by G. R. Lyons
“Oh.”
“Hey, Mr. Wizard,” Rey teased, though his voice had softened. He grabbed the wheels of his chair and rolled closer. “It's gonna be fine.” He paused, tilting his head. “As long as you don't wear that shirt. Put on the lavender one. It brings out your eyes.”
Spencer looked down at himself, then cocked one eyebrow and looked at his brother from under his eyelashes. “Since when did you learn anything about fashion?” he asked, then immediately took off the shirt and reached for the lavender one instead.
“Since I started reading your man's magazine,” Rey teased.
Spencer blushed. “He's not my man,” he mumbled.
“Oh, I think he is.”
Spencer felt his blush spread, so he turned away, finished buttoning the shirt, then tucked it in, fixed his belt in place, and contemplated his reflection. Rey was right: It did bring out his eyes. Or maybe that was just the startled look he had on his face.
But he was running out of time, so he left it at that. Forgoing a tie, he rolled his sleeves up to his elbows, fussed over whether to leave just the collar button undone or the one below it as well, then finally snatched up his wallet, keys, and phone, shoving them into his pockets.
“If you need anything–” he began, grabbing Rey's wheelchair and spinning it around so he could push him down the hallway.
“We'll be fine,” Rey insisted, then looked up when they came to a stop just outside the kitchen. “Won't we?” he asked as Irene stepped out to join them.
“Oh, I'll keep him in line,” Irene teased, winking at Spencer and flashing Rey a grin.
Rey grumbled.
Spencer checked the time. “Right.” He bent down and planted a kiss on the top of Rey's head, then forced himself away. “I'll be back as quick as I can,” he called over his shoulder.
“Take your time!” Irene called back in a sing-song voice, then said to Rey, “Seriously, that poor man needs to get laid.”
“Tell me about it,” Rey muttered.
Spencer blushed and hurried out the door.
He thought about taking the car, but he was probably already running late as it was, and traffic at that hour could be insane. Instead, he ducked around the side of the house and cast a transportation spell, landing him at Temple Park. The park sprawled across an area equal to eight city blocks, the temple itself rising majestically right in the middle. Spencer arrived in the midst of a thick stand of oak trees at one side of the park, using the shadows as cover for his sudden appearance, then stepped out and walked closer to the temple itself.
Most temples throughout the world were built to match the architectural style of the given area, but this one was modeled after the Grand Temple itself. Spencer had seen the Grand Temple several times when he'd gone to Jadu'n to train as a mage. Like that one, the structure before him looked as though it could have been built out of glass, marble, or steel, the guess changing with every glance or at every new angle one looked. Even with all his power, Spencer himself had no clue. All he knew was that the sight of the structure always took his breath away.
As well as bringing him a sense of calm. Spencer exhaled slowly, touching his hand to his chest, then to his forehead, then to the air above him, a reverential gesture to the lesser god Kalos, patron of the magi and the creator of man.
“Father, give me strength,” he whispered, then turned away and left the park. The restaurant was only three blocks away, so he got there by foot, using the walk to calm himself and clear his head.
He reached the restaurant and was shown to a table where Dirk and Jayden already sat. Dirk smiled as he rose smoothly from his chair. Jayden glanced at Dirk, then shoved back his own chair and shot to his feet, flashing Spencer a grin.
Spencer gave them each a nod of greeting, smiling nervously. Dirk started to lean in, so Spencer turned away and grabbed the back of his chair to pull it out, stopping what Spencer was sure would have been a kiss. He wanted it, but he didn't think he was quite ready for that. At least not in public.
Dirk gave him an indulgent smile and resumed his seat, Jayden following suit a second later.
“Sorry I'm late,” Spencer said, snatching up his napkin and spreading it on his lap to give him something to do.
“We were early,” Jayden admitted, and Dirk agreed with a nod.
The hostess took their drink orders, giving Spencer a moment to compose himself, but then she was gone again, leaving just the three of them at the table.
Jayden gave Dirk an eager grin. “Can I?”
