Addison Albright - A Dream Come True

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental and beyond the intent of either the author or the publisher. A Dream Come True TOP SHELF An imprint of Torquere Press Publishers PO Box 2545 Round Rock, TX 78680 Copyright 2008 by Addison Albright Cover illustration by Alessia Brio Published with permission ISBN: 978-1-60370-638-4, 1-60370-638-0 www.torquerepress.com All rights reserved, which includes the right to reproduce this book or portions thereof in any form whatsoever except as provided by the U.S. Copyright Law. For information address Torquere Press. Inc., PO Box 2545, Round Rock, TX 78680. First Torquere Press Printing: February 2009 Printed in the USA

Chapter One Wes was pissed off. That was the third one. He'd been rejected because he was gay, he just knew it. The man had seemed interested enough in him as roommate material until he'd disclosed that little tidbit. Then suddenly he remembered another guy he'd interviewed and said he'd let Wes know his decision in a few days. Jesus, did the asshole think Wes wouldn't be able to resist jumping his flabby ass? If he could help it, Mike, the guy he was seeing next, would never know he was gay. No excuse not to let Wes room with him and no excuse to kick him out later. He hated closets with a passion, but, hell, he'd be too busy to play around much anyway, and he could just plan to go home with any hookups he did make.

The apartment was close to the hospital where he'd be working, and it looked like a nice building. There were nicely trimmed crape myrtle trees producing attractive pink blooms planted around the perimeter of the clean brick building, and well-maintained flower beds blooming with colorful annuals edging the parking lot and walkway. Hopefully things would work out with this guy, because the price was right for this place. *** The first two roommate prospects Mike had interviewed weren't very promising. He was not going to live with a stoner, and just knew he'd be nuts within a week if he accepted the chatterbox. He was listening to Paul Simon sing Me and Julio Down by the Schoolyard when his third and last interview for the day knocked on the door. He plastered on a friendly smile and opened the door. The smile froze on Mike's face. No way. He collected himself, smiled up at the green-eyed, sandy-haired Adonis standing in his doorway and managed to speak. "Hi, I'm Mike Evans. You must be Wes." "Yes. Hello, I'm Wes Shaw. I hope the room is still available?" "Sure is. Come on in." Wes smiled and stepped inside. "Thanks." Did Wes remember him? God, hopefully not. He'd been so flustered and deeply closeted when they'd crossed paths back in college that Wes had probably thought he was a complete fool. Mike took a deep breath and launched into his spiel. "Well, Wes, we already talked about price on the phone. The bedroom is furnished, but if you have your own furniture, I can put that stuff down in my storage unit. I'm not using that space for anything else anyway, so it doesn't matter to me either way. How about I just show you around, then you can tell me if you're still interested?" The entryway opened directly into the living room. Mike motioned with his arm and continued. "This is the living room." Brilliant, Mike. He took a calming breath and pushed on. "It's decent-sized, I guess. I like that it's kinda separated from the bedrooms by the kitchen and eating area, so that's good if one of us is up and the other's trying to sleep." The living room was decent-sized. All of the rooms were. Not to mention colorful. Not the walls -- they were all basic apartment white -- but the furniture and accessories were all vibrantly colored. He had a red couch covered with blue and yellow pillows, a royal blue recliner, and a crazy-patterned, multi-colored, overstuffed chair, in addition to a small black entertainment center and blue-painted bookcase. Apparently his decorating style didn't faze Wes. There was a spark of curiosity in his eyes, but his smile was sincere. "Oh, hey, that's great. I should mention that I'm starting my residency at

