Matthew woke up to the smell of bacon. That could only mean one thing.

Rubbing his eyes, he went downstairs and smiled as his mother set down a plate of waffles and eggs with a side of bacon.

“Buenos dias, mijito.”

The housekeeper, Maria, was beside her, putting away the dishes.

“Hola mama. Donde esta papi?”

“He’s looking at some foreclosures today. Lots of them are in the area, so we’ll probably stay home for a while to flip here.”

“Okay.” He liked it when his parents were home. But he also liked it when they were gone. He enjoyed the freedom and trust. And he enjoyed Maria’s company.

“Maria says you have a girlfriend.”

Shit. “No. I mean—”

“Había condones en la basura,” suppled Maria, giving him a sly smile.

“Oye, Marie, por favor!” He hung his head down, embarrassed. Note to self: Start taking out the trash yourself.

“As long as you use protection. You’re seventeen. I’m not naïve or stupid.”

“I know, Mom.” Now, his face was burning.

“Cómo es ella?”

“It was Luci.”

His mom stopped sipping her café con leche and sat next to him at the little island in the middle of the kitchen.

“Was?”

His mom knew Luci. She knew Luci had feelings for Cyrus.

“I couldn’t do it anymore. I couldn’t keep being her second choice.”

They sat silently, the only sound being Maria putting away the dishes while he picked at his food.

“You deserve better.”

He didn’t like his mother’s tone; he didn’t want her to hate Luci. “It’s not her fault. She wanted to try. I—it was just supposed to be casual. But I know how she feels about him. And he’s a moron who feels something for her.”

His mother studied him, sipping her coffee. “Hmm, okay.”

“There is someone.”

“Oh.”

“Yeah. Their name is Jae. Well, that’s what they go by. Um, they’re non-binary and gender fluid.”

“Okay. Well, I’d like to meet them.” His mom pat his hand. “You deserve to be someone’s first choice.” His mom got up, kissed his forehead, took the newspaper and coffee, and headed to the office.

MIcheal headed up to his room, but not before kissing Maria on the cheek.

He hadn’t really talked to Luci in a while. On Halloween, she had pretty much avoided him, which had hurt more than it should.

Every time he thought about her, he thought about her smile. He thought about her lips, about the curve of her breasts, the way her nails dug into his skin, the arch of her neck.

He locked his door, flopping down on the bed. He thought about Luci, and it was driving him crazy.

What the fuck was he doing?

He wanted her. He wanted her so badly that it made him tear his hair out.

Matthew picked up his phone and looked up her number. He tried not to think about how it made him feel when she picked up on the first ring.

“Hello?”

“Hey, um, do you wanna hang out for a bit?”

Silence met him on the other end. “Let me ask my mom. Give me a second.” In the background, he listened as she spoke to her mother. “Sure, I have to be home by seven, though.”

“That’s fine. I’ll head over now.”

He didn’t know what he was doing.

Getting dressed, he grabbed his keys and looked at his nightstand and the golden-wrapped squares. Swearing to himself, he shoved them into his pocket and ran out the door.

***

“What are we doing here, Matt?” asked Lucita, sitting on the sofa, far out of reach, on his parents’ beach.

“I don’t know.”

“You’re the one who called me.” He didn’t miss her tone, the confused way she sounded, the bitter way she sounded as if she was mad at him. Or maybe she was mad at herself? He looked away from her.

“Yeah, I know.”

“How’s Jae.”

Jae. “Jae’s okay.”

“Okay. How are you?”

“Very confused.”

“Matt—”

“One last time.” He still didn’t look at her. He didn’t know why he felt so ashamed to look at her. Maybe because he had ended things for another person? Maybe because he was about to cheat on someone he cared about? Maybe because he cared about Luci and didn’t want to make her feel used.

“What?”

Matt let out a sigh. “Before things get serious and official with Jae. One last time.”

“Why?

“So I can move on, god dammit.” Now, he was looking at her, and he was glaring. She met his gaze evenly, her lips pursed together. He hated that he found her so damn attractive, even when she was angry at him.

“So what, it’s all about you?”

“It was always about you,” he shot back.

Her glare sharpened, but she didn’t argue. They both knew he was right. She had used him to forget about Cyrus, and he had let himself be used. It doesn’t matter that they developed feelings for one another; the intention had soured things.

So when she moved onto his lap, taking off her shirt, exposing her breasts, and lips finding him, he was a little surprised. He hadn’t expected it to be that easy. It warmed him to know she wanted him as badly as he wanted her.

“One last time,” she said, breath against her lips. “And you have to tell Jae.”

“Okay.”

“Make it last, okay.”

“Planning on it.” They had the whole day, and he wasn’t about to squander it.

He bit down on her nipples, unbuttoning her shorts, sliding his hand down, relishing in the way her body lifted, the way she moaned. Picking her up, he carried her to the bedroom down the hall, her legs wrapped around his waist.

This was where she had taken him by surprise. Lucita unbuttoned his shorts and slid them down. He knew exactly what she was about to do.

“Luce—”

“Let me try it.” He was too turned on to say no. And when her mouth wrapped around him, he almost came right there, cursing loudly, fists gripping the sheets. He didn’t know how, yet somehow wasn’t surprised, but she was good. The way she moved her tongue, the way she gripped the base of him, holding him taunt while her mouth moved against his, up and down, taking him deeply into her.