Dirk chuckled and shook his head. “So impatient! Yes, I suppose you can.”
Jayden gave a little squeak of excitement, then snatched up an envelope resting on the corner of the table—right next to a wrapped gift that looked suspiciously like the size of the box in which Spencer had put the watch—and held it out in Spencer's direction.
Spencer stared at the envelope in confusion before he slowly reached out to take it. “What's this?”
“We got you something,” Dirk said.
Spencer frowned. “It's your birthday, not mine.”
“Well, this is sort of a present for all of us,” Dirk told him.
His frown deepening, even more confused, Spencer turned the envelope over, unsealed it, and pulled out the pages it contained.
He felt his cheeks go instantly hot when he saw what was on the pages.
“Mr. Cameron–” he gasped.
“Alright, first of all,” Dirk began, leveling a look at him, “we're not at the office right now, so you'd better call me Dirk. Secondly–”
Jayden cut in: “We wanted you to know how serious we were.”
Spencer stared at the pages again, then noted the date stamped on them. “You did this for me?”
“To show you how much we want this,” Dirk said with a nod. “Exclusive. Committed.”
“But we– It's too soon to– You couldn't possibly know–” Spencer tried to protest even while a little voice inside his head snapped at him that his gut was agreeing with them. That it wasn't too soon. That he did know just how much he wanted these two men.
“Nothing has ever felt as right as this,” Dirk said, and Jayden nodded rapidly in agreement.
“I can't explain it,” Jayden added, “but that moment in the office, even before the kiss…”
“It felt meant to be,” Dirk finished for him.
Spencer looked from Dirk to Jayden and back, at a complete loss for words.
Dirk reached over and touched Spencer's hand. “We don't have to do anything right away. We can go slow if you need.”
“We just want you to know how much we need you,” Jayden added.
Spencer swallowed hard, then folded the pages with shaky hands and tucked them back into the envelope. “I still need to think about it,” he said.
Disappointment flashed across Jayden's face, but Dirk kept his expression neutral as he said, “That's fine. That's why we're here. To show you that this will be a good thing for all of us.”
Jayden nodded again.
Spencer cleared his throat and set the envelope aside. “I thought we were here for your birthday,” he said, hoping to change the subject.
“Oooh!” Jayden brightened, snatching up the box and thrusting it in Dirk's direction. “Happy birthday.”
Dirk chuckled, then looked at Spencer. “He's been threatening to give this to me all week. He might have gotten a little dramatic about how impatient he was getting.”
Jayden scoffed. “I'm gay. Duh. Dramatic comes with the territory.”
Dirk snorted a laugh, shook his head, and started tearing at the wrapping paper.
Spencer tensed. “Shit,” he gasped.
Dirk looked up. “What's wrong?”
“Uh…” Spencer couldn't very well tell him what was going through his head right then. He'd imagined Jayden giving Dirk the watch while the two of them were alone, not right there for Spencer to see. Thinking quickly, he blurted out, “I didn't get you anything.”
Di
rk paused in the midst of unwrapping and reached out to touch Spencer's hand. “Just having you here is all the gift I need from you.”
Spencer blushed, his hand tingling as Dirk went back to unwrapping the box. He watched helplessly as the paper fell away, somehow feeling more nervous than if he'd been giving the watch to Dirk himself. What if Dirk hated it? Even worse, what if he loved it? He forced on a polite smile and held his breath as Dirk lifted back the lid.
Dirk's eyes went wide and his lips parted. “Wow,” he breathed, pulling the watch out of the box and holding it up so the whole band was on display, tracing a fingertip along the designs tooled into the leather. “This is incredible.”
“It's one-of-a-kind,” Jayden pointed out as Dirk took off the watch he was wearing and strapped on the new one instead.
“This is–” Dirk stared at it, shaking his head, then looked at Jayden with a sappy smile. “Thank you.”
Spencer fought the urge to grin. He hadn't been able to give Dirk the watch himself, but seeing Dirk's pleasure—seeing his own creation on Dirk's wrist—made him feel like he could do almost anything.
