by Bates, Aiden
Kurt nodded. "I remember when he moved to the neighborhood. There was a lot of talk about how he was behind on the rent ."
"So everything that they have is Jay's mother's?" Marcus asked .
"It was back then," Luke said. "He took the money she brought in and turned it into a multi-million dollar firm. Even in California, he has a reputation ."
"It's good, then," Nikolai said, leaning back against the arm of the couch. When everyone looked at him curiously, he shrugged. "If Jay's papa had lots of money, then Jay will have a big inheritance ."
"I don't think he was quite prepared for how big." Luke set his half-eaten container of rice down. "I'm going to go check on him ."
"I'll put your food away," Teddy said, getting to his feet. "I have noise canceling headphones, and I'm going to watch a movie," he added .
Luke kept walking, trying to ignore the way his ears burned .
"Teddy, man. We have got to teach you about tact," Kurt said behind him before Luke got out of earshot .
He almost turned back when he got to the door to his room, his skin prickling with the knowledge that they were expecting him to... What? Dive into bed with Jay? If he'd been thinking clearly, he would have made it very clear that he and Jay were not an item .
Then again, after that scene in the bathroom, maybe Teddy had a point. All the work he'd done to forget about the kiss meant nothing as the memory came rushing back. His hand shook as he opened the door .
The bedroom was dim now that the sun had gone down, the light from the novelty lamp on the bedside table barely covering half the bed. Jay was still face down on the pillow, his back barely moving as he breathed .
Perching in the shadow on the other side of the bed, Luke tried to pry the fabric away from his face. It earned him a swat, the omega dragging the pillow and half the blanket right back up with a sleepy grumble .
A smile twitched his lips as Jay's fine hair stood on end, energized by static. He couldn't resist putting his hand out, the strands tickling his palm as they clung to his skin .
He should grab his things and go sleep in the guest room that Jay was using or bunk with Cody. Propping his shoulders against the headboard, he picked up his tablet. He wasn't tired yet, so he'd stay here and make sure Jay didn't have another panic attack when he woke up. He still wasn't convinced that Jay wouldn't suffocate, so if he left, he'd just worry .
"Oh, shut up," he muttered to the voice in the back of his mind that was laughing at him. It sounded suspiciously like Kurt, and he tried to block it out as he opened up a science fiction novel that he'd picked up for his flight .
* * *
D isoriented, Luke sat up, his tablet sliding off his chest as he groped for his phone. Instead of his bedside table, he got a handful of warm flesh and froze .
"I didn't mean to wake you," Jay said quietly. Under Luke's palm, his heart was racing. "I should go to my room ."
"Don't," Luke said, his voice harsh with sleep .
Jay sucked in a deep breath, his chest rising under Luke's hand. Luke jerked it back with a curse .
"I'm not saying you can't leave," he said, running his hand through his hair. It didn't wipe away the feeling of Jay's heat. "I just don't want you to feel like you have to ."
"I'm taking up your bed ."
Staring into the dark, he could just make out the shadows of Jay's eyelashes against his cheek. Maybe it was his imagination, but he looked flushed. "It's a big bed," he said, forcing himself to shrug nonchalantly. "I don't mind sharing ."
Jay sniffed, ducking his head, and Luke winced, panicking internally. The glow of the lamp outlined the omega's shaking shoulders, and he wondered if he should go get one of the others .
"You don't mind sharing?" Jay said, throwing his head back and laughing. Luke gaped at him, his eyes drawn to the golden line of his neck and the sparkle of tears on his cheeks. "That was amazing. Priceless. I can't even tell if that was the best line you've ever come up with, or if you're just that cheesy." He collapsed on his side on the bed, cackling into the pillows. "'It's a big bed,'" he said, making his voice deeper .
"Get out," Luke said, glaring. "I don't have to put up with this ."
"But you said you didn't mind sharing," Jay said, wiping at his eyes. "Oh, my God, Kurt is going to die when I tell him about this ."
