25. Chapter 25

Chapter 25

Elias

Seventeen Years of Age

H amptons Beach

“What's the ideal thing you look for in a partner?” I asked, watching the moonlight dance over the water. Shane didn’t look at me directly as he considered my question, handing over the bottle of whiskey we’d stolen from my parents. I took a swig, coughing as it burned through my system. Shane patted my back to help me clear my throat and we looked at each other, sharing a laugh. Eventually, the spell passed, and I handed the bottle back to Shane—who took it a little more gracefully than I had.

“That they can make me laugh and can be my best friend as well as my partner,” Shane replied after another moment.

I hummed. That was a good one.

“What about you?”

“The same, I think. Really, anyone who tolerates my ramblings would be a win,” I huffed .

Shane nudged me gently. “Anyone who won’t take you for you isn’t worth it.”

His words warmed my chest, and I couldn’t help but feel grateful for having Shane by my side. If I ever found someone as great as him, I knew I’d want to lock them down.

We sat there gazing over the water, the sound of the waves providing a soothing backdrop. For a moment, everything felt perfect, as if time had stopped just for the two of us.

As we continued to chat, our words punctuated with the sloshing of liquid in the bottle. There was a comfort in being with someone who knew you better than you knew yourself, someone who accepted you without judgment.

"Hey," Shane said, breaking the silence. "Remember that time we snuck out of your holiday house and camped out by the lake?"

A fond smile tugged at my lips. "How could I forget? That was one of the best nights of my life."

“Best nights? We got eaten alive by bugs!”

I shrugged. “Yeah, but we stayed up all night and swam under the stars.”

Shane rolled his eyes so hard I could practically hear it. “The water was freezing, and we were exhausted the next day.”

I shoved his shoulder, which was pointless because he was basically a brick wall. “Okay, grumpy bear. I remember us having smores and cuddling by the fire to try and get warm. Then we spent the whole day in bed. It was perfect.”

“The bites were itchy and my back hurt from sleeping on the ground.”

Annoyed, I turned to look at him and saw he was smiling around the lip of the bottle. Done with him goading me, I pounced and pinned him to the sand .

“Every itch was a perfect reminder of a good night, and I massaged your shoulders! Admit it: you had a good time grumpy bear.”

Shane tugged me down, so I laid down on his chest while he brushed my hair away from my face. “You're a weirdo, but it wasn’t completely terrible. At least my balls didn’t freeze off in the snow that time.”

“Snow adventures are the best!” He gave a noncommittal grunt in response. “Oh, stop it! You liked the last snow adventure.”

Shane chuckled. “When will you realize, Mouse, I enjoy your company—not the adventure.”

I snuggled in tighter, hiding my smile in his chest. “I think it's the adventure I like more than you,” I lied, yelping as he pinched my side.

“You keep telling yourself that, Mouse.”

Present

I’d never tire of having Shane’s large body wrapped around mine. It used to be nothing more than seeking out his comfort but now, I got to have every bit of it. And oh, how I loved it. Turns out, I’m very, very gay for Shane Jarman. Sex was no longer something that made me anxious. Now I was begging my dick to go back to sleep with no more than a glance at the big man.

Like in that moment, his hard morning wood was wedged between my ass cheeks, a warm reminder of how he owned my body the night before. My toes curled just as the thought of it and my ass clenched. It was a little sore, but it was a delicious ache that spread through my core. Shane's large hand flattened over my stomach, pulling me harder against his bulge.

“Your thoughts are loud, sweetheart,” he mumbled, voice husky with sleep and desir e

I thrust my hips up, enough for his hand to graze over my erection.

Shane clenched his hand, chest rumbling with a low growl. Fuck, it was hot. I gasped, his teeth nipped at my earlobe before he licked the sting away. Who knew my ears could be such a turn on? I couldn’t even find it in me to be ashamed at the needy whimper that came from me. I knew I was safe with Shane.

“Need you, please,” I begged. “Just like this.”

“Want me to fuck you from behind, sweet Mouse?”

I threw my head back, nodding against the thick muscle of his bicep. With a quick kiss to my shoulder, Shane pulled away briefly before coming back behind me. My body buzzed, every brush of his large hands against my skin sending more of my blood south. He maneuvered me, lifting my leg, slick fingers slid between my cheeks and I welcomed the burn of him pushing two right inside. “You take me so well,” Shane praised, and I ground back on his finger, toes curling when he effortlessly found my prostate.

