Page 80 of First Snow

“And are you going to do something about it?”

“You’re terribly cheeky for a man who seems too tired to lift his head.”

Shrugging, he watches Jareth from under his lashes. Jareth looks delicious, his dark curls are slicked back and sweat is dripping down his muscled body. He looks like a dark deity, sexy and dangerous. Arttu would be tempted to lick the moisture from Jareth’s pecs if he could bring himself to move. As it is, ogling Jareth will have to suffice.

“If you’re up to anything that requires me to move you’ll have to wait until tomorrow.”

Jareth’s grin turns predatory.

“I just want you to hold still and relax. Can you do that for me, my darling?”

The way Jareth looks at him, as if he would like to devour him, has Arttu’s breath going shallow. Arttu wills his body to go boneless, opening his legs to allow Jareth a look at his hardening cock. Letting his head fall back against the bench, he bares his throat. He’s pretty sure that Jareth is able to see the bruises he sucked there earlier, even in the dim light.

“All yours,kultsi.”

“Fuck.” Jareth is on him in a heartbeat. “You can’t say things like that. I might be tempted to lock you up again.”

Jareth’s pupils are blown wide, Arttu notes with some satisfaction, and his glamour has slipped.

Burying his hands in Jareth’s curls, Arttu traces along his endearing, slightly too-large, pointy ears and takes hold of his antlers. Jareth looks magnificent like this. It’s possible that his Fae form is even more beautiful than his human disguise. It’s probably right, what Jareth keeps telling him all the time. Arttuiscareless and reckless, but he isn’t afraid of Jareth. Never really was.

Biting his lips, Arttu considers his next words carefully. He lets go of Jareth and places his hands above his own head in a gesture of surrender.

“What if I like to be locked up here for a while? What if I want you to do with me as you please?”

Jareth’s eyes widen. His mismatched irises glow in the sparse light. It looks eerie, and so damn sexy that Arttu has to swallow a whimper.

“Reckless—” Jareth claims his mouth in a searing kiss. “Clueless—” He bites Arttu’s bottom lip, his fangs leaving a pleasant sting. “Human! You’ve no idea what you’re getting yourself into, as per usual.”

The exhilarating pleasure of Jareth’s magic flows through his body. While every physical sensation increases tenfold, Arttu’s thoughts turn sluggish. It’s like being tipsy, only so much better. He could shake out of it if he really wanted to, but that’s the point. Arttu doesn’twantto break the thrall, and he’s pretty sure that Jareth didn’t do it on purpose.

“Please, Lord Blackrose, let me be yours.”

Jareth growls, his clawed fingers closing around Arttu’s throat; not choking him, just applying enough pressure to make Arttu feel at his mercy. Arttu moans, his cock twitching against Jareth’s stomach.

“As you wish, sweetheart. We’ll have to talk about the implications of your behavior in the morning. For now, you’re mine.”

“Yes,” Arttu hisses. “All yours.”

His eyelids flutter as another wave of pleasure drowns out his sorrows and fears. It feels so good.

Jareth rises and takes his seat again. He places a towel at his feet, just between his open legs. Feeling bereft and a little disoriented, Arttu bemoans the sudden loss of contact.

“Kneel.”

Jareth points to the spot at his feet. Like this, he looks like a pagan god. Arttu drops at his feet without hesitation.

“Good,” Jareth purrs. He starts to stroke gently through Arttu’s hair. “Now put your hands behind your back.”

Arttu obeys. As soon as his wrists connect, something smooth and warm slings around them, binding them firmly together. Yelping, he tries to pull away, but he’s trapped.

Jareth chuckles.

“Magical restraints. They’ll help you to keep still.”

“Th-thank you, sir.” Arttu blushes as soon as he says the words, but he’s probably flushed enough from the sauna’s heat that Jareth won’t see.

Groaning, Jareth pulls him forward by his neck.