Chapter 8
Jazz stood in front of his mirror and considered himself. His fingers lifted to smooth the materials of the frothy cravat he was wearing, under a fitted frock coat in a heavy, silken dove-grey material. Xavier had told him to wear a suit for their date, and this was the closest thing that he had to a conventional suit in his wardrobe. Hey, it had a tie! Sort of...and a suit coat, as well as close-fitting medium-grey pants with a small white pinstripe pattern, and slightly heeled boots with buckles on them. He'd applied a smoky grey eyeshadow to accentuate his eyes and make him look even sexier, as well as a rich mascara that threw his eyelashes into startling relief. He wanted Xavier to be drowning in lust tonight; to regret asking Jazz to be celibate for two weeks.
He pouted at the mirror at this thought. Even though he understood Xavier's concerns about his ability to remain faithful to anyone, two weeks without any sex was bound to kill him! Especially when he was dating a guy as sexy as Xavier Paretiss. Even the thought of that gorgeous, muscular body made Jazz start to drool heavily.
He made a small sound of discomfort as a pinch at his groin brought him out of his daydream. He reached down to readjust himself as best as he could in the form-fitting(though not skin-tight, not tonight!) pants, wondering how he was even going to get through dinner without losing it. He'd probably end up attacking Xavier across the table in the restaurant. The man just made him so crazy, so hot and bothered...it wasn't fair!
Jazz scowled at his mirror as he finished his primping. It sucked that Xavier had so much more control over himself than Jazz did. He wanted that big bastard to suffer just as much as he was. To feel frenzied with lust, and to want Jazz so much that he couldn't help himself. For one thing, that would mean that he'd get laid far sooner than anticipated. But he suspected that Xavier was an expert at controlling his desires. Jazz sighed in resigned disgust, leaving his bedroom to go into his kitchen and snag a drink of water. Two whole weeks. That was an eternity for a guy like him. Xavier was being very cruel in his request to a known slut...
There was a knock at his front door. Jazz set down the glass he'd been drinking out of on the counter and went over to peer through the peephole. Then he opened the door, revealing Xavier standing there looking more scrumptious than ever. The suit he was wearing was clearly very expensive, hand-tailored to his big body. He was wearing a maroon silk tie that Jazz definitely approved of. And he'd had his hair cut into a more becoming style for his craggy face. He just looked...edible.
"Good evening, Jazz," he rumbled.
"Good evening, Xavier," he replied.
The other man's eyes skimmed over him. "I thought I told you to wear a suit," Xavier commented.
Jazz shrugged. "This is the closest thing that I have to a suit. I'm not a suit-type person," he said tartly.
"I see. Well, that's close enough to a suit and tie that I doubt they'll turn us away at Le Cirque. And it's very becoming, I have to admit," Xavier said. "You look gorgeous, Jazz."
He preened, running his fingers lightly through his artfully coiffed silvery locks. "Thank you. and you look very handsome," he replied, his eyes doing another trip over the powerful figure in the black suit.
Xavier's lips lifted slightly at the corners. "If you say so."
Jazz bridled. "You do!" he cried.
"It's nice that you think I'm handsome, even if that's not the case," Xavier remarked. "Shall we go?"
Jazz stepped out into the hallway and turned to lock his front door behind him. When he turned back around, Xavier held out his arm. Jazz eyed it cynically. I'm not a woman," he pointed out acerbically.
"I never said you were," Xavier replied calmly. "But when a man goes out for an evening, he wants an attractive person on his arm. Is it wrong of me to want to show off the beauty that I managed to get to go out with me?"
Jazz's vanity won out over any objections that he might have had, and he readily twined his arm with Xavier's. "You have an answer for everything, don't you?"
Xavier smiled slightly as they began to walk down the hallway together toward the elevator. "I try," he said.
Down on the street, Xavier indicated a sleek black car pulled up to the curb. Jazz walked over to it, and Xavier opened the door for him. He sank into the black leather seat, blissfully enjoying its butter-soft texture. Xavier closed the door and came around to get in the other side. "This is classy," Jazz remarked, running a hand over the leather.
"Yes, and it has some nice features," Xavier remarked as he nodded at the driver to pull away from the curb. he leaned forward and pulled open a hidden door, revealing a built-in mini bar stocked with some tiny bottles of champagne and long-stemmed glasses. Xavier pulled out two of the small bottles and a pair of glasses. "A glass of champagne, Jazz?" he asked.
"Yes, that'll be nice," Jazz replied happily, leaning back into the comfortable seat.
Xavier opened the bottles and poured them both a glass of champagne. He handed one to Jazz, who took it and sipped at it the frothy stuff. It was slightly chilled, just right, and it tasted good on his tongue. Xavier leaned back in his seat and lifted his glass. "To us, Jazz," he said seriously. "And to whatever this might become."
