Free Love, Hypothetically[Theta Alpha Gamma 02 ] by Anne Tenino Page A

position inches in front of him. Trevor had put away the food so they’d have some room in the tiny space, but he’d left the flowers and champagne out. They’d kicked off their shoes, and now Paul had to resist with everything in him the urge to tangle his legs with Trevor’s. He teased himself, imagining what Trevor’s thigh dragging across his skin would feel like, and how their enmeshing hair would tug and pull gently, little tiny shocks running up to his groin. If Trevor kissed him, and he could feel Trevor thrusting his hard dick against him, wrapping his calves around Paul’s for leverage the—
    “What are you thinking about?” Trevor asked. His voice was hushed because they were so close together. When Trevor spoke, Paul could feel the words on his lips.
    His face heated. “Nothing.” Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Trevor’s hand reaching for him, then the backs of Trevor’s fingers stroked his cheek.
“Paul,” Trevor rasped.
    “We don’t even know each other anymore. How do you know I’m the same guy?”
Trevor slid his thumb across Paul’s cheekbone. “I know you more now than I did yesterday,” he said. “I still think you’re the same guy in the important ways.”
“What if you’ve idealized me, and you wouldn’t want a relationship with me now if you really knew me? Wouldn’t even want to . . .” Paul trailed off, meeting Trevor’s eyes. This close, the irises had little striations in them. Lines of gold that made them an almost luminous brown.
Trevor stroked Paul’s jaw with a fingertip, scratching his nail through Paul’s scruff. “I want to feel you rub this all over me,” he said. His eyes were unfocused, his pupils growing.
“Is that your answer?” Paul reached up to grab his hand, but somehow he just ended up holding it to his face.
Trevor focused on him again. “Don’t you ever just know something’s right? Intuitively, you know. I’m only asking for a chance to try, Paul.”
Paul dropped his hand. “I thought I knew once, about nine years ago. It didn’t work out that well for me.”
Trevor trailed his hand down from Paul’s face, down his neck and shoulder, across his chest to his heart. He stretched his fingers out, palm flat on Paul’s T-shirt. “I’m sorry.”
“You’ve said that already.”
Trevor sighed. “It’s all I’ve got. You know why I did it, and I can’t make excuses for acting that way.” He looked back at Paul. “All I can do is say I’m sorry.”
“Would you forgive you?”
Trevor gripped Paul’s pectoral muscle momentarily. “I’d forgive you.”
He didn’t know why, but he believed him.
“I can say I’m sorry,” Trevor said again. “And I can also say I think I’m still in l—”
Paul kissed him. He didn’t think he could hear that yet, but he was more than ready to kiss Trevor. Trevor’s lips were as chapped and rough as his were, and their kiss was dry, lasting only a couple of seconds.
It was enough. He pulled back and Trevor stared at him, breathing heavily, then reached to cup Paul’s face and leaned forward for another one. Paul felt a split-second of terror and panic, watching Trevor’s lips engulf his from under his eyelids, out of focus and filling his vision.
Trevor’s tongue twisted into his mouth and everything changed. His fear turned to something he might even call joy, and then Trevor’s weight against his mouth was forcing him back. Paul wrapped his arm around Trevor’s waist and fisted his T-shirt, pulling it off, interrupting the kiss long enough to yank it over Trevor’s head. Without breaking their kiss, Trevor used his hands to urge Paul to sit up in front of him, then clasped Paul’s head so tightly in his palms he couldn’t move as Trevor all but ate his mouth alive.
When he finally did back off, Paul’s head still held tightly in his hands, he gulped in air and just looked at him. Paul’s lips throbbed and even his teeth ached. He could feel the wind on his mouth, like it was