Page 14 of Sour Candy (Sour Candy #1)

Noah might have fucked up.

It was just something he liked to do for his subs. A few have liked it, others tolerated it, and a few of them flat-out refused. Cute in the movies, not in practice , as his latest ex always said. Granted, she’d said it after he accidentally got soap in her eyes.

Not that what he had with Benji was romantic. But it was a relationship , the same way all his subs were a relationship while they were in his care. It was his job to make sure they were okay. To give them what they needed. What they deserved .

But Benji was so unused to getting what he deserved.

His face lit up when Noah poured the bubble bath mixture in, but he covered the expression so fast that Noah thought he might’ve imagined it.

But the look he’d shot in Noah’s direction said it all—he was waiting for Noah to make fun of him.

He’d shown too much of himself: his body, his enjoyment, desires he’d never told anybody, and now the damn bubbles .

Someone had taught this boy that the things he wanted deserved to be laughed at.

Noah clenched his jaw, swallowing a surge of anger as Benji climbed into the tub.

“How’s the water?”

“Good,” Benji said immediately. Like he wasn’t even thinking about it. He sat down, wrapping his arms around his gangly knees. The peace from the bed was still there, but it was thin. Troubled. Like too many other things were leaking in without his permission.

Noah took a chocolate out of his bathrobe pocket and unwrapped it, holding it up to Benj’s mouth.

Benji stared at him, incredulously. “Seriously?”

“You need sugar,” Noah said.

Benji mumbled something under his breath. It sounded like sugar for your sugar. Then he opened his mouth. Heat stirred in Noah’s gut as he remembered the last time he made Benji open his mouth for him. He ignored it, sliding the chocolate onto his tongue.

Benji chewed. His eyebrows bumped up, a shocked smile taking over his face. Just like with the bubbles, it was gone fast.

“Uh.” Benji laughed nervously. “Thanks.”

Then he went back to sitting stiff and still in a mountain of bubbles. Noah leaned against the side of the bathtub, wondering if he had any more of that chocolate, which was expensive even by his standards. Only the best for his subs.

“You can stop waiting for me to mock you,” he said finally.

Benji blinked. “What?”

But he could only meet Noah’s eyes for a second, amazed and guilty, before he was staring down into the bubbles. He smiled, tight and defensive, and Noah could see a dismissive remark brewing under those dark curls.

“I can tell,” Noah said, eyeing the rigid line of Benji’s shoulders. “I won’t mock you. What you did isn’t something to make fun of. You were wonderful.”

Benji let out another stilted laugh. Barely a breath before he cut it off, pulling a sheepish face. “Oookay. Totally.”

He squeezed his knees. Noah eyed his knuckles, white with pressure. He needed to fix this, now. Benji responded so well when Noah touched him softly. Maybe that would help.

“Can I wash your hair?”

Benji gave him a hard look. “I washed it yesterday. It’s not dirty.”

“I know,” Noah soothed, stroking his soapy thigh. “I just want to do something nice for you. Because you were so good for me.”

“Oh.” Benji’s cheeks went pink. “Knock yourself out.”

He eyed Noah warily as he got the shampoo ready. His mouth kept twitching like he wanted to be the one to make a joke, if nobody else was going to. Then Noah started rubbing circles into his scalp, and Benji’s eyelids started to droop.

It was gradual. First, Benji’s shoulders came down. Then his breathing went slow and sluggish. By the time Noah was rinsing the shampoo out, he was sagging back against the tub, his face slack with bliss.

Noah stroked his wet cheekbone, relieved and a little angry that Benji had gone without something as simple as touch for so long. It was obvious: the wariness, followed by turning into putty in Noah’s hands. Benji hadn’t been touched like he should. Noah would have to remedy that.

He drained the bath and dried Benji off. Benji let him, even lifting his arms and legs for Noah to push the towel around. He didn’t say a word, except to mutter that the towel tickled.

Noah assumed he was just exhausted. But then Benji let him carry him to bed, and he noticed how under Benji was. He’d started to come out of it at the start of the bath, then dove right back in. His pupils were blown, his movements heavy and sluggish as he tried to hold his head up to look at Noah.

“Hey, baby,” Noah said quietly as he lay Benji on the duvet. “You liked that?”

Benji hummed, eyes barely open. “ Mmmm . Mmm-hmm.”

It seemed to take him a lot of effort. Noah stroked his damp hair, surprised and fond as Benji’s head lolled sideways to nuzzle Noah’s bare stomach in the gap in his bathrobe.

“Lemme show you how much I liked it,” he said, slow and clumsy. He almost sounded drunk.

Noah snorted. “Are you sure, baby? You’re pretty far under. I don’t know if you could even suck. We can just go to sleep.”

But Benji was still nuzzling him, fumbling out to grip his bathrobe. His floppy hands only made Noah less convinced, and he was about to tug them away when Benji made a pleading noise against his skin.

“I can be a good hole,” he said. He pried his eyes open—they had fallen closed while speaking—and stared up at him, his pupils huge and shiny. “Let me… let me be a good hole.”

Noah’s cock twitched. Benji didn’t seem to notice, still smearing his mouth against Noah’s stomach.

Noah’s fingers tightened in his hair. It was still damp. He’d towel-dried it, hadn’t wanted to harsh his glow with the din of the hairdryer. Benji was being so good for him. So open and pliant, offering himself to be used. Noah was only human.

