Dom had let him sleep over, and this was what he did.
“It’s fine,” Dom said behind him. “Just a small fire.”
“You don’t know that.” Gods, Jesse didn’t want Dom to start judging him again. For burning a pot of potatoes, of all things.
But Dom just leaned in and kissed his shoulder. “At worst, we’ll step outside. Let the station guys put it out.”
Easy for him to say, when he wasn’t the one being knotted. Jesse tried to scramble off the bed, groaning when Dom’s knot tugged inside him. Pleasure hummed through his veins. That knot was thick, heavy, and it pressed inside him with every movement he made—reminding him of exactly where they were joined. And how Jesse had let Dom fuck him again.
Stop thinking about that, he told himself. Focus on the fire.
Dom moved slower than him, though. That didn’t help when Jesse needed to be in the kitchen right this instant. He tugged on the knot, trying to make Dom hurry. Instead, Dom wrapped a sturdy arm around his waist, anchoring them together. “Don’t run off. I don’t want you to hurt yourself.”
“Then move faster, old man!” Jesse scowled.
Dom slapped his thigh—a light jolt of pain. It wasn’t much, but the shock was enough to turn his thoughts sideways. It didn’t feel good.
Dom immediately pressed his palm against the stinging spot, rubbing it. “Sorry.”
Jesse shook it off and tugged Dom across the room. Bad enough that they couldn’t move like they would with an ordinary fire. Every step involved them shuffling together, Dom’s cock wedged inside Jesse—decadent and so wrong.
When they finally stepped into the hallway, Jesse could see that some smoke had escaped the kitchen, but not so much. Like Dom had said, it was just a small fire.
“Extinguisher’s in the corner,” Dom murmured.
Yeah, Jesse had seen it. He had one in his own kitchen, too. Just in case.
In the kitchen, they headed over to the stove, where orange flames flickered in the pot of potatoes. Jesse’s heart sank. He pressed the lever on the extinguisher. Fire retardant hissed out of the nozzle, blanketing the pot and stove.
The fire sputtered out. In its place was a mess of burnt potatoes, and the stovetop that had been so clean before this. Jesse sighed. “I’ll clean it up.”
“Don’t worry about it.” Dom took the extinguisher from him, setting it aside. Then he turned off the stove, shuffled them across the kitchen, and threw open the windows. He reset the fire alarm, too.
Jesse shuffled them back, grabbing a roll of paper towels. Dom took the paper towels away. Jesse glared over his shoulder. “My fuck-up, Dom. I can handle it.”
Dom sighed and shrugged, handing the towels back. “You’re a guest, but fine.”
He stood with Jesse, though, wrapping his arm lightly around Jesse’s waist. While Jesse wiped down the stove, Dom nuzzled his nape. Jesse almost dropped the paper towels.
“Why’re you being like this?” he muttered. Then he could’ve kicked himself—he wanted more kisses from Dom. He didn’t know how to ask for them, though. And he wasn’t going to kiss Dom himself. He didn’t want to seem desperate.
“Being like what?” Dom asked. He kissed Jesse’s neck again, a soft, damp touch.
Jesse tingled all over. In his time after the Facility, he’d slept around a bit, just to see what all the fuss about intimacy was about. But he’d never been kissed like that before. Nothing soft and gentle and sweet, like Dom had given him tonight. For no reason at all.
“I’m not an omega,” Jesse said, his voice snagging in his throat. He remembered his dad, who had been so proud when Jesse presented as alpha. Dad had bought him a cake with Super Alpha on it, and they’d taken pictures with Mom and Jesse’s sister, Kelly.
“You don’t have to be an omega to get kisses like that.” And Dom kissed him again.
Jesse’s heart thudded so fervently, he thought he might’ve gotten palpitations.
Dom was just... Dom. Dom had given him donuts. So many of them. He’d held Jesse through his episodes, he’d given Jesse all these kisses. Jesse shouldn’t want his lips all over. He shouldn’t want Dom’s kisses to mean more.
He shouldn’t want Dom to treat him like he was important.
“I think it’s finally receding,” Dom murmured. He grasped Jesse’s hips, slowly tugging on his knot. It had gone down slightly, but there was enough of a bump that it couldn’t leave Jesse’s body easily.
Gods, he’d let Dom knot inside him. And it had felt like the best sort of belonging in the world. It still did.
When Dom’s knot went down... would he stop the kisses? Jesse didn’t want to find out.
“Something wrong?” Dom asked. He leaned closer, his breath warm on Jesse’s neck. “You keep tensing around me.”
Damn it. Dom could feel that? Jesse flushed. “Nothing’s wrong.”
Dryly, “You forget that I’ve watched you for three years, Sinclair. Something’s wrong.”
Part of Jesse didn’t want to risk saying anything. The other part wanted to just let go, and blurt out all his dark, guilty thoughts. It wasn’t as though he had any dignity left. He’d raised his ass for Dom. He’d begged Dom to fuck him.
But asking for kisses... that was a whole ‘nother ball game. He swallowed. Then he waited until Dom’s knot had fully receded, when there wasn’t any chance of Dom being intimate again, before he said, “The kisses.”
Dom slid out, leaving an aching emptiness inside Jesse. Then he turned Jesse around, meeting his eyes. “What about the kisses?”
Jesse’s face burned, betraying him. His tongue stopped working.
Dom studied him—still no judgment. But there was the hint of a smile on his lips. Fondness? “You want more?”
Something on Jesse’s face must’ve given him away, because Dom leaned in, brushing their lips together. A light touch, soft enough to be a promise. Jesse’s heart stopped. And Dom kissed him again. He didn’t once pull away, only drawing Jesse closer, their breaths mingling, his warmth radiating into Jesse’s
