by Jayne Rylon
“Take it.” Links didn’t cut him any slack. “You’re going to get what you wanted. And then some, I think.”
There it was again, a peek in Eli’s direction. Shit!
Stopping then would have been impossible. He choked up on his cock and refused to break his stare. Not from Links and certainly not from the gorgeous sight of Alanso’s awakening.
“Damn, he’s tight.” Ronnie grunted. “Been a long time since I had an ass like that.”
“Hey.” Phil shot him a glare.
“No worries, I like your ass plenty.” He beamed up at his partner. “In fact, I’m about to show you how much. Give me two minutes.”
“More like thirty seconds,” Links amended.
“If that.” Phil returned his attention to Alanso. He waited until Ronnie signaled him with a nod.
“I’m in as far as I can go.” He glanced up at the other two guys. “Gotta really work.”
“Good.” The encouragement spurred all three men to please Links more. “Ronnie, fuck him. Nice and slow. In and out all the way. Phil, lean in closer. You know you like a nice facial. I bet this is going to be the best you’ve had. Start tugging on him. Just a little.”
Alanso made noises Eli had never heard from him. Not even the time an entire case of motor oil had toppled from a cabinet and smooshed his hand between it and the frame of a vintage Corvette, breaking several bones in the process.
“That’s right, cariño.” Surprisingly tender, Links encouraged Alanso to surrender. “You’re safe here. Let it all out. We understand. No one’s going to make you hide again, are they?”
“No!” Alanso roared into the night.
Phil’s hand rippled along the shaft in his grip and Ronnie went double time.
They all held their breath for a split second. Then Alanso exploded. He screamed, “Eli! Sally!”
And those two little words ripped Eli apart from the inside out.
He shuddered and his cock lurched. His balls felt as though they might flip inside out, they drew so tight to his frame.
The iron tang of blood flavored his mouth. He kept silent despite the tsunami of pleasure, longing and fear laying waste to everything in its path, leaving his insides hollow. His future uncertain. Jet after jet of come poured from him, shooting hard enough from his dick to get lost in the brush.
They came together, even if Alanso didn’t know it.
All along, Alanso shuddered. His body jerked as though he’d been electrocuted. He shouted, cursed, prayed, gave thanks and supplied inarticulate expressions of his ultimate relief.
The sight brought Eli to his knees.
His head hung. Moisture scorched his eyes.
He’d reduced his best friend to yielding to a stranger’s touch. This couldn’t possibly be right. And now he’d probably fucked things up beyond repair. Struggling to get his breathing under control, he listened to the men emerging from their trance, less than ten feet away.
“I wondered for so long. But shit, I never imagined it could be that good.” Alanso threw one arm over his face. His chest billowed as if he’d unloaded the entire week’s supply shipment by himself, in record time.
If Eli didn’t know better he might have thought he saw the sheen of tears in Al’s eyes before he obscured them.
“Welcome to our world.” Phil rubbed Alanso’s shoulder. “You did great for your first time. If you find yourself in the neighborhood again…”
Eli regained his feet and took a few steps forward, unable to stay away. No. Next time it would be his finger in Alanso’s ass. Or better yet, his cock.
“Thank you,” Alanso murmured. He deflated as if every bone in his body melted in the wake of his release. How tightly had he been strung that Eli hadn’t even realized…
“So, who’s Eli?” Phil asked quietly. “And Sally?”
“Huh?” Alanso peeked from below his arm, blinking out of his daze.
“You called for them when you busted.” He smiled softly. “Whoever they are, I hope they figure out how lucky they are before it’s too late.”
“I know.” Eli cleared his throat.
Alanso shot up like a rocket. He scrambled to draw his clothes into place.
Links, Phil and Ronnie formed a wall between him and Eli. The man could win over even the toughest crowds in a matter of minutes. Jesus, he was amazing. And he didn’t get it. Never had fully.
“It’s okay, guys. He’s a friend.” Alanso cleared his throat. “My best friend.”
Eli hated how Alanso cowered when he approached. He didn’t hesitate to offer a hand. He hated looming over the guy.
