Chapter 12
CHAPTER 12
Deacon
Evening light glinted off the metal handcuffs dangling from Nathan’s fingers as he waited for my answer. It was said in a flirtatious way, but I knew he meant it seriously.
Did I trust him?
Any sane person would say “no”. He was a member of the Mafia, and I’d just watched him kill at least one person.
Then I remembered the weight of the gun in my hand, the thrill of pulling the trigger and ending someone’s life so easily.
So much more terrifying than rock climbing.
Still lying in bed, I tried to adopt a relaxed pose. “I suppose I have to trust you. After all, you saw me kill someone.”
Hearing the words leaving my mouth, I realized my true vulnerability. If Nathan wanted to ruin me, he could do so with very little effort. While I didn’t understand much about the Mafia, especially not a foreign one, I knew that Nathan had been involved with things like this for a long time. He could handle it easily, and probably knew exactly how to get out of trouble. If he threw me under the bus, I would have no way to save myself.
Nathan approached the bed, moving slowly as he sat beside me. The handcuffs remained in sight at all times.
“Just because you have to trust someone, doesn’t mean you do. And trust motivated by fear isn’t real trust. So, think about it clearly. Do you trust me?”
Did I?
He obviously had something planned.
Could I trust him not to hurt me, even if I didn’t know what he intended?
Well, if he wanted to hurt me, he would have done so by now. There was no reason to ask my permission.
Swallowing heavily, I nodded.
Nathan was obviously pleased, but he still moved as if he expected me to pull away at any moment.
“All right. Then, relax, and I promise you’ll enjoy this.”
It shouldn’t have surprised me when he used the handcuffs to attach my wrists to the headboard.
What else were handcuffs for, after all?
Yet, I couldn’t help tugging at them and testing their strength. The metal bit into my wrists a little, but not too much, since most of my weight was supported on pillows at the head of the bed.
To distract me, Nathan pressed kisses up and down my throat. He worried the sensitive skin between his teeth, no doubt leaving an impressive bruise that was going to last for days after this. It was pleasant, and instantly got my blood pumping again.
Until he started undoing my pants.
When his hand slipped inside the fabric to fondle my ass, I instinctively kicked out at him.
He must have expected this reaction because he easily caught my ankle.
“Shhh,” he breathed directly into my ear. “It’ll be okay. I’m not going to do anything you won’t like.”
Slowly, inch by inch, he slid my pants down my legs until I was completely bare. I squirmed on the bed. His gaze on my flesh felt like the pricking of pins and needles. Oddly pleasant in the same way that poking a bruise could be addictive. It wasn’t a nice feeling exactly, but I also didn’t want to stop.
Nathan ran a hand down my torso, all the way from collarbone to hip. Then, he seemed to shake himself to regain control and turned his attention to removing his own pants.
This was my first time seeing him fully undressed. Until now, I’d never even seen him with his shirt off, and suddenly, I was getting an eyeful of everything at once.
His tattoos were the first thing that grabbed my attention. The snake that I’d noticed earlier wrapped around his neck wasn’t alone. Several other animals adorned his skin. There was a general wolf theme, which was not surprising considering his moniker and the symbol of his home country. However, there was also a jaguar slinking around the curve of his hip, and a large bird-of-prey soaring over one pectoral. I even saw a few rabbits hiding here and there among the designs.
Along with the animals, there were also plenty of shapes and other symbols. Geometric stars scattered just below his collarbone, so specifically placed they must have depicted a constellation. Dark lines formed twisted knots around his biceps, and his forearms were covered in an odd mix of flowers and weapons.
I would have to ask him about the tattoos someday, for I was certain they all bore a special meaning. For now, I was more interested in the body that lay beneath the tattoos.
He was as well built, as I expected, though surprisingly a little thicker than his clothes made him seem. His suits were so well tailored and cut to his figure, they gave a general impression of sharpness and angles. Free of his clothes, his shoulders and chest looked broader, and his waist and thighs had more meat to them.
My hungry predator was actually quite well fed.
The thought made me laugh.
“That’s not the response any man wants to get after undressing.” Nathan kneeled over me, caging me in with all four of his limbs. “Care to share what’s so funny?”
