Shadows of Avarice - Book #1 (BxB)

Chapter 17

The sun was beginning to set as Xia and Osiris walked back to the palace. Xia tightly held onto Osiris' arm, taking in his warmth. With the sun setting, the desert city became cold, so Xia enjoyed the heat radiating off of his sultan.  

His sultan? Xia blushed at the thought. Osiris wasn't his, and he didn't belong to the sultan either. They were both playing with each other. As much as Xia tried to stop Osiris from finding out his identity, he knew Osiris wasn't stupid. Osiris knew that Xia was the man he met at the temple. Xia wasn't someone that could easily be forgotten. This disguise wasn't fooling this man he held onto, but Osiris was pretending not to know for whatever reason. How long would he choose to lead Xia on before he got bored of him? Xia and Alishba would need to escape before that happened. 

Osiris really confused him with how he was acting, though. He bought Xia plenty of gifts, attempted to kiss him on multiple occasions, and then left the marks on Xia's neck. Why was he taking it this far if he knew that Xia was an imposter? Perhaps Osiris was trying to make Xia lower his guard. But no matter what, Xia would never fall for him or his games. Xia would continue down this path that lay before him and keep the façade up for as long as possible. This was all for his family.

Regardless of his thoughts, this didn't make him pull away from Osiris. He wanted to be close to the sultan for selfish reasons. Xia couldn't deny that he enjoyed his moment alone with Osiris, even if he knew he shouldn't. It awakened something within him, making him crave more. For a moment, he wanted to imagine what it would have been like if they had taken things a step further. He would never do anything scandalous in his family home, but it should've been okay to imagine it. Right?

Why did he have to think these things when he knew it could never happen? Besides the minimal amount of affection, he shouldn't hope for more. Being with Osiris wasn't in the cards for him. After this was over and Xia's family was safe, then maybe he would consider a significant other. Xia knew he didn't have any feelings for Osiris. He only enjoyed the affection this man was giving him, but he could find that somewhere else when the time came. He could meet someone who cared about him and wasn't playing some game with him.

Xia bit his lip. He shouldn't, but he couldn't help breaking the silence between them to ask, "So . . . would you ever consider letting a man into your harem?"

This question would most likely reveal too much, but it made Osiris laugh. "Have you been speaking to Amani?"

Amani mentioned to Xia once that she wanted Osiris to end up with a man, but Xia had completely forgotten about that exchange. It seemed to be something that she brought up with the sultan often if this question made him think of her. At least it distracted Osiris from finding out Xia's true intentions with this question. Xia wouldn't reveal his identity regardless of the answer, but that didn't change that he was curious. Xia asked in hopes of getting an explanation as to why Osiris was acting this way towards him. If this were all a game to Osiris, would he really try to kiss Xia if he were straight? He even left hickeys on Xia's neck for the world to see.

"I-I am simply curious. It's a hypothetical question," Xia responded.

Osiris was quick to answer, "Yes, I would. I like women and men."

His reply made Xia's heart race. After seeing the girls Osiris chose for his harem, Xia wasn't expecting this answer. He shouldn't have been that surprised considering what Osiris did to him, but it still came as a shock. He wouldn't get his hopes up and think he had a chance, though. Xia would be eaten alive if it was ever revealed that he was a man. If Osiris wasn't the one to extract punishment, then his court surely would. They were desperate for Osiris to have children and keep the bloodline flowing, after all.

The sultan shot him a smirk, then added, "I've never been with a man, but I've heard anal sex feels really good for the giver and the receiver. I'm a giver, Xia."

Xia was taken aback by this declaration and his face heated up at the thought. When he asked Osiris this question, sex was never on his mind. He wasn't sure what to say to this statement, and he was glad when they were walking up to the palace gates. Xia could escape this awkward situation he found himself in. Xia wasn't repulsed by the idea. He knew that if he were ever intimate with a man, then he would be on the bottom. He had to brush away the naughty images that tried to pop into his imagination. Sex with Osiris was not possible.

Osiris chuckled, amused by Xia's bashfulness. To tease him more, Osiris asked, "Would you like to try it with me? You could be my first."

"W-we haven't even had our first kiss yet," Xia shyly answered, looking anywhere but at the sultan.

Before entering the palace, Osiris forced Xia to come to a halt. He made Xia turn to him, then gently caressed his face and looked Xia in the eyes. It was hard for Xia to look away from that smile and the eyes that shifted color. Whatever magic was making Osiris' eyes the fake brown color seemed to be wearing off as they turned back to their usual purple.

"It seems you've fallen into my little trap." Osiris gave him a knowing smile, and Xia realized his mistake.

By not denying that he was a man, he was admitting what Osiris knew all along. All of his teasing was to make Xia indirectly give away his identity. Xia kept Osiris' gaze, unwilling to back down.

Quietly, he asked, "And what are you going to do about it?"

Osiris' grip on Xia tightened as he leaned in close to seductively whisper, "I'm going to make you mine, Xia. Every inch of your body will be mine to do with as I please. You're going to be begging for more and screaming my name as I fuck you."

A shiver ran down Xia's spine from the excitement. Osiris' voice, his slight smirk, and the way that he held his gaze made Xia desire him more. Xia enjoyed the kind side of the sultan, but he was enjoying this naughty side even more. He was on the verge of giving in to his desires until he heard a voice call out from behind them.

"Osiris!" An angry voice called out, and the men turned to see Soraya stomping towards them.

Upon seeing the concubine, Osiris released his grip on Xia. His playful demeanor became serious and perhaps it was Xia's imagination, but something shifted in Osiris' eyes. There was a darkness in them that quickly disappeared.

Soraya took Osiris by the arm and said, "Where have you been? Do you know what time it is? You're not supposed to be out this late. Let me take you back to your room."

"What are you, his mom?" Xia asked, annoyed that Soraya interrupted them. It was probably for the best that she stopped them before things went too far, but it still irritated him.

She turned to Xia, shooting him a glare. Her expression soured even more when she saw the marks on Xia's neck. "Well, you two seemed to have fun. For your information, Osiris is not allowed to be out this late and I ask that you please respect the curfew."

"Why?"

"Because I said so! Don't question things that you'll never be ready for the answer to. Now come, Osiris." Soraya didn't wait for Xia to argue with her for a moment longer. She dragged the sultan away with her.

Before they were gone, Osiris turned to Xia and said, "I'll explain everything one day, I promise."

Then they disappeared from his sight. Xia was left standing there alone, confused by what transpired. He had so many questions. Now that they were back at the palace, Xia didn't know when he would see Osiris again. He didn't know when the sultan would tell him what was going on, and he highly doubted that Soraya would tell him the truth either. He would be left to ponder why Soraya insisted on taking Osiris away from him.

Not only that, but Xia was confused by his relationship with Osiris as well. The sultan couldn't have meant what he said, right? He didn't actually want to sleep with Xia. He only said those words to rile him up and it was working. Thinking about Osiris made Xia's heart pick up in beat and his face felt flushed. Xia kept replaying the words the sultan had said to him in his head.

Xia sighed. Teasing him like that was a dirty tactic and it almost made Xia forget his goal. He had to remind himself about why he was here. He couldn't afford to fall for Osiris.

With a heavy heart, Xia returned to his room for the night.