Page 26 of No Kind Words

“Yes. The only downside is that the old bastard isn’t around to see us.” He smiles, and I can’t help laughing as well.

“Get some clothes on, and we can get the food sorted.”

I watch with amusement as Jethro groans around the first bite of the pizza, his eyes rolling back. From what my friends have said, I make a damn good pizza. And seeing Jethro almost having another orgasm proves they are right.

“Oh, god, this is the best pizza I’ve ever tasted,” he mumbles around the second mouthful. “Do you sell these in the café? Because I’m sure Maeve would’ve told me.”

“No, this is something I do for myself or friends if they ask.” I shrug.

“That’s crazy. You could make a fortune.”

“I work enough already. I’m already up at four a.m. to bake for the café.” People rarely realise how much work goes on before they walk into the café for their morning coffee. The early mornings have always been a peaceful time. Until I discovered audiobooks, and now I’ve succumbed to books I never thought I’d love—gay romance. The hours fly by as I lose myself in the world of hot hockey players and special forces, but mainly the lost lovers who finally make it back together. Wishful thinking, I always thought, but here I am, with Jethro and the new start I’ve been wishing for.

Jethro wipes his mouth and hands with a serviette and screws it up into a ball, all laughter gone. This is going to be something serious, and I’m not sure if it’s going to be a good serious or a bad one. “You okay?” I shift on the sofa to get a better look at him.

“What do we do now?” Jethro asks, looking a little unsettled.

“What do you mean?”

“Us. What do you want? I’ve never really done this. I rarely dated. Boyfriends never lasted more than a couple of months. I never wanted to show my back, so making it more serious was out of the question. I don’t know how to do this, not out in the open.” The furrow on his forehead has deepened. This is troubling him.

“We don’t need to do anything but be together. Hang out with our friends at early doors. The food is pretty good in the pubs. Nobody is going to be surprised, are they? You already know everyone’s been waiting for this.” I pull him against me, placing a gentle kiss on his temple. “I’m not expecting anything. There’s no rush for us to jump into bed together. We can get to know each other again. Which brings us back to dating. It will be fun. We never got the chance before.”

Jethro is quiet. The crease on his forehead has lessened in its ferocity, but it’s still there. Then he smiles, and his whole face lights up. “Y’know, handjobs are still considered sex, so just because we’re not rushing straight towards full-on fucking, I’m down for more of that. Nor am I averse to blow jobs.”

I laugh and kiss him again. “That’s good to know. I’m sure I can be accommodating.” I check my watch. “I think I’d better get home. Hope needs her meds before I can get her settled down for the night.”

“I’ll drive you back.”

The journey home only takes a few minutes. When Jethro pulls up outside my home, he switches off the engine and twists to face me. “I’ve had a great evening. I can’t wait to get together again. When are you free?”

“It’s early doors tomorrow night. What time can you be finished at work?”

We arrange to meet at the pub tomorrow, and after some steaming hot kisses, I get out of the car and into my house. I give him a wave before he leaves.

It doesn’t take me long to get Hope sorted and settled for the night. Unfortunately, it’s not the same for me. My head is spinning with the memory of the way he came, the metal ring in his cock that had him groaning when I touched it. The taste of him when I licked my hand clean took me back to the warmth of the hay loft, but more than any of those memories, the scars on his back prevent me from going to sleep. What would I have done if I’d known how badly that bastard had hurt his son? After all these years, I still don’t have a truthful answer.

All I know now is that Jethro is back, and I’m not giving him up again.

Getting to know Ben again is exhilarating. He’s so different yet still the same man I was in love with years ago. But it’s getting harder and harder to say goodnight to each other. We have yet to get into bed, and it’s been three weeks since the night of the pizza at my place. We’ve seen each other at least three, if not four times, a week, and we message all the time. So why aren’t we fucking like rabbits?

Tonight, I’m going to ask him why. I want us to go to bed together, sleep in each other’s arms, and take the exploration of each other’s bodies to the next level. If he puts up a barrier or gives me another lame excuse, I’ll call him out on it.

The doorbell rings, and Isla barks. Hope joins in from the other side of the door. Laughing, I open the door. Ben is chuckling too. “Come on in.” I step back to let him in and look over his shoulder. His car is parked next to mine. Normally, he walks over, giving Hope some easy exercise for the day. “You drove?”

He nods. “Hope was limping a little more today. I didn’t want to risk her hurting herself.”

“I’ll give her a check-over for you.” But before he can get any farther inside, I push the door shut, pull the dog lead from his hand, and kiss him. This is a kiss full of promise, of desire, and of the absolute need for him to know I’m not letting him go home tonight. As I delve my tongue into his mouth, I grip his face and slide my hands up into his hair, clutching the still-damp curls in my fingers. Something drops to the floor, but I don’t stop and look. It doesn’t matter because his hands are on my waist, and his cock is pressing hard into mine.

When we break apart, panting with swollen lips, he stares at me. I’m not sure his eyes are even focusing. He darts his thumb over his bottom lip. “I don’t want to go home tonight. I’m sick of doing the right thing. I want you, Jethro. I don’t care how we do it as long as we do it.”

“About fucking time too. I was going to tie you to the bloody bed tonight.”

He smiles, stroking his fingers over my cheek. “Hmm, bondage, I like the sound of that.”

“Really? You like that?” Colour me surprised. I would never have thought it, although I don’t know why. We never had the chance to explore all the fun and different games. I’m not into pain of any type, for obvious reasons, but a little light bondage is fun.

“I think anything we try will be what I want to do. We’ve missed out on so much, Jet. All I want is to be with you.”

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