Confined within Reno's streets, Toki couldn't tell how deeply they situated in the southwestern deserts. Out the restaurant window where he and Skwisgaar sat for breakfast, it became evident as every person walking past revealed more skin. The natives differentiated from the tourists depending on how hard they fanned themselves.

"What time dids they say the car would be done?" Toki asked.

Skwisgaar stirred cream into his coffee, opposite. The longer they stayed on the road, the more Toki realized how much work Skwisgaar normally put into his appearance. His hair dried quickly due to the heat, leaving it frizzy and lanky. Toki found him that morning with an intense frown of concentration as he worked at a stubborn pimple in the valley beneath his cheekbone; even now, a couple hours later, it remained inflamed. Their abysmal diet did him no favours, although his tendency to pick when they ate spared his waistline. Toki, on the other hand, was used to a higher calorie intake to go along with his gym regimen. With the latter impossible as they travelled, he'd noticed to his horror that his abs began to disappear behind a manifested wall of fat. Starting that morning, he matched Skwisgaar on meal sizes. His deprived stomach already hated him.

"Abouts another hour, before dey evens going to look at it." Skwisgaar's frustration with his hair led to a messy bun at the back of his head. His sunglasses held back most of the stray hairs, but he kept wiping absently at a couple that brushed his forehead. "Hopefullys will be done by de time we finish de clothes."

Those sat in bags beneath the table. With little else to do except walk around in the heat, Toki had suggested they use laundry as an excuse to stay out of it. Skwisgaar already had a sunburn spreading down his right arm. It peeled badly enough to necessitate aloe vera.

"You readies to go?"

Less than a week passed since their last stint in a laundromat, so all their dirty clothes fit into two plastic bags. Toki carried them both so that his fingers could entwine with the other man's. His heart hummed, to contrast the ache it felt in Missoula. In keeping mindful of their fellow launders, Toki restrained himself against otherwise allowed affection. Skwisgaar used him happily as a resting place for his feet as he read, though batted Toki with his book when boredom tugged on his toe hairs. Toki placed a hand on the small of his back while they switched clothes over to the dryer, then invited Skwisgaar to lean against him as they sat together again. Regretting not bringing something along to preoccupy himself, Toki read over Skwisgaar's shoulder.

"You're usually fasters than this," he remarked.

"Can'ts read on de road, or else I get sick." Skwisgaar turned them over to page fifty. "Woulds has gottens further if I coulds. Dis book am actuallys better dan a lot others I has read."

"Oh?"

"De author never say, but de king—dis Vantisr guy—am pansketchuals. He has boned a couples lady and dude so far, on he and Edgwin's way to de mountain. Amn'ts writtens explicikly, of course. . ."

"That's cool, I guess." Tok rested his cheek on top of the older man's head. He might fall asleep again, thanks to a restless night.

"I cans identify wit' dat," Skwisgaar continued. "Ams a good trend, dat people am finally noticings more dan straight people for fictions. Mores dan gay, too. Dids you ever get confuse, when people say you hads to be one or de other?"

"Wouldn'ts has even known gay was an option, if Far didn't preach against it." While Toki liked both men and women, he didn't feel right going as far as Skwisgaar and claiming pansexuality. The definition of bisexuality always seemed to suit him just fine.

"I woulds has loved to be de one dat sullieds you, back den."

"Psh. Maybe four years isn'ts a big age gap between us now, but backs then it would has been. You pretties much were the one that dids, anyway. Coulds has sworn my balls drop the day I mets you."

Skwisgaar laughed. "Oh well. Virginities am a bits overrated. Who care what happen back den, so long as we got here, ah?"

Toki easily forgot how many people came before him. He saw them like ghosts in the room, present somehow but forming the background. At one time he believed he wouldn't be able to get past it, should he and Skwisgaar ever hook up, but how could he judge when he too had bedded plenty of women? "Part of me want to be sad for all the time we missed. Think abouts what it would has been like when we were younger and hads more energy. Although we woulds probably have argued a lots more. . ."

