An old Journey song played on the radio. Connor drummed his fingers on the steering wheel to the beat and stared straight ahead at the road.

Beside him, M struggled to keep his eyes open. Every now and then, his head would drop, his chin resting on his chest and his blond hair falling into his eyes, and he’d sleep like that for a couple minutes, his head bobbing and swaying as the truck bumped along. Then he’d wake again, and he’d jerk his head up abruptly, blinking his eyes open and sitting up a little straighter.

Connor wished he’d pass out. He didn’t know why M felt the need to rough it out and stay up. It wasn’t like they were talking or anything. After they’d left Walmart last night, a tense silence had fallen over them both.

They were in Missouri now and Connor was determined to make it to Illinois before they stopped again. He’d been taking the most direct route all afternoon and he was pretty sure he could make it over the state line before he was too exhausted to continue. He wasn’t doing another cheap-o motel, either. He actually wanted to get a shower tonight, and a decent night’s sleep would be appreciated so he was planning on spending extra.

They drove all afternoon. M finally passed out and slept for maybe an hour. Jack had been sleeping since the last stop. He had the right idea. He snoozed on the bench seat, curled up between the two of them.

They crossed into Illinois around 9 o’clock. Connor was starting to feel pretty tired so he kept an eye out for hotels along the highway. He spotted a Comfort Inn and figured that’d be alright so he got off the freeway and followed the sign. There was an I-Hop in front of it, separating the hotel from the busy main road. The restaurant was jam packed with cars. Connor made a note of the place, but there was no way he was going in there now.

They parked in front of the hotel and Connor made to get out. “Stay with the dog,” he said to M before he headed into the lobby.

The guy at the front desk had a little attitude about Connor wanting to pay with cash; he wanted a credit card. Connor tried his best to keep his cool, offering up his ID and waiting while the guy texted his manager to see if the transaction was valid.

Luckily, the manager replied immediately.

“Alright,” the guy said. He was a young skinny kid with dark circles under his eyes. He was dressed all in black. The dude was a creepy little vampire. “You can have 204.”

“Is that the pet friendly room?”

The vampire rolled his eyes and typed madly away at his computer. “Room 119 only has a single bed.”

“That’s fine. We’ll manage,” Connor said quickly. He blushed a little and the vampire rolled his eyes again.

“Great.” The guy slid a key card over the counter and Connor snatched it up. “The entrance is around the left side of the building,” said the vampire. He was staring at the computer, typing something. “There’s an area at the back, with vending machines and an ice dispenser.”

Connor nodded and pocketed the key card.

The vampire clicked on something and a printer behind the desk whirled to life. He spun around in his desk chair and grabbed the sheet of paper it spat out. “Here’s your receipt. It’ll be $90 for a single night. Check out is before noon.”

Connor counted out the money. He scowled as he handed it over. He hated spending money. He was running out fast and there were no guarantees on whether Julie would let him and M into her home. This whole trip could be for nothing and they could end up broke and stranded somewhere far from home.

“Thanks for choosing the Comfort Inn,” the vampire said, taking Connor’s money and Connor got out of there fast. He jumped back in the truck and drove around to the left side of the building. There was a gazebo in the grass and a couple picnic tables with ashtrays standing beside them.

Connor got their bags out of the back and led the way into the room. He swiped the key card and let them in, turning the lights on.

This room was much better than their first. It smelled like Pine-sol and the blankets looked and felt fresh.

“There’s only one bed,” M said and he went to bounce on it immediately.

Connor continued his silent peruse of the room. There was a TV in an entertainment/dresser setup across from the bed. He tossed their bags in front of it before he moved into the bathroom. It wasn’t the nicest he’d ever seen, but it was clean. The toilet was filled with blue water and fluffy white towels hung off the rack across from the shower. More were on the shelves on either side of the sink. There was a big mirror over the sink and more shelves under that with little soaps and shampoos. He even spotted a couple travel tooth-brushes.

“Thank fucking god,” he sighed.

M eyed him curiously as he came back into the main room.

“You hungry?” Connor asked.

“I’m tired,” M said.

“You should get a shower first,” Connor said. “I’m going to take one too before bed.”

M gave him a loaded look. “We could save time and take one together.”

“We could save even more time if you jump in the shower and I take the dog around the building for his last potty break. I’ll get us some snacks from the vending machine, too.”

M’s expression fell. “Alright.”

“Get a shower then put some pjs on and get in bed. I’ll join you when I’m done.”

M looked into Connor’s eyes. “Ok,” he said, and his face was full of hope. Connor froze. He didn’t know what M was hoping for, but the look made him very uncomfortable. “See you soon,” the blond slipped off the bed. His eyes didn’t leave Connor’s until he got to the bathroom. The boy pushed the door open and he disappeared inside.

Connor got out of the room before M could get into the shower. He wasn’t feeling much in the desire department tonight and M’s doe eyes put him on edge.

Jack was being good. He followed Connor’s hurried pace around the building. The dog wove through the picnic benches and took the long route around the gazebo. When Connor rounded the corner, Jack caught up and got in step with him.

Back behind the hotel, Connor shoved a couple bucks into the vending machine and pushed buttons for a couple different snacks and drinks. The dog was off in the grass sniffing around and Connor gathered his purchases together and waited for Jack to finish pissing.

“C’mon. Let’s go back to the room, I guess,” he said when the dog wandered over again.

Jack looked up at Connor with his little doggy eyebrows raised. Connor rolled his eyes at the mutt. Of course, Jack wouldn’t understand his hesitance to return. The dog had no fucking understanding of murder. M was still some kind of hero in his eyes…

They got back to the room in less time than Connor had anticipated; he could hear the water running. He laid the snacks out on the bedside table and kicked his boots off. He grabbed the TV remote and flopped on the bed after that. He scanned through the channels, but it was just a distraction from staring unendingly at the bathroom door. M didn’t take any pajamas in there with him and Connor was hoping he wouldn’t come out naked.

He just didn’t want any more awkwardness… He hadn’t meant anything by getting a room with a single bed. He didn’t want sex. He wasn’t in the fucking mood.

The dog was settling in by the door. Jack stretched out, resting his head on his paws. He yawned and Connor glanced at him nervously. The shower turned off and he turned to stare hard at the TV. Snakes on a Plane was on Fox and he pretended to be interested.

Connor’s heart pounded as Samuel L. Jackson cursed up a storm. He couldn’t concentrate though. He waited with bated breath for the bathroom door to open.

The movie cut to commercial before M finally shuffled out of the bathroom. He was wrapped in a towel and his hair was plastered to his head. He looked at Connor in the same moment Connor glanced at him and the two boys quickly looked away from each other.

“I forgot my jammies.”

“No problem,” Connor said. He was super interested in the Dr. Scholl’s insole commercial.

M crouched in front of the TV; their bags were on the floor beneath the set and he rummaged through his backpack. Connor tried his best to ignore the boy. The movie came back on and it looked like M had finally found something to wear.

M shifted out of Connor’s direct line of sight and edged over to the other side of the bed. Connor could feel him standing close by, his skin buzzed with electricity. Connor finally realized it was M’s gaze narrowing down on him, he could literally feel it.

Connor let his eyes drift to the side and the TV became a blur. The blond boy was laying his pjs out on the side of the bed and as Connor’s peeping gaze centered on him, the boy dropped his towel.

His skin was flushed pink. His nipples were hard little peaks. Connor’s palms started to sweat and when he looked down at M’s beautiful cock and balls he wanted to touch.

He swallowed abruptly and looked away. He didn’t want to have sex. He was determined, damnit! He got up quickly. “I’ll get my shower now, I guess.” He went around the bed and grabbed his duffle bag. “There’s some snacks on the table there.” He gestured to the candy and chips. M didn’t say anything and Connor was too afraid to look at him. He shuffled out of the room sideways so he didn’t have to face M and escaped into the bathroom.

He relaxed once he was alone. He breathed a huge sigh of relief and shrugged the duffle bag onto the floor.

He took a long, refreshing shower. The water was hot and the jets massaged his aching body. He breathed in the fresh, clean scent of the hotel’s bar soap and hoped M would fall asleep by the time he finished.

Once he’d washed up, he dried off and got into his flannel sleep pants. He carried his duffle bag back out to the room.

M was lying in bed, his eyes half lidded. He looked lazily in Connor’s direction as he emerged from the bathroom, but he didn’t say anything. He was dressed. His damp towel was hanging off the headboard.

Connor put his things away and shut the lights off. He even returned M’s towel to the bathroom. He did everything he could to delay getting into bed, but finally, he had no choice but to climb under the covers.

“You aren’t watching this, are you?” Connor jabbed a finger at the TV.

“No,” M said quietly. His eyes looked glassy. They gleamed eerily in the TV’s light and Connor looked away, strangely unnerved.

He shut the TV off. The room was thrown into pitch darkness. After a few moments, Connor’s eyes adjusted and he could see the dog’s form outlined against the red front door. The dog’s light fur glowed gently in the dim light.

M was a dark lump beside him in bed. Connor was afraid he’d see M’s eyes glowing in the dark or something and he rolled onto his side and put his back to the blond and his face towards the windows. The lights in the parking lot outside burned through the curtains like golden orbs.

Connor stayed on his side until he managed to fall asleep. And it happened sooner than he thought it would and rather abruptly to boot. One minute he was giving M the cold shoulder and the next he was fast asleep, rolling onto his stomach and drooling into the pillow.

***

Connor woke up with a bright light in his eyes and he threw an arm over his face and groaned.

“Hey,” M called from across the room and the intensity of the light died down. “Good morning.”

Connor cautiously opened his eyes. M stood by the window and he straightened the curtains. The sun blazed beyond them. It looked like it was early afternoon.

“Shit,” Connor sat up groggily and looked around for the clock. It was across the room on top of the cable box. It was 10 in the morning. They hadn’t missed check-out yet.

