Follow the River (River of Rain Book 1) Read online

  My balls seize for a moment and I internally curse. I need to focus on not coming prematurely like a goddamn preteen at each pump of my hips and every clench of his ass around my cock.

  River’s head hits the counter as his back arches with each swipe I make over the tiny button inside him, unleashing the rawest, impassioned sounds from his lips. Those moans only spur me on, fucking him with quick, confident strokes. Tightening the grip I have on his hips to a bruising level, we build and climb towards ecstasy.

  “Fuck, you feel too damn good,” I pant, using my shoulder to wipe the sweat from my brow as I slow, rolling my hips and bottoming out inside him.

  River’s eyes roll back in his skull as one hand moves from his grip on the counter to grasp his own cock. My eyes latch onto the sight of him stroking himself in time with my movements, fucking his fist like I’m fucking him. A small bead of precum gathers at his tip after a few minutes, glistening in the light and taunting the hell out of me.

  It makes my mouth water and for the first time…the thought doesn’t have me in a fit of rage.

  So I don’t know if it is the high I’m riding from being balls deep inside River or if I’ve gone completely insane, but before I can think twice, I lean forward and lap at the tip of his cock. The salty tang of cum hits my tongue instantly, shooting a bolt of desire down my spine as his hips jerk off the counter.

  The first thought that processes through my brain is…I want more.

  And I don’t care how fucking wrong it is.

  My eyes shoot up to his face to find him watching me, his heated gaze scorching me from the inside out. The haze clouding his eyes overwhelm me with the most powerful feeling I’ve ever known. Holding his eyes in place with my own, I continue to fuck him. I’m still bent over his body, each pant and sigh leaving my mouth caresses his cock, causing it to twitch.

  At that small movement, lust overtakes me, allowing me to flick my tongue over his tip again. Keeping my eyes trained on his, I watch as he finally submits to the control I have over him. I’ve never felt this level of dominance over someone.

  “Suck it, baby,” he moans, his smoky voice raw with lust.

  My tongue swirls around the head of his dick before taking him deeper into my mouth. Not much deeper, seeing as I’m not that flexible, but it seems to be working for him based on the rumbles coming from his chest as his head hits the counter once again.

  A gravelly fuckkkkkkkk leaves him and I smile around his cock.

  Yeah, no fucking kidding.

  My hips keep pistoning, now in more sporadic strokes, while my lips and tongue work the first couple inches of his length. Hollowing my cheeks, I suck hard, letting my tongue play with the underside of the head. It’s driving him fucking wild based on the way he’s clawing at the counter. Which only spurs me on more, leading me to close my eyes and give into the task of sending him to fucking heaven via my cock and mouth while he continues to stroke himself.

  And fuck me. The way he takes control of his own pleasure, owning it with confidence and ease…I’m in fucking awe.

  I feel the tip of his erection twitch in my mouth, a surefire signal he’s close to finishing, when one of his hands grips my trapezius and squeezes.

  Realizing what he’s trying to tell me, I give him one final suck before releasing, leaving him to pump his entire shaft as he pleases.

  “Fuck me,” he demands, his eyes wild with passion as he starts jacking himself faster, the muscles of his abs straining with effort. The hand that was on my neck finds its way to my waist and he tugs me to him, emphasizing his request.

  Tightening my grip on his hips, I fuck him mercilessly. Grinding. Climbing. Chasing my climax as his tight channel starts spasming around my cock. I lose all sense of time, of surrounding, of my-fucking-self in him when his release spurts from his cock, coating his stomach and chest.

  “Shit,” he groans, licking his lips as his eyes flash to mine, holding steady as he continues to work himself. The sight sends me over the edge right behind him, spilling my cum into the condom while I’m lodged deep in his ass.

  “Fuck, Riv,” I breathe, slowing my thrusts dramatically, every ounce of semen is milked from my body by his tremors.

  And when I stop all together, I’m left a sweating, panting mess.

