Page 29 of Epidermis

“I believe I exhausted what the convention has to offer, so I’ll be staying here, but I would be happy to bring you lunch,” Konrad said, lounging in bed.

Jasper swallowed, looking him over. He loved when Konrad’s hair was in his face instead of combed back. His eyes wandered lower and Konrad thought he was being slick with the book he had open in his lap, but Jasper could just barely see the tent in his pajama pants, and realized with a pang of envy that Konrad was probably going to relieve that problem as soon as Jasper was gone. What Jasper didn’t know was what he envied more; Konrad getting to have release, or that Jasper couldn’t stay and provide it.

It was as though they’d been dancing around their attraction before last night, and now that it had been acknowledged, it had rushed to the forefront all at once and filled every space they occupied together.

He sat on the edge of the bed to pull his boots on. Konrad slid across the bed to sit behind him, his chin on Jasper’s shoulder. “Let me take you to dinner this evening.”

“You shouldn’t get so close to me to ask that, you’re making it sound like a date.”

“I intended it as such.”

“Oh.” A flutter of nerves beat against the inside of Jasper’s stomach. What happens in Vegas, he reminded himself. “Well, I guess I’ll have to stop by here first so I can get dolled up for you.”

It was a joke, but the look on Konrad’s face and the fact he was seemingly speechless was worth the anxiety Jasper felt about going on a date. They felt like they were so far past that and not there yet, all at the same time. He looked back at Konrad and laughed when he found dark eyes already watching him go.

“Creep,” Jasper called out as he left the room.

“Hopelessly besotted,” Konrad corrected as the door closed.

Jasper should have known Hiyori would clock him immediately. He barely got sat down before she was there, pulling a chair up next to him, grinning like the Cheshire Cat and just as mischievous. Konrad being in Vegas with them was her doing, after all.

“Can I help you?” Jasper asked, pretending to look at something in his sketchbook.

“What happened last night? I want to know everything.”

“I’m sure you do.” Jasper drew aimless lines on a blank sheet like it was the most important thing he’d ever done. “Nothing happened, Hiyori. He made sure I got to bed and we slept. That’s it.”

He left out the part where he propositioned Konrad. He definitely left out the part where he agreed to go on a date with him later.

“I’m glad he took care of you. He seems like a good guy,” Hiyori said, her smile softening as she stood up. She dragged her rolling chair back over to her booth, seeming more pleased with Jasper’s answer than if he’d recited the salacious details of a drunken hookup.

Her dropping the subject so quickly made him wonder if that was the answer she actually wanted. They were close to the same age but he had the sneaking suspicion she had her big sister hat on today. It came naturally, as she was the oldest sister to her five siblings. As a rule, Jasper didn’t like people prying into his personal life but he knew any of Hiyori’s interrogations came from a place of care.

He was glad it was such a busy day. Time passed quickly, and before he knew it, Konrad was showing up with lunch. He seemed determined to be liked by Jasper’s coworkers, so he’d brought them food as well. Konrad kissed his cheek in parting and Jasper was so flustered that he barely noticed Hiyori’s tiny squeak of excitement at what she’d just witnessed. It was beyond him how he’d kept his composure while Konrad had felt his naked upper body that morning, but a kiss on the cheek sent him into a full factory reset. He decided it was all Konrad’s fault. Suave, gorgeous, Danish bastard.

His stomach was doing an Olympic gymnastics routine when he cleaned up for the day. He said goodbye to Hiyori and walked back to the hotel, hands in his pockets, his brain in overdrive as it searched for any remnant of the sensible Jasper Hayes who’d gotten on the plane. That man had been steadily deteriorating from the moment Konrad sat next to him on said plane, and his brief attempt at cutting Konrad out of his life had fallen to pieces.

Jasper put his card against the scanner and walked into their room. There was no Konrad, only a note on Jasper’s pillow, written on the hotel stationary.

Jasper,

I understand that even though we can leave our ventures into foreign territory behind when we return home, those ventures remain frightening. I hope I have not made you feel pressured or overwhelmed. With regards to that, I’ve given you privacy to change your mind without my presence to influence you. You have my complete understanding if our date is no longer something you wish to attend. If it is, you will find me at the address below.

Yours,

Konrad

Konrad was giving him an out. Things had moved fast since last night, and he was giving Jasper the chance to back out without having to do it to his face.

If anything, the note only made Jasper more certain he wanted to go.

Maybe that was the point. It would be an effective manipulation tactic, one that Konrad was certainly smart enough to implement. But Jasper liked to think it was genuine. He only ever saw the darkness in people, mistrusted their intentions, but he found himself wanting to see the best in Konrad. Choosing to see the best in him. It was a leap of faith that made Jasper feel like he was just begging to crash to the ground.

He showered and put on an outfit he’d brought without any expectation he would end up wearing it. He’d never worn it anywhere, but he kept it around on the off chance he worked up the nerve to put it on. The high-waisted pants fit like a glove until they flared out at the calves and required the sacrifice of underwear unless he wanted lines to show. The black, long-sleeved shirt had a low, draped neckline that fell to the bottom of his pecs. He loosely tucked it into the wide, corset-style leather belt that snapped into place at his back. The front of the shirt not only dipped low but also wide, just shy of exposing his nipples. He self-consciously pulled the sides inward to cover more of his chest.

He put on some eyeliner, then smudged it with his pinky finger since that had worked well enough for the award ceremony. He’d been wearing layered silver necklaces at the convention—a shorter herringbone chain, and a longer box chain with a silver snake pendant that came to the center of his chest—and he put those back on.

The outfit screamed “trying too hard” but he didn’t have time to change. Konrad was waiting for him to either show up or… not show up, and Jasper didn’t want to take so long that Konrad thought he’d taken the offer to back out of their date. So he walked out of their room before he could lose his nerve.