Catalyst (Connectivity Book 2) Read online

  “I’m sorry about earlier,” Jersey whispered into the side of Travis’s head as they held each other tightly.

  “No harm done, babe. It’s forgotten. It was awkward as hell, but with all these little hurdles we cross, I feel like we grow closer together. I know neither of us would want a repeat of certain parts of last night, but it’s over and out of the way now. We can only move forward, and I’m fairly certain we’ll both enjoy it if you give me a little guidance while I practice certain skills.”

  Jersey shivered and Travis chuckled, pressing a kiss to the side of his head.

  Jersey was wrapped around him like a spider monkey, but he pulled back just enough that Travis could see his eyes. “I don’t know how you continue to amaze me, but you do. Everyday. And as uncertain as things have felt between us at times, I know one thing that is certain: I’m just a little bit past falling in love with you.”

  He didn’t give Travis a chance to respond before he pressed their lips together and they lost themselves to their passion and their growing feelings for each other. And later, as they came down from their high, and Jersey tenderly cleaned him up and helped him back into his underwear, Travis knew Jersey had just claimed another piece of his heart.

  -XII-

  The next several days were a blur of rainy weather, Travis working, and the two of them trying to spend as much time together as they could. Even though it was summertime and the weather was usually pleasant, periodic rain showers had cropped up every day.

  When the weather had been sunny, they’d swum in Jersey’s pool and Jersey had attempted to teach him how to play tennis. Herald had given Jersey permission to let Travis and Edgar tour his garage and they’d spent the better part of several hours walking around Jersey’s grandparents’ property, all the while checking in on Edgar, as he’d sketched his heart out around the cars and gardens.

  When the weather had been rainy, Jersey had played the piano for him.

  If his heart hadn’t already been gravitating toward Jersey, listening to him play the piano made Travis’s heart melt into a soft, mushy, pile of goo at Jersey’s feet. Jersey was undeniably talented. He didn’t need sheet music, although sometimes he did bring some out when he tried to show Travis chords or how to read a scale, but Travis listened to him explain about notes and keys and tempos and all the little notations written in the music, and if anyone were to witness their interactions, they probably would have seen cartoon hearts pounding out of Travis’s eyes while he watched Jersey play.

  The man was stunning.

  He lived the music; moving his body to the beat and never missing a note, he vibrated with happiness when he let himself go and just felt. If Travis hadn’t known that Jersey was majoring in business, he would have said music was his true calling, his passion. Travis had never seen anything like it.

  And if he were being completely honest with himself, the last few days had shown him how woefully under-matched he and Jersey were.

  Jersey was complicated and driven. He had passion in his veins to help others that were like him and those who’d had a tough time with family that didn’t accept them for simply being who they were. He was a skilled musician and was set to head off to a four-year university in a few short weeks. The life that he’d lived before he’d moved, and the life that he lived now, had groomed him for success. Sophistication, confidence, and class were just a few of his many stunning characteristics.

  Travis, by comparison, was simply a jock, who earned slightly more than minimum wage handling other peoples cast-offs. He had no special skills or hidden talents, and even though he had a basic idea of what he wanted to study, he didn’t have nearly the same drive that Jersey did.

  It made him feel inadequate in ways he’d never experienced before.

  High school had been Travis’s world; one he’d excelled in. He’d done well in classes and sports and had lots of friends, but once school was over, what did he have to show for himself?

  Jersey seemed to be gloriously escaping his high school shaped prison and had finally found himself with the room to spread his metaphorical wings. He’d been trapped by his circumstances and was finally ready to face his future head-on.

  Travis didn’t know what his future looked like.

  As Friday wound around again, and Travis found himself with the day off from work, he wanted to do something special for Jersey. They’d had a great week and he thought it was high time he did something to show Jersey what he’d come to mean to him. So Travis rose well before the sun and started gathering the things he’d need for the day he had planned.

  As the sun finally crested the horizon, Travis loaded up the bed of his truck and left a note on the counter informing his parents of his plans.

