Eight days after Luke’s injury, and his shoulder only really pained him when he lifted his arm above his head. Luckily, today, on the stakeout of a suspected marijuana plantation, there wasn’t much aerobic activity involved.
In fact, Luke might have put up with a bit of shoulder pain if it would make time tick past a little quicker. His constable, Mitch Lithgow, kept on sighing, as if this stakeout had been designed with his torture in mind. You’d think he’d be more excited for police action that wasn’t the speed traps, domestics, or paperwork that made up a majority of their days. However, Luke could hardly blame him, this was donkeywork. Once they had the evidence gathered the drug squad would swoop in from Newcastle and make the arrests. Today’s work involved sitting in the car on a dusty property, out of sight, taking photos of everything that moved, using a telephoto lens.
“I can’t see why the city thought that this was a job for two of us, Sarge,” Mitch complained as he snapped a photo of one of suspects going back to the house for what had to be his third beer since midday.
“There are three weapons registered to the farm,” Luke reminded him. “Anyway, it is coming out of the city’s budget, so it’s their protocol we’re stuck with.”
He agreed with Mitch privately. It didn’t take two of them to take surveillance photos, especially as today’s photos had only revealed the farmer who was growing the drugs on his property and his mates drinking enough to drown the average football team. Being in the car, and watching their frequent trips between the shed and house to take a piss and get another beer, was only vaguely better than being on sick leave and sitting around the house himself all day. He’d hated the long stretches of inactivity of being in the house alone. The only thing that had made last week bearable was Jai’s quick visits. He’d drop in each night, check that Luke had eaten, and stand at the kitchen counter and flirt. Luke wanted to disappear the first night Jai had winked at him and asked him if he liked the satin. He’d steadfastly refused to answer and was especially grateful for the solid construction of the old police housing each time he’d groaned into his pillow after one of Jai’s visits. Yes, it turned out not only did he like the feeling of satin on his cock, his cock also really liked the thought of Jai having done the same thing.
“Do you think drug squad will have enough for a raid next week?” asked Mitch, the question jolting Luke out of the too frequent musings about his new next-door neighbor.
Luke shrugged. “He’s growing it; they’ll get him as soon as they can be bothered to get their asses out here to make the arrest.”
He was glad that this farmer was a relative newcomer to their community. The absolute worst thing about being a country cop was arresting someone you had known all your life. Just last year, Luke had to charge someone he’d gone through the small local school with for dangerous driving occasioning injury. Three of Jenkins’s cousins, two of whom had been on the football team with Luke, still muttered “stinking pig” each time he passed them on the street. Luke had to be grateful they muttered it quietly enough that mostly he was the only one who heard it, and he didn’t have to arrest them as well for threatening a police officer. Part of being a good local copper was keeping the peace.
“Dirty bastard,” came from the other side of car. Luke would have been worried that Mitch had suddenly been able to read his thoughts about Jai, if he too wasn’t watching the dude whose brilliant idea it was to grow a $100,000 worth of drugs in a paddock with no natural cover, take a piss again on his own shed wall.
“Can’t even be bothered to walk another meter to water the trees,” muttered Mitch.
“These idiots are hardly criminal masterminds.”
“Lucky,” replied Mitch. “The idiots made enough mistakes that they practically reported themselves to us.”
Luke was glad that surveillance wasn’t a normal part of his daily duties. Another hour of it and he’d want to be home again, even with a sling. They were in Mitch’s flatbed truck that he used as a working vehicle out at the farm. You couldn’t fault the dusty exterior as definitely not reading “cop car.” Unfortunately, the smell of wet sheep had pervaded the interior. Authentic disguise, disgusting in the heat. And if he knocked his legs against the low bloody steering wheel one more freaking time, he’d be tempted to start leaning on the horn just to blow their cover.
He was even more tempted when Mitch started telling him in painful detail about his problems in his marriage.
For the first time, Luke considered what would happen if he reciprocated with, “I asked this guy to live next to me, which would be great, as he wants to be friends, and he is the coolest guy I’ve ever met. The problem is I really want to fuck him or maybe I want him to fuck me, but he just wants to be friends.”
He didn’t think that would go down easily. Mitch probably wasn’t the kind of guy who would request a transfer, but it could make for some awkward hours, and god knew the man had a problem with discretion. So he just shut up and listened to Mitch whine on about his interfering mother-in-law and the detrimental effect on his sex life for the hundredth time.
