Jay's Loelife Ch. 19

"Definitely not cooler. Taller? Sure. Blonder? Okay, I'll give you that. But cooler?" Matt shakes his head.

Jay glares at him in the playful way they do. "I did not ditch my flight for this crap. Besides--" he points to me, "This guy has a pretty full schedule. So you're stuck with me, Sucka."

Matt crosses his arms and pouts while Jay makes childish neener neener gestures. I look at Seamus in disbelief. "Is this really happening?"

He sighs like a resigned mother in a house full of unruly children. "You'll get used to it."

Aidan squirms until Jay sets him down then comes running to me. His giant grin is pretty damn contagious. "Lowen!" he says with uppy arms.

I grin down at his smiling face. "Heyo Aido. Wass up?"

He grips my jeans and tries to climb up. Before his toes can bruise my shins, I grab the waistband on his pants and heft him the rest of the way up. He scoots around and then he sits on my lap like a little adult, waiting for the conversation to continue.

I chuckle. "Okay then."

Jay hasn't seen his friends since we watched Aidan back in June, so they spend the next few hours catching up. I jump between conversation with them and working on my laptop.

After dinner we deep dive into life in Denver. Seamus is going through a bunch of drama. In January when we last talked about his legal crap, Matt had found some evidence that Mike, Seamus's accountant, had embezzled money from under Seamus's nose. Since then, it's turned into a giant fiasco where Mike and Seamus' dead ex-husband's family are suing Seamus for everything his husband left him. Talk about a clusterfuck.

The more they share the story, the more ridiculous it gets. There are five businesses ranging from car dealerships to high end restaurants. They may have started out as Kelly's but it's Seamus who built them into what they are now. The café he owns was nothing, now it's one of the most popular coffee shops in the area. In fact, the loesdrinkoftheweek hashtag started there.

Worst part is, there's a small chance Seamus could lose simply because his in-laws are cunning bastards with a lot of clout.

But so are Jay and I. And I think Seamus isn't too bad off himself. Between the three of us, we can afford a killer team of lawyers. But that's not all of it. I get the impression that his in-laws are image driven, which is why they want what's not rightfully theirs.

"You know..." I start even though I haven't fully vested my own thoughts. "I bet a little spotlight on the situation might dissuade your in-laws from pressing forward."

Seamus narrows his eyes. "What do you mean?"

"They seem to care a lot about image, if you share what you're going through online, they might not like the negative attention they'd get."

"They wouldn't, but I don't know that my seven-hundred followers will have much of an impact."

"Yours might not, but mine would definitely cause some waves."

Jay sees what's happening, so does Matt.

Matt leans forward with his elbows on his knees. He's into this. "How would we do it? I mean, if we decided to air the laundry..."

"Off the top of my head, we'd do exactly what we're doing now, just a casual conversation. We'll get flooded with questions, so we'll need to keep the initial conversation going for two to four days while we build critical mass."

"Two to four days?" Seamus asks, looking more hesitant than a minute ago.

"Not everyone tunes in every day. Story clips last for twenty-four hours. We need to make sure people have time to tune in. I would save everything to a highlight, that way, no matter when someone joins the conversation, they'll have all the info. But that will just be a start. We'll need to make this a regular topic."

"Are you sure you'd want to take that on?" Matt asks. "It sounds like a big commitment."

"Sounds like a good cause."

Jay hands Seamus a fresh beer then sits next to me. "I think it's something to be considered. I for one would love to watch their dirty little secrets be brought to light, courtesy of social media's best detectives. Drag them damn skeletons out of the closet."

We talk about pros and cons. In the end, it's their call. If they want me to run with it, I will. I don't think any of them really comprehend the magnitude of what will happen. Once it goes live, millions of people will descend on Seamus' in-laws and his ex-accountant. It will be complete mayhem for them.

It could potentially ruin them, which is the point. It's also why I'm extremely careful about what I share on any given day.

****

The sun barely peeks through the window. It's fucking early. Earlier than normal. I pad out of bed with one eye barely open.

While I workout in Jay's home gym, I have a sudden vision of a video that would be absolutely hilarious. I'll need Jay. I set the weights down and jog upstairs with a smile.

He's still in bed. Aidan's giggles fill the room as Jay tosses him around the bed. He spies me and pulls Aidan into his lap. He waits for me to speak. He knows something is coming. I have a certain look when I'm about to drag him into a creative project.

"Basic concept: I'm working out in the gym when I hear Vengaboys: Boom Boom Boom playing. Intrigued, I follow the music. I open the door and find you wearing 80's workout gear--neon from head to toe, tight shorts, the whole thing--doing a fast-paced, bodypump workout. Instead of leaving, I put on a matching workout headband and join you."

