A Worthy Man

by Jaime Reese

  “I’m going to fuck you on every inch of white surface in this place.”

  “That’s going to be a lot of fucking,” Drayton said, a sated smile still lingering on his face.

  “I know.” Vann grinned, then leaned in and stole the breath from Drayton with a kiss.

  “C’mon,” Drayton said, tugging Vann by the hand. After breakfast and a countertop quickie, they had immediately returned to the bedroom and had been hibernating there since. He had no objection to spending all day in bed, but he had a surprise for Vann and couldn’t stand waiting any longer. “I want to show you the rest of the house.”

  “But I like the bedroom.”

  Drayton chuckled, pulling him up with more force. “We can come back after.”

  “Fine,” Vann grumbled, finally sitting up on the bed with a dramatic pout.

  “You’re cute when you don’t get your way.”

  “Cute enough to stay in bed?” He waggled his eyebrows and petted the bed. “It’s really soft.”

  Drayton leaned in and gave Vann a chaste kiss, jerking back quickly to avoid his grasp.

  Vann’s laughter filled the room. “Damn. You’re still super-fast.” He reluctantly stood and stretched his arms over his head.

  Drayton’s lips parted, enjoying the flex of muscles.

  “Like what you see?” Vann asked, delivering a cocky grin as he seductively licked his lower lip. “Let’s get back in bed—”

  Drayton threw his head back and laughed. “You’re still persistent as hell. C’mon. I want to show you something.”

  “I want to show you something too.”

  “This is important.” Drayton crossed his arms. “We can skim the other rooms but there’s one that’s special. It’s…yours.”

  Vann sobered. “You’ve given me enough to cover every event for the rest of my life and then some. I don’t want—”

  “It’s also for me. I’ll watch you while you use the room.”

  “Hmm.” Vann pursed his lips. “Okay, you’ve got my attention.”

  After a little more bargaining, Drayton finally lured Vann out of the bedroom and down the hallway. He opened the door to his office and stepped inside. “This is the room I’m usually in when I’m here.”

  “Not anymore.”

  He chuckled as they exited the office. They walked down the hall to the room he’d had converted into a gym.

  “Damn, this is nice.” Vann checked the different weight options and looked at each of the machines.

  “You’ve got everything here for all types of routines. And if you don’t like the view, you’ve got a TV.”

  “The view’s beautiful.”

  “Whatever we need to change out or add, we’ve still got space. I do a lot of thinking while I’m on the treadmill, so we’re not getting rid of that.”

  Vann chuckled. “Okay.” He walked over to Drayton and leaned in for a slow kiss.

  “Mmm. What was that for?”

  “Is this the room I’ll use while you watch me? I promise I’ll make you sweat too.” He pressed another kiss to Drayton’s lips and slid his arms around Drayton’s waist.

  “Not this room. But I’m totally game for that. C’mon.” He grabbed Vann’s hand and pulled him along, trying to avoid another distraction.

  His heartbeat thumped harder when they crossed the living room to the hallway on the other side of the penthouse. He had spent the last few months perfecting every detail of this room, hoping Vann would love it as much as he did. He stopped, holding the handle a few seconds longer than needed before finally pushing open the door.

  ∞ ♥ ∞

  Drayton looked nervous and excited, all rolled into one sexy bundle. Vann was perfectly fine bending Drayton over the weight bench in the gym, but it seemed Drayton had other plans.

  That was fine. For now. Vann just added that to his list of places to christen this weekend.

  Drayton pushed open the door and stepped inside, pulling Vann by the hand. “This is your studio.”

  Vann stood stock-still, scanning the room. The walls were white, just like all the others in the penthouse, but splashes of colors filled the room, created by the endless array of art supplies organized on the tables set along the wall. On the right wall was a single, small dark fabric couch, large enough to comfortably seat two people. The walls across from him and to his left were floor-to-ceiling windows. Even though the long panoramic window that began in the bedroom and ended in the living room granted a full view of the Atlantic Ocean, this room offered a northwest view that was both beautiful and striking. “You can see sunsets from here. Right?”

