Alkali Rain
by Cyc

There was something deliciously perverse about eating ice cream in a steaming hot bath in the middle of the afternoon, and Ezra was relishing every second of it. Settling his head against the spacious tub's high back, he let another spoonful melt in his mouth then slip down his throat while his gaze drifted up to the ceiling with the steam. As ceilings went, it was a pretty one, very high and beautifully ribbed with saguaro and mesquite beams. It was certainly in keeping with the exquisite furniture arranged around the large bedroom. However, as attractive as the Tucson adobe building he had rented was, there was something else he would have much preferred to be looking at -- or rather someone else.

As if on cue, Chris shifted in his tub next to Ezra's. The light splashing of the water made Ezra look around even though he tried not to. Relieved to see that Chris' eyes were closed so he wouldn't get caught watching again, Ezra leaned over for a better view of Chris' relaxed length.

He almost dropped the ice cream dish when Chris abruptly asked, "That melted yet?" without even opening his eyes.

Slightly flustered, Ezra blinked down at the dish that had almost slipped out of his hand. "Well, I suppose it is more cream than ice," he announced dryly.

"I wasn't talking about that," Chris said, still lying contentedly low in his tub with his eyes closed.

Ezra raised an intrigued eyebrow. "You weren't?"

Chris opened his eyes to meet Ezra's gaze with a slow smile. "Don't you want to come over here?"

Ezra couldn't have moved any faster if he'd tried. He immediately placed the ice cream dish on the floor and went about trying to get from his tub into Chris' with at least a little decorum. The problem wasn't the tubs, they were certainly big enough for two, but rather the imagery rampaging through his mind. Even though he had deliberately asked for two baths so Chris could relax in peace after their journey, it didn't mean his imagination hadn't had other ideas. As soon as Chris had made his offer, Ezra's good intentions had melted away with the ice cream.

"You do realise that the water is going to slop everywhere as soon as I get in?" Ezra asked in a last minute appeasement to propriety.

"They have to get it out somehow," Chris returned easily, moving back to give Ezra room.

"I don't think mopping it up off the floor was quite what they had envisioned," Ezra muttered as he stepped across to sink quickly down into Chris' hot bath.

While the water cascaded onto the floor, Ezra settled into Chris' embrace and was welcomed with a kiss. But when Ezra tried to deepen the kiss, Chris broke off to stifle a yawn.

"Was it something I said?" Ezra asked with a grin.

"Just sleepy."

"Should I wake you?"

"Maybe." Chris smiled. "What-- Hell, Ezra!" he yelped, jerking away from the cold touch on his nipple.

"Sorry," Ezra said, his already warming fingers slipping down to rest on Chris' hip even as he drew Chris into the deeper kiss he wanted.

Too soon, Chris pulled away again. "You taste like ice cream," he murmured.

"You taste better," Ezra promptly replied before recapturing Chris' mouth.

Chris' kisses were a contradiction of harsh demand and gentle generosity. They tasted of soap and whisky but most of all there was the intense heat that always defined Chris.

Lost in the need for an ever deeper taste, Ezra closed his eyes and pushed hard into Chris. It wasn't until the subtle softening of Chris' response turned into complete acquiescence that Ezra realised what he had been doing. In his hunger, he'd all but pinned Chris to the side of the tub in a position that must have been very uncomfortable. However, when he moved back to apologise, Chris skewered him with such a darkly aroused gaze that he couldn't form a word.

"Do it now," Chris said low and rough, as if his throat and tongue were as bruised and ready as the rest of him.

Ezra blinked. His reasoning, along with the majority of his blood volume, seemed to have deserted his brain. His suddenly overheated groin told him where the blood had gone. As for his reasoning, that was anyone's guess.

"I.... Didn't..." his voice began of its own accord while his mind rushed ahead.

