by Luna, David
“They are.”
His smile grew wider. “Seriously?”
Asher grinned and nodded. “Real frosting isn’t hard and crunchy. Frosting should only ever be soft and sweet. Their version of frosting is like biting through a rock to get to the good stuff.”
Thornton laughed, finished opening the pouch containing the unfrosted brown sugar cinnamon Pop-Tarts and handed one over. “I have strawberry ones downstairs, too. We’ll have to divest my cupboards of the rocky subpar Pop-Tarts so we can stock more of the good stuff.”
Asher grinned, nodding, as he bit into one of the unfrosted treats. He closed his eyes in ecstasy—as one does when tasting unfrosted Pop-Tarts—and hummed as he chewed. “So good!”
Thornton bit into his, eyes closing much like Asher’s had. “They really are.”
Asher laughed and tossed another piece in his mouth, then followed it up with a sip from his juice box. The noise of the air sucked through the empty box made Thornton laugh. He poked the straw through the second box and handed it over. Asher smiled and drank Thornton’s juice down. Once finished, Thornton took both empty boxes from him and put them on his nightstand.
When he turned back, Asher’s face was serious when he whispered, “Thank you, Daddy.”
Ahhhh, fuck, fuck, fuck. God those words had never sounded so good.
But he couldn’t have Asher saying them if… “Don’t say it if you don’t mean it, sweetheart.”
Asher met his gaze straight on. “I mean it.”
“Asher…” His voice was a low growl.
Asher shuddered, and Thornton had to file that away for later, enjoying, probably too much, how his voice affected the boy. “I do. I promise. I’m not playing with you. I don’t know what the hell I’m doing, and I’m scared to death, but when the hell am I not scared to death? You said you’d help me. You said you’d make the hard decisions. You said all I had to do was let go. You said—”
“Shhh, baby, shh.” He moved closer, shoving the remaining food away, careful not to jostle the boy, and rubbed the pad of his thumb over Asher’s lips, dislodging a crumb. “I meant what I said.”
“So did I.” The stubborn set to Asher’s jaw made him smile. His gaze took in every inch of the boy’s face, looking for doubts and indecision. He saw none. A bit of trepidation, yes, but the boy was resolute in his choice and that’s all he needed.
Nodding, he leaned in. “Good boy.”
He captured Asher’s whimper with his lips as he kissed him with a hunger that was born of desperation. He slid his tongue over the boy’s lips, receiving a soft gasp of surprise that allowed him to slowly lick his way into his boy’s mouth. “Mmm, baby boy, you taste so sweet.” Asher moaned and tried to push forward, to move closer. “Be careful. Let me do the work. I don’t want you to hurt yourself.”
Asher nodded, closed his eyes, lips parted, and waited. He’d never seen a more beautiful sight. His boy, waiting patiently for him, as he’d been told. He leaned in, but instead of kissing Asher’s mouth, he started at the base of his throat and gently kissed his way up Asher’s neck, lightly nipped on the boy’s ear, and nibbled his way over to those luscious lips.
“You’re gorgeous, baby. Just perfect.”
Asher began to shake his head and opened his mouth to disagree, but Thornton was having none of it, placing his finger over Asher’s lips. “Don’t. No negativity towards yourself, Asher. Rule number one.”
Asher’s eyes popped wide at that. “Ru—” He cleared his throat and tried again. “Rules?”
Thornton gave the boy a soft smile. “What Daddy worth his salt doesn’t have rules?”
Asher’s bewildered expression wrenched at his heart, but he had to begin as he meant to go on. “We’ll talk about all of that later. I don’t want to overwhelm you right now.”
“But what if I don’t agree with the rules?”
He rubbed the back of his hand against Asher’s soft cheek. “We’ll settle on the rules together. We’ll talk about them so we’re both in agreement. But the one most important to me that I’d like to start with immediately is negative self-talk. You don’t give yourself the credit, care, or compassion you deserve. So, I think it’s a good idea if we work on that together. What do you think? Are you willing to do that with me?”
Asher’s eyes filled with tears that he was able to blink away before nodding. “Yes.”
“Yes, what?”
Confusion wrinkled the boy’s brows before they smoothed out and he whispered, barely loud enough for Thornton to hear, “Yes, Daddy.”
