Archive of Our Own ^beta

When Felipe stepped off the plane to clear, bright blue sky and pale sunshine, for a moment he wondered if he really had landed in London at all. It wasn’t warm, that was for sure, but it wasn’t nearly as cold as he’d feared when he was at home packing every jumper he owns, and desperately but fruitlessly trying to shop for a thicker winter coat at the height of summer in São Paulo. In the end he’d given up and decided to just buy one when he got here, but he might not need to if it stays like this the whole time.

Felipe had always wanted to visit England, and that feeling had increased recently, but he'd never had an excuse to make the journey, until this year, very conveniently, his friends gave him the perfect reason, by having their wedding here. Of course, they would choose to have it in December, when travel and hotels are extra-expensive, but Felipe didn’t mind too much - it’s a treat, and a special occasion, and his friends have told him that London is so nice around Christmas time. It’s been a while since he’s travelled so far from home, so he decided he’d make a holiday of it, staying a couple of weeks, seeing a bit of Europe as well, because he didn’t know when he’d be able to come back. And while he’s over here, he thought it’d be a good opportunity to reconnect with some European friends he hasn’t seen in years.

Admittedly, he doesn’t have that many European friends, and several of the ones he does have will be at the wedding. But there’s one acquaintance he’s been looking forward to seeing probably more than he should, and definitely more than he admitted to any of his friends or family back home.

It’s not that he never told anyone about his dalliance with Rob - in fact, he took great pleasure and pride in telling some of his friends about it immediately afterwards, and they hung on every detail, not even bothering to hide their envy. But he wasn't sure what reaction he’d get if he said he was going to meet up with him again, after two years.

It wasn't totally out of the blue - he and Rob have kept in contact, if not often, then at least semi-regularly. Rob likes Felipe’s posts on Facebook, even if he doesn’t post there much himself, and Felipe’s received a number of drunken messages over the years that usually start something like ’If you were here right now I’d…’ He’s always secretly delighted by them, even if they do tend to arrive at embarrassing mid-evening times on a Friday or Saturday, when he’s likely to be hanging out with friends or, worse, family. He’s thought about jokingly replying with a link to the universal clock or similar, but he usually forgets about that in favour of finding out exactly what it is Rob would do with him, if they were together. Felipe feels very flattered that Rob still thinks of him that way, even if it is only when he’s drunk - or, maybe, especially because of that, because maybe Rob is too shy or self-conscious to do it sober, but when he’s not, Felipe is on his mind and he’s brazen enough to go for it.

It certainly makes Felipe feel confident enough to send Rob similarly flirty messages whenever he goes back to his parents’ house in Miami. He always sends a photo of the garden, accompanied by a winky smiley or a comment on how it’s looking. Something like ‘I think was nicer when you did it ;)’, to which Rob might reply ’That’s not the first time I’ve heard that ;)’, or ’Looks like it could do with some attention. I know what else could as well ;)’. Those sorts of messages always make Felipe giggle like a fool, and they invariably and swiftly progress to some exquisitely filthy reminiscing, sometimes even with the added thrill of video when possible, just like they promised as they parted in Miami.

Nevertheless, Felipe was still a bit nervous of actually approaching Rob and asking him if maybe he’d like to meet up again. Would Rob feel like he was being presumptuous? Expecting him to be at Felipe’s beck and call, like he was still the employer and Rob just the lowly labourer. He was worried that maybe Rob just wouldn’t be interested, maybe he’d think it a bit sad for Felipe to still be hanging onto something so brief, from so long ago, and being so sentimental as to think that maybe they could go for a drink together like old friends. Chatting and having a bit of naughty banter online, where it’s a fantasy world, is one thing, but bringing it back to real life might seem like he was taking it a bit too seriously.

It had even occurred to him that Rob might have a boyfriend by now. He couldn’t imagine a partner being too happy about Rob going to meet a guy he spent a torrid couple of weeks with, a couple of weeks fucking, even if it was a while ago. If Rob were attached, and didn’t feel like it’d be appropriate for them to meet, Felipe knew he'd just have to respect that.

But he knew all along that he’d definitely ask anyway, no matter how nervous he felt or how many negative scenarios his imagination could conjure. He just couldn’t pass up the opportunity to see Rob again, not after how much fun they had together two summers ago. Maybe it is sad, and he knows that’s why he didn’t tell any of his friends about this plan before he came, but he'd feel guilty somehow if he didn't invite Rob to meet him in London. For all his worry about the possibility of being rebuffed, he knew he'd feel really quite disappointed - hurt, even - if he knew Rob had been all the way to Brazil and not even told him, and he didn’t want to risk making Rob feel that way.

So, trying to sound as casual as he could, he'd sent Rob a friendly message mentioning that he was coming to London, and it would be great to see him if he was free to come down at some point. Felipe made sure to give him plenty of notice, to get in before he might have other plans, but he knew that where Rob lives is nowhere near London, so he was prepared to accept it if Rob thought it was just too inconvenient to travel down - but fortunately he didn't have to, because he very quickly got a reply confirming that Rob was indeed free that week, and any day would be fine with him.

And now Felipe is here, and the nerves are starting to kick in for real. They’ve agreed to meet the day after Felipe arrives, around lunchtime, at Piccadilly Circus, because it might be a cliche, but they're strangers in the city and they wanted somewhere easy to find. But more and more what ifs are looming now. Felipe’s most pressing concern is, what if it's awkward? What will they talk about? The conversations they’ve had since they last saw each other haven't exactly been suitable for lunchtime conversation in a nice London restaurant. They barely knew anything about each other even back then, what if they realise they have nothing in common anymore, and maybe they never did? Maybe it was all just pure physical attraction, and they can hardly act on that at 1.30pm on a Wednesday in central London, even if they want to.

Felipe doesn't want to ruin the very special, almost fantasy-like memories he has of that time in Miami. It was something outside of the normality of life, and he still doesn't know if trying to bring it closer to the real world is the right thing to do. Plus, he doesn't want to lose the relationship he does have with Rob, casual though it is. It's not like he has anything else more serious on the go at the moment, and he enjoys the naughty little thrill of getting those unexpected messages every once in a while. He doesn't want to spoil that.

But it's too late for any more overthinking now, because it's twenty-five to two, and Felipe is hurrying up the steps from the tube station and realising he has no idea if he’s chosen the right exit. When he reaches ground level, he's across the road from the statue that he assumes Rob will be waiting by, but he can't see him from here. He crosses the road in the middle of a throng of people, wishing he were taller, or on time, but he’s used to having to find people in crowds, because he knows they’re usually far less likely to spot him than the other way round. He walks around the statue, aware that his heart is beating a little too hard and feeling stupid for it. Fortunately, it only takes him a minute to spot Rob, standing on the steps of the statue, and his stomach does a silly little flip of excitement, nerves, anticipation, everything he's been feeling ever since they agreed to this. Rob looks good - his hair and beard are both a bit longer and messier, but apart from that, Felipe sees the same guy who turned up on his doorstep in Miami two years ago, and he feels the same too. He still finds Rob as attractive as he ever did, even now he's wearing a lot more clothes than he ever had to in Miami. He's not really surprised by the wave of feeling that passes through him, the sudden memory of everything they did together, all at once, making his skin prickle and his body feel warmer. If he's not forgotten it in two years, he's not going to in this moment. All that attraction might have been buried, but it hasn’t dulled one bit, he knows that for sure now.

He’s a little more surprised by the feeling of affection that swells in his heart, the genuine gladness he feels at seeing Rob, and knowing Rob wants to see him, too. It’s a nice feeling - softer and more mellow than the reflexive prick of lust, but no less warm. But he doesn’t know yet how this is going to go, what expectations Rob might or might not have. He knows that, for now at least, he has to keep it cool and under control, keep things just friendly, not presume too much, or anything at all.

He sees the moment Rob spots him, pleased to see a big smile spread across his face as he steps down towards him. He doesn't even have time to apologise for being late before Rob is right in front of him, opening his arms to him and they're embracing, as naturally and comfortably and affectionately as long-lost friends.

Before they've even parted, Felipe already feels like actually, all his worries were probably unfounded. This feels alright, it feels good. It's going to be OK.

“What time do you call this?” murmurs Rob as he lets Felipe go.

Felipe chuckles. “I don't want you to think I am looking forward too much,” he teases, though he knows it's a bit near the mark for comfort.

Rob raises his eyebrows. “Nice to see you too,” he says, grinning.

Yeah, thinks Felipe, this is fine. It already feels so much easier than he was afraid it might be.

“You want to eat lunch now?” Felipe asks. It might not be as cold here in the UK as he expected, but that doesn’t mean he wants to stand about outside if he doesn’t have to.

“Sure,” Rob agrees. “Do you like Japanese food?”

“I love it!” enthuses Felipe honestly. “You know somewhere nice?”

“Well, I hope it still is, it’s been a while since I’ve been there,” Rob says. “I always used to get Japanese food when I came to London, ‘cos it was a lot rarer elsewhere back then. It’s a lot more common now, but somehow it feels like tradition to eat it when I visit London.”

He smiles, and Felipe smiles back, his heart feeling somehow warmed just by Rob’s nice little anecdote. That’s just what he wants, the little stories of Rob’s life. Doesn’t have to be all his secrets, or his life’s history. Just simple things, to colour in the picture Felipe’s held in his mind all this time.

“You come to London a lot?” he asks, as they start along Regent Street.

“Not as much lately,” Rob explains. “I used to have some friends here, but they’ve moved away now. So it’s nice to have an excuse to come back - whenever I get one, I take it,” he says, with another warm smile that Felipe receives happily.

“I am happy I can give you an excuse,” he says, grinning. “I am happy you can come.”

“I’m happy you invited me,” Rob says. “It’s nice to be, y’know, remembered.” His cheeks look a little redder, and maybe it’s just the fresh air, but maybe he, like Felipe, can’t help but think about just how memorable the time they spent together was.

Felipe has to bite his tongue to stop himself commenting on it out loud. That can wait till they’ve been together for more than ten minutes, he tells himself mock-sternly. He doesn’t want to jump the gun, because once they go there, what’s left? It’s hard to climb back down to the level of everyday chat after that, he reasons.

Maybe they won’t venture onto the topic at all, Felipe considers. Maybe all the dirty late-night messages will stay safely locked away online. Maybe they’ll barely even flirt, though Felipe finds that possibility rather far-fetched, even at this early stage. For now, though, he’ll keep it clean, at least until he can find out a bit more about Rob’s current... circumstances. They have hours to go yet - maybe the past will remain untouched for the duration. But Felipe already suspects that he’ll find it difficult to ignore that elephant in the room for the whole time, and he doesn’t really want to anyway. He can't deny he'd be more than a little disappointed to come all this way, and not even mention anything about Miami. It's nice that they're finding it so easy to be friendly, but it'd be even nicer if there was a bit more to it as well.

“Oh,” says Rob, abruptly coming to a halt in front of a shut-up shop. “I guess they’re not in business anymore.” He chuckles ruefully. “Sorry. I guess that’s out the window then.”

Felipe laughs. “This is a good start!” he jokes. “But is OK, for sure is not difficult to find another Japanese restaurant in London.”

They carry on towards Chinatown, and they do come across plenty of Japanese restaurants, but most of them are either small and pretty crowded, or just looking at the prices on the menu makes Rob’s eyes widen in alarm. Felipe’s not in a rush, he’s happy to keep wandering the streets with Rob, getting a feel for London, and eventually they settle on a Korean barbecue place instead. It actually seems a better option, more spacious, less rushed, and just in case Felipe still had any worries about the possibility of conversation drying up, at least they have something to focus on with the meat grilling right on the table in front of them.

