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“Do what?”
“Minimize your pain. They hurt you, and it’s ok for that pain to have an impact on you. Pain and scars… they aren’t something to compare. We don’t win a prize for having deeper wounds.”
“Well look at you being all… profound,” I grin, nudging his thigh with my toes.
“Guess you’re just as lost as the rest of us, huh?” he smirks.
“Guess I am,” I shrug.
Riot shifts his weight, turning to face me, pressing his elbow into the back of the couch and propping his head up with his fist. With his opposite hand, he brushes a stray strand of hair away from my forehead.
“You’re staying here tonight, right?” his eyes are bright again, nearly shining, and I could never ever say no to him. Not when he looks at me this way. Like I’m something worth keeping. Something he doesn’t want to slip away.
I nod, “If you want me to.”
“Want you to?” he snorts, “If I had it my way, you’d never fucking leave.”
He leans forward, quickly devouring the emptiness between us and my breath falters as his lips are suddenly hovering over mine.
“Careful,” our lips brush together as I whisper, “that sounds dangerously like you’re tightroping the line between cute-obsessive, and crazy-obsessive.”
“Oh Cole, I never claimed to be sane,” he purrs as he presses his lips to mine.
Sunlight streams through the uncovered window, basking my skin in warmth. Rubbing my tired eyes with one hand, I begrudgingly open them one eyelid at a time, and when I turn my head, I find that Riot is missing from the bed. Zeke’s heavily tattooed arm is draped across my chest, and the soft, even breathing coming from beside me lets me know he’s still fast asleep.
The events of last night play through my head on a loop, and if I stay in that space for too long, my chest begins to tighten, filling me with nervousness. So instead I replay the aftermath - showering with Riot. And the way he looked at me, the way he kissed me, was more than I could put into words.
We stayed up late, talking while Zeke rested. Nothing was off limits. While I’ve already gotten to know Riot over recent months, I’m learning quickly that he’s full of surprises and layers. Just when you peel back one, there’s something new and exciting beneath it, or maybe sad and tragic, but each one is this unique experience that shaped him. He laughs and smiles, but this life he leads, it’s in his blood. A life built of circumstance. Born into a world where he’s lived only to survive, and the fact that he didn’t let any of it break him?
It makes me crave more of him.
We talked for so long that we lost track of time, and when the sun began to rise, we crawled into Riot’s bed. Riot snuggled up against Zeke, I snuggled up behind Riot, and we fell asleep. The aftermath of the chaos held some of the most intimate moments I’ve had in my entire life, and I’m not sure what to do with that revelation right now, so I tuck it away for later. Emotions are running high for everyone, and the last thing I want to be is someone’s mistake, so I feel like I have to tread carefully.
Riot must have snuck out of the bed early this morning, and I suddenly feel extremely awkward because I’m fairly certain if Zeke woke up and realized he was snuggling up to me, he might freak out a little. Lifting his arm, I quietly slip out from beneath him, placing his arm gently on the mattress where I was previously laying. My feet touch the cool vinyl floor, and I stretch my limbs before making my way to the bathroom.
Flicking the light on, I turn and quietly pull the door closed behind me. After a few moments of poking around the cabinets, I find some mouthwash and a tube of toothpaste. Squirting the toothpaste on my fingertip, I do my best to clean my mouth out, ridding myself of this horrendous morning breath. Uncapping the mouthwash, I pour some into my mouth, swish it around and spit the contents into the sink.
I quickly hit the lights as I slip out of the bathroom, and as I head for the bedroom door, I turn my head to check on Zeke once more. He’s still sound asleep, but his body twitches and a whimper falls from his lips. The movements are gone as quickly as they came though, so I convince myself that my mind is playing tricks on me.
Without a sound, I tiptoe from the room and make my way out to Riot’s kitchen. Riot’s on the phone and I can’t help but chuckle as he whisper-yells at someone named Darren to get someone over to the apartment now to repair Zeke’s shattered window, detail the interior, and replace the paneling that took some stray rounds.
“I don’t give a shit about the cost,” he hisses. “I want it fucking fixed before he wakes up Darren, so find me someone!”
Pulling the phone from his face, he taps the screen and lays it face down on the countertop, exhaling heavily as he drops his head.
“Everything ok?” I ask, walking up behind him, wrapping my arms around his waist, leaning in to hover my lips just above the crook of his neck.
“It will be when you just fucking kiss me already,” he groans, and the sound he makes travels straight to my cock. Mentally I’m telling my dick that it’s not the time or place because Zeke is recovering and it just doesn’t feel right, but my lips on the other hand… They have a mind of their own as they press down against his warm skin and travel up the column of his neck.
Turning slowly until he faces me, his lips find mine quickly and eagerly. Spinning us both around, he pushes me against the countertop and blankets my body quickly with his own. My lean frame, engulfed by his strong and muscled form. When he’s this close, there’s no hiding the things he does to me. To my body.
My erection digs into his thigh, but when he pushes his hips forward, it’s evident that we both want something more. Gripping my hips he grinds into me; his cock far bigger than I imagined, and the thought alone makes my mouth water. It presses against mine, rubbing together through layers of sweatpants, and it’s killing me that there’s anything at all between us.
“Cole,” he murmurs, as his hips increase in speed, our bodies rocking together leaving us breathless, panting against each other’s lips.
I’m lost in this reckless thing we’re doing, and I’m powerless to stop it. Tilting my head back, I release his lips and he peppers my skin with small kisses, nipping his way down my neck. Stopping to suck and dig his teeth in, making me groan out in pleasure.
“Riot,” I whisper with bated breath.