Drawing the Devil

by Jon Keys

  Shane erupted first and grabbed Dustin’s hard nipples and twisted them. Legs capable of keeping Dustin on two thousand pounds of angry bull clamped around Shane. Dustin rode him passionately as Shane filled the condom.

  The first molten line of Dustin’s come shot across Shane’s torso as the final waves of climax washed over him. Dustin rode Shane as his body shot streams of semen over them. Shane’s arms began to shake as a last tremor slid through him, and he dropped onto Dustin.

  Dustin threw his arms out wide, lost in bliss. “Fuck. What did you do to me?”

  Dustin sat staring at the ground while Shane did the few things needed to break down the camp. Usually he helped, or at least tried to. Shane never let him do much. This time he was obsessing over bottoming for Shane. His emotions about the night before were far from resolved. He’d never bottomed, not for anyone. But ever since their first night in the hotel room, he’d wanted Shane to fuck him. Shane’s touch, his shyness, those incredible lips—they had changed Dustin.

  Dustin never understood how Shane could miss how sexy he was. He’s so obsessed about that scar. I just don’t get it. Dustin lost himself in Shane’s eyes every time they looked at each other. Those little flecks of gold flashed through them when Shane was frustrated with him. Scar and all, he found Shane incredibly desirable. Dustin shifted in his chair, and the slight ache in his butt brought his thoughts back to last night.

  Am I just a pussy now? Am I the girl? Damn, it was good, but I like being the guy. Doubt and guilt whirled through Dustin’s body as he reconciled his feelings. His attitude spiraled downward as doubt tore into him like a rank bull’s horns. Shane kicked his boot, jolting him to life.

  He stood over Dustin with folded arms and a dark expression. “What’re you pouting about? Something crawl up your butt?”

  “Ain’t nothin’ crawled up my butt, asshole. Just leave me alone.”

  Shane’s expression softened, and he squatted in front of Dustin, his hands on Dustin’s knees. “What’s wrong? This isn’t like you. I’d like to help.”

  “I don’t wanna be the girl,” Dustin blurted out.

  Shane shot him a confused look. “What?”

  Dustin ran his hand through his hair and glared at Shane. “I got fucked, now I’m the girl. I don’t want to be the girl.” There it is. I knew he was disgusted. I’m just his bitch now.

  Shane clenched his fists. “Are you fucking shitting me? That’s about the stupidest thing I’ve ever heard. Did you think I was suddenly not a guy after you screwed me? ’Cause if you did, you were fuckin’ wrong.”

  “No, but that was different,” Dustin stammered.

  “How? How was it different?”

  Dustin struggled to bring his scattered thoughts together. “I dunno. I guess because it was you, and you didn’t act like some girl afterward.”

  Shane’s eyebrows almost merged as he looked at Dustin. “Do you feel like a girl?”

  Dustin was confused by the question. “No. I still feel the same as always.”

  “So what do you think that means?”

  He shrugged, knowing he’d screwed up, but not quite understanding how.

  “If you don’t feel like a girl, then you aren’t a girl. Now quit being stupid, get off your ass and help me,” Shane said.

  Dustin moved to pack things into the back of the pickup and the trailer. He was still confused why things had gone so wrong. He couldn’t settle on anything. He didn’t dare tell Shane he’d forgotten his Adderall today. He didn’t want Shane to get tired of him because he was so much trouble. Sometimes he got tired of taking meds all the time, though. He realized it helped him deal with other people, but there were times he resented it. He swore to himself he would try harder to take the meds like the doctor told him he should. That might help Shane tolerate him better.

  The packing took longer than usual. Maybe it was just that Dustin’s silence was only making the knot of anger inside Shane grow and fester. His black mood hadn’t improved by the time they climbed into the truck to leave.

  They both made a few futile attempts at conversation but had become embroiled in their own thoughts. Now they had managed to cover several hundred miles in silence. Shane centered on Dustin’s confession. Why did I blow up like that? Did his question hit too close to home? Shane wrestled with the issue as mile after mile of hot, rolling prairie sped past their windows.

  “Sorry,” Shane said.

  “Yeah? About what?” Honest confusion shone in Dustin’s eyes.

