by Kiru Taye
On Saturday afternoon, they’d sat on the grass in Hyde Park listening to a music festival. Seun, who’d been one of the performers, had sent them the tickets for the event as a way of apologising for his behaviour. James had forgiven him easily; glad to have his friend back. It was the best afternoon they had. James had spent most of it with his head on Ethan’s chest as they lay on the grass, and then they’d eaten ice cream off each other’s cones, while holding hands.
They’d become almost inseparable, doing everything together. They talked about different subjects, personal stuff as well as current affairs.
He’d spent ten days of bliss, better than he’d imagined when he’d planned the trip. There’d been no shame, no hiding, and no sneaking around.
The man had fulfilled his wishes.
Except two.
Ethan hadn’t declared undying love.
James hadn’t made any pledges either, not brave enough to cope with another amorous rejection.
Secondly, they hadn’t indulged in penetrative sex, although he’d experienced the next best thing on the occasions Ethan had masterfully taken James to ecstasy and beyond.
His mind went back to one of those scenes.
*
James stood naked in the middle of the living room, while Ethan wrapped his body with jute rope in intricate Shibari patterns.
“These bonds are an extension of me,” Ethan said, as he knotted the rope around James’s arms at his back.
Only his upper body was bound, his arms unmoving behind him, but Ethan’s words were true. James felt as if Ethan had his arms around him continuously, everywhere that the ropes touched his skin.
As James knelt on the floor, bound by Ethan’s rope while Ethan sat on the armchair reading a book, a peace settled over James that he’d never experienced before.
Ethan read the words out loud, his voice rumbling and seductive.
James could listen to him all night.
It was just Ethan and him, no one else. The world was far away.
He found his mind uncluttered by all thoughts except being encased in Ethan’s cocoon of protection.
After a while, Ethan got up from the sofa and picked up some items from the box on the table. He tossed a cushion on the floor.
“Tip your head forward and rest it on the cushion,” Ethan said.
James manoeuvred himself, although it was difficult with his hands tied at his back.
Ethan’s hands guided him until he settled his head on the cushion and tipped it to the side so he could watch.
“When I see you covered in my ropes, you please me, firefly.” Ethan drizzled cold lube down James’s crack. “So I’m going to give you that which you crave so much. Can you guess what?”
Something nudged James’s rosette. Was Ethan going to make him come like he did last night?
“What, Sir?” he asked in a croaky voice.
“You’re just going to find out.”
The object stroked his opening again. James’s heart raced as his dick hardened.
The object pushed through the first ring. It seemed too big to be a finger, and didn’t quite feel like a dick. Considering Ethan’s position, it couldn't be the man’s cock, anyway.
Ethan stroked the item back and forth a few times before pushing it all the way in so that it sat in James’s ass.
James moaned out loud as he clenched around the object.
“Relax and enjoy this,” Ethan said.
The item in James’s ass started vibrating, sending intermittent pulsing through him.
“Fuck!” James couldn't help the exclamation that escaped his mouth as heat flushed his skin and sweat dripped down his face.
There was no hiding from the sensations as they took over his body. He jerked and moaned, clenched and writhed. His body burned and trembled.
“Sir,” he cried out, as Ethan took him to the edge and then pulled him back, switching off the vibrations and pulling out the plug.
James took panting breaths as his arousal subsided.
“Ready to go again?” Ethan asked.
“Unh.” James swallowed. “Yes, Sir.”
Ethan inserted the plug and turned it on again. “Remember, you don’t come without permission.”
“Yes, Sir.” James could barely think as the sensations returned.
He fought hard to keep the arousal at bay, but soon it was swarming him, fever in his veins as heat radiated from his skin.
Ethan was too fucking good with the edging, taking him to the thin line of bliss and yanking him back until James started begging.
“Please, Sir. Let me come.” Tears mixed with the sweat dripping onto the cushion.
Ethan wrapped a lubed hand around James’s cock. “Now, firefly.”
Just the slick touch was enough to send James hurtling over the edge as his balls tightened and warm cum splattered onto the carpet.
Ethan pumped him until there was nothing left, his clothed body pressing against James’s back.
It was some time before James realised that Ethan had removed the plug from his ass and was cleaning him with wet wipes. Afterwards, he untied the knots binding James’s body and rubbed his muscles to ease out any cramps.
James was lightheaded and floaty, his body as pliant as cooked noodles, even when he took sips of water that Ethan gave him.
When he could stand, they repeated the routine of the previous nights, showered, and then curled up in Ethan’s bed. The comfort of the man’s body and his exhaustion meant he slept like a baby.
*
A knock to the door of his office drew him out of his memories. He glanced up as Cordelia crossed the threshold.
“This parcel was just delivered.” She passed the brown A4 envelope across and left.
“Thank you,” he said as he pulled out his letter opener from the drawer.
He broke the seal, tossed the contents on the desk and his skin went cold.
Whimpering, he squeezed his eyes shut and shook his head in denial at what he had seen. His earlier day dream about Ethan must still linger in his mind.
