A Midnight Thanksgiving (Gay Romance) Page 9

  "I know. I must be fucking crazy about you," Alex said as Vaughn raised his head and their eyes met.

  "Me too," Vaughn confessed. "I never felt like this before." He was deadly serious now. He wanted Alex to know he meant every word.

  "So does that mean that we're going to keep seeing each other?" Alex said while he eyed Vaughn intently. He was getting serious too.

  "I pretty sure I won't be able to stay away from you," Vaughn told him and gazed at him with longing.

  "And then you'll break my heart?" Alex asked.

  Vaughn denied it. "No, you'll break my heart and I'll let you. And yes, I do have one."

  "Good to know. I'll be careful and try not to break it too bad," Alex said and kissed him sweetly. He ended the kiss with a regretful moan. "Now take me where there's food before I kill you. The way we're going, we'll be eating Thanksgiving breakfast not dinner."

  Vaughn laughed, but the murderous look in Alex's eyes told him that this was no laughing matter. But even if he was on the verge of death, Vaughn was still happy. He was grinning to himself as he cleaned up and pulled his clothes back on.

  "I can't believe this turned into the best night of my life," Vaughn said, but Alex had only one thing on his mind.

  "I'm going to starve to death. Screw this. I'm driving," Alex said and climbed over him to the front seat. He only zipped up once he was behind the wheel. When Vaughn climbed through to the front, Alex was already backing the car onto the road. Vaughn waited a bit then he put a hand on Alex's knee. It didn't seem wise to bother an agitated driver, but Vaughn needed the contact, the reminder that this was real.

  Chapter 13

  Alex was tempted to run every red light on the way to Paul's place until Vaughn asked him nicely not to get them killed. Since he had done such a fantastic job fucking him, Alex decided to spare his life. Especially since Vaughn said they would keep seeing each other. That was the best news.

  Alex had been afraid that this night was just a one-off, a taste of something he couldn't have. Though he tried to push it away, that thought was already starting to break his heart. But there was Vaughn surprising him again and again.

  He even reached over to squeeze his knee. Vaughn's hand stroked up his thigh from time to time, but only when they stopped at a light. It was a casual touch and also a welcome reminder that he wasn't done with Alex.

  In the lobby of Paul's building, Alex was ready to race up the stairs instead of bouncing on his toes, waiting another second for the elevator to arrive. Vaughn grabbed the back of his jacket and wouldn't let him. Once again, Alex suspected him of having an elevator fetish. On the way up, Alex plastered himself to him.

  "You know how to show a guy a good time," Alex praised him.

  "And I wasn't even trying. Wait till we have our first date," Vaughn told him and then kissed him until the elevator doors opened.

  "Don't tell Carlos what we were up to in his car," Alex whispered while they headed for Paul's apartment then waited for Paul or someone to open the door.

  Vaughn agreed. "Goes without saying." Then he grinned.

  Seeing the grin, Alex warned him, "Wipe that look off your face or you'll give it away."

  "I'm not sure I can. Or maybe I just don't want to," Vaughn said and gave him a peck on the cheek. He was so brazen and cheerful all of a sudden. Paul and the others were going to see right through him.

  Once they were in, everyone wanted to know more about what Zack had been up to. Alex and Vaughn filled them in on how Zack sent them on a wild goose chase before they found him in an indecent condition and perfectly happy with his old ex.

  "So him and this Ted are getting back together?" Ursula asked. She was back on the couch with her foot up almost the way they left her, but she was facing away from the kitchen door this time.

  "Looked that way to me," Alex said. "And Vaughn didn't hate that Ted guy on first sight, so that's a good sign." Alex nudged him to get him to agree, but Vaughn decided to be Vaughn.

  "I reserve judgment until I see how things play out," he said stubbornly.

  "I thought you turned over a new leaf," Alex said.

  "Only where you are concerned," Vaughn told him with a small smile.

  Seeing them being chummy, Paul pounced on them. "What's going on with you two? What am I seeing here," he asked and pointed an accusing finger at the two of them.

  "We're seeing each other," Vaughn stated simply, but Paul and the others treated it like it was news of cataclysmic proportions.

