The bandage was a sickening reminder that Lindsay had put Noah through hell. “I’m sorry. I never wanted you to go through any of that. I know—” He swallowed hard, coming close so he could rest his hand on Noah’s chest, below the bandage. “I know what it’s like, and I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be.” Noah cupped Lindsay’s face in his hands and pressed his lips to Lindsay’s. “Now that it’s over... At least we understand each other a little better, right? It can make things easier for you, if I felt it too.”

“I would rather have had to talk about it.” And Lindsay hated talking about it. He understood what Noah was saying, though, and that Noah forgave him. “But thank you.”

Lindsay leaned up on his toes and kissed Noah back, trying to show Noah how he felt—sorry, thankful, relieved, and more emotions he could hardly name.

“I told you it would be okay.” Noah pulled Lindsay in and stroked his hair, nuzzling against his cheek the way Lindsay often did to him. “It will be. You didn’t do it to me, they did.”

“Never again,” Lindsay promised. He turned his head and caught Noah’s lips in another kiss, slower this time. Noah was his, and he wouldn’t let anyone hurt him, not if there was anything he could do to stop it.

“I’ll do it if I have to.” Noah wound his fingers in Lindsay’s hair to tilt his head back a little, trailing kisses down his throat, the touch of his lips like fire on Lindsay’s skin. “Especially if I get to come home to you.”

“You can have that for as long as you want it.” Lindsay found the edge of Noah’s shirt with one hand and dragged it up to touch bare skin, hot and alive under his fingers. “You don’t have to... Not for that.”

“I should put the kettle on if you want some tea.” Noah stopped kissing Lindsay’s neck and pulled back to look at him. “Did you still want tea?” There was a little grin lurking around the corners of his mouth, but he did a decent job of feigning serious interest in the issue.

Lindsay couldn’t resist kissing that grin, letting the softness of Noah’s lips distract him from the urge to go find Dane that was burning in his gut. Dane deserved some time to himself, to cope with what had happened. He would come back when he was ready, and Lindsay would be here waiting for him.

He turned away and headed for the stairs, calling over his shoulder, “Tea, no. But I can think of some other things I might want...”

Noah laughed at him and followed, catching up on the stairs and giving him a swat on the backside. “I can’t wait to find out.” The next time, it wasn’t so much a swat as a grope.

“If I fall down the stairs, I’m making you carry me to bed,” Lindsay warned as he skipped ahead a few steps.

“That’d be embarrassing.” Noah managed to keep his hands to himself the rest of the way up the stairs, but not a moment longer. He caught Lindsay around the waist and pulled him back to kiss his neck.

“All that work getting in and out of military facilities and what trips you up is being too cute to resist.”

It wasn’t the compliments or the kisses that had Lindsay turning in Noah’s arms and kissing him fiercely, it was the reminder—again—of what Noah had done for him. He backed Noah up against the wall, hands on Noah’s hips skimming up under his shirt and in to find the fly of his jeans.

Noah yielded to him with a surprised little noise, then he was kissing Lindsay back just as fiercely.

The button yielded as easily as Noah had, and the zipper came down with a whine that seemed loud in the empty hallway. Lindsay slipped his hand inside and, fuck, Noah was hot. Hardening in his palm, and the way Noah sounded made Lindsay want to touch him more.

Noah’s head hit the wall behind him with a dull thud and he shifted to keep his balance. His first attempt at talking ended up in more kisses. The second time, he managed: “Tell me what you want.”

It took Lindsay a moment to realize Noah actually expected a response. Wasn’t it obvious what he wanted? Noah. He wanted Noah. The memory of how Noah had looked and felt when they’d had sex before washed Lindsay’s mind blank, and he had to start all over again with the realization that Noah expected him to answer.

“You.”

“Oh, okay.” Noah nodded, and grabbed the front of Lindsay’s shirt to pull him in for another kiss.

“You can have that,” he said between kisses.

Good. Very good. Lindsay remembered to start stroking again, bracing himself with his other palm flat against the wall behind Noah so he could lean up to keep kissing him.

“Oh, fuck.” Noah was quite clear about that. He tangled one hand in Lindsay’s hair and starting working Lindsay’s pants open with the other. Lindsay’s touch was a distraction from his task, the way his hips rocked into each stroke and the way he shivered every time.

Lindsay could help, though. He stopped kissing Noah and stood flat-footed, stripping open his jeans.

“Touch me.”

Noah said something, but Lindsay couldn’t make it out; it could have been yes, please. He pressed his hand flat against Lindsay’s belly and down. His palm sliding over the head of Lindsay’s cock was incredibly hot and Lindsay arched into it.

“Like that. Yes.” Lindsay couldn’t manage more than a word or two at a time. All he wanted was to keep touching, keep being touched, don’t stop.

“What the hell are you two doing?” The furious whisper came from down the hall, along with an angry rustle.

Ylli. Lindsay turned his head to see the muddy brown wings and angry glare. “What does it look like?”

“Well, I know...” Ylli began. “Other people live here too, who don’t want to see that. Like her.” He pointed back at the room he’d just left.

Noah didn’t seem perturbed; he was busy kissing and licking and nipping Lindsay’s neck.

“Her door’s closed,” Lindsay pointed out mildly. He nudged Noah away from the wall, though, and Noah backed up willingly. The door to the room they shared was only a few steps away. No more interruptions in there.

“Yes, but... Oh, forget it. You’d think the animals in the house would be the problem.” Ylli turned away with a flick of his wings and disappeared into the room he shared with Kristan.

Their room was as they had left it, clean and almost bare. The bed was made and the candles still lined the few flat surfaces available. As the door closed, some of the candles by the bed lit up, blowing little fire bubbles at first.

“Oops.” Noah kissed Lindsay and pulled him over to the bed at the same time. The candles settled down and behaved after that little hiccup, but it made Lindsay laugh, seeing how Noah felt coming through his magic.

As soon as Noah’s back hit the bed, Lindsay climbed over him, pushing Noah’s shirt up ahead of him so he could lick and kiss and nibble all that warm skin. He shifted his grip on Noah’s cock too, and kept stroking.

“Clothes off.” Noah arched as he peeled his shirt off. “Total waste of closing the door if you leave them on.” He threw his shirt into the shadows and started to get Lindsay’s undone.

“I thought closing the door was so Ylli wouldn’t come yell at us again.” Lindsay sat up, though, and helped Noah get him undressed. Shirt, and then he stood to kick off his shoes and slither out of his jeans and briefs. He tugged Noah’s jeans down past his hips. “Yours too.”

But, oh, that was too pretty to resist. He leaned over, distracted by the sight of Noah’s cock arcing up from his body, and licked it from base to tip.

“Lin...” Noah stopped pushing his jeans off and slumped on the bed, motionless other than the shivers that ran through him. So sweet. Lindsay mouthed at his bare balls and up the shaft of his cock, licking and nuzzling.

Noah tasted good, the heat of his skin almost overpowering anything else, and Lindsay moaned as he finally sucked him in.