25. Rurik #2
“We row together,” I say, knowing she won’t accept it as the only answer.
“Since fucking when do you row?”
“Since Ash showed me the masochistic delight in it.” So much for sticking to my story. But we’re friends, and it’s hard to not be myself.
She throws her hands up in the air. “I fucking knew you were sniffing around him. You were too interested at the first event. I fucking warned him.”
“Guilty.”
“He’s not even gay.”
“I know. He tells me it all the time while his dick is in my mouth,” I deadpan.
She makes a gaging face and shudders. “What?!”
“Oops… cats out of the bag I guess.” I didn’t mean to say it. It kinda just came out.
“I did not need to fucking know that. Wait, why would he tell you he’s not gay while you’re—” She makes another face. “Come to think about it, I don’t think he likes anyone. Are you grooming my cousin?”
I hold up my hands before the knife comes back out. “I’m not grooming him...mostly. Sure, he was reluctant about my advances at first, but that’s because of your fucked up family not allowing him to be gay. I can assure you, he likes his dick being sucked.”
“My family wouldn’t care if he’s gay. At least not my mother or father. Not his mother either. I don’t know Uncle Gustav as well, but I don’t think so.” She shakes her head like it’s not even a possibility.
Well that’s…weird.
What the fuck is up with him then? I hate how this is leaving me with more fucking questions than answers. It’s also making me want to go on a murdering spree. So honestly, I have to stay here tonight, or I’m going to ruin everyone’s night.
Ash stirs, and we both go quiet. I sit on the bed next to him and stroke his hair out of his face. “You know I’m not leaving, right?”
“Are you really this into him? What happened to the I fuck everyone Rurik?”
“People can evolve, K.” My phone starts to buzz. I pull it out and answer it. “Key? You here?”
“Rurik-chan, I’m pulling up. You said you want me under a damn window?”
“Yeah, I’m going to drop something down to you. I want you to have our lab run a full screen. Whatever they can do—drugs, alcohol, substances, fucking anything they can think of.” I meet K’s eyes as I say it. Watching for any hint she’s lying to me.
“This might be the weirdest fucking thing you’ve ever had me do.”
“I love you!”
“You better.”
I put the vials in a padded bag and drop them down to Kiho, then turn back to K, expecting questions.
“I want the results. If there are drugs, I might be able to trace the chemical signatures back to a lab.” That tells me enough.
“You’re the drug expert. How long will this last?”
“Depends on what it is. Could be eight to twelve hours from onset. We won’t know until the tests come back.”
I grunt, annoyed. I should have taken him to the family doctor. I hate not having control.
“He’s let you stay?” K lingers. I’m sure she doesn’t want to leave him alone with anyone.
“I’ve been here every night for months.” And maybe he didn’t know part of that time, but it’s been awhile since I started sleeping here regularly. “My toothbrush is in the bathroom if you don’t believe me.”
“If he wakes up upset, I’m killing you.” She lingers, clearly not wanting to leave me alone with him.
“Do you trust me zero? When have you ever even seen me willing to stay a night with anyone who wasn’t in the circle of trust?”
She processes my words. “Damn it. You have a point.”
“And if you kick me out, I’ll just tase all of you and get to him anyway. So choose if you want the easy way or the hard way.” My tone is flat and deadly serious. Probably more serious than K has ever seen me.
“I’m choosing to trust you.”
“Good choice.”
I strip down to my boxers and slip into bed with him. I hate sleeping with anything on, but since I wasn’t the one who drugged him consensually for funnzies, it feels wrong.
I put my arm over him, already knowing he’ll wake up anxious. I’ve seen the come-down with Nik, and when there is already a baseline of anxiety there, it’s not a good time.
I come half awake some time later, pulled from sleep by his energy shifting. I can’t explain it other than I feel it. I always do with Nik. My body reacts to soothe him before I’m even processing I’m awake. It’s so easy with Ash.
“You’re okay. I’ve got you, baby.”
He’s shaking, which wakes me up more.
“Baby?”
His eyes are open, but he’s unmoving except for the trembling.
“Are you awake?” I roll half on top of him, using my weight to help ground him. He doesn’t respond, but his eyes move, so I put my lips next to his ear. “I’ve got you, baby boy.”
He grunts and sucks in a big breath. “Fuck.”
“Could you not move?”
He avoids my gaze but murmurs. “No.”
“Sleep paralysis?” I ask, settling in beside him but keeping him in my arms.
“Yes.” He trembles.
“Was that what it was the last time?”
“Mmmhmm.” His breathing shudders, and I kiss his temple.
“Did I help?”
“Yes.” He hesitates. “Usually, a person grounds me and snaps me out of it. But I felt so heavy, like even you couldn’t bring me out of it. And I just kept expecting you to be an illusion. For you to turn into the demon because I wasn’t coming out of it.”
I don’t know much about sleep paralysis, but I’ve heard of the demon shit. It’s fucked someone’s brain can do that to them.
“So it helps when I touch you?”
“Yes.” He practically melts into me. “It’s basically stopped happening since you’ve been staying here. I don’t know what did it tonight. Maybe it was the alcohol…”
I see him putting the pieces together. “Do you remember what happened?”
He searches my face in the low light from the window. “No. I went to the bathroom and… How did I get home?”
“Your bodyguards found you passed out in the bathroom. K—Viv—and I were looking for you.”
“Viv knows? I need to talk to her.” He tries to sit up, pulling out of my arms. “Fuck my head hurts.”
I tighten around him. “You passed out. Of course your head hurts.”
“She and I talked. She’s a friend of mine. I didn’t realize she was your cousin.” I explain how the night went down because I’m not going to lie to him, and it will all come out eventually.
I don’t bring up the slip of the name. I don’t know why. Maybe it’s because I don’t want to know. I want to spend another night in bliss before my research. Or maybe I’m worried it’s nothing or something. But I’m not ready.
“Fuck. I can’t believe she’s in Legacy.”
“It’s kind of funny.” All of it is actually. “Do you have any idea who could have possibly drugged you?”
“I never left my drink. I don’t know why anyone would.” He groans curling into me and I know it’s because he doesn’t feel good, but I still like it.
I skim my fingers down his back. “When I find out who did it, I’m killing them.”
“I don’t think you’ll be able to find out.” He nuzzles against my side clearly exhausted. “It must have been the drugs that made my episode worse. I’m sorry for disturbing your sleep.”
“You can always disturb my sleep, baby.”
He rolls his eyes but notably doesn’t tell me not to call him baby. I’m gonna take that as a win.
“What does the demon normally do?”
He shakes his head. “I—it’s nothing—” Which means it absolutely is something.
And now I got beef with a fucking demon in Ash’s brain. That seems fine.