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  “I can give you a second if you need one to adjust, honey, but no more than that,” Josh rasped, and bending over Ryan, he sucked the sensitive spot behind Ryan’s ear.

  Ryan shuddered and trembled, but didn’t ask for any time. He couldn’t ask because any connection between his mouth and brain had been shot the moment Josh entered him. All he could do was grip the desk and shove back, letting Josh know without words that he wanted the man to start moving.

  “I got that order.” Josh laughed and gripping Ryan’s hips tight, pulled almost all the way out.

  He clenched his muscles, trying to keep Josh inside. He didn’t want to lose their connection. Ryan shouted as Josh slammed back in and the flared head of his cock hit Ryan’s gland, causing explosions throughout Ryan’s nerve endings.

  They settled into a driving rhythm, each thrust driving him into the wood under him and drawing cries from him. His balls drew tight to his body and Ryan realized he was going to come without touching himself. There was no way he could risk letting go of the desk because of the demanding pace Josh set.

  “I’m gonna come soon,” Josh grunted.

  Ryan nodded the best he could without banging his head on the desk and massaged Josh’s shaft with his ass, milking his lover’s climax from him. One more thrust and Josh froze. The swelling and sudden heat in his ass drove Ryan over the edge as well.

  “Josh,” he called out, spilling his come all over the front of Rachel’s desk.

  They rocked together and the tremors lingered. Ryan collapsed on top of the desk, allowing Josh’s weight to press him harder into the unyielding wood. He moaned softly as Josh pulled out and stepped away. Cool air washed over his naked flesh and goose bumps rose on his skin.

  When he managed to stand and get his jeans pulled up to his hips, he turned. Josh stood behind him, holding out some paper towels.

  “Here. Clean yourself and Rachel’s desk off. My break’s over and I have to run to the bathroom to wash up.” Josh cradled the back of Ryan’s head and gave him a rough kiss. “Thank you, honey, and we’ll talk about the boyfriend thing later tonight.”

  Ryan’s thought process was fried and he simply smiled as Josh left him. After cleaning everything up, he threw the dirty towels away in the bathroom and went back out to the bar. Josh set a whiskey in front of him when he sat and winked.

  He blushed as the ache in his ass reminded him of what they had been doing only a few minutes earlier and of how much he wanted to do it again soon.

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  “We’re done here, Josh.” Pete tossed a wet towel at him. “Get the hell out of here and take your fucking hot boyfriend with you.”

  Josh caught it, finished wiping down the bar and threw it back at Pete. “I’ll catch you tomorrow night.”

  “Only if I don’t get swept off my feet by some embarrassingly rich man and flown to the South of France.” Pete shrugged at Josh’s skeptical grin. “Hey, a guy can dream, right?”

  Laughing, Josh walked over to where Ryan sat. “Ready to head out?”

  Ryan nodded and stood, settling into Josh’s side like he’d always been there. Josh savored the warmth and scent of his gorgeous lover while they made their way over to the door. He stopped and looked at Ryan, who frowned at him.

  “I would love to have you come home with me and share my bed, but I would completely understand if you say no. We haven’t figured out who’s been taking the pictures and even though there haven’t been any new ones lately, doesn’t mean the stalker isn’t lying in wait for you to do something like going home with me.”

  Maybe he was worrying too much, but he wanted Ryan to know he would let the actor set the pace. If Ryan didn’t want anyone to know about them, Josh would deal with it. Of course, coming to the Lucky Seven and staying all night wasn’t the best way to hide.

  Ryan’s smile was sweet as he studied Josh before saying, “It’s too late, no matter what we do. I’ve been here all night. The guy could have taken a ton of photos when you dragged me off to the office or even before that when I was dancing with Tommy.”

  Ryan cupped his cheek and Josh nuzzled the man’s palm. Ryan’s brown eyes flared with heat. Josh wanted to do something about that passion, but decided the club wasn’t the right place for it. At least, not at this point in the night.

