Page 95 of Charming Like Us

I sink a hand onto Highland’s thigh. He shifts in his chair…closer. We steal hotter glimpses of one another. Tension stretches, and while we pretend to watch the ballet, he lets his arm fall off my shoulder and grazes his hand onmythigh.

Fuck…I don’t shift like him. But I’m rigid, breath caught. I caress his thigh upwards, and his hand ascends up mine.

I want to experiment with Jack like I would any new partner, but I don’t want to beanexperiment. Squashing the thought, I let pleasure guide me.

My fingers slide against his hardened bulge, and his palm rubs over mine. Muscles constricting, I ignite on fire, doing everything in my power not to initiate a kiss here.

Ballet. Semi-public.

I want to give that choice to him.

His gaze caresses over the tension in my neck when he kneads me.Fuckingah, Christ. I shut my eyes in a long, aroused blink.

I thumb the sensitive spot around his tip, and he swallows hard, his other hand flying to the back of his head.Got him.

Jack bites down on the sucker stick to force back a noise.

And then Charlie stirs, the program falling off his face. We both go rigid and retract our hands. Charlie is…still sleeping. Eyes shut.

I touch my earpiece.Working.I’m working. Shouldn’t have fallen into that so easily. “Sorry, Highland,” I breathe.

“Don’t be sorry.” He pops out the sucker stick, pent-up tension in his flexed shoulders. “I should get back to this too.” He unpacks his Canon to take more footage for the show.

No one has ever been that understanding when I have to prioritize work. Hell, I’ve never been able to have a date on-duty—or a non-date. Whatever the fuck we’re doing.

On occasion, his job can even be more grueling than mine, and I respect his tireless work ethic. But I’m just thinking aboutafter.When I’m off-duty tonight. He’s put away his camera. I don’t really care what time it is or how long we’ve been awake. And considering he fought exhaustion before just to talk to me, I don’t think he’ll care either.

So I whisper, “Highland?”

“Hm?”

“It’ll probably be another late-night. You can stay at my place, if you don’t want to drive back.”

He smiles. “I’d like that.”

20

JACK HIGHLAND

Oscar switcheson a Phillies game and passes me a beer bottle. The leather couch bobs as he sinks down beside me. We undo our black bowties and pop a few constricting buttons of our white shirts. After the ballet, coming back to his studio apartment feels like the hottest romantic invite I’ve ever been extended.

So I took it.

There is no denying how attracted I am to him, or how badly I’d like things to progressupstairs. To his loft. His bed.

But I can’t tell if that’s where this is going.

Not yet, anyway.

“Try these.” I pass him a bag of corn nuts, which I packed in my camera bag for him.

Oscar reads the label. “Boy Bawang Cornick.Chili cheese flavored.” He grins as he rips open the snack-sized bag. “Are these your favorite, Highland?”

“They’re up there, as far as Filipino snacks go.”

He tosses a corn nut in his mouth, crunches, and my smile widens while heassesses.He blows out a breath and swigs his beer.

“Too spicy?” I laugh and grab a different snack.