Buck watched the sharpshooter through the day. He was restless, not an unusual state for Vin after all the days and nights at the hospital. The man didn't care to be cooped up for so long. But there was a different quality to this unease. Noticing his absence from the room yet again, Wilmington tracked him down near the coffee machines. He held one of those awful paper cups filled with even more awful coffee in his hand. The sharpshooter leaned against a window in the snack area, forehead to the glass, eyes far away."There's some better coffee than that sludge..." said Buck, coming up behind the Texan. "Oh, I forgot. You like that sludge." There was no movement.
"Vin?" Buck asked, reaching out to touch Tanner's shoulder lightly. "Somethin' bothering you? You know I'm a pretty good listener..." Vin did know it. In spite of the fact that the man's jaw seemed hinged at both ends, he made a very sympathetic, understanding and non-judgemental listener. But there were too many things churning around in Tanner's mind right now. He wasn't even sure yet exactly what he needed to talk about. And if Chris regained his memory... all of it would become a thing of the past anyway. He snorted. A thing of the past... It all came down to that.
"Don't matter," said Vin.
"Now, Junior," said Buck, "we been all through this a hundred times. If it's eatin' at you... then it's affecting all of us." Tanner heaved a sigh. He might as well. Once Wilmington started like this, he never gave up. He was worse than a pack of wolves worryin' at a bear.
"Chris just... he's actin' awful strange, Buck," he said. "I don't know how to be around him right now..."
"Might be strange to you," said Buck, stroking his mustache thoughtfully. "But it's familiar to me. I could have sworn when he woke up... he looked and sounded just like the Chris I knew... the way he was before..."
"Before Sarah and Adam..." breathed Vin, suddenly understanding what he'd been seeing as well.
"Yep," said Wilmington, "he was a different person back then. I can understand you bein' a mite confused." The big man chuckled. "We was a bit rougher around the edges, too."
Another snort from Vin.
"You ain't kiddin', Bucklin," he retorted.
"Chris did have a way about him then..." said Buck thoughtfully, watching the young man before him closely. "He'd see something he wanted and he'd go after it... and nothing could get in his way." Vin turned at that, looking up at the big man, his eyes wide as he began to process the information Wilmington was giving him.
'One more little piece to just nail the coffin real tight,' thought Buck.
"Chris never was the tame variety either, you know," said Wilmington. "If he thought something was right or wrong... didn't matter what anyone else thought of it." With a patented Buck Wilmington smile, the man turned and left, leaving Vin standing there blinking as his mind tried to twist around all he'd heard.
+ + + + + + +
Over the next weeks, the Team's plan seemed to be working... up to a certain extent. Chris settled in to his usual relationship with most of the men. He seemed to take naturally to commanding them. Bits and pieces of different cases they had worked on came back to him. Larabee grasped the idea of his position as Team leader intuitively and was beginning to ease back into office work. The largest part of his missing memories remained stubbornly inaccessible but he seemed to be picking up enough flashes to re-establish his place and interactions among the men. All except one... Vin Tanner.
Chris and Vin danced around each other, the older man often in stalk mode, while the Texan alternated between doing his best impression of immovable object... and running. The rest of the Team watched them warily... trying to ease things as they could. But it wasn't improving. They began to fear they were seeing the slow self-destruction of the two men who had been the heart of their group. The daily war council now centered on arguments about whether to let them work it out on their own or (as Buck was in favor of) knock their two heads together. For the time being, the others won out.
All of them had gathered at Chris' ranch for a Sunday afternoon. The food had been good, the game on television at least moderately interesting, and the companionship between them a warm underlying hum. Except for the sharp jangling against the nerves of the interactions between their team leader and their sharpshooter. Tanner was jumpy, wouldn't stand or sit close to Chris. He could frequently be found with his back to the corner, eyeing the older man through narrowed, wary eyes. Chris made an effort to be a genial host to the other men, but his eyes kept tracking to the younger man's form. He watched his backside when he walked away, watched his face whenever he could steal a glance. The words between them were few, much like it had always been, but the tension pulsing in the room every time their eyes met wasn't.
When the Team indulged in their after-game rehash of plays, Chris missed the Texan and sauntered over to the sliding glass door looking out to the corral. He saw Vin out there, brushing down Peso with frenetic energy. 'His horse... Peso,' Chris thought. 'And I don't remember... don't even remember Pony... though he feels familiar.' Chris had watched the two horses together, often wondering if the relationship between the two of them mirrored that between him and the Texan. The horses alternated between nipping at each other and standing close, muzzles almost touching.
Larabee watched as Vin stopped his activity to loop his arms around Peso's neck and bury his head in the black's mane. He couldn't tell for sure, but he thought he saw the younger man's shoulders shaking. He pressed his lips together. This needed to be settled. It was tearing them both apart. And for Chris Larabee there was only one outcome to this battle of wills between them. He would never let the sharpshooter go.
