Burn - 1 

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and 
incidents either are the product of the author's 
imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to 
actual events, locales, organizations, or persons, living 
or dead, is entirely coincidental and beyond the intent of 
either the author or the publisher. 

Burn 
TOP SHELF 
An imprint of Torquere Press Publishers 
PO Box 2545 
Round Rock, TX 78680 
Copyright  2010 by Sean Michael 
Cover illustration by Alessia Brio 
Published with permission 
ISBN: 978-1-61040-113-5 
www.torquerepress.com 
All rights reserved, which includes the right to 
reproduce this book or portions thereof in any form 
whatsoever except as provided by the U.S. Copyright 
Law. For information address Torquere Press. Inc., PO 
Box 2545, Round Rock, TX 78680. 
First Torquere Press Printing: December 2010 
Printed in the USA 

Burn - 2 

Burn, a Hammer Novel 

By Sean Michael 

Chapter One 

He wasn't in the fucking mood for this. 
Marshall headed up the stairs of Murphy's, still 

smelling of smoke and cinders. He had reports to file, 
training. Not to mention he needed a fucking nap. The 
guys only got together once a year, though, and Kerry 
never fucking failed to call and invite him. "Come on 
down," he said. "Even if you can't make the game. See 
the guys from the team. Have a beer." 

Yeah. Yeah. 
Why it had to come on the day after the worst nights 

of fires he'd had in his career, he didn't know. 

A cheer went up as he came in, the guys all lifting 

their beers in a toast to him. 

He nodded, rubbing one hand over the back of his 

neck. "Boys." 

One beer. 
One beer and he'd go home. 
Someone nudged him from behind and a beer 

appeared in front of him. 

"Hey, Marshall. We didn't think you were going to 

make it this year." 

"I didn't, either." He grinned, tried not to sigh. "I just 

need one, and I'm off." 

David Banders smiled at him, the expression just the 

same as it had been back in college, and patted his back. 
"You look like you could use about ten and then maybe 
another ten." 

"No shit on that, man. No shit on that." 
"Come on, let's go sit by the bar, it's quieter." 

Burn - 3 

He nodded, clapped Dave on the shoulder. "Sounds 

like a plan." Dave was a good guy, always had been, 
from what he could remember. 

They headed for the bar, sitting on the corner stools. 

"Potato skins and wings?" 

He nodded. He wasn't hungry yet, but he could sit 

and nod. Shit, Dave would eat it all by himself. Dave 
placed the order and pulled back half a beer before 
turning back to him. "So. Bad night, huh?" 

"Yeah." He rubbed his neck again. "Fatalities. It was 

harsh." 

Four kids. Four fucking kids. He... Yeah. 
Harsh. 
"Oh, man. I'm sorry." 
"Yeah." He sucked down half his brew, letting it hit 

him, right in the gut. 

"You definitely need another beer." Dave got the 

bartender's attention and ordered them more beer. 

"I don't know, man..." Still, it felt good going down. 
Dave put a hand on his shoulder, rubbed. "Tell you 

what, this is my first -- it'll be my last, and I'll be your 
designated driver." 

"Yeah? You sure?" He wrapped his hands around the 

mug. 

"Positive. Unless you want another way to release the 

tension." One of Dave's eyebrows went up and back 
down. The fucker was an incorrigible flirt; it could be 
charming or irritating as fuck, depending on the mood. 

"You want me to beat you up in the back room?" He 

winked, playing back. It wasn't Dave's fault he was 
bitchy. 

Dave grinned. "Or you could let me beat you up. 

That's more my style, anyway." 

"Yeah, right." He shook his head, flexed. Like he was 

the kind to be beat. 

Burn - 4 

Dave's hand slid across his bicep. "Very nice." There 

was clear admiration in Dave's voice, in his eyes. 

He'd seen it before, over the years, but neither of 

them had ever taken it anywhere. "Careful, man, huh?" 
He wasn't in the best place for shit. Not really. 

Dave backed off, hands wrapping around his beer 

bottle. "We could go somewhere else." 

He shook his head, focusing on his beer. "You got 

food coming." 

"Oh, I imagine the guys would be happy to make sure 

it doesn't go to waste. Seriously, man, you wanna split, 
I'm easy." 

He sighed, rubbed his forehead. "I don't know. 

Maybe I'll just go take a shower, work out for a while." 

"Is that usually all it takes?" Dave was looking at him 

like the man knew something he didn't. 

"All it takes for what?" He wasn't quite with it. 
"To wind down, to let go of the bad shit that 

happens." 

"It'll take a couple more beers for that." He stood, 

mood suddenly heading directly south as the images of 
those four babies, burned and lost, hit him. He should 
have saved them. "I have to get home. Have a good 
one." 

Dave stood with him. "Let me drive you, man." 
"I'm cool." Still. He was fucking exhausted. "You got 

people here to visit with." 

Dave was taller than Marshall remembered. Way 

taller. 

"I spent a couple hours running around a field after 

the pigskin with them, and then almost another hour 
here before you showed up. They won't miss me." Dave 
put a hand on his shoulder and turned him, aiming him 
toward the stairs. 

Burn - 5 

"Hey, guys," Dave called out. "Marshall came 

straight from a call. I'm going to give him a lift home." 

There were a couple of disappointed 'aww' sounds, 

but most of the guys just raised their hands or their beers 
and called out, "Goodbye." 

David's hand was on his elbow, guiding him, helping 

him out the door. 

Wait. 
They went down the stairs, and David led him right 

over to a black Honda Civic, opening the passenger door 
for him. 

"I have my truck here, buddy." His head was 

pounding. 

"I'll pick you up and drive you back in the morning." 

Dave encouraged him into the passenger seat and closed 
his door. Within moments, the engine had started and 
Dave was pulling into traffic. "Where am I taking you?" 

"I live off Davis." He had a sweet little place -- big 

enough for him, his dog, his stair climber. 

"Cool. You have any roommates or anything?" Dave 

turned at the light, heading for the highway. 

"What? No. No. I don't need the hassle." He didn't 

need the shit with his schedule. "What is it you're doing 
these days?" 

"I've got a store down by the Cedric's gym. The 

Athletic Supporter." 

He looked at David. God, he was out of the loop. "No 

shit? I been in there." 

"Yeah?" Dave grinned at him for a moment before 

looking back at the road. "Thank you for supporting the 
Supporter." 

Marshall chuckled, nodded. "That's cool, man." A 

sporting goods store. That was pretty damn cool. 

"It is. Especially now that I don't need to be there 

twenty-four seven. It was pretty intense the first few 

Burn - 6 

years when I couldn't afford to have both staff and 
merchandise in the place at the same time.” Warm 
brown eyes smiled at him. “Now I do the books, show 
up to manage when I have to. It's a good life." 

They turned off the highway and into a residential 

neighborhood, the street lights going by in a hypnotic 
rhythm. He nodded, murmured at the appropriate times. 
The tension was starting to get to him, the migraine 
bubbling right at the base of his spine. 

Dave's hand on his arm got his attention. "Okay, 

we're on Davis. Where do I go from here?" 

"All the way down the street. Last house on the 

right." 

"Cool." It was quiet for the few moments it took for 

Dave to turn into the drive and turn off the engine. 
"Home sweet home -- it's a nice-looking house." Dave 
turned his attention back to Marshall. "You want me to 
come in? I'm not trying to be an asshole or pushy idiot 
here, you just look... well, haunted." 

"Four dead kids will do that. I smell bad." Still, Dave 

had been decent. "You want a cup of coffee or 
something?" 

"Oh, Jesus, Marshall. You'd said it'd been rough, but 

that. Wow. Yeah, I would." Dave's hand was back, 
squeezing his arm gently. 

"Come on in." Don't be decent, or he'd get stupid. He 

didn't get stupid. Dave came around, followed him up 
the stairs, and waited for him to open the door. His 
hands were shaking a little bit, but Doby started barking 
and howling, the big shepherd going nuts. "Hey. Hey, 
Dob. Did Karen and Bill bring you home for me?" 

He'd rescued Doby from a fire five years ago. Stupid, 

Karen keeping Dob the lion's share of the time. 

"Oh, you have a dog. Cool." Dave put a hand over his 

and gently guided the key to the lock. 

Burn - 7 

"I. Yes. Sorry. Doby." He got the door open, Doby 

wagging hard. Dave followed him in, offering Doby his 
hand to sniff. 

“Doby? Where did you get him? A breeder?” 
“No. No, I rescued him at a fire. It's stupid to have a 

pup as little as I'm home, but I have some friends next 
door that I pay to keep him when I'm not home.” 

Doby drooled all over Dave's hand, and Marshall 

headed for the kitchen, intending to make coffee. The 
place was clean enough for company. Mostly. He heard 
Dave's soft laughter slowly getting closer, and then his 
dog and his friend joined him in the kitchen. "You've got 
a nice place here, Marshall." 

"Thank you." He got the coffee out, got the carafe, 

filled it with water. 

"You need me to do anything?" 
"No." His hands were shaking, the carafe tapping 

against the side of the sink. 

Dave got up and stood behind him, hands sliding on 

his arms and down to his hands, curling around them. 
"You don't need to make me coffee, Marshall." 

"Sorry, man." This was a bad fucking idea. 
"Don't apologize. You've had a traumatic night. Let 

me help you." Help him? How? He handed Dave the 
coffee pot. Dave shook his head and put the coffee pot 
down, turned him around. "Shut up, Marshall." 

He couldn't have said anything even if he'd wanted 

to; Dave's mouth covered his. Marshall's eyes went 
wide, pulling at the edges, and he gaped. Just gaped. 

Dave took advantage of his open mouth, tongue 

pushing in, exploring. 

What the fuck? 
He stepped back, chest heaving. He wasn't in the 

closet, but he never flaunted. Never. "Dave?" 

Burn - 8 

"You need something to take you out of yourself, 

Marshall. I can see that. I want to help." Dave moved 
forward, body pressing up against his. 

"But we. I. This." Wait. He couldn't. What the fuck? 
"Just shut up and stop thinking so hard." Dave's 

hands cupped his face, and then Dave kissed him again. 

His eyes rolled and he grunted, pushing into the kiss. 

Never let it be fucking said he walked away from a free 
offer of nookie. Dave deepened the kiss, whole body 
leaning against him, pushing him back against the 
counter. He wrapped his hands around Dave's shoulders, 
squeezing tight. 

Dave nodded into their kiss and grabbed his collar, 

moving them. "You got a bed?" 

"I do. You sure you want to do this, man?" He didn't 

usually indulge in pity fucks. 

"I'm not in the habit of kissing guys I'm not interested 

in, Marshall. Take me to the bedroom and I'll show you 
just how much I want to do this." 

"It's down the hall to the left." He didn't know when 

Dave had become... hot, but he wasn't going to look a 
gift horse in the mouth. 

Dave grabbed his hand and led the way to his own 

bedroom, all confidence and sure strides, and he found 
himself following along, his cock almost pushing in 
front of him. Once in the bedroom, Dave turned to him 
and started tugging his T-shirt out of the waistband of 
his jeans, even as Dave leaned in, taking small, sucking 
kisses. He wrapped his hands around Dave's waist, 
holding on. Not to keep his hands steady, just holding 
on. 

"Arms up," Dave whispered against his lips as the T-

shirt got stuck three quarters of the way up his chest. 

He nodded, but he couldn't move his hand for a 

second, couldn't quite make it. 

Burn - 9 

"You okay?" Dave asked, hands rubbing along his 

sides. 

"Yeah." He shook his head. 
Dave wrestled the T-shirt off him and then undid his 

jeans, pulling them and his underwear down to his 
knees. "Sit." The word was an order. 

He blinked, sat. God, he was tired. 
Dave pulled off his Kodiaks and his socks, and then 

tugged his pants and shorts right off. He was pushed 
back onto the bed, Dave climbing up and encouraging 
him to move to lie in the middle of the bed. "I'll take 
care of you, Marshall." 

"I'm okay, man. Really." Just a little stressed out. 
"Oh, you're more than okay. You're a big, beautiful 

stud who runs into burning buildings to rescue people. 
You don't have to be strong tonight. Just lie back and let 
me make you fly." Dave's mouth covered his again, this 
kiss starting out soft and growing harder the longer it 
lasted. 

He groaned, cradled Dave in his arms and legs, 

framing the man, holding on. The kisses continued, 
Dave in full control. Every time he tried to take the kiss 
back, Dave kept them where they were, lips locked, 
moans passing between them. Dave's hands found his, 
the man threading their fingers together. 

Crazy. This was crazy. 
He pressed closer, moaning low and deep. 
Dave slowly pulled his hands up over his head, 

stretching him out. All the while, the kisses kept him 
unfocused, kept stealing his breath. 

He found himself rocking up toward Dave, his entire 

body awake, alive, on fire. 

"Taste good," muttered Dave, lips wrapping around 

his lower one, tugging on it. 

"Like smoke, prob'ly." 

Burn - 10 

"Maybe a little. Underneath the you." Dave nuzzled 

their noses together. "Leave your hands up there." 

"Hmm?" 
"Don't move your hands." Dave started kissing his 

way down Marshall's body. 

He chuckled, but was willing to play along. The 

sucking kisses moved down his chest, with detours at his 
nipples. He grunted, reached down, and shook his head. 
"I'm not into that, man." 

That... ached. 
Dave looked up at him. "You're not into getting 

kissed?" 

"No. I don't... C'mere." He dragged Dave back up, 

kissed the man hard, fingers cradling the man's head, 
thick hair slick on his palm. Dave took control of the 
kiss, deepened it further. 

There. Better. Let's just get off. 
Moving against him, Dave rubbed their cocks 

together, and Marshall nodded, hips rolling, driving 
them. 

Dave broke the kiss long enough to ask him, "Got 

lube? Condoms?" 

"You want me to fuck you, Dave?" He was really 

close, really tired, but he was never too tired for that. 

"No, Marshall. I'll take care of you." Then Dave was 

kissing him again. 

He felt like he was missing something, not quite 

following the conversation, but the kisses... 

They went on and on and left him floating, flying, 

breathless. He didn't have a handle on anything, and it 
felt good, so just relax, feel. Be touched. Dave's hand 
slid over his body, fingers twisting his nipples lightly 
before moving down to stroke across his abs. The touch 
felt fucking amazing, and he moved into it. 

Burn - 11 

"That's it, Marshall. You need it -- take it, enjoy it. 

Lose yourself in it." 

Shh. No talking. Talking meant thinking. 
Then Dave was kissing him again and the threat of 

thinking disappeared under the onslaught of the man's 
mouth on his, the warm, knowing fingers on his abs, his 
hips. His cock throbbed, aching, needing a touch. Dave's 
palm brushed by it, and his hips jerked, trying to get 
closer, more. 

"So needy. Good." The words were murmured into 

his mouth and then Dave's fingers slid around his cock, 
snuggled it right up against the hot palm. 

He licked his lips, hips moving in short, needy bursts. 

"Gonna. Soon." 

"Yeah, nice and quick this time. Then we can take it 

slow." Dave's thumb rubbed across the tip of his cock on 
the downstrokes. 

Nice. Quick. 
Quick. 
Fuck. 
Yes. 
"Come on. Give it up for me, Marshall. Let me see 

what you've got." 

His balls ached, throbbed, and spunk sprayed out of 

him, landing on his stomach. 

Fuck. 
Dave groaned into his mouth, hand rubbing his spunk 

into his belly, and Marshall panted, eyes rolling. Fuck 
him. Good. Dave leaned up over him, fumbling through 
his bedside table. 

He tried to focus, blinking hard. "Dave?" 
He tried to make his hands work, get one around 

Dave's cock, to help the man out. 

"Shh. Don't worry about anything, Marshall. I've got 

you." 

Burn - 12 

"Don't want to leave you hanging." 
"You don't have to worry about me, Marshall. You 

don't have to worry about anything." Dave seemed to 
have found the lube and a condom, coming back to lie 
next to him. He blinked, nodded, just not able to really 
focus. 

"Spread your legs," Dave ordered, the man shifting, 

moving down his body, tongue hot on his skin. He 
stretched and spread, his hips rolling lazily. 

"Mmm. Nice." Dave licked the tip of his cock and 

then one of his balls. Then the man's hot tongue slid 
across his hole. 

"Oh. I. Dave..." He'd never. Whoa. 
Back and forth, up and down, that tongue flicked at 

his skin, the sensations nearly overwhelming. 

His breath came in shorter and shorter pants, his 

hands opening and closing; then Dave's tongue pushed 
into him, breaching his body. 

"Fuck..." His shoulders left the mattress, and he cried 

out. 

Dave hummed, and he'd be fucking damned if that 

didn't send vibrations all fucking through him. 

"I... Oh, Jesus. I can't. Fuck..." He twisted, damn near 

sobbing. 

That tongue didn't stop, it just fucked in and out of 

his hole, so hot and wet. His cock was hard as glass, his 
body on fire, then something else pushed inside him, 
slick and easy going with that tongue working him. 

Marshall was out of his fucking mind, and his hands 

grabbed hold of the headboard so he had something to 
brace himself on. The wet, silky stretch continued, 
Dave's tongue-fucking building the sensation ever 
higher. 

Wrapped in sensation, Marshall just grunted, 

moaned, and rode, hips driving himself down. He had no 

Burn - 13 

clue how long it went on -- he pretty much lost track of 
time, of his brain, of every fucking thing but the way his 
body felt. 

Slick warmth continued to fuck him, to spread him, 

even as Dave's tongue disappeared. "God, you're hot, 
Marshall. So fucking hot." 

"Please. I need." 
"I know, I know." A moment later the slick warmth 

disappeared as well, but before he could even cry out, 
something hot and hard pressed against him, pushed. His 
breath caught in his throat, and when Dave's fingers 
pinched one of his nipples, he bore down, hard. 

"Oh, fuck, you're tight, Marshall." Dave's mouth 

covered his with another one of those kisses that 
absolutely took his breath away. 

Caught in the whole thing, Marshall grunted, their 

bodies slick as they slid together. Dave began moving, 
cock pushing into him, sliding back out, then in again. 
He wasn't into getting fucked. He wasn't, but... feeling 
good was feeling good and he was already there. 

Dave's hand wrapped around his cock again, the 

strokes around his prick matching the ones pushing into 
him. Heat flooded him, and he cried out, body gripping 
Dave tight. 

"Yes! Fuck!" Dave froze and then collapsed down 

onto him, hand still holding his spent prick. 

His eyelids were so heavy, his body limp and lax. 
Dave slipped out of him, and a moment later a soft 

tissue moved over his skin, cleaning him up. 

He murmured. He should see Dave out. Something. 

He should. 

"Shh. Shh. It's all right. I've got you. Go to sleep." 
"Sorry. Tired. Long day." 
"I know. You're safe here, though. Sleep." 
Dave's hands slid on him, petting him, soothing. 

Burn - 14 

Marshall moaned, sinking down into dreams of men 

and sex and heat. 

Not fire. 

*** 

Dave woke up with a start, half sitting in a strange 

bed, a warm body next to his. 

It took him a moment to remember where he was --

he'd gone home with Marshall Ray, made love to the 
man. Right. Lying back down, he leaned into the big 
body next to his, wondering what had woken him up. 
Marshall's chest was heaving, one tear escaping the 
corner of one eye. 

Oh, damn. Nightmares. 
He rubbed his hand along Marshall's breastbone. 

"Shh. Shh. It's okay. You're safe." 

Marshall's forehead crinkled. "I'll get you out." 
Oh, that wasn't good. "Come on and wake up now." 
Marshall took a deep breath. "Cap! Cap! The wall's 

coming down, man! There's kids in there!" 

He grabbed Marshall's shoulders and shook them. 

"Wake up!" 

Those eyes popped open and Marshall sat up, bright 

blue eyes rolling, the blond buzz cut making them all the 
more blue. "Fuck. Fuck, sorry. Right." 

The man rolled up off the bed, lurching around for a 

few steps. Dave followed him, wrapped his arms around 
Marshall's waist, and pulled the big body against his. 
"It's okay. It's over." 

"Sorry. Sorry. I. Shit. Sorry." 
"Shh. It's fine. You're fine. You want to come back to 

bed or go see if your fridge has any beer?" What the 
man really needed was a good beating, something to 
make Marshall let go. 

Burn - 15 

"I... Bed. Yeah." 
"Okay, come on." He got Marshall turned back 

around and into bed. Climbing in, he settled close, the 
covers pulled up. 

"Sorry. What time is it?" 
"I don't know. Late. Dark." He looked to the bedside 

table and sure enough, there was a digital clock there. 
"It's almost three a.m." 

"Jesus. I'm sorry for waking you." Marshall looked 

over at him, blinked slowly. 

"It's okay. Sounded pretty bad. You need to find a 

way to put it behind you, man." He rubbed Marshall's 
back, hand moving in slow circles. 

"Just a dream. Happens." 
Dave snorted softly. Right. 
"I could help you with that." He knew exactly how to 

get Marshall to let go, to release all that pain. 

"Only time helps that stuff." 
"Time just helps you bury it. I'm talking about 

expunging." Letting go. 

"Huh? I don't go in for that psyche bullshit." 
"When was the last time you just let go?" He decided 

to try a different tactic. 

"Huh? Come on, buddy. Sleep, it's late. You need a 

hand job to get you there?" 

"I'm fine, Marshall." He shook his head. He needed 

to get Marshall to his place. There he could tie the man 
to his bed and beat his back and ass until Marshall cried 
for mercy. Until Marshall cried, let it all go. Stopped 
trying to be the hero all the damn time. 

"Cool." Marshall hummed, eyes dropping closed. 
"Come to my place for breakfast tomorrow." A little 

coffee, a little pancakes and syrup, a little bondage and 
beating... 

"I'm on my seventy-two off. I don't have plans." 

Burn - 16 

"Then you'll come home with me." He didn't give 

Marshall time to argue, just settled in nice and close, 
head on the big chest. Marshall hummed, then the sound 
turned into low, soft snores. 

Dave shook his head and thought about the best way 

to give Marshall what he needed. The funny thing was, 
he'd had images of having Marshall tied up in his bed 
for a long time, each year they got together with the 
guys for their annual game giving him more ammunition 
for his fantasies. 

Now it was more than just a fantasy; now it was 

something that Marshall needed. 

He just had to convince Marshall of that. 

Burn - 17 

Chapter Two 

He woke up at six and stumbled into the bathroom 

without turning on the lights, then turned on the hot 
water. Steam billowed up all around him and Marshall 
leaned into it, dozing again. 

He woke with a start at the sound of a voice. "Mind if 

I join you?" 

"Nah. Come on. Just waking up." 
Dave slipped in behind him, pressing up against his 

back. "Mmm. You're nice and warm." 

"Good hot water heater." 
"I like the man heater better." He could hear the 

fucking grin in Dave's voice. 

Marshall chuckled, leaned deeper into the spray. 

"Flirt." 

"Can you blame me? I'm in the shower with a hot 

stud." 

"Man, how many of the team have you picked up 

over the years?" 

Dave slapped his ass. Hard. "Fuck you, Marshall. I'm 

here because you needed me and because I'm interested, 
not because you're next on the fucking list." 

"Hey!" He stumbled forward, purely shocked, then 

spun around as surprise turned to anger. "Jesus fucking 
Christ! I was teasing you, man! What the fuck is wrong 
with you?" 

Brown eyes went wide. "Sorry, man. I thought you 

were making a fucking dig. Just because I'm kinky 
doesn't mean I sleep around." 

"What?" Kinky? Where the hell had that come from? 
"I guess you hit a nerve, man." Dave's hands looped 

around his waist. 

Burn - 18 

He stared for a second, then rinsed off, feeling a little 

like there'd been a conversation he'd missed. "You want 
a cup of coffee?" 

"How about I take you home and make you that 

breakfast I promised you?" 

He shrugged. "You don't have to put yourself out, 

man." 

"It's not putting me out." Dave rubbed a hand across 

his shoulders. "I'm sorry I ruined the mood. You need to 
give me a chance to recapture it." 

"No big, man. I just... I'm thinking I'm in a bad 

space." 

Tired. 
Bitchy. 
Stressed out. 
Not particularly interested in drama. 
"I know you are. That was the point of you coming 

over and me making you pancakes, huh?" Dave slid 
their lips together, the kiss light, gentle, soothing. 

Pancakes. 
Right. 
He let himself relax a little bit, breathe. 
Dave's fingers were gentle on his skin, tracing his 

muscles as his hands came to rest on Dave's waist again. 

Okay. 
Okay, better. 
Dave's tongue teased the roof of his mouth. Damn, 

he'd never met someone as into kissing as Dave was. 

"You taste great," Dave murmured. 
"Thanks. You're one hell of a kisser." 
"You're not so bad yourself." 
He snorted. What the hell did a guy say to something 

like that? Dave seemed to think it warranted more 
kisses. Then the man slipped down to his knees right 
there in the shower, mouth level with his prick. 

Burn - 19 

He blinked down, his cock saying hello and howdy, 

just like that. Dave gave him a grin and licked the head, 
tongue getting good coverage. 

"Oh, fuck yeah." He groaned, hips beginning to roll 

in a slow and steady fashion, pushing his cock over 
Dave's tongue. 

Dave grabbed onto his hips, fingers digging in so he 

could feel them, but not stopping him from slowly 
fucking the hot mouth. Man, how had he not known that 
Dave could do this? The man's tongue wasn't just lying 
there, either, Dave was rubbing and slapping at his cock, 
adding little zings of sensation. 

His body jerked, driving into that hot mouth, pushing 

harder. "Shit. Yeah. So good." 

A low hum vibrated around his cock, like Dave was 

agreeing with him. 

He was surprisingly close, and his thighs went tight. 

"Close." 

Dave pulled off long enough to mutter, "Let me 

taste," then the man went back down on him, sucking 
hard. 

Fuck, he was gonna blow so hard the top of his head 

was going to pop off. 

Dave's fingers crept up between his legs, rolling his 

balls, sliding behind them. The little touch to his 
perineum had him grunting, shooting hard. Dave didn't 
seem to miss a beat, swallowing him down. The touch 
between his legs lingered, soft and gentle strokes that 
encouraged his orgasm to stretch out. 

"Damn." That was hot. 
Dave pulled up and rested against his hip, head tilted, 

lips curved up in a smile. "That's how you start a proper 
morning." 

"Yeah." He nodded, swayed a little. "Damn." 

Burn - 20 

Leaning over, Dave turned the water off and then got 

up and grabbed a couple towels, handing one over. 

"Thanks. You... you need something?" He wasn't a 

selfish man. He wasn't. 

"I can wait 'til we're back at my place." 
"You sure? I won't leave you hanging, I'm not that 

type of guy." 

"I'm good, man. It'll be all the much sweeter for 

having waited." 

He nodded, dried himself off. "Good deal. Let me get 

some pants on." 

Dave's chuckle was soft, sweet. "Yeah, we'd cause a 

bit of a stir if we went out as we are." 

"Probably, yeah. Although I jog in shorts." 
"Mmm, I bet that causes enough of a stir." Dave 

winked and patted his ass as they made their way back 
to his bedroom. 

He grabbed a pair of sweats, briefs, a T-shirt, 

dressing quickly while Dave put on the clothes he'd been 
wearing, looking easy in his skin. 

"You sure you don't want me to buy you breakfast, 

man?" It would save the guy groceries. 

"You can buy me breakfast tomorrow." Dave headed 

toward the front door. 

He grinned. Tomorrow. The man was confident. It 

was hot. 

Dave's car was in his drive, and the man held the 

door open for him. "I'll drive you to your truck, and you 
can follow me home." 

"Sure. Thanks." He slid in, smiled. This was the 

weirdest damn week... His cell phone rang and he 
answered it. "Yeah?" 

"Marsh. Man. We need you. Now. We're calling 

everyone in." 

Burn - 21 

"Shit. I'll be there in... six." He hung up. "Sorry, man. 

Drop me off at the station. They're calling everyone in." 

Dave's eyes went wide, but the man nodded and 

started it up. "Rain check?" 

"Absolutely. Sorry, man. Work first." Always. 

Forever. 

Dave nodded. "I get it. Come to my place when 

you're done, okay? I've got a shower, good food. I'll take 
care of you." 

"I'll call first." He was a big boy. He didn't need to be 

taken care of. 

"Okay. You owe me an orgasm, though." Dave gave 

him a wink. 

"I absolutely do. I'll call." They pulled up to the 

station and he held out his hand. "You have my word." 

"Excellent." Dave took his hand, squeezed it, then 

slipped a business card in. "My number. Be safe." 

"You got it. See ya." 
He hopped out of Dave's car and waved. 
Time to go to work. 

*** 

He'd seen the fire on the news. 
It had been bad. Really bad. Lots of property damage. 

Every station in the city called in. Firefighter injuries. 
Civilian fatalities. 

Dave hoped to God Marshall called when he was 

finished fighting it, because the last thing Marshall 
needed was to go home alone after a fire like that one. 
Especially coming so close after the other one. He kept 
the radio tuned to the local news station and an ear out 
for the phone. 

It was late in the evening when he got the text. Sry 

bout 2day. M. 

Burn - 22 

He didn't bother texting back -- it would be too easy 

for Marshall to just blow him off. Instead, he called 
Marshall's cell. 

"'Lo?" Marshall sounded shattered. 
"Where are you?" He grabbed his car keys and 

headed out the door. 

"Heading for my truck, man. Sorry about our day. I 

got the next few off, maybe we can hook up?" 

"Let me come pick you up, drive you here. You 

sound absolutely beat." No way was he letting Marshall 
drive himself home and then spend God knew how long 
alone, beating himself up for any of the fatalities over 
the last few days. 

"I'm at my truck already. I jogged down from the 

station." 

"I'm turning on the highway now." Okay, so he was 

just pulling out of the driveway, but he'd be there soon. 
"You want to just stay there and wait 'til I get there --
you can follow me home." 

Let Marshall think he was a pushy asshole; he was, 

but it was for the man's own good. 

"I'm really not in the mood for company. It's been a 

hard fucking day." 

"That's exactly why you need me. A good hard fuck, 

a good solid sleep. A shot, a shower. And not 
necessarily in that order." 

"I don't know about all that, but maybe we can find 

an all-night diner. Get those pancakes." 

Dave would take it. He could work on Marshall once 

he had the man in front of him. "Benny's is on Fourth 
and Hemmingway. Best pancakes in town." And right 
around the corner from his place. "You want me to come 
get you, man?" 

"Nope. I'll meet you. Give me ten." The line went 

dead. 

Burn - 23 

Dave headed the car for Benny's; he'd just have to 

trust that Marshall was okay to drive. It didn't take him 
long to get to the diner and he went in, nodding at Lucy, 
who was making a new pot of coffee in the big pot 
behind the counter. The place wasn't too busy right now, 
and he picked a booth with a view of the parking lot, 
figuring the wide bench seats would be more 
comfortable for Marshall. 

Marshall's big red truck pulled in and the man 

parked, head leaning back on the seat for a long minute 
or two, then the truck door opened. 

Jesus, the man needed a break. Needed to get out of 

himself. 

Marshall nodded to the waitress, smiled and nodded 

again about the coffee, then headed toward him. 

David had a smile for the man and squeezed 

Marshall's knee under the table when he sat. "Hey, 
babe." 

"Hey, man. How's your day been?" Marshall looked 

haunted, and there was a burn creeping up from under 
the collar of the man's shirt. 

"Been worried about you. Looks like with good 

reason, too." 

"No reason to worry. Just doing my job." 
"What happened to your neck?" he asked, pointing. 
Marshall reached up, winced as his fingers trailed 

over the angry burn. "Work." 

"Did you get it checked out before you left the 

station?" He was betting no. 

"It's not bad. Nothing big." Marshall smiled at the 

waitress. "I want pancakes, bacon, and three scrambled 
eggs, please." 

"I just want the pancakes and bacon, Lucy. Oh, and a 

milkshake, please." 

Burn - 24 

Marshall got the once over from Lucy, a lazy smile. 

"You want a milkshake, too?" 

Marshall shook his head. "A large OJ and keep the 

coffee coming." 

"That not going to keep you awake?" 
"Nope. Caffeine doesn't affect me at all." 
Dave chuckled, shook his head. "I can't drink it after 

eight or I don't sleep." 

"No? That's too bad. I cat nap. A lot." Wasn't that a 

pretty fucking image? Marshall napping bonelessly. 

"Occupational hazard, huh?" 
Marshall nodded, poured a metric fuck ton of sugar 

in his coffee, and drank deep. "What did you do today?" 

"I checked in on the store at one point, but mostly I 

had a lazy day." Watched TV and was horrified by the 
out of control fire... 

"Cool." Marshall sighed softly. 
He met Marshall's gaze. "Did you want to talk about 

it?" 

"Work? It was hard. People died. That never gets 

easier. Never." 

"No, I bet it doesn't. Do you ever let go of it, though? 

Of not being able to save them?" Marshall was big and 
strong and he ran into burning buildings to save people. 
It had to rankle, had to hurt, when he failed. 

"Of course not. I have a job to do." 
"You just bury it, huh?" 
"I just use it, I guess. I save the next ones." 
Except today Dave knew Marshall hadn't, and he was 

willing to bet Marshall never cried about it, because that 
would be weak. How long could stuff like that fester 
before it was finally too much? He didn't want Marshall 
to have to find out. 

Marshall leaned back when the food came, digging in 

eagerly. He was hungry himself; he hadn't had much to 

Burn - 25 

eat during the day and the pancakes here rocked. He 
gave them a liberal dose of syrup and cut through all the 
cakes on the stack, just barely managing to get all the 
little triangles on his fork and then into his mouth. 
Marshall slowed down about three quarters of the way 
through, started working on another cup of coffee. Dave 
sucked on his milkshake, watching Marshall from 
beneath his lids. 

He knew what Marshall needed. He could give it to 

the man, too. Tied down, beaten, he could push Marshall 
all the way to the edge, break him until Marshall let it all 
go, cried and screamed. The man needed a few hours 
where he didn't have to be strong. Something told him 
Marshall was going to fight him, every step of the way. 

It was a good thing he was stubborn and could be 

ornery, too. 

"You ready to come back to my place?" he asked 

when they'd both cleared their plates. 

"I don't know if it's a good idea, man. I'm tired." 
"And you've got seventy-two hours to sleep, to eat, to 

deal, to fuck. You owe me one, Marshall." 

"Yeah. Yeah, okay. I don't welsh." Marshall finished 

his coffee, found him a rather shaky smile. 

He reached out and squeezed Marshall's hand. "It'll 

be okay, Marshall. You'll be okay." 

"Of course I will." 
He stood and dropped some money onto the table. 

"Come on, time to go." 

Marshall pushed the money back toward him. "This 

one's on me." 

"Okay." He knew how to pick his battles. 
Marshall paid the bill and headed for his truck. 
"You can follow me." He'd have offered to drive the 

man, but he had a feeling that would be another battle he 
didn't want to fight. 

Burn - 26 

"No problem." Marshall swung up into the truck, the 

engine roaring to life. Dave hustled to his car and pulled 
out, making sure Marshall was tailing him before 
heading home. Jesus, he'd never met someone so tense, 
so in need of release. 

He pulled up in front of his house, offering Marshall 

a smile as the man pulled up behind him, truck just 
clearing the end of the drive. "Welcome to my home." 

"Thanks for the invite." 
"No problem. You want a shower, couch and a 

movie, or bed?" 

"How about the couch?" 
"You sure? I thought you'd want to crash." Those 

pretty eyes looked so fucking tired. "Come on. My bed 
is more than big enough." He grabbed hold of Marshall's 
hand and led the man down the hall and into his 
bedroom. 

"Wait. Weren't we going to the sofa?" 
"You need bed, man. It's written all over you." He 

started stripping Marshall down. 

"No. I just. I was going to..." The burn slashed across 

Marshall's chest. 

He winced. "Shit. Marshall, this has be hurting. I've 

got some of that burn spray. You finish getting 
undressed and I'll get it." 

"It's not bad. Just red." 
"Still. I'll feel better if I spray it." 
He went into the en suite and checked the medicine 

cabinet. There. He'd been right, he had some. He 
grabbed the bottle and headed back to Marshall, who 
was sitting on the edge of the bed, still in his briefs. 

"Hey, man. Chin up and let me spray your burn." 

