by Sean Michael
“Brett!” Benj’s eyes widened, but Ralph was chuckling.
“That’s how I know I’m doing it right.”
“If you don’t know….”
Benj felt like his eyes were going to pop out of his head at that.
“Well, the eruptions are another clue.” Ralph winked, not looking in the least put out.
Brett patted Jean on the back. “Good man, giving him clues.”
Benj was caught between giggling madly and being shocked.
Ralph looked like he couldn’t decide between spluttering and thumping Brett but settled finally on laughing. “You’re a prick, Brett.”
“No, I have a prick. I am a first baseman.”
Benj was amazed at how unflappable Ralph seemed, still chuckling, coming over to put his arm around Brett. “Thank you for clarifying. I need help with that sometimes too.”
“And they let you have needles, Mr. Pokey?”
“Oh, they let me have more than that, Mr. First Base.” Ralph winked at him and Jean. “Like home.”
Brett snorted. “Yeah, sure they do…. You stunned them with your perviosity.”
Jean giggled. “Pervitude.”
“Oh no, I thought I was an evil kinkster—no demoting me!”
Benj watched, laughing softly, amazed by the happiness in Brett’s eyes. Brett was enjoying himself, enjoying the verbal sparring.
Brett poked Ralph good and hard in the breadbasket. “You’re an ass, man.”
“Now who’s poking who? And thank you for noticing my ass.” Ralph turned in a slow circle, shaking his ass.
Jean hooted, tackling Ralph with a happy cry.
Benj held on to the bowl of strawberries with one hand and tugged at Brett’s arm with the other as Ralph’s arms went around Jean. “Let’s go while the going’s good, love. I’ve got the berries….”
“Sorry, Mr. Pokey. You can’t compete with my baby.”
That earned Brett another laugh, though it was distracted. “As it should be, First Base.” Then Ralph’s hand cupped Jean’s ass, and Benj averted his eyes.
Of course it didn’t matter much, because Brett scooted him right out, heading for the stairs. He went along eagerly, loving seeing this side of Brett again.
Once they were up the stairs, he slid his hand along Brett’s ass. “Yours is better.”
“You think so?” Brett smiled back. “I’d hope you’d think so.”
“Oh, I know so. You’ve got the best ass in baseball.” Wow, it felt like forever since he’d flirted with Brett. And it felt good.
Brett smiled, shook it a little. “You sure about that, baby?”
He managed somehow not to moan. “No, I think I need to amend that statement. You’ve got the best ass. Period.” He hurried the rest of the way to their room, wanting to find some privacy and somewhere to put down the damned bowl of strawberries. Now.
Brett let him get in front, one hand on his ass. “No. This is the finest ass on earth, baby, and it’s all mine.”
Oh. Oh yes. He did moan this time, and as soon as they’d cleared the door, he pushed back against Brett’s hand. “It is, love. It’s all yours.”
He heard Brett’s knees hit the floor, felt the warm mouth on his ass.
Benj gasped, legs trembling, the stupid bowl in his hand suddenly heavy and threatening to fall. “Love… oh.”
“Shh.” Brett worked his pants open, mouth so hot, so good.
Whimpering, Benj curled both hands around the bowl, legs spreading a bit, knees locking into place. His eyes closed, his breath growing short as his cock throbbed.
That tongue worked him, spread him, one hand wrapped around his prick.
“Brett!” His eyes closed, his body moving between Brett’s mouth and hand, shudders working through him. He felt Brett’s pleased chuckle, Brett’s soft chuff of breath. Oh, Brett was enjoying himself too. Good. Good. He shivered. Oh yes, very good.
Of course, another few strokes and Benj didn’t much care. All he wanted was for it not to stop. He didn’t care about how noisy he was either, his cries going from soft to loud, the bowl of berries crashing to the floor as he reached for something solid to hold on to.
Brett’s hand worked him furiously, jacking him off, demanding his pleasure.
“Brett!” He cried out his lover’s name again as he came, body shaking, cock spurting as his ass clamped down on Brett’s hot tongue.
“Mmm….” Brett’s lips brushed the small of his back. “So hot, baby.”
