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As Raoul finished eating his dinner, he watched the sunset from the kitchen window as it dipped below the skyline. The sky turned pink with its passing, then darkened to purple: time to get the evening work started.
Rising, he took his dishes to the sink and washed them, setting them into the drying rack. He'd clean up the rest of the kitchen later.
He fetched the morning newspaper from the entrance where he'd taken it in earlier today, then strode over to Thaddeus' study. He flipped on the light switch on the way in, then set down the newspaper onto the side table beside his master's favourite leather wingback. He pulled the cord on the small lamp there, then crossed the room again to switch off the main light. Now the study was lit in a dim, golden glow, just as Thaddeus preferred.
Raoul waited until he heard footsteps coming his way, and soon his master appeared.
“Good evening, Raoul,” he said, making his way to his chair and sitting down.
“Good evening. Did you sleep well?” Raoul asked.
“Yes, quite well,” Thaddeus responded, crossing his legs as he reached for the newspaper.
“There's an article on page six you might find interesting,” Raoul told him.
Thaddeus flipped to the page indicated, scanning the paper. His brows rose and he smiled lightly. “So there is,” he agreed. “And how was your day?”
“It was good,” Raoul reported. “I picked up the dry cleaning and checked in with the antique store to see if they got the book you requested. It wasn't in yet, but the owner thinks she'll get it by next week.”
“Hmm,” Thaddeus mused, “Better late than never, I suppose. Thank you for checking.”
A warm buzz of pride welled in Raoul's chest at the praise, as it always did. He'd picked up groceries today as well, but those were for himself and he knew Thaddeus wouldn't be interested, so there seemed no point in mentioning it.
“Do you need me to drive you anywhere tonight?” he asked.
“Hmm... no. Last night's feeding has left me satisfied yet. I believe I'll stay in tonight.”
Raoul nodded in acknowledgement. “Should I leave you to your reading then, or do you need me for something else?” he asked, a touch of eagerness tinging the second half of the question.
Thaddeus folded the newspaper and set it aside. “In fact, there was something I wanted to speak to you about. Stay awhile,” he asked, motioning Raoul forward.
“Of course,” he answered, stepping toward his master.
Uncrossing his legs, Thaddeus removed his glasses, pulling free the hem of his shirt in order to wipe the lenses clean. “Today is an auspicious day,” he stated. “Do you know why?”
Raoul shook his head in answer.
His master set his glasses back onto the bridge of his nose, then beamed a smile at him. “It was one year ago tonight that you came to work for me. I trust you remember?”
Blinking, Raoul nodded. How could he possibly forget? Thaddeus had saved him. It had been the beginning of his new life.
“Feels like it was yesterday,” he offered. Yesterday, or an eternity. Sometimes, the before seemed like it had happened to someone else.
“Oh, I know the feeling,” Thaddeus chuckled. As a vampire more than a century and a half old, a year must seem a drop in the bucket of time, Raoul supposed. “But you've served me well during that year. You've shown faultless loyalty, and I appreciate that.”
Pride surged up within him again, and Raoul held back the grin that wanted to spread across his face.
“However,” Thaddeus continued, “loyalty is not the only trait that I value.” He met Raoul's gaze. “Trust is of equal importance.”
Raoul's heart sank with momentary panic. Had he done something wrong?
“I would never betray your trust, Master,” he hurriedly assured Thaddeus, who in turn shook his head.
“No, Raoul, I know well that I can trust you. The question,” he mused, leaning forward, “is whether you fully trust me.”
His mouth gaping open for a moment, Raoul hurried to rebut, “But I do trust you.”
His master's brows rose. “Easily said. But we Kindred learn not to take trust for granted.” He leaned back in his chair, steepling his fingers. “I propose a test, on this anniversary of sorts. To prove your trust in me.”
“Anything,” Raoul eagerly asserted, taking one swift step forward in emphasis.
Thaddeus tilted his head, regarding him with an enigmatic expression. “You've not taken any lovers during our time together,” he stated matter-of-factly.
Raoul frowned in confusion. No, he hadn't, he supposed. But he'd hardly had time for that. His previous relationships had tended to be spectacular failures, and now he was so busy between working for Thaddeus and putting in time at the precinct – though he'd asked for fewer and shorter shifts, which his captain had gladly granted in order to save the department money – that he hardly put any thought towards dating these days.
Of course, there was that one cashier at the dry cleaners who had been flirting with him for a couple of months, but that hadn't gone anywhere. She'd eventually worked up the courage to make her interest plain and had given him her phone number, but after Raoul had mentioned it in passing to Thaddeus, he'd started sending him to the cleaners across the street instead. He took that as a sign that his master didn't approve, and so Raoul hadn't pursued her further.
He didn't know why Thaddeus was mentioning it, but he shook his head in confirmation of the statement.
“You are, however, ah,” his master began, gesturing vaguely, “capable. Are you not?”
Blood rose to heat his cheeks, but Raoul answered firmly. “I am.”
Is this a sex thing? he remembered having asked Thaddeus on the night they had met. He'd denied it, and to be fair the subject hadn't come up again after that, but Raoul had a feeling that was about to change.
“What I propose,” Thaddeus said levelly beneath a half-lidded gaze, “is fellatio.”
