Chapter 9

Nine

" W hy was I a rabbit?" Everly wondered as he peered through the steam at his reflection. He stood on his tiptoes and wiped off the bathroom mirror, his hair dripping from his morning shower. He turned to inspect his bare backside, squinting and imagining a tail before turning and checking the top of his head for ears.

"Still just me," he noted and gave his nose a wiggle. "Same little face."

He shrugged and looked down, considering his petite frame. At an even 5 feet, he could still pass as a teenager from behind and he often felt like one when the twins, Nox, Nelson, and Fletcher towered over him. Thankfully, they never made Everly feel less valuable or like less of a man despite being more than a full foot shorter than everyone but Merlin.

"What's that?" Everly spotted a ripple on his tummy and gasped as he went to the mirror for a closer look. The indent went across his stomach and was more pronounced when Everly sucked in and stiffened his core. "I have an ab!" he whispered in awe.

He curled himself forward and straightened, viewing it from different angles as he turned. Then, Everly raised his arms and flexed like a bodybuilder and yelped at the slight bulging where he'd always imagined his biceps would be.

"Whoa! I'm almost almost ripped," he observed and turned to get another look at his bottom. It might have looked fuller and firmer too. "Bryn!" he called excitedly.

He burst through the door a heartbeat later. "What happened?" Bryn asked breathlessly as he held onto the knob and searched the bathroom.

"I'm okay! I didn't break anything!" Everly reassured him and gestured for Bryn to come closer. "Look!" he said pointing at his new ab.

"I probably…shouldn't," Bryn replied tightly as he studied the ceiling, turning to leave.

"Wait!" Everly spun and presented his backside. "Do I have cakes?"

Bryn coughed and nodded. "Yes," he confirmed without needing to look. "Everything's…perfect…back there," he mumbled as a hand flailed in Everly's direction.

"Yes!" Everly pumped a fist, watching his arm through the mirror, then extended it toward Bryn. "I'm getting a muscle here too!" he said as he pointed at his upper arm. "I bet it's because we went on that run," he guessed, causing Bryn to chuckle.

"You ran to the corner, Ev. It's probably because you're eating better and taking care of yourself," he said to the door and Everly's lip pushed out.

"Oh. I thought I was turning into a real man like you and Nelson."

"Hey!" Bryn scolded as he turned, bracing his hands on his hips as he frowned at Everly. "You are real. You feel everything that I feel?—"

"I can't feel it when I burn myself or step on something sharp or when I fall and crack my chin or my nose on the curb," Everly argued, making Bryn splutter.

"That's not what I meant! You feel the same things I feel." He tapped the center of his chest. "Even more, sometimes, and you care about all the things a man should care about. You care about doing what's right and you care about your friends and the people you love, more than you care about yourself," Bryn explained.

Everly nodded in understanding. His old life had seemed more like a simulation or a demo model of a young man's life until Bryn found him. "I love you and that makes me feel real."

"Damn it, Ev!" Bryn's hand scrubbed over his mouth and he stopped himself from punching the door. "You're really testing me," he whispered loudly, pointing hard at Everly. "You are real and you're enough of a man to tie me up in knots, let me fuckin' tell you." He looked exasperated as he swept back his hair, his gaze hard and starved as it raked Everly from his eyes to his toes and back.

"I am?"

A wry laugh burst from Bryn as he pushed away from the door and reached for Everly, reeling him in. "I want to be balls deep right now, hearing you scream my name," he growled as he gathered Everly in his arms, sweeping him off his feet.

"You can if you wan?—!"

Bryn cut Everly off with a hard, hungry kiss, lapping and sucking on his tongue. His growl grew louder and more demanding as Bryn licked along Everly's jaw. "Don't say another word until I tell you it's safe," he panted in Everly's ear, the damp huffs sending a shiver down his spine. "I'm going to taste you and love you with my mouth and you're going to be as quiet as you can, got it?" he asked and Everly swallowed hard and nodded. "Good. Because, so help me gods, Ev… If you say one word, I will break and fuck you so hard it'll scramble both of our souls and we'll have to spend the rest of eternity as incubi." He raised a brow, daring Everly to say something.

