Painted On My Heart

“Are you still into him?” Arik instinctively asked.

“God, no! It’s not like that at all,” Kellus said, vigorously shaking his head, giving a sad-sounding, humorless laugh. “His lingering effects never subside. And for whatever fucked-up reason, I feel bad for him. I’ll never be with him again. I just don’t want him hurt,” Kellus explained, and for the first time, Arik could see the whole picture beginning to emerge.

“That’s because you’re a good man. It’s the most fundamental reason I’m drawn to you,” Arik said in all honesty. He took a small step forward, driven by something unknown, because Kellus had been clear—he didn’t want to date. That should have been enough to move Arik along. But it hadn’t. What he felt was bigger and stronger than any baggage Kellus might be carrying. “I don’t know what our future holds. I just know I have to know you better. And I do want to date you in a very aggressive manner. If there were a way to secure every single night with you for the foreseeable future, I think that may be the only thing to calm some of the worry I have.”

“Why in the world would you be worried?” Kellus scoffed like it were the most ridiculous thing in the world.

“Because you won’t let me in.”

“You don’t make sense to me. I don’t get it…”

“Is that why you keep trying to run me off with all these terrible sides of your bad life?” Arik asked and stepped between his spread feet. He didn’t touch Kellus, but he was close enough to share air space.

“Maybe,” Kellus said softy.

“Then let me in and let me show you that I’m trustworthy. I promise I won’t hurt you, Kellus. I promise you hold all the power between us.” Arik was encouraged when Kellus didn’t move away.

“I don’t see it like that.” Kellus shook his head but relaxed his stance, allowing Arik to step farther in. The reward for his patience came when Kellus wrapped one of those big arms around him and the full length of their bodies met.

“I do. I’m already in so deep, and you’re just at the starting gate. I’m the one who’ll suffer if this doesn’t work out,” Arik confessed, taking his hands out of his pockets, running his fingertips up Kellus’s massive chest.

Seconds passed before Kellus responded. “That’s not true.”

“What’s not true?” he asked, lifting his fingers to graze the soft whiskers covering Kellus’s jaw.

Kellus’s blue gaze lifted to his, holding him in place. “That I’m just at the starting gate. I’m not. I’m way past there.”

“Then let’s go home. I’ll drop you off at your place in the morning,” he said, leaning all the way in to brush his lips against Kellus’s, stealing a soft kiss before he reluctantly broke the head-to-toe contact.

“All right.” Kellus surprised him by cupping the back of his head with a large, strong hand and drawing him in for another much deeper kiss. He hungrily thrust his tongue into Kel’s sweet mouth, taking all the man was willing to give. Arik wrapped his arms around Kellus’s waist, and smoothed his hands down to the pronounced curve of Kellus’s backside before greedily cupping his palms over those firm globes. Swallowing Kellus’s soft groans as he squeezed that perfect ass, drawing Kel in tighter, rocking their jean-covered erections together. He could certainly come from the friction alone, but he craved skin-on-skin contact, and a little more privacy.

Arik pulled back from the heated kiss Kellus had initiated. “We need to get out of here before you make me forget we’re not alone.”

Kellus nodded as he stared at Arik’s parted lips, such intensity reflected in his gaze. He couldn’t help but smile when he noticed how Kellus discreetly adjusted himself as he finally stepped aside and turned toward the car. It turned out, as Arik rounded the hood, he had to do some minor adjusting himself before dropping into the driver’s seat.

The drive to his apartment was a quiet one. Neither said much more than a few words, and all of those were Arik’s, which caused him to wonder if maybe Kellus was having second thoughts.

“Are you okay?” he finally asked as he pulled into his designated parking spot and shut off the engine.

Kellus turned those captivating blues eyes his way. “Yeah, I am.”

“Good.” Arik undid his seatbelt and leaned across the console. More than anything, he didn’t want Kellus second-guessing the decision to give them a try. Arik bent forward, fisting Kellus’s T-shirt to draw him closer. He wanted Kellus to know how much he wanted him, how happy he’d made him, but more than that, he wanted another taste of the man’s lips. The sample he’d had earlier had only made him crave more.

The slight intake of Kel’s breath drove home the point that the man wasn’t immune to the chemistry they shared. Slanting his mouth over Kellus’s, Arik dove in for the kiss. Kellus kissed him back, lifting one hand to the back of his head, the other strong arm locking around his waist, holding him in place as the kiss grew frantic. Tongues tangled, brushing and dancing against the other. Nothing could ever be as sweet as the taste of his artist on his tongue.