Celestial Seductions: The Complete Series: An MM Gay Paranormal Mpreg Romance Collection

by Odin Nightshade

  Josh leaned forward and pressed his forehead against his own. Chad closed his eyes and did not pull away. How could his touch feel so good and so wrong at the same time? He wanted it, but he was not supposed to. His brain knew that but his heart was not listening.

  “Chad...tell me what I did wrong,” Josh whispered.

  Chad held back the tears that were threatening to flow. Did Josh honestly think that he had done something wrong? Had he thought that the entire time?

  He shook his head. “Nothing.” he whispered. That was as much as he could trust himself to say.

  Chad felt a hand beneath his chin and his face was raised so that their lips met once more. This time, the kiss was tender and sweet.

  “Come to the wedding.” Josh spoke against his lips.

  “I am going to the wedding.” Chad replied, voice stony. They broke apart, and Josh took one of his hands in his own.

  “At least let me drive you there, then. To the rehearsal dinner, too. You should be there, and why not come with me?” Chad felt a gentle squeeze on his hand.

  “Josh, I can’t.” He sighed.

  “Why?” Josh asked. “Ashley won’t even notice. She’s too happy having you back around, and too distracted...Come with me.”

  Chad laughed. He made it all sound so simple.

  “It’s not a good idea.” He was trying to stay firm but the goofy grin on the handsome face opposite him was making it difficult. Despite his churning guts, it made him want to smile. How could part of him feel so utterly happy, even while he felt about to be sick with worry? Kissing Josh had just made everything much more complicated. He should have kept his distance.

  Even now, though, he knew that staying away from Josh was practically impossible.

  “Chad, I promise, if you never want to see me again after the wedding, I will leave you alone.” Josh said, sudden and resolutely.

  Chad could see the determination in his face. Josh was not going to give up until he said yes, was he?

  Chad rubbed his temple. Two dates with Josh and he would promise to stay away forever. That was what he wanted, wasn’t it?

  With a deep sigh, Chad agreed. He only hoped that he could go through with it and come out unscathed. No matter how he tried to rationalize it, Chad was certain that he was on the fast track to a broken heart.

  Chapter 9

  The next evening, Josh was sitting at a local bar sharing drinks with his buddies when he had the sudden urge to leave. All evening, women had been throwing themselves at him. Apparently a recent magazine article had labeled him the country’s hunkiest bachelor and, upon finding out that he was in town, the women had come out in droves.

  He did not want to see any of them. The only person he wanted to see, to spend time with, was Chad. After yesterday, his body was still on fire after their contact. How could he think about anyone else?

  He had called Chad, to ask if he wanted to go to dinner that night, but he had refused. He had rushed through the phone call and hung up without much explanation and seemed distracted. Josh sighed. He hoped that he was not regretting his decision to attend the wedding events as his date.

  Josh sighed again and looked around him at the bar, at the people looking at him with avarice and greed. This was not where he wanted to be. He wanted to see Chad.

  As he made his polite excuses and hurried on his way, noticing to his surprise that he was a little unsteady on his feet, he thought about the longing that drove him out into the night.

  There had never been anyone for him except Chad. Somehow, he needed to prove to him that they were meant to be together. Even though Chad said that he was not interested, his actions had told him otherwise. There was no denying the passion that flowed between them. Chad might not want to admit it, but it was right there at the surface every time that they met.

  On a whim, perhaps fueled by alcohol, Josh decided to go to Chad’s apartment. He needed to see him, to feel him, to know that he was not going to change his mind and run away from him again.

  The door to the apartment building was locked. Even if it had not been, he had no idea which unit belonged to Chad, even so. He decided to throw caution to the wind and call for him.

  By the time he had shouted his name four times, half the building was awake.

  Chad stepped out onto a second-floor balcony and stared down to where Josh stood in the grass.