It seemed Chris had enjoyed being pinned down and forcefully kissed to within an inch of his life whether it had been planned or not. While Ezra had always known that Chris liked it rough sometimes, and that a little hurt didn't seem to bother him, he was unsure if a desperately rushed and probably rather painful session in a bathtub was a precedent he wanted to set. Even though the key to being an attentive lover was giving your partner what they wanted, whether rough or gentle, he was pretty sure Chris wasn't thinking clearly. He wasn't even sure if he was thinking clearly himself.

Managing to conjure up a smile, Ezra leaned forward for a quick kiss before retreating. "Actually, I have a better idea," he said while carefully moving around Chris' legs then stepping out of the tub into the nipping air.

Chris didn't try to stop him but Ezra could almost feel the confused glower following his movements.

The hard-baked mud floor was cool on his feet as he moved across the room to where four large towels were folded neatly upon the shell inlayed dressing table. Resting one hand on the fluffy white pile, he turned back to meet Chris' gaze.

By all rights, Chris' murderous expression should have turned the warm trickles of water running down his body to icicles. Paradoxically, it was only then he realised he had done the right thing by not taking up Chris' invitation. If Chris got this irritated over a little teasing, he was obviously too tense to enjoy any demanding kind of activity. But now was not the time for Ezra to congratulate himself on their narrow escape. Getting Plan A back on track before Chris decided to get out the bath and make him eat the towels was the obvious priority.

"Mea Culpa," Ezra said, picking up the top towel from the pile. "That was my fault and I apologise." He crossed back to the side of Chris' tub. "You'll still be sore from the ride," he finished softly, crouching down and shaking out the towel to start drying Chris' hair.

Chris stopped scowling but didn't otherwise respond. He put up with Ezra drying his hair and then his face without comment.

"You know, it's a little unsettling to be so roundly ignored -- no matter how handsome the ignoring party may be," Ezra said sotto voce. Then, after another long silence, he stopped drying the back of Chris' neck and leaned in to gently thumb Chris' lips. "Say something."

"I'm going to bed." Chris pushed Ezra's hand away and sloshed out of the tub before Ezra could even think about stopping him.

Wiping a splash of water out his eye, Ezra seriously considered throttling Chris. The man seemed bound and determined to make their lives a living hell of uncertainty. While their relationship had never exactly been easy, lately it was like walking a very thin tightrope over a singularly enraged pit of hellfire. Blindfolded.

Ezra held his breath and took a moment's peace before standing up to look round at Chris drying himself off with sharp, economical towel strokes.

"You soaked my towel," Ezra stated, discarding the item in question into Chris' deserted tub just in case Chris felt like arguing the point.

Chris didn't look particularly pleased when he looked over but at least he did look over. "There's more," he replied grudgingly before throwing a fresh towel towards Ezra -- which Ezra neatly sidestepped so it landed in the bathtub with a muffled splash.

"Oh dear." Ezra glanced down at the sinking towel. "I suppose that's my lot then. Mother always did predict I'd catch pneumonia one day."

Frowning, Chris studied Ezra for a moment before picking up the last fresh towel and walking over to him.

"Your mother ever predict you'd aggravate me so much I'd go off and suffocate you with a nice, clean towel?" Chris asked, shaking the towel out before using it to dry Ezra's back and shoulders.

"Strangely enough, no," Ezra returned with a grin. Then, as Chris moved around to dry off his chest and arms with even, measured strokes, Ezra reached out to comb his fingers through Chris' damp hair.

"You never did say if you wanted to go to that circus tomorrow, Chris," he said conversationally. "They have a revolving stage and a bearded lady who tames the lions...or is that a lion who tames the bearded ladies?"

Chris snorted amusedly. "Maybe they take turns."

"That sounds fair," Ezra agreed. Then his mouth went dry as Chris knelt before him, nudging his legs further apart to rub the insides of his thighs.

