“So how long do we have?” Mitch asked, doing his best to stop himself from frowning as he pushed the shopping cart behind Jonah through the home improvement store. “I know you’ll probably want to get back to New York soon.”

“Yeah,” Jonah nodded, then stopped in the aisle as he turned back to look at Mitch. “I wish the timing had worked out better… for everything… you know?” He sighed. “But yeah, I’ve got maybe another week here at the most before my boss starts to have panic attacks.”

Mitch took a deep breath and then schooled his features into what he hoped was a supportive smile. On the inside, though, he couldn’t be more conflicted.

Jonah had told him about the designing convention over dinner at the steakhouse in town, and Mitch’s initial feelings had been nothing but happiness for Jonah.

And he was happy for Jonah, of course. While Mitch might never have heard of the event Jonah had been invited to, it was clear by the reverent way Jonah talked about it that it was a Really Big Deal.

Still, a part of Mitch had selfishly hoped that he might have a little more time with Jonah. He hadn’t completely fooled himself into thinking that Jonah was going to stay in Hidden Creek or anything crazy like that, but as long as his return date had been a sort of nebulous thing in the future, he’d been able to sort of push it to the back of his mind.

It had even been easy to keep from thinking about it earlier, when they’d been out to dinner. But that could have also been the product of a little bit of sensory overload from the very Texas decor and the mechanical bull that the steakhouse was famous for.

Now, though, there was no getting around the fact that their days together were numbered.

A week.

At the most.

That was practically no time at all, especially since nearly a week had already passed and this was only the second time they’d seen each other.

“Well, I’m happy for you,” Mitch said, belatedly realizing they were still stopped in the middle of the aisle when the lady behind him loudly cleared her throat. He pushed his cart aside as he pulled up even with Jonah again. “I know this is a big opportunity for you. I remember how much you used to talk about being rich and famous in New York, and it’s really good to see that it’s starting to happen.”

Jonah grinned. “I think I’m still going to be a long way from rich and famous, but this really could do great things for my career—what do you think about this fabric for that little window above your sink? Too bright? Too much yellow?”

Mitch shrugged as Jonah reached out to run his hand over the fabric. The top of the material was indeed a bright yellow, but it faded to white about halfway down, and then to black at the bottom. It was definitely not something he would have picked out for himself, but the more he looked at it, the more he liked it.

“You’re the expert,” Mitch said. “If you think it looks good, I love it.”

Jonah quirked an eyebrow. “You’re not just saying that, are you? I mean, I do think it looks good, and I saw a rug a couple of aisles back that would really complement it, but you’re the one who will have to look at it every time you walk into the kitchen.”

“I love it,” Mitch repeated, stifling a laugh as Jonah shot him a sideways glance.

What he really loved was seeing Jonah in his element, watching his creative mind at work as he scanned the fabrics and paint swatches and tile samples. It all seemed so abstract to Mitch, like those weird, jumbled paintings in museums that looked like they had been made by a five year old left unattended.

Somehow, though, Jonah made sense of it all and pulled together colors and patterns that Mitch would have never dreamed of on his own—yet he ended up nodding in approval at nearly all of them.

“And what about your kitchen accessories?” Jonah asked, looking thoughtful as he eyed the contents of the shopping cart. “We need a few things to tie this all together.”

“My, uh… kitchen… accessories?” Mitch felt like a deer in headlights. Did he even have any kitchen accessories? “Do you mean like… silverware?”

Jonah shook his head. “Not quite. More like… dish towels? Utensils? Small appliances? What color is your backsplash?”

Mitch knew he was giving Jonah the blankest of blank stares, but… were they even speaking the same language anymore? Thankfully, Jonah jumped back in before Mitch could fumble with another attempt at answering.

“I think maybe we should just start from the ground up.” Jonah smiled. “I was sort of, um, distracted the last time I was over at your place, but I think the kitchen was pretty neutral, right?”

“Mostly beige, I think,” Mitch nodded. “Like the rest of the place. So yeah… neutral.”

“Right. So that means we have a blank slate. We can do whatever we want. So… the new plan is that I’m just going to pick out a little bit of this, a little bit of that, and you can stop me if there’s something you don’t like. Okay?”

