Bee Among the Clover (169 page)

Aron trembled, a trifle lightheaded as his darkling kissed him. Roman’s toes slid up his calf, the slave’s leg wrapping around his hip to hold him closer. He could feel Roman’s inhibitions slipping away, as his long fingers plucked and teased Aron’s nipples, something he’d never done before.
It amazed him every so often that six months ago, a mere half a cycle of the seasons, he hadn’t know Roman existed. Hadn’t known the pleasure and emotion another man could draw from him. The pleasure he now understood, but the emotion, he was unused to that. Male or female, he had never felt the way he did for his darkling. He had always assumed when it happened it would be a woman, had never imagined anything else.
Suddenly his breath caught in his throat. When it happened? What? He lifted his head, looking down at Roman, into wide, dark eyes that met his without hesitance, his soft, kiss-swollen lips. Aron threaded his fingers through Roman’s silky, flowered hair and knew in that instant. He loved him. He loved this beautiful man.
He didn’t allow himself to think about the ramifications, simply smiled and brushed his fingers across his cheek, refusing to let reality intrude on this moment. For tonight, he was allowed to love him. “Let me make love to you, darkling.”
Roman stared up at him, his eyes searching before he smiled and nodded. “Yes.”
It had been so long since Aron had seen Roman smile at him, and seeing him do so now made him think that maybe all of his other smiles before hadn’t been real. This one was. When Roman agreed, the rush of tenderness was almost overwhelming. He needed to show his darkling that he was different from the others. That what Roman wanted did matter, to him at least.
Aron knelt up in the furs, his fingers searching through the basket next to their bed and finding the small vial of oil he knew would be there. Roman’s eyes were on his face, the shadows lifted from them tonight. His darkling smiled again, spreading his legs wider. Roman’s hips lifted, and Aron’s mouth went dry at the slow, seductive look that passed across his beautiful face.
“Touch me, Aron. I’ve craved you for so long….” Roman’s voice was a needy whisper.
Aron could only nod, hands trembling as he settled on his heels between Roman’s slender thighs. What a sight his darkling was spread out on the furs, his cock hard and straining toward his stomach. Aron removed the stopper from the bottle, pouring some of the thick, scented oil onto his fingertips, then slid his fingers between the cheeks of Roman’s buttocks to skim over his entrance. Entirely in tune with his darkling, he heard his soft intake of breath, saw the way his pulse quickened at his throat.
“Mine,” Aron whispered without thinking as he slowly pushed his finger into Roman, feeling how relaxed he was, how he opened up for him and allowed him into his welcoming body.
“Yours.”
His eyes closed briefly at Roman’s agreement, then opened again. He didn’t want to look away, wanted to see everything written on his face, in his dark eyes that had been hidden before, reveling in it. Slowly he slid down his slim, arching body, nibbling along his stomach, tongue tracing the sleek muscles, dipping into his belly button and smiling at the soft sound Roman made that told Aron he was a little ticklish there.
Gods, he was so hot and tight around his finger, a perfect fit, opening for him, willing and supple, and Aron knew this wasn’t training. This was genuine desire. His darkling wanted him, wanted this, and gods, that made all the difference in the world.
His mouth moved lower, over the taut flesh of his lower abdomen, as his finger sank into Roman, tasting his skin, so warm and silken against his lips, finally reaching his goal. Aron’s lips feathered along the hard shaft, and he drank in Roman’s expression, how his mouth fell open and he gasped. He was so beautiful, and all Aron wanted to do was bring him more pleasure than he’d ever known.
Roman watched in fascination as Aron’s lips reached the head of his cock. His lover kissed the tip, his tongue dipping into the slit, and he groaned deep in his throat as Aron drew the head into his mouth, wet heat suckling at him. Roman curled his fists deep into the furs, lost in the erotic vision of Aron kneeling between his widespread thighs, his sensual lips wrapped around his cock as he drew it deeper into his throat.
Then Aron began to move, so slow it was almost a torture, thrusting his finger deep inside of him even as his mouth began to draw off and vice-versa. It took no time for Roman’s hips to begin to rock, trying to meet each sensation. Roman drew his upper lip into his mouth with a whimper, trying to keep his hips from moving harder, his eyes half-closed in pleasure.
“Sweet Jesu, Aron,” Roman whimpered. “More….” He was unable to stop that soft demand from falling from his lips.
