Total pages in book: 88
Estimated words: 85167 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 426(@200wpm)___ 341(@250wpm)___ 284(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 85167 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 426(@200wpm)___ 341(@250wpm)___ 284(@300wpm)
“What?”
“Nothing.”
Driver hummed his disapproval. Tam had a bad habit of keeping his thoughts to himself. Normally Driver wouldn’t care, he liked people who could be quiet and thoughtful, but he hated not knowing that Tam was thinking. After the disaster date, there was so much Driver wanted to know. But how could he ask someone like Tam to open up when he wasn’t willing to do so himself?
He pulled off the T-shirt he wore and added it to the load.
“Keep your pants on, Maverick.” A telltale blush tinted the tips of Tam’s ears and he cast his eyes toward the door.
“You sure?” Driver flicked open his buckle just to tease him. Sure enough, that blush spread and deepened until Tam’s pale cheeks had a rosy glow. Too fucking cute. Driver chuckled. “Don’t worry, your virtue will remain intact.”
“You get far too much pleasure from teasing me.”
Still smiling, Driver gave a grunt of agreement and started his machine. “It’s the little things in life.” He held out his hand for Tam, who took it and slid to the floor. Without letting go, Driver picked up his bag, swung it over his shoulder, then grabbed Tam’s empty basket with one hand.
“I can carry that myself.”
“Yeah, but then I wouldn’t get to feel like a knight in shining armor. Don’t kill my ego.”
Walking hand in hand back to Tam’s apartment seemed as natural as blinking. He hadn’t really thought about it until they were standing outside the door—he’d just reached out and held on. Simple.
And yet, when it came time to let go he had to force his fingers to loosen. The connection had brought him joy, and without it he was disoriented.
“Um, I’ll just drop my bag off and grab the menu. Be right back.” He didn’t wait for Tam’s acknowledgment. It only took a second and when he returned he found Tam’s door open. He closed it behind him.
“You want to order or what?”
“I already told you what I wanted.”
Driver followed Tam’s voice into the bedroom. “What are you doing?”
Tam kicked something under his bed and stood a little too quickly to be nonchalant. “Nothing.”
Driver groaned, threw his hands up and went back into the living room. “You and your nothings were designed to torture me.”
Tam’s adorable giggle followed.
They called in their order and grabbed a couple beers from the fridge, then settled down to wait.
“Aren’t you gonna put on a shirt?” Tam asked as he sat on the couch, tucking his feet under himself.
Driver held in his smirk, just barely. Needling Tam was fast become his favorite pastime. His being half-naked was rattling Tam so, of course, there was no way he’d cover up if he didn’t have to. He picked up the remote and flicked on the television. “Nope.”
“It’s not that warm in here.” Contrary to Tam’s words, he fanned his own shirt.
“I’m hot-blooded.” He propped his feet on the coffee table as he clicked through the channels.
Tam snorted.
“Why? Is my stellar physical form distracting you?” With his best impression of innocence, Driver met Tam’s disbelieving glare.
“What? No! Please. It’s not that stellar.” And yet, he couldn’t seem to keep his gaze away. No matter how sneaky he tried to be, Driver could feel it like a caress every time.
“Give me the remote.” Tam lunged to grab it from Driver’s hands, but Driver held it away so he ended up sprawled on Driver’s lap.
“No way.”
“This is my apartment.” Tam wriggled to reach it and Driver had to bite his tongue to keep in his groan. Fuck, but that felt way too good.
“So?”
“So? I’m the boss here.”
“That’s not how it works.”
“Yes, it is, owner of the house sets the rules.”
“Not while I’m around. I had it first so it’s mine for the night. Sorry, precious.”
With a frustrated growl that ignited Driver’s lust like a flame to kerosene, Tam rose to his knees and punched Driver’s shoulder. “Jerk.”
“Ouch.” He faked a wince, then tugged Tam snug to his side and wrapped an arm around his shoulders. “Is there something you wanted to watch?”
Tam sighed but didn’t attempt to remove himself from Driver’s embrace. “No.”
Unable to contain his grin, Driver chose a late-night show they could both enjoy.
“How was your day?” he asked after a while.
“Good. We got a gig.”
“Really? Congratulations. That’s great.”
“It’s just a guest spot, but the manager was really nice.”
“At least it’s something.”
“Right. We needed a win.”
“When is it?”
“In about three weeks.”
Three weeks? Driver’s stomach sank. Shit. He wanted nothing more than to see Tam on stage, but there was no way he could make plans for three weeks from now. He didn’t even know what tomorrow would bring.
“Why?” Tam asked.
“Just curious.”
When the food arrived, Driver paid and brought the bag into the living room. Like the night before, they sat on the floor. Tam peeled the cardboard tops from the aluminum containers, and the scent of spices and vegetables wafted into the air. Driver picked up a plastic fork and nabbed a bit from Tam’s dish.