by Ruby Ryan
I pushed my finger deeper, down to the second knuckle, and based on Sam's quickening thrusts it drove him wild. Which of course drove me wild in return, his own desire mirrored back at me. I heard his breath speeding up and I closed my eyes, and imagined it was his fingers inside of me, and then maybe his cock, deep inside the place no man had been, and I moaned out loud and Sam moaned with me.
"Oh Ezra," he cried in a raspy voice. "I'm going to come so hard..."
"Come for me!"
His grunts grew louder, and closer together, and I shoved my hips back against him as he roared in climax, his grip on my hair and waist so tight it almost hurt as he came deep inside of me with an ecstasy as bright as the sun.
*
"Something's weird."
We were clothed again, and resting on the couch with my head in his lap. He stroked my hair while we basked in our mutual sexual exhaustion.
"That's not exactly what a girl likes to hear after sex," I said. "But you seemed to enjoy it awfully well."
"No, not the sex. Something's weird inside me."
"It's probably the fact that you can morph into a gryphon," I muttered. "Do you remember that? Your clothes ripped off and wings popped out of your back. Happened an hour ago. It was a whole big ordeal."
"Ha ha, you're really funny," he fake-laughed. "What I mean is that... I can change again, right now. If I wanted to."
I twisted my head to look up at him. "You mean you couldn't before?"
"See, that's what I'm not sure about." He stared off as if reading a faraway billboard. "After transforming back, the power left my chest. I didn't notice it was gone until just now, when it returned. It's like someone cut me open and stapled a cell phone to my lungs, and now it's vibrating."
"So it's a power that takes time to regenerate," I said. "Good thing it came back quickly."
But Sam was shaking his head to himself. "I'm not sure it's that. It's like something triggered it to return."
I rolled all the way over onto my back. "The only thing that's changed between now and then is that we fucked. Sounds like I've got a magic cunt, huh?"
He flinched. "You're awfully vulgar."
"They're only words." I grinned. "It's kinda like King Arthur's sword in the stone. Except the sword is your dick, and the stone is me."
He tried not to, but I saw a smile force its way onto his lips. "I'm dying for some food. You hungry?"
"I could eat." I sighed as he slid me off his lap and went to the fridge. "You're not worried about being late to work anymore?"
"I am, but food first. If I don't fill my stomach right now I think I'm going to pass out."
While he made chicken tacos, I turned on the TV. I wasn't used to being somewhere with cable, and the list of channels that appeared on the menu was four digits long!
I'd only channel surfed through the first 40 options when I froze.
"Uhh, Sam..."
"What?"
I didn't answer; I just stared at the scene playing on the local news. Cell phone footage of an impossibly-large bird swooping in the air, diving at an unseen target. Sam joined me in front of the TV just as the dragon appeared, beating its way into the sky to follow the gryphon, belching fire chaotically.
"...reported this afternoon," the attractive news anchor said over the footage. "Local law enforcement are dismissing the incident as a publicity stunt with oversized drones, though conspiracy theorists have been quick to jump on the bandwagon."
They cut to a wide-eyed woman gesturing with her hands while explaining what she saw. And then the screen changed to a still-image of the footage, showing a woman riding on the back of the beast...
The anchor concluded with, "Police are asking anyone with information about the incident to come forward as soon as possible."
"Oh man," Sam moaned. "I'm screwed. How could I have been so dumb..."
"You? They don't have video of you."
"What do you think that is!" he gestured with his spatula.
"Yeah, you're a gryphon on tape. But there's nothing to tie that to Sam Feinstein, tall sexy human dude. Meanwhile, they've got grainy footage of me! My description is probably going up in police stations as we speak. Especially after they tried to arrest me at the parking garage."
He returned to his pan of shredded chicken, silent and brooding. "So I guess you'll be going, then? Running to some new town?"
Ahh, fuck. That's what it was. He thought...