M moved silently over the carpet and he knelt next to the bed. A wave of nausea washed over Connor. He laid back in bed as his head spun. The walls bent inwards and then protruded out in a strange, breathing like motion. He shook his head and blinked rapidly and everything stood still again.

“Are you ok?”

Connor glanced at the boy beside him. M looked genuinely concerned. His green eyes were sad and his lips downturned. There was a cute little wrinkle of worry between his pale brows.

“Maybe we should get some actual food to eat,” Connor said. “I’m just wore out. From all the driving and the shitty fast food.”

“Teach me how to drive. I can help,” M said earnestly. “It doesn’t look hard and I slept ok last night. I’m not tired.”

Connor was tempted to give in to the boy’s request. He didn’t want to risk getting pulled over with an unlicensed driver behind the wheel, but they still had a lot of miles to cover before Tampa. “Maybe,” he said. “But let’s get something to eat first. I-Hop has really good breakfast. You’ll love it there.”

M nodded.

They lazed around a bit more, watching the news and getting dressed for the day. They were out of the room by 11:30 and packing their stuff back into the truck. They drove down to the restaurant. Jack had to stay behind in the truck, but they left the windows down for him.

As soon as they got into the I-Hop, M’s eyes grew wide as they drifted around. They locked on a huge display for the strawberry waffles and he pointed. “What’s that?”

“Order it and find out,” Connor said and M’s eyes just about popped out of his head with excitement.

“Table for two?” An old lady with an apron and a blue I-Hop t-shirt stood behind the front counter. The dining room was laid out simply with booths along the windows and a couple tables in the middle. Further down the counter there was seating on stools.

“Yep,” Connor said and the lady gathered some menus up and led them to a booth in the corner.

The place wasn’t busy, there were two different men sitting at the counter, three stools between them. There was a little family of four, a mom and dad and two little girls sitting in the middle at a large table. There was an old couple in a booth a few tables away. They sat across from each other talking quietly.

Connor slid into the booth with his back to the wall so he could see everybody. He wasn’t surprised when M sat beside him, beaming and overexcited. The lady left them at the booth with the menus and Connor flipped through his, saw the strawberry waffles again and pushed the menu in front of M.

“Order that. Just point at it,” Connor said.

M licked his lips. “It looks good.”

“Let me order the drinks.” Connor instructed. He looked through M’s menu now, quickly picking an egg and sausage combo with toast. He looked up and sure enough, a waitress was already heading their way. “Get ready,” he said and M sat up importantly.

A pleasant, chubby blond girl came to the table. Her nametag read Suzie. “What can I get you boys to drink?”

“Coffee and a hot chocolate,” Connor said and the girl smiled before jotting their order on a little pad of paper. “We’re ready to order, too. We’re in a hurry to get back on the road.”

Suzie glanced up with interest. “Are you two traveling?”

“We’re going to visit family. In Florida.”

“That’s quite a drive.” she laughed. “Are you guys from around here?”

Connor didn’t know how saying they were strapped for time led into smalltalk, but he figured he shouldn’t be a complete dick to Suzie. He didn’t want any spit in his eggs.

“We’re from South Dakota.”

“Wow!” Obviously, Suzie was very easily impressed. She was making eyes at Connor, but he didn’t think anything of it. Girls liked to look at him occasionally and it didn’t mean anything. If Suzie thought South Dakota was something to be impressed over, then she had absolutely no taste.

“Yeah,” Connor said. “We’ve got a long way to go yet, so…”

“Of course,” Suzie laughed and she got her notepad ready again. “What can I get you boys?”

“I want this,” M poked a finger at the strawberry waffles with enthusiasm. He grinned brilliantly. Suzie blinked and then she wrote down M’s waffles.

“Can I get two eggs over easy, sausage links and white toast?” Connor asked and Suzie nodded, scribbling it down. He gathered their menus together and handed them over. “Thanks,” he said.

She quirked a brow, but took the hint. She wandered off back into the kitchen and left them alone.

Connor sighed. The bad part about doing stuff in public was dealing with other people…

“Connor?”

Connor looked up. M watched him with cautious eyes. They were vibrant green today and his smile was easy coming.

Connor blinked at him stupidly. He felt a lot better since they’d left the hotel, but suddenly he felt very unsure of himself. M’s smile completely disarmed him. Before the boy could say anymore though, Suzie came back with two steaming mugs. She dropped them off silently, meeting Connor’s eyes, but he quickly looked down and away and she hurried off again.

Connor watched her go as he grabbed his coffee. He blew on the surface, his fingertips sweating against the porcelain.

“I’m sorry that all this is happening,” M said suddenly and Connor looked up at him again. The boy touched the edge of his hot chocolate. They’d put a dollop of whipped cream on top and it was melting. “I’m sorry I invited that guy into the trailer.”

Connor attempted to get a sip of his drink and it burned deliciously down his throat. He closed his eyes briefly.

“I hope you can forgive me. I hope I didn’t ruin everything,” M continued and Connor peeled his eyes open.

“I don’t understand why you ignored me,” he said and M bit his lip. Connor pressed on. He had to get this out if anything was going to get back to normal. “I told you to stay away from that guy. You didn’t listen to me. Worse, you invited the guy inside the house.”

M used both his hands to raise his mug to his lips. He cautiously sampled his drink and hissed as he burned his tongue. A bit of white cream dotted his nose and Connor sighed and reached over to wipe it off with his finger. He sucked it off without a thought.

M made cross eyes, trying to look at the tip of his nose. “I just thought I could help,” he said softly before he nervously met Connor’s eyes. “I thought if I could figure out why he wanted to talk to me, I could solve the problem and we could be happy.”

“But instead, you made it worse,” Connor said pleasantly and M’s head sank.

“I’m sorry,” he said and Connor sighed.

“I guess you didn’t mean it,” he said slowly. He looked determinedly out the window. He could see the highway in the distance and a hint of bitterness leaked into his tone. “I just wish it hadn’t happened.”

“He really shouldn’t have hit the dog,” M said and Connor glanced at him. The boy’s jaw was set firmly and his eyes were hard with purpose. “He shouldn’t have bothered us.”

“I guess not,” Connor snorted with amusement. M looked tough and the image of him, bloodstained with a bat in his hand, came to mind. It was so preposterous that Connor couldn’t help but to laugh.

M grinned at him and leaned a bit closer. He looked so vulnerable, so hopeful for affection and Connor’s heart melted. He was suddenly overwhelmed with the urge to kiss M’s soft lips...

The boy’s gaze shifted slightly behind him, and Connor turned to see what had captured his attention.

Suzie approached with a tray of food. She looked at them weirdly but Connor didn’t care. They just needed to eat, pay the bill and then leave. They’d never see Suzie again.

She left the food, muttering something about knowing they were in a hurry.

“You could bring the check,” Connor said sweetly. He pulled his plate of eggs and sausage in front of him. “That would help.”

Suzie nodded and hurried off. They were left to enjoy their meal in peace.

M stared at his waffles in amazement. Two thick ones sat on his plate underneath a huge pile of strawberries, syrup and more whipped cream. ”I don’t know where to start,” he said.

Connor rolled his eyes and grabbed up the kid’s silverware. He cut the waffle into pieces and handed over the fork. “Dig in,” he said. “Just try not to touch anything. I’ll probably have to hose you off before we get back in the truck.”

M wasn’t listening. He stuffed a loaded piece of waffle into his mouth and moaned with pleasure. He ate every single bite without pause; his mouth wasn’t empty until the plate was clean. Connor watched the boy eat with fascination. He struggled to keep up with the boy’s ravenous pace.

“It’s so good!” M moaned around a large mouthful. His cheeks and fingers were streaked with strawberry and cream. It was kind of disgusting, but Connor took it in stride. He didn’t want to keep up his bitterness towards the sunny boy. There was no way he was going to forget what happened back at the trailer. What he’d seen… but they were on the run and staying in the past couldn’t be helpful. They were rushing into the future, into a new life, and Connor was going to choose to put this behind them.

M was stupid. He’d just been trying to help. He’d fucked up, hugely, but Connor was just going to have to keep a better eye on him.

Or something.

He remembered the strange dream he’d had the other night. The one full of blinding lights, static and blood. He looked at M again, at the red caked at the corners of his mouth.

He shivered. It looked like fresh blood.

He was almost done with his breakfast. A piece of toast and the dregs of his coffee remained in front of him. M’s waffle was gone, too. He licked whipped cream off his fingers and smeared the red around his cheeks. Connor grabbed a napkin and got it wet with a little spit.

“Let me see you,” he said.

M, smiling and bright eyed, turned to face him. He saw the napkin and seemed to understand what Connor wanted. He held still and Connor started to clean his face.

“Ah… here’s your bill,” Suzie edged past the table. She tossed the little receipt down before vanishing. Connor didn’t even bother to pause in his current task, but he felt his face get hot and embarrassment bloom in his belly like a fragile butterfly unfurling from its cocoon.

It seemed they’d gotten some attention despite his desire to play it cool. The mother and father of the two girls were glancing in their direction and the guy reading the newspaper at the counter was craning his neck around to see them from the other side of the restaurant. He was talking to the hostess and she too was watching Connor and M from behind her gawking customer.

Connor wiped M’s face clean and the boy smiled at him, happy in his obliviousness. He had beautiful skin, Connor thought, but he never wanted to see M’s face covered in blood again…

“How about we find a big parking lot and I teach you some driving basics?”

M squealed and he threw his arms around Connor’s neck. Connor just hoped he was right and that M hadn’t murdered someone because he was crazy. He hoped that M wasn’t out for his blood and that this wasn’t some sort of mean, fucked up joke.

But he was going to take his chances. Because he couldn’t resist the magnetic pull the boy had on his heart…

***

After a 40 minute crash course in driving, Connor took over the wheel again and they jumped back on the highway.