“Perfect,” Mitch said, feeling like he’d just been told he didn’t have to take an exam he’d been dreading. “That sounds like a perfect plan. The best plan.”

“Perfect,” Jonah echoed, already starting down the aisle. “You’re in good hands now. I’ll take care of everything you need.”

Mitch smiled as he followed along with the shopping cart. Hearing Jonah say those words made his heart do a slow roll in his chest, even if they were just talking about kitchen accessories or whatever it was.

But along with that happy feeling came a twinge of sadness. After so long apart, Mitch had really been looking forward to getting to know Jonah again, to staying up all night talking about their dreams and plans for the future—just like they used to do.

Now he had a week.

It wasn’t enough time. Not for anything meaningful, anyway. It seemed a little cruel that fate—or whatever—would bring them back together again now, only to rip them apart so quickly.

It wasn’t fair. It wasn’t what Mitch wanted.

They were together now, though. That was what really mattered, right?

And even though Mitch would have liked to have several weeks, or months, or years with Jonah, he was going to make the next seven days as good as they could be.

Mitch stretched and checked the clock on the wall—one of the purchases Jonah had insisted on during their shopping trip.

Somehow, the entire afternoon had slipped by. It had been hours since they’d hauled in the seemingly endless number of shopping bags, and Mitch was pretty sure that Jonah had barely even stopped to take a breath aside from the few minutes they’d spent devouring the pizza Mitch had ordered as a late lunch.

He moved toward the kitchen, which Jonah had insisted was “perfect” at least three times so far before finding one more thing to adjust or replace or polish.

Mitch winced as he leaned against the half-wall separating the kitchen from the dining area. Jonah had kept him on his toes—on his feet, more accurately—all day, and it was the longest workout Mitch had endured since leaving the military.

Who knew shopping could be such hard work?

“Okay, I think this is just about perfect,” Jonah said, turning toward Mitch. It was next to impossible not to smile at the proclamation, given how many times it had already been made. Still, Mitch did his best not to let the corners of his mouth turn up as Jonah shot him a mock glare. “I mean it this time,” he said, waving a hand dismissively. “I think it looks really good, but if there’s anything you—wait, what’s wrong?”

Jonah stopped talking and took a step toward Mitch, furrowing his brow. “Do you hate it? I know it’s maybe a little bit much to take in all at once, but I think you might, um, get used to it?”

Mitch shook his head and smiled, doing his best not to wince again as he pushed himself off the wall and stood upright. “No, no… I love it. I do. It’s just this damn knee. I think I might have to tap out for a while. I know we’ve still got a lot to do, but maybe we can pick up with it again later tonight?”

Jonah’s gaze flicked from Mitch’s eyes down to his knee and back up again. “Oh my God, Mitch, I’m so sorry! I should have thought about your knee hours ago. I didn’t even consider…”

His voice trailed off as Mitch closed the distance between them, scooping Jonah into his arms and planting a kiss right on those sexy lips.

“You don’t need to apologize for a thing. I’ve enjoyed every minute of the day with you.” Mitch leaned back a little to look into Jonah’s eyes. “This knee pain comes and goes. How often do I get to spend the day with my favorite person on the planet?”

“Not often enough,” Jonah conceded. “I’ve had a nice time today, too, though.” He leaned in and stole a quick kiss. “A really nice time. But is there anything I can do for you? For your knee, I mean? Anything that will help?”

Mitch shrugged a little and shook his head. “I think I just need to let it rest for a while. If that doesn’t work, I’ll ice it later. I have a brace that I should have worn, but I didn’t really think about it earlier.”

He let Jonah take his hand and lead him into the hallway toward the bedroom. “I agree that you definitely need to be off your feet, but I think I might need to take a look at this knee before I can really give my professional opinion.”

Mitch laughed as Jonah turned and winked. If he would have known he was going to see this side of Jonah, Mitch would have said something about his knee a lot earlier.

His cock was already standing at attention at the idea of Dr. Jonah getting up close and personal.

“Do you, ah, see many injuries in your line of work?” Mitch asked, barely even registering the pain as he lowered himself down onto the edge of the bed.