I felt the regret of such an action, and recoiled away from it. I went to the kitchen and wrapped my arms around Sam, and felt his body relax. "I'm not going anywhere," I said.
"Do you mean it?"
"You know I do. Can't you feel it?" I ran my hands over his chest. "Can't you feel it in here?"
"I... I can. I really can." He shook his head and flipped off the stove burner. "You're welcome to hide out here. As far as I know, they don't have anything to tie you to me. I'll be back in a few days; then we can figure it out from there."
"Woah woah woah." I rounded on him. "What do you mean you'll be back in a few days?"
"I told you. I have to go to work."
"And that takes days?"
"I'm an astronomy engineer. We set up radio dishes. Our current contract has us building one up near Mount Antero."
"You act like I'm supposed to know where that is." I waved a hand. "It doesn't matter. I'm coming with you."
"You're what?"
I made myself grin. "Get it? I'm coming."
"I get it."
"Like cumming."
"You can't come, Ezra."
I put my hands on my hips. "Why the hell not?"
"It's up on a mountain. We have to climb to get to it."
"Are you doubting my physical ability? Cause I can show you again..."
Sam dished out chicken onto tortillas, then sprinkled cheese on top. "My boss wouldn't go for it."
"We can find an excuse to bring me along. Like an assistant!"
"I don't know."
But I could feel his excuses growing weaker. He wasn't going to stop me.
"You said the cops don't have anything to tie me to you, and your apartment? What about your car? We made one hell of a getaway from the parking garage, and surely there's a security camera somewhere that caught your plates."
"That's the lab's car," he said. "And I've already considered reporting it stolen."
I snorted. "You don't know the cops. It's not that simple. They're gunna grill you about it, and you'll blush and sweat and spill the beans the moment the questions get tough."
He looked angry at the buried insult, but didn't argue.
"I'm going," I said, pressing my body close to his. "Even if I need to convince you some more."
He handed me a plate of tacos, then went to the kitchen table to sit down. I joined him, and we ate in silence.
"Fine," he said when he'd finished his third taco. "You can come."
"You act like it was your decision at all," I said, grinning.
He looked upset, but then that gorgeous smile split his face again. We giggled together like kids and finished our meal.
And when we were done, I still felt a naughty tingle in my sex. I sauntered over to Sam's side of the table and kissed him on the lips.
"I want to go with you," I said, putting on a fake innocent tone. "Isn't there anything I can do to change your mind?"
"I already said you could go."
I gave him a wicked smile. "I want to convince you anyways."
I dropped to my knees, and his pants were unbuttoned and unzipped before he could protest. I pulled them down; there was no underwear underneath, only his smooth thighs and a cock as hard as steel. I bit my lip and looked up at him through my eyelashes, giving him one final chance to resist.
Sam's eyes were round sapphires, begging me to go on.
I wrapped my lips around him, sucking on just the tip, tasting the lingering taste of me from earlier. He moaned as I pushed further, lips locked tight around his shaft. I ran
my fingernails up his thigh until I found his balls, caressing them gently while I gave him head.
He groaned wordlessly.
I wondered if I could even get him off this way, both because it was so soon after our couch-sex, and because it would be the third time today. But that only made it a challenge, another incentive beyond my primal desire to please him.
I gripped the base of his shaft as I sucked, stroking him up and down while I moved my lips. I ran my other hand up his shirt, feeling his abs and chest, the ridges of his muscles.
I pulled his cock out of my mouth and licked the underside of his shaft, down to the seam of his balls and then back up, flicking along his head. "How do I feel?" I couldn't help but ask.
"Incredible."
I returned his prick to my mouth eagerly, enthused by his pleasure. I moved faster and faster with his deepening moans, desperate to make him cum. I grabbed his hand and put it to the back of my head. He laced his fingers through my hair and then grabbed hold, guiding me with each stroke with his muscular, tattooed arm. Just like I wanted.