Marshall's chin lifted, the strong throat working, and 
Dave sprayed the long burn, wincing as he did. Damn, 
that was nasty. 

Burn - 27 

"It's not bad. First degree." 
"What happened?" he asked quietly. 
"A beam fell." Just so nonchalant. A beam fell. 
"So it's bruised as well as burned." He brushed his 

hand over the air above the burn. The skin was hot, but 
not unbearably so, and there weren't blisters. 

"We have protective gear." 
"And you still got burned. Come on, lie down." He 

pushed gently on the uninjured side. 

"Really, it's not a big deal." Marshall leaned back, 

though, followed his touch. 

"You need to take care of yourself, Marshall." He 

pressed kisses on Marshall's face, just soft and gentle. 

Marshall turned toward the kisses. "I'm okay." 
"I'm going to make you even more okay." It was a 

promise. 

"I was going to give you an orgasm." 
"Uh-huh." He grabbed Marshall's hands and brought 

them up over his head. "Grab hold of the headboard." 
He got one of those looks again -- confused, hot, sweet. 
"Just do it, beautiful man." 

"Okay." Marshall stretched up, letting him see all that 

body – muscled and taut, broad-shouldered and stacked. 
God, he wanted to see Marshall in leather. 

"That's perfect." He wanted to tie Marshall to the 

headboard, the man's ankles spread and tied to the 
footboard. But right now the man needed to be fucked 
and to sleep. They had three days; he'd have his chance. 
He started by kissing Marshall's knuckles where they 
were wrapped around the wood. 

Marshall's eyes were on his mouth, staring at him. 

"Jesus, that's hot, Dave, but I'm supposed to be here 
helping you out." 

"Hey, I spent the day lazing around and yeah, I 

jacked off when I got home this morning, so don't worry 

Burn - 28 

about me getting blue balls or anything." He smiled, 
stroked his hand along Marshall's cheek. "I want to do 
this." 

Marshall's eyes closed, the pretty lips parting. So 

fucking hot. 

He licked along Marshall's lips and then went back to 

where he'd been, tongue sliding along the veins in 
Marshall's wrists. Marshall's hands tightened, the 
tendons standing out for him. He traced those with his 
tongue as well, nibbled them with his lips. 

"Fuck. Your mouth is so fucking warm." 
"Gonna eat you all up," Dave promised, moving 

slowly along Marshall's inner arm. 

"Gonna make me crazy." Marshall's legs were 

moving, sliding on the sheets. 

"That's kind of the idea, you know?" Take Marshall 

out of his head, help him forget everything, even if just 
for a short while. 

"Oh. Good to know I'm getting it right." 
He chuckled and rubbed his nose along the inside of 

Marshall's elbow. Then he nipped at the sensitive skin 
and Marshall's arm jerked, hand slipping off the 
headboard. He kissed the spot he'd nipped and then 
wrapped Marshall's hand back around the headboard. 
"Don't let go, babe." 

"Sorry, man. I just...Watch the biting." 
"You liked it. It just surprised you." 
Marshall looked at him, eyebrows arching. "I don't 

know." 

"It doesn't matter. All you need to do is feel." 
"Feel." Marshall took a deep breath. "Right." 
"Yep." He grinned and rubbed their noses together. 

He liked the soft chuckle he got, liked how Marshall 
relaxed for him, so he pressed kisses across Marshall's 

Burn - 29 

face, his fingers taking over sliding along Marshall's 
arms. 

Marshall tried to capture his lips, but Dave kept out 

of reach. He stayed away from the burned area, fingers 
and mouth sliding over the rest of Marshall's skin. Those 
off-limits nipples were dark, peaked, begging for 
attention, abuse. He blew on them, and Marshall arched, 
abs rolling. 

Look at that. 
Leaning in, he licked the tip of his tongue across one 

hard little nipple. 

"Don't." Marshall's chest pressed toward his lips. 
Dave managed to swallow his snort, his tongue 

flicking back and forth across Marshall's flesh. 
Marshall's breath came faster, and Dave could almost 
smell the man's need. He moved to the other nipple, 
tonguing it, letting his teeth threaten. Fuck, he could all 
but see the clamps on the little bits of flesh, biting in. 
The games Marshall was going to let him play... 

Groaning, he dropped his mouth over Marshall's 

nipple and sucked it in. 

"Dave!" The headboard creaked. 
"Yeah. I've got you, babe. Just feel. Go with it." He 

went back to sucking. 

"Feel... Fuck." 
Oh, yeah. Someone hated nipple play. He flicked his 

tongue back and forth across it as he sucked. 

"I... Oh, fuck." 
Yeah, that was in the plan. That and more. His 

fingers traced Marshall's abs. God, they were fucking 
sweet. He felt Marshall's fingers touching his hair. He 
pulled off the sweet nipple. "Hands. Headboard." 

"What?" Marshall tried to pull him up for a kiss. 
He grabbed hold of Marshall's hands and put them 

back up to the headboard. "I said hold on." 

Burn - 30 

"Jesus. Okay. Okay, man." Marshall was panting for 

him, wanting. It was an exceptional look, and he'd bet 
the last thing on the man's mind was that fire. 

He traced those abs again, fingers sliding, stroking, 

touching. Marshall twisted, but those hands stayed put. 
He kissed Marshall's navel and then the point of one hip 
while thick, wet drops leaked from that heavy prick, 
staining Marshall's belly. He licked his lips, but made 
himself slide his nose along the dip between cock and 
hip, and Marshall's legs parted, hips arching up toward 
him. 

Beautiful, needy stud. 
He nuzzled Marshall's balls with his nose, letting two 

fingers slide down to tease Marshall's hole. Marshall 
tensed, that tiny ring of muscles shifting against his 
fingertips. He sucked in the head of Marshall's cock, lips 
wrapped tight around it. 

"Oh, fuck. Your mouth." Marshall arched and 

moaned, pushed deep. 

He let Marshall in, his fingers stroking the little hole 

as he sucked on the thick cock. 

Marshall moved like a dream, rocking and bucking 

under him, begging him for more. 

He might have to fight Marshall every step of the 

way, but the man was built for pleasure, built to be a 
sub, to let go and just fly. 

He lubed up his fingers and pushed two in as he took 

Marshall's prick deep. 

"Fuck!" The hearty cry filled his bedroom up. 
He swallowed around the tip of Marshall's cock and 

nudged his fingers against the man's gland at the same 
time. 

"Can't hold it. Fuck, Dave!" Marshall's heels 

thrummed on the bed. 

Burn - 31 

His answer was to suck harder and to hit Marshall's 

gland again. Marshall didn't need to hold it; the man 
needed to come, to feel good, good enough to fall 
asleep. 

Spunk sprayed over his tongue, thick and salty and 

wet. He took it in, pulling the flavor across his tongue 
and down his throat as he eased his fingers out of 
Marshall's ass. 

He wanted to bury himself deep inside the man again, 

but he had a hunch Marshall needed some shut eye. 
Besides, the man being two up on him in the orgasm 
department would work in his favor. 

He pulled off Marshall's cock and gently kissed his 

way back up. 

"I..." Marshall blinked at him, head lolling. "C'mere 

and I'll help you out." 

He cuddled in close, resting his head on Marshall's 

uninjured shoulder. "Shh. Sleep, babe. You'll get me in 
the morning." 

"Not... not fair." The man's eyes were closed, breath 

evening out. 

"Only not fair if it bothers me. It doesn't." He kissed 

Marshall's cheek gently and settled more firmly 
alongside the muscled body. 

He could get used to sleeping like this. 

Burn - 32 

Chapter Three 

The dreams were distant, easy, the horrors like he 

viewed them from a TV. 

Marshall slept hard. 
When he woke, he smelled coffee and bacon. He 

could hear someone singing off key, dishes rattling. 

He chuckled and rolled up out of the bed. God, he 

needed to get home. He'd eat, thank Dave for last night, 
fuck the man into goo, then head out. 

Dave was coming down the hall with a tray full of 

mugs and plates with food. "Hey, you're awake. Cool." 

"Hey. Good morning." Marshall grinned at Dave. 

"You've been busy." 

"Well, I promised you breakfast yesterday morning. 

It's a day late, but hopefully you'll enjoy it." Dave 
nodded back toward the bedroom. "I had intended to 
serve it in bed..." 

"That sounds fun. Let me help." He took the tray 

from Dave. 

"Yeah. Bacon, biscuits, coffee. I'd have done eggs, 

but they're kind of messy for eating in bed." 

Dave stripped once they were in the bedroom, sitting 

cross-legged on the bed. 

"It smells great." He handed Dave the tray back, then 

slid in under the covers. 

"Uh-huh. Bacon is the way to a man's heart. My 

grandmother taught me that." 

"Did she now? I remember her, vaguely." She'd been 

one of those old ladies who smelled like oatmeal 
cookies. 

"Yeah?" Dave got a faraway look in his eyes for a 

minute. "She was the best." 

Burn - 33 

"She was. Did she pass away?" His family was still, 

mostly, intact. They'd lost his grandfather when 
Marshall was in college. 

"Yeah, about four years ago." Dave had been brought 

up by his grandmother. 

"I'm sorry to hear that, Dave. She was a neat lady." 
"She was." Dave smiled. "She had the softest skin on 

the back of her hands. She made me promise, before she 
died, that whenever I thought of her, I'd make sure to 
think of something happy." 

"That's sweet, Dave." And he didn't mean that in an 

ugly way. 

Dave seemed to get it, because he nodded and then 

handed over a piece of bacon, sort of shaking himself 
off. "Eat up, man." 

"Thanks." The bacon was perfect -- salty and crispy 

and hot. 

Dave grabbed himself a sausage and the way he ate it 

was... suggestive and rude, really. 

He found himself staring. Not just looking, but 

staring in that wide-eyed shock sort of way. When Dave 
was done, his right eyelid dropped in a slow wink. 

"You. That's bad." Hot, but bad. Fun, but bad. 
Dave grinned, looking entirely unrepentant. "I'm a 

bad kind of boy." 

Marshall laughed, tickled. "You going to have to get 

a spanking?" 

He grabbed another piece of bacon. 
For some reason that tickled Dave hard, and he 

laughed and laughed. "Or give one," he finally managed. 

Marshall snorted, and then his own laughter started, 

deep and happy. Dave shifted, handing him his coffee 
before coming under the covers with him, sitting close. 
He draped one arm around Dave, casually. "Thanks for 
breakfast." 

Burn - 34 

"You're welcome, man. I hope it's going to be the 

first of many." 

He smiled. He wasn't sure about that -- he wasn't sure 

that it was a good idea to have a relationship right now. 
He had the station, the work. It was enough. 

Dave let him finish his coffee, and then his mug was 

taken from his hand, a warm smile playing around the 
man's lips. 

"You look happy." 
Dave looked right at him when he answered. "I am." 
"Good." God, Dave had beautiful dark eyes. 
"Yeah, yeah, it is." 
Dave leaned in and almost, but didn't quite bring their 

lips together. He could feel the warmth from Dave's lips, 
the soft rush of his breath. 

"I think I owe you an orgasm or two." 
"Mmm, if we're keeping score, maybe you do." 

Dave's tongue slid across his lower lip. "Of course, I'd 
rather tie you up and have my wicked way with you." 

"Right." Tie him up. Sure. 
"Yeah." Dave's lips pushed against his, the kiss soft, 

gentle, warm. 

He turned and let his hand slide down Dave's side. 

Dave's answering groan was sweet, and the man 
straddled him, knees on either side of his hips. Marshall 
wrapped his hands around Dave's hips, drew him closer. 

"Love all these muscles." Dave's hands slid over his 

chest, skirting the burn. 

He flexed playfully, showing off. 
Groaning for him, Dave licked his lips and then 

flicked two fingers across each of his nipples, making 
them stand up and take notice. 

He jerked, grabbed Dave's wrists gently, and kissed 

each palm. "I'm not into nipple stuff, man." 

Burn - 35 

"Bullshit." Dave's hands cupped his cheeks. "They're 

hard as hell just from that little touch. I think there's a lot 
of stuff you've decided you're not into that you just 
haven't given a chance." 

He chuckled. They were so sensitive that he had been 

able to come from touching them when he was a 
teenager. They weren't for playing with now. 

Dave grinned and leaned slowly down until his 

mouth wrapped around one, the suction gentle. 

"Dave. Dave, I don't..." The man wasn't good at 

listening. 

His nipple was flicked, Dave's tongue going back and 

forth across it. Then Dave let his nipple go. "Why not? 
Why don't you let your lovers make you feel good like 
this?" 

"You make me feel plenty good." Hell, he was up 

two on orgasms. 

"That's not an answer to my question." Dave looked 

amused, his palm sliding back and forth across 
Marshall's right nipple, hips rolling, sliding their pricks 
together. 

He grabbed Dave's hand again. "Honey, they ache 

when you do that." 

"That's the point, Marshall." Dave blew across the 

nipple. 

That made his toes curl, made him shift. 
"God, you're such a sexy beast, Marshall." Dave 

rubbed a cheek against his nipple this time, whiskers 
scratching at his skin. He moaned, pressed closer before 
leaning back. Dave chuckled softly. "You shouldn't deny 
yourself so. Your body knows what it wants." 

"It's your turn to get off." 
"I think we should both get off." Dave grabbed his 

hands and put them up over his head, the strong body 
moving against him, rubbing abs and balls and cock. 

Burn - 36 

"Dave!" Pushy, hot, strong bastard. 
"Fuck, I love the way you say my name." Still 

holding his hands above his head, Dave leaned in and 
nipped at his earlobe. 

This was a little too wild, a little too hot, but his cock 

was aching, needing... something, and when Dave rolled 
his hips, their cocks sliding, bumping, he tugged a little 
bit, leaned in for a hard, sharp kiss. Dave groaned into 
his mouth when their lips met, the kiss a little crazy as 
their hips pushed and rocked. 

Fuck. Fuck, yes. His cock was aching, balls full. 
More. 
The hands on his wrists tightened as the kiss went 

even deeper, harder. Oh, fuck. He tugged on the grip, 
hips rolling, punching up now. Dave's hands didn't 
release him, though. If anything, the grip tightened 
further. Each of his thrusts was met, Dave pushing down 
against him, their bodies noisy as they slapped together. 

Fuck. Fuck. He was gonna come. 
Dave kept moving, sliding and shifting and making 

him just crazy. 

Shit, he didn't know what to do, where to look. 
"Gonna come for me, Marshall? Come on." 
"W...what about you? Oh, fuck. Fuck." 
"You first, man. Just let go and fucking come." 
"Fuck!" He jerked , those fingers around his wrist 

almost bruising. That little ache was all he needed and 
he shot, hard. 

"Love that smell." Dave took his mouth again, tongue 

sliding between his lips as heat splashed up over his 
belly. 

He was still riding the aftershocks when the kiss 

ended, both of them staring at each other, blinking. 

"You're something special, Marshall." 
"Shit. You've known me for years. Just a guy." 

Burn - 37 

"You have to know I had a crush on you back when. I 

don't think you were ever 'just' anything." 

"On me?" That was a weird fucking thought. "You 

never said anything." 

"You were a stud. You could have anyone you 

wanted." Dave nipped at his bottom lip again. "Hell, you 
still can. But the difference is that now I know I can give 
you what you need." 

"Confidence is hot." 
Dave grinned. "Glad you think so." 
He grinned back, took a quick kiss. "You got plans 

today?" He had some time off. 

"Well, you did say you had some time off, so I was 

sort of hoping..." 

"Three days." 
"We could do a lot in three days." Dave's smile was 

just this side of wicked. "I could blow your mind in 
three days." 

"Hopefully my mind is made of slightly sturdier 

stuff, Dave." 

Dave just laughed, thumbs and forefingers making a 

lightning-quick attack on his nipples. 

"Hey!" He jerked up, grabbed Dave's wrists. "No 

touching!" 

"God, I'd love to see them pierced, Marshall." 
"No way." He'd be out of his fucking mind. 
"Oh, yeah." Dave tugged his hands out of Marshall's 

hold and started playing with his nipples again. 
"Swollen from my touches, pierced, and then clamped. 
Fuck..." 

"Don't." He was going to go out of his mind. 
"God, it's hot, the way you protest when you so 

obviously love it." Dave pinched one nipple, then the 
other, then the first one again. 

"Do not. Stop it." His belly ached. 

Burn - 38 

Dave met his eyes. "No." 
He blinked. "What?" 
"I said no." Dave's fingers twisted his right nipple. 
"Shit! Stop." He wasn't playing, damn it. 
Bending, Dave took the right nipple into his mouth, 

sucking on it. One hand slid below, working his prick. 

"You're not hearing me." Marshall couldn't catch his 

fucking breath. 

"I heard what you said with your mouth, Marshall." 

Dave looked up at him, eyes glittering. "I'm listening to 
your body." 

"That doesn't make sense." 
Dave stroked his prick, tugging him back from the 

edge of flagging, thumb sliding across the tip. "Neither 
does you trying to pretend you don't want to have your 
nipples played with." 

"I don't like it, honey. It makes them ache." 
"You telling me it's not a good ache?" 
"I'm telling you I don't want to deal with them 

aching." He was getting growly. 

"Too bad." Dave had a hold of his hands again, both 

wrists held together over his head, while that wicked 
mouth worked his nipples, Dave's other hand stroking 
his prick. 

"Dave!" He was going to kick this son of a bitch's 

ass. 

As soon as he came. 

*** 

Dave moaned as Marshall came, spunk spraying 

between them. He slowly pulled off the man's nipple, 
feeling ten fucking feet tall. 

Burn - 39 

Look at him getting Marshall off with a little nipple 

play. Marshall was panting hard, lips parted, open. 
Fucking sexy stud. 

Dave shifted up, licked at Marshall's lower lip. 
Marshall groaned, obviously trying to get himself 

together. 

He rubbed against the big body, enjoying all those 

muscles. 

Warm. Shit, Marshall's skin was warm. 
He rubbed Marshall's come into the defined abs, 

fingers playing there as he pressed lazy kisses on the 
man's skin. 

"Hard to holler at you when you're doing that." 

Marshall's arms wrapped around him. 

That made him chuckle; why did Marshall think he 

was doing it? 

He still thought the man needed nothing so much as a 

good, hard beating, a way to totally let go and get out of 
his mind and his body for awhile, but Dave was 
prepared to be patient, to do it right and to set Marshall 
up for doing it more than once. Sure, he'd had a crush 
and been in lust with the man forever, but the more time 
Dave spent with Marshall, the more he realized there 
was more there between them. There were seeds there 
between them that he'd never seen, never looked for, 
really. 

Marshall kissed the top of his head, his temple, and 

the gentle care was almost unbearably dear. He smiled 
and rubbed his cheek against Marshall's shoulder. He 
wanted to just wallow in the man. 

"You got anything you want to do today besides eat, 

sleep, and have amazing sex?" If nothing else, there was 
sure to be a game on somewhere -- ESPN was good for 
that. 

"Not really. I could use a lazy day." 

Burn - 40 

"I can do lazy. I've got some steaks. We could grill 

out on the deck. Got beer, too." Nothing went with a 
lazy-day barbeque like beer. 

"Sounds perfect." Marshall sighed once, blinked. 

"Hopefully I have some sweats in the truck." 

"Yeah, or you'll have to wander around with a sheet 

wrapped around you like a toga, and I have a hunch that 
look wouldn't be your best." 

"No. No, I'm not particularly toga-y." 
"Nice and easy access, though." He slipped his hand 

along Marshall's body, finding the man's balls and 
playing gently with them. 

Marshall chuckled. "If they'll ever work again." 
That had him laughing, his hand sweeping up over 

Marshall's cock, making it jerk slightly in response 
before settling on the man's amazing belly. "My guess is 
they'll manage." 

"You think?" God, Marshall was hot. 
"I do. I'm not done with them yet." He gave Marshall 

a wink, fingers stroking the hard body. He wasn't sure 
there was an end to the things he wanted to do to the 
man. 

"You still hungry? I could make eggs." 
"I could eat eggs. And make more coffee." 
"Coffee is good." Marshall grinned at him. "Almost 

as good as the bacon." 

"Not much beats bacon." He smiled back at the man. 

There was already a little more ease in those blue eyes. 

"You got that right." 
"I could doctor that burn, too. I've got that burn 

spray." He supposed it was an occupational hazard, but 
damn, it looked awful. 

"That'd be good. It's aching." 

Burn - 41 

He popped up right away. "Let me just get the stuff." 

He went to get the spray, and Marshall was cleaning up 
the tray of food when he got back. 

"You don't have to do that, man." 
"It's okay. You cooked." 
"Well, put it down for now and let me spray your 

burn." He shooed Marshall back to the bed. 

Marshall lifted his chin, giving up that chest. Dave 

took a good, close look before he started spraying, 
making sure it really was just a first-degree burn. Then 
he hit it with the spray, and Marshall grunted, skin 
goosepimpling up. 

"Have you had worse?" Dave asked softly as he gave 

the burn another pass. 

"Sure." So casual, so easy. 
"Tell me?" He wasn't sure why he needed to know, 

but he did. 

"The worst is on my thigh. I had a skin graft. Fell 

through a floor, landed on a pool table, and broke both 
legs. Had to wait for my guys to get me." 

"Shit, both legs? You'd never know it to watch you 

walk." 

And Marshall still went back, still went into burning 

buildings to save people. 

"It's healed." Marshall brought his hand to one thigh, 

the skin just a bit... off. 

Dave ran his hands over the spot, feeling just a slight 

difference. "Good," he said softly. 

"Yeah. No big deal." 
Dave kept his thoughts on that to himself -- just 

something else that Marshall shrugged off instead of 
dealing with. "Well, when the burn starts hurting again, 
let me know and we'll reapply the spray." 

"Sure thing." Marshall winked at him, smiled. "No 

worries, I'm a tough old man." 

Burn - 42 

"Not so old, huh?" He slipped on a pair of sweats. 

"Give me your keys and I'll run out and see if you've got 
an extra set of clothes in your truck." 

Marshall tossed the keys over without argument. He 

made a show of blowing Marshall a kiss and headed out. 
Finding Marshall's gym bag in the back seat of the truck, 
he grabbed it instead of going through it. Worse came to 
worst and the clothes in it were used gym clothes, they 
could toss them into the washer. He wasn't going to 
complain if Marshall had to go naked a while longer. 

When he got in, Marshall had a towel around his 

waist, eggs sliding into a skillet. He couldn't help but 
tease. "You never mentioned you'd look great in nothing 
more than towel." 

"It's never come up before." 
"Never?" He put the gym bag down by the door and 

walked up to stand behind Marshall. Letting his hand 
drift to the fold in the towel, he teased Marshall's prick 
with his fingertips. "I could have sworn it was up just 
this morning." 

"I was talking about wearing a towel." The eggs got a 

stir. 

He kissed Marshall's spine, his hand wrapping around 

Marshall's prick in earnest. Even flaccid, it was big, and 
so soft. He did love that feeling of living silk. "Were 
you?" 

"Hmm?" Marshall shivered a little bit. "You are a 

horndog, aren't you?" 

"I have mentioned you're a big stud a few times, 

haven't I?" Who wouldn't be a horndog around 
Marshall? Besides, the man needed as much release as 
he'd let Dave give him. 

"Once or twice. You're not tiny twink yourself." 
"God, no." He laughed. "Makes me appreciate 

someone bigger than me all the more." He kept stroking 

Burn - 43 

Marshall's cock with the one hand, the other wandering 
over Marshall's abs and pecs. 

"Honey, I'm cooking and I can't go again..." 
Uh-huh. 
"Because you're not hard at all." He squeezed the 

filling prick in his hand, and Marshall snorted. He let 
Marshall go and patted the man's ass. "You can feed me 
first, though." 

"I can do that." A huge plate of scrambled eggs was 

dished up in short order, then Marshall grabbed his bag. 
"Let me see if I have anything clean in here." 

"There's a washer just off the kitchen there if you 

don't." He poured them out some more coffee and 
grabbed a couple knives and forks before settling at the 
little kitchen table. 

"Thanks. I think there's at least a pair of shorts." 
"Damn." He winked at Marshall. 
Marshall chuckled for him, grinned. "I will need to 

borrow your shower, honey, and find somewhere to plug 
in my phone." 

He nodded toward the outlet by the toaster. "Should 

be fine there, just make sure you pull it out if you put 
bread in to toast. It's a greedy machine." 

"Have you had an electrician in to look at it?" 

Marshall frowned, headed over. "Does it need a GFI 
plug?" 

He almost chuckled. Marshall the hero. "I don't 

know, babe. I don't even know what a GFI plug is. 
Come sit and eat. You can check out my sockets later." 

"You need one in the kitchen. I might have one in my 

truck. Have you checked your alarms lately?" 

"Marshall. Put away the firefighter for ten minutes 

and eat, okay?" 

"I... That's like asking a tiger to be spotted instead of 

striped." 

Burn - 44 

He chuckled. "Okay, babe. But come and sit and eat, 

hmm? I promise to let you examine all my sockets 
closely when we're done." 

"Okay." Marshall's shoulders rolled and the man sat, 

then sighed. "I forgot to make toast." 

"I can eat eggs without toast." He reached over and 

rubbed Marshall's arm. 

"Yeah. Sorry. I got distracted." 
"I wouldn't know anything about that." He gave 

Marshall a wink. 

Marshall chuckled. "No?" Damn. Marshall winked at 

him, obviously trying to play along. 

He reached out with his foot, sliding it along 

Marshall's leg. "Nope. Nothing." 

"Dork." Marshall peppered his eggs liberally, dug in. 
"Nah, I'm a stud like you." He grinned and added a 

bit of salt to his own eggs before eating. 

Marshall snorted, head down as he focused on his 

food. 

"Slow down, enjoy them." He'd bet Marshall always 

ate like this to avoid not getting his meal in if the alarms 
went off. 

"They're eggs." 
"Well, sure. But that doesn't mean they aren't good. 

You've got to enjoy every moment, Marshall." 

The plate was cleaned up. "I do." 
"At double speed?" He slowly worked on his own 

plate of food. 

"Sure." Marshall got up, washed his plate, and 

headed to the plug near the toaster. 

Next time, he'd have to let Marshall do his firefighter 

thing before eating. Or maybe he'd tie the man up and 
feed him, one slow bite at a time. 

The sky was the limit. 

Burn - 45 

All he needed to do was convince Marshall. Or 

maybe it was more a matter of proving it to him. 

It was a good thing he was a patient man. 

Burn - 46 

Chapter Four 

He had a decent day -- he worked on Dave's outlets, 

checked fire alarms, ordered a pizza, called and checked 
on his dog, and did a load of laundry. Then he sat and 
watched ESPN for a while with Dave while they waited 
for the pizza to arrive. 

"You want a beer, man?" Dave was lounging next to 

him, their bodies touching from shoulders to knees. 

"Maybe when the pizza comes, yeah." 
"Yeah? Okay, I'll wait, too." Dave shifted, pushing a 

little closer. "Dude, that guy just groped the forward." 

"Lucky bastard." 
Dave laughed. "You've got someone to grope, man." 
He snorted, laughed, and pinched Dave's inner thigh. 

"Like this?" 

Dave jerked and punched his arm. "That was a pinch, 

man. Do I need to demonstrate the difference?" 

"Nah. I'll just try again." He took another pinch. 
"That's still not it," growled Dave. 
"No?" There was a sudden electricity in the air, 

something that made him just a little unnerved, just a 
little excited. 

"No. You've got one more shot at it." Dave met his 

eyes. "You'd better get it right." 

"Or what?" 
"Or I'll give you a very thorough demonstration of 

what the difference is." 

"Is that a threat?" He let his hand slide up Dave's 

thigh. 

Dave stared into his eyes, the atmosphere intense. 

"No, babe, it's a promise." 

He found himself breathing hard, his abs tight as 

rocks. He almost reached out, not sure if he was going to 
pinch or not when the doorbell rang, saving him. 

Burn - 47 

"Pizza." He hopped up to pay. 
"Oh ho! Saved by the bell!" Dave got up and headed 

for the kitchen; looked like the man wasn't going to fight 
him for the pizza bill. 

He paid the bill, got the pizza, and settled back to 

watch the game and quit being a dork. 

Dave came out of the kitchen with four beers. He 

shrugged, then grinned as he sat. "Saves me having to 
make another trip." He chuckled and handed Dave a 
piece, popped the top on one of the beers. They ate their 
pizza, but Dave was watching him. 

He met Dave's eyes once, then got back to eating. He 

thought he saw Dave smirking at him. He arched an 
eyebrow, but didn't take the bait, and all Dave did was 
laugh and grab another piece of pizza. 

The game got good, and they started hollering, 

tossing things at the TV. 

Dave laughed and went to get them a third beer each, 

sitting even closer when he came back, one hand on 
Marshall's thigh. 

They relaxed back, feet propped up on the end table. 
"It was a good game, right up until the end there." 
"It was." He leaned his head back, finally relaxed. 
"A good evening." Dave was looking at him again. 
"Mmmhmm. You ready for me to hit the road, give 

you your privacy?" 

"Is that your way of saying you're tired of me? 

Because I've barely even started with you." 

"No. No, I was just..." He shrugged, blushed. "Trying 

to be nice." 

That set Dave chuckling, and the man slid a hand 

along his cheek, thumb rubbing his lower lip. "I want 
you to stay, Marshall." 

"Okay." He hummed, nipped Dave's thumb. 
"Good." It was more a groan than an actual word. 

Burn - 48 

He nodded, tongue soothing the fingertip. Another 

groan came from Dave, and then the man straddled his 
lap and took a kiss. Dave was solid, heavy, warm 
against his thighs, and he pulled them tighter together. 

"You're fucking sexy, Marshall. Make me feel like a 

teenager again -- always wanting." 

"It's been a few years since we were teenagers 

playing ball." 

"Yeah, a few. You were hot then, but now... God." 

Dave dove back in, taking more kisses from him -- a full 
assault. He moved Dave against him, rubbing them 
together lazily, and Dave moaned and groaned for him, 
feeding the sounds into his mouth. 

Marshall's hands started moving, exploring the man 

lazily. So many years of casual friendship and then 
bang. Dave was right there. 

"Hard for you, babe." Dave's prick rubbed against 

him through their sweats. 

"Good." He was on his way to hard enough to ache. 
Dave laughed, the sound husky as hell, full of want 

and need. 

"Never wanted so much." 
The words worked to spur Dave on, the man kissing 

deeper, moving harder against him. 

He slipped Dave's sweats down, hand on one hard ass 

cheek. 

"You've got amazing hands." Dave's hands slid up 

under his T-shirt, heading straight for his nipples. 

He stretched away. "Dave." 
"Yeah, babe?" Dave's fingers slid across his right 

nipple. 

"Don't. I won't be able to wear a shirt tomorrow." 

He'd be out of his damned mind regardless. Good thing 
he had two more days off. 

Burn - 49 

"Is that supposed to be a deterrent? Besides, you have 

tomorrow off." Dave's fingers pinched lightly. 

"Fuck..." He felt that deep in his balls. 
"Yeah, I could go there. Love fucking you." 
He groaned, tugged Dave closer, that wet-tipped cock 

rubbing his belly. 

"Such a fucking stud." Dave's fingers found his other 

nipple. 

"Fuck, that aches." Felt so good, so fucking hot. 
"Yeah?" Dave pinched hard, and he jumped, almost 

pushing Dave off. Dave's knees clamped down hard 
around his thighs, though, holding him in place. 

"Let me up." Oh, fuck, he was hard. 
"You're good where you are." Dave's hands slid down 

and pushed his sweats down, slipping them under his 
balls. That looked obscene, his balls and cock pushed up 
in a perverse package. One of Dave's hands slid over it, 
down to cup his balls, then back up along the shaft. 
"Imagine that bare." 

"What?" He was swollen, aching. 
Dave's fingers carded through the curls around his 

cock. "You. This. Shaved." Then Dave made this 
obscene, sexual noise. 

"No way." He whimpered, hips jerking. 
"Your mouth is saying no, but your body..." Dave 

grinned, rubbed the tip of his cock with one hand and his 
left nipple with the other. 

"Stop it." Oh, fuck. Oh, fuck. 
The rubbing on his cockhead continued, the touches 

to his nipples continued. Dave leaned in, mouth resting 
against his, breath hot as it was shared with him. His 
eyes fastened onto Dave's, his heart slamming in his 
chest. Dave was right there with him, gaze holding him, 
looking into him as the touches continued, intensified. 

Burn - 50 

"This isn't..." He grabbed Dave, tried to move the 

man. 

"It's fucking good." Rub. Pinch. Stroke. Press. Pinch. 

Rub. 

"Fuck." His cock ached, his whole body on fucking 

fire. 

"Soon. I swear. You just come for me, and I'll take 

care of it." 

Marshall keened, ass sliding on the sofa cushions. 
"That's it, babe. Give it up to me, let me push you 

over the edge." 

So hot. So fucking hot. "Dave." He whispered the 

man's name, so close he couldn't bear it. 

"Do it, Marshall. Fucking come for me." Dave 

twisted his right titty and pushed the ball of one thumb 
into his slit. His head slammed back, spunk pouring 
from him, spraying between them. 

Dave moaned when he came, hand wrapping around 

his cock and milking out small aftershocks of pleasure. 
His abs jerked with each and every little tug. 

"Fuck." Dave's mouth covered his again, the kiss 

hard and needy, and he tried to kiss Dave back, but his 
head was spinning. "Flying, babe?" 

Dave's hands pushed his T-shirt up and over his head. 
"Uh-huh..." He let Dave have his way. 
T-shirt off, Dave worked on getting Marshall's sweats 

completely off. He lifted his hips to help, body arching. 
Dave's lips kissed the tip of his cock, licking away his 
come, and damn, he was so sensitive that the tiny 
touches made his prick jerk, try to recover. 

"Sweet." Dave grinned and then nudged him over so 

he was sprawled on the big couch. One foot landed on 
the floor, his legs spread wide. "Fucking sexy," muttered 
Dave, eyes eating him up. 

"Melted." Most of him, anyway. 

Burn - 51 

Dave laughed, fingers sliding behind his balls. 

"Good." 

"Mmm." All he could do was moan. 
Those fingers skirted his hole, and then came back, 

rubbing against him, and Marshall shifted, rocked a 
little. 

Dave put his fingers in his mouth, sucking noisily 

and then letting them pop out just as noisily. 

Marshall'd let this man do more to him/with him/for 

him in three days than he had anyone in his life. Those 
wet fingers slid along his crack and then pushed against 
his hole. His body let them in, almost without his 
permission, stretching just enough for two of them to 
slip right into him. 

"Dave." His eyes closed, and he just melted. 
"Yeah, just relax, babe. I've got you -- gonna make 

you feel so good." Dave's fingers slid and rubbed, 
stimulating him from the inside out, and Marshall 
rocked into the touch, groaned, riding the sensations. 

Dave's mouth started working him -- the tip of his 

cock, his nipples, the spot right next to his belly button. 
All he could do was make one needy sound after 
another, groaning and moaning as he shifted. Then 
another finger pushed into him, Dave stretching his ass 
and hitting that spot inside him. His lips popped open 
and he pushed down, wanting it again. 

"Fucking sweet." Dave worked him, fingers 

stretching and twisting and moving in and out. 

"Feels good." 
"Good. It's supposed to." Dave's fingers crooked, 

hitting his gland again. Electricity shot up his spine and 
he bucked, cried out. "Right there, babe. I got it." Dave 
did, too, nailing that spot again and again. 

"Oh, fuck. Oh, fuck." He was going to fucking 

scream. 

Burn - 52 

"Fuck. Need a rubber." Dave reached for his pants. 
"Hurry." He needed more. Now. 
"Hungry man." Dave finally found the condom in his 

pants pocket, tearing the packet open, slipping it on, and 
slicking himself up. Then that blunt heat was right 
where Marshall wanted it, needed it. 

"Uh-huh. Please." He grabbed Dave's shoulders and 

pulled, begging for more. 

"I won't leave you wanting." Dave pushed in, the 

round head sliding right into him. 

He arched and bore down, his hips rolling restlessly. 
"I've got you," Dave told him, sinking all the way 

into him. 

"Good." It was so fucking good. 
Dave made a noise that sounded like agreement, eyes 

watching him as Dave's hips began moving. He met 
each thrust, lost in the sensation, the heat, the drive. 

