Page 79 of Bonus Game
Sloan had beencrying?
“I…brought food,” Riley said awkwardly, and then held up the container like an idiot. “Jake made stuffed peppers for us and then kicked me out.”
Sloan drummed his fingers against his bicep, blue eyes narrowing. “For us?”
Riley was starting to lose feeling in his feet from anxiety. He had to swallow and wet his dry throat before he could force his voice to work. “These are just for you, but I think Jake wants me to use them as a distraction so you don’t…kill me.”
Sloan continued drumming and glaring for so long that Riley had to lower the container because his arm began to shake from the strain of lifting them. They entered a silent stand-off, and the tension was enough to make Riley’s heart nearly explode.
“What do you want to say?” Sloan asked gruffly. “Allen wouldn’t tell me shit. He just said that you were ready to talk, and then asked me not to pummel your pretty face because he likes looking at it.”
Riley didn’t want to do this in the entryway, but Sloan wasn’t budging, and he couldn’t put this off any longer.
“Look—if you want to forget about the kiss, then let’s forget about it,” said Sloan. “I’m not even sure I’m into guys, but you were pissing me off so much that it was either a kiss or a punch, and I figured you’d rather the kiss.”
Sloan’s arms and chest gradually flushed a deep red as he continued to ramble—not from anger, but from embarrassment. Riley had never seen anyone light up like an angry Christmas tree before, and he was surprised it was happening to Sloan of all people.
“If it makes you feel any better, there are no feelings involved,” Sloan continued, oblivious to how flustered Riley was becoming. “You know you’re hot, so it’s not like it’s hard to see why I went for it. I still hate you, so nothing has changed between us. We’ll both go back to fucking women and pretend it never happened.”
Riley inwardly cursed himself because Allen had been right. It was difficult to believe that someone as rough and confident as Sloan could be hurt by a rejection, but he was seeing the evidence laid bare before him.
Sloan was hurting because of Riley. Sloan had cried because of Riley.
Any other time, Riley would have found Sloan’s suffering enjoyable, but today it was waking a different anger inside of him. Anger athimself.
So, what if they were both men? Riley had liked kissing Sloan, and he thought Sloan was pretty, even though he was muscular and masculine. And yeah, they were still rivals, andbeing boyfriends was out of the question, but what was wrong with kissing?
The answer wasnothing. They could kiss as much as they wanted to as long as they were both consenting, and Riley couldn’t think of a better way to figure out where the line was drawn.
He didn’t know if he was bisexual or…curious, but Riley wanted to know. He didn’t like feeling unsure of himself, and he knew Sloan likely felt the same way.
Daring to take a chance, Riley bent to set the container on the floor and then straightened. He held Sloan’s gaze so there would be no mistaking his intentions as he closed the space between them with determined steps, watching Sloan for signs of discomfort.
But Sloan’s posture mirrored Riley’s, determined as Riley’s hands touched the door on either side of Sloan’s body, pinning him against the wood. Their breaths mingled as Riley tilted his head, hovering close enough to kiss, but keeping enough space between them to give Sloan a chance to back out.
Sloan’s throat bobbed when he swallowed, and Riley’s gaze dipped to watch it before slowly dragging back to Sloan’s still swollen mouth. “You gonna kiss me or what?” Sloan asked, softer than anything Riley was used to.
“Can’t fucking stand you,” Riley growled—and then his mouth was on Sloan’s—where it belonged. He pinned Sloan harder against the door, earning a gasp from his rival’s mouth that Riley was all too eager to swallow.
Sloan’s lips tasted like something sweet, maybe one of the gummy candies Riley always caught him snacking on, and Riley swept his tongue over them and nibbled like he owned every inch of Sloan’s mouth.
Sloan was breathing hard through his nose, and his hands had flung up to grip the belt loops of Riley’s jeans when hehad been shoved against the door, but he wasn’t opening up for Riley. Not yet.
Happy to accept the challenge, Riley’s hands gripped Sloan’s bare shoulders, fingers digging into the warm, smooth skin before sliding down to trace the hard ridges of the arm muscles flexing under his touch, drawing a surprised huff from him.
Fuck, Sloan was built like a goddamn weapon, all lean power and taut lines, and Riley’s palms roamed possessively over the bulging biceps, squeezing appreciatively.
“What—” Sloan began, but Riley didn’t give him a chance to finish. He forced his tongue past those parted lips, plunging deep and stroking against Sloan’s with aggressive hunger. It turned into a battle of mouths, Riley dominating every slide and twist, sucking on Sloan’s tongue before biting down just hard enough to draw a muffled groan.
Yeah, he liked doing this. He liked how he could make Sloan react so vocally. He liked how he tasted. He liked the warm, wet heat of his mouth and thinking about how good it would feel around his cock if Sloan wanted to go that far.
And that was when Riley realized where his line was. He wasn’t panicking about thoughts of Sloan on his knees for him. Or bent over the counter as Riley drove his cock into him. Or gripping his sheets as Riley took him apart in his bed.
Riley wanted all of that and more. Maybe more.Maybe.
Because the thought of Sloan beinghis, like Allen was Jake’s and Jake was Allen’s, made him want to carve his fucking name in Sloan’s pretty, freckled skin with his teeth.
Sloan grabbed him by the throat and pushed him back, barely able to take a breath before Riley was kissing him again. Claiming him.
