Chapter Twelve
Waiting for Jeff to respond was agony.
“If you think you’re up to the task.” Jeff’s eyes twinkled.
“Why don’t we find out?” Dave didn’t hesitate.
He cupped Jeff’s cheek once more, only this time, he moved closer until his lips brushed Jeff’s, a gentle, chaste kiss that was just right.
Jeff cradled the back of his head and drew him closer still, deepening the kiss, and Dave went with it, one arm around Jeff’s waist, moulding Jeff’s body to his.
When they parted, Jeff let out a whoosh of air. “I’d say the job is yours.”
Dave laughed, suffused by a feeling of lightness. “You’re sure?”
Jeff grinned. “Oh yeah, you’ve aced the interview.” His stomach growled, and he flushed. “Sorry about that. I didn’t eat lunch, and I’ve been on the go all day.”
“Then let’s eat. Everything’s ready.”
Jeff followed him to the table, and Dave pulled out a chair for him. Then he went to the fridge to retrieve the wine. “It’s a Sauvignon Semillon. I find it goes really well with chicken.” He poured two glasses, then busied himself with putting out the food.
“You have no idea how many questions I got after you left,” Jeff told him. “Everyone wanted to know who you were.”
“What did you tell them?”
Jeff smiled. “I said you were just a man who wanted to sit on Santa’s knee.”
Dave burst out laughing. “Believe me, the thought crossed my mind.”
“Of course, once you’d gone, I found it incredibly difficult to concentrate. So if some little child wakes up Christmas morning to find they’ve got the wrong present, I’m blaming you.”
Dave filled the serving dishes with roast potatoes, and mashed carrots and parsnips, put the lids on them, and brought them to the table. Then he took the chicken from its warming oven and carved a couple of thick slices.
“I’m cheating with the gravy, I’m afraid. It’s just gravy granules.”
“Can I do that while you’re dealing with the bird?” Jeff coughed. “I think I can manage to pour boiling water onto gravy granules.”
Dave chuckled, and inclined his head toward a cabinet. “They’re in there. Kettle’s already boiled, but do it again.” Jeff got up from the table and got on with making the gravy. “You should have seen Matt’s face the first time I made proper gravy.”
“What’s proper gravy?”
“I’d done a beef joint. I took the roasting pan with all the juices still in it, set it on the stove with a low heat under it, then added flour and a bit of water, whisking it smooth.
He took one mouthful, and…” Dave laughed.
“Judging by the way he moaned, you’d have thought he was having an orgasm. ”
Jeff gaped. “Oh, now I have to try it sometime.”
“So is it true what they say? The way to a man’s heart is through his stomach?”
Jeff shook his head. “Not this man. It’s not food you need to find your way into my heart—it’s laughter.” He met Dave’s gaze. “And I wouldn’t worry about that if I were you, because you’re already halfway there.”
The acknowledgment thrilled him.
Dave placed the chicken on two warmed plates, and Jeff poured boiling water into the jug containing the granules, stirring briskly. Then they took their places at the table.
Jeff surveyed the food before him. “And to think I was going to have a frozen pizza this evening.”
Dave raised his glass. “Let’s drink to the pizza’s reprieve.”
“I have a better idea.” Jeff brought his glass to Dave’s. “To new beginnings.”
“New beginnings.” They clinked glasses, then Jeff attacked his meal with gusto. A rumble in his own belly told Dave Jeff wasn’t the only one who was hungry.
“This is great,” Jeff murmured between mouthfuls. “Especially the gravy.” His eyes sparkled.
Dave nodded. “Absolutely.” He sighed happily. “Thank you.”
“For what? Coming over to eat your food?”
“For coming over, full stop. And for understanding. Last night when you left, I… I felt terrible. I thought I’d ruined everything.”
Jeff put his fork down. “I didn’t sleep much. I kept thinking I’d pushed you when you weren’t ready to be pushed.”
Dave glanced at the wall covered in photos, then back to Jeff. “And I was talking to Matt—about you.” Jeff blinked, and he nodded again. “I was telling him how much he’d like you.” His heartbeat quickened. “I also told him that I… wanted you.”
Jeff picked up his glass and drank a little. “That’s a coincidence.” He looked into Dave’s eyes. “I was having the same thought about you.”
Warmth surged through him. “I’m glad about that.” Then it was back to eating. “When does your stint as Santa finish?”
“Christmas Eve. Then that’s it for another year.
” Jeff grinned. “I got the best request today. A little boy asked for a baby brother or sister. Now, there’s no way I can promise to get him either, right?
For all I know, his dad might have had the snip since he was born.
So, I was about to say that I couldn’t guarantee anything, when I caught his mum’s gaze.
” Jeff beamed. “She was nodding. And when the boy walked out of earshot with his dad, she bent down and told me in a whisper that they were going to give him the twenty-week scan image on Christmas Day.” He sighed.
“That’s going to be one very happy kid come Christmas morning.
And it’s days like this that remind me why I do this job. ”
“I don’t think you’d be a good Santa if you didn’t like children. And you are good with them. I watched you today.”
“I love children,” Jeff confirmed. Then he grinned. “I just couldn’t eat a whole one.”