"So fucking good, Marshall. So fucking good." 
"More. More, I need." He was going to lose his 

fucking mind. 

Dave's fingers wrapped around his prick, holding 

tight, squeezing him as that cock fucked him. Marshall 
was ready to lose his shit, and he grabbed Dave's 
shoulders while Dave's mouth closed over his, the kiss 
full of heat. 

He squeezed Dave tight, his balls letting go as he did. 
"Oh, fuck! Marshall." Dave groaned, pushing even 

deeper and freezing. 

He kept moving, tiny motions to keep Dave's 

pleasure going. Crying out, Dave shuddered several 
times before collapsing down onto him, and Marshall 
wrapped his arms around Dave, held on. 

Dave's breath was hot against his neck as the man 

panted and gasped for breath. 

"Got you." 

Burn - 53 

"Mmmhmm. You do." Dave kissed his shoulder. 

"And I've got you." 

"Good." Marshall hummed. "Very good." 
Dave laughed softly. "Yeah, man, it is. It really is." 

Burn - 54 

Chapter Five 

It had been over two weeks since he and Marshall 

had been together last, and Dave was feeling antsy. He 
wasn't interested in being fuck-buddies; he wanted to see 
more of Marshall than he was. They'd had a handful of 
dates over the last couple of months -- a Chargers game, 
couple of hockey games, even a Christmas party down 
at his store that happened to coincide with Marshall's 
time off. Add that to a handful of wham-bam hookups, 
and things were moving painfully slow. Luckily, today 
was their day to actually spend time together, damn it. 
They were meeting at the best burger joint in town at 
six. 

Well, that had been the plan, anyway. 
Dave glanced at his watch. It was closer to seven than 

six at this point. He was here. Marshall, however, was 
not. 

His phone rang, Marshall's name popping up. 
He opened it up, heart sinking. That was not a good 

sign. "Yo. Marshall. What's up?" Where the hell are 
you? 

"Look, Dave. I'm sorry, but I'm in a shitty fucking 

mood and I'm going home, getting my dog, and... well, I 
don't know what I'm going to do, but I'm not going to 
subject anyone I care about to me." 

Oh, no, He didn't think so. "Thanks for the warning. 

I'll take my chances." 

"Look, I'm sorry, but I'm just... I have to get out of 

my head for a couple days, okay? It's for the best." 

Dave snorted. Getting Marshall out of his head was 

exactly what Dave had in mind. "Marshall. Man. I can 
get you out of your head better than anyone or anything 
else. Trust me. We don't have to do dinner. You can 
come to my place, and I can blow your mind for you." 

Burn - 55 

"I can't. I'm so fucking pissed, man. I've already been 

in a fight today. You don't deserve that." 

"Tell you what, you come over, I'll tie you up to my 

headboard, and you can scream and yell and shout as 
much as you like." He wasn't joking, either. 

"Ha ha." 
"Hey, if it works..." He paid for the drink he'd had 

and headed out of the restaurant. "You want me to come 
to yours instead?" 

"No. I'm not there. I'm at the grocery store on Eighth, 

buying beer." So, right by his house. 

When there were tons of grocery stores closer. 
Huh. 
Interesting. 
"You need a pick up from there? Or do you want to 

meet me at my place?" 

"I... Didn't you hear me?" 
"I heard you -- you're at the grocery store on Eighth. 

Right around the corner from my place. Did you get 
dropped off there or do you have your truck?" 

"I have my truck." 
"Okay, see you at my place." He hung up, not giving 

Marshall time to protest again, and headed for home. 

The phone started ringing again, but he didn't answer. 

Marshall would be there. Marshall wanted to be there. 
Of that he was sure. Even more than that, Marshall 
needed to be there. Besides, Marshall cared for him; the 
man said so. 

He turned the corner onto his street, heading for his 

house. 

Marshall's truck was there in front of his place, the 

man himself leaning on the driver's side door, face like a 
thundercloud. 

He tried to hide his grin as he pulled into the drive 

and got out. "You beat me here." 

Burn - 56 

"I just came to tell you I'm not staying." 
"You're here now. It'd be crazy to go." He sauntered 

up to the front door, trusting Marshall would follow. 
Grudgingly, but surely. 

"I'm not in a good fucking mood, man." 
"I know that. I don't care." He unlocked the door and 

held it open for Marshall. 

Marshall stared at him. "Look, I'm sorry about 

supper. I'm just not fit company." 

"We can go eat there some other time." He jerked his 

head toward the door. "In." 

"What?" 
"Come on in. I know you don't want to hang out on 

my lawn all night." 

"No. I just..." Marshall came in, glowering at him. 
All that anger, all that emotion. It made Dave hard. 

The things he wanted to do to help Marshall through it 
made him even harder. He wanted to show Marshall 
things that the man hadn't even imagined. 

He closed the door, letting it shut hard, and then 

hauled Marshall up against the wall and slammed their 
mouths together. Marshall's pretty blue eyes went wide, 
shocked, and he pressed his advantage while the man 
was off-balance. 

He worked his leg between Marshall's, giving his 

lover something to hump up against as he devoured 
Marshall's mouth. He felt it -- the war inside Marshall. 
The need to push away fighting with the need to submit. 

Using his body to keep Marshall in place, he worked 

his belt open, off. Then he grabbed Marshall's hands and 
pushed them up over their heads. He had to be quick, but 
he got both of Marshall's wrists in one hand, got the belt 
around them and tightened it as far as he could. 

"Dave?" Marshall stared at him, eyes huge. "What 

the fuck?" 

Burn - 57 

"Trust me." He took Marshall's mouth again, one 

hand sliding down to cup Marshall through his jeans, the 
other tugging Marshall's shirt up out of his waistband. 

"I don't want to fuck. I'm pissed off." 
Uh-huh. Look at that fine, hard cock. 
"This isn't fucking." He started squeezing Marshall's 

prick with his hand, thumb working the tip through the 
denim. He was going to go for Marshall's sensitive little 
nipples in a second. 

"What the fuck is it, then?" 
"Relieving a little tension." He kissed Marshall again, 

shutting the man up. Then he squeezed Marshall's cock 
hard to make the man pay attention to his body. The 
strong hands tugged at the belt, but Dave held fast. He 
needed a hook to attach those hands to. He let Marshall's 
cock go, pressing his thigh against it again as his fingers 
slid beneath the shirt and found one of those sweet, 
sensitive nipples. He didn't tease, just pinched it. 

He felt that cry all through him. 
Shuddering from the pleasure along his spine, he 

pinched Marshall's nipple again. 

"Stop it..." 
"No." He bit at Marshall's lower lip, hips rolling to 

rub his thigh along Marshall's cock. 

"Fuck you." Oh. Growly. Hot. 
Groaning, he pinched Marshall's other nipple and 

debated throwing the man on the floor and nailing him 
right there in the hallway. He was going to turn Marshall 
inside out, let him rail and fight. 

"Come on." He growled as well as Marshall did, and 

brought the man's hands down in front of him, using the 
belt to lead Marshall to the bedroom. 

"What the fuck are you doing?" 
"Helping you." 

Burn - 58 

And Marshall was going to fight him the entire way. 

It would be glorious. 

"Let me go. I just came by to..." 
"To let me fuck you into tomorrow." He kept 

moving, getting Marshall into the bedroom and pushing 
him into the bed. He could tie the belt to the headboard. 

"No. That wasn't it." Marshall's ass bounced, T-shirt 

straining at the wide shoulders. 

"No?" Dave grinned, pulled Marshall's hands up over 

his head and got the belt tied around the headboard. He 
was going to have to cut the T-shirt off. 

"No. Fuck off, man. Let me go." 
"Nope. This is what you want. But even more, this is 

what you need." He dragged Marshall's jeans off. 

"Let me go!" Marshall's cock was hard as nails. He 

ignored Marshall and grabbed hold of the man's T-shirt, 
checking to see if he could tear it apart. “Don't you 
fucking do it, man. I'll beat your ass." 

Fuck, that fury was hot. 
"That's my job." He tugged hard, the T-shirt giving 

way with a satisfying ripping sound. 

"Motherfucker!" Marshall yanked at the belt, eyes 

flashing. 

So fucking strong. Dave loved that. 
He bent and bit at one of Marshall's nipples. 
"NO!" 
He bit again, harder this time, and Marshall's body 

jerked, hips fucking the air. He reached down, grabbed 
Marshall's balls. He didn't squeeze hard enough to hurt, 
but Marshall had to be feeling it. 

"Asshole. Bastard. Let me go." 
That's right, stud, you keep fighting me. He bit at 

Marshall's other nipple, his fingers moving, sliding up to 
wrap around the thick prick. 

"What the fuck are you playing at?" 

Burn - 59 

He kept biting, sharp little nips that were driving 

Marshall crazy. He added a slap to Marshall's hip. 

"Let me GO!" Marshall snarled at him, pulled away. 
Dave hauled him close, kissed him hard. 
The kiss quieted Marshall some, those eyes looking 

right into him. "What's going on?" 

"I'm giving you an outlet for your bad mood. A way 

to let go of all the things making you crazy." He pinched 
Marshall's left tit and then the right, sharp and quick. 

"I'm not in the mood to fucking fight with you." 
"You're not fighting with me, babe." Poor man was 

fighting himself and just didn't know it. 

He treated Marshall to more pinches to his nipples, 

then slid his fingers down, digging hard into Marshall's 
hips. 

"Let me go." There was real emotion behind the 

words. 

"I can't do that, Marshall. You need this. You really 

do." 

"I'm going to kick your ass." 
"After. If you don't feel better. You can try." He 

tugged on Marshall's balls and then slid his hand up to 
wrap around the hard prick. 

"I thought we were doing good..." 
"We're doing great, babe." He leaned up and kissed 

Marshall. "Just go with it. Trust me, huh?" 

"I'm trying to, Dave." 
"Go ahead and scream and yell and bitch -- let it all 

go, Marshall. The bad mood, the hard fires, let them all 
go." He dove down, took Marshall's cock into his 
mouth, his fingers sliding up to pinch the pretty nipples. 

"This is fucking insane!" Marshall arched, heels 

driving against the mattress. "Dave!" 

Dave couldn't help but notice that Marshall had yet to 

tell him to stop, and his body was responding so 

Burn - 60 

beautifully. Marshall growled, hands tugging at the 
headboard, hips snapping. He let Marshall's movements 
push the thick cock into his mouth over and over, his 
hands pinching Marshall's nipples and slapping the 
man's thigh. Marshall spread for him, cock leaking. 

That was it. So fucking needy. 
Dave settled between Marshall's legs, one finger 

pushing at the hot little hole, and Marshall bore down on 
him, hips moving restlessly. 

He let his finger slip in. Marshall was so tight and hot 

inside, felt amazing. 

"Quit teasing. I need more, you ass." 
He nearly snorted up his mouthful of cock, but he 

managed not to, shoving another finger into Marshall. 

"Yes." Marshall growled, driving hard. "Fuck. Fuck, 

I need." 

He pushed in a third finger, the way tight and rough 

without lube. 

"Dave!" Oh, shit, when his Marshall let go... 
He stretched and twisted his fingers, fucking 

Marshall with them as he pulled off the thick prick. He 
grinned down at Marshall, spanking the man's thigh 
again. All he needed now was a condom. 

There was a red handprint on Marshall's thigh, and 

the fat, needy cock dripped for him. 

Leaning over Marshall, he licked the man's lips as he 

reached for the drawer in the nightstand, blindly 
searching for a condom packet. 

"Let my hands go. Want to touch you." 
"Not how it works." He finally got the condom and 

ripped the package open, covering up and then slicking 
up. 

"Bastard." This time the word was less heated. 
"That's me." He slapped Marshall's thigh again, then 

pushed the strong legs back up against Marshall's chest. 

Burn - 61 

"Don't fucking slap me." Marshall was panting now, 

breathing hard. 

"It's called spank, Marshall." He reached down and 

did it again, this time on the bit of buttocks exposed by 
Marshall's position. Then he pushed the head of his cock 
into Marshall's body. 

"Fuck you." 
He slapped again, and again, each time Marshall's ass 

clenched. He started alternating thrusts with slaps, in, 
slap, out, slap, in slap, out, slap. 

"Motherfucker!" Marshall's ass was slamming against 

his thighs. 

"That's right. Shout for me, Marshall. Scream and 

yell and get it out." 

Marshall's body moved with him, rocking hard and 

feeling so fucking good. He wrapped his free hand 
around Marshall's prick, jacking as he fucked, as he 
slapped, as Marshall met each and every one of his 
movements. Marshall groaned, muscles tense, straining, 
and he pressed a hard kiss on Marshall's lips, then 
shifted, biting the right nipple as hard as he could. 

Marshall cried out, arched, spunk spraying over the 

man's chest. 

"That's it, babe. Lose yourself in your body." Dave's 

thrusts became harder, wilder. 

Marshall's cheeks were flushed, and Dave thought he 

saw tears. 

Good. Good. The man needed to cry, to break down, 

to let the macho, stud hero go, if only for a night at a 
time. Dave was just the man to do that. Tonight was just 
one step. 

He kissed Marshall hard, his hips thrusting one more 

time before he came. He stayed still for a long moment, 
very careful about what he did next. This was the 
dangerous part. 

Burn - 62 

Then he kissed Marshall again, softly, breathing into 

Marshall. 

He could feel Marshall tensing, but then the big body 

relaxed under him and the man sighed. 

Good man. He hummed, tongue slipping between 

Marshall's lips. This could be healing for him, helpful. It 
was what he wanted for Marshall. 

Oh, he wasn't entirely selfless, but Marshall needed 

this from him. 

His prick slid away and he got rid of the condom. 
Marshall hid his face in one arm, breath coming 

quick and light. Dave silently undid the belt from the 
headboard and then from around Marshall's wrists. He 
carefully rubbed at the skin where the belt had been. 

Marshall slowly pulled away. 
"Stay," he murmured quietly, lying down and holding 

his arms open for Marshall. 

Marshall looked at him, shivering, shuddering, and 

the man's mouth opened. Then his lover pushed into his 
arms. 

Yes. 
Dave wrapped his arms around Marshall, kissed the 

man with all he had. One hand slid around his waist, 
Marshall holding on. 

"It's okay. I've got you." 
He got an answer in a single short nod. 
It was enough. 

*** 

He napped for a little bit, but Marshall woke up 

before he wanted to, blinking slowly. 

He'd lost his mind. 
This whole thing between him and Dave was just out 

of control. He slipped out of the bed, grabbed his jeans. 

Burn - 63 

"Hey, man. Where are you going in such a hurry?" 
"I..." He couldn't handle this. "I'm going to head 

home, I think. I have some shit to think about." 

"You still need to eat. We could grill. I've got 

hamburgers." Dave stood, scratched his belly, and went 
over to grab a pair of sweatpants. "I can help you work 
things out." 

"I don't know. This... this isn't what. Things are. I 

just." He stopped, took a deep breath. "I care about you, 
man, but I don't know about this thing we've got going 
on." 

"Are you feeling better than you were when you got 

here?" 

"I don't know." That was as honest as he could be. 
"Okay." Dave grabbed his hand and led him down the 

hall, back to the kitchen. "Sit. I'll make you some coffee, 
or there's cold Cokes in the fridge." 

"A Coke's fine." He sat, rested his head down. 
Dave's hand slid over his shoulders, rubbed a little. 

Then the man got him his Coke and started pulling 
things out of the fridge to make hamburgers. "I take it 
that it's been a bad couple weeks." 

"Yeah." A real bad couple of weeks. There was a 

serial arsonist. It was a big deal, and three of the guys 
had been pulled in for questioning. 

"I'm sorry." Dave kept working, started forming 

patties. "Did you want to talk about it?" 

"Nothing to talk about." 
"Okay." Dave gathered up his plate of burger patties 

and headed for the door to the back yard. "It's a nice 
night, come keep me company while I grill these." 

"Okay..." He was trying to break up with the man, 

wasn't he? 

The patties went onto the grill and Dave came over to 

sit next to him. "I know you're a little weirded out, man, 

Burn - 64 

but if you put that aside and look beyond it -- I made 
you feel good, didn't I?" 

"You mean if I look beyond the tying up and the 

swatting me part?" He wouldn't call it spanking. 

"Uh-huh. Seems to me we both got off. Shit, seems to 

me we both had mind-blowing orgasms." 

"Yes, but... Dave, we can't keep doing the other." 
Dave looked him right in the eye. "Why not?" 
"Because I'm not comfortable with it." 
"You need it." 
That pissed him off. "How do you know?" 
"Because you never let go. You push everything deep 

inside. I can give you a way to let it go. I can make you 
let it go." 

"I... Man, I don't want to. I'm not into that stuff." 
Dave's hand slid along his thigh. "You were pretty 

into it earlier." 

"I said no." God, he was ashamed of himself. 
"Come on, Marshall. You got off on it. You'd get off 

on even more. I could make you feel so fucking good." 

He stood, tense, angry. "I'm not some fucking pussy 

that gets off on getting hit!" 

Dave stood, too, looking calm. "Nobody said you 

were. You are the strongest man I know." 

"Then..." Wait. He was confused. 
Dave leaned in and kissed him. Then the man went to 

flip the burgers. Marshall was beginning to believe that 
they were living in two different universes. 

"You want your buns toasted, man?" 
"What?" Oh, God. Oh, fuck. 
"Hmm? Your hamburger bun? You like it over the 

heat for a few minutes?" 

"Sure. Sure." When had he lost control of this? 
"Cool. Me, too." Dave went back inside and came out 

with a bag of buns, ketchup, mustard, and relish. 

Burn - 65 

Somehow he was just standing there and staring like an 
idiot. Dave put the condiments on the picnic table and 
the buns on the grill. "Be ready in two shakes. There's 
paper plates on top of the microwave if you wanna grab 
us a couple." 

"Sure." He was losing his mind. 
When he brought the paper plates out, Dave was 

putting the hamburgers together with the buns. 

The man grabbed the plates from him and put two 

burgers on each. "Cool. Let's eat." 

"Thanks." Okay. Eat, then break up. He could do this. 
The burgers were good, and they each wolfed down 

three, along with their Cokes. 

When they were done, Dave relaxed back. 
"They were good, man. I appreciate it." 
"You needed food. Food, fucking, and a nap. I bet 

you feel a lot better now." 

He nodded. "I'm just... Yeah. I'm not as bitchy." 
"See? I'm good for you." Dave's eyes twinkled. 
"You know this thing we're doing is fucked up, 

right?" 

Dave frowned and leaned forward. "It's not, Marshall. 

Really. I belong to this club full of people who live a 
BDSM lifestyle. It isn't fucked up at all, and people get 
what they need from their partners." 

"A club?" Shit, he was out of here. No way was he 

doing a... a... a club thing. Like a cult. 

"Like a men's club. A place where like-minded men 

can gather, eat amazing food, get together with friends. 
You don't need to come, babe. I just wanted you to 
know this isn't fucked up." 

"When did you get into this shit? I mean, wow." 
"I discovered The Hammer in college, checked it out. 

It resonated with me." 

Burn - 66 

"Cool." Except he was freaked out and stressed out 

and he didn't want this hot guy that was his friend and 
fuckbuddy to be into weird shit he didn't understand. 

"Hey, relax, Marshall. I'm not asking you to call me 

'sir' or lick my boots or anything, okay?" 

That actually made him chuckle. "Look, man. I got a 

thing for you, I do, but this shit... I'm not into it." 

"You liked what we did, Marshall. It made you hard, 

made you come better than you ever have." 

He didn't even want to think about what that meant. 
"Look, we don't have to make any rules or say we're 

doing this or that. What we've got is good, isn't it? I like 
you a lot, I think you're a hot stud, and I want to keep 
getting together with you." 

"I. Yeah. It is. Good. Just... no more of the weird 

stuff, man, 'kay? This is good between us." 

"Don't make me promise not to play with your 

nipples, man. They are sexual gold." 

He looked over at Dave, mouth open, then he cracked 

up. "Texas tea!" At Dave's look, he stuck his tongue out. 
"You know? Beverly Hillbillies?" 

"The who? Ah, TV show, right? My grandmother 

never let me watch except for when football or the Billy 
Graham Crusade was on, remember?" 

"Dude, you're a freak." 
"Fuck off." 
"A freak and probably a turd. Tell me you at least 

watch Ninja Warrior now." 

Dave gave him a blank look. 
"Oh, Jesus Christ. Dude, I cannot be dating a dude 

that doesn't watch Ninja Warrior." 

"Hey, I'm open to broadening my TV watching 

horizons." 

He caught them standing, grinning at each other like 

idiots. 

Burn - 67 

"Come on, stud. I think I've got something in the 

fridge we can call dessert." 

"Yeah? I'm all about the sweet shit." He wrapped one 

arm around Dave's waist, more than willing to just let it 
go. 

Dave's arm slid around his waist in return and they 

went in together. "Sweet shit for two, coming up." 

He nodded, pleased. 
He'd just ignore the ache in his nipples. 
It turned out that Dave had a box of chocolate éclairs 

in the fridge. A half dozen of them, in fact. "Got 'em at 
the bakery this morning." 

"Oh, you are a good man, somewhere in there." 
"I just need to watch more Ninja on TV, huh?" 
"Yeah." He let himself steal a kiss. "It's good to see 

you." 

"Yeah, you, too, babe." Dave bumped their hips 

together and they headed into the living room for dessert 
and something sporty on the tube. 

For the first time in days, he could just lean back and 

relax. 

Burn - 68 

Chapter Six 

Dave and Marshall headed for the park near his 

place, wandering along the path toward the water 
fountain at the center. There was a field to the right and 
a playground to the left, trees and a couple of paths 
surrounding the whole area. It was a great day, too, 
warm and sunny without being too hot. Marshall had a 
bag with a couple of gloves, a baseball, and he had a 
cooler with beer and water. 

Marshall had called him up, out of the blue, and 

asked if he wanted to play catch. 

It had been charming as fuck. 
They planted their stuff down by the trees at one end 

of the field. It was empty, which was cool -- they could 
goof around and throw the ball back and forth without 
messing up anyone's game. 

Marshall tossed him a glove. "Glad you could take 

the day off." 

"Yeah, me, too. It's one of the perks, you know." He'd 

worked hard to get to the point where the store could run 
without him, and where he could afford to take some 
time off. He was tickled that Marshall had called him, 
too, he had to admit. He'd worried that Marshall 
wouldn't contact him after their wild night. 

Still, here they were. 
This should prove to Marshall, too, that they could 

still be friends, do the usual guy things that had nothing 
to do with sex and spanking and nipple play. 

He grabbed a ball and headed out across the field. 
It took him a couple of rounds to get used to the feel 

of Marshall's ball slapping into his hand. The man had 
an amazing arm. They threw back and forth, moving a 
little around the field as they ran for mis-throws, 

Burn - 69 

deliberate and otherwise, and he was soon warm and 
laughing, feeling good. 

Marshall made it all look effortless, the chuckling 

deep and easy as they played. God, he really was a stud. 
Dave wanted more of the man. More and more. 

He threw the ball hard, wanting Marshall to be 

impressed, too. 

Marshall leaped, caught it. "Good one!" 
The ball was shot back. He chuckled at the way the 

words made him puff up a little. God, he had it bad. Of 
course, he'd had it bad for quite awhile; it was a real 
treat to let Marshall know how he felt. 

He wasn't alone, either. "Someone I care about," 

Marshall had said. 

They tossed the ball back and forth for another half 

hour or so and then Dave jogged back to Marshall. 
"Hey, you want a drink?" 

"Sounds good, man." Marshall grinned at him, 

nodded. 

He grabbed a couple of waters out of the cooler and 

handed one over. Marshall stripped off his shirt, wiped 
off his face, then sucked down the water. 

Dave spent a few minutes watching the man. 

Admiring. The little nipples were tight, that belly was 
flat as a board, and the little trail to glory was enough to 
make his mouth dry. He wanted to drop to his knees and 
follow that path right down to Marshall's cock right 
there and then. 

He licked his lips. 
"Your water okay?" 
"Yeah, man. It's great. The day's great." 
"It is." Marshall finished his water, grabbed an apple, 

and chowed down. 

Dave wanted to touch. 

Burn - 70 

Before he could give in to temptation, though, a 

couple guys came by. "You guys want to play a pick-up 
game?" 

Marshall looked at him. "Wanna?" 
"Yeah, sure." He grinned. They were gonna cream 

these guys. 

"Excellent." Marshall nodded once, then they were 

off, playing. 

*** 

If they didn't catch that fucking arsonist soon, it was 

going to kill them. 

Hell, the bastard had killed eight civilians already, 

and one of their own. 

Goddamn it. 
Marshall sat, looked at Jack and Will. "Anything 

new?" 

Will shook his head. "Shit, we're all still suspects. 

First responders." 

He sighed, shook his head. "I hate this shit." 
Jack nodded. "Fuck, yeah. They need to catch this 

asshole before anyone else dies." 

He grabbed his fork, started eating. He got about 

three bites in before the alarm sounded again. "Jesus 
Christ." 

"Fuck." Will stood up and threw his bowl at the sink, 

the thing landing with a hard, shattering noise. 

"I can't fucking take it any more." 
"Like we have a choice." He headed for the 

equipment bay. 

His cell went off as he got there, Dave's number. 

"What?" 

"Bad time?" Dave asked. 
"Yeah. Important?" 

Burn - 71 

"No, man. I just wanted to get together. Call me when 

you're off, huh? Or better yet, come on over." 

"'Kay. Gotta go, man. I'll call." He hung the phone up 

and got to work. 

Everything else had to wait. 

*** 

Dave hated watching the news these days. 
It looked like there was a new fire almost every day. 

Out of control, huge, human-assisted fires. People were 
dying, including firefighters. Marshall was getting more 
and more stressed, more tight and tense, often blowing 
him off, even on those days where Marshall wasn't on 
call. Someone needed to catch the asshole setting these 
fires before anyone else died, before anyone else's life 
was put at risk. 

He was expecting Marshall to come over today. He'd 

wheedled and cajoled and managed to get Marshall to 
promise to drop by after his shift. 

Dave checked his watch. The man should have been 

here by now, he was sure. 

His phone beeped and he tensed. Goddamn it. 

Marshall was canceling again. 

He checked the text. 
Just off. Want me 2 bring burgers? 
He relaxed again and texted back. Have burgers. Just 

missing u. 

b there in 10 
c u 
He pocketed his phone and double-checked the 

fridge. The burgers were made, the beer chilling. He 
even had dip so they could sit and munch, see what they 
could find on ESPN. Hell, he'd even watch the karate or 
ninja or whatever it was thing that Marshall liked. 

Burn - 72 

He just needed his Marshall fix. He had a hunch 

Marshall needed a Dave fix even more. 

Nine minutes later, there was a knock on the door. 
Grinning, he went to let his lover in. "Marshall." 
Marshall looked like hammered shit, but there was a 

smile for him. "Hey." 

"Hey. You're a sight for sore eyes." He dragged the 

man in and planted a kiss on those sexy lips. 

Marshall kissed him back, then leaned away. "You 

said there was food? I skipped supper." 

"Yeah, yeah. Come on. You can have chips and dip 

and a beer until the burgers are ready." He led Marshall 
to the kitchen and plonked the beer and food in front of 
him on the little kitchen table. 

"Thanks." Marshall dug in, sucked the beer down, 

shoulders slowly coming down from around the man's 
ears. "How're you doing?" 

"Not bad. Missing you, huh?" He got the burgers on 

the grill pan over the stove. 

"Been busy. I gave Doby to Karen for the long term. I 

wasn't ever home. It wasn't fair to him." 

"Oh, man. Marshall." He went over and gave 

Marshall a hug. "You could have asked me to look after 
him while you're busy." 

"She loves him, and I paid her well. Told her I'd get 

him back when I could. I just... I'm not a good caretaker. 
I'm married to the job." 

"No, I'd say more you need someone to care for you, 

huh?" Dave began to work Marshall's shoulders. 

Marshall shook his head, the muscles under Dave's 

hands like rocks. He kept working them as the burgers 
cooked, not bothering Marshall with lots of chatter. 

Marshall's phone rang and the man jerked, tensed. 

"Fuck." 

Burn - 73 

"Are you on call?" He knew it didn't matter if 

Marshall was or not; if there was another fire, all hands 
would have to be on deck. 

Marshall shook his head. "No." His lover's hands 

were shaking when he reached for his phone, answered 
it. "Cap. 'Sup?" 

Dave sent a little prayer up that this wasn't a call for 

Marshall to come in. The man needed a break. A day or 
two, and he needed Dave to make him fly. 

"Yeah. Yeah, okay. Sure. Okay, Cap, I get it." 

Marshall stood, kissed his forehead. "We got a copycat. 
Three fires going at once. I have to go. I'll call. Love 
you." 

It wasn't until Marshall was gone -- not even waiting 

to hear his answer or his goodbye -- that Dave really 
heard what the man said. 

Love you. 
He sat down hard and glared at nobody in particular. 

God damn it, but his man had better make it through 
this. 

He wanted to hear that again. 

Burn - 74 

Chapter Seven 

He parked in front of Dave's house, too tired to go 

home. 

They'd done it. Found both fucking arsonists. Thank 

God. 

He crawled up to the porch and crawled onto the big 

swing, curled up, and went to sleep. 

"Marshall?" Something -- someone -- was pushing at 

him. "Wake up, babe. Come on." 

"Hmm?" He blinked awake, face pressed on the 

swing slat. 

"God, how long have you been out here asleep?" 

Dave helped him up, moved him toward the front door. 

"Dunno." He wasn't really awake right now. 
"Come to bed, babe." Dave kept moving him. 
"Mmmhmm." He was easy. Tired. 
"I'm glad you came here; I just wish you'd rung the 

bell or something. I'd have let you in, and my bed is way 
more comfortable than the swing." 

"Didn'wanna wake you." 
"I'll have to get you a key so next time you can let 

yourself in." 

"Just didn't wan' go home." 
"Of course not. You're tired, come to bed." 
He nodded, stumbling forward, letting Dave ease him 

down onto that bed. He murmured his thanks, asleep 
before he could kick his boots off. 

*** 

It was all over the news, how both arsonists had been 

caught. 

Dave was relieved. Even more so when Marshall 

slept for twelve hours straight. When he finally woke 

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up, Dave was going to feed him and then fuck him 
through the mattress. He heard the toilet, then the 
shower, the water running hard. That was his cue to start 
the bacon, so he did. 

Soon Marshall's broad shoulders appeared in the 

doorway, his lover there, awake. "Hey." 

"Hey, stud. You feeling any better?" 
"Yeah. Yeah. Sorry I crashed on your porch." 
"Anytime, man." He flipped the bacon out of the pan 

and cracked in a bunch of eggs. 

"Need help?" 
"You could set the table." 
"Sure." Marshall walked close, pressed against him 

for a moment. 

"Oh. Hey." He pushed back against Marshall and 

turned his head, bringing their mouths together. 
Marshall tasted minty fresh, tongue sliding against his. 
Groaning, he opened wider, reaching up to cup 
Marshall's skull. Marshall's hand brought him closer, the 
deep moan vibrating his lips. 

Oh, fuck, he'd missed this in the last weeks. 
He reached out blindly, turning the stove off, and 

then he turned and pressed fully against Marshall. 

Marshall fed him another low, deep moan, muscles 

shuddering against him. He reached around and grabbed 
Marshall's ass, squeezed it. Fuck, the man felt good 
against him. 

"Dave." Marshall's cock was full, hard, pressed 

against his hip. 

"I've got you." He slid his free hand between them, 

wrapping it around Marshall's heat. 

"Fuck. Fuck, Dave. Yes." Marshall groaned, hips 

bucking for him. 

"Fucking need you, man." He squeezed hard, let his 

hand fly up and down Marshall's fat prick. 

Burn - 76 

"Yes." Marshall nodded, hand cupping his head. 

"Please." 

"Come on, you big, beautiful stud. Give it up for me." 

He scraped his thumb across the tip of Marshall's cock. 

"Fuck." Heat sprayed over his hand, Marshall's throat 

working, eyes rolling back. 

"Yeah, that's it, babe." Get Marshall off, feed the 

man, and then jump his bones. Dave licked Marshall's 
lips, then his own. 

"Mmm. Good. Let's do it again." Even as Marshall 

spoke, the man's belly rumbled. 

"Yeah. As soon as you've been fed, I'm dragging you 

right back to bed." He patted Marshall's ass and ignored 
his own hard on as he turned back to the stove to see 
how big of a mess he'd made of their breakfast. 

"It'll be fine to eat." Marshall grabbed a couple of 

plates. 

"Yeah, it'll do." He dished the food onto the plates 

and grabbed the toast, now cold, out of the toaster. 

Marshall poured two glasses of milk, eating quickly, 

doggedly, and for once, Dave didn't care. They just 
needed to eat so they could touch. He scarfed his own 
food down, the silence between them full of promise. 

Marshall grabbed the plates as soon as they were 

done, plopped them in the sink, then held out one hand. 
"Bed." 

"You sure?" he teased, even as he grabbed Marshall's 

hand and headed toward the bedroom. He didn't run. Not 
quite. 

"Sure. Absolutely sure. I got two days left." 
Dave groaned happily. Two whole days. They could 

get their rocks off good and hard and simple, and then 
he could help Marshall really relax, let go. 

He didn't touch Marshall, aside from holding the 

man's hand, until they were on the bed, and then all bets 

Burn - 77 

were off. Their mouths met, teeth clicking audibly. Fuck 
yes. Marshall dragged him closer, hands spread across 
his back, his ass. 

"Need to be inside you." He couldn't wait to be 

buried deep in Marshall's ass. 

"Yeah. Want you. Now." They were humping 

together, Marshall's eyes rolling back in his head. 

"Hands and knees." He growled out the words as he 

went for the lube and condoms on his nightstand. 

"So fucking hot for you." Marshall spread for him, 

hips moving, cock bobbing beneath that flat belly. 

"Ditto." He slapped Marshall's ass as he settled 

behind his lover. 

"Hey." Marshall grunted, pressed back against him. 
"Right here, babe." He got his fingers slicked up and 

pushed two into Marshall with little finesse. They both 
needed too badly for him to pussyfoot around. 

Marshall slammed back against him. "Harder." 
"Pushy." He added another finger, stretching quickly. 

Marshall's hole was tight, burning hot, and took his 
fingers eagerly. 

"Fucking want you." So damn badly, his cock and 

balls ached for Marshall. 

"Yeah. Yeah, Dave. Now. Please." Jesus, the sound 

of Marshall begging made him want to scream. He 
tugged his fingers away and gloved up. He didn't tease, 
simply pushed in, cock sliding into Marshall's ass in one 
hard movement. 

"Yes!" Marshall climbed up the headboard, driving 

back on his prick like a wild man. 

"Fuck. Love you like this." It spurred him on and he 

set up a fast, hard rhythm. 

"More. Fuck. More. Good." 
He watched Marshall's muscles jerk and roll. 

Burn - 78 

"I've got more for you here." He thrust in hard. And 

then harder. He could feel Marshall rippling and jerking 
around him, interior muscles working his cock. 

It was so fucking good. He grabbed onto Marshall's 

hips, fingers digging in as he pounded harder. The 
bedsprings were screaming, the headboard banging 
against the wall. He managed to work a hand around 
Marshall's prick, pulling on it as he fucked Marshall's 
ass. 

"Dave!" Oh, fuck, yes. 
"Right fucking here." He moved harder, faster, riding 

his fucking stud as hard as he could. 

Marshall's ass clenched around him, rippled around 

him, demanding his pleasure. 

"Fuck. Fuck!" He grabbed Marshall's cock tighter. 

"Come on, babe. Give it up." 

Heat sprayed over his fingers, a sharp cry filling the 

air. Marshall's body squeezed him tight and Dave 
couldn't have held back his orgasm if he'd wanted to. He 
didn't. He came hard, filling the condom. 

They slumped down onto the bed, panting. He rested 

his cheek against Marshall's back, breathing in the musk 
and sweat. 

"Good." Marshall hummed, almost laughed. 
"Shit. Marshall, that's the understatement of the 

year." 

There was a real laugh, deep and husky and happy. 
He patted the man's ass and pulled out, getting rid of 

the condom before throwing himself down beside 
Marshall. 