He shivered at the kiss, his cock jerking. “Me? God, Brett, that was unbelievable.”
“Mmm… help me up.”
He turned and reached for Brett. “You okay, love?”
“Yeah. Just need to move and don’t want to strain the arm.” Brett’s lips were swollen. It was a good look on him.
“I ruined the strawberries,” Benj told him, giggling. “I dropped them and then sprayed spunk all over them.” He leaned in for a kiss, those swollen lips drawing him.
“Perv.” God, Brett’s eyes were happy.
He giggled harder. “I think I’m only a perv if I try to push them up your ass.”
“I am not squirting berry juice out my ass for a week just for your edification, Benjamin.”
Benj laughed, looped his arms around Brett’s neck, rubbed. “No? You wouldn’t do it for me?”
“Nope. Not even for you.” Brett kissed him, tongue pushing into his lips.
He opened wide, wanting, needing to give Brett everything. Brett hummed, fucking his lips, taking him. He slid his hands around to Brett’s front and fumbled with Brett’s buttons. He wanted skin on skin; he wanted to rub against all those great muscles.
“Bed, baby. Don’t step on the strawberries.”
“Ew.” He stayed close to Brett and he walked backward, watching where his feet went.
By the time they reached the bed, he was stumbling, and he fell back, laughing up at Brett. Brett reached out to tickle, tease. Benj squirmed, trying to get out of the way and trying to push harder into Brett’s fingers at the same time.
Brett smiled down at Benj, and he tugged, wanting that weight on him, desperate for it. Brett slipped and landed hard on both arms, wincing as his body jerked, shoulder taking his weight.
“Oh!” Benj slid his hand over Brett’s shoulder, fingers soft and gentle. “Love?”
“Yeah. Slipped on a strawberry.” Brett’s lips were pressed together, but at least Brett wasn’t growling, wasn’t pulling away.
Benj kept touching, massaging the shoulder. “Lie next to me, love. Take the weight off it.”
“Hate that I can’t catch myself.”
“You’ll be able to soon enough, love. You will.” He believed it with all his heart. He had to.
Brett settled back, letting him rub and love. “Made you feel good, though.”
“Oh God, Brett. You made me feel amazing. Blew my mind.”
He pressed close and kissed Brett’s lips. Brett kissed him back, passion quieter but still there. Benj relaxed into the kiss, returning the banked passion, hoping to recapture the mood, the need between them.
Brett’s cock was warm, half-hard against Benj’s thigh.
He rubbed gently, sliding against Brett’s heat and muscles. “You’re so sexy, Brett. Always were. Still are.”
“Doesn’t feel like it sometimes.”
“I’m sorry,” Benj said softly. “I haven’t done a very good job of taking care of you.”
“Oh, stop it.” Brett frowned, growled low.
He smoothed his fingers over Brett’s forehead. “Shh. Shh. I didn’t mean to upset you.”
“You’ve been a champ, putting up with my growly ass.”
“I love that growly ass, remember?” He kissed Brett hard, fingers curling around the muscled shoulders.
“Still?” Brett searched his eyes.
“Oh, love. Yes.” It broke his heart that Brett could think maybe he didn’t anymore. “Yes.”
“Good.” Brett smiled, kissed his nose. “Good.”
“Why don’t you lie back and let me show you how much?” Benj murmured, trailing his fingers down Brett’s body.
“Mmm…. You’re good to me.” Brett shivered, moaning a little.
“No, I just love you.” He pushed Brett onto his back and leaned over him, smiling down into his warm eyes. “A lot.”
“You sure?” Brett asked again, relaxed, smiling.
“Yep.” Grinning, he gave Brett a kiss, and then another. “Gonna blow your mind, love. Make you feel so good.”
“Gonna be better than strawberries.”
“I sure hope so.” He dragged his tongue along Brett’s jaw, ending at Brett’s ear, which he nibbled.
That earned him a laugh, a soft moan. Benj hummed happily, determined to pull more of the sweet sounds from Brett. He circled the shell of Brett’s ear with his tongue, his fingers sliding across the firm chest, fingertips dancing over Brett’s nipples, making them harden.
