Never a Road Without a Turning (26 page)

The masters were always circumspect in company. Pip had never once seen them exchange a touch that would betray them. But if you knew what to look for, the depth of their connection and familiarity could be seen in the way they moved around one another or were seemingly able to convey worlds of meaning with only an exchange of glances or a few words.

The harsh lines around Ash’s mouth eased a little, and he accepted the offer of a comfortable chair with more warmth than he had earlier at breakfast. When they were all seated by the fire, Pip and Ash on an elegantly upholstered but sturdy settee and the two masters in matching winged leather armchairs, Master Carey was the first to break the silence.

“Now that you seem to have recovered somewhat from your journey and we have seen you fed, perhaps we might learn the reason you braved the roads to pay us such an unexpected call, Major.”

Pip eyed the tray of crystal decanters on the small table by the windows longingly, wishing he’d had a tipple or three before this particular conversation. But when Ash answered without a moment’s pause, his voice calm and assured, Pip felt some of his own tension ease and his admiration for Ash increase.

“As I said last night, I wished to speak to Phillip. There was a…
misunderstanding
, and I reacted hastily. I should have given him the opportunity to explain himself before I terminated his employment with me. I felt, given the abrupt manner of our parting, that I would do better to discuss the matter in person rather than merely sending a letter.”

Pip hid a smile and tried to keep his expression blank.

“Surely, after a fortnight had already passed, one more day to send word ahead so we might prepare for your arrival would not have made that much difference.” Master Carey’s words and expression betrayed nothing beyond mild curiosity, but even Pip could see the devilish twinkle in the man’s eyes. Carey was enjoying himself immensely, baiting Ash.

“It is a matter of honor to me, Mr. Carey, that when I am proved to be in the wrong, I waste no time in righting it. I intended to merely speak to Phillip and then find lodgings in town. You were both most gracious to offer your hospitality, but I never dreamed of imposing on it,” Ash replied swiftly and smoothly, but Pip could see a tiny bit of color in Ash’s cheeks.

Carey waved a dismissive hand, clearly done toying with the man. “That is of no matter. We are most gratified to be given the pleasure of your acquaintance, and we would not dream of interfering in your private matters. I only ask for Pip’s sake. He is well-loved here, and I know whatever transpired between you was the cause of great distress to him.”

Now they were finally getting to the heart of the matter, without so much of that mincing about with words. Pip was warmed by Master Carey’s concern for him, even though he wished again for a little more time with Ash before they had to suffer this. When Pip looked to Ash, he could see that some of the man’s composure had cracked around the edges. He was looking only at Pip as he answered.

“I know that now, Mr. Carey. I will do whatever I must to make it up to him, if I can… and if he will allow it.”

Pip swallowed at the tightness in his throat. He wanted to fling himself at Ash and promise to let him do whatever he wanted, but more than decorum held him still. He didn’t know yet what Ash was offering nor did the current circumstances make him feel any better about what he had to offer in return.

For only the second time in the months Pip had known him, Pip was witnessing Ash in the company of his equals, and the experience was proving as disheartening as the first time with the doctor.

Silence fell on the company until Carruthers chose to speak, cutting off whatever Mr. Carey had drawn breath to say. “I believe these men have more to discuss before we badger them further, William. We should let them to it. We have business matters we should attend to, at any rate.”

Carey let out a sound Pip had never heard from the man before, half groan, half whine, like a child who’d been denied his favorite toy and forced to go to lessons instead. But he stood up and followed Carruthers from the room anyway.

“We shall see both of you at dinner, I hope?” Mr. Carey said from the doorway.

“Thank you for the invitation. I accept most gratefully,” Ash answered, still without taking his eyes off Pip.

“Remember what I said before, Pip,” Carruthers called over Mr. Carey’s shoulder. Then Mr. Carey closed the door behind them, leaving Pip and Ash to themselves.