Those pretty eyes met his, crinkled at the corners, and 

twinkled. "Hey." 

"Hey, babe." He wrapped an arm around Marshall's 

neck and tugged him close, took a kiss. "Missed you, 
man." 

Burn - 79 

"Yeah. Yeah, we found them. The cops did, I mean, 

but it's over." 

"Thank God for that." He took another kiss, this one 

lasting a little longer, his lips lingering on Marshall's. 

Marshall tugged him close. "Tell me we can spend a 

couple days together." 

"Just try to escape." 
"Maybe later. This is good now." 
He laughed and pushed closer. "It is." 
Marshall held him for a while. Not talking, not 

sleeping -- the man held him and breathed. 

It was a good place to be, and he went with it, just 

lying there, close, together. Like they just needed to be 
for awhile. 

*** 

They rested for a while, but the peace could only last 

so long and Marshall knew it. 

He needed to get up, get something done. 
He patted Dave's butt. "I'm going to replace those 

outlets for you today, install a couple new alarms, 
maybe shore up the step on the back porch." 

"I thought you already fixed the outlets, and I know 

you added an alarm -- how many do I need?" 

"Oh, did I? Good for me." He was jittery, though. 
Dave gave him a wicked grin, eyes glinting. "I have 

plans for your ass anyway, Marshall." 

He chuckled. "Uh-huh." 
"I do. I want to fuck you into goo, babe. A great big 

pile of melted, satisfied goo." 

He nodded, grinned. "We'll probably need a little 

recovery, huh?" 

"You want recovery? Damn, I was planning to keep 

you up and spouting gibberish when you weren't asleep 

Burn - 80 

or eating..." Dave gave him a wink and rolled up. 
"Shower?" 

"I don't speak gibberish." Marshall chuckled, rolled 

up out of bed, too. 

"I could make you." Dave led the way to the shower, 

naked ass right there in front of him. 

"Not a chance." He grabbed Dave's butt, squeezed it. 
"You don't think I'm just that good?" Dave pushed 

back into his hands, head resting on his shoulder. It was 
a little awkward, walking like that, but it felt nice, too --
Dave was warm. 

"That's a trick question. I think I'm just that macho." 
Laughing, Dave nodded. "Yeah, okay. I'll buy that." 
"There you go." He let go so he could brush his teeth, 

let Dave start the water. 

Of course that gave him a great view of the man's ass 

again as Dave leaned over and fiddled with the taps. He 
reached over, stroked Dave's ball sac with one finger. 
Dave jerked and then looked over a shoulder at him, 
smiled. He grinned back, nodded once. 

"Come on. There's more of that here under the 

spray." Dave went into the shower, finger crooking to 
him. 

Marshall chuckled, followed. The hot water poured 

over him, felt so good. Dave's hands followed the same 
trails, warmer than the water, making him feel better 
than good. He caught himself swaying, moaning at the 
touches. 

Dave brought their mouths together, capturing the 

sounds he was making. 

He wasn't sure how he could still be horny, but he 

was. 

"Fucking want you." 
"'M right here." 
Dave grinned and slapped his ass. "You so are." 

Burn - 81 

"Hey. We talked about that." He pinched Dave. 
Dave slapped him again. "No pinching!" 
"No slapping!" He turned the water spray into Dave's 

face. 

Dave sputtered, laughing and fighting him for the 

shower head. He snorted, keeping his butt out of Dave's 
reach. Dave got hold of the shower head, though, and 
got him in the face, laughing all the while. 

"Turd!" He flicked Dave's hip with his fingers. 
"Hey, you started it!" 
Another swat landed on his ass and the burn made his 

toes curl. "I said stop it." 

"No, you didn't." 
"What? Here, I'll say it again. No swacking!" 
"You're no fun, Marshall. You know you want it." 
"Stop it, now." He wasn't no fun. 
"Make me." 
He looked at Dave. "I don't want to hurt you, man." 
"You don't want me to stop, babe. Not really." 
He shook his head. "We're taking a shower." 
"We're showering, we're playing, we're making each 

other feel good." He couldn't argue with that, not really. 
"Ease up, Marshall." Dave pointed to his cock, which 
was hard again. Or maybe still. "We're both feeling 
good." 

Yeah. Yeah, he was. He grabbed Dave and pulled 

him close. "You are a complicated son of a bitch." 

Good thing Marshall loved him. 
He pushed their lips together, tongue-fucked Dave's 

mouth for all he was worth. Dave's tongue slid along his, 
the man's hands running along his back as the water 
pounded down around them. He groaned, rubbing on 
Dave's slick skin. It all felt so good. 

Dave slid a hand between them, fingers finding his 

right nipple and flicking back and forth across it. His 

Burn - 82 

fingers tightened. Oh, fuck. Fuck. He knew Dave was 
going to pinch it, just knew it was coming. Dave made 
him wait, though, kept up the gentle flicking, and his 
hips bucked, rolling in time with the touch. 

When the pinch finally came, the sensation exploded 

through his entire body. 

He stumbled back, heart slamming through his chest. 

"Oh, fuck." 

Dave followed him, eyes holding his as Dave's 

fingers slid around his nipple and twisted it. 

"Don't." Oh, Jesus. Please. 
"I know what you really mean, Marshall." Dave 

leaned in and bit the nipple that had been ignored so far. 

He was going to slip, fall. Bash something. With 

another two steps, though, Dave had him pressed up 
against the tile at the back of the shower, lips covering 
his, the kiss wild, almost as hot as the random pinches 
and twists that worked his nipples. His hands were still 
around Dave's hips, and Marshall couldn't quite move 
them. All he could do was hold on and feel. 

Dave gnawed on his tongue, on his lips, making them 

ache, small echoes of the larger ache on his nipples. 
Deep sounds clawed their way out of him, harsh and 
raw. He couldn't think. 

He couldn't breathe. 
The hand that wrapped around his prick was rough, 

Dave's fingers pinching the head, and exactly what he 
needed. Marshall shot hard, knees buckling as the world 
went gray. 

Fuck. 
He didn't fall, though. Strong arms caught him, held 

him, kept him from passing out totally. 

He gasped, held on. 
"I've got you, Marshall. Okay? I'm not letting go." 
"Fuck." He gulped in breath. 

Burn - 83 

"Yeah, that's coming, babe. I swear." 
He couldn't even laugh. His fucking skin was 

tingling, on fire. 

"Come on, turn around for me. I want you." Dave 

turned him, guided his hands to the tile. It was easy to 
spread, body begging for more. "That's it, babe." Dave's 
hand landed on his ass, hard, solid, and two fingers 
pushed into his ass. 

"Yes..." Fuck, that burn was so good. 
Another finger slid into his ass, Dave spreading him 

quickly. One smack after another hit his ass, each one 
coming as Dave's fingers nudged his gland. 

His body rolled, ass screaming with sensation. 

"Dave." 

"I've got you." Two more smacks hit him and then 

Dave's fingers disappeared. 

"Oh, fuck. Don't go. I need you." 
Another smack hit his ass. "Right here, babe. Right 

fucking here." Then he felt it, the blunt heat, the 
pressure as Dave's cock pushed against his hole. He 
grunted, the burn so fucking right. Dave kept pushing 
and that thick cock stretched him until Dave's cock was 
deep inside. He could feel the man's hips pressed up 
hard against his ass. 

Dave groaned. 
He nodded, hips working as he took Dave in. Fuck, it 

ached. So good. 

Dave smacked his ass and then pulled out, pushed 

back in. 

"Love your cock. Harder." 
"Love your ass." Dave plowed into him, their skin 

slapping together hard, the motion making his ass 
cheeks ache in the best fucking way. 

"Yes. Yes. Yes." He bit out the word, over and over, 

snarling his pleasure out. 

Burn - 84 

The speed got faster, Dave smacking, pulling out, 

pushing back in again and again. 

He needed to touch his cock, but he couldn't. He'd 

fall. 

Dave was focused, the smacks and thrusts growing 

more powerful, making him absolutely crazy. 

"Gotta. Oh, fuck. Oh, fuck..." He threw back his 

head, growled. 

"Yes. Yes, come on, babe. Fucking come for me." 
His ass clenched down, gripping Dave hard. Dave 

smacked him, hard, cock pushing in and pegging his 
gland. He screamed and shot hard, his entire body 
convulsing. 

"Fuck! Yes!" Dave jerked and thrust in one last time, 

collapsing against his back. 

Those arms held him, kept them up, and Marshall 

was fucking grateful for them. 

He could feel Dave's breath gasping against his skin, 

the only sound he could actually hear the sound of water 
hitting the tub. 

He held on, clinging to the wall like a big lizard, 

trying not to shake apart. 

Soft kisses moved along his spine. "It's okay, babe. 

I've got you. I've so got you." 

"Sorry. Just. That was. Big." 
"It was. It was big and good and ours." 
He nodded, fighting the urge to break down with 

everything he was. Dave pulled out, hand coming down 
on his ass again. 

"Dave?" He jerked away, stumbling a little. 
Dave kissed his back, hand stroking his ass this time. 

"Come on, babe. Out of the shower." 

He nodded. "I might need to go for a run in a little 

while." 

Burn - 85 

"I could handle a run. Then we could do a few 

things." 

He nodded, trying to get his shit back together. Dave 

turned him and didn't say a word, just kissed him. Hard. 

He gasped, then pulled away. "I need a minute." 
Dave regarded him for a moment, and then pulled 

him in, kissing him again. He groaned, tried to pull 
away. Dave didn't let him, tugging him down the hall 
and keeping his mouth occupied. He needed this to stop. 
He needed a little bit of space, damn it. "Stop thinking 
so hard, Marshall. I'll make you fly." 

"I need a break." 
"No, that's not what you need." Dave pulled him into 

the bedroom, 

"Listen to me!" Goddamn it, he was trying to get 

some fucking afterglow! 

"No, you listen to me. I know what you need. So just 

hush." 

"Stop this." He was going to have a fucking 

meltdown. 

"No. You need it." Dave pushed him down onto the 

bed. 

"What the fuck is wrong with you!" He came back up 

about halfway, their chests slapping together. 

"You need an outlet, Marshall." Dave pushed him 

back down, hands grabbing his wrists and holding them 
down. 

"Let me go, you fuck!" He'd been flying, damn it. 
"You want this, Dave. Look inside. You do." 
He was horrified to feel his breath hitch. "Leave me 

alone." 

"No." Dave manhandled him onto his stomach, 

drawing his hands up above him. Marshall started 
fighting hard, feeling betrayed. This man was supposed 
to... they were supposed to be friends, damn it. 

Burn - 86 

"That's it, babe. Fight. Work it out." His ass was 

smacked again, then again. 

"You asshole! I trusted you!" 
"You still do." The blows moved to his back, to his 

shoulders. 

He jerked away, his lower body sliding almost off the 

bed. 

"That's it. Knees on the floor, babe." Dave pushed 

him off the rest of the way, the blows continuing, 
warming his back. 

"Leave me alone. Don't talk to me like you give a 

shit." 

"I do." Dave pushed his hands against the bed over 

his head and then the heat of the man disappeared, 
coming back a moment later. The next hit wasn't from 
Dave's hand and it snapped across his back. 

Marshall went totally still, completely shocked. 
The blow came again. Then again. The long line of 

pain moving across his shoulders. He couldn't breathe, 
couldn't focus. What the fuck? 

"Let it go, Marshall. Focus on the pain." Each new hit 

slid a little farther down his back. 

"What's wrong with you?" What was wrong with 

him? 

"You're hurting. I want to help." Dave just kept 

hitting his back with the end of a belt, over and over and 
over. He sobbed softly, his heart cracking in his chest. 
"Let it go. Let it all go, Marshall." 

Hiding his face in his hands, he cried, feeling 

completely lost. 

The blows eventually stopped, Dave's body curling 

around his. "That's right, babe. You have to let it go." 

Marshall wanted to pull away, but Dave wouldn't let 

him. 

Burn - 87 

"I've got you, babe. I've got you." The soft murmurs 

continued, interspersed with one gentle kiss after 
another. 

He didn't understand this. Not at all. He just... 
He closed his eyes and let the tears fall. 
Through it all, Dave held on, rocking him. 
Dave climbed back onto the bed and pulled him up, 

too, something cool and soothing spreading over his 
back. 

Marshall stayed there, quiet and still, breathing 

slowly. As soon as Dave started snoring, he slipped 
from the bed and gathered his things. 

He'd made a terrible mistake, somehow. 
Broken himself. 
And he needed to get back to finding himself at work. 

Burn - 88 

Chapter Eight 

Dave had known that the chances were pretty good 

that Marshall would leave the second Dave fell asleep. 

He'd been hoping that wouldn't happen, of course, but 

he wasn't surprised when it did. 

He wasn't surprised when he woke up alone. Only 

disappointed. He was surprised when Marshall didn't 
answer his calls, didn't go home, didn't go to the bar. 

He kept trying, though. He and Marshall needed to 

talk about what had happened. And Marshall needed to 
let go like that again. 

Two days passed, then three. Then a week. Another 

week. And Marshall didn't say anything. 

Dave texted the man. 
He phoned. 
Emailed. 
He left a message at work. 
He gave Marshall time. He told himself to take it 

easy, back off. He worked a lot. 

Finally, nearly six weeks after he'd belted Marshall, 

he took the bull by the horns and showed up at the man's 
house. 

The place was overgrown, dark, but Marshall's truck 

was in the drive and he knew the man was at the start of 
seventy-two hours off. 

He'd checked. 
Knocking on the door and ringing the bell yielded 

him nothing but silence. "Come on, babe. Don't make 
me break down this door." 

Dave knew Marshall was there; he could feel it, 

could almost hear Marshall breathing. 

He leaned against the door, fingers rubbing the wood. 

"We need to talk, babe. Hell, we need to make love, to 
reconnect and make it right." 

Burn - 89 

He needed to make Marshall see. 
The door opened, just a crack. Marshall peered out, 

the man sallow, unhappy. "I don't think it's a good idea." 

"Oh, Marshall. Please. Let me in, babe." He hated the 

way Marshall looked. The man needed to talk to him. 

Marshall shook his head, but stepped back, let him in. 

The house was dark, dank, a total mess. 

Shit. He'd been sitting there thinking Marshall was 

pissed off at him, not in a total funk. 

"Jesus, babe. What're you doing?" 
"Working. Say what you want to say." 
"You're not taking care of yourself, Marshall. If you 

won't let me do it -- you need to." 

"I've been busy. What do you want?" 
"I want back in your life. I want you to come over for 

wild monkey sex whenever you're off work. I want you 
to feel better -- in your heart and in your soul." 

"Dave. I can't. There's something fucked up about 

this. About me when I'm with you. I'm sorry." 

"It's not fucked up, Marshall! I give you what you 

need. With me you can be yourself. I can help you let go 
of all the emotional stuff you carry with you." 

Marshall looked at him, haunted. "I let you hit me. 

That's unhealthy." 

"No. No, babe. It's not. You need some way to 

release everything you go through, all the shit you see. 
This lets you be out of control. Look. We'll set it up 
properly, with a safeword and everything, with me tying 
you up. And then you can fight and yell stop all you 
want and it won't be down to you. It'll be good." 

"I had marks on me! I let you hit me, and I came!" 

Marshall was roaring at him. "I'm sick!" 

"No, you are not." He didn't yell back, but he got 

right up into Marshall's face. "It's not sick. You're still a 
stud. You're a hero. A strong man." 

Burn - 90 

"Go away. I can't fucking do this right now. I'm 

fucking tired." 

"Then let's go to bed. Not do anything, just sleep 

together." It broke his heart to see Marshall hurting so 
badly, to know that it was his fault. 

"What are you doing here?" Marshall stared at him. 

"I can't do this with you standing here. I fucking love 
you, man. I can't break up with you face to face." 

It hit him right in the chest, hearing those words from 

Marshall with the man looking right at him. "I love you, 
too, Marshall. And I don't want you to break up with me. 
We don't have to break up. We fit, babe." 

"I don't know how to fucking handle this shit." 

Marshall looked exhausted. 

"So don't. Let me take you to bed. Let's sleep on it. 

We can worry about it tomorrow." He put his hand on 
Marshall's chest. "Let's just hold each other, babe." 

The quiet went on so long that he thought Marshall 

would say no, but then he got a nod, the door locking 
behind him. "Bed." 

He grabbed Marshall's hand and headed down the 

hallway to the man's bedroom. He didn't say anything. 
He wasn't going to do a single fucking thing to screw 
this tenuous peace up. He stripped off quickly, folding 
his clothes and leaving them next to the bed. 

Marshall didn't turn the lights on, just slid between 

the sheets, head on one pillow, leaving him the other 
one. 

Dave slipped into bed and curled up against his lover, 

his hand sliding around the man's waist. He felt the 
muscles jerk and tremble, shake under his touch. He 
pressed closer, fingers stroking Marshall's chest and 
belly. 

Marshall took one deep breath, then another and 

another. 

Burn - 91 

Dave didn't say anything; he just kept holding the 

man, touching gently. 

Slowly, Marshall relaxed, then melted against him. 
Dave took a deep breath and relaxed as well, let 

himself go. 

He was going to do this, damn it. He was going to 

make this work. 

He and Marshall were perfect for each other, and he 

wasn't letting anything get in the way of that. 

Not even Marshall. 

*** 

Marshall dreamed for hours -- work, Dave, running, 

swimming. One dream bled into another and another, 
and through them all, he didn't wake up. He was warm, 
safe, held close. 

"Gotta get up." He murmured the words, but he didn't 

want to. He was so tired. 

"Shh. I've got you, babe." 
He frowned. "Dave?" 
He missed Dave. 
"Right here, babe." Dave's hand patted his belly. 
"I'm not ready to get up." 
"No, me, too. Let's stay right here." 
He nodded, let his eyes close again. Tired. He was 

tired. 

A soft kiss slid across the back of his neck, warm and 

good. 

God, he missed that. 
He bit his bottom lip, fighting to keep the real world 

out. 

The fingers on his belly moved slowly downward as 

the warm kisses continued. 

"I shouldn't..." His body wanted to. 

Burn - 92 

"You should. I want you." 
He nodded. He wanted Dave. He just didn't want to 

think. 

Those kisses on his neck got hotter, became sucking 

kisses just as Dave's hand wrapped around his cock. He 
groaned, bit his bottom lip. Fuck, he wanted. He could 
feel Dave's cock, hard, hot against his ass. 

It was so fucking easy not to think. 
Dave began rocking, cock sliding along his ass, hand 

stroking his prick. 

"Fuck..." He moaned, long and low, rocking harder. 
"Yes. Fuck. Wanna." Dave's finger slid along his 

crack. 

He shouldn't. He shouldn't, but he wanted to. So 

badly. 

"I have you. I have you, babe." 
He took a shuddering breath, then nodded. Okay. 

Okay, he needed. 

That finger pushed against him, and then 

disappeared, coming back a moment later, slick and 
cool, sliding right into him. Everything was easier in the 
half-light, in the quiet. Like this. 

One finger became two, stretching him as Dave's 

mouth slid and sucked the skin of his neck. Marshall 
didn't spend any time thinking; he needed to feel. Dave 
didn't spend a lot of time on prep either, and soon those 
invading fingers were gone, Dave's cock pushing at him 
instead. 

He leaned back into the touch, eyes closed, fingers 

holding on. He could feel Dave's breath, hot and moist 
across the skin of his neck as the thick cock filled him 
steadily, and Marshall groaned, the sound refusing to 
stay caught inside him. 

Burn - 93 

"Mmm. Feels so good, Marshall. Missed this. Missed 

you." Dave started moving, rocking that fine prick in 
and out of him. 

He didn't answer, fearing he would say something 

embarrassing and wrong. Dave's hand circled his prick, 
sliding along his skin as Dave fucked him. 

They found an easy rhythm, in and out, over and 

over, rocking on the sheets. Dave's mouth worked his 
skin, leaving sucking kisses across his neck and 
shoulders. 

Marshall just wanted to come, to shoot, empty his 

balls and breathe. 

"Come for me, babe. Come on." It was like Dave 

could read his thoughts. 

"Fuck..." He jerked, clenched around his cock, balls 

drawing tight. 

"Yeah. Fuck. Come on. Come." Dave's hand jacked 

him hard and fast. 

He shot so hard his bones rattled, his hands opening 

and closing, over and over. 

"Yes! Yes!" Dave jerked into him a few more times, 

then slammed in hard and froze. 

He didn't say anything. He stayed there, still, quiet. 

Hiding. 

Dave slipped out of him, did something with the 

condom, and then wiped his ass with a tissue before 
curling up around his back again. "Love you, babe." 

"I miss you." That was the best he could do. 
Dave's arms tightened around him. "Me, too." 

Another of those soft kisses landed on his neck. 

He sighed, kissed Dave's fingers. This wasn't going to 

work, but he didn't know what to do. 

"Mmm. We're good together, babe." 
"I don't know what to do about you." 
"You need to trust me." 

Burn - 94 

"How? You hit me. I let you." 
"Because you trusted me to do it, to bring the pain 

and hurt and tears out of you. Marshall... it's... you're so 
strong, so damn strong. A hero. Every now and then you 
need to let go. That's where I come in." 

"You aren't making any sense. I love you, damn it. 

This is unhealthy!" 

"I love you, too, Marshall and I'm telling you that it's 

not." Dave hugged him tight. "I can back off for a bit, 
though. For now." 

"I just want to be with you." 
"Works for me, babe." 
"Okay." 
Okay. 
For now. 

*** 

Dave felt a weight come off his shoulders. 
It wasn't perfect, but Marshall was going to keep 

seeing him, at least for now. 

He just needed to be patient, push a little, but not a 

lot. For now, he was just going to enjoy Marshall's 
company. 

"Can I take you out for pancakes?" 
"That sounds good." Marshall actually smiled at him. 
"Cool." He leaned in to gently touch his lips to 

Marshall's. 

Marshall took a deep breath, then those strong hands 

wrapped around his hips, rested on his skin, and his 
lover kissed him back, slowly, softly. 

He moaned, let Marshall lead this sweet, gentle kiss. 
Marshall's forehead rested against his as the kiss 

ended, those pretty eyes staring into him. "Pancakes and 

Burn - 95 

coffee. Then maybe we'll get some food at the grocery 
store?" 

"Yeah. You wanna come stay at my place for your 

time off, or should we come back here and tackle this 
place?" 

"You don't have to deal with this shit. I'll get it when 

I get home." 

"I don't mind. Your shit is my shit, huh?" 
Marshall met his eyes, took a deep breath. "Yeah. I 

guess so." 

"Hey. I want what's best for you. I do." 
Marshall took his hand. "Shower." 
"Yeah, that sounds good. And then pancakes, because 

I don't know about you, but my stomach is thinking 
about staging a revolt." 

Oh, that got him a grin. A real one. 
Thank God. 
Marshall's shower was a little small, but they 

squeezed into it, laughing when they bumped bellies and 
elbows and knees. 

It was starting to feel more like normal, more like it 

had been between them. 

This was important to him, more important than 

anything else, really, to have Marshall with him, trusting 
him, loving him. He knew he could help Marshall with 
his demons; he knew what he'd done was the right thing. 
But maybe too soon. Marshall would be ready for it at 
some point, he was sure of it. Now that the man knew it 
was there, maybe... 

Dave let it go for now. 
They could focus on each other, on this. 
He brought his mouth to Marshall's, sharing a happy 

kiss. 

"Mmm. You taste good." Marshall turned the water 

off. "Food. It's too nice a day to be cooped up." 

Burn - 96 

"You said it." He went to smack Marshall's ass and 

turned it into a grab instead, getting himself a good 
handful. 

Marshall chuckled, stole one more kiss. 
"You feel like the diner near my place or the IHOP?" 

He tugged on his jeans, leaving his underwear on the 
floor. 

"I'm easy. The local place is good." 
"It is. And it shouldn't be too busy this time of day." 

He threw on his T-shirt and slipped his feet into his 
sneakers. "You gonna join me in my car?" 

"Sure." Marshall grabbed a sweatshirt, an undershirt, 

his wallet. 

"Cool." His lover looked a little less tired today, a 

little less exhausted. 

They headed out, the air cool, refreshing, and Dave 

found himself breathing deep, enjoying the release of 
tension. 

"We should go out and play at the park again while 

you're off." 

"That'd be cool. I like to get outside." 
"You look like you could use some sun." 
"Been working a lot." 
"Even Superman needs to take a break now and then, 

babe." They got to the car and climbed in. 

"Good thing I'm not him, then." 
He looked at Marshall -- was the man trying to tell 

him that Marshall didn't need a break? Because that was 
bullshit. 

"What? I told you from the beginning, I'm married to 

the work. It's who I am." 

"I just worry about you, babe. You're looking worn 

around the edges." 

"I've had a lot of stress the last few weeks. I've had a 

lot to think about." 

Burn - 97 

"I'm sorry I've been one of the stressors, Marshall." 

He looked the man in the eye. "I want to make you 
happy." 

"I just... I had a lot to think about." 
He started the car. "How about we see if we can 

make this a think-free zone for a couple days, then?" 

"I can live with that, man." Marshall nodded. "For 

real." 

"Cool." He turned the radio on and headed toward the 

diner near his place. 

The place was mostly empty, the coffee hot, and the 

bacon crispy. All in all, it worked. 

They talked about random, inconsequential things, 

just shooting the breeze. Marshall told him stories, 
laughed for him, made him smile. By the time they were 
finished, drinking the last of their coffee, he was leaning 
back, foot sliding along Marshall's shin. Marshall was 
relaxed, easy, smiling. Smiling at him. The man needed 
more of this, more of relaxing, smiling. 

"There's a pool hall down the road. Wanna?" 
"Shit, yeah. I haven't played pool since... the last time 

we played." He grinned at Marshall. 

"Well, then. That ended well." It had ended with 

them in bed. 

"It did. Let's see how playing it again ends." 
"Sounds perfect to me, man." 
He dropped some money on the table for their 

breakfast and they headed back out. It was getting better. 
Getting better all the time. The pool hall was pretty 
empty -- likely too early for most -- and they were able 
to grab a table right away. Soon the balls were racked 
and Marshall was breaking. It was all okay. 

He admired Marshall's ass every time the man leaned 

over the pool table. Once, he even wolf-whistled, and 
Marshall shook for him, side to side, teasing. 

Burn - 98 

His cock got a little firm in his jeans and he grinned, 

shifting to get more comfortable. 

"Your shot." Marshall headed over to the table. 
He watched Marshall for a moment and then turned 

back to the pool table. If he didn't start paying attention, 
he was going to lose. Again. He tried to remember if he 
was solids or stripes. There were way more stripes left, 
so he figured that was him. 

Marshall leaned against his side, a bit, whispering. 

"Bet I win." 

He stopped and looked at Marshall. "What're we 

betting?" 

"What do you want?" 
"No, no -- you're the one who brought it up. What do 

you want?" 

"Breakfast in bed." 
"Oh, you're on." Now, he just needed to focus on the 

balls on the table instead of the balls in Marshall's pants. 

"What do you want? Not that it matters..." 
"No, I liked your idea of breakfast in bed. And-- Hey! 

There's no guarantee you're gonna win! Maybe I've been 
playing you." 

"Bullshit. I want waffles. Sausage." 
He snorted. "You gotta win first. And that's not 

gonna happen." 

"Is, too." Marshall chuckled. 
"Back off, man. Give me some room to work here." 

His ass was goosed, hard. "Cheat!" He jumped and 
shifted down the table, mock-glaring at the man. 

Marshall's chuckle made his cock jerk. That sound 

was pure, happy sex. 

He shook his head and tried to focus on his next shot. 

Shit, he didn't even care if he won or lost, but he wanted 
to give it his best shot. He sank two in a row, and was 

Burn - 99 

feeling pretty good about himself, when he missed the 
third shot. 

"Damn it." He'd just given Marshall his opening, not 

that making and serving Marshall breakfast in bed 
would be that big a hardship. 

Marshall chuckled. "My turn!" 
"You know I'm going to be checking out your ass 

while you take your shot, right?" Never let it be said he 
couldn't try to get a little distraction going. 

"Uh-huh. Sure. Damn." 
He leaned against the table where Marshall was sure 

to see him, and cocked his hip out. "Careful now, you 
don't want to sink one of mine by accident." 

"I won't. I spend a lot of time doing this at the 

station." Boom. One ball went in. 

"You mean you played me!" 
"Not so! I'm not a pro." 
"Just an amateur who gets a whole lot of practice, 

huh?" 

"Exactly." Two more balls went in. 
He shook his head, not upset -- he could probably 

have given Marshall a real run for his money if he hadn't 
let the man distract the hell out of him. Marshall 
relaxing was the whole point of the exercise, though --
relaxing and the two of them enjoying each other -- and 
on that point, they were rocking. Marshall laughed, hand 
touching his waist as they passed one another. 

"I've pretty much lost, huh?" 
"Pretty much." Marshall grinned at him. "At least I 

didn't ask for anything awful." 

"I can't think of anything you asking for being 

awful." 

Marshall nodded. "I wouldn't do that to you." 
"No, babe. I know you never would, but what I meant 

was there isn't anything you can ask for that I wouldn't 

Burn - 100 

give." Anything, up to and including whippings and 
beatings and all the good things Marshall thought were 
wrong. 

Marshall patted him. "I'll grab us another round." 
"I'd better not -- one of us has to be able to drive 

home." 

"You want a Coke?" 
"Yeah, that'd be great. They serving munchies yet?" 

He wasn't sure what the time was, but he was feeling 
hungry. 

"I'll see." Marshall nodded, headed to the bar. The 

man had a great butt. 

Dave racked up the balls, setting them up for another 

game. One more -- it wasn't like they had anywhere to 
be, and this was nice and relaxing. It took a few, but 
Marshall came back with two Cokes, a basket of tortilla 
chips, and the promise of hot wings. 

"Dude. You rock." Laughing, Dave grabbed a 

handful of chips and started munching. 

"Yep." Marshall broke again, the tension between 

them nonexistent. Better. So much better. 

They drank their Cokes and munched and played 

more rounds of pool, Marshall pretty much trouncing 
him game after game and he didn't give a shit. It didn't 
matter, because Marshall was going home with him. 

The place started to get busy around six, and Dave 

nodded toward the door as they finished up another 
game. "You wanna head out, babe?" 

"Sounds like a plan." 
He put his pool cue back on the rack, and they 

headed toward the door and his car. 

Burn - 101 

Chapter Nine 

Each day with Dave got easier. They went out, they 

goofed off, they had sex. 

Lots of really good, really vanilla sex. 
Marshall started to relax, settle into the world, which 

stopped being off-center. 

Dave bumped his paper. "You not done with the 

sports section yet? It's taking for damn ever." The front 
page appeared in front of the article he was reading. 
"Trade you." 

"Read the TV guide part. You're still woefully 

lacking in your television knowledge." 

"The TV guide part..." Dave's front page bumped into 

his section again and then it was plucked right out of his 
fingers. "Ha!" 

"Bitch!" He pushed up out of the chair, stalking his 

sports page. 

Dave laughed, feet surprisingly agile for a big guy. 
"Gonna beat your butt, man." That was his sports 

section. 

"Gotta catch me first!" 
"Grr." He chased Dave down the hall, chuckling 

under his breath, following close. 

Dave slipped down the hall, heading for the bedroom. 
"Bring me my stats!" He put on a burst of speed, 

reaching for Dave. 

The paper went flying, even as Dave turned, 

wrapping around him. He caught Dave, both of them 
going down, they were laughing so hard. 

"You dumped me on the ground!" Dave thumped his 

shoulder. 

"You stole my paper." He pinched that tight little ass. 
"You pinched me!" Dave swatted his ass. 
"Watch it." He pinched again, a little harder this time. 

Burn - 102 

"You watch it!" Dave's hand landed again, harder, 

too, just like his pinch had been. 

His ass felt that, and he grabbed for Dave's hand. 
"That's better, no pinch." 
"No swatting." Fuck, his heart was pounding. 
"You started it." 
"I did not." 
"Did too, you pinched me." 
"You stole my paper first." 
"Well, yeah." Dave gave him a shit-eating grin. 
"Dork." He chuckled, took a quick kiss. 
Laughing, and God, Dave had a great laugh -- it lit up 

his whole face -- Dave made the kiss longer. Wet and 
awkward from the laughing, but good, hot. 

"Love you." The words weren't what he'd meant to 

say, but he meant them. 

Dave's laughter faded, but his eyes stayed bright and 

his smile was wide. "Good. Me, too, you know." 

"Cool." They stayed that way for a bit, then he 

winked. "Give me back my paper." 

*** 

Dave invited Marshall around at the start of 

Marshall's next seventy-two hours off. He had plans for 
his stud. Plans that included pushing a few boundaries. 
Maybe not as far as he'd pushed the time he'd really 
scared Marshall off, but enough to open the door again. 

He had a plug he wanted Marshall to wear for him, 

and a cock ring. Kinky, without crossing too many of 
the lines Marshall had drawn in his head. 

Everything, including an easy-to-warm-up dinner, 

was ready. All he needed now was his man. 

He'd gotten the usual text letting him know Marshall 

was off, that the man was heading to the corner store for 

Burn - 103 

beer. He grinned. There might or might not be a chance 
to drink it. Dave was pretty much planning on keeping 
Marshall occupied twenty-four seven. 

He heard familiar footsteps on the porch, heard 

Marshall's whistling. 

His smile widened. God, he was almost giddy. 
"Hey. I brought beer and cupcakes." 
Dave snerked. "Cupcakes and beer, huh? The 

essentials?" 

"Absolutely. Don't mock. They have sprinkles." 
He couldn't help but tease. "Are they pink, too?" 
"Nope. Easter leftovers." Marshall looked incredibly 

pleased with himself. 

"Oh, that's cool." Even if he didn't want to admit it. 

He tugged Marshall into the house. "Come on in, babe." 

"How's business?" Marshall handed him the bags, 

took off his sneakers. 

"Good. Everyone takes up running again in the 

spring." 

"Yeah. Flowers are growing and shit." Marshall 

grinned at him. 

He tugged Marshall in, kissing the man hard. 

Marshall hummed, opened up for him, tongue slipping 
alongside his own. 

"God, I want you." His need for Marshall was like a 

fire inside him. 

"Right here." 
He knew. He could feel. He wanted to feel more. He 

tried to climb Marshall's body, humping against the 
man. 

"Someone's wanting." Marshall murmured the words 

against his lips before pushing back into the kiss. 

Like Marshall wasn't, with every fiber of his being. 
They fit together perfectly, cocks rubbing and riding 

through two sets of jeans. 

Burn - 104 

"Less clothes," he demanded, tugging Marshall's shirt 

out of his jeans. 

"Uh-huh." Marshall jerked his shirt off, baring those 

sensitive nipples, then reached for Dave's shirt and 
tugged. 

Dave didn't even wait for Marshall to get his shirt off; 

he just went for those sweet little nipples, eager to pinch 
and play. 

"Fuck..." Marshall shook his head, but arched into the 

touch, body begging for more. 

"I've got what you need, babe." He so did. 
"They ache when you do that." 
He knew. He so fucking knew. 
"That's the point." He loved driving Marshall wild. 
"Crazy man." Marshall got his shirt off, pulled them 

close together, obviously trying to protect those poor 
tits. 

"No crazier than you." He shimmied down Marshall's 

body so he could nibble at Marshall's sensitive bits. 

"Hey. Hey, don... Oh, fuck." Marshall leaned, hands 

on Dave's shoulders. 

Like he was going to stop. Like Marshall wanted him 

to. Marshall started moving, groaning softly when he bit 
down. Dave worked off the man's jeans as he kept 
torturing the sensitive little bits of flesh. 

"Stop, man. Love. Damn." Marshall's prick was 

dripping, leaking for him, and he nipped harder, 
Marshall bucking for him. 

He moved to the other one, letting his hands grab 

hold of Marshall's arms and hold them down. 

"Dave..." Marshall tested his hold, pushed a little, but 

didn't fight. 

"Just making love to you, babe." He was. He was 

pushing boundaries a little at the same time, but it was 
going to be awesome for Marshall. Awesome. 

Burn - 105 

"Your mouth." Marshall moved against him, rocking 

against him. 

"Made for kissing you. Sucking you. Licking you. 

Biting you." 

