Page 9 of Saddle Studs (Rainbow Ranch #3)

BENNY

I couldn’t wrap my head around the fact that Sam Carter was currently lying down in the bedroom next to mine.

Greeting him, seeing him again, giving him a tour of the ranch—that all went smoother than expected. Slightly awkward, sure. But it didn’t take us long at all to fall back into that easy camaraderie we always had together.

Which, considering what we’d been through, that was a blessing in and of itself.

I sat propped up against the headboard, endlessly scrolling on my iPad for something to watch for a grand total of five minutes before I fell asleep.

I wondered what Sam’s nightly routine consisted of.

Did he like to read? Listen to a mind-numbing self-help podcast or a riveting fantasy series?

Was he into meditation? Did he just jerk off and go to sleep?

What did it even matter?

I was losing my marbles. I decided I’d take the day tomorrow to ride Juniper June.

She was my absolute favorite horse. A seven-year-old Appaloosa with a shiny white coat speckled with black spots, making her look like a horse cosplaying as a Dalmatian.

We had her the ranch since she was a foal and had instantly bonded with me.

She came around when Sam had moved away, pulling me out of that shitty time.

Perfect temperament, perfect stride, perfect everything. I knew I could saddle her up and trust that she’d take the metaphorical reins while I handled the literal ones.

That would clear my head.

I set my iPad down and looked over at the large incubator sitting on two chairs, up against the wall farthest from my bed.

Still close enough for me to see that the crow was sleeping peacefully on his warm, fluffy, rolled-up towel bed.

After the trip to Doc Evans’ office—which was being renovated and had little room to board patients—it was decided that the best thing for the bird’s future was for me to take it home and help rehab it.

I decided to keep my intense and nearly debilitating fear of beaked creatures to myself, biting my tongue as Doc Evans so nonchalantly handed me back my slightly sedated new roommate.

I called Beau to set up the incubator somewhere at the ranch where I’d never see it again, maybe in the administrative office. I rarely ever stepped foot in there. Paperwork made me break out in hives.

So, color me surprised when I got back to Rainbow Ranch and found the incubator set up in my bedroom.

Beau blamed it on the bad cell reception at the ranch, but the smirk he wore as he left my room said otherwise.

I had to admit, the crow was growing on me. I enjoyed seeing him already starting feel better. He appeared to understand I was trying to help, too. He wouldn’t try to fly away when I’d open the incubator, and he didn’t try to peck my hand off whenever I dropped fresh water and food in there.

I was still deathly scared of birds, don’t get me wrong, but at least I didn’t sleep with the lights on last night.

Progress.

A yawn made me cover my mouth. I stretched my arms and legs before reaching over to my table lamp and turning it off. The bright iPad screen became the only source of light in my room. I sighed and got under the covers, getting comfortable so I could continue aimlessly scroll?—

“Yeah, boy, suck that big cock. Take it. Take it down to my balls. That’s it, oh fuck yeah.”

Umm…

What the fuck was that?

I locked my iPad screen. Had that come from some website I didn’t close out of?

“Yeah, how’s that taste? All that man down your throat? Good? Yeah?”

No, that wasn’t coming from my iPad, that was coming through the wall behind me.

It was coming from Sam’s bedroom.

My eyes went wide as my heart began to pound. He was watching porn.

Not just any typical MILF or straight amateur video either. He was watching gay porn. Two men. Going at it hard , from what I could hear.

Shit. I had to tell him. But also… fuck. I was getting hard, my dick poking through the open slit of my boxers. I couldn’t just walk over and knock on his door now.

Did he know I could hear? There was no way. This had to be some kind of accident.

A really hot, fantasy-fueling accident that needed to stop. What if my siblings walked by? I think he could survive the embarrassment from me telling him I could hear, but I had full confidence that Sam would self-combust if it were any of my siblings asking him to turn his deep throat scene down.

I quickly grabbed my phone off the nightstand and sent him a text.

BENNY: Howdy, um I can hear what you’re watching right now. Might want to turn it down.

Mere seconds after I sent the text, I heard a muffled “shit” from behind the wall and then the sounds of a guy gagging on cock disappeared. I could see that he was typing a response, then stopped, then started typing again, then stopped again.

BENNY: Next time ask me for recs ;)

There, that should maybe make it less awkward.

SAM: Sorry. Headphones died.

BENNY: Totally fine. Don’t worry about it.

I didn’t want to push it any farther. I could use this moment to pry a little deeper, maybe ask about his particular preferences in adult skin ema, but digging felt way too invasive.

If Sam really wasn’t straight, then I’d let him tell me that on his own terms. Either way, I wasn’t going to get my hopes up.

I saw how that went last time.

SAM: And yeah, maybe next time I’ll ask for some links.

