Slow Heat

by Leta Blake

  Vale smiled and a knot inside him unwound. He had friends. No matter what happened with Jason. He had people who loved him.

  “How was school?”

  Vale’s voice was delicious. Jason squirmed in his father’s big leather chair, wishing he had a phone extension in his bedroom for privacy. Cleaning up the mess the other night hadn’t been easy, not with Father’s sensitive alpha nose. He’d opened all the windows and sprayed lemon-scented freshener everywhere, but he’d still worried that Father would know what they’d done. Or at least, what he’d done.

  “Don’t ask it like that.” He opened a desk drawer to grab a piece of paper and a pencil. Maybe doodling would keep him focused this time.

  “You don’t want to share your day with me?”

  “Sure I do. But not when you ask like you’re one of my parents.” Jason frowned.

  “How should I ask then?”

  “I don’t know. Tell me about your day first. I bet it was more interesting anyway.”

  “Highly doubtful. You probably learned something or interacted with someone at least. Aside from a trip over to Rosen and Yosef’s for lunch, it’s just been me, Zephyr, and a pile of old magazines I’m trying to sort through.”

  “Is Zephyr a beta servant?” It was an unusual name, but betas liked to be a bit flashy sometimes to make up for not being alphas. At least that was what Father said.

  Vale snorted. “No, I’m afraid I’m not of the income class to hire servants.”

  “You can be now.”

  “Let’s not get mired in that discussion. That’s for our lawyers to help us figure out.”

  “Fair enough. Who’s Zephyr?” he asked again.

  “My cat.”

  “Oh, you have a pet?” Due to Pater’s allergies and fragile state, he’d never been allowed one. He’d always envied Xan his fluffy dog and his classmates all their various cats, gerbils, and birds. “Is it a boy or a girl?”

  “A girl.”

  “Wow. That’s amazing. Can I look at her sometime?”

  Girls were fascinating beasts. It was stunning to Jason that once upon a time there had been human females, too. He’d seen pictures of them in Old World art.

  Vale’s tone held a smile. “If Zephyr wants you to see her, then you will. She’s a magician and a marvel at hiding if she’s nervous.”

  “What color is she?”

  “Silver.”

  “Oh, she sounds lovely.”

  “She can be. She’s also very good at knocking things over. She has a true talent for that. And sometimes she bites. She’s either a doll or a demon.”

  Jason laughed. “Changeable. Like the wind.”

  “Very much like the wind.”

  “So, today at university was strange,” Jason ventured, answering Vale’s initial question now that he didn’t feel like such a child about it. “Everyone had heard about me imprinting on you.”

  “I imagine your cohorts had a lot to say about it.”

  Jason frowned, remembering Wilbet Monhundy’s taunting. Your omega’s a slut. Your omega’s all used up. If it hadn’t been for the massive amounts of alpha quell in his system keeping him unnaturally calm, he might have punched him.

  “You don’t have to save my feelings, Jason. I’m sure you were teased about my age.”

  Jason sighed. “But you’re beautiful and perfect and smart and talented. They’re just jerks. Jealous jerks.”

  But he knew that wasn’t entirely the case. Sure, they were assholes, but none of them especially envied Jason for imprinting on an older omega. Most of them wanted the usual experience of finding an age-mate match, even if they were titillated by the idea that Jason might have already consummated with Vale.

  At least he only had to put up with them for two more days before the University closed so students could be home in plenty of time for the second Autumn Nights feast on Saturday. As the Feast of the Expectant Wolf, it was the most holy of the three.

  “Mm, well, omega persuasion is a bit blinding. But I’m glad you’re not entirely dissatisfied with me.” Jason had a strange sense that Vale had left off the word yet. “And your professors? How are they treating you? Some might have some trouble reconciling that one of their colleagues is now your Érosgápe.”

  “They’ve been fine.” Though Professor Shriner had suggested he watch ahead of the class on the educational films in preparation for consummation. Jason had broken out in a cold sweat at that. “All my teachers are being really generous about giving me enough time to complete my make-up work.”

