Page 39 of Sugar

“You’re not a romance kind of guy?” Piper asked, surprised.

Juno lifted a brow at him. “Do I seem like one?”

“To me, you do.”

Juno’s cheeks went pink, and Piper indulged in looking until the light turned green and he had to hit the freeway. The rest of the drive was him stealing glances whenever he was safe enough to take his eyes off the road and basking in quick touches and easy kisses when they stopped for food, or gas, or a piss.

The hours flew by in a sort of quiet ease Piper wasn’t expecting, and he was startled to realize they were ten minutes away from the little rental he’d booked. It was about thirty minutes outside of Buffalo, secluded and quiet, which seemed appropriate for what they were doing.

Normally he would have pulled out all the stops—a fancy hotel, room service, a spa with massages—but Juno didn’t seem to need all of that right now. At least, that’s what Piper hoped. He hadn’t mentioned where they were staying, and Juno hadn’t asked.

“I try not to be picky,” Juno said, facing the passenger window, “but we’re not booked in some creepy roadside motel, are we?”

Piper snorted as he followed the GPS directions, turning down a low-lit street. It was only eight, so the sun wasn’t quite down yet, but it was getting there. He saw small, flickering lights in a few yards, and he realized the fireflies were out.

“I tried to get us homes instead of hotels as often as I could,” he confessed. “I like the privacy better. I’d rather not have neighbors hearing what we’re up to. And I want you to be noisy.”

Juno swallowed heavily. “That’s…yeah. That’s a good point.”

Piper found himself grinning widely as he pulled into the driveway. It was a small cottage-looking thing. Dark wood paneling and a landscaped front yard. The houses on either side of them were just as well put together, but there were no lights on. He wondered just how alone they actually were.

He found Juno brave then. He wasn’t young by any means, but Piper still would have been shit-scared to do something like this when he was Juno’s age. Then again, he’d never had much courage. Not the way others did.

He wondered if he’d get braver the longer Juno was around and the more Juno let him in close.

Glancing over his shoulder, he saw his lover fumbling with his bag, but before he could reach out to help, Juno slung his duffle over his shoulder and yanked the suitcase until it was upright. He gave Piper a stunning smile—cheeks concave with the smallest dimples—and he squared his shoulder.

“Well?”

Piper turned and walked to the door, punching in the code. He was instantly hit with a strong scent of pine cleaner, enough to make his eyes water. Behind him, Juno coughed, so he walked to the front windows in the living room and wrenched them all open. There was a beep somewhere far off in the house—the alarm, he thought. He hadn’t been given instructions to turn it off, and it didn’t make more noise, so he dropped his carry bag on the couch and turned in a half-circle.

The place was as small as advertised, and a little less cozy than the pictures had promised, but it was still nice. The furniture looked well-worn, and at the very least, it was clean.

“Imagine having a whole house you could just rent out,” Juno mused as he walked past a bookshelf. He trailed his fingers along the books. They were all the classics he’d had to read in college. Moby Dick, Jane Eyre, Frankenstein, Dracula. He wondered if they were real or just for show. “Like, I’m still freaking out about losing my studio and being homeless.”

Piper’s stomach twisted. “You’re not going to be homeless.”

“It’s not that big of a deal. I mean, I’ve been homeless, and it sucked, but I learned all the tricks. I’d figure it out.”

“Your friends would never let you. I would never let you.”

Juno walked up to him and tugged on his wrist playfully. “I know. I’m just being salty about rich people having property for funsies or whatever.”

Rolling his eyes, Piper pulled him close. “It’s bullshit, I know. But for now, we’re going to take advantage of these morally corrupt people and fuck in a room where you can be as loud as you want.”

Juno swallowed heavily. “Yeah? Not even going to wine and dine me first?”

“Oh. There will be plenty of that.” He pushed his fingers gently into Juno’s curls, careful not to disturb them too much. “In fact, rumor has it there’s a jacuzzi tub and a spa kit for you to relax in while your loving new sex-friend cooks for you.”

Juno’s brows flew up. “Sex-friend?”

Piper felt a blush prickle across his cheeks. “That’s what my brother called you since, you know, we don’t have labels.”

Juno’s cough sounded suspiciously like it was trying to cover up a laugh. “Wow. Okay. That’s not going to be mortifying when I meet him or anything.”

Piper wanted to ask if maybe Juno wanted to call this something—which was better than nothing. But he wasn’t going to push it. Instead, he took Juno by the chin and kissed him softly. “About that bath…?”

“You sure you don’t want to join me?”

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