Free All Man by Jay Northcote Page B

little closer than he needed to, greedy to inhale the scent of Gareth’s body. He smelled of clean sweat and masculinity, locker rooms and teenage fantasies. Jules was in heaven. He drew in a deep breath and exhaled, and Gareth shivered. Jules jerked back quickly, realising he was practically panting on the poor bloke’s neck.
    “Nearly done,” he said quickly. He’d been working in silence, which was unlike him. Normally he’d talk the ear off his customers. He prided himself on being able to get even the most surly silent types to talk back to him. “So, have you got any plans for the weekend?” he asked, cringing at the banal question. He usually did better than that, but Gareth seemed to have stripped Jules of his usual powers of witty banter.
    “I’ve got the day off tomorrow. I’m gonna hit the gym in the morning then go to my mum’s for lunch.”
    “Nice,” Jules said, imagining Gareth in workout shorts and a skimpy vest top. If he knew which gym Gareth went to, he’d be tempted to join, even though he rarely lifted anything heavier than a hairdryer.
    “Then I’m going out on Saturday night.”
    “Anywhere fun?”
    “I’m just meeting some mates at the pub, but maybe we’ll end up going on somewhere from there.”
    “Okay, I’m nearly done.” Jules moved back and studied Gareth’s hairline critically. “I’ll just neaten it up around your ears a bit.”
    He took the guard off so the clippers would cut right down to the skin and stepped in close. “Here, tilt your head like this.”
    He put his fingers on Gareth’s stubbled jaw. It was thick and scratchy but just long enough that it would rasp deliciously over skin rather than scrape like sandpaper. Jules thought about how it would feel on his thighs, or on his arsecheeks….
    Fuck, no. Stop thinking about that right now .
    With Gareth’s face only a few inches above Jules’s crotch, that train of thought was going to end in embarrassment. It would be impossible to hide an awkward boner.
    Taking a deep breath, Jules forced himself to focus as he finished up. Gareth was sitting with his thighs spread wide. He made no move to close them, so Jules's legs pressed against the hard muscle as he moved in close to carefully trim along Gareth’s hairline. He saw a pulse beating in Gareth’s neck, a steady throb beneath the skin. The desire to straddle Gareth’s lap and suck on his neck was almost unbearable.
    The tension was broken by Tyler dropping a pair of scissors with a loud clatter.
    Jules nearly jumped out of his skin. Heart pounding, he whirled around to glare at Tyler.
    “Bloody hell, Ty. You nearly gave me a heart attack. Gareth could have lost an ear.”
    “Bit jumpy aren’t you?” Tyler grinned unapologetically. His gaze flitted from Jules to Gareth and back.
    Jules ignored that, turning back to Gareth. He moved to his other side and worked quickly and efficiently, trying to ban all X-rated thoughts from his brain.
    “There. That’s perfect now.” He moved to stand behind Gareth with his hands on those deliciously strong shoulders and grinned at him in the mirror. Then he added, unable to resist testing the waters, “You’re all ready to wow the ladies on Saturday night.”
    Gareth held his gaze for a moment and Jules thought he saw a glint of interest there. But then he cleared his throat and looked away, and whatever Jules thought he’d seen was gone.
    “Thanks. How much do I owe you?”
    “No, no. It’s on the house.”
    “You sure?”
    Jules nodded. “Absolutely. It didn’t exactly take long. It’s not like you had a full head of highlights and a cut and blow dry, is it?”
    “Not enough hair for that,” Gareth said with a sheepish smile. He ran the flat of his palm over his shorn head. His hand was strong and thick like the rest of him, broad-fingered and calloused….
    No , Jules told his errant brain. Down, boy .
    “Let me brush you off so you won’t be too itchy.” Jules whisked away as much of the hair