  My hands leave his hips, gripping the edge of the counter as I gasp for breath. I pull from his body slowly, my head bowed over him as I attempt to calm my erratic heartbeat.

  What the hell just happened?

  River’s palms grab each side of my face, causing me to start. He yanks my head up, making room for him to move into a sitting position. My heart clenches at the sight of the dopiest, sated smile on his face before he leans in and places a rough, chaste kiss on my lips.

  No tongue, no teeth.

  Just his lips on mine and for some reason…it feels more intimate than the fuckhot sex that happened not more than a few minutes ago.

  He rests his forehead against mine after he withdraws, our breath and sweat mixing together as we continue to come down from the high of our orgasms. Reaching down, he rolls the condom off my softening cock, tying it off and placing it on the counter beside him.

  “I meant it, you know,” he tells me after a couple minutes, pulling back to look at my face. The expression on his… I can’t place it. But whatever it is, I’m sure it has everything to do with this bridge between enemies and lovers just having been dismantled entirely.

  I feel my forehead crease. “About what?”

  River rolls his teeth over his bottom lip, before smirking. “You laughing more. It’s sexy as hell. And I am selfish enough to want to hear it all the time.”

  My eyes roll of their own accord as I grimace. “Okay, River.”

  His smile is contagious as he shoves my shoulder. “I’m fucking serious. I’m about to make it my mission to hear it every single day we’re here.” He pauses to tap his chin. “And twice on Sundays, seeing as it’s the holy day and you love to be inside of my holes.”

  I blink at him, a small smirk on my own lips, and he shrugs before continuing.

  “What? It’s only fair to think I should get something out of it.”

  I just stare at him some more, attempting to process his cocksure attitude and misplaced entitlement…only to realize we’re having this conversation bare-ass naked in the kitchen of our Coach’s cabin…covered in cum and sweat after the hottest sex of my entire fucking life.

  And for the second time today, I just can’t help it.

  I laugh.

  “You ready for this shit?” I ask Rain over my shoulder.

  I’m digging through a clear bin I found in the hall closet that housed a few Christmas decorations, smiling like an idiot. Nothing fancy is inside, just white string lights and some standard buffalo plaid ornaments. I’d found it there the other day when I was searching for a second pair of snowshoes before remembering they were out in the shed with all the other sporting equipment.

  But the minute I found them, along with a tree stand, I sent Coach a text asking if it would be okay for us to set up a tree. He agreed, so long as we tore it all down before he was here to pick us up at the end of our stay.

  Hence, where we are now. Me and my die hard Christmas-loving ass asking for Rain to help me decorate for the holiday.

  “Do we have to?” he gumbles, leaning over the back of the couch, staring at me.

  My brows raise in disbelief. “You’re kidding, right?” I scoff when he nods in affirmation. “It’s Christmas Eve and we chopped down a damn tree for this and hauled it back here. Of course we’re going to decorate the damn thing, you nutsack.”

  Yep, you heard that right.

  Two days ago, I dragged Rain into the forest in search of the perfect tree for us. It only took an hour to find one I thought was manageable enough to both cut down and haul back to the cabin, but Rain bitched and moaned about it pretty much the whole time.

  Such a fucking Grinch, this one.

  And even after o
ur fuckhot rendezvous in the middle of the forest that I swear could have melted the snow on the ground around us.

  “All part of your brilliant plan, I might add.”

  “I don’t appreciate your tone,” I snip as I drag the box over to where the tree is held up in its stand, just next to the fireplace. Pulling free a strand of lights, I motion for him to join me. “Let’s go, Scrooge.”

  Rain lets out a huff of indignation before rising to his feet and crossing the room to me.

  “You’re such a pain in my ass,” he gripes as his hands snake around and palm my ass.

  I simply smirk, not saying a damn word until he realizes the opening he left me. Because there is always an opening when it comes to the shit he says. I mean, come on. I’m a bisexual man and you’re talking about pain in the ass. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to decode my thoughts on that one.

