Flight of Fancy (12 page)

They regarded each other with frowns.

Aidan took the cowardly way out. “You should be calling me Sir.”

“And you shouldn’t be so jealous.” Gavin wanted to shout with happiness when Aidan colored.
Again.
“I’m attracted to him. But you’re the one I want to go down on. You’re the one I want to sleep with, the one I want fucking me, filling me up.” He glanced down and reached for Aidan without asking. “You’re the one I want to swallow, Master.”

Aidan rasped, “Damn it. I’m in charge here.”

“Tell me what to do, Sir. Let me please you. It makes me so happy to serve you.”

Aidan closed his eyes and clenched his jaw tight, but he didn’t move away from Gavin’s hands. Gavin wasn’t sure what Aidan might have done if they hadn’t heard Mike’s footsteps.

Aidan pulled away and glared. Then he unlocked Gavin’s ankles and hefted him over his shoulder.

Gavin let out an
oomph
, shocked anew that Aidan could carry him with such ease. He felt like a rag doll in the arms of a blond grizzly.

“Oh, that’s a picture. Especially with your dick like a fucking pike.” Mike snickered.

“Shut up and get that fat dildo. The one that’s wider than my dick.” Aidan dumped Gavin onto the bed in the corner of his dungeon. “I want to watch my boy ride it while he sucks us both off.”

“Oh, nice. What about the flogger and the cock ring?”

Aidan’s mean grin made Gavin’s cock twitch. God, he loved the man, and the delight he felt in the knowledge allowed him to brick up his mental shield and hold it tight. Just what Aidan had wanted him to achieve, and knowing he’d make Aidan proud only made his shield that much stronger.

“Good.” Aidan nodded. “The flogger and cock ring? Get them. Time to see what my boy is really made of.”

Hours later, after Mike had come twice more and departed, Gavin lay on his belly like a limp noodle in the middle of the mattress. Toys and devices lay on the tables on either side of the bed. His wrists and ankles were sore from the manacles used on him earlier, and his ass felt like he’d been forced to sit on hot coals. The flogger had given him an amazing rush, and though he’d exploded when Aidan had spanked him while Mike sucked him dry, his ass hurt, not used to such beatings.

He hissed when Aidan ran a cool rag over his buttocks.

“Shh. Easy, baby. That’s good.” Aidan finished wiping him up, then put a soothing gel on his flesh. “You bruise easily. You’ll look well used when we show up tomorrow.”

“Yeah?” Did Aidan ever think about anything other than the mission?

“Sometimes.”

It took Gavin a moment to realize Aidan had answered his unasked question. Since their time on the bed earlier, Aidan had refused to read him.

“What do you think about?” Gavin asked quietly. He turned his head over his crossed arms. The dim lighting in the basement lent a romantic feel to the room, despite the various chains and discipline equipment. “Why are you so alone, Aidan? You have a great sense of humor—when you’re not making fun of me.”

Aidan snorted.

“You’re smart and sexy. Hell, Mike would take you on permanently in a heartbeat. I could see it.” And that annoyed the hell out of him.

Aidan sat on the bed next to him. “Mike’s a good fuck buddy. But that’s it.”

“Why?”

“Because I’m not normal. I don’t have normal relationships.”

Gavin remained quiet and hopeful, aware Aidan was opening up when he’d never done so before.

“I read minds.”

“Tell me something I don’t know.”

Aidan sighed. “I don’t normally pry. I don’t like knowing what other people think. It’s better not to know. People who know what I can do are usually cautious around me. They fear my ability. They hate it.”

They hate me
, Gavin all but heard him say.

“Jack keeps me on because I get results. The team deals with me because I’m a peer. We’re not friends.” Aidan lay down on his side, leaned on his elbow, and rested his head on his hand. “Are we friends?”

“No. We’re more than that.”

Aidan nodded. “Partners.”

“Lovers.”

Aidan frowned. “Well, yeah, but because—”

“Tell me something from your childhood. Something no one else knows.”

Aidan’s face went blank.

“Don’t hide from me.” Where Gavin’s sudden sense of confidence came from, he couldn’t say, but he knew he needed to talk to Aidan about something more meaningful than sex or the mission. He wanted to know Aidan, the whole man. Not just bits and pieces of his PWP résumé. So he continued to hold that shield inside him tight. “Can you read my mind now?”

Aidan frowned. “No. You’re doing really well. I could probably push into your thoughts, but it’s not easy.”

