Chapter 28
Jeremiah
This man. This nerdy, awkward, adorably cute smarty-pants.
He’d already destroyed me.
I was done.
And I knew it.
“I’ll take the yard and the bugs and any other critters you want to throw at me . . . as long as I get to keep you, too.”
Theo’s smile blossomed into the most brilliant thing I think I’d ever seen as I lifted my head from his shoulder. Then he kissed me again, and I forgot my own name.
It felt as though my words flipped some internal switch in him, because every ounce of hesitation or doubt I could see in his eyes and touch vanished. His grip on my back firmed—as did his erection now growing beside mine.
His lips devoured mine as his tongue explored and caressed and captured my mouth.
I gripped the sides of his head in both hands and held him there, joined in passion, never wanting to let go.
But he had other plans.
He grabbed my shoulders roughly, and with a strength I hadn’t known the scrawny boy possessed, spun me around and tossed me onto the bed again. Before I could gasp or laugh—or anything—his weight fell atop me in a blessed wave of air-stealing pressure.
His kisses grew hungrier.
His cock harder.
His rutting against me more primal.
I barely caught a breath before his next kiss stole it from my lungs.
Then his lips vanished and teeth dug into my neck.
“Oh, fuck,” was all my brain could manage as he trailed down my neck, licking and nipping, until reaching my collarbone, then upper pec, then . . .
“Shit, Theo, my nipples are really sensiti—”
He bit down.
It took all my strength not to throw him across the room as fire bloomed in my chest.
He bit again.
Then licked and soothed.
Slickness pooled at the head of my cock and coated us both.
He rutted faster.
God, he’s so fucking hard.
He bit again.
Lightning arched my back.
His head lowered, and he took my leaky cock in his mouth. No longer gentle, he bobbed and sucked and slurped, until my ecstasy reached the edge.
“Theo, you . . . gotta . . . stop . . .”
He gripped my balls hard, fisting them until the line between pain and pleasure blurred.
Hell, my vision blurred.
Then I felt a finger sneak inside my hole.
Where the hell had that come from?
“Oh, fucking hell!”
My back arched again.
He gagged as my cock slammed into the back of his throat, but he didn’t stop . . . or slow . . . or ease.
He shoved me into him harder and faster, wriggling his evil digit until he found my prostate.
I couldn’t think.
I could barely breathe.
“Theo, I’m so close . . .”
Another finger slid in, slickened by saliva and precum.
I fought to hold back, to save myself, to wait—
“Damn it, I’m coming!”
My body shook as I fought to . . . as I begged for . . . as I shot myself down his throat. One wave, then another. Then another.
Theo didn’t slow. He swallowed and sucked, a hungry beast consuming his prey. All the while, his fingers destroyed me from the inside.
When the last of my load spilled into him, and my breath and heartbeat slowed, he finally let my cock fall free and slowly removed his fingers.
I could barely lift my head to look at him.
An evil, utterly satisfied grin greeted me.
“You’ve got a little . . . right there . . .” I pointed to his chin where some of my cum clung to his stubble.
Without taking his eyes off me, he scooted up my body, dragging his still-pulsing cock across my skin, until our faces were a breath apart.
“You need to clean up your mess, mister.”
Clean up my mess? What the . . . oh!
I leaned up and licked myself off his face.
He purred like some mountain cat who’d just eaten its fill.
“You drained the life out of me,” I said. “I never had a chance.”
“I wanted to show you I’m not the good little boy everyone sees all the time. I can be fun, too.” He kissed me again as I tried to wrap my brain around my little librarian being a bad, bad boy. “Let’s get a little sleep. You can return the favor once your battery recharges.”
Without another word, he snuggled next to me, his arm draped over my chest, and his head nestled into the crook between my chin and collarbone. Before I could think of anything to say, his breathing slowed, and the familiar rise and fall of his sleep lulled my own eyes closed.
Sunlight streamed through the crack in Theo’s magical blackout curtains. In our rush to get naked, we’d apparently missed the part where we were supposed to double-check that they were pulled snugly together.
Theo slept peacefully, still snuggled half on top of me with his arm across my chest, though his head had shifted onto his pillow during the night.
I watched him a moment, studied the curve of his lips, the lines of his cheeks, the way his eyes twitched back and forth in some scene playing out on the screen of his mind.
He was so unlike the guys at the gym, the guys I’d always dated.
They were typical Atlanta boys with muscles bulging against shirts and abs on their toes.
Most weren’t the brightest bulbs; then again, my light didn’t exactly brighten the night sky.