  Still, it takes a moment, but his eyes widen, then he frowns at me. “You’re such a fucking child.”

  “Oh really?” I laugh, grabbing the back of his neck with my free hand and bringing his mouth to mine in what is meant to be a quick kiss…that quickly turns into a full blown make out session.

  It’s honestly a little surreal, being with Rain like this.

  Open. Free. Affectionate.

  And still, it’s not always perfect. I can tell there are times when he starts to feel uncomfortable with how we touch each other. Moments when he hesitates. Whether it’s when our lips first touch, or the first seconds my hands or mouth are on his cock.

  He still fights the attraction flowing between us, and in turn, has what I’ve dubbed mini meltdowns. Where I watch the wheels turning in his head and the tick of his jaw set, like he’s preparing for battle.

  There have been a couple times where he’s snapped at me over the past four days, but in all honesty, I expected it. I’m not looking to change who he is as a person. He wouldn’t be Rain if he wasn’t a little bit of an asshole and I like him exactly how he is.

  Especially when he’s deep inside me, which in itself is mind-boggling.

  When we fuck, pure and animalistic and…hot as hell, it’s like we channel all the rage and disdain we held for each other into making the other feel good instead. We’re more attuned to one another now, as if it were even possible because I already swear he can read my damn mind.

  In short, it's the polar opposite of the vibe we’ve had flowing between us up until a few days ago when he flipped out on me, thinking I left him here on his own.

  Because, apparently, I’m the kind of person to do that to someone.

  I’ll never admit it to him, but that hurt me more than anything he’s ever done or said to me. Never in my life have I claimed to be perfect or upstanding at every moment, but there are a few things I would never do. Abandoning someone, that’s high on the list.

  Especially when I know what it feels like.

  A nip on my bottom lip pulls me out of my thoughts, and I’m left panting when I pull away from him, but there’s a huge smile on my face. When he sees it, his mouth lifts into a small grin too.

  That fucking smile.

  It might be the best part of this whole arrangement we have going on, getting to make him smile. And shit, I almost got another laugh out of him the other day. He played it off, attempting to cover it with a cough, but I heard it. The decadent sound will be ingrained in my mind forever, making me wish to hear it as often as I can.

  I meant it when I said I would try every day to make it happen.

  “Come on, you just got laid this morning,” I chide, removing myself from his tempting grasp.

  We’ve hardly kept our hands to ourselves in the past few days, even with Rain’s issues adjusting to our new status quo. But God knows we need to learn how to handle being in the same room without getting naked and fucking on whatever surface might be available before we become addicted.

  “We should do this while we still have a few hours of daylight, so we can enjoy it.”

  Starting at the bottom, I begin stringing the lights around the tree, only to find Rain staring at me and…

  Holy shit, he’s actually standing there pouting. I mean, sort of. In a more masculine, I-could-rip-you-limb-from-limb way.

  “Who are you, a male version of Cindy fucking Lou Who?”

  I smirk at his movie reference, knowing he’s full of the most random ones. He even quoted Mean Girls the other day. His asinine use of the phrase boo, you whore in a valley girl accent damn near brought me to my fucking knees, I was laughing so hard. He says he learned them from using an obscene amount of GIFs in texting chains with his friends in high school, but I don’t believe him for a second.

  Besides, when it comes to the usage of Mean Girl references, the limit does not exist.

  “I think that would be Tiny Tim?” I laugh as he finally joins me in running the lights around the tree. We work in tandem, me handing him a length of lights and him working them through the branches of the tree.

  “Nothing tiny about you, babe.”

  My heart stutters at the endearment and I freeze. Rain doesn’t notice right away, just holds his right hand out for more lights as his left fiddles with the section he laced through the branches of the tree moments ago.

  His attention snaps my way then, probably wanting to know what the hell my issue is, but my stunned expression brings him pause.

  “What? Why are you staring at me?”

  I don’t answer, just continue fucking staring.