University Hospital next week, so I'll be pulling some crazy shifts. I may be coming in and out and sleeping at odd hours. I sleep pretty heavily, and I can be very quiet if I'm up when you're asleep. I hope that won't be a problem for you?" "No, that's okay." Mike replied. "I'm quiet in general anyway, and a pretty deep sleeper myself. If you decide to take the room, then just be sure to let me know what your shifts are and I'll do my best to work around them. I don't mind being extra quiet when I know you're home sleeping." "Awesome. Thanks. I was hoping you'd be okay with that. I really like the location of this place. It's pretty close to my work." "Yeah? Mine, too. Anyway, here's the kitchen and dining area. If we have the same tastes, we can work out a food budget and just share everything instead of each keeping separate food stores. That worked out well with my last roommate." "Cool. I was wondering how we'd handle that." The song changed on the rather eclectic music mix CD Mike had playing and the Ditty Bops started singing Wishful Thinking. Wes didn't appear to notice. They walked down the hallway toward the bedrooms. "I've got a washer and dryer behind these doors," Mike pointed out. "Here's the bathroom. It has two doors, one out to the hallway and one into my bedroom, since it's the master bedroom. This'll be your bedroom here across from the bathroom, and that's mine there at the end of the hall." They entered the spare room that would be Wes' and looked around. It was roomy and furnished with a double bed, a bedside table, a dresser, a small yellow-painted bookcase, and a wooden desk with a swivel chair. Again, the decorating was cheerful. There was a brightly colored green, yellow, and red checkerboard cotton bedspread on the bed, and matching redbased lamps on the bedside table and desk. Otherwise, he'd emptied the room of all personal effects. "This is terrific," said Wes. "And this furniture can stay if I want it? I do. I've been living in student housing, so I don't really have any furniture of my own yet. I was hoping to find a furnished room. The closet's pretty big, too. And a desk…that's perfect." "So you think you'd like to take it?" Please, please. "Absolutely. Can I use this bedding, too, or do I need to furnish my own?" "You can use this. There's a linen closet in the hallway with extra sheets and blankets, too." The music changed again and the Soggy Bottom Boys started singing I Am a Man of Constant Sorrow. Wes gave him a slightly odd look, but apparently it wasn't a deal breaker. "Great. Thank you so much. Hey, are there any rules I should know about?" "Nah, no rules per se, other than no drugs and no smoking. I think if we just communicate well and are basically considerate, then stuff'll just fall into place."

Wes leaned casually against the door jamb. "Terrific. I'm pretty easy-going, and you seem to be, too, so I think that'll work out fine." "When do you want to move in?" "How soon can I move in? The sooner the better for me. I'm set up in temporary quarters at a motel. I'd love to move my stuff in tomorrow, if not this afternoon." "Hey, that's fine. I can help you if you want to move this afternoon. Tomorrow I'm working. I'm a structural engineer, so my work days are just your basic Monday through Friday, with the occasional Saturday thrown in." Wes grinned. "Cool. Thanks, that's great. I don't really have that much stuff to move, but enough to appreciate the offer. Boxes of books, my clothes, and computer stuff, mostly." "Great. Let's go." Shit. Was Wes back in the closet in general? Maybe he thought it might be an issue with Mike, assuming that he was straight, and figured a 'don't ask, don't tell' stance was in order? Wes had been pretty active in the GLBT group back in school, and Mike had gotten the impression that he was more of a 'get the info out there so there aren't any misunderstandings' kind of guy, rather than an 'I'll just mention it if and when the subject comes up' man. Mike could play dumb if that was what Wes wanted, but should he make a point of telling Wes that he was gay, or should take his cue from Wes and let the subject arise naturally in the future sometime? *** Mike was cute…and nice. Dark curly hair, pretty brown eyes, probably about five-nine, and lean. Mike seemed to be agreeable and levelheaded and Wes liked his cheerful, friendly manners. He had such a pretty smile, and the way those beautiful eyes seemed to look right into him…damn! Hell, it would be hard to resist jumping this one's ass. There was nothing flabby about it, that was for sure. Using both of their cars, they were able to haul all of Wes' stuff in one trip. Buddy Holly was singing Peggy Sue out in the living room as he got his stuff spread around his new room. Mike certainly had an interesting assortment of song mixes on his CDs. Wes kind of liked them, though. They were generally fun songs, anyway. The aromas that drifted in from the kitchen smelled delicious. Mike's idea of sharing the food budget sounded like a good plan. The smells beckoned him and he found himself drawn to the kitchen to investigate. "Hey, Mike, that smells great." Mike turned around and smiled. "Thanks. My cooking's pretty basic, but not bad, I guess. Nothing gourmet. Just meat, potatoes or pasta, veggies, fruit…simple stuff."

