Twenty Times Tempted: A Sexy Contemporary Romance Collection

by Petrova, Em

  “Yes, of course. Budge up, Stanley.” He patted the side of the dog’s belly, and got no response. “Hey!” he said, chuckling. “Just because you won’t move, doesn’t mean I’m going to sit here and stroke you all night. Move!” In the end, he had to move sideways out of his chair, dragging his feet from beneath the dog’s bony bottom, and getting a dirty look from the canine as he did so.

  Shaking his head, he followed his mother into the kitchen. “That bloody dog’s got us all wrapped around his little finger, hasn’t he?”

  “We’re under the paw, darling, that’s what I always say. But how can we not be, with a face like his?”

  “True,” Wilkes sighed resignedly. “You couldn’t have gotten an ugly dog, could you?”

  “It probably wouldn’t have made a difference. When a dog’s lovable, it’s lovable. Doesn’t matter what it looks like.”

  “Also true. So,” he leaned over and kissed his mother’s cheek, “what do you want me to do? Or was this just a ruse to get me in here so you could talk to me alone?”

  “Both.” She smiled at her son as she began pulling boxes and packets out of cupboards. “I really could use some help with the nibbles. But I have a feeling you and Rustam are going to be in hot demand this weekend, so I thought I’d take advantage of a little mother-son time. Grab some plates and bowls, darling, please.”

  Doing as he was told, he placed the plates and bowls down and began opening some of the packets his mother had laid on the work surface. “So, what do you want to know?”

  “Everything!” She giggled. “Well, no, not everything because that would just be weird. Maybe just the romantic bits, the important bits. I don’t know, really. I’m just so excited! Rustam seems really lovely; so polite, well-spoken and...” she tailed off, then glanced out into the corridor to make sure no one was listening, “he’s so handsome, Hugh! If I was thirty years younger—”

  “And a man?” Wilkes cut in, laughing. He’d been pretty sure his family would be okay with this, but he was still glad it was out in the open now—although apparently it hadn’t been the secret he’d thought it was—and they could talk about it, laugh and joke like they were now.

  “Well, yes, I suppose!” she replied, blushing a little. “I don’t have the right equipment, do I?”

  “Afraid not, Mum, sorry. And even if you did, I’d tell you to clear off. He’s mine! God knows I went through enough to get him. I’m damn well keeping him, now, for as long as he’ll have me.”

  “Oh, Hugh!” He was wrapped in another warm, perfume-infused hug, and he squeezed right back. “You have nothing to worry about on that front, I’m sure of it. To me, it looks as though you two are equally enamoured with each other. On that note, you may as well tell Rustam to move his bag from the spare room to yours. I had an inkling what was going on when you called earlier, but I wasn’t sure, which is why I put you in separate rooms. It’s up to you, of course, whatever you’re both most comfortable with. But just so you know, your father and I have no problem with you sharing a bed here. Just don’t make too much noise, eh?”

  She wiggled her eyebrows theatrically, and Wilkes released her, horrified, and covered his face with his hands. “Mum! What are you like?” Heat infused his throat and his cheeks. “If you’re going to keep embarrassing me like this, I’m not going to tell you anything.”

  “All right, all right!” She held her hands up in mock-surrender. “Sorry. Just a little light teasing, sweetheart. You’re forgetting this is the first time you’ve ever brought anyone home, so I’ve never had this opportunity before; to tease you, to ask you questions, to find out about the person making my son so happy. I’ll stop the teasing, now, and move right on with the questions. So...”

  Wilkes humoured his mother as they sorted out the food, pausing their conversation only when they headed into the living room with bowls and plates, then returned for more. By the time Joy had decided the family had enough nibbles to be getting on with and they’d all been delivered into the front room, she’d learned about how and when Wilkes and Balkhi had met, how they’d gotten to know each other, how they’d gotten together, admitted their feelings, and so on. Naturally, Wilkes had given her a highly sanitised version of the story, since the reality had been doused in epic amounts of sexual tension and eventually, actual sex.

  As well as being excited for her son finding someone, she’d also been sympathetic to their plight, how they’d had to keep their relationship a secret while out in the desert, and how, to some extent, they still were a secret. But she’d understood, and been happy, that Wilkes had wanted to tell his family first, but encouraged him to come out to his friends and colleagues sooner, rather than later.