He needn’t have had any reservations though, because everything continues to flow as smoothly as Felipe could’ve hoped for. It’s almost like picking up where they left off - if they’d had more time all those years ago, Felipe can imagine them doing this sort of thing, getting to know each other better, going on something like a date. He’s trying not to let his imagination run away with him, not so soon, but that’s what it feels like - a continuation, suspended for a while, but building on the positive foundations they started in Miami. They had a good time together even when they weren’t in bed (or in the garden, or the pool), so Felipe is relieved that the impression he got back then doesn’t seem to be just rose-tinted by his pleasant memories.

“So how far is London from your town?” Felipe asks. He’s seen the name of the town where Rob lives written on his Facebook profile, but he has no idea how to pronounce it.

“It’s about three hours on the train, with a change,” Rob says. “That probably doesn’t sound that far to you,” he adds, chuckling.

Felipe shrugs. “Is far enough,” he says, smiling. He pauses, not sure how to ask his next question without it sounding loaded. “You will go back tonight?” he ventures.

Rob shakes his head. “Nah, I’d have to get a train at 8 or something stupid like that,” he says. “And I thought, if we were out drinking, or whatever…” His cheeks seem a bit more colourful again, but maybe this time it’s just the heat from the grill. He grins anyway, and goes on. “So I booked a hotel room, to be on the safe side.”

Felipe smiles, pleased that Rob didn’t think he’d’ve had enough and be eager to rush back home early. It’s nice to not worry about a curfew - and if for any reason they do want to split early, they both have the safety net of somewhere in London they can go back to.

“You are still a gardener?” Felipe asks. If Rob still works for himself, at least it will have been easy for him to take a couple of days off.

“Yeah,” Rob says. “And obviously winter is the quiet time for us, so no problems with a jaunt down to London at this time of year,” he explains, chuckling. “Thought maybe I could do a bit of shopping while I’m here. Get people some fancy stuff for a change.”

“Me too,” Felipe says. “My friend told me to go to Harrods and a lot of other places.”

“Let’s not go nuts,” Rob warns, but he’s smiling. “That might be a bit out of my budget, but it’s nice to have a look.” He pauses, then adds, “I say that, when I know just how expensive drinks are in London, and I’ve come perfectly prepared to pay for them.” He laughs. “Priorities, eh?”

Felipe giggles. “Well, if you know some good bars, we can go there,” he says. “If they are still open,” he teases.

Rob chuckles. “Yeah, I hope I’ve not cursed everywhere I used to like,” he says wryly. “I must’ve put the kiss of death on that Japanese place.”

“You can take me to a real English pub,” Felipe says sweetly.

“Now you’re talking,” Rob enthuses, and so it follows pretty naturally that that’s where they head to after lunch. “Now, I know you’re from Brazil so you must’ve seen all sorts, but it might not be exactly what you’re expecting. Same for British people in general,” Rob says, sounding a little bit apologetic as he pushes the door open and lets Felipe into a place that looks pretty much exactly like he was expecting, with dark wooden panelling and those stubby beer glasses with handles, and even a proper fire going.

Felipe laughs. “Rob, you were not exactly what I was expecting,” he says. “I am prepared for everything.”

Rob’s definitely blushing this time, and Felipe can’t deny, he’s delighted. If Rob is trying not to think about everything that happened in Miami, he’s obviously not trying very hard. Felipe is pleased, because he doesn’t think he could avoid starting to make at least oblique references to it for very much longer. He’s having fun, and the more fun he has, the more he feels like he can start to flirt, because what’s more fun than that?

“So you’re here for a wedding,” Rob says, when he’s bought them both a pint of something brown and still and not at all unpleasant. “When’s that?”

“Saturday,” Felipe says. “They are having everything at a hotel. I have the address, but I don’t know where it is, or how to say the name of the place,” he admits, laughing.

“It wouldn’t mean anything to me anyway,” says Rob, laughing as well. “Are your friends English then?”

“One is Brazilian, his boyfriend is Indian, actually, but he live here,” Felipe explains. “My friend came to London to work and they met here.”

“Oh, it’s a gay wedding?” Rob asks.

“Yes,” Felipe says, surprised that Rob is surprised.

“Sorry, that sounded stupid,” Rob says, pulling a face at himself. “I’ve just never been to one. I don’t have a lot of gay friends back home,” he explains.

He sounds like it’s a source of regret for him, and Felipe would understand if it was. In many ways he knows he lives a very privileged life, but he still feels a lot happier knowing he has a community of friends around him who understand, and who he knows will support him if he needs it. Felipe knows everyone is different, but he thinks he’d feel quite isolated if he didn’t have that.

“Is hard to meet guys as well?” Felipe asks cautiously, not knowing if he really should, or wants to.

“Well, it’s a lot easier these days with the internet and dating apps and all that,” says Rob. “But there’s not that great a ‘scene’ up there,” he adds, making air quotes with an ironic laugh. “Nowhere I’d want to go, anyway.”

“You… have a boyfriend at the moment?” Felipe asks, cringing to himself a little. He’s surprised at how soon and suddenly the question has come up, but he supposes it’s pretty natural - he just hopes it doesn’t look like he’s angling after anything too clumsily.

“No, not really,” Rob says, looking a bit uneasy. “I’ve kind of been seeing someone, but only really casually. Going for a drink every so often, and… y’know.” He shifts, like he feels like he shouldn’t go into detail, even though there’s not really any reason why not. Felipe understands what he means, anyway. “But I’ve not seen him in a while. I don’t feel like we’re a match made in heaven, I doubt we’ll be going long-term,” he says with a chuckle, and Felipe wonders how much to read into him emphasising that. “How about you?” Rob asks.

“No,” Felipe answers quickly. “Is like you say, there is nobody serious since a long time. Just casual,” he says, smiling a little and feeling inexplicably shy all of a sudden. At least that’s out of the way now, out in the open. Felipe can stop wondering if he’s treading on any toes, except Rob’s. He's had two of his big worries resolved now - it's not at all awkward between them, and Rob is single - so that just leaves one more important question that he’s been trying unsuccessfully not to think about ever since he knew they’d be seeing each other. Does Rob still fancy him, now they're face to face again? Felipe would obviously be very flattered, and he knew as soon as he set eyes on Rob this afternoon that he was still just as attracted to Rob as he was when they parted. Still filled with a sense of unfinished business, an affair cut too short, potential unfulfilled. But the bigger question is, even if Rob feels the same, what would they do about it anyway? That’s something Felipe hasn’t let himself think too much about, in case he gets carried away.

“Well, maybe you’ll be like your friend, and meet someone over here,” says Rob, smiling with a twinkle in his eye. “How long are you here for?”

Felipe laughs. “Just a week,” he says. “Then I thought I will go to Paris, on the Eurostar, you know? Then Switzerland, Italy… everywhere is so close, I thought I will go to as many places as I can when I am here.”

“Good idea,” says Rob. “Might be a bit warmer over in Italy as well,” he goes on, then grimaces. “Bloody hell, that’s how you know you’re in Britain, when someone starts talking about the weather.”

Felipe laughs. “Some things are exactly how I expected,” he says, grinning.

They stay for one more drink, but Felipe is keen to look round a bit more of the area, even though it’s already dark by the time they step outside again. The Christmas lights are very pretty against the evening sky, and all the decorations are so wintery, it’s hard for Felipe to not get caught up in childlike excitement.

“Is my first time to be somewhere north in December,” he explains, knowing his smile is probably a bit too giddy for a man of his age. “Is like the Christmas that you see in a movie!”

Rob laughs, but it’s not mocking. “You’re cute,” he murmurs, and it’s Felipe’s turn to hope that Rob thinks his flushed cheeks are just because of the chilly air, or the beer they were drinking.

They stop for coffee, though Rob gets tea, and makes Felipe taste it, “for the full English experience”. It doesn’t taste of much, especially not next to his espresso, but it’s fine, he supposes.

“Better up north,” Rob asserts. “Like most things.”

“Maybe I will have time to visit,” Felipe says with a smile. “I have a few free days.”

Rob raises his eyebrows. “Well, there’s a lot of good stuff about the north,” he says. “But not much of it is in my neck of the woods.”

Felipe laughs. “Is a shame,” he says. “But for sure there is a lot of things to do in London.” There’s not much point going somewhere outside London if there’s no-one he knows there - if there’s no Rob to give him a guided tour, he might as well just stay here, as planned.

When they’re done with coffee, Rob grins. “I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but we’re in Soho,” he says. Felipe can tell this has some kind of import, but he doesn’t know what it is. “There’s a few places round here that you might be interested in,” he goes on, and his smile now is positively wicked. Felipe can’t help but be very intrigued.

He soon sees what Rob means. Alongside the bars and hipster cafes like the one they’ve just been in, are narrow shopfronts and staircases marked XXX, as well as smarter, more modern-looking stores with sensible frontages, that nevertheless display their wares blatantly in their pristine windows. There’s all sorts, in full view of the street - books and magazines, clothing ranging from the risque to the fetishistic, and a wide range of toys and accessories.

“Oh my God, Rob!” Felipe exclaims, laughing as they browse rows and rows of underwear of all colours, styles and materials. “You were thinking ‘Felipe will definitely want to go here’?!”

Rob cackles. “Well, it’s something a bit different, isn’t it,” he says. “Thought you might find a wedding gift for your friends.”

Felipe bursts into fresh laughter. “Actually, maybe that is not a bad idea,” he says. He can’t deny it’s pretty fun to look around and see a lot of crazy items he’s never seen before, and even a little exciting to be there with Rob as they look at the sex toys and racy costumes and erotic imagery, and wonder if he’s into any of it.

In the end he does find a nice, relatively artful publication that he hopes the grooms can enjoy together, but he doesn’t take the opportunity to purchase anything for himself. He wonders if maybe Rob was thinking the same as him, wondering what sort of thing Felipe would choose, if he was going to.

“Not getting anything for yourself?” Rob asks as they leave, grinning smugly.

Felipe chuckles. “I don’t want to pay more if my bag is too heavy for the flight home,” he deadpans.

Rob laughs. “Yeah, that’d be tough to explain if you had to re-pack in the airport,” he says, grinning. “Not to worry, I bet they ship overseas if you change your mind.”

“And you?” Felipe asks, grinning back at him. “You did not want to buy?”

“Not at London prices,” Rob shoots back, and Felipe giggles.

After they’ve shopped enough, and taken in the varied sights of Soho, they agree that it’s probably time for more drinks. In fact, it’s getting towards dinner time, but they ate enough barbecued meat at lunchtime that Felipe doesn’t feel at all hungry yet. Felipe is quite interested in checking out some of the gay bars they’ve passed, but Rob seems a little more hesitant. Felipe is surprised, given what Rob said earlier about the lack of scene in his hometown - he’d’ve expected Rob to jump at the chance to visit the sorts of places he usually can’t.

“I feel like a complete fucking square saying this, but those sorts of bars aren’t for me,” he confesses. “They play shit music, serve shit beer, the clientele are so young and trendy - bars like that, whether they’re gay or not, they’re not my type of thing. Sorry,” he says, looking a little embarrassed to be admitting something so uncool.

Felipe smiles. He doesn’t mind at all. “Anywhere is fine for me,” he says honestly. “The pub we went in earlier was nice! It was… English,” he says. “These bars are the same as I can go to at home, if I want.”

