Chapter 21 - All-in for an Angel #2
Adathan’s smile widened. He brushed the tip of his nose against William’s and leaned in for a kiss—slow, tender, delicious.
Perfect.
William caressed Adathan’s hair as he kissed him back. Their hands and lips found their familiar rhythm, an intoxicating choreography he never got enough of. Their breaths mingled, warm and close. The water swayed with their movements, gentle waves brushing their skin in time with the kiss.
Soon, they forgot all about donuts, and sparkling wine, and cramped apartments.
As their hands melted the tension from their bodies, and their mouths drank the soft sounds escaping their lips, the world shrank to a tiny bubble of bliss.
Nothing mattered but this. Them. Their love, and the present they shared.
“You make me so happy,” Adathan whispered against his lips.
William pressed their foreheads together. He let the moment breathe, the warmth sinking into his bones, lingering even as the water cooled. “What do you say we get out of the bathtub and eat a proper meal?”
“I made us some cold quinoa bowls.”
“Nice.” William never would have thought he’d enjoy eating quinoa, but Adathan was just that good of a cook.
Adathan finished his half-eaten donut, and they gave themselves a quick scrub before stepping out of the lukewarm water.
William grabbed their fluffiest towel and wrapped it around Adathan. He shivered as he dried his own skin. Air conditioning was awesome until one was naked and wet.
They rushed to their bedroom to get dressed. William grabbed his comfiest sweats, and Adathan put on the silky kimono pajamas they’d found at the thrift store.
“Piggyback!” Adathan exclaimed.
William lifted an eyebrow. “To the kitchen?”
“Yes, please!”
William chuckled, shaking his head fondly. He crouched and grabbed the underside of Adathan’s legs as he climbed onto his back. He carried him out of their bedroom and walked a whole four feet before setting him back down. “You have arrived at your destination, Your Majesty.”
Adathan circled William to face him. “My gratitude is yours, my most valiant steed,” he declared, cupping William’s cheeks with exaggerated grace. “This noble act shall not go unacknowledged. I will see you properly rewarded.”
“There’s no need, Your Majesty. I already got the best reward—you.” The sentence landed like an echo from another life, hitting William with a load of memories.
Judging by the emotion flashing in Adathan’s eyes, he remembered too. Adathan had said those exact words on the day they met. William, of course, hadn’t believed them to be true.
“William,” Adathan said, his features sobering.
“Yeah?”
“If we were to move to a new place . . . would I still get to see Rosanna and Oliver often?”
William relaxed. “Of course. We wouldn’t be leaving this neighborhood.” He knew he should stop there, but he couldn’t help adding, “Who knows, we might even end up closer to Oliver. I saw a listing for an apartment right across the street from his place.”
“You did?”
“Yup. But there’s no rush; there’ll be other—”
“Can you show me?”
William shook his head slowly. “Adathan. You don’t have to do this.”
“I want to.”
“You sure? Because I’m happy to stay here for as long as you need. I mean it.”
Adathan smiled. “I’m sure.”
“All right.” William took his hand and kissed his knuckles. “Fetch your laptop, Your Majesty. I’ll grab our celebratory feast from the bathroom and join you in the royal kitchen.”
He kept his optimism under a tight leash as he made his way toward the bathroom. No decision to move out had been made yet—they’d just be looking at apartment listings to acclimate Adathan to the thought of it. That was all.
William put away the dirty clothes and joined Adathan with the wine and donuts. Two large bowls with colorful toppings were now on the kitchen table, where Adathan sat with his laptop and a smile.
“We’re just looking,” William said, serving them more wine.
“Just looking,” Adathan echoed with a nod.
William accessed the website, found the listing, and gave Adathan back control of his laptop.
Adathan’s face lit up as he browsed the pictures, filling William’s heart with dangerous hope. The apartment wasn’t huge, but it had plenty of natural light, an extra room, a decent bathtub, and a balcony on which Adathan could grow flowers.
“The windows are gigantic!” Adathan said.
William moved his chair closer and wrapped his arm around Adathan’s waist. “Right? Your plants would love it.”
“Actually,” Adathan said with the voice he reserved for when he educated William. “I specifically selected plants that thrive in low-lighting conditions.”
William kissed the tip of his ear. “You could get better plants then.”
“There’s no such thing as ‘better plants.’ All plants are beneficial to the ecosystem they belong to.”
William snorted. “Fine. Got it. Your plants are perfect, and so are you.”
Adathan giggled. He opened his mouth to speak, but the doorbell interrupted him.
William’s brow furrowed. “Did we order something?”
“I don’t believe we did.”
“Be right back.”
William slipped on his shoes and headed downstairs.
A man in a courier cap stood at the door, holding a letter and a small electronic pad. “William Mitchell?”
“Yeah. That’s me.”
The man offered the electronic pad. “Please sign here.”
Registered mail? What the fuck could it be?
William scribbled his name, his stomach tightening as he spotted the Freedom in Spades Poker logo on the envelope.
“Thanks,” he muttered, already tearing it open. Whatever it was, best get this over with. He pulled out the letter as he climbed the stairs, the paper crinkling between his tense fingers.
Mr. William Mitchell,
You are cordially invited to our 20th anniversary VIP poker tournament in—
William ripped the letter to shreds. Fuck them. He was done with poker. And even if he weren’t, he’d refuse to take part in a tournament held by a company that saw nothing wrong with handing out human beings as prizes.
He shoved the pieces into his sweatpants pocket, took a deep breath, and opened the door to their apartment.
William’s tension dissolved when he saw his angel looking at a different listing from before, his toes wiggling in his fuzzy socks. Adathan’s face lit up as he browsed pictures of an apartment with a cozy reading nook, a freshly renovated kitchen, and a master bedroom twice the size of theirs.
Master bedroom.
Before meeting Adathan, William had never realized the extent to which slavery was woven into their everyday lives. Rendered invisible, yet still very much thriving under their noses. Now he saw it everywhere.
“What was it?” Adathan asked, not looking up from the screen.
William smiled when he noticed the multiple tabs Adathan had opened. “Nothing important,” he said, and it was the truth. He pressed his hand against his sweatpants pocket, flattening the pieces as he joined Adathan at the table.
Despite everything, he couldn’t bring himself to fully resent Freedom in Spades Poker, though. They were the reason he’d met Adathan. But also, they’d delivered on their promise: they’d freed William from his life of misery.
William wrapped his arm around Adathan and kissed his temple, breathing in his pomegranate-and-honey scent. “Do you like your new shampoo?”
Adathan leaned close, cozying himself in William’s embrace. “I love it! Do you?”
“Yeah.” William nuzzled Adathan’s silky hair. “I think it’s the one.”