Any Closer

“Leo,” he cut me off softly, reaching up for my hand, taking it in his.

“What’s going on with you?”

“Don’t you know? You must know.”

I reached for him, the hand he wasn’t holding going to his face before I could even think about it. “Baby, please tell me what’s wrong.”

His breath caught as he leaned into my palm, and I realized what I’d said. “Oh shit, Charlie, I—”

“Shut up,” he said, tugging on my arm, and I let him pull me down beside him before he lifted up and climbed into my lap. There was the smooth slide of his warm skin over my own slightly chilled flesh as he straddled my thighs and shoved the hard bulge in his jeans against my abdomen. “Just please lemme have you.”

“Charlie—”

“Christ, Leo, you’re so fuckin’ blind,” he husked as he leaned back enough so he could put his hand down the front of my sweats and fist my hardening cock.

I pushed up into his hand, my eyes closing as my head fell back.

“Oh fuck yeah,” he moaned deeply. “I knew you’d come apart in my hands. I knew all I had to do was touch you. I can’t wait to get in your bed.”

He thought he had me, and I would admit to myself that surrender was on my mind. But I was not a fun fuck for the evening no matter who it was, no matter how bad I wanted to be. I was surprised at the lust that was riding him, etched in every line; his trembling need was right there, no missing it. But if he wanted me, it was not going to be fast and easy.

Sometimes I thought that being big was a hardship. My size and my muscles, my quick, determined movements, scared some people, and I was sorry about that. But at that moment as I surged forward and gathered Charlie in my arms, lifted him, and held him tight, I was glad that I could.

“Leo, what’re you—”

“Stop,” I warned, hand on his ass but just to hold him against me, the other on the back of his head, gently massaging as I began the walk toward my bedroom. “Tell me what this is all about.”

But he said nothing, just held on, content, it seemed, to be held pressed to my chest and carried in my arms.

I reached my bed and threw him down onto it, turning without waiting to see what he was going to do. I went to my closet and came back with drawstring pajama bottoms, which I wadded up and beaned him in the face with.

“What’re you—”

“You said you wanted to stay, right?”

“I do wanna stay,” he told me, “but I wanna do it naked, under you, with you buried inside me.”

It sounded like heaven. “You need to explain this all to me, because for me, you’re comin’ out of left field. What the fuck is this about?”

He got up and stripped out of his jeans, and I turned my head so I wouldn’t see his cock, which I was sure would be as pretty as the rest of him, bounce free.

“You can look now,” he said with a weary chuckle.

The pajama bottoms that were nothing special on me had a whole different appeal on Charlie Ryerson. Hanging off his narrow hips, they showed off the lines on the sides of his abdomen that led down to…. God.

“Jesus,” he breathed out, coming around the bed fast.

I stood my ground as he reached me, put his hands on my face, and gazed up into my eyes.

“Leo, my love, you cannot look at me like that, like you wanna fuckin’ eat me, and then expect me to do nothing about it.”

But I had stumbled on the word. “Love?”

His smile was breathtaking, and I felt my knees wobble.

“Caught that, did you?” His voice was breathy and hoarse. “I can’t keep anything from you.”

“Charlie,” I whispered.

“Kiss me.”

I made a very primitive noise deep in my chest, and Charlie whimpered. I told myself I would just taste him—just once. What could it hurt?

I bent toward him and smiled. “Take it easy, okay? Don’t hurt me.”

His eyes suddenly filled as he inhaled sharply, and he nodded fast.

The man was so fragile, had already been broken once, shattered. That he was even willing to take another chance was astounding.

“Kiss me like it’s the first time, okay?”

“It is the first time,” I told him. “For us.”

“Leo,” he breathed out my name.

I leaned in and pressed my lips to his, gently, tenderly, not rushing him in any way. He whined in the back of his throat, and I felt his tongue slide over my bottom lip. I opened for him, and he surged up into me, his tongue thrusting deep as he wrapped his arms around my neck and pressed his warm, smooth skin to mine.