Deep in Your Shadows

by Darien Cox

  “Are you projecting? You been treated that way before? Judged by what people assumed about you?”

  Myles smiled. “Maybe a little. But mostly I just like elephants because I like elephants.” He gestured toward a chair. “Sit,” he said as he took a seat on the sofa.

  Ignoring the chair, Christian sat down next to Myles on the sofa. Myles looked amused but said nothing. “Don’t worry,” Christian said. “I’ll keep my hands to myself.”

  “See that you do.”

  “So I told you stuff about me, stuff I wasn’t supposed to even. Do I get to ask about you now?”

  “What do you want to know?”

  “Everything. What do you like, what do you think, what are your dreams...all that shit.”

  Myles chuckled. “You want my five-year plan? Am I in a job interview?”

  Christian snorted. “A blowjob interview.”

  “Christian, come on.”

  “I know, I’m sorry. I tried to deactivate my flirt but I guess I didn’t twist the knob hard enough.”

  Myles lips curled into a tight smirk.

  “You want to laugh because I said twist the knob, don’t you?”

  A laugh escaped, and Myles set his beer down on the coffee table. He shifted toward Christian, crossing his arms over his chest. “Well, I like elephants, as you can see.”

  “Never met a guy who was into elephants before, but okay. What else?”

  “I like living in the village.”

  “So there, we have something in common. Where’d you live before you came here?”

  “New Hampshire.”

  “Why’d you leave?”

  “I got tired of the way things were there. A lot of homophobia in the town I worked. Good people too, but I got sick of having to work so hard to tell the difference. It wasn’t a good fit. But it’s different here. No one seems to give a shit about people’s sexuality in the village, and that’s a nice change. And it’s just really fun here. People are always happy. I came to the village as a kid, several summers. You know Tim Patterson?”

  “Yeah. Forest ranger guy.” Christian didn’t care for Tim, but there was no need to tell Myles that, not when he was trying to bond with him.

  “He was my camp buddy when we were kids. Good memories. When he heard I was unhappy, he told me about the sheriff opening in Singing Bear Village. The rest is history.”

  “Camp buddies, huh? Tim’s good-looking. He’s got that total blond frat boy thing. Did you guys accidentally have sex when you were trying to short-sheet each other?”

  Myles shook his head. “You can’t help bringing everything back to sex, can you?”

  “I’m sorry! Just picturing you and Tim all young and prepubescent. The smell of hormones and bug spray hanging in the air. Flashlights under the blankets...”

  “No, Christian. Tim and I have always been just friends. No flashlights or anything else under the blankets.”

  “Family?”

  “I don’t want to do this,” Myles said.

  “Why? Sore subject?”

  “No, my family is great. Sunday dinners, Christmas gifts, no one hates anybody. I meant I don’t want to sit here and give you the resume of my life. It’s boring.”

  “But...isn’t that how you get to know someone?”

  Myles laughed hard. “I guess I prefer just talking about other things, music, current events, whatever. Then you get to know someone as the conversation happens.”

  Christian looked down, sipping his beer. He felt awkward suddenly, and he never felt awkward around other people.

  “What’s wrong?”

  Shaking his head, Christian said, “Ah, nothing. Well...I’m starting to think maybe I’m kind of fucked up.”

  Myles smirked.

  “Don’t say it. I know you think I’m fucked up, but I don’t mean getting in fights or doing crazy shit. I spend all of my time with the same people. I just realized, I don’t even know how to get to know someone anymore. Someone new. It’s like I’ve lost the skill. I guess I’m starting to understand why you keep rejecting me.”

  Myles stared at Christian for a long time, blue eyes narrowed slightly. Christian grew uncomfortable under his gaze, but Myles just kept staring.

  “Am I supposed to keep talking? Because I’m honestly not sure what to ask you now.”

  “Ask me if I want to kiss you,” Myles said.

  Christian stared back, swallowing hard. Did I hear him right? “That is not what I expected you to say next.”

  “That’s because you assume you know everything. Plus I was trying to catch you off guard.”

  Christian smiled. “Why?”

