The Virgin (Breakfast at Bennett's Book 1), page 8
Jonah rolled his eyes whenever his dad called him that, but secretly he still liked it so he never said that he was too old to be called kiddo or that it was embarrassing.
“Jonah?”
He turned and came face to face with Grant Hastings, the uncle of the student he’d tutored. The one his brothers teased him about having a crush on him.
“Grant. It’s good to see you. How’s Tyler doing?”
Grant’s face lit up and it was easy to see that he adored his nephew. “He’s doing great, thanks to you. You really helped him.”
“Eh, he did all the heavy lifting. All I did was show him a few tricks. I’m glad he’s doing well, though. Tell him I said hello.”
Jonah’s dad came back with two coffees shoved into a drink tray.
“Thanks, Dad. I’m running late. Can you put it on my tab?”
“As if you have a tab. Get out of here. Go teach something.”
“See you Sunday, Dad.” Jonah grabbed his breakfast and the drink tray and turned back to Grant. “It was nice to see you, but I have to get going. Remember to tell Tyler I said hi.”
“I was thinking that if you came over for dinner one night, you could say hello to him yourself.”
Jonah wanted to climb into a hole and die. He turned around so fast he nearly lost hold of breakfast. “I’m not…” Once Jonah was sure he wasn’t going to drop anything, he took a breath and continued.
“You’re not single,” Grant said for him.
Jonah tilted his head. “I’m not sure?”
Grant raked his hand through his hair. “Well, when you are sure, you still have my number, right?”
Jonah nodded, somewhat stupefied as he watched Grant turn and leave. Jonah waited until Grant’s car left the parking lot before he ventured out of the diner. He was probably going to be late now, but that couldn’t be helped.
For all intents and purposes, Jonah was single. But he also wasn’t, because he had an arrangement with Spencer. One he couldn’t even begin to think about at that moment because he was about to step out of his car and be surrounded by a bunch of half-awake teenagers. But also because whenever he thought about it ending, his chest got uncomfortably tight.
He didn’t want to think about what that meant.
CHAPTER 12
SPENCER
Nothing between them had changed, yet everything was different. At least for Spencer. They kept to their routine, but Spencer now found that Jonah was on his mind more often than not. It wasn’t like Spencer had never thought of his friend before, but this was different. More.
Jonah’s presence in Spencer’s mind was often X-rated. The image of how he’d looked—face flushed with arousal, eyes sparking, biting that sexy lower lip of his—was seared into Spencer’s brain. It was a damn good thing he was a grown man who had self-control. As it was, he was like a walking hormone when Jonah was around. It was easy to quell at school, surrounded by the scent of teenagers in various stages of personal hygiene and fragrance combinations. But on the weekends, when their extracurricular activities would take place, it was a different story.
It was Spencer’s weekend to host. Usually, he ordered pizza and that’s what he’d done again to keep up appearances. Jonah and Damon were due to arrive any minute, and Spencer was about ready to climb out of his skin with nerves. He blew out a breath and took another one, a deeper one. He filled his lungs full of oxygen and wished it was that easy to fill his head with sense.
In some ways it would be easier if Damon was aware of what they were up to, but Jonah didn’t want anyone to know about his lack of sexual experience and how else could they explain it to him? That they were fucking, but not a couple? Spencer frowned at the way he hated how those words sounded. Even in his own mind, they sounded crass and wrong. Like they were incorrect, but that didn’t make sense because it was the truth.
They weren’t a couple. They were a couple of friends who happened to have insane sexual chemistry. So what if Spencer cared about Jonah? He’d always cared about him—that wasn’t new. Spencer let the lie go unchallenged since the man of the moment was climbing out of his car and walking up Spencer’s driveway.
The urge to greet him with a kiss nearly knocked Spencer off his feet. All he thought about all week was getting his mouth on Jonah. Here he was, right in front of Spencer, and yet he couldn’t shake the feeling he was off-limits.
Spencer pulled the door open to greet Jonah, unable to keep what was probably a stupid grin off his face.
“Hey,” Spencer said breathlessly.
