“I went to yer apartment,” I said, through gritted teeth.
“Oh.” Vail smoothed a hand down his thigh and nodded. “Did you find anything? Rowen said I could stay here. Do you have half-and-half for your coffee? I asked Rowen and he wasn’t sure. He doesn’t drink coffee. Who doesn’t drink coffee?” Then he stopped, and his eyes widened. He jumped to his feet, either oblivious to his nakedness or not caring as he helped Rowen stand. “Why do you always have to push him around?”
I shook my head. This wasn’t something I was getting into right now. “How much do ye know about the Irish mob?”
He touched Rowen’s shoulder and looked at me. “The mob? I’d have to know quite a bit, considering I teach classes on the topic. Not only the Irish mob, but all the organized crime in the US. You know that. You were at my lecture with Rowen and the others.”
“I’m not talking aboutthe past. How much do ye know about the mob today?” I growled out.
Rowen shook his head, his red locks cascading over his forehead, but he brushed them off with his hand. “Don’t do this now, Cillian.”
“That’s what they were after.” I pointed a finger at Rowen. “They took his notebooks about the mob.”
“They did?” Vail’s eyes widened and he gasped. “My work? Oh no. I’m already behind.”
“How much do ye know about the current mob?” I stalked forward until we were face-to-face, and to my surprise, Vail didn’t back off. He stared up at me in wonder, almost like he couldn’t read the intimidation attempts in my expression, or he could and wasn’t going to give me what I wanted.
“Those notebooks are for a research project. I was writing a book for my publisher.”
I winced.Fuck, this was worse than I thought.
“How did you know about those notebooks?” He tossed a frown at Rowen, then me. “You were only at my apartment last night. Or this morning. Yes, this morning. After midnight is the morning. Why would they steal my research? It’s all very strange. I’ve only talked to the people in the Humanities Department at Manhattan Central and my publisher about the book. Oh, and I might have mentioned it a few times in class. I don’t really remember.”
I reacted without thought, surging forward and grabbing him by the neck—not tight enough to hurt him, but enough that I could drag him to the wall and slam him against it. Rowen called out, scrabbling at my shoulder, but I turned and shoved him away.
“Stay the fuck back, Rowen, ’less ye want me to snap his neck.”
Rowen froze and held up his palms. “Cillian, ye’re overreacting.”
“Shut the fuck up.” I pointed a finger at him and spun on Vail. His wide gaze pierced me, mouth popped open in a smallO. Pressing in closer to him, I added more pressure to his windpipe, and he gasped. “How much do ye know about the Irish mob?”
“I....” He shivered and chewed on his bottom lip. Something heavy poked me on the thigh and I glanced down at his cock, rock-hard and slapping against me. I tightened my hold on his neck and his cock jerked again.
Smirking, I returned my attention to his face. “Tell me, firebug. What do ye know?”
“Are you....” He swallowed, his Adam’s apple jumping. “Why?”
“Ye know why.” I tickled my finger down his cheek and jawline, pressing my thumb against his chin. He opened his mouth, and I slid the pad of my thumb across his bottom lip. “Tell me what ye know.”
His tongue darted out and he stared at me with lust-clouded eyes. He didn’t say what I wanted him to—that I was an Irish mobster—and whether he knew why I asked the question or not remained unclear. “I know about Sloan Killough. He’s the suspected Irish mob boss of New York City, but there’s no proof. The cops and feds never have proof. I know some men under him and possible leads as to how they’re connected.”
It was strange to hear him talk about it with such confidence. The one topic he had reason to be assertive about.
“Ye’re gonna tell us everything, firebug.Everything. Every wee piece of information ye collected. Am I clear?” I slid the hand not around his neck down his chest to his cock, curling my fist around his hard flesh. I tugged at him, swiping my thumb over his slit, and watched the tremble it elicited from him.
He nodded, his pupils growing large and dark when I squeezed his shaft. “Now? When? I wonder who stole my notebooks. Did you figure that out? Wonder if it was someone from another institution....”
I grabbed his neck so tightly his gasping was for air this time. He shuddered and moaned and his cock twitched in my hand. His enjoyment was stunning, and my body reacted to his obvious desire for danger. The head of my erection pressed against the zipper of my jeans and my balls ached. I wanted to get inside his mouth, fuck him until his throat was bruised.
“Are ye done?” Rowen scowled at me when he approached and stopped at my shoulder. “He’ll tell us what he knows.”
“No, I’m not done.” I dragged Vail by the throat toward the bed, and like a good boy, he came without a struggle.
He let me lead him around like a dog on a leash, and that was the sexiest thing I’d ever seen. He submitted so beautifully. I was almost tempted to demand he get on his knees and suck my cock, but I had other plans.
Before he reached the bed, I fell onto it first, letting go of his neck so I could shuffle backward until my spine was against the headboard. I gestured at him to get on the mattress, and he did, his cock bobbing against his belly as he crawled to me. The slim lines of his back arched, giving me a view of his scrumptious arse over his shoulder. My mouth watered.
He stopped in front of me, waiting in perfect submission.