“Uh oh,” Jayden said.
Spencer blinked, tearing his eyes away from the watch and looking from Jayden to Dirk and back instead.
“What?” Dirk asked.
Jayden stared at Spencer. “I know that smile,” he said, then asked, “Why didn't you say anything?”
Spencer tensed. “What do you mean?”
“Please,” Jayden said. He looked to Dirk, but Dirk looked just as confused as Spencer felt. Jayden pointed at Spencer and went on: “That's a creator's smile. The kind of proud look you get when you've done something incredible.” He paused. “You didn't just find that watch, did you?”
“What?” Dirk asked.
Spencer blushed, but before he could say anything, Jayden reached toward Dirk and made an impatient gesture.
“Let me see that for a second,” Jayden demanded.
Dirk cocked an eyebrow, but he took off the watch and handed it to him.
Jayden turned it over, smirked, then turned it back around and held it up so that the back of the watch was on display. “'S' for Spencer, am I right?”
“What?” Dirk gasped again, looking from Spencer to the embedded stamp and back.
Spencer's blush spread.
“I'm right, aren't I?” Jayden asked, grinning with triumph.
Spencer tried to come up with some sort of denial, but words failed him.
Dirk took the watch back, staring down at the stamp, then looked up at Spencer from under his eyelashes. “You made this?” he murmured.
Spencer opened his mouth to deny it, then let out a heavy sigh. “It's just something I've been working on. I didn't think I'd ever be able to give it to you, so when Jayden said he needed a gift for your birthday–”
“Why couldn't you ever give it to me?” Dirk asked.
Spencer cocked his head and gave him a stern look, silently telling him, You know why. We've already been over this.
Jayden groaned. “Shit, I feel so guilty now. You should have given him that,” he told Spencer, then pointed at him as he looked at Dirk. “That's officially from him now. I'll have to get you something else.”
“No, I–” Spencer tried to protest.
“And I'll still totally pay you,” Jayden offered.
“You don't have–”
“But I wish you'd said something! I don't know how you kept quiet. If I'd made something like that, I'd be bragging about it all over town.”
Dirk snorted a laugh. “Now that does not surprise me.” He strapped the watch back on, smiling as he admired it on his wrist.
Spencer couldn't help smiling himself as he watched him.
“Yep,” Jayden said, “that's it. I need to get you something else.” He paused, tapping the tip of his index finger on his bottom lip. “But what would Dirk want?”
Spencer raised his eyebrows. “I could tell you exactly what he wants,” he pointed out.
Jayden grinned. “Well, he wants my ass, of course, because it's fabulous,” he began, throwing Dirk a teasing, seductive look before turning the same expression on Spencer. “Something that I can't wait for you to find out for yourself.”
Spencer's blush returned in full force.
“But I need something else, too,” Jayden finished, quirking his mouth to one side as he thought.
“You don't have to get me anything,” Dirk grumbled. “Neither of you do.”
“I think he does,” Spencer pointed out, nodding at Jayden.
“Oh?” Dirk asked.
Spencer shot Jayden a look. “Don't you remember how this whole thing started?” he asked, gesturing at the three of them. “The argument you and Dirk had?”
Jayden's thoughtful look slowly melted away into a cringe. He snatched his phone out of his pocket, unlocked the screen, typed in what appeared to be a username and password, then scrolled and clicked through a few things before finally grinning with pride as he turned his phone around and thrust it out for Spencer to see.
“There. Done.”
Spencer took the phone, his chest tightening with a hint of rightness and purpose.
“What?” Dirk asked.
Spencer handed over the phone. “He's officially registered for introductory business classes.”
Dirk's eyes went wide, and he stared down at the phone for a long moment before he looked back up at Spencer with a soft smile. “See? We do need you.”
Jayden nodded rapidly in agreement.
Spencer felt his resolve weakening. Oh gods. He was in so much trouble.
