“Okay?” His eyebrows rise slightly.
“Yeah. Dinner. Public.” I take a deep breath. “I can do that.”
“Dinner. Public. Together.” The words sound strange coming from my mouth after months of hiding, but they feel right. Like I’m finally exhaling after holding my breath for too long.
Theo’s smile slowly breaks across his face, transforming his features. It’s not the cocky smirk I’m used to—this is something softer, more vulnerable. He reaches up to touch my face, his fingers tracing my jawline with a gentleness that makes my chest ache.
“Thank you,” he whispers, and the pure emotion in his voice knocks the air from my lungs.
I turn my face to press my lips against his palm. “Don’t thank me for something I should have done months ago.”
We move toward each other like magnets, my hands finding his waist as his arms wrap around my neck. The kiss isn’t hungry or desperate like so many before—it’s tender, unhurried, as if we have all the time in the world. I feel something crack open inside me, walls I didn’t even know I’d built crumbling to dust.
I lift him, cradling him against my chest as I carry him to the bedroom. His weight feels right in my arms, like he belongs there.
On his bed, I undress him slowly, reverently, mapping every inch of his skin with my hands and mouth. His body responds to my touch with eagerness, but there’s something different in his eyes tonight—a shadow I can’t quite read.
When I finally push inside him, the sensation nearly overwhelms me. I’ve been with him countless times before, but this feels new—like we’re truly seeing each other for the first time. I move slowly, deliberately, watching his face for every flicker of pleasure.
“Look at me,” I whisper, and his eyes open, dark and fathomless.
He’s with me, around me, responding to every thrust and touch, but I catch moments when his gaze seems distant, like he’s bracing himself for something. His hands clutch at my back with an almost desperate intensity, as if he’s trying to hold onto something that’s slipping away.
I kiss him deeper, trying to pull him back to me, to anchor us both in this moment. His body arches into mine, but I feel the subtle tension in his muscles—not from pleasure, but from some unspoken worry.
I gaze down at Theo beneath me, watching his face transform with pleasure. Sweat glistens on his skin, his curls damp against his forehead. There’s something powerful about being with him that I’ve never experienced with anyone else—this blend of dominance and vulnerability.
“I can’t get enough of this—of you,” I whisper, my voice rough. “The way you feel around me, the sounds you make. It’s... everything.”
Theo’s lips curve into that smile that always undoes me. His hands slide up my chest, fingertips tracing the ridges of muscle.
“You know what I keep thinking about?” I slow my pace, grinding deeper. “That night in the mirror room. Your birthday.”
His eyes darken with recognition. “When I fucked you?”
“Yeah.” The memory sends heat rushing through me. “I want that again. Tonight. Want you inside me.”
Theo’s breath catches. “You sure? It’s only been?—”
“I’m sure.” I’ve never been more certain of anything. “I want to feel you everywhere. Want to give you everything.”
Without warning, I flip us, pulling Theo on top of me. His smaller frame settles against mine, and I spread my legs, making room for him between them.
“Like this,” I say, voice barely above a whisper. “Face to face.”
Theo reaches for the lube on the nightstand, his movements deliberate as he coats his fingers. When he reaches between us, I tense instinctively before forcing myself to relax.
“Breathe for me,” he murmurs, working one finger inside me with careful patience.
I close my eyes, surrendering to the unfamiliar sensation. By the time he adds a second finger, I’m pushing back against his hand, seeking more.
“That’s it,” Theo encourages, finding that spot inside me that makes stars explode behind my eyelids. “Just like that.”
When he finally pushes inside, the stretch burns in the most exquisite way. I grip his hips, urging him deeper.
“Fuck, Victor,” he groans, bottoming out inside me. “You feel incredible.”
Theo rocks into me with steady, deep strokes, his rhythm building like a well crafted beat. My body burns with the stretch of him inside me—still unfamiliar, still overwhelming. It’s only the second time I’ve ever let him do this, but the sensation of fullness, of surrender, ignites a fire in me.
