“If talking is hard, just try kissing. It’s always worked for me.” Clover grinned and confirmed his words with a peck on Drake’s lips.
He still had to adjust to the concept in his head, and he didn’t even know what these two stubborn men could work out between them, but he was excited to find out. He’d always felt weirdly tender whenever he’d seen Tank give Drake the odd hug or pat him on the back in passing, and if connecting this way made his men happier, he wanted to see it happen.
Drake was still chewing on the answer when his phone pinged. He quickly checked it, but then showed it to Clover with an unreadable expression.
[I’ve got a few hours off baby. Can’t wait to lick up your love juices,] Tank’s message read.
Clover raised his eyebrows with a deep exhale. “Looks like you’re up.”
Chapter 15 – Drake
Drake wasn’t ready.
With a green light from Clover, he could approach Tank without guilt, but the arrival of the message had left no room for thinking things through. He and Tank had agreed to always meet up past sundown on the day of receiving the message, in a motel room rented out for the whole month, in case it was needed. Drake had left the cabin far too early, and had at this point been stewing in his own juices for three hours.
After his fourth shower that day, he needed to remind himself that the purpose of this meeting wasn’t his uncomfortable attraction to Tank but the poison, which Drake had sewn into a women’s push-up bra. Their communication was based on the premise of Tank having a girlfriend, so the lingerie, if seen by anyone, would be considered a trophy and nothing more.
It should work out just fine.
Tank would do his job and safely return into the fold once his new boss was no more.
But safety wasn’t Drake’s primary concern right now. He knew Tank could take care of himself. He, on the other hand, was useless at romance… if whatever this was could even be called that.
The very idea of Tank politely rejecting him made everything inside Drake twist and cringe. Maybe he should wait until Tank was done with the job? What was the point of putting any more weight on him when he was surely already far more stressed than he claimed in his coded messages? It would be selfish to turn his attention to Drake’s issues at a time like this.
Still, Drake cleaned every inch of his body, and let his hair dry in a braid to give it a gentle wave, and changed into fresh clothes, still undecided about what he should do. Which was ridiculous. He’d known Tank for eight years.
If… if anything was to happen, what did Drake even want from Tank in this sense? He had no fucking idea. He liked the hugs, and Tank’s unexpected kisses made him more confused than he let on, but anything beyond that was a hole in his mind, even though he knew he wanted more.
Tank smelled of a cologne so delicious Drake had gotten him another bottle of it last Christmas, his body was strong, tall, impressive. But somehow, the very things that Drake found attractive in Tank also made him uneasy. With Clover, Drake knew where he stood, but if Tank wanted to use Drake’s vulnerability against him, he could. And while Drake considered himself proficient at fighting, Tank’s strength and skill could be deadly even to him if Tank pinned him down.
He knew Tank would never attack him, not after all they’d been through, but he might want things Drake didn’t, and if they tried, the good relationship they’d developed over the years might end up ruined.
It was selfish of him to lust after Tank when everything was going so smoothly. They’d been in that boat before, so why did he even consider rocking it again?
Clover, of course. When Tank had tried to get into Drake’s pants all those years ago, he’d flirted with him in the way he did with Clover. He was looking for a submissive guy who would take his cock, his gifts, his protection, and be his sweet baby. But Drake was anything but pliant, was set on protecting himself, and the thought of a cock up his ass made him queasy.
With Clover in the picture though, Clover filling all of those needs Tank had in terms of a boyfriend, what was Drake’s use to Tank? Why would he be up for the scraps Drake could offer?
But whenever those agonizing thoughts overcame him, Clover’s voice was back, reminding Drake that nobody forced Tank to touch Drake in an intimate way, and that he’d never once approached Boar and Pyro. He’d never teased them in a flirty way nor kissed them. It couldn’t be only because Drake had been with Tank the longest.