"Vin," said Chris, catching the younger man's arm as the others headed out the door. "Stay...." he said in a whisper. "Stay with me, Vin..."
Wide blue eyes met his. Chris grasped the younger man's shoulder, pulling him closer. Outside, the sounds of various vehicles starting almost drowned out the last calls of "Good-bye." Larabee lifted his other hand to slide under the long brown curls and cup Vin's head. He leaned in till he could feel Tanner's hot breath on his face.
"I don't want to chance losin' what we had," said Vin softly. The same thing he'd said in the hospital... and over and over again the last few weeks.
At least he wasn't running at the moment thought Chris. And he was letting him get physically close. The tensions had risen between them until the older man felt like a ticking time bomb. Larabee was fed up with having to chase Vin down. He wanted him right here... in his arms... where he belonged.
"But sometimes you have to take a chance," pressed Chris. He pulled the slender body against his till they were touching all along their lengths. Tanner moaned. Chris bent to nibble at his ear and breathe his next words into it.
"Tell me you don't want this..." Vin groaned louder and the dam burst. All the weeks of avoiding being alone with the man. Of kisses and touches when he could no longer avoid it. Green eyes watching him everywhere... questions in them. No, just one question... the most important one of his life. Grabbing Chris' hips with both hands Vin ground himself into the older man groin.
"OH God yesss... I want it..." Chris nipped and kissed down the long neck to a fine-boned shoulder. Once there he sucked and bit bringing blood rushing to the surface and causing Vin's chest to heave. A high keening wail broke from the Texan as he bucked against the older man.
"Oh SHIT... OH FUCK! Chrisssss..." Larabee licked the darkening spot on Vin's skin, then kissed it tenderly. He smiled into Vin's neck at leaving his mark on the gorgeous body of the sharpshooter. He moved up and captured the lips of the younger man, delving into his hot mouth, exploring every surface. The Texan's frantic movement eased as he sucked on the exploring tongue. His hips still rocked against Larabee's, but in a slower rhythm. Sharp gasps and whimpers escaped Vin as he first pushed at him then tugged him closer. Abuptly, he sagged against the older man limply. The blond waited patiently, sensing some momentous corner had been turned. After a few moments, Chris could feel the slender man gathering himself. He forced his arms to loosen their hold as the Texan pulled away just enough to look into his face. Chris saw blue eyes dilated with desire and shadowed with sadness.
"OK, Chris," he said, "I trust ya... I'll take the leap... take a chance... on us."
"I promise you..." Vin laid his fingers over Chris' lips.
"Don't make promises ya may not be able to keep..." Tanner dove in, latching on to the older man's mouth, sucking hard on his lower lip, then moving to thrust his tongue inside. Chris groaned as the man grew wilder in his movements again. Vin's hips now rocked against him as frantically as his mouth moved on his lips. He grabbed hold of Tanner's ass and swinging him around pushed him hard up against the wall. Larabee thrust his throbbing erection against the bulge in the tan jeans. Vin arched against him, breaking the contact between their lips to cry out as feelings overwhelmed him.
"OH God, Vin..." moaned Larabee, "Yes! So good... you feel so good." He buried his face in the man's hair, inhaling the scent that had been one of the first things he'd noticed. When he woke up in that hospital room with Vin leaning over him, the clean, fresh scent of the man had sunk into his mind and heart almost as quickly as the sight of the eyes that fascinated him.
Chris couldn't stop, couldn't slow down, especially not with Vin groaning and writhing against him. He thrust against the younger man, desperately wanting the restricting fabric out of the way... to feel that hard cock rubbing against his. But he couldn't make his hands move. It was all he could do to use them to hold them both up against the wall.
Vin's hands roamed over his body as he gasped in response to the older man rubbing against him. One hand slid down his back to caress and squeeze Chris' firm ass. The other hand moved between them, seeking warm skin between the buttons of his shirt. Slender fingers found and circled the sensitive nub of his nipple. It was too much. Larabee arched into the taut body pressing equally hard into his own. With a cry, he crashed over the edge. Somewhere in the back of his mind he dimly felt the blooming dampness at his crotch.
"Ah... Ah... Ah...OH..." cried Vin, sounding both surprised and almost like a innocent teen experiencing his first orgasm. Chris clung to the younger man, gasping for air as they both slid down the wall into a tangled heap of limbs and sweaty bodies.
"Damn Tanner, you're good..." Chris finally managed to get out. Vin clutched at him, his head dropping to Larabee's shoulder. Shudders still shook the thin frame. "Vin..." No response but more shaking. Chris slid his fingers into the hair at the nape of the Texan's neck and gently lifted his face. The wide blue eyes were dilated, the mouth slightly parted and still panting. What shook Larabee was the look of wonder on the younger man's face.
