Empty Nests (15 page)

“Sure.” He hoped a little wine would help him calm down. If tonight was going where he hoped it was going, he didn’t want to be a frantic mess.

“I’ll go get it.”

“I really like this place,” James said, looking closely at a nearby painting. “It’s not what I expected.”

“What were you expecting?” Gabe called from the kitchen.

“I don’t know, modern, glass, chrome, high-tech everything.”

“I get enough of that at work. On the rare occasions I manage to drag my ass home, I want it to be somewhere that feels comfortable.” Gabe returned with two glasses of white wine. “Just after this place was finished up, I was dating this guy who was an ornithologist. He told me I was a bowerbird. That I’d gone and built myself a fancy feathered nest and was hopping around outside trying to lure someone into it.”

“A bowerbird?”

“He was a little odd.” Gabe took a sip of his wine. “By the way, you look really nice tonight. Green is a good color on you.”

James looked down at himself. He’d lost a bit of confidence in the car and had done up an extra button. “Thank you. It was a gift from Dylan. You look nice too.” Nice wasn’t exactly the word James was thinking. Gabe was in jeans and a tight V-necked T-shirt that showed a good bit of chest and gave him the urge to run his tongue along Gabe’s collarbone. That was an urge he could honestly say he’d never had before with anyone, and despite some nerves, he had a growing desire to skip dinner. He took a first taste of his wine, trying to steady himself.

There was a chime from the kitchen. “And that would be dinner.”

“It smells nice.” James followed Gabe into the kitchen that was sleek and modern, and looked big enough to cater a small army.

“I shook down my sister for a recipe or two.” Gabe reached into a vast oven and pulled out a foil-covered baking pan.

“Do you need a hand?”

“Nope, in fact
—” James was quickly led from the kitchen to a beautifully set table for two with votives already lit and floating in a cut-glass bowl. “You sit right here.” Gabe pulled out a chair. “I’ll be just a second.”

James set down his glass of wine and sat while Gabe slipped back into the kitchen. He watched the candles float gently in their bowl and tried to focus on them instead of the places his mind wanted to wander. While on the surface Gabe had simply extended a dinner invitation, James had not been raised in a convent. He was well aware when someone invited you to their lavish penthouse condo, plied you with wine, and cooked a romantic meal, they were not planning on ending the night playing checkers. And he was okay with that. He was tired of his almost-virginity hanging over his head, and Gabe was certainly handsome.

Gabe emerged from the kitchen with a plate in each hand and a bottle of wine tucked under his arm. “Here we are.” Gabe set the plates down carefully. “Spanish rice, cucumber and avocado salad, and chicken braised with tomatillos, cilantro, and poblanos. My sister’s recipes, and if I’ve ruined it, you’re supposed to call and tell her.”

“I’m sure it’ll be great. And it can’t be any worse than my famous ketchup-and-hot-dog spaghetti sauce.”

Gabe froze with his glass halfway to his mouth. “I’d ask if you were joking….”

“It was what we had in the fridge.”

“Well, here’s hoping this is better.”

It was better, and James took his time, trying to savor every bite. He also decided he was going to have to get hold of the recipe, for Dylan’s sake if nothing else. Unfortunately, ketchup-and-hot-dog spaghetti had not been a one-time meal.

The music switched to another song, and Gabe closed his eyes for a moment.

“Everything okay?”

“Yes. My grandmother used to listen to this kind of music. She had this place out on the far edge of Modesto, and we’d drive out there a few times a summer when we were kids. I hadn’t heard it in years until the other night. I always liked it out there. She had this tiny house on a big plot of land. It was full of fruit trees and her garden. It was peaceful.” Gabe looked beyond James into some point in his past.

“It sounds nice.”

“It was.”

“We used to drive through Modesto once a summer. My parents could never afford to go anywhere fancy for vacation but once a year, we’d wake up early, pile into the car, then drive about a million miles to the other side of the Sierras. We’d set up camp near Mono Lake, stay for about a week, then drive all the way back. We did that every year until I left home.”

Gabe’s brows pulled together. “You know, I can honestly say I’ve never been camping.”

“Really?” Camping had been the only kind of vacation his parents could regularly afford.

“Really.”

