Ethan (Alluring Indulgence #5)(25)
Author: Nicole Edwards

Walking into Moonshiners, Ethan glanced around to see who was there, a habit he couldn’t break. The trucks in the parking lot were familiar, some belonging to his brothers. There were times, based on the vehicles outside, when he knew better than to stop in. Today didn’t look to be one of those days.

Most of the faces were friendly, although Ethan wouldn’t call them friends. At least he didn’t have to worry about a confrontation. And the best part… Beau wasn’t there which meant he didn’t have to worry about being on guard.

“Hey, Mack,” he greeted the bartender as he took one of the empty stools at the bar.

“E, how’s it goin’?”

Ethan knew the question was merely a pleasantry, and he didn’t bother with replying. Mack didn’t expect him to either.

A minute later, Mack passed over a Heineken and let him be without further conversation. As Ethan stared blankly at the scarred bar top in front of him, his mind insisted on wandering back to the events of that morning. Particularly, when Beau went after Ricky Dillinger for his comment.

He’d had a hard time not thinking about that, but somehow he had kept himself busy enough that the past hadn’t come back to haunt him through the day. But now… well, now Ethan had nothing else to do but sit and think and those memories from all those years ago came flooding back.

“Hey,” Gavin greeted as he made his way around his truck.

Ethan watched Gavin approach, admiring the man he’d found himself falling in love with in recent weeks. The mere sight of him made his heart rate speed up.

Several hours ago Gavin had called and asked Ethan to meet him down by the lake, and without a second thought, Ethan had agreed. For the last month or so, they’d spent many evenings out by the lake, mostly talking, but in recent days, things had continued to escalate between them. And the more time they spent together, the hotter their encounters seemed to get.

Considering all that they had shared so far, the only logical step would be to commit to one another unconditionally. More so than just in the physical sense. Although Gavin hadn’t out-and-out said he was looking for a relationship, Ethan got the impression that the need for something more was mutual.

At nineteen, Ethan had finally come to the full realization that he was gay. No matter how many times he’d tried to convince himself otherwise through the years, the mere fact that he wasn’t attracted to girls and never had been made it glaringly obvious. After trying to deny it to himself for the millionth time, Ethan had finally accepted it.

And when Gavin dropped into his life out of the blue, Ethan knew the man was heaven sent.

To have found someone who made him want something more, something he’d never wanted before, Ethan hadn’t been willing to let Gavin get too far away from him. And the last week had been the most unbelievable time of Ethan’s life.

First there was the kiss that had rattled the ground beneath his feet and… And then the few times they’d made love, right there by the lake under the moonlight. After the first time, – Ethan’s very first time – he had known his heart had finally found what it was searching for.

“Want to go down by the water?” Ethan asked as Gavin got closer.

Gavin glanced around, then back to Ethan. Was he trying to make sure no one would see them? It was something Ethan always found himself doing. Not that he honestly cared who saw him with Gavin like this, but if something else were to happen again tonight, he definitely wanted to ensure they were the only two there. He liked the idea of having Gavin all to himself.

“Sure,” Gavin replied, moving ahead several feet.

Ethan could sense that something was wrong, so when they reached the edge of the water and Gavin took a seat on one of the fallen tree stumps, Ethan decided to approach things head on. “You ok?”

“Sure. Why?” Gavin asked, a note of tension in his voice.

“You seem… nervous.”

Maybe that was it. Maybe Gavin was nervous to be around him. Lord knew that Ethan had been overwhelmed by nerves to the point of nausea in recent days. With each passing minute that the two of them spent together, Ethan’s longing for this man was coalescing into something so potent, he wasn’t sure he’d be able to survive all of the feelings he was beginning to have.

“Sit,” Gavin said, nodding his head toward the log across from him.

Ethan momentarily glanced down at the spot directly beside Gavin but moved backward instead. He would prefer to sit close to him, to be able to feel the warmth of his arm, smell the scent of the cologne he’d been wearing more of these last few weeks. Maybe lean into him and steal another kiss.