STORY EXCERPT

“What’s going on? First thing I see when I get back from entertaining a bunch of guests is Kai hopping around like he’s a madman,” Ethan said, seeing Kai trying to pump himself up. “Whatever it is, I like it. Are you getting into exercise while we’re here, or just hopped up on the champagne and cupcakes?”

“First of all, that’s a really dumb observation, dear,” Kai deadpanned. “Second of all, I have a really sassy comment to the champagne and cupcakes that I’ll bet you’ll get a laugh out of later, but thirdly, no. I’m about to ask someone out.”

“Oh, is it Artaxerxes?” Ethan suddenly asked. “Also, it is so not a dumb observation. And I’m definitely going to ask you about that sassy comment later.”

“What? How do you even know?”

“You’re not exactly the paragon of subtlety, you know. Besides, we’ve seen you, and the entire time you guys have been talking, you’ve been stealing glances at the big guy over there! You should go for it. He might just be waiting for your approach,” Ethan admitted, and Adam merely nodded.

“It’s not like I was being rude by staring at him. Wouldn’t it be rude if I just went up to him? We’re not even properly introduced. I should wait. Maybe you should introduce me. Or wait, maybe we should—”

“Okay, first of all, you’re babbling. Second of all, if this were a bar or a club, would you be concerned about being properly introduced? If you like someone, sometimes you have to be the one to introduce yourself,” Rain said. “Why all the fuss about being proper all of the sudden, anyway? It’s like you’ve turned into your parents.”

“Low blow, man.” Jayce gently nudged Rain to the side. Kai looked like he’d just been hit, and hard. It took a moment, but Kai remembered that this was Rain he was talking to, the man who could offend Mother Teresa himself with his bluntness, and he closed his eyes, taking a deep breath.

“That’s the worst thing you could have said. I am so not like my parents!” Kai gasped, his eyes wide in shock, eyebrows furrowed as though he were angry. Because he was, but only for that brief moment. “First of all, if I was like my parents, you would be hearing from me about our lifestyle and some form of gay agenda.”

“Then why so concerned about propriety all of a sudden?” Rain said. “Sometimes it’s good to be rude, to be able to get what you want. Also, sorry about comparing you to your parents. I forgot it was a touchy subject.”

“I think what my smart-mouth boyfriend means to say with that earlier question is that you aren’t usually so concerned about being proper if you’re just looking to be someone’s friend. It’s not like you’re asking him to hop into bed with you,” Zack added, just as Kai was about to reply something that seemed vaguely angry. “At least, that’s not what you were thinking of doing, right?”

“Of course not!” Kai took a moment, taking a deep breath. “I just kind of wanted to talk to him. He’s…dreamy. I think that much I can say.”

“He has it bad,” Dmitri said, a wide grin appearing on his face. “Poor Artie. He doesn’t know what’s coming to him.”

“Hey! I resent that!” Kai said, his cheeks puffing up angrily as he sent a glare Dmitri’s way. His six friends suddenly burst out into laughter. Kai looked around in bewilderment for a second before clearing his throat, his face red. He turned away from them, crossing his arms, grunting in dissatisfaction.

“Aw, don’t be angry, Kai.” Ethan grinned.

“And besides, if anything, I don’t think you were being rude at all,” Jayce said diplomatically, almost immediately. Where Kai was concerned, Jayce was definitely often the one who thought the most about his words. “We’re saying that you should go for it, and if you decide to, we have your back.”

“That’s exactly what I said, several sassy comments and quips earlier!” Ethan said in exasperation. “Do people just not listen to me?” He turned toward his husband-to-be.

“For what it’s worth, I listen to you. But from what I can tell, your friends have a history of ignoring you…Then again, you guys seem to ignore each other quite often. Just as often as you guys listen to each other, in fact.” Adam grinned.

“He gets it. He’s definitely one of us, now.” Kai nodded. A little part of him did appreciate the support. It gave him the strength not to chicken out, first and foremost, but it also helped him realize that maybe what they were saying was right.

There was no point in wasting time when he could be talking to Artaxerxes right now. Seeing the man finally turn away and speak to one of the guests to his side, Kai finally took the first few steps forward to take the plunge and ask the man out.

As his eyes closed and he jumped in place, psyching himself up, he didn’t realize that his friends had stopped talking altogether around him. He also didn’t quite realize the shadow being cast over him. It was the shadow of a large man, the very same man he had been eyeing from the other side of the party.

His friends were all standing about in surprise, trying to keep their grins and soft chuckles to themselves, when finally, a hand tapped on Kai’s shoulder. Surprise registered in his expression and he turned, finding himself staring into a set of stormy, silver-gray eyes that made his heart skip a beat.

It was like something inside them spoke, and he could hear it reverberate in his heart and mind. Mine.

