Covet (Straight Taste Book 4) Read online

  Inside, Cody's cabin was furnished with polished pine furniture, rustic drapes, and handmade quilts draped on the bed and country style couches. The open floor plan resembled a studio apartment more than a lodge room for rent. I guessed the square footage to be about six hundred square feet. Cody offered me beer or wine and I chose beer. He sets cans down for both of us on hand-painted coasters, featuring majestic stags with antlers, atop a coffee table that extended narrowly between the two couches.

  We were both still in our costumes, though I peeled off my Egyptian headdress when Cody removed his crown wreath, setting it beside a table lamp.

  "You're even more attractive without the headwear," he commented.

  The way Cody sat against the back of the couch, with his legs casually splayed open, reminded me of a man I had met the past summer. His name was Teddy and he was the owner of multiple vineyards and wineries. Both Cody and Teddy were comfortable with their masculinity, displaying it naturally, without effort or pretense.

  "You resemble someone I know," I said.

  "A sexy hunk?" Cody asked.

  "Definitely, yes."

  "Very nice."

  "I assumed you were completely straight until I caught you looking at me tonight."

  "I dislike stereotypes and generalities," Cody said. His words were spoken with a good-natured tone, but sharply cut with a reminder to me to not peg a person's sexuality based on his or her perceived masculinity or femininity. He was right.

  "I stand corrected," I said.

  "We're gay men. We come in all forms, don't we? No one is better or worse based on feminine or masculine traits. Do you agree?"

  "Completely."

  "Good deal."

  "Not to excuse myself for making assumptions, but I have always lived in small towns. I have yet to meet the range of people I want to get to know, if that makes sense. Do you live in a city?"

  Cody shared that he lived in the suburbs, only miles from the city limits of Austin, Texas. He was single, openly gay in all aspects of his life, and visiting the wetlands preserve as a professional consultant. He was an engineering geologist and spent ample time on the road going to the parks and preserves where he was hired on various projects.

  I was faintly familiar with engineering geology. "Are they making changes at the wetlands or adding a new building?"

  "Yes and yes, there are many coming changes, including several new structures. You didn't know?"

  "I hadn't heard a peep."

  "It's in the planning stages, and all very hush hush for some reason, but these things have a way of leaking out," Cody said. "The funding is in place. The motivation, too. So the transformation will take place."

  "What is it becoming?"

  "In essence, the preserve remains inherently the same, but it will be better equipped to fulfill its purpose. For example, more rangers and specialists will be on hand to stop the poachers who try to invade the lands. Accommodations will also be made for interns and other guests. The pathways will be upgrading, the parking lot will expand, and more people will be able to visit and learn about the wetlands and the preserve's mission."

  "And this is all secret?"

  "As of today, yes, mum's the word."

  "Is your role to make sure the land remains unspoiled?"

  "Exactly. My goal is always minimizing or reversing harm. There's much to consider, from erosion issues to fault lines that actually exist under portions of the forests, not to mention water drainage concerns, and the list goes on."

  I liked Cody. I sensed he was a kindred spirit, appreciating wildlife and nature, dedicating his livelihood to making at least some parts of the world better and kinder. I stepped around the coffee table, sat beside him on the couch, and swigged the last few drinks of my beer.

  "How long will you be in our area?" I asked.

  "A few more days. Then I'll be back, periodically, as conundrums arise. And they always do." Cody put his hand on my forearm. "Tell me about you, Kieran. Beyond the basics I learned from the others, how did you end up here and how do you like to spend your free time?"

  I chuckled and shrugged. "Where do I start?"

  "Anywhere you'd like. Care for one more beer?"

  "I'm good, but thank you."

  "Me too."

  I began by telling Cody about my schooling and job aspirations, but somewhere along the line I switched to sharing personal details. He learned about my limited dating and sexual experiences, my past anxiety about my appearance, and even heard an earful about my struggles with loneliness and my uncanny need for approval from other men. Cody did not interrupt me. He listened closely while gazing into my eyes and occasionally stroking my wrist with his fingers.

