I laughed because I wouldn’t put it past him. We’d christened many different places on this farm over the past six months. My favorite was the night Kerry made love to me at the edge of the pond under a canopy of stars.
“At least wait until we get inside,” I said with a playful wink. Though we wouldn’t be alone. Brad, Sienna, and Ainsley were finishing lunch and promised us a roaring fire upon our return. This was how our weekends had gone during the worst parts of the winter, and I looked forward to it. We had become our own little makeshift family. Brad and I had even developed an affinity for a certain racing game that we sneaked in every time the television was free.
We still maintained separate bedrooms—well, most of the time—because Kerry was sort of old-fashioned, which didn’t surprise me in the least. In fact, it was one of the things I’d come to appreciate about him. The way he saw it, we were still in our first year of dating, and someday we’d be much more. Brad and Sienna had a similar arrangement, with him staying over on weekends.
But we had plans, and that felt amazing.
Sometimes after we put Ainsley to bed, the four of us would go outside on the porch, or sit around the fire on colder nights, and talk about our future. Brad and Sienna seemed very well matched, and he planned to propose by the end of the summer. He’d even asked for our help in choosing a ring.
Sure enough, as soon as we got the horses safely back in their stalls, Kerry pinned me against the wall, already unbuttoning my jeans and falling to his knees.
“Just need a taste.” His voice was scratchy with need as he slipped his thumb over my tip, which was already damp.
“We’re gonna make a mess,” I said, but my legs were trembling with anticipation as I opened my jacket to give him better access.
“Won’t spill a single drop,” he replied, carefully placing his hat on the floor beside him.
Clutching my thighs, he hummed as he licked a bead of precome from the slit. That alone nearly sent me over the edge. The way he seemed to savor every moment.
“Ah, fuck,” I said, my voice needy as he enveloped my shaft in his warm mouth. He sucked with perfect pressure, skillfully using his tongue and little scrapes of his teeth to drive me wild.
“Missed this,” he said after he pulled off, then licked the underside of the crown. “The way you smell and the sound of your voice, all hoarse for me.”
I wouldn’t argue that he’d had me plenty. The man was insatiable, and I couldn’t complain because I needed him in exactly the same way.
My fingers gripped fistfuls of his hair as he held me steady in his mouth, expertly edging me. But I didn’t want to wait, I was too close, so I arched my hips and thrust my cock toward his throat. His eyes rolled back because he liked when I was rough, and he gave back in-kind.
Groaning, he reached down to grip my balls. I squirmed, my muscles feeling like live wires as his hand and mouth and tongue sparked an electric current that traveled down my spine and straight to my nuts.
“So good.” With a deep, satisfied groan, I shattered, gripping his head for leverage. He gagged a little, but as promised, he kept his throat working, swallowing every drop.
And then he was on his feet, helping stuff me back in my jeans, before yanking me against him. He delivered a bruising kiss, allowing me to taste myself on his tongue.
We stood in a tight embrace, breathing into each other’s necks and murmuring sweet nothings because we were mushy like that.
When Hamlet snorted at our feet, we broke apart with mutual grins, knowing we had stayed out too long. “We’re coming.”
The house was warm and welcoming as we stepped inside and slipped out of our wet boots and coats at the door. Sienna, Ainsley, and Brad were engrossed in a puzzle on the coffee table, and we barely registered as we sat down to get warm in front of the fire.
After the afternoon chores and dinner, we watched a movie together as a family, with hot cocoa and plenty of marshmallows, of course. It was wild that this was my life, but I wouldn’t have it any other way. It felt like one of those Westerns, where I’d ridden off into the sunset with my man, and my theme song was “Forever and Ever, Amen” by Randy Travis.
Okay, you could tell that Brad had recently influenced my taste in music, and Caitlin teased me mercilessly about it.
“So about that floor plan,” Brad said as soon as Kerry had returned from putting Ainsley to bed. He was excited, and I was happy for Sienna. He adored her.
Our discussions about the future included building them a farmhouse next to the silo, where they would live comfortably, and then Kerry and I would remodel this house more to our liking. And honestly, I could not wait to get my hands dirty again.
“Let me get it.” I stood to retrieve from my room the specs I’d drawn up.
When I briefly glanced back, Kerry’s eyes were all soft and tender, and it made me pause in the doorway.
“I love you,” I mouthed to him.
“I love you,” he mouthed back, rubbing at the center of his chest.
Damn, I could hardly believe that gorgeous cowboy was all mine. And I couldn’t wait to pay him back tonight.
Afterword
Thank you for reading HAVE MERCY! I hope you enjoyed it!
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NEWSLETTER
About the Author
Once upon a time, Christina Lee was a wardrobe stylist in New York City. She spent her days schlepping clothes, hailing cabs, and on the hunt for the perfect lip gloss, which became a bit of an addiction—along with books and coffee. You could always find her perched in a corner booth of a favorite diner sipping a dark roast and reading.
She currently lives in the Midwest with her husband and son—her two favorite guys. She’s been a clinical social worker and a special education teacher and while very rewarding, they still didn’t feel like an exact fit. It wasn't until she began writing a weekly column for the local newspaper that the bells went off in her head. She could finally draw from her real-life experiences and vivid imagination to write fiction—and she’s never looked back.
