Page 80 of Gray

My eyes rolled back as his fingers found the slits in my shoulder blades. With each rub, sparks shot to the tip of my cock, stimulating me so much I felt like I was about to explode from it.

“I… god, Mason.” My arms started to shake as I struggled to hold myself up. Everything was intense: the pleasure, the way my muscles ached as they squeezed, and the sizzling connection between us.

“I’m right here,” he murmured at my nape, slipping his arm across my belly and holding me in place. “Let go. I’ve got you.”

I didn’t recognize the sound I made, one that was like a strangled cry mixed with a gasping moan. The orgasm blew me apart as I came harder than I ever had before.

“Jesus fucking Christ,” Mason said, his voice breaking. His cock twitched before pulsing stronger as he lost his rhythm and shot his load. Like the other times, there was so much it dripped out of my ass as he withdrew from me. “Come here.”

He collapsed on the bed and gathered me in his arms, slipping one under my head and draping the other across my stomach. Our heavy breaths filled the room as we fought to catch them. Although completely exhausted, I had never been so sated. So happy.

“Sleep?”Sloth whispered.

“Not yet.”I was so freaking tired, but I wasn’t ready to go to sleep.

I wasn’t ready for this to end.

Mason got out of bed and walked into the connecting bathroom. The faucet turned on, and I shook my head when my eyes started to close again. He returned with a warm washcloth and cleaned the cum off my belly, as well as wiped down my thighs and backside.

“You still awake?” Mason whispered, sliding back into bed.

“For now.”

I felt him smile against my temple. His breathing calmed, but his heart thrummed faster. I heard the echoes of it as I rested my head on his chest. “I still don’t understand the mate thing, Gray.”

“Me either, but we can figure it out together.”

Mason softly kissed my brow and let his lips linger there. “The last guy I had feelings for… I lost him. After that, I told myself I was happier being alone. I told myself it was easier not to get attached because I never stayed anywhere long enough to lay down roots. But the truth? I’m afraid of getting hurt again.”

“Lost him how?” I asked. “Bad breakup or…”

“He died.”

I stared at a beam of moonlight coming through the window. Somewhere between me opening my heart up to Mason and him throwing me on the bed to fuck me, dusk had passed and welcomed the darkness of night. It wasn’t all darkness though. Not really. Because there were bright stars and the moon, like beacons that reminded you that even in the dark, there could still be light. Could still be hope.

Mason felt like that to me—a bright star that pierced through my shadows, touching that dark place inside my heart I thought to be unreachable.

“What was his name?”

“Travis.” He swallowed hard. “Travis Kinkaid.”

“Kinkaid?” I lifted my head from his chest to look at him. “Wasn’t that the name of your friend who—” Understanding washed over me. “Oh. He was more than a friend.”

Mason gave a short nod. “I met him during my first year of basic training when I was shipped off to Parris Island. Don’t let the name fool you. It’s a goddamn hellhole. We served together after that, both getting stationed at Camp Lejeune.”

I laid my head back on his chest as he spoke.

“The first time he kissed me, we had just had a close call. The Humvee hit an explosive and flipped over, fucking up my leg. Not enough to take me out of the game—just a flesh wound that knocked me on my ass for a week or so. But Kinkaid pulled me out of the line of fire, wrapped my leg, and as we waited on the medivac team to arrive, he leaned in and just stayed like that, his breath on my lips.” Mason shakily exhaled. “And then he kissed me.”

“Did he know you were gay?”

“No. But I knew he was. He’d told me during basic.” Mason tightened his arms around me. “I kissed him back. It was just a kiss, but it stirred something in me I’d tried to ignore my whole life. Days later, he came into my bunk late at night, and one thing led to another. I’ll spare you the details.”

“Why?” I asked before yawning.

“One, you’ll probably fall asleep,” he said with a light laugh. “And two, me having sex with another guy isn’t anything you want to hear.”

“Yeah. I usually don’t mind stuff like that. I don’t get jealous easily. But I’m kinda possessive over you.” I buried my face in the center of his chest and breathed in deep. His pecs were out of this world. “I love your man boobies.”