Saving Sebastian: A Catharsis Novel (Custos Securities Series Book 3)

by Luna, David

  As his boy continued to drift, he quickly used the corded controller to lower Sebastian down to the table’s surface to remove the ropes. Making quick work of removing the many suspension lines connecting him to the frame, Gideon then removed the rest of the ropes, sitting Sebastian up to help shake out his arms, rubbing them down to bring circulation back.

  When he had him completely free of the rigging, Gideon slid his arms under his boy and picked him up. Sebastian murmured to him incoherently and rested his head on Gideon’s chest. He got him up to his loft and lay him on the side of the bed against a mound of pillows, murmuring that he’d be right back. He grabbed several bottles of water from the kitchen and brought them back, opening one and handing it over. While Sebastian drank he gathered some massage oils and a towel.

  Gideon took a few pulls from his own water bottle and set it down. Taking Sebastian’s empty water bottle from him, Gideon laid the towel out on the middle of the bed. “Lie face down on the towel.”

  Sebastian’s half-lidded eyes and crooked smile let him know the boy was still flying. He was slow to turn over onto his stomach. Once there he was boneless, arms at his sides, eyes closed. “Bastian, check in with me, please.”

  Gideon heard a dreamy sigh before the boy finally answered, his words slurring a bit. “Mmm. Green, Sir.”

  “Good boy. Rest now, I’ll massage the achiness from your body as much as possible and then get you in the tub.”

  “Mmmhmm.”

  Smiling, Gideon got to work on the boy’s back side and then turned him over to rub down his front. While Sebastian wasn’t sleeping, he was drifting in and out. After his body was fully rubbed down, Gideon got up and turned on the faucets to fill the gigantic tub. He added in some scented Epsom salts and went back to lie with Sebastian, cuddling him and murmuring praise. He told him how proud he was of him, how good he’d done and continued to do so while his boy clung to him, subspace making him needier and less guarded than he’d normally be.

  He carried Sebastian to the tub and got them both in, he settled his boy between his legs in the steaming hot water and ran his hands gently over his soft, slick skin. He couldn’t remember a feeling of contentment so strong in years, maybe ever. He leaned his cheek on the crown of Sebastian’s head and let himself come down from his own high.

  SEBASTIAN WAS ON CLOUD NINE, or maybe even cloud ten. Eleven? Was there even a cloud eleven? He’d have to look that up. Sitting gingerly at his desk on Tuesday morning, he thought back on the rest of the weekend. He didn’t have a client for another hour and he’d already caught up on the work he’d missed on Monday. He had some projects he could work on, but he found himself daydreaming while staring blankly at his computer screen. It had turned out taking one of his floating holidays on his birthday wasn’t a bad idea after all. He couldn’t remember having a better birthday.

  He was used to either working on his birthday or being alone. He mostly didn’t acknowledge it. It passed by each year, if not unnoticed, uncelebrated. And he was okay with that. He’d had to be. It had been that way since his sixth birthday, the first year he’d had one of his episodes—as his mother called it—in front of other people.

  His mother, not one to do much for birthdays in the first place, had finally allowed him to invite a friend over for a sleepover. Before his best friend’s mom had even left, he’d had one of his “episodes” and his best friend and his best friend’s mom were both so horrified, they’d left immediately after, making their apologies and saying it looked like he wasn’t feeling well and they’d have to reschedule when he was feeling better.

  They hadn’t. And his best friend had told everyone in their class what had happened and he’d struggled to make friends from that day forward. Children’s cruelty and people’s inability to accept those who were different didn’t bode well for making new friends, let alone winning popularity contests. It was a good thing he was an introvert. Or perhaps he was an introvert because of things that happened during his childhood. That was a nature vs. nurture debate he didn’t have the desire to sink energy into.