“That’s my good boy.”
Asher’s breath hitched, and Thornton sipped at his lips, sliding his tongue in and groaning when Asher surprised him by sucking on it. Fuck if that didn’t get his dick rock-hard. He glanced down at Asher’s lap, then his own. “Naughty little boy. Look what you did to us both.”
Asher glanced back and forth between them and shook his head. “I didn’t…”
“Oh, but you did. You said, ‘Yes, Daddy,’ in that beautiful, soft whisper. It sounded so needy. I bet just saying it made you hard, didn’t it? I know just hearing it made me hard as steel.”
A soft whimper, followed by an even softer, “Oh, god,” had Thornton nodding, his cheek brushing along Asher’s. “I know. I know, baby. You’re a natural at this. You’re going to be my sweet, perfect boy. Would you like that?”
“God, yes.”
“Me too, sweetheart. Me too.”
Asher made a needy sound, and Thornton leaned closer, Asher resting his forehead against Thornton’s shoulder. He brought his palm up to grip the back of Asher’s neck to hold him in place and whispered in his ear, “Your mind is working faster than you can keep up with, isn’t it? I want to help you slow it down, focus, so you aren’t worrying yourself into a panic attack.”
When Asher nodded against his neck and drew in a deep breath, he tightened his grip and began a massage of the boy’s neck and shoulders. “I want you to clear your mind of the clutter. Take deep breaths. Close your eyes and think of ocean waves. Can you hear them? See them?”
Asher nodded, his hand making its way to Thornton’s shirt at his waist and gripping the fabric tight. Thornton slowly rocked them to mimic the movement of the waves for several moments. “Better?”
The soft, “Mmhmm,” helped Thornton relax a bit as well. He kept rocking slowly back and forth, barely moving, just enough for both of them to be aware of the movement. Asher’s grip eventually loosened on his shirt, and then those soft, warm fingers found their way to the skin at the waistband of Thornton’s pajama bottoms, with sweet little caresses Asher probably wasn’t even aware of doing. The boy’s tentative touch sent little jolts of electricity straight to his cock.
He ignored it as best he could. “I want you to think about the one thing you want most right now. Not something that is unattainable, but something realistic, something you can have right now if you could only ask for it. It can be anything; a real breakfast, a bath, seeing Beauty and Beast, coloring, or watching TV. Anything at all. Can you visualize it?”
Asher’s hitched breath had Thornton kneading the boy’s shoulder again and kissing his ear as he whispered, “Can you tell me what it is?”
“I want to touch you.”
Fuuuuuuck. Okay, Asher was aware of what he was doing.
His sweet boy was going to slay him with his innocence. “You are touching me. Is that not enough?”
Asher’s fingers stopped moving, and he made to pull his hand away. Thornton clasped Asher’s hand and held it right where it was. “Don’t pull away. I’m sorry. That came out wrong, so let me rephrase. You’re already touching me. But do you need more?”
“Mmhmm.”
“I need to hear your words.”
“Yes.”
“More?”
The barest of whimpers escaped Asher’s lips. “Yes, more, please.”
“You’ve been so good, so brave staying calm, asking for what you want. You can have more, Asher.
You can have everything. Do you want to just feel my skin against yours, or do you want to explore my body?” A shiver ran through Asher, the movement making Thornton’s cock leak. “Tell me what that shiver was about, baby. Tell Daddy what you want.”
“Oh, god. To explore. Please. Can I explore?”
“Yes. Do you want Daddy naked?” He felt the need to use Daddy as much as possible with Asher. Thornton wanted him to feel comfortable hearing it, so he’d feel more comfortable saying it. That, and it thrilled Thornton to be able to use it with Asher.
Asher lifted his head at that, and their gazes clashed. The boy’s eyes were wide, his gaze heated and pupils blown. “Yes, D—Daddy.”
“Good boy.” Thornton reached behind his head, gripped his shirt in his fist, and dragged it over his head, wincing a bit when his battered body protested the movement. Next, he divested himself of his pajama pants and leaned back against the headboard, pillows behind his back, and watched as Asher took in Thornton’s long, lean, muscular build. “Look your fill. Take your time.”
