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Chapter twenty-seven

Not Safe for Work

Rusty

When Thursday rolled around, Gem had already arranged to swap his shift with Oliver so he could get off work at the same time as Rusty.

Gem had said several times that he didn’t care what they did for his hatchday, as long as they spent it together.

He mentioned watching Desperate Desires or getting high and watching Kiki’s Delivery Service , but Rusty wanted to do something more, something special.

He might not have put much stock in birthdays, but Gem being alive was proving to be Rusty’s favorite thing. It deserved to be celebrated.

So when they got back to Gem’s flat, Rusty prodded Gem toward the bedroom. “Get changed. We’re going out.”

“We are?” Gem eyed him suspiciously, and Rusty nodded, pushing him past the room partition .

“Yes, get changed into something warmer.”

With a squeal and a shimmy of excitement, Gem skipped to his dresser and started digging through it. “Like something fancy? Or—”

“Not fancy. But it’s outside.”

As Gem changed, Rusty simply slipped on the hoodie he’d stowed away in his knapsack, then sat on the couch to wait. The Araknis took nearly thirty minutes, insisting he had to do his makeup and fix his hair. Rusty thought he looked gorgeous just as he was, but he didn’t complain.

Rusty watched from the couch as Gem dusted powder around his eyes, something in the spectrum of yellow he guessed, then he added product to his already perfect curls. He wore a tube top, visible through a crocheted sweater that stopped at his elbows, and a jean skirt that barely covered his ass.

It wasn’t warm, but it was sexy as hell. Rusty kind of wanted to join Gem in the bathroom, sink to his knees, and eat his ass as he watched himself in the mirror. Maybe they’d do that later. For now, Rusty kept his hormones in check, determined to treat Gem to a hatchday date.

As much as he hated to admit it, he was nervous.

He’d never been on a real date before, and he didn’t want to mess it up.

Especially on Gem’s hatchday. But then Gem danced out of the bathroom looking radiant and excited, and the nerves dissipated.

Even if all they did was eat takeaway on the beach, he had a feeling Gem would love it.

“Okay, I’m ready!” Throwing up several arms, Gem gave Rusty a twirl. “How do I look?”

“Beautiful,” Rusty answered honestly, and the crests of Gem’s cheeks darkened. “But I said dress warm.”

Gem gestured to the crocheted top. “I’m wearing a sweater.”

“It has holes in it,” Rusty said, and Gem pouted .

“If you make me change, then I have to redo my makeup to match the new outfit. So we’ll be here another hour,” Gem said, and Rusty chuffed a laugh.

“Okay, if you think you’ll be warm enough.” Slapping his thighs, Rusty stood, and Gem smoothed two hands over his shoulders as another two hands rubbed down his sides.

“You look nice too.”

He dismissed the compliment, taking Gem’s hand and twining their fingers. “I’m just wearing a hoodie.”

“I know, and it makes you look all warm and snuggly. It’s cute.” With a giggle, Gem rubbed Rusty’s belly. “And it makes your tummy look so squishy and wonderful.”

“My pudding pouch?” Rusty said flatly, and Gem shrieked with laughter as dragged him out of the flat, locking the door behind them.

“I love that you called it that. It’s my favorite name for your wonderful belly.”

“Shut up,” Rusty grumbled, barely resisting the urge to cover his stomach with his arms.

Like Gem could sense the rise of insecurity, he pulled Rusty into the lift and cupped his face in his hands. “I love your tummy. It might be one of my favorite things about your body. Not my number one, but definitely in the top ten if we’re speaking purely about physical attributes.”

As the lift descended, Rusty cringed. “Gods, can we not discuss my physical attributes? That’s awkward.”

They rode the tram to the tip of Gluttony where the carnival had set up decades ago. In the coldest months, it closed down, but they were getting in just under the wire.

When Gem saw the flashing lights, he squealed in excitement and jumped an entire circle around Rusty. “I love the carnival!”

“I know you do,” Rusty said, dragging a nearly weeping Araknis toward the entrance. “But I’ve never been. Figured you could show me the ropes.”

Before he could even buy the tickets, Gem was hoisting Rusty off his feet into a bone-crushing hug. Face buried in Rusty’s neck, Gem mumbled nonsensically as Rusty struggled to inhale.

“What?” he wheezed, and Gem popped his head up, sniveling obnoxiously.

“This is the best hatchday ever.”

“We haven’t even gone in yet,” Rusty said.

“It’s still the best,” Gem said, before he swooped in and kissed Rusty until he was breathless. “How I adore you.”

