The Darkest Flame

by Christina Lee

I recognized the frustration in Mal’s eyes. He thought Smoke had been dealt a shitty hand. I couldn’t agree more.

  After Mal left, I was thinking so hard about everything he’d said that when Smoke strode in for his shift, I nearly dropped the bottle of tequila I was replacing on the back shelf. Man, I’d been on edge all day. I needed to pull my head out of my ass.

  I could barely look at him without my cheeks heating up. He was wearing those fucking tight jeans with those black laced-up boots. And the way his blond hair curled atop the bandana he wore made me want to shove my fingers beneath it and feel the softness against my rough hands. Given his poor eye contact, I wondered if he had misgivings about what had happened between us last night. Fuck.

  Or maybe it was all the tension in the air, choking him in precisely the same way it was choking me.

  He tugged the headscarf from his head. He wore it only when he rode. His curls bounced against his forehead. Damn, he was sexy. “Hey, Vaughn. Anything you need besides the usual?”

  “Ain’t that a loaded question,” I said, and something shuttered in his expression. I immediately backpedaled. “Look, about yesterday…”

  “It’s all cool,” he said, cutting off my thoughts. “If you have regrets about what when down…”

  “Regrets?” I asked incredulously. My defenses shifted to stand-down position. “Did you not feel my raging hard-on stroking against your groin?”

  Smoke momentarily shut his eyes. His hands bunched into fists as if to get a hold of himself. His eyelashes were like golden wings that cast faint shadows on his cheekbones.

  “Fuck, say something, Smoke. Because believe me, I liked what happened last night. I just don’t know what to do about it.”

  “Same here.” He scrubbed his hand over his face. “Maybe we…I….”

  “What?” I said, needing something to do with my hands. I reached for the jar of maraschino cherries I had brought from the back room. “Just say it, man.”

  “Maybe we need to get it out of our system or whatever,” he said, eyes uncertain, voice throaty. “Then some of this—whatever the hell this is between us—can be relieved.”

  My cock jerked in my pants. I looked around the bar to be certain we were still alone in here. I could hear Lewis banging around in the kitchen. Smoke seemed to be holding his breath as he waited on me.

  “Yeah?” I said, taking a step toward him, and I heard a low growl. “One good hard fuck?”

  “Something like that,” he said, and then his eyes darted to my now raging hard-on.

  My fingers locked on the bar top. “Hell, if this wasn’t the start of our shift, I’d say let’s get it over with now.”

  “I’d be on board with that,” he said, quirking one eyebrow and adjusting the substantial bulge in his own pants. He was as turned on as I was.

  He grabbed the jar from me and popped open the lid as my gaze travelled appreciatively over his body. “You a top or a bottom?” I asked.

  A dark look crossed over his features. “A top, man. Always a top. You got a problem with that?”

  Damn, there was definitely a story there somewhere.

  “No problem here,” I said, shrugging. “I would never complain about getting it on with someone as hot as you.”

  Right then a regular came trudging through the door on the heels of Cherry. “Hey, boys.”

  We both blew out a breath and took a step away from each other, as if we’d been caught screwing on the bar or something. As Smoke moved past me to the service station, his fingers brushed against mine and lingered. It felt like a swarm of fireflies was crammed inside my chest, humming and buzzing and trying to burst free.

  The customer sat at the other end, and Smoke served him a draft. When he headed back my way and mumbled, “Tonight,” I nearly fucking whimpered, I was so wound up.

  “Any chance of somebody seeing us heading to my place?” I asked him low enough that only he could hear.

  “I can say I helped you unload something from the bar.”

  I snorted. “On our bikes?”

  He groaned. “Fuck, I don’t know. We’ll deal with it if it even comes up.”

  I thought about how Mal asked me to look out for Smoke and was easily able to come up with a decent excuse for why he’d follow me home. And now I was twisting that request around. It almost felt like a betrayal. I shoved it out of my brain.

  “Sounds about right,” I said. “Now, let’s get through this shift.”

  The rest of the night I sported a semi-hard-on.

