Six
JC lay awake long after Lance had fallen
asleep. He was a bit screwed up, with the time difference and all, but he still
felt as if he were asleep and dreaming. He was lying in a huge bed, in a French
manor home, with one of the most sought-after men in the world asleep in his
arms. They had made love, ate their light dinner, sat by the fire for hours,
and then made love again. Real life would be scary as hell after all this.
Finally JC worried himself to sleep, thinking about what life would be like after
Lance left him for his career.
“Morning,
Sunshine,” a low voice murmured in JC's ear.
“Chris…gonna
kill you,” JC muttered, swatting at the voice.
“You
and Chris sleep together?” The voice said unhappily. JC's eyes flew open and he
turned around. Lance was sitting cross-legged on the bed next to him, a large
binder on his lap.
“God,
Lance! No! He just is always in my bed…I mean…in the mornings, he wakens me…oh,
fuck it,” JC said simply, and Lance grinned.
“You're
adorable. I understand what you mean.”
JC
yawned and stretched. “How long have you been up?”
“About
an hour. I laid there and watched you sleep for a bit, then I decided to start
to study this script. It rules, Josh.”
JC
blushed slightly. “I only gave ideas. Martin did all the writing.”
“I
know Marty's writing. This isn't all Martin. I sense some Chasez in
here…especially the parts where the assistant is pining away for the artist.”
Lance closed the binder and tossed it to the floor. “I went down and told Henri
we'd ring when we were ready for breakfast. They actually have bells by the
door that ring down to the butler!” Lance's eyes were wide. “This place is
amazing.”
“I
feel like Joe Millionaire or something,” JC said. Lance stared at him blankly.
“You do know what I'm talking about, right?”
“I
heard of the show,” Lance admitted. “Met Evan at some party once…he was kinda
stupid.”
JC
smiled. “Well, he's just some low-class hick, you know, and they set him up in
this huge French castle. He doesn't know what fork to use with what course, or
which color wine to have with which meal. That's how I feel.”
“You
use whatever fork you want…and whatever wine you want,” Lance told him. He lay
back down and pressed his body against JC's. Lance was wearing pajama bottoms,
but JC could feel his erection pressing against him.
“What
if I want to run that wine down your spine and lap it up?” JC murmured. Lance
let out a groan that JC felt down to his toes.
“I'd
let you. You could buy wine that cost a hundred dollars a bottle, and I'd let
you waste it that way,” Lance sighed.
“Licking
wine off of you would never be a waste,” JC told him. Lance pulled back and
studied him, then smiled.
“You
know, I've heard that kinda stuff from a hundred people, guys AND girls, and
this is the first time I've believed it.”
“You've
talked Naked Wine Tasting with a hundred girls and guys?” JC asked with a
straight face. Lance shoved him, then got up.
“I'm
gonna ring for breakfast. Do you want to eat up here?”
“Nah…let's actually show our faces
downstairs, before they think we're nothing but horny kids,” JC said.
Henri
was waiting for them at the bottom of the staircase when they finally made
their way downstairs. “Good morning, Monsieurs,” he said politely. “Breakfast
is served in the breakfast room.”
“The
breakfast room?” JC mouthed to Lance, who raised his eyebrows.
“We
took the liberty of preparing a bit of everything,” Henri told them over his
shoulder. “Please let me know what you'd prefer for your breakfast menu, and
we'll have that ready for you every morning.” He opened the door to a large
sunny room that was basically a sun porch.
“Whoa,”
JC said before he could stop himself, staring at the breakfast table. There was
eggs and bacon, sausage and ham, fresh fruit, bagels, croissants, and other
sweet pastries. Pitchers of apple and orange juice sat in the middle of the
table by a vase of fresh wildflowers, and steaming pots were at either end.
“There
is coffee and tea in the pitchers.” Henri pulled out a chair and JC all but
fell into it.
“I
think whatever you come up with for breakfast will be fine from now on, right,
Josh?” Lance said, sitting in the other chair. JC nodded. “Though I think you
could probably cut the amount of food in half, Henri. I hate to waste all
this.”
“As
you wish, Monsieur.” Henri flipped a napkin into Lance's lap, then JC's. “Also,
Monsieur…about lunch. It's supposed to be a gorgeous day today. I could have
lunch ready around one, or, if you'd like, I'll have the cook pack you a picnic
luncheon. The land around this house is quite beautiful, and at one end of the
estate is a pretty field by a creek. I could have the lunch waiting there for
you if you'd like to take a walk?”
“That
sounds wonderful,” Lance said, noticing the eager light in JC's eyes. Henri
nodded and turned to JC.
“I
noticed some painting supplies in with your luggage. You're an artist?”
“Yes,
Henri,” JC said almost shyly. Henri nodded again.
“The
area I mentioned…by the stream…it's perfect for landscapes, I would think.” He
gave a short bow and closed the door behind him.
“Would
you mind pinching me?” JC murmured, staring at the bowl of fruit. “I think I've
died and gone to heaven.”
“No…heaven
is these chocolate cream éclairs,” Lance mumbled with his mouth full. “Pure
heaven.”
“I
thought you only liked French toast for breakfast,” JC teased, pouring himself
a cup of tea. Lance froze in mid-bite and JC laughed. “I've done some reading
up on you, boyfriend. Apparently you like French toast, butter pecan ice cream,
and men who do drugs and party all the time.”
Lance
choked on his food and had to take a long drink of juice before he could reply.
“Okay, yes to the first two, but the last one wasn't my fault. How did I know?”
JC
laughed, finally comfortable with talking about AJ. “Chris told me it was
obvious.”
“Well, I wasn't around him much,” Lance said
defensively, and JC only laughed harder.
“Henri
wasn't kidding,” JC said, putting down his sketchbook. “This place is
gorgeous.”
“Look…there's
our lunch,” Lance said, walking over to a large basket. “Looks yummy.”
“You're
yummy,” JC said suddenly, and Lance turned to look at him. With the sunlight
shimmering off of Lance's short blond hair, he looked like an angel. “I
can't…this is all a dream,” JC said softly. “I love you so much, Lance, and I
hardly even know you. I just KNOW this is all gonna fall apart, and I can
hardly bear it.”
“Stop
it,” Lance said. “I thought you said you could get past the whole celebrity
thing. That's why I brought us here…so we could get to know each other away
from everything.”
“It's
not just that, Lance,” JC said. “I have had maybe one serious relationship in
my life…and that was Justin. Nothing ever works out for me like this. Nothing
that matters.”
“We're
gonna work out, Josh.” Lance took JC in his arms and kissed him. “We'll make it
work.”
