Friends, Sexcapades, And Love Affairs - 25. A Practical Romantic

Chapter Twenty-Five - A Practical Romantic

“Join us upstairs?” Adrian offered Christian, but the blond head shook, and a smile as big as the sun followed.

“I just got out of that boring affair, so I don’t plan on hanging out with two old men,” Christian replied.

Adrian smirked. He knew that Edward’s cousin wanted to give them space to work things out. “What are you going to do?”

Christian shrugged. “Maybe go to a bar, start a fight, cool things like that.”

“Christian,” Edward said gravely.

The young man waved. “No worries. It’s just my first free Sunday in forever. I’m going to spend it wisely.”

Adrian had serious doubts about the truth value of that statement. “Well, if you get into any trouble, just give me a call.”

“All right, cousin in law,” Christian said with a smirk. “You two have fun.” He winked exaggeratedly, earning a grin from Adrian and a roll of the eyes from Edward.

Christian waved them goodbye as he sauntered off like a kid who had just heard that the school was out permanently.

“Will he be fine?” he asked Edward.

“He’s the smartest young man I know,” was the reply. “He knows better than get into trouble.” Somehow, Edward didn’t sound completely convinced, but maybe that was the thing with that family. They didn’t allow their young ones to spread their wings and fly.

Adrian had every intention to change that, at least in regards to one particular representative of the illustrious Hastings tribe. He grabbed Edward’s hand and dragged him toward the building entrance.

“Hey,” Edward said in a stern voice, but this time Adrian wouldn’t have it. “Hey, Adrian, slow down,” he added.

“No way. Do you have the slightest idea what you put me through this week?”

Edward fell silent. At least, he could see the errors of his ways. Or so, Adrian hoped.

A young mother with a child no older than five joined them in the elevator. The kid stared for a while until Adrian began making faces at him. The boy snickered and hid his face into his mother’s flounce dress.

The woman and child got out on their floor, leaving them alone. Adrian pressed the button and waited impassively for the elevator to move. He still held Edward’s hand in his, and he could only hope that the slight tremor he experienced was lost on the other. The adrenaline from earlier had rushed through his system, and now there was room for something else.

Edward followed obediently as they got out on the top floor, and into Adrian’s bachelor pad. The door was barely closed when they reached for each other, like drowning men at a rope thrown in their direction by a benevolent hand. Their lips crashed, and for a while, nothing but the fumbling on their clothes being partly taken off, partially ripped from their bodies, could be heard.

Adrian was the first to stop. That was his show, and he intended to run it like he should. He pushed Edward away, although he was sure the hunger he felt was a match for what he could read in the other’s eyes. “You,” he pointed at his lover, “you stay right there.”

The harshness of his words took Edward slightly by surprise, but the light that flashed in the forest eyes burned and turned into a subdued flame. They got each other. They both knew what that was all about.

Adrian went into the bedroom and came back with the object Edward had so quickly discarded the last time he had been here. He gestured, a simple flick of the wrist, and Edward knelt in front of him, head bent in supplication. It was all right like this for a while.

He tugged at the leash and took Edward to a chair. There were no protests as he pushed his lover to sit, and then tied his hands behind using his own tie.

Edward’s eyes were burning, but not with defiance, but with a new power that could only be named desire. He repeatedly bit his bottom lip, in an unconscious expression of his repressed want, and his cheeks were a bit flushed. Adrian ran one hand through the wavy chestnut hair, messing it, and then leaned in and pressed a hard kiss on the wet, bitten lips.

They had done a poor job of undressing one another. Edward still had both the shirt and suit jacket on, although they were both open in front, most of the buttons had flown, most probably, in all corners of the room. Adrian grabbed the undershirt and ripped it open, too, allowing smooth skin to show. Edward didn’t protest one bit and even helped as much as he could in his position to have his pants and underwear pushed down and dropped around his ankles.

For a while, Adrian moved around Edward, in full circles, as his lover tried to follow him with his eyes.

“You know, this is getting a bit unnerving,” Edward said in a hoarse voice.

“As it should,” was the prompt reply.

“Oh, I see. You want to punish me.”

