Page 34 of The Shapeshifter’s Secretary (Charmed Away Temp Agency #3)

CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR

Tony sounded tortured, and even though Taron liked to tease, he didn't want to push him too far. They spent all that time getting him to relax. Riling him up to the point where he got tense and stressed would ruin the mood. Pulling his fingers free, he grinned when Tony moaned in protest.

“Poor thing. Don’t worry, love. I’ll take care of you.”

Zephyr offered him a condom, surprising him for the second time that night. With both of them focused on Tony, the tension he felt around his former lover eased and a familiar warmth took its place. It made Taron nervous. He couldn’t let himself sink into that feeling. It wasn’t real. They were only here because of Tony.

He pushed that aside, ripping the condom open and rolling it on. This position would take some maneuvering, since Zephyr had to keep his magic going and his hands on Tony, but they couldn’t put Tony on his hands and knees without hurting him. Maybe once Tony was a little better, he could lay down on top of Zephyr while they did this, but for now, things were about to get really intimate.

He pushed the discomfort away, propping himself on one hand while he used the other to guide himself to Tony’s entrance. Zephyr helped with a grip on Tony’s ass, making the poor man squirm as his magic got really close to his hole. Even Taron felt it when he pushed inside, and he bit back a moan at the familiar thrill that shot through him. He used to love Zephyr using his magic during sex. He didn’t need it for pain relief, but the extra spark always made him come his brains out.

To keep Zephyr close enough to help Tony, he had to be on his side, with Taron basically leaned over the both of them. One arm was caught between the two men beneath him, and he could feel Zephyr’s hand brushing against his abdomen when he bottomed out. He squeezed his eyes shut, trying to block out the painful want that swelled in his chest, but closing his eyes didn’t block out Zephyr’s magic, or the sound of his voice as he crooned sweet nothings into Tony’s ear.

A ball formed in his throat that he couldn’t shake off, distracting him from what was important. He had a sweet and perfect man beneath him. He couldn’t let himself get hung up on his ex while Tony needed to be taken care of.

“Taron?” Zephyr turned to look at him with a frown. It took him a second to realize he hadn’t moved since entering Tony. He was basically torturing the poor man now. Tony squirmed a little, his bottom lip caught between his teeth as he fought to stay still.

Shoving away his turbulent thoughts, he put his whole focus on Tony. He drew his hips back and thrust forward, just rough enough to give Tony what he needed without hurting him. Tony’s groans drowned out Zephyr’s voice, and Taron grew more determined to get Tony to be as loud as possible to keep that going. He shifted, trying out different angles, until Tony’s sounds changed, growing more high pitched as Taron nailed his prostate dead on.

Unfortunately, hitting the right spot sent Tony into another scramble, and his hips started moving, despite the obvious discomfort that flashed over his face. They had to shift positions a little to stop him, with Zephyr almost laying across Tony’s back on his good side to pin him and Taron’s arms around both of them. It put him too close to Zephyr’s face, and despite his best efforts, he couldn’t look away.

Zephyr locked eyes with him, and it felt like all the breath got sucked from his lungs. He fucked Tony faster, desperation filling his chest and spreading outward. He couldn’t. He couldn’t want the man who broke his heart. The only other man he ever loved. Tony was none the wiser, moaning as Taron pounded into him, but Zephyr looked just as conflicted.

“Stop it,” he gritted out, low enough that Tony wouldn’t be able to hear him with his human hearing.

“Taron…” Zephyr murmured back.

He squeezed his eyes shut again, shaking his head, but he was flagging. It was too hard to concentrate. He considered pulling away and letting Zephyr take care of Tony, but before he could, Zephyr moved, capturing Taron’s chin in his hand and drawing him into a kiss.

The familiar press of Zephyr’s lips lit him up. His hips moved on their own, fucking into Tony as his mouth was consumed with Zephyr. Electricity swept through him, Zephyr’s magic, and settled low in his groin. Their tongues tangled, and his breath caught in his chest. He knew he shouldn’t, they’d already ruined things between them once, but he couldn’t stop. He missed this.

Tony tightened around him and took Taron by surprise as his release slammed into him. Between the tight grip of Tony’s ass and Zephyr’s touch, he couldn’t hold back. He groaned through it, his hips rolling to ride out the waves of pleasure.

It was only when he came back to earth that reality slammed back into him. He locked eyes with Zephyr and panic swelled in his chest. They’d ruined things once by adding sex to the mix. He couldn’t let that happen again when Tony would be caught in the crossfire. He pulled away, pushing to his feet.

“Taron–” Zephyr started.

He shook his head once. “Don’t. Take care of him. This is about Tony.”