It was intoxicating knowing that a man wanted you, that you could drive him to ecstasy so easily. It filled me with my own satisfaction as I ran my fingernails along his thighs and worshiped his cock.
Sam's moans rose in intensity, pouring from deep within his chest like a roar. I locked my lips onto his head and jacked him off as fast as I could.
"Oh God. Oh fuck!"
He practically screamed at the top of his lungs as he came into my mouth. I moaned around his cock as I took load after salty load, lips still locked tight on his head so I wouldn't spill a drop. His roar subsided and he breathed like he'd just run a marathon, chest heaving so much it rocked me back and forth.
Finally I pulled back from his member, giving the head a gentle little kiss. I discretely swallowed the cum in my mouth and rose to my feet. Sam's eyes were wide with every emotion as I kissed him sensually on the lips.
"Okay, okay, you've convinced me," he said between breaths. "I wouldn't dream of leaving you behind."
"You're goddamn right," I said, giving his thigh a playful smack.
15
SAM
It was a bad idea.
I knew it deep inside my bones, instinct as much as a conscious thought. This was a bad idea. It wouldn't work. It would blow up in our faces.
But what other choice did we have? She was right that the cops could come knocking on my door at any moment. My Accord still sat a few blocks away, near the scene of the now infamous gryphon-dragon publicity stunt. They'd run the plates. The lab address would come up. And then they'd be searching for the dozen or so employees who worked there.
We both needed to get out of dodge.
Plus, there was another reason. The totem. When I told Ezra she couldn't come, it was like I could feel the stone pulsing angrily. Defying my comment. It remained that way, hot and raging, until I'd finally relented.
For whatever reason, I needed to keep Ezra near me.
Which, honestly, was what I really wanted.
Selfishly, I wanted her by my side. She was a thief, and a stranger, and had a personality as blunt as a butter knife, but oh my God was I into her. It was like the excitement of a first date, and third date, and telling someone "I love you" all rolled into one bundle of emotion. I knew it couldn't last, but for now it was incredible.
Besides, she was the only person who knew about my ability. I didn't want to deal with that terrifying reality alone.
We finished our tacos and took an Uber to the lab. I could barely remember the list of equipment Thomas wanted me to bring; even though our phone conversation was that morning, it felt like days ago. I grabbed what I hoped would be enough to make Thomas happy. Then we raided the equipment locker and found winter clothes that fit Ezra: Under Armor leggings and long-sleeve shirt, waterproof ski pants and jacket, a balaclava and a hat and goggles. The hiking boots we had were several sizes too large, but we fixed that by pulling three sets of double-wool socks on her feet first.
"I feel like the dough boy," she said, voice muffled through the mask.
"If you want to dress sexy, you're welcome to it. Just don't cry to me when we're on the mountain and your fingers turn black and fall off."
She didn't complain after that, and we spent the next half hour loading equipment into one of the lab vans.
"We'll tell Thomas that you're one of the interns sent up from Boulder," I said when we were an hour outside of Denver on the interstate. "You're an electrical engineering major."
"I'm good hotwiring cars and swapping out the electronics on stolen TVs," I said, "but I don't think I can fake being an engineer."
"You won't have to. Thomas is... possessive with most of the equipment. He barely lets me do anything but haul equipment."
"Great."
"If anyone asks any questions, you can tell them your specialty is car electronics, or something," I said. "You seem like you can make up something on the spot if need be."
"Yeah, sure."
"This project is to set up an array of radio dishes," I explained. "They'll be used to scan for radio signals in space."
"The top of a mountain seems like a dumb place to set those up."
I grinned the grin of someone who was about to explain something they found interesting. "That's the thing about radio waves: they're affected by moisture. Specifically, moisture in the air and atmosphere. The higher we go, the less interference there is between us and space.
"And not only that," I continued, "but the dryer a place is, the better. One of the largest arrays is in the Atacama Desert in Chile."
