Chapter 6
It was late when the limo got them back to the city, and Toby was hungry.
When he’d met Roper, and the man had made assumptions and lit into Ryder about it, two things happened. He’d been instantly intrigued and struck with a need to help Roper, and his prick had come to life in a way it hadn’t in a very long time.
So he was hungry. For dinner, for the work they called play, and for Roper.
He was a lot of other things too: nervous, excited, worried.
He was relieved that Roper had agreed to three days with him because he couldn’t imagine waking up tomorrow to find him gone.
That was a feeling he didn’t understand yet and wasn’t going to explore too deeply until he was sure Roper wasn’t just looking for a roof over his head.
It was raining again as they climbed out of the limo, and they moved as quickly as they could toward the building. He pulled out his key and let Roper go in ahead of him. “Spring in New York can be wet,” he said with a soft laugh.
“Thank you, Sir. Spring tends toward wet in a lot of places. Even the desert.” Roper’s booted foot slipped on the wet floor, and it seemed as if he kept from falling with sheer willpower.
He resisted the urge to reach out and steady Roper, but it wasn’t easy.
Roper had in no way invited him to touch, even in a gesture of help, and he understood that independence was important to the sub.
“The desert in New Mexico, right? That’s where you’re from?
” He led Roper to the elevator. There was only one, and it wasn’t the fastest, but it worked.
“Yes, Sir. Not down near Mexico, but up toward Colorado in the mountains.” Roper had a line of sweat popping up on his freshly shaved upper lip.
So that not-so-little slip on the tile had hurt, he assumed. He’d get the boy inside and sit him down. “Can I take that bag? It’s got to be tough to balance in that boot.”
Roper glanced at him, lips twisting. “It’s heavy. Are you sure? It would be a blessing.”
“I’m stronger than I look.” He wasn’t sure that was true really, but Roper needed help. He reached for the bag, which was indeed heavy, and shouldered it. “I got it.”
“Thank you, sir. I appreciate you.” Well, the boy was polite, he’d give Roper that.
“I hope you’re still saying that in three days. I honestly do.” The elevator opened up on his floor. The halls were tight but well lit, and he was only a few steps from the elevator.
“I have a cat. Whiskey. She’s really friendly, so I hope you’re not allergic.” He unlocked the door and sure enough, Whiskey started howling, reminding him that he’d missed her dinner hour. “I usually ask Mrs. Mars to pop over and feed her, but I completely forgot. Come on in.”
“Oh, hey, baby.” Roper’s expression changed, softened, becoming almost gentle. “Aren’t you stunning?”
That was so sweet.
Whiskey tried howling at Roper.
“Roper doesn’t know where the food is, silly kitty.” He headed through the living room toward the bedrooms. “Your room is here on the right, mine is immediately across the hall. I have a bath off my room, so this one here is basically yours.”
His guest room wasn’t big, but it had a nice double bed and got good light. “Sorry about the boxes in the corner, I’ve been storing some things in here. I’ll move them out tomorrow.”
“No worries. They won’t bother me a bit. This is just fine. Thank you, sir.” Roper took the duffel from him and put it on the floor at the end of the bed.
“Are you hungry? I think we should order some dinner. Otherwise all I want you to do tonight is rest.”
“You want honest or polite? Because the honest answer is that it’s damn hard to be hungry. I’ve not been eating a whole lot. I’ve been in bed.”
Poor boy. Anxiety and pain weren’t appetite friendly. “I always want honest. How about something easy on the stomach then? Eggs and toast? It might help your appetite if you actually eat something.”
“Can I buy you a pizza? I hear pizza here is…special.”
“Have you never had New York pizza? I’m always up for that.
I know a great place that delivers.” Ordinarily he’d refuse, but under the circumstances, he’d let Roper pay if that made the boy feel better.
He felt like Roper’s pride had taken a hit recently.
He pulled it up on his phone and showed it to Roper.
