Striped (2 page)

“Miguel, talk to me,” he said, taking another swig of beer.

“I’ll talk to you all right.” Miguel Paz barely raised his voice to tell the punch line of a joke in a loud room, but he was practically shouting. Mitchell noticed Jason’s eyebrow shoot up; the conversation was clear over the tiny speakers, filling the kitchen. Miguel stormed on, “That fucking tiger—no offense—chased Delilah all the way from our property line, clear down to the main road. I thought you were supposed to do something about this.”

“Jason talked to him.” Mitchell hoped Jason knew he wasn’t throwing him under the bus, but he didn’t want to lie to Miguel, either, and pretend to have everything in hand.

“Maybe he thought she was a deer,” Jason whispered.

“Maybe he genuinely thought she was a deer?” Mitchell tried weakly. No matter what Sean had thought, he’d broken the rules, especially a safety rule he’d already been warned about.

“He didn’t think she was a goddamned deer, because she wasn’t shifted! She was gardening. He could have killed her!”

Jason held up his hands and stepped back, in a classic, “It’s your problem now,” move.

Mitchell gave him the finger, and winked to soften the blow. “I’ll talk to him again. We are taking these concerns seriously, but we need everyone to understand that this guy…he’s just needing a little extra adjustment time.”

“If you don’t adjust him, I will.” Miguel hung up before Mitchell could answer.

“Wow.” Jason shook his head. “I’ve never heard that guy angry.”

“He’s protecting his mate. I’d be that angry if some idiot chased you down and terrified you.”

“Sean isn’t terrifying. To be honest, I think he’s just a dumb kid who said whatever you wanted to hear in order to get a place up here.” Jason turned back to the dishwasher and set the controls, then went to wash the silverware in the sink.

Mitchell took another drink, frowning. “When you talked to him, you made it clear that this behavior is totally against the rules, right?”

“I did. And I told him to go raise hell somewhere else.” Jason scrunched up his eyes like he was waiting for Mitchell to explode at him.

He was tempted to. They’d discussed this before, the idea that whatever it was in tiger shifters that made them a little more rebellious, a little more dangerous, whatever it was couldn’t be tamed unless it was locked down completely. Mitchell didn’t like to lose that control, and he didn’t like Jason advising others to lose control, either.

On the other hand, Mitchell remembered the struggles Jason faced when he’d tried to assimilate into living with another shifter. Even though they’d been as deeply in love then as they were now, they had clashed. Maybe Jason did understand Sean better than Mitchell could.

Then, there was another possibility. One that Jason might not like. Mitchell sighed. “Do you remember how we finally got your issue under control?”

“I didn’t have an issue,” Jason said, bristling. “But I’m listening.”

“I’ve been thinking about something for a while.” Good lord, was this all going to come spilling out right now? Was this the right way to broach the subject? “I’ve been thinking about…exploring the idea of…a third.”

The silence was crushing.

Mitchell had planned to talk to Jason about the idea ever since they’d helped Delilah move in with Miguel and Darius. All around Gwinn Close, little “packs” had begun forming. Couples that moved in were suddenly becoming trios and quartets. And while at first Mitchell wasn’t sure he wanted to build a polyamorous community, so far there hadn’t been any catastrophes. In fact, everyone seemed deliriously happy.

And it wasn’t that he wasn’t deliriously happy with Jason. But he did wonder if there was something to adding a third. Maybe shifters were pack animals, no matter their animal form.

“Is this because you want to help this guy out so much that you’re willing to do anything?” Jason formed his words cautiously. “Or is this something you’ve actually been thinking about?”

“In the wild, tigers are solitary. Hell, half of the shifters we have here aren’t pack structured animals. But they’re happy in group relationships.” This was becoming more uncomfortable by the minute. “I’m not saying let’s run away to Utah and marry him. I’m just saying we should get to know him and maybe…leave our options open.”

A slow smile spread across Jason’s face, a sign of humor to come, and Mitchell was grateful for it. “You saw his tattoos and your sheltered little all-American cock wanted to get a piece.”