On instinct, his hand coiled around her hair, and he was suddenly afraid he was pulling at it, but she didn’t protest; he just kept bobbing her head until she wasn’t, letting him slip from her mouth. He let go of her hair, eyes closed, heart racing, breath heavy, and the next thing he knew, she was on him, sliding him into her.

He was a little concerned about the lack of a condom, but they had never done this before. And for a moment, he let himself feel her. Her tightness, her wetness, the way she moved slowly, deliberately, eyes shut, hands gripping her breasts.

Matthew watched her, hands on her hips, before cursing.

“Luci, shit, let me put on a condom.” He had to, or he would explode right then and there. The blow job alone had almost sent him over the edge.

Slowly, deliberately, torturing him, she pulled herself off him, flopping on the bed beside him. Matthew stood up, shoving his hands into his pockets, pulling out the golden-wrapped condoms, and stripping off the rest of his clothes.

He stood there, hard, taking her in on the bed, glasses off, thrown aside, hair askew behind her. He drank in every single one of her delicate curves, the wanting in her eyes that matched his own.

Spreading her legs, he thrust himself in, hands on her hips. Her back arched in delight, a smile on her face, his name escaping from her lips. This time, it was his turn to torture her, taking it slow, moving slowly but driving back in deeply.

Matthew had every intention of making it last.

When he was close, he pulled out, flipping her on her stomach, letting her stand on her hands and knees, her body meeting him halfway. Now, he let loose the restraint, driving himself into her harder and faster until she was screaming his name, body shaking as they came together, their bodies in sync.

Matthew collapsed onto the bed beside her, letting her rest against his chest, his arm wrapped around her.

They lay like that, staring at each other, hearts racing, breath short. It felt over now. Almost. There was a weight that had lifted, like a fog vanishing. But he wanted more. He wanted the day.

Her lips found his.

“Luce—” he said, his mouth against hers. Oh, how he wanted her, gripping her tightly against him.

“Let’s do it again.”

“All day.”

“Last day.”

He bit down on her lower lip, moving his hands between her legs. She arched her body against him, still caught between his teeth. He would make the most of their last day.

***

Matthew hadn’t wanted to let her out of the car, and she hadn’t wanted to get out. So, one last time, they had sex in the back seat, her body riding his in the far abandoned reaches of the apartment complex, far from her own.

Things had escalated too far, and he had almost gone, only to pull her out of the car and flip her onto the hood of his car. On her back, her eyes never leaving his, he made fast work of her orgasm, pulling out just in time to go on the front grill of his car.

It was still there when he pulled up to Jae’s house, moving his hands through his wet hair. Wet from the shower, he had taken Luci in, her back against the wall, one leg on his shoulder, fingers in his hair, him on his knees, his mouth enjoying the taste of her.

He shook the memory of it from him as he got out of the car. There was seriously something wrong with him.

Jae opened the door, and on her face when she saw him there.

And just as quickly, it vanished.

“You had sex.”

Matthew’s eyes widened in shock. “What?’

Jae sighed. “Did you get it out of your system, or are you here to break up with me?”

“I—what–?” He was stunned, even more so when Jae just laughed, warm and sweet.

“You’re adorable. Come in, handsome, let’s talk.”

Jae pulled them in, dragging him upstairs to their room.

“Jae—”

“You know, I’m not mad. I saw the way you were looking at her at the Halloween party.”

“Jae—”

“Are you breaking up with me?”

“You care?”

“I do.”

Matthew sighed, rubbing his hand across his face. “No. In fact, I thought I would have to beg you to not break up with me once I told you.”

“I’m not opposed to some begging. I am glad you planned on telling me.”

“Yeah. I just—”

“You seem lighter.”

“Huh. Yeah. It just—everything happened so fast.”

“Closure. You wanted closure.”

He nodded. “Yeah.”

“Did you get it?”

“Yeah.”

“Good. Because I’ll forgive you this time.”

“It won’t happen again.”

Jae smiled. “I know.” Jae pulled him close, hand sliding down his pants.

“Too tired for another round?”

“God no.”

“Good.”

Matt lay in bed with Jae, curled up to him.

“Hey Matt.”

“Yeah.”

“Can I ask you why?”

Matt pulled away, sitting up. “I mean. I guess everything just happened so fast, ya know. I mean, okay, so she and I weren’t exclusive or anything until we kinda were, but—”

“But you caught feelings?”

“Yeah. And we talked about it, about dating for real. But then you came into the picture, and I liked you, and I was tired of being used to make her forget about Cyrus. But, I mean, I didn’t know the last time would be the last time.” He paused and looked at them. “Why did you forgive me?”

Jae laughed, easing the tension in the room. “Because we’ve only been on one date. I don’t even know what we are. How can I be mad? It just doesn’t make sense to me. Honestly, I’m just glad it’s now. I could tell there was some unfinished business between the two of you.”

“Yeah. I think we both got it out of our system.”

The house, he finally noticed, was eerily quiet. “Where are your parents?”

“Oh, it’s Saturday. Saturday is date night. They go out and do their thing, then get a hotel room for the night. They won’t be back until tomorrow afternoon.”

“Oh.” Matthew took a moment to absorb the quiet house, thinking of his own. Grabbing his phone, he looked at the time. Eight thirty. “Hey, do you want to come over for dinner? My parents are back in town for a bit. My mom would love to meet you.” Sitting up, Jae kissed him lightly on the cheek. “I would love that.”

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