Page 43 of Something Good
She reached over and took my hand. “You’ve loved him in one way or another most of your life. It’s no surprise you feel that way now.”
My eyes flashed to hers. I hadn’t expected that. I figured she’d tell me I was too young or it had all happened too fast.
“I’m not about to tell you how to feel your own feelings.”
The sounds of someone moving from within the house caught my ear, and I assumed that meant Jimmy was up. Mom must have clocked it too because she let go of my hand and nodded in the direction Sammy had gone. “Go on. Go talk to him. I’ll get Jimmy some breakfast.”
We both stood, and on impulse, I pulled her into a hug, wrapping my long arms around her petite frame. “I’m so lucky to have you as my mom. I love you.”
I felt her release a shaky breath, but then she pulled away, and I released her. “I love you too.”
I’d followedMom into the house, dressing quickly in shorts, a T-shirt, and my Huskers ball cap, then grabbed my keys and headed out. I’d debated walking, but Sammy already had a thirty-minute head start, and I was anxious to get to him.
As I suspected, I found him at our spot, perched on top of the boulder, legs pulled up to his chest and head resting on his knees. Every thought about the argument last night or what the future held for us faded as my focus centered on him. Just him. My beautiful, broken boy whose light had been dimmed but refused to flicker out. I couldn’t fix his circumstances. I couldn’t protect him from future harm. But I could be his shelter now. At least for a little while.
He eyed me as I approached, though he didn’t lift his head. “Hey, golden boy. I wondered how long before you came and found me.”
I walked around to the backside of the giant rock and climbed up, then settled behind him, spreading my legs on either side of his so his back was pressed against my front, and I wrapped my arms around him. I’d held him just like this on our first date.
“This okay?” I asked. He let out a breath as if he’d been holding it for hours and relaxed into me.
“Yeah. It’s good.”
I don’t know how long we sat like that, breathing in and out in tandem with my arms wrapped around him, as if I was trying to keep him together. As if the solution to all of his problems could be found within the shape of my embrace.
When my arms started tingling, I pulled back but didn’t release him completely. Instead, I pulled back those curls I loved so much and kissed the spot right behind his ear.
“Will…”
“Shh. Just let me explore,” I whispered. “Let me make you feel good.” I didn’t know what the hell I was doing, but I let my instincts guide me. I pressed another kiss on the tip of his ear. “Stop overthinking and stop worrying about the choices that are mine to make.” I paused for a moment. “Unless you don’t want me to…” I hated the doubt that crept into my voice.
Sammy turned in my arms. “I’ve wanted you since the first moment I saw you after you came back to town.” He placed his hand on the side of my face, rubbing his thumb across my cheekbone in lazy strokes. “I don’t think I’ll ever stop wanting you.” He pressed his lips to mine, and I opened for him automatically. He didn’t hesitate to slip his tongue inside.
He tasted like sadness and despair, but there was also longing and warmth and the faintest whisper of hope fighting through, like a sapling stretching toward the sun in the middle of a forest scorched by fire. There’s something so beautiful in a life that simply refuses to give up. Whether it’s a weed growing out of the side of a rock or in a boy who’s been dealt a shitty hand but refuses to fold. I was in awe of him.
I matched the urgency of his mouth with my own plundering tongue, tangling it with his in sloppy strokes. At some point, we rose, heedless of the rock digging into our knees, as we continued the assault on each other’s mouths, drinking each other in like we were in the middle of a desert.
His hands came up to either side of my face, holding me at the angle he wanted while mine went on an exploration. I snuck my fingertips under the hem of his T-shirt, running them up his abs to his chest. I’d never had my hands on another guy before, not like this, and I marveled at the feel of him under my palms.I traced his nipples, and he gasped into my mouth. Loving that I could draw that sound out of him, I did it again and again, delighting in his whimpers. Feeling bolder, I ran my hands back down his chest, and my heart gave a pang as I noted the way his ribs protruded from lack of proper food. Not wanting to dwell on that, not right now, I continued my exploration, feeling my way over his abs and down to the waistband of his joggers.
I followed the edge of the fabric around to his backside, slipping my hands beneath the fabric to cup the curve of his ass. He wasn’t wearing underwear, so it was all smooth skin under my palms as I squeezed and pulled him into me. I gasped at the feel of his erection pressed against mine and wrenched my mouth away from his, needing a moment to collect myself before I came in my shorts.
I rested my forehead against his, both of us taking in air in heaving breaths while my heart beat a frantic rhythm in my chest. He tried to pull his hips away from mine, to put some distance between us, but I squeezed his cheeks tighter, holding him against me, cock to cock, as we both struggled to catch our breaths. “Just give me a minute,” I said between breaths.
“You on a hair trigger, there, golden boy?”
“Fuck off. You know I’ve never done this before.”
His eyes softened. “We can stop…”
“No!” I held him in place, desperate to continue this exploration. “I just need a second.”
He chuckled. “Alright. I’m not going anywhere.”
The crack of a breaking twig shot through the air, and our heads snapped toward the sound. Moments later, voices carried toward us, and we scrambled down the back side of the boulder, pausing at the bottom, out of sight.
My eyes locked with his, heart now racing for another reason entirely. “Relax, golden boy. They can’t see us,” he whispered. A look passed across his features. Something playful and alittle naughty. “Think you can keep quiet if I suck you off?” he whispered in my ear before nipping it. I only had a moment to process his words before he quietly dropped to his knees in front of me. My eyes flew wide as he reached for my waistband, yanking both my shorts and briefs down before I could even register what was happening.
My hard cock slapped against my belly even as my heart lurched into my throat. “You can’t be serious,” I whisper-yelled, stifling a groan as he took my balls in his hand. He bounced them up and down as if measuring their weight before rolling them between his thumb and forefinger. My dick twitched and precum dripped from my tip as he continued to play with my sack, every so often allowing his fingers to graze my taint. My legs shook, and I could taste blood as I bit my lip to keep from making a sound.
