Everyday Hero Box Set

Seventh Inning Stretch-4

Vic was in the locker room getting dressed when he sensed Matt enter the gym. ::Hey!:: his lover called out in surprise, his voice resonating through Vic’s head. ::What are you doing here, sexy?::

::Had some extra energy to work off this morning,:: Vic replied, an unconscious smile flickering across his face. ::Can’t imagine how that happened, can you?::

::Stop by my office on your way out,:: Matt teased, ::and I’ll put that energy to good use.::

An image flooded Vic’s mind, the two of them naked by the side of the pool, Matt lying on Vic as he kissed him back against the tiled floor. ::We’re not doing it there again,:: Vic told him. The last time they’d f****d in the gym pool, he’d spent the rest of the day with flippers for feet and gills in his neck, waiting for that damn aquatic power to wear off. ::Besides, I have to get to work. Meet me at the front desk in a few minutes and walk me out, what do you say?::

::What can I say?:: Matt countered. ::I’m there.::

But when he reached the desk, the only person there was Roxie. She stared at the computer screen as she sipped at the remnants of a Frappaccino from Starbucks, and only spared him the slightest glance as he approached. “Hey, Vic. You looking for Boy Wonder?”

Vic dropped his gym bag at his feet and leaned on the desk. “He said he’d be here to see me out.”

Without taking her gaze off her computer, Roxie reached for the phone and dialed Matt’s extension. Into the receiver, she threatened, “You better get your ass up here, hot cheeks, or I’m stealing your man.”

Mentally, Vic heard his lover’s response, ::Roxie!:: He frowned to keep from grinning. She knew just what buttons to push with Matt; they argued like siblings. Vic doubted his lover knew just how much affection Roxie felt for him—Matt liked to say she had a crush on Vic, and yeah, he picked up on that every now and then when he brushed over her thoughts, but her feelings for her coworker were much more complicated. Vic suspected she liked them both, together, and not in any ménage à trois type of way, either. It was something purer, something deeper than mere s*x.

Vic waited. Roxie went back to reading her e-mail and tried to ignore him, though from the corner of his eye, Vic saw her gaze wander to him from time to time. He turned, leaning back on the counter, so she wouldn’t know he noticed those looks. The next time he dared to peek inside her mind, he caught a randy thought of Matt, naked, lying spread-eagle on a large bed, and Vic himself, also nude, kneeling between his lover’s legs. In Roxie’s imagination, his c**k was three times its normal size, his ass firm, his muscles bulging. Did she really see him like that?

With a grunt, Vic flipped their positions, putting himself on the bed with Matt over him. His legs were open wide, and Matt’s thick c**k jutted from his groin to pierce Vic’s ample buttocks. Then he sent that thought back to her and got the satisfaction of hearing her choke on her drink.

The door beside them opened and Matt appeared, slightly flushed from jogging down the hall. He smiled at Vic, then glanced at Roxie. “Are you okay?”

Over his shoulder, Vic saw Roxie laughing into a napkin as she wiped coffee-colored slush from her nostrils. “God,” she gasped as another fit of coughing hit her. When Matt came closer, she shooed him away. “I’m fine, really. It just went down the wrong pipe.”

Vic caught Matt’s hand in his and pulled him near. ::I’ll tell you about it later,:: he promised as he kissed his lover’s forehead. Matt’s curls smelled faintly of chlorine from the gym’s pool.

He smiled up at Vic, puckering his lips to catch the next kiss there instead. “When did you get in?”

“About an hour ago.” Vic gave Matt a chaste kiss, ignoring Roxie’s renewed cough. “Did you two go out for lunch?”

“Just up the street for subs.” Leaning against Vic, Matt ran one arm around his lover’s waist and plucked at the buttons on Vic’s work shirt with his other hand. He caught his lower lip between his teeth, and gave Vic the same wide-eyed look Doug had had on his face when he’d asked about the charity game. Barely able to contain a grin, Matt murmured, “I’ve got something to ask you.”

Vic grunted. “If it’s about that damn ballgame, I’m already in.”

Matt’s eyes widened. “You are? Who told you about it?” He glanced at Roxie, who simply shrugged. “I just found out myself.”

