Some of the tension eased from his shoulders and Zaiden let out a breath of relief. “Yeah, you’re probably right. I just got paranoid and overprotective.”
Asher’s eyes softened, and he smiled tenderly. “I like that,” he whispered. His cheeks flushed, and he looked away, suddenly finding the left front tire on Zaiden’s care very interesting.
“Hey.” Zaiden held his lover’s chin and urged his face back to look into his eyes again. “None of that. We might have been tricked into this mating thing, but I like you a lot, okay? If I have to be stuck with someone for the rest of my life, I don’t think I could have picked anyone better. We’re a team now.”
Asher’s eyes misted a bit, shimmering in the sunlight as he nodded slowly. “Okay,” he whispered thickly. Then he cleared his throat and stepped away, turning around and swiping at his eyes with the sleeve of his checkered shirt. “Hurry up and call the police, because I’m starving.”
Zaiden rolled his eyes but allowed Asher to take charge of the situation. If that’s what his mated needed to feel more grounded, he wouldn’t argue.
* * * *
They finished talking to the police about the vandalism to Zaiden’s car and arrived home just in time to unload their purchases before the delivery van pulled up to the curb with their new bed. Zaiden insisted on supervising the setup, hovering over the deliverymen and watching them like a hawk.
Once the men had left, glaring daggers at Zaiden the entire way out, Asher set to work hanging the new blinds and curtains as his lover made the bed with the new bed set. It really did look nice, and matched perfectly with the shimmery gold drapes Asher had found on their third stop.
“It looks good,” Zaiden complimented when he’d finished. He took a few steps back, surveying the room as he smiled and nodded. “It looks really good. You did a fantastic job, baby.”
Asher preened at the compliment, huffing on his knuckles and pretending to polish them against his chest. “Yeah, I’m awesome. Say it again.”
Zaiden snorted and rolled his eyes before flipping Asher the bird and walking out of the room. Jumping down from the stepladder he’d been using to hang the curtains, he raced after his mate, catching up with him in the kitchen. “Why’d you just leave like that? I was only joking.”
Whirling around, Zaiden stared at him in shock. “Asher, I’m not mad. I just came to the kitchen to get a beer. What’s up with you?”
Biting his lip, Asher shook his head quickly. Damn, he could be such a bonehead sometimes. “Nothing’s wrong. I was just mad because you were acting all pissy, and I didn’t do anything wrong.”
Zaiden eyed him for a long time, then finally nodded and turned back to the refrigerator. Asher sighed and scrubbed his hands over his face. He’d demanded total honesty from Zaiden earlier. The least he could do was reciprocate the request.
“I really like you, Zaiden. I know it’s not been very long, but I can see this really going somewhere. Not just us being stuck together.” He watched Zaiden slowly straighten and close the door to the fridge before turning around to frown at him.
“Some weird shit has been happening, and it makes me wonder if maybe you have somebody else. Someone who’s not happy that I’m here.” Asher shrugged and looked down at his bare feet. “I don’t like it when you’re mad at me,” he mumbled. “It makes my stomach feel funny, and not in a good way.”
The room went deafeningly quiet. It pressed in on him, surrounding and suffocating him, until he couldn’t take it anymore. Lifting his head, Asher opened his mouth to saying something stupid no doubt, but snapped it shut when he saw the look on Zaiden’s face.
The man had his head tilted to the side, his hands resting on his hips, and a half smile on his mouth as if he knew a secret and wasn’t about to share. Then he lifted a hand into the air and crooked a finger at Asher. Twice.
Moving as if in a trance, Asher drifted across the room, his eyes never leaving Zaiden’s until he stood directly in front of him. Tilting his head back on his shoulders to adjust for their almost thirteen-inch height difference, he waited patiently for whatever his mate had to say.
“I’ve never really had boyfriends,” Zaiden began. “I don’t have anyone else in my life. I don’t want anyone else.” He wound his arms around Asher back and leaned down to kiss his forehead. “To be honest, I’ve never wanted anyone like I want you. I just haven’t worked through why that is.”
Nodding his understanding, Asher snuggled closer to his mate’s chest. “I get that. Everything just happened so fast, and I feel like I’m struggling to keep up. Some days I’m not sure I even manage to keep my head above the surface.”
