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“All right?” Alex arched his back in a way that emphasised the swell of his bum, glancing over at Lee with a subtle spark in his eyes. Ah, so he really was doing it on purpose—strutting around near-naked, showing off his body at least partly for Lee’s benefit. They were athletes, of course, and changing around each other came with the territory, but Alex seemed to have developed an aversion to clothing that exceeded normal levels.
Lee closed the door. “Yeah, all good.”
“So Oliver only wanted to talk?”
“Something like that.” Lee crossed the room and tugged off his T-shirt because hey, two could play that game. Alex’s gaze dropped before it returned to Lee’s face.
“‘Something like that’ means…?”
“He, uh.” Fuck, Lee really should have figured out how to break the news to Alex. “He figured it out, sort of—that something happened between us. So I told him.” Lee turned to face Alex fully. “I know it wasn’t really my secret to share, but he’d half-figured it out already, and he’s my best mate, Alex. I trust him without question.”
It took a few seconds, then Alex sighed. “It’s fine.”
“Yeah?” Lee asked quietly.
“I knew there was a good chance you’d tell him.” Alex’s lips twitched into a slight upwards curve. “I mean, a mind-blowing kiss like that—of course you’d want to tell your best mate about it.”
Lee snorted. “You’re taking this better than I expected.”
“I’m not… It’s…” Shaking his head, Alex snapped the book shut and rolled onto his back. “I’m notashamed. I swear, that’s not it. It’s just personal, and telling people feels…”
“Scary?” Lee suggested gently.
“Yeah. That.”
“I can vouch for Oliver—he won’t tell a soul.”
“I trust your judgement.”
It sounded an awful lot like ‘I trustyou’, and Lee wasn’t quite sure what to make of the little zing of pleasure that warmed his face at the thought. To hide his reaction, he walked over to his bed and switched on the small reading lamp beside it, identical to the one that bathed Alex in a golden glow. “Glad to hear it.”
“Yeah, well.” Alex didn’t immediately continue. “So how did he react?”
“Told me to get lucky.”
“Sounds about right.” The words carried a stifled grin, Alex propping himself up on his elbows in a way that drew attention to the line of his torso and the trail of dark hair that disappeared into his boxers. Cheeky bastard.
Lee sighed as he pulled his gaze away. “Can you not?”
Alex’s laugh blended with the quiet evening, humid air flowing in through the open balcony door. “Just following captain's orders.”
Lee spared Alex another look. “Still a bad idea.”
“I thought” —Alex batted his lashes— “you trust him without question?”
“Within reason.”
“Oh ye of little faith.” Alex’s voice lightened, and he dropped all pretence. “Anyway, so I figured it out.”
“You figured what out?” Lee asked carefully.
“Why you won’t tell me what it is that you’re reading.”
Oh, that.
Lee countered Alex’s smile with an unimpressed eyebrow raise. “Is that so?”
“It’s gay erotica.” Alex gave the statement a second to settle, grinning up at Lee. “Which—I’m not judging, right? But since you won’t give me the time of day, the least you can do is share so I can live vicariously through your pages.”
