CHAPTER 5
“And?” Ives grinned, lazily tracing whimsical patterns with the tip of his finger on his husband’s bare chest. “How was your day?”
“The truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth?” Ottavio asked with feigned solemnity. When the other man nodded, he continued in a half-playful, half-serious voice. “I had lots and lots of fun, and I mean it. I had no idea that feeding and changing the diapers of three four-month-old babies could be so entertaining and…stimulating.”
“Whoa!” Ives exclaimed, staring at his husband with wide eyes. “I have to confess I didn’t expect this response, but I keep forgetting you still surprise me, even now, four years after our first meeting.” He gave a chaste kiss to the corner of his beloved’s mouth.
“Well, I didn’t say it wasn’t hard, and the big balls of fluffy fur known as Sansone and Snow White certainly didn’t help when they decided it would be cool to put their kitties in the babies’ bassinets, patrol around, and then swap the small fluffs. If only they had done that once, but no.” Ottavio playfully rolled his eyes.
“What can I say, cats are… cats,” Ives grinned. “They see us as an extension of their family, so our babies are just hairless kitties, a bit bigger than their own little ones.” He smiled, and his tone softened, becoming sweet and evocative. “I never told you, but during the last trimester of my pregnancy, I couldn’t stop thinking about everything that could go wrong with the delivery. Snow White, pregnant herself, came and curled up at my side, purring until the not-so-happy thoughts vanished.”
Ottavio rolled onto his side, facing his husband. “Why didn’t you come to me?” he whispered, his voice almost pained. “Icould’ve given you reasons not to worry; we could’ve talked things through together.” The man gently tucked a rebellious strand behind his partner’s ear. “You know I’d have been there for you whenever you needed me, right?”
”Yes, I know, but…” Ives looked into the deep-brown eyes of the man he loved most. “You already had enough on your plate, dealing with my mood swings, cravings, and episodes of nausea, not to mention all the business-related problems and tasks you had to handle daily.”
“I made time and did a lot of research, and my brother, Luca, and the Wisdom Keeper sent me a ton of interesting materials,” Ottavio said in a soothing voice. “The male pregnancy treatments available today are much safer than those doctors Rayme and Alasdair Stark developed a few decades ago, not to mention the horrible experiments that started everything.”
“I know now, and I guess I knew back then, too, but…” Ives planted another innocent kiss on the corner of his husband’s mouth. “Anyway, back to the original topic: I took advantage of my day off and did some great reading today.”
“Really?” Ottavio’s eyes sparkled with genuine interest. “I’m all ears if you want to tell me about it.”
“The Special Ones.” Ives paused, waiting for his husband’s questions, but continued when he realized the other man wasn’t going to interrupt. “It was a team of teen boys and girls, each with unique talents, who assisted former CIA director Alastair Stark with many complex investigations.”
Ottavio frowned. “I remember reading about them somewhere, too; maybe it was the same book. Or I’ve heard Papa talk about the subject with Don Calogero or one of his friends when I was young. I don’t remember exactly.”
“One of these days, I’ll go to The Base’s library and see if I can find out more about them from Brian. I think he knows some of them personally, since they collaborated closely withArdan MacNamara, the sanctuary’s founder.” Ives swallowed hard, then continued in a slightly hesitant voice. “I…um…I think we could use a team like that.”
“We?” Ottavio frowned at the word. “Like, you and I, here, or The Council? I don’t think they need a special unit, not with all the Ears, Eyes, and Tongues Baldassare has on the streets.”
Ives nodded. “I agree with you on that; indeed, the network of informants your cousin spent so much time and effort building is the best out there, but the Special Ones were different. They pursued careers in law enforcement, diplomacy, politics, business, and more, leveraging their positions to access information that their mentor and his associates could use, with the elimination of the most dangerous criminals as their main goal in life.”
“Oh, I see now. So that’s a long-term project.” After a brief pause, Ottavio continued, carefully choosing his words. “I’ll think about it and talk to the Consigliere, the Judge, and the Wisdom Keeper.” He grinned. “Right now, I can’t think of anything except my dear husband and his inseparable friends, sleeping peacefully in my arms.”
“Mmm…” Ives stretched beneath the covers, a lustful look in his jade-green eyes. “And I, who thought you had other plans, involving you ravishing this fragile body…” He closed the distance between them, rubbing the lower half of his body against the other man’s.
Ives lay on the bed, a breathless smile on his face, craving his lover’s kisses all over his body. It wasn’t long before he felt himself getting hard at the thought of what was coming next. Ottavio pressed his lips to the side of Ives’s neck, letting out a sound of delight as his ass was grabbed.
He ground against the other man, stroking their cocks together, a smile tugging at the corner of his lips as he felt one of Ives’s fingers slide down the crack of his ass and press towardthe pulsating, hot hole. In response to his lover’s touch, Ottavio slipped his tongue into the man’s mouth, drinking him dry.
Reaching for the nightstand behind the bed, Ottavio lightly lubed his fingers, working them around Ives’s entrance before pushing them inside. The man inhaled sharply and bit his lower lip, arching his back off the bed as Ottavio finally spread his legs and pushed his cock into his lover’s welcoming ass.
Ives couldn’t control the loud moans escaping his lips, but since the babies were peacefully sleeping in the nursery, they had the house to themselves, and he didn’t have to worry about anyone hearing him. Ottavio supported himself with his hands pressed against Ives’s sides and pumped into him, his partner’s pleas to go harder turning his blood as hot as lava.
The man dragged his hands down the other’s body and wrapped a hand around his cock, continuing to thrust into him with the same passion and vigor, rotating his hips and whispering affectionate words into Ives’s ear. Ottavio released his cock, firmly grabbed his lover by the shoulders, and lifted him from the mattress, bringing him on top.
Eyes closed, lips slightly parted, torso glistening with sweat, Ives rode Ottavio’s cock while pumping into the man’s tunneled fist, sending their minds into a frenzy and bringing them both closer and closer to the point of no return. Amid pants, moans, and words of praise and encouragement, the two men reached their climax almost at the same time.
Smiling brightly, Ives fell on top of Ottavio, then rolled onto his stomach on the mattress. The other man shifted onto his side and kissed his husband’s temple, brushing aside a few red-blond strands from his forehead. Ottavio gently ran his index finger down Ives’s spine, caressing it.
“My husband,” Ottavio murmured, protectively wrapping Ives in his arms. “Mine,” he added with a smile, then let sleep take him.
**********
The next morning, the two husbands went into the kitchen for breakfast, thanking all the deities for Basile. After cooking and setting the table, the man volunteered to watch the babies so they could have some time for themselves before Ottavio headed to Manhattan for another business meeting.
“This is really good,” Ives softly moaned, pointing to the fried eggs and sausages on his plate. “Ivy told me Martino envies us for Basile, and he’s right. The man is the king of cooks, among other things.”
“Yes.” Ottavio nodded with a warm smile. “He’s a loyal, dedicated bodyguard, would have made a great doctor if he hadn’t been kicked out of NYU med school, the most patient and hilarious babysitter, a great conversation partner, and the list goes on.”
