It was nice, in a way. He loved Duke for being such a likeable guy but even more he liked his rarely seen quiet side—the side he’d noticed when his friend had spent a month feeding a stray kitten from an eyedropper because its mother had died and it was too young to be weaned. The side that volunteered in an after-school program for at-risk youth, teaching kids from broken homes and bad backgrounds the rudiments of soccer and telling them about the sports scholarships they could get that would make getting to college and having a real future possible. Mav had gone with him on more than one occasion and watched as he established a rapport with even the most skeptical young souls. Duke could always get them laughing and talking and excited about the game, even the troublemakers other volunteers had given up on.
Yes, Mav admitted to himself, he’d admired his best friend’s easy way with the kids and his gentle touch with the tiny, helpless kitten. And he’d caught himself wondering why Duke couldn’t be like that more of the time. He loved his friend, but sometimes the loud, drunk frat-guy routine got old—way old. Why couldn’t Duke let the gentle, caring side of himself out more often?
Suddenly Mav wondered what had gotten into him—was he actually wishing his roomie could be more sensitive? How freaking gay was that? No gayer than kissing him while you rubbed off against him, a little voice in his head spoke up. Mav pushed it away. He’d already decided not to think of or mention the episode from the night before ever again and since Duke hadn’t said anything about it, he was pretty sure they could consider the incident dropped. Things happened in college. People got drunk or high and did stupid things—you should be allowed a certain number of mistakes, Mav told himself. He was just going to call last night a mistake and leave it at that. And if he and Duke never mentioned it again, there was no reason why it ought to affect their friendship.
Except it was already affecting their friendship. Why else were they so comfortable touching each other? So at ease holding hands? And when the photographer asked them to kiss, Mav didn’t even hesitate. Without a word, he dug his fingers into the short, spiky blond hair at Duke’s nape and brought him in for a long, breathless exploration where he mapped every part of his friend’s mouth with his tongue. It felt natural to take the lead and Duke let him, winding his arms around Mav’s neck and pulling him even closer as though he couldn’t get enough. In fact, the photographer told them to stop and change to a different pose several times before they heard him—which kind of embarrassed Mav when the guy called them out about it. But he decided that was just because he and Duke were both intensely focused when it came to getting something right. Just like on the soccer field, they made a great team. And his unspoken reluctance to let go of his best friend and stop kissing him had nothing to do with it. Nothing at all.
Just before their own shoot was over, another pair of men came in. One was tall and lean with multiple piercings, including a tongue ring and eyebrow barbells, and short black hair. His companion was shorter and more normal looking with brown hair and eyes and he wore a colorful rainbow t-shirt that read, I’m not gay but my boyfriend is.
The photographer stopped and talked to them for a minute before coming back to Mav and Duke.
“Hey, guys, if you’re not in too much of a hurry I’d really like to get a few more shots of you but I need to do these guys first. They have an appointment to get to. You mind waiting?”
Duke shrugged. “Got nothin’ else to do today.”
“Me either,” Mav said. He’d taken his organic chem test earlier so the rest of his day was clear.
“Great.” The photographer smiled and ushered them off to the side of the set. Mav watched intently as he arranged the two new subjects. He suddenly felt shy around his friend for some reason and hoped Duke wouldn’t start talking about the kiss they had just shared—or the night before for that matter. But his roommate seemed as content as he was to let it drop. He stood silently beside Mav and watched as well as the two new men who’d come in were put in position. And there was certainly something to watch.
To Mav’s mingled interest and discomfort, it appeared that the two new guys were posing for the gay website. The photographer had them get completely naked before posing and the positions he photographed them in were much more graphic than anything Mav and Duke had been asked to do.
Mav wanted to look away as the two men kissed and fondled each other but it was like a train wreck—he just couldn’t. And it wasn’t like he enjoyed gay porn either—that shit did nothing for him. It was just… Just that I can imagine doing the same kinds of things with Duke, he thought before he could stop himself.
