Chapter Text
It wasn’t the first time Jesper Fahey had been caught with cum glistening on his lips. Hell; it wasn’t even the first time Kaz had interrupted him kneeling at another man’s feet.
It was just that this time, Inej and Kaz together stumbled upon him in such delicate circumstances with a certain red-faced Wylan Van Eck, having entered through the front door of the young merchant’s mansion and made it to the music room before realizing anything was amiss.
As the leaders of the Dregs stared blankly at the two men, Jesper noticed the snowflakes melting in Inej’s scarf, and that her small hand was clasped in the black leather grip of-
“Are you holding hands?!” Jesper asked incredulously, while Wylan sputtered and hastily zipped his trousers. He accidentally slammed his hand on the grand piano’s ivory keys, and their minor chord rang loudly in the spacious, comfortably decorated room, accompanied by the cheerful crackle of flames from the fireplace.
“Evening Jesper, Wylan,” Kaz greeted breezily, nodding his head at them both. Jesper thought he detected a hint of annoyance in his tone. Clearly, Jesper was the one intruding on something, despite this being Wylan’s home.
Smooth as silk, he released his hold on Inej and took an inconspicuous step back. "Don't let me keep you; I was just leaving." He turned, tall and stiff as a tin soldier, and made for the door.
“Oh, boo!” a disembodied female voice objected, and was promptly shushed by an unseen man. Kaz halted in his tracks.
“Zenik!” He snapped without turning to face the curtain, where the two voices emanated. “You’re supposed to be working. I asked you to keep an eye on the Dime Lions tonight.”
Petulantly, Nina emerged from behind the room's curtains, flushed and giggly from drink with a clearly intoxicated Matthias close behind. Kaz’s eyebrows shot disapprovingly into his hairline.
“It seems I’m interrupting more than I bargained for,” he sneered, disdain dripping from every syllable: Kaz Brekker, the ultimate cockblock. “Were you just waiting for Inej to complete the party, then?”
Inej shot him an icy look; if he felt the temperature in the room drop a few degrees, he didn't show it.
Nina, dressed in a red silk robe that barely came to the top of her thighs, flipped her mane of thick brown hair over one shoulder. Worshipfully, Matthias watched the glossy strands fall messily over her ivory skin. “There’s an idea,” she retorted defensively, stepping in and taking both Inej's hands in hers, offering her a tender smile for a half moment before turning her evergreen glare back on Kaz. “Since you clearly don’t know shit about showing a girl a good time. I assume you can see yourself out?”
For one so tipsy, she was cuttingly eloquent.
“Of course,” Kaz replied, voice dangerously soft, the set of his expression deadly as he stared Nina down. Jesper was captivated by the abrupt tenseness in the room as the two enormous presences stood at odds. Nina, proud and tall with her eyes bright, plump lips kiss-bruised to a mauve; nearly naked and all the more powerful for it. Kaz was fully and impeccably dressed as ever, cane tucked into his elbow, hips and shoulders canted in a way that commanded keep your distance, or else to strangers and companions alike. He was a man with bones like blades under his paper skin, and a tongue capable of hurling words sharper than knives. Already Jesper couldn't say with certainty if his holding Inej’s hand had truly happened or was a figment of his imagination; was Kaz even capable of being so soft?
Nina was the first to break their stare, tipping her chin up with a defiant little huff of breath and a knowing smirk. “Of course, you're welcome to stay too, if you're not afraid.” Turning her back on him, she rolled her shoulders and let the red silk of her robe puddle like blood at her feet, revealing a sheer chemise underneath. Stepping easily from the ring of fabric, she approached Inej, flickering candlelight highlighting the pearly luminescence of her soft skin.
“What do you say, Inej,” Nina offered her friend, and leaned in for a moment, whispering something Jesper couldn’t hear into the other woman’s ear. Inej’s dark skin flushed, and she bit her lip as Nina pulled away. He held his breath; since he'd met her some years back, she'd never said yes to a night of fun. Neither a girl who gambled nor a woman who drank. Nobody in the Dregs had ever bedded her, and he knew the source of her reluctance. He wondered if he should step in and offer her an easy excuse to leave, but before he could do so she shocked him by nodding.
