Chapter 7

Chapter Seven

Tennessee

I’d never scarfed down pizza as fast as I did that Valentine’s Day with Tate. The special was a delightful heart-shaped pie with a chicken, fig, arugula, and balsamic topping. A far cry from the pepperoni and pasteurized mozzarella of our youth, but I doubted either of us fully appreciated the pizza or the ambiance. The remodeled space was fun with lots of classic pinball and video games, but the only playing I was interested in was more kissing with Tate.

“We’ll have to go back to Pinball Pizza soon. I want to challenge you to that rare street fighting game they’ve got in.” After parking the truck, Tate led the way back to my house. “But right now, I’d rather wrestle you for fun, not points.”

He laughed, and so did I, but my stomach also quivered. Tate undoubtedly had way more experience than me, and while I was desperate for whatever we were about to do, I was also a little nervous.

Okay. A lot nervous.

“You’re probably way better than me at…wrestling,” I murmured.

“What? No way. You never met a video game you couldn’t best me at. You’re the strategy king.” Completely missing my attempt at innuendo, Tate waited for me to unlock the front door, then my apartment door. Thankfully, neither of the upstairs units had lights on. A little auditory privacy might be nice if I could ever get a handle on my nerves and racing pulse.

But then again, if I had a cardiac event, I did have a trained EMT to give me mouth-to-mouth. The thought allowed me to relax while we removed our coats and shoes and made our way into my living room.

“Aww. Look.” Tate stopped in front of my couch. Unlike most canines, Mouse had stayed on the couch rather than greeting us. Clifford had joined her in her blanket nest, spooning behind the small dog. He opened an eye, daring us to disturb their domestic harmony. “They’re cuddling.”

“They are. I like it.”

“Hate to kick them off the couch.” Tate winked at me. Couch. The spot where one might reasonably assume we could make out. Or more.

“I…um…” I glanced over at the hallway. Maybe more kissing and making out was too juvenile anyway. If Tate were truly my boyfriend now, he didn’t need me all Muppet-flail at the thought of sex. Which I did want, especially with Tate, as opposed to some random hookup, which had never once interested me. But the gulf between wanting sex and doing sex was relatively unchartered territory for me. “We can…that is, I have a bed.”

“I’m sure you do.” Tate chuckled and stretched to give me a fast kiss. He was shorter, a fact I kept forgetting because he was far broader and more muscular. And commanding. Few people I’d met could take up space like Tate did, which threatened to overwhelm me every time we touched or kissed. “We’ll get there as far as bed, but remember what I said. There’s no rush.”

And with that, he backed me against the wall near the door, more barely there soft kisses and touches on my neck, shoulders, and upper arms. Like me, he was limited by the cast on his other arm, but unlike me, it barely seemed to hamper him. In fact, his left hand was so talented that I found myself relaxing way more than I’d thought possible.

I was dangerously close to purring like Clifford simply from Tate petting me, and like a cat, I stretched into the contact, inviting more. Tate seemed to instinctively know that light touches and kisses worked far better for me than groping and intense tongue action.

“This is nice.” I sighed happily, sagging against the wall. My knees were deliciously rubbery, brain cells all muddled, and I barely registered Tate steering us over to my Swedish chair. As competently as he did everything else, Tate managed to arrange us both in the chair with no one landing on the floor. I reclined as Tate straddled me, a predatory gleam in his eyes.

“See? No need to rush to bed.” He grinned down at me. “This is cozy, and the pets don’t have to move.”

“True.” I smiled back until the chair gave an ominous squeak. “This isn’t exactly designed for two…”

“Relax.” Tate cupped my face in his hands. I loved how he made me feel precious and fragile yet strong. “I’m an EMT. If it dumps us on the floor, I know first aid.”

“Kiss it and make it better?”

“Exactly.” He proceeded to do exactly that, kissing me until I was certain there wasn’t much better on earth.

And then he moved.

Subtly at first, little shifts as he ducked his head to kiss my neck or stretched to lick my ear. Then more deliberate rocking against me, the sort of rhythm I couldn’t help but mimic. We might well break the chair, but hell if I could be bothered to care. Two broken wrists? A minor price to pay for how amazing this felt.

Heat bloomed all over my skin, every nerve ending on red alert. I was achingly hard, and being able to feel his erection against mine, even through our jeans, was almost unbearably erotic. My breath came in little pants. I could come only too easily from this kissing and friction combo, but I wanted more.

Skin. Skin would be good. But when I reached for his sweater, my cast got in the way, and while my left hand was decent at skimming over his sides and back, it lacked the sort of dexterity necessary for complicated clothing removal shenanigans.