  “Darling, those that know you well will probably have already sussed it out, like we all did. And you know that we’ll all be here for you, for both of you, whatever happens. But once the initial shock wears off, I don’t think anyone will give you any trouble. And if they do, then they’re really not worth bothering with, are they?”

  With his mother’s wise words ringing in his ears, Wilkes decided that she was right. The successive baby steps were coming much more quickly than he’d expected, so why delay the inevitable?

  He was in love. Why the hell shouldn’t his friends and colleagues know about it? God knows he’d had to listen to their tales of love, lust and woe often enough. It was time to repay the favour. Though hopefully his tales would all be positive ones—going forward, anyway. They’d already had their fair share of angst.

  Chapter Fourteen

  After a couple of hours, the other members of the family began making a move to go home. They’d all be seeing each other the following day, after all.

  Lacey was first to leave, being concerned about little Alexander. It seemed that nobody wanted to be the first to go, but once she had, Joe and Ben followed pretty close behind.

  Soon, just the four of them, and Stanley, were left.

  “Right!” Joy said, standing up. “I’ll get cleared up and then I think I’ll call it a night. Tomorrow’s going to be a busy day.”

  Almost immediately, Balkhi jumped up. “I will help you, Mrs—Joy.”

  Wilkes bit back a smirk. Poor Balkhi was still struggling to call his parents by their first names.

  “Nonsense,” she replied. “You’re a guest. John?”

  John looked a little startled, thinking he’d gotten away with helping out, too. But, after a brief expression of disappointment flitted across his face, he turned a sweet smile upon his wife. “Of course, my love. Do you boys want any more of these nibbles before we put them away?”

  Wilkes and Balkhi shook their heads, and Wilkes said, “No thanks, Dad, I couldn’t eat another thing.”

  “Right, okay. Well, uh, if you two want to head upstairs, don’t let us stop you.”

  Unsure exactly what his dad was getting at, Wilkes frowned, but stood up. “All right. See you both in the morning.”

  “Goodnight!” his mother called from the kitchen.

  “Night, son. Goodnight, Rustam.”

  “Goodnight, John. And goodnight, Joy!” Balkhi replied.

  With that, the two of them headed upstairs. Once they were out of earshot of the kitchen, Wilkes beckoned Balkhi into his room.

  “What?” Balkhi said, eyes wide. “Is something wrong?”

  “No... it’s just, um, well, when Mum and I were talking in the kitchen earlier, she said that she and Dad are okay with us sharing a room, if we want to.” He left out the part about not making too much noise. No need for Balkhi to be embarrassed, too. “She only made up the guest room in case she’d gotten it wrong and we weren’t together. Apparently, she suspected as soon as I phoned, earlier. So... it’s up to you. You can stay either in the guest room, or in here, with me.”

  “You’re sure they don’t mind?”

  “Yep. Mum brought it up, not me.”

  “Well then, as long as it is not considered disrespectful, I would rather stay with you. If you are okay with
it?”

  “Go and get your bag, Rustam,” Wilkes said good-naturedly, throwing him a grin.

  Balkhi returned moments later. “Okay. Here I am. Do you think it would be okay for me to have a shower?”

  “Of course. I want one, too. Feels like it’s been a long day, doesn’t it?”

  Half an hour later they were both slipping beneath the crisp, clean sheets of Wilkes’ old bed. He chuckled, and shuffled closer to Balkhi. “This feels quite odd to me.”

  Balkhi tensed. “W—what do you mean? Do you want me to go?”

  Putting a hand on Balkhi’s bicep, Wilkes said gently, “That’s not what I meant. Don’t you dare go anywhere. I just meant it’s unusual. The others—Lacey, Ben and Joe—all had boyfriends and girlfriends stay over here when we were younger. I was the only one who didn’t. So sharing this bed with you, under my parents’ roof, is a completely new experience. Even though it’s allowed, it feels forbidden.”

  “We have had enough forbidden to last us a lifetime.”

  “True.” He moved closer still, and pressed a kiss to the sensitive skin beneath Balkhi’s ear. “Doesn’t mean we can’t be a little bit naughty though, does it?”