• • •
After a long day making nice in the car, watching the world’s most boring and unattractive want-to-be criminals, Luke was ready for the quiet of home. He had shed the uniform for a pair of sweats and old T-shirt and was getting ready to lift the weights he had in the boot room. The doctor had given him the all-clear with light weights, and he really did need to start something soon, especially after a day cramped in the car. Otherwise, his waistline would expand past the point he could actually put claim to the picture of his abs on Grindr.
Instead, he got a knock on the door that had him cursing. Hadn’t he earned just a few hours of peace? The swearing inside his head stopped only when he opened the front door and found Jai outside his shoulders slumped in a way that Luke hadn’t seen before.
“Come in,” Luke ordered. “I’ve got two hands now, so I’ll make you a tea.”
Jai shuffled inside with only a halfhearted smile, which was so unlike his usual vibrant demeanor that Luke really did start worrying. He got him sitting at the table before he went into the kitchen. Luke put on the kettle, only coming out when the water had boiled and he had rummaged enough to find a new packet of biscuits. They wouldn’t help the abs but seemed necessary as he watched Jai sit slumped with his elbows on the table.
“Work?” Luke asked, his inflection turning the one word into a drawn-out question.
“Yeah,” Jai replied tiredly. He pulled at the sleeves on his T-shirt. He seemed to have been home and changed before seeking out company. Coming over here without the excuse of checking on Luke’s condition, was unusual enough, that Luke was starting to feel seriously worried.
“I just didn’t realize exactly what everything would be like out here in the country,” Jai went on.
“In what way?” Luke’s voice gentled to a practiced tone.
“I shouldn’t say anything.” Jai looked reluctant. “Even if I don’t use names, it is still patient information.”
“I’m a cop, Jai,” Luke explained. “I understand the need for not passing things on. Some cops are more discreet than others, but we all know the difference between stories that can be repeated at the dinner parties and the stories that keep people’s secrets in our circle. You can trust I won’t repeat anything said here.”
Luke was sincere in that. There wasn’t a cop in a close-knit community who didn’t hold secrets that could explode people’s lives. He knew how to keep his silence in the same way he knew the need that Jai had to decompress.
“I did an ultrasound today and I could see, even without the patient going for a biopsy, that it was cancer.”
“That is horrible,” Luke empathized. It really was, although he was surprised at Jai’s distress. He had been a practicing radiologist for a few years, surely he had seen this kind of illness before.
“No, the worst thing was this guy should have been in to see us a year ago, when they would have been able to help him. He was riddled with the stuff. Of course, I’m not allowed to tell him anything, so I have to call the consultant in the city and the earliest appointment they can give him is in three weeks’ time.”
Jai took a frustrated breath, before continuing. “So this guy is going to have to drive a six-hour round trip just to find out that he has six months to live.”
“Okay,” said Luke, thinking through his next words. He knew from experience that just going for the easy reassurance wasn’t always the most satisfying response. “Yeah, that sucks, healthcare out here is a bit patchy and having to travel so far to access it does put off people from getting help when they first start getting sick. But you have come to the area, so people don’t have to go even farther for their first test, and if he needs help before the three weeks are up, we have doctors and nurses who have chosen to live out here so they can help him too.”
Luke could see that his words were getting through to Jai. “Most people live out here by choice and know that they are going to have to drive awhile to see a specialist, and most people know that’s part of the trade off. Hopefully it will get better in the future, but what you can do is just keep on doing your job well and giving them your best.”
Jai put his hand out to the table and waited until Luke reached out his own and let their hands touch.
“Thanks,” Jai said.
Luke let him keep his hand even though part of him wanted to pull back. This was an intimacy that seemed more daring than even sucking some guy’s dick. Holding hands at the kitchen table seemed far beyond anything in Luke’s experience, and he wasn’t sure he welcomed the emotion that seemed to want to overwhelm him at the gesture.
Conversely, as uncomfortable as he was, he even found himself a little resentful when Jai pulled back his hands and straightened his shoulders.
“You know what my roommate Kris would have me do?” Jai asked, looking amused. “Come over to my place and I’ll show you.”