  “Yes.” Drayton walked up to him and wrapped his arms around Vann’s waist. “You’ve got a view of the Intracoastal and all of downtown. It’s really nice at night if you want to see the city when you draw.” He pressed a kiss to the side of Vann’s head and released him from the embrace, setting him free to explore.

  Vann turned, looking at the wall closest to the door. He opened the tall cabinet, revealing shelves full of more art supplies.

  “I know you prefer to work with regular pencils for your sketches, but I wanted you to have colored pencils if you ever wanted to try that.”

  Vann pulled out narrow drawers, filled with pencils and markers in every subtle progression of the color spectrum. His breath hitched as he tried to control the bubble of happiness growing in his chest.

  He remembered once using some of these colored pencil brands while in school, loving how smoothly they glided across the page and how they accented elements of his drawings. But he also remembered how fricken expensive a basic set of a dozen art pencils cost back then and how he couldn’t afford to spare the money. Working with a standard pencil was the only option he’d had to unleash his need to sketch.

  He closed the cabinet door, excited to test every single colored pencil and marker like a child receiving a new bike at Christmas and racing to take it out around the block for the first time. He could already picture his sketches with lines of red accents or blue strokes fading into a pale silver.

  He glanced over to Drayton and smiled, trying to cap the flood of emotions threatening to spill. He spun back around, walking over to one of the long tables against the wall. He ghosted his fingers over a row of graphite pencils, sorted by lead size and hardness rating, set next to a stack of sketchbooks with different page sizes.

  His fingers itched to grab a book and draw.

  He turned toward the large drawing board set up in the center of the room. He traced his finger along the edge of the tempered, blue safety glass top and down along the heavy gauge steel frame.

  “The top tilts. So you can adjust it however it works best for you.” Drayton walked over to the table and tinkered with the lever at the side.

  Vann sat in the chair and adjusted the height, leaning back and enjoying the soft cushion and back support.

  “Does that work?” Drayton asked, adjusting the tilt on the tabletop.

  He nodded, not trusting his voice to be steady enough to respond. He watched every slope of Drayton’s arms as he locked the table so it was set perfectly to Vann’s sitting position, tilted just right for endless hours of drawing in comfort.

  Vann’s focus traveled up Drayton’s arm and neck and along his square jaw. Every job, big or small, demanded perfection and utmost concentration. Whether it involved building an empire or adjusting the tilt on a drawing table for a man who would be content balancing a sketchbook on his crossed legs.

  For Drayton, everything mattered.

  For Vann, only Drayton mattered.

  He loved everything about this man. Physically and emotionally. His quirks and mannerisms. His enormous heart. His gifted mind. He was the embodiment of a beautiful soul.

  Vann placed his hand on Drayton’s, drawing his attention. He pulled him over to the other side of the table, directly in front of him. He reached up and held Drayton’s face, pulling him into a tender kiss.

  “What’s wrong?” Drayton asked, a h
int of worry in his tone.

  “Absolutely nothing.” In that moment, all Vann could see was every bully who had ever threatened Dray, and every other person who had turned away from him, refusing to offer him any sort of friendship because they didn’t understand him or see the world the same way he did.

  Vann cursed every one of those assholes. The seed of doubt in Drayton’s mind had been planted years ago by those jerks and seemed to have grown roots of steel. He never wanted Dray to ever feel discarded ever again. He slid his arms around Drayton’s waist and pulled him close, resting his head against Drayton’s chest. “I’m just one really lucky bastard.” He closed his eyes and sighed, enjoying Drayton’s fingers combing through his hair.

  “Don’t call yourself that.”

  He pressed a kiss to Drayton’s chest and tilted his head upward. “Technically, it’s the correct word.”

  “I still don’t like it.”

  He turned his head again, holding Drayton close, pressing his ear against Drayton’s fast beating heart. “Okay. I’ll zap it from my dictionary.”

