Page 42 of Fire & Ice

Grumpy about it, Tripp pouts as he dries off, using the towel to obscure his expression from Lee's scrutiny, but he’s sure he knows. Leander finishes before him, sweeping off into the playroom to rummage in the middle drawer of one of the armoires. Tripp follows reluctantly, standing quietly with his head down and his hands behind his back.

“Tripp,” Leander says softly, appearing at his side somewhat suddenly. “I want you to know that you can say no to this request. I’m aware that you’re going to take your collar off before we leave regardless, and that we will be in friendship-mode as far as the world is concerned. If you want to maintain those boundaries, you may. I’ve no right to insist you disregard them. However…I believe we’ve come a long way.”

Tripp lifts his head to find Leander standing ridiculously close and looking up at him fondly. “I think that we can handle this, and if I’m being honest, on a purely selfish level, I’d love to see you do it.”

Never one to back down from a challenge, Tripp bounces his eyebrows and spreads his arms. “Then lay it on me,” he replies. “Sir.”

The grin that splits Leander’s face is heart-wrenchingly gorgeous, and it’s so unfair—Tripp would doanythingto be the reason for that smile. A little chastity? This is nothing. A freaking walk in the park. Tripp isin.

***

Tripp has made the greatest mistake of his life. Why the fuck he ever thought Lee would make thiseasy—maybe because of the newness, or the fact that they were sceneing in public for the first time—the absolutedelusionin which that assumption was rooted is truly beyond his current comprehension.

How it never occurred to Tripp that Lee would absolutely seizeeveryopportunity to press his buttons, to rile him up, and to generally put that cock cage to the test, he has no idea. He’s pretty sure he’s not an idiot, much as his decision making and thought processes today might indicate otherwise, and yet, here he fuckin’ is.

At first, things seemed to be going pretty smoothly.

Tripp’s anticipation about wearing the cage took care of any lingering arousal that might have prevented securing it in place, so at least he had that going for him. As the two of them left the apartment—his collar tucked safely away in its box but hismindstill very much in sub-mode—the cool, circular metal actually felt alright.

Good,even, to Tripp’s surprise and intrigue. Not to mention, it felt pretty exhilarating to be under Lee’s control in public, even if (for starters)publiconly meant the elevator in Lee's building and the uninspiring front seat of Tripp’s car.

During the drive to their destination, Lee didn’t mess with him. He just sat back and let Tripp adjust, focus on driving, and cope withnotleaving his role at the door to the apartment. He looked pretty pleased with himself, though, glancing between Tripp and his window, relaxed back into his seat with his favorite ratty trench coat on and his legs spread, exuding all the confidence of a man who has the entire world in the palm of his hand and damn well knows it.

He’s got one thing in the palm of his hand, that’s for sure, Tripp thinks, only slightly rueful.

Pulling into a parking space outside of the building where their appointment is, Tripp throws the car into park before turning toward Leander. “You know I’m gonna have to call you Lee, right? Sir,” he tacks on belatedly, since they are still in aprivate space and Tripp is not about to go into this thing with Lee's handprint waving hello from the side of his face.

“Of course, Tripp,” Leander replies easily.Tooeasily, which is suspicious—or maybe it’s not, Tripp’s not exactly swimming in familiar territory. “Consider it like…roleplay.”

Barely stuffing down the ‘are you fucking kidding me, I’m roleplaying being myself?!’that practically begs to be blurted out, Tripp shakes his head in disbelief and holds up a finger, the one with the cut on it. “Can we, uh—yellow,” he says weakly, and the change in Lee is instant.

The cocky smirk drops immediately from his face and he turns fully in his seat to face Tripp, practically kneeling to do so. Reaching out to take Tripp’s closest hand between both of his own, Leander doesn’t so much as blink when Tripp tugs it away with a frantic glance around the parking lot.

“Go ahead,” Lee reassures him, blowing straight past his paranoia. “Speak freely, you’re just Tripp right now.”

Tripp can feel a flush creeping into his cheeks but has no idea why or what’s causing it, so he covers. Dragging a hand over his mouth, he ducks his head under the pretense of adjusting his ass in the seat. Small miracles, Lee doesn’t say shit about it.

“Okay,” he says. “Okay. So, here’s the thing. I wanna do this, Lee. A lot, if you really want to know.” He pauses to wait for Lee's acknowledgment and gets it in the form of a subtle nod and patient smile. “I’m just—um.” Anxious, he shakes his hands out and raises both eyebrows at Leander, searching for words and failing to find them. “Beau,” he finally hisses, like Beau is sleeping in the backseat and might overhear.

“Well,” Leander replies with a shrug, his own gaze drawn briefly to the view from the window before snapping back toTripp. “All I can do is ask for you to trust me. I would never intentionally out you and our relationship to Beau, nor would I embarrass you in public, since humiliation isn’t on your kink list.” Lee says the last part so blandly, Tripp isn’t entirely sure whether it’s a joke or not, and then equally can’t decide whether the sentiment is concerning or not.

“About Beau,” he starts, but Leander keeps going.

“Beau knows that you and I are having sex, but not the particulars. He also thinks we’re both in denial about harboring feelings for each other,” Leander says flatly, like it’s the world’s smallest deal and not Tripp’s heart being ripped out of his chest and trampled on, right there in his own fucking car. He imagines his face reflects the same, which Leander must notice, as his carefully blank expression twists with sympathy. “Apologies. I thought it best to just cut to the chase. You know Beau and I talk regularly—”

“Well, yeah,” Tripp replies, gesturing out the window to the place they’re parked and waiting to enter. “Duh.”

Leander shoots him a warning look and Tripp shrugs. “Beau,” he continues, with carefully-measured cadence, “has never held back on his thoughts about you when speaking to me.”

Wellthatis new information, something Trippreallywould have rather known and had time to come to grips with more than sixty or so-odd seconds before—

A rap on the window startles them both. Tripp cranes his neck to glare at his brother’s stupid-ass, Frankenstein-looking face peering in at them with awaytoo knowing grin slapped across it. Considering the information he’s just learned, that irritates the hell out of Tripp, and he’s not above showing it.

“Fine,” he grunts, in the same heartbeat shoving the door open and straight into Beau's side, intentionally rough.

“Oof,”Beau huffs, stumbling away.

“We can do it your way,” he mutters to Lee, “don’t make me regret it.”

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