I continue to examine the wine, not yet composed enough to look at Nico. “And you’re just friends?” With luck, my tone expresses only vague interest in the answer.
His furrowed brow and clear confusion at the question ease my concern. “Yes. Best friends, but only friends. Why do you ask?”
There is no way I’m answering that honestly. “I’m merely putting all the pieces together. I’d prefer it if jealous lovers aren’t bursting in trying to kill us while we’re intimately occupied. I’ve had enough of that.” I flash him a wide grin that I don’t feel and pray to the Founder that he buys it.
When I glance at him, Nico is sheepishly trying to meet my gaze. “Marek only acts like that when he is drunk. I pay no attention to it.”
Not finding any guile in his gaze or posture, I can’t help but believe him. I card my fingers through his soft curls, and he leans into my touch, sending a pleasant rush through me. It’s exhilarating to be this close to him again. “So how much of last night do you remember?”
He grimaces and chews on his lower lip. “A bit. You helped me into the house. You put me to bed. A few other flashes of things I might have said, which I am hoping desperately to forget or pretend were a dream.” He glances up at me through his long lashes. “I thought you promised to come back tonight but given how inebriated I was, it could have been a dream.”
“You were quite chatty. And very handsy, which under more sober circumstances would have been something I’d have encouraged.” It looks like he wants to shrink in onhimself, and I take pity on him. “Don’t worry. I’m glad I was there to help you get home safely. What if those thugs from before had cornered you in that state? You need to be more careful.”
Standing, he takes a tentative step toward me. “I will. I promise.” He runs a knuckle along my jaw. “Thank you for helping me.”
“You’re welcome.” The way he’s looking at me, like he wants to consume me, has my heart racing and adrenaline pumping through my veins.
He gathers me into his arms, and the barest brush of his lips against my ear has me half hard almost instantly. “You took such good care of me last night. Let me return the favor.” My whole body tingles as he presses his lips to mine. The kiss starts gently but soon becomes hungry and frantic. He tugs at the front of my pants, and I grin, though I don’t make any attempt to help. Instead, I reach for him, only to have my hands gently pushed away. “No, Bello. Not tonight.”
With a small shove, he nudges my pants over my hips, and they drop to the ground. I’m reminded of how rapidly things progressed the last time we were in a similar situation. “You don’t waste time, do you?”
Nico slides his fingers into my hair, tugging gently, as his other hand lightly brushes along my thickening cock. “Not when I know what I want.”
Oh, Founder, how I adore his confidence. “And right now, you know what you want?” Thankfully one of us does.
His warm breath caresses my skin as he nuzzles into my neck, just below my ear. “Yes. Tonight, I want to take care of you. Will you let me?”
He lifts the hem of my shirt, and between the two of us, we manage to tug it over my head and drop it to the tile floor. I palm his cock through his pants only to have him step away with a small shake of his head. For a moment, he openly admires my body. Not one to shy away from admiration, I arch my back and stretch my arms above my head, enjoying his obvious approval. Some witty comment is on the tip of my tongue, but the words are swept away by another of his hungry kisses, which I return eagerly, my own need growing with the increasing energy between us.
Dropping to his knees, he settles between my spread legs, nuzzling into the crease of my thigh. “You smell good.” That shouldn’t be as erotic as it is. I’ve done this and had it done to me numerous times before. Now is no different. And yet it truly is.
“Bello, sit. Please. Let me care for you.” His voice is deep and silky, and without hesitation, I let him gently push me toward the empty chair. I slide into the seat, watching curiously as he walks into the house, disappearing for several minutes. I’m about to stand up and go after him when he reappears carrying a bowl, a towel over his arm, and something clutched in one hand. There’s a sloshing of liquid as he sets the basin on the ground, lining up a cloth and a bar of soap next to it. He picks up my foot, removes my boot, and tosses it through the archway into his room. “Nico?” His only response is a grin as he repeats the process on my other foot, slides my pants from aroundmy ankles, and tosses them after my boots. He sets my feet into the bowl of warm water, gently washing them with the cloth and cake of soap. The scent of sandalwood and myrrh travel on the warm steam. I’m still confused about why he’s doing this, but at least it’s pleasant, if completely unexpected. Moments later, he’s drying my feet and moving the basin out of reach.
I am not at all prepared for what comes next.
A groan forces its way out of my mouth as he firmly presses his thumbs into the arch of my foot. “Fucking hells, Nico.” It’s exquisite. Decadent. This isn’t something I’ve experienced before, and I won’t be denying myself this pleasure in the future. As he attentively works his thumbs along the sole of my foot toward my toes, I melt into the chair, debating whether the argument could be made that a foot massage is equal to, or better than, sex. At the very least it’s excellent foreplay.