"That's okay, perfect, in fact." Wes grinned back. "Is there anything I can do to help?" "Nah. There really isn't much of anything left to do." Chicken pieces were roasting in the oven, potatoes were boiling and almost ready to be mashed, and fresh veggies were cleaned for steaming. "So you're all settled in, then?" "Yep, really wasn't much to it. So, how do you spend your evenings around here? I don't want to mess up your routine or anything." Mike leaned comfortably back against the counter. "If it's a work night, I usually just hang out at home and read or watch TV or a movie. Friday and Saturday nights I generally go out and meet up with friends. Sometimes we'll just play cards, or go to a pool hall or the movies. Sometimes we hang out at a dance club near here." Wes cocked his head. "Oh, yeah? Sounds like fun. I don't know what my schedule will be yet at the hospital, so I don't know how many weekends I'll have free. Have you ever been to the dance club during the week?" Why did he bother to ask? It wasn't likely to be a gay bar. "Sometimes, yeah…it's not as busy, but still okay. Nice people there." Mike tossed the vegetables into the steamer pan then picked up the potato pot to drain it. Wes opened the fridge and set out the milk and butter. "What time do you get up in the morning on a work day?" Mike picked up the potato masher and grinned at him. "Six-thirty. I don't have to be in the office 'til eight, but I like to take my time, eat breakfast, and read the paper before heading out. I work 'til five, so I'm usually home by five-thirty. I tend to go to bed on work nights between ten and ten-thirty, but I'm a pretty deep sleeper, so it won't bother me if you're still out here watching TV or something." "Cool. Well, since I'm free until a week from tomorrow, I might stay up a little later, but I'll keep it down. I'll let you know my work schedule as soon as I know what it is myself." Wes opened the oven and removed the small roasting pan. "This smells great, Mike." "Thanks. Grab a plate. We'll see if it tastes as good as it smells." It did. After they ate, Wes volunteered to clean up since Mike had cooked. Mike thanked him, flashed him a brilliant smile, and wandered off. Wes didn't have any trouble loading the dishwasher and getting it started. He wiped down the counters and headed out to the living room. Whoa. Mike had gotten comfortable while Wes was busy in the kitchen. He wore low-riding sleep pants, a thin, ratty T-shirt, and nothing else that Wes could see. Damn, he was hot. Mike wasn't making Wes' resist-jumping-the-roommate's-ass mission very easy. Mike gave Wes an innocent-looking grin and told him the TV selection didn't look too favorable, so unless there was something Wes wanted to watch, Mike suggested he pick out a movie. Wes grabbed The Matrix and put it into the DVD player.

*** Operation Seduce Wes was underway. Wes seemed to have noticed, because he wasn't concentrating very well on the movie. In fact, he seemed to be just a tad bit uncomfortable. Nice. Mike tried to at least look like he was paying attention to the movie instead of getting busted checking out Wes checking out him. He was stretched out nice and comfy on the couch, and his peripheral vision was picking up a good bit of fidgeting coming from the general direction of the recliner. "Hey, would you like some popcorn or anything to munch on?" Mike asked. "Oh, um, no thanks, I'm good. Dinner was very filling. Thanks, though." "Okay. I'm just going to get a glass of water. Do you want something to drink?" "Yeah, a glass of water'd be good. Thanks." He did his best to keep his movements casual as he fetched two glasses of water and handed one to Wes. Wes sat cross-legged with a throw pillow in his lap. Oh, man. "Here you go." "Thanks." The movie was soon over and Mike told Wes goodnight and headed off to bed. That was enough teasing for one night. Hopefully it would give Wes something to think about when he went to bed. Wes asked him if it would be okay if he took a quick shower and Mike told him "Sure." Mike brushed his teeth, then padded across the tan plush carpet in his bedroom to set the alarm and slide between the cool, sea-green sheets. He heard the shower start up and went to sleep listening to the gentle sounds of water flowing in the bathroom, knowing that his dreams would be wonderful that night.

Chapter Two Was it possible that Mike was gay? It was almost as if he'd been flirting. Either he was doing it subconsciously, or it was a very bold move on his part. Because, damn…Mike wasn't very big, and flirting with a straight guy was a good way to get beat up. Was Wes giving off some gay vibes he wasn't aware of? Perhaps Mike had some unusually tuned-in 'gaydar.' Wes had gone to bed early after all, right after Mike did, and awoke to some fine breakfast smells. It was time to fight fire with fire. He figured turn-about was fair play. At the very least, he wanted to gauge Mike's reaction and determine once and for all if the man was gay, too. Wes left his sleep pants on and didn't bother with a T-shirt. He headed to the bathroom to pee and brush his teeth, then wandered into the kitchen. "Good morning, Mike. Sleep well?"

