Chapter Thirty-One

Vince and Crossbody’s Second Therapy Session

Crossbody

I couldn’t decide how I was feeling.

In some ways, I was almost at peace. Something had shifted inside me. Suddenly, I had more hope for my life here. Work was better. Vince and I didn’t really speak, but we also didn’t try to needle each other all the time. We would make eye contact and smile or nod in the days after our second night at the motel. I felt less like an outsider, able to sit with the others and make conversation a bit, because I knew he wasn’t going to start snarking at everything I said. My budding friendship with Eloise helped.

But in other ways, it almost felt like I was in mourning.

Our long-running feud was tentatively over, and my days suddenly seemed empty. Lacking.

Like I missed him.

I threw myself into my hobbies to try and fill the empty space inside me, spending hours in my small garden and baking almost obsessively. When my cleaner, Ren, showed up for work on Friday morning, there was a huge stack of pastries and cakes on the counter for him to take home. It wasn’t like I had anyone else to give them to, and I didn’t want them to go to waste.

I tried bonding with Lady Potato—reluctantly—but she wasn’t interested unless I was feeding her.

By the time Monday rolled back around, I was actually looking forward to our ‘couples therapy’ session with Corey, because it meant that Vince and I would have to be in the same small space, talk, acknowledge each other properly. I was desperate for any kind of interaction with him. I didn’t care how uncomfortable it was.

When I reached the room at 1.55 p.m. and opened the door, Vince was already there, sitting on the loveseat in the same spot as last week while Corey lounged back in his pink armchair.

“Hi, darling,” Corey said cheerfully. “Take a seat.”

I gave him a polite smile, then found my gaze automatically drifting over to Vince as I approached. His knee was bobbing restlessly, fingers drumming on the armrest, but he offered me a tiny smile.

“Hi.”

I felt a little flustered as I sat and smoothed down my trousers. “Hello.”

“Well look at that.” Corey gave us a delighted nod of approval. “Have you been doing your ‘good morning’ exercises?”

“Kind of,” Vince said, sounding slightly amused.

“God, I’m good,” Corey muttered to himself, then put on his useless glasses and shifted back to get comfortable. “Now, let’s pick up where we—”

“Actually, Corey.” I cleared my throat. “I was wondering if I could say something. Before we began.”

Corey paused, then took his glasses back off to place one of the temple tips against his mouth with a thoughtful nod. “Of course, Crossbody,” he said in a hushed voice.

Swallowing, I looked over at Vince, who’d grown a little tense as he waited for me to speak.

“I’ve been thinking about what I said during court recently and I…” Heat crept up my throat, but I forced myself to hold his gaze, my voice husky with nerves. “I’m sorry for what I said about you. You’re not a slacker. You work hard and you’re extremely good at your job. You’re more professional than me,” I added, my flush deepening.

It was true. Vince had never gone off-script and sabotaged a match. I had.

“I’m sorry I said those things in front of everyone. I’m sorry I said them at all.”

“Oh my god,” Corey whispered in excitement. “A breakthrough.”

Vince had frozen, his throat working as he stared at me with wide eyes. He was so handsome, I thought as I looked back at him in silence, my chest aching as I let myself truly realise it. He was lean and narrow-faced and almost gaunt, but his features were beautifully sharp and his eyes were so wonderfully dark. Endless pools of black.

“Vince?” Corey prompted in his hushed therapist voice.

Vince swallowed, flicking him a glance as if he’d just remembered he was in the room with us. Then he looked back at me and parted his lips.

“I’m sorry too,” he said huskily. “For being such a dick to you all these years. I’m—I was wrong too. At court. What I said. I was the one who started it.”

“And why do you think that is?” Corey asked, nodding encouragingly.

Vince cleared his throat, looking uncomfortable as he broke eye contact and stared down at his fingers picking at the armrest.

“He… I don’t know. He intimidated me, I guess,” he admitted in a mutter, slouching lower on the couch. “I’m not used to being around people like him.”

“What do you mean by that?” Corey asked thoughtfully.

Vince huffed and scrubbed his face. “Rich folk.”

“I’m not rich,” I said with a frown. “My mother is. I’m not.”

“Oh.” He hunched up a little. “I just… assumed she—”

“She doesn’t support me.” My voice grew tight. “Or what I do.”

“Oh,” he repeated, then mumbled, “Sorry.”

“It’s fine.” I gave him a brief smile when he glanced at me.

“And why do you think you made those assumptions about Crossbody, Vince?” Corey asked with a slow nod, writing something in his notebook.

Vince huffed without any heat. “Because he’s freaking royalty. You come from… a different world to me,” he said to me directly, flushing. “I don’t mean Otherworld. I don’t mean literally—”

“I understand what you mean,” I said quietly.