“You have a mouth on you, after what you did. I would keep it shut if I were you. Or do you want me to gag you?” The last words were of a soft whisper, and Adrian stooped to reach Edward’s ears with his lips. The small shudder that crossed the sexy man tied to a chair in his living room was enough for an answer. “Should I gag you anyway?”

“Do as you please.” While the words were meant to be snappy, the voice used to utter them was anything but.

“Of course. As I please,” Adrian emphasized the pronoun. So far, Edward’s behavior was more than satisfactory. And since he had anticipated that asserting dominance over that stubborn man required the right tools for the job, he was more than ready.

He went to the bedroom again, and this time, when he came back, he observed with increased contentment the way Edward’s eyes grew wide, and his mouth went slack.

“You can’t be serious.” A tiny bit of revolt speckled the beautiful greens. And that was fine, too.

“I told you. As serious as --”

“A heart attack,” Edward said tersely.

“Be a good boy and receive your well-deserved punishment.”

Edward nodded and said nothing, even opening his mouth obediently when Adrian fixed the black silicone bit in his mouth and the bridle over his head. Still, the green eyes spoke of rightful indignation at the treatment, so Adrian smiled and then brought the riding crop over Edward’s exposed chest.

His move was sudden, so a natural jerk was the reaction. It couldn’t have hurt; that was an instrument demanding attention, and it wasn’t about painful punishment.

Adrian straightened up and observed the crop in his hand. “I have no idea where you and horses stand, but I imagine you must have taken riding lessons, seeing how you were born with a silver spoon in your mouth. That’s why I believe this is the right way to make myself well understood, once and for all.”

He moved the head of the crop slowly over Edward’s nipples, all perked up and thirsty for attention. Adrian let his eyes drop lower and smirked when he noticed the weeping cock, stiff and swollen. Edward’s body had always been honest, regardless of what its owner had chosen to let fly out of his mouth. Well, that was taken care of, for now.

Adrian flicked the crop over the taut abdomen, earning a small, wary jolt each time the leather tip connected with the skin. He took delight in teasing the inside of Edward’s thighs until he reached the final bastion. Placing tiny slaps over the tight sack, Adrian focused on the small jerky moves of the overstimulated cock. Its head was bigger now, which made him wince for a moment. But a declaration of love disguised as one of war had to be memorable for both parties.

He moved backward until he was sure that Edward could see him without angling his head painfully. And then, he started to strip, slowly, his eyes never leaving the man in front of him. An elegant eyebrow arched, and Adrian grinned, waiting for the realization of what would follow to finally dawn on Edward.

“This is for your audacity to think that there is something in this world I’m not willing to give you.” Adrian straddled Edward’s lap, aligning the hard weeping cock with his asshole, which he had had the inspiration to lube well in one of his trips to the bedroom.

He could read in Edward’s eyes everything he was thirsting for. Not only astonishment, but dark desire, and desperation, too. The latter was because of the bit Edward was biting on hard now. Maybe he had things to say, and Adrian would hear him, but that would have to come later.

It was a good thing to have determination, he thought wryly as his ass opposed the blunt head pushing at its gates. It might not be what you want, buddy, but it’s what I need to prove myself to his asshole boyfriend of mine.

Oh, it looked like the lube really helped. Still, Adrian struggled a little and didn’t dare to meet Edward’s eyes until he was thoroughly impaled to the sheath. Only then, he allowed himself a smirk. Damn, that thing kind of hurt. He drew one deep breath and willed his ass to stop fighting this; it didn’t have a choice in the matter.

Now, there was a bit of playful challenge in Edward’s eyes. They measured Adrian, and then, the eyelids dropped. The muffled sound coming from behind the silicone bit was enough for encouragement.

“And now, I ride,” Adrian said in one go, as he pushed himself up and then let his body drop hard on Edward’s lap.

Damn, he must have tied his lover’s legs, as well. He was thrashing like a wild horse that didn’t want to accept his fate. Adrian had a hard time, at first, to find a rhythm, especially with that hard thing pulsing inside his ass. Now, he only had admiration for Edward, and not only him, but all the bottoms of the world for putting up with that kind of ordeal.

It wasn’t all bad, though. As the master in this situation, he needed to enforce a rhythm, even if that meant that he had to use his whole strength to do it. Adrian grabbed Edward’s hips between his thighs as he could in that position, and then he started to ride for real. Maybe that was the thrill of riding a wild horse.

