MERTHUR (Escort) AU - Dating Mr. Right For All The Wrong Reasons
Chapter 13 now on AO3 (almost the whole chapter is NSFW) https://archiveofourown.org/.../52122565/chapters/162448282
The silence stretched, heavy with the day’s unspoken residue… Agravaine’s threat, the court order looming like a guillotine, the photo that had cracked their armor. Merlin felt it settle back in, a cold weight against the heat still pulsing in his veins. Arthur’s hand tightened on his shoulder, fingers pressing into the muscle, and Merlin met his gaze. Those blue eyes were softer now, stripped of their steely look, raw with something unguarded. Trust, maybe, or need.
It hit Merlin hard, a quiet ache blooming in his chest, sharper than the lust had been.
“You okay?” Merlin murmured, voice low, thumb brushing Arthur’s wrist where the pulse still fluttered.
Arthur exhaled, a shaky laugh ghosting past his lips.
“After that? Barely.” He paused, the grin fading, and his hand slid to Merlin’s neck, thumb tracing the damp hairline.
“It’s… a lot. Monday. Agravaine. I don’t doubt who I am, but he’s got a way of making me feel like I have to prove I'm worth it."
Merlin shifted closer, the sheets rustling, their legs tangling. “You don’t have to prove shit to him. You’re Uther’s son—anyone with eyes can see it. He’s just a vulture circling a throne he’ll never have.”
His fingers tightened on Arthur’s chest, grounding them both.
“We’ll bury him. Together.”
Arthur’s smile was small, tired, but genuine, his breath warm against Merlin’s forehead.