“And I know that’s not, like, your fault. You couldn’t control that. But it still just… makes me feel weird.”

“I understand,” I repeated, trying not to let the despondence sinking into my gut show.

We were too different. I was different from everyone here, because of my background and the social standing I didn’t even want. I was the anomaly. The outsider.

“And how does that make you feel, Crossbody?” Corey asked, posing with his head cocked and glasses to his lips again.

I exhaled a slow breath, rubbing my hands over my thighs. “I’ve spent the last six years trying to build a life for myself here, but I still feel like I don’t really… belong.”

I couldn’t quite believe I’d just admitted that. In front of Vince.

“And have Vince’s actions contributed to you feeling that way?” Corey asked, then raised a brow at Vince when he cringed and looked down. “We have to lance a few wounds to heal them, Vince. I never said this was going to be easy. But I’m here to guide you through it.”

I shifted uncomfortably. “It… They didn’t help.”

“I’m sorry,” Vince croaked.

“It’s alright.” I smiled over at him, but he didn’t smile back.

“No. It’s not. I’m sorry, Crossbody.”

I nodded quickly, not liking the way my eyes were prickling. “I’m sorry too. I… I played stupid mind games with you, trying to get under your skin and irritate you because I… well, I don’t really know why. I just did. I’m sorry.”

Corey exhaled a slow breath and sat back, crossing his legs. “That was a real moment, you two.”

We both stayed silent. I was a little trembly with adrenaline, and Vince was tense and fidgety at the other end of the couch.

All I wanted to do was pull him on top of me. Crush my mouth to his. Feel his body against mine.

“Which is actually perfect timing,” Corey was saying, checking his watch. “I have a hair appointment that I couldn’t move. I’m sorry, you two. Just as we were making such progress! Very unprofessional, I know, but Layland is the best stylist in the city—”

“It’s fine,” Vince said quickly. “So we’re done?”

“Until next week.” Corey made a note and smiled at us. “I’m so proud of you both.”

“Yeah, thanks.” Vince was already standing up, but instead of heading straight for the door, he looked down at me and waited. My heart started beating a little faster.

Wetting my dry lips, I rose from the couch. “I appreciate it, Corey.”

He was standing up too, snapping his notebook closed and smoothing down his shirt. “My pleasure. Great work today, darlings. Keep doing those ‘good morning’ exercises. They seem to be working wonders.”

I cleared my throat, willing my cheeks not to heat. “Yes.”

Vince was already waiting by the door, holding it open. His eyes darted to me before he said, his tone somewhat pointed, “After you, Corey.”

“Thank you, Vince.” The orc swept out of the room, and when I slowly followed, my breath caught as Vince’s fingers brushed my lower back in what seemed to be a signal. Once we were all in the corridor, I stopped. So did he.

Corey didn’t notice at first, striding down the hall until he glanced back and paused. “Aren’t you coming?”

“Think I’m gonna see how Rafe’s doing while I’m down here.” Vince gestured at the IT Manager’s closed door.

“Ah. Our tech wizard. Lovely.” Corey looked at me questioningly.

“I’m”—I looked around quickly and spotted a door marked Supply Closet, so I walked over to open it—“going to get some pens.”

“I see.” Corey’s brows twitched, but then he glanced down at his watch again. “Oh god, I need to get going. If I’m late there won’t be time for the pre-wash scalp massage and cocktail. Kisses!”

Neither of us moved as he disappeared around the corner. Then Vince looked at me while I stood there clutching the handle of the supply closet door and cleared his throat.

“Let me help you grab those pens,” he said casually, walking past me into the tiny room.

I hesitated. What if he really did think I wanted pens? What if I’d completely misinterpreted—

“Crossbody,” he rasped, black eyes shadowed as he watched me from inside the closet.

Swallowing, I stepped inside and awkwardly closed the door behind me, my front brushing his. There was no room to manoeuvre, and my wings were a little crumpled in the tiny space. We were boxed in on all sides by messy shelves covered in office supplies, and cleaning products tingeing the air with lemon disinfectant.

There was a brief moment of stillness, and then our mouths were crashing together in a feverish kiss. I clutched his face, already making hoarse, desperate sounds as he shoved his hands under my shirt to run them up my back. He plunged his tongue deep, almost into my throat, making my knees weak as he pushed me up against the door and groaned. His hands slid over my hips before one dipped between my legs to cup my rapidly stiffening cock, making me gasp against his mouth.

When he broke the kiss with one last flick of his tongue against mine, my breaths were trembling out of me. Then he crouched and popped the button on my fly, and I had to clap a hand over my mouth so I didn’t make too much noise. Vince reached into my briefs and pulled out my cock, making my brows pinch up with breathless anticipation.

