by _Anthology
She laughed, and he laughed with her, caught up in the infectious sound. “I think I like you, Jason. Refills are on me this time.”
Jason never turned down free coffee, especially from such an attractive woman. Two cups and an hour later, they were still sitting in the corner, laughing over something pointless. Flirting turned out to be just like riding a bike; Jason had hopped right back on and started peddling. Lexi had crossed her legs underneath the table, and teased the inseam of his jeans with her foot.
Jason swallowed. “As much as I’d like to continue, I have an appointment with my advisor….”
Lexi pulled a slim tube out of her purse, and uncapped it. She scrawled a number in scarlet across his forearm. “I have a feeling I’ll be seeing you soon, Jason.” She winked.
He watched her leave the café, finding the view from behind was just a nice as from the front. Nice, he liked his girls well balanced.
***
“I think you actually have to read the book to reap the knowledge.” Cooper tossed his backpack on the library table.
Jason kept his forehead squarely on his copy of Self-Consuming Artifacts. Maybe if he kept at it long enough the material would slowly seep into his brain. “Fucking Derrida,” he muttered.
He nearly leapt out of his seat when soft hands began to knead his shoulders. He got as far as sitting up, but Cooper kept up the gentle massage. “Cooper?”
“You’re so tense,” Cooper murmured, digging in to the tight muscles around Jason’s neck. Jason groaned. Cooper’s hands were obscene. “God, you’re good at that.” “That’s not the only thing I’m good at,” Cooper whispered, breath warm at Jason’s neck. He licked along the lobe of Jason’s ear.
Jason stiffened, undoing all of Cooper’s hard work. “Cooper, stop it.” Damn it, that was all he needed, Cooper screwing with him like this. He had just gotten his mind wrapped around the girl from the coffee shop, gotten his body to think in terms of curves instead of hard angles. And now this?
Cooper ignored him, soft lips making contact with Jason’s neck. He tilted his head away from Cooper, giving him better access. The gentle nibble turned into a full-on bite, Cooper sinking sharp teeth into Jason. When he began to suck, Jason bucked up, the sensation going right to his cock. God, he’d like to feel that suction somewhere else.
He reached up and clamped onto Cooper’s hands on his shoulders. “Dude, you have a girlfriend,” he managed to gasp out, holding on to a shred of dignity.
Cooper stopped sucking, giving Jason the chance to catch his breath. “If she was here, my girlfriend would be sitting in the corner directing….” Jason pushed those strong hands off of him and managed to slide out of his chair. He moved so that the table was between him and Cooper, trying to gain control of his unruly body. Cooper looked bereft, staring at him with sad eyes, hair stuck up in all directions and face flushed a deep red. He bit his pink lips, and Jason wanted to crawl over the table and take that lower lip between his own teeth.
“I know you want me, Jason. I see you watching me when you think I’m studying.” Cooper started to walk around the table, in slow measured steps, like he was trying not to spook a wild animal.
Jason backed away, unable to take his eyes off of Cooper, who moved with predatory grace, eyes smoldering and heavy-lidded as he licked his lips. Jason’s back came up against something hard– a set of shelves—and he stopped cold.
“Am I wrong?” Cooper stopped just short of Jason. His arms darted out and grabbed the shelves behind Jason’s head, trapping Jason between them. “Tell me you don’t watch me. Tell me you don’t get hard every time I suck on a pencil.”
“Cooper,” Jason said, not recognizing his own voice. He never sounded so hoarse and breathless. “Yeah, Cooper, yeah….” Then Cooper leaned down and kissed him, claiming Jason’s mouth, forcing his lips open and taking possession. Cooper sucked on Jason’s lower lip, then pressed his teeth down hard. Jason whimpered, hips arching for contact. Jason’s world narrowed to nothing but sensation, warmth at his mouth, heat pooling in his groin. All this, from nothing more than having his lip sucked. “Make noise for me,” Cooper murmured. He dropped his hands to Jason’s waist, tucking them under Jason’s sweatshirt, his fingers sizzling against hypersensitive skin.
“Library!” Jason gasped as Cooper moved one hand to unsnap his jeans. “Nobody comes up here.” Cooper smirked. He worked the zipper open, running his fingers up and down the hard line of Jason’s cock in his boxers. “But imagine if they did. Imagine if that librarian from the third floor wandered on up here.”
