Chapter 11 Rule #11 Make your intentions clear. #2
Then, to my surprise, he’s the one to erase the space between us first. His soft lips press against mine, and I don’t wait a second, darting my tongue out to taste them. A soft growl escapes his chest, and as much as I wish we could do more, I know this is just a taste.
Freya fidgets, so Julian and I pull away from each other. He transfers her to my arms, and I hoist her up before we finish the climb to his apartment. Neither of us say a word for the rest of the way.
Once we reach his place, he quickly unlocks the door, and I’m ushered inside.
Immediately, I notice the apartment is much bigger than mine.
It’s basically the entire floor to himself.
There are grand windows and intricate molding around them.
The kitchen is sleek and modern while the living room has old-world charm.
A baby grand piano sits in the corner, and it suddenly makes me wonder if he plays.
“Follow me. We can put her back here.” He leads the way down a long hall with rooms on either side. The apartment is clean and immaculately decorated, and I’m willing to bet he pays someone to do all of it.
When he opens the door to a guest room, I carry Freya in and deposit her gently on the bed.
Julian sits on the edge, unlacing her boots with care before peeling one off, and it stuns me a little.
It’s not what I’d expect from him. So while he does that, I slip off her bulky coat.
My drunk fingers struggle with removing her jewelry, but I manage to get most of it off without waking her.
She stirs a little as we ease the blankets up and over her.
“Where am I?” she mumbles sleepily.
“Julian’s apartment. Don’t worry. You’re safe. Just sleep.” I brush her hair off her forehead, unable to resist pressing my lips above her brow again.
She squirms under the blankets, getting herself cozy.
With the lights off, Julian and I leave the guest room. He offered to let me stay here too, and I have to admit, it feels too strange leaving them, even though my apartment is just down a few flights and she’s clearly safe with him.
When we reach the main living room of his apartment that leads into the kitchen, I see something black jump down from the piano and stalk toward me. When I hear the cat meow, I relax a little.
“Who is this?” I ask, bending down to pet behind its ears.
“That’s Onyx. Be careful. She’s mean. Do you want a drink?”
I glance up at him, seeing that hesitation on his face again. “Sure. Whatever you got.”
He nods, turning away and going to the beverage cart in the corner. The cat rubs against my legs and starts purring as I stroke a hand down her back.
“Well, she likes me.”
Julian chuckles quietly across the room. “Of course she does.”
When the cat stalks off, I stand upright and grin at the sexy man with his back to me. I kick off my brown boots and drop onto the large leather sofa that spans the middle of the room.
I can’t stop thinking about what he said in the elevator that night. In fact, I haven’t stopped thinking about him using me. I’d let him. No question. I’d let that cocky, self-absorbed rich boy do whatever he wants to me.
Onyx hops up and purrs on my lap as Julian prepares our drinks. He returns a moment later, handing me mine. It’s an expensive whiskey that goes down very smoothly.
As he sits on the other side of the couch, I glance down at the space between us.
I wish he’d sit closer. I’d like to feel those lips again, but I also understand how now that she’s not here with us, it’s not the same.
Having Julian to myself sounds like heaven but still not as good as having her too.
“So you…have been with both?” he asks, a stutter of nerves in his voice.
My lips tugs into a smirk. “Both?”
“Men and women?”
I hate the question of my sexuality because it feels like a label, and labels just aren’t who I am, but I get what Julian is asking…and why he’s asking it.
“I’m attracted to the person, not the gender,” I reply.
He nods in understanding.
“And you?”
With a shrug, he says, “Same, I guess.”
As he takes a sip, I bark out a laugh.
He looks offended as he glares at me. “What was that for?”
“Nothing, sorry. I didn’t mean to laugh, but…Julian, you’re an ice prince. You don’t strike me as the type to be attracted to…people.”
His brows furrow angrily, a thick wrinkle appearing between his eyes. I happen to love when he gets heated and his already villainous eyes get even more menacing.
“That’s not what I meant,” I say, correcting myself. “What I mean is…fuck, I don’t know what I mean. I’m drunk.”
He takes another sip, still glaring at me with that hard expression. As he sets down his drink, I can tell he’s in contemplation, maybe thinking about what I said. Maybe thinking about how to kick me out.
But then he mutters, “You’re right.”
My brows lift as I lean closer. “Say that again.”
With a roll of his eyes, he continues. “I don’t really do…relationships. I don’t even like putting in the effort for hookups and one-night stands. I don’t really like…people.”
“You like me,” I say with a wink.