  Myles shuffled closer, took Christian’s beer and set it down. He leaned one arm on the back of the sofa. “I like catching people off guard. Gives you a glimpse of their truth. And now you know that about me. See?” He reached out and touched Christian’s chin, quickly pulling his hand back. “That’s how you get to know someone.”

  Christian got a tingle just from that quick touch. “And what glimpse of my truth did you see?”

  “That for all your cocky swagger, I actually make you nervous. And I like that.”

  “Why would you want to make me nervous?”

  “Because.” Myles touched Christian’s face again, and this time his hand lingered there. “You’re used to being the aggressor. You’ve been trying to come onto me.” Myles’ hand slowly wrapped around Christian’s neck, and he tugged him closer. “But I want to be the one to seduce you.” His lips moved nearer, fingers tightening on Christian’s neck. “So I had to make you nervous.”

  Christian’s head spun, dizzying him as Myles’ lips hesitated, stopping an inch from his, until he could feel his breath. “Mission accomplished,” he whispered. “I’m nervous.”

  “Before I kiss you,” Myles said, his eyes heated. “I have an important request.”

  “Anything.”

  Myles grinned. “Don’t make me arrest you again, okay?”

  Smiling, Christian closed his eyes. “I’ll do my best.”

  Then Myles’ mouth was on his, a strong arm wrapping around Christian’s back.

  Christian inhaled sharply, excitement making his heart thud. Oh hell yes, this is what I’ve been waiting for. Myles gently parted Christian’s lips with his tongue, angling his head and letting out a breath as Christian opened to him. All wrapped up in the heat of Myles’ body, Christian could feel the other man’s heart beating against his chest. The hard thumping of Myles’ heart emboldened him, the knowledge that he was just as amped up as Christian.

  But when Christian got more aggressive, smashing his mouth against Myles and hungrily exploring with his tongue, Myles’ fingers glided up and tightened on Christian’s jaw, holding him in place, controlling the kiss, keeping it slow and gentle. The grip on Christian’s jaw wasn’t painful or forceful, but it was enough to make clear Myles wanted to control the experience. He was claiming authority over this, and Christian softened, relaxed, and gave it to him. It made him feel more desired than any sexual aggression could have.

  The languid kissing grew heated in its own way, the wet softness of Myles’ tongue moving more enthusiastically in Christian’s mouth, exploring, savoring. Myles moaned, low and deep, and Christian’s cock responded to the sound, swelling.

  “Christian,” Myles whispered against his lips.

  “I like that,” Christian mumbled between long, slow kisses. “Much better than the way you usually say my name.”

  Myles’ head eased back and he grinned, fair skin flushed, eyes drowsy. “How do I usually say it?”

  “Like this.” Christian straightened his back and forced a scowl. “‘Boucher! What the hell are you up to?’”

  Myles’ smile widened as he grasped Christian’s shoulders, easing him back against the couch pillow. Sliding close, his lips hovered over Christian’s. “Boucher,” he said softly, staring into Christian’s eyes. “What the hell are you up to?”

  “Damn.” Christian grabbed My
les’ face and pulled him down. “Can’t believe you made that sound hot.”

  Myles really kissed him then, and it was no longer gentle. His body was angled over Christian’s, no below the waist contact, but Myles’s chest pressed down on him, trapping him. Hands palmed Christian’s cheeks then drifted up, threading through his hair, and that moan came from Myles again as the kiss deepened.

  When Myles finally came up for air, Christian was panting. “Fucking crazy,” Christian huffed, eyelids fluttering. “You’re driving me fucking crazy.”

  “I want to look at you.” Myles shifted and tugged off Christian’s plaid button-down, then lifted his tee shirt over his head. He paused, holding the tee shirt, his expression shy, like he was second-guessing himself. “Is this okay?”

  “Look, touch, it’s all okay,” Christian said.

  Myles smiled, and his fingers trailed over Christian’s chest, following the lines of his tattoos—which led to his lower belly. One of the tattoos disappeared beneath his jeans, but Myles stopped there, and trailed his fingers back up, over his chest, finally cresting Christian’s chin and stroking across his lower lip.

  “I like the way you look at me,” Christian said, having trouble breathing. “Especially since you used more than your eyes.”

