Princes of the Universe

by Serene Franklin

  I picked up Bryan’s hand and laced his fingers with mine, reveling in how good such a simple act felt. “I can assure you that this is really happening. Do you mind if I kiss you again?” He shook his head, so I kissed his fingertips, paying close attention to each one as thanks for all the comfort they’d brought me.

  Bryan sucked in a sharp breath. He leaned toward me, brushing his nose against mine, just like he had while we were dancing. His scruff scraped my jaw, and I moaned, eliciting a throaty laugh from him. “You remember this, don’t you?”

  “Yes,” I replied. Well, it was more like a strangled whimper.

  He continued brushing our cheeks and noses, ghosting his lips over mine with each pass. “I wanted to kiss you so badly that night.”

  “So kiss me now.”

  The kiss started slow and exploratory—all lips and soft caresses. He kissed each corner of my mouth and a spot on my jaw before joining our lips. His left hand cupped the back of my head while he pulled me closer with his right until I was practically in his lap. I liked the way it felt to be held by him, and my body reacted, just like out in the hall. When his tongue drew across the roof of my mouth again, I moaned—even louder than before. I forgot to breathe and pulled away gasping and dazed and needing more.

  Bryan took one look at me and pushed forward, pinning me flat on my back with the weight of his body. He claimed my mouth again at the same time he ground his hips into mine, and I knew without a doubt that he was just as turned on as I was.

  The feeling of him grinding against me was incredible. It was unlike anything I’d experienced with anyone before. Every cell in my body reacted to Bryan; his voice, his scent, his all-encompassing touch. He kissed me deeper and harder with ragged breaths while his grip on me tightened. I was gasping, and on the verge of coming when he abruptly leaned up and blinked down at me with wide eyes. His lips were rosier than usual.

  “I’m sorry. I’m getting carried away. I didn’t mean to attack you like that.” His chest heaved with exertion, and his dick was hard against my hip.

  “You can keep doing that.”

  Bryan dropped his head against my shoulder and groaned. “I don’t think I have the self-control to continue just kissing you right now.” He lifted his head and his cheeks were flushed, whether it was with lust or embarrassment, I couldn’t tell. Maybe it was both.

  “Oh,” I said. Based on the way he’d been grinding against me and his words, I figured he meant sex. I wanted that with him at some point, but it might have been a bit much that night.

  He snorted a laugh and lifted his hips from mine with a low growl. “Yes, ‘oh.’ We don’t have to rush this. And we should talk about it some more after we get some rest.” He leaned up off of me completely and extended a hand to help me up.

  Once I was righted and thinking more clearly, slowing things down did sound like a smart idea. It wasn’t the one my dick wanted at that moment, but I knew Bryan had a point. I’d gone so long not wanting sex, and abstaining another night—or however many nights Bryan felt were necessary—wouldn’t kill me. I mean, probably not. “I guess you’re right. Will you, um… will you stay with me?”

  Bryan leaned over and kissed me chastely in a soft kiss. He smiled at me and told me he would love to stay, and that was all I needed to hear to forget about my newfound lust.

  We took turns getting ready for bed. I gave Bryan my extra toothbrush from the multipack I bought and waited in bed for him with Prince curled up at my feet and the lamp on. I didn’t know if I should’ve kept my clothes on or taken them off, but keeping them on seemed like the safer, less presumptuous choice.

  Bryan entered the room wearing his boxers and a T-shirt he must have had on under his sweater. “I’d offer you a fresh shirt, but I don’t think any of mine would fit you. You can just take it off if you want.”

  He cocked an eyebrow at me and one corner of his mouth twitched into a smirk. He grabbed the hem of his shirt and pulled it over his head in a single motion. The light from the lamp cast over the dips and ridges of his abdominal muscles and the hair centered near the middle of his pecs. I wasn’t an authority on men’s bodies by any means, but his seemed ideal to me. Not too bulky, yet strong without looking like a roided-out mess.

