by L. A. Witt
“These could be fun.”
Lucas’s voice jarred Nate out of his thoughts. He turned to see Lucas with a set of silver handcuffs dangling from his index finger. There was a wicked look in his eyes, too—one that made Nate forget any reservations he’d ever had about cuffs. Had he had any reservations? Maybe. All he knew was he’d never wanted to use them before, but now he definitely did.
“Uh, yeah.” He gulped. “Those will work.”
“Cool. And we—” Lucas did a double take. Then he grabbed a black silk blindfold off a shelf. “Paired with this, maybe?”
Nate glanced from the cuffs to the blindfold to the man who was grinning devilishly back at him. “Maybe we should pay for those and get out of here.”
“Maybe we should.”
* * *
This was hardly Nate’s first time with “extras” in bed, but the little thrill he had as he and Lucas brought their new toys into the bedroom? That was new. Or at least not something he’d felt in a long, long time.
Lucas grinned as he held up the cuffs and blindfold like he had in the shop, looking a hundred times hotter this time because he was naked. “So, who’s wearing the new jewelry?”
“You picked them out,” Nate said. “Your choice.”
“Hmm.” Lucas quirked his lips, fixing his gaze on the silver cuffs dangling from his outstretched finger. When the grin came back—bigger this time—Nate knew the answer even before Lucas said, “I want you to wear them.”
“Why am I not surprised?” Nate slid a hand up into Lucas’s hair and kissed him. “I’ll bet you’ve been plotting something ever since you found those, haven’t you?”
“Me?” Lucas batted his eyes, and damn, he really could pull off that innocent look, even with a pair of handcuffs and a blindfold in his hand. “I have no idea what you’re—”
“Don’t even try to play innocent with me.”
“But I am—”
“Not after I’ve heard all the filthy things you say when you’re turned on.”
“I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
“Liar.” Nate laughed and kissed him. “So, you wanted to play with cuffs and blindfolds. What do you want me to do?”
Lucas swept his tongue across his lips. “For starters, I want you to lie back on the bed.”
That was easy enough. Nate lay back on the middle of the bed, the sheets cool under his bare skin. “All right.” He smirked as he stretched out his arms. “I’m all yours. Do your worst.”
A grin played at Lucas’s lips but faded, and he held up the cuffs. “Uh, before I put these on—any limits?”
Nate thought for a moment, then shook his head. “No, I don’t think so.”
“You think we need a safe word or something?”
“No. I’m pretty sure ‘uncuff me’ is enough.”
“Fair. Just, uh, let me know if it’s not fun anymore, okay?” Lucas caressed Nate’s arm, raising goose bumps all the way down to his neglected erection.
“Somehow I don’t think that’ll be a problem.”
Lucas held his gaze, and his tense expression softened into a grin. He nodded toward the headboard. “Put your arms up over your head.”
Nate did as he was told. His heart was thumping, but he told himself it was excitement, not nerves. Lucas quickly cuffed him to the rail. The coolness of the handcuffs sent an electric thrill through Nate, and though it was a little disconcerting, he wasn’t scared or anything like that. For one thing, these were novelty cuffs, so the safety latch was well within reach. It wouldn’t take much to get free if he wanted to. And he didn’t want to. He didn’t feel the least bit threatened by Lucas.
Not even when Lucas slid the black blindfold down over Nate’s eyes.
This was definitely new. Whoa. Hands bound. Eyes covered. Dick absolutely rock hard.
“Hmm, I like this,” Lucas said. “I’m not even sure where to start.”
“Anywhere,” Nate breathed, the cuffs clinking against the rail as he tried to get rid of some restless energy.
“Patience, patience.”
“Yeah, right.”
Lucas chuckled. “You know, your hands are bound.” He leaned down and dragged his lips across Nate’s. “And you’re blindfolded.”
“Uh-huh. Now what are you going to do with me?”
“I don’t know yet. But I am really tempted to grab a Sharpie and draw dicks all over you.”
Nate burst out laughing. “You would, wouldn’t you?”
“Absolutely.” Lucas climbed on top, straddling him, and traced a fingertip over Nate’s stomach, making distinctive curves and lines. Nate was already ticklish, and knowing that Lucas was drawing an invisible dick on him made him laugh again, which amplified the ticklishness.
