8. How To Win A Joey’s Trust

Hong was waitingwhen Blade pulled up in front of his home.

Blade narrowed his eyes at that shit-eating smile. "What did you do?"

"Ah, nothing much. Just told him some of your secrets."

If Blade didn't like his butler so much, he would've flung Hong across the yard. "Why the fuck do you have to be like this?"

"For your own good!" Hong cackled. "I like him. He's watched The Golden Dragon."

Blade pinched the bridge of his nose. "Oh, dear gods."

"Don't worry. I will suggest that the both of you watch it again."

"Don't you dare."

"I will queue it up on the TV in your mastering room."

"Fuck you."

"No thank you. Methinks Joey will prefer that you not fuck me."

Blade sighed, striding up the front steps. Hong was impossible. Then again, he and his brothers all were. "How is he?"

At that, Hong dropped the teasing and grew serious. "He's expecting you to throw him out."

Blade winced. "It was just a slip of the tongue. Damn it."

His butler smirked. "He might change his mind if you give him a different kind of tongue-slipping."

Blade scrubbed his face. "Where are they?"

"In your mastering room. I've put in an order for a crib and arranged to have it fireproofed."

"Thank you."

Blade reached out with his hearing. His ears were nowhere as sharp as Hong's, but he caught the faint sounds of Katie babbling, and Joey talking to her.

He swallowed. Joey really had no idea how alluring he was. The way he gazed at Katie, the way he was so protective of her. The way he fumbled and flailed, but he kept on picking himself up, carrying on with his life instead of letting his failures get him down.

Blade's heart quickened as he approached his bedroom. "It's not my mastering room, by the way. I don't... master people."

Hong rolled his eyes. "‘Master bedroom' is boring."

"It is what it is."

"You are boring."

"Too bad. You're working for me anyway."

"What a tragic life," Hong said dryly. Then he nodded at Blade and slipped away, leaving Blade to greet his new guests.

Blade paused at his bedroom door.

For so long, his mansion had only been occupied by himself and his staff. It wasn't that Blade didn't want a life partner; it was that no one had felt right.

He wasn't sure if this feeling in his chest was right, either, but meeting Joey was the closest he'd ever come to bringing someone home.

To wanting to take care of someone, and see them smile.

Joey's voice drifted through the door. "I bet all the kids will take one look at you and say ‘We want to be your friend, Katie!'"

Katie giggled, and Joey giggled along with her.

Blade couldn't help grinning. He knocked lightly and heard Joey's breath hitch.

Then he opened the door, and Joey promptly fell off the bed.

"Joey!" Blade's heart clenched. He lunged forward, but he didn't have the speed to catch Joey before he hit the floor hard.

"Ow," Joey mumbled.

Blade gathered Joey into his arms, looking him over. "What hurts?"

"My shoulder," Joey mumbled. Then he stiffened and glanced warily up at Blade, and Blade couldn't help himself.

He pulled Joey into a hug. "I'm sorry for surprising you," Blade murmured, tucking his nose into Joey's hair.

So maybe he was secretly sniffing this man. No one had to know.

Joey smelled like morning dew, like chocolate cookies and tea. Blade ran his fingers over Joey's shoulder, pressing down lightly. "Here?"

Joey flinched. "Ow!"

But he leaned in closer, like he was trying to burrow into Blade's arms.

"It'll hurt less soon," Blade whispered, glancing over Joey's head to make sure Katie was safe.

She'd flipped onto her belly, large eyes locked onto Blade. When Blade took his hand off Joey's shoulder to offer it to her, she curled her hand around his finger.

It never failed to surprise him, how tiny her fingers were. They were so fragile, and Blade wanted to protect her, too.

Joey looked up at the sudden disappearance of Blade's hand. When he realized it was with Katie, he stiffened. "You're not supposed to say hi to her!"

"All right. I won't." Regretfully, Blade took his hand back, continuing his massage of Joey's shoulder. "You'll let me have you, but not her?"

