Getting There

by Black Deja

  Lucas had no idea as he didn’t indulge often. He nodded, and Creed smiled at Phillipe.

  “That will be wonderful.”

  When the waiter left the table, Creed placed his hand on the table, palm up and waited. Lucas smiled and placed his own hand inside Creed’s. The warmth he found there only made his heart race.

  He glanced around the opulent room, the beautiful lighting. “You did all of this, planned all of this for me?”

  Creed’s eyes warmed. “Yes, Lucas. Why is it so hard to believe I care for you? That I’d do this and more just for you?”

  Lucas looked down and would have taken his hand back, but Creed just squeezed tighter, not allowing him to.

  “Look at me, Lucas.” The whisper of control Creed inserted into his voice made Lucas shiver. He looked up, his eyes finding Creed’s, but he didn’t know what to say, how to answer.

  “Tell me what you’re thinking, baby.”

  Lucas took a deep breath. “I look at you, and you’re amazing. You’re powerful, fascinating even, and you could have anyone you want. And, you want me?” Lucas wasn’t a bad catch—and he wasn’t really fishing—but he was still fighting his own self-doubt. Doubt that magnified the more he envisioned happiness with Creed after Ira’s betrayal.

  “Ah,” Creed said, then released Lucas’s hand. Pulling back in his seat, he cradled his hands together on the table as he leaned forward. “I need you to listen to me and actually hear me, Lucas. Will you?”

  Lucas nodded, the pulse of his heart beating in his ears.

  It was then Phillipe returned with their wine.

  “The meal you requested will be ready shortly, Mr. Hamasaki.”

  Not looking at Phillipe, all of his attention focused on Lucas, Creed responded, “Thank you, Phillipe.”

  Phillipe vanished once again, and the earlier tension reappeared.

  “Lucas, I’m in love with you, have been ever since the day I met you.” When Lucas moved to speak, Creed raised his hand. “No, don’t say anything. Listening, right?” Lucas nodded, and Creed continued. “You are beautiful, so intelligent and so strong. I’ve waited my whole life for someone like you, and when you walked in at that charity event, I knew why I’d met your brother. Because he led me to you. You say those things about me Lucas, but what I need, who I need is you. You’re brilliant. The way you laugh, your smile, how deeply loyal you are. I need that, need it like the air I breathe. I need you.” Creed paused while he looked deeply into Lucas’s eyes. “And one day, Lucas, you’re going to need me like that, too. I’m willing to wait. Whatever it takes, and I believe you’re getting there.”

  Lucas’s eyes were wet, and his breath stuttered. Loved him. Creed said he loved him. How? Why? He opened his mouth to speak, but Phillipe returned with their meals.

  Nodding, he said, “I hope you don’t mind, Lucas, but I couldn’t wait to share my favorites with you and told them so when I made the reservation. Trust me on this.” And, from the way Creed looked back at him, trusting him to order the meal for him wasn’t the only subject on the table.

  Lucas wiped at his eyes quickly, removing the trace of threatening tears. “Thank you.” He sighed. “I’ll trust you.”

  “That’s all I can ask for right now. Thank you, Lucas.” Creed looked at him with love, with patience, and with naked longing.

  Waiting, Phillipe glanced back and forth between them and nodded, a golden eyebrow raised. “Yes, okay then. We have the Ahi Tuna au Poivre with balsamic roasted Portobello, kale, goat’s milk feta, pistachio pesto, and smoked tomato butter for the gentleman. Then we have the Braised Beef Short Ribs with buttered egg noodles, Brussels sprouts, Mepkin Abbey mushrooms, caramelized onions, with red wine jus for you, sir. We also have the low country succotash and the mac and cheese casserole.” After setting the dishes before them, Phillipe waited.

  “It looks wonderful as always. Thank you, Phillipe.”

  “Should you need anything at all sir…”

  “I’ll let you know. Thank you.” Phillipe bowed quickly and left the table.

  Lucas looked at the dishes. How in the world would they eat it all? It looked so good, so tantalizing.

  “It smells divine, Creed.”

