“SHOT! SHOT! SHOT!” the crowd shouted as the bartenders poured liquor into tiny cups to pass around the room. As the last of the partygoers were given theirs, I hopped on top of the bar along with East.
“All right, you fuckers—” East started, but I clamped a hand over his mouth, glancing down to where JT stood below, his brown eyes dancing and a wide grin on his face. He was feeling niiice and happy, and seemed to be having a blast so far. I was on a mission to keep it that way.
The DJ lowered the music just enough that my voice could be heard around the room. “Thanks for coming to our annual ‘Welcome back to Astor’ party—”
“Coming? I don’t see anyone fucking coming yet,” East grumbled, sloshing his shot over the edge of the cup as he scanned the room, a pout on his lips. “I expected more debauchery, dammit.”
I laughed along with the partygoers, gripping my friend’s shoulder to help keep him steady. Couldn’t have him falling off the damn bar at his own party.
“The night is young,” I assured him, shooting a wink out into the crowd before my gaze landed back on JT. A few of his curls were stuck to the sweat on the side of his neck and face, and fuck me, he looked hot. Especially in that navy button-down shirt I wanted to undo, and a pair of ripped jeans that had tears in places that were practically indecent.
Bet or no bet, I wanted to put my hands all over him, but more than that? I wanted him to enjoy it.
I lifted my shot at him and then managed to force my eyes up. “On behalf of myself and East, we expect you to clean us out of every drop of alcohol in this place.” A roar of approval rose, and I grinned. “See? We’re nothing if not generous. And if anyone tells you different, they’re fucking liars.”
“Less talking, more drinking,” East said, slinging his arm around my shoulders. “To you, to me, to the bruises on your knees.”
The crowd whooped and threw back their shots, East and me along with them, and then I hopped back down from the bar beside JT and his ever-present shadow Caleb. Luckily, the guy wasn’t too bad once you got a few drinks in him, but he was still in my damn way.
“Nicely done,” Caleb remarked, flagging down the bartender for another beer.
That happy, tipsy little grin on JT’s face told me he was feeling just the right side of good without crossing the line into too much. I couldn’t help myself, though. I had to reach out and push one of the curls sticking to his skin back behind his ear. The strands were soft and damp, and I wanted to spear my fingers through his hair, angle his mouth to mine, and see if he tasted as sweet as I thought he would.
“I know, I’m all sweaty,” he said.
Like that wasn’t something that was driving me out of my mind, with or without the alcohol flowing through my veins.
“You’re not the only one,” I said, feeling a trickle down the back of my neck. “All that body heat. Don’t be surprised if clothes start coming off…”
“Yours?” he asked, and though he’d probably meant that innocently enough, that one word shot straight to my dick. It stirred impatiently behind the confinement of my boxer briefs, and it was all I could do to ignore it.
Or die trying.
“That wasn’t you issuing me a challenge, now was it, JT?” I teased. “I can never resist those.”
“No one wants to see that,” Caleb said, but I didn’t bother looking his way. I hadn’t been talking to him.
JT held my gaze. “I dunno, you seem to let others undress you without a challenge, so I’m not sure you need one.”
Now that had my curiosity spiking. “Do I?”
“Yeah, like at the concert. You let that guy unbutton your shirt.” He gestured toward the one I was wearing—still wearing, for now—and shrugged.
My smile turned feral. “Jealous? There’s no buttons here, but if you want it off, you can just take it off.”
I waited for the shocked expression, the quick denial, but JT gave me a relaxed once-over that made my impatient cock start to ache.
“I wouldn’t want to cause a riot in your condo. Seems like it would be expensive to fix.”
That wasn’t a no, was it?
I leaned in by his ear and breathed in the salty scent of his skin mixed with whatever cologne he’d sprayed on tonight. While I knew it wasn’t anything designer or outrageously expensive, the impact was priceless—my dick went from a delicious ache to an insistent throb.
“Don’t forget, I’m rich, Golden Boy. You want to take my clothes off and cause a riot, I’m not gonna stop you.”
JT laughed, another sign he was feeling the buzz of the alcohol. “You’re crazy.”
I fucking was, because all thoughts of bets and dream vacations vanished in that moment until all I could think about was how gorgeous he looked smiling up at me like that. But I had to tread lightly here. I didn’t want to spook the guy, and Caleb… Caleb was still lingering.
Luckily, though, I knew a fast way to make Caleb want to get gone.
“So, Caleb.” I picked up the drink the bartender had just set down for me—I loved that I never had to ask. “You look less likely to murder anyone right now. You sort shit out with Travis?”
Right on cue, Caleb’s relaxed posture turned rigid and he glared in my direction.
What can I say? I never claimed to be a saint.
“What do you think?”
I shrugged and took a sip of my drink. “I don’t know, but it seems like you might’ve kissed and made up. So I’m just asking.”
“You’re being fucking nosy, is what you’re being.”
I was, but when he put his beer bottle down on the bar and turned to tell JT he’d be right back, I almost patted myself on the shoulder. If there was one thing Caleb avoided like the plague, it was anything to do with Travis—talk or interacting in general. So the fact he’d been around when I invited JT tonight was kind of a happy accident. Not only had it meant JT felt comfortable enough to come to the party, it was also a surefire way to make Caleb disappear whenever I wanted him to. I knew his triggers, and I wasn’t above using them.
“Speaking of being a sweaty mess, you feel like getting some air with me?” I suggested as Caleb disappeared through the crowd.
“Sure.” JT nodded and put his empty shot down on the bar. “Have you got a balcony?” He looked around the crowded living and dining space.
