Unforgivable - 24. Chapter 24

Chapter 24

Jason stifled a laugh as he watched Corey hurry past him to check on dinner, again.

“Babe,” he said as he reached out and grabbed the agitated brunette’s wrist. “Everything is going to be great. The food smells delicious and the house has been cleaned to within an inch of its life.” He placed a kiss on Corey’s nose. “Relax.”

“This is really important to Liam.” Corey chewed on his lip, with his eyes darting around the room, probably making sure he hadn’t overlooked anything.

“Regardless of whether or not the house is tidy or your lasagna is perfect, which it always is by the way, nothing we do here today is going to pry Alek out of his closet. Not if he’s in as deep as I think he is.”

“I know,” his boyfriend sighed, leaning into Jason’s bigger body. “I just want to help.”

“I know you do.” Jason leaned down and planted a kiss on Corey’s nose. “It’s one of the many things I love about you, but this is Liam’s battle.”

Corey grumbled inarticulately while resting his forehead on Jason’s chest.

“How are things going between them? Has there been any headway?” Jason rubbed soothing circles on Corey’s back, trying to help relieve some of the younger man’s tension. He knew his boyfriend was very fond of his assistant, and wanted him to be happy, but this relationship was an uphill battle from the start.

Corey sighed. “Not great. Alek finally opened the garage, but his father has been there almost every day. Liam told me he dropped off Alek’s wallet the other day, and the dad was there. Apparently, Alek all but ignored him and played it off like Liam found it in a parking lot somewhere. Liam played along and left quickly, but some pretty derogatory things were said while he was still in earshot.”

“Alek insulted him?” Jason felt his temper rising. He might not be close to Corey’s young assistant, but he wasn’t about to play nice with someone who’d been deliberately hurtful to the guy.

“No, it was his dad, but Alek didn’t say anything to defend Li. They got into a pretty big fight about it later.”

Jason shook his head. He’d assumed the relationship would be rocky under the circumstances, but he wasn’t sure if it could last. Liam was a ‘heart on his sleeve’ kind of guy, and didn’t seem to care that he was a little flamboyant. The secrecy and lies must be killing him.

“What time are they supposed to be here?” Jason barely finished speaking when the doorbell rang.

“Right now,” Corey said with a grin. He reached up and kissed the tall blonde before heading for the door. “It’s showtime.”

Halfway through dinner, Jason still wasn’t sure what to make of Alek. The man obviously cared about Liam, but seemed uncomfortable with any physical displays of affection. He would have guessed the mechanic had an aversion to touch if he hadn’t caught the two kissing in the hall to the bathroom. Luckily, as time passed, Alek seemed to become more comfortable, and even gave Liam a peck on the cheek when he was handed a plate of tiramisu for dessert. Maybe his boyfriend was right, and Aleksei just needed more exposure to ‘out,’ gay men.

“So Alek,” Corey asked as they enjoyed the coffee flavoured confection. “How is the new garage working out for you?”

“It’s great,” the other man replied with a grin, clearly pleased with his new business venture. “Business has been steady, and I even managed to land a contract with one of the local trucking companies for tow and repair service, since their head mechanic just quit on them.”

“That’s great,” Jason said, putting his arm around the back of Corey’s chair and playing with his boyfriend’s dark locks. “That’ll help during the lean months. How did you get a commitment so quickly? A lot of those companies are awfully particular about who touches their trucks.”

Alek looked uncomfortable, and peered sideways at Liam before answering. “Umm….” He cleared his throat. “My dad has been friends with the owner for years, and put a good word in for me. They’re giving me a six month trial with an option for renewal for five years.”

Liam gave his boyfriend a tight smile, before reaching over to grasp his hand. “You’re really good, Alek. I know they’ll be impressed with you.”

“Thank you, miliy moy.¹” Alek linked their fingers together, took a deep breath and closed his eyes. “I hate depending on my dad and his cronies, but I’m still building my reputation.”

“They can’t fire you if they find out you’re gay, Alek,” Liam whispered, squeezing the other man’s fingers.

Jason suddenly understood the somber mood. “I take it your dad’s buddy is old school?”

