Only the small bones:  Bonus Scene

The mouthwatering scent of jambalaya hit me before I opened the apartment door. After much debate between his love of art and cooking, Asher had decided to go to culinary school. When I’d told him he could do both, his response was: “Oh, I plan on it.”

 

Anita Baker’s sultry voice blended with the sounds of the kitchen drawers opening and shutting. My mother’s taste in music appealed to Asher. They discovered they had similar tastes in movies too. Now they spent their Sundays’ cooking, picking through her record collection, and crying over old black and white films. 

 

Stepping inside, my heart filled with warmth and joy at the sight of all the balloons covering the ceiling. 

 

“Please don’t make a big deal about my birthday this year. I just want a quiet night in with you.” 

 

“Okay,” he’d said without argument. I should’ve known not to trust it. Then again, he was cooking, so maybe this was exactly the night I’d asked for. 

 

I pushed past the curling ribbons dangling from the balloons and quietly set my satchel on the hall table. I fought to hold in my laughter as he belted out, “...giving you the best that I’ve got...” He was good at a lot of things, but singing wasn’t one of them. 

​

I winced when the closet door hinges creaked, but Asher kept singing like he hadn't heard anything. I hung my coat up, then crept toward the missing piece of my heart.

 

I wasn’t expected to be home for another hour, so I thought I’d have some fun and take him by surprise. Turning the corner, I nearly stumbled. Asher moved around the kitchen barefoot, in nothing but his favorite pair of skinny jeans. He didn’t even have the decency to button them. They hung low on his hips, the waistband of his sexy Valentine’s Day underwear peeking out. 

 

Most days I still found it hard to believe he was real, that he was here, and he was mine. I’d roll over in the middle of the night reaching for his side of the bed, exhaling once I made contact with his warm skin. I’d haul him into me, sometimes tucking his head beneath my chin before drifting back off, other times fucking him until the fear of losing him vanished. 

 

Standing on the kitchen threshold, I debated swooping in behind him to plant a kiss on his bare shoulder. Or something more comical like tip-toeing over to snap the elastic on his boxer briefs.  

 

Asher made the choice for me, dipping a spoon into the stockpot before turning, wearing a grin that said he knew I was there all along. “You’re back early.” 

 

“And you’re no fun.” I headed for the spoonful of jambalaya he held out to me. 

 

“You can’t surprise me. I always feel you coming.” He wiggled his eyebrows suggestively. 

 

“I can vouch for that.” Because he’d clench around my cock, begging me to pump him full every time. I accepted the small serving, moaning as the savory combination of rice, meat, and seafood hit my tongue. 

 

“Well?” He prompted. I took my time chewing, enjoying each delectable flavor. “How is it?” 

 

I licked my lips, taking my time to lengthen the suspense. 

 

“William,” he groaned. 

 

Pecking him on the lips, I whispered, “My great grandmother would be proud.” 

 

Asher beamed. He’d been working on mastering the recipe for months now. 

 

“What’s this?” I fingered the red ribbon tied into a bow around his neck. “Are you my birthday present?” I bit down on his bottom lip, my cock hardening. 

 

“Nope. I’m your Valentine’s Day gift.” 

 

Just then, a loud pop sounded, likely one of the heart-shaped balloons overwhelming the apartment. It was followed by a bark, then a low whine of distress before a tiny bundle of white fur shot into the kitchen. 

 

“What the—” My words cut off when the puppy ran straight for me. The scared little furball scratched at the legs of my jeans while I turned my shocked stare to Asher. “You got me a dog?” I scooped it up, holding its trembling body against my chest. 

 

“Happy birthday.” Asher kissed me, taking his time with it. 

 

“You got me a dog,” I said again, smiling through my pleasant surprise. “And it’s a Bolognese.” I recognized the breed from all the research we’d done into Asher’s family history. They hailed from Bologna, Italy. The place where Asher’s mother was born. We’d managed to track down a few distant relatives and had plans to visit them next month. 

 

“Her name is Sidney.” 

 

I couldn’t help laughing. “You named my dog after Sidney Poitier?” 

 

Asher shrugged, blushing. “Have you seen his performance in A Raisin in the Sun? He deserves way more than a dog named after him.”  

