31. Lancelot
LANCELOT
T he ecstasy on Julian’s face was mesmerizing.
The way his body arched, the pleasure on his face.
I wanted to memorize the look of it forever.
I held myself still, except for my hand stroking his cock.
I intended to drain him utterly. His gaze met mine, and the words spilled from my lips before I could stop them. “I love you.”
He sucked in a breath, staring at me. I didn’t know what to do, so I drove back into his body and let myself go. Julian clung to me, taking it all, urging me on, heels digging into the backs of my thighs.
“Want you, Lance. Need you.”
I buried my face against his neck, kissing him, nipping at his skin, and sucking. I didn’t want this to end, but I was at the breaking point. My balls ached, and I needed to mark him with my cum like I had my teeth.
“Julian, take it. Take it all.” I drove into him one last time and let go.
He writhed under me, hips working, his cock already hard again. “Feels so good. I can feel your cum inside me. So hot. So…”
I growled, thrusting into him one more time so I could give him every last drop. When I was done, I stretched out on top of him. His arms came around my neck and held me there.
Neither of us spoke. I wasn’t sure we were capable of forming words.
Even if I could, I was scared to. I’d told him I loved him.
I meant it. That wasn’t the problem. The problem was what he might think, how he would react, whether he felt the same way.
He’d probably just dismiss it, thinking I’d said it in the heat of the moment.
He wouldn’t think it was real when it very much was.
I wanted to convince him of that, but I wouldn’t be able to now because he wouldn’t trust my words. He trusted me with his body, but he wouldn’t trust me with his heart, not with my cum running out of his ass.
Finally, I found the strength to push up onto my arms. Julian winced when my cock slipped from his body, and I realized how rough I’d been with him. “You’re going to be sore.”
He shook his head. “No… Yes. I don’t care. I want that. I want to remember.”
I wanted to tell him there was no need for that kind of reminder because I was going to do this to him every night, every day, every chance I got. What would it take to make him believe this wasn’t temporary?
I met his gaze, but the mix of intense emotions in his eyes was too much for me. I slipped from the bed and stumbled to the bathroom. “Be right back.”
I cleaned myself up, then brought a washcloth out for him. He was lying there staring at the ceiling. He looked lost.
“Are you okay?”
“I… I don’t know.”
“I meant what I said.” Fuck. I wasn’t supposed to talk about it now. I kissed him instead. He held himself back for a moment before melting into me.
“Stay with me. Please.” His voice was soft, barely audible.
“I’m not going anywhere unless there’s an emergency no one else can handle.”
I pulled him into my arms and cradled him against me. “How about a bedtime story?”
Julian frowned. “I shouldn’t go to sleep now.”
“Yes, you should. Relax and listen to the story of how I got Tony.” The monkey raced into the room, obviously having heard his name.
Julian turned to face me as Tony jumped onto the bed. “You’re really going to tell me?”
“Yes. You deserve to know.”
“Thank you.” Julian’s smile was filled with the love I longed for from him.
Tony settled between us, and I started my story. “We used to partner with some Columbian businessmen helping to move their products into the country.”
“You were running drugs?”
“We were also importing coffee.”
“As a cover?”
“At first, then Remy got a taste of the coffee, and it was just as important to us. More so eventually.”
Julian frowned. “How so?”
“The Garcias, the family that harvests and sells the coffee beans, are amazing, some of the kindest people you’ll ever meet, but they’d needed ready cash to get their business off the ground, so they’d partnered with our other associates, hiding the product in some of their coffee tins.
However, when we found out the Garcias were being mistreated by our other associates, we intervened. ”
“You intervened? How?”
“Remington was in Boston visiting some family friends, the Marchesis. Pop didn’t like my suggestion that I go to Columbia and settle things in person, but eventually, I wore him down.”
Julian gaped at me. “You went to Columbia by yourself to take down a drug cartel?”
“It probably wasn’t as dramatic as you’re imagining it, but yes. I basically showed up and told them to leave the Garcias alone.”
“And what? They just did as you said?”
I smiled. “Would you believe that?”
“No.”
“The head of the operation admired my take-charge attitude. He even told his son he should be more like me.”
“Yikes.”
I nodded. “It was painful to watch. The son then proposed a deal. We would have a shooting contest. If I won, they would do as I asked, and if he won, they would kill me.”
“Oh my God.” Julian’s eyes were enormous. He took my hand and squeezed it. “What did you do?”
“I agreed to his terms.”
Julian shook his head. “I’m scared just thinking about it.”
Tony hopped up and down as if he agreed.
“I knew I was a better shot than him. This wasn’t the first time we’d met. I also knew it would be easy to distract him. On my first visit to Columbia, he’d been… especially hospitable and accommodating.”
“Holy shit. You’d slept with him.”
Lance just grinned. “He suggested we shoot squirrel monkeys out of the trees.”
Julian shuddered. “That’s horrible.”
“I didn’t want to go along with it, but I didn’t think I had a choice. I laid a hand on the son’s shoulder and wished him luck. His first shot went wild. He took a second, and despite me shifting into his line of sight, he hit his target.”
Julian grimaced. “Obviously you won, but still.”
I caressed his cheek. “It could have been a lot worse. The guy pointed to a smaller monkey, one not yet old enough to be on his own. He obviously wanted me to have a smaller target.”
“Please tell me you didn’t?—”
I held up a hand. “The little monkey stared right at me. I aimed and shot the longhorn beetle on the branch next to him.”
“Oh my God. What did they say?”
“They didn’t believe me at first, but once I showed them the evidence, the leader declared me the winner over his son’s protests.
Then he aimed his gun at the little monkey, saying it couldn’t survive without its mother.
