“Glad you enjoyed the show, Finn,” Rick said through a snicker. “Have fun letting Teddy show you around?”
“Rick,” Teddy warned, since his tone was anything but subtle.
“I uhh… saw some worthwhile sights, yeah.” Finn blushed but didn’t try to hide his grin.
“Wait, what did I miss?” Dan looked between them.
“Nothing,” Teddy tried.
“Just some inspired stress relief, babe,” Rick supplied, putting his arm around Dan’s shoulders and winking over at Teddy and Finn.
“What? When?” Dan exclaimed, but the obvious answer dawned on him with his own darkening blush. “Erina would flay you alive!”
“Please.” Teddy barked a laugh. “If she knew, she’d have been the first one to high-five me.”
“Ha!” Rick raised his hand over the table. “I’ll pick up that slack.”
Teddy did not want to give in, but he also felt like he’d earned it.
He gave Rick’s hand a quick smack, and Finn laughed.
“Now leave it alone,” Teddy said. “I’m trying not to scare this guy away after how badly I’ve handled things since we met.”
“Intermission wasn’t handled badly,” Finn said.
“That’s because you did all the work.”
They shared the laugh this time, and Teddy realized he no longer felt as ancient as he had at the start of his night, mostly because being with Finn made him feel ten years younger.
“While I am still mildly offended you two snuck off for… whatever you did,” Dan said in reprimand, “you’re also kind of adorable.” He leaned into his husband beside him.
Teddy had to agree, and when Finn found his hand beneath the table, he gave it a firm squeeze.
“I just realized,” Finn said, turning back to Dan and Rick, “you two know everything about us and how we met. But how did you two meet?”
Dan nearly spat his beer all over the table. “We do not need to tell that story.”
“Aw, come on,” Rick said. He loved that story, and Dan loathed it, so Teddy generally liked hearing it too. “This one”—he tugged Dan closer against his side—“drunk off his ass and wearing a mesh tank top of all things, comes right over and gives me a lap dance as his opener.”
“You said hello with a lap dance?” Finn nearly spat out his beer too.
“I was very drunk,” Dan defended.
“Rick had just directed his first play on a big stage,” Teddy said, enjoying the heat of Finn close at his hip. “He was still getting his feet wet with writing, nothing of his own published yet, but hoping to get Playwright in Residence one day, so we were celebrating a successful opening night.”
“Which play?”
“As You Like It. I helped choreograph the fight scenes, though that isn’t my forte,” Teddy said when Finn’s eyes lit up. “As a joke, we had two of the sword props on us.”
“And Danny Boy here”—Rick leered playfully at his husband—“giant nerd that he is, has a huge hard-on for knights in shining armor.”
“Legendary heroes,” Dan corrected—as if it mattered.
“Said he liked the look of my sword, if you catch my drift.”
“Rick!”
“Aw, hush, those exact words came out of your mouth. I’m not making shit up.
“‘If thou remember’st not the slightest folly
That ever love did make thee run into,
Thou hast not loved.’
“And speaking of folly.” He flagged down the waiter. “I need another drink.”
Only Rick could quote As You Like It with adoring eyes at his husband and then turn to demand another whiskey.
Shakespeare would have approved.
“Sounds like you guys were pretty wild back then,” Finn said.
“Back then, he says,” Rick huffed. “Don’t think us old guys can’t keep up with the younger crowd. You obviously don’t mind a challenge if you went after Teddy.”
“He was a challenge,” Finn said, eyes dark and enticing in the dim light of the bar, “but I’m patient when something’s worthwhile. Plus, I was a challenge, too, though I can’t seem to scare him off.”
“Your dancing might do it,” Teddy joked.
“I told you I have two left feet!”
Teddy chuckled. “You have potential. You just need direction.” The warmth of the whiskey coursing through him made it easy to add, “Which you take very well.”
Finn flushed, and from across the table, Rick gave a gruff laugh.
“You are something else, kid. Not too many people can pull out such easy smiles from this old grump. And I get why. Maybe he’ll let us borrow you sometime.”
