Chapter Sixteen

Amos

I kept Chase true to his word, as difficult as it was. Especially after we ate tacos in the shade at the pier and he offered me one last-ditch effort of an orgasm.

I really wanted to.

God, how I wanted to . . .

But what he'd said was right.

We needed to see who we were when Dominic and Elijah no longer existed and we were just Chase and Amos.

And to be fair, what I'd said was right too.

He needed to stop saying shit he didn't really mean. I got that he joked a lot and he was very new to relationships, but we needed to talk.

If we were gonna do the whole boyfriend thing, that was.

And I was pretty sure that's where we were headed.

Did I want that?

With the most infuriating guy I'd ever met?

The warmest, most wonderful guy, with the most heart- stopping smile and kindest eyes I'd ever seen. Who was funny and loving, and vulnerable. Who shared my passion and my dreams.

Yeah, I was pretty sure I did.

But we needed to talk first.

"So, about tomorrow," I hedged. We were sitting on the steps facing the ocean. The mid-afternoon sun was getting low, the breeze was cool, and people were, thankfully, leaving us alone.

And now was as good a time as any.

"Yeah?" he replied. "Will there be orgasms tomorrow?"

I snorted. "That depends."

"On what?"

"What we decide. When the filming's all done and we have no obligation to hang out together."

"Obligation?"

"You know what I mean. If we decide if we wanna be boyfriends in real life."

"I've already decided."

"But you were the one who said you wanted to wait."

He sighed. "Earlier-me has a lot to answer for."

I snorted, but this was exactly my point. "You need to work on your communication skills before I agree to anything."

He shot me a look. "I was just kidding."

I stood up and wiped the sand from my ass. "We should sleep on it."

"Amos," he said, holding his hand out. I thought he wanted me to help him up, but he didn't. He just wanted to hold my hand. "Real talk. God, this is hard. And awkward. Why is my heart beating so fast?" He put his hand to his chest. "Is this normal or should we call 911?"

I snorted. "I'm glad you wanted to have a serious conversation."

He pulled on my hand. "I'm sorry. I joke when I'm nervous. It's easier for people to think I'm joking in case it all goes to shit. That way they're laughing with me and not at me."

Oh man.

There's that vulnerable side to him again.

"I wouldn't laugh at you."

"I already know my answer. I know what I want. And before you make your decision, I need you to know I'm serious. And I'm sorry about before. I freaked out and panicked because I thought you didn't like me the way I like you. And it felt like I'd put myself out there—though technically it was Jimmy who threw me under the bus—but the way you reacted, I thought you were horrified, and it was the first time in my life that I'd ever admitted to liking anyone?—"

"The way I reacted? I didn't react. I was in shock."

"But it wasn't a good reaction.

"He said you were in love with me!"

He blinked fast a few times and his mouth opened a second before the words came out. "And I don't know if he's wrong."

Oh.

Oh, holy shit.

Chase looked up at me then, his eyes reflecting the sun and the water. "I don't know. I think maybe he was right."

"Chase," I whispered. Not sure what else to say .

"See?" He stood up, on the verge of tears. "Not a good reaction, Amos. Not a good reaction. If you could just pretend you're Elijah just one more fucking time, pretend that you even like me, that'd be great?—"

He was about to turn, but I grabbed his arm. His eyes met mine, fear and hope looked back at me. "I was never Elijah," I said. "I was never pretending. Every kiss, every touch, every time. It was me. All me."

He nodded. "Me too."

I cupped his face and brought his lips to mine. Soft and warm, with every emotion I couldn't name. I pulled him against me, his arms holding me tight, and I buried my face in his neck.

"Chase, I was never acting. Not with you. Not once. I kept telling myself ‘it's what Elijah would do,' but it wasn't. It was what I wanted."

"Same," he mumbled, nodding. "I tried. I tried to separate it." He pulled back and looked me in the eye. "In the beginning, it was just fun and exciting. Then it was too much fun and too exciting, and I thought, wait, is this what having a boyfriend is actually like? Because if it is, then I want that."

I laughed. "I want that too."

His smile was everything. "Just so you know, I will fuck something up at some point. And there's a one hundred percent chance of it being epically bad."

I held up my hand and counted off my fingers. "No cheating and no lying. It's not hard."

"Is that it? Are those the rules? Because those are easy."

I thought for a second. "No sulking, no miscommunication. We're going to talk like adults. "

"Okay." He nodded. "I can do that."

"And no being a wallowing, melodramatic bisexual."

He made a face. "Okay, look. There are limits. The bisexual is a constant, and the wallowing, melodramatic part is almost guaranteed at some point. You'll just need to learn how to deal with it."

I laughed and with my fingers under his chin, I tilted his face and kissed him again.

"So? Boyfriends?" he asked. "You'd technically be my first ever, so if you want the title, it's up for grabs."

"I want the title."

He laughed and threw his arms around me. "Does this mean there'll be orgasms?"

I wrapped my arms around him tight, laughing. "I think it might, yeah."

We walked into Chase's house holding hands and as we were about to take the stairs, Jimmy poked his head around the corner.

"Oh, hey," Chase said. "Can't chat. About to get a dicking."

Oh god.

Jimmy laughed. "So does this mean . . . ?" He looked between us.

"Yes," Chase replied. "To all the questions. Yes, we made up. Yes, we're officially dating. Yes, he's gonna dick me so hard, and yes, if you break the lock on my door to film us, I will kill you. "

Jimmy grinned. "I'm glad. Glad you worked it out, I mean. We watched the livestream. It was pretty cool. Max can finally stop moping."