Jonah looked stunning in a pair of dark jeans that clung to his form and a button-up with the collar wide open and the sleeves rolled up past his elbows. It wasn’t anything he hadn’t worn before, but now Spencer was allowed to look. The way Jonah moved, not quite fluid and not quite confident but with an endearing awkwardness, was something Spencer was allowed to notice now. The curve of his ass and the slashes of pink on his cheekbones when he saw the way Spencer looked at him were things he was allowed to notice too.
“Get in here,” Spencer said, opening the door wider to let Jonah slip past him into the house.
Jonah hadn’t needed to bring anything, but Spencer took the Tupperware container full of cookies out of his hands. He wanted to set it aside and cradle Jonah’s face. To touch the blushes of pink on his cheeks and drag him into a kiss. But that wasn’t part of the plan, and Spencer wasn’t sure of the rules. Kissing Jonah was a treat. A gift. A fucking treasure that he wanted to gather more of and hoard all to himself.
“You’re early,” he said instead. It was all he could do not to pin Jonah against the wall and kiss him senseless.
“I tried not to be, but I kept pacing in circles and acting like one big ball of anxiety.”
“Everything okay?” Spencer motioned to his kitchen. He’d set the pizza up on a timed delivery and it wasn’t due for an hour yet. Damon, however, would be there any minute. Guilt tore through Spencer when he realized he didn’t want Damon to come at all. Not when it meant being unable to reach for Jonah at all. Not when it meant lying to him about what was going on. Okay, so maybe lie was a stretch, but they were still keeping something from him. Not that it was any of Damon’s business. Or that it was going to last. If they were a proper couple, Spencer could tell Damon. He could have them both over and have Jonah sit in his lap and hold his hand. Fuck. Spencer was in way over his head.
But there was no going back now. He’d promised Jonah that he’d help him and he would. He’d help his friend and he’d keep all his big, dumb feelings to himself.
“Spence?” Jonah held a can of beer out to him. By the look of concern on his face, Spencer would guess that Jonah had been trying to get his attention for a minute.
“Sorry, thanks.” He took the beer and cracked it open. “Got lost in my own head there. Did you see the new images the James Webb Space Telescope got?” Pride bloomed in Spencer’s chest when he’d actually remembered the name of the telescope.
“You can’t distract me with science geekery, Spencer.” Jonah cracked his beer. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing. It was a long week, that’s all.”
Jonah frowned. He looked out the window that overlooked the front of the house where Damon was due to appear. “We don’t have to…you know. If you’re too tired.”
“Should I be offended that you think I’m too old and tired to follow through?” Spencer took a sip of his beer. How could he say that he’d looked forward to this all week and that his only regret was that Damon was coming over? That there were hours between now and when Spencer would be allowed to touch him.
“I’m sorry we can’t tell him,” Jonah said, as if reading Spencer’s thoughts. “It's kind of personal, you know. I know he’s our best friend and part of me feels like shit for keeping this from him. I thought about telling him, but I can’t. I’m sorry.”
Spencer had closed the gap between them because there wasn’t a thing on this planet that could keep him from offering comfort to Jonah when he was upset the way he was now. Jonah so seldom let anyone past his wall of self-sufficiency that getting a glimpse behind the curtain was like winning the lottery.
He cupped Jonah’s cheek and did the thing he’d been thinking about all week. Kissing Jonah was like coming home. Like their lips had known each other in a past life and were old friends, meeting again and again. There was a comfort to it, but also heat that spread from Spencer’s core through his whole body like a flash fire. He had to force himself to pull away, a nearly impossible task when his body begged him to do the opposite.
“Better?”
Jonah cleared his throat. “Yeah, uh…”
“It’s okay, Jonah.” Spencer mapped the slope of Jonah’s cheekbone with his thumb. “He’s our friend, but that doesn’t mean that everything is his business. It’s your business, and its mine for as long as you’ll let it be. I’d never do anything to hurt you or make you uncomfortable. Damon will be fine not knowing things he doesn’t need to know.”
