20. Fit for a King
FIT FOR A KING
“Holy shit.” Jake whistled between his teeth as he rounded the bend and a large, stately house came into view.
“Please don’t make a big deal out of it,” Robbie begged him. “I know it’s ridiculous, but go with it for one night.”
“I won’t,” Jake said, an amazed grin spreading across his face as he pulled into the circular driveway. “But my God, this is insane. I had no idea you lived like this, Robbie. I mean, I knew it was big, but…”
The house was down a dead-end drive, surrounded by beautiful old evergreen trees and rhododendrons that must have been planted around the same time the house was built.
It was darker back here, if only because of the trees that partially shielded the estate from the sky.
The entire vision looked like it had been ripped straight out of a painting, and not in the uncanny, synthetic way the elder Eatons’ house had.
“It was the family house for a while,” Robbie said. “We lived in it until I was about six, and my parents had the house you saw built out in the countryside. But my great-grandparents built this place after they got married, and my father grew up in it.”
“Did they give it to you or something?” Jake asked.
“Sort of.” Robbie smiled sheepishly as he got out of the car. “It’s not mine, technically, but I’ll inherit it once they’re gone. I’m more of a steward right now.”
“Yet another reason not to move away,” Jake observed. Robbie nodded stiffly, and Jake could tell he didn’t like talking about it. “Well, it’s a beautiful place. Anyone would love to live here.”
“I’m very fortunate,” Robbie said.
“That’s an understatement.” Jake followed him up to the front steps, where Robbie entered a key code to open the door. “Do you have a maid and cook too, or is that just your parents?”
“No staff,” Robbie said firmly. “I do everything myself. I promise you, the house isn’t nearly as big inside as it looks from out here. Come in and I’ll give you a little tour.”
“Can’t wait.” Jake stepped inside, shrinking into himself a bit as the vaulted ceiling and massive beams towered above him.
“Wow,” he breathed, looking up until Robbie turned on the light and nearly blinded him.
“You’ve gotta be lying about doing all the cleaning yourself. This place is fucking huge.”
“I’m not,” Robbie sighed, shrugging off his jacket. “I just spend a lot of my free time keeping it up. It’s worth it to me.”
“You would have plenty of free time.”
Jake couldn’t possibly miss Robbie’s flinch at that, and for a moment he felt bad. Then Robbie took him into the kitchen with the massive fridge and the double ovens, and every last bit of pity he took on Robbie dissolved.
Everything about this house, from the layout to the furniture to the man living inside it, was the direct opposite of how Robbie’s parents’ house had been when Jake visited. This place was a home, with all the personal touches and coziness that the new Eaton House could never possess.
“This is the kitchen,” Robbie said unnecessarily, “and the living room is right through here.”
“Is the furniture all inherited?” Jake asked, fighting the urge to jump onto the gorgeous brocade chaise lounge by the bay window and sprawl out.
“Most of it. We’ve all bought a few things over the years, but I tried to keep everything that was still in usable condition when I moved in after my grandparents died. I did have to reupholster a couple of pieces, but I took them to someone who does it authentically.”
Jake nodded as though he had any idea of what Robbie was talking about. “Your parents didn’t care?”
“Of course not.” Robbie smiled wryly. “They told me to throw everything out if I wanted, as long as they never had to deal with it. I couldn’t do that, though.
” He ran his hand along the mantel of the fireplace with a touch so tender, it was like he was caressing the cheek of his own baby.
“This place has too much history to gut it and start fresh. It wouldn’t be fair to it, and I doubt Eventide would appreciate it. ”
“Your family must have had a pretty big hand in establishing the town, huh?”
“They did,” Robbie said slowly, “though my grandparents destroyed all the favor the family curried when they began buying out businesses after the success of the lumber mill they ran. It earned them a massive fortune, but it ruined their legacy.”
“Would you rather have the fortune or the legacy?” Jake regretted the question as soon as he asked it. He almost didn’t want to know Robbie’s answer either.
“Honestly?” Robbie sat down in a wingback chair next to the unlit fireplace.
“Neither. I would rather have a small house by the beach and work at Sandway. And before you say anything, I know, I know: poor little rich boy. I should be grateful for my privilege. Sometimes I just wish I could have a normal life, or at least a normal family.”
Jake breathed a sigh of relief as he sat down across from Robbie on a velvet sofa.