  “I’m glad everyone’s being fair.”

  “Well, professors are for sure. The others…well, I can’t blame them if they’re acting a little different from usual.” His stomach shriveled as he remembered the way people whispered when he walked by and how he’d been shunned at lunch, like mere contact with him would make them imprint on the next random professor to walk by. “They probably didn’t mean the things they said.” Though he suspected Wilbet Monhundy absolutely did.

  “Do you want to talk about that or how it made you feel? I don’t think it’s likely to change as time goes on. People will talk about us this way forever if we contract.”

  Jason grimaced. “It doesn’t matter what other people say. I’ve never cared about that anyway.”

  “But you’re Yule Sabel and Miner Hoff’s son. You’ll have a role to fill in society when you inherit your father’s company.”

  “I want to be a scientist. I’ll let someone else run Father’s company.”

  “You’ll be expected to be the figurehead, attend the right parties, schmooze with the right people.”

  “You saw the other night how bad I am at schmoozing.”

  “You were charming.”

  “I was silent and I let you down.”

  “You are entirely too hard on yourself. You’re nineteen. Give yourself some time to grow into your puppy feet. You’ll be fine.”

  “Puppy feet?”

  Vale laughed. “Just something I thought of the first time I saw you. You’re still filling out, not quite entirely grown. You move like a puppy, all big feet and hands. It’s sweet.”

  “I need to be more than sweet to you.”

  “Oh, believe me, you can be. You are.”

  Jason’s heart raced and his cock grew semi-hard. Determined not to let Vale think he was an out of control alpha by making this phone call all about sex again, he changed the topic. “What are the magazines you’re sorting?”

  “A stack of poetry and creative writing magazines from about five years ago. I always meant to look through them, but never found the time. That’s something I’ve got plenty of now.”

  “What about poems? Are you working on any?”

  “Some are percolating, but nothing’s grabbed me by the throat and insisted I write it. I’ve scribbled a few words here and there, but nothing good. Why?”

  “I loved what I read. I’d like to see more.”

  “You can just re-read those for now.”

  “I’ve memorized them. I have a photographic memory.”

  Vale was silent for a long moment. “That’s unusual. I’m sure that serves you well in your classes.”

  “It does. I honestly think it’s unfair. But it’s not like I can turn it off.” Jason listened to Vale’s breath for a moment and then recited, “‘breath of light that falls on sweat soaked skin, wolf-god sings his prayers.’”

  “I haven’t thought of that poem in a very long time.”

  “I liked it. And this one, too: ‘salamander eyes glisten in time to a pulsing heart i cannot find’.”

  “Truly, that’s abominable. I should be ashamed of calling myself a poet!”

  “It’s beautiful. No one else would ever think of those words. Only you.”

  “Maybe it would be better if I hadn’t.”

  “Stop.” A bubble of irritation filled his voice with command. “Be happy that you please your alpha.”

  “Oh,” Vale said, a bit breathlessly. “Y
ou’re going to tell me how to feel?”

  “If you’re being wrong-headed, yes.”

  “And if you’re being wrong-headed, oh, mighty alpha?”

  “Feel free to point it out.” He nodded firmly. “I can handle being told I’m wrong. But I’m not wrong about the poems. Have you ever seen salamander eyes?”

  Vale still sounded breathless when he replied, “There used to be a variety of salamanders in my pater’s garden. He would capture them sometimes to show me the different colors and variety. I imagine they’ve made quite the home out there now that I’ve let the place go.”

  Jason closed his eyes, soaking in the tenderness of Vale’s tone when he spoke of his pater. “No green thumb on you?”

  “Urho says I’m lazy and maybe he’s right, but if it comes between reading and gardening, I’ll take reading. Though reading in a garden is always a nice compromise.”

  Jason tapped the end of the pen he’d been doodling with against his chin. “It wouldn’t be hard to clean up your garden. I could hire a few betas to help me. We could put in a beautiful winter theme for now.” Excitement pierced him. He’d never been allowed to have any say in Pater’s gardens before, though he’d wanted to. “And we could lay in brighter colored bulbs for spring.”