The beast under him finally seemed subdued. Adrian was sure Edward still wanted to thrash some more, but there was a real danger of them ending both on the floor if they tipped over the chair.

Fortunately for both of them, the furniture held, and with the rhythm, Adrian found something else. He was pretty sure Edward’s cock had grown in size at least a few times, he felt so full. But that sensation of fullness, plus the shot of pleasure that took him by surprise when it first hit him, was enough to confirm that he was doing the right thing.

He placed both hands behind Edward’s head and grabbed his hair. That was a position of power, and he needed to make sure he was well understood. He slammed down, over and over, enjoying how Edward’s eyes became loose, unbound, in sheer abandonment, and then dark with growing arousal.

Edward Hastings, the accomplished doctor, the one with a family whose pedigree chart must be descending back to a time of kings, for sure, the arrogant lover responsible for making Adrian lose his head, that man was now completely at his mercy.

There was no other way out but complete surrender. Adrian looked down at his cock, in disbelief. As focused as he had been on milking Edward’s cock, he had failed to register completely what that was doing to himself, as well. The tip of his member was oozing, and, to his complete surprise, heat and pleasure burst from the deep core of his body, all over Edward’s chest.

His body still moved, and the wonder in Edward’s eyes, as well as a short buck of the hips, followed by another and another, let him know that his mission was accomplished.

He didn’t remove himself from that position, keeping Edward inside him, wishing for them to meld into one being. But he rested his forehead against Edward’s sweaty head and breathed deeply.

It took him minutes to reach behind his lover’s head and remove the bridle and the bit. Still, Edward was silent, and Adrian watched him, waiting.

“Now you can talk,” he said in a voice he wanted to sound domineering and in control but came out as a hoarse whisper. He must have shouted earlier; funny thing, he couldn’t quite remember everything he had done.

“Untie me.”

“No. I won’t let you run.”

“Do you really think I would run? After this?” Edward expressed his disbelief. He licked his lips a few times.

Adrian could only think of kissing him. That had been a clear downside of the little horsey play he had staged; he hadn’t thought of how he wouldn’t be able to kiss Edward at leisure. “I don’t know. I don’t think I know you that well.”

“And yet, you went out on one knee and proposed to me in front of my father,” Edward said with a small smile.

Adrian shrugged. “What was I to do? Losing you wasn’t an option.”

Edward’s face softened. The desire from earlier was replaced by something else. “Untie me, Adrian.”

“Why?” At this point, it was better to remain suspicious.

“Because I want to hug you and tell you that I love you.”

Adrian grinned. Well, that was a good reason. “You’re not going to bolt the moment you’re free, right?”

Edward rolled his eyes. “I have my cock in your ass. Such a maneuver would require skills I don’t think I possess.”

“Okay, then.” Adrian plastered his body against Edward and reached back to untie his hands.

He was barely done when Edward wrapped both arms around him and dragged him into a maddening kiss. Gone was the guy who had teased him over not being able to kiss properly at the club that fateful night. Instead, there was someone new, someone Adrian might not have known that well until now, but surely wanted to get to know better.

They kissed until almost out of breath. Only then, Edward let him go. “I love you, Adrian.” His hands moved over Adrian’s back, taking in each muscle. “I’ve been in love with you for a while now.”

“So, will you marry me?”

“I already said ‘yes’, didn’t I?”

“A guy has to check.”

“I see. Then hurry and put that ring on my finger.”

So he had to move and let Edward’s cock slide from his ass. Adrian was giddy like a kid when he rummaged through Edward’s pockets for the ring. Triumphantly, he held it high and then took his boyfriend’s hand. “Do I have to say something? Like ‘I solemnly swear’--”

Edward roared, a sound so free unleashed from his chest, and Adrian’s eyes grew wide. Well, the prissy Edward Hastings with a ton of chips on his shoulder had definitely given him a boner. No, a ton of boners. This guy gave him more than that. He put the ring on Edward’s finger. “Look, it fits.”

“Definitely,” Edward teased.

Adrian yelped when one firm hand grabbed one of his butt cheeks. “I did my homework.”

