Chapter Eight

Orin twisted away from the controls as Ari settled into the copilot’s chair.

“You seen Sally’s list?” the pilot asked.

Ari watched as Orin pulled it up on the view screen and flicked it over to Ari’s side.

Orin’s side of the screen was occupied by rapidly changing numbers and complicated navigational equations as the pilot’s fingers flew over the projections. He worked faster than Ari could follow.

Ari narrowed his eyes curiously. “Are you performing those calculations in your head?”

Fingers never pausing, Orin shrugged one shoulder. “Sure. Gotta recalculate our flight plan so we can make a perimeter sweep of the Verge, hit all these ratholes to see if we can hear the right song to lead us to your brother. It’s a hell of a lot better plan than falling ass over tea kettle into the deep dark and flying blind in the hopes we might just trip over him.”

Ari studied the list of names and locations. “Have these been rearranged?”

Orin nodded distractedly, biting his lip in concentration as he flung numbers in every direction. “Yup. Figured I’d line ’em up for us; easier to make one continuous loop than to double back every time we wanna try a new singer. Now I just gotta finish calculating our most efficient route, don’t wanna waste fuel if we can help it. And, there she goes!”

He flung up his hands like a dramatic pianist finishing a complicated piece of music, tossing his hair back and dazzling in Ari’s direction.

“Got our first stop pinned down. You ready to head out?”

Ari fastened his harness as Orin drew both pistols from his belt and pocket and secured them under the dash before fastening his own harness.

He sent a broad smirk Ari’s way, hands poised over the controls.

“Hold on to those garters, we’re gonna give Jeb And Sal a little show. It’s high time me and Delilah really got to know each other.”

Ari opened his mouth to ask the obvious question but didn’t get a chance as his head was pushed against the headrest when the ship disengaged from the dock and immediately lifted at an unconventional speed, swooping over the dock in an elegant arc.

Orin let out a whoop, hands flying over the controls. “There we go, Delilah. Never say I couldn’t show a girl a good time!”

Aristotle turned his head, fighting against the gravitational forces to face the beaming pilot. “Is Delilah the ship?”

Orin offered a pleased smile. “There you go, professor, using those brains!”

Ari adjusted back against the headrest, swiveling his chair to observe Orin caress the controls, the pilot’s hands finally slowing down.

“What brought you to decide upon the name Delilah?”

Orin’s face reflected off the view screen, twice as bright as the projections flying across. “Pretty name for a pretty lady, Red. And I always like to dance with the pretty ladies!”

With no more warning than a mischievous glance in Ari’s direction, Orin slid them into a complicated rolling maneuver that seemed to achieve little more than rearranging Aristotle’s stomach contents.

Righting the vessel, Orin patted the dash fondly. “See, Delilah knows all the steps! She and I are gonna tear it up out there.”

Ari closed his eyes, relieved at the return to their previously smooth takeoff maneuvers, the creak of Orin’s chair as he leaned back indicating they had exited atmosphere and autopilot had been engaged.

When he opened his eyes, Orin was checking the controls, surveying the dash almost reverently.

Ari cleared his throat, fiddling with his harness as he gathered his courage.

“Mr. Stone. I mean, Orin.”

Orin unbuckled his harness as he turned his chair to face Ari, brows lifted inquisitively.

Ari suddenly didn’t know what to do with his limbs, fingers clutching the harness as his feet shuffled against the base of his chair, clunky in the new, unfamiliar boots.

“I have been thinking,” he said.

“Ain’t exactly surprised to hear that,” Orin responded with a chuckle.

Aristotle lowered his head. When he lifted his lashes to check, Orin was staring with a dazed expression, eyes flitting away when Ari caught him.

Ari focused on the line of dark stubble meandering down Orin’s jawline, forcing words past the claw of anxiety in his throat. “After further consideration, I have come to the conclusion that perhaps I was too hasty in my previous decision regarding the depth of our association.”

Now Orin gave him laser focus, broad hands shifting to grip his armrests so tightly the muscles jumped in his forearms. His quiet voice dropped straight down Ari’s spine.

“You reckon?”

Ari nodded haltingly, fingers half releasing and then refastening the buckle on his harness repeatedly. Orin tracked the motion for a moment before pinning his attention back on Ari’s red face. Ari sucked on his bottom lip, releasing it with a pop that seemed to center all of Orin’s attention.

Ari heaved a shaky breath, searching for the audacity to continue.

“Indeed. I now believe that—provided we enter into any furthering of our acquaintance with the understanding that my mission and duty to my brother must come before all else—it would not be entirely inadvisable to continue exploring all aspects of our partnership.”

