Chapter 15
The Emperor’s bedroom somehow seemed more ominous than it had in the past, and Nuri hesitated just within the entrance, hand itching to grab onto the doorknob, throw the thing open, and make a run for it.
Nate was staying in the room just down the hall, meaning he’d hear the commotion and most likely come to see what was going on. If he got himself involved a second time, there was no telling what Silver would do—
“Try it,” Silver’s low spoken words sliced through Nuri’s thoughts and his head snapped up to find the Emperor had stopped in the center of the room and turned toward him.
His hands were casually in his front pockets, hip cocked, but his expression wasn’t guarded like it usually was.
Instead, the swirl of heat and challenge written on his face was impossible to miss.
“Give it an attempt. See what happens, Narek.”
Nuri dropped his arm to his side, giving up on the idea of running. Not that he would have actually done it anyway. He knew he was stuck between a rock and a hard place.
“Good boy,” Silver praised, the corner of his mouth quirking upward when that had Nuri’s spine stiffening. He held out his hand, palm up. “Shall we begin?”
Pointedly, Nuri bent down and picked his N.I.M. up off the floor from where it’d been idling at his side and took a step closer to the Emperor. He was careful to maintain some distance, not entirely trusting the other man to keep his word should Nuri come out of this the winner.
He also didn’t trust himself not to feel a bit disappointed if that were the case either, but he wasn’t above admitting to himself that he wanted to know.
He wanted to experience sleeping with Silver.
Wanted to try it once and remember it, if only to satisfy all those fantasies his past self had wasted all that time with.
Really, it came down to what was more important to him.
Getting railed by the Emperor?
Or his freedom?
It should be an easy enough question, and yet…
The two of them had finished their work a couple of hours early but had been forced to attend dinner as per usual since Nate had arrived shortly after.
Nuri had feared that Silver would force the issue, but he’d surprisingly gone along with it, possibly understanding that Nuri didn’t want his brother to know what was going on here, whether that was him gaining his freedom or…
It was bad enough that everyone in the mansion was no doubt already making guesses, since word that the two of them were in a sexual relationship had spread, and they were clearly sharing a bedroom while Nuri healed.
That was the only reason he hadn’t bothered begging Silver to push their first game off until tomorrow when Nate would be gone.
Did it really matter at this point when everyone would already assume they’d done it come morning?
Nuri set the ball back down between them. “Usual rules?”
“Largest number wins,” Silver confirmed.
“N.I.M.,” Nuri licked his lips and shifted nervously on his feet, “roll two dice, please.”
He held his breath as the orb lit up, a pale blue light at the center glowing. A second later the distinct sound of dice clattering together came from it, and then the holographic image of two squares shot from the ball to roll across the floorboards.
The dice rolled for a good couple of feet before coming to a stop, and they both leaned in to see them.
Four and three.
“Seven,” Silver said with a frown.
Nuri exhaled in relief at the same time. Seven was good. It was high enough that he stood a fighting chance.
“N.I.M.,” since the AI was voice-activated, Nuri was going to have to be the one who initiated, something he was surprised the Emperor didn’t seem bothered by since he was usually so keen on being in control of every little thing, “roll two dice for the Emperor, please.”
The first set of holographic dice flickered and disappeared. The process started again, the tension rising with every realistic shaking sound emitted from the device.
N.I.M. sent another digital pair out and Nuri could have sworn time stopped as he waited for them to settle.
A five and a six.
“I win,” Silver sounded pleased, but Nuri was still staring at the dice, trying to sort out the emotion he was currently feeling.
Was he disappointed or…was he excited?
“Better luck next time, Narek.” It was the only warning Silver gave before he was scooping Nuri up off his feet and carrying him over to the king-sized bed.
“Wait!” He gasped as he was dropped onto the mattress, mind reeling from how quickly things had escalated. Sure, they’d done it once before and this morning Silver had given him a hand job but—
“I’ve been waiting,” Silver said. “My patience for you has come to an end, I’m afraid. You lost, pet. Now it’s time to pay up.”
Before Nuri could fully process what was really happening, his work clothes were practically torn from his body. In less than a minute, he was left naked, lying against the silk sheets with the Emperor kneeling between his spread thighs.
