Chapter 9
NINE
IGOR
THE PAST
Igor’s twenty-first birthday
The strobe lights flash yellow and blue in time with the heavy bass of the music as we all dance together.
Saturday nights at one of the clubs downtown have become a ritual for Julian, Lana, Giulia and I.
And tonight is even more special as we cling our glasses together to celebrate my twenty-first birthday.
I still remember the first time we came here, when Julian turned eighteen.
I stayed on the outlines of the dance-floor with the other bodyguards, looking on with envy.
I was mesmerised by Jules, and very grateful for my colleagues to make sure Lana was protected.
She was my responsibility. But that night, I only had eyes for him.
Just like tonight.
Except there are no other bodyguards around. They stay outside and guard the exits and entrances. Besides, I don’t drink—except Mammona’s night cap when I can’t sleep—so I can keep my wits about me.
This club belongs to Pietro. No one who would attack his favourite daughter and heir in his own property.
And he spared no men to make sure I could enjoy my night, which fills me with both gratitude and discomfort.
Pietro truly acts like a second father to me and I’m still trying to get used to it.
He’s doing a better job than my dead one, that’s for sure.
“You’re hovering again,” Lana yells in my ear, the liquid in her glass sloshing with the sway of her hips. “It’s your birthday! Go have fun.”
She pushes me away from Giulia and her with a forceful hand on my back, flippant flicks of her wrists and a massive grin. Her chin juts towards where Julian is ordering more drinks.
I’m still not very good at this whole dancing thing. The sea of bodies grinding together irks me to no end, but the other three love it. And I guess there are worse things than grinding against the man who makes my heart jump in my throat.
Especially with the white crop top he wears over his baggy jeans. It leaves a sliver of smooth skin on display. My fingers itch to touch it.
It took Lana and Giulia approximately a week to find out about Julian and I. Not that we were very good at sneaking around to make out.
We try not to be too obvious about it. I’m still fighting the voices in my head that sound like my father and berate me constantly for the strong feelings I have for the blond demigod, but Julian is relentless with his affections. And he never lets me talk negatively about myself or about us.
Yet, I haven’t felt strong enough to claim him in public. My colleagues at the compound still don’t know about us. Nor does Pietro. I suspect Julian’s mother does. Maybe Mammona, too. She’s the most cunning woman I know.
“Hi, baby,” Julian says before slamming his lips against mine.
I tense, the knee-jerk reaction hard to curb even after the sixteen months we’ve been dating. Not that I counted them, that’d be ridiculous. Only new mums count time in months for their children, right?
“Hi, pup.”
His smile is blinding. He hands me a clear glass and I take a sip. Just like I knew it would be, soda fizzles on my tongue. Julian is aware I don’t drink. He also knows I have a soft spot for club soda over coke, and that I like a lime slice in it. Not lemon. Lime.
I glance back at Lana and Giulia, dancing and laughing together. No one seems to pay them any mind. The crowd knows who they are, giving them enough space to dance.
I feel relaxed enough to turn my attention back to the man who stole it with his kindness. He kisses my throat, and before long, I let him pull me to a dark corner. He makes me feel safe, and free, when nothing in my life has ever remotely resembled safety or freedom.
It’s getting harder to remind myself that I’m indentured to Pietro. My boss treats me like a son. Lana and Giulia consider me a brother. And Julian... It’s like he can’t get enough of me.
Especially when his lips descend on my jaw in open-mouth kisses. Gooseflesh erupts on my arms. We’ve been together for over a year, but every kiss, every time he moans into my mouth, every lick of his tongue gets me more addicted.
I frame his face with my hands, and slam my lips to his, then suck on his tongue. He melts against me, putty in my hands. It’s heady.
Julian is a powerful man, with a legacy at his fingertips.
Everything points to a power imbalance between us.
Yet, it couldn’t be further from the truth.
I’d lay it all down for him. In a short amount of time, I’ve let the feelings that bloomed in my chest turn into a full blaze of devotion.
And he’d do the same for me. I don’t know how I know.
Maybe it’s because he always showed me respect and care, from the books he gave me, to the games of teasing he played when I barely understood what attraction was.
I’ve never looked at another person like I look at him. And I don’t think I ever will.
