“I don't need you to do anything else,” Thomas muttered, the edge gone from his voice. Leon scraped his fingers across the fabric again, prompting a shudder from him.
“Really?” In spite of his bound state, a surge of power rushed through Leon. “'Cause you seem to really like it when I'm doing stuff.” He turned his head as much as Grady's impossible hold would allow. “I can do a whole lot of something else if you give me the chance.”
“Like what?” Long fingers moved away from his cock to close around his balls. The sudden pressure almost made Leon's eyes water. “Try to run away again? I'm not going to give you the chance to do anything.”
No, he wasn't running from this. All of the satisfaction from handjobs disappeared in the need to feel Grady splitting his ass. It felt like he'd been waiting for a repeat performance for the past three days.
“Name it. Tell me what you want, and I'll do it.” In that moment, he absolutely meant every word. “Just let my arms go so that I can feel all of you, damn it.”
Thomas loosened the rope around his wrists, freeing one hand. He wrapped the length around the nearest branch, forcing Leon's wrist above his head. It wasn't perfect, but his other hand was free now, and that was almost enough to satisfy him.
“I should just leave you hanging here. Or knock you out. Or shoot you.” His hands returned to where they had been before—on his cock and his throat—and Leon didn't know if Thomas was talking to him, or talking to himself.
“You should. You won't.” He reached behind and gripped Grady's hip, pulling him flush with his ass. “You want this as much as I do.”
Thomas massaged him, his fingers hard, and getting harder every time he pressed into Leon's flesh. “Push your pants down.”
He wouldn't be surprised if Grady left bruises. The fingertips at his neck alternately cut off his air and eased the tense muscle, while those at his cock coaxed more and more pre-come down its length. The only reason he found the wherewithal to obey the order was his desperation to feel that thick length against his bare skin, but he did as he'd been told. He scrabbled at his pants, shimmying them down to his ankles.
“Good.” Thomas's breath was coming faster, tiny, swift gasps on the back of Leon's neck. “Now unbutton my pants.”
His hand shook with desire, but Leon complied, tugging at the buckle to free the belt first, then struggling with the fastenings. It might have been easier if he had both hands, but Leon had a dark realization as he got the top button open. Being bound made it better. Being at Grady's mercy had his heart racing, his nerves hungry with anticipation. The only thing that would have beat this would have been seeing Thomas at the same time. Being face to face.
Maybe next time. Though he certainly wouldn't be the one to suggest it. He'd admitted to too much already.
The hand on his throat disappeared, allowing Leon to finally take a deep breath. Thomas didn't completely break contact with him, though. His fingertips pressed against Leon's lips, forcing him to open his mouth. As soon as he did, Thomas pushed two of his fingers past Leon's teeth. He pumped his wrist, giving a hint of what he planned to do once his skin was properly slick.
Leon sealed his lips around the strong fingers, sucking at them as hard as he'd ever sucked at Grady's cock. When he heard Thomas groan, he wasn't sure if it was because of that or because he'd finally gotten his hand on the man's arousal, scraping down the shaft now without the benefit of covering. He didn't much care. He was too lost in the heady fire sweeping through him, and his ass clenched every time Thomas pushed his fingers deeper into his mouth.
It felt like Thomas wasn't going to be happy until he reached right into Leon's throat. His fingertips tickled the back of his tongue, his knuckles scraping across the roof of his mouth. It made him squirm and Thomas moan, his cock sliding between Leon's thighs. Thomas pulled his hand free, the slick fingertips pressing against Leon's ass seconds later. And then he was inside, fingers stretching the flesh that was still a little sensitive from the first time Thomas fucked him.
Leon hissed at the intrusion and clamped down. He had to struggle for breath, a fight even more difficult now than when Thomas had had his hand at his throat. He almost wished it was back. At least then, it made sense when he couldn't find air.
“See? Better than shooting me. Or will be, anyway. Soon as you stop fucking around.”
“Sometimes ... I think ... you won't be happy ... until I just shove a rag in your mouth.” Thomas thrust into his tight channel with each word, but he didn't sound very threatening—especially since he was giving Leon almost exactly what he wanted.
“Not a rag I'm interested in.”
