Spencer Cohen Series, Book One (The Spencer Cohen Series 1) (4 page)

“
Sexy Nerd
,” he repeated softly, shaking his head. “You’re delusional.”

“I do believe you fit both categories,” I said, turning my cup of tea. “And fit them well, I might add. I like how you dress.”

He blushed again, even the tips of his ears turned pink.

I stuck my foot out. “Anyway, I love these shoes. I paid a fortune for them.”

“I can tell,” he said, admiring my loafers.

I held out my arms, where ink covered every part of my skin from my rolled-up shirtsleeve to my wrists. “Do you not like my tattoos?”

He froze again, but before he could answer, Zineb brought our food over. “You boys share?” she asked.

“Yes please,” I said, making room on the table. “We’ll have a bit of both.” Zineb put the food down, sorted out plates and cutlery, and left us to it. “Try the savoury first,” I told him. “It’s so good. It’s spiced lamb and Mediterranean vegetables done in a flatbread. And the msemen are like pancakes. Zineb’s husband makes this fig and honey jam. It’s divine.”

He took a forkful of the khobz b'chehma and moaned. It was a throaty sound that made my skin tingle. He swallowed it down. “Okay, wow.”

I laughed, trying to ignore my reaction to him. “It’s good, yes?”

He nodded and continued to eat. In between mouthfuls, he asked, “So, my turn to ask questions?”

Shit.
I nodded. “Yep.”

“What part of Australia are you from?”

“Sydney.”

“And you’ve been here two years?”

I nodded, washing food down with a sip of tea. “Yep.”

“Why did you leave?”

I considered how to best answer. I didn’t need to go dredging up family history for a guy who, in all likelihood I’d know for a month then never see again, so I decided on answering diplomatically. “I hated my job and wanted to travel. Airfares to LA were on sale, so I packed a bag and here I am.”

He seemed to process that for a while. Whether he believed me or not, I had no clue. But it seemed he did. “Family?”

Jesus.
Okay, so maybe he didn’t. I needed to work on my ability to lie. “Parents, still married. Two brothers. Both younger than me.”

“They didn’t mind you moving to the other side of the world?”

“Nope.”

“Have they visited you here?” he pressed. “Or have you been back since?”

I had a mouthful of food, so it wasn’t like I could have spoken, even if I wanted to. I couldn’t tell the truth on this one. I shook my head.

“Do you miss them?”

“Yes.” It came out a little quicker than I’d meant.

He nodded, more to himself than to me, and I knew right then he saw straight through me. Thankfully, he didn’t push, and he changed the subject. “Favourite food?”

“You’re eating it.”

“Least favourite?”

“Shellfish. I’m allergic.”

His fork stopped halfway to his mouth. “Seriously?”

I pulled an EpiPen from my pocket and held it up for him to see. “Very. I usually carry one of these with me if I’m eating out somewhere new, and as a general rule I don’t eat anything that comes out of the water.” Then as a joke, I added, “Unless he showers first.”

Andrew laughed at that. “So no seafood.”

I shook my head and pocketed the EpiPen. “Nope. To be safe, I don’t eat anything that comes out of the water, like fish, even though it’s technically not shellfish. I also don’t eat many Asian foods because they use fish sauce as a base for a lot of meals. I have to ask a lot of restaurants before I can eat there, but some don’t get it. Like Thai beef salad? You’d think it was okay because it’s beef and salad, but it has fish sauce in the dressing. But even the guys I work with, like faux-dating”—I motioned between us—“I have to ask them not to eat anything that might be contaminated as well. Because if we need to make out and he’s just eaten lobster, me going into anaphylactic shock in front of his ex doesn’t look good.”

He looked shocked. “Has that ever happened?”

I gave him a smile. “No.”

He made a thoughtful face, and he put his fork on his empty plate. “Do you have to make out with all your clients?”

“Are you asking if we have to kiss?”

He nodded.

