Chase the Stars (Lang Downs 2 ) (16 page)

J
ESSE
was tempted to make a comment about Chris’s experience, but he didn’t want to provoke a fight, especially when his own track record for relationships was probably as spotty as Chris’s. He’d had one hook-up several years ago that turned into a season of messing around, but neither he nor the other guy—Jesse couldn’t even remember his name—had ever pretended it was anything more than a convenience when they didn’t feel like going out on the prowl. Jesse didn’t know if Chris had ever had a boyfriend, a real one with emotions involved, but since Jesse couldn’t claim one in his own past, he decided not to ask. “I certainly benefited the other night,” he said instead.

“Good,” Chris said, his voice so smug Jesse decided right then what was going to happen when they stopped for lunch. Chris was getting his mind blown along with his dick. Chris might have a talented mouth, but he was still a kid compared to Jesse, and Jesse would bet he’d been the one doing the sucking, not the one being sucked. He knew how gay bars worked. A kid like Chris, fresh-faced and more slender than stocky, would have been the one on his knees blowing the other guy or else the one with his pants around his knees getting fucked. Unless he picked up someone even younger and skinner than him. Jesse had known a few exceptions to that dynamic, but they were few and far between, and usually in enough of a relationship to set aside some of the posturing. Chris didn’t have that vibe.

Chris hopped out of the ute, carrying his list inside. They checked the hut, finding this one much more depleted of supplies than the last one.

“I’m glad we’re doing this,” Chris said as they carried in tins of food. “I wouldn’t want to be the one stuck out here with nothing more in the cupboards than what we just found.”

“Me either,” Jesse agreed, thinking of the nights he’d spent sleeping rough on other stations. He could see why the Lang Downs jackaroos were as loyal as they were. Accepting a gay boss had to be easier with perks like these to ease the sting. For someone like Jesse who had left jobs in the past because of discrimination, the combination seemed like a dream come true.

They switched out the blankets and closed everything back up. “Where’s the next hut?”
Chris looked at the map Macklin had given him. “That way.”
The roads worsened as they made their way to higher elevations, proof of the powerful storms that had hit the area over the winter. It took them nearly two hours to reach the next hut. “Lunch time,” Chris declared as soon as they stopped.
“Let’s check the hut first,” Jesse suggested. “Then we can relax and eat.”
“And fuck.”
“And something,” Jesse agreed. “I still don’t carry condoms while I’m working.”

“We’ll have to do something about that,” Chris insisted. “There’s nowhere at the station itself, which means we have to find other places to be alone.”

“We’ll see,” Jesse said, not entirely comfortable with that compromise unless they drove out to one of the empty huts after they finished work for the night and came back in time for breakfast. His sense of responsibility to Caine was too strong. He didn’t want to lose this job, and while he didn’t think he’d lose it for messing around with Chris, Caine would have every right to fire him if he messed around when he was supposed to be working.

The stench of animal dung hit them the moment they opened the door. “Damn,” Jesse cursed. “Something spent the winter in there. I hope it wasn’t anything nasty.”

