Shae doesn’t feel amazing. He feels raw and shattered, and he has no idea what the rest of his life is going to look like. But he wants to live up to the adoration in Arthur’s eyes.
“Well, we’ve bathed and healed, and I think it’s time we really talked.” Shae sits on the edge of the bed and starts to unlace his boots. “We reached Lyrisenia, and I dealt with the demon. Not quite how I planned, but you fulfilled the terms of our contract.”
Arthur closes the door behind him. Locks it with an audible click. “Are you firing me, necromancer?”
The word doesn’t sting anymore, not when Arthur says it so fondly.
“Maybe.” He kicks away his boots and tilts his head up as Arthur draws nearer. The man’s so tall. “I was thinking, since we worked so well together, that I wouldn’t be opposed to a new contract.”
Arthur laughs and kneels next to the bed, between his thighs. The scent and heat of him fills every inch of Shae’s awareness. He takes Shae’s left hand and runs his thumb over his knuckles. Lingers on the topaz and silver ring. He says, voice low and resonating through Shae’s very bones, “Marry me, Shae.”
Shae knew what he was going to say already, but hearing the words is still a shock. He feels warm all over, and his throat chokes up. He wants to say something important, something eloquent about how much he wants this and how much he loves this brilliant man, but the only word he can manage is, “Yes.”
Arthur’s grin is brighter than the sun. Shae only has an instant to be dazzled by it before the man surges upwards and kisses him. They fall back against the bed, Arthur’s body firm over his, grounding him purely in this moment. He gasps into Arthur’s lips, opens up to a deeper kiss, and forgets that he was ever cold.
They break apart enough to shed their clothes, clumsy with desperation. The moment Arthur takes to find the denseed oil feels like an eternity, but in the next breath, Arthur’s kissing him again, running a warm hand down his chest. His thumb circles around Shae’s nipple, drawing out a whine Shae wouldn’t have believed came from his own throat if he didn’t feel it with a primal need.
“Come here.” Arthur sits up against the pillows and draws Shae into his lap. Shae ruts against him, their cocks sliding together in sparks of pleasure. Arthur groans, and his hand tightens on Shae’s hip. He’s so beautiful like this, all powerful muscle and strength and that chiseled jaw, unraveling in desire forShae.
“Let me,” Shae says, taking the jar from Arthur. He dips his fingers in the oil and strokes it over Arthur’s length. His own cock jumps in arousal at the feel of Arthur’s in his hand, hot and slick and heavy, and at the way Arthur’s breath grows more ragged with every movement. Any nervousness Shae had about not knowing what he was doing burns away in the heat of Arthur’s gaze.
He spends less time prepping himself—his own fingers are far less interesting than the slick, hard cock in front of him. A few cursory pumps are all he manages before rising up on his knees and then sinking down.
“Fuck, Shae, take your time,” Arthur gasps, grabbing him by the hips to support him.
“Do I have to?” Shae teases.
His confidence is his downfall, though, and he drops down too quickly. He whimpers, seeing stars, with the impact of Arthur’s cock at this angle, filling him so completely. There’s an edge of pain. He doesn’t dislike it, but he’s too overwhelmed to move or breathe or do anything.
Arthur leans up to kiss him, and all the tension unravels. When Shae can move again, he rocks up and down in tiny increments, unwilling to pull too far away. He wants to be this close forever. So close he can’t tell which of them is moving more, which of their heartbeats is louder in his ears. Whether there’s any difference in the breath shared between them.
When they finally collapse together, utterly spent, Shae can only curl up against Arthur’s chest and savor the scent of him. Somehow, Arthur has enough energy to stroke through his sweat-stained hair, a soothing, gentle touch.
Shae’s eyes squeeze shut. He says, “Thank you for coming back.”
Arthur’s hand pauses in Shae’s hair. Then resumes. “I always will.”
Shae falls asleep to Arthur’s touch, and knows that it’s true.
?
EPILOGUE
One Month Later
“Have you thought about my offer?” Georgia asks.
She’s sitting on a chair in the kitchen of the little house Shae and Arthur just moved into. The house is outside of Lanwatch, close enough that Shae can run over if he’s low on living energy, but far enough out to keep Duchess and Sparrow in a nice open field out back. Arthur says he’s going to hire help to build a small shelter before winter hits. In front, there’s a garden that Shae has absolutely no idea what to do with.
Shae sets aside his focusing crystal and lets go of Georgia’s wrist. He sits down in the chair across from her. “Yes, I talked about it with Arthur, and we don’t want to join the Riverswords completely, with a guild contract and all. But we’re happy to work with your crew on relevant jobs.”
“Great.” Georgia stretches out her arms. She’s dressed in ordinary leathers, and her eyes are as bright as ever. The pallor of her skin is the only sign that under her leather jerkin, there’s a hole where her heart should be.
Another voice sounds from the doorway—Reed, her second in command, with his arms crossed as usual. “Has she gone crazy yet, necromancer?”
“Not yet,” Shae says, tucking his focusing crystal back into his belt pouch. “Her energy’s stable, and I think it’ll stay that way unless something drastically changes.”
“That’s good,” Reed says gruffly.
