Page 2 of Beyond the Rainbow (Pride Camp 2025 #11)
“Embarrassed, are we?” Colin teased, his voice a low rumble as he stepped forward, now also wholly nude.
His body moved with quiet confidence, his frame outlined by the faint moonlight slipping through the curtains.
The hush of the night wrapped around them like a secret, broken only by the whisper of the overhead fan.
Joshua shook his head, unable to look away despite the heat rising in his face. “Not embarrassed,” he murmured, his voice soft but steady. “But— maybe a bit overwhelmed.”
Colin climbed onto the bed, shifting the mattress as he relaxed beside his husband, and Joshua’s breath caught as their eyes locked. “Good,” Colin whispered, his lips curving into a crooked smile. “Because I want you to feel everything I feel when I look at you: awed, amazed … so damn lucky.”
Joshua let out a shaky laugh, brushing his fingertips along Colin’s jawline. “And hot enough to implode.”
Colin smirked and leaned in, his mouth brushing against Joshua’s in a kiss that was soft and slow yet filled with unspoken promises. “Happy to hear it,” Colin murmured against his lips.
The tension in the room thickened, not with awkwardness but with the depth of their love, tangible and undeniable.
Every touch, every whispered word, and every lingering gaze reminded them that they weren’t just lovers—they were each other’s safety, each other’s cherished treasure, each other’s only real home.
Joshua’s palm rested against Colin’s cheek. He tilted his head toward the bathroom, eyebrows arched. “Should I…”
“No,” Colin told him, his hand moving, trailing gently over Joshua’s skin.
“Not tonight, my love.” His kisses fell onto Joshua’s face and throat, then captured his mouth in a hot, hungry kiss that proclaimed the ache of his desire beyond the need for words.
Joshua moaned softly against Colin’s lips, his fingers curling into the sheets as Colin’s hand continued its slow, deliberate exploration.
The tenderness in Colin’s touch contrasted with the fire behind his kiss, sending shivers racing down Joshua’s spine.
“Colin,” Joshua whispered when they broke apart, his voice trembling with emotion. “What do you mean, ‘not tonight’? You’re driving me insane.”
Colin chuckled, his deep, velvety laugh brushing over Joshua’s skin like a caress.
“What I mean, my love, is this: I want to savor this. Savor you. Every moment, every inch, every sound you make when I touch you.” His voice softened, though the heat in his gaze never waned. “You’re too important to rush.”
Joshua swallowed hard, his heart swelling with both love and desire. “You always make me feel like your most cherished possession,” he murmured, reaching up to cup Colin’s face.
“That’s because you are,” Colin replied without hesitation, his eyes locking onto Joshua’s with an intensity that left him breathless.
“And tonight, I want to show you just how precious you are to me.” His lips and hands moved with a patience and purpose that made every second feel like an eternity of bliss.
Joshua surrendered completely, knowing he was in the hands of a man who adored him beyond life itself, lost in the pleasure and in the love that inspired it.
“Do me a favor, love of my life,” Colin muttered against his ear.
“What’s that?”
Colin leaned back slightly and extended his hand, palm up. “You’re closer than I am,” he told Joshua, nodding toward the bedside table and the heated lubricant that always waited there.
“My pleasure,” Joshua hissed out.
“Goddamn right,” Colin said in return as Joshua filled his hand with the slippery substance.
His hand slid between them and gripped both their erections, smiling when he heard Joshua’s choked, pleasured cry.
“Yes,” he hissed out, his hand moving, slowly at first, then faster …
bringing them both to the brink, then slowing again as they both gasped, writhing against each other, whimpering as the pleasure lifted them nearly to madness.
Joshua's heart raced wildly in his chest, his mind consumed by the intoxicating heat of their passion. He could hear the pounding of his own heart in his ears, and the rapid rush of his breath echoed as if from another world. “Oh god, Colin,” he moaned, writhing against the bed, gripping Colin’s shoulders with bruising intensity. “Hurry! Please hurry!”
The last blinding second of pleasure took them both, and Joshua cried out in ecstasy, feeling Colin spasm against him as he came, hearing him groan as pulsing waves of pleasure consumed them both.
