Lazarus

by Cooper McKenzie

  Quillan took the plates and delivered them to the dining room. When he returned to the kitchen, Laz was standing in the doorway with his hands on his hips.

  “Where is he, Nonna? He’s not at the house, and I know he wouldn’t leave unless dragged.”

  “I’m right here,” Quillan said, patting Laz’s back. “The women came and demanded I come. I didn’t want to leave the house until you got home, but they said if I took too long to come with them, we’d all get spanks so I came. Don’t be mad.”

  Laz turned and pulled Quillan in for a hug. “I’m not mad, cub, just worried. I didn’t want them to scare you away before I could convince you to hang around and be mine.”

  Quillan melted into the hug, taking a deep breath and relaxing fully against his man. Tilting his head back, he looked into Laz’s deep brown eyes and blinked back tears as he whispered, “I didn’t think you wanted me.”

  * * * *

  The whispered confession caught Laz completely off guard. “Not want you? How could you think that, cub?” he asked, keeping his voice low.

  Before the man could answer, Laz bent his knees, wrapped his arms around the smaller man’s thighs, and straightened, lifting the man off the ground. Quillan’s squeak as he wrapped his arms and legs around Laz’s neck and waist brought a smile to his lips. Turning, Laz headed to the television room, which was as far from the kitchen and all of his nosy relatives as he could get them while still being under the same roof.

  Once there, he closed the door, then leaned back against it. “Talk to me, cub. Why do you think I wouldn’t want you?”

  Quillan dropped his head forward so Laz couldn’t see his face. The man began to tremble in his arms, a clear signal he was terrified.

  “Cub, look at me, please,” Laz said as gently as he could.

  Which, for a man who ran a biker bar, probably wasn’t as gentle as Quillan needed. But it was all he could offer at the moment.

  Quillan’s head slowly came up until Laz was looking into those dark purple eyes through a layer of tears.

  “Why do you think I don’t want you?”

  Quillan blinked and a tear rolled out of his left eye and down his cheek. That tear tore a giant hole in the wall around Laz’s heart. “Because you moved me into your house a week ago and don’t touch me. You sleep on the couch while I’m sleeping in your bed, and you’ve kissed me twenty-seven times, but don’t touch me or go any further than that. What am I supposed to think?”

  “Oh, Little boy, I’m sorry. I sleep on the couch because I wanted to give you time to heal. Once we share the bed, there was no way I won’t be doing a hell of a lot more than just kissing you. You were traumatized last week, and I refuse to pressure you into a relationship, even if it’s getting harder and harder to keep my hands to myself.”

  Quillan stared deep into his eyes. Laz held his gaze steady and waited. Finally, his man blinked and breathed, “Oh.”

  “After dinner, you’ll come to Saints with me,” Laz said as the plans he’d made for their evening shifted almost as fast as his cock filled with blood. “While we’re there we can talk, and make some decisions about our future, together. Okay?”

  Quillan studied his entire face this time before nodding and grinning at him. “Okay. Does this mean I can act bratty and flirt now?”

  The shift in emotional energy in the room nearly brought Laz to his knees, but he remained on his feet leaning against the wall. “You can flirt with me, but smile like that at anyone else and you’ll get ten swats. And acting bratty will earn you even more. And don’t think that just because we’re in my place of business I won’t toss you over my shoulder, carry you to my office, and spank you right then and there, either, because I will.”

  This time Quillan looked a little stunned and, from the feel of the cock pressing into his belly, more than a little aroused at Laz’s words.

  “Uh, okay. I think,” he finally said.

  Knowing this would only add fuel to the glowing sexual embers ready to burst into a raging firestorm, Laz leaned in and kissed him.

  Their lips matched like they were meant to be together, and even when Laz tilted his head slightly, it was a perfect match. Licking Quillan’s skin, Laz couldn’t help the growl that came up at the tangy sweet taste of his man’s skin. He teased Quillan’s lips apart, then took his time thoroughly exploring the man’s teeth, lips, gums, every part that he could reach.

  He smiled as Quillan did the same. His cub’s arms and legs wrapped tighter around his body, until the layers of clothing were all that kept them from coming together.

