Declan
It only tookDeclan three days in New York City to find himself a job. He and Seb still hadn’t made any decisions, but the second Alexandria mentioned the science facilities in Manhattan, he had known what he wanted to do.
A taxi blared on its horn as it splashed by, early spring puddles all over the pavement. At least his leather jacket made sense for the season again, he figured as he stomped into a little floral shop. He was still adjusting to the crowds and finding his way in the busy city. The feeling of always being surrounded made him jumpy, ready to throw a punch, but he assumed that would fade.
“How much are these ones?” he asked the man behind the counter, pointing at a few round, colorful flowers, wrapped in a piece of brown paper.
The man frowned, staring at Declan, then said something that sounded like Russian.
“What?” Declan asked.
The man repeated the Russian words again, yelling them angrily this time as he pointed at Declan. “Okay, okay!” Declan said, holding his hands in the air. “Fucking hell.” He rummaged for his wallet, then offered the man behind the counter a twenty.
“Have a nice day,” he said with a smile, then gestured to the flowers for Declan to take them.
Declan grabbed the bouquet, grumbling to himself as he walked out. Soon, he promised himself, this damn city would start to make sense. And until then, he could deal with the blaring car horns and the angry shopkeepers. He could deal with anything, in fact, if it’s what Seb needed.
Something whizzed by his nose. Declan stopped in his tracks just in time, a splatter of pigeon poop at his feet. He jumped back, then to the side again when another splatter exploded on the pavement, only to be jostled by a woman hurrying past and talking on her phone.
He cursed, gripping the stems tight in his fist. At least everyone passing was ignoring him. He could probably stand there all day cursing up a storm, he figured, before someone would even bother to glance his way.
Making sure the pigeons hadn’t gotten him, he followed the last couple of blocks to his destination. As he rounded the corner, all his worries disappeared on the sight of Seb, standing there beside an ice cream shop and glancing up at the tall buildings.
Declan grinned. It wasn’t often he got to give someone good news. But with Seb, making the right decisions felt easy.
“Flowers?” Seb said, turning. “Thank you, Declan.” He laughed, then took a sniff as he accepted the bouquet. “If you had told me on the day we met that you would be buying me flowers in Manhattan, I never would have believed you.”
Declan grunted. “Me either. But I’ve got an even bigger surprise now.”
Seb lowered the flowers as a smile rounded his cheeks. The baby blue sweater he wore looked especially soft against his skin, and Declan had to pull him into a kiss there before he could say anything more.
Plump lips, soft moans… Some things were exactly the same in Manhattan as they had been in the country.
Seb pulled his lips away. “What’s the surprise? Does it explain why you keep going for walks on your own?”
Declan chuckled. “I wasn’t kidding when I told you I need to figure out my bearings in this city.” He ran his fingers through his hair, then gestured down the street. “I noticed about three operations running on this block alone. But you’re right. That’s not the only reason I’ve been out.” He put his hands on Seb’s shoulders, then pointed them both across the street, gesturing toward a building with a big blue awning and an open garage door. “That is.”
Seb turned over his shoulder to Declan and arched an eyebrow. “A shipping company?”
He released him with a grin. “I got a job there. A gig that’s above board, with a steady paycheck and everything. I’ve been up close and personal with enough of my family’s shipping operations that I know how they run, and the owner was happy to have someone who could lend a little muscle, too, when it was needed.”
Seb’s lips parted open. He looked confused as he stared up at Declan. “Working for a shipping company? Are you sure you want to do that?”
Declan snorted. “It’s an honest job. Management, even. Nothing wrong with that. And I figured it would be good for me to have something steady while we’re getting situated. This way, you can focus on your work and spend your time at those laboratories Alexandria was talking about, without having to worry about me distracting you.”
Seb stared a moment longer, then launched himself forward. He wrapped his arms around Declan’s neck and pulled himself up for a kiss, nibbling on Declan’s lip and then releasing it with a whimper.
“I guess that means you like the idea?” Declan asked, suddenly a little shy on the street corner there.
Seb blinked twice. “Kind of,” he said gently. “If that’s what you want to do, of course I’ll support you. But I don’t need you to go to a nine-to-five every day or anything like that, Declan.” He took Declan’s hand, then smelled his flowers again. “You’re perfect exactly as you are. Come on, I want to show you something.”
“Oh yeah?”
Seb started down the street, their hands still laced together. “Yeah, this way. I was going to wait, but I guess there’s no reason to hold off now.” He led them down into the subway, which hummed with the sounds of people passing and the song of a guitar down the platform. When they got to their spot, he finally let go of Declan’s hand to face him again. “You’d really work a boring job for me?” he asked.
Declan shrugged. “I don’t know. I’ve tried it all the other ways. Maybe it wouldn’t totally suck.” Seb raised his eyebrow and gave Declan a sassy grin. “Okay,” Declan laughed. “It would suck. But that’s okay.”
“You don’t have to explain it to me,” Seb answered. “You saw how far I was willing to go to avoid working in a laboratory. Some people just don’t fit into those structures very well. We have to find a different way. A way that we can make on our own.”