Edward grinned. “I noticed. You’re a pretty hot bottom.” The double entendre wasn’t lost on either of them.

“Don’t let it get to your head. This was only because I thought it had to be done so that I didn’t lose you. I guess I secured that.” He took Edward’s hand and placed a small kiss on the ringed finger.

“And I thought you did it because you’re a true romantic at heart and wanted to win me over with a grand gesture.”

Adrian rubbed his behind and grimaced theatrically. “It was grand all right. But I’m a practical romantic. Your ass is mine, completely. The other way around? Well, we will see.”

“More romantic words have never been spoken,” Edward replied, his lips twisting, not searching, like always, a cutting edge to words, but a smile. He hugged Adrian again and rubbed his head against his chest. “You know, what you did today, it was pretty wild. No one has ever done anything like that for me.”

“Oh, the poor rich boy,” Adrian teased, but he began to caress his lover’s hair. “From this moment onward, you’re taken, so that should be off your list.”

“Do you really mean it? About marriage?” Edward’s voice was muffled and appeared to come from somewhere far away.

“I can’t believe I bought into your act. You know, I’m still a little salty over that. Couldn’t you say that you were in love with me?”

“And witness that smug smirk of yours?”

“What smug smirk?”

“Yours,” came the dry reply.

“Why would I have smirked?”

“Obviously because that could only meant that you won. I wanted to save myself the heartache. And I meant what I told you before. I went for a playboy like you because I wanted to have fun for a change, with no strings attached. I thought I even managed to make it quite clear the first time we met.”

“So, are you trying to tell me that you usually chose your potential husbands based on a totally different criteria? But Brown --”

“Please, don’t bring up that boorish man. He had noticed once my interest in his preferred sexual practices and thought he could turn me into one of his toys.”

“I hope you looked at him with that disdainful and haughty look of yours with which you typically grace the entire world around you.”

“What haughty look?” The vague irritation wasn’t lost on Adrian. Things like that made him smirk.

“Yours,” he replied in kind. “But stop deflecting and tell me how your other potentials were.”

“Let’s say that I might have picked them using the wrong criteria.”

Adrian pulled at Edward’s hair until their eyes met. “Elaborate, Your Majesty.”

“Oh, please, stop with that. I’m marrying a commoner.”

Now, look who wore a smug smirk on his handsome face. Adrian wiped it with a rough kiss. “Elaborate,” he ordered.

“Well, seeing how you don’t mind us sitting here, with cum drying on ourselves, instead of taking a shower, here is the story.”

Adrian shifted and felt Edward’s cum pouring freely from his ass. Now that was a sensation he could get used to. Still, he didn’t move. Before anything else, he wanted to hear about Edward’s life before him, even if it could only be the abridged version at the moment.

Edward took one deep breath. “The day I came out to my parents, I promised them that it wasn’t just a phase, and that I planned on being a responsible person. That, of course, including finding the right man to marry. Although I could tell they weren’t happy, they couldn’t say I was into some alternative lifestyle just for the fun of it. And it wasn’t just a promise. I believed in it, too.”

“And still believe, I hope. I’m not taking that ring back.”

Edward looked at him crossly. “You know, you’re pretty heavy as you sit like this in my lap. Now, be quiet and listen to the answer you so wanted to hear.” Adrian encouraged him to continue with a short nod. “Therefore, I focused my attention on men I could bring home to mom and dad, men I thought they would appreciate and like.”

“Blue-blooded,” Adrian said. “But wait, how come they gave up so quickly on you if they already had money?”

“Rich families can be quite complicated, Adrian,” Edward replied. “Trust fund babies may still feel like there’s something out there they cannot afford.”

Adrian shook his head. “All right. Let’s skip that. Tell me about those men. Wait, was that guy, William, from the party, one of them?”

Edward shook his head. “I never returned William’s advances. It would have been cruel on my part.”

“What about the plaything he was talking about? That Raphael dude?”

“Ralph,” Edward said with a tiny bit of exasperation. “He was one of the reasons why I decided to change tack and aim lower.”

“Geez, thanks,” Adrian said, pretending he was offended.

“I would explain everything in detail if only you managed to listen for two seconds.”

