Ceto looked at the bat, ignoring Severa as she climbed down the ladder.

  Levrith walked slowly towards him. Ceto could feel Levrith’s eyes on him, but Ceto kept his attention on the bat as he put some mango in the box and carefully closed the lid.

  Levrith continued to stare at him.

  “What?” Ceto snapped. He glared up at Levrith.

  “Nothing.” Levrith raised an eyebrow, hands on his hips. “You were just a bit rude to Sev. That’s all.” His voice was calm. He always was so calm.

  And for some reason, this time, it really pissed Ceto off. “Oh, I’m sorry. Was I rude to Sev?” He jumped to his feet and stormed out onto the balcony. “Did you enjoy her fawning over you, smiling at you, touching you, and telling you how strong you were?” he snapped.

  He couldn’t get the image out of his mind: her slender, pretty hand squeezing Levrith’s arm.

  “She was just being friendly!” Levrith followed him out onto the balcony, his face a mixture of confusion and annoyance.

  “Oh yes. Really friendly,” he sneered. Ceto stormed back into the room. He couldn’t stand still. The anger pulsed hot, bubbling in his veins. “I’m sorry for chasing Sev off. Maybe you wanted to get real friendly with her.”

  Levrith followed him. “What has gotten into you!” He looked genuinely annoyed now. “I don’t understand why you are so angry. She only touched me.”

  “Because I’m the only one allowed to touch you!” The words were out before Ceto had time to consider the weight of them. But once they left his mouth, they felt right. True.

  He didn’t dwell on why it felt that way. He just knew he didn’t want anyone else touching Levrith.

  Levrith’s mouth dropped open. His lips moved, but no words came out.

  Which was fine; Ceto also had nothing else he needed to say. He stepped forward, took Levrith’s face in his hands, and kissed him, pouring all his anger and jealousy into the hungry kiss.

  Levrith froze for half a second. Then his hands gripped Ceto’s hips, squeezing as he pulled him closer so their bodies pressed deliciously together. Ceto deepened the kiss, pushing his tongue into Levrith’s mouth. Levrith groaned.

  Desire thrummed through Ceto’s body. Levrith’s hard cock pressed against his hip. He wanted to see it. Touch it. Smell it. Knocking Levrith’s hands from his hips, Ceto dropped to his knees. He practically snarled at the buttons as he undid his breeches, then grabbed onto the waist and yanked the breeches and drawers down in one rough movement.

  Levrith’s cock sprung forward, long and thick. Veins ran along the flushed skin. A drop of pearly liquid glistened on the flared mushroom head. Ceto rested his hands on Levrith’s meaty, hairy thighs and leaned forward, brushing his cheek against Levrith’s cock. Silken skin over hardness rubbed against his cheek.

  Levrith’s hips thrust. Ceto buried his nose in the dark hair of Levrith’s groin, inhaling deeply. He smelled so good. Musky and like something that was completely Levrith. He looked up at Levrith. The man stared down at him, eyes wide, mouth open, chest rising and falling quickly.

  “Tell me you want this.” He squeezed Levrith’s thighs.

  “I want this,” Levrith said, voice strained.

  That was all Ceto needed to hear. Opening his mouth, he took Levrith in, swallowing him deep.

  “Seroth!” Levrith cursed. His hands landed on Ceto’s head, as if he needed support to keep himself on his feet.

  Ceto moved his head up and down, enjoying the feel of Levrith’s hard, heavy cock on his tongue. His salty, tangy taste filled his mouth. His cheeks hollowed as he sucked. He lifted his hand and gently squeezed Levrith’s balls.

  Levrith gasped. Ceto looked up. Levrith’s chest and neck were flushed. His eyes squeezed shut as Ceto moved up and down his shaft. Unconsciously, his hand convulsed in Ceto’s hair.

  Satisfaction filled Ceto, knowing it was him who brought Levrith to such a state. No one else. He took Levrith deep into his throat until he couldn’t breathe, until his nose was buried in Levrith’s dark curls.

  Levrith’s hand tugged almost painfully in Ceto’s hair. Ceto swallowed around the cock filling his throat. Ceto slowly pulled off. He took a breath before licking up to the tip of Levrith’s dick and tonguing the slit.