“Dude, I can’t believe they’re doing that,” Duke murmured, breaking his train of thought. Duke’s brown eyes were glued to the scene in front of them where the shorter, brown-haired man was taking his partner’s cock deep into his mouth. In fact, Mav thought he might be deep-throating, a skill he’d only seen displayed by women before while watching his friend’s extensive porn collection.
“They’re, uh… Probably they do it all the time so it’s no big deal to earn money doing it,” Mav said, trying to sound nonchalant. “I mean, if you were really gay, that kind of thing would be like, something you did every day. Right?”
“Probably. You’re probably right.” Duke cleared his throat and Mav could see him looking at him from the corner of his eye. “So what do you think about it? Think you’d ever do it?”
Mav frowned. “What—suck another guy? I don’t know. Maybe—it would depend.” He didn’t say what it would depend on because he didn’t really know himself. On how much money he was offered? On who the guy was? He was too busy watching to think about it. The two men were getting into a different pose now and his attention was on them instead of what his friend was saying.
“Oh, man,” Duke almost whispered as the brown-haired man knelt on all fours and his taller partner crouched behind him. “Do you think they’re gonna fuck?”
Mav shrugged. “Don’t know.” He couldn’t take his eyes off of the two gay guys in front of him. What would it be like to do that with another guy? What would it be like to do it with Duke? Shouldn’t be thinking that, his mind whispered. But he couldn’t stop the images that formed in his brain. The idea of Duke under him, open to him, both of them naked and kissing, Duke writhing on the bed while Mav pounded into him…it was hard to let go of somehow.
“Wow,” Duke murmured as they watched the two men perform acts very like the ones Mav was imaging.
“Yeah. Wow is right. That looks like it should hurt but the, uh, one guy seems to be enjoying it,” Mav whispered back from the side of his mouth.
“How much would they have to pay to get us to do that, huh?” Duke nudged his arm jokingly.
“Depends,” Mav said again. “I guess I could see being the pitcher—if the money was right. But I don’t think I could be the catcher, ya know?”
“Yeah, I guess.” Duke looked uncomfortable. “Well, but I mean maybe it wouldn’t be so bad to be the catcher. It would depend on who was pitching. Like maybe…maybe if it was you…” He trailed off, going red in the face.
Mav stared at his friend, his interest in the show going on in front of him abruptly waning. “You saying you want me to fuck you, Duke? Is that it?” He was surprised at how instantly his friend’s words affected him. The idea had been intriguing enough but now that Duke had practically voiced what he had been thinking out loud, his cock was suddenly so hard he felt like he could fuck through solid concrete.
Duke cleared his throat. “No, man. That would be way too gay…wouldn’t it?”
“I guess.” They were looking at each other now and Mav found he couldn’t drag his gaze away from his best friend’s deep brown eyes. “How would you feel about it?” he asked Duke, as the tension mounted between them. “Would you let me? Would you want me to? I mean—in a purely hypothetical situation, like if they paid us a million bucks or something?”
“I…uh…” Duke shook his head uncertainly as Mav leaned forward.
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“Well?” Mav murmured. For a moment, all he could think of was kissing his best friend again. Of how soft Duke’s lips were, how he gave himself completely when they kissed…
“I, uh, I gotta go… Just gonna get a drink of water.” Duke bolted from the room, leaving Mav to stare after him and wonder what was going on.
He came back about ten minutes later with a sheepish look on his face. “Hey, I’m sorry, man. Don’t know what hit me—maybe a stomach virus or something.”
“Now you tell me—after I just spent half the day kissing you,” Mav complained and then realized what he’d said. Not only had he become comfortable enough to kiss his best friend, he was joking about it. And wanting to do it again—even when nobody’s paying you, the voice in his head whispered. “Uh, I mean, I hope you feel better,” he ended lamely, hoping Duke wouldn’t think he was strange.
