CHAPTER 266: AN UNEXPECTED EMOTION

Fortunately, or unfortunately, Cass was refusing to look at it too closely; there was a knock on the door again. This time, it was Sir Forsythe, and he was coming to check on Cass since he normally didn’t sleep in this late.

Cass was bright red, on the bed with both men who had shit eating grins on their faces as Cass chanted internally for Sir Forsythe not to open the door.

"He’s awake. Getting changed." Lucian called and Cass could practically hear the gears turning in his head from outside of the door.

"I...see. Is he in another room?" Sir Forsythe asked and Cass gave Lucian a look. He hoped the man understood that he was telling Lucian to lie. Lucian, able to read his thoughts, smirked.

"He’s in the bathroom at the moment. Hiding from us." Lucian lied easily, smiling down at Cass, leaning in to press his lips against Cass’ forehead with a warmth that had Cass’ toes curling and wiggling under the sheets. Edgar wasn’t to be ignored, continuing to press soft, ticklish kisses against Cass’ exposed shoulder and throat.

"Alright. I will...head downstairs and begin to get food ready for him then. Please inform my Lord that under Ser Hune’s suggestion we ordered food from the same inn we had ordered from yesterday. A temporary solution since the food stock here is quite low." Sir Forsythe said and Cass felt his chest slowly relax.

Even in a moment like this, Sir Forsythe was looking out for him. It was...nice.

"Perfect. I will let him know, Sir Forsythe." Lucian told him, and the three of them listened to his footsteps fading away.

Cass sat between the men on the bed, sure that the moment had passed and now he really did need to get up and get ready for the day. He wanted a shower but they weren’t really a thing of this time. Baths were the only thing available unless you went out into the wild and found a waterfall.

Cass let out a soft sigh, glancing around the room as he felt the body heat of the two men at his side lean in.

"What is our Cass thinking about?" Edgar asked softly, pressing another kiss against his shoulder. Cass twitched, but neither man said anything about it. It wasn’t a rejection, Cass hadn’t given the sign, it was more of a startled motion. He’d been doing it almost the whole time Edgar had been kissing his skin.

"I think I need to bathe." Cass said and watched as Lucian’s eyes sparkled.

"I could help with that. I’ve been told my tongue is a good cleaning pad." Lucian sounded so proud of that declaration while Cass’ jaw dropped and his face flared.

"What?" It came out strangled, shocked. "You are not doing that!" Cass knew he was being a little loud, to the point that even Lucian was a little surprised, and now upset.

"Why not? Dragons do this with each other all the time." He muttered, and Cass swore he was pouting. Cass’ heart was a drumbeat in his chest.

"I’m not a dragon." Cass reminded him, and Lucian pouted more.

"But the sunbathing after is the best part." Lucian said, and Cass realised that there was some kind of miscommunication happening right now. He was thinking that Lucian, in the form that he was right now, was offering to clean him with his tongue. Cass blinked a few times, before he let out another sigh.

"Lucian, are you speaking about your human form or your real form?" Cass asked carefully, and watched as Lucian scoffed, froze, and then looked slightly embarrassed.

"Ah. I see that you were..." Lucian coughed. "Well, I can’t say I wouldn’t like the other option either, but this tongue isn’t quite as rough as my normal tongue." Lucian opened his mouth, pointing at his tongue, and Cass had to agree.

He’d experienced that tongue rubbing against his own. While it was slightly rougher, it wasn’t too much of a difference when compared to Edgar’s. Cass’ face felt so warm and red that he was sure he could cook an egg on it.

"I-I see." Cass muttered, not offering any insight to Lucian’s words, and Lucian’s smile was warm as he closed his mouth.

"I was referring to shifting to my actual form and cleaning you that way. Most dragons do cleaning that way. Cleans the scales, gets all the little dirt off, and our saliva in that form is a natural cleaner." He was bragging about himself, puffing his chest up and showing off that he was better than most other animals.

All Cass could think about was how he was like a cat or a dog. Just...bigger.

"Is the estate even big enough for you to change without destroying the forest?" Cass asked, and Lucian froze. Then he looked like he was pouting again. Edgar chuckled.

"That look alone tells you the answer. No, and he also knows that you wouldn’t like it if he destroyed the forest here, and hell, we wouldn’t want the guards getting the wrong idea. Imagine if they attacked the dragon that helped found the country? I could only imagine how many heads would roll." Edgar chuckled, and Lucian looked upset.

"I wouldn’t hurt that many people. Just...people who shot at me." Lucian muttered, and Cass shook his head.

"Lets save shifting forms for when we’re back at our own estate." Cass said, and then kicked himself for making fucking plans. He shouldn’t have done that. He watched as both men perked up, all happy. He shouldn’t be making plans with them. He really shouldn’t.

He was the one who knew he needed to leave to make sure that the future didn’t happen. That he didn’t end up dead at the hands of Fiona. That the others didn’t slowly devolve into suspicion and fear when he was around.