“If it will get Eli’s attention, then yes. If it will make him want to throw you over his shoulder and take you back to his cave to make you his again, then yes.” I let him think about that for a moment, no doubt that visual was playing over in his mind. “I promise, I have excellent dental hygiene, extra soft lips, and only give tongue if it’s warranted.”

He did that barked-out laugh again and blushed.
God, he was too easy
. “Oh, um, right.”

I swapped the plates over and served up the pancakes and put the jam on the side for him to taste. It also gave him some time to compose himself. “So I was thinking, this afternoon we could go over Eli’s schedules, if that’s okay with you?”

“Oh.” He swallowed hard. “Sure. I guess.”

“We can do some sleuthing,” I explained. “Stalk his Facebook, see where he’s been, that kind of thing.”

He nodded thoughtfully. “Okay.”

“Do you know where he’s been living?”

He frowned, then shook his head. “No.”

“Where does he work?”

“Downtown.”

“What does he do?”

“He works at a printing press on Wilshire.”

That wasn’t too far. “Hobbies? Gym? Favourite bars?”

“He has a membership at the same gym as me, but I haven’t seen him there since,” Andrew said. “We went to a few of the bars in Echo Park, though they weren’t really my scene.”

“What’s your scene?”

He cleared his throat. “There’s a jazz bar not far from his work. The food’s great, the music is incredible.”

“You like jazz?”

He nodded. “Love it.” Then he innocently took a mouthful of the Moroccan pancakes with fig and honey jam, and he moaned. A deep, throaty, delicious sound that sent shivers over my skin and a pleasant ache straight to my dick. “Oh, my God,” he murmured.

I was staring at him. That sound, Jesus. If he moaned like that over food, I’d love to hear him in bed.

“What?” he said, snapping me out of my lust-daze.

Shit
. I got caught gawking. I shifted in my seat, trying to quell the desire that was filling my cock, and cleared my throat. “The pancakes are good, yes?”

He nodded. “So good.” He took another mouthful, and this time he sighed instead of moaned. I was almost disappointed.

Zineb appeared at the table with a knowing smile. “He like the conserve, yes?” she asked and nudged me with her elbow. “Unless he make that sound for you. You like it, Spencer, I can tell.”

Andrew almost dropped his fork, but it was me who was embarrassed. I felt a heat rush over my cheeks and I laughed to hide it, but I was blushing. Jesus Christ. I wanted to die.

Andrew’s shock turned to embarrassment, though he didn’t go as red as me, I’m sure of it. “Was I loud?”

I scoffed. “Uh, yeah.”

“Oh,” he said softly. He wasn’t laughing. He looked up at Zineb. “I apologise.”

She just picked up the empty plate from the table and laughed it off. “No being sorry. Spencer here liked it.” She patted my shoulder and walked back to the counter, and a whole new level of embarrassment washed over me.

“I’m really embarrassed,” he whispered.

Shit. I reached over and grabbed his hand and gave it a squeeze. I didn’t let it go. “Don’t be. It’s my fault. I shouldn’t have…” I shook my head. “Wanna get out of here?”

He nodded. So still holding his hand, I stood up and walked over to the counter. I only dropped his hand so I could pay the bill. I gave Zineb my card, praying like hell she wouldn’t embarrass me further.

No such luck. She smiled sweetly at me. “It makes me so happy to see Spencer finally with a man who make him smile.”

I considered praying to the earthquake gods to give the San Andreas a nudge so the ground would split open and swallow me whole. Instead I stood there like an idiot, turned a darker shade of pink, and mumbled, “Thank you, Zineb, for not embarrassing me at all today.”

She handed me back my bankcard, looking confused. “What? You not love this boy?”

I shook my head and swallowed the lump in my throat, which could have possibly been my heart. “Thanks, Zineb. We’ll see you next time, ’kay?”

She looked even more confused. “But Spencer you don’t look at the other boys like you look at this one.”

Needing to not be in the firing line of Zineb’s embarrassing untruths for one second longer, I grabbed Andrew’s hand and all but dragged him out of the café, waving Zineb off as I went. As soon as I was a good twenty meters up the street, I dropped his hand so I could put both hands on my knees and catch my breath.

