“He seemed... friendly.” I wasn’t sure what other word there was to use for him. He was all limbs, reminding me of a teenager who hadn’t grown into his body, even though he was clearly a man in his late thirties or early forties.
“You don’t need to pretend to be nice, Noah.” He stared at me, his eyes glittering with some emotion I couldn’t pin down. “They are the kind of people who suck up to men like us. They want what we have but aren’t willing to work for it.”
“That’s presumptuous,” I said with a frown. “This is his job.”
“Yes, it is, but you can still do a job without being a kiss ass.” He pointed to the far corner of the gallery, which led to a hallway. Above the doorway the wordsTruth Duke’s Workwere painted. “That’s where we’re heading. Let’s go, little mouse.”
I sighed and tightened my hold on his hand as he moved in that direction. We went through another narrow hallway into a gallery that was solely dedicated to the work of Truth Duke. The paintings were rooted in impressionism and mostly consisted of gay men in various sexualized positions. My favorite, a piece Duke calledCommitment, was displayed in a sturdy frame mounted to a half wall in the middle of the room. The canvas portrayed two men hugging back to chest. The man in front glanced over his shoulder. Duke managed to catch a love in their locked gazes I’d never quite seen, and the way he painted it expressed a deep connection that always had me longing for the exact same thing. That’s why I’d waited to have sex. I’d wanted to feel that first.
I released Alton’s hand and stepped forward, my shoes barely making a noise on the wooden floorboards as I shifted closer. I reached out, then pulled my hand back. I doubted Torrence would appreciate me touching the canvas, and I was sure there were security measures in place, but I had a deepneedto have it in every way. I wanted to press my cheek against the ridges and valleys created by the paint. Lose myself in the topography of color.
“Is that one you like?” Alton asked gently, his presence at my back warm and surprisingly nice.
“Yes. It’s calledCommitment. He painted a real couple and did it so exquisitely. You can feel their emotions through the painting, and the brushstrokes are so soft, as though Duke was fondling a lover himself.” My heart slammed against my ribs. “Can you feel it?”
“I can feel myself getting hard. Was that his purpose?” He leaned in closer and his breath caressed my ear from behind. I sucked in air as he brushed his fingers down my arm, and even though I couldn’t feel it under my suit coat, I imagined the touch on my skin. “I want you.”
“Here?” I whispered. His warm breath tickled my skin again, and I gnawed on my bottom lip.
“I’m going to buy you this painting. Show me your appreciation.” He licked the shell of my ear, creating a ripple of shivers down my back.
“This one’s not for sale.” I pointed at a small sign underneathCommitmentthat said it would soon be going to a private collection.
“Everything has a price, little mouse.” He spun me around, and I gasped when he slowly slid to his knees. “Even you came with one.”
I hated how right he was. He slid his hands over my hips and down my thighs, as though mapping and learning every inch of me.
“What are you doing?” I asked, swallowing around my excitement.
“What does it look like?” He grinned and reached for my zipper.
“I don’t think... we should do this in here.” I glanced around the empty room, my eyes latching on to another one of Duke’s paintings. This one was more erotic, naked men entwined together in a sexual embrace with their dicks out and hard, which was exactly how my own cock was reacting. There was no way out of it. If Alton wanted me here, I would give in.
He pulled out my hardening dick from my fly, and I didn’t think he even stopped to realize I wasn’t wearing the special underwear he’d set out for me. I had no idea why I’d passed up on them this morning, but a part of me wanted to rebel. Show him I didn’t belong to him. Now I was regretting it. Last night he’d looked at me so hungrily when he saw me in the red lace.
Alton didn’t waste any time and took me into his mouth. The heat blazed through my body. I hadn’t been prepared for how amazing it felt, and I had no idea where to put my hands. He went slow, sliding my cock past his lips and licking across my skin. It was as though I was his favorite treat and he was enjoying every inch of my taste. He stared up at me, gauging my reaction. It was impossible to hide my pleasure from him when it felt so fucking good. The heat of his mouth enveloped me, drew me deeper into the wetness, and all I could do was throw my head back and groan at the incredible sensations.
Bliss zipped through me and I nearly tripped when I leaned back. Without Alton’s hands on my hips, I might’ve smashed into the painting I loved so much. He pushed me, though, lips not leaving my dick until I was pressed against the blank wall besideCommitment.
I angled my head to look at the textured strokes from the side, and the mastery of the painting had me nearly shooting into Alton’s mouth. The only thing that stopped me was a hard slap to my thigh, as though he knew I was going to come.
He popped his lips off me and smirked. “Like what you see?”
“You or the painting?” I whispered, panting.
“Both.” His eyes danced with glee, and he was gorgeous resting there on his knees.
Knowing that for six months no one else would see him like this did something to me. My balls throbbed and my heart raced. “Sexy. Very sexy.” I grinned down at him. “You, too, I suppose.”
There was something akin to pride in his eyes as he laughed. When he stood, I frowned.
“What are you doing?” I asked, my voice echoing around the silent room. The only noises I could hear were the buzzing of the security systems in place around the paintings. I nodded down to my dick. “I’m still hard.”
“Yes, you are.” He flashed me white teeth as he grabbed my erection and tucked me back into my pants as best he could. “And you can stay that way.”
“What?” I gaped at him, real rage swelling inside me. “What the fuck?”
He grabbed my face between his fingers with a rough hold, and I gasped when he shoved me against the wall, his smile transforming to become dangerous and wicked all at once. “You’re my husband, Noah, and you are mine. I get to do what I want with you, do you understand?”
