Page 15 of The Jorogumo (The Sanctuary #2)

Haruto

My breath caught in my lungs at his words, and I had to shake my head to get back on track.

While I usually only wove my webs with my back legs—it was faster that way—I could also do it with my front two legs, and I did so now, quickly weaving a few straps to bind Liam to the door, one on his hips, and two on his thighs. I left enough room for him to shift around a little, but he wasn't going anywhere until I decided he could.

"Fuck," Liam mumbled, and I glanced at him, brow raised.

"Still okay?"

He nodded quickly, a pulse of his arousal thickening the air. Ah. He wasn't just okay—he liked this. Good.

I left his hands free because he'd said he wanted to touch me, then lowered myself in front of his hard and leaking cock, my legs on either side and the bulb at my back almost brushing the floor.

Liam groaned, his eyes heavy-lidded as he watched me, and I smirked up at him as I reached for his cock, wrapping my palm around it.

He hissed, his hips jerking forward and fighting the bindings to thrust into my hand. Rather unsuccessfully, I might add.

"Shhh, I'll take care of you," I murmured, rubbing his thigh with my other hand.

"Please," he gasped, and I smiled, then leaned forward and licked the precum off his tip, humming at the salty taste. It'd been a long, long time since I'd done this, and I'd never done it with a human man. Still, I didn't think I'd ever tasted anything as delicious as him.

Wrapping my lips around the head of his cock, I started jerking him off, teasing his head with the tip of my tongue.

Liam whined low in his throat, and his fingers slid into my hair, holding on as I moved over him. He didn't try to make me go faster, merely held on, as if he needed something to hold.

I reached up with my free hand, placing it on his hip, and he instantly clasped his other hand over it, making me smile around his cock. My mate was so starved for touch.

I pulled away for a moment to consume some of his arousal. He was too close, and I wanted to enjoy playing with him a little longer.

"Haruto!" he whined, sensing what I'd done, and I shushed him softly as I took him back into my mouth, going a little deeper this time.

I could deepthroat him if I wanted, but I liked the way he tasted, and I didn't want to miss out on more of it.

Despite consuming his desire, it didn't take long before Liam was close to coming once more, and this time, I quickened my pace, moving my fist over his length as I sucked at his head, my other hand clasped tightly in his by his hip.

"Haruto," Liam gasped out, eyes on me as he panted softly, his skin covered in a sheen of sweat.

I nodded as much as I could, and that was all it took for Liam to spill into my mouth with a shout, his whole body shaking. I swallowed every drop of his cum, humming at the taste, then pulled back and sucked in some of the arousal still hanging in the air around us. I couldn't take it all, because Liam was still in the hazy, floaty afterglow, and suddenly having it taken away would feel like plunging into ice cold water.

Rising up to my full height, I used the sharp end of my front leg to cut Liam out of his bindings, and caught him in my arms just before he tumbled to the floor. It seemed my bindings had been the only thing holding him up, and that probably shouldn't have made me so happy.

Carefully, I carried him over to the hammock, then climbed in beside him.

As soon as I was horizontal, Liam wrapped his limbs around me, clinging to me. Hugging him close, I pushed his hair out of his eyes, and waited patiently until he opened them.

"Hi," I murmured, making him smile.

"Hey. That was..." he shook his head. "I don't think I've ever come that hard before."

I grinned as a sense of satisfaction filled me. I was pleased I'd given my mate pleasure, and better than anyone else at that.

"I'm glad."

Rolling his eyes at my smugness, he leaned forward and kissed my cheek, placing his palm on my chest.

Pulling back, he glanced down as he slowly started moving his hand over my chest, and I sighed softly, happy to let him explore me to his heart's content .

Usually, I got nervous when someone wanted to touch me in intimate settings like this, worried they'd take it further than I was comfortable with. But with Liam, I wasn't worried at all. I trusted him completely, and I knew he would be mindful.

"I love how warm you are. Smooth too," he murmured, and I smiled. "You don't mind this, do you?"

"Not at all. You can touch me as much as you want."

He glanced up at me, then, his lips curving up in a small smile. "I really, really like you, you know."

Smiling widely, I leaned down and pressed my lips to his for a soft kiss. "I really, really like you too."

Liam chuckled against my lips, and we lay like that for a while, exploring each other with our hands as we shared kisses.

When dinner time rolled around, we took a quick shower—it just wasn't good etiquette to go to dinner stinking like sex—before making our way to the dining room and having a meal with our friends.

I loved how quickly Liam had made a place for himself in the Sanctuary, and I knew that whenever he was ready to move, he'd be welcomed with open arms. For now, that was more than enough for me.

Liam

After dinner, we returned to Haruto's place, and curled up together on his hammock. It was too early to sleep just yet, so I pulled my phone out, swiping over to a streaming app.

"Wanna watch something?"

"Sure. I'm not much of a TV person. What do you recommend?"

"Have you seen any of the Marvel movies or shows? "

Haruto blinked, then shook his head. "I've heard of them, but I never really got around to watching any."

"Well, we can watch one now. How about we start at the beginning?"

Haruto nodded, so I found the first Captain America movie and hit play.

