“When I graduate. I don’t know where I’m going to live. I don’t know what I’m going to do.”
There were so many unknowns looming, and just when he was starting to really love his life and all of his routines. And Roman. He mightloveRoman. How could he possibly leave? His panic started escalating while Roman’s strong arms encircled him, and he kissed the top of his head. “Shhh, Ezra. Calm down, baby. You don’t have to worry about that right now. You can stay here for as long as you want, and if you choose to go, the desk and chair will go with you.”
“But I don’t want to go,” Ezra moaned. Just the idea of it made him feel so heavy and sad.
“Don’t worry. It’ll all work out, I promise. Now go on and try out your present.”
Ezra nodded and wiped his eyes, then sat down at his new desk. The chair’s contours fit his butt and back just right, and the desk could be adjusted to slide toward him so that he didn’t have to sit hunched over his keyboard.
“I love it,” Ezra said, eyes still shining. “This was so thoughtful of you, Roman. I can’t believe you did this for me.”
“I’m glad you like it, baby. You work hard and you should be comfortable while you’re busy being brilliant.”
“Thank you. I have a present for you too.”
“I want to see it,” Jay said from where he’d been standing in the doorway.
Ezra shook his head knowingly. “It’s private, Jay.”
“Private?” Roman asked.
“Yes. It’s a video.” Ezra didn’t think that would ruin the surprise too much. “A veryprivatevideo.”
Roman pointed to the front door. “Out,” he said to Jay.
“Roman, come on. Have a heart. I’m a lonely bachelor on Christmas.”
“Thanks for coming over, Jay, please see yourself to the door.”
Jay grunted. “Fine. Ezra, I’m going to send you a picture of what we talked about. You can let me know what you think.”
“Would that qualify as a dick pic?” Ezra asked with a grin.
“A what?” Roman exclaimed.
“I’m going to get a rock sculpted to the shape of my dong,” Jay explained, “and give it to my yoga instructor as a token of my affection. It’s metaphorical, you know?”
“Sounds pretty literal to me,” Roman said.
“I’ll do some research on which rock to use,” Ezra offered, thinking that rose quartz might be good for something like that. “And see if I can find a local sculptor who will shape it. It might be expensive.”
“I don’t mind. Just do your magic. I’ll lock the door on my way out. Unless…”
“Goodbye, Jay.” Roman waited until he heard the front door shut, then turned to Ezra. “I’m ready for my present.”
“Do you want to see it on my laptop or would you rather I load it onto the big screen?”
“Definitely the big screen.” Roman rubbed his hands together. “Surround sound, high definition, give me the works, babe. After all, it’s Christmas.”
16
Second Christmas
Roman didn’t know how he’d gotten so lucky. He had an amazing, sexy, and smart boyfriend who’d made him a personalized porno for Christmas just because he’d mentioned wanting to watch. Except that the video was more like a sexy documentary than porn, a completely honest and raw recording of Ezra getting himself off while alone in his bedroom. No faking or hamming it up for the camera, just Ezra seeking his own pleasure and finding it. It was legit the hottest thing Roman had ever seen.
Ezra left to visit his mother in Shreveport a few days later and Roman missed him terribly. He watched not only the video Ezra had given him for Christmas but also some of his old footage of Ezra cleaning house. If he couldn’t have his boyfriend there with him, he’d have to make do with recordings of him.
On Christmas morning, he video chatted with his family up in Michigan. Ezra had helped him pick out gifts for the kids—an extravagant Lego dollhouse for Jada and a solar-powered remote control car for Desmond. Both were a hit. His brother-in-law took one look at the Lego box and said his afternoon was booked. His sister wanted to see a picture of the man in question, so Roman shared the photo of himself and Ezra from the Roosevelt Hotel, both of them wearing Christmas-themed sweaters and smiling.
