Too Hot for Santa

by Helena Stone

  Nick sniggered as he joined Jonah. “I’d forgotten quite how bad it was.” He looked at the corner of the room where partially empty boxes sat. “I can’t even remember if all of them have ever been up at the same time, but I’m fucked if I know where to put any of the remaining items.”

  “You don’t want to add anything else.” Jonah turned his head toward Nick. “It’s perfect just the way it is.”

  The soft smile on Jonah’s face stole whatever remaining doubts Nick might have had about reintroducing Christmas to his home and life. Studying his surroundings to take in all they’d done, he couldn’t deny his house and garden looked festive now. A large artificial tree, loaded with baubles and lights, took up one corner of the room. Smaller trees, a ceramic winter scene, and numerous candle holders had taken over every flat surface in his lounge room. And that was just inside. In the garden they’d decorated the largest of his gum trees, as well as the pool area, with long strings of white lights.

  Nick focused on Jonah again, only to find his gaze still fixed on him. He studied his features, the red curly hair, the deep-green eyes, and the first hint of rust-colored stubble on his cheeks. His mouth enticed him, especially when the tip of Jonah’s tongue flashed across his plump bottom lip. Nick was tempted, so very tempted, but pushed his impulse down. After the talk they had the night before, he wasn’t sure how any attempt at intimacy would be received. He liked Jonah and found himself looking forward to having him around for the next few months. Spooking him again was the last thing he wanted to do.

  Jonah continued to study him, searching his face for something. For a moment, Nick’s reservations slipped away, and he found himself leaning toward Jonah before common sense made him pull back again.

  He got up and held out a hand to Jonah. “Let’s go out. It’s too warm to be inside, and I want to see the garden with those lights on.”

  He told himself he only imagined the flash of disappointment in Jonah’s eyes as he allowed himself to be pulled up. He refused to relinquish his hold on Jonah’s hand as they made their way past the wide-open sliding doors and onto the patio. Nick flicked the switch, and the garden exploded with soft yet festive lights. They lit up the old gum tree, and their reflection sparkled on the still pool water.

  “It’s a summer wonderland.” Jonah whispered the words, but Nick didn’t miss them.

  “Think it will do?”

  Jonah looked at him, his eyes shining. “It’s perfect.”

  Nick focused on his surroundings again and had to agree. “We did well.” He emphasized his words with a firm slap of his hand to Jonah’s shoulder.

  “Ouch!” Jonah frowned.

  “What’s wrong?” Nick didn’t understand; he hadn’t used that much force.

  “I think I managed to get burned,” Jonah muttered.

  “How….” The answer to his unasked question hit Nick before he could get the words out. “Bugger. The Chinese Gardens.”

  “But we were in the shade.” Jonah sounded petulant, as if the audacity of the sun reaching him despite the trees’ protection offended him.

  “Why didn’t you use sunscreen?” Nick wanted to kick himself for not paying more attention. Jonah had only been in Australia for a few days and had spent most of those inside. He’d no idea about the strength of the sun.

  “I did!” Jonah frowned. “Well, on my face, legs, and arms, I did. You know, the parts that were exposed all day.”

  “Show me,” Nick demanded while trying to recall if he had anything resembling after-sun relief on hand.

  Jonah turned his back to him and pulled his shirt over his head. Even in the soft light provided by the decorations, it was impossible not to notice the angry-red glare to his skin. Nick lightly touched Jonah’s shoulder blade, not surprised to find it radiating heat. He winced in sympathy.

  “Stay here. I’ll be right back.”

  In the kitchen, Nick opened his fridge and expelled a sigh of relief when he found the tube of aloe vera gel nestled in the back. That should do the trick.

  Jonah let out an adorable shriek when Nick applied aloe vera to his back. “Fuck, that’s cold.” Moments later he almost leaned into Nick’s touch, whether because he enjoyed Nick’s fingers on his skin or to seek more of the refreshing coolness the gel brought, Nick had no idea.

  Nick took his time, making sure not to miss an inch of Jonah’s skin. When he was happy he’d done all he could for now, he placed a hand on Jonah’s shoulder and softly pulled. “Turn around.”

