Orin didn’t take his eyes from Tiiran. “Some of the pleasure you took in it might have been the love you keep declaring.”
“Yes,” Tiiran agreed after a moment of reflection. “Fial certainly wouldn’t have made me feel that way. I didn’t love him and he didn’t love me. We weren’t even friends. But I also think that Nikoly doesn’t feel that way with his other lovers.”
“Pastlovers,” Nikoly corrected quietly.
“Past lovers,” Tiiran agreed with a nod. “I think that’syou, Orin. You’re wonderful. As is he, so you should have each other. It makes sense, and it pleases me. And…” Tiiran flicked his tongue over the edge of his tooth. “I don’t have poetry, so I will just say that I will be even more pleased when you stop pretending you haven’t already almost kissed Nikoly several times.”
Orin went blank.
“He’s very kissable,” Tiiran went on, his face hot as he did his best to be sweet and coaxing like Nikoly at his most convincing. He touched his fingertips to Nikoly’s bottom lip to prove it. “And he would have let you kiss him in that hallway, even with fallen palace guards around you.” He felt Nikoly start but ignored it except to brush his mouth again. “I think it would have soothed him. The possibility soothed me. I want to watch you kiss and fuck, and sleep and fuss over each other too. Maybe not as you do with me, or maybe so. I don’t care. It feels right no matter how it is. This is what home is to me. And I want to be there when you tie Nikoly up as you said, and torment him and deny him until he cries pretty tears.”
Nikoly shut his eyes. “Please.”
“You see, Orin?” Tiiran demanded, and felt the bunching of Orin’s muscles a beat before Orin bent his head to put his mouth to Nikoly’s.
Both of their mouths were already open, their breath warm on Tiiran’s fingers, which he kept there between them for another moment. Nikoly made a tiny sound of surprised pleasure and then Orin’s hand came up to hold him. When Nikoly turned into the touch, Orin kissed him deeper, which Nikoly took with greedy whimpers. Or perhaps those were Tiiran’s whimpers, because suddenly he was being kissed too, by one and then the other, and then settled back with his face to Orin’s shoulder while Orin and Nikoly both caught their breath.
“Again,” Tiiran ordered, shivering when Orin gave in and took Nikoly’s softness again, kissing him until Nikoly shuddered against him.
“Orin,” Nikoly gave way so beautifully, “I didn’t realize you were afraid. I’ll be careful. I’ll work hard to be careful if you let me. Please.”
“Pup.” The rumble rocked through Tiiran. “I don’t expect you to.”
“Oh.” Nikoly punctuated this with another kiss. “You’re just like him. Oh, let me. Please. Tiiran, make him agree so I can care for him. Please, Tiiran.”
“Home,” Tiiran declared with satisfaction, peering up at the sight of a bear being softly kissed into submission. Then he rose up to add his kisses to Nikoly’s, and then to Orin’s, until someone—Po—yelled for them to pay for a room or invite the rest of them to join.
That was an idea—the room, not Po’s involvement. Tiiran certainly wouldn’t mind watching Nikoly capture Orin further by falling into more of his kisses. But Orin pulled back, breathing harder, and Nikoly apparently had already gotten his way, because he curled into Orin’s side and Orin merely blinked and didn’t comment.
“Ducklings are selfish,” Tiiran reminded him.
Orin gave a small start, then snorted a laugh. “Tiiran, there is selfish and then there is what you just did, whether you realize it or not.”
“I saidhome, Orin,” Tiiran said, a bit sharply but he didn’t apologize. “There are no roses around that word when I say it. I mean exactly that.”
One lover or two, one husband or two, it was all the same in their bed.
Although, they would need a better one. Perhaps it was good that Tiiran meet with Cael, provided he could persuade her to like him, which Tiiran was not sure how to do. Maybe Nikoly could convince her to ask the housekeeping staff to order a larger bed for their room.
His tone took the befuddled wonder from Orin’s gaze and replaced it with fire. “You are too exhausted and still recovering, Tiiran. Stop asking for punishment.”
Tiiran hadn’t been—but then supposed hehad. “But, Orin….”
He stopped when he felt Nikoly’s palm over his cock, not pressing, not stroking.
“He’s aroused.” Nikoly actually sounded surprised by that.
Tiiran wriggled. “You were kissing in front of me. Of course, I am.”
“All but begging for either a spanking or a rough fuck in front of the other assistants.” Orin clucked his tongue, enjoying turning this back on Tiiran now, perhaps as much as Tiiran was enjoying it. Orin loved him. Orin would lovethem. “Terror of the Great Library, hard as a post and trembling because he wants to be spanked and tumbled so everyone knows how eager and good he is for me.”
“Orin!” Tiiran whined freely, skin blazing with embarrassment although he didn’t look to see who might have heard. “You didn’t say anything about fucking,” he whispered in a flushed, aroused panic. “Only… only….”
“Spanking?” Nikoly suggested, pressing a kiss to Tiiran’s head, behind his ear, after Tiiran dropped his head to moan into Orin’s shirt. “I’d like to watch you fuck Tiiran too, if I may.”
“I think we both know you may,” Orin replied dryly. “As he wants to watch us.”
Tiiran shook too violently for it to be a mereshiver. “At least once,” he agreed. “Or some of the time. I don’t have to watch every encounter between you.”