I only laughed harder, proving that I really lacked basic self-preservation.
“I just... I realized I’m stupid for being nervous.”
“Hmmm.” Nathan gave me a considering eye, like he’d expected me to say something else. “Not stupid. In fact, I’m surprised you’re not more nervous. Most people would be terrified in your position.”
“Well, I’ve always been a bit odd. Just ask anyone who’s ever met me.”
With a decisive nod, Nathan stood from the bed. “That is true.”
“Hey!” I tried to follow him, but forgot my hands were still cuffed and ended up flopping uncomfortably to the side. “You didn’t have to agree so quickly.”
Despite my awkward position, I still took the time to admire his backside as he retrieved a basket off the nearby table.
After looking through the container for a moment, Nathan selected something and brought it back to the bed.
“I’m glad you’re odd. We wouldn’t work if you weren’t.”
He helped me into a more comfortable position, and it was then I noticed what he’d retrieved.
Surprised, I looked back at the basket. “Why is there a bunch of lube and stuff waiting for us here.”
Nathan’s grin could have given the Cheshire cat a run for its money. “The valet at the front desk will get you anything if you tip well enough.”
I hadn’t paid attention to what Nathan was doing when we were checking in at the front desk. I’d been too horny to care. So long as we got a room, anything would have been fine.
Apparently, Nathan had been thinking ahead.
After checking in, we’d come right up to the room. The poor valet must have booked it as fast as possible to deliver the supply basket before we got there. Plus, the fact that the hotel even had these kinds of supplies on hand meant that it wasn’t the first time they’d catered to such a request. It seemed coming here hadn’t been as random of a choice as I thought. The staff knew what they were doing.
The thought that Nathan may have brought other lovers here before pricked at my brain. It would explain how he knew that the staff would be able to meet such a request. I didn’t want to be jealous, but the little green-eyed monster had bitten me and wouldn’t let go.
When Nathan kneeled over me again, I wrapped both legs around his waist to pull him closer.
“So, you’re finally going to have your way with me?”
Nathan studied me for a moment, his gaze intense as he searched my eyes for something. I didn’t know what he was looking for, but whatever he found apparently helped him make a decision. He pulled my legs from around his hips and laid them flat on the bed.
“Yes, but not like that.”
Then, to my surprise, he shifted his position so he was straddling me.
My eyes felt like they were about to fall out of my head.
“Wait. What? Hold on. Are you really—” My question cut off when he leaned forward and kissed me.
The kiss didn’t last long but was enough to completely steal my voice. It was as though Nathan had swallowed every word I even thought to say, because I couldn’t make more than a few unintelligible sounds as he sat up straight and stared down at me.
The lid of the lube bottle made a surprisingly loud pop when he opened it. “I’m not used to doing things this way, so you’ll have to bear with me. I don’t think I can completely submit to you, so the handcuffs will have to stay in place. But I promise it’ll be good anyway.”
He couldn’t be about to do what it seemed like.
It was impossible.
Yet, the impossible played out in front of my eyes as Nathan coated two of his fingers in lube, then shifted to reach around and slipped those fingers inside himself.
I couldn’t have blinked even if I tried. My cock twitched and something deep in my gut twisted pleasantly as I watched Nathan preparing himself for me.
Sure, I’d had partners in the past offer to let me fuck them, but usually, I had to seek those people out specifically for such a thing. Just a convenient, lukewarm release when I was really desperate. Never from the kind of men I actually found attractive.
The men I preferred, men like Nathan who were confident and domineering, never even considered letting me top.
I shifted, trying to calm myself down as Nathan’s fingers pushed a little deeper into himself. He groaned, low and guttural.
The handcuffs tugged at my wrists, reminding me of my position.
So, this is what people meant when they talked about “topping from the bottom.”
I felt dizzy. I had barely taken a breath since Nathan started.
He looked down at me, face and voice both obviously strained, and gave a weak laugh. “You’d better appreciate this. I don’t do this for just anyone.”
Finally, after what felt like an eternity, he deemed himself prepared enough. More lube was spread over my cock as well, and the feel of his hand sliding slickly over my heated flesh nearly made me come on the spot.
