Page 17

Chapter 16

Apollo

I don’t know why my chest feels the way it does. Like it was a tiny metal box before, but now expanded into an endless open field. Looking at him, I realize Kobe did that with one simple question, and that knowledge shakes me up.

No one’s ever asked me that before. Definitely not around here. Not…not even Jasper. What I wanted to do. What made me comfortable.

I bite down on the inside of my cheek and push the stupid sentimentality away. Now’s not the time for it. Especially not with Kobe underneath me, presenting his ass to me in anticipation. Smiling, I run my fingers down his spine. The wide muscles on his back tense and ripple under my touch.

He looks so perfect like this, kneeling in front of me, his arms stretched out and tied to the hidden hooks within the bed’s heart-shaped headrest with a black silk ribbon. I’ve been tied up with it, yet somehow it seems to have been made for Kobe. It’s hard to imagine anyone else there, and I don’t want to imagine anyone else.

My trailing fingers end up on the curve of his ass. I find myself paralyzed by the amount of choices. Just fucking him like this, like I did last time, doesn’t seem as appealing. Not when I can do whatever I want. Whatever I want , I repeat those words to myself, feeling a tickling buzz spill through my body as I do. There are so many options. So many ways I’d like to see him.

We don’t have much time. Make this worth it.

I hear him let out a small, needy gasp once I move my hand away. I glance toward the chest of drawers with the music player on top, and my mind goes wild.

“I’m going to turn you around,” I say, and help him. The hooks inside the frame of the bed can twist to allow all sorts of positions. Kobe looks like a newborn foal trying to readjust himself, but ends up lying on his back, slightly elevated by the thick fluffy pillow. When he lies there with his arms held above his head, I have to pause and marvel at how wide the muscles running on the sides of his torso and to just under his armpits are, creating that lovely V shape to his upper body.

I bite my lip, my cock swelling underneath the latex. Though not as much as when I look down at his rigid member and realize that the tip of it that glistens with droplets of precum is nearly the same color as the dusty pink surrounding us.

Licking my lips hungrily, I hop off the bed and go to the chest of drawers to the side. I feel his confused gaze on me as I open one of them and tap my fingers against the wood.

So much choice. I never thought about how much choice the clients have. Do they ever get as overwhelmed by the images of all the possibilities swirling inside their head?

Before taking my pick, I unzip the back of my bodysuit and struggle out of it for a few seconds. I hate that fucking thing.

Once I’m free, I let out a deep breath and stretch. Again, I feel his eyes, so I purposefully don’t turn around to deny him that satisfaction. Instead, I select a toy that might be a little too basic for me, but probably won’t be for Kobe. I have to take it slow with him. At least for now.

I spin around, holding the purple vibrator with a flared base in my hand, and watch his face go through several emotions in a split second. Pure shock at first—his eyes widen and his lips open slightly. Then confusion—those same eyes dart between me and the open drawer. After that, I notice his tongue roll inside his mouth and his back arching, as if in anticipation. And yet, when he gulps audibly, a part of me hesitates.

“Is this okay? Do you…want this?” I ask, momentarily sober from this erotic dream.

“I was just— I didn’t know there were toys,” he mutters, averting his gaze with that sweet, innocent shyness that makes me feel like a starved animal.

Grinning with my teeth out, I make my way to him. “ Oh , there are plenty of toys. I thought this one might be a good start. It looks simple, but trust me, it can take you places,” I say while I crawl onto the bed. Kneeling in front of him, I watch with delight as he’s already opening his legs wider for me.

I press the little button and see Kobe’s cock twitch at the vibrating sound. He keeps flexing his toes against the fabric, and shifting his feet slightly to steady and settle himself, seemingly without success. With that sadistic glee only he seems to awaken inside me begging to be unleashed, I move closer, resting one hand against his knee. “Look at you, making a mess.” I shake my head after I make him lift his ass a bit for easier access and notice the small wet spot from where he’s been leaking slick.

The embarrassment mixed with desire on his face makes my heart beat tenfold.

