Alluring Passion: A MM Contemporary Bundle

by Peter Styles

  “It’s okay,” I told him as we entered my apartment, still dripping wet and freezing. “He’s a little uptight.”

  “Huh. I didn’t notice.” Gary gave me as much of a smile as he could, but it quickly turned into a grimace. “Can we please get out of these clothes?”

  I nodded and both of us stripped. It was wildly unsexy and it led to a fight over who got to jump into a nice, warm shower first, but it was also necessary. I managed to win the fight for the shower, but I made it quick, doing little more than letting scalding hot water run over my skin for a few minutes. Once I was warm enough to relax, I scuttled out of the bathroom and immediately dove toward the couch, snatching up the blankets I kept there and wrapping them around myself before turning on the many episodes of Gotham that I’d missed.

  I had finished two episodes before Gary emerged from the bathroom, steam rolling out around his feet, his skin still a little pink. He flopped down on the couch beside me with a pleased sigh.

  “Better?” I asked.

  “Much.”

  I wondered for a second whether or not the Shadow Hunter was cold wherever he was. The thought of him twisted my stomach painfully and I pushed it away as fast as I could, unravelling the blankets from around me and leaning in to whisper in Gary’s ear. “Want to feel even better?” I asked him, then running my tongue over the shell of his ear.

  He didn’t even respond in words. Instead, he just gave a little gasp and turned to kiss me, mouth hot and wet against mine.

  As stressed as I was, my libido managed to win out. It wasn’t long before thoughts of the Shadow Hunter had completely evaporated from my mind, replaced by Gary’s warm lips against my skin. For whatever reason, I’d been caught off guard by just how much I needed the contact. It allowed Gary to get a leg up on me in our usual sex competition.

  Unlike last time, when he had moved softly and slowly and tried to work me up for as long as he could, he was practically trying to devour me. He planted nips and bite marks all over my chest, as I saw little pink welts and marks rise up across my skin. He licked and sucked at my nipples, rolling his tongue around them and lightly brushing them with his teeth until I was nearly sobbing with need. His hand reached between my legs and his fingers rubbed at my entrance, creating enough friction to reduce me to a groaning, thrusting beast without actually pressing into me.

  It was maddening. It was frustrating. And it was sexy as all get out.

  Even though he hadn’t touched my cock, I was still rock hard when he pushed into me. The feeling of him inside me was sudden and electric. My hands scrabbled at his shoulders, looking for something to anchor me down, lest I completely drift away on the wave of pleasure I felt.

  His movements were hard and measured; I could tell he was holding back from going as fast as he wanted and I was happy for it. I wanted to feel every inch of him inside of me.

  In my mind, I couldn’t help but imagine different faces hovering over mine; different hands on me. Gary’s soft, big hands morphed into Jonah’s hard, calloused ones on my hips, which gave way to the strong, gloved hands of the Shadow Hunter. I wrapped my legs around Gary’s back and locked him in and I thought of straddling Jonah in the practice room, wriggling against his hard cock as he lay beneath me. My breathing came faster and harder with every second and I started hissing, “Yes, yes, yes,” in Gary’s ear. He responded with a harsh growl and little nibbles across my jawline.

  I was pressed hard against the couch cushions and I had to turn my head away from Gary’s face just to catch my breath. My eyes fluttered open and I froze when I looked out of the window in front of me.

  My window faced the rooftop of the abandoned office building beside us and I never saw anything there but the sky and the odd bird or two.

  But that night, in a flash of lightning, I saw a dark outline and bright silver goggles.

  My breath caught in my throat and, somehow, I knew that the Shadow Hunter and I had made eye contact. I couldn’t say why, but I recognized the piercing gaze, the one that seemed to see into my soul.

  I froze for half a second, then, on pure impulse, I whispered in Gary’s ear, “Get up.”

  Gary stopped, panting. “I think I’m about as far up as I’m going to get, man.”

  “Oh, for God’s—sit up, you moron!”

