No Good Deed - Marie Sexton Page 0,15

then climbing into bed with him. He dreamed about how it would feel, making love to Charlie again. Feeling Charlie’s hands and lips on him. Jonas wanted that more than anything.

If only Charlie wanted it too.

His third day at Charlie’s, he did the output test, which involved keeping track of how much water he drank and saving all his urine for the day. He intentionally did the test on a day when Charlie had to work. Sure, Charlie was an RN, but that didn’t mean it wasn’t embarrassing as hell having a pitcher of pee in the fridge. Jonas was glad when that particular test was over. The woman at the testing facility assured him he’d have the results in a few days.

The next night, the wind carried a winter storm in off the mountains. The snow blew sideways through the glow of the streetlights, packing itself against the west-facing sides of trees and parked cars. Charlie’s house still had an old-fashioned, wood-burning fireplace, and Charlie built a fire, turning his living room into a cozy haven. Charlie rarely turned on the TV, relying instead on music and crafts to keep him occupied in the evening. He worked on an afghan as Jonas settled next to him on the couch.

“Tell me everything I missed.”

And so Charlie told him all about Taylor and Warren, and about Phil and River. After some hesitation, he moved on to Gray and Avery. He told Jonas all about the Tap House, and the community there.

“It sounds like you spend a lot of time there,” Jonas said when he was done.

“It’s a really positive space right now. Preachers talk about taking control of a congregation and somehow lifting them up,” he said. “I swear, Avery does it every single night on that piano. No matter how bad of a day I’ve had, I always leave there feeling better.” He glanced in Jonas’s direction before returning to his knitting. “We should go by there one of these nights so you can hear him play.”

Jonas squirmed uncomfortably at the thought. “I’m not ready to face Gray again.”

“Yeah,” Charlie said quietly. “Me neither. We’ll have to make sure it’s on a night when he’s busy.”

They’d been sitting less than a foot apart, and it was easy for Jonas to move closer. Charlie set his knitting aside so Jonas could straddle his lap, bringing them face-to-face. Charlie didn’t object, but he didn’t touch Jonas either.

“What about you?” Jonas asked. “There must have been somebody in the last six years.”

Charlie’s gaze fell. “Not really.”

“Nobody?”

“Nobody who mattered.” He eyed Jonas. “Why? What about you?”

Jonas grinned and used Charlie’s own words. “Nobody who mattered.”

“Not for six whole years?”

Jonas laughed. “I’m not saying I was celibate all that time.” He leaned closer, eyeing Charlie’s lips. “I told you I dated a bit. But none of them kept my interest.” He put his hand against Charlie’s cheek. He loved the way Charlie’s beard felt against his palm. “I ended up comparing every man I met to you, and every single one of them fell short by a mile.”

Charlie smiled. “Flattery will get you nowhere.”

“Can’t blame a guy for trying.”

Jonas had been away from the BDSM scene for six years, and their one night together hadn’t been about kink. It’d been nothing but instinct. But Charlie had been a Dom for as long as Jonas had known him. He assumed Charlie would want to lead. But that didn’t mean Jonas couldn’t give him a nudge.

He brushed his lips lightly over Charlie’s. Charlie tensed, and for half a second, Jonas thought Charlie was going to push him away. But then he slid his hand up the back of Jonas’s neck, into his hair. Jonas closed his eyes, leaning into Charlie’s touch.

And finally, Charlie kissed him.

Charlie’s kiss was as sweet the cookies he spent so much time baking, and Jonas sighed, slipping his arms around Charlie’s neck, relaxing into him. He loved the way Charlie’s body felt against his, and the way Charlie touched him, exploring Jonas’s back with his big, strong hands. For a while, they made out like teenagers, lost in each other as the snow fell outside and the fire crackled in the hearth. Jonas felt like he’d found heaven. For years now, he’d dreamed of belonging to Charlie in every possible way, and now it was finally going to happen. Charlie’s touch seemed to light Jonas up from the inside. Jonas moaned, desperate to somehow push closer, hoping more than anything that Charlie would