Unable and unwilling to wait any longer, I glide the vibrator against his entrance. A low whine comes out of Kobe, making my cock harder than I ever thought possible. I run the tip upward to the sensitive area between his hole and his balls, and he writhes with pleasure, head craned into the pillows.

“I need you to tell me when you get close,” I say while I watch his lovely face twist. “You’re not allowed to come until I let you. Let’s see how long you can last.”

“I’m not sure we have ti— ah! —time for that sort of thing.”

Unable to hold in a snort that might be a little too mean, I tilt my head as Kobe meets my eyes with confusion. “Oh, I don’t think you’ll be able to endure as much as you think,” I say, smirking. I relish the expression he makes as I press the toy inside of him without a warning. His throaty groan is music to my ears.

I brush the tip of my cock against Kobe’s as I inch closer, burying the vibrator deeper. The sounds he’s making are nothing like when I was fucking him.

Is this his first time? Has he never used one before? It must be the case.

The rich scent of wet pine grows stronger with each moan that I draw out of him. And that’s with his suppressants.

Slowly, I work the length inside him until the flat base sits flush against his ass. In rhythm with the pulsing buzz of the vibrations, I pull it out and slide it back in, catching myself almost mimicking the movements with my own hips without thinking.

When I tilt my hand slightly, Kobe flinches under me. “Apollo,” he moans, eyes shut.

“Is that the sweet spot?” I tease him but stop moving, knowing well what that high-strung call of my name coupled with the flexing of the muscles on his thighs means. Instead of pulling out, I press the button on the bottom of the vibrator to turn it off. Kobe relaxes under me, taking sharp, deep breaths. “Good,” I say softly.

I give him a few moments. When he lifts his head to look down at me, I raise a brow, silently asking him if I should carry on. “Fuck. This feels so much better than I expected,” he mutters, his words almost slurred. His gaze moves down to between my legs, like it did when I was dancing for him. This time, he seems considerably more pleased with what he sees.

A corner of my mouth tugs upward. I’d say he’s ready to continue.

I press the button again, making him flinch. Right away, I begin moving, letting the vibrator slide in and out of him, slick with his wetness. “Tell me how it feels,” I say, finding myself irresistibly hungry for more of that rumbling voice of his. Usually, I hate clients speaking when we have sex. Having to pay attention to my body and their useless prattle, their dirty words that are supposed to make me want them more when I don’t want them at all… This is different.

“It’s just—” He pauses and gulps, holding in a moan as I copy the shape of his insides with the vibrator, using my hand to apply pleasure to his walls when I know I’m near that spot he liked. He clenches around it, making it harder to pull out this time. Making me imagine what that would feel like against my cock. “It’s making my whole body buzz.” Kobe’s voice trembles at the end. His toes curl again.

Wanting to see if he can handle it, I press the smaller button, intensifying the vibrations. He jolts and draws almost an embarrassingly loud moan. My cock throbs in response, aching for friction, so I grind against Kobe’s. He yelps and cries out, and I feel like I’m going mad with how much it makes my chest swell.

“That’s it,” I whisper, my own pleasure rising to dangerous heights.

“W-wait, wait,” Kobe exclaims, voice urgent, while his arm flails blindly until it reaches my hand holding onto his knee. He grips me tightly. I turn it off right away, let go of the dildo, and grab the base of his cock, squeezing firmly. Kobe writhes under me, his chest expanding and falling down again rapidly as he buries his head back into the pillows.

Oh, that was a close call.

“Not yet,” I warn him, intently watching his cock. I swear it just twitched in my grip, but nothing comes out besides the precum dripping down his length.

“Dammit, Apollo,” he whines, biting his lip with a long exhale. Hearing him so frustrated and desperate forces me to swallow hard. “Please…”

I almost feel bad for him, knowing how inexperienced he is. This strange, twisted part of me reels in satisfaction at all of this, but the other part is restless. I give into the dark side of me, looming over him while gently letting go of his cock.

“I thought you said it felt good? The longer you resist, the more pleasure you get.”

Kobe huffs and licks his lips. He seems dazed. A little out of it. Downright adorable.

