Roped In

by A. M. Arthur

  * * *

  Avery hated that he’d starred in one of Colt’s nightmares about the shooting, but he was also grateful to have been there to soothe Colt afterward. He’d never seen the man so shaken before—no, that wasn’t entirely true. The night Colt came to him after finding out he’d fired the fatal shot during the bank crisis, Colt had been well and truly wrecked.

  These nightmares concerned him, though, because nightmares were often manifestations of repressed emotions or memories. Colt needed to talk to someone about the shooting, but Avery also couldn’t force the man to do it. Being partners wasn’t about force or coercion, it was about mutual love and trust. And honesty.

  He wasn’t ready to have that serious conversation with Colt just yet, but if the nightmares continued, he would.

  The air at the ghost town site was a bit tense on Monday, and that was mostly because of Mack’s sour mood. Knowing he could only see Wes over Skype for the next three weeks had to suck, especially when his relationship was only a few months old. The honeymoon stage, so to speak. But by lunch, Mack had lightened up. They were detailing the inside of the general store today, sketching out what sort of props they’d need, versus goods they really could sell to tourists.

  Patrice had come up with a really good idea of partnering with the lady she bought homemade applesauce from and having her consign canned goods to sell. Mack had loved that idea, and he’d asked Patrice to look into other locals who might can or bake, and who wanted to earn a little extra money.

  Avery adored the idea, too, and it gave the general store another air of authenticity if they could sell actual, useable goods like applesauce, jam, and fruit bread. He wasn’t sure of all the permits needed in order to do that, but that also wasn’t Avery’s job to research.

  Some of the props they could buy online or from prop stores, but Mack was having all the furniture made by a local woodworker. The man truly did love the little town of Garrett, because he threw work at locals as often as possible. Avery didn’t think he’d ever met someone with such a generous spirit as Mack Garrett.

  Mack was quiet on the drive back down to the ranch, but nearly there he asked, “How was your first night with Colt?”

  “Mostly uneventful, actually,” Avery replied, which was true. He didn’t feel comfortable sharing Colt’s nightmare, so he decided “night” only included up to them going to bed the first time. “We did go on a horse ride. The first of my life, as a matter of fact.”

  “Colt got you on a horse, huh? How did that go?”

  Avery snickered. “I had to use the steps to get up on top of Duchess, but after that I did all right. We wandered the trails for a while. I can see why you both love living here. The land is gorgeous everywhere you look.”

  “It is. I’m thankful every day that Wes agreed to move here with me when the house is done, instead of staying in the city.”

  “He’s leaving his dinner theater job?”

  “Yup. Now that his acting career is picking up steam, he’s going to keep auditioning remotely, and work at the ghost town in his downtime.”

  “That’s wonderful news for you two.” Avery couldn’t see himself giving up his university position to move here, but he loved the idea of visiting so he could see Colt. The Colt he knew five years ago had refused to do long distance, but the Colt from now promised he could manage it. All Avery could do was take him at his word and enjoy the time he had with Colt.

  “Yeah.” Mack pulled the truck up near the main house. “Things are starting to shape back up, I think.”

  Avery took a small chance on his next comment. “Colt mentioned you two talked yesterday. Civilly and for several minutes.”

  “We did. For a few minutes, it was like old times. And I’m working on it. Those guys are my family, and I know we’re all Colt’s got. Some days I look at him, and I want to high-five my brother, and other days I want to punch him in the mouth again.”

  “I understand that, and so does Colt. I hope you two find your way back to a friendship one day.”

  “Me, too, and I mean that. Coming up for dinner?”

  “Yes, I’ll just drop my bag off at the cabin, and then I’ll be out to the kitchen.”

  “See you in a bit, then.”

  Avery climbed out of the truck and headed behind the house to the cabin line. Colt wasn’t home, so he was either finishing up a job or already at dinner. Ernie joined him on the walk up to the guesthouse, so Avery made casual conversation about the guests. More than half had signed up for tonight’s overnight camping trip with Slater and Quentin, so they didn’t have as many out on the hiking trails today.

