15. Chapter Fifteen

Chapter Fifteen

Myles

W hat was time? What were days?

My screen glared at me, and I glared back. I was in the last quarter of my novel, which was the stage where I forgot human function and turned part vegetable. Maybe an eggplant. A sexy, sexy eggplant.

I squirmed in my seat. A few days had passed since Avery and I fucked on his birthday, and the clanking downstairs meant he was home. Sharing that night with him had flipped something significant in my brain. Maybe that was why the words had started pouring from me and hadn't stopped. And I'd been through too many static periods of staring at a blank page throughout my writing career to pass up on flow when I flowed.

Except I'd been a reclusive dick and had barely talked to Avery since.

Had I eaten today?

My stomach grumbled as if it had needed a reminder. I had three cups cluttering my desktop, my coffee from the morning, a water, and an oolong tea I'd thought I would like more than I did.

I'd exchanged more than a few words with Avery the other day, and he'd brought me in for a kiss this morning while we made coffee. So maybe I hadn't ruined everything. He wouldn't be kissing me if he hated me for pretty much ghosting and hiding in my room the past few days, right? Or maybe he gave nice, conciliatory kisses to people he was about to let down, and I'd blown any chance with him.

Panic fluttered through me, or maybe it was hunger? Probably both. I rifled my hand through my hair. I felt gross, sitting in the same pajamas I'd slept in, and I needed a deodorant refresh. I stripped my shirt off and dropped my pajamas to the ground. Once I got the deodorant on, a dab of my favorite cologne, and slipped on boxer briefs and sweats, I was a little more presentable. My hair still flopped this way and that, but at least I didn't stink.

My body creaked with the movement because hunching like a gremlin for ten hours wasn't the best form of self-care.

A knock sounded at my door, and I froze.

Was there a home intruder?

Wait, Avery lived here too. My shoulders sank with the realization. "Come on in." If my heart pounded a little harder, that was my own problem.

"Hey, I didn't want to interrupt." Avery peeked past the door. He was dressed down in a thin black tank top and black cargoes with boots as if he'd prepared to hit the club. My chest twisted. Of course he would. He was social and happy and bright and charming, and he'd find another hookup the second he went there while I holed away in the dark, typing like a crazy person.

That shouldn't hurt as much as it did. Neither of us expressed anything beyond casually hooking up, even though my feelings had detoured right past casual and into full-on smitten territory.

"No, no interruption." I threw my hands up. "Just stretching."

"You've been in book land?" he asked, his eyes twinkling.

I speared my fingers through my hair. "Yeah, I'm so sorry I've been such an ass. I get like this whenever I'm close to finishing a book."

"Shit, that's so cool," Avery said, slipping into my room and taking a seat on my bed. I loved the way he owned my space, how he just placed himself there. He could drape himself over every piece of furniture I owned, and I'd be thrilled. It soothed my anxiety in ways I didn't even realize until it happened. "So, is it a full book possession? Have you been eating?"

My stomach rumbled.

"I'm guessing not." Avery's smirk lit a fire in me, but I was pretty sure if I tried to get frisky with him, I'd pass out. Had I even slept?

"What time is it?" My blackout curtains were less than helpful.

"Dinner time. I made some tacos and wanted to know if you were hungry."

"Marry me?" The words slipped out of my mouth, and my cheeks heated up. Clearly, going from fucking to zero communication to proposals was not the right move to make. Except Avery tilted his head, his grin widening, and a softness appeared in his blue eyes that didn't look like he hated me.

"Okay, gorgeous. Let's get you fed." He grabbed my hand and tugged me toward the door, not hard since I'd withered away to skin and bones. And rice cakes. I might've had a rice cake earlier.

"Are you going to the club tonight?" I asked, my heart thumping harder. If it was midweek, which it might be, that would make sense. Even though I didn't want to think about him going out there and grinding up on someone else or hooking up with other people.

"That's the plan, but not until later."

I eagerly followed him down the stairs, even as I tried to ignore the little stir of jealousy in my gut, which could also be hunger because I hadn't eaten.

"Oh, how good for you." The words came out weird and stiff and wooden.

Avery paused in the middle of the staircase and looked up at me. He chewed on his lower lip for a second and stared hard, as if searching my face for something. Maybe dignity, but I was in a deficit there.

"What's making you uncomfortable? Talk to me," he said, giving my hand a squeeze.

"Nothing," I babbled out. "Look, you're welcome to hook up with whoever you want to. I know it's stupid to have feelings about that."

Avery's brows drew together. "Who said anything about hooking up?"

I shrugged, a nervous laugh helplessly slipping out. "The club, the sexy music, all the easy hookup terrain?"

"I'm not averse to it, but honestly? I like what we're doing right now." Avery met my gaze, and I couldn't look away if I tried. "I'm not interested in finding anyone else while we're doing this."

