Eric’s leaned back on his heels and looked up at me with sad, wide eyes. “Do you really think that’s all you are?” he asked as he ran his hands down my calves. By the way he watched me, waiting for me to say something in response, I wasn’t sure he even knew what he was doing.

“Uh, yeah,” I responded sarcastically. “Probably because it’s the truth.”

Eric curled his fingers around the footboard to pull himself closer to me. His hands finally came to rest on my hips. He was so close, too close. “If we’d been having this conversation a year ago, then yeah, you would’ve been that kid. But now, I’d like to think we’re friends at the very least,” he admitted. “Although, I’ve got to tell you, helping a friend has never been as hard on me as it was last night.”

My dick twitched and I wondered if he felt the same spark of attraction I’d felt. I reached out and cupped his cheek when he smiled up at me. I ran my hand over the stubble on his jaw, inhaling deeply because I fucking loved the way he smelled. “Yeah, we’re friends,” I assured him. I bit my tongue to keep from asking him why he’d pushed me away if he felt the same as I did. “Then again, I don’t make a habit of asking my friends to help me out in the shower, and I can’t guarantee you I won’t be yelling for you every night.”

“Fuck,” Eric groaned. “Well, then you should know I’m only human. There’s no way I can promise you that I’ll be able to keep my hands from exploring if I’m going to be forced to clean you every night.”

I glanced over to the door, praying no one walked in. It felt as though we’d reached some sort of turning point, and I wanted to see where this conversation led. We could never be everything to one another, but we sure as hell could see how much sex we could have between now and February. “That’s fine by me,” I promised Eric. “As long as you don’t plan on wearing your shorts every night.”

I spread my legs further as I inched toward the end of the bed. Eric looked down and noticed the way my cock was trying to break the zipper on my jeans.

“I want you, Eric.” I was so hard, I didn’t give a shit if I had to beg him. I wanted him to be the one to give me what I needed. “Please. I’m not asking you because my head’s fucked up from the drugs. I’m not asking you out of desperation because of what happened to me. I’ve wanted you for a while, but I didn’t know how to tell you.”

He quirked an eyebrow and I nodded, biting my lower lip to keep from begging him to do something. The muscles in my stomach tensed as Eric popped the button.

“Lay back,” he suggested as he ran his hand from my waist up to my shoulder, easing me down to the mattress. I tried to prop myself up on my elbows, but the position sent sharp, almost nauseating pain through my torso, so I laid back and allowed myself to simply feel what Eric was doing to my body. “You sure you’re okay with this? I don’t want to hurt you.”

The compassion was touching, but I was going out of my mind. His concern was touching, but I needed this. I needed him to be the one person who didn’t act as though I was fragile. “Eric, if you don’t shut the fuck up and do something, I’m going to shut you up,” I warned him. He chuckled as he muttered something about me being a moody bastard. My hips bucked off the bed as Eric’s calloused hand wrapped around my length.

“Is that better?” he asked teasingly. I groaned, then bit back a moan when the pointed tip of Eric’s tongue dipped into my slit.

“Fuck yes,” I ground out, trying to keep from writhing in pleasure when he sucked my tip into his mouth. “God, don’t stop.”

Eric tugged at the waistband of my jeans and I lifted enough for him to pull them lower on my hips. His fingernails dug into my skin and I smiled at the idea of having marks on my body from something other than getting the shit kicked out of me. I felt his plump lips wrap around me again and it was impossible to resist the urge to thrust into his mouth. He groaned around me as he took me to the back of his throat then swallowed.

There was nothing sweet or intimate about the way I fucked his mouth. Eric took everything I gave him and dug his fingers into my ass as if begging me to give him even more. A sheen of sweat coated my body, and I fisted the sheets as I felt his middle finger shove between my ass cheeks. He taunted my hole, never breaching my entrance as he sucked my cock hard and fast.

Even if I’d have wanted to, there was no way I could stop my orgasm as it crashed through my body. I tried to push Eric away, but he sucked harder and faster, swallowing every drop of my cum. By the time he stood up and moved onto the bed next to me, both of us were struggling to catch our breath. I ran the tip of my index finger over his swollen lips and my eyes rolled back in my head as he sucked that into his mouth as well.

“God, I’d have thought you’d have gotten enough already,” I teased.

“I’m just getting started,” he quipped after releasing my finger. “Fuck, if I’d have known you wouldn’t get pissed, I’d have done this a long time ago.”

If there was one thing I’d learned from last night, it was that life’s way too fucking short for regrets. Yeah, it would have been much more entertaining to stay here last winter, fucking and getting fucked, but nothing either of us could do would change that. On the other hand, now that I knew what the man was capable of, I had every intention of exploiting his mouth again very soon.

I couldn’t bring myself to go so far as to tell Eric that I wanted to do this again, but I think he knew. We laid there together, him running his fingers through my hair as I waited for my heartbeat to slow to something more reasonable. I knew I was going to be sore when I tried to get up, but it was worth it to know I wasn’t working my way into a full-blown crush on yet another man who’d never reciprocate. The sound of someone pounding on my bedroom door interrupted me from basking in the afterglow of an amazing orgasm.

“Yeah?” I yelled, choking back a laugh as I watched Eric get to work trying to dress me once again. This time, I didn’t bother to tell him that I could manage on my own. I was beginning to see the benefit of needing help with certain tasks, especially if it led to more hot times with Eric.

“If you’re about done in there, you have company,” Jason informed me. My cheeks heated so much I was sure they were beet red. I threw my good arm over my face, mortified by the thought that I may not have been as quiet as I’d thought. If my parents had heard what was going on, I might be forced to walk down to the beach and throw myself into Lake Michigan.

“Do you think he knows?” I asked.

Eric shrugged. “Would you give a shit if he does?”

“I guess not,” I conceded. “But if he knows, then so does whoever else is out there. And I don’t know about you, but I’m not quite ready to profess my undying love and devotion.”

“Gee, you really know how to make a guy feel special,” Eric huffed. That made me remember Jason’s warning from yesterday. I reached out to Eric, hoping to ease his mind. It wasn’t that I couldn’t possibly, someday in the distant future, have feelings for someone like him, but it wasn’t going to be today, or this month, or even this year. “It’s okay Drew, I was giving you a hard time.”

“In case you haven’t heard, I’m recovering from some rather serious injuries,” I scolded him. “I’m pretty sure the doctors in charge of my care wouldn’t appreciate knowing that you have no problem trying to freak me the hell out. If my blood pressure goes up, it’s all your fault.”

This time, Eric barked out a hearty laugh as he wrapped his arm around my waist. “Babe, there’s no doubt in my mind that your blood pressure is high right now, but it’s not because of anything I said. I’m pretty sure that has everything to do with the fact that I just blew your mind in more ways than one.”