Luis figured it was an ego thing, and Luis was more than happy to placate for Jase’s sake.
“You’re bad,” Jase said. “I knew you were a very dirty guy the minute I met you.”
“I was nothing like that back then,” Luis said. “If you recall, you’re the one who corrupted me. I hardly ever had sex before I met you.” Luis had done his fair share of teasing the older men he’d escorted to parties and night clubs and restaurants. But he’d never slept with one of them. He’d been waiting for his real life to begin, not looking for sex around every single corner of New York City like so many of the other guys his age.
Jase slapped his ass hard. “You forget. I was the virgin. I’d never been with a man. You’re the one who corrupted me.”
“And you loved it. You like it dirty.” Luis smiled, dipped his finger into a puddle of come he’d left on Jase’s chest, and licked his finger. He repeated this until all the come on Jase’s chest was gone.
“You have a point there,” Jase said. “You’d better clean up now. If you’re dripping you might ruin the sheets.”
Luis smiled. “Right now I’m going to do something else I haven’t done in a long time.”
“What’s that?”
“You’ll like it. It will give you something to think about all day while you’re in New York.”
Jase cocked his head, quirked his eyebrows, and sent Luis a quizzical stare. Then his eyes widened as he watched Luis slide gracefully off his dick and crawl down between his legs. But Jase’s jaw didn’t drop until he saw Luis open his mouth and stick out his tongue so he could slip Jase’s shrinking dick back into his mouth one more time.
* * * *
After breakfast, Luis kissed Jase on the cheek and watched him walk down to his truck at the other end of the driveway. “I’ll see you later tonight,” he said, calling from the back door. “Drive safely.” He always worried about Jase’s driving, especially in the city.
Jase stopped and turned. “Have a good day. I love you.” They’d just finished discussing Luis hiring a live-in nanny-housekeeper because Luis had been putting it off for so long. Jase was serious and Luis knew it. With Luis’s work schedule and taking care of Hunter full time, Luis had wound up so exhausted a month earlier he’d lost most of his energy.
His doctor had diagnosed him as anemic. It wasn’t anything serious, just that Luis was overworked and not paying enough attention to his health. But Jase had been after him to either hire a nanny-housekeeper or lighten up with his modeling jobs.
“Love you, too.” Jase said. “And don’t forget about what we talked about this morning with the housekeeper thing. I don’t want you getting sick on me, seriously.”
“I know,” Luis said. “I’ll deal with it. I promise.”
He’d already called an employment agency in New York last week, against his better judgment. What more did Jase want?
When Luis turned to go back inside, he waved at Cory.
He was down near the barn talking with the guys who would be installing the new swimming pool Jase had been dying to get since they’d bought Cider Mill Farm. “Good morning,” Luis said. “If you want some coffee, there’s a fresh pot in the kitchen.”
“Thanks,” Cory said. “I might take you up on that. I want to finish up here and make sure everything’s set for the pool.” They’d put him in charge of overseeing everything at Cider Mill Farm.
Luis turned and walked back into the kitchen. Hunter was sitting at the table eating dry cereal and Camp was sitting on the floor beneath his chair, glancing up with wide eyes.
Hunter didn’t think Luis could see him dropping pieces of cereal down in Camp’s direction. He was fast about it. One quick swipe of his tiny hand and right into Camp’s open mouth.
“Do you have all your things ready?” Luis asked. He was talking about Hunter’s small back pack and his materials for the summer camp in which Luis had enrolled him. It was basically a softball camp for kids—boys and girls—between the ages of four and six, sponsored by the local town library.
Luis and Jase thought it would be nice for Hunter to get to know a few of the local kids. They were still undecided about whether or not they wanted to raise Hunter full time in New York or Cider Mill Farm.
Hunter jumped off the chair and patted Camp on top of the head. He grabbed his backpack and told the dog, “You be good while I’m at baseball camp. I’ll be home this afternoon.” Then he sent Luis a glance and said, “I can walk to the end of the driveway alone, Daddy. It’s cool.”
Luis blinked. “I know you can, Hunter. But I think I’ll walk you down this morning to get a little exercise if that’s okay.”
Hunter shrugged. “I guess so. Just don’t hug me or kiss me when the bus comes. You can do that right now.”
So Luis hugged and kissed him and they stepped out the back door. Hunter walked ahead of him all the way down the driveway, swinging his backpack and kicking stones. Luis couldn’t figure out whether to smile or start crying. In a matter of less than a month, Hunter had undergone a transformation Luis hadn’t predicted. He no longer needed the nightlight when he went to bed. He’d actually jumped up and down when Luis had mentioned the baseball camp. It was as if he’d gone from baby to little man overnight, especially when he told Luis not to worry about him while he was at camp. And now, this announcement about walking to the end of the driveway alone—a year earlier Hunter would have been clinging to Luis’s side, clutching his hand and staring down at his shoes. Though this new independence was a good thing, Luis was secretly hoping Hunter wouldn’t stop asking for his bedtime stories for at least another year.
Chapter Five
When the big yellow school bus pulled away from the driveway, Luis folded his arms across his chest and watched it slog up the road with its loud, grinding engine and rough gears. Hunter had boarded without giving Luis so much as a backward glance. Luis saw him run to the middle of the bus to sit with his best friend Justin, Josh’s and Roland’s son, whom Luis hadn’t seen since around Christmastime. Even though Josh and Roland were a gay couple raising a child just like Luis and Jase, and they commuted back and forth from New York like Luis and Jase, Luis made a point of not getting too friendly with them. He didn’t stop bothering with them altogether; he just maintained a distance. Luis was already friendly enough with Josh’s ex-wife, Hillary, in New York, with regard to the Angel Association . Though Hillary never stopped talking, and the way she liked to take control of everything often made Luis clench his teeth, they were both very dedicated to helping unwed mothers find solutions to abandoning their newborn babies. And Hunter seemed to like Justin, even if Justin was a little older and a bit slower intellectually. Luis’s problem with Roland and Josh had to do with their open relationship. They thought nothing of bringing other men into their bed, which left them with little in common with Luis and Jase. And Josh, the younger of the two, was forever trying to get into Luis’s pants when no one was looking. No matter how many times Luis told him he didn’t cheat on Jase, Josh was always sending him seductive glances and patting him gently on the ass.