  “It might throw my agent into a hysterical fit, but I’m not going to act like there’s nothing going on between us. There haven’t been any more photos and the hoopla has died down. I haven’t been ambushed by paparazzi or anything like that. I don’t think people care anymore whether their stars are gay or not as long as I don’t act ashamed of it.”

  Josh accepted Ryan’s decision because ultimately it was Ryan’s career and his choice. Holding out his hand, he grinned as Ryan took it.

  “Do you need to let your friend know you won’t be home tonight?” he asked as he opened the door to step outside.

  “No. I told him not to wait up for me when I left tonight. We drove up to San Francisco and spent all day wandering around. He wants to go up to the Napa Valley and check out some vineries.” Ryan shrugged.

  “Don’t you?”

  Ryan’s cheeks pinked in the streetlights and Josh thought how cute the actor looked when he blushed.

  “It’s not that I don’t want to go. I just don’t like the idea of not being able to see you for a couple days.”

  Josh dropped Ryan’s hand and slung his arm around the man’s shoulder, bringing their bodies tight together. He enjoyed the way their hips bumped together and how Ryan let him take the lead. Of course, Ryan might not remember how to get to Josh’s apartment building.

  “It’s just the first flush of a new relationship,” Josh pointed out. “If we’d been together for months or years, you wouldn’t have any kind of trouble going away for a few days without me.”

  “Maybe.” Ryan walked quietly for a few steps, obviously thinking about something. “Josh, what’s going on between us? Are you my boyfriend?”

  He chuckled and Ryan shook his head.

  “God, I sound like I’m in high school again. Should I send you a note asking you to be my boyfriend?”

  Reaching down, he pinched Ryan’s ass. “You’re being silly. Can you wait until we get to my place before we get deeper into this? I want to be able to see your face when we talk.”

  Ryan shot him a quick glance and nodded. “That doesn’t sound good.”

  “Don’t worry. It’ll be fine. I don’t like to air out personal stuff in the middle of the sidewalk.” He gestured to the people walking around them.

  “Good point. You never know who’s watching or listening.”

  They continued on, enjoying the rather warm California night and watching the people around them. Josh was a little nervous about the upcoming talk, but from everything Ryan had babbled, he wasn’t going to get rejected if he suggested they make their relationship exclusive.

  After getting them home into his apartment, he dropped his backpack and dragged Ryan over to his couch. Sitting, he tugged Ryan onto his lap and pulled him close.

  “Now that we’re alone, we can talk about your cute babbling over me being your boyfriend.” He nuzzled Ryan’s chin, breathing in Ryan’s musky scent.

  “Hell, I swear I’m not a teenage girl in disguise. I can handle it if you’ve decided all you want is amazingly hot sex. I mean, I’m an adult. I understand that sex doesn’t equal a relationship. But, fuck me, sex with you is like nuclear, man. I completely give it up when you just look at me with lust in your eyes.”

  He covered Ryan’s mouth with his hand and laughed. “Breathe, honey. You must want to spread your legs every time I look at you because I always want to fuck you. You’ve got a body that doesn’t quit and an ass that fires my brain the minute I stick my prick in it.”

  Ryan drew in a breath and Josh knew his lover wanted to say something.

  He shook his head. “Let me talk now, Ryan. You’ll get another chance to ramble. Sex with you is great and I w
on’t be saying no to more of it later, but more than that, I’m finding out that I enjoy spending time with you. I like talking to you, even when you chatter like a monkey. I find myself thinking about you during the day when we’re not together.”

  Josh removed his hand from Ryan’s mouth and the actor leaned forward, kissing him with gentle insistence. He let his head fall back and allowed Ryan to control the kiss, understanding that at that moment, Ryan needed to dictate what happened.

  After a few minutes spent kissing and touching, relearning each bump and ridge in Josh’s mouth, Ryan eased away. His gaze was serious as he met Josh’s.

  “I could fall in love with you, Bear, and I’m a little afraid of that. All the years I worked to make it in the movies and I’m getting to the point where I would throw it all away as long as I got to keep you.” Ryan closed his eyes for a moment and took another deep breath.

  “What scares you the most?” Josh ran his fingers through Ryan’s curls, soothing his lover with his touch.