  Myles let his fingers drift again, swirling around Christian’s nipple. His head lowered, then his eyes flicked up and met Christian’s, silently asking permission.

  “Do whatever you want.”

  Myles’ mouth closed on Christian’s nipple, sucking, tongue swirling. Christian groaned, hips lifting off the sofa, humping the air. Then Myles’ tongue followed the same path his fingers had, trailing the lines of Christian’s tattoos, below his chest, over his ribs, and down to where his flesh met the fabric of his jeans. Christian had barely recovered when Myles lips drifted to his other side, tongue trailing a line back up, stopping on his nipple and sucking.

  “I get the feeling...” Christian huffed, gripping Myles’ head when he sucked harder. “I get the feeling you’ve thought about this.”

  “Since the night at your house,” Myles mumbled against his skin. “When you wanted to fight me.”

  “This is better,” Christian said through labored breaths. “Much better than fighting.”

  “Much better.” Myles’ hooked an arm below Christian’s knees and slid his legs over so he was lying flat, spreading his thighs, then easing down on top of him. “This okay?” he whispered. “Too much?”

  Squeezing his thighs around Myles’s hips, he said, “Not too much. Not even enough.” He began struggling to unbutton Myles’ shirt. “I like you in uniform, but would much rather see you out of it.”

  “We don’t need to rush anything,” Myles said, but his eyes were dark with lust, and he didn’t resist when Christian helped him out of the shirt, then gripped the white tee he wore beneath it, pulling it over his head.

  Myles torso was more chiseled than Christian expected, perfect fair skin with sparse dark hair. “Not rushing,” he said as his palms moved over the contours of Myles’s chest, finally touching that soft skin. “I just want to feel your skin on mine while you kiss me.”

  “It was hard enough kissing you with the shirt on,” Myles said, but lowered his body on top of Christian, who moaned at the warm, silky press of flesh.

  “How hard?” Christian moved his hips, thrilled by the weight of Myles’ body between his legs.

  Myles’ hips pressed down on him, stopping the undulation, and he gripped Christian’s chin again, trapping his mouth with a slow, soft kiss. Pinned beneath the other man, his face in Myles’ determined grip, Christian couldn’t move at all, which was a surprising turn-on. Myles was taking what he wanted, the way he wanted it, and at the pace he wanted it. And he was making sure Christian knew it.

  Christian relaxed beneath him, surrendering with a breath into Myles’ mouth, softening his tongue and letting Myles control the kiss. Then Myles’ phone rang, and Christian wanted to curse the gods of all technology straight to hell.

  Breaking the kiss, Myles glanced at his phone on the coffee table, then down at Christian. “Don’t answer it,” Christian said.

  “I have to. I’m the sheriff.”

  “They can get their own damn cat out of the tree.”

  Grinning, Myles climbed off him, picked up his phone and walked out of the room.

  Damn, that’s a nice back, he thought as he watched Myles walk shirtless into his kitchen. Sitting up, Christian sighed, adjusting his jeans at the crotch where his cock swelled and pulsed. “Damn.” He shook his head. He was so turned on, so excited about what was happening. And so glad he’d taken Rudy’s advice and gone after Myles when he left the pub tonight. Risk and reward, baby.

  Myles stepped back into the room, still deliciously shirtless, but his token scowl was back. “I’m sorry. There was a fight at Spangles. I need to go down there.”

  “At Spangles? The land of leather and happiness?”

  “Sounds like a jealous lover thing,” Myles said as he wriggled into his tee shirt. He picked up his uniform shirt, pausing to look down at Christian. “It might not take that long...it’s probably not fair to ask you to wait for me. I’m sure you have better things to do.”

  “I told you, I’m free all night. I’ll sure as hell wait if you’ll let me. You trust me alone in your house?”

  Myles chuckled. “Why, you gonna steal something?”

  Christian stiffened for a moment. But Myles knew nothing about Christian’s past. And his flirty smile made it evident he was just making a random joke. “Depends,” Christian said with a smile of his own. “You have anything worth stealing?”