“No.” Not entirely. Mitchell shifted uncomfortably. There was no denying that Sean was hot. And gay, which always helped matters. And flirtatious. And yes, there was a quality of danger to him. And—

“You’re over-thinking.” Jason leaned forward. “Look, we don’t have to marry the guy. We don’t even know if he’d be open to a one-off three way. But I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t attracted to him. He looks like a porn star.”

“A porn star who just got out of prison.” Mitchell groaned and dropped his head to his hands.

Jason’s fingers ruffled his hair. “You want to have some fun with this guy, fine. I’m all for it. But let’s not think we’re going in there to save him with the combined power of our awesome dicks. We still need to deal with this aggressive, antisocial thing. Just because being tamed in the bedroom was all it took for me doesn’t mean that’s going to work for this guy.”

Mitchell looked up, into Jason’s sweet gray eyes. “You’re so smart.”

“That’s why you’re with me.”

Letting his gaze drift slowly down Jason’s chest, Mitchell shook his head. “It’s really only part of the reason.”

“Jerk.” Jason peeled off his t-shirt and tossed it aside. “So, it’s getting late.”

“That it is.” Mitchell pushed the stool back and stood, pulling Jason into his arms. Every separation, whether it was a week or a weekend, was way, way too long. Could he really bring another person into this? Their time together already seemed too limited. Would they be able to split it three ways?

Jason reached for Mitchell’s belt and opened it with a rough tug. “You were real gentlemanly, waiting until after dinner to ravage me.”

“I’m ravaging you?” Mitchell laughed as Jason backed him against the island. “What sex are you having?”

“Not enough, that’s for damn sure.” Jason dropped to his knees, opening Mitchell’s zipper. He slipped his hand inside and cupped Mitchell’s balls through his cotton boxer-briefs.

“Lonely?”

“Horny.” Jason’s fingers slipped under Mitchell’s waistband and folded it down, then wrapped around Mitchell’s cock.

He squeezed, and Mitchell hissed. He swallowed thickly. “So, what can I do to help you with this problem?”

Jason stroked Mitchell’s shaft up and down. “You can let me suck your cock and fuck your brains out.”

Mitchell’s knees shook at the words. There had been a time not long ago that Jason would never have taken a dominant role in their lovemaking. Now, he could bring Mitchell to the floor with a few naughty promises, because Mitchell knew exactly how well Jason would deliver on them.

Jason rose up to slide his lips around the head of Mitchell’s cock. There was no gentle teasing, nothing coy about the way he set to work devouring his lover. Mitchell groaned at the almost too-intense sensation. There was something to be said for a little build up before the main event, but he wasn’t going to complain. If this was the overture, then it was about to be an amazing show.

Jason moaned low in his throat, taking almost all of Mitchell’s length into his mouth. He swirled his tongue around the shaft, circling his fingers around the base to glide up and down. Mitchell dove his hands into Jason’s glossy black hair and tugged rhythmically, in time to the sweet suction on his dick. “You’re driving me crazy. I want to touch you.”

With a pop, Jason released Mitchell and rose to his feet. “Then let’s go, before I bend you over this counter and make a man out of you.”

Chapter Three

Jason could barely wait to get Mitchell upstairs to the bedroom. It had been way too long, and even a moment more seemed impossible to bear. He shed his shoes on the way up the stairs and had his jeans off the moment they got through the door. That morning, he’d put clean, crisp linens on the bed in anticipation of exactly this moment, the best part of every homecoming.

Maybe not the best. The best was just having Mitchell home, in his arms again.

“You look so fucking good. Did you look this good before I left?” Mitchell pulled his shirt off and kicked his jeans and boxer-briefs aside.

Jason practically vaulted onto the bed. “I look this good all the time. I don’t know why you even bother to leave.”

Mitchell slid onto the sheets beside him, bringing all his warm, naked skin into contact with Jason’s. Jason sighed in relief. The simplest things were sometimes the most important. His lips found Mitchell’s, and their tongues met in a long, slow slide. Mitchell tasted like beer and smelled like aftershave—manly and rugged. His fingers dug into Jason’s back, and he looped one leg over Jason’s hip. Jason ground his cock against Mitchell, the pressure teasing.