My heart thumped so loud I was pretty sure the sound echoed through the house. "Yeah, I feel the same."

"Clearly, I'll need to fend off all those interlopers slipping through your window at night to fuck you into the mattress." Avery winked.

I flipped him off with my free hand. "I'll have you know I sleep on my stomach with my ass bared for a reason ."

"Ngh, don't tempt me," Avery moaned out.

The idea of him stealing into my bedroom at night to fuck me awake was so hot I could barely breathe. "Oh god, would you?"

"For real? If that's on the table, I'm definitely going to take advantage." The heat in his voice leaked into my system, swirling with so much hope and promise I binged on it.

My T-dick had woken up from slumber, and the pulse between my thighs was unreal. Fuck, I wanted that beyond reason. Just to fall asleep vulnerable and wake up being taken at his mercy. My whole body combusted.

"Yes. The second I get this book done, I'm so game." I didn't want to spoil the chance of getting fucked out of a dead sleep by the characters chattering at me midcoitus and then blurting out something random. Or being so exhausted I couldn't enjoy a thing because I was just a flimsy pile of plastic wrap and twigs.

"What timeframe are we thinking for that?" Avery asked. "Because I'm not going to lie. I'm dying here."

"Sex or somnophilia?" I asked, squeezing my nape. "Because I will legit blow you after tacos if you're talking about the former."

"Okay, both, and I'm taking you up on that." He flashed me such a charming grin my knees weakened. "Though you don't owe me a blow job for tacos or anything."

I shook my head. "Think of it as extra sustenance. I need my protein."

"You're such a dork." He swung our hands as we continued down the steps, finally veering toward the kitchen. My heart tripped over everything we had talked about. Even the affectionate way he called me a dork added more strings to our connection, and while we hadn't discussed specifics, my heart had already gotten far too attached.

Rich, savory spices like chili pepper and cumin wafted our way, and dizziness struck. Maybe I should've had more than caffeine and rice cakes.

"Okay, gorgeous, sit down." Avery nudged me gently toward a chair at the kitchen table. "I'm going to grab you some tacos before you pass out."

I took his advice and plunked into the seat.

"How did you survive when you wrote your other books?" he asked, the plates clanking around. The room was getting awfully spinny. Maybe I had overdone it.

"Uh, DoorDash and self-cannibalizing." I drummed my fingers on the table. Even with the faintness gripping my body, I couldn't stop my twitches.

Avery set a plate of three soft shell tacos before me, and my eyes watered a little. Sleep deprivation mixed with sheer joy, my favorite. They were picture-perfect tacos, like the kind influencers posted five million shots of before never actually eating. I grabbed a taco and took a bite. The burst of flavors on my tongue was heavenly, and I moaned.

"Oh my god, you can cook ."

"Just one of my many skills, along with dancing and stabbing people with needles." Avery sat beside me at the table with his tacos.

"Man, acupuncture sounds so badass." I munched on the rest of the taco, polishing it off in a few quick bites. "Healing through stabbing."

"You should come see me sometime," he offered. "I'm guessing you've got a bit of back pain."

"Is my horrific posture the indicator? Because yes," I said, starting into the second taco. "But I planned on stopping by your booth for the quick intro sessions at your fair."

"Oh, you're coming?" Avery asked, and I didn't miss the slight lilt to his voice or the way he glanced away fast. Fuck his goddamn family for making him feel like shit. He deserved every ounce of support on the planet.

"Obviously." I swallowed another bite of taco. "You'll have to explain me away as your awkward roommate."

Avery's smile lit his whole face, and I stopped in the middle of my final taco to just stare. Fuck, he was so damn pretty.

"Mmm, I like the idea of scandalizing everyone by calling you my live-in lover." Avery waggled his brows.

I snorted, wiping a bit of the juice from the taco from the side of my mouth. "What about this makes ‘live-in lover' sound like a title for me? ‘Cave goblin on the second floor' is more fitting."

"Aw, but you're my cave goblin," he teased, his eyes alight with mischief.

Oh my lord, my fragile little malnourished heart couldn't take all this sweetness.

"Well, I'm also whatever else you need on the day of the event." I wiped my hands and mouth with another napkin. Energy pumped through me, my stomach finally not screaming into the void. "Just set me to work. I should have finished my book by the end of the week. Maybe sooner if the words keep flowing like they are."

"That's wild." Avery stared at me with an unvarnished curiosity I craved. Like I was worth looking at and more than my shitty brain told me half the time. "I think it's magical you can write not just one whole-ass story but, what, fifteen? Chloe and I already started our book club."

"Oh no. She's going to think I'm some depraved pervert." I walked over to the sink and washed my hands before grabbing a cup and filling it up. "You want some water too?" Avery nodded, and I grabbed another glass of water before carrying them both over.

