After the End Ch. 16

Author's note:

This is the fourth chapter of After the End - Part 3, the final novel in my dystopian erotic romance trilogy. If you enjoy intensely provocative sex with a power play twist, handsome male heroes in emotionally satisfying relationships, and unconventional happily ever afters -- you are in the right place! These books are full-length, publication-quality, and currently being offered free of charge. :)

Descriptions of each book can be found in my bio by clicking my user name. Feel free to drop in on specific chapters or sections based on your mood or interest, but the dramatic tension is strongest if you start from the beginning of Part 1. As always, I appreciate hearing your reactions and feedback. It truly does help me create the best stories that I can for readers to enjoy.

Content warning: This chapter depicts a character disclosing his past experience of sexual violence.

Tags for this chapter include: #bisexual male, #dystopia, #novel, #romantic, #threesome, #submission, #teasing, #tickling, #denial, #bound

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Avery:

August passed in a haze of hot weather, hot sex, hard work, and happy memories. There was always plenty to do to keep ourselves, our allies, our crops, and our livestock fed and protected. Graham also had his own duties with Bravo Company, including the occasional journey back and forth to Shreveport. It didn't rain a lot that month, so sometimes we resorted to hauling water from the creek or storage ponds to keep our vegetables and grains from drying up. The farming collective supplied a lot of produce for us, but we still needed to grow quite a bit ourselves. Besides, it was never safe to depend on the same few square miles to supply all your sustenance. One bad hailstorm or pest infestation could wipe out months of painstaking labor. Humans can survive a long time without food, but only because the body literally cannibalizes itself for nutrients. It isn't something you want to watch your friends or neighbors suffer through.

By now, the community knew that Julian and I were more than just friends with Graham. There were rumblings about it, like there had been with Vik. Accusations of infidelity, impropriety, immorality -- you name it, someone probably thought it about us. Our community had been founded by families who shared a particular religion, and some dogmatic beliefs about sex and family structure persisted. The same bigots who complained about Vik and Gavin and Madelyn complained about us, even though in Gavin's case, he and Madelyn had ended their sexual and romantic relationship years before he and Vik got together. These days, residents who could be neatly categorized as "gay" and who chose unobtrusive monogamous partnerships were relatively accepted, even by the hardliners. Same-sex pairings actually didn't disrupt their norms as much as the idea that someone didn't need to follow any rules to have a healthy, fulfilling life. Rules were how they defined themselves and decided who was good or evil. The suggestion that those categories might be unnecessary was more threatening than any particular activity.

It incensed me when people passed judgment on us for doing something that didn't affect them at all, but Graham didn't seem too phased by it. He actually found bizarre beliefs interesting. Sometimes he and Julian had long discussions about why people continued to create hatred and misery on this planet, when they could easily know better and make different choices. I wondered that also, but I usually got too annoyed to try to care why. I generally thought people should worry about their own damn lives. If their way was so wonderful, why did they spend all their time tearing others down?

Rowan, predictably, was a huge fan of our new relationship with Graham. She got along with him great and thought he was just what Julian and I needed to "keep us from getting boring," as she put it. She was in the final stage of training to be a doctor, so she didn't have a lot of free time, but she played sports or went swimming with us when she could.

It was funny how territorial Rae got about that, at first. She didn't mind Graham hanging out with Julian and me, but she clearly viewed Rowan as a rival, judging by the way she would forcibly take over the conversation with loud jokes and reminisces about the wild antics she and Graham used to get up to. If Rowan mentioned a procedure she'd performed, Rae would jump in with a story about a rescue she'd led or a risky maneuver she'd pulled off as a fighter jet pilot. She could get quite handsy, too -- hanging off Graham's shoulder, snatching the ball from him, horsing around with him in the creek. He reluctantly confided that he and Rae had occasionally hooked up in the past, and she still sometimes came on to him if she got too rowdy, but he'd put a stop to it when it proved too complicated for their friendship.

Rowan didn't have any designs on Graham, but eventually she had it out with Rae. We only heard rumors of what went down, but it was said to have involved a high-stakes wager, a handgun, and a lot of alcohol. The two women were unusually tight-lipped about it, refusing to confirm or deny any details, but they'd been on good terms ever since.

