Play Dirty (Wages of Sin #2) - Neve Wilder Page 0,67

eyes closed, and a half foot of white bubbles lapping the tub’s edge.

“Who the fuck buys bubble bath for a safe house?” he wondered aloud, eyeing the Mr. Bubble on the lip of the tub.

Az cracked one eye. “Someone truly depraved, no doubt. Come in with me. It’s very nice. Smells like bubblegum.”

Madigan barked out a laugh. “Like hell.”

This time, Az opened both eyes, pinning Madigan with a flat, unwavering stare. It was a stare that would’ve made someone shrink back, walk faster, look for a safe place to duck into. It was the abyssal stare of a killer, and yet, the only thing Madigan found it to be was compelling. Arousing. Beguiling.

He reached over his shoulder and pulled his tee off before the conscious thought registered that he was doing so, and it was while he was shucking his pants under that same piercing stare that Madigan realized the doctor had been right on all counts; he was in love with Azrael, and that seemed to be the case whether Madigan trusted him or not. Though that answer, too, seemed already lodged deep inside him. Small, but quiet and sure.

“You know I would never do anything to hurt you, hurt us.” Long ago words needled over his skin even now. Those words had been a lie.

The difference was that Azrael had never made such bold statements, never demanded his trust.

Madigan inhaled a quiet breath and stepped toward the bathtub.

19

Azrael

For a split second, Az thought Madi might tell him to move so he could slide in behind him, but after a moment's hesitation, he stepped into the oval-shaped tub and sat, moving until he was flush against Az, leaning back tentatively, shoulders up around his ears.

Az chuckled. “At ease, motek. I simply want your company. I’m not waiting here with a weapon under the bubbles.” Madi relaxed visibly, resting his head against Az’s shoulder. “That’s better.”

Az let his hands roam along Madi’s chest and torso. It seemed the best way to appreciate Madi’s form: slick, soapy fingers playing at his nipples, slipping along the ridges of his abdomen, threading through the hair just beneath his navel, stopping just short of his cock before slowly traveling upward again. Madi gave a sigh that sounded almost content.

Az nuzzled behind his ear and along the curve of his throat, enjoying the salty tang of Madi’s skin on his lips. The longer Az caressed him, the more tranquil Madi seemed to grow, his chest rising and falling beneath Az’s hands. “Why didn’t you let me answer the question?” he finally asked.

“What?” Madi asked, voice husky.

“Earlier. Why didn’t you let me answer the question the therapist asked? What I admired about you? Did you think I’d have nothing to say?”

Madi hesitated. “I don’t know. Maybe. Maybe I don’t want to know. Maybe once it’s out there, there’s no taking it back.”

Az threaded wet fingers through Madi’s hair, murmuring, “And if I don’t want to take it back?”

Madi took a deep breath, shaking his head. “What is there for men like us? Just this. Fighting. Fucking. Killing. Mistrust. Misunderstandings.”

“Is that all this is to you?” Az asked, knowing in his heart that wasn’t how Madi truly saw them, even if it would make things easier for the both of them if he did.

Madi was quiet, but his hand caught Az’s wrist, sliding to tangle their fingers together. This gesture spoke the words it seemed Madi could not, causing a warmth to spread through Az that rivaled the bath water.

Az spoke before he could stop himself. “The first thing I admired about you was your beauty. You were a sight for sore eyes that night in the bar, and I was shocked you wanted me.” This time, it was Madi who turned his head, nosing under Az’s chin in a barely-there touch.

“When I realized why you were there after a bit of shameless snooping, I dismantled your weapon, not because you were the competition, but because I realized after the night we spent together, the only way I’d ever see you again was if I did something to make you angry enough to want to get even.” Madi didn’t answer but squeezed Az’s hand. Az could feel the uptick in his breaths, which told him Madi was listening. “I admire your skill with a weapon, motek, your precision. The way you kill is art. Truly. But you fucked like you killed…from a safe distance, where nobody can harm you. I needed you closer to me. At the