Page 3 of Wounded Soul
Jesse smiled and lifted his chin slightly. “Be my guest.”
Ian took the photo. Even with shitty lighting and his two-year-old phone, Jesse was stunning. “Cate,” he said, sending her the photo. “This is Jesse Sykes. I’m taking him home with me, so if I disappear off the face of the earth, you know who did it.”
“That’s not funny.” She shook her head, then checked her phone. “Got it.”
Ian frowned, just noticing her bare wrist. “Why don’t you wear your Apple Watch? I bought it so you wouldn’t have to stash your phone at work.”
“It’s in my bag still. I decided it’s too nice to wear to work.” She waved him away. “Go, enjoy your night.”
“I’ll call you tomorrow.” He winked at her, drawing a reluctant smile.
“You better.” She glanced at Jesse, who now had his back to her, and mouthed, “Have fun.”
That’s the plan.
THE COOL AIR hit them as soon as they left the bar. A relatively mild spring evening, by official standards, but cold in contrast to the over-heated pub.
Ian shivered.
Jesse didn’t so much as flinch. Maybe that jumper was warmer than it looked.
They walked along in silence, not uncomfortable exactly, but knowing they were headed back to his flat for sex, Ian couldn’t think of anything to say. Anything that wouldn’t sound ridiculous or forced anyway.
“Do you do this a lot then?” Jesse asked, breaking the silence.
“What?” Ian narrowed his eyes.
“This.” He gestured between the two of them. “I’m curious since you seem to have a routine all set up with the lovely young lady tending bar.”
Ian laughed at the thought of Cate being described as alovely young lady. Sounded like something his grandad would say. “Cate’s one of my best friends. But no, I don’t do this often.”
Not at all, recently.
When his mind started to wander back to Blake, Ian shut it down immediately. “You live around here?” He asked more for something to occupy his thoughts than because he wanted to know. Odds were they wouldn’t be seeing each other again after tonight.
“I have a flat I share not far from here.” He gestured over his shoulder. “Clifton way. But that tends to be more of a crash pad.”
“Nice,” Ian muttered. He was right about Jesse having money. Bristol didn’t have London prices, but it wasn’t cheap either. Especially not in Clifton. “So where do you live when you aren’t out exploring the city?”
Jesse hesitated for a moment, then said, “Just outside of Tetbury.”
Ian let out a low whistle. “Also nice.”
“It serves its purpose.”
That struck him as an odd thing to say about a home, but they were almost at Ian’s flat, so he let it slide. “This is me.” He gestured to the dark-blue front door of his building.
Jesse glanced up, taking it all in. “What floor are you on?”
“Top.” There were four floors. When he’d been looking for a place to live, there’d been two apartments for sale—the basement and the one he’d ended up with. He’d rather have a couple of flights of stairs to climb than live below street level. Something about it weirded him out.
Jesse crowded behind him when they reached his floor. The front of him pressed snuggly against Ian’s back, while his hands found Ian’s waist, grip firm. “Do you like being on the top?”
Ian heard the amusement in his tone and glanced over his shoulder. “I like living on the top floor, yes.” He grinned. “But if we’re talking sex, I like a bit of everything.”
“Oh good.” Jesse dipped his head and kissed along the back of Ian’s neck, drawing a shiver out of him. “That makes two of us.” He carried on kissing him, lips barely brushing Ian’s skin, and it took Ian a couple of goes to unlock the door.
Once inside, Ian turned and backed Jesse against the wall, pushing the door shut at the same time. Jesse went willingly, cupping Ian’s jaw as Ian kissed him. His lips were soft, the hint of stubble adding a touch of roughness to it that had Ian’s cock straining in his jeans.
