Burning the Midnight Oil: A Single Dad Small Town Romance

Chapter 31

It’s after one in the morning, and I can’t sleep. I’m not all that surprised, given everything that happened tonight. After Colt got out of surgery and the doctors came and told us he made it through okay, his mom and dad sent us all home for some rest, since the nurses wouldn’t let any of us see him tonight. I still don’t know the full extent of his injuries, but I do know whatever it is, probably took him out for the rest of the season. He’s going to wake up, find out what happened, and be absolutely fucking gutted.

I’m just happy he’s alive. The way that bull stepped on him, it easily could’ve killed him. I don’t think I’ve ever felt as scared and helpless as I did watching one of my best friends get trampled. My head is a mess tonight, and I can’t get it to quiet down. Unwanted thoughts run rampant. Replaying the accident. My stomach is in knots, and I know in the morning, when I’m able to actually see him in the flesh, I’ll feel better. Being in the rodeo, we’re all aware of the risks. It’s carved into our brain the dozens of ways a ride can go wrong. We all get it…but seeing it happen, and to somebody you’re so close to, is a whole different type of reality check.

Shoving the comforter off my body, I swing my legs over the bed, sitting up, until my feet hit the cold, hard floor. Maybe some water and fresh air will help clear my head and allow me to get some sleep. I pad down the stairs and into the kitchen, where moonlight spills in through the window over the sink. Getting a glass out of the cupboard, I fill it up with water, sipping on it with my ass perched up against the counter and my mind racing a mile a minute.

As I’m finishing my water, the floor creaks, and when I turn my head toward where the noise came from, I see the door open to Grady’s room. It’s dark, but I can make out his tall form coming into view. Standing with his shoulder rested against the doorway, he crosses his arms over his bare chest. The silence between us is heavy as my heart squeezes in my chest. After a few tense beats, he uncrosses his arms, puts one foot in front of the other, and he wanders into the kitchen. Reaching into the cupboard, he grabs a glass, filling it up with water, and he comes to stand directly in front of me.

With his gaze locked on mine, eyes cloudy with sleep, dark blonde hair tousled every which way, he brings the glass up to his parted lips, and he takes a drink. And then another. The more he drinks, the drier my mouth becomes. The heat from his body radiates over to mine, me in a pair of low-slung pajama pants, him in nothing more than his boxers.

“How are you?” he asks, voice a simple whisper into the night, lips slick from the water and the way he just wet them with his tongue.

I set my empty glass in the sink before gripping the edge of the counter with my hands on either side of my body, my ass still resting on the edge. “Worried about Colt,” I admit honestly, my voice equally as quiet.

He nods with understanding, moving to set his glass beside mine. When he rights his position, he takes a step closer to me.

“He’s going to be okay,” Grady offers.

His proximity sends goosebumps all over my flesh. My skin warms, pulse kicking up a notch. “You don’t know that.”

“No, but we have to think positively for him.”

He’s right. I know he’s right, but it’s just so easy to think the worst when you don’t know anything. All I really know is that he made it through surgery. That he’s alive. The state his body is in? No fucking clue.

Grady holds my gaze, taking one last step toward me, putting him nearly flush with my body. Then he slides his arms around my middle, pulling me in for an unexpected hug. Instantly, my arms wrap around him too, holding him close to me as he buries his face in the crook of my neck. His breath is hot against my skin, the moment surprisingly tender and somehow exactly what I need. Grady’s chest rises and falls at a steady pace against me, and after a few moments, my breathing matches his, our bodies in sync.

His nose nestles around the side of my neck, below my ear, along my jaw. It’s gentle, but I feel it everywhere. Hands splayed on my back, his nails rake gently across my flesh in a way that sends a spark down my spine. Warmth floods my body as I rest my cheek against the side of Grady’s head, inhaling the sweet scent of him.

“Grady…” I whisper his name. To my own ears, it sounds pained. The comfort he’s bringing me in this moment just by holding me is more than anything I could’ve asked for. Despite the way we left things, he’s still here, somehow knowing exactly what I need.

I feel his lips press down on my neck, the touch soft but firm. He moves from one spot to another, kissing his way across my throat until he gets to the other side. My breath catches when I feel his teeth tug on the lobe of my ear before his tongue flicks out, gently soothing it. His lips then lead a path past my collarbone, down to my chest, peppering the wide expanse with his affection. My breathing is coming out in heavy pants now, hot, rapid puffs of air spilling past my lips, tingles spreading across my body.

Can he feel how fast my heart is beating?

Does he know it’s all for him?

Grady pulls back, his eyes dark and hooded, hand coming up to cup the side of my face. “I’m sorry you’re stressed and worried. Will you let me comfort you in the only way I know how?”

I swallow thickly, my tongue feeling twice the size it should be inside of my mouth. The insinuation is clear, but it’s more than a little shocking coming from him, especially after everything he said. But like hell am I going to remind him of that now when he’s offering himself up to me on a silver platter.

Right and wrong simply do not exist in this moment.

