Authors: Alex Jace

Falling Bundle (18 page)

BOOK: Falling Bundle

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“Of course not.” Arjen smiled up at him as he slid under the duvet to join him. “I said I’ll wait. For you to be sure. And I meant it.”

Arjen promptly slid down his body and licked his cock. Max caught his breath at the jolt of lust that hit him. He shifted under Arjen’s weight and his hands clenched into fists as he tried to hold still. Arjen licked him again, a hot swipe of his tongue, tantalising him with the promise of more.

Fuck it. Max took a firm grip on his hair. “Stop teasing and suck me.”

Arjen did not need persuading. He went down on Max immediately, engulfing Max in his hot mouth. It felt amazing; Max gasped for breath as he tried to resist that wicked tongue. Arjen made a contented hum in his throat as he plunged deep, then pulled off, the suction intense. Max groaned aloud, already close to the edge. Max took control, rocking into his mouth, controlling the depth and rhythm of his thrusts, but he could only stand it a minute before the urge to come got too fierce and he had to pull out.

“I could finish you off,” Arjen murmured against his thigh, the picture of temptation.

Max growled, but managed to resist. “Come here.” He got Arjen nice and slippery, and Arjen began to slowly, slowly ride his cock, clinging to him, stifling his whimpers against his shoulder. Arjen’s body squeezed him so tight it wasn’t fair, no man could hold back long. “I love you,” Arjen whispered to him, his voice cracking under the strain. “I can wait.”

They came together, shuddering, their shared pleasure intense.

Max lay awake in bed the night before his father’s funeral, Arjen asleep beside him. He was deciding the way he wanted to spend the rest of his life.

At seven Max got up, leaving Arjen sleeping trustingly in his bed. His arm lay outflung across the warm place where Max had been, fingers curled into his palm. There was no more beautiful sight.

Silence ruled the house. It was still dark outside, and when Max drew back one corner of a curtain, the muted inside light caught delicate feathers of frost etched into the window glass. A deep chill had set in overnight. Nothing stirred.

Max tried not to disturb his sleepy Arjen as he dressed, putting on the only suit he owned: black shirt, black jacket, black tie. His shoes gleamed, polished and shined the previous night by Arjen, who had been endlessly supportive and loving. Arjen had brought him cup after cup of coffee, kissed him and whispered to him, sneaked under his arm and laid his head on his shoulder. Max would never have coped without him.

Arjen had offered to come to the funeral, but Max had asked him not to. Max did not want these two worlds to collide for a single second. He could not risk his old family ruining what he had.

Arjen still slumbered on. Max reached out and gently smoothed the duvet that covered him. Arjen stirred sleepily at the dip of Max’s weight against the bed; his dark lashes fluttered against his cheekbones as he dreamed.

Max dipped his head to kiss his cheek. “I love you,” Max whispered against his warm skin. “I’ll come back.” He kissed Arjen’s fingertips as well, then uncurled his fingers to kiss his palm. A sudden surge of tenderness tightened his throat; he worried that no whispers, no kisses would convey the depth of his feelings.

“I’ll fix this,” Max promised him, running his fingers through his dark hair. “I’ll fix everything.”

Nothing. Max shut his eyes. Swallowed hard. Then got up and left his beloved behind.

His father’s funeral was held in a little stone church in a churchyard white with frost. Houses clustered around it with tiles shining in the sunlight. Threads of smoke curled up from chimneys into a pale sky. Max crunched through the frozen grass of the churchyard, hopped down onto the path and let himself into the back of the hall just as the funeral service was rising to a crescendo. The priest’s voice echoed and resounded through the deep cold silence.

Only a few dozen mourners had come to the service. Once the last shovelful of earth hit the coffin in the open grave, they started to leave in ones and twos.

Max did not linger in the crisp air at his father’s grave. He had nothing to say to the old man.

He went to the wake, quite sure that this would only take ten minutes. The moment he entered the crowded hall, Tyler threw his arm around his shoulders with a grin, ruffling his hair. “It’s great to see you, baby brother. I didn’t think you’d come. Hey, you should give a speech.” Tyler’s smirk got even bigger. He clearly thought that by forcing Max off guard like this he could reassert his old power.

Max stepped out easily from under his arm. “Yeah, I’ll give a speech.” Somebody poured him a drink, which Max accepted. He took a quick gulp.

“My father was an asshole,” Max announced to the gathering. Loudly.

Silence fell. Then the whispering started. Max raised his voice still further. “My father was the most fucked-up part of a truly fucked-up family. He was a disaster as a father and a disaster as a man. None of you are my real family. You just share my DNA. And I’m not going to see a single one of you ever again.”

He turned away from the crowd feeling a thousand times lighter. “Hey, Tyler,” Max said, and while his brother stared at him in surprise, Max sucker-punched him.

His fist hit his brother’s jaw with all the force of thirty-five years’ pent-up fury behind it. It felt fantastic. Tyler hit the floor and actually skidded. Max shook out his stinging hand with a broad grin. He couldn’t understand why he’d waited so many years for that.

Then Max downed his drink and walked out into the sunshine with a smile. He felt on top of the world. Finally free.

Max whistled all the way home. It was a perfect day. Stunning sunlight filtered through the trees overhead, casting a pale new light on everything. Frozen leaves crunched underfoot. A spectacular frost glittered on every surface. It was a day for new beginnings, new families.

Max turned into his street, where he lived with the most amazing man in the world, and his smile escaped all by itself. Arjen was waiting fidgeting outside in the cold, clearly worried about him.

Max caught him by the front of his coat and kissed him soundly. Kissed away his questions, his concern. Kissed him into breathless silence until Arjen was clinging to him helplessly. Then Max just leaned his forehead against his, so close he could feel the brush of their lashes together. “Marry me.” At the end, in this winter moment, it was so easy to say. “Marry me.”

“What?” Arjen sounded dazed with happiness. “I—what?”

Max was grinning like an idiot, so happy it burst out of him in words. “I’m crazy about you. I always have been. I’m so in love with you that it’s terrifying. You are perfect for me. And I get it now. You’re the one who’ll always keep me, you’ll be my family if I let you. You are my test of faith. Let’s get married.”

It was absolutely heart-melting to watch Arjen light up into pure joy. “Are you sure? You really want to—?”

“I’ve never been so sure in my life.”

Arjen was smiling up at him, his face alight. “When do you want to get married?”

“Right now. This second.”

“I don’t think that’s allowed.”

“As soon as possible,” Max amended. Max tugged him closer still, so that Arjen wound his arms around his neck and glowed up at him, all his. Max dipped his head and whispered in the last moment before they kissed, “Whenever you want.”

Alex Jace
is a UK erotic romance writer.

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Falling

#1—LOSS OF CONTROL

#2—EDGE OF DANGER

#3—FEAR OF FALLING

#4—MOMENT OF TRUTH

#5—LEAP OF FAITH

#6—LIGHT OF DAWN

#7—DEPTH OF FEELING

#8—PROOF OF POSSESSION

#9—BATTLE OF WILLS