Heart on the Run (27 page)

“
You can keep them. They’re part of the gift.” He’d had as much fun finding the assorted bits and pieces of china in antique shops and thrift stores as he’d had planning the menus and cooking for his …ex-boyfriend? Former friend? Beloved…

“
I’m not sure there’s room in the cupboards for this stuff.”

“
Oh…”

***

A pang of guilt shot through Sprocket. Did he have to be such an ass to Chaz?

I can’t do this. I won’t do this
…
this
…
whatever type of triangle it is.

Yeah, maybe he did have to be an ass to Chaz. He never asked him to be in a love triangle, and if Chaz didn’t believe two grown people could live together without fucking…well…

And so what if Mason and he did fuck around from time to time, they never did it when either of them was seeing someone else. They had restraint over their bodies. Sometimes sex really was just sex.

He looked at Chaz’s broken expression…and sometimes it wasn’t.

And just like that all the anger in Sprocket depleted, along with the strength in his body. He’d been trying to get the house to rights for Christmas, but the task proved to be too large for one person with only half his normal energy.

Mason would’ve helped, but he took the day to visit his parents in Huntington. He didn’t want to leave Sprocket, because of course, everyone now thought of him as a frail child who needed constant monitoring, but he swore to Mason he’d be fine. They normally visited Mase’s parents weekly during December, a happy holiday tradition for them, but Sprocket just couldn’t do the hour plus drive, then keep a happy face on so Mase’s mom didn’t worry over him, then another trek back home. They never got home earlier than ten-ish. Yeah, he just didn’t have that in him today.

Anyway, it wasn’t like he needed constant supervision or protection. No danger lurked around the corner. The junkie—a twenty-two-year-old high school dropout named Mitch Nickels—awaited trial behind bars. He’d been awarded bond, but no one had come forward to pay it so he’d become a ward of the state for the time being. With all the evidence stacked against him, even if Sprocket didn’t testify, he faced a long time in prison. Even though his priors were labeled as misdemeanors, and he never committed a crime with a deadly weapon before, the level of violence he showed this time weighed heavily against him.

Sprocket felt sorry for him. Nickels lived in Westerbury, a town about thirty miles east of Parkerburg. His parents had abandoned him at the ripe old age of fifteen, and he evidently had no intention of hopping between foster parents, so he’d lived on the streets and fended for himself. Sprocket couldn’t help but think his grandparents might’ve saved him from a similar situation. Sure, his situation and Nickels didn’t match, considering the age discrepancy—Sprocket had just turned five when his mother overdosed, nothing even close to fifteen—but the parallels of their histories made him contemplate what could’ve been.

“
Are you okay? Do you need to sit down?” Chaz hurried to his side, but hesitated to physically help him.

Sprocket didn’t realize he’d reached out for the railing of the porch and was now using it as a way to stay standing. Damn, he hadn’t done that much work…but something told him it wasn’t the chores that had sucked his energy from him; it was the man standing so close to him he could smell his soap, could practically taste the saltiness of his skin.

“
I think I should go inside now,” Sprocket mumbled. “It’s cold out here and I don’t cherish the thought of sitting on the swing and freezing my ass off.” The sweatpants he wore were threadbare and certain bits of him were already feeling nippily.

Again, that might be the weather or the man within arm’s reach of him, who knew.

Chaz slowly nodded. “Okay, I’ll let you get inside.” He cautiously descended the four snowy steps from the front porch.

“
If you wanted to come in with me…for a few moments maybe…well,” Sprocket quickly offered, even when the logical side of his brain asked him what the hell he was doing. They didn’t need to get involved with the runaway chef again, this was a bad idea.

But the other half of his brain didn’t give a shit what Mr. Logical thought. All it knew was that Chaz was walking away and it didn’t like that at all.

“
Well?” Chaz looked up at him.

“
I just thought…well…maybe you could help me bring the food in?” He gestured to the meal Chaz had placed on the table. “I like your meals…” He let the allusion of that verbalized thought linger in the air.

In the blink of an eye, Chaz was back on the porch with the food and cute little figurine in his arms. They smiled at each other for a quick moment before Sprocket turned and opened the door for them.

They quietly walked the short distance to the kitchen. Remaining silent when Sprocket entered it first and turned to look at Chaz. God, the man was beautiful with the bright copper highlights in his auburn hair predominant today, his eyes wide and beseeching, his mouth…fuck, that perfect mouth…

Sprocket rationalized to himself he hadn’t meant for this to happen as he pushed Chaz against the kitchen wall and shoved his tongue in the man’s throat again. Their coats were on the floor, the food was discarded on the table, and Sprocket had two handfuls of the most luscious, inviting ass he’d ever seen.

“
Want you…” he mumbled against Chaz’s parted lips before going back for seconds or was this thirds?

He didn’t care. He just wanted to push himself as close to Chaz as humanly possible.

Chaz twined his fingers in Sprocket’s hair and tugged. Sprocket winced, the back of his head throbbing where he still had a slight bump from being thrown into a wall.

“
What…what did I do wrong?” Chaz quickly released his hair and held both hands palm out in the air.

Sprocket didn’t want to stop kissing the other man, so he didn’t, mumbling between pecks along Chaz’s cheekbone, “Nothing…just a bruise…back of head…no biggie…just sore…fucking touch me…already…” He ended with his lips wrapped around the place where Chaz’s neck met his shoulder, angling for his collarbone, but Chaz’s damn collar was in the way.

