Jay Williams loved living in the mountains. He loved waking up to the scent of pine. He relished how his cabin floorboards creaked under his footsteps. Even the early-morning chill only soothed by building a fire was refreshing. Nothing compared to chopping wood by the glow of the sunrise.

Most of all, he treasured the isolation. He hadn’t always lived alone. There was a time when he woke cradled in another man’s arms. But that chapter of his life was over now. That man was gone, and he was never coming back.

Jay tried not to think about it. He tried to enjoy his independence.

There were no nosy neighbors, late-night partiers, or salesmen to knock on his door. Unfortunately, there was also no cell phone reception. Or an internet connection. When he spoke to people, it was after a lengthy drive into town.

So when his jeep broke down as he was driving home, he was pissed.

“No, no, no,” he muttered. “Come on, baby. Don’t do this to me.”

His jeep wasn’t known for its reliability, but he liked to think it harbored sentimentality for him after everything they’d been through together. Unfortunately, it was only enough for him to steer onto the shoulder before the stuttering engine died completely.

He sighed, turning the key in the ignition. Nothing. No lights, no attempt to start. With a sigh, he met his own eyes in the rearview mirror. They blinked back at him, more grey than blue in the moonlight.

“At least it’s a warm night.”

He popped the hood and climbed from the jeep, scratching the dark stubble on his jaw. His boots thudded against the pavement. He didn’t have a working flashlight. The one in the front passenger seat was dead. That was how Murphy’s Law worked, after all. It kicked you when you were down.

A breeze lifted the hair from his forehead. It crept beneath his cargo jacket and the hem of his shirt. He shivered. Goose bumps broke out over his skin, making his hair stand on end. Warm or not, the air seemed charged tonight with static electricity.

Suddenly, there was an explosion and a brilliant flash of light beyond the treeline.

Jay jumped in surprise, instinctively crouching behind the jeep. It was like someone had set off a firecracker. The only difference was how this light didn’t fade after the initial flash.

It pulsed, glistening like the Northern Lights. Violet. Magenta. Emerald.

His eyebrows drew together in confusion. What the hell?

He remained crouched for some time before deciding to investigate. Rational explanations ranged from partying campers to disco hunters, to hikers having a rave. Whatever it was, perhaps it came with a satellite phone and the number for a tow truck.

He rose to his full height, decision made. His first order of business was to slam the hood and lock up the jeep. He could only hope no car barreled around the corner in his absence. The chances of being rear-ended were slim, but there was an uneasy feeling in his gut nevertheless.

Twigs snapped under his boots as he hiked into the forest. The light grew brighter with every step, as if calling to him. Deep down, he knew it wasn’t an earthly light. It flowed too easily. Weaving between trees like voltaic waves, it was beauty unto itself. As he drew closer, it began to retreat.

“Hello?” he called. “Is anyone there? I don’t mean to scare you. I just need a phone, or a CB radio.”

There was no answer. The only sounds were those of rustling branches overhead.

Frowning, he ventured closer. There was an enormous pile of burning coals ahead. They dimmed before his eyes, disintegrating to ash. He stepped behind a tree to shield himself from the heat. Even midday in the summertime was cooler.

Curiosity eventually overwhelmed his reason. He peered around the tree. His heart skipped a beat, and sweat broke out on his brow. The ashes were moving.

Phoenix.
Alien.
Demon.

Whatever emerged from the ashes had the physique of a Greek God. He wouldn’t have been surprised to learn that it was sculpted by the finest artists of the Renaissance period. But by the simplest definition, overlooking the contours of muscle, what emerged from the ashes was a man. A naked, dirty man.

Jay exhaled, pulling back to hide in the shadows. Adrenaline thrummed through his veins. Of everything he’d expected to see, a man bathing in coals didn’t even rank.

He’d seen enough. He was going to back away slowly and return to his jeep, lock the doors, and hope another car came along before–

He gasped when a hand landed on his shoulder, spinning him around. The naked man stood before him, heat radiating from his skin. Before Jay could react, the man grabbed his head and yanked him forward into a kiss.