We were beefy clones of each other, and in so many ways, that worked.
It made sense. Of course the gym bros would hang out, maybe hook up, occasionally fall for each other.
But they weren’t Theo.
He was so completely different from anyone I’d ever known, much less cared about.
His brain was sexier than any amount of muscles. The way he saw the world, cut through the clutter and just understood things, that made my heart flutter almost as much as how his hair stuck up at odd angles, no matter how much paste he put in it.
And watching him with Debbie . . .
I had no resistance to that.
Zero.
Nada.
Zilch.
The moment I saw Theo’s hand rest on that little girl’s shoulder when she greeted me at their door that first time, I knew, deep down, that I wanted to be part of whatever he had. I wanted to know him—and her—and to see where things might lead.
And while I was totally turned on by how smart the guy was, his brainpower was intimidating as hell. I mean, seriously, how was a guy supposed to compete with a human calculator? Computer? Abacus thingy?
Fuck me.
Being smart was sexy; I didn’t care what any of the gym bros said.
Theo’s nose twitched, as though some speck of dust had irritated it from the inside. It reminded me of a dog sniffing the air and then deciding the bacon was too far away to chase.
“Why are you smiling?” Theo’s sleep-coated voice startled me.
“I was just—”“Watching me sleep? Isn’t that a little cliché, even for you?”
“Aren’t those made with cheese and ham?”
Theo’s eyes narrowed. Then one brow cocked. Then his lips quirked.
“That’s a quiche. They’re tasty, but not the same thing.”
“Oh,” I said, my gaze slipping.
Theo’s hand shot to my chin. “Don’t you dare.”
“What?”
“You wouldn’t let me be hard on myself last night—”
I giggled like an eight-year-old at a fart joke. “You said hard.”
Theo rolled his eyes, a chuckle slipping out.
“I’m serious,” he said, his gaze hardening. “If I don’t get to be mean to my toothpick of a frame, you don’t get to mock your mind. You are an amazing guy, Jer. Don’t you dare forget that.”
Why are my eyes wet? What the fuck? I blinked a few times. They got wetter.
Theo scooched up and kissed my left eye, then my right.
“I’ve got you, Jer. You’re okay.”
I gulped back whatever irritating shit had lodged in my throat and struggled to stare into his stupid, caring eyes. Why did he have to be so damned perfect?
“Can we talk about something?” he asked, his tone shifting.
I turned to face him and propped myself up on one elbow. “Sure. Whatever you want.”
He looked away, suddenly hesitant, suddenly shy Theo again.
“I’m scared of this court hearing.”
“The adoption?”
“Yeah.” He looked back at me. “I mean, I’m already Debbie’s dad. No court can change that. Still, it feels like such a big step, like a world-changing thing for both of us.”
I let that hang in the air a moment, waiting for him to continue. When he didn’t say any more, I asked, “That’s scary? Being with Debbie forever, legally, scares you?”
“No, of course not. I love Debbie more than anything, more than I ever knew anyone could love another person. She’s everything. It’s just . . . I don’t know . . . it’s all so . . . big.”
“I don’t get it,” I said. “If you love her and want to be her dad, what’s so scary? Nothing’s really changing, right?”
Theo’s eyes were fixed on mine, but I could tell he wasn’t really looking at me. His gaze was far away.
“I guess.” He blew out a breath. “I don’t know. What if something goes wrong? Maybe I’m scared the judge will say ‘no’ or someone will show up and object or Debbie will change her mind—”I didn’t mean to laugh. It just happened. I cursed myself inwardly for letting my stupid mouth open.
“Sorry, it’s not funny,” I said.
“What were you thinking? I could use a laugh.”
“Debbie change her mind?” I couldn’t have sounded more incredulous.
“Have you seen how that little girl worships you? You’re her dad, Theo.
In her mind and heart, in her tiny little soul.
You, Theo Jamison, are her father, and no court or law or anything will ever change that.
If you can’t see that, you’re dumber than I am. ”
“Hey!” He jabbed my ribs with a stiff finger. “None of that, remember.”
“Right, sorry,” I mumbled.
“I know I’m being stupid. It just feels like I’m standing on a cliff, looking down, and it’s a really, really long drop. I know I’ll be okay, but the jump is still really scary.”
I didn’t know what to say to that, so I just reached over, grabbed Theo, and pulled him into me, so his head returned to that spot below my chin.
He nuzzled and wrapped his arm around me, just like he’d done before.
I squeezed him with all my strength, hoping he knew, with that simple touch, that he wouldn’t go through this alone.