Read Jade Archer - Sandpipers 2 - Raven's Mark Online
Authors: Jade Archer
Mark couldn’t help feeling a swell of pride as he watched a grinning Raven help Wolf make his next shot around the tussle that ensued between the two. Raven was stronger and more resilient than most would give him credit for—Raven included, he suspected. He’d found his feet and an unlikely circle of friends within the odd mix that made up the Sandpipers Restaurant family.
And strangely enough, Mark understood completely. He felt as if he’d found the same thing in a lot of ways. What had started out as just another job with an admittedly good crew had gradually morphed into something more. He’d started to form a sense of connection with these people too—something he hadn’t felt since Lucy and Evan had moved away nearly twelve months ago.
As for his connection to Raven, the past few weeks had been pretty incredible in that regard too. They ran most mornings together now. And man, could Raven move. Not that he minded when Raven got into the zone and started outdistancing him. The view from behind was amazing. Mark had many a night-time fantasy involving Raven and his tight, black running shorts. Although, they never stayed on for long in his dreams. Not like in reality.
He had to admit his cock was becoming more and more unruly and insistent every day. But he could hold it…quite literally as it turned out, because it was the only action he was seeing right now. And he didn’t expect that to change anytime soon.
Mark quickly tried to divert his mind to other things before he ended up embarrassing himself in front of the entire restaurant staff.
He thought about the handful of formal dates they’d been on over the last few weeks. None of them had been as intense as the first—thank goodness. Mark felt like they’d finally started to relax while out together. They talked about ordinary, mundane things—what books they’d read, what movies they wanted to see, places they wanted to visit. Things he suspected most couples getting to know each other talked about—which was good. Hopefully it would lead to more, but for right now it was…good.
Damn!
Who did he think he was kidding? He wanted Raven with a passion.
Right now!
And the more he tried to deny it, the more he found himself dwelling on the need. He felt guilty because he’d promised himself they’d take things slow and he didn’t want to push Raven. But he ached something fierce. He was only human, after all, and Raven was sexy as all hell.
Fortunately, his frustrated musings were cut short when Lark let out a wild, indignant cry. Apparently Brody had used Lark’s distraction to set the man’s croquet ball back several hoops. Lark stopped struggling with Dave and began chasing after Brody, whose escape was somewhat hampered by his amusement.
“Less laughing more running, Brody,” Zak called out, clearly enjoying his lover’s antics. “He’s going to kick your ass if he catches it!”
Mark smiled. “I’m going to take a wild stab in the dark here and guess this whole croquet game thing was one of Lark’s ideas.”
“How’d you know?” Zak asked, grinning broadly as Lark finally caught Brody and tackled him to the ground to tickle him mercilessly.
“Just a hunch.”
They both chuckled as Raven not so subtly used the distraction to advance Wolf and Ryan’s ball several hoops—much to the boys’ boisterous delight.
It was wonderful to see Raven slowly coming out of himself like this. It had been the best part of the whole afternoon actually.
Just as he thought it, Raven looked across and smiled at him—a full, uninhibited and glorious thousand-watt smile that arrowed straight to Mark’s heart. And Mark fell right into it. Then Wolf and Ryan snagged Raven’s arms and dragged him away, breaking the moment.
Mark didn’t begrudge the boys Raven’s attention for a second. In fact, he was somewhat grateful. He wasn’t sure he could have withstood anymore of that look without doing something stupid…like marching right over and planting a kiss on Raven’s beautiful lips. As it was, he was struggling against popping wood and probably gaping like a landed fish.
Zak cleared his throat, drawing Mark’s attention away from Raven and the boys to face a very knowing grin. “So, how are things going between you and Raven?”
“Good,” Mark replied, forcing a calm he didn’t feel as he tried to concentrate on Zak, giving his brain a moment to clear and his cock a chance to settle down. “Yeah, slow, but…good.”
“You still running in the mornings?”
There was a wicked smirk on Zak’s face now. The man knew how much Mark loathed getting up early. But to be honest, he’d kind of got used to it now. He wouldn’t miss the chance to be with Raven for anything. And he had to admit he felt better for the regular exercise.
“Yeah. I’m really enjoying it, actually.”
“Wow! It must be love,” Zak drawled—but Mark got the distinct impression Zak was scrutinising his reaction far more closely than a simple ribbing would require.
For a crazy moment, Mark felt like he was being cornered by an overprotective father and asked his intentions. He eyed Zak. Perhaps an older brother was closer to the mark, but one just as deadly earnest about looking out for Raven.
In a weird way, it was kind of nice to think Raven had people looking out for him. In another, Mark was a bit indignant that they’d think he’d ever hurt Raven. Because he had absolutely no doubt Lark and Brody had a hand in Zak’s ‘little talk’.
Mark squared his shoulders. “Yeah. I mean he… it’s…you know…”
Zak let him flounder for a moment, before finally letting him off the hook with a nod as he looked over at his own men. “Yeah. I know.”
Lark and Brody were laughing together so hard they could hardly stand up as Brody tried to wrestle the croquet mallet away from Lark. All things considered, it was probably a good move for all concerned.
