Past Hurts (Sizzling Miami Book 1)

by Jessie G

  “You’re a little out of practice.” As if reading his mind, Alaric gripped his chin and drew his head up. “And that’s okay. Gives us something to build on.”

  “Uh huh.” Between his racing heart, seizing lungs, and the inner voice shouting that the orgasm would have been worth the punishment, that was the closest he could get to yes, Ric.

  But Alaric didn’t call him on it this time. Instead, he shifted his chair around until they were closer and ordered, “Stand up.”

  It took some effort, but Davin finally managed to stand, then raised each foot as Alaric skimmed his shorts away. “Turn around and grip the seat of the chair.”

  Half twisted, Davin faltered as the full meaning of that request sank in. If he followed through, Alaric would see the scars no one except his doctor had ever seen. He worried that Alaric saw them in the shower, but when he didn’t say anything, Davin struggled to find the right time to tell him. When that time was, he didn’t know, but this definitely wasn’t it.

  “Are you saying no?” When Davin shook his head to say, no, he wasn’t saying no, Alaric dropped his hands and sat all the way back in his seat. “You’re allowed to say no if that’s what you need to do, but I would like you to tell me what’s wrong.”

  “I’m not saying no and nothing’s wrong, exactly, it’s just—” Davin waved a hand at his body, which did nothing to explain the situation, and murmured, “I have scars.”

  “I know.” Alaric’s smile was filled with understanding, but Davin wasn’t sure if that meant Alaric had seen them or he was just assuming. “Will you trust me with them?”

  Trust. For Alaric, it was the key to every successful relationship, be it business or personal. He was willing to work hard to earn it and expected others to do the same. Break his trust, and he would have no trouble walking away forever. Like so many other things, it had come naturally between them and they never questioned it so much as they did this last week.

  Knowing Alaric spent eight years trying to figure out how he broke Davin’s trust gave him the strength to turn around, bend over, and grip the seat of his chair. “I trust you, Ric. With me, with my scars, with everything.”

  Though the position left him exposed and vulnerable, he meant those words with his whole heart and that made it easy to stay still while Alaric looked his fill. Finally, he heard the creak of the chair, felt the air move, and then Alaric’s hands were curving around his upper thighs. “Thank you.”

  Before he could respond, Alaric leaned in and placed a soft kiss on one cheek, then nibbled gently on the other. “Thank you,” he repeated as his hands slid up until they followed the curve of his ass.

  “Thank you for letting me look,” he said as he pulled the muscular globes apart, revealing the skin within.

  “Thank you for letting me touch,” he murmured as he stroked the sensitive flesh until Davin shivered.

  “Thank you for letting me taste,” he whispered just before his tongue followed the same path as his finger. Then he did it again, flicking his tongue over the marks Davin knew was there, paying homage and blowing his mind all at once. “Say my name.”

  “Ric.”

  “That’s right and just like the rest of your body, these belong to me now. Say it.” Between the words, Alaric licked, nibbled and kissed the entire area, claiming them as his own.

  “Yes, Ric, they’re yours now.”

  “What happens if you come without permission?”

  “You spank me.”

  The clink of ice against the glass was his only warning before the he felt the liquid drip into his crease. Davin didn’t know how something so cold could make him so hot, but when Alaric rimmed him with it, then pressed the melting cube inside, his whole body went on alert. Alaric didn’t give him a chance to adjust as he dove in, lapping up the water and him like a starving man.

  “Ric…fuck. Fuck…Ric.” It was a litany as Davin desperately tried to remain upright. Another ice cube was inserted, more solid than the first, and Alaric was right there to get his fill. Davin was so lost in the contrast of cold and hot, of the firm grip on his ass and the gentle tongue turning him inside out, that he didn’t realize Alaric had worked a finger into him until he was fully impaled. “Please, Ric…so close. Please, let me… Please, Ric…”

  “Let you come?” Another ice cube was presented, and Alaric used two fingers to press it inside, using the water to ease his entrance. “Did you just ask me to let you come?”