  Balkhi edged away, eyeing Wilkes suspiciously. “We can’t!” he whispered. “Not here. It would not be... right.”

  “Not that I want to think about it, but do you think my brothers and sisters haven’t had sex with various partners under this roof?”

  “No... but... that is different.”

  “How?”

  “Because...” Balkhi tailed off.

  “It’s not different at all, is it? We’re adults, it’s consented, we love each other. And, most importantly, we have their blessing.”

  “To have sex?”

  “Actually, yes.”

  “What!”

  Wilkes chuckled. So much for not embarrassing Balkhi. “I wasn’t going to tell you this, but my mum said that she and Dad didn’t have a problem with us sharing a bed here, as long as we didn’t make too much noise.”

  Balkhi covered his face with his hands. After several seconds, his widened eyes peered out from behind his fingers, then he narrowed them. “Hugh, you are... teasing me?”

  Wilkes shook his head. “I’m not. That’s pretty much word for word what she said. Come on, Rustam, they’re not idiots. They know we’re sleeping together.”

  Shaking his head incredulously, Balkhi said, “This is hard for me, Hugh. I have no experience with this meeting the parents thing, either in my culture, or yours.”

  “Nor do I,” Wilkes pointed out. “I’m just making it up as I go along.”

  “We seem to do that a lot, don’t we?”

  Grinning, Wilkes replied, “Seems to be working out for us okay so far, doesn’t it?”

  “Yes, it does.”

  “So stop making excuses and give me a kiss. If you’re too embarrassed for anything else, I promise I won’t hold it against you, but don’t make me sleep next to you without so much as a kiss.” It was a devious move. Balkhi’s libido was just as high as Wilkes’, so he was pretty sure that once they kissed, Balkhi’s hormones would override his conscience. He bloody hoped so, anyway.

  Balkhi’s handsome face creased into a smile, and he rolled his eyes, though they glinted with amusement. “All right, all right!”

  They moved closer together, and their mouths met. Wilkes sighed happily, relishing the feel of their bodies touching, as well as their lips. They both wore boxer shorts, but having Balkhi’s warm, muscular chest pressed to his was still delicious, particularly since they’d barely touched all day. They’d had no privacy, really, from the moment Balkhi had stepped off the train up until now. Hours spent in each other’s company without being able to express their feelings—Christ, it had been like Afghanistan all over again. Only with less sun, sand and soldiers.

  Slowly, Wilkes ramped up the heat of the kiss. If he moved too quickly, Balkhi would suss out his true intentions in a heartbeat. But if he was careful, hopefully he’d believe it was just erotic nature taking its course, rather than his boyfriend being lusty and sneaky.

  Tentatively, Wilkes poked out his tongue, seeking entrance to Balkhi’s mouth. The scent of peppermint invaded his nostrils—they’d both brushed their teeth and gargled with mouthwash whilst cleaning up. Mercifully, Balkhi opened up. It took a whole lot of willpower for Wilkes not to dive in and truly possess his lover’s mouth, to show him exactly how much he wanted him, how much he intended to have him. Instead, he kept it slow and steady, sweeping his tongue over Balkhi’s, tickling a little, taunting, having fun.

  From Balkhi’s body language, he could tell he was winning him over. Both their cocks were rock hard and ready to go, tenting their boxers and pressing against each other. Balkhi was also relaxing into the embrace, straining towards his lover, silently, possibly unconsciously, asking for more.

  Wilkes was just contemplating giving him more when a creak on the landing outside the door made Balkhi spring away from him like a scalded cat and sit bolt upright.

  Turning his fearful gaze to the door, he whispered, “What was that?”

  Unwilling to give up his chance at getting laid by allowing himself to laugh, Wilkes swallowed down his mirth and replied, “Someone walking past, that’s all. Probably Dad, checking all the windows are closed and locked, or something. Or possibly even Stanley, mooching about before he settles down for the night.”

  “S—Stanley?”

  “Maybe. I don’t know for sure. Rustam, there’s no one listening outside the door, I promise you. My folks aren’t like that. And even if they were, kissing doesn’t really make any noise, does it?”