James hadn’t been camping in ages. Despite the long drive, it had always been a highlight of his childhood summers. “Well, if you’re willing to drive about five hours, I know a great spot for it.”

Gabe grinned. “If I can get three days in a row off anytime in the next year, I will absolutely let you take me camping.”

“Don’t you get vacation time?” He’d wondered about Gabe’s work schedule. Even on weekends he seemed to always be calling from his office or his car.

“I’ve got stacks of it. The trick is wedging it in somewhere. These days it feels like, if you take your eye off the ball for more than two seconds, the ball is going to get stolen or simply disintegrate.”

“I think they have cell coverage around the lake now. I’m sure you’d be fine.”

Gabe poured them both another glass of wine. James found himself relaxing, but then he often did around Gabe. He wasn’t one for energies or chakras or any of that, but Gabe’s presence always seemed to make some little knot between his shoulders unravel, and it felt like he could breathe easier.

He scraped his plate clean as they talked, hoping he didn’t look like a glutton.

“Did you like it?” Gabe asked with a smile that glowed bright in the candlelight.

“You can tell your sister I fully approve.”

“Good. I hope you saved room for dessert.”

“I think I can manage a little something.”

Gabe whisked away the plates and returned with two glasses of chocolate pudding. “I’m afraid I used what cooking mojo I have on dinner.”

“That’s okay. I love pudding.”

“Would you like to take dessert outside?” Gabe gestured to the balcony that wrapped all the way around the entire penthouse.

“Sure.”

Gabe led him to an old-fashioned swing for two that let them look out over the South Bay.

James leaned back into the cushions and took a couple bites of pudding. He wasn’t kidding when he’d said he loved chocolate pudding. Dessert was a rare treat in his house. A box of pudding and some milk was about all his budget and culinary skills could handle. There was something comforting about it. He let the swing rock and enjoyed the warmth of Gabe’s body just touching his. In the distance, lines of traffic snaked north and south.

“When I get my house built, it’s going to have a proper view instead of just the South Bay.” Gabe’s voice was wistful.

“You’re building a house?”

“No. I wish. It’s on my to-do list for when I have time, which at this rate will be when I’m three days dead.”

“I’d like to build a house one day,” James said mostly to himself. He could feel Gabe looking at him. He took another few bites of pudding in the silence.

“If you could go anywhere or do anything right now, where would you like to be?” Gabe suddenly asked.

James tried to picture the whole world spread out before him. It was too much. The very thought scared him, and he pulled away from it. “I think… I think I’d like to be eating chocolate pudding on a balcony in San Jose with a very attractive man, who for reasons I’m not quite sure of seems to like me.”

Gabe set aside his pudding and leaned in for a kiss. It was slow and soft. James melted and wrapped his arms around Gabe before completely dissolving into a puddle. He wasn’t exactly submissive by nature, but there was something about Gabe’s strength and gentle warmth that made him relax.

Gabe pulled away from the kiss. “Would you like to move this back inside?” he whispered.

James’s heart slammed against his ribs, and he understood what Gabe was really asking. “Yes, I think I would.” He was proud at the steadiness of his voice.

Gabe stood and took James by the hand, leading him around the balcony, through another set of french doors, into a bedroom. It was done in dark woods and rich blues and greens. The mattress was thick and looked warm and soft. James could picture himself sinking into it and sleeping for a decade.

He turned around to mention that, but the comment stopped in his throat. Gabe was standing inches from him, looking suddenly taller than his two extra inches. His eyes were dark and focused. A few butterflies returned to James’s stomach and started fighting with the strongest arousal he’d ever experienced.

Gabe settled his hands lightly on James’s hips, and put his lips to his cheek, right by his ear.

“Nothing has to happen that you don’t want,” Gabe whispered. “Just say so, anytime.”

James nodded, not trusting his voice not to crack.

Gabe kissed him again. It was too soft, and James pressed himself into it. He wasn’t made of glass, and no one had ever treated him like he was. Gabe got the hint, slipping his tongue between James’s lips and pulling them together. He moaned. He could feel how hard Gabe was even though his jeans. The next wave of lust brought with it a sudden desperate need to get Gabe naked. He slipped his hands under Gabe’s T-shirt, sliding them along the smooth, hot skin.

