Chapter 11 #2
Justin moved toward the portal, eager to get out of here and see his brothers again, but Mynor grabbed his arm to stop him. Justin didn’t have the time to ask if he’d changed his mind. Mynor pulled him back behind him and moved toward the portal, clearly intent on crossing it before Justin.
Justin got it, even though he was impatient. He was sure this was Calyx’s doing, but Mynor wasn’t, and he didn’t know Justin’s brothers. He didn’t trust them or whatever they’d find on the other side of the portal, and he wanted to protect Justin. It was sweet, albeit unnecessary.
Mynor hesitated only for a moment before sticking his hand through the portal. He looked apprehensive, like he expected something to happen to that hand, but nothing did, and Justin was getting impatient.
He tried moving past Mynor, but Mynor glared at him, which he took as an order to stay where he was.
He glanced toward the door, but thankfully, no one seemed to have noticed that a portal had appeared in the dungeons.
Pythom and the other guards were going to freak out when they came in and found Justin and Mynor gone without a trace.
Mynor stuck his head into the portal. Justin giggled at the thought of Calyx seeing Mynor’s head come out.
Would he be scared? Probably if he’d tried to summon Justin.
He didn’t know he’d succeeded yet. Justin knew that Mynor was harmless, at least to his family, but he could admit that his demon didn’t look like he was.
He didn’t want Calyx to do something that would lead to someone getting hurt, especially Mynor.
Justin had plans for him, and he needed him in one piece for them.
“Come on, stop wasting time,” he said. He was ready to be home, dammit.
Justin could see the tension in Mynor’s body.
He didn’t want to rush Mynor, but he was starting to get worried that one of the guards would notice something was happening, so he was relieved when Mynor turned to him and reached for him.
Surprised, too, but maybe he shouldn’t be.
Mynor wouldn’t send him ahead because they didn’t know what was waiting for them on the other side of the portal, but he also wouldn’t leave him behind because something could happen.
So of course, he hauled Justin into his arms.
Even though they were both dirty and stinky, Justin was in heaven. He and Mynor were finally about to be free, and they’d be able to shower and sleep in Justin’s bed and do so many more things in it.
Mynor cradled Justin against his chest with one arm, and before Justin would ask if it wouldn’t be easier for them to climb in through the portal one at a time, Mynor reached into the portal.
Justin clung to him, more interested in what was on the other side than in how Mynor managed the feat of getting through while holding him.
The only thing that mattered was that he did.
As soon as they were out of the cell, Mynor reached down to hook the arm he’d used to climb under Justin’s legs, moving him into a bridal-style carry. Justin felt like he needed it, to be honest. He needed food and rest—real rest, something he didn’t think he’d ever gotten in that cell.
Justin glanced around the room and grinned as he patted Mynor’s chest and tried to get him to put him down. He was tired and weak, but he was home, and his brothers were all there. He didn’t know who he wanted to hug first. Calyx, probably since he was the one who’d gotten Justin here.
Mynor didn’t let go. He was tense and clearly didn’t trust Justin’s brothers. “I told you,” Justin said. “They’re my brothers. They rescued me from the underworld, and they’re not going to hurt me. Calyx isn’t going to tie me to him. It’s not like that between us.”
“You can’t know that for sure,” Mynor grumbled.
He was scared for Justin, which Justin understood. “I can know it for sure. Calyx and I are already linked, but not through magic. He’s my brother, and I’d do pretty much anything he asked, even without a bond. Let me down. I want to hug him and thank him for what he did.”
“What’s happening?” Calyx asked Griffith. For some reason, he was whispering.
“I have no idea,” Griffith answered. “But it looks like you have a full-blown demon in the living room.”
He placed himself between Calyx and Mynor, just like Mynor had placed himself between Justin and the portal earlier.
Justin wasn’t really paying attention, though.
He was still trying to convince Mynor that no one would attack them.
Mynor didn’t look like he believed him, and he was glaring around, showing his fangs, which couldn’t be great for Justin’s brothers.
Griffith’s movement caught Mynor’s attention. He turned to him, so Justin patted his chest again. “I told you that they won’t hurt me,” he repeated. “They’re my brothers.”
“You look nothing like them.”
Justin squinted. They’d talked about this, so why was Mynor making this so complicated?
Justin understood that Mynor was trying to keep him safe, and he was grateful, but he didn’t need him to.
