by Shawn Lane
“Sure was.” Edward looked away, his gaze straying to the street. “You being a lawyer and all, my jobs must seem lame and uninspiring.”
Jim held up his hands. “Not at all. What you want to do for a living is entirely up to you and no judgment here. Life brings everyone a series of choices, and whatever each one of us chooses is right for them. That’s all that matters.”
Edward returned to smiling. “I’m not…I mean, I’ve never been into school, college, that kind of thing. And I guess I’m used to a lot of judgment from others.”
“People are definitely judgey.”
“You going back to LA for Christmas to spend it with Hope?”
Jim sighed and shook his head. “I wanted to, but we just decided, with me moving, it’s not practical. There will be other Christmases and Hope won’t likely remember this one anyway.”
“But you will.”
Jim decided a change of subject was in order. “So, since Nolan’s not your boyfriend, are you, um, seeing anyone?” Very smooth.
“No, no one.” Edward’s tongue traced his bottom lip. Jim instantly remembered that habit from their brief time together. It was sexy then, and now, by God, it seemed sexier still.
What the hell? Why not take a chance? He was in Sutter’s Bay to start a new life.
“I’d very much like to see you, if you’re interested,” Jim said.
For a moment, Edward stared wide-eyed at him, and Jim convinced himself he’d gotten it all wrong. He even began to open his mouth, as if to take it back or something.
“If I’m interested?” Edward finally said. “Are you kidding? Of course, I’m interested.”
Jim couldn’t stop himself from smiling. “Yeah? I mean, that’s great. Are you—are you available tonight?”
“I have to work at the store until five-thirty.”
“But after?”
Edward smiled and took another sip of coffee. “No plans.”
Jim drummed his fingers on the table. It wasn’t as though they were strangers going on their first date or anything, so he didn’t see why he couldn’t jump right ahead. He’d never been terribly shy anyway.
“How about coming over and I’ll cook dinner. We can watch something after. Maybe a Christmas movie.” He laughed.
“I love the sound of that. I’d like to go home and change first, so what time?”
“Hmm. Say seven. That should give you time, right?”
“Perfect.”
“Let me give you the address.”
Edward shook his head. “I know where the chief’s mother lived. Everyone here knows.”
“Small town?”
“Yeah, kind of. So, sure, see you at seven.”
* * * *
Jim hoped he hadn’t overdone it. But he hadn’t had a real date since he’d split up with Mavis, and he had always liked Edward.
Their relationship had been hot while it lasted. There’d been frequent sex. They’d had a great time together. But in the end, neither of them had been ready to settle down with any one person. Jim had been the one to finally say that their time together had run its course, and no doubt about it, it had been difficult because he had liked Edward so much.
They’d been friends first, then moved to sex. And when the sex was over, unfortunately, so was the friendship, and Jim was sorry for that.
Never in a million years had he expected to run into Edward in Sutter’s Bay, of all places. And yet, here they were.
He’d decided to serve Chicken Cordon Bleu because he knew how to make it taste really good, and he’d made it so many times it was easy for him, yet generally impressed his dates. Then he’d rethought it at least half a dozen times because maybe Edward didn’t eat meat. Sure, he had years ago, but people changed. He’d hoped that Edward would’ve said something if he was vegetarian, though.
He prepared a salad, too, then decided to make eggnog and gingerbread trifle. He’d never attempted it before, though, which was the problem. What if it turned out terrible? And he didn’t have those tiny store-bought gingerbread men cookies to lay on top.
Edward arrived promptly at seven just as Jim was pouring glasses of Pinot Grigio. He set the full glasses on the dining room table and rushed to the door.
For a moment, his breath caught in his throat. Edward looked like he had just showered, with his hair still damp and his skin vaguely scrubbed red. He wore low-slung jeans and a burgundy pullover sweater. It went great with his coloring and made Jim want to skip dinner and go straight to eating Edward.
“Hi.”
“Hell, Edward. Come on in.”
