Page 18 of Grave Throbbing
Key cuddled up to his side, taking his nipple into his mouth and grazing it with a hint of fang. Harley didn't recognize the sound that came out of his own mouth, but it was more feline than human.
Key dropped his nipple and circled the pebbled flesh around it with his tongue.
"You didn't bite me." Harley had wanted it, waited for the added layer of pleasure.
"I wanted to talk about it first."
"If we talk about it in bed, I'm going to want a repeat of what we just did, plus a bite."
Key grinned. "Fair." He was out of bed and dressed in a flash.
Despite his disappointment, Harley had no choice but to follow his lead. He stopped Key at the door, holding it shut for the briefest moment so he could steal another kiss.
"You taste so good," Key said. "If you're not careful, I'll bite your lip again."
"Who says I want to be careful?"
"Fair enough. I like this daring side of you."
It was Harley's job as liaison to Empress Marcella to be precise and methodical in his research, but he wanted the freedom to be reckless with Key, as reckless as jumping on a giant coffin with a hole in the middle of it. Why stop there? Still, Key wanted to experiment with his bite, so Harley ushered him back to the living room.
Greed checked the time on her phone and flashed a wry grin. "Finished already?"
"Not quite." Key laughed. "We're moving from sexual to scientific experimentation."
"We have a few hours before sunrise," Greed said. "Might as well make the most of them, though I expected you to go at least two rounds first."
"This is foreplay." Key winked at Harley.
Harley's knees felt weak as he approached the door to his study.
"It might help to have a more neutral location," Key said. "I don't want you to break anything valuable."
"There's not much to break in the dining room," he suggested, "unless we toss the China cabinet."
Key flashed another devilish grin. "As long as you don't have the table set, the dishes will be fine."
Key took the seat at the foot of the heirloom oak table, closest to the kitchen, and Harley moved a chair to sit near Key's corner, so close their knees touched. Greed wandered over, too, sitting opposite Harley. He'd found her a pair of his old pajamas, the kind with a house coat over trousers long out of style. In them, she resembled a small child as she pulled her knees up to her chest and wrapped her arms around them. The shirt was large enough she could have pulled it over her knees, and she'd rolled the pant legs.
Harley had been the only child of a widow, but he understood the familial bond between sister and brother. When Harley had left home to take his first job as a clerk, his uncle had given his mother room and board. He'd also defended Harley's dear mother from his wife's countless attacks.
Harley had never fully understood his auntie's problem with his mother then, and he really couldn't comprehend it now. Key loved his sister, and Harley knew he would never break that bond, nor did he desire to do so.
Greed was blunt and aggressive, but she seemed fiercely loyal to her brother. Granted, that was more in what Key had relayed about her than anything Harley had experienced, but he understood. Here he was, encroaching on her territory. She'd never had to share her brother with anyone before, and she probably hated him for it.
Now wasn't the time to wonder about family ties. This was an experiment, not a confessional. Greed was here to offer moral support, and Key looked like he needed it. His brow glistened with sweat as he took Harley's hand.
"First, I'm going to bite you without any toxin."
"Would you please take notes?" Harley asked Greed.
She held up her cell phone. "I'm recording and taking dictation. If you speak, we'll have it on record."
"Thank you."
She grinned and nodded. Harley was grateful for cell phones and every little application that prevented what had once taken hours and hours of work.
"Ready?" Key asked. He looked even more nervous after the interruption.