He opened his mouth to protest, but the man took advantage by plunging his tongue inside. It explored, swirling and flicking in ways that made Jay’s eyes flutter. The man refused to let him go when he tried to pull away. Breathing harshly through his nose was the only alternative to passing out.

Jay gripped his biceps, fiery to the touch, torn between pushing him away and pulling him closer. An electric jolt shot straight to his dick. He began to harden as the nerves were gently stimulated. Christ, it felt fantastic. Almost like phantom fingertips tickling his shaft and thumbing the head. Strange and unexpected, yes, but his knees threatened to buckle from the pleasure it gave him.

He flushed, heat spreading over his face and chest. While he wasn’t the instigator here, he didn’t want to give this man the wrong impression. That wouldn’t end well for either of them. He was experiencing a natural response to unnatural stimuli. That was all.

He tried to pull away again, putting real effort into it this time. Instead of releasing him, the man thrust his tongue even farther into Jay’s mouth, licking the back of his throat. He jerked in surprise, ninety percent certain that human tongues couldn’t do that. His hips brushed against the man’s naked thigh in the process. The friction made him groan.

Sweat trickled between his shoulder blades, over his back and below his waistline. His cock twitched when it trailed down the crease of his ass. He grunted into the kiss as his legs began to tremble. There were infinite ways he could imagine putting a long tongue to good use.

He pressed his hips forward, grinding, caught up in the ecstasy flooding through him. It wasn’t merely affecting him physically, but mentally as well. His brain tingled. His chest swelled, heaving with something more than earth-scented air. It was like contact with this man somehow made him complete. The more contact they shared, the better he felt.

Logical whispers deep within his mind spoke of how wrong this was. He was kissing a naked stranger, if something akin to mouth sex could truly be called kissing. With every lick and prod, his balls tightened, drawing up. He just needed one more forward grind, one more stroke–

The man broke away from his lips as abruptly as he’d crushed them.

Jay would have fallen, if not for the arm that snaked around his waist. He stared at the man’s lips, bitten pink and shiny. His own tongue darted out to taste lingering traces of musk. God, that was good. He needed more. He leaned forward to close the distance between them again.

But the man released him and stepped back.

Slightly put out, Jay shivered, his heart pounding rapidly. Whatever daze he’d fallen into faded away. He remained rock hard and aching, but he was distracted by the questions running through his mind. After untangling one from the others, he opened his mouth to speak.

“What the hell was that?”

“My apologies,” the man said. “I needed to feel you. Taste you. I needed to know.”

“Know what? If I can survive without air? You could have asked. The answer is no.”

The man smiled, but it didn’t reach his eyes. He looked a little sad. “Introductions are in order. My name is Skyler. I’m here to breed with you.”

Jay blanched. “Excuse me?”

“Breed. Copulate. Mate.”

“No, yeah, I got that.” Jay ran a hand through his hair, taking a deep breath. He must have crashed his car. Slammed his head against the steering wheel. It was the only explanation. Either that, or this guy was clinically insane. In either case, it might be best to play along.

“I’m sorry to tell you this, Skyler, but I’m a man. Men don’t breed with men. So, if mating for the sake of reproduction is what you’re looking for, I’m not the one.”

Skyler seemed to find him amusing. “I don’t seek to conceive a child. I seek to conceive an entity of a non-corporeal nature. Many entities, in fact. Those that only stem from euphoria. The euphoria experienced during orgasm.”

“Right.” Hard though he was, his upstairs brain was rapidly catching up. This man was a psycho. A sex maniac
who happened to bathe in ashes and lure strangers into the forest.

Jay began to back away.

Skyler matched his every step.

Though he found it unnerving, he tried to keep his expression passive. “Well, that sounds like quite a mission, and I wish you the best of luck with it. I’m just going to go. I have friends expecting me. It was nice meeting you, but–”

“There is no one expecting you.”

His stomach dropped. “What?”

