Crave - 9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

Jenson stood, staring at the door Connor Weir had just exited. Merrick was going on the mission to the Alecteran system with him? Of all of the things he thought he was going to hear when Connor walked down the stairs, that was the last thing he expected.

“Well, it looks like we’re finally going on a mission together,” he said when he was finally able to find his voice.

He felt the younger man’s hand on his shoulder. “I’m looking forward to it.”

He turned to Merrick. “I’ll send you the mission briefings when I get home. We’ll have to meet with the rest of the team in the next couple of days. I’ll forward you details of that as well.”

His mind whirled with new adaptations that might be needed, as well as the potential consequences of living in such close quarters with the other man for an extended period of time. There was no way he was going to be able to resist him forever. He knew he had to talk to Merrick about Kel. It was a conversation that should have happened years ago, but he was never ready. He didn’t know if he was ready now.

Arrangements were made to contact Merrick regarding possible meeting times before leaving the man to deal with scheduling for his own security team. With such short notice, there were going to be a lot of last minute preparations required.

He didn’t remember most of his drive home. His mind was occupied with what happened under the tree. His cock, which had softened after Connor’s news, twitched with renewed interest as he recalled Merrick’s taste… how he felt against him. The urge to sink his fangs into the man’s flesh, to taste his blood, was almost overpowering. Merrick’s arousal had given his blood a heady scent that nearly drove Jenson out of his mind with lust. Forcing the thoughts out of his head, he pulled into the garage. He didn’t want to meet up with any of his staff while sporting a hardon.

Going up to his room, he stripped out of his clothes. He felt sticky with sweat and precum, and desperately wanted a shower. Once the water came to temperature, he stepped under the hot spray. The heat felt good against his tense shoulders, as the water washed away the evidence of his afternoon activities. He moved his hand under the dispenser, and a tiny dollop of mint scented cleanser appeared on his palm. He slicked his hands over sensitized skin, spreading the lotion. As soon as his hands moved over his groin, his cock began to stiffen in anticipation. Putting his left hand against the wall to steady himself, he reached down and took his cock into a soapy grip. With firm strokes, and the memory of how it felt to have Merrick writhing beneath him, he chased his previously denied orgasm. This was no slow tease; he needed to come. It only took a few minutes before his body stiffened, and with a grunt, he came… hard, his release splattering the wall of the shower in front of him. He took several deep breaths, waiting for his racing heart to calm, as the water ran over his head and shoulders. Damn, he needed that.

Finally feeling more relaxed, he quickly finished his shower. After messaging his assistant, Joshua, to meet him in his office, Jenson left his room and walked through the quiet halls. He only had to wait a few minutes before he heard the door buzz, and he called for his assistant to enter. Joshua had come to work for him almost a century ago. He and his wife, Mariah, were friends of his parents, so he had known the family for most of his life. When the older man walked into Jenson’s office, the envoy was surprised to see a few grey hairs in the other vampire’s normally dark-brown hair. Joshua was beginning to show his age.

“Jenson, it’s good to have you back. I’m sorry I missed you yesterday.” Joshua sat in the chair across from Jenson’s desk and pulled out his comm pad. He looked up at the younger man with a sad smile. “I read the reports about Kel. I’m really sorry.”

Jenson nodded in response. “It’s ok. Have you spoken to Alain?”

“I spoke to his family, and he’s home, resting comfortably. I arranged for funds to be deposited into his account, and he’s to contact me when he feels ready to return to work.”

“That’s great news,” Jenson said, relieved the orderly’s injury wasn’t more serious. “I received a message from Dr. MacAllister. The next round of treatments are scheduled to start in a couple of weeks. Unfortunately, I’m being sent on a mission to the Alecteran system, so I’ll need you to oversee everything for me again.”

Joshua nodded, quickly typing on his comm pad. “I’ll speak to Dr. MacAllister when he comes in today to confirm his timetable.”

After going over a few more mundane household details, Joshua left the office. Jenson spent the rest of the afternoon going through his correspondence and answering messages. After several hours, he finally left the room to stretch his legs. As what usually tended to happen when he was home, he found himself in the left wing, standing at the door to Kel’s room. The man was seated in the hover chair in his usual spot by the window. Jenson had passed one of the medical staff in the hall, so he knew Kel must have just returned from his afternoon exercises. The muscle stimulators they used on Kel daily, helped to prevent muscle atrophy. He had tried them once to see what the device felt like, and although it wasn’t painful, after 10 minutes it felt like he had run a marathon, after lifting weights for an hour.

