River looked shocked for a moment, then began to move his hand up and down more vigorously inside his jeans, while staring straight at Newt.
“Can’t you make it a bit more exciting?” Newt met his gaze. “You’re an actor. If you can’t speak, then…grunt or something. Or breathe heavily. Convince me you’re actually enjoying yourself. Wanking is supposed to be fun.”
River moved his hand faster.
Newt guessed River was wondering how far to push this, so gave him an out and stood up. “Looks like I did put you off.” Maybe a partial out. “You’re not even hard.”
The glare intensified.
“I’d do a striptease, but I’m not your type, am I? Come downstairs. Well, no. That wouldn’t go down well.” He chuckled. “Come up here and then join us downstairs. Washyour hands first, okay?” Then he walked out, flinching as a cushion hit the door by his head.
This was going to be difficult, but not because the guy was a shit. River Lawson made the breath catch in Newt’s throat, made his cock twitch, made his pulse race. He was stunning. While Newt had been locked up, his occasional crushes on other inmates and officers had remained private. It didn’t matter whether the guy was gay or not because Newt would never have said or done anything to imply any interest. But thinking about someone he fancied did pass the time and fuel his imagination. Looked like he was going to have to do the same with River.
Newt made his way back downstairs and paused at the kitchen door when he heard his name mentioned.
“Are you sure about this…young man?” asked Linda. “Didn’t you ought to stay for a few days? It seems irresponsible to leave a stranger with him. He’s not very well dressed.”
Newt swallowed hard.
“I’m a good judge of character and I trust Newt. You can’t do this anymore. It’s not fair to ask it of you and I’m relieved I can get back to the office to deal with yet another fire. Bloody idiots taking pictures of bits of themselves that they shouldn’t. Anyway, if there are any problems, River will find a way to get rid of him.” He laughed.
“Even so,” Daniel said. “Make sure River is good with this.”
“He is. I’ll keep checking up on them.”
Newt pushed open the kitchen door.
“Is he coming?” Max asked.
Newt almost laughed. He doubted it whichever way Max meant it. “I asked him to. Reminded him to wash hishands.”
Max pressed his lips together as he smirked.
“This is a lovely house,” Newt said brightly. “Is it new?”
“Four years old,” Max said. “River hadn’t spent much time here before the accident.”
“I’ve given everywhere a good clean, including the room we’ve been using, so you should manage for a while,” Linda said.
“Mum!” Max sighed. “You shouldn’t be doing the cleaning.”
“I’m not too old to clean. Who else was going to do it? You wouldn’t have and I didn’t want it to be a big job for the next person who came. If you keep rooms tidy, it’s an incentive to go on keeping them tidy.”
“And did that work with River?” Max asked.
“No, but…”
“Give me strength.” Max groaned. “Come and sit down, Newt, and have something to eat. I’ll talk you through the monster’s routine.”
The soup and sandwich were both delicious. The best things Newt had eaten in a long while. He’d almost forgotten how good proper soup and sandwiches could taste. Nothing like prison fare of slightly stale sliced white bread and gloopy soup. The sandwich was made from slices cut from a wholemeal loaf and filled with cheese, ham and pickle. Newt didn’t usually like ham but this was lean and tasty.
He listened carefully while Max’s parents, and occasionally Max, ran through River’s routine. It was a lot like prison, Newt thought. Waking up and going to bed at set times. Same with meals. And what River ate was regulated as well. His physiotherapist came three times a week. Newt was given his number and shown a photo. The guy’s too-whitesmile, rectangular head and buzz cut, along with a lot of muscles were intimidating.
“The latest speech therapist isn’t coming again,” she said. “I don’t blame her. He just kept telling her tof…off.But I’ve heard him trying to speak when he’s been alone in his room. Not successfully.”
“Newt has experience with language development,” Max said. “He’s going to work with him 24/7.”
“Oh good.” She smiled at Newt.
