Chapter 9
There’s no place like home
Zach watched as the urco bore Andras away, and he hoped his old friend would be safe.
Andras could be a pain in the ass, but for a demon, he was one of the good ones.
Good . . . ish ones, anyway. He’d made Zach laugh and had kept him sane for over two centuries.
He really hoped Andras would make it through this unscathed.
Turning back to face their current predicament, Zach saw Orias on the edge of the newly formed ravine, watching them. He held out his hand to Drew. “Probably best if I toss it over,” he said, nodding at Lucifer’s dagger. “You’re more likely to end up throwing it into my foot or something.”
Drew rolled his eyes but didn’t dispute this, happily handing over the blade.
“Orias, this is for your master,” Zach called, and threw the dagger across the chasm. It thudded into the ground a foot away from the commander, the bejewelled hilt glinting in a flash of lightning. “Call it an act of goodwill.”
Orias bent down and plucked the dagger from the dirt, then carefully wiped the blade clean and slid it into a sheath on his belt.
“Do you really think this meagre offering will appease my prince, considering the sheer insult and disrespect the miscreant, Andras, bestowed upon him?” Orias shook his head.
“Lucifer will not let such irreverence slide. Andras will pay for his actions.”
“Stealing from Lucifer was a dumb move, I get that,” Zach admitted. “But surely there’s no need to waste the time and resources of the Shadow Blades now that the dagger has been returned?”
“I see Andras has not been entirely forthcoming with you regarding his actions,” Orias said.
“The dagger is not the most valuable thing he stole from my master, though I thank you for its return.” A Shadow Blade approached and whispered in his ear.
Orias nodded once and then turned his attention back to them.
“I have no quarrel with you and your companion. You are free to go.” He turned to his troop and began calling orders, dismissing Zach and Drew entirely.
“What the hell did Andras do?” Drew asked.
Blowing out a long breath, Zach tried to ignore the pang of hurt at being misled by Andras. “No idea, but it’s no longer our concern. Let’s go home, sweetness. I’m tired of this place.”
Drew gave him a sympathetic look and rubbed his back. “I’m sorry he lied to you.”
“It shouldn’t have come as a surprise. I let my guard down and trusted too easily.”
“Still, it sucks.” Drew turned and looked towards the horizon, peering into the distance. “Do we go that way?”
Zach dredged up a smile and nodded. “Yep. The borderlands are in that direction. Let’s go.”
They’d been walking for six hours and had just crossed a small ridge when they found themselves in the borderlands.
Gone was the baking red desert, replaced by low, rolling hills covered in long, blue grass.
Drew was fascinated by the grass and dropped to his knees to examine it closely.
Leila jumped down as well, scratching and pecking, and eating her body weight in grass.
“I think you should be able to try from here,” Zach said, looking around to judge precisely where they were.
Drew nodded, brushing his hands on his jeans as he stood up. “Here goes nothing, I guess.” He held out his hands and Leila flapped her way up and he held her close. Then he closed his eyes and Zach felt his ears pop as Drew began to gather his power. “nusquam pār domui1.”
The air grew heavy and charged, and the hairs on Zach’s arms stood on end. Thunder rumbled as the sky was lit up with lightning, and dark storm clouds rolled in. The sheer amount of magic Drew was wielding made Zach’s teeth ache, and yet his boyfriend was hardly breaking a sweat.
Wind swirled around them before it coalesced into a vortex, spinning faster and faster as it gathered dried grass, the odd twig, and even an inky black feather Leila had left behind.
The side of the vortex seemed to collapse in on itself, leaving behind an opening.
Drew opened his eyes and nodded at Zach. “It’s done. We can leave.”
Reaching out, Zach took hold of Drew’s elbow, since both hands were occupied with his familiar, and guided him forward. They stepped into the vortex and in the blink of an eye, they were back in their kitchen.
Zach breathed deeply as he looked around the familiar space, noting the oven was now empty and there was a note on the clean countertop.