"I'll stay if Kaz stays."
Jesper and Wylan exchanged glances, and even Matthias craned his neck to take in Kaz's expression. The Druskelle looked back and forth from him to Inej as though waiting for a bomb to explode between them. Inej's face was set and determined when she turned to gauge the leader of the Dregs, who had eyes only for her.
He returned the stare, expression unreadable. "Is that what you want, Wraith?"
She nodded, and to the astonishment of everyone in the room, he walked to the velvet chaise lounge meant for guests, leaned his cane against the wall, and sat, folding his hands on his lap. "Then I’ll stay." As simple as that.
Wylan's jaw dropped, and without looking Jesper closed it for him with the back of his hand. It had been surprising enough when Matthias asked to be let in on their Thursday night parties. Kaz voluntarily lingering to watch the orgy was positively unthinkable, though Jesper couldn't deny that the thought of Kaz's eyes on him as he lost himself in pleasure sent a jolt of liquid electricity through his veins and straight to his groin.
"Well?" Kaz barked after an awkward moment of hushed blinking. "Carry on."
Wylan gave a nervous giggle, and everyone let out a relieved exhale as the ice was broken. Nina licked her lips as she watched Inej start to slowly undo the clasps on her vest. She waited until Inej gave a nod of assent before reaching for her, running her hands over the other woman’s trim waist and pulling her close. “You’re beautiful,” she told her friend softly, and ducked her head to kiss her.
Smiling into the kiss, Inej looped her arms around Nina’s neck, rising to her toes to match her height. When they broke apart, Inej had a wry grin crooking her mouth. “I’m beautiful? Have you looked in a mirror recently, Nina Zenik?”
Nina beamed, tipsy and delighted. “We are both stunning. Isn’t that right, Brekker?”
Kaz still looked uncertain. It wasn’t evident on his face- few things ever were- but Jesper saw it in how his arms were crossed, his good foot jiggling slightly. It wasn’t discomfort, exactly, but it was bordering on a slight anxiety. Nina’s question had him rolling his eyes.
“I might use another word.”
Something like hurt flashed briefly in Inej’s eyes; Nina promptly turned her back, flashing him a very rude gesture with her free hand. “Forget him.” She slid her fingers through Inej’s hair, the blue-black strands catching the light. “I want you, Ghafa.”
Inej enthusiastically dragged Nina down for a second kiss, this one far less chaste than the first. A strangled moan rose from somewhere inside Jesper’s chest as he watched them, and then it was Wylan’s turn to roll his eyes.
“Typical,” the merchant snorted affectionately. “Go on, you know you want to join in on the fun.”
Jesper cocked his head. “You don’t want to?”
“Not really my thing,” the younger man shrugged nonchalantly. “Girls are… well. But I love watching you.” He said this last bit in a rusty purr of promises to come, and heat burned anew in Jesper’s veins.
Dragging his boyfriend up by the collar of his shirt, Jesper licked a stripe up his pale, freckled throat. He savored the sight of pink roses blooming in Wylan’s cheeks before kissing him slowly, claiming his mouth and then lowering to nip his jaw. Wylan’s blue eyes had gone hazy by the time Jesper shot him a wicked grin and hopped from the piano bench, strolling to the girls with a sway in his hips. Teasing Wylan would never stop being fun.
“Mind some company?” he asked Nina and Inej when he reached them, lidding his eyes in a deliberately over-the-top way until they both giggled.
“I don’t know if you can keep up, Fahey,” Nina told him flirtily, taking his wrist and easily manhandling him until he was trapped between her and Inej, before playfully nipping his nose. Jesper’s smile dimpled and he reached around to squeeze her behind the way she liked, the ruby satin of her chemise bunching in his hands. She made a pleased sound, rolling her hips over his.
“You look lost, darling,” she said, and it took Jesper a moment to realize she was addressing Inej who, though she was still pressed to his back, hadn’t moved much. “You can speak up any time. A ‘no’ is always respected here.”
At this, Inej rested her forehead against Jesper’s shoulder, her arms tentatively reaching around him in a hug. “I know,” she said softly. “Thanks.”
