Social Skills by Sara Alva

“O-okay.”
    “So
let’s start right now. You tell me what you want to do.”
    “D-do?
Do where?”
    “Here,
with me. What would you like to do right now?”
    “Um…I…I…”
Blood tingled in Connor’s cheeks, and if he hadn’t been holding onto his shelf,
he probably would have sunk to the floor.
    Jared
heaved another sigh. “Okay, okay, don’t have a panic attack.” He edged closer
and wrapped Connor in his arms, running comforting hands along his back. “Just
relax.”
    On the
verge of tears from the unexpected confrontation, it took Connor a second to
ease into the contact. But once he did, the proximity to Jared’s steady heart
rate began to settle his anxiety.
    “Better?”
    He
nodded against Jared’s chest. “I’m sorry.”
    “Nah,
don’t be sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you. I just want you to be comfortable
around me.”
    “I’m
starting to be,” Connor mumbled, unable to resist burying his head deeper into
Jared’s warmth.
    “Well
if this is all it takes, I’d say things’ll work out fine.” Jared’s hands
settled at Connor’s waist. “Got any ideas about what you’d like to do now?”
    “Um…this
is nice.”
    Jared
leaned down and pressed his lips into Connor’s. He stayed close when he was
done, whispering, “Okay, what else?”
    One
kiss was all it took to get Connor’s body surging almost to the brink, and he
was pretty sure Jared could feel that, as he was pressed up against his thigh. Would
there ever come a point when he’d be desensitized to Jared’s touch? So far, he
could barely deal with his hand being held.
    He
shifted to glance down, and Jared began pulling him toward the bed. “Let’s take
care of that.” Jared grinned. “I’m sure it’ll help you relax.”
    Connor
tensed again, the memory of his previous failure springing to mind. Strangely,
that turned out to be a benefit, throwing him into his head instead of his body
and keeping him from fully focusing on what was happening.
    Jared
pushed down on his shoulders until he was lying flat on his back and staring up
at the ceiling, praying for stamina. A hand slipped under his shirt but he
hardly noticed it, even as it began running along his chest in slow circles. The
pressure gradually increased and the circles widened, sliding further and
further down his torso.
    As
distracted as he was, he managed to do a better job of containing himself. He
remained composed until Jared yanked his slightly loose pants down without
unbuttoning them and wrapped surprisingly hot fingers around his dick. Warmed
from the friction, the fiery temperature of Jared’s hand shocked him into a squeak.
    Jared
paused. “This is okay, right? I’m not entirely sure what I’m doing here. Just
thought I’d try what I usually like.”
    “O-okay?”
Connor’s voice scratched out while most of his mind remained frozen in ecstasy.
    He
came less than a minute later. Jared expertly caught the stream in his hand and
wiped it off in a tissue while Connor floated back into his body. He couldn’t
remember a more blissful release in all of his life—though that probably
had a lot to do with the fact that it was only the second time someone else had
led him to it. And this time Jared had even managed to make skin-to-skin
contact.
    After
a brief recovery time, he tried to shift Jared into a convenient position to
return the favor, but Jared resisted.
    “Nope.
Time for you to talk, remember? You gotta be relaxed enough now.”
    Connor
smiled, the endorphins still traveling his body. “Yeah, maybe.”
    “So,
what’s on your mind?”
    “Well…that
was…the best hand job of my life.” A sigh escaped Connor’s lips without his
approval.
    “That
was your only one,” Jared pointed out, chuckling.
    “Yeah,
but it seemed like you were an expert. I mean, it always seems like you’re so
completely…confident in everything you do. I’m not like that.”
    Jared
shook his head. “Don’t put me on a pedestal, Connor. I’m still