  “About chewing you out earlier. I shouldn’t have done that.”

  Dustin shrugged and turned away to stare out the window. “Sometimes I have trouble following things. My dad always said I was about as sharp as a bowling ball.”

  What would I have done if my family had tossed me out like Dustin’s did? At least Shane’s parents still welcomed him in their house. After his last trip home, it appeared some of them were coming to an understanding of his life.

  Shane patted Dustin on the shoulder. “You aren’t stupid. It’s all confusing. But just because you enjoy…catching, doesn’t mean you are not a guy.”

  “But that’s how people talk. I’ve heard gay guys talk to each other like that. They call whoever takes it the bitch and use girl-part names for their butt, and shit like that.”

  “Yeah, I know what you’re talking about. I’ve probably had a few guys talk to me like that too, and I shouldn’t have let ’em.” Shane sighed, slowed the pickup and pulled to the side of the road.

  Dustin glanced around, obviously in a growing panic. “Hey. Don’t dump me out here! I’ll get my shit together, I promise.”

  Shane reached out and gripped Dustin’s shoulder. “Dustin. Calm down. I’m not going to dump you. I need to talk to you about something serious, and I want to do it without us flying down the road.”

  Dustin swallowed hard and met Shane’s eyes. “Okay, what do you need to tell me?”

  “I like you, Dustin.”

  Dustin sat frozen. Then slowly he nodded. “I like you too. You’re a cool guy.”

  Shane shook his head. “No, I mean I really like you. I mean I want to be more than convenient fuck buddies.”

  Dustin stared at Shane with his mouth hanging open, his brows almost to his hairline. “You mean, like dating? Like going steady?” He twisted in the seat, his eyes flicking to the floorboard. “I haven’t ever done that, with anyone.”

  A mischievous grin crept across Shane’s face. He reached over and grasped Dustin by the back of his neck. “I guess that’s as good a description as any. Maybe we’ll just say we’re dating. Going steady sounds a little like we sit next to each other on the bus coming home from junior high.”

  Dustin relaxed under Shane’s hand. “I guess that does sound like something kids would say.”

  He considered Shane. “So—like you’re my boyfriend?”

  Shane pulled them together. As their lips met, a spark of electricity raced through him. The depth of emotions building inside Shane brought up feelings he’d never experienced before. But he wasn’t the only one lost in warm closeness. By the time their lips separated, Dustin’s cock had formed a noticeable lump in his jeans.

  Reaching down, Shane squeezed it, and his heart quickened at Dustin’s gasp. “Yes, like your boyfriend. That’s probably easier to tell people than smoking-hot lover.”

  Dustin crumpled against the seat when Shane released him. He stared at Shane as the words sank in. “Yup, probably is better than smoking-hot lover.”

  Chapter Eight

  Dustin spent the first few hours after their talk sitting quietly, and Shane left him to his thoughts. By the time they crossed the Oklahoma border, Dustin had fallen asleep against the pickup door. He’d mumbled and snored faintly while Shane covered the remaining miles to their first destination.

  A few hours later, Dustin stretche
d, and his eyes fluttered open. “Where are we?”

  “Southwestern Oklahoma, and you better hope the A/C doesn’t conk out, ’cause it’s a hundred and five outside.”

  “Damn, that’s worse than at home this time of year.” Dustin stretched again, tweaked Shane’s nose and dropped back against the door. “So where are we headed? ’Cause this doesn’t look like the way to the next rodeo.”

  Shane shook his head. “I met a couple of guys early last summer, and their place is pretty close. They’re selling some of their Santa Gertrudis bulls as bucking stock. That’s my dream someday, to own a ranch and sell high-dollar bulls to stock contractors. You’d said raising cattle was in your master plan. I thought we could stop by and check out their operation. I called at the last rest stop, and Mitch said it’d be fine if we came by.”

  “How good are the bulls?”

  “Well, I think the little red bull that stepped on you was one of theirs.” Shane tried not to relive those horrible minutes. But he could smell the arena again as it came back to him clearly. Dustin’s yell. The snort and pivot of the bull. Stop it! Reliving it isn’t going to change a damn thing. Dustin’s just fine. “One of the contractors introduced me to Mitch. Someone had told him I wanted to set up something similar. He’s a nice guy and knows a lot about the business, rodeo stock and just raising cattle. I think his husband teaches at the local college or something. I’ve never met him.”