Jenson sat in his usual spot on the cushioned bench and took Kel’s hand in his. “Kel?” He squeezed the man’s hand. “It’s Jenson. It’s a beautiful afternoon. Would you like to go outside?”

He stood, and with a nod to the orderlies, maneuvered the hover chair down the hall and towards a side door. It opened to a large patio, surrounded by a clear railing. Several lounge chairs were scattered around the area in small groupings.

Lifting Kel, he placed him gently on the chair closest to them, tilting the back so the other man could feel the late afternoon sunshine on his face, but not be staring into the sun. Lowering himself onto the chair beside the silent man, he pulled up one of Kel’s favorite books on his comm pad and started reading. After several chapters, he put the pad away and just let himself relax into the cushions. He watched as the sun slowly sank behind the treeline before standing and moving Kel back to his chair. He returned the other man to his room and, with a promise to be back tomorrow, walked back to the main house.

He didn’t realize how late it had gotten until his hunger made itself known. Jenson mixed himself a mug of blood and sipped it, leaning against the counter. After his solitary meal, he messaged his sister about the change in the mission plans and wasn’t surprised when she commed him immediately.

“Merrick is replacing Minster Stevens? How do you feel about that?” His sister asked without preamble.

“Good evening to you too, Audra,” Jenson rolled his eyes, and walked into his den to find a seat for what he imagined would be a lengthy conversation.

“Yeah, yeah, good evening,” she huffed impatiently. “How did Merrick get selected for this mission?”

Jenson sighed, knowing he wasn’t going to be able to extract himself from this conversation, and proceeded to tell her about the Minister’s injury and how Connor Weir volunteered his son for the operation.

“And how do you feel about this?” Although she had never really said anything outright before, Jenson knew Audra suspected his weakness when it came to Merrick.

“I’m fine, Audra. The mission will carry on as before. The only change will be the Earth representative.”

“Jens…,” she said softly.

“Audra, it’s fine. I swear.” Although she couldn’t see it, he smiled just to prove his point.

He heard her chuckle and felt himself relax. “All right, Jens,” she sounded amused. “Do you have a time scheduled for the lead team meeting? As captain of the ship, I’d like to be there.”

They spent the next several minutes talking about the mission, their father, and the odds of Audra ending up in an Alecteran prison for assault. Prior to signing off, Jenson agreed to meet his sister at the training grounds in the morning to do some sparring before the team meeting. After remembering to message Merrick and send him the mission briefing, he reviewed the daily staff reports before finally heading to bed.

The next morning, he arrived at the compound early, and went to the locker room building adjacent to the training grounds to change into his workout gear. He sent Audra a message to tell her where to meet him and then went out for a run. He was halfway through his second lap of the cross country track when Audra fell into step beside him.

“Good morning, little brother,” she said, her voice full of mirth. She was obviously in a good mood this morning.

“I take it you had a good night?” Jenson chuckled. He laughed harder as he dodged her punch. “What?”

“I was alone last night, I’ll have you know,” she huffed, and lengthened her stride.

Jenson smiled, and increased his speed to match hers. They ran side by side in silence for a few minutes, enjoying the quiet, sunny morning. After completing the second lap, they stepped off the trail and headed for the training field. His sister was trained in several martial arts disciplines and was a great sparring partner. They tried to get together to practice as often as they could, in order to keep their skills sharp.

They stripped out of their running gear, down to shorts and form fitting tanks made out of a material that helped regulate body temperature. The fabric could sense ideal temperature and either cooled or heated up, so the wearer was more comfortable.

They had been sparring for some time, and had gathered a small crowd of younger trainees when Jenson spotted a familiar face… Merrick. Their encounter yesterday flashed through his mind, and he lost focus, a dangerous thing when one’s opponent was as skilled as his sister. Her kick to the sternum knocked him back several feet. She smirked at him, bouncing lightly on the balls of her feet.

“Something distract you, little brother?” She smirked and circled him, putting Merrick directly in his line of sight. Smart woman.