“We don’t have to look like each other to be brothers.
Stop it.” His voice was a little harsh, but he didn’t think Mynor would get offended.
“What’s going on?” Calyx said as he pushed Griffith aside and stepped forward. Maybe Justin should just hop off since Mynor didn’t seem to want to put him down. “What happened to you, Justin? We were worried.”
Justin beamed at him and wiggled again, glad when Mynor got the hint and finally lowered him to the floor.
“You brought me home.” He threw himself into Calyx’s arms. Calyx squeaked and hugged Justin back, and they teetered on the edge of falling on their faces, but they didn’t because Griffith was there. He was always there for Calyx.
“I can’t believe you’re all here,” Justin said as he looked around the room. “Even Yancey.” He was the last person Justin would have expected to be there, not because he didn’t care but because this was a demon’s summoning—or half-demon, anyway.
He turned his attention to a human he didn’t recognize and who shouldn’t be there. The man looked so excited that he might be about to burst out of his skin.
“This is so cool,” the man breathed out.
“You’re new,” Justin said. He already liked the guy, even though he had no idea who he was or why he was there.
“Ignore Travis and tell us what happened to you,” Yancey ordered, his tone hard. Nothing new there, then. “We thought for sure that you’d come home, but you were in the underworld. Why? You’ve never gone there before.”
Justin moved back toward Mynor. “It’s a long story. I need a shower and clean clothes. Maybe we can talk later?”
“Of course,” Calyx said. “You can go to your room, and I’ll have something to drink ready by the time you’re done. We can sit down in the kitchen and talk.”
“That sounds great. You have no idea how long it’s been since I’ve eaten anything that didn’t make me want to puke.”
“I’ll grab cookies, too.”
Justin beamed and took Mynor’s hand. “Let’s go. You can shower with me.”
“Are you sure we can trust them?” Mynor asked, glancing at Justin’s brothers again.
Justin ignored him as he pulled him out of the living room. He had plans, and the first one included as much hot water as he could get.
The door to Justin’s bedroom clicked shut. The only light came from a multi-coloured glow of lights strung along the window frame, painting the room in red and green in a way Mynor had never experienced before.
For a moment, they just stood there. The rush of their escape from the cold, stone cell was crawling under Mynor’s skin, but it wouldn’t last much longer.
He’d crash soon, so he was glad that he and Justin were finally alone.
He understood why Justin trusted the men from the room where they’d landed, but he didn’t.
They weren’t his brothers, and he didn’t know them.
He was more relaxed than he’d been when they’d first arrived, though. The shower had helped, and while he was wearing clothes that didn’t belong to him, Mynor didn’t care.
He took a step forward, the floor creaking under his weight.
He knew what he wanted. He might not have any idea where he was or what to make of the confusing human realm, but right now, that didn’t matter.
He and Justin hadn’t been safe in a long time.
They hadn’t been alone without the danger of someone surprising them in as long as they’d known each other.
It was an odd feeling, but it was exhilarating.
“Justin,” he murmured, afraid to break the moment.
That was all it took. Justin closed the distance between them, tilting his head up. His hands came up to cup Mynor’s face, and he traced the line of Mynor’s jaw, then the pointed tip of Mynor’s ear, with a black tipped finger.
“I want this,” Justin breathed out.
Mynor leaned down to kiss Justin, not gently or questioningly, but claiming him. It was the kiss they shared that felt safe. In their haste, Justin’s short fangs caught on Mynor’s, sending a spike of lust straight to Mynor’s groin.
Mynor slid his hands down Justin’s back, gripping the fabric of his shirt. He pulled Justin against his body, and Justin gasped into the kiss, maybe at the feel of Mynor’s hard cock between them. Mynor couldn’t hide how much he wanted Justin.
They both wanted the same thing, and Justin seemed to be as desperate as Mynor felt.
They wrestled with their clothes, discarding fabric.
Justin pulled at the fastening of Mynor’s pants, while Mynor made quick work of Justin’s clothes.
When they were both finally naked, Justin took a stumbling step back toward the comfortable-looking bed that belonged to him.
The coloured lights gleamed off the pale expanse of his skin in a way that made Mynor want to lick all the places they touched. “You’re beautiful,” he whispered, the words leaving him in a rush of awe. He’d never felt this way for anyone else. He hadn’t allowed himself to.