  He squirted more gel onto his hand and reached for Jonah again, who took a small step back.

  “I can do the front myself,” Jonah said, his voice soft and not completely steady.

  Nick refused to acknowledge the disappointment rushing through him. “Sure. If you want.” He held out the tube of gel.

  Jonah didn’t reach for the offering.

  Nick lifted his gaze from his hand to Jonah’s face and caught his unblinking stare. A small frown had formed on his forehead, and Nick wondered what was going through his mind. Nerves churned in his stomach for reasons he didn’t understand. When a small smile stretched Jonah’s lips, it was as if a weight had been lifted from Nick’s shoulders.

  “I’ve changed my mind,” Jonah said in a tone of voice Nick hadn’t heard before but hoped to hear more often. Jonah sounded husky, close to breathlessness. His lips remained slightly parted after he stopped talking, and his eyes were big and darker than usual. “I think I’d enjoy it more if you rubbed it all over me.” He didn’t waggle his eyebrows, but then, that was hardly necessary; the message couldn’t have been clearer.

  “It will be my pleasure,” Nick said, all too aware his gruff voice betrayed how big a pleasure it would be.

  He took his time, slowly working his way down from Jonah’s shoulders to his chest. He took extra care with Jonah’s nipples. Those tiny peaks could be sensitive enough under normal circumstances. Nick imagined the sunburn had made them even more tender.

  A low sound, some strange combination of a sigh and a moan, escaped Jonah, and it sent blood rushing to Nick’s already half-hard cock. His mind spun. Very little time had passed since Jonah had been upset because he thought Nick wanted to get him naked. Now all the noises falling from his lips and the way he couldn’t keep his gaze off Nick’s hand seemed to indicate Jonah wanted the intimacy.

  Jonah touched the side of Nick’s neck, curving his fingers around it as if he’d read Nick’s mind and wanted to confirm his suspicions.

  “Are you sure?” Nick had to hear him say it. “You know this is not expected of you. It’s not part of the deal we made.”

  “I know,” Jonah said. “And sure I’m sure.” He smiled before lifting his chin and pressing his lips against Nick’s for an all-too-brief moment. “Why don’t you take me to your bedroom and finish this project”—he indicated the front of his body with a broad sweep of his free arm—“in comfort.”

  “It will be my pleasure.” Nick had found his favorite five words.

  Chapter Eight

  “COULD YOU make that accent a bit broader?” Jenny asked.

  It was his third week in Sydney, and rehearsals had reached the final-tweaks stage. Jonah stared at Jenny, unsure what she meant. He was tired, and his concentration was slipping. It was the end of the afternoon, and they’d been at it since eight in the morning.

  “You need to sound more Irish,” Jenny explained.

  “‘Sound more Irish’?” Jonah gasped. “I am Irish.” A nasty suspicion popped up in his head. “Fuck. You want me to sound like Tom Cruise in that movie—what’s it called?”

  “Far and Away,” Jenny muttered.

  “You’ve got to be having me on,” Jonah said, unwittingly reverting back to the much broader Dublin accent he used to have before he took elocution lessons. “I’m surprised I haven’t come across the terms ‘begorrah’ and ‘top of the morning’ in this play.”

  “Actually….” Jenny nibbled on the end of the pencil she always carried around.<
br />
  “You’re joking.”

  Laughter reached him from the far end of the theater. His heart sped up when he recognized the deep rumble. Nick. He still wasn’t sure what had happened. Over the course of one day, he’d gone from appreciating how attractive Nick was in the morning to sharing his bed that night. He was inclined to blame a combination of the magic of Christmas and sunstroke. Except it still felt like a good idea when he woke up next to Nick the following morning… and the morning after that. In fact, he’d only been back in the granny flat to pick up his stuff and move it to Nick’s bedroom.

  “She is joking. Probably.” Nick made his way down the path between two rows of seats. “Aren’t you, Jen?”

  Jonah caught the mock glare Jen threw her brother. “Yeah, I am. But….” She focused her attention on Jonah. “You are playing a leprechaun. That almost demands you lay it on thick.”

