From the Ashes (8 page)

Shooting Diego an angry look, Maria gathered up her nephews. The little one held on to her hand but watched Tomas from across the table.

Jesse could tell he wanted to go back to his uncle but he didn’t dare disobey his father, and even though Tomas was going along with it—hell, even though the whole table was going along with it—Jesse couldn’t sit there quietly while all this drama took place just under the surface.

“I’ve got a dog,” he blurted. The words hung in the air, and everyone at the table stopped what they were doing to stare at him, probably wondering what was up with the segue.

Jesse didn’t know himself what point he was trying to make, but it felt good to steer the conversation. So with more conviction, Jesse said, “A
big
dog.” He smiled at the little boy in Maria’s lap, and added, “She’s right outside.”

“Is she a guard dog?” the older boy asked.

“Well…” Jesse thought about it, considering what the boys might want to hear. “She used to be a guard dog, but she wasn’t very good at it.”

The older boy shrugged, unimpressed. The younger piped up in his small preschooler voice, “Is she nice?”

Diego cut in. “Dogs aren’t supposed to be nice. Their job is to protect their masters’ houses.”

Jesse hid his sneer in a cough.

All at once, Maria and Tomas argued against Diego’s position. Tomas’s mom snapped a few phrases in Spanish, but Jesse couldn’t tell which of her children she was siding with.

He took advantage of the mayhem to lean to the side and whisper to the small boy, “She’s very nice.”

The little boy smiled shyly. His older brother wandered over to the window and went on tiptoe. He must have spotted Chardonnay because he said, “Wow! Look at the size. She looks tough.”

“Let me see!” The small boy hopped off Maria’s lap and ran to the window. He pushed his brother out of the way more roughly than Jesse would have expected, considering his older brother was twice his size. “Is she a pit bull?”

“No, a bull mastiff. Not purebred, though,” Jesse said. “You want to go out and see her?”

In tandem, the boys turned around, blinking their wide brown eyes at their father. “Can we,
papi
?” the older one asked.

The younger one added, “
¿Por favor?
”

The two of them were so ridiculously cute they must have rehearsed their technique.

Diego glanced around the table, and it was clear from the way he shrugged his assent he knew he was outnumbered. “First, eat your
sopa
.” He gestured with his chin at the small bowls Mrs. Perez had set on the table.

“Yes, Daddy,” the boys said in unison. Oh, they were good. Clearly masterminds at reaching their maximum begging potential.

“That dog better not bite.” It was obvious Diego was talking to Jesse, but he didn’t meet Jesse’s eyes.

“I’ll keep her on a leash the whole time.” Tomas pretended Diego had been talking to him, not Jesse, and that pissed Jesse off.

“You don’t have to—” Jesse closed his mouth when he saw Tomas’s expression.

Tomas’s eyes were thunderous, and his jaw slid forward. “I’ll keep her on a leash.”

Diego nodded. “Good idea.”

Jesse sulked while Tomas dug a leash out of his parents’ hallway closet. “I’ll get it on her.” He snatched it out of Tomas’s hand and pushed open the screen door.

Chardonnay and Sushi came bounding up. Sushi stood on her hind legs and scratched her dirty paws on Jesse’s pants. Taking her cue from Sushi, Chardonnay did the same—jumping up to lick Jesse’s face. On her back legs and with her paws up, Char wasn’t much shorter than he was.

“Down, honey.” He forced her off so she fell onto the ground. Jesse squatted, leash in hand. “Good girl.” He rubbed her head.

Chardonnay scooted around while he struggled to get the leash on. The backyard was dark, and Jesse was glad Tomas’s family wasn’t watching.

Someone switched on the back porch light, and Jesse—covered in slobber and mud—grabbed Chardonnay by the scruff of the neck and looped the collar around her head. He hopped up to standing, illuminated by what might as well have been a spotlight.

With as much confidence as he could muster, he called to the kids peeking between Tomas’s and Diego’s legs. “Come on over.”

The kids spared a single questioning glance at their father and then barreled, full speed, into the yard. Sushi charged them, yapping and hopping, and even Chester rolled out of his sleeping spot under the table and jogged over to greet them. Chardonnay, on the other hand, barked a couple times, and then wound behind Jesse, twisting his arm.