Pip turned away from the intensity of Ash’s questioning gaze, but when he did, all he saw was the richness of the room around them. It hit him all at once that he didn’t belong in this room, not as a guest at any rate. This wasn’t his world, and no matter how finely he might try to dress himself up and put on airs, it wouldn’t change the truth of that. He’d spent years avoiding getting any nearer to this than the servants’ quarters. And now….

“Phillip?” Ash’s concerned voice broke him out of the downward spiral of his thoughts, and he turned back to the man. “What is going through that complicated mind of yours?”

Pip snorted. “Complicated? Not ’ardly.”

Ash brushed his knuckles across Pip’s cheek and smiled. “There is far more to you than meets the eye, Phillip. No matter how you try to convince the world otherwise.”

Pip closed his eyes and pressed his cheek into the coolness of Ash’s fingers. He took a deep breath before saying, “We need t’ talk. But not ’ere.”

“Where would you like us to go?”

“Back upstairs, to yer room.”

Ash chuckled. “Are you sure we’ll get any talking done?”

Pip grinned cheekily despite his unease. “Course we will…
after
.”

A
SH
HADN
’
T
packed any oil, so despite the fact that the man insisted it wasn’t necessary, Pip had to sneak into the masters’ bedchambers in search of some. Pip was dressed quite scandalously in only his trousers and shirtsleeves while he raced along the upstairs halls, returning with the small glass vial clutched victoriously in his hand. He would need to return it before the masters discovered it missing, but perhaps he might be able to coax Maud into doing that for him.

She wouldn’t want him to get into trouble now, would she?

Pip’s stocking feet slid on the waxed wood floor as he came to a halt beside drawn curtains on one side of the bed. Ash was already beneath the thick dark blue velvet coverlet, his cravat and outer clothes discarded, his fine linen shirt open at the neck and wrists, revealing dark blond chest hair and lean, muscled forearms. Pip quickly set the vial on the night table and flung off the rest of his clothes before diving beneath the blankets and drawing Ash into his arms.

“This isn’t talking,” Ash chuckled against his lips.

“After,” Pip promised both of them. He needed to remind himself of all the ways in which they were equal, how they fit together, that beneath the fine words and clothes, they were both made of flesh and bone with desires and hopes and vulnerabilities.

Pip threaded his fingers through Ash’s soft blond hair. He’d let it grow long enough for Pip to hold on to as he plundered the man’s mouth. Ash slid his palms around Pip’s back, his hands playing restlessly across the muscles there as he gave back in equal measure.

Eventually, Pip pushed Ash back into the pillows and climbed into his lap, straddling the man’s thighs as they tasted and teased one another’s mouths. Impatient for more contact, Pip pulled away only long enough to strip Ash’s shirt over his head. Then he pressed the man back again, tangling their tongues together and swallowing Ash’s panting breaths while Ash’s coarse chest hair teased Pip’s nipples.

“I need ye, Ash. I need to feel ye around me,” Pip whispered against his lips, grinding his cock into Ash’s thigh.

Ash moaned and dug his fingers into Pip’s buttocks, dragging his hips closer so he could grind his cock against Pip as well. Pip pulled away again long enough to grab for the oil and then dove back in for another devouring kiss. Ash clung to him as Pip pushed between his legs, nudging the backs of Ash’s thighs until the man spread them wide and locked his good leg around Pip’s hip. The bed creaked as Pip bent Ash nearly in half, pressing oiled fingers into his hole and invading Ash’s mouth with his tongue at the same time. Ash’s satisfied groan vibrated all the way to Pip’s fingers, and, desperate to hear that sound again, Pip twisted and curled them as Ash’s channel throbbed around him, drawing an answering pulse from Pip’s loins.