Twenty minutes later, Haruto was hooked . When he shushed me for the third time, I realized this had been a very, very bad idea.

Sighing, I wrapped my arms and legs around him—he'd webbed up my phone so we didn't have to hold it, which was pretty nice—and decided to let him enjoy the movie. I understood his fascination, after all. It was a great movie, and it was only because I'd rewatched it so many times that I wasn't as excited as him.

Dropping a kiss on his warm chest, I tucked my head against his shoulder and watched the movie with him, cheering along at the important parts.

When the movie ended, Haruto turned to me with big eyes and a bright smile. "That was amazing. How many more are there?"

I snickered at his excitement, and pulled my phone down to show him all the movies.

"There's also a different franchise for X-Men . Spider-Man also has a few different versions," I told him, and he listened intently, his eyes flicking from movie to movie. " Marvel also has a whole bunch of shows."

"Can we watch them all?"

Smiling fondly, I gave him a kiss on the cheek as I nodded. "Of course we can."

"Awesome! "

Convincing Haruto that we should get some sleep took a while, but when I reminded him I had to wake up early to open the store on time, he finally relented. His enthusiasm made me smile, though, and I fell asleep with it still on my face.

The next morning, I left the Sanctuary too early for breakfast, and Haruto made me promise I'd get something from the bakery.

I was smiling the whole time as I made my way to the store with my head in the clouds, which was why it took me a moment to realize the door was unlocked.

I stopped short with my hand on the handle, unsure what to expect. People didn't generally try to rob a comic book store—nothing of value unless you knew what you were looking for—but there was a first time for everything, right?

Wishing Haruto was here, I took a deep breath as I pushed the door open, and then relaxed almost instantly when I spotted the 'intruder.'

"Mrs. Warner," I greeted, the surprise clear in my voice. "You scared me. I thought someone broke in."

Mrs. Dahlia Warner was a woman in her sixties, with long gray hair she braided down her back, laugh lines, and an ever-present smile that fooled people into underestimating her skills. She was also the owner of this fine establishment .

"Oh, Liam, I'm sorry I gave you a scare. Come, give me a hug."

Walking over to her with a smile, I wrapped up the much smaller woman in my arms, giving her a light squeeze. She was the closest thing I had to a real mother, which was saying something since my own mother was well and alive.

"It's good to see you, ma'am."

"You too, honey. You look good. Happy," she said, making me blush. "And don't think I didn't notice you're just getting home."

Smiling, I shrugged as I stepped back, scratching my chin. "I met someone."

"You really like them, huh?" she asked with a smile, and I nodded quickly.

"He's amazing."

"Good, good. I'm happy for you. I told you you'd find someone, didn't I?"

"You did," I agreed with a grin, then asked. "What are you doing here? Not that I'm not glad to see you."

Her smile softened, and she sighed. "I'm in the city for a month, so I thought I'd come see you. I called earlier, but it didn't go through."

Frowning, I pulled my phone out of my pocket, then sighed when I realized it was dead.

"Sorry, phone's dead," I explained as I walked around the counter to plug it in, and she waved me off.

"The reason I'm here," she said, giving me a look I couldn't parse, "is I'm thinking of selling this place."

I froze, my mind going blank and empty as her words filtered through, dropping in like pennies, every penny clanking louder than the one before .

"What? We've been doing good, haven't we?" I asked, but what I meant was, I've been doing good, haven't I ?

"We have, sweetie. But I'm retiring soon, and no one in my family is interested in owning this place. I spent years running this store, and I'd like it to go to someone who would love it as much as I do, and I know my kids aren't the right fit for it. I think it'll be better if I sell."

I nodded mutely. It wasn't like I could argue, because she was right. It would be better for the shop to be in the hands of someone who treasured it, someone who knew how to run it, someone who wanted it.

It didn't seem like she was done speaking, and I held my breath as I waited, and hoped she wasn't about to fire me.

"I was hoping you would want to buy the store," she said, and whatever I'd been expecting, it wasn't that.

The breath rushed out of me in a loud whoosh, and I slumped against the counter, shaking my head. "Me?"

Smiling fondly, she reached over to pat my cheek. "Of course. You've been taking such good care of this place since the day I hired you. Actually, you've done better than I did, and kept this shop going through the digital age. You've put so much time and effort into this place, and there's no one else who could take care of this place better than you."

I swallowed hard, her praise making my chest feel all warm and tight.

"Mrs. Warner, I would—I would love to, but I don't think I can afford it."

"Of course you can," she said, waving it off as if it was no big deal. "You've been working here for almost a decade, and I know for a fact that you haven't made any big purchases in all that time. I'm sure you've saved up quite a sum."

She wasn't wrong, though I didn't think it was anywhere near enough to buy a store this big.

"Just think about it, okay? If you'd like to buy it, we can settle on an amount you feel comfortable with. I don't mind selling for less if it's you, because I know you'll take care of this place. I just don't want to walk by here in five years and find yet another clothing store here."

That made me chuckle, but my mind was a buzz of fragmented thoughts, and it stayed that way even after she'd left.

Fuck, what was I supposed to do?