“Sure, sure, Your Majesty, continue.”

“Stop it with the --”

“You’ll be my heart’s king always,” Adrian said simply.

That earned him a surprised look from Edward. But then, the look became affectionate. “I’ll take it, then. Getting back to the men I thought I would be able to marry, now. I selected them from the appropriate circles and brought them home.”

“And did your dad flex on them with his checkbook?”

“Not as overtly as he did today. Depending on the status of the man in question, he adapted his strategies. It is his deep conviction that all people wish for things they do not have, and made it a task to find out what those were. It surprised me that my father would part even with much-beloved properties only to get rid of the men I was dating.”

“He seemed so practiced when he wrote me that check today.”

Edward sighed. “I might be a little at fault here. As I went through a rebellious phase --”

“Oh, did you have one of those? What did you do? Placed your elbows on the table at dinner?”

A reprimand was expected, but instead, Edward just chuckled. “Thanks for the idea. I might do that the next time I want to prove my father that I’m a grownup and I can do as I please.”

Adrian had a few ideas on how to make Edward grow a pair in front of his family’s patriarch, but he made a mental note to deliver them another time.

Edward continued. “I decided to throw my dad off-balance by bringing home – let’s say – less suitable suitors.”

“Like what? The pool boy? The gardener?”

Edward smirked. “The gardener at my family’s estate is eighty years old. As for pool boys, they are none. My family uses a company to outsource such services. I’ve never seen their personnel around. They are that kind of low key.”

“That’s good to know. So no gardeners and pool boys in your past. What kind, then?”

“Strippers,” Edward said. “Oh, apologies. Exotic dancers.”

Adrian snickered. “Oh, damn, and didn’t daddy have a heart attack?”

“He’s not a man easy to shake. It only took him less of a bother to pay them off. And I didn’t dwell on that for long. After all, I didn’t plan on marrying them anyway. It was just a farce to annoy my father.”

“Just how many men have you had sex with?” Adrian asked, a little pang of jealousy nudging him to say stupid things.

“Fewer than what you must have had in a single night,” Edward said wryly.

“Touché,” Adrian admitted. “So how did I come up in the picture?”

“Quite easily. I cruised the clubs, fed up with trying to find someone to share my life with, and asked, on a whim, about the sexiest and easiest to approach men. I thought I would be entitled to a bit of fun before becoming all cynical and convinced that love doesn’t exist in my part of the universe, anyway. When I got to your club, I was about to give up on that plan, too. For some unfathomable reason, none of the playboys I had been introduced to, until that moment, appealed to me.”

“It’s not unfathomable,” Adrian said promptly.

“What makes you say that?” Edward observed him with interest.

“You were searching for me,” Adrian replied, aware of his cocky attitude.

Edward smiled. “That must have been it.”

“You were so annoying I wanted to give it to you hard so that you’d never forget me.”

“I guess that worked. I was slightly annoyed with you, too --”

“Slightly?”

“All right, more than slightly. You were so full of yourself that I immediately wanted to take you down a peg or two. And I found myself wanting to get to know you better. Of course, I had to play my cards right, to provoke you, so that you wouldn’t forget me, either.”

“It worked,” Adrian admitted. “But, later, as we grew close --”

“I got caught up in my own game, unfortunately. I had done a good job at convincing myself that I shouldn’t go down that road again. And with a playboy, on top of it all. I guess I was afraid that it would be so easy for you to make a fool out of me.”

Adrian nodded. He remembered how he had used to be, and Edward wasn’t completely to blame. “Still,” he said, “when I told you that I loved you, you could have dropped the act.”

“You scared me with that,” Edward replied, taking him by surprise.

“Why? You couldn’t believe me?” Adrian felt hurt for real, this time.

Edward shook his head. “No. As I told you before, I didn’t want to witness you, of all people, being tempted by my father and his money. I realized, that very moment, that something like that would hurt me in ways I hadn’t been hurt before. So it was easier to cut you loose.”

“Man, good thing I’m stubborn and you have a badass cousin.”

Edward sighed, and it sounded like relief. “Yes. Good thing.”

Adrian caught Edward’s face in his hands and locked eyes with him. “Listen to me closely. From this moment on, you’re with me. No one else matters.”