 

“Well, I guess we’re even. I did name your violin.” I held Sidney up in the air, talking to the puppy as if she were a baby. Asher watched, a smile spreading over his face. I set her down, watching as she ran out of the kitchen to the doggy bed I hadn’t noticed in the living room. 
 

I backed Asher into the counter, letting his bun down and smoothing his hair over his shoulders. “So this is why you insisted I didn’t miss rehearsals for tomorrow’s opening performance.” I’d been asked to be a guest conductor for the opening night of Sailor’s Moon.

 

 “So… since I got my birthday gift, am I allowed to open my Valentine’s Day gift?” I rubbed his satin bow between my fingers. 

 

“Open me wide,” he whispered, lowering my zipper. Asher had come into his own over the years. He was smart, funny, loyal, and loved predicting surprises. But he was also bold, carnal, and adventurous in the bedroom. These days it wasn’t uncommon for him to fall into the chair across from my desk, jerking himself off until I called an end to my virtual meeting to suck his cock. 

 

I tugged on the ribbon, unwrapping him, taking arrogant pride in the hickeys revealed. A matching set waited between his thighs. 

 

Asher pulled my cock through the opening of my jeans. He weighed it in his hand, dropping his gaze to it before meeting my eyes again. “No need to fuck me with your fingers first. I’ve already made room for it.” 

 

“Fuck, Asher.” I lowered to my knees, helping him out of his jeans before gripping his underwear. 

 

“Uh-uh,” he said, and I rose to my feet again, giving him a questioning look. Stroking my cock, he brought his lips close to mine and whispered, “Tear a hole into the back of them, then shove this all the way inside.” 

 

“I can do that.” I shuddered as he worked my length.

 

“I know you can.” He kissed me hard, slipping his stiff cock through the front of his underwear to rub it against mine. Abruptly breaking the kiss, I forced him around. His breaths flew from his lips, his palms slapping against the counter. 

 

“You asked for it,” I warned, kicking his ankles apart before kneading his ass cheeks through the tight boxers. I stepped in close, letting my dick slide up and down his cotton-covered cleft. “I’m gonna send you to your fucking toes, Asher. Then I’m gonna fuck into you hard, until you come all over the cabinets.” 

 

“Do it,” he panted, dropping his head between his shoulders and backing his ass into me. “Please… do everything you just said.” 

 

I left him there trembling while I dug around the junk drawer for a bottle of lube. We kept them stashed everywhere. I slicked myself up, getting off on the impatient sounds he made. 

 

“Hurry—”

​

I ripped his underwear open, spreading his ass cheeks apart as I aimed my cock for his hole, plunging all the way in. His command turned into a shout of pleasure. 

 

As promised, my first thrust sent him scrambling to his toes. He shifted his grip to the counter’s edge.

 

“Hold on tight,” I bit out, securing his hips and fucking him roughly. The heat of him was too much to bear, burning its way through my whole body. My balls ached as the need to orgasm hit me so fast I grew dizzy. It was like I hadn’t already fucked him before leaving, or last night, or twice the night before that. 

 

We were constantly aroused and shameless about it. Constantly needing to fill and be filled. Our hands, our mouths, his ass, my fingers… Wanting him would never grow old. 

 

The thought of it all lit the fuse on my orgasm, and I did nothing to hold back my release. The possessive part of me wanted him branded with my cum right now. The part of me obsessed with him belonging to me needed to see the proof of that spilling from his well-fucked hole. 

 

“Are you c-close?” 

 

“Yes,” he hissed, turning his head and craning back for a kiss. “I-I was close before you got h-home.”  

 

I forgot he’d prepared himself for me. “Toys or fingers?” I growled.

 

“B-both,” he moaned, rocking from the harsh impact of my thrusts. “Both.” 

 

That both turned me on and made me jealous. It always did, and he liked that. It wasn’t out of the norm for me to step into a room to find him fucking himself on a dildo just for the pleasure of me tearing it out stuffing him with the real thing. 

 

“Don’t,” I bit out when he reached for his dick. “You come from my cock or not at all.” I bent my knees a bit, searching for his sweet spot. He cried out a second later, his fingers white-knuckling the edge of the counter. 

 

“Did you try to come with your fingers inside of you?” I breathed heavily as sweat soaked through my shirt. “Or with that tiny cock inside of you?” 

