Page 27 of The Swap Masquerade

Moments later, I watched as he stiffened beneath me. His back arched off the bed and he cried out, hot spurts of come splashing us both and landing on his chest. Seeing him come undone sent me spiraling out of control as the most powerful orgasm I’d ever experienced hit me like a tsunami. I tossed my head back with a guttural shout as I came, filling the condom with my seed.

The last of my energy had been depleted by the intensity of my orgasm, causing my arms to give out from under me. I landed on top of him in a heap and he wrapped his strong arms around me, cocooning me in his warmth. I knew I should get up and attend to him, make sure he was all right after everything he’d been through, but he smelled so good, and his body was so comfortable, and I was just so damn sleepy…

* * *

I woke with a start, not sure where in the hell I was or why it was so hot. Opening my eyes, I took in my surroundings, the wooden furniture and beige carpeting, the large window overlooking the city. Everything came back in a rush, meeting at the hotel, kissing my mystery man, the look in his eyes as I sank into him for the very first time, followed by mutual orgasms. Mine had left my brain feeling like mush and my body zapped of strength which would explain why I’d fallen into such a sound sleep, immediately after.

At some point, he must have gotten up because my chest was clean even though it should have been covered in his come after I fell on top of him. Guilt washed over me when I realized he’d also disposed of my condom. It had been his first time and I’d wanted to take care of him, but instead, he’d ended up taking care of me.

It felt like an oven in the room, but it was probably from the solid man pressing up against my back and the strong arm anchored around my waist. Apparently, my mystery man likes to cuddle. I smiled at the thought. I’d never been much of a cuddler with any of my other boyfriends, but somehow, being held by this man felt right.

I could have very easily laid like that the entire night if my bladder hadn’t chosen that moment to complain. It took a herculean effort to move his arm enough for me to slide out from under it, but eventually I freed myself and stood up. Luckily, he was a solid sleeper, mumbling softly to himself as he flopped over to his other side, showing me his back. Right away, I heard his steady breathing and knew he’d drifted back to sleep.

Just in case, I made my way to the bathroom as quietly as possible and shut the door behind me before turning on the light. After relieving my bladder, I moved in front of the sink to wash my hands. Even behind my mask, I could tell my eyes looked much brighter than usual, my lips were still tender and plump from our kisses, and my skin had a healthy pink glow I hadn’t seen in a while. I looked happy and it was all because of the man sleeping in the other room.

Questions circled around my brain. I was glad he’d agreed to see me again, but for how long? Where was this thing between us headed? Would we ever be able to be together without the masks? Without any secrecy? Stop getting ahead of yourself. It’s only the third time you’ve seen him and the first time you’ve had sex with him. The first time ever for him.

The last thought brought other questions to my mind. Would he want to get out there more now that he’d felt what sex was like? Would he want to try it with other men? I rubbed a hand over my chest, trying to rid myself of the sudden pain that line of questioning had brought with it. The truth was, he owed me nothing. We’d made no promises to each other and therefore, he was free to see whoever or do whatever he wanted. So was I. But then, why did it hurt so bad to picture him with another man?

Yanking my mask off, I splashed some cold water on my face, letting my depressing thoughts wash down the drain. There was no use wasting time on something that hadn’t even happened yet and hopefully never would. Instead, I should be focusing on the sexy man who was currently sleeping naked in the bed I’d crawled out of.

A devious smile spread across my face as I began making a list in my head of all the things I wanted to do to him. My cock stirred at the erotic things that came to mind and I quickly shut the water off, slipped my mask back on and opened the door. I crept toward the bed, intent on waking him up, but as I neared, I saw that his mask had slipped off his face when he’d switched positions. But it wasn’t the fact that I was finally seeing the stranger behind the mask that had my feet freezing in place. No, it was because I wasn’t staring at the face of a stranger at all. Instead, I was looking at the very familiar face of Elliott Stone.

My student.

My jaw dropped open in horror as I thought of all the things I’d said and done to this young man, a young man who I’d gotten to know quite well over the past several weeks as we worked side by side on the Habitat project. A young man who I would have to face in class, knowing the things I’d done to him. Holy shit! I took his virginity! My hands shook as panic began to take hold and I ran my fingers through my hair as I paced back and forth by the foot of the bed.

What the fuck was I going to do? The college admins already frowned on my being gay but this, this would get me fired for sure. I’d lose my job and everything I’d worked for and all because I’d had no idea it was him under the mask. And how would Elliott react to all of this? Clearly, he didn’t want anyone to know he was gay, which was probably what had led him to the parties in the first place. The masks must have made him feel safe enough to finally explore his sexuality, but how would he feel if he knew the person he’d slept with not only knew him, but was his teacher? Would he feel as if I’d somehow betrayed his trust? Would he hate me?

