Page 79 of The Sterling Acquisition
The honesty in those words, the raw vulnerability, hit Dante like a physical blow. This was Orion—defiant, unbroken Orion—admitting his fear and desire in thesame breath.
He’s giving himself to me,Dante thought with savage satisfaction, drinking in every tremor, every desperate sound.He’s trusting me. And I’m going to take care of him.
Instead, he tightened his grip, his hand working Orion’s cock faster, his thumb pressing down on the sensitive spot just beneath the head. “Cum for me,” he demanded, his hips pistoning, his cock sliding through the slick heat of Orion’s thighs.
“Wait, wait, I need–fuck–” Orion gasped, one hand reaching back to grab at Dante’s hips.
“Cum for me, baby. Let go.” The pleasure coiled tighter in Dante, the friction of Orion’s thighs, the way his body clung to Dante’s cock—it was too much. Orion’s body locked up, his back arching as Dante’s name poured from his lips in a breathless shout, his cock pulsing in Dante’s grip, spilling hot and thick against the van wall. The sight of it, the feel of Orion’s thighs clamping down around his cock as he came, sent Dante over the edge.
He groaned, his own release crashing over him, his cock jerking between Orion’s legs, painting his thighs with thick, white streaks.
For a moment, they stayed like that—Orion slumped against the wall, Dante pressed against his back, both of them breathing hard, their bodies slick with sweat and cum.
By the time Dante pulled away, the intensity of Orion’s scent had receded enough that Dante felt marginally better about proceeding into the Neutral Zone. Marginally being the operative word.
Well,Dante thought as he watched Orion try to put himself back together,that was either the smartest tactical decision I’ve made in years, or the dumbest. Probably both. And I’m definitely not done with him.
“Better?” Dante asked, helping Orion straighten his clothes.
“Better,” Orion admitted weakly, still in the haze and afterglow of his orgasm. Then he shoved Dante away from him. “Now shut the fuck up and drive.”
Dante adjusted his pants and grabbed a clean shirt from his packed supplies and pulled it on, then crawled back to the driver’s seat with the lazy satisfaction of a man who’d just gotten exactly what he wanted.
“Your pheromones are tamping down already,” he said conversationally as he started the engine. The silence from the back stretched long enough that Dante thought maybe Orion was ignoring him.
Then he heard movement—the rustle of fabric and the soft thud of someone climbing over the bakery supplies. Orion appeared in the passenger seat a moment later, pants barely pulled up, shirtless and glistening with sweat, looking like a pissed off fallen star who’d just been dragged through hell. “You’re an asshole.”
Jesus.Dante’s hands tightened on the steering wheel as he tried not to stare. The sight of Orion disheveled and furious and beautiful was distracting in ways that made him question his ability to drive safely all over again.Come on, Ashford, you just finished getting off. What the hell is wrong with you? Focus on the road.
Professional. You’re supposed to be professional.“I was just demonstrating proper asset management protocols. Very by-the-book stuff,” Dante said, deliberately not looking at Orion.
“I’m sure calling assets ‘baby’ is in the corporate training manual,” Orion said quietly.
Dante opened his mouth to respond with some clever deflection, some sardonic comment that would turn the moment back into banter. Instead, nothing came out. The accusation hit home because it was true—he slipped. And the fact that Orion noticed and filed it away to use against him later was both impressive and embarrassing.
Shit.
For once in his life, Dante Ashford had no response. He kept his eyes on the road ahead and tried to pretend the silence wasn’t deafening.
Chapter twenty-six
Beyond Borders
Orion
ThefactthatDantehad nothing to say was almost more satisfying than anything that happened in the back of the van.
Almost.
Orion shifted in the passenger seat, hyperaware of every place his body still hummed from Dante’s touch. The buzzing heat receded to a manageable simmer after what they’d done—the first real sexual release he’d ever allowed himself during a heat cycle—but he could already feel it lurking beneath the surface, waiting to return with a vengeance. For now, though, the reprieve felt like a miracle.
Don’t think about what just happened,he told himself firmly.Don’t think about how good it felt or how you begged or how he called you ‘baby’ like you meant something to him.
The van crested a small hill, and the world opened up before them.
The Neutral Zone was a sprawling collection of buildings that looked almost familiar at first glance. The mixture of architecturalstyles, the improvised construction, and the general air of “make it work with whatever you have” reminded him of home. But as they got closer, the differences became clear.
These weren’t SVI’s rugged, practical modifications born from necessity and ideology. This was something else —a place where different corporate styles and technologies collided and somehow learned to coexist.