Mitchell sucked a path down Jason’s neck, his teeth scraping over collarbones on a lazy path to one nipple. Jason drove his fingers into the other man’s blond hair and thrust his hips against Mitchell’s.

“I’ll get there, don’t worry,” Mitchell said, smiling against Jason’s chest. His tongue swirled a path over each ridge of Jason’s stomach, and Jason couldn’t help but breathe harder. His cock strained, demanding attention, and Jason groaned.

 Not content to play the submissive, not this time, Jason pushed Mitchell off, to lie beside him head-to-foot. Before he could protest, Jason hooked one leg over Mitchell’s shoulders and laid his head beside Mitchell’s thighs. He opened his mouth wide and swallowed as much of Mitchell’s cock as he could.

Mitchell hissed and bucked his hips, rocking more of his shaft past Jason’s lips. Jason tilted his head slightly, aligning his throat to take Mitchell down to the base, despite his large size.

Sometimes, Jason didn’t mind taking the lead, but Mitchell had never truly submitted to him. Jason wasn’t sure Mitchell even could. Their relationship had evolved to the point that Jason no longer felt the desire to be submissive all the time, and it might be nice to actually dominate someone. Would he have that chance with Sean?

With Mitchell’s lips wrapped around his cock, Jason wondered what it would feel like if Sean were there, flexing his thick cock into Jason’s ass at the same time. How would Mitchell react, seeing him taken that way? Would he be too jealous and call the whole thing off?

Not that Sean would get to fuck either of them the first few times. Jason shivered, remembering how long he’d waited, bent over the back of Mitchell’s old leather sofa, ready to be fucked. Mitchell had made him wait for hours, teasing him the entire time. Forcing him to watch as Mitchell jerked off, while Jason was unable to touch himself.

Jason moaned around Mitchell’s cock. His own surged as Mitchell bobbed his head, sucking hard. He wouldn’t be able to take anymore, and neither would Mitchell, judging from the way he thrust against Jason’s mouth. Mitchell halted, gasping for breath. “Are you thinking about what I’m thinking about?”

“Sean?” Jason admitted with a chuckle as he sat up. “Yeah.”

“All the things you want to do to him?” Mitchell shook his head. “Would it be a mistake, do you think?”

“I think it would be a mistake to sit here and talk ourselves out of it. You know, instead of fucking.”

Mitchell grinned and slapped his palm against the side of Jason’s head in an affectionate admonition before driving his fingers into Jason’s hair and pulling him down for a kiss. Jason didn’t have long to savor Mitchell’s mouth before he pushed Jason to the bed. “Get the lube.”

Doing as he was told, Jason shivered with excitement low in his stomach. He reached into the bedside drawer and pulled out the bottle, passing it to Mitchell.

“Hands and knees,” Mitchell ordered gruffly. Though Jason had been the one to instigate, as always, Mitchell’s dominant side took over, and willingly, Jason submitted. He braced himself for Mitchell’s touch, listening as the other man squirted the lubricant onto his hands and rubbed them together slightly to warm them.

Not that it helped much. The slick wetness was still shockingly cool when Mitchell brought his fingers to the cleft of Jason’s ass, his other arm wrapping around to grip Jason’s cock. Jason jerked his hips forward, not quite sure whether he wanted to press back against Mitchell’s fingers probing his tight hole, or lean into Mitchell’s grasping hand.

With hands that knew his lover’s body the way some guys knew their way around a particularly finicky old truck engine, Mitchell eased two fingers into Jason, curling and rubbing with gentle friction that drove Jason crazy. Almost more unbearable than the physical punishments Mitchell sometimes employed in their lovemaking, the gentle, knowing touches brought Jason to the brink. Only his own willpower held him back as Mitchell stretched him with one hand and worked his shaft with the other. Jason refused to come, not before Mitchell was inside him, pounding him into the mattress with all that pent up energy from Mitchell’s long absence. Jason didn’t want to come until they were shaking with exhaustion, breathing hard and sweating enough to soak the damn mattress.