Page 15 of First Snow
Jareth sighs as soon as she closes the door behind her. Right, he has a guest to attend to. He picks up the tray and ambles to the bedroom. He slips inside and walks over to the large four-poster bed to place the tray on the nightstand. The curtains are still drawn, but Jareth’s eyes don’t need to adjust to the twilight, one of the perks of his heritage. His parents taught him early that staring at someone isn’t socially acceptable, but this time he can’t help but watch the mesmerizing rise and fall of his guest’s chest.
Arttu lies sprawled on his back, face turned to the side and mouth half-open. Jareth finds his soft snoring oddly endearing. He doesn’t want to wake his guest yet. Arttu must be tired, and even if the punch to the face didn’t give him a concussion, his body still needs time to recover.
Silently, Jareth creeps closer to the sleeping man. He tilts his head to study Arttu’s features. Jareth frowns as he takes in the small cut above Arttu’s nose. He has to lock a growl behind his teeth. Jareth hates that these bastards hurt Arttu before he could get to him to solve the situation. Jareth’s hands twitch with the urge to comb through Arttu’s soft-looking hair. He restrains himself with some difficulty. Arttu is a good-looking man, no question, his dark brown hair a lovely contrast to his pale skin. But there are many beautiful subs. His attractiveness doesn’t explain Jareth’s interest in him.
The previous evening plays out in Jareth’s head again. He had first noticed Arttu when he felt the man’s scrutinizing eyes on him. Looking up, Jareth had seen this stunningly pretty guy with his artfully disheveled hair and black clothes staring right at him. For a confused moment, Jareth had wondered if Arttu was a rock star, a celebrity that he simply failed to recognize. It wouldn’t be the first time Annikki laughed at Jareth’s ignorance regarding the rich and famous. Jareth considered asking this stranger to play even then, but seeing Arttu fight was something else entirely. That’s what got Jareth really intrigued.
Arttu’s eyelids start to flutter, and he twists in the sheets. Jareth watches the pattern of his breathing change. He knows his guest is going to wake soon, but it’s several more seconds before he can pull his gaze away. Finally, he steps to the window and opens the curtains. Bright sunlight falls into the room, and Arttu blinks his eyes open. He looks around, disoriented, before his gaze zeros in on Jareth.
“What time is it?” Arttu yawns as he sits up, his voice gravelly with sleep. Jareth wonders what he would sound like if he sang. But before he can get too caught up in his thoughts, he has to hurry to stop Arttu from getting up and out of bed with a hand on his chest. What the hell does the idiot think he’s doing?
“I brought you breakfast," Jareth states the obvious.
“Okay.”
Arttu eyes the offered food as if he’s never seen a breakfast tray in his life. Jareth decides to take pity on him.
“Coffee or tea?”
Arttu hesitates a second before he answers: “Coffee. Black, please.”
Jareth pours his guest a cup, which is practically wrenched from his hand. Arttu groans as he inhales the scent greedily and takes a careful sip to avoid burning his tongue. Jareth wishes he could hear Arttu making these sounds under less innocent circumstances. He licks his lips. He shouldn’t let his mind wander down this particular path while having Arttu in his bed, but it’s hard not to think about all the things he could do to him. Jareth busies himself with filling a plate with food to distract himself from his unruly thoughts.
He watches Arttu scooting backward and making himself comfortable against the headboard. Jareth can’t help but sit down on the bed, although he knows it’s probably unwise to get closer. He offers Arttu the plate.
“Wow, this is a pretty nice breakfast, considering we haven’t even shagged,” Arttu says after devouring the first bites.
Jareth sends him a sharp glare that has Arttu blushing a lovely shade of pink. His brain-to-mouth filter doesn’t seem to be online yet, or maybe he’s just a tease. Jareth can’t help the predatory grin that flits across his face.
“Is that what you came for?”
“Huh?” The blush travels down Arttu’s neck, and Jareth wants to strip him naked and see how far he can make the flush go.
“Did you come here to, how did you put it, shag me?”
“What? No! I didn’t—” Arttu trails off, looking deliciously flustered as he fiddles with his fork.
“Shame,” Jareth purrs. And, honestly, he shouldn’t make advances on the man. He doesn’t have time for games like this, and he already has an inkling that fooling around once won’t satisfy his curiosity. On the other hand, maybe his guest is a total disappointment in bed. That would certainly help him move on as he usually does.
Arttu sends him a wide-eyed look, as if he can’t decide what to do. So Jareth chooses to push a little more. He curls his hand around Arttu’s wrist in the gentlest of touches, feeling Arttu’s pulse racing under his fingertips.
“If you change your mind, we can always try a scene.”
Arttu goes perfectly still under his touch, just like the other night. Jareth is a heartbeat away from withdrawing his hand, fearing he has crossed a boundary he didn’t even know was there.
“You mean, like, now?”
Damn, Jareth has no idea what to do with this man. One second he acts eager and confident, and the next he seems so flustered he can barely speak. Jareth registers that he’s rubbing soothing circles on Arttu’s skin without a conscious thought, but at least the gesture seems to calm his guest.
“I mean, we could try a scene whenever you decide that’s what you want,” Jareth offers.
“Oh.” The blush is even more pronounced now.
“We could just try it out. See if we’re compatible,” Jareth adds in a more playful tone. And who’s he even trying to fool? He’s sure they’re plenty compatible.
“Okay. Um…” Arttu drops his gaze and pushes the food around his plate. Something isn’t adding up here. Arttu wouldn’t have come toThe Worshipand taken the green braceletif he weren’t looking for a Dom. He was interested in Jareth enough to spot him in the crowd. He even accepted Jareth’s invitation to stay, even though Jareth knows that the way he made the offer was anything but socially acceptable.
“Is this your first time subbing?” Jareth asks, following an intuition.