Open Seating (22 page)

Bryce cradled Seth’s face and looked into his eyes. “This will hurt if you don’t bear down.”

Seth nodded. “Say when.”

“Now.”

Seth bit his lower lip and squeezed his eyes shut, concentrating on his task. Bryce thrust, moaning in pleasure as his cock popped through the tight ring of muscle.

“Holy crap,” Seth breathed, opening his eyes to meet Bryce’s intense gaze. “I can’t believe you’re inside.”

“Almost. How are you holding up?” Bryce asked. He was dying to get on with it but had to ask to make sure Seth was doing okay.

“It stings, but… Bryce… there’s something down there that wants more. Start moving.”

Growling, Bryce said, “Hang on, babe.”

Bryce started pumping, and Seth met him stroke for stroke, squeezing his ass muscles tight with every thrust.

“Babe,” Bryce groaned, pleasantly surprised. “You sure you haven’t done this before?”

“Uh-uh,” Seth said, keeping pace. “It never got this far or this good.”

Bryce bent down and kissed Seth, who returned it passionately while sliding his hands up Bryce’s chest, groping for his nipples. When Seth found them, he twisted savagely, sending a hot spike of pleasure straight to Bryce’s dick.

“Jesus.” Bryce shouted as he wrapped his arms around Seth’s torso, holding him tight for a second to catch a breath. When he recovered, he started pounding into Seth with renewed vigor. They were both sweaty, and the sound of slapping flesh reverberated in the room while he pumped in and out of Seth’s ass. A groan escaped from Seth’s lips, and Bryce thrust harder, finding his sweet spot. He thrust again, and Seth’s groans turned into keening sounds that made the hair on the back of Bryce’s neck prickle.

“Oh my God,” Seth exclaimed. “What are you doing?”

“Nudging your prostate,” Bryce replied, pressing down hard between them.

“Bryce!”

He felt Seth shudder violently, immediately followed by spurts of warm cum splattering all over Bryce’s chest and neck. Relieved that he’d done the job as well as he’d hoped, Bryce threw his head back and bellowed as he filled up the condom’s reservoir with pulse after pulse of semen. After several seconds, once the last bit dribbled out, Bryce collapsed on Seth’s chest.

“Score,” he huffed, struggling to catch a breath.

Seth wrapped his arms and legs around Bryce in a possessive move. “You sure did.”

“Was it good?”

“Can we do it again soon?”

Bryce snorted against Seth’s neck. “You’re something else.”

“You woke the sleeping giant.”

“I think we both had a nice wake-up call,” Bryce admitted.

“Are you telling me this was more than your standard Grindr-style hookup?”

“Way more.”

“Thank you,” Seth said, sounding happy and secure.

“You’re welcome. Shall we rinse off and join the rest of the world?”

“Do you have any idea what time it is?”

“Not a clue.”

“I’m guessing it’s close to three or four,” Seth said. “My stomach is growling.”

“We’ll find something to tide us over until dinner.”

“I’m sorry I made you miss out on Cork.”

“What were we scheduled to see?”

“I wanted to kiss the Blarney Stone at Blarney Castle,” Seth said. “Supposedly one who kisses the stone will be gifted with the power of eloquence.”

“No need for that, babe. You’re already a damn good wordsmith. What else did you have planned?”

“We were going to tour the House of Waterford Crystal. It’s just as well we didn’t go. I would have spent too much money.”

“All in all, I’d say your decision saved us a ton of cash.”

“Best. Day. Ever.”

“I agree.” Bryce gave Seth one more kiss on the lips. “Get in the shower, babe.”

“Again?”

“Unless you want to go up to the Lido Deck reeking of sex.”

“Bryce?”

“What, babe?”

“This was really nice.”

“I’m glad you enjoyed it.”

“A lot.”

“We’ll do it again tonight if you’re up for it, okay?”

Seth’s cheeks flushed, but he nodded vigorously. “Yes.”

IT WAS
closer to four by the time they made their way up to the Lido Deck. Most of the passengers who’d gone on land tours were already back on board, and the area around the pool was starting to fill up. They opted to share a plate of french fries to make sure they left room for dinner at six. Bryce was a little concerned about Seth’s reaction if Jeannie insisted on discussing the movie. He had to reach her somehow and ask her to drop it. Seth seemed to have recovered from the upset, and there was no need to stir that pot again. As far as Bryce was concerned, he never wanted to hear the acronym ALS again.