  "No, you don't. I'm not dealing with the nuclear fallout of you two getting together. I order you to split up right now. Go to neutral corners. Don't even look at each other," Paul demanded while Carlos laughed.

  "Why does everyone have this reaction?" Alex asked, exasperated by all the naysayers.

  "Who cares? They can't keep us apart," Vaughn said and kissed Alex defiantly. Showing a united front, they turned to face their friends. Alex draped his arm over his shoulder while Vaughn circled his waist with his arm.

  "I'm willing to offer my congratulations and best wishes, but don't come crying to me when this thing blows up in your faces," Carlos told them.

  Vaughn gave him a wry smile. "Thanks for that first thing you said."

  "And for that second thing, we screwed in your car," Alex informed him vindictively.

  Carlos made a face, and Vaughn cursed and blushed. Seeing him like that, Alex kissed him on the cheek and ruffled his hair.

  "Look at them. Isn't this one of the signs of the apocalypse?" Ursula asked from her perch on the couch.

  "I'm scared. Hold me," Val said and went over to cuddle with her.

  That's when Alex came to a realization. "You are all drunk, aren't you?" he said and shot an accusing look all around.

  "That's right, you were going to make some weird punch," Vaughn remembered.

  Paul took offense at his description. "That punch was a masterpiece."

  "It was good," Val agreed. "Nice and strong, not too sweet." By the look of her, she had plenty.

  "I hear a lot of past tense when you talk about this punch," Alex said worriedly.

  Carlos confirmed that he was right to worry. "I'm afraid it's a late, great, dearly departed punch," he told them.

  "Oh, no," Alex said and immediately went into mourning.

  "There's plenty of food left," Carlos reassured him.

  Alex rushed off into the kitchen and started warming up food and loading his plate. In his feeding frenzy, he didn't forget about Vaughn. He made sure he left some for him.

  Starved, the two of them took a seat at the table and dived in. It might have been leftovers, but what Carlos made was still a feast. That man was going to be a culinary star. Val and Ursula hung out for a while then started for home.

  "Finally it's Thanksgiving," Alex said between mouthfuls of chestnut and sausage stuffing. Then he caught Vaughn smiling at him and he was truly happy. With Vaughn next to him, it was a perfect Thanksgiving.

  *

  They had barely made it in time. After all that craziness, Vaughn really wanted to end this night the right way – sitting down to a Thanksgiving dinner with Alex by his side. When they started eating, it had just struck midnight, so this meal was still officially Thanksgiving dinner.

  The best thing about it was that he got to share it with Alex. His face beaming, he was beautiful even in his gluttony. Being with him made Vaughn feel so right. It was like being home, a place that he only remembered from long ago and which was fading from his memory a little more every day.

  "Since you guys did all that legwork, we saved you the wishbone," Carlos said and handed it over to them.

  "Make a wish," Alex said and offered Vaughn the other side of it. It broke in Alex's favor. "Now you're mine forever," he said with a wicked grin.

  "OK," Vaughn said like it was no big deal.

  "I mean it," Alex said threateningly. "Wishbone wishes are legal and binding. You're mine now."

  "And I said OK." Vaughn kept a straight
face until Alex grabbed him and kissed him.

  Carlos and Paul kept them company while they ate, and they filled them in on how dinner went. Then it was time for Alex and Vaughn to head out. They left with Alex protectively clutching a bag with leftover stuffing and pumpkin pie. When they got in the elevator, Vaughn reached for the leftovers playfully. Alex growled at him.

  Looking at Vaughn, he changed his tune a little. "You are kind of cute. I'll share this with you if you're good."

  Vaughn laughed. "I'll be very good."

  Stepping off the elevator, they strolled outside uncertainly then lingered on the sidewalk.

  "So where are we going now?" Alex finally asked.

  "Not your dorm room, that's for sure. My place," Vaughn said. He acted like it was a given, but he was worried that they would have to say goodnight and go their own way. Now he was so happy that they would be spending the night together.

  As they went to his place, it was past midnight and the streets were nearly deserted. Few cars passed. The night was quiet. The sky full of stars. Vaughn walked with his arm around Alex, who was still cuddling those leftovers.

