Page 24 of Nicks and Cuts

“You really don’t mind?”

“No… Why would I? It means you’re right here when I wake up in the morning.” He walked his fingers lower over Dante’s stomach so they could be no mistaking what he was thinking. “Of course, if you’d rather sleep in your own bed, I understand.”

Perhaps it had been a heat of the moment request, and now, as Dante was thinking through the implications, he didn’t want to take things further.

Dante grabbed Shannon’s hand and brought it to his lips. “I want to be here. It’s…”

“Your first sleepover?”

Dante sighed. “Yes. But you already knew that.”

“I guessed. I’ve gotten good at reading people.” He pressed a quick kiss to Dante’s lips and sat up. “I won’t be long.”

“You moisturize?”

“Yes. No one wants premature wrinkles.” His mother had taught him the importance of sunscreen and moisturizer, and he had actually listened. He opened the bathroom door and stepped in, not sure if he would find Dante waiting in the bed for him, or if he would be sleeping alone.

CHAPTER

THIRTEEN

Dante had almost talked himself out of returning to Shannon’s room three times while brushing his teeth, but in the end he gave in because he wanted to and because he might never get the chance again. He didn’t want his entire life to be a string of meaningless and unforgettable encounters.

He showered and padded back through the house, turning off the lights and making sure the door was locked as he went. It felt odd to be sleeping in the guest room. Should he have invited Shannon to his room instead?

It had taken him over six months to move from his childhood room to the master bedroom because it had felt wrong. Shannon was still in the bathroom. Did he get into bed and make himself comfortable?

Standing around and waiting didn’t seem right either, so he slid into bed, hoping that Shannon didn’t have a preferred side. If he did, Dante would move because he didn’t.

He lay there feeling more than a little uncomfortable, mostly because he’d never spent the night with another man.

With anyone.

Shannon stepped out of the bathroom, naked, a smile forming on his lips. “I’m glad you came back.”

Instead of sharing his fears, Dante flipped back the sheets in what he hoped was a welcoming manner. “Why wouldn’t I?”

Shannon’s eyebrow lifted ever so slightly, but he kept his mouth closed and flicked off the bathroom light, leaving them in darkness. He got into bed next to Dante and somehow found his lips in the dark. “Don’t worry, I’m not going to maul you in your sleep.”

Dante could think of worse things happening in his sleep. “I might like that.”

Shannon gave a soft laugh and lay back on his own pillow. “There’s plenty of time.”

Was there? What happened when Shannon moved out? He needed to gulp down all this experience before it disappeared.

He hadn’t had the nightmares in several years, and while he didn’t remember falling asleep, he jolted upright awake and alert and confused about where he was. He sat there breathing hard, terrified of something that he had no real recollection of, only what he’d been told.

It only took a couple of heartbeats for him to remember he was in the guest bedroom and that he wasn’t alone.

He glanced at Shannon, and while he couldn’t read his expression in the dark, his eyes were open.

“I’m fine,” Dante said, mostly to reassure himself.

“Obviously. I was debating if I needed to fling myself out of bed.”

“I woke up confused, that’s all, not violent, and it hasn’t happened in years.” Which was why he hadn’t said anything.

“Good to know. I occasionally get nightmares, but they’re the kind where I can hear someone screaming, and I’m covered in blood. Very dramatic, very Lady Macbeth. But if I ever get up and take a shower in the middle of the night that’s why.”