Dave cackled. Then he sobered. “You don’t have to dash off after dinner, do you?” He wasn’t ready for this to end just yet.
Jeff studied him for a moment. “No, not tonight. I can stay till you throw me out. I’m doing the same shift tomorrow—one till five.”
“Then we could sit on the couch, eat cheesecake, and watch more Bill Hicks, if you like.” There were other things Dave wanted to do, such as reacquainting himself with Jeff’s mouth, but he was willing to let Jeff take the lead.
“How about we play it by ear?”
That sounded like the perfect plan.
“Did you mean that about talking to Matt last night?” Dave’s confession had touched him.
Dave aimed the remote at the TV and switched it off. “I gave myself a good talking-to as well.”
Jeff bit back a smile. “Do you do that a lot?”
“Only when the situation calls for drastic action.”
He twisted on the couch to gaze at Dave. “And what did you tell yourself?”
Dave turned to face him, his cheek resting against the seat cushion. “That I needed to fix this. And to decide where I wanted it—us—to go.”
Jeff’s pulse raced. “I hope it’s the same destination I have in mind.”
“And where’s that?”
His heart was hammering again. “One where we end up kissing.”
Dave’s breathing caught. “That sounds like someplace I’d like to visit.” Then he closed the gap between them, and took Jeff’s mouth in a lingering kiss.
“Thought we’d never get here,” Jeff murmured against Dave’s lips.
He stroked Dave’s neck, loving the shiver that trickled through him in a wave from head to toe.
Jeff slid his hand lower, rubbing Dave’s chest, so firm beneath Jeff’s fingertips.
Dave’s hands were gentle as he explored, taking his time, and that was fine by Jeff.
Then the kiss deepened, and suddenly there was real heat in their touch. Jeff let out a soft moan as Dave kissed his neck and nuzzled him there. “Oh yeah, just like that.” He wanted to touch, to feel skin, to breathe Dave in.
“I could kiss you all night,” Dave whispered, his face buried in Jeff’s neck.
“You can kiss me, touch me…” Jeff was dizzy with the headiness of it all. Then Dave became still, and Jeff peered into his eyes. “Are you okay?”
Dave expelled a shaky breath. “Overload. It’s been so long since I…”
Jeff held Dave’s face between his hands. “It’s okay, I understand. And we don’t have to do more than kiss.”
Dave met his gaze. “Is it okay if I don’t want to rush this?”
Jeff smiled and kissed his forehead. “Of course it’s okay. And I get the overload thing. I haven’t been with anyone for a long while.”
“It’s just that there’s only ever been—”
Jeff stopped his words with a finger to Dave’s lips. “I know. It’s all right.”
“You know I want to, don’t you?”
Jeff snuck a glance at Dave’s crotch, and grinned. “Something might have given that away, yeah.” That raised a chuckle. He moved in and kissed Dave on the mouth. “Remember I said I don’t do casual? Well, I know you don’t, either. Whatever is happening between us, it’s serious. Isn’t it?”
Dave’s smile lit up his face. “Yes, it is.”
“So that means we can take our time.” Another kiss, this time to the tip of Dave’s nose. “Because I’m not going anywhere.” He grinned. “Apart from home.”
“If you stayed here tonight, I’d make you breakfast. In the guest room, of course.”
Jeff gave him an inquiring glance. “You’d make me breakfast in the guest room?”
Dave rolled his eyes. “You know what I mean. I just didn’t want you to feel you had to leave. And apart from that… I don’t want you to go.”
Jeff didn’t want to go either. “Then I’ll stay.”
Judging by the warm glow in Dave’s eyes, it was the right answer.
The bed was comfortable, the pillows the right side of firm, and the sheets smelled of lavender. Moonlight painted the white walls blue, and the hoot of an owl came from outside. Its cry hadn’t awoken Jeff—there was too much going on inside his head for sleep to get a look-in.
How does that song go? What a difference a day makes? And Dave had made all the difference. The irony hadn’t bypassed him: Jeff had spent most of the afternoon wishing the day away, and most of the evening wishing time would stand still.
He’d meant every word of what he’d said. He didn’t want something casual with Dave—he wanted them to build a relationship that would last. Because it wasn’t just them to consider. There was Chris too.
I know what he wants for his dad—someone to make him smile and laugh again.
Grief had robbed Chris of two men—Matt, and the dad he’d known, because Jeff was certain a part of Dave had died along with his husband.
He’d seen the light in Chris’s eyes as they’d walked around Madame Tussaud’s, and knew instinctively what had caused it: for a moment, his dad was back.
So I’d be taking on not just Dave, but his son.
What shocked Jeff was that he didn’t baulk at the idea. In fact, he liked it.
The bedroom door creaked open, and Jeff sat up in bed. Dave came into the room, the moonlight giving his white shorts an eerie glow.
“Is everything okay?” Jeff asked.
Dave came over to the bed. “You know I said I didn’t want to rush into anything?”
“Yes.” Jeff’s heart skipped a beat.
“And that it had been a while since I’d… you know.”
“Yes.” His heart beat faster.
“Well…” Dave’s skin glowed in the blue light, giving him a ghostly appearance. “Do you think we could…”
Without a word, Jeff threw the duvet back. “Get in.”