  “Do you like your studio?”

  He tightened his hold around Drayton’s waist. “It’s the best studio on the face of the earth.”

  Drayton chuckled. “I was surprised you didn’t crack a joke about christening the table.”

  Vann bit his lip, hiding a smile. “I thought you’d find the comfort of the couch a little more appealing. I was thinking of a plan on how best to lure you into my trap.”

  “Anywhere with you is appealing.”

  Vann pulled Drayton closer. Drayton and his special words got him every time. “Thank you.” Thank you for loving me.

  “You’re welcome.” He closed his eyes when Drayton pressed a kiss to the top of his head. “I’m glad you like the studio.”

  “I do. It’s perfect.” He held Drayton close, stroking his thumb along Drayton’s warm skin. Thankful for the blessing of having this man in his arms. “Now…how about we break in that couch?”

  ∞ ♥ ∞

  After officially breaking in the studio, gym, and even testing out the office desk, they retreated to the living room to enjoy the afternoon. Drayton sighed, relaxing into the cocoon of Vann’s thick arms as they lay on the chaise lounge by the window. A thunderstorm darkened the sky and set the room in an almost nighttime dimness. The flicker of the muted television in the room battled with the flashes of lightning in the afternoon sky, lighting the room in random bursts of light.

  The rhythmic brush of the fingertips up and down his back and the strong, steady thump of the heartbeat against his ear threatened to lull him to sleep. Just as he’d start to nod off again, a kiss would press against his head and fingers would comb through his hair. He tightened his arm around Vann’s waist and tucked his leg between Vann’s, craving the closeness he had missed over the years.

  He’d almost forgotten how Vann’s presence always calmed him. It was as if Vann silenced the chant of deadlines and exorcised the naysaying demons in his mind, leaving an open valley for a flood of strength and confidence to overpower the constant stress and worry thrumming through his body. He hadn’t felt this relaxed in so long it was no wonder his body craved the comfort blanketing him with peace—a peace that only seemed to exist when they were alone together.

  He remembered the odd sense of calm that always surrounded him when they were younger. The pressure from school and his relationship with his parents always seemed to evaporate in Vann’s calming presence.

  Drayton smiled, remembering all the times they’d snuck around to steal some alone time. He tipped his head upward and placed a kiss on the crook of Vann’s neck. “Do you realize last night was the first time we were actually in bed together? Alone.”

  “No, it’s not. I snuck into your bedroom for months and stayed the night. Even before we started fucking around, I’d still sneak into your room to sleep together.”

  Drayton smiled. “I meant, we’re alone. Completely alone without someone in a room nearby or people in earshot close to the lake. So we can be as loud as we want.”

  “You were pretty loud last night. But I’m totally cool with breaking any sound barriers you want to hit.”

  Drayton chuckled and tugged Vann closer, pressing a kiss to Vann’s chest. “You’re taking everything well. I thought you’d be pissed off or freaking out about the money.”

  “I don’t think it’s hit me yet, so I don’t really know how to deal with it. I can’t wrap my brain around all those zeroes. Besides, I want to focus on you and our weekend.”

  “Okay.” They held each other for a few moments, enjoying the silence between them until Vann spoke again a while later.

  “Do you…ever regret it?”

  “Regret what?”

  “Loving me.”

  Drayton pulled himself up, resting his weight on his elbow. “Why would I ever regret that? I can’t imagine anyone could love me more than you.”

  Vann quieted. “You could have your pick, you know. The richest guy, the smartest guy, a guy you could talk smart shit about who knows what all those symbols mean you keep squiggling on that whiteboard in your office.”

  Drayton stroked his thumb along Vann’s jawline. “That guy’s not you.”

  Vann rolled his eyes. “Well, duh. That’s the point I’m trying to make.”

  “And that’s the point I’m trying to make.”

