Chapter 33
Chapter Thirty-Three
Zeke
It’s late by the time we get back to Kappa house, and when we both climb out of the car, I hesitate. Charles’s eyes hit mine over the hood, and after a second, a smile twitches his lips.
“I’d ask if you wanted to come in, but—”
“Yes.”
“Zeke …”
I round the car and nod toward the house.
“My brothers will see you,” he says. “Lots of them. How are we going to explain you being here, let alone in my room?”
“What if we—stay with me here—don’t?”
“Don’t?”
I shrug. “Why do we have to explain ourselves to anyone?”
He opens his mouth to argue, but nothing comes out. It’s another one of those things that soften me toward him every day. Charles worries about keeping my secret more than I do some days, and the fact he cares about me that much gives my ego this funny little kick.
I slip my serious face on. “I think we need to talk after all that,” I point out.
“Good point.” He scruffs up his hair. “I’m just worried …”
“I know you are, Charlie. It’s why I like you so fucking much.”
He rolls his eyes, but his smile is splitting his face. “Fine. Come on, then.”
I follow Charles into the house, and he’s right—his brothers are everywhere.
I’m careful not to look too closely at who, and we both ignore it when someone calls out to Charles.
There’s every possibility they’ll put two and two together by the time we’ve reached his bedroom, but while I’m worried about rumors, without either of us confirming shit, there’s no way people will actually know.
We reach his room, and I immediately lock us inside while Charles swaps out his button-up for my swim hoodie.
I greedily take him in, and I’m hit with this full-on, drop-kick-to-the-face fact that if I give up on this without trying, I’ll regret it forever.
My chest hurts when I think about leaving here, knowing I won’t see him again.
All these panicky splinters vibrate in my gut and force words from my mouth.
“Be my boyfriend.”
Charles opens his mouth, but before he can answer me, I plow on.
“I know we sorta talked about it before, but I’m serious.
I want you. I want you with me when I go home this summer and with me when I move to California.
I want to wake up with you and go to sleep with you.
I want to win gold for you and be there while you work out what you want to do with your life.
And if we’re lucky, that’ll be a life I get to be a part of. ”
“Zeke …”
“Please. I know you said you didn’t want to base what comes next on one person, but you should. You should base it on you and what makes you happy. And … I make you happy. Right?”
“Fuck … so much.”
“Then …” My voice does this waver, and I have to clear my throat. “Can we try? The whole time we’ve been together, both of us have had one foot out, knowing it can’t last. And if you come with me, I’ll come out for you. I don’t fucking care. I just need you to say yes.”
His tongue swipes over his lips, and I swear I’ve forgotten how to breathe as I wait for his answer. “No.”
The hope, the rising emotion, the crystal-clear image of us together crashes. I can’t even answer him because if I do, my stupid eyes might start stupid leaking.
Charles steps forward and wraps his arms around me. “No coming out for me.”
“What?”
“I’ll come to California. We’ll work out what this is, and I’ll figure out what I want next. You’ll keep working toward your goal, like you have for years, and at least until you qualify, I’ll … be your roommate.”
“But—”
“I’m serious.”
When I lift my gaze to meet his, complete sincerity stares back at me.
“The only thing you need to worry about for the next year is making your dreams happen, because you’re the whole reason that gets to be my focus too. Without you, there’s no way I could have gotten my shit together and walked away from a miserable future.”
I cup his face, thumbs stroking over his cheeks, completely goddamn stunned that this guy is real and he’s mine. “I don’t want you to be my roommate.”
He grins. “Good thing I’m really your boyfriend and the spare room we have will all be for show.”
Like that, I’m hit with this overwhelming truth that I’ll never meet anyone as perfect for me as Charles. I drop to my knees, holding his thighs, staring up at him like I can’t believe he’s in front of me. “You fucking own me, Charlie.”
And the look he gives me in that moment is one he’s never given me before. Barriers down. No fake pride. Just complete and total affection coming my way.
I surge to my feet to kiss him, and his mouth parts easily for me. My heart aches it’s so full. Charles presses closer, body flush with mine, hands sliding up to card through my hair.
“Mine,” I whisper, attacking his mouth again. “Mine, mine, mine.”
He shivers, and my hands splay over his back to feel every tremor. His neediness goes to my cock, fattening it against my thigh, and I have to exercise extreme self-control to stop from grinding against him like a teenager learning to dry hump for the first time.
“I need you,” he begs.
“How?”
“Inside me.”
I palm his deliciously firm ass. “Question for you.”
“Urg, now?”
I chuckle and work open the front of his pants to keep him happy while I talk. “I love being inside you. A lot. But … do you ever want things the other way?”
“Me to top you?”
“Uh, yeah …”
His hands drop to my shoulders as he pulls back. “Well … I’m happy to do it if you want me to. I’m just greedy about having you inside me.”
A long, relieved breath leaves me, and I drop my forehead to his. “Yet another reason why you’re perfect. I wasn’t sure how I’d feel bottoming.”
“If you ever want to try it, I’m all for it. But it’s definitely not something I need. Or even prefer. Orgasms aren’t anywhere near as fun when I don’t have something up my ass.”
I laugh, then shove down his pants and briefs before lifting him. His legs close around me as I carry him to the bed.
“In that case, we better not keep your needy ass waiting any longer, should we?”
“My needy ass thanks you.”
It’s hard to describe how much happier I am with him, considering I’ve always been a happy person. I work hard, but it’s not like I deprive myself of the things I want.
When I’m with Charles though, everything else is so damn trivial.
I lower him to the bed and we kiss long and hard, my body weight pressing him into the mattress, and his hard cock digging into my abs.