M hadn’t done too terribly driving around the empty lot of the abandoned shopping mall, but Connor didn’t trust him on the road. They’d have to practice in a couple more parking lots before Connor felt comfortable letting M drive for real. And even then, he was already planning on taking M around residential areas so they could go 25 mph and stop at every intersection.

M chatted happily about his driving experience as they took off down the interstate. Connor was quiet and let him talk. He planned out the route and estimated the times and distances left to travel.

Both boys were in a good mood today and they passed the time pleasantly enough. Connor taught M a game with license plates and state names and when that got old, they played Slug Bug. Connor had to really explain and point out what a Volkswagen Beetle was, but once M understood the rules and could spot the car, they had some fun with it.

M played with the radio, choosing different channels and music to listen to. He went through his bag and read Hannah’s baby books. Then he took out his pad of paper and a pen and started scribbling. He wrote for a long time and Connor was lulled into a strange sort of trance as he drove and listened to the pen scratching across the paper. M had some country music on and it too was soothing. Connor wasn’t super tired, nor was it late, but his head felt fuzzy.

“Can you stop that?” Connor asked.

The pen halted immediately.

“Sorry.”

M put the paper and pen away without letting Connor see what he’d been working on. He figured M had been scrawling a love note or drawing something silly. That or he’d been writing some sort of doomsday plot. Connor shook his head and turned the volume down on the radio. He cracked the window open for a little gust of fresh air and he started to feel better.

M looked out the window and was quiet for a long time. Connor let him be. He concentrated on the traffic. They were picking their way through a busy area and it was nearing rush hour. The commute was brutal. It was past 6 o’clock by the time they hit the open road again and the line of cars thinned out.

They crossed into Kentucky after 7 and cut through the west half of the state. They were moving along at a good pace; they hadn’t had to stop for a rest break in a couple hours. They passed into Tennessee at a quarter to 9. M was half asleep, slumped in his seat while Jack scratched at a little tear in the upholstery with his paw. Maybe Connor had overestimated everyone’s determination to reach Tampa. It was probably time to call it a night.

He made an effort to search the roadway signs for somewhere to stop. He saw a Super8 coming up in about 10 miles and decided to pull off and get another room for the night.

They didn’t have tons more money to work with, but Connor was weary. He thought it might be nice to curl up with M in bed, as well.

They parked in front of the Super 8. It was a flat, sprawling motel. Connor left the truck running and went inside to see about securing a room for a few hours. When he came out, M’s head was dangling down to his chest and he was fast asleep.

Connor drove them around to their room and silently unpacked their things. The room was a carbon copy of the Comfort Inn. Things were decently clean and it was just a single bed. There was a TV and an empty dresser. A table and a single chair.

He let the dog out of the truck and hoping for the best, he let Jack walk off on his own. He still had to deal with M.

He scooped the boy up and lifted him into his arms.

“Mmm,” M moaned. He blinked his eyes lazily.

“Shh, I got us a bed.”

M smiled and he dropped his head onto Connor’s shoulder. He held on trustingly and they went inside the motel room. Connor laid the blond on the bed and M stretched out languidly. He reached his arms over his head and kicked his feet over the edge of the bed. Connor grabbed M’s shoe and started to untie the laces.

“Where’s the dog?” M asked, his breath hitching. Connor pulled his shoe off and exposed M’s little foot.

“Out pissing, I hope.” Connor thumbed the corner of M’s sock and pulled that off as well. M flexed his cute toes and Connor slipped his fingers between them, squeezing the plump appendages.

“Oh,” M said, his voice breathy and high pitched and Connor abandoned M’s bare right foot and started to denude the other. He tickled the wiggling toes and M laughed out loud, twisting on the bed with humor. His good cheer and carefree spirit were deeply attractive to Connor and after a few moments of play, Connor’s mind began to wander.

“I want to try kissing you again,” he said in a husky voice.

M moaned. “Yes.”

Connor climbed on top of the blond, resting his knees on either side of M’s tiny waist. M sat up enthusiastically, his eyes brimming with interest, but Connor put a hand on his chest and pushed him back down. “Just relax,” he said, and M licked his lips and settled back into the mattress.

Connor gazed into M’s gorgeous eyes, enjoying the affection burning within them. Nobody had ever looked at him like M did. It was the craziest, most exciting feeling Connor had ever experienced and when the boy smiled up at him gently, Connor lowered his head and pressed their lips together.

M arched into the kiss immediately, pressing his warm body flush to Connor’s. He was desperate to be touched and it took every bit of Connors self-restraint to keep the kisses tame. M moaned into Connor’s mouth and wound his arms around his neck, holding on as if his life depended on it.

As their mouths slid together, Connor realized his cock was fully hard. He hadn’t even noticed it filling with blood, he’d been so focused on M’s lips. His head started to swim, and he pulled back a bit to get some air. He saw then that M was trembling beneath him, and that his face was flushed bright red. Connor rocked his hips into M’s and found that the boy was also painfully erect.

The kisses were going well, M was hot and bothered, but they both needed more. Tenderly, Connor pushed M’s hair away from his sweaty brow then held the boy’s face between both his large hands. He held him completely still, then with a sense of purpose, Connor leaned in and swiped his tongue against the hot entrance to M’s mouth. Cautiously, the blond parted his lips and for the first time ever, their tongues touched.

Connor was instantly on edge. He was expecting M to go into a seizure again and was overcome with guilt. He was so incredibly horny and the feel of M’s tongue meeting his had been electric. Still, he forced himself to pull back and check on the blond.

M seemed ok… he wasn’t having a seizure, anyway.

As Connor studied M’s face, the boy licked his thick bottom lip, leaving it shiny and wet and Connor moaned. He couldn’t resist the temptation and he promptly covered M’s mouth in another hungry kiss. M knitted his fingers through Connor’s dark locks and kissed him back enthusiastically. The moist, smacking sound of their passionate kissing filled the little motel room.

They made out for a good 5 minutes before Connor could take no more. His cock was so hard, all he wanted to do was get M naked. He pulled his lips off the blond’s, thrilling at the sound of his helpless whimper. “I want to do bad things to you,” Connor said in a rough, sexy voice.

“What… kind of bad things?” M moaned.

Connor didn’t answer. His hands went between their bodies, and he grabbed M’s fly. He popped the button and fumbled with the zip. M gasped a little, but he was all too willing to participate. He lifted his hips and let Connor pull his jeans and underwear off, then he sat up and ripped his shirt over his head. Suddenly, the blond was naked and panting hard.

Connor stared down at the gorgeous boy. All of M’s lovely pleasure bits from his cockhead to his lips to his hard little nipples, were puffy and reddened with passion. Connor’s mouth went dry and when he touched the boy’s soft thigh he felt his hand trembling. He was so nervous, but at the same time, thrilled.

Almost as an afterthought, he started to strip. Connor stepped on the heels of his boots, taking them off quickly and shoving them under the bed. He hopped out of his jeans next then tore his hoodie over his head. In seconds, he was naked.

The boy stared up at him with wide eyes. “What do you want to do to me?”

Connor swallowed, trying to get some moisture on his tongue. “I think you’ll have another seizure.”

“So? I always—”

“I want you to suck my cock,” Connor blurted and his whole body felt hot. He was exposed all of a sudden, but the feeling only added to his arousal. “If you have another seizure when it’s in your mouth, you’ll bite it off.”

M’s brows knit together. “What do you mean in my mouth?”

Connor huffed in embarrassment. Of course he’d have to explain…. “You know how I rub your cock with my hand?” he asked awkwardly.

“Yeah?”

“Well, you know how good that feels?”

“Mmhmm.”

“It feels even better when someone has it in their mouth,” Connor explained, trying to ignore the cute faces M was making. His looks of skepticism and bafflement were really quite endearing. “Maybe I should just show you first,” he said.

M shrugged and spread his legs, leaving himself open and vulnerable. “Ok,” he said.

Connor shivered a little. M’s innocence was stupidly arousing and for once he didn’t care if it made him a perv. Tonight, he was going to teach a virgin how to suck dick!

Smoothly, Connor sank to his knees between M’s thighs and his eyes zeroed in on his straining erection, taking it all in. M’s cock had stayed rock hard during the kissing and awkward sex talk and it was painfully swollen between his legs. Connor could relate. His own dick throbbed with need, but he ignored it and focused his attentions on the blond. He grabbed both of M’s legs, high on his thighs, and pulled him close so his butt rested right on the edge of the bed.

“Oh,” M gasped as Connor ran his hands over his heated skin and closed in on his cock. He didn’t feel very sure of himself at all, but Connor didn’t let that stop him. He gathered M’s length in his hand and firmly started to stroke it.

M reacted sweetly, bucking his hips up into Connor’s hand in excitement. The movements were small and desperate, and Connor easily restrained the boy by placing a free hand on his hip.

“You’ve gotta hold still,” Connor chided. “Just relax and let me do the work.”

M tossed his head back with a moan, but he didn’t move any further. He let Connor pump his hard cock, let him study his tender pink cockhead and little sensitive pisshole in detail.

Connor swirled his tongue around his lips as he continued to milk M’s shaft. Clear precum was bubbling from the tip of his cock and Connor wanted a taste. He made sure his lips were coated with spit, then he guided M’s length into his mouth.

M hissed as his cock was enveloped in warmth. He craned his neck up to see better. “Oh, you’re--” he groaned loudly as Connor hollowed his cheeks and began to suck. “It’s in your mouth,” M finished lamely, out of breath and clearly overwhelmed. He fell back onto the bed and whimpered as Connor slurped on his shaft and slowly bobbed his head, letting M’s cock slide in and out between his lips. M’s hands fisted in the sheets and his toes started to curl.

“Oh, oh, oooooh!”

Connor worked his mouth up and down M’s excited length. The taste was hot and salty on his tongue, and he quickly fell in love with the flavor. Connor hadn’t done this since high school, since Rick, and he tightened his lips up and used his first two fingers and thumb to pull M’s skin taunt. He flicked his tongue at the sensitive vein just under M’s cockhead, delighting when the blond gasped with pleasure. He decided right there and then that he liked giving blowjobs and that Rick, damned him, hadn’t won. Connor wasn’t afraid anymore.

