Chapter 11 #2
He forced it back down. It wasn’t the time or the place, nor did he have the right to get upset. Whatever was happening between them was brand-new, and Malcolm was feeling insecure and was lashing out.
In the future though, they’d be discussing boundaries and how getting shrugged off had felt for him.
Unsurprisingly, Bull found Dahlia’s wide eyes not too far away. He pointed at the coffee and then at Mrs. Faraway. She nodded and hurried over, but he didn’t stick around to hear anything she might have to say, following Malcolm and catching up just as he reached the office.
Once they were both inside, Bull closed the door behind them, planted his hands on his hips, and said clearly, “I’m not dating anyone else.”
Malcolm rolled his eyes with such gusto Bull was surprised he didn’t fall over. “Oh, excuse me. I guess if you’re just fucking him, you probably don’t consider it dating.”
“Malcolm—”
He sliced his hands through the air and stepped closer, craning his head back to hold Bull’s gaze. “I guess this is my fault. I should have asked if you were fucking anybody else before putting your dick in my mouth.”
The words hung in the air around them for a long moment, Bull’s cock twitching in his jeans at the mere reminder. Malcolm’s face was flushed, his dark blue eyes red-rimmed. The sight of his pain was like a knife to Bull’s stomach, and the last of his own lingering hurt drained away.
“Baby boy,” Bull said softly. “I’m not fucking anybody else. I’m not interested in fucking anybody else.”
Malcolm licked his lips, squinting a little. “Who was that, then? I’ve seen him in here before.”
“That’s Lukas, and yes, he’s been here before. I always say hi whenever he or his husband”—Bull carefully enunciated the words—“stop by.”
“His husband?” Malcolm repeated, eyebrows rising.
“Yes. Lukas is very happily married.”
“Oh,” Malcolm muttered, dropping his head and wrapping his arms around himself. “Fuck. This is embarrassing.”
Bull cupped his chin and raised his face.
“Don’t be embarrassed. I’d feel the same way if I saw you hugging another man.
Especially right now when things are new and…
uncertain.” He debated whether or not he should mention that he and Lukas used to be a couple, then decided he didn’t want Malcolm to find out later and be hurt that Bull had kept it from him.
“A couple of years ago, Lukas and I did briefly date, but it never got very serious. We’ve just stayed friendly. ”
Malcolm winced. “I don’t know if that makes it better or worse.”
“What do you mean?”
“I mean, he’s really good-looking,” Malcolm whispered.
He didn’t mean to, but Bull laughed, then immediately felt like shit when Malcolm’s lips parted and hurt flashed across his face. “I’m sorry, baby, but you seriously do not have anything to worry about. You are gorgeous. Every time I look at you, I have a hard time looking away.”
A lovely flush grew on Malcolm’s cheeks, making his handful of freckles stand out. Bull wanted to trace the small constellations with his fingers and then kiss each one.
“I’m sorry I made a scene in there,” Malcolm said. “I kind of… lost my head.”
“I have to say, I’m a bit surprised,” Bull said slowly, studying his face. “Considering how you’ve been acting since your shift started, I didn’t think you would want to draw so much attention to us.”
Malcolm’s face scrunched. “What are you talking about?”
Sighing, Bull stepped back and ran a hand over the back of his head.
“You were acting like it was any other day, so I thought you might not want people around here to know about what happened this weekend.” He lowered himself to the couch and tried to keep his voice neutral, not wanting Malcolm to feel pressured into doing things just to not hurt Bull’s feelings.
“I understand if that’s what you want to do.
You’ve got a lot to figure out, and I don’t want you to feel rushed. ”
Malcolm cocked his head and closed the distance between them until he stood between Bull’s spread legs. He ran a finger over one of Bull’s knees, the light touch raising goose bumps on his arms. He was so easy for this man.
“I didn’t really think about it,” Malcolm admitted, his gaze on his finger tracing over the ridges. “It sort of felt like a regular day, so I just did what I always do. Plus, Dahlia already knows, so it’s not like it’s a secret. We were actually talking about it when we came in.”
“Is that why you were smiling when you got here?”
A shy grin spread across Malcolm’s face. “You were watching me?”
“I don’t know how else to say it, baby boy,” he said, shaking his head. “There’s no one for me but you, and there hasn’t been since I met you. You’re all I see the moment you walk into any room.”
Malcolm sucked in a breath. “Fuck, I love when you say things like that to me.”
Bull chuckled and scratched his jaw. “It’s just the truth. I can’t say I’m not flattered you got jealous over me talking with Lukas, but I’m not going to pretend like I haven’t been crazy about you for months. I’m sorry if that’s… too much or freaks you out.”
He was shaking his head and climbing onto Bull’s lap before he even finished talking. “It doesn’t. I like it,” Malcolm said in a hurried tone, clasping the sides of Bull’s face. “I like the idea of you maybe being a little obsessed with me. Even if that makes me a bad person.”
“Baby, I’m not a little anything,” Bull said, threading his fingers into the hair on the back of Malcolm’s head and holding tight. “My obsession with you runs soul-deep.”
Malcolm fell on him with a soft, keening sound that ripped at Bull’s insides.
He tightened his grip on his soft hair and tilted his head, sealing their lips together.
He threw everything he’d felt the last day into the kiss, all his worries and hopes and his achingly sweet relief.
Malcolm wasn’t pulling back. He didn’t regret the things they’d done.
He didn’t want to go back to how things had been.
He still wanted Bull, needed him.
Whimpering, Malcolm opened for him, letting him plunder his mouth and pour himself into every inch of his slender frame.
He wrapped his arm around his body, tugging Malcolm forward so they were plastered together.
His cock hardened at an uncomfortable angle, trapped by his jeans and Malcolm’s weight.
When he had to tear his mouth away to gasp for breath, he panted and stared into Malcolm’s glassy eyes. His pink lips were damp and flushed darker, calling to Bull like a fucking siren song.
But he wanted something else first.
Dipping down, he licked up the side of Malcolm’s neck, smirking as he rolled his hips against Bull.
His boy’s neck was so sensitive, but there was one area in particular he’d discovered the day before that he zeroed in on.
He sealed his lips around the erogenous spot and sucked, working the skin hard.
If Malcolm was going to doubt his devotion, he was going to leave a mark that could be seen from outer space. A reminder that there was no one for him but the sweet boy rocking in his lap.
“Fuck,” Malcolm groaned, slipping a hand behind Bull’s head and holding him closer. “I can’t believe you’re giving me a hickey.”
Bull grunted and bit at the bruise that was already starting to blossom. It was beautiful, darkening his pale skin and shining like a neon sign that declared him as Bull’s.
Malcolm hissed and arched against him. “Shit, shit, shit. God, that hurts so good, but if you keep it up, I’m going to come in my pants.”
Tempting, but he lifted his head to find Malcolm’s damp mouth again, licking back inside. He slipped his hand down to his perfect little ass and gave his cheek a squeeze, his long fingers digging into the cleft through his jeans.
Someone knocked insistently at the door, and they froze, panting against each other’s lips.
“Not sure what’s happening in there,” Dahlia said loudly, making no move to enter the office, “but we’re in the weeds out here. Dishes are dying on the pass.”
Because they were at work.
At his mom’s restaurant.
Not an appropriate place to maul his maybe-boyfriend.
“We’ll be right there,” he called out, then brushed his face against Malcolm’s, breathing him in. “The caveman in me liked that you were jealous, but you never have to be. I am consumed by you, Malcolm. That will never change.”