“Rick!” Dan shouted again, smacking Rick’s chest with a scandalized expression.
“You know I don’t mean it,” Rick said after another deep chortle. “I only have eyes for you, babe.”
They kissed, practiced and heated in a breath, and Teddy saw Finn gaze at them in wonder.
“Stranger things have happened at my beach house,” he muttered, which took Teddy a moment to register.
“Excuse me?”
“Not like that!” Finn said quickly, now that Teddy’s head was filled with illicit threesomes. “And you have nothing to worry about, it’s just… Carlos and I made out once after too much tequila.”
Teddy laughed.
“Carlos? That the guy Erina’s after?” Rick asked with a sly grin. “Oh, we’re gonna have fun with him next weekend.”
“Don’t torture him too badly,” Teddy said. “I think Erina actually likes this one.”
“And Carlos adores her,” Finn chimed in. “They’ve talked on the phone almost every night since they met.”
The buzz of the whiskey and other good feelings in Teddy’s belly made it impossible for him to care if his hip was sore from sitting on a plane, then in a theater, and now. He snuggled closer to Finn, all his walls dropped, and loved how Finn’s were nowhere in sight either.
“Like I keep saying,” Teddy purred, “you are a terrible influence.”
The way Finn ran his tongue over his lips drew Teddy’s eyes right to them—and reminded him of where they’d been earlier. “Does that mean I’d be totally lame if I said I’m ready to call it a night?”
“Only if you go straight to sleep,” Rick said with another laugh, “and we all know that’s not happening. Go on, we can make our own way home and catch up with you kids tomorrow.”
“We’ll cover the tab.” Dan smiled, having drunk significantly more of his beer in a short period after reliving his meet-cute with his husband. “You two have a good time. A good night,” he corrected the obvious innuendo.
“And a good time,” Rick affirmed.
“I’ll call you in the morning,” Teddy said, dragging Finn out of the booth, but as they headed off, Rick was already too distracted to answer, crowding Dan into the corner of their nook, the two of them ever in love and an inspiration Teddy used to resent, if only a little.
Now he didn’t feel quite so hopeless in the wake of their romance when he had a warm hand in his.
They were only a few blocks from the hotel, perfect to walk on a cool spring night. Finn had already been to the room to drop off his things and change, so his bags were upstairs. Erina had planned her surprise so that he arrived just as Teddy and the others were out at dinner.
“This room, by the way, is insane,” Finn said, finally shuttered away together, alone, not even with pets to interrupt them. “How much money do you have from your dance career anyway?”
“Only interested in me for my money, Mr. Archer?”
“Obviously.”
Laughing heartily, Teddy kicked off his shoes and removed his suit coat to toss on a chair.
Finn tossed his coat there too.
“Let’s say I know how to temper myself and save and only indulge when it’s worthwhile. I thought I’d need the pick-me-up of overindulgence tonight.” Slowly, Teddy met Finn in the center of the living room of the lar
ge suite, Finn’s shoes kicked away now too, and their hands immediately going for each other’s waists. “Then a much better pick-me-up walked into that lobby.”
“I’m glad,” Finn said, the flush in his cheeks equal parts alcohol, exertion from walking, and expectation. “Really glad.”
They surged together, Finn’s lips never failing to make Teddy’s heart flutter—a catch of breath, a thrill of youthful want. Finn might be younger, but being with him didn’t make Teddy feel old. He didn’t feel useless or washed up. He didn’t feel alone.
Pawing at Teddy’s shirt, Finn started to tug it free from his pants, opening his mouth wider for a deeper connection, while long fingers slipped up beneath the fabric and sprawled across Teddy’s stomach. The pudge was still there, but if Finn liked it, Teddy wasn’t about to dwell.
He moved his hands in tandem, sliding up the front of Finn’s shirt to get at the buttons. Their kiss was turning more heated quickly, wet and ravenous. Finn even chased after Teddy’s lower lip with a mild bite when he tried to pull away.
“Tell me.” Teddy gasped to catch his breath. “What did you mean the other night when you said you have ideas to get around my hip?”
