It was fast and dirty, but he screamed out and painted the wall, his quivering hole sucking an orgasm out of me. I roared as I came, and something in my chest heated in an unexpected way. I hadn’t even realized I’d closed my eyes until I opened them to see Basil’s black magic swirling around us.
My chest tightened even as something inside of me started melting. I looked down at the little witch, his magic like a fresh breeze surrounding me, and pieces of the wall I kept around my heart broke off, making me gasp out loud.
I could feel him there in my chest. I. Could. Feel. Him. And every-fuckin-thing he felt was floating through my body.
This man had helped keep me safe for months, and here I was treating him like he was nothing. Like he meant nothing to me.
But that wasn’t fuckin’ true, was it?
He’d gotten under my skin a long time ago, and somehow burrowed even further in.
Maybe he was a witch, yeah, but… he was more than that, too, and I was a freakin’ idiot for not seeing it sooner.
I could feel him. I could feel everything inside of him, and he was so much fuckin’ more than I’d ever imagined. Not only that, but I could feel his soul. And it was beautiful, much like the man himself. The hardened exterior he showed the world was nothing like his interior. His soul was kind and generous and selfless, and it was reaching for me as if I was a long-lost friend.
My chest tightened further, and I slid my hand from his hip up to his chest so I could hold him tight to me as this myriad of emotions swirled inside me.
Basil was breathing hard, forehead resting on his forearm against the brick, his other hand still holding onto mine. I rested my forehead against the back of his head, holding him as tight as I dared, trying to catch my breath and get my thoughts and feelings in order.
We stayed there for a few minutes until his magic pulled back inside him, and I pulled my cock from his ass. I kept my arm around him and our hands laced because I still needed a minute.
But then suddenly he pushed away from me, dropping our combined hands and pulling up his pants in angry movements. As he tucked himself away, I did the same before he faced me.
When his sorrow-filled eyes met mine, when I saw tears beginning to form, when I saw one fall from his eye, my heart clogged up my throat.
“Are you happy now, Hiro?” Basil asked angrily as he straightened his shirt and fixed the weapons on his pants.
Another tear slid down his cheek, and he angrily wiped it away. Seeing the true pain on his face made my heart pound and no words came out. What had I done to him?
“You proved your point, okay? I know you hate me, I know you don’t want me, I know you don’t even fucking like me. But did you have to…” He seemed to choke on his words for a moment before he found them again. “Did you want to show me you could do the very thing you’ve been accusing me of? Did you have to… did you have to break my fucking heart so thoroughly? You kissed me, and I thought it meant… but it wasn’t…” His voice cracked and another tear fell down his cheek, then he pushed me again, making me stumble back a few steps. “Congratulations, Hiro Grimsby, you got what you wanted; you’ve figured out how to break a fucking witch.”
Before I could respond, he used his shadow magic to seemingly melt into the wall and disappear.
And all I could do was stare at the spot he disappeared from and realize he was right. I’d been playing with his emotions since the day we met.
He wasn’t the asshole, he never had been; I was. And I had no idea how to fix it.
Chapter Eleven
Basil
Tears kept falling as Blaze flew us back home. Sorrow and despair were gripping me hard.
When he’d kissed me, I’d had hope. I thought he was finally going to accept what he was to me. My heart had fluttered, and felt light for the first time in years. But then I realized he wasn’t kissing me, he was fucking punishing me. He didn’t care about me; he wanted to show me that I meant nothing to him. He wanted to use me.
And I’d let him.
Some sick part of me had wanted it even though I knew it would break me.
I’d known he was going to rip my heart out and stomp all over it, but I hadn’t known just how bad it would be.
Basil, where are you? What the fuck’s wrong? my little brother asked through our link.
I’m fine. Be home in a minute, I managed to send telepathically.
Like hell you are, Thayer said. What happened, Bas?
I shook my head even though they couldn’t see it. Nothing. Absolutely nothing.
Bas… Jorah sounded sad. Talk to us.
I… I can’t. Not right now. Not yet.
They didn’t say anything back, but I could feel their disappointment, concern, and resignation. I could also feel their love for me, but that wasn’t the type of love I was wishing for.
Since we weren’t far from home, it only took a few more minutes for Blaze to land on the overlook near my house. As soon as his feet hit the ground, I slid off him. He transformed into his bearded dragon form, I picked him up, and I rushed to my house.
I should’ve expected it, but it still surprised me when I found Jorah inside my doorway. Blaze hopped out of my arms just in time for Jorah to pull me into a tight hug. As soon as his arms were around me, a sob wracked my body, and I clung to my little brother and cried.
I cried so hard and so long, no more tears came out. My eyes actually hurt, but not as badly as my heart.
Jorah pulled me into my bedroom, laid me on the bed, and came in with me to hold me through my silent tears. He didn’t ask what was wrong even though I knew I’d have to tell him. He just held on tight and let me know he was here for me. Not only did he say the words, but I could feel them through the link we shared with Thayer. Thayer was there with us in spirit, but Jorah asked him to stay away, which was fine by me because I didn’t want another person watching me break apart.
After who knew how long, I whispered, “I found my viramore, and he… he doesn’t want me.”
“Oh, Basil… that’s…” Jor trailed off, unsure of what to say. Maybe because there really were no words to express how horrid that was.
I cried again and again until I eventually cried myself to sleep.
Ringing woke me, and I was confused for a few seconds until I realized it was Jorah’s phone. I was in my bed on my stomach, and Jorah was snoring beside me, sprawled out on the other side of my bed. My heart hurt, but I tried to ignore it as I pushed Jorah and said, “Wake up. Your phone’s ringing.”
He groaned and reached blindly for it, holding it up to his ear. “Yo?” After a pause he said, “He’s right here,” then held the phone out to me. “For you. Dad.” As I took the phone from him, he fell back asleep. I’d had my phone on silent, so I guess Ailin called my brother since he lived right next door.
“‘Lo?”
“Bas, there’s a guy here banging on our fucking wards, saying he needs to talk to you. Said he’s been calling and texting and that you won’t answer.” Ailin sounded irritated.
I sat up in the bed. “There is? Who is it?”
“Is that Basil?” I heard a voice call in the background, and my heart stopped. “Tell him I need to talk to him. It’s important.”