Whether he should or shouldn’t be, Grady is a person I find solace in. Find comfort in. I can’t explain it, nor would I even want to try. I nod in response to his question, and he leans in, sealing his lips to mine. Grady’s hand slips back, fisting the strands of hair at my nape as he parts his lips, letting my tongue dip inside. A sigh that feels like the weight of a thousand pounds escapes me, and he swallows it down. He tastes sweet on my tongue.

All too soon, he pulls back, but before I can argue, he reaches down and takes my hand in his, leading me toward his bedroom. Any warning bells that should be going off right now as we pad across the floor with only the moonlight lighting the way are silenced. My racing mind is suddenly quiet, and I relish that feeling as we cross through the threshold to his room. As I shut the door behind us, I’m also closing out the entire outside world as I do it. It’s just me, him, and whatever we’re about to share together that matters right now.

I need this.

I need him.

Grady walks us over to his bed, turning to face me as we stop in front of it. Neither of us moves at first, our eyes drinking each other in. It’s dark, we can barely see, but it’s enough to take in the look in his eyes—the lust, the desire…but also the tenderness, the care. His lips are slightly parted, and his chest rises and falls with his steady breathing. I don’t know who moves first, or maybe we do at the same time, but one minute we’re apart, and the next we’re on each other. We become nothing more than grappling arms, clashing teeth, hungry lips, and hot, slick tongues. We’re everywhere all at once, Grady invading all my senses in the very best way. He backs up, dropping onto his bed, and I follow, climbing over his lithe, hard body. Our lips never separate as we situate ourselves the right way on the bed. Somehow, Grady’s able to pull his comforter over us before he wraps his legs around my waist.

Our bodies line up perfectly, the hardness of my thickening erection rubbing against his. Sighs and groans and the wetness of our kissing are the only sounds heard in the otherwise quiet room. My heart is pounding against my ribs, my mind fuzzy, and my veins pump heat and arousal through every crevice of my body. It’s a steady hum just below the surface, a prickly feeling that makes me crave more. A vibration of need for Grady. It’s intoxicating.

We make out for what feels like hours, until we’re both out of breath, hands exploring, hips rolling against each other. This feels like something I haven’t done since I was a teenager. This unhurried, sensual but needy type of kissing, rubbing, touching. It’s clear what we both want to happen, but neither of us seems to be in a rush to get there.

Eventually, we end the kiss, both of us gulping in lungfuls of air, breathing each other in. Grady brushes the hair out of his face, his lips swollen and slick. “I’m so hard,” he mutters, rolling his hips upward to showme. A bolt of electricity shoots through my body at the touch, and suddenly, I need him fully naked under me more than I need anything.

“Me too.”

Sitting back on my haunches, I hook my fingers under the waistband of his underwear and drag them down. I don’t feel nearly as nervous as I did the first time we did something like this, but the nerves are still there, just below the surface. Once I rid him of what little clothing he had on, I do the same to myself, tossing my pajama pants on the floor beside the bed. Leaning down again, I plant my hands on either side of Grady’s head as he wraps his legs around my waist, lining our bare lengths up. The feel of his silky smooth, hard cock rubbing against the underside of mine is enough to have my eyes rolling back, especially when he reaches between us and takes us both in his hand, rolling his hips and pumping us together.

“Your dick feels so good,” he moans, adding a second hand to the mix, creating an even tighter grip on us.

“Fuck,” I groan. “So does yours.”

“Rock your hips,” he instructs. “Fuck my fist.”

Doing as he asks, I thrust forward, slipping alongside his cock as he does the same. Before long, we’re both dripping, making the slide that much more delicious. Our eyes are locked, neither of us capable of looking away from the other as our breaths come out in harsh pants. Beads of sweat drip down my back and line my forehead, my body burning up.

“Grady, fuck!”

“You like that?” he asks, his voice gravelly.

I nod, lips parted, but nothing but air escaping.

Grady’s back arches off the bed, and if possible, his eyes darken even more. “I want you to fuck me again.”

“Fuck.” My pulse roars in my ears, arms trembling as I hold myself up.

“I’ve thought about you being inside me every single day since it happened,” he admits, eyes locked on mine. “You’re so big, and you fucked me so deep. So good.”

With a groan, I lean down and brush my lips against his. Swallowing his soft moans, flicking my tongue into his mouth, tasting his desire. His lips tip up into a sultry smirk. In a move I don’t anticipate, he flips us, putting him on top of me.

“You want to fuck me?” he asks, lazily dragging his cock along mine as he waits for my answer.

“Yes.” Fuck, do I ever.

Grady’s eyes glimmer as he grins. Leaning over me, he reaches into the drawer in the bedside table, and he pulls out a clear, slender bottle. Presumably lube. He straddles my hips, cracking open the lid. Pouring some onto his fingers, he reaches behind himself and begins to work himself open.

