Page 52 of Fish Out of Water

Jake nodded. “I know why you don’t want to just jump into anything, but I can promise you, Robbie, this is it. No more after this. We get it out of our systems, we have a fun night, and then it’s over and we can get on with our lives.”

“You say that, but somehow I don’t believe you.” Robbie’s voice had a touch of amusement to it, and when Jake looked over at him, he was smiling, still gazing out at the water.

“Hey, if you really don’t want to, I swear I won’t bring it up anymore. I get it now. Really, I do. I can?—”

Robbie broke off his rambling with a kiss, his third kiss, his lips meeting Jake’s before Jake even had a chance to understand what was happening. Then he got it, and he relaxed, and Robbie pulled him in closer, like Jake was the only thing keeping him from slipping away.

Robbie’s breath was hot, his cheeks flushed, and his eyes twinkling even in the dark. He was intoxicating in a way Jake had never experienced with another man before. Maybe waiting and letting Robbie reach his breaking point was the best decision after all.

Except it wasn’t justRobbie’sbreaking point they had reached.

Robbie’s soft sweater slipped over his head and fell to the ground, leaving just the button-up shirt that Jake had seen him wear at least a few times by now. Over-consumption was not one of Robbie Eaton’s problems, at least.

“Don’t you wanna put that in the car or something?” Jake asked between breaths. “So it won’t get dirty?”

“Don’t worry about my sweater, Jake. I have others.”

Jake gave it one last glance, and then he closed his eyes and let Robbie sweep him back into their own little world. He was right; a simple sweater was of no concern now.

Robbie put his hands on Jake’s shoulders and pushed him down toward the ground, his touch gentler than Jake expected. The sand sank under the pressure of Jake’s knees. With anyone else, in any other circumstance, Jake would have been the one taking control. But not with Robbie. Robbie was a different beast entirely.

He unzipped Robbie’s trousers, his fingers fumbling just enough to make his cheeks redden. “I’m not usually like this,” he muttered, but Robbie ignored his excuses and let his fingers slip into Jake’s hair.

The lapping waves and occasional hoot from an owl in the wooded park mixed with the sounds of clothes rustling and skin against skin. A quiet whimper escaped Robbie’s lips as Jake freed his cock. His fingers tightened in Jake’s hair. He lifted his gaze to the sky and closed his eyes, and Jake gave him one last glance before he ran his tongue along the tip.

The sand made a better floor than Jake had anticipated, even with all the little pebbles and seashell fragments and flecks of wood. They were utterly bathed in darkness now, with the moon having disappeared behind another patch of clouds, and he couldn’t see a single thing. All he could do was feel, and what he was feeling was more than enough.

There was no one else out there tonight. It was only Robbie, Jake, and the tension that had been mounting between them for weeks—months, really. The first time Jake realized Robbie was gay, he knew he had to have him. He became a challenge to win.

Except Jake hadn’t won at all.Hewas the one on his knees with Robbie’s cock pressing against the back of his throat.Hewas the one who had practically begged Robbie again and again for them to fuck.Hewas the one who broke down and messaged Robbie that first lonely night when he realized there was absolutely no one else in town who could fulfill his desires.

“Oh, fuck, Jake,” Robbie hissed between clenched teeth. Jake’s scalp ached where he was pulling on his hair, but he kept going, fighting back the rising urge to break away for a moment and swallow the spit pooling in his mouth.

He was going to get Robbie to come in his mouth. He was going to push him to a point where he couldn’t possibly hold back, and then he was going to?—

“That’s enough,” Robbie said suddenly.

Jake looked up. He sank back onto his heels, wiping his mouth with the side of his hand. He could still taste Robbie, the saltiness tinged with whatever it was on his clothes that always made him smell so fresh and put together. He watched as Robbie took his cock in his own hand and stroked himself a few times, quickly and with a sort of practice that made Jake wonder exactly how many men Robbie had let into such an intimate part of his life.

“My turn?” Jake asked as Robbie fished a clean tissue from his pocket. He tore it in half and stuffed one half back into his trousers.

“Your turn?” Robbie echoed.

“To get my cock sucked.”

Jake rose to his feet, dropping his gaze to the front of his pants. Robbie’s gaze followed, and then their eyes met again.Jake waited in the silence, blood still thumping in his ears, for Robbie’s answer.

“Yeah, why not? You’ve earned it.”

Robbie sank to his knees, positioning himself directly in front of Jake. His fingers, warm and soft, undid the button and zipper of Jake’s jeans. The clouds shifted, and Jake saw the sheen of sweat still on Robbie’s forehead and neck.

“I genuinely never thought I’d live to see the day Robbie Eaton got down on his knees in front of me,” he said.

“I am five seconds away from getting up and leaving you here with your pants down and your cock out,” Robbie said, “so watch it, Jake.”

“All right, all right.” Jake was about to make another quip, but Robbie’s tongue slid over his tip and down his shaft, and suddenly his breath was caught in his throat.

He closed his eyes. He wanted to get his hands in Robbie’s hair like Robbie had with his, to pull hard, and experience a brief, blissful moment of schadenfreude, but he couldn’t collect himself enough to do it. He was too lost in a world he hadn’t been inside in a long time—or maybe ever.