He opened his eyes and glanced down. Nothing had changed.
Glossy photographs of him and Ethan in London at different locations lay strewn across the desk—the two of them on the grass in Hyde Park kissing, walking down Oxford Street while holding hands.
The sound of his heartbeat trashed in his ears. Wrapping his arms around his belly, he toppled forward and hit his head onto the desk.
Someone had seen them. Someone knew about him and Ethan.
What did the person want? What was he going to do?
Had his stalker followed him to London?
His heart stuttered and breath left him in a painful rush.
Had Ethan been correct? Was his stalker someone he knew? A friend or member of his family? Could someone in his close circle be wicked and twisted enough to send him cruel messages?
He stared at the photos again. Luckily there was no nasty note attached.
Yet this didn’t bode well.
What other purpose would someone have to send the pictures except to torment him and turn beautiful moments of his life into shameful acts?
The ringing phone jarred him upright.
He scrambled to shove all the photographs back into the envelope and then tossed it in one of his drawers.
It took him a few deep breaths to calm his quivering body. He would rather not answer the phone when terror left his weakened. However, it could be a business call and he couldn’t afford to be unprofessional.
Not recognising the number, he grabbed the phone and answered, “James Coker speaking.”
“Hello, James Coker,” the male caller said in a cold tone.
James recognised the voice. “Jibril, why did you call me?”
The man had never contacted James directly before. James wasn’t in the frame of mind to deal with his scorn.
“Did you get the special delivery I sent you?”
James’s heart froze. Oh, God,
let it not be Jibril that sent the photos.
“What special delivery?” He maintained the facade, while cold fingers travelled down his spine.
“You can’t pretend with me. I know what you are. I’ve known it from the start. Papa knew it too. That was why he rejected you. Now, I’m going to show the whole world how disgusting you are.”
James’s body trembled and his breaths came out harsh and rasping.
What was he going to do? Those photos couldn’t go public. He couldn’t let Henry and his mother bear the shame.
“What do you want?” His voice came out in a whisper as he gasped for air.
“I don’t want anything from you.” The man’s vile laughter echoed.
“Please, Jibril. Don’t do this.” He hated begging the man but had no choice. Sweat broke on his skin and his hands trembled making the phone slippery.
“Now you know how to beg,” the sneer in Jibril’s tone was loud. “The last time you came up to Katsina, you had the guts to insult me.”
James’ mind raced at different directions. The mention of Katsina gave him an idea. “Destroy the photos and I’ll tell Emir Musa to cancel the DNA evaluation.”
His fingers on the free hand dug into his thigh muscles as he prayed Jibril would be appeased by his offer.
“If I show Musa the photos, he will disown you anyway and cancel the paternity test. If you have any decency, save your family from the shame and end it.”
Jibril ugly laughter bounced in James’s head as the line went dead.
Pain ripped through his chest and he clutched it, dropping his phone.
What was he going to do? He had no one to help him, except...
Ethan.
Ethan had told him to call whenever. He was a trouble-shooter whose job entailed sorting out dire problem.
James scrambled to the floor on his hands and knees. When he picked the fallen phone he sat on the floor with his back to the drawers and dialled the Ethan’s number. The call didn’t connect and he got “the number you have dialled is switched off” instead.
“No!” he screamed and tossed his phone at the wall. There was a cracking sound as the gadget clattered to the floor.
Ethan had promised he would be there for James whenever he was needed. Yet when his life was imploding, he couldn’t reach the man.
A knock rattled the door. “James?”
On edge, he jumped and glanced at the exit.
“Are you okay?” Cordelia asked, her brows furrowed.
Ignoring the woman, he grabbed the envelope and shoved it into his satchel before lifting his jacket from behind the armchair. Then he picked up the shattered phone.
“Cancel all my meetings. I’m going out to lunch,” he said and headed out of the office.
He couldn’t contemplate sitting there pretending to work while Jibril had compromising photos of him and was threatening to make them public.
The man’s words echoed in his mind again and again.
“Save your family from the shame and end it.”
Chapter Twenty-Four
Ethan sat in a cab, heading from Murtala Muhammad Airport to his apartment in Victoria Island. He’d travelled to Abuja on Monday which was the day after he’d returned to Nigeria with James.
Unease prickled his scalp and he pulled his phone out of his pocket.
He hadn’t seen the younger man since they’d parted ways at the same terminal four days ago. The same restlessness had plagued him since.
In London, James had indicated he didn’t want to continue their relationship after their trip. Ethan had respected his wishes, although it had hurt.
He hadn’t thought he had to capacity to give himself totally to another person again. Not after Kunle’s tragic death and the breakdown of his marriage to Funke.
But he’d gone and fallen in love with the beautiful and bratty James. The young man had hooked him from the first time they’d met and had reeled him in during their brief affair.
Ethan had thought about James every damned day since. The time they’d spent together. Just ten days spent with the man and he’d taken over Ethan’s life. Now he couldn’t think of a future without James.