I made a frustrated noise. “I’m not sure how to do this.”

“It’s okay, Tenn.” Tate soothed me with a sweet little forehead kiss as he swept his thumb over my bearded jaw. “We don’t have to do anything you’re not ready for.”

“I’m ready.” I groaned, more frustration seeping into my tone. “I mean with our casts. They keep getting in the way.”

“Agreed. But I’m rather…handy one-handed.” Eyes sparkling, he made a jerk-off motion with his left hand.

“Goof.” I laughed even as my dick throbbed. Yeah. That. I wanted his hands all over me, my cock very much included. “I think I’m ready to show you my bed.”

“Are you?” Tate bounded off me and offered me a hand out of the recliner before following me to my bedroom. He waited patiently while I flipped on the light, which suddenly seemed far too bright for the small space. My double bed was neatly made with a gray comforter set, and the only other furnishing in the room was a secondhand nightstand with a goose-neck lamp. “Nice bed.” Tate remained way too close to the door, regarding me through cautious eyes. “Is that all you want to show me?”

“No.” All my nerves came rushing back. I fiddled with the edge of my fuzzy sweater. Skin. I wanted his skin and mine touching, preferably on the bed, but getting there seemed like a huge leap. “I want to do things too. Not just show.”

I glanced up at the overhead light, praying for guidance to sound less like a teen virgin and more like the professional I was. I could be so well-spoken in court and yet so out of my depth here.

Thankfully, Tate finally took pity on me and entered the bedroom. He flipped off the big light before turning on the bedside lamp and pointing the beam down at the floor, giving the room a dusky glow. Not dark, but not nearly so overwhelming either.

“That better?”

“Yes, thank you.” I met him halfway, pulling him close, putting all my relief and desire for him to lead into my kiss. I gave a contented sigh when he did exactly that, taking over the kiss until my thoughts were pleasantly jumbled again. Drunk on kisses and without the harsh light, undressing seemed far more manageable, especially with Tate leading the way.

My curiosity over his body overcame my own insecurities. I might be skinny and pale, but Tate was worthy of all the admiration—thick, surprisingly fuzzy chest, dark nipples, beefy biceps, and lean abs. A tattoo graced his upper right pec, and I gasped.

“Is that a stick of dynamite?”

Chuckling, he glanced down at his thick and heavy cock. “Pretty sure it’s just average?—”

“I meant your tattoo.” I reached out to touch the design featuring a popular cartoon character getting ready to light the dynamite. “You got a TNT tattoo?”

“I did.” His face darkened, a rare blush, as he glanced away. “I always was the reckless one.”

“I love it.” I dropped a reverent kiss onto the tattoo. Maybe he was right, and this thing between us was simply meant to be. Destiny.

I kissed his mouth next, and he kissed me back with a new intensity. He toppled us both gently onto the mattress, solving my question of how to make it to the bed. Looming over me, he gazed down tenderly.

“God, you’re so hot. How did you get so hot?”

“Hey, I’m wondering that too.” I laughed and touched his tattoo again.

“We can kiss all night.” He dropped a light peck on my nose before claiming my mouth again. “Heck, simply cuddling would be awesome.”

“You’re sweet.” Smiling, I kissed him back. “But I do want…more. Just not sure what. Not a lot of…imagination.”

“I’ve got you, Tenn.” He touched me lightly all over—my beard, then my collarbones, each nipple, my quivering abs, and at last, my aching cock.

“Yes.” I stared down my torso at my cock in his hand. Tate’s hand was big and broad and utterly perfect. My hips jerked upward, not waiting for permission. “Oh yes.”

“Easy.” Tate loosened his grip right before I was about to shoot on the second pass of his hand. “Not yet. I’m trying to go slow here.”

“Go fast instead,” I begged.

“How do you do it when it’s just you?” he asked conversationally as if inquiring about the snow forecast.

I made an impatient noise. “I haven’t managed to jerk since breaking my wrist.”

“Poor baby.” He tortured me with more feathery touches along my cock, not nearly enough to make me come, but plenty to drive me crazy.

“But when I can jerk, it’s always my right hand, usually with lotion.” My face heated. I couldn’t believe I was revealing all this. “I’m pretty boring.”

“You are not,” Tate scolded. “Show me the lotion.”

Figuring this was about to head all sorts of good places, I fished the small bottle out of my nightstand with minimal embarrassment. This was Tate. It was difficult to stay too self-conscious.