"Vin," he said, suddenly overwhelmed by a thought. "Vin, that wasn't the first..."
"Nah, cowboy," said Vin, his husky voice sounding even rougher than usual. "But fer sure the best..." Tanner looked straight at him, eyes still hazy with passion and that lop-sided smile appeared.
"You keep looking at me like that and we'll have to see if we can top it." The smile on the Texan's face turned seductive. He pushed himself off the floor and reached down to pull the blond up beside him.
"Appears to me," said Tanner, "that you could use some cleanin' up." Holding on to Chris' hand he led him up the stairs.
Once in the master bedroom, he turned Chris around and stalked the man across the room until the back of his knees hit the edge of the wide bed. With a hungry grin on his face, Vin pushed him down onto the mattress. By the time Chris could get up on his elbows, the sharpshooter had crawled up on the bed beside him. The older man was already breathing faster, his cock beginning to stir again just watching Vin move. There was a definite wild look to the Texan's eyes now and he briefly wondered just what he'd gotten himself into. Now, the man's face was coming closer as he leaned over him, curls falling around the square-jawed face, eyes already wide and full of passion. Chris' lips parted, anticipating the touch of that hot mouth on his.
Just as the lips were about to brush against his... so close he could feel the man's warm breath ghosting over him, Vin sidetracked. Brushing over Chris' cheekbone, he dived down and latched onto an earlobe sucking it into that wet heat. Larabee groaned and his penis hardened completely in a heartbeat. His arms began to tremble. Strong slender arms slipped around his shoulders and eased him back down. That wonderful mouth nipped down the line of his throat. Hands were busy at his chest. The slightly cooler air wafting across bare skin made him realize Vin was unbuttoning his shirt. A hand drifted over his exposed chest and hard hips descended on his as Vin moved to straddle him.
The younger man had paused to give some serious attention to his collarbones. Larabee lay there, gasping for air, his body trembling and tingling under the Texan's touches and talented mouth. He moaned again. His pants were too tight, his cock beginning to throb. Chris lifted his hands, tunneling the fingers into soft hair on each side of Vin's head. Tanner's hands gripped his shirt front just above his waist and pulled slowly, knowing the tails would drag over his swollen sex in the tight black jeans.
"Oh God!" Chris moaned, his hips lifting, pressing into the body above him. Tanner took the edges of the shirt in his hands and with a quick practiced flip tossed it off his shoulders, dragging it down Larabee's back to pin his elbows close to his body. Vin looked up into blond's face and smiled slowly, naked lust glowing in his eyes. Then he pounced on the man's left nipple, dragging his tongue roughly over the tip before sucking it hard between his teeth. Chris shouted hoarsely. Vin rolled the pebbled bud between his teeth for a minute before lifting up to descend on the other side. The older man writhed beneath him, thrashing wildly. Chris felt on the verge of exploding again and didn't want it to happen this way.
"Wait! Wait!" he cried, struggling to free his arms. Vin raised up and helped him pull off his shirt. "Want to take it a little slower this time," panted Chris. "Enjoy feeling you... and touching you." Tanner's face lit with an inner glow.
"Sure..." the younger man agreed, a pink tongue snaking out to lick his lips as he looked at Chris lying spread out below him like a feast.
"Cowboy..." finished Chris. "Say it Vin."
"Cowboy," growled the Texan. Larabee lunged up and latched onto his mouth, his hands copying Vin's move and flipping the open flannel shirt off his shoulders. He sucked and bit on those lush lips, plunging his tongue in to stroke along Vin's. Chris drew a low moan from the Texan. He tugged the long-sleeved t-shirt up and out of Tanner's pants, only to find he still hadn't reached skin. Larabee broke off from the mouth he was plundering.
"Hell, boy," he growled. "How many layers are you wearin'?"
Vin blushed and turned his face away, refusing to look him in the eye.
"I get cold easy," he said softly.
"Vin," said Chris quickly, "I'm sorry..." Larabbe never seemed to know just which remark would cause the Texan to retreat. He reached up one hand to pull the man back down to him, showering kisses all over the finely chiseled face. His other hand grasped a firm handful of ass and pulled the slender body tight against his again. "I really didn't mean anything by it." Chris traced cheekbones with his fingers. "But I think I may die of old age before we get our clothes off at this rate." He looked up into blue eyes, his own now sparking with amusement. "You've got an advantage over me, you know." Vin tilted his head, looked back at him, and took the bait.
"Well, other th'n age and bein' on top of ya right now..."
Chris smiled up at him innocently. His hand slipped beneath the thermal shirt at the bottom of Vin's layers and moved up his chest, stroking the firm muscles in a sensuous caress. Vin inhaled sharply.
