Page 74 of The Rogue's Curse

Misha shook his head and leaned in to kiss him, soft and sweet. He nipped at Paris’s lower lip, then held him at bay as he said, “You don’t have to be sorry. Just be yourself.”

“Careful what you wish for,” Paris said, awkwardly wiping his eyes.

“I know exactly what I’m asking for. You’re a good man, even if you can’t see it through all the weight you carry.” Misha glanced at his watch, then smiled. “We have a few hours before sunrise, and there’s a shower that no one else uses just down the hall. Care to do the math?”

Paris smirked at him. “What are you suggesting?”

“I’m suggesting that we celebrate Dominic’s recovery and yours,” Misha said. His eyes scraped over Paris. “Are you going to join me?”

He eagerly shed his jacket and tossed it over Misha’s workbench.“It would be my pleasure.”

“It certainly will,” Misha said, smacking him on the ass before hurrying out of the workshop.

Giddy laughter bubbled from him as he chased Misha down the hall. Suddenly, they were ravenous, clothes flying overhead as they kissed and grabbed and caressed their way across the tiled bathroom. He was still wearing his snug briefs when Misha turned on the water and blasted him with a cold spray.

“Shit!” He leaped out of the cold water, but it didn’t help.

Misha laughed, grabbed his hips, and pulled him in for a hungry kiss beneath the slowly warming water. He kissed Paris’s chest, gently caressing the scar across his sternum before going lower and lower and lower until he was on his knees, gazing up at Paris. “I’m glad you’re feeling better,” he said, gently flicking his tongue over his crown.

“Me too,” he said, one leg going weak.

“After I do this, I’m going to fuck you out of your mind,” Misha said matter-of-factly. “All right?”

“All right,” Paris said dreamily, sighing softly as Misha took him into the decadent warmth of his mouth.

Water sluiced down his back as the overwhelming pleasure flushed through him. Planting his hands against the smooth tile, he fought the urge to thrust himself deeper into Misha’s mouth, instead staring down at that dark hair, dripping with water as he worked Paris. Water ran down his muscular back, over those lovely, chiseled planes that he knew felt divine under his palms.

God, it had been too long since he’d had sex. As much as his brothers enjoyed teasing him, he didn’t fall into bed with attractive acquaintances nearly as much as anyone thought. He was good with his hands and always saw that a veravin was well-compensated for their gifts, if they so desired. But it had been…well, before Shoshanna arrived. Before he saw Alistair fall in love and realized that he wanted someone again.Not just the empty dance of hands and tongues, but a person to connect with, someone he could care for.

Misha’s hands slid up his thighs, kneading into his ass cheeks and pulling him closer as he groaned around his shaft.

“Good God,” he muttered, knees buckling. His vision was going red, and it felt as if Misha’s mouth was caressing every inch of his body, that tongue rasping over sensitive skin and lighting him all ablaze. He tapped on Misha’s head lightly as the tension grew to a breaking point. “I’m going to come.”

Misha simply said mmm around him and drew him in, cupping his sack with one hand as his head bobbed. His hips jerked, thrusting deep as he let out a long, happy sigh. When Misha rose, he cupped Paris’s jaw and kissed his lips, then grinned at him.

Taking one of the soft washcloths, Misha gently scrubbed his chest, then turned him around to soap his back, occasionally kissing his shoulder, the line of his spine, the back of his thigh.

“Misha, what is this?” Paris blurted.

“Soap,” Misha said, deadpan.

“I mean us,” he said.

He looked back and met Misha’s eyes. The other man’s brow furrowed. “Can it just be what it is? Can we enjoy each other without knowing the future?” Misha said.

No. Because if we do this, I’m not going to be happy with just once, he thought.

But he swallowed that thought and nodded. “Of course,” he said.

Misha smirked and gave him a tap on the ass. “Finish washing up and meet me in the room,” he said, sauntering off without bothering with a towel.

A thrill of nervous excitement rippled through Paris as he watched the other man go. When he was alone, he carefully washed himself, making sure he was squeaky clean. He had to admit that vampirism had quite a few advantages, one of which was no longer eating nor dealing with the by-products of eating. It made preparing for sex far easier, though he was still a firm believer in a thorough wash, if for no other reason than to make his body far more inviting to wandering lips and tongues.

He toweled off, then grabbed his phone and texted Julian.

I’m off the clock for a few hours.

Most of Building Five was empty, except the two large workrooms that had been renovated for Misha, and a single bedroom at the other end of the hall. Several rooms were crammed with furniture left behind by the previous residents of the school, and dust and cobwebs lingered in the corners. Not exactly luxury living.

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