Cory stood just inside the bedroom door and admired the way the amber light
of the bedside lamp accentuated his lover's natural coloring. With his dark
gold hair and pale gold skin, Tyler almost glowed against the dark blue
sheets on which he lay waiting. Patiently or not, Cory couldn't be sure,
because Tyler gave nothing away until the exact right moment.
Quiet amusement curled one corner of Tyler's mouth as he finally broke the
silence, "You going to stand there all night?"
"Maybe. I do enjoy the view," Cory replied with a grin. "But I think I'd
like a closer inspection, if that's all right?"
Tyler wet his lips and beckoned Cory with a crooked finger. "You won't be
needing those clothes, so why don't you get rid of them?"
Releasing each button on his untucked shirt with deliberate precision, Cory
took a couple of steps and stopped in the middle of the room. He let the
shirt slide off his shoulders and down his arms to land in a heap on the
carpet. Popping open the top button of his jeans, he teasingly asked,
"These, too?"
Waiting until he received Tyler's nod of affirmation, he opened the rest of
the buttons and slowly slipped the jeans down his thighs and kicked first
one bare foot loose and then the other. Wearing nothing but black
boxerbriefs, he turned his back on his lover and picked up his clothes. As
if suddenly possessed by the spirit of Susie Homemaker, he carefully lined
up the seams of his jeans and folded them over a hanger. He placed them in
his side of the closet before shaking the wrinkles out of his shirt. With a
hidden grin, Cory ignored the low frustrated curse that came from the bed
and continued putting his clothes away.
Cory was placing his watch on the dresser when two wiry strong arms wrapped
around him from behind. He looked up and met Tyler's eyes in the mirror
with a delighted grin. He sometimes got so caught up in Ty's mild-mannered
businessman persona, that he forgot how quickly and silently he could move,
showing the warrior underneath the facade.
Swallowing a smart-ass comment about impatience, Cory watched the
reflections in the mirror as Tyler's teeth nipped at the nape of his neck
and Tyler's hands slid over his stomach, making the muscles contract
suddenly in anticipation. When Tyler dropped a line of kisses across Cory's
shoulder, he tilted his head back and watched the reflected movements from
under his lashes. Tyler's eyes were closed as he licked at Cory's biceps,
but they opened slowly when he lifted Cory's arm slightly. Blue eyes
meeting green in the mirror, Tyler pressed his lips softly to the
surprisingly sensitive inside bend of Cory's elbow, gently tasting with the
very tip of his tongue. Cory was caught off guard by the rush of tenderness
he felt at the simple action.
"Ty... I'm... I..." Biting his lip to stop speaking words that he was unsure
of, Cory lifted his free hand to the side of Tyler's face. Sliding his
fingertips across Tyler's cheek, Cory touched the corner of the hot mouth
fastened to his skin. Tyler flicked his tongue over Cory's fingers and then
lifted his head. Cory met his lover's gaze once more, a flutter in his
stomach chasing the intended smile from his lips.
"I missed you." Those three words were spoken quietly, almost
unemotionally, but Cory could read how much they meant in Tyler's eyes. He
almost drowned in the wave of guilt that hit him for how close he'd come to
cheating on Tyler while he was in Seacouver. He could have done it so
easily, would have if Amanda had just said yes. Hell, he'd have even given
MacLeod a long overdue tumble, if the man had been willing to take the steel
rod out of his ass long enough. He wouldn't have considered any of it
cheating... until he got back here and saw the welcoming smile on Tyler's
face.
Cory swallowed hard and said lightly, "But now I'm back." He knew he was
sidestepping the issue of his own feelings, but he didn't want to lie. The
truth, that he had given Tyler only a few passing thoughts during the week
he was out of town, would only hurt. Seeing Amanda again had completely
blinded him to the fact that Tyler was waiting for him back in Chicago.
Cory shoved that thought away when Tyler's naked erection pushed against his
still-covered backside, reminding him of his own hard cock, aching for
release.
"Yeah, you're back, and I've got you," Tyler whispered as he wrapped his
arms around Cory once more, hands dipping into the waistband of the
boxerbriefs that were growing more uncomfortable by the minute. Cory sighed
in relief when the constricting fabric was replaced by a warm hand curling a
round his shaft in a "let's-get-reacquainted" exploration.
"Mmmm, that's very nice. Guess we should move this over to the bed now."
Cory gasped as Tyler let go of his cock and spun him around, pressing him
back until the edge of the dresser met the back of his thighs. Tyler's
hands came up to cup Cory's face as he leaned in for a long thorough kiss
that left Cory grateful for the support of the furniture as his knees went a
little wobbly.
