STORY EXCERPT

When he went upstairs, his steps carried him to the office. The wolf statuette was still there, on the desk, glinting slightly with an inviting glow.

It looked just as striking as before, but, for some reason, it seemed lonely. “Maybe you don’t want to be alone after all, huh?” he murmured.

On a whim, he picked up the figurine and carried it back to the bedroom. He rarely kept such objects here, because he wasn’t the tidiest person in the world and he risked losing them in the clutter. Still, he didn’t think he’d have that problem with the statuette. He could probably find this figurine in a horde of objects that had the same purpose.

He set the wolf on the nightstand, carefully out of the reach of his hand, just in case he fumbled for his phone in the middle of the night. Then, he quickly prepared for bed, brushing his teeth and changing into his PJs. Once he finished his ablutions, he shot one last look toward the wolf before finally sliding under the covers. The room was dark, so the statuette didn’t seem to glow anymore. And yet, with it, Lee felt strangely protected.

He didn’t know how long it took for him to fall asleep, but before he knew it, the room had vanished, and Lee was in some kind of forest. Flexing his fingers, Lee took a quick look around.

It wasn’t unusual for him to dream. Half the time, he was aware he was dreaming and he could wake up if he really tried. Bailey had once told him not everyone could do that, and Lee had to admit it could come in handy. But despite his experience, Lee was unprepared for this dream. The full moon shone brightly in the sky, its cold rays caressing the expanse of his naked back. The sweet smell of flowers tickled his nostrils, and the blades of grass felt wet with dew under his bare feet. 

Distantly, Lee hoped he wouldn’t wake up to a flooded home. He should have probably checked, but something stopped him from forcing the dream to an end. 

There was something here, in the dream, something that was waiting for him. Or was it… someone? Lee wasn’t sure, but if there was one thing he knew, it was that he needed to look.

The moon shone brighter, as if approving his decision. Lee braced himself and walked forward, trying to find some sort of path through the forest. As far as he could tell, there was nothing, not even a dirt road. But if working at an antique store had taught him anything, it was detecting every single detail. Lee would find his answers, just like he could find a way to unravel the dream.

He didn’t have to look for too long. The mysterious presence came to him. 

“You shouldn’t have come here,” the stranger whispered. His voice sounded raspy, full of gravel, as if he hadn’t spoken for a long time. The words held no threat, only a strange sort of yearning.

“I shouldn’t have done a lot of things,” Lee said with a sigh. “I’m not good at following the rules, or doing what’s expected of me. What about you?”

The man’s face was in shadow, so Lee couldn’t completely distinguish his features. Even so, Lee got the feeling he was amused. His bright green eyes glowed with an inner flame, and Lee could have sworn it meant affection. “I can’t say I’m fond of them either. Rules or expectations.” His dark hair fell in gentle waves over his sharp cheekbones, and when he tilted his head, a fierce scar came into view. “But sometimes, such things exist for a reason. It’s not safe here for you.”

“You wouldn’t hurt me,” Lee offered. He didn’t know where that certainty came from, but this was a dream. He was allowed to be irrational.

“I wouldn’t be so sure.”

The man took a step forward. Lee squinted, hoping to see the mysterious stranger better. He was out of luck, because as his new acquaintance moved, a dark veil covered the moon. Suddenly, he couldn’t see anything at all.

It should have frightened him. This felt far realer than any dream he’d had in the past. He didn’t move, and when strong fingers wrapped around his wrist, he didn’t try to escape. “Do you know that, in the wild, wolves run in packs?” the stranger commented almost idly. “Sometimes, they even mate for life, though that isn’t always the case. Those who don’t do that, who don’t have a partner… Don’t you think they’re lonely?”

The question was a strange echo of what Lee had asked the wolf statuette earlier. Lee wondered if this whole dream was based only on that strange one-sided conversation. He decided to indulge his own subconscious. “I think everyone is lonely, whether or not they admit it. No one can truly accept another person. The world is just too cruel for that.”

“And yet, you would be willing to try.” A warm hand cupped his cheek. “You want to.”