  “That you don’t feel the same. That this isn’t about love for you. That you see us as two friends who like each other and have great sex, but there’s nothing deeper to it.”

  He saw the fear deep in Ryan’s eyes and knew he had to do something to reassure the man. Cradling Ryan’s face in his hands, he locked eyes with him and smiled.

  “I don’t know what love is supposed to feel like, Ryan. Not the forever commitment kind of love anyway. I only know about the love I feel for Erin, Pedro and my friends. That’s sort of like what I feel for you, only ours is deeper and stronger. It’s mixed up with the sex and the attraction, but those things don’t make it weaker, just bigger.”

  Relief flooded Ryan’s face and he threw himself into Josh’s arms. Josh stood, holding his lover in his arms and making his way to his bedroom.

  It was time for some soft slow loving, shoring up what he admitted to Ryan. There would be more questions and compromises to work out, but for now, he’d hold his lover close and love him until any doubts Ryan had were gone.

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  Buzzing woke Ryan the next morning. He rolled over, reaching his arm out to hit the snooze on his clock.

  “Shit, honey. Watch where you’re throwing body parts.”

  He jerked up and looked to his right. Josh lay on his back, rubbing his nose and grinning up at him.

  “Sorry, forgot where I was. I’ll kiss and make it better.”

  Leaning down, he pressed his lips to Josh’s mouth, licking along the crease and asking for entrance. Sighing, he slid his tongue in when Josh opened for him. He sank into Josh’s embrace and feasted on the man’s mouth, sucking on his tongue and nibbling along his bottom lip. Their bodies fit together as Ryan settled between Josh’s legs and rocked their groins together.

  More buzzing and Josh groaned.

  “Stupid clock,” he growled.

  Ryan moved to lie on his side, propping his head on his hand. He watched Josh climb out of bed and start to dig through the pile of clean clothes on a chair in the corner of the room.

  “I have to take a shower, get dressed and make lunch in fifteen minutes. Antonio’s coming to pick me up for work.”

  “Don’t worry. You go get ready and I’ll make you lunch.”

  Getting out of bed, he found his boxers and jeans. He put them on while Josh headed for the bathroom. After making his way to the kitchen, he assembled two sandwiches for Josh’s lunch along with three apples and a bag of chips. He wasn’t sure what the other man drank, so he didn’t pull anything out.

  Josh’s lunch box was sitting on the counter and Ryan packed everything in it by the time Josh stepped into the kitchen. Ryan’s phone rang as Josh hugged him.

  Jerking it out of his pocket, he answered without checking the ID.

  “What?”

  “Thank fucking God, I finally got a hold of you. I’ve been calling for the past two days and no answer, plus your stupid friend wouldn’t tell me anything. Where the hell have you been? Oh wait, I know, you’ve been with that bartender again.”

  Raz’s voice shot out of Ryan’s phone like the high-pitched screech of a parrot. Blinking in shock, Ryan held the phone away from his ear and stared at it.

  “I told you to stay the fuck away from that fag, but you just can’t seem to help yourself. More pictures of you appeared in the tabloids yesterday. Is he blackmailing you? If he is, I’ll get the police to haul his ass into jail.”

  Josh stood close to him and by the look on his face, he heard everything Raz had to say.

  Ryan interrupted his agent. “I don’t want to talk about it right now, Raz. I just got up and I’m not awake enough to deal with you.”

  Shaking his head, Josh kissed Ryan and headed out of the apartment.

  “I want you in my office at ten o’clock sharp and you better be able to deal then.”

  Raz slammed the phone down in Ryan’s ear. Swearing silently, Ryan ran and caught Josh as he started down the stairs.

  “Can I call you later?” he asked, grabbing Josh’s arm and bringing him to a stop.

  “Sure, though if I’m working, I won’t be able to answer. You can stay at my place as long as you want. Just remember to lock up when you leave.”

  Josh glanced out toward the parking lot where a large black truck sat.

  “I have to go and your agent doesn’t sound very happy. Go, put out that fire and bring your friend to Mia Leone’s for dinner. I’m working the evening shift there.”