Everly clapped a hand over his mouth and shook his head. He would do whatever Bryn asked.

"Very good," Bryn said and set Everly on the counter. "Turn and onto your knees," he commanded, supporting Everly and getting him into position with his knees spread. "Hold onto the glass so you don't fall," Bryn whispered in his ear.

Everly nodded, then swallowed a gasp as Bryn's fingers trailed down his spine. The cheeks of his bottom were stroked with tender reverence and Bryn let out a tortured groan as he traced the puckered flesh around Everly's hole. Kisses rained down Everly's back as Bryn lowered, taking a knee.

A finger pressed against the tight ring of Everly's ass and Bryn swore and leaned back. "You're already wet!"

Their eyes met in the mirror but Everly barely nodded, afraid Bryn would stop or turn them both into incubi if he shared that he was often very wet, especially when Bryn was around. Or that he had never required lubricant while bottoming because he made so much on his own. Bryn held him open, muttering a string of curses as he fingered Everly's slick hole.

The hot sweep of Bryn's tongue almost made Everly sob, but he bit down on his lips. He pressed his cheek against the glass, closing his eyes and savoring every searing flick and slick thrust of Bryn's tongue.

"Fuck, you taste good." Bryn's hands tightened around Everly's cheeks and there were loud smacking sounds as he feasted. His fingers twisted and spread, opening Everly so Bryn could spit into his hole and chase it with his tongue. He sucked it out, then slid two fingers into Everly, curling them as he rubbed hard.

A bright wave of pleasure rolled up Everly's back and limbs and he let out a strangled "Oh!" as he came, cum flinging onto the counter between his knees.

"Do not move," Bryn whispered against Everly's flesh. He heard a soft, but swift tapping before Bryn breathed out a strained "Fuck!" and shivered. He needed another moment before rising and helping Everly off the counter. "No more silly talk about being a real man, understood?" Bryn asked but didn't wait for Everly's weak nod, making a hasty escape and silently closing the door behind him.

"Understood," Everly said and smiled when he spotted a puddle of cum on the white marble floor.

He dropped to his knees and hummed happily as he slurped it up, licking Bryn's tart essence off the cool stone. Everly sprang to his feet and pulled on his boxers before skipping into the bedroom to finish dressing. Jeans, a Killers T-shirt, and socks were waiting on the bed and Bryn had a bowl of oatmeal ready when Everly met him in the kitchen for breakfast.

Arawn and Fletcher had already left for Roanoke. Nox had classes to teach and Nelson was headed into the office for the day. "What's on your agenda?" Nox asked Everly.

He shook his head, glancing at Bryn and Merlin. "Whatever's on their agenda," he said, shrugging.

"Afraid you can't come with me today," Merlin informed Everly, then glanced at Bryn. "Jeff is taking me to Rockville and Bethesda to check in with a few friends so you're on duty here," he said and Bryn offered Everly an apologetic grimace.

"I have a few certifications that I have to renew soon, so I need about an hour to knock out some forms online and pay some bills. We can try another walk afterwards. Doubt we'll come across another body so we should make it around the block this time," he added as he held up two sets of crossed fingers.

"Yes! I love walks!" Everly cheered and was looking forward to his day with Bryn as he saw Nox, Nelson, and Merlin out.

Everly used the time while Bryn was on his laptop to make sure the coast was clear for their walk. He checked all the windows and didn't see any scary shadows so he carefully opened the front door and peeked around it.

"Don't go too far, Ev," Bryn called from the study.

"I won't. Just looking at a butterfly," he said and silently apologized for fibbing as he eased out onto the stoop and leaned to see over the wall on the other side of the yard. He stepped out and held onto the rail as he rose on his toes but Everly still couldn't see the road on the other side of the wall.

