“Have you ever read Sailor Moon? Not watched the anime, but actually read the comics?”
Zachary looked up from his phone and blinked, as if trying to understand exactly what she meant by that. His eyebrows knitted together and he stared at her. “No… why? Should I?”
“In the first chapter Mamoru - that’s the main love interest for Sailor Moon - wanders around the city in a full blown tuxedo.” Raven pitched forward and rested her hands on his counter, smirking at him, as if making a point. “And I always thought it was odd, that in the middle of an average weekday, he couldn’t take off his damn tuxedo.”
Zachary’s face fell and he gave her a flat stare. “I take it that’s my queue to change?”
“Yep.” Raven reached for the celebratory glass of wine he had poured for her, leaning back in her chair with a smirk.
She watched as he rolled his eyes and disappeared into the back of his surprisingly modest apartment. She had half-expected some kind of ultra-modern, lavish penthouse, but Zachary seemed to live comfortably in a two bedroom condo by himself. Raven stood up and walked to the window, looking out at the skyline as she took a well-earned sip of wine.
Their mission had gone on for longer than either of them had been expecting, and after more than a few battle scars, drained powers, and nearly-lost lives, it was finally over. She let go of a breath she’d probably been holding for the past three months, and leaned back on her heels. Even if the reprieve was short, it still felt good to take a moment and not think about anything more than the soft rain outside the window and glow of the city lights.
“You look lost in thought.”
Raven jerked and she looked over at Zachary, who was standing in the doorway to his bedroom. Even though she teased him about his choice of formal wear as a costume, she realized she had never seen him out of his tuxedo. But here he was, standing in front of her in a pair of low-slung sweatpants and a long sleeve shirt with the sleeves pushed up around his elbows. Something strange turned over in her heart and she stumbled a half-step backward, as if her words had suddenly died in her throat.
“What?” Zachary looked down at himself, as if he wasn’t sure what she was seeing. “You told me to change.”
Raven found herself scrambling to make some kind of sense of her thoughts, and settled on a teasing jibe. Maybe it wasn’t the best choice for their conversation, but it made her feel like she had some kind of control. “I didn’t think you owned anything other than various tuxedos and white gloves.”
“Ha ha.” He rolled his eyes and walked past her to the kitchen. “You’re so funny.”
Raven winced and followed him through his living room, letting silence settle over them again. She really didn’t have a lot of room to talk. She was still wearing the same Kevlar-inforced uniform Cy had made her years ago, despite it not quite fitting anymore. Sometimes she felt like she was one bad spell from popping a seam open and spilling out of it. She just… she wasn’t ready to change yet. Change was hard, and so much around her had changed so suddenly, that she felt like she needed to hold onto this one thing just to keep herself together.
“You look lost in thought over there.”
Raven picked up her head to see Zachary watching her, his head tilted to the side. She flushed and looked away, taking a sip of her wine. He was frustratingly observant sometimes. “We just took down a meta trafficking ring that’s been terrorizing the city for months. I’m allowed to be tired… and quiet.”
“Yeah. I never said you weren’t.” He crossed his arms over his chest and pitched forward. “You look tense.”
She looked up into his eyes and felt like she could see flames and shadows dance there. Like he had created a spell that was pulling her closer and closer towards him, weaving them both together. Heat slipped down her spine and pooled just under her stomach before sliding lower, and her cheeks burned red.
Raven knew that only an idiot would fail to see how attractive Zachary was, and how sometimes he cast dark sideways glances at her, or how his hands lingered just a little longer against her skin than they should have. She had seen the way he looked at her, from beneath his stupid, thick lashes, and she knew that there was something between them. But change was hard, and it was unknown. And, admitting that she had grown feelings for him over these last few months was even harder. What was she supposed to say to him?
She pushed at her hair. “You look like you’re going to propose something?”
“Spend the night with me.”
He said it so simply without any kind of sugary words or caveats, just… spend the night with me. That was it. An open offer that she could take if she wanted, or ignore if it was too much. Raven blinked and watched as he walked to where she was sitting, his fingers circling her wine glass and pulling it from her hand. He set it on the counter and threaded his fingers through his own. She looked down at their hands, and realized she had never seen Zachary without his gloves. His fingers were long and slender, and there was something in the way he moved that made her realize he knew exactly what to do with those hands.
“I like you.”
Raven’s eyes widened and she slammed her hand over her mouth, shame filling her chest. Stupid. She was so damn stupid. Zachary wasn’t talking about starting a relationship, he was talking about something easy. Something they could both walk away from in the morning, and there would be no hurt feelings.
“Well, that’s convenient, because I like you too.” Zachary pulled her to her feet and leaned over her, pushing her hair out of her eyes. His fingers slid along the line of her jaw and he tilted her face towards him. “I just… I didn’t really know how to tell you for the longest time, so… I didn’t say anything at all.”
“How… how long?” Raven swallowed a breath and shifted, her heart threatening to escape her chest. “How long have you liked me?”
Zachary looked sheepish, and glanced away. “Years.”
Raven felt memories flood her mind - all the little moments they had spent together, the missions, the quiet days at a coffee shop, the late nights reading, small touches, long glances… everything suddenly seemed to be viewed in a different light. Her breath caught in her throat and Zachary rubbed at the back of his head, still unable to look at her.