"Dave!" Fuck, that was a beautiful, shocked sound. 

Dave loved that even his words turned Marshall on. 
"Come to bed." 

"You're just trying to get me to stop biting your nips." 
"Uh-huh." Marshall tried to move away. 
He held tight to Marshall's arms, and leaned in to bite 

the little nub of flesh. 

"Hey. Hey, fuck. Fuck. Dave." Marshall was 

shuddering for him. 

"Fucking soon. Promise." He moved to the other 

nipple. 

"Don't. Please. It's so fucking bad." That little moan 

was so fucking hot. 

"So bad, it's good." He bit at Marshall's breastbone on 

the way from one nipple to the other. 

"No more. Bed." That waiting nipple was dark red 

and swollen already. 

"That's not what your body says." He went for it, 

mouth closing over flesh. 

Marshall's hands wrapped around his head, held him 

close. Yes. Fuck, yes. He gnawed and licked and bit at 
that sweet flesh. "F...fuck. Fuck. Please." 

He pushed his hand into Marshall's pants and 

wrapped his fingers around the thick, hot cock. Marshall 
nodded. "Yes. Yes." 

Yeah, he knew what Marshall wanted, what he 

needed. 

He bit hard, then backed off, sucking lightly, teasing 

the fat prick. Marshall was burning against him, breath 
coming fast and light, quickly. 

He barely heard the whisper. "Harder." 

Burn - 106 

Dave gave it to Marshall, though, biting hard, 

squeezing the hot prick, and heat sprayed over his 
fingers, wet and thick, the scent strong and male. 

Groaning, he eased up on Marshall's nipple, licking 

and sucking gently now. 

Marshall moaned, starting to shiver, hips still 

moving. 

The still-hard cock slid smoothly along his slick 

palm, each push sending a waft of scent up to his nose. 
He took one last lick of Marshall's nipples and then took 
a kiss. 

"Come to bed, babe." 
Marshall nodded, moaning into his lips. "Yeah." 
He pulled the man along and got him into bed before 

stripping off his jeans and sliding in, his hands moving 
over Marshall's body. Marshall turned toward him, 
hands dragging him closer. Such a needy stud. Dave 
loved it. Loved Marshall. He attacked Marshall's mouth, 
telling the man without words. 

Marshall's fingers were around his hips, rubbing him 

along the muscled thighs, the smooth skin. 

"You want me, babe?" He could feel the heat from 

Marshall's cock, knew his lover was still hard, needy. It 
was the perfect time for the cock ring. 

"Always." Marshall smiled for him, lips on his now, 

tongue slipping in to taste him. 

"I know a way to make it last longer, to be better 

when you finally get to come." He reached up for the 
simple leather cock ring he'd laid out. It wasn't fancy, it 
didn't truss up Marshall's balls at all. It was barely 
kinky. 

Marshall looked at it, finger sliding on the leather. 

"Oh, that's nice. The leather." 

He nodded. "It'll feel good around your cock and it'll 

keep you from coming. We'll be able to do it for hours." 

Burn - 107 

Marshall chuckled. "We'll see about that." The man 

leaned back, though, gave him access. 

Score. 
He took the head of Marshall's prick between his lips, 

his tongue cleaning the tip off as he wrapped the black 
leather around the base of Marshall's cock. He carefully 
snapped the cock ring closed, fingers stroking over it. 

"Oh..." Marshall leaned back against the pillows, 

broad chest working. 

"Feels nice, doesn't it?" He stroked Marshall's cock a 

few times. 

"Yeah." Marshall pushed into his touch easily. 
"Got some other stuff that feels nice." He grabbed the 

lube and got his fingers slick, planning to open 
Marshall, get him wanting to be filled. Marshall watched 
him, one leg cocked, thighs slightly spread. He moved 
forward, stroking Marshall's balls, getting them slick 
before he pressed his fingers farther back, finding 
Marshall's hole. He took it as a positive sign that 
Marshall didn't tense, just spread farther for him, so he 
pushed two finger in, humming happily at the tightness, 
the soft, smooth walls. When Marshall went up on his 
elbows, rocking down toward him, he almost lost it. 

Such a slut. Such a stud. Fuck, he was a lucky man. 
"Look happy." 
"I am. You're a fucking stud, Marshall. And all 

mine." 

"Am I, now?" 
Oh, hell yes. "Yep." He slid his free hand down, 

wrapped it around Marshall's cock. 

"Mmm. Good." He loved how Marshall's hips shifted 

up, pushed into his touch. 

"I know." He pressed another finger into Marshall, 

spreading all three, then pushing deep. 

Burn - 108 

"Oh." Marshall groaned softly, eased back onto the 

bed. 

"You want more, babe?" He nudged Marshall's 

prostate, watching his lover's reaction. Marshall cried 
out, nodded, moaned. "More lube, then." 

He grabbed the tube and let his fingers slide away so 

he could slick them up. Marshall's eyes followed every 
motion of his hands. 

"Gonna make you feel great, babe. Gonna blow your 

mind." He made sure his whole hand was liberally lubed 
and then slid three fingers back in, just to make sure 
Marshall was stretched enough for more. 

"Mmm..." Marshall was open and relaxed, at least for 

now, trusting him. 

He started pushing against that little gland again, 

stretching and nudging and twisting. 

"Dave. Fuck. Full, huh? So good." 
"Yeah, babe." He bent to suck on the tip of Marshall's 

cock for a moment, letting his tongue collect the 
amazing flavor there. Marshall cried out, ass muscles 
gripping his fingers. He sucked a little harder, pushed in 
a little harder. 

"I. I can't breathe." 
He popped off Marshall's cock to look up into his 

lover's eyes. "Why not?" 

"It's too big. You. In me." 
"This?" He wriggled his fingers. "This isn't anything 

you haven't already taken." 

Marshall gasped, shuddered. "No? Feels huge. Good. 

Real good." 

"Want more, babe? I can show you more." 
"More." 
"That's my Marshall." He curled his fingers and 

tucked his pinky on in, pushing all four in. 

Burn - 109 

He loved the husky cry, the way Marshall's hands 

wrapped around his shoulders. He leaned forward 
enough to tease Marshall's right tit with the very tip of 
his tongue. 

"Dave!" 
Oh, shit, that was hot. 
He kept pushing, stretching Marshall wider than he'd 

ever stretched him. 

"Dave. Dave. Oh, sweet fuck. Lover, please!" 
He twisted his fingers, he pushed the tips over that 

little gland. 

"I... I need. Oh, fuck. I need." 
"I've got more for you, I swear." He put more lube 

around where his hand disappeared into Marshall's body, 
pulled his fingers halfway out and then pushed back in 
again. This time with his whole hand. 

"Dave. Dave..." Marshall's hands grabbed the 

headboard. 

"That's it, babe. I've got you. I do." He slowly worked 

his hand in deeper, groaning at the tightness of 
Marshall's body. The widest part of his hand was caught, 
right at Marshall's entrance. 

Marshall whined for him, arched. "Full..." 
"I know, babe. I just need you to breathe, huh?" He 

smiled up at Marshall, feeling unbelievable. "Just look at 
me and let everything go and let me in." 

Marshall looked at him, eyes intense, beautiful, so 

fucking blue, and Dave was so fucking in love he 
couldn't bear it. 

He smiled, letting how he felt show in his eyes, and 

then took a deep breath and pushed forward with his 
hand. Oh, Jesus. 

Marshall grunted and that tight body opened, let him 

in. 

Burn - 110 

"Fuck. Fuck. So fucking good." His fucking hand 

was inside Marshall's body. Fuck. 

Marshall keened softly, muscles rippling furiously 

around him. 

"I've got you, babe. I've so got you." He was holding 

his fucking lover in his fucking hand. It was... there 
were no words. 

"Got... Please." 
He moved his hand a little, more a wriggling of his 

fingers, watching Marshall's face closely as he did. 

Marshall groaned, hands gripping the headboard. 

Those dark red nipples were hard on the heaving chest, 
cock swollen and bobbing. Dave moved carefully, 
pinching one of those sweet nipples with his free hand, 
even as he bent over Marshall's cock to taste what his 
hand inside his lover tasted like. 

"Oh, fuck. Oh, fuck. Again? Please." 
He hummed a yes around Marshall's cock and 

wriggled the fingers inside Marshall, pinched the man's 
nipple again. He was going to blow Marshall's mind 
right into outer space. 

"Fuck. Fuck..." He felt that pinch around his hand, 

and he started bobbing his head, giving Marshall 
something else to focus on as his hand kept moving. 

The hungry words became nonsense, his lover 

babbling, shaking under him. His fingers curled slowly 
into a fist and he moved his hand, turned it, pushed and 
pulled it, all the while sucking on Marshall's amazing 
prick. 

Seed splashed on his tongue, and that sweet prick 

stayed hard. 

He hummed some more, licking Marshall's cock 

clean, rubbing his nose along the leather binding at at 
the base. 

He flicked a fingertip against Marshall's left nipple. 

Burn - 111 

"Oh, God..." Marshall cried out, the bed shaking. 

"Please. Please, Dave. Don't stop." 

No, he wasn't going to stop, not until Marshall was so 

melted, so blown away he couldn't even speak. He 
continued to flick and pinch and twist Marshall's 
nipples, his hand inside the man moving in tiny 
increments so there was sensation without pain. 
Marshall sobbed softly, twisted for him, called to him. 

"Right here, love. I have you." He murmured the 

words against Marshall's prick, his balls, his belly. They 
didn't need to make sense; Marshall just needed to hear 
his voice. 

"Love you." The words didn't have any voice left to 

them, any breath. 

"Me, too." He kissed the tip of Marshall's cock and 

pushed his hand forward a little, hopefully nudging 
Marshall's gland with his knuckles. 

His lover screamed, spunk spraying against his face. 
Moaning, he licked it from his lips, then rubbed his 

cheek against Marshall's belly, spreading the come along 
the amazing muscles. 

Marshall was still, relaxed and panting underneath 

him. 

"God, you're such a stud, Marshall." 
Marshall muttered something unintelligible. 
He slid his hand out a tiny bit. 
Marshall's answer was a soft moan. 
Dave put more lube around his wrist, pushed his hand 

back in a bit, and then worked it out a tiny bit more. 
Each pull out would leave Marshall moaning, that spent 
cock jerking like it was trying to revive. It took him 
ages, but he took the time, made sure to touch and 
soothe Marshall with his free hand as he worked. The 
man was fucking sexy, all sated and needy at the same 
time. 

Burn - 112 

He cleaned them off, Marshall pushing lazily at his 

touches. 

Then he undid the cock ring and settled next to his 

lover, aware of his cock, of his need, but not really 
focused on it -- Marshall was what was important at the 
moment. 

Marshall murmured to him, softly, almost distantly. 
He kissed Marshall softly and whispered, "I have 

you." 

"Stay." 
He wasn't sure if Marshall was asking him to stay or 

asking if Marshall could stay. 

"Of course." He pressed another kiss on Marshall, 

this one against the man's temple, and then pulled the 
covers over them and held on. 

Marshall hummed softly, melted against him. 
It was a good start, and he'd take it. 

*** 

He slept hard, deep, dreamless rest that left him 

waking slowly, the aches in his body unfamiliar but 
good. Dave was hot, wrapped around him almost like a 
blanket. 

Marshall nuzzled in, stretched, then let himself doze 

more. 

Home. 
Something warm slid across his nipple, then air blew 

over it, making him shiver at the sudden coolness. He 
gasped, the ache delicious, making his toes curl. 

"These are mine," murmured Dave, repeating the 

lick, the blow. 

His breath caught in his throat, his cock trying to fill. 
"Mmm... I see that. I see you." 
It was like being caught in a web of pleasure. 

Burn - 113 

Marshall couldn't quite manage to wake up enough to 

argue, couldn't quite stop the sensations, the words. He 
wasn't one hundred percent sure he wanted to. 

His other nipple was suddenly twisted, pinched. 
His lips opened, the pain intense, but so, so good. 

"Fuck... I..." 

He shook his head, refusing to beg for more. 
"Shh. Just enjoy it, babe." The shushing blew more 

air over his skin. 

All he could do was moan, go with it. Enjoy. Yeah. 

Yeah, okay. 

Lick, pinch, blow, twist, circle, tease. God, over and 

over, Dave kept it up, seeming endlessly fascinated. 
These sounds were pouring out of him, and he couldn't 
help twisting, shifting, begging. All of a sudden, 
something sharper than Dave's teeth bit at his right 
nipple. 

His eyes flew open, hands jerking toward his chest. 
There was something there, something biting his 

nipple. 

Dave grabbed his hand, fingers wrapping around his. 

"It's just a little clamp, babe. Gonna make you feel 
good." 

"I..." His fingers twined with Dave's. 
"No thinking, just feeling, remember?" 
"Okay." Only this. He could do this. 
"Good man." Dave's fingers squeezed his, and then 

brought them down, wrapped them around Dave's 
erection. 

"Hard..." He started rubbing, stroking from base to 

tip. 

"You make me hard, Marshall. You make me want to 

do things to you." Dave reached out and grabbed his 
cock, too, stroking. 

Burn - 114 

His eyes closed of their own accord again, his heart 

pounding. Dave licked his free nipple, then bit it. 

"Don't. Please. Fuck. Fuck, aches." His fingers 

tightened on Dave, moved faster. Blowing against his 
wet skin, Dave also flicked the clamp around his other 
nipple. His jaw clenched and he bucked, thumb on the 
wet tip of Dave's fine prick. 

"Oh, fuck. I love what that does to you." Dave's hips 

moved, pushing the hard cock through his hand. 

"Aches. Burns." So fucking good. 
"Uh-huh." Dave flicked the clamp again, the teeth 

biting and harsh on his nipple. God fucking damn. He 
twisted, jerked away, then pushed back. 

"Yeah, that's it, lover." Dave's fingers slid across the 

top of his cock, rubbing it. 

"Love you. Fuck. Fuck." They rolled together, 

humping, wild. 

His nipples were on fucking fire, his cock hard in 

Dave's hand, and that mouth was setting his skin on fire. 

"Gonna. Fuck, gonna." 
"Come on, then, babe. Show me." 
"Uh-huh." He couldn't, though, he was all caught up. 
Dave's mouth suddenly covered his, tongue pushing 

in between his lips. His eyes popped open, meeting 
Dave's. Fuck. Fuck, his lover. 

Dave stared into his eyes, kissing him like it was their 

last moment on earth, and he came hard, their lower 
bodies jerking together. 

"Oh, babe." Dave groaned, cock sliding along his 

cock and abs, hips pushing hard. 

"Uh-huh. You... you too." 
"Yeah. Lemme just..." Dave groaned and then heat 

shot up over his belly. 

"Dave." He blinked, staring at his lover, head rolling. 

Burn - 115 

Dave beamed down at him. "We're pretty good 

together, aren't we?" 

"Uh-huh." Words were not his friends. 
Dave's hand covered his nipple, the one with the 

clamp on it. "You ready for me to take this off? Or leave 
it on?" 

"I..." He didn't know. 
"It's gonna make you hard when I take it off." 
"Nothing's gonna get me up again." 
"Oh, now I'm taking it off for sure." 
"Shh." No talking. 
Laughing softly, Dave danced his fingers along 

Marshall's chest. "This is going to be a bit of a shock." 

It was impossible to not tense, anticipation driving 

him crazy. 

"Mmm... ready?" Dave glanced up at him, eyes 

dancing, wicked. 

He shook his head, but said, "Yes." 
"Okay, then." Dave opened the clamp, took it off. 
Pain spiked in his nipple, and he jerked away, body 

aching. 

"I know;" Dave's fingers chased him, landing on his 

nipple and rubbing. "It's the blood coming back." 

"Fuck. Fuck, that stings." 
"Look at that sweet little nip." Leaning in, Dave 

licked at his nipple, then sucked it in. 

"Please. No more." His hands wrapped around Dave's 

head, holding him right there. 

Dave kept sucking, tongue flicking back and forth 

across the tip. The pain was so good or the pleasure hurt 
so bad or something. Distracted by the sucking, he 
barely noticed as Dave's fingers slid to his other nipple. 
He sure as hell noticed when the clamp closed on it. 

"Dave!" He did jerk away this time, gasping. "What 

are you doing?" 

Burn - 116 

"This one was feeling left out." 
"I. It. I." He was losing his mind. 
Dave licked at his now free nipple and then blew. 
"Stop, now. I can't breathe." 
"Breathing is overrated, babe." 
The clamp on his nipple gripped his flesh hard, the 

ache more intense now that he knew what was coming. 

"I just... I... It's early in the morning." He thought. 

Although it could be noon. 

"We have all day, babe. And we have tomorrow, 

too." 

"Uh-huh." Wasn't that his point? 
"So we can do what we want. And I want to do this." 

Dave flicked the nipple clamp. That jolt of need hit him 
again and he bucked, their bodies slapping together. 
"Mmm. Looks like you do, too." 

Dave's tongue teased over the freed nipple, the touch 

light, warm, such a contrast to the way the clamp bit his 
other nipple as yet another finger-flick made his nerves 
scream again. 

"No. No, I..." He moaned, rolling, intending to put 

Dave under him. 

Dave's hands landed on his shoulders and pushed him 

back down, mouth covering his in hard, sure kiss. 
Marshall cried out, hands around his lover's waist. 
"Gonna take you this time." 

"Lots of lube." Last night had been intense. 
Amazing. 
Unreal. 
"I should be able to slip right inside." Dave winked, 

fingers sliding toward his nipples. 

He shifted away, but he couldn't get far. Dave bit at 

his lower lip, and then at his chin, then those fingers 
found their targets. Two teased his free nipple, one 
tortured the clamped one. 

Burn - 117 

He growled, bit Dave's bottom lip a little. 
Dave licked his own lips and then his before biting 

his chin. 

"Fuck. Stings." He rolled his hips up. 
"It's all going to sting, babe. Gonna make you feel so 

good." Dave twisted his free nipple again, then backed 
off a bit, slicking up his fingers. 

"Fuck. Fuck, Dave. You make me crazy." 
"Yeah, that's kind of the point." Dave winked and 

pushed fingers into him. 

"Butthead." He could laugh, too, now, relax into the 

touch. He was tender, sensitive, stretched. 

"Your butthead." Dave gave him a wink, fingers 

stroking slowly inside, sending warmth and tingles from 
there all through his body. That touch was gentle. Easy. 
And he moved with the touch. "Can't wait to be inside 
you, Marshall. You're so fucking hot." 

"Want you. You." Marshall had thought about it, long 

and hard. "You and me, skin on skin." 

Dave froze, not even breathing as the man met his 

eyes. "Yeah? I've never done that before. Ever." 

"You don't have to. I just... I wanted." 
"No, I want to. With you, I want to. I just never 

have." Dave grinned. "At least you know I'm clean, 
huh?" 

"I am. I would tell you." 
"Oh, man, now I want inside you more than ever." 

Dave's fingers pushed deep, hitting his gland. 

His abs went tight, one knee lifting. Damn. 
"Have you ever?" Dave asked. "Not because I don't 

think you're clean, just because, well, I kind of hope I'm 
the first." 

"No. No one. I just... It's something important." 
"It is." Dave slid his fingers away, and then put some 

lube onto his cock before settling between Marshall's 

Burn - 118 

legs. The man's eyes never left his. His stomach went 
tight, hard, and he nodded. 

Dave's lips pressed against his; this kiss felt more 

intimate somehow, and the heat of Dave's cock nudged 
his hole, pushed inside. 

Still staring at him, Dave slowly moved deeper. 
He squeezed, clenched around that fine cock. 
"Oh, fuck. Oh, fuck, Marshall." Dave grinned at him. 

"Feel that." 

He did. He did. "Yeah." 
"God, you're so hot like this. So fucking hot." He 

took more in, bearing down, feeling his skin slide 
against Dave's. "That's it. God, you just feel so good." 

"Better than with the rubber?" 
"Yeah. Yeah, more than I thought it would." 
Dave met his gaze. "You?" 
He nodded. He could feel Dave. 
"Good." Dave thrust, almost all the way out, then all 

the way back in again. 

"Yes. Again." 
That was perfect. 
"God, yes. I'm not stopping anytime soon, babe." 

Dave gave another long, slow thrust, the two of them 
groaning through it. 

His eyelids got heavy, his body shaking. Hell, yes. 

Dave kept moving, kept dragging that hot, hot prick out 
of him, pushing it back in. They found a sweet, slow 
rhythm, something perfect and sustainable. 

Every now and then, Dave groaned or murmured his 

name. He reached up, touched Dave's lips, and Dave's 
mouth opened, tongue-tip touching his fingers. 

"Love." Shit, he loved this man. 
Dave hummed around his fingertips, eyelids heavy. 
"Need the clamp to come off, man. It hurts." Not a 

sting, but something worse. 

Burn - 119 

"It should have faded off by now." Dave pushed 

inside him and stilled, fingers coming up to his nipple. 
The little thing had twisted, his nipple angry and red, 
and when Dave straightened it, Marshall gasped, 
bucking hard on Dave's cock. "Shh. It's okay, babe. It'll 
just burn a little as the blood comes back in. I'm gonna 
take it off. You ready for that?" 

He nodded. "Yeah. Yeah. Okay. Fuck!" 
The thing came off, and the pain hit him. He started 

riding Dave's prick like a wild man, his body 
demanding. Dave moved with him, slamming into him 
like the man felt it, too. 

"More!" Fuck. Fuck, he needed. 
Bending, Dave took his abused nipple into that hot 

mouth, sucking hard as they moved together. 

His hands grabbed Dave's head, hips slamming as he 

growled. "Yes. Yes. Oh, motherfuck! Yes!" 

Their bodies kept coming together with pounding 

force, Dave hitting his gland hard every time his cock 
pushed in. 

"Your teeth. Please, man. I need..." He was so 

fucking close. 

He felt Dave's smile, and then felt the man's teeth, 

sharp and hard and fucking perfect. 

Marshall shot so hard his bones rattled, eyes rolling 

back in his head as his balls emptied. 

"Oh, fuck, babe. Feel you. Just feel you." 
He couldn't even answer. He just moaned. 
Dave kept thrusting into him, moving hard and fast. 

"Close. Love. Close." 

He nodded, trying to squeeze, trying to give Dave 

what he needed. 

"Marshall!" Dave cried out and shoved in hard, 

coming, and he swore he could feel the spunk pushing 
inside him. 

Burn - 120 

It was easy to catch Dave as he fell, holding them 

both together. 

"God, babe." Dave kissed him slowly and then lay on 

him. 

"Uh-huh." 
Dave nodded, body heavy, lax, so good against him. 
Rest. 
They needed to rest. 
And then eat. 
A lot. 
Together. 

Burn - 121 

Chapter Ten 

Dave grinned across the table at Marshall. 
He'd been grinning all day. 
Smiling hard enough that his cheeks were starting to 

hurt. 

He'd fucking fisted Marshall and then they'd gone 

bareback and to top it all off, the man had asked for the 
pain, for his bite. Shit, it made him hard just thinking 
about it. 

He met Marshall's eyes again, grinned even harder, 

and drank a mouthful of beer. 

"This Chinese place is pretty good, huh?" Marshall 

was going shirtless, and Dave had been careful not to 
comment on it. 

"Yeah. Of course, the real test will be the fortune 

cookies and what kind of fortunes they have." 

"Bah. The real test was the hot and sour soup." 
"No way, man. Fortunes and maybe the egg rolls." 
"I love egg rolls." Marshall grinned, broke the last 

one of those in half, and shared with him. 

"It must be love!" 
"Must be." 
The simple words made him smile. Again. 
He leaned back and let his feet touch Marshall's, 

rubbed them along Marshall's calves. Marshall winked 
at him, nodded once, went back to eating. The man sure 
could eat. Of course, getting fisted was hungry work. 

He beamed around his mouthful of egg noodles. 
Getting fisted. 
Taking his cock. 
Pushing those tender little nipples into his mouth. 
Begging for his bite. 
Dave licked his lips, his cock firming up in his 

sweats. Jesus, he had it bad. 

Burn - 122 

"What are you thinking about?" 
"What do you think?" 
"Soy sauce?" 
"Yeah, that's it exactly. Soy sauce makes me horny." 
"You can't possibly be horny again, man. This 

morning was a month's worth of orgasms." 

"You turn me on, Marshall. Everything about you." 
"Well, that can't be bad." Marshall grinned at him, 

winked. 

He laughed. "No, no, it's not bad at all. You're a very 

good thing." 

"Dork." He did love the blush that his words caused, 

though. 

"There's a game on the tube, isn't there? We could sit. 

Watch. Fool around." 

"Sounds like a plan." Marshall stood, gathered up the 

trash. 

He went to the fridge and found them another couple 

more beers, then headed into the living room to turn on 
the TV. Soon his lover was at his side and they were 
resting together, Marshall a little furnace next to him. He 
let his hand slide along Marshall's thigh. 

"Hockey or..." Marshall flipped channels. "Boxing?" 
"Hockey. Boxing is too homoerotic -- you might get 

ideas." He managed the words with a straight face 
somehow. 

"Homo..." Marshall looked at him, lips twisting. 

"Don't make me beat you." 

"Nah, that's my job." He gave Marshall a wink and 

grabbed the chip bag from the coffee table. 

"Dork." Marshall leaned back. 
"Nah, my boyfriend's a firefighter, I think that 

automatically disqualifies me as a dork." 

"Is he?" Marshall grinned over. "Is he a stud?" 

Burn - 123 

He couldn't help but grin back. "Oh, yeah. He's a 

major stud." 

"Yeah? Cool. He's a lucky bastard." 
"Yeah, he is." 
Marshall nodded, stretched. "Good deal." 
"It is. For both of us." He slid his hand along 

Marshall's thigh, rubbed it across Marshall's crotch. 

"Easy, now." Marshall shifted away a little. One of 

Dave's eyebrows went up. Marshall pinked. "I just..." 

"What?" He kept his voice soft, gentle. 
"I'm just... my balls ache a little, my nipples, too." 
"I can see the nips. All swollen and red." Smiling, he 

moved close and blew across one. 

"Don't." Look at that tiny bit of flesh draw up tight. 
"Don't? Are you sure that's what you meant?" He 

blew across the other one. 

"Uh... Uh-huh." 
Dave laughed softly. Marshall was such a liar when it 

came to admitting his sexual needs. He kissed the skin 
next to Marshall's left nipple. Marshall hummed, 
relaxed, that tempting, tender bit of skin so close. 
Groaning, Dave gave in, wrapping his lips around 
Marshall's tit and sucking. He was good -- he sucked 
gently and didn't bite. 

"Oh. Oh, God. Love. Dave." 
He flicked his tongue back and forth across the sweet 

nipple a few times, and then moved to the other one. 

"Aches." 
Sweet pain slut. 
"So good," he whispered against Marshall's skin. 
"I..." 
He pushed his fingers Marshall's lips, gave that 

mouth something to do. The immediate suction made 
him groan. Marshall's mouth was hot, the man's tongue 

Burn - 124 

sliding over his fingertips. He hummed, pleased. They 
were discovering something together. 

He rubbed idly against Marshall's thigh, his cock 

pressing against his zipper, and Marshall moaned around 
his fingers, one hand reaching for him. He grabbed 
Marshall's hand and pushed it into his waistband. God, 
he wanted. He didn't care if they'd had the most amazing 
sex already last night and this morning, he still wanted 
Marshall. 

Badly. 
Marshall started jacking him off with hard, quick 

strokes. 

That had him sucking harder on Marshall's nipple, his 

fingers pushing in and out, fucking Marshall's lips. 
Marshall's fingers squeezed him, thumb working the tip. 

He jerked, biting down on Marshall's nipple, and 

Marshall's hips slammed up, jostling him hard. 

"Oh, fuck." He moved to the other nipple, sucked and 

bit it as well, his own hips sawing now, moving and 
pushing. 

Marshall's head fell back, throat working, his fingers 

sliding free. "Oh, God." 

He shifted, putting his thigh against Marshall's cock 

so his lover had something to rub against, too. Then he 
dropped his hand, plucking at Marshall's other nipple 
with his wet fingers. 

"No more. So hot. Oh, Jesus..." Marshall's hand 

moved faster. He would have laughed at Marshall's 
mixed signals if he hadn't been so turned on, so hot. One 
day he'd have these pierced, have tiny little rings in 
these amazing nipples. 

Just the thought made him groan and bite harder, 

hump his hips harder. 

"No more. Fuck." Marshall bucked up against him, 

tried to push him over. He rode the motions and kept 

Burn - 125 

sucking, biting and pinching. Fuck, Marshall was 
magnificent like this. "Fuck... Help me." 

Marshall's muscles rippled and he was pulled up, 

their lips crashing together. He fucked Marshall's mouth 
with his tongue, both his hands working the little nubs 
of flesh. Marshall's hand never stopped, never slowed, 
just kept moving furiously. 

They were going to explode in a frenzy any second 

now. So fucking good. 

His balls drew up, his orgasm screaming down on 

him. Images flashed through his mind -- whipping 
Marshall's nipples, binding the heavy cock, sliding a 
plug deep inside... 

He shouted out Marshall's name, come shooting from 

him. 

"Oh. So pretty. So hot." 
"You are." He slid one hand down, rubbing it against 

Marshall's cock. 

"I..." Marshall was leaking, so hard. 
"You are." He kept rubbing, his other hand playing 

with one nipple and then the other, then the first again. 

"Oh, God." Marshall moaned for him. "They're gonna 

fall off." 

"No, I'm pretty sure they're not going anywhere and 

I'll get to play with them forever." 

"They ache." 
"I know." He kissed Marshall, his thumb playing with 

the man's slit. God, Marshall was so hot. 

Marshall rolled into his touch. "So does that." 
"And you like this as much as you like the fact that 

they ache." He repeated the touch, that sweet little slit 
leaking for him. 

"Shh. Don't say that." 
"Just do it, huh?" He twisted one of Marshall's 

nipples again. 

Burn - 126 

"Fuck!" That heavy cock pulsed. 
"Yeah, there you go, babe. I know how to press your 

buttons." 

"You do. Fuck. You so do." 
He beamed and pushed up into another kiss, taking 

Marshall's mouth, making it his own. 

His lover. His hero. His Marshall. 
His. 

Burn - 127 

Chapter Eleven 

Marshall sat at the station, texting away. 
U busy? 
nope u? 
He leaned back, sipped on a Coke. 
Nah. yay. Not busy meant a happy night for the 

station. 

good 
Yeah, Dave knew that, too. 
how's the store? 
quiet sale starts tmrow. busy then 
guys are coming 4 shoes. be warned. 
what guys? 
all of us 
He grinned. The guys were going to hit the Athletic 

Supporter like a plague of locusts. 

u r going to clean me out of big sizes 
$$$$ 
lol 
Marshall chuckled, stretched out. This was more fun 

than playing pool with Marty and Lew. 

what r u doing now? 
sitting. u? 
same. bo-ring. 
LOL. poor baby 
wouldn't b boring if u were here 
no. prolly not. 
He chuckled. They hadn't had a chance to hook up for 

more than a quick kiss and a hand job in almost two 
weeks. 

i have ideas 
u always do 
Scary ideas. 
Kinky ideas. 

Burn - 128 

Crazy ideas. 
i do 
i do. wanna hear some? 
not now later yeah 
God, not here. He couldn't spring wood here. 
One of the guys walked through, waved at him, and 

he waved back. 

im pouting now 
:P 
Marshall chuckled. Right. Pouting. 
Dave didn't pout well. 
when can i c u? 
tomorrow? 
sigh 
not off til 8a 
want ur ass in my bed @ 8:05 
810 maybe. 845 if i stop 4 breakfast 
no bfast. have that here. 
Marshall chuckled and teased. 
maybe ;-) 
more pouting man 
uhhuh. 
The alarm went off and he jumped up. 
gottagoluvubye 
Time to work. 

*** 

Dave set his alarm for eight a.m. He checked his text 

messages to make sure Marshall hadn't had to cancel, 
then stumbled out of bed, showered, and brushed his 
teeth. He headed for the kitchen next, making eggs and 
bacon, avocado and toast, still half asleep as he worked 
on the breakfast. 

Burn - 129 

He heard Marshall's boots on the front porch, heard 

the tuneless whistle. 

He'd opened the door on the way to the kitchen 

earlier, but really, he needed to get Marshall a key. God 
knew, he was here as much as he was at home. Maybe 
more at this point. 

"I smell bacon." Marshall sounded like he was in a 

good mood. 

"Nothing wrong with your nose." He turned from the 

stove, smiling as Marshall came in. Marshall grinned at 
him, but Dave could see a hint of exhaustion in his 
lover's eyes. "I knew you'd be hungry. How about 
breakfast in bed?" 

"We could eat out here, honey." At his look, Marshall 

shrugged. "Four calls last night. Once I lie down, I'm 
going to crash." 

"Okay, babe. I'll feed you in bed tomorrow morning." 

He dished up the food onto a couple of plates, giving the 
lion's share to Marshall. 

"Thanks. Looks good, hmm?" Marshall salted and 

peppered, then dug in. 

"Something at the table does." He waggled his 

eyebrows when Marshall looked up at him, and then 
started eating his breakfast. 

Marshall ate, sucked down coffee. 
"You going to be able to sleep with all that coffee in 

your system?" Really, he wanted to jump Marshall's 
bones in the worst way, but he was planning on letting 
the man sleep first. 

"Caffeine doesn't get to me too bad; besides, I want 

to spend a little while with you if I can." 

That made him smile. "How much time have you got 

off?" 

"Two days." 

Burn - 130 

"Then we can go goof off in bed and if you fall 

asleep, hey, we have two days, it'll be fine." 

"Still. I don't want to waste it." 
"You want me to blow you out here?" He waggled 

his eyebrows. 

Marshall looked at him, obviously confused. "What?" 
"You don't want to go to bed and fall asleep, so I was 

suggesting blowing you out here." He chuckled and 
stood, stretched. "Come on, man. You're wiped. Let me 
take you to bed." 

"Uh-huh." Marshall took his hand, let him drag the 

man up. 

He wrapped his arm around Marshall's waist, 

enjoying the solid weight pressing against him. 

"Seems like it's been too long." 
"It's been forfuckingever. At least a week and a half, 

man." 

"I know." Marshall leaned harder. "Last night 

sucked." 

"Yeah? You wanna talk about it, babe?" Marshall 

never talked about work; Dave kept trying, though. 

"No. It was just hard. I was ready to come ho... here." 
Dave smiled. "Home. I'd like you to think of this 

place as home." 

"I do." Marshall blushed dark, but he got a nod. 
"Good. You need a key, then." 
Marshall nodded again. "I'd like that." 
Well, damn. 
"Okay." He nodded, grinned. That had been so much 

easier than he'd expected. 

He dragged Marshall into the bedroom. 
"You need one to my place, too." 
He wrapped his arms around Marshall's waist, 

pressing their fronts together. "We can go to the 
hardware store tomorrow, get them made." 

Burn - 131 

"Tomorrow." Marshall rested their foreheads 

together. "Not today." 

"No, I told you -- I've got plans for today." He smiled 

into Marshall's eyes, his hands sliding on the broad 
shoulders. 

Marshall's eyes closed. Jesus, the man was tense. He 

started rubbing Marshall's shoulders, digging his fingers 
in even as he brought their mouths together. He heard 
Marshall's little whimper, the sound half pain, half 
pleasure. He deepened the kiss, moving Marshall to the 
bed. They'd get naked first and then he'd love the man 
into a pile of goo. Marshall went, moaning into his lips, 
tongue lightly touching his. He started working on 
clothes, pushing Marshall's sweatshirt up and taking the 
T-shirt beneath it along. 

The ripped belly rippled for him, the pretty nipples 

not loved on or abused at all. It was just wrong to see 
them so... normal. 

They at least needed rings in them. 
Breaking the kiss long enough to get Marshall's shirts 

off, he dove back into the kiss, his fingers making a 
beeline for the little bits of flesh. Marshall arched away 
a little, but didn't complain, didn't balk. No, they both 
knew how those little nipples responded, how sensitive 
they were, and how much Marshall got off on them 
aching, burning, swollen. 

Stinging. Bitten. Tugged. 
He groaned into the kiss. He twisted the right nipple 

and teased the left, keeping the touch there featherlight. 
Marshall grunted, moved away, then pushed back. 

