The Distance (13 page)

I took his hand. “What made you ask me out in the first place?”

“After we slept together, I couldn’t get you out of my mind. An attraction that strong doesn’t exactly come along every day.”

It really didn’t. “I have to ask. If you’re gay, how did Candice fit into the picture?”

“Back then, I didn’t really know what I was. I mean, I knew I was attracted to guys, but I hadn’t ruled out the possibility of being bisexual. Like I said, Candice was my best friend, but she wanted us to be more than that, so we gave it a shot. We only dated for two weeks and went to the winter formal together, which was when we both lost our virginity and Candice got pregnant. I won’t say it was a mistake, because I wound up with my beautiful daughter and she’s the best thing that ever happened to me. But trying to turn our friendship into a romance was just never going to work.”

I mulled that over before asking, “If we get to the point where you want to introduce me to your family, how will they feel about you dating a guy?”

“They’ll be fine with it. I’ve always been open about my sexuality, and they’re totally supportive.”

“You’re lucky.”

“I know.” He ran his fingertips along my jaw and said, “I wish you’d gotten the same response from your family.”

“Me too, but I always knew how it’d go over. I sat through many of my dad’s sermons on the sins of homosexuality while I was growing up. That’s why I waited to come out until I was nineteen. I even asked one of my friends if I could sleep on his couch and packed my stuff before I told them, and then my family completely lived up, or down, to my expectations.”

Kai began to lightly rub my back, and after a while he asked, “Would it throw off this just-sleeping-together-platonically thing we’re doing tonight if I kissed you?”

I grinned at him. “I can control myself if you can.”

He brushed his lips to mine, and I cupped his face in my hands and deepened the kiss a little, but kept my libido in check. We kissed tenderly, taking our time, and I closed my eyes and let myself get lost in it. I couldn’t remember the last time I’d kissed just for kissing’s sake, and not as a prelude to or a component of sex. I’d really been missing out.

I woke up alone in the little bed the next morning, but there was a note taped to the wall, which simply said:
Be right back.
I used the restroom, put on my shoes and jacket, and poured a cup of coffee before wandering out into the garage. The Impala was gone, and I checked out the second one, which he was using for parts. Then I slid under the open hood of his Mustang and studied his engine configuration, mostly for something to do.

A garage door opener whirred to life a couple minutes later, and after one of the rolling doors rattled open, the Impala pulled into its usual spot. “I’m being nosy, I hope you don’t mind,” I called when Kai got out of the car with a pink bakery box.

“I don’t.” He reached back into his car through the open window and hit a remote, and the door rattled shut again. His hair was damp, and he’d put on clean clothes.

“You’ve done some clever things here,” I said, still studying the engine. “A lot of these parts look like they’ve been rebuilt or retrofitted, so I doubt you’re sinking a ton of money into it, but you’re getting a hell of a lot of power out of this thing.”

“Spending a lot isn’t an option. Most of my parts come from the salvage yard.”

“In that case, you must be a genius of a mechanic.”

“Nah, I just really understand this car. I’ve been working on her since I was old enough to hold a wrench. My dad was great about letting me learn by doing.”

“You’re being modest,” I said. “This took a lot of ingenuity. So many street racers think it’s just about spending a fortune on a car to make it go faster, but you’re proving them wrong.”

He came up behind me and looked over my shoulder. “Oh believe me, I’d love to have an extra few grand to spend on upgrades, but that’s never going to happen. Whenever I win a race, a portion of the prize money goes back into the car, although most of my winnings go toward Izzy’s and my living expenses.”

“Is that why you race, because you make money at it?”

“That part’s awesome, but no. Everything else I do is for my daughter, but this is the one thing in my life that’s just for me. It’s pretty much the only time I get to act my age and cut loose. I can’t even tell you how much I need that outlet.”

“I get it.”

He grinned a little and said, “I just realized the advantage of dating a fellow racer. You probably do understand, in a way other people never will. My family gets so pissed off whenever they find out I’ve been racing. They love to lecture me about how dangerous it is, and they’re always trying to get me to quit. They don’t understand what it means to me.”

“That must get annoying.”

“They mean well, but yeah, it does.” He changed the subject by holding up the box and saying, “I got us some breakfast. I didn’t know what you like, so I got a few different things for you to choose from.”

“Thank you. I’m not picky, I’ll eat whatever’s put in front of me.”

