Page 110 of The Shots You Take

He felt those words with every thrust.

Adam was stroking himself again, still gazing at Riley’s face. “Riles,” he said. Then repeated his name twice more. Riley loved hearing it. He never wanted to stop listening to a blissed-out Adam Sheppard chanting his name like a prayer.

“You gonna come?” Riley asked with effort. “Shit, Adam. I’m so close.”

Adam answered his question by going rigid and coming all over his own chest. “Oh fuck.Fuck.Riles.”

Riley lost all sense of rhythm after that, fucking Adam wildly as he drowned in pleasure. Then, like the sea being dragged back from the shore to form a monster wave, he shivered and braced for impact before being smashed apart. He exploded inside Adam with a choked howl of relief and ecstasy. It seemed to go on and on, delicious ripples rocking through him as he continued to lazily thrust. Now that he was finally inside Adam, he didn’t want to leave.

He lowered himself carefully and kissed Adam until his dick softened and slipped out on its own. Then he sat back on his heels so he could admire the mess that was now Adam Sheppard.

Adam spread his arms wide on the mattress and smiled sleepily. “Gotta say, that was fucking great.”

Riley smiled back at him. “The best.”

“I probably need a shower.”

“You look all right to me.”

Adam laughed, then said, “Shower with me?”

“You just want someone else to do all the work scrubbing you down.”

Adam closed his eyes, still smiling. “You made the mess.”

Riley huffed. “Guess I’ve gotta clean it up then. Come on.”

The shower was ninety-eight percent lazy kissing and two percent scrubbing, but they got the job done. Later, when they were back in bed, Adam tucked snugly under Riley’s arm, Adam said, “Thank you. For doing that for me.”

It took Riley a moment to understand what he was talking about. “It wasn’t exactly a hardship, fucking you.”

“I mean… I’m glad it was you. I needed to really trust the person who did that to me for the first time, so thank you.”

Riley’s brain told him two things at once: that it was really nice hearing Adam say that, and also that it might mean Adam was now ready to bottom his way through gay Toronto.

He pushed the second thought away and kissed Adam’s temple. “I’m glad it was me too.”

He wanted it to keep being him. He wished they had more time. He wished this could have happened during a better week, one where Riley wasn’t choking on grief. A week when Adam could have seen him at his best, instead of his absolute worst.

But Adamhadseen him at his worst, and he was in Riley’s bed anyway.

Riley kissed his temple again. He hoped, if nothing else, he’d given Adam some good memories over the past couple of days. If this was where things had to end, then at least they could both move forward without the ghosts of the past haunting them.

As Adam fell asleep in Riley’s arms, Riley let himself imagine a different future, where things didn’t have to end. He thought about what that might look like, what he’d be willing to give up. He could be patient, he thought, if a life with Adam was the prize.

Chapter Twenty-Nine

“How long is the drive again?” Adam asked between kisses.

Riley smiled. “It’s still about ninety minutes. Same as when you asked last time.”

Adam sighed and slipped his hands under the hem of Riley’s T-shirt. He was obsessed with Riley’s stomach: the solid muscle, the soft skin, the sexy dip of his belly button. “What time is it now?”

“Almost ten. Your flight is at one. You need to leave.”

They were in the kitchen, attempting to say goodbye for the second time today. The first time had been an hour ago, but then Adam had spotted a deer in the backyard, and Riley had found his excitement adorable. So they’d ended up blowing each other on the sofa. This time Adam had his coat on, and his suitcase beside him. This time it was real.

“Maybe there’s a later flight,” Adam murmured against Riley’s neck. “Like, maybe one in October.”

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