Dave loved it, that internal fight and ultimate 

surrender. He pinched the nipple he'd been teasing, 
moving the lighter touches to the other nipple. Marshall 
murmured a complaint into his lips, groaning as he 
pinched harder. 

Burn - 132 

"Wanna pierce these." He threw it out there. Let 

Marshall hear it. 

"Fuck." Marshall growled at him, bit his lips. That 

wasn't a no. 

Dave nearly crowed in triumph. 
Instead, he pinched both nipples, good and hard. 
Marshall jerked, hands wrapped around his wrists. 
Growling a little, he grabbed Marshall's hands and 

pulled them around behind his back. He put both of 
Marshall's wrists in one hand. There was no way he 
could hold Marshall like this, but he was banking on 
Marshall letting his hand be a binding. 

"Dave..." 
"Hush, Marshall. Let me make you feel good." He 

leaned in, using his mouth on one nipple, his free hand 
on the other, giving the sweet bits of flesh the attention 
they so desperately needed. Like he thought, Marshall 
pulled a little, but let him have his way. 

Yeah, he knew what Marshall needed. 
He let his hand slip down to tug open Marshall's 

pants, pull down the zipper. His mouth stayed busy 
biting and sucking, though. 

"Fuck. Fuck, Dave. Stings. God. Fuck." 
"Uh-huh." He knew that. He knew that was the point. 

He moved over to chew on the other one, and got 
Marshall's jeans undone one-handed. Each bite had 
Marshall groaning, hips bucking. 

He grabbed hold of Marshall's cock and moved back 

to the other nipple. Biting the very tip of Marshall's 
nipple, he pressed his thumb into the slit at the top of 
Marshall's cock. 

"Dave!" Heat sprayed over his fingers, his lover's 

scream perfect. 

"God, that's sexy. You're sexy." 

Burn - 133 

Marshall slumped against the wall, staring at him, 

eyes rolling a little. Smiling, feeling just a little smug, he 
got Marshall to step out of his pants, and then moved the 
man onto the bed. Marshall followed, still in the midst 
of waves of pleasure. 

It was easy to push him down, to put him on his back, 

legs spread. 

Look at that stud. 
Dave licked his lips. His. 
He reached for the lube. 
"Can't wait to be inside you without the latex again." 
Marshall hummed, spread for him. "I'm right here." 
"You sure are. My very own stud." He slicked up two 

fingers and slid them into Marshall's hot body. 

"I'll never forget before. Ever." 
"Me, either. It won't be the last time we do it, either." 

He would hold Marshall in his hand whenever the man 
needed it. 

"Oh, God. Dave. Need you." 
"I'm right here, babe." He pushed a third finger in, 

working that little hole open. 

"Yes. Yes, your cock now." 
"Fucking hungry today." He worked his fingers in 

there a little longer. 

"Been days. Want you." Growly man. 
"It's been more than days. Nearly two weeks." Too 

damn long. 

He tugged his fingers out and lined up his cock with 

Marshall's hole. He wanted Marshall hard and he wasn't 
going to be able to hold back. 

"Want you. Fuck. Need you." Marshall reached for 

him, dragged him in. 

He sank in deep, groaning. Then he started moving, 

hard and fast, letting Marshall feel his pent-up need. 

Burn - 134 

"Yes. Yes, love. In me." He loved that wildness, that 

hunger. 

"In. Yes." He nodded. It was all he had to spare; 

everything else was going into fucking Marshall as hard 
as he could. Marshall's body was a furnace, a tight, silk 
furnace. 

"Babe. fuck." He'd never felt anything so good. 
"Uh-huh. Come on. In me." 
"Together." He grabbed hold of Marshall's cock, 

started jacking twice for every thrust. 

"Uh-huh." Marshall was groaning, nodding. 
He moved faster and deeper, knowing that Marshall 

liked it good and hard, wanted to feel him still there 
when they were done. All the while, he kept looking at 
Marshall's face, keeping eye contact, keeping his lover 
right there with him. 

Those pretty eyes went wide and he could see it, see 

Marshall's orgasm coming. 

"Yes. Yes, Marshall." He pounded in harder, his 

fingers squeezing the head of Marshall's cock tight. 

"Yes!" As soon as his thumbnail nudged Marshall's 

slit, his lover came. 

With Marshall's ass so tight around him, milking his 

cock, he couldn't hold his own orgasm off and he 
shouted, came deep inside Marshall's body. Fuck, that 
was amazing. 

"In me. I can feel you. Hot and wet." Marshall was 

muttering to him. 

"Fuck, yeah." That was something else, the feeling 

and the fact it was hitting Marshall, too. 

Dave reached for a plug, the lube, getting it ready. He 

didn't think Marshall even noticed, and he knew they 
hadn't done this before, but he wanted to know Marshall 
was keeping him in, held inside. "I want to be inside you 
all day, babe." 

Burn - 135 

"Mmm." Marshall's eyes were closed, the nod lazy. 
"Gonna help you with that." He kissed Marshall 

softly and started to pull out, ready to slip in the plug. 

Marshall's eyebrows lowered a bit, but the man didn't 

tense. 

"It's just a small one. You'll feel it, but it won't stretch 

at all, babe." He slid out, pushed the tip of the plug into 
Marshall's body. 

"Small one?" Marshall's body pressed back, sweet as 

pie. 

"Plug," he murmured as he pushed it in, seated it. 
"Oh. Oh, fuck." 
Look at that. He stroked Marshall's ass. "You look 

amazing, babe. A-fucking-mazing." 

Marshall moaned, the words nonsensical. 
He brought their lips together, took the sounds into 

himself as he kissed his lover. 

Marshall was almost asleep, head lolling, hands 

touching him randomly. 

He pressed a kiss to one slightly swollen nipple and 

settled against his lover. "Sleep," he murmured. 

"Mmmhmm. Love." 
"Yeah, and I'll be here when you wake up again." 
He tugged the covers up over them. He could manage 

another couple hours of sleeping if it meant he could 
stay wrapped up around Marshall. 

*** 

The first thing he noticed when he woke up was the 

plug. 

Then his nipples. 
It was insane. Delicious. 
The next thing he noticed was that there wasn't a 

warm body next to him. 

Burn - 136 

He frowned, sat up. Damn, how long had he slept? 
"Hey, you're awake." Dave smiled at him from the 

chair by the window, laptop on his thighs. It was set 
aside and Dave stood, headed toward him. 

"Uh-huh." He hated not knowing what time it was. 
Dave crawled back into bed and eased him down, 

taking a kiss while he was at it. He shifted, body 
clenching around the thing inside him. 

"Mmm. The plug." Dave smiled, fingers sliding over 

his body. 

"I should take it out." 
"No, you shouldn't. I put it in, it's up to me when it 

comes out." 

The words made him uncomfortable, made him grunt 

a little. He didn't know about that. 

"I like that I'm still inside you. It makes me hot." 
"Oh." His cock jerked and he nodded. That was... 

yeah. 

Okay. 
Dave grinned, kissed him. "You hungry, babe? For 

food, or uh... " Dave's eyebrows waggled. "You know." 

"Horndog." He could... you know. 
"Totally your fault." 
"You were a horndog before we hooked up. I 

remember." 

Vaguely. 
"Oh, I don't think so. You bring it out in me, big time. 

Stud." As Dave said the word, his fingers slipped behind 
Marshall's balls and nudged the base of the plug. 

"I. Don't." That made his toes curl. 
"Mmm. You're delicious like this. Fanfuckingtastic." 
Dave nudged the plug again. Harder this time. 
"Fuck. Dave. Shit. I..." That sent electricity through 

his spine. 

Burn - 137 

"You worry too much about what you're supposed to 

feel, babe. Do me a favor -- just feel." 

He moaned and grabbed Dave, brought their lips 

together. Dave's kiss was like they always were -- all 
consuming. So fucking hot. Marshall dove into it, 
grunting into Dave's lips. 

Dave kept tapping the base of the plug, making it 

shift inside him. Making it hit his prostate. Shit. Shit, the 
man was making him crazy. Then Dave's other hand slid 
across his belly before creeping up toward his left 
nipple. He grabbed Dave's hand, twined their fingers 
together. 

Dave laughed, squeezed his hand, and moved down 

to bite at his nipple instead of pinch it. 

"Fuck..." He twisted, but those teeth held him fast. 
Between that mouth and the fingers playing with the 

plug in his ass, he thought he was going to go out of his 
mind. 

"Fucking making me crazy." He squeezed Dave's 

fingers. 

"That's not a bad thing." 
"Could be..." 
"No, it's a very good thing. Very good." Dave nudged 

the plug really hard this time. Marshall cried out, 
scooting up the bed. "Where do you think you're going?" 

He chuckled, a little breathless. "I don't know." 
"Then stay and let me blow your mind." Dave bit 

down on his nipple. 

"Oh, fuck. Fuck. Stop." 
"Forgot a word there." Dave moved to his other 

nipple. 

"What?" His body arched in anticipation. 
"Don't. As in don't stop." Dave groaned and then bit, 

Marshall's nipple going hard. 

"Oh, you ass." He was fucking soaring. 

Burn - 138 

Dave hummed and shook his head, which had the 

side-effect of shaking his nipple in Dave's teeth. 

"Hey!" He grabbed Dave, hands not sure what to do. 
Dave smiled up at him. "Wanna try something?" 
"I. Okay." That smile didn't look dangerous. 
"Cool." Dave popped up and rummaged through his 

bedside table. "Grab the headboard." 

"Grab the..." He reached up, wrapped his hands 

around the slats. 

"Good man." Dave found what he was looking for 

and showed him. Handcuffs. They were lined with 
leather, but they were still very definitely handcuffs. 

"Dave?" He wasn't sure about this. 
"It'll be great, babe." Dave met his eyes. "Trust me." 
"I-- You won't leave me with them, huh?" 
"No, babe. I'm not going to leave you. Not for a 

second. Not while you're all sexy for me." 

"Okay. I'm going to trust you." 
Warmth and pleasure flooded Dave's face. "Thank 

you, babe." 

"You stay in this room with me, the whole time, no 

matter what." A man could burn to death tied to a bed. 

Dave cupped his cheeks, kept his gaze right there. "I 

swear to you, Marshall. I will not leave this room until 
you leave it with me." 

He nodded, and offered Dave his hands. 

*** 

Dave had to take one deep breath and then another. If 

he didn't, his hands would be shaking and he didn't think 
that would make Marshall feel very confident. He could 
hardly believe that Marshall was letting him do this. He 
was thrilled, though. Very. He put the cuff around one 
wrist. 

Burn - 139 

Marshall groaned, fingers curling. 
"I'm gonna take good care of you, I swear. You won't 

have to worry about anything, just feel." He wrapped the 
chain between the cuffs around the headboard, and then 
attached the other cuff to Marshall's other wrist. 

"This is a little wiggy." The words were soft, 

nervous. 

"I tell you what, Marshall. You give me a word, any 

word, that when you say it, I'll stop whatever I'm doing, 
no matter what it is, and I'll undo you. How does that 
sound?" 

Marshall didn't need to know that was a safeword, 

not yet. 

"Okay. Like red? We use that at work." 
"That's perfect." Marshall didn't know just how 

perfect. 

"So you just say that if you need to." He stroked 

Marshall's wrists, feeling the man's heartbeat speeding 
through the veins there. "I'm going to love you so good, 
so hard. Just feel it, feel how it makes you fly." 

"Okay." Marshall smiled at him, winked. "Kiss me?" 
"Oh, yeah." He bent and took Marshall's mouth, 

letting himself get lost in the flavor. Marshall relaxed, 
opened, their tongues tangling together. Dave was about 
as high as a man could be, soaring with pure pleasure. 
He was going to make Marshall soar, and he was going 
to soar right along with his lover. 

His fingers danced their way slowly toward 

Marshall's nipples. He could feel Marshall's breath 
shorten, speed up, so he let the anticipation build, 
knowing Marshall wanted his touches so badly. A little 
barbell in each one. Something he could twist, tug, chain 
together, hang weights from... 

Groaning into Marshall's mouth, he grabbed hold of 

the man's left tit and twisted. Hard. 

Burn - 140 

Marshall jerked, hands tugging at the cuffs. Dave 

hummed, loving that, knowing Marshall would, too. He 
rubbed the abused bit of flesh, his tongue sliding along 
his lover's. "Aches when you do that." 

"I know." He flicked it with his finger and then 

moved to mouth the other one. He licked it first, got it 
nice and wet. 

"Why do you do it?" 
"Because it makes you fly, makes you need and want 

and feel so good it hurts." 

"Does it make you want?" 
"Fuck, yes." He rubbed his prick against Marshall's 

thigh. "See?" 

"Feel." Marshall reached for him, chains jerking. 
"That's right. Feel." He reached up and nipped at 

Marshall's inner arm before dragging his hands down 
along Marshall's ribs. That touch made Marshall moan, 
shiver a little. 

Oh, the things he wanted to do to this man. 
He pressed his thumbs alongside Marshall's thighs 

and Marshall spread, so easily, so perfectly. 

"So sexy." He nipped at one of Marshall's nipples. He 

needed the clamps. Marshall murmured, tried to pull 
away from his lips. He bit a little harder and then 
soothed with his tongue, eager to push Marshall, to send 
him to the sky. 

"Mmm. Dave." The little nub of skin got harder and 

harder, pushing between his lips. 

He started sucking and rolling Marshall's nipple 

between his teeth, switching from one sensation to the 
other and back again. 

"Jesus... Hurts. Fucking aches so bad." 
Yeah. Yeah, he knew. He let it go, his hand sliding 

down to wrap around Marshall's cock as he moved to the 
other nipple. 

Burn - 141 

"No more." Marshall arched, though, pushed against 

his lips. 

He hummed around Marshall's nipple, groaned so 

that it vibrated. His tongue slipped over the tip, again 
and again, flicking it. He jacked Marshall's cock: flick 
the nipple, jack the prick, over and over. 

Marshall began to relax into it, moaning steadily, 

groaning for him. That was it; he'd known Marshall 
would get into this, would love it if he just gave it a 
chance. 

He kept it up, moving from nipple to nipple. 
"Fuck, Dave. Need you so much." Marshall was 

rocking, riding the plug. 

"I know. Luckily I need you, too." He let go of 

Marshall's cock, moving his hand down to twist the plug 
inside his lover's body. 

"Fuck!" Marshall tugged at the cuffs again, heels 

digging into the mattress. 

Shifting, he licked at the tip of Marshall's cock, 

letting his hand take over the nipple torture. With his 
other hand, he kept tapping the plug, moving it. 

"Don't. No more. Oh, fuck, yes..." 
"Try not to come, Marshall. Hold it off as long as you 

can." 

He wrapped his lips tightly around the head of 

Marshall's cock, and then he slowly went down on it. 

Marshall's cry sounded almost pained. 
He pulled just as slowly off, then went back down 

again, fingers nudging and pinching. 

"Love." That single word had the whole world in it. 

He hummed, the head of Marshall's cock deep in his 
throat. "Gonna. Gonna. If you don't want me to, you 
gotta stop." 

Burn - 142 

He popped off, knowing it would slow Marshall 

down a little. "I just said hold off as long as you could, 
not that you weren't allowed to." 

"I know. I just... I wasn't asking, I mean..." 
He swallowed Marshall's cock again, and Marshall 

cried out, hips pumping furiously, slamming into his 
mouth. He sucked as hard as he could. He also pinched 
and twisted those sensitive titties as hard as he could. 
Come splashed between his lips, Marshall's scream 
echoing in his bedroom. 

He swallowed the bitter spunk down, massaging 

Marshall's prick as he did. 

"Fuck. Fuck. Fuck me." 
"Like this?" Dave grabbed the base of the plug and 

pulled it almost all the way out before slamming it back 
into Marshall's body again. 

"Fuck!" Marshall grunted, body bowing up in an arc. 
"Fucking stud." He did it again, twisting the plug as it 

went in this time for maximum sensation. 

"Again!" Marshall was still riding his other orgasm. 
Dave was more than happy to oblige, fucking 

Marshall's ass with the plug as hard as he could. He'd 
put in another one after, a bigger one that Marshall could 
wear for part of the day. It was going to be so hot 
knowing Marshall was wearing it. For him. 

Fuck. 
Dave kept fucking Marshall with the plug until his 

lover was shuddering, whimpering. Then he slowed his 
pace, and finally let it slide away. He wasn't going to 
fuck Marshall until the man asked for it again. 

He was pretty damn sure it wouldn't take long. 
Marshall panted, sheened with sweat, chest heaving. 
"So sexy. Feeling good?" He ran his hands over 

Marshall's body, fingers flicking across the two little, 

Burn - 143 

swollen nibs. Marshall shivered, murmured something 
unintelligible. "What, babe?" 

He cupped Marshall's balls, his cock so hard it hurt. 
"Love." Those thighs spread farther, offering him 

everything. 

"Mmm. I know what you want." He slid his hand 

down, touched the hot, swollen little hole. 

Marshall whimpered softly, one knee bending, and 

Dave knew that, right then, Marshall would give him 
anything. 

"Gonna love you so good." 
That leg moved out wider, the pretty little hole well-

worked, hard-fucked. 

"You want it, Marshall? You want me to fuck you?" 

He pushed his thumb against Marshall's opening, and 
Marshall pressed down toward him. "Is that a yes, 
babe?" 

"Hmm?" Marshall moaned, shifted again. 
"Tell me what you want. Tell me what you need." 
"Want you. 'M empty." 
"You got me." He shifted and pushed into Marshall's 

body. Tight and hot. It was perfect. He could feel 
Marshall's body rippling and squeezing around him, 
tugging him in deeper. 

"God. Love." It was still amazing to be inside 

Marshall without a glove. 

"Uh-huh." Marshall's eyes were wide, but so focused, 

laser-sure on him. 

He started moving, thrusting slowly, filling Marshall 

over and over as Marshall moaned for him, body barely 
moving, letting him lead. He'd bet Marshall was really 
sensitive, that each slow push and pull of his cock was 
blowing his lover's mind. He sped up, just a little bit. 

"Love you." Marshall shuddered, hips rolling for him. 

Burn - 144 

"Yeah, babe. I know." He managed to get their lips 

together, kissing Marshall hard enough that Marshall's 
lip split, the coppery tang of blood tingeing the kiss. 
Groaning, he thrust harder, giving Marshall everything 
he had. 

Marshall was still hard, still leaking. Still all his. He 

worked a hand between them, fingers wrapping around 
Marshall's heat. 

"Can't. Can't again." 
"You can. You will." He met Marshall's eyes. "For 

me." 

"Oh, fuck. I can't..." But his words made Marshall 

harder. 

"You can and you will because I said so." 
Marshall looked at him, eyes rolling. "Oh, God." 
"Yeah. I know." He pressed his thumb into Marshall's 

slit. 

"Stings..." Wait until he introduced his lover to a 

sound. 

"Uh-huh." He thrust in hard, getting the angle just 

right for Marshall's gland. Marshall twisted, chains 
rattling at those cuffed wrists. 

"Oh, fuck. So sexy. Marshall." Groaning, he worked 

Marshall's prick, worked that little bit of flesh inside. 
Made Marshall fly. 

"I can't. I need a break." A dull flush covered 

Marshall's body and the huge muscles tensed, Marshall 
fighting now. 

"After you come, babe." He thrust harder, faster, 

hand working his lover's prick big time. 

"I can't. Oh, fuck. I..." Marshall growled, ass 

clamping down on him like a fist. 

"You will." He pushed his thumb against Marshall's 

slit again, urging him to relax, to focus elsewhere. 

Burn - 145 

Marshall twisted, the sharp cry echoing all through 

the room. "Dave. Please. Fuck, please." 

Bending, he took one of Marshall's nipples in his 

mouth, biting hard, as hard as he could. He felt 
Marshall's orgasm -- ass convulsing around his cock, 
heat spraying between them as Marshall screamed. 

"Fuck! Oh, fuck." He started moving, just a little --

that's all he needed -- and then he was coming, too, 
filling Marshall up deep. 

Marshall took a deep, shuddering breath, then went 

boneless. 

He let himself go limp, too, resting on Marshall's big 

body, panting. 

He could hear Marshall's heart pounding, hear the 

blood whooshing through his lover. 

He was going to hear grumbling about this, he was 

sure, but Marshall had dug it, had so gotten off on it. 
And, maybe, had let a little bit of the emotions he kept 
buried loose. 

"Don't leave me, huh? Stay?" 
"I'm not going anywhere, babe. I promise." 
Even after the cuffs were off. Even if Marshall 

pitched a fit for him doing it in the first place, he wasn't 
going anywhere. 

And Marshall would find him very hard to shake. 
He placed a kiss on one of Marshall's abused nipples. 
The man was stuck with him. 

Burn - 146 

Chapter Twelve 

Marshall rolled his shoulders and packed a suitcase. 

Two weeks' vacation. Damn. They were heading for the 
beach for a week of it, but the other week he was just... 
off. 

It was a little weird, knowing he was just going to 

hang at Dave's. 

A honk came from the front of the house -- looked 

like Dave was there to pick him up. 

He grabbed his suitcase, locked up, and headed out. 

He made it to the car, nodded to his lover. "You sure 
you want a hanger-on for two weeks, man?" 

"Hanger-on." Dave shook his head. "Get in the car 

already." 

He stowed his suitcase in the back seat, slid into the 

passenger's seat. "How's it going?" 

"Good. Great, in fact." Dave leaned over and kissed 

him hard. "It's gonna be a great couple weeks." 

"You get some time off at the store?" 
"Yep. It's good to be king." 
"Still, it's got to be a little weird, taking so long." He 

always felt unnerved being away from the station two 
weeks. 

Dave pursed his lips. "Hmmm. Nope." 
"No?" He shrugged, grinned. "You know me, I'm into 

my work. Where are we going?" 

"It's a surprise." 
"A surprise?" 
"Yep." Dave waggled his brows, eyes shining 

wickedly. 

"Be good." He laughed, though, stretching out. Two 

weeks off. 

"Oh, that would be no fun at all. None." Dave took 

the highway, going north. 

Burn - 147 

"So, tell me. Where to?" He hated being curious. 
"You could try guessing." 
"Guessing? We're going out to lunch?" 
"We're going away for a week, right? It's a bit more 

than lunch." 

"Well, yes, but last time we talked you hadn't even 

decided which week we were going." 

Dave took this surprise thing seriously. 
"The first one. Surprise!" Dave winked at him. 
Marshall cracked up, tickled. "Good thing I brought 

vacation clothes." 

"You aren't going to need too many -- clothes, that is 

-- so you would have been okay anyway." 

"Ah, the beach, then." 
"You need clothes for the beach, man. No sand in 

tender places." 

"You don't need many, though." 
"Very true. Of course, you need even fewer at a 

private beach house." 

He blinked over. "No shit? Dave?" 
"No shit." Dave's grin looked like it was going to 

swallow his whole face. 

"Oh, man. Oh, man, that rocks. I'll do the food 

buying and all, or I could write you a check." 

"We'll work it out." Dave turned to smile at him. "No 

stress, huh?" 

"No. No stress." He reached over, touched Dave's 

thigh. 

"Mmm. Yeah, plenty of that." 
"Horndog." Dave smelled good. 
"Who, me?" Dave laughed, the sound full-bodied and 

nothing but happy. "Yeah, I am." 

"Yeah." God, he loved the pretty son of a bitch. 
"Good thing you are, too." Dave patted his hand 

where it sat on the man's thigh. "Stud." 

Burn - 148 

"Yeah, yeah, yeah." He flexed a little, though, didn't 

he? 

Dave turned off the highway not too far out of the 

city. The summer sun felt good on his skin and the 
ocean was right there, shining and blue. "Won't be too 
much longer." 

"We're staying close to home, hmm?" He didn't mind 

at all. 

"I don't think we could find a nicer place even if we 

went further afield. This place rocks -- I promise." 

"I trust you." Those words meant a lot these days. 
"Good. I won't steer you wrong." Dave turned off 

onto a smaller road. "I have a friend who is very rich 
who offered me the use of his 'beach house.' I've never 
been, but I have heard stories -- this place is a palace, 
babe." 

"Yeah? For a whole week?" Some friend. 
"Yep. Just you and me for a whole week. It's going to 

be awesome." 

"Sounds like a blast." A private beach house. Damn. 

Marshall's cheeks were going to start hurting from 
smiling. 

"I hope so. Jack said there was even food in the 

freezer and we should help ourselves. And there's a pool 
on the deck, a staircase down to the beach. If we want, 
we don't have to see another soul the whole week." 

"Where did you meet Jack?" Not that he was jealous. 
"I know Jack and his lover Oliver from the club I was 

telling you about. Jack's a photographer -- he's done 
some amazing work." 

"Neat." He tried to remember which club Dave was 

talking about. 

"Yeah. We should have supper with them one 

evening when we're back. This week is just ours." 

"Just ours. I like the sound of that." 

Burn - 149 

"Yeah, me, too." Dave gave him a quick grin and 

then concentrated as he took another turn, car moving 
slowly along a well-kept but tiny road. The road ended 
in a gated entrance, Dave punching in a code. 

"Damn, man. This is something." 
"Ready for our vacation, babe?" 
"I am. This is a great surprise." 
Dave beamed at him and drove them through the 

gates. The drive was long and slow and then suddenly 
they were there, the 'beach house' enormous, gorgeous. 

"Jesus, Dave. That's huge." He hooted, clapped, 

grinned. 

Dave was waggling a brow at him and making a rude 

hip motion. "Why, thank you." 

He swatted Dave playfully. "Butthead." 
Dave just laughed and pulled the car up in front of 

the place. "Here we are. Home sweet home for a whole 
week." 

"Wow. This is fucking amazing." 
"Come on. Let's go explore." Dave got out and 

hauled both suitcases out of the back. 

"I'll get those." He grabbed them from Dave. 
"Sure thing. Stud." Dave gave him a kiss and dug 

some keys out of his pocket, leading the way to the big 
front door. 

The place was amazing -- the size of Dave's house 

plus some, fully furnished, with photographs gracing the 
walls. 

"Those'll all be Jack's." Dave nodded his head toward 

them. 

"They're neat. He's talented." Like he'd know good 

pictures from bad. He knew they had to be good because 
they were big. 

Burn - 150 

"He is. Goes to all these war-torn places and shit." 

Dave started down a hall, opening doors. "There's 
supposed to be, like, five bedrooms or something." 

"What are we going to do with five bedrooms?" 
"Well, we are here for seven nights..." 
"Uh-huh." Look at the back deck. That was stunning. 
"This one looks nice, and it's got its own entrance to 

the deck. Whoa, look at the pool." 

It was one of those pools where the water went over 

the back edge, and you could see the ocean from it. It 
was like a resort, for fuck's sake. 

"Fucking amazing." He dropped his bag, turned Dave 

to face him. "Thank you." 

"You're welcome, babe." Dave leaned in, bringing 

their mouths together, and he dove into the kiss, happy 
bone deep. Dave's arms slid on him, along his back, 
down to his ass. The man had a serious thing for his ass. 

He pushed back into the touch, making his offer. It'd 

been a week, after all. 

Groaning, Dave dragged him back toward the 

bedroom. He nodded and followed. Yeah. Yeah. Now. 
"Get naked, babe. Get on the bed." 

"You too." He tugged his T-shirt off, toed off his 

shoes. 

"Yep, no point in not being naked." Dave was 

making short work of his own clothes. 

"Good. Like your skin." 
"Yeah? I'm pretty fond of yours, too." 
He chuckled and worked his pants off, his briefs. His 

cock was making itself known. 

"Jesus fuck, I could just look at you all damn day 

long." 

"That's a bad idea. We'd get blue balls." 
Dave blinked at him for a second and then started to 

laugh. 

Burn - 151 

Marshall chuckled, tossed his briefs at Dave. 
"Eww." Dave caught them and tossed them back. 
"Scary underpants!" He grabbed them, waved them in 

the air like a very floppy shield, and advanced. Dave 
was laughing, backing away. "Gonna get you!" 

"Not if I get you first, man." Dave suddenly turned 

and tossed his own tighty whities at him. 

"I am not frightened of mere Fruit of the Looms!" He 

struck a superhero pose, swatted the briefs out of the air. 

Dave sniggered. "My hero!" 
"That's me! Super Marshall!" 
They both burst into hysterical laughter. Dave 

manhandled him back toward the bed, fingers digging 
into his sides, encouraging his laughter. 

"Love playing with you." He fucking loved Dave. 
"I know. Me, too." Dave nipped at his lower lip, 

rubbing up against him. 

They moved to the bed, the mattress soft beneath 

them. Dave rolled him so he was underneath his lover. 
That strength was a turn on. He tried to push Dave off, 
but his lover kept him there. 

"You're stuck, Super Marshall. I'm your kryptonite." 

Dave wriggled, rubbing all up on him. 

"Daveonite. Oh, right there." He grabbed Dave's ass. 
Dave laughed, the sound turning into a groan as their 

cocks slid against each other. He took another kiss, their 
teeth clicking together. Dave kept moving, driving their 
bodies together as hard as their mouths. He knew how to 
do this now, how to get them both off. It felt good. 

"Not gonna take long," Dave warned, eyes already 

getting that "I'm coming" glaze. 

"Got you." 
"Uh-huh. You do." Dave moved faster, pressed 

harder against him, and came. 

Burn - 152 

"Mmm." He let one hand slide down Dave's side, 

keeping them close together. 

Dave kissed him, tongue lazily working his mouth. 

He kept one hand on the small of Dave's back, hips 
rolling up. "Come on, babe. Show me you want it." 

"Hmm?" Of course he wanted it. 
"Come for me. Do it. Now." 
"Dave!" The harsh words surprised him almost as 

much as the spunk spraying from him. 

Dave looked smug, body still rubbing slowly against 

his. He sighed, settled, beginning to relax. 

"Mmm... happy start of our vacation, babe." 
"Yeah. Happy vacation." 
"We should go test out the pool or something." Dave 

wasn't making any moves to get up, though. 

"Uh-huh." Him, either. 
"Later?" Dave snuggled in closer, arm and leg lying 

over him. 

"Mm." He kissed Dave's nose. 
That made Dave chuckle, snuggle closer. 
They were going to have a fabulous vacation. 

*** 

Dave took a sip of his margarita and sighed happily. 
This was the life. Sunny day, beachside pool, 

margaritas, and the sexiest firefighter this side of the 
moon. He looked next to him, smiled at his firefighter. 
Marshall was spread out in the sunshine, basking, 
working on the tan. 

"You know, if you take the trunks off, you'll have no 

tan line." 

"You're sure no one's got access?" 
"The house sits on, like, acres of land, babe. No one's 

around for miles." He might have been exaggerating a 

Burn - 153 

little, but Jack and Oliver had assured him that the beach 
house was entirely private. 

"You'll tell me if my butt starts to burn, right?" 
Oh, now, that was a tempting thought -- bright red 

Marshall butt. "I'll do you one better, babe. I'll slather 
sun block all over it." 

Any red butt was going to be thanks to him. 
"How could I turn that offer down?" Marshall 

wiggled out of his shorts, turned over, and offered that 
bubble butt to the sun. Dave tried not to drool. He got up 
and found the sunscreen, moving slowly back to his 
lover and that fine ass. Marshall's thighs parted for him, 
just the littlest bit. 

"Mmm. Look at you. My very own stud, all spread 

out for me." 

"Dave!" Marshall's chuckle was the barest bit 

embarrassed. 

"What? You're fucking gorgeous, Marshall. I'd be 

dead if I didn't notice that." 

"Glad you think so, honey." The words were soft, 

pleased. 

"I do." He straddled Marshall's legs, right beneath his 

ass, hands reaching for those sweet cheeks. God, he 
could just wallow in those muscles. 

He kneaded them for awhile and then splurted on a 

bunch of sunscreen. Marshall groaned, stretching for 
him. 

"So fucking sexy, Marshall. You say I'm a horndog, 

but it's all your fault. All this right here... God." He 
squeezed Marshall's ass cheeks, his thumbs rubbing 
along the crack. 

"Listen to you." Marshall's back turned pink. 
He chuckled, leaning down to rub his cheek against 

one of Marshall's shoulders. 

Marshall chuckled. "You're warm." 

Burn - 154 

"I'm a horndog." Grinning, he bit at Marshall's 

shoulder blade, his fingers still digging into Marshall's 
ass. 

"Are you getting all my skin?" 
"Does it feel like I am?" He gave one ass cheek a 

slap, watching Marshall's reaction. 

Marshall stilled, then relaxed. "Ass." 
"Oh, very good. Let's see if you can get this one." He 

slapped Marshall's right shoulder. 

"Hey!" Marshall wiggled, tried to turn over. 
"No, not hey, that's your shoulder." He waited, seeing 

if Marshall would get the joke. 

"Dork." Marshall's laughter shook him, bounced him 

on Marshall's butt. 

"Your dork." He went back to rubbing the sunscreen 

into Marshall's ass, though really, he was feeling it up 
more than lotion-ing it. Marshall relaxed, spread out for 
him. "I want to bury myself in you and never come up 
for air." 

He did love Marshall's deep, low moan. 
He got more lotion on his hand, sliding two fingers 

along Marshall's crack now, teasing the little hole every 
time he went by it. 

"Can't get sun with you on my back." Marshall 

spread wider. 

He leaned over and bit at Marshall's earlobe. "You 

want sun, or you want me?" 

"You." 
"Good answer." He pressed his sunscreen-slick 

fingers into Marshall's hole. 

"Uh... uh-huh..." 
"Mmm, like that, huh?" He pushed them deep, 

twisted them. 

"Fuck. Fuck, Dave..." Marshall's hips rose up, 

meeting his hand. 

Burn - 155 

"Yeah, that's the idea." He pushed another finger in 

with the first two. Marshall's response was a deep moan. 

"Love that sound, babe." 
"Love your touch." 
"Good." He kissed the base of Marshall's spine and 

spread his fingers wide, opening and closing them. 

"Oh, fuck. Yeah." 
He pushed his fingers in a few more times and then 

slid them out, used the sunscreen to slick up his cock. 
That tiny hole was waiting for him, ready, and Dave 
wanted it, needed to fill it. 

"Me now." He pushed the head of his cock against 

Marshall's hole, then pushed it in. 

"Mmm..." That was a totally satisfied sound -- deep 

and raw and happy. 

"Mine," he murmured as he kept pushing in, sinking 

deep into Marshall's tight heat. 

"Good." He grabbed Marshall's shoulders and rocked 

carefully, keeping himself fully buried in his lover. 
Murmuring softly, he kept rocking, hips circling, cock 
rubbing Marshall's insides. 

"Fuck. Fuck, that's... Damn, Dave." 
"It's fucking good." He thrust in hard, hoping to get 

Marshall's gland. 

"Yeah." Marshall shifted, trying to help. He shifted 

again, and then Marshall cried out and he crowed in 
triumph, thrusting in place again. "Oh. Oh, fuck. There." 

"Uh-huh." He kept nailing that spot, loving the 

sounds, the way each thrust made Marshall squeeze his 
cock. 

"Harder. Jesus, need to touch my cock." 
"No. Don't touch it. That's mine." He growled the 

words and pounded into Marshall. 

"I. I...?" Marshall's ass rippled around him. 

Burn - 156 

"I say when you get touch on your cock; I say when 

you get to come." 

"Dave!" Fuck, Marshall was so tight. 
"Tight, babe Fucking perfect." 
Marshall went up on hands and knees, slamming 

back against him. 

"Yes, fuck." His fingers dug into Marshall's hips as 

he added the strength of his arms and legs to their 
fucking. 

"Jesus... So good." 
"Yeah. Good." He was down to single syllable words, 

most of them the same one. 

"More. Please." 
He could do that. He could so do that. And he did. He 

fucked Marshall hard and fast, their bodies slapping 
together noisily. Sweat poured down his chest, dripped 
onto Marshall's back. 

"So hot, babe." He slid one hand around, wrapped it 

around Marshall's prick. 

"Yes..." The word was almost inaudible. He pushed 

his thumb into Marshall's slit. 

"Oh, Jesus." Heat spread over his fingers. 
"That's it, babe. Show me how much you like it." 
Marshall's answer was incoherent babble. He humped 

harder and harder, so close. 