  Vale was quiet a moment but eventually said, “It’s almost too late for that.”

  “Then I should get started right away.”

  “This isn’t a good idea. We haven’t contracted.”

  But he sounded uncertain. Jason could hear the longing in his tone. Vale wanted his garden to look nice again, and moreover, he enjoyed the idea of his alpha doing that for him. Jason puffed up a bit. Father always said that omegas respond well to being cared for. “Give an omega some tender care, son, and he’ll be putty in your hands.” Though Jason also recalled that Pater rolled his eyes at that, chiming in with, “Any man likes to be cared for, Yule. Alpha, beta, or omega.”

  Regardless of who was right, Vale sounded tempted.

  “I’ll start tomorrow,” Jason said firmly. “It’ll be no trouble.”

  Vale made a soft noise but didn’t reply.

  “There’s no reason not to agree to it. No matter what comes of the contract, my family will owe you an allowance and the care of your estate for the rest of your life.” Vale’s quiet became somehow brittle like Jason had said the wrong thing. “But that’s not why I want to do it. It’s not about any of that. I want to make it beautiful back there. I could see the bones of it that day when I spoke to you through the window. It could be so handsome. I want to make it nice again. For you.”

  Vale was a tough nut, though. “It wouldn’t do for me to agree to anything without your parents’ approval. After all, it’s their money you’re talking about spending.”

  “Not really.” Jason grinned, twirling the pen between his fingers and thumb. “I have an allowance of my own and this won’t make a dent in my trust fund.”

  Vale sighed. “You sell this idea quite nicely.”

  “All I need to do is talk with the betas who work Pater’s gardens. They’ll be happy to help me.”

  Vale was quiet again and then said, “I should tell you that I’m not fond of red tulips.”

  “Do you like pink and orange ones, though?”

  “They’re preferable by far. Though purple irises are my favorite. Aside from red roses, of course.”

  “Of course. They’re my favorite, too.” Wondrous joy swept through him. “And what about daffodils?”

  “The ones with the white centers are always sweet.”

  Jason started making a list on the paper he’d gotten out to doodle on. They discussed the garden for some time until Pater knocked on the study door and stuck his head in. “Dinner is ready, love. It’s time to get off the phone.”

  Shocked to see that over an hour had passed since he first called Vale, he pleaded, “Already?”

  “I’ll give you a moment of privacy to say goodbye, but your father is waiting.” His tone brooked no argument. Pater shut the door again and left Jason alone.

  “I have to go eat dinner now.”

  Wolf-god, he sounded like an infant, being called to the supper table by his parents.

  “Oh!” Disappointment laced through Vale’s honey-rich voice. “I didn’t expect you’d have to end the call so soon. Though I suppose we did talk a long time about the garden.”

  “Were there other things you wanted to talk about?” Jason asked, his breath coming quick.

  “I suppose I thought…” Vale trailed off. “Never mind. It’s for the best that we don’t repeat what happened the other night. It was smart of you to come to this conversation with a level head.”

  “Oh, my head isn’t level,” Jason assured him quickly, his skin prickling in excitement. “I just didn’t know if you wanted to—”

  Vale cut him off. “You need to get to dinner and I need to find something in a tin for me and Zephyr here.”

  “From a tin? That’s awful.” He wanted to ask Vale to come across town and eat with them. There would be more than enough. It was ridiculous that he couldn’t. Not without asking his parents’ permission and they’d have to issue the invitation. Then things would be awkward again.

  “I’m accustomed to it,” Vale said. “No use preparing big meals for one person.”

  Longing and frustration squirmed in Jason’s gut. “Can I call you again after? I want to talk with you more.”

  “We shouldn’t—”

  “Not for that!” Jason hastened to explain, but then he softened his voice. “Well, for that and other reasons. I want to talk to you about anything really.” He’d settle for listening to Vale breathe. “Anything at all.”

  “Not tonight. You need to do your homework. I know you have quite a lot to make up.”

  “Yes,” Jason admitted reluctantly.