  Jersey answered his phone on the third ring. “Someone better have died.”

  Travis laughed. “Good morning to you too, babe. Come down and open the door for me. I’m almost at your place.” There was a pause and lots of shuffling.

  “What are you doing coming over so early? It’s not that I’m not glad to see you first thing, but did we have plans I forgot about or something?”

  “Not exactly. Just come down and open the door and I’ll explain. I’m just down the street.”

  “Okay. I’ll be right down,” Jersey said around a yawn and Travis smiled, picturing his warm and sleep-rumpled boyfriend.

  “Thanks, babe. See you in a minute.”

  “‘Kay, bye.”

  When Travis pulled into the circular drive a moment later, Jersey was already standing in the doorway, with a sleepy smile, and a robe wrapped around his small frame. Travis cut the engine and leapt out of his truck, jogging the short distance and swooping Jersey up in a massive bear hug.

  Jersey giggled and wrapped his arms and legs around him, while he spun them around a few times. He kissed Travis soundly, once they’d stopped spinning, and Travis kicked the door closed, then carried Jersey up the stairs and down the hall to his room.

  Travis took a moment to look his fill of Jersey as he lay back on the bed enticingly. “Damn, babe. You are one sexy man.” Jersey smiled a gorgeous smile, and ran his hand through his hair, causing his T-shirt to rise and a stripe of skin with dark hair to show above the low waistband of his sleep pants. Leaning over the bed, Travis pulled Jersey’s body closer so his knees bent and his feet hung down over the edge. He pushed his hands into the sides of Jersey’s robe, separating the front, and then slowly slid his hands up under the hem of Jersey’s shirt, exposing more of his smooth and creamy skin as he pushed the shirt up to his collarbone.

  They’d fooled around quite a bit over the last several days and Travis found himself happily back on solid ground in regards to pleasing Jersey. Of course, he’d never really had a problem pleasing his guy, but after the horrific experience of that first blow job, he’d been more than glad for their morning after make-up session.

  In the back of his mind, he’d even gone so far as to think about what make-up sex would be like. He supposed it would be similar to what they’d done Monday morning, except with the actual sex, and not just the naked frotting and humping they’d been doing. Monday morning had been mind-blowing; slow and sensual and exploratory, but also wanton and needy. Travis thought that if they’d connected that well without penetration, he couldn’t imagine what would it be like when they finally took that last step. Of course, he worried that it would hurt and he was admittedly nervous as hell, but he also knew Jersey would never allow either of them to feel anything but pleasure. Which, begrudgingly, somewhere so far buried in the absolute depths of his mind, Travis was the tiniest smidgen of a speck thankful that Jersey had experience and knew what he was doing. But he’d still done his absolute best to forget that information at all costs.

  Bending down low over Jersey’s body, he licked into Jersey’s belly button and smiled against his skin when he squirmed. Travis pressed a kiss to the spot and then proceeded to lick a stripe from Jersey’s navel to his sternum. Jersey moaned softly and gently p
laced his hand on the back of Travis’s head. He nuzzled into Jersey’s neck, playfully nipping along the column up to his ear. Jersey wrapped both arms around him and without warning, pulled him down and somehow managed to flip him onto his back while straddling his hips.

  Travis stared up at Jersey and his Cheshire Cat grin and they both dissolved into laughter. As they regained themselves, Jersey bent forward and placed several kisses to Travis’s lips, jaw, and neck, finally ending at his ear. “What brought you over so early this morning?” Jersey purred and the sound distracted Travis for a moment. Jersey chuckled and nipped at his lobe.

  Travis placed his hands on Jersey’s back and gently rubbed up and down. “I wanted to take you out for the day, just us, on a little road trip. We can take your car if you want, but I have my truck all packed up and ready.”

  Jersey sat up and Travis let his hands slide down his back until he was holding Jersey’s hips. “You planned something for me?” he asked, staring down at Travis like he’d just cured some rare disease.

