Chapter Twenty-Two #2
Vincent kept close, hands on Jasper’s hips or guiding him through making a recipe that seemed far more tedious than it should be.
By the time the risotto was nearly done simmering, a storm was rolling in. A thunderstorm that quickly turned the sky dark and formed tiny chink-chink-chinks of what sounded like hail against the windows.
He glanced out the back door and watched the rain come down fast and hard, then turned back to watch Vincent.
He was working on a blueberry compote to go with the store-bought sponge cake and can of whipped cream.
With a hum, he went to prop himself against Vincent’s side, shook the can, and sprayed a generous amount in his mouth.
“Really?”
Jasper tipped his head back with a grin. A shiver of heat went through him when Vincent glanced at him and leaned in to swipe his tongue against the corner of Jasper’s mouth.
“Mmm, crème à la Jasper.”
Jasper swallowed a soft moan, suddenly wanting more than he was comfortable doing in Amber’s kitchen. “Fuck,” he whined, biting Vincent’s shoulder when he snickered.
He wasn’t prepared in the least for the front door to swing open.
“Jas?” Amber called. “Whose car is in the driveway?”
Jasper froze, hearing a strange wounded-animal sound before realizing it was coming from him. No, no, no. Why? They weren’t supposed to be back until morning. Not walking in while he was practically naked in the kitchen!
He whimpered as Vincent stepped back, clinging to him and blinking when Vincent put the apron on him.
“Jasper?”
Jasper made that strangled sound again as Amber and Terrance walked into the kitchen. They were both soaked. And staring at Vincent in surprise. “Hey. You’re back early.”
“The storm hit the lake this morning, so we headed back,” she replied, still watching Vincent.
Terrance turned his attention to Jasper with a smirk. “Are you naked?”
Jasper flushed, clutching the apron against himself. “No! I’m… going to get dressed,” he muttered, glancing at Vincent.
Vincent nodded. “Are you joining us for dinner?” he asked, glancing over his shoulder.
Jasper backed out of the kitchen and then bolted up the stairs and slammed his door behind him. He yanked the apron off and wadded it up into a ball that he threw against the door.
Stupid Terrance. Stupid Amber. Stupid storm. He should have known better.
Why couldn’t he get a damn break?
He ran his hands over his face and sighed before pulling his clothes back on. So much for a quiet date at home.
He grabbed the apron and shook it out as he trudged back down the stairs. He passed the apron back to Vincent and focused on stirring the risotto. “Isn’t this done yet?” he asked, even though he wasn’t hungry anymore.
“Yes.” Vincent moved the pan of blueberry compote to a different burner before picking up two plates. He filled them with risotto and passed them both to Jasper, then grabbed two more from the cupboard.
Great. Their dinner was being invaded then. Of course.
He stifled a sigh and took the plates to the table, setting one in front of Amber and the other in front of Terrance. He grabbed four glasses and poured the sweet iced tea Terrance liked to keep in the fridge, then sank into a chair across from him.
Amber sat to his right at the head of the table, and Vincent set a plate in front of Jasper as he took the seat to his left.
He could feel their eyes on him, but he ignored them both in favor of poking at his food.
“Vincent said you’re going to sign a new contract. For a year,” Amber said, her voice carefully neutral.
“Yes,” Jasper said, his fingers tightening around his fork as his heart rate picked up, expecting some kind of fight. She might not have tried to interfere before now, but who knew what Matt had told her.
“Finally found yourself a sugar daddy. Nice job,” Terrance said with a soft laugh. He winced as Amber likely kicked him under the table.
“It’s not like that,” Jasper muttered, glancing at Vincent. He wasn’t sure what reaction he expected, but the wry amusement was at least better than a glower.
Terrance cleared his throat. “This tastes great, Vincent.”
“Yes, thank you for dinner. Even if we crashed it,” Amber added with a smile.
“Jasper made it.”
Jasper felt heat creep up his neck as both Terrance and Amber looked at him in surprise.
“I just followed your directions, Sir,” he murmured, shifting in his seat when Terrance’s eyebrows shot into his hairline.
He turned his attention to his food, then nearly jumped when Vincent rested a hand on his knee, gave a light squeeze, and didn’t pull away.
“Huh. Learning to cook, getting your first real taste of kink. Little Jas is growing up,” Terrance teased.
Jasper made a face at him and rolled his eyes. “You’re such a dick.”
“I’m starting to think that’s an endearment coming from you,” Vincent said.
