John didn't see Dave in any way for five days.
And during these five days, John experienced withdrawal symptoms of the strangest kind. He craved Dave, the blonde on his mind all hours of the clock, and his wife suddenly was not enough to satisfy any craving he may had.
He rarely had sex with his wife, he felt bad, as he knew she suffered for it, but he simply couldn't do it. It was awkward and uncomfortable and not what he liked at all.
But he missed Dave's touch so much, it was driving him insane.
And on day three, he allowed it.
He thought of Dave the whole time, and had to stop himself from yelling "Dave!" when he came.
His wife was pleased, but he was barely satisfied.
On night four, John snuck out to Derse after a long day of managing finances and setting budgets, and hoped he would find Dave sitting in a bar stool, or in a booth.
He didn't.
He returned home from Derse without getting his fill for the first time in months.
On day five, however, he was awoken by his handmaid telling him he had a meeting with a potential business partner, and that they were preparing lunch for himself and his guest. His bed was empty, so his betrothed must have already woken up.
He got dressed appropriately, and asked kindly what was for lunch.
Satisfied with the menu, he finished making himself presentable, gathered his required documents, and waited in the study.
He hadn't bothered to ask who this potential business partner was. His maid hadn't bothered to tell him. If he had known, maybe he would've reacted slightly less when he saw a head of blonde and ruby eyes walk through his door. "Good Morning, Mr Egbert." Dave was suddenly so formal. John didn't like it at all. It wasn't the man he spoke to in Derse, he was far too formal and cold.
"John is fine, if you would please take a seat. I'll have Nepeta pour us some coffee, or would tea be more to your liking?" Dave told him coffee was fine (because hey, John was heir to a massive coffee company, who was he to decline a cup?), and, As if on cue, the petite woman walked through, wheeling a tea trolley with said coffee on it. She politely asked how Dave liked his coffee, and served it accordingly, and she knew well enough that John liked his coffee with a dash of milk and cream, and a little sugar.
She bowed and left respectfully, leaving the tea trolley behind on John's request.
The door closed behind her.
Dave looked around, an eyebrow raising as he noted that they were in utter privacy. No servants were near, no open doors or windows. He turned back to John.
"Cosy, is it not, John?" he asked, a mischievous smile on his lips, as he believed he had a reason for this absolute privacy. He was definitely experiencing Strider Withdrawal. (He would never admit he'd been gagging to see John again too)
"All of my business meetings are held in private like this. So that nobody knows what we say, or do. Which is rather fortunate for us, I suppose." He replied, twitching slightly. His finger twitched, wanting to reach up to those blonde locks and feel those sweet lips on his again and-
"I see. Well, let's get down to business then. You scheduled a meeting with me just before we met five days ago, considering me a possible business partner, using my trains to transport your goods, instead of your current company, correct?" a nod, and the pair were stone cold business again. Though John couldn't wait to get it out of the way and talk about their arrangements.
"You've got good recommendations, and you haven't been in England a year yet. I thought that was intriguing. Besides, my current rail partner isn't meeting my high standards. " I think you're intriguing. You meet every standard I could ever set.
He would never speak the thought aloud. It alarmed even him.
"Well, I'm glad you thought so. I drafted a contract myself, just a few days ago." He winked and John, who was surprised by the sudden blazen action. His cheeks dusted themselves a bright red.
"I hope you don't ruin your business because you thought our activities were too your liking, Dave." He read over the contract, and saw that Dave was only asking for 10% of his coffee's profits.
"No, no, just because you're great at that, does not mean I'd ruin my business or take less profit, if you look below, it says that this figure is subject to change during the validation of this contract, so I could put it up at any point, as long as I negotiate it with you first, but you aren't allowed to right out decline me." he pointed to the paragraph he was talking about, and sure enough there it was. Exactly as he had described.
John finished reading said contract, and found it to his liking, making only minor changes here and there, and soon they were ready to call in lawyers and get the whole thing finalised.