“I know exactly what you mean, baby.” Zaiden nuzzled the top of Asher’s head with his cheek and sighed. “We’ll figure it out together, but we have to be honest with each other. Deal?”
“Okay. Deal.”
“Now, what do you want to do, baby?” Zaiden stepped away and wiggled his eyebrows playfully. “How about a movie in bed, and then we can break in our new mattress.”
“Oh, yeah, I can get behind that plan. You make the popcorn, and I’ll run to Blockbuster. Your movie collection sucks.”
“I’ll agree with you on that one.” Zaiden grimaced as he pulled the popcorn bags from the cabinet over the sink. “I don’t watch a lot of television, so I never really saw a need to buy movies. Before you moved in, I spent the majority of my time at the office. Hell, there were nights I even slept there.”
“That’s just sad.” Asher shook his head in mock despair and grabbed his car keys from the hook beside the back door. “Do you have a preference?”
“Either horror, action, or something with half-naked, sweaty men.”
“I like the way you think. I’ll get one of each.” Asher, blew Zaiden a kiss, and hurried out of the kitchen.
Chapter Twelve
“That man is a freakin’ god,” Asher breathed before shoveling another handful of popcorn into his mouth. “Have you ever seen so many muscles in your life?”
Zaiden had to agree, but he found his taste in men ran a little more on the small and dainty side. He’d watched more of Asher than he had the movie, sneaking glances at him from the corner of his eye as often as possible. He loved the way his mate had gasped and clung to him, practically crawling up in his lap during the horror film.
Now, they’d moved on to the action adventure, and damn had Asher picked a good one. He’d combined some top-notch fight scenes with plenty of slick, glistening bare chests and abs. If the tent in his sleep pants was any indication, he was enjoying the movie immensely.
Zaiden’s cock screamed at him as it throbbed between his legs, demanding to be the focus of Asher’s attention. He wrapped a chokehold around his desire, though, and settled back against the headboard to just enjoy spending time with his mate.
“This is nice.”
Peeking over at his mate’s softly sighed words, Zaiden smiled and nodded. “Yeah, I’ve never done anything like this before. I like it.”
“I have something I think you might like a little better.” Asher turned and knelt on the bed in front of him with a teasing glint in his eyes. He pulled his hands from behind his back and presented Zaiden with a pair of handcuffs and a bottle of chocolate syrup.
Trying desperately not to swallow his tongue, Zaiden’s eyes widened and he continued to nod dazedly. “Oh, yeah. I like.” He started to reach for the handcuffs, but Asher held them out of reach as he clucked his tongue.
“I want that spanking. Then I’m going to handcuff you to the bed and ride you until you scream my name. Can you handle that?”
Zaiden growled as he lunged for his mate, tackling him to the mattress and pinning him by the shoulders. “You really were a brat at the mall today. I think you need to be reminded who’s in charge here.”
Asher swallowed hard as his mouth opened and his tongue snaked out to moisten his dry lips. “Oh, yes. I need you to punish me, Zaid.”
Zaiden closed his eyes briefly
, trying to grab hold of some semblance of control. His mate proved too tempting when he thrust up against him and ground their cotton-covered erections together.
Rolling off the bed with a grunt, Zaiden stood at the foot of the mattress and pushed his boxers down his hips to pool on the floor at his feet. “Get naked, and then I want you to lay over the bed here.” His voice dropped low and husky, rough and demanding. He’d never heard anything like that come from his mouth before.
Asher nodded quickly as he jumped from the bed and stripped off his sleep pants in record time. He hurried around to stand in front of Zaiden, then turned and sprawled over the mattress on his stomach, his feet on the floor, and his ass pushed high in the air.
“Like this? Is this how you want me?”
Zaiden caressed the rounded globes one by one before giving each a light swat. “This is perfect, baby. Don’t move.”
Asher started to lift up on his hands, his head moving to look over his shoulder. Zaiden swatted him hard, his dick jerking as he watched his hand print appear on his mate’s ass. “I said do. Not. Move.”
“Yes, sir,” Asher panted.