Rob looks relieved. He looks even happier when they realise that actually, not all the gay venues are painfully trendy bars - there are some pubs not at all unlike the one they were in earlier, and Rob clearly feels a lot happier about going into one of those. He’s even impressed with the beer, if not the price, and it’s a nice relaxed place, not too busy. They’re just having a few beers, nothing too heavy, but Felipe can’t help but wonder how much Rob drinks on those nights before he starts sending Felipe dirty messages. If he has a few more pints, will he start getting more and more suggestive? Felipe feels a tingle of naughty excitement as he wonders about it. He doesn’t want to go too far, but he’s happy to keep paying for the drinks to test his theory.

It really has been just like he remembers in Miami - being with Rob is still easy and comfortable, even after all this time, and with only those couple of weeks to build on. Rob is funny and interesting and engaging, and has lots of amusing tips for him as a first time visitor to Britain. It’s only fuelling Felipe’s feelings of attraction, and he's starting to wonder where they go from here. Before he came here he'd been strict with himself, only let himself think about meeting Rob as a friend, thought that was a good and realistic enough target in itself - and it has been, he’s so pleased at how it’s gone. But now, after a number of hours together, and a few beers, Felipe’s mind is starting to inevitably let in the idea that maybe he hasn’t been bold enough in his thinking after all. And if he’s feeling this way, maybe Rob is too. They’ve got a place to go back to - they’ve got a choice of two places, he supposes - they know exactly how it would go. They’ve got nothing to lose, for just one night, for old times’ sake.

Felipe has done so well all day, trying not to think about it, but now he’s started, he can’t stop. He remembers everything about Rob so vividly, more than any other lover he’s had since then. The taste of his lips, the touch of his fingertips, the images that come back to him every time he’s in Miami or gets one of those secret late-night messages. He can admit it to himself now, he wants it all again, just one more time. Even if it’s not the same, at least that would feel like some kind of closure.

“Thank you again for coming down to London,” he says, because he really means it. “I had a really nice time with you today.”

“Me too, it was great to see you again,” Rob says, meeting Felipe’s eyes with a smile that makes his heart skip. “Where are you staying?” he asks, and is Felipe overthinking in the opposite direction now, or is Rob fishing a little too?

“My hotel is in St Pancras,” he says. “In the station actually. I thought it will be good for the Eurostar,” he explains.

Rob raises his eyebrows in surprise. “Me too,” he says. “Well, not the station bit, that hotel’s out of my price range,” he goes on with a wry grin. “My trains leave from Kings Cross, so I’m in the fucking Travelodge just down the road. And that’s expensive enough!”

Felipe thinks fast. “That is good, we can go on the tube together, you can help me so I don’t get lost,” he says, smiling sweetly.

“Good idea,” Rob murmurs. “You, er, want to go now, or…?” His face is reddening a little again, and Felipe is going to take that as all the sign he needs, and grab it with both hands. Rob didn’t even bother finishing his sentence, didn’t make any other suggestion - he must be absolutely fine with the idea of leaving, and together.

“I think so,” says Felipe, and as they leave, he can feel his heartrate start to pick up again. This is it, then, and maybe Rob has had enough and just wants to go back to his own hotel room, but Felipe is ready by now to not make that assumption. He’s ready for a lot of things.

“We should get you a kebab,” Rob says, as they head back towards the tube station. “Though I’m not sure I’m drunk enough for that right now. But make sure you get one while you’re here! Another part of the full British experience!”

Felipe laughs. “Well, today I drink tea and go to the pub, I think I am having the British experience,” he says. He stops short of saying there’s something else British he’d like to experience very soon, but he’s thinking it, and he can’t help but wonder if Rob is too.

The tube journey is pretty short, and the whole time, Felipe is aware of his heart, still beating that bit faster than it needs to. He has to hide his smile, at both his own silly nerves and the fact that this really looks like it’s happening. Somewhere in the back of his mind he was always prepared for this, especially when he was making sure to pack condoms, but he didn’t let himself get his hopes up too high. But now he’s definitely glad he considered the possibility.

Felipe takes a deep breath as they come up the escalator out of the station. They’ve managed to end up outside, even though Felipe knows there’s a way all the way through to the hotel on the inside, but neither of them knows where it is.

“You… want to come and see the hotel?” he asks, trying to keep it casual. “Is very nice.”

“I bet it is, for those prices,” says Rob, grinning and equally casual. “Yeah, remind me again of how the other half live.”

Going this way means they get to approach the hotel via its impressive outer façade, and Rob seems genuinely interested, and even a little awed, by the interior as well.

“You would like to have a drink? The bar here is very nice,” Felipe suggests, just in case that’s what Rob’s really curious about.

But Rob shakes his head. “I think I’d prefer to have a look at your room,” he murmurs, and Felipe’s poor heart suddenly leaps another gear.

He’s so relieved that there’s no-one else in the lift when they step inside it. Rob leans back against the mirrored wall, and his face is flushed and his eyes are shiny with the cold, but he’s still so attractive that Felipe can’t help himself. Smiling, he steps closer, shoes silent on the plush carpet, and just touches Rob lightly, his hands on his coat sleeves as he tilts his face up with parted lips and leans in. Rob moves to meet him and their noses rub, side by side, a sweet little intimacy that Felipe savours, before their lips finally touch, soft and gentle, a delicate kiss that Felipe has waited two years to receive again.

They don’t have time to deepen their kiss before they’re at Felipe’s floor, stepping out with no words, just smiles, and their hands, briefly caught together before Felipe has to fumble for his key and let them into his room, fingers clumsy and his whole body bubbling with giddy anticipation.

Even as he takes his coat off, Rob makes a show of looking around the room, before his eyes come to rest on Felipe. “This is nice,” he murmurs. “Even nicer than your place in Miami.”

“The bed is very comfortable as well,” says Felipe, and Rob chuckles. Felipe walks towards him, smiling confidently. He doesn’t say anything else, doesn’t think he could find any more words even if he needed to, not when his head is swimming only with thoughts of Rob and his mouth and his hands and the way he could make Felipe feel with the way he used them.

He presses up against Rob boldly and kisses him again, excited when Rob wraps his arms around him straight away to keep him close, kissing back with passion he’s wanted to feel again ever since they last saw each other. He hasn’t been kissed like this in a long time, hasn’t felt lust like this for anyone since Rob, surging and pulsing within him and making him dizzy. Felipe’s not going to hide it or ignore it any longer, he can’t do anything but give in, swept up in the rush of it all, his mind struggling to catch up with his unresisting body as heat floods through it. They struggle out of their clothes and into bed, barely parting for a moment, bodies and limbs sliding against each other, shuddering and groaning as their kisses intensify, messy and deep but not deep enough. Felipe wants more, more of everything, reaching deeper into him to try and satisfy the reignited desire that throbs in every part of him, undeniable and overwhelming.

He’s in Rob’s arms on the bed, lapping at his throat and delighting in the way Rob moans, his breathing ragged as he grasps at Felipe, holding him like he wishes he’d never let him go. Felipe is so hard, he doesn’t know what he’s going to do, he could just carry on like this, rubbing against each other desperately and blindly, and he’d come in no time. He doesn’t care, it’d feel so good to just do that. But oh, he wants to do more, do everything he remembers from Miami, because if he feels so hot now, how much better will it feel to do it all again, to relearn every intimate sensation he shared with Rob, to re-engrave it in his memory, because he’s been given another chance, and he can’t waste that.

Felipe can’t think straight, he feels so crazy right now that he can’t make a decision over anything. Rob’s voice cuts through the fog in his brain, and he tries to focus on what he’s saying.

“Felipe,” he says, and his voice is thick and rough. “Felipe, I want you to fuck me, please.”

Felipe swears in Portuguese. He’s trembling with lust, his body coursing with want, and just hearing Rob say that, tell him exactly what he wants from him, is too beautiful.

“I will, I will,” he mumbles, covering Rob’s face with feverish kisses. He stumbles off the bed, his pulse whirring in his head, but he manages to find the condoms and lube in his luggage with surprising ease. It’s like Rob said - priorities, he thinks, as he climbs back onto the bed and on top of Rob again.

He makes a mess with the lube, which he’ll feel guilty about later when he considers the price of the room and the quality of the bedsheets, but he congratulates himself on getting the condom on successfully under the circumstances, and he slowly starts to push inside as Rob urges him on.

Felipe has to close his eyes, has to clench his free hand into a fist, he can barely control himself. He thought he remembered how good it felt to be inside Rob, but, he realises, he didn’t remember even half of it. He stays still when he’s all the way in, listening to their breaths as they take in the feeling of each other.

He starts to rock his hips, gently at first, and Rob moans, clutching at Felipe’s shoulders already.

“Fuck, yes, harder,” he groans, and Felipe’s body obeys before his brain can even understand. He’s sure he’s had this dream before. Maybe he drank more than he thought earlier and this is his unfettered, uninhibited fantasy, his unconscious brain playing out everything he could ever want.

“That feels so fucking good,” Rob pants out, and Felipe doesn’t need the encouragement, it’s too dangerous, but his body wants to give Rob everything he wants.

“For me too,” he moans, pushing in deeper, as deep as he can, and Rob helps him, hands sliding down to his arse to pull him in as far as he can get. He feels white hot, he’s more turned on that he knows how to cope with, and all he can do is keep moving, keep doing the things he remembers that Rob liked when they did this before. It’s so easy to recall, and he's obviously getting it right, because Rob is so responsive to all of it that Felipe’s losing his grip on himself.

“You’re fucking amazing,” Rob moans. “No-one else can do that like you.”

Felipe squeezes his eyes shut as he comes, completely helpless against the tide. He’s not felt such pleasure in longer than he realised, and it turns him inside out. He feels ridiculous that Rob is saying these incredible things about him, and the irony is that because of them Felipe couldn’t make it last any longer. He reaches for Rob’s dick, so hard in his hand as he strokes it, fast, trying to keep up some momentum before he softens inside Rob. Maybe Rob is just as worked up as Felipe, to the point where anything would do it, because he spills over Felipe’s fingers quickly and copiously, as if he hasn’t even noticed Felipe has finished.

Felipe’s not going to point it out if he doesn’t have to. He slows his movements to a stop, and spends a few blissful minutes spreadeagled over Rob’s recumbent body. He knows he’s not heavy, but still, he doesn’t want to hamper Rob’s breathing or anything, so he very gently extricates himself and flops down on the bed beside him. He’s a little embarrassed by how easily he came when Rob offered him some flattery, some hyperbole about how he compares to other guys that Rob’s been with. He knows it’s just sexy talk, in the heat of the moment, but he would love it to be true. Right now, when they’ve just finished, isn’t the time to encourage Rob to say more about it - though he doesn’t know if there’ll be another opportunity. Maybe he can save it for their next midnight message exchange.

Instead, he waits for Rob to turn to look at him, and they smile, both as smug as each other. And why shouldn’t they be? Felipe got more than he let himself hope for, and he doesn’t think Rob is disappointed either.

He can’t resist teasing though. It feels appropriate. “So, you will go back to your hotel now?” he says, giggling.

“I don't think I can now, not after I've been in this room,” Rob replies, barely missing a beat. It just makes Felipe like him more. “Mine was a tatty little shoebox. You wouldn’t be cruel enough to send me back there!”

Felipe laughs. “Oh, I understand now,” he says. “You just wanted to sleep with me to stay in the nice hotel room!”

“You’ve got me there,” Rob says, even as he turns onto his side and edges closer towards Felipe. “You’ve given me a little glimpse of luxury, and it turns out I’ve got a taste for it.”

“Well, I think you earn it,” Felipe says, smirking.

Rob laughs softly. “Seriously though, if you do want me to fuck off, I can go,” he says. “If you want some time alone or whatever.”