Chapter 9
DIRK LOOKED down at the watch on his wrist and smiled. Probably for the tenth time that day. He still couldn't believe Spencer had spent months off and on working on something so beautiful, and for him. Just the fact that they'd both been wanting one another for so long—with neither one the wiser—made him ache in ways he hadn't known were possible, but at least they were finally on the right path now. Spencer was still resistant to the idea of developing an intimate relationship, but that lunch the other day seemed to have put a crack in the man's resolve.
Spencer was still all business at the office, of course. But with each day that passed, their gazes would hold a little bit longer whenever they locked, and the space between them whenever they discussed Dirk's calendar grew smaller and smaller. Little by little, they were reeling each other in.
Dirk sent his last email for the day and went to switch off his computer, pausing when his phone beeped with the notification for an incoming text. He rolled his eyes, shook his head, and chuckled. Most likely Jayden again. The little brat had pestered him every day that week, too impatient to wait for Dirk to get home to ask if Spencer was any closer to making a decision.
He pulled out his phone and checked the message. Sure enough, it was from Jayden. Dirk was about to type out his usual response when he realized the message was the only one in a new group text thread.
Meet me in the conference room.
Dirk's eyebrows went up. Setting his phone aside, he finished shutting down his computer, then stood up, buttoned his jacket, and walked out of his office, pausing beside Spencer's desk. The man was sitting there, his own mobile lying on top of a stack of reports. The look on Spencer's face made Dirk wonder if he thought the phone might bite him.
“You got it, too, huh?” Dirk asked.
Spencer slowly looked up, then nodded. “Why do I get the feeling he's about to do something wholly inappropriate for a conference room?”
Dirk laughed. “Because he's Jayden. Come on.”
Spencer slowly got up and followed. They headed down the hallway, saying goodnight to the last few people who were leaving for the day, then stopped at the conference room door.
Dirk looked at Spencer and raised an eyebrow, silently asking if he was ready. Spencer gave a noncommittal shrug, so Dirk opened the door and stepped inside.
His eyes went wide, and he hustled Spencer
into the room before he quickly slammed the door shut so that any stragglers in the office wouldn't be able to see.
“Holy shit,” Spencer gasped, jerking to a stop right beside him.
Jayden lay in the middle of the glass conference table. On his back, his face turned toward them with a wicked smile, his knees bent, his back sensually arched. He wore thigh-high, platform, high-heeled boots, a top that was cropped so short, it left his nipples exposed, and a black jock strap. That was it. At the sight of them, he lifted his bare ass off the table, pushing his hips up into the air, and the natural oils in his skin left behind an imprint on the glass from where his ass had been.
He lowered himself back down and used the arm closest to them to reach out, silently beckoning them as he bit his lip and threw them a seductive look.
“Fuck,” Dirk gasped, his cock roaring to life. He looked at Spencer and found the man blushing furiously. “For the record, I had no idea he was gonna do this.”
Jayden smirked at him, then looked at Spencer. “Please?” he begged.
Spencer let out a tiny, needy sound, but quickly bit it off. Still, it was enough to make Dirk's cock harden the rest of the way. He stepped behind Spencer and pressed up to Spencer's back, adjusting himself in his pants so that his length would be nestled right against the crease of Spencer's ass.
Not that he thought he had a shot of ever fucking the man himself. For as mild-mannered as Spencer was at work, that moment in his office—when Spencer had gotten Dirk and Jayden to stop fighting, followed by that amazing kiss—was enough to show Dirk that Spencer was all daddy dom once he let it out. Still, Dirk couldn't resist showing the man just how much he wanted him. He wrapped his arms around Spencer's chest and held him, giving his hips a long, slow thrust to drive the point home.
Spencer whimpered.
“Please?” Jayden begged again. He sat up and spun around to face them, resting back on his hands as he spread his legs, showing just a tease of his hole while his hard cock strained inside the black jock strap. He bit his lip seductively again and wiggled his hips.
Spencer whimpered again, and it felt to Dirk like his knees gave out for a second. Dirk kept him upright, then nudged him closer to the table, right between Jayden's spread legs.