  "I went way too far off track," I finally acknowledged. "I told you too much. You should have stopped me from rambling."

  "You're fine. People always reveal themselves, eventually. You wear your heart on your sleeve, Kieran. It's fine to do that, but you're going to get hurt now and then."

  "By rejection?"

  "Of course."

  "I am being foolish. You didn't bring me back to your cabin to hear me rumble on and on about myself and my past."

  "Actually, I did. I wanted to get know you. And vice versa. If sex happened, great. If not, that was fine, too."

  I scooted closer to his side. "Have I ruined my chances for more to happen?"

  "Not at all. Your honesty and authenticity appeals to me."

  I couldn't wait any longer for Cody to take the reins and make the first move. I leaned toward him and kissed him. His lips were powerful and he held my chin in his hand. I trembled, reclining with him on top of me. I pushed his toga up, rubbing his hairy legs and the impressive musculature on his thighs. Cody latched his thumbs around the sides of my underwear beneath the tunic and pulled my briefs down my legs and off of my ankles.

  Cody stood up and admired my partially nude body while he slipped out of his toga. Dark curly hair covered his broad chest. His arms were enormous, particularly his biceps, and he had hips that matched the width of his torso. His testicles hung low, one significantly lower than the other, and his erection jutted out directly toward me.

  Cody put his knee on the edge of the couch, lifted my legs and eased between them.

  "Here?" I asked, wondering if the couch was the most comfortable place for us to be.

  "Sure, we can switch it up," he answered.

  "Lights off?"

  "No, Kieran, I want to be able to see all of you."

  After a long bout of foreplay, that included us tasting and sucking one another, Cody brought a bottle of lube and a handful of condoms from a dresser drawer. He penetrated me from various angles—on my back on the couch, kneeling on the floor, laying on my belly on his bed, and even standing upright against the doorframe by his kitchen. Cody never closed his eyes. He observed my pleasure with great interest and frequently changed positions so I could experience new sensations.

  He nearly brought me to orgasm while I was on all fours in front of the couch. Cody froze so I could regain my control, then pulled out of me and helped me to my feet. He led me to his bed and handed me the bottle of lubrication and a condom.

  "Do you want to be inside me?" he asked.

  I nodded. Being inside another man, not counting oral sex, was not something that had happened to me yet. Until Cody, only two men had ever penetrated me, the others being Andrew and Teddy.

  I eased inside him. The immediate impact, all-encompassing, of having Cody surrounding me, made me emotional. Underneath me and on his back, Cody watched the changing expressions on my face. He told me how amazing I felt inside him and I swelled to such rigidity that I thought I would burst.

  I bent down and kissed him. Cody put his hands on the orbs of my buttocks, squeezing them, encouraging me on without being demanding, with a gesture of appreciation.

  "This is more intense than expected," I whispered in his ear while nuzzling his neck. "What if I can't last long?"

  "So be it,"
he answered, locking his ankles around my lower back.

  But I was able to withhold my eruption. He was so beautiful beneath me, and around me, that I suddenly thought of Andrew. I wondered if this was what I looked and felt like to Andrew when I was underneath him. Emulating Andrew, I began to focus less on myself. Cody became my focus. I liked pushing in and twisting at angles to determine what Cody responded to. I didn't hold back. I even told Cody how much I adored seeing him respond to my thrusts.

  Almost half an hour later, we climaxed together, nearly simultaneously, then fell asleep at each other's sides. It was pitch dark outside when I heard Cody get up from his bed to turn off the lights.

  "Oh, it's so late," I said. "I should get going."

  "Spend the night with me, Kieran."

  We had sex again in the morning and showered. Cody shared a breakfast of juice and muffins with me, then I hit the road, driving home in my Halloween costume with a smile so big my cheeks started to hurt.

