Plan B (8 page)

After about five minutes, I started shifting my weight from side to side. My footwear wasn’t exactly winter-friendly and my toes were starting to go as numb as my ears and nose. I did my best to cover my face with my mittens to block the wind. Rudolph was not a good look for me. I still hadn’t spotted Lance and was seriously contemplating heading back to the dorm, when a car horn sounded, grabbing my attention.

An older red Chevy, I think it was a Cavalier, had pulled to a stop. The passenger side window went down slowly, and I spotted Lance leaning across the seat. “Danny, c’mon, get in.”

He didn’t have to ask me twice. I’d already left my place in line and was heading for the car. Just as I got to it, the door was pushed open and I slid into the seat and slammed the door.

“Oh, thank God you showed up when you did. I was seriously debating whether another few minutes of waiting were worth freezing my nuts off.”

Lance chuckled and pulled away from the road. “Wouldn’t want that to happen.”

“Yeah, no shit,” I agreed, rolling up the window. Only then did I notice the smell of pizza sauce, sausage, and yeast. “You got pizza?”

“Yeah, I left class early thinking I’d be able to get a table.” He shrugged and turned on his blinker. “Guess everyone had that same idea. It was packed by eleven thirty, so I went and grabbed us a pizza.” He turned right at the next intersection.

“Nice recovery. I’m starving.”

Lance winked at me. “Then you’ll be glad to know I got a large.”

“This is where you’re taking me to lunch?” I questioned, as he pulled into the parking garage.

“Impressed, aren’t you?”

I gave him my best exasperated look and rolled my eyes. “Totally.”

“I knew you would be.”

Actually, I was impressed. I only had about fifty minutes before I had to be back in class and his thoughtfulness meant I wasn’t going to have to wait in line anywhere, or worse, go hungry for the next couple of hours.

He pulled into a deserted section of the garage and parked. He kept the car running, the heater on full blast, reached behind him, grabbed the pizza box, and opened it. I pulled off my mittens and grabbed a slice. “Thanks.”

“You’re welcome.”

We ate in silence for a couple of minutes. Lance’s table manners were not much better than at breakfast, and he shoved two slices into his mouth for each slice I ate. He’d also gotten us each a Coke and I washed down the last of my lunch before turning in my seat and facing him.

“Okay, so I take it back.”

“Take what back?”

“Not all jocks are meatheads. Lunch was great. What do I owe you?”

“Nothing. My treat.”

“I can’t—”

He waved me off. “I invited you. You can always get lunch next time.” He waggled his brows at me. “Or dinner.”

“Next time, huh?” I laughed. “Who said there would be a next time?”

“Well a guy can hope, can’t he?”

He turned in his seat to face me, back leaning against his door, as his eyes wandered from my face down my open coat to my lap. Each time we were together, Lance seemed to become a little bolder, like he was having the same difficulty I was hiding the attraction. When he reached my heeled boots, he licked his lips and his eyes were dark with desire—they really were dark this time and not just my vanity coloring them—when they once again met mine. “You look great.”

“For a guy who claims he’s never been with another guy, you sure seem comfortable checking one out.”

He shrugged.

“How old are you?”

He wasn’t expecting that question after his admission, as evidenced by the way he cocked his head and hesitated slightly. “Twenty-one. Why?”

“And you were nineteen when your buddies took you to the strip club?”

“Yes.”

“And in two years you’ve never once acted on your curiosity?”

He shook his head. “I….” He swallowed and shifted slightly in his seat. “I thought about it a couple of times. Even went to a gay club once.”

“And?”

“I didn’t go in. Just stood outside watching all these guys going in, hugging each other, kissing and….” He shifted nervously again. “It just didn’t feel right. After that, I started talking to this dude on the Internet and thought about hooking up with him. Went as far as to chat on the phone and set up a date, but I chickened out at the last minute.”

“Why do I have a hard time believing that?”

“I’m serious. It’s not like I know a lot of gay guys or get the chance to meet them between school, football, friends, and my family. Besides, I haven’t really been attracted to anyone like I was that stripper. Well, not until now.”

I wasn’t sure if I was flattered or pissed off at his admission. Did it mean he was actually attracted to women and thought I looked like a woman? It was my turn to shift in my seat. His eyes were heavy on me, my pulse increasing. My breath must have increased too, since the windows in the car were fogged up. I wanted him, so did I really care how he saw me? Hadn’t I intentionally added a more feminine touch to attract him?

“I’m going to assume since you keep showing up, I’m the ‘until now’?”

He didn’t answer, but he didn’t have to. I saw the answer in his eyes as he shifted and leaned across the car. I found myself meeting him halfway. The first press of lips was hesitant, cautious. It was as if he wasn’t sure he should be doing this, but then he licked at my bottom lip and the second I opened my mouth, all the hesitancy was gone. His hand went to the back of my head and pulled me toward him as his tongue plunged deep. A husky moan rumbled up out of him as I opened wide and let him explore and take the kiss where he needed it to go.

Lance had started out reluctant, but as the kiss went on, he became more aggressive, demanding. His hand tightened in my hair and forced my head to the side, and he continued to dominate my mouth. The clash of lips, teeth, and tongue was all-consuming, my toes curling, and shaft hardening in response.

I placed my hands on his shoulders, my fingers digging into the bulging muscles. Without warning, Lance released his hold on me and jerked back, eyes wide and wild as he stared at me. A strange expression crossed his face, one I couldn’t quite identify as I fought to get air back in my lungs.

“I shouldn’t be….” Lance sat back in his seat, eyes forward. His hand shook when he reached out and adjusted the flow of the heater so it was now blowing directly on the fogged-up windshield. “I gotta get to class.”

“You shouldn’t be what?”

He scrubbed his hands over his face, big chest heaving, looking all kinds of panicked.

