What Happens at Christmas (13 page)

Sean rolled onto his stomach, kicking the covers down. He tucked a pillow under his hips, spread his thighs and tilted his arse up. “Like this.”

Justin moved to kneel between Sean’s legs, admiring the view for a moment. He felt as though all his Christmases had come at once.

Sean gripped his buttocks, holding himself open like a gift. “Justin.” The thread of need in his voice made Justin’s balls draw up.

“Fuck, okay.” Justin lined up and rubbed the tip of his cock over Sean’s hole. For a moment Sean’s body resisted. “Come on, baby. Let me in.” Justin pushed a little harder, then gasped as Sean’s muscles relaxed and he eased into the tight, grasping heat.

Sean made a high keening sound and Justin froze, afraid he was uncomfortable. But Sean pushed back, forcing Justin in deep.

They both cursed.

“Yeah. God, that’s perfect. Do it. Fuck me.” Sean’s head was turned to one side and Justin could see the flush on his cheeks, the slack of his mouth where he gasped the words against the sheet.

Justin braced his arms on either side of Sean’s body and started to fuck, hard and fast, because that was what Sean seemed to want.

Sean moaned with every thrust, the sounds knocked out of him as Justin slammed in. He hoped the angle was good for Sean. “This okay?” he managed.

“It’s fucking brilliant.”

But it was going to be over all too soon. Sean was hot and tight and the sight of him spread out, begging for Justin to fuck him was too much. The electric tingle of impending release built, pooling in Justin’s balls and trickling up his spine.

“I need a timeout. Otherwise I’m going to come,” he warned.

“No! Don’t stop.” Sean rocked his hips, grinding back on each thrust. “Don’t you fucking dare… even
think
about stopping….” His words trailed off in a hoarse cry of pure pleasure and his walls pulsed around Justin as he came, hips jerking into the pillow. Justin pressed in deep and let Sean ride it out until the tension left his body and he relaxed.

Justin drew out and then pushed back in, hoping he could finish now, but Sean hissed. “I’m really sensitive after coming. You’ll need to go carefully.”

“It’s okay.” Justin was so close. It wasn’t going to take much, but waiting wasn’t an option and he didn’t trust himself not to hurt Sean if he carried on. He pulled out carefully and sat back on his heels. He stroked himself over the condom a few times before pausing to pull it off.

Sean looked over his shoulder. “Need some help? Want my mouth?”

“Nah.” Justin started stroking again. “You can just lie there and look pretty.” He parted Sean’s cheeks with his free hand so he could see his hole, all pink and shiny with lube. He made a grunt of appreciation, stroking his cock harder, faster. “Oh fuck, yeah.”

He came with a strangled groan, hips snapping forward as he fucked into his fist, painting Sean’s gorgeous arse with thick white streaks. One landed right next to his crack, and Justin caught it with his thumb, smearing it over Sean’s hole.

“You kinky bastard,” Sean said, grinning from ear to ear.

“Apparently.” Justin had never had a thing for come play before, yet something about Sean made him want to push his spunk inside him and leave it there.

“Clean me up, you fucker. I want to roll over so I can kiss you again.”

Justin reached for the tissues beside the bed and wiped his mess off Sean.

“Cheers.” Sean rolled over, pulling the pillow out from under his hips. “I don’t think tissues will be much help for this wet patch, though.” He flipped the pillow over and rested his head on the dry side, reaching up for Justin’s hand so he could pull him down. “C’mere.”

Sean wrapped his arms around Justin, and they kissed, slowly and lazily. Sean stroked his hands over Justin’s back, and Justin burrowed closer, losing himself in the warm strength of Sean’s body and the sweetness of their kisses.

Outside in the streets, church bells pealed, the tumbling notes heralding the turn of midnight and the arrival of Christmas ringing out in celebration across the city.

Justin drew back so he could see Sean’s face. Sean’s dark eyes were soft and his lips swollen from kissing. He made Justin’s heart twist.

“Merry Christmas,” Justin whispered.

Sean smiled. “It’s shaping up to be a great one. Merry Christmas.”

CHAPTER TWELVE

Sean slipped into consciousness to the sensation of fingers combing through his hair. A warm body was pressed up behind him and humid breath washed over the bare skin of his shoulder.

He smiled as he remembered the night before and then braced himself, waiting for the doubts and uncertainty to sweep in, tarnishing the memory of what they’d done.

