Page 24 of Doubts of the Egoist (Egoist #3)

Yugo wrapped a tie around his neck and narrowed his eyes when the door behind him creaked open and Kuon sneaked into the room. Standing in front of the tall mirrors, Yugo didn’t turn to greet him, but a single glance at Kuon’s reflection further darkened his mood.

Kuon froze, caught off guard, then gave him a hesitant smile. “You’re up.”

“Not what you expected?” Yugo drawled, focusing on Kuon’s fingers tightening around his crumpled T-shirt and muddy tennis shoes. Sweat coated Kuon’s skin as he panted through his nose, messy hair spiked in all directions.

Anger surged as Yugo realized that the entire mansion had enjoyed the view of Kuon’s half-naked body, covered in scars and passion marks. The former police detective looked depraved, wanton, and oh-so-fuckable. He drew attention like a painting, begging to be explored under a magnifying glass.

The view made a vein throb in Yugo’s temple. He pulled too hard on the tie, causing the silk noose to sink into his throat and cut off his air. He growled, tore it from his neck, and threw it aside as if the piece of silk caused all his problems.

“Why are you angry?” Kuon’s eyebrows furrowed in alertness.

An mean remark rattled behind Yugo’s clenched teeth, desperate to escape, as he tried to figure out why Kuon’s appearance triggered him.

Until now, he’d never cared if people saw his lovers naked.

Kuon wasn’t even fully undressed; on top of that, he had Yugo’s claiming marks all over his body.

Yugo should be happy, even proud, but he hated the thought of anyone seeing Kuon like that.

It was even more ironic because his desire to show the single mark Kuon had left on his own neck was nearly overwhelming.

Ridiculous… He grimaced, unable to leash his ruffled emotions.

Confusion and something akin to fear bled into Kuon’s expression when he didn’t receive an answer. “Yugo, what’s going on?”

Rage annihilated self-control. Yugo whipped around, seized Kuon’s elbow, and pushed the younger man toward the mirrors. “You tell me.”

Kuon’s face paled, and then his cheeks flushed bright red. He stared at his own neck and chest, covered in purple hickeys and bite marks; his reflection’s eyes held a billion expressions. It took him a long second to croak, “Why aren’t you happy? You left them.”

“I did,” Yugo hissed. “So that the flies who get too close to you see that you already have a master. Certainly not for you to display yourself like a third-rate whore after an orgy.”

“Excuse me?” Kuon said slowly, as if giving Yugo’s mind time to catch up with his tongue.

He turned to face him, knuckles whitening as he gripped his muddy shirt.

A deepening crease between his brows accentuated the fire of indignation blazing in his eyes.

“I must have misheard. Repeat if you dare.”

“I’m serious.” Yugo grimaced at the hellish flames dancing in Kuon’s eyes, then raised his palm in surrender.

He grabbed another tie from the tie rack and faced the mirror.

“I don’t have time for this argument right now, so just listen.

Don’t stroll around undressed. This is not a request. I don’t want people to get the wrong idea. ”

“Wrong idea?” With a challenging but incredulous smirk, Kuon folded his arms over his chest. The muddy tennis shoes left a dirty smudge on his wiry flank. “What would that be? Enlighten me, because when I look at myself, I think all the right things.”

Yugo’s fingers seemed to have forgotten how to tie a tie. He crumpled the black silk in his fist, then snapped, “I don’t want anyone to think you’re approachable. Am I being clear?”

Kuon blinked, opened his mouth to say something, then closed it and started laughing. His body shook, mud from his tennis shoes rubbing off onto his stomach, painting it gray and brown. “Are you for real? Look at me. You are the only person in the world who still finds me attractive.”

“That’s all I do. Look at you. Want to know what I see?

” Yugo whispered, then scooped Kuon into his arms and hauled him back to the mirror.

A dirty shoe brushed his cuff, leaving an earthy stain on his crisp white shirt.

With one hand, he secured Kuon’s chin while the other ghosted over the purple marks on his chest down to the scars on his flank.

Kuon gulped, following the ministrations with blown pupils.

