As he’d expected, Joey had pulled the Santa shirt back on, and it hung unbuttoned from his broad shoulders. He sat on the edge of the mattress, his elbows propped on his knees and hands dangling between his legs. As Liam approached, he lifted his head from his deep contemplation of the worn wood floor.

Liam saw a flicker of fear in Joey’s eyes before he plastered that damn smirk on his face like a mask. Was he afraid Liam would want to pick up where they left off or that he wouldn’t?

Before Joey could say whatever smartass remark Liam knew he’d been working on the whole time Liam was gone, he put the bags of food on the floor. Joey followed with his eyes as Liam stood between his knees forcing him to spread them even further.

His head tilted back as he kept his eyes locked on Liam’s face. Joey’s hands went almost automatically to Liam’s legs, his strong fingers wrapping around the back of Liam’s thighs.

Slowly, so Joey had time to tell him to stop, Liam slid his hands under the collar of his shirt, his thumb rubbing the stretched out column of Joey’s neck. Joey’s eyes fluttered closed, and his pulse pounded under Liam’s fingers.

He forced Joey’s head up even further with a thumb on the bottom on his jaw. “Okay?” he asked quietly, fingers sliding up the back of Joey’s neck. Liam knew Joey wanted him, but there was a big difference between wanting and getting.

Joey exhaled heavily through his nose.

Liam gave him a second that stretched almost too long. But when Liam as much as shifted his weight away, Joey’s hands clenched around his thighs.

“Okay,” Joey said, opening his eyes, pupils wide with lust. He looked right into Liam’s eyes and said the one word Liam couldn’t resist. “Please.”

“Off,” Liam said, pushing the stupid Santa shirt over Joey’s shoulders. Joey gave a sinuous roll of his torso, and the shirt slithered to the bed.

Liam ran his hands down Joey’s arm. “All grown up and gorgeous.” Joey’s smooth olive skin covered surprisingly large muscles. Joey might be shorter than your average hockey player, but he was broad and strong. Taking a hit from him must be like running into a brick wall.

He started to undo his cufflinks; then he had a better idea. “Take these off,” he said, turning his wrist so Joey could reach them.

Even at the height of his career, Liam hadn’t been a big spender. His tastes were fairly modest, but he did have a thing for expensive cufflinks. These were a midrange pair. Handcrafted in Greece out of sterling silver with a cabochon ruby that almost exactly matched his tie, they’d only set him back about seven hundred dollars.

They were a simple post back style, easy enough to get in and out. But Joey concentrated hard on his task, biting his lip, hands shaking. A guy who had faced pucks flying at eighty miles per hour and two hundred pounds of hockey player slamming into him on a daily basis unnerved by a small silver stud was unexpected.

What was more unexpected was how hard it got Liam. He’d gone from aroused to needing to be buried inside Joey so badly it was almost frightening.

Was Joey like this with everyone? Did everyone he slept with get to see this vulnerable version of Joey Luciano? If they did, did they know how grateful they should be? Liam ran his fingers through Joey’s hair, suddenly protective of the younger man. Joey should be careful. He shouldn’t give just anyone this trust.

Joey finished taking off the cufflinks, and the shirt sleeves fell open wide. Liam held his hand out for the jewelry. He slipped them into his pants pockets. Slowly and deliberately, Joey watching every movement, he rolled his sleeves up to his elbows.

He was buying himself time, hoping the motion disguised the way his own hands were shaking. There was so much he wanted to do. He wished they had hours, but he could hear the clock ticking.

With a hand on his chest, Liam pushed Joey down to the mattress and hooked his fingers over the waistband of the Santa pants. “Lift up.”

Obediently, Joey lifted his hips off the bed, and Liam tugged the baggy red pants off, lifting the waistband over Joey’s straining erection.

Holy shit. “Jesus,” Liam croaked when the scrap of fabric passing as underwear came into view. “This is all you’re wearing under that fucking costume?”

The tiny black Armani briefs couldn’t contain Joey’s dick; it poked out over the waistband. Electric blue piping outlined the impressive bulge. Liam pulled them down just far enough to let the hard cock spring out.

Joey’s mouth quirked in that special Luciano smirk that he knew damn well made people want to punch him or kiss him, or maybe do both in that order.

Liam rubbed his thumb over the head of Joey’s dick. That wiped the smirk off his face, replacing it with a wide-eyed desperation that made Liam do it again just to see what Joey would do.

Joey’s hands scrabbled against the bare mattress and his back arched, head thrown back. His body was a gorgeous arc from hips to bared throat.

