The Fox and the Hunter

Chapter 3: Johnathan

The weekend couldn't have come fast enough. The moment Johnathan crossed the threshold of the estate, he flew past David the butler, barely giving the man enough time to finish his formal greeting. Johnathan was too excited to see his father to care about etiquette.

"Where's my dad?" Johnathan asked, tossing his bags aside.

"Master Gideon is still in his suite, sir. Sleeping, I believe," David replied smoothly.

Johnathan frowned, checking his watch. "Still asleep? It's the middle of the afternoon!"

Upstairs, Gideon was just waking up. He rolled over with a wide yawn, but the yawn died in his throat when the muffled sound of Johnathan’s voice drifted up from the grand foyer. Gideon’s eyes went wide. The memories of last night came rushing back, along with a terrifying realization: he had completely forgotten Johnathan was coming home this weekend.

He looked to his side. Jace was still fast asleep, completely naked, tangled in the high-thread-count sheets.

Panic surging through his veins, Gideon smacked Jace’s bare back. "Wake up! Wake up!" he hissed.

Jace let out a sleepy chuckle, but the humor evaporated when Gideon gripped his shoulder. "Johnathan is downstairs. He’s coming up right now!"

That did the trick. Jace scrambled out of the bed, his legs tangling in the sheets causing him to stumble onto the plush carpet. Recovering quickly, he grabbed his clothes and bolted into Gideon’s massive, luxury walk-in closet, pulling the doors shut just as heavy footsteps sprinted down the hall.

The double doors to the master suite burst open with a loud thud.

"Dad!" Johnathan yelled, bounding into the room.

Gideon violently yanked the duvet up to his chin, desperately trying to conceal the canvas of dark purple hickeys marking his neck and collarbone. Before he could say a word, Johnathan threw himself onto the bed, wrapping his arms around his father in a giant, childlike hug.

Gideon chuckled breathlessly, patting his son's back with a trembling hand. "Geez, kid. You're acting like I haven't seen you in years. It’s only been four weeks. You still have two more weeks left before your actual home visit."

Johnathan pulled back, sitting on the edge of the mattress. His sharp eyes scanned the room, landing on the tangled sheets, the discarded pillows, and the general chaos of the space. He looked back at his father, a knowing look in his eye.

"By the way, Dad... who was in here with you?"

Gideon’s face flushed a violent shade of red. He choked on his own breath for a second before stammering, "O-oh! No one. No one at all. I was just... having a very loud argument on the phone."

Johnathan raised an eyebrow, a sly smirk spreading across his face. "Really? Then why is your room a total disaster zone?"

"Out!" Gideon yelled, grabbing the nearest down pillow and launching it directly at his son's face.

Johnathan laughed, dodging the projectile. He jumped off the bed, stuck his tongue out at his blushing father, and continued to tease him from the safety of the doorway. Gideon threw two more pillows in rapid succession, but Johnathan easily ducked under them and slipped out into the hallway, closing the door behind him.

Gideon collapsed back against the headboard, letting out a heavy, exhausted sigh. Johnathan was entirely too smart for his own good; there was no way the kid bought the phone story.

After a moment of silence to ensure the coast was clear, Gideon glanced over at the heavy wooden closet doors. "Alright. You can come out now."

The closet door slid open. Jace stepped out into the bedroom, completely unbothered, and leaned casually against the doorframe. He crossed his arms over his chest, looking down at Gideon with an amused grin.

"Well," Jace chuckled, raising an eyebrow. "That was incredibly close."

**Earlier that night...**

The grandfather clock in the grand foyer struck 10:30 pm . David, the butler, walked down the darkened hallway, frowning in confusion as the heavy front doorbell rang in the middle of the night. He unlocked the massive double doors and pulled one open, blinking in surprise at the person standing on the porch.

It was Jace Thompson.

David cleared his throat, thoroughly perplexed as to why his son's best friend was showing up at this hour. "I'm terribly sorry to turn you away, Mr. Thompson, but young master Jonathan hasn't returned home from his study trip yet."

Jace offered a smooth, borderline dangerous smile, his green eyes glinting in the porch light. "I'm not here for Jonathan, David. I'm here for a fox."

David’s brow furrowed, completely lost as to who the young heir was referring to. But before he could ask for clarification, a tired, soft voice echoed from the top of the grand staircase.

"David? Who is it at this hour?"

Gideon walked down a few steps, clutching a silk robe around himself. David turned to answer, but the moment Gideon’s eyes landed past the butler's shoulder and locked onto Jace, his heart plummeted. A furious crimson blush exploded across his face. He let out a sharp gasp, spun on his heel, and immediately started running back up the stairs.

Jace let out a rich, low chuckle. David looked back and forth between his master fleeing in pure panic and the smug teenager standing at the door.

"Excuse me, David," Jace said smoothly, stepping past the butler without an ounce of hesitation. "I must chase after my fox. I need to punish him for being so naughty."

Before David could even process the words, Jace brushed right past him, sprinting up the stairs with effortless athletic grace. Gideon looked over his shoulder, his panic spiking as he realized Jace was closing the distance fast. Desperate, Gideon lunged toward the end of the hallway, aiming straight for his master bedroom door.

Downstairs, David stood completely frozen in the foyer, staring up at the empty staircase in absolute bewilderment. Finally snapping out of his shock, he shook his head, muttered to himself, and quietly closed the front door.

Upstairs, Gideon’s hand practically touched the brass doorknob of his bedroom when Jace’s voice rang out right behind him. "Oh, no you don't."

With a final burst of speed, Jace lunged forward. His heavy, athletic frame slammed into Gideon from behind, pinning the older man flat against his own bedroom door. Jace threw his arms out, planting his hands firmly on the wood on either side of Gideon's head, completely trapping him.

Gideon was breathing heavily, cornered and breathless. He turned his head, his wide eyes meeting Jace’s piercing green gaze. The intense, possessive look in the boy's eyes made Gideon's entire body flush with heat.

Knowing he had absolutely no escape, Gideon’s panic suddenly melted into a rush of intoxicating defiance. Giving in to the sheer tension thick in the air, Gideon turned around in Jace's space, reached up, and tightly gripped the back of Jace's head, pulling the younger man down into a fierce, breathless kiss.

Any thoughts of teasing or lecturing vanished from Jace's mind instantly. Reaching down, Jace blindly twisted the bedroom doorknob open, scooped Gideon up into his arms without breaking the kiss, and carried him straight toward the king-sized bed.

The heavy, passionate heat of their desires consumed the room, lasting long into the early hours of the morning until they finally collapsed into a deep, exhausted sleep, completely wrapped up in one another.