Ethan wanted so much more of the man. He’d decided to wait until he’d captured James’s stalker and ended their professional connection before letting the man know his true feelings.
He hadn’t spoken to James, although he’d had daily reports from the close protection officers who were assigned to him.
However, James was afraid of coming out, and Ethan would never force the issue until James was ready.
Ethan wanted them to plan a future together, in whatever form it would take.
The buzzing of his phone made him pull it out of his pocket.
“TJ, how now?”
“Big Easy, I’m fine. But there’s a problem.”
“What is it?”
“Fine Boy is here.”
His heart kicked up a notch. “James?”
After the incident at the bar when he’d first met James, he’d told TJ to be on the lookout and tell him whenever the man showed up at the bar. As his close friend and someone he collaborated with often, TJ was best placed to help.
“Yes. James Coker. He’s here. He’s been here for about an hour. I called you as soon as he arrived, but I presume you were on the flight.”
“Yes, I landed not long ago. Is James drinking?”
He had to ask. It was the middle of Thursday afternoon, a little early for happy hour or weekend partying.
“Yes. But I’ve given him watered down cocktails after the first one.”
“Good. I’m going to head straight to the bar—”
“Hold on,” TJ said as something else distracted him. “I’m getting a proximity alert for the number you told me to look out for. It’s turned on and the person is close by. In the bar.”
“Shit.” Ethan swore. Blood drained from his head.
The number in question was the one that had been used to send James malicious messages. They’d pulled strings to get the details from the phone network and he’d given it to TJ to track as the comms expert. But the phone had been offline for weeks, and there hadn’t been any more messages sent to James.
Suddenly having the phone turned on today and near to James’s location sent a cold shiver down Ethan’s spine. Something bad was about to go down, and he wasn’t going to let anything happen to James.
“I’m about thirty minutes away,” he said into the phone. “Keep eyes on James and make sure he doesn’t leave until I get there. Also, track down the target. We can’t afford to lose them.”
“Got it,” TJ said, before the line went dead.
Ethan told the driver the new address.
He called Dumelo, the bodyguard assigned to James.
The man picked at the first ring. “Yes.”
“Have you got eyeballs on James?”
“Yes. He’s at TJ’s Bar.”
“Give me a rundown of his day.”
“He got to work as usual this morning. He seemed okay until a parcel arrived for him. After that, he locked himself away in the office for an hour. When he came out, he said he was going to get lunch and ended up here.”
“Do you know what was in the parcel?”
“I don’t know.”
“Okay. Stay close to him. I’ll be there soon.”
He cut off the call and urged the taxi driver to go faster. His hands shook as he stuffed the phone into his pocket. It seemed he was enduring the longest period of his life. He was grateful that he was in Lagos and only minutes away rather than in Abuja, where it would have taken hours to get here.
As soon as the cab stopped outside TJ’s, he grabbed his bag and ran to the entrance. Inside, it only took him a few seconds to spot James. The place was almost empty.
James sat in a corner booth. There was a man sitting next to him with an arm on the back of his chair, leaning into James. They looked like they were friends.
The bodyguard
sat two tables away pretending to drink.
Ethan puffed out a relieved breath that James was in one piece. He strode to the bar where TJ was waiting. He handed the overnight bag over and the man stashed it behind the counter.
“Did you identify the target?” Ethan asked.
“That’s him, right there with your boy. I cleared the place out.”
“Are you sure it’s him?”
“Yes. I verified it.”
“Fuck.” Ethan had been right. James’s stalker was someone known to him.
Ethan dialled the number he had stored on his phone.
The next second the man sitting beside James pulled his phone out and looked at it.
“Gotcha.” Ethan stalked towards James and indicated with his hand for the bodyguard to cover the exit.
James looked up.
“Ethan?” His voice sounded slurred.
“James.” Ethan wanted to ask why he was drinking in the middle of the day. But that would have to wait. Something in the parcel he got must have upset him. “Are you going to introduce me to your friend?”
“Oh, yes.” James looked confused, as if his brain was finding it difficult to compute. He waved at the man sitting next to him, who didn’t even look perturbed. “This... is... Damola. Ethan.”
“Nice to meet you,” Damola said, but he didn’t get up or extend his hand. “Excuse us, we were chatting.”
Ethan ignored the man for a minute, focused on the disorientated James.
“I thought you said you gave him non-alcoholic cocktails?” he asked TJ, who stood beside him.
“Yes. There’s something else wrong with him,” TJ said.
Rage bubbled in Ethan’s veins. He yanked Damola up by his shirt collar. “What did you give him?”
“Hey. Get your hands off me,” Damola shouted, fighting back.
Both Ethan and TJ were on him, taking him down and restraining him.
“We’ve got him,” TJ said once the man was under control. “Go and check James.”
Ethan nodded, letting the bodyguard and TJ drag the man to one of the back rooms while he sat on the chair next to James.
“I told you to call me if something happened,” he said.
