Covet (Straight Taste Book 4)

by Jaylen Florian

  Brandon patted me on the back and whispered, "You're quite the showman, as it turns out." He sat back down at the desk and saw numbers that pleased him. "Damn! My cam is on the first page—the homepage—and I've gained ten thousand followers? You people are amazing!"

  Encouraged by exceeding his fifty thousand fan goal and having raked in a few hundred dollars, Brandon let the show escalate further. It didn't take long before I was down to my boxer briefs, we were flashing bare ass shots, and I was reaching my hand inside Brandon's underwear and feeling his pecker and balls in the palm of my hand. We were both sweating, especially Brandon, and I inhaled his scent. I stopped trying to hide my erection, proudly standing sideways to the camera to let his audience see how fully roused I had become.

  When Brandon made it to the top male cam on the whole site, a feat he had not previously achieved, he checked with me one more time to see if I was ready to quit. I wasn't. He then told his fans that we were going to do more, but only on private cam. They could buy into the show if they contributed twenty dollars worth of tokens by the time the countdown clock expired. Brandon set the countdown timer for five minutes and told me to keep them entertained while he ran next door to Andrew's unit to take a very quick rinse.

  Alone with his fans, they praised me for loosening Brandon up. I was taken aback by the personal compliments, which had earlier been about my unusual eyes, but now were about my fit body and perky butt. Again, I gave them what they wanted, standing and dropping my briefs to my ankles, giving them a close-up view of my raging hard-on and butt cheeks.

  Brandon, wrapped only in a beach towel and glistening with drops of water, returned to my bedroom to find me completely nude and posing for the camera. He doubled over laughing. "I've unleashed a beast!"

  "A hundred and one people joined the private show before the clock expired," I replied.

  "No way." Brandon dashed to the computer screen to confirm the news. "Unreal!" He smiled at the cam and shifted in his seat. "We're now in private with all of you. Thank you from the bottom of my heart for showing so much love. You know I'm completely straight and my friend isn't, apparently, and we don't have a script, and no one is quite sure what is happening next. Bear with us. Let's see where this goes. But keep your expectations in check. I won't ask you for any additional tokens. Make sure to click the 'follow' button for me if you haven't done so already." Brandon ended by kissing the tip of his finger and then pressing that fingertip only centimeters away from the screen. "I cherish you people."

  Then Brandon did something totally unexpected. He stood up in front of the cam and relinquished control. The same man who bragged about being alpha and dominant in his bio actually surrendered himself to my touch. He put his arms up, with his hands behind his neck, and closed his eyes and let a wry smile form on his lips.

  I began by moving directly in front of Brandon. My erection bobbed into the folds of his towel, prodding his manhood from side to side, making it grow rigid. I yanked the towel from his waist and he was glorious. Brandon's red pubic hair, even redder than mine, accentuated the pale pink color of his large prick. While I arched upward, Brandon stuck straight outward, like a thick plank. I bumped our erections together, giving the fans the sword fight so many of them had pleaded for earlier.

  After squeezing his muscles, licking his nipples and mashing my face under his arms, the show moved into the final phase. Brandon was fully hard, still with his eyes closed and his hands behind his head. I knelt under his legs to lick his balls and he groaned. I kept at it until he reached down and held his palms against the sides of my face. Holding me still, Brandon entered my mouth and probed all the way to my throat with a gradual thrust. His humping sped up, each thrust harder and faster than the one before. I opened my mouth as wide as I could, he tightened his hold on my head, and banged into me with ever more potency. I stroked myself and timed my release with Brandon's climax. He didn't pull out. Instead, he continued vigorous pumping into my mouth until every drop of his seed had been swallowed down my throat.

  "Ahh, that was unreal!" Brandon groaned, crumbling stomach first onto my bed with his arms stretched out to his sides.

  I didn't say a word as I snuck to the camera, winked and smiled the biggest grin imaginable to the fans, gave them two thumbs up gestures, bowed my head to them with gratitude, and clicked the computer off.

  Chapter 11

  The next morning, Sunday morning, I was floating in the air. After completing chores around the duplex unit and soaking in a piping hot tub, I indulged my favorite breakfast. Fluffy pancakes drenched in old-fashioned maple syrup.

  My mind was clear. For a person prone to overthinking and angst, I felt uncaged. The freedom was overpowering. Anything was now possible. Not with web cams, but with myself, and with other men, even immortals like Brandon, sophisticated hunks like Cody, and benevolent studs like Andrew.

  Andrew called after I had washed my breakfast dishes. I curled up in my living room chair by the front window and listened to his updates. Willow's mother continued to improve, but needed additional care. Andrew said he would be returning in a few days and Willow would remain behind with her mother for at least a week. He said he was eager to get back to work. He had created some new tattoo designs in his spare time that he wanted to offer his customers.

  Before we hung up, Andrew asked if I had run into Brandon while he was staying in his place.

  "I did," I said. "Brandon saw me jogging yesterday afternoon and asked me to show him a good running route later this morning."