Satisfied that his mate would comply with his command, Zaiden hurried to the closet and dug through the top of it until he came up with his little bag of goodies. Pulling the slim butt plug and the warming lube from the bag, he rushed back to his mate and dropped to his knees.
Without a word or other preliminaries, he spread Asher’s cheeks and licked a long swatch from his taint to his hole. He swirled his tongue around the pretty little starburst, growling and groaning at the taste of his mate.
Asher whimpered and moaned, but remained perfectly still. Good boy. Zaiden licked and prodded until the muscles began to relax, then pushed his tongue inside, licking at the inside of Asher’s entrance.
He squeezed and massaged the muscles cheeks before delivering a stinging smack to the right one. Asher cried out, his muscles tensing around Zaiden’s invading tongue. “Oh, shit. Do that again,” he whimpered.
Zaiden set a steady rhythm, fucking his mate’s hole with his tongue as he continued to spank him over and over, alternating sides. When he felt he had reduced his lover to a writhing pile of mindless goo, he grabbed the lube from the floor and popped the cap one-handed. Sitting back on his heels, he worked quickly, slicking his fingers and dribbling a little extra along Asher’s crease for good measure.
He circled the muscles once before pushing into the second knuckle with his index finger. He licked and nibbled, scraping his teeth over Asher’s glowing hot ass as he pumped in and out of him, twisting his wrist and stretching the muscles.
“You look so fucking hot like this, baby. Do you like it? I want to hear how much you like it.”
Asher moans grew in volumes as they stuttered from his mouth in broken sobs. Zaiden added a second finger, scissoring them back and forth, stretching his mate for the fun he had planned. Once he could easily fit a third digit, he pumped a few more times before gently removing them from Asher’s convulsing tunnel.
Growling, Asher pushed his ass back toward Zaiden, silently begging for more. It would have been funny if Zaiden hadn’t been fighting like hell to not blow his damn load just from the sight. Grabbing the black silicone butt plug, he slicked it quickly and pressed the tip against his mate’s opening.
“You ready, baby?”
“What is that?” Asher didn’t sound worried—merely curious.
“Do you trust me?” As much as he wanted this, it had to be Asher’s decision. He would never force anything on his mate that the man wasn’t comfortable with.
“Yes, Zaid. I trust you. Whatever you want. I’m yours.”
Gripping the base of his cock to stave off his orgasm, Zaiden moaned pathetically at Asher’s words. He could hear them over and over and never grow tired of it. Pushing away his own desire, he concentrated on his mate, nudging the tip of the plug through the tight muscles and rocking it gently. Asher’s hungry ass clamped down around the tip, sucking in more of the toy until the flat base rested against his cheeks.
“God, I feel so fucking full.”
Zaiden stood to his feet, admiring his handy work as he smoothed his palms over his lover’s still-heated bottom. Then he swatted him lightly, again and again with no pause between. The intensity increased, his hand stinging from the punishment he delivered to his eager mate.
Asher went wild, screaming and moaning, wiggling around on the bed to slip a hand beneath him to grip his turgid flesh. Zaiden swatted him over the base of the plug, pushing it deeper as he growled. “Uh-uh, little birdy. Not touching what belongs to me.”
Mewling pathetically, Asher moved his hand from beneath him and placed it flat against the mattress. “I need to come, Zaid. My goddamn dick is going to fall off and my balls are going to explode if you don’t let me come.”
“Oh, I’m going to let you come, baby. Just not until I say so.” Three more swats to Asher’s ass and Zaiden grinned broadly as the pretty shade of red that greeted his eyes. “You should see yourself, Ash. I’ve never seen anything more gorgeous than how you look right now.”
Leaning over his mate, he braced his hands on either side of Asher’s head, curling over him until his chest rested against Asher’s back. They both hissed, and Asher actually cried out as Zaiden’s leaking cock slid over his scorching hot ass.
“Fuck me, Zaiden. Please, I can’t take anymore.” Asher sounded near hysteria, and it scared the shit out of Zaiden.
Sitting up quickly, he rolled his lover to his back and pushed the sweaty hair back from his face. “Shh, baby. It’s okay.” He gripped Asher’s cock in his hand and stroked him quickly. “Come for me, baby. If that’s what you need, then do it.”
