Holiday Cheer from Andrew Grey and Amy Lane

Chapter 5

Chapter 5

IT WAS funny how things could change so quickly. He worked just as hard, but Gregory called each evening and they talked a while. Rhys’s holiday was looking much brighter just from those calls.

The bell rang. He let Gregory in and received an excited kiss once he got his coat off.

“Are we making the centerpieces?” Gregory asked, and chuckled when Rhys didn’t let him go.

“Eventually,” he whispered, tugging Gregory down for another taste of his sweet lips. He loved Gregory’s soft moans and the way he always seemed surprised at the instant intensity between them. It set Rhys on fire, and judging by the way Gregory gasped when he stepped back, the feeling was more than mutual.

Gregory’s lips were red and his face flushed. “I….” He touched his lips with the tip of his finger. “I thought about that all week.” His nervously sweet smile had Rhys doing the same. He had thought about Gregory a lot, especially when he was alone at night.

“Me too.”

Gregory wrapped his arms around him, holding tight. “I got a call on my way over from Jonathan. It seemed he is taking Annalise to the hospital. She’s been in some distress, and he thinks the baby is going to come one way or another. I asked if I should be there, and he said there was nothing I could do right now. The kids were staying with his mother tonight anyway.” Gregory held him tighter. “What if something happens to her?”

Rhys held him in return. “Your sister is strong. She’s going to have that baby, and then she’ll be at the party that you put together for her.” Rhys knew there was little either of them could do, and it was best if he tried to keep Gregory busy. “I cut some greens yesterday and got some green foamy floral oasis, so we can make what we need, and I thought we’d put them in the garage to keep them cool until the party.”

“That sounds like a good idea.” Gregory backed away. “I’m sorry I’m acting like such a dope. It’s just that she’s my only family and—”

“I know. And you’re not being a dope. Now why don’t we get to work and make your sister proud?” Rhys sat next to Gregory, and they worked together to fill the jars with peppermints and then build the arrangements around them. They needed five, according to the list, and used the greens and the same ribbon they’d used for the favors to tie everything together.

“They’re beautiful,” Gregory said as he looked over their finished product.

“You did an amazing job,” Rhys said with a smile.

Gregory shook his head. “I didn’t know anything about making these. That was your idea.”

“No. You were the one who picked out the colors and put that together. This… the centerpieces… all sprang from that. And look at those bows and the ribbon work—you did that. I didn’t.” Rhys clasped his shoulder. “You came up with that. Give yourself credit. You’re crafty.” He grinned, and Gregory rolled his eyes.

His phone rang, and Gregory snatched it up off the table. He answered it and made a number of humming sounds and then sighed and smiled. “Oh my God, it’s a girl! You had a girl!” he practically shouted. “That’s amazing. And Annalise is doing fine? … Thank you so much, Jonathan. Thank you.” He hung up and sighed hugely.

“I take it your sister had the baby.”

“And it’s a girl. No one in Jonathan’s family has had a girl as far back as anyone can remember. Annalise figured she would never have a daughter, but she did.” Gregory sat down, still smiling. “Jonathan said she’s weak and will need a lot of rest, but Annalise is going to be fine. He asked me to come visit tomorrow so she can rest.” Gregory looked like a wrung-out rag for a second and then bounded to his feet with a burst of energy. “Wow.” He turned to Rhys and paled. “That means she’ll definitely be at the party. Is it bad that I hoped she might still be in bed?”

“You wanted the pressure off?”

Gregory nodded. “Kind of. But now she’ll be there, and….”

“Since these are done, why don’t you and I go ahead and plan the rest of the food and how we’re going to get everything done so this can be the best party ever? Then your sister will be so proud of the job you did that she’ll want you to plan all the parties going forward.” Both he and Gregory laughed, but seeing Gregory smile was always a beautiful thing.

Rhys slid his hand around the back of Gregory’s neck, gently tugging him closer. He took his lips, and Gregory pressed nearer. Rhys deepened the kiss. He suddenly wasn’t interested in menus, decorations, or desserts. All he wanted was Gregory. His instinct was to press forward and take what he wanted, but instead he gentled the kiss and pulled back.

“Rhys, I….” Gregory blinked a few times. “I want….”

“I know. Me too, but it’s so soon.” Rhys gazed into Gregory’s eyes. “I’ve had crap luck with relationships, and I tend to rush in too early.” He stroked Gregory’s arm. “I’d rather wait a little, because I want this to work between us, and I think you’re worth waiting for.” He caressed Gregory’s cheek, and Gregory closed his eyes, leaning into the touch. Rhys lightly pressed his fingers to Gregory’s chin, and Gregory raised his face. Rhys kissed him. “I missed this as soon as I was stupid enough to send you away. I want you to know that sometimes life gives us each a second chance, and I don’t intend to waste this one.”

“Oh,” Gregory said, sliding his eyes open. “So you do like me, then?” He was teasing, and Rhys nuzzled in closer.