When Al’s chocolate gaze flicked upward from Eli’s boots, it paused. His pupils dilated even further than the night had mandated.
Eli glanced down and spotted a thick, pearly strand of come he must have launched onto the thigh of his jeans. Shit.
Alanso reached up. He hesitated, as if Eli might run again, before touching the tip of one finger to the wet line. He swiped a trace of the fluid from the leg of Eli’s pants and brought it to his mouth. A purr escaped from his throat as he tasted Eli’s desire.
“Can we talk about this at home?” Alanso gained his feet and stared directly into Eli’s eyes. He didn’t blink once as Eli tried to put everything he felt into words yet failed miserably.
All he could do was nod his head.
When a couple of creases appeared at the corners of Alanso’s eyes, Eli reacted on instinct. He thrust his hands out and cupped the shorter man’s cheeks. He drew the guy to him and crashed their mouths together.
Their teeth clicked once before they found their rhythm, both used to leading. Alanso whimpered into Eli’s mouth. He couldn’t help but try to soothe the frantic questions he’d unintentionally inspired.
Eli forced himself to slow down. For Alanso’s sake. He used every sliver of self-control he had to harness the energy sparking between them as if they stood at the center of an enormous Tesla coil.
Tempering urgency with richness, he glided his mouth over Alanso’s.
The vague mint taste didn’t stop Eli from detecting the distinct zest of his best friend. Or the delicious flavor of the promise they sealed with their very first kiss.
How different it was to make out with a guy. This man.
And yet the same.
But way better than anything he’d felt before.
They made a few more passes of lips over lips. Until Eli’s lungs burned and the edges of his vision turned blacker than the night could account for.
Reluctantly, they split. Alanso’s mouth made one last bid for attention, nipping Eli’s lower lip as he retreated.
They stared at each other.
“I’m sorry,” Eli breathed against Alanso’s mouth, hating the remnants of latex he tasted on his friend’s lips. “I’ll make this right. I swear.”
“Hijo de puta, you’d better,” Alanso snarled before stepping away, a glint of mistrust in his eyes.
“I guess this means we won’t be seeing you again.” Phil kicked a rock idly.
“I hope not.” Alanso grinned and fist bumped Links before jogging up the hill toward his bike. He called over his shoulder, “Thanks.”
Eli groaned. It was going to be a long ride home, watching that tight ass fly down the road in front of him.
Chapter Five
Alanso swung his leg over his bike and clomped up the metal stairs at the rear of Hot Rods without waiting for Eli to park his Cobra in the personal bays the rest of the group reserved for their rides. His bed called loud and clear. Given the chaos of his thoughts and the ragged emotion chasing on the heels of his experiment, he thought it’d be best if he avoided a confrontation tonight.
God only knew what he’d say when all of his insides were laid bare. He felt like he was turned inside out and everyone could see his guts, what made him tick and the dumb hope causing his heart to pound.
He had to think.
Or maybe getting in his head too much was the fucking problem. Deliberat
ing hadn’t done him any good over the past several months.
Seriously, there was no mistaking the tongue Eli had shoved in his mouth before spinning on his heels and commanding Alanso home.
But he hadn’t been exactly affectionate either, had he?
Begrudging intimacy wasn’t going to cut it anymore. He refused to settle. Or walk around feeling like he’d done something wrong.
Links had it right. Alanso didn’t plan to hide ever again.
Except maybe just this one night. Until he figured out what to say to the five guys and one smoking hot woman staring at him as he opened the door to their common room a teensy bit too fast. The knob slipped from his grasp, allowing the door to hit the wall as he flew inside. A black-and-white picture of their first restoration job fell off the wall. The glass cracked as it hit the hardwood floor they’d installed a few years ago.
Just like that, something inside him shattered along with it.
His eyes flickered first to Sally. Worry lines around her pretty green eyes only amped him up more. This tension between him and Eli had affected the entire group in some way. From where he lounged on the couch beside her, Carver put his hand on her shoulder.