He slammed in deep, hips slapping against Marshall's 

ass. 

It felt amazing -- the sun beating down on them, the 

breeze from the ocean, and the heat of Marshall's ass 
around his prick 

He shot, filling his lover deep. God, yes. Fuck. Yes. 
"God. Marshall." It was like it got better every time. 
"Uh-huh." He should have brought a plug out. He 

could have watched it filling Marshall's ass. "Gonna 
keep you, babe." 

Burn - 157 

"Mmm. Are you?" 
"I so am." He let Marshall's strength hold him up for 

a bit. 

"That works." Marshall slowly sank down, holding 

him all the way. 

"Mmm, God, I love how strong you are." 
"Have to be for work." 
"I know." Marshall needed to figure out how to let go 

of that strength in the privacy of them. 

Marshall sighed softly, asshole massaging his cock. 
"You know what we should do this evening?" 
"Hmm?" 
"We should go down to the tattoo shop. They do 

piercings, too." He pushed a hand beneath Marshall's 
chest and tweaked one of Marshall's nipples. 

"What? You're not serious." The sweet hole clenched 

around him. 

"Yeah. Just think about it, babe." He licked at a spot 

just behind Marshall's earlobe and circled his hips, 
moving his cock inside Marshall. "You'd look amazing 
and I could play with them -- drive you wild." 

Marshall shook his head. "I. They. We." 
Incoherence. Fabulous. 
"Yeah. Let me take you out to dinner -- wine and 

dine you -- and then get you a lovely present for both of 
us." He kept murmuring into Marshall's ear, making his 
words intimate. "It'll be so good, babe." That fine ass 
was working him hard, making his body respond, again. 
"I know it's not an easy thing to do, but you are so 
strong and such a stud -- I know you can do this." His 
voice was growing more and more husky. 

"I don't know." Oh, fuck yes. That wasn't a no. 
"We'll have dinner. We'll go see. After we finish 

here." He started moving again with intent, searching for 

Burn - 158 

that little bump of flesh that would make Marshall need 
when he hit it. 

"F...finish?" 
"You've got me all revved up again, babe." 
"I. Oh..." 
Dave pushed in again, listened to Marshall's gaspy 

cry. He could listen to that all day. He started a nice, 
slow rhythm. 

"Love you." Marshall's voice sounded destroyed. 
"Oh, babe. I love you, too." He pushed in hard. 
"Oh, fuck. There." Marshall pushed back against him. 
"Yeah? Here?" He shoved in again. 
"There. Again." Demanding man. He loved it. And he 

gave in to Marshall's demands, humping hard. "Yes. 
Yes. Yes!" 

God, he was a lucky son of a bitch. 

His hand wrapped around Marshall's prick again, 

each thrust driving it through his hand. 

Marshall was whimpering, gasping. 
"So sexy, babe. So good." Dave bit the nape of 

Marshall's neck. "Come for me, babe." 

"Uh-huh..." 
He felt Marshall's orgasm all around his cock. 
"Yes. Oh, babe." Groaning, he pushed into Marshall a 

few more times and came. 

God, this was the best fucking day. Ever. 
He collapsed completely onto Marshall, whispered, "I 

love you," and let himself drift off on a feeling of utter 
satisfaction. 

"Yeah." Marshall hummed, nodded. "Yeah." 
"It's just going to get better, babe. I promise." 
Both the vacation, and everything beyond. 

Burn - 159 

Chapter Thirteen 

He took a gulp of his beer, tried to focus on eating his 

steak. 

There was no way Dave was serious. No way at all. 

Dave, who was sitting across from him, looking about as 
sexy as you please as he ate. Marshall cut another bite of 
steak. 

He'd just say no. 
That was it. 
Easy as that. 
Dave slid a foot up along his calf. "Enjoying your 

steak?" 

"Uh-huh. It's good." 
"I'm enjoying the view." Dave licked his lips, eyes 

hot. 

"Stop it. I'm not going to do it." His cock jerked. 
One of Dave's eyebrows went up. "You're not going 

to do it with me anymore? That sucks." 

That made him chuckle, grin. "Well, I'll definitely do 

you..." 

"Well, there you go." 
The next bite of steak went down easier. Dave's foot 

stayed where it was, sliding on his leg. The baked potato 
was fluffy, the broccoli... green. And Dave was, well, 
looking at him like he was dessert. 

Marshall ignored that, focusing on his food, only 

looking up when someone who knew them said hi. Dave 
grinned, nodded, and didn't say anything, but kind of 
made it clear that they didn't want to be bothered. It 
worked like a charm. 

Marshall finished his steak, his beer, and leaned back. 

"Yum." 

"You know it. We should save dessert 'til later, 

though. I am stuffed." 

Burn - 160 

"Yeah, me, too. You want to hit a movie?" 
"Maybe tomorrow. You know where we're going 

now." Dave motioned to the waiter for their bill. 

He shook his head. "I don't think so." 
Their bill was handed over and Dave stood, leaving 

the money on the table. "Come on. You said you'd come 
to the shop with me." 

"I'm not going through with it, though." 
"Keep an open mind, babe." Dave took his hand once 

they were out of the restaurant, walking easily. 

"Uh-huh..." He didn't think so. 
"I know that 'uh-huh.' It means you're humoring me." 

Dave kept walking, seemed to know where he was 
going. 

"Uh-huh." He wasn't doing it. 
"Here we are." The store Dave took him into was 

bright and surprisingly busy. There was artwork 
covering the walls and bunch of stations, like at a barber 
shop, several of which were in use -- guys getting 
tattoos on various parts of their bodies. 

There was a lovely woman sitting at the counter, who 

waved. "Good evening, gentlemen." 

Dave smiled, hand moving to the small of Marshall's 

back, urging him to the counter. "Good evening. We 
were interested in a nipple piercing." 

"Dave..." 
"Ah. Treat is our piercer. Let me get him." 
"Come look at the jewelry." Dave pointed to a section 

in the counter full of rings and little barbells, as well as 
some more complicated designs. 

"I'm not going to..." Look at all that. 
"I think you should. It'll be fantastic. You know how 

much you like it when I play with them." Dave was 
speaking quietly, body pressing against his side. 

"But... rings? I can't." He couldn't. 

Burn - 161 

"You can. It'll be amazing. Seriously. At least try --

it's my treat." 

"Try? No." 
Someone chuckled softly. "First piercings, hmm?" 
Dave grinned and nodded. "Yeah. If he'd just give it a 

chance, he'd love it." 

"I'm sorry. I..." He shrugged, met the man's eyes, a 

little panicked. 

"Is he yours, Dave?" 
"He is, Treat." 
Marshall looked at Dave, not sure what the fuck was 

going on. 

"He's lovely. Rings or barbells?" 
"Well, I was thinking rings, but I'm open to barbells. 

What do you think, Marshall?" 

"I'm. I don't. This isn't." Okay. Stop. Breathe. Focus. 
Dave's hand was on the small of his back again, 

rubbing, warm. 

"I haven't considered it." There. Coherence. 
"Cool. We'll stick with rings, then. We can always 

change our minds later, right?" 

"Absolutely. Gold or silver?" 
No. No way. 
"Babe?" Dave smiled at him. "You want me to 

choose?" 

"We need to take a walk." 
"Sure. Or we can talk in the back. I'm sure Treat has a 

room we can talk in." 

"I. Okay. Sure." Anything to get away from the 

sounds, the light. The metal. 

Treat chuckled. "Come on back to the piercing room. 

That way, you're ready to proceed when you want to." 

Treat pointed the way and he let Dave lead him. The 

door closed behind them, Dave sitting him down in the... 
piercing chair. "What's up, babe?" 

Burn - 162 

"I can't do this. You get that, right?" He stared at 

Dave. "I'll go crazy." 

Crazy. 
"It's a good crazy, though." Dave grinned and then sat 

on a stool next to him and looked into his eyes. "Babe. 
You have two weeks off. If you really can't take it, 
there's plenty of time to find that out, get rid of them if it 
comes to that." 

"I..." Well, shit. 
Dave leaned in and kissed him, hand resting over his 

heart. "It's going to be amazing, Marshall. I swear." 
Dave moaned, then that hand moved, sliding over first 
one nipple, then the other, making them ache. "Come 
on, babe. Do this for me. For you. For us." 

Marshall groaned, rested his forehead against Dave's. 

"I. Okay. I guess. It's only a couple days." 

It's not like Dave could touch them. 
"Fucking A! You want to choose the jewelry, or just 

get it done?" 

Dave's eyes shone, his thumb and forefinger 

tweaking Marshall's right nipple. 

"I'm just gonna sit here." 
It was the best he could do. 

*** 

Dave pulled up in front of Oliver's beach house and 

turned off the engine, turning to grin at Marshall. He had 
to admit, he was a little high -- almost bouncing with it. 
Marshall's nipples were pierced. Both of them, with little 
silver rings complete with ruby red gems. It was sexy as 
hell, and he knew -- he just knew -- that Marshall's cock 
had to be aching badly within the confines of his jeans. 

"Come on, let's get you and your pierced nipples 

inside." Before one of them hurt themselves. 

Burn - 163 

"Hush." The word was groaned. 
Dave chuckled, and when he got around to the other 

side of the car, he grabbed Marshall's hand, tugging him 
up the walk to the front door. He couldn't wait to get the 
man naked. Marshall had been stoic, the piercing going 
quickly, without a hitch. He was hard now, though, the 
ache in his nipples no doubt echoed by one in his balls. 
Dave would bet his store on it. 

He slid his hand over Marshall's ass as they went in, 

and Marshall jerked, shivered for him. 

"Love this ass." It wasn't just about Marshall's 

nipples, though he'd also bet that at the moment, that's 
where Marshall's focus was. 

"It's just an ass." 
"Babe. There's nothing 'just' about any of you." 
Marshall let him open the door to Oliver's beach 

house. He pushed the door open and turned, crooking 
his finger at Marshall. "Come into my parlor." 

"This place probably has a fancy parlor, man." 
"Uh-huh. As long as it has a flat surface." 
Marshall closed and locked the door behind them. 

"You tired?" 

Dave laughed. "Shit, no. I just need you in the worst 

way." 

He loved Marshall's husky groan, the way those eyes 

looked at him. He grabbed Marshall's hands and pulled 
the man into the room with the big couches. 

"I can't believe I actually did it." 
"I can." He started working off Marshall's shirt. "It's 

sexy as hell." 

"No touching." Those muscles flexed. 
"Maybe just a little touching." Grinning, he laid his 

hands against Marshall's amazing abs and started 
inching them upward. 

Burn - 164 

"No. No touching." God, look at those angry, needy 

nips. Leaning close, he blew on the right one. "Dave! 
Don't!" 

Laughing, he blew against the other one. 
They needed ice. 
"No touching." He could smell Marshall's need. 
"I'm not touching." Not yet. 
"Your breath is touching!" Marshall was almost 

laughing. Almost. 

"Breath can't touch, man." He grabbed Marshall's 

hand and led him toward the kitchen. 

"Where are we going now?" 
"Kitchen." He was going to ease the burn in 

Marshall's nipple a little. He had a few other ideas for it 
as well. 

"Kitchen... weirdo." 
He laughed, gave one nipple a quick pinch. 
"No TOUCHING!" Marshall swatted at him. 
Not at all put out, he dragged Marshall over to the 

fridge and opened the freezer, pulling out a couple of ice 
cubes. "You're going to change your tune in a minute." 

"Uh-huh." Marshall backed up. Marshall was about 

to hit the center island -- he wasn't going to be able to 
back up much farther. Dave kept advancing, ice at the 
ready. "Don't you do it..." 

Dave could see that hard, needy cock. There was 

stain on the front of Marshall's jeans. It was getting 
bigger. 

He faked going for the right nipple, and pushed the 

ice against the left one instead. 

"Fuck!" Marshall slammed against him, the scream 

rang out. 

He slid his free hand between them, opening 

Marshall's jeans -- he didn't figure it was going to take 

Burn - 165 

much. Then slid the ice over to Marshall's other nipple. 
Heat sprayed over his hand, Marshall bucking wildly. 

"Oh, fuck, babe." God, there was nothing like 

Marshall when he just let go and let the sensations take 
him over. Dave worked each nipple in turn with the ice 
until the cube was gone, melted away by the heat of his 
lover's body. 

"Fuck. Fuck. Need. Dave. Now. Now, lover. I 

fucking need." His lover was wild. 

"Come on." He grabbed a bowl, filled it with ice, and 

then dragged Marshall back to the front room with the 
big fucking couch. 

Marshall's hands were all over him, tearing at his 

clothes. They were both naked in seconds, Marshall still 
as hard as if he hadn't come. "Please. Come here." 

"Need something, babe?" He grabbed two of the ice 

cubes from the bowl. 

"Come here. Want you." 
"Turn over and spread, babe." He was going to feed 

an ice cube into that hot little hole. 

It was gratifying as fuck to see Marshall turn without 

argument, offer him that sweet, tight ass. 

"I've got a new sensation for you, babe. It's gonna be 

great." He slid the ice cube along Marshall's crack. 

"Fuck. Fuck, Dave. Dave, I. Shit. Fuck." 
Uh-huh. 
"I know. And here's the best part." He pushed the ice 

into Marshall's hole. Marshall scrambled forward, 
gasping. "Let it happen, baby. It's going to be so good." 

"Oh, fuck." 
Look at his man. He swatted Marshall's ass, the man 

only moaning in response. He took the other ice cube 
he'd grabbed and pushed it into Marshall's ass as well. 

Burn - 166 

"Please!" Marshall lurched away from him, hips 

rolling, and he slapped Marshall's ass. Marshall's 
response was a deep moan. 

"Yeah, that's my stud." He swatted Marshall's ass 

again before pushing another piece of ice into that fine 
ass. 

"No..." He fucked Marshall's ass with two fingers, 

working hard, listening to the deep, raw moans. 

"Yes. Yes." He pushed in another piece of ice and 

then continued finger-fucking. 

"No more. Oh, God. Dave. Need you." 
"You'll have me." Just not right this second. He gave 

Marshall another swat. 

"I. Fuck you." Marshall pushed back into the blow. 
"That's right." He swatted again, and again, watching 

Marshall move with him, so turned on his cock and balls 
ached. 

"Dave..." Marshall's thighs parted, hips moving like 

his lover was dancing. 

"Right here, babe. Right here with you." 
"Need you." Another blow had Marshall groaning, 

back arching. 

"I know." God, Marshall was amazing. The fine ass 

was tight, turning red. "Want in you." He wanted to fuck 
Marshall so badly. 

"Now. God, love. Now. Please." 
"Yeah. Yeah, babe." He slipped two fingers into 

Marshall, making sure his lover was stretched. That 
hungry hole swallowed his fingers up, pulling at him. 
"Oh, fuck, babe." Marshall was so ready for him. 

Groaning, he let his fingers slide away. 
"Don't you leave me like this!" 
"I need to slick up my cock, babe." He slapped 

Marshall's ass. Hard. "You know I wouldn't." 

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"Oh... Fuck..." Marshall was dancing, hips rolling 

restlessly. He slicked up his prick with one hand; the 
other he let fly again, smacking Marshall's ass. Marshall 
groaned, and that sound was so hot, so needy that Dave 
almost lost it. 

"So fucking hot. Need you." He muttered the words, 

moving into position behind Marshall. He was so 
fucking close, but he bit his lower lip and pushed slowly 
into Marshall's heat. Marshall wasn't cooperating, 
though, body shoving back, demanding. 

"Fuck!" He buried himself deep and then grabbed 

hold of Marshall's hips. "Just a second, babe." He could 
feel Marshall's muscles rippling around him, working 
his cock as Marshall panted for him. He looked out the 
window, at the beach, the waves, and took a few breaths. 
Then he nodded. "Okay. Okay." 

Moaning, he pulled partway out and then slammed 

back in again. Oh, fuck yes. Marshall cried out, body 
taking his cock in deep. One hand moving to wrap 
around Marshall's shoulder, he slid partway out again, 
pushed back in. God. It was... fucking sublime. 

Marshall drove back against him, over and over, 

calling out his name, moaning for him. He got hold of 
Marshall's cock, fingers wrapping tight around it -- he 
wasn't going over by himself. Fat, wet, and swollen --
the pretty prick felt so good. 

"Together, babe. Come on." He kept pounding in, 

holding onto his own orgasm by the skin of his teeth. 

"Uh-huh." Marshall's ass squeezed tighter, harder, 

working him. 

He slapped Marshall's ass with his free hand. "Come 

on, babe. Give it to me." 

Heat sprayed over his fingers, Marshall's ass milking 

him. 

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"Yes! Fuck, yes!" he shouted, hips going wild as he 

chased his own orgasm down. It didn't take but a few 
seconds before he was pouring himself into Marshall. 

He slumped down, holding onto Marshall as they 

panted, moaned. 

"Fuck. Babe. So good." His voice was husky, rough. 

They needed to get on the couch instead of leaning over 
it. 

"Uh-huh." Marshall nodded, moaning low. 
He pulled out as gently as he could and rolled off 

Marshall's back, flopping down onto the couch. Holding 
out his arm, he motioned for Marshall to join him. 
Marshall settled beside him on one side, sighing softly. 
He reached over and patted Marshall's belly. "Well, I'd 
have to say the nipples piercings are a resounding 
success." 

Marshall grunted. 
It made him chuckle. Marshall wasn't going to admit 

it, at least not yet, but Dave would bet that the piercings 
were going to stay. 

"Happy vacation, babe." 
"Happy vacation." Marshall kissed his knuckles. 
"You get to choose what we do tomorrow." 

Burn - 169 

Chapter Fourteen 

His nipples ached when he woke up. Ached. 
He moaned, sat up and looked at them. 
The silver rings picked up the sunlight coming in 

through the window, and the little rubies on them 
seemed to glow from it. His nipples were dark, hard. 
Swollen. 

Dave murmured and shifted closer, hand closing 

around his hip. 

He should take them out. 
Dave's hand patted his hip, then grabbed on again. 

"Shh." 

Marshall hummed, focused on the touch, eyelids 

getting heavy again. He was pretty sure Dave was still 
mostly asleep, but that didn't stop the soft rock of Dave's 
hips, sending the hard cock sliding along his thigh. His 
legs parted, one sliding in front of the other. Dave's 
upper leg settled over his, and those brown eyes blinked 
open. "Mmm. Marshall." 

"Hey." He leaned in, took a kiss. "Morning." 
"Morning, babe." Dave yawned and then cuddled 

back in. 

"You look happy." It was a good look on the man. 
"I am. Aren't you?" 
"Mmmhmm. The rings ache a little." 
"Yeah? They're damn sexy, babe. I can't wait to play 

with them." 

"You think I should take them out?" He wasn't sure 

he'd ever touch them. Ever. Maybe they'd just have to 
stay in, untouched. 

"Shit, no." Dave was suddenly wide awake. "Babe. I 

love them. Besides, you promised me you'd try them 'til 
your vacation was over." 

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"They ache." And they needed that cream worked 

through. 

"We got some stuff for that, babe." Dave slid out of 

bed. "Be right back." 

Stuff. 
He wasn't sure about that. 
Dave came back a moment later, naked and glorious 

in the morning sun. He let himself enjoy the view, lick 
his lips. Dave caught him looking and posed for him, 
flexing a little. "Stud." 

"Takes one to know one." 
He chuckled, sat up. "Let's get this over with." 
"You say that like it's going to be a bad thing." Dave 

climbed up onto the bed and crawled toward him. 

"I don't... Maybe we shouldn't touch them." 
"They need the lotion, babe. Besides, touching them 

is the point." 

He swallowed, his prick trying to fill a little. Damn it. 

Dave bent over him and splurted lotion onto each of his 
nipples. It was cold. 

"Sh...shit." He sat up tall, scooted away. Dave 

followed him, fingers moving to rub the lotion in. 
"Don't." Fuck. Fuck, that felt weird. 

Then Dave moved the rings through his nipples and 

he felt like screaming. Coming. Running. Something. 

"How's it feel, babe?" Dave grabbed at his prick. 
"I don't know." That was the most honest fucking 

answer he had. Dave kept stroking him with one hand, 
running the rings through his tits with the other. 

"You. I. We have to stop." 
Dave frowned; "Why?" 
"Because... oh, shit. I don't know." He chuckled. 

"Driving me crazy." 

Burn - 171 

Grinning now, Dave gave him a wicked look. "I 

know how to help with that.” Then Dave leaned down 
and swallowed him deep. 

Oh, fuck. Yes. Yes. His hands landed on Dave's 

shoulder as his hips rolled up. 

Dave swallowed around the head of his cock, tongue 

working him. 

"Dave... Oh, fuck. Love." Oh, fucking shit. 
One of Dave's hands slid down to roll his balls. 
"Gonna." Shit, he was so fucking close. So fucking 

close. 

Dave sort of half nodded and hummed around his 

cock. It wasn't that hum that sent him over the edge, 
though. It was the tiny, brief touch to the tip of his 
nipple. 

Dave swallowed hard around his prick as he bucked 

and shouted, shooting down his lover's throat, and 
Marshall slumped back, panting hard, heart slamming in 
his chest. 

Fuck. 
Dave licked him carefully, cleaning his cock, his 

balls. He stared down, lips parted, watching his man 
love on him. 

Hot. 
So fucking hot. 
Dave licked the tip of his cock one last time and then 

turned his face up, looking at Marshall, smiling. 

"Hey." 
Maybe the rings could stay. 
"Hey, sexy man." Dave kissed his belly and waggled 

his eyebrows, rubbed against him. 

"Uh-huh..." He brought one knee up, nudged Dave's 

crotch. 

Dave moaned, rubbed against his leg, so he pushed a 

little harder, hands on Dave's hips. 

Burn - 172 

"Babe. Yes." Dave searched out his mouth. He gave 

it up easily, his own spunk flavoring Dave's lips. Dave 
moaned, hips moving faster. "God, babe. So good." 

"Love you." He wrapped his legs around Dave's hips, 

rubbing them together. 

"You, too, babe." A groan sounded and Dave moved 

harder, faster. 

"I know. Come on me. Want you to." God, did he just 

say that? 

"Oh, fuck." Dave jerked and heat splashed up against 

his thigh, hip, and belly. Marshall moaned, licked Dave's 
lips, his poor cock jerking weakly. It jerked even harder 
when Dave reached between them and rubbed his come 
into Marshall's skin. 

He moaned into Dave's lips. "So hot, huh?" 
"On fucking fire, babe." 
"Yeah." God, he was having a good fucking vacation. 
Dave settled back next to him and touched the tip of 

one finger to his right nipple. "These look amazing. 
You're such a fucking stud." 

"Don't touch, honey." 
"They're made for touching." 
Dave reached for the other one, touching just the tip 

again. Electricity slid up his spine, and his toes curled. 

Dave's tongue slid over his lips, tracing them. 
"We should make breakfast." 
"We should. Or I could take you out, feed you 

waffles and coffee." 

"Oh, that sounds good. I like waffles." 
"I know." Dave looked smug, but happily so. 
"I'll go get cleaned up." He kissed Dave's nose. 
"No." Dave's hand dropped back to where he'd 

rubbed the come in. "I want you to smell like me all 
day." 

"Dave..." Jesus, that was hot. 

Burn - 173 

"That's right. Me Dave, you Marshall." Dave leaned 

up and bit his lower lip. 

"Butthead." 
"No, not butthead. Dave." His lover winked and high-

tailed it out of bed. 

He managed a swat to that tight ass on the way. 
Dave laughed, headed for his suitcase. "So what do 

you want to do today, babe?" 

"I'm easy." He just didn't want to get anything else 

pierced. 

"I know you're easy, babe -- I count on it daily." It 

was a shame that fine ass was all the way across the 
room; he had a mind to swat it again. 

He settled on throwing a pillow. 
Hard. 
Dave danced out of the way, laughing, smiling at 

him. Fuck, the man looked as happy as he felt. 

Waffles were only going to make it better. 

*** 

Dave floated in the pool, watching the stars up in the 

sky. He was lazy and sated and just fucking happy all 
through. He floated by Marshall and ran his hand along 
his lover's skin. 

"Mmm. Hey." Marshall looked younger, happier. 

Tanned. And then there were the nipples rings, which 
made his cock sit up and take notice every single time. 

"Hey, babe." His lover did that for him. 
"We should go for a walk on the beach or 

something." 

"Mmmhmm." Marshall didn't sound like he was 

going to move. 

Dave laughed and moved one hand in the water, 

aiming himself at Marshall again. "Did I tire the studly 

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fireman out?" He had been keeping Marshall's ass pretty 
busy. 

"Nope. I am simply relaxing." 
"I didn't think you even knew the meaning of that 

particular word." 

Marshall'd done good this week, though. They'd had 

lots of relaxing time. Marshall's hand came up, flipping 
him off, and Dave laughed. 

God, he loved this man. 
He splashed some water at Marshall, making sure to 

hit those pretty little nipples. Marshall chuckled, body 
sliding deeper in the water, a wave of water coming after 
him. Shit. It caught him, sending the float he was lying 
on rolling and him into the water. 

He sputtered as he came up, looking for where 

Marshall was. Of course, Marshall was nowhere to be 
found. Sneaky bastard. 

He grabbed hold of his floatie and stopped moving, 

searching the water carefully for signs of movement. 

He didn't see anything, and he'd just started to feel a 

twinge of worry when hands wrapped around his ankles 
and tugged. 

Oh, fuck. 
Dave managed to get a breath before he was pulled 

under, his feet kicking. Marshall wrapped around him, 
rubbed against his ass, so he twisted in Marshall's arms, 
searching for his lover's mouth. 

Their heads popped out of the water as the kiss 

started, tongues tangling, playing together. Their feet 
moved lazily, keeping them above the water. 

"Mmm. Gonna be hard to go back to real life." 
"It is. We've got a week, though, to just hang out and 

be." 

"I know. It's going to be great. Besides, there's work I 

need to do on your house." 

Burn - 175 

"I could always chain you to my bed and make love 

to you all week." 

"No chains." Marshall pinched him playfully. 
He yelped and flicked one of Marshall's nipple rings 

in retaliation. They were healing nicely. "No? Silk ropes 
it is." 

"Fuck." Marshall grabbed his hand, held it. 
He grinned and pushed closer so their chests rubbed 

together. Marshall having those rings was going to be so 
much fun, and an instant turn on for a long time to 
come. 

"Stop it." The words didn't match the actions, 

Marshall's hands grabbing his hips. 

"You love it." He rubbed harder, their cocks bumping 

back and forth, his chest moving those pretty little rings. 

"Dave..." Marshall tugged him closer. 
"I won't leave you hanging, babe." He slid his free 

hand into position, fingers tugging at the right nipple 
ring. 

"Jesus. Jesus, Dave." Marshall stumbled a little, the 

water splashing. 

He slid his hand over, gave the other one a little twist. 
"No touching." Marshall took his lips in a kiss. 
Such a liar; Marshall would miss it so much if he 

stopped touching the sweet little nibs. There was so 
much they were doing that Marshall enjoyed, got off on. 

And one day, soon he hoped, the man would ask for 

it, would beg for it. 

He grabbed hold of Marshall's tongue with his lips, 

sucked on it until they slipped under the water, 
sputtering a little bit, both laughing. 

They made their way to the stairs at the corner of the 

pool and he grabbed Marshall's hand, leading his lover 
out of the water. "Deck chair or bed?" He could see the 

Burn - 176 

advantages to both; either way, they were both getting 
laid again. 

"Horndog." 
"Yep. As usual, that's all your fault, though." 
Marshall led him into the house, back to the huge 

shower, the big bed. "You know, your dick might fall 
off..." 

He snorted. "Then we'd better stock up on dildos for 

your ass." 

Marshall gave him one of those looks. 
"What?" He had to bite his cheek to keep from 

chuckling. 

"No sticking random things in my butt." 
"No one said anything about random things. I have 

very specific things in mind." 

Marshall's laugh this time was less sure. 
"Come on, babe. My dick's not in any danger tonight. 

It's only my balls that are going to go blue if we don't 
get back with the program." 

"Uh-huh. You could not come for a month after this 

last week and you'd still be safe." 

He gave Marshall a horrified look that was only 

partially put on. "Don't even joke, babe." 

"Maybe two months." 
He pounced on Marshall, using surprise and 

momentum to push Marshall back onto the bed. "Hush, 
you." 

Marshall's laugh shook them both. He took that 

laughing mouth, tongue sliding in to taste Marshall's 
happiness. The strong arms wrapped around him, held 
him tight. 

This right here was real and good and so fucking hot. 

He rubbed their bodies together again, like they'd done 
in the water. 

Burn - 177 

Marshall laughed into their kiss, the sound husky, 

happy as their cocks rubbed together, the friction soon 
heating him back up. It was maddening, wonderful, 
amazing, and Dave was stunned it was his. Stunned or 
not, he knew well enough to hold on with both hands as 
tightly as he could. 

He broke their kiss off by tugging on Marshall's 

lower lip before slowly kissing his way down to those 
sensitive little nipples while Marshall's hands tightened 
on his arms. 

Dave noticed that Marshall didn't try to pull him 

away from those sensitive little nipples, though. 

"It's so fucking hot, man. Makes me ache." 
It made Dave moan loudly to hear Marshall admit 

that. He breathed over Marshall's right nipple. The little 
ring jerked, bumped his bottom lip. He wasn't one to say 
no to a request like that. He put his tongue through the 
metal and tugged. 

The reaction was fucking hot -- hands squeezing, hips 

jerking, his name ringing through the air, so he did it 
again, his hand snaking up along Marshall's side toward 
the other nipple. 

"Shit. Shit, that's so hot." 
Dave nodded in agreement. It was. Marshall was. He 

grabbed hold of the other nipple ring and twisted it. 

"Fuck!" Marshall grabbed the back of his head, his 

hand. 

"More?" Like he was going to stop even if Marshall 

said no. 

"I. Dave. Just give me a sec." 
Oh, no, Marshall didn't need a second. He flicked the 

ring in his tongue up, and then back down. 

"G...gonna take 'em out." 
No. No, Marshall wouldn't. Dave was sure of it. 

Burn - 178 

"Would be a huge shame." He twisted the other one 

again. 

"Fuck... You make me crazy." 
"'S my job." He kissed his way down to Marshall's 

belly, licking around the dimpled navel. Reaching up, he 
flicked at each of the nipple rings. 

Marshall rolled him over, catching him off guard. 

"Ha! Got you!" 

He blinked up at his lover and chuckled. "It looks like 

you do." 

Marshall grabbed his hands, held them over his head, 

those pretty ringed nipples out of his reach. He yanked 
on his hands, trying to get them loose. Marshall held 
tight, and he waited. Patience. Or, hell, he could get 
Marshall so riled up the man would put his hands back 
on those pretty nipples where they belonged. He blew 
hard, right across the right ring, and then the left. 

"Uh-uh..." Marshall arched away. "No nipples for 

you." 

"You want me to play with them." 
Marshall shook his head, staring at him. 
"Are you sure? You can so feel them. They're aching. 

Begging for my touch." Those fingers squeezed around 
his wrists, Marshall's hips beginning to rock. "Oh, yeah, 
you want it. You want me. You want my fingers and my 
mouth. My teeth." He snapped his teeth together. 

"No." Marshall jerked, his cock sliding back, 

snuggling into the crease of that taut ass. 

"Yes. Oh, yes. You can rub them against my lips if 

you want." 

"Dave..." Marshall moved on his prick, sweet and 

easy. He groaned, wrapping one leg around Marshall's 
upper thighs, heel digging into that pretty ass. That 
earned him a moan, an open-mouthed stare. 

Burn - 179 

"Think how much better it would be with a tweak or 

two to those pretty little nipples." 

"Shh." Marshall was moving faster, rocking harder. 
"If I had one of your little nips in my mouth, I 

couldn't talk." 

"Dave, man. Please." The grip on his wrists was 

faltering. 

"You know what you want, babe -- let me give it to 

you." 

"Oh, Jesus." Marshall panted, eyes like a touch on 

him. 

He licked his lips, nice and slowly, making sure 

Marshall was watching every second. Marshall's fingers 
let him go, the muscled chest leaning toward him. 

Yes! He knew what Marshall needed so badly. He 

latched onto one nipple with his lips, and grabbed hold 
of the ring in the other. 

Dave felt Marshall's ass cheeks clench around his 

prick, squeezing him tight. He bit down on the nipple in 
his mouth, his teeth clacking against the metal. 

"Fuck! Fuck, Dave!" Marshall jerked away, fingers 

on his nipples. 

He grabbed hold of Marshall's cock, pressed his 

fingers into Marshall's slit. 

"Jesus, you make me crazy." Yeah, that was the idea. 
He just bit and sucked harder, working the ring with 

his tongue. 

"Oh, fuck. Fuck. Please. Please, man. In me. Need 

you." 

He rolled them, putting Marshall beneath him again. 
"I thought you'd never ask." 
"Want you so fucking bad. It's insane. Fucking crazy, 

but I need it." 

"I know, babe. I've got what you need right here." He 

spread Marshall's legs with his knees, letting his cock 

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nudge right up against the hot, swollen little hole. 
They'd made love enough over the last week; he was 
sure Marshall was stretched enough. 

The hungry body took him like a dream, giving him a 

perfect place to push into. So fucking good. Marshall 
wasn't the only one who needed it. 

He wrapped one hand around Marshall's prick, 

working the slit, then he started fucking Marshall hard, 
thumb pressing every time he hit all the way in. 

"Shit." Marshall's shoulders rolled up off the bed. 
"And I haven't even touched your nipples yet." 
"Yet..." 
"That's what I said." He chuckled, let go of Marshall's 

cock, eyes on those sweet little nips. 

"No." Those tiny nipples were dark, hard, tight. 
"Yes." He flicked one ring, sending it up over 

Marshall's nipple. On the other side, he flicked the 
nipple itself. 

"No." Marshall's ass convulsed around his prick. 
"Oh, fuck." He couldn't even be bothered to argue 

this time around, he just repeated the touches. 

Touch. Squeeze. Touch. Squeeze. Over and over they 

repeated the cycle. 

He'd love to do it all night, but there was no way he 

was going to be able to keep it up. Marshall's body was 
demanding his orgasm. And damn it, he wanted 
Marshall's. Now. 

He leaned in and whispered into Marshall's ear. 

"Come for me, babe." 

His lover whimpered softly, body jerking, heat 

spreading between them. 

"Yes." He bit at Marshall's lower lip and thrust into 

the wonderful, tight heat, working hard toward his own 
orgasm. 

"You. You, next." 

Burn - 181 

"Uh-huh." Yeah, he just needed another thrust or two. 

Marshall's hand squeezed his ass, dragged him in 
deeper. 

"Yes!" He cried out, butt cheeks clenching as he 

came. 

"W...we're gonna have callused pricks." 
He collapsed onto Marshall, out of breath and 

laughing anyway. Marshall grinned for him, gasping 
underneath his weight. "Rough-pricked boys." 

"Stop. Can't breathe." 
"Cocks like sandpaper." 
He snorted hard and smacked Marshall's hip. 

Marshall wheezed with laughter. 

His cock came out of Marshall's ass as they laughed, 

and he shifted, sliding over to the side. Marshall grabbed 
a towel from the laundry basket beside the bed and 
tossed it at him. 

"Stinky laundry is playing dirty!" 
Marshall hooted, grabbed the basket, and dumped it 

on him. 

He froze for a moment, shocked, mouth open and 

gasping. Then he launched himself at Marshall, and 
Marshall took off down the hall, feet slipping and 
sliding. 

"You can run but you can't hide -- I'm going to get 

you!" 

"You'll have to catch me!" 
"I will!" He headed down the hall, trying to figure out 

how the heck he wound up running after a bone-melting 
orgasm. 

He caught up with his fireman on the landing, both of 

them clinging to each other. 

"Shit, we're gonna go down!" He tried to balance 

them back the other way. 

Burn - 182 

"Are not." Marshall braced, that amazing, sudden 

strength holding them. 

He ran a hand up along Marshall's arm. "Damn, but 

that's sexy." 

"What's that, man?" 
"You. All these muscles." 
"They're for work." 
"They sure work for me." 
"Come on. We'll shower and then make huge, gooey 

sundaes." 

"Mmm. I like the way you think, babe." 
Marshall grinned at him, winked. "I'm a brilliant son 

of a bitch." 