As he had predicted, the wind had strengthened in the afternoon, and though it had mostly died down, the chill still clung to the air. Wisps of fog appeared behind Edward as he stepped into the house.
“Nice and warm in here,” Edward said.
“Not too warm, I hope.”
“Perfect.”
“Before we go to the table, I guess I’d better introduce you to Butters.”
“Uh, Butters?”
“My cat.” Jim brought Edward to the large orange tabby lounging across the hearth. “Butters. Edward.”
Edward crouched next to Butters. The cat flicked his tail. “Hey, kitty. Aren’t you pretty?” He held out his hand and Butters didn’t do a thing. Edward gave him a pat across his back just under the neck.
“He’s harmless. Mostly.” Jim gestured toward the table. “Come make yourself at home. I hope you like Pinot Grigio.”
“I do.” Edward sat down and grabbed one of the glasses.
“Have you been here before? To Mrs. Sweet’s house?”
“No. But the chief talks about it. About her.” Edward half-smiled. “The Sweets were well known here. Forever, I guess. He’s been talking about selling the house but I think it has a lot of sentimental value to him. But he lives with Danny, so who knows.”
Jim looked around at the small house. The front part was made up of the kitchen and dining room; neither room had been redone in years, if ever. He was pretty sure he remembered Jason saying that his family were the original owners.
The living room had one double-pained window facing the street with a view of the sea. The house stood only a block from the beach, most definitely its greatest appeal. Jim had purchased an artificial pre-lit tree, and he’d set it up in front of the window. The lights were on, but he hadn’t added any decorations yet. Nor had he put up the outside decorations.
The house had three back bedrooms and one bathroom. Nothing fancy and maybe even a little sad, really, as Jason had told him some pretty bad stories of his life here, but for some reason, Jim liked it. A lot.
“I’m hoping Jason will sell it to me, in time,” Jim admitted. “I like it here. But we’ll see. I’ll be right back with dinner.”
Jim plated the chicken and filled two bowls with salad, then snatched up the bottled ranch dressing. He brought everything to the table.
“Oh, my God, it smells incredible.”
“Hope you like it,” Jim murmured.
Edward cut off a piece of chicken, popped it in his mouth, chewed, and swallowed. “Like it? That’s fantastic. Maybe you should be Mabry’s chef.”
Jim chuckled as he felt himself blush. “It’s definitely one of my signature dishes. It’s supposed to impress.”
“Oh, I’m impressed all right. I don’t remember you cooking for me before.”
“I didn’t.” Jim hid behind his wineglass. “Wasn’t that kind of relationship.”
Edward smirked. “You mean it was all sex.”
“Sorry.” He laughed again. “Not exactly but—”
“Pretty much. Don’t worry, I’m not offended. It wasn’t right for either of us at the time. No one’s to blame,” Edward assured him. “Well, you are! For not making me this.”
Jim was pretty sure his eyes were shining. “I have now. Where are you living, by the way?”
“I’m renting a room with Heloise.”
Jim arched his brows. “Helois
e?”
“The lady who owned the ruined salon.” Edward shrugged. “When I came to Sutter’s Bay, I had nothing. Things had gotten pretty bad in LA.”
“Bad?”
Edward lowered his gaze for a moment, then raised his dark eyes to look at Jim. “I had an abusive boyfriend. It was bad for a while and it took me a long time to get up the courage to leave, and I thought of Sutter’s Bay even though I hadn’t lived here for a long time. So I came anyway, but I had nothing. Knew no one, really. Some people remembered my folks, but only vaguely. I had a rainbow mohawk, rings in my eyebrows and nose, tattoos—”
“You have tattoos?”
“A couple.” Edward lifted his shirt and pushed down the left side of his jeans to show one on his hip—a small sword. Then he pulled aside his collar to show an eagle on his shoulder, rather small, too.
“Huh. Did they hurt?”
“Yeah. Duh.” He laughed. “So I walked into that salon and I begged Heloise for a job. She had advertised for a stylist.” Edward’s grin widened. “She thought I was there to apply for that job. But honestly, I just wanted something. I did her hair as my audition, of sorts. She loved it, and me, and hired me on the spot. Eduardo.”
