Before Noah could ask, the strange emotion disappeared from Reign’s eyes and the nature of his touch shifted back to what Noah was familiar with.
“You’re still here?” Reign clipped, clearly not a fan of Barbatos’ cryptic words.
“Your car’s here, isn’t it? I need a lift, so give me one.”
Reign seemed like he had something to say, but ultimately just sighed. “Okay, let’s go.”
After they dropped Barbatos off at some bar downtown, he drove to the other side of the square, parking at one of the underground garages. The pedestrian zone started here, so they walked along it, nerves dancing in Noah’s stomach as terse silence settled between them. The cold didn’t help his anxious mood either, his many layers doing little to stop it from seeping into his bones.
“Noah.” Reign broke the awkwardness, giving Noah a heated sideways glance.
“Yeah?”
“Do you feel like barbeque or Italian?”
Great question. Both sounded nice and, knowing Reign, he’d booked both places so he could accommodate whatever Noah’s choice turned out to be. Noah’s stomach twisted in more knots. Things like these, that waswhat made it so hard to resist giving into the yearning he felt in his heart and to remember not to place meaning which wasn’t there into Reign’s actions.
Noah shivered at a gust of wind, thinking. The snow had mostly melted, leaving only what the snowplows had piled on the side of roads. Despite the sunny days, it was still cold, the temperature not what Noah was used to for January.
“Barbeque?” he said, decision made.
Reign hummed in agreement and it sounded self-satisfied. Perhaps he’d guessed correctly what Noah would pick, or maybe he was just amused at the whole thing. Either way, the sound slid down Noah’s throat and settled in his chest, stirring up more unwanted sensations, more shivers that mixed with the ones the winter chill was causing him. Clearly, he hadn’t dressed sufficiently, with the lack of scarf being his biggest mistake.
The sidewalks got busier when they rounded the corner and headed toward the COEX Mall where Galbi Heaven, a famous Korean Barbeque place, was located. Streetlamps hummed above them, washing everything in white and orange, and conversations buzzed in a constant cacophony of noise. Despite the crowds, Noah’s exposed neck didn’t get any warmer, at least not until Reign’s woolen red scarf ended up wrapped around it.
Breathing in Reign’s charred earth scent, Noah glanced at the demon. Unlike him, Reign wasn’t overdressed, sporting his slacks, a shirt and a dark gray longcoat.
“Thank you,” Noah muttered into the fabric, his lips tracing along one edge.
Reign’s gaze intensified, the red a thin rim around his pupils. “You are welcome,” he said and placed a hand at the low of Noah’s back.
Noah couldn’t help but lean into the contact, his body not giving him a choice.
With heat traveling through him from the touch and Reign’s warm scarf, the walk was a lot more pleasant. They made it to the mall about twenty minutes later, ascending to the top floor in one of the glass elevators. People and shops shrunk beneath Noah to blurry shapes of different colors, not much different from the cars outside. When they reached their floor, a suited waiter greeted them. He took their reservation details and led them to one of the VIP rooms, explaining what movies were available. Two tablets with menus awaited them on a table in front of a luxurious but comfortable-looking sofa. The cinema screen covered most of the wall across from it, while the other one was a floor-to-ceiling window with the drapes pulled to one side.
The waiter didn’t follow inside, letting them settle and pick their food in peace. Before long, Noah was sufficiently warm, so he removed his coat and vest.
“Are you not taking that off?” Reign tugged on the scarf.
Noah’s eyes focused on the red button on the cuff of Reign’s shirt, the smooth surface catching the light of the screen like a polished gem.
“It’s warm,” he argued, inhaling Reign’s scent.
Leaning in, Reign whispered into Noah’s ear, “Is that why, Noah? Or is it that it smells of me?”
Noah licked his lips and swallowed, his blood thrumming through him as his cock started filling. “It is,” he confessed the truth, feeling his neck and cheeks flush.
“Mm.” Reign mouthed along the curve of Noah’s ear, his teeth grazing gently. “It is arousing how you are not ashamed to speak the truth. To voice what your body desires,” he said, grasping Noah’s cock through the fabric of his pants.
Noah moaned, his hips bucking. Maybe they should skip dinner after all and get right to fucking. He opened his mouth to suggest that, but Reign shushed him with a finger, letting go of his dick to press the order button on the tablet. Noah whined at the loss of touch, but his erection calmed down the moment the waiter opened the door just minutes later and light poured in along with the aroma of grilled meat and vegetables.Okay, change of plans.The sex could definitely wait until after Noah had tried everything on the plates now placed in front of him.
“Go ahead then,” Reign encouraged once they were alone again, dimming the lights but leaving the curtains open. He started on his own plate, but spent more time watching Noah than actually eating.
“Have you decided on a movie?” he asked once he’d finished a perfectly juicy rib.
“Mmh, ghow bot mhe’liens?” Noah replied, still chewing.
“You might want to try that without your mouth full,” Reign chuckled, though he loaded up the alien survival horror that Noah had picked.