Nathan’s fingers pinched hard at the base of my cock, using pain to keep my orgasm at bay.
“Oh, no. I did not go through all that trouble just for you to come that quickly. I am getting all the pleasure I can out of you.”
I was panting too heavily to speak, sweat beading over my skin, so I just nodded wordlessly.
After pressing his lips to mine one more time, Nathan gripped the headboard with one hand while his other hand helped guide my desperate cock into the right position.
For someone who claimed they didn’t take this position in bed very often, he certainly didn’t hesitate to immediately sink down and impale himself on my shaft. We both groaned, and I dug my heels into the mattress as I fought the urge to thrust up into him.
“Fuck, you’re tight.”
It was, without a doubt, the best thing I’d ever felt. The heat and friction of Nathan’s body was unbearably good, but what made it even better was the knowledge of who he was. This was a man who laughed in the face of the law and didn’t hesitate to kill whoever he wanted, whenever he wanted. Other people spoke of him with fear in their voice, yet here he was, allowing me inside him in the most literal sense.
The rush of power went straight to my head, and I trembled all the way down to my toes.
The whole bed shook as Nathan gripped the headboard with both hands.
“Be good, and don’t come until I say so.”
Using he headboard for stability, he raised himself up until I almost slipped out of him, then dropped back down. There wasn’t even time for me to moan before he did it again.
And again.
His hips and legs moved with the strength of a professional jockey as he rode me like a fucking horse. The man knew exactly what he wanted, and he was determined to take his pleasure from me.
“You... damn... liar...” I gasped as the breath was punched out of me every time he plunged back down.
The headboard creaked ominously when Nathan gripped it tighter. “How did I lie?” He paused for a breath, but never stopped the movement of his hips. “I’ve... given you exactly what I promised.”
“You—ah... You’re too good at this. You’ve done this before.”
Nathan did stop this time, my cock buried as deep as possible inside his tight heat, obviously grinding against a particularly pleasurable spot based on the way his voice cracked.
“Didn’t lie—mmm— I said I... didn’t do this for just anyone .”
My vision flashed red, and I pulled desperately against the handcuffs.
“Who else have you let inside you?” I growled, the idea of anyone else being allowed inside him so intimately forming a lump in my gut.
I probably looked half-deranged, snarling and panting as a heated flush stained my skin.
My thrashing obviously brought Nathan even more pleasure because his arms shook as he clung to the headboard to keep himself upright.
“I see. You’re a jealous little thing. Aren’t you?”
Realizing I was having absolutely no effect, I slumped against the handcuffs and caught my breath.
“Not little,” I grumbled without looking at him.
I felt him shift as his body squeezed tighter around my cock.
“No, you aren’t.”
Without warning, he started moving his hips again, bouncing even harder and faster on my cock than before. I tried to match his pace and move with him, but it was useless. Between his weight pinning me down and the handcuffs holding my arms above my head, I couldn’t thrust more than an inch or two off the bed.
It didn’t matter. Nathan was determined to set the pace, and he wouldn’t be derailed.
Each time I watched my cock disappear inside him, the pleasure building in my gut intensified. Inch by inch, I approached the edge of climax, but I didn’t want to fall until I knew Nathan was coming with me.
He’d given me an order, and I wanted to follow it.
Damn, was it hard.
My hands clawed at empty air and my toes clenched against the sheets as I tried to stave off my orgasm. Every inch of my body was alight with the need to come, and my nerves seemed to burn as I held back.
A hand stroked my cheek then trailed down the length of my neck.
“So obedient.” Nathan’s voice was breathless and almost inaudible over the sound of slapping flesh. “Come whenever you want. I’m almost there.”
Even with permission, I held off a little longer. I wanted to see him unravel first.
It was nearly impossible. The taste of blood coated my tongue when I accidentally bit the inside of my cheek in a desperate attempt to control myself.
Yet, in the end, my efforts were worth the pain. The sight of him, back arched and hands gripping the headboard so hard both of his arms shook, was an image I would never forget. He clenched tight around me as he came, though he never stopped the movement of his hips, milking my own orgasm right out of me.