Turned off your smoke alarm, threw charcoaled remains found in the oven in the trash. I assume Drew has been cooking??? Call me the moment you’re back. Kensington.
“I think you might be in a bit of trouble with the Grand Master,” Zach said with a grimace as he showed Drew the note.
Drew scanned the message and then shook his head. “Fuck that. He can wait until tomorrow. I need food, a hot shower, and then sleep.”
Zach couldn’t deny feeling the same, and he quickly began assembling some turkey and salad sandwiches while Drew refilled Leila’s water and food dishes.
They sat together at the breakfast nook and demolished their meals, washing it down with a can of Coke each.
Leila left her mix of pellets and grains after a while to share some of the salad from Drew’s sandwich, and it was a serene moment.
No one was chasing them, no one was trying to harm them, and no one wanted their heads.
“It was kind of Kensington to clean up,” Drew noted before he shoved the last of his crust into his mouth.
“Mmm,” Zach agreed. “I imagine we may owe the neighbours an apology if our smoke alarm had been going off for a while.”
“I was really looking forward to that pie,” Drew said mournfully. “Maybe I’ll try agai—”
“No!” Zach half shouted, shaking his head vigorously. “If you want pie, we can just buy some. No more baking!”
“I’m sure I can’t fuck up that badly a second time,” Drew protested.
“But is it really worth the risk? I don’t think so.” Zach collected their plates and popped them in the sink to deal with later. “Come on. The shower is calling my name almost as loudly as the bed is.”
With an adorable pout on his lips, Drew stood and scooped Leila into his arms before depositing her on a cushion on the couch.
Zach bit his lip to keep in the complaint about that being his cushion.
He’d not survived for over two thousand years without learning when it was safest to hold his tongue.
Instead, he headed through to the en suite off their bedroom and got the shower running.
The hot water felt heavenly, and Zach’s eyelashes fluttered shut as the first cascade hit his shoulders.
He stood there for a long moment, hardly even aware of the sounds of Drew undressing, just enjoying the feel of the hot water caressing his skin.
The glass shower door opened and Drew slipped inside the cubicle before wrapping his arms around Zach from behind and plastering their bodies together.
“Can we just stay here all night?” Drew asked around a moan.
“As good as it feels, I think our bed will feel even better. How about a compromise?” Zach asked.
“Oh?”
“We stay in here until we’re nice and pruned, and then we head to bed where I’ll give you a massage?”
Drew hummed as he considered this. His forehead was pressed against Zach’s back and his breath felt cool compared to the heat of the water. “Counteroffer?”
“Go on.”
“We stay in here until we’re pruned, but instead of a massage, we get each other off in here, and then go straight to sleep once we’re in bed?”
Zach chuckled. “I believe I find that counteroffer more than satisfactory, Mr. Phillips.”
“I’m so glad you do, Mr. Angelo,” Drew said.
Groaning, Zach turned in Drew’s embrace. “I still can’t believe you allowed Simon to use that as my surname on my new ID.”
“Come on, it’s funny!” Drew grinned impishly at him.
“It’s ridiculous,” Zach complained.
“Yet, you agreed to it.”
“Only because it made you happy,” Zach admitted.
“You always make me happy,” Drew murmured, running his nose along Zach’s jaw. “Which is why I’m going to make you happy, right now.”
He dropped to his knees and Zach tried not to imagine how uncomfortable kneeling on the hard tiles must be. Drew didn’t seem to care, and he made a pleased little noise as he covered Zach’s stomach and thighs with kisses.
The way Drew looked right now should be illegal.
As he took Zach’s cock into his mouth, his lips stretched obscenely around his girth.
He looked up at Zach with his big blue eyes, fluttering his lashes to keep the shower spray from blinding him.
Drew had always looked sweet and innocent, angelic even.
More angelic than Zach had ever managed, even as an actual angel.
Right now there was nothing sweet or innocent about the things Drew was doing with his tongue, though. It was downright devilish.