  My eyes traveled down to his belly button and the trail of dark hair leading down, under the waistband of his black boxer briefs. I bit my bottom lip at the sight of the bulge in his trunks, suddenly imagining what he might look like completely naked.

  “If you keep looking at me like that it’s going to be very difficult to keep my hands off you tonight,” he drawled.

  “Would that be so bad?”

  “Be good, please. Today was a lot for both of us,” he pleaded.

  “You better hurry up and get under the blankets then.”

  He walked around the bed and slid in behind me, snug against my back with an arm draped over my waist. His warmth and sweet smell made the idea of going to sleep much more inviting if it meant being in his arms all night.

  Prince came up to investigate and kiss Bryan’s arm before returning to the foot of the bed. We bid each other goodnight and I shut the light off, faltering in the action when Bryan’s lips pressed against the back of my neck. He nuzzled into my nape and whispered that he loved me, which was how we ended up lazily making out in bed until we fell asleep. I wasn’t sure who dozed first, but it didn’t really matter.

  Sixteen

  Bryan

  I woke up with the ocean in my nose and the heat of the sun against my body. I opened one eye to reveal a mess of short brown hair and smiled to myself, relieved that last night hadn’t been some sort of illusion or cruel dream. Eli had kissed me and told me he loved me. The joy and happiness I felt down to every fiber of my being was immeasurable. I even felt fucking tingly—in one place more so than the rest of my body.

  I tried to move my foot, but it didn’t budge. I lifted my head to see what was going on and smiled when I caught sight of Prince soundly sleeping with her head resting on my ankle. Even in sleep, she looked like she was smiling. The urge to reach down and gently squeeze her cheeks was strong, though I had other urges that far outweighed that one.

  Morning wood was a fact of life and nothing outside of the ordinary for me. It was different today because I was in bed with Eli and my dick was firmly pressed against the crack of his ass. If I stayed wedged up against him there was no hope of it simply going away like it did other mornings. Very slowly, I tried to inch back without rousing him from sleep.

  I failed.

  “Where are you going?” he asked, his voice thick with sleep. He sounded gruff and way too sexy, which only made me grow harder.

  “Nowhere. I’m still right here.”

  He hummed his approval and shifted back against me, making me bite my tongue to keep from moaning at the friction. He moved again and chuckled softly. “Are you turned on right now?”

  So fucking blunt—just one of the things I loved about this man. I bit back my smile and kissed his nape. “Yes, I am. I tried not to wake you.”

  Eli turned around in my arms and looked up at me with half-lidded eyes. “You don’t have to move away. I was hoping you’d want to stay.”

  “Of course I do.” I pulled him close and kissed him, first on his nose, then on his lips. “I’m not leaving. I just didn’t want you to wake up… ah, like you did, and think I wanted to… okay, it’s dumb saying it out loud.”

  “Is that why you never told me how you felt?”

  “Yeah. I didn’t want you to think I expected more than just your friendship. You trusted me, and I didn’t want to betray that or pressure you into doing what I wanted.” I couldn’t live with myself had I let either of those things happen.

  “You’re too good for me. I’ve thought that since day one, but now I know it to be true more than ever. I don’t know why you love me, though I’m so thankful that you do.”

  I was going to kiss him again, but he took the initiative and closed the short distan
ce between our lips. I managed to free my trapped leg and slung it over Eli to pull him closer. His hips met mine, and I faltered in the kiss when I felt his rock-hard cock against mine.

  I flipped him onto his back and was over him in seconds. Morning breath be damned, there wasn’t anything that was going to keep me from him. He stared up at me, panting with parted lips and dilating pupils. I fisted the back of his hair and tugged his head back, exposing his neck and all of those little dots I’d longed to connect with my tongue. I trailed kisses along his jaw, starting at the hinge and working down to his lightly stubbled throat. He tasted so good that I marked him above the collar before I realized what I was doing. He held my waist and pulled me tighter against him, which I took as all the invitation I needed to continue my long-awaited exploration.

