Page 37 of The Villain's Beast

As I led Luca to the winding staircase what would carry us to Fletcher’s third floor bedroom, I counted every sin I’d evercommitted, wondering when I’d pay enough penance to be free of this place. It was so childish, I thought, curling my hand around the carved wood banister and pulling myself up the stairs. My legs didn’t want to carry me, my body didn’t want to be turned away from Luca, and yet…

And yet.

Men like Luca and me, we weren’t meant to rule or lead. We were best played in the second seat, and I’d never cared about that until I found myself being called to sacrifice the only thing in my life that meant anything. It had been easy enough when we both knew what our roles would be, who we’d have to step back to serve. Whatever we were both walking into at the top of the stairs, though, it was far beyond anything either of us had expected. It was one year of active initiation, then graduation, then dissemination. After graduation there’d be more expectations but less oversight. It would have been manageable.

Livable.

I didn’t dare say another thing to Luca, even though I found myself aware of the way his body vibrated behind me, the heat and nerves rolling off of him in trembling waves, crashing into my back like we were both diving into a high tide. Fletcher’s bedroom door was cracked open and, with a steady hand on the brass knob, I pushed it wide and stepped aside for Luca to enter.

Chapter 25

Fletcher

“Close it,” I said.

Daren followed the command and locked it for good measure without being told.

“You’re Luca Mandeville?” I asked, staring out the window instead of at either man unfortunate enough to find himself alone on initiation night in my room. I’d reluctantly pulled the curtains back, my gaze unsure of where to focus.

“Yes,” he answered.

Daren cleared his throat. “Can I clean your back now?”

I reached behind me, picking dried blood off my spine with the tips of my fingers. Bringing my hand around to the front, I frowned down at the red and brown flakes beneath my nails. “Is it bad?”

“It’s not good.”

I rubbed some more grime off my skin, this time a patch nearer my shoulder blade. It wasn’t anything a hot shower wouldn’t fix, and I was assuredly not going to let Daren tend my wounds in front of Gideon’s deputy like I was some kind of helpless bitch.

“Bellamy put up a fight,” I said, sitting down in an old leather armchair in front of the window. Dirt puffed off myclothes, particles floating in the air around me before settling or disappearing entirely. I’d never been so envious of something so insignificant. I would have given up nearly anything to be allowed to simply vanish in front of someone’s eyes.

“You persevered,” Daren said softly.

“Did he fight you?” I asked, crossing one leg and resting my ankle on top of my knee. My stare drifted between the two men in front of me who stood far closer than friends would, let alone rivals. “When you fucked him, I mean.”

The only tell was a twitch in Luca’s right eye I would have missed if not for the glare on the lens of his glasses.

“He didn’t fight,” Daren answered, swallowing hard.

“Will Luca fight?” I asked neither of them in particular.

“No,” Luca answered me before Daren could.

“Good.” I drummed my fingers against the outside of my knee, making sure the move I was about to make was the right one. It was a crapshoot based on a twitching eye and a lack of space between two people that I recognized from my past. “Prove it.”

Luca stepped away from the wall and reached back to pull his shirt over his head. He dropped it at his feet, revealing a massive tattoo in the middle of his chest. A mimic of the fresh brand I’d seen over Gideon’s heart when we met up to trade in the clearing. I didn’t think Luca’s mark was mandated, and I wasn’t sure if a willing scar was better or worse.

He dropped his hands to his belt and made quick work of his fly while kicking out of his boots and using his feet to shove them against the wall with the rest of his clothes. If Luca had any qualms about modesty, he did good at hiding them from me because his underwear was the last thing to go before he righted to his full height and turned his hands back, palms facing me.

“So quick to do what you’re told,” I murmured, admiring the thickness of the cock that had already started to swell between Luca’s legs. “Handed off like cattle, stripped down like a whore.”

Luca shivered, his dick twitching at the slander. “I’m here to serve,” he said.

“I wonder if your counterpart is as keen to bend the knee,” I said, stare flickering to Daren who looked like he either wanted to vanish into the wall or throw me out the window. When he realized I was watching him, he tore his stare away from Luca’s ass, expression quickly settling into a mask of apathy.

“You know I am,” Daren said.

“Prove it,” I repeated the command to him.