Total pages in book: 105
Estimated words: 101168 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 506(@200wpm)___ 405(@250wpm)___ 337(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 101168 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 506(@200wpm)___ 405(@250wpm)___ 337(@300wpm)
“Have the ghosts ever hurt you?” Jamie asked gently. “Are they dangerous?”
When Edgar’s eyes fluttered open again, they were the eyes of a child waking from a nightmare. The eyes of a man who didn’t believe in hope but wanted so badly to be wrong.
“I don’t know,” he said.
“But you’re scared they will?”
“Jamie,” Edgar said in a voice so small, it seemed to come from somewhere deep and choked inside him. “I’m scared of everything. All the time.”
Jamie threw their arms around his shoulders and squeezed him tight.
“Being scared sucks so much,” they said, stroking Edgar’s hair.
With a groan, Edgar’s head fell forward and thunked against Jamie’s sternum. They could feel his warm breath on their chest. Jamie pressed a kiss to the top of Edgar’s head. They cradled him in their arms, and it felt so right. Even though their towel was damp and their hair was cold and the room smelled of mildew and cold fried chicken, Edgar’s presence rendered those things unimportant.
They tilted Edgar’s face up and kissed his forehead, the bridge of his nose, the curve of his cheek. They pressed a gentle fingertip to the teardrop above his upper lip and stroked the thin skin behind his ears. When his eyes fluttered shut, Jamie kissed his eyelids.
“I wanna kiss you so fucking bad,” Jamie said, voice rough with desire. “It doesn’t have to be anything more than that, but I—”
“Kiss me, please. Fuck, please, just—”
Jamie caught Edgar’s mouth in a kiss. At first, it was sweet, but at the tension in Edgar’s thighs and his hand at the small of their back pressing them closer together, Jamie’s control snapped. They opened their mouth to the velvet swipe of Edgar’s tongue. The kiss deepened, and Edgar moaned, the sound ripping through Jamie with a jolt of lust. They cradled Edgar’s face and feasted on his mouth until he was writhing beneath them.
Heat pulsed between Jamie’s legs, and they wanted to press into Edgar, feel him from the inside. But they forced themself to end the kiss.
They were both breathing heavily, looking into each other’s burning eyes.
“Jesus,” Edgar murmured, sounding surprised.
Jamie kissed him again. This time, their tongues met and tangled, their lips barely containing the kiss. Jamie moved closer, and their nipples brushed Edgar’s chest. They shivered at the delicious sensation, and Edgar’s arms tightened around them. Desire burned in Jamie’s gut. They threaded fingers through Edgar’s hair and pulled gently.
Edgar shuddered and then froze. Jamie did it again. Edgar’s nipples hardened, and he shut his eyes.
“Mmmm.” Jamie pressed against Edgar, helplessly turned on.
Edgar pulled them closer, and their lips reunited. This time, the kiss was slow as honey and hot with promise.
Jamie trailed kisses across Edgar’s jaw and sucked lightly at the skin of his throat. Edgar’s hips bucked, and Jamie felt his erection.
“Sorry, I—” Edgar began, but Jamie clapped a hand over his mouth.
“Shut up,” they said. “You’re fucking exquisite. Don’t apologize.”
Edgar swallowed, and then he pressed a kiss to Jamie’s palm.
It was as if, denied the ability to explain, Edgar let his body speak for him. He slid the hand at Jamie’s back slowly down their spine to the swell of their ass. Jamie’s breath caught. Even through their towel, they could feel the strength in Edgar’s hands, feel how gently he applied it.
Fuck, fuck, fuck, Edgar’s responses were driving Jamie wild. They replaced the hand over Edgar’s mouth with their mouth, and as they both melted into the kiss, Jamie tightened their hand in Edgar’s hair again. This time, they tugged a bit harder and longer. Edgar gasped and shuddered, pulling Jamie to him and burying his face in their neck.
“S-stop. I—”
Jamie gentled their hand and stroked Edgar’s hair. “Are you okay?” they asked with a soft kiss to Edgar’s cheek.
“Uh-huh. It’s been a really…really long time, and I just…” He shivered.
Jamie eased off his lap. For a moment, Edgar looked bereft. Then he saw the hand Jamie held out to him, and his expression eased. He took it, and Jamie led him to the bed.
They were relieved Edgar had called time-out, because they weren’t sure they could have.
“Cuddle with me?” they asked.
Edgar hesitated a moment, looking lost, as if he wasn’t sure Jamie was serious. They got beneath the covers, wincing as the wet towel bunched beneath them. They pulled it off and dropped it on the floor.
When they patted the bed beside them, a flush burned high on Edgar’s cheeks, but his eyes were soft. “Yeah. Okay.”
He lay on top of the covers for a moment, then got underneath as well, shedding his own towel.
“C’mere,” Jamie said and put out an arm.
Edgar arranged himself so he lay on his side with his head resting on Jamie’s shoulder and draped his arm across their stomach. Jamie gathered him in so they could stroke his hair.