Page 26 of Learn Your Limits

Chapter twenty-five

Reid

I’ve never been the type of person who takes their time packing for a trip.

I don’t plan out specific outfits beyond making sure I’m packing for the right weather, and I don’t worry about remembering extra of anything.

But for some reason, the idea of going on vacation with Milo has me second-guessing everything.

He mentioned wanting me naked for the entire trip, and while I sort of think he was just teasing. .. What if he’s serious?

Even if he is, going on vacation with only the clothing I’m currently wearing sounds ridiculous. Especially considering I’ve still got on the pajama pants I borrowed from him.

Before I left to come home and get ready, Milo told me a little bit about the cabin that he’s booked for the long weekend. He didn’t give me exact details, but he did tell me to pack for cooler weather.

Autumn in California tends to still be on the warmer side until you drive up into the mountains, which is where we’re headed.

All I know is that wherever we’re staying, it’s secluded.

He said he booked the trip with relaxation in mind, but now that he’s invited me to join him, I don’t know how much relaxing we’ll be doing.

The genre-bending music of my favorite metal band fills my room as I work on folding a week's worth of shirts, jeans, sweatpants, briefs, and socks.

Heat rises to my cheeks as I add a bottle of lube to my toiletry bag.

My mind has been running rampant with visions of what sex with Milo might look like since we met, and now I can't seem to get his words from earlier out of my head.

Given his dominating presence and the way my body practically begs to melt beneath his, I assumed that he would be the one fucking me. Knowing that he's open to letting me experience what it's like to be inside of him makes me all the more excited to take that step.

Though I can't lie and say I'm not nervous about the whole thing. My sexual experience when it comes to being with another man consists only of what Milo and I have done together.

Not that I’m assuming we’ll spend the entire vacation in bed together, but a guy can dream, right?

“Taking off for the break?” Wes asks. His voice startles me, pulling me from my thoughts as I quickly zip up my duffle bag before I turn to face him.

“Fuck, man. I didn’t know you were still here,” I laugh, nerves swirling in my stomach.

He’s leaning against my bedroom door with his arms folded over his chest, looking as relaxed as ever in jeans and an Oakhart University football shirt with his hat flipped backwards.

“Not exactly eager to get home, ya know? All my dad’s gonna wanna talk about is football, and I get enough of that while I’m here.

” His dark eyes dart over to my duffle, nodding his chin toward it. “You taking off?”

Why does such a simple question suddenly feel impossible to answer? I don’t want to lie to him, but it’s not like I can tell him that I’m going to be spending the break at a cabin in the woods with my Cognitive Psychology professor.

A smile pulls at my lips, and I have to swallow down the laugh threatening to break free. Just the thought sounds absolutely insane.

If Milo hadn’t already planned out the trip, right down to what time we need to get on the road, I’d offer to hang back with Wes for a bit until he leaves.

Having similar home situations is part of what brought us so close together.

His dad expects him to play college football and aim for the NFL, while mine expects me to take my place within the family business after graduation.

Neither one of us wants to follow the path that’s been laid out for us.

“Yeah.” I pause to clear my throat, trying to force my voice to remain calm. “I need a vacation after all the bullshit stress of midterms.”

He sighs and leans his head back against my door. “You could say that again. If I hadn't promised my mom that I'd be home for the weekend, I'd just stay here and fuckin’ rot on the couch the whole time,” he chuckles.

I nod my head in response as I grab my phone charger from where it's plugged in beside the bed, tossing it into my backpack along with my sketchbook and a set of pens designed for drawing. “Honestly, dude, that's what I'd been planning on doing too,” I say with a shrug, aiming for nonchalant.

“Gotta keep the parents happy if we want them to keep paying for shit, right?” He shakes his head and laughs, but it's lacking any trace of humor. Tension eases from my shoulders at his comment.

He thinks I'm just going home for the break. He doesn't suspect anything. And really, why would he?

As soon as he leaves and disappears into his own room, I pull out my phone and shoot a message off to Milo through the app.

I hadn’t planned on Wes or Matt still being home by the time we took off.

They’re not nosy fuckers who are gonna be pressing their faces against the window to see who I leave with, but I can't risk them seeing him.

CallMeCal: My roommates are still here. It might not be a good idea for you to pick me up. Any other ideas?

I hate that we have to sneak around, but they're not the only ones who can't find out about our relationship. Milo and I agreed to keep things between us a secret until the semester is over, and I haven't even thought about what comes afterward.

The idea of telling my parents is what scares me the most—my dad, specifically.

He's the one who has always pushed the idea of what he considers to be traditional family values, as though anything that looks the slightest bit different from the image he's created in his head is wrong and unacceptable.

JustMilo: Of course. I can meet you a few streets down if you don’t mind the walk.

JustMilo: [attached pinned location]

As much as I hate the idea of having to meet him somewhere instead of him just being able to pick me up, I refuse to let the situation make things between us feel wrong.

The sneaking around is temporary.

CallMeCal: I’ll be there.

The location he sent shouldn’t take me more than ten minutes to walk to, giving me plenty of time to take a shower and get cleaned up. After the mess we made all over my skin this morning, I’m itching with the need to stand under the heated spray of water.

Taking a hot shower always seems to do wonders for my mindset, and by the time I've brushed my teeth and am slipping on a clean pair of boxer briefs and jeans, the nerves that were swirling in my stomach have vanished. In their place is nothing but excitement.

Getting ready to go on this vacation with Milo feels a little bit like getting ready for a first date.

Being alone for the week will be a surefire way to see whether what we have is real or not.

Hell, he may decide by the end of the week that he’s sick of me and that being with someone so much younger than him isn’t worth the hassle of sneaking around until the semester ends.

Once I've sprayed on some cologne, run some gel through my hair, and there’s nothing left to do, I shoot a message off to Milo.

CallMeCal: Walking out the door now. See you soon *kissy face emoji*

The pinned location he sent me takes me to a small neighborhood park. I find Milo’s car already pulled up alongside the curb beneath a large shade tree.

The passenger window rolls down as I approach, butterflies taking flight in my stomach as I lean down to meet his gaze. “Fancy meeting you here, Professor.”