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Everything was wedding bells. For Eli anyway.
Noah had never seen his brother emoting so happily. At his side, Meryl was fireworks made flesh, all sparkles and smiles as she spun through the day wrapped in a white lace gown like a princess who sang duets with birds. The two of them sitting at the head of the room looking like a real-life fairytale. It was almost enough to make Noah forget the noise and friction of so many unfamiliar people crammed into a banquet hall around him. He couldn't tell any of Meryl's family apart. There were too many.
He had a tension headache after the first hour of the wedding reception but melting into the crowd with his camera helped temper it. People only came in two varieties when he had a camera in his hands: those who were happy to see him and those that ran. He liked things that clear-cut.
Noah stood near the bustling bar for cover, sneaking blackmail shots of Liam on the dance floor. He wasn't a bad dancer. Noah was actually rather impressed with his brother's sense of rhythm. But that didn't mean he couldn't find some nefarious uses for the pictures later on. Blackmail never went out of style. As he raised the camera for another bit of evidence, the view went dark.
West's hand covered the lens. "What are you doing?"
Weddings might be high on the list of things that gave him hives, receptions a cornucopia of attention span destroying stimulation, but West was still easy to focus on. Noah would go to a dozen more weddings if it meant he got to see West poured into a suit. He'd left his hair down, the silky brown strands brushing the broad shoulders of his navy suit, and his vicious mouth was set in that half smile that made him look like a capricious god. Noah had never seen anything more perfect.
"Well, I was working until you ruined my shot. There'll be a penalty for that."
West folded his arms over his chest and cocked his head, a suspicious look in his eye. "Which is?" Noah opened his mouth and he held up a hand. "Wait. Don't answer that. I already know what you're going to say."
"You're no fun."
"You didn't say that last night."
"I wasn't wearing a suit and tie last night. It makes me cranky." Eli had let them choose their own ties at least so Noah had gotten the most obnoxiously pink floral tie he could find in protest. If he had to wear a tie it wasn't going to be any of that austere stripes or subdued tone on tone paisley bullshit. It had to scream. Plus pink was his color.
"I don't know. I'll be a little sorry to see the suit go. You look good today." West grinned and traced a teasing finger down his tie. The touch set off flashbacks to the unexpectedly erotic experience that was half Windsor knots. Standing chest to chest while West manhandled him never got old.
Noah shook the memories off with regret. "Excuse you. I look good every day."
"You're so vain." West could only fight his smile for a second before it broke through the mock frown. "I love you."
A fist squeezed tight around Noah's heart and he groaned. Hearing that never got old either.
He snuck a peek around before he took West by the lapels and pulled him in for a kiss. There was still only so much public displaying West could handle before he started to get cagey about it. The trick was to ration it out. Noah had been good for the last few hours, biding his time until now, but this was an occasion that demanded kissing. It needed firm hands and just a little tongue. When he drew back, West's face glowed faintly pink. But he didn't move away. He stayed in the embrace, staring into Noah's eyes like the moment could last forever.
If only.
His boyfriend. His love. Noah really liked the sound of that.
He brushed West's hair back from his cheek.
Before he could do more there was the sound of conspicuous throat clearing nearby. To his credit, West stiffened but didn't flee. Noah let him go with regret. Then he glared at Liam. "What? We were having a moment."
"I could see that. But I thought you should know Aunt Ev is looking for you."
"What? Nooooo," he groaned. He sank halfway to his knees before he remembered that his suit was a rental and straightened up again. "Are you fucking kidding me?"
"Sadly no."
West looked between the two of them and frowned. "I don't want to know, do I?"
"Probably not," Liam agreed. Then he looked off to one side. "Better hurry."
Noah grabbed West's hand and towed him along as he fled. "Don't look back, sweetheart. She can sense fear."
They spent the next hour dodging family from both sides and not nearly enough time groping in the coat room. Or any time actually. Each time Noah suggested it, West shot him down with a cryptic "wait until later."
There was cake and dancing and only a manageable amount of anxiety buzzing in his veins, just enough to feel a little exciting. Like bubbles. And there was West. Holding his hand. Whispering in his ear. Laughing. And occasionally scolding him. The way his nose wrinkled up when he was annoyed really was Noah's favorite.
So yeah. Maybe weddings weren't so bad after all.
He said as much in the car on the way home. West drove because he'd offered and because Noah hadn't been sure if he would be sober enough to do so.
"My family likes you. My mom even said to bring you to dinner sometime," Noah said, head lolling back against the seat. He'd only had one glass of champagne but now that the adrenaline was ebbing, he felt dizzy and as unbound as if he'd had more. Delayed drunkenness might have its benefits.
"That's nice of her." The words came out with a robotic edge.
"Still haven't spoken to yours?" Noah guessed.
"Nope. And I don't intend to in the foreseeable future."
West had eventually explained the rest of the family history that had knocked him into a tailspin and the current state of said family affairs. Getting information out of him was still like pulling teeth with a slippery weasel, but he was slowly getting better about it. Noah was reasonably certain he'd gotten the important highlights. Complicated family relationships were one thing he understood all too well.
"I'm sorry, sweetheart."
"Don't be. It's not your fault. It was them. And me." He sighed. "And it was a long time coming."
"Still." He took West's hand and brushed a kiss over his knuckles.
The look West shot him was soft and warm as a blueberry muffin fresh from the oven. "I think I got the better end of the deal."
"Keep looking at me like that and you're going to get very fucked too." Noah slid a casual hand up his thigh before it was slapped away.
"Behave."
"I am behaving."
West didn't answer except to scoff before turning his attention back to the road.
Noah contented himself with watching West's face slip in and out of the glow of passing streetlights, going green and orange and deep blue in turn. Focused on driving, his mouth had drifted back into its resting frown. His hair fluttered in the breeze from the open window. "God, you're beautiful." Noah hadn't meant to say it out loud.
"Are you drunk? Because I had plans."
"I'm devastatingly sober, thank you very much. I'm just admiring you. And what plans? I thought we were going home. Your home," he amended. West's apartment was also a relatively new commodity. He'd only been once and they'd left almost as quickly as they'd arrived, but Noah was fine with taking it slow in that regard. He knew where everything was at his apartment and he'd never slept well in other people's spaces. "What plans?"
His smile was sinister when the next streetlight caught it, but he didn't say another word.
West parked and led the way up to his dark apartment, barely waiting for Noah to follow him inside before he slammed the door. The lock turned over with a snap. Noah laughed. "Worried I'll run away?"
"Safety first."
West pounced while he was still coming up with a response to that. He was a continual surprise. He kissed like he was starving, steering Noah backwards with hands on his hips until they connected with something solid. Noah's head bumped against it but he didn't mind when West was draped over him, nibbling at his lips in between kisses, tongue delving into his mouth.
Something clicked. West smiled against his lips. "I told you I had plans," he whispered.
Noah nodded, too busy chasing after West's retreating mouth with his own to understand the words and what they meant until something dug into his wrist. Both wrists. They were captured behind him, the thing at his back some kind of column or pole. Noah angled his head but he couldn't see much back there. He knew the feel though. "So that's where my handcuffs went. I thought I lost them under the bed."
"You probably did," West said, still standing just out of reach. His voice dropped lower. "Because these ones? Are mine."
"You sneaky little bitch." His laughter bubbled over. The need to touch West was so sharp it hurt. "I love you so damn much."
West put a hand on his chest and shoved him back into the pole, holding him there. Fingers brushed Noah's stomach as West undid his belt. He was already breathing fast, lips parted, slick where he'd licked them. In the moonlight, his eyes looked endless. "Then let me know when it feels good," he said as he got on his knees.