Two nights before my fourth anniversary with Julian at the beginning of September, he and Graham had a surprise for me. I'd been visiting my friends Lamont and Tara and their daughter Verity, who'd recently turned one year old. I wasn't her official godparent; that title went to her uncle Shawn. But I'd been good friends with Lamont pretty much my whole life, and he and Tara had struggled to conceive, so it was a big deal that they'd finally been gifted with the family they'd dreamed about. I didn't particularly want to father any children myself, but Verity was pretty special to me. If it came down to it, I'd be willing to take care of her, even if Julian probably wouldn't help.

When I got home, Graham was already there, lying across the bed propped on one elbow, while Julian sat at the desk. The captain often dropped by our quarters after responsibilities around the fort were squared away for the night, even if just to chat for a few minutes. We were all respectful of the rule about sexual contact between us and Graham -- that it could only happen when all three of us were present and had consented -- so I never worried if he and Julian were alone without me. They looked like they'd been enmeshed in conversation when I opened the door, but they both shifted focus expectantly to me.

"What?" I asked self-consciously as I dropped my stuff by the bench.

"We were just talking about our anniversary on Monday," Julian replied, standing so he could kiss me. "Hi babe," he added warmly.

"Hi." I leaned against the desk next to him when he sat back down on the simple wooden stool. "What about our anniversary?"

"I wanted to give you guys a nice present," Graham answered, sitting upright with a smile. "And your husband here helped me come up with one I think you're really going to like."

"Oh yeah? Is it indoor plumbing? Because I would love that."

He laughed. "Sadly, that's beyond my capabilities. No, this is a sex present."

"Ah. Should have known." I adopted a tragic manner that was clearly fake, complete with a playful punch to Julian's shoulder. "He never gets me jewelry or flowers; only ever wants to have sex." Everyone in the room knew I would take sex over dead plants every day of the week.

"Hey, I got you jewelry once," my partner pointed out. "Still looks damn good on you, too."

"And on you," I agreed, momentarily distracted by the affection in his gaze and the semicircle stone pendant on its leather cord around his neck. The one he always wore as a symbol of his commitment to me, just like I wore mine. "So, what's my present?" I asked when I remembered what we were talking about, looking back to Graham.

"Well, you know we've talked about doing some bondage together. And you've told me that Vik had appointed you the 'deadliest cock-tease,' and I've been curious for you to try out your skills on me. So we thought" -- his glance included Julian -- "in celebration of your anniversary, we could do a two-part extravaganza. Tomorrow night, you and Julian will get to tie me up and do whatever you want to me. But here's the catch: I'll get to orgasm, and you will not. Then I'll stay over while you stay denied."

He stopped speaking, as if to give me time to process. So far, that scenario was definitely generating some thermal energy in the region of my genitals.

"The next night, on your anniversary, after you two get back from the overlook, we'll reverse it," Graham went on. "Julian and I will tie you up and do whatever we want to you, but you'll finally get to come, and I won't. Then if you want, I'll stay again so you can play with me more."

Damn. They'd denied me on occasion in the past six weeks, and we'd experimented a little with Graham, but nothing like what he'd just proposed. I got super hot when he exerted authority over me, but I'd also greatly enjoyed taking charge when we'd been with Vik, and interest had definitely been growing as we spent more time with the captain. I loved the idea of getting to do both.

"One of the best things about this," Julian said before I collected a response, "is that you'll head into our anniversary already pent-up and horny, knowing we're still going to put you in bondage and make you even more desperate before you get your climax. Thought it might make the day special for you," he finished with a grin.

"Fuck," I breathed involuntarily. Just hearing about it had me halfway to desperate. It definitely had me halfway to erect. Never would have guessed this was a benefit of being married to Julian, when I first met him -- his endlessly devious erotic schemes.

"Should we take your speechlessness as an endorsement?" he asked wryly.

"I'm probably gonna fucking die...but yes. Also, why is it never your turn to be tied up and desperate?"

Graham gave my partner a pretty smoky glance. "Everyone's entitled to their own preferences, but to be honest, Avery, I'm hoping that day comes eventually too."