He turned to Vincent with a grin. “Yeah, maybe,” he said, reaching over to pat his leg. He couldn’t quite resist the temptation to let his fingers slide farther north, his grin turning to a smirk when he felt a bulge against his hand.
Well, at least it might be easy to get Vincent to stay the night.
VINCENT SPORTED an erection all through dinner. It’d started the moment Jasper took his clothes off and only intensified when he first called him Sir in front of Terrance and Amber. The brat’s hand constantly touching his thigh hadn’t helped either.
And once Jasper noticed, he’d made a point to touch his leg every chance he got.
Damned brat.
Since he couldn’t exactly stand without giving himself away, he made Jasper serve the dessert.
It surprised him how drama-free dinner was. He’d expected some kind of fallout from Matt’s revelation, but apparently Matt hadn’t shared with anyone else, or they were pretending it was none of their business.
Seeing Jasper interact with someone besides him was interesting, though it was obvious Jasper wasn’t completely at ease, even in his own home. He told himself it was far too early to even think of getting involved in such personal issues, but he could at least satisfy his curiosity.
“How did you end up living here?” he asked Jasper when they’d finished eating. He sat back with his arm resting along the back of Jasper’s chair, fingers lightly brushing against his shoulder.
Terrance paused, sharing a look with Jasper before gathering up the rest of the dishes.
Jasper shrugged but kept his eyes on the table as he answered. “My dad was drunk. Like, always. Usually it wasn’t too bad, but he’d just lost his job.” He said it like that was a valid justification.
“Someone heard him yelling and called the cops, and Kris from next door called Amber. She saw my black eye and brought me here. And then she refused to let me go back home, even after Dad got released. I was, like, a week away from turning eighteen, so I kinda ended up staying here.”
Vincent stared at Jasper a moment before turning to look at Amber. When she only shrugged, he looked at Terrance, who was studiously washing the dishes. “I see,” he finally said.
Amber cleared her throat and stood. “Thank you for dinner, Vincent.” She mussed Jasper’s hair and took her glass to the sink, groping Terrance on her way to the stairs.
Vincent fixed Jasper’s hair without thinking, ignoring the stupid smile Jasper gave him in return. He leaned in close enough to steal a quick kiss, a thrum of satisfaction settling in his limbs when Jasper let out a soft needy whine.
Jasper chased after him when he pulled back, pouting when he didn’t get another kiss. “Will you stay the night, Sir?” A flush spread across his cheeks. He shot a quick glance towards Terrance, who was still at the sink, and lowered his voice. “You could… you know.”
Vincent raised an eyebrow, settling his palm against the back of Jasper’s neck. “Mmm, do I know?” he asked. His fingers rested near enough to Jasper’s pulse to feel the quick, excited beat.
“Don’t be a dick,” Jasper whined.
“I thought you liked it when I’m a dick,” he said, feigning shock. “Don’t you?”
Jasper groaned and let his forehead thunk against Vincent’s shoulder.
Vincent laughed softly and tilted his head, pressing his lips against Jasper’s ear. “Am I punishing you for being an absolute brat?” he whispered, relishing the shudder that went through Jasper.
His erection twitched with interest, and he curled his fingers tight in Jasper’s hair, tugging his head back and taking in the warm flush and darkened eyes.
He hummed in approval and let go. “Lead the way,” he murmured, snorting softly as Jasper lurched to his feet, practically ran out of the room, and thundered up the stairs.
He bid Terrance a quick good-night as he followed.
When he reached Jasper’s bedroom, he stepped inside and closed the door quietly behind him. There were clean piles of clothes on the dresser; textbooks, notebooks, and a laptop in a mess on the desk; and a few posters of a violinist he didn’t recognize on the wall.
Jasper sat on the edge of his bed, hands clenched in the blanket as he watched Vincent. His breathing audibly stuttered when Vincent flipped the lock, his tongue darting out to wet his lips.
Vincent let him sit there a moment before stepping farther into the room, then came to a stop in front of Jasper and lifted his chin with a finger. “Do you know what I’m going to do to you, pet?”
Jasper’s breathing hitched again and sped up. “Punish me?”
“Mm-hmm. And why am I punishing you?”
That pink tongue flicked out again. “Because I was a brat?”
“You were a brat,” he agreed. “You had the audacity to call me old and decrepit.” He raised an eyebrow when Jasper bit his lip; it did nothing to hide the twitch at the corners of his mouth as he fought a grin. He tsked and stepped back. “Strip and lie down on your back, pet.”
Jasper stood and peeled out of his clothes with eager but clumsy efficiency, then flopped onto the bed, wiggling until he was stretched out on the far side.