Asher’s head whipped back and forth on the comforter, and he swatted Zaiden’s hand away. “I want to fuck you,” he said, staring into Zaiden’s eyes. “I want to come inside that sinfully gorgeous ass of yours and brand you as mine.”
Zaiden’s cock pulsed and throbbed, dripping copious amounts of pre-cum from the slit as a mental movie reel flipped through his mind of his mate plowing into his ass again and again.
“Yes,” he hissed. “Fuck me, Asher.” Moving up the bed, he positioned himself on his back in the middle of the bed and spread his legs wide in invitation.
Moving faster than Zaiden had ever seen him, Asher sprang off the bed, grabbed the handcuffs and had them looped around Zaiden’s wrist before he could protest. Then he slipped the over cuff through the metal slats on the headboard and locked it around Zaiden’s other wrist.
“Okay? Not too tight?”
Zaiden turned his wrist one way and then the other, pulling lightly against his restraints. “Not too tight, but I want to touch you,” he pouted.
“Later.” Asher wasted no time as he pushed Zaiden’s knees to his chest and pushed two well-lubed fingers into his eager ass. “Oh holy hell, you’re fucking tight, babe. I didn’t realize. Are you okay?”
Zaiden closed his eyes and breathed through the burn and slight bite of pain from Asher’s forceful entry. His erection never lagged, though, and his breathing accelerated until his head began to swim with lack of oxygen. Hell, he didn’t even remember Asher grabbing the lube.
“Feels good. Keep going.” He wasn’t lying. He liked that quick jab, the instant zap of pain before the pleasure took over and swamped him in sensations. “I love what you do to me.”
Asher stretched him quickly, his entire body trembling as he worked to prepare Zaiden’s hole. Then the fingers disappeared and the blunt tip of Asher’s prick nudged against his opening. Asher paused and looked to him as though asking permission. Zaiden had only one answer to give.
“Fuck me, Ash. Hard and fast, slow and easy, however you want it, baby.”
“Can’t go slow,” Asher ground out through gritted teeth. “I need you too bad.”
“Oh thank fuck,” Zaiden gasped as his lover pushed in to the root with one long glide.
“So tight. So damn good,�
�� Asher moaned as he eased into his rhythm, working his glistening shaft in and out of Zaiden’s clenching passage. “Your ass just swallows my cock, babe. It’s so hungry for me.”
He leaned forward, covering Zaiden’s body, and began kissing down his neck and chest as he set a hard, fast pace that left Zaiden struggling to keep up. “Gonna,” Zaiden warned.
“Not without me you aren’t.” Sitting up to kneel between his legs, Asher held a bruising grip on Zaiden’s hips as he drove into him.
Zaiden rocked against his lover, meeting him thrust for demanding thrust. “Stroke me, baby. I need you touch me. Fuck, I need to come.”
“No,” Asher growled. “You’re going to come just from cock in your ass.” Then Asher right hand burst into purple and orange flames, and he rubbed it down Zaiden’s chest, bypassing his straining cock and cupping his heavy sac instead. “Come for me,” he whispered so softly Zaiden barely heard him, but had no choice but to obey.
The heat spread through him, choking off his cry of completion in a strangled sob as jets of pearly spunk blasted from the head of his dick to paint his chest and stomach. His eyes rolled back in his head as his heart thundered inside his chest, knocking against his breastbone like a hammer.
“Stay with me, Zaid,” Asher demanded as he jerked on Zaiden’s hips and slammed home once again. He froze, his eyes squeezing shut as his body jerked and trembled, and hot lava filled Zaiden’s ass, coating his inner walls and pulling another soft groan from his heaving chest.
Asher slumped over him, planting a soft kiss on Zaiden’s lips. “Incredible,” he whispered tenderly.
“Always is,” Zaiden answered, still trying to catch his breath.
“I didn’t get to play with my chocolate,” Asher pouted.
“Next time, baby. I promise.” Zaiden adored the way his mate’s bottom lip stuck out—the way his eyes crinkled at the corners. He clinked the handcuffs against the headboard and arched an eyebrow. “Get me out of these so we can get cleaned up.”
Evans, Gabrielle - Fire and Ash [Midnight Matings 3] (Siren Publishing Classic ManLove) Page 8