Jesper turned to face her, a knuckle under her chin tilting her face to meet his eyes, and he gave her a grin. “Then c’mere,” he offered, and gripped her by the waist, hoisting her small frame into the air and giving her a kiss. She laughed when he spun her around, and carefully wrapped her strong legs around his waist.
“What do you want, pretty girl?” he asked, still smiling as he nuzzled her hair, letting kisses fall like shooting stars on a night sky. “Tonight it’s all about you.”
“Is it?” she countered playfully. “And if I said I wanted only to cuddle and nap?”
“Well, not to brag, but I am an excellent cuddler. Top notch. Truly stellar.”
“Liar,” Wylan stage-whispered. “He’s too squirmy to be any good at cuddling. And he always steals the blankets!”
“You wound me!” Jesper pantomimed a dramatic fall to the lushly carpeted floor, careful to keep Inej cradled to his chest as he did. “See! I’m cuddling now.” He rolled over Inej like two puppies in a basket, then let out an oof! as Nina flopped onto their pile and kissed Inej again.
Inej was laughing, sparkling, trying to keep up with the onslaught of kisses and affection. It was good to see her like this; even Kaz’s eyes had gone slightly soft when Jesper risked a glance at him, sitting like a king in his throne while his subjects gamboled at his feet.
The Suli girl had her arms and legs hooked around Nina as the larger woman licked warmly into her mouth, making an appreciative moan that had a hot thrill speeding up Jesper’s heart.
“You taste good, ‘Nej,” Nina mumbled.. She dragged her mouth over Inej’s cheek, then down her throat. “Sure you only want to cuddle?”
“Mm,” Inej replied thoughtfully from where she lay sprawled beneath them, hair mussed and dark eyes twinkling. She cupped Jesper’s cheek in her palm. “Maybe not just cuddling.” She tipped her head back to look at Kaz, and he met her eyes evenly, before he turned to look at Jesper.
“Rub her feet,” Kaz ordered- there was no mistaking it for anything but a command, his deep voice doing interesting things to the butterflies in Jesper’s stomach. “She deserves to have her feet rubbed.”
Obligingly, Inej folded her legs to her chest, undoing the laces of her winter boots, and Jesper was reminded all over again that if Kaz was king of the Barrel, then surely Inej was queen. Powerless to resist Kaz’s compelling tones, Jesper carefully slid her stockings down.
Inej’s feet were ugly things; too large for her petite frame, knobbly with prominent veins running throughout, and Jesper felt an almost embarrassing surge of affection for them. He held one in each hand and brought them together, grinning cheekily at her before ducking his head and kissing each sole. The noise of approval she made as he began rubbing his thumbs into them had Kaz shifting slightly in his seat.
Her face was flushed when he glanced up again and she reached for him, then hesitated.
“Go ahead,” he encouraged. “There’s no wrong answers. Trust me, if I don’t like it I’ll let you know.”
Looking more reassured, she lightly scratched her nails along his scalp, tingly and pleasant.
He took her small face between his large farmer’s hands, cradling her and then touching his mouth to hers. She tasted of Nina with the warmth of brown sugar. He drank her in deeply and pressed a hand to her lower back, bringing her compact length firmly against his body. When she abruptly stiffened, he immediately knew why: his erection was impossible to miss.
“Sorry-” he began, feeling like an ass, but then she kissed him again, quickly getting over her surprise.
“Don’t be.” She hitched a leg over his hip, and Jesper saw Kaz’s eyes darken. Returning Jesper’s heated gaze, Kas deliberately bit his lower lip, then smiled. It was a predator’s smile.
At the sound of Jesper’s moan, Kaz’s smile grew into a knowing smirk that sent equal parts panic and desire swooping through him.
He was distracted by Nina, pushy creature that she was. She had grown tired of being ignored. “Stop hogging Inej,” she complained, and wriggled her way between Jesper and the Wraith. “You look positively edible,” she informed her friend, and there was something foxlike in her bright eyes.
In response, Inej parted her knees, only an inch or so, but her intention was clear. It was so hot that Jesper bit back another moan and Nina gave a playful shimmy against his straining cock.