  The cupcakes his mom had allowed him to buy at the store that day, with his own allowance, had disappeared. He’d only found them accidentally when taking the kitchen trash out to the garage bins the following afternoon. She’d said they shouldn’t celebrate birthdays anyway. That what happened was God’s way of ensuring they only celebrated the birth of Jesus Christ. So, from then on, birthdays had gone uncelebrated, throughout his childhood and into his adulthood. He hadn’t really tried to break the habit. He’d had no reason to celebrate because really, who celebrates alone? And it wasn’t like he’d celebrated the day before, either. Not really.

  He might have looked at himself in the mirror after waking up and given himself a mental, “Happy Birthday!” Maybe Gideon had thought his smile was only for him, and truthfully, it mostly was. When he’d come into the bathroom with a cup of coffee for Sebastian and stood behind him and kissed his neck, Sebastian had silently thanked whatever powers that be that this year he’d at least have a good birthday.

  He hadn’t even mentioned it to Gideon. Gideon had said no flowers, gifts, or dates, and truthfully, he wouldn’t have expected them anyway. So, he’d kept it to himself and had been grateful just to spend the time with the beautiful man that had chosen him—for reasons he still didn’t understand and maybe never would—to sign a contract with. The day had been great, the night before even better. The rigging that Gideon had done had far surpassed anything he could have dreamed up.

  He’d barely remembered Gideon carrying him upstairs. He’d never gone into such deep subspace before. And he couldn’t remember ever having come so hard with almost no stimulation. Before he knew what was happening, he was being asked to turn over and Gideon was digging into his sore muscles with practiced precision, finding each and every sore spot he had and working it, until it was gone. By the time he was done, Sebastian was a boneless incoherent mess. He wouldn’t have been able to stand if he’d wanted to, so it was good that he’d then been carried to the tub, and surrounded by nearly scalding water and Gideon’s arms. As aftercare went, it was definitely a first. Not that he was complaining.

  He knew his body would be sore for a couple days after a scene like the one they’d just shared. He was between Gideon’s legs, caged by his raised knees, his own arms hooked over Gideon’s thick, muscular thighs and when he finally came more fully into himself he couldn’t keep his hands to himself and rubbed them up and down Gideon’s shins. He leaned to the side and then tilted his head to look back at the gorgeous man behind him.

  “There you are.”

  Sebastian blushed and smiled. “Hi.”

  “Hi, yourself. How are you feeling?”

  “Good. Exhausted, but really good, Sir. Thank you.”

  “Good. I’m glad. And I’m happy you’re back with me again. I want to finish washing you.”

  Sebastian could feel his blush deepen, but a thrill shot through him at the thought and he nodded.

  “Good boy. Lean up, I wanna wash your back.”

  And on it went. The amount of firsts Sebastian had experienced that weekend made him giddy. He thought it prudent to pinch himself, but truthfully, he didn’t want to wake up if it was a dream.

  Gideon got out and dried himself quickly and then helped him out of the tub and held up a towel, warm from the hot towel rack. He’d taken his time and dried every inch of him, even getting down to his knees to dry his feet, again worrying Sebastian with the wrongness of his Dom on his knees for him. It took everything he had not to get down on his own knees until Gideon stood.

  That discomfort only continued, as Gideon hung up the towel and moved him to stand in front of a full-length mirror. Practiced in avoiding looking at himself in the mirror, he gazed at the man behind him, easily twice his size, and would have continued to feast his eyes there if Gideon hadn’t demanded otherwise.

  He leaned down and whispered in Sebastian’s ear, “Look at the lines on your b
ody caused by the ropes. They’re beautiful. You’re beautiful.”

  Curiosity had him seeking himself out in the mirror, if only to see the lines Gideon was referring to. He was glad he did. They were everywhere and they were brilliant. He reached up, almost convinced he wouldn’t be able to feel them, that they weren’t real. But when he ran his fingers over his chest he could feel the indentations, the little bumps that the rope had left, awed by the pattern.

  He hadn’t paid attention to what he’d looked like in the ropes, just how he’d felt and he’d felt amazing. He almost wished he’d allowed Khaleo to take the pictures. Almost. Before he could stop himself, he admitted as much to Gideon as he blushed, yet again. He was ordered to stay where he was as Gideon left the bathroom. Moments later he returned with Sebastian’s phone, handing it over and asking him to put his code in.

