CHAPTER 35 - BAKED CHICKEN
baked chicken
CHAPTER thirty-five
David knew it wasn’t the healthiest option, but he pushed everything from Malibu out of his mind for the next week. At least, he tried to. The sound of car doors made him panic, and he and Noah stayed in a hotel down the street from their apartment because David was too afraid to sleep in his own bed. He wanted to be in Milan already, but there were things to do first. Things David wasn’t allowed to do because he couldn’t look at screens for two more days.
“Hugh is finalizing the press release with publicity as we speak,” Noah said, still staring down at the pile of contract paperwork he’d been poring over for an hour already. “A few signatures, and you’ll be clear of Oxbow.”
“Good,” David said stiffly. He pushed a piece of baked chicken around on his plate, trying to gather the courage to eat it. He’d already managed two pieces. One more wouldn’t kill him. Hopefully. The doctors said it wouldn’t.
Noah set down the piece of paper in his hand and looked at him from across the table. David ignored him and continued pushing his chicken around.
“We can do a press conference when you’re ready, if you want,” Noah said. “The media is running wild with the Klaus story, but I know your fans would love to hear from you.”
David shook his head. “We posted the picture, didn’t we?”
Word broke about Klaus’s attack before David even left the hospital, so David had Noah post a picture of him giving a thumbs-up to the camera in his hospital bed to assure everyone he was fine.
“We did,” Noah agreed. “But I’m a little worried about you, Davey Jones. You’ve barely spoken about leaving your team and—”
“My team that starved me half to death?” David interrupted, stabbing his chicken. “The same team that talked shit about you and me being in love with each other? Or how about how they’ve touted Louise as the savior of Oxbow when she jumped in a car I set up for her?”
Louise was his replacement driver. She was pretty, blonde, and everyone’s new favorite in the pit lane. She was fast, too, but that didn’t matter as much in Hugh’s campaign to imply he’d had her waiting in the wings ever since David’s performance dipped.
David didn’t doubt that part, but no one at Oxbow had ever mentioned her name once while he was around. He doubted they were that good at keeping secrets.
“This goes deeper than just Oxbow,” Noah said.
David set down the fork and looked up at his fiancé—he was still getting used to referring to Noah that way. “I know. I don’t really want to deal with it until we’re in Italy, okay? Being here freaks me out too much.”
“We can go to Colorado anytime, babe,” Noah offered. “Finlay would love to organize a game night, and we should probably tell people we’re engaged. I’d like to tell Finlay, at least.”
Fear ratcheted down David’s spine. Even though his father was in jail awaiting trial, David couldn’t shake the feeling that Klaus might show up at any moment, wielding his baseball bat. If Klaus somehow escaped jail time, he would go after Noah, too. Especially if they told the world they were engaged.
“I’m not ready,” David said quietly. “I mean, I’m ready with you, but I don’t want him to find out.”
Noah nodded in understanding. He reached across the table and took David’s hand. “Then we’ll wait.”
“We can announce it in Italy,” David offered, not wanting to take anything away from Noah. “Once we’re settled there, I’ll feel better.”
“I agree,” Noah said. “Fuck, sorry. Here I am, talking about this shit after…”
David stood up from his chair when Noah trailed off. He eyed the uneaten chicken, then forced himself to take a bite, though he had to squeeze his eyes shut to do so.
The flavor was amazing. Noah had some kind of talent when it came to making chicken now that they didn’t have racing diet requirements. David busied himself with thinking about Noah cooking at the stove as he chewed, and the way he got so excited about paprika and garlic salt.
David kept his eyes closed as he heard Noah stand up from his chair and round the table to reach him. He only opened his eyes when Noah’s arms came around him, avoiding pressure on his broken arm. David swallowed the chicken and cringed as it went down, but that was better than feeling sick.
“Would it help if I sucked your dick?” Noah murmured in his ear.
David bit back a laugh. “That always helps, but I think it’s my turn to suck your dick.”
Noah held him close. “I’d rather have you inside me. If you’re up for it.”
David was only allowed two walks a day now, as part of his recovery. Jacob insisted on going on his morning walk with him and acted like leaves on the sidewalk might try to murder him. Somehow, Jacob was more protective than Noah. David let him freak out as much as he wanted, mostly because it was entertaining but also because he knew Jacob felt like he was making up for the Klaus incident that wasn’t his fault in the first place.