Nina’s smile was all teeth as she acquiesced, her mouth flush to Inej’s sternum as she rucked her tunic up, baring smooth bronzed skin and small breasts with satin-looking nipples. She brought her mouth to one and palmed the other, laving her tongue over a hardened nub. Inej’s toes curled against Jesper’s leg and her back arched, a pleasured sigh escaping her. Kaz’s eyes devoured them all, his crows tangled and panting before him, as though he’d been starving all his life and was finally presented with a feast. Jesper wondered wildly if those impossible eyes of his would sear them all to a crisp if they kept burning so intensely.
Bending, Jesper sensuously kissed the pale skin of Nina’s shoulderblade, tracing the generous curve of her hip with one hand. He suckled softly at the pulse point of her throat and she tilted her head for him, though he knew not to leave a mark. He’d made that mistake only once, and Matthias had been grumpy for weeks.
He moved with her, fluid as water, as she slid down the length of Inej’s body, pink tongue kitten-licking over her navel and pearly teeth nipping at the soft skin of her lower belly.
“Awfully good at this,” Jesper murmured into her ear, admiring her technique.
Pleased with the compliment, and being a total show-off, she reached behind herself and expertly palmed Jesper through his trousers even as she guided one of Inej’s knees over her shoulder.
“Fuck, Jesper whined, unable to stop his hips from jerking. She managed to unbutton his trousers left handed while mouthing over the damp patch on Inej’s plain cotton panties. This was overwhelming; his brain was short-circuiting with the visual and physical stimulation. They’d messed around together before but this, coupled with the ever-watchful eyes of the others, was something new and exciting. “Fuck, Zenik.”
“I’m good,” she replied with a smug shrug, all too pleased with herself, and then lightly tugged at Inej’s panties with her teeth, shifting them to the side and taking a long swipe with her devil’s tongue.
Soundlessly Inej bucked, legs flying apart and head falling back until it thumped the floor. Kaz had already half-risen from his seat, concern in the set of his brows, before Jesper quickly placed a hand under her head for cushion. Glaring meaningfully, Kaz sat back down.
Inej didn’t seem to notice. Her fingers pulled at Nina’s hair, drawing her closer.
“Saints, Ghafa, who knew you were so demanding,” Nina teased with a chuckle, and rubbed the flat of her tongue against Inej’s slit as toned brown thighs clenched around her. She’d freed Jesper from his trousers and was gripping him firmly, rubbing slow circles over the head of his cock with her thumb. Not to be outdone- though the distraction was considerable- he nipped at her jaw and pressed a palm to her belly in a way he knew made her pulse jump.
Inej had lost herself in the press and tug and slide of Nina’s sinful tongue and was shuddering as she unraveled under the talented hands massaging her breasts and tugging her nipples. Her cries were soft, but one hand pulled Nina’s hair with increasing fervor while the other dug into the carpet as she fought to hold on, to stay grounded. When Nina’s hand slackened, Jesper lost all decorum and palmed himself, jerking off as he watched the two.
Inej’s whine as she came was high and pure and Kaz’s eyes darkened to blackest night at the sound. Nina sat back with a very pleased smile on her face, her mouth and jaw glistening and dewy.
Inej was shaking, thighs twitching, ribs prominent as she panted to catch her breath. Nina leaned up to nuzzle the side of her neck, murmuring softly and working her down with two fingers until she became too sensitive and put a hand down to stop her. Jesper caught only pieces of words- ”did so good,” and, ”looked so beautiful,” and finally, ”Thanks for trusting me, ‘Nej. I’m honored.”
Inej’s breathing began to even out and a tall figure strode past Jesper, reaching down and taking Nina’s hand. She locked eyes with Matthias and a wordless exchange passed between them, before his hands were on her shoulders and he’d knocked her back in play-aggression, sucking the taste of Inej from her cheekbone.
“Saints!” Jesper exclaimed, a grin on his face as he dragged himself and Inej closer to Kaz to get out of their way. Matthias and Nina appeared almost to be wrestling with anger rather than lust, and Matthias’ grunt was more than half pained when Nina sank her teeth harshly into his neck. She managed to get the upper hand, perching astride the Fjerdan’s hips and rocking with a triumphant and bloody smile.
His large hands nearly wrapped around her thick, creamy thighs, fingers pressing so hard they’d surely leave bruises. It seemed he’d succumbed to being ridden until, with a huff of effort, he rolled them both over again and dragged her back by the hips, the muscles in his torso and arms bunching.