  “Oh!” He pulled out and I let out a long, low hiss of both pleasure and need. He sat back on the couch, almost as if he was planning on doing nothing more salacious than watch TV. “Like this?” I glanced back at the window. The Shadow Hunter had frozen, looking unnerved.

  “Yeah,” I muttered, distracted. “Yeah, that’s good.”

  Carefully, I got up and straddled him, my back against his chest as I lowered myself down onto his cock. He groaned in pleasure. “Oh, fuck yeah,” he moaned. He gripped my ass hard. “I love this view.”

  “Me too,” I teased him, but I was only half-joking.

  I started moving against him, leaning back and bouncing gently on his cock, making sure that it would last for as long as possible—or at least as long as necessary. I looked back out the window and was relieved to see the Shadow Hunter still standing there and still watching.

  Well, I thought, if he’s going to watch, I’ll give him something to look at.

  I knew it was probably a bad idea, but I couldn’t help it. If I couldn’t have him the way I wanted, I could at least have this. Maybe things wouldn’t end up working out with Jonah and maybe I could never have the Shadow Hunter in the first place, but at least I could have this moment with him.

  I finally allowed myself to start stroking my cock. I pumped slowly and softly, moving in time to my thrusts. My eyes wandered over the Shadow Hunter and my skin felt like it was catching fire. I couldn’t tell if it was from the intensity of his invisible gaze on my body, how hot it was to have my savior watching over me while I got fucked, or if it was because I couldn’t seem to stop myself from picturing Jonah behind me. Either way, the room was starting to swirl around me; a vortex of lust-crazed thoughts and images crashing over me as I felt Gary’s cock throbbing inside me.

  “Fuck,” I whispered, an exclamation and a command all at once.

  Gary wrapped his arms around me, one laid over my chest so he could play with my nipple, the other tight on my stomach, restricting my movement so he could thrust into me from below. His strength nearly took my breath away. I couldn’t even imagine what Jonah could do to my body in bed.

  The Shadow Hunter continued to watch. I saw his silhouette start to move around against the sky, and I worried that he was going to leave. But instead, I realized after a minute that he was pulling open his fly and, even though I was watching him from several yards away, I could tell that the cock he gripped in his gloved hand was massive: long, thick and with a mushroom tip that made my mouth water. I started trying to thrust back against Gary desperately; he was pounding into me hard, but still with slow, measured movements; I needed more. I gripped my cock harder, trying to keep my strokes long and seductive, but it was getting more and more difficult the more desperate I became.

  I watched the Shadow Hunter stroke his perfect cock and felt a pleasant fuzz fall over all of my thoughts. All I could think about was how badly I wanted to touch, taste and feel him all over me. Gary’s thrusts sped up, his arms slipping away so he could hold onto my hips, and it wasn’t long before I was riding him as hard as I could. I stroked my shaft with wanton abandon, panting and staring out of the window, every flash of lightning bringing with it another perfect view of the Shadow Hunter’s strong, solid body and his hard dick.

  My mind was flooded with lust. I could barely see straight, much less think, but I became entranced by the thought of having that perfect cock in my mouth. I wanted to feel something slipping past my lips; to suck on something and caress it with my tongue. Unable to think, I blindly grabbed for Gary’s hand and brought it to my lips, taking two of his fingers into my mouth and winding my tongue around them. I moaned breathlessly and started sucking in earnes
t. “Holy fuck,” Gary whispered, in a strangled voice and, with one final thrust, he slammed hard into me and cried out, pumping me full of his cum. The feeling of him twitching and throbbing inside me pushed me over the edge, and I looked straight at the Shadow Hunter’s perfect member while I came, my cries muffled by Gary’s fingers. I noticed the Shadow Hunter’s shoulders hunch and I swore I could see cum shoot out over his fingers.

  And then, just like that, he was gone and I was left panting, but extremely satisfied.