  As interesting as an old-fashioned campout with a real chuck wagon and everything sounded, Avery wasn’t the camping type. Not without an air-conditioned RV and lots of mosquito nets.

  Colt wasn’t in the kitchen yet, so Avery sat with Mack and Ernie to eat. Colt showed up about ten minutes later with dirt all over his polo and jeans.

  “Busy day?” Mack asked once Colt had joined them.

  “Had a bit of a standoff with a skunk down by the east fence,” Colt replied.

  “Pardon me?”

  Colt poked at his slice of meatloaf. “Yeah, down where that steep slope is about a half mile out? Damn thing toddled right up to me and had me basically pinned above the slope. I did not feel like being sprayed, so I had to slide down the slope, and then find another spot to climb back up. I was too hungry and irritated to change, but I did wash my hands.”

  Avery glanced at Colt’s hands, which looked raw and sore. Someone deserved a little pampering later. “I’m glad you didn’t get sprayed, too,” Avery replied, “since I’m the one who has to live with you.”

  Ernie and Mack both laughed. After Reyes arrived and settled in, Mack pulled out his phone and showed off some pictures. “Wes sent them,” he said. “First makeup tests for his ripped guts prosthetics. He’s having the time of his life already.”

  “It does appear so,” Avery replied. Wes’s beaming smile in all the photos was breathtaking. “I can’t wait to go see the film.”

  “You hate zombie movies,” Colt said.

  “Yes, but how can I not go support the person who discovered Bentley Ghost Town? I’ll just hide my eyes during the gory parts.”

  Colt opened his mouth, as if to make a comment in relation to the movie, then shut it. Reyes gave Colt an assessing look.

  Dinner morphed into another poker night, this time hosted at their cabin. Reyes and Robin started out in the game, and Mack arrived a while later and asked to be dealt in. Colt’s visible excitement got Avery excited, because he didn’t need to ask in order to know this was the first time Mack had come here since the truth came out. All in all, it was a huge step toward reconciliation between the two.

  The cabin only had two chairs, so they all sat on the floor in a circle. Everyone laughed and teased, and the friendly environment made Avery a little wistful of what he’d be leaving behind. He didn’t have this kind of easy camaraderie with his coworkers back at the university, because he was such an introvert. And the few times he accepted invitations to informal functions, he ended up holding up the wall and feeling awkward. But not here. Here at Clean Slate, everyone had accepted the shy, somewhat uptight professor from UCLA without batting an eye.

  And Avery loved every second of it.

  He also had a life in Los Angeles and the chance at a tenured position. While it would require more hours in a classroom, tenure would also give Avery the job stability he craved.

  They played with quarters instead of paper money, so no one was ever in danger of losing big, but Avery was extremely pleased to cash out of the game with an extra thirteen dollars in his pockets. Colt lost his entire five-dollar buy-in and was the first one out. He wasn’t actually very good at hiding his tells, but Reyes was tough. He had the second highest amount with eight bucks. Robin and Mack only
had a few dollars between them.

  Their guests hung around a while longer, telling stories and drinking from a six-pack Mack fetched from his own cabin next door. Avery turned down a beer and drank water instead, and spent as much time as possible covertly enjoying how stinking happy Colt was. He was the old Colt who had a kind word and smile for everyone, who wasn’t afraid of the dark, and who didn’t suffer from terrifying nightmares.

  Eventually, Colt spoke up. “So this is kind of a ‘last but not least’ situation,” he said directly to Mack. “But Reyes and Robin know, and I wanted to tell you that Avery and I are trying again.”

  Mack’s bushy eyebrows crept up. “Trying again as in dating?”

  “Yes. We’re taking things slow, figuring out who we are to each other again, but there’s something between us. And we’re keeping it quiet for now, until Avery’s contract is over and we aren’t both Garrett employees, but I wanted to tell you.”

  “I see.” Mack’s expression was totally unreadable to Avery. No real emotion to speak of on his face or in his voice. “This because you’re stuck as roommates?”

  “No, it’s because we still have feelings for each other that never went away, and they all came rushing back on Saturday night, and I want him back.” Colt turned to smile at Avery in a way that made Avery’s heart melt. “I want to make this work because I’ve never stopped missing you. You’re my person.”