There were a number of activities Julian enjoyed performing but not experiencing, or at least not to the same extent. Teasing, denial, and anal play were some. All three of us agreed that sex should be about things that felt safe and fun for all participants, and not about pressuring anyone to accept things they didn't actually like. In our relationship, I allowed Julian control and didn't demand it in return. That's how he and I both wanted it. But something about the idea of him giving control to Graham really got to me.

"That would have to be a separate negotiation," was the noncommittal reply.

Graham left before too long, since he would be here the next two evenings. The lingering kiss he gave me at the door kind of made me regret we had to wait until tomorrow, but it was also nice to have some time alone with Julian.

"What would you like tonight, love?" my husband asked in my favorite velvet, fond tone once we were in bed and I'd thoroughly tasted his mouth. I still hadn't gotten tired of kissing him, even though we'd done it thousands of time. It made me feel close to him, like I was defenseless and completely safe at the same time, and I never got tired of that.

"Since we have plans with Graham tomorrow and Monday...maybe we could do something we can't do when he's here."

"Such as?"

"Sixty-nine, with fingering..." Julian had continued to keep receptive anal stimulation off limits during our threesomes, and even with me he didn't want it that often. I thought that still had a lot to do with his traumatic sexual history. So far I was the only person ever to penetrate him consensually, or witness it happening. "Only if you want to," I added. That should go without saying, but it's always best to say it anyway. Especially when someone has been raped.

There was a brief silence, but he sounded sincere when he answered, "Sure, babe."

I made him come first, which I was proud of, and I fell asleep dreaming of an extra-sexy anniversary.

Julian had learned the art of rope bondage from someone he knew back west, and although I had nothing to compare it to, he seemed to have been a very good student. Which obviously was not even slightly surprising. He'd shown me the basics, but it turned out to be a lot more complicated than it looks, and I didn't want to put in the kind of effort that would have been required to use ropes safely myself. Luckily I didn't need to, because I had him to do it for me.

Before trying a new and potentially dangerous tool together, the three of us had the necessary in-depth conversation. It's easier than you might think to hurt someone if the loops of rope aren't placed carefully enough -- not too tight, and not where they can cut off circulation or damage nerves. Graham didn't have a ton of experience being in bondage, but he'd experimented on a few occasions, and he felt comfortable with Julian's level of knowledge. And of course, I knew how to use the emergency scissors if anything went wrong.

Julian's ropes were nice: supple twisted hemp that he kept well-conditioned for secure bonds with minimal chafing. For this part of our present, Graham had agreed to let us tie all four limbs to the corners of the bed -- not so taut that he couldn't adjust his position at all, but plenty to keep his naked body fully exposed and unable to resist any kind of sensation we wanted to inflict.

"Damn...it's been a while since I've gone this far onto the submissive end of the spectrum," he said when Julian had double-checked each coil and knot to confirm none were causing undue pressure. Graham shifted a little, testing his freedom of movement, which was minimal. His wrists were secured to either end of the headboard, and his ankles were held as far apart as was comfortable. His cock was only flying at half-mast.

"Take a minute," Julian advised, sitting on the bed next to the captain's bare side. "Can I put a hand on your chest?"

"You can do whatever you want; that's the agreement," Graham replied, but his voice was strained, and he shifted restlessly again.

Julian switched immediately into the calming, authoritative mode he used so often with me. "But the agreement is also that everyone has fun and no one gets distressed. So I need to make sure you feel safe before we proceed."

"Kind of hard to feel safe, when I literally can't move or protect myself at all." His powerful arms tugged again and went nowhere.

My partner hadn't touched him yet, probably remembering the first time he had me bound and tried to reach for me. I'd completely freaked out, shocking both of us, and hadn't been willing to try again for a long time.

"Graham, look at me, please," he ordered.

I'd gotten almost painfully hard during the tying-up process, and when the captain dragged his gaze to meet Julian's, more blood surged into my crotch. To see this hunky, muscular commander all spread out, totally helpless, actually kind of nervous, and obeying my husband's command...it was a lot hotter than I'd even imagined. Which reminded me that my price of admission to this show was keeping my semen in my balls -- for the duration of the night, and all day tomorrow, until my two lovers had mercy on me sometime in the evening. I pulsed again, already suffering.