But Asher’s gaze turned sad as he reached out to touch the bruises on Thornton’s torso. “I’m sorry you were hurt.”
“Baby, I’m fine. I promise. I’m just a bit achy but it’s absolutely nothing like the pain you’re feeling. Please don’t let this discourage your exploration. I think I need it just as much as you do.”
That admission had Asher blushing, but it worked because the boy’s gaze went from concerned to heated again. His cock, having already been hard, was moving with the beat of his heart. When a minute ticked by and Asher hadn’t made his next move, he held his hand out, palm up. Asher finally pulled himself out of his daze and clasped it.
“You can touch me, anywhere. You won’t hurt me. I want you to feel free to explore. I know this is new. I know it’s probably scary your first time, but there’s no right or wrong way to learn my body, Asher. I want your hands on me, but there’s no rush.”
It was like those words broke the spell that had been holding him immobile. Asher’s hand, still clasped in his, tugged Thornton’s closer, placing Thornton’s hand in his lap. Asher traced each finger, one at a time, turned his hand over, and ran his fingers over Thornton’s palm and up the inside of his forearm, feather-light touches up and down.
The boy made a noise in the back of his throat, a frustrated sound Thornton wasn’t expecting. “What is it?”
Asher tried to remove his own shirt like Thornton had. He watched pain pass over the boy’s features and sat forward immediately. “Hey, hey.” He pulled Asher’s arm down where he knew it wouldn’t hurt him. “Do you want me to take it off for you?”
Asher nodded, so he slowly pulled the shirt off him. Sitting back again, he could only smile when Asher made another frustrated sound and pulled the string to his pajama pants loose. Thornton’s mouth went dry, knowing what Asher wanted. Sitting back up, he helped the boy free himself from his pants.
What he wanted to do was pull his boy on top of him, flip them over, and kiss and lick every square inch of his boy’s skin. But he knew that wasn’t possible. Not yet. So he had to let Asher take what he wanted. He folded his hands behind his head so he wouldn’t touch. He wanted Asher to take his time and move at his pace. But again, it seemed like the boy had lost his nerve.
“Are you all right? Do you need my hands to guide yours? If you’re feeling overwhelmed, you don’t have to do anything, sweetheart.”
Asher’s chest rose and fell as he seemed to come to a decision, and Thornton’s heart rate shot through the roof as Asher slowly scooted closer to him on his knees. Then, before he knew what was happening, the boy sat astride his thighs, Thornton’s cock lying flush against Asher’s. He groaned, but he forced himself not to move.
“What a brave little boy you are.”
The sweet blush blooming on Asher’s cheeks was Thornton’s very own brand of Kryptonite. The urge to reach out, draw the boy flush against him, and ravish those sweet lips was almost impossible for him to deny.
Fuckfuckfuck.
The reward was worth it, though, as Asher squirmed on top of him and then leaned forward, their dicks pressing against each other, both of them groaning that time. But instead of touching their cocks, Asher’s innocent touch on Thornton’s face was a surprise, more a dusting of fingertips over his cheeks and trimmed beard. When Thornton didn’t move, the boy’s hands moved to his hair, carding through Thornton’s thick, dark strands. His palms then ghosted down his arms and into his armpit hair, lightly tugging on it.
Thornton closed his eyes and leaned his head back against the headboard. And then Asher’s breath fanned over his underarm, and the boy was rubbing his face in his armpit. Thornton’s eyes popped wide, and he glanced down, eyes glued to the top of Asher’s head as his boy continued to breathe him in. Asher’s gaze turned up towards his, and he licked his lips and then looked down at the thatch of hair he was rubbing against and rubbed his nose in it again, inhaling.
But it was when the boy’s tongue flicked out and licked him there when Thornton nearly lost control and came. “Fuck, baby. What made you do that?”
When Asher pulled away, embarrassment reddening his cheeks again, Thornton lowered an arm and held him right where he was, not wanting him to move further away. “Look at me. Asher, that’s the sexiest fucking thing. You surprised me, that’s all. I just wondered what prompted that.”
“I like your smell there. When you have shirts on and you put your arm around me, I’ve wanted to do that. It’s weird, isn’t it? I’m sorry.”