The world whited out and my voice tangled inside my throat as pleasure exploded like fireworks behind my eyes. None of my previous partners had ever come close to making me feel so good. I hadn’t even known sex could be so intense, and in the back of my mind I felt cheated.
The moment lasted forever, but at the same time it was still too short. Eventually, we both sagged and collapsed against the bed. Nathan clung to the headboard just long enough to pull himself off me and slide to the side, so he didn’t crush me under his weight. My hands were still cuffed, but I didn’t bother to bring it up. My bones felt like liquid, and I wouldn’t have been able to put my arms down even if they were released.
Lying at my side, Nathan threw one leg over me, heedless of the mess he’d left over my stomach.
“Oh, shit,” I said as I looked down at the evidence of Nathan’s climax painted over my skin. “We didn’t use a condom. That’s... that’s bad, right?”
I knew better. Every gay man of the modern age knew better. Even the health classes at my uber-religious school, which had promoted abstinence as the only acceptable answer, admitted to the need for protection. While I’d never been on the receiving end of sex before, I’d fucked several one-night stands. I knew my way around a condom, but in the heat of the moment, with Nathan bearing down on me, it had completely slipped my mind.
Instead of getting upset, Nathan just laughed against my shoulder.
“Don’t worry. I’ve checked your medical file. I know you’re clean. I am, too. I can show you mine if you need proof.”
Ignoring the question of how he got my medical file in the first place, I shook my head. “No. I trust you.”
I’d already trusted him with my life and my freedom. Adding my health on top of that wasn’t much of a leap.
Before either of us could say anything else, we were interrupted by an unexpected banging noise coming from the other room. It sounded like wood breaking, and something metal hitting the floor. There was just enough time for Nathan to sit up on the bed before the bedroom door flew open, and we were left staring at several members of the police force.
“Step away from the bed and put your hands in the air.”
Many guns pointed at us, but following their trajectory, it became obvious that they were only focused on Nathan.
Nathan reached for my handcuffs. “A least let me release him first.”
When he moved toward me, the sound of several guns cocking filled the room.
“Off the bed. Now.”
Raising his hands in a show of compliance, Nathan stood and stepped away from me. The guns followed him. Even naked and vulnerable, he still managed to radiate calm control, as if the police standing in our hotel bedroom had been his idea from the start.
I preferred to admire his composure, rather than think about my own position. Embarrassment burned me under the scrutiny of so many eyes. There was no denying what we had just done. While I wasn’t ashamed, the remnants of my religious upbringing still insisted that sex should be a private affair, not for the eyes of others.
Not even the aftermath.
There was a commotion among the police as a familiar face pushed her way to the front of the group.
Agent Belden stood there, looking at Nathan with equal parts disgust and glee. She didn’t even seem to notice me at first.
That changed when I started laughing loud enough for it to echo off the walls.
“You were right, Agent,” I managed to say even as I continued to laugh, spurred on by the awkwardness of everything. “I am in handcuffs the next time we meet. And Nathan did take care of me. You should start your own psychic hotline, because you’re a God damn prophet.”
Agent Belden stared at me with an odd look on her face, like she’d never been so disrespected, and didn’t know how to react. The local officers, however, ignored my comments. One of them stored their gun away and approached the bed cautiously.
“Where are the keys,” the officer demanded of Nathan.
Nathan didn’t move, just nodded in the right direction. “There, on the side table.”
A moment later, my handcuffs were removed. At first, my arms didn’t want to cooperate. After being held in the same position so long, my shoulders were stiff. I gasped at the ache in my muscles as my arms collapsed against the pillows.
“Are you okay?” the officer asked as she helped me sit up.
I slapped her hand away, not in the mood to be touched by strangers, then gasped again when the bruises around my wrists made themselves known.
“Of course, I am. What kind of stupid question is that?”
Now that the shock and awkwardness had worn off, I was pissed. My happy, post-sex afterglow had been ruined, and the sudden crash of endorphins felt like barbed wire creeping under my skin.
Rolling my shoulders to get them working again, I grabbed the nearest blanket and pulled it over my lap to preserve at least some of my dignity.
