Sweaters & Cigarettes by Mika Fox Read Free Book Online Page B

on it, sending tendrils of smoke through the chilly
air.
    It’s after a little while that Max
actually hands the cigarette to Theo, who eyes it warily. Max says nothing, not
a word of encouragement or judgment. But Theo takes the cigarette anyway, to
his own surprise, and moves it to his mouth. He’s prepared this time, and takes
a careful inhale that doesn’t go down into his lungs, before blowing the smoke
out again. Max chuckles, but in an oddly fond way.
    “Look at you,” he says, taking back the
cigarette as Theo hands it to him. “I feel like I’m corrupting you.”
    He takes a slow drag on the cigarette.
    “What would your friends say?” he adds,
and Theo glances at him.
    “What would your friends say?” he
retorts. “You, hanging out with me?”
    Max chuckles, eyes directed straight
ahead. Theo likes him from this angle, likes watching his profile.
    “I honestly don’t think they care much,”
he says. “And even if they did, I wouldn’t care.”
    Theo feels absently surprised at the warm
feeling that gives him inside.
    “Maybe Beth, though,” Max says, and Theo
frowns.
    “Who?” he says, involuntarily jealous.
    “Friend of mine,” Max explains, tapping
the cigarette against his knee, ashes falling. “She’s into me.”
    Theo hesitates.
    “You sound very sure,” he says, and Max
cocks his head, eyebrows raised pointedly.
    “She’s made it very clear,” he says, glancing
at Theo suggestively. Theo swallows hard, unsure why he’s asking this.
    “And?” he says, and Max exhales, looking
straight ahead again.
    “And,” he replies, “I’ve told her I don’t
swing that way. I mean, I’ve tried it, once or twice. But it’s not really my
thing.”
    He sighs heavily.
    ”I like dick,” he says, without flinching.
“Simple as that.”
    He turns to Theo, taking a pull on his
cigarette.
    “What about you?” he asks, and Theo
glances at him. He shakes his head.
    “No,” he says. “No, I...”
    Max raises an eyebrow.
    “You, what?” he asks pointedly, knowing
full well that Theo is simply too uncomfortable to answer. He’s just being an
asshole. “You like it, too?”
    Theo sighs uncomfortably and looks away,
his silence confirmation enough. But Max is unrelenting.
    “You can say it, you know,” he says, a
smirk on his face. “Dick.”
    Theo shifts in his seat, refusing to look
at Max.
    “Just say it.” Max shrugs, clearly amused
at Theo’s uncomfortable reaction. “Or would you prefer cock?”
    “Stop it,” Theo mutters, and Max lets out
a chuckle.
    “Why?” He takes another slow pull on his
cigarette. “You have one. I have one. And they obviously like each other. So
what’s the big deal?”
    He looks over at Theo, who can feel his
face heating up. He can’t believe Max is so comfortable talking like
this.
    “Are you blushing, Davis?” Max says, using
Theo’s last name, and Theo deliberately doesn’t look at him, annoyed and
embarrassed about the increasing heat creeping up his neck.
    “Shut up,” he mutters unnecessarily, and
Max chuckles, a little bit more benevolently, this time.
    “It’s fine, I don’t mind,” he says,
tapping away some ash from his cigarette. “Actually, I kinda like it, getting
you all flustered.”
    He looks at Theo, eyes him up and down.
    “Makes me feel kinda special.”
    Theo slowly turns to him, then. Max's dark
blue eyes become fixed on his green ones, and they narrow slightly.
    “I like making you blush,” he says, his
voice a bit lower and a bit more gravelly than a moment ago, the tiniest smile
on his lips. “And I like that I get you hard.”
    Theo actually gulps, but keeps his eyes on
Max, to his own surprise. Maybe he’s getting used to Max's way of talking,
albeit very, very slowly, and it’s just enough to keep him from looking
away. Max seems to like that, too, at least judging from the way his expression
shifts just the tiniest bit. For a split second, he looks almost impressed.
Then he smiles crookedly, eyes