  “Jesus,” Gary gasped when I rolled off of him and collapsed beside him on the couch. “What was that all about?”

  I shrugged. “I don’t know. I was just feeling… inspired, I guess.”

  “Does it have anything to do with the fact that you’re incredibly turned on by the Shadow Hunter?”

  I blushed. “Oh, so you… noticed that.”

  He smiled gently. “Yeah, I did,” he admitted. “But even if I hadn’t, I probably would have been able to figure out that it has something to do with him.”

  “I’m sorry,” I said, with a wince.

  “Don’t be!” He grinned. “Does it look like I mind?”

  “No.”

  “Did I seem bothered about doing it?”

  I snorted. “Pretty much the exact opposite.”

  “So why would you have to apologize?”

  I shrugged. I felt uncomfortable; I didn’t want to finish the conversation we were having. Part of me hoped that we would be able to come through it totally unscathed, but I knew that wasn’t going to happen. More importantly, I knew it couldn’t happen, not if either of us were going to be happy in the long run.

  “Gary,” I started, but he stopped me.

  “You like him, don’t you?”

  “Well. I don’t know about liking him, but—”

  “So you do,” he confirmed. “If you didn’t, you definitely wouldn’t be arguing semantics with me right now.”

  I snuggled back into the cushions and pulled a blanket around me nervously. “I really don’t feel like we should be talking about this right after… you know.”

  “Why not? We talk about plenty of stuff after sex.”

  “Yeah,” I said, my expression pained, “but it’s not usually stuff that I think will hurt you.”

  Gary’s smile softened into an expression of genuine concern. “Harris, don’t,” he said, softly. “Don’t worry about hurting me. You’re not going to.”

  “Are you sure?”

  “I wouldn’t say it if I wasn’t.” He grabbed a blanket and wrapped it around himself. I was glad; it was much easier to have a conversation with someone when neither of us were naked. “I know exactly what the relationship between us is. I’m not going to be upset just because it ends.”

  “How do you know it’s ending?”

  He smiled and raised an eyebrow. “I saw that man running off,” he said. “Right after we just had the best sex ever. You think I can’t connect those dots?”

  I bit at my lip. Everything he was saying was right and, even though I trusted him, I was still so terrified of losing him as a friend that I couldn’t make myself believe that it was actually okay. “Are you sure?” I asked, quietly. “I mean really, truly sure that you’re alright with this?”

  “I am,” he said, a note of confidence in his voice. “It’s been fun, but I’m glad you’re going to be happy. You’re my friend, after all.”

  “Thanks.” I smiled.

  “I know.” He cracked a lopsided grin, but I could tell he was feeling self-conscious. “I’ve been wanting to say something about our arrangement for a while, actually. I just didn’t know what to say. I didn’t have the words.”

  “Really?” I was surprised. I’d never even guessed that he was having second thoughts. I’d been so worried about hurting him that I never even considered that he might be way more in tune with his emotions than I was with mine. Considering I was about as in tune as a bass guitar in a KoRn song, it was really saying something that I hadn’t even thought about the fact that Gary was undoubtedly far more stable.

  “What we’ve had is fun,” he said, “but the fact is, we’ve both been holding each other back. Not out of malice or anything like that, but out of fear. I know I’ve been holding onto this thing with you because I’m afraid other people won’t find me likable or attractive enough to want a real relationship. And I think you’ve been holding on to me because I make you feel safe, and you’re afraid no one else can do that.”

  I gave him a mock frown. “You know, if you were able to read minds this whole time, you could have just told me.”

  He laughed. “I didn’t want to intimidate you with my gifts.”

  We sat in silence for a few minutes, both of us taking in everything that was happening. It was actually ending and felt strange; even though I’d been planning on putting a stop to it, it was weird to see it actually happen. I wasn’t sure I’d ever truly believed that the two of us would stop hooking up and hanging out like it was no big deal. I couldn’t imagine what the new normal was going to look like for us.

  Or at least, I couldn’t at first.