"You've seen a lot more of me," whispered Chris, biting along the square jaw, "than I have of you..." His fingertips brushed Vin's nipple, his other hand now kneading Tanner's back end in a rhythmic motion. Chris grinned as he drew another long moan from the quiet man. Grabbing the layers in his two hands, Larabee stripped them up and off the man in one motion. Tanner jerked and sat there, looking at him, eyes glazed with passion and skin flushed. The older man took advantage of his momentary daze and quickly had the tan pants unbuttoned and slid down, pulling Tanner's briefs with them. He tossed the clothing off the bed and pulled Vin up on his knees, at last getting a chance to feel the man's heat against his skin. Chris melded their bodies together, running his hands over the Texan's firm ass.
"Ohhh..." he moaned. "Niiice!" Then he pulled back, fastening his eyes on Vin's. Larabee let his gaze travel slowly over the finely chiseled face, enjoying the hazy look in the other man's eyes. He followed the line of the long neck, making a note to himself to work some more on the passion mark already appearing where neck met shoulder. Chris' eyes drifted down, taking in the slim but well-muscled chest. His hand drifted up to touch but his eyes were drawn further down. The man was even more beautiful unclothed than he was buried under all those layers. Two strong hand grabbed his shoulders. They pushed and he fell back to the bed, Vin on top of him.
"Look later," growled the Texan. "Touch... NOW!" He looked up to find flashing blue eyes on him. Vin's hands were at the buttons on his jeans. Cool air rushed over his heated body as the last of his clothing was tugged down and off. Then Tanner's head dipped to circle his navel with a rough tongue. Chris sucked in air. A swift bite just below there and the mouth was moving further down. Chris could feel the wet sticky remains of his earlier orgasm still on his skin in places. Vin's tongue traveled over those places, cleaning him thoroughly, tasting him. Teeth nipped again at sensitive spots already mapped with the younger man's tongue.
Larabee groaned and reached down searching for something to hold on to. His hands found firm shoulders and dug in. His rock hard and now throbbing cock rubbed against the side of Vin's face, the man's unshaven cheeks sending sensation zipping through his body. The younger man nuzzled into the light curls at the base of his penis, nails scraping slow patterns up Chris' inner thighs. The blond let loose a long, low moan that was almost more of a growl. When the Texan moved to close his mouth over the head of Chris' cock, his tongue probing the slit, the growl turned into a howl.
"N-not... shy... are... we?" gasped out Larabee, struggling to lift his head. He had to see this, if he could just make his brain connect to his muscles. Chris looked down the length of his body. Vin was crouched between his legs. He could see the curve of his back and just a hint of the taut ass he'd grasped for a few minutes. The young man had nicely defined shoulders and arm muscles. One of his hands held the thick base of Chris' cock. The other was cupped around his ball sac, teasingly rolling them between his fingers. Long curly brown hair draped around his face.
Tanner's mouth stretched wide, slowly engulfing his penis. His neck muscles moved as he worked his tongue around it, stroking the sensitive underside. The blond groaned again. Vin looked up and blazing eyes met his. Chris couldn't breathe. His hands twisted in the sheets trying to find leverage. His heart was pounding, his chest hurt, hanging on the edge between pain and ecstasy. Chris' hips bucked up involuntarily. The younger man's hands moved to hold him still and he slid down the last bit of Larabee's cock he could manage, letting it deep into his mouth, bumping the back of his throat. His nose was buried in the blond curls just above it. The younger man swallowed.
"FUUUUCK!" screamed Chris, all the blood in his body pooling in his groin. He thrashed and fought the hands holding him, struggling to thrust into that tight wet heat. Vin slowly withdrew, stroking every inch of the swollen organ with his tongue. He stopped to nip lightly at the easily stimulated spot just below the head. Chris finally managed to gasp in a breath.
"OH God, Vin," he gasped, shaking all over. "Don't stop... please don't stop." The Texan grinned up at him, seeming to take great satisfaction in having pulled such a plea out of the normally very controlled Chris Larabee. Vin moved slowly up his body, stopping to take a bite here, a lick there as he covered the man's form with his own. He stopped with his mouth just hovering over the blond's, warm breath washing over Chris' lips. The younger man lowered his hips until Larabee could feel his hard cock just rubbing against his own wet, aching shaft.
"But cowboy..." Vin said in that raspy low voice, eyes half closed in sensuous invitation. He moved swiftly to the bed beside him. Lying down on his belly, he turned those compelling eyes to the older man. "I thought you said somethin' about 'toppin'..." He lifted his ass up enticingly. Chris' eyes widened, his mouth fell open and he was instantly up off the mattress. Spreading the young man's legs, he knelt between them. His hands went out to stroke the soft flanks, stroking a finger down the shadowed crease.
"You sure this is what you want?" asked Chris.
