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Adriano’s mouth quirked in a half grin. ‘Kiss me good night.’ Yet again, not a question. He saw war waging in Noah’s eyes, fear with need with hesitation with raw desire. He let it go on only a moment more. ‘Kiss. Me.’ His signs were sharp and demanding, and eventually, Noah nodded.
Adriano was kind enough not to torture him more, not to make him work too hard for it. He closed the distance between them, tucking his hand behind Noah’s short curls, burying his fingers in the soft locks, twisting them around as his lips parted and he took the thing he’d wanted since he’d set eyes on the man.
The kiss was hot. It was sloppy. It was unpracticed. Noah seemed unsure what to do with his tongue, with his mouth, but Adriano didn’t mind. He nudged Noah’s lips apart with his own, then dragged his tongue in gently, slowly. Noah tasted of oregano and tangy sauce and something else that was uniquely him.
Adriano groaned, pressing his body hard against Noah’s. He felt him hard and throbbing, felt the way his pulse rocketed. He was close, Adriano realized. He was on the edge of coming. He thrust his tongue deeper, let his own erection just barely graze Noah’s, and he felt it when it happened. He felt the blaze of a flush shoot through Noah’s skin, felt his body stutter, felt the way Noah’s fingers dug into Adriano’s arms, painful and present.
When he pulled back, Noah’s eyes were shut, but there was a look of hesitant shame on his face. Noah had come in his pants like some teenager who had never been kissed, and something niggled at the back of Adriano’s brain. But this moment was fragile and delicate, thin ice across a lake, and Adriano didn’t want to crack it just yet.
He dropped another soft, careful kiss on Noah’s lips, coaxing him, urging his eyes to open. When they did, he smiled. ‘Goodnight, beautiful.’
Noah nodded. He didn’t move, and Adriano deliberately didn’t look down to see if the wetness had darkened the front of his jeans.
‘Tomorrow?’ he added.
Noah nodded again, his limp arms falling to his sides.
Adriano let out a small breath, then caressed the side of Noah’s face before reaching for the door. He didn’t break eye contact until he was in the hall, then he pressed the tips of his fingers to his mouth, offering Noah a last breath of a kiss, and then he was gone.
He didn’t look back, didn’t let Noah know he was aware of what happened. He just put one foot in front of the other…and started to make a plan.
* * *
Adriano had never beenbig on sleeping in. His routine had him up at dawn for a morning run, then weights since he decided to make film his career. So even on vacation, sleeping until seven was a luxury. His body still ached from the drive and from sleeping in his car, but he threw on track pants and took Jude for a walk around the neighborhood. He had forgotten to ask if there was a gym nearby, but he decided a few days off wasn’t going to kill him.
Hell, if it came back that he wasn’t going to be able to film for three years, what was the point anyway? Trying not to let frustration seep in, Adriano went back to the house and set Jude up in the little crate before deciding to check out the café next door for breakfast.
He snatched his phone from the nightstand, then tapped out a good morning to Noah before ignoring the texts from his brother and heading back out into the chilly morning.
The morning air felt good on his heated skin, even if it was more humid than he was used to, but he felt like he could live there comfortably. And fuck if that wasn’t a thought he wasn’t expecting. He liked Noah—maybe not enough to propose marriage, but even that didn’t seem like the wildest notion for a future.
He wasn’t sure what it was about the guy that had him so captivated. He was the opposite of everything Adriano had ever looked for in a partner, but maybe that was just it. Adriano’s usual taste for spoiled twinks had gotten him nowhere except hiding out across the damn country, and Noah was the first person to show genuine concern about him and not the figure he was to the public.
The thought calmed him a little as he made his way through the café doors and followed the smell of bacon to a dining room where a bored looking man who couldn’t have been older than his early twenties was leaning on the counter. He offered a smirk as he gave Adriano a once-over.
If Adriano hadn’t been utterly consumed with Noah, he might have taken more than just a quick notice of him, but he had no room for anyone else in that moment. He approached with a smile, then pointed to himself, and held up one finger.
The guy didn’t try to talk, so he’d either seen Adriano signing to someone around town the day before or recognized him for his work. And by the look in his eyes, Adriano assumed the latter. He tried not to smirk a little as the guy led him to a table near the front of the buffet, and when Adriano sat down, he realized the guy was waiting for his attention.
‘Coffee, tea, juice?’ his hands signed, not quite right but close enough. Adriano appreciated it more than he could say when servers actually took the time to learn.
‘Coffee,’ Adriano signed.
The server nodded, then pulled out a notepad and gestured for Adriano to write on it.
He took a second to scan the menu, then jotted down:egg white omelet w/ turkey and cheddar, side fruit, OJ.
The server read it over, then nodded and gave him a thumbs-up before turning on his heel. Adriano watched the guy walk away with a bit of a sway to his hips and appreciated the view and the attempt to communicate. He hadn’t expected to feel any sort of warm welcome at all there, but all these people were quickly changing his mind.
It only took a second for the guy to return with the large glass of juice and the pot of coffee, and he set it down next to the little bowl of creamer pods.
‘Be back soon,’ the server said, mostly through pantomime.
Adriano gave him a nod, then filled his mug, gulping down the hot, bitter liquid before adding a couple packets of sugar and a single creamer. There were a few people who came in right after him, and Adriano fell into his favorite habit of people watching. He liked when he was somewhere new and got a glimpse of the locals.
Coming from LA, even the people who grew up there never seemed to belong. They were all just getting by and dreaming of somewhere with less chaos. It was why all his brothers, except Luca, had moved out of the city and why he was now dreaming of a life along the East Coast.
Lost in his thoughts, Adriano almost didn’t notice someone appear at his table until a plate moved in his periphery. He startled and almost knocked it out of the poor guy’s hand, then quickly tried to offer an apology, but it died in the air between them as he stared at a man he didn’t know…