 

“N-no. I o-only want to come with you.” 

 

I picked up my pace, striking his gland as my ego swelled, my control slipping, and my climax raced through me. “Fuck. Come with me, Asher. Come.” My pelvis crashed against his ass cheeks one last time, my cock spurting into him as my brain glitched. 

 

“I can feel you,” Asher moaned, pounding his ass back onto me. “Feels so fucking good.” 

 

His breathing quickened, grew louder as he took advantage of my cock, fucking me senseless as I painted his insides with my cum. “I’m coming, I’m coming,” he chanted. “Fuck, I’m coming.” Asher exploded with a strangled cry, his cum splattering against the cabinet.  

 

We stayed there, recovering, my dick twitching inside of him. 

 

My phone chirped from my back pocket. “What?” I muttered confused, staring down at the text from the concierge. “Leland and Franky are here.” Before I could figure out why, another text came through. “And Noon and Solace.” We’d all grown close over the years. 

 

“What are they doing here?” I gazed suspiciously at Asher, who at least had the decency to flush with embarrassment at the predicament we were in. 

 

I groaned at the next set of names that came through. “My mother and Davidson.” They all must have shown up one after the other, thus all the messages. “She has the code to the elevator, and will bring everyone right up here.” That was when I noticed how much food Asher made, and the three cakes lining the island. 

 

“What happened to a quiet night home with just the two of us?” I couldn’t help but laugh at the absurdity of our situation as I righted my clothes. We’d just had sex in our kitchen, and Asher was naked. “They’ll be up here any minute.” 

 

“It’ll be fun,” he said, scooping up his jeans. His underwear hung around him in tatters. 

 

“Fun? You’re leaking cum everywhere.” 

 

Asher looked at the droplets hitting the floor. “Yeah, maybe this wasn’t such a great idea.” 

 

“You think?” We both keeled over with laughter, Sidney barking and running into the kitchen again. 

 

I sent my mom a text letting her know not to come inside yet. “She’s going to know what we’ve been up to.” I laughed harder when Asher’s expression turned mortified. We wiped the floor and cabinet down before racing for the shower. 

 

“I can’t believe you.” I shook my head, still chuckling as we soaped and rinsed in less than two minutes. Sidney watched her crazy parents from the bath mat.

 

Asher cut the water off, wrapping his arms around my neck as if we had all the time in the world. “Come on, did you really want them to miss the proposal?”

 

My eyes widened, thoughts going to my satchel and the ring inside. I’d picked it up while I was supposedly at rehearsal. “You knew? How?” I’d sworn everyone to secrecy. 

 

“Heard you talking to Cole about it the other night.” 

 

Cole was a classically trained pianist. He’d stopped by to help me put the finishing touches on something I’d been working on.

 

 “You’re just as bad at whispering as Davidson.” 

 

“No,” I laughed, cupping his cheeks. “You’re just nosy and hate surprises.” 

 

Asher grinned, his dark eyes sparkling with enough love to mend everything broken in the world. “You planned to propose to me on your birthday.” It was his turn to shake his head in disbelief. 

 

“There’s no greater gift than you agreeing to marry me.” I would’ve done it sooner, but I wanted to give him time to find himself, to discover all his likes and dislikes. I wanted to give him the space needed to dream dreams, to create and meet goals. Time for him to decide if choosing me was the right move, time to decide whether or not he wanted to stay. 

 

Some may have thought we rushed into what we have. That he had no choice because I saved him. The truth was, he’d saved me. 

​

I never held him back, never blinded him to all the options he had in life that didn’t include me. I allowed him to be free, and every day he’d come home excited to fill me in on all he’d done, on all he’d seen. And every night he’d remind me that nothing made him happier than being right there in my arms. 

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“You can stop holding your breath,” he’d once said. “I’m not going anywhere. I can be my own person and still choose you.” 

 

We’d made plans for forever, but I loved him enough to let him go if his plans changed. Thankfully they hadn’t.

 

“Well?” I whispered, swallowing down my nerves. “Will you marry me, Asher Gray?”

 

“Yes,” he whispered back, as our phones rang in the distance, and our hoard of family and friends began pounding down our front door. “A million times, yes.”