Page 6 of Doubts of the Egoist (Egoist #3)

Kuon crawled on three limbs, carrying the plate on his open palm.

Darkness swarmed around him as he concentrated on the atmosphere of the room and the smooth silken sheets shifting under his weight.

The air felt slightly warmer on one side.

He turned right, and his shoulder brushed against Yugo’s raised knee as his hand landed on his stomach—rock hard and searing hot.

The passionate scenes Kuon had tried to eradicate from his mind with the cold shower intruded again. His skin warmed; what little water remained on his back evaporated. He withdrew his hand and sat back on his heels.

“Lift my blindfold, hm?” Yugo murmured in a sugary baritone. “I want to see you.”

Kuon hesitated. Despite the placid undercurrent in Yugo’s voice, it was hard to believe the man could calm down so quickly.

Still, finding no harm in the request, he lowered the dish onto the bedsheet and reached for Yugo’s face.

An impudent mouth pounced on his hand, warm and velvety tongue lavishing attention on the knuckles and the tender spots between his fingers.

“Mhh, delicious…”

Kuon froze, disturbed by how intimate Yugo’s kiss on his hand felt, perhaps even more so than sex.

Sensations sparked in his hazy darkness, confusing and pushing him beyond his comfort level.

It felt as if Yugo’s tongue penetrated his flesh to lick his nerve endings.

Borderline painful, yet addictively good.

He wanted more but didn’t know how to ask for it.

To quell the ill-timed arousal, he rasped, “What are you, a dog?”

“Would that turn you on?” Yugo chuckled against his palm, then caught his hand with his teeth, and shook it like a dog would a toy, growling.

Kuon snorted, trying to free his trapped limb and pluck the blindfold off Yugo with his other hand.

It took him a second to find the tie’s tail and pull it down.

The silk slipping down Yugo’s nose made him unclench his teeth.

Kuon rubbed the edge of his palm where Yugo’s teeth had nearly punctured his skin. It throbbed with heat and served as a warning not to let his guard down. Centering himself, he picked up a piece of lukewarm meat and offered it to his prisoner.

“To the right,” Yugo instructed and groaned when Kuon’s hand hit something soft. “It’s the finest Chinese silk. For fuck’s sake, uncuff me before you completely ruin the bedding.”

Kuon lowered his hand and tilted his head, suspicious.

Hating unnecessary waste, he wanted to stop and spare the finest silk from its fate in the dustbin, but Yugo’s accusation of vandalism rubbed him the wrong way.

The Black Duke cared no more for linen than he did for his partners, and he frequently soiled both with cigarette ash and bodily fluids.

The thought scratched his nerves.

Wanting to teach Yugo a lesson and get a little revenge, he bridged the gap between them with an outstretched arm, letting his aim slip just a little. His greasy fingers tangled in thick, smooth hair, and Kuon bit his lip to keep from grinning.

Yugo was right, this game could be fun.

“Are you taking the piss?” Yugo hissed, ducking aside from the cold meat that greased his cheek and ear.

His shoulder bumped against Kuon’s forearm, knocking the dubious treat out of his slippery fingers.

The bite landed on Yugo’s chest, tumbled down his pec, and disappeared into the silk folds.

Yugo worked his jaw as gravy cooled on his skin, solidifying. Gross…

“Sorry,” Kuon croaked, not sounding apologetic at all.

His lips twitched, and he dropped his chin to hide his grin.

His blind fingers, fumbling over the silk, left more dark stains.

Realizing the futility of his attempts to find the lost piece, he raised his hand to wipe the grease off Yugo’s face but instead smeared it more.

“For fuck’s sake, stop!” Yugo groaned in dismay.

Kuon sat back. “Should I bring a napkin, or better… call Greg?”

Yugo glowered at the familiar face, studying it with extra attention. “You’ve changed. I don’t remember you being this… vindictive.”

“Oh, don’t exaggerate.” His smile was blinding as Kuon stopped trying to school his features into a semblance of remorse. “I just followed your example. You were right; feeding someone can be fun.”

“In that case, follow me to the letter. If you remember, I cleaned you right after, with my tongue. We’re responsible for the mess we make.

Clean yours.” Although Yugo fought the urge to wipe his face on the pillow, his voice vibrated with provocative flirtation.

Kuon’s lips parted. A flash of astonishment morphed into an uncertain smile, and he laughed out loud. “I’m serious. Kuon, use your mouth.”

Kuon shut up. A moment of silence dragged on, enhancing the power standoff, before he relented. “All right.”