David was slowly learning how to be the person he wanted to be.
He did the best he could to help Noah undress with only one usable arm and felt like a bit of an idiot for keeping his own shirt on, but fussing with the cast was more trouble than it was worth.
Butterflies swelled in David’s stomach when Noah looked up at him with so much desire in his eyes, and David soaked in every touch like it might be his last.
“I want to buy you a ring,” David said between kisses.
Noah paused to brush noses with him. “Only if you want to.”
David was completely obsessed with Noah’s face. His brown eyes and dark lashes were like something out of a movie, and David has the shape of his jaw memorized from kissing every inch. And his lips—fuck, David could lose himself in the sensation of kissing those perfect, perfect lips.
Noah smirked. “Do I have something on my face?”
David let out a hum. “You’re so good-looking, it isn’t fair.”
Noah’s cheeks turned ruddy as he laughed. “Says the guy I’ve been lusting after since we were teammates.”
“Only lusting?” David asked with a smirk of his own.
Noah’s gaze softened, and the desire in David’s blood cooled to a low simmer, a warmth he only ever felt with this man.
“Not just lusting,” Noah murmured. “That’s what the ring is for. And I don’t think I’d raise a baby with a guy just because I like his dick.”
They hadn’t spoken much about the baby since the party. David had barely spoken to Caroline, too worried that he’d say the wrong thing or make her think he wasn’t in a place to take care of Pierre when he was born. Jacob said she was worried about him, but wanted to give him space to heal. She wasn’t upset with him, thank god.
“You really think we can do this?” David asked. “I don’t know why Caroline would even trust me after this.”
“This is why we need to get to Italy so you can start therapy,” Noah said, thumbing his cheek. “If you saw what I see, you wouldn’t doubt yourself.”
David sighed and rolled so that he could rest on his good side and not risk hurting his arm. He adjusted his cast so he could rest it on Noah’s chest.
“You know, I’ve never broken a bone before,” David said. “All those times my dad hurt me, he never broke anything.”
“I don’t know how nothing was broken when I found you half dead in the storage tent,” Noah growled, staring at the ceiling. His finger ran up and down the line of David’s spine through his shirt, and the desire between them fizzled out in a comfortable way.
“Hopefully we’ll never have a moment like that again,” David said. “No more hospitals unless it’s to be there for Pierre being born, okay?”
Noah gave him a look. “I’d pinkie swear, but your arm’s broken.”
“Well, I wouldn’t want to tear a tendon in your fragile wrist, either,” David teased.
Noah cocked a brow. “Oh, Jochmann’s got jokes, huh?”
David hid his smile in Noah’s shoulder. He liked moments like this the best. Fighting for time together forced a lot of things in their relationship. Every moment had to be worth it—something to savor in their moments apart. Now, they could do stupid things like lying half-naked on the couch with softening dicks, making jokes about trauma.
“What if I took your name when we get married?” David asked, tilting his head to look up at his fiancé. “Do gay guys do that?”
Noah kissed his forehead. “We can do whatever you want, baby. We’ll have to get your championship trophy changed, though.”
“I honestly forgot I had that thing,” David said. “Racing feels so far away right now.”
“We’ll have plenty to keep us busy in Italy,” Noah said. “The faster we put the Oxbow shithole behind us, the better. Jacob’s shopping around, you know. He’s pissed about how this went down.”
“Tell Finlay to retire, and Jacob can have his spot,” David said. “I’d pay to see him and Evan going at it on track.”
Jacob would pulverize Evan. If he didn’t, David would teach him how. Evan liked to drive with too much steering angle and had no idea how to conserve tires.
“You realize you’re the one I’m marrying, not Evan, right?” Noah asked, flicking his chest. “I know I shouldn’t have told you about that kiss.”
“I don’t care that you kissed him,” David said indignantly.
Noah rolled his eyes. “You’ve had a stick up your ass about it since I told you. You’re a much better kisser, if you must know.”
David didn’t need Noah to tell him that. One look at Evan’s Instagram photos of him kissing his boyfriend showed him all he needed to know. He certainly wasn’t intimidated.
“He’s in a happy relationship,” Noah added in a drawl. “Are you serious right now?”
“I’m not allowed to look at phones,” David reminded him. “He could be texting you and making a play.”
Noah burst out laughing. “Oh yeah? And what do you think he’d say that would ever get my attention when I have you here, hm?”
