A Mended Man (The Men of Halfway House Book 4) (36 page)

"Fuck…don't stop," Aidan said on another groan as Jessie pressed against him while licking and biting his chin and jaw. He threaded his fingers in Jessie's hair and closed his eyes, reveling in the prickling current coursing through his veins and every nerve ending of his skin.

It had been too damn long and his body was hyper-aware of even the tiniest graze and caress. "Jess…"

"Mmm," Jessie mumbled with a teasing nip against his skin, pressing his weight against Aidan.

Aidan reached under Jessie's chin with his index finger, drawing Jessie's focus. "Tell me what
you
want," he said, his voice thick with need.

Jessie ceased the teasing touches and reached up, carding his fingers through Aidan's hair. After a few gentle strokes, he tightened his grip and pulled Aidan's head to the side, leaning in and kissing along the corded muscle of Aidan's neck as he spoke. "I want to lick every inch of you. I want to know what you feel like in my mouth and how you taste."

Those words shot straight to Aidan's dick faster than a jolt of adrenaline. He screwed his eyes shut. His breath came in quick bursts and a groan escaped when Jessie pressed his hand against the rock-hard bulge in Aidan's jeans. He peered back at Jessie, mesmerized by the teasing stare and obvious want and need in his gaze.

Jessie smiled and bit his lower lip. "Are you okay with that?"

He nodded and wrapped his arms around Jessie, pulling him closer. A frenzied storm of want and need pushed him to the edge. He was close. Too damn close and probably wouldn't last long enough to free his hard-on from the ridiculously tight jeans cutting off his circulation. He had abandoned all sense of control the second Jessie's lips touched his skin. He pushed up into Jessie's body, craving friction and contact. His breath hitched at the sound of the zipper. He raised his hips when Jessie tugged at his jeans, inhaling sharply at the rush of cool air brushing past his heated skin. He gasped when Jessie's cool fingers wrapped around him and began a slow up and down sliding rhythm.

Aidan bit into his lower lip as his body arched, pushing into Jessie's grip. "I'm not gonna last."

Jessie nipped his earlobe and whispered, "Good. Then I won't have to wait much longer." He quickly lowered his body on the couch, between Aidan's legs, and swiped his tongue along Aidan's shaft from root to tip.

"Fuck!" Aidan grabbed at the cushions beneath him, writhing when Jessie's lips wrapped around him and pulled him into the wet warmth of his mouth. A current shot up Aidan's spine and rippled throughout his body, numbing his senses and igniting a fuse within. He couldn't think and couldn't breathe as fingers dug into his waist—lost to everything but Jessie, his firm touch, and the warmth of his mouth wrapped around him. His heartbeat pounded furiously as if trying to rip through his chest. He looked down at the lust-filled gaze staring back at him, unmistakable desire shone in Jessie's eyes. Jessie wanted him.

Him
.

That gaze and its intensity fueled the lighted fuse traveling along every muscle in his body. "Jess…" He barely managed to warn him before the fuse reached its target and exploded in an orgasm that shifted his being, simultaneously charging and numbing every inch of his body into oblivion.

He lay weak on the couch, barely able to breathe, wondering if he'd ever come so hard in his life. He threw his forearm over his face. No. Never that hard. Never like that. And sure as shit never that fast.

"You okay?" Jessie asked, sitting up and resting his head against Aidan's shoulder.

"That was…embarrassing." He peeked under his arm, frowning when Jessie chuckled. "I'm glad I amuse you."

"
I'm
glad I can make you come that fast."

Aidan grunted a reply.

Jessie licked along the shell of Aidan's ear then nipped at his earlobe. "I'm perfectly fine practicing to improve your response time."

"Smartass." Completely under Jessie's spell, he couldn't muster an ounce of control over a millimeter of his body. He'd just lost it moments ago and his treacherous body eagerly awaited round two.

"Can we do that again?" Jessie asked quietly, stroking his fingertips against Aidan's chest, hesitating to make eye contact.

Aidan reached out and raised Jessie's chin until their eyes met. "
I'm
glad you want me enough to do that again."

A shy but teasing smile spread across Jessie's face. "I want you enough to do
a lot
of things to you."

