Noah inspected the pictures I had taken over our cinnamon bagels. I put on the small espresso maker I’d brought along to make a second cup for us. The sputtering coffee and the freshly toasted bagels made the kitchen smell heavenly.
He whistled through his teeth.
“How about this?” he asked me as he held the phone out to me. I took it and inspected the picture he’d chosen.
“Mm, I like it. We look hot.”And like we’re seconds away from fucking each other’s brains out.
“We do,” Noah agreed with me, a tiny smirk on his lips. He’d found his composure again. “What about the caption? Witty enough?”
My eyes snapped down to read it.
Bright days ahead!
My lip curled up again when I noticed the blue heart he’d added. It was precisely the shade of my eyes. When I threw him a glance he looked pleased with himself.
Bright days ahead, indeed, my sweet puppy.
“Post it.” I handed it back to him. He tapped on the screen, then locked his phone and put it—screen facing down—on the table.
“How did you know I was up already?” he asked before taking the next bite of his bagel.
“I follow you on ArgoS,” I said simply, leaning back in my chair with my cup cradled in my hands.
For the second time in under half an hour Noah’s face glowed like the setting sun.
So adorable.
Would he have posted the picture of him gazing out into the morning if he had realised I followed him? He had taken up only a tiny sliver of the picture’s edge, with his shirt pulled tight around his body, and the grey joggers hugging his unmistakably hard cock.
Seeing him like that and knowing he was only a mile, not half a world, away had done funny things to my own dick. I still felt the sting of my barbs on my palm from when I had furiously wanked again in the shower.
“I need to get some fresh content out. My reach is still dropping like crazy.” His voice had a defiant tone about it.
“I get it. That’s why I came here—well no, not true,” I amended. “I wanted to get you a coffee and hang out a bit. But I wanted to suggest a trip to Windmouth Castle soon.”
“Sorry,” Noah mumbled into his cup.
“It’s okay. It’s been a lot. But if I can, I’ll help you carry a bit of the burden.”
“You need to stop saying these things, Lewis.” He chuckled weakly, clutching his mug so tightly his fingers turned white.
“Why? I mean it.”
“You’re making me cry, okay?” Noah brushed a few tears off his cheeks.
“Sorry.” I felt like shit. Hadn’t I made his life difficult enough when we’d both been teenagers?
“Stop being so sweet, Sinclair, honestly!” He shook his head, making his curls flop around his forehead as he meticulously cut open a second bagel. “Want half of it? I don’t think I can eat all of it.”
Stop being sweet to you, Bright? Over my dead body.
“Yeah, thanks.” I held my hand out and took the upper half—my favourite. When I told him as much, he snorted.
“I prefer the bottom half,” he said as he cut the Somerset Brie into slices, a playful smile on his lips.
“That fits then.” I smirked at him.
Good to have that established. I wouldn’t mind the occasional bottom half.
