Take My Hand - Lashton

Chapter Eight

Chapter Eight

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"This is um, a gift from my boyfriend." Luke handed Stella a bottle of wine that Aaron had picked up a couple of hours prior and told Luke it was rude not to take anything. Luke felt suddenly guilty for not thinking about bringing a gift himself.

"Thank you!" Stella smiled, taking the bottle and observing it. "You should have bought him with you," she said, placing it on the counter and taking another look at the younger man. She could tell why Ashton had liked him, or maybe still did.

She felt the urge to call him pretty for want of a more masculine word. But then thought pretty could be used for anyone, it was just a word, and she was a bad feminist for giving it gender associations. But what she found most intriguing were his actions. How gentle and cautious they were. She didn't like it when people were anxious, she thought everyone had a right to assert their confidence. But it was an attractive trait she could understand her fiance liking.

"Oh, he was working tonight," Luke responded, looking around the kitchen intrigued. He wondered if it came with the house, or had Ashton contributed to the interior design. Had he even decorated it himself? Luke smiled to himself, remembering Ashton's university bedroom. Ashton didn't even understand the concept of interior design. All he knew he was how to be messy and shove things on shelves for convenience.

About to tell her how lovely her kitchen was, Luke was interrupted. "Sorry, I'm late. A session overran and you know what the trains are like! Who was working tonight?" Ashton rambled, taking off his coat and flinging the back of a chair.

Luke watched him carefully. His shirt half untucked and scrunched up at the back, sweat marks underneath his arms. He thought about how Aaron never came home like that, was always clean and tidy. Luke didn't know what he preferred. He liked things neat and clean, but Aaron was so perfect, like a god, and he found it hard to meet his expectations.

"Luke's boyfriend," Stella smiled, picking up the bottle of wine and showing it to her fiance. "He got us this. You didn't think to invite him?" she asked, wondering his Luke's boyfriend thought them rude for not inviting him.

Eyebrows raised, halting what he was doing, Ashton turned to stare at Luke. "I didn't know he had one. You could have brought him, Luke—"

Luke shook his head and smiled politely. "Like I said he was working, it's fine."

"What does he do?" Ashton asked, suddenly standing up straight, his chest slightly stuck out. Stella cracked a smile. She found men fascinating. She couldn't believe her fiance was competing against a man he had never met, knew nothing about.

"He's a therapist," Luke muttered, shoving his hands into his jacket pockets, swaying his body slightly. The movement keeping his mind calm.

Stella frowned playfully. "Hmm, is there something I should know? Sounds a lot like Ashton!" Luke quickly shook his head, not understanding she was joking. "I'm just messing Luke. Ashton was right to say I need to be careful with you. You're like fine china." She looked over at her fiance who was still staring at the man they had invited to their house. She could feel the tension forming between them. "I'm going to set up the table, let me know when the oven beeps will you Ashton?"

Once she was gone, Ashton walked over and picked up the wine, scrunching up his eyebrows when he found that it was low sugar. "What does he specialise in?" he finally asked.

It took Luke a while to answer. In that time Ashton had poured them both a drink of the wine. Handing Luke a glass. When Ashton was close enough he muttered. "Eating disorders."