But his best friend only shook his head. “Better already. Just needed some water. So, are they done?” He nodded at the set where the photographer appeared to be finishing up.
“I think so,” Mav said, relieved that the heavy-duty gay action was over. It had been beyond weird to stand there with Duke and watch the two gay guys fuck each other, although he admitted to himself that it hadn’t been as gross as he’d feared it would be. Mostly because he’d wondered what it would be like if he and Duke were doing exactly what he was watching.
“Good.” Duke looked relieved and soon enough the two guys left and they were back on set.
Here we go, Mav thought. He was certain that now the photographer would ask them to try something gayer—something like what they’d just watched the other guys do. But to his mingled relief and disappointment, the photographer only wanted a few more hugging shots and then he sent them on their way.
They left the studio with enough money to pay the rent, but Mav also took away a lot of questions—not the least of them was what was going on between him and his roommate…
“So it wasn’t so bad—right?” Duke’s voice brought him out of his silent reverie and Mav realized he’d been thinking so hard he’d forgotten he was supposed to be pumping iron. They were working out in the USF men’s gym, trying to burn off the tension the shoot had caused. Or at least Mav was—he just didn’t know if he was doing it the right way because despite the hours of weightlifting, he was still tight as a wire. But he didn’t want Duke to know that so he answered his friend’s question nonchalantly.
“Nah, not so bad,” he answered, finishing another set of reps. “Hey, man, I’m beat. How about we head back soon?”
“Sure, all right.” Duke put down the barbells he’d been lifting and wiped his hands on a towel. “Just let me do one more set and I’ll meet you in the locker room. ’K?”
“Sure.” Mav put down his own weights and stretched before grabbing his towel. “See you there.”
The green tiled locker room was steamy and the communal shower was filled with guys who had just worked out. Mav picked a shower and twisted the nozzle to hot before getting under the spray. For some reason, he felt really self-conscious about showering naked with a bunch of other guys, although he never had before. Seeing all the naked male flesh surrounding him had him thinking of what he’d done with Duke the night before. Was he gay now? But if he was, wouldn’t the sight of all the hard, muscular bodies surrounding him turn him on?
Although he had never done so before, Mav looked around, staring deliberately at the other men showering around him. Nothing. He felt a small measure of relief. Surely if he really was gay the sight of so many naked men would have had him popping wood like nobody’s business. Instead it left him cold. Guess I can just chalk up last night to another college mistake that will never be repeated, he told himself, feeling a little better.
“Hey, Holms, you mind not staring at my dick?”
The familiar voice snapped Maverick out of the trance he’d somehow fallen into and he realized that his eyes had been wandering independently of his brain. The guy who had addressed him was Richard Enslow and he was soaping himself vigorously in a shower two down from Mav’s. Enslow had a shock of bright red hair that contrasted strangely with his dark tan skin and his naked body appeared to be one massive freckle fest—not that Mav wanted to see it.
Inwardly, he groaned. Of all the people he wanted to meet by accident Enslow was on the bottom of his list. Of course, he didn’t want to meet him on purpose either. In fact, he’d been hoping never to see the judgmental asshole ever again—except at the soccer team’s end-of-the-year party. There was no avoiding Enslow there because the entire team went, but it wasn’t for another week yet.
“Hey, Enslow,” he said halfheartedly. “Sorry, man, I was just spacing out, that’s all.”
“Or maybe he was just lookin’ ’cause he’s never seen anything that small before. Seriously, dude, you should invest in a microscope so your girlfriend can even find that thing.” Duke’s voice behind him made Mav jump.
“Damn it, Duke, don’t sneak up behind me like that,” he snapped as his roommate took the shower next to his.
“Yeah, like it’s anything new. I bet you faggots are sneaking up behind each other all the time,” Enslow sneered, returning Duke’s insult.