Jonah nodded. “Sorry I’m a mess.”
“You’re not. And if you are, everyone is, so you’re not alone.” Spencer forced himself to step away from Jonah, to put a respectable friendly distance between their bodies. “Okay? You good?”
Jonah was slow to nod but he gave Spencer his word that he was okay, and by the time Damon showed up a few minutes later, Spencer even believed that it was true. Now all they had to do was get through the next few hours of not touching and not kissing. Of not being anything but friends who didn’t kiss so they could go back to being friends who did.
Unfortunately, it seemed that this was a weekend when Damon wasn’t going to cut out early to go see his mystery man. Spencer did his best to stay tuned into the conversations going on around him, but his mind kept going back to Jonah and how hard it was for him to share any small bit of himself with someone. But, for some reason, he’d chosen Spencer. It was tough to not read too much into that. Jonah was his friend. Currently with benefits, but that would come to an end one day. And Spencer was fine with that. He was.
At least that’s what he’d have to tell himself if he wanted to not fuck up their whole friendship. Because it would be like a bomb going off between them if Spencer admitted that he’d like to do more than show Jonah how incredible it was to have someone suck his dick. If he admitted that he liked him, he worried that Jonah would shut it down and walk away. Not because he would want to, but Jonah didn’t like relying on people. He didn’t like people going out of their way for him. And someone having feelings for him would make Jonah afraid of becoming a burden.
Jonah was a hard person to know, but Spencer had years of watching and listening, and he learned a lot from what Jonah didn’t say. His dad had raised three boys by himself, and Jonah had done his best to not ask for things. To be quiet and out of the way and to do things on his own so his dad had more time and energy available for everything else he had to do.
When both Jonah and Damon bid him goodnight and left, Spencer was sure he’d fucked something up. He’d been quiet and introspective all night, unable to pry his mind away from picturing Jonah on his back, writhing and panting his name. When Jonah’s car left the driveway, Spencer hated that Damon had to be there at all, which was uncharitable.
Spencer sat down on the couch and leaned back. Closing his eyes, he let his thoughts drift to Jonah, because they were never far from him anyway. He was sure Jonah would make up a reason to stick around, but maybe Spencer was putting his own wants ahead of the reality of the situation. Which was that Spencer was so absolutely fucked. Hell, he was so hooked on his best friend he could almost hear his voice.
“There you are.”
Spencer’s eyes snapped open and there stood Jonah, hands tucked in his pockets. Not casually, but to look casual. Jonah’s nervous energy flared out, and Spencer sat up straighter.
“You came back.”
“I made sure Damon got too far ahead of me to notice me circling back around.” Jonah had already taken his shoes off, and he padded over to Spencer in his sock feet. “Is that okay?”
Spencer could only nod. Jonah usually didn’t tower over him, but Spencer felt almost small from his position on the couch. Jonah’s approach happened in slow motion. He telegraphed his every move so Spencer knew before it happened that it was coming. That still didn’t prepare him for the sight of Jonah sinking to his knees. His hands were hot on Spencer’s legs as he slid them from knee to hip, slotting himself in the space between.
Their gazes met, and the question went unasked between them. They didn’t need words. Not when Jonah’s gaze flicked down, then back up, and his cheeks flushed red. Not when he waited for Spencer’s answering nod. Spencer had the distinct feeling that if he started to talk, he’d say too much.
“I’ve never…” Jonah admitted, though he didn’t need to.
Spencer reached down and popped the button of his pants in a silent invitation. He didn’t tell Jonah that it was okay, that he’d do just fine. He couldn’t get a word out because Jonah’s hands slid up under his shirt and skated, hot and hesitant, across his bare skin.
Jonah rucked his shirt up, baring Spencer’s chest. Like he’d read Spencer’s mind and knew all about how insecure he sometimes was about his fuzzy chest, Jonah’s eyes brightened. “I love how you look.”
Jonah’s blush deepened, and his gaze caught Spencer’s. Before Spencer could think, Jonah’s hands slid upward over his furry barrel of a body, pausing at his chest to gently graze over his nipples.