And everything inside Rusty turned to mush. His bones went noodly, and his organs melted. To hide the humiliating reaction, he grabbed Gem’s face almost roughly and kissed him again. They made out for several minutes against the fence until Rusty was overheated and frustratingly hard in his jeans.

With his leg hitched between Rusty’s, Gem felt it, and he smiled against the Pyclons mouth. “I was thinking we could have sex later, since it’s my hatchday and all. Would you want to?”

They hadn’t had sex since their sixty-nine exchange Sunday night, and Rusty found himself nodding, even as his brain fought to catch up. “I mean, who am I to say no to the hatchday girl?”

With another wiggle of excitement, Gem kissed him again, filthier this time, and Rusty growled, digging his claws into the back of Gem’s neck. Gem moaned into his mouth, rubbing his thigh against Rusty’s aching cock, and Rusty bit Gem’s lip in retaliation .

Gem gasped, and Rusty tasted blood. He jerked away with a whine, staring in horror at the glimmering smear on Gem’s bottom lip.

“Fuck, I’m sorry,” he said, but before he could panic, Gem pressed three fingers to Rusty’s mouth.

“Don’t be.” Gem licked up the small bead of blood, then leaned in, practically feeding it into Rusty’s mouth. It was sharp and a little bitter, but that primal creature that lived deep in Rusty’s gut howled at the taste. He wanted to bite Gem again, wanted to bite him harder.

As usual, Gem seemed to know what he was thinking, and he grinned darkly. “I like when you get rough with me, remember?”

“Still. I didn’t mean to…” Rusty drifted off as he swiped an apologetic thumb over Gem’s perfect lip.

Gem snickered and proceeded to cover Rusty’s face with kisses. “You don’t scare me, Care Bear, even if your bite can be worse than your bark.”

The tightness in Rusty’s chest eased, and he rubbed his cheek against Gem’s. “We should probably stop before we get arrested for public indecency.”

“Ooh, that sounds like a fun hatchday activity too.” Untangling them, Gem grabbed Rusty’s hand and hauled him toward the ticket booth where the bored Gorgyn was glaring at them, lip curled.

“The public indecency. Not the getting arrested,” he clarified as Rusty handed over enough myrels to gain them entrance.

“I’m not fucking you in public,” Rusty said.

“Of course, you’re not,” Gem said, winking one large eye at him. “We’d never do something so vulgar.”

“You’re doing that winking thing again, which makes me not believe you,” Rusty griped, but Gem simply guffawed and yanked him into the small throng of carnival goers.

They spent several hours visiting all the different stalls, playing games that were clearly rigged against them.

It was a waste of their money, but Gem’s unbridled joy made it all worth it.

Rusty even managed to win one of the shooting games, and Gem chose a stuffed pink krimpi as the prize, hugging it exuberantly to his chest.

“I shall name her Rusti,” he said, and Rusty rolled his eyes, even as his traitorous tail swayed in pleasure.

They ate carnival food that covered Rusty’s fingers with grease and dusted Gem with sugar. “Looks like I’m douching later,” the Araknis whispered as he shoved half a hunlet leg into his mouth, picking the bone clean.

He handed it to Rusty, who accepted it gladly, crunching through the bone to slurp up the marrow inside. “You assume I put out,” Rusty teased, and Gem snorted, a lower hand feathering over the front of Rusty’s jeans.

“Oh, baby, your pheromones don’t lie.”

Lunging up, Rusty kissed him, and it was sticky and greasy and wonderful.

As night fell, they shared a shaved ice flavored with kili as they rode a tall, rotating ride.

The height was intimidating, but Gem kept two arms firmly hooked around his waist, securing Rusty to his side.

As they hovered at the top, the twin moons so close and bright, Rusty tipped his head back and yowled up at the sky.

After a moment, Gem did the same, both of them calling to the moons, to the gods that Rusty’s mother had told him about all those years ago. And it was good.

On the walk back to the tram, Rusty chittered playfully and climbed up Gem’s back to wrap his arms around his neck. Gem easily shouldered his weight, middle arms hooked under his knees as his top hands clasped Rusty’s wrists and squeezed.

Nuzzling under Gem’s ear, he purred, slicking his rough tongue over the sensitive flesh there. Then he tugged on Gem’s earlobe with his teeth, making the Araknis hiss in reprimand.

“I thought you weren’t going to fuck me in public?”

“I’m not,” Rusty whispered, nosing along the shell of Gem’s ear. “Doesn’t mean I can’t mess with you a bit.”

With a shiver, Gem picked up his pace. “We’re going home now so you can fuck me.”

“I can do that,” Rusty promised, nibbling on the nape of Gem’s neck.