His cheeks pinken a little, but he manages to avoid a smile.
“That explains why you enjoy…what was it called again? Free use?”
He nods. “Yes. That’s why.”
“Intimacy is a barrier for you.”
Shrugging, he replies, “Sure.”
Then a wicked idea enters my mind.
“So what if,” I say, taking his glass and placing it on the table next to mine. His eyes track my movement cautiously. “You didn’t have to put in the effort.”
“What are you talking about?” A fire burns through his loaded gaze when he realizes what I am offering. “What about her?” he asks.
“She’s asleep. And I’m here.”
His Adam’s apple bounces as he swallows, his eyes tracking from my lips and down my body. He wants it. I can see the desire in his eyes. So why won’t he take it?
To signify to him just how available and free I am, I lay my arms along the back of the couch, opening my body to him. I close my eyes and let my head hang back.
“Take as much as you want,” I whisper so quietly, my words can hardly be heard over the pounding of our hearts.
Then I wait.
Silence stretches between us. Slowly, I grow nervous that I’m being too eager. Exposing too much.
A soft, gentle hand strokes down my chest, making my breath hitch. A low moan vibrates from my rib cage to his touch.
As his fingers close around my left nipple through my shirt, my hips jerk, and a short whimpering sound escapes my lips.
Julian’s hand travels lower, causing chills to roll down my body.
Being so liberally touched without touching him back is exhilarating and has my heart pumping faster than normal.
When his fingers creep over the bulge in my pants, squeezing the half-hard cock hiding behind the zipper, I struggle to hold still.
He’s exploring me, and I am his for the taking. It’s hotter than I ever believed it could be. By the time his hand moves deeper between my legs to cup my balls through the fabric, my cock is hard and throbbing.
“Fuck,” I breathe, with my face angled toward the ceiling.
What I wouldn’t give to hear the sound of my zipper right now. To feel the warmth of his hand on my cock. To know the wet heat of his mouth.
The couch shifts just before I feel his weight settle on my lap.
My eyes pop open as I stare at him, seeing the arousal in his dilated pupils.
Facing me with a knee on each side of me, Julian stares down at my face.
The cool metal of his rings slides along the back of my neck as he touches me. Goose bumps erupt in their wake.
He lifts my head, watching me like he’s about to devour me. I wish he would.
I keep my arms pressed along the back of the couch as he brings his lips to mine. They are impossibly warm and soft. He tastes like whiskey and him. He delights in our kisses, growing hungrier and harder as he goes.
His hips grind subtly against me as he moans and whimpers. My cock aches with need, but I suspect it won’t get the release it wants tonight. Julian is holding back. Probably because of her, which is fine with me. I’d let him kiss me for days if that’s what he wanted.
I don’t grope him or let my fingers roam as much as I’d like to after what I learned, but for now, I just kiss him. And it doesn’t grow heated or go any further.
We kiss for what feels like hours but is probably only twenty minutes. My cock is hard and wanting more, but then again, it’s been hard nearly all night. It might not be getting what it wants tonight, but I am. Because this is perfect.
This is Julian and me, setting our intentions. I don’t know his history with men, and I don’t need to. Because right now, we’re saying enough. I’m into him and he’s into me, and if we hadn’t drunk so much at the restaurant, it’s likely all three of us would have taken this way too far tonight.
And I do intend to take it there eventually. I want to make it very clear to both of them that the sex between us could be amazing. But for Julian and me, this kiss means that whatever happens with her, we’re in.
When we both feel the kiss come to an end, we gently pull away just a few inches. As we breathe the same air and linger just close enough to still touch, he whispers, “We should probably call it a night.”
“Okay,” I reply on a breath. “I’ll crash out here.”
“You sure?”
I nod. “Yeah.”
Julian peels himself from my lap, and it feels cold without him. There’s a blanket on the back of the couch. I drape it over my legs as I recline on the sofa. Onyx makes herself comfortable on my chest, and I watch Julian walk through the darkness toward his room.
Before leaving, he turns back toward me. “Thanks.”
I stifle my smile as I reply, “For what?”
“For not shaming me for what I like. For letting me show you.”
“I’d like you to show me more,” I say sleepily.
“Me too,” he murmurs before disappearing around the corner.
Lying in the dark living room with the feel of Julian’s lips on mine, I relive the entire evening.
I can’t remember the last time I felt as happy in the moment as I am with these two.
For someone who usually has one foot out the door, these two have me feeling like I might want to stay right where I am.
With that thought and a black cat purring on my chest, I drift off to sleep.