  “N—no.”

  With relief, Wilkes noticed that Balkhi was gradually relaxing, getting over his shock and settling back against the pillows.

  “Now,” he said quietly, closing the gap between them once again, “where were we?”

  Balkhi tensed briefly, but Wilkes ignored it, slipping his hand behind Balkhi’s neck and pulling him in to resume their kiss. He didn’t start from scratch with the slowly-slowly approach this time. He went right back into open-mouthed, heated kissing, pulling Balkhi’s plump lower lip into his mouth and sucking and nibbling on it.

  Exhaling a quiet moan, Balkhi returned the kiss, gripping Wilkes’ hip and pulling him so their bodies were flush once more.

  Letting out a moan himself at the sensation of the hard cock which pressed against him, Wilkes pushed a hand between them and palmed it. The heat of Balkhi’s shaft was apparent even through the material of his underwear, and Wilkes stroked the bulge, gratified when he felt it twitch and swell further beneath his fingers.

  Releasing Balkhi’s lip, he pushed his tongue into his mouth, possessing it with a ferocity that could not have failed to let Balkhi know just how horny he was. Thankfully, the gesture was returned, and their lips mashed together almost bruisingly, their teeth clashing occasionally as they fought for dominance.

  Need overflowing his lust-filled mind and body, Wilkes broke the kiss, giving one last little bite of Balkhi’s bottom lip as he squeezed his dick hard through the underwear. Then he ducked beneath the bedclothes, shuffling down and down, eager to uncover and claim his prize.

  A whoosh of relatively cool air as the duvet was lifted was accompanied by Balkhi’s panicked whisper. “But Hugh, what if—”

  “Rustam,” he interjected firmly, “nobody is listening. Nobody cares. The door is locked. We are not doing anything wrong. Now be quiet and let me suck your cock. It wants me to, even if you don’t.”

  “Oh, I do...” He tailed off with a gasp as Wilkes released him from the boxers and closed his lips around his pre-cum slicked glans.

  Chapter Fifteen

  Thankful that Balkhi had finally given up his resistance, Wilkes set about making sure he didn’t regret it. He hummed quietly with pleasure as the salty musk of pre-cum bathed his taste buds, followed by the freshness of Balkhi’s just-showered skin.

  Pausing briefly, he
tugged at the waistband of Balkhi’s boxers, silently urging him to help him remove them, to get them out of the way, so he could truly go to town on the parts that would be revealed.

  As Balkhi wriggled and lifted himself, Wilkes pulled the shorts down, discarding them as soon as they’d cleared Balkhi’s feet. Then he quickly returned to what he’d been doing. Teasing the tip of Balkhi’s cock with his lips, teeth and tongue, he trailed the fingers of his right hand lightly down the shaft, then gently cupped his balls. Carefully rolling and tugging them, he smiled around the straining cock in his mouth as Balkhi moaned and jerked his hips, desperately trying to get Wilkes to take him deeper.

  Instead, Wilkes deliberately continued to taunt his lover, keeping all of his movements light and slow; ensuring that Balkhi’s cock stayed hard and he experienced pleasure, but nowhere near enough to make him come.

  He kept this up, tickling, stroking, tugging, barely-there licking and sucking, until Balkhi appeared to lose his patience. That whoosh of air came again as Balkhi lifted the duvet and muttered, “Hugh, are you trying to kill me?”

  “No,” Wilkes replied, maintaining an air of innocence. “Why?”

  Releasing an exasperated sigh, Balkhi almost growled, “Because you are killing me, that is why. So unless you wish for me to die of, what is the saying, blue balls, could you please stop doing this to me? Please?”

  By the end of Balkhi’s little speech, his tone had gone from growling to pleading, and Wilkes relented. Not because he was a soft touch for a little begging, though, but more because he didn’t want to piss Balkhi off and have him get him own back at some time in the future. Teasing and fooling around in the bedroom was all well and good, but when it went beyond pleasure and became truly frustrating... where was the fun in that?

  All he wanted was to make Balkhi happy—and not just in the sex department—so in lieu of a reply, he thoroughly wet his lips, then sunk back onto Balkhi’s shaft, taking it deeper this time.