  "Nice," Andrew said. "I'm glad you got to meet him. Can you please make sure my door is locked tonight? Brandon heads home this afternoon and he's not so good about remembering to lock doors."

  "I'm happy to, of course."

  "Thank you. See you sometime soon."

  I stayed balled up on the chair when the call disconnected. Nothing in Andrew's tone suggested he was aware of what had happened the night before. Nonetheless, instantly, the carefree musings I had relished all morning subsided. No matter if Brandon might be the handsomest man alive on the entire planet, did I have any right to have oral sex with Andrew's longtime friend? Was it a betrayal to my friendship with Andrew? Did I now risk losing him when he inevitably found out? What would Brandon say about it, if anything?

  I had gone so long in adulthood being denied gratification that I seemed to lack much restraint, if any, when opportunities now arose. Ugh. What had I done?

  Cody sent a text message asking for my address so he could pick me up at seven o'clock. I wrote back and told him I was looking forward to dinner with him. I offered to meet him at the pizzeria, but he replied that he preferred to drop by so we could ride there together.

  Brandon knocked on my door a few minutes before eleven o'clock, just ahead of schedule, for the jog we had planned to take together. He had on the same compression clothing and knit cap I had seen him in the day before. I was ready, too, in my usual running shorts and athletic shirt.

  "Kieran, good morning."

  "Come in. I just need to get my sneakers on and I'm ready to go."

  "We got out of hand last night." Brandon smirked and raised an eyebrow, awaiting my response.

  "Loved it."

  "No regrets?"

  "None at all."

  Brandon handed me a plain white envelope. It was lightweight and sealed closed. "For you," he said.

  "What is it?" I asked, flipping it around and observing that nothing was written on the back of the envelope, either.

  "Open it now."

  I tore it open. It was a check for fifteen hundred dollars from Brandon. I had to stare at it for several seconds because the air had been knocked out of my lungs. I sat down to catch my breath.

  Brandon smiled. "Your half. You deserve it. You earned it."

  "But you don't have to do this," I said. "I expected nothing. That's not why I played around with you."

  "I know."

  I handed the check out to Brandon for him to take it back.
He refused.

  "I insist and you better cash it," he said. "Okay?"

  "I will, if you're sure."

  "I'm positive. Now let's hit the road. I'm ready to stretch my legs and run at a good clip without worrying much about traffic."

  We ran for an hour. I led Brandon on the route by the railroad tracks and farmland. The pacing worked out, despite him having longer legs than me. We adjusted to a mutual speed, ambitiously fast, which precluded any talking. We finished at the truck stop, a quarter mile from the duplex, and cooled down as we walked the final distance.

  "Great run," Brandon said, pulling the knit cap from his head.

  "You're leaving today?" I asked.

  "In about an hour. I have just enough time to shower, pack, and slap a sandwich together at Andrew's."

  "Anything I can do to help you?"

  "You have good energy, Kieran. I like you."

  "I like you, too."

  "I have an impression I'll see you again some time."

  Chapter 12

  The duplex was too empty and lonely in the late afternoon. I tried reading a novel in the backyard and playing puzzles online, but I couldn't keep my mind off of Andrew and Brandon's absence or my upcoming date night with Cody. I decided on another jog, though a shorter course this time, followed by another soak in the bathtub. By the time Cody arrived promptly at seven o'clock I was in calm and hopeful state of mind, and wearing my favorite sweater, with paisleys and peacock colors that accentuated my eye colors, over a dark pair of navy jeans.

  "Good evening," Cody said, standing in my doorway with his hands in his pockets. He wore dark brown slacks, a camel-colored jacket over a beige shirt, and stylish derby shoes.

  "Please come in," I said. "I'd give you a tour of this old place, but there's nothing much to see."

  "Don't show me your bedroom or we'll never make it to dinner."

  "Then I'm too hungry to show it to you," I chuckled.

  "You're dressed too nice for pizza."

  "Well, so are you."

  "All right, let me come up with something else."

  I nodded my agreement and didn't ask where we were going so it would be a surprise. Cody hugged me before we walked out the door to his rental car.

  "You look terrific, Kieran."

  "I'm honored you wanted to see me again."

  "Don't say that."

  "Why not?"

  "You sell yourself short."

  I didn't really understand his comment, but I smiled at him and he patted me on the rump and we left. We parked downtown and got seated at a second story restaurant that overlooked the town square, which was illuminated with strings of lights along the walkways to the center fountain. The small room, holding only ten tables, was dominated by a crystal chandelier, expansive windows, and walls covered with layers of luxurious fabrics.

  "Have you ever been here before?" Cody asked.

  "No. I didn't even know this place existed and it's way beyond my budget. How did you know about it?"

  "I discovered it online this afternoon and wanted to try it, so I made a reservation in case you agreed to come here with me instead of sticking with pizza."

  Cody ordered a bottle of Chardonnay and suggested we both choose the tasting menu so we could sample small portions of the restaurant's favored dishes, appetizers and desserts included. I sensed I had slipped into an alternative universe, living like a prince in a castle, and Cody's confident, kind, and relaxed manner had my heart doing flip flops. Occasionally I recalled his Caesar costume from Halloween night and imagined that the emperor himself had likely been no more attractive or compelling than the magnificent man across the table from me.

