“But he doesn’t like me.”
“I’m sure that’s very difficult for your ego,” Andrew says, moving in front of Nicholas. So close, yet not close enough to satisfying Nicholas.
“I don’t give a fuck who likes me so long as you do,” Nicholas admits.
“I like you, quite a lot.”
“Enough to go get naked with me and cuddle?” Nicholas questions, situating his hands on Andrew’s hips.
The shift in Andrew’s posture is undeniable, his shoulders sagging as he sways forward. Nicholas is there, pulling Andrew against his chest into a tight embrace.
“Don’t wanna be naked,” Andrew mumbles into his shoulder. He lets out a deep sigh, the weight of it heavy, like maybe he’s been holding something in for a long time.
“Why?”
“M’cold.”
“Cold?” Nicholas echoes, reaching for Andrew’s chin and tipping it up so he can press his lips to his forehead. “You’re warm.”
“No, I’m cold,” Andrew counters, despite the heat radiating off his body.
“You look tired, too,” Nicholas notes, not liking the implications of this combo. Has Andrew not been taking care of himself while Nicholas was on the road?
“Is that your way of saying I look like shit?” Andrew asks.
Now that he’s voiced it, Nicholas can’t help but notice that he looks worse for wear. There are dark circles under his eyes, and his normally perfect hair is completely mussed on one side, like he slept hard and forgot to brush it after, very unlike the Andrew he knows.
“You don’t look like shit, you look tired.”
“That’s a tactful way of saying I look like shit,” Andrew huffs, dropping his face to Nicholas’s shoulders. His hands slip beneath Nicholas’s suit jacket, tugging at his shirt until he pulls it out of the waistband. Then his hands settle on the bare skin at Nicholas’s back, and he lets out a contented sigh.
Even without looking, he traces the snake tattoo on Nicholas’s spine, up and down in perfect repetition, almost as if he actually did memorize it before.
“The house was quiet without you,” Andrew murmurs.
“Peaceful quiet?” Nicholas questions, relaxing into the embrace.
How the fuck is it that Andrew can affect him like this? Nicholas has had marathon, mind-blowing sex that didn’t get him as calm as Andrew’s touch. Maybe Andrew’s got magic hands or something. They sure as shit feel like it, every stroke up and down his spine making Nicholas sag.
“Sort of. Lots of time to think after work.”
Nicholas is starting to understand how much Andrew thinks. Possibly more than anyone else he’s ever met.
“About what?”
Andrew’s breathing changes, his inhale slow and deep. “Can we lay down before we talk about it?”
“Yes.” Nicholas kisses the top of his head. “Can I be naked though?”
“Is that a ploy for me to touch you?”
“No ploy, I was going to flat out demand it.”
Andrew’s quiet laughter has Nicholas swelling with pride.
“Lucky for you, I am very amenable to this idea,” Andrew says. “Can you do me a favor though?”
“What’s that, princess?”