Taking a few steps back, he put more space between them. Zephyr looked like he wanted to say more, but Taron walked away before he could. He wasn’t going to ruin what he had with Tony. No matter how much his heart called out for the love he’d lost.

He’d survived losing Zephyr. He wouldn’t survive if he lost Tony, too.

* * *

Zephyr watched Taron go with a heavy heart. He questioned what the hell he had been thinking, kissing Taron like that. He told himself not to do anything stupid. He just couldn’t help himself. Taron looked… conflicted. It wasn’t like him not to be smiling, especially when Tony was involved. Something in Zephyr told him to fix it, so he did what he used to do whenever Taron was upset. And it was better than he remembered.

For a minute, it worked. Taron sank into it, and the warm familiarity lit Zephyr up inside. But then Taron came back to himself, and the panic on his face was evident even in the low lighting in the room. Zephyr had come on too soon. He knew better. And his brashness chased the man he wanted away.

He doubted the shapeshifter would come back tonight. He wanted distance. And it was all Zephyr’s fault.

Tony sat up a little, looking over his shoulder with a frown. “Where’s he going?”

Zephyr didn't want to worry Tony or ruin the mood. Taron would feel guilty later if he realized. So he told a little white lie, just to ease the tension for now.

“He promised me earlier that I’d get some alone time with you since he got to see you all day. Is that okay?”

Rolling onto his back, Tony looked at Zephyr for a moment. Zephyr kept his upset over what happened with Taron carefully hidden and smiled softly at him. He ran his fingers over the hair at Tony’s temple, leaning in to rest their foreheads together.

“He met you first. I want to be selfish for one night. I promise we’ll make it up to you.”

That might have been another lie. From the way Taron acted, it was possible he might refuse to do this again. Eventually, Tony would be well enough to not need him during every act. If Taron was truly bothered by what happened, he might wait it out, so he could avoid Zephyr entirely. The thought hurt and he wanted to chase after Taron and discuss things, to fix it, but he couldn’t leave Tony all alone.

Tony’s bashful smile drew his focus, and he promised himself he’d figure out what the hell they would do next when Tony wasn’t around. It promised to be an epic fight, and he didn’t want Tony anywhere near that. He moved himself between Tony’s legs, kicking up his magic to keep the man comfortable.

The act itself was amazing, and he loved having Tony’s attention to himself, but he couldn’t help but feel like something was missing. He’d joined the project in hopes of getting his ex back, and while he hadn’t expected Tony, the three of them together was amazing. It felt wrong when Taron wasn’t there with them.

He cleaned Tony up alone and tucked him against his chest, trying and failing to just enjoy the moment. His mind was too caught up on Taron and the panic in his eyes. How the hell had he let it get so bad?

After Tony fell asleep, Zephyr slipped out of bed. He couldn’t help but look for Taron. He thought maybe he was in the living room, pacing around like he always did when he was stressed. But the living room was empty, and his bedroom door was wide open, showing that he wasn’t there either. He actually left the apartment. Naked? He hadn’t heard the man grab any clothes. Was he seriously so desperate to get away that he walked out of the apartment naked?

Dropping onto the couch, he sighed heavily, scrubbing his hands over his face. He realized he fucked up, but a small part of him didn’t regret it. It was finally out there. It just hadn’t gone at all how he’d planned.

He never admitted it out loud when they were together, but he loved Taron once. That feeling never fully went away. Even all these years later and with how often they fought with each other, he still had a flame lit for his ex. Because Taron had been more than just a lover. He’d been Zephyr’s best friend. He’d made friends since, but none came close to the kind of connection he’d had with Taron. He kept a wall up to protect himself from ever feeling that kind of loss again. It felt like a piece of his heart left when Taron did, and it only felt whole again when he kissed Taron. He just wished Taron felt the same way.

A whimper from the bedroom had him lifting his head. Tony. Pushing to his feet, he headed back, worried he’d find Tony awake and hurt from being left alone. But Tony wasn’t awake. He was shifting restlessly in his sleep, his face contorted in pain and fear. He was having a nightmare.

Slowly, so he didn’t scare him, Zephyr climbed back into bed and pulled Tony against him. Tony stiffened at first, his breathing picking up, but when Zephyr pushed his magic into Tony, easing the man’s pain, he relaxed again, sinking further into his arms.

He wasn’t sure what he was going to do about Taron, but he could help Tony. He could take care of the man that ensnared them both. And once Taron came back, they could talk about what happened next. As long as they both got to keep Tony, they could work things out.

He just had to ignore that twinge of hope that stupidly wouldn’t give up even after Taron ran from him a second time.