Aftermath by Bailey Bradford (most important books of all time txt) 📗

out of his clothes. Tomorrow would be Darren’s first day back at work since Virginia had disciplined him, and Lee planned on making sure Darren felt him all day.

Yes, he had plans for that amazingly tight ass, and since Darren said he needed to be up by four-thirty or so in the morning, Lee wanted to get started on fucking Darren right away.

“I think it’s time for bed.” Lee stood and held his hand out to Darren.

“Really, now, at…” Darren glanced at his watch. “Three in the afternoon. You sure you’re only thirty-two?”

Lee caught Darren by the wrist. “Bucket’s empty, right?”

Darren frowned at him like Lee was dense. “Well, yeah, I gather the eggs in the— Hey!”

Lee slapped the bucket from Darren’s hand and hefted his lover up in a fireman’s carry before Darren could get another word out. He popped Darren’s ass just hard enough to sting. “That’s for the age crap.”

“And this is for spanking me.” Darren’s nip to Lee’s ass wasn’t painful at all, but Lee yelped anyway then promptly landed another smack to Darren’s backside.

“I can do this all day,” Lee warned when Darren bit him again, and much harder than the first time. “Maybe I’ll just bend you over the porch rail here, jerk your pants down and pink your ass up right. Sound like a plan?” Lee was only half teasing. He hadn’t ever done the whole spanking a lover thing, but those two swats he’d landed to Darren’s ass had turned them both on.

And seeing Darren’s pale skin warming and blushing under Lee’s hand, feeling that firm flesh give under his palm—well, Lee suddenly understood the appeal of a little rough play. For that matter, he’d liked that zing of pain when Darren had bit him the second time.

“So what’s it going to be, baby?”

Darren’s answer wasn’t a word but a bite, and if Lee had thought the second one was hard he’d been wrong, it was nothing compared to this—and he liked that it hurt more, too.

“Damn. Maybe I should strip and let you have at my ass.” Lee set Darren back on his feet and reached behind himself to rub the throbbing spot on his butt. “Or maybe I should make sure you didn’t take a chunk out of me.”

Darren was grabbing at him instantly, spinning Lee away from him. “I’m sorry, I didn’t think it’d hurt with your jeans and—” He fumbled with the button on Lee’s jeans. “Let me check and make sure I didn’t break the skin or something. God, Lee, I’m so sorry!”

“I was teasing. I, uh, I kind of liked it.” There was no ‘kind of’ to it. Lee’s cock was hard enough to hammer a railroad spike.

Darren didn’t sound relieved as he opened Lee’s jeans. “Uh huh. You just don’t want me to feel guilty for hurting you. Now let me—”

Lee spotted the truck turning onto the road leading to the house at the same time he heard the engine. “Later. Company’s coming.”

“Let’s go inside and I’ll just check real quick.” Darren tugged the open flaps of Lee’s jeans. “Whoever’s coming can— Oh. Laine and Severo.” Darren’s voice hitched slightly on the names but he started pulling on Lee’s zipper.

“I’ve got it.” Lee patted Darren’s hands then gingerly nudged them out of the way before making himself presentable for company. His nerves had started jangling as soon as he’d realized who was coming down the road.

Darren smoothed a hand down Lee’s back as he stepped beside Lee. “Do you think Severo will have any useful information?”

Lee fingered the button he’d just slipped through the buttonhole on the waistband of his jeans, too fidgety to stand completely still. “I think he must, otherwise I would have expected him to call. Something important or…or bad, he’d want to tell us in person, right? I mean, I don’t really know him well but he seems like a decent guy.” Scary, even, with the whole spirit thing, but Lee knew that was his own fear talking. He had no reason to think of Severo like that.

“You’re probably right,” Darren murmured as Laine steered the truck into the long driveway.

“Come here.” Lee settled his arm around Darren’s shoulder, pleased when Darren in turn looped his arm around Lee’s waist. Darren was as nervous as Lee and he knew touching each other would soothe them both at least a little. Kind of like two people in love would draw comfort from each other. The thought startled him. He snuck a glance at Darren when Laine stopped the truck a dozen feet from the house. Darren wasn’t watching their visitors, he was watching Lee with something so warm and sweet in his brown eyes, Lee couldn’t even panic over the fact he might be halfway in love with the man. Darren smiled and Lee cursed as he gave up. He looked at Darren and cupped his chin gently.

“Nope, no halfway to it.” Lee shook his head once at the question he could see Darren’s lips forming. He wasn’t ready to explain that sentence to Darren, not yet. Instead, Lee lowered his lips to Darren’s and kissed him.

“Geez, have y’all been doing that since we left?”

Lee blinked his eyes open and licked Darren’s lips one last time before giving up Darren’s mouth—for now. Craning his neck around so he could see Severo, Lee grinned despite a new wave of unease that welled in him. “Pretty much. I mean, look at the man. You’d do the same if you were me.”

“No, Sev would probably do something involving less clothes and more fucking,” Laine said, winking at his partner.

Severo nodded. “Yup, what can I say? Although I would want a pair of handcuffs, you know. Just because.”

Lee didn’t know and he sure wasn’t going to ask. He was going to divert the conversation, which seemed the smartest thing to do but his lover beat him to it.

“Would y’all like to come inside and have a drink?” Darren asked.

Laine and Severo both declined, Severo adding, “We