“Rob, I do not want you to fuck off,” Felipe says, rolling his eyes, though he’s still smiling. “You need to leave early tomorrow?” he asks, hoping that doesn’t sound like a contradiction of what he’s just said. In fact it’s just the opposite, he really hopes Rob is in no hurry, just so they can draw out this reunion for as long as they can. Felipe has already got way more than he bargained for, but he feels unashamedly greedy for as much as he can get.

“Nah,” says Rob, to Felipe’s delight. “I got an open return ticket. I can get any train for a month,” he explains, blushing again a bit. Felipe’s even more pleased to hear him say it - maybe Rob had considered the possibility of them getting caught up like this as well, and planned accordingly. Just in case.

“Good,” Felipe says, grinning. “But you paid for the hotel room already…” he adds, suddenly feeling a bit apologetic.

“Worth it,” Rob murmurs, and it’s obvious that neither of them are moving far again tonight.

When Felipe wakes up in the morning, it takes him a few moments to realise he’s not alone in the bed, and as soon as he remembers who’s with him, he can’t help the self-satisfied grin that spreads across his face.

Soon Rob stirs as well, turning over to face him with a similar expression on his face. That smile makes Felipe’s heart swoop pleasantly. He’s missed it, more than he realised.

“So, do you get breakfast here or what?” Rob asks, his eyes crinkling at the corners as he smiles cheekily.

Felipe laughs softly. “Well, I can get breakfast,” he says. “But I don’t know if you will be allowed.”

“Yeah, I’m an illicit guest. A stowaway,” Rob suggests, and they giggle at the idea of Rob being a naughty little secret, smuggling him out under the disapproving looks of the pristine and haughty staff. Not that anyone will notice or care in reality, but it excites Felipe anyway.

He doesn’t really want to get up and get dressed and go downstairs, not when Rob is here in bed with him, warm and enticing and reaching for him again invitingly. They kiss, eager right from the start, and Felipe thinks now, when they’re getting worked up and wanting to turn each other on, might be the time to try to hear more of the things Rob was saying yesterday, when they were fucking.

“You like what we did last night?” he murmurs in Rob’s ear, nipping the lobe with his lips and teeth.

“Yeah,” Rob whispers, shuddering at Felipe’s touches, the closeness of their bodies. Maybe he realises how much it excited Felipe to hear him talk dirty, because he seems happy to carry on where he left off. “It was fucking amazing. Your cock felt so good inside me,” he says, reaching down between them to stroke it. “I’ve been with a few guys since I last saw you - not loads, but a few - and none of them could do it like you.”

Felipe shivers, enjoying the swelling heat of arousal within him. Of course he’s loving the ego treatment, like anyone would, but even just Rob’s voice, throaty and low, his accent, the way he talks - it’s all making Felipe so hot.

“You want me to do it again, the same as last night?” he murmurs. He doesn’t care what the answer is, he’s just getting a thrill out of talking about it, spelling everything out before they do all the things they’ve talked about.

“Hmm, that would be nice,” Rob says, between kisses, but Felipe can hear there’s a ‘but’ coming. “But we could do something different,” he goes on, and Felipe can feel his smirk against his lips. “I want to fuck you, want you to sit in my lap, want you to ride me,” he says, breathless, all in a rush.

Felipe groans, kissing Rob fiercely, catching his bottom lip between his teeth and loving the gasp Rob makes. “I want,” he breathes, moving right away so Rob can sit up.

Rob chuckles at his eagerness, and Felipe laughs as well, he doesn’t care, he just wants Rob again, he loves this momentum they’ve got, seizing the moment, because it really might be the last time now, and he wants to grab the chance with both hands.

Rob settles himself against the plump pillows, and Felipe takes just a moment to admire him, displayed there purely for Felipe’s pleasure and gratification. He can see Rob start to flush a little under his attention, another thing he remembers so well from before, and it makes him smile, he loves that feeling of familiarity, that they know each other so well despite the distance of time and brevity of their liaison. Felipe thinks Rob probably knows him, or at least his body, a lot better than some boyfriends he’s had. He definitely knows how to please him better, Felipe thinks as he slides down onto Rob, his eyes falling shut as he revels in the feeling. He’s also been with a few guys since they were last together - a few, not many, the same as Rob - but none of them have ever been quite as satisfying. Just his luck, thinks Felipe, to have the best sex of his life with a guy who lives halfway round the world. The sex wouldn’t be as important if he’d found someone who made his heart feel as good as Rob makes his body feel, but he doesn’t have that either. At least if Rob lived nearby, he could be having more fun, but every casual affair just leaves him feeling vaguely unfulfilled by comparison.

Maybe he’s getting old. But he doesn’t feel it now, with Rob’s cock deep inside him, rocking up into him as Felipe moves, just as good as it felt before. He digs his fingers into Rob’s shoulders, tipping his head back as Rob kisses his neck, holding him close with one arm around him and one hand on his hip. The way they fit together is so right, Rob can hit the spot inside him like no-one else. He hopes this is how Rob felt last night when Felipe was inside him, because Felipe is absolutely lost in it, burning up with it, and he’s so, so glad he got to do this again after two years without.

They manage to make it last a little bit longer than they did last night, but not much.

“I’m so close Felipe,” Rob whispers, and Felipe can only moan, putting a hand around himself as Rob starts to thrust harder inside him. He can’t get enough of Rob saying his name like that, breathless and so full of desire, like Felipe is the only thing in his world right now, just like Rob is the only thing in Felipe’s.

Felipe comes just after Rob does, sinking into his arms, spent and trembling. He’s reluctant to move for quite a few minutes, because then it’ll all be over, for he doesn’t know how long. Could be forever. But on the other hand, the last time they parted he thought the same. Who knows, in another two years maybe they’ll be going for round three. The thought makes him grin as he finally slides off Rob and lolls onto the bed with satisfaction.

Rob smiles down at him, before a sudden flash of realisation passes over his face.

“Oh, shit,” he mutters. “I need to check out of my fucking hotel room.”

Felipe sighs, not even trying to hide his disappointment. “You will go to the station after?”

Rob hesitates. “Well, I don’t have to,” he says, and Felipe smiles.

“You would maybe like to meet for lunch?” he tries hopefully.

Rob smiles too, and it gladdens Felipe’s heart again. “Yeah, I’d love to.”

Rob gets up, with great reluctance, and pulls on his clothes from yesterday, looking regretfully at the luxurious bathroom he hasn’t got time to make full use of. They have no idea where to arrange to meet, so eventually Felipe says he’ll just wait in the hotel foyer downstairs. It’s too late for the breakfast he paid for, but he can get some coffee, and it’s a no-brainer that time spent in bed with Rob is worth more to him than the value of a hotel breakfast - even somewhere like this. He’s here for several more days still, he can make up for it tomorrow.

When Rob is gone he has a shower, and heads downstairs feeling cheerful to the point of obnoxiousness. He wonders who else around him might’ve had such an exciting and impromptu tryst last night, or this morning, or both, and he decides that probably no-one has. And even if they did, it can’t possibly have been as good.

He hasn’t been waiting that long when Rob shows up again, wearing fresh clothes and with his hair combed. They grin at each other, and Felipe hopes everyone around them can tell exactly what they were doing just an hour or so ago.

“That was the proudest walk of shame I’ve ever done,” Rob murmurs. “Which I suppose means it wasn’t a walk of shame at all,” he muses, and Felipe laughs, a little proud himself.

Felipe has picked up a tourist map of London, so they decide to walk around, rather than get the tube. Felipe is used to being in a big city, so the crowds and bustle don’t bother him, but the customs and cultures of London are unfamiliar; Rob isn’t accustomed to being in a city, but at least he knows Britain well enough to be able to tell what sort of places they should and shouldn’t go into. Together they manage to make a pretty successful navigation of the area, and find a good spot for lunch, two tourists together. Felipe didn’t necessarily expect Rob to be his tour guide, but he’s a little surprised - and amused - by the way Rob reacts to a lot of things around them with just as much wonder as Felipe does. He supposes it’s as if he’d met Rob in Rio - Felipe has been there, he speaks the language (more or less), but it’s different enough for him to be aware he’s an outsider.

After lunch, they stroll in Hyde Park, on their way to Harrods, as suggested. It’s predictably crowded, but Felipe makes a few purchases, and even Rob puts his hand in his pocket for some bits and pieces.

“If it says Harrods on it, it’ll impress my mum, anyway,” he says with a grin.

The weather continues to be mild, at least to Rob, and to Felipe’s undeniable surprise it’s still not raining, so they carry on walking, accidentally coming to Buckingham Palace, where Felipe insists Rob take some pictures of him.

“And that will impress my mum,” Felipe says, pleased with himself. “Now I have done everything I came to London to do,” he says, nudging Rob with a naughty smile.

“Except the wedding,” Rob points out, though he’s smiling too. “Are they having a stag do or anything?”

“No, I think they already did,” Felipe says. “But we can have for them,” he suggests, giggling.

Rob smiles, but it’s a little wan. “I should head back soon if I’m going to catch my train,” he says, sounding apologetic.

Felipe bites his lip. “You don’t have to,” he says quickly, before he can think too much about it. “You said you have the train ticket for a month? And I am staying in the hotel until Tuesday,” he says, hoping he doesn't sound too much like he's begging. But he's just being honest, even if he does feel a little embarrassed. “If you are not busy, you can stay with me tonight. Or as many days as you want.”

Rob looks like he wants to say yes, but he’s hesitant. “Felipe, I’d love to,” he says. “But you’ve paid for it all, I don’t want to be a freeloader, again,” he goes on, though he sounds regretful.

Felipe shrugs. “But I paid for it anyway, if you are here or not,” he says. “I am not spending anything more! And if you want to pay something, you can buy my drinks, and pay for dinner,” he adds, grinning hopefully. He doesn’t want to put pressure on Rob if he really doesn’t feel comfortable staying - he definitely doesn’t want to disrespect Rob’s principles or anything. But on the other hand… he just doesn’t want Rob to leave when he doesn’t have to, and in all honesty, he doesn’t think Rob really wants to go either.

“Well, if you’re sure,” Rob says, still sounding a little uneasy, but he doesn’t protest anymore, and after a moment’s contemplation, he goes on, “Actually, with food and drink prices down here, you might be getting the better end of this deal after all.”

After a short while, he stops in his tracks again and says, “If I’m staying another day, I’m going to need some more fucking clothes, aren’t I? I’m going to be more out of pocket than I thought!”

“We can go back to Soho, those shops had a lot of underwear,” Felipe suggests with faux-innocence, and Rob bursts into laughter, even as he smacks him in the back of the head.

Rob is right though, and, after some quick Googling on his phone, they make a detour to a hectic but low-priced shop that Rob also sardonically describes as part of Felipe’s “full British experience”.

“You’ve not seen a proper cross-section of the British public till you’ve been in a Primark,” he explains, grimacing a little, but with fresh underwear, socks and shirts to keep him going.

They choose a suitably modestly-priced restaurant for dinner, and head on to a charmingly historic pub, which both satisfies Felipe’s wish to see as much authentic Englishness as he can, and Rob’s desire for cheap drinks. There’s not a lot of choice of drinks on offer, but Rob definitely doesn’t care, at these prices, and Felipe is happy enough, just because Rob is still with him, and they’ve put off saying goodbye for at least one more day.

