Spencer inhaled a shaky breath and released it thoughtfully. If only. God, if only he could find someone who would put him first, make him a priority. However, each time he’d taken that gamble, he’d lost in a horrible way.
SpencerWUT: How is it I miss your sweet talk already and Ive only known you for one day?
BurbankVI: You miss me?
Spencer rolled his eyes. Ordinarily he’d think, Rich men and their egos. Always seeking validation. But that thought never came to mind when he pictured Cole’s shy smile and hopeful brown eyes. Spencer had a feeling that Cole really wanted to be missed, wanted to be important to someone for other reasons besides his bank account. Did he miss him already? Yes. Did he want him there with him right now, in his bed, holding him close and taking away all of his heartache. Fuck yes!
SpencerWUT: Since you’re over thirty thousand feet in the air I guess I can be brave behind this keyboard. Yeah, Cole. I miss you.
BurbankVI: How much?
Spencer laughed loudly; Cole was such a kid at heart, and he liked that about him.
SpencerWUT: If you were here right now Id show you exactly what I miss and how much.
BurbankVI: I miss you too, Spence. I miss your voice… I miss your mouth.
The use of his nickname felt intimate, and Spencer was just short of begging Cole to come back and make it all better like he did last night. Feeling brave, he spread his legs wider as his cock thickened in his briefs.
SpencerWUT: I wish you were here, I’d put my mouth all over you.
Spencer was thinking of asking Cole for his phone number and switching from Messenger to a voice call when there was a sharp knock at his front door. He jumped, staring at his bedroom wall as if he could see through it. Who the fuck? Maybe it was one of his neighbors inviting him over, or perhaps bringing him a plate of food. They all knew he lived alone. He waited to see if the person would knock again, and after a few seconds they did, more insistently. He checked his phone to see if Cole had sent another message, and he hadn’t.
“Jesus.” Spencer yanked a pair of his sweats out of his drawer and hurried to put them on. He trudged his way through his apartment, wishing he’d put on a shirt or a robe since it was freezing. But the quicker he got this over with, the sooner he could get back in bed and chat with Cole. The knocking sounded again, and Spencer hollered, “I’m coming.”
He unlatched his bolt lock to simply stick his head outside to politely say, “Thanks, but no thanks,” when his door was pushed all the way open and strong, excited arms wrapped around him. He barely registered Cole’s spicy, leathery scent before a warm mouth covered his lips and an eager tongue slipped inside. He should’ve been embarrassed at the volume of his moan that was a mixture of pure elation and relief, but he didn’t care. He was in Cole’s arms. How?
The sound of his front door slamming jerked him out of his shock. He leaned back, mouth open, panting to catch his breath as he gazed at the man he thought was almost to New York City by now. “Cole. What are you doing here?”
Cole slowly reopened his eyes. “You said you wished I was here… so here I am.”
Spencer huffed, trying to compose himself. Was this man for real? “I thought you had an early meeting on Monday.”
“I do. I had to bribe my driver and security to stay an extra day.”
Spencer smiled. “Why’d you have to bribe them?”
“Because it’s Christmas and I promised them the day off, but when I begged them to work anyway, knowing the consequences, they really didn’t skimp on their list of demands.”
Spencer wrapped his arms around Cole’s neck as immeasurable warmth sank into his lonely spirit. “Demands?”
Cole reached in his jacket pocket and took out a folded sheet of paper and began to tick off items they both wanted. “Two days off when we get home, driver wants balcony tickets to Phantom of the Opera on Broadway, both want a box of the Black Dragon Cubans you guys sell at the club, box seats to the Knicks playoff season, and a weekend stay at the Waldorf Astoria for New Year’s,” Cole grumbled. “And they both want VIP tickets to Dick Clark’s Rockin’ Eve.”
Spencer’s eyes widened. “Holy shit. You had to give them all of that? How can you let them blackmail you for those expensive things in exchange for doing their jobs?”
“I told them they’d have Christmas off, but I’ve chosen to be one hundred percent selfish, here. And even though neither of them is married with families, I still feel bad, and a man should honor his word.” Cole’s expression turned serious as he touched their foreheads together. “And those are just worthless things. I don’t care about any of it. Baby, I would’ve promised them seats on Artemis’s next moon exploration if they’d wanted, just so I could be here to wrap you in my arms when you called.”
Spencer felt his stomach flutter and his body began to tremble, feeling overwhelmed by Cole’s words. “Cole.” Shit. How did he tell him that what he’d just done meant the world to him?
“And I stayed to give you this.” Cole reached inside his coat pocket and pulled out a small gold Burbank Jewelry box that was topped with a neat red bow. “Merry Christmas, Spencer.”
He stared at the box for a long moment, scared of what he’d find inside.
“Please just open it.” Cole squeezed his shoulders, resting his lips against Spencer’s forehead as he stared down sadly at the box. “Please. I stayed up all night finishing it.”
Finishing it? Spencer was intrigued. He slowly lifted the lid as if something was going to jump out and frighten him, when his breath caught in his throat. It was the literary bracelet. But not the onyx one on display in the store that he’d been wanting for months. Spencer blinked away tears. This one was so very different. The beads were unlike any shade of blue he’d ever seen, and the owl was exactly the same but shiner, sexier.
“The literary collection is mine, Spence. I designed it. I was already in the process of making this one, but I knew I’d be changing the beads last night to blue lapis… after only one look in your eyes. It’s a pattern exclusively for you, baby. Every other bracelet made will have a white-gold owl; yours is the only platinum one with a diamond overlay. There’ll never be a duplicate in the world.” Cole took the bracelet from Spencer’s shaking fingers and put it on his wrist. “It’s a gift from my heart, made with my two hands. In hopes that it would mean something special to you.”
“Cole.” Spencer choked on the lump lodged in his throat. He squeezed Cole to him, praying he could feel what he couldn’t say out loud.
“I hope I’m not pushing you, Spencer. But I just needed to be with you today. Not just because of how you spoke about Christmas, but because of how I feel about this holiday too. No one should hate it. No one should have to be alone… on any day… but especially not this one. Especially not you. Ever since my big brother passed, our traditions seemed to have died with him. But it wasn’t until I spent time with you that I realized it’s okay to make some new ones. That I want to make new ones… with you.”
“With me?” Spencer wanted to believe it all, but fuck he was so afraid of hoping again.
“Come back to New York with me.”
Spencer gasped, and Cole’s eyes widened as he hurried to speak. “Just for a few days. I cleared my schedule until Wednesday. Let me show you my home, my city. Maybe I can enjoy New York again at Christmas because it really is nice this time of year. I wanna show you my studio, my art, my new designs.” Cole smiled shyly. “And I want to read the stories you write and fall asleep in your arms listening to Spencer’s Unimaginable Tales.”