  A sound close to a sob fell from Levrith’s lips. Arousal coursed through Ceto’s body as he swirled his tongue around the head of Levrith’s dick. His own cock throbbed painfully between his legs, confined still in his breeches, but he ignored it, focusing all his attention on Levrith. He wanted Levrith’s pleasure. He wanted Levrith to come completely apart because of him. He never wanted Levrith to forget this.

  He dropped down, licking Levrith’s balls. He sucked one into his mouth. Then the other. The sounds escaping from Levrith were a mix of moans, gasps, and cries. He doubted Levrith would last much longer. He released Levrith’s sack from his mouth.

  Ceto wrapped a hand around Levrith’s cock. He stroked up and down. Pre-cum drizzled copiously from the tip, making the strokes smoother. “Tell me no one else is allowed to touch you,” he whispered.

  “By Seroth and Seran,” he cried. “Only you! Only you.”

  Ceto took the tip of Levrith’s member into his mouth, running his tongue around the head before swallowing him back into his throat. Levrith’s body tensed. His head dropped back, and his mouth fell open. His fingers dug into Ceto’s scalp.

  “Ceto!” he screamed. His hot, salty seed shot from his cock, filling Ceto’s mouth and throat in warm pulses.

  Ceto sucked the thick liquid down, determined to not miss a single drop. Levrith opened his eyes, breathing heavily. His hand released Ceto’s hair. He reached for Ceto’s cheek, stroking it. Finally, Ceto released Levrith’s dick from his mouth.

  Levrith dropped to his knees, as if all the energy had drained from his body. He leaned forward, kissing Ceto desperately, tongue pushing into his mouth. With shaking hands, Levrith reached out and unbuttoned Ceto’s breeches. Ceto groaned at the relief of his cock being freed. Levrith wrapped his calloused hand almost tentatively around Ceto’s cock.

  “Yes,” Ceto whispered as Levrith started to stroke him.

  Ceto buried one hand in Levrith’s curly hair, clutching onto him, grounding himself. Ceto’s body tensed, his toes tingling.

  “I’m close,” he whispered. “So close.” Sucking Levrith off had done that to him.

  Pleasure barrelled through Ceto’s body. Levrith’s hand tightened, his strokes speeding up. He dropped kisses on Ceto’s cheeks and lips. Ceto cried out. Thick, ropey cum shot in spurts, covering their chests and stomachs in his seed. For several seconds, they stayed still, leaning against each other, propping each other up, their breaths mingling.

  Ceto’s body trembled. He felt dizzy, out of breath, and slightly nauseated.

  “I need to lie down.” He disentangled himself and crawled towards the bed before collapsing onto his back.

  “Are you all right?” Levrith’s voice had a note of panic in it.

  But it was too hard to concentrate on that. “Fine.” Ceto closed his eyes. He felt floaty, his stomach all over the place. “Just a bit tired.” He smiled. “But it was worth it.”

  What just happened?

  Levrith had had sex. With Ceto. And now Ceto was unconscious. But smiling.

  Worry gnawed at him. He leaned closer. Ceto looked all right. He slept on his back, his breathing even. It appeared like he just slept deeply. But perhaps he’d overexerted himself. Perhaps the sex had been too much.

  He hadn’t even cleaned himself or pulled up his pants. Levrith grabbed a discarded shirt from the floor and used it to wipe up the seed from Ceto’s chest, stomach, and now flaccid dick. The dick he had just held in his hand, that had throbbed and pulsed as Ceto had come. He swallowed.

  He carefully pulled Ceto’s pants the rest of the way down his legs. Then pulled the sheet over him. Ceto didn’t even stir. Levrith frowned. He hoped Ceto was all right.

  Still, he found it hard to regret what had just happened, even if Levrith was confused and didn’t know what it meant. He wiped quickly at himself, cleaning Ceto’s seed from his skin. A part of him wanted to leave it. It felt like Ceto had marked him with his cum, and he wanted to hold on to that. But that was being silly.

  I’m the only one allowed to touch you. Ceto’s words buzzed in his head, filling his chest with hope. Had Ceto meant it? Or had it just been sex talk? He wished he weren’t too inexperienced with these things to know.

  He leaned forward, pushing a wayward strand of icy-blue hair behind Ceto’s ear. The strand had escaped Ceto’s usually neat plait.

  He pulled his hand away. Was that creepy? They had just had sex. His cock had been in Ceto’s mouth. He’d had his hand around Ceto’s dick. So maybe it was all right. Levrith wanted to curl up next to Ceto, wrap him in his arms. But maybe Ceto wouldn’t like that. He didn’t know what was allowed following sex.

