Page 79 of A Gathering Storm

Ward kissed and lapped and suckled, gently at first, then more firmly, loving the contrast of fragility and roughness. Loving even more Nicholas’s astonished, helpless gasps. He captured the tender orbs between his lips and cradled them there, rolling his tongue over them, before gently suckling them into his mouth. Then he did it all over again, and again, till Nick was chanting his name like a prayer. He moved lower, dipping his head to explore the tender, sensitive patch of skin below Nicholas’s balls, then lower still, so that his tongue skirted the very edge of Nicholas’s tight hole. That glancing caress made Nicholas cry out with something like desperation, so he did it again, stretching his tongue to graze the tender ring, over and over.

“My God, Ward,” Nicholas gasped. “I’ve never—”

He broke off, and the sentence went unfinished, forgotten even, because Nicholas was groaning now, his jerking hand moving ever swifter as he wrenched out his climax. At last his spend erupted from him, splashing his belly, his chest, even his throat as he came hard, his bright gaze fixed on Ward.

They lay tangled together in bed after. The lantern had gone out, but the fire in the grate, though low, gave off a faint glow.

Outside, the rain still fell, though now with diminishing force. The storm was well and truly over.

“So, what now?” Nick asked. “Do you intend to continue with your work?”

“My attempts to contact the spirits, you mean?” Ward asked. He’d been staring at the ceiling, but now he turned his head to meet Nick’s gaze, his expression a little bleak. “No, I don’t.”

He didn’t offer any explanation, and Nick didn’t ask for one. Right now, everything was still rather too raw for that, he thought. Instead he propped himself up on one elbow and gazed down at Ward’s comely face. “What will you do then?”

Ward thought about that. “I may go back to the work I was doing before,” he said. Then he smiled faintly, just a small quirk of his lips. “Or perhaps I will find something new to occupy me.”

“Do you have something in mind?”

Ward paused. Then he said carefully, almost diffidently, “I’ve become quite interested in weather prediction lately.” A self-deprecating huff. “It’s all that watching for storms, I expect.”

Nick was hit by an unfamiliar surge of affection—the hint of uncertainty in Ward’s expression was so unexpected. It was rare to see Ward look anything but entirely sure of himself.

“Well, I can certainly see the practical use of that,” Nick said. “The fishermen round here would welcome it, I’m sure. Too many men are lost to storms at sea.”

“It would be good to do something useful,” Ward agreed quietly.

“Ward, I didn’t mean—” Nick began, falling silent when Ward reached up to place cool fingertips over his lips.

“I know you didn’t,” Ward said. “But you were right when you questioned what good my reaching George would do anyone in this life. So yes, that’s one of the reasons I won’t be continuing with my previous studies. And yes, in the future, I would like to do something that benefits someone in a meaningful way.” He smiled then. “Anyway, what about you? What does your future hold, Nicholas—apart from me, of course?”

“Apart from me.”Those words prompted a helpless smile from Nick. His cheeks had begun to ache with all the smiling he was doing.

“Well,” he said, dropping down to the mattress again, so that they lay facing one another, their heads on the same pillow, “if you can believe it, Godfrey’s apparently bequeathed me some land.”

“Has he? Where?”

“It’s the other part of the plot he sold you. It badly wants improving—it’s nothing but grass and rocks just now. I’ve been nagging at Godfrey for a while to put it to some use. He must’ve decided to just give me it and let me do my worst. Probably realised Harry would never rouse himself to do anything more with it than stake it in a game of cards.”

Ward raised his eyebrows at that, but only said, “And how do you propose to cultivate it?”

“I’m not sure. I’d be starting from scratch. Most farmers round here have dairy herds so there’s really no more call for that kind of thing. The land’s not particularly apt for arable crops, but it’s good for other crops, and when the new train line’s built from here to Truro, I’d be able to transport any produce a good distance, so that might be a way forward—” He realised he was beginning to babble and came to an abrupt halt, embarrassed by the betraying eagerness in his tone.

Ward didn’t look bored though, or even amused. His eyes were warm, a faint smile playing over his lips. “It sounds as though you have some thinking to do,” he said softly.

“It sounds as though we both do,” Nick said. He reached out to brush back that always-straying lock of Ward’s hair from his forehead.

“There are some things I need to think about,” Ward agreed. “But there’s others I’m already decided on.”

“Such as?” Nick asked.

“Such as, I love you,” Ward said. “And I want to share my life with you. Fully.” He stared into Nick’s eyes, his gaze growing a little wary, a little careful. “What about you, Nicholas? Do you want that too? Really want it, I mean?”

The edge loomed, terrifyingly high, but Nick didn’t hesitate. He didn’t know what was on the other side, but he ran towards it full tilt.

“I really do,” he told Ward, and leaned forward to seal that assurance with another kiss.

And they soared over the edge of thezawntogether.