Mike turned around with a smile, then somewhat choked out a 'good morning' of his own. Oh, yeah. He was noticing. He had the sweetest blush. He should've known better than to get into this kind of a battle with such a strong blush tendency. Mike tried to avert his eyes, but couldn't seem to help himself. This was going to be entertaining. Mike was dressed in standard 'business casual' wear -- khaki pants and a bright blue polo shirt -- so Wes had the advantage on him this morning. "Did you sleep okay? The bed's comfortable?" Mike asked. "Yes, thank you. Hey, is that extra pancake batter? Is it okay if I make up a few more for myself? Yours look great." "Oh, sure, go ahead." Mike couldn't stop blushing. Mike made an impressive attempt at reading the newspaper. Wes quickly grilled up the remaining pancakes and sat down across from him. "Are you done with the sports section?" Mike looked up. His eyes had darkened. "Um, sure, here you go." He gulped his orange juice, and appeared to be utterly absorbed by an editorial in the metro section. This was too much fun. Mike glanced up again and saw Wes looking at him. He blushed furiously. Wes finished his pancakes and decided to cut the poor guy some slack. He got up, rinsed off his plate, and told Mike that he'd empty the dishwasher and clean up the breakfast dishes. He wished Mike a good day at work, then walked down the hall to take his morning shower. He'd check out the neighborhood later in the day to see what kind of dance clubs there were nearby. He fully expected to find one with a rainbow in the window. *** Uh-oh. Perhaps Mike hadn't been as discreet as he'd thought the previous night. Wes had clearly been returning his apparently none-too-subtle flirts. The gig was up, so to speak. Wes was in the shower, so Mike tossed beef stew ingredients into the crock pot and took off for work. What should his strategy be tonight? Maybe he'd just sit back -- comfortably attired, of course -- and let Wes take over running the show. He seemed to be on a roll now, anyway. The day dragged on and on. Mike had a client meeting in the morning and a progress meeting with his manager late in the afternoon. He got out on time, though, and drove home to see what amusements awaited him. The crock pot smells met him at the door. Yum, he loved beef stew. And there was something else, too…cookies…brownies? Wes was in the kitchen. He'd set the little table and had some rolls warming up in the oven. Awesome. Amber, his last roommate, hadn't been much of a cook. Mike smiled at him. "Good afternoon! Hey, the rolls are a great idea. Thanks for doing that." "You're welcome. I did some wandering around today to familiarize myself with the neighborhood and picked these up at that little bakery down the street. The smells there put me in the mood to do a little baking of my own, so I made some brownies for dessert, too."

"Oh, yum. I'm afraid you'll soon discover that I'm a closet chocoholic." Wes looked at him and beamed him a saucy smile. "Oh, I don't like closets. You should just own up to your addictions." Mike laughed and headed down the hall to change out of his work clothes. *** Wes figured he'd mostly laid his cards on the table now and that he'd sit back to watch and see what Mike did with them. Mike came back out dressed once again in his sexy evening sleepwear. He wasn't pulling any punches. Mike turned off the crock pot and opened it up for serving. They filled their plates with stew, grabbed some rolls, and sat down. The food was delicious and they made quick work of it. "Ready for some brownies?" Wes asked. "Absolutely, please." Mike cleared the table while Wes cut the pan of brownies. "Wes, these are fabulous. I hope you like making them because I might just have to request them on a regular basis." Mike gave him a bold smile. Oh, Wes liked this man. "No problem," he replied. "It's an easy recipe and I make them a lot anyway. I have to admit I'm a bit of a chocoholic myself. Not really closeted, though; I'm right out there freely admitting to it." Take that and make what you want of it, my friend. This time, Mike winked at him while flashing that mischievous grin of his. Yowza. "I'll clean up the dishes tonight, since you got this all ready for us," Mike told him. Wes took him up on that offer and scurried off to change into his own sexy evening sleepwear, once again without the shirt, since that had worked so well that morning. He settled in the living room and turned on the local news. Mike made quick work of the cleanup in the kitchen, then came out to the living room. Wes had claimed the couch, so Mike sat in the recliner. "You mentioned that you checked out the neighborhood today." Mike asked. "How'd you like it?" "Just fine. It's pretty nice, really. It's clean and well-maintained, with lots of convenient little shops. I love that bakery." "Yeah. They have wonderful pastries, too. I always stop there when it's my Friday to take donuts to work. They're a major hit at the office." "Romeo's seems like a fun place, too. I think I might check them out sometime. Is the music any good there?" Wes held his breath because that was him, putting all of his cards on the table. Romeo's was a nearby fun-looking dance club that just happened to have a neon rainbow flashing in the window. Mike looked slightly surprised at his bold comment, but quickly regrouped, straightened his shoulders, looked Wes right in the eye, and said, "Yes. They have great music."

