In the Silks (14 page)

“Lie down and relax, Henry. That was fucking great by the way,” Ryan said to him.

Henry let out a sigh of relief as he scooted down the bed. Lying on his side, facing Ryan, his head rested on his bicep under him. He just watched Ryan as he smoked, blowing circles into the air. They stayed silent until he finished. Ryan passed Henry the ashtray when he was done, and Henry leaned behind him to place it on the night stand. Ryan produced the bottled water from his other side and leaned up to open it and take a few gulps then passed it to Henry. Henry followed suit. When he tried to hand it back, Ryan waved it off, and Henry capped it then tossed it off the side of the bed.

“So?” Ryan stared at Henry and asked.

“So…”

“How was it? Want to do it again?”

“It was fucking amazing and are you kidding me?”

“Why would I be kidding? You’ve never done it before; I had to ask. By the way, my shower gel smells amazing on you.”

Henry arched an eyebrow at him, his shower gel? Ohhh. He couldn’t help the laugh that bubbled up. “Yeah, thanks. So it was good, for real?”

It was Ryan’s turn to laugh. “For real. In fact, I want more, soon.” Ryan rolled closer to him, throwing a thigh over Henry’s. He slid his arm under Henry’s. They both fell asleep that way.

During the night, they woke up, and true to his word, Ryan wanted to go again. Henry was good with that. They lay there, kissing slowly and pressing their bodies together. Only separating long enough to get the condom and lube. Ryan rolled to his other side, his back to Henry’s chest, guiding him with his hands and words. Henry eased forward, slipping into the warm depths of Ryan’s body. Henry came first, unconsciously biting into the curve of Ryan’s neck, arms wrapped tightly around his chest, a rough grunt escaping his throat. Ryan’s arm bent back over his head to grip Henry’s hair in his hand and stroked himself to completion with the other. Henry fell asleep thinking about that and how he would be sure that next it would be him that got Ryan off.

Chapter 13

T
HE ALARM on Henry’s phone woke him. He had to climb out of bed and go looking for his jeans to find the phone before it woke Ryan too. Once he found it, he realized it was on its third snooze.

Shit.
He would be late for work for sure.

Henry hurriedly threw his clothes back on still trying his best to be quiet. He was in the bathroom reliving himself when he realized that if he just left without waking Ryan up regardless of his good intentions, it would be just like last time. Or at least, he thought Ryan would feel that way. That was a chance he wasn’t willing to take, not again. After finishing up in the bathroom, he put on his shoes and then went back into the bedroom and over to where Ryan was asleep on his stomach, pillow tossed on top of his head.  Henry lifted the pillow and slid his fingers into Ryan’s hair. “Psst psst, hey,” he whispered.

“Mmmmm?”

“Hey, I have to get going. I’m going to be late for work.”

“Mmmmm.” Ryan began to stir and rolled onto his back rubbing a hand over his eyes. “Good morning”, he yawned.

“Good morning, I’m sorry, but I really need to go.”

“Mm’kay,” Ryan said with gravelly voice that made Henry’s cock stir. He wished that he could climb back in that bed. Ryan stretched, “Will you kiss me despite the morning breath?”

Henry didn’t answer with words but leaned over and kissed him. Ryan wrapped his arms around Henry’s neck and deepened the kiss.

When Henry pulled back Ryan said, “That bad, huh?”

Henry laughed, “Nahhh, I really am going to be late for work. Believe me, I would give anything to stay here and smell your morning breath.” He winked, gave Ryan another chaste kiss and got up.

“Call you later?”

“Definitely.”

When Henry walked out that door, he could have sworn he was walking on air. Henry was still on his cloud later that day. He’d gone home and taken a two minute shower, unhappy that he had to part with Ryan’s scent, then hurried off to work. He had a busy morning; his voice mail was full, several reports due. And lucky him, two new assignments added to his caseload. He found it hard to concentrate with memories of the night before playing over and over in his mind. He was standing at the fax machine waiting for a twenty page document to come through when his text alert went off. It was from Ryan.

Ryan:
Hey

Henry:
Hey yourself

Ryan:
How’s work?

Henry:
I could think of better things to be doing

Ryan:
Oh yeah like what?

Henry:
;-)

Ryan:
Tell me

Henry:
Rather show you

Ryan:
I’d rather you show me too…I can still feel you

Oh my God.

He could feel his face flush and his pants tighten at the idea of Ryan's words. But he wanted to play along. Ryan made him feel bold, made him want to try new things and feel okay with the things he wanted.

Henry:
Is that a good thing??

Ryan:
Oh yeahhhh

Henry:
Killing.Me.

