Josh followed him blindly.
He’d be okay with more?
West captured his hand and pulled him towards a space in the planting, where a picnic awaited them. Josh whipped his head up to West, watching him.
“We didn’t make breakfast, so I thought . . . Please, sit.”
Josh found a spot on the woollen blanket and West dropped, legs outstretched, to rest his head on Josh’s thigh. “I took a bit of everything. I wasn’t sure what you’d like.”
Josh’s tummy rumbled, and West grinned. “Your belly and I are becoming well acquainted.”
Josh moaned around a scone with jam and whipped cream. “I’d like you acquainted with more than my belly.”
Which sounded crude, and not the way Josh intended.
West laughed. “You’ve got cream . . .”
Josh darted his tongue out.
West stretched an arm behind Josh’s head and steered him down. Their gazes clashed and Josh’s breath hitched. A grin followed a soft kiss, sucking the cream off his lip. “There you go.”
Josh pulled back, ticklish inside and out. This whole weekend was out of control. Out of control, and out of this world. “Now I’m tempted to smoosh this scone in all sorts of places.”
A barking laugh jiggled his leg.
Josh refrained from following through and took another small bite. “Where in New Zealand are you from?”
Dark eyes met his. “Port Rātapu.”
Josh dropped the scone and it landed on West’s face. West sat up abruptly, wiping cream from his nose, his eyelashes.
“So sorry. Port Rātapu?”
“Have I missed a spot?”
“This is . . . I don’t believe it. Two guys from the same town do not meet on the other side of the world.”
“A spot here maybe?” West asked teasingly. “Or on this cheek?”
Josh clasped West’s neck and kissed a creamy spot at the bridge of his nose. “This doesn’t make . . .”
West raised a brow.
Josh blinked at him, and kissed more cream away. “I don’t suppose you know Cameron Morland? He told me about this place. I was . . . not paying the most attention.” Josh pulled back. “I’m guessing you were the reason he mentioned it?”
“Sounds familiar. My friend Taylor had a neighbour called Cameron.”
“Huh.”
“Huh?”
“He gave me some guy’s number when I left, in case I wanted to look up a fellow countryman.”
West cocked his head. “He gave you my number?”
“I think so?”
“You never called.”
“Yeah, no.” A pause. “Maybe I should have.”
That dimple deepened. “So . . . you’re sort of here for me.”
“Unintentionally.”
“I’m weirdly flattered nevertheless.”
Josh helped himself to cold tea, gripping the cup tightly as he snuck glances at West. “I suppose we should learn everything about one another.”
A raised brow.
Josh plucked his phone from its secret pocket. The brow lifted higher at that. “What? In case of emergency. We can write a list. Work out all the nodes of connection between us.”
“We can do that without the list.” West’s waggling brow scrambled Josh’s thoughts. “Damn,” West murmured, looking over Josh’s shoulder. “I’m really not a fan of this guy.”
Josh followed his gaze to Professor Paisley and Wally outside the church ruins—and Cassius, breaking off towards their lavender haven.
“When’s your birthday, quick.”
“July.”
“The?”
“Twenty-fourth, why?”
“Favourite colour?”
“Um . . .”
“Quick!”
“Green.”
“Do you want children?”
“Only if you read to them every night.”
“Excellent. You can do the sport stuff.”
“Stuff?”
Josh spared him an impatient look. “Give me a manual and I’ll be more specific.”
West laughed. “Deal.”
“Okay, shhhh. I mean, ravage me.”
West crawled over him, lowering Josh to the ground with those careful hands. His kiss was a feathered touch, his body a thrillingly indecent weight shifting against him. He kissed down Josh’s throat, sucking at the sensitive spot just above his collar. “I could do this all day,” came murmured at his ear.
Josh wanted to rip off his neckcloth and bare his throat, bare everything.
Maybe Cassius would see what they were up to and back off?
Maybe he and West could play this out, right here amongst the lavender—
Cassius cleared his throat impatiently.
West paused for a moment, eyes flashing to Josh’s, and then sank into another kiss, tongue darting into his mouth. Josh gasped.
West slowly looked up. “Can we help you with something?”
Josh steadied his breathing and shuffled into a sitting position. Cassius glared at him. “What’s this act all about?”
West steeled his voice. “I am not acting.”
Cassius folded his arms and scoffed. “Really.” He stared at Josh. “You, and this guy?”
“What do you want, Cassius?” Josh gritted out.
“The professor’s discussing religion in the Regency era. You love that stuff.”
Right. He wanted to pry, more like. After all, how could Josh ever score someone as outrageously hot as West.
Cassius kept staring.
Josh took West’s hands and threaded their fingers together. He glanced at Cassius. “I’ll be right there.” He turned besotted eyes on West. “About the apartment viewings. Maybe after your birthday?”
Cassius rolled his eyes. “You don’t even know when his birthday is.”
“July twenty-fourth. He’s a Leo. Favourite colour green. He’s taking my family name, and in three years we’re going to adopt two kids. Lucy, for the girl.”
“Roger, for the boy,” West chipped in.
Roger?
Josh struggled not to, hell, giggle. “Both of whom we’ll be raising in New Zealand. My mum can’t wait to have little Fairfaxes running around.”
“Bullshit.” Cassius shook his head and stalked off toward the church.
Josh eyed West. “Roger?”
“I saw a rabbit.” A pause. “Maybe last night was on my mind.”
Josh shook his head. “We don’t have to make any decisions today.”
“I liked Lucy.”
“Nice, isn’t it?” Josh picked himself up. “Right. Care for a lecture on religion?”
A shadow passed over West’s face. “No.” Short, abrupt, cold.
Josh winced.
He should have thought. “Sorry. I just . . . forgot.”
West scored a hand through his hair. “It’s okay. It’s . . . something I have to deal with eventually.”
Josh cocked his head, assessing the expression on West’s face, the stiff set of his shoulders. “Only when you’re ready.”
“I’m not sure I can ever be ready.”
“I’m sorry, West.”
West’s eyes darted everywhere but to him. “I need to clean up, head back to the house. There’s horse riding to organize for this afternoon. And luncheon coming up.”