Raoul blinked in confusion. “The test is... a blow job?”
Thaddeus nodded, his expression serious. “Think of it. For you to place your, ah... blood-filled erection into the mouth of a Kindred is the ultimate display of trust.” He continued, unbothered, as if he were discussing the weather or some article he'd read in the paper. “You would be proving that you have no fear of me losing control and biting you in a most, shall we say, intimate place?”
Oh.
Thaddeus was suggesting sucking him off. Not the other way around.
Raoul was at a loss for words. Maybe it was just a test. What he was saying made sense, after all.
But, either way, did it matter? Raoul wanted to keep this job. He didn't want to give up the blood bond, the way the vitae in his veins made him feel strong and alive. And, hell, who was he to turn down a freely offered blow job?
“Okay,” he uncertainly agreed. “Do... do I need to come?”
“Oh, yes,” Thaddeus emphatically confirmed. “We do this to completion – otherwise, you will have failed the test.”
Raoul swallowed hard. Well, then.
He tentatively closed the distance between himself and Thaddeus, then reached down and began undoing his belt. His blood pounded in his veins; this certainly seemed like a strange way to get off, but nevertheless, he was already getting weirdly turned on just talking about it.
Thaddeus watched attentively as Raoul undid the button of his jeans and pulled down his fly. Hesitating, he grabbed hold of his waistband and finally slid his jeans and briefs down to his knees.
A silent moment passed, feeling almost surreal as Raoul stood naked from the waist down in front of his employer. He was half-hard already, as absurd as the situation was, but he wasn't going to get much further than that on his own. He wondered if he should reach down and stroke himself to life, but before he had the chance to decide either way, Thaddeus made his move.
Reaching out, his master lightly traced his fingertips along Raoul's hip, the touch sending goosebumps rippling across his flesh. He failed to suppress the shiver that followed, but Thaddeus didn't stop there – he unceremoniously wrapped his fingers around Raoul's dick and began stroking slowly.
Raoul closed his eyes, sighing softly. It had been a long time since someone else had touched him like that – with just the right pressure and friction, no less – and his body responded eagerly, his dick growing steadily harder. It seemed like no time at all until he was fully erect, the blood rushing to his loins. Thaddeus' grip was firm now, his movements speeding up, and goddamn it felt good.
Opening his eyes for a moment, Raoul looked down just in time to see his master set his glasses aside with his free hand. Licking his lips, Thaddeus leaned forward in his chair, his eyes gleaming before he shut them and engulfed Raoul with his mouth.
Fuck, Raoul thought, throwing his head back and squeezing his eyes shut. He gasped quietly, his nerves surging to life, sending tingles all along his body. This was better than he'd expected it to be. It seemed Thaddeus approached giving head with confidence – clearly he had done this before. When he'd been alive, Raoul idly wondered? If vampires truly didn't experience lust, then it may well have been a long time ago – but what difference did it make? All Raoul knew was that he was being treated to the best blow job he'd had in a long time.
The fear of sharp canines ripping through his flesh didn't cross his mind. He was lost in the moment, in the feel of warm wetness wrapped around him, sucking and caressing his eager shaft with abandon.
Thaddeus' free hand rose up to grasp Raoul's hip, fingers digging lightly into his flesh. He pulled back with his mouth, lavishing attention on the head of Raoul's dick as if he were savouring a fine meal.
“A la verga,” Raoul murmured with a hiss of a breath, unable to hold back the exclamation. His whole body was thrumming with pleasure – how much of that was the blood bond, he absently wondered? His senses felt heightened, the scent of sex filling his nostrils, the soft slurping of Thaddeus at work resounding in his ears.
Raoul's fingers twitched at his side. He half wanted to reach out and rest a hand on his master's shoulder, to grasp the back of his head to guide his movements. But he hesitated – it felt almost too intimate, and he didn't know if he'd be welcome. He clenched and unclenched his fists instead to give his hands something to do, squeezing hard with each particularly satisfying pass of Thaddeus' tongue.
His breathing quickened as his master's pace did, and Raoul moaned haplessly. He wouldn't last much longer, at this rate. His loins clenched deliciously, tightening with tension that spooled deep in his belly. His hips moved of their own volition, matching Thaddeus' rhythm with each thrust. Raoul's head spun behind his tightly clenched eyes, his thoughts a jumble, and when he felt his master's teeth lightly grazing his skin, he tipped over the edge.
“Ohh, ungh! Th-Thaddeus!!” he unwittingly moaned, bucking his hips forward as he came hard.
Thaddeus pulled back a moment later, raising a hand to wipe at his mouth as he swallowed, and Raoul stilled. His breathing was ragged and his chest rose and fell, but his afterglow was punctuated with doubt. Had he crossed a line?
In front of him, Thaddeus reached for his glasses and hurriedly rested them back onto his face. Clearing his throat, he rose, muttering a monotone You passed the test, as he strode from the room, tucking his still-loose shirt hem back into his waistband as he went.
The door shut behind him. Raoul stood half-naked and alone, catching his breath, his dick wet with saliva and softening fast. He hurried to pull his clothes back on, anxious shame pooling in his middle, unsure of what exactly he had proven to his master.