Page 94 of D'Vaire or Nothing
Stepping away from Seltivare to keep himself from forgetting to be a gentleman, Ashby smiled ruefully. “You’re a dangerous man, sweet Selti.”
“Can you make lube magically?”
Ashby sputtered and quickly marched away from the elf, who was speaking directly to his baser instincts. “I’m not answering that.”
“It must be nice. I’ve been jerking off in the shower since I don’t have lube. Of course, I’ve also been in a room with Mavi, and I’m not playing with my dick with my twin around.”
“Flowers?” Ashby asked stupidly as he continued to stalk through the garden.
“You’re rushing past them.”
“Because you keep talking about your dick.”
Seltivare ran up and passed Ashby. Then he walked backward so he could grin impishly. “I mentioned my dick once. Are you thinking about it? About how it will feel to get the second hoop? We should discuss it, I think. Are you a top or a bottom? Or do you like both?”
Ashby halted and wondered how the hell he’d raced past about two-thirds of the garden, including the vast greenhouse Killian and Dravyn shared.
“This morning I touched my hole,” Seltivare whispered, his voice a mixture of brazen mischief and shyness. “I liked it so much, I put two fingers inside me. It wasn’t easy at first; I almost fell and slammed my head into the tiles. But I figured it out. I almost screamed when I came. I think I’m a bottom.”
Sinking his hands into his own hair, Ashby tugged as Seltivare’s words produced images that were likely burned into the hybrid’s gray matter for eternity.
“Let’s go see my tree.”
“I bet it’s nice resting there in your underwear. Or it would be if underwear didn’t suck in general. I wear boxers if I’m in non-elven clothes. They are a nuisance.”
Exasperated and charmed, Ashby reached out and cupped Seltivare’s chin. He planted a fast hard kiss on his playful mouth and grinned at the joy in Seltivare’s blue gaze.
“I was talking about the tree in the garden.”
Seltivare laughed and grabbed Ashby’s hand. “Okay, let’s see your tree.”
“It’s ours now if you want to share it. But mostly it’s an office. I work there during the day.”
Ashby led Seltivare to the tree Killian had grown for him, and they wandered up to the large office space. It was decorated in shades of green, including a small dragonskin couch.
“This is pretty,” Seltivare said as he took in the pencil drawings Ashby had begged of Magister Duke Jeremiah D’Vairedraconis, who was a wonderful artist who normally worked with paint. But he’d been outside one afternoon doodling as he stared in the garden, and Ashby had somehow talked Jeremiah into allowing him to have those pages.
“I was happy I could add a second desk in here for you.”
Seltivare shrugged. “It is kind of you, but my job at Deck of Cards doesn’t require a desk.”
“I wasn’t sure if you were keeping your job there.”
A little furrow formed between Seltivare’s brows. “You weren’t?”
“No, you’ve talked mostly about your garden. I guess I figured you’d want to concentrate on that now that you don’t have to worry about the imminent sale of your parents’ house and losing your beloved plants.”
“No one is going to pay me to garden, Ashby.”
“You’re a D’Vaire now and extremely wealthy; you can do whatever you want. A job isn’t a necessity. This is a home where we encourage everyone to explore what fills their heart. You’ll live for eternity, Selti, and I want you to be happy.”
“My parents owned a cleaning company. I’ve worked for them since I was eighteen. They sold it as soon as Mavi and I were hired by the dragons. It was their way of removing it as an option. Our parents wanted us to get out into the world and find our mates. But they also instilled in us the satisfaction of a job well done and how good it feels to provide for oneself.I’m not sure how I’d handle spending every day gardening while someone else ensures I have a roof above my head.”
“I can understand that. Growing up, I had to quit school to keep up with the high rent of the apartment the former jaguar leader forced me to keep. Once I got here, I was offered the world. I chose to finish high school and get my degree, and although I started working part time, I quickly added more hours to make it a forty-hour week. Are you opposed to doing something different from cleaning? I only ask because I’d sort of built this dream of having you in here with me during the day. Dérive can always use devoted employees. In fact, remind me I need to offer the same thing to Mavi if he wants to continue to work too.”
“Dérive would have me?”
“Absolutely. Sorrel and I have way too much to do. We could train you to work alongside us.”
