His lips rise in the slightest grin as he lifts the lid and stares at the delicate golden chains on a bed of white satin. “What is this?”
I take the box from his hands and pull the necklace from inside, undoing the clasp before looping it around his neck. Micah pushes his hair aside, letting me fasten the two sides. I sit back and grin, admiring my work as I trace the shape.
Golden chains weave in an inch-thick band that hugs his neck, and a thin ring hangs from the front. I loop my finger through it and yank him closer, amused at the shock on his face. “Told you I was going to collar you.”
“Won’t it break?”
“The links are Hell-forged, so they’re strong. I could hook you from the ceiling and they would hold.” My fingers continue to dance over the chains before lifting to stroke along his jaw. “They’ll hold forever.”
“It’s beautiful,” Micah says, eyes locked on mine.
“You deserve beautiful things.” He swallows, the bob of his Adam’s apple making the lights shimmer off the choker, and a small smile spreads over my lips. “I had something made for myself, too.” I pull a singular, skinny golden chain from my shirt,and he huffs a quiet laugh when he sees the key to his cage hanging from the end of it.
“Keeps you from misplacing it,” he teases.
I pull him in for another kiss before tucking it back into my shirt. “It keeps you close to me.” He offers me another shaky smile as I wrap my arms around his middle. “They’re going to come looking for us soon. We have to get back out there.”
“Yeah, okay,” he whispers, softly kissing me once more as he traces his fingers over the chains on his neck. He separates himself from me and smoothes his hair, flashing me another gentle smile before his mask slides into place. My heart cracks again as hard lines replace all that sweetness, and I follow him out, avoiding Damien’s eyes like the plague.
Chapter 14
Micah
Xalreth is ignoring me, and I’m pissy.
After a lifetime of feeling unseen, one would think I’d be used to it. Buthissilence holds a different weight.
Wrapped in a silk robe, I grip the ends of the belt and fidget with them as I stare down at my exposed legs. Bitterness builds in my throat, beyond my control. For two hours, I’ve lounged in nothing other than this thin material, and Xalreth has paid me no mind. Nose stuck in a pile of papers, he’s barely looked my direction. He got up and walked past me a few minutes ago without so much as a glance, shutting himself in the bathroom.
He never goes this long without paying attention to me, and a sinking dread settles in my stomach as I wonder if he’s finally done with me.
Please don’t let him be done with me.
I recognize I’m in too deep. The way I want him is self-destructive, but I’m doing nothing to fight it. This desperate, drowning pull to be with him, no matter the consequences.
And there will be consequences.
There always are.
“I believe my costume is perfect,” Xalreth announces from his bathroom.
So that’s what’s been more interesting than me. Fuckingclothes. Defiantly, I flip my hair over my shoulder even though he can’t see me, staring at the bedspread and trying not to let his distraction bother me. “Oh?” I call back, forcing myself to pay attention to the conversation. “That’s… great.”
“Don’t you want to see it?”
Another quiet sigh leaves me as I cross my arms over my chest, biting my lip as I fight my bad mood. One hand reaches up to trace the edges of the chain around my neck. In the week since he’s given it to me, it’s become a constant comfort—something to ground me when life gets overwhelming.
I realize I never answered him and shake my head to myself. “Yes, of course.”
“Don’t sound so excited,” he mutters, and I force myself to push out of this defeatist attitude that’s weighing me down.
“I’m sorry, of course I want to see it.”
“Hmm, less enthusiastic than what I’d prefer, but I can work with it.” The hinges of the door give the tiniest squeak as he pulls it open, and I can’t help how my jaw drops as he steps into the bedroom. “Well? What do you think?”
Black satin covers his torso, thin boning tucked underneath blood-red strips of material. The corset ends justbelow his nipples and is fastened so tight that his well-defined pecs bulge over the top.
A tiny pair of leather shorts clings to his body like a second skin, hugging his thick thighs while showing a perfect outline of his cock. Combat boots lace up his shins. They shouldn’t work with the rest of the outfit, but holy fuck, they do.