Nate hooked a leg around Lucas’s waist and pulled him down.
“Hey!” Lucas laughed, grabbing Nate’s shoulder for balance. “Do I need to cuff your ankles, too?”
“Not unless you bought an extra set of cuffs I didn’t notice.”
“Damn it.” Still laughing, Lucas kissed him, and . . . holy shit. Everything was suddenly way more sensitive than usual. As if their laughing fit had put all his nerve endings on high alert, and now he was extra perceptive of every brush of Lucas’s lips or fingers. Just having Lucas’s naked body on top drove Nate’s senses haywire, as if he’d never touched a man’s hot skin or hard cock before.
Lucas kissed his chest. Then down to his abs. Sometimes, he’d stop and draw circles and loops with his tongue. Or maybe penises for all Nate knew. He had no idea what kind of pattern Lucas was drawing, and he didn’t care—he just loved the way all his senses homed in on the soft, wet touch. The coolness of his skin wherever Lucas’s tongue had already been. The warmth of a lingering kiss followed by the tingle of nerve endings seeking more.
Then Lucas made a muffled sound that was awfully close to a giggle.
“What’s so funny?” Nate asked.
“Nothing.” The giggle turned to a snicker, and Lucas’s lips brushed Nate’s skin. “Nothing at all.”
“Uh-huh. Tell me.”
Lucas dropped a kiss on Nate’s hipbone. “Just thinking about all the things I can do to you like this.”
“That’s supposed to turn you on, not make you laugh.”
“I know, but that mental image of you covered in Sharpie penises is—”
A laugh burst out of Nate. “Don’t you dare.”
“Aww, you’re no fun.”
Nate tried to produce a comeback, but a single fingernail trailing up the inside of his thigh reduced him to a low moan.
Lucas ran his palm up Nate’s thigh, and in a breathy, almost reverent tone, he said, “God, you’re gorgeous like this.”
Heat rushed into Nate’s face. “Even without cartoon penises all over me?”
“Well, I think that would add to the whole picture, but . . . yeah, even without.” He trailed a hand over Nate. “You’re just . . . so fucking sexy like this.”
“Like how?” Nate licked his lips. “Tell me. What’s so hot about this?”
“You. And just having you stretched out like this, letting me do anything I want to you. . . .” He teased Nate’s balls, and a strangled sound emerged from Nate’s throat.
“Fuck. . . .”
“See?” Lucas purred. “You’re all mine.”
Oh, you have no idea.
Lucas shifted around. Limbs brushed Nate’s skin, and as the mattress and their combined weight shifted, he recognized the position from the first night they’d slept together. Warm breath grazed his cock, and body heat neared his lips.
“Open your mouth.” The command was sharp, and Nate’s mouth was open before he’d had a chance to think twice. Lucas’s thick cock slid between his lips. Lucas pushed in. Then withdrew. Then pushed in again. Nate’s toes curled and he tugged at the cuffs, dying to have his hands on Lucas. If he couldn’t see him, could he at least touch him? Grab his ass? Finger his hole? No, apparently not. He only got what Lucas w
as willing to give, and right now, that was a hard cock in his mouth.
And . . . oh God. Lucas’s mouth on him. They’d sixty-nined plenty of times, and Nate still loved the raunchy and aggressive way Lucas fucked his mouth. It was insanely sexy how Lucas didn’t just passively get his dick sucked. He was as eager about pushing himself into Nate’s mouth as he was about sucking Nate’s cock, and holy shit, it was hot. With Nate blind and bound, it was even hotter because his senses were zeroed in on the firm, salty skin sliding back and forth across his tongue, and the soft moans of approval thrumming against this own cock.
At the same time, he wished like hell he could see Lucas. Watch himself sliding in and out of those talented lips. Meet those intense blue eyes through the strands of hair that had undoubtedly tumbled down over his forehead. All he could do, though, was enjoy the feeling and the sounds and the taste, and how in the world was he not already shooting his load on Lucas’s tongue? So. Hot.
Abruptly, though, Lucas stopped. He slid out of Nate’s mouth and let go of Nate’s cock, and he was suddenly . . . not on top of him.