“Is this okay?” Jonah asked, leaning closer.
“Anything you do is okay, Jonah.”
Spencer warmed at the way Jonah smiled small and shy and so very fucking sexy as he leaned in closer, lips parting, tongue poking out between them. Jonah held his gaze up until the moment his tongue flicked out and made contact with Spencer’s nipple. Then his eyes fell shut. Spencer watched him and his too-thick, too-beautiful eyelashes as they fanned downward.
“That feels incredible,” Spencer encouraged him, and he watched, his head spinning, as Jonah kissed his way lower, building courage as well as arousal. Spencer was turned upside down by Jonah. Never in a million years did Spencer think he’d see this, or that he’d want it as much as he did, but he was nearly ready to come apart at the seams by the time Jonah tugged his zipper open and looked up at him once again.
Nothing in the world could have prepared him for the surge of lust that lit him up when his best friend leaned forward and mouthed the head of his cock through his briefs. Even after all this was over, Spencer would never be able to scrub the image from his mind. And a bigger gift than Jonah’s impossibly warm mouth on his dick was the trust it took to allow him to put it there to begin with.
Spencer’s mind spun to a halt when Jonah tugged his briefs down enough to allow the head of his cock to escape. His heart hammered against his chest and everything seemed to fall away when Jonah gently, hesitantly, timidly took the head of Spencer’s cock into his mouth. Spencer was so fucked.
CHAPTER 13
JONAH
Jonah had spent the whole week psyching himself up for this. He’d imagined it a million times and he’d almost jerked himself blind at the thought of this very thing. Of him on his knees and Spencer’s thick cock sliding past his lips. Jonah might have also tried to tame his gag reflex a bit, but deep throating wouldn’t be something he was capable of any time soon.
Instead of trying to take Spencer’s cock down his throat all at once, Jonah wanted to work up to it. He tried to stay in the moment, to not let himself wonder too much about his technique. He knew he didn’t have one, after all. But he still wanted it to be good for Spencer.
The first taste of Spencer’s cock on Jonah’s tongue made his own dick twitch, thickening uncomfortably fast in his pants. Jonah whimpered, and that’s when Spencer’s hand found his hair. Thick fingers carded through the short strands, and Jonah knew then he was going to let it grow a bit longer so Spencer had something to grip onto.
He’d dreamed of those hands doing exactly that, combing through his hair, gripping it tight as Jonah sucked Spencer off. God, his cock was thick, and Jonah pulled off to give his cheeks a rest. Grabbing hold of Spencer’s pants, he gave them a tug. Spencer lifted his ass enough to allow Jonah to pull his pants down a bit.
Carefully, he pulled Spencer’s briefs down and freed his cock and balls from the tight confines. Spencer was hairy everywhere, and Jonah found that he liked it. The hair was thick but trimmed back around Spencer’s cock. The creases of his legs only had a light dusting, but his chest and stomach had a dense coat of hair that was soft to the touch.
Jonah licked the underside of Spencer’s cock, pausing at the head to swirl his tongue around the tip before dragging his mouth back down, caressing the veiny shaft with his tongue.
Spencer groaned, and his fingers flexed against Jonah’s scalp. A delicious sensation zinged down his spine, right to his cock. It was all he could do not to free his own dick and jerk off, but he wanted to give Spencer his full attention.
Jonah had never done anything like this before, but he’d seen enough porn to give him ideas for years and he’d touched himself enough to know what he liked. Taking Spencer’s cock in hand, Jonah laved his tongue over Spencer’s sac, letting a smile slip when Spencer’s breath caught.
“That’s amazing,” Spencer said. He was practically petting Jonah now, but it was his words that soothed Jonah more than the steady touch. It was the truth that rang in the tone of his voice.
Jonah wanted to do everything he could to elicit more of those delicious, happy noises from Spencer. But you had to walk before you could run, and he decided that trying to do too much too fast would be a bad idea. Besides, the slower he completed his list, the longer he’d get to have this. So Jonah went back to parting his lips and taking Spencer’s cock in his mouth.