Before Vic could respond, he felt his lover’s presence inside his head, digging around for the information. It was easier to show him the memory of what had happened than to try and explain it out loud, so Vic let him rummage through his thoughts. Roxie watched them openly now, her gaze flickering from one to the other, waiting for something to be said.

Finally Matt sighed. “Doug. Damn it. I wanted you on my team.”

Vic glanced at Roxie, who frowned at them around the straw in her mouth. “Matty,” he warned. “As long as we’re both playing, I don’t see how it matters much—”

“Each gym gets two teams,” Matt explained. “Doug’s captain of one, I’m the other. Apparently voted into the position just because I missed a stupid staff meeting.”

He threw an evil look at Roxie, who shrugged it off. “Hey,” she said, “I wasn’t the one who came in late today. I wasn’t the one sleeping with Vic.”

::Thank God,:: Vic groaned silently.

Matt tugged on Vic’s collar to get his attention back to where it belonged—on him. “Vic,” he whined, drawing his lover’s name out in two syllables like he did whenever he wanted his way. Why he bothered, Vic didn’t know; he always won out in the end. “I want you on my team, not Doug’s. So go back in there and tell him you’re switching sides.”

Vic wasn’t one to renege on his word, but in the grand scheme of things, Matt’s feelings mattered more to him than Doug’s. With a heavy sigh, he started toward the door leading to the members’ area, intent on telling Doug he’d be playing against him, not for him, when Roxie cleared her throat. “Hold up. Matt?”

The fearful tone of her voice was so unlike her usual raucous manner that it stopped Vic. He turned, scowling, and felt Matt’s hand on the small of his back. “What?” his lover asked. “You said I had to recruit players. I want Vic on my team.”

“I said you had to recruit staff.” Roxie blew her bangs out of her eyes, exasperated. “I guess I forgot to mention we’d decided one team would be members only, the other would be just staff. So Vic can’t be on your team. He doesn’t work here.”

“Wait.” Matt’s hand fisted in Vic’s shirt, tugging him back. When Vic looked at him, he wanted to kiss away the pout he saw forming on Matt’s lips. “I’ve got to play against you? s**t, we might as well forfeit now. We’ll never win.”

Vic sighed. Why did people assume he’d be good in the field? “I haven’t played ball in years—”

“Doesn’t matter.” Matt shook his head. “No. Roxie, this isn’t fair. I’m not going to do it.”

She shrugged. “Too late. You’re already signed up.”

“You signed me up.” Turning to Vic, Matt pleaded, “You quit, then. Go tell Doug you can’t play against me. I won’t let you.”

Roxie cried, “Matt! Grow the hell up, will you? It’s just a game.”

But Matt gave Vic his most sorrowful look, and mentally prodded his lover. ::Please?::

“I already said I’d do it,” Vic murmured. Wrapping an arm around Matt’s shoulders, he turned away from Roxie and pulled his lover close. Kissing Matt’s temple, Vic spoke softly. “I’ll quit if you want me to, Matty, but I only agreed to do it because I wanted to be with you. I’d rather spend the weekend close by, not up in the bleachers somewhere watching the game. With you. Since I can’t play on your team, at least I’ll be able to hang out with you in the locker room, or in the dugout, between innings…”

“For someone who hasn’t played in years,” Matt groused, “you sure seem to know a lot about baseball.”

With a grin, Vic admitted, “I know my way around the bases.” Turning Matt’s face toward his, he kissed his lover’s mouth and opened his lips to dive inside. ::First base,:: he thought as their kiss deepened. One hand trailed down Matt’s chest to thumb over his n*****s, which hardened beneath his T-shirt. ::Second…::

Behind them, Roxie cleared her throat. Reluctantly, Vic pulled away, and for a moment Matt clung to him, unwilling to break their kiss. His eyes stayed shut, and he let out the faintest sigh as his hands grasped in the front of Vic’s shirt. In a gruff voice, Vic muttered, “I have to get to work.”

Roxie slurped at the last of her drink. “You guys probably won’t even get to face off against each other,” she said. “The only person on Matt’s team at the moment is himself. He won’t make it past the first round.”

“I have another player,” Matt told her. “You.”

Roxie sputtered, “I don’t do team sports.”

Vic laughed. “Yeah, that was my excuse. You see how well it worked for me.”