I begged and pleaded as two fingers worked me open, and the feeling of his latex-covered cock had me sighing in relief. I bared down, relishing his hard cock filling me. His hand gently stroked my cock and I arched into the touch. I turned my head, seeking out his mouth. Our lips met in a sloppy kiss, tongues wrestling for dominance.

It was perfect— he was perfect.

My hips rocked back against him, and his hand left my cock to encourage the movement. It was a perfect dance of chasing each other's pleasure. Shane’s free hand curled around my neck, gripping my throat possessively, just enough to keep me chasing that high. It didn’t take more than a few more thrusts for the glorious pressure in my ass and the lighting shocks up my spine from each thrust into my prostate had me coming on a cry. Shane bit into the flesh of my neck and shoulder, hard enough to leave a mark—which only drew out my orgasm. I loved the idea of wearing his mark. His cock throbbed and spilled inside me, and with each pulse I wished the condom weren’t there. I voiced my thoughts and the noise he made proved why I named him my bear—he was all growly, yet cuddly.

“I’ve always been safe, but I'll go get tested this week.”

“Let’s go together,” I say all too excitedly, more for the concept of getting him bare. “We can make a date out of it.”

He rumbled a laugh, holding me tight as he pulled out. I whined, soaking in his kisses like they could make up for the loss. They helped, but I was going to need a lot more of him before I’d had enough. He was my new high, and I planned on chasing it forever.

“Only you would make a testing date sound fun.”

“We always have fun together.”

More kisses peppered my neck and shoulders. “That's true.”

Only the rumble of our stomachs pulled us out of the lust-filled haze. After a quick joint shower which was disappointedly nothing but effective, we made our way to the living room. Shane chased me with his large arms around my waist as we stumbled into the kitchen. Both Tyler and Cal sat at the table, hiding knowing grins behind their morning coffee.

“Good morning,” Cal sing-songed.

“It is a good morning.” I hummed, more to Shane than them, loving his responding rumble in my ear.

“Cheeky, Mouse.”

“Ugh, damn this house and cute couples,” Cal groaned. “Jarman, you were supposed to be my buffer! Now I have two sets of porn-worthy noises coming through the walls.”

Shane gave me a quick squeeze, lips meeting my hairline before he moved to the coffeemaker. “Sorry, not sorry, Cal.”

“I wouldn’t be sorry if I were getting dicked down like that. Fuck, I need to get laid.”

Tyler scoffed “Remind me again what's stopping you?”

“I’m on a sex hiatus. My sparkly little heart doesn’t understand casual, then it acts all hurt when they put their dick in another person.”

“Not all men fuck anything that moves, Cal,” Tyler countered. “Your guy is out there.”

“Your guy might not even know he’s gay yet, or like me needs to have an emotional connection you know?” I rambled. “I read this blog to help me understand demisexual, and if your guy is like me, he needs to meet you and get to know you. If you're not out there, you won't build that connection.”

Cal’s eyes softened. “That's not bad advice, Mouse.”

Shane’s warm hand squeezed my hip, his brown eyes gazed down at me with what looked like pride. I preened at that look.

“So enough about me and my failing love life and perpetual blue balls,” Cal said. “I need to know about you two. I’m vicariously living through the cuteness that is best friends to lovers. Is this a secret like all relationships seem to be in this house, or are we out and proud?”

Tyler smacked Cal on the arm, gathering their dishes and moving to the sink

“Uhm…I want it to be out and proud. Shane’s obviously out and I won’t force him back in the closet. I can’t keep my hands to myself, so we’re making plans to tell my family.”

Cal launched from his seat, bouncing on his toes and clapping his hands excitedly. “Yay!Are you moving here and working remotely?”

I bit my lip, willing away the hornets thrashing around in my stomach.“I'm going to quit. I’ve started applying for jobs here—anything to get me back on the ice again.”

I jumped when Tyler wrapped his arms around me from behind. “I’m proud of you—you’re very brave for speaking up for your happiness and going against your father’s expectations.”

He let go and busied himself in the kitchen again. I looked to where Shane was at the stove, flipping pancakes, those eyes checking in on me in a way only he could.

“Well, we’ll be happy to have another person in this mad house. I’ll be sure to make sure my noise-canceling headphones stay charged.” With that Cal kissed my cheek, then Shane’s and Tyler’s before toddling off to his room.

The affection in the house was something I never expected to see. They’d all bonded even more in the few months we’d been apart. They’d become a family, one I was dying to be part of. I tried to push down that spike of jealousy that I was alone with the weight of the world on my shoulders while Shane was with people who I once thought to be friends. Standing there, I felt a part of that little family. And then I knew that if things went bad with my father, I wouldn’t be alone ever again.