"Don't you fucking dare," Luke growled, looming over him. "I will put salt in your paints if you even think about it around him ."
That just made Jay laugh harder, his face flushed pink as he squirmed on the covers. "Go for it," he said around giggles. "I can just replace them all. I'm a millionaire ."
Luke winced as the laughter hit a hysterical note. "Several hundred times over, I'm sure," he said, bracing one arm on the blanket. "Do you want me to go get Marcus ?"
Jay took a deep breath, shaking his head. "I'm okay." A giggle escaped, and he grimaced. "I think I'm okay." His eyes were bright in the glow of the lamp, and Luke had to look away. He started to sit up, but Jay caught his arm. "What am I going to do?" he asked, his voice lost .
"What do you want to do?" Luke took a slow, steady breath to keep his heartbeat from jumping at the feeling of those delicate fingers on his skin .
"Buy a swimming pool full of ice cream," Jay said immediately, biting his lip .
Caught up in the way those even, white teeth pressed into the soft flesh, Luke didn't laugh. "Sounds sticky," he said .
"It would be a disaster," Jay whispered. "But I could do it." He turned his head to look out toward the window. "What if I mess it all up ?"
"You won't," Luke whispered back. "This isn't a test that you can fail. There's no right answer ."
"I feel like there is, and I have no idea what it is. I just know I'm going to drown in ice cream because I'm too stupid to have so much money." He rolled onto his side, his shoulder brushing against Luke's chest in an electric snap of contact .
He had to bite back a groan at the thought of that lithe body covered in ice cream. "You're not stupid," he said, gently shoving Jay until he rolled back onto his back. "Money is one of those things that most people just don't get. Do you think I manage my own money? The first and only time I tried investing, I lost everything." Levering himself up, he motioned for Jay to sit up next to him. The room was full of rustling fabric and quiet breathing for a moment, his ears attuned to every little sound .
"Do you just stick it in a savings account, then?" Jay asked, settling cross-legged, close enough for his knees to brush Luke's hip .
Luke laughed. "Kurt would kill me. No," he leaned in close, his voice dropping as he imparted the secret that most of the men he knew would kill to learn. "I have the best money management team in the country ."
Intrigued, Jay pursed his lips thoughtfully. "Marcus?" he said after a moment .
"And Kurt. Don't get me wrong," he said when Jay rolled his eyes, "he puts on a good act. The careless playboy thing keeps people off guard. There are only three things in this world that Kurt Villanueva is dead serious about. Money, friends, and family ."
Ducking his head, Jay glanced at the door, his eyes a flash of blue in the light, and Luke's gut clenched. "He's a good guy. I wish his family wasn't so crazy ."
"You and me both," Luke muttered. In the darkness of the room, there wasn't much to distract him from the way Jay's lips glistened or the puff of his breath where it brushed across his cheek .
"Can I ask you a question?" Jay said a moment later, his eyes practically glowing as they caught Luke's .
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br /> He had to clear his throat to force out his reply, the tension in the air pressing in on them so that the words came out a bare breath of air. "Of course ."
"What's my favorite cookie ?"
He wanted to laugh, wanted to snap off a witty answer and turn the conversation from the cliff that had suddenly appeared in the distance. He shook his head, but Jay was all he could see, and the denial caught in his throat. "Chocolate peppermint," Luke said, the ground dropping out from under him, "with chunks of after dinner mints." His heart in his throat, he sucked in a deep breath, praying that he didn't end up broken at the end of this. "I haven't made them in ten years ."
The last sound was still vibrating in his throat when Jay's lips crashed against his, bruising and hungry. Their teeth clashed, noses bumping as they both shifted, pressing closer .
"This is a terrible idea," Luke said, threading his fingers through Jay's hair and tilting his head so that the kiss smoothed out, hot and wet and perfect. He ran his tongue along the seam of Jay's lips, the rich, earthy flavor of him flooding his senses .
"I've made worse," Jay said, pulling back to yank at their shirts .
