Tingle Bells Read online

  “Shame. I’d love to find out who issued you that particular credential.” Justin shook his head. “I must have been blown away by the multitude of framed paperwork adorning your walls. Hmm. I must say, I admire your technique for judging the evidence. But say, Ramon, where did you study for this qualification?”

  Ramon squeezed Justin’s cock, which seemed to distract him from expecting an answer to his question. “I can see there are lots of spots you missed in your initial cleaning. By dint of my professional qualifications, I hereby offer to remedy this situation.” He rose to his feet. Justin’s cock twitched in agreement.

  “I don’t know about that,” Justin said with a smirk.

  Ramon opened his legs. His own erection was large and throbbing. “Oh, no? What will help you make up your mind?”

  Justin nodded to Ramon’s hard-on. “I may be only an avid amateur, but I propose to clean your cock while you do mine. After all, why should the pros be the ones who have all the fun?”

  “Hey, a prick can never be too long, thick or clean.”

  With the shower water still at a perfect temperature and pressure, the two men stood very close and, armed with handfuls of relaxing gel, took hold of each other’s dicks. Ramon, who rarely got off alone beneath the shower, felt like one of his fantasies had just come to full, pulsing life.

  The sensations of both touching Justin and having Justin’s hands in intimate contact had him shivering in ecstasy. “For an amateur, you’re pretty damned good,” Ramon muttered. Justin tightened his hold.

  Ramon put his hand over Justin’s, increasing the pressure of his erotic touch. The spray poured down around them, forming a perfect cloud.

  “Mmm, that feels incredible,” Ramon moaned. He had one hand around Justin’s cock, the other on his high, tight balls.

  The two men fell into a pattern of soaping each other, then rinsing off the soap. Each kept finding spots and ridges that required yet another soaping. Justin expected, by the time they finished, they’d be able to compete in an Erotic Olympics Clean Cock Event and walk away with gold medals.

  Justin tried to hold on to a shred of detachment. In the past, sometimes when he’d made love, he’d felt like he was almost an out-of-body observer, judging his own and his lover’s techniques and moves. But with Ramon, Justin was completely present in the sensual moment. Out-of-body was the last place he’d want to go when being in his body was so perfect. Every move, every breath with Ramon was amazingly erotic. Justin wanted to savor the full sensuality and intimacy of each moment.

  At first, exercising great restraint, Justin tried to move his hips very slowly. He used corresponding restraint in the way he stroked—uh, cleaned—Ramon’s cock. But very quickly, Justin started to feel greedy for more intense sensation, which made it a challenge to continue exerting such control. Soon—too soon—he was moving faster, drawn on by the mounting pleasure Ramon provided both as a soaper and a soapee. As he moved his hips faster, he also increased the speed and pressure of his stroking Ramon’s erection.

  His eyes closed, Ramon grew larger, harder and tighter and, with an oath, shivered and came, filling Justin’s hand with his cum. His explosive release nearly pushed Justin over the edge. Urged by Ramon, he moved faster and harder, with Ramon’s talented fingers more than keeping pace. And then Justin lost it. His cries echoed in the enclosed shower as, his body trembling, he shot his cum into Ramon’s hand in wave after wave of shattering release.

  When he returned to regular breathing, for a moment, Justin almost didn’t know where he was. And then Ramon took him in his arms for a soul-searing kiss.

  Even after the kiss ended, the two men clung to each other until both started to look like water-logged, shriveled prunes. Ramon turned off the shower. “Want to see the rest of my bathroom?”

  Justin sighed his response.

  Using the heated towels, the men did a thorough job of toweling each other off. In fact they were so thorough and committed in their drying, they almost made love again. But determined to get out of the bathroom to the bedroom, they both agreed to wait until they reached the bed for the next round.

  Ramon handed Justin a luxurious terrycloth robe and put his own on. “We never did get dessert,” he said.

  “Wanna bet?”

  They both laughed. “How about I go down to the kitchen to see what I can rustle up? After all, we need to keep our strength up. And I’ve got some great champagne I’ve been saving for something special.”