“So we’re really having a wedding?”

“Yes, we will.”

“That’s a bit crazy.”

“Well, you’re not getting any younger.”

Edward gasped, making a show of how mock-affronted he felt. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

Adrian laughed. “It means only that I can barely wait to tell my folks back home that we’re going to have a doctor in the family. My mom will go nuts.”

“Ah, so you do marry me for my status.”

“No, I’m marrying you for your gorgeous ass, but I hope you don’t expect me to scandalize my mother.”

“So your parents have no idea of your adventurous past?”

“They do. Dad called me Casanova once.”

Edward laughed softly. “I would like to meet your parents.”

“That can be arranged. But first, I have plans with you.” Adrian kissed Edward. “Don’t think I’ll let you off the hook.”

“Hmm, that sounds nice. What do you have in mind?”

“I’d lock you up in here and have my way with you until I’m no longer mad at you, but seeing how I need to up the ante and provide for my royal soon to be husband, I can’t miss work.”

Edward exhaled in relief. “Good. I can’t miss work, either.”

“But you still have to make it up to me.” Adrian wagged a finger.

A solemn nod was the answer. “Can we take a shower? I think I drooled all over myself and I must look like a mess right now.”

Adrian snickered. There was no way in hell for Edward to look like a mess. He was just saying. But he got off his boyfriend’s lap and offered him a hand. From now on, that would be their home until Adrian figured out something better for them as newlyweds. But he couldn’t think of that right now, as there were other priorities, first a shower, and then, a call to his best friends to tell them the news.

***

“What? For real?” Jared stood up, reconsidered, and sat back down, the phone glued to his ear.

Shane was in the door, with nothing but a towel wrapped around his waist, and way too distracting. How many sleepovers had they had last week? Shane hadn’t actually slept one night outside Jared’s bed, but no one was complaining. This wasn’t even a sleepover; it was a Sunday over or whatever. And after Shane said something about Sunday sex being just the best thing they could have, their staying in bed had turned into a marathon. Jared could still feel the marks of Shane’s fingers on his hips. So much fantastic fucking was bound to get to his head. He had no idea how he would be able to turn to normal after having such an accomplished friend with benefits in his bed.

Right now, there was no time to consider the multiple benefits associated with being friends with Shane, since Adrian had thought of dropping the bombs of all bombs on him. “Adrian, is this a prank call? I’ll strangle you if it is.”

“What is it, babe?” Shane sauntered to the bed and decided to straddle Jared, while his towel fell from his perfect body.

Jared risked another look. It was a bit strange and funny how giddy he felt each time he looked at Shane’s hairy chest. He was naked, too, as he had hurried out of the shower upon hearing his phone ringing incessantly. Only an emergency had the right to sound like that, and, well, while that didn’t qualify as an emergency, it surely was something.

“Adrian,” Jared cleared his voice as he inched the phone away from his mouth, “is getting married.”

“What?” Shane’s eyes grew wide, and a face splitting grin lit them up. “Give me the phone.”

Jared was still too much in shock to even consider resisting. He could hear Adrian exchanging smooches with someone on the other end, so his friend wasn’t paying attention anymore. No, not someone. Adrian had somehow managed to turn his breakup from Edward into an engagement to the man. Whatever he had, if he sold it, Adrian would make a fortune, because not everyone could pull that kind of stunt.

“Hey, man, I guess congratulations are in order,” Shane said, the moment he took the phone. “When’s the happy event? Great, I guess that leaves us plenty of time to prepare. I already know what gift I’ll get for you two, lovebirds. Yeah, I’m thinking of that.”

Something in how Shane looked at him made Jared feel fidgety for no reason. It was like he knew a secret and didn’t care to share.

“Of course. That’s exactly what I’m thinking every day.”

Thinking every day? About what? What kind of gifts to buy for newlyweds? That was weird. Jared tried to adjust his position so that he could be close enough to hear what Shane and Adrian were talking about, but he couldn’t move. Even more, Shane pressed one hand against his chest to keep him down.

Now that was a bit unnerving.

“Here,” Shane said and handed him back the phone. “Adrian wants to talk to you some more.”

“What did Shane say to you?” Jared asked directly. “He’s looking at me like the proverbial cat in front of the can of tuna.”