Tyler released Cory's mouth with a lingering caress of his tongue. "Would
be more efficient, wouldn't it?"
Cory grinned and pushed Tyler backward until they both fell onto the wide
expanse of the bed. They rolled over a couple of times before coming close
to the edge, and Cory laughed breathlessly. "Boy, did I miss this bed! The
one in my cabin was a plain old double."
"You missed this bed more than me." It wasn't a question. Tyler smiled as
he bent his head to Cory's neck and said, "And you know what? I don't even
care."
As Tyler nipped and sucked on his neck, Cory closed his eyes and thought it
was probably just as well that Tyler didn't seem to want to talk right now.
There were much more exciting things to do and talking too much would
probably only get him in trouble. It usually did.
Like the time that Tyler took him to his gym for a sparring session...
They'd had the private fencing studio all to themselves, reserved for the
entire afternoon because Ty was determined that Cory get back into sword
fighting shape. He'd wanted to make Cory take being Immortal seriously for
a change, and Cory had told him that it was a waste of time, but Tyler had
been a man on a mission.
"You have to love your blade," Tyler declared somberly, holding his sword
straight up in front of him.
Cory mimicked the pose, but the upright sword did not inspire thoughts of
defensive maneuvers or how to get past an opponent's guard. Keeping his
eyes locked on his lover's, Cory teasingly ran his tongue up the flat of the
blade, coming dangerously close to the sharp edges.
Tyler cleared his throat and said, "I said love your blade, not make
love to it." Tyler hid whatever amusement or arousal he might have been
feeling, but Cory could tell there was something going on in there. "You
have to treat it like an extension of your body—a necessary appendage."
Cory lowered his sword to his side, grinned and waggled his eyebrows. "I
have other appendages that are much more fun to play with."
Tyler's gaze dropped to the front of Cory's pants then quickly returned to
his face. "You are not taking this seriously."
"Why should I?" Cory lowered his voice to a seductive rasp and said, "I'm a
lover not a fighter."
Tyler rolled his eyes at that, but Cory could tell his flirting was starting
to have some effect. "Why? Because one of these days, my friend, you're
going to run into an Immortal that you can't charm or trick... or seduce.
You'll have to fight, and I want you to be able to walk away from it with
your head still attached."
"Well, walking without a head would be difficult," Cory conceded with mock
seriousness. When Tyler let out a sound of disgust that was dangerously
close to a growl, Cory reassured him, "I've been at this a long time, you
know. Longer than you have. But if it makes you feel better..." He raised
his sword in an approximation of a fencing stance. "Let's go, en garde, and
all that jazz."
In less than two minutes, Tyler delivered a fatal blow to Cory's chest.
When he came to again, Cory admitted that a little practice might not be a
bad idea. But since Tyler had already gotten half his clothes off, Cory
decided that his friend's idea was much better.
The slight pain of hands gripping his wrists too tightly brought Cory's
attention back to the moment at hand. He opened his eyes to see Tyler
staring down at him intensely. "Are you still with me?"
Cory smiled and thrust his hips against his partner's, but the suspicious
gleam didn't fade from Tyler's eyes. When Cory started to speak, Tyler's
mouth took his in a hard kiss, cutting off whatever he might have said.
Since he wasn't sure what he'd have said, it was just as well. He relaxed
and let Tyler take whatever he wanted, whimpering when Tyler took his time
working his way down Cory's torso and then skipped over his groin to lick
and nibble at the back of one upraised knee.
Just when Cory was certain he couldn't get any harder or hotter without
coming apart at the seams, Tyler took his erection in his mouth and began to
suck gently. He released his grip on Cory's wrists to tease the rest of
Cory's body with just his fingertips as he slowly took more of Cory's cock
into his mouth. He worked his tongue over the most sensitive spots as he
sucked, until Cory was just about to come, and then he pulled back. Cory
let out a frustrated groan, wondering just how long Tyler could keep this
up, and then he noticed that Tyler was reaching into the drawer of the
nearest bedside table.
A few seconds later, Tyler shoved Cory's thighs apart as wide as they'd go
and prepared him quickly, apparently ignoring Cory's flinch at the coldness
of the gel on his overheated skin. He watched as Tyler haphazardly spread
some lube on his cock and then started to enter Cory, slowly but steadily.
He pushed inside Cory relentlessly, not stopping until he was fully seated.
Then he paused and looked Cory in the eyes for the first time in what felt
like forever.
