14
Ben follows the women into the living room and returns with a blanket. Tops up their champagne and leads Alex to the edge of the courtyard. The cloud cover has lifted leaving a clear, mild night and he stretches out on one of the recliners, opening his arms and smiling when Alex lays down next to him. He spreads the blanket over their legs and presses a kiss to Alex’s temple; they lay listening to the sound of the water lapping against the sand.
“Glad you came?” he asks.
“Yes. Very.” Alex says and kisses his cheek. “Thank you.”
“I’m pleased you’re having a good time. I don’t know what your family is like ...”
Alex places his hand over Ben’s mouth.
“Not now, okay? “
Ben starts to protest then nods and sips his champagne.
“Allie and Polly are amazing. You’re very lucky.”
“I know,” Ben says. “They’ve always had my back and they’ve never questioned any of my choices. Well maybe when tequila has been involved but that doesn’t count.”
He’s pleased when Alex laughs.
“My mom works too much but I guess when your mother is ninety and still working, it’s probably genetic.”
“So, do I have that to look forward to? You being a workaholic?”
Ben’s breath catches at the insinuation and wonders if it was intentional.
“I don’t even want to think about what it will be like when Polly isn’t around.”
He closes his eyes, bites his lip, willing the thought away.
“You love her very much, don’t you?”
Alex rubs his cheek against Ben’s.
“Yes. I know she can be a bit intense at times but she’s an amazing old broad once you get to know her.”
“I can see that,” Alex says.
“And I like the influence she has on you.”
“What are you talking about?”
“So far today, you’ve kissed me in public, called me sweetheart, and referred to me as your boyfriend.”
“You’re an idiot,” Alex mutters, tightens his arm around Ben and closes his eyes.
“Mmmmhmmm,” Ben says, “but I’m an idiot who loves you.”
Alex sits up, rests on his elbow, and looks into Ben’s eyes.
“Could you say that again please?”
“Depends.”
He holds his breath and waits to see if Alex remembers.
“On?”
He remembers.
“Whether that would be a problem or not.”
Alex considers for a moment, takes Ben’s glass from him and sips.
“Say it again and let’s find out,” he says.
Ben pushes a lock of hair out of Alex’s eyes and smiles.
“I love you,” he says.
When Alex leans down to kiss him, he closes his eyes and lifts to meet his mouth with his own. Slides his tongue into Alex’s mouth and tastes champagne. Clenches his hands in the creamy soft fabric of Alex’s shirt and shifts to pull him onto him without breaking them apart. Shivers when Alex deepens the kiss.
With effort, he pulls away and tilts his head back to look at Alex. In the soft light from the kitchen window behind them, Alex’s eyes glimmer and Ben traces a fingertip along the line of his jaw, happy just to look at him.
“I love you too, Ben.” There’s a tremor in Alex’s voice. “And it really scares me.”
“I know,” Ben says and kiss him again.
#
Alex eases the door shut behind him and reaches out to stop Ben unbuttoning his shirt, kissing away his confusion as he takes over the task. As Alex undoes each button he places a kiss on the patch of skin revealed beneath. Between kiss he speaks.
“Your challenge, is to not make a sound.”
Alex pauses to pull Ben’s shirt free from his jeans, grazing his teeth over Ben’s throat.
“What?”
“Shhhh,” Alex lays a trembling finger on Ben’s lips, eyes dancing. “You have to be quiet.”
He drops to one knee, hears Ben’s sharp inhale, and unbuckles his belt and the top button of the brown linen pants. Hooks his fingers in the loosened fabric and pulls Ben toward him, mouths the hard outline of him through the fabric. Groans when Ben gasps and digs his fingers into his shoulders.
Smiling, Alex finishes undressing him and pushes him back on the bed, before pulling off his own jeans and boxers. Before he can do more than finger the hem of his suede shirt though, Ben stops him, shaking his head.
“Want me to keep it on?” he asks and smiles when Ben answers by running his fingers over the suede and nods.
He kneels between Ben’s legs. Wraps his fingers around Ben’s cock and begins to stroke him.
“If you make any noise at all I’ll stop,” he says keeping the movement of his hand slow and steady. “I’ll stop, I’ll put my pajamas on and I’ll go to sleep. Okay?”
“Okay,” Ben whispers. Alex chuckles when he sees panic rush into his face.
“I’ll let you have that one,” he says. “But from now on, you need to do as you’re told and be quiet. Understood?”
Ben rolls his hips up and closes his eyes. Nods without a word. Alex lowers his head and blows lightly along the length of hard muscle, then carefully pulls it up and away from Ben’s belly. Feels Ben brace himself then closes his mouth around the head and flickers his tongue back and forth in the saltiness he finds there. A quiver runs through Ben and he buries his fingers in Alex’s hair, panting. Alex hollows his cheeks and sucks; hears Ben gasp and glances up when his hands fall away. One hand clings to the sheets, twisting and pulling as his hips stutter against Alex and he bites down on the other in an effort to make no sound. The sight sends a jolt straight to Alex’s groin and he moans. Slides his hands under Ben’s buttocks and squeezes each cheek as he runs the flat of his tongue from base to head in long, lazy licks. Finally, he closes his lips around just the head and sucks with steady, firm pressure while stroking with his left hand. Ben’s fingers tighten in his hair again. The other hand runs back and forth across the soft fabric of his shirt.
Alex opens his eyes and catches Ben watching him, biting his lip, eyes desperate and hungry. Deliberately Alex bobs his head, relaxing his mouth and throat so he can take his full length. Ben gasps when he hits the back of his throat; Alex hums a warning and flicks his tongue around the head of Ben’s cock. Drags his mouth back up, followed by his tightly fisted hand, and repeats the action. When he does it for a third-time the fingers in his hair pull tight. He readies himself as Bens’ thrusts become more urgent, then still as his body tightens, back bowed off the mattress. Alex tastes the first hot spill of saltiness on his tongue and coaxes Ben through it, licking and swallowing as he slows the movement of his hand. When Ben stills, he slips his mouth off him and moves up the bed until he’s straddling Ben’s chest.
“Ben,” he pants, “please...”
Ben places one hand in the small of Alex’s back, stoking the suede. The other closes around the back of his thigh, pulling him forward and when Ben opens his mouth, sticking out his tongue, Alex whines and drops forward. Every nerve is wound tight and it takes only a few seconds of Ben’s mouth to drive him to the edge. Sensation rushes through him, firing every nerve, until he comes hard, arching his back and clenching his teeth. A drop of sweat falls from his cheek and lands on Ben’s forehead; he wipes it away with the hem of his shirt before yanking it off and tossing it on the ground.
Still quivering, he shifts back on the bed and lays down. The only sound in the dark room is their still rapid breathing.
“You’re just full of surprises today,” Ben says.
“Shhhh,” Alex replies and turns them so he can curl around Ben’s body, eyelids already drooping.
“Seriously, I could get used to you being bossy.”
“If you don’t shut up and go to sleep, that will be the last blow job you ever get.”
As he sinks into sleep, he hears Ben murmur again that he loves him.