Page 14 of The Jorogumo (The Sanctuary #2)

Haruto

Two days later, Liam stayed the night again. And the day after that, I spent all day at his place, finally getting to see his apartment above the shop.

It was a small place, but I could see it was Liam's. He had a shelf full of comics, his personal collection, and it was easy to imagine it besides mine someday soon.

I stayed the night at his place, and while his bed wasn't as comfortable as my hammock, it was big, and I enjoyed spreading him out on it and feasting—somewhat literally—on him.

Now, a week since the first time he stayed over, I was all but ready to ask him to move in with me.

I knew I was going way, way too fast in human terms, but I couldn't help myself .

I was falling hard for Liam, and I wanted him around all the time. Judging by the way he hadn't once declined my offer to stay the night, I got the feeling he felt the same.

But still, I needed to talk to someone, and since there was only one human in the Sanctuary who'd moved here to be with his mate, I went to Dustin.

The headmaster had forbidden him from helping with the chores because of his pregnancy—mostly for the sake of Khush's sanity—so I found him sitting on a comfy-looking chair outside his cabin, Scrappy curled up in his lap. The cat glanced up when I approached, then tucked her head back in, apparently deciding I wasn't worth getting up for, even though she enjoyed spending time in my house.

"Hey, Haruto!" Dustin greeted cheerfully as I stopped in front of him, and I smiled.

"Hey, Dustin. How are you?"

He sighed the sigh of a man who was tired of answering that very question. "I'm good, the baby's good, Scrappy's good."

I snickered. "Sorry. I guess everyone's been asking you that, huh?"

"Yep. Every single day. I mean, don't get me wrong. I love everyone here, love how much they care about me, but I'm not really used to it, you know? I've been taking care of myself for so long, and now having all these people wanting to take care of me? It's strange. Good, but strange."

"I get that," I murmured, using some nearby trees as anchors to quickly whip up a seat for myself. "I didn't think I'd ever find someone who would understand and accept my boundaries completely, and yet."

Dustin smiled widely at my words. "I thought things were going well since he's here so often, but I'm glad to hear it."

My cheeks heated up at his words, and I cleared my throat. "Yes, we're very... compatible. I actually wanted to talk to you about something."

"Yeah?"

"How did you know you were ready to move in with Khush? To live here?"

Dustin stared at me, eyes wide with surprise. "You want Liam to move in with you?"

"I do. I'm worried it would be too fast for him. We've only known each other for a few months, and dated for much less. I don't want to scare him away by pushing too hard."

"Has he mentioned anything about moving?"

I shook my head, then raised a brow at him. "How did you decide?"

Dustin made a face. "Ah, I didn't actually. Khush was over the day my landlord evicted me, and he asked me to move in."

"Oh." Since Liam lived above the shop, I doubted that would happen for me.

"Yeah." Dustin gave me a soft smile. "I know it's probably not what you want to hear, but maybe you should let him bring it up? We humans tend to have a lot of rules and timelines when it comes to dating."

"I can do that." And I would. If there was anything I wanted more than for Liam to move in with me, it was for him to be happy.

"Thanks for talking it through with me, Dustin."

He grinned, eyes shining brightly as he waved me off. "Nah, it was my pleasure."

Slowly, he got to his feet, and I grabbed his elbow when he seemed to waver a little. Shooting me a smile of thanks, he patted my arm, and I let go, though I kept a watchful eye on him, and not just because I knew Khush would kill me and probably destroy the whole Sanctuary if Dustin got hurt. Dustin was my friend, and I didn't want him or his baby to get hurt either.

Once Dustin was safely inside his cabin, I headed back to mine as I mulled over my thoughts.

Moving might not be the right choice for now, but there was another milestone I could cross, something new I could explore with my mate.

That evening, I invited Liam over, promising that I'd set an early alarm for the next day so he could open his store on time, at which point he reminded me that it wasn't his store and he was just the manager.

Liam's name might not be on the ownership papers, but it was very much his store.

I grinned as I opened the door to Liam just as the sun was starting to set—the headmaster had synced the Sanctuary's time with the human area outside our main doors, that was, Liam's town, though the weather stayed much the same, only affected by the landscape of different areas—and pulled him in, closing the door behind him and then pressing him against it.

"Hi," I murmured, my lips hovering close to his.

"Hi," he whispered back, his dark eyes peering into mine as his plush lips curved upward. "Did you miss me?"

"Every single moment," I answered honestly, then kissed him before he could comment on my mushiness.

I moaned into the kiss, humming as I tasted bitter coffee and sweet chocolate on his tongue. He'd been to the bakery.

"You taste sweet."

Liam's lips curved up at my observation, and something smacked against my thigh. "Got you some. "

Grinning, I pulled back, meeting his eyes properly and just taking a moment to look at him.

Liam was dressed in a navy blue-button down today with tiny eye-masks printed all over in white, paired with off-white jeans that clung to his thick thighs, and black boots that made a soft thunk whenever he moved.

