19. Santiago
SANTIAGO
Close the door.
On your knees.
You better not so much as scrape me.
Do you want to make me angry?
Attaboy.
How obedient.
Come over here.
Go on, make me come.
Who said you could touch yourself?
How disgusting.
Get out.
Get out.
Get out.
Get out.
Get out—
“Fuck, bro, you’re gonna burn the food,” Nacio said as he shoved his way to the front of the hot grill.
Snapped out of it, I looked down at the meat cooking over the flames, realizing I’d drifted.
“Sorry,” I muttered when he took the tongs from me and flipped the beef.
“Everything’s good?” he asked, eyes meeting mine.
Forcing a smile, I rubbed his nape. “Yes. Now, get away from my grill.”
A smile spread on his lips, a dimple on each side, before he gave me back the tongs and went over to sit with the others.
Just as promised, we’d invited a few friends to celebrate his birthday.
It was nothing fancy, just some good meat and a few beers in our backyard, but it was tradition.
A part of being Argentinian meant that asado was basically a religion.
One we’d neglected for a while due to unfortunate circumstances, like me going to prison, but it was about time we got back to it—
Get out. And don’t you dare show your face to me until Monday.
It had been over a day, and yet I was still obsessed over it.
Why was he so angry? If anything, I should’ve been the one getting mad when, instead, he kicked me out of his house with his cum still on my face.
My stomach flipped, and I placed my fingers on the side of my cheek, almost able to feel his fingerprint there.
I finally had a break from him, a whole weekend for myself, and yet, for the last twenty-four hours, he was all that I could think of.
The way he smelled, the way he tasted, the hollow expression in his eyes right after he came.
What was that? And more importantly, why did my body ache every time I remembered it?
For fuck’s sake, he was a freaking demon, and yet, in that moment, I wanted to embrace him so bad it basically burned in my bones.
“Tell me you’ve got some tofu for me.”
Looking to my side, Imani stared at the grill, a frown on her lips.
“No clue what you’re talking about.”
“Veggie skewers, then?”
I huffed. “You’re talking to an Argentinian.”
“And you’re talking to a vegetarian.” She slapped my chest. “So better make sure I have something to eat, yeah?”
Holding her stare, I broke it with a wink. “Don’t worry. I got you some pizza.”
“Now you’re talking.” She rubbed her palms together, making us both laugh when someone new joined the others, and we turned to see who it was.
Great.
“Isn’t that your sexy ex?” she asked, looking at Gabriel, who’d just fist-bumped Nacio.
“It is.”
“Even sexier than in the photo.”
This girl found his photos online after I mentioned his name once.
“Seriously, Santi, he’s hot.”
It took Gabriel no more than a few moments to track me down, and our eyes quickly met. Nacio was the one to invite him, and since it was his birthday, he had every right to. Besides, Gabriel’s sisters were also here, and they said the more, the merrier, so…
“Meat’s ready,” I called aloud, causing the rest to cheer because it was about fucking time.
* * *
A few hours later, we were down to the best crew, drinking beer and chilling.
Imani was busy talking with Gabriel over who knew what, although by the looks of it, she’d probably call it a night soon.
Sitting across from them, I was nursing my own beer, enjoying the bitter taste of the cold drink.
Despite my parole, after the week I’d had, a drink was in order.
Besides, who was going to report me—Gabe?
Laughing at my own thoughts, I took another sip and watched my brother.
Cuddled with Tess, he was planting kisses along her neck, looking like a fool in love.
They seemed happy, which was nice, considering only last week they’d broken up for the tenth time, probably.
I smiled at the thought and brought the bottle to my lips to take another sip, only to find out I’d finished it.
Grunting like an old man, I got up from my folded chair that had molded to the shape of my ass and went over to the cooler where we kept the beers.
Seeing there were only empty bottles and cans left, I figured it was time to get more from the fridge.
With everyone sitting outside, our small house was empty.
It was nice having people over for a change, although I wouldn’t get used to it.
After having no privacy whatsoever in prison, my time there made me possessive over my space, and I wasn’t a fan of people intruding on it, not even friends.
Still, tonight was one of those rare occasions where it felt nice.