  Chapter 6

  It was still Saturday morning and I was about a mile from the duplex. I noticed a tall jogger pausing for traffic at an intersection. He was fully attired in black compression clothing, which clung to every curve of his body, and a grey knit cap covered his head. I reached the stop sign and recognized the profile of his face. It was Brandon.

  Brandon looked over at me, glanced down at the costume tunic I was wearing from the party the night before, gave me a gesture that resembled a military salute, and sprinted across the street.

  I had assumed that Brandon either accompanied Andrew and Willow to Minnesota or had returned to his home out west somewhere. Had he really stayed behind in Andrew's unit to wait for his return? I spent a moment second guessing whether the jogger I had seen was actually Brandon. But while there were some attractive men in the small town, none of them were quite like Brandon. Sure enough, upon reaching the duplex, there was a rental car parked right out front. I maneuvered in front of it, collected my bag of clothes from my trunk, and rushed inside to change into my work uniform.

  I had most of the day off, but my co-workers and I were required to attend a lunch function at the wetlands preserve. I arrived back at the primary headquarters building with only minutes to spare. The lobby was pristine. There was not a single indication it had been the site of a large Halloween party the night before.

  The luncheon gathering was assembled in the events hall, which was a boring rectangular-shaped room devoid of windows, skylights, or any other source of natural light. I considered it an architectural mistake, an anomaly to an otherwise highly functional structure. On the other hand, it could be used for employee meetings or events without disturbing the preserve's visitors and operations.

  The second I entered the room I understood the undisclosed purpose of this mandatory meeting. Poster board renderings of buildings and plazas were displayed on easels beside a speaker's podium. A projector was positioned before a film screen for a power point presentation. They were ready to share the expansion plans with us.

  Only a few seats remained empty around the banquet tables that filled the room. Cody, dressed in a dark chocolate suit, crisp white shirt, and fern-green tie, raised his arm to get my attention and tipped his head at the vacant chair on his left. I smiled and headed his way. Cody stood and formally shook my hand, a gesture that impressed me as being both genial and professional, and cognizant of the fact that an intimate hug would have surely set off gossip and unwelcome speculation by my co-workers.

  "How's Kieran doing?" he asked me, just before the presentation was about to commence.

  "Extremely well," I answered.

  "I like hearing that."

  "You look sharp."

  "Thanks, but Caesar's toga gave me more breathing room."

  With genuine glee, the director of the preserve proudly announced the future enhancements to us. She kept the power point presentation to only ten minutes and spent most of her time directing the audience's attention to the illustrations and explaining the benefits of the site improvements. She concluded by introducing her staff who had been working behind the scenes, as well as the consultants, including Cody, who all stood for a round of applause.

  Then lunch was served. It was heartier than expected, a plant-based meal with curry and potatoes, finished with fresh fruit smoothies and a scoop of lychee fruit sorbet. Discussion at our table was robust, which was not unexpected following such important and heartening news from our director, so Cody and I did not have much of a chance to converse. However, under the table, we had our knees pressed together. It may seem like an insignificant gesture, however, taking nothing for granted, it meant a lot to me.

  After the meeting Cody and I strolled onto the parking lot together. When we were out of anyone else's range to hear us, we had a short conversation.

  "Everything she mentioned today was in line with what you told me last night," I said. "I liked having the inside scoop, a few hours before everyone else."

  "I'm glad we were able to sit together," Cody replied.

  "Last night blew my mind. You'll never understand what it meant to me, so I won't even try to tell you."

  "Do you have plans tomorrow evening?"

  "No."

  "Can I take you out for pizza?"

  "Sure, I'd love that."

  We finished making a date. I was on top of the world driving home, singing along to the most upbeat songs I could find on the radio, which I cranked up so loudly my car boomed to the bass beats of the music.