Roman had asked for more before, but he’d never had the thought that he could do more than ask, that he could demand and take what he wanted. With Aron he could do that, and the rush of power was thrilling, knowing how much Aron wanted to please him. It was a unique experience; always before it’d been Roman striving to please.
Aron sped up in response to his plea, and Roman gasped as he began bobbing a bit faster, finger sinking into him at the same alternating pace. His breath caught as Aron added a second finger and began a gentle scissoring. Oh gods, his lover seemed determined to take his time, and while Roman fully agreed with the sentiment, his body was already raging for more, shifting restlessly.
Aron’s eyes met Roman’s, and he felt his heart clench and his breath speed up at the brightness in them. Part of him wanted to look away, the amount of emotion there was so overwhelming, but he didn’t. Tonight he wasn’t going to hide anything from Aron.
His lover slowly drew off of his cock and crawled up Roman’s body, stretching out beside him. Roman sighed in pleasure as Aron’s free hand tangled in his hair, their faces close, eyes locked, lips hovering and breaths mingling as Aron thrust his fingers deep, stretching him.
“My darkling,” Aron whispered against his lips, and Roman could only nod in agreement.
He could feel the need in Aron. He could see and taste just how much his lover wanted him, but Aron restrained himself, continuing to touch him with gentle care so there wasn’t a trace of discomfort, looking at him with tenderness in his eyes. For once, another’s claim of ownership did not bother Roman, and he smiled as he closed the scant distance between their lips and kissed him.
Roman uncurled his hands from the furs, his fingers blindly searching for the vial of oil Aron had set aside. He poured some into his palm, rubbing his hands together to warm it before slipping his hands between their bodies and grasping Aron’s cock, stroking its hard length, rubbing the oil onto him. He wanted to feel Aron inside of him. He wanted to experience the way Aron was going to make love to him.
Aron groaned against his lips, his body jolting at the contact, and Roman arched, moaning in return, pressing his cock against Aron’s hard thigh. Slowly, he broke the kiss, nibbling on Aron’s full lower lip before opening his eyes to meet his lover’s. “Please, Aron, show me.”
Aron smiled down at him and nodded. “I will, my darkling, I swear to you.” He withdrew his fingers, shifting over him and between his slim, widespread thighs, shuddering when Roman slung those long legs around his waist and lifted himself toward him in silent offering.
Roman trembled, gasping. “Please, Aron….”
Aron couldn’t even think about denying his husky plea, one hand sliding down the outside of his sleek thigh to slip under him and lift him up, meeting his eyes, and the only thing he could do was pray to all the gods that Roman wouldn’t close his eyes now. Gently, he began to push inside.
Roman’s eyes widened, and his breath caught. It felt so right to be penetrated by him this time. Everything fell into place. All the other times when it just wasn’t quite right, when they had come so close to this but it had slipped through their fingers…. Roman realized now he’d been afraid of the emotions Aron made him feel. But not tonight, not now.
Roman slid his oil-slicked hands up Aron’s sides, arching his hips up to meet Aron’s. “Sweet Jesu…” he breathed as Aron settled deep inside of him, clenching around him. He didn’t know what to say, how to express how good Aron made him feel, so he didn’t try; instead he brushed his fingertips under Aron’s jaw and smiled, hoping it would be enough.
Aron smiled in return, and Roman was struck by the pure beauty of it, the open, honest smile that lit up his youthful face impacting Roman to his core. He whimpered and lifted his hips harder, more demanding, desire swamping him as he held Aron close.
“Gods, darkling… you feel so good… so perfect.”
Roman smiled. He wasn’t perfect, but for that moment, he thought he might be. Perfect for Aron, anyway. He wanted to be. He shifted one leg higher on Aron’s back, his fingers digging into his lover’s shoulders. No one had ever affected him this way, and he reveled in it.
Roman burrowed closer to him, pressing his face against the side of Aron’s neck and drinking him in. He rocked his hips to meet Aron’s slow, deep thrusts. It felt so different from the way it normally was. He wasn’t hounded by the frantic need to get off, to drive his partner wild with desire so they would hurry up and it would be over. He wanted this to last all night.
He hummed in pleasure. Aron’s cock brushed just past that spot inside of him, building up the fire inside in slow degrees. Roman tightened around him, and he whimpered every time Aron began his slow withdrawal.