  “Cool. Have a good day, Bear.”

  He stepped back, not wanting to make Josh uncomfortable with a public display of affection. Although he was the one who should have issues with that since it seemed he was being stalked by some obsessed camera fiend.

  Ryan watched Josh get in the truck and leave before he went back to Josh’s apartment. He straightened up a little, tugged on his shirt and left to get his car.

  As he drove back to his apartment, his phone rang again. He took the time to check the ID before answering. He didn’t need another repeat of Raz’s call.

  “No, Bill, I’m still not telling you the gory details.”

  “Well fuck, if you won’t share, I’m not going to tell you my news.” Bill’s teasing words rang in his ears.

  “You know I never want to hear about the girls you screw.” He stopped at a red light.

  Bill’s laughter danced over the phone. “True. Are you on your way home?”

  “About ten minutes away. Why?”

  “Does your building have a back entrance?”

  What was Bill up to?

  “Yes. What’s going on?”

  “I’m at the window overlooking the front of your building. There are photographers all over. I swear some are hiding in the bushes.”

  Shit. Somehow he’d managed to convince himself that aside from the invisible cameraman following him around, he’d avoided any major fallout from the original photos. It sounded like he was wrong.

  “Good news is there doesn’t seem to be any TV reporters out there.” His friend sighed. “Can you sneak in?”

  He parked a block away, locked the car and headed toward his building.

  “Yeah, I parked a block away and I’ll be there in a few.”

  “Great. See you when you get here.”

  He hung up and manly resisted the urge to throw his phone. He’d already destroyed one because of this whole shitty situation.

  Keeping his head down, he made it inside and up to his apartment without being spotted. Bill was sitting on the couch when he walked in.

  Falling onto the couch next to his friend, Ryan groaned. “I didn’t sign on for this. Raz said another set of photos appeared yesterday.”

  Bill shook his head. “Either you need to stop seeing the stud or you need to just come out. Either way you’ll stop giving them fuel for the rumors.”

  “I’m sure Raz has my statement for me.” He threw an arm over his eyes as he leaned back against the cushions.

  “Are you going t
o do what he wants? I’ll bet you any money, he wants you to say it was all a mistake and that you love fucking girls.”

  Closing his eyes, he shrugged. “I’m not sure yet. I really like Josh, and if I let him go, I’m not sure I’ll get another chance at a relationship like this.”

  “Another option is say you’re straight, find a good-looking woman to play your girlfriend and keep Josh on the side. It’s a time-honored Hollywood tradition.”

  He gave a weary chuckle. “It wouldn’t be fair to either of them. If I wouldn’t want to be someone’s secret or second choice, why would anyone else? I guarantee Josh isn’t willing to be my secret lover.”

  Bill hummed “Secret Lovers” and Ryan slugged him in the arm. As they laughed, Ryan thanked God for a friend like Bill. A friend who understood him so well, he was able to make him laugh even when he was frustrated and angry.

  Relaxing back, Bill grinned at him. “You know, I don’t think Josh would have a problem being discreet, but what he would have a problem with is never being acknowledged by you as anyone more than a friend and no one wants to come in second to their lover’s career or public opinion.”

  “You’re probably right.” Ryan glanced at his watch. “I better take a shower and change my clothes. I have to report to Raz by ten for my verbal spanking.”

  “Something tells me that won’t be any fun at all,” Bill joked.

  Standing, Ryan looked at Bill and grimaced. “Nothing ever is with Raz.”

  “I’ll be here when you get done.”

  “Oh right, Josh invited us down to Mia Leone’s, the restaurant where he works. He’ll be there tonight. I thought it might be cool for you two to meet again and get to know each other.”

  Bill’s eyebrows shot up. “Sounds like you’ve already made up your mind about what’s going to happen.”

  “Maybe.”

  He went to clean up and dress. It was time to face Raz.

  Before he walked into Raz’s office, Ryan’s phone rang. He glanced down and frowned when he saw Josh’s number on the screen. Moving away from the door toward the windows, he answered the phone.