"You look really handsome," I told him, smiling when his cheeks went pink.

"You don't look so bad yourself," he said after a moment, making me chuckle.

I was in a loose pink button-down that was two sizes too big for me, just the way I liked it.

I still didn't understand how Liam could like me—and even be attracted to me—in my true form, but he did. I could feel his arousal every time we were together, and it left no room for doubt.

"Come on. Let's go to my place."

Dinner would be ready in a few hours, and I knew just what we were going to do to pass the time.

Liam

Haruto was on a mission. I didn't know what his plan was, but I could tell he had one.

I followed along happily, glad to just be with him, and maybe a little curious about what we were going to do.

Once we were in his house, much later than I'd expected since we kept crossing paths with some of the other residents, Haruto closed the door after me and once again pressed me against it, hovering in front of me with his lips inches from mine .

It was clear where he intended to take our evening, and I was all for it.

While I would never admit it to him, it'd taken me a while to truly accept the fact that he didn't need reciprocation, and it had nothing to do with him.

For my entire dating experience, sex had been expected of me. It was something I'd never given a second thought to.

As I'd discovered with Haruto, I liked giving up control, I liked letting him do with me as he pleased. I liked making him happy.

Before, I'd never had the chance to do it quite this way, and what small amount of satisfaction I'd gotten had been from satisfying my partners.

Going from that to being the only one who got—and wanted—to come...was difficult. But it hadn't taken me long to realize that Haruto truly enjoyed everything he did to me. That he got satisfaction from driving me crazy.

Once I'd realized that, it became much easier to give myself over to him and just enjoy everything.

I got to show my care for him in other ways. With baked goods and hugs, with cuddles and kisses, with sleeping in even if I had to rush to open my store later.

Haruto's lips on mine broke me out of my reverie, and I kissed him back, moaning when he slid a palm under my shirt, his fingers warm as they trailed up my torso.

I opened my mouth, inviting his tongue in, and he made a sound of satisfaction as he did just that, tangling his tongue with mine and pulling me into a dance.

Clutching at his hip, I whined as he sucked my tongue, flexing my hips in search of friction I couldn't find.

Haruto pulled back, leaving me panting, and waited until I'd caught my breath to meet my eyes .

"I'm going to take your clothes off, and then I'm going to give you a blowjob. Is that okay?"

My eyes were wide as I nodded, and it took me a moment to get my head on straight enough to speak. "Uh, will you take your shirt off? I'd like to feel your skin against mine."

I was sure my skin was beet red, but I forced myself to maintain eye contact.

Haruto gazed back at me for a long moment, then smiled, a soft look in his eyes. "Of course."

Relaxing, I nodded quickly, then glanced away with an exhale.

Haruto cupped my cheek, tilting my head until I was looking at him again. He pressed a soft, chaste kiss on my lips, then smiled. "Thank you for telling me what you want."

My cheeks heated up again, but I didn't look away, not when Haruto pulled his hand away, and not when he started unbuttoning my shirt.

His fingers brushed over the skin he revealed with each button, and I shivered at his touch. He seemed to be taking his time, and my cock pressed insistently against the front of my boxers. I didn't think I'd ever been this turned on before.

Then I felt that soft brush against my skin, the one that felt like merely a breeze, but I recognized it now. It was Haruto's magic. He was snacking on my arousal to make sure I'd last—and because he liked the way it tasted.

For a reason that I didn't want to look too closely at, it made me happy to know he didn't find anyone else's arousal delicious. I liked knowing I was the only one who could feed him this way.

"Fuck, Liam. What were you just thinking about? Your desire practically skyrocketed. "

I blushed, and kept my mouth firmly shut. Haruto gave me a knowing look as he reached for my pants, and the next thing I knew, I stood naked in front of him, my back pressed against the wall right by the front door.

Haruto's eyes roamed over me, a satisfied smile on his face, and he quickly removed his own shirt, drawing my gaze to his smooth, pale skin.

Haruto was much slimmer than me, his muscles well-defined in a way that spoke of hard work and not hours spent in the gym.

There was a moment where I wanted to cover up because I couldn't help comparing myself to him, but then he stepped closer and pressed his palm flat on the center of my chest before slowly dragging it down.

"I love touching you," he murmured softly, eyes meeting mine. "You're so warm and soft and hard at the same time. I love the contrast, love the way your skin turns pink when I praise you."

As if following his command, my cheeks heated up, the blush racing down all the way to my chest, making him smile.

"Just like that," he said, voice ringing with satisfaction.

He met my eyes again, something warm and impossibly soft in his. "Do you trust me?"

"With my whole heart," I said, because it was the truth.

I trusted people with my life every day, when I was walking down the crosswalk, when I was taking any kind of public transport or even a cab. I was always trusting other people to keep me alive, to not crash into me, to not do something rash.

I'd never, ever trusted someone with my heart before. But with Haruto, I knew he would keep it safe.