by Sean Michael
He knelt across the top of Mike’s chest, rubbing the tip of his prick against Mike’s sweet red lips. Mike opened up, eager, hungry, sliding his tongue out to taste. Jessy moaned as Mike’s hot tongue slid across the head of his prick, and he leaned forward, feeding it into Mike’s mouth.
God, Mike took him deep, the suction enough to make his spine ache. Leaning to rest his hands on the headboard, he deliberately fucked Mike’s mouth, pushing all the way in, coming almost all the way back out again. Coupled with Mike’s suction, the movements made him shudder, made him shake.
Mike was right there with him, the race, the anger, all of it shoved aside. Jessy didn’t hold back, knowing Mike loved this—the sensation of Jessy’s cock deep in his throat, the desperate pull for breath through his nose. Mike’s eyes were on fire, starving for him, for this. He held on as long as he could, fingers going white where they gripped the headboard. It was just so damned good.
“Come,” he muttered, wanting to bring Mike with him.
He felt Mike swallow, Mike’s long body going tight as the smell of Mike’s spunk filled the air. He called out Mike’s name, shuddering and spilling his own seed down Mike’s throat. Mike didn’t lose a drop, just sucked and moaned, swallowing around him.
He let Mike clean him, let his prick start to soften before he pulled out and started his way down the long body to clean Mike’s skin. Mike was humming, moving so languidly against the sheets. He cleaned Mike’s skin, purring over the taste, and then sucked in the tip of Mike’s cock, determined to get his lover hard again, to make Mike come again.
He was going to leave Mike limp and exhausted.
The low groan he got made him ache, Mike’s cock twitching in his lips. He nodded, sliding his fingers along the insides of Mike’s thighs, fondling the hot balls before moving back to jostle the plug again. Mike pulled at the cuffs, trying to draw his legs up.
He shook his head, pulling his mouth off Mike’s cock. “Just feel, baby.”
“I try, Jess. I do.”
He licked at Mike’s cock and then took it back in, going all the way down and pulling hard.
“Oh!” Mike jerked, cock filling, going so hard, so full in his lips.
He moaned around it, singing, losing himself in the sensation of Mike’s body. Mike rubbed and rocked, cries filling the air, hips shifting. He reached up with one hand, tugging on one nipple clamp and then the other, twisting them in his fingers. His other hand stayed at the plug, pushing it randomly.
“Jess. Jessy. Love. Oh, fuck.”
Yeah, that was the idea. His head bobbed, lips tight around Mike’s cock, suction high. He wanted Mike’s pleasure, wanted that splash in his throat. Mike gave it up, cry sharp as he came. Jessy drank Mike down, the taste sharp and familiar, as sweet as it was bitter, and utterly welcome. Needed.
He gradually pulled off, leaving a kiss or three before he nuzzled Mike’s balls.
“Mmm… warm.” Mike purred, balls wrinkling under his lips.
“You taste good, baby. Like life.”
“You make me fly.”
“That’s the idea.” He licked at Mike’s balls, slid his tongue behind them to tease at the base of the plug.
Mike groaned, thighs shifting. “Uhn.”
“What do you think, Mike?”
“Th… think?”
“Oh good. I’m doing my job.” He grinned and nudged the plug hard with his chin.
“Oh.” The chains tugged away, dark eyes rolling.
Yeah, that was it; sensory overload was about the only thing that was going to send Mike into sleep. Hell, if he left the kid in the cuffs, he could guarantee Mike wouldn’t be killing himself in the water at 2:00 a.m. Mike groaned, hips trying to thrust, cock half-hard. Jessy turned his head and nibbled at the soft inner thigh, licking, threatening his teeth on the soft skin.
“Jess….” Mike tried to stretch, to pull away.
“Right here, baby. Right here.” He rubbed his cheek against Mike’s thigh, a day’s growth rasping.
“Yeah. Love you. I do.” So raw, so hoarse.
“Good.”
He moved back up to nip at Mike’s abs and then licked around the clamp holding Mike’s nipple. “I love you too.”