The movie they’d been watching droned in the background.
Roman, Holden, Kaige and Bryce set their cards on the table despite the large pot resting between them. Big, usually quiet, Bryce broke the silence. “You okay, Alanso?”
“No.”
Roman’s eyes widened and Holden scooted his chair around so he could catch the show too. In an instant, Sally rose and started to cross the sweeping area. The second floor of the garage was enormous. A complete blank slate had allowed them to slice the space into the rooms they needed to house them all while leaving a big-ass kitchen and this common ground.
Fortunately, the size of the living room gave Alanso opportunity to evade Mustang Sally’s outstretched arms. He put a beat-up leather recliner between them.
“Don’t.” He shook his head. She couldn’t touch him after where he’d been. What he’d done.
Tears shimmered in her eyes, obscuring jade behind pools of crystal. “What happened? What’s wrong? Where’s Eli?”
Relief washed through the gang when the door opened for the second time in as many minutes and their King Cobra came home.
“Who broke the picture?” He stepped toward the shards on the floor. Would he sweep them up? Alanso didn’t think he could. None of them could put it back together now. It was too late. The damage had been done.
“I did.” Alanso didn’t recognize the tone of his own voice. “Leave it. I’ll get it before I head out in the morning.”
“What?” Sally rounded the chair. “Where are you going?”
Alanso kept pace, never letting her close the distance. “It doesn’t matter. But I’m tired of pretending to be something I’m not just to fit in.”
Sally propped her hands on her hips. She looked damn cute when she got pissed. Not that it happened often. “The hell’re you talking about? Did he tell you to get out?”
She jabbed a finger in Eli’s direction.
“You know better than that, Sally.” Eli’s response came quiet yet sure.
“Shut up.” Her snap at the garage owner raised a few brows in the room. “You’ve fucked up enough already, haven’t you? Somebody damn well better tell us what’s going on. Keeping us in the dark is a shitty thing to do. Since when do we hide stuff from each other? Afraid we’re going to kick your ass, Eli? I’m starting to think you really deserve it.”
Alanso appreciated her loyalty. No questions asked. She’d always have his back.
Which is why he felt extra lame when he rounded on her as she crept closer again.
But having her near confused him all over again, just when he’d thought he’d found some answers.
“Stop! Don’t you get it? I don’t like chocha.” He drew a ragged breath, knowing he had to say the word. For himself. “Sally, I’m gay!”
Holden laughed first.
He flat out snorted as he rocked in his chair. Several beer bottles scattered on the table in front of him when his arm knocked into them. The clatter echoed off the high ceilings with exposed metal beams.
Sally froze. She tipped her head as she scrutinized him. Her gaze roamed over him inch by inch, as if one of his tattoos had secretly proclaimed his orientation all this time and she’d missed it.
Roman shot up from his chair. He paced behind the poker table. As usual, he didn’t say anything right away, but Alanso could practically hear the wheels turning in his mind. What conclusion were they working toward? Would he accept a gay guy in their mix?
Carver piped up from the couch. Not in disgust. With pure curiosity, which was harder to drum up protective anger toward. “I’m confused, Al. It was less than six months ago that I walked in on you, in our laundry room, fucking that check-out girl from the grocery store. There wasn’t any faking the way you pile-drived her.”
“Hell, this place isn’t soundproof. We’ve all heard you making women scream. And that damned Spanish. Wraps them around your dick every time. What’s this really about?” Kaige grinned, his golden dreadlocks dancing around his head as he shrugged. “Dude. You almost had me for a second there.”
“I’m not joking, cabrón.” He scrubbed his hand over his head. “Okay, maybe not maricón. What do you call it? Bi. Something. Whatever. I sucked a guy’s dick tonight and I liked it. Label that whatever the fuck you want.”
“You should have waited outside for me,” Eli murmured. “This isn’t the time or place for this discussion. Let’s take a walk. Cool off.”
“Fuck you.” Alanso wrenched away from Cobra. “I’ve had enough of secrets. They deserve to know why I’m not welcome. Why everything went to hell.”
