his lip. “Are you kidding me?” He pulled Joel through the crowd to the side of the room where there were fewer people dancing, then looked Joel up and down, a lingering glance that got Joel’s pulse climbing. “Honey, I would climb you like a tree in a heartbeat, but that would be wrong.”
“Why?” Not that Joel was unhappy about Seb’s reluctance to make a move on him, but he was puzzled.
“Because I love Finn like a brother, and I wouldn’t do that to him.” When Joel frowned in confusion, Seb sighed. Gone was the flirtatious manner, replaced by a serious expression that made Joel’s chest tighten. “You don’t sow seed in another man’s garden, okay?”
“Excuse me?”
That got him another sigh. “Finn likes you, so you’re out of bounds.”
Joel gaped at him. “But… me and Finn… we’re… we’re not together. He brought me here tonight because I’ve never been to a gay bar, and he thought I might need some support. That’s all.” His heart pounded.
Seb arched his eyebrows. “Okay, you go right on believing that.”
And what the fuck does that mean?
Seb took a deep breath. “The only reason I’m talking to you like this, is because we have something in common.”
“And what’s that?”
He looked Joel in the eye. “Finn. Not that he means the same to both of us. Like I said, I love him like a brother, but I’m pretty damn sure you don’t want to be his brother.” Seb raised his eyes. “Well? Am I right?”
Warmth flooded through Joel, and his dry mouth was suddenly dry no longer. His breathing quickened and he shivered.
“I guess I have my answer. And just so you know?” Seb gave a slow smile. “I’m not the only one who prefers older guys.”
Holy fuck.
“Am I interrupting something?”
Finn’s voice broke through, startling him. Joel swallowed. “Not at all. Seb and I were just… talking.”
Seb smiled. “And now you’re back, I’m gonna try my luck with that daddy over there.” He kissed Finn’s cheek. “Have fun.” For a moment, his gaze met Joel’s. “You too.” And with that, he danced his way into the middle of the crowded floor.
“Wanna dance some more?” Finn asked.
Joel nodded, his mind in a whirl. For the first time since he’d met Finn, he entertained the idea that something happening between them was not as unlikely as he’d thought. Then the music changed again, to a song with a good beat that was impossible not to dance to.
Finn shifted closer. “I don’t bite, y’know.”
Joel’s heart rate climbed. “Is that a promise?” He seized his courage and closed the gap between them a little more, until they were dancing scant inches apart.
Finn widened his eyes. “Unless you happen to like biting, of course.”
“Not my thing,” Joel said with a grin. Rihanna was assuring the men dancing that she was the only one who understood how to make them feel like a man, and instead of letting the song wash over him, Joel listened. He moved as sensually as he knew how, in sync with Finn, the two of them locked into a fragile moment that felt as though it would shatter if they so much as breathed wrong.
Finn didn’t look away, but focused on Joel, lip-syncing as they moved to the music. The beat was pumping and yet more heat surged through Joel’s body when Finn sang, their gazes locked as he told him he could come inside.
Joel didn’t break eye contact, his breathing erratic, his heart hammering.
And when Finn shifted closer still, inviting Joel to take him for a ride, Joel knew beyond a shadow of a doubt what kind of ride he had in mind.
Make it last all night, Finn mouthed, and Lord, Joel wanted that. He wanted to have Finn’s body against his, to feel every motion, every undulation. And the more Rihanna sang, the more convinced Joel became that the song had nothing to do with being the only girl in the world, and everything to do with getting down and dirty.
Joel could so do down and dirty right then.
When Rihanna faded into a much slower song that Joel didn’t recognize, his heart soared as Finn closed the gap between them.
“I don’t know who this is,” Joel confessed, aware that he was trembling. All around them, guys were swaying to the music, arms looped around necks or waists, cheeks pressed together, bodies moving in sinuous harmony.
“Kacey Musgraves,” Finn told him. Joel had to strain to hear him. “This one’s called ‘Rainbow’.” His gaze kept drifting to