Tiberius dropped his hair brush, abandoning task of taming unruly ebony locks, and turned from his mirror when he heard the sound of horses approaching. He raced to the window, pulling aside the diaphanous curtain and peering down at the party which had come to a halt beneath, heavy sigh falling from lips upon recognition of visitor.
Gaius Claudius Glaber. A man he loathed above all but one other and yet, to who he owed strange debt. Debt to be repaid over and over in the only coin Tiberius owned. His body.
He squinted at the sun as he stared at the man below in attempt to gauge current disposition. Since accord had been reached between Glaber and his master, Tiberius had found it beneficial to know the man's mood in advance. Fair mood saw the Roman less aggressive, less demanding, made the encounter less difficult for Tiberius to bear. Foul mood saw the opposite and told him he should prepare himself for rough ride.
Alas, the man's back had turned quickly and Tiberius could discern nothing more about him than his presence. Better to be ready for the worst, he told himself, returning at once to his dresser to verify that he had sufficient quantities of healing herbs and ointments.
Satisfied that should the need arise, he could treat all but the most severe of wounds himself without having to await the arrival of a medicus, he took to his bed, arranging himself into a position he knew Glaber to find pleasing. One arm resting loosely on the cushion behind his head, one leg stretched out before him, the other bent at the knee, thighs slightly parted. With his free hand, he drew a thin blanket across his midsection, hiding his cock and balls from sight. It was a thing that suited them both. Glaber preferred to uncover him himself and Tiberius was content to let him do so as the blanket afforded him a few more seconds of precious dignity and more time to will his body into a state resembling arousal.
The second arm now joined the first behind his head. He drew in a deep breath and waited silently for his visitor to arrive, listening with an ever growing feeling of discontent as the footsteps on the stairs outside his door drew nearer.
At last, the door was thrown open.
"Praetor." He whispered in only half hushed tone, fluttering his lashes against his cheekbones and fixing a smile upon his lips that he knew did not reach his eyes. "Much time has passed since you last visited me. It had almost slipped memory how handsome you are."
Glaber's mouth curled into a smirk.
"An occupational hazard." He said, just a hint of cruelty in his voice. Tiberius felt colour rise in his cheeks, shamed by the Roman's taunt because it was true, in his profession forgetting the faces of the men who had fucked you was just such a hazard, albeit a necessary one if you yet whished to hold to sanity. Glaber removed his helmet, tossing it into a corner, then proceeded to remove the remainder of his armour and his tunic before taking to the bed, naked and already half hard beside Tiberius. "I however, am yet to be granted means with which to forget how utterly intoxicating you are."
Tiberius shivered, a discomforting chill had settled in the room, causing flesh to prickle and pulse to quicken.
"Am I to offer gratitude for the flattery, or apologies for same.?" He questioned, afraid that it should be the latter. On many occasion past, Glaber had expressed resentment towards Tiberius for awakening certain desires within him. On those occasion Glaber sought to fuck not simply for pleasure but also to punish, and it was becoming clear that this was to be just such an occasion.
"What do you think?" Glaber's response came in the form of another question, one Tiberius understood he was not expected to answer. "Your beauty haunts my every waking moment." The other man said, sliding a none too gentle hand over his hip and tugging away the blanket that covered him. What little interest Tiberius had willed his body to conjure, now waned in anticipation of cruelty, but the praetor quickly took him in hand, squeezing tightly until he began to swell once again. A whimper of pain rose in his throat but pride made him swallow it. The time would come soon enough when he could not hold back his cries, he would not allow Glaber the satisfaction of hearing them before then.
"I can no longer bring myself to touch my wife because of you." He continued, releasing Tiberius from grasp and moving to straddle the boy's stomach, hands slowly sliding over the smooth skin of his chest and settling at the base of his throat. Tiberius sucked in as much air as his lungs could contain, sensing that he might soon be deprived. "She grows dissatisfied with absence of my attentions, as does that pompous fuck she calls father on daughter's behalf." Tiberius could feel the praetors fingers twitching against the vulnerable flesh of his throat, then as he had feared their grip began to tighten. "Between them, they have the power to destroy all that I have worked to achieve and I fear they will soon conspire to do so, all because of you." His grip tightened further still, cutting of Tiberius' air supply completely. "You, who stands nothing but a worthless, filthy whore and yet can control a man's heart and mind simply by bringing his cock to hardness."
Panic gripped Tiberius. His hands grabbed frantically at Glaber's in desperate but futile attempt to free himself from hold. His head began to feel light, his vision burry, and he knew that if the Roman did not release him soon he would fall from consciousness, maybe even life and in spite of all he had endured in his short life, Tiberius was not yet ready to die.
"P, p…" He made attempt to plead for his life but there was not the breath in his body to see the plea into the world. It mattered not though, for suddenly the hand was gone from his throat and once again his lungs began to fill with air.
Coughing and gasping , Tiberius silently thanked the Gods for hearing his plea and allowing him to live yet one more moment, though the weight of the other man remained upon him, reminding him that danger yet lingered.
"Do you think it is easy for me?" He choked, his throat pained and raw, his voice hoarse "To so desire a man such as you? You said yourself, I am but a whore of no worth, and you a man of wealth and position. I know that you will never truly be mine, yet it does not stop me from wishing it so. It does not stop me from wishing that every hand that touches me and every cock that enters me is yours. It does not stop me yearning for you when I am alone in my bed at night."
The lie came easy to him. It was after all his profession, for didn't all men long to believe the whore in their bed truly desired them? Never before though, had the lie felt so necessary to survival. To have Glaber believe that his foolish desires were equally shared might be all that allowed him to continue drawing breath next time the man's resentment brought him to such rage.
Seemingly endless moments passed in which Glaber only stared at him. Tiberius did not dare to tear his gaze away, so he held it, as steady as he was able.
At last the Roman spoke.
"Prove it. Prove desire equally matched… Or see lie punished."
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