Page 25 of Praised By the Cornerback

“Tell me.”

“I’ll probably be terrible at this.” The admission comes out quiet. “It’s my first time with a guy. I don’t know what I’m doing.”

The vulnerability in his voice gets to me. I cup his face with my palm, my thumb brushing across his cheekbone. He leans into the touch immediately, his eyes closing.

“Don’t worry. I’ll take care of you.”

His eyes open, and the trust I see there nearly undoes me. He nods once, and then I’m kissing him again.

It’s slower this time, and I pour everything I can’t say into it, all the reassurance and want. Connor makes a small sound in the back of his throat and kisses me back just as hard.

I start walking him backward toward the bed. He goes willingly, his hands coming up to grip my shoulders for balance. When the backs of his knees hit the mattress, I break the kiss and reach down and tug his T-shirt up. He raises his arms, and I pull it over his head, tossing it somewhere behind me.

His chest is flushed, muscles defined from years of training. I run my hands over his shoulders, down his pecs, feeling his breath catch when I brush my thumbs over his nipples.

“Your turn,” he says.

I step back and pull my own shirt off. Connor’s gaze drags down my torso, hungry and unashamed. He reaches out and traces the line of my collarbone with one finger, then follows the path of my sternum down to my abs.

“Shit,” he mutters.

I kick off my shoes, hear him doing the same. Socks next. And then we’re both standing there in just our jeans, the air between us charged.

“Get on the bed,” I tell him.

He does, crawling backward until he’s in the center of the mattress. I follow, my knees sinking into the soft surface as I move over him. He lies back against the pillows, watching me, and I settle my weight on top of him.

The feeling of skin on skin makes us both groan. I kiss him, letting myself savor it. His mouth is warm and eager, his tongue sliding against mine.

I move lower. His jaw first, scraping my teeth along the sharp line of it. He tilts his head back, giving me access, and I take advantage. I kiss down the column of his throat, feeling his pulse jump under my lips. When I reach his collarbones, I trace them with my tongue, and his breath goes shallow.

“Adrian.” My name on his lips sounds wrecked.

I keep going. Down to his chest, kissing across the firm planes of muscle. When I reach his right nipple, I swirl my tongue around it. Connor’s whole body jerks, his back arching off the bed.

“Fuck,” he gasps.

I do it again, this time closing my lips around the peaked flesh and sucking. He moans, and his hands come up to tangle in my hair. I bite down gently and he whimpers.

I give the same attention to his left nipple. Licking, sucking, biting until it’s as swollen and red as the other one. Connor’s breathing hard now, his chest heaving, and when I look up at him his eyes are glazed with pleasure.

I straighten up, my knees pressing into the mattress on either side of his body. His gaze drops to my hands as I unbutton my jeans and push them down my hips. I have to shift to get them all the way off, kicking them aside.

Connor’s already working on his own jeans, lifting his hips to shove them down. We’re both in our underwear now, the fabric tented obscenely by our erections. I can see the outline of his cock straining against the cotton, and my mouth goes dry.

I lean down and kiss him again. His hands slide up my back, pulling me closer, and I grind against him. The friction is maddening, even through the fabric. We both groan into the kiss.

Connor’s hand comes down between us, palming my cock through my boxer briefs. I growl against his mouth, my hips jerking forward involuntarily. He does it again, firmer this time, and I have to break the kiss to breathe.

“Connor.”

“Please.” His voice is desperate. “I want to feel you.”

He reaches down and tugs on the elastic band of my underwear. I shift my weight and push them down, kicking them off. He does the same with his, and then we’re both completely naked.

I take a second to look at him. His cock is thick and flushed, the head already leaking. It’s gorgeous, and I want my mouth on it, my hands. Everything.

But first.