  I can tell the moment he realizes what he said, because red tints his cheeks and the tips of his ears.

  “Sorry, it kind of slipped out.”

  I bite my lip in an effort to keep from smiling, but it’s no use. Before long, I’m grinning at him like a full blown idiot. I’m always fucking smiling at him. Because, as strange as it might seem especially with everything we’ve gone through to get to this point…I’m happy.

  Really happy.

  More than I should be, literally sleeping with the enemy.

  If that’s where I’d even slot him these days.

  Clearing my throat, I start handing him more lights. “Don’t be sorry, I don’t mind,” I tell him, and it’s true. It’s not like I don’t call him baby, though it’s usually in a taunt or in some sort of heat-of-the-moment kinda thing. “I guess I wasn’t expecting it is all.”

  He keeps stringing the lights, not meeting my gaze, but he lets out a strange noise somewhere between a laugh, cough, and groan as a blanket of uncomfortable silence settles over us.

  Shit.

  We keep working, and after all the lights are on the tree, Rain finally speaks as he digs out some ornaments, starting to place them sporadically around the tree.

  “At least you aren’t making us listen to fucking Christmas music while we do this.”

  I laugh, but inside I’m actually surprised. How the hell did I forget that piece of tradition? “Thanks for the reminder, baby,” I smirk, gripping the back of his neck and kissing him again. The emphasis on the word baby makes him shake his head once we pull apart, but at least the ice has broken once again.

  Still holding his neck, I call out to the Google Home on the kitchen counter, asking to play a Christmas playlist. A few seconds later, she’s blasting some good ole “Frosty the Snowman”.

  Biting my lip, I chance a glance at Rain, who is glaring daggers at me.

  Damn, he really isn’t into the Christmas spirit.

  His palms grip each side of my face and I’m actually a little scared he might go all Game of Thrones on me and squeeze my brain into mush through my eyeballs, The Mountain style.

  Moving his mouth forward to hover over mine, he whispers, “This is one of those moments when I really wish I still hated you,” before latching his lips onto mine in a possessive kiss that curls my fucking toes, not letting my mind linger on the fact he inadvertently admitted to not hating me anymore.

  His kiss is fierce and bubbling with desire and unspoken promises. His tongue thrust into my mo
uth and I groan when it makes contact with mine. We’re desperate, fucking each other’s mouths with greedy stokes, begging to dive deeper.

  I don’t think I’ll ever get used to kissing him, tasting him. Just him.

  But goddamn, I want to. Part of me hopes I never lose whatever this is with him. That same part of me is dreading each and every passing day.

  I realize this line of thinking is dangerous, damn near insane. We’ve been messing around for only a hand full of days and I’m already finding myself far too attached for comfort.

  And honestly, how could I not be concerned?

  Ciaráin Grady was tailor-made for heartbreak.

  And apparently, I’m the idiot who volunteered as tribute, putting my heart and body on the line, allowing Rain to test drive where he falls on the “gay spectrum”.

  As if there is such a thing.

  Sure, there is a difference between being gay and bi and straight. But it ends there. You can’t be kind of gay or sort of bi. You can’t sometimes like fucking a guy’s ass or a dude’s lips wrapped around your cock like you would sometimes like mustard on a hotdog.

  Yes, sexuality might be extremely fluid as a whole, but there are no gray areas when it comes to this.

  You either like cock or you don’t. You are into guys or you fucking aren’t.

  The way he responds to me when I touch him, kiss him, fuck him with my hand and mouth and tongue? Jesus, it tells me everything I need to know.

  He likes it. And he is.

  I feel the ridge of his erection pressed into my leg as our lips continue devouring each other. His hand slides down to cup me through my pants, but it only serves to remind me of the shit we need to get done. Namely, Christmas tree decorating.

  Sex can wait another hour, after all.

  Wrenching my mouth from his, we’re both left breathless, panting like we just completed a marathon in record time. If it were possible, I’d say I could hear his damn heart beating at a rapid pace matching my own.