They don’t stay out late. Both of them are pretty happy to head back to the hotel, and straight up to Felipe’s room, in good time. They’ve had a perfectly normal, relaxed day together, but as soon as it starts getting late in the evening, it’s like a switch flips inside and Felipe can’t help his thoughts starting to turn to what else they could be doing. Rob definitely isn’t complaining, lets Felipe come to him in the lift again and kiss him, warm and almost chaste, for the benefit of CCTV. Felipe catches sight of them together in the mirrored wall, and it makes him feel a bit sentimental, his heart filling with affection again. He likes how they look together - they’re so different, but they fit.

It’s a pointless thought, he knows that. But for now it’s nice. He’s proud to have Rob by his side, it makes him feel just a bit smug to think that anyone could see them and guess he was taking Rob back to his room to fuck. He loves the idea of people being envious of him, and why wouldn’t they be, when he’s taking such a good-looking guy to bed with him? Maybe Felipe’s perception is clouded by the shameless lust he feels for Rob, but surely people must look at them and wish they were in Felipe’s place.

They start to kiss in earnest when they’re safe in Felipe’s room, pawing at each other through and under their clothes, stripping each other quickly so they can get into bed as fast as they can. When they’re alone together like this Felipe feels just like he did when they were in Miami, he just can’t get enough of Rob, he wants him however he can get him. If anyone asked him to explain it he doesn’t think he could find the words. The way Rob touches him, the way his body feels against Felipe’s, the way it feels to be in Rob’s arms - it makes him breathless, there’s no room inside him for air, he’s just filled to the brim with hot, sticky, insatiable want. He rubs himself against Rob reflexively, almost involuntarily, his body chasing the stimulation. He can’t resist touching Rob’s cock, so hard, thick in his hand as he massages it, gently at first, until Rob moans, thrusting greedily into his touch. It’s an unbelievable rush for Felipe, to be able to make this hot guy respond to him like this, making him feel like he really is the best lover Rob could wish for.

“Turn over,” Rob whispers, and Felipe obeys, loving the way Rob’s body fits against his back, and the way his cock feels against his arse. Rob leans over him, easing him forwards so he’s almost lying on his stomach, and coaxes his legs apart with a hand running teasingly up the inside of his thigh.

Felipe holds his breath. He can feel his cock throbbing between his body and the mattress. He feels vulnerable like this, but in the most intimate way, just waiting to see what Rob’s going to do next. He trusts Rob completely, knows that whatever he does, it’ll be to give Felipe as much pleasure as he can, and it will. Everything Rob has ever done to him has felt good, so good.

Felipe feels Rob’s finger, slick and cool, just teasing over his hole, and he gasps softly, a shiver running up his spine. Rob just touches him lightly for a bit, and Felipe arches his back, hips lifting, encouraging Rob to give him more. Eventually he pushes the tip of his finger in, slow and shallow, rubbing the sensitive skin there, and Felipe whines, wanting more but also enjoying the flood of sensation he gets from just such a simple thing.

Felipe groans with relief when Rob finally slides his finger all the way in, but even then he doesn’t keep it there for long, goes back to just carefully stroking where he was before with the tip of his finger, attentive and gentle. Felipe is weak with arousal, rubbing himself helplessly against the bed. He’s at Rob’s mercy and he loves it, able to do nothing but just wait, and let the tide wash over him, building and building.

Rob pushes his finger back in, keeping it inside this time, and Felipe jerks and moans with the fresh spike of heat that jolts through him. He’s so turned on he can’t move, can’t speak, and every time Rob touches that spot inside him, all he can do is cry out against the pillow, screwing his fingers up in the sheet. Rob strokes it fleetingly at first, just an occasional touch, enough to make Felipe want to beg him for more, but he doesn’t. He tries to be patient, wanting to follow Rob’s plan. And it’s worth it, because when he does get more, it’s like electric in his veins, spreading to every part of him. Rob withdraws for a moment, and Felipe, trembling, tries to catch his breath, but then Rob is pressing two fingers in, and Felipe is overwhelmed all over again. He feels almost like it shouldn’t be having such an effect, this simple thing that Rob is doing to him, but he’s doing it so perfectly, and now he’s rubbing that spot inside more insistently, over and over, not moving away at all now, and everything is building up inside Felipe out of his control. He doesn’t know what to ask Rob for, doesn’t know whether he wants Rob to fuck him or touch his cock or just keep doing what he’s doing and not stop. He doesn’t need anything more, not if he just slides his own hand down and wraps it around his swollen cock, groaning as he squeezes it. He starts to stroke himself, and once he's got going he can't stop. Rob isn't changing what he's doing, just touching and rubbing him in the same place, unerring, like all he wants to do is send Felipe out of his mind, see what he can do to him just like this. This is just for Felipe, and Felipe is happy to just lie here and be pleasured. Again he's put faintly in mind of the circumstances in which they met, with him as the boss, and Rob as his employee, there to do what Felipe wanted and obey orders, and it's so arousing that it doesn't take Felipe much longer to come, soaking the expensive sheet again, but this time he's too blissed out to care for even a moment.

“If you want to fuck me, is OK,” he mumbles. His body is feeling very sensitive, but if Rob wants to, it's the least Felipe can let him do, after how good he's made Felipe feel.

“It's OK,” Rob grunts. “Wouldn’t be very comfortable for you right now, would it?” he murmurs, and like this, especially like this, Felipe is touched that Rob is nice enough to care about something like that over his own gratification.

He feels Rob easing his slick, hard cock between his thighs, hears him groan with relief. He pulls Felipe closer, and Felipe loves the feeling of their bodies pressed together as Rob starts to thrust against him. Even though Felipe is as lax as a ragdoll, sated and pliant, he tries to be what Rob needs, hold himself firm so Rob can get enough purchase. He spills himself quickly between Felipe’s legs with heartfelt swearwords, and Felipe grins, feeling disgustingly, disgracefully satisfied.

Rob relaxes slowly back on the bed, and Felipe rolls onto his front again, turning his head on the pillow so he can look at Rob, and they smile at each other.

“They’re not gonna let you stay at this hotel again, messing up all their sheets like this,” Rob murmurs, when he’s got his breath back.

“I think they definitely see worse than this,” Felipe chuckles. The slick patch on the bed does restrict their space a bit, but Felipe doesn’t mind having to lie close to Rob, and Rob doesn’t seem to either, turning onto his side so he can drape his arm over him affectionately.

Felipe drifts, his whole body and mind feeling light and free. He wonders what he did to deserve this sort of luck. The luck of Rob turning up on his doorstep by chance in the first place, in a place where Felipe spends only a few weeks each year, and Rob was only visiting temporarily. And then for them to manage to get together again, years later and thousands of miles away, and to recreate whatever it was that happened between them before. Felipe’s still not sure what it is that’s so different and special, whether it is at least in part just the separation from reality, the myth that’s surrounded the pair of them in his mind, but he knows no-one’s ever made him feel this crazy, he’s never connected physically with anyone in the same way he has with Rob. Rob can make him feel so good, and Felipe knows that’s because he fancies him so much, but he hopes he makes Rob feel just the same way. It might be brief, but all the time he’s spent with Rob is a bright and vivid spot in Felipe’s memory, and it makes him feel good whenever he thinks about it and remembers that it happened to him.

And on top of that now is the contentment of spending time with Rob and doing normal things, having fun together, like they do it all the time. Again, the word dating sneaks into his mind, because that’s what the past couple of days has felt like, going for coffee and drinks, and eating in nice restaurants, and laughing and flirting and enjoying each other’s company. It makes him happy that they’re so compatible, but the more he thinks about how much he’s enjoying himself, the more he starts to wonder if everything’s not so lucky after all, under the circumstances. He doesn’t want to think too much about that. Just wants to focus on the fact that this is happening at all, and enjoy it while it is.

He looks over at Rob. His eyes are closed, maybe he fell asleep. He wonders what Rob thinks about their time together, wonders if he regards it with the same fondness. It’s not something they’ve talked about - yet, and maybe they never will, but Felipe can’t deny he’s curious. He definitely doesn’t want to make things awkward by bringing too many words into this, but he hopes it wouldn’t be awkward at all. Nothing has been so far, in bed or out of it.

Rob opens his eyes and smiles at him, and Felipe’s heart stutters. He’s almost startled by the feeling of it, but he revels in it, cherishes it, smiling back at Rob and wishing he could feel like this every day of his life.

He wakes up before Rob the next morning, and wants to repay him for last night, give him as breathtaking an experience as Rob gave him. He slides down under the covers and laps at Rob’s soft cock, smiling as it starts to swell against his tongue. He mouths at it gently as it stiffens, taking the head into his mouth and suckling it carefully until Rob wakes up. He has a sudden moment of apprehension, worried that maybe he’s overstepped a line, assumed Rob would want this because Felipe wants it so very much, but when he hears Rob moan in surprised delight, he thinks it's probably OK.

“Oh, fuck, Felipe,” Rob mumbles, still sleepy but already lifting his hips, pushing himself deeper into Felipe’s mouth.

Felipe takes it steady, just like Rob did with him last night, sucking the tip and stroking the rest of Rob’s cock slowly with his hand until Rob whimpers, his back arching as he asks for more. Felipe takes in just a little more at a time, slowly, slowly, loving the way Rob writhes on the bed, his fingers twisting in the hair at the nape of Felipe's neck. He'll give Rob so much, then pull back for a little while, and he can feel Rob trembling and panting. It's almost as big a thrill as everything Rob did to him yesterday, and Felipe can't help but press himself against the bed, his dick throbbing, already knowing it wouldn’t take much, if he were to just rub himself, just a bit… He concentrates on the feeling of Rob’s cock in his mouth, slides it in a little further each time he goes back down, till he’s taken in as much as he can. Rob is gasping, little cut-off cries, reduced to the same shivering incoherency that he induced in Felipe. Both his hands are on Felipe’s head now, hips thrusting greedily, and Felipe lets him, enjoying the feeling of Rob, so caught up in it and taking his pleasure from him so eagerly.

Felipe knows when Rob gets close, his dick even harder and his movements erratic, filling Felipe’s mouth.

“Can I?” Rob mumbles, desperate and breathless, and Felipe looks up at him, staying exactly where he is and letting that be his answer. Rob moans, and a few moments later he’s coming, warm and thick on Felipe’s tongue, and Felipe swallows before he can really think about it.

He lets Rob’s softening cock slide from his lips, feeling dizzy with the weight of his own arousal, still fierce and unassuaged. He can’t wait, can't help himself, he slides his hand between himself and the bed and strokes himself feverishly, bringing himself off before Rob has even got his breath back. He crawls back up the bed on shaky arms, and flops down next to Rob, grinning and feeling like he’s continuing to get away with the naughtiest plan of his life. He’s come to London, one of the coolest cities in the world, and his days and nights have been dominated by incredible sex with a hot guy in a luxury hotel. What indulgence, what decadence!

He rolls onto his side so he can look at Rob again. He’s not tired of it yet, wants to make sure he takes in every detail, while he can, because he already feels like he's on borrowed time.

Maybe Rob is thinking the same, because he says, quietly, “I guess you’re going to be busy with the wedding tomorrow, probably recovering on Sunday - I should probably think about heading home.” He pauses, and Felipe sees him take a breath. “I suppose... this might be the last time.” His cheeks are flushed, and Felipe wonders if it’s still from the great blowjob he’s just given him, or if he’s a little self-conscious that he’s the one who’s finally brought it up, put words to their situation and made it real. Maybe he is, because he quickly moves things on, with a smirk spreading across his face. “Unless you want to stay in bed till I have to go get my train.”

It’s a little less sentimental, but it still makes Felipe happy that Rob is enjoying their time together just as much as he is, and wants to draw it out as much as they can, just like Felipe does.

“Come to the wedding with me,” he blurts out, before he can stop himself.

