Page 7 of Complications

“You’ve been kicked out of your room?” Dread settled in my gut. If Matteo was anything like my uncle or Ralphie, I would pay dearly for this one.

“Pup, listen to me.” Matteo crossed the room and wrapped his arms around me. “I never do anything that I don’t want to do. You weren’t going anywhere but my bed. There’s no punishment coming. You don’t owe me anything.” It should have felt weird to feel his arms around me, but the weird part was only that it felt right. And natural. And so damn perfect.

I ducked my head into the crook of his neck so he wouldn’t see my face. I felt shattered. It had been years since I’d felt this cared for, and now I was being comforted by a man that I didn’t know but somehow also trusted. Fumbling around under the bleachers in high school or the occasional rushed hookup after I came out wasn’t in the same universe.

Nothing about this made sense. Believing him and being wrong likely meant what Ralphie threatened would look like a picnic compared to what Mattoe could do, but my gut told me I had nothing to worry about. I wasn’t sure why I believed him, but something in me settled, and I knew I could trust this man.

I knew nothing about Matteo except that he had been incredibly kind to me and his crew had killed the man who’d claimed ownership over me. It was overwhelming. Matteo gently grasped my chin and nudged it up so he could see my face. I was shocked to find concern, kindness, and lust reflected back at me. On impulse, I raised up on my toes and brushed my lips against his.

“Thank you for helping me,” I whispered to him when I pulled away,

“You’re very welcome, pup.”

I realized Matteo wanted to kiss me back when his mouth slowly descended to mine. He gave me plenty of time to move away, but I eagerly welcomed his kiss. He allowed me to set the pace and patiently waited for me to part my lips and let his tongue into my mouth.

Once entry was granted, Matteo seized all control. His tongue rubbed against my own as he deepened the kiss. My needy sounds echoed in the room. Each stroke of his tongue sent stabs of desire straight to my cock, which thickened in my borrowed joggers. Matteo ground his erection against mine, and the movement teased me until I was achingly hard.

Matteo’s right hand cradled the back of my head while his left cupped my ass with a possessive touch. His throaty groan was a welcome reminder that I wasn’t alone in this unexpected encounter. When he drew back, I whimpered my objections but quickly got on board with him mouthing my neck and leaving a trail of nips and kisses against the column of my throat. I almost stomped my foot and demanded he continue when he drew away.

“Pup, we have to stop. You need to recover before we go any further.”

“I’m fine…good…great even. It’s fine.” My panted words sounded desperate even to my ears, but this man’s mouth was a gift, and I wanted to keep tasting him.

“Soon, pup. We have to get you fully healed before we do more.” Matteo drew me closer and hugged me gently, and I melted into his arms. “I want you, but you need to be healthy.”

CHAPTER FIVE

Matteo

Michel and Connor accused me of overkill. Even if what they said was true, I’d happily own up to it. Connor had come into my house broken, and I’d be damned if I did anything to jeopardize him or his recovery. Even if it meant that the only sex I was getting was jerking myself off every morning and evening in the shower. I’d limited myself to only tasting Connor’s mouth for two weeks now. I was slowly losing my mind because that not-so-innocent boy didn’t know how much he teased me.

He sweetly raised his chin to kiss me every goddamn morning. At night, he waited for me to kiss him goodnight, no matter how late my business kept me out. What I wanted to do was throw him back on my bed and suck his brains straight out of his cock. I refused to let him leave my bed, but I also didn’t trust myself to keep my hands off him if I slept there as well.

The unfortunate solution was that I ended up in the room intended for him. Connor had dropped hints over the last week that he’d prefer if I didn’t excuse myself every evening, but his bruises hadn’t fully faded. They needed to be gone entirely before I touched him anywhere beyond his mouth. But that? I kissed him every chance I got.

“Boss, he’s in the sunroom.”

I nodded to Sam, the guard who’d given me the information, and headed to the back of the house. Connor became agitated when I tried to discuss how he came to be at Ralphie’s and distraught when I brought up the houses. If the subjects were enough to terrify him, they were a sufficient threat for precautions to be taken. I’d increased my crew to provide a constant bodyguard for Connor and beef up the security around the house.

When this section of the city was originally developed, the builders added conservatories that rivaled the ones found in Victorian England. Most of them had been destroyed to make room for more development. A few, like my own, had survived. Nothing had happened in the room in the ten or fifteen years I’d been here. A few days ago, Connor had asked if he could play in the dirt. Of course I said yes, with instructions to the crew that he had free rein to order anything he needed for the space, but I didn’t want him leaving the house.

Connor’s definition of playing in the dirt and my own differed vastly. In a few short days, he was on his way to completely transforming the space from a never-used room without a purpose to a fully functioning greenhouse operation. He was so engrossed in potting a plant that he didn’t hear my approach from behind. I slid my hands around his torso and gently pulled him against my chest.

“Pup, what are you doing out here?” Connor had originally stiffened when I put my hands on him, but he sagged against me once I spoke. “This is a lot more than playing in the dirt.”

He wiggled around until he faced me and then tipped his head back and met my eyes. “Are you mad? Did I spend too much? I told the guys I didn’t need all of this. I put everything I could want for a garden in my cart, and then I was going to take out what I could live without. Frankie said you’d be mad if I didn’t get everything.” He chewed on his lip.

“It’s fine. I wouldn’t be mad, but I’d be disappointed if you hadn’t let me get everything you wanted.”

“Well then, I guess it’s okay. Are you sure you’re not mad?” Connor asked, peeking through his long lashes to check my reaction.

“I’m sure.”

I softly kissed his mouth and then returned for a longer sample. My tongue swept into his mouth, and Connor’s sweet taste was precisely what I needed. The sensation of his cock grinding against mine was the distraction I needed from what I’d found out about his family. Connor drew back and gently framed my face with his hands.

“Matteo, stop making me wait. I feel fine. And I want you.” Connor’s quiet voice held a steely quality I hadn’t heard from him before. He grabbed my hand and placed it on his already hard cock. “This is what I want. You’re who I want.”

Internally, I groaned because I knew I should talk to him about today. But fuck it. I’d take the fallout tomorrow. There was no goddamn way I was going to turn down the man I’d been lusting over since we met. With a growl, I captured his mouth again and thrust my tongue into the wet heat.