  “Holy shit,” Robin said after a moment of silence. “Words like that usually precede a marriage proposal, my friend.”

  Avery sputtered.

  “It’s way too soon for that,” Colt replied. “But that’s where I stand. Avery knows it, and now my closest friends know it, too.” He didn’t look at Mack.

  Avery looked for him. Mack was smiling faintly, and he didn’t contradict that he and Colt were friends, which made Avery’s heart trill. “I’m happy for you, man,” Mack said. “I mean it. Be good to him, because Avery’s my friend, too.”

  “I hear you. Avery deserves the best.”

  “So do you,” Avery said, “whether you believe it or not.”

  Colt gave him a shy grin.

  “We all do,” Reyes said, “in whatever form we choose to seek it out or not.”

  “Amen,” Robin replied as he lifted his beer.

  They all raised their drinks and “hear, hear”-ed the sentiment. The group broke up not long after, and Avery found himself alone with a beaming Colt. He loved seeing Colt smiling so widely, but it also worried him a bit. They’d agreed Colt could tell Mack, but something about Colt’s declaration that Avery was his person felt way more permanent than what they’d discussed. More impulsive than Avery was comfortable with.

  But he didn’t want to crush Colt’s joy by bringing it up, so Avery left it alone for now. “So that went well, I think,” he said.

  “Hell, yeah, it did.” Colt tipped back the last of his beer. “Goddamn if it didn’t feel like old times.”

  “I’m glad. I like knowing you’ll be happy and have friends surrounding you when I’m gone.”

  “Yeah.”

  Avery scooted across the floor so he was sitting next to Colt. His hands still looked red and raw, so Avery took Colt’s left hand and began a gentle massage of his palm. “So a skunk, huh?”

  Colt snorted. “All the years I’ve lived here, I’ve smelled a few but never been cornered by one. Couldn’t chance it was rabid, you know?”

  “It was a smart move.” Avery rubbed over Colt’s knuckles. “How about I rub some lotion on your fingers? They look sore.”

  “Okay.”

  Avery rose, then helped Colt stand. He directed Colt to sit on the bed, while he fetched a bottle of hand lotion from the bathroom. Sat beside Colt and angled them both so they were facing each other more directly. Colt presented his right hand; Avery squirted some lotion on his own hand and proceeded to smooth it along Colt’s fingers.

  Not a thing about it was sexual, but Avery’s balls tingled with arousal as he smoothed creamy lotion across Colt’s skin. Colt’s breathing sped up a fraction, but Avery didn’t look at his lap. He simply concentrated on his task, working soothing lotion into Colt’s hands, over the knuckles and joints, from fingertips to wrists.

  Avery was half hard by the time he finished, leaving Colt’s hands resting boneless in his lap. He dared look up. Colt’s eyes were half lidded, his cheeks flushed bright red, a funny mix of a man on the precipice of orgasm and ready to pass out all at once.

  “I don’t think I can move my hands,” Colt said, his voice thick with arousal. “You broke them.”

  “That’s a shame. You have very skilled hands.”

  “Yeah. You might have to help me undress for bed.”

  Avery quirked an eyebrow at him. “Oh? If you’re that broken, perhaps I should have Patrice come take a look at you.”

  Colt pouted. “Spoilsport.” He flopped backward onto the bed, making the mattress bounce slightly. His knees fell apart, and Avery couldn’t miss the telltale erection.

  “Well,” he said slowly, “since I was the one to break you, I suppose I can lend a helping hand.”

  “Yeah?” Colt flashed him a grin. “Maybe start with the pants? They’re a tad uncomfortable.”

  Avery snickered as he reached for Colt’s belt. The soft, worn leather was giving him ideas, so he pulled it free from Colt’s jeans and set it aside. Then he worked Colt’s fly. Colt lifted his hips, so Avery could pull his jeans and boxers down together. They got tangled around Colt’s boots, and that was just fine with Avery. He tugged until Colt was lying lengthwise on the bed, then tugged Colt’s shirt up to his wrists. The belt was too tempting, so he looped the soft leather around the T-shirt, securing Colt’s wrists above his head.