“What’s this all about, anyway?”
“I would like to know that as well,” Nathan spoke up from the other side of the room.
He was too far away. I hated it. We should be cuddling right now and exchanging pillow talk, not staring down the barrel of a dozen guns and twice as many judgmental eyes.
Agent Belden went back to ignoring me to face Nathan. “Don’t play dumb, Sterling. You know exactly why we’re here.”
Still as calm as ever, Nathan bent down to retrieve his pants from the floor and started putting them on. “I assure you, I have no idea what you’re talking about. If you’d care to explain, then maybe we can clear up this little misunderstanding.”
Agent Belden came closer, and pulled out a pair of her own handcuffs, nearly identical to the ones that had just held me to the bed. “We can talk all about it back at the station.”
Nathan didn’t say anything. Just narrowed his eyes at her as the wheels in his head turned.
I, on the other hand, started freaking out.
“Whoa. Hold on. You can’t arrest him.” I jumped off the bed and tripped over the tangled bed sheets.
Nathan caught me. “It’s okay, Deke. You stay here while I go answer their questions. This’ll all be cleared up soon. Just wait here until I come back for you.”
“But—” I stared to argue, but the look in his eyes cut me off. He had a plan. I didn’t know what it was, but I could see the resolution in his gaze.
I just needed to trust him.
“Fine.” I made a show of crossing my arms and huffing in annoyance. “But this is not the fun weekend in New York that you promised. You owe me.”
Grabbing my hand, he kissed my knuckles with the ghost of a grin on his lips. “I promise, I’ll make it up to you.”
I huffed again and pouted. The spoiled brat act wasn’t usually my thing, but it distracted me from the worry eating at my heart.
Nathan had a plan.
Trust him.
That mantra repeated itself over and over in my head as I watched Agent Belden handcuff him and lead him out of the hotel room.
Unfortunately, I was not left alone. Several officers stayed behind. I soon found myself moved from the bedroom to a table in the hotel room’s small kitchen, thankfully dressed. Across the table sat the same officer who had uncuffed me from the bed. She seemed to be the highest rank of all the remaining officers. Her name was Officer Quinn, and she looked at me with uncomfortably sad eyes.
“It’s okay,” she said as she placed a hand over mine. “He’s gone now.”
Scowling at her, I pulled my hand out of her grip. “I’m sorry. Are you under the impression that I’m here against my will? I know the handcuffs were a bit misleading but trust me...” I leaned closer and let my smile turn just a bit lecherous. “I was a very eager participant.”
The officer cleared her throat and shifted in her seat, clearly uncomfortable.
“Be that as I may, I still have a few questions for you.”
Technically, since they hadn’t arrested me, I didn’t have to answer their questions. But I also knew that reminding them of this would only make me look suspicious.
Lounging back in my chair and crossing one leg over the other, I tossed a careless hand in the air. “Fine. Whatever. Ask away. I’ve got nothing to hide.”
Too much?
Maybe. I’d never been interrogated before. Even when Agent Belden came to my old studio, it had been more of a threat than an interrogation.
Officer Quinn pulled out an old-fashioned notebook and pen. “You just arrived in the city today. What time was that?”
My heart thudded in my ears. This is where I could mess everything up. They’d separated Nathan and I to check if our stories lined up. If not, then it would basically be an admission of guilt. Unfortunately, I didn’t know what Nathan planned to tell them. I was certain he had a plan, but there hadn’t been time to “get our stories straight”. If I said the wrong thing, I could accidentally end up incriminating him.
A tactic that Kiki had once taught me came to mind. The dumb blonde act had gotten her out of many tickets in the past.
I was neither blond nor female, and this was much worse than a parking ticket, but hopefully, the principle would work the same.
Resting my chin on my hand, I pretended to think for a minute. “I don’t know the exact time. Nathan handled the tickets and I never looked at the clock. The sun was still up when the plane landed, though.”
Not surprisingly, Officer Quinn didn’t bother to write my answer down.
“I see. And what are you doing in New York? You live in Las Vegas, correct? That’s a long way to fly. I’m sure you didn’t come all this way just to rent a hotel room.”