“It was nasty enough just from the smell,” Chris complained, holding his nose with his good hand.
“Yeah, but there’s nasty and then there’s dangerous,” Jesse said. “Get one of those extra flashlights and let’s see if we can figure out what’s in there before we go in.”
Chris grabbed a flashlight out of the back of the ute, and Jesse shone it in the door, looking for the reflection of eyes or anything else to show where the animal was. He found them, finally, in the back corner of the hut. “Over there,” he said to Chris. “See it?”
“I see eyes,” Chris whispered, “but I can’t tell what it is.”
“Me either,” Jesse said. “Bandicoots, bilbies, bettongs or potoroos, or if we’re unlucky, a wombat.”
“Why unlucky?”
“Because they’re bigger and tougher than the others. If it’s a wombat, we may want to talk with Macklin before we do anything else. I knew a man at another station who tangled with one and ended up in the hospital,” Jesse explained, “and that one wasn’t cornered and protecting its home.”
“So how do we figure out what it is?” Chris asked. “If they’re that tough, I’m not sure walking in and opening windows to let in light is the best idea.”
“They’re nocturnal,” Jesse said. “I know that much. The light ought to drive it deeper into its nest if it’s a wombat, and if it’s not, we’ll be able to see what it is. Keep the flashlight on it so we can see if it moves. I’ll try to get a window open.”
Chris nodded as Jesse slipped inside and edged along the wall farthest from the animal, feeling for the window rather than looking for it. He wasn’t taking his eyes off the creature until he knew what it was. He found the latch and pushed it open, letting in the late morning sunlight. “It’s a wombat. We’ll report it to Macklin and see what he wants us to do about it.”
“We’d have to come back and clean the hut out anyway,” Chris said as Jesse inched back toward the door. “We don’t have shovels and the like to clean out its nest, and I’m not sure how much help I’d be to you anyway. I can’t hold a shovel at the moment.”
“Not to mention that even if we run the wombat out, there’s the question of how it got in here and keeping it from coming back. Macklin might want to send a more experienced crew out to deal with it. I’m not much of a carpenter. I mean, I could pound a couple of nails to hold a board over a hole if there is one, but that’s not the real solution. I was going to suggest eating lunch in the hut, but I think we’ll be better off sitting on the bed of the ute.”
Chris grabbed their lunches from the cab of the ute while Jesse spread one of the clean blankets over the metal bed of the truck. It wasn’t a bed, or even a cot like in the huts, but it was better than cold steel. Fortunately the sun was out, warming the day enough that the breeze off the highlands felt good, although Jesse wasn’t sure about getting naked out in the open. He’d been imagining stretching Chris out on one of the cots and taking his time licking and sucking all over, not just getting him off and rushing on to the next hut. It might be a little cool for that, though. He’d see how things went.
Chris hopped up on the gate of the ute next to him. “Here’s your lunch,” he said, offering the bag to Jesse. Jesse waited a moment before opening his bag. Chris had been so eager earlier, but now he seemed content to sit and eat, so Jesse did the same. He wasn’t eighteen and so horny he couldn’t stand it. He could afford to wait until after they’d eaten or even until another time entirely.
“Seth seems to be settling in well,” Jesse said as they ate. “Other than a couple of pranks, anyway. That should make you happy.”
“A couple?” Chris said around his mouthful of sandwich. “I only knew about the one he played on me.”
Jesse cursed under his breath. “And I told him I wouldn’t tell you since he apologized and cleaned up the mess he made,” Jesse said with a shake of his head.
“What did he do?”
“He messed up Patrick’s toolbox,” Jesse said. “It was harmless, just annoying, and he put everything back in its place. Patrick checks his box every morning now before he starts work, but other than that, he doesn’t seem to be holding a grudge.”
“Little shite,” Chris muttered. “I
told
him not to do crap like that here on the station. He thinks it’s funny, but he’s past the age where he can get away with it.”
“Which is what Patrick told him,” Jesse said. “Even better, I really think he listened. He’s been on his best behavior ever since. Just let it go.”
“I guess I can do that this time since Patrick already got on him about it,” Chris said slowly. “I’m trying my best to be a good role model for him, but bloody hell, I don’t know what I’m doing half the time.”
“Hey,” Jesse said, tugging on Chris’s good hand until Chris scooted into his arms. “None of that. Seth isn’t a little kid you have to coach constantly. He’s nearly an adult himself and old enough to make his own decisions. If he screws up, that’s on him, not on you. You’ve done more than your part already making sure he has a place to stay and enough to eat.”
Chris sighed and leaned against Jesse. “I will never, ever make a disparaging comment about a parent again. I don’t know how they do it, because just six months with a mostly-grown teenager and I’m at the end of my rope.”
Jesse kissed the side of Chris’s neck, more in comfort than in an attempt at seduction. He had no idea how he’d handle that kind of responsibility. He only hoped he’d have half Chris’s success if something like that happened to him. He hadn’t seen any of his younger siblings since he left home, though, so it wasn’t likely. His “baby” sister was already older than Seth.
Jesse lost track of how long they sat that way in companionable silence. It wasn’t the lunch break they’d discussed, but Jesse found he didn’t mind. More than anything, it seemed Chris needed a friend right now, and Jesse was happy to oblige.
“I guess we should check on the rest of the huts,” Chris said eventually. “I sort of ruined our lunch break.”