“The one with the mustache?” Cooper chuckled. “Yeah, imagine her walking up here, seeing me backing you up against the books. Think she’d freak out? Maybe she’d shush us, then stand back and just watch. God knows you’re too darn pretty, all hard and flushed for me….”
He couldn’t believe he was standing there, about to get sucked off somewhere between Chem Abstracts and Reader’s Guide to Periodical Literature. Anybody could walk right in and see them. They’d see Jason flush against the stacks, his cock stiff and proud, hanging out of his boxers. They’d see Cooper drop to his knees, looking up at Jason under his long eyelashes, his cat-like eyes narrow and conniving. They’d watch as Cooper’s pink tongue darted out from his bow-shaped lips and tasted the head of Jason’s dick.
Cooper kept one hand on Jason’s waist, holding him still against the shelves, and with the other he gripped Jason’s cock. His entire pose—knees spread, head tilted, lips pouting as he continued to tease just the head—seemed designed to entice.
“You like to show off, don’t you?” Jason rasped.
“Oh, you have no idea,” Cooper snarked. Then he got down to business. Jason tried to watch as long as he could. Cooper kept up the show, Jason’s cock disappearing between Cooper’s slick lips. He sucked hard, and used his tongue like a pro. Finally Jason clamped his eyes shut and slammed his head against the shelves behind him, knocking some of the heavy books back and onto the floor with loud thumps.
Jason rose up on his tiptoes, trying to get more of that delightful suction. It felt good, too good. He gasped and tried not to cry out. He was so close, almost there, if only…. Cooper lightly scraped his teeth against sensitive skin and Jason lost it, coming hard down the other man’s throat. He finally let go of the shelf behind him and sank to the floor, Cooper’s hands easing him down. Jason buried his face in Cooper’s neck, desperately trying to catch his breath.
“Yeah,” Cooper whispered, tilting Jason’s face up to kiss him. Jason tasted himself and groaned, his spent cock twitching a bit.
“I didn’t…you?” That was about as coherent as he could be at the moment, reaching for Cooper’s jeans. His fingers clutched wet fabric and Cooper winced.
“Yeah, I did.” Cooper pressed a kiss onto his forehead. “You’re so damn hot when you’re trying to keep quiet.” “We wrecked the room,” Jason looked around, noticing his chair was turned over, and they were joined on the floor by several large red books. The entire room smelled strongly of old dust and come.
“Give ‘em something to wonder about.” Cooper pulled himself up and drew Jason with him. “God, I need a shower.”
“Don’t think you can get that in the library bathrooms,” Jason said, tucking himself back into his shorts and zipping up his jeans.
“I guess I’m done studying early,” Cooper grabbed his backpack. He unzipped one of the front pockets. “Listen, Jason….” God, was this going to be one of those “nice fuck, but that’s all it was” talks? Jason really could have done without the guilt trip after the fact. He couldn’t regret the encounter, not even if it meant that would be all he shared with Cooper.
“Tomorrow night, come to CatsEye. We’ll be on the third floor.”
Jason snorted. “There is no third floor to CatsEye.” He hadn’t been to the club more than once, but he knew that much. Cooper reached out, grasped Jason’s wrist and snapped a thick leather bracelet around it. Jason pulled his hand back a
nd ran his finger over the stiff leather and the stylized tiger embroidered on the back. “What the hell…?”
“Show this to the bouncer behind the bar and they’ll let you up. Tomorrow, yeah? ‘Round ten?”
Cooper looked so hopeful. Jason could only nod. “Can’t wait.”
With one last kiss for the road, Cooper grabbed his pack and slipped out of the room. Jason looked around and figured he had some books to put away.
*** Thirty seconds in, Jason wanted to turn around and go home. Too many people filled the confined space of CatsEye. Too many bodies pressed against each other, heat and sweat rising in the dim light. He dodged a group of laughing girls, one of whom would have gotten him in the nose with her bottle of beer if he hadn't ducked at the right moment.