“Oh yeah.” Aleksei sighed deeply. “Their whole group is the same… women belong at home, a man is only as good as his word, handshakes seal the deal… gay is an abomination.”

“They can’t legally punish you though,” Corey protested, leaning forward with his elbows on the table. He looked to Jason for support.

“No, they can’t,” the garage owner agreed. “But Anatoly doesn’t have to renew my contract, and my dad can pull his support for my loan.” He grimaced and looked apologetically at Liam. “Until then I have to at least pretend to toe the line.”

Liam looked sad but resigned as he pushed his dessert around the plate. “I said I would be patient,” he murmured quietly. “I just hate feeling like a dirty secret.”

Jason saw Corey blanch at Liam’s words. Only a few short weeks ago Jason had said the same thing to him, although Liam’s situation was far worse in comparison.

“It won’t be for much longer,” Alek responded, pulling Liam into his arms. “I promise. In a year I’ll have my start-up loan paid off, and Anatoly locked into the renewal. I’ll also have had time to build up my reputation in town.” The two lovers were locked in their embrace for several minutes, seemingly oblivious to Jason and Corey.

“I’m sorry guys,” Liam said as he sat up, wiping away a few stray tears. “I didn’t mean for tonight to become so melancholy.”

“Don’t worry about it,” Corey gave his assistant a smile. “Why don’t you two go into the living room while we clean up? I’ll put on a pot of coffee.”

As soon as their guests were out of earshot, Jason turned to his boyfriend. “Liam’s going to have a tough year.”

Corey’s mouth tightened as he nodded. “I don’t think he realizes how hard it’s going to be. If what Alek is saying is true, he’s going to have to be very careful. It’s a shitty situation.”

“It is a bad situation. Liam could get his heart broken. I can’t imagine being in a secretive relationship. It’s a lot to ask from someone.”

“I’m really sorry about what happened with my mother,” Corey interrupted, looking up at him sadly.

“I know you are. You fixed it, so stop apologizing.”

“It’s just… seeing how upset Liam is… I hate that I hurt you like that.”

“It’s not the same thing.” Jason brushed Corey’s hair away from his forehead. “You weren’t trying to hide me as much as you were trying to protect your mom. There’s a difference. Once you realized I was being hurt, you did everything you could to fix it. Right now, Alek can’t fix this… not without potentially losing his financial backing, and a lucrative contract.” Jason leaned down and gave his boyfriend a deep kiss, pulling him in tight. “Come on,” he said quietly when they finally stopped for air. “Let’s get this mess cleaned up so we can get back to our guests.”

Jason was just putting the last plate into the dishwasher when Liam appeared at the threshold.

“Hey guys,” he said, with a sheepish smile. “Thanks for having us over, but I think we’re going to head out. Don’t worry about coffee.”

“Are you sure?” Corey turned, holding the carafe. “It won’t take long to make.”

“I’m sure,” he responded, not quite making eye contact with his boss. “Alek has to be at the shop early, and we have Don coming in for seven o’clock, remember?”

Jason could see how uncomfortable Liam looked, and figured he and Alek wanted some time alone. Sadly, it wouldn’t surprise him to hear the two ended up deciding to part ways.

“Okay, well, I’m glad you were able to make it,” Corey said rubbing Liam’s arm gently. “I hope everything works out for you two. I really do.”

Liam’s eyes looked a little misty when he finally looked up. “Me too.”

Jason was swamped with appointments. His cup of coffee was long cold before he got back to his desk. Checking his cell phone, he saw a missed message from Corey. Smiling, as he did any time he thought of the brunette, he pulled up the text screen.

“Do you have time for lunch?”

Jason looked at his watch. It was just after noon, so there was still time, if Corey hadn’t left yet. He wondered how Liam was doing. It’d been a few days since the dinner party, and he hadn’t seen the man since, although Corey said he seemed like his usual upbeat self.

“Just finished. Lunch sounds great.”

The reply only took a few seconds. “Great! Can you come here?”

“Be there in fifteen minutes.”

He checked to make sure he didn’t have any urgent emails before heading out the door. As promised, fifteen minutes later he was walking into Corey’s building. The front desk was empty so he called out for his boyfriend while pulling off his gloves.

