Page 7 of His New Toy

The man looked him up and down in one slow glance. “You’re very helpful,” he said, voice pleased. Then, “I usually retire to the den after dinner and enjoy a glass of wine, would you like to join me?”

It was too early to go to sleep, and Seth didn’t really want to say no to Clark as it was. “Okay.”

Seth wasn’t much of a drinker, so he politely declined the wine when Clark offered and took a seat on one of the rich, brown leather couches while Clark poured himself his own healthy glass. The man then came and sat on the same couch as Seth, just a touch too close.

The den was darker than it had been earlier, the lighting dimmed so it cast long shadows at the edges of the room. It gave the room a much more private feel.

“So Turner’s Toys, how did you end up there?” Clark’s gaze on him was steady, and wrapped up in this room Seth couldn’t help but feel suddenly like this was much more than just after dinner chat. That he was being treated to something much more than just the politeness extended to a helpful service worker.

Seth swallowed and then told Clark the very unexciting story of needing to find a job after the grocery store he’d previously stocked at had cut everyone’s hours to put them on part-time pay. How he enjoyed working with his hands, and so it hadn’t taken long for him to also be given the job of assistant toy doctor. Despite the topic, Clark didn’t at all seem bored by the conversation. Instead, the man posed pointed, thoughtful questions that had Seth talking about himself, sharing more with this man than he’d shared with anyone in a long time.

Before Seth realized it, Clark was finishing his second glass, and quite some time had gone by. Seth couldn’t remember the last time he’d gotten so wrapped up in a conversation.

“Oh,” Clark said, glancing at his watch. “I promised not to keep you up too late, but it seems I should apologize.”

Seth glanced up at the large, decorative clock on the far wall, genuinely surprised to find it was nearing eleven. “That’s okay,” he said, “It was nice to talk. You’re very easy to talk to.”

“As are you.”Clark said with a smile. “But come, I should get you settled in a room.”

They went upstairs, and Clark led him to a guest room that was nearly twice the size of his own rented one. It didn’t have the same lived-in quality that other parts of the house had, but it was clean and tidy and thoughtfully decorated all the same.

“I’ll put you here,” Clark said. “It has an en suite bathroom there with spare toiletries,” he gestured to a door off the room. “And let me just get you something to change into.”

He left before Seth could stutter out that he was fine without being provided clothes. Seth didn’t know how he’d feel wearing something borrowed from Clark, even if the alternative of going to sleep in his day clothes–or without them–was not exactly appealing.

Seth took his backpack and dropped it in the corner chair. It was so strange to be here, and he still couldn’t wrap his head around it. He’d come just to put together a trampoline, and now he was going to sleep on a mattress that was probably worth more than everything he owned.

A few minutes later Clark returned with a stack of clothing in hand.

“These will probably be a bit big on you, but it’s the best I could do.” He held the clothing out to Seth. “And if you need anything else, my room is two down. Just knock.”

“Thank you,” Seth said, taking the little pile, fingers brushing Clark’s in passing. The fabric in his hands felt very soft.

Clark reached out to lay a hand on Seth’s shoulder–when had he gotten so close? Seth breathed in the heady notes of Clark’s cologne and didn’t move. “Is there anything else you need?”

“Nossir,” Seth managed under the weight of Clark’s large, warm hand. He didn’t shiver, but only just. “Thank you.”

Clark smiled at him, slow and languid. “Very well,” he said. “Again, should you need anything, I’m only a few rooms away.”

“Thank you,” Seth said again. And then Clark was giving his shoulder a squeeze and stepping away, taking his leave and closing the door behind him.

Seth let out a breath he didn’t know he’d been holding and went to wash his heated face.

After, he looked at his own mirrored reflection and told himself to get a grip, before he set about making use of the rest of the bathroom. There were even a few little wrapped toothbrushes and toothpaste sets under the sink, like a fancy hotel might have. Seth was grateful for them, and tried not to feel too bad opening a set to use it. Clark said he could, so… that was okay.

Then he went back to the main bedroom and shucked his clothes to change into the ones Clark had given him. It turned out to be a genuine set of pajamas– dark blue and incredibly soft. The shirt was long sleeved and fell past his wrists, and the pants hem puddled slightly around his ankles, but they were otherwise very comfortable. He didn’t even have to cinch the waistband in too tightly to get them to stay on his slimmer hips.

The pajamas also smelled… good. Like Clark.

It was subtle, but the faint whiff of smoky wood clung to the fabric. Enough that Seth couldn’t help but unconsciously bring the sleeve to his nose and inhale, before he realized what he was doing.

Face flaming, Seth crawled into the huge bed, tucking himself under the heavy comforter. It was, as expected, very comfortable. It also smelled clean, and not at all like Clark, and that helped him clear his head a little.

Seth set his alarm for eight am to give him plenty of time in the morning to get from Clark’s house to Seth’s place and then back out to work, then closed his eyes and tried to sleep.

Chapter Four

As much as Seth tried to sleep, all he ended up doing was tossing and turning fitfully for what seemed like hours. When he finally gave in to checking the time on his phone, Seth saw that it was only just midnight. So not too much time wasted on insomnia yet, but he worried that if this kept going, he’d never fall asleep.

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