I drank down as much as possible, big gulps to try to fill my stomach the rest of the way. If I kept eating, I'd make myself sick, though guzzling water like I'd never seen it before wasn't the solution either. Avery's plate was almost empty—he'd reached his final bites. My heart thumped hard, and my libido, which had been ignored for the past few days, sparked to life.

I dropped to my hands and knees and crawled under the table.

"Did you lose something?" Avery asked.

I stopped between his legs, the cool tile biting into my knees. "Can I?"

Avery pushed back from the table and peered beneath. When he saw me there, his eyes widened. "Oh fuck. So sexy."

"I wasn't kidding." I tapped his knee. "I'm hungry as fuck, and I haven't tasted your cock in far too long. As long as you're still interested…"

"Fuck yes." Avery unbuttoned and unzipped his black cargoes in a record amount of time before shuffling them down along with his boxer briefs. His cock sprung out, thick and mouthwatering, nicely trimmed down there, and those balls looked edible. I dipped in and sucked one of them into my mouth. Avery clutched the arms of the chair tight, and I teased it around with my tongue a little, then gave the other one the same treatment. His cock was as hard as steel, a drop of pre-cum beading on the flushed tip.

Oh man, I'd thought I was hungry before, but I was starving now.

I reached around his base and lowered his cock so I didn't bump my head on the underside of the table. My knees would hate me for this later, but right now, I didn't give a damn.

I lapped at the bead of pre-cum on the tip, the salty burst on my tongue delicious. How had I gone so long without his cock in my mouth? I hadn't sucked him off since our first time together, and clearly, there was no point in depriving myself when he was so willing to offer. I licked around the tip, enjoying the velvety feel on my tongue. When I lapped at the slit, he gripped the chair arms tighter. A rush of gratification flowed through me. My T-dick throbbed, but I didn't want to get off yet.

No, I just wanted to suck on Avery's cock until he unloaded in my mouth.

I wrapped my lips around him and opened my jaw, taking in inch after inch. He let out a low rumble in his chest, and I settled in a kneel, keeping my palm around the base to jerk him off in time as I sucked. Drool dripped down, lubricating the way as I started with a steady pressure that built. More bursts of salt exploded on my tongue, and Avery tilted his head back, exposing his gorgeous throat as he moaned loud enough to echo through the kitchen.

"Fuck, I'm not going to last long," Avery groaned, letting me go to town. I didn't restrain myself in the slightest. I descended on him with the hunger I hadn't realized I'd been tamping back the last few days. Despite being burrowed in my cave, I'd missed his scent, and I fucking craved it. Tasting him on my tongue, feeling his legs around me, had my senses careening.

I bobbed my head to the same rhythm I pumped around his base, which was getting a smoother glide from the amount of spit pouring down. Finesse wasn't necessary though. Avery's breaths were already coming out ragged, and his knuckles had turned white. I soaked up every low moan from his lips as encouragement as I sucked him down deeper and sped up my pace.

"Oh, god, Myles." The gasp was followed by the pulse of his cock, and salty cum flooded my mouth. I swallowed as much as possible, gagging a little from the sheer amount. A few drops trickled down the sides of my mouth.

Avery's chest heaved from his orgasm, and I slowly drew my mouth off his cock. As I wiped around my mouth to get the residual cum away, my knees started to protest. My T-dick had formed a steady thump - thump - thump between my legs, the pulse undeniable, but I didn't want an orgasm right now.

I'd just wanted him.

And his taste on my tongue as I set back to work and he hit up the club was everything I needed.

Avery reached down and offered a hand. I accepted and shuffled out on my knees from under the table and rose. My joints raged at me with an audible creak, and I winced.

"Okay, next time, I'm putting a pillow down there or something," Avery said, his pretty eyes twinkling. "Come on. Sit on my lap, and I'll take care of you."

"Guh." The idea was so hot my brain rewrote itself. However, I stuck to my guns because I wanted a little more than a scrap of time with him. My brain already yanked me back toward the keyboard, the way it did when my characters were running off without me, and he'd be heading out tonight too.

"I'm good," I said, leaning in to press a kiss to his lips. They were soft and lush and warm, and damn, I wanted to drown in them. Avery wrapped his hand around my nape, licking into my mouth as if he was trying to taste himself on my tongue. I sank into the headiness of our kiss, on how being with him transported me far from reality, even for a few moments.

When we pulled away, Avery looked into my eyes and gave my beard a light tug. "You sure?"

I tipped my forehead against his. "Yeah. The voices in my head are chatting away, which means I've got to go channel them out on the page."

"That's fucking adorable." Avery slid his palm down my arm until it rested over the back of my hand. "Can I check in on you when I get home?"

My heart thudded hard. I was so used to operating solo in my ragged little way that the idea of someone checking in on me, caring enough to see I wasn't burning myself out too hard…fuck, it meant everything.

"Always." I pressed my lips against his one more time.

God, I was head over heels.