"Cool. Can I borrow more clothes and use your shower?" His voice is low, s.e.xy, and a thrum of excitement shoots through me.

"You're a needy b.a.s.t.a.r.d, aren't you?" But I push to my feet and head to my room. Levi's right behind me. I throw him a towel, a pair of sweats and a T-shirt, and then fall onto my bed as I wait for him to shower.

For the second time in my life, I'm going to have s.e.x with Levi Baxter. I mean, what else would he be staying for? Yeah, I know he doesn't want to go back to Palo Alto yet, but he's also made it clear he's interested in the friends-who-bone thing. I'm not sure either one of us will be able to pull off any kind of friendship with each other, but for tonight we'll have a little fun, forget about everything else, and this time when we walk away, we'll both be on the same page and know this is over.

The pipes are loud in the apartment so I listen to the clinking, clanking and running water for what feels like forever. Eventually there's a loud rumble that tells me Levi turned the water off. A few minutes later, he opens the door, crosses the hall and makes it into my room only wearing the sweats and holding the T-shirt in his hand. His wet, brown hair hangs over his forehead, making it so he's peering at me through the strands. It's s.e.xy as h.e.l.l. Heat p.r.i.c.kles on my skin as I watch him run a hand through it, pushing it back.

"You're eyeing me like you're ready to jump my bones at any second." He c.o.c.ks a brow at me because he knows I want him, but he also knows I've been trying to ignore it. Yeah, he really sucks right now. "Should I go raid Xavier's room for the pre-bang kit?"

I feel the smile deep inside me before it makes an appearance on my face. d.a.m.n him for making me like being around him. That's not usually something I have to deal with from people in my life. "Shut up and come here."

With his foot, he pushes the door closed, a loud bang echoing through the apartment. "Why don't you ask me nicely?"

I sit up so I'm on the edge of the bed. I wrack my brain trying to think of something creative to say, but it turns out my brain has, for real, turned off, so I listen to my erection and say, "Please come here, Levi."

He drops the shirt and walks over, stopping right in front of me. He smells like soap, my soap, the stuff I stocked up on because he liked it. Levi was right. It smells good on someone else's skin. Leaning forward, I lick at his flat stomach, running my tongue over the flesh at the edge of the sweats.

"I bought more of this stupid soap because of you," I say. "Now I see what you meant. I love the way it smells on you."

"I like it when you're h.o.r.n.y. You admit stuff you wouldn't say otherwise."

d.a.m.n it, he's right. Ignoring that, I kiss his abs, keeping my mouth busy with tasting instead of talking. I run my hand up the back of his legs, palm his a.s.s, and then dip my hands under the sweats to pull them off. Levi grabs my face, tilting it up so I'm looking at him. "No. You got to taste me last time. It's my turn to have my mouth on you."

Brain still off, c.o.c.k running the show, I lean back and wait. There's not a chance in h.e.l.l I'm turning down that offer.

CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO.

I'm embarra.s.sed to admit my pulse is going crazy as Levi kneels in front me. It's not the typical I'm-about-to-get-head excitement. It's more like the Levi-Baxter-is-on-his-knees-for-me kind.

He's beautiful. He's always been beautiful, but in this moment, wet hair in his face as he works the b.u.t.ton and zipper on my jeans, he's f.u.c.king incredible.

"Lift up." He swats my leg and I obey him so he can pull down my pants and underwear.

He runs his hands up my bare thighs, and I feel every little wrinkle of his pruned fingers against my sensitive flesh.

"Can I say your skin looks like caramel if I follow with a chaser of, 'And I want to lick it up'?"

Laughter bubbles up from deep in my gut. "Holy s.h.i.t, you are such an idiot."

"I make you laugh, though."

I hiss when he wraps a hand around me and strokes. "No...surprise...there." He pauses and I finish with, "You've always been funny," before he pumps his hand again.

"Have I? I thought I lost it. Or at least lost being genuine about it and not just playing a role. It feels real again."

Levi doesn't give me time to dissect what he said (not that I want to), before he sucks me deep. A moan pushes past my lips as I sink into the wet cavern of his mouth. He uses his hand at the same time, stroking, licking and sucking like his life depends on it. He's good, like he could win the d.i.c.k-sucking World Series if there was one. I plunder deep into his mouth, and as I do, he looks up at me through thick lashes, coaxing a strangled moan out of me.

Heat plunges through me, burning my whole body as I savor the feel of his mouth on me, as I tangle my hand in his hair and guide him. Levi groans around me, sending a vibration through me, and it's almost enough to end this before I'm ready. I pull him off and take his mouth with mine.