“What do you want on it? Are you fancy? Basic?” Roper stared at the URL, then just sighed and pulled out his wallet. “Let me know when you need the card.”
“I’m very basic. You?” He gestured for Roper to sit on the bed, the poor boy needed to get off that foot.
“Pepperoni is my friend.” Roper sat and dug out his credit card. “Veggies are fine if you’re into it.”
He ordered a large pizza and used Roper’s card. “Okay. I’m sure you need some time. I’m going to go feed Whiskey and wait for the pizza. Just come out whenever you’re ready. No rush. Do you have pain meds or—I have some Advil if you need it.”
“I have meds. Nothing hard-core, but they’ll take the edge off. I won’t be long, you got my word.” Roper met his eyes. “I do appreciate you letting me hang. I let my brother know I was cool.”
“I texted Charles with my apologies for leaving so abruptly. He seemed to understand.” Charles was thrilled, in fact, and grateful. “You know where to find me.” He gave Roper a nod and left, giving the boy some privacy.
And Whiskey was getting desperate.
It didn’t take long at all for Roper to head across the hall and run some water, do his business, and then appear with a clean face and a cane.
Whiskey trotted right over to investigate the cane and sniff his boot.
“She’s friendly. If she’s too much we can put her in my bedroom. Would you like something to drink? I have some homemade sangria in the fridge, random sodas, iced tea?”
“Do you have something fizzy and citrusy?” Roper bent over, balancing on his cane, to love on Whiskey. “Aren’t you pretty? Did you get your supper, sweetheart?”
“Dinner, treats, scritches…she’s so spoiled. Sprite work for you?” He smiled as he went to the fridge. It made him happy that Roper liked cats.
“Yes, Sir. Thank you. I—where would you like me to sit?”
“Anywhere you’re comfortable.” He had a deep leather couch and a couple of chairs in the living room.
There were a couple of large pillows and a small kneeling pad as well, bought while wishful thinking.
None of them had been used for their intended purpose.
“And please feel free to put that foot up. The coffee table is very used to it.”
“Thank you, Sir.” Roper moved into the front room and sank into the sofa with a low moan. “Oh, this is nice. It’s real. Your place is real.”
That was an interesting observation. “What do you mean by real?” He joined Roper in the living room and handed him his Sprite.
“You saw Ryder’s place. It’s like a damn museum. No one has ever had sex there, farted there, sneezed there.”
He chuckled. “I feel quite sure someone is having sex there.” He understood though. “That limo was sent by Charles. I haven’t been in one since my high school prom.”
“Ha! Me and Ry rented a stretch Hummer. It was a hoot. Did you wear a suit?”
He grinned. “Oh I did. It was powder blue. White tie. I looked like an idiot. You?”
“I wore jeans. They wouldn’t let me in. I started a fire in the parking lot…” Look at that wicked little grin.
“You’re lying.” He stared at Roper. “Are you?”
He got an arched eyebrow. “I don’t lie. I was pissed off, and I wasn’t dating a girl anyway.”
He laughed and shook his head. “Apologies, I wasn’t calling you a liar. I’m sure you were angry, and add to that teenage hormones… I bet you looked better in your jeans than I did in my suit. Did you get arrested, or did you run?”
“Everyone swore I was in the gym, and Ry was there, so—” Oh, there was pure naughtiness there, unashamed and hungry. “I watched for a while, and then me and some buddies went to drink in the back forty.”
“Sounds like it was handy having a rule-follower twin.” He didn’t think they were at a share the sofa point yet, so he sat in the chair closest to it, and just to make sure Roper believed him, he put his feet up on the coffee table as he sipped his sangria.
“Honestly, apart from the boot and the attitude, I don’t think I could tell you apart in a lineup. ”
“Almost no one can. It’s part and parcel of the whole identical twin thing, I guess. We were made out of the same DNA.”
Interesting, as they otherwise appeared to be nothing alike. “So do you think the stark differences between you are nature or nurture?”