He laughed, pressed his lips to Marshall's. 
Heaven. 
He was in heaven. 
"Love you," he whispered. 
"Good. Guess you'll have to keep me." 
Marshall didn't look like he was joking. 
At all. 
"I guess I will." He let Marshall drag him down to the 

bathroom with the huge shower stall. 

He figured he'd let Marshall drag him pretty much 

everywhere. 

Burn - 183 

Chapter Fifteen 

Marshall figured the last nine days had been some of 

the best of his life. 

Honestly. 
They'd swum and gone to movies, laughed and 

goofed off. Done some home improvements, painted a 
bathroom, and had a fucking ball talking about the 
future. 

And they had five days left. 
"Hey, babe. I want to take you out to dinner." 
"Yeah? Okay. What are you hungry for?" He put the 

toolbox down on the counter, headed over for a kiss. 

"Yummy and luxurious and quiet and where we don't 

have to worry about how affectionate we are." 

"Did you want to drive to LA? I'm sure there are safe 

places there." 

"No, babe. I want to take you to the Hammer. It's 

quiet, the food is awesome, and it's very, very gay 
friendly." 

"The Hammer? Where's that?" He went to the fridge 

for a drink. "You want some juice? And is it dressy?" 

"Casual dressy, though I'm a member, so they won't 

kick us out if we show up in shorts." Dave nodded. 
"Apple, please." 

"Sure." He poured two glasses, grabbed a bunch of 

grapes. "I have a pressed shirt that's soft." 

His poor nipples were so sensitive. 
"I like soft." Dave gave him a knowing smile, hand 

on his belly. 

He popped a grape into Dave's lips, took one for 

himself. "Sounds good to me." 

Hell, right now, almost anything sounded good. 
"Let's go get ready and do it, then, before I decide I'd 

rather ravish you. Again. And then again." 

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He chuckled, nodded. "I'll put the tools away and get 

cleaned up." 

"Mmm... I'm just imagining you wearing nothing but 

a tool belt." 

"Dork." He headed for the utility room, grabbing his 

juice on the way back to the bathroom. The house was 
looking good and he loved it here. 

"You look at home, babe." 
"I've been staying here for a while." That was cool, 

right? 

"Yeah, you have, and it suits you. Suits me, too. You 

should move more of your stuff in. I mean, you're either 
here or at the firehouse, right? Seems crazy to pay for a 
place you aren't staying at." 

"You think? I wouldn't want to cramp you, but I'm 

here all the time I'm not at work." 

"Exactly and there's plenty of room here -- it's not 

like we use more than one bedroom. Look at your 
schedule, figure out what's the best weekend to move 
you in here, and I'll help you with the packing and shit." 

He nodded, chewed his bottom lip. "I don't suppose 

you'd be interested in bringing Doby over, too? I miss 
him." 

He knew Doby was okay where he was, but damn. A 

dog needed his man. 

Dave beamed at him like it was the best idea he'd 

ever heard. "Yeah, that'd be great. I'm home enough that 
he shouldn't get lonely." 

"No shit?" He grabbed Dave, kissed the man hard. 

"Oh, man. I'll call and see if they'll let me come get him 
this week." Hell, he knew that it would be okay. These 
were friends doing him a favor, and Karen called every 
other day with 'Doby misses you' updates. 

Dave kissed him back, mouth opening for him, 

sharing his happiness. 

Burn - 185 

"Come on, man. Let's go celebrate." He winked over. 

"I guess this makes us an official thing now, right?" 

"I guess it does." Dave grinned, grabbed his hand and 

squeezed. "They've got champagne at the Hammer." 

"Cool." He'd have to look into partner benefits at the 

station, too. 

They got ready to go, both of them wandering around 

each other, stealing lazy touches, happy kisses. Once he 
was buttoned up and combed, Dave led him out to the 
car, pointedly letting him be the one to lock the door 
behind them. 

Dave drove; the man's car was infinitely more 

parkable than his truck. 

There was a little line-up and a doorman at this place, 

but Dave went right up to the front door and showed the 
man a card from his wallet. 

He looked, tilted his head. "You a VIP?" 
"No, I told you -- I'm a member." 
The man at the door smiled and opened the door for 

them. "Have a good evening Mr. Banders." 

"Thank you. We will." 
The place was dark, masculine, the music loud 

enough to dance to but not loud enough to cover 
conversation. It was a little over half full, all the patrons 
men -- couples. 

"Dave! We haven't seen you in ages." A large, dark-

skinned man smiled at them, greeting them. 

Dave's hand was solid, warm on his back. 
"Hi, Xavier. I've been a little... uh, preoccupied." 

Dave smiled at him, drew him close. "This is my 
partner, Marshall. Marshall, this is Xavier; he's the club 
manager." 

"Pleased to meet you." 
They shook hands, different people coming up, 

saying hello. Some of the men were very into their body 

Burn - 186 

mods. Xavier eventually led them over to a table for 
two, and Dave shook Xavier's hand before pulling a 
chair out for Marshall. 

"Thanks." That was a little weird. 
Dave sat, grinned at him. "They usually have 

something awesome featured on the menu." 

"Yeah?" He could see some guys with plates, talking 

and eating and... "Dude, Dave, there's a guy on his knees 
over there." 

Dave looked over. "Yeah. He's serving his master. If 

you look closely, I'd bet you can catch some guys 
getting blown, others wearing leashes and stuff." 

His eyes went wide. "Dave?" 
What the fuck? 
"You remember me telling you about the club? About 

how it's a BDSM club? A while ago. These guys are all 
in loving relationships, they care for each other more 
than anyone else I know." 

"I can't. Shit. You should have warned me, man." He 

kept his eyes on the table. 

Dave reached out and touched his hand, squeezed it. 

"I'm sorry. Do you have a problem with the way these 
guys express their love?" 

"I. I. This is. I just. Dave!" 
This was. And people were. And he. 
"Marshall? Marshall Rye? Is that you?" 
He looked up into Ilan Franks' face, the lean, bright-

eyed computer tech wearing a thin red ribbon around his 
neck, tight jeans, and little else. 

Oh, God. 
"Hey." 
"Ilan, right?" Dave nodded to the man. "You know 

Marshall?" 

"I do, Sir. I do tech support for the city -- I've had the 

pleasure a number of times." 

Burn - 187 

"Cool. Your master is JW, right?" 
"No, Sir. No. He, uh. I'm unattached at the moment, 

but the membership here was mine." Ilan grinned as 
everyone looked uncomfortable for a moment. "We're 
still very good friends, but his son came to live with him 
and, well, he decided that having a full-time sub wasn't 
going to work for his new lifestyle." 

Master? Lifestyle? Marshall sat there, staring, tongue 

heavy in his mouth. 

"Well, you're in the right place to find someone new." 
"I am. And if I don't, then I'm going to have a ball." 

Ilan leaned down, hugged him. "I'm so glad to see you. 
It's good to have a friend in the lifestyle. Dave's 
amazing. Lucky man." 

Marshall thought he'd pass out. 
Dave beamed at the compliment, though, and gave 

Ilan a wave. "Good luck, man." 

When Ilan had gone, ass swaying from side to side as 

he walked away, Dave turned to him. "See? Normal, 
regular people." 

"Normal. I. Master, huh? That's intense." 
"It is. There's all different levels. Some people are 

deep into it, others dabble." 

"What about you?" It was like Dave had this whole 

life he didn't know. 

"Me? I'm with you, babe." 
"Yeah, but these people know you." 
"They do. I'm a member here. You remember when 

you told me the spanking thing was unnatural and I told 
you it wasn't?" Dave nodded out to the rest of the club. 
"See? It's not unnatural. These guys are normal, 
everyday folks. Just like you and me." 

"Have you... with people here?" He needed to know. 

Burn - 188 

"I haven't. I don't believe it's something you do 

casually, and I've never found that special someone. 
Until now." 

"So... so you came here and didn't... you didn't. I 

mean, I'm not a fucking virgin." But the things they did? 
He wanted that to be his. 

"I'm not a virgin either, babe. I've hooked up with 

folks, but not from here. I've watched, I've learned. I've 
hoped." 

Somehow that made him feel better, more relaxed. 

"Do we have to go up to the bar for service?" 

"No, there should be a waiter along soon. Ah, see?" 

Dave nodded at the twink coming toward them. 

"They pay attention." 
Dave nodded, smiled at him, and he relaxed a little 

bit more. It was a little weird, a little wiggy, but this was 
Dave and the man seemed easy. 

"Good evening, Sir. Would you like to hear the 

specials?" 

"We would." Dave nodded, hand landing on his knee 

under the table. 

"Tonight we have lamb chops, a seafood risotto, and 

a chicken breast stuffed with feta and olives." 

Dave wrinkled his nose. "We'll have the filet mignon 

-- it's still on the menu, isn't it?" 

At the waiter's nod, Dave grinned. "Cool. Two of 

those and a bottle of champagne, please." 

"How would you like those cooked, Sir?" 
He opened his mouth, but Dave said, "Medium on 

both, thank you." 

"Very good, Sir." Their waiter smiled at Dave and 

then looked at him, giving him a shy smile as well 
before going. 

"This is a little weird, huh? That this is a real place." 

And not gross. 

Burn - 189 

"I was pretty stunned the first time I stepped foot in 

the place." Dave's hand was on his knee again, warm 
and good. "But we're just people, you know?" 

"I guess. People with a big hobby." 
"People who know what they want for their life." 
"It makes me a little uncomfortable, man. I mean, not 

us, but... the whole master thing." 

He reached down, took Dave's hand, squeezed. 
Dave squeezed back. "I don't want you to call me 

master, babe." 

"Good. I won't." He couldn't. That just wasn't cool. 
"That's one of the neat things about the lifestyle, 

babe. You take what works for you, what you need. You 
leave the rest." 

"I want you." That was good for him. 
Dave's hand squeezed harder for a moment. "And I 

want you." 

"Okay." Marshall nodded. "It was fucked up, meeting 

Ilan here. Do you know his ex?" 

"Yeah, I've shared a beer or two with him." 
"And when Ilan said 'full-time sub'?" 
"He and JW were pretty deep in the lifestyle. He'd 

have been kneeling if they were still together." 

Marshall sat there, tried to make sense of that. 
"He gets what he needs out of it, babe. If he didn't 

want it, he wouldn't be here." 

"But he seems like just a dude at work." 
Dave nodded. "That's my point. We're guys just like 

everyone else." 

"And he just gets off on being told what to do?" He 

dropped his voice, leaned closer. "Wouldn't someone 
like that... I don't know, join the army or something?" 
Maybe it was a stupid question, but he figured Dave'd 
forgive him. 

Burn - 190 

"It's more complicated than that. Ilan wants to belong 

to someone, to know that person sees him no matter 
what." 

"We belong with each other, though." People were 

weird. 

"Yeah, we do. We all have our things, though, right?" 

Dave's gaze dropped briefly to his nipples, licked his 
lips. 

"Yeah." He kicked Dave under the table. "Stop it." 
Dave gave him a patently false innocent look. 

"What?" 

"You know what. Butthead." 
Chuckling, Dave took another look at his chest and 

then met his eyes again. "I like your things, babe." 

"Yeah. Yours aren't half bad." 
The champagne came, the owner himself bringing it 

over. 

"You didn't say you were celebrating," Xavier 

murmured, as he handed the glasses over with a flourish. 

Dave looked at him and smiled, the look on his face 

happy and proud. "Marshall's moving in with me. We're 
a couple." 

Xavier beamed. "No shit? Guys! Guys, tell Dave 

congratulations!" 

Everyone within earshot turned and checked them 

out, raising glasses and calling out "Congratulations." 
Dave was blushing to beat the band. Marshall chuckled, 
ducking as the cork went flying. He and Dave held up 
their glasses, the owner pouring for them. "First one's on 
the house." 

"Thank you." How cool was that? He held out his 

glass, clinked it against Dave's. 

Dave shifted closer, smiling at him and sipping his 

champagne. "Thanks, Xavier, this rocks." 

Burn - 191 

"We're very pleased for you, Dave. Enjoy your 

dinner." Xavier put the bottle of champagne in a bucket 
of ice a little waiter brought over. 

"Wow. That was cool." He felt like everyone was 

looking at them. 

"It's a very supportive community." Dave lifted his 

glass to several people before settling back next to him. 

"You seem happy here. I'm surprised you came onto 

me." Came back for him. 

"Sure, I'm happy here, but you make my life... oh, 

shit, Marshall, it sounds like a fucking sappy Hallmark 
card, but you complete me." 

He grinned, pleased down to his balls. "Dork." 
Dave stuck out his tongue. 
"It's good, man. This. Us." 
Even the parts he didn't understand. 
"It is. It's very good. Even when you're stressed out 

the wazoo from work and I'm making you crazy." 

"Yeah." Their fingers twined, right there on the table 

top. 

They stayed like that, too, until their little waiter 

brought their steaks, serving Dave first and giving him 
another one of those shy smiles. "Congratulations," 
whispered the waiter. 

"Thank you. I'm Marshall, by the way." He held one 

hand out to guy. 

"Oh." The kid took his hand and shook it. "I'm 

Barton. Nice to meet you." 

"Hey. This is my lover, Dave." 
"Hey, Barton." Dave shook the kid's hand, too. 
Barton started to flutter a little. "Enjoy your meal. I 

have to..." He pointed somewhere behind him and 
scurried off. 

"Did I do something wrong?" 

Burn - 192 

"He probably thinks you're hot and it made him all 

fluttery." 

"Huh. Should I not be nice to him?" He didn't want to 

scare the guy. 

"Just be yourself, babe. Come on, let's eat -- this 

steak is too good to let go cold." 

"Right." It looked like heaven and, when he dug in, it 

tasted even better. 

They finished off the champagne bottle before they 

were done, and Barton was back as soon as they'd 
poured out the last. "Would you like another bottle?" 

"Sure." Dave gave him a grin. "We can always take a 

taxi home." 

He chuckled. "I'm going to get giddy, man. It won't 

be pretty." 

"No? You telling me you're a nasty drunk, babe?" 
"Nope. A goofy one." A horny one. 
"Oh, we definitely want more champagne, then. Keep 

his glass full, Barton." 

"Yes, Sir." Barton chuckled and Marshall shook his 

head. 

"You enjoying yourself?" Dave asked. 
"I am. I was a little wigged, but..." He shrugged. 

Honestly, he was focused on his lover. No one else 
really mattered. 

"But you're not anymore?" Dave's hand moved to his 

thigh, squeezed. 

"I'm here. You're here. I'm a little buzzed." What was 

there to be wigged about? 

"In other words, it's all good." Dave beamed and 

squeezed his thigh again, hand moving a little closer to 
his package. 

"Easy." He covered Dave's hand with his own. 
"Just keeping you on your toes." 
"I'm on my butt, Dave." 

Burn - 193 

Dave blinked and then laughed. 
"God, you're beautiful." 
"What?" 
Strong, tanned, with an easy smile and a warm eyes -

- the man did it for him. "You're beautiful." 

"I'm going to take that as high praise, man, given you 

are a grade-A stud." Dave seemed almost shy about 
accepting the compliment. 

He took Dave's hand, squeezed it, so in love he was 

stupid with it. 

Dave met his gaze and they sat, just like that, until 

Barton came back with their second bottle of 
champagne. 

Somehow, he didn't think they'd need it. 

Burn - 194 

Chapter Sixteen 

Dave came in from work and grabbed the mail. He 

glanced through it, determining there wasn't anything 
too important, before opening the door, Doby jumping at 
him. "Hey, boy." 

He gave the shepherd some loving and made his way 

to the kitchen. "You want a bowl of kibbles, boy?" 

Doby didn't answer, but Dave knew the answer was 

yes. He fed the dog and then started on supper for him 
and Marshall. He double-checked the schedule on the 
fridge Yeah, Marshall was supposed to be home this 
evening. Got off at six. 

Hopefully this shift had been better than the last 

couple. Marshall had come home snarling and tired, 
bitching about the weather, politics. Everything. 

The place was soon smelling good. He even popped a 

can of apple turnovers and put them in the oven. 

All he needed now was Marshall. 
His cell phone beeped and he knew it was Marshall. 
Hey. Bad day. Just got out of gym. Need anything? 
He texted back. Just you. 
k. c u soon. 
Doby barked, tail wagging like the pup knew who it 

had been. 

Dave laughed. "Yeah, boy, he'll be here soon, and 

we'll love him up." 

It took Marshall half an hour, but he heard the truck 

door slam, heard the heavy footsteps on the porch. 

Man, Marshall needed a break. Or to give himself 

one. 

Dave headed for the door, following Doby. 
Marshall came in sporting a black eye, a slash of red 

burn on his cheek. 

Burn - 195 

"Aw, fuck, babe." He put his hand on Marshall's 

shoulder, taking a closer look. "You let the EMTs doctor 
you?" 

"Yeah. Yeah. Was a bad fucking night." The man's 

eye looked okay, and the burn wasn't vicious, but the 
muscles under his hand were tense as hell. 

He leaned in and gave Marshall a kiss, slowly licking 

his tongue into his lover's mouth. 

Marshall sighed into the kiss, leaned a second before 

pulling back. "Food smells good." 

"It's just spaghetti." Good, simple, solid food. 
"It works. Do I have time for a shower?" 
"Yeah. We do." 
"I'll be back in a minute, huh? Your timer's going 

off." Marshall patted him, turned away. 

"Where are you going?" 
"To shower. To decompress a second." 
"You need to decompress a lot. And I'll join you in 

the shower in a second." He put another kiss on 
Marshall's lips and headed to the kitchen. He rescued his 
pastries, grabbed a bottle of water, put Doby in the mud 
room with his bed and toy, then headed to the bathroom. 

With its closed door. 
Shaking his head, he knocked once, just to let 

Marshall know he was coming in. Marshall was already 
in the water, head down, letting the spray beat down on 
him. Dave stripped quickly and climbed in behind his 
lover, hand moving immediately to the tight, tense 
shoulders. 

"We lost a man last yesterday. Buddy Flagg. He was 

six feet in front of me." 

"Oh, babe." He leaned his forehead against one of 

Marshall's shoulders. "I'm so sorry." 

"The floor gave way. There wasn't anything we could 

do." 

Burn - 196 

"Thank God you're okay." 
"I don't want to talk about it anymore. I have to go to 

the funeral in a few days. Look at his wife." 

"Okay." He grabbed the soap and got it lathered up, 

sliding his hands along Marshall's skin. Marshall was 
like rock under his hands, like a statue. "Shit, babe. 
You're tight." He started massaging Marshall's shoulders 
and back, working the muscles that were holding all of 
Marshall's stress. 

Marshall nodded. "Yeah. I tried to work it out on the 

free weights. Didn't work." 

"Doesn't feel like that made any difference, babe." He 

kept rubbing. He knew what Marshall needed. He was 
pretty sure Marshall knew, too. 

"Nothing makes any difference right now." Marshall 

leaned against the tile. He turned his fingers to claws, 
scraping the nails down Marshall's spine. Marshall 
hissed but didn't step away, so he scraped all the way 
down to Marshall's ass. Then he grabbed one cheek and 
pinched it. Hard. 

"Leave me the fuck alone." Wow, that was a straight-

up growl. 

"No." He smacked his hand against Marshall's ass, 

the sound loud, reverberating in the enclosed space of 
the shower. 

Marshall spun around, eyes wild. "Fuck you. You 

leave me alone." 

One hand reached out for him, though, took his 

fingers, squeezed them gently. 

His poor, amazing stud needed this so badly and 

didn't know how to ask for it, how to take it. "Let's go to 
bed, Marshall. I can give you what you need." 

"You promise?" 
"I can, babe. You know I can help you let it go." 

Burn - 197 

"If it doesn't work, we don't have to do it again, 

right?" 

"It's going to work, babe. I swear." He leaned up, 

kissed Marshall hard before turning off the water and 
dragging his man out of the shower stall. Marshall didn't 
say a word to him, didn't talk to him, didn't look at him. 
He made quick work of drying them both off, and then 
led Marshall to the bedroom. "Lie down," he said softly, 
going to his closet and finding a couple of silk ties. "On 
your stomach." Once Marshall had accepted this, they'd 
use cuffs and paddles and whips and floggers. Once it 
wasn't something scary, just necessary, they could find 
all manner of implements to help Marshall break 
through and let go of all the bad stuff that happened. 

For today, silk ties and his hands would do the job, 

maybe the non-buckle end of his belt -- he brought it 
along. 

Marshall settled, his entire body tense, stiff, ready to 

bolt. 

He went over to the bed and took Marshall's hands. 

Pressed kisses against his lover's knuckles before 
pressing one on Marshall's neck. "I love you," he 
whispered, slowly moving Marshall's hands up over his 
body to the headboard. 

Marshall grunted for him, moving slow. 
He encouraged the strong hands to wrap around the 

wood, and then he slid the ties around each wrist. He 
began to murmur, giving Marshall something to focus 
on besides the fact that he was being tied to the bed, that 
Dave was going to beat the hurt and pain and anger and 
tension right out of him. "God, you're so strong, babe. I 
don't know anyone as strong as you. Such a stud." 

"I don't want to do this. I'm tired. I didn't sleep last 

night." 

Burn - 198 

"You'll sleep tonight." He started rubbing Marshall's 

arms, shoulders, and back, fingers digging in as he left 
kisses on the skin. "Remember the red light, babe." 

Marshall's safeword. For when it truly became too 

much. 

Marshall nodded, then shook his head, then nodded 

again. 

"Love you," he murmured, sliding down and taking 

aim. 

His hand connected with a bang, and Marshall 

grunted, but didn't move, didn't cry out. He hit the other 
ass cheek with his second blow. Then the first again, 
then the second, moving back and forth between them. 
The skin began to redden, darken, and Marshall began to 
tug at the ropes. 

"That's it, babe. You're allowed to fight the ropes. Let 

it out on the ropes." He grabbed his belt and tested it on 
the tops of Marshall's thighs. 

"Don't! You motherfucker!" Marshall dragged his 

knees under him. 

He nodded. That's what Marshall needed to do, to 

scream and shout. To rail against everything and 
anything. He slapped the belt across Marshall's 
shoulders this time. 

"No! Bastard! Prick! Don't you hit me!" Marshall's 

shoulders were hitching. 

Dave knew Marshall needed this, he knew the man 

needed to break down and cry. That didn't make it easy 
to keep slapping his belt across his lover's shoulders, his 
ass. Dave did it, though; he would do it as long as 
Marshall needed it. 

"Let me go! Stop it. Talk to me, damn it!" 
That he could do. He laid down another strike. 

"Buddy's death wasn't your fault." 

"You don't know that." 

Burn - 199 

"The floor collapsed because of the fire. You didn't 

set it the fire. Not. Your. Fault." He landed the belt with 
each of his last words. 

"Fuck you. It could have been me." 
"I know." His next hit was particularly hard. 
Welts were beginning to rise up on Marshall's back 

and ass, red and angry. 

"I was glad it wasn't." 
"Me, too." Shit, he was glad every day that Marshall 

came home safe. 

He laid down two more stripes with the belt. 
"It's wrong. He was a good man." 
"He was." 
"He screamed. He fucking screamed, and we couldn't 

get to him." 

Dave felt tears start to prickle at his eyes -- he 

couldn't imagine how horrible it had been -- and he kept 
hitting, blindly laying down strikes. 

"Red light. Red light. Stop. Dave. Please." Marshall 

was sobbing, tugging at the ties. "Help me!" 

"I've got you, Marshall. I've got you." He threw away 

the belt and tore the silk ties from Marshall's wrists. 
Then he took Marshall into his arms, rocking his lover, 
pressing kisses over his face. "I've got you." 

"I'm sorry." Marshall held on, shaking for him. 
"Shh. Shh. Don't apologize. You don't need to 

apologize. Not for anything." Marshall's skin tasted like 
salt from his tears. 

"I hurt." 
"I know. I know." He kept rocking Marshall, kept 

holding the man. "It'll pass. I swear." 

"He was a good man, Dave. He had babies." 
"I'm sorry, babe. So sorry." 

Burn - 200 

"I am, too." Marshall's head landed on his shoulder, 

tears wetting his skin. He held onto Marshall as his lover 
let it out, let go and cried. 

Soon, Marshall was sleeping, loose and relaxed in his 

arms, clinging to him. 

Dave sighed and relaxed against the pillows. He 

would hold Marshall forever if that's what his lover 
needed. One hand rested against Marshall's back, the 
skin raised and heated beneath his palm. 

They rested together for about an hour, then Marshall 

started to get restless, murmuring under his breath. He 
planted his lips on Marshall's kissing him softly. He 
needed to put some salve on Marshall's back. 

Marshall groaned, eyes cracking open. "Dave." 
"Right here, babe." 
"I'm sorry." 
"For what?" From where he was sitting, Marshall 

didn't have a damn thing to be sorry about. 

"Melting down." 
Dave chuckled softly. "Babe. That was the point, 

huh?" 

"Still. I feel a little stupid." Marshall pinked for him, 

and Dave fell in love a little more. 

"Don't. I still think you're an amazing, strong, 

beautiful stud." 

"I'm so fucking tired, man." 
"You need some sleep. You've got seventy-two 

hours, right?" 

"Yeah. Yeah. I do. I have the funeral." Marshall 

sighed, looked at him. "I want you to come with me." 

He nodded. "I will, babe. When is it?" 
"Couple days." Marshall sighed. "Could just stay here 

for days." 

"Yeah. It's a good place right here. You need to sleep. 

It'll be okay, I'll watch over you." 

Burn - 201 

"No. I don't want to sleep yet." Those eyes were red, 

bloodshot, a little crazy. 

"No?" He knew how to make Marshall sleep. He 

pressed their lips together, tongue pushing into 
Marshall's mouth. Marshall groaned, shook his head, but 
those lips opened up. He took the kiss deep right away, 
hand sliding on Marshall's arm before moving it in 
toward one of the pretty little nipple rings. 

Marshall's hand grabbed at his wrist, keeping him 

away, so he rubbed his chest against Marshall's instead. 

That had those fingers opening, letting him go, and 

he slid his hand over, flicked the ring up and down 
again. 

"Harder." The word was whispered into his lips. 
He grabbed hold of the ring and tugged it, then 

twisted it, giving Marshall what he wanted -- what he 
needed. 

Marshall cried out for him, bucked against him. 

"Yes." 

"Yeah." He found the other ring, twisted it even 

harder. 

Marshall's fingers dug into his hips, hard enough to 

bruise. 

"I've got you, babe." He wrapped his leg around 

Marshall's, tugging his lover in close, rubbing against 
him. 

"I need something, Dave. I need you to fucking help 

me." 

He rolled Marshall over onto his back, knowing it 

would ache and sting. The rough little grunt was just 
about right, the way Marshall arched off the sheets 
better. "That's it, babe." 

He leaned over Marshall to grab the lube off the night 

table, and quickly slicked up his fingers. 

"More. More, Dave. Make me." 

Burn - 202 

The shudder that hit him at those words was 

completely unavoidable. He pushed his fingers into 
Marshall's ass, spending a scant moment stretching the 
hot little hole. Then he was pushing his way between 
Marshall's legs and slamming home. Marshall's ass was 
red, burning against his thighs. 

"Fuck! Marshall." He pulled almost all the way out 

and then pumped back in again, his thighs slapping 
Marshall's hot skin. 

Marshall grabbed his knees, pulling back and out, 

spreading wide. 

"That's it. Yeah. Stud." He reached out and grabbed a 

nipple ring, twisting it harshly. 

"Dave!" That scream was echoed in the grip of the 

muscles around his prick. 

"Yeah. Love you." He started pounding into 

Marshall, letting his lover have everything in him. 

Marshall's head slammed back, the strong-featured 

face lost in sensation. His lover wasn't thinking about 
work, about death. Dave would bet his world on that. He 
worked one nipple and then the other, making those 
rings earn their keep as he fucked Marshall's ass. 

Every touch had Marshall jerking, tightening, 

working his cock. Dave groaned and moaned with each 
ripple of Marshall's ass, the sensations rocketing up his 
spine. Marshall's body rippled around him, milked his 
cock as the man reached for that heavy, dripping prick. 

He slapped Marshall's hand away, growling out 

"Mine" as he grabbed Marshall's cock. 

"Fuck." Marshall stared at him, nodded. 
"That's right." He jacked Marshall in time with his 

thrusts. 

"Yours. Don't stop." 
"Not gonna. Not ever." 

Burn - 203 

Marshall's face went red, eyes squeezing shut, 

whispering, "Not ever." 

"That's right, babe. Marshall, you are mine. Forever. I 

swear it." He pressed his thumbnail into the slit of 
Marshall's cock. His poor, worn-out lover shot, 
shoulders leaving the mattress as he did. 

Moaning, Dave came, too, Marshall's ass pulling it 

right out of him. 

He collapsed onto Marshall, gasping for breath. "I've 

got you. I've got you." 

Marshall moaned, blinking slow. "Uh-huh." 
"Yeah." He kissed Marshall softly and then slid out, 

settling next to his lover. 

He needed to clean them up and get ointment on 

Marshall's back, but first Marshall needed to sleep. 

Before he could pull the blankets over them, Marshall 

was sound asleep. 

*** 

He was sore when he woke up, but Marshall felt like 

he could breathe for the first time in what seemed like 
days. 

Of course, part of that could be the bacon. 
He slid out of bed, Doby barreling toward him from 

the big bed on the floor. "Hey, boy. Good morning." He 
glanced at the clock. "Afternoon." 

He heard footsteps and then there was Dave, 

complete with a tray of food and a couple of coffee 
mugs. 

"Hey, I thought you might be awake about now." 
"Hey." He found a smile for Dave, and he tried not to 

be too shy. He'd let the man beat him. He'd cried. 

"I've got coffee, toast, and bacon. I'd have made eggs, 

but we're out." Dave put the tray down on the nightstand 

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and leaned in, taking his mouth like it was any other 
morning -- afternoon, whatever. 

The kiss was warm, comfortable. Easy. 
"We'll have to run out today anyway. I need razors 

and a new pair of dress shoes." Not to mention he 
needed to get his dress uniform into the cleaners for a 
spruce up. 

"Cool. We could drive down to the outlet mall if you 

want. We could do supper -- one of my customers 
recommended a restaurant out there." Dave stripped and 
joined him in bed, sitting close, still looking at him 
like... like he was a stud, like he was everything Dave 
needed. 

"Yeah?" He searched Dave's eyes. "I'm sorry about 

shorting out on you. It'd been a rough one." 

"Babe, you needed to short out. It's what I'm here for, 

yeah? The good and the bad, I want it all." There was 
only honesty and love in Dave's eyes, no judgment, no 
censure. 

"Still." He took another kiss. "Bacon?" 
"Oh, yeah, I've got bacon. And toast and stuff. I do 

know the bacon is the big draw, though." Dave grinned 
and pushed a plate full of bacon toward him. 

"Thanks." They started eating, with him slipping 

Doby bites on the side. It was easy, quiet, and what he 
needed. Dave was warm and solid next to him, 
munching away. Every now and then, Dave would slip a 
hand along his thigh, a little hello. 

"I want you to come to HR with me." He blinked at 

himself, his words. That wasn't exactly what he'd 
intended to say. 

"Your work's HR? Sure -- what for? Everything 

okay?" 

Marshall nodded. "I want you on my paperwork --

insurance, benefits, all of it. You're my partner." 

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He wanted Dave to be taken care of, in case it was 

him next time. 

Dave looked at him for a long moment, a smile 

slowly spreading across his face. Dave reached for his 
hand, squeezed it. "And you're mine. Thank you." 

Marshall looked at their joined hands. "I want 

everything legal for us. I want it right, just in case." 

Dave squeezed his hand. "We'll need papers for 

medical power of attorney and stuff as well, then, babe. 
For both of us. Because this cuts both ways." 

He nodded. "Yeah. Yeah, we do. Hopefully, we won't 

have to use any of it for a hundred years." 

"Why think so small? Let's hope for two hundred." 
That cracked him up, and they both continued eating, 

planning their day, their weekend. Normal things --
stopping to check that the inventory had arrived at the 
store, dry cleaners, groceries, early supper. Possibly 
getting their costumes together for the Hammer party. 
Good things. 

When they were done, Dave slipped the plate that 

had held the food onto the floor for Doby. "He needs a 
good run. We should take him to the park and toss the 
ball at him before we abandon him for the rest of the 
day." 

"Works for me." He leaned over, took another kiss, 

this one bacon-flavored. "Let me get dressed and I'm 
yours." 

"Oh, no, babe. You can be mine and then get 

dressed." 

Dave's arms slid around his neck. 
"Promise?" He couldn't stop his smile, the peace 

inside him. 

"From the bottom of my heart." 
Dave's lips covered his, the kiss awkward, and yet 

somehow so right, as they smiled through it. 

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It was good to be home. 

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Epilogue 

The Athletic Supporter was always busy on a 

Saturday afternoon, though Dave only worked it if 
Marshall was busy at the station these days. One of the 
perks of being boss was being able to set your own 
hours. 

It was busier than usual, though, as the guys began to 

wander in from their once-yearly football game. 

The store was equally close to the big green park they 

played at and the pub they used to booze up post-game. 
Plus a lot of the guys liked to come in and get their 
'friend of the owner' discount on the latest trendy 
running shoes. This year's model was particularly 
expensive, and Dave was more than happy to sell a 
boatload of them, even at ten percent off. 

There were a couple of new guys working, too, and a 

day like today was always a good test for the new guys. 

His employees were running around trying to fit 

everyone, while Dave leaned against the counter and 
watched. What he was really doing was waiting for 
Marshall. 

His lover had gone to the station to drop off some 

paperwork, and Dave could only hope that he hadn't 
been roped into a half shift or something. 

His phone vibrated in his pocket and he grinned, 

shook his head. 

Hey. On my way. All done. U need anything? 
He texted back. Just U. 
"You texting Marshall, man?" Chris Wilson grinned 

at him, winked. "You tell that bastard to quit getting out 
of the game and resign himself to an ass-kicking." 

"I know he's missed a couple of years, but you do 

remember Marshall, right?" He held his hands up over 

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his head and then out wide to indicate tall and broad. 
"The only ass getting kicked is going to be yours." 

"Yeah, yeah, yeah." Chris chuckled. "I don't know. 

He was actually smiling the other day when I ran into 
him at the grocery store. Buying steaks and whistling to 
himself. It was a little creepy." 

Dave just grinned. Those steaks had been awesome, 

even a little overdone, probably because the sex leading 
up to them had been mind-blowing. 

That had been the night he'd introduced Marshall to 

penis wands, the man screaming out his name while he 
slipped the metal into that leaking slit. Maybe he ought 
to make that Marshall's reward tonight for winning the 
game. 

His grin got just a little wider at the thought. His 

prick started hardening up, too, and he tugged his 
sweatshirt down, glad he'd decided to go with jeans 
instead of sweatpants. 

"Marshall! Dude! You made it! Did you bring the 

beer?" 

"Water. We can drink at the tavern after." Marshall 

waved to him, nodded to their buds. "You dorks buy up! 
Dave has a store to run!" 

Dave laughed and aimed a happy smile at Marshall. 

He wanted a hello kiss from his very own stud. Marshall 
came to him, arms settling around his shoulders. "Got all 
our papers dealt with, finally. Having a good day?" 

Man, paperwork took forfuckingever. They were 

done now, though, both of them all signed, sealed, and 
delivered, taken care of if anything happened to the 
other. "I'm having a great day, actually, and it's just 
getting better." 

He went ahead and took himself a kiss, not the deep, 

face-sucking kiss he really wanted, but they were in 
public, after all. 

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The hooting and hollering made it sound like he'd 

taken Marshall right there. His lover rolled his eyes, 
grinned. "Okay, you jerks. Time to play ball." 

"I've got my cell, Jimmy. Call if there's an 

emergency." His assistant manager nodded and waved 
him off, and Dave fell into step with Marshall. 

Hanging back a little from the throng headed for the 

park, he handed Marshall a little jewelry box. "Happy 
anniversary, babe." 

Marshall grinned at him, popped the box open. "A 

ring?" 

He nodded, knowing there was no way the smile on 

his face came anywhere near to matching the happy he 
felt inside. "Yep. But it doesn't go on your finger..." 

end 

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