I paused, mid-step, my brain sifting through my jumbled thoughts until it zeroed in on one in particular. I’d had no idea it was him under the mask, but he hadn’t been the only one wearing a mask. I had too. In fact, I still was. My eyes landed on his gorgeous face, sleeping peacefully, totally unaware of the man freaking out from only a few feet away. He didn’t know it was me and I had to keep it that way, for both of our sakes. Better for him to assume I’d simply moved on than to be devastated by the truth.

My body felt like it had been dipped in cement as I moved around the room, quietly gathering my things and pulling my clothes on. Elliott didn’t stir as I picked my keys up off the dresser and headed toward the door. I looked back over my shoulder, taking one last look at his beautiful sleeping form and then I slipped out the door, closing it quietly behind me.

My hands were still shaking as I pressed the button for the elevator. When it arrived, I stepped inside. The reflection in the doors was nothing like the happy man I’d seen in the mirror a short time before. I closed my eyes, taking a steadying breath as the elevator began its descent. My brain assured me I was doing the right thing, so then why did it feel like I’d left half of my heart up in room 1082?

Chapter 11

ELLIOTT

I watched from the dugout as Brett rounded third base, his legs pumping furiously as he headed for home. The outfielder from the other team threw the ball to their pitcher who threw it to the catcher. The ball landed swiftly in the catcher’s glove and he scrambled toward the base, but Brett dove, his arms stretched out like Superman in flight. His fingers touched the base a fraction of a second before the catcher landed on it. Everyone turned to the umpire who threw his arms out wide.

“Saaaaafe!”

Cheers erupted all around me and then everyone ran out onto the field, picking Brett up onto their shoulders. I stayed a few paces back, wanting to congratulate my friend but not wanting to take part in the celebration. After all, I didn’t deserve it. I’d done nothing but mess up all day and it was only by the skin of our teeth that we were able to secure a victory in the end.

Brett jumped down from their shoulders, an exuberant smile on his sweaty face as he landed in front of me. “Stooooner! Did you see that hustle?” he crowed. Brett lived and breathed baseball and I was happy for him that he got to have this moment.

“I sure did. You practically flew around those bases. Good job, man.” I held my hand up for a high-five, but he clasped it instead, pulling me in for a classic bro hug. I winced as he beat his meaty hand against my back, but I quickly plastered a smile on my face when he pulled back.

He placed a hand on my shoulder and leaned in as if he had a secret to tell me. “Listen to me, Stoner. We all have shit days. You’re one hell of a player, but you’re allowed to have shit days too, so long as they don’t become a habit. Now, brush it off. We’re still undefeated and we’ll do better next time, okay?”

I barely had time to nod before a bunch of guys rushed up and dumped a jug of ice-cold Gatorade over his head. I jumped out of the way right in the nick of time, narrowly avoiding getting soaked myself. With my teammates celebrating behind me, I turned and made my way to the locker room. I raced to my locker and grabbed my phone, waking the screen. Nothing. The rest of the guys came filing in, along with our coach, who didn’t look happy, despite the final score. Tossing my phone back inside the locker, I slammed the door shut and took a seat on the bench, preparing myself for the reaming about to come. Coach Reynolds didn’t disappoint.

The next ten minutes were spent listening to him rant and rave about every mistake we’d made, and there were plenty to choose from. Although, I knew I’d made the most. I hung my head, guilt over letting my team down engulfing me. Baseball meant the world to most of these guys, even if it wasn’t that way for me anymore, and they deserved better than having me flake on them during a game.

Besides, it wasn’t their fault I’d been so distracted lately. The fault of that lay on the shoulders of the man who wouldn’t return any of my texts. It had been a week since I’d slept with Tyrion only to wake up alone in the hotel room. I’d tried reaching out to him several times, but all of my texts had gone unanswered, leaving me to wonder what in the hell had gone wrong.

For me, that night had been perfect, magical even. It was everything I’d ever dreamed about and more. Tyrion had been amazing, never making fun of me for my nervousness or lack of skills. He’d coaxed me through the pain, taking care not to hurt me any more than he had to, and then he’d taken me all the way to the brink and sent me soaring off the edge. He’d made me come so hard, I’d seen stars, and when I’d finally floated back down to earth, I’d found him lying on top of me, sound asleep in my arms.

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