Bowl Full of Cherries (22 page)

“Can I get in the picture?” Rell asked Sondra.

She was standing with her hand on her hip, sweeping her bangs out of her face, when he asked and the question stilled her. She considered it for a second and fiddled with the camera that hung around her neck.

“If you get naked, I’m out of here,” Tyler grumped.

“Finally!” Rell joked.

“Actually….”

Sondra had Crowley sit up on the bed. The sheets were a tangled mess from all the different poses she’d directed. He crossed his legs “K-Style,” as she asked and folded his hands lightly in his lap.

“Rell, get on the bed behind him and….” For a second she turned her eyes up to the ceiling as she thought. “I’m not going to direct you.”

She didn’t have to tell Rell twice. He leaped up on the bed, situated himself right behind Crowley, and wrapped his arms around him. Crowley’s muscles went loose at the warm presence of Rell snuggling against him. Even more when Rell put his chin on Crowley’s shoulder and looked ahead at the camera.

“That!” Sondra nearly shouted. “
That’s
the smile I wanted!”

Was he smiling? Crowley hadn’t even noticed. He groaned as Rell began to kiss his neck.

“I want you so bad, Owl,” Rell whispered in Crowley’s ear. “I can’t wait to get you alone.”

Crowley couldn’t wait either.

T
HEY
WERE
playful as they climbed the stairs, knocking into each other, racing a few steps, and then stopping to kiss. It was unspoken, what was going to happen between them, and a giddy high school excitement bubbled up inside the both of them. Rell opened his bedroom door, grandly motioning Crowley through, thrilled when he saw that Crowley—far from shaking with nerves—was already shedding his clothing. Just to be safe, Rell pulled a chair over and wedged it hard under the knob.

“You were so hot back there,” Rell groaned, tugging off his own clothing. He chucked his shirt into the corner, then quickly shed his pants, standing in his boxers. “I can’t wait to see the pictures.”

“You’re not so bad yourself,” Crowley replied playfully.

Downstairs, Rell’s grandparents were blaring the television and the cheesy, swelling strains of old-timey orchestrated Christmas music filled the whole house.

“C’mere,” Crowley said, motioning Rell closer.

“Oh? Bossy much?”

“Yup,” Crowley said, and as Rell approached, he threw his arms around Rell’s neck and pressed his naked form hard up against Rell. He claimed the kiss, owned it. “I feel so
alive
.”

The shift in Crowley wasn’t subtle. The experience of being naked in front of the camera had brought out a new side of him—an aura of confidence. Where Rell had always guided their kisses and touches, Crowley now moved Rell toward the bed, gently forceful. It was damn sexy.

“Get comfortable,” Crowley said.

God.
Damn.

Rell lay on the bed and Crowley ran kisses up his leg, and then pressed his lips against the fabric covering his now-hard member. He ran a tongue over Rell’s flat stomach and his ribs and then playfully nipped at one of Rell’s dark nipples.

Rell twisted his fingers up in Crowley’s hair, willing him to keep sucking. And suck he did, causing a sharp pinch of pain, which curled Rell’s toes. Once the pain passed, however, there was only delicious, nerve-sparking pleasure. Rell groaned.

“Does it feel good?” Crowley asked, moving to the other nipple where he was more gentle.

“Yes.” Rell exhaled the word on a sigh and shuddered.

“Tell me what to do.”

“Oh, no,” Rell smirked. “You’re in control here.”

“But I don’t know what you like.”

“Well, there’s one
obvious
spot you could attend to….”

Crowley nodded. With shaky hands, he pulled down the front of Rell’s boxers. He licked his lips nervously, but there was lust in his eyes. When Crowley bent over and put his mouth on Rell, he thought he’d vibrate right off the bed. Goddamn, getting head from an eager virgin was like nothing Rell had ever experienced. Television and movies generally painted the experience as disastrous—misplaced teeth, sloppy sucking, overeager mistakes. But not Crowley Fredericks. He seemed attuned to the subtle changes in Rell’s body. Speeding up and then slowing down, even fondling Rell’s balls gently. Crowley’s enthusiasm negated his lack of experience. Rell could barely stop himself from coming in Crowley’s mouth.