Any other night he’d be at the bar stocking up on some liquid courage. His friends had tried dragging him out here a few times, but he never stayed more than an hour. Jason preferred to meet potential bed partners elsewhere, like the library.
Tonight he wanted to be sober for whatever this encounter with Cooper would be like. A mysterious third floor? A leather cuff as the entrance ticket? What exactly had Jason gotten himself caught up in?
This was a bad idea on so many different levels. Cooper didn’t deny his girlfriend, didn’t claim to be anything other than what he was. Jason liked Cooper, liked him too much. He couldn’t risk his heart on another guy like Jack, who was only interested in his dick.
He wondered what Mike would do. Before he hooked up with Dan, he was all about taking stupid risks. Jason could almost hear his voice in his head, saying, “You never know if you don’t try, man.” He’d never thought of Mike as a role model before, but Mike was the one in a successful relationship, not Jason.
Jason finally made it over to the bar along the back of the club, resorting to shoving his way when his “excuse me”s were ignored. He raised his arm to get the bartender’s attention, and to his surprise the man rushed right over to him.
“A guest pass, eh? Go on up!” He jerked his hand to a big man standing in front of a long red curtain behind the bar. The guy nodded and drew aside the heavy fabric, revealing a carved wooden door.
Jason made his way around the bar and pushed the door open, revealing a tall, dimly lit staircase. “Have fun, kid,” the bouncer chuckled behind him, and the door closed with a heavy thud.
He trailed his fingers along the railing as he moved upwards, stepping more quickly the further he moved. Ten p.m. had come and gone; Cooper would be waiting wherever these steps led him. At the top…at the top he forced himself to keep walking onto the mysterious third floor. This resembled the first floor like the Taj Mahal resembled a parking lot. Everything shone just a bit more: the polished hardwood bar, the plush armchairs and low tables. Low-hung chandeliers gave the club a warm glow, not seedy like the frantically pumping dance floor downstairs. Incense burned somewhere, filling the room with a smoky sandalwood scent.
Here the customers made no secret of their desire for sex. No two people were dressed alike; he caught sight of everything from leather to loincloths. Along the far wall a platform was set up, and when Jason got closer he could see two women performing, one covered head to toe in rich dark leather. She carefully wrapped heavy ropes around her nude partner, forming an intricate pattern around pale, unblemished skin.
The crowd was just as varied. Jason saw a man with nothing more than two leather straps around his bare chest. In his hands he held a chain link leash, which led a woman who trailed behind him. She winked at Jason as they passed and was jerked forward abruptly by the chain around her throat.
He blushed and looked away, trying to search the crowd for Cooper. He saw a woman at a table, a girl tucked into her side like a pet. Under the table between the legs of the first woman a man knelt and, from the motion of his head, seemed busy.
Everyone seemed paired off, or at least busy with one or more partners. Jason was the only one by himself in the sex-charged atmosphere. He swallowed, feeling the first flush of arousal. He just wished he wasn’t standing alone; it felt too much like watching porn in his apartment.
Later, he figured he was so used to looking up for Cooper, it never occurred to him to look down. Every tall man who walked by caught his eye, only to ultimately disappoint. It wasn't until he nearly tripped over him that he saw Cooper.
Wearing nothing more than a pair of skintight jeans and a leather collar around his neck, Cooper knelt at the side of one of those plush armchairs. His arms were crossed behind his back and his head tilted up to stare at the women seated there, the woman who held the leash that buckled to that leather collar. The woman who looked more familiar to Jason than she should.
Jason stumbled backwards, knocking into one of those low tables and sending it onto its side. Cooper looked up at him and his eyes went wide. “Jason.” He turned to run. This felt more like a setup, and he didn’t want to get caught in another bad situation. God, just when he had washed the foul taste that was Jack out of his life. He found a bright exit sign and pushed the door open. The stairs led out into the street, and he had just opened the last door when he heard Cooper behind him.
“Jason, wait!”
He let the door fall closed and whirled around. Fists clenched at his side, Jason faced Cooper. “You weren’t kidding when you said your girlfriend liked to watch, were you?”
“Jason….”
“The whole thing was a setup, wasn’t it? She just happened to wander into my favorite coffee shop.” “I wasn’t going to invite you if Lexi didn’t like you.” Cooper fingered the collar he still wore, and God help him, Jason wanted to put his lips there, suck on that soft skin till it was raw and red. “But I knew she would.”