David nipped Noah’s shoulder. “Maybe he’d tell you how hot you looked in that photo I took of you in Paris. That’d be a good opener.”
“Is that what you’d do?” Noah asked. Desire ignited in his eyes.
“I’m not much of a texter,” David said. “A picture is a thousand words.”
“The ol’ dick pic? I thought you had more—”
“Not a picture of my dick,” David said. “Do you remember that Calvin Klein shoot you did?”
Noah made a face. “Uh, like five years ago? That one?”
“Yeah. I found it in a magazine once, and I saved it. I still have it,” David said. “I’d send you a picture of that.”
Noah gaped at him. “You have that photo? Oh god. Finlay calls that my truck stop hooker photoshoot.”
“I’d pay top dollar, then,” David teased.
“Dirty boy,” Noah clucked, wriggling to adjust himself on the couch cushions. “But you’ve got my attention. Now what?”
“Now you tell me how hard you want me to fuck you,” David said, holding his gaze. “Does that work?”
“Uh-huh,” Noah replied breathlessly. “I’m very convinced that I want you to fuck me.”
“Good,” David said with a sly smile. He moved to sit up, but Noah leaned back against him, pinning him against the cushions. Heat rushed between his legs to his hardening cock. He was already close to Noah’s entrance, and the thought alone had his mind spinning.
It didn’t take long to lube up, especially when Noah only let him get two fingers inside him before he demanded David fuck him properly. The pace wasn’t exactly his most vigorous, but he had the excuse of recovering from two hospital visits. Both of them didn’t last very long anyway—David found release way faster than he intended, and so did Noah.
Noah moaned deliciously and arched completely against him as David thrust as best he could, pumping him full. Noah’s moans echoed in the hotel suite, loud and unabashed.
“Nothing feels like that,” Noah panted, grinding back against him for more.
David nosed the corner of his jaw, working his hips in rhythm as Noah milked him dry. His heart rate skyrocketed, which was a bit worrisome, but he was already coming down so it was probably okay. “Fuck, Noah. You’re so perfect.”
“Worthy of a photoshoot, I reckon.” Noah laughed breathlessly, but he broke it off with a moan as David spurted inside him one final time. “God, how do you have more?”
“Love having my cock buried in you too much,” David growled. “Working you open feels so good.”
Noah moaned. “I’m gonna get hard again if you keep talking like that.”
David kissed up the back of his neck—sloppy, love-drunk kisses. Noah leaned back against him, still moving like they were in the thick of sex. He needed to spend every minute in Italy like this, making up for lost time. Noah needed it. They both needed it so much.
“Want you to cum again before you pull out,” Noah panted out. “Feels too good.”
David’s cock twitched at the desperation in his voice. “What else do you want?”
Noah writhed against him, and David rocked his hips upward to push deeper inside him. He felt the moment he brushed Noah’s prostate, coupled with a shuddering gasp from him.
“I want you to tell Oxbow to fuck themselves,” Noah said between hard breaths. “Then I want you to fuck me in the showers. Always wanted you to fuck me there.”
David blinked. He’d been expecting a lot of things to come out of Noah’s mouth, but he definitely hadn’t been expecting Oxbow to come up during sex.
He shifted, angling his hips to turn Noah’s to rest on the couch cushion. Noah rolled the rest of the way to his belly with a soft noise of pleasure, and that was all David needed. He pushed as deep as he could inside him and moved on top of him properly, using his good arm to support himself. He could only manage maybe a minute of this, or he risked passing out. Worth it, though.
David rutted his hips once to get the feel, then moved into a deliberate rhythm. Oxbow almost ruined them both, and if he didn’t say anything, they would get away with it.
Noah let out a cry of pleasure as David drove deeper with each thrust, rocking the whole couch as he did so. His strength was still feeble at best, but fucking Noah always gave him more than he thought he had.
David groaned out Noah’s name, then burst inside him again. The wet, slick sounds of fucking continued in the haze as Noah moaned into the cushion, rutting into it as he found his own release.
Once they were both boneless, David sat back and watched with erotic fascination as he slid from Noah’s abused hole. Noah squirmed with discomfort as David laid down beside him again. He hooked his broken arm over his fiancé, totally spent.
“Call Hugh and schedule a press conference, then,” David said, kissing his way up Noah’s neck. “We should fuck before it, though. I doubt we’ll be allowed to stay in the building after what I’m about to say.”