Whatever the Cost (26 page)

At first Liam is okay. Jacen tongue-fucks his mouth and squeezes his ass. Then Jacen begins to grind against him, thrusting against the junction of Liam’s legs. Easing the leg wrapping around his back higher, Jacen rocks against Liam’s bottom. His fingers hook inside the waistband of Liam’s pants. They’re chest-to-chest and Jacen can feel Liam’s heart jumping, beating too wildly, the quickened gasping of Liam’s breath, more panic than anything.

Instantly, Jacen tries to put on the brakes. He stops thrusting and stills his movements. Putting a buffer of space between them after guiding Liam’s leg back down, Jacen kisses in a line down Liam’s throat to his collarbone. Intending to break away, he’s instead lured in by the clean taste and heat of Liam’s skin, and sucks hard at his pulse point. Liam surges up into the contact, grabbing a handful of Jacen’s hair and moaning loudly as Jacen nips and sucks and marks him, leaving a dark bruise.

“Let-let me up,” Liam growls. “Jace. Let me up.”

His pupils blown black, Jacen can’t even pretend to hide how hard up he is, how crazy with lust. Enough of his brain is still working to inform him that he’s being a jackass for trying to take from Liam exactly what he’s just confessed he wasn’t ready for, so he hangs his head and hides his face in his hands, elbows planted on his knees as Liam gets up off the couch.

Once I’m more composed
, Jacen tells himself,
I’ll apologize profusely
.

He doesn’t get the chance. Liam shoves Jacen back against the cushions, grabs his knees and yanks them forward, making Jacen sag even farther into the back of the seat. Roughly yanking Jacen’s pants open, tugging them down to mid-thigh, Liam settles on his knees between Jacen’s feet, holding his gaze with a steady, dangerous look. Fitting Jacen’s massive hard-on in the junction of his thumb and forefinger, Liam extends his tongue and licks in a wide stripe over the head, rolling the taste of him back into his mouth, moaning at the salty, thick flavor. Jacen palms the back of Liam’s head and, wasting no time, Liam wraps his lips around Jacen and feeds him slowly back over his tongue, taking a few inches, hollowing his cheeks and pulling back off. Then he does it again, feeding him a little deeper, pressing with his tongue along the underside and sucking as hard as he’s able as he pulls off a second time with a slurp.

“Li-Liam,” Jacen pants, wrecked already. “Fuck your mouth.”

With a wicked grin, Liam plants his hands on Jacen’s thighs, holding on to him as he begins to suck him off. Head bobbing in Jacen’s lap, Jacen’s flushed length slips wet, pumping in and out from between Liam’s sinful lips, stretched wide with his mouthful. Liam takes Jacen deeply enough to get his hips bucking up off the couch. Jacen’s free hand flies to Liam’s head, to better hold on to it, guiding his pace, and scratching desperately over his scalp as Jacen’s need coils like a snake ready to strike.

Before he erupts, Jacen drags Liam up off of the floor, his fist twisted in Liam’s shirtfront. With a growl, Jacen licks back into Liam’s mouth, sucking the taste of himself from Liam’s lips. But Liam doesn’t ease up, letting Jacen have his mouth as he manually brings Jacen off, hungrily drinking down Jacen’s explosive, breathless cry.

“It’s—” Jacen gasps, trying to recover “—official. I’m the luckiest bastard in the world. Hands down. Goddammit.”

Liam chuckles, “You’re welcome.” Leaning close to Jacen’s ear, Liam clears his throat and asks in a gruff voice, “Can I?”

“Baby, you can do whatever the fuck you want to do.”

“Good. ’Cause all I want’s to be balls deep in you right the fuck now.”

“Is it always going to be this much fun to work through our issues?” Jacen asks deliriously, his voice breaking as Liam yanks Jacen’s pants the rest of the way off and manhandles him around so that he’s kneeling on the cushions, holding the back of the couch.

Spitting thickly onto his fingers, wriggling them up into Jacen, getting harder at the low grunt Jacen makes in response, Liam scissors his fingers apart and leers, “Nah, once we get the test results back and know for sure that we’re clean and I can finally do you bareback, it’s gonna be
so much fuckin’ better
.”

Pulling his fingers free, Liam fits his condom-sheathed member to Jacen’s opening, letting gentle pressure stretch him open the rest of the way. Jacen shudders and shivers, his head falling as he pushes back against Liam, swallowing him up.

