Chapter Twenty-Three
Santino held Orsen close, letting the warm water slide over them. Orsen sighed, snuggled closer, and Santino briefly squeezed him, then kissed his head. “How’s your week been, other than being hungover?”
Ugh! What a question. “I was ill on Monday and Crompton made me muck out the stalls as punishment for taking his booze.” Orsen twisted in the bath. “It was hell, and I am never drinking again.”
Santino sucked his lips in, coughed, then said, “I think you’ve said that. How long did it take for you to recover if you were still ill on Monday?”
“Days, and I had to go to school as well. At least I don’t have anyone bullying me now, but I had to sit through classes while my head pounded.
Why does a hangover take days to recover from?
And my stomach! Oh, my gosh, my stomach hurt, and I could barely eat for days, and I am never drinking again.
Never ever! Don’t even offer me one when I hit twenty-one, because no. Nope. Never.”
Santino couldn’t hold back and started laughing. Orsen sat up and glared at him. Santino grinned and pulled Orsen down for a kiss. He resisted at first, then huffed before kissing him back. “Poor Orsen.”
“Oh, shut up,” Orsen muttered grumpily. “I’m not happy with you now, and I can feel my ass.” He clenched his ass and felt a slight ache. “No sympathy from you and you should have some for me if you got drunk at my age and suffered too.”
“Does your ass hurt?”
“No, but I can tell something happened to it.” Orsen suddenly smiled. “Can we do it again? I think I prefer you to be in charge. I mean, I would maybe sometimes, but yeah, I like you being inside me.”
“You told me. I’ll do whatever you want. I just want to make you happy, and we can have sex again later, but I don’t want to make you feel worse.”
“You can lick it better.” Orsen smiled, then winked. “Did I tell you my friends have all had sex, and Devon is bi and has been getting it on with some kid at school? Apparently, he’s built everywhere, and Devon can’t wait to bend over for him. He asked me to let him know all about it.”
“Teenagers aren’t teenagers anymore. You all grow up too fast. You should enjoy having no responsibilities and be outside having fun. When I was younger, I was hardly inside at all.”
“Game consoles. I need to get one so I can play games with my friends.” Orsen twisted closer and kissed Santino, a huge smile on his face. “I have friends. I never thought I’d have any, but now I do, and I have you as well, and I’ve never been so happy.”
Santino kissed him back, smiling softly. “You’re free now, Orsen. You can have and do whatever you want. Live your life the way you want to.”
“With you? I want you in my life.”
“Well, that’s good because I want to be in your life, too.”
“Oh, I had plans drawn up for the house. Why does it cost so much for someone to put a few lines on paper? When he told me how much, TJ had to take over because I couldn’t say anything except, ‘how much?’”
“You said that?”
“Well, duh! Course I did! I wanted to tell him I could draw a picture of the house and charge half as much as him and still make a fortune.” Orsen glanced away, then whispered, “I didn’t though. That would be rude, but I thought it.”
“Some of them do charge an exorbitant amount.”
Orsen’s eyes widened. “Ooh, a new word. Exorbitant.”
“Means a huge amount, or more than what would normally be charged.”
“I like that one, and it fits.”
“What have you settled on for your home?”
Orsen smiled and snuggled against Santino. “It has two floors and a basement. A wraparound porch. I want to have one of those swings, so when it’s warm at night, we can sit on the swing watching the sun set. That sounds nice.”
“It does sound nice. A place to relax at the end of the day.”
Orsen hummed, picturing him and Santino on the swing, cuddled up under a blanket, watching the sun set.
“I’m going to have a large bedroom with a bathroom that’s attached to it.
I want a nice kitchen too, and oh! I spoke to TJ about renting out some of my land.
Crompton and Pistol and Trace suggested it.
They said I could make money without having to sell and I thought maybe when I’m older I might sell. What do you think?”
“I think it’s a good idea to rent some of the land until you know what you want to do with it. You don’t have to decide right now. When are you going to break ground?”
“Er… next month, I think. I have to wait to make sure everything’s in place.” Orsen moved in the bath, the water rising almost to the top. “Do you want to visit the creek with me now that you’re home?”
“I’d love to.”
“Good. I want to show it to you so you can see how nice it is.” Orsen’s stomach rumbled, and he felt his cheeks heat up.
“Want to eat now?”
“Hmm, yes. I’m hungry, and after, we can come back to bed, and you can have sex with me again.”
“Thank you for telling me what I can do later.”
“I did, didn’t I? Sorry, I’m just so happy that you’re back and I want to do more with you because I’ve missed you so much.” Orsen sat up and twisted around in the bath. “Does it bother you?”
“What, you wanting to have sex with me?” Santino stroked his fingers over Orsen’s cheek.
“No. Whatever reservations I had are quickly disappearing. I like being with you. I like coming home to you when I’ve been in the city all week.
You have no idea how good it feels to know you’re here.
You’re not… tainted by life, even though you’ve experienced a horrible time growing up.
You see things in a pure way. I see shit all the time with my work.
People rob each other, and when they’re found out, they try to kill each other. Sometimes they succeed, too.”
“I wish you didn’t have to see those kinds of things.” Orsen kissed Santino. “I’m here if you want to talk about it.”