  “Josh! Go away!” He was attempting to keep his voice down. One of the neighbors shouted for them to be quiet, while a female neighbor offered to let Josh into her own apartment.

  “Chad, let me up.” He stood beneath his balcony and spoke as quietly as possible.

  “Are you drunk?” he hissed.

  “Yup.” He smiled. “I just wanted to talk to you.”

  Chad had a look of panic on his face that Josh did not understand.

  “Go away, Josh. We can talk tomorrow.” He rolled his eyes eyes at him, evidencing his frustration.

  Josh evaluated the situation, and made the only decision that seemed appropriate at the time. He scaled the side of the building until he was able to pull himself up over the edge of Chad’s balcony.

  There Josh stood, wearing a towel bathrobe, his arms crossed over his chest and a look of pure agony on his face.

  Josh wasted no time. He walked over to him, grabbed him by the shoulders, and kissed him.

  After a moment he pulled away but continued to hold him.

  “Chad Stone, I am in love with you. I know that…” He never got to finish the thought because a moment later a small voice piped up behind him and he felt as if the floor had fallen out from beneath him.

  “Daddy? Is that a burger-lar?”

  Chad instantly took control. That was a good thing because Josh stood frozen after he turned to face the small blonde-haired girl who was the spitting image of Chad.

  “No honey. This isn’t a burglar. It’s just an old friend.” He shuffled the tiny girl back inside and Josh could still hear Chad talking. “Let’s get you back in bed, sweetie.”

  “I love you, daddy.” The tiny voice was already yawning.

  “I love you too, Emmy. Sweet dreams.”

  When Chad came back out onto the balcony he did not speak to Josh.

  “I didn’t know you had a daughter.” Josh stated dumbly.

  “Well, now you do.” Chad crossed his arms over his chest once more. He seemed annoyed.

  “How old is she?”

  “Three.”

  Josh breathed in, making swift calculations. If she was three, then...then she must have been conceived the same summer he had really met Chad; the summer of his graduation. Had he been seeing someone then, a woman? He must have been. The sense of betrayal, of hurt, surprised Josh. He breathed in shakily, struggling to control it.

  “I suppose...well, you didn't get her from me, that's for sure.” Josh laughed, shakily.

  “Well, no. What chance that that could happen?” Chad said, blankly, and turned his back on him.

  Josh stood looking after him, face twisted with sadness, as he returned into the brighter light of the apartment, closing the door behind him.

  Chapter 10

  Chad lay in bed, sleeplessly, agonizing over the lie that he had told Josh. He could not have pretended that there had been any partners before him: Josh was well aware of the fact that there had not been. There had been no lovers after him that summer, men or women. There had been no lovers since him, period.

  Emmy was Josh Holmes's daughter.

  Even now, even after living with the the strange anomaly that had made such a thing possible for his entire life, the admission seemed utterly ludicrous. How could he possibly tell Josh something so radically unlikely? What chance did he have of being believed? He did not want to have to explain himself, especially not to Josh. His childhood shame was a wall between them, shutting him in and shutting Josh out.

  In a few days, Josh would be gone. Then, he could make him hold true to his promise and stay out of his life for good. He
never had to know, did he?

  Josh was sleeping on the couch on the other side of the thin apartment wall. Chad had let him in after Emmy had fallen asleep, hoping that he would sleep off the stupor and leave before Emmy woke in the morning. With any luck, the tired child would not remember the incident.

  Chad heard him roll over and groan. Heavy footsteps crossed the room, and he entered the bathroom. What was he doing in the shower?

  Chad continued to listen for a few minutes before he was certain. Yes, the man was taking a shower in the early hours of the morning, in his apartment.

  He squeezed his eyes shut. That was the sort of image that he had been trying to force out of him mind. Unfortunately, his mind provided a surplus of imagery of Josh in the shower that made him blush in the darkness.

  Shortly afterward, there was a soft knock on his bedroom door.