“And once I get over my shit,” Liam promises, “you can hold me down, tie me up, stuff me full of that gorgeous cock and fuck me ’til I scream any goddamned time you want to.”

Jacen moans sharply and starts to fuck himself back onto Liam. “Because no one else gets to have that from you but me.”

“That’s right,” Liam grins. “And
no one
,” he growls, snapping his hips, plunging in up to the hilt, driving the breath from Jacen’s lungs, “gets to have
you
,” he draws back and does it again, holding Jacen’s hips to keep him still, “like
this
,” one more time. “But
me
.”

“Yours,” Jacen gasps.

“Damn fuckin’ right. Anyone else tries to touch you, I break their goddamned hand.”

The possessive, protective, wildness in Liam’s words gets Jacen off fast. He comes at the same time that Liam does, and hopes the dull ache from the force of Liam’s movements lasts all night long, to serve as a reminder of the promises made.

The speed with which Liam and Jacen found themselves dislodged from their previous existence was dizzying. Realities shifted overnight. Up became down. Night became day. Nothing was certain. Given this fact, and their subsequently frazzled mental states, Liam in particular is lured into a conviction that things will begin to slow down and stabilize again seeing as how they’ve attained a modicum of safety. Sure, the motel isn’t ideal, but it works for their basic needs and there is no reason to rush any more major decisions. This is why Liam is utterly unprepared for it when Jacen comes back from an emergency panini run with not just a bag full of hot, fantastic-smelling food, but a job to boot.

After tossing the bag down onto the motel room’s small table, Jacen spills the news in a torrent of words. “It was incredible, Lee. I saw the help wanted sign posted but didn’t really think much of it until I got talking with the woman that was serving me. Her dad owns the place and they had a really bad experience with their last chef. He had this massive ego, I guess, came right out of culinary school and they’re looking for someone who they’ll get along with better. They said they don’t mind someone learning on the job if they’re a good fit and I don’t know. One minute I was placing my order and the next I’m sitting in the back office answering questions about my cooking style and availability and they hired me. I start tomorrow afternoon. Joe Barbara, he’s the owner, he wants to see how I do with the current menu. The crowd won’t be too crazy since it’s a Tuesday, so I can ease into it, but can you believe it? I don’t have training, or, you know, experience, but they were willing to look past that and this is huge. This is like a dream come true! I want to take you down there. I mean, we should eat first, of course, but I want you to see it. You never know, our luck could hold out and we might see some place on the market in the area and it could be our new home.”

“Whoa. Slow down. Take a breath, sit down. You look like you just ran all the way back here.” Liam pulls out a chair for Jacen and glances over the Barbara’s Bistro logomark on the paper bag.

“I could have!” Jacen gushes, his skin flushed hot and glistening with a light sheen of sweat. “I feel so energized, like I could run clear across the state if I wanted to.”

“This is just really sudden. Are you sure this is the right fit?”

“Yes, it’s the right fit! It’s a perfect fit. Why? You don’t think so?” The light begins to die in Jacen’s eyes, crushing his overjoyed, enlivened spirit, so Liam holds his tongue, pushes past his concerns and smiles.

“I think it’s awesome. I don’t think I’ve ever seen you this excited about something before. I guess I was just surprised.”

“Me too! It was just...
bam
!”

“And you don’t think it’s taking on too much? I mean you said it yourself; you don’t have formal training in this type of thing. We’ve both been pretty stressed from the move and all. I just don’t want to see you jumping into this only to be disappointed.”

“Lee, I swear I can handle this. All I was praying for was a chance, just a chance to show someone that I can do it. I’ll work my butt off. I’ll listen and take direction and use every trick I know.”

Hands flattened on the tabletop as if he’s bracing himself against the blistering speed of Jacen’s decision-making, Liam looks over at Jacen, who is bursting with joy and renewed faith in the universe. “You’re going to be amazing, Jace, I know it. I believe in you.”

Jacen’s cheeks dimple deeply as he grins, surging toward Liam, sweeping him off his feet in a bear hug and groaning loudly against him.