Orin leaned forward, his chair creaking in protest. His hands released the armrests to rub fitfully at his knees.

“You’re saying you changed your mind about taking part in a little meaningless diversion, sweetheart?”

Ari shivered at the heat in Orin’s gaze.

“Yes,” he gasped.

Orin’s whispered “Thank the rusted stars” was nearly drowned out by the heavy thud of his knees hitting the metal floorboards and his hands scrambling at the buckles of Ari’s flight harness.

The harness was quickly shoved aside, thick fingers moving on to the fastenings of Ari’s trousers and the button at the waist of his drawers with confident precision. It was not entirely unlike the efficient way they worked the flight controls, Ari thought hysterically.

Before he could do more than choke at the transcendent sensation of Orin’s rough hands sliding into the opening of his drawers, Ari found himself exposed to the cool air of the cockpit.

Orin’s broad chest heaved, his eyes as reverent on Ari’s flesh as they’d been upon the dash. He circled the base of Ari’s cock in his thumb and forefinger, gently pulling it to stand away from his body as he studied Ari’s face.

“This alright, beautiful?”

Already panting, Ari clawed at the armrests as he nodded frantically. “Yes. I. Yes, please.”

Orin beamed up at him and winked before swallowing him down to the root.

Ari didn’t know what to do with himself. His whole body shuddered as he was engulfed by the wet heat of Orin’s mouth.

He tried to close his own mouth around the moan rising in his throat at the sight of Orin’s full lips stretched around him.

Orin slid his way up to lick a wide stripe along the underside, murmuring so closely his lips dragged against the shaft. His voice dropped an octave, wrecked and filled with gravel. “Beautiful.”

Ari couldn’t stop shaking as Orin sucked him back down, his arms hooking under Ari’s knees as large hands slid under him to shove his trousers down to his thighs and take firm hold of his ass.

Orin lifted him to his lips as though he were drinking from a cup, and Ari could only pant helplessly when he started bobbing his head. His stubble scraped against the sensitive skin of Ari’s thighs, causing his heart to explore the possibility of bursting from his chest.

The waves of pleasure were building far too rapidly for Ari to do anything but be helplessly carried along.

He barely managed to stutter out, “I can’t. I can’t. I’m going to—” before Orin lifted honey eyes to meet his, and he was spilling down his throat, whining as Orin swallowed around him.

Orin withdrew with a little kiss to the tip, making Ari shudder once more as he collapsed back onto his folded legs on the floor.

Ari hurried to tuck himself away into his trousers as Orin eased up into the pilot’s chair.

Ari chanced a glimpse at Orin to find him smiling softly, waiting until he’d caught Ari’s eye before wiping his mouth on the edge of his hand with another wink and then sucking his thumb into his mouth with a contented hum.

“Knew you’d be sweet, sugar,” he mumbled around it.

They both took a moment to catch their breath until Ari’s gaze snagged on the prominent bulge in Orin’s trousers. He slid to the edge of his chair, hesitating for a few seconds before getting clumsily to his knees between Orin’s spread thighs.

Orin’s lips parted in shock as he started to speak, growled instead, then cleared his throat and tried again.

“Nah, baby, you don’t gotta do that. I’m alright.”

Ari squared his shoulders until they pressed against the insides of Orin’s thighs, lifting his chin defiantly. “What if I want to?”

Orin smoothed gentle fingers over the top of Ari’s head, meeting Ari’s gaze. “Well, then, I’d say please and thank you, if you would be so kind, sweetheart.”

Orin was breathing so heavily the buttons were straining across his chest. He licked his lips and Ari’s attention was drawn to how swollen his mouth was, a stab of desire piercing him at the sight.

Ari slid tentative hands up Orin’s thighs; Orin trained on them like he was witnessing a miracle. Ari brushed his fingertips against the burning length of his cock pressed against his trousers, listening to Orin’s breath hitch in his throat as the chair squeaked in protest of his iron grip on the armrests.

Orin transferred his restless hands to the outside of his thighs as Ari worked open the button fly of his trousers, peeling back the layers to expose the nest of black curls surrounding his rigid length.

Ari pulled him from his trousers, trying to stem the shaking in his hands as he discovered that his fingers could barely meet around the circumference.

The daunting size of him was not so much surprising as it was the fulfillment of Aristotle’s deepest, darkest fantasies, throbbing right there in his grasp.

He wrapped both hands around, spreading his fingers until only the flushed head was exposed. He couldn’t be sure whose moan was loudest at the sight.

Ari tried to get his breathing under control enough to speak, unable to tear his attention away from the bead of moisture welling from Orin’s slit.