He bent over his captive’s splayed frame and carefully put his hands on either side of his chest. Like a dog seeking approval or because he couldn’t believe what he was doing, Kuon rested his forehead against Yugo’s cheekbone.

When Kuon tilted his head to the side and tentatively wet his lips, Yugo felt the damp heat of his tongue on his lips.

His patience, frayed by anticipation and proximity, snapped.

Ignoring the metal rings biting into his wrists, he strained his spine into an unnatural arch to lift himself.

His stomach quivered with tension as his tongue pressed to Kuon’s lips, drew a lazy line across the seam, teasing, seducing, tearing down the first wall of his lover’s resistance.

A shuddering breath washed over his lips, and the slick teeth unclenched to allow penetration.

The wet smoothness didn’t soothe his parched mouth; on the contrary, it fueled the fire raging in his veins.

He sucked on Kuon’s tongue, tasting mint and lamb, savoring the salty mixture of their saliva.

The tape holding the medical shields creased between Kuon’s brows, and a muffled moan rolled off his tongue to rebound in Yugo’s throat.

Kuon opened his mouth a little wider, meeting Yugo’s tongue with his own.

The building pink on his cheeks made the burns on the skin around his eyes stand out against the white plastic.

Watching the color spread over the paper-thin tissue, Yugo realized he didn’t hate them anymore.

They weren’t any less ugly, but instead of scrubbing them off, he wanted to kiss them, stroke them, and watch Kuon react to his caresses.

The longer the kiss lasted, the thicker the desire-fueled fog became.

He wanted to fuck Kuon until he couldn’t think straight anymore, then empty himself into that receptive mouth, feeling Kuon’s throat spasm around his cock as he swallowed his release.

His shoulders screamed with pain from the acute backbend as Yugo forced his upper body up even more and sank his teeth into the tender tongue, causing a gush of sour, metallic flavor to flood Kuon’s delicious mouth.

Drunk on the taste and sensation, he sucked harder, driving his canine tooth even deeper.

His head spun as coppery moisture quenched his thirst.

With a startled jerk of his head and a hiss, Kuon recoiled and wiped blood off his mouth on the back of his hand. “Fucking hell, you bit me… Am I bleeding?”

Yugo dropped on the cool silk, stomach churning with the need to spill over those bloody lips. “Put your mouth back on me, Kuon. Now.”

“Lick yourself, you animal.” Kuon’s voice dripped with a blend of anger and lust. He stuck out his tongue, pressed a finger to the puncture, as if in disbelief that Yugo had bitten him so hard. “What the hell is wrong with you? It hurts…”

“Unchain me, and I’ll apologize.”

“Hell, no. Mad dogs should remain chained or be put down. You don’t want to be euthanized, do you?

” Kuon growled and shuffled away, taking the silver dish with him.

He snatched a loin chop as he sank his teeth into the caramelized lamb, eating with the appetite of a starving beast. A brief grimace of pain crossed his face, quickly replaced by one of appreciation.

With his mouth full and a raging hard-on, he looked ridiculous and delicious.

“Come on, Kuon. What can I even do to you?” Yugo coaxed.

A neurotic laugh escaped Kuon’s throat.

“You do realize that waiting will only make me… salty? Sooner or later, you’ll have to release me, but then I might not be so forgiving.”

“Nice try,” Kuon said, unperturbed. After a brief hesitation, he used his pinkie to fish around in his mouth and pulled out a small fragment of bone.

Yugo groaned and closed his eyes. Even this savage behavior aroused him. For a moment, he lay there, seething with need, then decided to try a new tactic. “You’re afraid of me even if my hands are tied, hm?”

Kuon didn’t reply, just shook his head with a smirk, refusing to be manipulated.

“Is it really me you’re afraid of? Or are you scared to admit that chains and all the control they provide turn you on?” Yugo rested back, watching Kuon’s jaw work. “You’re hard. Does the thought of me lying here, naked and chained, excite you? Shall I keep them for your pleasure?”

Kuon stopped chewing, swallowed, and turned his face to Yugo as if he could see him.

“Don’t get weird ideas. I’m not like you.” As a final argument, he thrust a piece of the unfinished chop toward his opponent as if trying to shoot him with the bone, but his aim was once again off. “Get rid of them.”

Yugo lifted up again to reach that hand with his tongue. The tip dipped between Kuon’s spread fingers, curled around a knuckle, savoring the taste. Kuon’s breath hitched, and the loin chop tilted in his hand, losing the illusion of a gun.

“Kuon, I want you…”