“It feels good. I just want to— It’s not like the real thing,” he says, the words flowing out of his mouth slowly. I expect him to avert his gaze, but even as his cheeks flush, he keeps staring into my soul. The real thing. He must notice how I narrow my eyes with interest. More, I say without saying, and somehow he listens, continuing in a husky voice. “It isn’t warm and soft and…attached to a human being.”

Suddenly, what he said is all I can think about. That, and how much I miss feeling someone warm and soft inside, too. My face burns, a prickling buzz of heat taking over me. I swiftly reach over Kobe to release his restraints from the bed.

He gasps in confusion and follows me with a questioning stare while I settle back between his legs. Those pretty brown eyes bulge out of his head the moment I start positioning myself over him, grabbing his cock to guide it into my hole. I swallow his entire length up in one smooth movement until I sit flush against him with a low moan.

I blink slowly, settling into the pleasure, the familiar fullness, and only then do I notice his trembling hands resting firmly on my hips. Kobe gazes at me, maybe with a little confusion. I smile back, happy to keep him on his toes.

Happy about how good I’m about to make him feel. He’s got no idea.

While lifting myself, I twist around to grab the base of the vibrator again and turn it on. I swear Kobe grows even more rigid inside me. His eyes roll into the back of his head and fingers dig into the skin around my waist. I clench my teeth, letting my body collide with his. My cock slaps against his stomach with every bounce. I find it harder than expected to sync up my movement and the tempo of my hand working the vibrator at the same time, but I’m determined to ride it till the sweet, explosive end.

“I’m gonna fucking come, Apollo,” Kobe warns, frantic.

“Just a little longer,” I beg him, using my free hand to stroke myself as I bounce up and down his cock and thrust the vibrator inside of him.

He makes a whine. An actual, high-pitched, desperate fucking whine.

I feel every muscle of his flex under me, and his fingers dig into my skin in a way that will probably leave marks. Looking at that gorgeous face of his, I see how much he fights to hold off for me, wrestling with the weight of that release.

That’s more than enough for me to succumb to it as well.

“Kobe. Ah , fuck, Kobe!” I moan, letting myself unravel. Those words free him from the condition I gave him, and we both implode together. Everything turns into this incoherent, otherworldly storm of bliss. Our heartbeats, connected through our bodies, and our pheromones mixing to create the most intoxicating smell, all merge. Kobe twitches deep inside me as I splurt all across his chest, an enormous weight lifting off my shoulders.

I’m not sure which way is up and which way is down for a while.

Tapering waves of heat continue to bloom inside my chest. When I blink to open my eyes, I find myself resting against Kobe, who struggles to catch his breath as much as I do. Or perhaps a little more. My body still feels light and like I’m one gust of wind away from drifting out of it when I prop myself up, studying him.

Fixating on me tiredly, he blinks as he lies there. He’s all shaky and out of it. It doesn’t take long for that guilt and worry to surface again, like the last time we were together.

I’m used to this, but he isn’t. To his mind and body being bent out of shape and pushed to the edge of what they can handle through pleasure. I know it can be a lot to handle sometimes, even if it feels great in the moment.

I gently brush the curling hairs stuck to his face upward. If I were an alpha, this would feel different. I could use my pheromones to soothe him.

That thought sends a strange ping of pain through my heart. I don’t even know why I’m thinking about that. About using my scent to help Kobe settle like Jasper does to me. That’s not what omegas do to each other…

Is it?

Staring at him with my lips parted, I realize that I’m not actually sure if two omegas or two alphas can have that effect on each other. I’ve never tried. Never considered it.

His half-lidded eyes follow me, like he’s trying to understand what got me so deep in thought but is still too breathless to even ask. I want to try— need to try—this hypothesis before he has time to calm down on his own, so I lean in, nuzzling my nose against the crook of his neck. I focus on my body. Focus on being present in it and its sensations. On the comfort and relaxation I want to relay through my pheromones. Somehow . I kiss him on the neck softly, like Jasper often does. It always makes me feel all mushy.

A faint chuckle that comes from somewhere deep inside his throat sounds next to me. “I’m-I’m not sure I can go again,” he whispers.

