Page 5 of Inferno

But he’s not mine.

He doesn’t even know my name.

“Parker, this is my friend and teammate, Anders. Anders, this is my girl, Parker,” Danny says loudly, pulling my attention away from Henry.

“Nice to meet you, Parker,” I say, trying not to be rude.

“Nice to meet you too,” Parker says politely, her eyes cautiously narrowed as she looks between me and the boy in the seat below me. “This is Henry. He and I work together at the garage. Henry, this is my…”

Parker’s posture stiffens as she looks at Danny, and despite his relaxed façade, I watch him brace himself for what she’ll say and how she’ll introduce him. I remind myself to let my friend know what an idiot he is later, because I’ve spent less than a minute in Parker’s company, and it’s painfully obvious that she’s just as in love with Danny as he is with her. How can he not see it?

“Danny,” she says lamely, color filling her cheeks.

“Hi, Henry,” Danny says, reaching over the table to shake my boy’s hand.

I have no fucking clue where it comes from, but the moment Henry and Danny touch, I lose it, and a possessive growl falls from my lips. Knowing I’m crossing a line, I clear my throat, hoping it’ll disguise the noise I made.

Both Danny’s and Parker’s eyes snap to me, but Henry doesn’t even glance my way, his gaze fixed firmly on the table in front of him. Feeling like an asshole, I slip slowly into the seat beside him. “Hello, Henry,” I whisper, keeping my voice soft,trying to counteract the animalistic growl I just made with a little gentleness.

Henry freezes, literally freezes, and I feel myself tense in response.

“Nice to meet you both,” he whispers, his voice small.

Is he scared of me? I know my reaction to him and Danny touching was over the top, but I haven’t done anything else to make him fear me. In the past I’ve enjoyed my submissive partner’s fear, but that was only during a scene. Something that was preplanned and with the person’s full consent. Fear can be fun, the anticipation and worry are just as intoxicating as the pleasure that follows it.

Before I have a chance to ask Henry if he’s okay or demand he look at me, the waitress arrives carrying two plates of food.

Her appearance shatters the intensity of the moment, and I’m both grateful to see Henry relax a little and frustrated that I don’t know why he reacted the way he did in the first place.

“I have a burger, medium well, no mayo, extra fries,” the waitress says, her tone no-nonsense and slightly harried.

“That’s mine,” Parker says, reaching out and taking the plate from her.

“And loaded tots,” the waitress says again.

“That’s mine,” Henry says, his cheeks turning pink as he takes his bowl of greasy junk food.

The waitress eyes both me and Danny, then looks at the paper ticket in her hand. “Did you order anything else, because I don’t have another ticket for this table?”

“No, we just got here, but I’ll have the bacon double cheeseburger with a side of loaded fries and onion rings,” Danny tells her, smiling widely.

“I’ll have the nachos with chili,” I say gruffly, managing to swallow down the desire to demand she bring Henry somethingproper to eat instead of just the bowl of empty calories he’s chosen.

“Drinks?” she asks, her attention on her order pad.

“Coffee, for me,” I tell her.

“Can I get a chocolate shake, thick, please?” Danny adds.

Nodding, she backs away from the table, still writing.

“You do realize what you just ordered was like five thousand calories?” Parker asks Danny, her lips quirked in amusement.

“Yeah, but I can get a snack at home later,” he teases, stealing a fry off her plate and shoving it into his mouth.

Danny and Parker chat happily like the longtime friends they are, but I tune them out, focusing all of my attention on the silent boy beside me.

Staring like a creeper, I silently take in every facet of Henry’s face, from the austere slope of his nose to the smattering of tiny freckles that cover his cheeks. My fingers itch with the desire to touch him. I want to tug on a strand of his unruly hair and demand he look at me. I want to warn him that his attention should be on me…always on me. I want to reach over and grab his cock and remind him that he’s mine and that if he doesn’t follow my rules, I’ll spread him out and use his hole without letting him come until he understands that he belongs to me.

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