"Yeah... do it cowboy," said Vin, moaning softly as Larabee's finger moved lower, just touching the opening to his body. Chris slid his hands up over the hips and onto the man's lower back, enjoying the feel of sleek skin, taut muscle and the sight of all Vin Tanner laid out before him. Lying there waiting for Chris to make him cry out in passion. A frown appeared on the blond's face.
"Vin," he asked, his hand spreading out over the Texan's lower back. "Did you get hurt when I did? You pull some muscles or something?"
"Nah, Chris," said Vin, turning to look back over his shoulder, a puzzled expression on his face. "Why?" A cold chill ran over him. The older man was looking at his back. And now, he would move away. Wouldn't want him, because he wasn't right... because he wasn't straight... Well, he'd never been exactly 'straight' but this was the kind of 'not straight' that drop-dead gorgeous men like Chris Larabee definitely weren't interested in.
"Your back looks... I don't know... not straight... right here..." The warm hand drifted out over his right hip. "And it looks like this side is higher than the other one." Long fingers stroked that flank tenderly.
"Been that way since I was little," said Vin quietly, struggling to swallow his disappointment. He'd thought... he'd hoped... even if just for one night... for just a little while. And it wasn't even Larabee's memories that came between them, but his damn back. His twisted, ugly back. Chris looked up with a gasp.
"Since you were little?!" he snarled. "And why the Hell didn't your parents DO something about it? I KNOW there's agencies that will help if money's a problem! I'd NEVER let a kid of mine..." The sad look in Vin's eyes told him. "Oh, fuck it all to HELL," growled Chris. "You didn't have any parents, did you?"
"I's pretty little when my Momma died," said Vin, rolling slightly to his side, one hand plucking at the threads of the comforter.
"That's really rough, Texas," said Chris, sighing heavily. "But why didn't the State take care of it?" The younger man hunched a shoulder.
"Fell through the cracks, I guess."
"God, Vin. I'm so sorry..." Something in his voice made Tanner look up again. He saw green eyes full of concern and pain. "Wish I'd known you then. I bet you were an adorable kid. All big blue eyes and curls. Can't imagine anybody not falling in love at first sight." The Texan scowled and squinted at him.
"Skinny and full of trouble is more like it," he replied, not sure what to think of the other man's description. Chris chuckled.
"I can believe that," the older man said. "I bet you were a pack of trouble from the very beginning... with a smart-ass mouth and a temper to match!" He looked down at Vin's back again, his hand tracing the S shaped curve low in the Texan's back. "Does... does it hurt?"
"Aches sometimes when I gotta stand for a long time," said Vin with another shrug. "Doesn't keep me from doing my job though," continued the man defensively. "I can do that just fine!" Larabee looked at him startled, wondering why the man would assume anyone would think that.
"I'm sure you do," he said. "Or they wouldn't have let you on the Team in the first place... or kept you there." Vin relaxed just a little. Chris smiled seductively, his fingers now finding and rubbing at tight muscles in the man's back. "Would you let me rub it for you... when it hurts?"
"Yeah," said Vin, with a little groan as the man's fingers zeroed in on a particularly tender spot and eased the pain away. "Only... Not... Right... Now!" He rolled back onto his stomach, deciding not to question the amazing fact that Chris didn't seem to mind his physical deformity. "Touch me, Chris," he said, letting his voice go dark and husky.
"Yesss," hissed the blond. Moving his hands lower, he grasped the firm mounds of Vin's ass to pull them apart and expose the other man's most private places. The younger man felt the cooler air across his anus and lifted his hips, silently asking for more. A light touch drifted down the crevice and circling around the tight opening, pressed lightly as it began to pulse at the caress.
"Mmmm," said the Texan, turning his face into the pillow and focusing on the feelings coiling in his belly.
Chris bent over and fastened his mouth at the base of Vin's spine, just below the curve and sucked. His fingers drifted further down over the root of Tanner's cock and made light circles on his ball sac. The Texan gasped and pushed back into the hand, seeking a firmer touch, but the fingers moved with him, keeping the strokes soft and teasing. He felt teeth now just at the top of the cleft of his ass. Vin groaned.
"Anybody ever tell ya that ya have an 'oral fixation', cowboy?" he growled. Larabee laughed around a mouthful of Tanner ass.
"Yep," he said. "Quite a few times actually." He branched out to nip a few choice places over the nicely firm ass cheeks, then moved back up to the top of the crevice again. His hands were still stroking and teasing Vin's balls and cock down below. The Texan squirmed more, trying to push into his hand. Chris slowly made his way down the center, stroking with his tongue and mouthing with his lips. When he hit the tight puckered hole he began to alternately suck and push with his tongue. Tanner's back arched and he let out a low guttural moan. Larabee looked up over the slender body spread before him and could see that the younger man was panting as well.