  “And it will taste even better. Go ahead, take a bite of your tuna. I can’t wait to see your face when you do.” Creed waited as Lucas picked up a fork and knife then gently separated the flesh of the tuna. “Not just that. Try to get a sampling of each.” Indulging him, he placed it all between his lips and immediately experienced the second best foodgasm ever. His subsequent groans and moans as the flavors melted in his mouth made him glad they were the only ones in the room.

  “Oh, the sounds you make, Lucas,” Creed growled. “My dick’s hard just listening to you. Now, the succotash.”

  Looking up at Creed who hadn’t even touched his own food yet, Lucas said. “Aren’t you going to eat?”

  “I will, but let me enjoy this first. Go on. Eat.” Maybe Creed had some hidden food porn fetish.

  Shaking his head with a smile, Lucas dipped his fork in and tried the small amount on his fork. “Oh! Delicious!”

  Pleased, Creed nodded then pulled his napkin from the delicate little napkin holder and placed it on his lap and began to eat his meal.

  They spoke of many things. Politics which Lucas didn’t have a great interest in, of books they both enjoyed and ones Creed agreed he’d add to his list. By the time they were finished, they’d covered a gambit of topics, and Lucas was full and satisfied.

  He enjoyed talking with Creed, enjoyed the way he listened to him and heard what he had to say. Lucas liked the laughter they shared.

  When his phone went off, he completely forgot his reasons for avoiding it and pulled it out, putting it away again when he saw he’d missed a text from Ira.

  He frowned and began to answer Creed’s question about his next class when Creed interrupted him. “Lucas, was that Ira, again?”

  Lucas groaned. “Yes.”

  “Don’t you think you should report these calls, at least to Anthony? He’s in law enforcement, you know? Or, let me talk to him.” Creed’s body tensed, a viper ready to strike. Lucas shouldn’t like the way it made him feel, that Creed was ready to protect him. He shouldn’t feel warm inside or tremble from the knowledge Creed wanted to fight for him. But, he did.

  Instead, Lucas said, “I can handle it. They’re just text messages.”

  “Lucas, I need you to be safe. The messages have increased, and if they’re still anything like what you mentioned to me earlier, Anthony needs to be informed.”

  “Ira is a psychology professor. He’s not crazy. I don’t know what he is right now, or why he’s sending these messages. Maybe he’s going through something right now.”

  “Crazy doesn’t always wear a straitjacket, Lucas. Sometimes it walks around in suits pretending to be normal. Talk to Anthony. If you don’t, I will.”

  “I’m not a child,” Lucas said bristling.

  “Then don’t act like one. I’m not saying you need to walk in and press charges, but you need to at least make your brother aware there is a problem. The new semester starts next week. You’ll be at school with Ira.”

  While that was true, Lucas barely saw Ira when they were together. With Lucas in the College of Education and Ira in Psychology, there was little reason their paths should cross. True, they shared some of the same students, but their offices were in two different buildings. He was not going to worry about something that shouldn’t or wouldn’t happen.

  Lucas sighed. Anthony had been working so hard lately, exhausting himself to the point where he crashed as soon as he got home. To burden him with this?

  “I’ll think about it.”

  Creed’s lips pursed, and Lucas knew it wasn’t the answer he wanted to hear.

  “That’s all I can promise, Creed. Anthony has a lot on his shoulders right now.”

  “Lucas, if Ira hurts you, and you didn’t give your brother a heads up, a chance to protect
you, he will lose his fucking mind. I can promise you that.”

  Creed was right, and Lucas needed to factor that in, but he’d do it when he felt he should.

  “This isn’t over, but I won’t ruin the night trying to get you to change your mind. Later, we’ll discuss this again.” Creed leaned back. “So, would you like dessert?”

  Lucas sighed, grateful for the reprieve. He was full, impossibly so and couldn’t eat another bite. “I can’t. It was all delicious. Thank you, Creed.”

  Creed smiled. “I want you to be happy, Lucas. If you’re ready, allow me to take care of the bill, and we can head to the ranch.” Phillipe appeared then as if he were hovering in the wings waiting to fulfill their latest desire.

  Lucas decided to go to the restroom and told Creed he’d meet him downstairs. On the way, he retrieved his phone and brought up Ira’s message.