After only a second or two watching Chris' head moving around bear inches from his overly optimistic erection, Ezra had to close his eyes. Unfortunately, closing his eyes did nothing to stop the rush of blood that flooded to his groin every time Chris 'accidentally' caressed him with a few bangs of hair or a perfectly timed breath of warm air. Revenge, it seemed, was sweet indeed.

Ezra cleared his throat but didn't dare open his eyes. "Hmm, Mr Larabee, I have heard tell that you are a very bad man. A scoundrel of the first water, in fact."

"I heard that too," Chris replied easily.

"I never believed those tales until now."

"Is that a fact?"

"It is indeed. Why the--" Ezra choked, forcing him to conclude that having certain sensitive organs fondled by knowing hands in a soft towel did terrible things to a man's thought process.

"I mean clearly--" Ezra tried again, only to lose not just his breath but his sense of balance as well when the wet heat of Chris' mouth and throat suddenly enveloped his erection almost to the base. If it weren't for Chris' hands holding him at the hips, he would have toppled into the bathtub. As it was, he almost came on the spot and had to scrabble to catch hold of Chris' head then shoulder to steady himself.

"A little warning?" he managed to gasp when Chris released his whetted shaft to the cold air.

In response, Chris blew a warm breath over the head of Ezra's erection, making him shiver and lean forwards for more.

With the very tip of Ezra's erection almost pressing against his lips, Chris only needed to open his mouth to lick then lightly suck it inside.

Ezra closed his eyes against the new sensation of Chris' tongue but couldn't stop the growl of need that escaped him. Reality lurched beneath a rush of arousal as Chris moved a hand to take a firm grip of his shaft. As Chris squeezed in time with harder sucks on the tip, Ezra's thigh muscles ached with the need to move and sweat prickled across his shoulders. But before the need to come got too much, he eased Chris away and moved down to kneel in front of him. When their gazes levelled, he cupped the left side of Chris' jaw for a sound kiss on the lips.

"It doesn't have to be a sword of Damocles hanging over our heads," he said quietly, thumbing Chris' cheek even as Chris' hands moved up to cradle the back of his head. "We can stop at anytime."

"Let's do it now," Chris returned, pulling Ezra into a series of demanding kisses.

Surrendering to Chris even for a moment brought another heady rush of arousal, but Ezra could feel the tenseness in Chris' body and he reluctantly gentled the kisses before pulling back.

"Well, when you put it that way..." he said with a smile, stroking a hand down Chris' tense shoulder. "But you need to relax a little first."

Chris let out an irritated breath then glanced behind at the bed. "There ain't no way to start this but get over there and lie down, so let's go," he growled, abruptly standing to lead the way.

Ezra rolled his eyes as he got up to follow. "I believe you meant to say, 'Ezra darlin', why don't we go over to the bed and get comfortable'," he suggested while climbing onto the mattress beside Chris. "Affectionate forms of address may not be strictly necessary but a touch of subtlety wouldn't hurt."

"Ezra darlin', why don't you come over here and get comfortable," Chris replied, luring Ezra to settle against his side with a grin.

"I thought you'd never ask." Ezra leaned up for a kiss. "But on the subject of asking, not to mention the risk of sounding like a mother hen..." he trailed off, turning his attention to the faint remains of the many bruises discolouring Chris' torso. He watched his fingers trace around the greyish-yellow edges of the most visible bruise in the centre of Chris' sternum before meeting Chris' gaze again. "Are you sure you've quite recovered?"

For an answer, Chris reached under his pillow for the bottle of liniment oil Nathan had given him and uncorked it purposefully.

"Ah, now that's subtlety," Ezra commented lightly while his heart raced.

Paying Ezra's quip no heed, Chris poured a little of the clear, slightly sharp smelling liquid into the palm of his hand then rubbed it in.

Ezra's breathing hitched as he watched the oily coating over Chris' fingers shine in the muted afternoon light. Then he was kissing Chris, deep and slow. He wasn't aware his hand was moving until he felt the warm slickness of Chris' hand as their fingers interlaced. Their kisses grew urgent as their joined hands travelled down their bodies.