The blowjob continued for several moments more. M was close. Everything, from the breathless noises he made to the flush on his cheeks hinted he was going to come soon. Connor smiled around M’s cock. He hadn’t thought he’d enjoy this so much, but he was still very hard. He forced himself not to touch his dick, but as M dissolved in absolute bliss Connor found it harder and harder to resist. Desperate for his own release, Connor increased his pace, moving his head up and down faster and faster, working his lips and tongue in concert to bring M closer and closer to orgasm. When Connor felt the blond’s balls draw up into his body, he swallowed hard around M’s pulsing shaft, urging him to come in his mouth.

M cried as he jetted cum onto Connor’s tongue, jerking and shaking on the bed in the throes of an intense orgasm. Connor drew back quickly, letting the majority of the mess collect on the sheets. He breathed hard and wiped at a bit of cum dripping from the corner of his mouth, watching M shudder through the tail end of his pleasure. Then the boy’s eyes did a weird little roll in their sockets and Connor was instantly on-edge.

“You ok?” Connor cupped M’s face with one hand and grabbed his dick with the other. He was so fucking hard. He just wanted to keep going...

“Y-yeah.” M’s teeth chattered, but he smiled weakly. “That just felt really really good is all.”

“Oh. Ok. Good.” Connor squeezed his cock, trying to starve off his frustration. He understood M had a lot of issues, but fuck, he really wanted to come! “Here.” He stood, his length hanging heavily between his thighs. “Sit on the edge of the bed. In front of me,” he said and M moved slowly to comply. He seemed dizzy and his eyes were clouded but Connor attributed it to M having a really good orgasm.

M finally got into place, and he looked up at Connor through locks of his falling blond hair. Connor peered into his eyes, but M’s gaze was distant. The boy was a thousand miles away.

“M?”

The blond blinked once, but his gaze didn’t change. It was creepy, seeing M look straight through him.

“Fuck…” Connor cursed under his breath. “M? Snap out of it!” He clicked his fingers in front of M’s face a few times, but M continued to stare at him, his eyes sightless. Connor nervously looked down at himself, feeling self-conscious again. What the fuck was he staring at? Connor realized after a quick scan of his body that his erection was rapidly flagging, and he glared up at the boy, wondering what the fuck was going on now. “M! Is this another weird seizure thing? Does your head hurt?”

M’s mouth fell wide open, but he didn’t make a sound. He didn’t even try to answer. Connor could see his pupils were dilated. Hugely. Something was wrong and Connor backed up without even thinking about it.

“M?” Connor shivered, the hairs on the back of his neck standing up straight. “Are you ok?”

M took a deep, wheezing breath, and then he screamed. A terrible, shrill sound that had Connor clapping his hands over his ears and curling into himself, pain stabbing through his brain. The scream reminded Connor strongly of the static….

Luckily, it ended after just a few frantic heartbeats though and M closed his mouth and slumped to the side, silent and still. The people in the next room over pounded angrily on the wall, yelling something indiscernible. It was barely a concern. Connor couldn’t hear them, anyway.

He waited a moment or two, then cautiously unplugged his ears and nervously surveyed the blond lying limp on the bed. He was studying the boy’s face, when his eyes popped open and he jerked upright, startling Connor with the suddenness of it. He was breathing heavily. His eyes were wild and definitely present. He wasn’t staring off in the distance this time.

“M?”

The blond whipped his head in Connor’s direction. His sharp, green gaze was questioning.

“What just happened?” Connor asked slowly. “Why did you make that horrible sound?”

M’s eyes darted around the room a few times before he answered. “I saw something.”

“What did you see?”

M gnawed his lip. “I don’t know. It’s hard to explain…”

“Can you at least try?”

“No!” M’s face screwed up and he pressed his fingers to his forehead and rubbed them in a little circle. “You wouldn’t understand,” he said finally, looking deeply pained, and Connor scoffed.

“How would you know?” he grumbled, bending to grab his boxers and undershirt off the floor. He put the shorts on first, covering his limp dick, what a fucking shame. “You didn’t even try.”

M didn’t answer, instead he massaged his forehead and avoided meeting Connor’s insistent gaze.

Connor waited for a response. Fuck, he wanted to know what the hell had just happened and why. M was so damned mysterious all the time. It was fucking bullshit!

The minutes dragged on. Connor could hear their neighbors settling down, probably going back to sleep. Connor cleared his throat when he couldn’t stand to wait a moment longer. “Just tell me. What did you—?”

“I don’t know!”

M’s shout brought Connor up short. He stared, shocked, at the little blond on the bed. M was still naked, and his face and chest were flushed red with frustration. He looked ridiculously helpless, yet he was the one withholding potentially important information.

“I’m sorry for yelling,” M said after a moment. He didn’t remove his hand from his forehead, and he didn’t open his eyes. “But we don’t have to talk about everything. Some things should just stay private.”

“Really?” Connor sneered. “What a dicky thing to say.”

M shrugged, but he kept up his stupid pose. He didn’t give in. Connor huffed, defeated for now, and he turned away and marched to the door to let the dog in.

“Jack!”

It took a moment, but the dog came running at the sound of his name. He bounded up the little pathway and came in the door, looking around the motel room most likely searching for food and water. Connor went to get him something to eat and drink.

M was still pretending to be invisible on the bed and Connor left him to it. He was disgusted. He wasn’t sure what the fuck had just happened, but he didn’t understand why M couldn’t talk to him about it. They were keeping secrets from each other now? Well, granted, M had been keeping secrets from the beginning. But Connor didn’t like the feeling... That he was giving his everything and M was holding something back from him. He felt foolish.

Connor went to take a shower even though he didn’t really need to. He turned the water scorching hot and stood under the spray for a long time. He brushed his teeth aggressively when he was done, then he came out of the bathroom naked.

M had the TV on and was watching Family Guy. He was in pajamas now and he very purposefully didn’t look at Connor as he stood naked in the middle of the room.

Connor scowled, but after a moment of being totally ignored by the blond, he felt himself losing his nerve. He went to rummage through his duffel bag and put his sleep pants on from yesterday. He locked the door, patted the dog on the head, then climbed sullenly into bed.

“Goodnight,” he said stiffly.

“Night,” M muttered.

Connor drifted to sleep, listening to the grating sound of Peter Griffin’s laugh...

***

They didn’t talk about last night. They were on the road again by 11am and barreling towards Georgia. They reached the state in good time, but had to stop a little ways before Atlanta. M had to pee.

Connor pulled off the road and into a little rest stop. He sent M in ahead of him and then let Jack out after the boy. He got out of the truck too, but he went around to the side of the restrooms. There was a pavilion with vending machines, picnic tables and a bank of payphones.

He pulled the slip of paper Marshall had given him out of his back pocket. It was Julie’s cellphone.

Connor dropped some coins into the pay phone then dialed the unfamiliar number. He waited through a couple rings, thinking it would go to voicemail when a feminine voice picked up.

“Hello? Julie Lowry speaking.”

Connor’s voice dried up in his throat and for a moment, he was speechless.

“Hello? I’m going to hang up,” Julie sang. “Hello? Last time I’m asking creep-o.”

“Mom?” Connor’s voice cracked, but he forced himself to continue speaking. “Mom, it’s me. Connor.”

“Connor?”

“Yeah. You know. Your son.”

Julie was silent for a minute. When she spoke again, she sounded strangled. “Where are you calling from? Why the surprise call after all these years?” she tried to laugh, to ease up the tension in her tone but the sound of it was forced.

Connor immediately suspected he was bothering her. Julie was probably in the middle of something. He’d avoided making this call a hundred times before because he’d feared being brushed off by his long-lost mother. He’d thought the experience would be crushing, but Connor just firmed his resolve and tightened his speech up.

“I’m in Georgia,” he said. “I was hoping I could come stay with you for a while.”

“Georgia?”

“I’m just passing through,” he said shortly. “I’m heading for Tampa.”

There was a long pause.

“Hello?” Connor pulled the receiver away from his ear before he remembered he wasn’t on his cell. He couldn’t check the network connection.

“Oh, that’d be great,” Julie said faintly. “When were you planning on arriving?”

Connor felt no relief. He just wanted the conversation to end. He was brief. “Tomorrow probably.”

“Late afternoon, I hope. I’ve got a couple errands and a doctor’s appointment in the morning,” Julie said.

“Ok,” Connor agreed. “Hey, I don’t have your address.”

Julie sighed then regurgitated her house number and street. Connor repeated it and Julie confirmed.

They ended the call after that. Sickeningly, the conversation had felt as brisk and emotionless as the call to his father had been a couple days before. Of course, Julie’d been a lot less hostile, and she hadn’t cursed up a storm in response to Connor’s request. She’d simply agreed. So, Connor told himself everything was fine. He went back to the truck, dug in the glove box for a pen, then wrote Julie’s address under her phone number.

“Don’t you have to use the bathroom?”

Connor glanced up to see M had returned. He was standing outside Connor’s partially opened door. “I just called my mom,” Connor said, tossing the pen onto the dash. “We can stay with her for a while.”

“You talked to her?”

Connor nodded.

“What was she like?” M curiously tilted his head. “Better than your dad, I hope?”

Connor didn’t want to say how emotionless and unaffected she’d been by his ‘surprise’ call, so he shrugged. “She was busy. I didn’t keep her on the phone long. I said we’d be there late afternoon and she was ok with it.” He got out of the truck and pocketed the slip of paper. “Actually, I think I do have to pee.”

“Can I have some money?” M asked sweetly. “I want to buy a drink.”

Connor pulled a couple bucks out of his wallet. “Are you sure you can handle it?”

“I’ll figure it out,” M said, then he walked off toward the pavilion and the vending machines, the dog following behind.