“Oh, I like this.” I moaned as he gripped me with a slick fist. This was going to be over in three point four seconds, and I hadn’t even touched him yet. I reached between us, trying to match his rhythm, but the angle was all wrong for using my left hand. I huffed out a breath. “I want something for you too.”

“Trust me that anything I do to you is for me as well, but let me show you something else?”

“Gladly.” I happily let him arrange me on my side, him spooning me from behind. “We’re like our pets.”

“We are.” He matched my silly tone before further adjusting us. And then there was no room for silliness, only sexy, him angling his cock between my thighs while stroking me with a slippery hand.

“Oh, this works.” I closed my eyes and sank further into the sensations of him behind me, warm and urgent. His woodsy scent was stronger like this, and the faint tickle of his body hair revved my nerve endings even higher. He lightly nipped at my shoulder blades as he held me tightly.

“Yeah it does.” Groaning, he moved faster against me, grip tightening on my cock.

“I’m not going to last,” I warned. It had been too long since I’d done this myself, let alone with another person, and much as I wanted to go all night, my body had other ideas.

“It’s okay, baby.” Tate licked my spine. “Go fast, then slow later.”

“Later.” I breathed the word like a promise. “I’m… Tate.”

Being this close to the edge, sharp and unknown, was scary and intense. Pleasure washed over me, and I shuddered hard.

“That’s it. You’re so perfect.” Tate kissed every bit of my back he could reach, reassuring me with his touch as much as his voice. “Tighten your legs for me. That’s it.”

“Are you…?” I trailed off as another wave of good feelings carried me higher. I wanted him to come too, preferably first, but I was already right there. My whole body tensed, ready, but not quite?—

“Come on, Tenn. Come.”

“Yes. Oh. Yes. God.” That was exactly what I’d needed—his command, permission to shut off my always-thinking brain and come in gloriously abundant spurts all over his fist and my stomach. My brain short-circuited, and all I knew was pleasure, overwhelming pleasure. And Tate. He surrounded me, turning all those scary feelings into something warm and wonderful. I came so much that I was still cresting as he sped up, thrusting hard and fast against me, grunting softly.

“Me too. Me too.” He groaned loudly a final time as he came, hot and sticky between my legs.

The mess should have been slightly off-putting, but it wasn’t at all. Made me want to experience that inside of me sometime soon as well. But like he’d said, we had time.

All the time in the world, hopefully. I stretched, content, as Tate fetched a small towel from the nearby bathroom. He cleaned us both up before cuddling back in.

“Now what?” I whispered. Was I supposed to say good night? Ask him if he’d brought a toothbrush?

Before I could let my brain get out of control again, however, the animals both wandered in. First, Clifford jumped onto the foot of the bed, and then Mouse came and delicately arranged herself under the nightstand.

“Well, Mouse clearly thinks she’s in for the night, but in a minute, I’ll find pants and take her to the backyard so she doesn’t wake us at five.” Tate gave my neck a friendly lick. “Okay with us staying over?”

Ah. That. That was what came next, and I liked it. Easy and wonderful, like everything else with Tate.

“Please.” I smiled up at him as he hefted himself upright.

“Good.” He bent to kiss my mouth. Lust momentarily dampened, the kiss was more affectionate, but I reveled in its quiet familiarity. “In the morning, I’ll make you coffee. Send you off to save the world with a smile.”

“You’re already the perfect boyfriend.” I smiled so hard I had to be almost literally glowing.

“Yep.” Tate laughed before he sobered. “In all seriousness, I’m not perfect. I’m messy. I can be bossy.”

“You think?” Sitting up beside him, I dropped a kiss on his bare shoulder. “I should have said that you’re perfect for me . Because I know you’re not some fantasy dude dreamed up by an algorithm. You’re Tate, my best friend. And you’re the perfect boyfriend for me.”

“Awww.” Tate’s features went soft with more emotion than I could remember ever seeing in his dark eyes. “You too, Tenn. You too.”

“Me?” I knew Tate was a catch. But me? “Even CUPID was stumped by me.”

“Yes, you.” He lightly nipped my neck. “And maybe CUPID led you straight to me. I’ve never met anyone with as big a heart as yours, who cares as deeply. You’re hot, sexy, amazing…”

I cut him off with a fit of laughter. “I’m already yours.”

“I know.” He kissed me soundly on the mouth. “But I’m going to keep on making sure you know it. Deal?”

“Deal.” I kissed him back. Funny how he’d only been back in my life for a matter of days, and now he felt like home. Like my whole future too. TNT. Together forever.