“
I don’t know where I can… I don’t want to hurt you,” Chaz whispered, gently ghosting his fingers down Sprocket’s throat.

“
Even that feels so damn good.” Sprocket sighed. “God, it feels like forever since I touched you.” He leaned back and whipped Chaz’s shirt over his head, tossing it over his shoulder and firmly planting his teeth in the damn collarbone he’d been searching for.

His hands massaged Chaz’s pecs, his thumbs strumming over his nipples until they poked out ready to puncture something.

“
Ahh, yeah.” Chaz yanked the hem of Sprocket’s shirt up.

“
Fuck!” Sprocket cried out, stumbling back a step and instinctively putting his hands over the stitches on his abdomen.

“
Oh god, I’m sorry.” Chaz released the shirt and put his hands back up in the air as if to again state he wasn’t touching anything.

“‘
S fine.” Sprocket slurred his words, carefully peeling his shirt up over his head.

“
Shit,” Chaz cursed, dropping to his knees and studying the angry red stitches marring Sprocket’s skin. “I hate him. I’m not sure I’ve ever hated anyone in my life, but I hate that asshole who did this to you,” he whispered, placing gentle kisses around the injury.

“
Yeah, I’m not too fond of him either,” Sprocket agreed, running his fingers through Chaz’s soft hair.

When Chaz finished his circle around the healing wound, his lips decided to travel south. He flicked his tongue in Sprocket’s belly button and he groaned. The quick moist sensation forced his toes to curl.

Sprocket fisted his hands, taking control of Chaz’s movements, and forced him lower. It didn’t take much to convey to his lover what he wanted considering his sweats were slowly peeled down his body.

“
Nothing below the waist was hurt. Don’t you even think of being gentle down there,” Sprocket grumbled through clenched teeth, his need welling up in him.

“
Thank god for small favors,” Chaz huffed out before taking Sprocket’s helmet into his mouth and sucking.

“
Uhh…” Sprocket fought off the need to fuck Chaz’s mouth, even though miraculously, his energy seemed to be restored to full strength. Amazing what could happen when sex landed on the table. “So good…take more…take all of me…” He fed his length into Chaz’s mouth inch by agonizing inch.

Chaz looked up at him, his mouth wrapped around Sprocket’s dick so sexily. Sprocket ran his finger down the side of Chaz’s face, scraping his nail over those rosy lips spread to their limit as another inch of cock pushed through them.

“
Can you do it? Can you take the last bit? I want your nose buried against my body,” Sprocket whispered, tenderly touching his lover’s beautiful face.

Chaz groaned, his eyelids drooping as he barely nodded.

Pulling back partway, allowing Chaz to prepare for the rest of him, Sprocket again worked past those sensual lips, not stopping this time until Chaz’s lightly freckled nose was buried in his coarse pubic hair.

He closed his eyes and dropped his head back, breathing deeply as Chaz’s tongue massaged the sensitive veins underneath his cock. Holy shit, how long could this man hold his breath? Did Sprocket want to push it? He looked down again and was amazed that Chaz still stared at him. No worry in his eyes, deep breaths puffing out of his nose rustling Sprocket’s pubes. Sprocket ground his hips back and forth in a slow, circular motion and was rewarded when Chaz moaned around him, the tingles of his throat ratcheting up Sprocket’s need and hardening his balls.

Damn, he was about to explode down Chaz’s throat, but that wasn’t where he wanted to lose his load.

He stepped back, his cock falling out of Chaz’s mouth with a loud pop. Chaz tried to follow it, but Sprocket stopped him, ordering him up off his knees. As soon as Chaz stood, Sprocket took his mouth in a desperate kiss, wanting to taste them together, getting a hint of his own pre-cum from Chaz’s lips and tongue.

“
Fucking A, you’re so fucking good at that,” he muttered, holding Chaz’s head still and licking his lips, getting every drop of moisture—whether it originally came from his dick or Chaz’s mouth. “I have to fuck you…I need to be in you again…”

“
God, yes,” Chaz agreed, nodding. “But…can you?”

“
What?” Sprocket stepped back, looking at Chaz, wondering if he’d grown a third head or something. “You were just down there, you know I can.”

A light caress ghosted over his stitches. Sprocket glanced down and saw Chaz delicately fingering about the wound. “This doesn’t bode well for strenuous activities.”

“
I just took four ibuprofen, and you are not leaving this house until your ass hurts. Understand?”

Chaz gasped. Oh yeah, he understood. Sprocket toed off his shoes and stepped the rest of the way out of the sweats, glad he hadn’t bothered with underwear. He grabbed Chaz’s hand and dragged him back to the bedroom.

“
Get undressed,” he ordered as he went straight for the bedside drawer and grabbed the lube and condoms, tossing them on the bed. Looking over his shoulder, he sighed in thanks that Chaz’s back was to him as he undid his pants, so he didn’t see Sprocket’s slow climb on the bed or the grimace he couldn’t quite hide.

Didn’t matter if he had a little pain now, because in a few moments, he’d be in heaven and all would be good.

He situated himself in the middle of the bed and had just settled down when Chaz turned, completely naked and ready. This time Sprocket gasped. Goddamn, that man was gorgeous, not an inch of his body wasn’t perfect—freckles, pale skin and all. Sprocket especially loved the pale skin, because every time Chaz blushed, it showed, and the skin around his groin was heating up quite nicely.

“
Get over here,” Sprocket growled. He tore open the condom wrapper and rolled it over his cock. Next came extra lube, because he didn’t have the patience to spend too much time preparing Chaz. He needed to be in the man now.