“I’ll meet you back here!” Connor called after the two of them and M turned and smiled brilliantly back at him, then he ran off, laughing, after the dog.

Connor went to the men’s room by himself. It was empty, except for an old black guy who was washing his hands. By the time Connor got to the urinal, the guy had finished up and was on his way out.

Connor unzipped his fly and pulled out his dick, considering his options as he let out a thick stream of piss. So, if Julie was going to put them up tomorrow night, then Connor could blow their remaining money tonight. A nice room, an excellent dinner, some margaritas perhaps, and Connor had a feeling he and M would be falling into bed for round two.

See, Connor had decided to chalk up M’s screaming fit last night to some kind of PTSD. He’d seen something he didn’t want to talk about, probably something related to the man in black, and he’d freaked. But it didn’t have to ruin their sex life forever. They could try again. Most likely tonight in the honeymoon suite….

Anticipation made Connor’s dick perk up with interest. He finished pissing then shook off the remaining drops of urine. His dick was half hard now, and he struggled to get it tucked back in his jeans.

Connor washed his hands when he was done. As he stood in front of the sink, he glanced up at his reflection in the wide mirror. He looked kind of rough. His hair was bedraggled and his eyes were tired. Poor Connor just wanted a fucking blowjob like any normal guy. He just wanted to kiss M without fear of losing his tongue or getting blasted in the nose. He firmed his resolve and quickly straightened up in the mirror, finger-combing his hair and splashing some cold water across his face. He looked better already, and he flashed a smile at his reflection. Tonight was going to be fun; he was sure of it.

***

They drove past Atlanta. The city looked big and imposing and Connor was glad they weren’t going in. They drove for several more hours and by the time they reached Albany, the sun had disappeared under the horizon and only a faint glow remained in the west.

Connor calculated the remaining distance in his head. They were almost out of the state. They had another 4 to 5 hours’ drive before they would get to Tampa. If they stopped now and found a hotel, they could checkout tomorrow around noon and head straight to Julie’s. She’d be home by the time they got to her house. It was perfect.

On their way through the city’s outskirts, Connor scanned the streets for a payphone. Soon he spotted a row of them in a little plaza, and he pulled over and parked.

Connor called information and asked for hotels in the area. As an afterthought, he asked about a place with a restaurant and maybe a pool. Information assured him that the Hilton was the best choice. They had the best rooms and amenities.

Connor got directions and he hung up; they couldn’t go absolutely crazy, no blowing up the room service number or raiding the mini bar, but a dip in the pool would be nice. The king-sized bed, and the views of the city from the balcony sounded pretty cool, too.

“Did you find us somewhere to sleep?” M asked when Connor got back in the truck.

“Yep. I figured we could have a little fun tonight. I found us a nice place.”

“What kind of fun?” M asked curiously. “And what’s different about this place? I thought you said all motels are the same.”

“You’ll see when we get there.” Connor steered them back to the highway and they zipped across town. They were still in Albany, but definitely a much nicer part. They passed a huge aquarium and a bunch of fancy looking restaurants. A shopping plaza packed with high end stores and glass plated office buildings took up the length of the street, but a park with a fountain in front separated the commercial zone from the Hilton on the corner.

“This is the place?” M asked with awe in his voice.

“Yep.” Connor was impressed too. The large hotel looked like a huge luxurious mansion; four stories tall. Parking was on the side and Connor could spot the pool area in the back. It was large and mostly fenced off from view so he couldn’t see much. It was lit though, indicating that they had some after dark swim hours. Hopefully, they’d get to check it out.

“Wow, it looks amazing,” M said in a breathy voice. “Are you sure they’ll let us in?”

“Of course,” Connor snorted, then he glanced down at the dog. “I kinda doubt they’re going to let him in the building, though.” Jack sat innocently between the humans, and he looked up at Connor with dark mopey eyes.

“Then we can’t stay,” M said sadly.

“Or we can just leave Jack in the truck.” Connor scratched behind the dog’s ear. Jack yawned and his eyelids lowered with pleasure. “We’ll leave food and water. It’ll be fine.”

“No. That’s mean.”

“How’s it mean?” Connor asked. “We’ve been sitting in the car all day already, what’s a couple more hours for the dog?”

M frowned. “But what if it gets hot?”

“They just said on the radio it’d be 56 degrees tonight. That isn’t hot,” Connor said. “And we’ll roll the windows down, so he gets fresh air.”

“Well…ok.” M nodded slowly. “But just for tonight.”

Connor agreed and they left the dog with food and water, the windows rolled partway down, and one of M’s new hoodies as a blanket. The boy insisted on it. They grabbed their bags once the dog was situated then they started toward the big hotel.

Connor and M walked into the huge, high-ceilinged, marble floored lobby. Large plants flanked the entrance and modern art dressed the walls. To the left was a lounge filled with stylish couches and chairs. To the right was the front desk decorated with fresh flowers. A woman stood behind the desk wearing a spotless uniform. Her hair was slicked back severely, and she looked rather stern.

Feeling a bit intimidated, Connor hesitated and slowed to a stop. “You should probably wait over there,” he told M, nodding to the chairs in the lounge area. “Just let me handle this.”

M nodded and wandered off. He wasn’t worried at all. But Connor was. He had a feeling he wouldn’t get to use “cash-only”.

The whole process ended up taking maybe 15 minutes and Connor was grumpy when it was over. He’d had to use his ID and his credit card, and he almost never used credit. He hated owing people. He also didn’t like the idea of being tracked through the credit transactions either, but he really wanted a room. He’d argued a bit with the lady behind the desk, but she wasn’t relenting.

“That’ll be room 355, sir,” the bitch said as she slid the key card onto the desk. She didn’t smile and Connor felt like it was on purpose. “The elevators are down the hall to the right.”

“Yeah, thanks,” Connor grumbled, grabbing up the key card, then he stalked off to find M.

The boy sat comfortably on one of the white angular sofas, watching CNN on the big television mounted to the wall. He met Connor’s eyes as soon as he approached, an excited little smile twisting his lips.

“Let’s go check out this fancy ass room,” Connor huffed, snatching M’s bag off the floor. He just wanted to get out of the lobby and away from the judgmental hotel lady as fast as possible.

“Yay!” M bounced off the couch and followed Connor to the elevators at the back of the lobby. It looked like the hotel’s restaurant was back here as well as a little convenience store and a gift shop in two corner stores outside of it. The whole back wall was glass and it looked out into the enclosed pool area.

“Wow,” M said, and he wandered over to the window.

The pool was long and narrow. There were a couple kids splashing around in the shallow end and a teenage girl was watching them halfheartedly. She sat on the edge, her eyes glued to her phone.

“We can go swimming once we drop our stuff off. Oh, maybe we should get something to eat first,” Connor said. The tension in his body had evaporated the moment they left the bitch’s lobby. But as he scanned the hours outside the restaurant, he realized they only did breakfast and lunch. They probably didn’t want to compete with all the pricy restaurants in the shopping plaza down the road during dinner hours. That hadn’t been part of the plan though, Connor had been hoping to get them something really delicious to eat right here.

“We don’t have to eat first,” M said. “I want to go swimming.”

Connor smiled. “Then let’s go drop our stuff off in the room. We’re on the third floor. C’mere.”

M reluctantly left the window.

“Push that button,” Connor said, nodding toward the glowing buttons on the wall.

The blond scooted up close to the elevator door and he peered at the call button. “What does it do?”

“It brings the elevator down. Push it and you’ll see.”

M touched the up button and with a little ding the doors opened.

“Go in.” Connor herded the boy into the elevator and the doors shut behind them.

“Why did it close?”

“Because we’re going upstairs,” Connor chuckled. “Push the three on that panel there.”

M studied the rows of buttons. Connor thought he was going to have to explain what a three was when M finally pushed the correct button. The boy immediately fell against the side wall. He grabbed at the railing with one hand and latched desperately onto Connor’s arm with the other.

“What’s happening!?”

Connor smiled. He’d never liked the feeling of going up in an elevator, but now he’d always associate it with the look of pure terror on M’s face. “We’re in a metal box being pulled upstairs by cables. It feels pretty weird, doesn’t it?”

M gave him a wide-eyed look of confusion and Connor laughed.

The elevator stopped and the doors jerked opened. M immediately let go of Connor and slipped into the hall.

Connor followed him. “That wasn’t so bad,” he said. “Right?”

“I guess not,” M said. He looked back into the elevator from the safety of the hallway. The doors shut again, and he watched with fascination.

“We would have had to walk up three flights of stairs without that thing,” Connor said, amused with the blond’s reaction.

“Cool,” M said.

They found their room easily. It was in the middle of the hall, close to the elevators and the ice machine. Connor swiped the key card and let them inside.

This room was the best yet, and Connor forgave the bitch downstairs for making him use his credit card. The bed was large and comfortable, covered with fresh bedding. The entertainment center had a big screen TV and on the partition next to it was some crazy hi-tech coffee/espresso machine, the kind that did everything on its own. There was an armoire in the corner for storing clothes, a cozy lounge chair turned towards the window, and a large desk beside it. Connor saw the sliding glass door to the balcony as he dropped the bags on the bed.

“This bed is so bouncy!” M flopped onto the mattress, giggling as he flipped around.

Connor walked past him and opened the balcony door. He stepped outside into the cool, breezy air. The city skyline stretched across the horizon. Skyscrapers and tall brick buildings towered off in the distance, their windows twinkling with light. The pool glowed merrily below and the blue water sloshed around playfully. The kids were climbing out and the teen girl was tossing them towels from a beach bag. It looked like they were heading inside.

“Oh, wow! It’s so pretty up here,” M said from behind Connor. The balcony was just large enough for two or three people to comfortably stand together, so there was just enough space for the pair of them. M moved closer to the railing and peered over the edge. “I won’t drown again? Right?” he asked, looking down at the water.

