That thought had bothered him the entire way here, and still did even though they were seated and going over the menu.
Yes, he’d already tried hard to ensure his sister didn’t take advantage of anyone’s generosity since he held himself to those standards, but this wasKaz.If Kazimir Ambrose got used for his money? He deserved it.
Didn’t he?
Since when did he even care?
He’d hesitated at the side of the bed this morning for a good five minutes before giving in and leaning over to plant a soft kiss against Kaz’s plush lips. The younger guy had come alive beneath him, nipping and kissing him back almost immediately.
It’d actually been tempting to shuck off his clothes and crawl back into bed. With the devil.
Nate had sat there on that couch and allowed Kaz to tie him up, to pose him just the way he liked and touch him however he pleased. When had the resistance fallen away? When had this started to feel less like coercion and more like voluntary play? When had he started to, not only like, but crave the twisted type of pleasure Kazimir could coax out of him?
What did all of this say about him? That he liked the care he was getting? That he enjoyed being wanted? Kaz didn’t just demand attention, he commanded it, and when they were together, it was as though everything else in the entire universe fell away.
He couldn’t even recall the last time his mind was devoid of those nagging voices, trying to remind him not to become a burden, not to complain, or cry. The ones that constantly kept an eye out for others and all the ways Nate could make their lives run smoother.
When they’d gotten to his place the other night, just before he’d gone off to take a shower, Nate had caught Kaz opening the fridge. His expression when he’d seen that it was practically empty had seared itself onto Nate’s brain.
There hadn’t been any judgment or disgust. Only puzzlement. As if Kaz had struggled to process what he was seeing.
Nate could afford to feed himself.
So why didn’t he?
How many days had he gone since graduation, surviving off of one rushed meal? He didn’t know, and more importantly, thinking back on it now, he couldn’t quite put his finger on why he’d done that in the first place.
“—Brother?” Neve’s voice trickled through some of Nate’s thoughts, too late for him to grasp anything she’d said at the beginning of the sentence.
Under the table, Kaz’s hand squeezed around his thigh, and when he glanced over, that same perplexed look was on the hotshot’s face.
Nate cleared his throat and smiled at his sister. “Sorry, what?”
“Are you that hungry?” Neve asked, her brow furrowed slightly. “Order whatever you want.”
They’d grabbed a booth in the corner of the room, her and Verga on one side, he and Kaz on the other. The restaurant was decorated in warm tones, and the dark mustard shade of the leather seats only somewhat crinkled beneath them whenever someone shifted. A touchpad in the shape of a square smaller than a coaster was set in the very center of the polished table, and they’d scanned the code to pull up the menu on their multi-slates.
Nate closed his now, the smile still carefully kept in place. “No, I’m fine. I had a lunch box at the theater.” Images of how he’d eaten it flashed in his mind, and he felt his cheeks heat. “I’ll just get something small.”
“Want to split an appetizer?” Kaz removed his hand to flick through the menu on his device.
“You should get something more than that,” Nate said. “You didn’t eat.”
The corner of his mouth tipped upward. “Sure I did.”
Verga, who’d been sipping at his water, coughed at that, some of it spilling onto his shirt. He turned toward Neve when she grabbed napkins and started to help dry him off, but it was obvious it was mostly so he could avoid looking at either of them.
Nate reached out and pinched Kazimir’s side just above his hip bone, that smile still plastered on his face, all the while, even when the Devil at his side winced.
“My brother has a tendency to put other people’s needs above his own,” Neve said, glancing between the two of them. “It’s fairly typical behavior from him. I hope that’s not something you plan on taking advantage of, Kaz.”
“Neve.” The smile dropped away all at once.
“What?” She tossed the wadded napkins off to the side and cocked her head. “I’m older than him, too, and even if I wasn’t, I’m well within my rights as your sibling to speak up for you.”
“I don’t need you to do that,” he disagreed. “I can take care of myself.”
“Can you?” Kazimir cut in, propping an arm up on the table and angling his body more toward Nate. He rested his cheek on his knuckles casually, his other arm stretching out to drape over the top of the booth behind Nate’s shoulders. “Does she know about the empty fridge?”
