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Did he know that Jax was there? How would he know that? And should he be embarrassed that his lover’s father was standing on the other side of his son’s open bedroom door while Jax lay naked in his bed? He waited for it to hit, but nothing happened. He was too on board with Noah to care much what anyone, including his father, thought about the matter. They were both consenting adults, and he was no longer in a position of power over the younger man.
“I’ll see what he says,” Noah mumbled in response, hiding his face from his dad again.
Jax had to swallow the laugh that rose in his throat at the rueful tone of Noah’s reply. He tried not to listen to the rest of the brief exchange, and when Noah closed the door and turned to him in the moonlit room, Jax could barely make out the chagrined expression on his face. He rose from the bed, loping over to where Noah stood indecisively and pulled him intohis arms.
“D’you think he knows I’m here?” he whispered against his earlobe. “And doyou care?”
Noah’s needy kiss was answer enough … he didn’t care too much. Jax returned it passionately, letting the moment stretch between them like a promise before he pulled away reluctantly.
“Even if doesn’t he know though, I don’t think it’s a good idea for me to stay here.”
He stepped away as Noah flicked the switch by the door and light flooded the room, pricking his eyes sharply. He looked around for his clothes, and Noah fetched him a robe from his closet.
“Here, put this on. Your clothes are in the guest bedroom. I’ll meet you in thekitchen.”
Jax changed quickly, wondering if Alvaro could hear him. He took his duffel and hurried back out to the kitchen where Noah was sipping a soda.
“One for the road?”
He held out an unopened can to Jax, who took it gratefully. Dutch courage … just in case Alvaro came back out before he left. He leaned against the counter, watching Noah sip his own drink, the tension stretching like a taut wire between them. He knew he needed to leave so he could get enough rest for the next day, but being with Noah wasn’t something he wanted to end either.
“I hope you find a nice place to live.” Noah broke the silence. “Are you looking at anythingspecial?”
“The realtor has two houses and a condo for me to look at. One of the houses is on a lake. I’m looking forward to seeingthat one.”
“I wish I could see it with you.”
Jax heard the longing in Noah’s voice and the echo of his own desire to share the experience with him in the noncommittal grunt he gave in response. It would have been nice to have him along. If they were going to be together, the house would eventually be Noah’s as well, wouldn’t it? Tension eased back into his limbs at the thought. Was he getting ahead of himself? Even if Noah was on board with rekindling their love affair, that didn’t mean he would want to live together, to…
The word hovering on the edge of his thoughts, waiting to drop into his mind and lodge there, was one he had never allowed himself to think about before. Marriage was a huge deal, not something he’d ever enter into lightly, and not something he felt confident that Noah would want. No matter what he might think, Noah was still ten years his junior with a lot of life left ahead of him, even if he never played another concert. He had more options than he might realize, and tying himself to one man might not be in his vision of his future.
“Jax?”
Noah’s voice broke him out of the increasingly unhappy trend of histhoughts.
“Sorry … just zoned out for a bit.”
He had no other truths he was prepared to offer. He had to get a hold of himself, to remember that so far all they’d done was make love once. That did not constitute a basis for considerations of wedding vows and together forever. He needed to exercise some of the restraint he had been able to marshal back when they were first together, when Noah tried his last string of patience before he seduced him completely.
“Ready to go? I’ll drive you.”
“You don’t…”
“What’s with you and resisting all the time?” Noah asked, sounding a tad irritated. “Why can’t you just say yes withouta fight?”
“Yes.”
Jax swallowed the laugh that rose in his throat and went with it. Whatever Noah wanted, Noah would get, even if it was just his agreement to a ride to where he was staying two streets over. He found an odd comfort in Noah’s impatience with his pussyfooting around, even after what they’d just been doing in his bed. Maybe, with time, he could consider ever afters.
While Noah let Klinger out for his last potty break before bed, Jax finished his drink and then they headed out. Despite the heat of the summer day, the car was refreshingly cool at this time of night, and the soft breeze blowing in off the lake was a sweet kiss of approval on his decision to say yes to the ride home. It wouldn’t take but a couple of minutes, but that was two extra minutes he’d have with the man sitting easily at his side, his free hand resting loosely onhis thigh.
They didn’t speak, but the air between them was full of unspoken hopes and dreams, of fantasies and desires … at least on Jax’s side. What would it be like to get home, after a long day, to Noah in his bed? How would it feel to wake in his arms? If he wasn’t living with his dad, would Jax have hadthatwish fulfilled? There had been no plan for sleepovers or even for sex, but if one could happen, who was to say both couldn’t? And sleepovers meant something, didn’t they? So if they woke up together some morning in the future, maybe Jax could take it as a sign that Noah was thinking about something more than committed lovers. That maybe Noah was thinking life partners, like he was.
“I had a great time today,” Noah said when he put the car in Park outside the Bell house. “And an even better time tonight.” His voice grew husky.
Jax cleared his throat so he could be heard. “Me too.” He looked over at his lover and smiled. “Thanks for inviting me out. The next date is onme, okay?”
Noah grinned. “Next date, huh? I’m in. When are we gonna get to it?”