“You’ve lived through some dark times, Orsen. Why would I want to add to that?”
“Because I’m yours.” Orsen stood and got out of the bath. “And so is my stomach.” He pointed to it. “My empty stomach.”
Chuckling, Santino stood, and Orsen stared as the water slid down Santino’s amazing body. All golden skin and hard lines and firm muscles, and he licked his lips. “See something you like?”
“Yes.” Orsen nodded. “Later though. Food first.” Picking up a towel, he handed it to Santino, then picked up one for himself. “I had a math test in class this week.”
“Why didn’t you tell me when I called?”
“I didn’t want to tell you in case I failed.
You’ve been helping me so much and I wanted to do this.
I’m eighteen now and I need to do more for myself.
” Orsen shrugged and stared at the wall, trying to figure out how to say what he wanted to.
“I know some people think I’m young and, in a way, I am.
You know I don’t know much about the world, and when you talk about work, it makes me glad I don’t.
When I hear you and TJ discuss cases, I know what you do isn’t for me.
I want to do more for myself. I can hunt and prepare animals.
I can fix things up when they’re broken.
I can treat wounds.” Orsen rubbed his hair with his towel and looked over at Santino.
“Other things I need to rely on people for and I want to do more of that on my own. I wanted to pass the test so I could show you that I can do more.” Shaking his head, Orsen murmured, “I’m not saying it right. ”
“I understand what you’re trying to tell me. You want more responsibility in areas of your life where you’ve had to rely on others for. For example, schooling and finances. You know far too much about areas of life you shouldn’t and not enough about areas you should.”
“Yes.” Orsen put his used towel in the hamper and waited for Santino to finish drying. “I got a B on my test.”
“You did? That’s great!”
“It wasn’t the same test as everyone else, but the teacher told me I was catching up, so I don’t mind. It is what it is. I’ll get there. I know I’ll probably have to do another year in high school, but I’m okay with that.”
“At least you’re getting an education, making friends, and catching up.” Santino kissed him. “I’m proud of you. You’re not letting the past stop you from achieving what you want, and you’re capable of far more than you know.”
Orsen returned Santino’s kiss, then dressed and waited for Santino. When they left the bedroom, Orsen went to the front door and picked up his bag. “I have food.”
“You do?” Santino’s eyebrows shot up. “In that bag? What?”
Orsen walked past Santino and into the kitchen, placing the bag on the table.
He grabbed the boxes and smiled. “Pasta Bolognese. I made it in school today and kept it warm for tonight. I knew you’d have nothing here because you clear the fridge before you go, so I made sure to cook plenty for us.
” Orsen grinned. “Even Crompton liked it.”
“Well, if he liked it, I know I’m going to love it.” Kissing Orsen’s head, Santino murmured, “You didn’t have to do this.”
“I know, but if we’re together, then we look after each other, and I want to take care of you.” Orsen peered back into the bag and grabbed another box. “Salad. I was going to make garlic bread too, but I wasn’t sure if it would last.”
“I have some in the freezer. I’ll pop it in the oven with the pasta and we can have them together.”
“That sounds good.”
Santino grinned and wriggled his eyebrows. “I may have a beer with it.”
Glaring, Orsen muttered, “You enjoy your beer. I’m never drinking again, even when I’m legal.”
Laughing, Santino pulled Orsen close and Orsen pouted. “You will when you hit twenty-one.”
“Nope! I’ll have a party with all our friends and eat cake instead.
I wanted to try it, and I did and that’s it.
I’ve seen what booze can do to someone. Lived through it.
I wasn’t even going to try any, but I’ve never been on a sleepover before, so I thought I’d do it.
Never again. I don’t need to drink to have a good time. ”
“Wise words,” Santino murmured, then kissed him. “If you don’t want to drink, then don’t. I don’t have to have a beer—”
“Yes, you can. Not drinking is my decision, not yours. If you want one, then have one.” Orsen wasn’t going to have his decisions influence Santino.
He knew Santino liked a beer, and after the long, stressful week he’d had, and the drive home, he deserved one.
“Have your beer while the food heats up and you can tell me all about your week in the city.”
“Not much to tell.” Santino grabbed a beer. “I was in court for two days but wasn’t called to testify. The defendant made a plea deal, then I visited my mamma, who scolded me for not going enough. She doesn’t like the fact I live here now.”
“When will she forgive you?”
“When I give her enough kids. She gave me leaflets for adoption agencies. Again.”
Orsen bit his lip and smiled. “Wow. She really wants some grandkids.”
“She has three already. She can wait a few more years before I need to give her any.”
“With me?” Orsen hoped so. He wanted to build a future with Santino. Their relationship was going well and Orsen didn’t want it to end.
“If you’ll have me, but I’m older than you, so maybe you’ll want to do other things.” Santino shrugged. “What about college?”
“I have thought about it and I’m not sure if I want to go or not. I like working on Crompton’s ranch and looking after the animals.”
“Maybe you could do something that helps? You could become a veterinarian or maybe business or something along those lines. Don’t say no just yet until you’ve explored all options. It could be as you say. You could look into it and decide it isn’t for you.”
“Thank you for understanding.” Orsen kissed him and sighed when Santino took control of their kiss. “I’m glad you’re home.”
“So am I.”