[Is it so bad, he asks, and it makes something flip in his chest. He knows this is, and will never be, close to any regular love affair. They will not whisper sweet nothings to each other, hold hands on romantic dates, sit together in a sort of marital bliss. This is not what this is for. And yet, Silco says something like that, and the tender part of his heart reacts in kind, like its seeing a mirage it believes too much in. He desires me, too. He wants me, too.]

Ha. [Comes the low exhale, rumbling in his chest like a purr. Time to open his present - he is glad for no tie, as he moves to unbutton his shirt and vest to shuck them off, discard them to the floor. It's a bit of a bend, but he will lean the man back a little so he can steal a dotting line of kisses down to his clavicle.] I am. I would call my indulging a punishment. This guide can't wait to see how much you have to cover your old bones up at the end of it all.

[To punctuate that, he gives the area he's kissing a little harsh bite. Just because.]