A pang of disappointment settles in my chest. He did this part last time too, and I was hoping if we ever did it again, I’d get to do it for him. I feel uncharacteristically insecure about my abilities with him, being that he’s the only man I’ve ever been with. Being with women was something I knew. It was something I was good at, confident in. This is new, and I hate how nervous it makes me. So nervous that I can’t even seem to find my voice to speak up and tell him I want to take over.

Grady must sense something on my face because, with a smirk tipped up on one side, he climbs up my body until he’s straddling my chest this time. The new position puts his dick right in my face. Gripping himself at the base, he stares down his nose at me, eyes wild with heat, as he drags the tip of his cock along my bottom lip. My tongue dips out to lick up the mess he left behind, the salty flavor exploding on my taste buds and making my mouth water.

“Open up,” he orders, voice raspy and low, dripping with arousal and fervor. Doing as he asks, my heart races a mile a minute as Grady guides the head past my parted lips. “Suck.”

I flick my tongue against his length before hollowing my cheeks and doing just that. He lets out a long, low groan, dropping his head forward as he brings his hands back to his ass and continues to work himself open. Face morphing into pleasure, his eyes track the way his dick disappears behind my lips, inching farther and farther in until tears spring to my eyes and I gag.

“Your mouth feels so good,” he coos, the praise warming my chest. “Never thought I’d see the day when my cock would be in Daddy Boone’s mouth.”

My eyebrows cinching together, I groan, and Grady lets out a throaty chuckle, pulling himself out of my mouth. “Don’t call me that,” I grumble, trying to ignore the tingle rippling through my body at hearing him say that.

He arches a brow. “Why? Afraid you might like it a little too much?” Tapping my thigh with his hand, he adds, “Sit up.”

Grady grabs the lube as I push to sit with my back against the headboard. After he lathers my length in the cool gel, he positions himself above me, slowly easing me inside of him. Once I’m fully sheathed, we both let out a contented groan, and he drops his forehead down onto mine.

Having Grady this close to me, being so deep inside of him, is overwhelming in the best way. It feels as if my heart is going to beat right out of my chest if he keeps looking at me the way he is. Hands coming up to his hips, I hold on as he begins to move. Slowly, he sits all the way up on his knees before lowering himself again.

Up… down.

Up… down.

Grady cups the back of my head in his palms, bringing his mouth down on mine. Kissing me sensually and tenderly, his movements stay slow and controlled. It feels good…too good. He’s everywhere all at once. I’m drowning in him, and I love it. I can’t think past what he’s doing, the sounds he’s making, and the way he’s making me feel. I wrap my arms around his back, holding him as tightly to me as possible. With the new, closer position, his hard length is trapped between us, dragging along my abdomen with every movement.

It”s so easy to lose myself to him, and to this moment. Our bodies move together, over and over, until sweat drips down my back and neither of us can catch our breath.

A deep, throaty groan sounds from Grady, and his head falls back. “I’m right there,” he moans breathily. His fingers grip the strands on the back of my head as he keeps a steady pace. “Touch me, I’m so close.”

I barely have time to reach between us and wrap a hand around his length before he slaps a hand over his mouth and lets out a muffled cry, spilling his release all over my chest. His ass squeezes the hell out of my cock, contracting with every pulse of his release, and between that and watching him give himself over to ecstasy, I feel my own orgasm creep up fast and hard. Grady lowers his head, features sated and relaxed, as he continues to ride me. It hits me right in the chest how beautiful he looks. Sweat glistens on his chest and along his forehead, his full, red lips are parted, and he’s got this post-sex glow to him that makes him look ethereal. He’s gorgeous, and all I want is to taste him as I come.

“Kiss me,” I rasp, tightening my hold around his waist.

The hint of a smile grazes his lips as he leans forward and crashes his mouth against mine. My tongue hungrily thrusts into his mouth, licking and devouring, as I feel my nuts draw up tight against my body. Pressure builds at the base of my spine, spreading throughout my limbs, until I can’t hold on any longer. I empty myself inside Grady as our tongues tangle, and nothing has ever felt as good.

We stay connected long after we both finish. I think neither of us wants to fracture the bubble we’ve put ourselves in. All I want is to curl up in bed behind Grady, wrap my arms around him, and finally pass out.

But I can’t. It’s too risky.

Grady climbs off my lap, we clean ourselves off the best we can without actually leaving the room and going into the bathroom, and then we both get dressed, all while dread swirls in my gut. I don’t want to walk out of this room and go upstairs. I don’t want to fall asleep alone. I don’t want to leave Grady, because I know the moment I do, it’s all over. He’ll go back to telling me we can’t do this, and that thought is nothing but a dull ache right in the center of my chest.

Glancing over at him with every intention of telling him just that, he cuts me off before I even have a chance, holding up a hand to stop me. “Not tonight, okay? Let’s just keep tonight for what it was, and we can talk about the rest after we’ve had some sleep.”

With a reluctant nod, I give him one last quick kiss before I walk out of his room and head back up to mine. Something in me has changed, and that something is without a doubt because of Grady. He’s changed me, and I’m not ready to give that up.