Page 69 of Sweet

“What guy?” Jess asks.

Cas shrugs. “Riley was going straight home anyway, so I didn’t see the harm. It was kinda the whole point of taking him out somewhere with a wider pool of options. He had fun.”

“Then he’s probably passed out at home and forgot to call in before his shift,” Jess agrees. With a sigh, he looks at me. “You okay closing alone?”

“Yeah, of course. Get the hell out of here,” I say with a smile.

Cas puts a hand out, offering to take Jess’s trash for him.

Jess smiles back at both of us and hands over his mostly empty cup, filled only with ice and the essence of coffee. “Thanks for the coffee, Bailey.”

“No prob.”

As soon as Jess is out of earshot, I smirk at Cas and stroke some hair behind his ear. “Look at you, playing nice with the other boys.”

Cas shrugs, looking extremely pleased with himself while he grins.

“You’re still mine,” I remind him.

“I’m yours,” he parrots with a wider grin.

“Mybottom,” I tease.

Cas rolls his eyes.

“What? You’re mine. You’re never having sex with anyone else ever again. Ergo, you’re officially a bottom. My bottom. And my good boy.”

With that, I pull him in for a smooch and kick him out of the store before I get myself in trouble being unsupervised around him.

Chapter twenty-seven

Cas

What Will thinks happened yesterday:

Stop at the farm with coffee. Find Riley in the parking lot. Head a few towns over to the city. Meet up with some friends of mine. Enjoy nightlife. Get Riley a vehicle before he can get himself in too much trouble. Send him home shitfaced with someone who’ll fuck his brains out. Go to my hotel. Stay the night. Meet with investors in the morning. Come back home. Stop by the farm around my usual time with iced coffee, equally confused as everyone else about what went wrong.

What actually happened yesterday:

Stop at the farm with coffee. Meet Riley there. Ask if he still wants to carpool tonight. Pick him up at his place close to nightfall. Detour to my house real quick, since I forgot my phone at home. I’m so scatterbrained, hahahah. He’s impressed by the house. Pretend to check my phone. Aw, shoot. The meeting that I completely made up got canceled. Frown. So very saddened by this fake news.

Riley says it’s okay. We don’t have to leave town to have funtogether. Perfect. Let’s pregame at my house. We start with shots. He’s a lightweight. He starts to flirt with me. Flirt right back. Be open to him making a move so he thinks it’s okay. Take him to bed.

Wring his little fucking neck until he stops fighting, then give it a satisfying snap just for good measure. Won’t be resting that head again onanyoneanytime soon.

Drag Riley out of bed. Strip the sheets and put dirty linens right in the washer. Scald the shit out of everything. Everything. Top to bottom. Every room. Every surface. Everything he might’ve touched and even stuff he definitely didn’t, just to be safe. Load up Riley in a leftover painting tarp from the remodel. He spends the night wrapped up outside in the barn. Scald the shit out of myself. Make bed again. Bedtime. Sleep great.

Wake up the next day. Lie low at home for the morning. Stop by the farm at my usual time with coffee. Give spare coffee to Jesse. Smile. I’m such a nice guy. Offer to take his trash. Heart-melting kisses from the boyfriend before he sends me on my way. Go home. Put on my snow tires. Same tires Jesse happens to have on his truck. Load up Riley. Sun sets early. Around twilight, arrive at a wooded area conveniently located a couple of miles from where Jesse and his family lives. Dump Riley. Shake the shit out of the coffee straw around Riley’s face and mouth. Thanks for the free DNA, Jesse. Do a half-assed job burying Riley like an amateur. Take the tarp with me for now. Go home. Wash truck. Scald self again and put all clothes in the washer. All done with everything in time to welcome home my horny boyfriend. Lots of sex. Sleep even better than last night with him wrapped up with me.

A week passes. No one has any idea what happened to Riley. And by that I mean, no one’s come across his body in the pitifully shallow grave I left him in. Eh. Just a matter of time. The farmer’s market has officially come to a close for the season. Will and I have been going strong, and he practically lives with me. Jesse has backed right the fuck off, so I’ve been able to tolerate Will’s best friend like the good boyfriend I am.

The remaining leaves are frosted every morning. Snow has started falling regularly, though it rarely sticks. The whole season is cozy and lovely. Sex in front of the roaring fireplace, Hallmark holiday-type romance. I am extremely happy for perhaps the first time in my life, so much so I am content with day-to-day normalcy. Mostly because Will smothers me with love and affection, and I adore the constant attention. He really doesn’t give a fuck about anyone or anything outside of me.

Since neither Will nor I have family obligations, and since the farm will be closed for the long weekend due to the holiday, we have decided to go away. It’s going to be just me and him, in the middle of nowhere in the mountains, spending the entire time cuddling and drinking cocoa between rounds of screwing. Sure, we could’ve done all that at my house, but the snowy mountain backdrop is something we both want to experience. Will has to close tonight, but he’s going to sleepover and then first thing tomorrow we’re driving out to the rental for our vacation. Like the good boyfriend I am, I pop by in the afternoon with his caffeine fix. Leave it to him to suck down iced coffee in a store that isn’t heated very well.

I am basking in sweet nothings and promises of all the things Will is going to do to me over the weekend when Jesse comes by to drop off his keys. I wordlessly pass a hot coffee over to him, since he probably needs it from being outside and I’m in such a good mood even his presence can’t take that from me.

“Thanks, Bailey,” Jesse chirps.

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