Page 10 of The Shadows of the Dawn

Nikola leaned in close to Asher’s ear. “No killing tonight, my love, all things considered.”

Asher scoffed with the roll of his eyes. Hopefully, the story of Grander hadn’t spread so quickly that the silver and red would be clocked as anything but eccentric contact lenses. “Tch. I know. Old habits, y’know? Well, duh, of course you know, being old yourself.”

Nikola gave a halfhearted snarl. After the High King, Asher still viewed Nikola as old? “Let’s feast together, precious one.”

They landed on an alarmingly drunken young gay couple. So drunk, in fact, that they didn’t need much supernatural coaxing to follow Asher and Nikola down an alleyway. They fed swiftly.

It was possible that they didn’t even need to cast amnesia over the men before sending them stumbling back to their bar buddies, but it was an ideal opportunity to show Asher Black how Moon Children fed and cleaned up.

“I don’t think it’ll ever not be weird,” Asher grumbled, his features freshly flushed. The rosy tint was gorgeous. Nikola was struck by the overwhelming urge to kiss all over his face. “Targeting innocent people. Then healing them. All without the drumbeats. Shit, I think I got a little drunk off those chuckle fucks.”

Nikola laughed. Ah, perhaps he was right. He brushed a thumb along those dastardly sharp cheekbones. “A normal night and I would suggest we keep the party going.” He grimaced. What even constituted a normal night between us? “Unfortunately, we should head back ASAP.”

Asher leaned his cheek into Nikola’s palm, eyebrows pinched. “Right. Back to my ex.”

Nikola peered at Asher, trying to get a read on him. When Asher had met Nikola’s ex, it hadn’t exactly been under conventional circumstances. Even by their standards. The concept of exes to a creature of Nikola’s history was a foreign concept. Did that explain the innate jealousy?

Asher pulled back, picking up on the impulsive reaction. “Nikki, listen. Trust me, there’s nothing there. Except hatred. Lots of hatred. It’s... Christ. Complicated? It’s weird. I last saw that fucker when I was human, and these memories keep rushing in, and then he comes around with this new partner, as if he can just forget what he did to—” Asher tangled his fingers in his hair and growled. “It’s you, okay? Only you. My trauma shit is its own shit. It’s not who he is. It’s what he did to me—what he got away with.”

Nikola believed Asher with all his being. He had no reason not to. Did he himself not experience such complicated emotions in the face of the woman he had once loved and came to fear and loathe? “Oh, precious one.” He glanced down at his cellphone, relieved to find a lack of impatient texts urging them to hurry up. “I suspect we have a little time.”

The alley they were in was tucked away from the busy streets, chosen for obvious reasons, but it could serve another convenient purpose. Asher’s lips curled toward a teasing smile as he registered Nikola’s suggestive change in tone.

“Oh, I don’t know,” Asher said in a sing-song voice, taking a few steps away from Nikola with an excruciatingly alluring sway to his hips. “We should probably get going. Godly responsibilities or whatever the fuck.”

He shot a sly grin over his shoulder, stopping midstride, as if he were devious prey treating the hunt like it were a game.

Nikola gave a frustrated snarl and closed the gap between them, yanking Asher’s chest against his own, lips colliding.

Nikola fully trusted Asher, but he didn’t know Liam at all. The possessiveness boiled fiercely within Nikola’s stomach, taking the form of a stiffening cock. There was history between Asher and that other man, Nikola would need to accept that. But that didn’t mean Nikola couldn’t make Asher cum so hard he forgot every man’s name except for Nikola’s, his own included.

Nikola shoved Asher against the alley wall, hips pressed against hips. He lashed his tongue up the side of Asher’s neck, teasing a bite. “You’re mine, you hear me? All mine.”

“Fuck,” Asher breathed. “Oh, fuck. I’m yours.”

Nikola yanked Asher around, one hand circling around his throat as the other unclasped his belt. It felt as if they were picking up from where they’d left off on the rooftop. Except no one would be interrupting them this time.

Nikola eased Asher’s pants below his waistline, pushing his upper half forward until he was bent over. Asher cursed, bracing against the wall with his hands.

Asher gasped as Nikola squeezed a fistful of his ass. He admired the curve of Asher’s back, the prime position to take him in. But their location and lack of... assets proved inconvenient. But there was a surplus of ways Nikola could make Asher fall apart.

He reached around Asher’s hips, pushing aside the shirt hanging in the way. He circled his fingers around Asher’s erection, purring with satisfaction at the droplets of precum. He began to stroke, Asher moaning and thrusting his hips into Nikola’s fist.

“Nikki!” Asher cried out, voice bouncing off the walls. Hopefully, no one overheard them... but Nikola found he didn’t really care. “Oh, Christ. Nikola.” Asher let his head drop into the nook of his elbow, his breaths hissing between his teeth.

Nikola unbuckled his own pants, easing out his throbbing member. Although he was normally content whether he came or not, as long as his partner was satisfied, he did not wish to start their road trip with blue balls.

Continuing to stroke Asher, he slotted his length between his ass cheeks. Asher arched back, wordlessly asking to be penetrated, but Nikola did not enter. He slid himself up and down the crevice, the friction enough to cause his desperate cock to crackle with impending orgasm.

Asher fucked Nikola’s fist whilst Nikola thrust his hips. “Nikki, I’m—” The sentence ended in Asher’s choked groan, cum spilling over Nikola’s knuckles. His lover’s climax stole his breath. He just barely managed to yank up Asher’s shirt in time to avoid soiling it, spilling his seed across Asher’s deliciously toned back, white coating blurred and blotchy inked scars.

Nikola didn’t even get the chance to catch his breath before his phone buzzed.

Time’s up.

Back to reality.

CHAPTER SIX

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