  Dustin twisted in his seat and stared at Shane. “Husband? They’re married?”

  “Apparently. I didn’t pump him for information about their relationship. Why? Would that matter?”

  “No, I’ve just never met a real-life gay couple.”

  “What do you think we are?”

  Comprehension spread across Dustin’s face. “Oh. Yeah. I guess that was kinda dumb.”

  Shane reached up and popped Dustin’s ball cap so it tilted down over his forehead. “Not dumb. If I can’t say I’m ugly, you can’t say you’re dumb.”

  Dustin smirked. “Dumb and Ugly. Sounds like a bad movie.”

  Shane’s expression went deadpan, then he began to laugh. “Yeah, you’ve got a point. Maybe we’ll figure out another name for the two of us.”

  Dustin bounced a little in his seat. “Yup. Wonder what these guys are gonna be like.”

  Shane shook his head at the speed Dustin shifted from one topic to the next.

  They pulled into the ranch headquarters as the broiling Oklahoma sun traveled toward the western horizon. Shane rolled to a stop in the parking area. Opening the cab, he was met by a red-and-white border collie whose tail vigorously swept the ground behind him.

  “Max! Leave him alone!”

  Mitch trotted over and shook hands. “Hey, Shane. Glad you stopped by. Don’t mind Max. Our foster son’s off with his husband on their anniversary, so we’re watching the grand-dog.” Dustin came around the front of the pickup. Mitch extended his hand again and grabbed Dustin in what Shane guessed was an equally firm handshake. “Hey, nice to meet ya. I’m Mitch. I kinda run the ranch.”

  Dustin blinked, and then considered Mitch. Finally he came alive. “Yeah. Hey. I’m Dustin.”

  “Yes, Dustin Lewis. I recognize you from TV. You’re doing pretty good in the earnings.”

  “I was, until a bull stepped on me a few weeks ago. I’ve been gimping along ever since.”

  Mitch shook his head. “Damn bull riders. Ya’ll are all crazy.”

  A mischievous expression covered Dustin’s face. “Being crazy does help. Or just so fucking antsy that you gotta be doing shit all the time, like me.”

  Shane put his arm over Dustin’s shoulder, then turned to Mitch. “Do you still have time to show us your operation? I know the phone call was pretty short notice.”

  Mitch waved his hand. “No problem. Let me tell Darrin where we’re going, and then we’ll head out.”

  A few minutes later, they had piled into Mitch’s pickup and were driving across the open prairie, Dustin riding in the bed and Shane up front with Mitch. Shane kept an eye on his boyfriend while he and Mitch talked, but Dustin rode with one arm draped over the side, his eyes gazing over the deep red dirt of the gullies and washes, punctuated by a sea of gray-green buffalo grass that ran as far as the eye could see. The islets of blackjack, post oak and cedar formed spots of relief. A handful of minutes later, they pulled beside a group of mahogany-colored cattle.

  Mitch stuck his hand out the window and rubbed a cow on the nose. She answered back by sticking out a long tongue and trying to curl it around his hand. “Hey! I don’t have anything for you. Keep that tongue in your mouth.”

  Shane and Dustin enjoyed watching the persistent animal. Mitch teased her for a few minutes and then turned back to the pair. “They don’t look like typical rodeo stock, do they?”

  Shane cocked an eyebrow. “No, actually, they don’t. I expected them to be a lot crazier than this bunch.”

  “Well, Princess here is really tame. Some of the others you have to watch when you get too close to their calves, or they’ll nail your ass. And the bull we use for bucking stock isn’t with these. I stay in the pickup or on horseback when he’s around. He’s protective of his herd. I’m not sure it’s worth all the effort to keep him.”

  “Can we see him?” Dustin asked through the back window.

  Mitch twisted in the seat and glanced back at Dustin. “Sure, if you’d like. That bunch is closer to the house so we can keep an eye on them.”

