A beat passed before he twisted, turning the spray on and then tested the water. He took his time, standing in the glass shower stall, his palm collecting droplets of the spray. When he finally turned around and met Nuri’s gaze, his eyes had darkened to a deep shade of gray.
“Shower sex certainly has its drawbacks,” he stated as he exited the stall and approached Nuri, “but I’d hardly call it effort.”
“That’s not what I meant.” He couldn’t help but glance over Silver’s large form toward the water, gulping.
“What? You didn’t honestly think I ordered you in here just to bathe, did you?” One of his arms snaked around Nuri’s waist, pulling him in until their chests met. “The innocent act is cute and all, but now that I’ve seen how you are in the throes of passion, I’m admittedly finding it harder to buy into.”
“I don’t know what you’re implying.” Nuri planted a palm against Silver’s shoulder and tried to push him away, but the other man didn’t budge.
“Will you answer the question I asked you last night?” Silver ignored his attempts to separate them. “Who else have you slept with?”
“That’s still none of your business.”
“I disagree.”
“Disagree all you like,” he gave up trying to free himself and opted to glare up at the Emperor instead, “it doesn’t change anything.”
Silver hummed. “That’s true. The past is the past, in any case.”
“So then drop it.”
“I’m still curious about something, I’m afraid.” Silver grabbed onto the short hairs at the base of Nuri’s skull, forcing his head back with a little tug. “Who was better? Me or them?”
“Considering I was too under the influence at the time to recall much of anything,” Nuri stated, “I’m afraid I can’t adequately answer that question.”
“Is that so?”
“It’s as I said last night,” he repeated. “I know what happened between us, but the details…I can’t remember.”
The corner of Silver’s mouth turned up at that and when Nuri frowned it burst into a full-blown grin. “Can you hear yourself, Narek? The disappointment is impossible to miss.Don’t be too upset though. It was the first time between us, true, but it won’t be the last. I’ll make sure to make this next time memorable. It’s unfortunate for you that it’s day time. Surely moonlight would make this easier for you to accept.”
This situation was all kinds of fucked up, and Nuri was confused by everything going on.
Silver had never acted this way with him before, had never been this open. Sex between two people could alter the dynamics between them, sure, but this felt fundamentally different, and that left Nuri unsure where it was safe to take his next step.
What if the ground was about to fall out from under him?
“If you’re messing with me right now, majesty,” Nuri forced himself to say tersely, once more putting his pride aside, “I don’t appreciate it.”
“Isn’t it you,” Silver inquired, “who’s messing with me? You started all of this with your tantrum the other day. You’re the one who set this in motion.”
“Let go. I’m serious, majesty, release me this instant.”
Silver’s eyes narrowed and then he lifted him. He carried him into the shower stall, clicking the glass door shut behind them before placing him down.
Nuri slapped him.
The sound cracked within the stall, sharp and deafening. Despite the shower spray, the world seemed to come to a grinding halt.
His mouth popped open the second he processed what he’d done and he retreated a step, bumping up against the damp wall sooner than he would have liked. “I didn’t…”
There’d been plenty of occasions over the past ten years where Nuri had wanted to slap the Emperor, but he never would have guessed there’d come a day when he’d actually act on thaturge. To say it was suicidal would be putting it lightly. He’d be lucky if Silver didn’t bash his face into the tile or drown him.
“Why so afraid?” Silver asked, and that was when Nuri realized he was shaking. He took a single step closer, eyes narrowing when that had Nuri bracing himself. “Do you think I’m going to hit you back?”
“Forgive me, majesty, I lost my temper and—”
“I’m convinced now more than ever that you sustained a mild head injury in the accident.” His arms came up, caging Nuri in, but he didn’t touch him. “If I’m going to punish you, Nuri, I have better ways of doing it than turning to violence.”
