Wild Horses (16 page)

“Don’t you dare!” Attila summoned an expression of exaggerated alarm. “Let me see how bad it has gotten.” Attila floated closer to Kai and stood next to him, teasing the wet, matted mass with his fingers.

“There’s no straw this time. It just gets like this when it’s wet,” Kai whispered. The distance between them closed very suddenly. Kai felt just a bit short of breath, aware of Attila’s strong, sleek body.

“Really,” Attila murmured, allowing his fingers to make their way to Kai’s hairline. He stroked the tangled strands back, brushing Kai’s ear so lightly, it might have been an accident. Kai found that he didn’t care, and he found he was tired of pretending the stunning man before him left him cold and indifferent. He let his head lean into Attila’s palm, just as Attila came even closer. Despite the cool water, Kai could feel exactly how close he was to Attila’s strong legs and exquisite torso. The water felt warmer in Attila’s direction.

Kai felt Attila’s searching gaze on his face, but made no effort to move. His eyes were barely cracked open and his lips parted in hopeful anticipation, drawing in short and silent breaths of air. Attila let the fingers of his other hand drift up the strong arm, tracing up to the broad shoulders.

“Kai.”

Kai heard the soft whisper and felt the hard, painted concrete of the pool’s edge dig under his shoulder blades. He leaned against it and away from the enticing heat source that was Attila—he wasn’t sure that he deserved something this good. The other man’s form seemed pure, pale and ethereal in the twilight, and Kai could see the man’s firm shoulders and strong neck against the midnight black of his hair. The words they uttered were but a foil to excuse their closeness, and Kai pressed against the cold concrete again, knowing he was unworthy of following this sweet a temptation. He winced at the tug of Attila’s sinewy fingers in his hair, water swirling around his legs as the other man approached.

His cock, not heeding his reservations, filled with urgency. The water of the pool seemed less cool as his skin flushed with arousal and as his heart beat stronger and faster, air became thin and rare. He yearned to reach out and touch Attila’s enticing skin, but did not for fear he would break the moment. This was too much, he was feeling too much, he was exposing too much—

Gentle fingers painted water trails along the curves and dips of his muscles, tracing droplets up to his shoulder.

He knew he would soon begin to hyperventilate.

“Kai….” Attila’s voice was full of suppressed want, drawing him in. “Yeah,” he rasped.

“I am going to kiss you now.”

Kai tilted his head to the side and presented his parted lips, afraid to open his eyes any wider, lest the dream flee and dissipate like diaphanous fog. The initial, delicate press of Attila’s lips grew more insistent. Kai’s hands let go of the side of the pool. His fingertips tingled with every heartbeat and his warm palms barely cooled in the water before he found Attila’s toned torso and skimmed his hands down to his narrow hips.

Their lips moved, lush and yielding, both soft and hard as they pressed against one another in search of something more. Greatly daring, Kai eased his tongue out the slightest bit in curious exploration. He heard a pleasured moan as Attila’s pale body was now pressed against his—no, he had pulled it in—and then they broke apart in need of air.

They peered at one another through the falling darkness. The lone citronella candle flickered on the picnic table across the water and the kitchen light burned through the thin curtains. “Attila.” The name was an invocation on his lips as he kissed Attila again, freeing his left hand and tangling his fingers in the midnight strands of hair. He relished the other man’s press of his swollen shaft into his hip. They moved a bit, then moved again. Kai’s mouth devoured the skin of Attila’s pale neck, making him gasp in pleasure as their hips ground against each other in a sensuous rhythm.

Kai’s urgency mounted at an alarming rate. He gasped as Attila slid his hand between them, gathering both their lengths, and moved his hand up and down. His world was condensed to the contrast of cool water and the intoxicating warmth of Attila’s skin against his own. The taste of Attila’s mouth lingered on his tongue and the urge to press and thrust became overwhelming. Kai bit down and groaned, arching his back; the sharp gasp of pain from Attila mingled with the blinding pleasure of his own release.

They leaned against one another, slumped and breathless. Kai turned them around, pinning Attila against the side of the pool, and kissed the bite mark with gentle tenderness. “I am sorry. Did I hurt you?”