“What’s the matter?” the bigger boy asked.

“Is she gonna bite?” the little one chimed in.

When the older brother went around to Chardonnay’s back end to try and touch her, Char barked at him as if she was going to snap.

“Pedro! Get away from it,” Diego called from near the door.

Jesse dropped to Chardonnay’s side. He petted her head, trying to calm her down. “She’s just scared,” he told the boys.

The smaller of the two held his ground, but the bigger boy backed up ten feet and picked up a yellow plastic bat. He lifted it with both hands.

Chardonnay went apeshit. She barked, growled and dragged on the leash, but Jesse knew from the way she stood with her butt right against his legs, she was scared of the kids.

Diego and Tomas jogged over from their place at the door. Tomas’s jaw was tense, but his brother was smiling.

“Guard dog, eh?” Diego looked at Chardonnay, impressed. “Maybe she’s not such a waste of dog food after all.”

“She’s not a guard dog,” Jesse snapped. “Just…she’s not used to people.”

Tomas picked up the smaller of the two kids and bounced him in his arms. “Dogs take a while to get to know you, Nelson. She’ll let you pet her soon.”

Losing interest in the dog, Pedro picked up a grayed tennis ball. He tossed it in the air and hit it with the bat.

Char stopped her barking and lurched in the direction of the ball.

Jesse stumbled, trying to keep her under control. “You wanna fetch, honey?” He rubbed her head, and then that spot above her nose, where her bones dipped between her eyes.

She panted, her tongue lolling to the side.

“It’s late.” Diego plucked his smaller kid out of Tomas’s arms. “I have to put the boys to bed.”

Lips pinched, Jesse kept his attention on Chardonnay. He didn’t know if he was allowed to speak to Diego or if Diego would growl at him like a protective bear.

“Bye-bye.” Tomas kissed his fingers and pressed them into Nelson’s rounded cheek.

With Pedro, he bumped fists. Pedro puffed his chest out, obviously proud to have been treated like an equal by his uncle.

“See ya,” Jesse said to the kids.

Diego jutted his chin forward. He looked like Tomas when he did that—but different. With Tomas, the expression meant he was trying to get his emotions under control. With Diego, the expression was a threat.

The kids led the way back into the house, and Diego followed. Tomas turned to go along, but Jesse caught his arm.

“Listen. Do you mind if I just head to bed?”

Tomas met Jesse’s eyes with so much heat that he couldn’t believe it had flared so fast. Maybe it was part anger, but Jesse didn’t care. He was pissed at Tomas for dragging him to dinner. Still, his body responded like it was designed for Tomas’s touch.

“I’ll be there in a second.” Tomas squeezed his arm in a way that might have seemed heterosexual to someone looking out the window—and in deep denial—but conveyed want and lust and a desire to forget about everything that had happened in the last hour.

“Take your time.” Jesse gave him a smirk. It would serve Tomas right if Jesse gave him a hard-on then his mom asked him to help with dishes.

“Don’t worry.” Tomas grinned. Damn him for being so sexy. “I won’t.”

Chapter Seven

“Thank you for giving us dinner.” Tomas kissed his mother’s cheek. He didn’t wait for her reply because he suspected she might ask how long Jesse was staying, and he didn’t want to have to make excuses. Heading for the door, he waved. “See you tomorrow.”

“Have fun.” Maria snickered from her spot wiping down the counters.

He would have smacked her with a dishtowel if his mother wasn’t standing there. “I will.” He waggled his eyebrows.

Luckily, his mom was oblivious to what they were talking about—a benefit of having parents not entirely fluent in English.

None of the dogs bothered to get up from where they were resting when Tomas crossed the yard. He saw the flicker of the TV through his back door, and when he pushed inside, he found Jesse lying on the folded-out couch.

“Hey.” Tomas sat on the back, watching cars explode on the screen. “What you watching?”

Jesse turned down the volume. “Something stupid.” He bit his lip. “Listen, I’m just here for a couple weeks. But if it’s okay with you, can I skip family stuff with your brother? I don’t think he likes me.”

