by Okati, Willa
Ever so slowly, Josh reaches up toward Daniel. The move seems harder than when Daniel was coaxing him into this, but he does take Daniel by the hand and begins to squeeze lightly as Rack starts the machine going again. His palm is warm and dry, his fingers long and nimble, and all in all he has a good hand to hold. Rack flicks a look at them, but then settles down to his work without a single word muttered in their direction.
Apparently it doesn't take as long as Josh was expecting, because he looks surprised when Rack takes the machine away and announces, "All done." He snaps off his gloves and throws them away, then reaches for a hand mirror. "Check yourself out, then, pet. Nice job. What d'you think?"
Josh looks down into the mirror, and slowly, slowly, begins to smile. "Fucking A," he says, surprising Daniel. It's the first time he's heard Josh curse. "Thanks, man. Th...thanks."
"My pleasure," Rack says. There's something new in his voice now, a sort of warmth. Daniel guesses he approves of how Josh took the tattoo like a man. "Now, piercings. Four of them, I think. We want both your nipples pierced, and your earlobes." He glances at Josh, eye to eye. "Titanium hoops through each of them. And if I hear you say one single word about the cost, so help me I'll make you eat one. You've been lookin' out for my boy, and I like to return a kindness if I can."
Josh looks like he does want to argue, but swallows hard and nods. "Do you want me to sit up?"
"If you would, yeah. Ta." Rack readies his needle and cork. "Hang on to Daniel's hand again. That's the way." He pinches Josh's nipple between two fingers. "Here we go..."
Josh doesn't make a move as the needle goes in, but does shudder when it comes back out again and Rack inserts the titanium ring, clicking it shut with a bead. He grips Daniel's hand a little tighter as Rack moves to the other nipple, and this time around his shiver is even more violent.
"You all right?" Rack asks. It's a routine question, but his voice is a little more personalized than usual. Daniel realizes with a slight shock that Rack actually cares, whereas with most customers it's just a courtesy thing and a chance to back out. "Good to do the ears now?"
Josh takes a deep breath, as if to steady himself, and nods. "Whenever you're ready."
"Think that's my line, pet." Rack stands to get a better angle on Josh's ears. He's taller than Rack, but not as tall as Daniel, kind of a nice in-between. Needle and cork are at the ready, and after a quick eyeball of how he has things lined up, Rack is driving the needle in.
Josh moans.
The noise startles both Daniel and, apparently, Rack, who gives Josh a sharp look. "Sure you're all right?"
"Fi...fine." Josh clenches his jaw shut and grips Daniel's hand. Daniel squeezes back, concerned for his friend and totally what-the-fuck? confused about the whole undercurrent that's developing here.
Then Daniel looks down and realizes with a shock that, through the loose khaki pants Josh is wearing, he's hard. Josh moans again, the sound of a man who's being kissed instead of having metal driven through him, and it sends chills down Daniel's spine.
Josh, on the other hand, seems oblivious to his own erection. He reaches up to touch the hoop of metal through his right ear. Rack's there to gently swat his hand away. "Not until you wash those," he orders. "That's a fresh wound, that is."
"Battle scar," Josh whispers.
Rack gives him another dose of the Diamond Eye, but after a moment, nods. "Reckon it is at that. You did well, pet. Any time you want more, just ask Daniel here to give me the word, right, Dan?"
Daniel's having a hard time tearing his eyes away from Josh's fly, but manages to come back with a "Sure. You betcha."
"That's a love." Rack hesitates, then picks up Josh's other hand. His thumb makes a few small circles. "I was telling the truth there, you know. You did do well."
Josh grins shyly. "I bet you tell that to all the customers."
"Only the sexy ones," Rack says straight-faced. Daniel cracks up, and Josh laughs. It's a moment lifted right out of the tattoo parlor back home, except when Josh isn't looking but Daniel is, Rack gives him a slow wink with one eye. Then it's right back to what the fuck?