He sat forward a bit, cupping Asher’s warm cheeks and kissing him, quite thoroughly. There was no mistaking Thornton’s arousal as his cock grew even harder against Asher’s. The boy’s wet, kiss-darkened lips let out little puffs of air, showing Thornton just how affected by him he was. “It’s not weird. Nothing you find arousing, nothing you want to do with me, nothing you want to share with me is shameful, Asher. What turns you on is going to turn me on, even if it hasn’t been something that has done so in the past, because it’s you and because your arousal heightens mine.”
“Really?” Christ, when the boy dipped his head, closed his eyes, and then opened them while peering up at him, Thornton’s breath caught. That timid, sweet, hopeful look was going to be the one that tripped his damn heart into love sooner rather than later, he just knew it.
“Yes, really.”
Asher nodded and then smiled a tiny, little devilish smile, the tease of it making Thornton’s cock drip with his arousal. “Okay, then sit back so I can keep exploring.”
Thornton smirked and raised a brow, Asher’s blush and a stammered, “Please, Daddy,” had him complying. “Good boy.”
He sat back into the pillows, careful to stay upright so the boy didn’t have to strain to touch him. He tucked his hands behind his head again, waiting. Asher’s movements were more confident as he leaned in that tiny bit they were separated, sniffed, rubbed his face in the hair there, and then licked. His tongue lapped him there, over and over. Thornton’s eyes nearly rolled into his head. He’d never experienced a feeling like it. How the fuck did he not know his own armpits were a damn erogenous zone?
His cock was dripping copiously at that point, and he thought if Asher kept going, he’d come without actually touching his own cock, which blew his fucking mind. But before he could start to worry he was going to go off before he was ready, Asher pulled back, the dilated eyes, pink cheeks, and wet lips almost enough to kill him. “God, you’re so fucking beautiful.”
Chapter Fifteen
Asher
Asher had a hard time trying to understand how Thornton could think of him as beautiful, but what he saw in Thornton’s eyes couldn’t be faked. There was reverence, lust, and so much tenderness in the man’s gorgeous eyes, Asher could barely hold his gaze. So he believed it—he believed Thornton looked at him and found him beautiful. He felt his cheeks heat up, a common occurrence around this enigmatic man. Would he ever get used to being the target of Tho
rnton’s full attention?
He had to admit: he had never thought of himself in that way. Of course, he had looked at himself in the mirror his whole life, but when he thought about it, truly thought about it, he realized he had only seen the parts of himself individually. His eyes, his hair, his lips. He didn’t know why that was. He didn’t think of himself as someone with self-esteem issues. He didn’t hate what he saw when he looked in the mirror; he was just indifferent to it.
He looked down at Thornton’s chest, raised his hands, and ran his fingers through the hair between Thornton’s pecs. He could feel Thornton’s gaze, but he knew if he met the man’s eyes, he might lose his nerve. The fact he was sitting on the man’s lap, their hard cocks rubbing against one another, was just too much to be believed.
Thornton wasn’t a very hairy man. He had chest hair and a beautiful treasure trail leading down to the thatch of hair above his cock. God, the man’s cock was a thing of beauty. He was uncut, a bit longer than average length, but the thickness… holy fucking hell. The thickness was as mouthwateringly sexy as it was terrifying. Because how the hell was he supposed to fit that thing anywhere?
Thornton was so aroused his foreskin had pulled back, fully revealing his deep, dusky, red glans. God, how he wanted to lean down and taste the precum that was dripping down the length of his cock, along the raised line of a vein that he could imagine himself licking from tip to base and back again.
He had to wonder. If he wasn’t injured, would he have the confidence to do it? He knew in the past that he wouldn’t have had the guts. But something about Thornton and how the man made him feel had him believing that he might just be able to.
It hit him then, what a big deal this was. It was like he’d been given a gift, the most important gift he’d ever been given, and the enormity of that had him frozen in place. Then and there, touching Thornton’s chest, the man’s coarse hair between his fingers—the magnitude of what he’d said yes to hit him. And Thornton must have seen it or felt it in the shaking of his fingertips, the tension that seeped into his frame. Because suddenly he was wrapped in the man’s warm embrace, being offered comfort he didn’t even know he needed.