  “Huh. Inaugurating your bath, your bed and breaking into your vintage champagne. You sure know how to make a guy feel welcome.”

  “Hey, who doesn’t appreciate it when he can have a well come?”

  Both men laughed uproariously at that piece of cornball humor.

  “We also inaugurated the family room,” Ramon noted.

  “How quickly I forget.”

  They’d gotten as far as the head of the steps when Ramon’s urgent pager went off. He had two pagers, one for routine communication and one for the don’t-fuck-around-and-miss-them messages. Shit. Where the fuck had he dropped the pager?

  “What?” Justin asked.

  “I’ve got to get that.” Ramon hurtled down the steps to the family room and frantically dug through the pile of clothes for his pager. Hoping that whatever he was about to hear wouldn’t drag him from Justin just yet but fearing it would, Ramon checked the message.

  Eyes big with concern, Justin watched every move Ramon made.

  “What the—” Ramon steeled himself not to react too dramatically so as to keep from worrying his new lover. “Justin, I just got a really interesting message. I’ve got to make a phone call, find out some more information.”

  Justin nodded.

  Ramon dialed the number he’d been instructed to call, then a second. At last he put down the phone. “Holy shit.”

  “What is it?”

  Ramon shook his head. He really hadn’t been expecting to get to the bottom of Justin’s case this fast. “It looks like the metaphysical tracer folks have a handle on what’s going on with the Tingle Bells.”

  Justin didn’t react right away. When Ramon’s words sank in, he expressed his gratified shock. “But Ramon, you really are a magic man. Even you didn’t expect anything to happen so quickly. Or did you just say that to keep me from raising my hopes prematurely?”

  Shit. Ramon knew he should be feeling as elated as Justin, who was alternating between hugging him and jumping up and down, but he knew how preliminary any information they got now might be. “I just want you to know. What we have is a first step. That doesn’t mean the Tingle Bells are fixed, just that we might have some solid leads on how to proceed. Honest, I’ve been completely straight with you.”

  Justin laughed harder at that.

  Ramon waved away his stupid remark. “You know what I mean.”

  “Well, okay. What do we have to do next?”

  Great question. “My source tells me there is definitely a hex on the Tingle Bells.”

  Justin inhaled hard and clenched his fists. “Just what I suspected. But who the hell…and what do we have to do to get them unhexed?”

  “The people who discovered the hex want to consult with me about their findings in person. They don’t trust any of the usual methods of communication to transmit their information.”

  “Why?”

  Ramon shrugged. In his business, he’d learned not to question what seemed like the weird motivations and irrationality some people operated under as long as following their demands didn’t prove too onerous. “They’re highly skilled at what they do. If they insist on giving me the information in person, I figure it’s a minor inconvenience.”

  “So where are they? And when do we head off to talk to them?”

  “What do you mean by we?”

  Justin glared hard at him. “You don’t think I’m going to let any more time pass before I know what’s happened. Come on, man. Every second we delay makes it more unlikely for my Tingle Bells to save Chris
tmas for the Clancys.”

  Ramon hadn’t anticipated Justin wanting to go with him, though it made perfect sense from the other man’s perspective. “These people know me and trust me. I don’t know if they’d be willing to speak to you.”

  “If they’re not, I’ll wait in the car.” Justin tossed off his robe and started throwing on clothes like he’d taken a hit of speed. When Ramon hung back, he looked at him. “What are you waiting for, dude? Let’s go.” He paused for a moment. “Uh, where are we going?”

  “They’re down the shore, in Ocean Grove. Justin, it’s the beginning of December. It’s cold here, so it’s probably freezing at the shore.”

  “Thoughts of you and saving the Tingle Bells will keep me more than warm. Come on, man. I’ve got to go with you. Sitting back here and waiting for news, I’d go out of my mind.”

  Yeah, Ramon could definitely dig that. “Okay. Let’s get dressed.”