"Get on your way," Rack says, freeing his hand and giving Josh's thigh a light slap. "Go show that off to some of the lads still hanging about here. Bet they'll be proper appreciative."
Josh turns dark, dark red this time. He mumbles something Daniel can't understand and hops off the table. Still low-pitched, he offers his thanks and then takes off like a bat out of hell, leaving Daniel to stare after him.
"Oi!" Rack complains. "He shorted me the twenty. Dan, make him pay for your coffee from here on out."
"I don't think he meant to," Daniel says slowly. "I think he just realized he had a little... problem."
"Eh, not so little, if you ask me."
Daniel stares at Rack. "You noticed?"
Rack leans back in his chair and shrugs. "Kind of difficult not to. Notice I didn't use the word 'hard', if you please. So the lad gets off on a bit of pain. Not exactly what I expected, but then again, like calls to like. Only makes sense you'd gravitate toward someone with the same tastes."
Daniel isn't sure he likes the tone of Rack's voice. They're back on prickly and it's damned uncomfortable. "Yeah, I guess so." His voice sounds lame to him. He rubs the back of his neck. "You want to... finish up here, and head back to the suite?"
"Yeah, might as well." Rack's eyes are slightly unfocused, as if he's staring off into the distance.
"Gates of Hell," Daniel entices. For some reason, he's anxious to have all of Rack's attention focused on him just then. "My cock, all trussed up for you to do what you want with."
Ah-ha, those words bring Rack back around and he grins at Daniel, his most wicked look of all. "Well, what are you hanging about for, then? Get a move on and let's pack this stuff away. One more day in Dallas, and I mean to go out and taste a bit of the nightlife. Might even dance a few songs away. But that," he says, standing up and twining his arms around Daniel, "is after we take our stroll through Hell. Get me?"
"Oh, I got you." Daniel puts his own arms around Rack's waist and bends his head for a good, raunchy kiss. By the time they're done thrusting tongues into one another's mouths, Josh's isn't the only hard-on that's graced this booth tonight.
"Upstairs," he says with his own attempt at the naughty smile. It must pass muster, because Rack's eyes go dark with lust and he gyrates against Daniel.
"Upstairs," he agrees. Then, with a wink, he adds: "Race you."
Chapter Four
When they make love that night, it's a little... different. Almost angry. Although what they're "fighting" about, Daniel couldn't say. He just knows that from the second they got off the elevator to the moment they entered their suite, the air between he and Rack was charged with something almost electric, like the great outdoors right before a hell of a storm.
Daniel's just locking the door behind them when he's assaulted from behind by Hurricane Rack, who's all over him as if it's been days, weeks, years since they touched and he can't wait another second to get his hands on Daniel's skin. He's got one hand up Daniel's back and another down his pants, groping at his ass, before Daniel's hand has even left the doorknob.
"Hey, tiger, take it easy," he tries to say, worming his way around, but that almost feels like a mistake when Rack seizes his face between two hands and kisses him hard, almost angrily, thrusting his tongue into Daniel's mouth like a little spear.
That gets Daniel's blood hot and racing. He doesn't understand this mood swing on Rack's behalf, but damned if he's not going to take advantage of it. He grabs Rack back, and with a firm ass cheek in either hand pushes them backward in the direction of the bed.
Rack fights back. He has his hand down the front of Daniel's jeans now, grasping at the metal-pierced cock and squeezing it, making it grow into a monster that wants to get free. He laughs into Daniel's mouth, a rough and almost primal sound, like a wild animal claiming its mate.
Oh, so that's how you want to play, is
it? Daniel retaliates, dueling against Rack's tongue with his own. He pushes his hand down the front of Rack's pants, gripping his cock hard and feeling the metal cold in his hand while the rest of Rack is hot and already hard enough to hammer nails. And he knows from nails and hammers.
