“Of course, you’re welcome. You’re one of us.” He hugs me again, then looks back at a bench seat, a soft smile I neverthought I’d see on the serious man sweeps over his face. “Come and sit with us. I’d like you to meet my boy, Noah.”
I recognise the young man from the first night at Bound, witnessing his collaring from a distance. Noah has almost as many tattoos as Saint and is incredibly pretty—yet he exudes sex appeal. He looks adoringly at Saint and happily lifts his head for a kiss as Saint bends down.
“Babe, this is Memphis. He lived with us for three years. And is the reason Royal is stomping around scowling at everyone.”
Noah laughs a deep laugh and looks me up and down. “I like you already. Take a seat, and we can get to know each other.”
“I should’ve thought this through,” Saint laughs. “You two are going to be trouble.”
Noah gives Saint a wink. “I like getting into trouble, the punishments are worth it.”
“Brat.” Saint shakes his head but sits down and pulls his boy into his lap.
I watch them, knowing they have exactly what I want, and it hurts to see it. I tell them I’ll be back and put my beer down and hit the dance floor. I may have to wait for my chance at a relationship, but that doesn’t mean I can’t get my groove on with some hot guy on the dance floor.
The Scissor Sisters blare out of the speakers, and I squeeze through the mass of hot, sweaty men and dance. It doesn’t take long before I’m surrounded by men who scream ‘Top’ at me. It’s the usual crowd of leather clad and harnessed bears, the muscled, overly handsome self-assured men all trying to join in. I smile at the first one and move in closer, turning my back to him so I can grind my arse into his groin.
Yep, this is what I need. His hands roam down my ribcage to grip my hips. He leans in closer, his mouth to my ear. “You are the sexiest man in here.” His teeth graze myneck, making me shiver. I haven’t had a man just come onto me for a very long time. I was with Simon for over two years, and he wanted a permanent BDSM lifestyle. One where he was supposed to be my Daddy, but twisted it to being my Dom.
He spins me around to face him, and he really is gorgeous. “Why, thank you.” I flutter my eyelashes and let him lead me from the dance floor to a dark corner booth.
He sits first, so I straddle his thighs and settle down with a wiggle. I lean into him and press my lips to his. They are soft and warm, and when they part, it’s his tongue that touches mine first. He tastes faintly of beer, but I don’t think he’s had much to drink. The rest is all him, hot and eager as he slips his hands round to my bum and pulls me in closer. I can feel his erection and rub against him, moaning as his warm hands slide under my shirt, and his nails scrape over my skin. We kiss for a long time, coming up for breath only to dive back in again. I don’t know how much time has passed, but I feel someone sit next to us and an extra hand slips under my shirt. I break the kiss and look to my right.
“You want something extra?” the new guy asks and leans in to kiss the guy I’m sitting on. He doesn’t seem surprised by the addition, but it’s not what I want for tonight.
I shift and stand up. “You go for it.”
I turn away without either of them saying a word. I’m annoyed, but it’s not a big thing. Of course, I look over towards Saint, then silently curse. Sitting at the table next to him is bloody Royal. He stares at me, his face expressionless, then he turns to Saint and says something.
I weave back out and to the door. “Goodnight,” I say to the massive bouncers at the door. It’s a warm night, so I decide to walk instead of getting a cab. It shouldn’t take me too long. I remember the area; the town I grew up in hasn’t changed too much.
When I reach the corner and look around to check if it’s safe to cross the road, I see Royal a dozen or so steps behind me. He halts and crosses his arms over his broad chest but doesn’t say anything. I’m really not interested in playing his games, so ignoring him, I check the road again and cross over. He’s the one having issues with me, if his reaction to the party at the club is anything to go by.
I know I’ve come back to see if there is any way we can work things out, to explore the feelings I have for him. If he’s this affected by me, I’d put money on him feeling the same way, but with less understanding of why and when it happened. Time is something I can give him, if he can find the way to talk to me without being a total knob about it. Preferably not tonight, I’ve had enough of this Foster brother for tonight.
As I turn the last corner to the flat I’m renting from Airbnb, a hand touches my shoulder, and even though I’m pretty sure it’s Royal, I still let out a very loud shriek and spin around. “For fuck’s sake!”
“What? You knew I was behind you,” he says, his hands out in front of him.
“You’re kidding me, right? I guess with your height and being all muscled up, you’ve never worried about being jumped. No, of course you haven’t. But as a short, obviously gay man, I worry all the fucking time. Now, what do you want?”
“You grind up on strangers a lot, do you? Tease them, then walk away.” He looks pissed off, and I have no idea why.
“Fuck you,” I snap. “What I do, or don’t do, is none of your fucking business.”
He does at least have the decency to look abashed, but I’m not interested. “Look, I don’t know what Saint told you, but I think you should leave me alone. You made your opinion of me crystal clear in the club. I don’t think there’s anything for us to say.”
Something crosses his face, it’s not anger or even frustration, it’s something more, like sadness or maybe loss. Either way, it’s not going to work on me tonight. I want a hot shower and my bed. I can’t stop the sad smile on my face, even knowing he’ll see it.
“Good night, Royal,” I tell him, then turn back and walk away.
It’s been two weeks since I followed him home from the club, and it’s impossible to get that man out of my head. Memphis bloody MacIntosh has taken up penthouse residency in my mind. He’s in my dreams, ones that end up with me waking up with my hand around my rigid knob and a hard-on that won’t go away until I come—usually with his face in my mind and his name my lips. And when I come? It’s so hard I feel like I’m going to go blind or pass out at the intensity.
After spending time with my dads and hearing what I hate to say are sensible reasons for Memphis not coming home, my thoughts are on Memphis showing signs of being a boy when he was at home and being so blind to them. I was still in training at Bound, and while I knew who I was, I hadn’t learnt the subtle cues from boys and littles. The littles at the club were never shy or held back what they wanted. But that was because they were all part of teaching me. It took much more practice to understand the nuances of a shy or nervous boy.
The hardest part is admitting to myself that I want him. And that Pops is right: Memphis needed to find his own path before coming back, not just to here but to me.
At least while I’m working, my mind is occupied. I can focus on my classes. It’s when I get to the gym that my mind wanders back to him, which is exactly where I am when I hearSaint’s voice. He’s supposed to be working today. I look around, and my jaw drops. He’s talking to Roman and bloody Memphis. What the hell? I thought he’d realise how screwed up my head is over the whole Memphis is back mess.