“Naw, I’ll teach you how to swim,” Connor said confidently. “We’ll be in Florida. We could go see the ocean.”

“What’s that?”

Connor didn’t even blink. “The planet’s full of water. Oceans are the largest bodies of water on Earth.”

“And that’s why it looks so blue,” M said. He lifted his head and his gaze trailed upwards. He looked out into the stars.

Connor quirked a brow. “What looks blue?”

“The Earth. From far away.”

Connor studied the boy. M’s mood had sobered, and he continued to search the skies. His eyes darted back and forth, scanning the horizon.

“What are you talking about?”

M snapped back to normal. “Huh?” He gave Connor a curious look.

“Uh, nothing, I guess.” Connor looked closely at the boy again, but M was already rushing back into the room.

“What should I put on?” he called and Connor followed him back inside. The boy had climbed onto the bed, and he was rooting through his backpack.

“To swim in?”

“Yeah.”

“You don’t need to put anything on,” Connor said. “You need to take things off, actually.”

M looked up at Connor, a blush blooming across his cheeks. “Like…when we have sex?”

“No, M.” Connor smiled at him and came closer, tugging seductively on the boy’s t-shirt. “You could get away with swimming in your pants. The shirt has to go though.”

“Oh!” M tore his shirt off. “Is that good?”

“Great,” Connor laughed at the boy’s enthusiasm.

It was around 8 o’clock when they finally made it downstairs again. Just two shirtless boys with bath towels over their shoulders. Nothing unusual about that.

The same lady was still manning the front desk. She watched them with a pinched expression on her face as they trailed through her lobby. Connor barely paid her any attention. M was chatting about some little kid’s book he’d read recently. The plot had been about learning to swim apparently, but the kid had picked up some weird ideas about the activity.

“Yes, you can float on your back. Water wings are not required,” Connor said as they passed the bathrooms.

“But how? The kids in the book all had colorful animals to help them float. Should we get Jack?”

Connor laughed. “Those were inflatables. They’re made of plastic and filled with air. They’re not real live animals.”

“Oh.”

They passed the hotel bar next. It looked somewhat busy. There were a few people sitting at the bar and a few more scattered around the room at different tables. Connor spotted a couple eating some fries out of an appetizer basket. Fuck yes! Food!

But he’d promised M. Pool first.

They went out the glass double doors at the back of the hall and entered the pool area. Besides the large pool which was wrapped around the back patio, there were sporadic planter sets with palm trees and other beachy plants. White tea lights hanging from the trees lit the beautiful foliage. They also had little rock speakers set up and some unknown pop song played throughout the area. There were pool chairs and loungers, tables with umbrellas over them and more lights, little candles in vases, were scattered around.

M charged to the edge of the pool. He kicked his tennis shoes off and dipped his foot in. “Oh! It’s cold!”

“Guess we’d better go back to the room then,” Connor said, getting a little thrill when M’s face fell. The boy looked out into the blue, calm pool water with a look of sorrow and Connor tried hard not to laugh. He kicked his boots off, bracing himself for the cold shock he was about to face. “Or I could just push you in.”

M turned back to him in an instant. “What?

Connor broke into laughter and rushed the boy. He would have liked to throw M in by himself, but he’d promised the boy he’d teach him how to float. He didn’t want to start that off by scaring the shit out of him. So, he cradled M in his arms and shoved them both over the edge.

M screamed and there was a rush of ice cold and then under they went. They hung suspended in the water for a few seconds, but there was a steady stream of bubbles flooding out of M’s mouth. He was still yelling, and he struggled in Connor’s arms, frantic to get to the surface.

Connor held onto M and kicked his legs, bringing them up and out of the water.

M gasped dramatically as they reached the surface. “Why’d you do that!” he cried. “That was mean!”

Connor just laughed. The blond was fuming, his eyes were angry, but he allowed himself to be held. He draped his arms around Connor’s shoulders and huffed.

“Sorry,” Connor said. “It was just a joke.”

“I thought you said you weren’t going to play mean jokes on me anymore,” M whined. He had a drop of water hanging off his nose and Connor flicked it away. He stroked his hands through M’s wet hair, combing the white blond locks out of the boy’s face.

“I’m sorry,” Connor said again, beaming up at the blond. He was totally supporting his weight; M’s legs tickled his sides. “You’re really cute when you’re scared.”

M pouted.

“But that was a terrible way to start learning,” Connor agreed. “First things first, you can’t breathe under water. You know how to hold your breath right?”

M rolled his eyes. He sucked in a deep breath of air and held it, his cheeks puffed out.

“Hold your breath until we come up for air,” Connor said and then he tightened his hold on M and plunged them underwater again. Connor opened his eyes and saw that M was watching him too. The boy still had a big bubble of air in his mouth. Mission accomplished.

Now that M had the knack of holding his breath, Connor had him ride on his back as they went around the perimeter of the pool. He had M practice his kicking and then they went to the shallow end and Connor showed him how to do a basic doggy paddle with his arms.

After about an hour of practicing, M was doing better, but he was far from good. He could keep his head above water, but he looked like he was going to kick his legs to death. He still didn’t get the whole buoyancy thing.

“I’m getting hungry,” Connor said. He swam to the edge and waited for M to follow him. The boy was mostly tip-toeing across the bottom. He swallowed a large gulp of water too when he reached the edge and the water rebounded into his face.

“Gah!” M spit out some foamy water.

Connor cringed and he lifted himself out of the pool. “Give me your hand.” M reached his hand up, stirring the water up and getting even more into his mouth.

“Coooonnoaaa!” the boy gurled around a mouthful of chlorine. Connor grabbed him and lifted him out with ease.

The blond hunched over and coughed up water. It was kind of funny, but Connor didn’t laugh. He alternated between rubbing and patting M’s trembling back.

When M’s coughing subsided, Connor led him to one of the lounge chairs. He sat down first and then pulled M on top of him. The boy lay between his legs and pillowed his head on Connor’s bare chest. Connor exhaled a deep, relieved breath. “Well, did you have fun?”

“Swimming is hard,” M said tiredly.

“What gave you that impression? When you tried to swallow half the pool?”

“Ha ha, that’s real funny,” M bitched.

“Seriously, no wonder you aren’t hungry,” Connor said, grinning. “Your stomach is full of water!”

M sat up just to flip him off and Connor laughed at him.

“C’mon,” he said, rolling off the lounge chair. “You’d better find a hole in that belly for alcohol because the bar’s the only place open here.”

“Do you think they have margaritas?”

“They’d be crazy if they didn’t,” Connor said. “Let’s go.”

They dried off and went back into the hotel. The bar had a few less people, but it was still open. Connor found them a secluded table off to the side of the bar and he had M save the spot while he went to go talk to the sleepy-eyed bartender.

They did have a pitcher of margarita and Connor found an extra-large order of loaded fries on the menu. M hadn’t mentioned being hungry, but when the bartender brought their drinks and the fries out, he dug in just as eagerly as Connor did. In fact, everything was so good, they ended up ordering a second round of drinks and another basket of fries!

“I loooove margaritas,” M said, dancing in his seat as he drained his tall, frosty glass. His face was flushed a tell-tale red and he was giggling and acting goofy. He was already drunk, but Connor wanted to make sure he was properly wasted before they went upstairs. If he was going to get his dick sucked tonight, he had to pull out all the stops.

Connor ordered a third round of margaritas to be sent up to their room, paid, and then led M back out into the lobby by the hand. The boy was stumbling, and Connor carried his shoes because M had kicked them off at some point. The mean bitch was still behind the front desk, and she watched them making their way to the elevators with her nose in the air. Connor didn’t care this time. He glared right back at her. He waited until they were about to disappear around the corner and then he flipped her off, too.

“Hurry. Let’s go.” Connor yanked M around the corner and then lifted him up and tossed him over his shoulder. He ran them to the elevators with M laughing loudly.

“What are you doing?! I can walk!”

“You’re taking too long.” Connor skidded to a stop in front of the elevators and slapped the call button. They waited one, maybe two unending minutes before the elevator dinged. When the doors opened, Connor shifted M into a more comfortable position on his shoulder then stepped into the elevator, absently pushing the button for the third floor.

“It feeeeels weird!” M sang, kicking his dangling legs as they began to ascend.

“Hold still,” Connor patted M’s damp ass. “We’re almost there.” The elevator stopped at the third floor and the doors opened smoothly. Connor took them down the hall to their room and valiantly carried the boy over the threshold. M was laughing, again. The feel of his vibrating body tickled Connor’s chest. As they approached the bed, Connor let M slide off his shoulder, carefully setting him on his feet. “You’re soaking wet. Get naked before you sit on anything.”

M raised his eyebrows but took off his shorts and his tiny briefs. They clung to each other, coming off all at once. M handed Connor the wet clothes once he was naked and Connor tossed them lazily into the bathroom. He’d get them later or something.

There was a knock on the door. “Room service.”

“Good timing.” Connor turned back to M, taking in his naked body. “Go sit on the bed. I’ll get the drinks.”

M nodded and sat gently on the edge of the bed. Connor ruffled his hair in approval, then left him to answer the door. The drinks were served on a little silver cart and Connor wheeled it into the room and close to the bed. M was being seductive again. He’d arranged himself on the bed so his naked legs dangled off the edge, making him look vulnerable and delicious. His slim legs were parted and Connor could see his creamy, soft inner thighs. Connor stopped on M’s cock and balls. The boy was half hard and Connor licked his lips as he came closer.

“Want another drink?”

M nodded.

Connor fixed them both a glass. He was already feeling the buzz, and not necessarily hating it either. Fuck, obviously margaritas were his favorite, too. He handed M his drink and then he took his shorts off, too, and sat beside him. M took a big gulp of his, his wide eyes scanning up and down Connor’s bare body. Connor chuckled. “See something you like?”

“Yes,” M said intently.