  Vaughn caught himself thinking how they were going to have one strange relationship. Jumping ahead like that didn't seem to bother him like it should have. Even if they were brand new, his feelings were solid and real.

  He was tired of holding himself back anyway. He was done with that. Since the first time he heard his father and brothers say homophobic things as casually as breathing, he started building a wall. He heard others say those kinds of things too and no one ever disagreed. Even when he got older and he knew better, some final barrier remained in place keeping him repressed.

  Then Alex came along and shattered everything that once bound him and made him feel alone. In Vaughn's eyes, Alex was an unstoppable force, reaching inside him like touching another man's heart was only natural. With no hesitation, Alex took his heart and ran away with it while grinning and whooping in triumph. It was that easy for him.

  Right now Alex was making sure to step on dry leaves that littered the sidewalk to make them crunch under his feet. Then he stomped on a whole pile of them like he was doing a dance. As they neared his building, Alex scoped out his neighborhood for good places to eat. Vaughn looked forward to taking him to every one of them.

  At the door to his apartment building, Vaughn felt strangely nervous. He couldn't remember the last time he took anyone home with him. Whenever it was, it was nothing like this. This was the start of something crazy and wonderful.

  "So that was our first Thanksgiving together," Vaughn said as they waited in the lobby for the elevator to arrive, and he took Alex's hand in his.

  "First Thanksgiving? I like the sound of that. But next year I expect you to cook for me," Alex demanded as they got on the elevator and Vaughn pressed five.

  "I can't cook," Vaughn told him. He should have already known that.

  "You have a year to learn," Alex said and grinned at him while giving his hand a strong squeeze.

  One seductive grin from Alex was all it took, and Vaughn was all over him. He pushed the bag of leftovers out of the way and grabbed Alex for a hard, thorough kiss. Bodies colliding, they groped and kissed until the elevator doors opened on his floor.

  Alex stayed in the circle of his arms, letting the doors close again. "I told you that you had a thing for elevators," Alex told him while panting.

  "I have a thing for you." Running his thumb along Alex's bottom lip, Vaughn leaned in for another kiss.

  Chapter 14

  Vaughn's apartment was small and sparsely furnished, and that's just how he liked it. He and his roommate, Henry, kept it tidy. Henry was a nerd and a neat freak, and proud of both of those things. He and Vaughn got along well. Good thing since the place was so small.

  As he and Alex went in, Vaughn saw Henry was back from his Thanksgiving dinner with his family. "Hi. You're back. How was your Thanksgiving?" Vaughn asked him while he showed Alex where to stow his leftovers.

  "It was fine. I drove back a little while ago," Henry said but he was distracted by seeing Alex with his arm around Vaughn. "What's this?" He asked looking from Alex to Vaughn with dread.

  Vaughn realized he hadn't introduced them yet. He was definitely nervous. "This is Henry, my roommate. This is my boyfriend, Alex."

  "Nice to meet you," Alex said and shook his hand.

  "Nice to meet you too," Henry said then immediately contradicted himself. "Not a boyfriend. Come on. You were a perfect roommate. From now on it's going to be nonstop sex noises coming from your room," he whined to Vaughn.

  "I sure as hell hope so," Alex told him then turned to Vaughn with a wicked look in his eyes.

  "We'll keep it down," Vaughn promised Henry, but Alex disagreed.

  "I plan to get loud."

  "Get in there," Vaughn told him and dragged him off to his bedroom.

  He turned on the lamp on his nightstand and let Alex have a look around. Not that there was much to see. A desk, a narrow bed, and a bookshelf were all the major pieces of furniture he had in his room. He kept things organized and put away, so it didn't take Alex long to form an impression.

  Seeing how neat it was in there, Alex vowed, "I am going to make such a mess of this place."

  "Wonderful," Vaughn said. He had a feeling he was going to let him get away with that and a lot more.

  "Does it worry you that so many people are against us?" Alex said, turning to him and placing his hands on Vaughn's hips.

  "Not even a little," Vaughn said and took him in his arms. "And I did just introduce you as my boyfriend."