  “No. Yes… Oh fuck… I mean…” Davin didn’t know what he meant. He didn’t know anything beyond Alaric’s fingers in his ass and the slide of his tongue around them.

  “Maybe you want a spanking more than you want my cock.”

  Just the thought had him clenching in anticipation. Alaric’s hands were right there, and Davin was in the perfect position. If he chose, Alaric could deliver a sharp slap without even getting up. One stinging blow that would have blood rushing to turn his pale flesh pink—Alaric loved that color on him.

  As much as he wanted that, and he did, there was one thing he needed more. “Cock.”

  “What?”

  “I want…your cock… Please, Ric.”

  Alaric released him instantly and stood to ease him around. Davin went easily, allowing Alaric to pull him in and then burrowing close because it wasn’t enough. “Are you okay?”

  “Yes, better than. Will you—” Davin had to clear his throat before he could say, “Will you please make love to me, Ric?”

  “I do love the way you ask.” Leaning back, he tipped Davin’s chin up to assess his stability. “Can you walk?”

  “I think so.” He wanted this so much, he’d be willing to crawl if that’s what it took.

  “Good. I’m going to lock up the house. I want you to go into the bedroom and wait for me at the foot of the bed.”

  “On the bed?” Davin asked, not wanting to get it wrong.

  “No, just stand at the foot of it.”

  “Yes, Ric.”

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  Alaric

  The sight of Davin standing at the foot of the bed with his back to the door brought him up short. He’d never had a preference for a bed frame, but the sudden image of Davin bound to the foot of a four-poster bed, standing just the way he was now, rocked him to the core.

  “Turn around.” There was something to be said for arrogance and in that moment, with the desperation receding enough, Davin found it. It was exactly what Alaric wanted, for Davin to find both pleasure and power in what they did together. “I’m not sure which I like best. The frustrated pout, the blissed-out haze, or the all-powerful sex slave.”

  “I won’t make you choose just one.” Davin was all seduction now, with deep bedroom eyes and an even deeper bedroom voice that lured him forward.

  Alaric resisted, if only to tug the connection between them tighter. “There is one I missed. Total loving adoration.”

  “You can have that anytime,” Davin purred. “Why not shoot for a new look?”

  “A challenge, then?”

  “You do like a challenge.”

  “I do very much.” Crossing the distance, Alaric stripped down under Davin’s very attentive gaze. “But tonight, I have something else in mind.”

  “Does it include fucking me sideways?”

  “No, Davin.” He moved right into Davin’s space, caressed his jaw, and whispered, “We’re going to make love, just like you asked.”

  Completely undone, Davin reached for him. “I’d love that.”

  He was counting on it. “Lay on the bed. I’ll get what we need.”

  Alaric allowed himself a second to watch Davin stretch out, tuck a pillow under his head, and offer him a shy smile. Seeing it again, after that brief display of arrogance, made his stomach flutter. They’d been cycling through emotions quickly, and he just hoped it was a good thing and not something Davin would regret later.

  “Aren’t you supposed to be getting something?” Davin teased when he continued to stare.
<
br />   “Brat.” But he was right. Alaric found the supplies in the drawer, tossed them on the bed, and then he was sliding over all that warm, golden skin. He didn’t stop until he had Davin’s mouth, softening the usual harsh lines and pushing his way inside. One kiss led to another as they touched and teased, relearning all the sensitive spots and exploiting them. He didn’t even mind when Davin rolled him onto his back, pressing him down with that impressive physique. It wasn’t how they’d finish, but he loved everything about Davin’s body.

  “Let me please you.”

  “You do please me.” But Alaric nodded and threaded his fingers behind his head to keep from touching.

  Sliding over him so they touched everywhere, Davin licked and nibbled a haphazard path to his nipples, then he used teeth and tongue to work them into painful points. Alaric loved being on the receiving end of Davin’s attention and that more than the nipple play had him moaning softly. Davin responded by moving further down, mapping the defined contours of his abs and hip bones until he was a breath from Alaric’s cock.