Jazz clinked glasses with him. "To us," he agreed. Then he gasped as Xavier leaned over and drank form his glass, all the while watching Jazz with hungry eyes. He almost moaned aloud, his body reacting violently to the sight of the shimmer of champagne on Xavier’s top lip when he pulled back. "T-That wasn't nice," he moaned, shuddering.
Xavier licked at his lip to capture the champagne, almost finishing him off. "I know," he said softly. "But I couldn’t help myself. You're very sexy, Jazz. You make me regret my two-week 'no sex' proposal, even though I know it will help me to trust you."
Jazz felt a surge of relief and smugness that Xavier seemed to be feeling almost as much lust and frustration as he was; it had infuriated him that he seemed to be alone in suffering. But if he could share the pain, that was all for the good...he smiled his most sultry smile at Xavier, and lowered his lids over his eyes seductively. "Yes, this 'no sex' rule is going to be very HARD for me," he purred, the fingers of his free hand sliding down his throat toward his supersternal notch.
Xavier made a small sound rather like a growl, his eyes darkening. "Talk about not nice," he said, his lips curling in a dangerous smile. "If you keep that up, Jazz, I'll have to punish you."
"Will you? Oh, goodie," Jazz replied happily.
Xavier shook his head. "I promise it won't be the good kind of punishment, Jazz," he remarked silkily.
Jazz swallowed a bit in trepidation. He didn’t want to find out what the ‘bad’ kind of punishment might be; he suspected that he wouldn't like it, whatever it was. "Fine," he pointed, folding his arms over his chest mutinously. "You’re no fun."
"Oh, I can be," Xavier replied ."I can be lots of fun. Which you'll find out one of these days, Jazz, I promise..."
The car pulled up at the restaurant. Xavier got out and came around to help him out, taking Jazz's hand. He felt a spark of electricity as their skin touched, and his breathing came short. Xavier obviously felt it too, because he released Jazz's hand almost immediately. He stepped back. He tried hard not to smirk, not wanting to make Xavier angry. But he put just the tiniest switch in his hips as they entered the restaurant. 'Take that, you big, sexy bastard!' he thought gleefully. 'Make me go for two weeks without sex, will you? Then you'll have to suffer too!'
The maitre'd seated them at the table that Xavier had reserved for this evening, and left them with menus. Jazz looked up at the ceiling, where light fixtures that resembled orange umbrellas shed a soft light over the room. "I haven’t been in here for awhile," he remarked. "Since before they remodeled. It's...interesting."
"Yes. This modernistic style has never been to my taste; but to each their own," Xavier replied with a shrug.
"Yes, I've noticed that you like old things," Jazz remarked as he began to scan his menu.
"Not old things, Jazz, antiques. Things that have stood the test of time because they're beautiful and strong. Much like you'll be at age seventy, I presume."
Jazz lowered his menu and eyed Xavier suspiciously. "What's that supposed to mean? That you think I'm an antique?"
"No, not right now I don't. But I'm just assuming that you'll age well as you get older, that’s all. Something tells me that you'll be a gorgeous silver fox who younger men will lust after in droves."
Jazz considered this. "I like that," he replied.
Xavier's lips quirked. "I thought you might."
"Hey, you knew I was vain when you first met me. If that didn't stop you from associating with me, that's on you," Jazz pointed out with a grin.
Xavier chuckled. "You have me there. This is all my fault. And I'll probably regret it, but..."
"Hey!" Jazz protested vigorously.
Xavier's smile widened. He winked at Jazz, who sniffed at this audacity and went back to scanning his menu. Their waiter arrived, and Xavier ordered them a bottle of red wine as well as the Colorado Rack of Lamb for himself, while Jazz chose the Long Island Muscovy Duck. He’d always liked duck, and had heard that it was very well-prepared here. He was starting to feel very hungry. He hadn't eaten since lunch. And while he knew that duck was decadent, and he had to be careful of his calorie intake, he was going to indulge himself for once. One dinner wasn't going to make him fat.
"While we wait for our meals to come, we could have a casual conversation," Xavier said. "Part of dating is getting to know each other better."
"I'm all for getting to know you better," Jazz replied saucily, giving Xavier the glad eye.
He shook his head. "Not just parts of me, Jazz. You have to get to know all of me better."
Jazz pretended to pout. "Now I realize why I don't date," he said with a sniff.
Xavier shrugged. "It might not be as bad as you assume, Jazz. Just give it a chance."
"All right, I will. But this had better be the best sex that I've ever had," he added.
Xavier's eyes went a little lidded, making him catch his breath. "Trust me, Jazz," he rumbled, "It will be."
A/N: Poor Jazzy, having to wait. Will he make it? Wait and see...
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