  A tiny squeak distracted him from his thoughts. He stood up, pulling up his breeches before approaching the crate. He opened the lid. The bat looked up, tilting her head.

  “You all right there?” he asked as he reached in and stroked the bat along the side of her furry face. The bat reached out with her clawed feet and wrapped them around one of his fingers. He lifted his arm out of the crate, the bat hanging upside down as she clung to him.

  She let out a series of little chirps and squeaks. Careful, he walked to the side table, where they still had some mango. One-handed, which was not easy, he managed to cut the skin from around the large seed. It was messy, and he ended up with a fair amount of the sticky yellow juice and pulp on himself.

  He’d need to duck down to the river to clean himself later. He wondered if Ceto would join him. If they waited until dark, they could go in naked, perhaps do what they’d just done or similar but this time in the water.

  Levrith frowned. Would there be a repeat? Would Ceto want that? Levrith had never had sex before and didn’t know how this all worked.

  The bat squeaked.

  “Sorry, got distracted.” He held the mango seed up to the bat, who, still upside down, reached forward to lick and bite at the fruit. “You like the seed, huh? One of my sisters doesn’t. She says it’s too messy.” But judging from the juice all over the bat’s face and clinging to her fur, she didn’t seem to mind.

  His gaze slid to Ceto. He’d learned a bit about sex on the Naiad’s Revenge, considering most of the crew weren’t shy about it. He knew that sometimes it was casual. Sometimes not. But how could someone tell? He wished he could ask Rowena.

  He bit his lip. What if Ceto only wanted a one-off? Could he handle that, after what they’d just done? Now that he knew the taste of Ceto’s skin, his kisses, and the sounds he made when he came?

  Levrith would handle it. Just being friends would hurt, but it was better than nothing. Whatever Ceto wanted, he could bear it. He had to.

  He just hoped Ceto wanted something more than friends.

  Chapter

  Fifteen

  The bat hung upside down, her eyes shut, clinging to Levrith’s finger with her tiny, clawed feet. Dark wings stretched around her body, as if she was hugging herself. His arm ached from holding it still for so long, but he didn’t want to move and disturb her.

  “That’s a strange way to sleep,” Ceto sleepily said.

  “You’re awake!” Levrith smiled with relief. He’d been sitting next to Ceto on the floor by his sleeping mat, worried and wondering if he should get his grandmother to check on him. He’d been trying to work out how he’d explain to her what had happened.

  Ceto nodded as he sat. The sheet slid down, revealing the smooth icy-blue skin of his torso.

  “How long did I sleep?” Ceto asked, yawning.

  “Couple of hours. You and the bat both needed to sleep.”

  “Do bats usually sleep like that?” Ceto’s lips quirked up into a smile, the dimple appearing in his left cheek.

  Levrith had kissed those lips. That cheek. He wanted to do it again. He cleared his throat. “Normally they cling to their mothers as babies. And the mothers sleep upside down. So I guess so.”

  “It’s sweet,” Ceto said.

  Silence followed. Levrith’s throat tightened. He wasn’t sure if it was a comfortable silence or not. Was their friendship ruined? Had the sex changed everything? He took a deep breath, trying to calm the panic in his chest. “So that was…unexpected.”

  “Indeed.”

  Levrith tried to read him. They’d been friends for years, but Ceto’s face gave nothing away. Ceto yawned again. Was he still tired? Perhaps the sex had harmed him.

  “Are you feeling all right?”

  “What?”

  “Well, you fell asleep after… And I wasn’t sure if you…if we overdid it, when we…” Levrith stammered.

  A slow smile spread across Ceto’s face. “I feel fine. Tired, but like I said, worth it.”

  Levrith couldn’t help the warm, pleasant flush that spread through his body. “Really?”

  “Definitely. I enjoyed myself immensely.”

  Levrith’s cheeks burned.

  “Did you?” Ceto tilted his head, a teasing smile on his lips.

  “Of course,” he blurted. “But then again, I don’t have much to compare it with.” He chuckled.

  A crease appeared between Ceto’s brows. “What do you mean?”

  This time, the flush that passed through Levrith’s body wasn’t pleasant at all. He looked at the bat. Her beady dark eyes, now open, stared at him. Ignoring the question hanging in the air, Levrith stood and walked with the bat to the crate. He lifted the lid and placed her on the soft blanket inside. But she didn’t want to let go.

