“I’m starting to.” Callahan smiled at him and it was such a sad and aware thing that Jace felt the urge to immediately kiss the expression away from his face. He pressed their mouths back together, lips not parted. He kissed Callahan like that until he was sure he’d be able to breathe with distance between them, then he leaned back and exhaled against Callahan’s mouth.
“Do you want to stay the night?” he asked. “Not for…anything. Just to sleep.”
Callahan’s eyes widened. Obviously he remembered what Jace had said the morning after they’d slept together. Jace recalled it as well, and he knew what he was doing, what he was asking. He knew it would be easier to fuck Callahan again and send him back to whatever godly ornate mansion he lived in, but that wouldn’t be fair.
It pained Jace to admit that until he met Callahan, he’d never realized how alone he was. But now, it picked and poked at him, and nothing on the planet sounded better than falling asleep with Callahan’s warmth beside him.
The offer was a promise, and he needed Callahan to understand what he was leaving on the table.
“Are you sure?”
Jace looked away. He wanted to be sure, but he didn’t know how to trust himself, how to trust Callahan.“Do you mean the things you said to me?”
“More than you know.” Callahan nodded, his eyes crinkled around the edges with worry.
“Then come to bed.” Jace stood up and lowered his hand, waiting for Callahan to accept it. “It’s late.”
Callahan took his hand and Jace led him back into the bedroom, his stomach churning nervously with every step. His bedroom was dark, the sheets tangled from where Callahan had slept before. Jace wondered what his pillow smelled like, if the scent of Callahan’s shampoo lingered in the threads.
The sound of his bedroom door clicking closed pulled him out of his head, and he turned, finding himself nervous to be facing Callahan with what was about to come. Whether it would end up being sleep or more, he didn’t know. He only knew what he wanted, what he feared, what he craved. He licked his lips, doing his best to hold steady and not allowing his emotions to knock him flat.
“Can…” Callahan reached for the hem of Jace’s shirt, but stopped before he touched him.
Jace closed his eyes again, well aware of what Callahan’s fingertips felt like against his skin. He nodded, and then Callahan was there, his fingers dragging Jace’s shirt over his head. He dropped it onto the floor and then removed his own, and then…then their chests collided—hot, and cool, and oh, so alive.
“Can I kiss you until you fall asleep?” Callahan murmured.
Jace smirked, amusement bubbling in his throat. “I almost forgot how bold you are when you’re like this.”
Callahan swallowed. “When I’m myself. With you, I’m myself.”
“Callahan.”
“I know you said just for sleep…”
Jace slanted their mouths together before Callahan could say another word. He’d heard enough and he was done listening. He knew in the days that were to come he’d have lots of things to hear and learn, and he worried he wouldn’t like a lot of them, but he wanted to like this.
To have this.
Callahan made a surprised noise, then wrapped his arms around Jace’s back and pulled their bodies tighter together.
“Take your pants off and get on the bed,” Jace said, turning them both so Callahan’s back was to the bed. He gave him a gentle shove and Callahan tumbled backward, landing with anoomph.
Callahan rose off the bed and shoved his pants down, shaking his legs until they slipped off and onto the floor. His cock was already hard and it was as thick as Jace remembered. He pushed his own pants down and grabbed his lube from the nightstand before crawling onto the bed and settling himself between Callahan’s legs.
“I haven’t forgotten how you like it, but I want you to do what I tell you.” Jace poured lube onto his hand, no care for cleanliness, and then he reached down between Callahan’s legs. With his other hand, he braced himself, staring down into Callahan’s face, and when his fingers found what they’d been looking for, he bent lower.
“Jesus,” Callahan rasped. “Fuck. Yes. Okay, I will.”
As his fingers eased in, so did his tongue, and he took Callahan completely, owning both of his holes. Callahan spread his legs wider and moaned into Jace’s mouth, his hands scrabbling at Jace’s back. Jace fucked Callahan’s ass with his fingers until Callahan was slick with sweat, and he thrashed madly beneath him.
Jace’s cock ached, and he straightened up, stretching toward the nightstand for a condom, three of his fingers still deep inside of the man beneath him. He tore the wrapper with his teeth and rolled the condom down with one hand.
“Yes?” he asked, rotating his fingers and lining his cock up with Callahan’s ass.
“You better. Please.”
Jace eased himself in, using his fingers to stretch and make room for his cock. Once his head breached Callahan’s tight muscles, he removed his hand and tumbled forward, burying himself in one smooth thrust. Callahan bucked off the bed and cried out, his mouth searching for another kiss.