  Chad called for him to enter, noting with some pride that his voice was even and unaffected. Then, all of a sudden, there Josh stood looking fresh, clean, and alert.

  He entered the room and shut the door behind him.

  “I just wanted to apologize for my behavior tonight.” He whispered. He was apparently very concerned about volume now that he knew there was a child in the other room. “If I had known that you had a child I wouldn’t have… well, I wouldn’t have been so loud.”

  He sat down on the edge of the bed; his hip rested against Chad's thigh and Chad suddenly felt flushed.

  Josh gave a self-depreciating smile.

  “I still would have showed up, though. I just wouldn’t have been so loud out there.” He held his hand in his own. “Chad, we need to talk.”

  “Josh…” He pressed a finger to his lips to silence him.

  “No, Chad.” His thumb rubbed circles on his wrist. “No matter what happened tonight. I meant what I said.”

  Chad was surprised to find a lump in his throat. He swallowed, painfully and cleared his throat, wanting to speak.

  No, he schooled himself, he would not give in to this ridiculous dream. He might be here for the weekend, but once Josh left he would be stuck picking up all of the shattered pieces of his life. And Josh would leave. He knew enough about Josh's reputation to be certain of that.

  “Tell me the truth.” Josh whispered.

  Chad shook his head. He did not know which truth Josh was asking him about, but it did not matter. He had so many truths that he was unwilling to share.

  “Just answer one question.” Josh pleaded. “Alright, maybe two.”

  Chad’s laugh was combined with a strangled sob.

  “When you told me that what we had meant nothing…did you mean it?” Josh asked. His eyes were dark, tormented.

  The silence rang between them for what felt like ages. Slowly, Chad shook his head.

  Josh breathed a sigh of relief, as if that answer meant everything to him.

  “Was there something that I did to push you away? Was there something I could have done different?” His voice was full of emotion now. They both understood the weight of these questions.

  “That is too many questions.” Chad attempted to distract him with humor.

  “Answer the question, Chad.”

  “No.” Chad answered and a lone tear slipped down his cheek.

  “To which question?” He asked for clarification.

  “Both.”

  His answer was brutal, but true. It had not been Josh's fault, but no matter what he had done he would have still made the same choice. He had been protecting Josh's future, at the risk of his own, and that was a decision that he refused to regret.

  “Do you still care for me?” Josh asked, his voice quiet.

  When Chad nodded, he knew that all hope was lost. He had given his heart to Josh a long time ago and even now, all these years later, he could not resist him.

  He could not remember how it had happened, but somehow, suddenly, Josh was kissing him with all of the pent up emotion that they had both been hiding for so many years.

  Chad wrapped his arms around his chest, and pulled himself against him. The real truth was that he wanted this time with him, even if it only lasted one night.

  Josh’s hands roamed over his body, stroking his chest, and Chad felt a shiver run through his skin. Chad deepened their kiss and cried out against his mouth when Josh’s hand moved to his waist, and lower.

  Chad experienced a moment of fright as he imagined Josh seeing the slender scar that ran across his belly, so he reached over to turn the lights down low, before allowing his desire to regain control. He had secretly dreamed about this night for years. He had imagined that they would make slow, passionate love until the sun came up. Now that it was really happening, he realized that slow was not an option. He wanted him. Now.

  Chad’s hands moved to Josh’s waist and began pulling at his shirt; at first slowly, and then with more urgency as Josh caressed him. Eventually, he succeeded in pulling the shirt over his head and tossed somewhere into the far shadows of the room.

  The moment that he was free, Josh’s mouth was back on his. Chad smiled against him, touched by the level of his desire. He pulled the sheets back to let him in. Josh hastily discarded the rest of his clothing before slipping beneath the covers.

  They lay down beside each other and reveled in the feel of each others bodies, so close after so long. Josh was even more muscular than his college self, Chad realized. He, on the other hand, seemed completely fascinated with the harder musculature of Chad's shoulders, and his still-narrow waist.