“We can….” Rell was delirious, his breath coming out in panting gasps. “Try
more
, if you’re ready.”

And to demonstrate just what he meant, Rell pulled his knees up to his chest, giving Crowley better access. Crowley’s smile was beautiful. Rell groaned as Crowley put his finger into his mouth, wetting the digit.

Crowley pressed the tip of his finger to Rell’s entrance, and then hesitated. “I don’t want to hurt you.”

“I know you don’t, Owl,” Rell promised. “Just, I dunno, try to be gentle?”

Crowley began to lightly stroke his hole, tracing intricate patterns, slowly driving Rell crazy. Rell gripped his sensitive shaft, caressing slowly and watching Crowley’s curious expression as he explored. Soon the pleasure was building upon itself, growing until Rell wanted—no
needed
—more. Unable to help himself, he pushed against Crowley’s slick finger.

“Deeper,” Rell demanded, his breath hitching in his chest.

Crowley pushed in farther, moving his finger in and out of Rell with gentle thrusts.

“Good?”

He couldn’t even form words. As Crowley bumped that perfect spot inside of Rell, a guttural noise burst out of him.

When his mouth cooperated again he cried, “M-more!”

Crowley obeyed, slipping a second finger in alongside the first. He stretched and teased until Rell lifted his hips, bucking up off the mattress.

“Please, I can’t take it anymore. I want
you
. Inside me.”

Rell never would have imagined those words leaving his mouth, but in that moment, there was nothing he needed more. He wanted to feel the thick swell of Crowley, filling him, thrusting inside of him. He stroked his shaft harder. Damn, he’d nearly come from Crowley’s fingers. Yet, as delicious as those fingers were, Rell knew taking
all
of Crowley was going to be unlike anything he’d ever experienced before.

“We need a condom, right? I mean, I don’t have any,” Crowley said.

But Rell did. After the first time it almost happened between them, Rell had stocked up, perhaps a little too enthusiastically. Lube too. He pointed to the small stand next to the bed. Crowley laughed when he pulled open the drawer. A nervous, delighted kind of laugh.

“Lots of… options.”

“I got them for us,” Rell said. “All for us.”

“Help me?” Crowley asked, his voice choked.

Instructor Rell, who would be patient and thoroughly involved in a safe sex lesson, had to wait. Out-of-his-mind-with-lust Rell was in control right now. He kissed and molded Crowley’s cock, rolling the condom Crowley presented him down the shaft. Then with the bottle of lube, Rell did a
thorough
job of slicking Crowley up.

Rell fell back against the bed with a wickedly coy grin. “Ready,” he said.

Crowley placed a sweet kiss against Rell’s lips as he positioned himself at the waiting hole. He worked his cock gently inside, and yet there was still a sharp pain. Rell sucked in a breath, which made Crowley hesitate.

“N-no, keep going,” Rell said.

Quickly the pain became a deep pleasure and Rell relaxed, loving Crowley above him, loving the way he thrust, loving the wild look, the increasing pleasure, in his chocolate-brown eyes. Crowley’s mouth went slack and his breathing increased. He was getting close. He was going to come and there was nothing Rell wanted more.

Rell grabbed Crowley’s head and brought him crashing down into a wild kiss. He savored those delicious lips. Rell frantically stroked himself as his tongue tangled with Crowley’s, and at the apex of his pleasure, he gripped the head of his cock. Hot liquid splattered across his own chest, as his groans and cries were swallowed up in the gasping need of Crowley’s mouth.

The throbbing of Rell’s orgasm tightened his muscle around Crowley, who threw back his head and let out a long, pleasured grunt, his fingers digging hard into Rell’s side.