I keep planting soft kisses against his skin, focusing on its texture and temperature. His pheromones swirl wildly in the air. Now that I pay attention to it, there’s intensity to them. Emotions tied to them in a hardly conceivable way.

With an exhale, I sense his body relaxing under me. His breathing slows. Did he finally understand that my caressing was for comfort instead of trying to seduce him again? More than comfort, it’s…connection.

Pulling away, I meet Kobe’s eyes. He looks at me tentatively, a bit of surprise and satisfaction painted on his face. At that moment, I know he’s better. Still . And I feel the same way. Have I ever experienced this before?

With Jasper, maybe? I’m not even sure.

What I’m sure of is that I want to fall asleep in his arms right now. Safe and sound. Curled up together. But that’s something neither of us can afford.

It can’t be reality.

It might be only my imagination, but it feels like Kobe realizes the same thing. He lowers his eyes, trailing the shape of my shoulder and arm until he ends up looking at my naked body; not with a hint of desire, just…observing me.

“We should clean up, in case—”

“Right,” I say with a sharp nod and sit up. That’s right. The world still exists outside of this room.

My cum is all over his chest and mine from me laying against Kobe. I give him an apologetic smirk once he notices and glances down, bunching up his nose in a cute way. “The shower is in there,” I say, pointing to the somewhat camouflaged door on the other side of the room. It sits nearly perfectly flush with the wall, but Kobe finds it.

“I’ll go in first,” he says with a tired sigh. He stumbles after getting up, and it’s pretty clear he’s going to be sore later. It’s almost impossible for me to suppress a smirk, knowing I was the one who did it.

When it’s only me sitting in the room, reality dawns on me again, though it isn’t as cold against my skin as I would expect. This was the agreement. Have fun. Feel good. I had fun, a lot of it, and I feel…damn good. For once, my mind is tranquil.

We part with few words. Kobe has to get something to eat before Jasper calls him in—especially after I made such a mess out of him—and I need to prepare for my next client. The day is nowhere near over for me.

I meet those men, and I do the dance. I smile. I laugh. I flirt.

But when they have me where they want me, I find that I don’t drift away as far as I usually do. I stay tethered to my body, only a few steps separated, and back in that moment Kobe and I shared in the Pink Room. I imagine it’s him I am with; Kobe fucking me instead of them. I imagine being secure again.

I know that I probably shouldn’t. This isn’t how I should cope with this. After all, I don’t even think of Jasper when I’m working.

Whether it’s what made it pass so quickly or not, the end of the night comes.

The Dollhouse’s heartbeat slows, the clients leave, and the music eventually quietens. Cleaned up and not as exhausted as I normally would be, I make my way upstairs to Jasper’s office to remind him to stop working and come home.

There’s no one around. Not even a guard to stand outside the door.

I walk in without knocking, startling Jasper a little as he’s leaning against his arm at his table. He glances in the corner of his monitor, probably to check the time, and straightens his back with a quiet, “Oh.”

I approach him with a smile, but pause when I see one of the monitors is missing. My eyes find it on the ground next to his desk. The screen is cracked in the middle like a projectile hit it. I feel the hairs on the back of my neck stand on end. Fighting my body from tensing up in fear, I take another step toward Jasper. He notices where my gaze went, connects the dots, and lets out a low groan.

Then I notice his right hand, held loosely in a fist beside the keyboard. His knuckles look angry and sore.

I gulp, hesitantly meeting his eyes. “What happened?”

Some anger simmers within them, but clearly not as strong as whenever this transpired. Pressing my lips together, I feel safe enough to come and touch his shoulder. It must have been his father. No one ever enrages him as much as he does.

He lets me touch it without groaning, so I brush my hand down toward the damaged skin around his knuckles, touching him softly. Jasper studies me, thoughts flashing behind his eyes. I wait for him to speak, to maybe confide in me, but he doesn’t. Instead, he stands sharply and pulls me closer.

I let him kiss me. He does it in a strange way, like he’s exploring and tasting me for the first time. He must be tired. “Nothing,” Jasper says and grabs my hand. “Let’s go home.”

I don’t fight him on it.