For a long time, they lay together, gasping for breath, clinging to each other as jolt after jolt of mindless ecstasy coursed through them like white-hot fire.
“Oh my god,” Colin gasped out, half-laughing as he pressed wet kisses to Joshua’s neck, their bodies pressed tight together, Colin’s hand still between them … still wrapped around their softening erections.
“I bet …” Joshua began, then shuddered in pleasure and swallowed hard, his breath still catching. “I bet that hand needs to be washed.”
“It’s not the only thing.”
Joshua’s fingers crept from Colin’s shoulder to his sandy hair. “That was heaven, my love,” he whispered. “Thank you.”
“So good,” Colin murmured, still kissing and sucking on Joshua’s already-damp neck. “My god, Josh … so damned good!”
They remained tangled together, bodies slick with the remnants of their passion, the blankets bunched beneath them in soft, sweat-dampened folds.
The room was quiet except for their slowing breaths and the faint rustle of their bedding as they shifted to get even closer.
Colin’s lips found the curve of Joshua’s shoulder, pressing a kiss so gently that it made Joshua smile.
“I don’t ever want to move,” Joshua murmured, his voice soft and thick with satisfaction. His fingers continued to thread lazily through Colin’s hair, and he tilted his head just enough to press a kiss to Colin’s temple.
Colin hummed contentedly, his arms tightening around Joshua’s waist. “Then don’t. Stay right here with me. The rest of the world can fuck off.”
Joshua laughed softly, the sound like music to Colin’s ears. “You say that now, but you’ll be the first one to piss and moan when your arm falls asleep underneath me.”
Colin chuckled, his breath warm against Joshua’s skin. “You’re worth it.”
They fell silent again, the sweetness of Colin’s words settling between them like a toasty blanket. Joshua traced mindless patterns across Colin’s back, his fingers light and soothing. His heart felt full—overflowing with a love that left no room for doubt or fear.
“This,” Joshua whispered after a long moment, his voice thoughtful. “This is what I think about when the world gets too ugly and painful. Just this. Just us.”
Colin leaned in, brushing a kiss to his temple.
“Always,” he murmured. “You’ll always have this.
” He lifted his head, propping himself up on one elbow so he could meet Joshua’s gaze.
His honeyed-green eyes were soft, filled with a tenderness that made Joshua’s chest ache.
“And I’ll make sure you never have to reach too far to find me,” Colin said, brushing his fingers along Joshua’s cheek.
“I’ll always be right here, waiting for you. ”
Joshua turned his face into Colin’s palm, pressing a kiss there before meeting his eyes again. “I love you,” he whispered, his voice low and rich with meaning.
“I love you too,” Colin replied, bending to kiss him once more—soft and slow, with the quiet reverence of someone who knows they’d found the treasure they had always sought. “Think we could manage to do this in a tent?” Colin asked finally, giving Joshua a quick grin.
Joshua nuzzled his face against Colin’s chest and laughed softly. “Depends on how close we are to the other campers.” He peeked up at Colin and winked. “You know how loud I can get.”
“Hey! They’re supposed to be learning about living the gay life, aren’t they?”
Joshua laughed even harder and gave Colin’s butt a gentle smack. “That’s a part of their education that I’d prefer they got from someone else.”
Eventually, they untangled enough for Colin to rise and retrieve a towel from the bathroom. He returned with a teasing grin, tossing the towel onto Joshua’s chest. “For you, Mr. Clean.”
Joshua caught it with a laugh, sitting up just enough to swipe the towel over both of them. “If I didn’t know better, I’d say you’re trying to get me to do all the work.”
Colin flopped back onto the bed, hands behind his head, his grin widening. “I’d never dream of it.”
Joshua rolled his eyes and finished the job before tossing the towel aside and snuggling back into Colin’s waiting arms. “Next time, I’m making you do the after-sex cleanup.”
“Deal,” Colin said, pulling him closer. “As long as there is a next time.”
Joshua’s laughter filled the room, warm and bright. “There will always be a next time, my yedid,” he promised, resting against Colin’s chest, where the steady rhythm of his heartbeat lulled him into sleep.