"Just so we're clear." Luke's hands itched to touch the warm skin revealed as the rumpled button-down that Jay had worn to court came free one button at a time .
"Crystal," Jay said, leaning forward to bite at Luke's lips .
Luke groaned as sharp nails raked up his back, dragging the fabric of his t-shirt with them. He dragged it over his head, only pulling back far enough to throw it across the room before diving back into the kiss. Jay fought him for dominance every step of the way, teeth scraping across Luke's tongue as it stroked the sensitive roof of his mouth .
Growling in frustration, Jay tugged at the cuffs on his shirt with his teeth, one of the cufflinks tumbling off the bed. When Luke reached out to help him, he pushed him backward onto the bed, straddling his hips .
"No," he whispered, nipping at Luke's bottom lip and making them both groan .
Content to let him do the work, Luke ran his hands up the tight skin of his abs, hidden and revealed with each shift as the omega struggled out of his shirt. They twitched under his palms, so hot that it was like touching a live wire. His cock twitched, and he was grateful for the loose sweatpants .
Jay finally got the shirt off, flinging it across the room and sprawling fully across Luke's chest, the skin on skin contact wringing a moan out of his throat. He trailed his lips down Luke's jaw, sinking his teeth into the sensitive skin when Luke tried to direct him .
"Bossy," Luke said, choking on his next breath as Jay ground their hips together. He was rock hard inside his dress pants, the zipper an uncomfortable pressure for them both. "Not complaining," he gasped, and Jay chuckled against his chest. "Pants ?"
Sinking his teeth into Luke's chest in a way that made him arch into the pressure instead of away, Jay nodded, smiling against the mouthful of flesh when Luke cursed. Jay squirmed as he wormed his hands between them to undo his belt .
The hiss of the zipper was a physical caress that sent shivers up Luke's spine, and he growled, reaching out to pull Jay back when he climbed off .
"Your turn," he said, snapping the waistband of Luke's sweats against his stomach. The back of his hand brushed the erection tenting the soft fabric, and Luke growled .
He shoved them down his hips, kicking them off as Jay toed off his shoes and left the last of his clothes in a pool of fabric on the floor. He was glorious, every dip and hollow of his body bathed in gold by the lamp. There wasn't a spare ounce of flesh on him, muscles coiled just under the skin. His rippled abs lead down to narrow hips, a trail of red hair leading to the erection standing proudly between corded thighs .
"Fuck, you're just as beautiful as I remember," Luke said, reaching out to stroke the tender skin of Jay's hip. A shudder shook him from head to toe, and Jay closed his eyes, his head tipping back for a moment before he caught Luke's hand .
"You look better than I remember," he said, stroking a single finger down Luke's chest. "I don't remember this being quite so... firm." He smiled, licking his lips as he climbed back onto the bed .
"I only let myself buy ten pounds of flour a month," Luke said, well aware he was babbling, but unable to stop himself. Jay knelt next to him, looking good enough to eat, and he wanted to pin the omega down and taste his fill. "If I'm out of flour and I can't sleep, I go to the gym instead ."
"It's a good look," Jay said, leaning down for a kiss. He plunged his tongue into Luke's mouth, his chocolate and salt taste going straight to his head .
Surging up off the bed, Luke flipped them around, pinning Jay to the bed so that he could deepen the kiss. Grinning into the kiss, Jay arched his back, rubbing them together from knee to chest. They both gasped, and Luke's hips jerked against the smooth skin of Jay's hip .
"Do that again," he said, sliding his hands under Jay's hips to grasp the globes of his ass. It was almost impossible to tell in the thrift shop clothes that Jay usually wore, but he had a fantastic ass; Luke's fingers sank into it as he urged him to move .
Jay obliged, gasping as Luke kissed his way down his chest. Delicate fingers threaded through his dark hair for the second time that day, the sharp tug whenever Luke did something he particularly liked streaking down his spine and settling in the pleasurable tangle in his gut .