Rob blinks in surprise. “You want me to be your date?” he says after a moment, his lips twitching into a coy smile.

Felipe feels himself start to blush a little. “Yes, if you would like,” he says, feeling incongruously shy.

Rob hesitates, and Felipe cringes at himself for sounding so needy. Rob might be fine with hanging around longer so they can fuck more, but he might not be up for a full-on, high-pressure social occasion like a wedding. After all, it’s not like he’s Felipe’s boyfriend or anything. Maybe asking him post-coitally, when they’re both still naked, is a bit too much emotional pressure, and Rob might feel too awkward to say no even if he doesn’t want to come.

“I’d love to,” Rob says, after really not very long at all, but long enough for Felipe to give it an inappropriate amount of thought. “But I don’t want to cause any hassle for the grooms - an extra person turning up at such short notice is bound to mess up all their plans, isn’t it?”

Felipe isn’t completely sure if that’s an excuse or a genuine worry, but he’s going to take the chance that it’s the latter, just for one more try. “The wedding is not very organised,” he says. “They say is a buffet, so everybody help themselves to the food, and sit where they like,” he explains. “I will call my friend and tell him, but for sure I think it will be fine.”

“Well, if you’re sure,” Rob says, to Felipe’s relief. “I mean, it feels a bit cheeky, to show up at a stranger’s wedding, but I can’t really bring myself to say no to free booze and food,” he says, grinning and leaning over to give Felipe a kiss. “But if we’re off to a wedding, we can’t be lying around in bed all day after all! I’m gonna need to hire a suit!”

Felipe laughs with delight. He’s got away with it again, managed to eke out some more time with Rob, but what’s almost even more pleasing is the willingness with which Rob agreed to come along. More than anything, he loves feeling that Rob wants to be with him just as much and in just the same way that he wants to be with Rob.

Rob goes to have a shower, and Felipe takes the chance to phone his friend.

“Hey, Bruno, how’s everything going?” he asks, suddenly a bit nervous in case he is taking too big a liberty in inviting Rob along.

“Not bad, as well as you’d expect,” Bruno says, cheerfully enough for a man a day away from his wedding ceremony. “You’re still coming tomorrow right?”

“Of course!” Felipe reassures him. “But I was hoping you wouldn’t mind if I brought someone.”

“Oh man, Felipe, you’ve not picked up some random on the streets of London have you?” Bruno teases.

“No!” Felipe laughs. “It’s Rob. You remember, from Miami. I told you about him.” He can feel his cheeks heating up, and he’s glad Bruno can’t see him.

“Ohh,” Bruno says knowingly. “Well in that case, no problem at all! I look forward to meeting him.”

Felipe cringes again, really hoping Bruno doesn’t feel the need to mention in front of Rob exactly what details about him Felipe might’ve shared, but who knows, he’ll brace himself for the mortification anyway. It’ll be worth it.

After a bit of Googling, Rob finds a place where he can hire a suit for a price he deems acceptable, and they go and find it. Felipe’s stomach does a foolish little flip at how attractive Rob looks in his suit, and he probably shouldn’t be surprised by the faint tingle of arousal that he feels at the same time, but he can’t pretend he doesn’t enjoy it.

Rob sensibly thinks he should drop the suit back off at the hotel, and Felipe has to try very hard to not ask him to put it on again when they get there, because he knows that’d probably lead to exactly the sort of creasing and messiness that Rob wants to avoid.

They head back out to the park again, because the weather is still good, and Felipe is interested in exploring the winter attraction he noticed the other day. He suspects that maybe Rob thinks it’s all very corny, but it’s a great novelty for Felipe, and Rob seems perfectly willing to indulge him, especially when he sees that there’s mulled cider. He draws the line at ice skating, though, despite Felipe’s wheedling, but they have a lot of fun eating overpriced hipster streetfood and mocking each other’s skills at fairground games.

“I am cold now,” Felipe murmurs when they finally get back to the hotel room that night.

Rob observes him taking off first his coat, then his jumper, and raises his eyebrows. “Well, you’re not going to warm up by taking your clothes off,” he says dryly, though he’s already crossing the room to help Felipe do just that.

Felipe pouts, inviting Rob to kiss him, which he does. “You are supposed to make me warm,” he says, rather needlessly, because it doesn’t take them any time at all to strip and get into bed, pressed together from mouths to hips.

“You a bit warmer now?” whispers Rob with a grin, even as he gets ready to enter Felipe’s willing body, spread out beneath his own.

Felipe giggles, arching his back and drawing Rob against him, into him. He’s definitely warm enough, heat spreading to every extremity, fire stoked between them as they move together. They make love slowly this time, deep and tender and taking care of each other, soft wet kisses and gentle fingertip touches. It makes Felipe’s head spin just as much as the intensity of how Rob made him feel yesterday, and when he comes he pulls Rob close against him, his face pressed into the crook of his neck, feeling more fulfilled and complete than he can put into words.

There’s no early start required for the wedding the next morning, so they find the time to mess around a little in the spacious shower before they get ready.

“All this space and luxury, it’s almost like they’re inviting you to fuck all over the place,” Rob pants as he rinses himself off. “Now I feel like I get it.”

Felipe is struck with pride all over again when Rob is dressed, so smart in his suit and a tie borrowed from Felipe.

“I cannot wait for my friends to see you,” he says, not caring how smug he sounds.

“Oh, I’m a trophy am I,” Rob says, but he’s wearing a grin that suggests he doesn’t mind at all.

“I don’t think they ever see me with a boyfriend as handsome as you,” Felipe says, realising what he’s said as soon as he’s said it, but trying desperately not to show any reaction one way or another.

Rob blushes, but Felipe hopes it’s just because of the ‘handsome’ part. “Well, I’ll try not to show you up,” he murmurs. “And y’know, don’t worry about me, I know you’ll want to go and talk to your friends and all, so don’t feel you’ve got to keep checking on me. I’ll occupy myself. Most likely at the bar,” he says, grinning, and Felipe laughs.

“You will like my friends,” he says. “And there will be a lot of English people there, so maybe you will meet some new friends for yourself too.”

Rob nods thoughtfully, as if this hadn’t occurred to him before, but it’s a pleasing idea. “I hope there’s some northerners,” he says. At first Felipe thinks he’s joking, but actually, he sounds sincere, and it makes Felipe smile fondly.

They get to the wedding venue in plenty of time, and Felipe sees Rob shaking his head at the opulence of the place again. He can tell Rob is judging these rich folks and their wild spending again, but he knows it’s just a bit of gentle mockery, like when he teases Felipe for his fancy car or unnecessarily luxurious hotel room, but will happily enjoy their comforts as he fucks him in either of them.

“Felipe! It’s so good to see you,” Bruno greets him warmly, embracing him tightly. “I’m so glad you could make it.”

“Thank you for inviting me,” Felipe says in Portuguese, then switches back to English to introduce Rob.

Bruno shakes his hand with a big smile. “So you are real!” he exclaims. “I was sure Felipe must have made you up.”

Rob blushes, and so does Felipe. “Thanks for letting me come,” he says, no-selling Bruno’s messing, to Felipe’s relief. “Congratulations.”

“Thank you,” Bruno says. “To be honest I’m glad to have an extra person on my side. Karun’s mum has invited everyone she’s ever met, I’m feeling pretty outnumbered.”

He shows Felipe and Rob to their seats, and he’s right, there are a lot more people on the other side of the aisle. Bruno and Karun are both wandering about, mingling and chatting and directing people around, and Felipe is glad that it’s so informal, so Rob should be able to relax and feel comfortable.

It’s a lovely ceremony, warm and filled with love and laughter, and in at least three languages. Felipe loves the feeling that everybody is accepted and included, and he knows he and Rob will fit in fine.

“Thank you all so much for coming,” says Karun at the start of his speech. “I know some of you have come a very long way, and we really appreciate that. But we wanted to have our wedding here, in London, where we met. I’m so glad I came here, and I’m very grateful to my family that they gave me the opportunity to come to the UK, or I would probably never have met Bruno. It really is amazing that we both travelled thousands of miles from our homes, and managed to find each other. I am so very lucky. Almost as lucky as Bruno,” he says, and everyone laughs, but Felipe can’t help but feel a certain resonance in his speech. He’s probably thinking too much again, feelings heightened by the emotion of the occasion, but Felipe isn’t one to ignore a sign when it appears to him. But sometimes it’s harder to figure out if something is a sign, or he just wants it to be.

Rob may have reassured him that he’ll be alright by himself if Felipe wants to go and chat with other people during the reception, but to be honest, Felipe is quite content to stick with Rob. There are some friends who, like Bruno, Felipe has told about Rob, never dreaming that they’d ever come face to face with him, and Felipe is a little mortified by their “Ohh”s of recognition as he introduces them. He cringes, knowing that Rob now knows he’s gossipped about him, and even more as he considers that his friends probably can’t help remembering intimate details of Rob that they may or may not want to think about. But he swiftly gets over his embarrassment as he sees the admiring, even envious, looks on some of his friends’ faces, and when he looks at Rob’s face he can tell that he sees them too, and it makes him smile to see Rob quietly enjoying the flattery, getting more confident and more relaxed.

“Fuck, Felipe,” his friend Lucas says to him, with feeling. “So this is your gardener from that time I saw you in Miami? How did you manage to bag a guy like that?”

Felipe is glad he’s said it in Portuguese, as Rob is still right beside him, and as much as Rob seems very comfortable with his friends’ approving glances, he might be a bit less so with being so openly appraised.

“Are you saying he’s out of my league?” Felipe says, raising his eyebrows. In some ways it might be true, but he keeps hoping Rob hasn’t noticed yet.

Lucas laughs. “Maybe a little bit,” he teases. “Now I understand why you didn’t have time to hang out with us that summer. Have you been doing a long-distance thing since then, or what?”

“No, no,” Felipe says. “We just arranged to meet up again while I was here. It’s only a holiday thing, a bit of fun,” he explains, trying to sound casual.

“That's a long way to come for a booty call,” Lucas replies, cackling wickedly. “To want to hook up again after so long, that must’ve been some pretty amazing dick.”

Felipe smacks him, unable to stop himself laughing, but refusing to confirm or deny it, at least with Rob right there.

“If you guys aren’t serious, maybe you can give him my number, I’m spending a lot of time in the UK lately,” Lucas goes on, winking at him. Though Felipe keeps laughing, the thought makes him feel deeply uneasy. He can’t say he’s really keen on the idea of passing Rob on to a friend when he’s done with him. Besides the fact that it’s just a bit uncomfortable thinking about indirectly having sex with Lucas through a shared lover - he’s not sure he really wants to think about passing Rob on to anyone, friend or stranger.

Lucas isn’t the only one curious about the unusual circumstances around Felipe and Rob’s meeting and reunion. A lot of people seem to assume they’re a couple, and it’s easy to see why they would, if only because why would you bring someone who wasn’t your partner with you to a wedding? Felipe doesn’t really mind, though he makes sure to correct them, just in case it makes Rob uncomfortable. But it doesn’t seem to - he seems pretty amused by it, and in fact, people seem genuinely surprised when they find out how briefly they've really known each other. It's a little awkward explaining the truth, but at the same time, Felipe is oddly pleased by everyone's reactions - people accept them, people see something between them, they don’t react with mirth or disbelief at the very idea of Rob being Felipe’s boyfriend.

But then, Felipe supposes he shouldn't really be surprised that people see them as a couple, because it's not like they're making any effort to hide the fact that they’re more than just friends, either. After all, for all intents and purposes, for this week at least, Rob is his boyfriend, and Felipe might as well embrace it, and enjoy the pretence. Especially here, surrounded by other same-sex couples and people who know them, or, at least, know Felipe - he likes feeling free to kiss Rob when he pleases, and he definitely likes when Rob gives his thigh a squeeze under the table.