Mike was panting, clamps shifting in time with his heartbeat. Jessy growled and wrapped a hand around Mike’s cock, pumping.
“Again? Jess….” Mike shook, eyes wide, unfocused.
“Yeah. Give me one more, baby, and then I’ll let you sleep.” He kept pumping as he unclamped one nipple.
“Oh, fuck. A… always pushing. Fuck. Need you.”
Yeah, he was always pushing. It was his job. “Got me,” he told Mike, first pumping harder as he released the other nipple.
Mike groaned, going stiff as a board, hips bucking furiously into his touch, come sliding over his fingers. He leaned in and licked at Mike’s nipples, sucking on each one in turn to help pull the blood back into them, making Mike shiver and shudder.
Finally he stopped, hand leaving the spent prick, and he smiled down into Mike’s eyes. “Feeling better, baby?”
“Uh-huh….” Mike was almost asleep already, just barely keeping his eyes open.
“All right.”
He nodded, settling in next to Mike, stroking idly with his fingers, not trying to arouse, just touching. Mike didn’t twist, didn’t try to get free, just relaxed, gradually falling into a deep sleep.
He decided to leave the kid’s good arm in the cuffs—he’d take the plug out and make love to Mike tomorrow before they worked on a new routine aimed at getting Mike back where he needed to be.
Jess pulled a comforter over them both and settled in to sleep.
Chapter Eight
MIKE RACED the clock, checking his times against the competition every day, every day staying in the pool a little bit longer, pushing it a little bit farther, a little bit harder.
The summer was full-on, no classes, no friends, nothing to worry about but pushing, but swimming. He wasn’t ready to race again. Not yet. Soon. No matter how frustrated Coach got.
“Come on, Mike. Racing is good experience. Whether you come in first or last, you need to get out there. And you’ve picked your time up. We’re going.”
“I’m not going.” He wasn’t going to lose ground, wasn’t going to embarrass himself.
“Yes, you are.”
“No.” He could be stubborn too.
“You have a good reason?” Jess was standing, arms crossed, looking like he was going to stand there all day if he had to.
“I’m not ready.”
Jess snorted. “Can you swim?”
“Can you breathe?” He could be grumpy too.
Jess didn’t even bat an eyelid. “Then you can race. You start packing it up the first time you don’t do well and I can guarantee you, the minute you hit the Worlds and Olympics you’re going to be in deep shit.”
“There’s a difference between not doing well and sucking wind, and you know it.”
“And I guarantee you you won’t suck wind. You’re so far ahead of where you were three weeks ago. And making the fucking finals is not sucking wind!” Jess growled and got up into his face. “Are you ever going to stop fighting me on every single fucking thing?”
He pushed right back, seeing red. “No! I’m going to make your fucking life miserable until the day you die!”
“Well, you’re doing a damned good job of it!” Jess growled again and grabbed his arms, staring straight into his eyes. “You’re going to this fucking meet, and you’re putting in the best race you can put in. And if you come in first, fucking awesome. You come in third, cool. You come in dead last? That’s fine too. But you are racing.”
“Fuck you. I. Am. Not. Ready!” He was shaking, he was so pissed, and he pulled away, stormed upstairs to the little room that used to be his. The sound of the door slamming felt good; the sensation of his hands pounding on the bed felt better.
Jess hardly gave him any time to himself at all, knocking on
the door in what seemed like seconds later. He looked to make sure the door was locked and then went back to throwing his temper tantrum. If no one saw it? It didn’t count.
“Damn it, Mike, let me in.” The handle turned fruitlessly.
Mike stopped, sweat pouring off him, pissed as hell, and tore the door open. “What?”
“We weren’t finished, Mike. And I’m sorry if it’s going to cramp your tantrum style, but we need to deal with this.”
“I am dealing. I am being pissed off at you!”
“Good. Use that. Swim your heart out.”
“You never listen to me!”
“Not when you’re talking nonsense, I don’t.”
Oh. Oh, he was.
Oh.
Mike threw his head back and just screamed.
“Right.” Jess grabbed his arm and dragged him over to the playroom.
He was already in the room before he figured out what the fuck was up. “What the fuck?”