Ezra's senses blurred and dipped, intensifying the feel of Chris against him. Chris' body seemed hot even to his own flushed skin, all hard planes and cording muscles. When their hands finally found their straining erections, Ezra wasn't sure if he was squeezing his own hard shaft or Chris'. Their bodies seemed to blend flawlessly. He was at once massaging and being massaged even when his fingers were tracing the movements of Chris' hand.

Then there was a new liquid coldness added to the press of flesh and Chris was speaking into Ezra's mouth.

"Now," he said between kisses. "Do it now," he went on, bringing his knee up to rest on Ezra's hip while easing Ezra's hand further down, beneath their erections.

With one last kiss, Ezra mouthed down Chris' neck to suck on the point of the collarbone. He then slipped his hand around to massage the loose skin of Chris' heavy sac and then the tight skin behind it.

Chris kept up the steady rhythm on their erections, squeezing and rubbing them together, until Ezra slipped the tip of one finger just inside him. The stutter in Chris' rhythm wasn't enough to make Ezra withdraw but the sudden tensing of apparently every muscle in Chris' body was.

"I believe this is our cue to slowdown," Ezra said, moving up to kiss Chris lightly on the mouth. He then moved his hand back on top of their erections to ease Chris' hand to rest.

"I'm fine," Chris almost growled.

"You're as tense as hell and I'm getting a tad overheated," Ezra corrected. "I think it's time for a change," he went on, rubbing his thumb in the palm of Chris' hand as he brought it up to his chest. "A new position, perhaps."

"I ain't lying on my belly," Chris said low. "I want to see you."

"Well, that's fine because I want you to see me." Ezra smiled and Chris was suddenly kissing him breathless into the pillows.

"All right," Chris said when he broke the kiss.

"Um." Ezra blinked. "Right."

Chris grinned as he thumbed Ezra's cheek. "You want me on my back?"

"Um, no." Ezra kissed Chris' wrist. "That's too deep. Lie on your side."

Chris' gaze narrowed. "You'll be behind me."

"Not necessarily," Ezra returned, already moving to kneel up on the mattress. "Trust me." He kissed Chris one last time before moving down the bed to the other side of Chris' legs.

Chris moved into position without complaint, but lying on his side with his top leg angled out and bent at the knee, he didn't look particularly convinced.

When Ezra moved up close behind to kneel then sit with one knee just touching the small of Chris' back and the other resting behind the knee of his bottom leg, Chris curled around to watch Ezra grin at him.

"Oh ye of little faith." Ezra stroked Chris' hip. "As you can see there's no need for that sceptical look."

"It isn't sceptical it's impatient," Chris replied, tossing the bottle of liniment oil at Ezra. "You going to wait until we're both old and grey?"

Arching an eyebrow, Ezra took his time pouring more oil onto his hands and warming it between his fingers. "I rather fancy you'll improve with age," he countered with a smile before leaning down to massage the tense muscles at the base of Chris' back. "After all, you must have all but used up your quota of ornery for one lifetime."

"I wouldn't count on it." Chris closed his eyes and pressed back into Ezra's touch.

The feel of Chris' muscles easing against his fingers was almost as addictive as Chris' kisses. Ezra redoubled his efforts until the muscles at the base of Chris' spine were relaxed enough so that he could move one hand over to Chris' angled out thigh.

First pushing the leg a little further up, Ezra massaged the muscles until he could run a smooth, circular route over Chris' hip, round and down as far as the base of Chris' sac and back up without Chris tensing. Only then did he overcome his reluctance to spoil a good thing and moved his other hand down from Chris' back to once more try and ease the tip of one finger inside.

Chris immediately opened his eyes to meet Ezra's gaze but didn't seem to tense as he had before.