Aidan grasped the back of Jessie's head and pulled him into a kiss. He groaned when greedy fingers wrapped around his semi hard-on, quickly bringing him to full attention with a renewed reservoir of want and need flooding his body. They kissed and moaned, grabbing and pulling each other repeatedly. He eagerly let Jessie explore every inch of exposed skin he wanted to touch, lick or kiss.

Later that evening, they both lay spent on the couch, barely able to breathe, still half-dressed. He smiled, giddy with excitement, reveling in the wonder that they hadn't scratched the surface of all the
things
Jessie wanted to do to him that he would willingly allow.

* * * *

"Good morning," Jessie said in a tone thick with sleep as he walked over to the kitchen.

"Hey," Aidan said, hiding a grin. Responding with "great fucking morning" would have been a bit much. He certainly didn't want to push his luck and say anything more than the bare essentials and risk screwing up the warm fuzzies lingering from their night on the couch. He glanced over his shoulder and his body immediately responded to the rare sight of a tousled-haired Jessie. He returned his focus to the brewing pot of coffee. He couldn't chance being late—the team would know something was up and he didn't want to screw up his good mood telling them to fuck off. He'd already extended his morning as much as possible, unable to rip himself away from Jessie's warmth.

"Staring at it won't make it brew any faster."

Aidan smiled. "Smartass." He turned to sneak a glance at Jessie leaning against the entryway and stilled. The playfulness evaporated as a wave of anger slowly took its place. He took a few deep breaths to hold off the simmering fury. In two steps, he stood by Jessie, pulling down the edge of his sleep pants. "What the fuck?"

Jessie looked down at his bruised skin. "It doesn't hurt."

Aidan gripped the waistband of Jessie's pants and twisted them in his fist. "Did I…" he began but couldn't speak through the tightness in his throat.

Jessie reached up and placed his hand against the side of Aidan's freshly-shaven face. "It doesn't hurt at all. I swear."

He closed his eyes and shook his head, stumbling as he took a step backward. The thought that he'd hurt
his
Jess.

"Look at me."

He bent his head and slumped his shoulders, folding into himself. "I'm sorry," he whispered. "I—"

"Look at me, dammit."

Aidan flinched. He took a deep breath and finally opened his eyes, making contact with the blue gaze that always weakened him.

"You would never hurt me. I know that. And
you
know that. So stop it. I bruise easily. I always have. I also don't tan when out in the sun like you do… I burn."

Aidan shook his head and looked down at the angry purple marks stamped across Jessie's hip. He looked over to the opposite side of his hips and the breath left his lungs when he saw another set of matching bruises. "Fuck." He turned away as a series of images flashed across his mind—Jessie in the hospital bed, the blood, the swollen-shut eye, the bruising…

A firm grip and pull on his arm yanked him from his spiraling thoughts. Jessie stepped forward, invading Aidan's personal space, his shoulders squared, and a fire of determination burned in his eyes. "Don't do that."

"Do what?"

"These bruises are not the same as the ones I had in the hospital."

Aidan scowled. Sometimes, he hated how transparent he was to Jessie.

"And I already told you, this doesn't hurt." Jessie wrapped his arms around Aidan and ran his hands up and down his back. "Besides, I love the fact that you let your guard down with me and lost control. It lets me know how badly you want me. So just stop it."

Aidan exhaled heavily and stepped away, turning back to the coffee pot that seemed to be taking forever to brew. "Bruises are bruises, Jess. I did that to you. Wanting you is no excuse for hurting you." He scoffed, unable to hide his contempt. Wouldn't that be the same miserable excuse that son of a bitch would use for hurting Jess and putting him in the hospital?

Jessie yanked his shoulder again to force him to face him. His lips thinned and his chest heaved with each measured breath. "I asked you to not do that. It's not the same thing."

Aidan crossed his arms. "Enlighten me. It's a bruise, Jess."

Jessie closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He looked off to the side as if gathering his thoughts, finally returning his attention back to Aidan, calmer and more in control. "I'm going to ask you a few questions. You answer yes or no."

"Jess—"

Jessie raised a stopping hand. "Humor me."