  The collar of his shirt impeded my progress, so I ripped it over his head with an impatient growl, revealing an expanse of pale skin decorated by even more beauty marks. Each one deserved to be lavished in attention, and I would one day, but we had all the time in the world for that.

  I took a few moments to take him in and feel his skin under my palms. His chest hair was thicker than mine, but less spread out, just like the hair on his arms and legs I’d become quite familiar with. There was more than there was all those years ago, though his treasure trail was still as enticing as ever.

  His body was lean and tight in a way that could only come from running. Eli had mentioned that he wanted to put on more mass, but I thought he was absolutely beautiful just as he was. I brushed my thumb over one of his dark pink nipples and he gasped, the sound deafening in the otherwise silent room. I did it again and smiled when I got the same reaction out of him.

  “You’re quite sensitive. That’s pretty fucking sexy.” I tweaked both of his nipples at once and felt his cock twitch against my stomach while he fisted the sheets and made a desperate, guttural moan. I replaced one hand with my mouth and swept my tongue over the hardened nub. His back shot up off the bed, and he cried out. I pressed him back down and held him with my free hand while I worked his nipple with my tongue, alternating between sucking and flicking over it. I bit down on it, not too hard, to see how he’d react, and almost got kicked in the balls when his whole body shook.

  “Sorry,” he ground out.

  I used more of my weight to pin him, and went to work on his other nipple, eliciting the same enthusiastic reaction. I tortured him like that until he begged me—for more?—and choked out that he was going to come. His warning snapped some sense back into me and I released him, kissing my way back up to his mouth.

  I wanted to make him come, just like I wanted to touch every part of him, but we still had so much to discuss, and we had no boundaries set. Eli wasn’t gay, or at least he didn’t think he was, yet there I was on the verge of making him come. The last thing I wanted was to get caught up and go too far too fast and have him regret anything we did. He deserved better than that. If I hurt him in any way it would kill me.

  Eli pulled back from the kiss after a minute and stared up at me with his forehead lightly creased. “You keep holding back. Is there something wrong? Am I… doing something you don’t like?”

  I cupped the side of his head and traced one corner of his mouth with my thumb. “You’re so incredibly sexy, and you’re doing everything right. I’m trying to take it slow and not overwhelm you.”

  “You realize I’m not a virgin, right? I mean, I did pretty much tell you I was terrible at sex, but I have had it. With several different people.” He cringed and shook off the thought. “It’s been a while, but I like how you make me feel. I wish you’d touch me more.”

  Well, fuck. It was probably still a bad idea, but with him wanting more so openly, like hell was I going to deny him. “Will you tell me if I’m going too fast or you don’t like something?”

  He nodded, and I finally let go of the control I’d so desperately clung to since we reconnected. I grabbed his legs and pulled him so we were lying across the width of the bed, giving Prince a wide berth. I went for Eli’s mouth again and raked my hands up and down his body while writhing against him. My hand slid down over the top of his boxers and gave his hard cock a firm squeeze. His moan was muffled by my mouth on his, and I needed to hear it in earnest. I focused on leaving another mark on his neck and gave him another squeeze, swiping my thumb over the ridge of his cockhead. He cried out, loud and sharp, and I squeezed him again.

  His writhing got more frantic and his moans so sweet and low that I figured he was close. I should have left it at that and stroked him through his climax, but my greedy mouth needed to taste him. I left a trail of sloppy kisses down his torso and shimmied his boxers off, only breaking contact to slide them off over his feet.

  Eli lay before me completely naked, flushed with arousal, and looking at me pleadingly. Without another moment’s hesitation, I dropped down between his legs and took his uncut cock into my mouth, nearly coming undone myself in the process.

  He inhaled deeply then groaned, making this primal sound that went straight to my cock. I ground my hips against the bed while I worked Eli’s cock, drowning in all the beautiful sounds he made. I heard his breathing shift and knew he was close. With his fingers buried in my hair, his cock pulsed in my mouth while the rest of his body went stiff under my hands.