"Yeah, it was pretty cool," I said.

Jimmy flattened down his shirt. "I, uh, I was just about to leave, actually. So you'll have the house to yourselves. Tate and I are heading down to the bar with the girls. Georgia asked me," he said, blushing. "Hope that's okay."

"Hell yes it's okay. She's a great girl. And tell her I told you to tell her to give having a boyfriend a try. It's awesome. There's sex on demand, Rick and Morty marathons, and snacks. And cuddles. Literally no downside."

"Yes, there is," I added. "Having a boyfriend with the attention span of a squirrel on speed."

Chase met my eyes and grinned. "Right. Yes. Upstairs. That's what we were doing." He took off up the stairs and I followed him.

"I'll lock the front door," Jimmy yelled.

"Thanks," he yelled back. "Have a good night!" Then he mumbled, "I know I'm about to."

Chase pulled me into his room, shut the door, and locked it, then turned to me.

"So, boyfriends, huh?"

I took the hem of his shirt and pulled him closer. "Unless there's a waiver period."

"Nuh-uh." He shook his head as he slid his hand over my ass and pulled our hips flush. He was already half-hard. "No waiver. I'm all in."

"Good." I captured his lips with mine, taking my time to kiss him properly. Slow and deep, our tongues tangling until he moaned, melting into me .

His erection was hardening between us, as was mine, and I was desperate to get my jeans off. To be naked with him, to feel his skin against mine. To have that closeness, that intimacy.

I needed it.

I slid my hand along his jaw to hold his neck and he moaned, breaking the kiss. He pulled his shirt off, then ripped mine over my head, fumbling for the button on my jeans.

"Need you naked," he said.

I stilled his hand. "Slow down," I whispered. "I need it too—I need to be inside you, but I want to take my time. We have all night."

"Oh god, you're gonna kill me," he mumbled. "Is it possible to die from not being fucked fast enough?"

I chuckled. "Not likely. Get on the bed."

He toed out of his shoes, pulled his socks off, then whipped his shorts and briefs off and was on the bed in record time. I toed out of my Chucks, and by the time I had my jeans off, he had a condom beside him, and with one leg raised, he was smearing lube over his hole.

So fucking hot.

Okay, so maybe going slow wasn't gonna happen.

I kneeled on the bed, crawling between his legs, taking in his solid muscle and tanned skin. His cock lay across his hip, thick and hard, but I ignored it for now. "You're so fucking hot," I murmured, kissing his ribs and then tonguing his nipple.

He hissed, so I sucked on it, hard. His back arched and his cock twitched as he whimpered. "Fuck."

Laughing, I kissed him, crashing my mouth to his and delving my tongue in deep. He ran his hands down my back, trying to pull me closer. "Need you," he said.

I smiled, trying to decide how long to play this out. But then his brows knitted together. "I will not beg you, Amos. I'll just get mad."

No teasing him then.

I laughed and sat back on my haunches. "Then I better not keep you waiting." I took the lube, smearing his hole first, then giving his shaft a few slow pulls.

"Oh fuck," he said, raising his hips, sensitive and desperate.

So I fingered his hole, slipping a fingertip inside him, then a second. He stroked his cock and groaned, widening his legs for me.

Fuck yes.

I pulled my fingers out and he whined, his head shooting up with a mad look on his face, until he saw that I was rolling on a condom. "Just as fucking well," he said.

"You're so demanding," I said, pressing my cock against his slick hole. "And desperate. And hot. You're so fucking sexy right now." I pushed into him, as slow as I could, watching his eyes, his face, for every emotion, every feeling he couldn't say.

His eyes went wide, his lips parted, his breath caught. His hand went to my hip to hold me, to stop me. I almost joked that he didn't seem to have much to say now, but I didn't. "You okay?" I asked.

He nodded quickly. "Just... slow." His brows furrowed and his nostrils flared.

I stilled, the head of my cock barely inside him, and the restraint it took. The restraint... Oh god. "Chase," I whispered.

He nodded again. "Okay."

I let myself push in, still as slow as I could, but so good. So tight, so hot. All the way in. "Oh, holy fuck," I ground out. So much for taking all night. I wasn't going to last two minutes.

To distract myself, I concentrated on him, his comfort, his pleasure. I moved with him, for him. I made love to him. Drove my pleasure into him, and he rolled his hips faster, his rhythm increasing with his urgency.

He clawed at my back, moaning and gasping as I sucked on his neck. "God, Amos, more. I'm so close, I need more. Don't stop."

So I kissed him as I thrust harder, and he slipped his hand between us to stroke himself. Then he cried out, arching his back and groaning as his orgasm took hold. He shot come onto his belly, groaning and twitching, his ass milking and squeezing.

I came so hard, so completely, I almost blacked out. The room spun and went dark and silent. All that existed was him and bliss. I collapsed on him, spent and boneless, out of breath.

"Fucking hell," I mumbled. "Did I die?"

He chuckled underneath me, but I couldn't even lift my head. "Boyfriend sex is so much better," he murmured. "So was that the big or little orgasm? I need to know which one for round two later tonight."

"Round two? I'm still dead."

He laughed. "Just kidding. That was totally a big orgasm. I'll take the smaller one as a BJ or a hand job in the shower. Later. When you're alive again."

I sighed, so ridiculously happy in that moment I would've agreed to anything. "Okay."

I pulled out of him and discarded the condom and he pulled me back in for a cuddle. "Little-spoon nap time."

Laughing, I tightened my arms around him and closed my eyes.