What the hell? I knew he had been into the kiss. I had felt its intensity in every cell of my being. He pulled his coat around him, covered his lap, but not before I saw how hard he was. As I continued to stare at him, trying to figure out what had caused the sudden shift, he crossed one arm across his body, his hand going to his shoulder. He continued to stare at the defrosting window and rubbed at the spot where I had gripped him.

He continued to rub at the spot, a peculiar look on his face. I sat there watching him and I wanted to be pissed. The selfish part of me was in fact pretty riled. I hadn’t wanted the kiss to end. I wanted it to be the beginning of hot and horny fun. But the other part of me, the part that wasn’t quite so shallow, felt bad for Lance. The kiss had gone from hesitant to hot, growing in intensity until it had a sharp edge. I couldn’t help but think that on some level, Lance had known he was kissing a man, could tell how strong and raw it became as he began releasing the reins he kept on that powerful body. However, when he felt the strength in my grip, the other side of Lance, the part that society had created, came to the surface reminding him that what he was doing was wrong. It wasn’t that I could read his mind, but his statement “I shouldn’t be” was telling, and I was damn sure as I watched him struggle that the rest of the statement would have been
doing this
, if he’d continued. I shifted in my own seat and pulled the seat belt across me, fastening it. I hid the large bulge I was sporting beneath my coat. Lance was freaked out enough at the moment without me adding to it.

“Same here. If you’ll just drop me back off at the deli, I can walk from there.”

The sound of my voice must have jolted him from his thoughts, because he jumped then put the car in gear. “I can drop you off at your next class.”

I hid my disappointment and worked to keep my voice neutral. “If you could drop me off at the music library, I’d appreciate it.”

“Sure.”

The silence in the car was thick and uncomfortable as we made our way across campus. The only sound was the rush of the heater and the steady swoosh of the windshield wipers. The sky had opened up while we’d been in the parking garage, and the snow fell heavily in large white flakes. Winter had come early.

I stared out my window, watching the flakes as they swirled in the air, my thoughts consumed with what had just taken place between us. Lance had been the initiator of both kisses—yes, both kisses, as I was sure the kiss I had experienced the night before was real—yet I had the distinct feeling that I would have to be the aggressor if anything beyond kissing was to happen. I liked the dance between men. Feeling each other out, figuring out their preferences without coming outright and asking. I already knew Lance was curious, but exactly how far he was willing to go to satisfy his curiosity, I didn’t have a clue. I was also dying to know what was going on in his head, but I had no idea how to ask him. It wasn’t like I had a lot of experience with closeted guys. I just didn’t think
So that first male-on-male kiss really freaked you out, huh?
was the proper postkiss etiquette.

Lance dropped me off at the library, and as I climbed out, he called out my name at the last minute. I turned around to find him staring at me, his mouth partially open, and then he seemed to think better of what he was going to say, snapped it closed, and turned back to look out the front of the car, both hands gripping the steering wheel. “See you later,” was all he said.

“See ya.” I shut the door and he pulled away.

I was just stepping into the library when my cell phone chirped. I pulled off my mitten and flipped it open. I didn’t recognize the number but I knew who it was from the text.

Can I see you after practice?

Oh yeah! Definitely interested, which meant I still had a shot at hot and horny fun. I’d just have to take it slow, was all. I smiled and stuck my phone back in my pocket without responding.

I
IGNORED
Lance’s text on Monday, the two on Tuesday, as well as the multiple texts on Wednesday. I also had been particularly cranky, and not once in those three days had I shaved, worn anything that could be considered the least bit girlish, and I hadn’t applied so much as lip gloss. By Thursday morning, Bo was checking my forehead for signs of a temperature.

“Dude, I know you’re sick. You sure you don’t want me to cut class and take you to the clinic?”

“Shut up.” I scratched at the stubble on my jaw.

Christ, it itched. I was going to do some serious damage to my face if I wasn’t careful. As far as I’d fallen into macho mode, I hadn’t fallen so far that I hadn’t kept up my nails. Okay, I admit I’d also gone for a pedicure that week, but dammit, I needed some kind of pampering. I kept expecting Lance to show up, but as of yet he hadn’t, and my resolve was quickly crumbling.

“How many this morning?”

“None of your business.”

Lance had texted me twice, but I’d gotten smart and put my phone on silent any time Bo was around.

“Are you ever going to tell me what you two are fighting about?”

“We’re not fighting!”

“Lance keeps telling Katie the same thing. Do you have the hots for him?”

“Hell no,” I lied. “When have you ever known me to chase after straight guys? Men chase me, not the other way around.”

“From the amount of texts you’re getting, I’d say he was chasing you pretty hard. Which, come to think of it, is pretty weird.”

“You ever think it’s you he’s trying to keep tabs on?”

Bo slipped his coat on and moved to stand near the door. “What?” he said, hand on the doorknob. “Why the hell would he keep tabs on me?”

“You are dating his sister and he seems a little possessive.”

Bo paled. “You really think—”

“Yeah, I do. I know I’d be a little concerned if you were dating mine. I’d want to keep an eye on you.”

I obviously didn’t do a good job of hiding my amusement when Bo’s eyes narrowed and he walked out, flipping me off over his shoulder before he slammed the door shut.

God, he was so easy to sidetrack.

I scratched at my jaw again, the insistent itch driving me out of my head, and for what? Lance apparently wasn’t going to show up to find out why I wasn’t answering his texts. I admit I was acting a little high schoolish, but I guess I wanted to know how far he’d go to see me again. When he hadn’t come by on the third day, I’d told myself I didn’t care and wasn’t even sure I liked the son of a bitch beyond his physical attributes, so why should I care if he saw me as a man or a woman? To make matters worse, I looked like shit.