I would have happily spent the rest of my life in that moment. But eventually we parted, if only by a few inches. His chest rose and fell as he tried to catch his breath, and I traced the curve of his lower lip as his eyes searched mine.
“I’d wanted to do that for such a long time,” he whispered.
“Me, too.” I kept touching him, just because I finally could. As I brushed my fingertips over his cheek, I asked, “When did it start for you?”
“Sometime over the last few months, after we started living together in San Francisco.” He cupped my face between his palms. As he ran his thumb over my cheekbone, he said softly, “You really are extraordinarily beautiful, Seth, and one day it just sort of hit me that I was attracted to you. After that, I couldn’t switch back to seeing you as just a friend. I tried. God, did I try. But it just kept building and building, and I didn’t know what to do with everything I was feeling.”
“Were you really going to let me move back to St. Louis without saying anything?”
He nodded. “Even though I was going to miss you like crazy, I thought some time apart would give me a chance to get over you.”
“I don’t understand. Why would you want to get over me before you even gave this a chance?”
“Because Casey’s my best friend, and you’re his kid brother. That line shouldn’t be crossed. And what about your parents? They made me a part of your family, and I’d be betraying their trust by—”
I cut him off by saying flatly, “You know I’m twenty-five, right?”
“Of course I do.”
“In that case, please stop acting like there’s something wrong with two full-grown, consenting adults choosing to be together. I’m not some naïve, impressionable kid, and you’re not taking advantage of me. Far from it.”
“I know that, too.”
“Do you know how long I’ve wanted this, Eden? How long I’ve wanted you?” He really didn’t. He had no idea. “While you’re standing there manufacturing reasons for why we can’t do this, I’m about to burst with happiness, because this is a dream come true.”
I leaned into him, and as I ran my hands down his arms, I looked into his eyes. There was conflict churning in them, a battle between what he wanted and what he thought he was supposed to do. I slid my hands around his waist and nuzzled his neck. When I kissed the spot just below his earlobe, he murmured, “We shouldn’t take this any further.”
“For once in your life, stop playing by the rules,” I whispered, as I caressed his back. I nuzzled him again and kissed his jaw. “I think you want this as much as I do, so please, Eden, I’m begging you. Give yourself permission to be with me.” When I ran the tip of my tongue up his neck and lightly bit his earlobe, a tremor went through him.
In the next moment, Eden’s resolve crumbled, and it was breathtaking. The most proper, restrained man I’d ever met gave in to his desire, not in increments, but all at once. I understood how huge that was, because I knew him so well. This wasn’t a man who surrendered to temptation lightly. Eden lived his life by a strict code of conduct, and almost nothing would make him go against that—except for the irresistible attraction that drew us together.
He pushed me against the wall beside the fireplace, and his kiss consumed me. It was wild and urgent, and I moaned against his lips. My cock throbbed and my head spun as I grabbed onto him, trying to draw him even closer.
When I pushed my hips forward and rubbed my cock against his, Eden’s breath caught. He was as hard as I was. I massaged him through the thin fabric of his underwear, and I was thrilled when he dropped his boxers and stepped out of them. I did the same with my briefs and kicked them aside.
I started to jerk him off as we kissed, but then I spun us around so his back was to the wall, and I dropped to my knees in front of him. I ran my tongue from his balls to the tip of his cock, and as I wrapped my lips around it he whispered, “Oh fuck.”
This wasn’t the time to dazzle him with technique, or to see how long I could draw this out. Not when we were both burning for each other. Instead, I sucked him like my life depended on it, massaging his balls with one hand while I braced myself against the wall with the other.
He stroked my hair, and I looked up at him. When our eyes met, I was overwhelmed by the intensity of our connection. His expression made it clear he felt it, too.