“Hey, did the surprise of hearing how I’m going to get married wear off already?”

“No, consider me in complete and utter shock. But, of course, I’m glad for you,” Jared pedaled back, realizing that he acted like a self-centered person, and not a friend right now. “How long until the wedding? It appears that Shane was completely unshocked and already asked you that.”

“Not for a few months at least. My mom will never forgive me if we don’t organize a proper wedding. And I thought to give you time to unshock yourself, too, J.”

“Smartass,” Jared retorted. “Of us all, you’re the first to take this step? I feel rightfully cheated and a bit pissed at you.”

Adrian chuckled, and muffled sounds of kissing could be heard. “What can I tell you, J? I couldn’t let this one get away.”

“Good thing you didn’t. I’m so happy for you, I have no words. For Edward, too. And it’s good that we’ll still have plenty of time to prepare before the wedding. I’ll have to get you two a gift that you’ll always remember. Also, I know for a fact that your mom will love to have my help with all the organizing stuff. Ah, I need to think of what to wear, too. How swanky are we talking about? What about Edward’s family? How many guests will you have?”

“J, breathe.” Adrian laughed again. “Are you getting the jitters already? It’s not even your wedding.”

Jared relaxed. Shane was already caressing his chest and playing with his nipples. There was a hard thing touching his lower belly, and he didn’t have to look to learn what it was. Up again? He quirked an eyebrow and was met by warm eyes filled with mischief. So, the Sunday marathon was far from over, apparently. “You’re right,” he replied to Adrian.

“Listen, I gotta call Mike, too. You two boys have fun, okay?”

There was no doubt that they would have fun. Jared realized too late that he had missed his chance to insist on what Adrian and Jared had talked about earlier. Shane kissed him as soon as he put the phone down.

“Hey there.”

Their bodies were already in synch, and Jared could feel a small, now familiar, flutter of nervous wings inside his stomach. “Hey,” he replied, trying to smile and appear unfazed.

“Do you come here often?”

Oh, so they were playing that game.

“Where did you get that pick up line? Last century?”

“Hmm, I like me a sassy one,” Shane purred against his lips and snatched another kiss.

“A what? A sausage?” Jared teased.

“That, too. A sassy sausage is all I want.” To send the message across, Shane pushed himself down until his mouth blew hot air over Jared’s already heated cock.

Despite coming already so many times today, Jared let out a small moan. He grabbed the headboard rail with both hands and got ready for another round. How was it possible for someone to get so good at this? Each time with Shane felt like there was something new.

Like having a naughty tongue trying to make love completely with his glans. After having fun so many times, Jared had expected the novelty factor to wane a little, but that wasn’t happening. On the contrary, it seemed that Shane learned things on the fly. In comparison, Jared was starting to feel like a complete amateur.

Deep and again, his cock felt engulfed in heat, only to be released gradually and with that maddening teasing tongue that almost left him no room to breathe. Jared was only vaguely aware of his shouts and crazy moans as Shane worked his cock like his life depended on doing a good job.

When he came, his eyes rolled in his head. All right, it had to be the last time because there had to be no drop left in him.

“How was it, babe?” Shane sneaked by his side and kissed his sweaty forehead.

Babe. Jared wouldn’t have thought, in a thousand years, that he would take to being called that, as he usually thought it a bit cheesy, and something only people on fake reality shows used to address their equally fake love interests. But in Shane’s mouth … well, everything was better in Shane’s mouth.

“Will you let me?” Shane whispered into his ear, raising goosebumps everywhere. “It’s the last time, I promise.”

“Last time this hour?” Jared teased but turned on one side.

A kiss of appreciation was planted on the side of his neck. “Just tell me if I’m too much to handle.”

Although he felt rightfully exhausted, Jared reached back and slapped Shane’s thigh. “Giddy-up, cowboy.”

Shane laughed, a low, sexy sound coming out of him, and Jared laughed with him. The sound of ripped foil made him shift into a convenient position to allow Shane to prepare him.

“We must be spending a small fortune on those,” he joked. “The rubber industry should be thankful.”

“I’d be happy to do it without,” Shane said.