This one was easy. I didn’t even need to feign excitement when I answered her. “We’re starting a new fashion line. Well, it’s not really new. It already existed, but Nathan bought the company and hired me as the lead designer to reinvent the brand’s look.”
I started telling her all about my design plans, and the new ideas I was eager to try. It wasn’t even an act. I could go on all day about color pallets and stitching patterns if she let me. Most of the time I was holding my obsession back, so all I had to do was release the dam on my words and I wasted a significant amount of the Officer’s time.
It reached the point where I was critiquing the construction of the Officer’s uniform—those clothes really didn’t fit her figure, and the fabric was cheap—when she finally cut me off.
“Yes, that’s all very good,” she said, obviously trying to hide her annoyance. “But what, specifically, are you doing here in New York? Your studio is in Las Vegas, so you must be here for some specific reason.”
“Oh, I don’t know,” I said, waving away her question as if it were unimportant.
“You... don’t know?” she repeated my answer slowly, probably wondering if she really had just heard those words.
“Yeah. Some business stuff with the company. I didn’t ask. I’m a designer, not a business major. I don’t bother sticking my nose in things I don’t understand. Nathan just asked me to come along, so I came.”
“Right.” Officer Quinn’s words were growing more clipped by the minute. “Why don’t you walk me through what you’ve done today. Your plane landed. What did you do after that?”
I thought for a moment, considering many different ideas.
How did Nathan want me to reply?
Obviously, I couldn’t tell her what we’d actually done, but I couldn’t risk making something up that wouldn’t match what he said.
I quickly ran over the timeline of our day in my head. We landed. We drove immediately to the office building where Caprice Vidales was meeting with her hitman. We killed a couple of people, including the hitman. Then we left and headed straight for a hotel to spend an unknown amount of time screwing each other’s brains out.
Thinking back on it, I vaguely remembered the time on the big clock in the hotel’s lobby when we checked in. Compared to the time we landed, and how long it took us to drive there, we only spent about twenty minutes at the office.
That small of a discrepancy could be explained with a minor traffic jam.
In the end, I just shrugged. “Nothing much. We landed. Then we came here.”
I held back a laugh as I watched the muscles around the agent’s eye start twitching. “It took you an hour to drive from the airport to the hotel?”
“What can I say? New York traffic’s a bitch.”
Her pen tapped against the still blank page of her notebook, leaving a little constellation of dots on the otherwise pristine surface.
“Why did you come to this hotel? There are plenty of other ones closer to the airport. We looked into it. You didn’t have reservations ahead of time, so why drive all the way here?”
I looked around the hotel room as if seeing it for the first time. “I guess Nathan likes this one. I don’t know. I didn’t ask. As long as there’s a decent bed, then its good enough for me.”
I could almost hear her teeth grinding. “Mister Millar. You’re not being very cooperative.”
“Hmm?” I put on my best confused face. “But I answered all your questions. Is there something else you need to know?”
Her “Good Cop” act was about the crack. I could feel it. She was moments away from threatening me. The pen trembled in her hand, and her lips pulled back over her teeth like she was about to chew me to pieces.
Before she could say another word, however, the hotel room’s door opened. I knew who I would see before I even turned around. Those footsteps were unmistakable.
“Nathan.” Springing up from my chair, I threw myself into his arms. “You’re back.”
Checking the clock, I quickly realized he’d only been gone for about two hours. That was still two hours too long, but not nearly as long as I feared.
His arms wrapped tight around me. “Hello, beautiful. I told you I’d be back. Were you good while I was gone.”
Grinning up at him, I nodded. “I was on my best behavior.”
“Sterling?” The officer sputtered from where she still sat, staring at the both of us in wide-eyed confusion. “What? But—how?”
Nathan’s hand gave my hip a squeeze as he addressed the officer. “As I said. It was a misunderstanding. Everything’s cleared up now.”
We obviously had a lot to talk about. He must have done something questionable to get released so quickly, but all I could feel was relief in that moment.
Turning within the circle of his arms, but never leaving his embrace, I waved at the officer with a coy twiddle of my fingers.
“Goodbye, Officer Quinn. It was pleasant talking to you.”