His face flushes red. I remember him being a little self-conscious after the orgasm afterglow wore off. “Is that really my best side?” Victor chuckles but looks away, and I follow him with my face until our lips meet.
“You look equally amazing from every side. I want to paint you looking back at me while my cum still cools between your legs. While being inside you is still fresh on my mind.”
He puts down the spoon and latches onto me for a kiss. “It’s just that you never painted like that before. I want to understand why it excites you. I… Letting you in like that made me feel like I’m yours.”
“You are mine,” I confirm, and something in my chest flutters when he smiles. “I suppose that after... how static and cold my art has been, I want to paint life, vitality, lust. I want everyone who looks at the picture to know how desirable I find you.”
Victor climbs into my lap and wraps his arm around my neck. He is an absolute vision with all those freckles, the damp hair, green eyes shining with interest. “I know this will sound like the craziest thing because of our whole… thesituation, but I feel so safe with you. I can just be myself.”
I drift closer, wrapping him in my arms and resting my chin on the top of his head.
I am the danger, a fact I was always proud of, but he has nothing to fear from me. “That’s it, pet, Seva will protect you...”
“‘Seva’? Can I call you that?” He’s insatiable, already kissing up my neck. Victor is voracious. He’ll take anything I’m willing to give him, so why not a nickname he can use for me? He deserves to feel special after the way he’s opened up to me today. Sure, the sex was hot and filthy, but it wasn’t just about pleasure and relief. He’s the first person I can talk to in years, and his presence makes me so tender inside. It was his first time, and I sensed his nerves. Still, he wanted me bad enough to ask for it.
“No one’s called me that in ages,” I tell him, brushing hair out of his face as we watch steam float above mybowl. “The last time... when I was still a kid, playing cops and robbers on the block where I lived. But I like it. You can call me that.”
“You don’t really have guests here, do you, Seva?” Victor tenderly brushes some hair behind my ear, and I lean in, gasping at the tinge of pleasure his touch offers.
“Not since my mother died. Just you and the assassins.” I shrug.
He smirks and runs his finger from my forehead to my nose. “Ah, the mysterious assassins. Are you sure you didn’t make them up?”
I wish.
“Do you think I made it all up and terrorized you for no reason? That would make me crazy,” I mumble, remembering that time I strapped Victor to my torture chair, and he broke instantly. I hug him tighter, because he’s fragile underneath the bravado that brought him here. Nothing like the men who visit me for a chance at the bounty on my head.
“I’d believe you if you told me it’s daytime and the sky is green.”
Adorable, but not what I want. “Then you’d be believing the ravings of a maniac. The assassins are real, although I hope my enemies ran out of people stupid or reckless enough to go after me,” I say and fish out the last two dumplings out of the soup. “Open wide.”
He does so without question, and with the happiest little smile when he closes his mouth to chew. I’d be blind if I didn’t see how infatuated he is, so it makes me especially glad that even in such a state, art is still important enough for him to question me about it. He’s never harsh or cruel in his critiques, but very thoughtful. It makes me want to teach him even more, so yes, maybe I am ready to allow someone else to paint me.
It’s way past midnight though, and the new day will await us with fresh energy after a good sleep.
Once we’re done with our soup, he insists on washing the dishes, so I let him, but not without cuddling him as he does it and distracting him endlessly. I lead Victor downstairs, to the large bedroom where he sleeps. It’s bigger than the one he occupied initially, and it even has a window (shatterproof and barred) to let in some natural light, but as I get ready to leave, he lingers at my side.
“Seva…” he says, holding my wrist.
I ruffle his hair. “Hm?”
“Stay with me? After today, I just… I’d love to just cuddle. We can lock the door, that’s okay.”
I should have expected that question, yet it strikes me out of left field, and I find myself staring at him in silence. If he really is as innocent as it seems, then my insistence on staying away might sound crazy, but I’ve only known him for two weeks, and he could be playing the long game. I didn’t survive until now by accident. Still, I feel awful when I shake my head, dimming some of the glow in his eyes.
“I prefer to sleep alone.”
Because what am I supposed to say? That I’m afraid he’ll bite into my throat as I sleep?
“Oh…” Victor plays with my fingers, unwilling to let go. The truth is that if I was able to relax enough to sleep next to him, even for a little nap, I would have loved to hold him close.
At first, I chose to keep him as a convenient, pretty toy, but he’s already crawled under my skin with his playfulness, his inquisitive nature, and how intense he is about art. It also doesn’t hurt how insatiably horny he is despite an underlying shyness. I still haven’t managed to capture that in any drawing of him.
So maybe...
“Would you be able to sleep if I taped you in place?”
Victor frowns and steps back, letting go of my hand. “Probably. But that’s not the point. It’s fine. I’ll see you tomorrow.”