He pulled Benji’s head back gently, making those glazed eyes meet his. “I want you to lie on your back, baby. With your head off the bed. Can you do that?”

Benji blinked slowly. His brow furrowed, confused by the instructions.

“I’ll show you,” Noah said.

Benji’s brow smoothed out. He let Noah guide him onto his back, his head dangling off the side. He was totally limp, but Noah was gratified to see his soft cock was already getting hard again. Did Benji even notice, or was he too deep in his own head?

“It’s easier to deepthroat like this,” Noah told him, smoothing a condom down his length. “You just have to lie there and take it. Can you do that for me?”

Benji groaned, low in his throat. His mouth fell open, eyes half-lidded as he stared at Noah’s condom-clad cock. He turned his head, trying to capture the tip in his mouth.

“Ah-ah.” Noah caught his chin, thumbing the stubble. “Don’t suck. Don’t even move. Just lie there and take it.”

Benji went limp. For the first time, he wasn’t shaking while he got hard. He just lay there, cock ignored and stiffening weakly between his legs, mouth open. Waiting. More relaxed than Noah had ever seen him.

“Good boy,” Noah murmured. “Just like that.”

He slid his cock into Benji’s lax mouth. Rubbing against the roof of it, then his soft cheeks. Getting him used to it.

Third blowjob ever , Noah thought hazily. Then he pushed into Benji’s throat.

Benji gurgled around him. He made a soft noise of loss when Noah slid back out, only to get cut off when Noah pressed back in, all the way to the hilt.

If it were anyone else, he’d take it easy on him.

But Benji had been so eager to be good, he’d practiced on that dildo.

Noah hoped he’d get to see it. He wanted to watch what Benji had done to himself, alone in his bedroom, for all those years.

Waiting for someone to come along and show him what he’d been missing.

He fucked Benji’s throat fast yet gently, watching Benji’s throat bulge around him.

“Such a beautiful neck,” Noah said, smoothing his fingers carefully over the bulge as he pushed inside. “Should I mark it up next time? Suck bruises into it, so everyone knows who you belong to?”

Benji made a garbled noise around him. He was still so lax against the bed, his cock pink and hard against his stomach. And still he hadn’t moved to touch it. Hadn’t done anything but lie there and take it, just like Noah told him to.

Noah’s thrusts faltered. He was heading fast into orgasm, even though he’d come less than an hour ago. He couldn’t help it; Benji was taking it so well . Even as tears dripped down his face, coaxed by Noah’s cock or Benji’s deep headspace, he continued to lie there and let Noah use him.

Noah came deep in Benji’s throat, filling the condom. He pulled out fast, letting Benji catch his breath. Benji’s chest was heaving, his eyes closed as he panted.

Noah pulled his head onto the mattress and walked around the side of the bed. Benji made a confused noise, which stopped the instant Noah placed a hand on his chest. Grounding him. Reminding him he was there.

“You’re hard,” Noah said softly. “Want me to jerk you off, baby?”

For a second, Benji didn’t say anything. Just lay there, catching his breath, tears dripping steadily down his cheeks. There were tear tracks all the way up his forehead from lying upside down, and Noah leaned over to thumb them away.

“Benjamin,” Noah said. “Do you want to go to sleep, or do you want me to make you come?”

Benji shifted against the bed. He licked his lips, forcing his bleary eyes open.

“Come,” he slurred. “Please.”

Noah climbed on top of him. It took Benji a second to focus on him, and then his mouth fell open in a gorgeous look of shock as Noah started to jerk him off. He fumbled at Noah’s arms, fingers digging into his biceps as Noah worked him.

Noah expected the usual litany of curses, just like when Noah had fucked him. But Benji stayed silent, the occasional wet gasp tearing out of him as he fell headlong into orgasm. He’d been closer than Noah thought. He’d barely had to touch him before he was spilling over into his hand.

Benji went limp once more, eyes closed. He was still crying, a steady stream of tears dripping onto the bed.

Noah cleaned them away with his thumbs and then let all his weight drop onto him, arms sliding underneath his back.

He gave Benji several minutes, holding him close, letting him float.

Running his hands over his damp scalp in that way that had put him back under so quickly.

Then, when he thought Benji was asleep, he got up on unsteady legs to find a washcloth.

He was almost back from the bathroom when Benji made a noise. Soft and searching, low in his throat.

“I’m right here,” Noah said, closing the distance. He stroked the flannel over the come on Benji’s stomach, watching Benji’s face. “How are you feeling?”

It took a second. Benji made another soft noise, eyes still closed.

“Are you feeling okay? Blink once for yes, twice for no.”

Another pause. Then a slow, purposeful blink.

“Good.” Noah went back to stroking his hair. “You’re really far under, baby. Ever gone nonverbal before?”

Two blinks.

“It’s alright,” Noah said. “I’ve got you. I’ll take care of you until you come back up. Do you want any food?”

Two blinks.

“Water?”

A pause. Then two blinks.

“Okay, baby. Want me to hold you?”

One hard blink, another tear slipping out.

Noah kissed it away. Then he pulled the sheets gently out from under him, arranging them so they could lie together under the duvet.

“You did so good,” he said as he pulled Benji to his chest. “Hear that, baby? You did so good.”

Benji made one last noise into his skin. Then his breathing evened out, the tears stopping as he finally fell asleep. Noah’s arms tightened around him, shocked at the surge of protectiveness he felt as he watched Benji sleep.

Nobody else had given this boy what he deserved. Noah was going to change that.