"How does that feel?" Ezra asked, easing in a little deeper.

Chris' expression wasn't exactly pained but it was far from comfortable.

Ezra stilled his probing finger but moved his other hand over Chris' thigh with a calming caress. "Do you want me to stop?"

Without a word, Chris pushed back onto Ezra.

Freezing, Ezra tried to keep his breathing steady as Chris' tight heat swallowed him as far as it could.

When Chris eased back to rest, his expression was pinched but he still met Ezra's gaze steadily. "Keep going," he insisted roughly.

Nodding, Ezra moved his hand around under Chris' upper leg to take a firm grip of Chris' erection. Unlike his own hard shaft aching impatiently between his thighs, Chris' shaft had lost interest in the proceedings, but soon roused again at Ezra's touch.

Ezra held Chris' gaze as he began squeezing Chris' erection just the way Chris liked it, hard at the base with a teasing roll over the head. When Chris' hips started to move in time with the strokes, Ezra waited another few rapid heartbeats before moving his finger against Chris' internal muscles.

Chris didn't tense this time, but his gaze, which had been growing hazy, was suddenly sharp and watchful.

"All right?" Ezra asked, keeping the strokes on Chris' erection in time with the loosening circles inside.

Chris just watched Ezra with a slight frown until Ezra picked up the pace, quickening and strengthening the strokes on Chris' shaft until Chris was rocking hungrily, almost helplessly between his hands. As a fine layer of sweat broke over Chris' body, Ezra was tempted to skip the introduction of a second finger and just sink himself into Chris' heat. The need to feel Chris' muscles tightening and relaxing against the length of his shaft was almost too much.

Almost.

Steadying himself, Ezra stilled his movements inside Chris and moved his other hand from Chris' erection back up to stroke Chris' thigh and ease his rocking motion.

"Chris?" he enquired a little hoarsely.

"Fine," Chris replied, but his eyes were very dark and Ezra wasn't sure if it was with arousal or doubt.

"Want to try something else for a bit?" Ezra tried. "I could--"

"Keep going," Chris said flatly.

Frowning, Ezra picked up the liniment bottle to apply more oil. "This is going to feel a little different. Stop me if I go too fast," he instructed while pouring the oil down his hand, working it so it slipped inside Chris. He then continued to stroke Chris' thigh calmingly as he eased his first finger out before gently introducing the tips and then the first joints of two fingers back inside.

"Don't push," Ezra warned and Chris scowled at him. "Relax," he went on, leaning down to kiss Chris' side. He then went back to stroking and squeezing Chris' shaft while Chris adjusted to the feel of two fingers.

It seemed to take forever for Chris' internal muscles to open for him the second time and Ezra wasn't sure how long he could hold on. The feel of Chris easing to allow him entry was making his breathing ragged and the need to touch himself almost unbearable. By the time he felt Chris was ready for a faster, harder pace, there was a trickle of sweat running down between his shoulder blades that was driving him insane.

However, when Chris started pushing back onto his fingers, hissing breaths through gritted teeth and trembling with the need to come, Ezra forgot what shoulder blades were. He wanted to be inside Chris badly, wanted to feel that heat clenching against his aching shaft not his fingers. But before that want crawled too far up his throat, he reluctantly eased the pace until he could let go of Chris' erection and stroke the length of Chris' thigh in time with circular massages of his inner muscles. He then wrangled up a smile before looking Chris in the eye.

"How's it feel?" he asked, his voice unrecognisably rough even to his own ears.

Chris just blinked then frowned.

"Do you want to rest for a bit?" Ezra continued, withdrawing his fingers and ceasing all motion even though his own body screamed out for attention.

Chris studied Ezra a little longer before sitting up and picking up the liniment bottle. "You look like you're going to have a heart attack," he told Ezra dryly while pouring some oil into his hand then rubbing it between his fingers. "You're telling me to relax and you're wound tighter than a spring."

