Page 84 of The Spellreader and the Phoenix

Rory was a big fan of the festive atmosphere. He doubted Max would go for a theme every month, but Rory was pretty sure he could come up with at least a small way they could celebrate all the time. It made everything brighter and gave people something to look forward to when they came in.

Also fun—so fun!—was the fact that Max liked kisses now, and he would occasionally drop one on Rory’s lips for no discernible reason. Rory was a big fan of this (for as long as Max wanted to do it, of course). He liked the affection, and he was glad to know that Max felt this at ease with him.

A few kids who hadn’t been able to make it in yesterday showed up today, and of course Rory took their bingo cards and gave them candy. Max rolled his eyes, but he didn’t object, and Rory even caught him giving out the treats a couple times. He also told off a rude man on the phone, informed a customer their taste in books was appalling, and scolded someone who went into the back corridor and was heading for the basement and not the bathroom. So the prickly exterior was definitely still intact.

They closed on time at five, spent a short period ensuring everything was tidied up again, fed Nōwē, and then made the questionable choice of eating popcorn for dinner and watching The Princess Bride immediately.

Rory liked being curled up next to Max on the couch, and he appreciated that Max could quote sections of the movie. He also texted his sister so that she could quote sections of the movie. Was this sibling magic?

Max laughed when he asked. Apparently, she just had favorite parts like her brother did.

Rory liked the whimsy of the book and film, how serious things happened amidst the silliness and people weren’t perfect, but good always triumphed in the end. (This was probably why he read a lot of romances, just like Tom from D&D.)

They ate a lot of popcorn, and Rory couldn’t stop smiling as the credits rolled—especially when Max seemed to think that the end of the movie meant they deserved kisses, too. Rory appreciated very much being sprawled out on the couch with Max’s warm weight on top of him, half propped up on his arms. Max ground down, making Rory moan into his mouth. Max’s cheeks were pink, his eyes dark, and his hair in disarray. His t-shirt was half rucked up, and Rory was very much enjoying touching the soft skin of his back.

Max moved again, and they both shuddered. Friction was an excellent force. Rory was a big fan.

“Is this okay?” Max asked.

“Super okay,” Rory gasped out, “as long as you’re into it.”

“Mmm,” Max hummed out a satisfied noise. “I was always confused when people talked about grinding. It seemed uncomfortable.”

Rory huffed a breathless laugh, rolling his hips and enjoying the rush of sensations and the way Max made pretty sounds. “It definitely doesn’t make sense if you don’t find it pleasurable. Then it’s just people rubbing against one another.”

Max chuckled, leaning in to capture Rory’s lips again. “Yeah, no thank you. But this… I didn’t know I could want like this.”

Rory sank into the kiss, reveling in the connection. He knew Max might not want to do this often, but he was definitely going to enjoy it anytime Max was interested.

Max’s movements were more rhythmic now, chasing his pleasure against Rory’s skin. Rory loved the feeling, both for the physical sensation and the knowledge that this was bringing Max pleasure.

“Mm,” Rory hummed happily. “Do you like the way this feels?”

“So much,” Max gasped out, face flushed, lips puffy, eyes bright. His eyelashes fluttered. “It’s weird and awesome. The idea of doing this with anyone else is still kind of gross.”

Rory tried not to laugh. “I’m glad it feels good with me. But we can stop at any time.”

Rory hoped he wasn’t belaboring that point too much. But this was pretty new to Max, and Rory didn’t ever want to accidentally pressure him.

“Don’t want to stop,” Max told him, sucking in a sharp breath as his hips continued to move rhythmically against Rory, lighting up both their bodies.

“You don’t have to stop,” Rory assured him. “In fact, you can come if you want.”

Almost like he’d been waiting to be sure that was okay, Max gasped again, body growing taut before he collapsed on top of Rory, who happily took his weight. His partner’s pleasure would always be more important than his own.

But after a moment, Max nudged him. “C’mon.”

So Rory hooked a leg around him and rocked against that warm body. Desire burned through Rory, roaring higher and higher until his own release overwhelmed him.

They lay there for a few moments, their breath evening out, until Max spoke. “It gets a bit gross at this stage, doesn’t it?”

Rory laughed. “Yeah, coming in your pants has some down sides. Shall we get cleaned up?”

Max agreed with alacrity, and Rory insisted that Max use the bathroom first. A few minutes later, they switched places, and Rory cleaned up quickly, so he could get back out to Max and see how he was doing.

“Alright?” he asked, as soon as they were back in the living room together, settled side by side on the couch once more. “Honest reactions only, and nothing you say is going to hurt my feelings, I promise.”

Max’s expression went soft. “I can quite honestly say it was the most pleasurable sexual experience I’ve ever had.”