“Tease.” Brett shifted, legs moving.
“I’m not teasing.” He nipped at Brett’s Adam’s apple before looking up at him. “I’m just being thorough.”
“Yes, but thorough-boy doesn’t roll off the tongue like tease does.”
Benj giggled. “Thorough-boy? That makes me the sidekick, doesn’t it? So what are you? Stud-Man?”
“You know it. Driving ’em home.”
Benj purred. “Driving me home.” He went back to kissing and licking, tongue tracing Brett’s collarbone, the muscles of his chest. He slipped Brett’s boxers off.
“Horny little devil.” Brett hummed, cock starting to fill.
“It’s your fault, you know.” He kept kissing, moving downward.
“Hmm? My fault?”
“Yeah. For being so sexy. You know—Stud-Man.” He licked at Brett’s navel, circled it with his tongue.
“That’s my fault?” Brett arched, stretching out, moaning, the scent of need sharp in the air.
“Uh-huh. That’s your fault.”
Brett’s cock bumped against Benj’s chin, rubbed along his neck, and he moaned. Benj couldn’t resist turning his face and taking in the tip of Brett’s prick. He licked it and teased it, wanting the hot drops of precome on his tongue. He craved Brett’s flavor.
“Baby. Your fine fucking mouth.” That growling sound made Benj’s belly ache.
He sucked harder, only to cry out around Brett’s cock as that amazing flavor began to leak onto his tongue. Brett’s hand was hard on the back of his head, not tentative at all, and his strong hips pumped, pushing into his lips in shallow, careful thrusts. Benj moved faster, head bobbing. He sucked as hard as he could; he wanted to give Brett everything.
“Baby….” Oh, he could feel Brett, swollen and hard on his tongue, pushing into his throat.
He reached down and rolled Brett’s heavy balls. He wanted Brett’s taste in his mouth.
“Close.” Benj knew. He could feel it, how badly Brett needed him.
He slapped the tip of Brett’s cock with his tongue, and then he went down deep, taking his man into his throat.
Spunk filled him, Brett’s cry loud, echoing in the room.
Benj swallowed it all down. The taste was so good. God, he’d missed it, missed this.
Brett gave it up to him, breath huffing out.
He kept sucking, easing Brett down.
“Oh, damn. Damn, baby,” Brett moaned, fingers tangling in Benj’s hair. “You rock my fucking world.”
Benj pushed into Brett’s hand and beamed. “I want to, Brett.”
“Shit, baby. Don’t you know you always have?”
“Yeah?” He slid up to lie on Brett, pushing in close. “Even the last while?”
“You are the only good thing sometimes.”
“Oh, love. It’s going to get better. You’ll see.”
“Yeah? What’re you going to do when I retire?”
“I’ve got plans for you. For us.” All sorts of trips, and he wanted to convert one of their rooms into a studio for Brett.
“Yeah?” Brett gave him a quick, curious look.
“Uh-huh. Trips like to the wine country, redecorating the condo….”
Brett relaxed back into the pillows, kept him close, and grunted, which he took to mean “keep going.”
“I thought we could have a studio for you. You know, for your painting.”
The happy little sound that Brett gave him made him smile.
“I want to go to Europe. Paris, Amsterdam, Rome—all the places with famous paintings—so we can go to the galleries.”
Benj knew there was plenty of money saved up, but if Brett couldn’t go back and satisfy his sense of self that he’d quit on his own terms, he might never be willing to do those things. Benj knew that.
He wasn’t asking for much, was he? Just that Brett finish out his career with pride.
“You’ll like Rome, baby,” Brett said. “It’s fucking cool. We should go this winter for a few weeks.”
“That would be so cool.” Benj’s smile faded as he realized they were going to be busy this winter, working here on getting Brett well enough to play again come spring training. “Maybe next winter?”
Brett sighed. “Maybe. You know, there’s a chance it’s all over. That there’s no reason to stay.”
He petted Brett’s chest. “I know that’s not what you want, love.”
“No, it’s not.” Brett’s eyes closed a little. “They want to get me pain pills and stuff, just for a while.”
“There’s no shame in taking a few pills to stop hurting.” His beautiful lover was so stubborn. “You are hurting a lot. I know you are.”