“I have a confession. I am not terribly. I have never. I haven’t done this before. Or. Or anything close to this, ever.”

Orin’s thighs flexed against Ari’s shoulders, his cock rocking forward just slightly in Ari’s grasp. His voice rumbled through Ari’s bones.

“You’re doing great, gorgeous.”

Ari peeked up through his lashes, warring between exuberance and hesitancy, and Orin zeroed in on him like a man held at gunpoint.

Ari struggled to hold his wide gaze.

“Perhaps, you could provide some guidance in the—” His gaze dropped heavily to the rosy skin inches before him, tongue tracing his lips nervously.

“—matter.”

Orin sighed, one hand brushing his thick brown hair into disarray as his broad shoulders lifted into an uneven shrug.

“Listen, honey. I ain’t a decent man. I really oughta be trying to talk you out of this. I’m sure if I gave you instructions, you would follow them to the letter like a damn pro, but to tell the truth, I’m just dying to watch you put that big brain to work figuring this out your own sweet self.”

Ari spent a moment just looking into Orin’s eyes, the hopeful, sheepish expression on his face sending warmth spreading through Aristotle’s chest like an overturned inkwell.

He focused back down to the task at hand, taking a fortifying breath before leaning in to start in earnest.

He began small, with tentative kitten licks all across the head, squeezing his fingers with a deep moan as the musky scent and flavor of Orin exploded across his senses.

Orin responded with a choked gasp, his fingers compulsively clenching and releasing against his thighs.

Ari switched to one hand, moving it up and down as he licked every inch of exposed skin, his hand and chin growing sloppy wet.

He wrapped his other hand around Orin’s wrist, lifting his hand to rest on the back of Ari’s head. Orin groaned through his teeth, biting back other noises under the slick sound of Ari’s fist working his shaft.

He cried out sharply as Ari wrapped his lips around the tip and sucked down until the head popped into his mouth.

Ari pressed down further, barely taking in a third of his length and groaning at the way his jaw already felt stretched to capacity.

Orin’s bitten-back noises exploded into words, shoved rough and sweet between panting moans.

“Gorgeous. Look at you. So beautiful, baby. Holy fuck. Stars. Just, look at you.”

Ari hollowed his cheeks, pressing until Orin hit the back of his throat, and when he choked, Orin’s hand pulled him gently up.

Orin seemed transfixed by Ari’s wet, open mouth as he shook his head. “Don’t hurt yourself, baby.”

Ari spared him an irritated glare before shoving himself down as far as he could go, swallowing against the choking sensation, already addicted to the blunt press of Orin against his soft palate.

Orin’s fingers spasmed behind his head, Ari’s eyes rolling up at the light tug to his hair. “Good. So good. You’re so good for me, beautiful.”

Ari attempted to bob his head as Orin had done, choking twice more before he found a rhythm that he could manage, belatedly remembering to chase the motion with his hand around the shaft.

The muscles of Orin’s thighs tensed against his shoulders, the hand that wasn’t on Ari’s head sneaking down to slip under Ari’s shirt, unerringly finding and pulling at his nipples.

Ari muffled a surprised moan at the sensation, shocked that he was hard in his trousers once again.

“Perfect, baby. Just like that.”

Ari whimpered helplessly at the words, doubling his efforts.

He would feel the ache in his jaw in the morning, and the knowledge sent a dark thrill down his spine. He wanted to stay here forever, achingly full and cradled by Orin’s heavy thighs.

Ari shoved his free hand under Orin’s shirttails and raked his fingers through the curls up to his navel, tracing the ridges of tensing muscle across his abdomen.

Orin’s voice cracked, his hand trembling against the back of Ari’s head.

“Shit. Baby, you gotta pull off if you don’t want. I can’t. I’m close.”

Ari wrapped his tongue around the head and pressed down as far as he could, hand working frantically as Orin swelled impossibly larger before shooting down his throat.

He tried to swallow against the warm waves but had to pull off to take a breath, catching the last pulse on his chin.

He lifted his lashes to fix on Orin’s wild, awestruck face.

“C’mere, beautiful.”

Large hands pulled Ari into his lap, evidently unconcerned with tucking himself into his trousers.

Orin grazed his sore lips with a rough fingertip before swiping at the mess on his chin.

Ari surged forward, taking Orin’s tongue into his mouth as his fingers clenched in the soft waves of his hair.

Orin’s hands slid into the back of his trousers before working their way to the front, blanking Ari’s mind with bliss.

For the first time in his life, Aristotle couldn’t hold another thought in his head until morning.