Chapter 11
CHRIST, HE was sore. At least it wasn’t as bad as Vincent remembered, but years with only the occasional slender plug to scratch that particular itch was no preparation for the real thing. Even a hot shower hadn’t offered more than superficial relief, but that was fine.
The ache was worth Jasper discovering something new.
Seeing how he stepped into a role as easily and completely as everything else they’d tried, he was surprised by the way Jasper mimicked his style, but maybe he shouldn’t have been.
Vincent was the only one Jasper had played with or subbed for, so it made sense he’d use what he’d learned, but Vincent still hadn’t expected to have his own methods turned on him.
He settled on the sofa and stretched his legs out.
He found the remote to turn on the TV and flipped through the channels to find a movie while his phone booted up for his nightly missed call check.
Not that he expected to hear from anyone, at least not about anything important, but he couldn’t quite bring himself to ignore his phone for two full weeks.
When Jasper finished with the dishes and joined him, he straddled Vincent’s lap and leaned in for a kiss.
The lack of hesitation or second-guessing was new and a turn-on, and Vincent tossed the remote aside in favor of making out with his sub.
They’d barely gotten started when his phone chimed with a text, which he ignored.
A few minutes later it rang, and Vincent broke the kiss with an annoyed huff to answer it. “Yes?”
“Oh, am I interrupting something?” Zach asked with a snicker.
“Yes.”
“Too bad. I need an answer to my text.”
Vincent let out a slow breath for patience and ignored Jasper’s amused stare as he pulled up his texts.
Lunch tomorrow y/y?
“Funny, it sounds like we don’t have a choice,” Vincent said.
“You don’t,” Zach replied with a grin evident in his voice. “But I need to know what to make. My spaghetti isn’t nearly as good as yours. Your boy have any allergies?”
“He doesn’t like olives.”
He barely heard Zach’s “Good God, there’s two of them now,” since he was completely distracted by Jasper’s surprised smile. As if he thought Vincent wouldn’t remember. Then he was distracted by Jasper’s lips against his neck and the fingers worming their way under his shirt.
Zach cleared his throat. “Are you even listening?”
“No.”
“Man, you’ve got it bad.” He was well aware of that, but hearing Zach point it out wasn’t entirely comforting. “I asked if chicken parm would work. I’ll even make my super special potatoes.”
“Putting butter and roasted garlic on a pack of instant potatoes doesn’t make them special,” Vincent replied dryly.
Jasper snorted and buried his face against Vincent’s neck to muffle his laugh.
“Rude. It’ll be ready by one, so be here before then. Clothing optional.”
“Absolutely not,” Vincent muttered. “Clothing required.”
“Take all the fun out of everything, why don’t you?”
“Bye.”
Vincent hung up on Zach’s second “Rude!” and dropped the phone to the floor. Any further interruptions would have to wait.
VINCENT STILL had an ache in his back come morning, but it wasn’t entirely unpleasant.
After a quick breakfast he sent Jasper to the playroom to pick out some Shibari ropes while he flipped through some images on his phone.
Most were simple loops with knots, but he wanted something a bit more intricate.
He’d watched some videos in his spare time over the past weeks to refresh himself in the hopes of Aston and Jasper agreeing to a photo shoot.
Jasper returned with a few loops of rope in black and dark plum.
Vincent turned his phone off and tossed it aside to take the rope and set it on his other side. Jasper was dressed in only a pair of boxers, and he indulged in all the bare flesh available to him.
Jasper straddled his lap with happy sounds and ran his fingers through Vincent’s hair. “Anything I need to know about your friends?”
“Zach can be pretty tactile, especially if he takes a liking to you. Ash doesn’t speak much.” Vincent trailed his fingers down Jasper’s thighs. “If they make you uncomfortable and you want to leave just say so.”
Jasper pulled back enough to eye him with a frown. “Are you worried I won’t like them?”
Vincent opened his mouth to answer, but he realized he really wasn’t.
Zach and Ash had both despised Adam even before Vincent fell into a toxic relationship with him.
Zach made no secret of hating him but was at least civilly polite to him.
Adam complained so much after the single time Zach and Ash visited that Vincent fell out of touch with them.
“No,” he finally said. If he were honest, he was more terrified of how well Jasper and Zach might get along. They were both brats, but Zach had a devious streak wide enough to rival the Grand Canyon. “I think you’ll get along fine.”
He picked up one of the lengths of black rope and set to work.
He was still out of practice enough that some of the diamonds were uneven, but they had enough time that he redid them until he was satisfied.
Jasper was as pliable as ever, easily moving where Vincent directed or maneuvered him.
By the time he used all the black and reached for the purple, Jasper’s breathing had deepened, his expression was calm, and he was certainly enjoying himself if the growing situation in his boxers was any indication.
When he’d finished with Jasper’s torso it was covered in a pattern of small diamonds. His arms had a line of rope down the outsides with four loops spaced out from biceps to wrists. He wound the extra length around the lines, then settled his hands on Jasper’s legs to admire his work.
“Should we add your fox ears?” he asked, smirking when Jasper came out of his stupor enough to shoot him an annoyed glare.
“I’ll take that as a no.” He landed a light swat against Jasper’s ass and toppled him to the sofa, then headed upstairs to rummage through Jasper’s clothes.
He picked out a pair of jeans and a deep red button-up shirt that made Jasper’s blue eyes appear brighter.
Jasper raised an eyebrow when Vincent handed them over, but he pulled them on, his lips twitching when Vincent undid the top few buttons and tugged the collar farther apart so the Shibari was visible. “Are you trying to make me look good?”
“Problem?”
“Depends. You’re not trying to set up an orgy or something, are you?”
Vincent paused and slowly hooked a finger through one of the diamonds below Jasper’s throat, the possessive need to keep Jasper all to himself warring with the voyeur inside him who wouldn’t mind sharing with someone he trusted. “Is that something you’re interested in?”
Jasper blinked, a flush spreading across his cheeks. “Not really.”
He didn’t comment on the uncertain tone.
Even if Jasper was interested, it wouldn’t happen today.
He gave a light tug on the rope, humming softly when Jasper rocked onto the balls of his feet, his pupils dilating.
“Go fix your hair,” he said and let go to get dressed himself.
As much as he preferred a suit, he didn’t need to give Zach even more ammo to add to his ample supply.
He pulled on black jeans and a heather gray graphic tee with “The Rabbit of Caerbannog is my Spirit Animal” scrawled across it in fancy black script. It earned an amused eye-roll from Jasper, and he couldn’t resist hooking a finger in the Shibari to pull him closer, which only amused him more.
“You like that entirely too much, Sir.”
Vincent huffed softly and didn’t bother to point out that Jasper likely enjoyed it more. “A leash would be better.” He slipped his fingers down to tweak a nipple before heading for the door. They’d be a little early, but at least with others around, he’d be slightly less tempted to torment his pet.