Hal was seething.
It was bad enough that some space anomaly had flung Kyle and him into another universe, one that had a duplicate Earth but, unlike their previous experiences, not duplicate people. As far as he knew they didn’t exist in this place and the world was protected by an entirely different set of heroes.
And one of them was hitting on Kyle.
Tony Stark, aka “Iron Man” (Hal wondered if he was compensating for something), had reached them first when they suddenly appeared in the sky over the Atlantic. And once their identities and situation had been worked out, Stark had offered them a place to stay at his New York penthouse while the elastic scientist with the pretty wife named Sue — a sad reminder for Hal of the Dibneys — tried to figure out how to get them home. But while he appreciated the offer, he wasn’t sure if he was going to survive it.
Stark had rubbed him the wrong way from the start. Hal could tell right away he was an arrogant, egotistical jerk. And he couldn’t understand why Kyle — sweet, generous, caring Kyle — seemed to be basking in Stark’s attention. It had all started when they got to New York, and Kyle and their host were talking about the city, comparing what was the same and what was different and how much they loved living there and blah blah blah and all Hal could think to contribute was that California had better beaches.
Well it was true, wasn’t it?
And they had shrugged it off and continued their conversation like he wasn’t even there. Then Stark had taken them to some hole-in-the-wall hot dog place for dinner, which Kyle said reminded him of a place he had always gone to. And while they were singing the praises of New York hot dogs, making noises that sounded nearly orgasmic, Hal had reached his breaking point and suggested that they and the hot dogs should just go get a room.
And that’s when the trouble really started.
As soon as the words were out of his mouth he wanted to take them back. Stark glanced at Kyle with a predatory gleam in his eye, Kyle blushed with a big grin on his face, and Hal got a painful knot in the pit of his belly because he realized what a fucking idiot he was.
He had known for a long time that Kyle had a crush on him, probably ever since he came back from the dead. John had told him it went even further back than that. Which kind of disturbed Hal, because that meant that Kyle had a thing for him when he was either Parallax or the Spectre — or both — but that was an issue to deal with another day. It had become a constant in his life, Kyle’s eyes always on him and the adoring smile he had just for Hal. And Hal had taken it for granted and now Kyle was looking at someone else that way.
What did you expect, Jordan? That he was going to moon over you forever while you fucked around with half the female population of Coast City? Because you were too much of a coward to admit that you were attracted to him, too?
Hal had sullenly followed them back to the penthouse, hands jammed into his jacket pockets and a scowl on his face, because now they were openly flirting with each other. Part of him — a very small part — thought he should do the honorable thing and find somewhere else to stay, but it was overruled by the part of him that kept thinking “He’s MINE!” and there was no way he was going to leave them alone together.
The penthouse looked like something Bruce would own just for photo ops with business magazines — sparsely furnished but tasteful, and obviously expensive. Stark handed him a bottle of beer that probably cost more than the entire case in Hal’s fridge back home, then opened a bottle of Chateau Something-or-other to share with Kyle. And now Hal was sitting here watching what could have been the best thing that ever happened to him get snatched away by someone else.
Did he mention he was a fucking idiot?
He drained his fourth bottle of expensive beer and set it down on the coffee table a little harder than he had intended. That at least got their attention away from each other. “I think it’s time we got some sleep. It’s been a long day and we’ll need to be alert and ready to go tomorrow if Dr. Richards comes up with a way to get us home.”
“Right,” Stark said. He stood up and set his wine glass on the table. “There’s a guest room down the hall on the left,” he said to Hal. Then he turned to Kyle and the predatory look was back. “There’s another across the hall, but you’re more than welcome to join me—”
“No! You need to keep your hands off of him!” Kyle and Stark stared at him in surprise. Hell, Hal had surprised himself with the outburst. But there was no going back now. He clenched his fists and stared back.
Kyle stood up, frowning. “I don’t tell you who you can sleep with,” he said angrily. “Why do you think you have a say in this?”
Hal cringed. Ouch. Okay, the kid had a point…
“He appears to be jealous.” Stark laughed and reached out to run his fingers through Kyle’s hair. “But I can put my hands wherever you like, Kyle.”
Hal just reacted. One second Stark was sneering at him, the next their host was sprawled on the floor with his hand to his jaw and Hal’s hand was stinging.
“What …?” Kyle gaped at them, first looking at Stark, then at Hal. “What the hell are you doing?”
“I …” Hal looked at Kyle, imagined Kyle and Stark in bed together… It was time for one of those split-second decisions he was trained for as a pilot. “Something I should have done a long time ago.” He stepped forward, grabbed Kyle, and kissed him.