“Not much,” Attila admitted. “I have wanted to do this from the moment I laid my eyes on you.”

“Really?” Kai trailed kisses up Attila’s scratchy jaw, lavishing care upon his high cheekbones and his closed, tired eyes. “When was that?”

“When you were racing your bike down that street with my phone in your hand,” Attila said, his voice lazy with contentment. “When you showed up only a few days later, it was all I could do not to… I don’t know.” Attila stopped, embarrassment audible in his voice.

“Me too,” Kai said. “Maybe the only reason I biked all the way out here was because of the way your hand moved your hair out of your eyes.” He captured Attila’s wrist and kissed its inner, sensitive skin. “And because you texted me.” Kai buried his face into the crook of Attila’s neck. “I’ve been nothing but trouble. I’m so sorry.”

Attila embraced him. “You’re well worth any trouble in the world,” he murmured so softly, Kai thought he only imagined it.

“W
ILL
you join me, Kai?”

They were both dry now. The dishes were washed and put away, but the mood was not quite right for settling down with their evening books.

“Join you?”

“In bed,” Attila supplied, his face calm, almost impassive.

Kai peered over the shorter man’s shoulder. He knew that bed, having lain in it before while recovering from various injuries. He had never shared it with its owner, though. Would it be awkward, or threatening, or… would Attila want to go all the way?

He nodded, swallowing dry. Hell, his dick just about led the way.

Attila turned the small reading light on and pulled the light blanket and the sheet halfway down the bed. “Make yourself comfortable. I’ll be right back.”

Kai stood at the foot of the bed. There were two pillows, but both were fluffed up. There was no way to tell which side of the bed Attila preferred. He groaned with indecision before he sat on the very edge of the mattress closest to the door. He heard Attila flush in the bathroom and run water in the sink. It occurred to Kai that Attila was getting ready for bed, that he intended to fall asleep next to Kai, and that he even expected to wake up by his side in the morning.

Sharing space.

Kai did not do that well. Usually he felt too defensive of who he was, or what he was doing at the time, to allow himself the luxury of falling asleep next to his lover. Yet no warning bells clanged in his mind, no red flags popped up.

The bathroom door opened and Attila emerged, nude and clean. “All yours,” he said, not saying whether he was talking about the bathroom or about himself. Kai noticed his eyes, though, and the way they darkened into warm, liquid pools as he raked his body with a heated gaze. It made Kai blush, and he was all too happy to make his escape and take care of his bedtime hygiene.

When Kai emerged again, Attila was reading a small, old paperback. He gave Kai a welcoming glance, but redirected his attention to the small print of the book right away. Kai pressed his lips together, fighting down a feeling of dismay. He peered at the title of Attila’s bedtime read, curious to see what Attila found more interesting than himself. There was a spaceship on the cover, and—wait—Kai relaxed into a relieved grin. It appeared that Attila Keleman, for all his suave manner and old-fashioned self-confidence, was fighting down a case of nerves of his very own. Attila was holding his book upside down.

“Attila,” Kai purred, secure in the knowledge that it was permissible to take the initiative. He reached out, skimming his fingertips across Attila’s belly and under the sheet that concealed the rest of him. He felt, rather than heard, the minute gasp of pleasure from behind the old sci-fi. Kai grinned as he propped himself up on his elbow and leaned over Attila. “Attila, quit hiding. Your book is upside down.”

He heard Attila groan. The man flung his arm over his eyes and let the open volume land on his face, almost disguising his fierce blush.

“No need to hide. You are amazing and fabulous and beautiful.” Kai’s words were a soft murmur, delivered in a tone of voice he would use with a skittish horse. He pushed the sheet down with his foot, revealing a lovely, pink erection. Whispering soft words of appreciation, Kai bent down and kissed the tip, then gave it a long, languorous lick. He heard Attila’s sigh of pleasure and saw Attila’s hands claw at the sheet by his sides. Most of all, Kai was gratified to see the upside-down book slide off Attila’s face.