Then Mike got up, walked over, and put one knee on each side of him to straddle his lap. Leaning in, Mike bravely put his sweet, warm lips on Wes'. Oh, fuck yes. Wes quickly responded so Mike wouldn't be kept in suspense as to whether or not his move was appreciated. Mike's touch melted Wes. He put one hand around Mike's waist and pulled the man gently in against his body, slipped his other hand under Mike's arm, and reached around and up to the back of his neck. He pulled Mike in and added some pressure to deepen their kiss. Wes angled his head and moved his lips, sucking on Mike's for a bit, and then he tested Mike's mouth with his tongue. Mike graciously accepted that, groaned, and pushed for more. Oh, God, Wes' cock was filling quickly and he could feel Mike's, also hardening, pushing against his abs. Mike's arms were on his shoulders and his hands were moving back around Wes' neck, massaging his nape. Mike's body moved rhythmically against Wes'. Wes groaned and pushed back up at him. Wes' hand moved on his back, lower, cupping his ass and pulling him closer. Oh, fuck. Wes pulled his head back and broke the kiss. They were both breathing heavily. He looked Mike in the eye and simply asked, "Bedroom?" Mike beamed a stellar smile back at him, gave him a quick peck on the lips, and replied, "Oh, yeah." *** Jesus, fuck. The man sure could kiss. Mike led Wes back to his own bedroom because he knew he had any supplies they might need and he didn't know what Wes had in his room. Hell, Wes was a doctor, so he was reasonably sure Wes always played safe and was clean, but he brought up the subject anyway, just because, duh, it was stupid not to with a new hookup. "Um, just so you know, I always play safe, and actually mostly within a group of guys I know who are like-minded and are all tested regularly." He handed Wes a piece of paper that he'd grabbed out of his top dresser drawer. "Here's a copy of my latest test. It's about a month and a half old." "Great. Thanks for bringing that up…just a sec." Wes dashed off and disappeared into his room and Mike could hear him rummaging around in his stuff. He was back quickly and handed Mike a copy of his most recent blood work. Clean, of course, and only three months old. "Thanks." Mike reached back up to him and started another kiss. Wes' tongue swept through his mouth and Mike groaned and pushed back with his own. Mike felt Wes' hands reach down and pull his T-shirt up. They broke the kiss so Wes could get it over his head. Wes was already shirtless and oh, God, he had the sexiest chest, arms, and abs. He could just swoon when Wes put those strong arms around him and held him to that muscular chest. Wes had a small crop of sandy-colored hair across the center of his chest and an absolutely take-your-breath-away line of hair trailing down his abs and disappearing into his sleep pants. Mike put his hands at the top of Wes' pants and gave him a naughty grin. Wes winked,

returned his grin, and brought his head down for another kiss. He felt Wes' hands worked his sleep pants down over his hips and he did the same to Wes'. "Mmm…" Mike thought that was himself, but he couldn't be sure. They kicked out of their pants. Mike's cock was full and so damned hard as he rubbed it against Wes' balls. Wes' balls were high and tight and his cock was rock solid, grinding against Mike's abs. Wes grabbed his arms and walked him back toward the bed without breaking the kiss. They scrambled onto the bed and Wes pressed him down. Oh, man, he felt so very good. They weren't going to last long enough to even need the 'supplies,' but that was okay. God, Wes was his roommate! He'd never had a lover living with him before. That was bound to be enough sex to keep him more than happy, even accounting for the crazy shifts. *** Oh, fuck. Wes was going to blow quickly. It had been too long. Hookups during med school were few and far between; he didn't have time. Mike was such a beautiful, hot little package, and he had their dicks rubbing together perfectly. Mike grabbed them both in his hand and caressed them, teasing them. They were both leaking, and Mike smoothed some of the spunk down over their cocks and started pumping, hard. Nice. Mike got pushy when he was worked up. Wes liked that. Mike rolled them over so he was on top and aggressively rubbed his cock alongside Wes'. Mike's chest rubbed roughly up against him and Mike's chest hair teased his hardened nipples. Mike broke their kiss and started sucking and nipping at the side of his neck. Wes groaned. "Oh, fuck, fuck, fuck! Don't stop…Jesus, don't stop!" "You like that?" Mike whispered in his ear. Fuck, yes, he liked that. Fuck! That did it. Wes grunted, groaned, and shot. Hot come spurted out over Mike's hand and between their rubbing bodies. "Come on," Wes encouraged him. Wes gripped Mike's ass in both of his hands and pulled him in tightly. Wes kissed him again and Mike's tongue was deep in his mouth when Mike moaned and jerked, and he felt Mike's spunk adding to the mess between them. He rubbed Mike's back as he softened their kiss and went back to nibbling Mike's lips. The rhythmic movement of Mike's body slowed down and he slumped onto Wes. He pulled his hand out from between them and Wes hugged him tightly. Mike gave Wes' lips a last nibble and laid his head down on Wes' shoulder. "Mmm…I didn't realize the room came with such wonderful fringe benefits," he teased Mike.