Aidan inclined his head, encouraging him to continue.

"Would you throw something at me in anger?"

Aidan straightened. "Jess, this isn't funny—"

Jessie crossed his arms and planted himself firmly in front of Aidan. "Yes or no. Which is it?"

"No."

"Would you ever hit me in anger?"

"No," he responded, the anger slowly simmering at this line of questioning, not really sure why Jessie thought he might do something like that.

"Would you ever call me useless, stupid, or tell me the world would be better off without me?"

A knot formed in Aidan's throat as the painful realization began to set in. "No," he said, barely able to voice the small word.

Jessie took a deep breath and tilted his head upward, fighting the tears that began to pool in his eyes. "If I had said 'stop' or 'no' at any point last night, would you have stopped?"

Aidan swallowed the painful knot in his throat, finally understanding the reason behind Jessie's questions. "Yes." He reached out and gently placed his hands on Jessie's waist, barely grazing his skin. "Jess…"

"I know you want everything nice and sweet with me. But it's not the same, and I need you to understand that. I'm not afraid when I'm with you and you are not malicious or hurtful." Jessie jabbed his finger at Aidan's chest. "You are not abusive. You don't scare me."

Aidan leaned in and placed a tender kiss on Jessie's lips. "I guess you didn't get the memo about me being a frightening son of a bitch."

Jessie threw his arms around Aidan's neck. "There
is
something about you that scares me."

Aidan frowned. "What's that?"

"I'm afraid you'll never really let go with me. That you'll always keep a part of yourself stashed away in that internal safe of yours. Sometimes, I see a hint of it before you catch it and hide it away. I saw it in your eyes last night. I want that. I want all of that. It doesn't scare me. What we do together, however wild it gets, it's not violent."

Aidan pressed a kiss to the side of Jessie's head, holding him close, not wanting to imagine what Jessie had been through growing up and as a teen. "I'd never hurt you, Jess."

"I know. But now, with these bruises, I'm worried you're going to pull away and hold back more than ever. And that…" Jessie paused before continuing. "That hurts me more than any bruise I've ever had."

Aidan exhaled heavily. He really wished he was a better communicator.

Jessie inched back, separating from the embrace. He looked up at Aidan, a fiery look of determination screamed from his expression. "Question for you."

Uh-oh, round two
. "Go ahead."

"Do you trust me?"

"You know I do." Aidan crossed his arms and cocked his head.

"Do you think I trust you?"

He frowned and shoved his hands in his pockets. "I…I hope so."

"Then trust me enough to know my limits and to be honest with you to tell you when you get there. Because I
know
you'll listen and stop if I need you to."

Aidan sighed.
Dammit
. He hated when people made logical arguments that didn't play in his favor.

Jessie took a step forward and grabbed Aidan's waist with far more aggression than Aidan could have anticipated. But his dick definitely took notice and wanted to join in. "I'm not fragile," Jessie said. "If you want slow and sweet, soft and nice, that's fine. But if you want me any other way, don't you dare hold back. Because I sure as hell don't want you going elsewhere. Understand?"

"I wouldn't go elsewhere." Aidan's jaw hurt from clenching his teeth so hard. It took him years to finally open his heart to someone. Not just someone.
Jessie
. No one had ever had a hold of his heart the way
his
Jess did. And no one else ever would. He reached out and grabbed the back of Jessie's head and pulled him forward, slamming their lips together, telling him, without words, just how much he wanted every inch of him, all to himself, and only him. He guided Jessie exactly where he wanted him, pushing his tongue between Jessie's lips and unmistakably branding him with a kiss filled with want and need.

Jessie gripped Aidan's biceps for balance, digging his fingers into the hard muscle. They finally separated from the kiss but still remained a breath away.

A slow smile spread across Jessie's face. "That's what I'm talking about."

Aidan shook his head. He was a weak son of a bitch when it came to this man. He looked into those crystal blue eyes he loved so much and huffed out a quiet laugh at the mischief staring back at him. Without question, Jessie had him wrapped around his finger and handled every inch of his mind and body.

And for the first time in Aidan's life, he was totally fine with that.