“Oh, you might be surprised,” Jonah said, dropping down to his knees in front of Mitch and reaching for the button of his jeans. “I might need a little bit of help getting these off you,” Jonah said, continuing to take charge. “If you can just lift off the bed a little…”

Mitch raised his hips while Jonah made quick work of the button and zipper, then slid his jeans and underwear down around his thighs with one swift motion. Mitch’s cock bounced up and slapped against his stomach as he sat back down on the bed.

Jonah looked right at it and licked his lips, making Mitch groan as his cock throbbed at the attention.

“I’ll um, need you to take your shirt off, too,” Jonah said, looking cute and distracted and flustered as he stood up again and took a step back. “And then scoot back onto the bed and lie down.”

“Are those your official doctor’s orders?” Mitch asked, trying and failing to stifle a grin. “Do I get anything for the pain in my knee?”

“Mhm,” Jonah nodded, letting his eyes roam hungrily over Mitch’s body as he shrugged out of his shirt and tossed it aside. “I do have something that I think will help with that.”

Mitch was tempted to cut to the chase and pull Jonah on top of him, but Jonah giving orders was also pretty damn hot. And while Mitch doubted Jonah could actually do anything for his knee, he was sure as hell ready to find out what, exactly, Jonah had in mind.

Jonah folded his arms across his chest, clearly waiting for Mitch to move. Mitch scooted back to the middle of the bed and moved around until he way lying on his back, head propped up against the pillows like he was about to take a nap.

Except there was no way he was going to get any rest with a raging hard-on and Jonah standing a few feet away looking at him like he was a piece of candy.

Jonah crawled onto the bed, laying on his stomach between Mitch’s legs. Just seeing him there like that, peering over Mitch’s straining cock, was almost enough to make Mitch come.

“I have a confession to make,” Jonah said, letting his fingers play along Mitch’s thighs and following with a trail of light kisses.

Mitch gasped as Jonah’s touch sent little jolts of pure electricity straight to his cock. “Yeah? What—ah—do you need to tell me?”

“I don’t actually know how to make your knee feel better,” Jonah admitted, smiling sheepishly before licking his lips again as he glanced from Mitch’s eyes down to his cock and back again. “But I can do something else that will hopefully take your mind off the pain for a while…”

Jonah wrapped his hand around Mitch’s cock and slowly stroked it, eliciting a low moan from Mitch as he struggled to keep up his end of the conversation.

“You have my… undivided attention,” Mitch ground out through gritted teeth as he thrust his hips upward to meet Jonah’s strokes.

“Is this helping at all?” Jonah asked, feigning an innocent look as he stroked faster. “You still seem awfully tense. Maybe I should try something else…”

Without waiting for a response, he lapped at the head of Mitch’s cock before sucking it in deep, massaging the shaft with his tongue.

“Oh Jesus fuck,” Mitch moaned. “Please don’t stop. Please…”

Mitch reached down to thread his fingers through Jonah’s sandy brown hair as he took Mitch’s cock deeper and deeper. Fuck, it felt amazing.

Jonah moaned, low and sexy, and Mitch could feel the vibration from it run through his entire body.

“Yes, babe… Jonah… just like that…” Mitch guided Jonah’s head up and down, up and down. “Look at me, babe,” he growled. “I want to look into those beautiful eyes when you make me come.”

Jonah eased back, letting Mitch’s cock slip from his lips as he gave a sexy smile and reached down to stroke himself at the same time. “You want to come in my mouth, Mitch? You want me to swallow it?”

“Oh, fuck yeah,” Mitch said, nodding quickly. “You’re so fucking sexy when you talk like that, babe. You’ve already got me so fucking close I don’t know how long I can hold off.”

Jonah didn’t answer—or rather, he answered by swallowing Mitch’s cock again down to the base, rolling onto his side as he stroked himself while he sucked.

Mitch’s head fell back against the pillows and he was tempted to close his eyes. It felt so damn good. But watching Jonah take him deep down his throat was mesmerizing and so fucking sexy that Mitch immediately raised back up.

He opened his legs wider, giving Jonah better access, and Jonah responded by reaching up with his free hand to massage Mitch’s balls. His warm mouth, his electric touch, and the delicious little whimpers and moans that were coming from around Mitch’s cock had already pushed Mitch to the very limit.

