Bonedust

who I hire. How ‘bout I pay you for a private viewing? You, me, and a bottle of Calixthe.”
    “I don’t drink.”
    “I do.” He flashed a brilliantly white smile, then stuck out a hand. Gabriel looked at it for a moment before gripping it in a shake. His grip was firm and cool to the touch, but not cold, not anything like Jeremie. “Urban Winters, striptease extraordinaire. And you?”
    “Just Gabriel.”
    “Well then, Gabe-babe, whaddaya say we slip behind closed doors and get the party started?”
    The bouncer rolled his eyes with a grunt. “At least you’re going behind closed doors this time,” he muttered, waving one of his many hands and ambling towards the bar.
    “Love you too, babe!” Urban called after him with a whistle. Gabriel’s stomach did a nervous flop. He was so…out there. Outrageous. Exuberant and carefree, like a child who’d never been scolded before in his life.
    He slid his gaze across Urban’s torso, tracing the glimmer of scales lying across his skin. Sure, he was aware of the Shifters—Jeremie had kept a few of them as slaves—but what was Urban? Snake? Wyvern? His gaze skimmed downwards, to the low cut of his too-tight pants, to the trail of pale hair disappearing beneath the hemline.
    Urban’s pallid grey eyes met his, amused. “White viper, baby,” he said, one hand sliding down his hip and the other reaching out to Gabriel. “One hundred percent natural, no bio-genetic mutations involved.” His palm stretched toward him, slender fingers waiting. “Don’t you trust me?” His voice was nearly a whisper.
    “I don’t trust anyone,” Gabriel said just as softly, his heart doing double-time as he watched the other man smirk. Anger boiled in his gut at Urban’s silent laughter and he all but slapped his hand into the man’s waiting palm. Giving the snake’s fingers a squeeze for good measure, he said, “Let’s get this over with.”

Chapter Two

    Something about that man’s scars really gave Urban a hard on. He loved the way they crisscrossed, layered across one another carefully, as if their maker had hewn them slowly into his flesh. They looked painful, torturously so, but damn if Gabe-babe wasn’t a looker. His gaze roved down the intricate skeletal pattern tattoo, a perfect rendition of a spine and ribcage, before sliding lower.
    Gabriel made a noise in his throat and turned away, arms crossing over his chest quickly. Almost bashfully. So cute. Urban’s lips quirked into a grin and he held up one finger in a ‘wait a moment’ gesture before he flitted through the dancers on the floor. Their bodies ground and twisted against one another, soft pants and moans and husky murmurs spreading between them like a virus. Urban felt a hand touch his hip and he turned into the embrace of a man with strawberry blond hair and a cocksure grin on his face.
    “Hey doll,” the man murmured, pulling Urban flush against him. Urban swayed along with him without even a glance over his shoulder to Gabriel. He could feel eyes boring holes into his back, but it was fine. Let him look. Urban couldn’t deny that he loved to be watched. The man in his arms traced feather light fingers up his chest, toying with the ring in Urban’s left nipple. “Care to dance?”
    “Aw, any other time I’d be game, honey, but…I’m a little busy tonight,” he replied easily, still swinging to the music. He let his hand brush the short stubble on the dancer’s face before he pulled away. Blowing a kiss to the man, he slunk off towards the bar.
    He leaned against a familiar, cracked red stool and pushed his elbows onto the bar counter. “Heya, Millie. Whaddaya say you give me two glasses and a bottle of Calixthe?”
    The bartend, a petite woman with no tits to speak of, arched a pierced brow and smiled. Millie was the firstborn daughter of Butch Harding, owner and manager of Club Feylinn. She looked nothing like him, with hot pink curls that matched the décor. If you looked hard, her ears were slightly pointed at the tips, but that was the only thing the woman had in common with her Elven father. “Daddy’ll take double outta your salary,” she quipped.
    “Watch me care,” Urban said, dismissively waving his hand. “It’ll be worth it.” His mind flashed to Gabriel, to what he hoped the man would look like naked, and he wet his lips. So worth it, just to hear Gabriel moan… But he’d have to pull the stick out of the man’s ass first. He shook his head.
    Millie returned,