“He’s the baby brother, right? Aren’t they supposed to be wicked?” Roper shrugged, winked at him. “Hell, I think he’s the good twin, and the brain injury…that knocked the hell out of him.”
Right. He’d forgotten the extent of Ryder’s injuries. “Of course. Which is why you sometimes don’t recognize him, like you said. My twin sister and I are very different too. We don’t share the identical twin DNA, though, of course. But I’m the older one, and I don’t usually let her forget it.”
“Another twin? Damn. I have a set of identical twin brothers too. They’re just kids, still, but they’re good guys.”
“Yep, although you’d never know. I look older, and she looks more like Mom. Do your parents have twins too? My mom did. Does.”
“Mom is a twin. Her mom was a triplet. It runs in the Howe family.”
“Triplets.” He shook his head. “Wild.” The buzzer went off and he hopped up. “That’s the pizza. I’ll run down; you sit tight and…just breathe a little. I’ll be right back.”
Ordinarily, he’d let a sub run an errand like this, but Roper needed to get off that foot. That was a theme for the next three days—keep the boy off his feet, make sure he slept, set some boundaries for him to test.
That last part would start first thing in the morning. Roper was too tired for games tonight.
He went down and met the delivery guy at the door then headed back up with their dinner.
Roper was curled up in the corner of the sofa, booted foot propped up on his other one, eyes popping open as he walked in. “Smells good.”
“Best pizza on this side of town.” He’d make sure Roper had a few bites and then put the boy to bed. “I’ll bring you a slice. Do you need another Sprite?”
“No, Sir. This is fine. Settled my belly like a dream. Thank you.” Roper’s eyes followed him like a laser.
The “sir” was just polite, he knew. He hoped in a couple of days it would be an earned title instead. The way Roper was focused on him was encouraging.
On more than one front.
He came back with two slices apiece on sturdy paper plates. Not fancy, but who wanted to do dishes over pizza? That defeated the purpose of takeout. “Don’t worry. Just eat what you can. I’m just lazy and didn’t want to make another trip to the kitchen.”
“I hear you.” Roper stared at the pizza like he was planning an attack. “Those look so damn good.”
“Food of the gods, I’m telling you.” Toby picked his up and took a bite, enjoying every bit of the gooey cheese, tangy pizza sauce, and spicy pepperoni. He’d asked for mushrooms too, just to pretend they were being healthy.
Roper took a bite, and he could hear the deep, hungry growl that came from the boy. That was impressive.
“Mhm. So good. I love pizza. I was thinking of more impressive takeout options—Thai or Greek—but this is perfect. Thank you for treating.”
“Thank you for this…” Roper waved one hand. “It’s damn kind of you.”
“You’re welcome.” He was doing Greg a favor. Though it was working out well for him so far. Roper was lovely, and the man was built like a tiny tank. With any luck he’d get to see the muscles popping through Roper’s shirt in person soon.
He was interested in the tight ass, too, in seeing how far they could push one another.
He inhaled one slice, possibly without chewing. He’d been so hungry, he wasn’t sure. He slowed down for the second, gaze on Roper between bites. “I hope you’ll be comfortable here.”
“It’s homey. Not too fancy, not too…sterile.” Roper moaned over the pizza. “Damn, this is good.”
Whiskey hopped up on the back of the couch and settled on the pillow behind Roper’s shoulder. She rubbed her face against Roper’s ear, purring loud enough he could hear her clearly. “Well, that’s that. You’re not going anywhere now.”
“Is that so?” Roper rubbed back with his cheek, and Whiskey’s purr buzzed through the air.
“I mean, she’s in charge.” He took another bite of his pizza and watched Roper indulge Whiskey.
“Of course she is.” The softness in Roper’s expression felt like proof that the naughtiness, the temper, the fighting was a struggle for attention. Sort of like Whiskey.
Toby was very happy to give Roper all the attention he wanted. Maybe not the way the boy was envisioning, but he could scratch that itch.
Around the ears.
Under the chin.
Behind the balls.
He grinned. “Such a naughty kitten.”