  Once he did, Gideon took the phone back, stood directly behind him and cupped his chin in his hand, tilting Sebastian’s head back against Gideon’s chest and took a picture of them as Gideon kissed the top of his head, whispering again that he was beautiful. The only reason Sebastian didn’t tense was because it was his phone, his camera, his album and he could control where the pictures went and who saw them.

  Gideon handed his phone back and they walked into the bedroom where Gideon helped him get dressed and then told him to rest for a bit while he made lunch. He started to protest but a stern look from his Dom had him acquiescing. No sooner did he follow instructions than Gideon was back, chuckling at his inability to even lift his body enough to get up and join him in the kitchen for lunch.

  However, when Gideon said he’d bring lunch to him in bed, Sebastian was up like a shot, unwilling to have the man wait on him even more than he already had. One thing was for sure, Gideon took aftercare seriously and Sebastian couldn’t help but enjoy every single minute of it, racking up even more firsts with the pictures in the mirror, and the massage.

  They spent the rest of the day being lazy and getting to know each other a bit, though strangely they both kept from sharing too much of their personal lives. They fell into a pattern of safely talking about what things they liked to do, the food they liked to eat, and the places they’d like to visit. They’d discussed their favorite songs, movies, and books. And covered silly topics like what was their favorite color, what they’d wanted to be when they grew up, and whether or not they liked mustard on their sandwiches. They both did, and the spicier the better. Though pepperoncini were a bone of contention.

  When Sunday night rolled around, Sebastian found his back snuggled tight against Gideon’s front, in a spooning that felt more like a cocooning, the man was so enormous. He couldn’t remember a night where he’d had such a peaceful sleep. He was a cold sleeper and Gideon, it turned out, was a furnace and had kept him warm from the top of his head to the bottom of his feet. Sebastian had snickered when he’d rubbed his freezing feet on Gideon’s shins and the man had jumped and cussed a blue streak, saying he was made of ice before drawing them between both of his calves to warm them up.

  The following morning his birthday started off with a hot shower that soothed some of his achiness from the rigging of the day before. He was sad to see that nearly all the rope impressions on his skin were gone but his sadness didn’t last long when he was permitted to go down on Gideon again in the shower. He was bound and determined to be able to deepthroat the man’s whole cock, eventually.

  A huge part of the day had been going through the contract again, point by point. They’d added several caveats towards the end. They’d both wanted to avoid talking much about their personal lives, hoping to keep them separate and not blur any of those lines. Sebastian was happy with that adjustment. He was very uneasy about sharing too much about his personal life, including his past and his medical issues. He was being truthful with Gideon when he’d said there was nothing medically that would impact or be affected by their play, so he felt reassured that there wouldn’t be further questions regarding those issues.

  They’d also both agreed that should either of them feel like they weren’t getting what they needed from the contract, they could end it at any time, no questions asked. Sebastian knew he wouldn’t be the one to end it, and he was okay with not asking Gideon any questions about it when he decided to move on. He didn’t have any misconceptions that more would come from their contract, nor did he think the six-month time designation would ever be reached. He figured if he was lucky, he’d be able to enjoy having a contracted Dom for a couple months and be happier for it.

  He’d seen the part of the contract talking about monogamy and glanced at Gideon, biting his lip, “It’s okay if you don’t want our arrangement to be monogamous.”

  Gideon, confused and angry had replied, “We’re getting retested so we don’t have to wear condoms. You can bet your ass you won’t be fucking anyone else.”

  Sebastian’s eyes had popped wide and he’d shaken his head. “No. That’s not… I’m sorry, Sir. That’s not what I meant. I don’t want to be with anyone else. I just don’t expect you’ll want to limit yourself to just m—”

  Incredulous, Gideon had growled out, “Limit myself? What kind of asshole do you think I am?”