“You obviously need something other than swimming to focus on.”
His eyes felt huge in his head. Massive. Hot. Almost rolling.
Jess just looked at him, raised an eyebrow. “Unless you want to discuss this like a rational human being.”
He growled and turned his back on Jess, breathing deep, trying not to be pissed.
“Mike…. You’re behaving like a child.”
That put a line of pure steel in his spine, his jaw going tight. “Fine. Then I definitely shouldn’t be in here.” He headed out, downstairs to the kitchen to pour himself a glass of milk.
Jess came down the stairs but didn’t search him out, going into the office instead.
Mike didn’t know what to do. Part of him wanted to go to Jess, tell his coach how scared he was, how it was haunting him, how he worried, constantly, about what would happen to him when Jess found another star, another swimmer. Part of him knew that he needed to just get his ass in the pool and swim. Another part wanted to get on the bike and drive until he couldn’t think anymore.
Ten minutes later, he still hadn’t decided. Jess came out of the office and into the kitchen, leaning against the counter. “You ready to talk to me, Mike?”
“What do you want me to say?”
“I want you to tell me why you won’t race.”
He looked out the kitchen window. “I’m not ready.”
“Bullshit.”
“It’s not. I’m not ready. I want another tenth.”
“You won’t go to the meet because you’re sweating a tenth of a second?” Jess looked incredulous.
“Yes. I want another tenth.” He rinsed out his glass, hands shaking. He did, and he wasn’t going to forgive Jess for the child crack either.
“All right, Mike. Talk to me, okay? What the hell is really up?”
He didn’t realize he was shaking his head until he stopped.
“Okay, okay.” Jess’s arms wrapped around him, face buried in his neck. “Breathe, baby.”
He took a deep breath, fingers in Jessy’s hair. It was easier like this, easier to talk with Jess so close. “I… I’m scared, Jess. I’m scared that I can’t. I’m scared that… that it’s over and then.” He swallowed hard.
“Oh, baby.” Jess’s fingers slid down his back, soothing, warm. “It’s not over. Not for a minute.”
“I’m… I don’t want to lose you. I’m greedy. I don’t want to be your has-been.”
Jess stood back a little, took Mike’s hands in his. “You will never be my has-been, Mike. I love you. You. Trophy case or no trophy case.”
“I love you. I… I’m sorry. You’re right. I’m just a stupid kid.” He backed away, headed toward the pool.
“Whoa, hold up.” Jess caught up with him and stopped him. “I was pissed off too, Mike. And that was out of line.”
He met Jess’s eyes, all twisted inside. “Yeah? Because I try, Jessy. I try so hard to be all you want.”
Jess kissed him softly. “You are, Mike, don’t you get that? You are. Just by being you.”
“I love you.” He rested their foreheads together.
“I love you, too, Mike. So much. No matter what, okay?” Jess shook his head. “I know there’s a lot on your shoulders, and I’d take more if I could, but you’re the one with the talent. I never had that.”
“You have talent, Jess. You put up with me.”
Jess chuckled and rubbed their noses together. “That’s easy as breathing, baby.”
“You think I can win the races?”
“Hell, yes. And if you don’t win the ones this next meet, you’ll win them the meet after. You’re the best I’ve ever seen, Mike.”
He nodded. “I’m scared, but if you think… I trust you.”
“Mike, losing’s a part of the game. Only one person can win, and it isn’t always going to be you. You put in your best on any given day, and that makes you a winner. Now, when it comes to you, your best is better than anyone else.” Jess looked right into him. “I will love you no matter what place you take, Mike. I love you. You.”
He nodded, wanting to believe, so badly.
“You know, everyone thinks I’m so hard on you, when the truth is that you’re harder on yourself than I could ever be.”
“I…. You’re good to me.”
“That’s what people who love each do, no? Be good to each other?” Jess kissed him hard.
Something hard and hurting within him eased, and he nodded, pushing into Jess’s arms. Jess purred softly, stroking, mouth sliding over his face.
“Oh. Better. Love.”
“Yeah? Good.” Jess continued to touch him, to kiss and nuzzle him.