It was soft and warm, its deep burgundy hue so rich, he had to believe this was one of the pieces Robbie had gotten reupholstered.
“My parents piss me off too sometimes,” he said, “but you know all about that by now. At least yours try to avoid you as much as you avoid them. That’s something to appreciate, right?
” He smiled, hoping Robbie would smile back.
He didn’t.
“Listen to me complain,” Robbie said after a moment. “I brought you here for a fun night, and now I’m fucking it all up by whining about my life. Come on; I’ll take you up to the bedroom.”
“You move fast.”
“Not as fast as you.”
“Yeah, I guess that’s fair.” Jake tried to laugh, but his nerves had returned with a vengeance, and they bared themselves raw in whatever choked sound he made just then. “Third time’s the charm, right?”
“I’m afraid to ask what you mean by that.” Robbie shook his head, then hesitated for a moment. “Can I ask you a rude question, Jake?”
“My permission’s never stopped you before.”
“Have you ever even had sex with the same person three times in a row?”
“In a row? Sure.”
“On different occasions?”
A lump formed in Jake’s throat. He swallowed thickly, willing it to go away, but it remained.
“Uh, no, I haven’t. I don’t think so, at least. It’s hard to remember all my past encounters.
I don’t usually spend long enough with any single person to get that close.
But that shouldn’t come as a surprise to you. ”
“It doesn’t. Not exactly. I’m just… I don’t want to be the man who ruins your life.”
“We’re way past that, Robbie. I know I’m gonna have to face the consequences of this someday. Until then, though, let’s just have fun. It’s why I’m here now, isn’t it?”
“It is.” Robbie took Jake’s hand, leading him out of the living room and up a set of grand, creaky wooden stairs. These showed the age of the house more than anything else so far, but it was comforting in a way. Like Robbie, this little paradise had its imperfections, too.
Robbie’s guiding hand was gentle as ever, his fingertips barely brushing Jake’s knuckles. There was something about it that made dread well up in Jake, as though something terrible were going to happen. But he’d been with Robbie before. He knew what came after this. He knew what to expect.
Except this was Robbie’s house, and Robbie’s room, and the very place Robbie said he kept sacred. Now Jake was part of that sacred space, and that thought made his heart freeze up more than any text from a needy guy the morning after.
They reached the top of the winding staircase in silence, and for a moment Jake stood on the landing, surrounded by wainscoted walls and paralyzed by the collection of doors leading to places he couldn’t even imagine.
“My bedroom’s at the end of the hall,” Robbie said. “Follow me.”
“Oh, right.”
Jake couldn’t help peeking into the rooms with doors left ajar as he walked past. Most of them were empty guest rooms, one was a home office, and another looked to be storage.
He wondered if the house had ever been truly full, or if there was always an empty room, left open more as a formality than as a place for someone to actually stay.
Robbie reached a door that was closed, and after a deep breath, pushed it open. It was dark inside, but warm, as if the heating had been turned on an hour or two before he got back. Jake stepped inside behind him, his feet sinking into plush carpet.
Then the light turned on. Robbie glanced back, the lines in his face more prominent in this dim overhead lighting than anywhere else in the house. “Sorry it’s messy in here,” he said, stooping to pick up one of those pristine linen shirts Jake had seen him wear so many times before.
“You saw my room at Aunt Isabel’s house,” Jake said. “This is nothing.”
“I really didn’t think I’d be inviting you over tonight,” Robbie continued, ignoring Jake’s assurance.
“I’m glad you did. I don’t know what possessed you to finally ask me, but I’m sure as hell—” Jake’s eyes landed on the ceiling-to-floor windows leading out to the balcony across the room, and he stopped in his tracks.
“Sorry,” Robbie said, hurrying over to the windows to close the velvety curtains previously held back by braided ropes as soon as he noticed Jake staring.
“If it makes you feel any better, no one can see in unless they’re trespassing.
That’s the backyard, and it’s bordered by a couple of acres of woods belonging to the property. ”
“What? Oh, I wasn’t worried about that. Leave them open; it’s fine.”
“You sure?”
“Positive. Relax, Robbie.” Jake turned his attention to the bed.
A stark contrast to the twin-sized one in Isabel’s guest bedroom, this thing was big enough for an entire orgy—a king-sized bed if Jake had ever seen one.