  Jonah deflated. He still had moments when he couldn’t believe he’d flown halfway around the world to play the role of a mythical Irish fairy. On the other hand, he couldn’t deny that as far as Christmas plays went, Santa’s Crock of Gold was original and imaginative. Whatever doubts still lingered in the back of his mind about playing a Grinch-like villain were more than compensated for by the frequent occasions when he thanked his lucky stars he’d been given this opportunity to discover a wonderful country and, first and foremost, meet an amazing man.

  An amazing man who stood at the edge of the stage, staring up at Jonah with laughter and affection in his eyes. An amazing man Jonah was getting far too attached to, given that in less than three months’ time, the play would finish its run, and he’d have to get on a plane back home. That’s ages away. Don’t spoil the present by worrying about the future. He jumped off the stage, determined to enjoy every single moment of his time in Australia. Even if all he’d be left with afterward were treasured memories, it would be better than having to regret everything that might have been if he denied himself.

  “Ready to take me home?” he asked.

  Nick’s eyes lit up. “Whenever you are.”

  “I’m good to go now. Right, Jenny?”

  She nodded. “Yeah, we’re all done for the day. And that reminds me.” She turned away from Jonah to face the rest of the cast, still gathered in small groups on the stage. “We’re making so much progress I’ve decided we can afford to take one day off. There will be no rehearsals tomorrow, but on Sunday, I expect everybody back here at nine in the morning.”

  Jonah was caught between excitement about the unexpected free day and a sudden attack of nerves. Previews would start in five days’ time, with the official premiere two days later. He waited, but none of his colleagues voiced any objections or reservations about Jenny’s announcement. In fact, judging by the exclamations and the round of applause he did hear, they were all on board with the plan. Then again, they were experienced stage actors; Jonah had only done television work until he traveled to Sydney.

  His mind churned as he collected his backpack and followed Nick to his car.

  “What’s wrong?” Nick asked after they’d driven in silence for ten minutes.

  The words to deny anything was amiss burned on the tip of Jonah’s tongue, but he swallowed them. He didn’t want to lie to Nick. Besides, it warmed his heart to think Nick already knew him so well that he picked up on the shifts in Jonah’s mood.

  “Nothing really. I guess I’m getting nervous about the play opening.”

  Nick reached out, placed his hand on Jonah’s thigh, and squeezed. “Stop worrying. It’s going to be great.”

  Jonah said nothing. It was all well and good for Nick to say that; he wasn’t the one who’d have to get on a stage in a leprechaun outfit. He reconsidered. Nick and his sister were both producing and financing this play. If anything, Nick had more at stake than Jonah. If all did go horribly wrong, Jonah’s ego might take a bruising, but it wouldn’t put his livelihood at risk.

  “Fair enough. I guess we are doing really well. Everybody’s mastered their lines. We all know what to do, how to do it, and when.” He shrugged, more at himself than at Nick. “Knowing that doesn’t stop all sorts of disaster scenarios playing out in my head.”

  Nick moved his hand up Jonah’s leg until it rested near his crotch, stroking his dick with his pinky finger through the material of his shorts. “I think I know how to make you stop obsessing.” Nick took his gaze off the road for long enough to wink at Jonah.

  “I have no doubt you do.” Jonah snorted.

  JUST OVER an hour later, Jonah’s lack of doubt was proved right. They’d moved straight to the pool as soon as Nick parked the car, stripping off without bothering with swimwear. Nick’s garden was Jonah’s personal vision of paradise. He’d gotten so used to his daily swim after rehearsals that he wasn’t sure how he would cope when he returned to Ireland and wouldn’t have access to this luxury anymore. Because no prying eyes overlooked the garden, the daily swim had seamlessly morphed into cool and sensual sessions of foreplay.

  Leaning against the wall of the pool, Jonah watched as Nick swam toward him. He arched his muscular arms over his head before his hands disappeared beneath the waterline with barely a splash, the subsequent strokes moving him forward at a speed Jonah was never able to match. He took advantage of the few seconds remaining before Nick would reach him to drink in the image and store it in his memory, certain that, in months and years to come, he’d call up the pictures and relish them.