Jay laughs. "Sign me up."

Over breakfast Jay tells Seamus and Matt. Matt's quick to offer him and Seamus in whatever capacity I need. More the merrier. We find everything we need, so we film right after breakfast. It's a simple video, and an hour later I have the finished product.

It's fucking hilarious. The cake is that Jay is wearing tight 80's spandex, looking like Richard Simmons but with better hair and a less creepy smile, while workout-dancing to Vengaboys.

Within an hour it has over twenty million views.

I'll post the outtakes. Mostly it's Aidan being fucking adorable with a neon pink headband and little 1lb weights that he ends up flinging across the room while he dances.

I have a photoshoot and a podcast interview. Instead of ditching everyone and catching up later, they join me.

"This will probably be pretty boring," I tell them as we load up in Jay's Sequoia.

"I think it's fun!" Matt says. "Behind the scenes stuff is fascinating."

The photoshoot is for Rockwears new line. The shoot itself is at Rock Steady. Everything is set up when we get there. Jay, Matt, and Seamus stand off to the side and watch. I'm used to people watching but Jay's never watched me before. While he's doing football, I'm doing my thing. They don't tend to overlap like this. Not for me. Even in the off season, Jay is busy.

I'm suspended from the wall, decked out from head to toe. The photographer is hanging from the ceiling. He rapidly fires the camera then lowers it and looks at me.

"Why don't we lose the shirt? I'd like to see your back muscles engaged as you climb."

I look down at Jay. It's his call. It's not something we've talked about in a long time but I haven't been shirtless in over a year. Jay shrugs like it's my call to make but he looks nervous. He doesn't want to stand here in front of a dozen people and be the stage boyfriend who won't let his boyfriend be half naked.

But he is the stage boyfriend and he doesn't want his boyfriend half naked.

I look at Dan. "Nah, you know what they say, modest is hottest. I think this tank will suffice. We could roll up the sleeves on a tee? Either way, we can make it work."

Dan is less than impressed but I know how to make this shit work. This ain't my first rodeo. In the end, I bring both options to life. Or it could be the peek of my abs. Either way, Dan is smiling as we wrap up.

Then we head downtown to Ryan Warner's office for a podcast interview. It's a quick interview, less than thirty minutes.

"Are there wedding bells in your future?" Ryan asks Jay. "Is that something you see?"

Fuck. What are these questions? I stare at Jay, waiting to see what shit-storm he's about to start.

He smiles. "Marriage? I'm just happy Loren wants to hold my hand."

"But someday?" Ryan presses. "It would be quite the wedding."

"Here's the thing, Ryan. The future is full of possibilities and what-ifs. But I don't live there, I live here, where I am. I don't want to waste what I have today thinking about what I could have tomorrow. Will Loren and I marry?" Jay shrugs. Who knows. "Is he here with me now? Yes. Will I see if he wants to have dinner with me tonight at Sivi's? Absolutely. These are the things I get to enjoy now. I look forward to whatever will come tomorrow, next week, and next year. And as they unfold, I will enjoy them, just as I enjoy every day I have with Loren."

Well, fuck me.

I'm careful not to react like the love-sick fool I feel. I can't take my eyes off Jay when we leave, or as we drive around Seattle, or when we take Seamus, Matt, and Aidan to Sivi's for dinner.

But once everyone is in bed...

I crawl on top of him and kiss him until he's all love-drunk and hard. We roll around naked for the better part of an hour, just enjoying the here and now.

****

Jay is sleeping but he's also naked and hella tempting. I slide my hand under the blanket, over his hip and... He moves against me as he slowly rouses from his slumber. Mmmm. I lean forward, letting my intentions press against his ass cheek and slide my hand between his legs.

"Good mornin--"

The door flies open with incredible speed, bouncing off the door stop.

Startled to all hell because, again, this wouldn't be the first time someone's broke it. I sit up. "What the--"

A little mop of brown hair bobs across the floor. Jay's bed is tall, taller than Aidan. Little hands reach up and grab the comforter. He grunts and whines as he tries to get up. Jay reaches down, grabs Aidan by the back of his pajamas, and lifts him up and over like a crane. Aidan's grinning with his arms out. "Weeeeeee."

Potato stumbles into my lap, which makes me realize--

I tighten the sheets around my waist and suck in a breath. "I'm naked!" I whisper-shout, glaring at Jay because it's his fault that there's a kid in his house, interrupting sexy, naked time.

Jay laughs, completely unbothered that he, too, is naked.