His hand was sweating around the rail as Everly tiptoed down the stairs and took a few cautious steps onto the grass, his eyes darting around the yard. He jumped to see if anyone was on the sidewalk on the other side before ducking and hurrying to the wall. Everly tripped, smothering an "Oof!" as he skidded onto the grass.

"Slow down," he told himself as he dusted the dirt off his hands and got back to his feet.

Everly made it to the wall and pressed his back against the bricks, listening for cars and pedestrians. He could hear a dog barking down the street, but everything sounded clear so he leaned to peek through the iron gate.

A pair of empty black eye sockets stared back at Everly from behind a pair of cracked and bent wire-framed glasses. They rested, crooked and rusted, on the small, chalky, gray face of a child and a scream caught in Everly's throat when it reached for him. The child recoiled as if the gate's bars had burned it and it snarled and spat at Everly, its head flopping sideways as it studied him.

"Go away!" Everly whispered shakily, then jumped back when it dove at him. Once again, the iron gate repelled it and the child hissed as its cracked, dirty hands swiped at Everly. "Go!" Everly begged it and screamed when it opened its mouth and he felt cold and weak.

He pulled away, crashing onto his bottom on the grass. Everly rolled and crawled, scrambling to his feet. He ran right into warm muscle and safe, strong arms.

"What happened?" Bryn asked, alarmed as he scanned the yard and the street behind Everly.

"It was—!" Everly looked back at the gate but the scary dead child was gone.

"What did you see?"

Everly wasn't sure anymore. "Um…" He checked again and wondered if he'd imagined the whole thing.

They had talked of little else but the shadow child Bryn had encountered in the Nothing and that Ronan O'Sullivan had reported seeing when he was attacked. But there was nothing there now, the sidewalk and the street looked perfectly peaceful. Everly didn't want to be the boy who cried wolf and he didn't want the front yard to be off limits. He gave his head a shake and smiled at Bryn, deciding that even if he had seen something his hellhound scared it away.

"It was a butterfly but I couldn't get a good look at it before it flew over the fence."

"Are you sure?" Bryn didn't sound convinced as he searched behind Everly. "I heard you scream and you looked scared when I came out."

"I wasn't scared," Everly replied quickly. "I…tripped and I just screamed because I tripped." He willed his shoulder to shrug and it eventually did. Everly smiled brightly up at Bryn. "I was trying to see a butterfly and I screamed because I tripped, but I was not scared," he summarized.

The furrow in Bryn's brow deepened as he blinked down at Everly. "It's really hard to know when you're being weird." He laughed it off and went to step around Everly. "Ready for that walk?"

"No!" Everly pushed against his chest. "I changed my mind! I don't really like walks now."

"You don't like walks now?" Bryn's voice rose and his brow cocked. "What's going on, Ev?"

"Nothing!" He glanced at the house behind Bryn longingly. "I would just rather stay inside because…" Everly's eyes widened and snapped to Bryn's when he remembered that Nox, Nelson, and Merlin wouldn't be back for hours. "We have the house to ourselves!"

"True… But we just …" Bryn said with a pointed look. "We already pushed our luck once today," he said but Everly grabbed his hand.

It took a hard yank to get Bryn moving and his steps dragged as Everly towed him back to the front door. "We can make out in the study."

"That sounds like a bad idea. There's no one here to stop us from going too far."

"You will, if you promise we won't," Everly said and Bryn's head cocked.

"What?"

Everly smiled as he realized how perfect his plan was. "Promise me we won't have sex and turn into incubi," he ordered.

"Okay… I promise we won't have sex and turn into incubi," Bryn repeated slowly.

"There!" Everly said before leaping at Bryn, laughing as he was caught and they stumbled up the steps. "Now, we're safe!"

"You might be," Bryn grumbled as he carried Everly inside. "But I'm in serious trouble."