Chapter Twelve
Dez sat with elbows propped on his knees, holding his head and willing away the intense throbbing in his temples. The night before was a blur, but as his head cleared, one undeniable thought kept replaying over and over: They were about to lose their partner.
He checked the clock on the bedside table. Almost noon. Veryl was probably with her now. Had they gone all the way? Marked each other? For some reason, he always thought he’d know if that happened. If his best friends found the loves of their lives, he believed he’d feel it.
All he felt right now was nauseous, and for a moment, he thought the entire planet had tilted and whatever remnants of what he’d drank the night before were about to come up. It took him a second of clenching his eyes shut and tightening his grip on his head before he realized it was just the bed behind him moving under the weight of the other person in it.
A harsh groan pierced Dez’s tender skull, followed by a string of curses from behind him. “I can’t believe how badly I fucked up,” Cato said. “I was so sure … so fucking sure. Fuck me.”
Dez chuckled. That phrase was a pale echo of the one his friend had uttered the night before. Fuck me, Dez. Fuck me so I can feel something besides my heart breaking. Cato always got maudlin when he drank, but last night was a first. Dez had almost said no. Hell, he probably should have said no, but he’d needed it just as badly. His heart was breaking too.
“I don’t know, man. But we can’t let him find out about this.” He glanced over his shoulder at Cato. The other man lay on his side, completely naked and uncovered, his bronze skin gleaming in the midday light streaming through the windows. The bastard was oblivious to the effect he had on everyone who met him. With his wavy, shoulder-length hair like spun gold and eyes the color of sapphires, he was the most striking of the three of them.
Dez’s gaze wandered down Cato’s body and his heart skipped a beat. Despite the mutual anguish that had driven the pair into bed together, he had to admit the sex had been damn good.
Was it because they were both hurting, though, or was there something else?
“If he winds up with a mate, we need to keep looking,” Cato said. “I’ll call Wilder later, tell her we want to try again.” He rolled over, turning his back to Dez and moving to get out of bed.
Heat blasted up Dez’s spine, anger at his friend’s dismissal making his vision go red for a second. He shot a hand out and grabbed Cato by the arm. “Not a fucking chance. Not until we talk about what happened last night.”
Cato snorted. “You just said we should hide it. What more is there to talk about? We needed a distraction.”
Dez stood and stomped around the bed to face Cato. His headache only made the rage burn brighter. “He was right, and you know it. We should’ve tried with each other. Last night wasn’t just a fucking one-off. Think about what it could’ve been if he had been here.”
“Not what we want,” Cato said, glaring at him. “Last night didn’t fucking happen.” He stood up and pushed past Dez to get to the bathroom.
Dez glared after him, grinding his teeth. Didn’t fucking happen? Sure, he didn’t want Veryl to know about it, but that didn’t mean the two of them should pretend there wasn’t something deeper at work.
The sound of the shower coming to life spurred him into action. He stalked into the steam-filled bathroom and yanked open the shower door.
“What the fuck are you doing?” Cato said, swiping water off his face and blinking at Dez through wet lashes.
“Proving a goddamn point.” He stepped into the spacious stall and grabbed Cato by the back of the neck, kissing him hard before the infuriating man could protest. Cato grunted and went rigid, trying to pull away, but Dez refused to let him go. Cato’s mouth remained unresponsive for a second before he let out a low, desperate groan, clutching at Dez’s skull and driving his tongue deep into Dez’s mouth.
Fire shot down Dez’s spine as their tongues tangled, his cock springing to life despite the dull throb of a headache that still lingered.
True to form, Cato took command, owning the kiss like it had been his idea all along. He raked his fingers down Dez’s sides, gripping his hips, and Dez found himself spun beneath the scalding water, his face forced against cold tiles with a hot, hard shaft pressed into his ass from behind.
“My turn,” Cato growled into his ear, clutching the back of Dez’s head and pushing him into the shower wall hard enough he could feel the line of grout between the tiles. He was going to wind up with a mark if Cato held him much longer.
Maybe a mark was what he was after, but despite the intensity of this little confrontation, there was still something missing to spur his dragon into wanting to trade permanent mementos of their hookup.
Still, this felt right, and it felt good. So fucking good when Cato ground his hips into Dez’s ass, forcing his long, thick cock between his cheeks so that it rubbed at his sensitive opening. Dez gasped, reaching back to grab at Cato’s hips.
“Hands off,” Cato said, releasing his head and grabbing both Dez’s hands, smacking them flat to the tile.