“You have never been more alluring. Whenever I look at you, I can’t help wondering what it would take to break you if all these scars only made you stronger. ”

“I really hope you don’t think that.” Kuon’s smirk faded. He tried to wrench his chin out of his grip, but Yugo only held on tighter, causing the skin under his fingers to blanch.

“I do.”

“Well, you’re a sick fucker.” Kuon’s snort was devoid of mirth. “No one else thinks that.”

Kuon held his breath as Yugo’s nail scraped across his belly.

“I already know the faces you make when you tremble with pain or pleasure.” Yugo breathed into his ear.

“But they don’t. They wonder what’s so special about you if the Black Duke keeps you so close and paints your body with purple welts every night.

” Yugo looked at him with lascivious eyes.

“Is it your talented mouth? Your tight ass? That beautiful cock? The way you scream? They’d die to find out.

What do you think they’d do to you in their fantasies after seeing you like this?

” The corners of Kuon’s mouth dropped. His eyes locked with Yugo’s.

“That’s right… They wonder exactly how I fucked you last night, and how much you loved every inch of my cock.

They want to find out if they can make you scream even louder. ”

Disgust contorted Kuon’s face as he remembered the burning look one of Yugo’s subordinates had given him, and how another had sneered and turned away.

Yugo’s anger had contaminated him, inflamed his lungs, but it had been instantly redirected to its source.

Kuon shook off Yugo’s grip and ducked away.

“I must be dreaming.” Kuon shook his head. Outraged and shocked, he struggled to find words to fend off the verbal assault. “Why the hell do you say that? I’m a man, a former cop, and a military officer. This is insulting and untrue. Don’t judge others by your standards.”

With an irritable hand, Yugo straightened his tie into a slim knot. “You are many things, but you forget that you belong to me. People always want what’s mine. So act appropriately.”

“Appropriately?” Kuon choked on the word, unable to believe he was being accused of indecency just for coming back from a hike shirtless.

He already had trouble settling in, and Yugo just made things worse.

Trying to hide his hurt feelings, Kuon glued a skeptical smile on his face, but his eyes refused to obey and kept glaring.

“Here I thought, in your domain, your people were supposed to think whatever you tell them to. How come you have so little control over them?”

“Don’t be stupid. To them, you are just another cocksleeve unless you prove otherwise. I can shut their mouths in my presence, but that won’t stop them from gossiping behind your back. It won’t make them respect you . They never will if you let people see you like this.”

“A cocksleeve?” Kuon snapped, unsure whether to laugh or break things. “Well, maybe they’re not too wrong? After all, here I am, listening to your insults instead of punching you.”

“I try to protect you…” Yugo snapped, fingers sinking into his hair.

“Protect me? So far, you’re the only one who constantly disrespects me and treats me like… how did you put it? A ‘third-rate whore after an orgy’. It doesn’t matter what I do. Your people will never respect me because you don’t. If you don’t want people to see your marks, stop leaving them.”

“Not happening.”

Kuon laughed out loud, feeling stupid.

“Well, I’m not going to prove anything to anyone, and I’m certainly not going to wear a turtleneck all the time to hide your damn marks. I will walk around as I see fit, whether you like it or not.”

He turned on his heel, intending to storm out.

“I’m not done.” Yugo’s commanding tone and the veiled threat in it made Kuon freeze.

Yugo took a pause and an audible breath.

When he spoke again, his voice was deep and calm.

“Very soon, I’ll introduce you to my circle.

Don’t make it harder for me by feeding them gossip.

They will never respect you if they think you are just a bed warmer. ”

Kuon’s anger cooled a few degrees, leaving a dismal sucking feeling in his guts.

“Wait, what?” Everything was happening too fast. He glanced around, searching for something familiar to anchor himself, but ended up staring right at Yugo. “Why do you want to introduce me?”

The man huffed and tilted his head, watching him with a question in his gunmetal eyes. “Why are you surprised?”

Afraid of making wrong assumptions or having false expectations, Kuon always avoided thinking about their future together.

He wasn’t even sure if people like Yugo could have a future with someone like him.

The thought that Yugo considered him permanent enough to make introductions appalled and made him hot and cold at once. He took a small step away.

“Kuon?”

“What for?” Kuon blinked as a chain of possible events unfolded in his imagination, leading to unpredictable, drastic outcomes.