soon, but it had been two years since anyone had sucked him off and the sensation was just too intense. He pushed instinctively into it, rocking his hips and trying to get deeper. “Gonna come,” he muttered.
A couple more thrusts and he was there, crying out sharply as the overwhelming rush of orgasm tore through him. His legs nearly gave out, but Jackson’s hands were there on his hips to hold him steady until the wave of climax had passed.
“Christ on a bike,” Nick said weakly. He uncurled his hands from the death grip he had on the branches and let himself slide down until he was sitting in Jackson’s lap. He rested his head on Jackson’s shoulder and felt strong arms come up around him. “Fucking hell.”
“You okay?” Jackson asked.
“Yeah.” Nick had no idea whether he was okay, honestly. He’d just blown his best mate in a tree. It was going to take him a little while to integrate that experience and make sense of it. Shit. What would it mean for their friendship? That thought sent a jolt of anxiety through his stomach. “You?”
“I think so. I’m just trying to work out how the hell that happened. Am I awake? Because if not, then I’m having a very weird dream.”
Nick gave a weak chuckle. “Well if it’s a dream, I’m having it too.”
Jackson laughed and the warm familiar sound was reassuring. Things might be a bit weird between them after this, but they’d work it out somehow.
They had to.
Nine
Jackson tightened his arms around Nick, trying to ignore his growing sense of unease at what they’d just done. All those years of friendship and then… that. What kind of insanity had gripped them both?
Time was ticking away, and they needed to get back for dinner soon. Jackson was unwilling to break the spell that still surrounded them. Wrapped in each other’s arms like this, it was as though they were lovers in a storybook, bound together by something unbreakable with a happy-ever-after guaranteed. But that wasn’t their reality.
He wished he knew what was going on in Nick’s head. Was Jackson the only one who’d just been shaken to his foundations? Was he the only one who felt as if things could never be the same again—who didn’t want things to ever be the same again?
“So… um. That was….” Words were too difficult.
“Fun?” Nick supplied.
Fun was one way of describing it. Mind-blowing would have been more accurate, and not just because it had felt so good. Jackson’s brain was total mush in the aftermath, and his thoughts were anxious and scattered. “Oh yeah, for sure. But kinda crazy, huh?” Surely Nick had to be a little freaked out too?
“Mmm.” Nick’s sound of agreement was muffled by Jackson’s shoulder.
Jackson wanted more of a response than that, but he was too afraid to ask anything too direct in case he didn’t like the answer. “I’m pretty sure we just breached some best friends’ contract or something.”
Nick laughed. Raising his head to meet Jackson’s gaze, his expression was bright and seemingly unconcerned. “Probably. But does it matter? We’re still good, right?”
“Of course.”
Face softening, Nick cupped Jackson’s cheek and surprised him with a brief kiss on the lips. “We wouldn’t be the first friends to fool around together. We’re consenting adults, we’re both single. It’s not like it’s hurting anyone.”
Not yet. Jackson’s heart warned him, jumping in his chest. “Of course not,” he said.
“We’ve both been celibate for too long, and you’ve got to admit that was pretty great. Maybe we should just let ourselves enjoy it. It is Christmas after all.” Nick smiled.
Jackson stared at him. Was he suggesting this could be more than a one off? “Do you mean… you might want to do that again?”
“Well, not that exactly. I don’t want to push my luck and fall out of a tree in some embarrassing sexual misadventure.” Nick’s amused expression faded into hopeful uncertainty. “But something else maybe? We’re sharing a bed for the next few nights… so we could see what happens with all that close proximity.” He shrugged. “I’m up for it if you are. Think about it.” With that, he got off Jackson’s lap and started rearranging his clothes. “Come on. Time to head back.”
Jackson’s mind was reeling as they walked through the darkening wood.
What exactly did Nick have in mind? The invitation to do more had been pretty clear, but did he only mean while they were sharing a bed here? And if Jackson let himself give in