"You talks like we don'ts have energy now. I t'inks we has provens ot'erwise." Outside of fucking nearly everyday since they first hit the road, they'd woken up their neighbours that morning as the bed collided rhythmically with the wall. It earned them a congratulatory whoop at the end, although the twenty-something douchebag Skwisgaar chatted with outside afterward grew perplexed when Toki emerged from their room. To the guy's credit though, he played it off and wrapped up his cigarette before retreating back to his girlfriend.

"We stills pretty young, ja. Maybes is just because this all new, but I coulds go all day everyday, with you. I used to thinks that people stop fucking when they hit thirty."

"Pff."

"Your thirtieth birthday party's what fixed that, you knows. There isn'ts no word to describe that night but depraved. Chicago actually reminded me of that."

"Was a goods night. Bot' of those. Everys once in a while, you gots to go hard likes dat."

"I's never gones that hard."

"You lets booze catch up to you too quicklies, is why."

"I think is more because I nots a machine."

A smirk tugged Skwisgaar's lips. "I coulds contest dat."

While folding their clothes, Toki tried to imagine what it would be like if the other guys overheard, rather than strangers. How were they going to break it to them? And how would places like the hot tub change, in atmosphere? Toki wouldn't be able to help checking Skwisgaar out, if they both sat in their bathing suits. Maybe he ought to learn a little restraint before the situation pressed.

With their car tuned well enough to withstand another five-hundred mile sprint through sandy desolation, Reno shrunk in the rear-view mirror. They'd hardly made it half an hour on the Lincoln Highway before it struck Toki just how much of an attention whore Skwisgaar aimed to be that day. He attempted everything from humour to crankiness in order to gain Toki's eye, which only made the younger man laugh before explaining.

"But we amn'ts at Mordhaus right now."

"Just chills out. I gots to keep my eye on the road anyway."

"Ha, you waits. I'll gets you."

He gained Toki's curiosity, but Toki had to wait until they turned south onto the Veteran's Memorial before the cryptic warning came back into play. Movement in the corner of his eye marked the end of Skwisgaar's short nap; a moment of weakness turned Toki's head, then heat plummeting into his lower abdomen forced a double glance.

Compared to what he'd already seen of Skwisgaar, him palming an obvious erection through his pants shouldn't hit Toki so hard. Perhaps that on its own wouldn't light such a hot fire, but hooded eyes sure did.

Toki cleared his throat, cheeks growing warm. "Okays, you win. You gots me."

"But I amn'ts done yet." Skwisgaar's zipper gave a short protest before he shimmied the jeans down off his hips. He touched along his cock's underside and grinned when Toki couldn't help but look again. "You know whats?"

"What?"

"I amn'ts going to cum untils you tell me I can."

Toki forced himself to exhale slowly. That only made the sartorial restraint between his legs all the more agonizing. "Don'ts think you're getting off anytime soon, then."

"I gots all day. Literallies."

"You won'ts last. Is another six hours. Whats you gonna do, fondle yourself the whole ways?"

"Whenevers I feel like it."

"This, I gots to see."

Accepting the challenge full-heartedly, Skwisgaar's touch alternated between gentle grazing and purposeful strokes. However, every time he got close, he'd clench his hands against his sternum and take deep breaths as his body backed down from climax. They passed by a lake when a pitiful whine sounded from the passenger seat.

Toki only laughed. "Don'ts look at me like that. You gots yourself into this. If you wants to be a quitter you can goes ahead anytime. But I not sayings anything abouts it."

"I'll. . ." Skwisgaar bit his bottom lip in agony. "I'll waits."

He tucked himself carefully into his jeans with a sigh. Minor fidgeting and readjustments pleased Toki more than they had the right to. While no rule in this little game postulated he needed to withhold, what could he do behind the wheel? His eye wandered continuously to Skwisgaar, as the man slowly bounced back.

Toki eventually pulled over. "C'mere."

The older man went along without batting an eye; in pretty much as long as it took for Toki's seat to slide back, Skwisgaar bent over his lap. Toki's fingertips slipped into the other man's jeans, eventually making their way around to the front. They couldn't delve much further than the short, curly hairs. Skwisgaar still groaned, lolling Toki's head back against the rest.

"I hopes you feel better." Skwisgaar's erection had reemerged. "Here I ams again, horny as hell."

