Chapter Two

An ear-piercing alarm had Casper shooting straight up in bed. His heart flew to his throat while his gaze shot in every direction. Only darkness met his eyes. Then light flared to life, nearly blinding him. London leapt into the room, holding a gun, while Casper covered his ears against the sound. His heart raced so fast and hard, his brain got no oxygen. London rushed to the window and yanked back the blackout drapes. He silenced the alarm Casper hadn't known he had before racing from the room again.

Casper strained to hear anything at all. He clutched the covers to his chest. No sound reached his ears. A minute passed before he worked up the courage to slip from the bed. He found the pajama pants he had discarded before going to bed. Casper still stood frozen in the center of his bedroom, afraid to take another step, when London returned. His hair stood in every direction, and he was shirtless.

"I worried that might be the case."

"What?" Casper's voice came out in a whisper.

London set his gun on the table beside the bed. "When I cased the joint earlier, I noticed scratches around your window—like someone has pried it open with a knife a time or two."

Casper shifted from foot to foot. He rubbed his arms as a chill ran down his spine. "Do you mean someone's been sneaking in while I'm gone?" A worse thought hit. "Or when I'm asleep." Several horrible scenarios raced through Casper's mind. His teeth chattered.

London led him back to bed. "You're safe. I promise. You have me now. I won't let anything happen to you."

Casper's gaze moved toward the window. "He's out there."

London tried calming him. "I'm not leaving you alone." He moved to the door and turned off the lights before returning to the bed. "Scoot over. I'm staying right here."

Casper happily made room for London to join him. Still, even with London's huge presence, Casper couldn't stop shaking. His teeth chattered again. "Sorry."

London scooted closer and held Casper as if trying to warm his skin. It felt like ice ran through Casper's veins. He had been silently going through this alone while Carver pretended nothing happened for a while now. Casper wondered if Carver went through even half the torment or if the wild notes left on Carver's car were merely another way this person struck at Casper. Maybe that was the real reason Carver wasn't scared. This guy wasn't doing all this to him.

"Sorry," Casper said again when he couldn't stop shaking.

London held him tighter and rubbed his skin. "Stop apologizing. You're allowed to feel this way." He kept his voice low, soothing. "You're strong as hell for holding up as well as you have."

Casper took several deep breaths. He focused on the sound of London's breathing. Casper forced his mind to go back to the moment London burst into the room. That chest. Whoa. He was a brick wall, and those delicious freckles were everywhere. The mood in the room shifted. The chill left him. All it took was the slightest turn of his chin. Their faces were inches apart. London's every breath brushed his face. Casper's heart sped for a different reason. His body stirred. He heard the way London's breathing hitched and then picked up speed. Casper held his breath. London's lips bumped his—almost like a test. He moved away just as quickly. Casper's dick stirred a little more. His focus completely shifted. He thought he would die while he waited to see what London would do next. London came back for more. This time, his lips lingered. Casper's lips parted, inviting him inside. Their tongues lightly brushed once.

London leapt from the bed, as if repulsed by himself or maybe Casper. Them. Casper's heart fell. Someone had finally shown up to help him and he had already ruined things. Depression and desperation washed over him. He would probably be dead soon, or worse. Yeah, he knew there were worse things. Yet he couldn't leave the one guy who showed up to help him alone.

Before Casper found the words to apologize, the covers ripped away. A massive body covered his. London's mouth was back. This time, there was no unsurety in London's kiss. He devoured Casper. Casper immediately lit like a bottle rocket. London was everywhere. His hands never stopped moving. He explored every inch of Casper while Casper writhed. Casper had never been more overwhelmed by anyone's passion. He thought he might die if London came to his senses.

"I don't know what to do. Tell me what to do."

Something flared inside Casper's chest at London's plea. He slowed things down. "It's okay. You don't have to do anything." He linked fingers with London, keeping him grounded. Their kiss softened. It turned into a make-out session that felt like it wouldn't go further.

London pulled away. Even in the darkness, his stare felt intense. "I want you, but I don't know…" A sexy growl came from the back of his throat. His frustration was tangible. It was obvious he didn't want to admit to thinking he was straight until this very moment, and having no idea how to proceed with a man, but he still wanted what he wanted.

"Let me," Casper said as he pushed at London's chest until he had the other man on his back. He kissed London's chest as he straddled his body. Once he started, he couldn't stop. He had never had his mouth on such an amazing body. Casper was fascinated. His teeth closed around London's nipple.

London gasped. He buried his fingers in Casper's hair. Casper moved lower, sucking, licking, and biting as he went. The sounds London made drove him. He pried London's pajama pants down his hips. London let him have them. Casper circled London's navel with his tongue. The way London's stomach rose with each rapid exhale before tightening again with each inhale fascinated him. He could practically taste London's excitement mixed with panic.

"Oh, God. Please don't stop."

At the plea, Casper turned his attention to the erection he had just set free. He closed his lips around the crown and lightly sucked. London made a sound like a dying man. Something swelled inside Casper's chest. He prayed London didn't come to his senses and run. Casper had plans for him and he didn't intend to leave this bed for a long while.