Mike looked back up at him, smiled, and kissed his chest. "Well, the fringe benefits were a bit of a spur-of-the-moment add-on. I'm happy for it, though. I hope you don't mind the complication?" Wes chuckled. "No, I don't mind at all. Of course, I tend to be agreeable to anything right after coming, but I think I can safely say that this is not an 'afterglow' agreement and that I'm also quite happy for this so-called complication." Mike winked. "So you probably won't need to be taking any more of those lonely jack-off showers before bed? I hope the shower was acceptably inspiring to you last night." What a joker. But that reminded him…"That was a pretty bold move on your part, by the way. Flirting with me like you did last night. Are you just that fearless, or was there something that I did or said that made you think I was gay?" "I'm not particularly brave when it comes to approaching men whose sexuality is unknown. I generally assume someone is straight unless there are obvious clues to the contrary. Personally, I like the gay bar approach. It's usually safe to assume that a guy in there is gay." "You haven't answered my question." "Shit. You picked up on that, huh?" "Yes, I did." Wes smiled. "Well, okay. I didn't just think you were gay. I knew for a fact that you were." Wes quirked an eyebrow. "Is that so?" Mike's answering grin was sly. "Yep." "Have we met? I've never been to Austin before, except for a quick visit to interview at the hospital." "I only moved here three years ago myself, after graduating from college. Um, from Brownsville University in Kansas, to be specific." "Ah ha! Why don't I remember you? I know I'd remember you if we'd ever hooked up before." "Well, I knew you were gay because you were pretty active in the GLBT organization there. You don't remember me because I wasn't a member of the club and we didn't move in the same circles at all. I was a frustrated gay man living a closeted life at home." "Ah." "I'd picked up a flyer at registration because I just couldn't resist catching a glimpse of the life I very much wanted to lead…not to mention you sitting there at the table. You followed up with me to see if I was going to come to a meeting. Remember that?"

"Oh, my God, yes, I do remember you now, Mike. I thought you were cute. I only followed up with you as an excuse to approach you. I kind of thought that was your story, that you were a closet case. Man, that had to really suck!" "Yeah, it did. I probably shouldn't tell you this, but after you approached me that day, you became my…ah…nightly inspiration. I actually used to dream about you." That was just too funny. "So I'm a dream come true for you tonight?" Mike laughed. "Yeah, you are. And oh, for the record, although I barely know what a closet even looks like here, I still maintain a 'don't ask, don't tell' position with my family. At least, that's my position. I can only hope that if they start picking up clues, they'll maintain the same attitude and not make it an issue, 'cause I know my dad, and I'm afraid that it'll cause a major rift in the family if he's faced with having to acknowledge the fact that his son is gay." So Mike was still a closet case…with his family, anyway. "Jesus. That's too bad. Do they ever come out here to visit with you?" "Yeah, they've come out for a weekend visit each summer so far, and I've gone back around the holidays each year. I just evade the girlfriend questions. I tell 'em no, I don't currently have one, and hope my mom'll quit asking." "My family was great…very supportive. I have an older brother and two younger sisters, how about you?" "I have an older sister. She's married now and has two small kids. I also have a younger brother who just graduated from Brownsville." "That's cool." "Speaking of cool, this come is getting cold. Want to share a shower?" Wes laughed. "Yes, I definitely want to share a shower!"