"One more thing, Dave." John had said, breaking their previous formalities. A small sound of acknowledgement came from Dave.
"You have to come have coffee with me as often as possible. We're bringing out a premium range soon, so I'd like to have a cup with you." Dave nodded. "And regular coffee dates at the Egbert household, it would be my pleasure." John smiled a quiet smile, and Dave's hand brushed John's as they reached for their coffee.
It was finally time to discuss personal business.
"So, our agreement. The one we made five days ago." John began.
"Yes, that one. We'll have to arrange a way to be at the bar at the same time, and to get when our services are required." John nodded at Dave's continuation. There was silence until John offered an idea. (He had been thinking on it a while)
"How about we meet on a set day at a set time, and if we feel we…need to see each other, we can have a code word for a matter of urgency."
"Yeah, sounds good. What word shall we use? And where will we meet? How will we get this message across? Will our servants not get suspicious if we frequently send one-word messages?"
Dave set down his coffee.
"Do you not have a personal telephone? I have one in my office, I can call you with it."
A nod.
"Yes, I have a phone, not a private phone, though. My servants may hear." Dave sipped his coffee softly once more before setting it down, John set his down with it.
There was a certain thrill with breaking the rules in this way, of organising secret meetings and hiding kisses in the cover of night.
"As long as this code word is inconspicuous we shouldn't have a problem." John answers, their inner businessmen coming out in their words, quick, sharp and decisive.
"Then all that is left is a word, used slyly in conversation, of course." Dave's eyes were playful and staring at John, taking in the very sight.
There is silence, and when they break from their trance, they suggest words.
"Apples."
"Coffee!"
"How about, um, Steel?"
"Hmmm, how about "Interest" John suggested, he felt the word communicated their apparent interest in each other, and the financial interest which would be relevant to their partnership in business. Dave mulled it over, and agreed shortly after. Should one call the other and say "Interest" they are to meet outside a small "greengrocers" near the quiet corner that Derse was tucked into. It was a small business that was barely running anymore, and many of its customers were prostitutes, criminals or drug dealers, as, if you were in-the-know of London's criminal underground, as both John and Dave were, then you would know that nothing was as it seemed to be and that it wasn't actually a greengrocers. It was a den of indecency, where the law meant next to nothing, and you paid in secrets instead of coins. The floors above the shop itself were reserved for such wrong doings, and private rooms would fit their purposes just fine, should Derse fail to be an option.
They agreed that Mondays and Fridays would be when the pair would meet up inside Derse itself, and John already couldn't wait. He was grateful he could find the will to wait, though. He was never one for patience.
Nepeta arrived mere minutes later, saying lunch was prepared. And so he sat with his wife and guest, sharing adequate conversation and good food, stealing glances whenever possible.
He was put his hands over his betrotheds, and plant a soft kiss on her lips.
He didn't miss the restrained jealousy blazing in Dave's eyes. He only prayed his wife did.
Conversation was mild and uninteresting, and his wife excused herself, and John knew that the relentless heat inside the red of Dave's eyes was the reason. She disapproved of him so much.
It made their arrangement even more exciting. (Though the guilt had yet to leave him)
John stood to lead Dave to the exit, and wish him well on his way, as any good host should, but, before they left the room, they were alone once again, Dave reached for John, and kissed him. He kissed him until John could neither breathe nor stand, its sheer intensity making John weak at the knees.
They didn't dare make a sound, though.
Absolutely red in the face, panting and generally dishevelled, John gathered his wits. Dave had a smug look on his face, and it should've infuriated him, but it didn't. "I'll make my own way out, see ya on Monday, John."
And with that, he was gone.
A/NI like this fic, and despite its apparent unpopularity im continuing. Because Victorian Homos is why. Also, shoot me an ask on tumblr if you feel like it, im hisprettyboyninjastud.