Alex

"This was wonderful, Alex. Well done!" Henry gave me another strong handshake before he made his way through the company doors towards his vehicle.

"He's a cool guy." I commented to Christian once he had disappeared in the rain.

"Definitely." Christian agreed. "He's known my father for years. He's been helping with event photography for as long as this company has been up and running." My eyes grew wide at Christian's words. "I'm just glad that this event was a success. Truly was a well done job on your part, Alex."

My body started to heat up when Christian redirected his gaze to focus on me. He was giving me that look. That if it wasn't for people still here, you'd already be naked look. Before he could expand on that look, we were interrupted by someone quite literally running into us. Derek had torpedoed through Christian and I from behind, momentarily knocking us off balance.

"Alright kids!" He spoke, slamming hands down energetically on our shoulders. "I heard it's a party at Brad's tonight!"

Christian gave me a look. I didn't even have to look his way to know he was annoyed...

But he tolerated it for my sake.

So Brad, Joan, Derek, Christian and I made our way over to Brad's. We didn't stay long because Christian and I had the flight in the morning. That, and Christian's exhaustion was starting to seriously show. He was constantly rubbing his eyes throughout the remainder of the evening, and even temporarily dozed off on me when we were catching up on news with the gang.

I think Brad's breaking point was when he finished making us tacos, just to have Derek not eat any.

"I'm full!" Derek whined.

"So you're telling me that I went through all this work to put together something that you might actually like, only for you to be full?" Brad asked. If you looked closely, you could see his bottom eyelid start to twitch.

"It's not my fault!" Derek insisted, but Joan was quick to shut it down.

"You made love to that snack bar today Derek. This is entirely on you." She replied. Christian and I got a good laugh in at that. Luckily, I was absolutely starving after the day we had, so that just meant more tacos for me.

When we made it back to Christian's, it was approaching ten at night. Nathaniel and I said a quick hello amidst the struggle of trying to get Christian's sleep deprived self to his bed. He was looking at his couch longingly, but I insisted that if he knocked out there, he'd regret it in the morning. By the time we made it to his bedroom, Christian had stripped off completely to his underwear. I followed close behind him, picking up the articles of clothing he was randomly discarding everywhere.

While I would have loved to spend a little more time with Christian tonight, I didn't complain as he flipped up the duvet cover and pulled me into his arms. He smelt like one of his regular colognes. It had this spice sort of scent to it. I nuzzled my face deeper into his chest as his arms tightened their hold on me.

"Goodnight, baby." He murmured through his sleepiness.

"Gwoodnight." I whispered back, with my voice muffled by his chest.

Christian

"Good morning, handsome." I whispered to Alex, as his body stirred awake. My 8 am alarm had woken him up. I, on the other hand, had been awake for some time now. My body was just too used to me getting up earlier.

"I don't understand how you can look so dead the night before, then wake up with so much energy the next morning." Alex groaned as he flipped over to face me. He had sleep lines on his face from the pillowcase, and his voice was raspy from sleep... which only further enticed my already horny self. Unfortunately, I had set an alarm for the latest possible moment I could. What this meant was that Alex and I didn't even have time for pillow talk.

"Come on, come on." I coerced this man child into getting up and out of bed. Everything was already packed and ready to go, so all we had to take care of this morning was getting dressed, eating, and heading out that door. Luckily Nathaniel had had breakfast ready by the time we made it downstairs.

"Are you excited for the trip?" He asked Alex while we worked on finishing the last of our food.

Alex gave him an enthusiastic nod in between bites. "Definitely. I haven't been anywhere tropical before so this would be a new experience for me."

I saw Nathaniel's face light up as he sent me a look. "I'm sure this one here will make the trip extra special." Alex's face grew redder and redder from Nathaniel's words. He stood to place the dish in the sink, but Nathaniel got to it before he could. "With you around, I'll soon be out of a job." He joked. Alex's cracked a grin, allowing Nathaniel to assist.

Nathaniel didn't know too many details about this trip, but he knew I had made some serious special requests for it. Now all I had to do was get Alex on that damn island.

