Chapter Twenty-Eight

On The Come

A situation where the player does not have a complete hand but hopes to make one if the right cards come up.

*

"That is a very large tub," Klaus said as he took in the deep whirlpool in the enormous master bathroom, the water swirling and bubbling away. He put his hand in to see how cold the water had gotten while they were eating, only to discover it was still hot. Then he noticed the temperature controls off to one side.

"I always pamper my guests," Dorian said from beside him. He watched the officer examine the controls and gauges a minute before asking, "Are you gonna look at it all night or are we getting in?"

Klaus turned to Dorian and suddenly felt very self-conscious at the thought of undressing in front of him. This was what he wanted, wasn't it? The whole reason he had thrown caution to the wind all those months ago and broken into Castle Gloria in the first place. But that was a phantom reality that had been driven home when his world ended the next day. A manufactured personality fine-tuned over--

Klaus blinked. Is he blushing?

Dorian had started to remove his own clothing and noticed the officer's steady gaze upon him, his expression one that he'd never seen before. Suddenly, he found he couldn't look at Klaus anymore.

"Dorian, are you blushing?" the incredulous Klaus asked.

"I'm embarrassed, okay?" Dorian snapped more harshly than he intended, his eyes flashing from the floor, to Klaus's face, and back down again.

"Embarrassed? You're the one who pulled me into a bath in Rome and then tried to take my clothes off!"

"I was playing a part!"

"You were also stark naked!"

"You weren't supposed to end up being gay!" Dorian countered defensively. The injured look that came to Klaus's face made him feel like a heel. If he'd punched him in the face again, he probably would've hurt him less. "Dammit, I can't say anything right! That came out completely wrong. Again!" His voice softened. "I'm sorry if I've burst your bubble, Maj--Klaus. This can't be what you were expecting when you broke into my room this past June."

Klaus drew a deep breath, admitting, "I don't know what I was expecting."

"Well, it can't've been finding out that Eroica isn't the seasoned lover everyone believes him to be."

"I think I prefer not being one of a long line of Eroica's lovers."

Dorian felt his breath catch. Lovers? We're barely even friends. "One step at a time," he said as he finished undressing. "Let's work on getting each other's first names right first."

* * *

"This isn't too hot for you, is it?" Dorian asked as Klaus eased himself into the tub. "I rather like my baths scalding."

Klaus shook his head. "It'll help keep our muscles from stiffening up after our...workout," he said as he sat opposite the Earl.

Dorian's eyes lit up. "I don't think I'm ever going to get used to you having a sense of humor."

"I've always had a sense of humor, you just never noticed."

"And you're a romantic, too."

Klaus gave a snort, waving the hand that was in the process of reaching for the soap. "I'm not a romantic. That's your jurisdiction."

"Rubbish. Only a romantic would break into someone's bedroom in the middle of the night to make a declaration of love."

Klaus had no reply to this, since he knew Dorian was right. He grabbed a washcloth and started to work on removing the grime that had dried onto his skin during dinner.

Dorian grinned and did the same. After a few minutes, he felt his heart in his mouth when Klaus said, "Turn around, I'll get the dirt off your back."

Klaus saw a nervous look pass over the Earl's face and rolled his eyes, sighing heavily. "What do you think I'm gonna do? Rape you? Jesus, and you called me homophobic!"

"I'm being ridiculous, aren't I?"

"Fuck, yeah, you're being ridiculous. This isn't some bloody porn film!"

Dorian could not help but laugh at this. He turned around, allowing Klaus to scrub his back, which, on reflection, felt wonderful. "If this were a porn film, we would've been going at it like weasels the moment we stepped into the house."

Klaus's reply was a snort of disgust.

"Everything would've been perfect," Dorian went on. "Two people knowing exactly what to do, exactly what to say, not stumbling over their own feet..."

"Like us."

Dorian turned to look at him. "Yeah, like us."

Klaus stopped what he was doing. "I don't want..." He drew a deep breath, unable to come up with the right words.

"Never mind what you don't want," Dorian said gently. "Tell me what you do want and I'll let you know if I can...um, accommodate you."

Fair enough. "I want...to hold you, if I may?"

Dorian's blue eyes grew wide. "Me or Eroica?" he asked pointedly.

"Whichever. Just once, please."

"Alright."

Klaus closed his eyes as Dorian leaned back against him. He shifted position so his legs were on either side of him and then wrapped an arm around his chest. Dorian laid his head against his shoulder as he gently stroked his hair.

"How's this?" Dorian asked.

"It's...nice."

Dorian drew a deep breath, and closed his eyes. It really was nice, now that he thought about it. To be held, feel protected. He put his hand on the arm across his chest while his hair was stroked. He didn't even realize he was absently stroking Klaus's leg with his other hand until he felt an unmistakable hardness beginning at his back. He sat up and turned, uncertain what to say.

Klaus silently studied the enormous blue eyes staring back at him. The pair sat this way for several seconds. Then Klaus put a hand beneath Dorian's chin and kissed him. When the other man responded, he was suddenly kissing him for all he was worth. He leaned forward, pushing Dorian back against the tub. A moment later, he was moving a hand downward over his slick body.

This took Dorian completely off guard. Before he knew what he was doing, he was struggling against the powerful grip. "No!" he gasped out the instant he broke free.

Klaus could not have looked more hurt if he had been physically struck. He practically recoiled to the other side of the tub, his eyes wide. He sat panting for breath a few seconds, the bewildered look on his face changing to one of shame. Then he abruptly climbed out of the tub, vanishing into the shower.

Dorian sat in a shocked silence as the officer disappeared into the shower. How could I be so stupid, sending the man such totally wrong signals? Some fantasy this turned out to-- Dorian blinked. No, not a fantasy. That's where I got it wrong. I'm not that Eroica.