“Cor?”

“I’m in my office working on something. Can you lock the door?”

Jason flipped the deadbolt and headed back to Corey’s office, which was tucked into a back corner behind the exercise room. When he crossed the threshold, he froze in shock. The sight of his boyfriend leaning against his desk, and wearing nothing but a flirty smile, took away any ability he had to think, much less move his feet.

“You’re naked,” he sputtered.

Corey chuckled. “Thank you, Captain Obvious.”

“But… wh… holy shit….”

“It’s good to know I can still render you speechless.” Corey’s grin was full of wicked promise as he sauntered past the still shocked Jason to close the office door behind him. Jason’s skin tingled when he felt a touch up his back and over his shoulder as the brunette returned to the desk. With a wink, Corey reached for a paper bag and started removing various containers from inside. “I thought we could have a picnic.”

“A picnic?”

Corey’s deep, sensual laugh sent a tingle of anticipation up Jason’s spine.

“Mmhmm,” he hummed in response, running a hand down his abs, and drawing Jason’s attention to the hard cock surrounded by a trim nest of dark curls. “A picnic. Unfortunately I forgot to ask for plates, so we may have to find something else to eat this off of.” He opened a lid and the enticing scent of sticky, sesame chicken wafted out.

The smell of the delicious food, and the thought of feasting off of his boyfriend’s incredible body finally got Jason’s feet moving. He grinned down at the smirking brunette as he pulled him close. “Then I guess you’d better lay down, because I’m awfully hungry.”

A quick examination of the rest of the boxes showed them to be filled with other favourites from their favourite Chinese restaurant. In the interests of fairness, Corey insisted that Jason also strip down. Jason was more than willing to comply with the request. He was selfless like that.

Praising his boyfriend for his ingenuity, Jason picked up the chicken and placed several morsels strategically over the muscular body before him. Licking and nibbling his way over the flushed skin added to the enjoyment of the meal, and judging by the moans and shudders coming from his dining partner, the pleasure was mutual. When it was his turn, and Corey’s skilled tongue had licked up plum sauce from the line between Jason’s hip and groin, he declared this the best lunch idea his boyfriend ever had.

After eating his fill Corey slowly kissed his way to Jason’s throat, claiming he wanted to ensure he got every last bite. “I don’t think you got any food there,” Jason teased as he tilted his head back.

“This is dessert.”

Jason’s laugh morphed into a groan as Corey reached between them to stroke his leaking cock. “Yes… dessert,” he agreed. “I like dessert.”

He felt Corey grin against his neck as he reached under the couch for what appeared to be a bottle of massage oil. “Being a physical therapist has its perks.”

“You should have been a boy scout,” Jason teased. When Corey’s slick finger slipped down into his crease his breath caught. The lengthy foreplay, combined with the anticipation of having his boyfriend inside of him had Jason close to the edge. “Corey....”

Something in his tone must have alerted Corey to how close he was. The brunette quickly stretched him with his fingers before the head of his slickened cock pressed inside. Both men were tested regularly, and when their latest results came back clean, Corey broached the subject of foregoing condoms. It was a huge step forward in their relationship. Neither man had ever gone without protection before, so this act was a declaration of the complete trust they shared in one another.

After a few seconds Corey lowered his body over Jason’s and started to move. “I love you.”

“I… love… you… too….” Jason panted. There was no way he was going to last, but he didn’t want to go alone. Knowing how much it turned the younger man on, he nipped along Corey’s collarbone and up behind his ear.

When Corey’s rhythm started to falter, Jason reached for his cock. In only two strokes he was shouting his release. Even with his body still tingling from the after-effects of his orgasm, he was aware of Corey groaning loudly as he came deep inside him. The feeling was almost enough to take him over the edge again. The brunette hummed with pleasure as he leaned in for a kiss.

Jason grinned at Corey’s satisfied expression. “Now that is what I call a lunch date.”

A big thank you and a  to my editor, beta and friend, Gary, who helps keep me on track.  Thank you to those of you who read and support this story.  
1. miliy moy: my dear or my sweet