  Sebastian’s mouth had dropped open. “No, Sir. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to imply—”

  Gideon held up his hand to cut him off. “Our contract will be monogamous, on both sides. End of discussion. Understood?”

  All he’d been able to do was nod, wide eyed, which had caused Gideon to soften a little and give his hand a squeeze. “Bastian, I don’t want anyone else. If I did, I wouldn’t be signing a contract with you. All right?”

  Sebastian had gulped, nodding again. “Yes, Sir.”

  He’d vowed to himself then and there that he’d do his best to ensure his sexy Dom didn’t need anyone else. Though he was still surprised, he admitted to himself that he was secretly thrilled that Gideon hadn’t been thinking of getting his needs met elsewhere.

  Once they’d signed the contract, he’d written out the following week’s schedule for Gideon and though his Dom had given him the side eye about working Saturday, he’d arranged for them to have two weeknight sessions and for Sebastian to come over Saturday evening, after his work was completed, and stay until Monday morning. Sebastian decided then and there to begin tattooing Friday evenings, so that he could reduce his workload on Saturdays. It would take some adjustment, but would be worth it until Gideon ended their contract.

  They’d had dinner after their contract was signed and then Gideon had ordered him to strip and kneel naked on Gideon’s huge, square brown leather ottoman in his living area, facing the couch, behind which was a wall of windows. His pulse raced as he looked out towards the other buildings that were taller than the one he was in. He couldn’t see in their windows, so he had to hope they couldn’t see in Gideon’s, but in the end, even if they could he wouldn’t have changed a thing.

  When Gideon returned, Sebastian heard several thunks as multiple things were dropped on the hardwood floor behind him. He’d heard him approach, but hadn’t expected the clatter of equipment. It made him nervous, it made him giddy, and it made his cock stand at attention. The hairs on the back of his neck stood up and he shivered when that deep commanding voice ordering him quietly to bend over, face down, knees on the edge of the ottoman, arms straight back by his sides.

  He knew just by the position that it would be precarious after a few minutes and take all of his concentration to keep his knees on the ottoman’s edge without slipping off, especially when he started to sweat, and he knew he would. His forehead was on the ottoman and Gideon murmured that he could turn it to the side and lay his cheek on the leather. He did so and found his back arching more and his ass a bit higher than it had been.

  Not five minutes later his ankles and wrists were bound by leather cuffs. Left wrist cuff chained to left ankle cuff, the same done on the right side. His knees were spread and he found himself being suddenly shy that his ass was sticking so f
ar up into the air, right in Gideon’s face as he finished fastening the leather restraints. He couldn’t keep a moan from escaping as Gideon gripped his ass cheeks and spread them wider, swiping his tongue over his ready hole.

  “Whose beautiful ass is this?”

  “Yours, Sir.”

  “That’s right. And what do you think I’m gonna do with it, boy?”

  Sebastian’s breath caught at the sexy smirk he could hear in his Dom’s voice. “Re—” He cleared his throat and tried again. “Redden it, Sir?”

  “Beautiful and smart. I’m a lucky man, aren’t I, Sebastian?”

  When he didn’t respond, he got a smack on his ass and Gideon growled, “You answer me when I ask you a question, boy.”

  “Yes, Sir.”

  “What am I?”

  “Lucky, Sir.”

  “Why is that?”

  “Because your sub is beautiful and smart.”

  “Who is beautiful and smart?”

  Sebastian let out a shaky breath and answered, “I am, Sir.”

  “That’s right, my beautiful boy. And look at you, bent over for me, skin so flawless. It’s gonna look stunning with my marks.”

  Sebastian’s heart rate sped up when he heard what he thought was a flogger whooshing through the air. It never made contact and he figured Gideon was warming up, and heightening Sebastian’s tension levels. He did his best to relax. Drew in and let out a couple deep, slow breaths. The noise of the flogger got faster and Sebastian could envision his Dom making a figure eight in the air, warming up his muscles.

  He was startled out of his musings when his Sir asked, “Safewords?”

  “Green, yellow, and red, Sir.”