Operation Fake Relationship

“I’ll have that potato.” Adrian deftly swiped it from her plate. “They were delicious.”

“Yes, Reg. You did a wonderful job,” Sue said.

Preoccupied with thoughts of what he and Nick had done earlier and what they might do later, Jackson had barely tasted his turkey. He’d managed to get through the meal by pretending to listen to the conversation, while his thoughts ran around in endless circles never reaching any conclusions.

He knew that he absolutely shouldn’t do anything else sexual with Nick, because it was a stupid idea. Their friendship was way too important to jeopardise. Perhaps Nick could cope with injecting a bit of casual sex into their relationship, but Jackson knew there was no way he could handle anything casual. Now he was finally being honest with himself, he could see that his feelings for Nick were too complicated already, and switching to some kind of fuck buddy relationship could only make things worse. In his heart, Jackson had to admit that he wanted far more than Nick appeared to be offering. But he was afraid to be honest with Nick about that, because he didn’t think there was any chance that Nick felt the same. If Nick had those sorts of feelings for him, surely he wouldn’t be suggesting they fool around, because it put the stakes way too high.

His attention was caught by Nick’s voice. “Mum, Dad… is it okay if Jackson and I stay an extra night?”

“Of course, darling!” Sue answered immediately, her face lighting up. “That’s fine, isn’t it, Reg?”

“Absolutely. It will be nice to have you here for longer now we’ve finally got you back.” Reg smiled at Nick, his expression warm and open.

Nick smiled back, cheeks flushing slightly. “Well, it seemed a shame for us to rush off tomorrow now we’re here.”

Jackson looked down at his plate and clenched one fist under the table where nobody could see. More time here meant more forced proximity, and more temptation to take whatever crumbs Nick was offering.

I am so screwed.

After dinner had been cleared away, they relaxed in front of the TV with cups of tea and watched Monsters, Inc. Once that was over Maria and Adrian put an overtired Seth to bed, and when they returned, Maria said, “Anyone fancy a game of Triv?”

“Yeah, okay,” Nick said. “Are you in, babe?” He patted Jackson’s knee.

“For sure.” Trivial Pursuit was one of the games Jackson’s family often played at Christmas too.

“Ugh. I guess.” Pete yawned.

They all ended up playing, and decided to play in three teams. Pete went with his parents, Maria with Adrian, and Jackson with Nick.

As the game progressed, Nick and Jackson made quick work of filling their playing piece with coloured wedges.

“I think you two have an unfair advantage,” Pete said, as they claimed their fifth piece of pie. “Between you, you don’t seem to have a weak spot. Nobody on our team is any good at the entertainment questions.”

“Yeah, and we’re both useless at the geography ones,” Maria said. “You two are bound to win.”

It was true, their areas of general knowledge complemented each other well. Nick was better with literature and entertainment, whereas Jackson was good on science, sport, and geography. They were both pretty decent at the history questions.

“Yeah. We are a good fit.” Nick smiled at Jackson, and the warmth in his eyes lit an answering glow in Jackson’s chest. “We’re obviously made for each other.”

Jackson deflated as he remembered Nick was putting on an act for his family.

But he wasn’t acting in the treehouse earlier.

Although that thought was reassuring on some levels, it didn’t fill the aching gap in Jackson’s heart.

They did win the game, as predicted. But in a second round, Maria and Adrian managed to claw their way to victory.

“Right. I’m afraid that’s it for me,” Maria said. “I need to get off to bed, because no doubt Seth will wake us up at the crack of dawn again.”

“Yes, me too.” Adrian yawned.

Sue and Reg went up to bed too, leaving Jackson, Nick, and Pete in front of the TV again. Nick snuggled up to Jackson, fitting himself under his arm and tucking his feet up. It felt so easy and natural, as if they sat like this every night.

Despite their relaxed position, Jackson was feeling increasingly jittery about the prospect of going to bed. What would happen when they did? What did he want to happen?

He let himself imagine various possibilities, sending a thrill of excitement through his body. If Nick initiated anything, Jackson knew he wouldn’t be able to find the strength to resist—even though he knew it was probably a terrible idea. The realisation escaped in a shaky sigh.

“You okay, babe?” Nick said softly.

“Yeah.”

“Tired?” Nick put a hand on Jackson’s thigh, stroking him in a way that was more arousing than soothing.

“A bit.” Jackson wasn’t remotely tired if truth be told. As Nick’s hand crept a little higher every cell in his body was on red alert, primed and tingling. Nick grabbed his dick, squeezing it through his jeans, and Jackson bit back a yelp of surprise, turning it into a cough at the last minute.