Page 38 of Johann

All in all, the chime of the bell over Death by Coffee’s front door sounded out like an accusation.

But Alexei couldn’t beat himself up for too long because then there was Jay, looking absurdly adorable in some sort of corduroy overall number over a fuzzy purple sweater, staring off into space over the cash register. The majority of the café’s tables had people sitting at them, but there was no line—possibly because Alexei had deliberately chosen a time when he’d been hoping there would be a lull at the café—and it didn’t take long for Jay to notice him, breaking out into one of his beaming smiles, waving enthusiastically as Alexei approached. “Alexei! Hello! You’re here! How nice.”

“Hey, kitten,” Alexei said, resisting the urge to grin back at him like a maniac. Still, he was feeling magnanimous enough, now that he had Jay in his sights again, to shoot a nod of acknowledgment at Alicia, manning the espresso machine.

Jay placed his hands first on the counter, then on his register, then fiddled with the clasp on his overalls. “I’ve missed you, and it’s only been a day. Isn’t that funny?”

Alexei’s heart clenched at Jay’s casual admission. Maybe that was why his own words came out easier than he would have expected. “I missed you too, kotyonok.”

Jay unclasped and then reclasped the button on his shoulder. “Really?” he asked, an uncharacteristic shyness in his voice.

Alexei noticed then that up close, Jay looked a little…different. Dimmed, somehow, even with the clear delight he felt at Alexei’s arrival.

Alexei placed his box on the counter, leaning in. “Hey, are you okay?”

Jay shrugged, still fiddling with the button on his overalls. “I’ve just been a little stressed. It’s been…stressful.”

Alexei had no idea what “it” would be regarding. The café? Something with Jay’s friends?Alexei?“You want to talk about it?”

Jay’s brow furrowed, just the slightest bit, and he released his overall strap, instead poking at one of the bags of coffee beans at the counter. What came out of his mouth next was not what Alexei was anticipating. “I think we should have penetrative sex.”

The air punched out of Alexei’s chest. How was Jay always doing that to him? The admittedly sheltered vampire had next to zero sexual experience, zero flirtation game, yet he was always so easily pulling the rug out from under Alexei, leaving him feeling desperate and wanting like no one ever had.

Instead of answering with theFuck yes, we shouldthrumming under his skin, Alexei rubbed at the back of his neck, still concerned with the strange nonverbal signals he was getting. “Is that, uh— Is that what’s been stressing you out?”

Jay flapped a hand in the air. “Unrelated. But I think we should. We definitely should do that. Soon. Tonight.” He punctuated the last statement with a sharp nod before his lips twisted into a thoughtful frown. “Wait…no. I have family dinner tonight. Tomorrow, then.” Then he was looking up through his lashes at Alexei, biting his lip. “Unless you don’t want to?”

Oh fuck. Hehadto know what he was doing, right? No one was that completely oblivious to their own appeal, were they? Alexei couldn’t help it. He leaned forward, wanting to tug that lip between his own teeth, not caring how many customers were in the café or who might see them.

A throat cleared.

Alexei paused, mere inches from Jay’s now upturned face. “Hello, Colin.”

“Hello yourself, Alex,” Colin said, tapping at Jay’s shoulder from where he was suddenly looming behind him. “Short stack, you mind going to the storage closet and grabbing some more bags of French roast?”

“Oh, sure.” Jay blinked slowly, looking a little dazed, before shaking his head and bouncing off to the back, leaving Alexei with a predictably scowling Colin.

Alexei heaved a sigh, wondering what the source of the seemingly increased hostility was. He’d thought they had things squared away. “What’s up your ass today?”

Colin turned toward the back quickly, making sure of Jay’s continued absence, before he answered, “Jay’s been…off. Since yesterday. Distracted, and not in his usual way. Like, worried. Sad.” The glowering intensified noticeably. “What did you do?”

“What do you mean, what did I do? Nothing. He had—we had a date. It went well. We made pancakes.”And somehow, virgin that he is, he still managed to suck my soul out through my cock. Alexei decided to keep that last part to himself. He rubbed at the back of his neck again, confused.Hadhe fucked up somehow? Made Jay sad? But then why was Jay asking for penetrative sex, as he’d so plainly put it? “I like him a lot,” he admitted to Colin, more than a little helpless at the admission.

Colin gave him a skeptical once-over. “Like having your dirty paws all over him, more like.”

Alexei bit back the inappropriate urge to laugh. Who the fuck talked like that? “Ilikehim, okay? He’s weird and funny and sweet, and he’s not a raging asshole like ninety percent of the human population.”

Jay chose that moment to bounce back over, bags of coffee in his arms. “That’s so nice, Alexei. I don’t think you’re a raging asshole either.”

Alexei took a moment to appreciate the sound of Jay’s sweet voice saying the wordasshole.“You heard that, did you?”

“I have excellent hearing.” Jay placed his wares down before leaning forward to whisper loud enough for the entire café to hear, “Because of…you know.”

“I was just telling Colin how much I’ve enjoyed spending time with you.” And then—because he had no idea what had Jay feeling so upset, but he so very much didnotwant it to be because of him—Alexei did what he’d been wanting to do since the moment he’d walked in and seen Jay’s smiling face. He leaned in all the way over the counter and planted a kiss on those Cupid’s bow lips.

It wasn’t a proper kiss unfortunately, not with the café full of strangers and Colin’s black cloud of disapproval hovering over them. Just a brief brush of lips. But still a sort of…claiming.

Alexei straightened back up after not nearly enough time, assessing the damage. “Was that okay?”

---