Take What You Want (63 page)

“
I
wanted to thank everyone for coming from various parts of the country
for this party,” Alex said into his microphone. He laughed at
the cheers, whistles and hand clapping that followed his statement.
“I know a few of you had wondered where I'd disappeared,”
Alex said. “Well, now you know, and I have to say, the change
of scenery, has done wonders for me.”

Danni came to stand beside
Chase; along with Allison and Jayson. Chase slid an arm around
Danni's waist and pulled her close to his side, then kissed her
forehead.

“
I
also want to thank Chase and Danni,” Alex said, finding them
embracing in the center of his gathered guests. His gaze softened
when he found them; emotion beginning to fill his eyes. “I
want to thank them for being the breath of fresh air I needed –
even more than I thought I needed it.”

Chase rubbed at Danni's
back. His chest tightened at Alex's words and Danni rolled into his
chest, seemingly trying to hide her face from the gawking eyes.
Chase gave Alex a wave and Alex continued to speak.

“
I've
written a bunch of new material since moving here,” Alex said.
“And, I want to share some of it with you tonight.” With
that introduction, Alex counted off the beat and brought in the band
to play their first song of the acoustic set.

Chase couldn't wipe the
smile from his face. He could also feel Danni's excited energy as
she bounced on her toes beside him. Watching Alex come to life
before them was nothing short of magical.

Ryan moved closer to Chase
and nudged him with his shoulder. “The look on your face right
now tells me you understand what its like watching these men turn
themselves on for an audience.”

“
It's
surreal,” Chase said.

“
It
is,” Ryan said. “I find it fascinating to see Alex
become Zander and Dagger … well, he just morphs into this
other crazy person that I find sexy as fucking hell.”

“
Do
you ever get jealous of the groupies when he's out on the road?”
Chase asked.

Ryan shook his head. “They
can flirt all they want – and he can, too, because I know he's
coming home with me.”

“
I
envy your confidence,” Chase said.

Ryan
chuckled. “That didn't happen overnight,” he said. “I'd
never been with a guy before Dagger, so in the beginning I had every
insecurity you could imagine. I kept waiting for Dagger to get
frustrated; bored, whatever, and dump me. His patience is just one
of many traits I love about him.”

“
It's
only been a few months for us,” Chase said. “So, who
knows what will happen.”

“
Can
I ask
you
a personal question?” Ryan asked, holding Chase's gaze.

“
Of
course,” Chase said.

“
Do
you love him?” Ryan asked.

Chase blinked several times
in quick succession and almost seemed to sway on his feet.

Ryan gripped his arm at the
bicep. “You don't have to answer that,” he said. “From
your reaction to the question I know the answer, and I'm also
guessing Zander doesn't know how you feel, either. Am I right?”

Chase nodded slowly and
visibly started to sweat. “Please don't say anything to Alex –
or Dagger.”

“
You
have my word,” Ryan said. “But, listen, I know what its
like to carry that around, Chase. Don't make the mistake of waiting
too long to tell him. Okay? Because, judging from the way he looks
at you and Danni, I'd say he feels the same way about the two of
you.”

“
Maybe,”
Chase said. “But, I'm just not sure how something like this
can work, you know, in the 'real world'; with him living on the West
Coast and us on the East Coast. And, what happens when he tours?”

Ryan
shrugged. “The touring part is easy. You either go on the
road with him or stay at home. That's when the trust factor comes
into play. Would you be open to relocating?”

“
I
don't know,” Chase said. “It's a lot to think about and
I'm not completely sure what it is he wants.”

“
The
good news is, you don't have to think about
all
of it right now,” Ryan said. “One day at a time. That's
all you need to worry about.”

“
Yeah,
you're right,” Chase said. “This thing with Alex is the
last thing I expected to happen. I think I'm still shell-shocked.”

Ryan laughed heartily. “I
know exactly what you mean,” he said. “Dagger was one of
many musicians I had interviewed in my career, yet, when it was over
and I walked away, I couldn't get him out of my head. Dagger is a
perceptive bastard and saw right through me, though. He patiently
watched me go through every stage of denial; shell-shocked being one
of them.” Ryan looked at Chase and grinned. “And, he
was ready and waiting when I … finally came to terms with what
I wanted.”

“
I
knew what I wanted before Alex,” Chase said. “I just
never had the balls to act on it.”

“
Leave
it to Zander to show you the light,” Ryan said.

“
I
bet you've got all kinds of Zander stories,” Chase said. “But,
whatever they are, it's probably best if I don't know them.”

Ryan
laughed again and shook his head. “I wouldn't go down that
road,” Ryan said. “That's up to Zander to talk about,
not me. What I
can
tell you is, neither me or Dagger slept with him. We're all friends
and nothing more.”

“
Well,
that's good to know,” Chase gave Ryan and uneasy smile. “I
was actually a little curious about that.”

“
I
figured as much,” Ryan said. “Dagger has a colorful past
and has shared a few of his stories with me, but for the most part, I
prefer not to know about it unless it directly effects me; like we're
about to have dinner with the guy or something.”