“You’re always welc—”
“No, I’m not.” Refusing to settle for half-alive wasn’t an option anymore.
While he was distracted, Mustang Sally snuck in. He flinched when she wrapped her arms around his waist and laid her cheek between his shoulder blades. “We love you, Alanso. It doesn’t matter who you choose to have sex with. Why would you think we’re so judgmental?”
Whether it was the heat of her embrace or the enormous open heart she flashed them all, arousal—the same familiar longing that had plagued him lately in the presence of his de facto family—flared around him. The inappropriate thoughts heated his cheeks and had him staring at the floor.
Not one of the guys uttered a peep.
“Because Eli is.” He hated the trembling in his worn-out muscles. It transmitted his exhaustion and fear to Sally as clearly as if he’d painted the torment in the bright colors she loved so much. “He’s been keeping me gagged for months.”
And didn’t that image rouse his cock? Damn thing wouldn’t behave. Seriously? After the best fucking night of his life? Well, second best if you counted the session with the crew.
“What?” Roman stood farthest away, but there was no way he had misheard.
“You’re ashamed of him?” Bryce took a step closer, cracking his knuckles. “Cobra, what the fuck?”
“Hell, no.” Eli rounded on the beefy guy. “You don’t understand the situation.”
“Of course not, coño. Because you haven’t shared any of it with them. How could they know what we saw? What we did?” Weeks and weeks of rage exploded from Alanso at once. “You refused to be honest about it. You’re a fucking coward. I didn’t imagine your cock in my hand or your tongue in my mouth, did I?”
“Holy shit.” Kaige plopped into his seat. “Is this the Twilight Zone or something?”
“No. You did not.” Eli stepped closer.
Alanso couldn’t have retreated even if he’d wanted to with Sally plastered to his back, sobbing quietly. He knew how much conflict upset her. Still, he couldn’t stop the snowball they’d set rolling down this mountain of angst.
“Well, at least I’m not crazy and gay,” he spat.
“Look, if you keep saying
that like it’s a bad word, you’re going to be fighting with more than Cobra.” Holden surprised them all by getting fired up. The usually affable guy rarely took a stand on serious issues. “You’re not the only one in this room who’s hooked up with a dude. I just never had some kind of emo crisis about it. Do what feels good and fuck anyone who tells you not to. What the hell’s so hard about that?”
Alanso’s stare whipped to his friend. Could it be true? All this time he’d spent not confiding in them he could have had an ally. It was partially his fault. Not everything could be blamed on Cobra. That asshole.
“Nothing.” He cleared his throat. “It’s how I plan to live from now on. Like from right this second. And it’s how the crew does it too.”
“The crew?” Sally tensed around him. “Joe and his guys? What do they have to do with this?”
“Alanso…” Cobra hissed out a warning.
“Quit that.” Bryce winged a clay poker chip at Eli. It bounced off his corded biceps. “Let him talk.”
Alanso swallowed hard. “When Dave was in the accident and we went down to help, the crew was a mess. Kate and Morgan were pregnant and having a rough time. They were all torn up. Terrified he wasn’t going to make it. We finished with the insurance paperwork earlier than expected so we met Joe, Morgan, Kate and Mike back at their house where the women were resting. Or so we thought.”
Eli hadn’t blinked once. It was as if he could visualize the scene they’d walked in on as clearly as Alanso could. The day replayed like a movie on endless loop in his mind.
“Cobra didn’t want to wake them. Morgan had practically passed out at the hospital and the guys weren’t hanging in there much better. So he picked the lock. We snuck in.” Alanso couldn’t stop himself from licking his lips. “Joe was fucking Morgan on a mattress. Right there on the floor of the living room.”
“Guess she was feeling better.” Kaige’s eyebrows wiggled.
“They were helping her get there.” Alanso nodded. “Taking away some of the fear and comforting her.”
“Who’s they?” Roman spoke up.
“Kate watched while Mike and Joe got it on with her.” Alanso couldn’t help the boner that started to rise. He hoped they wouldn’t notice.