Mitch didn’t want to be selfish. He wanted to give Jonah time to catch up, but damn he didn’t know if he could make it that long.

“Sixty-nine,” Mitch gasped, motioning Jonah further up onto the bed. “Hurry, babe. Let me make you feel good, too.”

Jonah scrambled up and moved his body around until they were both lying on their sides facing each other. He was still mostly dressed, but Mitch made quick work of Jonah’s pants and underwear, shoving them down around his thighs just enough to get his hands on that beautiful cock.

Mitch swirled his tongue around the head and Jonah moaned loudly from the other end of the bed with Mitch’s cock still buried deep in his throat.

Fuck yes.

This is what Mitch needed.

This was going to make them both come in record time.

“Yeah… Jonah…” Mitch eased back and punctuated each word by lapping at Jonah’s shaft and head. “Come for me, babe… Now…”

Just like that, as if on cue, Jonah’s whole body tensed up. Mitch rushed to get Jonah’s cock back into his mouth as those first pearly white jets spilled over and slid down his throat as he hungrily took every drop.

Mitch had only ever sucked Jonah, and it had been so long since they’d been together that he had wondered if it would feel different now—or if he’d even remember how to do it.

He shouldn’t have worried, though.

Tasting Jonah again brought all of those memories right back. It had awakened a hunger and a need inside of Mitch that he had forgotten even existed.

Back then, just like now, pleasing Jonah—hearing those sexy little sounds and watching him come undone—was enough of a turn-on for Mitch that he really could have come just from making Jonah climax.

It was sweet and sexy and hot as hell.

And then Mitch was coming, too. Fast and hard and so intense that his vision blurred as Jonah struggled to swallow it all.

They stayed like that, joined together and totally spent, for several long seconds before Mitch eased back and pulled Jonah up onto the pillows next to him.

“Holy fuck,” Mitch panted, brushing Jonah’s hair back from his eyes and planting a kiss on his glistening forehead. “That was so hot, babe. So good.”

Jonah smiled up at him. “Did it work, though?”

Mitch blinked and furrowed his brow. “Did what work?”

“Your knee. Did it help the pain go away?”

Mitch snorted, then laughed, pulling Jonah close. “That depends. If I say it feels better, does that mean I don’t get anymore of that special treatment?”

Jonah shook his head. “Nope. It just means next time I might not be so gentle with you.”

And damn. Even though Mitch had just come a few minutes ago, those words still made his dick twitch.

“In that case, I think I’m completely healed,” Mitch said. “It’s a medical miracle. So… can you show me what not-so-gentle looks like now? Or… maybe in a few minutes?”

He knew he sounded desperate—especially when Jonah started laughing—but Mitch didn’t care. Because holy hell, if what they’d just done together was only a preview for what could come later, Mitch was pretty sure he’d just died and gone to heaven.

“I wish I could stay for round two,” Jonah said, sighing as he rested his head against Mitch’s. “But I need to get back soon. I told Pop I’d be there tonight.”

Mitch wanted to beg. He certainly wasn’t above it if it meant keeping Jonah in his bed for a little while longer. But he remembered how guilty Jonah had felt earlier in the week when he had accidentally slept over, and how panicked he’d been the next morning worrying about his grandpa.

And as tempting as it was to be selfish tonight, Mitch didn’t want to put Jonah through that kind of stress again. Even if it meant missing out on another one of those mind-blowing blowjobs.

“I understand,” Mitch said, kissing Jonah again and hugging him close. “I wish you could stay, but I completely get why you need to go.”

“Thank you,” Jonah said. “For… everything. I’ve had the best time today with you.”

“Me, too,” Mitch replied, his voice just above a whisper. “We need to do this—all of this—as much as possible before you have to leave. Promise me we will?”

He could feel Jonah nodding his head against the pillow. “We will,” he said, simply.

And even though hearing those words gave Mitch a little bit of reassurance, he couldn’t be completely happy. Because no matter how much time they spent together over the next several days, Mitch already knew one thing for sure.

It wouldn’t be enough.

He’d still want more.

Always.