Page 110 of After the Siren
They wrapped up dinner when the volume reached an uncontrollable level. Xen was making noises about bedtime while the others were in an argument about where to go next.
Jake looked at Theo. He was also in favour of bedtime.
‘I got us an Airbnb,’ Theo said. ‘It’s a ten-minute walk.’
Jake felt a grin spread over his face. ‘You did, huh?’
‘I did.’
Theo looked pretty pleased with himself. Jake was pretty pleased with him too.
Jake stepped a little closer. Not so close that it would beobvious, but close enough that he could look up at Theo through his lashes and see the way it made Theo’s eyes darken. ‘Why? You planning to be loud?’
Theo brushed his fingers over the inside of Jake’s wrist, the barest touch. ‘I’mnot the one who’s loud.’
‘Yeah, you hold back. Weak.’
‘Because you havehousemates.’
‘You wanna know how many people I’ve heard Paddy fuck?’
‘Absolutely not.’
‘We’re gonna go,’ Jake announced to the group, over their spirited discussion about nearby pubs. ‘It’s been great, thanks.’
He got some more ‘happy birthdays’ and about twenty per cent less ribbing than he’d expected. He wanted to reach out and take Theo’s hand. Maybe he’d be able to one day.
‘Come on,’ he said. ‘I wanna see how loud you get.’
‘I’m going to jump in the shower, can you keep yourself amused?’ Theo asked.
Jake had learned early that Theo was not ashowering togetherperson. He said he liked to be able to think in the shower, and Jake supposed he could understand that. Although these days when he was in the shower he mainly just thought about Theo.
The Airbnb wasnice.It was a loft in a warehouse conversion, all exposed brick and heavy beams, but it had been furnished in a way that made it feel cosy: heavy Turkish rugs on the floor, a forest of houseplants, a king-sized bed covered in pillows and the types of blankets that even Jake could tell were expensive. There was also a bottle of champagne on ice on the kitchencounter, and some chocolate-coated strawberries. Jake had never fed anyone a chocolate-coated strawberry, but he was keen to give it a go. He tested one while Theo was out of the room and they weretasty. There were two bathrobes on the bed, so Jake stripped and put one on. It felt like wearing clouds. He put on a playlist using the apartment’s speaker and decided to assess how sturdy the bed was.
Theo came out of the shower ten minutes later looking ... nervous? He towelled off and wrapped himself in the other bathrobe. Jake had expelled a number of throw pillows from the bed, but the doona was very snuggly and the blankets were cosy. Theo was looking at him in his nest, not quite smiling, and something turned over under Jake’s ribs.
‘It’s been a really great night,’ Jake said. ‘Thank you.’
Theo crossed the room and leaned over the bed to find Jake’s mouth with his own. ‘I haven’t even given you a present yet,’ he said when he broke the kiss.
Jake wriggled back and propped himself up on the pillows. ‘Oh yeah? You gonna?’
‘Guess you’ll find out.’
Jake pulled Theo in for another kiss, then all the way down onto the bed, Theo’s thigh settling between Jake’s legs. Theo slid his hands under Jake’s unfastened robe and Jake sighed, let himself be touched, ran his own hands over Theo’s familiar body. It felt different, somehow. They were alone plenty, but it was always in Jake’s room. It never feltreallyprivate. Not like this.
The kiss started slow and sweet, stayed slow but turned filthy, Theo’s tongue in Jake’s mouth, his hands on Jake’s sides. Jake was trying to touch all of Theo at once, needing to be closer. He wrapped one leg around Theo’s hips, arching up so their dicks brushed together. They both groaned. Theo had two handsburied in Jake’s hair, his mouth hot on Jake’s neck, then his jaw, then his mouth again.
Theo broke the kiss after what might have been hours, panting, and Jake reached up to trace a thumb over Theo’s mouth. Theo was looking down at him, eyes dark, mouth determined. ‘I want you to fuck me,’ he said. ‘If you want to.’
Jake closed his eyes for a second. ‘Are you giving me your ass for my birthday?’ he asked, instead of saying other, dumber things. LikeI think I might be in love with you.
That made Theo laugh. ‘It’s more of a loan.’
Jake pouted. ‘It’s rude to take back a gift.’ He ran his hands down Theo’s back, then over his ass, and Theo shifted, restless, pushing closer. ‘Are you ... it’s not ...’ Jake tried to find the right way to say it. ‘I wanna do this, but not if you’re only suggesting it for my sake. I don’t want it to be, like, a sacrifice.’
Theo stroked a hand down Jake’s chest, teased his thumb over one of Jake’s nipples, then the other. Jake inhaled.