Nina squealed, but there was no mistaking the smirk on her face when Matthias rucked her chemise to her waist- she wore no panties- and delivered a sound smack to her glorious bottom. Her flesh rippled, then pinked, and she arched her back with a throaty moan in a clear invitation for more.
Jesper had quite forgotten himself, so distracted was he by the sight of Nina Zenik’s magnificent bare bottom receiving a sound spanking from the appealingly debauched and muscle-bound Matthias Helvar. He felt he could hardly be blamed for this lapse; the image would be keeping him warm on cold nights for years to come.
He was brought back to the present by the faintest twitch of Inej’s knee under his hand. Shit. She was always so quiet and still, always just a breath from disappearing. When he looked into her eyes, he saw uncertainty. Tonight wasn’t a night for her to pull a vanishing act. Tonight, Jesper wanted to help his friend shine.
“Hey Wraith,” he greeted with a soft, sincere smile meant just for her. Her wide-set doe eyes, heavily fringed with their lacey lashes, blinked in surprise, skin still flushed with the afterglow of an intense orgasm.
Reaching, Jesper gently tucked an errant strand of dark hair behind her small, perfect ear. “What do you say I continue where Nina left off?” he suggested, voice low. “I could watch you cum all night long.”
Jesper liked going down on people; it didn’t matter what was between their legs as long as he liked whomever he was pleasuring. On the likely possibility that he’d never again get this opportunity, he wanted his friend to have a night to remember.
To someone who didn’t know her, hadn’t spent years fighting by her side, watching her back, celebrating victories and mourning losses great and small together with the quiet and softspoken Inej Ghafa, the tells wouldn’t have been so obvious. They might have missed the subtle change in her mood. But not Jesper: he saw it in the set of her mouth, the curl of her shoulders. A man’s face- his face- between her thighs was just something she didn’t want. It was too much, too fast.
“Okay,” he said simply, and continued to smile. It was okay. He felt a pang of disappointment, but it was only for his ego. “Hey,” he spoke quietly so not even Kaz could overhear. “I love you.”
A pleased little smile quirked Inej’s lips. “I love you, too!” she responded. “I trust you.”
The words made warmth bloom in Jesper’s chest. He knew their love was a love between friends, and he was thrilled by the confirmation. But to be trusted by the Wraith was a humbling, almost unheard of honor. “Show me what you want?” he suggested, voice a little hoarse with sudden emotion.
In response, Inej stood, stripping off her remaining clothes and then carefully settled onto Jesper’s lap, facing Kaz. She was petite but toned, skin the color of new pennies. She was pleasantly solid to hold.
Jesper automatically shifted his limbs to accommodate her, sweeping her curtain of hair out of his face and wrapping an arm loosely around her waist. He glanced at Kaz, who was watching them quietly, though his eyes burned a strange new fire that was hard to look at directly, like staring into the sun.
Inej took Jesper’s hand in hers and guided it between her thighs, resting her head back against the sharpshooter’s shoulder.
Jesper smiled, letting his lips brush the top of her head so she could feel it. “I’ll stop any time you want me to,” he reminded her, and though she said nothing her shoulders relaxed comfortably against his chest.
She was wet from Nina’s mouth and her own interest alike, and she let out a quiet breath when Jesper’s fingers ghosted over her, learning the shape of her.
“I would kiss you right now,” Kaz surprised them both by admitting. “If I could.”
Jesper was stunned. Kaz had never before openly voiced this weakness; it was always a topic he denied or avoided entirely. What was it Nina had said earlier? I am honored.
Jesper felt honored to be included in this small piece of Kaz’s trust.
“I’ll do it for you,” he told his leader, and Inej turned her face so that he could give her Kaz’s kiss.
“What else would you do to me?” Inej asked, and surprise, then arousal, flashed on Kaz’s face.
“Everything,” he said, voice deep and rasping. “I’d-” But here, words failed him. His eyes met Jesper’s, for the first time since he could remember showing a hint of true vulnerability. Kaz Brekker didn’t know what it meant to touch another human being. He’d locked himself away for so long that this was completely new territory. Jesper wanted to help, to give him the experience as best he could manage.