"Rack," he tries to say between kisses. "Bed. Nice soft bed over there. How about we go and-"
Rack shuts him up with another kiss, savage as before, pawing at Daniel like he's the last chunk of meat at a carnage. He's smaller, but he's a force of nature, and he backs Daniel up against the wall easily, as if he were twice Daniel’s size. "No," he rasps, the cigarette habit coming out in his voice. "Like this. Like the first time. Turn around, you. Want to see that gorgeous ass all spread out just for me."
Daniel finds himself being manhandled until his face is against the wall, his hands flying up to brace against the impact. Rack isn't in any mood to be gentle or to wait, which makes Daniel just about panic. "Lube," he pleads, hoping Rack will at least listen to him on that count. "If you've gotta, I'm here for you, but for God's sake slick yourself up."
He hears Rack spitting on his hand, and guesses that's as good as it's going to get. Then he knows it for sure because Rack is unzipping him and shoving his jeans down to around his knees. His lover's cock, bristling with metal, chafes against the seam of his ass.
"Don't try an' tell me you don't love this," Rack hisses in Daniel's ear. "You fell for me the first time I took you this way, rough and hard and fast, right over the counters you were building with your own two hands. And I'm goin' to remind you about it now."
"Don’t need any reminders," Daniel says as Rack presses against him, his saliva-covered cock pressing against Daniel's unprepared hole. Not like he can't take Rack on and take him in after all this time together, but he likes a little TLC, you know?
"Hell with bein' gentle," Rack growls, and pushes his cock against Daniel's entrance. Daniel feels his muscles twitch and jump, letting Rack in, and immediately stops caring about "careful" and "easy" because fuck, this is good. The rough thrusting, the grunting and the way he clenches his teeth all take him back to that first day in the unfinished tattoo parlor.
He lets out a deep groan as Rack pushes into him time and again, the metal scraping his soft inner tissues until they're flaming sore, but begging for Rack to do it again, again, again. As if he's not satisfied with just plain fucking, Rack takes it one step further -- he snarls and bites at Daniel's shoulder, almost but not quite breaking the skin.
Daniel keens and throws his head back. God almighty, that's hot! "Rack...me," he manages to get out, wondering if he'll be heard or heeded. But no, Rack's reaching around to grab ahold of Daniel's cock, stripping it up and down, ruthless in his urge to get Daniel off as fast as possible.
This time, Daniel yells.
Rack claws down Daniel's back, his fingernails scoring the skin. He lets out a sound that's part cats on a back fence and part junkyard dog, and comes in hot, heavy spurts deep inside Daniel's ass, so deep Daniel can almost taste it on his tongue. He's still reeling from the sensation when Rack does something with his hand that should be illegal and his own orgasm hits him like a fist in the gut, knocking the wind out of his lungs and sending him down to his knees.
Luckily for Rack's cock, he's there to follow Daniel every inch of the way, sliding out and catching Daniel in his arms as he crumbles into a crouch on the floor.
They're still for a minute, breathing heavily and harshly. Finally Daniel turns around, knowing his eyes are blazing, and says, "Jesus fuck, Rack, what the hell was that all about?"
Rack's eyes are a little crazed. He's patting down Daniel's back. "Didn't hurt you, did I? Didn't hurt you..."
"No. I'm okay. But Rack, come on. You were suddenly possessed by an incubus or what?" Daniel tries getting his legs to work. They wobble like jelly, he came so hard, and he's there to tell anyone who asks that the wall is never going to be the same again. Some things just leave a stain that no amount of elbow grease will remove.
"Just... wanted to claim you, is all." Rack's shaking. "Didn't hurt you."
"No. No, see? I'm fine."
"Good," Rack mumbles. He lets go of Daniel, standing up on wobbly legs. His own jeans are down around mid-thigh. He shoves and kicks until they're off completely. He should look ridiculous with a bare ass and a leather vest, but from Daniel's point of view he's fucking edible. Even if he has suddenly gone crazy.