“You are Jay Williams. You live alone and prefer to keep it that way. You have no close friends or sexual relationships, though you do enjoy pleasuring yourself on occasion. Under different circumstances, you would ravish me in a heartbeat. And the only reason you are here is because your jeep inexplicably stopped.”

Shit.

Jay grasped half of that. Then he was done listening. He turned and began to run.

Did Skyler have a fantastic body? Perhaps. Was Skyler out of his damn mind? Hell, yes.

Jay wasn’t about to bend over for him. He wasn’t that kind of guy. He’d slept with three men. Ever. And two of those had been as a teenager.

There was a reason he lived alone. While he wasn’t ready to confront that reason, it originated from letting someone penetrate the wall he’d built around himself.

And sex gave a whole new meaning to the word penetrate.

Even a glimpse of Skyler’s dick had revealed him too well-endowed for someone with so little experience. It didn’t matter how much Jay was fingered first – he shuddered with desire at the thought – he’d never be ready for something that big to fill him.

He cursed as a low branch whipped at his face. His steps were unsteady, made difficult by his arousal. It was stubbornly persistent. Trapped in the confines of his jeans, it throbbed, insisting he turn around. But his pride refused. If he had to ignore his primal desires to survive an encounter with some nut job, he would.

Without warning, the forest floor dropped out from under him. There was no time to slow before he was tumbling down a steep embankment, slamming against logs and crashing through brush. Pain radiated through his bones. His legs flailed for a foothold, but he was falling too quickly.

He grunted whenever his ribs absorbed the impact. The breath was stolen from him as he rolled to a stop at the bottom of the hill. Face down in decaying leaves, he was too stunned to move. He could only listen to rocks sliding down the embankment after him. Loosened earth showered ferns like rain.

Everything hurt. The throbbing between his thighs shifted to include his head and ribs. Scratches on his hands and face burned, but he was too busy trying to breathe to care.

He heard Skyler reach the crest of the embankment and pause. The mood had changed considerably. There was a difference between a game of cat and mouse, and an honest-to-God injury. While Jay had been too panicked to accurately gauge the danger he was in before, there was no longer any doubt. He was hurt. And he’d been caught.

Bushes rustled nearby. Skyler had reached the bottom of the embankment. He knelt beside Jay, resting a hand on his shoulder. Even the light touch made him jerk. He tried to get up and run, but a sharp pain in his side made him face-plant instead. He couldn’t run if he wanted to.

“Shhh,” Skyler soothed him, caressing his cheekbone. “I know you’re in pain. Tell me where it hurts.”

Jay might have obeyed, if he could unclench his jaw. Labored breaths escaped through his teeth.

Skyler gripped his shoulder and hip, gently turning him onto his back. Jay went rigid when a fresh wave of pain washed over him. His erection was softening. There was something about being unable to breathe that reordered his body’s priorities.

Skyler’s hard-on was also wilting fast. At least he didn’t get off on other people’s pain.

Jay lifted his gaze to Skyler’s face. He saw confusion there. Even a little hurt.

“Why did you run?” Skyler asked. “I offered you euphoria. Rhapsody. Elation beyond your wildest imaginings. And you ran. Injured yourself.” He parted the flaps of Jay’s jacket, leaning so moonlight encircled his head like a halo.

Jay was mesmerized, blinking heavily. He felt fingertips graze his lower abdomen as they slipped beneath the hem of his shirt. When his shirt was pushed up, cold air made his nipples harden. He shuddered as Skyler studied his chest. From the frown on his face, he didn’t like what he saw. One of his hands reached out. Heat radiated from his skin.

“Don’t–” Jay choked out, shifting a bit. “Don’t touch me.”

Skyler looked surprised. “I must touch you to heal you, Jay. How are you to create entities if you’re in pain?”

“You’re too hot. You’ll burn me.”

Skyler’s eyes darkened. “Only in the best way, I assure you. You’ll soon come to understand.”

He rested his hand on Jay’s ribs, his touch light. A soft glow emanated around it. It seemed to melt into Jay’s skin, expanding over his chest and abdomen. The feeling was like pins and needles at first.