“I don’t know if it’s all the romance in the air or what,” Rob murmurs, right in his ear. “But I really want to suck your cock right now.”

Felipe squirms in his seat, instantly turned on. “I would like,” he whispers back, trying to stop himself giggling out loud.

“Wait till everyone’s a bit more pissed, then they won’t notice we’ve gone,” Rob says, giving him a conspiratorial wink.

Fortunately, no-one complains when Felipe is very quick to fetch the next round of drinks.

It feels like he waits forever, trying to appear much more patient than he feels, certain that everyone can see right through him to the dirty thoughts he can’t keep out of his mind. He tries to stay relaxed, sitting close up to the table and trying desperately to pretend he hasn’t got a semi right there in the middle of this classy event, surrounded by genteel elderly relatives. How’s he supposed to keep calm with such a promise being dangled so tantalisingly in front of him? By the time Rob, grinning in undisguised amusement at Felipe’s fidgeting, catches his eye and nods with admirable subtlety in the direction of the toilets, Felipe has to also hope everyone has drunk enough that they don’t notice the state he’s in.

But if he’s honest, he doesn’t really care if they do, because he’s the one getting a blowjob in the plush bathroom of another luxurious venue. He’s hyped up from the anticipation and the surroundings and the days and nights he’s spent with Rob, and it's nothing like yesterday, when they took it so slow, with care and tenderness - this is fast and frantic, Rob taking Felipe's cock deep into his mouth right away, and Felipe has to cover his own mouth with his palm to stop himself moaning with the sudden and shocking pleasure of it. Just as the other day Rob knew exactly how to touch Felipe to draw it out, make him wait till he was almost melted with the need to come, now he knows just what to do to get Felipe off as fast as he can. Felipe's done before anyone probably notices they've gone, his knees weak, panting for breath as Rob wipes his mouth, getting to his feet with the smuggest smirk Felipe has ever seen. He loves that Rob looks so proud to be sucking his cock, and doing such a good job of it, loves that his temporary lover, who he's brought here at least in part to show off to his friends, is fulfilling the role more perfectly than Felipe could ever have hoped for.

He finishes Rob off with his hand, unglamorously, over the toilet. It takes even less time than it did for Felipe, and they grin and giggle at each other as they try their best to tidy up, tucking each other back in and straightening their hair and ties and belts.

“Definitely the poshest toilet I've ever got a handjob in,” Rob murmurs, and Felipe laughs, the post-orgasmic euphoria making him feel drunker than the champagne he’s been drinking. If anyone notices him stagger, legs wobbly, as they head back into the reception, at least they’ll put it down to the latter.

If he’s honest, he’s almost disappointed that no one actually does seem to realise how long they've been gone. Maybe his friends really are drunk enough now that they don't notice Rob's flushed cheeks or messy hair, or Felipe's unmistakeable satisfied grin.

“Thank you again for inviting me,” Felipe says to Bruno when they leave. “It’s so nice to see you so happy.”

Bruno beams, looking over at Karun, goofy and in love. “Thanks, man. I am. And you seem pretty happy yourself,” he says, nudging Felipe teasingly.

Felipe looks down at his shoes, hiding his smile and his blushes. He really is happy, but it feels a little bit bittersweet on a day like today. “Well, yeah, I guess I have to thank you for giving me the excuse to come to London,” he says, trying to laugh it off as casually as he can. “I’ve had a lot of fun,” he emphasises, nudging Bruno back with a grin.

“Yeah, so Karun’s cousin heard,” Bruno says, raising his eyebrows. “You’re lucky it wasn’t his grandad!”

Felipe can’t help laughing wickedly, feeling somehow like his mission has been accomplished after all.

Bruno laughs too. “Good for you though, man,” he says, grinning, before his expression softens. “Make the most of it while you’re here. He’s a nice guy. You guys seem good together.”

Felipe’s heart does a sudden skip at the unxpected sincerity of his words. It’s one thing for Felipe to be having a nice little fantasy, playing at having an international love affair to impress his friends and enjoy himself, but it’s another when someone else, someone he knows and trusts, makes a comment like that. Bruno knows him well, he’s seen him with different guys over the years - maybe Bruno is just feeling understandably loved up right now, and is seeing everyone around him through heart-shaped glasses, but Felipe doesn’t remember him ever saying anything like that before.

Even after they’re in bed and Rob has fallen asleep, Felipe can’t get it out of his mind. Or rather, now it’s been brought to the forefront of his mind, he can’t avoid thinking about it any more. Everything today - Karun’s speech, Lucas’s interest in Rob, Bruno’s words as they left - it’s added up, added to the pile in the back of his brain that he’s tried not to examine too closely. He can’t deny the little thoughts and feelings that have been stirring and prodding at him during the time he and Rob have been together. It’s just been so nice to be together, no awkwardness, no difficulty, just fun, just like it was the first time around. Felipe had all those worries before he came, but it was easy right from the start, or they wouldn’t’ve kept extending their time together. They certainly haven’t got tired or bored of each other. In fact, the more time they spend together, the more Felipe can feel his like for Rob grow, and now, with it forced into focus in front of him, it might turn out to be more of a problem than Felipe anticipated. Because it feels too nice - not just the sex, but the happy, stupid, excited feeling like at the start of a new relationship. That’s what it feels like, and Felipe likes it much too much. He likes Rob too much, for someone who’s going to be travelling back to the other side of the world in a couple of weeks. He feels pretty pathetic, feeling so strongly for this guy who, he has to keep reminding himself, he barely knows, just because the sex is so incredible. Maybe he’s just overwhelmed, brainwashed by the physical side of it, his mind and heart tricked by his body into thinking it’s more than it is. But Felipe really doesn’t think that’s it. He may not have spent much time with Rob, but the time they’ve had together has been so intense it feels like so much longer. He can’t really bring himself to give a fuck what it might look like to an outsider - Felipe’s old enough and experienced enough to trust his own feelings, and he knows he can’t just let this go without saying anything. And if he finds out Rob doesn’t feel the same, well, no harm done, because he’ll be off in a few days anyway and they’ll still have had a good time.

Perhaps, he thinks, in fact, it would be would be more difficult if it turns out Rob feels the same way. Because what the hell are they going to do then?

Felipe doesn’t wake up that early the next morning, but once he’s awake he knows he’s not going back to sleep, his mind immediately cycling through the same thoughts he was having last night. Rob wants to sleep a bit more though, so Felipe gets up, finally getting to have breakfast at the hotel, and he thinks.

He knows he wants to be straight with Rob, tell him how he feels, start a conversation about it. But how, and, even more difficult, when? Felipe knows he isn’t going to stop being preoccupied with this until they can talk about it. But he doesn’t want to take Rob by surprise, bring it up out of the blue and fluster him or scare him by suddenly coming on heavy. He wants Rob to know he can be honest with him, whatever he feels. But then, if Rob’s response isn’t what Felipe hopes, he doesn’t want to curtail the time they have left together, or taint their memories by embarrassing himself and making things weird. Maybe a lot of people would think it best to just leave it as it is, a nice, sweet, delicious little bubble, fun, but soon just a memory.

Maybe that would be the easy way. But Felipe can’t just leave without even finding out one way or the other. He can’t imagine going back to Brazil and always wondering. But, and this is the sticking point, he still doesn’t know what they can do about it if Rob does respond positively. He guesses if that’s the case, they’ll just have to work things out together.

When he goes back upstairs to the room, he can hear that Rob is in the shower. He waits for him to finish, checking Facebook on his phone and smiling at the pictures he’s tagged in from yesterday. Bruno was right, they do seem good together - he can see it, feel it, even in the photos, the way they smile, the way they look at each other, the way they are together. Maybe he’s biased, maybe he’s being stupid, his vision blurred with lust - but there’s something tangible there, he feels like he could tell even if he were looking at pictures of two strangers. Maybe it’s a flimsy thing to base any decisions on, but there’s something there that’s real, and getting realer, solidifying and coming together in Felipe’s heart.

The shower stops, and soon Rob comes out of the bathroom, naked and damp and making Felipe shiver, automatically interested in making the most of Rob before he puts his clothes on. He suddenly has a wicked idea, one that’s been hovering in his mind ever since Friday, when they went to hire the suit for Rob.

He smiles slyly, getting up and going over to the chair where they dumped their clothes yesterday night. He picks up Rob's shirt and offers it to him, hoping he gets the message.

“Put it on? All of it,” Felipe says with a naughty grin, his heart beginning to beat faster.

Rob chuckles. “You want me to put clothes on? That's a first,” he murmurs, but he takes his shirt from Felipe and starts to dress.

“I think you won't need underwear,” Felipe says, smirking as he watches Rob fasten his shirt, then put on his trousers, and jacket, and even tie when Felipe hands them to him.

Rob spreads his arms to the sides, showing himself off. Felipe feels satisfied to see the outline of his dick, half-hard in the sleek fabric of his trousers, interested already just from knowing what Felipe wants to do, and Felipe has to touch, cupping it and fondling it gently and feeling it stiffen quickly in his hand.

Rob hisses softly, pushing against Felipe's palm, and Felipe leans up to kiss him firmly. He’s not had - or even wanted - sex this often since he was in Miami with Rob, but his hunger for him is endless, every time he has a chance, he has to take it.

“You like the suit, then?” Rob asks, smiling against Felipe’s lips.

“I like a lot,” purrs Felipe. “You look very sexy.”

“You prefer it when I look like a rich guy, rather than an old scruff then?” Rob asks, smirking, his lips still so close Felipe can feel the warmth of his breath.

“For sure I like both,” giggles Felipe. “I like when you are dirty from the garden. And I like when you are dressed like this, is very nice.”

“You like the contrast, I see. I know it’s a bit surprising that I scrub up alright,” Rob chuckles.

Felipe supposes he is a bit surprised, yes, but it’s a very pleasant surprise. He grins. “You would like me to wear my suit too?” he asks, enjoying the thought of recreating the image of them dressed up together last night, but in a place where they can see and appreciate it properly.

It’s a slight disappointment when Rob shakes his head, but it doesn’t last long. “I quite like it with what you’re wearing now,” Rob murmurs, smirking at Felipe’s plain jeans and t-shirt. “You being the normal, blue-collar guy, and me being the smart, posh one. An English gentleman. Makes a change,” he says, and Felipe shivers with delight, immediately and completely won over.

He catches sight of them in the mirror together, and yeah, it’s too easy to think of Rob being in charge now, he looks sophisticated and self-assured, and Felipe’s ready to do anything Rob tells him to. He liked being Rob’s boss in Miami, but he’s fine with taking the subservient role as well - he’s fine with anything, loves any game or scenario they come up with, because everything he does with Rob is just so exciting he’ll fall over himself to try it all.

Rob takes him by his upper arms and turns him so he’s facing the mirror, pressing himself against his back. Felipe can feel his hard cock against his arse, and he wants it inside him as much as ever. He loves feeling that Rob is turned on by him and wants him and wants to please him as he slides his hands around and undoes Felipe’s jeans. Felipe watches, mesmerised, as Rob pushes his jeans and underwear down, just far enough to give Rob access to his arse, and expose his cock. He spreads his legs as well as he can, leaning forward against the dressing table and arching his back, shameless and keen. He catches his own eye in the mirror when Rob breaks away for a moment to fetch a condom, and he lets out a breathless laugh at his flushed cheeks, and lips red from kissing. He can see the desire, clear on his face, and he knows Rob must see it too, Rob must know just how much Felipe wants him. Every time they’re together like this he feels more and more certain he’s never wanted anyone like this, and maybe that means something, maybe it doesn’t, but he really thinks that no-one else must have ever looked at Rob the way Felipe does. It feels so all-consuming that he can’t imagine ever feeling a deeper physical want, and it’s messing him up in his body and his brain.