“What?” Jim burst out laughing.
“It had more drama. Heloise is all about drama. If you ever meet her, you’ll know.”
“If she’s important to you, I hope I do get to meet her.”
Edward moistened his lips again. “Looks like you’re starting to decorate for Christmas.”
“Got the tree up, anyway. I got some ornaments at your store. I have lights and stuff for outside.”
“Want me to help put up the ornaments after dinner?”
“You’d do that?”
Edward shrugged. “I would. There’s something sweet about you decorating for Christmas when you don’t even really know anyone here.”
“I like Christmas. And I know you.”
Edward’s gaze grew intense. “Yeah. You do.”
Chapter 5
Edward was in a festive mood. Yeah, okay, maybe three glasses of wine had something to do with it. But he thought it was more likely because of the Christmas music Jim had put on after dinner as they prepared to decorate the inside of the house. It really was a sweet little place, and Edward found himself hoping Jim would get to stay there.
Besides the music, Jim had lit a three-wick candle from one of those bath shops that smelled like baking gingerbread. And honestly, that eggnog and gingerbread trifle Jim had made was still warm in Edward’s tummy. It had been a great night so far.
Edward found himself sneaking glances at Jim when the other man wasn’t looking. His profile was perfect. What would they call that? Roman or something. And more than once Edward had found himself lost in those killer sapphire eyes.
“Want some cocoa?” Jim asked as he hung a series of hand-painted Christmas balls decorated with holly leaves and reindeer.
“Maybe later. I’m still buzzed on wine.” Edward held a box of glass ornaments meant to appear like icicles.
Butters watched them from his perch by the fireplace but he didn’t offer any help.
“I didn’t get too many ornaments,” Jim admitted. “When I was a kid, Mom sort of got a new set of ornaments every year, to add to the collection, you know, and I kind of thought of doing that with my own tree.”
Edward smiled. “That’s a really nice thought. I don’t remember you talking much about your childhood. Was it a good one?”
Jim nodded. “I grew up in an LA suburb called West Hills. My dad was a cop.”
“Yeah?”
“A good one. Mom worked in insurance. I had three brothers and two sisters.”
“Big family.”
Jim shrugged. “It seemed so when I was a kid, but not so much now. One of my brothers was killed in a car accident when he was in high school.”
“Oh. God, I’m sorry.” Edward realized they’d never really talked about any of this when they’d known each other before. It was like they’d known even then it would all be temporary.
“It was really hard at the time. I was just a kid. Anyway, other than that, we had a lot of love, a lot of closeness.”
“How were they about you being bisexual?”
“Okay. I mean I’ve never hidden that I like both genders.” Jim sighed. “I think they were kind of relieved when I married Mavis, though.”
Edward smiled. “That’s pretty common. Being supportive except when it stares them in the face. No offense.”
“None taken.
“Where are they all now? I mean, here you are alone in Sutter’s Bay for Christmas.”
“Mom and Dad retired to Florida. One sister moved to Hawaii with her military husband. My other sister lives in North Carolina with hers. One brother lives in San Diego, living the free surfer bachelor life. And my younger brother’s still in LA.” Jim shrugged. “He’s got a girlfriend and her family to spend Christmas with. We haven’t had a family Christmas together in many years. What about you, Edward?”
“It’s hard for me to hide being gay and my family wished I could.”
Jim made a face. “Bad?”
“Not the worst, no. But they definitely liked the idea of ‘don’t ask, don’t tell.’ They’re happy knowing I exist but I don’t spend a lot time with them. And there’s just my sister and me, no other kids.’
“And she feels that way, too?”
“Pretty much,” Edward whispered. “She prefers I didn’t spend much time around her kids. Doesn’t want the gayness to rub off or something.”
“Edward, God. I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be. I’m okay with it. I don’t lose a lot of sleep over it.”
