Chapter 21 #3
“No, but it’s justice and it’s fair.” Parker raised an eyebrow and Rios nodded.
“Yeah, it’s something like that,” Rios agreed.
“What are you going to do now?” Nick asked.
Shadow looked human, and she couldn’t stop staring at the people around them. Laurel’s Café was at full capacity, and San Amaro had shrugged off the shelter at home order as just another part of living in the same city as the World Tree.
“I suppose I will go home.” She looked down at the dessert tray that Laurel had provided. “I suppose I must…”
“You could stay here,” Parker said. “Do a touristy thing. Check out the world. There’s a lot of Earth to see. Most people aren’t like Durkavic, although I probably wouldn’t go around advertising who you are.”
Shadow grimaced a smile. “No, I won’t be doing that again.”
She picked up a chocolate croissant, biting down on it, her eyes closing in pleasure. “Perhaps I will stay. For a short while.”
“I can’t believe Durkavic pulled one over on me. Glamouring Learn so that I thought it was Durkavic going all pop goes the weasel.” Parker shook his head. “It’s embarrassing for me, is what it is.”
“Everyone makes mistakes,” Nick said. “And anyone would have been shaken up by watching someone explode. Your mind makes connections when you see something that traumatic.”
“But why five million dollars?” Parker asked. “That’s what’s bugging me.”
“That’s what’s still bugging you?” Nick muttered, “The TV dinners are what’s still bugging me.”
Parker shot him an amused look. “They’re at my office, and I only use them in emergencies. Aren’t you happy that I’m making sure I eat regularly?”
Nick blinked exaggeratedly and gestured to Parker’s stomach. “Am I glad that you’re eating an entire day’s worth of sodium in one sitting rather than… I don’t know, a carrot?”
Parker snickered and took a sip of his wine.
They were settled on Silverwood’s back patio, the sunset coloring the sky, a fire burning in the outdoor pit.
Nick’s brain still broke a little when he tried to figure out where they lived.
They got to their house through a front door in an apartment building, the interior of their house was somewhere inside the World Tree, and their backdoor opened onto Silverwood’s patio, and somehow the universe kept it straight when they wanted to go back to their own place instead of back inside Silverwood where Shannon and Bastian lived.
It was fine. He could live with the confusion as long as it worked. Which it did. Most of the time.
“Alright. Alright. I’ll put some of those veggie sticks in the emergency snack bag.
I’m serious, though. There are easier ways for Durkavic to get money.
Ways that don’t involve kidnapping a god.
” Parker gestured toward the hills. “He had a rich widow on the hook! Why do the whole obligation and kidnapping and murder?”
“I don’t know. You said the widow’s daughter had her signing all sorts of prenups and postnups and everything to keep the cash away from Durkavic.
Maybe he just figured out that cashing in on a hostage situation was easier than trying to extract that much money from lawyers and estate executors.
” Nick shook his head. “I’m just glad we got to her before he accidentally killed her. ”
“You feel like you owed it to Darkness to save her,” Parker said, in that way he had of opening up Nick’s soul and naming the thing that Nick didn’t have the courage to say.
“It doesn’t make up for killing her father, but I know Darkness loved her. He loved her the best any god can love their offspring.” A thought occurred to Nick and he looked sharply at Parker. “Does the Sun god have any—”
Parker was already waving off the suggestion. “No, no. Nope.” He popped the p clearly. “The Sun god killed his own father, so he was big on seeing offspring as potential competitors rather than…”
“Inheritors,” Nick said. “Darkness knew that Shadow could be more powerful than him someday if she wanted to be. But she never did.”
“Explorers and scientists, huh?” Parker looked up at the first sprinkle of stars in the sky. “She’s probably seen more than any of us ever will, even if we lived as long as she did. Can you imagine life on other planets?”
He hummed a bar of David Bowie and then shook his head.
Nick couldn’t resist. He leaned over and kissed Parker. The first brush of lips was always tentative, always warm and hopeful.
He could kiss Parker a thousand times and it would always be as wonderful as the first. His chest would always flutter, his smile would always make its way into the next kiss. He could kiss Parker every day forever and it would be just as wonderful.
Perhaps, when they were older, when they had shed some of their responsibilities, he would try that. Kiss his husband for days upon days until his lips were numb and his body trembled with want.
For now, he let Parker draw him closer, pulling Nick’s weight on top of him, the deck chair sturdy enough to handle both of them.
The chairs were large enough for two, more deck futons than chairs, and Nick didn’t mind the extra space at all when it let him feel every inch of Parker’s body pressed against his.
“The neighbors,” Nick said against Parker’s lips, but he kept kissing, made his way down Parker’s neck until Parker was arching up.
“Trees blocking their views,” Parker said, voice jerky and half whining.
“What if Sugar comes out?” Nick said.
“Pre-convention orgy practice. They’re checking safety measures.” Parker’s voice was a whine and Nick felt his hard length against Nick’s stomach as he kissed lower, shoving up Parker’s shirt to get at the gorgeous expanse of Parker’s stomach.
“Bastian?” Nick asked, just to make sure.