  How is Magnolia’s, Lucas?

  Lucas stopped walking and looked around. Had Ira followed him? Convinced Anthony to tell him he was going out? Anthony wouldn’t have spoken to him.

  Ira was a writer with the greatest mind he’d ever encountered. He could puzzle out solutions in moments, foresee outcomes no one envisioned. And, he never made a move before he’d thought it out, planned every single action like the pieces on a chessboard. What was going on?

  Creed was right.

  Lucas would tell Anthony but not tonight.

  He would not allow thoughts of Ira to taint their evening.

  It was special. Ira would not take that from him.

  Chapter Six

  The windows were down as Creed drove to his family’s ranch. Lucas was enjoying the ride, but his mind wouldn’t stop returning to the monster in his pocket.

  “What’s wrong, Lucas?”

  Lucas shook his head.

  “If you’re honestly still worried about this, we can turn around.” Creed masked the disappointment well but not nearly enough.

  “No, Creed. I want to see your home and these horses who are family to you. I just have a lot on my mind.”

  “Want to share?”

  Lucas almost did, but he stopped himself. He promised himself he’d deal with this Ira thing later.

  Shaking himself, he looked at Creed. “No, I’m fine. Just mentally preparing for school Monday, that new class I’m teaching. It’s difficult going into a new curriculum, new subject when I’ve been teaching the same one for years.”

  “I get it. You hate to leave your comfort zone. But, you know you must look at it as a step toward what’s meant for you. I think we get too used to being where we’re not challenged and we stagnate. You, you’re meant for growth, possibility. It’s really about perspective and knowing you deserve to see how far you can go.”

  Creed was right, and while teaching the new class honestly wasn’t the worry he’d been hashing out in his brain, he had a point. Lucas would use that when he revamped everything he’d been doing for the last few years, not just with teaching but with life in general.

  “You’re right. I’d lost sight of that.”

  “It’ll be fine, Lucas.” Creed turned to him and grinned. “Besides if I had a professor with an ass like yours walking around, I’d be the best student ever no matter what you taught.”

  Lucas groaned, but his stomach was filled with a million monarch butterflies, eager more with anticipation than fear. Creed’s way of dispelling his worries did that for him. He never would have thought he’d be sitting next to Creed in one of his vehicles on his way to meet the family. Life was so unpredictable, filled with surprises along the way.

  Before long, they arrived at the entrance to the family estate, and Lucas sat stunned.

  “It’s incredible. You grew up here?”

  “Yes.”

  The house was a sprawling stucco mansion with arcs and stairs, like one of those beautiful creations Lucas had seen in every house magazine. Lucas thought he had some idea of Creed’s wealth, but this? This was far beyond what he’d imagined. Several of Anthony’s home could easily fit in the one Creed had grown up in as a child. And the grounds? He imagined the time it took to grow roses flowing over the land like a botanical river among the other gorgeous blooms of color everywhere.

  “Oh, my God.”

  “Hmm. Not the reason I wanted to hear those words, but we can work on that. I’ll show you around. My parents aren’t home. They are at an event tonight but mentioned they’d be back in the morning to meet you. Mom said not to let you leave without at least getting a chance to say Hi.”

  “Meet me?”

  “Yes, it’s the first time I’ve brought a guy home. She wants to see the miracle for herself, and I want her to meet you, the man I plan to spend my life with.” Creed looked at Lucas as he spoke.

  “Creed, you have to stop saying things like that.”

  “Why, when it’s true. Let’s park. We’ll get your bag later. I want you to meet the girl of my dreams first.”

  They pulled to the side of a fountain and got out. It was amazing seeing the home from the gate, but actually parking in front of the monolith was incredible.

  “I had no idea.”

  Creed’s look was one of pride. “My father took a small horse farm and made it into the ranch it is today, and he didn’t stop. He found other places to invest and used those to become the success he is now.”

  “It’s incredible,” Lucas said.

  Creed took his hand in his. “Yes, but that’s the outside. First, you need to meet my girl and tour the stables. After, we’ll go to the place you and I are staying tonight. I can’t wait anymore, Lucas. Tomorrow, my mother can show you the house. Tonight, I’ll show you our future.” Creed bent and softly kissed Lucas’s lips.