  I swallowed everything he gave and continued to swirl my tongue over his cockhead until his body went limp and he hissed from overstimulation. I kissed each of Eli’s inner thighs then crawled up and lay beside him, my fingers lightly drumming on his chest. Yeah, I was feeling pretty fucking great.

  “Was that enough for you?” I asked with a shit-eating grin I couldn’t keep from my face.

  Eli turned his head toward me, still panting, and flashed me the happiest opened-mouth smile I’d ever seen. “Holy shit. Are you, like, really good at that or something?”

  I snorted a laugh. “Excuse me?”

  “I’ve never orgasmed that fast before,” he said with a hint of embarrassment. “I usually struggle to come with a partner, but it’s completely the opposite with you. So, are you some crazy sex god or something?”

  Oh my God, he’s being serious. “Um, I don’t want to brag or anything, but I haven’t received any complaints after I figured out what the hell I was doing. Maybe you just find me too irresistible,” I teased.

  “I definitely do.” He said it so seriously, staring at me with those gorgeous brown eyes. “Would it be all right if I touched you too? I’ve been thinking about it for a while.”

  I was suddenly very aware of my need to come, and I fucking jumped when Eli cupped my balls. I’d been too caught up thinking about what he was asking for and didn’t see his hand reach down.

  “I didn’t wait for an answer, but you didn’t look like you were going to say no,” he said with his mouth twitching into a grin.

  “Fuck—do whatever you want,” I ground out.

  He sat up with a tired groan and slid his legs off the edge of the bed. Prince moved her head but didn’t bother to get up. “Will you come stand over here for me, please?”

  I did as he asked and stood between his open legs. I tried my best not to focus too closely on the sight of him sitting there—naked, and with sex hair—for fear of coming before my underwear even came off. He ran his hands up and down the front of my thighs, stopping to finger through the hair occasionally. With no hesitation he tucked his fingertips under the band of my boxers and pulled them down. My hard dick caught on the band and slapped against my stomach once freed.

  Time seemed to stand still while Eli studied my cock. His hands stilled on my thighs and he just stared at me, head tilting occasionally. I had no shame surrounding my body and was fairly comfortable being naked, yet under his intense gaze I felt bare. Exposed. Open. Raw.

  It was a strange feeling, but one I was glad only belonged to Eli. He was different from all others, and I wanted to give him everything I had, especially those parts that unnerved me. Our eyes locked as he leaned forward
, so close to touching me. His hot breath ghosting over my cock was almost sensation enough to make me come. My body was starved for touch and hypersensitive; I longed for Eli in this moment more than I had any other over the past few months—more than I had for anyone in my entire life. A bead of pre-cum pooled at my slit and caught Eli’s eye. He gently dabbed it with his finger and tasted it, making me whimper for more.

  Watching and waiting was driving me crazy. I was liable to come from just looking into his eyes or from my eyes wandering the expanse of his gorgeous, exposed skin. Not wanting to blow before he even properly touched me, I closed my eyes and let my head drop back. With my vision obscured, the sounds and smells in the room held more of my attention.

  I could hear Eli breathing, ragged and measured. I could smell his sweat from the force and exertion of his release mixed with the scent of his lingering body wash. I heard him swallow and lick his lips then my knees nearly buckled when I felt his hot, wet tongue lick the tip of my cock.

  All of the air left my lungs in an almost violent rush. My eyes squeezed shut tighter before cracking open to see Eli’s lips parting around my cock, slowly taking more of it in. It had been too long and I was too turned on to last. Eli pulled off and wiped the corner of his mouth with his wrist.

  “Tell me how to make this good for you,” he said. He sounded so determined and focused.

  I cupped his jaw and stroked his lips with my thumb before sliding it in his mouth and over the tips of his bottom teeth. I withdrew it and smeared spit over his lips, making them shine with inviting moisture. “Just go slow and don’t take too much. You can use your hand to hold the base and prevent yourself from choking. Lightly sucking feels good, but your tongue will be doing most of the work. Do what feels most comfortable for you.”