Unable to wait a moment longer, Pip withdrew his fingers and slicked his cock with oil. Lining his crown up with Ash’s opening, Pip pressed forward until luxuriant, silken heat gripped him tightly all the way to the root. They both groaned then, so wrapped up in one another not a hair’s breadth remained between them. Ash enfolded him in his arms as Pip buried his face in the man’s neck and began to thrust. Ash whispered breathless and surprisingly filthy words of encouragement in Pip’s ear that only inflamed him more, driving Pip to burrow his own arms beneath Ash’s back and lift his hips from the mattress, pounding down into him with ever greater force until Pip was almost struck blind with the pleasure of it.

His release took him by surprise. He barely had the presence of mind to clamp down on his lower lip, cutting off his shout, before the dam broke and all that he had rushed from him in a flood of ecstasy and fire. Ash writhed beneath him, forcing a hand between them. Thankfully, the stars faded from Pip’s vision soon enough to watch Ash grip his own cock and pump furiously at it while his hips twisted and flexed, Pip’s cock still embedded fully inside him.

Not long after, Ash threw his head back, his face awash in pleasure, and ropes of his seed painted his belly. Pip shuddered as Ash’s channel rippled and squeezed his now sensitive cock, but the sight before him was worth any discomfort. Ash was beautiful.

And he is mine.

“Mine,” Pip whispered before bending down and capturing Ash’s slack lips again.

Pip tasted Ash’s answering smile until his thighs began to cramp and he remembered that Ash was bent nearly in half beneath him. Pip eased off the man and fell onto his back as Ash groaned and stretched out next to him.

A few moments later, while Pip was floating contentedly on a cloud of satiation, the mattress shifted and then shortly thereafter Ash’s beloved voice came to him. “It’s cold. Be warned.”

The mattress dipped again, and Pip barely had time to open his eyes before an icy flannel was wiped across his belly and prick. He yelped and pulled away, throwing Ash a wounded look, but the man simply chuckled. “I warned you first.”

Pip grumbled a bit and quickly burrowed beneath the covers while gooseflesh rose over his skin. As he watched from the safety of his cave, Ash rolled away and tossed the flannel the short distance to the washstand. Only then did Pip notice the furniture in the room had been rearranged while they were at breakfast, and the washstand and chair had been moved to within easy reach of the bed. Maud must have seen Ash’s false leg against the night table that morning and had Stubbs do it as a kindness. Clever woman, to see to it without calling undo attention. Pip would have to remember to thank her later.

Ash burrowed back under the covers next to him, and Pip rolled toward him. He pressed his body against Ash’s side and draped an arm contentedly over the man’s chest, feeling so much better than he had less than an hour ago. The distance and anxiety he’d felt that morning had eased and their relationship did not seem so impossible at the moment.

Of course, a release like the one he’d just had did much to improve his confidence and outlook on the world in general and he was feeling positively sunny as he propped his chin on his hand, gazed dotingly up at Ash, and said, “Now we can get back to where we left off this morning.”

“And where was that?”

“Ye were going to tell me what ’appened… yer tale of woe, as ye called it.”

Ash raised his eyebrows innocently, but the fond smile he’d been wearing as he toyed with Pip’s curls dropped away. “That is a rather broad request. I fear I wouldn’t even know where to start.”

As the man chuckled uncomfortably, Pip narrowed his eyes and waited expectantly. But Ash didn’t continue, and a spark of anger ignited in Pip’s belly, his good humor quickly slipping away again.

He pushed himself up on his arms and glared down at the man. “Ye said ye thought all those bad things about me because of yer past, not because of what I am,” he said hotly. “But ye won’t tell me anythin’. Ye said ye knew ye were wrong now and ye want me back. But when I try to know ye better, ye push me away like ye did before, makin’ me think yer fine words are all a lie. This ain’t gonna work between us if ye don’ even try.”

Pip huffed and made a big show of throwing off the blankets. He moved toward the edge of the bed, but thankfully Ash reached out to stop him before he got too far.

“Wait. I’m sorry, Phillip. You’re right. Come back. Please.”