"Why don'ts you just get off?"

"Ams you tellings me I can?"

Toki grinned. "Nope, but is still your choice."

"You amn'ts any fun. Why you say it am ups to me, when I say it ams up to you?"

"Just to bugs you. And I wants to see how much self-control you haves."

It already turned out to be more than Toki presumed. Skwisgaar held it together all the way to Tonopah, where they stopped for dinner. Although quiet in the restaurant, he stuck closer to Toki than usual. In the car, before Toki could push in the clutch, he wound up again with his fingers entwined in thick hair. Sloppy kissing and a vehement assault underscored hands roaming his chest.

"Skwis, there're people watchings us over there. . ."

"So? Lets dem."

"Uh-uh." Toki's eyelashes fluttered as Skwisgaar dropped down to his neck. "You aren'ts getting anything this way. I still says you not allowed."

"Dere gots to be somet'ing to change your mind."

"Why you needs my permission? Just goes ahead!"

"No!"

"It still another three or four hours to Vegas. You thinks you can hold out?"

Skwisgaar moaned. "You goings to makes me wait dat long?"

"Feels free to jacks off anytime." Just to make it worse, Toki groped him between the legs. Skwisgaar's swollen lips fell open and his brow furrowed.

". . .amn'ts fair. . ." was all Toki caught as they resumed their seats. At least behind the wheel, Skwisgaar might be able to distract himself. Without the freedom to paw at Toki, his lips pressed tighter and tighter. When they switched one more time in Indian Springs, Skwisgaar let out a tumultuous sigh as he secured his seat belt.

"Figureds you would has caved, by now," Toki remarked. "Since when does you like this kind of thing?"

"Normallys never, but I thought it woulds make de drive a bits more interesking."

"Workeds for me. This hasn'ts been bad at all." Toki paused. "Goes ahead. You hads a long day. You deserve some funs."

"Maybe I wants to wait, until we gets a motel room."

"No, you does it now. I's probably still goings to fuck you when we gets there, but you have beens very patient."

It didn't take very long, once Skwisgaar fished himself out. If not for desperation surging through Skwisgaar's veins, Toki would assume the noise and squirminess to be all part of his exhibition. However crude the scene, there was something beautiful about Skwisgaar jacking off. The look in his eye when their gazes met didn't hurt. Neither did a blissful, post-orgasm man grinning before kissing Toki's cheek. "T'anks you."

"And thanks for the show."

"Anytime."

"You betters be careful what you wish for. I mights get used to puttings you through the rings."

"Coulds be fun." Skwisgaar sat limp as a noodle. Ahead, Las Vegas' light pollution marred the night sky. "I woulds let you."

"Reallies?"

"Beens a while since I dids anyt'ing like dat. Some peoples don't know how to ties knot, but I don'ts really trust many fors it anyway."

"Ares you saying you woulds let me ties you up?"

"Ja."

"I didn'ts believe that's something I woulds ever hear come out of your mouth."

"Oh, come on. What ams fucking, if it amn'ts fun? What you t'ink, dat I goings to do de straights and narrow, all dese years?"

"Well, no. . ." Toki smirked. "Is great, though."

Toki played around like that with others on occasion, though never anything too over the top. He, probably like Skwisgaar, didn't exactly trust in participating with someone he barely knew. And he definitely wouldn't let a virtual stranger tie him down, no matter how much they negotiated beforehand.

"Dere amn'ts much we cans do on de road," Skwisgaar replied, "but would give me somet'ing to look forward to back at Mordhaus, if we did dat kind of t'ing once in a while."

"Same." Yeah; Toki could certainly fuck again, by the time they got a motel room. Unfortunately, America's modern Sodom and Gomorrah railed against them. Even nowhere close to the Strip, they couldn't find a place to shack up. Pushing further north therein, flopping backward onto their most recent bed satisfied Toki nearly as much as if he sank his dick into the other man.

However, Skwisgaar didn't share the same level of satisfaction. He straddled Toki's waist and smirked from his perch when Toki opened his eyes. "You promised."

Two handfuls of ass changed the younger man's tune in Skwisgaar's favour. "Gets undressed. Beens too long since I saw you completelies naked."