Zach groaned loudly as Drew pressed down firmly on his frenulum and flicked his tongue back and forth across it.
His hips jerked forward, but Drew’s hands on his thighs prevented him from being choked.
Drew continued to lavish attention on the most sensitive of areas, before moving up to suck softly on the head, lapping at the precum that Zach was leaking.
“Feels so good, sweetness,” Zach murmured as he stroked Drew’s cheek. He could feel the firmness of his own cock beneath the soft skin and he pressed down just a little to increase the sensation.
Drew started to bob his head up and down, taking Zach in deeper each time.
Over the course of the last year, he’d become a pro at blow jobs, never failing to leave Zach a shaking, shivering mess.
He still wasn’t a fan of cum in his mouth, and Zach respected that.
He always warned Drew when he was close, and didn’t mind being finished off with a hand.
Half the time, Drew would climb on top of Zach and fuck him to completion, but they didn’t always have time for that.
Shower head was always a treat. Drew found that the constant stream of water that ended up in his mouth diluted the sticky texture of Zach’s load and he would sometimes be okay with finishing him off with his mouth.
It wasn’t something Zach would ever ask for or expect, so it was always extra special when Drew did it.
It was a show of trust and devotion that made Zach fall even deeper in love with him.
One of Drew’s hands dropped to cup his balls, and it was the last bit of stimulation Zach needed. He felt himself teetering on the edge, and he met Drew’s gaze. “I’m about to come,” he warned.
Drew winked and continued to suck him, though not quite as deeply.
When Zach’s orgasm washed over him, Drew let the first pulse or two coat his tongue, then he let Zach’s cock slip from his mouth and worked him through with his fist, painting his cheek with his release.
It was quickly washed away by the water, but seeing his cum marking Drew in such a manner prolonged Zach’s orgasm, making him groan.
Drew kept his mouth open, allowing it to fill with water, which he let dribble out, taking everything else with it. It was hot as fuck, and Zach pulled Drew to his feet so he could cover his mouth with his own, kissing him deeply. “Thank you,” he gasped as he finally pulled back.
Drew smiled, slow and sleepy. “You’re welcome.”
“Let me take care of you now,” Zach said, and turned Drew in his arms until he was leaning against his chest.
“Mmm, won’t take much,” Drew said. He was rock hard and the head of his cock was flushed.
Zach reached around, trailing his fingers down the slick skin of Drew’s chest and stomach.
A year of eating three meals a day had finally filled in the gaps between his ribs, and had even given him a small tummy.
Drew could sometimes be self-conscious about his stomach, but Zach adored it.
When they’d first met, Drew had been malnourished, surviving on ramen and instant coffee.
He was now hale and hearty, with tangible proof Zach was looking after him.
He would spend all night stroking and caressing Drew’s stomach if it didn’t make his boyfriend uncomfortable, but it did, so he didn’t linger.
Dropping his hand down lower, Zach wrapped it around Drew’s cock and started to jerk him with slow, steady strokes. He bent down and kissed the top of Drew’s spine, then moved to the side and sucked gently on his throat. Drew gasped and ground into Zach’s fist, chasing his pleasure.
“Look at you,” Zach whispered. “So perfect for me, sweetness. Fuck, I love you so much.”
“Love you too,” Drew whimpered, letting his head tip back against Zack’s pecs. “Always.”
Drew’s cock was twitching almost violently in Zach’s palm, eager and wanting.
He gave a little twist on his upstroke, and Drew made a keening noise as his entire body stiffened and he came hard.
Zach held him securely as he shook and shuddered through his orgasm.
He pressed even more kisses to his throat, feeling his thundering heartbeat beneath his lips.
“Come on, let’s get cleaned up and into bed,” Zach said when Drew had caught his breath.
“Mmm, sleep sounds so good,” Drew agreed.
After the adventure they’d just had, Zach couldn’t agree more.
1. 'There's no place like home'