Page 24 of Merrick

“I’m sorry,” he answered quickly, because it felt like the right thing to say.

“Never apologize for being exactly what I want.”

Merrick let out an embarrassing whimper, and Wilder let go of his hand, but Merrick didn’t pull away.

“I have to go get ready for work.” Wilder stepped back, tracing his tongue across the bottom of his top teeth. “What does your day look like?”

“Work from twelve to ten,” Merrick answered.

“And after that? Or before then?”

Merrick glanced down at his hand, half cleaned of his release, then he looked up at Wilder and answered, “I think at this point, that’s up to you.”

CHAPTER 10

Wilder

He didn’t askMerrick to come over the night after their relationship talk, even though he desperately wanted to. Wilder needed to exhibit some form of control and restraint, or he was going to lose himself to Merrick entirely. They did text throughout the day, Wilder between meetings and Merrick between appointments and on breaks. The conversation was casual, Merrick rattling on via a voice note about a song on at the shop he really liked. He apologized for sending such a long message, but he’d wanted Wilder to hear it. The absolute earnestness of Merrick’s voice made it so even if the song was something he hated, Wilder would have enjoyed it anyway.

He would have enjoyed plenty of things on account of Merrick enjoying them.

It wasn’t long before Saturday rolled around. Wilder spent the day grocery shopping and cleaning. Merrick worked until eight, but they had plans for him to come over after and spend the night. Maybe spend Sunday night too, even though Wilder had to work on Monday and Merrick didn’t. Wilder was ready for uninterrupted time with Merrick, but he was also nervous about it.

What if he was too much for Merrick?

Not in the way Merrick always worried about overwhelming the people around him, but in the way where Wilder’s grasp on dominance was too firm for Merrick’s liking. That wasn’t something he’d ever been concerned about before, but he’d also never felt attraction the way he did to Merrick. There was something so innocent about him, but not in a naive way. Almost like Merrick was perfectly ripe and ready for the plucking, and Wilder was desperate to be the one to bring Merrick home.

Justin had texted him daily since their lunch, and Wilder had kept his friend updated on everything that had transpired. Justin was practically giddy for Wilder and Merrick’s upcoming weekend, but Wilder assumed most of that excitement stemmed from Micah, who had never met a person he didn’t like.

Well, there was one.

But Micah was sweet and he was obedient, and he was always looking for new people to bring into their friend group.

Would Merrick get along with them?

All that was for another day, after Merrick and Wilder had time to get to know each other more, when they could really decide if a relationship was something they wanted to pursue. Because as much as Wilder was worried about how Merrick would take to submission, he was equally worried about how the free use aspect of Merrick’s sexual tastes would play out.

Wilder had a high sex drive, and he would definitely sate that hunger for Merrick whenever he could, but Wilder himself was no match for a revolving door at a BDSM club where one man after another could come in and use Merrick in whatever way suited them best. It would be a learning curve for the both of them.

At seven-thirty, Wilder hopped into the shower to deal with all of the cleaning and prep he’d been putting off in the days he and Merrick had been apart. At eight, he dried himself off,dragged a towel through his hair, and dug out a pair of clean lounge pants and a shirt. He poured himself a glass of wine and made himself comfortable on the couch, scrolling through social media on his phone.

Wilder’s mind was quick to wander, role playing through scenarios he desperately wanted to make real. One where he had a key to Merrick’s apartment and he’d show up in the middle of the night unannounced. He’d wake Merrick up with urgent kisses, stroke Merrick’s cock until he was hard, and then use Merrick to get himself off. Once finished, he would tuck Merrick back into bed and drive back home. Wilder wouldn’t sleep the rest of the night, but that wouldn’t matter.

He thought of another, with Merrick tied to his bed, cock stimulated to the point of pain. He’d be so hard and leaking, bound there with nothing to do except wait for Wilder to come in and fuck when he needed to feel good. Sometimes Wilder would let Merrick come but not every time. He also entertained using Merrick’s mouth, making Merrick warm his cock before bed or after a good spanking. Wilder thought about a thousand different things he’d never really allowed himself to pretend about, all of them somehow now within reach.

At eight-thirty, Merrick knocked on his door and Wilder let him inside. Merrick moved to toe off a sneaker and stopped, blinking up at Wilder with worried eyes.

“Can I take off my shoes?” he asked.

“Why wouldn’t you? Are you not planning on staying?”

A deep crease appeared between Merrick’s eyebrows, and he kicked out of his shoes, using Wilder’s arm for balance.

“I want to stay,” Merrick said, “I just…didn’t know. You didn’t say I could take off my shoes.”

Oh.

Wilder understood what was happening, and his chest tightened at the sweet sincerity of Merrick’s concern.