  “Yeah? I wanted to do something nice for you. Is that okay? You don’t have plans, do you?”

  Jersey smiled and shook his head. “I don’t have any plans. It’s just that,” he paused, looked away, then looked back at Travis, “no one has ever planned something for me before. I mean my mom and grandparents, sure, but even Josh never surprised me with anything on a whim like this. Thank you, Trav. It’s super sweet of you.”

  Travis did an epic abdominal crunch and sat up, cradling Jersey’s head as he spoke. “You’re welcome, first of all. Second of all, you deserve it, and third of all, it makes me a little sad that you’ve never had anyone do nice things for you just because. Although I’m not just anyone, but still. How could I not want to put that beautiful smile on your handsome face? It makes me happy to see you happy. That what a good relationship is about.”

  Jersey wrapped his arms around him and kissed his neck. Travis returned the hug and Jersey pulled back to place a soft, warm kiss on Travis’s lips. “Should I go shower then?” Jersey asked with a hint of excitement in his voice.

  Travis pecked him again and stood quickly, supporting Jersey easily, and carried him into the bathroom. Without setting him down, Travis opened the shower and turned the water on, then set Jersey carefully on the fluffy mat in the center of the room. He quietly closed the door and then slowly removed each article of Jersey’s clothing, paying special attention to each area of newly exposed skin with soft caresses and tender kisses, letting Jersey know exactly how special he was.

  When Jersey stood before him naked and aroused, Travis did the only thing he could do: he removed his own clothes and guided Jersey to the shower.

  The steam from the hot water billowed out when he opened the door, and Jersey entered first with Travis right behind him. The hot water sluiced over both their bodies and Jersey pulled him into a kiss under the spray. Hands roamed and caressed and wandered with free will, and eventually, Travis’s hands found their way down Jersey’s back to his butt.

  Feeling a little bold and more than a little turned on, Travis skimmed his fingers into Jersey’s crease, as their mouths connected and their erections rubbed. Jersey moaned and wiggled his hips, pulling Travis tighter against him. He took the hint and delved in farther, finding his hole and rubbing the pad of his finger in gentle circles around the sensitive area.

  Jersey hitched one leg up on Travis’s hip and opened himself farther for Travis’s exploration.

  Using a light pressure, all the while kissing Jersey soundly, Travis slowly pressed against his entrance, and Jersey moaned loudly enough to be heard easily over the water. Travis withdrew then, feeling that any more and they’d need some lube and possibly a bed. “One of these days, babe,” he said next to Jersey’s ear and Jersey nodded against him, sliding his leg down Travis’s, then back up, sensually caressing him with the move.

  When both his feet hit the ground, he guided Jersey under the spray and proceeded to wash him from head to toe, after which they both paid special attention to certain other body parts before finally climbing out of the shower. They dried off and Travis dressed quickly.

  “Should I wear anything special?” Jersey inquired over his shoulder as he rummaged through his drawers. “I’m not going to ask where we’re going or what we’re doing, because I’ve never had a surprise like this before and I don’t want to ruin it. I’m just asking if I should dress a certain way.”

  Travis grinned and came over, pecking Jersey on the lips. “Just casual is fine. Maybe some good shoes for walking around and probably a jacket, but whatever you choose should be comfortable.”

  Jersey nodded and pecked him again before dressing in a slim fitted red shirt with casually trendy black shorts and some white and black sneakers. He grabbed a black sweater from his closet and with one more trip to the bathroom, declared himself ready.

  “We’ll just drive through somewhere for some breakfast if that’s okay with you?” Travis asked as Jersey gripped his hand and led him down the stairs.

  “That’s fine,” Jersey replied easily as he opened the door, then closed it behind them.

  Travis opened the passenger door for Jersey and soon enough, they were on their way. They swung in for some breakfast and Travis steered them up the freeway. They had about an hour’s drive before their first stop of the day.