He ground back against Grady's hand, groaning when he twisted his wrist in order to press the heel into the crack of his ass. It let his fingers dig even deeper into his passage, and when he felt hard calluses scrape across his sweet spot, he shouted out, unable to contain it.
“On the other hand, if I gagged you ... I wouldn't hear you shout.”
Thomas found that spot again, grinding against it almost ruthlessly. The bark on the tree scraped across his bare groin and thighs, forcing him to push even harder against Thomas. He was going to be raw and bruised by the time Thomas was finished with him, and the thought just made him throb.
“Like that, do you?” Leon caught the rope binding him to the tree limb, winding it around his hand in order to have something to better hold onto. It forced his body to stretch even more, finding new patches of skin to rub against the rough bark. “What happened to wanting to hear me beg?”
“I will hear you beg before we part ways.” His teeth closed over the tendon in Leon's neck as he slid his fingers from Leon's body. The head of Grady's cock, sticky with pre-come, dragged down his ass to press at his hole. “One way or the other.”
“Never.” He would deny even more, but Thomas was gnawing at his neck like he wanted to eat him alive, each bite sending a fresh array of goose bumps down Leon's exposed skin. Reaching around, he bypassed Grady's cock to go straight for his balls, cupping and squeezing with the same sort of force Thomas exerted on his erection. “Now fuck me before we both explode.”
“You will,” Thomas said, pushing the head of his cock into Leon.
He wanted to deny Thomas again, to insist that it would never happen, but for the moment, he couldn't speak. He squeezed Grady's balls, his fingers tightening with every slow, unbelievable inch. He pulled harder on the rope, rising off his heels as Thomas continued stretching him. When Thomas finally stopped, Leon's flesh burned.
He panted for breath, and when that wasn't enough, tipped back his head until it rested against Grady's shoulder. It cleared his throat, but only for a few seconds before Thomas reached up and caressed the sinew almost gently. Each brush was hotter than the last. He didn't know what to do with it, how to respond, whether he could relax or force him to do more.
The choice was taken away from him when Thomas shoved him forward, using his hips and the thick length buried inside his ass, to grind his cock into the tree.
Leon screamed. Fire laced through him, but it must have been all Thomas was waiting for because he chose that moment to start moving.
Leon knew Thomas was capable of being slow and thorough, but Thomas apparently wasn't interested in either at that moment. Once he began, he snapped his hips in a sharp rhythm, barely leaving Leon's body before filling him again. He pulled on Leon's length, his palm traveling from the base to his tip, with each stroke. His mouth never left Leon's neck, and he could almost imagine the blossoming bruises on the sensitive skin below his ear, and beneath his hairline, and on his nape. Even on his shoulder, and the side of his throat.
He didn't bother holding back. He rode Grady's cock as much as his limited mobility allowed, relishing the sting of skin slapping against skin with every stroke. Sounds escaped his mouth—moans, whimpers, words—but the only indication he had that they meant anything at all to Thomas was the growing ferocity of his thrusts. The man moved as if he wanted to crawl into Leon's body and never come out. Frankly, Leon thought he could spend hours with Thomas buried inside him. For a brief, vivid, shattering moment, he wondered what it would be like to fall asleep like that.
Too good. That's what it would be like. He thought he might even be willing to consider begging if he could experience it, just once.
Thomas covered Leon's bound hand with his, entwining their fingers as he continued his harsh speed. At that point, Leon was thankful for the rope, because he didn't know how either of them would remain standing without it. It cut into his skin, rubbing his wrist raw, but each time the rough rope scraped against him, it sent a jolt straight to his cock, and he flexed, his body tightening around Thomas. Thomas moaned in response, his breath coming in hot, deep gasps.
Leon's hole burned. Everything about him burned. Eyes, skin, cock. The world swam around him, but all Leon knew was the man at his back, the teeth savaging his neck, the drives ravaging him elsewhere. An unyielding grip stripped his erection, angling it every other time to drag the sensitive head across the harsh tree bark.
But it was when Thomas slammed into his sweet spot that Leon came apart.
His ears rang from the raggedness of his scream. Hot come spilled over Grady's fingers, but the man never stopped pulling, spreading the sticky fluid over his throbbing skin. All Leon could do was press as hard as he could against Thomas's hard body. And wish it didn't have to end.