Without being able to see him, the broken contact was jarring, turning Nate’s entire focus to No, don’t stop!
But then Lucas kissed the top of his thigh and said, “I want to fuck you.”
A low moan escaped Nate’s lips. “Yeah.”
“You want that?”
“So much.”
“Good.” Another kiss on his thigh. When the fuck had that spot become erogenous? “Give me a second.”
A drawer opened. A wrapper tore. The lube bottle clicked. Nate was nearly coming unglued, lying there without even being able to drink in the sight of Lucas getting ready to fuck him.
Fortunately, Lucas didn’t keep him waiting long. With a tap, he indicated for Nate to spread his legs. Then he settled between them, and thanks to the blindfold, Nate was acutely aware of every place his body made contact with Lucas’s. Even the cool rush of air when Lucas moved close to him but didn’t actually touch. The blindfold theoretically had the same effect as turning off the light and fucking in the dark, but it was different. It was exhilarating. Nothing at all like the kind of sex where neither could be bothered to turn the light back on and look at each other. As Lucas eased himself into Nate, the blindfold was a frustrating but thrilling barrier keeping Nate from seeing all that gorgeous tattooed skin, the tense muscles, those beautiful eyes. All he could do was lie there and feel.
And he felt amazing. He was taking his time, easing himself in as Nate yielded to him, and every heavy breath he released rushed across Nate’s skin. His soft murmurs—sounds he probably didn’t even realize he was making—thrummed over Nate’s nerve endings, lighting up his senses and filling his mind’s eye with images of lips pulled tight, blue eyes gleaming with arousal, and muscles quivering with the exertion of going so slow.
“How does this feel?” Lucas whispered against Nate’s lips.
Nate couldn’t remember words, so he lifted his chin enough to claim Lucas’s mouth, and as soon as they kissed, Lucas moaned. He deepened the kiss, and his body twitched subtly, as if he’d been zapped with the faintest little jolt of electricity, and Nate relished the responses he might not have noticed at all if sight hadn’t been muted.
Lucas steadily picked up speed. He still wasn’t moving all that fast, though—just driving himself into Nate with smooth, fluid strokes. No hurry at all. No rush. It was as if he had exactly what he wanted right now—his cock buried inside Nate—and had every intention of savoring the ride.
“Like that?” he asked.
“Uh-huh.” Nate squeezed his eyes shut behind the black satin. “So good.”
“Mmm.” Lucas shuddered but not hard enough to indicate he was about to come. Just that he was enjoying himself. After a while, he picked up some more speed, enough to make Nate’s breath hitch and the bed creak. Nate was dizzy as his overloaded senses tried to keep up with how amazing it was to be fucked by Lucas.
“You’re gonna make me come,” Nate slurred. “Oh God, I’m so close.”
“Yeah?” Lucas sounded breathless. “This gonna make you—”
“Yeah. Yeah, just like . . . oh fuck . . .” His spine lifted off the mattress, and he clenched around Lucas, which made the cock inside him seem even thicker, and then Lucas was moaning too, thrusting deeper and harder as he swore in Nate’s ear.
“Fuck. Getting . . . getting there too.” Lucas shivered, and his thrusts were wild now. Hard, fast, bordering on violent, sending Nate into the stratosphere without either of them even touching his dick.
Nate cried out, and a split second later, so did Lucas, and they were both coming, both shaking, both cursing until their voices faded to soft whimpers. Lucas slumped over Nate. Nate desperately wanted to wrap his arms around Lucas, and he could’ve freed his hands, but he wanted to leave that part to Lucas.
“That was hot,” Nate murmured as Lucas pulled out.
“Uh-huh. Think we should do it again?”
“Oh God yeah. Any time you want.” Nate grinned. “Long as you promise to fuck me like that.”
“You better believe it.” Lucas kissed him softly. “I’m going to get up and take off the condom. I’m not going anywhere, though.”
Licking his lips, Nate nodded. It was trippy how he couldn’t see Lucas, but he could follow every move he made, from getting up off the bed to peeling off the condom and tossing it in the trash. When the mattress dipped beside him, his heart raced even before Lucas’s body heat confirmed what he already knew.
