CHAPTER 261: CHAPTER 261: TIE

Lucas’s brows lifted, all mock surprise, though the curve of his mouth was pure provocation. "Better than I think? That’s ambitious of you."

Trevor’s laugh was a low, quiet thing, the kind that never reached his eyes. His thumb pressed a little firmer against Lucas’s thigh. "You underestimate how much I enjoy you making a mess of me."

Lucas tilted his head, studying him the way one might examine an intricate puzzle, fingers idly smoothing the open edge of Trevor’s waistcoat as though weighing his next move. Then, patiently, he slipped his hand beneath the loosened fabric, palm flattening over the crisp shirt stretched across Trevor’s chest.

Trevor’s breath caught, and his gaze fixed on Lucas like he was daring him to keep going.

"You’re too easy to unravel," Lucas murmured, his thumb brushing just under the line of Trevor’s tie.

Trevor’s hand tightened on his hip hard enough to draw a soft hiss from him. "Careful," he warned again, but his voice had dropped, husky now, as if every word had to be dragged past the heat coiling low in his chest.

Lucas leaned closer until his lips brushed Trevor’s jaw, just the barest suggestion of a kiss. "I thought we established I don’t like being careful."

Trevor turned his head, so quick and sharp that Lucas barely had time to pull back before his mouth was caught in a kiss that was nothing like the easy, smug banter from moments before. It was rougher, heavier, all heat and possession, the kind of kiss that pinned Lucas to his lap even though he’d put himself there.

When Trevor finally drew back, his lips curved, but the softness was gone. His voice was a quiet growl against Lucas’s skin. "If you want to test me, sweetheart, do it properly."

Lucas’s smile was slow, dangerous, and full of teeth. "Don’t tempt me."

Trevor’s gaze darkened further, his hand sliding from Lucas’s hip to the bare skin of his thigh, fingers settling just under the hem of his shorts. "I already did."

Lucas’s pulse jumped, but his smile didn’t falter. If anything, it sharpened his eyes, catching the dim flicker of the screen as he shifted just enough to test the line of Trevor’s patience.

"Properly, hm?" he murmured, fingers sliding higher, finding the knot of Trevor’s tie.

Trevor’s hand stilled on his thigh, but only for a beat, long enough to acknowledge the defiance, before relaxing again, a silent dare.

Lucas took it.

Slowly, he tugged the silk free, loosening it until it slid open in his hand. His gaze never left Trevor’s face, drinking in the way his composure strained at the edges, the way his chest rose deeper now beneath Lucas’s palm.

"Messy enough for you yet?" Lucas asked, letting the tie fall across Trevor’s shoulder like it belonged there, like he’d claimed it.

Trevor’s answer came in the way his grip tightened again, anchoring Lucas firmly on his lap. His voice, when it finally came, was low and rough. "Keep going."

Lucas’s laugh was soft and taunting, the kind that promised trouble. He popped the top button of Trevor’s shirt, then the next, fingers brushing against warm skin. Each movement was unhurried, sincere in its lack of care.

Trevor’s jaw flexed, his control hanging by a thread. "You really don’t know when to stop."

"I do," Lucas said, leaning in so that his breath warmed Trevor’s ear. "I just don’t want to."

The words landed like a strike, and Trevor’s restraint snapped in the way Lucas had been baiting it to. One sharp pull and Lucas found himself flush against him, Trevor’s mouth on his again, deeper this time, claiming, his tongue tracing Lucas’s mouth like a starved man. The tie Lucas had undone was in Trevor’s fist now, dragged around his wrist like proof of who’d really won the dare.

When they broke apart, breath ragged, Trevor pressed his forehead to Lucas’s temple, voice low and raw. "Congratulations. You’re not watching the rest of that movie."

Lucas’s laugh was breathless, triumphant, and smug. "Finally, a victory worth stealing."

Trevor didn’t waste time pretending anymore. The tie was already in his hand, soft silk sliding with a hiss as he wound it once around Lucas’s wrist, then drew it tight enough to hold without hurting.

Lucas’s breath hitched, not because he hadn’t expected it, but because he had and Trevor following through always burned hotter than the threat.

"You like rearranging things," Trevor said, voice low, steady despite the heat rolling off him. "So let’s rearrange this." He gave the tie a tug, pulling Lucas’s hand to his chest, pinning it there against the thrum of his heartbeat.

Lucas’s pulse answered instantly, quick and sharp beneath Trevor’s grip. His smile curved slow, challenging. "That’s hardly fair. I undo your buttons, and you tie me up?"

"That’s balance," Trevor corrected, his other hand sliding beneath the hem of Lucas’s shirt now, palm spreading warm over his back. "You take, I take. That’s how this works."

Lucas shifted against him, enough to make Trevor’s restraint a fragile, burning thing. "And if I don’t like your terms?"

Trevor leaned up, brushing his mouth along Lucas’s jaw, a kiss that was more possession than tenderness. "Then stop me."

Lucas let his free hand trail down Trevor’s open shirt, fingers pressing into the hard line of his chest, lower still until Trevor’s breath caught on the edge of something far less controlled.

"Mm," Lucas murmured, eyes dark and intent. "I think I’ll keep going."

"Good," Trevor said, his tone breaking into something rougher as he shifted, pulling Lucas closer until there was no space left to steal. The movie on the screen was forgotten, the half-empty fry box abandoned on the table.

His hand pressed harder against the small of Lucas’s back, drawing him down until their mouths were a whisper apart. The silk tie still bound one of Lucas’s wrists to Trevor’s chest.

"You’re enjoying yourself too much," Trevor murmured, breath hot against his lips.

Lucas tilted his head, brushing his mouth slowly against Trevor’s without giving him the satisfaction of a kiss. "I told you... I like your promises better when you keep them."

Trevor’s patience frayed then, his free hand sliding lower, curving over Lucas’s thigh until his thumb traced the edge where shorts had ridden up indecently high. His grip tightened. "You’re playing with fire."

"Then burn," Lucas whispered, and kissed him.

The kiss was sharp, Lucas’s mouth pressing in like he had every right to take what he wanted. Trevor met him with equal heat, deepening it, his hand dragging Lucas fully against him until the thin barrier of clothes felt like mockery.

The tie stretched taut between them as Lucas pulled back just enough to smirk, dark eyes glittering. He twisted his bound wrist, testing the restraint, and Trevor’s answering growl was low, primal.

"You want out?" Trevor asked, his voice already fraying.

Lucas leaned in, lips grazing the shell of his ear. "I want you to try harder."

The words snapped what control Trevor had left. He shifted fast, hauling Lucas tighter into his lap, the chair creaking under the weight. His mouth claimed Lucas’s again, demanding now, his hand sliding up beneath the shirt to map every line of muscle and warmth.

Lucas arched into it, one hand braced against Trevor’s chest, the other still caught in silk, his breathing uneven but his smirk unbroken. "You’re not very good at being subtle," he muttered between kisses.

"Not when it comes to you," Trevor said, each word rough, pressed between their mouths.

Lucas rolled his hips deliberately then, a movement calculated, slow enough to make Trevor’s entire body tense beneath him. His shorts rode higher still, baring the long line of thigh, and Trevor’s grip tightened hard enough to bruise.

"That’s better," Lucas whispered, his voice all smoke and satisfaction, like he’d orchestrated the entire thing.

Trevor’s eyes burned with the kind of focus that made his control dangerous, the restraint stretched to its limit. "You really want me to keep going?"

Lucas licked his lips, deliberately slow, and nodded once. "Show me what you do with your victories."