“Would you taste the salt on her curves?” he asked his leader, and leaned in to lick the side of Inej’s throat. “Tease her skin just to watch the goosebumps form?” Stroking lightly over her belly and thighs yielded just such a result. “Feel the softness of her breasts, perfectly sized for your palms?” He demonstrated that they were indeed so by massaging them, and her back rolled like a cat’s.
“I,” Kaz wet his lip with his tongue, eyes hungrily tracking Jesper’s movements. “Yes.”
“She’s wet, Kaz,” Jesper said daringly, his hand slipping back to the small woman’s cunt. “So wet. You can hear how ready she is, how easily you can slide your fingers inside her, how they squeeze tight around you, wanting you to stay.”
When he worked his long index and middle fingers into her, she arched her back, legs falling open and pressing to the inside of Jesper’s.
“She’s hottest here,” he explained as he fingered her open, working her over. “Burning, almost. It makes you want to bury yourself inside of her, fuck her until you can’t tell where she ends and you begin.”
Inej’s back bowed, face flushed and mouth forming a high moue of want as Jesper crooked his long fingers inside of her, pressing and thrusting. He crooked them until he stroked a spot that had her eyes wide, her chest heaving.
“Kaz,” Inej mewled, panting as her hips thrust to match Jesper. “Kaz... “
The bastard of the Barrel watched her longingly, a new sheen to his eyes and a furrow on his brow.
“Yes, love?” He murmured, and oh. Jesper had never heard Kaz’s voice like that before; molten lava that caused Inej to buck frantically on Jesper’s fingers with a keening whine.
She seemed unable to voice her request, but Kaz’s lips twitched in a knowing smile.
“Does Jesper feel good inside of you, Wraith?” He rumbled in the same new, darkly honeyed tone. “Stretching you open like that for me to watch? Aching for me…”
His words only stirred her passion; her hole was twitching around Jesper’s fingers, dripping and close. He had to grip her waist tighter to keep her from squirming right off his lap and flying away.
“I could watch you like this forever.”
The words were for Inej, Jesper knew it, but Kaz’s eyes met his when he said this. It had become all mixed up somehow: the three of them making love together. Jesper felt powerless to resist Kaz’s bitter coffee stare. He’d always been drawn by power, and Kaz held more in his voice than most men had in their whole bodies, their whole lives.
Inej came with Kaz’s name on her tongue and Jesper’s thumb on her swollen clit. The leader of the Dregs watched it all, drinking in the sight of her small breasts heaving, of Jesper’s long, strong arms holding her tight. For a moment, the only sound in the room was of her trying to catch her breath.
Then...
“Are you going to come for me, too, Jes?” Kaz asked quietly.
Jesper’s heart flew into his throat and his cock jerked, and then like the firing of a gun he too was coming wet and sticky and hard in his own pants, seeing stars. He didn’t know if he was crying Kaz’s name out loud or if it was just his very blood singing the word again and again.
Kaz’s face was temporarily an open book, and as Jesper came down he stared, transfixed. He'd seen Kaz give genuine smiles before, and that was rare enough for him to recall each occasion.
This was different. Not quite a smile, but his normally harsh and sharp eyes were soft. Not just on Inej, but on all of them, on all his crows. He looked over Matthias and Nina, curled into each other like cats in a basket, and when Wylan gave him a cheerful wave, Kaz's mouth twitched in a fond grin.
He loves us, Jesper realized as he panted, giddy and a little in love with them all. The thought was like liquid light warming him from the inside. He knew it, and he knew he'd never be able to doubt it again.
Already Kaz was putting himself back together. Jesper had never seen him do it before and it was so subtle it was hard to account for each minute change. The squaring of the shoulders, the straightening of the neck, the focusing of his eyes. Like an actor putting on stage makeup, the softened Kaz from the instant before was soon unrecognizable.
In his arms, Inej sat up and reached for her discarded tunic, and Jesper shifted to give her space. She cleared her throat nervously, having returned to her senses a bit and feeling unsure whether anything had changed.
Jesper solved her uncertainty by placing an obnoxiously loud, wet kiss on her cheek while sticking a damp finger into her ear; she laughed in surprise and batted at him. "Ew! Gross, Jes!"