Christina writes romance in different sub-genres, but mostly with LGBTQ characters because representation matters and everyone deserves a happily-ever-after.
Other Books by Christina Lee
Standalones:
A Breath Apart
Love Me Louder
Kickflip
A Kaleidoscope of Butterflies
Have Mercy
So This is Christmas Series:
Beautiful Dreamer
Beautiful Temptation
Under My Skin series:
Regret
Reawaken
Reclaim
Redeem
Roadmap to Your Heart series
The Darkest Flame
The Faintest Spark
The Deepest Blue
The Hardest Fall
The Sweetest Goodbye
Co-written with Nyrae Dawn (AKA Riley Hart)
Free Fall series:
Touch the Sky
Chase the Sun
Paint the Stars
Spinoff from Free Fall series:
Living Out Loud
Standalones with Riley Hart:
Of Sunlight and Stardust
Science & Jockstraps
Forbidden Love series with Riley Hart:
Ever After: A Gay Fairy Tale
Forever Moore: A Gay Fairy Tale
Boys in Makeup series with Riley Hart:
Pretty Perfect
Pretty Sweet
Co-written with Felice Stevens
Heartsville series:
Last Call (MMM)
First Light (MM)
M/F books that can all standalone:
All of You
/> Before You Break
Whisper to Me
Promise Me This
Two of Hearts
Three Sacred Words
Twelve Truths and a Lie
*Find links to these books HERE!
Interested in Similar Settings to Have Mercy?
These books also take place on a farm
Rugged and conventional Callum Montgomery enjoys running Shady Pines hunting preserve, except for the secret that's eating him alive. When his sister brings a date for a family wedding, he can't stand the arrogant city slicker with the stick up his perfectly fine ass. He doesn't understand his draw to Dean, who pushes his buttons at every turn, but he'd never dream of betraying his sibling over some lust fueled fantasy.
Handsome and conscientious Dean Abbott is a research assistant in his university's biology lab. When his roommate, Cassie, begs him to be her pretend date in front of her meddling family, he begrudgingly agrees to help. He doesn't anticipate being enchanted by the countryside, the colorful cast of characters, or her sexy and brooding straight brother.
When contempt turns to passion and leads to stolen moments in a sugar cane field, Callum can't help longing for the kind of connection he believes he can never have. But not even the world's most heart-melting kiss can bridge the vast philosophical differences between the men.
Dean's return to his urban lifestyle leaves him restless, his mind continually wandering to the charming setting that spoke to something missing deep inside him. Because you can take the city boy out of the country but you can't make him forget the intriguing man he left behind.
**Find it HERE!
Two years after the death of his wife, Aubrey Hendricks is still weighed down by grief. He can’t focus on anything beyond working at the family farm, First Light. At the urging of a friend, he takes a step toward resuming a normal life and reopens the bakery his wife once ran. He places a Help Wanted ad in the local paper, and to his surprise, an applicant shows up the next day.
When Oliver Hansen gets a second chance at life, he grasps it with both hands. Leaving his stressful life in New York, he plans to enjoy the simpler things. Driving to Heartsville in the Pocono Mountains to thank his heart donor’s widower is a top priority. But the brusque man with the melancholy eyes strikes a chord in Oliver. So when Aubrey mistakenly believes he’s there to apply for the bakery job…Oliver takes him up on the offer.
As Oliver busies himself with the grand reopening, he and Aubrey establish a tentative friendship, which soon shifts to blazing attraction. Oliver falls hard for him, yet he can’t help but wonder if Aubrey’s feelings are an attempt to maintain a connection to the wife he’s still mourning. And Aubrey is unsure if Oliver will tire of the slow pace in Heartsville and go running back to the city he loves. The two must successfully navigate the stormy waters of grief, doubt, and their very different lifestyles, or they risk losing both their hearts—again.
**Find it HERE!
You Might Also Enjoy My Last Standalone
A Kaleidoscope of Butterflies
The last thing Emerson Rose expects is to fall for his best friend, Rhys, especially since he’s never been attracted to a man before. Everything in his life is already complicated enough. He’s put his own future on hold to raise his two younger siblings, and confusing feelings for the guy who always has his back muddy the waters even more. But then something astonishing happens. For one perfect moment, he thinks Rhys might feel the same—only to have his world come crashing down around him a second time.
Rhys Lancaster has always known he’s gay and that Emerson isn’t. Best friends since childhood, their easy companionship has usually been enough. Between his job, his adrenaline-filled adventures, and hanging out with Emerson and his siblings, he has it good…until he wakes up in the hospital with no memories of the last year of his life.
Like they normally do when things go horribly wrong, Rhys and Emerson support each other. Frustrated by all he’s lost, Rhys stays with Emerson during his recovery, and Emerson helps Rhys through the fog, while pushing those other feelings aside. To make matters worse, Rhys knows Emerson’s keeping something from him. Everything feels different now when he looks at Emerson, and as they fall into a comfortable routine, that aching desire doesn’t stay buried for long.
But Emerson has a family to raise, and Rhys is struggling to figure out what’s going on inside his head. Unless they can push past the doubts and fears to seal that connection between them again, this tragedy might become the one each has to weather alone.
**Find it HERE!
Have Mercy Page 24