“Good to know. There’s a table out back, we can eat there if you want.”

“I’ll get us some coffee.”

I filled a second mug and followed him out the side door, then through a gate in a chain link fence. The cement patio and the back of the building were covered in Izzy’s colorful chalk drawings (and a few that were probably made by Kai to entertain his daughter, which put a smile on my face). It was furnished with a couple patio chairs and a red picnic table. The chain link surrounding the space had been completely engulfed by an attractive, flowering vine, which made the yard feel really private. “It’s nice out here,” I told him.

“Glad you like it.”

I sat down beside him at the table and asked, “Am I keeping you from your family?”

“No, they’re in Sacramento for a girls’ weekend. My mom’s best friend lives there, and they’re staying with her so they can go to some big dollhouse show at Cal Expo. I sent along some money and told them I’d gladly build Izzy a dollhouse if she finds a kit she likes, but I just couldn’t make myself spend an entire day oohing and aahing over tiny furniture and picking out sweaters for miniature people.”

“Can’t say I blame you.”

He opened the bakery box and turned it to face me, and as I selected a blueberry muffin I asked, “So, what are your plans for today?”

“I’m going to work on a DIY project. With the whole family out of town, now’s the perfect time for it.”

“Want help?”

He grinned a little. “If you’re there, I doubt I’ll get much work done.”

“Sure you will. I think last night proves we can be around each other without constantly fucking like bunnies.”

“You seemed a bit drunk after all that whiskey, which is the only reason I didn’t initiate anything,” Kai told me. “I was fairly drunk myself, actually. Now that we’re both sober, it’s all I can do to keep myself from ripping your clothes off.”

I returned the muffin to its box and got up from the table. “Come on, let’s go to your house. There’s no reason we can’t do both. Fuck my brains out first, then let me help you with your project.”

He stood up too and grinned at me as he ran a hand down my arm. “I’m all for the fucking part, but I’m sure you have better things to do with your Sunday besides refinishing a deck.”

“Actually, I enjoy DIY, and I have today wide open. If you’d like some company, I’m good at home improvement. I’m good at some other stuff, too.” I flashed him a flirtatious smile.

Kai pulled me to him and his lips found mine. We ramped up quickly, and I clutched his navy blue hoodie in my fists, returning the kiss, tasting him, breathing him in. He grabbed my ass and drove our hips together, his swollen cock rubbing mine through our jeans. “I don’t want to wait until we get to your house,” I told him as he licked and kissed my neck.

“Me neither.”

He stripped me in a matter of seconds. I found a condom and a couple lube packets in my wallet, and as he prepped himself, I spread out my jeans on the bench and knelt on them as I worked some lube into me. I wiped my fingers on my briefs and tossed them aside, then bent over, offering myself to him as I rested my elbows on the tabletop.

“Oh God,” he murmured, caressing my ass with both hands before lining up his cock with my opening. Kai slid into me with one long, slow thrust as I pushed back to open myself for him. He pulled almost all the way out before rocking forward again and seating himself in me fully.

I started jerking off as he began to move in me. He sped up quickly, and within a minute he was slamming his cock into my ass. “Harder,” I rasped, driving myself onto him, and he did as I asked. His body slapped against mine as he absolutely pounded me, both of us moaning and gasping for breath. It was wild and intense and exactly what I needed.

When he pulled out of me abruptly, I cried out in protest. But then Kai flipped me around so my back was on the table, climbed up between my legs and pushed into me again. He paused to yank off his sweatshirt and t-shirt, threw them aside and put my ankles on his shoulders, and then he began to fuck me again.

Kai held my gaze and murmured, “You’re absolutely gorgeous,” as he slid almost all the way out of me and sank back in slowly. I pulled him to me with my hand on the back of his neck and we kissed for a long moment.

He raised himself up on his elbows and watched me as he continued those deep, slow thrusts, sending jolts of pleasure through me every time he dragged his cock over my prostate. I rocked my hips, pushing myself onto his cock, completely consumed by and in awe of him as he overwhelmed my senses. His clean scent surrounded me and he filled my field of vision. He was bathed in sunlight, which brought out caramel highlights in his ebony-brown hair, and his skin almost glowed under a light, sexy sheen of sweat. I reached up and touched his full lips, and he grinned before kissing my fingertips.

He sat up and brought me with him, holding me in his arms, and I straddled his lap and planted my feet on the table, picking up the pace, riding him hard and fast. I felt my orgasm approaching, and as the intensity built, I closed my eyes and moaned.