“You’re daft sometimes,” Rhys retorted without heat. “Come on. I think I’ve figured out how to make the baguettes.” He grinned. “Wanna go make some penises? I thought instead of actually making them edible—because they aren’t going to stay super fresh anyway—we can make smaller ones, put them in plastic, and use them as ornaments on the tree. That should be fun and saucy. Then I can make a few fresh ones that we can put out as part of a bread plate.”

Gregory chuckled. “Okay. Let’s go make some penises.”

IT HAD been a long time since Rhys had done something this fun in the kitchen, and so laden with visual innuendo.

“How do these look?” Gregory asked as he held up two globs of dough.

“Nice size and shape. They’ll be quite a mouthful,” Rhys retorted, and Gregory rolled his eyes. They had gone on like that for the last hour, with the bad puns and jokes, as they formed the loaves and got them into the oven. “Do you think cut or uncut?”

Gregory shook his head. “We can let nature and the baking decide.” The two of them were definitely straining the amount of penis humor humanly possible as they worked and baked.

Once the baguettes were out of the oven and cooled, Rhys placed each into a plastic bag and set them in the freezer. “We can thaw and decorate them before the party. Do you think piped hats?” Rhys closed the door and couldn’t help wondering at the fun he was having, and if it would continue with Gregory once the party was over.

“Yeah. Probably best.” Gregory was grinning. “I can’t wait to see Annalise’s expression when she sees this… all of this. The cake is going to be stunning, and the food will be amazing. But the decorations and the favors are beautiful. Annalise is going to be impressed, and Cynthia will be so thrilled.”

It was incredible to see Gregory happy and excited rather than down and fearful of the task ahead. That was so much like the Gregory he remembered from college, and it was good to see him back again.

Gregory’s phone rang, and he pressed the speaker button, probably because he was up to his wrists in baguette dough. “Annalise, are you okay?”

“Yes. Jonathan is right here holding Victoria, and he’s going to text you pictures, but I wanted to talk to you.”

“It’s great to hear your voice. I’ve been so worried about you.” Gregory tried not to sniff, but it was pretty clear how relieved he was to hear his sister’s voice. “How long will you be in the hospital?”

“A few days. They had to deliver the baby surgically, and she’s just beautiful. Maybe tomorrow you can come up after work and we can introduce you to your niece.”

This time Gregory did sniff, and Rhys took his hand, staying quiet but supporting and considering himself very lucky to get to be a part of this happy moment. “I’d love that.” He lightly bit his lower lip. “I should let you get some rest, but I’ll see you tomorrow after work.”

She paused. “Am I on speaker?”

“Yes. I’m working on stuff for the party with….” Gregory paused. “Well… I got a boyfriend….” He looked over at Rhys, who smiled and nodded. “Yeah. While you were having Victoria, I got a boyfriend, and he’s helping me with the party stuff for Cynthia. It’s going to be great. I’ll see you tomorrow,” he added hastily and ended the call. “She is going to grill me no end when I see her.”

“I bet. She sounds like a real drill sergeant kind of person.”

“Yup.” Gregory was still bouncy, but they got to work finishing up with the baguettes and getting them in the freezer. “So tomorrow I have to go to the hospital after work, but with the party on Thursday, I thought I would come over on Tuesday and Wednesday to help with the rest of the prep.”

“Good. I’ll bake the layers on Wednesday so they can cool, and I added the cake and other prep to my Wednesday and Thursday schedule. The party is at six, so we should be there at four to get everything set up. I contacted the venue, and they have a professional oven. So for the quiches, we’ll take the ingredients and shells and bake them there. The rest will be done ahead of time. We’ll get the tables set, room decorated, and then your sister and her friends will come in to an amazing evening, and you and I can duck out and have a pretty earth-shatteringly amazing evening of our own.” Rhys leaned even closer. “I may even put on my own Santa outfit and do my best to take it off, really slowly.” He swayed his hips, and Gregory whined.

“Okay. Now that’s something to look forward to.”

Rhys loved the raw desire in Gregory’s eyes, and it would be so much fun to give in to it. But anticipation was the best increaser of desire that he knew, for himself and obviously for Gregory.

“Should we clean this up? Is there anything else we can do to prepare?”

“No. Right now, it’s the cooking. I got the cheese and charcuterie items. We can put those together the day of the party so they don’t dry out. I’ll really need your help with the transportation and last-minute put-together, but we can do this.” Rhys had done a lot of events and delivered a huge number of cakes, but this event and cake were special because they were for Gregory. “Everything is going to be okay. I promise. Something always goes wrong, but we’ll handle it.” He stepped behind Gregory, leaned down, and gently sucked at the base of his neck. “God, you smell and taste so good.” His entire body thrummed with desire, but waiting would be worth it. At least that’s what he kept telling himself, but Rhys wasn’t sure he could last that long. “Let’s clean up and we can get some dinner.”