  Chapter Eight

  Smoke

  The end of the night couldn’t come soon enough. We were both adults, knew how to handle a one-night stand. Big fucking deal. We’d get each other off and hopefully douse the fire that seemed to be consuming us.

  Still, I’d admit to having reservations all night long and had even considered backing out. But all I had to do was look at him—his wine-stained lips and beefed up forearms. Plus, just seeing that devious grin on his face when he was flirting with those customers made me want to push him against the bar and claim him with my mouth.

  As the clocked ticked past midnight, I was nearly blind with lust for the man.

  After Cherry and Lewis left, we finished emptying the trash bins, barely uttering a word, the air between us so thick I was choking on the fumes.

  Finally, Vaughn cut the lights.

  “I’ll meet you there,” he said. “I’m cool if you decide not to—”

  “See you in a few,“ I said without hesitation. I stared at his ass moving in those jeans as he headed out the door.

  When I got to his place, my stomach solidified into a tight fist. I chewed my lip all the way up the stairs and looked down at my feet once he closed the door behind me.

  Vaughn’s fingers hooked around the back of my neck, tugging my forehead against his. “You having second thoughts?”

  “Nah, just nerves.”

  “Afraid of not turning me on?” he asked, panting. “Because fuck, Smoke, I’m ready to rub one out every time you look at me.”

  A moan burst from my throat, and my mouth brushed back and forth against his. My tongue flicked out to swipe his lips, top then bottom, as he hummed his approval.

  He backed me up. My shoulder hit the door as my tongue slid past his lips, delving into his mouth. His fingers tightened around my nape as his other hand roamed my chest, tweaking a hardened nipple through my shirt.

  “Fuck, I’m going to come just from kissing you,” I said.

  “Same here,” Vaughn said, releasing a breath and then dragging his mouth away. “Maybe I need to invite you inside and offer you a drink or something.”

  “I’d take you up on that offer.” I took a deep breath and pushed away from the door. I looked around the apartment and saw that it was nicely laid out with black leather couches, modern paintings, and a large cream area rug. “Nice place.”

  “Thanks.”

  I heard a mewling sound, and then a small black cat jumped off the chair and stretched her hind legs.

  “That’s Betty,” Vaughn said.

  My eyes darted to his. “I didn’t take you to be an animal lover.”

  He smirked. “No? Well, I have two cats, a male and a female. The other one is gray. His name is Hurricane. Cane for short.”

  I guess you found out a lot about a man when you visited his private home. Last year he’d taken in Cory and Jude’s dog named Chopper, and now I understood why he’d made the offer.

  I followed Vaughn into his kitchen, where he pulled open the refrigerator door and grabbed two sodas. As he straightened, I slid my body against his and whispered in his ear. “You’ve got one of the nicest asses I’ve ever seen.”

  “Likewise,” he said, shuddering. “I’d say I’d like to fuck yours, but I guess I’ll have to settle for just sucking you off. “

  “I wouldn’t complain,” I said, grabbing the soda and popping the lid. I took a large gulp as Vaughn moved to the couch and sat down with his drink.


  “This is a great fireplace,” I said, running my hand along the mantel. “Wood-burning?”

  “Gas,” he said. “Think you could make me something to hang in that space above?”

  “That could be arranged,” I said, noticing his modern decor throughout the apartment. “Think about what you want and let me know. I’m figuring something contemporary.”

  “Sounds about right. The exact opposite of my pop’s place with all of those antiques,” he said. “He’s got a thing for timepieces.”

  “Is that right?” My eyes darted to the art deco clock hanging on his wall. I noted that it was after two in the morning. I was used to these hours, and I knew he was, too. Still, he probably needed his rest.

  “You’re free to walk out of here any time, Smoke,” he said as if noticing that I was thinking too damn hard.

  “I know I am,” I said, sitting down next to him, and wondering again what the fuck my problem was. As soon as our thighs brushed, my blood pumped straight to my groin.

  “If I’d met you at a bar,” he said, “we’d already be in my bed with come on the sheets.”