“Oh ... fuck ... Leon...”
It wasn't quite a shout, but it echoed in Leon's ears as Thomas pushed into him one final time. His cock pulsed, hot come filling his channel. He shook from the force of his pleasure, and he was still trembling long after his erection softened. He could have moved away immediately, but he didn't take a step back, almost as if their bodies were fused together.
Leon gulped for air, not lifting his head from where it rested on Grady's shoulder. “I think you pretty much made sure I won't be running again,” he panted. “My legs aren't going to work any time soon anyway.”
“Good, because you've pretty much made sure I'd chase you down again.” Thomas brushed his fingers across Leon's neck. “I've got another bandana, if you want it.”
The thoughtful gesture did more to shock Leon than getting slammed into the tree from a dead run. “Nah,” he said, hoping he didn't sound as rattled as he felt. “This way when you haul me in, it looks like I put up a fight.”
“Yeah, I guess it does.” He stepped back and tucked himself into his pants. “You ran a little over a mile. Do you want to walk back, or wait here while I get Max?”
“Walk.” The answer surprised him as much as it did Thomas. “My ankle can use the exercise.”
“If you're sure.” Thomas unwrapped the rope from the branch, but he held it between his fingers, and didn't seem interested in forcing Leon's hands behind his back.
He wasn't sure, but he didn't like the idea of being left alone at the tree, standing around helpless. He bent and pulled up his pants. Riding was going to be miserable. His ass would be sore. He'd feel the fucking every step of the way.
He ducked his head to hide his smile. Running away had been worth it.
Besides, he could escape just as easily from the U.S. Marshals in Sacramento anyway.
CHAPTER 6
As soon as they reached Sacramento, Thomas felt torn. He knew he should turn Leon in, but that meant he'd have to lose the warm pressure of Leon's chest against his back. That meant never seeing Leon again. That meant going back on his promise to give Leon a decent meal, and though he knew he didn't owe Leon shit, he also knew he wasn't the sort of man to go back on his word. But he wasn't even sure what his word meant when Leon was sporting vibrant bruises on his throat, neck, and jaw, and could barely sit on the back of Max without wincing.
He didn't stop Max as they passed the sheriff's office. Leon was tense behind him, and he didn't relax when Thomas kept the horse loping down the street. He didn't stop until he reached the Hotel Sacramento. Maybe he didn't owe Leon a meal, but he didn't know if he could drop him completely, without so much as a word.
“What're you doing?” Leon asked when Thomas slid off.
“We're having a drink. You can spare the time, can't you?”
His shrewd eyes flickered between Thomas, and the hotel, then back to Thomas again. A ghost of a smile curved his mouth. “S'long as I'm not buying.”
“You're not.”
Thomas wrapped the reins around the hitching post, debating whether he should drag Leon through the hotel in ropes. But he strongly suspected that if he untied Leon now, the other man would bolt. Thomas would expect as much, and it'd be stupid to give him the chance when they were this close.
He took Leon's arm and helped him dismount. He thought he saw a flash of pain in Leon's eyes as soon as his foot hit the ground, but maybe he had imagined it. It was getting more and more difficult to read Leon.
Leon tensed when he attempted to lead him into the hotel. “What are the odds of you untying me for this?”
“What are the odds of you running?”
“Make it two drinks, and I'll give you my word I won't.” A grin split his features properly this time. “Though it might be worth it if you promised another ride like the last one we got when you caught me.”
“Two drinks.” His fingers dug into Leon's upper arm as he pulled the knot free. He expected Leon to try to jump away—it'd probably be easier to hide there in Sacramento than out in the wilderness. But he didn't try to break free from Thomas's grasp. “And that's it.”
“All I ask for.”
He held utterly still even after he was released. It was probably the quietest Thomas had ever seen him. It meant Thomas was even more aware of him than usual, of the discrepancy in their heights, of how much bigger he was than Leon. When they were stretched out next to the fire, or when Leon straddled Max behind him, it wasn't as noticeable. Then, all Thomas knew was how well they fit together. But standing next to him, his hands itched to do more than untie the ropes, and he had to clench them at his sides in order not to.