  Mitch drove the pickup in a wide circle around the grazing animals before heading back to the headquarters. A few gates and a short drive later, Shane and Dustin stood on a high metal fence, studying a small group of massive animals.

  “Which one will eat you alive?” asked Dustin.

  “That darker one with the crazy horns. The other three are big babies that’ll eat cattle cubes out of your hand.”

  “What did you have to change to start with the bucking stock?” asked Shane.

  Mitch pushed his hat back and scratched his head. “Not much, really. We’re trying to select ones that perform in the arena but aren’t crazy.” He paused again, then shrugged. “We did beef up the working facilities, but that’s about it. Otherwise, we treat them just like the rest of the herd.”

  The trio continued talking about the ranch and cattle until a voice came from the house.

  “Hey, supper’s ready. Ya’ll come eat.”

  Shane turned to head back to the pickup. “Oh hey. We didn’t mean to intrude like this. It’s about dark. We’ll be heading out.”

  “You have to stay now.” Mitch motioned toward the figure waiting for them. “Darrin will be pissy for weeks if you don’t stay after he fixed supper. He’ll swear it was something I did to run you off.”

  Shane glanced at Dustin. “I wouldn’t mind a meal that we weren’t eating hunched up in the trailer or the pickup. What do you think?”

  “All right. I don’t want Darrin pissed. It would probably make the breeding stock higher if we were to come back to buy some cattle from you.”

  Mitch waved them ahead of him. “You’ve got that right.”

  A few hours after Darrin’s wonderful dinner and some good conversation, Dustin sat on the edge of the huge bed in Mitch and Darrin’s guest room, not certain how they’d ended up staying. The older couple had insisted he and Shane spend the night and enjoy an evening out of their tiny trailer. Shane and Mitch had hit it off. Dustin had enjoyed a comfortable conversation with Darrin. At first he’d been intimidated by the college professor. Dustin hadn’t done well in school, but he soon relaxed when Darrin talked to him like they were old friends.

  “It was nice of them to invite us to spend the night,” Shane said as he emerged from the bathroom.

  “Yeah, they seem like guys who’d be fun to be around. I wasn’t too sure at first, but I think they’re okay.”

&nbs
p; Shane sat beside Dustin and bumped him with his shoulder. “So. Are you okay?”

  Dustin scrunched his eyebrows together, a little confused as he looked at Shane. “Yeah, I’m fine. Why?”

  “Well, this morning you were freaking about what happened last night.”

  “Oh.” He looked away. “I guess it’s like you said. It’s just that we’re wired a little different. Doesn’t make me a girl.” He shot Shane a wicked smile. “Besides, it felt so fuckin’ amazing.”

  Shane ran his hand over Dustin’s back, creating electric chills with his touch. “I’m not sure about the wiring thing. But it does feel good. If I’m catching or pitching.”

  Dustin glanced around the room and then wiggled his brows at Shane. “This bed’s huge, bigger than the whole trailer.”

  “Dustin! We can’t screw around here. They’ll hear us.”

  He leaned over and ran his tongue up the side of Shane’s neck. Taking his earlobe between his teeth, Dustin bit down. He was rewarded with a soft moan. “I promise to be quiet. Not a peep out of me.”

  “Damn, Dustin. We really shouldn’t.”

  Dustin grabbed the tail of Shane’s T-shirt and tugged it over his head. His short curly hair rippled from the collar as the shirt cleared his head and flew to the floor. Dustin pushed him onto the bed and swung his leg over to straddle him. He ran his hand over Shane’s rugged torso and toyed with the patch of hair between his nipples. Dustin scooted lower, lay on top of Shane and put his head on his chest to listen to the comforting thump of his heart. “You know, no one ever let me do this.”

  Shane ran his hand down the center of Dustin’s back. “Let you do what?”

  “Cuddle. They just wanted to fuck and run. I like cuddling with you.”

  A deep rumbling laugh erupted from Shane. “I’m happy to cuddle with you anytime. We don’t even have to have sex if you don’t want.”

  Dustin snapped his head up and looked at Shane. “But I like fuckin’.”

  Shane stroked Dustin’s cheek. “Yeah, I picked up on that. I don’t have a problem with that either.”