“All-night gaming session,” Parker said, then yanked at the collar of Nick’s shirt until he was back at Parker’s mouth, their lips fitting together.
He kissed and kissed until his whole body was buzzing with it. He remembered the first time, the very first time and felt a shiver start in his spine, curling up until he couldn’t help it and yanked off his shirt, pushing Parker’s too.
Chest to chest didn’t relieve the ache of want he felt, the way he needed to be inside Parker, the way he couldn’t let himself go until he felt that completeness that came when he and Parker were speaking with every part of them.
Parker was eloquent with his words, but his body.
His body was a sonnet. His body was everything Nick wanted and more.
He pulled back just long enough to reach for Parker’s pants. Before he touched the button, he looked at Parker’s face. “Yeah?”
Parker’s face nearly split with his grin. “Yes. Let’s do the thing that Sugar most definitely thinks we do all the time out here.”
Nick laughed, yanking Parker’s pants off and taking his own off for fairness. As he stepped out of them, he raised an eyebrow at Parker rooting around in his own jeans. “Forget something?”
Parker emerged with a triumphant grin, tossing Nick a packet of lube. Nick looked at it, almost frowning. “Were you expecting this?”
“I was hoping, but I expected you’d be too prude. That was a sample Sugar got to try at her orgy practice. Apparently there’s competition to be the lube-sponsor of the conference.”
Nick laughed, then tore open the packet, slicking up two fingers and leaning over Parker.
The reclining chair should have been uncomfortable, but all he could feel was the smooth slide of Parker’s skin over his and the easy way Parker hooked one leg over Nick’s shoulder.
He kept eye contact as he traced around Parker’s hole.
“Nick,” Parker whined.
“Parker,” Nick teased. Then he pressed one finger in and Parker’s whole back arched up. He reached for his cock, stroking it in time to Nick’s first gentle pushes. When Nick felt Parker relax, he eased in his second finger.
There was nothing like watching Parker whine and beg for more. Nothing like the way that Parker came undone at Nick’s touch. Parker was the most powerful man that Nick knew and he needed Nick.
It wasn’t just that Parker wanted Nick. Plenty of people wanted Nick. But Parker needed Nick the exact same way that Nick needed him.
Nick pulled his fingers out and used what was left in the packet to coat his cock.
He was so hard, he felt pre-come teasing at the head of his cock.
Parker watched, eyes wide and mouth open and Nick had to lean forward again, kissing him with all the desire he felt watching Parker work his own cock.
Parker moaned, arching up and dragging a long line of pre-come over Nick’s stomach. Then he settled back, and Nick reached under his knees, putting them up against his shoulders. He positioned himself and pressed in until he was fully seated.
When he stopped, he had to rest his forehead against Parker’s collarbone, panting with the effort it took to wait, to let Parker’s body adjust. But Nick also needed a moment. He was so greedy with Parker.
Parker tried to give so little of himself to anyone, he tried so hard to keep himself closed off, but then he would let Nick in and there was nothing like it, nothing at all like the way that Parker allowed Nick to see the parts of himself that no one else got to see.
When they were like this, when Nick could feel the flex and tight, warm heat of Parker’s body, it felt like Parker was giving in to him, but also letting Nick see the parts of him that he wanted hidden, the parts that made him vulnerable.
He trusted Nick.
Parker arched his hips, rutting upward, and Nick knew he was ready.
He began to move, thrusting slowly as he gained momentum. He grunted, feeling the pleasure build along his spine, feeling all the pressure of his orgasm shivering through his muscles.
Parker was pumping his own cock and Nick reached down, grabbing hold of him. Parker keened, coming hot and sticky over Nick’s hand. He whimpered, crying out and Nick paused, letting Parker shiver, twitching hard.
When Parker settled, Nick started to pull out, but Parker wrapped both arms around him, pulling him down, pulling Nick onto him, and the pressure was too much.
Nick couldn’t resist the smooth slide in as he pushed further inside, Parker twitching around him.
Nick couldn’t last long, even when Parker’s cock gave another twitch, another smear of come rubbing on Nick’s stomach.
He moaned, hips picking up the pace and then he was overwhelmed, Parker all around him, his knees trembling, the scent of Parker in his nose, the tight strength of Parker’s arms, his whole body spread for Nick to take and take and take.
Nick came, his vision going white and then he pressed down, letting Parker hold him tight, their bodies cooling in the evening.
“I love you, Nicholas King.” Parker’s voice in his ear was fuzzy with pleasure.
“Is that your way of saying you want me to carry you inside for round two?” Nick asked, nuzzling at Parker’s neck.
“It’s my way of saying that we have ice cream, more wine, and then maybe time for round two,” Parker said. He nudged at Nick. “Come on, before the universe tries to kill us again.”
Nick laughed. “That sounds like a promise, Windrose.”
“You already have your promise from me,” Parker said, his voice so serious that Nick drew back so he could see Parker’s eyes. “As long as I live. And then forever on top of that if we get into the good afterlife.”
Nick laughed, rolling them so Parker was cuddled against his side. “Forever.”
Thanks for reading Nick’s No Good, Very Bad Day.