Cass jerked, the thought surprising him at how potent it felt, how much it made his gut churn even thinking about it. He hadn’t realised that even the thought of them looking at him like that again had him this upset.

It had only been a short time since all of them were looking at him with open hostility and disinterest behind Fiona’s back, but...now it made him sick to his stomach to even imagine them looking at him like that. Even as the two men had their hands all over him in the bed.

"I really should go wash up. The longer we stay here, the later my day gets." Cass told them and Lucian was the first to move. He was gentle, careful as he extracted himself from Cass. Edgar wasn’t any different.

They took their time, gentling Cass as they pulled away, leaving trails of kisses and gentle squeezes as they released him. Cass had never...he’d never been treated like this before. Not even in their previous moments of...desire? That didn’t feel like the right word, but it somewhat fit what they had done before.

Now? Gentling, seduction, easing him into it. All of those words fit what they were doing to him, making his guts churn in a way that Cass had never experienced before. He felt light headed, his breath unfocused, slightly harsh. He was sure he looked like a damn tomato. It was probably ridiculous looking with his white hair and red eyes.

He could feel the way both men were watching him as he tossed his legs over the edge of the bed closer to Lucian since that was the side of the bed he had been sleeping on. Lucian was there, waiting to catch him, and it was a good thing too.

Cass’ legs almost buckled out from under him as he put any weight on them. Cass was surprised by that, but the other men weren’t. There wasn’t any pride in their eyes, nor did they seem to think it was from what they had just done on the bed. Edgar came rushing over, helping Cass even though Lucian didn’t need the help to keep him on his feet.

"Are you feeling okay?" Edgar asked, thoughtful, worried. Cass blinked a few times, holding onto the upper arms of the dragon holding him as his legs trembled.

"I...feel a little light headed. I don’t know why my legs are shaking." Cass muttered quietly, trying to scan his memories to find what did it.

"Yesterday was a lot." Edgar spoke quietly. "Your body is probably telling you that you need to rest. Not that I think you’ll agree with it." Edgar said with a soft smile. "Come. Let’s get that bath poured for you, hmm? Am I allowed to go through your pocket pouch to find you some clean clothes?" Edgar asked and Cass felt something shift.

He knew something was shifting already, but...he could feel it this time.

It was trust. He was beginning to trust them.

Cass’ heart squeezed as he realised it. He had said that he wouldn’t, that he had no one to trust here. Not even Sam, not even Byron, not even Sir Forsythe. But here he was. Slowly beginning to trust everyone.

Cass let out a shaky breath. The realisation made his legs even shakier. It was a time altering experience, and even Lord Blackburn, who had been remaining mostly quiet inside of him shifted at the realisation.

Cass felt him shift, and also felt his own emotions melding with Cass’. There was fear there. A lot of it. Lord Blackburn didn’t trust easily. Couldn’t. He’d reached out too many times and been burnt, but so had Cass.

They hadn’t been as life or death situations like Lord Blackburn, but there were people Cass had burned from his memory due to the way that they had betrayed him. Hurt him. He had refused to acknowledge it before now, but it was all coming to the surface as he realised the men that he had brushed off, pushed away, and downplayed were taking up parts of him that he hadn’t willingly offered up, but that didn’t seem to matter to his heart.

They were weaseling their way in, and Cass was worried that he wasn’t as worried as he should be.

"Cass?" It was Edgar again, and Cass jerked.

"S-Sorry. Yes, that’s fine. I just..." Cass trailed off, and Lucian let out a grumble.

"Don’t apologise. You’re well within your reason to have a few moments to yourself. Should I go down and ask Sir Forsythe to bring the food up here?" He was being thoughtful and Cass felt his heart twist. He shook his head.

"No. I should eat downstairs. Not for the girls, but for the staff. I need to get a read." Cass said and both men looked only mildly annoyed before they agreed.

"I wish you would consider your own physical health first, but after understanding how ill you’ve been your whole life, I guess you won’t." Edgar muttered, annoyed and Cass let out a soft laugh.

"Why would I care about my own health? No one else does." He was teasing, and when Edgar went to huff and puff, he stopped at the soft way that Cass’ lips were turned up, and Lucian let out a soft, shaky breath.

"I want to kiss that smile off of your lips." Lucian whispered and Cass felt his face warm.

"No. It’s mine." Cass declared and that only made Lucian whine more.

"What? Come on, share!" Lucian begged as the trio began to move towards the bathroom. It was a ridiculous argument, and it kept going on as Edgar and Lucian helped Cass fill up the tub, get partially undressed, and then made sure he had everything he needed.

It was surreal, a little strange, but not...bad. He hadn’t had anyone to bicker with like this since...since his other world.

It was a knife in the chest, but not a bad one. The thought of his sister still made Cass want to throw up, anger and injustice a tight mix in his chest, but this moment...the way that they hadn’t pushed for more, just let Cass sit in the moment, simmer...

Cass took off his pants, tossing them to the side before submerging himself in the water. He was sure the feeling of their tongues in his mouth were going to haunt him for days.