Austin sighed, then dropped his head against Dare's shoulder. He'd never done that before, and Dare couldn't help but concentrate on the way Austin's soft hair brushed against Dare's jaw. Or the warmth of him, which was really fucking strange and maybe inappropriate.
"I'm boring."
Dare went tense. His pulse shot through the roof. "Did that motherfucker tell you that?"
"No." Austin shook his head, making his hair move against Dare again. "Kind of. Forget I said anything. I sound like a sniveling teen."
But he was upset. Austin had dated men, and they'd gone their separate ways in the past but he'd never been torn up about it. Dare felt like his insides were tied up. "Did you love him? I know you said it wasn't serious, but was it?"
Austin took another drink. Then Dare. He felt it already, the deep tingle of a buzz shooting through him.
"No, but I should have. He checked all the boxes."
The word boxes came out slightly slurred. Dare had no idea what the fuck that meant, but it sounded important to Austin.
"I don't know what's wrong with me. Why I'm taking this so hard. He checked all the boxes," Austin said again.
"These must be some important boxes," Dare told him, and Austin chuckled the way he'd hoped he would. "I hate Brian."
"You hardly knew him and you can't hate someone just because they broke up with me."
Dare lifted his shoulder and dropped it, making Austin's head move. "Actually, I can. I can hate people for whatever reason I want, thank you very much. But I hated him before he called it off with you. His nose is too small and his eyes too big. His mouth too, actually. He's like this big-mouthed, big-eyed, know it all. You're better off without him. You deserve better than a guy like him."
Austin's hair tickled Dare's jaw again as he moved. Then he sat up and Dare didn't feel his warmth anymore. He set the bottle of whiskey down on the coffee table and then turned to Dare with those wild, green eyes. There was something in them, something Dare hadn't seen before. Something that looked like green fire.
The couch cushions moved, made noise as Austin inched … closer this time, leaning in toward Dare. He knew what was happening, but still his brain questioned it as time crawled like they were in slow motion.
The second Austin's lips touched his, his immediate thought was to pull back. Then the first lash of Austin's whiskey-covered tongue against his lips made that thought disintegrate. Before he knew it, Dare had his hand on the back of Austin's head, tangled in that soft, red hair, pulling him closer. His lips were open, and his tongue was in Austin's whiskey-flavored mouth.
Austin groaned, and Dare felt it vibrate in his throat. He wanted more. Wanted to devour him. Wanted to know what he tasted like everywhere as his hard cock throbbed in his jeans.
Austin sucked his bottom lip and then they were kissing again. He kissed deeper, harder, ate all of Austin's little moans that were somehow loud enough to help him ignore his brain asking, What are you doing? Then it told him, This is a mistake, Dare. This is Austin, not some random fuck.
But he wanted to, he realized then. He wanted to take Austin's ass. Wanted to fuck him over the back of the couch. Wanted to feel Austin's hole stretched around his aching prick.
Austin sucked Dare's bottom lip again before he opened and let Dare possess his mouth, and damn it felt good. Made him want to throw Austin down on the couch, cover his body with his own.
Austin's hands went to his pants, felt them working his belt. Yes, they could do this. He could fuck him, feel Austin from the inside. His friend. His …
This isn't some fuck, this is Austin. He doesn't sleep around, doesn't hook up, doesn't do temporary.
Dare jerked away. Austin looked stunned for a second but then tried to lean back in.
"No," Dare told him. "This is a mistake. It's … " He shook his head, slid out from under Austin and stood. His dick tented his jeans, and Austin's did as well. For a brief second, he thought about dropping to his knees, taking Austin's cock into his mouth, but this was his friend. His best friend. He couldn't fuck him and forget about him like he did with everyone else. "This is a mistake," he said again. "Sleep off the whiskey. Forget about that stupid motherfucker who broke it off with you. I have to go before I do something I'll regret."
Dare didn't look back as he turned and left the apartment.