  They munched and chatted and Jersey took charge of the radio. Travis’s truck was an older model with a bench seat and a radio that didn’t have any preset buttons. It had never really bothered him much since he just kept it on his favorite station, or the radio off. He wasn’t much caught up by the latest and greatest music. Jersey, however, was appalled at his lack of song knowledge and general lack of pop-culture knowledge on the whole. Travis just shrugged. Maybe with Jersey in his life, he could be the one that kept his finger on that pulse for them.

  After lots of questions from Jersey about celebrities, music, and movies, and lots of shrugs and non-answers from Travis, they finally switched from the freeway to a highway, and Jersey quieted as he realized their possible destination.

  “Are we going to my school?” he asked, looking between the scenery, the posted signage, and Travis.

  “Yeah. Well, that’s our first stop anyway. I thought it would be cool if we explored a little bit together. That way you’re more familiar with the area and I know my way around when I come to visit.”

  Jersey looked at him and smiled with what Travis suspected was a very strong emotion behind his gaze. Jersey had said he was falling in love with him, but Travis didn’t want to assume anything until the words were off his lips. He knew he’d been silently falling for Jersey for a while, as well, but he’d also been trying to hold himself back from getting in too deep. Maybe it wasn’t fair to either of them as their relationship progressed, but some part of him kept reminding him that Jersey could never be his in the way a true Complement would be.

  “Thank you, Trav. This is the sweetest thing. I’ve been kinda freaking out about how fast school is coming and I’ve been a little nervous about the whole moving-away-from-home and living-by-myself thing. I know I’ll probably have some jerk for a roommate, but hopefully, I’ll make some friends too. It makes me so happy that you’re already planning to visit and still want to be with me. I guess just like anyone, somewhere in my mind is the worry that we wouldn’t make it and that a long-distance thing wouldn’t work out. Granted it’s only like an hour away, but still. I’m moving. And we won’t get to see each other all the time anymore and we’re both going to be busy with school…” Jersey trailed off, looking down at Travis’s hands on the wheel. When his head lifted, Travis glanced at him again. “I’m really happy that you’re already thinking past the summer,” Jersey finished and unbuckled to slide across the seat to kiss Travis on the cheek. Travis wrapped his arm around him, as Jersey took the lap belt and snapped it in place. He rested his warm palm on Travis’s thigh, and they continued on toward the off-ramp Travis wanted.

 
; Minutes later, they pulled off the highway and Jersey sat up straighter, taking in the sights as Travis navigated the streets. He had a vague idea of the layout of the school and just drove them around for a while, as Jersey pointed things out. They passed lots of huge buildings that claimed to be for one thing or another, and they also passed what Travis guessed, was student housing and apartments. They circled around several times, just familiarizing themselves with the area, and where they suspected Jersey would become a resident.

  After about half an hour of just driving slowly and trying not to back up traffic, Travis finally parked his truck on a side street that claimed to be a two-hour parking zone. They climbed out of the cab, and Jersey took his hand immediately as they headed out on foot.

  They explored the campus a bit and after what felt like miles of walking, finally returned to the truck.

  “So, what do you think now that you’ve explored a bit more?” Travis asked before he started the engine.

  “I feel a lot better. The campus is actually smaller than I thought it would be, and maybe it was just having you with me, but I feel more confident now. Like I know my way around or at least where the major things are. I definitely won’t starve since we found the dining hall,” Jersey quipped.

  “Good. I’m glad. I think we found your dorm building so that’s good, too. At least I feel better knowing where you’re going to be and when you tell me about certain things, or areas, I won’t be completely in the dark.” Jersey smiled back at him. “Okay, well, if you feel good about the area, then we can move on to part two of the day.”

  “Yeah? I think I’m good here. We found all the major things around campus and that feels pretty good. If there’s more to this day, I say we head out and get to it, huh?”

  “Sounds good,” Travis agreed and they buckled in again, with Jersey right next to him. After a quick-ish kiss, they set off again with Travis driving them back to the highway.