  Chapter 7

  Before catching a matinee downtown, I sent a text message to Andrew inquiring about Willow's mother and how Willow was coping with the accident. Andrew and I wrote back and forth a few times. Andrew sent me a picture of the wrecked car. Its side was so smashed in that it was a wonder she had survived. Andrew said Willow's mother remained hospitalized with broken ribs and legs and the drunk hit-and-run driver had been captured and arrested.

  After the movie, I returned home, changed into running shorts, and set out on a long run beside a rural road parallel to the train tracks on the outskirts of town. I ran daily, usually at sundown, but on weekend days like this I occasionally ran in the afternoons to enjoy the sunshine. My legs had great spring. The chilly air helped make my breathing easy, despite embarking on a pace slightly faster than usual. There were few cars out and I mostly had the road to myself.

  I hadn't asked Andrew anything about Brandon when we had been exchanging text messages. I didn't mention Cody, either. I thought it best to attempt to not express enchantment with another man to Andrew. I didn't want to risk his reaction, even though he probably wouldn't be threatened. Would he or would he not, I pondered. All of these men—Andrew, Brandon, and Cody—were on my mind this afternoon, to one degree or another, and they occupied my thoughts while I jogged mile after mile.

  On my way home I changed my route and jogged past numerous fields of corn and soybeans, passed the truck stop, then slowed to a loose walk to cool down the final quarter mile. Brandon had just parked his rental car as I arrived at the sidewalk in front of the duplex.

  "You're a runner, too?" Brandon asked.

  "Every day," I answered.

  "Who else would be bare legged in fifty degree temperatures?"

  "Diehards. As long as it's above freezing, even as low as thirty-three degrees and sleeting, I run as long as I can. It gets my head on right, if you know what I mean."

  "Of course. Are you fast?"

  "I can knock out five minute miles."

  "Awesome. Run with me tomorrow afternoon and show me some good paths to avoid traffic?" Brandon asked.

  "Sounds good."

  "Thanks, sport. I've been bored out of my mind since Andrew left. I just got back from a classic car show, but it was lame. Some Studebakers and Chevrolet Bel Airs, and they were well cared for, sure, but that was about it."

  I thought loneliness and boredom were the plights of mere mortals like myself. Brandon's admission caught me off guard. I sensed he was rel
uctant to put his key in Andrew's door, so I hesitated on the steps and tried to figure out what I should say or ask him. He beat me to the punch.

  "There's a case of beer in the fridge," Brandon said. "Want to waste an hour and keep me company?"

  I nodded and followed Brandon into Andrew's unit. The room was identical to mine, but furnished with eclectic furniture. Unframed abstract paintings hung on the walls. Brandon noticed me shivering and blasted up the heat gage to seventy-two degrees. He grabbed us both beers, plopped onto the couch, and kicked his feet up on the coffee table. Brandon's blue eyes, impossibly vivid—but I knew they were natural—shot me a sneaky look.

  "Out drinking all night or was it a drive of shame?" he asked, manhandling the tab of his beer, opening it and spraying suds out onto his fatigue pants and the carpeting.

  "Huh?"

  "I saw you at an intersection early this morning in some type of costume."

  "We had a work event last night. A Halloween party."

  "What's your line of work?"

  I told Brandon about my new position at the wetlands, my recently-completed summer internship in state conservation areas, and my aspirations to become an officer to protect public lands.

  "Single, married, divorced?" Brandon asked me.

  "Single."

  "Kids?"

  "No."

  "Andrew told me you're a great guy."

  "The feeling is mutual. I wish I was more like Andrew."

  "Interesting." Brandon reclined further and put one of his hands behind his head. "I've known Andrew most of my life. He's like a brother. Andrew always has his feet on the ground and you can say I'm the one who can't keep my balance."

  Again, his candor astonished me. Sheer physical perfection was stretched out in front of me, but within a matter of minutes Brandon had confirmed his utter mortality by confessing to loneliness and lack of direction.