Rob pushes easily into him, and Felipe’s eyes fall closed, savouring the feeling of having Rob inside him again. Rob rocks his hips slowly at first, and Felipe sighs with the soft pleasure of it, the sweet, sensitive feeling of being gently wound up, gently tended until the pressure, the tension, gets too much to bear any longer.

“Look at us,” Rob murmurs, as if Felipe would be looking at anything else. “I’d never done things like this with anyone before you. Fucking in the garden, or in your car in a public place, or while wearing an expensive rented suit,” he says, with a breathless laugh. “You make me want to do things I’d never dared to before.”

“You are the one who sucked my dick at a wedding,” Felipe giggles. Even talking and thinking about it, and all those things, is making him hotter.

“See, this is the effect you have on me,” Rob says, his voice throaty and low, and it makes Felipe moan. He loves the thought, loves the implication, that he has this influence, this power, over Rob’s sexuality, that there’s this special connection and that makes this thing between them unique. It’s sexy and it’s exciting and it just makes the feeling, the growing emotion in Felipe’s heart and mind, harder and harder to ignore.

Rob wraps his arms tight around his waist, keeps him close, keeps whispering in his ear. “A lot of your friends yesterday seemed to know who I was already,” he says. “What have you been telling them about me?”

Felipe giggles breathlessly, seeing what it is that Rob wants. “I tell them how amazing you are,” he murmurs, meeting Rob’s eyes in the mirror. “I tell them how fantastic your cock feels inside, like you are now.”

He knows it was a bit naughty of him to share such salacious gossip with his friends, but right now he wants to tell Rob exactly what he said, in words that will flatter and excite him. He can tell that Rob takes it the way it was intended, because he thrusts deeper, harder into Felipe, and they both moan out loud.

“So all those people yesterday, they were talking to me thinking about my dick, whether they wanted to or not,” Rob goes on, much more breathy than before.

Felipe laughs, even though they’re like this. “You are so good, I had to tell my friends,” he pants. “I want to show off!” He’s saying it to turn Rob on, but it’s the truth - he wants Rob to know he was such a great lover he couldn’t help but brag about him, tell his friends all about the fortnight of incredible sex they had. “I think you like,” he says, grinning at Rob through the mirror.

Rob smirks back. “I guess I don’t mind you saying how great my cock is,” he murmurs. “To me or anyone else.”

Afterwards, when they’re reclining on the bed, naked again, recovering and enjoying the slow comedown, Felipe says, “I think maybe I say too much about you to my friends anyway. Lucas asked me for your phone number.”

Rob’s eyebrows raise, and his cheeks redden. “Did you give him it?”

“No!” giggles Felipe, and he’s undeniably relieved when Rob looks relieved as well. “You don’t want to make new friends?” he teases.

Rob snorts. “I suppose, but I’m not sure the things you’ve told him are a decent basis for friendship.”

Felipe laughs gently. “Well, for sure I did not tell everybody,” he says reassuringly. “But I hope you had a good time anyway, and maybe you add some people on Facebook, know some new people who live closer to you.”

Rob kisses his forehead affectionately. “It’s very nice of you to care that much about my social life,” he says, and although his words are a bit playful, Felipe senses he does genuinely mean them.

“Well, when I go home, I don’t want you to be lonely,” he says, with the same feeling.

Rob is quiet, and Felipe’s heart is suddenly beating harder, wondering if this is the moment, this is the time when he should bite the bullet and say something, talk about what could happen after he leaves, if anything. He knows Rob never forgot about him over the past two years, knows he was still interested in having fun with him - at the very least Felipe expects that can continue, unless he blows it by getting heavier than he should, trying to stake a claim on Rob, tie him to more than he really wants.

But Felipe is in no doubt that it’s a gamble he’s willing to take. He just has to find the words, the right words, to explain to Rob how he feels.

“Rob,” he says impulsively, before he can let the moment escape. “When I go home, I know I will miss you a lot. More than I did before, I think.” He takes a breath, looking at Rob, who's watching him intently. “When everybody at the wedding was looking at you, I felt very proud that you were with me, but soon you will not be with me anymore. And when Lucas ask me for your number, I did not like that, I did not like to think about you with him. Or anybody else. I think I like you too much, Rob.” He stops and he waits, trying not to crowd Rob by even looking at him for too long, but he can't not look at all. Rob catches his eye, and takes his hand, and Felipe's breath catches in his throat.

“I don't know if it's too much,” Rob says, and he sounds as if his mouth is as dry as Felipe's. “‘Cos I think maybe I like you just as much.”

Felipe’s heart is hammering, he feels as elated as a teenager asking his crush out on a first date, and being accepted. He can't stop himself from laughing with sheer delight.

“What’s so funny?” asks Rob, chuckling at him, but a little warily.

“I am happy!” Felipe exclaims, putting his arms round Rob and cuddling close. Despite all the difficulties, that he’s very much aware of, he’s still thrilled to know that his feelings are reciprocated. Maybe it’s immature of him, but it still feels completely wonderful to be liked by the person he likes.

“Well, I am too, but I’d be happier if, y’know, we lived in the same country, or continent, or even hemisphere,” Rob sighs. He’s quiet for a moment, before he wonders softly, “What are we going to do?”

Felipe doesn't know what to say. He knows what he wants to say - that he wants to make a go of it, somehow, that he doesn’t want to just let Rob drift away. But he also knows he can’t say that, can’t really ask for any commitment without seeming desperate or, worse, entitled. So he just says, “I don’t know.” He feels helpless. It was bad enough having the best and hottest sexual chemistry of his life with a guy who lives thousands of miles away, but to develop feelings for him that are more than sexual as well… “Is not fair.”

Rob gives him a half-smile, and kisses his temple. “I know,” he murmurs. “I mean, maybe the sensible thing to do would be to draw a line under everything. So we can both move on.”

“I don’t want,” says Felipe, feeling childish, but knowing he has to be honest, because he wants Rob to be honest too.

“Me neither,” Rob says, without hesitation, and Felipe feels another burst of hope, another step closer to something tangible, something that satisfies the stupid, impetuous wish he can’t ignore. “And I guess we probably thought that last time, and look where we are.”

“Maybe in two years we will be back in Miami, or here, or São Paulo, or anywhere, together,” Felipe says, with a little smile.

“Maybe,” Rob murmurs, and the look on his face tells Felipe he’d like that just as much as Felipe would. “But you might’ve found a boyfriend by then. And I don’t want to take that chance.”

Felipe’s thoughts are racing. It might not be him who finds the boyfriend in the indefinite interim before they might see each other again - it might be Rob, especially if the looks Felipe’s friends were giving him at the wedding are anything to go by, and Felipe isn’t at all happy with that possibility either.

“Me too,” he says, with feeling. “If one of us meet somebody, that will make it even more difficult.”

“Exactly,” sighs Rob. “I don’t want to leave things like, ‘Oh, we’ll see what happens in a year or two’. That might be too late. But I don’t think I can just forget about it all and let you go back to Brazil, just because it seems like the sensible thing to do,” he says, with obvious scorn for the sensibility of the idea. He pauses a moment, looking wistful. “If we knew each other a bit better it’d be one thing, we could maybe have a go at the long-distance thing. But I can’t ask you for that, I can’t ask you to be faithful to some old guy thousands of miles away if you meet someone nice in your own city.”

“I lived there all my life and it has not happened yet,” Felipe points out.

“Me neither,” Rob admits. “Even when I was seeing that lad a while ago, as soon as I heard that you were coming to England and wanted to meet up, I was much more excited to see you again than I ever was to see him.” He pauses, takes a breath. “I wanted to see you again,” he says, quiet and simple, and it makes Felipe deeply, desperately happy. “I think I always wanted to see you again.”

“Me too,” Felipe murmurs, sincerely. It feels good to be able to acknowledge it, to admit it to Rob, but it also makes it even more difficult to deal with the possibility of just letting all of this go. He bites his lip, struggling even harder with the impulse to offer exactly what Rob feels he can’t ask for. He knows it’s an idealistic, silly, romantic idea, but it’s obviously an idea they’re both having, but trying to dissuade themselves from.

But if they’re both thinking the same thing, that’s all the more reason to go for it, isn’t it? One of them is going to have to suggest it as a real possibility, and Felipe is feeling bold and daring enough now for it to be him.

“We can try,” he says slowly, his stomach feeling crowded with butterflies. “I think it can be OK, even if we don't see each other. We can talk online, and send messages, like we already do,” he goes on, trying a cheeky smile as he invokes their cyber history.

To his great relief, Rob smiles too, like he’s imagining it and liking it and finding it more plausible than he expected. “Yeah, I guess these days it doesn't matter where in the world we are, we can still talk. Not like there's anyone nice in Middlesbrough either,” he chuckles. “Whoever I'm with, I have to travel, and talk on the phone or online a lot anyway. So what's a few extra miles, eh?”

Felipe laughs, daring to begin to hope that something might work out, somehow, after all. “We can use Skype more, to know more about each other, and, you know,” he says, nudging Rob with a naughty smile.

Rob raises his eyebrows. “Well, we know we've got that part worked out already,” he says, smirking.

Felipe giggles. “For sure is maybe not so different to what we are doing for these two years already,” he says.

“Have we been in a relationship for two years and we just haven't realised it?” Rob wonders dryly.

Felipe laughs happily, enjoying the thought. “But if we talk more, will be even better,” he asserts. “And maybe in a few months, I can come to England again, maybe see where you live next time,” he suggests. He's trying not to get carried away, but it all seems so perfectly doable. He's not short of money, and Rob knows that very well - instead of going to Miami or wherever on holiday, why shouldn't he come to the UK? He's enjoyed his time here, he has friends to visit - right now it makes perfect sense to him.

“And I've got a job I can do anywhere in the world,” Rob muses, trying to sound calm and casual, but Felipe doesn't care, he's not keeping a lid on his own feelings and he isn't bothered if Rob doesn't either. “I worked in Miami, I'm sure I could find some work in Brazil as well if I ever wanted.”

“I know already a place you can work,” Felipe suggests, with a twinkle in his eye.

“Thanks,” Rob laughs. “But y’know, if you do meet anyone else, or you don't feel like it's working out, for whatever reason, you can tell me, y’know? It's OK. I don't want to hold you back,” he says earnestly.

Felipe laughs gently. “I will tell you,” he agrees. “But I am serious, you know? I know maybe is a little bit crazy, is not sensible, but I think I can like you a lot, Rob. I think you can be exactly what I want. And I don’t want to give up. I want to try.”

“Me too,” murmurs Rob, and he kisses Felipe’s lips with such tenderness that Felipe is surer than ever that this is something he shouldn’t let go of, not so easily. “I don’t want to make any promises, and I don’t want any from you either, and maybe everyone’s going to think we’re mad. But if we’re both feeling the same, that’s got to count for something, hasn’t it?”

Felipe can only offer kisses in agreement. His heart is racing with an excitement, an anticipation, a happiness he hasn't felt in a long time. He knows it might be tough, and they might have to work hard for this, and he knows they don't have any real idea what the future might hold, or the path they might end up on, but what he does know is that it feels like he has more to lose without Rob in his life than by trying out this thing that maybe one day could turn into love.