Our tongues tangle, duel, fight to possess each other's mouths. He tastes like toothpaste. There's a light layer of sweat on his body now, we're making each other so hot. At least I'd like to think I'm making him as wild as he's making me.

I stand up and Levi follows, our mouths still attached. I finish kicking out of my pants as I push his sweats down and out of the way. He rubs against me, his hardness on mine as I squeeze his tight cheeks, pulling him closer.

"Shirt off," he says against my mouth, so I pull away. Levi wraps a hand around both of us, stroking as I rip my shirt over my head.

"That feels good." I shudder, thrust forward, delirious with need.

"It'll feel better in a minute. I can't believe how crazy you make me."

I choose to ignore the part about him not being able to believe he wants me. We fall to the bed, laughing and kissing. I've never really laughed when I was messing around with someone before. It makes all the good stuff I'm feeling even better.

Our bodies are aligned, me on top of him. He's holding onto my a.s.s now as I writhe against him, my tongue deep in his mouth. Pulling back, my lips make a trail down to his neck, and I lave his Adam's apple with my tongue.

"We doing this or not?" He's breathless and I love that I'm making him that way. He's making me the same.

"We are doing it. You want more?"

"I want more," he replies. There's not a chance I'm making him wait. I knock a cup off my bedside table, trying to get into the drawer. Water spills everywhere and Levi laughs. "See? You're clumsy when you're h.o.r.n.y."

He squeezes me, kneads my globes. "And you're c.o.c.ky all the time." Finally my hand wraps around a small bottle, and then a small square package. "Found it. Thank f.u.c.k. I thought I was going to have to keep listening to you gloat."

I slide off him, open the condom and roll it down.

"You like me. Don't pretend you don't," he says.

And he's right. That doesn't mean I'm going to admit it. "No I don't."

"Yes you do."

"Why do you like arguing with me so much?" I ask, but that light feeling in my chest is expanding, growing and swelling so much it makes it hard to breathe, because I like it, too.

"Because it's fun. You're fun. You stopped moving."

"Bossy." I roll him to the side, so his back is to me. Levi bends his top leg in front of him, as I lube my fingers, then myself, before rubbing more lube on him.

The second I push in, I almost lose it and come all over the place. He's a hot, tight cave that I want to live inside. Holding still, I bite the tendon that runs along his neck to keep from embarra.s.sing myself.

When I'm finally under control, I pull out before thrusting forward again. His body is hugging me, so hot and tight. "d.a.m.n you feel good."

"You too." Levi grabs my hand and puts it on his d.i.c.k. "Now take me, Toby."

And I do. Hard. Sweat beads on my forehead, rolls into my eyes and drops down to Levi's neck. Each time I pump my hips, I jerk him off. He's thrusting into my hand and onto my rod at the same time.

It doesn't take long before I begin to feel the familiar burn and tingle. Just as soon as he covers my hand in hot, thick, fluid, I let go, slamming into him as I ride out the best o.r.g.a.s.m of my life.

I pull out of him, panting. He has an arm thrown over his face. His spent, flaccid c.o.c.k rests against his stomach. As I look at him I suddenly feel like I'm choking. Like I can't breathe. I've again had hot, filthy s.e.xy with gorgeous golden boy, Levi Baxter. There's come all over the place, and everything about this, about him feels so d.a.m.n good that I'm not sure how to handle it. "I'll be right back. I'll get something to clean up."

"Huh. Why would you do that? Being messy is the best part." He rolls toward me, throwing a leg over me.

And he's totally right. "You're dirty."

"Dirty is good."

He's right about that, too.

Seems like at least an hour pa.s.ses as we lie here awake. We don't speak but I swear I hear a quiet whispering happening between us, a soft mumble in the room as our thoughts run through us and make their way into each other.

I can't hear his words, but I know they're there.

"I'm afraid of my dad," Levi suddenly says. "Not because I think he would ever physically hurt us, but because..."

He doesn't finish the sentence. I nod to show him I understand. "I used to wish he was my dad," I admit. "I was afraid of him, too, but I liked that in a way. He's strong and puts out the aura that he knows everything, that there's nothing he can't do." Which is so different than the way I see my dad. People don't f.u.c.k with Dr. Baxter. They do what he says. They respect him.

My dad doesn't respect himself.

Levi respects his dad so much, he puts his dad's happiness over his own.

Levi reaches for my hand. When I take it and squeeze his fingers, he says, "I failed a biology test my junior year in high school. I was scared s.h.i.tless to bring it home. I didn't want to let him down, ya know? I begged the teacher to let me retake it and she said no. I puked on my way home, vomited because of a f.u.c.king test, man."

My own stomach clenches up hearing him speak about it. It's not something I ever would have expected out of him. So much of Levi's behavior seems to be so different than what I've always thought.