"Ohhhh... s-shit, Chris," Vin managed to say. "Somethin' t-to... be said... fer a f-fixation... AHHHH!" Tanner's body couldn't seem to decide whether to pull up and away from the teasing hands or push back into that spearing tongue... or was it the other way around. He couldn't say. His head was spinning, body jerking and twisting as the blond drove him straight to the edge with all the stops pulled out. Chris leaned back and straightened.
"Ummm, Vin..." All he got from the Texan was a growl and a shove of his hips backwards, looking for the lost sensations.
"Hey, Texas," said Chris, "we're going to need something here. Spit just really doesn't cut it. I DO remember that much..." The curly head turned slowly and one blue eye appeared.
"Ya did that on purpose, didn't ya," said the younger man in a dead quiet voice.
"Gotta keep things even here," Larabee responded with a smirk. "Really, Vin," he continued. "I won't do anything to hurt you and I don't think there's anything in the night stand that would work." He leaned over to reach for the drawer. Vin stopped him.
"No, I don't figure ya keep lube in yer nightstand," said Tanner. "Only Buck would do that..."
"And in the living room... and the bathroom... and the kitchen..." Tanner groaned, rolling over and throwing his arm over his eyes.
"That's more than I wanted ta know, cowboy," said Vin. He sat up with a heavy sigh and slid off the bed. Looking down at the man still kneeling on the mattress, his eyes lit with promise. "You're gonna pay for that..." Vin said, leaning over to whisper in the blond's ear. He kissed the smiling lips, tasting himself and sucking that sexy lower lip into his mouth. Then he turned and strolled towards the bathroom slowly, feeling the green eyes following the roll of his hips. He returned just a few minutes later with a bottle and a rolled up towel in his hand. Tossing the towel on the floor beside the bed, Vin handed the bottle to Chris. Larabee hadn't moved from his spot on the bed, but his hand encircled his still hard penis. The Texan raised an eyebrow at him.
"Just keeping things warmed up for you," said Chris, giving him a smoldering look. "Come here..." He reached out and pulled Tanner into his arms, bringing their bodies fully against each other and their mouths together.
"Think this'll work... fer now... " Vin said when they came up for air. Larabee saw that it was a bottle of massage oil. He just grinned and pushing the other man down onto the comforter, leaned over him.
"I want you like this," he said. "On your back... so I can see your face." He closed the last little space and kissed Tanner deeply, letting him know just how much he wanted him. "Nice show, Vin..." he said, "but now it's time to pay the piper..." His hands roamed down the nicely defined chest, stopping to pluck at deep rose nipples. Vin groaned. "Do you scream when you come, Texas?"
The younger man looked up at him defiantly, eyes hazing as Larabee stroked his body expertly. His cock, which had softened during the trip to the bathroom, filled out nicely once again.
"No... never," Vin said huskily.
"Well, get ready," said Chris. "Because you will tonight..."
Vin gasped as a single oiled finger slid inside him. Damn! When had the man done that? He hadn't even seen him open the bottle. He struggled not to moan too loud as Chris opened him for his pleasure. Tanner wouldn't give the man the satisfaction of knowing that he was driving him over the edge, well beyond what he'd ever felt before. But when the slightly cool oil drizzled over his cock and down over his balls, he arced up, crying out.
"And you're going to beg me to fuck you," said Chris, leaning forward to look Vin in the eye. Tanner shook his head, but his defiant look had faded, eyes widening and darkening with desire. The blond had two fingers in him now, and was working them steadily in and out. He tilted his head slightly and sucked one of the tightly pebbled nipples between his teeth. Vin's hands came up to grab Chris' head as he gasped for air.
"Oh GOD... Oh, shit... Oh, Fuck! Now, Chris... Now... want you inside me NOW!" Vin's hips were rocking wildly on his hand. His hot, tight ass clenching on Larabee's fingers. The blond slipped his fingers out. Tanner whimpered at the empty feeling. Chris poured out a handful of oil and briefly slicked his penis, moaning at his own touch. He sat up and sliding both hands under Vin's thighs pushed them back up over his chest.
"Can you hang on to these, Texas?" he asked. Vin nodded, chest heaving and wrapped his hands around his own legs. The blond took hold of his cock, trying not to groan again at the touch.
'Just hold on another minute,' he told himself, 'just a minute more and you'll be inside that tight ass... the one you've been dreaming about all these weeks...' Chris bit his lip and controlling his wildly careening libido, placed the head of his cock at Vin's entrance. Then he looked up at the man with smoky green eyes and smiled that slow, sexy smile.
"You sure you want this, Texas?"
"Yessss," groaned Vin, wiggling his ass.
"What do you want?"
"YOU!" growled Vin.
"Oh," purred Chris, his eyes narrowing, "and just where do you want me?"