He lavished his attention on Attila with his hands, his mouth, his tongue. An unobstructed view of Attila’s face was his greatest reward. As Kai settled between Attila’s splayed knees, he saw his lover force his eyes open and gaze at him. Attila seemed surprised, amazed even, as though a dream was coming true. Kai wrapped his lips around the hot length and swirled his tongue again, enjoying the weight of the heavy cockhead on his tongue and the smooth, silky texture of Attila’s shaft. Many gasps of pleasure later, Attila croaked his first words since he came to bed.

“Watch… out!”

And Kai relished every crest in the wave of Attila’s pleasure and every nuance of his bitter, musky taste. There was no sound. Attila’s eyes were wide open, almost round, and his mouth was open in an entirely silent, voiceless scream.

Kai remained still for a while afterward, the stubble of his cheek catching the soft skin of Attila’s belly and his own insistent arousal pressing against Attila’s leg. He felt the wild heartbeat of Attila’s climax calm down, and not long after, Attila’s fingers stroked his hair.

“Kai.” The older man’s voice held no uncertainty now. Kai seemed to have wiped out his nervousness entirely. “I believe it is my turn to pleasure you.”

There was something about Attila’s formal phrasing that filled Kai with the promise of untold pleasure to come. He settled on his back, just the way Attila’s hands directed him. Attila was ardent, and skilled, and he didn’t complain when Kai grasped his hair and tugged in an effort to make him slow down. Kai thought he might have heard a chuckle from down under, which was of course impossible because Attila barely smiled, let alone chuckled. When Kai climaxed, he did so with all the violence of his young and troubled past, and he was as loud as Attila had been silent.

T
HE
alarm went off, beeping louder and louder. Attila groaned. He forced his eyes open, only to meet Kai’s wide, caramel-brown gaze.

Kai….

He flipped over and hit the right button, then rolled back toward Kai and slid his hand up Kai’s tan, muscled shoulder. There was a tattoo on it, but he ignored it, pretending it didn’t exist: Kai was enough, embellishment was not necessary, and the ink only marred an already perfect surface. “Good morning,” he breathed, studying the man next to him. “Did you sleep well?”

“Well enough. I woke up early,” Kai admitted. “We did turn in earlier than usual.”

Attila allowed the corners of his mouth to lift in a hint of a smile. “That we did. And now it’s time to get out of bed and feed the horses.” He sat up, only to feel a large, warm hand on his arm.

“Hey… Attila.” Kai was sitting up, too, with an anxious look in his eyes.

“What?”

“Are we… are we good? No regrets?” Kai’s tone was flat and the expression in his eyes grew guarded.

“None on my side.” Attila’s eyebrows pulled together. “You?”

“No, it was great. Just… I worry, y’know? I don’t wanna fuck this up. It’s been so good, being here an’ all, an’… I
work
for you. I don’t want to, you know… mess that up in case we don’t work out.”

Attila gave him a long, thoughtful look. “I haven’t been involved with anyone for a long time, Kai. There has been no one to entice me. There is never enough time to look, with the horses demanding almost all of my attention. They come first, but if you can accept that, then….” Attila leaned in, brushing his lips against Kai’s warm mouth. “Then I think we will work out just fine.” He bounded out of bed. “If we don’t hurry, our charges will kick holes into their stable doors.”

K
AI
measured his effort with a critical eye. The covers were even and looked tidy enough, almost as tidy as Attila would have made them, and Kai retreated into the guest room to gather his clothing for the day. As soon as Attila emerged from the bathroom, Kai headed in, eager to rinse off and give his body a proper wake-up call.

He thought back to Attila and the way he disappeared into the bathroom for his quick morning shower. The older man had faith in their ability to coexist as… what, lovers as well as co-workers? Could it be? Earlier that morning, Kai woke up first, and had the opportunity to observe the other man in repose. Attila looked relaxed in his sleep, his lips forming a bow that just begged to be kissed. And his eyelids… they were almost translucent and delicate, with lush eyelashes complementing his arched brows. Kai wanted that, he wanted all of it, yet an old feeling of impending doom threatened to spoil what had been, so far, a very good morning. The old feeling that Attila was too good for him, that Kai didn’t deserve someone so kind and accomplished and downright fabulous, hovered at the edges of Kai’s mind. He did his best to focus on the here and now in an effort to banish these old and useless thoughts.