CHAPTER 433: CHAPTER 427: RESTRAINED

Damian did as instructed... mostly.

He carried Arik with reverence into the nursery, lowering him into the crib with a tenderness that would’ve astonished half the Empire and confirmed the suspicions of the other half. The baby stirred once, latched his fingers around Damian’s thumb for a moment, then sighed and turned his cheek to the soft blanket beneath him.

It took effort, real effort, for Damian to let go.

His hand lingered a second too long before he withdrew, brushing a ward glyph on the rail with two fingers to reinforce the protective layer Gabriel had etched earlier that morning. Then, slowly, silently, he straightened.

He could still feel Gabriel’s presence like gravity in the next room. Could still scent him through the walls, warm, clean, alive. And his own body, despite the training and suppressants and years of iron discipline, was starting to betray him.

The bond throbbed faintly in time with his pulse. His shirt felt too tight. His skin, too warm.

’Not yet’, he thought, jaw tightening. Not until he says yes.

He returned to the shared suite with the precision of a general entering contested territory. And there Gabriel was, still in his robe, barefoot now, standing at the open balcony doors with a glass of water in hand, the wind teasing strands of his dark hair against the nape of his neck.

A bad idea.

A beautiful one.

Gabriel didn’t turn, but he spoke. "Don’t look at me like that."

"Like what?"

"Like you’re debating whether to devour me or chain yourself to the window frame."

Damian stepped closer. "Can’t you chain me?" He said, smirking without an ounce of shame.

Gabriel’s mouth curved slowly, the kind of smile that said he was both amused and entirely aware of the effect it was having. He took a sip of water, intentionally slow, watching Damian over the rim of the glass like a man measuring his aim before he pulled the trigger.

"I could," Gabriel murmured, lowering the glass, "but I think you’d like that too much."

Damian’s pupils darkened. "Probably."

"Then it’s not a punishment." Gabriel turned fully now, one hand braced lightly on the balcony doorframe, the other still holding the glass, catching the fading light. "And you don’t deserve a reward."

"I carried our son without complaint, reinforced your wards, and didn’t touch you when I wanted to," Damian said, stepping closer. "That’s restraint."

"That’s the bare minimum," Gabriel countered, his tone silk over steel. He tilted his head, exposing the faint edge of the bond mark on his neck. "But if you want a reward..."

Damian’s breath hitched just enough for Gabriel to notice.

"You’re cruel," Damian said, his voice low and raw.

"I’m bored," Gabriel corrected, taking a slow step toward him. "And you’re making it far too easy to entertain myself."

Damian’s jaw tightened, his hands curling at his sides like if he touched Gabriel now, there’d be no stopping. "You’re playing with fire."

"You’re my fire," Gabriel said simply, his voice dropping to a dangerous softness. "And I happen to like the burn."

For a moment, neither moved. The air between them thickened, heat curling through the bond like a living thing, pressing at the edges of Damian’s control until it trembled.

Then Gabriel smirked, lifting his hand and brushing the back of his fingers across Damian’s jaw, barely a touch, just enough to make his mate’s breath falter. "You are mine, Damian."

Damian exhaled like the words had lodged somewhere deep. "You are going to regret this."

Gabriel’s smile widened. "I certainly hope so."

He stepped closer until the line of his body was pressed deliberately into Damian’s space, until he could feel the contained heat of him, the faint tremor running through muscle held too tight.

Then, with the kind of unhurried cruelty, Gabriel reached up and slipped his fingers to the top silver button of Damian’s shirt.

The click was quiet, almost delicate.

The second followed, just as slowly.

Damian didn’t move, didn’t speak, but the muscle in his jaw ticked and his golden eyes tracked Gabriel’s hands like they were a threat and a promise at once.

By the third button, Gabriel’s thumb brushed the warm skin beneath, lingering just long enough to feel the sharp hitch of breath it drew.

"You’re warm," Gabriel murmured, the words soft but edged with meaning. "Too warm."

"It’s nothing," Damian said, though his voice had dipped, rougher now.

Gabriel hummed like he didn’t believe him, his fingers trailing lower, unfastening another button, his touch never hurried, never clumsy.

"This is patience, Damian," he said, his tone as deliberate as the slow parting of the shirt across Damian’s chest. "This is me... deciding exactly how much I’m going to let you have."

Damian’s hands flexed at his sides, and for the first time since entering the room, he let out a low, almost inaudible growl, one that curled under Gabriel’s skin in ways that were anything but innocent.

Gabriel looked up through his lashes, smirk in place, and let the next button slide free.

"Still restrained?"

"Barely," Damian admitted, and it was almost a warning.

"Good," Gabriel said, fingers brushing over the exposed line of muscle before moving to the last button. "Let’s see how long that lasts."

Gabriel slipped the last button free with an almost ceremonial care, letting the fabric fall open to reveal the solid warmth of Damian’s chest, the steady rise and fall of his breathing.

For a moment, he didn’t touch, just looked, like he was committing the sight to memory. Then his gaze dropped lower.

He stepped in closer, close enough that the faint brush of his robe whispered against Damian’s trousers, close enough for the bond to hum, alive and charged between them.

Then, he lowered himself into a slow crouch.

Damian’s breath caught as Gabriel never broke eye contact until his line of sight was forced downward. When Gabriel’s gaze finally dropped, it was to the silver buckle at Damian’s waist, his fingers finding it without hurry.

The leather slid free with a quiet hiss, and Damian’s hands curled into fists at his sides again.

"Gabriel..." His voice was warning, plea, and threat, all tangled together.

"Shh," Gabriel murmured, not looking up as he worked the belt loose. "You’re the one still restrained, remember?"

The button at Damian’s waistband came next, flicked open with a deftness that was entirely intentional. Gabriel’s knuckles brushed heat and muscle, and the answering pulse through the bond was so sharp it nearly made him smile.

The zipper slid down slowly, agonizingly slow, until the tension in Damian’s stance was a tangible thing, pressing into Gabriel’s palms where they rested at his hips.

Gabriel looked up then, from his position at Damian’s feet, a dangerous little curve to his mouth.

"Still restrained?"

Damian’s jaw was tight, his pupils blown wide, and his voice almost unrecognizable when it came.

"Not for much longer."