Page 99 of The Waiting Game

Felix might not like plants in and of themselves but he liked Jonah’s passion for them and he liked learning new things.

But was Jonah attracted to him? That was hard to tell. Felix had tried to subtly flirt with him lately but he couldn’t get a good read on Jonah’s reactions. Was he turned on? Confused?

Or did he simply not even register it because he’d so firmly put Felix in a friendship box in his head?

Or, even worse, did Jonah think of him as a brother?

Felix didn’t think so but what if Jonah did? What if growing up together the way they had completely ruled Felix out as any sort of romantic interest?

Stifling a groan, Felixs shifted onto his back, staring up at the ceiling.

This was so frustrating. Felix knew how to act with women. He’d been told he was charming.

He knew he was good at flirting, good at the light, friendly teasing that made women relax and smile.

He was sure of how to do that getting-to-know-you dance with women, when to move forward, when to ease off. He knew the signs of attraction and when to act on it.

But it had been so long since he’d had practice at any of that.

He’d been with Whitney for years and they were monogamous. All of the sex he’d had after their breakup was pretty transactional. It had been very straightforward and to the point, no ambiguity about what anyone wanted or expected from the encounter.

But this thing with Jonah was all unknown territory. Felix felt off his game—if he’d ever truly had any—and he wasn’t sure how to proceed.

Whether it was because the other person was a man and Felix wasn’t used to reading those signs in men or because it was Jonah, and it was harder to read in someone he’d known so long, Felix wasn’t sure.

But it was confusing as hell and he really wasn’t in a place where he could handle the rejection if Jonah laughed.

He wouldn’t do it to be mean, but Felix could picture him being surprised and thinking Felix was kidding around and … yeah. There was no way he could handle Jonah laughing and not taking him seriously.

Whether it was sex or a relationship, what if they didn’t want the same things?

Of course Jonah would be nice about it and turn him down gently but it would still be embarrassing.

Felix had to tread carefully and leave an out in case things started to get awkward.

With all that in mind, Felix rolled over, pressing closer to Jonah but not crowding him.

“Time to wake up,” Felix said quietly in Jonah’s ear, running a hand down Jonah’s arm.

Jonah grumbled sleepily, snuggling back into Felix’s body.

Felix bit his lip at the sudden warmth of Jonah’s bare skin against his chest, at the way his ass pressed tightly to Felix’s groin.

He hissed at the contact, easing his hips back even as desire snaked through him, his heart rabbiting like he’d run blue line drills.

“Hey, alarm’s about to go off, Jo,” Felix coaxed, voice low and rough from desire.

Yeah okay, he knew this feeling. He knew the heat pooling low in his belly and the blood pounding in his ears. He knew what the thickening of his cock meant.

If Jonah was someone else Felix felt this for, anyone else he was in bed with, he would know the other person wanted him.

The women he’d shared a bed with were there for one reason: sex. Love too, but sex had always been a part of that.

Felix had slept beside Jonah more times than he could count. He’d held him close during nightmares because that was what a friend did for someone they cared about. Sex had always been firmly off the table.

If Felix was in bed with anyone but Jonah right now, he’d slide forward and press his full length against them. He’d press his lips to the back of their neck and let the kiss linger. He’d slide a hand around their waist and wake them up with slow, damp kisses and little nibbles and licks until they were awake and squirming against him.

And God, the thought of doing that with Jonah made Felix’s head spin but things were murky with Jonah. He couldn’t be sure Jonah wanted that.

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