Kyle tried to pull back at first, but Hal held him tight until Kyle relaxed and returned the kiss. The kiss turned deeper, tongues pushing into each other’s mouths, and their hands started wandering over each other’s bodies. Hal grabbed Kyle’s ass and pulled him close, grinding his erection into Kyle’s, while Kyle threaded his fingers into Hal’s hair.
Then another set of hands joined the exploration and Stark pressed up behind Kyle. “Now that you two have worked out your issues, can I play too?”
Hal broke the kiss with Kyle and opened his mouth to tell Stark to fuck off, but then he caught the excited look in Kyle’s eyes, the way he was tilting his head so Stark could kiss his neck … Fine. If Kyle wanted it, he would do it. It’s wasn’t like Hal would have to deal with the asshole once they left this universe. When they got home he could have Kyle all to himself. “If Kyle wants to.”
Kyle nodded and smiled at Hal with eyes full of desire, and Hal realized he had Kyle back. And this time he wasn’t going to take it for granted.
“Let’s go into the bedroom,” Stark said, giving them a little push towards the hallway. He had one hand on Kyle’s shoulder and the other on the small of Hal’s back, and the touch sent a jolt through Hal’s body as he thought about the three of them in bed together.
Maybe this was a good idea after all.
They kept Kyle between them, kissing his neck and shoulders as they peeled off their clothes. Hal paused for a moment at the sight of the power cell implanted in Stark’s chest, but he was distracted when Kyle climbed onto the massive bed and lay down in the middle of it. He looked at them invitingly and Hal’s heart thudded in his chest. Fuck, he was gorgeous!
“What do you want, Kyle?” Stark asked as he climbed onto the bed, crawling over to kneel next to Kyle. Hal followed, not wanting to be left behind.
Kyle grinned. “I want both of you to suck me off.”
“Both of us?” Hal asked. “At the same time?”
Kyle nodded, still grinning at him. “At the same time.”
“Don’t worry, Jordan,” Stark said. “I don’t bite.” He winked at Kyle, then bent down to swipe his tongue over Kyle’s cock.
Kyle’s tilted his head back and sighed. His eyes met Hal’s and he gave him that smile again. That was all the inspiration Hal needed.
It was strange at first, being face to face with a man he didn’t like while they licked and sucked Kyle’s cock and balls. And of course their mouths and tongues would collide as they worked together to make Kyle moan and writhe, and it sent more jolts through Hal’s body. Kyle’s hands were in their hair, urging them on, and when Stark turned his head to kiss Hal, plunging his tongue into Hal’s mouth, Kyle gasped out, “Fuck yeah!”
They kissed whenever their mouths met now, which Kyle was enjoying if his moans were any indication. When Kyle’s thrusts quickened and he gasped “Gonna come…”, Hal swallowed him deep and Kyle came, shouting Hal’s name.
Hal lifted his head, a big smile on his face because Kyle had called out his name, but then Stark was kissing him again and pushing him back on the bed so that they rolled away from Kyle with Stark on top of Hal. They ground against each other, Hal struggling to flip them over while Stark struggled to keep him on his back, all the while kissing and groping. But Hal was bigger and he managed to flip them over and pin Stark to the bed, holding Stark’s wrists over his head while they kissed and thrust their cocks against each other. The power cell was digging into Hal’s ribs but he ignored it, intent on keeping the upper hand.
They came nearly instantaneously, moaning into each other’s mouths. Hal collapsed on top of him, breathing hard, then turned his head. Kyle was watching them, eyes wide. Shit. He rolled off Stark and sat up. “Sorry.”
Kyle laughed. “There’s nothing to be sorry about. That was hot!”
Stark laughed, too, and rolled off the bed to head into the bathroom. Hal scooted around so he was lying next to Kyle. Kyle brushed a few sweaty strands of hair from Hal’s brow, then leaned down to kiss him. Hal sighed and caressed Kyle’s face. Next time it was going to be Kyle writhing underneath him…
“Here you go.” Stark tossed a warm, damp cloth to Hal, then reached down to pick up his clothes.
“You going somewhere?” Hal asked.
“Duty calls. I have some things I need to check on,” Stark said as he dressed. “I’m not sure when I’ll be back, but I’ll have Richards call you here as soon as he has something. My secretary, Ms. Potts, will be by in the morning to check on you.”
Kyle smiled at him. “Thanks, Tony.”
“Yeah, thanks,” Hal said. Okay, so maybe the guy wasn’t that bad.
“If you’re ever in the neighborhood again, you’re welcome to stay here.” He winked at them, then turned and left.
Hal cleaned up and tossed the towel on the floor, then rolled over to put his arm around Kyle. “I really am sorry. About not admitting how I feel about you and—”
Kyle put his finger over Hal’s mouth. “It’s okay.” He rolled to his side and kissed Hal. “I’m sure you can figure out some way to make it up to me.”