Page 10 of The Way Home
I laughed, even as I could feel the hot burn of the impact from the door. It was going to bruise for sure. “Relax, I'm fine, Ri, it’s fine.”
His arms folded over his bare chest, and he visibly shrunk his tall form. Riley’s head was lowered, but he glanced up with uncertainty. “Are you sure?”
“Yeah, man. No big deal. I've taken plenty of hits in my lifetime. That was merely a tickle.”
His head lifted a little higher, a look of doubt replaced the panic that had been there a moment before. “A tickle? You're sure?”
Unable to stop myself, I reached out and brushed my hand over his arm. “Yes, I'm sure. I forgot for a moment that I'm bigger than I used to be, and getting out of the bunk bed takes a little more finesse now.”
Riley's eyes dropped, taking in my nearly-naked body. I didn't miss the way they lingered over my bright pink briefs, before darting away. He cleared his throat and took a step back, looking anywhere but at me. “Good, yeah, I…uh, gotta…” Riley hooked his thumb toward the door as if he ran out of words.
Before he could run away, I lowered my voice and said, “Thanks for making sure I wasn't dead. It was very sweet of you to rush in here, ready to rescue me. I like knowing you care.”
He flicked his eyes to mine, his cheeks blushing in that way I loved so much. “I, uh, wasn't.” A visible change came over him as he straightened and fixed his expression. I'd seen him slip this mask on several times. The familiarity of it was somehow both comforting and disappointing at the same time. “I don't care, Jeremy. I just didn't want to have to clean up the mess.”
A bark of laughter popped out of me. “Sure, darling, but your actions say otherwise.” The wink I gave him made his pink cheeks flare brighter.
“Whatever. And wear some fucking clothes!” Riley shouted before marching out, slamming the door behind him.
I couldn't help but chuckle at his dramatics, completely unoffended.Thanks for handing me my perfect weapon, Ri.I was suddenly very happy with my decision to pack sexy underwear for this business trip. I mean, I always did, but I packed my nicest pieces, and I planned to use every single one while I was here.
Feeling triumphant, I laid back down in bed. With my earbuds in, I put on my favorite nighttime ASMR streamer and let the sounds of a husky voice and turning book pages relax me. I wasn’t a big visual reader—I never had the attention for it—but a deep voice reading to me was always calming. As my eyes grew heavier, my lips tilted up, despite the wince in my side when I moved.
Riley
Go to the cabin, she said. Relax, and clear your head, she said, I thought as I tossed and turned with my mind theunclearestit had ever been. It didn't help that every time I closed my eyes, I saw Jeremy on all fours wearing the tightest pink briefs known to mankind, as if they were a part of his very-sculpted body.
Not only was my head a mess all night, but I was beyond horny, especially after getting interrupted in the shower earlier. I half-expected I would wake up in a pool of my own dried cum. But the idea of him stealing an orgasm from me in my sleep pissed me off, and my anger and guilt were enough to hold it at bay. Barely. I was still sporting a raging hard-on that needed urgent attention.
Just as I slid my hand under the blanket, my door flew open, and Jeremy stood in the door with his hands on his hips. He wore a crop top and gray sweatpants that highlighted a dick impossible to ignore. It was enough to make my own traitorous dick twitch at the sight. I sat up quickly and clutched the blanket around me.
“Knock much?” I snapped out in a panic.
He shrugged nonchalantly. “Let's call it payback.”
“You don't need to check on me.”
To my horror… excitement… horrified excitement, Jeremy came further into the room and leapt onto the bed, making me bounce, and I grabbed a pillow and placed it on my lap, hoping he wouldn't notice the way his presence affected my already-excited physical state.
Of course, he didn't miss the action and a slight smirk tugged at his lips. “I beg to differ. I can practically hear you thinking from across the hall. You're going to hurt yourself if you keep it up. So this is me…helping. It’s time to get your ass out of bed.”
I threw my pillow shield at him. “Fuck you, let me sleep.”
Jeremy laughed that husky, deep laugh of his that practically made my toes curl. “Nope, sorry. You need an endorphin boost, and I'm not leaving you in here to sulk alone. So you can either get dressed and come with me, or you can stay, but I'll be staying right here with you.”
He lowered his gaze, purposely lingering over the tented blanket, making my face flush hot. His gaze lifted back to meet mine, and he winked. “So…what'll it be? In or out?”
“Fine! Fuck! You are such an ass. Can you at least give me some privacy to get ready?”
Jeremy beamed as he stood, looking triumphant. “Okay, but if you're not out in—is ten minutes long enough to ‘get ready?’”The finger quotes made me want to crawl under my cover and die. I didn't bother to answer, and it seemed he wasn't expectingone anyway. “Ten minutes, or I come back in and drag you out, no matter what state you're in.”
He left, closing the door carefully behind him. As much as I ached with the need to get off, I refused to give him the satisfaction of knowing I was in here jerking off while he stood outside waiting.Fuck, it really messed with me, though, because I had to admit the idea of him knowing my hand was on my cock made me even hornier.
I didn't put it past him to barge in on me, though, and that was motivation enough to get my ass up. Ignoring the flag pole in my boxer briefs, I listed chemical formulas, one of my go-to methods to help me focus, as I reluctantly put on a t-shirt and track pants. I nearly grabbed a hoodie, but I was already feeling plenty hot and didn’t know what he had in mind.
“Sodium chloride, NaCl. Calcium chloride, CaCl2. Aluminum chloride, AlCl3.” By the time I got to aluminum hydroxide, my erection had thankfully gone down, and I felt like I was ready to face him again…mostly. I couldn't risk him coming back in and being in bed with me again. I just couldn't.
My hand was reaching for the door when it opened, and Jeremy stood right before me. He did the up-down that made my skin warm beneath his gaze.