Tomas climbed over the back of the couch to get onto the bed next to Jesse. He took off his shirt. If he and Jesse were going to disagree, he would use his assets to his advantage. “Diego doesn’t like anyone.” Jesse was already shirtless, so Tomas felt his way over Jesse’s chest.

His skin was peachy pale, his freckles like decorations on his shoulders. Growling, Tomas bit his way across a few of them.

Jesse sighed. “Yeah, but the way your brother looks at me… It freaks me out.” He walked his fingers down Tomas’s belly. With a single fingertip, he teased at the edge of Tomas’s jeans.

“I’m working tomorrow night.” Tomas leaned in for a kiss. Against Jesse’s mouth, he said, “And the night after, I’ll cook.”

“I’m not just talking about the next couple days—”

Tomas pressed their lips together, silencing Jesse’s argument. Jesse tasted like toothpaste, and his top lip was rough, like fine-grain sandpaper. He moved into Tomas’s arms but broke their kiss to talk.

“I’m serious. I don’t feel comfortable—”

“I know.” Tomas kissed him again. This time, he pulled Jesse in tight, rolling on top. Tomas forced his thigh between Jesse’s legs and thrust into Jesse’s hip.

“Oh fuck.” Jesse wrapped a leg over Tomas’s back and arched. “You do not fight fair.”

Tomas smiled, licking his way down Jesse’s neck. When he got low enough, he nibbled one of his perfect, pink nipples.

“Why won’t you let me go down on you?” Jesse looked at Tomas, eyes wide and imploring, cock hard and taut under his boxer shorts.

“Because I say so.” Tomas wouldn’t tell Jesse the real reason—that it would make Jesse seem like a slut and a woman in Tomas’s eyes. He wished he didn’t feel that way.

Sighing in frustration, Tomas kissed his way down Jesse’s belly. Tomas needed to expand his boundaries if he wanted to change his opinion.

“I thought you said you didn’t.” Jesse lifted his hips so Tomas could get off his shorts.

“That was before I made you have dinner with my family.” Tomas kissed his way over Jesse’s hip. The scent of him was rough and spicy. His cockhead smeared precome on Tomas’s neck.

Tomas didn’t know if he could do this, not without freaking out, but he needed to try. He owed Jesse something. Maybe not as payback for dinner, but maybe just as comfort. Reassurance that it was all okay.

He worked his kisses into the frizzy hair around Jesse’s base. The smooth skin of his erection caressed Tomas’s cheek. Jesse wasn’t pushy, but the cock pressed close to Tomas’s face was demanding and masculine. Tomas didn’t know if he could take it inside any part of him, not even his mouth.

“You don’t have to,” Jesse said.

“I know.” Before he could lose his nerve, Tomas closed his lips around the head. He pinched his eyes, bracing against the emotions he thought would come crashing down—humiliation, self-loathing, guilt.

But none came.

Mostly, he felt sexy. Especially when Jesse gripped the sheets and moaned. Jesse leaked a little, slick saltiness overlaying the musky flavor.

“Oh God. Fuck yeah.” Jesse bucked, pushing the head farther into Tomas’s mouth.

Tomas loved that Jesse was so excited. Upping his game, Tomas wrapped his hand around the base and used his saliva to get Jesse slick. Tomas had gotten enough head in his life to know what felt good, and he worked his lips and mouth in time with his hand.

Jesse didn’t seem to mind that Tomas wasn’t deep throating. If anything, he thrashed and panted more when Tomas mostly jerked him off and sucked the sensitive patch right under the crown.

“Fuck.” Jesse punched the bed.

Tomas pulled off and worked Jesse just with his hand. He tore spurt after spurt out of Jesse’s cock and watched with fascination as come land on Jesse’s smooth chest. “God, you’re so fucking hot.” He’d never seen anything sexier in his life.

“You too.” Jesse pushed Tomas’s hand off and tried to slither down the bed.

Tomas caught him under the shoulders and lay on top of him. Dick sensitive enough to burst, he worked tight thrusts against Jesse’s stomach. He shouted when the first spasm hit.