Matt and Glynis showed up around five. They were already dressed for dinner and, spotting Seth and Bryce, veered over to their table.

“Aren’t you guys joining us at six?” Matt asked.

“We are,” Seth replied.

Giving their casual attire a once-over, Matt suggested, “Shouldn’t you be downstairs getting ready?”

“It doesn’t take an hour to throw on a nice shirt,” Bryce commented. “Contrary to what you might think, being gay doesn’t necessarily mean we’re members of the fashion police. We’ll be there in plenty of time.”

“I didn’t mean to imply anything.”

“Then why bring it up?” Bryce asked. He didn’t like the way Matt made Seth his business. In fact, he was dying to punch his lights out.

“I’m sorry,” Glynis interjected. “We enjoy your company so much, we wanted to make sure you’d be at our dinner table again.”

“We’re planning on it, Glynis,” Seth said.

“Tootles,” she said, grabbing Matt’s arm and pulling him in the opposite direction.

“I can’t stand that guy,” Bryce said.

“It’s pretty obvious. Want to tell me why?”

Bryce shrugged. He wasn’t sure what was going on between Matt and Glynis, but he would bet his left nut the guy was either bisexual or closeted and had set his sights on Seth. Bryce felt a little foolish for being so possessive. They weren’t exclusive and Seth could do whatever or whomever he wanted, but imagining Matt coming on to Seth made his blood boil. He had no intention of giving him the opportunity.

Answering Seth, who was still looking at him curiously, he said, “The guy has some hidden agenda, and I don’t trust him.”

“Fair enough,” Seth said. “You’ve got pretty good instincts.”

Relieved, Bryce nodded. “Shall we go down and get ready?”

“Sure,” Seth said, heading toward the elevator.

Back in their cabin, Seth asked, “Have you ever been with anyone who was bisexual?”

“I don’t think so, why?”

“Just wondered.”

“I’ve been with someone closeted, and it wasn’t fun,” Bryce said.

“It’s hard to imagine you’d put up with that sort of subterfuge.”

“This was back in the day when I was young and trusted everyone.”

Seth’s eyebrows shot up. “Is this the mystery man who turned you into a cynic?”

“The very one.”

“Aha… the plot thickens.”

“Stop trying to turn my life into a soap opera.”

“I’m not,” Seth said. “Only trying to figure you out.”

THE CLINK
of silver against fine china and the low buzz of the early dinner crowd were becoming more familiar as Seth followed Bryce toward their assigned table. Would anyone notice the difference in his gait? Usually graceful, he felt like a baby with a poopy diaper or a dog with a newly clipped tail, unable to put one foot in front of another without feeling uncomfortable. The aftereffect of their afternoon lovemaking was making itself known, a part of anal sex no one had bothered to mention. He hadn’t noticed the slight tenderness when they’d run upstairs for a snack, probably because the lovely pink haze of the recent orgasm blocked out everything else. But now, he was feeling it down there, and he wondered how long before he’d be back to normal. Because, he thought, softly laughing, he had every intention of doing it again.

“What’s so funny?” Bryce asked when they were seated. The recognizable faces of their dinner companions turned to him expectantly, wanting in on the joke as well.

Seth could feel his cheeks flaming. “I’ll tell you later,” he murmured into Bryce’s ear. “This is not for public consumption.”

Bryce took one look at his face and grinned. “Whatever you say.”

“We missed you on the tour to Blarney Castle today,” Jeannie said, addressing Seth. “Is everything all right?”

“Fine,” Seth replied. “We decided to stay on board and have a lazy day.”

“You look well rested,” Jeannie remarked.

Seth wanted to tell her resting had nothing to do with it, but he didn’t trust himself to keep the giddiness out of his voice. If he’d been a social media addict, he would have posted a bunch of stupid heart emojis or something equally lame to share his happiness, but that wasn’t the case. He’d have to cherish this special moment on his own and add it to the rest of the wonderful memories he was accumulating on this trip.

“Did you kiss the Blarney Stone?” Bryce asked Andrew.

“Heck no,” Andrew replied. “You have to be an acrobat to do it.”

“What do you mean?” Seth inquired.

“The famous stone is set in the wall below the castle battlements. To kiss it, you have to get to a narrow parapet, bend over backward, and hold on to iron railings. It’s a challenge, to say the least, and not for old folks.”

“We did it,” Fiona Donovan said proudly.

“That’s because you’re nice and bendy, my dear,” Jeannie defended. “I’m as stiff as a board.”

“Wow, I had no idea,” Seth said. “They didn’t mention that anywhere in the brochure.”