  Laz carefully wrapped one arm around Quillan’s back and the other dropped to massage his beautifully rounded ass cheeks. Quillan’s groan in response had his cock filling further. By the time he broke the kiss and turned his head so Quillan couldn’t start it again, all he could think about was getting his man home to see if sex between them would be as hot as kissing was.

  He jumped and tensed when a heavy hand pounded on the door he leaned against. “Dinner’s on, so stop whatever you might be doing and get your assets out here.”

  Quillan immediate began to squirm in his arms.

  “Relax, cub,” Laz said as he tightened his hold on the smaller man.

  “But your family…they’re waiting. They’ll know what we’re doing in here.” Quillan looked completely freaked.

  Laz lifted the hand on Quillan ass and slapped it down hard one time. “Stop. Yes, they know what we’re doing in here. I can tell you that every one of them have done much worse in this room than what we just did.”

  Quillan froze and stared at him with wide eyes. “You spanked me,” he said, sounding a bit shocked and yet awed.

  “Yes, I did. And as your Daddy, I’ll do it again if I have to. I will never beat you, cub. But on those occasions that you deserve, or have earned it, I will spank you ass until it’s bright red. Then you’ll be sent to a corner to marinate about what you did.”

  Quillan giggled. “Marinate? That’s what you do to meat, not Littles.”

  “Oh, I don’t know about that. You’ll be stewing in your tears with a red and hurting ass. Seems like marinating is the correct word,” Laz said with a grin. “Now, if you think you can behave for the next hour while we’re with family, we can go eat.”

  Quillan’s loudly rumbling stomach answered for him.

  Setting the man down, Laz grabbed his hand and brushed another kiss on his lips before he opened the door. Keeping hold of his hand, he slowly walked his man through the house to the dining room where the rest of the family had already served themselves and were sitting at the table.

  Though there were deep chuckles around the table, a glance showed that the Littles were all staring at their plates with bright red faces. Laz chuckled as he handed Quillan a plate before taking the last one for themselves.

  “No teasing my new nipote,” Nonna stated with a slap of her hand on the table.

  “Yes, Nonna,” was heard from around the table as everyone turned their attention to their plates.

  Quillan leaned into Laz and whispered, “What’s a nipote?”

  “It’s Italian for grandson,” Laz grinned as he whispered back.

  “Oh. Okay. Thanks.”

  Once they’d filled their plates, Laz led Quillan to the last two empty places at the table, right next to Nonna. He nudged his boy into the seat next to his grandmother so she could talk to him without yelling, and then took the other one for himself.

  As he settled in to eat, a sense of peace he’d never felt before settled over Laz. For the first time ever, he was part of a couple partaking of the Santi family tradition of Friday night dinner. And, if their short conversation just moments before was anything to go by, Quillan would be by his side at these weekly meals for a long time to come.

  Chapter Seven

  Quillan wasn’t quite sure what to expect after dinner. He’d felt like a bug under a microscope by the time Laz’s grandparents had finished thoroughly questioning him. He was
somewhat surprised the rest of the family, especially the Littles, didn’t chime in with questions as well, but the rest of the family remained silent. It was as if they found their grandparents’ inquisition entertaining.

  Glancing at the other Littles at the table, he supposed each of them had gone through it when they’d joined the family, so it was just his turn. By the end of dinner, he thought it was sweet for Laz’s grandparents to be so interested in Laz’s new boyfriend.

  What he hadn’t expected was for Laz to be almost rude about leaving the table as soon as they finished dinner. He didn’t even wait around for dessert. Which sucked because Quillan had seen two cheesecakes in the kitchen. He wondered for a second if Nonna would save him a piece, but didn’t know how to ask without sounding whiney and impolite.

  As Laz pulled him from his seat, Nonna touched his arm. She had a twinkle in her eyes and a big smile as she said, “I’ll put a couple of slices of cheesecake in Laz’s fridge. You can have dessert after you finish at the bar tonight.”

