Page 58 of The Mechanics of Lust

A few thrusts later and his lips left mine, his head slamming back into the pillow as he arched and came with a jerk and a shout, clutching me to him like a life preserver. Didn’t matter to me. I was already there, following him over just seconds later, the orgasm roaring through me like a truck, my eyes locked on Zach’s face as he watched me fly with soft eyes, a sated smile, and a thousand unspoken questions dangling between us.

I shuddered with a final wave of intense pleasure and then collapsed on top of Zach’s slick body, both of us drenched in sweat and gasping for air. The heat of late summer might’ve slipped rapidly into a cool mountain autumn, but whatever bed Zach and I came together in, we tore up the sheets until they smoked with scorching no-strings-attached sex that was anything but no-strings, at least on my part.

Because Iwantedstrings.

Toomany strings.

I wantedallthe fucking strings.

And therein lay a big problem.

Almost five weeks fucking each other’s brains out and I still couldn’t get enough of him. Five weeks of talking and laughing and learning about this complicated, beautiful enigma of a man. Five weeks of texting and planning and sneaking around to get as much time with each other as we possibly could. Five frustrating weeks of wanting more than sex with him but being too scared to ask. Five weeks of pretending that I wasn’t falling for the man who’d wormed his way under my skin and was taking up far too much real estate in my head.

Five weeks of some of the best sex of my life.

Cue the highlight reel.

Having my arse owned by Zach in Miller Station’s impressive haybarn after discreetly slipping away from Gil’s one-year-anniversary party of arriving at the station. Our fucking had been accompanied by the bellowing of two curious Angus bulls who’d been penned outside. We were lucky not to have been discovered by Holden who went looking to see why the creatures were making such a fuss.

If it hadn’t been for Zach’s hand over my mouth as he kept fucking me with renewed gusto into my prickly and decidedly uncomfortable makeshift mattress, my laughter would’ve been a dead giveaway. As it was, when we were done, we had to check each other carefully for incriminating hay-based evidence before we could safely return to the house five minutes apart.

I’d spent the rest of the night mulling what appeared to be a change in Zach’s earlier fear of being discovered, to what could only be described as excitement at the possibility. Who knew I had a budding exhibitionist on my hands? Not me. Not that I was complaining. I just needed to figure out how to fan that little flame safely.

Then there was the evening I owned Zach’s arse in return at midnight in the bed of his ute, in a park alongside a rippling Lake Tekapo with moonlight washing over every curve of his body as he keened and cried out into the night.

Then we’d fucked for two hours in a motel room in Tekapo. The bathroom of a pub in Twizel. The back of the Wild Run hangar one Sunday when he’d dropped by, knowing I was alone and catching up on paperwork.

And on nearly every surface in my bungalow, in every manner imaginable. There was no room I could walk into that didn’t have a memory of something Zach and I had done there, even if it had only been kissing and making out, because those were quickly becoming some of my favourite times in his arms. The times I got to have him, not simply his body, the strings almost visible between us if you looked hard enough.

“Another stellar encounter,” Zach huffed into my ear, wincing as I eased my cock free of his arse and rolled off him and into a warm patch of sunlight bathing the sheets. Autumn had the Mackenzie in its grip and the sweat on our bodies would rapidly cool. “Man, I hate that part,” he grumbled.

I stretched over to kiss him, then fell back, dealt with the condom, and blew out a long sigh. “I reckon your arse has worn a good centimetre off my dick in the last month.”

He chuckled and turned onto his side, grabbing my cock and stretching it out like he was measuring it. “Mmm, you could be right. Another few months and there might only be a stub left. You better hope it lasts until you leave, or I might have to consider my options.”

I knew he was only joking, but the reminder that my time in Oakwood had an expiry date and that he would likely move his attentions elsewhere dealt a sharp blow to my heart.

Seemingly oblivious, Zach stretched out beside me and slung an arm over my still-heaving chest. “You need to up your gym time, old man. Just as well you’re not coming on muster. You’d never make it up Widow’s Walk without a tailwind. Even then I’m not sure—”

“Shut up.” I hit him with a pillow and then kissed him. “You’rethe reason I can’t get to the damn gym more often. I’ve been too busy up your arse, or you in mine. Who knew a guy could have so many appointments in Oakwood in a month?”

Zach grimaced. “Yeah, Holden gave me a long sideways look yesterday when I said I was coming into Oakwood again to meet with the bank and then a ‘client.’” He made air quotes and set about cleaning us both up. “Imagine his reaction if he found out theclientwas actually you.”

I pulled him on top of me and kissed him soundly. “Or the nature of the truly excellent service that you provide said client. Finest in the Mackenzie Basin.”

That made him laugh. “Well, it helps that you pay promptly.”

“I always pay my debts.” I kissed him again, softer, longer, until the sweet taste of him coated my tongue. “Now tell me what the bank thought of your new business plan?”

Zach groaned and rolled onto his back. “Pretty much what we expected. They liked the plan and the fact I’m only asking for enough to sort out some better kennelling and to invest in a couple of good dogs to start my own line. But neither of those come cheap, especially the dogs. The bank wants more evidence that I can produce the quality of training necessary to fetch those prices I bandied around their office before they’ll commit to anything.”

I rolled onto my stomach and perched on my elbows. “But you knew that was coming, right? We talked about it. But at least they liked your plan, and that’s a huge step forward. Now, you have to do what you do best and prove you can deliver what you said you could. Have you talked to Holden yet?”

Zach pulled a face. “I wanted to talk to the bank first and see if I had a real shot. Going ahead means attending more competition trialsanddoing well in them,plusbuying and retraining a couple of dogs to sell on at a good price while still working for Holden. I didn’t want to raise the subject if it didn’t have a chance of getting off the ground. I’ll be tied to the station for at least another year, probably two. And that’s if I can even find a couple of promising dogs whose owners will let me buy them. Oh, and pay for those dogs somehow as well. And they won’t be cheap. It also doesn’t solve my problem of not having enough time.”

“Is that all?” I teased, which probably wasn’t the best response, and Zach rolled his eyes. I leaned down and kissed him. “I get that it’s going to be hard, so why not talk to Holden? Maybe you can negotiate something.”

He shook his head and stared up at the ceiling. “I can’t. He needs me.”

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