"I made sure to go home when I knew Chris wasn't there. I knew dad would freak and I was embarra.s.sed because I don't get F's. That's not me."

He shifts on the bed and then I ask, "What happened?"

"He lost it. He was disappointed in me. He knew I was better than that, as though one F meant I'd be a failure my whole life. One call from him and my teacher let me retake that test, though. She couldn't say no to him, and I couldn't fail."

I get now what Levi's saying... We're not just talking about that test from years ago. We're talking about his life now.

He can't fail and his dad always wins.

CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE.

It's grey and foggy when I wake up Monday morning. Looking out the window, the wetness in the air is obvious. My bones feel the weather like I'm sixty-one instead of twenty-one. Or h.e.l.l, maybe not. Maybe I'm just looking for an excuse to stay under the covers instead of getting up. They smell like Levi and s.e.x. I had him twice again yesterday before he left-once with me inside him and the second time with him in my mouth.

Pulling the blanket over my head, I breathe in, savoring the warmth; but then my cell starts beeping again and I know I have to get up and get my a.s.s to school. I head straight for the shower. My mind runs over the weekend while hot water flows over my skin. We spent yesterday watching movies and playing video games between stints of touching each other in my room, all so Levi could stall and not head back to Palo Alto, as though staying away means he isn't really in his second year of med school.

The f.u.c.ked-up part of the whole situation is that I enjoyed it way more than I should have. I enjoy Levi in a different way than I ever have and I don't mean just because I've had my d.i.c.k inside him and his mouth around me.

The pipes make their typical banging and clanking sounds as I turn off the water and get out. I shave real quick, brush my teeth and get dressed before heading back to my room to pack up all my s.h.i.t.

There's a glow from the living room in an otherwise dark apartment, and when I get there, Xavier's sitting on the couch playing a game with the volume muted. "Sucks to be you. I haven't even gone to bed yet and you're already heading out."

"We can't all spend our time blowing s.h.i.t up."

"Jealous?" Xavier c.o.c.ks his head and grins at me, laughter in his ice-blue eyes.

"So jealous I can hardly stand it."

He tosses the controller to the couch, the tunnel of light from the TV helping me see him. Eyeliner's smeared under his eyes, giving them smoky shadows. "So your dude finally left last night?"

s.h.i.t. I should have known he'd go there. "He's not mine. He's just an old friend who's dealing with some stuff. He doesn't want to face his future and it's like he thinks hanging out with me will keep him in the past."

"Whatever you say. If he needs a distraction and you're not around, tell him to give me a call."

Tightness spreads through my chest, makes my muscles go rigid.

"See? You don't like that thought, do you? Just keeping it real. This is cool. Now that you spent the weekend getting a.s.s, we're getting closer. It's almost like we're friends instead of just roommates."

Yeah if friends talk about wanting to hook up with the same person their friend is s.c.r.e.w.i.n.g. Not that it should matter. Levi and Xavier have a right to do whoever they want. And spending the weekend with Levi didn't change that. "You're crazy. We're still not friends."

Xavier laughs and shakes his head. "I think we are. I just might be getting a handle on you. Wanna chat and help me paint my nails tonight?"

Heading toward the door, I glance over my shoulder at him. "You're an idiot."

"I'm serious, dude. It's chipping and I have a hard time doing my left hand."

It's a legit excuse, but still not something I'm doing. "I work tonight. You're on your own." The door closes a little harder than I mean for it to and the echo feels as though it's vibrating through me. The friend comment bounces around inside me, making that emptiness grow.

No, Xavier and I don't sit around and talk or really hang out much, but we're cool. He makes it sound as though I'm this closed-off douchebag, yet after a weekend of s.e.x, I've suddenly changed.

He's crazy.

Only, he's not the only one who's basically told me I keep a fortress between myself and others. Cherise and Brian obviously feel the same way.

All morning I try to sort through the thoughts crowding my brain. Who cares if I have a lot of close friends? I'm not closed off. My dad is closed off. I do things besides go to school. I meet people, hang out with people, enjoy people. Sure, I may not be an open book, but I'm not the guy who doesn't know how to relate either.

My third and last cla.s.s of the day I have with Cherise. She steps up beside me as I'm walking from the lecture hall. She opens her mouth to say something, but words suddenly fall out of mine before she gets the chance. "Wanna grab a coffee or something with me? I can get to the coffeehouse a little before I have to clock in."

See? Screw Xavier. I chill with people just as much as the next guy.

"Um...sure. Where did that come from?"

Dude. "What do you mean where did it come from? It's a simple question."

Cherise's brows pull together. "A simple question you've never asked me. I'm just a little surprised, but sure. Let me text Brian and tell him. Which one will we be at?"