Derek knew he should be pissed when Jared told him about John’s threats, but even as he placated the upset man, he was inwardly grinning. It was just such a John thing to do; assess the enemy, threaten and/or offer an ultimatum, and then take action if his words went unheeded. Derek had no doubt that if Jared were stupid enough to actually do something to hurt him, the man would end up in the hospital. Or, possibly, a shallow grave somewhere in the desert.
That his fifteen year old nephew had threatened his ‘boyfriend’ should piss Derek off, he did know that, but whenever he thought about it, it really just made him grin. In a strange way, he felt…flattered. John, well, future John at least, only took the time to threaten when he was very serious about something or someone. It told him that despite the youthful way with which John had quite literally thrown himself at Derek, there was more to it than just hormones.
But that doesn’t mean you
can do anything about it, Derek told himself sternly. This boy isn’t the
man you love.
Not yet, that small, traitorous voice inside whispered.
Things got back to normal over the next few days. He and John found their equilibrium again and even though he could tell that John was waiting to get called on his behavior with Jared, Derek didn’t mention it. Sarah, thankfully, stayed well and truly out of it aside from that one night of forcing John to meet Jared. He was pretty sure that she was too relieved to see him dating to be anything except firmly on his side.
And man, how weird is it
that I’m actually dating? Derek thought with a grin. I haven’t done that
in twenty years.
Not that there was anything serious going on between him and Jared. It was just uncomplicated sex and good conversation, all of which felt damn good to Derek. After the intensity of loving only Kyle and John for so long, although in very different ways, it was nice to simply drift with someone who had no ulterior motives and didn’t need to rely on him to stay alive.
“Yo, Derek. You gonna be done any time soon?” John shouted through the bathroom door.
Rolling his eyes, Derek called back, “Maybe.”
“Jared’s here.”
Derek snorted at the semi-snide tone, even though he knew John didn’t mean anything by it anymore. Scrubbing his fingers through his hair, he left the bathroom and threw an arm around John’s neck, squeezing tight as he said, “You know, I think we should up your training time if you have the energy to stand around being a smartass.”
John laughed and they mock-wrestled on the way to the living room where Jared waited. Derek spotted the uncomfortable look on Jared’s face before it vanished, but he wasn’t going to punish John for being John. The other man would either get used to his presence, or they’d stop seeing one another. Letting his nephew go, Derek swatted him upside the head and ordered, “Go do your homework before you flunk out of chem or something.”
“Yeah right, like that’s going to happen,” John retorted. “Man, they dumb things down around here.”
But he left and Derek turned his attention to Jared. Smiling, he greeted, “Hey. You braved the Baum household for me, thanks.”
Jared’s lips twitched into a half-grin as he took Derek’s hand and replied, “You should be grateful. That nephew of yours is scary.”
“Nah, he’s just overprotective,” Derek promised. “Come on. Let’s go have some fun.”
They saw a movie, not that Derek really noticed it with how Jared’s hand alternated massaging his thigh and sliding slowly up and down. It never went high enough to be considered public indecency, but was very distracting. He was definitely aroused by the time they left the movie theater and headed back to Jared’s apartment.
Once inside, Jared pinned him to the wall and took his mouth with an aggression that hadn’t been present before. It startled Derek even as it spiked his lust and he responded enthusiastically. Strong hands gripped his ass and Jared’s thigh pushed between his legs, rubbing against his dick.
“I really want to fuck you tonight,” Jared murmured against his ear.
Derek shuddered in need, wanting it no less than the other man. He nodded and they got rid of clothing on the way to the bed on the other side of the loft. They just about made it to the bed where Jared pushed him down and climbed on top of him. Derek groaned as they rolled around together, enjoying the sensation of being with someone not really equal to him in strength. He could easily overpower Jared and the knowledge that he was letting the other have his way just added to the whole encounter.
He turned over, fully intending to not only let Jared fuck him, but do anything else the other man might have in mind. Derek enjoyed the warm mouth all over him and the way Jared touched as much of him as possible. He enjoyed all of it right up until the point where Jared’s fingers rubbed over his hole with intent. Derek was thrown from the moment with an internal, No! Don’t! That’s John’s! but shook it off. There’d been no promises made between them, no declarations of any kind.
Derek tried to get back into what Jared was doing, closing his eyes to magnify the sensations. But then John’s face swam before his mind’s eye, a mix of his future lover and the current boy in a way that caused him to gasp, fingers twisting into the sheets as pure lust and need shot through him. It was the strong way Jared tried to command his body that brought up the comparisons, he knew. Always before, their sex had been easy and gentle, getting to know each other in an almost sweet way, so there’d been nothing to compare to.
When Jared bit him sharply on the hip, something John had done repeatedly, Derek gasped, “No!” and shoved him away, twisting and rolling off the other side of the bed. Panting, Derek sat up and hugged his knees to his chest, trying in vain to banish the vision of his future lover from his mind.
“Derek?” Jared asked cautiously. “Are you okay?”
Derek sighed explosively and shook his head. “Sorry. It’s just, when you bit me…sorry. It’s a strong association for me. This whole night, the way you’ve been, you remind me a lot of…”
“Your ex,” Jared supplied, moving to kneel next to him.
A short, bitter laugh escaped
as Derek thought, My once and future lover.
Gently rubbing his hand over Derek’s arm, Jared offered, “We can go back to how it was. I’ll, I won’t come on so strong.”
“That’s not fair to you,” Derek replied.
Jared sighed. “So what do you want to do?”
Unfortunately, Derek knew there was only one thing to do.
* * * *
John came out to the swings
some time around
“Just thinking,” Derek answered. “It’s quiet out here.”
Sitting on the other swing, John said, “I was thinking we could try out a new running route tomorrow. Change things up a little, you know?”
Derek’s lips twisted to the side, knowing that John knew something had gone down between him and Jared, if not what. If they changed routes, they wouldn’t risk running into Jared. “Yeah, sounds good.”
They sat in silence for a few minutes before John asked, “You okay?”
Derek stood and finished off the beer in one long swallow. “I’m fine. Oh, and Jared’s a good guy so he better not wind up getting mugged on the way home from work or something. I’d be really angry about something like that happening.”
John grimaced, but only said, “See you in the morning.”
“You’re not coming in?” Derek questioned.
Shaking his head, John replied, “Think I’ll stick around and look at the stars. Haven’t done that in a while.”
Derek thought about it and sat back down. “Me, either.”
John gave him a crooked grin and they stayed out together, swinging just a little, bumping into one another now and again. Even though they didn’t talk, Derek felt better about things by the time they left the dark night for the warmly lit house that was fast becoming home.