My eyes rolled back, my head hitting the door behind me when wet heat engulfed my cockhead. A muffled groan vibrated against my palm, my other hand shooting out to clutch his hair. Vince moaned, swirling his tongue, smoothing it over my piercing, before sliding my cock deeper into his mouth and sucking with perfect pressure.

My legs were shaking. He began to bob his head, his mouth making wet sounds as he groaned and reached down to rub his own cock through his sweatpants. My sac wrenched up tight. I was already close to coming, but I didn’t want it to end.

My fast breaths were shuddering out of my nose as I held back my desperate moans, which was difficult. I didn’t know how good of a job I did. When Vince paused at my cockhead, breathing fast, I whimpered pleadingly. Then his long tongue emerged to swirl around my length, the tip sliding over my sac as he looked up at me, his eyes like black holes in the dark.

I found my trembling hand leaving his hair to cup his cheek, my thumb dancing at the corner of his mouth before I smoothed it over his soft, slick tongue. He pulled it back to capture my thumb in his mouth, sucking softly, eyes still locked on mine. I moaned hoarsely as my knees almost buckled.

Releasing my thumb, he kissed the weeping tip of my cock before grinning up at me and letting his tongue emerge again. This time, the tip slid all the way down and over my tight sac, then kept going until I felt its slick warmth running along my taint and flicking at the crease of my ass.

I started to shake, my hips jerking to slide my cock along the flat of his tongue. He groaned and pulled it back to suck me into his mouth, fisting the base of my cock and stroking as he bobbed his head faster. His free hand ran up my thigh and slipped under my shirt to smooth over my stomach, before he stretched his arm higher to circle a nipple with his thumb.

Bolts of pleasure zinged down through my belly and up my cock. I moaned gutturally, thrusting into his mouth now, and this time he didn’t stop and tell me I wasn’t allowed to move. He just groaned around me, sucking hard and fast, still plucking at my nipple, until a choked sound tore from me and my cock flexed against his tongue.

A hoarse moan left him as he slid his lips down to meet his fist and held me in his mouth, sucking softly and swallowing the cum I pumped into the back of his throat. Spots danced in my vision, my breaths sawing out of me, and when it ended I sagged back against the door with a weak moan.

Vince slowly sucked his way up to the tip and kissed it, his lower lip rubbing against my piercing and making me tremble. His hands were gentle as he tucked my wet, pulsing cock back into my briefs and did up my pants.

He briefly nuzzled my stomach before he rose, his knee cracking on the way up. I was still dazed as he cupped the side of my neck and leaned in to kiss me, thumb stroking my jaw. This kiss was slower, our tongues gliding languidly, and I shuddered when I tasted myself on him.

“Vince,” I panted when it finally ended. “I want to—”

The door opened abruptly behind me, making me almost topple back before Vince’s hands shot out to grab my waist and steady me. I whirled around and accidentally whapped him in the side of the face with my wing, which made him squawk in shock and stumble into a shelf, sending a box of paperclips crashing to the floor and exploding over our feet.

I stared at the Ghastly Boys, still breathing hard, my face flushed. Their yellow eyes shone from the shadowy depths under their hoods, and as one they floated a few feet back from the door in silence.

“Pens,” Vince blurted, hand shooting out to snatch a random box off the shelf. “We were looking for pens and the door shut on us.”

They said nothing. Clearing my throat, I tried to compose myself and smoothed back my hair as I walked out of the closet, giving the pair a cool nod. Their yellow eyes flickered from me to Vince as he slunk out behind me, holding a box of highlighters.

In silence, we walked swiftly down the corridor and turned the corner, at which point Vince snorted.

“Think they’ll say anything?”

“They never speak, so no.”

He snorted again and glanced over at me with a tiny grin, then hesitated before parting his lips to speak.

Before he could, Larkin and Seb appeared up ahead, walking hand in hand toward us. Larkin was holding a huge soda cup and slurping from the straw noisily. He choked a little at the sight of us.

“Holy crap, it’s you two. Together. And you’re not calling each other assholes.”

“You just missed it,” Vince said dryly, making my mouth twitch.

“But seriously though, what are you doing down this end of the building?” Larkin slurped his soda again, brows rising with interest.

I cleared my throat. “We just had our mandated therapy session with Corey. It was awful.”

“Fucking bullshit,” Vince agreed, somewhat convincingly. His voice was a little sly when he added, “It sucked.”

My sated cock twitched. I cleared my throat and lifted my chin.

“Yes,” I said, keeping my voice as inflectionless as possible. “It did, indeed, suck.”