"Damn you, Larabee! I want your cock inside a me RIGHT NOW! Quit foolin' around and get with the program here!"
"Beg me, Vin," he said, pushing just a touch to give the younger man a taste. Tanner's eyes widened. "Ask me to give it to you..." The Texan gasped, twisting and undulating, trying to push his body in the right direction. He only succeeded in teasing himself even more as Chris' cock only slightly breached his hole. He couldn't move far enough down on the bed to get what he craved with his hands wrapped around his own thighs. Vin looked up into the man's face above him. He didn't see any meanness or cruelty there, only a driving hunger. The man needed to hear him say it. Needed to know that Tanner truly wanted this as bad as he did. And Vin could deny the man nothing. Couldn't fight against his heart any longer.
"Please, Chris," he breathed. "Please... fuck me..."
Larabee's eyes flashed, his face going hard and for a second Vin thought he was going to pull back all together. Then he leaned even closer, looking deeply into Vin's eyes.
"No, Vin," he said in a harsh voice. "I won't fuck you..." His expression softened. "But I'll make love to you..." He moved forward, his hips pushing until the head of his cock pressed into the small puckered hole. Tanner arched, his head thrown back, eyes tightly closed. A slow burn spread through his lower body.
"God, Tanner, you're tight," gasped Chris.
"Ohhhhh," Vin groaned, a tremor running through him. He was panting now and sweat broke out all over him.
"Vin?" asked Chris softly, "you all right? Am I hurting you?"
"'M Okay," gasped the Texan, chest still heaving, "j-just... been... a while..." Larabee inhaled quickly, eyes widening in concern and moved as if he were going to withdraw.
"NO!" shouted Vin, letting go of his legs, wrapping them around Chris' waist and reaching under them with his hands to grab the man's hips. "You pull outta there," he growled, his eyes flashing, "and I'll bust your ass... boss or no boss!" Larabee let go his breath with a whoosh and grabbed Vin's hips just barely preventing him from impaling himself totally on his penis. Tanner had managed to get more of what he wanted however and he wasn't settling for partway. His eyes were wild and almost desperate as he fought with arms and legs to pull Larabee closer... or himself down onto the invading shaft, no matter how much pain it caused. Vin couldn't lose this chance now... not when he was so close.
"All right, Vin," Chris said, trying to calm the man down and hold him still at the same time. He leaned forward slightly again. "I won't stop... but we'll take this slow and easy..."
"Don't want slow and easy," gritted out Vin between clenched teeth. "Want hard and fast!"
"I'll give you what you want," promised Chris, rocking forward just a little.
"Ohhhh," said Vin, eyes half closing.
"Shhh... I won't go away... won't leave you..." The blond rocked gently back and forth, each movement pushing him a little further in. A rising wail rose from the Texan as the heat spread and engulfed his whole body. He still pulled at Larabee's ass with his hands, but his movements lacked their earlier frantic intensity.
Chris rocked one more time and he was fully seated in Vin. He stopped now and let himself feel it. Throwing his head back, mouth opening in huge gasps, he fought the urge to move for just a moment... to savour the sensation of Vin all around him. He'd never felt anything so good, so perfect. Slowly, he pulled out till just the head of his cock was left in Vin's body. He thrust back in slightly faster than he'd withdrawn.
"Oh, God... yeesssss..." moaned Vin, his head thrashing from side to side. "There... yes... just... THERE!"
Chris set a slow rhythm, bending over Vin's body as he moved in that wonderful, hot channel. His whole being focused on thrusting in and out, pleasuring the younger man, controlling his own desires, holding them both on that knife edge of delight. The younger man pushed down onto him, crying out inarticulate sounds of joy, using his hands and legs to let him go and pull him back. The speed picked up along with their breathing. A fallen lock of Chris' hair brushed Vin's chest with each forward thrust. Deep moans broke from him as he let the tide of heat and light carry him away.
Larabee raised his head to look into Vin's face, wanting to see there what this was doing to him. There was a feral glow in the blue eyes. Tanner bucked harder under him with each stroke, deep growls and untamed sounds coming from his throat. His hands were everywhere he could reach, digging in to Chris' muscles, scraping along his sides and back. He reached down and wrapped his hand around Vin's cock, stroking it in rhythm with his thrusts into the man's body. The Texan cried out, more incoherent sounds breaking from him.
They moved faster and faster, each reaching for something more, more sensation, more heat, more passion. It flowed over them, pushing them together, melding them into each other, into one driven being, trying to find itself. It was no longer just making love but a search... a quest to find what had been missing... the lost gift they'd never known to be gone. Their bodies writhed and fought, clawed and clasped, moving in a rhythm older than time itself. They came to the edge and then looking deep into each other's hearts, they leapt off the precipice together. Rolling and turning, pressing kisses and clasping hearts together as they fell, fluttering slowly back to earth and more mundane things.