  Nick disappeared underneath the water, only to surface again inches away from Jonah, claiming his mouth instantly.

  God, how he kisses. Jonah wasn’t sure what it was. He’d been kissed often enough in the past, and he always enjoyed it. None of his past experiences had given him the pure and heated pleasure Nick’s mouth brought him. His whole body responded to the caresses of Nick’s tongue. Despite the heat, goose bumps erupted across his shoulders as a shiver ran down his spine while his cock filled and started to rise.

  Draping his arms around Nick’s shoulders, Jonah pulled himself up until he could wrap his legs around Nick’s middle, pressing as close as he could, safe in the knowledge the water would carry at least some of his weight.

  “Love how you taste,” Nick muttered in between kisses.

  It was impossible to stay still, so Jonah moved against Nick, his arousal growing as he rubbed his now fully erect cock against the flesh on Nick’s upper belly. “More.” He groaned the demand when Nick pulled back.

  Nick released him without a word, pulled himself out of the pool, and had almost reached the patio door by the time Jonah followed his example. He rushed to catch up, his dick bobbing as he moved, leading the way to Nick’s bedroom.

  It was wondrous how well they knew each other’s bodies after only a few weeks of exploration. Nick was an expert at reducing Jonah to a begging and boneless body of need. Soft strokes across his taint, the teasing of his hole, and those bites and licks to his nipples; none of them were new experiences, and yet it all felt better than it ever had before.

  Jonah arched into Nick when he entered him, his hard and covered cock breeching him without the need for substantial prep work since they hadn’t been able to keep their hands, or any other body parts, off each other.

  “Please.” The plea fell from Jonah’s lips without him knowing what he was asking for. But Nick knew. He wrapped his hand around Jonah’s cock and stroked it in time with his thrusts in and out of Jonah’s ass.

  His orgasm washed over him, his body clenching around Nick, who groaned loudly before shooting his load deep inside Jonah.

  “Perfection,” Jonah said when he could think and talk again.

  “Indeed.”

  Nick’s face expressed satisfaction tinged with sadness, and Jonah had no doubt his features told the same story.

  Chapter Nine

  NICK’S MIND wandered freely as he drove. Jonah was silent beside him except for occasional exclamations in appreciation of the sights they passed. The happy sounds filled Nick with the
sort of joy he hadn’t experienced in a long time and didn’t want to examine too closely. He couldn’t believe how lucky he’d been. The houseguest he’d resented before he arrived turned out to be exactly what he’d needed to pull himself away from the past. He was determined to enjoy every single minute of the few months he’d get to spend with Jonah. He didn’t ask himself why that thought was tinged with sadness either.

  “Tell me more about this place you’re taking me to.”

  Nick expelled a sigh, grateful Jonah’s question forced him to focus on something other than his emotions. The situation was what it was, and he had no doubt he’d manage to spoil what promised to be three memorable months with Jonah if he allowed his doubts and secret wishes too close to the surface.

  “The Blue Mountains,” he replied. “More specifically Katoomba.”

  Jonah snickered as he had every time he heard that name. “Katoooomba,” he repeated, dragging out the oooo-sound until he ran out of breath.

  Nick laughed. The joke should have gone stale by now, but for some reason, it refused to get old. “We’re going on a bit of a hike. I don’t know about you, but I’ve been stuck indoors far too often these past few weeks.”

  “Abso-fucking-lutely. At least when I did the TV show, we shot about as many scenes outside as we did indoors. We didn’t actually go anywhere exciting, but it was less claustrophobic.”

  Nick steered the car into a parking bay and killed the engine.

  “What’s that?” Jonah pointed to the large building on the far side of the car park.

  “A tourist trap.” Nick grinned before answering the question properly. “It’s actually not bad. They have the world’s steepest railway and a cableway. There are also a few short walks that start and finish here.” He got out of the car and waited for Jonah to do the same before continuing. “I’d rather go on a longer hike, if only to avoid the hordes of tourists. It is the middle of school holidays, after all. And I brought lunch.” Nick patted his backpack before strapping it on. “If I didn’t bring enough, there’s a café along the trail.”