Even in the dark, he could see the worry glimmering in Dylan’s eyes. “Yeah, I know.”

“And I still think Claire will come around. But until then…” The mattress shifted as Dylan bridged the distance between them.

Since Aidan was sitting up, Dylan’s head was perfectly level with his crotch, and his c**k instantly reacted to the other man’s proximity, thickening beneath his cotton boxers. Unlike Dylan, he didn’t sleep naked, but it wasn’t long before he wound up that way.

With his boxers out of the way, Aidan cupped the back of Dylan’s head and guided that sexy male mouth to his cock.

The first lick made him shudder.

Dylan peered up at him with a grin, his straight white teeth shining in the darkness. “Everything okay?”

“Mmm-hmmm.”

The second lick made him moan. Closing his eyes, he leaned back on the oak headboard and enjoyed the incredible sensations created by Dylan’s tongue gliding along the length of his shaft.

Dylan brought his hand into play, curling it around Aidan’s c**k and pulling the skin back to expose the head, which he promptly drew into his mouth and sucked gently on.

“Mmmm. I like that,” Aidan mumbled. “Keep going slow for a bit.”

His fingers tangled in Dylan’s short hair, hips rocking restlessly as Dylan’s tongue laved his c**k with long, teasing strokes. Pressure built in his balls, and he knew he wouldn’t last long at all. He’d been hard-up all week, drooling over Claire’s sweet curves with no results, and longing for Dylan’s hard muscles, also with no results. Now that his dick was finally getting some attention, the big guy was overly eager and ready to blow.

“Fuck, I love sucking your dick, man.” Dylan’s growl of pleasure vibrated through Aidan’s body, sending a jolt of electricity right to the tip of his cock.

“Okay, forget slow.” The words squeezed out of his chest. “Fast, I need it fa—”

A cell phone rang.

They both froze, then relaxed when they realized it was Aidan’s ring tone and not the one that would signal Dylan to report to the base.

“Hold that thought,” he said with a groan.

Licking his lips, Dylan lifted his head and grinned. “I dunno…I might decide I’m too tired to finish the job…”

“Hold that f**king thought.”

Ignoring Dylan’s mocking laughter, he grabbed his phone and glanced at the display. His stomach went rigid.

“Who is it?” Dylan asked.

“My dad.”

“Isn’t it like three in the morning in Chicago?”

“Yes.” Without giving Dylan a chance to respond, he clicked the talk button and raised the phone to his ear.

“What’s wrong?” he asked in lieu of greeting.

A tired laugh rippled over the line, easing some of his panic. “Nothing’s wrong. I know it’s late, but I had something to discuss with you. Did I wake you?”

“No, I was up.” Aidan slid off the bed and reached for his boxers. He balanced the phone on his shoulder so he could slip them on, then signaled to Dylan that he’d be right back.

The SEAL rolled onto his back with a resigned look in his eyes.

Aidan knew it bugged his roommate that he took his father’s calls in private, but his relationship with his dad was weighed down with so much past sorrow that he preferred to keep that part of his life to himself.

He drifted into the living room and sank onto the couch. “What’s going on?” he asked his father.

“I wanted to talk to you about the holidays.”

“At three o’clock in the morning?”

“I couldn’t sleep. The firm’s trying to land the commission to design the new World Bank headquarters. I’ve been pulling quite a few all-nighters working on the proposal.”

“I’m sure they’ll love whatever you show them.” And he totally meant that—the shadows that surrounded Tim Rhodes had never tainted his professional life, and Aidan’s father was one of the most prominent architects in the country.

“I hope so.” His dad sounded distracted for a moment, and there was a shuffling of papers on the line. “Anyway, I wanted to let you know that I’ll be out of town from the twenty-third until January fourth. Ronnie and I decided to fly to Switzerland to do some skiing.”

Aidan swallowed his disappointment. How shocking. His dad was bailing on the holidays, the way he did every year.

At the same time, he couldn’t bring himself to begrudge his father’s decision to run away. Ever since Aidan’s mom died, Christmas in the Rhodes household had been a wretched, miserable affair. Besides, it was nice to hear that Tim was still dating the same woman Aidan had met when he’d flown in for a visit in the spring.

“So you’re still seeing Veronica, huh? How’s that going?”

“It’s good,” his father admitted. “It’s…easy. Comfortable.”

“That’s the way relationships should be, no?”

“Yes. Yes, they should.” Tim cleared his throat. “I’m sorry to do this to you last-minute, son. Do you have friends you can spend the holidays with? Your roommate’s family, maybe?”

“Yeah, I’ve got options,” he said vaguely. “Don’t worry about it. Just go on your trip and have fun on the slopes.”

“I plan to.” His father sounded relieved. “You’re not upset?”