He licked his way across the ridges of Jay's abs, teasing the sensitive spot that made his hips jerk for long minutes until those fingers in his hair dragged him away. He couldn't stop sinking his fingers into the delicious flesh of Jay's ass, his fingers brushing the crack until Jay gasped .
"Tell me you have lube and condoms," he whined, yanking hard on Luke's hair when the other man's breath puffed across his erection .
"I think so," Luke said, letting the omega drag him up for a kiss. He fumbled in the bedside table with one hand as he cupped Jay's jaw with the other, deepening the kiss until he was swallowing Jay's whimpers. "Yes." He sighed with relief, dropping a pair of condoms and a barely used tube of lube onto the bed .
"Thank God," Jay said, grabbing a condom and tearing it open .
Luke couldn't quite muffle his shout when Jay grabbed his cock in one eager hand, rolling the condom on without warning. He spared a prayer that Teddy's headphones were as good as he hoped, and then all thoughts scattered in the face of the pleasure of that touch. It had been entirely too long .
He didn't put up any resistance when Jay flipped them around again, straddling Luke's hips and pressing the lube into his hand. For what felt like ages, Luke could only stare at the vision above him, taking every detail and locking it away in a place in his memories reserved for the best and worst days of his life. He still wasn't sure what this was, but he wasn't about to stop now .
Dumping entirely too much lube out into his palm, he stroked his hand over Jay's hip, grabbing the artist’s lips in a kiss as he stroked his fingers carefully across his hole. Jay groaned filthily into the kiss, and Luke couldn't resist pushing one fingertip in .
"Shit." Jay hung his head, a debauched angel painted in light and shadow by some old master as he rocked back against Luke's hand .
"That's right; just like that. Fuck, you look amazing. Just a little more, and I'll give you another one, sweetheart." Luke worked the finger in carefully, pressing deeper with each thrust of Jay's hips. He could hear himself talking, nonsense phrases and dark, lust-filled encouragement, but he couldn't spare the brain cells to worry about it .
"More," Jay groaned, biting his kiss-swollen lip and working himself onto Luke's hand faster .
Luke lined a second finger up, and Jay drove back against it, swallowing it to the second knuckle without pausing. They both groaned, Jay shuddering above him as he curled
his fingers around, working him open carefully. For all he knew, it hadn't been as long for Jay as it had for him, but he was determined to make this good .
He brushed the firm lump of Jay's sweet spot, and the omega threw his head back with a sharp cry, his hips jerking erratically. Luke couldn't breathe, watching the muscles move under his skin, his gorgeous cock dancing as he writhed .
"Now," Jay whined, curling his hand around Luke's neglected erection .
"One more, sweetheart, and then you can have me," he said through gritted teeth, his hips bucking into that sweet grip. He lined up a third finger, working it in slower as Jay hissed under his breath. "Breathe for me ."
"Easy for you to say," Jay snapped, rolling his hips so that Luke rubbed his prostate harder than he'd intended. He cried out, high and triumphant, a drop of precum spattering onto Luke's abs .
"Okay, you're ready," Luke said, brushing Jay's hand aside and squeezing the base of his cock to stave off the orgasm that welled up .
"Finally," Jay muttered. He whined as Luke pulled his hand out of that slick heat, one eye slitting open to glare at him .
Luke clutched his hip in one hand, stroking the rest of the lube over his cock carefully, the pressure making his eyes roll back in his head. He felt Jay shift, and then he was pressing into heaven, the pleasure overwhelming him. Gritting his teeth until they ached, he fought to keep from thrusting up, forcing his eyes open so that he could see Jay slide onto his cock .
It was worth the effort, the omega arched over him, every muscle in his body thrown into harsh relief as he, too, trembled with the effort it took to be patient. The light caught the red in his hair, and with the dark dye blending into the shadows, he looked so much like he had in the boathouse that Luke was momentarily adrift. Digging his fingers into the bed to remind himself that it wasn't a worn plank floor this time, he cursed as Jay settled against his hips, every breath and tremble sending sparks of pleasure through his body .