Ryan:
Lol, you’re blushing right now aren’t u?!?!

Henry:
Anywayyyyy what are you doing now?

Ryan:
Talking to you

Henry:
Smart ass

Ryan:
what r u doin

Henry:
Waiting for a fax+thinking about you

Ryan:
Oh yeah? How’s that working out for ya?

Henry:
Sooo NSFW

Ryan:
lmao, true juvenile probation officers with hard-ons, not good!

Henry:
NOPE!!!!

Ryan:
Okay well I’ll let you get back to it. Dinner tonight at my place? And dessert…yummmm bring your appetite ;-)

Henry:
Killing. Me. I’ll be there, I’m starving already.

Ryan:
Bye xoxo

Henry:
Bye xoxo

Oh, it was going to be a long day
.

He should be more freaked out about what happened, shouldn’t he? He was surprised with himself. He definitely should be more freaked out but he just wasn’t. He felt exhilarated, light and content. Henry was reveling in this new inner peace that he couldn’t quite define. Sex could result in inner peace? He wasn’t sure, but that was what it felt like. He was surprised that he acted with so little hesitation. He assumed it was because he had wanted it for so long and Ryan made him so comfortable. It had felt right, like the way it was supposed to be. Maybe he should talk to Ryan about this. Tell him what he was thinking. Maybe Ryan wondered what Henry was thinking. They hadn’t talked that much after.

He wished he was daring enough to take more control, in his fantasies he always did. He also wanted to be able to just say what was on his mind, although Ryan seemed to be able to read him pretty well. Or maybe he was just that transparent? But he wasn’t really upset about that either. His thoughts were all over the place, but right then, in that moment he wasn’t scared and he didn’t have any regrets. So that was somewhere to start, he supposed. Stick with that for now, and the rest would get figured out.

~~~~~

Ryan was in front of the bathroom mirror getting ready for therapy when he noticed the red mark on his neck. Rather than upset him, it made him smile. He thought about the night before, it had been hysterical when Henry had accidentally turned on his vibrator. He couldn’t wait until Henry was more comfortable and they could play with his toys. He knew Henry was curious, just apprehensive. He’d give him all the time he needed though. He was so passive, although Ryan was confident that was not all there was to Henry. That it was just about taking their time and making Henry as relaxed as possible. Ryan had to admire his own restraint; he thought he was doing a good job of not scaring Henry off.
Maybe that was why he was so upset that morning after the party?
He thought that he had scared Henry off, interesting. Ryan wasn’t going to dwell on that now though. He wanted to continue reminiscing about the night before. When he had gone down on Henry he could smell the distinct fragrance of his shower gel telling him that when Henry went in to the bathroom he wasn’t just taking a leak.

For a few moments Ryan had panicked, thinking about the very real possibility that Henry

might be a bottom. He hid his panic well though, he contemplated asking him but he was too nervous about what the answer would be. They would have to discuss it at some point just to put Ryan’s mind at ease. He opted for doing things his way and seeing how Henry reacted. He had been more than happy to let Henry do what he wanted, for the most part, but he knew this time at least, he needed to take the lead. Ryan had never been with someone less experienced than him, and it caused him to stop and think about things more than he usually did before sex. He had no doubt that Henry had enjoyed himself. He could say that with absolute certainty. Ryan knew he’d enjoyed it several times over and Ryan had the bite mark on his neck and deliciously sore ass to prove it.

Ryan left the bathroom and went to find his pills and knee brace. Not only was his ass sore but so was his knee. That wasn’t something anyone else needed to know though. He popped a couple Vicodins and chugged the remainder of a bottle of Gatorade he found in the fridge. Putting on the brace and throwing his cigarettes and a few other things into his backpack, he was ready to go. He decided to text Henry and ask him to come over for dinner. If he said yes, and Ryan was praying that he did; he’d go to therapy, then come back and clean the loft. He knew right away that he would get them Middle Eastern food, his favorite. Ryan was convinced it was the perfect food to serve for an intimate night at home.

A few hours later he was on his way back home with a grocery bag in hand. He had stopped to get a few cleaning supplies and some candles. Ryan had opted for a cab, he thought he’d been sore before going to therapy, but that was nothing compared to how he felt now. He needed to lie down, put some ice on his knee and take a nap. Ryan popped a few pills with some water before the cab even pulled up to his building. Once he was upstairs, he smoked a joint and went to lie down. When he got up he would clean and then order the food. His eyelids already heavy he was lying in bed listening to music coming from his laptop when his phone rang. Grabbing the phone he got excited at the idea that it might be Henry calling. He was disappointed to see that it was Rena.

“Hey.”

“Well, don’t sound too excited to hear from me.”

“Shut up, I was falling asleep.”

“Sure.”

“All right, I was hoping you were this incredibly hot guy I’m totally in lust with.”

“There you go! All right listen; Mom and Dad really want you to come for a visit.

“Yeah, I know.”

“Don’t you want to? You must be bored out of your mind there.”

Ryan thought about how un-boring his life in Boston had become. “I wouldn’t say that…”

“Oh do tell.”

Ryan laughed, he was tired but it was good to hear Rena’s voice. So he could fight to keep his eyes open a little while longer. He wouldn’t tell her much though, so she would have to live with the disappointment.