Oh. Jared fell silent. He didn’t feel ready for that, not that Shane wasn’t honest and awesome, and of course, he didn’t see people on the side like –

“Someday,” Shane added, bringing the train of his thoughts to a halt. “I don’t mind waiting.”

Jared wanted to say something, to find a proper excuse, but Shane turned his head and kissed him as his cock buried inside. After that, it was hard to think.

***

“Mike!” Ryan called for him from the other side of the yard. “It’s Adrian on the phone. He says it’s important.”

Mike stood up, breathing hard. “Come on, boy. Let’s get inside.”

Bran barked, and when Mike crouched, he hurried into his arms and licked his face. After Ryan had ushered them out of the house to prepare something to eat, they had had the entire backyard to themselves. And plenty of toys, which in the end had been forgotten, in favor of Bran chasing Mike all over the yard until he had caught him.

There were small grass clippings in his hair and all over his clothes, and Mike tried to brush them off as he walked toward the house. Bran followed him gladly. They had hit it off from the start, and ever since the weekend had started, they had spent a lot of time together. Ryan had even teased him that he must like him because of the dog, after all.

Mike stopped in front of the back kitchen door and stared at the lamentable state of his clothes. Ryan looked at him with a broad grin on his face. “Aren’t you going to come in?”

“I think I should rather stay here until I get all of this out of my clothes.”

Ryan took his hand and pulled him inside. “Your phone is there.” He placed a short kiss on his temple and turned to his duties.

Mike grabbed the phone from the table and sat gingerly on a high chair. Whatever food Ryan was making, it smelled heavenly. His stomach growled. Bran had noticed he was busy, so now he had a bone to pick with his true master. Ryan was scolding him in a quiet, loving voice.

“Hey, Adrian.”

The phone slipped from his hand and hit the table with a thud. Ryan turned to him, his entire face in a state of alarm. “What’s wrong?”

Mike cursed his clumsiness silently and reached for the phone again. “Sorry, Adrian. Can you repeat that?”

Ryan still looked at him, and Mike smiled. “Nothing’s wrong. Actually, it’s pretty amazing. Adrian asked Edward to marry him, and Edward said ‘yes’.”

The anxiety turned into a good-natured smile. “Send him my congratulations and tell him that I can barely wait to meet everyone properly.”

Mike bit his lips to keep from smiling ear to ear. “Adrian, Ryan can barely wait to meet you. And Edward, too.”

“We could have a big party here. We have a lot of space,” Ryan proposed.

“Yes, Ryan says that his place is big enough for a party,” Mike continued his conversation with Adrian.

“Our place,” Ryan corrected him, a finger in the air.

Mike blushed. He looked down and then back at Ryan.

“I’m waiting,” Ryan mouthed.

“Our place is big enough,” Mike whispered into the phone. “No, no one’s sleeping. I just felt like whispering.”

It was hard to keep himself in check, under Ryan’s intense stare. Their place? Like in the place that belonged to them both? That wasn’t fair. Mike had to contribute with something. He needed to think of that carefully. Right now, he was listening to Adrian’s happy banter on the other end with his better half. He raised his eyes and met Ryan’s briefly. What he read in them was enough to fill three romance books with happy endings.

“So, was this sudden or is it just my impression?” Ryan asked him after he bid goodbye to Adrian.

“Sudden is not even the right word. I don’t think there’s a right word for Adrian springing something like this on us.” He squirmed a little. Ryan’s gaze was making him feel hot. “I mean, we all heard him when he told us he was in love with Edward, but this is still ... well, sudden.”

“Why?” Ryan asked.

“Because Adrian used to be a bit of a playboy. Wait, that’s not right, he used to be a playboy a lot. So we thought he might take a while to get used to the idea of having a single partner forever. Also, people don’t usually jump from saying ‘I love you’ to marriage just like that, right?” He completed that with a small nervous laugh.

Ryan was still looking at him like he was dinner. “I don’t see why there should be that much of a gap between the two.”

Mike’s heart grew small, small, small. “You don’t?” His voice was funny again.

Ryan didn’t have to reply to that. Mike held his breath.

“I think I need to see about our dinner,” Ryan said and returned to his task at hand with a small, secretive smile on his face.

Mike exhaled. What was that all about?

TBC