Gabe stepped back and pulled off his T-shirt, flinging it across the room. He was tan, with a broad, well-muscled chest and small, hard nipples.

James swallowed hard. “How much time do you spend at the gym?” He didn’t care if his voice squeaked.

“Not as much as my personal trainer would like.”

James reached out tentatively, like Gabe might not be entirely real, and ran a single finger across Gabe’s chest, then down his centerline.

“Is this okay?”

“Yeah.”

“Good.”

Gabe undid the top button of James’s shirt. James hunched his shoulders, suddenly feeling shy. He knew he was pale and a bit on the thin side. Gabe’s hands froze.

He stepped in close and cupped James’s cheek. “Unless you’re secretly a girl under there, there’s nothing I don’t want to see. And if you are secretly a girl… well… we can talk about it.”

James chuckled a little, then took a breath and pulled his shirt up and over his head. The fabric was cool and smooth across his face. He dropped the shirt and tried not to hunch his shoulders again.

Gabe settled his hands on James’s waist. “There. That wasn’t so bad, was it?” Gabe didn’t give him a chance to answer, bringing their lips together. He was okay with that. Gabe’s warm, full kisses were familiar ground and still comfortable, even as their bare chests pressed against each other.

He ran his hands along the smooth skin of Gabe’s back, tracing the muscles until he found a patch of rough skin over the left shoulder blade. “Old injury. I’ll tell you about it some time.” James frowned and stroked the spot.

Like a dance partner, Gabe guided them both to the bed, James easily following his lead.

“If this is too much for you…?”

“No.”

Gabe kissed him while easing them down. The duvet was a deep green, almost black. The mattress molded under James’s body but wasn’t too soft. The little knot of stress that lived at the base of his skull loosened. He closed his eyes, unable to do anything but sigh.

“I take it you like my bed?”

“I could learn to live with it.”

“Good, because I’d very much like to keep you in it for a while.” Gabe rolled James onto his back and started kissing his way down James’s body. James had to grip Gabe’s shoulders as each kiss sent a wave of some new kind of pleasure through him. By the time Gabe was nuzzling at the thin line of hair below his navel, it was too much.

“Wait,” James gasped.

Gabe froze, then pulled back. “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing. I just… I just need to catch my breath.”

Gabe smiled and climbed back up the bed, lying next to James.

“Sorry,” James breathed.

“Don’t be. I’m in no rush. I even left my cell phone in the other room.”

“Wow.” James felt honored. Gabe seemed like the type who’d be the first to have his phone surgically implanted. “Are you jonesing for a hit yet?”

“Starting to.” He ran his fingers across James’s lips. “But I have something I can distract myself with.”

James kissed the tips of Gabe’s fingers. They still tasted of sweet peppers. “I think I’ve caught my breath now.”

“Good.” Gabe slid his hands down and cupped James’s backside. “Did you know you have a great ass?”

“No one has ever mentioned it.”

Gabe nuzzled at his neck, causing James’s toes to curl. “Well, you do. That second lecture, every time you leaned over to unlock my computer, I was checking you out.” Then he slid his hand around to the front of James’s body. James nearly jumped out of his skin as Gabe teased at his erection through his jeans. “And then there’s this. I fully intend to get this into my mouth before the night is up.”

“Jesus.” His head swam with the very idea. He pressed his hips into Gabe’s hand without conscious thought, simply craving more touch. Gabe nipped at his throat, then popped the button of James’s jeans with one hand and slowly drew down the zipper.

He buried his face into Gabe’s shoulder. He felt an overload building again, but he didn’t want things to stop.

“Just keep breathing and let me make you feel good,” Gabe said softly.

Then Gabe slipped his hand under the waistband of James’s underwear and closed it around his cock. It was the first hand other than James’s own to be there. It was too much. With a shout and a shudder and a single wild thrust, he came.

“Fuck,” he cursed.

“It’s okay.”

“No, it’s not,” James snapped, the humiliation crushing down on him, his face burning with shame. He couldn’t imagine what Gabe must think of such a pathetic and juvenile display. He tried to roll off the bed, but Gabe held him tight. He tried to cover his face.