  As the others in the family protested, loudly, Quillan leaned down and kissed Nonna’s cheek. The woman who ruled the boisterous family with love and a big wooden spoon impressed the hell out of him.

  “Thank you,” he whispered in her ear.

  With a lighter heart, knowing there would be cheesecake in his future, Quillan followed his man out of the house and across the yard to where Laz had parked his motorcycle. Just watching the man ambling across the yard had Quillan’s cock growing hard with need.

  “Um,” he said, stopping beside the bike, and watched as Laz pulled out a sparkly cobalt-blue helmet from the bag on the back of his motorcycle.

  “Yes?”

  “When do I get to call you Daddy?” He knew the question came out of left field, but with their relationship moving forward at what felt like light-speed, he needed to know.

  “Whenever you want to, cub, but not while we’re at the bar where some of the customers might get the wrong idea or take offense. Our relationship is our own and none of their business. If you don’t ever want to call me Daddy, that will be okay, but I hope one day you’ll feel comfortable enough to do so,” Laz answered seriously as he helped him don the shiny helmet.

  “Okay…Daddy,” Quillan said, then giggled when Laz grinned at him like he had just won the lottery. Or a brand-new, top-of-the-line Harley.

  Laz had taken him on a ride the night before, so Quillan knew how to climb on and then slide forward once Laz was seated. He had loved riding on the back of Laz’s bike, though he wasn’t sure if it was the wind whipping around them, or the fact that he was wrapped around Laz’s body as close as he could get. Either way, he was a happy, happy Little boy riding on the back of his Daddy’s motorcycle.

  It was just a short ride to Saints, but it was enough to cause Quillan problems. The rumble of the engine and holding tight to Laz caused Quillan’s cock to continue stiffening until it was as hard as a steel rod.

  By the time Laz parked in his space near the back door of the restaurant, Quillan was so close to an orgasm he was afraid to move for fear of coming right there and then.

  “Cub? You need to climb off,” Laz said after a half minute when he didn’t move.

  “I can’t,” Quillan whispered, tightening his arms and legs when Laz started to move.

  “Quillan? What’s wrong?” Laz peeled his arms from around his middle. After setting the kickstand so the bike wouldn’t fall over, he slid off then turned to look at him.

  Quillan dropped his hands to rest on his thighs, but otherwise did not move. Closing his eyes, he focused on breathing and trying to shove back the orgasm that was seconds from embarrassing him. He didn’t move even after Laz unbuckled and removed his helmet.

  A large hand slid around his neck and turned his head to the side before tilting it up. Quillan smiled when Laz kissed him gently. “Talk to me, boy,” the big man said against his lips.

  “I can’t move. If I do anything but sit here and breathe for a while, I’ll come in my pants and embarrass us both,” Quillan whispered, squeezing his eyes tight.

  When Laz didn’t respond, he opened one eye and looked at the big man. Laz didn’t look angry at his revelation. In fact, the man was grinning like he’d just won the Super Bowl singlehanded.

  “Is that so?” Laz asked, scanning the area around them before turning his attention back to him.

  Quillan nodded slowly. His orgasm was retreating, but so slowly that he wasn’t sure how he was going to make it through the building to the bathroom where he’d take about thirty seconds to jerk himself to release.

  “Well, I guess we’ll have to do something about this problem you have so you can come inside without jizz-filled pants,” Laz said, reaching for his waistband.

  Quillan’s eyes widened as the big man opened his belt and then slipped the buttons of his jeans through their holes and pulled the front of his jeans apart. “What are you doing?”

  He froze when Laz reached through the opening in the front of his boxers and fished his cock and balls out.

  “I’m solving my boy’s problem,” Laz said as his hand wrapped around Quillan’s cock, causing his orgasm to push forth once more. His voice was so matter of fact it was like he was announcing that the sun was setting or that grass was green. “That’s what Daddies do. We solve problems for our Littles.”

  Quillan could only grunt in response. When Laz began to stroke up and down his shaft putting a slight twist when he reached the head, Quillan’s grunt became a long, drawn-out moan. He wasn’t sure whether he was encouraging the man or wanting him to stop.