Despite Brody and Lark’s noisy clowning around, Mark found himself drawn to focus on Raven again.
“I just… I want to be there for him. You know?”
“Yeah. And believe me, it’s a good thing too. If you didn’t look after him, Brody and Lark would want me to kick your ass. And I’d hate to have to find another head-chef after we’ve just gotten you all broken in and everything.”
Mark let out a snort, eyeing Zak’s bulging biceps warily. “Thanks.”
“No problem. But honestly, it probably wouldn’t even be me you’d have to worry about. Lark’s a vicious little bastard when he sets his mind to it. Believe me.”
Mark did believe—he’d seen Lark dealing with a late delivery last week. He was certainly glad he hadn’t been on the receiving end of the ‘discussion’, that’s for sure. He might not have a mean bone in his body, but Lark didn’t take any crap from anybody either.
The game gradually started to wind down. Some players finished, but most were either busy harassing their opponents or too exhausted to care. Everyone seemed happy enough to let the match dissolve down into a messy draw for second and third place, with Wolf, Ryan and Raven’s team claiming an undisputed, if somewhat dubious first.
“We’ll probably take off soon,” Mark said, trying not to sound too nervous as he watched the boys celebrate their endgame victory on the other side of the playing field. It wasn’t easy. He could feel his shoulder and neck muscles getting tighter as he thought about the rest of the afternoon. Or more precisely the potential for it to go awry.
Zak glanced over, obviously having heard the unease in Mark’s voice.
Damn it!
“We’re going to take Ryan to the pier for ice cream and a walk on the beach to wind down,” Mark confessed.
“First time you’ve all been out together, huh?” Zak asked, astute as ever.
“Yeah.”
“You’ll do great.”
Mark took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “Hope so.”
Zak snorted. “Know so. Ever since you handed your watch over before that first date and brought Raven back right when you said you would, Ryan looks at you like you can walk on water.”
Mark felt his cheeks fill with heat. “He’s a good kid.”
“Yeah, he is. And so is his dad.”
Mark merely nodded. Raven definitely was good. And good for him too, in so many ways. Mark was very aware of how much was riding on this afternoon.
While it still startled him a little every time he heard himself make the sound, it was a pleasant surprise and slowly he was getting used to laughing. It happened a lot when he was around the boys. Their exuberance was infectious, and all the more precious because it was the first time he could remember seeing it from Ryan. But more and more often, Raven found himself relaxing enough to smile and laugh around others as well. And incredibly, no one stared at him or looked at him strangely. They only laughed with him, not at him.
A few of the other contestants—or was that combatants?—cheered Wolf and Ryan’s win. There might have been one or two dubious shots and a missed hoop or two along the way, but going by the antics of some of the other teams, Raven figured it was a case of all’s fair in love and croquet. And judging by the indulgent smiles and cheers as the boys celebrated their victory, everyone was pretty happy with the end result. Especially Wolf and Ryan.
Watching the two boys together, Raven realised he should never have worried about them forming an enduring friendship. They were closer than brothers these days. They’d never leave each other’s side if it was left up to them. It was quite a relief to know Ryan had someone his own age he connected to so strongly. It was one less thing Raven had to worry about. He knew from personal experience loners and the socially inept were prime targets for bullies. But he couldn’t imagine Wolf ever letting that happen to Ryan.
In fact, so much about their new life here in Riversands was working out perfectly, it was hard to believe at times. But he tried very hard to simply accept their change of fortunes. There were quite enough hurdles to overcome without inventing any.
Still thinking about how lucky they were, Raven’s gaze strayed to where Mark stood relaxing in the shade with Zak. Nothing could have prepared him for finding someone like Mark. The temptation to fret and fuss over just how perfect Mark seemed, compared to how completely imperfect Raven felt most of the time, was strong. And once or twice in the last few weeks since he’d decided not to dwell on it, he’d still found himself wondering— questioning whether it really was too good to be true. But he always came back to the memory of their first date together, to the vulnerability and need he’d sensed in Mark. For the first time in his life he’d felt as if he wasn’t the only one nervous and anxious—like the outcome of the evening actually mattered to Mark. He’d gradually started to accept that Mark really did want to be with him…maybe even needed to be with him. It was hard to explain, but something inside said
don’t pull away. Don’t put up barriers and keep Mark out.
Slowly, he’d lowered his defences and it was, quite frankly…wonderful. He felt like he was waking up for the first time after being in a coma for years—a miserable limbo of silence and self-doubt. And he was determined to savour every second.
“You about ready to say g-goodbye and head out, buddy?” Raven asked Ryan when the boys finally settled down.
“Can Wolf come with us?”
Raven studied the boys’ hopeful faces. It was tempting to give in to the pleading looks, but he had other plans for what remained of the day. Big plans.
“Maybe n-next time, huh? I want us to spend some time with M-Mark this afternoon. Just the three of us.”
Ryan nodded, looking crestfallen.
Wolf studied Raven for a moment, then turned to Ryan and gave him a final brief hug. “See ya later.”