  “Levrith?”

  He managed to gently pull his finger away from the bat’s clawed feet and closed the crate.

  Ceto still sat, watching him, waiting for his answer.

  He rubbed at the back of his neck, staring at the sheer curtains hanging limply by the windows. “None. No experience. That was the first time I’ve…” His cheeks burned.

  “What? But I thought… I knew that there hadn’t been anyone on the ship, but what about the woman you were engaged to?”

  “Nope.” Would Ceto regret it now that he knew how inexperienced Levrith was?

  “But you enjoyed it, right?” Ceto leaned forward. “I didn’t push you?” he asked, voice soft.

  “Of course not! I wanted it. And it was…wonderful.”

  “Good.” Ceto sat back. “I’d hate to think you regretted it.” There was a mischievous gleam to his eyes. “And would you want to do it again?”

  Levrith nodded.

  Ceto’s smile widened. He got to his feet, the sheet falling from his body and pooling on the floor. He stood naked, his beautiful, lean body completely on display.

  Levrith allowed himself to look, taking in every inch of him. He ran his gaze along slender, long limbs, a flat stomach, and his half-hard cock. Stepping closer to Levrith, Ceto reached out his hand. In a bit of a daze, Levrith took it. Ceto tugged him towards him.

  “I’m probably not feeling quite up to going again, but I think I’d be up for a kiss.” He tilted his head. “Would you be up for that?”

  Levrith nodded, his skin buzzing with anticipation. Ceto leaned forward and pressed his lips against Levrith’s. This kiss was different than the previous ones. Tentative rather than desperate. Soft rather than hungry. Like they were learning each other’s mouths and lips.

  Ceto cupped Levrith’s face in his hands as his mouth continued to move gently against his. Fingers caressed his beard. Levrith wrapped an arm around Ceto’s waist. Ceto stepped closer, pressing himself flush against Levrith. Ceto’s tongue pushed inside Levrith’s, exploring his mouth. He could feel Ceto’s member pressing against his thigh. His own cock was already throbbing in his breeches.

  Ceto broke the kiss. His pupils had almost swallowed the irises of his eyes.

  That’s because of me.

  “As much as I’d like to continue,” Ceto said, licking his bottom lip, “I’m worried we might get carried away, and I don’t want to pass out again.”

  Levrith stepped back quickly. “Sorry. Are you hungry? Maybe that will help you get your strength back.”

  “Desperate to go again?” Ceto laughed.

  “No… I mean… Yes… But that wasn’t why I suggested it. I just wanted to make sure you are—”

  “I know, Levrith.” He pecked him on the cheek.

  “Oh. Good.” Levrith felt so flustered and uncertain.

  He walked to the table in the room and grabbed some food his mum had sent. They took the food out on the balcony and sat on the chairs, eating. For several minutes, they ate in silence, but this time, Levrith was certain it wasn’t awkward.

  “I was thinking we could build the cage out here,” Levrith said. “I can start after we finish eating. We’ve got a few hours of light left. I might be able to finish it today. If it took up half the balcony, we could still sit here but then also watch the bat.”

  Ceto swallowed a mouthful of food. “We should name her. Stop calling her ‘the bat.’”

  Levrith pursed his lips as he thought about it. “What about Chirp?”

  “Chirp,” Ceto said. “I like it. Little Chirp.”

  The conversation felt easy. Normal. Their friendship wasn’t ruined by the sex. And Ceto said he wanted to have sex again. With him. Levrith took another bite of the prawns to hide his pleased smile.

  True, he still didn’t know what the sex meant. He didn’t know if Ceto returned his feelings or not. And he didn’t want to ask in case Ceto didn’t return them. No. Better not ask. Better just to wait and see what happened.

  The bat climbed down the cage, towards the mangosteen fruit that they’d hung in the middle.

  “Chirp can really move, can’t she?” Ceto asked.

  She reached out and grabbed the mangosteen, clinging to it as she started nibbling at the white flesh. The sun had set a while ago, but Levrith had managed to get the cage put together before then. Thankfully, his cousin had a few tools he could use to cut the bamboo. Although, he’d still had to borrow rope and some net from one of his neighbours. The rope was to tie the bamboo together. The net was to make the sides so Chirp couldn’t escape. Ceto had wanted to help, but Levrith had told him to rest. So in the end, he’d just watched Levrith work.