Chapter Twenty-Eight
Yun
Pulling corruption from the men had become easier. Was this how it felt for most guides?
Before, it had always been stressful, a hated task that had to be done, like going to the gynecologist.
As Kenyon pressed his fingers into me, I wondered if this wasn’t still similar…
“You shouldn’t laugh like that when you’re with me,” Kenyon scolded, offering a kiss to my throat, his tone playful.
It reminded me of how different the men were from each other.
Shear was silent and even with guiding, he never usually making things too sexual.
He joined in as a group, but when I guided him alone, he kept a distance.
Ingram liked to tease, to play, up for damn near anything.
I doubted there was a kink he hadn’t explored at one point or another, or anything he wouldn’t try.
Carter was controlling, rough, but never cruel.
Kenyon was sweet, as though sex were more than just physical. He seemed to enjoy the connection, the time together, wanting to make jokes. He felt like the entire act was something between two people instead of just two bodies.
He also didn’t mind at all when we just got each other off without penetration. I’d admit that when we finished like that, it felt as though something were missing. However, with how often I guided them, if I fucked them each time, I wasn’t sure I’d get anything else done.
My own orgasm crept closer, with his skillful fingers sinking into me, his thumb stroking my clit.
I had my own hand wrapped around his cock, though he thrust his hips forward so I didn’t have to move.
All the while, the corruption from him poured into me, as eagerly as it ever did.
I’d kept them all at levels so low that it was astounding, as near zero as an esper could go without any side effects.
It meant that when they went to dungeons—and there had been so many breakthrough portals each day as we approached The Pitt opening—they were in excellent shape.
It also meant I got to see them in a different way. Yes, they were absurd, and they didn’t seem to give a fuck what anyone else thought, but they were also powerful and dangerous. I saw them as the high-rank espers they were instead of the jokes they were seen as.
Kenyon moved his lips from my throat to my own, kissing me in a way I recognized. His hips came forward, hard, fast, his rhythm erratic and messy. I got it—I drowned in that same lust.
We came at the same time, with his hot cum spilling on my hands and my cunt squeezing around his fingers.
That moment of bliss that happened right after was damn near my favorite part, a split second where I didn’t worry, where there was no past, no future, nothing but the wonderful haze that covered my mind.
It always drifted away too fast, though at least I came back to myself with my head resting against Kenyon’s bare chest, the thudding of his heart enough to calm me as well. He dragged his fingers through my hair, the touch sweet, gentle.
“Let’s just stay like this.”
“For how long?”
“A week? Maybe two?”
I laughed at his offer, admitting it had its appeal. “We’d miss The Pitt.”
“So what? I’ve been there—not worth a repeat. I’d give it two stars.”
“Not just one?”
“I swiped a churro from a cart while I was there last time. It was a damn good churro. Something about the churro from our world mixed with the ash from the dungeon was just amazing.”
His words were absurd, but they helped me laugh about it.
We both knew he wasn’t serious.
No matter what happened, how things went, how little we wanted to deal with The Pitt, that wasn’t an option. We’d have to face that eventually. There wasn’t anything stopping it at this point.
Still, it was nice to play this game, to pretend for a moment.
“What should we do instead?” I asked, nuzzling against his chest.
“Well, I think we could stay here. I’m pretty sure I could keep you entertained for that long.”
“If we stayed here, they’d bother us. We don’t want that.”
He tapped his finger against his chin as though thinking. Hell, maybe he was, given that he wasn’t the sharpest one. “You know, I have a cabin.”
“What?” That had me twisting, rolling to my stomach, still resting against him so I could look right at him. “I thought you only had the beach place?”
He smiled, and the expression made him appear younger than he was. “I have my own place in the mountains, but I never go there. The others aren’t into camping or forests, so they never want to go, but I’ve kept it because I picture spending a nice week there. Have you been to the snow before?”
“My parents rented a place in Big Bear when I was younger, maybe ten years old. We didn’t have a lot of money, so we didn’t do a lot of vacations, but we spent three nights there.
The summers are the big tourist time, but that means it’s cheaper in the winter, so that’s when we went.
I remember sitting inside the little cabin, staring out at the snow as it fell.
I’d never seen anything like that, the way the white just blanketed everything.
It felt calm in a way I really liked.” I leaned my chin against my folded arms, staring at him but seeing the past in my head.
I recalled how the yellow from the porch light had reflected off the snow.
“Well, we can’t see the snow right now, but how about this winter we go?”
“You said the others don’t like it.”
“They like you, though, so I’m pretty sure they’ll come so they aren’t left out. We can spend a couple weeks there, no jobs, no dungeons, just us. There are huge windows that overlook the land around it, and trees that are packed in so tight and tall that it feels like walls.”
The way he spoke had me envisioning it, and while I wasn’t what I’d call an outdoor girl, I wanted to experience it.
My phone went off, a chime that had me reaching over to grab it from my nightstand.
A notification from the Guild.
Sleep study in one hour.
The words had me stifling a shudder. It wasn’t from the Guild, not exactly, but rather Mr. Yorn using those contacts. It would keep the communication private, ensure that even if the men saw my phone, they wouldn’t know anything was up.
“What is it?” Kenyon asked.
Having to lie didn’t sit right, but I had no other option. I didn’t bother to smile, I wouldn’t sell it anyway. “I have to get ready for a sleep study.”
“Sleep study?” His gaze moved over me the way it always did when he checked my physical state, to see if I was well. “Why are they doing that? I haven’t heard anything about it.”
“They decided my trouble with sleep was a potential problem, so they want to monitor me all night to see if they can find a cause for it.”
“But we know the cause—anxiety and insomnia due to trauma.”
I flinched at the ease in which he said it, like it wasn’t that important. I knew he didn’t mean it that way, but I didn’t much like my shortcomings phrased so bluntly. “I guess they think maybe there’s a hormonal issue, or the stages of sleep are messed up. I’m not sure, but they’re insisting.”
He pressed his lips together, the ones I’d just been kissing, and I was so grateful it was Kenyon and not Shear.
Shear would have never missed the obvious lie.
Still, Kenyon sighed and nodded. “I’m not happy about it, but at least the Guild is taking your health seriously.” He pouted, the action so cute that I leaned in to offer a soft kiss.
“I’ll be back in the morning.”
“Fine,” he muttered, but sat up.
I got ready, packing a bag. It would be the first time I’d slept away from them in so long, I hardly recalled how I’d slept alone before. Sure, they weren’t going to be that far, but it didn’t make me feel any better about it.
Carter, Ingram and Shear were off at a dungeon, so I didn’t have to worry about fooling them.
I wondered if Mr. Yorn had done that on purpose, if he’d ensured they wouldn’t be there to discover the truth.
I walked the distance to the medical building, the sun still up.
Kenyon had offered to walk with me, but I’d told him I could make it on my own.
Still, each step was more challenging than the last, and forcing myself to continue was almost impossible.
Then I thought about Mr. Yorn’s threats.
I thought about Shear back at Obsidian, or the others sent to an impossible dungeon, forced into positions there was no way out of.
I wouldn’t even put it past Mr. Yorn to have his own people hurt Carter and the others during a dungeon to ensure he got what he wanted.
It meant no matter how hard this was, how little I wanted to do it, I had no choice.
“Good evening, Miss Moore,” Mr. Yorn said as I stepped into the exam room, appearing exactly as he had each other time, like this was nothing but work for him.
I pulled in a deep breath and stood straight.
No matter what I had to face, no matter what happened, I’d keep my men safe.