Their Bounty (Four Mercenaries 1)

Breathless, he steadied himself and looked to the lake, uncomfortable with how obvious his crush on Drake was. But as embarrassed as it made him, the need to show off won, and he let go of the rough trunk, balancing on the thick branch, though there was one on his chest level he could grab on to if he needed to save himself.

Drake’s hands twitched, as if he were suspecting Clover might kick them. He wasn’t a trusting man. Clover understood, and while their relationship had become much closer since they’d arrived here, Drake still wasn’t vocal about his emotions, always keeping that air of mystery around him. It drove Clover crazy, and annoyingly only made him want to endear himself to Drake more.

“Didn’t you say you rarely had the chance to be out in nature when you were a kid? That’s some amazing balance,” Drake said, keeping still.

Clover’s heart skipped a beat at the compliment and he lowered his body to straddle the branch next to Drake’s hands. He wanted to show off, not fall on his face in front of the guy he longed to impress. “I had this boyfriend who was into parkour, so I learned some too. He dumped me when I got better at it than him.”

Drake’s mouth twitched, but when Clover thought that was all the reaction he was going to get, the handsome face relaxed into a full-on smile, which made it even more appealing than the harsh expression Drake usually sported. “You could be the perfect cat burglar.”

Clover smiled back and leaned down, craving Drake’s attention after being pushed away for so long. That rare smile gave him hope and beckoned him closer as if he were a moth, uncaring that it would get burnt the moment its wings touched the light. “Because I’m so cute and cuddly?”

Tank, Boar, and Pyro were satisfied with Clover’s obedience and sweetness, but Drake was a man whose taste wasn’t so simple. Judgmental, mistrustful, so fast and agile his skill level seemed unattainable, Drake needed to be impressed to give another person the time of day. He’d been through unspeakable horrors yet had managed to elevate himself and become a force to be reckoned with, and that was one of many things Clover admired about him.

Drake snorted, briefly looking away, but Clover noticed the flush on his cheeks. So he wasn’t made of stone after all. “If that’s how you want to frame it, be my guest.”

The cute blush spreading over Drake’s features was a call to action Clover couldn’t resist. It was making his head fill with air and cotton candy. “Wait, watch this.” He grabbed the branch in front of him, made sure it was strong enough by pressing down a couple of times, and climbed on it.

He stilled when it creaked under his weight, but what could possibly happen to him in such brilliant sunlight, with the lake grinning at him with all its shimmering teeth, and Drake waiting for his next move? He didn’t overthink it anymore and tilted back, letting gravity take its course. His lungs expanded as he took a deep gasp, but while the bark might have scraped some skin off his palms, he wasn’t falling, just hanging with his head down, as evidenced by the tips of his hair swiping across Drake’s knuckles.

Success.

With a sense of triumph trickling to his head, along with blood, he looked straight into Drake’s face upside down. “How about this?”

Drake’s nostrils flared, but their eyes remained locked, and Clover found it physically impossible to avert his gaze when, after a couple of breathless seconds, Drake’s hands twitched. He pulled himself up so his face was level with Clover’s. For once, his eyes carried no threat of injury. They were soft. “I could work with that, suspend you upside down,” he said, breathing minty air at Clover’s nose.

A wide grin spread across Clover’s face, even though he was getting dizzy. “Try me,” he teased and attempted to reach Drake’s lips for a kiss, but when he flexed his stomach to lean in, his attention slipped, and so did his legs. He tried to grab something, but it was no use.

His body stiffened when the world rolled around. It took only split seconds, but he did feel strong arms catch him before they both collapsed, Clover’s fall broken by a hard male body.

Drake let out a strangled groan, and his hands fell to the sides. “Goddamnit.”

Clover bit his lip, still shocked by the sudden landing. “Sorry. Tried too hard. You okay?”

Drake’s face was twisted into a scowl when he opened his eyes to look at Clover without a word. He didn’t move, even though since Clover had met him, Drake had always been extremely protective about his personal space and avoided close physical contact like the plague. They’d had oral sex many times since that first time, but he’d never relaxed and let Clover serve him, insistent on always restraining his partner first, as if he didn’t want anyone to have the freedom of touching him.