  Justin hugged him. “Your name may not be Santa, but I know you’re going to save Christmas for the Clancys—as well as Solstice, Chanukah and Kwanzaa. Not to mention, you’ll help spread lots of joy for all the boys who will get Tingle Bells in their Christmas stockings. And the girls.”

  Santa? Ramon felt a lot more like the Grinch. His gut was churning, and he suspected what they were about to find out would not be as clear-cut a victory for the good guys as Justin supposed. But how could he rain on his new lover’s parade until he knew his misgivings were not mere figments of his habitual pessimism? Maybe, just maybe, his gut was too used to his finding himself on the dark side. Forcing down his misgivings and opting to let Justin’s joy last a bit longer, Ramon threw on jeans and a thick, warm sweater. Though he made a last-ditch effort to encourage Justin to stay at his house and let him go down the shore alone, Justin wouldn’t hear of it.

  In minutes they were in his car, headed east to the Atlantic.

  Chapter Three

  The night had grown teeth-clenchingly cold. At least the earlier threat of snow had dissipated, and the clear dark sky shone with a million bright stars. Justin had to pinch himself to believe how his luck had finally turned this good. Ramon, his wonderful, excellent, super-hot and sexy new lover, had performed a miracle and saved Justin’s butt. That in addition to pleasuring him…

  Ramon said he figured at this time of the night, without traffic, it would take around an hour to get to Ocean Grove and connect with his source. This could turn out to be the longest hour of Justin’s life. He forced himself not to backseat drive, though he wanted to urge Ramon to ignore speed limits. After all, once they fixed the Tingle Bells, merchants could start selling them right away.

  Somehow, the two of them chewed up the miles and got to the shore before Justin went completely bonkers. When they pulled to the side of a dark road, Ramon phoned someone, asked a few questions, got some responses. They drove a short additional distance until, on a quiet stretch of road away from the ocean, they found the rather nondescript house Ramon had been looking for. Justin sprang out of the car. A salty tang flavored the brisk wind. He blew on his ungloved hands and shivered.

  Ramon, his face somber, walked around the car toward him. “I’ll need to go into the house alone first. Then, if it’s okay, I’ll signal for you to join us. If I don’t come out, don’t come in or you might ruin everything.” Justin frowned. Much as he didn’t want to go along with Ramon’s directives, he couldn’t risk messing up the arrangements.

  Ramon had remembered to wear gloves. Before he went to the house, he took them off and loaned them to Justin, who was grateful to accept. He watched as Ramon rang the bell, spoke to the middle-aged woman who answered and disappeared inside.

  Trying to keep sane, he climbed back in the car in a futile search for warmth and willed his mind to think about anything but what was happening in that house. Of course, Justin couldn’t distract himself. The more he tried to redirect his mind, the more it stubbornly speculated. What if they couldn’t be turned back? His mind skittered from how perfect they’d sounded to the sick, anemic noise they produced under the effects of the spell.

  Too much time had gone by. What could this mean? Was Ramon pleading with the people to come up with something to help Justin? Or was he trying to find a way to break the awful news of failure to him? Justin glared at his watch. Fifteen minutes had elapsed since they’d arrived. It felt like two hours.

  He and Ramon hadn’t arranged for what Justin should do if something went really wrong. What if Ramon was in there for hours? Justin decided he’d wait another fifteen minutes, and then he’d be justified in seeing what the hell was going on. He clapped together his hands clad in Ramon’s expensive leather gloves. At least he had a plan now.

  Ramon would have given anything to spare Justin the pain of waiting outside in the cold, but he figured he had to treat his sources with great care or risk losing them.

  Of course, his sources weren’t the only ones Ramon was handling with care. He wanted to make the situation as easy as possible for Justin. The voice of wisdom deep inside Ramon pointed out that this new man had started to mean a lot to him in a very short time—a potentially dangerous situation. In the past, maintaining a degree of detachment had always been Ramon’s preferred style of self-protection. But Justin might just be the man who’d demolish his usual emotional wall. Ramon knew he should tread carefully, but just now his heart overruled caution.

  The moment Ramon opened the car door, Justin jumped out. “What’s up? What did you find out? Can we get the hex off the bells tonight?”

