22
This is what life is about.
Killian sighed, enjoying these private moments where nothing mattered but the two of them, together, without the worry of an outside world invading their version of peace and tranquility. The room was devoid of all sounds except the puffs of their breaths, while they recovered from their lovemaking of a few minutes before.
Nick sat in bed, his head propped up on pillows against the headboard while Killian lay on top of him, with his arms wrapped around Nick’s torso and his head against his chest. This peace, this quiet time with Nick, was pure bliss and the perfect remedy to mitigate his rising anxiety.
He closed his eyes, letting the silence of the room soothe him and the warmth of Nick’s skin against his cheek calm his soul. Thankfully, Dex had left earlier to pick up the last bit of his supply list. The bastard was too happy and chattier than usual with his pending fatherhood, and it was starting to grate on Killian’s patience.
Times ten.
The sound of Nick’s heart thumped a steady, strong beat against his ear. The fingertips on his back strummed an intimate song filled with dreams and promises, both things he never would have thought possible before that first visit to the restaurant. He turned his face toward Nick’s bare chest and breathed him in, pressing a kiss to his warm skin.
“Your stubble tickles,” Nick said, squirming beneath him.
Killian rubbed his stubble against Nick’s chest, rewarded with another squirm and the start of a chuckle. That laughter and unrestrained joy always made his heart flutter. He tightened his arms around Nick’s waist, holding him close as he trailed kisses up the corded muscles of his neck.
Nick’s contented sigh fueled his determination. Killian rested his weight on Nick’s body, pinning him to the mattress. He took each of Nick’s hands and threaded their fingers together, bracing them above Nick’s head. He stared into those green pools he loved so much, witnessing the desire dilating Nick’s pupils. Seemed Killian wasn’t the only one with an insatiable appetite for their time together.
Leaning in with a moan, he captured Nick’s mouth, desperate for a taste of those full lips and his unique flavor. He willed his body to find a balance between its desperate need to claim and his heart’s desire to connect. He released Nick’s hands and reached for the lube on the nightstand, refusing to end their slow, deep kiss. Nick’s taste, the slide of their tongues, each nip of lips…
Everything was perfect.
Intimate.
Real.
Fingers dug into his back and scalp, pulling him closer with a strangled whine. He pulled Nick’s body against him and slid a lubed finger inside, and then another, groaning when Nick’s still stretched body easily welcomed him.
A ripple of need shook him.
He slicked himself and slowly entered Nick again, holding him close as he eased inside. It was a constant struggle, every time their skin touched and the heat of contact fueled the desire and need between them. Regardless of how many times they stole moments together, Nick’s body beckoned him, drawing him in like a crackling fire and warm blanket during a blizzard.
He hooked his hands on Nick’s shoulder from behind, pulling him closer and driving in deeper with each unhurried thrust of his hips. Killian kissed and sucked every inch of exposed skin, savoring Nick’s taste as the sweat and heat added spice to his already special flavor.
Nick’s body arched into him, his mouth falling open with a sharp inhale. Killian pushed his hips into Nick, groaning when Nick shifted beneath him and angled his body, deepening their connection. They slowly moved in tandem, each push drawing a pull, and each possessive grunt triggering a satisfied moan.
“Ian,” Nick whispered, as he usually did a few moments before reaching that peak which always arrived too soon between them, regardless of how they slowed their pace.
Killian dug his fingers into Nick’s tight muscles, holding him close with each deep, measured thrust. Their breaths became heavy, skating across their sweat-slicked bodies as they both reached that mountaintop. He buried his head at the side of Nick’s neck, craving an encore to this intimate symphony between them, knowing their private song always calmed his soul and granted a level of peace he never thought existed.
Teeth scored his shoulder, instantly awakening a primordial need within. His hips jackhammered forward of their own accord, shoving their bodies up the bed with each forceful thrust, sliding up along the sheets until they neared the wall behind them.
Nick reached back over his head and latched onto the heavy wooden headboard with a white-knuckle grip, his face twisting with desire.
Killian jutted his hips forward, thrusting harder and faster, with possessive, brutal, animalistic force, driven by a need to brand Nick’s body and claim his soul. He closed his eyes and let his head fall back as his hips continued their relentless rhythm. He surrendered to the heat consuming him, the sounds of their flesh connecting, and the scent of their lovemaking filling the room.
This…this was heaven. It was genuine, raw, and unfiltered…pure and real in every sense. This connection, this powerful force between them was greater than anything he had ever experienced.
And he never wanted it to end.
Killian raced alongside Nick to that mountain peak, pushing deeper into Nick’s body, commanding and demanding he give in. Fire licked his body and his vision blurred, filled with inky flares of light bursting behind his eyes. His breath quickened when that negligible telltale sound escaped Nick, beckoning him like a siren through the fog of need drowning his senses. Killian pushed his hips forward with one last deep thrust, burying himself to the hilt, swallowing Nick’s yell in a kiss as they both free-fell off that cliff together.
They remained frozen in place, Killian trying to balance the weight of his body on his forearms as each ragged inhale battled with each exhale in his throat.
Killian dipped his head, pressing their foreheads together. “I was trying to go slow. I know I wasn’t nice earlier.”
“I didn’t want nice.” Nick fought to catch his breath as a lazy smile spread across his lips.
No shit. Glancing over his own shoulder, he smugly smiled at the bruise Nick’s bite would likely leave behind. “Since when are you a biter?”
Nick shrugged. “Can’t help it. You taste good.”
Killian leaned in and pressed their smiling lips together in a tender kiss.
“Mmm. See? You taste good.” Nick stared at him, licking his lips as if savoring their kiss. He brushed a finger down the side of Killian’s face. “I like being your Nico Marks.”
Killian closed his eyes and groaned, leaning into Nick, letting the swell of emotions flood his body as a realization blindsided him.
This is what life is about.
Living, not survival. Connections. Not just breathing and getting through each day.
He had lived his life the way he thought was expected. The way his legacy dictated. The way his father had sworn was the life he was intended to live. But here, with Nick in his arms, he knew this was what life was supposed to be.
“Come here,” Nick whispered, holding him closer and stroking the back of his head, almost as if sensing the ground had been pulled from beneath him, leaving Killian with a sudden loss of his foundation and sense of direction.
Killian took a deep breath, welcoming Nick’s strength for support. There, surrounded by the warmth of Nick’s arms and the whispered words of affection, everything else around them faded but the power of the connection between them.