Chapter 18
JULIAN
My lips are tingling from our rough kisses, and every inch of my skin feels oversensitive and raw like I might fly apart into a million pieces at any second. Despite all that, my cock has only partially deflated, more than ready for a second round if Ranger is up for it.
I lace my fingers through his, my heart fluttering at the smile that tilts his lips.
Casual fun includes fluttering hearts, right?
I totally have this under control. I can’t resist pressing another quick kiss to his mouth, memorizing the shape of his smile before tugging him along out of the barn and up to the house.
Benny joins us, still at ease since Ranger gave him the signal to stand down earlier, but always on alert, making sure his human doesn’t need him.
The dog no doubt sees the same thing I do: loose movements, a relaxed, happy expression that doesn’t seem to grace Ranger’s face often enough.
He’s even sexier like this, more himself.
I’m not under any delusion that playing with my dick cured his PTSD, but it’s nice to think that the fun we’re having can settle his demons for a few minutes at a time at least.
When we get into the house, Ranger directs Benny to the living room, then lets me tow him down the hall to the bathroom, the two of us trading kisses and bumping into the walls along the way. He chuckles against my mouth, the sound vibrating through me and lighting me up from head to toe.
We manage to make it to the bathroom, and I kick the door closed behind us before pushing him up against the sink, only breaking our kiss long enough to pull my shirt off and toss it onto the floor.
Every time we crash back together, the kiss somehow feels more frantic, more desperate, hungrier. My cock is fully hard again, pressing against Ranger’s answering steel. At least we know we have compatible sex drives, which is the most important thing to find in a casual hookup.
Casual, casual, casual. All good.
Ranger groans when I break the kiss so I can start the shower and have a few seconds to catch my breath.
“You have a paw print tattoo on your shoulder.” He gently drags his index finger along the back of my shoulder, and goose bumps pop up all over my skin as he traces the shape of my first and only tattoo.
“It’s an imprint of my first dog’s paw. When I was a kid, I wanted a dog so bad, but my mom was not about that life.
Fast-forward to my second year as a prelaw student.
One night I was walking back to my dorm from the library.
It was freezing and had just started to snow.
I stopped at a crosswalk, and while I was waiting for the signal to change, I noticed that on the other side of the road, a dog was tied to a tree.
I scanned around, expecting to see an owner, and when I didn’t, I headed straight over to her.
It was obvious she’d been abandoned there on purpose.
She was whining, covered in her own pee, and shivering in the cold.
When I cut her loose, she tried to bite me, but as soon as she was free, she started licking my hand and tried to jump on me. ”
My throat tightens at the memory. With jerky movements, I strip out of my pants and underwear, letting them fall onto the pile of clothes on the tile floor. Nothing kills an erection like talking about your dead dog. Smooth, Julian.
Ranger takes off his pants as well. I reach into the shower to check the temperature of the water before pulling back the curtain all the way and waving him in. He steps under the spray and groans, tilting his head back to catch the water on his face and then moves aside so I can get in too.
“So, what happened?” he asks once I’m in the shower with him.
“I brought her back to my dorm and paid my roommate twenty bucks not to rat me out to the RA.” I smile as I think back to the week I spent hiding Layla in my dorm, sneaking food back, and begging her not to bark.
“One night, I couldn’t get her to keep quiet, and when the RA came by to find out what was going on, I pretended I had a cough that just sounded like a dog barking. ”
Ranger laughs, and I join him, reaching for the bottle of body wash perched on the ledge and pouring some into my hands.
“Why didn’t you just say you were watching a movie with a dog barking?” he asks.
“Well, snickerdoodles, where were you back then?” Without thinking twice, I lather up my hands and run them over his chest and shoulders, catching his nipple piercing against my palm and sending a shudder through him.
“Hmmm, probably Afghanistan?” he muses, all humor gone from his voice. I bite the inside of my cheek, praying I didn’t just ruin the moment. But then he leans into my touch and meets my eyes again. “Then what happened?”
“Shockingly, the RA didn’t buy my lie. The next day I got a notice that I had to get rid of her or vacate the dorms. It wasn’t even a question.
I packed up my stuff and dropped my classes.
I was already unhappy anyway, and having to choose between housing and Layla just sealed the deal.
I guess she changed my life. She was like my angel, my little terrorist angel.
” I pause, caught between my memories and this moment with my soapy hands all over Ranger’s body.
“Boy, did that dog love to destroy my stuff, but I got her under control eventually, and learning how to handle her is how I got interested in animal training and behavior. The rest is history.”
He hums in acknowledgment, bending his head for a softer kiss this time, our lips moving slowly against each other, our wet bodies slipping and sliding together. I moan against his mouth, my cock surging back to life against his, bumping and grinding together, the kiss heating up.
Ranger drags his fingers through my wet hair, backing me up against the wall, the tile cool compared to the heat of the water and his body. The contrasting temperatures light all my nerve endings on fire. I sink my fingers into his back, nipping at his bottom lip and thrusting against him.
Our grunts and groans echo off the shower walls, the head of my cock catching against his with each thrust, and the sticky remnants of our first orgasms mix with fresh precum and the water cascading over us.
“Fuck,” he gasps, his nose bumping against mine. Our kisses turn sloppy as we hump against each other like wild animals in heat.
“Ranger,” I pant his name against his mouth, digging my fingers harder into his muscles as my balls tighten, and my cock pulses against his. Without warning, my orgasm crashes over me, my cum coating his cock and my own before being washed away by the water.
He lets out a strangled sound, thrusting his hips erratically as his release joins mine.
As our orgasms fade, our kisses and groping hands slow, our chests heaving against each other. My throat is raw from moaning, and my balls are sore from two orgasms so close together, but I still want to lick this man from head to toe.
Ranger pulls away and plucks the bottle of body wash off the ledge, then fills his hands just like I did.
“I told you my story. Have you any of your own to share?” I ask softly, watching him form a lather in his hands to wash the rest of the cum, dust, and sweat off my body.
“A story?” He sounds amused and slightly exhausted at the same time.
“No pressure.” My eyes fall closed as he gently slides his hands all over my skin.
“Okay, I’ve got one,” he says after a few seconds. “When I was around ten, my brother Lucky and I…”
I sag into his touch, listening to him tell me about his childhood, soaking up the happiness in his tone, and reminding myself over and over again that he wants this to be casual.