Cory shivered at the possessiveness burning in the blue depths. He wasn't
sure this was what he wanted from Tyler. They had fun together, they were
hot together, and that was it. Right? He felt a rush of confusion and
guilt, and the cock in his ass suddenly felt as if it was taking up all the
space inside him. He closed his eyes as Tyler kissed him, his tongue
darting over Cory's, questioning and teasing, seeking a reaction. Cory
returned the kiss and moved his hips just a little, encouraging Tyler to
start moving himself. Tyler thrust into him slowly, adjusting the angle of
entry until he found the perfect stroke that made Cory throw his head back
with a groan.
Certain that he was going to die from the pleasure pulsing through him, Cory
decided he didn't care. Any death that felt this good would be a worthy one
in his opinion, so he brought his hand to his leaking cock and helped
himself to his possible demise. Tyler kept hitting Cory's prostate with
every thrust, but the driving strokes were getting more violent and less
controlled and Cory could tell he was almost over the edge. A moment after
Tyler stiffened against him, Cory's spine melted and shot out the end of his
cock to splatter warmly on his belly.
Tyler collapsed on top of Cory for a couple of minutes that seemed endless
to Cory as he drew in shallow breaths that tasted of spent passion. The
musky sharpness of their combined scents sent a twinge through Cory's
stomach. It was familiar and yet suddenly alien. He tried to shake off the
strange feeling because it wasn't in his nature to complicate an elemental
matter like sex. He always kept things simple and straightforward, having
fun for a while and then moving on with few regrets.
When Tyler rolled to the side, Cory allowed himself to be pulled into a
tight embrace. He laid his head on Tyler's shoulder and closed his eyes as
long fingers gently caressed the back of his head.
"Are you ready to tell me about your trip now?" Tyler's voice was dark and
a little rough in the post-coital stillness.
Cory rubbed his face tiredly against Tyler's smooth skin and spoke around a
yawn. "I already told you about the money and the orphanage. You should
have seen their faces. Those were some happy kids."
"I'm sure they were." As Tyler spoke, his hand kept petting Cory
soothingly. "I'm also sure there's a lot more to the story that you're not
telling, and it's almost certainly the most interesting part."
Cory immediately thought of Amanda, and then he remembered MacLeod, the kid,
and that impulsive hot tub invitation. Even though he'd been turned down on
all fronts, Cory was afraid that with Tyler it would be the thought that
counted. While it was true that he'd slept alone the entire time he'd been
gone, it wasn't from lack of trying. He'd also told Ty before he left that
he wouldn't be stealing from the mob, but how could he describe Sam Grinkov
in any way that wouldn't sound mobsterish? So that only left one thing to
tell...
"Well... I sorta... got blown up." He squeezed his eyes shut and waited for
an explosion of a different kind.
Tyler repeated the words as if certain that he'd misunderstood. "You got
blown?"
"Up. With dynamite." Cory could feel the tension seeping through the body
wrapped around him, and shook his head quickly. "It wasn't all that bad
really. And I did kinda...get the other guy blown up first."
"Start from the beginning."
Cory let out a long breath and started telling the story of how the Federal
Reserve job went wrong—leaving out any mention of Amanda. He could have
sworn he heard a little chuckle in the chest below his ear when he got to
the part about the marching band. He also played up MacLeod's more annoying
characteristics so that when the car blew up, Tyler did laugh.
"Cory, you could have gotten your head blown off." Tyler shook his head and
squeezed Cory tighter. "When are you going to stop taking these crazy
chances?"
Cory shrugged and said off-handedly, "Aw, you know you love it."
"Yeah," replied Tyler, exasperation giving way to quiet sincerity. "Yeah, I
do."
Cory froze inside and hoped desperately that Tyler wouldn't take it that
next step. He didn't want to hear it. He wasn't ready, might not ever be
ready for what he was afraid that Tyler might be thinking. He liked Tyler,
liked him a lot. They'd been friends for a couple of hundred years and that
kind of history did tend to build strong bonds, but that was as far Cory was
willing to go right now. His mind started to race with excuses and
explanations and ways to get out of this—this discussion, this bed, the
city, if need be. After a moment of frantic mental rationalization, he
realized that Tyler's body had gone slack around him, his breathing deep and
even.
The son of a bitch had scared the daylights out of him and then had fallen
sound asleep. Relief and indignation warred for a moment before relief won,
and Cory went to sleep with a wry smile.
Rush
by Amy B
Sometimes you walk
Sometimes you crawl
Other times you're flying
You feel the thrill not knowing where you'll land
—
"Rush" by Edwin