None came.

It felt so right, deep down in his bones and in his blood. He couldn’t regret any of it, but they needed to talk.

He stretched, making a satisfied humming noise as he turned into Justin’s arms, smiling sleepily.

“Morning,” he said.

“Morning.” Justin smiled back. He leaned in for a kiss, just a soft brush of lips. But as their bodies pressed together, Sean felt Justin’s erection against his hip. He reached down and stroked it, raising an eyebrow. “Been awake long?”

Justin ran a hand over Sean’s chest, thumbing his nipple until it hardened. “Not very.” He lowered his voice into a husky confession. “I was thinking about last night.”

“I figured.” Sean squeezed Justin’s cock, loving the heat of it in his hand. His mouth watered, spurring him into action. Talking could wait. He shuffled down beneath the covers, into the dark warm cave that smelled of both of them. His own cock hardened as he buried his nose in Justin’s pubes. “You stink of sex.” He breathed in deeply.

“You say that like it’s a bad thing.” Justin’s voice was muffled by the duvet.

Sean tugged the covers down to his shoulders so he could see better. He glanced up at Justin and grinned. “It’s not. Definitely not.”

He turned his attention back to Justin’s cock, guiding it into his mouth and sucking, lightly at first, until Justin started making impatient noises and tightened his fingers in Sean’s hair.

Sean rolled him onto his back and took charge. He gave Justin what he wanted, sucking him deep and strong until Justin was cursing, breath coming in gasps. “Fuck, Sean. Yes.
Fuck
.”

Justin thrust up into Sean’s willing throat, pulsing and filling Sean’s mouth with his come. When he was done, Sean released him, swallowing. He wrinkled his nose at the salty bitterness.

Justin chuckled. “You don’t have to swallow if you don’t like it. I don’t care.”

“Saves on mess.”

“Says the guy who jizzed all over my pillow last night while he humped it like a dog.”

Sean’s cheeks heated, and mingled arousal and self-consciousness flooded through him as he remembered being arse up for Justin, begging for it.

Justin must have seen his slight discomfort because he reached up and pulled Sean down, his hand curled tight around Sean’s nape so he couldn’t look away. “Hey, you were amazing. Hottest fucking thing ever.” He got his other hand on Sean’s cock and stroked, his thumb slipping through the moisture at the tip. “You’re sticky.”

“Uh-huh.”

“Well, roll over and let me blow you.” Justin pushed at Sean’s shoulder.

Sean obliged. “If you insist.”

“It’s traditional to exchange gifts at Christmas.” Justin knelt between Sean’s thighs and lowered his mouth to lick away the shiny bead of precome.

Sean’s brain left the building. His head thudded back on the pillows, and he gave himself up to the pure, mind-blowing pleasure of Justin’s mouth.

Afterwards they lay side by side. Justin’s eyes were closed, but Sean stared at the ceiling, his mind whirling with questions. There were so many things he wanted to ask, but they all boiled down to one thing.

“What are we doing?” he finally asked.

Justin shifted beside him, propping himself up on one elbow. He looked down at Sean and shrugged one shoulder as he gave Sean a wry smile. “I dunno. It’s fun though.”

Sean couldn’t deny that, even if he feared it was the sort of fun that could end in heartache. “I know, but….”

Justin cut in. “Let’s enjoy it for now. It doesn’t have to mean anything.”

But it does
, Sean wanted to say.
It means everything
.

Instead he followed Justin’s lead. “What happens at Christmas stays at Christmas?” His gut twisted as he said the words.

Justin flopped back down onto the mattress again. Sean couldn’t see his expression. “Something like that.” He patted Sean’s belly. “We’ll work it out.”

They exchanged non-blowjob-related gifts after breakfast. Justin wanted to open the presents they’d bought for each other straight away, but Sean insisted on coffee first, and then they both realised they were hungry.

Once they’d eaten, they went and sat in the living room with their second cups of coffee. Justin opened the curtains to a glorious blue sky. Sun poured in, making the tinsel on the tree reflect tiny points of light onto the ceiling.

Distracted by the sofa snogging that had led to sex, they’d forgotten to put their gifts under the tree last night, so they got them out now.

“Put them by the tree so I can take a photo. I want to send it to Mum to show her I decorated,” Justin said. “Then she’ll stop feeling bad about me being stuck here.”