“I didn’t want-”
She cut off whatever explanation was building on his lips with a kiss. It was chaste and cautious, but it was what they both needed - a reason to stop talking. Someone needed to make the first move, it might as well be her. Zachary let go of a low sigh that seemed to release every inch of tension in him, and he pulled her tight against his chest, deepening the kiss. His hands slid down her back, pushing her cloak out of the way to try and touch as much of her as he could. Raven’s fingers dug into the soft cotton of his shirt, and she chased after his mouth when he pulled away. Her head felt full of questions, but all of them could wait until later. She had more interesting things to think about, and Zachary seemed to agree.
“Bedroom.” His words were a low growl, and he grabbed her wrist, pulling her through the apartment to his room.
Raven barely had enough foresight to unfasten her cloak, letting it fall to the floor, before she found herself tumbling onto her back against his plush covers. Zachary was pressed tight against her, his mouth stealing kiss after kiss, until it felt like she didn’t even have a chance to breathe. The rest of the world faded away, leaving just the two of them alone together. Her head was spinning, and Raven found herself pulling off his cotton t-shirt, tossing it on the floor.
Oh. That was… not what she expected. Layers of finely crafted wool, neatly folded and tucked together, did not do his body justice. She took a moment to admire the sight of him.
“You should have just left the tuxedo off entirely.” Her hands slid down the lithe muscles of his chest, admiring the way he twitched under her touch. “I don’t mind this sight at all.”
Zachary leveled another flat stare at her. “Less talking, more making out.”
He swallowed her soft laughter with another kiss, hiking her leg up over his hip. Raven groaned as she felt the unmistakable bulge of his erection press against her, and she realized how long it had been since she had done this. Gods, she didn’t remember it ever feeling this good. It was like her body was on fire, each flame threatening to burst from her skin and singe them both, and she pushed against him, wanting more of that delicious friction.
His fingers traced aimless patterns along her bare thigh, before he slipped under the edge of her uniform. Raven pulled back from their kiss and stared into his eyes as she felt his fingertip part her and press against her clit. She shuddered, and let go of a groan that seemed to rattle her bones. How could one touch undo her like this, and make her feel like she was being tossing in a storm?
The sound of her own need broke Zachary, and he pitched forward, growling. “We need to get you the fuck out of this thing.”
Zachary’s hands were suddenly everywhere, unfastening her uniform and peeling it from her body before throwing it onto the floor, forgotten. It only took seconds, and she was laid bare to him, splayed out on his bed as she stared up into his dark eyes. She felt a bit like a sacrifice, and he was going to consume every inch of her throughout the night. Slowly, carefully, he crawled over her, pressing kisses to every inch of skin he could touch.
“I have never seen anything more beautiful in my life.”
Raven shivered as his long, almost delicate fingers dipped between her thighs again, and her head tilted back against the pillows. She let go of a soft moan, and let him explore her. His touches were slow, as if he was tryng to understand what she liked best, and how he could draw out this delicious torture for as long as possible. Raven pushed up into his hand as he slid two fingers into her, curling at just the right spot that had her back arching off the bed. She opened her eyes just enough to see a teasing smirk pass over his lips before his opened his mouth and dropped his head between her legs.
Oh fuck.
He was good at this. The last time someone had tried to go down on her it was messy and awkward, and obviously only reciprocation for receiving the same. But Zachary seemed to enjoy tasting her, and he seemed to know exactly what she wanted. His tongue worked against her clit in doubletime, flicking it and circling her, and then he wrapped his lips around her and sucked. Her whole body went white with pleasure, and she arched off the bed as magic sparked along her skin. Raven’s fingers buried into his hair, and she screamed as he worked her through the best orgasm of her life.
Gasping and shaking, she fell back against the pillows and sobbed, feeling like her entire soul was a mess of emotions. She ran a hand through her hair and wiped at the tears that had run down her cheeks, trying to calm her racing heart.
Zachary sat up and looked at her, concern flooding his eyes. “Are you alright? Did I hurt you?”
“No I’m fine. I just…” Raven was gasping, her whole body shaking, she threw her hand over her eyes, feeling like the light from the outside window was almost too much to bear. Had she always been this sensitive? Or did Zachary just know how to tease her the right way. “I just… haven’t ever… like that before.”
Zachary blinked, surprised at her admission. “Haven’s what? Come that hard?” His lip pulled back in some kind of mixture of confusion and disappointment. “What kind of half-assed partners have you had before, Raven? You’re so damn responsive it’s impossible not to read the signs of what you want.”
She flushed and looked at him from between her fingers. “Usually it’s just… me.”
“Oh.” There was a long pause as he seemed to turn that thought over in his mind. His face betrayed every single emotion and curiosity he had, as he leaned over her with a teasing smile. “I’d actually love to see that.” His teeth nipped at her earlobe, and he hummed against her skin. “Watching you pleasure yourself? Fuck. I can’t think of anything hotter right now.”
Raven’s hand fell next to her and tightened in his comforter, uncertain.
“Only if you want to.” He cupped her breast, his thumb feathering over her nipple. “Of course.”
Raven opened her eyes to slits and stared at him, still gasping. “You have voyeuristic tendencies don’t you?”
He teased her nipple into a tight peak before flicking it with his tongue. “I also have a showerhead that detaches.”
Raven’s hand was already releasing the soft comforter and sliding her fingers between her legs, feeling her whole body still twitching from her last orgasm. She let go of a soft sigh as she felt Zachary’s stare slide down her form to watch her own self exploration. “We’re going to be here all night, aren’t we?”
“Rae…” His voice sounded playfully indignant. “We’re going to be here all week.”