"VIN!" screamed Chris as an orgasm the intensity of which he'd never truly believed existed rolled over him, stealing him of energy to even inhale. He heard Vin scream at almost the same instant, something that could have been his name, but was so guttural as to be mostly unintelligible. He fell into the body that welcomed him so sweetly, clasping his organ in tight ecstasy. Shudders and ripples ran through him. He could feel Vin's body bucking in his arms the same way. At last Chris felt he'd come home. The blond had felt lost and wandering since he'd woken in the hospital. But no longer. He'd found the other half of his soul. Vin screamed again and this time he heard his name. Chris' body and mind pitched forward into darkness.
Slowly, his thoughts swam up from the warmth and completion of their two souls wrapped around each other. Larabee groaned, not wanting to leave that safe, beautiful place, but something else was calling him. He became aware of his body at last and realized he was resting heavily on Vin, still half inside of him. Easing out and over beside the younger man, he quickly checked his breathing. Then he looked at Tanner's face. There was an ease, a complete relaxation there that he never remembered seeing. Everything he could recall of the man pointed to him being preternaturally aware of everything and everyone around him. Apparently now he'd abandoned all caution. He had trusted Chris with everything. The blond leaned over to place a tender kiss on Vin's lips. The Texan stirred beneath him and he gathered him in his arms, pulling him closer. Blue eyes slowly opened and focused on him. When that heart-stealing smile lit the younger man's face, Chris felt his own galloping around in his chest.
"You all right, Vin?" he asked softly, brushing long hair back from his face.
"Better'n all right, cowboy," replied Vin. Chris smiled down at him and bent to kiss him again. The younger man responded eagerly and they spent several minutes indulging in a thorough exploration of each other's mouths... until the damp stickiness of their bodies began to intrude. The Texan leaned over the edge of the bed, retrieving the rolled towel in which he'd tucked a hot, wet washcloth.
"Always well prepared Vin..." teased Chris, taking the cloth and beginning to clean the Texan off. "Sounds suspiciously like the Boy Scout motto to me..."
"Wasn't ever a Boy Scout, Chris," said Vin, his eyes twinkling with mischief. "Don't imagine you were either..."
"You're right about that," said Chris, stroking the cloth over the Texan's chest and watching his reaction. Vin's eyes darkened at the touch, breath quickening. The warm golden skin flushed. Larabee found himself smiling at being able to get such a reaction out of Tanner so easily. "My idea of a good deed for the day just doesn't quite fit their image." He leaned down and breathed out slowly over the darkening purple mark at the base of Vin's neck. The Texan shuddered, knowing instinctively that the man was marking his territory.
"Suits me just fine..." rasped Vin as he angled his head giving the blond better access, moaning softly as that hot mouth closed over the sensitive spot again. Chris' hand began to wander again, stroking Vin's back. Tanner took the rapidly cooling washcloth from Chris' otherwise occupied hand. "If ya ain't gonna do anythin' useful with that, it's my turn." He began to wipe the other man and got a few yelps and a glare. Vin chuckled and dried him with the towel. A shudder ran through the Texan.
"What's wrong?" Chris asked quickly. Then he saw the goose bumps rising all over Vin. He smiled. This he could fix. "You're cold." He pulled the younger man closer, wrapping his own body around the man. Flipping the covers over them, he carefully tucked the thick comforter around the Texan. Chris ran his hands over the younger man's back and arms briskly, warming him. Vin sighed, relishing the touch as well as the heat. When the blond's hands slowed and became soft touches, he snuggled in even closer to the warm body tucking his head under Chris' chin.
"Chris," said the younger man softly, "when ya remember... I'd like it to be like it was before. I can forget if ya need me to..."
"It won't be like..." Slender fingers came up to cover his lips.
"No promises... just wanted ya to know that..." Chris sighed. No amount of talking would convince the young man. He'd just have to show him.
"We'll talk about that when... if it happens," he said firmly. That seemed to satisfy Vin for now and he relaxed into Chris' hands again. Larabee listened as the younger man's breathing deepened into sleep. He was tired... but a deep happiness filled him. Chris refused to let himself slide into sleep just yet. He wanted to take pleasure in that feeling... let it soak all through him. The restless emptiness, that drive to find something he'd lost that had occupied him since he'd awakened in the hospital room was gone... banished completely by one long-haired wildcat Texan. It didn't matter now whether he remembered. Actually, he was beginning to wonder if he wanted to recall the years he was missing. The blond thought he'd just rather go on from where he was right now. The young man stirred slightly in his arms and murmured something.
"Shhh, Vin," he whispered, soothing him back in to sleep. "I'm right here... I won't go anywhere..." He drifted away on that thought. Everything was in place in his life again. Right where it needed to be... held tenderly in his arms.
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