“Yeah.” Well, that was something, wasn’t it?
“I think….” Benj took a breath and continued, “I think it’s a safe place here. Ralph and Jean want to help us.” Brett just had to let them.
He got another nod, heard the soft sigh.
“I love you, Brett McCallister.”
“I know, baby. I know.”
“Okay. Good.” He let his eyes close and simply held on, held tight.
He was more hopeful this evening than he had been in a long time.
Chapter Eight
HE WOKE up with Benj lying on his shoulder, the joint screaming with pain.
Oh fuck.
Oh fuck.
Brett slid out from under Benj and off the bed, sweating with agony, shaking with it.
He needed a fucking drink.
Now.
Something.
Anything.
He stumbled downstairs, almost whimpering.
“I thought I heard someone stumbling around down here. You okay, man? Looking for food?” Ralph came up behind him, wearing nothing more than a little pair of boxers.
He shook his head, hurting too bad to talk.
The light came on, and Ralph swore. “Damn, you’re white as a sheet.” Ralph went to one of the cupboards and pulled down a small bottle. “Doc Trelaine left you a couple samples until your prescription comes through. He knows your concerns with testing, and these don’t have any banned substances in them.” Ralph opened one of the bottles and took out a pill. “Here. Take it.”
Brett swallowed the pill dry with a grunt.
Ralph handed him over a glass of water.
“Thanks. Sorry.”
“’S okay, man. I was up anyway, looking for some leftover pudding. I meant to give you the pills before you went to bed.” Ralph handed over the bottle. “Jean and Benj can go fill the prescription in the morning so you’ve got them on hand. One every four to six hours as needed.”
He nodded, headed for a soft, comfy chair.
Ralph followed, muscled body seeming to loom as he sat. “You want a massage or a compress?”
“Don’t touch it.” He was shaking, heart pounding violently. “I’m gonna be sick.”
Ralph disappeared, coming back a moment later with a bucket. “It’ll take the pills a few minutes to kick in.”
Brett closed his eyes and breathed deep. �
�Go back to bed. I’m okay. I’m okay.”
“I can keep you company ’til you’re feeling well enough to go back to bed yourself.” Ralph sat on the couch and gave him an assessing look. “You ever try to figure out a sleeping position that doesn’t strain the shoulder?”
“Tried. That’s….” His cheeks heated and he took a deep breath. “That’s where Benj sleeps.”
“Well, why on earth doesn’t he sleep on the other side, then?”
“He does. Shit, man. I just like to give him something normal.”
“You think he minds it that much?” Ralph put up his hands. “I’m not trying to be an asshole here, Brett. It just seems to me that you’re the one fighting changes more than anyone else.”
“I’m not fighting the change. He leans, he falls asleep, my arm is there. Simple as that.”
“Then move him, man. That shoulder needs rest. You need rest. You need some pain-free days. Lots of them. In a row.”
“Yeah.” He sighed, blinked a little.
“We’re going to do our best to give you that. To help you heal and get you back into fighting shape. In private. No one else is booked out here, and I imagine we’ll keep it that way until spring training rolls around. You and your man can just be and get better.”
“I….” His head bobbed, the room going fuzzy.
“Oh, careful there.” Ralph was suddenly in front of him. “I think we should get you back to bed, hmm?”
“I c’n sleep here….”
Brett thought he heard Benj’s voice.
“You could, but your man’s coming looking for you.”
“Benj….” He tried to stand up, stumbled forward.
“Whoa.” Ralph caught him, an arm going around his waist, letting him lean against the strong body.
“Brett!” Benj came rushing over, clearly fluttering and upset. “What’s wrong?”
“Shh. ’S okay….”
“He was hurting and came down for some painkillers. It’s a good thing, Benj, but I think they just hit. Why don’t you help me get him back up to your room?” Ralph got them moving.
“’M fine. I just…. Fuck. Fuck, the room’s moving, baby.”
He couldn’t do this, not to Benj.
“There’s a bed in the room off the kitchen. Jean uses it sometimes if he gets late in the kitchen. Let’s settle you there for the night.”