~~~~~

Henry could smell the food before he even got off of the elevator. It smelled amazing. He couldn’t pinpoint one particular food or spice, but it was mouthwatering all the same. Ryan was leaning against the open door when he reached it.

“Hi.”

“Hi yourself. Hungry?” Ryan said and took Henry by the collar, gently leaning in to kiss him.

Henry pulled back with a lick of his lips, “
Hmmmm
, you taste great.”

Ryan laughed, “Probably the food. I can’t lie, I’ve been picking while I waited.”

“Oh yeah? What’s all this?” Henry said pointing his chin in the direction of the food, as they walked into the loft. He heard Ryan close the door behind him.

“Middle Eastern food, do you like?”

“Not sure, never had it before.”

“I had never had it before, but there’s a guy from the show, Latif. He cooked for a bunch of us one night, and I’ve been hooked ever since. So glad there are good Middle Eastern restaurants around here.”

“It looks great.”

“I got the sampler; it’s a specialty. It has some of the most popular dishes. I wasn’t sure what you would like, so I thought you could experiment,” Ryan said in a tone laced with innuendo.

There was fresh pita bread, at least Henry knew what that was, he thought as he toed off his shoes, took off his coat and tossed it on the sofa. They both sat down at the coffee table. Ryan had placed the giant throw pillows that usually sat under the silks at the table for them to sit on. Henry sat crossed legged opposite him.

“These are all served cold,” Ryan said pointing out the various foods. “This is Hummus. It’s mostly chick peas but has other ingredients and spices.

“I think that I’ve had this before,” Henry said. He didn’t want to add on that he had tried it with Jackie; he was really uncomfortable bringing her up around Ryan. Although Ryan seemed okay with it, Henry just didn’t want to kill the mood, and she was a mood killer to him, for sure.

Ryan continued, “Cool, this one is called Baba Ghannouj, main ingredient eggplant. Then there’s Tabbouleh. It’s basically a really flavorful salad chopped and more like a dip; at least that’s, the way I like it. Falafel, Pickles, labneh, some of the best stuff on earth; it’s a yogurt cheese spread,
Ah-mazing!
These are stuffed grape leaves. Hold on there are two more staying warm in the oven.”  Ryan jumped up and went to the kitchen pulling some tinfoil trays out of the oven, carried them back with him.

“Wow, more!”

“Yup, Sambousik, just like a meat pie and these are Kibbi Kebobs.”

Henry raised an eyebrow and fought a smile.

Ryan caught the look, “Don’t worry, they’re delicious. So do you want to know what everything is made of, or do you want to take a chance on trying some new things and see what you like? And whatever you do like, I’ll tell you what’s in it.”

Ryan was so good at flirting, that last comment made Henry want to forget the dinner all together, throw Ryan down on the floor and devour him. However, bold Henry would stay dormant for now. Ryan winked at him and picked up a piece of pita bread, tore off a piece and dipped it into the hummus and put it in front of Henry's mouth. He opened his mouth, leaned forward and took the food out of Ryan's hand, deliberately taking Ryan's two fingers into his mouth as well. Maybe not so dormant. Ryan’s influence was becoming clearer to Henry every time he was in his presence; he wondered if Ryan realized it. That it was him causing it and that it wasn’t Henry’s typical way.

Ryan let his fingers linger in Henry's mouth. Henry, for his part, sucked the small piece of bread off out of Ryan's fingers and onto his tongue, held it there while he let his tongue roll around Ryan's fingers for a moment, and then he pulled back and began to chew the food. To his surprise, Ryan brought those two fingers that had just been in Henry's mouth to his own and licked them before taking up another piece for himself. They sat there and ate, whenever it was time for a new food to be introduced, Ryan fed the bite to Henry and the seductive meal continued. Henry’s forwardness was shocking to him. It seemed that just the idea of being with Ryan was enough for the reserved Henry to retreat.