“No.” Josiah tried to shake his head again but stopped when Tristan kissed him. When he let his tongue slide between Josiah’s lips. Turned them, pressing Josiah against the counter as he devoured his mouth. Their tongues battled, savored. His cock went hard and he rubbed it against Josiah’s, as he let Josiah lead the kiss for just a second. But then it was Tristan’s game again, tasting him deeply.

“You’re still mine,” he said when they parted.

A crease formed in Josiah’s forehead, and Tristan realized that was probably the first time he’d ever said something like that to him.

“I’m not giving you away. You go to him, and then come back to me. You have to, or everything will crumble around us. It’s the only way for you to know what you truly want. It’s the only way to make peace with it.”

“I don’t even know where he’s staying or if he’s even still here.”

Tristan pulled the piece of paper from his pocket and placed it in Josiah’s sweaty palm. One of the perks of having the kind of connections he did.

Josiah’s fist balled.

“Go,” he said.

“I love you,” Josiah replied. And then he did what Tristan told him to. He went.

Chapter Three

Josiah

Josiah ignored the nerves taking over his gut and brought his knuckles down heavily on the door to Mateo’s hotel room. He waited just a few seconds before banging again. Teo was in there. He didn’t know how he knew that, but he did.

“Teo...open the door.” The last word had hardly passed his lips when Mateo jerked the door open. They stood there, Josiah in the hallway and Teo in his room, staring at each other. He didn’t have a shirt on, just a pair of sweats, the exact same way as Tristan when Josiah’d left home.

Their looks were so different, though. The light dusting of hair on Mateo’s chest, though dark like Tristan’s, wasn’t as thick. A couple of tribal-looking tattoos decorated parts of his chest, but there was one, one tattoo, that Josiah knew exactly what it meant. It was the sign of his gang. They both had the same abs, firm with ridges between each muscle. Teo’s skin was darker, rougher. They were both incredible, just in different ways.

Comparing them made Tristan storm into his head again. It was wrong, walking out the way he did. He—“Don’t let me lose you. Whatever you’re thinking right now, come back to me, Jay. You’re here. Dios, I can’t fuckin’ believe you’re here.”

He reached out his hand for Josiah, and Josiah let him take it. Let Mateo pull him into the room and close the door behind them. He spotted a camera on the bedside table, training his eyes there because it felt safe. Words. There were so many words and questions in his head. He needed to get them all out, but his body craved Mateo, too. Needed him in ways he hadn’t even needed him all those years ago.

Like he always could, Teo seemed to read Josiah’s thoughts, pulling him so close, it was like they were one. He pushed a hand through Josiah’s hair, and then Teo’s lips covered his.

Josiah went weak against him as Mateo’s tongue stroked his—familiar yet foreign, but never forgotten.

Finally, finally, finally, echoed throughout his head.

Mateo’s lips trailed down his neck. Josiah tilted his head back to give him better access.

“I should have gotten a better room in case you came. All these years later, and I still can’t give you what you deserve.”

Josiah grabbed on to Teo’s side, running his hand up and down Mateo’s hot skin. “It won’t kill me, Teo. Just like it didn’t then.”

The lips on his neck stopped moving. “You deserve better. I’m sure the suit—”

Josiah’s body iced over. “Tristan. His name is Tristan.”

The muscles in Mateo’s side tightened beneath his hand. “Don’t let me lose you,” Josiah repeated Mateo’s words. “Whatever you’re thinking right now, come back to me, Teo.”

And he did. Slowly he backed Josiah up until the backs of his legs touched the bed. His fingers fumbled with the buttons on Josiah’s shirt until he muttered, “Fuck it,” and just ripped it open. Josiah’s pants were next, Mateo’s calloused fingers pushing them down his legs.

Josiah knew what they needed to do was talk, but one look at Teo and he was lost in sensations. He needed to feel him. He missed every part of him so much, and this was the easiest to tackle.

His mouth trailed down Josiah’s stomach, ripples of pleasure drifting out from where lips met skin. “I wanna go slow with you, Jay.” Mateo lashed his tongue over one of Josiah’s nipples. “Wanna savor you, but fuck, I need you so goddamned bad right now. I wanna taste you everywhere.”