  “Let me taste you.” This time, he didn’t wait for permission. With a strangled cry, he lunged forward and swallowed as much of Alaric as he could. The shock of it had Alaric crunching up, grabbing a handful of dark hair for purchase, and shouting his own pleasure. When Davin didn’t stop, he tugged until those dark eyes were looking up at him and warned, “Just a taste, Dav. Don’t make me come.”

  With his mouth full, it was impossible for Davin to respond, but Alaric knew he would be good. They both wanted a different ending to this encounter, and he knew Davin wouldn’t risk missing out. But he wasn’t done exploring yet either and pushed Alaric to the edge more than once before he took over and rolled them again.

  Before Davin could get his bearings, Alaric was between his thighs and tearing open a condom. “I want to see your face when I’m inside you.”

  “You don’t have to use that. I mean—” Davin blushed. “You were my first and only. The other…it doesn’t have to count. I’ve been tested a lot—for work and my own peace of mind—so I could do this with you now. So, if you think it’s okay, can we…not?”

  Alaric didn’t have to be asked twice. He tossed the packet aside, filled his palm with lube and slicked his cock before reaching between them. “I have to be inside you.”

  “I need you there.” Davin angled, giving Alaric the access he needed to properly prepare him. Thankfully, he was still slick and relaxed from their game at dinner, so it didn’t take much to get him there. Normally, he would take more time just to drive Davin crazy, but they both needed this too much to wait.

  Nudging forward, Alaric felt Davin breathe out as he pushed in, easing the way until he was surrounded in heat. “Fuck you’re tight. Am I hurting you?”

  “No, you feel amazing.” To back up his words, Davin pulled his legs up and wrapped them around Alaric’s hips, using the leverage to draw him in to the hilt.

  “Damn you.” His plan to give Davin time to adjust was shot and all he could do was hook those massive legs over his forearms, pull back, and thrust hard. Beneath him, Davin arched into it, taking every inch and crying out his encouragement. “I want you to come with me, not before.”

  “I won’t, Ric. I swear I won’t.”

  Every time Davin said his name like that—whether he whispered it, groaned it, or shouted out to the universe—Alaric wanted to pound his chest and shout back ‘mine.’ It was better than any honorific could ever be and while he respected those who found pleasure in those more defined roles, he only ever needed to be Davin’s Ric.

  “So close, Ric.” For every ‘Ric,’ he thrust harder, deeper, adjusting the angle until Davin was feeling him everywhere. “Please, Ric.”

  “Not until I say,” he warned, shifting again so that every stroke glided over that hidden bundle of nerves. When Davin arched, every muscle clenching in desperation, Alaric slammed him down and pinned him to the bed. “Think you can buck me off, Detective? For that, I’m going to make you wait longer.”

  “No, Ric, please,” he whimpered and squeezed his eyes shut when Alaric slowed his pace. “I’ll be good, Ric.”

  “Look at me, Davin.” Alaric backed up the order by stilling completely. Buried deep, chest heaving, he knew that were both close, but he wouldn’t finish them off until he could see Davin’s eyes. “You feel so good around me. So tight and hot and perfect and…fuck. I was willing to wait as long as you needed, but fuck, Dav, I missed you. I missed being connected to you. I missed feeling your heart pounding against mine as your body welcomed me inside. I missed the way you clench around me, as if you never want to let me go.”

  “Ric, please.” Davin’s eyes fluttered open and the small whimper coupled with the wide-eyed wonder staring up was all he needed to start moving again.

  “I’m right here.” Alaric groaned when Davin’s whole body tightened, pulling him in and holding him so deep. “I’ve got you.”

  “Ric, I need you to…” Arching hard, Davin demanded, “Fill me up, Ric.”

  “Not yet.” He wasn’t going to be able to hold out much longer and they both knew it, but he also wasn’t going to give in that easily. “Do you feel me inside you, branding you and owning you in a way no other man ever will? I own you, Davin, and I’m the only one who gets to have you like this. Do you understand? I’ve always owned you. Now say it.”

  “You fucking own me, Ric, you always have. I feel you and only you. Forever.”