  Chad, still in his boxer shorts, wanted to feel his hands on his skin, so he pressed himself against his hand to communicate his need. Josh peeled the underwear off him with surprising deftness. Then, his mouth made its journey over his chin and down his neck.

  As his tongue licked him, Josh wrapped an arm around Chad's waist and pulled their hips firmly together. What Chad felt made him grin, delighted by the rising desire he felt in Josh. He shifted his hips against him, which resulted in a low, masculine chuckle from the man beside him.

  Josh was toying with him, clearly, and it was working. He was so wound up that he was afraid that he might snap at any moment. He curled his fingers into Josh's hair and pressed himself against him once more.

  “I can't wait anymore...” he whispered.

  Josh slid onto his side and smiled down at the only person, he realized slowly, that he had ever cared about.

  “You’re getting bossier with age!” He teased, only to have Chad press himself insistently against him.

  Josh felt a sudden jolt like electricity inside him. He had deliberately been prolonging their encounter, as he did not want to scare Chad away by appearing overzealous. However, the effect of the teasing was diminished as they both felt the result of the altered position.

  Josh could feel the length of himself pressing against the warmth of Chad beside him. From the look in his eyes, Chad really could not hold out much longer than he could.

  “You were saying?” Chad was staring at him with raised eyebrows, daring him to delay any longer.

  Josh covered his mouth with his own and muttered an incoherent response. Chad shifted himself even closer, and Josh could bear it no longer.

  He eased himself inside of him and it was suddenly as if all was right in the world. He had never felt a connection like the one that he shared with Chad. This was what he had been missing. He was what he needed.

  Slowly, he began to move inside of him. Chad’s hips met his every thrust and they moved together as if they had been partners all of these long years.

  His breath was ragged, matching Chad's quiet gasps and moans of pleasure, and he could tell that he was ready. As he heard his breathing get faster, he pressed himself even further inside of him.

  Chad cried out and Josh felt the pressure building inside him, about to overcome him. With a driving force he carried them both over the edge and into a world of sheer bliss.

  Chapter 11

  The following morning Chad woke to a cold bed. Jo
sh was gone.

  He was not sure whether or not he was happy about that. Of course, his absence would mean that there would be no questions from Emmy, but at the same time, a small part of him was hurt that he would disappear into the night without a word.

  That was when he heard it. The tiny tinkle of laughter that could only come from a child. Emmy was awake. Chad looked at the clock and groaned. How had he slept in? He never slept in. If anything, Emmy would wake him as soon as the little girl was up herself.

  He threw on a pair of sweatpants and a tank top, the first two that came to hand, brushed his hair and teeth, and left the room.

  “Daddy, look! We makes eggs while you sleeped.”

  Josh was sitting cross-legged on the floor with Emmy, and they were coloring in Emmy’s princess color-book at the coffee table.

  Chad stared at the duo with wide eyes. He was sure that Josh could see the panic on his face.

  “They might need to be warmed up, but there is a plate for you.” Josh’s expression was guarded. He was waiting for him to react now.

  As if on autopilot, Chad went to the kitchen and collected his meal. Beside his plate was a mug of coffee. He did not know whether or not to believe that this was real. Was Josh really here, in his house, coloring with his daughter?

  He ate his eggs in silence, perched on the arm of the couch, while he watched Josh and Emmy playing.

  Emmy obviously had no qualms about the man. Chad wondered how he would explain it when he left.

  “Mr. Josh said that he knew you when you was little.” Emmy stood up to reach a crayon and her small, tousled head slammed into Josh’s chin. Chad grimaced.

  “Sorry.” Emmy turned with wide eyes, afraid that she had harmed her new friend. With two tiny hands she reached up to Josh’s face, touching the site of impact.

  “There.” She said, grinning and confident. “All better?”

  “All better.” Josh confirmed.