Releasing another mischievous chuckle, Finn grinned.
Chapter Eight
“DO you trust me?” Finn asked, sliding his hands up Teddy’s shirt again, this time around to the skin at his lower back.
Teddy pressed into the promising touch. He’d had his medication. He’d had a few drinks. Maybe the combination was what kept him in that warm, fuzzy place that felt like anything was possible. But he still knew he couldn’t straddle Finn’s hips and rock with abandon without pain.
Who better to guide him through this unscathed?
“With my whole body, Doc,” Teddy said, “and that’s saying a lot.”
The smile that spread across Finn’s face was sweet and roguish at once. He leaned forward to kiss Teddy, then whispered, “I’m not always used to taking full control, but I’ll need to if this is going to work. Is that okay? No, um… reservations?” He let one hand trail down over the crease of Teddy’s pants, low between his cheeks.
Teddy got the message and had no problem with Finn leading. “I remain in your capable hands.”
“Good.” Finn bit his lip, and Teddy wet his in expectation. “Guess the one taking direction tonight is you.” The hand that had slid down Teddy’s ass came up again, snuck beneath his waistband, and squeezed a naked handful.
Then he retreated and pushed at Teddy’s chest.
“First order, I’m going to need you to strip, but better lead me to the bedroom, or I might get lost in this place.”
“Yes, sir,” Teddy said, slowly backing up before turning and starting to unbutton his shirt away from Finn’s view.
Finn had always been bold, but this Teddy could get used to, even if he still planned to tease him a little.
Once he reached the bedroom, he peeked over his shoulder to see Finn right behind him, stopping to lean against the doorframe. This wasn’t new territory for them, but they hadn’t seen each other completely naked yet.
Again, Teddy thought of his love handles starting to thicken and hesitated as he was about to drop his shirt.
“Are you worried about the scar?” Finn asked with a patient smile.
On his hip, he meant, but no, Teddy hadn’t thought of that, and Finn had already seen it multiple times. “More so my age showing. And if you say anything about ‘fine wine,’ we’re through.”
Finn laughed as Teddy let the shirt fall to the floor. “Plenty of other things age well. Whiskey. Cheese. Harrison Ford.”
Now Teddy laughed, fumbling with the zipper on his pants.
“Keep going,” Finn said in a husky tone, pushing from the doorframe. He had an added confidence in his strut that made Teddy shudder—and quickly finish removing his pants. “You’re older than me, that’s fact. The problem is you thinking that makes you less desirable, less interesting, less… everything I want or would ask for.”
As Finn reached him, Teddy pulled the elastic of his underwear over his erection and let them drop down his legs.
Finn bit his lip again, eyes drifting downward. “And I know this might not change how you see yourself, but trust me, you are seriously hot.”
For the first time in a long time, Teddy believed that. “It helps.”
Giggling again, Finn stared warmly back at Teddy until their eyes fell to each other’s lips.
The kiss in the other room had felt hurried in its eruption, but as Finn reached for Teddy’s jaw to capture another one, he moved slower, his thumb stroking at Teddy’s skin with each coil of his tongue. He shifted closer, his other hand pressing to Teddy’s chest and drifting down with light fingertips tickling him.
They grazed the pudge of Teddy’s middle, the groove of his hip—near his scar—and down into coarse hair where they found him weeping and wrapped tight.
Teddy gasped out of their lip-lock, and Finn playfully flicked his tongue at Teddy’s lips as he started to stroke him. Shaking from the attention, despite his earlier release, Teddy sought an anchor by twisting his hands in Finn’s shirt.
Finn had such long fingers, lazily pumping Teddy to full hardness. His mouth had felt amazing, but this was wonderful, too, and had Teddy panting in moments as he struggled to undo the last few buttons of Finn’s shirt.
Once he had it open, he went for Finn’s pants, tugging on them to draw him closer. Finn squeezed Teddy tighter in response, slipping his tongue back between Teddy’s lips and shifting them toward the bed.
Teddy wanted Finn’s hands and mouth on every part of him.