  Ramon held his hands up to signal Justin to slow down. “One thing at a time, buddy. My source wants you to come in so they can explain everything to both of us at one time.”

  Justin slammed the car door closed. “Can you at least tell me if they’ve identified the source of the problem?”

  “Come on into the house. It’s warm. And we’ll both know the whole story in a short time.”

  Before Justin could ask another question, the middle-aged woman who’d let Ramon in earlier opened the door for both of them and smiled. “Welcome to Casa Primavera.” Incense permeated the air. Strings of beads that hung in the doorways rattled.

  “Our Sylvie will inform you of the answers to your questions.” Their guide gestured them toward a room. Ramon put his hand at the small of Justin’s back and steered him gently in the right direction.

  Sylvie, who looked like she was in her late twenties, rose when they came into the room and indicated they should seat themselves on the large decorative pillows covering the carpeted floor.

  Ramon and Justin settled on adjacent pillows and assumed cross-legged positions, their knees touching. Sylvie, casual in jeans and a sparkly red velvet top, sat opposite them.

  “You are the creator of the Tingle Bells?” She looked directly at Justin, who nodded and swallowed hard.

  “What’s wrong with the bells? Why do they sound so horrible? When can we fix them?”

  Her smile lit up her face. “Let’s look at one question at a time. We sense a very heavy-duty hex has been put on the Tingle Bells. Do you have any sense why anyone would so becharm them?”

  Justin took a deep breath and shook his head. “No, no clue.”

  “Any enemies, business rivals, competitors for similar niches—that sort of thing?”

  Justin shrugged. “I can’t think of any. Certainly nothing out of the ordinary. Hell, the Tingle Bells are so different from any other product currently available, I can’t see anyone considering them as competition.”

  Sylvie appeared to consider his answers carefully. “Someone imbued this hex with enormous energy.”

  “What does that mean?” Fear glinted in Justin’s eyes. Ramon wished he could help banish that fear.

  “Just as I said. There’s so much power in this hex, it would appear someone is very, very angry with you for personal reasons. You claim the product is too different from all the others to provoke a business rival.”

  Justin nodded.

  “No person
al enemies? No jealous lovers, brokenhearted exes or rivals for a lover’s affection?”

  Ramon sat up straighter as he waited for Justin’s response.

  “I can’t think of anyone who’d fit that description.”

  Sylvie steepled her fingers in front of her face.

  “I understand from Ramon that your family includes witches. Which tradition do they follow?”

  Justin shrugged. “I hardly pay attention to any of that. I could find out and let you know, if it’s relevant.”

  She smiled. “Can we eliminate your immediate family as suspects for placing this hex?”

  “Well, yeah. I mean this fiasco will have horrendous consequences for them if we can’t fix it, and no one in the family is self-destructive.” Justin’s voice rose. He frowned at Ramon as if to say he found Sylvie singularly unhelpful.

  “Then that means some powerful enemy of your family has chosen to hurt you all like this. Who would fit that description?”

  Justin jumped to his feet and began pacing around the pillows. “I have no fucking clue. All I know is my Tingle Bells sound more like Mangled Bells. The Clancys are so screwed, and you don’t seem to have any answers to help us. Aunt Claire, Uncle Fred and their seven cats will be out on the street. Pat won’t finish med school and will grow into an embittered old man. And here I am answering inane questions.” He smacked his head.

  Ramon stepped up behind Justin and put his arms around the other man. If he got much more hysterical, Ramon would have to slap him or throw brandy down his throat or take some other desperate measure. “Breathe, man. Nice and deep. Look, Sylvie knows what she’s doing. Just let her finish her questions and try to think.”

  “Geez, Ramon, with all due respect, I don’t see how any of this is going to help.”

  Ramon got Justin to sit down opposite Sylvie again. She watched the two men with no comment. “Hard as it is to get your head around the problem, you have to. Your family are witches. Someone who doesn’t like your family put a powerful hex on the Tingle Bells. You must have some idea who could have done that.”