They definitely could, but again, Roan didn't speak. Hell, he wasn't sure he'd be able to find his voice.
"Dinner. That's why you came here."
Roan grinned. "Right. Dinner."
Food was the absolute last thing on his mind right now.
Seg's eyebrows lowered slightly. "Unless that's code for something?"
"No," Roan admitted, taking a deep breath and trying to get himself under control. "It's not. Dinner's good."
"Okay. Well, this was kind of short notice so … " Seg glanced at the kitchen, then back at Roan. "Pizza okay? It'll take about half an hour to get here."
"Pizza's perfect."
Roan certainly didn't mind waiting.
And who knew what they could do in half an hour.
Eight
SEG WAS GLAD HE'D MANAGED not to maul Roan in his foyer. It had been a close call there for a minute. From the second he laid eyes on the man, he'd wanted nothing more than to strip them both and slide into the warmth of Roan's body, clinging to him, taking everything the man was willing to give him.
The only thing that had stopped him was fear. Fear that tomorrow would come and Roan would be gone and it would be another year before he managed to bump into him again, by sheer luck.
No, Seg didn't want that.
He wanted more than that.
And the only way to make that happen was to put the brakes on. For a little while, at least.
By the time the pizza had arrived, they'd been settled on the couches in his living room and managed small talk. Roan had asked about the season, Seg had told him preseason had been shit, but the season was off to a good start. Seg's contract had been renewed, and he would likely be with the Arrows until he retired. Not a bad thing. The team was better this year than last. Management was making some changes, focusing on the issues they'd seen last year.
They'd continued to talk about the marina where Roan worked while they ate pizza at the breakfast bar. Turned out, Roan was one of the owners of the marina. They were more than a decade in and he loved it. When Seg had attempted to ask about Roan's sister, he'd shrugged off the subject.
Seg knew he wasn't going to get much more out of Roan tonight. At least in the way of conversation.
"Want to go for a swim?" Seg offered.
"A little cold for that, no?" Roan was watching him closely.
"It's heated. Up to you."
Roan moved to the sliding glass doors in the breakfast nook, peering out. Seg tried to keep a safe distance between them. He didn't want to spook Roan, didn't want the man to decide he needed to go. He'd picked up hints of nervousness on Roan's part. Not just tonight but on the phone when they'd talked the other night as well. Seg didn't want to send him running.
Rather than wait for Roan to say something, Seg moved over to him, then flipped the lock on the door and opened it. "Come on."
The lights on the patio were off, but the ones in the pool were on, darkening the water with a deeper blue hue. Without waiting for Roan, Seg kicked off his shoes, pulled off his shirt, slipped out of his socks before pushing his jeans and boxer briefs down. He walked right over to the water and waded in, turning to see Roan watching him.
"It's warm, I promise."
"Yeah," Roan mumbled. "I think the water temperature's the least of my worries right now."
Seg let the warm water settle around him while he watched the fantasy play out right in front of him. Roan stripping down on the patio. It was as though he was gauging every move he made as he made it. Several minutes later, he was joining Seg in the water.
"Since you work at a marina, are you on the water a lot?" Seg asked, trying to keep the conversation going.
"On it, not in it," Roan said, moving his arms beneath the water.
"You have an issue with water?"
Roan shook his head, his attention on Seg. He liked that about Roan. The man always seemed to be watching him, as though he wasn't quite sure how he'd gotten here.
"You own a boat?"
"The marina does."
Okay, so this wasn't going far. Roan inched closer, his hair slicked back, eyes dark. "I don't wanna talk anymore, Seg."
Well, there you go.
Taking that as his cue, Seg moved closer. He stood to his full height, looking down at Roan momentarily before pulling him into his arms.
"We don't have condoms," Roan said, his eyes heavy-lidded as he breathed against Seg's mouth.
"Not having sex," Seg said. "Not yet."
Right now, he just wanted to kiss this man, to touch him, to hold him. What it was about Roan Gregory that made him want things he'd never wanted before, Seg wasn't sure. But there was something.
Seg pulled them out to deeper water so that he could stand and still be submerged. Roan moved with him, their lips brushing, hands roaming.