The hotel’s bar had been nearly empty and kinda sad, so I walked down the street to another bar that had a rainbow sticker in the window. I wasn’t particularly looking for a guy or a gal tonight, but at least I knew I wouldn’t get my ass kicked if I was caught ogling a man’s ass.
As I started on my second beer, a man sat beside me to order his own, and when he turned a sexy smirk on me, I was blown away. His eyes were dark, his face covered in a trim beard, his dark brown hair was styled messily, and he was big—tall and muscular, probably big enough to manhandle me, if I let him.
After I ran my eyes over the length of him, his smirk grew, and my stomach fluttered. I was in trouble with this one.
He held out his hand to shake. “I’m Leif. Nice to meet you.”
“Lazarus.” I shook his hand, and as soon as our skin touched, I gasped. It was like an electric shock ran from him to me. The buzzing sent a thrill through me, and I suddenly never wanted to let go. Actually, I wanted to get closer to him. Maybe climb on those massive thighs of his.
His eyes widened for a moment—did he feel it, too?—but he slowly pulled his hand back. “Can I get you a drink?”
I nodded even though I didn’t need another drink. He could’ve asked me anything in that moment, and I would’ve agreed. It was as if some weird power drew me in like a moth to a flame. And I was pretty sure I was going to get burned if I didn’t pull away. Only, I didn’t want to stop. I wanted to scoot closer to him and press my body to his side. I wanted to touch him.
The smile on his lips lit up his brown eyes, and I was sure he could sense how much I wanted him.
I didn’t do a lot of one-night stands, but holy hotness Batman, I’d take whatever this man was willing to give me.
“So do you live around here, or are you just visiting?” he asked me after he got me another beer. I suppose we need to do the whole small-talk thing before I can ask him to get naked, huh?
“Visiting. I’m on a business trip, actually.”
“Oh really? So am I. What is it that you do?”
I took a sip of my drink. “I own an antiques shop. What about you? What brought you here?”
“I was following a lead.”
“A lead? Are you a detective or something?”
He smirked. “Something like that.” He took a sip, and I watched his throat work before he asked, “What’s an antiques dealer doing here?”
It took me a moment to process his questions because I was still staring at his throat—who knew a throat could be so sexy? “There was a huge estate sale that I couldn’t pass up.”
He nodded. “Did you find anything to make the trip worthwhile?”
“A few pieces.” I ran my eyes up and down his body. “I’m pretty sure this trip was well worth my while.”
He grinned, set his drink down, and slid off his stool so his chest was against my arm. “Is that right?”
His breath on my skin sent shivers through my entire body and straight to my dick. It was already perking up and ready to say hello to this gorgeous stranger. I nodded and whispered, “Yes, definitely.”
“You wanna get out of here?” he breathed into my ear.
Another shiver ran down my spine, and my cock twitched a hell yes in my pants. “Yes.”
Immediately, he grabbed my hand and pulled me off my stool. The motion brought us chest to chest, and I tilted my head back to look up at him. He leaned down close to my ear, then pulled the lobe between his teeth as he asked, “Your hotel close?”
I nodded as I panted; my body was already aching for more from that small tease.
That sexy smirk played on his face as he laced his fingers through mine and pulled me out the door.
Should I be bringing a stranger strong enough to break me in half into my hotel room? Uh, probably not.
Do I care?
One look at that rugged face, those deep brown eyes, and those lips I wanted to devour, and I had my answer. Nope, I don’t care at all.
Outside the bar, I gestured toward the hotel since I hadn’t found my voice yet, and he suddenly stopped, turned quickly, and crashed our chests together. Then he roughly grabbed my hair, leaned down, and captured my lips in a bruising kiss that lit me up like nothing ever had.
A moan came out of my throat as he muttered, “Needed a taste first,” and he released me to walk toward the hotel.
With my lips tingling, I followed after him.
Isiah
ELEVEN MONTHS AGO
When I heard the door creak open, I stifled a sigh. I’d come out here to be alone. Should’ve known he’d follow me.
“Hey,” he said quietly. “Couldn’t sleep?”
I shook my head as I stared up at the stars. “No. You?”
He walked over and sat beside me on the top porch step. Since it was a small space, his broad shoulders barely fit, making him knock into me with every little movement. And each time, a small shiver ran down my arm.
But I was blaming that on the cold weather.
He answered, “Not really. Haven’t been sleeping much lately.”
“You know Raph and I will keep you safe, right?”
He grunted, so I finally pulled my gaze away from the night sky to examine the man beside me. Laz was only a little taller than me, but wider in the chest and shoulders, and if I was being completely honest with myself, I could admit that he was handsome—more than handsome; he was hot as hell—and I could see why Raph was attracted to him.
He caught my eye and whispered, “I’m sorry.”
My brow furrowed. “For what? Raph definitely deserved that punch.”
Laz barked out a laugh. “He did. I’m not sure what else he expected when he called Grady and me cunty whores that were only seeking a fat warlock cock to fill our mouths because we’re filthy little humans… or however the hell he said it.”
The corner of my mouth lifted. “He has a mouth on him. He always has. Especially if he’s caught off guard or upset.”
“Yeah, I’m beginning to see that. But that’s not what I’m apologizing for.”
“What are you apologizing for then?”
Laz ran his hand through his hair. “I’m sorry about what happened between Raph and me… you know, um… over the summer.” He angled his body to face me. “I swear I didn’t know about you. I never would’ve… If I had known he had someone, I never would’ve—”
“Lazarus,” I cut him off.
He swallowed. “Yeah?”
“You did nothing wrong.”
“But Raph…”
“He did nothing wrong either.”
A confused expression passed over his face. “But I thought you two were soul-pledged. Like Alaric and Grady. I… I don’t understand.”
“We are soul-pledged, but he’s free to seek out another’s comfort anytime he wants.”
He seemed to think that over for a moment before whispering in a soft voice, “So you’re not mad at me?”
I took him in again, and this time I saw the worry and hurt in his appearance. For the past week that Raph and I had been acting as his guards, I’d thought he was simply shy. But now that I was looking closer, I could see that he was worried and sad. And hurt. I wasn’t sure how much of that was from me, but if I could make some of that sadness fade from his eyes, I’d do it in a heartbeat.