  “Now come with me.” The command was like detonating a bomb, setting off an orgasm that ripped through them so that it was impossible to tell where one ended and the other began. Someone shouted, maybe they both did, as the bed shook under the force.

  In the aftermath, Davin clung and hid his face against Alaric’s throat. “Ric?”

  “Hmm?”

  “Don’t let me go.”

  “Never.”

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  Davin

  “Do you smell that?” Wrapped in Alaric's long limbs, his body soft and sated from three amazing orgasms, Davin had no interest in getting up to investigate what had woken him. But he also couldn’t ignore it either. Was there a fire nearby?

  “Bacon.”

  “Bacon,” Davin repeated curiously. Up until last night, they were the only two in the house and they were both still in bed. Did that mean they were no longer alone? “Claire?”

  “Who else?”

  “What time is it?”

  “Don’t know.” The arm-shaped pillow beneath his head flexed meaningfully. “You have my arm trapped.”

  Davin didn’t lift his head from said arm or his leg from where it was trapped between Alaric’s and wouldn’t unless he absolutely had to. “If we don’t come out, will she go away?”

  “Doubtful. The bedroom door is closed.”

  And that was only important because they had left it open the night before. Shit. “We were covered, right?”

  Alaric opened one eye and looked down at them. “Looks that way.”

  “You don’t sound surprised.”

  “That they are here?” Alaric rolled until his face was buried in Davin’s hair and murmured, “No, I’m not surprised.”

  “You’re pissed.” More awake than he wanted to be, Davin considered Alaric’s clipped answers and realized what he was hearing. Alaric might not be surprised, but he was angry. “Are you mad at them?”

  “Hmm.”

  “Don’t hmm. Talk to me.”

  “You’re not ready to deal with them.”

  “You don’t have to protect me from your parents, Ric.”

  “Someone has to.” Alaric huffed out a frustrated breath and finally lifted his head, treating him to a tired glare. “I know you care about them and I know they need to see that you’re all right. But they’re looking for forgiveness and your heart is too soft to make them earn it. So, yes, I will protect you, and yes, I do expect them to back off when I tell them you need space.”

  “But then they wouldn
’t be your parents.” He appreciated Alaric’s protective nature, but he didn’t want the Bennetts at odds over him. “They’ve always counted on you to understand their needs.”

  “Well, sometimes I don’t.”

  Davin didn’t believe that for a second. Alaric was their rock, their foundation, one-hundred percent solid and completely dependable. “You understand mine.”

  “That’s different. I adore you.”

  Flushing with happiness, Davin pointed out, “And you adore Claire-bear.”

  “Definitely, not the same.”

  “Okay.” What else could he say? “We’ll just lay here and wait them out.”

  As Davin snuggled back down, he knew Alaric wasn’t going to be able to lay there for long. Be it his anger, his sense of obligation, or the alluring smell of breakfast cooking, Alaric would give in and Davin knew it. More importantly, or possibly worse, so did Alaric’s parents.

  “I just don’t want you to be hurt again.”

  He honestly didn’t know why Alaric thought the couple that had always only been accepting of him was somehow dangerous to him, but he did know Alaric wouldn’t let anything happen to him. “I know.”

  “I love my family, but they take more than they give. Don’t be so free with yourself.”

  “The only person I’m free with is you.”

  “Promise me, Davin, guard your heart.”

  “No, I gave it back to you. It’s not mine to protect anymore.” Though Alaric had already taken on the responsibility, Davin thought it important to remind him that he had happily given Alaric control over this aspect of their lives. “I want to feel what I feel and if you think I’m in danger of getting hurt again, I trust you to protect me.”

  “Fine,” he sighed dramatically. “Let’s go get some bacon.”

  Fifteen minutes later, Davin walked out into the living room alone. Alaric had asked him to wait, but he felt like it would have been even more awkward if they strolled out of the bedroom together. Didn’t matter that they were grown men in their thirties or that everyone knew they were having sex; he still didn’t feel comfortable broadcasting it.