7. Aiden
7
AIDEN
I stumbled, and Nolan swept his arm around me, holding me upright. His tongue brushed against my lips, and I parted them, letting him inside.
I didn’t know what the fuck I was doing. I’d come here pissed off, looking for answers—or at least looking for an argument to blow off some steam. Instead, I’d gotten—well, I suppose I had gotten my argument, but I sure as hell hadn’t gotten any answers.
Not satisfying ones, anyway.
I nipped at Nolan’s lower lip, annoyed at that realization, and his arm slid lower, his hand moving to my ass. Before I even had a moment to register that, he was picking me up and spinning me around, as easily as if I were a bag of groceries. He set me down on the counter of his workstation, then pulled back to look at me.
My cock throbbed.
No one had ever looked at a bag of groceries like that before. I launched myself at him, my hands going to his collar, pulling at his buttons as he tugged at my T-shirt and pulled it off over my head.
I shivered. It was hot and humid today, just like it had been every other day so far, but I felt deliciously exposed. I couldn’t help thinking how good this would look on camera.
Maybe I got a little too excited by that thought, because when my hands went back to his buttons, I popped one off, sending it flying across the tent. Nolan blinked, pulling back from where he’d been nibbling at my neck.
“Shit,” I said. “Sorry, I—”
But he was kissing me again before I could finish, and I could barely breathe, let alone speak. He had no right to make me this dizzy, no right to make me feel like I was falling and flying at the same time, with nothing but his lips and tongue. Well, his hands, too, which were kneading the top of my ass.
It wasn’t fair. He was such a dick, but around him, my body just started to melt.
Who would have thought that someone who dressed like he read the US tax code for fun would be so passionate? That someone so cold could burn so hot underneath? It was like he was determined to make up for every bit of restraint he showed to the outside world.
Before I could even get his shirt all the way off, he was pushing me flat on the counter, bending over me. He kissed my jaw, then neck, then down onto my chest. He teased my nipples, biting and licking them until I was writhing on the butcher-block surface.
I was achingly hard, and his hand felt amazing as he palmed my cock through my pants. When his fingers went to my fly, I lifted my hips up, not even thinking, not questioning what was happening. I just wanted to give him access to more of my skin. It wasn’t until I was naked, splayed out on the countertop, that I was able to think clearly again.
“Wait,” I said, pushing up onto my elbows. Nolan’s shirt was only half-unbuttoned and his slim, dark pants didn’t look messed up at all. The contrast with my nakedness was startling. And hot. “Wait, I don’t just want some furtive blowjob where you suck me off and leave. I’m not going to be in your debt twice.”
Nolan just smiled—this crooked little grin that became rakish as it widened. “Lucky for you, a blowjob isn’t what I had in mind.”
He brought a hand to my cock, swirling his fingers across my leaking slit, and stroked up and down the shaft once before trailing his fingers back to my hole. My legs spread open of their own accord, giving him more access, and my eyes widened.
Was he suggesting sex? Did he have a condom with him? Did I care if he didn’t?
It was a little fast, maybe. Definitely not romantic. But then, maybe it was time to accept that I’d never be one of those guys who inspired love poems and rose petals and champagne. Maybe I should take what I could get.
Besides, if Nora was right, I was going home next week. Unless I took Tanner up on his offer. Which—I mean, the guy was good-looking. And, all things considered, nicer to me than Nolan ever had been. But he didn’t make my heart race the way Nolan did.
He didn’t make me breathless.
If we were sent home next week, I’d never see Nolan again. The thought made my chest tight, which didn’t make any sense. But right now, right in this moment, he was here, looking at me with desire, instead of disgust. Acting like he wanted me, instead of pushing me away.
Maybe I should have had more self-respect, but, well, I never had before. Why start now?
So when Nolan grabbed a jar of coconut oil from the pantry shelves behind his workstation and brought it back to where I sat, all I said was, “Do you have a condom?”
“No. Not on me.” His smile was downright lascivious as he unscrewed the lid. Before I could even decide if that was a dealbreaker for me or not, he added, “But there are all sorts of things that can go inside you that aren’t my cock. We are in a kitchen, after all.”
My stomach turned a somersault. Nolan slicked up his left hand with coconut oil and brought it to my cock. He plunged the fingers of his right hand back into the jar, then stepped up in front of me, tapping me on the knee. Feeling very slutty and very turned on, I parted my legs, and he moved in between them.
He stroked my cock with quick, confident movements, tugging on my balls with his other hand before sliding it back. He circled my hole a few times, probing it gently as I whimpered, before sliding one finger inside, just up to the first knuckle. A moan tore from my mouth, completely out of my control.
“That’s it,” Nolan said. His voice was gentle but sure. “You can let go.”
I wanted to tell him to shut up. That I didn’t need his praise or his direction or anything at all—except warmth shot down my spine at those words. I whined, unable to stop myself. I didn’t need to be told what to do. But maybe I wanted it.
Nolan’s eyes were intense, focused but oddly tender as he worked his finger in and out of me. His expression turned hungry when he added a second finger, and I could feel heat building in my core, a molten desire growing. I groaned as he slipped a third finger inside.