Despite the loud music and darkness of the club, I see and hear the man I love clearly when he murmurs in my ear, “I’m ready.”
My cock, already hard inside my dark jeans, threatens to combust. I swallow around my suddenly parched throat, my skin tingling where his hands rest on my stomach, despite the cotton between us. He lifts my shirt, and my abs contract.
I glance around us. We’re hidden in a dark alcove, away from prying eyes.
I wish I could say I’m strong enough to wait until we’re back at the Moretti mansion—he always sleeps there on Saturday nights—but I’m too excited.
And the threat of getting caught sends fire through my veins.
His cheeky grin tells me he feels it, too.
“Get your knees then, pup.”
Julian drops down slowly, hitting the floor like a supplicant before his God. The sight will be seared into my memory forever. I almost come when he grazes a hand over me while keeping my shirt lifted for better access.
“Hold this up for me, baby,” Julian says.
I obey, fisting the fabric, and just watch him, hanging on to his every move. His nimble fingers make quick work of my belt and the four buttons of my jeans.
My cock springs free between us. Julian’s gaze is riveted to the angry head leaking pre-cum. When he looks back up and sticks out his tongue to lick it, I release a guttural groan. The music absorbs it.
He takes my cock into his hand, pumping up and down a couple of times before settling at the base to guide me to him.
I hold my breath, waiting for him to lick my slit again, to take me into his mouth.
It’s both our first time, and I’m not sure if I can take the anticipation.
It’s like blood doesn’t flow fast enough in my veins.
I’m crawling out of my skin, chasing his hands, his lips.
I need them on me. Anyway he wants. Just touch me, I almost beg.
We’ve touched each other, but this is something new.
I wanted to take things slow, and he let me set the pace.
Attraction has never been on the cards for me.
I’ve never looked at girls. And before Julian, I never looked at men.
If I think about it, I only have eyes for him, and that’s confusing and a little scary.
But he’s been happy to explore slowly. Together.
It doesn’t matter that I wanted to take it slow, uncomfortable with my sudden attraction.
Not only to a man, but in general. Julian’s patience when it comes to me is something I admire.
It’s so rare in the world we’re growing up in.
Blood rushes to my ears so fast I’m afraid the eardrums will burst as Julian continues to jerk my cock with ease.
When his tongue laps at me, my head falls back on the wall behind me and my eyes close, a kaleidoscope of colours bursting behind my eyelids. Then, Julian slides the head of my cock into his mouth and I’m engulfed in delicious, wet heat.
My eyes snap back to him.
I can’t miss this.
I’m riveted to his lips encircling my girth when he hollows his cheeks and sucks. Hard.
“Oh fuck, Jules.”
My free hand falls to his nape, inviting him gently to take more, and anchoring me to him. Eyes on me, the little trickster on his knees doesn’t hesitate and glides down my dick one more inch before sliding away. He does it again. And again. And I swear my soul leaves my body.
Need pools inside me, my entire skin feeling like a live wire.
Julian creates a rhythm, up and down, sucking and licking when he withdraws before he takes me back. He drives me wild with his mouth.
I remove my hand, afraid to push, locking my knees not to fuck his mouth. But he doesn’t let me. He lets me go with a pop, before cocking an eyebrow at me, unhappy even from his place down on his knees.
“I’m not going to break if you go too far, baby. Just fucking let go. I can take it.”
“Jules,” I croak his name. “This is the first time we’re doing this. And in the middle of a very public club.”
“I’ll slap your leg if it’s too much.”
I don’t have time to protest.
What Julian wants, Julian gets. And he wants my cock like it’s the best thing he’s ever had.
He goes deeper this time, closing his eyes and adding his hands to the mix.
Pressure builds at the base of my spine.
I blow out a breath, trying to hold myself together but I’m about to embarrass myself with how quick he’s taking me over the edge.
Every time Julian touches me, I’m reminded that pleasure exists. When I look at him, it’s like he was put on Earth to make me feel alive, so that I wouldn’t be so alone and lost. Even on his knees, with loud music covering the sounds we make and shadows to hide us, he’s my light.
My lips part in awe as I watch him taste me, devour me. Our eyes meet, and I want to slap myself for not waiting. Better light would have given me access to the depth of the lust coursing through him. I bet his pupils have dilated so prettily.
He doesn’t care, ever reckless.