CHAPTER 96: A QUITE KIND OF LOVE

Lucien was stretched out beneath Silas’s hands, melting under the massage. The alpha really was unfairly good at pampering his partner.

His flu had already eased up thanks to the eastern medicine Silas forced into him earlier... bitter as hell, but undeniably effective.

"Don’t go to the dangerous zone..." Lucien muttered when those hands started drifting lower toward his ass.

"What? You don’t want that part to be massaged?" Silas teased, already knowing the answer. "I can even make it tighter."

"Perverted bastard. I’m tired, okay? Haven’t we had enough sex? You’re still not satisfied?"

"Hm... try standing where I’m standing. Your naked body right in front of me, within reach, begging to be touched in dangerous ways. Wouldn’t you get horny too?" Silas asked, dragging his hands back up to Lucien’s neck.

Lucien sighed in relief. No choker today, but the area was still tense.

"Nope. I’d be fine." He closed his eyes as the soreness melted away under those rough palms. "Ah... I finally feel like myself again."

Silas chuckled. "Then let’s test that. Try massaging my dangerous spot."

"Hm... I do love your abs and your tan skin." Lucien turned his head and smirked. "Fine. Let’s switch."

"Alright. Let’s see how long you last." Silas grinned as Lucien crawled off the mat.

The alpha peeled off his shirt, revealing the firm six-pack the omega worshiped.

Silas lay on his back, and Lucien slowly straddled him.

"You sure about this position?" Silas asked, one brow lifting.

"What? You said to put myself in your shoes. I’m doing exactly that."

Lucien grabbed the lotion and squeezed a generous amount into his palm. It dripped onto Silas’s stomach, making him flinch at the cold.

"Damn, that’s firm," Lucien muttered, biting his lower lip as he smoothed his hands across the defined muscles.

The lotion made Silas’s tan skin gleam, and the omega’s fingers traced every ridge with hungry appreciation.

"Yummy."

A laugh burst out of Silas. "See? You can’t even pretend you’re not a pervert." His hands slid to Lucien’s waist.

"Not my fault." Lucien shrugged. "And I still don’t want to have sex with you, not even hard, baby. I’m just enjoying the view," he said with a smug tone.

He then moved higher, squeezing the alpha’s chest, his hand slipping because of the oil.

Silas watched him with darkening eyes, his arousal unmistakable. Lucien ignored it and kept admiring.

"Hmm... your tits are bigger than mine. I wonder if they’re as sensitive too." He twisted a nipple, and Silas jolted.

"That’s enough. Since you’re not planning to have sex with me anyway," Silas groaned, grabbing Lucien’s hand and trying to sit up.

"See? You hate the idea of being a bottom. Even when I sacrifice everything." Lucien yanked his hand back and crossed his arms.

"It’s... complicated." Silas exhaled, then added, "Nothing wrong with being a bottom anyway. Don’t you like it?"

He lifted Lucien’s hand and kissed his palm. "I’m just glad I get to touch you and feel you inside..."

Lucien snorted. "That’s so cheesy. Stupid alpha."

"But you like it, right?" Silas asked with that smug, irritating smile.

Lucien looked away, refusing to answer, which only encouraged Silas to pull him in and kiss him softly.

His lips moved slowly, savoring the sweetness of Lucien’s mouth, licking the faint nectar-taste of his saliva.

The omega wrapped his arms around his neck, letting himself melt into the unhurried, almost innocent kiss.

He hadn’t expected to enjoy something so vanilla.

When they finally parted, Lucien giggled. "See? Not everything has to be about sex. I need rest too."

"I know... but I kind of feel like the victim here," Silas said as he lay back down, pulling Lucien onto his chest.

"You like being with me because I’m easy to handle, don’t you?"

"Easy to handle? More like you still have a functioning brain. Adrian only wants sex, and Edmund... ugh. I hate that guy."

Silas laughed and rubbed Lucien’s back. They stayed like that, quiet, warm, the afternoon sun glowing against their skin.

***

A couple of hours later, Silas asked Lucien to follow him to his private library. The place was huge, lined with shelves on two floors connected by a spiraling staircase.

The second floor opened into a cozy rest area by a wide window, with a soft couch that could unfold into a bed.

"Go lie down," Silas said. "I’ll find a good book."

Lucien walked over and sat on the couch. "You’re going to read it to me?"

"Yeah. I’ll pick a short one so your short attention span can actually get the message." Silas didn’t even look up while scanning the shelves.

"What? I’m not Adrian." Lucien frowned. "I review piles of documents every day. Don’t underestimate me."

"It’s not that. In the past, you fell asleep before the story even reached the halfway point. Sometimes I just want a reading buddy who’ll actually finish the book so we can talk about it." He finally pulled out a red book and came to sit beside him.

"This one’s about moon sisters," Silas began, opening the first page. "Long ago, three sisters lived in the sky, lighting the earth with their beautiful glow..."

He kept reading, voice deep and steady, but Lucien wasn’t paying attention to the story at all. He was staring at Silas’s face, marveling at how much he’d changed.

How did that clingy, cute kid who followed him everywhere turn into this handsome beast?

Back then, Lucien used to read stories to the Twinster because their teacher insisted it would help them process words faster.

As their self-appointed older brother, he did it happily; fairy tales, legends, anything. Those memories still glittered in his mind like a dream. And then everything had shattered in a single day.

The guilt crept back in, squeezing his chest. If he had searched harder... if he hadn’t given up...

"Silas," Lucien suddenly said.

"Yeah?" Silas paused and looked at him. "You weren’t listening, were you?"

Lucien shook his head but leaned over to hug him. "What happened to you after I left? How did you become assassins?"

Silas stilled. His fingers tightened around the book, knuckles paling.

"Let’s just say someone saved us... and trained us into what we are."

Lucien wanted to tell him, ’You should’ve looked for me. You should’ve told me everything when we met again.’ But nothing came out.

"I’m sorry," he whispered instead. "I wish things ended differently."

Silas chuckled softly. "If they had, we wouldn’t be here with you. We wouldn’t be strong enough to protect you. And we would’ve stayed stuck as just ’brothers’." His voice was gentle.

"Everything happened for a reason."

"But it didn’t have to be something that hurt you both."

"You’re hurting too, Lucien. So stop blaming yourself." Silas brushed his cheek against Lucien’s, warm and grounding.

"To me, it’s enough that you grew up into that fierce Don who doesn’t care what an omega is supposed to be."

He hesitated, then breathed out, "From the moment I first saw you until now, you’ve always shone. No matter if you’re omega, alpha, or beta, nothing dims you."

His hazel eyes were soft when he looked at him. "You were born at the right time, in the right place, with the right status. You were born to light up our lives. So... Thank you for existing."

Something warm bloomed in Lucien’s chest, unfamiliar and difficult to process. No one had ever said anything like that to him.

People had always treated him like an irritant, a burden. He never realized his kindness back then had saved two boys and in a weird way, it also saved him.

He hugged Silas tighter. "That’s so cheesy."

Silas laughed. "You’re just embarrassed."

"Shut up."

They both burst into quiet laughter and stayed close, savoring the peaceful evening together.