“There you go,” he said. “Show me how much you like it.”
It was so fucking presumptuous, so condescending, so—goddammit, it was so hot. His fingers stroked across my prostate and my hips stuttered against the wood, another moan escaping my lips. The only thing that made it bearable was the desire I saw mirrored in his eyes.
It wasn’t long until I was shaking on the counter, Nolan’s clever hands knowing exactly what I needed before I could even ask for it. I wasn’t sure how much more I could take, and was on the verge of begging him to fuck me anyway, to forget about condoms, to tell him I didn’t care, when he slid his fingers out, leaving me empty and craving more.
I followed him with my eyes as he walked to the end of his workstation. A bunch of cooking implements were gathered in a jar, like a bouquet of silicone and silver flowers. My stomach fluttered as he inspected them, then thumped when he selected a spatula with a thick, rounded handle. It was made out of silicone, the end torpedo-shaped to provide a comfortable grip.
“Holy shit,” I breathed. I’d held a copy of that spatula at my own workstation while deeply fucking up more than one bake. I’d never once considered how it would feel inside me.
Nolan flipped it around so he was holding it by the flat end, then brought it over to the jar of coconut oil. He dipped the handle in, then pulled it out, thickly coated and dripping. When he came back to me, I spread my legs again, and he brought a finger back to my hole. I could tell it hadn’t even fully closed yet.
“Tell me to stop,” Nolan said, his eyebrow arched, his smile way too satisfied. “Tell me to leave, and I will.”
Dammit, I wanted to wipe that smug look right off his face. But I wanted him to fuck me even more.
“Don’t stop.” My voice was faint but needy. “Don’t go.”
He removed his finger and replaced it with the tip of the spatula. I felt my entrance give in at even just that slight pressure. My hole was eager, desperate to be filled again.
“Ready?” Nolan asked, his other hand circling the head of my cock.
I nodded. “Fuck, yes, I’m fucking reaahhhh—” I breathed out as he slid the handle inside me.
He did it in one smooth motion, pushing way past the point his fingers had gotten to. I panted and whined, my ass accommodating the intrusion until, at last, he stopped sliding it forward and went back to stroking my cock.
“Fuck, that’s—it feels—it’s so—” I babbled as he began to move the spatula inside me, lightly at first, his motions gentle and teasing. But soon enough, he was sliding it in and out with a twist, making my hole stretch around the widest part of the base, pulling it almost all the way out before thrusting it back in. And it still wasn’t enough.
“I want—please, you have to—oh God, I’m so—”
“Tell me what you need,” Nolan said, his eyes radiating satisfaction. “Tell me what you need, and I’ll give it to you.”
“More,” I begged. “I need—fuck, just—more. I’m so close. Please, Nolan.”
“There, that wasn’t so bad, was it?” His smile widened. “You even said please. I didn’t know you knew how to be that polite.”
“Fuck. You,” I panted, my hips bucking off the counter at the same time.
I wanted to ask for it rougher but didn’t want to give him the gratification. Then again, it wasn’t like I had much dignity left. That had flown out the tent flaps somewhere around the time my underwear had come off.
I grabbed his wrist, and he stopped moving immediately. His eyes went wide, flashing with fear.
“Sorry,” he said, already drawing the spatula out. “I’ll stop. I shouldn’t have—”
“Jesus, fuck, don’t stop ,” I growled, pulling his wrist towards me, shoving the spatula back in. “Harder. I need it harder. That’s all I was trying to— fuhhhhhck. ”
He didn’t need to be told twice. He picked up the pace, each twist and thrust wringing waves of sensation out of me. I couldn’t hold back anymore.
“I’m—I’m gonna—fuck, Nolan, I’m—”
My head fell back on the counter as I came. Nolan’s hands kept up their rhythm, pulling out every ounce of pleasure until I was floating, suspended, my whole body lit up. He didn’t stop moving until my hand slid from my thigh to the counter, my chest heaving, my eyes closed.
I was too wrung out to move when he slid the spatula out of my ass. All I could do was turn my head and watch as he walked to the sink. He washed the spatula, then his hands, in business-like fashion and set the spatula at the edge of the basin to dry. He recapped the coconut oil in a single, fluid motion. Only then did he turn back to me.
“I’m sorry I offended you at the library today,” he said, his hands moving to rebutton his shirt. They paused slightly when they reached the spot where I’d popped a button off, then moved on. There was no trace of the desire I’d heard in his voice just moments ago. “It won’t happen again.”
He turned and headed for the back of the tent, which was when I realized he was going to do it again. He was going to give me a mind-blowing orgasm and just walk away. Well, fuck that .
I scrambled off the counter, my legs still a little shaky, and hurried after him. I grabbed his wrist and tugged.
“No,” I said fiercely.
“No what ?” Nolan said, whirling around.
“You don’t just get to do that. Leave me all—just make me—fuck, man, what the hell?”
His eyes got that wary look again. “You did—you did want it, right? I thought you—”
“God, yes, of course I wanted it,” I snapped. “I’m talking about after. I’m talking about—I mean, it’s not fair, is it? That it’s always me coming, and never you. Can’t I give you what you want, too?”