Luke wasn’t sure about this, but he was definitely glad to see the smile on Jai’s face, so he found himself trailing behind Jai as he headed next door.
It was the first time he’d been there, since he handed the keys over only last week. Jai was definitely less tidy and running shoes, sweatpants, and the odd hoodie dotted the floor and furniture of the living room.
Jai seemed to have a clear plan in mind, as he started moving back the lounge and ottoman.
“Okay, are you going to tell me the plan now?” Luke asked.
Jai just waved a hand at him and in a gesture that caused more than a little concern walked behind him to bolt the front door from the inside.
When he then went to the window and pulled the curtains and straightened them, so not even a crack of light appeared, Luke let out a nervous laugh.
“Jai, why is this suddenly feeling like something where I need a safe word,” he only half-joked.
That elicited the first real full smile he’d seen out of Jai today, “Babe, you wish.”
Luke really didn’t know what to think as Jai started stripping off his pullover. Luke wasn’t sure if he was relieved or disappointed when it turned out that under it was a singlet instead of skin. He did, however, get his first good look at the way the text of the tattoo ran to a point just above Jai’s collarbone. The thought of how Jai’s skin would taste there was one he quickly chased away.
Jai leaned over the expensive stack of electronics that had appeared on the right wall of the living room and within moments an electronica beat filled the room.
When he turned, he must have seen Luke’s reluctance. “Just give me a half hour. I need this and I need someone to dance with.”
His words were so clear and so sincere that Luke’s voice wavered, a very unfamiliar sound. “I don’t usually, uh, dance much.”
It was true he hadn’t danced much, not since his first forays into the gay clubs when he was back at the academy. Then he would stand at the edge of the dance floor, drink in hand, never needing to do more than bop himself around for a few minutes before someone would take him into one of the club bathrooms. Now apps removed the need for even the pretense of socializing that dancing provided.
Jai’s hips attested a very different attitude to dancing as he said, “That’s because you haven’t danced with me.” He held out his hand for Luke, and for a second time today, Luke was palm to palm with this man.
Within seconds, as the music poured out of the speakers, Jai had used the connection of their hands to pull their bodies close together and suddenly Luke got to feel exactly how their bodies would feel pressed together. Jai’s few inches less in height wasn’t awkward; it just mean that his head could rest on Luke’s shoulder, that his mouth was only a tantalizing whisper from his neck where Luke could feel his breath quicken and warm.
“Loosen up,” was Jai’s whisper in his ear. “I’m asking for dancing, not anything else.” As if to contradict his words, their groins pressed closer together. “It doesn’t mean the dancing doesn’t get to feel good though.”
With their proximity, there was no way Jai couldn’t feel Luke’s erection against his hip, and Luke was acutely aware Jai’s own hardness in return. What surprised Luke was that it wasn’t just a grind together. Jai was dancing, hips gyrating and whole body following with the soaring beat. Luke was too close, and too overly attuned to every movement, not to follow his lead. Luke’s eyes closed and he gave himself to the pleasure of the beat, to the easy pressure on his dick, to not thinking.
Jai was right, this wasn’t sex, despite its physical pleasure. The contact wasn’t going to be enough to get him off, and it wasn’t even really the point. Stronger was the feeling of freedom—having another male body against him in the joy of the music, in the joy of having their bodies move in synch.
Two, three, four songs and they kept moving. As sweat started dampening Luke’s T-shirt, he realized he wouldn’t need any cardio today. However, mostly he forget the rest of the world, forgot the rest of his life.
Jai’s hands had moved down Luke’s body to his hips during the songs, controlling the beat, but then they started a path around his body. It wasn’t long before his hands rested on Luke’s ass. At first, Luke’s eyes had opened in surprise, but when he looked at Jai’s face, Jai still seemed lost in the physical sensation of the dance. He was seemingly unaware of where his hands were and their gentle pressure felt like it gave Luke permission to enjoy it, to let the physical sensation flood in. It wasn’t something he usually allowed in his sex partners; he didn’t want them to feel like his ass was going to be an option. Jai’s openness had him considering it though, in his illicit fantasies when all other defenses were down.
When Jai’s hand traced down his crack, the sensations all became a bit too much. His dick immediately hardened to the point of pain, and he had to wrench himself away from Jai before Jai could feel the intensity of his reaction.
“Sorry I’m out of condition from all that lying around last week,” Luke apologized. “You keep on going though.”