“People tend to leave out the dicey parts,” Andrew said. “It would discourage the public from making the attempt, and tourists’ coins would stop.”

“I guess,” Seth said. “It seems odd they wouldn’t point out the difficulties, especially for the disabled.”

“Moving on,” Glynis said from her side of the table. “Is anyone planning on attending the art auction tomorrow?”

“No,” the group replied in unison.

“You really should,” she encouraged. “Some of Matt’s paintings are up for sale.”

“I didn’t know you were an artist,” Jeannie said. “In what medium do you work?”

“Oils.”

“And your subject matter?” she asked.

“Mainly nudes.”

“I see.”

Surprised at the unexpected revelation, Seth wondered if Matt’s interest in him was purely artistic. Did he want to use him as a model? To pose in the nude? The idea was ludicrous. Seth had no illusions about his looks. He wasn’t ugly, by any means, but his overall appearance was nothing extraordinary. The blond hair appealed to some, and he was grateful he still had a headful, but his torso was a little too lean, in his opinion, and he was starting to go soft around the middle. There was nothing remotely sexy about him. Bryce was the one who could walk around naked and draw a crowd. If anyone should pose for Matt, it ought to be his hunky roommate.

“He’s quite well known in P-town,” Glynis said, breaking in on Seth’s musings. “That’s how we met. I was looking for artwork for my B and B, and someone recommended Matt.”

“So you bought a painting and got the artist as a bonus?” Bryce asked.

Seth elbowed him.

Glynis broke out into peals of laughter. “Something like that.”

Matt frowned. “It was nothing like that.”

“Oh, sweetheart, don’t be so touchy.”

Matt reached for the breadbasket, found a roll, slathered it with butter, and popped a huge chunk in his mouth. He was glaring at Bryce the entire time.

“What?” Bryce asked.

“Nothing,” Matt replied after he swallowed.

Jumping in before things escalated, Seth said, “Let’s change the subject. Who’s going into Dublin tomorrow?”

“We’re going on the Guinness Beer Tour,” Heidi Granger replied. Steve grunted his assent. He was subdued tonight, probably on his best behavior after being reprimanded by the captain yesterday.

“It sounds interesting, but we’re passing on that one,” Bryce said. “Have a good time.”

“Plan on it,” Steve said.

“Fiona and I will be joining the walking tour of the city,” Ian boasted. “We’re more than capable of keeping up with the rest of the walkers. Plus, it’s cheaper.”

“I’m sure it is,” Jeannie agreed. “Do you have family in Dublin?”

“No, but we’ve heard it’s beautiful. Also, it’ll be nice to be able to read the street signs without an interpreter,” Ian commented in his heavy brogue.

“I would imagine so,” Seth said. He could barely understand the couple and was grateful that he and Bryce were going on a guided bus tour, where the recorded voice describing points of interest was easier to understand. The Irish might speak English, but you needed a practiced ear to get beyond the thick accent.

“What about you, Jeannie?” Bryce asked. “Are you and Andrew going into town?”

“There’s a tour specially designed for the wheelchair bound. We’re going on that one.”

“Makes sense.”

“Seth,” Jeannie asked. “I was wondering if we could have a chat in the next day or so.”

“Sure,” Seth said. “We’ll be at sea the day after tomorrow. Let’s plan it for then, okay?”

“That would be lovely,” Jeannie replied.

Seth turned to Bryce, who looked uncomfortable. “What’s up?” Seth asked in a low voice.

“Nothing,” Bryce said.

Seth had been with Bryce long enough to know when he was lying. Although the man had sworn he never lied, right then he was holding something back. He decided not to push for answers. Seth was still trying to wrap his head around the sudden tension that sprang up between Bryce and Matt. Was jealousy involved? Nah… impossible.

Bryce had been perfectly clear when they started the sexual part of their relationship that Seth was to keep his expectations down to a minimum. Living for the moment should be his new credo, even though it went against his deepest beliefs. There would only be heartbreak down the road if he insisted on hoping Bryce might reconsider and see him as more than a fling. But Seth’s subconscious refused to give up on the idea. Bryce could spin it all he wanted, but they’d had a moment earlier today, and Seth had good instincts. He might be naïve when it came to dating in the twenty-first century, but emotions didn’t change with the times. He could feel a slight shift in Bryce’s attitude. Should he infer a more positive outcome? And if that were to occur, was he willing to make the necessary changes in his life to accommodate someone like Bryce?