Chapter Text
Saturday, October 23 (Pt. 2)
You didn’t anticipate how hard it would be to leave Silco.
Well, actually, you did, but it’s an even more unattractive idea from where you’re currently standing: leaning against the front of his desk, tucked into the warmth of his side as he draws lazy circles on your arm. He’s already texted Sevika to make sure the security cam room and hallway are empty before you leave the office, so all you’re waiting for now is the all clear.
“I don’t want to say good-bye for the rest of the night.”
Your head rises and falls against his shoulder as he sighs deeply. “I know.”
“You’re the worst party planner.”
“Having a smaller, more private event would have precluded your ability to participate. This was the only way to ensure you could be included without raising suspicions. Besides, it ends at 10, and my men will ensure that everyone leaves the premises in a timely manner.”
“I get it, but I still hate it.”
“So do I, as a matter of fact.”
Several breaths pass before you venture, tentatively, “Well you could just tell them about us, and then we wouldn’t have to –”
“No.”
It’s the expected, unyielding answer. But you still raise your head to gaze at him, eyes full of reproach.
His expression softens.
“The time simply isn’t right,” He amends.
“When will it be right?”
“All in good time, darling,” He smiles, and your skin tingles where he caresses your cheek. “Believe me when I say I’d rather be done with this subterfuge, but we must suffer the inconvenience for a while longer. I ask that you trust my judgment on the matter.”
“Okay,” You mumble, “But I reserve the right to be unhappy about it.”
“You may feel as you please.”
“Thanks, I will…”
The sentence ends in a hitch from the seismic cascade of shivers caused by his thumb tracing along your chin.
“You know,” Silco murmurs, “I never properly thanked you for the gifts.”
“No,” You reply, quite breathless.
“I confess, I’m not sure what would be best.”
“A kiss?”
He puffs out a laugh. “I’d consider that a rather obvious and self-serving form of repayment.”
“Bold words coming from a man who hasn’t kissed me yet today.”
His finger pauses its perusal of your bottom lip as he looks baffled (which is a disgustingly adorable expression on such an austere man’s face).
“Haven’t I?”
“No.”
“A gross oversight.”
He sounds affronted on your behalf. When you bite your lip to cover your grin, it recaptures his attention.
“How can I ever make it up to you?”
You don’t even pretend to think about it.
“How about two kisses?”
“We need to work on your negotiating skills,” He says, with a kind of faint exasperation.
“Okay, promise to make them two really good kisses, or else.”
“Or else what?”
“Or else I’ll… um, leave you right now, and you’ll have to spend the entire rest of the night thinking about the kisses you owe me.”
“A baseless threat.”
He’s right, but he sounds far too confident about it for you to let it slide.
You bestow upon him an exaggerated look of indignation. “You don’t think I’d do it?”
He shakes his head slowly. “You once stood in this office and asked me if I knew what you wanted. At the time I hadn’t the faintest idea, but now...”
“Yes?”
Everything is unnaturally mesmerizing, from the glowing ember of his eye to the sheen of silver glinting in his hair when he tilts his head.
“For some incomprehensible reason, you have indicated that what you desire most in this world…”
“...Is you,” You finish with a quick smile. “I’m glad you finally get it.”
“I’m not sure I do.”
“Well, you should really try. Because I’m not going anywhere.”
His good eye closes as you clasp his scarred face with your right hand. He leans into your touch, eyebrows unfurrowing as you dust your thumb along his cheekbone. When you brush your fingers through his hair he releases a shaky sigh. Adrenaline pumps like wildfire through your veins as he grabs the back of your hand, and turns it to plant a soft kiss upon the soft base of your wrist. The other hand soon finds your waist, and he turns you in a slow waltz until your back is pressed up against the desk.
Trapped again, You think with a giddy flutter.
It’s a classic Silco move, but it's one that you don’t mind, even a little bit. In fact, you don’t mind at all, as it only serves to bring you closer to the carven contours of his face that have been teasing you since the moment you met him. So, you take your time kissing away the ghost of his haughty sneer, the wrinkles at the corners of his eyes, and the tiny scrunch marks on the bridge of his nose.
All the while your left hand is free to explore his soft, silken hair.
A hot buzz shoots through your gut as the hand at your wrist slides along your arm to settle on the bare skin at your waist. At your sharp intake of breath his eyelid drags open, and he gazes at you in a heady, dazed stupor.
Several long beats pass, before you whisper, “Well, are you gonna kiss me or not?”
His gaze turns heavy.
Your whole body flashes hot when he slowly anchors your hips to the desk, chin tilting as he removes all personal space between you. You're pressed so close together that you can feel the quickening of his heart, and the sharp, shallow intake of breath as his lips find yours.
You close your eyes to savor the taste of him: cinnamon and peppermint. Fireworks explode from the hungry, heated press of his lips against yours.
All too soon the fireworks end, leaving you breathless.
And wildly, desperately, hoping for more.
Instead, he rests his forehead against yours, “Was that sufficient payment for you?”
"No."
He chuckles, holding you like he's trying to memorize the shape of your body against his, hands tracing every contour.
You're clinging to him because you're suddenly afraid that if you don't, he might prove to be a dream, and as soon as you let go he'll disappear.
"You promised me... two kisses, Spisak. That was only one.”
His open mouth smiles faintly and he makes a noise of dissent. “Hmm, I don't believe I ever agreed to that.”
“No? Okay, then I guess it won’t be a problem if l just leave now… ”
You half-heartedly try to extricate yourself from his arms.