I’d just taken out a six-pack from the fridge when the porch door creaked open, and Gabriel walked inside. It was the first time tonight it was just us two, and I bet my broke ass he’d been waiting for the chance.
“The meat was good,” he said, that bashful smile on his lips.
“Of course it was. I cooked it.”
He chuckled. “Modest as always, I see.”
“When it comes to asado and boxing, we both know I’m the best, so what’s the point of denying it?”
“There were a few other things you were good at, if I remember,” he said, darting his stare to the floor.
Fucker.
“Yeah? Like what?”
He looked up, meeting my eyes. “Pissing me off, for one.”
My lips curled into a smile, and I huffed a laugh while placing the beer on the kitchen counter.
“You were good at that, too.”
“Imani’s nice,” he said, changing the subject.
“She is.”
“She told me you guys have the weekend off or something.”
The Kallos was hosting one of its famous parties this weekend.
All the staff who didn’t work them got the days off, which, honestly, was the majority of us.
A bit odd, I’d say, but Imani explained that because those parties were being hosted by an outside contractor, they brought in their own people.
“Yeah, we do.”
“Having a break must be nice.”
If I weren’t so busy thinking about my psychotic boss, it might have been.
But everything reminded me of him, including the empty wall behind Gabriel.
Until yesterday, an old bookcase was there.
But furious after getting back home, I wrecked the damn thing with my fists and had to clean up the mess before Nacio got home.
I should have saved those punches for Ariyan’s face, not some stupid furniture.
I should have hit him, wrecked his face for messing with my life like the fucking sadist he was.
Maybe that was why he did it all to begin with—pure sadism.
His sole agenda was to hurt me, and the pleasure he’d gotten from it was just a bonus.
But what did it mean if I enjoyed it, too?
And I did. A lot. I’d come in my jeans like a total loser, mouth full of his cock and my head already begging for more.
Even now, I could feel my heart rate increasing, beating so fast I heard the blood pounding in my ears just like it did yesterday.
It was that same sweet feeling of adrenaline that rushed through me before a fight, the thirst for blood, for violence—
“Santiago?”
My breath caught, and I looked straight ahead at Gabriel.
Sweet, kind, sane Gabriel. Like I said, that Ariyan was a disease of the mind, and I had to quit him.
Fast. Before it was too damn late. And if he truly was just a sadist, then there was no reason behind his actions.
He probably lied the whole time about me doing something to him in the past, using it as an excuse.
He told me to remember something that had never happened just to fuck with my head.
And when I thought about it, Gabriel did look hot today.
Very. Rough around the edges and with eyes that held nothing but kindness, he was the complete opposite of that psycho.
Forgetting all about the beer I’d come here for, I pushed away from the counter and strode toward him.
Gabriel’s brows furrowed a second before I reached for him and pulled him into me.
Our chests bumped, and then our lips met.
He seemed shocked but got over it quickly enough as he began kissing me back.
Opening his mouth, I thrust my tongue in, swirling it around his.
A kiss that was supposed to feel familiar, considering we’d kissed and fucked more times than I could count, was anything but.
My body didn’t warm up to his touch, even though it should have.
If anything, this whole thing felt forced.
Was I a bad kisser? Pulling back just a bit, Gabriel’s face was all flushed, his eyes already burning with need.
So that probably wasn’t the case… I guess the booze had gotten to me.
“Come,” I rasped, grabbing his hand and leading him after me to my room.
With the door closed behind us, I pushed him onto the bed and watched as he began to take off his clothes.
He’d gained some nice muscles during the last few years, and his tawny skin only made him look hotter, especially with all that dark hair to add to that.
He was my taste, or so I thought, until my mind showed me images of sickeningly pale skin, as smooth as a woman’s—
“Come over here,” Gabriel said, his words pulling me back to the moment.
Getting rid of my shirt, I then took off my pants and climbed onto the bed, still in my boxers.
Gabriel’s hands were on me in seconds, his fingers moving along my skin in such adoration.
It bothered me for some reason, and so I grabbed his neck and forced him down before taking over his lips.
He groaned, whimpering beneath me while I violated his mouth until we were both out of breath.
“That’s new.” He grinned, satisfied.