"But there's snow everywhere," she said, pointing to the terrain along the side of the road. "That doesn't seem very dry."
"Oh, it is," I said. "Snow isn't necessarily indicative of moisture. Did you know Antarctica is one of the largest deserts on earth?"
"Woooow."
"So yeah, a place like the Atacama Desert is ideal, but an array up here will suffice for the radio astronomy they're doing."
"Huh." She stared out the window at the snow on the side of the road. I didn't think she was listening, which annoyed me.
I tried to shake it off. I was just worried about my job. Thomas would be pissed I was late, especially if I'd forgotten any of the equipment. And I didn't think he'd appreciate me bringing along an intern. He didn't adjust well to deviations from a plan. He was the kind of guy who liked to know things well in advance so he could let the information simmer.
Beyond worrying about work, it was tough to focus with the dragon in my head.
I could feel him there, in the distance. Somewhere on the other side of Denver, thankfully, a safe amount of space between us. And he was still wounded from our fight, which filled me with strange pride. Even so, his presence unnerved me. Distracted me. Like a loose thread in my coat tickling the back of my head. I wanted to yank it out.
When my work on the mountain was done, I'd have to deal with him. I wasn't looking forward to that.
Stop it, Sam. I needed to worry about work, first. One thing at a time.
The GPS guided us away from the state highway and onto a mountain road. It wound up toward the Rockies with steady switchbacks, the van engine rising in pitch with the altitude.
"I've never been somewhere with mountains," Ezra finally said.
"Really?"
"Yep. East coast, west coast. Chicago, for a while. But never real mountains like this. They're incredible." There was wonder in her voice as she craned her head to look straight up. I'd thought she was bored when I was giving her instructions, but she was too distracted by the views! The sun setting on the other side of the mountain cast everything on this side in a mystical twilight glow.
"We take it for granted, living in Denver. But you're right: they're incredible."
For a while I watched her admire the terrain, a smile on my face. Then she caught me looking, and I returned my eyes to the road.
"So I've got a question," she s
aid.
"Shoot."
"Your tattoos."
"Yeah?"
"Well, don't take this the wrong way," she said. "But you don't seem like the kind of guy to cover both arms and half his chest with ink."
I stared straight ahead, embarrassed.
"See? That's what I mean. You're blushing right now."
"Am not," I said weakly.
"You've got tattoos of skulls with roses for eyes, and a ram's curved horn, and leaves covering a vine," she insisted. "Those are just the ones I picked out earlier, when I was admiring your body. Hell, in the airport I thought you were some gang member!"
I shrugged. "Nope. Just a regular old astronomy engineer."
"You really don't see my confusion here?" she insisted. "How those two things don't jive together?"
I shrugged awkwardly. "I mean, I've always been a shy guy. I was a nerd in high school, and didn't get into exercise until I was in college."
"...and then?"
"And then," I said, "I got drunk with my buddies and woke up the next morning with a tattoo."
Ezra barked a laugh. "Somehow I doubt you got half your body inked in a single night."
"It was just a tiny heart on my bicep." I paused as we drove around an especially tight corner of the switchback. "My buddy, Orlando, got the same thing but on his calf. And as embarrassed as I was at first... it was strangely freeing. Some way of expressing myself I'd never considered, in a way that was easier for an introvert. So I went back, and had the artist design an old English crest around the heart, like a shield. Then I got a skull inked above that, wearing a crown. And it just spiraled from there."
I shrugged, and Ezra didn't say anything, so I spoke into the vacuum of silence.
"Soon I was spending my biweekly paychecks from my internship at the tattoo parlor. It became routine. I was still shy everywhere else, at parties and in class and at my internship, but the tattoos were a silent way of being more outgoing. It made people treat me differently. In a good way."
"Huh," Ezra said.
"You probably think I'm nuts," I mumbled, shaking my head in embarrassment. I'd never told anyone this before. "It's stupid, I know..."