  “Sorry, no. I’m a simple man. There isn’t much here. Unless you want the elephant table. I’d rather you didn’t steal that.”

  “I will not touch the elephant.” Christian raised his hands. “Or anything else. I promise.”

  “You sure you want to wait?”

  Christian let his gaze trail over Myles, letting him see the desire in his eyes. “I’m sure.”

  Myles flushed slightly. “I can’t guarantee how long this will take.”

  “I don’t care how long it takes if it means I’ll end up in your bed at some point tonight.”

  Buttoning up his shirt, Myles’ fingers paused. He stared at Christian as he finished buttoning, but remained silent. Great, Christian thought. Probably went too far again. Now he’s gonna take off like a startled bird.

  Myles finished dressing, then sat next to Christian, his eyes trailing hungrily over his bare torso. Finally he met his eyes. “I didn’t expect this to feel so good.”

  Christian’s throat tightened, a rush of pleasure blowing through him. “Should I be insulted or complimented?”

  Myles kissed him softly, no tongue, then abruptly stood. “Complimented,” he said as he started for the door. He paused and smiled over at Christian. “If you get tired, feel free to wait in my bed.” He glanced toward the hall. “Second door down.”

  Christian smiled, then nodded. “Okay.”

  “Be back as soon as I can,” Myles said, then was out the door.

  Once the door closed, Christian stood and did a little dance, swiveling his hips and punching the air. He didn’t expect it to feel so good. And he’d invited Christian into his bed. Despite warning him earlier to keep his hands to himself. That’s when it finally occurred to him that Myles had been playing him, toying with him. He hadn’t wanted Christian to tone it down. He just wanted Christian to think he was hesitant. So he’d be blown away when Myles came onto him.

  “Son of a bitch.” Christian laughed. “Sheriff Myles Murphy out-strategized me.”

  With Myles gone, Christian explored his small house. But Myles had been right, there wasn’t much to look at. It was clean, orderly, nicely decorated, and cozy, but there was no safe of secrets or locked cabinet that read OPEN FOR A PERSONAL HANDBOOK ON MYLES MURPHY. Still, he examined the books, photographs, knick-knacks, all things Myles. Judging by the photos,
Myles had a lot of friends, but Christian didn’t recognize any of them, so assumed they were from his old life in New Hampshire. There were a few elephant knickknacks, and a giraffe or two, so he determined Myles probably had some personal philosophy about the long-necked creatures as well. While Christian had teased him about the elephants, he found it endearing. A man who loved animals usually had a good heart. Compassionate.

  It felt good, being in Myles’ home, among his personal things. That Myles trusted him to stay here was surprising at first. But then they’d nearly been about to get naked...at least in Christian’s assessment. That he’d been asked to stay made Christian cautiously decide maybe this wasn’t just a casual hookup for Myles.

  It was distinctly possible that Myles Murphy actually liked him.

  After all this time, and their rocky history, Christian could hardly believe it. It was as if the thunderbolt of attraction he’d been feeling for two straight years finally became too much to contain, and had spilled out and infected Myles. But he wanted to believe that Myles had always harbored some hidden attraction. Against his will perhaps, considering what an annoyance Christian had been to him.

  But this was more than a hook-up for Christian too. He felt like a kid who’d finally scored his high school crush, and now he didn’t want to let him go. With that childish thought, he took out his phone and scrolled through numbers, wanting to share his excitement with one of his friends. His finger hovered over JT’s number, but then on a whim, he hit Rudy’s, sending a quick text.

  ‘I’m in his house.’

  Momentarily, Rudy texted back. ‘Then what the hell are you texting ME for???’

  ‘He had to go do sheriff stuff, but he asked me to wait for him.’ To express his goofiness, he added several heart emojis.

  ‘Smooth work, criminal. Have fun. And don’t steal anything.’ Rudy had added a little emoji of a masked bandit.

  Christian thought that was the end of it, but a new text from Rudy popped up. ‘JT says try not to break him. We need him in the village, fit for duty.’

  Christian smiled. It was a little odd, picturing JT and Rudy together, laughing at Christian’s texts about his sex life. He responded. ‘Tell JT I can’t promise anything.’