  Naked, trapped and on display like that was Avery’s favorite way to see Colt, and his own dick swelled with appreciation for Colt’s gorgeous body. Avery tickled around his navel just to hear Colt laugh. Colt’s erection lay heavy and hard against his lower belly, the head already leaking clear fluid.

  “If I told you to, would you stay like this all night?” Avery asked.

  “Yes, Sir.” No hesitation.

  “Good, pet. Good.” Avery slipped so easily from himself to Colt’s Dom, like he truly was both people at the same time. Only ever with Colt, though. No one else had ever made Avery want so much.

  And that scared him to death sometimes, especially in moments like this when a simple hand massage had turned into a scene. He’d give Colt whatever he needed, but sometimes he wished Colt simply needed him. Not Sir.

  “I won’t do that tonight, because you had a hard day,” Avery said.

  “Whatever you want, Sir.”

  Avery’s gut clenched hard. He undid his own pants and pulled out his erection. Gave the head a firm squeeze. Colt’s fiery gaze watched his hands, lips already parted, as if waiting for this gift to suck. “God, you’re a perfect sub,” Avery whispered. “Look at me.”

  Colt dragged his gaze up to meet Avery’s, and Avery began to jerk himself off. Hard, steady strokes up and down his shift, using his own precome to slick his way. Looking down at Colt, bound and displayed for Avery and no one else, was the best kind of live porn, and it didn’t take long for Avery’s orgasm to hit. It ripped down his spine and out his dick as he unloaded all over Colt’s belly and cock.

  And Colt watched him the entire time with lust and adoration in his eyes, trembling all over with his own excitement and need for release. Avery could easily deny him that, but he wouldn’t. Not tonight. Avery sat next to Colt’s hip, curled his hand around Colt’s thick cock, and then used his own spend to smooth the way as he stroked Colt to completion. Colt cried out as he came, splattering his stomach and chest. One small drop even made it to his chin.

  Avery stroked him through it, not stopping until Colt whined in discomfort. He scooted up the bed to kiss Colt, thrust
ing his tongue inside to claim his man. His Colt.

  I love you stayed in the forefront of his mind the entire time Avery helped Colt clean up and get tucked into bed. It stayed with him as he did the same. But he didn’t say it out loud.

  Not yet, not until Avery was certain that if Colt said it back, he’d mean he loved Avery for exactly the man he was, and not the man Colt imagined him to be.

  CHAPTER NINE

  Avery paces the length of his studio, anxious because Colt is late for their weekly appointment. He’s never been late, always at least five minutes early, and Avery’s phone call and texts are unanswered. He can’t help worry, not only that something has happened to Colt—SWAT is a dangerous job, after all—but also that maybe Colt decided he doesn’t need Avery’s services anymore.

  This thought hurts more than any other, because Avery genuinely enjoys his sessions with Colt. He’s a remarkably responsive sub who enjoys giving up control to Avery. And they talk, maybe more than is professionally necessary, but Avery now considers Colt a friend.

  Maybe I scared him away last week.

  His stomach sours. In Avery’s line of work, it isn’t unusual for a client, especially a male one, to become sexually aroused during a scene. He always offers the bathroom to anyone who needs to situate matters before driving home, but Avery has never gotten aroused himself.

  Until last week. Until Colt. Avery can’t describe the feelings that washed over him as he covered Colt’s back in red marks and the occasional welt. The way he so easily slips into subspace now, after working together for only a few months. The sweet way he gasped and panted for more. The desperate way he counted down the final four lashes.

  He’s the perfect sub, and last week, Avery got hard for that perfect sub, and Colt noticed. He didn’t say a word, but he saw Avery’s tented jeans.

  Oh God, what if I somehow triggered him by getting hard. His last Dom was an abusive bastard, and I said our sessions were not about sex, and then I spring wood!?

  Avery grabs a bottle of water from the fridge, cracks the lid, and then squeezes it all over the floor when the doorbell rings. He puts it on the counter and dashes to the door, relief at seeing Colt on his doorstep draining into alarm at the sight of the man. Colt’s face is red, his eyes puffy, and he’s shaking all over.