"Well, perhaps if you actually ventured to tell me what you're feeling," Ezra began, rankling, "dared to vocal--"

When Chris' mouth captured his own, Ezra couldn't even recall the words he had planned to say let alone actually voice them. He thought, not for the first time, that there should be a law against what Chris' kisses could do to a person. As it was, he just closed his eyes and leaned into Chris' strength, bringing a hand up to caress either side of Chris' neck as he did so.

Lost in the feel of the kisses and the silky brush of Chris' hair against his fingertips, he was almost surprised when Chris' oil slickened hand took a firm grasp of his erection. His body, however, knew the touch was well overdue and he couldn't stop the groan of relief he breathed into Chris' mouth even if he had wanted to.

Even after Chris broke the kiss, Ezra kept his eyes closed and rocked a little into Chris' hand. It wasn't until Chris spoke that Ezra finally opened his eyes.

"How's that for vocalisation?" Chris purred smugly.

Ezra licked his lips before answering, "Your method does seem to have its compensations." He grinned then kissed Chris lightly. "But if you move that hand I may have trouble controlling myself."

"Maybe control's overrated."

"This from our fearless leader," Ezra replied before kissing Chris again. "We could just switch places, you know," he went on softly, the need to feel Chris' strength inside him almost more powerful than the thought of sinking into Chris. "I don't mind if you..." he trailed off as Chris shook his head.

"I want to finish it now."

Ezra scowled. "It's not a chore to get over with as quickly as possible, Chris."

"I know." Chris leaned in to kiss Ezra again before moving back on the mattress, leading Ezra after him. "Come on," he said, lying down on his side with a smirk.

"Your sudden bouts of dry humour are almost as disturbing as your penchant for not talking at all," Ezra said as he took Chris' invitation to spoon up behind him. "You do realise that you are probably the most frustrating human being I've ever met," he said against Chris' shoulder before raining kisses over the warm skin.

"Yeah, and that's just one of my good points." Chris rested his head on Ezra's balancing forearm then pressed back into the hand Ezra stroked down his hip.

"I thought you wanted to see me?" Ezra asked amusedly.

"Feeling's better," Chris answered low. "And you hardly stop talking anyway."

Ezra grinned at Chris' good humour and moved his hand around to caress Chris' stomach with an almost tickling touch. "I believe you meant to say that my deft touch and dulcet tones are more than capable of rendering you astoundingly aroused on their own," he replied, making his point by taking a light hold of Chris' erection and feeling it heat in response.

"Something like that," Chris admitted, a tenseness creeping into his tone.

Ezra frowned, suddenly feeling as if he was on that tightrope again with the flames licking at his heels. He studied Chris' expression but found only stony denial. Taking a deep breath, he spoke quietly, "Sometimes I think I'll go to any length of foolishness just to get your attention, Chris. I felt like that the first time I saw you in the saloon and I'm afraid nothing's changed since. You're the worst and best addiction I've ever had. I'd be lost without you."

Chris met Ezra's gaze before smiling slowly. "I never figured you for that type."

Ezra raised a curious eyebrow. "You never thought I liked men?"

"No." Chris shook his head then grinned. "Never figured you'd be addicted to anything but poker."

"Hmm." Ezra mock considered. "I can't decide whether to be insulted or not."

"Don't be." Chris leaned up for a soft kiss. "I couldn't be without you either so I guess we're both in the same boat."

"Then thank the Lord for unpredictable seas," Ezra said with a smile as they settled down again.

As Chris eased Ezra's hand away to take up the slow strokes on his erection himself, Ezra shifted back a little to gently enter Chris with two fingers again.

This time Chris' body immediately relaxed into his touch and just when Ezra thought he couldn't want to come anymore he suddenly did. His stomach muscles tightened with that honey-warm ticklish feeling just thinking about slipping inside Chris. Moving his fingers to relax the muscles a little more and kissing Chris on the shoulder only delayed the imperative.