“You’re the boss,” Dez said, his chuckle dying in his throat when Cato found the bath oil and drizzled the cool liquid into the top of his ass cleft. He let out a coughing curse at the sudden invasion of slick fingers sliding between his cheeks.
“You got that fucking right. I call the shots because I know how to fucking win.” Cato gripped one ass cheek to spread him open, then pushed two fingers roughly into him, driving deep enough that his knuckles spread Dez wider.
He heard a screeching noise like nails on a chalkboard, and realized through a haze of pleasure that his dragon had manifested its talons and had dug them into the hard, glazed shower tiles. Fuck, he’d always known Cato had a dominant streak, but had no idea how sadistic the bastard could be. This was a far cry from the sentimental drunk he’d nailed the night before out of shared desperation.
He kind of loved this Cato, maybe more than he should.
His cock kicked against his stomach when Cato twisted his fingers and nudged at the knot of raw pleasure inside him. A second later the fingers were gone, and something far bigger and more intrusive took their place. Cato’s cockhead was huge and blunt, but Dez wanted it to hurt. He pushed back into Cato’s cock, and a harsh breath escaped his throat when the head breached his opening, stretching him wide as Cato thrust deep.
“You want it bad, don’t you?” Cato murmured, his lips grazing Dez’s ear. “How did I never know you liked having your ass filled with cock?”
Dez grunted through gritted teeth, struggling to maintain his sanity as his best friend slid out and shoved back into him so hard he saw stars. “Never knew it myself until now.”
“I don’t believe you. Your ass was made for this.”
“Believe it, brother. And maybe believe yours was too. For me. For us. Last night … oh, fuck …” He scrambled to hold onto his train of thought as Cato sped up, harsh breaths gusting against Dez’s ear.
“Last night was nothing compared to now,” Cato said. He gripped Dez’s shoulder with one hand, pulling him back. Dez leaned over, widened his stance, and held on for dear life as Cato speared him from behind. Every long stroke was excruciatingly perfect, filling him so completely he wondered how he couldn’t have already known how fucking amazing it would feel. He’d never been one to shy away from trying new things. He craved the adrenaline rush, and always believed nothing good ever came from playing it safe.
But this … Holy fuck, Cato fucking him within an inch of his life was beyond imagining, more of a rush than any other risky undertaking he’d ever embarked on. His dragon roared in triumph, as if to say, “Hell yeah, you finally figured it out!”
What had he figured out, though? That he enjoyed taking it in the ass? It wasn’t that big a stretch—he’d always liked ass play. No, it was more than that. So much more.
The rush of understanding wrapped him in an unexpected cocoon of pleasure the likes of which he’d never felt. He became hyperaware of Cato’s hard, hot body pressed against his, hips smacking against his ass, heavy testicles bumping against his own with each rocking thrust of his cock. His friend’s belly pressed against his back and his mouth grazed the back of Dez’s neck, hot breath tickling the short hairs at his nape with every rough grunt. Dez could feel the desperation in the other man as acutely as his own, but that desperation only highlighted the true depth of an emotion he was normally too wrapped up in desire to notice.
Goddamn Veryl for making him understand this feeling.
“I love you,” he said. The words caught in his throat halfway out and sounded more like a cough.
Cato faltered, then let out a soft groan. Had he heard? His tempo changed, his thrusts slowed, and his touch softened. He’d heard something.
“Did you hear me? I said love you!” Dez said louder.
Cato cursed and wrapped his arms completely around Dez, one across his shoulders and one around his chest, pulling him back. “Damn you,” he said, still steadily pushing his cock in and out of Dez.
Dez couldn’t help but keep the rhythm up himself. Each jolt of pleasure magnified this feeling that had bloomed within him, like his dragon had set his soul on fire to make him admit it.
Cato pressed his mouth to Dez’s neck and whispered, “I love you too, and it’s killing me.”
Dez’s entire body melted. Their movements shifted, the desperation still there, but translated into more languid, deliberate touches. Dez reached back and held onto Cato’s head, twisting around enough so their mouths met. Cato groaned into the kiss and slid a hand down Dez’s belly to grip his cock.
They were suddenly no longer tangled in a violent fuck, driven to a crazed coupling by their mutual lack of control over the turn their lives had taken. The way Cato touched him, kissed him, and moved inside him could only mean one thing.
This is what it feels like to make love. Who knew it could be so damn good?
That was the last thought that spun through Dez’s mind before a shared tremor rocked through them both. Dez’s cock erupted at the same time a delicious, pulsing heat gushed into his ass. They both groaned huskily into each other’s mouths, but neither moved to end the kiss.
They just stood there, holding each other for an eternity as the hot water beat down on their joined bodies.