As a senior player on the Rebels, Ronnie had more pull than most of the others on the team. No one complained when he began inviting Christian along after practices, and the coach changed up the rooming arrangements so the two men could bunk together while on the road. The other players began to relax around Christian—it was always hard fitting in with an established group, but Ronnie’s friendship made it easier to be accepted, and soon his teammates began to appreciate Christian’s skills on the ice. By the time they played their first away game, against the Portsmouth Patriots, Christian began to feel the camaraderie that had always seemed just out of reach.
He sat beside Ronnie on the bus, and every so often, his teammate would touch Christian’s knee or arm or hip, a surreptitious gesture no one else could see. It warmed Christian up inside, that hand on his body, and he looked forward to an evening alone after the game. It’d become a ritual now, his staying over at Ronnie’s whenever they played, but a hotel room was a blank slate—anything could happen. Perhaps they’d finally move past the touch and go stage of their relationship, beyond mutual m**********n and insatiable kisses to something…Christian didn’t know. Something more.
The game went into sudden death overtime, and the coach sent Christian out on the ice to sink the final shot. When the puck hit the net, the light above the goal flashed and the crowd roared, and Christian raised his arms in triumph as his team skated out to join him on the ice. Ronnie reached him first—in front of everyone, his arms went around Christian’s waist and he pulled him into a fierce bear hug. The other Rebels joined in, a mad crush that obscured the playful press of Ronnie’s lips against Christian’s cool, bare cheek. Yes, his mind crowed, triumphant. Other players knocked his helmet aside, tousled his hair, clutched at his jersey. For the first time, the Rebels celebrated his win.
His.
Later, at the hotel, the team caroused in the halls, bottles of beer clinking together as they toasted their victory. Christian had a beer or two, a goofy grin threatening to split his face, and laughed when the guys wanted him to rehash the final play. “Aw, come on,” they cajoled. Strong arms tugged him away from where he stood by Ronnie against the wall. “Show us again.”
Christian grinned at Ronnie. “Go on,” he said, taking the bottle from Christian’s hand. “Show us your magic.”
How could he say no to that?
Hours later, Ronnie half-carried, half-dragged a pleasantly exhausted Christian into their hotel room. The two men still snickered from their teammates’ antics, and the beer buzzed comfortably through Christian’s veins with a vibrant hum like electricity through overhead lines. He let Ronnie drop him on the closest bed, where he lay on his back, fully clothed, and stared at the stucco ceiling above. “God,” he sighed. “I’m beat.”
At the other bed, Ronnie unzipped his overnight bag. “Tired?”
Christian laughed. “Yeah. I could fall out right here.”
Ronnie nudged Christian’s leg with his own as he dug into his bag. “Too bad. I had plans for tonight.”
Interested, Christian raised his head to glance at his friend. “Oh? Like what?”
Extracting a small, cardboard box from his bag, Ronnie pitched it underhanded to Christian. It hit the bed by Christian’s arm, and he rolled over to grab it. As he held it up, he noticed it was a box of condoms. “Heavily lubricated,” he read. A nervous little flutter tickled his stomach. “Looks like you came prepared.”
With his back to Christian, Ronnie shucked off his jeans and underwear. The twin pale moons of his ass peeked out from beneath the hem of his shirt. He turned toward Christian as he pulled the shirt off over his head, exposing whorls of dark hair that kinked around his n*****s then dove down his flat stomach like a trail on a treasure map to fist in the curls at his crotch. Christian had seen Ronnie nude before—they showered together in the locker room, for Christ’s sake—but never had so much naked flesh looked so tempting before. His gaze was drawn to the ruddy tip of Ronnie’s c**k, peering out from its bed of hair, and his own d**k stiffened in anticipation.
Positioning his legs on either side of Christian’s, he climbed onto the bed to straddle Christian and sat heavily on his thighs. One hand plucked at Christian’s zipper, easing it down inch by inch. “I had such big plans, too,” Ronnie said with a pout as he ran a finger up over the bulge at Christian’s crotch, over the button on his jeans, and under his shirt to delve into his navel. “But if you’re too tired…”
Pushing Ronnie’s hand aside, Christian unbuttoned his jeans. “I’m not. Get up.”
As his hips arched off the bed, Ronnie rose up on his knees to give Christian room to remove his jeans. He had wiggled them just below his underwear when Ronnie stood and tugged them off completely. His briefs followed suit, and Ronnie climbed back onto him again, pushing Christian’s shirt up out of the way as he lay above him. Their d***s crushed together with a sweet ache, and the press of flesh was wondrous along his skin. Ronnie held his shirt up, over his head, and before pulling it off completely, he kissed Christian’s exposed chin, then his mouth, then his nose. “I could eat you up,” he murmured against Christian’s throat as his lips left damp imprints behind after every kiss.
Christian pulled his arms free from the shirt and found Ronnie’s shoulders. Running his hands along his friend’s back, he tightened his arms around Ronnie and held him close as he shook his head from side to side. “Get this thing off me already, will you?”
With a laugh, Ronnie kissed Christian quiet. His body rubbed against Christian’s own as he tugged the shirt up slowly, his n*****s teasing Christian’s own, his c**k fast against Christian’s length. When the shirt cleared Christian’s ears, Ronnie nipped at his earlobe, then ran his tongue behind the ear, leaving a warm, wet trail in its wake. “f**k me,” he whispered, his breath hot and close.
Christian gripped Ronnie’s ass with both hands and spread his cheeks wide. His forefingers delved into the crack of Ronnie’s ass, strumming over skin that quivered at his touch. “Now,” Ronnie said, grinding his hips into Christian’s. “f**k me now.”
The box of condoms lay beside them on the bed. As Ronnie sat up to retrieve it, Christian pulled off his shirt and tossed it aside. He reached out, his fingers toying with the pink n*****s that poked through the tufts of hair on Ronnie’s chest. “What if I said I wanted to be first?”
“They’re my condoms,” Ronnie told him, tearing into one of the individual foil packets. “When you buy them, you get fucked.”
Christian reached for the box. “So what, you’re saying you get to use all of these? That’s not fair—ah yes, yes.”
His words dissolved into breathless gasps as Ronnie fisted his shaft, kneading it erect before rolling the condom into place. Scooting forward to sit on Christian’s lower belly, Ronnie lay down on him again. He kissed Christian, hands slick with lube as they clenched in the wavy bangs that fell back from Christian’s brow. “f**k me,” he growled, moving his hips in a maddening circle to entice his friend. “What are you waiting for? Sink the shot.”
Christian’s hands found Ronnie’s ass a second time, and he held those fleshy cheeks apart as he slowly guided his c**k inside.