“I need you,” Roman whispered against Aron’s throat, the truth of the words hitting him in his gut with powerful force. He felt the light jolt run through Aron and pressed his lips to his salty skin before lifting his head to meet his lover’s eyes.
It was on the tip of Aron’s tongue to vow he’d never leave Roman, that he’d always be there, but that wasn’t true, and he refused to ruin this night with lies, however pretty they might be. He met his dark eyes, and his fingers came up to brush against his cheek, tracing the elegant bones as he nuzzled at his lips and breathed him in. “I need you, too, darkling.” The truth of it was undeniable; the love he felt for this man clawed at him to get out, and he was barely able to hold it in.
His thrusts picked up speed, still nowhere near hard or fast, but a bit more pressure, a slight shift in angle to more directly stimulate that spot inside him, and he felt the reaction shivering through Roman. He reveled in it, in that fact that those reactions were genuine this time, there was no doubt in it.
He buried his face in his darkling’s neck. “I’ll always need you.” The words were softly spoken and so true it hurt. His stomach clenched at the realization, but he refused to think about it. This time was too perfect to mar with worries about tomorrow or any tomorrow after that.
Roman warmed under Aron’s words. He couldn’t imagine his lover needing anybody, and he couldn’t understand what he offered Aron that he would need, but he knew Aron spoke the truth. Aron had never deliberately lied to him, no matter his anger at the time. They’d misunderstood each other, but that was not because of lies.
Roman let his hands move over Aron again, enjoying the play of defined muscle under his skin as Aron made love to him. He arched against him, pressing his cock between their tightly joined bodies. He felt the urgency begin to rise in him and didn’t fight it. They had all night, and he wanted to experience it over and over again until they were spent and had nothing left to give each other. Then he wanted to sink deep in Aron’s arms and feel safe and cherished while he slept. He buried one hand in Aron’s thick hair, holding him close.
His lover must have sensed the shift, the desire to embrace their passion, because he responded accordingly, sliding one hand between their bodies to close around Roman’s cock. Roman whimpered, and the need curling in his belly tightened, driving him onward and upward, writhing beneath Aron.
Roman couldn’t tear his eyes from Aron’s face. For so long he had made a conscious decision to keep his eyes closed, he’d forgotten what it was like to watch every nuance of a lover’s pleasure on their face. Aron met his eyes and gave him a shaky smile before nuzzling at his lips, and Roman savored the tender brush of his mouth.
“Darkling… gods, yes….”
Roman couldn’t begin to express how it felt: more than pleasure, more than desire, more than anything he had ever hoped to experience. He was entranced by the pleasure twisting Aron’s beautiful features into something even more breathtaking, stealing his sanity, it seemed. He reached up and cupped Aron’s cheek in his hand, thumb caressing his cheek. Aron’s eyes met his, ecstasy written in their depths.
Roman’s whimpers and soft, sobbing sounds of pleasure became more and more frantic as it built, until he was on the verge of begging for release, twisting in desperate need beneath him. “Aron….”
Aron’s clear blue eyes darkened to sapphire as he stared down at Roman. Their gazes locked, and Roman saw a determination in his lover’s eyes that made his stomach clench. Aron’s voice was husky with restrained passion when he spoke. “Tell me when, darkling.”
Roman gasped, his eyes widening even further. For a second he was terrified, he didn’t know if he could, but Jesu, he wanted to give it to Aron, to himself. His training was so ingrained, and he latched with desperation onto Aron’s words. They could be construed as an order, couldn’t they? He drew his upper lip into his mouth, his whimpers frantic as the pleasure surged stronger, concentrating on it and Aron’s beautiful blue eyes silently urging him on.
Roman’s hands slid down to Aron’s broad shoulders, curling and holding onto him hard as he fought against the training that had been drilled into him since Wulfgar had captured him. He didn’t notice how his nails dug into Aron’s skin; he kept his eyes open and trained on Aron’s features.
This is different… this is different.
He chanted it in his mind. He was free to give Aron what he wanted, when he wanted. Everything about this night was special.
Roman whimpered, tasting the sheen of perspiration on his lip and biting down to keep himself from begging Aron for release. Instead he concentrated on the exquisite pleasure that was thundering through him with every deep thrust, feeling it build and claw at him for release.
Tell me when… tell me when….
He wanted to, wanted to so badly, but his mind and body were so tightly entwined that he couldn’t let one go without the other.