Evan rolled his eyes with a soft huff of disbelief. “You can’t just say that and make it?—”
“I know,” CJ cut in with a shake of his head. “I know I can’t promise you something like that or expect it to fix anything. AndI’m not asking you to just believe me. I know I’ll have to prove it to you, but I’m not running this time.”
Evan’s gaze returned to CJ’s face, his eyes searching for a lie. But it wasn’t there, and CJ met his eyes easily.
“I invited you here,” he said as he took another step toward Evan. “I kissed you back, and I’m not walking away or telling you to leave, even though my brain is doing everything it can to convince me that this is a terrible idea.”
Evan watched him, and CJ saw his shoulders ease a fraction as his eyes darted to the shrinking space between them. He still radiated hesitation, but he was listening, and CJ could work with that.
“I know it’s going to take more than this for you to believe me.” CJ closed the last few inches of space between them and his hand came up, settling lightly against Evan’s side. Evan’s breath caught, just barely, but enough for CJ to feel it beneath his palm. “But I want this. I want you.”
“Yeah?” Evan asked, and CJ heard the smallest crack of uncertainty in his voice.
CJ didn’t hesitate, and his voice was steady and certain when he spoke. “Yeah.”
“Okay,” Evan murmured.
That was enough for CJ, and he closed the remaining distance, hand sliding from Evan’s side to the small of his back, fingers splayed.
This time, the kiss wasn’t rushed. It wasn’t frantic like the first one, which had been all sharp edges and pent-up tension snapping loose at once. It was slower and deeper, intentional and filled with all of the emotions they’d been holding back. One of Evan’s hands found the back of his neck, steady and warm, and the other curled around CJ’s hip, pulling him close.
Then CJ’s hands were moving again, gripping Evan’s shoulders as he walked them backward out of the kitchen, onlystopping when Evan’s back hit the wall with a soft thud. The impact sent a jolt of want through him, and he pressed his thigh between Evan’s legs. Evan’s hands found their way to CJ’s chest and his fingers tangled and twisted in CJ’s shirt, knuckles pressing against his chest as his hips rocked forward and arched into CJ, seeking friction.
“You have no idea,” CJ murmured against Evan’s mouth, and his lips curved into a smile as Evan shuddered beneath his hands. “How long I’ve wanted this.”
The quiet admission seemed to destroy the last of Evan’s control, and he used the hands twisted in the front of CJ’s shirt as leverage to spin them until CJ was the one with his back against the wall. Evan crushed his mouth to CJ’s, kissing him with a wild desperation and grinding his hips against CJ’s. The layers of denim between them were an infuriating barrier as CJ reached around and cupped Evan’s ass, trying to pull him closer. His fingers tangled in Evan’s hair and he tightened his grip just enough to pull a moan from Evan.
“Bedroom,” CJ gasped against Evan’s lips, and the word sounded barely coherent to him. “Now, Evan.”
Mouths still fused, they stumbled more than walked down the short hallway to CJ’s bedroom, a tangle of limbs that bounced off the walls in their rush. The bedroom door was ajar, and it slammed into the wall as they crashed through it. Evan propelled him backward until the edge of the mattress caught the back of CJ’s knees and he dropped to the bed. He pulled Evan down with him. The impact knocked a breathless laugh out of both of them as they landed in a loose sprawl, half on top of each other and half sideways across the bed.
For a second, neither of them moved. They just lay there, chests rising and falling too fast, faces inches apart as they tried to catch their breath and get their bearings. It didn’t work. CJ couldn’t be anything except off-kilter when Evan was right therewith kiss-swollen lips and disheveled hair, eyes dark and fixed on CJ like he still didn’t believe this was real.
“Graceful,” he murmured, one hand rubbing up and down Evan’s side.
“You dragged me down with you,” Evan protested with a laugh.
“Did not,” CJ shot back automatically.
“Did too.”
CJ shook his head and his mouth curved into a grin as they moved their entire bodies onto the bed, but they didn’t move far from each other. Evan’s body was still pressed along his side, and the heat from it was distracting enough that the humor faded fast and shifted into something quieter. His eyes dropped to Evan’s mouth again, just for a second, before he caught himself. He slid a hand between them until his fingers found the hem of Evan’s shirt. He hesitated for a moment before raising his eyes to Evan’s.
“Still okay?” he asked. The whispered words sounded loud in the quiet.
“Yeah,” Evan said. “You?”
CJ nodded. “Yeah.”
CJ eased Evan’s shirt up, just an inch, until his fingers brushed against the skin of his stomach. Evan shivered and moved enough to allow CJ to pull the T-shirt over his head, the collar catching briefly on his chin before it was tossed aside. The apartment was cool and Evan’s skin was hot beneath CJ’s palms. He smiled softly as he ran them over Evan’s pecs and his nipples pebbled under the attention.
“God, Evan,” CJ breathed, leaning in to press open-mouth kisses along Evan’s jaw. “Look at you.”
Evan’s hands worked the buttons of CJ’s shirt, fumbling slightly in his haste, until the fabric gave way and he could push it open. His eyes landed on the hard planes of CJ’s chest, and hefelt his skin flush under the scrutiny. Evan reached out and ran a hand down his torso, following the dusting of hair that narrowed as it disappeared beneath the waistband of his jeans. Evan’s hand flattened against CJ’s side, and CJ’s heartbeat picked up its pace. With a growl of frustration, Evan yanked the rest of CJ’s shirt from where it was tucked in, and CJ lifted his shoulders enough to pull it off before Evan straddled his hips.
The sight of Evan’s chest was so familiar to CJ, but so different after years apart, and he traced the lines of muscle with his fingers, trying to relearn territory he used to know so well. His thumbs circled the dark nubs of Evan’s nipples, and Evan arched into the touch before leaning over to kiss him. Their mouths crashed together again, tongues dueling and teeth scraping in their haste to consume each other. CJ’s hands fumbled with the button of Evan’s jeans for a minute, then he slid his hand past the open waistband, fingers brushing against the hard heat straining against fabric before he wrapped them around Evan’s cock and stroked him once from base to tip. Evan broke the kiss with a choked gasp and his head fell back as CJ’s fingers wrapped around him.
“CJ,” he breathed, hips thrusting instinctively into the tight grip. “Don’t stop. God, please don’t stop.”