“No, that was good.” Jai went to the speakers and hit some buttons. The sound level dropped and the music switched to a more mellow pop tune. “I’ve danced enough of my demons away tonight, and you gave me more than the promised half hour. Thanks for being such a good partner.”
Luke stood awkwardly, sticking his hands in his pocket as he willed his erection to go down. “Hardly accomplished, but I think even Gumby would dance better with you.” He asked the question that occurred to him when he’d realized Jai’s plan. “Did you really do that with your roommate?”
Jai gave him another wide smile, those definitely seemed to be coming easier. “Yep, we do the ‘dance party at home’ thing. It used to be because when I came out of rehab the club scene was too much temptation at first, so this was a way of getting to dance. Then I just loved it, letting the music take over whenever I needed it.”
“You’re good; I see why you love it.”
“Sorry about the handsiness though.” Jai’s smile was rueful. “ I forgot who I was with.”
That was freaking Jai, nothing could be left unsaid, there wasn’t much that wouldn’t come out of his tempting too honest mouth. Luke wished Jai hadn’t forgotten who he was with. It was stupid. Nothing would or could happen, but not for one minute had Luke forgotten it was Jai in his arms, and he didn’t want to just be an anonymous body in return.
“It’s fine,” Luke said. He got over his awkwardness enough to take a proper look at Jai’s expression. “Feel any better?”
Jai’s more relaxed smile was answer enough. “Yeah, thanks for the pep talk and dance. See, I told you I needed a friend out here.”
“I’m glad you came by.” As Luke walked back next door, he realized he was genuinely glad he’d been able to do something real for Jai. The whole thing had felt very one sided until now. He’d been the dumbass Jai was protecting, then the dude in the closet who needed some cheering up. He’d even worried that Jai was sort of mocking him, indulging the pathetic little space that he’d carved out for himself. Today felt different; today felt like they could be friends, that he could offer Jai more than the empty house next to him.
• • •
The rush of water down his body felt good, washing away the sweat that came with dancing. The exhilaration of that hour, of moving with Jai, still hadn’t completely left his body. Hell, his semi still hadn’t completely gone down. Luke grabbed the soap and started washing his body. For once, when the preliminaries were over, he didn’t go straight for his cock. Instead, he let the soap play up and down over his crack, where Jai’s hand had been before he pulled away. His cock only got harder, especially as the soap bar pressed over his hole. This wasn’t an area that Luke had let himself focus on before, for too many years grabbing his dick and thinking about guys had been a guilty secret, potentially liking this seemed a bridge too far. Even if the guys he’d been with seemed to enjoy it, he’d been too focused on getting himself off and away to indulge.
Now his curiosity, and need, was too strong. Now he wanted to feel a little of what Jai had described so vividly.
Luke kept on rubbing the edge of the soap against his hole until he needed more. The water pouring down on him was turning cool, so he turned off the taps, grabbed the towel, and got himself dry, ignoring the erection that entered his bedroom before he did. Apparently, it was completely onboard with the idea of what he was planning to do.
He’d prepared enough guys to know that lube was a necessity, so he retrieved the pump pack from the bottom of the bedside table. He might never have had another man in this room, but his own right hand had gotten enough work that he always had slick close by.
The figuring out of the best way to do this to himself was a little awkward, but with some bent legs and a pillow, he finally had two fingers tapping on his hole again. As he started to push in, he bit his lip against the stretch and the ache as his internal muscle protested the intrusion. However, what he was doing was enough for his cock to thicken further against his stomach. Luke kept on pressing until he had both fingers all the way inside. Then he crooked them and found that spongy spot he knew was there.
Yep, the full-body shudder and burst of pleasure had him gasping and swearing. A rhythm of presses had his cock leaking precum all over himself. If he hadn’t suddenly become so desperate, he might have played for a while. All he could think of was Jai’s body pressed against his own, while dancing, his hands on Luke’s ass and how easily Jai could have been doing this to him. That thought of Jai’s fingers inside him was enough to get Luke to the edge and one pull, one twist of his cock, had him right over.
“Ughh.” The sound echoed through the bedroom as Luke pumped cum all over his chest and bedsheets. It was a few gasping minutes before the thought occurred to him.
Fuck, the water for my second shower of the night is going to be cold.