  Lucas sighed into the kiss, lost in the feel of Creed, the way he enveloped him, making the blood in his body rush down to his cock. He wrapped his arms around Creed’s neck and crushed himself against his muscular frame.

  “Damn, Lucas. I want inside you so bad.”

  Lucas groaned.

  “Creed!” a voice shouted, but Creed didn’t let go. He pulled Lucas closer to him and turned to face their greeter.

  “Uncle Maddox!” Creed said in welcome, his arm firmly planted possessively around Lucas’s frame.

  Maddox grimaced at first but quickly hid whatever he’d been thinking. Immediately on the defensive, Lucas felt Creed’s arm tighten around him as he tensed.

  “You down here to see your girl?” Maddox asked. Built like a truck, he was wide and solid, his voice laden with granite roughness. But, he looked at Creed with honest affection which made Lucas warm toward him slightly.

  “You know it.” Creed bent and kissed the top of Lucas’s head. “I’d like to introduce you to Lucas.”

  “Lucas, huh?” Maddox’s startling blue eyes focused on Lucas’s. “I’ll say it again. Don’t think I care for the fact you won’t find yourself a woman, but if this man here is what’s been making you smile again, then I reckon that ain’t too bad a thing.”

  He stuck out his hand and gripped Lucas’s own. His hand was like sandpaper, callused but warm.

  “Nice to meet you, sir,” Lucas said even though he wasn’t certain.

  “Hmph. Needs some meat on his bones. But, I guess he’ll do. You ride, son?” Maddox’s gaze was piercing, sizing him up as he waited for Lucas to speak.

  “No sir,” Lucas said. “I’m a professor.”

  “Like that matters. Plenty of smart men ride.” He spat on the ground, and Lucas was thankful the wind wasn’t blowing. “You teach him to ride more than that piece between your legs it’ll give the boy some strength, Creed.”

  Lucas gasped.

  “Yes, sir, I’ll get right on that,” Creed said laughing.

  “You do that. Got the horses settled in for the night. Going in to get me some sleep before your mother’s after me in the morning to check in with the doctor. I swear. Woman looks after me like I married her instead of my brother.” Mumbling, he strode off toward the house leaving
Lucas stunned and Creed with a smile on his face.

  “Your uncle…”

  “Takes getting used to, but he means well.”

  Still dazed from the interaction, Lucas followed Creed as they headed in the direction Maddox left.

  “Almost there,” Creed said as they traveled across wet grass chilled by the night air. The light showed them the way, but Creed never looked down, too familiar with the ground he was traversing, unlike Lucas who stumbled once or twice.

  Arriving at the door of an immense building, Lucas crooked his nose at the smell of animals and the soft whinnying of a horse or two. Pressing a few buttons on the side, the gate opened and Creed pushed to allow space for both of them to enter.

  “My father trained me years ago on what to look for in a horse. The proper gait, grinding of teeth, and has it worked out of an arena. The list goes on forever, but the most important thing he’s always said is, does the horse speak to your heart. It’s the same for most things in life.” Lucas followed Creed while he spoke, turned with him as he walked past rows and rows of stalls until he arrived at the one he was seeking.

  “I fell in love with one, and I discovered what my father meant for myself. Unfortunately, Beau Dancer died giving birth, and we didn’t know if the foal she tried to have that day would survive.” Creed’s eyes shone with happiness when a nose grazed his hand as he entered a stall with a lamp left on. “But she did, and look at her now.”

  The horse was magnificent. Black and shiny, she huffed, pushing her face against Creed’s shoulder.

  “Hi, there, baby. I want you to meet someone important. Lucas, stop hiding. Come and meet my sweetheart.” When Lucas didn’t move, Creed looked back. “Are you scared, Lucas?”

  “Well, I’ve never met a four-legged creature this big before.” Yes, he was afraid. The horse was beautiful, but she stood miles above him, her muscles sleek and broad. And those eyes, the way they roamed over him, searching him out to find his inner secrets. Lucas stepped back.

  “Jewels is not a creature. She’s a quarter horse, and a thing of beauty,” Creed said.