“I want to try a blow job again,” Connor said and M, of course, still had no idea what the fuck he was talking about. He could see it in the silly little wrinkle between M’s eyebrows. “Just… Finish your drink first.”

M started gulping his margarita down. “Ok.”

Connor quickly finished his own. His head swam a little when they’d both finished at last and he stood up to take both glasses back to the cart. He was definitely drunk and he’d split everything with M from the start, so the boy was surely smashed, as well.

He hoped everything went alright this time...

Connor didn’t sit back down. He moved in close to M’s face, his cock lining up perfectly with the blond’s mouth. He straddled the boy’s legs and there was about two inches left between M’s nose and Connor’s slowly hardening cock. Once it was hard, it would probably poke him on the chin.

M looked up at him. “You want me to put it in my mouth.”

It wasn’t really a question. Connor nodded anyway.

M gently grasped Connor’s penis, gripping it like he was shaking someone’s hand. “So, I just…. Put it in?”

“Just be careful with your teeth,” Connor said. “Dicks are sensitive.”

M didn’t say anything. He was staring at Connor’s cock with interest.

“What does it taste like?” he asked softly.

“You’ll find out.”

Slowly, M’s lips parted, and he guided Connor’s cock into his mouth. He closed his lips around the rapidly hardening length and cradled it on his tongue. Connor felt the flexible tip stroking the underside of his pulsing flesh.

“Good,” Connor hissed. “Good, fuck… Now, keep your teeth away from the skin, ok? But pretend you’re sucking a straw. Just let my cock sit on your tongue and suck my cockhead… Ahh!”

M did exactly as Connor requested. His tongue vibrated and danced a little against the sensitive vein that stuck out fatly on the underside of Connor’s cock. M followed directions exactly and did everything thoroughly and every suck felt better than the last. Connor’s thighs shook with the effort it took him not to start frantically thrusting his dick into M’s hot, tight mouth.

They were doing it! M was sucking him off! And he wasn’t doing too badly either. Fuck! This was amazing!

“If you can... take more of it in your mouth. Let my dick slide in and out between your lips, it feels really—” Connor’s eyes rolled up into his head and he locked his knees into place as M started bobbing his head. His teeth grazed Connor’s shaft a few times in his eagerness, but M looked up at him with his apologetic, sparkling green eyes and Connor forgave him. He’d never had a bj this good before. Hannah had sucked him once every blue moon but the experience had never been anything to write home about.

“Just… keep doing that, ah!” Connor groaned and M was happy to please. He eagerly sucked half of Connor’s cock down his throat and his tongue swirled madly around the head while he clenched the other 4 inches in his fist. Connor decided to take a little liberty with the blond, since M seemed to have caught on to dick sucking so quickly. He started rocking his hips, fucking his cock into M’s sweet mouth. The sound of his wet flesh sliding in and out of M’s mouth sent shivers down his spine. The feel of the boy’s tongue, his suctioning mouth, his warm, thick lips clamped down on his cock shaft were all so insanely hot.

Connor touched M’s hair, carding his soft locks between his shaking fingers. “Oh, baby… shit! Oh, fuck yes!” Sweat beaded at his hairline and rolled down the back of his neck. “M!” Connor cried out, he was so close. “I—I’m going—” Connor’s eyes slammed shut and stars exploded behind his eyelids as he came, so hard he was left breathless. M collected the sperm in his mouth then pulled back, smacked his lips together, and then swallowed audibly.

Connor watched him, panting. His dick felt cold, suddenly, exposed to the air-conditioned room. It was glistening wet and happily spent, settling peacefully into the bed of his dark pubic hair. “Did that taste bad?” he grunted, moving to the edge of the bed so he could fall onto the plush mattress.

“No,” M said. “What is that stuff that comes out?”

“Sperm, cum, jizz,” Connor listed off a couple different words for boy juice. “I got to taste yours yesterday. It wasn’t bad.”

M smiled. “I did good, right?”

“Very good.” Connor stroked the boy’s hair and pulled him in close.

They kissed passionately. It reminded Connor of the weird dream he’d had the other night, because there seemed to be no limits tonight. M’s eyes didn’t roll up in his head. He didn’t start shaking. Nobody was bitten, no blood was drawn.

M clutched Connor’s shoulders, opening his mouth enthusiastically under the barrage of Connor’s lips and tongue. Connor had his arms wound around M’s waist and he squeezed handfuls of his ass. He rolled onto his back, pulling M on top of him and the boy met his sloppy kisses with loud, desperate moans as his narrow hips jerked in frantic little circles. Connor could feel M’s hot erection branding his stomach. He sucked M’s juicy tongue one last time and then smacked his ass as hard as he could. The boy yelped and his head jerked up, his eyes popping open in surprise.

“Do you want to cum?” Connor asked him.

M’s face was stained bright red with arousal. “Yes.”

Connor smiled. He wrapped M in his arms, then rolled over, flipping their positions easily. He crouched over the blond now prone on the bed and pushed his legs apart so M gasped. Connor grabbed one of the pillows off the top of the bed, then returned to nudge his hip. “Lift up.”

The boy arched his hips and Connor slid the pillow under him. He positioned M’s body so that his ass was slightly raised. He’d seen this trick in Hanna’s Karma Sutra sex book a long time ago. A simple trick with a pillow got all of M’s sensitive parts exposed.

Connor laid down between M’s legs and lifted his thighs. He took a moment to savor his silky skin and he rubbed his thumbs over M’s tender inner thighs. The boy was groaning for attention by the time Connor pushed his legs back and towards his chest.

“Hold your legs here,” Connor told the boy and M looped his arms up to secure them. His toes wiggled in the air, and he cried a little, obviously very hard, hot, and bothered.

Connor stared at the most awesome sight. The position he’d put M into had spread his ass cheeks obscenely wide and the little dark wrinkle of his asshole was stretched into a tiny ‘O’. The white skin between his open hole and his tight, lightly furred ball sack was shiny with perspiration and pre-cum. The boy’s cock stood above it all, stiff as a flagpole. The tip was flushed red, and the boy’s clear fluids leaked out and dripped down his pink rigid shaft.

Connor grabbed the boy’s cock and M cried out, thrusting his hips up, trying to fuck Connor’s hand. Connor released him immediately and M’s little asshole clenched up tight. He whined, his body going tense.

“Stay still,” Connor said. He was getting hard again, too. His dick was pressed into the sheets, but he was fine with waiting. He wanted to play with M a little.

“I—I can’t!”

“Yes, you can,” Connor clicked his tongue. “Relax.” He licked his finger as M hissed and tried to obey. The boy’s cock twitched with impatience, precum bubbling from the excited tip, but he persevered and managed to stay still. Connor rewarded him by tracing his wet finger around his sensitive, little hole, making the muscle spasm like crazy. “I want to touch you here,” he said intently.

M sobbed and his arms shook, struggling to keep his legs back and spread for Connor. Connor felt kind of bad for him, but also, he kind of liked that M was having a hard time... It was hot.

Connor leaned in, smelling the thick scents of arousal and cum. It smelled delicious, and Connor decided to just go with it. He pressed his lips to M’s exposed asshole and sucked.

“Ah!” M gasped at the same instant his tight entrance clenched against Connor’s lips like a little mouth. Connor flicked his tongue out in response and French kissed the needy ring of muscle with the same enthusiasm he had M’s sweet lips. M went wild with pleasure. He shook and trembled with the need to move his hips and his moans quickly became incoherent.

Connor decided he wasn’t going to touch M’s cock again. He wanted to see if he could make him cum just by eating his asshole. So, Connor covered M’s quivering pucker with a good amount of spit, then prodded it with the tip of his tongue. M’s cock twitched just inches away from Connor’s face, the entire length was swollen with need, but Connor ignored it. He circled his tongue around and around M’s entrance and pushed in deeper, slowly opening M with the slippery muscle.

M panted hard as his body shook like mad and he moaned brokenly, totally overcome by Connor’s skillful tongue. He struggled to hold his position while Connor kept up the rimjob for several long minutes, but he was obviously enjoying himself. When Connor finally pulled back to study his handiwork, M groaned and unconsciously thrust his hips, searching for Connor’s mouth again. The boy worked his anal muscles reflexively, displaying his flexibility in all its lewd glory. “I want to cum,” he moaned, his voice ragged and desperate.

“I know, baby,” Connor said, but he otherwise ignored the boy. He was in no hurry for M to cum. Firmly, he pressed his finger against M’s wet hole again, smiling when he easily gained entrance. Connor pushed and his finger slid deeper and deeper inside.

M gasped at the strange new sensation. “W-what are you doing?”

“Just exploring,” Connor muttered, and he was. He’d never tried this on himself, but he knew there was a prostate up here somewhere. He sawed his finger in and out of M’s clenching hole, looking for the little button, listening as M groaned with discomfort. When Connor found M’s prostate, he knew it immediately. He prodded the rounded protrusion deep inside M’s anal track and the boy wailed with delight, his ass clenching down even harder on Connor’s fingers.

“Do you like that?” Connor asked dumbly.

“Yes!”

“Mmm,” Connor hummed, and he continued to fuck M with his finger, touching the boy’s prostate at the end of each deep thrust. “How does it feel?”

“Soooo so good!” M whined, jerking his hips up and down frantically. His entire body was slick with sweat, his face was red, and his breathing was labored. Connor thought he was absolutely gorgeous in his moment of bliss. He looked like an angel with a blond halo or something…

M lasted one or two minutes more before he jerked his hips up one last time and exploded like a volcano, his dick completely untouched... The cum flew all over them and the bed and Connor shoved his free hand between his stomach and the mattress and palmed himself. He jerked his over excited cock firmly and twisted his wrist a little to increase the intensity. He fucked M’s hole a few more times, loving the sight of it, before the boy dropped M’s legs and closed the magnificent spread.