ADULT EXCERPT

It took a moment for Kai’s lips to finally part, allowing the demanding entry of Darius’s tongue into his mouth. Darius was insatiable, claiming, taking, their teeth pressed together because he just couldn't get enough. He wanted more, wanted to taste him, wanted to feel him, and he wanted more of Kai slowly undulating his hips up and down to press his still-covered erection against Darius’s stomach.

Minutes passed until Darius finally removed himself from Kai’s lips, allowing both of them time to breathe. Kai’s hands were finally on Darius’s crotch, making the much taller man arch his back and groan when those fingers closed around the tent of his cock. Even against the sturdiest of cloth, his need shone through. Kai had to grin, using both of his hands to fumble and tug on Darius’s slacks.

Chuckling, the demon unbuttoned his pants and threw them off in record time, revealing the fact that he had actually gone commando. His thick cock sprung forth from a well-groomed thatch of hair that curled all around it, even on his balls.

Kai’s expression couldn't have been more in awe when he saw Darius’s body fully uncovered for the first time. It made the demon want to preen, his muscles flexing slightly, showing off every contour of his well-trained, well-maintained flesh.

Well, it was well-maintained only because of his strict regimen. If this had been a few months ago, he would have looked starved and thin.

Wasting no more time, he pulled and tugged on Kai’s pants, pulling down even the human's underwear in the same swoop and finding himself face-to-face with smooth, silky and trimmed black locks covering a cock that was pointed right at Darius accusingly, perfectly erect.

Darius grinned, giving out a soft chuckle and engulfing the tip of Kai’s shaft in the soft warmth of his lips. The human gasped, his back arching. A small spurt of pre-cum blasted onto Darius’s tongue, telling him how sensitive the untouched organ was.

A virgin, and sensitive, Darius thought with a grin, slurping against the tip of that shaft. Or perhaps the latter was an effect of the former?

Kai bit down on the back of his fist. His eyes glimmered in intense arousal, his body shifting as his cock was slowly enveloped in the warmth of Darius’s mouth.

“Ah, Artaxerxes,” Kai moaned softly, making Darius gently pop the pre-cum-seeping shaft out of his lips to grin up at the human writhing underneath him, rocking his hips forward and back.

“Darius.”

“What?” Kai was shaken out of his reverie for a moment, turning toward the demon. Darius only grinned, softly lapping at the glans of Kai's cock, sliding the thin muscle up and down with the tip of his tongue, then dipping into the slit on the tip, making the human bite his lower lip.

“Call me Darius.”

“Is that your first name?” Kai panted softly in between harsh breaths, taking in air and rocking his hips, because Darius seemed intent on torturing and teasing the poor human in between words. “Ah!” Kai sat up straight and held tight onto the sheets below him, his skin dappled in sweat.

“You could say that,” Darius said, before immediately taking more of that shaft. No more preamble, nothing other than focusing on the pleasure of the human. After all, he promised to make this good. From the soft whining noises and the sharp intake of breath he’d heard, Kai was close to reaching his peak. “And no one else can find out.”

Those words were breathed out in soft finality. The demon immediately suckled the entirety of Kai’s shaft with a little hum of appreciation, and the human’s toes curled as he gasped.

Just from a few good slurps of his lips around that perfect cock, Darius saw the human come undone. No matter, Darius thought, grinning around Kai’s shaft. The plethora of emotions registering on the human's face was, all on its own, an aphrodisiac for the demon.

Darius’s head gently moved back and forth, sucking up that cock and then slowly going down, prolonging his lover’s agony. Kai’s hands grabbed handfuls of the sheets beneath him, his legs splayed on either side. His body jolted, twitching, hips jerking up and down when it finally hit him. In thick spurts, Kai’s seed landed inside Darius’s mouth, hitting the back of his throat as he felt the human’s body twitch and let loose.

Excellent. The demon popped off of the human's shaft, seeing that it hadn’t deflated in the least bit. With a soft pop, Darius grinned at Kai and brought his lips down to the human’s. Kai’s chest slowly raised and lowered with each inhale and exhale, their tongues entangling in a slow, sinuous caress. “Mm,” Kai moaned into their kiss, tasting his seed for the first time.

The sound of their kiss echoed around the dark, empty bedroom when Darius looked down into Kai’s eyes. The only thing the demon could see in those pools were need and lust, perhaps because he, too, needed and lusted after the human that was staring right back at him, and it pleased Darius enough that he could feel a jolt of desire course through his body. A grin formed on the demon’s face when he finally cupped Kai’s chin, tilting it upward gently. “Lift up your legs a little,” Darius commanded, his voice smooth, yet commanding, somewhat steely in the way he said it. “I want to taste more of you.”