“Can I try something?” I ask, attacking his jaw like I can’t get enough of the taste of his skin.
“Anything.”
Nrgh. It makes me light-headed to think of how much time we have to explore everything.
I push onto my knees, yanking my shirt over my head, then sit back on my heels to admire the view. Charles is all swollen lips and pink cheeks, wrapped up in my hoodie, with his hard cock standing exposed between his spread legs.
He needs to be a fucking artwork.
“Can I take a photo of you?”
Surprise flashes across his face.
“I don’t have to.” I drink him in again. “But, damn, Charlie.”
He slowly nods. “If you get naked and I can take one of you as well.”
Boo yeah. I spring up, shuck off my jeans and boxers, then climb back up onto the bed between his thighs. He already has his phone ready, so I flex my muscles a little, then lean in and run my tongue over the head of his cock.
Charles breathes out a curse. “Okay, so maybe I took more than one.”
I laugh and scoop up my phone before leaning in and giving him a fast, bruising kiss. When his lips are all red and puffy again, I pull back, line up the shot so I have everything, and take a photo of the sexiest thing I’ve ever seen.
“Is that what you wanted to try?” he asks.
I let out a filthy chuckle. “Not even close.” I toss my phone onto the mattress, push up his thighs, then lean in and run my tongue along his crease.
“Oh, fuck,” Charles gasps, head dropping back. “More.”
Experiment successful, then. I drop onto my front, getting comfortable, and then bury my face between his cheeks.
With every lick and suck, his reactions are insane.
Trembling thighs, hitched breaths, fingers digging into my scalp.
I circle my tongue around his hole until it’s soft enough to push in, and then I start to get him ready.
I work him open with my fingers and tongue, loving the way his hole tightens around me, begging for more.
“Your ass is such a whore for me.” I drive my cock into the mattress, seeking friction.
“Please, please tell me I’m ready.”
“Let’s find out.” I jump up and grab a condom, covering my cock with it and a truckload of lube before climbing back on top of him.
“Should I …” He reaches for the hoodie zipper, but I snatch up his hand.
“Leave it on.”
His lips pull up on one side. “You like seeing me in this.”
“So much.”
There’s a second pause while I try to work out whether to kiss him after having my tongue up his ass, but Charles makes the decision for me. He draws me into a long, deep kiss that curls my toes. We lie there, making out like a pair of horned-up sweethearts who are in no hurry to end this.
My cock doesn’t like that plan though. It’s needy to the point where endurance might be a serious issue, but I take myself in hand and lightly run the head up and down his crease.
It’s slippery and hot and has my balls aching with need.
Every time my cock passes over his hole, it catches the rim and begs to push inside.
As much as I try to ignore the urge, I’m only human, and when Charles twitches and tries to bear down against me, I stop and finally let myself in.
Heaven. It’s goddamn heaven.
He’s so tight and warm, and I swear every time I do this, it just gets better. His sexy hole clamps around me like he never wants to let go, and when I bottom out, the whimper that comes from Charles vibrates through my blood.
I break the kiss. “You good?”
“So, so good. Urg, how does this feel so right?”
“Because it’s us.”
He smiles and cards his fingers through my hair. “I’ve had feelings for you for a long time.”
“You … what?”
He looks down between us. “Sorry, maybe I shouldn’t have told you—”
“You can tell me anything.” And damn if knowing that doesn’t fill my chest with too much to contain.
We kiss while I fuck him slow, deep, holding his thighs apart as I try to fill him as much as I can. I have exactly zero shits to give about anyone hearing us and working out that we’re having sex, because after today, I don’t want anyone looking twice at him.
He’s my Charlie. Fiery, bright, sweet, and passionate. I want every part of him.
My arms snake up his back so I can grip his shoulders as I pick up my thrusts. His cock is trapped between us, rubbing against me, making him squirm and let out the most delicious noises that I lap up with my tongue.
My mouth breaks from his to trail along his jaw. Stubble scrapes my lips, and when I drag my tongue up his neck, the taste of his skin goes to my head.
We’re going to make this work. We have to.
Because life without Charles in it is fucking bleak.
I suck his earlobe into my mouth and give it a nip. “I’m gonna own your hole and your heart, Charlie. You’ll see.”
“I’m scared you already do.”
That’s all I need to know.
My thrusts increase, pistoning in and out, harder, faster.
My hips meet his ass hard enough to push him up the bed.
The steady thwap thwap thwap is loud, and I’m vaguely aware of the headboard rhythmically thumping against the wall, but I dig my knees into the mattress and pound into him like my life depends on it.
Legs cramping, toes curling, Charles’s nails digging into my back.
It’s sensory overload, and I do everything I can to hold off.
“Touch yourself,” I growl.
Charles forces a hand between us, knuckles bumping my abs, and jerks off to the pace of my thrusts.
“I’m gonna … I’m about to …”
“Do it.” I reach to push the hoodie up. “Get your cum all over us.”
He groans, tensing, and then his release hits my skin. His ass tightens around me, begging me to go with him, and I stop holding back.
The tingles racing up and down my spine gather in my balls before it’s all too much. My orgasm hits, cock jerking with my load as I fuck Charles through it, too checked out to even know what’s going on.
The high ebbs, and I collapse on top of him, both of us sweaty and panting. Charles squeezes my ass, nuzzling the side of my face and dropping light kisses on my neck.
Still, one thought keeps circulating.
“You’ve had feelings for me for a while?” I ask, turning my head so I can see him.
He takes a moment, then nods. “Maybe … a year. More?”
Holy fuck. All that time and he was going to let me walk away like his feelings never existed.
“Sorry it took me so long to catch up.”
“But you have.” He nuzzles my face again. “So every minute of waiting was worth it.”