“Absolutely not,” He deadpans, and in one sudden and powerful move, he picks you up and drops you on the edge of his desk.
You shriek as papers go flying, and you automatically wrap your arms around him to stabilize yourself.
“Silco! What –?”
“You can’t leave quite yet,” He quips with a dark and mischievous quirk to his mouth. “Sevika hasn’t given us the all clear.”
You lose your breath as he steps between your legs to settle his hands on either side of your hips.
“I was just joking,” You choke, your brain on overdrive from being placed so suddenly into such a vulnerable position.
“I know,” He says, eyes searching your face. “But experience has taught me that one should be incredibly careful, especially when one has something of such extreme importance to lose.”
You send him a self-conscious smile.
“Besides,” he murmurs, “if someone should see us together, the problem would need to be dealt with swiftly, and I’d rather not have to… dispose of one of my hired hands on my birthday. If you understand my meaning.”
Your smile slides into a gape at his grave expression.
“That would rather kill the celebratory mood, don’t you think?”
He waits a beat before his mouth twitches.
You throw back your head, laughing far too loudly for such a dark joke. When you at last master your giggles enough to see him, his eyes are roving your face, and he's wearing an incredibly self-satisfied smile.
The gap in his teeth is in full display, and you automatically scoot forward so you can capture the moment with your lips. But you pull away at the last moment to say in a rush, “My kisses don’t count in the tally!”
He chuckles, “Feeling rather greedy today, are we?”
“For you? Always. You’re a great kisser.”
His brow arches, and you laugh again.
“Okay fine, you’re an excellent kisser, Silco Spisak.”
He smirks, “I am an exceptional kisser.”
You roll your eyes. “You’re lucky I love you and it’s your birthday, or all this bragging would be points against you.”
“Well, love covers a multitude of sins, or so I’m told.”
“It really does.”
When you smile, he stares at you with a completely tummy tingling expression you can only describe as…. what?
Admiration? Yearning?
Wanting.
Another wave of nerves, skittering down your legs this time as he starts to rub your thighs. You respond by wrapping your legs around him, and clasping your arms around his neck. He steps closer still, until you’re once again chest to chest, and you can feel how fast his heart is beating.
No, vibrating.
Vibrating?
You tilt your head, and he looks momentarily confused before he looks down. He removes one of his hands (with extreme reluctance) from your leg to reach into his pocket. He raises it to look bleakly at the screen.
“Is it… is it time for me to go?” You breathe.
He shakes his head before raising the phone to his ear with a terse, “Sevika.”
He listens for a few moments, expression getting more and more hardened until he looks at you sharply. His jaw tightens, nostrils flaring before he nods. “Understood. I’ll send her out now. Give it five minutes before sending them up.”
He disconnects the call. You watch his face sadly. He looks only halfway in the room, eyes darting as he calculates something in his head.
“I’m afraid our time is up.”
“I know,” You say with a sigh, unwrapping your legs.
“I'm sure we’ll see each other soon,” He says, and steps back to give you room to slide off the desk.
“Yeah, later tonight. I’ll have to go back to your house to pick up my things, and clean up the kitchen.”
“Excellent. Good.”
He keeps adjusting his tie, hair, and the flowers in his lapel with unconscious movements. Whatever Sevika said had really taken his mind elsewhere.
And so quickly, you think with a melancholy sigh.
“I’ll talk to you later then?”
He’s still smoothing out his tie. "Indeed."
You grab your things from the sofa and walk to the door. He grabs for the knob automatically, but at the last moment appears to think better of it.
He turns to look at you with a sharp, jerking motion.
“Everything I do is to ensure your safety," He says fiercely. "You understand that?”
You nod.
“Good. The party ends at 10. You won’t leave the building until you’ve seen me first, yes?”
His intensity is a little disconcerting. You force yourself to smile, even as your mind is sent down a bunny trail to trace the cause of such an abrupt turn in his emotional state.
“Of course. I would never leave without saying good-bye.”
“Do you trust me to make the right decisions?”
“Absolutely.”
His face shuffles through a myriad of emotions as he searches yours. At last he settles on a decisive nod.
“I'd stop at the restroom to freshen up, if I were you.”
"I will."
"And do try to enjoy yourself."
"I'll try."
With a nod he opens the door and you slip into the dim hall. You walk slowly to the ancient restroom, and go through the motions of resetting the make-up that Silco disarranged with his lips. You take your time, wondering about the conversation he'd had with Sevika that had worried him so much.
Five minutes later, as you're about to exit the room, you see two male figures turn the corner from the stairwell.
You quickly close the door until it's only open a sliver, and observe the newcomers with interest. The shorter one is dressed in bulky, over-sized clothes, and walks with a stoop shouldered limp. The taller of the two is dressed like an every-man, his walk and figure indistinguishable in the dim hall.
They pause at Silco's office and after muffled greetings disappear through the door.
It's an intriguing mystery. One that would be interesting to crack, if you had the time.
And is seems like an entertaining way to spend the evening.
The Last Drop is already full of people and music when you make it to the ground floor, and you hear Conner and Monique before you see them. You smile and return their enthusiastic waves. At the same time you spy Sevika lurking in the corner, watching you cross the floor with a somewhat enigmatic expression.
You narrow your eyes when, after catching your gaze, she turns abruptly and disappears into the crowd.
Something to hide, Sevika?
You'll find out soon enough, if you have anything to do with it.
And somehow, something tells you that you do.