Kai’s voice was low and insistent when he said, “Look at me, Jessie.”

I did as he asked and locked eyes with him as my orgasm tore from me, our connection absolutely electric. I crushed him to me as I shot again and again onto both of us, grabbing at his body, trying to get as close to him as I possibly could. He came a moment later with a low moan, holding me tight and thrusting hard as my ass clenched his thick cock.

My emotions were all over the place and I was shaking as I came down from the intensity of that orgasm. Kai shifted around a bit so he was sitting instead of kneeling on the table and enveloped me in an embrace. He felt so warm and solid as I wrapped my arms and legs around him, and he kissed the side of my head and rubbed my back as I tried to get myself together.

After a few moments, I became aware of some whooping and cheering in the distance. I sat up a bit and looked around, and Kai burst out laughing and muttered, “Oh God.”

The yard had seemed pretty private, but apparently it wasn’t at all if people happened to be on the roof of a tall building across the street. The five guys in our audience looked like they were in their twenties and were probably gay, given the fact that four of them were paired up with their arms around each other. When they held up pieces of cardboard with big numbers written on them, I started laughing too and eased off Kai’s cock, then scrambled after my clothes.

“Two tens and a nine-point-five,” he said, turning his back to the spectators. “I feel pretty good about that score.” He was blushing vividly and clearly embarrassed, just like I was, but I loved the fact that he was laughing it off.

While I rushed to put on my jeans, Kai peeled off the condom and pulled up his pants, then wiped off his chest with his t-shirt. I used my briefs to do the same thing, since I’d doused both of us when I came. The group was still cheering, so after I scooped up the rest of our clothes and Kai grabbed the bakery box, I took a quick bow and we hurried from the yard.

“That was a new one,” he said as we jogged along the side of the building, “sex with a live audience. I hope it doesn’t end up on Tumblr.”

“I didn’t see any of them holding phones, so hopefully not.”

Once inside, I stuck my briefs in my pocket and got dressed, and Kai threw the condom in a trash barrel and pulled on his sweatshirt. As soon as we were both reassembled, he said, “Come here a minute,” and took my hand.

He led me to the office and curled up with me on the mattress. “We weren’t done cuddling yet,” he said as he held me securely and I put my head on his chest.

“You’re so nice,” I said softly as I wrapped an arm around him. “I was utterly wrong about you.”

“You didn’t have much to go by. It’s not like I let most people see this side of me.”

“Still.”

He began to stroke my hair, and after a while Kai asked, “Are you okay? You seemed kind of rattled when we finished.”

“I’m fine. That was just really intense. I guess I’m not used to that.”

“Oh God, you’re not inexperienced, are you? If so, I should be going so much slower.”

I glanced at him and shook my head, then looked away as I admitted, “I’ve dated a hell of a lot of guys. It sometimes feels like my entire life has just been an endless string of short-term relationships.”

He thought about that for a moment before saying, “I’m curious about where I fit into that. Are you still just looking for something short-term?”

“I was never looking for something short-term, and that was the problem. I’d get emotionally invested way too soon, and I’d scare men away. What guy wants to go from ‘hi, nice to meet you’ to ‘let’s move in together’ over the course of dinner? And yes, I’m exaggerating, but not by much.”

“I can see why that might be problematic.”

After a pause, I said quietly, “Now that you know I’m both clingy and have slept with half the city, I won’t blame you one bit if you change your mind about going out with me.”

He shifted us around so we were face-to-face and asked, “You don’t seriously think what you just told me makes the slightest difference, do you?”

“Doesn’t it?”

“Hell no. I don’t expect you to be perfect.”

“But you probably didn’t expect me to be quite that defective, either,” I said.

“You’re too hard on yourself.”

“I’m not. I’ve just watched myself mess up
a lot
. But I want you to know I heard you when you said you need to take this slow, and I’m totally on board with that.” God, I hoped I’d be able to pull that off. Given my track record, it seemed unlikely that I could avoid rushing things and sending him running, but I was going to hope for a miracle. “Come on,” I said, swinging out of bed and changing the subject before I made things even more awkward. “That deck’s not going to paint itself. Wait, did you say yes to me coming over and helping you?”

Kai got up too and told me, “I’d love the help, and the company.” Well, that was a relief. He took my hand as we headed for the door.