He sets Liam down and flops into a chair, doling out the food and patting Liam’s seat to get him to settle into it. “The pay isn’t extravagant. It’s nothing like we’re used to pulling in, but there’s a health plan and retirement benefits and dental and it’s totally legit.” Jacen’s eyes sparkle at the idea. “And we’ve got enough saved to last us a lifetime as long as we’re not stupid about it, so the salary’s just gravy anyway. I’ve got a job. A real job. I can provide for us, and once we find a home we’re set. God, I want to tell everybody but I can’t so I feel like I’m just going to explode with happiness.”

Liam lets Jacen ramble on, exploring every idea that passes through his mind aloud as the reality of what he’s accomplished settles in. Liam eats while Jacen talks, and the food is good. Jacen finishes his own sandwich in huge bites which he tries to talk around, causing Liam to fear the obvious choking hazard. It would be spectacularly ironic, after all, for Jacen to die by the sandwich that sparked his good fortune just as all his dreams seem to be coming true.

It’s two in the afternoon when they head out, bellies full and Jacen itching to show Liam his new place of employment. It’s a ten minute drive. They park in a small lot set back off of the road, which they cross as they walk in the direction of the bistro. The neighborhood is quaint but bustling, with shops as far as the eye can see; a coffee bar, a bank, a community center and any number of businesses lining the road. People filter in and out of the buildings, drinks or shopping bags clutched in hand. Still about half a block from their destination, Liam tries to soak it all in, scanning the street. He pauses, reading the signs labeling the stores as Jacen goes on ahead, impatient.

Liam is getting ready to hurry and catch up again when a group of attractive, well-dressed women emerge from the coffee place on the corner and pass very close to Jacen on the sidewalk. One of them is a petite, platinum blonde and, judging purely by the superficial, Liam decides there’s no chance she wasn’t a snooty cheerleader type in high school. She smiles seductively up at Jacen and purrs, “Hi.”

“Hey,” Jacen smiles back at her, years of instinct coming into play as his natural charm and adorably dimpled grin radiate warmth and friendliness. Pushing his long, dark hair back with a hand, his attention lingers with her a moment longer.

“I’m Logan,” she says, extending a hand to him.

“He’s taken,” Liam interjects, finally catching up to Jacen’s side, hands balled up into fists, hidden in the front pockets of his jeans.

There’s an awkward couple of seconds when Jacen seems to struggle to figure out what’s going on, what he’s doing, what Liam is doing, and so on.

“Maybe you should let him decide that,” Logan says before turning her back to Liam, facing Jacen once more.

“I have actually. He’s not interested. Back off.”

“Seems interested enough to me,” she retorts, planting her hands on her dainty hips.

Liam fumes, jaw clenched, eyes blazing.

Logan scoffs, “What’s your problem, anyway?”

Jacen looks on, dumbstruck, as Liam spits, “My problem is with you trying to hit on my husband.”

Now it’s Logan’s turn to be dumbstruck as Jacen finally finds his tongue. “Liam. Be cool. It’s okay,” Jacen says calmly, taking his arm. “Come on.”

He guides Liam away from the growing crowd of onlookers, and down a fairly deserted side street. Liam yanks his arm free and steps into an alcove, hissing under his breath, “’
Be cool’
? What the fuck was that?”

“What? I just said hello.”

“That wasn’t just hello. You smiled at her like you were flirting with her. I know the difference between hello and
hello
.”

“You’re being crazy,” Jacen says quietly, blocking the stares of a few nearby people with his broad back. “It’s polite to say hi to someone who acknowledges you. What do you want me to do, ignore people?”

“You’re trying to teach me etiquette now? Some bimbo just tried to pick you up on the street and you want to turn it into a lesson in manners?”

“Liam,” Jacen says, stepping closer to him, lowering his voice even more. “No one’s picking me up. There’s nothing to worry about. We’re here, together, to check out the area because the restaurant that just hired me is nearby. I’m glad you’re so quick to defend my honor, but really, I’ve got this.”

Liam tells himself that Jacen wouldn’t have engaged Logan any farther than a brief exchange. He wouldn’t have tried to pick her up like he was out here working the street, but seeing with his own eyes how fast Jacen slipped into that suave, disarmingly charming role he plays so well—flirtatious and sensual—causes Liam to drown in a surge of jealousy and fearful possessiveness that he can control no more than he can control the way that, even now, people are looking at them, watching their heated exchange. And then he remembers everything Jacen has told him about how he got his job offer, that he fell into conversation with a waitress at the bistro and she was all too happy to tell him about the open position. That makes it worse.