Total pages in book: 137
Estimated words: 127201 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 636(@200wpm)___ 509(@250wpm)___ 424(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 127201 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 636(@200wpm)___ 509(@250wpm)___ 424(@300wpm)
Nero shuddered thinking what could have happened if he hadn’t been nosy, and squeezed Miguel’s hand as the lights of the passing vehicles made shadows dart over their feet.
So maybe the darkness obscured their closeness, and there weren’t many people around to notice their interlaced fingers, but Nero was still over the moon to feel Miguel’s cold hands squeeze him back. Their temperature made his touch so distinct. Nero shuddered every time Miguel slid his palms under his clothes, yet there was something reassuring in knowing them by touch.
Their generic room had a bed, a shower, and bars in the windows. Just what they needed for one night. He had no idea what would come next, but the whole day’s drive, the argument, and the sex had worn him out, and he no longer had the energy to think about serious issues. What he did know was that since Miguel’s tragic stunt showed he had no plans, it was on Nero to make sure his still-definitely-boyfriend didn’t get any more dumb ideas and embraced the fact that he would live on.
He pushed himself into Miguel’s arms as soon as the door was locked behind them and wrapped his arms around his waist. The word love floated up in his chest at the memory of Miguel saying it to him back at the cemetery, when he’d believed himself to be at the end of his life.
The man I love.
It wasn’t the first time someone had confessed their supposed feelings to Nero, but this time, his first instinct wasn’t to cut ties but to reassure Miguel and show him how much he cared.
He had to bite his lip when Miguel’s hands trailed up his back, pressing the fabric of his T-shirt to the scratched skin. In hindsight, maybe fucking on concrete hadn’t been such a great idea, but it had been so fulfilling he wouldn’t have changed it for just any pleasant night in silk sheets.
Miguel murmured against Nero’s ear. “I don’t even know how I got to this point. With you.”
His voice was rich and warm like hot chocolate spiced with a bit of chili, and Nero rubbed his cheek against Miguel’s exposed collarbone, savoring the musky scent of his sweat. “Me neither. I’ve never been… very constant before.”
Miguel snorted. “What does that even mean?”
Nero pulled away. “That I’m a slut who doesn’t care about anyone.”
Miguel stilled, and his dark eyes stripped Nero’s skin, turning him inside out. “Not anymore.”
And there it was. That simple, four-letter word rising inside Nero and blocking his throat.
He nodded, glancing toward the barred window, because meeting Miguel’s gaze suddenly felt overwhelming.
“Come on, I need to brush my teeth so you taste me, not rum and chicken,” Miguel said, guiding him to the small bathroom.
Nero chuckled, a bit more at ease. The chicken must have been cured with sugar, or something, because his filed teeth had been a bit achy since the meal. Maybe if there was salt somewhere, he could dissolve it in water and relieve the unpleasant sensation with the mixture?
“You and I both. And I can’t wait to push the beds together.”
The yellow glow of the bathroom lamp sank into the shallow creases in Miguel's skin and turned his shade sallow, but it somehow didn’t take away from how handsome he was to Nero, who craved to lick every inch of his body.
Miguel rummaged through his bag. “I’m looking forward to waking up with you in my arms.”
Such a fucking romantic. Ridiculous, sweet man.
Nero joined him in the narrow space that wasn’t designed for the simultaneous use by two grown men, but as he reached for the toothbrush he’d left on the little shelf above the sink, his eyes settled on the small tube that was painfully familiar.
“Y-you got it for me?” he uttered, grabbing the teeth sensitivity cream and staring up at Miguel.
Miguel wouldn’t look at him as he stuffed the head of his toothbrush in his mouth. “Um, yeah, I saw it at the drug store and thought of you.”
Nero’s heart beat faster, and he gently pressed Miguel’s toes with his foot as he opened the fresh tube to squirt some out. “Wow. That’s… amazing. Thanks.”
If Miguel intended to die tonight, he must have left it out for Nero to find on his own, in a bid to care for him even from beyond the grave.
Miguel shrugged, but gave Nero a shy, foamy smile as if he hadn’t just railed him like a demon.
And while he’d need practice to understand Nero’s needs better, he already was such a damn good lay. The raw enthusiasm burning inside him was not something a man could learn.
Nero winked at him and held his toothbrush in his mouth to pull off the dirty T-shirt, which at this point was stuck to the newly formed scabs on his back.