“Good. That session with Mike was hard for me. It seemed easy, because you were there. But I’m kind of a shy person.”

Aidan didn’t respond.

“I know I sound like a pussy, but knowing more about you makes this easier to bear. Like, we’re in it together, you know?”

“I guess.”

Gavin nodded. “Now it’s your turn. Tell me something you’ve kept secret.”

Aidan blinked at him. “I’m not that interesting. Really.”

“Why are you so scared? You know all about me.”

Aidan grunted. He reached out and rested a hand on Gavin’s lower back. “Because you won’t shut up.”

Gavin huffed and would have rolled over when Aidan held him fast.

“Fine. My mother died when I was four. I lived with my father and his drug habit until I was ten. Then I ran away. Happy now?”

Gavin stanched the pity he could see Aidan expected and didn’t want. “Did your dad know you could read minds?”

“Oh yeah. He used me to keep us ahead of creditors, junkies, and dealers. Until I turned it against him.” Aidan’s face twisted into a sneer. “I told his dealer my old man was holding out on him, about the stash of drugs he’d stolen, and that my father was a snitch. Then I left. Never heard from the old man again. I’m a hell of a son, eh?”

Gavin forced himself to show little emotion. “That sucks. No gingerbread men for you, I guess.”

Aidan snorted. “Hell, no.” Aidan removed his hand from Gavin’s back, so Gavin reached out to link their fingers together.

“I like you.”

“Bullshit. Your body likes mine. We’re on a mission together, one that requires us to be tight. Adrenaline and need, dude. That’s it. Five days ago, you couldn’t stand me.”

“You were always making fun of me. Why should I have liked you?”

“Exactly.”

“But that’s not the case now, and you know it.” Gavin scooted closer and kissed Aidan’s mouth, his chin, then his cheeks. “Does this happen on all your assignments?”

“Hell no.” Aidan took a deep breath and let it slowly release. He returned Gavin’s kiss with a sweetness that brought tears to Gavin’s eyes. “But we can’t let this get complicated. We have to focus on the mission. Jack needs us to concentrate on finding that book.”

“Success.” Gavin kissed Aidan again, and before he knew it, Aidan had rolled onto his back and pulled Gavin on top of him.

Gavin laid his head on Aidan’s chest and heard his lover’s heart racing. He smiled to himself.

“I can feel you grinning. What the hell is so funny?”

“I’m happy.”

“Why?” Aidan sounded genuinely puzzled. “I don’t get the joy. I know you feel it. I can hear you laughing like a loon in your mind. But I don’t know why.”

Gavin snuggled closer. Aidan was like a furnace, all fiery heat and angry denial. “Tell you what. After we make it out of Mendocino in one piece—with the book—I’ll tell you.”

Aidan sighed. “Sure. Fine. Piece of cake.”

Gavin drifted off to sleep, but he heard Aidan’s quiet reassurance as the man hugged him tight and kissed the top of his head. “We’ll make good on this together. I promise I won’t let anything happen to you.”

* * * *

The next day came earlier than he’d wanted. Gavin barely had time for a cup of coffee before he and Aidan packed up and left on a private plane. They touched down in Santa Rosa, and Gavin drove them in a rental the rest of the way. Three hours in the car next to a control freak stretched his nerves to the breaking point.

He refused to move through the next stoplight. “We’re not in a scene now. I swear, if you tell me one more time how to drive, I’m going to run us off the road and personally strangle you.”

Aidan just looked at him. Mr. Sexy, all dark and brooding. He wore black jeans, a black silk shirt, and a black leather jacket over the ensemble. His shoulder-length hair looked windblown, and his dark eyes were questioning. “Pitching a fit? You’re so cute when you’re angry.”

Gavin swore as Aidan laughed.

“Yeah, those blue eyes are shooting sparks at me. Gets me hard, baby.”

“Shut up, you big freak.” Gavin tried not to smile.

“I’m just trying to get your mind off your worries. You look strung out enough to snap. Don’t worry. We’ll play our parts, and this will go off without a hitch. Just remember. Call me Sir, and only speak when spoken to. That way you’ll have less chance of fucking up.”

“Gee, thanks for the pep talk, Aidan.”

“No problem,
boy
.” Aidan grinned when they started driving again.

Half an hour later, they reached Kerr’s huge estate on the coast. His house overlooked the ocean, a secluded spot half a mile from his neighbors on either side. Gavin and Aidan had fully reconnoitered the area using the aerial photos and blueprints Jack had given them in the files they’d left at home. They didn’t want to chance anyone finding their notes during the party.