“You didn’t ruin anything,” Jesse said, catching Chris’s chin and kissing him. “Sex isn’t any fun if both people aren’t into it, and you obviously weren’t in the mood. We’ll have other chances.”
They finished restocking two more of the drover’s huts before Jesse declared they’d done all they could do for the day. He picked up the dirty blankets, ready to head back to the ute, when Chris pushed him against the door and kissed him wildly.
Jesse started to protest out of habit, but he had just declared it the end of the work day, other than driving back to the station for dinner. Chris hadn’t been in the mood earlier, but that had obviously changed, and Jesse realized he didn’t mind. He let the blankets fall to the ground and pulled Chris closer, one hand on Chris’s hip, the other cradling his head to take control of the kiss. The moment Chris realized Jesse was kissing him back, he relaxed, so Jesse spun them around, switching their places so Chris’s back was against the door, pinned in place by Jesse’s broader body. He released Chris’s lips to kiss his way across his cheek, the stubble scraping against his lips.
“It’ll be time to shave you again soon,” he murmured when he reached the delicate shell of Chris’s ear.
Chris hummed softly, a sound of assent or pleasure or both. Jesse didn’t care which it was at this point. It was enough to have Chris willing in his arms again. He parted the heavy jacket Chris was wearing so he could massage his chest through the thick work shirt. It wasn’t quite the same as skin on skin, but it would do for now. He’d save the rest for when they had more time, and maybe a bed. He spared a quick thought for the cots behind them, but if he started that now, they’d be late for dinner, and then there would be questions to answer. Instead he worked open the button on Chris’s jeans and peeled down the zipper, slipping a hand inside to stroke Chris’s burgeoning erection. Oh, yeah, Chris had sloughed off his bad mood from earlier.
Chris moaned as Jesse moved his hand up and down a few times, and Jesse reveled in the freedom to enjoy the sound rather than have to stifle it for fear of being overheard. He pulled back long enough to push Chris’s jeans and boxers off his hips, letting the hard shaft pop free. He kissed Chris once more before dropping to his knees and claiming his prize.
He heard a thunk above him, presumably Chris’s head hitting the door, but he didn’t stop, too focused on the hard cock in his mouth, the salty flavor that leaked from the tip, the musky smell of sweat and desire that radiated from Chris’s body. Of all the things Jesse loved about sex, this might be the one he loved the most, taking complete control of a man’s body and senses, leaving him incapable of doing anything except moaning and shivering and coming like there was no tomorrow. He’d argued with what’s-his-name about it once, the other man insisting it was better to be blown than to do the blowing, but Jesse disagreed. Oh, he’d never complain about someone sucking him off, but that was a passive pleasure. This was all about making his lover feel good, and Jesse found the little sounds and signs of Chris’s desire even more arousing than simply getting his rocks off.
Chris’s fingers found his scalp, rubbing through his buzzed hair. Jesse wondered for a moment if Chris would try to take control and fuck Jesse’s mouth, but he didn’t, seeming only to need the contact. Jesse stroked Chris’s hip, offering that tenderness in return.
“Oh, fuck, close,” Chris gasped above him.
Jesse pulled back, his hand taking the place of his mouth as he surged to his feet and captured Chris’s lips. He stroked Chris rapidly as he plundered Chris’s mouth, exploring every inch with his tongue.
Chris grunted into the kiss, his body seizing beneath Jesse’s hand. Jesse slowed the movement of his palm, easing Chris back down from the high. His own need growing demanding, he rutted against Chris’s thigh. If he’d been thinking ahead, he’d have moved to the other side because the angle made it hard for Chris to get his good hand between them to help Jesse along, but he realized he didn’t care as Chris pushed back against him, urging him on. Jesse buried his face in Chris’s neck as his climax hit him.
“Well, that’s going to make for an uncomfortable ride home,” Jesse muttered when he could speak again.
“Take your shorts off,” Chris suggested. “Commando has to be more comfortable than sticky.”
Chris was probably right, but that would mean undressing with Chris watching. He wouldn’t think twice if they were rushing for bed, but it felt somehow too intimate to undress in front of him.
“I’ll meet you at the ute,” Jesse said.
“And deprive me of the chance to stare at your arse?” Chris joked. “I don’t think so.”
Swallowing down the ridiculous surge of nerves, Jesse pulled off his boots and stepped out of his pants and briefs, pulling his jeans back on as quickly as he could. Chris’s appreciative stare did nothing for his composure.
“Why does this bother you?” Chris asked. “You weren’t complaining a minute ago or when I had your dick in my mouth a few days ago.”
“That’s sex,” Jesse said with a shrug. “Changing clothes in front of you is more intimate.”
“How do you figure that?”
“It’s not something you do when you’re just fooling around,” Jesse said. “You fuck, you get dressed, you go on. Changing clothes like that, it’s something you do with a lover.”
“Or with a friend,” Chris said. “I’ve stayed over with friends and didn’t think twice about changing with them in the room.”
“Are we friends?” Jesse asked.
“What else would you call it?” Chris replied.
Jesse wasn’t sure how to answer that question. They had known each other such a short time, had barely begun any kind of a relationship before the dynamic changed on them, but that was no more defined than the first days had been. “I guess we are friends,” he said with a slow smile. “I don’t think I’ve ever been friends with a guy I was sleeping with.”
Chris winked at him. “You haven’t slept with me yet.”
Jesse resolved to remedy that at the first opportunity. Maybe he could carry a condom tomorrow after all.