Andrew surprised me by laughing. I would have expected a list of reactions from anger to embarrassment, even outrage. But laughing? I looked up at him. “What’s so funny?”

“You,” he answered. “The look on your face.”

“She embarrassed the hell outta me!”

“She embarrassed you? She made a point of telling the whole café I make noises that you like!”

“Well, your sex sounds are fucking hot, I have to say.”

His eyes popped and his mouth fell open. “My what?”

Now it was my turn to laugh. I stood up straight. “Never mind. Let’s just agree to forget everything she said.”

He stared at me. “My sex sounds?”

“The way you moaned,” I explained, needing to clear my throat. “It was um, sexy as hell.”

He folded his arms, then unfolded them, then shoved his hands into his pockets. He looked rather pissed off, but the burning blush that crept up his neck gave him away. “Well. Do you make a habit of saying inappropriate things?”

“Only when guys make inappropriate noises that make me think dirty thoughts, which leads me to saying such things out loud.” I shrugged. “And anyway, it wasn’t inappropriate of me to speak the truth. The noise you made was hot.”

He covered his eyes with his hand. “Oh God.” Then his hand fell away and he stared at me. “I can’t believe you just said that.”

“I can’t believe you don’t already know that,” I replied. “Has no one ever told you?”

He looked kind of horrified. “We’re not having this conversation. I call veto.”

I laughed and nodded back toward the tattoo shop. “Come on, we’ve got super-sleuthing to do on this fella of yours.”

The shop was open, so I held the door for Andrew. “After you.”

He stepped inside and shoved his hands in his pockets, a sure sign he was nervous, or unsure. Emilio was at his work station and a familiar face was in the chair with his chest exposed having his skin inked. “Hey Spencer!” Eric said, extending his arm.

I bumped my fist to his. “Hey man.” Eric was a regular here. I had a closer look at his ever-growing chest piece. “Lookin’ good.”

Emilio didn’t look up from his work when he said, “Hey Spence, can you grab me some alcohol swabs?”

“Sure thing,” I said, going straight to the cabinet he kept them in. I put the box on his trolley beside his arm. “Lola and Gabe still here?”

“Yep,” came Lola’s reply. “Stall two.”

I nodded to Andrew, a silent invitation for him to follow me, and led him to the back of the shop to the private cubicles. The curtain was slightly open so I stuck my head in. Gabe was lying on the table and Lola and Daniela were standing over him, inspecting his clamped nipple. “Hey,” I said with a laugh. “Do I even wanna know?”

Gabe rolled his eyes. “Lola wants to pierce my nipples.”

I walked in, and Andrew stood at the door with a look on his face that was a mix of shock and morbid curiosity. I peeked over Lola’s shoulder at Gabe’s stretched and clamped nipple. It wasn’t pierced yet, but Lola was holding the piercing needle.

“You’re gonna do it?” I asked.

She nodded excitedly. “Daniela is supervising, but yeah, I get to pierce his skin and leave this pretty little barbell in its place.” Daniela was the resident body piercer and would have made sure everything was perfect.

Gabe sighed. “I’m starting to think my girlfriend has a pain kink.”

I snorted. “Only if it’s your pain, my friend.”

“Do you want yours done?” Daniela asked.

I instinctively put my hands over my nipples. “No.”

“It’s more pleasure than pain,” Daniela said, waggling her eyebrows. “Believe me.”

“What about a Prince Albert?” Lola asked.

My dick retracted into my body. “Jesus, no.”

After she stopped laughing, Lola looked at Andrew. “How was breakfast?”

Andrew smiled at her. “Good. We had Moroccan. Apparently I made sex sounds, and Zineb said Spencer’s in love with me.”

Everyone stared at him for a full three seconds of stunned silence before I burst out laughing. I couldn’t believe he just said that. “You weren’t supposed to tell them that!”

Andrew chuckled and looked at my friends. “You should have seen him blush.”