I’m startled out of my thoughts by a wet sensation along the bottom of my foot. I open my eyes to find Nico watching me as he licks along my arch with the flat of his tongue. My cock throbs, and I’m mesmerized. His full lips close around my toes, one at a time, gently sucking, tongue teasing the sensitive skin. I groan again, gripping the arms of the chair to keep from touching myself. After he thoroughly worships each of my toes, he sits on his heels with a very self-satisfied smirk. “Do you like that?”
“You know I do. Now you’re fishing for compliments.” I grin and slide my foot along his thigh, inching it higher to rub against his fat cock. Laughing, he gently grasps me by the ankle, blocking any further movement before settingmy foot on the tiles. It’s clear that he intends to stop any attempts I make to touch him intimately. “Nico.”
He lowers his head, and his tongue darts out to lick behind my bent knee before mouthing gently at the wetness. My entire body vibrates with desire, and my cock is already leaking precum. I moan again as his supple lips burn a scorching trail of kisses along my inner thigh. His beard tickles deliciously as it brushes my sensitive skin, his gorgeous mouth inching closer to my weeping cock. “Nico.” He gently mouths at my balls, licking them and sucking them into his mouth before releasing them to ghost his lips up the length of my aching cock, barely brushing against my hot skin. I gasp for air, slack-jawed, eyes half-closed.
His expression, like the cat who got the cream, would make me laugh if my brain hadn’t already melted under his talented attention. He beams with satisfaction, as if the pleasure he’s giving me is matched by what he’s receiving. Except he’s not receiving because he won’t let me do anything. His nimble fingers stroke along my thigh and cup my balls, kneading firmly while his other hand lightly grips the base of my cock. It’s a struggle to remember to breathe.
I slide my fingers into his dark curls and close my eyes as his warm, plump lips suck me into the wet heat of his mouth. His hot tongue runs lazy circles around the head of my cock, teasing along the underside before pressing the tip of his tongue against the sensitive spot, rubbing in a slow circular motion. I desperately want to thrust with each swirl of his talented tongue, but I force my hips to stay still. Fuck, I want more. I want him. He pulls back,releasing me with a soft pop. “Bello, you look good sprawled across my furniture.”
I take a shuddering breath and grin, letting my eyes momentarily drift closed. “I look good anywhere.” I hope I seem relaxed. Thankfully, my voice doesn’t quaver, but it’s all an act. He’s wrecked me to my core, and it’s unnerving.
Nico chuckles, but I’m not sure if it’s in response to my comment or because he sees through my act. I stop caring as he lowers his mouth again, this time sliding his plush lips all the way down to the base of my cock. “Fuck.” I grip his hair and groan loudly as I’m swallowed whole, his warm breath wafting across my abdomen. Excruciatingly slowly, he hollows his cheeks, pulling firmly as he slides his lips from the base to the head before reversing course. “Fucking hells, Nico.” Though I try to sound seductive, my voice is too shaky for that. “You have a very wicked mouth. I love what you’re doing with it.”
He continues to suck as he brushes his fingers along the back of my thighs and across my ass, teasing them into the crease. I scoot forward and spread my legs wider, hooking them over the arms of the chair. With another soft pop, he releases my aching cock. “Then you will love this, Bello.” He glides his fingertips over my hole, pressing the pad of his middle finger against my entrance. My body is taut with anticipation. “I love watching you like this.”
Very deliberately, he torments me with his mouth and hands, keeping the pace slow and relaxed until I’m sure I’ll lose my mind. I’m achingly hard, leaking profusely, and desperate for Nico to stop teasing me. It’s foolish thinking. Nico is obviously enjoying this. But if he thinks I’ll beg forrelease, he’ll be waiting a long time. I may want to come, but Shabah never beg.
Sucking at his own fingers, he gets them thoroughly wet before gently pressing two against my hole. I meet his gaze. “Yes. Fuck yes, please.” He dips his fingertips inside me, torturing me with slow, short strokes just at the rim. The pleasure is intense, and I want more—more lips, more hands, more everything—until there’s nothing but his fingers and wicked mouth torturing me exquisitely. He does his best to fulfill that unspoken wish, sucking me into his mouth as his hands tug and press against the perfect spots.
My balls constrict, pulling up close to my body, and I gently squeeze his shoulder, but the only response he gives is a deep hum in the back of his throat before sucking even harder, thrusting his fingers deeper and curling them perfectly on the way out. The thought of coming in his mouth, him swallowing around me, watching it happen—my body seizes and shakes while I come with a roar.