-

The later flight had proved to be a great idea. By the time Alex and I had boarded, we were awake, full, and ready for the day. He acted like a 4 year old child with his face pressed up against the airplane window while we flew over the west coast. "This is so pretty!" He exclaimed excitedly.

Flying first class was a luxury I would never grow tired of. It came in clutch with this particular flight because Alex was everywhere. Every few seconds he either needed to pee, or needed a drink, or wanted a blanket.

I couldn't help but chuckle. "Now imagine how much prettier it will be when we touch down." Alex's head whipped around in my direction to give me one of his lopsided grins, before he went back to admiring the ocean. I couldn't wait to show him more pretty things.

The flight was in fact a bit of a long one- checking in at close to ten hours. I had spent most of the time working on loose ends with the company, while Alex listened to music. At some point, I made him switch with me so he could get some productive things done as well. When we did finally touch down in Hawaii, it was only three in the afternoon due to the time difference, but it would have been eight in the evening back home. I could tell that Alex was tired though. I had taken a bit of a nap on the flight, however Alex had difficulty falling asleep.

"This is gorgeous!" He smiled sleepily at me as I helped pack our luggage into a rental car Nathaniel organized for us. I noticed just how beautiful the day really was, when Alex and I stepped out of the airport. It was hot, but there was a nice breeze that kept the temperature well balanced. It was smart on Alex's part to recommend we wear shorts.

I kept it casual with a polo shirt and some golf shorts. Alex, on the other hand, looked absolutely ridiculous. He was wearing one of those Hawaiian shirts with funky patterned pants and even funkier shades. I didn't ask any questions when I got a glimpse of him in the morning, because he seemed far too proud of his outfit. I didn't have the heart to ruin it for him.

The one thing I probably should have mentioned, however, was who was going to be welcoming us when we reached the resort. Alex was speechless when we pulled into the compound. It was a large villa resort located right next to the ocean. Alex was practically drooling by the time we made it to the entrance. That excitement was quick to die down when he realized who it was we were walking towards.

"Christian! Alex!" John welcomed us with tight hugs and a warm smile. "Welcome to Hawaii!"

Alex immediately went into his self cautious mode. "Hi! Oh gosh I'm sorry. If I knew we'd be seeing you right away I would have worn something more professional."

He could be so fucking adorable sometimes.

"Nonsense! The crazier the better!" John replied, broadening his smile. "Now come on in, let me show you two around! I know the flight is a long one, and I'm sure you might want to rest before we make any plans."

John had already started making his way into the resort, so Alex and I followed closely behind with our luggage. The interior was even more divine than the exterior. Marble floors  and large plants. There was a large tree growing in the center of the resort that grew through the three levels. "Your room is one of the vip suites. Here are your key cards each of you will need to have, to make it onto that floor and into your room. We'll take the elevator up through here." John pointed to some elevators located further behind the lobby area.

Alex and I each grabbed our own key cards, and I used mine to unlock the third level of the resort. John was right, I wasn't able to press that floor option until the card was fully inserted.

Once we arrived on the third floor, John directed to our room. It was room 317. When I inserted the key card again, the door not only unlocked, but opened on its own. Alex and I each made little surprised faces. Once we were in the room, however, our jaws almost dropped past our navels.

The room was absolutely stunning.

There were two screen doors that opened up to a humongous balcony overlooking the bright blue ocean. To our left was a king sized bed decorated with rose petals, and two of those swan towels. A large flat screen was located in the opposite direction of the bed, then there was a ginormous open shower on the other end of the bed. "This is amazing John, thank you." I said, watching as Alex started to wander aimlessly in awe.

"This was no trouble at all! Like I said, take some time to settle in. I'm going to be in the business center here working on a few things. Either of you can join me whenever you feel like it." John replied. I pulled him in for one more hug, before he left Alex and I to get settled.

"Oh my god this is amazing." Alex mumbled into the bed. I didn't even notice him climb into the covers, but I knew it was only a matter of time before he would knock out on me.

"I'm going to go meet with John, then come unpack. You rest up and we'll go explore in a few hours." I whispered, as I bent down to give his forehead a kiss.

"Gwoodnight." He mumbled to me, furrowing deeper into the duvet.

••