Lachlan snapped. They had an entire cult of blood mages after them. Apollo had already been kidnapped once, and Lachlan almost lost him forever. He was going to have this conversation. Apollo could eviscerate his heart afterward. He didn't care. He couldn't hold it in anymore.
Lachlan caught the bedroom door before Apollo could shut it on him. He backed up, and Lachlan shut the door behind him and turned the lock.
"I've tried to be patient and let you figure this out on your own, but I'm done. So fucking done," Lachlan said, trying to get the words out without raising his voice.
"Don't do this to me, Lachie…"Apollo tried to move around him, but Lachlan ducked under his arm, lifted him over one shoulder, and dropped him down on the bed. He pinned Apollo's hands above his head and held him down.
"Stop. Moving. You're going to listen to me. Hate me afterward if you need to. I don't care. I almost fucking lost you, Apollo, so you are going to hear me out even if I have to sit on you to make it happen," he snarled.
Apollo's eyes flashed with the brilliant gold of his dragon, and Lachlan knew that he had the strength to throw him off if he wanted to.
Lachlan had never been great with words, but he didn't need to be for this. He just needed to get it off his chest so that he could fuckingbreatheagain.
"You're a pain in the ass, Apollo Greatdrakes," he said, and Apollo's eyes narrowed. Shit. Bad start. "You are. You crashed into my world and blasted it to hell. You've done nothing but confuse the shit out of me for years. I thought it was a crush, so I hooked up with blonds to try and get it out of my system, and it was all fucking pointless."
Lachlan's grip on his wrists tightened as he took a breath and continued, "Nothinghas worked to get rid of this fucking ache for you. All you do is ignore me, and I still want you. I haven't been with anyone for over a year because none of it is worth it if it's not with you. You are my fucking unicorn dragon, Apollo. Do you get that? I just want a chance to fucking love you. You deserve more than being a party boy hook-up. You deserve everything, so let me give it to you."
Apollo's eyes were filled with tears, and Lachlan suddenly felt like a brute, pouring his messy heart over him and not letting him go. If he did let him go, he was sure he would never get to touch Apollo again.
"Are you done?" Apollo asked, blinking back the tears.
Lachlan's heart hung in tatters, but he let Apollo's wrists go. "Yeah, I'm done." He went to move off him, but Apollo wrapped his legs around him.
"Where the fuck do you think you are going? You can't just say all that and leave me," he said.
Lachlan frowned in confusion. "I don't know what I'm meant to do now."
"You're meant to kiss me and make it a good one," Apollo insisted.
Lachlan brushed his fingers over Apollo's cheek before leaning down and gently kissing him. His lips tasted of heartache, but Lachlan still didn't stop.
Apollo threaded his fingers through his hair and tugged him down, his soft mouth hungry and searching. Lachlan was shaking, and he couldn't hide it. Apollo's legs tightened around him, and it was the only thing that kept him from feeling like he was going to fly apart.
Lachlan swallowed back the lump of emotion in his throat and lifted up. "Is this a kiss goodbye before you poison me or something?"
"Would you like it to be?" Apollo asked, his fingers trailing down Lachlan's back. "Because after that big speech, I don't think that's the case."
"Always so confusing," Lachlan sighed and kissed the tip of his nose.
"You love it. You love me. You said it just now."
Lachlan tickled his ribs, making him squirm. "Don't mock me, you dick. Just tell me you love me back and be done with it."
Apollo tugged his dark curls until Lachlan lowered his head. "You better not be doing all this just to fuck me in Paris and toss me aside when we get home."
"I'm not."
"And you better be really prepared to give me everything you promised you would because I'm not good at rejection or being ignored."
Lachlan's lips twitched. "I've noticed. You're high maintenance in all the ways, and I love that about you too."
"Yeah?" Apollo asked, voice small.
"Yeah," Lachlan replied, kissing the corner of his mouth.
"I don't know how good I'll be at a relationship. I've never had one."
Lachlan kissed him again, feather soft. "Neither have I. We'll figure it out as we go along. One day at a time."