  Two more strokes and stopping was no longer an option. “Daddy,” Quillan moaned as he grabbed the bike seat just behind his hips to keep from floating away. On Laz’s next slide up and down his length, he began thrusting his hips, fucking Laz’s hand.

  “Come for Daddy, cub.” Laz’s voice was deep as he issued the order.

  “Daaaddyyyyyyyy,” Quillan cried through a jaw clamped tight.

  He jolted in his seat when a warm wetness encompassed the head and top two inches of his cock. Forcing his eyes open, Quillan looked down, stunned to see that Laz was sucking on his cock. That visual, combined with the feel of Laz’s mouth sucking more and more of his cock into his mouth, sent him over the edge. His balls squeezed painfully tight, and his cock throbbed in time with his heart, spewing his seed out the tip.

  His hips continued thrusting up, forcing more and more of his length into Laz’s mouth. His Daddy didn’t seem to mind as he continued to suck and swallow down everything Quillan gave him. Once his orgasm subsided, Laz eased back and just held his cock in his mouth, gently swabbing his tongue around the softening flesh as he took his time easing off.

  Laz finally released his cock and straightened, licking his lips and looking like the cat who’d found the keys to the dairy. By the time Quillan was able to think clearly again, Laz had his cock and balls tucked away and his jeans buttoned up.

  “Feel better?” Laz asked as he helped Quillan climb off the bike.

  Quillan locked his legs and worked on maintaining his balance before he nodded his head as he whispered, “I think so.”

  Before he could wobble too far off center, Laz stepped up and wrapped him in a hug. Quillan buried his head in Daddy’s chest and pulled in a slow, deep breath. Laz smelled so good, he wished they could just stand there and snuggle for the rest of the night.

  Too bad Laz needed to get back to work for the next few hours. Quillan wasn’t sure what he was supposed to do, but he was certain he could find some way to help out. He had, after all, worked in restaurants for the last ten years.

  “Come on, cub. Let’s go see what kind of trouble has come up since we’ve been at dinner.”

  Laz kissed the side of his head before slowly releasing him and stepping back. After making sure he was steady on his feet, Laz took his hand in his and led the way through the back door into the bustling kitchen.

  * * * *

  Laz felt ba
d when he checked the time and found nearly four hours had passed since they’d arrived at Saints. He’d spent the entire time putting out one fire after another, and somewhere along the way had lost Quillan. Looking around the dining room, he didn’t see him anywhere in the room. Victor was sitting at the end of the bar since Dori was doing him a favor by filling in for the new guy who’d had to rush to the hospital to be with his wife who was delivering their first child.

  Sidling up to his cousin, he asked, “Have you seen Quillan lately?”

  Victor looked around, then turned to face him and shook his head. “Haven’t seen him in a while. I think he said something about checking out the kitchen.”

  Laz nodded. He had been so busy dealing with customers and phone calls about a kitchen crisis at Wildfire that he hadn’t walked through the kitchen all evening.

  With his fingers crossed, Laz pushed through the Enter door and was shocked that the normal yelling and chaos that reigned when Tito worked was absent. Looking around, he frowned. Everyone was busy and yet there was a calmness in the air that he’d never felt in the kitchen before.

  “Quillan? Are you in here?” He took two steps forward.

  “I’m here,” Quillan called as he waved from where he stood in front of the giant cookstove with several other of the kitchen help. Fridays were always crazy busy, and it took a full kitchen to keep everyone fed.

  As he rounded the prep counter, the people he passed nodded and smiled.

  Sam, the man who’d been washing dishes for as long as Laz had been around, said, “You need to hire him ASAP.”

  Laz frowned as he continued to where Quillan was doing something on the stove. When he finished and scooped it onto a large platter, the men and one woman watching him applauded. One took the platter, and they all returned to their duties while Quillan turned to him.

  “Hi,” he said with the happiest grin Laz had ever seen on his man’s face. “You have an amazing kitchen crew.”

  “Whatcha doing, cub?” Laz asked as he looked around, stunned that Tito wasn’t raising three kinds of holy hell that Quillan had invaded his kitchen.