If he had to go, though, Daniel's glad Rack dragged him along for the ride. He still feels like he's made of jelly as he stands up and divests himself of his own jeans. He takes his royal purple wifebeater off as well and throws it in a corner.
Naked and semi-naked, they face each other down.
Rack is the one to give first, rubbing a hand across his face. "Let's go to bed, yeah?" he suggests. "I'm all in."
Daniel gives a weary nod. They make for the queen-sized, overstuffed piece of luxury, neatly made up with clean sheets and turned down at the corners. By some unspoken agreement, Daniel goes to one side and Rack to the other. They crawl underneath the covers and lie there.
Rack sits up, curses, and takes his vest off. It hits the wall when he throws it.
Daniel's not sure what to make of him. He's seen this side of Rack before, the crouching-tiger-hidden-dragon aspect of his personality, but he doesn't know what brought it out.
Well... maybe he knows who.
"Rack," he whispers, turning on his side. "Josh isn't... I don't... I'm yours, okay? You don't have to worry."
Rack lets out a long breath as he lies back down. "I know, pet. I do." He doesn't apologize for taking Daniel like an animal, and frankly, Daniel doesn't want him to. He enjoyed every second of that fuck, and he kind of wishes they could do it all over again.
Maybe they've gotten too cozy lately. Could be the stress of the trip, or the whole honeymoon glow. But there was fire in Rack's cock tonight, and he let Daniel have the full blast of his personality force.
They lie there in silence until Rack reaches up to click the lights off. The night's still young, but Daniel's exhausted all of a sudden. He isn't sure whether to touch Rack or not, and eventually ends up with the compromise of reaching out for the man's tattooed hand with his own.
Rack grips back. He doesn't say anything, and that's fine. Daniel's comforted just by the touch.
It's not until he's almost asleep that he realizes -- Rack didn't say that he was Daniel's. And that thought keeps him awake longer than he'd like, long past the time when Rack's breathing has evened out into light snores.
The tattooed ring on his finger seems to tingle. What this all means, Daniel doesn't know. But he has a feeling that this was just the first wave of the hurricane.
The eye of the storm is still ahead.
Chapter Five
When Daniel wakes up, things are already starting to shake loose. He reaches over for Rack out of sheer habit, and finds only cool sheets. No mouthy, pierced punk to be found in their bed. He panics for a second, then fumbles his way around, grabs his glasses, and shoves them on.
A quick sweep of the room finds Rack sitting in the window seat again. Daniel relaxes, letting out a breath he hadn't been aware he was holding, and leans back against his pillow. God, but Rack is enough to take his breath away. He's dressed in the robe and boxers again, sexy as a fallen angel. Smoke drifts and curls away from a cigarette he holds loosely in his left hand, as if he's forgotten he's holding it.
"Rack," Daniel says quietly. "What are you up to?"
"Mmm? Oh -- just thinkin' is all, pet." Rack lifts the cigarette to his mouth and takes in a drag. A column of ash falls on his thigh, and he wipes it away with a short, annoyed-looking flick. There goes the carpet as well as the wallpaper. Daniel hopes they don't get angry letters from the hotel about the wreck they've made of this admittedly very nice suite.
Daniel leans up on one arm. He wants to go join Rack, but for some reason he's holding back. That troubles him as much as Rack's slightly distant a
ir. Usually Rack's only this absent when he's working on a tattoo, and that's because he has something that's absorbed his whole attention.
Daniel pushes a little. "Thinking about what?"
Another drag. "This and that," Rack says, the smoke escaping his mouth in a white puff of vapor. "That and this."
"Anything I need to be worried about?"
"Dunno." Another puff. "Maybe. Could be nothing."
Daniel's getting worried now. He sits up, sliding his legs over the edge of the bed. "Are you still upset about last night? 'Cause I'm here to tell you that although I may be walking funny for half of the morning, that was one spectacular fuck."
A half-grin lifts the corner of Rack's mouth. "Was good for me too, love."