Jim had moved closer and now stood almost directly in front of him. Those sapphire eyes were so focused on him that Edward began to feel warm all over and it was definitely not from the wine.
“Do you—”
“Yes,” he whispered.
Jim laughed huskily and took away the last few inches between them. He raised his hands to Edward’s face, framing his jaw. He touched his lips to Edward’s in a tentative kiss.
Far too tentative as far as Edward was concerned. He opened his mouth and pressed into the kiss. He slid his hands up the other man’s muscular arms. Jim wore a long-sleeved, soft, flannel shirt, but Edward easily felt those biceps.
It had been a long time for Edward, longer for him and Jim, and maybe he shouldn’t jump right into sex, but there was a familiar taste to Jim’s lips that he couldn’t resist. He didn’t want to, anyway.
Edward deepened the kiss and he found himself moving them to the nearest wall, pushing Jim flush against it. He stood a little taller than Jim, maybe an inch or two. He thrust his tongue into Jim’s moist, warm mouth and was rewarded by a sort of whimper from Jim as the man’s tongue stroked his.
He decided it really had been too long and he wasn’t sure he had the patience to make it to Jim’s bedroom and go with the whole lube-and-condom thing. It was time to take off the edge for both of them.
Edward slid a hand between their bodies. He flicked open the button of Jim’s jeans, then lowered the zipper. Jim sucked in a breath.
“Okay?”
“Fuck, yes,” Jim gasped.
Edward reached into Jim’s briefs to pull out his already hard cock. His own cock jumped in response. He closed his eyes briefly as he abandoned Jim’s dick for the moment so he could free his own.
With that accomplished, Edward grasped both dicks in hand and began to stroke them.
“God, Edward.” Jim’s hand joined his to jack their slick cocks, slipping and brushing against each other.
He continued to kiss Jim, their tongues doing a pretty good imitation of what their dicks were up to below.
It seemed somehow appropriate to Edward that his cock let loose just as some crooner belted out “Jingle Bells” in the background. He screamed himself hoarse with his release and Jim’s jizz joined his only a moment later.
Edward leaned his forehead against Jim’s. “Damn that was good.”
“Yeah.”
“It’s been a long time.”
“It’s been a long time.”
They both laughed.
Jim said with a grin, “Jinx.”
Edward captured those slightly swollen plump lips in another kiss. “You taste like the trifle.”
“You, too. And wine. You want to stay over?”
Edward reluctantly shook his head. “I have an early shift at Mabry’s and it’s only my second day. I don’t want to fuck it up by being late or something.”
Jim’s smile was soft and sweet. “I understand.”
“I don’t have to work at the store tomorrow. Want me to come over in the afternoon to help you put up the outside stuff?” Edward hoped he sounded casual. He liked Jim a lot. Honestly, he always had. And now—
“You’d do that?”
He grinned at Jim’s surprise. “Of course. How about one?”
“Sounds perfect.”
“And, uh, you’re new here and everything, so you might not know, but tomorrow night is the Christmas Festival and Parade. It all starts at seven. It’s off Main and Lowell. So, want to go with me?”
Jim kissed him. “I’d love to.”
Chapter 6
Jim met Jason Sweet for lunch the next day at just after eleven. The police chief of Sutter’s Bay’s and his husband, Danny, had just returned from a short getaway.
Jim ordered a Caesar salad and Jason a veggie burger. Both had iced tea.
“How’d the trip go?”
“Great.” Jason smiled. “We never really got much of a honeymoon, what with the job, and Danny’s teaching, so it was nice to go to wine country and do the whole tasting thing. Danny bought a lot of wine.” He laughed.
Jim felt a little wistful. Being without a relationship sometimes could do that. But, hey, things were looking up.
“You moved in all right?” Jason asked.
“Yeah, great. No issues at all. And I love the house.”
“I knew you would. It’s a nice little place. Did us well when we lived there, and Mom always loved it.”
Jim picked up his coffee cup. “Does that mean you want to keep it in the Sweet family?”