Terror takes over when Aidan starts to dig his way under the sheets next to me. My eyes widen. I open my mouth to ask Jay if it's a bit pedo to be naked with the potato, but before I can question any of it, the door, which bounced its way half closed, opens once more. Matt and Seamus stand there, looking for their lost spud.

Now I'm naked in a bed with a two-year-old while his parents stand there like it's no big deal.

Matt waves at his kid brother. "We were wondering where Sir Escapes-a-lot fled to."

Aidan smiles proudly, perched between me and Jay with the sheets pulled up to his belly. At some point between me panicking and Matt and Seamus making it worse, Aidan got a hold of Jay's phone and is now trying to unlock it. Good. Jay can spend a small fortune this time.

Jay keys the numbers in and ruffles his hair. "He had to see his favorite uncle first thing." And then, because it can't get more awkward, Jay tells his friends to take a seat on the bed...where I'm currently naked...with their kid.

I sink down in bed and pull the covers over my head. I've never been modest. The opposite, really. The world has seen just about all there is to see of me. I work hard for my body and I've always loved to show it off. One year of keeping it under wraps and suddenly I'm some blushing virgin.

They don't leave. I swear they hang out on the bed simply to watch me struggle. When they finally leave, taking Aidan with them, I fling the sheets off and hurry to the bathroom. "I've had to pee for a fucking hour!"

Jay laughs the entire time I relieve myself. When I get out of the shower, he's dressed. Jay takes one look at me and starts laughing again. I glare and then stomp out. He doesn't even care I was gonna suck his dick.

We spend the day working. Well, I spend the day working; they spend the day watching. It's not so bad. Jay suggests we have a big dinner, so while Seamus and Matt spend the entire day out and about, Jay and I take Aidan shopping with us.

"Here," Jay says, kind of shoving me out of the way to make room for a giant monstrosity of a stool.

"Why does it look like a little boom truck?"

He looks at the stool and laughs. "It's a stool for little kids. The boom part of the stool has rails and a black nylon strap to keep them from falling off. This way Aidan can help. I even bought this cute chef's hat. Check it out."

Aidan's pretty damn cute. His shoulders straighten, the hat making his job as a chef that much more serious. He means business. But help? Aidan absolutely does not. It's fun though. I set the tripod up and film the whole thing. Aidan particularly enjoys making mashed potatoes with his hands. And eating it...and then putting his slobbered hands back in the bowl to stir some more...and then eat some more. By the time his dads get back from their day-date, everything's just about done. We sit down and dish up our plates. I avoid Aidan's special mashed potatoes but grin as everyone else digs in.

I'm ready when Aidan joins us in bed again the next morning. Full attire, baby, including socks, much to Jay's amusement.

I leave before breakfast. With the launch going live at midnight, Isaac, Cole, Corey, and I have a very busy Thanksgiving. I only talk to Jay for a moment. It's cut short because he's promised his parents a Facetime since he bailed on the families Thanksgiving plans. I can't say I'm disappointed to be out of the house for that conversation.

Thursday flows seamlessly into Friday with almost no sleep. Now it's Saturday and the guys and I are at the warehouse, per tradition.

I grab the first order, box it, and then throw it a little something extra. "Samuel Monterey from Maine, this is for you! Congratulations on placing the FIRST order of the launch!"

The rest of the crew show up at eight. The place is bustling. Around eight-thirty, Jay comes in with Aidan on his hip and Matt and Seamus at his side.

"We're here to help."

We don't really need help, but it's not about that. I put them to work. Aidan rises in the ranks, and before long, he's foreman of the entire operation. Someone even gives him a safety vest and hard hat. I don't know where either come from and they're way too big, but it makes an adorable fucking picture and everyone eats it up. That kid is an engagement goldmine.

The only thing people like more than an adorable little kid, is an adorable little kid with Jay, or myself, or Jay and I together.

****

I stretch out on the sofa with my legs crossed at the ankles. Bringing the toasted vanilla latte to my lips, I savor the quietness of an empty house. Jay is likely on his way home from taking Seamus, Matt, and Aidan to the airport.

I can't believe the week is over. I had pretty low expectations. Work, work, work and all that. Somehow, Jay made it fun. I got everything done plus some, yet it barely felt like a chore. I hardly even noticed it was Thanksgiving. For the first time since I can remember, I kind of wished I'd celebrated. The dinner, though not on Thanksgiving itself, has been nice. I liked cooking with Jay and eating with friends.

I bring the drinks to my lips for another drink and pause. Jay is such a sneaky bastard. An evil mastermind disguised as a blonde bombshell, here to ruin me.

And I love him for it.

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