In front of the fireplace, dozing Nina stirred. "Th’party over?" she slurred, pushing hair from her face and stretching luxuriously. "I'm exhausted."
Matthias continued snoring like a bear and she rolled her eyes, but settled back against his side. Wylan, blanket and cushions in his arms, went to tuck them in. They usually ended up staying the night after these parties anyway.
"It was nice to have you here, Kaz and Inej," Nina mumbled, closing her eyes with another yawn. "Should come back next time."
Inej was standing on slightly shaky legs, and Jesper stood with her, keeping a steadying hold on her arm. At Nina’s invitation, Kaz glanced sharply at Jesper.
If you want to, The sharpshooter conveyed with a shrug, though he doubted they'd be taken up on the offer.
Kaz jerked his chin, a nonverbal, maybe. Jesper tried not to feel disappointed.
Inej reached and took Kaz's gloved hand in hers. "Will you stay tonight?" she asked. Clearly Jesper wasn't the only one hoping for more than Kaz was able to give.
"I can't," he said, though Jes heard the regret in his voice. "I have work. Goodnight, Wraith."
He made for the door, but was stopped when Inej wouldn't release his hand. He considered her wordlessly, then came close, his lips touching her forehead like the tiniest flutter of a moth’s wings before he quickly stepped back again.
"What, no kiss for me?"
He’d meant for it to sound comedic- silly old Jesper, always lightening the mood for everybody!- but something got lost in translation from his brain to his lips. Even to his own ears his words sounded sad, and he cringed hard at himself. Kaz was looking at him. Shit, he was looking, he was probably annoyed again, and-
Inej stood on tiptoe to give Jesper a full, lingering kiss on the mouth. “That’s from Kaz,” she explained.
Stunned, the only thing Jesper could think to ask was, “Kaz Brekker would give me tongue?!”
“Goodnight!” Kaz said with vehemence , and before anyone could react he was out the door, cane tapping loudly on the wooden hallway before abruptly ceasing. Jesper gawked after him. Had his ears been red? Wonders never ceased.
A faint smile graced Inej’s lips when Jesper turned to face her. “I think that was good,” she said thoughtfully. “For me. For him. Thanks, everyone.” She touched Jesper’s shoulder lightly before also entering the hallway, turning to the staircase that lead to her bedroom.
Wylan was standing much closer than Jesper expected, and he jumped a little, his hand flying to cover his lips where Kaz's kiss still burned. "Wylan!"
The merchant's son raised an eyebrow, arms folded firmly over his chest. Jesper's heart fluttered nervously and he stammered. How could he possibly explain to his boyfriend what had just happened?
"So," Wylan said, casually leaning his shoulder against the wall. Jesper gulped. Out of everything that had happened that night, being not-kissed by Kaz felt the most blasphemous. "Have you figured yourself out yet?"
"Huh?" Jesper squeaked, and Wylan rolled his eyes.
“Jes, don’t play dumb. Everyone knows you’ve had a Ketterdam-sized crush on Kaz for years.”
“Everyone?!”
“Everyone,” Nina yawned. Matthias snored agreeably.
Jesper sighed. His instincts were telling him to hide the soft point of vulnerability, to wear his poker face even when the cards were bad. He ignored them. “That… Yeah. Are you mad?”
“That you sometimes like them tall, dark, and moody? Not really.” Wylan glanced pointedly at the stain on Jesper’s trousers. “But you do need a bath. And I need some attention.”
Jesper gazed adoringly at his boyfriend, then grabbed him in a bear-hug, yanking him off his feet as he squeezed him hard. “I love you so much,” he said, overwhelmed with how understanding his boyfriend was. “I love you so, so much. You’re the best boyfriend in the country- the world! I promise I won’t steal all the sheets anymore, and-”
“Yeah, yeah,” Wylan snorted, but he was giggling. “Bath. Now. You smell.”
“And don’t use all my good soap this time!” Nina ordered as they ran off unheedingly, her words lost in the stampede of feet. Rolling her eyes, she nestled more comfortably into Matthias’ side with a smile. Her friends were morons; she loved them dearly.
…