  Vann quieted again. Sometimes, Drayton wished he could crawl into Vann’s mind and witness all the thoughts that raced in his mind when he dissected a situation. His thought process was so different from Drayton’s, and they rarely had the same approach to tackle a problem. Wherever Drayton lacked, Vann excelled. He could claim to not be able to “talk smart shit,” but it was the human element Drayton often missed in his solutions. And Vann always had that in spades. He had a gift for sensing how people would react and why they did the things they did.

  “Wait. Do you regret being with me?”

  Vann frowned and jerked his head back. “Why the hell would I regret that? You’re the catch here. I’m the lucky jerk who had the right bait to lure you in.”

  “I hate it when you call yourself names.” He sighed, not able to follow Vann’s train of thought. Problems he could resolve. Human psyche, not so much. “What’s the problem?”

  Vann pursed his lips. “I’m trying to figure out what bait I used so I don’t change it up.”

  “That’s easy. Just be you.”

  A huge smile split Vann’s face. “You’re such a fucking romantic. C’mon.” He rose and pulled Drayton to stand.

  “Where are we going?” He groaned, letting Vann tug him along.

  “To the bedroom. I want to see how close we can come to making enough noise to wake your nearest neighbor. Maybe we’ll get lucky and set a record or break the sound barrier.”

  Drayton laughed.

  Vann stopped and smiled, a mix of emotions passing through his expression as he stood there, watching Drayton.

  He sighed and cocked his head, waiting for Vann to say something.

  “You can moan, yell, and laugh as much as you want. As long as you’re not looking at my dick when you’re laughing.”

  Another wave of laughter surged in Drayton. He threw his arms around Vann’s shoulders, thankful for the ray of light he always brought with him that brightened Drayton’s usually dim world. He exhaled deeply when strong arms wrapped around him. “You have me, hook, line, and sinker. You always have. Don’t second-guess that.”

  Vann inched back and smiled before pressing a kiss to his cheek. He took Drayton’s hand and pulled him toward the bedroom. “C’mon. I want to see just how loud you can get. Besides, with all that darkness and bat-cave shit you had going on last night, I missed a chance to see your ‘O’ face in bed.”

  Drayton couldn’t contain the surge of laughter that erupted or the joy that buzzed throughout his body as he let himself be led by the man holding his hand, and his heart.

  Vann leaned over the
kitchen island countertop, staring at the two dozen takeout menus in front of him, trying to decide from where to order an early dinner before their weekend together ended. As comfortable as he felt at the halfway house, he hated the thought of leaving Drayton’s home. They had spent endless hours lying in bed or on the couch, doing nothing but enjoying the comfort of finally being together without the worry of someone catching them in their stolen moments.

  So much had happened since Friday night that he still found himself processing the billion thoughts going through his mind. He still couldn’t believe he was a rich man. That was one change he’d need some major time to process. It was a good thing…a great thing. But he hadn’t been kidding when he’d told Drayton it scared the crap out of him.

  He glanced up from the menus, watching Drayton sit in his favorite chair in the living room. Drayton’s body curved comfortably in the glove of the soft, white leather, funny-shaped couch-like furniture by the window. He appeared at ease, staring out at the view, even though his tone of voice and frown indicated otherwise. He couldn’t understand what Drayton was saying. Italian? French? German? Regardless of what language he spoke, Dray could mumble foreign words to him like that anytime. Fuck, that sounds hot as hell.

  Vann sighed and crossed his forearms on the countertop, discarding a few of the menu options. If he couldn’t decipher what the hell the foods were, he tossed the menu aside. It was no wonder Drayton didn’t have anything to eat in the fridge. He had enough takeout menus to mix things up for a full month. And yet, Vann still imagined Drayton would forget to eat when focused on work. He glanced up again and pursed his lips. Something wasn’t right. Drayton rubbed his temples, mumbled a few final words into the phone, then disconnected the call. He tossed his phone on the side table and ran both hands through his hair. He leaned his head back and closed his eyes, letting his arm fall over the single armrest.

  “I take it that was work?” Vann asked.