“No, but I’ve got something even better. Come on.” I brushed past him and headed into the dancing crowd that immediately parted, then glanced over my shoulder to make sure JT was following as we made our way through the gyrating guests toward the front door.
When we stepped out into the hallway, I pulled my key card from my back pocket and flashed it under the elevator keypad.
“That thing is so cool.” JT leaned in close to me—much closer than he probably would have if he was sober—and looked at the small screen that lit up. “How does it know where to go? There’s no buttons inside. We just…arrived.”
I smirked, then punched in a code. “It’s magic.”
The elevator door opened, and I ushered him inside then leaned against the back wall and slipped my hands in my pockets as JT looked around the interior for some kind of panel—there wasn’t one.
“Wow.” He ran his hand over the golden pattern of the wall. “It was packed in here earlier, so I couldn’t really see, but there really aren’t any buttons.”
“Nope. No buttons.”
He turned to face me, his eyes sparkling with delight. “So it really is like magic.”
“I told you.”
A grin lit up his features, and it took every ounce of restraint I had not to grab him.
“That fits you.” He nodded as his eyes wandered up and around the elevator car, and I couldn’t help but notice the sharp angle of his jaw and the light stubble covering it.
“It does?”
He brought his smiling eyes back to mine. “Magic exists in fairytales. Don’t you know that, Mr. Park Avenue Prince?”
The elevator came to a stop, and as the doors opened I pushed off the back wall. “So do castles.” I winked at him. “So come look at the view from the top of mine.”
I stepped around him, again careful to let this be his choice, to let JT be the one to decide whether he wanted to hang out with me or head back to find Caleb.
“Where are we?” JT’s voice filled the empty corridor I led him down, my key card in hand. When I reached the door, I glanced over my shoulder and waggled my brows.
“Come and find out.” I scanned my card under another keypad, and when the door swung open, JT’s eyes widened.
“Magic…”
I chuckled as he stepped outside and saw the view of the Chrysler Building and Manhattan’s skyline.
“Holy shit. This is… This is…”
“Indescribable?”
JT looked over his shoulder at me. “Pretty much. Jesus. Who lives like this?”
I arched a brow. “A prince.”
He scoffed and glanced back at the rooftop patio that was decked out with top-of-the-line outdoor furniture, including lounges, couches, chairs, and tables, not to mention several hanging seats that were suspended from the wooden rungs of the overhead awning. Potted plants and vines grew in lush precision up trellises. There were heaters and firepits for the winters and fans and misters for the summers, and along one side of the roof was an infinity pool that was exclusive for the guests.
But none of that interested me half as much as the man standing directly in front of me.
I gestured to the rail. “Want a closer look?”
“Um, yeah.”
“One sec.”
I jogged over to the bar that I knew was fully stocked, and grabbed a bottle of bourbon and some ice in a couple of tumblers. I at least knew JT liked this better than a shit bottle of beer.
He took the glass I offered and followed me to the railing, a thick wall of concrete that reached my chest. I swallowed down a bit of bourbon as I leaned against it, looking out over the city. The view never failed to impress, but tonight I imagined seeing it through JT’s eyes for the first time.
“Do you ever get tired of looking at this?” he asked, as if he could read my mind.
I shook my head. “No, but it changes.”
“How so?”
“Just becomes more familiar. More of a… I don’t know. Comfort somehow.”
“Must be nice to have the Chrysler Building to keep you feeling all warm and fuzzy.” JT winked—yes, winked—as he lifted his drink to his mouth.
My gaze dropped to his lips wrapping around the edge of the glass. So soft, so decadent. I wanted them on my own with a hunger that practically devoured me whole.
Fuck, I wasn’t used to having to handle myself with so much restraint. Then again, most of the people who ended up in my bed were pursuing me. It didn’t take much to have them down on their knees for me.
All this anticipation had me keenly aware of things I probably wouldn’t have noticed before. Like the proximity of JT’s body to mine, so close as we stood side by side that his arm rested against me.
As the bourbon hit JT’s tongue, his eyes widened slightly. “That’s strong.”
“Oh?” I leaned in a little. “Too strong?”
He cocked his head at me. “Nothing I can’t handle.”
That look in his eyes was a goddamn beacon, the words he uttered feeling too much like a double entendre.
“You sure about that?”
“Yeah. Apparently I like what you like now.”
Fuuuck. “We still talkin’ about the bourbon here, JT?” I said, dropping my voice low.
A heartbeat passed. Then two. When he didn’t answer by the third, I inched toward him, like his lips were a magnet mine were drawn to.
But JT didn’t move. Didn’t blink. He just watched me as I leaned in and swept my mouth against his in a light caress.
Will he stay or will he go…
I waited for what was happening to sink in, for him to push me away. But when all I felt was the gentle exhale of his breath, that was all the permission I needed. I moved in, taking his lips with mine, but kept my hands to myself. For now.
I kissed him slowly. Those pouty lips were just as smooth and pillowed as I’d imagined. Nothing too rough or eager, though, nothing that would scare him off. Slow and exploring was the right speed, not my usual hit and run.
I slipped my tongue out to tease the seam of his lips, testing to see just how far he’d let me go, and JT put his hand to my chest and gave a gentle push. The heat from his palm scorched through my shirt, but as I raised my head and stared at his wide-eyed expression, I noted he’d yet to remove his hand.
Interesting…
I trailed my eyes over his windswept curls and flushed cheeks. I noticed they were a little pinker now, and if I were a betting man—which was one of the reasons I was here—that color had more to do with me than the alcohol. He sure was something to look at, and when those eyes dropped back to my mouth there was no way I wasn’t going to push my advantage.
“So, JT, you still liking what I’m liking?”