Silver drank him in, his palms resting on Nuri’s upturned knees, touch hot and possessive as his gaze swept down the length of his chest to the spot between his legs.
To say he was embarrassed would be an understatement, and it took all of Nuri’s resolve not to cover his face with his arm and try to hide from the other man’s scrutiny.
Logically, he knew he wasn’t unattractive.
His job kept him in almost constant motion, so he was lithe, and since he often times helped with moving heavy items around, he was also toned.
He couldn’t be compared to someone of Silver’s stature, sure, but Nuri had a nice body.
That didn’t make this any better though.
For some reason, having the Emperor see him like this had him second-guessing his decision.
Not that he’d had a choice in the matter.
It was either this or pretend he wasn’t into it when Silver took him anyway.
Having seen the footage of Ackor Hue, Nuri already knew that’s how things would play out.
He may start off fighting, but he’d give into Silver’s ministrations in due time.
At least this way he could save himself some dignity.
It didn’t matter that logically he knew for the Emperor this was technically their second time.
For Nuri, who barely remembered the first, this was fairly new territory and now that he was here—and completely of sound mind—it all felt wholly overwhelming.
“You’re already dripping for me, Narek,” Silver’s taunting pulled Nuri from his thoughts, instantly putting him back on the defensive despite the resigned direction his mind had been taking him.
“I haven’t even touched you yet and you already look like you’re about to explode.
Do you honestly think you stand a chance here? ”
“Is that your way of telling me I should change my mind?”
“Too late for that.” Silver leaned back and started to undo the buttons of his dress shirt, slowly exposing his golden skin to Nuri. “I’m not letting you get out of this.”
“I didn’t sign anything legally binding.” He wasn’t sure why he was instigating him, but Nuri was distracted by the anticipation brewing in his lower region and that had left his mouth with less of a filter.
“A gentleman’s agreement.” Silver tugged the shirt off and dropped it over the edge of the bed before his fingers went to the button on his pants.
“You’re no gentleman.”
“It’s fortunate for me that my word is law then, isn’t it?”
Any witty retort he may have been able to come up with died on his tongue the moment Silver exposed himself.
The Emperor’s cock stood proudly at attention the second he’d gotten the zipper down, the dark rosy head bobbing as he stepped off the bed momentarily to discard his pants before he climbed back on.
The whole time, Nuri was transfixed by it, a mixture of doubt and anticipation clawing at his insides.
It’d looked big on screen, and it wasn’t the first time he was seeing Silver naked but…
This was the first time he was able to blatantly stare at him erect, and now that he was, he was even more hesitant than he’d been before.
“Worried, Narek?” Silver settled back between his thighs, trailing his palms lightly down from the tops of Nuri’s knees toward his hips. “Realizing you’ve bitten off more than you can chew?”
“I haven’t bitten anything.” The yet was silent, but he narrowed his eyes to get his point across.
Surprisingly, Silver laughed. “I’ve always preferred you this way, you know? Bold and cheeky. You filter yourself too often. It forces me to apply more pressure now and again just to get you to react.”
“What—” Nuri was cut off when Silver suddenly flipped him onto his stomach and settled over his back. The thick length of him pressed between the globes of his ass and he sucked in a breath.
Silver caged him in from behind, running the fingers of his left hand through Nuri’s hair, brushing it off the side of his face so that Nuri could glare at him over his shoulder in silent question.
He smiled distractedly, playing with a particular lock before finally letting it go and moving onward to trace the curve of Nuri’s ear.
Nuri shivered beneath the soft touches, tipping his head slightly when Silver traced his jawline and then pressed the pad of his thumb against the side of his throat as if feeling for his pulse.
He hummed in satisfaction and leaned in, planting an almost chaste kiss on the rise of Nuri’s right cheekbone.
“What are you doing?” Nuri’s voice came out wispy and foreign.
“How do you feel?” Silver asked instead of answering. “Does anything hurt? Your head? Ankle?”
“I’m fine.” He was not fine. He felt like he was on fire and burning from the inside out. The only reason he wasn’t already begging for it was because this was new territory and he was still a bit unsure if it was all some sick joke or a twisted test set in motion by the Emperor. “You can proceed.”
Silver snorted. “No shop-speak, this isn’t business.”