  Conversation was easy. Cody wanted to know more about me and I know wanted to know more about him. He seemed so perfect and stable, as well as honest, that I didn't believe I was out of bounds asking him about his imperfections.

  "Do you have any demons?" I asked him.

  "Sure." Cody shrugged. "Are you asking in general or hoping I will elaborate?"

  "Please elaborate. I don't detect any flaws and, I guess, that intimidates me."

  "Promiscuity."

  "Is that really a flaw?" I asked.

  "Not necessarily, but it was for me when I was your age. The random sex, encounters just for the sake of escaping loneliness or boredom, messing around with other people's boyfriends. It took me a long time to realize it was just making me lonelier and destroying my friendships. I've worked hard to move past it the best I can."

  "How did you move past it?"

  "By focusing my efforts on nights like this. Spending time with a guy who really interests me and who doesn't pretend to be something he is not."

  My cheeks reddened. "Changing priorities," I said.

  "And self awareness," he added.

  "I won't bore you with my demons. It would take all night and I don't want to ruin this." I grinned to add levity, but the truth was I didn't want to expose any more of my flaws to Cody.

  "I already know your biggest demon, Kieran."

  "How?"

  "Your self flagellation."

  I shook my head, not understanding.

  "Personal punishment," Cody continued. "You are brutal to yourself."

  "I am." My voice was meeker than I intended. "It's that obvious?"

  "It is."

  "I always thought it would end if other men liked me."

  "It will take more than that. Other men do like you. I suggest you think about spending time with men who make you feel good about yourself instead of seeking validation."

  "Seeking validation," I repeated, thinking about his advice.

  "You don't have to tell me, but let me toss out a theory. You are chasing straight men. That is where you are directing your lust and energies, in the pursuit of encounters of any kind for heterosexuals, most of whom can never satisfy your needs."

  I shifted my chair closer to the table and dropped my voice. "Cody, why do I do that?"

  "I already told you. You're seeking validation. In other words, you are your own worst enemy. Your battles are with yourself."

  We were silent for a minute. I finished my wine and a waitress refilled my glass and served us a tray of desserts.

  "I didn't expect conversation to get so deep," I said, breaking the silence.

  "I like it," Cody replied. "It's meaningful."

  "Can I ask you what you would do if you were in my shoes?"

  "I was in your shoes. I used to be at war with myself. I tailed after straight men and dug under rocks looking for validation and acceptance, too. Looking in all the wrong places, as the cliche goes. The fruitless chase won't ever end if you don't make a robust effort to change."

  "How?"

  "Show yourself some mercy!"

  Chapter 13

  Cody and I strolled through the town square and sat close together on the edge of the fountain. The night was chilly, but I was warm in Cody's presence. Our bellies were full and we were in no hurry for the night to end. I learned he loved to read, too, and we talked about favorite books and underrated books. I felt uplifted, particularly by our earlier disclosures, as I knew Cody had imparted wisdom that I could reflect on and, hopefully, use to improve myself. My skin must have glowed.

  "I have to kiss you right now," Cody said.

  "Here? In public, in the middle of the square?"

  "Do you prefer an alley?" He joked, shifting his leg against my knee.

  "How about your cabin?"

  "Beautiful."

  "Let's go."

  Cody drove me back to the duplex so I could get my uniform and car and head to work directly from his cabin the next morning. While I packed an overnight bag in my bedroom, Cody stood behind me, pressed into my back, and kissed my neck, sending chills up and down my spine.

  A firm knock on my door startled us. Cody and I both looked at our watches. It was a quarter past ten o'clock. Fearing an emergency, I rushed to my door, opened it, and Brandon stood in the doorway.

 
"This is a surprise," I said, happy to see him.

  "Hey, sport." Brandon smiled and stepped forward. "I heard you come in. My flight was cancelled."

  Cody walked up behind me. Brandon made an "O" shape with his mouth, lifted his eyebrows, and moved backwards. I introduced Brandon to Cody and they shook hands.

  "I'm sorry to interrupt," Brandon said. "I just wanted to let you know I'm here another day."

  "When does your flight leave?" I asked.

  "Late tomorrow night. So bang on my door in the morning if you want to catch an early morning jog before you go to work."

  Suddenly, I stammered, becoming as awkward as Brandon looked at that moment. "We're just now leaving and I won't be home until after work tomorrow."

  "I shouldn't have knocked so late at night, Kieran. My apologies. Nice to meet you, Cody."

  Cody and I both told Brandon no apology was necessary. I wished Brandon a good night and told him I would see him before he left tomorrow.

  "Oops," Cody said, once we were alone again. "Did me being here mess something up between the two of you?"

  "No," I answered. "Brandon is close friends with the guy who rents the other half of the duplex. He was supposed to fly home to Vegas this afternoon."

  "I sensed something more between the two of you."

  "Well, I've only known him a couple of days. He and I had soup and salad together last night and went jogging today."