“Christ, Cooper,” Jason snapped. “What the hell was that in the library?”
“Foreplay,” Cooper grinned. He moved forward, got in Jason’s space, pushed him against the brick wall of the exit. “Yeah, Lexi and I play, and I wanted to bring you in. If you had called the number she gave you, I’d have answered and you’d have found out sooner.” “Number got smudged when I took my shirt off,” Jason admitted, suddenly finding himself at eye level with Cooper’s too-pink nipples. Cooper laughed, low and deep, arousal coiled in his voice. He shivered slightly when Jason reached out and placed a hand on his chest, just above his left nipple, but not touching, not yet. “We won’t do anything you don’t like, Jason. Promise. No strings.”
What if I want strings? Jason thought, wondering if he was destined for nothing more than casual sex. He gave in to the impulse and ran his thumb over Cooper’s erect nipple. He grinned when Cooper closed his eyes.
“C’mon,” Cooper whispered. “Lexi’s getting us a private room. Unless you don’t want the both of us?”
Jason pushed him away slightly. “I’ve never done anything like this.”
“Don’t knock it till you’ve tried it, Jason.”
He wanted to ask questions, but he didn’t. Jason just followed Cooper back up to the third floor, mind whirling. Lexi was Cooper’s mistress, right? Did she spank him? Tie him to the bed and fuck him with a strap-on? Did she parade a string of strangers in front of him, picking one to service her boy? Each thought went straight to his cock, stiffening him in his jeans before they even reached this private room.
He had to stop and adjust himself, and Cooper laughed behind him, a deep, rich laugh that made Jason want to join in. The laughter helped when they got back up to the third floor. Cooper led him through the crowd, and Jason felt the eyes on him, probably wondering about the newbie who freaked out. Another bouncer nodded at Cooper and ushered them through a dimly lit hallway. Jason could hear breathy moans and sharp smacks of leather. He swallowed tightly, but didn’t back down.
Cooper knocked on a door marked with a number, and the door opened at his touch. A heavy scent of vanilla tickled Jason’s nose. Lexi looked up as they entered. She finished lighting a series of candles on the table alongside the king-sized bed in the center of the roo
m. Jason wanted her now, even more than in the coffee shop, with a leather corset constraining those heavy breasts and the fishnets caressing those shapely legs. The short skirt and stilettos just added to the tease.
“Jason! Cooper managed to catch you.” Oh yeah, Cooper had caught him all right. “I, uh, yeah.” His erection flagged slightly. He scanned the room, searching for the whips and paddles, but finding only discreetly placed furniture, though he was pretty darn sure those were hooks in the ceiling. Otherwise, he could have been in any luxury hotel done up in crisp greens and dark wood. Instead of a TV, a wooden cabinet took up one corner. Jason bet they kept the sex toys in there, and the uncertainty of what it hid tied his stomach in knots.
“It’s okay,” Cooper’s hands were on his shoulder again, kneading the tense muscles. “Nothing you don’t want.”
“Cooper,” Lexi said, “Take your place, pup.” “Yes, Lexi,” Cooper’s voice changed as he spoke. The way he said his girlfriend’s name, it might as well have been “mistress.” But he didn’t sound meek; he didn’t sound defeated. He moved forward and knelt at Lexi’s feet, and only then did Jason notice he was barefooted, the soles of those long feet dirty from the fire escape stairway. He felt a twinge of guilt.
Lexi pushed off the bed and walked to Jason. She caught her hand in his short hair and pulled him down for a kiss. When she pulled away, she ran her fingers over his swollen lips. “I wanted those lips from the moment I saw you.”
He bit down on them, embarrassed; he always thought his lips too plump, too girlish. She moaned and leaned into his neck, whispering into his ear. “We have rules, Jason. Cooper is my puppy, all he has to do is say the word ‘red’ and everything stops. If you can’t follow that, I’m going to ask you to leave right now.”
Jason brushed his fingers along her cheek, making eye contact. “I would never hurt him.”
She nodded. “Same goes for you; don’t be ashamed to call ‘red’ if you need to.”
