I looked over. “Well, for one, how about you lose those clothes?”
He frowned, then smiled a bit and started to strip. “Might as well, it’s my turn to shower next.”
I grinned. Once he was only wearing his underwear and looked at me expectantly—albeit he was trying to hide it—I picked up some shampoo.
“What’s next?” he prompted, sounding impatient when I rubbed the shampoo into my hair.
“Well,” I started, then let the water wash away the suds. “You could take those boxer briefs off and touch yourself for me.”
River whimpered loudly enough that I could hear it over the water.
I glanced over again. “Not like that. Spread your legs a little, cup your balls with one hand. I know they’re sensitive.”
He did as told, and I went back to my shower. He kept jerking himself off slowly, playing with his balls with only a couple more prompts from me. When I was almost done with my shower, I told him to turn the sink faucet on hot.
Then I stepped away from the shower turned it cold, before holding one hand in the stream. I turned the shower off, then stepped next to River and grasped his erection with my cold hand.
He let out a yelp, but didn’t soften in the least. Instead, he grasped my shoulder. He didn’t notice when I ran the hot water over my free hand, so when seconds later, I switched hands, his whole body jolted and he hissed.
I jerked him off quickly, enjoying the way his body flushed and the sounds he made. The moans and whimpers, the “oh fucks” and especially the almost reverent “I’m gonna…Ben!” at the end.
He came over my hands, his body relaxing from the tense arc it had been seconds before. He panted against my shoulder as I wiped my hands on his body.
He chuckled breathlessly, then lifted his face so we could kiss. I gladly gave him what he wanted and then stepped away to nudge the faucet to colder, then washed my hands.
“I’ll be on the couch, napping. Try not to fall asleep in the shower.” I saluted him and walked out of the bathroom with my towel.
“That was one time!” River yelled after me.
One night, when I’d given him a hand like we’d just done, he’d fallen asleep within the next half a minute. I’d laid there next to him, cum on my hand and stared at him. And of course, gave him shit the next day.
I got dry and dressed, then went to curl up under my favorite blanket on the couch. I set an alarm to tell me when my fifteen minutes were up, because I didn’t want to go to the house looking half asleep and rushed; I respected the guys too much.
Somehow, I managed to doze off before River made it to the couch. He snuggled against me, smelling of his cedarwood shower gel, and we both sighed contentedly. It led to chuckles that quieted quickly, and we soaked in the quiet calm.
I had never felt this settled in my life. This calm and at home. Not even as a kid. There had always been something…if not missing, then not quite right. The feeling of being complete had gotten stronger and stronger the more River and I fell into being one unit. Now, as we officially lived together, everything was perfect.
“I love you so much,” I murmured.
I could feel River shake with a quiet chuckle. “I love you, too, babe.”
* * * *
The surprise at the house was incredible. During one of our game nights, we’d idly chatted about favorite foods, and apparently Cook had paid attention.
There was Caesar salad, a massive charcuterie board, homemade pizza, and a few other things, and to top it all off, there were blueberry milkshakes, and even a baked Alaska.
The seven of us had so much fun, my abs hurt by the time we were ready to call it a night.
“Seb and I are heading out in the morning to go to another auction,” Theo said. “We’re taking a detour on the way there and taking a couple of horses and one of the ponies to their new homes.”
Sometimes I forgot the rescue was an active place, because my job was so much indoors and concentrated on my laptop. Even the early afternoons Lake and I took when he wanted or needed to hang out with Theo and do horsey stuff hadn’t really driven it home for me.
I decided that once River and I had figured out the renovations and how we were sharing those costs, I’d donate some money to the rescue. It only felt right, since—and that reminded me.
“Lake and Theo?” I asked while we were sitting on the couches as Rey set up a board game.
Theo looked at me. “Yeah?”