Even if he wanted to run, London's knees wouldn't work. He couldn't say what happened. One second, he had been frantically trying to comfort Casper. His fear had been unnerving. He had looked exactly like a man who had been secretly dealing with being terrorized for too long. Casper looked on the edge of collapse. London had panicked. Dealing with psychopaths was one thing. A hysterical person was another. He didn't comfort people. London killed them.

Except then Casper had been in his arms. He had been beneath London and London became hyperaware of every place they touched. Each breath leaving Casper's lungs had brushed his face. His lips had touched Casper's before he knew it would happen. Now this thing happened that snowballed by the second. His brain was all over the place. Maybe tomorrow he would fall apart the same way everything he had always believed about himself crumbled now. Right now, all London could do was feel.

Casper's hot mouth tugged at London's cock. He thought his heart would explode. London was a tough guy who wasn't afraid of shit. This was different. When it came to sex, or matters of the heart, he had zero confidence. He wasn't a person people wanted. Equally, London wasn't swiping right or getting picked up by anyone in bars. He didn't flirt or try to go home with anyone. London knew his limitations, and he wasn't someone who stood out in a crowd. In short, he wasn't incredibly experienced in the bedroom. Casper obviously was, because that mouth… goddamn.

Casper pulled away, making London swallow a cry. He ground his back teeth. London would be damned if he uttered a single complaint. Casper had already blown his mind in more ways than anyone else ever had. London had never felt this desired. He would cut his losses, grateful for what Casper had given him.

"Shh. It's okay, beautiful. I'm not finished with you."

London hadn't realized he had made a single sound. Apparently, he had no control over himself any longer. He simply had become too big of a mess.

Casper climbed from the bed. London felt cold without him. He started to pull his pants back up, but Casper was back before he had time. His nude body straddled London. A whimper escaped him without permission. He was a man on the edge.

Casper's fingers encircled London's cock, startling him. There was a crinkle like plastic being torn. "Promise me you won't regret me tomorrow. I don't want you to wake up enraged and attacking me because this isn't what you want."

"I promise." Fuck. He would say anything as long as Casper put him out of his misery.

He felt the condom slip down his length. More sounds cut through the dark—like a tube opening and closing. Casper toyed with his erection. London realized he coated the condom in lube. "It's odd," Casper said, sounding entirely too serious and calm. "I don't think I've ever felt this wanted, even though I'm a good ninety percent sure you don't really want me."

"I want you." Maybe this was a new experience for him, but London wasn't a pussy, nor was he a prudish homophobe. His dick was hard, so it was what it was. It seemed his body knew things his mind hadn't considered. He was one hundred percent in.

Casper lifted and held London's dick in place. "We'll see." He sat on London's cock.

London's hips left the bed. He had never felt so good. Something inside him escaped, showing him his true self. London used his strength against Casper. He rolled, flipping Casper beneath him. He didn't think. His body led, and London followed. He thrust, taking what Casper offered. His body automatically followed the sounds Casper made. Any gasp of pleasure had London holding that rhythm. He let Casper's pleasure guide him, because everything felt good to him. Casper's body felt so fucking hot on his dick. London was pure lust and nothing else while taking Casper's ass.

His mouth found every place it could reach. He bit and sucked. London had transformed into some sort of animal. It was out of his control, and nothing was ever out of his control. London was usually all things serious and professional. Casper had done something to his head. London had never felt like this.

"Yes. Don't stop. Mhmm."

London reveled in Casper's cries. They sounded genuine. That shit got him high as hell. Confidence pumped through his veins. "Fuck. I want to know what it feels like when you come." God, he didn't know where the words came from, but he really did. He needed to feel Casper's orgasm.

Casper's fingers dug into London's skin—like he held on for dear life. Tiny mewling sounds filled the air. London pumped faster. His everything stayed focused on Casper. He could almost feel Casper moving toward the edge. Casper cried out. Cum hit London's chest.

A growl tore from London's throat. It sounded proud and possessive. He had done that. He had made Casper come. Then the sensation of Casper's body trying to suck him deeper stole the oxygen from the room. London's entire body seized. A sound he had never made before burst from his chest as ecstasy slammed into him. A rhythmic cry kept caressing his ears as he rode Casper's ass, savoring every wave of mind-blowing pleasure. He didn't realize he was the one making the noise until the final cry left his lips. London's body gave out. He fell forward. Luckily, his brain had enough cells left to remember to throw his weight on his forearms, saving Casper. His mouth found Casper's like returning home. Their tongues played as their skin cooled. London fully expected a very harsh reality to crush him like a boulder. Instead, London settled in to keep kissing Casper like he never planned to leave. He felt something.

For the first time in his life, he was a little scared. This was likely just another Friday night one-night stand for Casper. London didn't work that way. He worried what would happen when the sun came up on a new day. If Casper pretended this didn't happen, or never planned to touch London again, London wasn't sure how he would react. Something possessive already built in his chest. He already felt the rage bubbling over someone out there, terrorizing his man. God. He was so fucked. Even if he was certain Casper wanted more with him, London didn't know if he would be worth keeping. Most likely, London had just been convenient for Casper, and the entire thought process was moot. Damn. He already hurt his feelings just thinking about it. None of those thoughts made him stop trying to taste every centimeter of Casper's tongue. London couldn't quit. It was possible no one would ever want him like this again.