Joey sucked his lips into his mouth, dropping his gaze.

He looked nothing like Katie.

Where Katie's hair was a coppery brown, Joey's hair was black. Where Katie's eyes were bright blue, Joey's were a deep whiskey-gold. They didn't have the same nose, or the same mouth.

Katie enjoyed being in Joey's presence, though. That much, Blade knew for sure.

He rubbed Joey's shoulder gently, carefully finding the boundaries of his bruise. He kept rubbing until Joey relaxed, his limbs going loose.

"Why're you being so nice to me?" Joey mumbled.

"Because I want to."

"You shouldn't."

"Why?"

Joey scowled and buried his face against Blade's shoulder, not moving away at all.

Blade couldn't help smiling. With one arm wrapped around Joey, Blade brushed his fingers through Joey's hair, lightly scratching his scalp.

Joey moaned. "Oh, gods. That feels so good."

"Yeah?" Blade didn't stop. He moved his fingertips from one side of Joey's head to the other, over the top and down the back, rubbing in slow circles.

Despite Joey's wariness, he melted easily into Blade's arms, curling his fingers into Blade's uniform.

Hope unfurled in Blade's chest. So he whispered, "You'll sleep in my bed tonight?"

Joey's breath hitched. "Um."

"We can stick to simple massages," Blade added, sliding his fingertips down Joey's neck, lightly kneading the tense muscles there.

A whimper fell from Joey's lips.

"No sex if you don't want it. Just backrubs and foot rubs."

"Oh, gods." Joey clung tighter to him. "Backrubs? You promise?"

"I promise to massage you anywhere you want."

Joey made a soft, needy sound. "Um."

"You don't have to decide right now, either."

Joey gulped, and Blade caught the musk of his arousal. "L-let me think about it," Joey said shakily.

"I'll make you feel good."

Joey closed his eyes, moaning into Blade's shoulder.

For a second, Blade imagined Joey in his lap with fewer clothes on, his tight little body squirming. He imagined touching Joey between his legs, pleasuring him there. Filling him up inside.

There wouldn't be any breeding tonight.

Definitely not.

He had to end that thought before he grew hard in his pants.

Why did he want to breed Joey, anyway? Joey already had a baby.

But the idea of claiming Joey's body where no one had before, the idea of showing Joey what a cock—his cock—felt like, then shooting his cum inside...

"Wh-what're you thinking about?" Joey mumbled.

Blade growled. "What do you think I'm thinking about?"

"Tonight." The tips of Joey's ears turned red.

"I want to frisk you," Blade breathed in his ear. "Make sure you're not hiding anything on your body. Make sure you're not bringing anything strange into my... my house. And maybe I'll need some... implements... to do a full cavity search."

"Oh, gods." Joey's neck turned red. "I'm... still a virgin, right?"

"You'll be a virgin all the way until you take my cock," Blade growled in his ear. "Until I stretch you open, and you're impaled on me. Completely filled up with cock, Joey."

Joey whimpered, squirming in Blade's lap. "Why do you have to make it sound so hot?"

"Because it is. I want to get you wet and squirming and absolutely ready. Did you bring the condoms?"

"Y-yes."

"Good."

Blade reached down, sliding his hand between Joey's cheeks. He crept his fingers further south, following the curves of Joey's ass so Joey's breath hitched, and his pants grew damp.

"Growing wet for me, sweetheart?" Blade murmured.

Joey flushed bright red and nodded.

"You're such a good boy for me."

"Oh, gods," Joey whispered. His pupils dilated.

"You really like that. You like being good."

"I want to be good for you," Joey mumbled, his cheeks turning pink.

"You are. You don't even have to try hard at all."

"I want to try."

"Then be the best boy, Joey. I believe in you. I want to be proud of you."

Joey clutched Blade's uniform shirt, opening his mouth like he was about to say something incredibly vulnerable.

Before he could get the words out, Katie hiccupped, a tiny ball of flame bursting out of her mouth.