“God, yes!” Crowley called out, pushing hard against Rell, shuddering with pleasure. Crowley trembled and his eyes fluttered closed. “Oh my God, Averell….”

Crowley collapsed next to Rell on the bed. A sweet warmth rolled through Rell as he tangled Crowley up in his arms and pulled Crowley tight against him. Despite the rapidly cooling liquid between them and the sweat on their skin, they clung to one another. Stupidly happy.

“God, I wish asshole Tyler hadn’t eaten my pie,” Rell groaned into Crowley’s shoulder.

Crowley snorted. “We just did it for the first time and all you can think about is pie?”

“Well….” Sex and pie? What could be better than that? “Sorry. But c’mon, are you telling me that pie doesn’t sound amazing right now?”

For a long time Crowley was silent, so long in fact, Rell raised his head, afraid he’d really offended the other man. Instead Crowley’s lips twitched. “It sounds brilliant.”

“I’
VE
FIGURED
out what we’re going to do,” Rell whispered in Crowley’s ear, running a lazy finger over his belly. He’d spent an hour worshiping every inch of Crowley’s body, kissing him, running fingers, hands, and tongue over his skin, whispering warm, lust-filled words against his flesh. Rell had forced Crowley to lie perfectly still with his hands over his head, to let him examine his body. There were rules to Rell’s wicked little game. Crowley couldn’t protest, he couldn’t squirm, he couldn’t try to hide himself. Every time he did, Rell sucked at his flesh and left another deep, red love bite.

The parts of Crowley’s body he’d been self-conscious about before—his untoned tummy, thick thighs, layer of padding over muscle—Rell had loved on them all, growing more and more aroused.

“My turn?” Rell whispered, his cock jerking in anticipation. He pressed hard into Crowley, making sure the man knew just how desired he was.

“God yes,” Crowley had said, and he rolled onto his stomach and tilted his hips up in a way that made Rell nearly come. It had been over too soon, anyway, Rell exploding inside of his new lover. And after he’d come and sanity returned, Rell decided he was getting tested so he could feel Crowley without that protective barrier as soon as possible.

He’d collapsed by Crowley, ignoring the sticky mess all over the trundle. Gently he tangled up his fingers in Crowley’s curls.

“I love when you play with my hair,” Crowley murmured warmly. Rell kissed his cheek.

“Do you want to know what I think we should do, Owl?” Rell teased, running the tip of his finger around Crowley’s bellybutton, making his tummy jerk.

“What?”

“I think we should pack our bags, get that tent out of the garage, and just move out into the mountains. We could live off the land. Make love. You’d never have to play for the conservatory ever again.”

“I’d still…,” Crowley murmured. His swollen lips, his flushed cheeks, his glassy eyes, Rell thought he’d done a pretty damn good job sating Crowley Fredericks, “like to bring my violin.”

“Then bring it. We’ll live off the land, do it all the time, and you can play songs for me. You can be my Corey Cartwright. It’ll be perfect. What do you think?”

“I think….” God, for one crazy moment, Rell thought that Crowley might say “yes.” He smiled and relished the thought of it, his cheeks flushed. “I could learn to hunt and fish and live off plants and things. No rent. No responsibilities. No practice. Just us in a tent.”

“
Exactly.”
Rell kissed his earlobe.

Crowley frowned. “I… think I should probably finish my education.”

Rell let out a long, low sigh. Of course he should. And this was without even admitting how poorly his last trip to the mountains had turned out. He breathed deep. “Nothing for it. Guess I’m going to have to follow you guys back to school.”

“That would be great,” Crowley said, without a hint of teasing.

“It doesn’t freak you out? We only just met and—”

Crowley let his head fall gently to the side, blond hair swept into his eyes, and the smile he gave Rell was warm and sated. “It doesn’t freak me out at all. I like you, Averell Lang.
Obviously.
”

“I like you too, Owly.”