  Gary and I were friends that had sex, and the friend part of the equation was crucial. It wasn’t like that was something we’d ever stopped. We’d never let our friendship suffer over sex or anything like that. We still played Cards Against Humanity together. We texted each other throughout every episode of Gotham. We fucked with Leonard together. None of that was going to just disappear now that we’d stopped touching our naughty bits together.

  If anything, it was going to make doing all of that way less weird. It was generally more fun to hang out with somebody when I wasn’t worried about whether or not I was going to get laid, and I was excited to go back to those times with Gary. The pre-sex age.

  It was somewhere I hadn’t been for a while, but I was looking forward to getting there.

  We cleaned up and ordered pizza. We took turns playing P.T. and watched an episode of the new Mystery Science Theater 3000, which we both agreed was good, but hard to adjust to. We came up with ways to freak Leonard out now that we couldn’t use our sex life against him. We talked and we laughed until we cried.

  We went back to being friends. And it felt amazing.

  Chapter Twelve

  I was surprised to find Jonah sitting on the front steps of the YMCA when I arrived for our next lesson. He was wearing a thin white t-shirt, jeans and a hoodie that did little to disguise the bulges of his muscles under his clothes. “Hey,” he called, when he saw me. Although his smile was still fairly subdued, his deep, dark eyes crinkled at the corners when he looked at me, his entire face suddenly alive and open. “I figured I’d meet you out here to tell you that the room is closed right now.”

  “Shit.” I looked up at the building, frowning. “What for?”

  “Repairs or something.” Jonah stood and shoved his hands into his hoodie pockets. Even standing there in street clothes, his posture was immaculate. He never seemed to really relax. “I didn’t want to cancel completely until you decided if there was something else you wanted to do though.”

  “Like what?” I honestly couldn’t think of anything else I wanted to do besides roll around on the floor with him. The only other activity aside from jiu jitsu that popped into my mind had the same principles—it was just minus clothing.

  “I figured we could go see a movie or something,” he said. He sounded nervous; out of his element. It occurred to me that dating might be as fresh and odd to him as it was to me.

  But I wasn’t sure I wanted this to be a date. Not yet, anyway. I still wasn’t quite used to the concept. Besides, either Leonard, Gary or Christy seemed to drag me to a movie at least once every week and I was getting completely burnt out on them. I’d already had to see the latest Star Wars four times.

  “This is my one day off,” I complained. “I was hoping to get a work out in. I mean, I know I look like a scrawny geek, but I like to do something physical when I can.”

&nb
sp; “Well, the weight room is still available,” Jonah commented.

  I wrinkled my nose. “God, no. That’s not my kind of thing.”

  He shrugged. “There’s just not much else open,” he said, apologetically. “Other than the basketball court, it’s pretty much all closed for the day for at least minor renovations.”

  Unbidden, the feeling of being on a court washed over me. For a second, I could almost feel the pebbled ball in my hand and hear the echoing sound of my feet against the wood of the court. I felt myself smiling. “That actually could be perfect,” I said.

  “Really?” Jonah worried at his lip ever so slightly. “I don’t know. I’m not exactly great at basketball.”

  “That makes it even better!” I chirped. I pushed past him to the door and he followed me, confused.

  “Wait, it does?”

  “Yeah!” I called back to him. “It means I get to teach you something for a change!”

  When the doors to the basketball court opened, I was surprised, not just by how many memories flooded through me, but also how happy all of them were. I could remember the roaring of an excited crowd, the feeling of my feet pounding down the court, the smell of the rubber of the ball and adrenaline. I remembered for the first time in years just how much I’d loved the game and I felt a pang of longing run through me.

  I saw a rack filled with basketballs near the door and dove for one. Dribbling it lightly in one spot, I could feel it all rushing back. I ran down the court fast as a shot, darting around imaginary opponents and landing a three-point shot while barely even looking. I cheered when it swished through the hoop. “Yeah!” I whooped. “Still got it!”