“He’s such a good brother,” Gina observed to Canaan.
“He really is,” Canaan agreed.
“He’s my hero.” There was a certain wistfulness in her tone that Canaan couldn’t place. He wished he knew her well enough to gently convey that all the hero business wasn’t helping Renzo, even if she meant it from a place of love. “He’s always done the right thing. Made the right choices.”
Hoping he was one of those right choices, Canaan nodded. “He’s a great guy. Saved my life. I’m lucky to know him.”
“We all are.” Again with the wistfulness. “I miss him so much. The whole family does. He’s our rock.”
Canaan tried to find a way to suggest that she tell Renzo how much the family supported him. It was clear that Renzo struggled with some serious guilt, and maybe if he knew the family was proud of him no matter what, that would help. But before he could raise the subject, they reached the hotel entrance. Renzo slipped him a room key, and he went up to the room while Renzo followed his parents, so that he could hang out with Joe while they showered and relaxed.
Having his own agenda, Canaan took a super-thorough shower while he waited, resisting the urge to jack off in the shower while thinking about Renzo and what they might get up to. The room had two queen beds and Disney-esque art on the walls with dark wood details. He was lounging on one of the beds in a towel watching a movie he’d already seen when Renzo finally came in.
“Okay. Now I’m really glad we’re on the other floor.” Renzo surveyed him with hot appreciation in his eyes. “Should I shower too? I can be super fast.”
“Nah. I’ve got plans to get you dirty. You can shower after.” Flipping off the TV, Canaan leered at him and patted the bed next to him.
“Plans, huh?” Kicking off his shoes first, Renzo stretched out next to him. “I’m game. After putting up with my family all day, you can have whatever you’d like tonight.”
“I was hoping you’d say that.” Canaan pushed him to his back so that he could straddle him, losing his towel in the process. “Because I want to fuck.”
Chapter Nineteen
“You mean metaphorically or literally?” Renzo scratched his chin. He was generally down with the ideas Canaan had in bed, but Canaan tended to call whatever they ended up doing to get off fucking, even if there wasn’t penetration involved. Other than in the truck on the way to Flagstaff, they hadn’t really discussed anal, and Renzo had honestly been too busy having more fun than he’d ever had in bed to broach the topic.
“Oh I mean literally. As in you fucking me.” Canaan’s grin was downright filthy. “And I know you’re going to say we don’t have to—”
“We don’t. What we’ve been doing is great.” Renzo stroked Canaan’s face and shoulders.
“Yeah, it is, but I really want to try this too.”
“I don’t want to hurt you. Or make you uncomfortable even.” Cupping Canaan’s face, he looked right into Canaan’s eyes, trying to tell him that he didn’t have to do this just because he thought Renzo needed it.
“I bought the best lube on the planet—it’s what porn stars use in double penetration scenes. I did my research. And I also ordered a sampler of larger sized condom brands so you won’t be uncomfortable either. Trust me. Pain is not on the agenda.”
“You do sound rather...enthusiastic.”
“That’s me. Very, very enthusiastic. I don’t wanna talk you into this though—I know you’ve had it go not so great in the past. If you’re not into the idea...”
“Oh, I’m into the idea.” Already, simply talking about sex had him half hard. “I just don’t want to jinx this awesome thing we’ve got going.”
Canaan beamed like Renzo had just given him a Benz. He bent to give him a fast, hard kiss. “You won’t. Promise. Not possible. Even if it doesn’t exactly work like I’m hoping, we can go back to the other stuff we both love.”
“I don’t want you disappointed.” He tugged Canaan down for another kiss, this one softer.
“I won’t be. We can always shelve it and try it again another time. Practice makes perfect and all that. And I’m not suggesting that this replace the other stuff either. Only maybe be something we can play with here and there.”
“You make it sound like a new video game to try.” Even when it had been new and exciting, sex had never been that easy for Renzo, but Canaan nodded emphatically.
“Exactly. And just like a video game, it’s got levels. So like we don’t have to go all the way to level ten tonight or anything. We could try level, oh say, three with some fingering if that’s something you want to try.”
“You did say you like that.”