Side by side on the tram, they kissed and giggled like teenagers in love, and it was the stupidest thing. Yet it made Rusty ache in a wondrous and exquisite way. Then he pulled out the card he’d made for Gem and handed it over, double-checking that no one was close enough to see what lay inside.

Gem opened it, then squawked, slamming the card shut. “Well, that’s not safe for work!”

Snorting, Rusty rested his head on Gem’s shoulder as the Araknis peeked at the card again. “I cannot believe you actually drew us having sex.”

“You asked me to,” Rusty defended himself, hating the way his cheeks heated under his fur.

With a wriggle of excitement, Gem admired the drawing of Rusty railing him over the back of his couch, claws digging into his hips. “And you dressed me up like a cow? Rusty, you kinky, little slut.”

Blushing hotter, Rusty slumped low in his seat and grumbled nonsensically. His embarrassment made Gem snicker, and the Araknis leaned in to peck his cheek .

“I love it so much,” he whispered against Rusty’s fur as he pressed the card to his chest with two hands. “Thank you.”

“Happy hatchday,” Rusty said, smiling like a lunatic as Gem kissed him again and again and again.

Once they arrived at Gem’s flat, Rusty expected Gem to jump him, but the Araknis took his time removing his boots. Then he made a show of setting up the handmade card beside the purple three of keys on his dresser. He dragged a finger over the frame, then over the card, and sighed.

“I don’t think I’ve ever been so happy,” Gem mused, and Rusty’s throat cinched tight.

“Me too,” he said hoarsely, and Gem smiled at him like he’d painted the Montana stars.

The kiss they shared next was gentle and sweet, not at all what their earlier affections had been.

Maybe Gem had changed his mind about having sex.

That was okay, even if Rusty was still half-hard from their making out on the tram.

Just to be sure, he dragged kisses over Gem’s jaw until he reached his ear.

“What do you want, Gemae?”

A shiver worked its way down Gem’s spine, and Rusty didn’t even try to hide his smile.

He liked the way he affected Gem, liked that he could make Gem melt and shudder.

He liked that he could give Gem pleasure, and he planned to put all his best skills to work tonight to do just that. If it was what Gem wanted too.

“I want,” Gem said, throat bobbing. “I want you to do whatever you want.”

“What?” Rusty asked, cocking his head up at the Araknis, sure he’d misheard .

“I want you to do what you want tonight. To me. On me.” Gem dropped his voice to a purr, mouth stretched in an evil grin. “ In me.”

It was Rusty’s turn to swallow thickly. “But it’s your hatchday.”

“I know, and what I want for my hatchday is for you to do what you want. Not what I want or what you think I want.” Gem rubbed a hand over Rusty’s racing heart. “What do you want?”

Rusty wanted a lot of things, but he’d never been given full rein to pursue them. He’d never felt out of control with Gem, of course, but Gem was bossier. He naturally took the lead, and Rusty followed, content in knowing that Gem would never take anything he wasn’t willing to give.

But Gem wanted Rusty to decide? It was both terrifying and exhilarating.

Like Gem could read the indecision on his face, he lifted Rusty’s paws and kissed his knuckles. “And while you think on it, I’m gonna freshen up.”

With a parting peck to Rusty’s lips, Gem dropped his hands and took a step toward the bathroom.

Before he got too far, Rusty snagged his wrist, and Gem paused, meeting his gaze.

They had to discuss this more, right? Rusty didn’t want to do anything that Gem didn’t like or might make him uncomfortable.

Again, Gem understood without him having to speak.

“I’ll tell you if I don’t like something.

Plus, you know my safe word, and I’m pretty sure I’m kinkier than you, so I’m not too worried on that front.

” He winked playfully, tonguing a fang. “I might push your buttons because I’m a brat and because I like it when you push back.

But this doesn’t have to be rough either.

You can make sweet, sweet love to me missionary style, and I’ll love every second of it.

If ”—Gem bent down to brush a teasing kiss across Rusty’s lips—“it’s what you like. ”

“What if I don’t know what I like,” Rusty whispered, embarrassment flooding his face with warmth at the unintended honesty.

Gem smiled and kissed him again, firmer this time. “We can figure that out tonight, if you want.”

“Okay,” Rusty said, and Gem hummed in satisfaction.

“Good. Now, I’m gonna put on something more comfortable, which actually means something less comfortable but way more sexy.” He waggled his tongue and shimmied backward in the direction of the bathroom. “And when I come back, we’re gonna fuck. Okay?”

More nervous than he should have been, Rusty just nodded, and Gem’s fur vibrated with excitement as he said, “Then I’ll be right back.”

With a trembling exhale, Rusty said, “I’ll be waiting.”