God, he looked wrecked, and Liam had barely touched him. If only they were alone and had more time, Liam would love to take him apart, make him beg for it over and over until couldn’t take it anymore.

He couldn’t help running his hands over Joey’s abs. All hockey players were strong, that was a given, but it took a combination of genetics and a strict diet to get the visible six-pack Joey sported. Liam liked to think he wasn’t shallow, but he couldn’t help that being surrounded by athletes his entire life had given him a high bar.

Joey certainly surpassed them all.

“Gorgeous,” he said appreciatively.

“You look pretty good, too,” Joey said, shifting his weight to one elbow so he could touch Liam’s bare forearm. “A little over-dressed, but it works for you.”

Yeah, it did. Being fully dressed with Joey naked under him was more of a turn-on that he would have thought it would be.

“I’ve seen your suits, Joey. How many best-dressed lists you been on?”

Joey shrugged. “A couple. It’s the best-undressed ones I like. You see my calendar?”

Liam rolled his eyes.

“Well?”

“Yeah, I seen it,” Liam admitted. Damn it, barely home an hour home, and he already sounded like a fucking Southie kid again.

“And?”

“And you look fucking hot? Is that what you wanna hear?”

Joey preened. “Yeah. That’s what I wanted to hear. Now are you just gonna look, or are we going to do this?”

That sounded like a dare to Liam. He pushed Joey back down, crawling up on the bed and over his body.

“You are such a...”

”Such a what?”

Liam moved closer, looming over Joey. “A mouthy little brat.”

“So I’ve been told.” His dark brown eyes locked on Liam’s and his tongue darted out to moisten his lips.

He had a gorgeous mouth, with thick full lips that looked like they’d be perfect for kissing.

Joey grabbed Liam’s ass and tried to pull him down, straining to rub against Liam’s body.

Liam braced his arms and legs on the mattress. “Uh-uh,” he said. “Don’t get my suit dirty. I’m not going back out there with stains on my pants.”

“The take them off,” Joey lifting his head up to get his mouth on the bare skin of Liam’s neck. “Let me touch you.”

Liam tilted his head so Joey could have better access. Those lips did feel good on his skin. They’d feel amazing around his cock.

Liam grabbed Joey’s cock, stroking slowly until he moaned. Then he kissed and groped his way down Joey’s body.

Joey trembled, muscles taut under Liam’s hand.

“I saw you,” Joey blurted apropos of nothing while Liam was counting the ridges of his abs with his tongue and exploring the dips and curves of his hipbones with his hands.

Liam lifted his head. “Saw me what?”

“With Sammy Pangallo. You were fucking him. Here on this mattress.” Joey sounded breathless, and his cock jerked, almost hitting Liam on the chin.

That name was a blast from the past. “That was almost fifteen years ago. And how did that make you feel?” Liam crawled backwards off the bed pulling Joey’s briefs off as he went, until he knelt on the floor, his hands on Joey’s knees.

“Jealous,” Joey admitted. “But I didn’t realize it until later.”

“Well, it’s just you and me now,” Liam said. Enough talking. He wrapped his hand around Joey’s cock and pulled it towards his mouth.

“Oh, fuck,” Joey whispered, legs tensing. “Fuck!” he yelled when Liam slid his mouth over the head of his dick.

Liam slid slowly back up. “We have to be quiet,” he whispered into Joey’s hip.

Joey bit down on his hand, turning the moans into muffled whimpers as Liam continued to drive him crazy with his mouth. Desperate, Joey’s reached out with his free hand, burying his fingers in Liam’s hair.

Liam hummed his appreciation of the sharp tug, and Joey’s dick jerked and throbbed in his mouth. It wasn’t ten seconds before Joey was begging.

“God, Liam, please. Fuck, I’m gonna—I want—” His voice hitched.

Liam pulled off slowly, enjoying the way it made Joey shudder. “What do you want?”

Joey’s eyes search Liam’s. Liam wasn’t sure what he was looking for or what he saw, but he exhaled deeply as if he’d come to a decision. “I want you to, to fuck me. Like you did Sammy.”

The blush on Joey’s cheeks made Liam want to flip him over and give him what he was asking for right away. The little hesitation in his voice and the determined set of his eyebrows made Liam briefly wonder how much experience Joey had with men.

He briefly considered the logistics of the situation and ran through a mental list of options as he nipped at Joey’s irresistible hipbones and ran his tongue along the deep vee of muscle above it. Reluctantly, he decided that fucking Joey here and now was a bad idea. It was probably a bad idea anytime, anyplace, but he’d think about that later.

He smiled at Joey and caressed his truly exceptional abs. “As much as I really, really want to do that, I don’t have any supplies. So now what should I do with you?”