"Ready?" Ezra asked hoarsely.

"Do it," Chris almost growled back.

And that was it.

Ezra's heart hammered in his mouth as he pressed his chest against Chris' back while withdrawing his fingers. Then one moment he was stroking Chris' hip in silent reassurance and the next he was guiding the head of his erection just inside Chris' tight heat.

The intense feeling of Chris accepting and surrounding even just the tip of his erection was almost too much and he had to rest until Chris pushed back a little.

"I'm going to do this nice and slow," Ezra said against the flushed skin of Chris' shoulder. "Tell me if you want me to stop," he continued, waiting a moment before easing slightly deeper.

As Chris' internal muscles massaged his shaft, Ezra nearly acted on the abrupt urge to push harder. However, just when he was about a third of the way in, there was a sudden resistance to his entry that made Chris tense and wince.

"Chris?" Ezra said, already beginning to withdraw -- only to have Chris push back on him and growl.

"Wait."

Not wanting Chris to push back any more, Ezra immediately halted his own movement and rested a steadying hand on Chris' hip. "I'm not going anywhere," he said calmly. "Just breathe."

Chris did breathe out then but it was more of an annoyed gust of air that translated as 'I know what I'm doing', with an added expletive or two.

Ezra held his tongue.

His heart thumped and seconds staggered by.

He waited until the hard lines of muscle in Chris' upper arm softened before kissing the shoulder and moving his hand down to cover Chris' hand on his shaft so they stroked in unison.

After a few moments alternately massaging Chris' hand then erection, Ezra felt Chris relax into him again. The feel of the easing entry was immediate, making Ezra close his eyes as he slipped deep inside. But as his shaft moved into Chris as far as it would go, Chris' breathing turned harsh and ragged.

"It's all right. That's it." Ezra moved his hand up to rest over Chris' pounding heart. "Chris?" he prompted, needing a reaction.

"I heard you." Chris met his gaze.

"How does it feel?"

"Different."

"Than?"

"Than anything," Chris said grouchily.

"I see," Ezra replied, wishing he could kiss away Chris' preoccupied scowl. He settled for rubbing the backs of his fingers against Chris' jaw.

He was just about to ask Chris if it was all right to go on when Chris suddenly tightened on him -- making him lose his breath in a sharp bite of pure pleasure.

"Hell," Ezra choked out, moving his hand down to hold Chris tightly around the waist. "This isn't going to last very long."

"Do it," Chris said, bracing.

Ezra nodded. "I'll stop whenever you want me to," he assured one last time while moving his hand to a comfortable grip on Chris' hip. He then paused only to brush a kiss over Chris' shoulder before setting a slow, short stroke that was barely a rhythmic tremor through their bodies.

While the small thrusts calmed the fluttering feeling in Ezra's stomach, it didn't seem to be doing anything for Chris. Lying on his side with a pensive frown on his face, Chris was letting Ezra's easy rhythm take him but making no movements for himself.

Ezra completed a few more shallow strokes before adjusting his grip on Chris' hip with a firm caress and pulling back for a longer, harder stroke. The immediate rush of arousal that washed over him was only a precursor to the dizzy heat that swallowed him when Chris shuddered and pushed back sharply.

"Touch yourself," Ezra gasped over Chris' hissed breaths. "Do it now."

Shuddering again, Chris wrapped his hand around his erection to coincide with Ezra's next thrust.

With Chris moving willingly onto him, tensing with all that lean strength, Ezra knew it couldn't last much longer. When the need to deepen and quicken his thrusts seized him, he gave into it -- and felt Chris move with him.

The faster and deeper Ezra went, the hotter and tighter Chris seemed around him. It wasn't long before his strokes grew erratic and everything in him tightened. Then the world blurred, he forgot to breathe and he was coming hard against Chris' sweat dampened skin.