  “But I’ll tell you what, Wednesday, maybe you could come over to my house.”

  “What?” Jason gasped, unable to believe his ears.

  “I’m having Rosen, Urho, and Yosef over for dinner. It’ll be an early Feast of the Expectant Wolf. Since we’re negotiating on Friday, and my friends have to travel for their other plans on the actual feast day, I wanted to spend Wednesday in their company. Would you want to join us? Rosen will be cooking, never fear. I’ll ask your parents’ permission of course. But with the three of them here, nothing untoward will happen. I can promise them that.”

  “Yes! Of course! I’ll be there.”

  “I’ll call your parents in the morning.”

  “No, I’ll ask them tonight. They’ll say yes. I’ll make sure of it.”

  “Don’t, Jason,” Vale said with a hint of disapproval that made the thrill in Jason’s gut shrivel. “I should arrange the meeting through your parents. Protocols are cloudy with our age difference, but if we were age-mates my parents would arrange the invitation with yours. I don’t think it would do for me to overstep. Your father isn’t someone I want on my bad side. Your pater, either, for that matter.”

  He didn’t want to admit it, but Vale was probably right. His father wouldn’t take it as a good sign at all if Vale failed to follow protocol for arranging meetings. Jason just hoped his parents didn’t insist on tagging along.

  “I’d come over after school on Wednesday?” He hoped the answer was yes. He wanted all the minutes and hours in Vale’s presence he could hoard at once.

  “Well, not directly. You should go home, of course, and change into something suitable for dinner, and then, yes, come to my house. Oh, and use the front door this time.” Vale’s voice lifted with the tease. “While I’ve no doubt you’re limber enough to crawl in the study’s window, there really isn’t any need.”

  Jason grinned. “But there’s something romantic about that idea, isn’t there?”

  “Oh, you sweet young thing. What am I going to do with you?”

  “I think you better start asking what I’m going to do with you,” Jason growled. “Because that answer is much more e
xciting.”

  Vale gasped, and Jason took the opportunity to end the phone call. He leaned back in his father’s leather chair, grinning like a wolf. Yes, he wanted Vale on his toes. And on his knees. And in his bed. And bent over desks and tables and countertops. And down in the dirt of the garden Jason was going to plant for him.

  He wanted him everywhere.

  Jason stood up, grabbed the list, and shoved his semi-hard dick into a more comfortable position in his pants. Then he left his father’s study in a much better state than the last time he’d taken a phone call from Vale.

  CHAPTER TWELVE

  “Jason! Wait up!” Xan jogged toward him, cheeks flushed with exertion. His coat flapped behind him and his scarf slipped, revealing a polka-dotted bow tie.

  Jason reluctantly slowed his steps. He didn’t want to be late to Vale’s house party, but he couldn’t afford to blow Xan off. They were at a crucial juncture in their friendship, and if he wanted Xan in his life at all, then he couldn’t make an excuse to him now.

  “Hey.” He pushed his hair out of his face. The dry air of the heaters in the classrooms had sucked the humidity out of his usually full-bodied hair, leaving it a flat, overlong veil. He needed to trim it. “I didn’t see you in Alpha-Omega Relations today.”

  Xan’s cheeks flushed even darker, and he used the opportunity to rewrap his scarf to evade Jason’s gaze. The weather had turned frigid the night before. It was unseasonable and would be disappointing if it remained, because then the ground would freeze and Jason would miss his opportunity to plant bulbs for Vale. Jason wrapped his coat tighter over his thick burgundy sweater and khaki school pants.

  “Yeah, I didn’t feel up to it,” Xan said dismissively. “Did you take notes?”

  “Of course.” Jason dug around in his bag full of books and notepads until he brought out some pages he’d scribbled in class. He handed them over to Xan.

  “What’d we cover?” Xan asked, not meeting Jason’s eye.

  Jason wrinkled his nose. “Pregnancy.”

  “Yeah?”

  “Specifically the rate of fetal development in modern omegas compared to Old World women.”

  “Why do we have to learn about that?” Xan groaned.