  “Same here,” I said. “Though I haven’t met anybody at a bar in a long time.”

  “Yeah?” he said, and I knew he wanted to ask more, but he held himself in check.

  “So, what’s holding you back now?” he asked, his fingers rubbing circles on my thigh.

  I watched his large palm work wonders on my libido. “This is different.”

  His knuckles trailed up my arm. “Different how?”

  “I know you,” I said. “Have to see you practically every day.”

  “Yeah, but after tonight,” he said, leaning forward, his finger snaking to the shell of my ear, “we can go about our business.”

  “That’s where I start to get jumpy,” I said, practically moaning from the contact. His hands were warm and rough. This was so different from being with a woman. “I want us to be friendly. Know more about each other if we have to work together. Don’t want to fuck anything up.”

  “I feel the same.” Vaughn grazed his lips right below my ear, making me shiver. “How about we agree that we won’t let it be awkward?”

  He stared into my eyes, and just as I nodded my approval, Vaughn sank to his knees in front of me.

  “You don’t have to reciprocate,” he said. “I only want the opportunity to touch you. Put my mouth on you.” Before I could think, he had my pants unbuttoned and the zipper down. “That’ll fuel my fantasies for weeks to come.”

  When he palmed my cock through the material, I groaned.

  He swung his face closer to my groin. “Do you want me to taste you?”

  My hand reached out to touch his jaw. I liked feeling the roughness there. “Hell yes.”

  He dragged my pants down to my knees along with my underwear, and my dick sprang free. “Damn, I knew your cock would be something to see.”

  “Yeah?” I said, panting openly from the contact. “I’ve been dreaming about yours ever since I saw it that one morning.”

  His gaze was filled with pure lust, and it nearly stole my breath.

  “I want to see it again,” I said.

  He stood up immediately and toed off his shoes. I stopped his hands from reaching for his waistband.

  “Let me.” I unsnapped his jeans and yanked them down. There it was, as thick and hard as I remembered it. “Damn.”

  Before I could take a closer look, he was back on his knees in front of me. I couldn’t resist grabbing his neck and hauling him toward me. I needed to feel his lips on mine again. I yanked at his hair and he lifted up to sink against me on the couch, rubbing our cocks together. It felt so damn good, I could’ve come from that contact alone.

  Vaughn’s groin slid with perfect friction against mine as my hips began thrusting upward to match his rhythm. He groaned deep in his throat, and I loved hearing that sound coming from him.

  “Fuck, I love that mouth of yours,” he said, wrenching his lips away and sitting back on his heels again. “But I need to taste you.”

  He didn’t waste any time as he bent his head and licked a circle around my crown. His fist latched solidly onto my length. I hissed as he dragged his tongue along the underside of my head, where I was most sensitive.

  “Holy shit.” I sagged against the cushion as my thighs shook, barely able to hang on now that his wet tongue was doing amazing things to my cock. “I’m not sure how much more I can take. Been wanting this for too damn long.”

  His lips engulfed my hardness. His tongue ran the length of my vein, down to where his palm smoothed over my balls. It was the perfect mix of hot mouth, soft tongue, and steady hand, and I was in fucking ecstasy.

  When he sank lower, tongued my sac, and then blew a gust of air across my balls, I nearly sprang off the couch. The contrast of hot lips and cool breath had me babbling unintelligibly. His firm grip was pumping and my balls were in his mouth and I was already slipping off the edge.

  My hands fisted tightly in his hair, and his eyes sprang up to mine. He kept his gaze on me while he moved his lips back to my head and licked the underside of my crown again. My spine tingled and my balls pulled up tight.

  “I want you to say my name when you come,” he growled.

  His warm mouth surrounded me as his finger reached beneath my balls to my taint. He rubbed my sensitive skin and hummed, the vibration from his throat sending me skyrocketing to the moon.

  “Fuck, Vaughn,” I called out as I shot my load down his throat. He swallowed every damn drop, some of it slipping out of the side of his mouth, and he licked at the white droplets as if savoring them.

