the large sectional, legs stretched out in front of him, and Lukas between his legs, back pressed to John’s front.
“He basically told me that he wasn’t going to pester me about becoming a contractor anymore and was happy that I was happy. I have no idea where it came from, though I suspect my mom had something to do with it, but I don’t even care. I’m just glad he won’t be pressuring me to give up a job I love anymore, you know?”
John hummed behind him and peppered kisses into the side of his neck, nuzzling behind Lukas’s ear when he tipped his head. “That’s great. I’m glad he got his head out of his ass finally.”
Giggling, Lukas fully relaxed into John’s warmth and closed his eyes. “Me too. I feel like the weight of his expectation has been lifted off me, and now I may float away.”
“Not too far, I hope,” John grumbled, nipping at Lukas’s ear.
“No, not too far.” He sighed happily and just enjoyed the moment. The only black spot left in his life was not being able to tell his parents—or really anyone but Kevin—about his relationship with John. He was going to be patient, though, because John was worth it. No matter how long it took before John was ready, Lukas would wait. He had to—losing John wasn’t an option anymore.
“What’ve you got there?” John mumbled, lips still pressed to Lukas’s neck.
He slowly peeled his eyes open and smiled down at the soft plastic package in his hands. “I got you something.”
John’s hands had been sneaking under Lukas’s scrub top to pet his stomach, but he froze at Lukas’s words. “Something for me?”
“Mmhmm.” He tore at the plastic until he got it open, then pulled out the folded T-shirt. Grabbing the top, he held it out in front of him and shook it, grinning at how awesome it had turned out. “Do you like it?”
There was a pause, and then John started laughing really hard, his whole body shaking behind Lukas. Lukas’s grin grew. The T-shirt was something he’d stumbled across online and read Laying Pipe across the top with a pipe wrench underneath and beneath that the words As big as you want, as deep as you need.
When John’s laughter finally slowed, Lukas turned over so they were chest to chest and grinned up at him. “I thought it was very appropriate.”
“You would, brat.” He was grinning, though, as he snagged the shirt from where Lukas was holding it between them and held it out to look at again. “I love it. Thank you, baby.”
Grinning so hard he had to be glowing, he leaned up and kissed John, slow and deep like he liked, but stopped before they could get too into it. “You’re welcome. I should change and get dinner going.”
John laid the shirt over the back of the couch and cupped Lukas’s face. “I ordered takeout. You said earlier you were tired, so I didn’t want you to have to cook.”
Lukas’s heart grew even larger, his love for John unable to be contained. He’d texted John not long after lunch because they’d had to put a younger dog down unexpectedly. The entire office had been devastated, the owner sobbing in the room for half an hour afterward. It had been hard on everyone, but Lukas had been in the room with them and had cried a little himself before having to get back to work.
“You’re so fucking thoughtful it’s gross,” Lukas said, grinning at John’s disgruntled look.
“That’s not very nice.”
Lukas cackled and reached between, palming John’s semi and giving it a stroke. “I’m sorry. Want me to be nice while we wait for dinner?”
John laughed as he lifted his hips and pushed his athletic shorts down, and Lukas went to work showing how very nice he could be.
A couple of hours after they’d eaten dinner and watched a few episodes of some show on Netflix that Lukas was obsessed with, John was woken up from a doze by his phone ringing. Lukas was asleep on top of him, so it was hard for him to pull the device out of his pocket, but he finally managed before the call was sent to voicemail.
The number wasn’t one he had saved, but that didn’t mean much considering he used his cell as his work number. “This is John.”
He listened as an irate older man told him about the overflowing toilet in his apartment and the useless super who told him he’d come check