Chapter Eight

A warm body moved beneath him, stirring Booker. Dash's heartbeat pounded beneath his ear. Relief poured through him. It hadn't been a dream. Dash loved him. They were okay.

Booker smiled as he realized he had his whole arm shoved inside Dash's shirt, no doubt looking for warmth and bare skin. His fingertips brushed Dash's nipple. He enjoyed the way it felt as it hardened.

"Are you starting something?"

Booker moved lower and kissed Dash's stomach.

"So you are starting something."

Booker laughed against Dash's stomach as he moved lower. His abs were even more defined than usual, proving he had worked hard the past eight weeks. It was also possible he hadn't been eating. Booker would fix that. He unbuttoned Dash's jeans and slid his zipper down. His cock jumped as he released Dash's erection. Booker licked him before swallowing his dick. Damn. He was so in love with this man. Obsessed. He never wanted to be with anyone else. This was his one.

Two deep swallows in, Dash grabbed his hair and pulled his head up to meet his stare. "God. You look so turned on right now." That was because he was. "Turn around and give me that dick. You know it'll take me forever to come and I want to suck you."

Goddamn, he loved this confident and take-charge version of Dash. Booker shifted to his knees and pulled his shirt up and over his head. He stole Dash's clothes before removing the rest of his. The second he was nude, Booker didn't hesitate to straddle Dash's face. He fully intended to stay there as long as possible. The moment Dash took Booker into his mouth, he called himself a liar. Dash always made him come too fast. Booker got to work. He needed Dash's cum.

Dash made noises around Booker's dick that had him seeing stars. The vibrations drove him crazy. Dash played with his hole and balls. Booker returned the favor.

Dash groaned. Booker bobbed faster. He needed to come. The pressure already built. Booker chased the high. He wanted the orgasm Dash's mouth promised.

To his surprise, cum filled his mouth. Dash cried out around his cock. Booker swallowed. Dash sucked him hard. Booker blew. Cries tore from him as he rode Dash's tongue. His mind was nothing but a sea of pleasure.

By the time Booker crawled back into Dash's arms, his muscles were weak. He collapsed and Dash claimed his mouth. They kissed, tasting each other's cum. Dash stroked his chest, making him feel treasured. From nowhere, Booker's eyes burned. He had almost lost this. What a nightmare his life would be without Dash.

Booker turned his head. "We can't let this happen again."

Dash pulled away, looking confused. "What? Why?"

A laugh burst from Booker as he realized he made it sound like they couldn't blow each other again. "I meant being apart. We can't let that happen again."

A smile exploded across Dash's face. "Agreed. Come here." Dash pulled Booker tighter into his arms. He kissed Booker's forehead. "I have some things to say."

Dash sounded serious. "Okay."

"The very first time we met, you had on this yellow shirt that was damn near blinding. We were in the sun, getting ready to head into the arena for my first time. Teddy had offered to train me in sled and you had agreed to meet us to help. I didn't know how things would go. Honestly, I thought I'd make a fool of myself. But you looked at me with those sweet brown eyes that outshined your bright-ass shirt and said, ‘You're the most amazing athlete I've ever seen. I know there's nothing you can't do.' And I believed because you did. I noticed you. You've always been part of me. So, yeah. We can't be apart again." Dash's voice cracked. "I don't want to be here without you."

Booker sniffed. He fought not to cry. It had been a waterworks day, and that wasn't like him. It was just that Dash meant everything, and Booker didn't want to exist without him either. They would make it. They loved each other too much for things to be any other way.

That sniffle murdered Dash. He loved Booker with every fiber of his being. Dash wanted to give him the world. No. He needed to give Booker the universe. That meant Booker had to stop being so damn prideful.

He took Booker's hand and linked fingers with him. "I'm not done."

"Okay."

Dash smiled at Booker's quietly spoken agreement. He brought Booker's hand to his mouth and kissed it before continuing. "You know winning the championship came with a huge bonus, then I also received a medal bonus from the games. But the reason I didn't come see you the day I got back from France—not that you were here. But the reason I didn't was because I didn't want to show up here until I finalized two different multi-million-dollar contracts for product sponsorships."

Booker lifted his head. He looked stunned. "Are you kidding me? That's fucking amazing. I told you there's nothing you can't do."

Dash stroked his knuckles down Booker's cheek. "I know, but I'm saying this because I want you to come live with me. I need you to know I can take care of you, and you don't have to struggle." He saw Booker gearing up to argue. Dash shook his head. "No. I don't want to hear anything born out of pride. We're a team. It's our job to take care of each other. Plus, this place just really isn't very accessible."

Booker chuckled. "You're right. I was gearing up to argue, but not about the money. My argument was you didn't need huge contracts to convince me to live with you. I love you. I want to be wherever you are, and you're also right about the accessibility. You need to be where you can be comfortable."

A random thought hit Dash, and he fought a wince. He would never be able to get down on one knee for Booker. Booker deserved that. Dash hated how he found something new every day that wreck had stolen from him.

"What? Why do you look sad? If you've changed your mind—"

"No," Dash said, a little louder than necessary in his panic. "I just realized I can't get down on one knee to propose. You have no idea how much I hate that."

A sweet smile touched Booker's lips. "Maybe I'll be the one who gets down on one knee."

Dash snorted out a laugh. "We'd still be eye level."

Booker chuckled. "Yeah. I got the string bean height from my dad." Booker's smile fell.

Dash stroked his face again. "I know, baby. You fought so hard to hang on to him. He never deserved you."

Booker settled back down onto Dash's chest. His silence was heartbreaking. Dash held him and tried to make things better the only way he knew how: by loving him. An odd thought hit. He was glad Lev had been here. It broke his heart to think of Booker dealing with this alone. He probably owed Lev an apology, even though they had never met.

Dash kissed Booker's forehead. They would meet when he married Booker because he fully intended to marry Booker. That was a vow.