Mav felt his face turning red. In the past he would have let Enslow’s insult roll off his back as easily as the hot water that was currently pounding him, but now…things were different somehow. They’re not that different, he argued with himself. After all, it’s not like we sucked each other off or actually fucked or anything. He had a sudden but vivid mental image of Duke on his knees in the shower, the steaming water making his muscular body gleam as he took Mav’s cock deep into his mouth, just like the gay guy had sucked his lover at the photo shoot. How would it feel to have his best friend’s lips wrapped around his shaft? To run his hands over Duke’s sleek, wet hair and pump into his mouth until he came? And what would it be like to do the same for Duke? What would Duke’s cock taste like, feel like as it slid between Mav’s lips?
To his horror, he realized he was getting hard. Apparently seeing other naked guys in the shower didn’t do it for him, but the idea of getting physical with his best friend made him all kinds of horny. What was wrong with him? How could he chalk this up to a college mistake if it kept happening?
Hurriedly, he twisted the shower knob to the off position and left the echoing, tiled area to grab his towel. No way was he going to walk around the locker room showing wood. What would the other guys think if he did that? They would think he was gay—that was what he would think. Am I? Mav asked himself again as he toweled off and got dressed in record time.
But no matter how many times he asked himself the question, he didn’t have an answer.
Chapter Four
“Hey, you ran out of there like your hair was on fire and your ass was catching. What’s the deal?” Duke was trying to act casual but Mav could see the concern in his big brown eyes.
“No deal. I was just done showering, that’s all,” he mumbled before going back to the books spread over their small kitchen table. He had a wicked finals schedule lined up for the next week and even though he had already been accepted into pharmacy school, he didn’t want to bomb out on his last few tests because he hadn’t studied.
“Well, okay, ’cause you just seemed kinda, I don’t know, freaked or somethin’.” Duke reached in the refrigerator and got out a gallon of milk.
“Why would I be freaked?” Mav had been asking himself that all the way home. Why had he bolted out of the guys’ locker room like that? Was it really so upsetting that he’d gotten hard thinking about getting a blowjob? Most guys would get wood over that, right? And a blowjob was a blowjob, no matter who gave it to you. Even if it was your best friend…your best male friend. Not that Duke had offered, but Mav was pretty sure his roommate would offer if there was some kind of challenge involved.
“I dunno. Maybe—”
“I guess I was just thinking about what we saw at the photo shoot today,” Mav c
ut him off. “You know, those two other guys?”
“Oh.” Duke took a big swallow of milk from the carton before saying a little too casually, “You mean the gay guys?”
Mav nodded. “Uh-huh. It made me think of something I saw online the other day on this website. It was, uh, I double dare you dot com or something like that. Anyway, it was these two guys—totally straight guys though—and they were doing this weird kind of sex dare thing.” He was watching Duke carefully from the corner of his eye as he spoke, trying to gauge his reaction.
“Oh yeah?” Duke began to look interested. “So what was it?”
Mav closed the book he’d been studying and frowned. “Well, it was kind of like gay chicken but not exactly.”
“How not exactly?” Duke was definitely interested now. He put the milk back and sat at the table across from Mav, listening intently.
“Well, like, they were lying on a bed kind of, uh, head-to-foot.” Mav made a gesture with one hand, trying to find the right way to describe the made-up scenario. He didn’t want to be too obvious. But it was clear he didn’t have to worry about Duke getting the point.
“What, like they were gonna sixty-nine or something?” he asked, a little too eagerly.
Mav nodded. “Uh-huh. And the idea was for each of them to see how close they could get to the other one’s crotch without being grossed out. I mean, they were fully dressed and everything…”
“Oh, yeah. Of course.” Duke nodded. “So which one of them won?”
“Well…” Mav paused as if trying to think. “I think that part was a tie so they had to do an elimination round. Only they called it an underwear round because they took off their jeans.”
“They did, huh?” Duke’s eyes were half-lidded now, an entirely different kind of interest filling their chocolate brown depths. “What happened then?”