“Just remember. It’s two days of intense play. I pretend to be a high roller who likes to play rough. You do what you’re told, period.” Aidan cleared his throat, and Gavin glanced at him before turning his gaze back to the road. “You look good in that collar. I like it.”

Gavin fingered the leather collar Aidan had fastened around his throat before he’d gotten into the car. The leather matched the vest he wore beneath his coat. He wore tight leather pants as well, white ones lined with buttons on the sides for easy access. There was no fly either, just that tight leather hugging his naked body. He felt aroused and prickly, with only the leather keeping him from Aidan.

“This is a lot of leather.”

“Yeah, but I can’t wait to rip those pants off you.” Aidan’s smile was there in his voice. “And I brought the clamps for your pert little nipples. Next time when you come like a geyser, everyone will be complimenting me on how pretty my sub is.”

“Shut up.”

Aidan laughed. “Just keep that irritation fixed on me, and you’ll do fine. We’ll get the book and hotfoot it out of here. No way in hell Kerr will touch you without me breaking off a hand. The more I read about him, the more I realize we need to be in and out ASAP. I plan for us to be gone by Sunday.”

“Yeah, well, I’m not the only one who needs to be careful. What if Kerr decides he doesn’t want me? He wants the blond god I’m with.”

“‘God.’ I like that.”

“Don’t be an idiot. You know you’re hot.” Gavin didn’t look at his partner as he clenched his hands around the wheel.

“I’m glad you think I’m sexy. The only thing my old man ever did for me, I guess. Tall, blond, and good-looking.” He shrugged, sounding less arrogant than simply stating a fact. “But I’m not Kerr’s type. He likes them pretty, not rugged. Soft and vulnerable, not hard and unemotional. He wants a slight boy he can break. He looks at me the wrong way, I’ll snap him in half.”

“You snap him in half, and we’re not getting in and out without drawing too much attention to ourselves,” Gavin muttered. “Hell. Look at that fence.”

“The security is tight, but we knew to expect that.” They pulled up next to a gate with a guard.

Gavin rolled down the window and announced, “Mr. Aidan Castle.”

The guard looked at him. “ID?”

Aidan handed Gavin the false license, and Gavin handed it over to the guard.

The guard studied the picture, then Aidan, and nodded. “Mr. Castle. And your guest?”

“Gavin Shelton. But he doesn’t have a name this weekend. He’s mine.” Aidan tugged back Gavin’s jacket and showed the guard Gavin’s collar. “Tagged and bagged. We’re here for the party.”

A Bentley pulled up behind them. The guard noted their vehicle, checked his list again, and nodded. “Shelton’s on the list. Go on in. Someone will meet you at the door for your bags.” The guard stepped back and released the gate, which rolled back to allow them entry.

Gavin drove them through. “Oh man. This is going to be a long weekend.”

“No, it won’t. I only need just enough time to look through the fucker’s mind and find that book. Then you check the book over, and we’re gone. Mission accomplished.” Aidan sounded excited, the adrenaline junkie no doubt getting off on the danger.

To Gavin’s surprise, he wasn’t as thrilled about being on the mission as he’d thought he’d be. Oh, he loved being with Aidan. That he liked far more than all this intrigue. Truth be told, he’d rather be back in the gym, making sure Ian hadn’t screwed with his spreadsheets, and that stunned him.

“You okay?” Aidan frowned at him.

“Good. Great. Let’s do this.” Gavin parked the car at the front of the mansion, where a valet waited next to two enormous men armed with automatic weapons.

In a low voice, Aidan reminded, “Just remember. I lead. You follow. Keep your head down, and say nothing unless I allow you. And keep your mind open to me, Gavin. I’m going to be with you the whole time. It’ll be okay.”

Gavin felt a measure of safety in Aidan’s words, because Aidan meant them. Suddenly his partner looked as hard and unforgiving as Gavin had always imagined him to be. No longer his lover he couldn’t get enough of, now Aidan reminded him of a Viking gone raiding.

The hard look on Aidan’s face couldn’t be mistaken for anything but dangerous.
“Follow my lead,”
he sent telepathically.

Gavin didn’t respond except to lower his head as he got out of the car. Aidan exited as well and shut the door behind him.

“Nice digs,” he said to the largest man near him.

“Mr. Castle.” One of the guards nodded for Aidan to prepare for a weapons check. “Standard security.”