“Played pool too.” Luca sat on the edge of the bed.
“You need to stay in the room, Luca.”
Luca straightened his shoulders. “Why?”
“Because I’m trying to keep you alive.”
Nox had made a promise. A promise to Luca’s dead brother. The person Luca held closest to his heart and who had died five years ago. But not according to Nox. No, Koda had been brought back, and he’d sent Nox to protect him.
The more Luca replayed the events in his head, the more he convinced himself it was nothing more than a delusion concocted by Nox’s broken memory no matter what Luca had seen. And who in their right mind would throw away an opportunity to be with someone like Vic for that?
“You know, I think I’m going to go back out.” Luca stood.
Nox stepped in his way.
“Move.”
“You need to stay close to me.” This from the man who’d been hiding all day.
“What I need to do is go find the good-looking guy I was with and take him up on his offer for the night. Now get out of the way.”
“No.”
Luca lifted his chin and met Nox’s searing glare. “You don’t get to tell me what to do.”
Nox’s expression crumbled. Pain, sorrow, want, and confusion welled up inside Luca right beside his anger and his fear. The former emotions weren’t foreign in nature, but he couldn’t identify the source. As if they’d leaked into Luca’s heart from somewhere else.
Someone else.
And Luca had the strangest need to sooth it. To take control, to remove the burden of those emotions and destroy them.
Nox placed a hand on each of Luca’s cheeks and held his face.
“Kiss me.” Luca gripped Nox’s wrist.
Nox swallowed. “Why?”
“Do I have to have a reason?”
Nox nodded.
“Then because I never have, because I’m going to die in however many months, because I might die tomorrow, because there’s nothing better to do?” Luca laughed, but it trickled away. “Because I’m horny.” He tightened his grip. “There you go. I’m sure I could think up more if—”
Nox pressed his mouth to Luca’s, then pulled away and rested his forehead against Luca’s.
He inhaled Nox’s exhale.
“Part your lips.” Nox traced Luca’s mouth with his thumb.
He claimed Luca’s mouth again.
Luca tried to match Nox’s movements. Then the wet heat of Nox’s tongue slid over the bottom of his lip. Under the spices from food Nox had eaten, a smoother flavor. Luca pushed back with his tongue, wanting more, and willing to be greedy enough to steal it.
Nox slid his hands down Luca’s hips and gripped his ass, crushing their bodies together. The hard length of Nox’s cock strained the front of his cargo pants. Luca rolled his hips, grinding his arousal against Nox.
The man shivered.
Luca kissed him harder, thrust his tongue deeper, and dug his fingers into Nox’s shoulder.