Weight shifted. The cuffs moved slightly, and then one fell open. A second later, the other. Nate brought his arms down, wincing at a touch of stiffness in his shoulders from being in that position so long. He took off the blindfold, and when he looked at Lucas again—sweaty, disheveled, flushed Lucas—a zing of renewed arousal shot through him.
There you are.
He grabbed the back of Lucas’s neck and pulled him in, and they kissed hungrily now. He wasn’t getting hard again—not yet—but he wasn’t about to let go of Lucas. They could make out and touch and fool around until their dicks were ready to play again. In the meantime, he was just thrilled he had his hands on Lucas again. After being blind and bound for what seemed like ages, he could see him and touch him, and that was heady in a way he hadn’t anticipated.
It occurred to him that with his hands bound, he’d had to trust Lucas not to give him too much. There’d been no buffer. No keeping a hand on Lucas’s hip or around the base of his cock just in case one of them got a little enthusiastic. The only thing keeping that thick cock from hitting Nate’s gag reflex had been Lucas himself.
Nate had had to trust him, and he did. Inherently. Nothing about Lucas had ever been threatening or over the top, and not just because he was physically smaller than Nate. Maybe that meant Nate’s inability to trust a man any farther than he could throw him didn’t extend to the bedroom; he wasn’t ready to put his faith in a promise of monogamy, but he had complete faith that Lucas wouldn’t cross any lines.
Was that stupid? Was he being an idiot?
Lucas hadn’t given him any reason to believe he was, so that must mean something.
Nate shifted a little and pressed a kiss to Lucas’s temple. There was no point in analyzing all this too deeply. At the end of the day, he liked what he had with Lucas. The sex, the banter, the lunches at work—when he was with Lucas, he was happy. He didn’t worry about the future or dwell on the past.
Right here, right now, everything was perfect.
Chapter 12
Around eight one night, while Lucas was mopping the floor in the back, Matt appeared in the doorway. “Hey, I’ve got a lady asking about a cover-up, and I think it’s a little above my capability. You want to have a look?”
“Yeah, sure. Be right there.” Lucas made sure the mop and bucket were out of the way, wiped his hands on a shop towel, and joined Matt up front.
And . . . wow. Skin Deep, Inc. had no shortage of beautiful clients
, and this one? She was hot as hell. Tall and curvy, and he’d always liked brunettes. She also had a wicked smile that he should’ve felt right in his balls.
But he didn’t.
He didn’t feel anything. Objectively, he was aware that she was painfully gorgeous, but his radar barely pinged.
Huh. Weird.
Matt gestured at her. “This is Becky. She’s got a tattoo she’d like covered.”
“Okay.”
She blushed. “The one I’ve got sucks, and apparently you’re really good at covering them.” Her eyebrows rose in an unspoken Please tell me that’s true.
Oh dear God, now would be an awesome time for my confidence to come back.
Lucas gulped. “Uh . . . well . . . let me have a look at what you want to cover.”
She turned around and tugged up the back of her shirt.
Oh. Wow. Yeah. He could definitely see why she wanted to cover that thing up.
He leaned in closer, keeping a poker face since there was a mirror nearby that might give away his disgust. He had nothing against tramp stamps. In fact, he was rather proud of some of the ones he’d done, and his second wife had one that was sexy as hell. This piece of garbage? Someone needed to confiscate the artist’s needle.
Most of the lines were blown out. The shading was uneven. The technique was bad, and the design wasn’t any better. Had this person never seen a flower before?
Over her shoulder, she asked, “Isn’t it terrible?”
He chuckled. “Yeah, it’s pretty bad.”
“Eh, that’s what I get for letting my roommate’s boyfriend do my ink. Ugh.”
“It’s all right—tattoos are permanent, but they’re not as permanent as people think.” He scrutinized one of the flower’s petals, which had probably been blue at one time but was so faded it was almost gray. “How long ago did you get this?”
“About two years ago.”
Lucas scowled. It was around the same age as Nate’s tattoo, which was still vibrant and sharp. “It shouldn’t be this faded already. But . . .” He shrugged. “On the other hand, it’ll be a lot easier to cover up, since the lines and shading are good and light.”