And with that he ran off towards Brody. Ryan really looked like he wanted to follow.
“Come on. Let’s go see if Mark’s ready to t-take us to the beach for ice cream.”
At least that seemed to perk Ryan up a little. Together they made their way towards Mark and Zak.
“Hey, guys! Good game!” Zak greeted as they stepped up. “Well done!”
Raven smiled. “It was a lot of f-fun.”
“Are you and Ryan about ready to leave?” Mark asked.
Raven nodded and held out his hand to Zak. “Thank you for inviting us. It was a wwonderful day.”
Suddenly, Lark appeared at Zak’s side. “You’re not leaving already, are you?”
“Raven and I have plans to take young Master Ryan out for ice cream,” Mark explained, ruffling the boy’s hair playfully.
“We have an announcement. Do you think you guys could hang around for just a few more minutes?”
Raven glanced over at Mark, who shrugged and nodded.
“Okay.”
“Hey, everyone,” Lark said, raising his voice and beckoning for Brody to join them. “Zak, Brody and I have a little something we want to share!”
He waited until everyone was gathered and listening. “Okay. Well, first off we’d like to thank you all for coming. It’s been a great start to a tradition we’re hoping to keep going for many years to come.”
“Hear! Hear!” someone called from the small crowd.
Lark chuckled. “Yes indeed! Here’s to good food, good friends and good fun!”
There was a chorus of cheers and rowdy agreement that Lark let die away before continuing. “We really do appreciate everything you all do throughout the year to make Sandpipers more than just another restaurant.”
“That’s ‘cause we’re not just
another
restaurant. We’re
the
restaurant, baby!” Callum— one of the barmen—shouted to a round of wolf whistles and applause from the rest of the crowd.
“Exactly!” Lark shouted to be heard over the noise, drawing everyone’s attention back to him. “You guys aren’t just some of the best employees around, you’re friends and family.” More hearty approval and clapping greeted Lark’s words. After a moment he raised his hands for quiet. “So, last but certainly not least, we want to let you all know, as Sandpipers family and friends, that Brody, Zak and I are getting hitched.”
Brody laughed over the mix of surprised and excited exclamations from the group. “And you were being so eloquent.”
“What Lark means is we’re having a commitment ceremony. To make everything official between the three of us,” Zak explained, then looked down at Wolf who stood gazing up at him. “Well, four really. We’re going to make our little arrangement as legal as possible, but really it’s all about us celebrating being a family.”
Lark frowned and affected a pout. “That’s what I said.”
“It’s a great excuse for another party anyway,” Brody said with a huge grin as Dave slapped him on the back.
“Like the three of you need one,” Andy pointed out.
“True,” Lark replied over the ensuing laughter.
“So, when is this party planned for anyway?” Drew, one of the waiters, asked.
“Some of you may have seen the restaurant booked for a two day function next month—” Zak began to explain, but Lark was apparently too excited to give up centre stage.
“That’s our special day! We’re getting caterers in. They work, we party!”
Lark’s announcement was met with another chorus of approval.
Everyone seemed genuinely excited and happy for the trio. They really did resemble one big, messy extended family with the next few minutes a happy confusion of congratulations and good natured teasing.
During the mayhem, Mark slipped up to stand beside Raven.
“You ready to go?”
Raven looked over to his friends standing in the middle of the chaos. It didn’t look like they’d be missed with everything else that was going on, and there was very little chance they’d get a word in edgeways anyway. Raven figured they’d said their goodbyes, at least enough not to be rude if they went ahead and left.
“Okay,” Raven agreed, feeling a nervous thrill at the idea of spending the rest of the afternoon with Mark.
“Let’s walk to the beach. It’s not that far.”
Raven nodded. “I just need to g-grab our coats from the car.”
The afternoon was cooling down rapidly, and the breeze at the beach was sure to be cool. Certainly too cold for Ryan’s skinny little five-year-old body to handle.
“Good idea. You go, I’ll keep an eye on Ryan.”
Ryan had managed to slip away to play with Wolf again. It would be easier to just nip to the car and be right back. Faster too.
“Thank you. I w-won’t be a second.”
Raven hesitated, then—squeezing all his courage into a sudden burst of speed—he impulsively kissed Mark on the cheek.
Mark looked completely stunned. A rush of fear and excitement poured through Raven, leaving him feeling a little lightheaded and shaky. Had he done the wrong thing? They’d never really gone in for public displays of affection before. Part of him had wondered if Mark was holding back, waiting for him to make the first move. But another more distrustful part simply held its breath, waiting to see what Mark’s reaction would be.
Raven watched, slightly wide-eyed and rooted to the spot as Mark reached out to touch him.
“Take your time,” Mark said, his voice low and husky as he held Raven’s chin and gently brushed a thumb over his lips. “There’s no rush.”
Raven was pretty sure Mark wasn’t referring to his trip to the car. At least not solely. “I know, I just… I don’t want to d-dawdle and get left behind.”
“No chance of that ever happening. You’re worth waiting for.”