Nolan’s lips pressed into a tight line, and he shook his head. “Aiden, all I wanted was to have a chance to win this competition. Now that that’s not going to happen, I’d really just rather you left me alone.
“Jesus, is being around me that terrible?” I hated the desperation in my voice, but I couldn’t help it.
“What?” Nolan looked baffled, which only confused me more.
“Do you hate me that much? That you can’t even be in the same room as me unless you’re yelling at me or giving me bone-melting orgasms?”
“I don’t…hate you,” Nolan said, speaking the words like they cost him something. He held himself like he might shatter if you knocked him against a hard surface.
“Then let me help you,” I begged. That was the only word for it.
At every opportunity, I’d managed to put myself in Nolan’s debt. There had to be some way out of it.
“Please. I feel like I owe you something. Owe you a lot, actually.”
Nolan shook his head. “If this is about sex—”
“It’s not about sex. Forget the sex.” Kind of a ridiculous thing to say, given that I was still completely naked and had cum drying on my stomach, but that didn’t matter right now. “You want to stay in the competition. Let me help you with that, at least.”
“I don’t see how you can.”
He didn’t even sound angry anymore. Just resigned. Which only made me feel worse.
“Try my plan,” I said. “Just for the next few days. Tomorrow, when we’re doing our practice bakes. And then Monday, for the challenge episode. You already basically started it, helping me in the library.”
“I wasn’t trying to start anything,” Nolan said. “I was trying to—fuck, I don’t even know what I was trying to do. But not that .”
“It doesn’t matter. The point is that there is now footage, of you, on camera, being—dare I say it—nice to me? We can build on that.”
“I’m not going to whore myself out on camera just so I can stay on the show.”
“That’s not what you’d be doing,” I protested, my stomach twisting at his words. I couldn’t imagine what he’d think if he found out about my CamFans sideline, if he considered it problematic to even smile at someone he didn’t like. But that wasn’t the point. “We wouldn’t even have to do much. Just like, flirt a little.”
“I don’t like lying.”
“Oh my God, Nolan. I’m not asking you to propose marriage to me, I’m asking you to be nice to me on camera for a few days. Are your principles really so strong that you can’t even do that?”
His eyebrows drew down, but he didn’t say anything. I decided that counted as progress. He looked me up and down, and I shivered. I really should have put some clothes on before having this conversation, but it was too late for that now.
“What if it doesn’t work?” he said finally.
“Then we both go home. And I’ll feel really shitty and I’ll apologize any way you want me to. But it can’t hurt to try, can it?”
Nolan didn’t say anything to that. He just looked at me again, but at least he wasn’t disagreeing. And maybe, just maybe, I could make those looks work in my favor.
I took a step forward and placed a hand on his chest. He’d left the top button of his shirt undone, and the one beneath it was missing. His skin was warm under my fingertips.
“Please?” I didn’t have to make my voice breathy. It did that all on its own.
Nolan swallowed. His dark eyes looked deep into mine, then traveled to where my hand lay on his chest. But he didn’t step away.
“Please,” I whispered.
I sank to my knees, letting my hand trail down his chest, then move lower still. But he grabbed my wrist when it reached his waist, not letting me go any farther. He pulled my hand up, which ended up pulling me to my feet too. I growled in frustration.
“Come on, would it really be that bad to—”
“I want one thing clear,” Nolan said, cutting off my objection.
“What?”
“If we do this, it’s just for the show. And if we make it to the finals, the deal is off. We don’t owe each other anything, and we’re not—”
“God, yes, yeah. I got it. It’s just for the show. Message received.”
Nolan gave me a long look. “Good. As long as we’re straight.”
“Oh, sweetie, I’ve never been straight a day in my life.” I grinned, but Nolan’s eyes narrowed, and I held my hands up in apology. “But yes. Okay. We’re clear.”
He gestured towards his workstation, the spatula still dripping lightly into the sink. “And we probably shouldn’t do…this…again, either. Don’t want to get things mixed up.”
How did he manage to do that? Not five minutes ago, he was telling me to let go, praising me for telling him what I needed—and I’d liked it, which was something I didn’t have the brain space to deal with right now. But now he acted like I disgusted him.
Well, joke’s on you, asshole. I know you enjoyed it. I can see how hard you are, even if you won’t let me touch you.
I shrugged. “Whatever you want.”
If I sounded a little bitter, so be it. Nolan was the one who didn’t want feelings involved, so I had no reason to care about hurting his.
“Alright, then.” He nodded, then headed for the back of the tent.
I turned around to grab my clothes. It didn’t take long to get dressed, though I took my time about it. I wanted a minute to compose myself. But when I turned back around, Nolan was still there.
When I met his eyes, he held the tent flap open like he was holding a door for me. I stared for a moment before shaking my head. Figuring out what made Nolan tick wasn’t my problem.
I walked over and pressed an obnoxiously loud kiss to his cheek. He grimaced, and I grinned.
“See you tomorrow, pumpkin.”