  I sank against the cushions, my legs quivering and my chest heaving. He leaned over and kissed my lips. The tips of our tongues met, and I could taste myself on him.

  “Having a bit of trouble moving right now,” I said, and he laughed. “That was amazing.”

  “I agree.” He pushed to his feet, sliding out of his pants. “Your cock is incredible.”

  He tugged his shirt over his neck, and his cock jutted upward toward his stomach. The head was practically purple and leaking against his abdomen. “I’m going to jump in the shower. You’re free to stay right there. Or if you need to take off, I won’t be offended.”

  He strode down the hallway, his tight ass on full display, and my shaft was already filling back up. Damn, he was sexy. And he wasn’t expecting anything from me. He’d said he only wanted to taste me. Well, fuck, what if I needed to taste him, too?

  Catching my breath, I stood on wobbly legs. That was the hardest I’d come in a long time. I stepped out of my jeans and kicked them to the side. Then I ripped off my shirt. I followed the sound of the water down the hall.

  I entered the bathroom, which was decorated in darker blue tones with tan accents. I didn’t get far in my perusal because Vaughn’s naked form was directly in my view, his head beneath the showerhead, his forehead leaning against the tile in front of him.

  It looked like either he was trying to hold it together or he was decompressing after what he’d done. I hoped he didn’t have any regrets, and I considered backing away until I saw his hands shaking and his full erection practically leaking all over the floor.

  That’s when I knew he was suffering in silence, so I padded inside, careful not to startle him. He briefly looked over his shoulder, the lust in his gaze blistering. I stepped flush against him, my front to his back. Without hesitation, I wrapped my hand around his hardness. He exhaled an erratic breath and released a muffled plea.

  I kissed his ear. “Let me take care of you.”

  “Thank fuck.” His hand reached out to grip the wall while I stroked him up and down.

  I continued sucking on his neck while he thrust into my hand.

  I flipped him around, his shoulders hitting the tiles, and seized his mouth in a searing kiss, sucking his lower lip into my mouth. His hands groped my chest and then rounded my waist to squeeze my ass.

  I opened my eyes to marvel at his e
xpression. His eyes were screwed shut and he was panting openly against my jaw.

  “I love your mouth. Even this small mark right here.” I swiped my tongue across his scar as he gasped and then bit my lip on a growl. His snapped his hips forward, rubbing his hard cock against mine.

  I sank to my knees in front of him. “Fuck yeah,” he grunted out.

  He was so far gone that all it took was my tongue in his slit and my mouth consuming his shaft. “Ah, hell,” he groaned as his thighs quivered.

  My forearm pinned his hip so he wouldn’t crumple in a heap while his come spurted down my throat. Damn, I loved everything about being with Vaughn, even the bittersweet taste of his seed. That glazed look in his eyes from what I’d just done to him had taken this experience to a whole new level.

  Chapter Nine

  Vaughn

  I woke up in the late morning neither satiated nor satisfied, my cock lying hard against my thigh. I wished I’d had the balls to ask Smoke to spend the night. Then maybe he could’ve fucked me so hard into my bed that it left me reeling and sated.

  Instead I wanted his mouth on me again, his hard body against mine, like it’d been in the shower. And fuck, the way those heart-shaped lips wrapped around me and then took me all the way back to his throat? Damn. I’d already been skating sharply along the edge after smelling his skin and hearing his raw voice as he moaned my name.

  I’d been so blissed out on Smoke, I would’ve taken my own cock in hand after another minute in the shower had he not joined me. But I also wanted to give him the option to leave, especially if he still had his doubts. I’d meant what I said. I simply wanted a taste of him.

  I rolled over in bed and wished that his scent were buried in the very fibers of my sheets. But that would’ve also sucked. To smell him and not be able to have him again. It had almost been like an unspoken agreement that we didn’t take it further than we had last night. We were merely testing the waters. To see what would be enough to satisfy.

  I didn’t know what was going through his head, but last night hadn’t been enough for me, and that was my biggest fear. He was worried it would become awkward. I was troubled that I’d only want more.