"You are safe," Julian assured his friend. "Avery and I have no interest in hurting or upsetting you. You can use the safe words at any point. If you want to set more limits, you can do that too. Take some breaths. No one is going to touch you unless you tell us it's ok."

Graham would have as much practice with tactical breathing as Julian did, thanks to their extensive military training and leading countless dangerous operations. He looked to the ceiling and took a measured breath in, holding it for an equal length of time before slowly expelling it. There was another pause before the next inhale. Some of his stress seemed to release by the time he'd done three cycles.

"I'm ok," he said then, still a little apprehensive but no longer agitated. "You can touch me."

Julian rested a flat palm over the captain's sternum. There was no visible response except another slight lessening of tension. "Can I kiss you?"

Graham nodded silently.

It had surprised me, how much I'd liked it the first time they kissed. I'd thought I would probably be jealous, of both of them, that they wanted to share their mouths with each other rather than with me. But in fact I felt something else, that I didn't really know how to name -- something that unfolded softly inside me, like sugar on the tongue, or campfire on a cold night. Like coming home to my husband's embrace after a tough mission.

I watched them kiss, Julian leaning down to reach his captive. He was careful and gentle at first, just like his verbal reassurances had been. His hand slid to cup Graham's neck -- affectionate, not controlling. It was gradual, but the other man relaxed, then grew passionate, mouth pressing hard into Julian's. His cock got hard too.

Julian drew back and studied him with a warm expression. "You ready, Captain?"

"Yes, sir," he replied in his more typically easy-going manner. As if his use of the title didn't feel like a phantom tongue licking up my shaft. "Sorry for the minor breakdown."

"No reason to apologize." Julian gave him one more quick caress, then stood and directed his attention to me. "Come here."

I'd been staying out of the way on the stool, but I went over to him and he kissed me in turn, hands slipping under my t-shirt to rest at my bare waist. It wasn't anything, just his palms against my flanks, but I throbbed in my pants. He knew how it got to me when he bypassed my clothing to touch my skin -- like he owned me; like none of me was ever off limits.

"Arms up," he instructed, sliding his hands upward and my shirt with them. A thrill went through me as I made myself vulnerable, and I flinched slightly when his fingers brushed my underarms, but he didn't linger. He tossed my shirt on the bench and reached to unbuckle my pants. Soon I was as naked as Graham and a little embarrassed about my conspicuously excited erection. Turning me to face our guest, Julian closed one hand around it from behind while his other arm anchored me to him.

"See what you've done to him already, Graham?" He tantalized me with gentle pressure, and I made a quiet, appreciative sound. "The beauty of this game lies in the fact that the more Avery teases you, the more aroused he'll get, and the more torturous it will be to wait for his orgasm tomorrow." His hand squeezed me briefly on an upstroke. "Happy anniversary to me."

I bit my lower lip and let him have his way. Yes, it was torture when he got me incredibly wound up and wouldn't let me release, but at the same time... His hand moving slowly like this on my rod, his solid body holding me in place, electric signals racing through my core: all generated toe-curling pulses of bliss that relaxed my muscles and hypnotized my brain, making me forget that I'd ever needed anything else.

"So," Julian told me when no one replied. "For now, Captain Lansing is yours. You want to find out how he likes to be touched when he's all tied up? If he's more ticklish when he can't shield himself? What inflames his cock the most?"

God, yes, I wanted to learn all those things. I'd never had this kind of unfettered access to him before. I loved it when he explored me, but I was eager to do some exploring of my own. And I couldn't help but notice the way his shaft twitched when it was mentioned.

Still, I was hesitant as I climbed onto the bed next to him. Was it really ok for me to take advantage of him this way? His pecs were molded into perfect swells, crowned with pink nipples I was dying to get my tongue on. His well-muscled arms stretched tantalizingly useless above his head, and his family jewels huddled vulnerably between his spread legs. Enticingly chiseled grooves crossed his abs and hips, outlining the softer plane of his belly. Plus the button in the center. I knew what happened to him when a fingertip burrowed there. And by the fusion of expectation and dread on his face, he was remembering too.