ADULT EXCERPT

Lee didn’t want to think anymore. His tentative plan of getting drunk suddenly seemed distant and stupid. He had a far better option right here, within his reach.

So what if this wasn’t real? It was his, and no one could take it away. He would hold the memories of these moments—imagined or not—deep within his heart, and whenever he felt like he didn’t matter, he would unearth them. Guiltily, he thought it might work better than his brother’s reassurances.

The stranger kissed him, and just like that, Lee forgot all about his brother and any other man except the one holding him. This time, their lip-lock was less desperate, softer and gentler, as if his lover was trying to prove a point. Love always has meaning, he had said. I’m here for you. I exist for you.

Lee believed him, and he kissed back. How could he not, when his spicy, masculine scent invaded his nostrils? How could he not, when those hot lips threatened to scorch the air in his lungs? How could he not, when even he felt realer in the stranger’s embrace? Maybe this way, maybe if he wanted enough, this man could truly be just as real as Lee was.

It was an insane notion, but Lee drowned in it—or maybe in the taste of the stranger’s desire for him. Their soft kisses soon gained a deeper urgency, and then even that stopped being enough. Lee moaned in protest when the stranger broke their lip-lock, feeling abandoned yet again. He needn’t have worried. The man nibbled on his earlobes instead, then traveled down over his neck, nipping slightly as he went along.

He lingered over the juncture between his head and neck as if fascinated by it. His bite grew sharp, almost painful, so much so that Lee wondered why he hadn’t woken up yet. Stranger still, what bothered him about the bite wasn’t the pain, but rather, the fact that he could feel something hiding behind it, a yearning the man wasn’t allowing himself to express.

“I’m here,” he croaked out. “I’m with you. I’m real.”

He wasn’t sure why he chose these particular words and who he was actually trying to reassure, but the method worked wonders. Something inside the man seemed to snap, and the next thing Lee knew, his lover crushed their mouths together again.

There were no more attempts at gentleness. What little they’d been wearing vanished—a perk of the dream, perhaps—and Lee could have wept in gratitude at the convenience because it quickly gave them access to each other’s bodies. 

His lover made shameless use of this opportunity. His hands roamed over every inch of Lee’s skin he could reach, tweaking his nipples, caressing his sides, lingering over every scar and imperfection. He even seemed fascinated by the slight pudginess around Lee’s middle. Lee would have actually felt a bit self-conscious—he preferred reading to exercise and it showed—but if his lover didn’t mind it, Lee certainly wasn’t about to complain.

The nearly feral caresses naturally led to something more. This time, the man wasn’t content with simple frottage, no matter how enjoyable it had been for both of them. He nibbled on Lee’s lips one last time, then crawled down Lee’s body and took his cock into his mouth. 

For a few moments there, Lee thought he was going to come on the spot. The wet heat surrounding him was like heaven and hell wrapped in one. His lover’s fierce touch had felt amazing on his skin, but this was on a whole new level.

If he didn’t fall over the edge, it was only because he wasn’t ready to let go of this moment. He bit the inside of his cheek so hard it hurt, hoping the pain would anchor him, give him just enough strength to endure.

It would have been easier if his lover hadn’t been so relentless. He bobbed his head up and down Lee’s cock, completely determined to make Lee lose his mind. When Lee resisted, his lover actually growled around his shaft. The vibration added another layer of sensation, and it was almost too much to bear.

The man might not be able to speak right now, but Lee still heard what he wanted to say loud and clear. “Come in my mouth. Give me your spunk.”

And then, Lee’s lover pressed a dry finger to his anus, and just like that, it was all over. There was only so much resilience Lee could hope to have. With a lost cry, Lee shuddered and came, filling his lover’s mouth with cum.

The man eagerly drank down every drop, and the sight was sin incarnate. Lee regretted not giving it the attention it deserved, because his vision was already fuzzy around the edges. Every fiber of his being was alive with the heat of the passion between them. And yet, despite the intensity of the climax, he couldn’t help but feel something was missing.

He spread his legs wider, a wordless invitation he hoped the stranger would understand. He couldn’t be more coherent than that, but he desperately needed to feel this handsome stranger inside him.