The monkey jumped before the shot came. I caught him, said I was keeping him as a reminder of my victory, and the rest is history. ”
Julian hugged Tony close. “I’m so glad you saved him.”
“Me too. Or I am now. When I was bottle-feeding him on the plane home, I wasn’t so sure.”
“You bottle-fed him?”
“I had to. I wasn’t going to let him starve.”
Julian kissed me thoroughly. When he pulled back for air, he gave me a heart-warming smile. “You’re an amazing man, Lancelot Theriot.”
Not half as amazing as he was. “Turn over. You need some rest.”
“I really don’t.”
“Fine. I need an excuse to cuddle you.”
Julian laughed. “In that case…”
He turned over, and I spooned him. We slept for a few hours and woke up hungry for dinner.
After we ate, he read Down by Lilac Creek while I spent a long stretch of time on the phone with various family members. Things were quiet tonight. Too quiet. We all sensed something was about to crash down on us. We just didn’t know what.
Even Blackjack couldn’t get any solid intel on what the Carlottis were planning.
If we’d had more time, we would have planted someone inside their organization, but this had all come out of nowhere.
As horrible as it was, it had brought me Julian.
I wouldn’t change that for anything, but I had to keep him safe.
Things remained quiet all night, but early in the morning Remington called to let me know some of our men had found a tracker on Julian’s car and Blackjack had prevented an attempted breach of my security system.
I tried to convince Julian to stay home, but he was way too stubborn.
I wanted to order him to do so, but after last night, after the way he’d been so unsure that there was more between us than just sex, I didn’t want to argue with him.
I absolutely wasn’t going to leave his side. He was my assignment for the day. I could protect him best, and honestly, if somebody came for him, the library was easier to defend than my condo.
People wouldn’t question extra guards around a public building the way they would at my place. There’d be no reason for my men to stay hidden or for me to severely limit their number.
I left a message for Remington, informing him of my plan. A few moments later, just as I stepped out of the shower, I saw his name flash on my phone. He didn’t bother to say hello when I picked up; he just launched into a tirade.
I knew how hard the situation was for him and how scared he’d been knowing Henri was at risk, even at Pop’s house. So I excused the fact that he called to bitch at me for insisting I would stay at the library with Julian when he wanted me doing reconnaissance.
“Remy, I’m plenty useful to you at the library. If anyone on the Carlottis payroll shows up, I’ll take them down and torment them every way I can think of until they tell me what we need to know to get the family off our backs.”
“Is fucking Julian on your lunch break part of this plan too?”
I jabbed at my phone, ending the call.
“What’s wrong?” Julian asked.
I shook my head. “Nothing new. Just Remington being an asshole.”
“He loves you.”
“You sound so certain.”
“I could tell when we met. He cares so much for you. He just doesn’t know how to show it.”
“I’m not sure any of us do. The family business doesn’t lend itself to emotional expression.” We stared at each other and time seemed to slow. I heard the tick of the clock in the kitchen. The air grew thick. I wanted—needed—to say something, but I didn’t.
“Where’s the necklace now?” Julian asked.
The change of subject startled me at first, but I was grateful for it. “Somewhere safe.”
He glared at me. “You’re never going to tell me, are you?”
“No, baby. The less you know?—”
“The safer I am. I know you’re right, but are you sure there’s no way it can be returned? Just the thought of these people—these evil people—having the necklace is sickening.”
I stroked his hair back from his face. “It’s what has to happen to keep you safe, to keep Henri and the rest of my family safe. It’s just a necklace.”
Julian nodded. “I know. It’s just that there is a reproduction…”
A plan started to form in my head, but I didn’t say anything. I wasn’t going to give Julian false hope, and if I even mentioned it to Remington, my brother might kill me.
I spent a restless morning prowling the perimeter of the library and stalking around inside. I was clearly driving Julian crazy. If he hadn’t been at work, I’m sure he would have told me off.
Gwen provided some distracting chatter, and when Julian had his lunch break, I ordered us food, took him into the storage room, and relieved a good deal of our tension.
By midafternoon, I was all keyed up again. I hated this kind of waiting. I knew someone was going to make a move somewhere. It would be so much easier to fight than to sit there not knowing what would happen next.
An hour before the library closed, my phone rang. It was Dax. Someone had set fire to a bar we liked to use for private business meetings. Our ownership was widely known, and Remington wanted me on the scene to lay on the charm for the first responders.
I started to insist he send Corbin, but while my younger brother had learned a lot and was becoming a more valuable part of our team, I was best equipped to handle the situation.
“What’s Remington got you doing right now?” I asked Dax.
“Working my network. Learning all I can.”
“I need you here. Come watch over Julian, take him to my condo when the library closes, and stay with him.”
“It will take me half an hour to get there at least.”
“Hurry.”
“Will do.”
Until Dax could get there, I’d have to trust the men I’d put in place. I headed back to Julian’s desk, not about to leave without explaining the situation, or at least what I could of it, to him.
“I’ve got to go handle something that’s come up. Dax will be here soon, and he’ll take you home and stay with you.”
Julian frowned at me. “What’s wrong?”
“Just some family shit to take care of.”
“Bullshit.” I couldn’t help but remember how he wouldn’t say that word the first day I’d met him.
“As far as I know, no one’s hurt, but I’ve got to go smooth things over with local law enforcement.”
“You really can’t tell me more?”
I wanted to tell him everything. About the Carlottis and about the rest of my life, but this wasn’t the time. “Not now. Be careful. Don’t trust anyone.”
“You’ve got three men here. I’ll be fine.”
“Will you keep Tony for me?” Julian reached for the little creature, and my heart skipped a beat. I loved this man.
I bent and gave him a chaste kiss. I thought he’d push me away since he was working, but he pulled me closer and kissed me back, teasing my mouth with his tongue. I felt a lot lighter as I left the library.