  "I noticed that. It had a nice ring to it. Was that another crazy impulse?" Alex asked him with a challenging gleam in his eyes.

  "No. I considered a few other options first, but 'the guy a never want to stop fucking' didn't seem appropriate."

  Alex kissed him hard. When they stopped to breathe, Vaughn asked him, "So what are you doing for Christmas?"

  "Don't know yet. And you?"

  "I'm doing whatever you're doing," Vaughn told him. He had never made plans like that with anyone before. It felt good.

  "In that case, get ready to meet the family, eat red bean rice cake and get interrogated about your career goals and dishonorable intentions toward me," Alex told him.

  "Sounds like a plan," Vaughn said. He was only a little scared by the prospect of meeting Alex's family so soon.

  They took their jackets off. When Alex saw him hang up his neatly, he huffed then hung his over the back of the chair like an act of martyrdom. Then Alex kicked off his shoes and flopped down on Vaughn's bed with a groan.

  "And what are you doing tonight?" Alex asked him while looking up at him from his bed.

  "Sleeping with you."

  "Come here then," Alex said and opened his arms to him.

  "Aren't you too tired?" Vaughn asked since Alex obviously had more in mind then just sleeping in the same bed with him.

  "Who, me? You shut up."

  "So you want this? You need this?" Vaughn teased him while staying just out of his reach.

  "You're so full of yourself. Get over here," Alex said and pulled him into bed with him.

  They didn't lie down though. Kneeling, they faced each other. Overtaken by an aching need that he never felt before, Vaughn couldn't hold back. One hand on Alex's ass, the other on the back of his head, Vaughn surged against him.

  Their bodies collided, their mouths crashed together while their rough hands groped and tore at their clothes. The frenzied kiss slowed and deepened. Now they kissed and caressed with more patience and care, like they had forever to show each other how they felt.

  Stopping to breathe, Alex grabbed him by the shoulders and pushed his face into Vaughn's chest, turning his head from side to side like he wanted to burrow inside him. "You make me crazy," he told Vaughn then raised his head for another kiss.

  Vaughn tried to unbutton Alex's shirt while Alex tried to unzip his fly at the same time. They fought to s
truggle free of their clothes and strip each other, but couldn't quite manage it as they got in each other's way. Getting impatient, Alex tried to manhandle him into submission, but Vaughn made him hold still.

  While Alex's shirt stood partly open, Vaughn started by kissing his throat. Opening his shirt all the way, Vaughn was kissing his way down his chest until his mouth was torturing one nipple then the other.

  His hands were busy too. One hand pinched Alex's nipple. Trailing down lazily, his other hand meandered to Alex's fly and freed his cock. Alex moaned then took in a stuttering breath as Vaughn stroked him lightly a few times.

  Alex thrust into his hand, but Vaughn wasn't ready to get down to business yet. "Hold on. I want to have a good look," Vaughn told him and stripped him all the way out of his clothes.

  As Alex sat back on his heels naked, Vaughn's gaze dropped from his pretty eyes to his parted lips. His hand went to his abs then down to his thigh. Alex's body was lean and smooth under his touch, the skin burning hot.

  Now that Vaughn finally had Alex naked and alone, he was determined to give his body some proper attention. He made him lie down. Vaughn felt free of everything that ever held him back and kept him confined. He wanted to give himself to this thing with Alex with no reservations.

  Kneeling over him, Vaughn started by taking his hand and kissing his knuckles. While Alex cupped his face with the same hand, Vaughn trailed feathery kisses up his arm. At his shoulder, he grazed Alex's flesh with his teeth then let them sink in a little. In response, Alex rose toward him and stroked his sides with a tickling touch. As Vaughn kissed his neck then his mouth, Alex wrapped his legs and his arms around him. Desire made blood rush in his veins. His heart beat only for Alex. If Vaughn dared to let this feeling take him and pull him under, Alex would own him body and soul.

  "I'll never let you go," Vaughn murmured, his lips moving against Alex's throat, tongue licking at his pulse point. "You're going to be mine forever." The words flowed out of him with no conscious thought. Alex's hold on him was that strong, Vaughn's need for him bottomless.