little rendezvous wouldn’t end in splinters.
“I believe I was promised kisses.”
“Were you?” He blinked up at me. “By who?”
“A not-so-secret admirer,” I teased.
“You’ve got me all figured out, huh?”
“Yeah.” I kissed him, smiling so much it was difficult for it to be anything sexy.
Benji’s hands slid under my shirt, caressing muscles with those artist’s fingers. I didn’t know why, but knowing what else those hands could do made his touches even sexier. It was ridiculous, but I was turned on by his talent.
I liked that he’d drawn me before we got together. One day, I hoped he’d ask me to pose and draw me for real. I got fucking hard just thinking about posing nude for him, all that intense artist focus locked onto me as he transferred every detail onto paper or canvas.
So hot.
Benji pushed a hand down the sweats I’d thrown on for bed, his slender fingers wrapping around my cock and I groaned.
When I reached for him, he blocked my hand. “This one’s for you.”
I couldn’t muster much protest as Benji kissed me again, deeply, meeting my tongue with his own. He’d gotten so good at turning me to mush. Somehow, he flipped us, and I found myself beneath him, moaning into his mouth as he pumped me.
“You’re beautiful,” he murmured between kisses. “Inside and out, you’re so beautiful. The best guy I know. The only guy I ever want to be with. You’re everything good in this world, Ace Collins.”
I didn’t even know how much I needed to hear those words, to feel so cherished. My eyes stung, and my breath hitched, and when I came, it felt as if I was pouring out more than cum. I was pouring out all the toxic grief and resentment I’d felt that day.
All that was left was love and gratitude for the amazing person I had by my side.
Benji
Ace went boneless on the floor, his eyes fluttering closed, and I wondered for a second if he might just fall asleep. It was too fucking cold outside for that, even if we were both fully clothed.
A blast of wind came through the open side of the treehouse and I shivered.
Ace wrapped an arm around me, pulling me close. “You’re cold.”
“It’s winter.”
He chuckled.
“And I did tell you I wanted a tropical future.”
There was a smile in his voice. “I’ll give you anything you ask for right now.”
“Even a cruise in the Bahamas?”
“Uh-huh. Jeremy can pay.”
We shook with quiet laughter, and I felt so content I could stay here forever—
Another cold breeze hit. Fuck this shit. I needed to go inside.
“Warmth,” I said. “Bed.”
“But my bed doesn’t have you.”
“You could squeeze into my twin?”
“That sounds dirty.”
I jabbed him in the ribs, and he sat up with a yelp, nearly hitting his head on the ceiling. “Okay, inside. Warmth. I get it.”
He adjusted the waistband of his sweats. My hand was sticky with cum, and he probably didn’t feel squeaky clean, but we were presentable enough to sneak to the bathroom and bed, at least.
He crept down the ladder, then caught me when I half-fell on my ass. Giggling, we made our way across the yard and into the hallway leading to the bathroom and our separate bedrooms.
“Thanks for tonight,” he said quietly. “I didn’t know it, but I needed that.”
I went up on tiptoe to kiss his chin. “Me too.”
Going to bed without Ace just hadn’t seemed appealing. We’d spent a lot of nights apart on campus, but we tried to make time to be alone together. Having him so close and yet so untouchable, especially when he’d had such an emotionally draining day, had been difficult.
But mainly, I wanted to do something for him. Something to show him that he was loved and appreciated. Even though he’d rebounded over Thanksgiving dinner, joining in conversation and joking around with Jeremy like old times, I could tell his smiles weren’t quite as bright as they usually would be.
Ace had gone to so much effort to cheer me up and support me when I was going through a tough time adjusting to living on campus. I wanted to do the same for him.
And after the way Ace had confided in me, I felt more settled in our relationship. I wasn’t some kid brother; I was his partner, his support system. Maybe he’d told my brother all that before, maybe he hadn’t. But either way, he was telling me now. He was trusting me. And he was choosing me.
He’d come back here, dealt with