Connor came after a few more hurried pulls. He spilled his come onto the sheets and then dropped his head onto M’s thigh. He was exhausted and he allowed himself to rest for a few silent minutes. Beside him, the boy’s breathing was slowly coming back to normal. He too was silent. For once, M was speechless.

That was really good. Connor smiled to himself, his lips curling against M’s soft skin. It must have been the alcohol…. He mentally patted himself on the back for the success. He felt like a real stud. He kissed the boy’s thigh tenderly and M sighed softly in response. But then the boy sat up abruptly, staring down at him in horror. Connor groaned, he already knew he wasn’t going to like this... “We forgot to check on Jack!”

Connor groaned again, but he was already rolling out of bed. Grudgingly, he went to sort through his things, looking for something dry to wear outside.

“I’ll come too,” M said, crawling unsteadily to the edge of the bed.

“No…” Connor poured M another glass of margarita and turned the TV on for him. “Just stay up here. I’ll be back soon.”

M sat back on the bed. He happily accepted his margarita.

Connor hesitated, then he leaned down and kissed M on the side of the mouth. “I’ll be right back,” he promised, then he stepped outside.

***

Jack wasn’t very happy to be led back to the truck after their walk. He snorted in protest when Connor opened the door. Connor patted the seat a few times, calling for Jack to jump up, but when it became apparent the dog wasn’t getting in without a fight, Connor simply picked the little jerk up and put him in the front seat.

“There. I gave you water, your food bowl is half full and we’ll be back in the morning, what else can I get you, Jackass?”

Jack moped. Obviously, he said nothing.

“Sorry, dude. This is the Hilton. It’s nice for humans, it’s banned for dogs. My bad.”

Jack continued to stare at him with sad, lonely eyes and Connor hated it. With a sigh, he locked the truck up and left the sad-eyed dog until morning.

Connor started walking back… The parking lot had gotten pretty full as the night went on though, because he didn’t remember all these cars being here. It seemed like a million cars were between him and the Hilton now. Connor froze… this wasn’t right. He’d just left the dog and the parking lot wasn’t that big to begin with! Where was the truck? Connor turned back and he blinked. He’d left the dog just seconds ago, but the truck was nowhere in sight.

He turned back to the hotel, feeling very uneasy. He shuffled ahead, afraid to look, but when he tripped over his own two feet in the dark, he glanced up reflexively. His mouth fell open in horror.

The hotel was further away than it had been a moment before. Much further. Connor was standing in the middle of a sea of cars. The vehicles went on forever behind him and the hotel kept getting farther into the distance ahead. It was dancing on the horizon.

He spun in a dizzying circle, looking for the truck. If he could get to the truck, he could drive back to the hotel no matter how far away it was! Where was the truck?!

A dark figure slipped from between two cars thirty yards down.

Connor froze again and he tracked the dark form with his eyes. Slowly, he started to back up as the figure got closer. He didn’t even know where he was going anymore; the truck wasn’t anywhere in sight, the hotel was too far to run to now. Connor backed up against a van. The warm plastic bumper butted into the back of his knees.

The dark form of a man crept upon him. Connor started to scream, but a strong lean body pressed into his front, curled into him and forced him back painfully onto the hood of the van. He could barely breathe under the weight, he definitely couldn’t scream.

Dark glasses met Connor’s fearful, searching gaze. A brimmed black hat covered the man’s short black hair. Pale, off-white skin contrasted sharply with a neat black suit and a trench coat that grazed the asphalt. Connor started to hyperventilate. He swore this was the man he’d thrown into the swamp a few days ago. But this guy wasn’t dead. He was choking the life out of Connor, in fact.

“You need to bring me the boy.”

Connor gasped. He couldn’t speak.

“Bring me the boy.”

The man in black pressed his face closer. He opened his mouth and the sound of static spilled out. Connor yelled. His head thudded back against the hood of the van, and he screamed and screamed—

“Wake up!”

The bed jostled crazily as M jumped off the mattress. Connor looked around the room, shaking. He wasn’t in the parking lot, pinned to the van. He was in the hotel room. The lights were on. The cart of margaritas was by the bed.

Had that been a dream?

“Connor!” M hissed and Connor rolled over. The blond was crouching near the bathroom. It was down the little hallway catty-corner to the room’s front entrance.

There was a brisk knock on the door and M gasped. He ran for the bathroom and slammed the door shut.

Connor huffed, reaching up quickly to wipe a trail of sweat from his brow. He didn’t know who was at the door, but there was no reason to panic, right? He glanced out the sliding glass door. It was pitch black outside.

The knocking came again, and Connor looked around for his clothes.

“Alright! I’m coming!” Connor’s voice made the knocking turn into pounding. Something fell hard in the bathroom and Connor’s heart started to race. He rolled off the bed and quickly pulled on his damp shorts as the pounding continued. He rushed to the door, bumping into the cart in his haste. He hissed, then limped down the hall. “What?!” Connor fell against the door, then stretched up to peer out the peep hole.

There was no one there. The knocking had stopped the second Connor got to the door.

Click, click

The hairs on the back of Connor’s neck stood up straight at the odd sound. Slowly, he turned around.

The man in black stood on the balcony, his hand on the door latch.

“Oh shit!” Connor lunged across the room, tripped, then slid across the carpet on his knees. The door was sliding open and Connor reached out for the latch, grabbed it, then slammed it shut with all his strength. He fumbled with the lock, looking through the glass at the man in horror.

The pale, sunglass wearing freak had his head down. He opened his mouth just as a blinding light flared behind him. Connor eyes slammed shut and he cried out.

“Connor!” M screamed somewhere behind him.

“Get back!” Connor couldn’t see anything, but he turned away from the light source and stumbled blindly toward M’s frantic voice. He bumped into the boy first, then grabbed him around the middle and hurried him down the hall. They squeezed through the door, a narrow opening in the blinding light, and stumbled into the hall. The door slammed shut behind them.

“W-was that the man?” M asked.

“Yep,” Connor said, then he grabbed onto M and pulled him down the corridor. “Let’s get the fuck out of here, now.”

For once, Connor skipped the elevators. He dragged M to the stairs and the two of them scrambled down the staircase. The second they go to the lobby, Connor charged up to the front desk. It was the same lady as before. She looked completely calm, and her eyebrows just about disappeared into her hairline when Connor stepped up to her shiny counter.

“Someone tried to break into our room,” Connor gasped.

“What?”

“Someone started banging on my door and when I went to see who it was, when I was distracted at the door, they knew immediately… They must have hid behind the wall or something! This guy was on the balcony and when I had my back turned, he started to open the sliding glass door!”

“Ah…what?” the lady looked very confused.

“Send someone up to my room!” Connor yelled. “Someone with some fucking muscles or something!”

The lady blinked. “I’ll… be right back.” She went into a door behind the counter and Connor slammed his fists on the counter.

“Fuck! She doesn’t fucking believe me!”

“I don’t want to stay here anymore,” M said, looking around nervously. “He knows we’re here.”

Connor growled under his breath. “Fuck this.” He grabbed M’s wrist and pulled him back to the elevators. They went up to the third floor and down to their room.

It wasn’t until they were standing in front of their door that Connor realized he’d left the key card inside. The door had slammed shut when they’d ran out and Connor stared at the door, feeling helpless and scared. All his stuff was in there.

“Is the card thing in the room?”

“Yep.” Connor leaned his head against the door and stood there for several long minutes, his mind running endlessly, plotting, planning, trying to figure out what the hell they should do next.

Ding!

That was the elevator. Connor turned his head lazily, then straightened when he saw it was hotel staff; two different guys in black t-shirts.

“Hey,” Connor said as the two guys approached. “We left our key card inside.”

The older guy had a key for them. He let them all inside.

Connor looked around nervously, but nothing in the room was any different. It didn’t look like any of their stuff had been touched. While the hotel guys were still in the room, he went out onto the balcony to see if anyone was lurking, but there was nobody.

“Sorry,” Connor said awkwardly, rubbing the back of his neck as the security guys exited the room. “I guess the man got away.”

The younger of the two guys shrugged, but the older guy had a bit more decorum. He asked if there was anything else he could do.

“No. Thanks,” Connor said, and luckily, the guys left without anymore hassle. Connor knew they looked stupid right now, but he knew what he’d seen. The fact that M corroborated his story proved it. The man in black was alive.

Connor and M began to pack up the moment they were alone again. M didn’t want to stay? Well, Connor didn’t want to stay either. They got dressed, grabbed their bags, then went back down to the lobby to check-out. The lady at the desk gave them a little discount because they’d had such a bad night and Connor hated her a little less after that.

When they exited the building, it was just after midnight. Connor and M walked close together, crossing the large parking lot with caution. As they walked, Connor remembered getting lost out here earlier with the dog…

“Did I come out to take care of the dog?” Connor asked. “After we had sex?”

M looked tense. He shook his head once. “We went to sleep.”

“Oh.”

Shortly, they reached the truck and Jack was so happy to see them. He was a little agitated and he whined as they got in, but his tail wouldn’t stop wagging.

“It’s ok, Jack. We’re back. We’re leaving,” M told the dog. “We’ll never leave you alone like that again. We’re sorry, Jack.”

Jack pinned his ears back. He climbed into M’s lap and licked him in the face, getting his nose and his chin and his lips, too. Connor reminded himself to have M wash his face before they kissed again.

They all got situated, then Connor started the truck, and they pulled out of the parking lot. He headed toward the highway, figuring they’d head to Tampa early and spend part of the day there. It was the only idea he had.

Connor and M didn’t talk much over the next few hours. Both of them were wide awake and alert at first, but soon M gave in and curled up against the dog, falling asleep peacefully. Connor wished he could join him. He was exhausted. He didn’t want to process what had happened because he had no idea what they were going to do. But Connor had no such luxuries now that he was driving. He was stuck with the image of the man in black gazing at him through the sliding glass door to the balcony. That shit was definitely going to haunt his nightmares for a while. Maybe it was best he probably wasn’t going to sleep again for another 24 hours…