Jenson forced his attention back on his sister and waited for her to make her move. He saw a fist coming towards him a fraction of a second before impact and bent back, using her momentum to swing her up and over his body. She hit the ground as he spun in the air, landing to straddle her and put her in a choke hold. Although she was out of breath, he could hear her chuckle below him.

“I yield,” she panted. Jenson heard clapping from the crowd around them.

Jenson stood and extended his hand, helping her to her feet. “Good match,” he said, throwing his arm around her slim shoulders and walking to the edge of the crowd of onlookers who had started to disperse.

“I guess you weren’t as distracted as I thought,” she laughed, grabbing her towel and wiping the dirt and sweat from her face.

Jenson didn’t get a chance to respond before he heard a voice behind him.

“That was a great match, you two. I see you’re still able to keep this guy on his toes?”

Jenson turned to see Merrick standing behind him with his arms crossed over his wide chest. From his clothing, he appeared to be dressed to go running.

“Merrick!” Audra shouted, flinging herself into the man’s arms. Over the years Audra and Merrick had become friends, and in Jenson’s six years of self-imposed exile, she and Merrick had met several times, on Earth and other planets, since the young man guarded his diplomat father. “I hear you’re coming with us to Alectara?”

“That’s what I’ve been told,” Merrick spoke to her, but his eyes were on Jenson. Audra looked back and forth between the two men, and suppressed a smile.

“Well gentlemen, I’m filthy, and desperately need a shower before our meeting, so I’ll see you inside.” She gave both men a hug before grabbing her things and hurrying to the locker rooms.

“I need to grab a shower too,” Jenson said looking down at his dirty clothing. When he looked up he noticed Merrick’s eyes roving over his body, almost like a caress.

“I think you look great,” the man’s voice had gotten huskier.

Jenson felt his body responding to the attention. His growing arousal would soon be very obvious, so he grabbed his clothing and held it in front of him. “I’m going to hit the showers.” He watched the other man look towards the building with what appeared to be longing.

“Varallo and Cooper are waiting for me to go for a run, or I would join you,” he said with regret. Merrick lifted his hand to Jenson’s chest, sliding it over his right pec and down his ridged abdomen. The vampire’s muscles jumped at the contact. “I wouldn’t mind helping you clean up so I could get you dirty again,” he said with mischief in his voice.

Jenson’s heart sped up, as the image of him and Merrick in the shower, naked and slick with soap, played in his mind. So much for trying to hide his arousal…

Merrick smirked at him and, reaching down, gave the vampire’s quickly hardening cock a squeeze through the soft cup he wore. “Pity we don’t have time,” the younger man sighed, before turning and walking towards the path that lead to the running trail. He turned back at the edge of the trees and gave Jenson a wink and a smile before turning to go meet his officers.

Jenson groaned, and quickly adjusted himself before heading to the lockers. The man was going to be the death of him. He wasn’t sure how he was going to survive the coming month. When he rounded the corner of the building, he saw Audra leaning against the wall by the door. Clearly, she had been waiting for him.

“How long are you going to keep denying him?” She asked softly as he approached.

“Audra…,” he sighed. “You know why I can’t….”

“He’s a beautiful man,” she pressed her palm to the scanner and the door slid open. “You can’t keep your life on hold forever. He loves you, but one of these days he’s going to get tired of waiting for you to get your head out of your ass, and he will move on... without you.” Without another word, she turned to the females’ locker room, leaving Jenson speechless behind her.

Jenson thought about Merrick giving up on him, finding someone who didn’t have to keep pushing him away, and felt a flash of jealousy so powerful it nearly blinded him. He did want Merrick… badly, but things weren’t that simple. His life wasn’t that simple. He knew he needed to talk to Merrick soon, to explain things to him… explain about Kel. It wasn’t a conversation he was looking forward to. He sighed and walked to the showers, stripping out of his clothing along the way. At the touch of a sensor, the shower turned on, and quickly came to temperature. He felt his eyes burn with unwanted emotion as he stepped under the hot spray. “Fuck,” he whispered, bowing his head. “What the hell am I going to do?”

It wasn’t until he was walking into the meeting room, later, that he realized his sister had said Merrick loved him.

div>Thank you to my editor for all of his support and encouragement and thank you to all of you who are reading and supporting this story.  This chapter is being posted earlier than  I originally planned, but it was ready and I just couldn't wait

 

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