When the thundering tide of orgasm ebbed to a sated undercurrent of warmth, Ezra realised he was lying half on top of Chris, who had rolled onto his stomach.

"That was perfect," Ezra said in between kisses up Chris' spine. "You were perfect," he continued by Chris' ear. He then kissed the edge of Chris' jaw because, by accident or design, Chris was facing away from him and he couldn't get the kiss on the mouth he wanted.

When Chris didn't move a muscle in response, Ezra frowned and moved up a little to see that Chris had his eyes closed but his expression wasn't angry or pained.

"Chris?" he queried, eager for their usual post-coital tenderness and beginning to worry if Chris had even climaxed. He was lost scouring his fragmented memory when Chris finally answered.

"I'm all right. Just thinking."

"Anything of note?" Ezra asked with a kiss on the soft skin of Chris' neck.

"No," Chris replied mildly but shifted his legs unhappily.

Ezra watched Chris sigh into the pillows before rolling off the bed in search of a semi-respectable looking towel. "I'll be right back," he said when Chris moved to look round at him.

Of course, the most suitable towel of the three possible choices happened to be the one Chris had abandoned on the dressing table, the last one Ezra inspected. As soon as he picked it up, he wondered why he had even bothered checking the ones that had ended up gritty from the floor.

When he turned to walk back to the bed, he was surprised to find Chris sitting up on the mattress with his back pillowed against the ornate curves of the black enamel headboard.

"And there I was thinking you were about to fall asleep," Ezra commented, pausing to quickly wipe away the stickiness from his thighs and groin before climbing on the mattress beside Chris again.

"I'm not tired." Chris took the towel from Ezra. "Just thinking."

"So you said," Ezra muttered, watching Chris clean himself off with rather harsh strokes before pitching the towel over the foot of the bed.

"You know, Chris, I do believe that both yourself and the towel would have preferred what I had in mind," he pointed out dryly.

Chris smirked. "You're probably right."

"You know I am." Ezra settled into Chris' embrace, leaning on one hip, balanced against Chris' side with his arms around Chris' waist and his head on Chris' chest.

Chris brushed hair back from Ezra's forehead, prompting Ezra to lean up for a series of lazy kisses.

"So was I right about our tryst too?" Ezra asked between kisses. "You don't seem to be complaining."

"No, I ain't complaining," Chris confirmed with a smile.

"Indeed." Ezra kissed Chris once more on the lips before mouthing a path down his jaw and throat to kiss along his collarbone.

"Reckon we may as well go see that circus tomorrow since we're so close," Chris said sleepily, his fingers moving across Ezra's ribs in a light caress.

Ezra kissed the bruised, salty-sweet skin under his lips again before meeting Chris' gaze with a smile. "The Tucson air does agree with you, doesn't it?"

"It ain't the air." Chris pulled Ezra into another kiss.

"Ah, the water then?" Ezra said as they parted -- but Chris ignored the shameless strategy for more kisses.

"Ain't the water," he replied, closing his eyes and holding Ezra securely while shifting down the mattress into a comfortable dozing position.

Ezra moved with Chris and kept up their body contact but settled his weight on his elbow so he could lean back for a better view of Chris' sleepy repose.

Just as Ezra was deciding that Chris looked even better now than when wet, Chris proved his sixth sense never dozed off even if he did.

"Didn't your mother teach you it's rude to stare?" he said low without opening his eyes.

"Actually, I don't recall that particular lesson being in her repertoire," Ezra returned, thumbing Chris' nearest nipple. "And your uncanny ability to surmise the attention of others should learn the difference between a stare and a contemplative look."

A smile tugged at Chris' lips but he still didn't open his eyes. "So what are you contemplating?"

"Do you want the long answer or the short one?"

Chris shrugged. "We ain't going anywhere."

"In that case," Ezra said with a grin, "Shall I compare you to breaking the Macavity brothers' faro bank? You are more lovely, if less temperate..."