Page 26 of Saved By the Pitcher

Mike glanced at James, who still seemed discombobulated. Not wanting to concede, Mike opted for humor instead. “James was bitten by a rattlesnake. I was sucking out the venom.”

Nadia laughed, retrieved the book, then paused again to study the two. “Yes, I can see that James’ lips are swollen. Those apartment rattlesnakes have a pesky way of biting peoples’ most sensitive areas. Well, carry on.”

With that, Nadia exited the apartment, leaving James and Mike looking at each other with a mix of embarrassment, annoyance, and amusement.

“Your family members don’t have boundaries, do they?” Mike asked.

“No,” James acknowledged, buttoning his shirt. “I should get going anyway.”

Mike touched James’ chin and pulled it toward him. “Hey, I don’t care that she caught us. It was worth it. I loved kissing you and I can’t wait to do it again.”

James smirked. “Who knows how many will be in the audience watching us the next time?”

Mike chuckled. “Zero, I hope. It will be my first time trying to suck venom from a guy’s dick. I don’t need spectators.”

James gave the side-eye look that Mike was beginning to realize was James’ flirting. “Oh, you’re sure that will be necessary, are you?”

Mike nodded. “Mmhmm. You heard Nadia. It’s only a matter of time before those pesky apartment rattlesnakes find their way to a man’s most sensitive areas. I will save you, James.”

James shook his head. “Apartment rattlesnakes. I thought you said you were done with lies.”

Mike shrugged. “I’m done lying to you. Lying to everyone else is fair game.”

Just as James was rising from the sofa, Mike pulled him in for another kiss. Once Mike pulled away, he looked into James’ eyes and was happy they had clouded once again with lust. “Does my kissing make up for the lie?”

James pulled him back for a deeper kiss to give him his answer.

Chapter Ten

Mike had enjoyed the last few days of texting back and forth with James, learning a little more about his crush each day. James was becoming more and more comfortable revealing his snarky sense of humor, and Mike saw that as a positive sign that James’ walls were coming down. Mike noticed too that James was even more sensitive than he’d first realized, and he imagined that resulted from James having lived a lifetime of being criticized and experiencing worse for being out of step with his father’s thinking. But Mike also learned just how many sacrifices James made for his friends and co-workers while asking and expecting nothing in return. Contrary to James’ prediction that Mike would tire of him once he got to know him better, the opposite had been true. Although there had been no more sexting or sexy video chats, much of the back and forth had been flirtatious, leaving Mike wishing there was a way to skip the Friday and Saturday that kept them apart.

When Mike arrived at the theater for the Sunday matinee, he smiled—the ticket James had reserved for him was for an aisle seat. He was glad that James had remembered his complaint about his old injuries and how Jessica had deprived him the comfort of being able to stretch. Billy and Nadia had offered to join him in the audience again so he wouldn’t be alone, though he would have gone anyway. Still, he was glad they would be there, and pleased to see them already seated and waiting. Before they noticed him, they were chuckling between each other, touching each other in the sweetest, lightest ways.

“Hi guys,” Mike greeted, taking the seat they had left empty. Billy and Nadia both smiled when they heard him, and Mike was relieved that they seemed happy to see him too.

Billy pulled him into a side hug when they were seated and stated the obvious. “Dude, you made it.”

“I wouldn’t have missed it,” Mike gushed.

Nadia laughed. “Someone has it bad.”

Mike blushed, but figured he would out-sass her. “Yes, James does. I didn’t want to disappoint him.”

They both laughed. Billy got a mischievous look on his face. “So, how are those apartment rattlesnakes? Still a problem?”

Mike rolled his eyes. “No secrets in your family, are there? One of the apartment snakes bit my ass earlier, leaving some venom. Since you’re studying to be a vet, why don’t you suck it?”

Nadia covered her mouth to suppress her laugh and Billy’s mouth and eyes opened wide. When Billy recovered, he responded, “Dude, so not my scene.”

Mike wasn’t going to let it go. “Then why is the side of your car spray-painted with the words ‘Billy’s Suck-it Services—call 888-ass-lick’?”

Billy’s look of surprise returned as Nadia continued laughing. “It does not!”

“You sure? When’s the last time you checked?” Mike grinned. “Interesting fact—did you know they won’t let you carry aerosol paint cans into Broadway theaters? Just learned that.”

Billy joined in the laughter, causing the woman in front of them to turn to the three with annoyance. “Would you lower your voices? The three of you look too old to be acting like juveniles.”

“Sorry, ma’am,” Mike offered, though his smirk remained. He retrieved his phone from his jacket pocket and typed ‘Isn’t she too old to be here without an oxygen mask on her face?’ and passed the phone to Billy. When Billy read it, he couldn’t suppress a bark of laughter before showing Nadia. She had a similar reaction, causing the offended woman to huff.