Sean got his hastily wrapped present out and put it under the tree alongside the one Justin had placed there. Both parcels were indeterminate shapes. Sean had wrapped his in boring gold paper, whereas Justin had gone for paper decorated with cartoon Santas and reindeer. Justin’s was a little bigger, and when Sean prodded it, it rustled.

“Get your hand out of the way,” Justin said, phone poised. Then came the click of the camera. “There.”

“Can I open it now?” Sean was excited. He’d forgotten the thrill of unknown presents hiding inside wrapping paper. It had been a few years since he’d had anything other than a cheque from his dad.

“Yeah, go on, then. Don’t get too excited, though. It’s just a bit of fun.”

Sitting cross-legged on the floor by the tree, Sean tore into the paper like an impatient kid. Justin had used a lot of tape, and bits of shredded paper fell to the floor as Sean ripped into it. Inside there was another layer—tissue paper this time, which explained the rustling.

“What is this, pass the parcel?” Sean looked up at Justin, who was watching him, grinning.

“Ooh, good idea. I should have put forfeits between the layers: take off an item of clothing, do a naked dance, blow me….”

“I’ve already done that today.” Sean went back to unwrapping.

The tape came off the tissue paper easily, but loads of it was wrapped around the thing inside. When Sean finally got to it, he stared at the contents with a smile of disbelief spreading over his face. What were the chances?

“It’s a—” Justin began.

“A gibbon. I know.” Sean was laughing now, lifting out the black-haired gibbon by its ridiculously long arms and holding it as though it was hanging from a tree branch. “It’s awesome. It’s just….”

“What?” Justin was smiling at his reaction, but his brow was wrinkled with confusion. “It reminded me of you.”

Sean chuckled again. “No spoilers. Open yours.”

Justin reached for his present, and when he settled back opposite Sean, he was close enough that their knees bumped.

“Oh my God!” Justin pulled the golden-furred gibbon out of the paper and held it up, mimicking Sean’s previous pose. “That’s so fucking
weird
.”

“I know. Great minds, huh?”

“We clearly know each other far too well.” They grinned at each other, happiness swelling and filling the space between them. “Thank you.” Justin crawled forward on his hands and knees and kissed Sean softly on the mouth. It was the first time they’d kissed like this—like boyfriends—outside of sex or Justin’s bed. Sean’s breath caught as the weight of hope and uncertainty slammed into his chest.

They needed to talk. He needed to know what this was, what Justin thought about it, but he didn’t want to spoil Christmas by dragging this beautiful shining thing between them out into the open. He was afraid that, like fairy lights on a tree in the daytime, it would be washed out, weakened if they looked at it too closely.

Sean wasn’t ready to let go of the illusion yet.

“Where are we going to put these guys, then?” He held up his gibbon.

“On the tree? Or we could hang them from the curtain rail.”

They ended up hanging them by their Velcro feet and linking their arms so they were holding each other too.

Justin snapped a photo and put it on Instagram. “Here we go. Hashtag: xmasmonkeybusiness.” He showed the photo to Sean.

“Does anyone else even use that hashtag?”

“Not yet. I like to be ahead of the curve.”

They Skyped Justin’s parents later in the morning. Justin insisted that Sean come and said hello, dragging him down on the sofa beside him as the call connected. He slung his arm around Sean’s shoulders as though to stop him escaping.

“Hi!” Justin waved at the screen where his parents smiled back.

Sean grinned at their familiar faces. It had been way too long since he’d seen them. “Liz, Matthew… long time, no see.”

After hellos and Christmas greetings, they chatted for a while. Justin’s parents were on their own for Christmas because Justin’s sister, Suzie, hadn’t been able to make the journey either.

“We’ll be eating turkey leftovers for the next month,” Liz said. “Good thing we’ve got a big freezer.”

“Is Suzie on her own?” Justin asked.

“No, she got invited to spend Christmas with a colleague. She threatened to try and drive up, but I talked her out of it,” Liz said. “We can get together another time. I didn’t want her to risk getting stranded. The snow’s been really bad around the Lake District.”

“Probably for the best, then.”

“Yes. But I’m glad none of us are spending Christmas alone. Are you boys having fun?”

Justin tightened his arm around Sean’s shoulder. “Yeah, we’re doing fine. I couldn’t ask for better company.”