“You’re incredible,” Chris whispered. “Beautiful.”
Seth had never felt beautiful before, but Chris made him feel that way. Special. Important. There were so many things Chris made him feel.
Their pace picked up, and their gazes locked, lost in the rhythm of pleasure.
“I’m about to…” Chris said.
Seth stroked himself harder, but Chris brushed away his hand, wrapped his fingers around Seth’s cock, and stroked. Once. Twice. And the release rolled through Seth, a wave of bliss as he shot out and over Chris’s hand. Colors exploded behind his eyelids and he marveled at the vivid hues.
“Seth,” Chris moaned as he pushed in hard and froze.
Seth felt the cock expand inside him, and the heat of Chris’s release into the condom as he began to come down from his own orgasm.
A minute later, Chris pulled out, rolled onto his back, and removed the condom. After tossing it into a nearby trash can, he pulled Seth close and nuzzled into his neck.
“That was amazing.”
Seth couldn’t agree more. There was something different about this coupling than any of his other hook-ups. There was…well, he wasn’t going to say the word, but the letter “L” floated around in his head. He shivered in Chris’s arms, then smiled when Chris pulled the comforter over them and kissed the top of his head.
Seth wiggled around and settled in, until Chris tossed off the comforter and rolled away. “Be right back.”
And he was, with a warm, wet cloth. He gently wiped Seth. No man had ever made Seth feel as cherished.
Chris caught him staring. He dropped the cloth. “I’ll get it in the morning. I’d rather be here with you.” He slid back into bed and pulled Seth close. “This might sound corny,” he whispered, his hot breath blowing across Seth’s ear, “but will you be my boyfriend?”
Seth touched Chris’s face. “That’s not corny. That’s all I wanted to hear.”
“So that’s a ‘yes’?”
“Definitely a ‘yes.’” He gave Chris a quick kiss before rolling over.
Chris pulled him close and once against nuzzled Seth’s hair.
Seth smiled and marveled at the change in his life in the last few hours, grateful that he’d given Chris a second chance, and likewise. He slept deeply in his boyfriend’s arms that night, knowing in his heart this would be the first of many, many nights they shared together.
12
Seth’s cell phone rang and he jolted awake to unfamiliar surroundings. The arm around his waist tightened, and he chuckled. Even in his sleep, Chris wanted him close. It was sweet. He snuggled in and ignored the phone.
When it rang again, he figured it was probably Damon and he might need a ride. Reluctantly, he lifted Chris’s arm and climbed over him to find his jeans. He pulled his phone from a pocket and his chest panged when he saw it was Karlee’s number. She never called in the middle of the night. Panic rising in him, he answered.
“Karlee?”
“No, this is her friend, Debra.”
Debra. Karlee’s friend who had just moved back to town. Why was she calling Seth?
“What’s wrong?” he barked.
“We’re at the hospital. Bellflower General. She was having severe pains so I brought her in and….” She trailed off as her voice began cracking.
“And what?” he asked impatiently. “What the hell is going on?”
Debra sniffled and let out a shaky breath. “They’re doing an emergency C-section.”
What the fuck? She’s barely seven months along. “I’ll be there as soon as possible.” He hung up, shoving the phone into the pocket before jumping into the jeans. Now where the hell was his shirt?
“What’s going on?”
Seth turned to see Chris sitting up in bed, barely awake. “Karlee is at the hospital and they’re doinga C-section.”
Chris’s eyes widened and he sat up straighter. “What? Jesus.”
“Yeah, so I have to go. I’m not sure why they have to deliver, but she’s my best friend. I have to get there.”
“Of course. Just let me throw on some clothes and I’ll take you.”
Seth stopped short. “You want to go?”
Chris looked at him like he was an alien. “Why wouldn’t I? First, she’s your best friend. Anyone you care about, I care about. Second, she gave me a job and a partnership in a business.”
Seth shook his head. “Right. I’m sorry. I’m not thinking straight. Just panicking.”
Chris grasped his hand. “I’m not going to placate you and say everything is going to work out, but I’m here for you no matter what happens, okay?”
Seth nodded, swiping at the tears spilling easily down his cheeks. “Okay.”
* * * *
They drove to the hospital mostly in silence. Seth tried to keep from fearing the worst, but he was an intelligent man—needing emergency surgery meant something with the pregnancy was drastically wrong. Was it the baby? Was it Karlee?
They parked in the Emergency parking lot and made the long trek to the doors. Seth’s heart roared in his ears as they entered, and he scanned the room for Debra. He was pretty sure she had blonde hair, but it’d been a long time since he’d seen her.