“Yeah. You… you make shit easier.”
“That’s what I do, Mike.” He got another kiss. “Now, are we going to this meet? Because we’ve got to confirm our reservations and pack.”
“I…. Yeah. Yeah. Let’s see how it goes.” For Jessy.
Jess gave him a bright smile. “Excellent. You’ll see. You’re way ahead of where you were last time.”
“Yeah.” He nodded, rubbed their noses together. “I’ll go pack.”
“All right. I’ll call the airline and the hotel, make sure we’re good to go.” Jessy stopped him as he turned to go. “Thanks, Mike. For trusting in me even if you couldn’t trust in yourself.”
“I love you. Trust is part of the deal.”
He found a smile, a wink, then headed to get their bags.
WELL, THIS was fucking familiar, and Jessy was still forcing himself not to pace, not to let Mike know he was nervous in any way. Mike had made it to the final heat again, swimming strongly during the preliminary rounds. He was in lane six this time, too, which meant he was definitely swimming faster. Or the whole field was swimming slower, but it hadn’t looked like slow water.
Mike climbed up onto the starting block, and Jessy held his breath, waiting for the starter’s pistol. Mike cut into the water, started swimming, and Jessy’s heart fell. By the turn Mike was in sixth and struggling, tense, out of rhythm. Shit. Mike didn’t need to win, but shit, the kid’s ego needed him to finish in the top three. Not fucking sixth.
The turn at the one-hundred mark was better, Mike pulling into fourth, beginning to stretch out and feel the water.
“Yeah! That’s it, Mike, own the water—it’s yours!” He knew Mike couldn’t hear him, but it felt good to shout, to encourage the kid.
Mike was head-to-head with the leader by the last turn, and Jessy stopped breathing again, looking for that distinctive burst of speed, that last-minute surge that was Mike. Come on, baby. Come…. Fuck, yes.
Mike exploded, pulling out ahead. Jessy roared, pumping his hands in the air. He was damned near jumping up and down as Mike hit the wall. Mike turned, searching for the board. Mike was grinning even before the numbers came up.
He headed for the coping, eager to congratulate Mike. The swim was nowhere near Mike’s personal best, but he’d found that tenth he’d been searching for, and continued training was only going to i
mprove that. “I told you, kid!”
“Pizza, Coach. You know how long it’s been since I got pizza?”
He laughed. “Long enough, Mike. I’m damned proud of you.” He stepped back, letting the other swimmers and coaches crowd in and congratulate Mike. Those dark eyes kept glancing back at him, warm and happy, dancing for him.
Now that Mike had done well, Jessy could admit, to himself, that he was worried. He had faith that Mike would eventually come back to his top form, but he wasn’t convinced Mike was anywhere near there yet. He also knew that Mike needed to show up to these meets, no matter where he placed, had to get back into the swing, and that learning to deal with defeat gracefully was important too.
The rest of the meet went well—Mike swam in six races, placed in three. His balance was back, focus back on track. They didn’t linger once the meet was over; Mike was showing signs of flagging, and if his ball of energy was tired, it was time to get him back to the hotel pronto.
“Come on, kid. You can talk to the boys next week at practice at UT. We’ll pick up your pizza on the way back to the hotel.”
Mike nodded. “Yeah. Yeah. Pepperoni, huh? Dr Pepper on the side?” The playful question made him grin.
He laughed and shook his head, just to make sure his laughter wasn’t taken as acceptance. “Sprite on the side, kid.”
Mike chuckled, leaning against him. “Hard-ass.”
“You know it.” He put his arm around Mike’s shoulders and gave him a quick, casual hug. “I do have a reputation to uphold, you know. It’s our magic secret—everyone thinks you win because I’m tough.”
“I thought everyone thought I won because I’m starving and need that pizza….”
Oh, fuck, he was going to hurt something if he kept laughing like this. Damn, it was good to be bantering again, Mike loose and happy, on top of the fucking world.
Mike settled into the rental car, eyes closing, just opening when he settled into the driver’s seat. “I want to see the video of the races. The two-hundred freestyle felt funny.”