Around
them, guests began dancing in front of Alex's band; swaying together
on the slow songs and jumping wildly on the fast rockers. Toward the
end of the set, Dagger joined them. They busted out a couple of
classic songs from Dagger's band, Black Ice, then Dagger sang with
Alex on a few of Ivory Tower anthems, too. The whole set lasted
about thirty minutes and then Alex and the guys staggered away;
exhilarated and sweaty, and filtered out into the crowd.

Alex came up behind Danni
and surprised her, sliding his arms around her middle and pulling her
backside against his chest. She protested when she felt the sweat on
his body, but gave in to the kiss he offered. A moment later, he was
embracing Chase. They were standing in the middle of the patio with
dozens of people around them and a sliver of panic washed over Chase.

Alex felt Chase's back
stiffen and leaned back in the embrace. “Are you okay with me
hugging you like this with all these people around?” he asked.

Chase swallowed hard and
nodded. “It's a little weird, but I guess I need to get
comfortable with it.”

“
What
I'd really like to do is kiss you,” Alex said. “Think
you'd be cool with that?”

“
I
don't know,” Chase said, and nudged his nose to Alex's.
“Depends on what kind of kiss you're talking about.”

Alex brushed his lips
against Chase's. “A really hot kiss; with lots of tongue, and
sure to give you a boner. A kiss like this,” he said, sliding
his tongue between Chase's lips. He swirled his tongue around
Chase's and felt the vibration of his moan filter into his mouth.
“Hmmm, and I see this kiss is having the exact physical
reaction I was hoping for from you.”

“
You're
asking for trouble,” Chase said, leaning in for another kiss.

“
I
like this kind of trouble.”

“
I
know, and it's also your middle name, right?” Chase said.
“Alexander Trouble Metcalf.”

Alex tipped his hips forward
and pressed his growing erection into Chase's groin. “I can't
wait for this party to end so you, me, and Danni can go to bed.”

Chase
teased the shell of Alex's ear with his lips, then whispered, “I
plan on fucking you and Danni through the mattress tonight.”

Alex
made a strangled sound and grabbed Chase's ass cheek, just short of
causing pain. “That sounds like the perfect after-party to
me.”

“
Good.
Soon as the last guest leaves, your ass is mine,” Chase said.

“
Christ!
I love it when you get all assertive on me,” Alex said.
“Makes my dick stand at attention every time.”

Chase
chuckled and stepped back from Alex. “Easy there, big boy,”
Chase said. “Or someone's liable to trip over that thing.”

Alex growled and closed his
eyes, sucking in a long breath. It would take every ounce of
restraint he had not to drag Chase and Danni to bed before the last
of his guests left the estate. But, he'd do it, because he knew the
wait would be worth it.

Chase rolled out of bed and
walked into the master bathroom. He stepped up to the toilet and
relieved himself, then went to the sink to wash his face and brush
his teeth. Alex came up behind him and wrapped his warm, naked body
around Chase. Alex's fingers sifted through the soft hair covering
Chase's chest and kissed his shoulder.

Chase smiled around the
toothbrush he now permanently kept at Alex's, right beside Danni's.
He grabbed onto Alex's hands; holding them tight to his chest and
leaned over the sink to spit. He could feel Alex's cock stiffening
against his ass. The heat of it rubbing against him was making his
own cock rise.

“
I
see you're up,” Chase said, rinsing out his mouth with water.

“
Come
back to bed,” Alex said. “I want to play.”

Alex
skimmed two fingers through the dark line of hair that fed to Chase's
groin, then squeezed his intended target. Danni had left bed early
to go to work. It was her Saturday to open the Pilates Center and
she wouldn't be home for several more hours after teaching
back-to-back classes. Chase moaned at Alex's tight, back and forth
strokes on his hard length. Alex's other hand now cupped his balls;
gently rolling them around in his palm like dice.

Even though Alex and Danni
had been intimate without Chase involved, Alex and Chase hadn't
crossed that line without Danni there to watch and participate.
They'd all grown a lot closer since Alex's party a month ago, and it
certainly seemed the relationship had become secure enough for Alex
and Chase to be intimate without Danni, but Chase still wasn't sure
if she was ready for it.

It was the next natural step
for them to take wasn't it, with Chase loving Alex solo? And, that's
exactly what Chase wanted to do: love Alex by himself in that big
bed. The deeper meaning behind that action washed over Chase; nearly
buckling his knees.

He turned in Alex's embrace,
cupped Alex's face in his hands, and took his mouth; rubbing their
tongues together. Alex pinned Chase to the bathroom vanity; his arms
tightened around him, strong fingers massaged the muscles in Chase's
back, and their kiss deepened. Their cocks rocked together having a
silent dueling sword fight until Chase finally gave up the seal he
had on Alex's mouth.

“
We
should probably wait for Danni,” Chase said to Alex.

“
She
won't be home for hours,” Alex panted. “Do you really
want to wait that long?” Alex ground his erection against
Chase's to drive home his point.

“
I'm
not sure I can,” Chase said.