“Don’t fall backward,” Finn said just as Teddy’s legs hit the mattress. “Scooting up from the end of the bed will rotate your hip too much.”
“So then…?”
“Come on.” Finn pulled away to guide Teddy around the side of the bed, kissing his lips affectionately once more before he sat him on the edge. “Pivot like I taught you when going to sleep each night,” he said, backing up and shrugging the shirt from his shoulders.
His toned physique was something to be envious of, but Teddy didn’t feel like that when he knew he was about to possess that body in other ways.
Part of his physical therapy had been training for simple tasks like getting in and out of bed. Sit, scoot back slightly, lift his body around without rotating his hip, and shift over slowly to get into the center of the mattress.
It didn’t feel like a simple task with Finn’s eyes on him, though, as he removed his pants, then his underwear, all with Teddy stroking himself through the wetness Finn had evoked.
But when Finn came forward again, Teddy realized, “I didn’t think I was getting lucky this weekend. I don’t have….” He gestured helplessly with his free hand.
“I, uhh”—Finn blushed darkly—“came prepared.” Holding up a finger, he strode back out the bedroom door to where he’d left his bag, giving Teddy a hell of a view from behind. Finn’s tan lines along his hips were even more enticing with all of him bare.
After Teddy had shoved the sheets and comforter down to spread out more comfortably, Finn came back with the needed supplies, eyes hungry and erection bobbing proudly with his strides.
When he crawled up from the foot of the bed, all tan graceful limbs, Teddy was reminded of the first day they met and how, even more than Finn’s body, he’d been envious of the ease of his motion. He still was. He still missed the freedom of not having to second-guess his next step or crouch. But even if there were hard days, and he knew there would be, he was grateful for what he had.
And right now, he had Finn, naked and nudging between his legs.
“I think I need to start with a little body worship,” Finn said, setting the supplies aside to run his hands up Teddy’s thighs, “because every single inch of you deserves it.”
“Even the extra inches?” Teddy half-jokingly patted his stomach.
“Absolutely,” Finn said, bending to p
ress a kiss right beneath Teddy’s navel. He kissed lower, still petting Teddy’s thighs—lower and around to the side to trail down one leg with a kiss, kiss, bite.
Teddy gulped in a breath. Finn gave each leg equal attention, the parts of Teddy that had been his tools, his assets, his pride, for most of his life. Then he kissed and nipped up his stomach, hands following in a lazy trail, chest slithering up to graze its skin along Teddy’s shaft. When Finn got to his neck, he bit a little harder, sucking soothingly in the aftermath, and moved to seal the attention on Teddy’s lips.
Already trembling, Teddy thought that might be it for the body worship, eager to thrust up against the friction of Finn’s cock aligning with his, but Finn shifted away to continue down his arms with the same pattern. He suckled each finger, eyes locked on Teddy’s, twirling his tongue slow and lewdly, and then moving to another.
Teddy was visibly shaking now and leaking liberal amounts of precome when Finn finally granted mercy with the return of his strong fingers around Teddy’s length. Having been denied direct touch through all those kisses and grazes of teeth, Teddy bucked into Finn’s strokes, flushed and desperately close, barely able to keep from moving his hips in a way that would hurt.
“Come up here,” Teddy said when Finn didn’t seem to understand that he could come any moment and wouldn’t be able to bounce back as easily as, well, Finn might, not after already coming once. “Give me a breather before I burst. Climb up and let me give a little back finally.” Teddy grinned, waving Finn toward his face in a way he hoped conveyed that he did not just mean for a kiss.
With a curious grin of his own, Finn obeyed, shifting to straddle Teddy’s shoulders so that all Teddy had to do was open wide when Finn lowered himself to his lips.
Teddy grabbed Finn’s ass to hold him steady, causing an obscene whine to sound from Finn’s throat at the first hard suck and deep-throated hum. Clutching at the curve of the headboard to balance himself and keep from literally sitting on Teddy’s face, Finn dropped his head back, displaying the lovely length of his neck. He rocked down into Teddy’s mouth, gently but getting more wound up the longer Teddy swallowed him down, squeezing his ass possessively through it all.
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