I grinned like a goofball, surprised he was still texting about this and not Googling ways to expedite a move out of this country.

BENNY: Oh I’ve got lots. Depends on what you're into.

That was an open invitation. He didn’t need to take it, but the suggestion was clearly there.

Keep this going. Let’s keep playing.

I started getting hard again. I wondered if Sam was still hard. He clearly wasn’t watching porn for research purposes or for the storyline. He’d been jerking off minutes earlier.

Did he still need to stroke?

My judgement was clearly fried. But could you really blame me? Sam was my first crush, the first guy I fantasized about, the guy who gave me my first butterflies and my first heartbreak.

Emphasis on that list bit. Heartbreak. Sam had really made things difficult for me, making me question everything I thought I knew about my best friend, reconsidering what it meant to love someone.

I had to not only untangle what it meant to be gay in a small and primarily conservative town, but I also had to sort out what it meant to fall in love with your very straight best friend.

It made my coming out process more turbulent than a plane flying through a damn hurricane.

But… well, fuck. I was a horny guy currently turned on by the fact that there was also another horny guy only a couple feet away from me, one who happened to be incredibly attractive and off-limits.

My phone dinged. My heart stopped.

SAM: I think I’m in my exploring phase.

Interesting. Very, very interesting.

BENNY: Want to explore together?

Nope, way too forward.

I deleted that message and retyped a new one.

BENNY: I always pegged you as an adventurer ;)

There. That had humor and also a slick double entendre.

Also… fucking hell, the idea of getting behind him, holding his hips while I guided my cock inside, seeing his head drop and muscles relax as I fucked him senseless…

it was an image that immediately got me hard as a boulder.

I tossed off the comforter and spread my legs, my cock jutting out from my boxers.

He started to type and then stopped. This continued for a little bit longer. I chuckled.

SAM: I’m sure you did lol.

SAM: Maybe you can just, I dunno, entertain me here.

Holy shit. Code red, code red. He wasn’t just playing along, he was initiating now. He wanted me to entertain him, which was code for sext with me. My pulse quickened. This was wrong, we still had so much to unpack from how things ended.

And yet…

BENNY: I’d love to entertain you. Especially in the way that daddy was entertaining his boy in the video you were watching. Sounded really hot. devilish face

SAM: What would you do?

BENNY: I’d start by massaging you, relaxing you. You’ve had a long day. I’ll work out the knots in your shoulders and back. Then I’d move lower, massage your ass, your thighs. I’ll push my bulge up against your hand, encouraging you to grab it, to play with me.

I hit send before I could overthink things. Control of my body had been handed over to the caveman that lived inside me.

SAM: Fuck, Benny… that’s really hot.

BENNY: You have me stroking right now.

SAM: I’m jerking too.

Holy shit. I briefly considered inviting him over. Not like he’d have to deal with any traffic on his way, but the caveman ceased his ugga uggas long enough for me to hold back. This didn’t need to be rushed.

BENNY: Close your eyes. Imagine it’s my hand around your cock. Spit on it. Stroke faster.

My breaths came in faster bursts. I fisted my full balls, cock leaking what seemed like a river of precum. I don’t think I’d ever gotten this fucking wet before. What was Sam doing to me?

SAM: I’m honestly getting close.

BENNY: Good, so am I. Keep jerking yourself off.

SAM: I am. I’m so fucking hard.

God damnnnn, he wants me to melt.

BENNY: Me too. I’m using my precum as lube, you’ve got me dripping.

SAM: Oh fuck, Benny, you’re gonna make me bust.

I jerked off harder, feeling the precipice slam into me as I read his words. My toes curled and my legs stretched out, cum shooting out of my cock, hitting my chin and chest. Just behind me, I heard the muffled moans of someone experiencing the same exact pleasure I’d just been given.

Then, without me asking for anything, Sam sent a picture. It showed his flushed pink chest covered in cum.

SAM: You made me make a mess.

His photo was enough to keep me hard. I sent him a picture showing him just how messy he made me.

BENNY: We’re even then.

SAM: Haha guess so.

SAM: Thanks for keeping me entertained. Maybe coming back wasn’t such a bad idea after all ;)

I huffed out a laugh.

BENNY: Clearly it wasn’t. Alright, get some sleep. You have to be up at six with the rest of us.

SAM: Six?! I haven’t woken up that early in years.

BENNY: Well then welcome back, buddy.

SAM: Right. Six it is. Night.

I locked my phone and laid in bed for a while, both basking in the afterglow of such a great orgasm and questioning what the hell I was doing with my life.

I’d been feeling like I was in a rut for a while now.

Was this just me trying any way I could to break out of that?

Was I asking to get hurt again? Or was this something entirely different?

Could this be the beginning of something new?

Whatever it was, I wasn’t going to figure it out tonight.