Forbidden Gaze
In the shadowed underbelly of the coliseum, Guard Maximus pressed his broad back against the rough stone wall, pretending to inspect his spear. In truth, his eyes were fixed on Asterion, the undefeated minotaur champion, who was washing blood from his massive frame in the prisoners’ bathing area.
The minotaur’s muscles rippled beneath his fur, water cascading down the powerful curve of his back and down the cleft of his massive rump. Maximus swallowed hard, suddenly his armor felt too tight.
Asterion turned, catching the guard’s gaze. Their eyes locked.
“Enjoying the show, human?” The minotaur’s voice rumbled like distant thunder.
Startled Maximus dropped his spear with a clatter that echoed through the chamber. He abruptly bent over to retrieve it, causing his uniform tunic to ride up excessively, fully exposing curves of his muscular backside.
The minotaur’s nostrils snorted and flared. His impressive bullhood stirred visibly.
“The gods have a twisted sense of humor,” Asterion murmured, taking a step forward as Maximus straightened, cheeks burning. “A guard and his prisoner…”
“Impossible,” Maximus whispered, yet he didn’t back away when the minotaur’s massive hand reached toward his face.
Their fingertips touched, sending electric heat through both bodies. Outside, the crowd roared for blood, but here, in this forgotten corner, something tender and forbidden bloomed.
“Tomorrow, they expect me to kill again,” Asterion said, his breath warm against Maximus’s ear. “Tonight, perhaps we could live instead?”
The key ring on Maximus’s belt jingled as he trembled, caught between duty and desire, between the man he was supposed to be and the one standing before him, offering another kind of “liberation” entirely.
