Sebastian was saying his name again, sounding distressed. Wesley squinted from where his head rested sideways on the floor, and saw Sebastian crawling toward him.
“I am so sorry.” Sebastian flopped down on his side on the floor next to Wesley, looking with tipsy earnestness into his eyes. “Are you all right?”
Wesley reeked of well-aged whiskey, his nose and throat still burning, his head probably bruised, his limbs useless as a fish on land.
He started to laugh.
“Oh no, I broke you,” Sebastian said miserably.
“No, duck, I’m fine,” Wesley promised, trying to raise a hand to wave that concern away and giving up when nothing moved. “I’m marvelous, actually. My limbs are all heavy and tingly to match my head—I haven’t been this relaxed in an age.”
Sebastian was still looking into his eyes, his handsome face barely inches away. “I can’t rein the magic in.”
“It’s all right,” Wesley promised again.
Sebastian sighed, letting his head drop. It landed on Wesley’s outstretched arm, and Sebastian didn’t move away. He didn’t seem to have registered that he was using Wesley’s arm as a pillow, but it was nice. “I shouldn’t have said that.”
“You most certainly should have.” Wesley had to force his mouth and tongue to form words, but he wasn’t letting this go. “And I’m going to need an explanation.”
“Well, controlling magic is—um—I suppose it’s like having the reins of wild horses, and when you drink, the reins are hard to hold—”
“Not an explanation forthatpart.”
Oh,Sebastian’s mouth formed.
Wesley tried to lift his head, and gave up. Sebastian was wonderfully close anyway. “Tell me about the man you didn’t kiss.”
Sebastian bit his lip. “Another soldier, from Georgia,” he said, barely a whisper. “We shared a tent. But I did want to kiss Jasper. I tried to, when our hands were on each other.”
“What happened?” Wesley said, also whispering.
Sebastian looked like the moment hurt to remember. “He said, ‘What the fuck, de Leon, you’re not a fucking fairy, are you? I thought you liked women!’”
Wesley’s chest clenched.
“And I saidI do,” said Sebastian, “because Ido. And then he sucked my cock.”
Wesley took a sharp breath through his nose.
“Jasper wanted his mouth on my dick but not my lips on his, and I didn’t understand.” Sebastian swallowed. “I still don’t.”
Anger simmered under Wesley’s heavy limbs. He’d met more than one Jasper in his day, some of them in difficult positions and deserving of pity, and some of them the worst kind of hypocrites.
“There was another soldier, after Jasper, and a man in Germany once, but I’d learned better than to try to kiss them,” Sebastian said, echoes of old wounds in his voice. “And after the war, there were women again, and wanting men hadn’t made me stop wanting women. But I’ve never kissed a man.”
Try kissing me, I’ll show you what those other men didn’t.Wesley opened his mouth.
“Why did your father shoot all these animals?” Sebastian suddenly said. “That poor fox, and the tiger! The deer, perhaps you needed him for food, but you did not eat the fox or tiger. Why not enjoy them alive?”
Wesley would have beaten his head against the floor, if he could have moved. “Are you drunk enough to babble? Aftertwowhiskies?”
“I’m not drunk.”Sebastian closed his eyes. “And I’m not babbling, I’mrestingafter two whiskies.”
Wesley snorted. “Are you.” He watched Sebastian for a moment, the way the firelight danced on his profile. “You know, tigers are beasts of prey, not giant house cats. I’m not advocating for safari hunts, you understand, but I did have a valet get eaten by a tiger once.” He paused. “Unless—that wasn’t more of thismagicbusiness, was it?”
Sebastian didn’t answer. His head had grown heavier on Wesley’s arm. “You had best be resting, not falling asleep on me, because your magic is very much awake.” Wesley tried to lift his head, but his neck muscles refused. “Sebastian, you paranormal lightweight, do you hear me?Sebastian.”
Sebastian took a slow breath and didn’t answer.