“How much room does one man need?” He jerked his head up. “That was uncalled for.”
“It wasn’t,” Robbie said. “It’s ridiculous, I know. I just like my space in bed, and…”
“It’ll be a nice change from the one I’ve been sleeping in.”
“I can imagine.”
Jake glared at Robbie for a second before deciding he deserved that.
“So this is it, huh?” He sat down on the side of the bed, his fingers sliding across the emerald green, down-filled duvet. “When’s the last time you brought another guy in here?”
“Uh…” Robbie ran a hand through his hair. “Never.”
“Okay, don’t answer then.” Jake fell back onto the bed, letting his legs continue to dangle over the side.
“That was my answer, Jake. I’m being serious.” Robbie sat down next to him. “I’ve never brought a date back here before. I don’t do this kind of thing. I don’t hook up, and if I do, I take them to a hotel or go back to their place.”
Jake sat bolt upright. “You’re joking, right? Tell me you’re joking.”
Robbie shook his head.
“What about boyfriends? Or friends? Has a single other human being ever been in this house since you moved back in?”
“Of course. I’m not a recluse, Jake. I’ve had people over, just not… in this capacity.”
“So no one besides you has ever slept in this massive fucking bed before?”
Robbie pursed his lips. Jake couldn’t quite make out if he was on the verge of laughing or crying. “That’s right.”
“Oh my God. And I’m the special one you had to choose to let into your heart?”
“Wormed your way in, more like.” Robbie pushed his hand against Jake’s thigh. “Get up and give me a minute to make the bed properly. Like I said, this wasn’t the plan.”
Jake glanced back at the rest of the bed. “It looks fine.”
“It’s not.”
“We’re gonna mess it up in a minute anyway.”
“Get up, Jake. Let me fix it.”
Jake rolled his eyes, but he stood, retreating to the door on the opposite side of the room.
That was where the attached bathroom lay, and it had a large clawfoot bathtub and a separate shower the size of Isabel’s entire bathroom back at home.
There were no cramped showers being taken inside a curtained bathtub at Robbie’s house.
“This is nice,” he said, closing the door again as Robbie finished smoothing out the duvet. “How often do you have a bath in that behemoth?”
“Occasionally,” Robbie said. He fixed his hair again, smoothing out rogue strands that didn’t exist.
Suddenly, it all made sense: his behavior, the slight quiver in his lip when he tried to smile, the furrow in his brow that wasn’t usually there. It wasn’t the lighting casting tight lines across his face; it was his anxiety.
“Do you want me to go?” Jake asked, making to sit back down on the bed before stopping himself. After Robbie had put in all that extra effort, he didn’t want to be the one to ruin it again.
“No,” Robbie answered faster than Jake expected. “Please don’t. I want you here. I wouldn’t have invited you if I didn’t. Just don’t—” he paused, inhaling deeply. “Don’t make fun of me tonight.”
“I won’t,” Jake said. Robbie sat back down on the bed, and finally Jake joined him. “Why would I ever do that?”
“Because I’m nervous, and you like finding my weak points and needling them.”
Jake looked down at his lap. “I’m nervous too. I’ve never let myself get this far with someone before, and I’ve sure as hell never been in a place like this. I don’t want to fuck it up.”
“Neither do I.”
“Then let’s agree to drop the teasing for tonight. You have a gorgeous house, Robbie. Let’s make the most of it.”
Slowly, a smile spread across Robbie’s face. His lower lip wasn’t quivering with tension anymore, and his eyes had softened into that charming twinkle people either loved or despised. Jake rather liked it when it wasn’t attached to a smirk, and even then it was growing on him.
He closed his eyes as Robbie’s lips met his. He slipped his tongue between Robbie’s parted teeth, the taste all at once familiar and yet still intriguing. His hands slid down Robbie’s waist, finding the hemline of his shirt before pulling it up.
It wasn’t frantic this time, or impulsive, but it was every bit as passionate. There was a slow, methodical rhythm to Robbie’s breaths, the gentle thump of his heart just barely audible as Jake nibbled at his neck.
A breeze picked up outside, swaying the trees beyond the backyard. Jake glanced up, but Robbie didn’t even take notice. He was used to these things. This was his home.
And now, at least for the night, it was Jake’s home, too. And that meant more to him than any big-dicked stranger pinning him against the wall in an unfamiliar house.