Chapter Three Mike's alarm went off at six-thirty, but he felt refreshed anyway since they'd crashed pretty early last night. Speaking of which, he loved waking up with a warm body wrapped against his back. A warm body with a hard cock pressed against the crack of his ass. God, that was nice. He reached out and turned off the alarm. Wes rolled onto his back and sprawled out when Mike slipped out of bed. Mike moved quietly around the room, gathering his clothes before stepping into the bathroom. The hot shower was relaxing and got him thinking. Thinking about Wes, about the things he'd told Wes, and about what he wanted, or rather didn't want, out of this situation.

Great as it was having a live-in fuck buddy, he didn't want to give Wes the impression that he wanted to jump right into a relationship just because they were roommates. He smiled to himself. Roommates with privileges. Lots of privileges. *** Brandon laughed. "So he didn't have a clue when he moved in?" "No." Mike grinned. "He didn't even know I was gay, let alone that I'd fantasized about him for years." "What did he think of that?" "Well, I downplayed it a little. But yeah, I told him I used to dream about him. Shit, it's no fair questioning someone in an afterglow haze." Devon snorted. "Well, at least it didn't scare him away." "He thought it was kinda funny. Didn't laugh too hard, though. Like I said…I downplayed it." Devon smiled at him. "Do you think you've found Mr. Right?" Mr. Right? Shit. "I think I've found Mr. Stud-Muffin-Live-in-Fuck-Buddy." Brandon raised his eyebrows. "Not ready for more?" "Me? Nah. You two are great together and I do want that some day, but for now? I don't know. I kinda like my life." Brandon just smiled. Mike knew that smile. It was his 'yeah, right' smile. It was right, though. Mike liked his freedom. "Well, we want to meet Mr. Stud-Muffin-Live-in-Fuck-Buddy. How about Friday…come over for cards and games?" "Cool. Wes doesn't know anyone here yet, so I'm sure he'll be up for it." "Great." "I've gotta run. He said he'd be planning dinner for six. I'm lovin' this week he's off. It's great coming home and having dinner pretty much waiting for me." Devon laughed. "Sounds like you might like this life better than the old one, Mike." Shit. It wasn't like that. Was it? *** The phone buzzed in his pocket as he pulled into his parking space. He turned off the engine and looked at the display. Randall.

"Hey!" "Mike, hey, how's it going?" "Great! I got a new roommate." "Not the chatterbox?" Mike laughed. "No. The last guy I saw on Sunday. He's cool." "Good. Will I see you again at Romeo's Friday?" "No. Goin' to Brandon and Devon's. Maybe Saturday, though." "Damn. I'll be visiting family." "Oh, well, another time then." "You still gonna be able to bring hookups home with you or is it too early to tell?" Shit. Well, once they figured things out, it would probably be okay. Wes could, too. That wouldn't bother him, would it? Shit. Would it? "Better not for now. See how things go first." "That's cool." "Well, I'd better let you go, Randall. I just pulled in at home and I think Wes'll have dinner about ready." "Awesome. 'Kay…later." He hung up and walked up to the apartment. Dinner was about ready. Smelled like it, anyway. He knew he'd be back to doing most of the cooking once Wes' job started, but this was pretty sweet in the meantime. "Hey. I'm home." Wes peeked out of the kitchen. "Good timing. Hope you're hungry." "Famished." Wes laughed. Damn, he had a nice laugh. "Good. Come on." Dinner was fabulous. Hanging with Wes for the evening was fabulous. The sex was fabulous. Less frantic this time, too. Fuck. Wes was fabulous. Fuck. What was he getting into?

Chapter Four

Wes was looking forward to a night out and meeting some of Mike's friends. Mike was a fun guy, and he'd enjoyed getting to know him this past week. Enjoyed learning that Mike had a sensitive spot behind his ears and that it drove Mike wild when Wes sucked and nibbled there…especially if he tossed in a few naughty comments while he was at it. Mike loved to talk dirty during sex, and Wes had learned that listening to it sent him over the edge quickly. Wes knew that Mike preferred to be fucked doggie style, although when he fucked Wes, he preferred to be face-to-face. Wes loved the way Mike screamed and begged when Wes sucked him off, and, God, Mike practically came himself when he sucked Wes. That was so hot. Damn. Brandon and Devon's apartment was only a couple of well-lit blocks away, so they walked. It was good to know they'd be able to have a couple of drinks without worrying about driving. It was a nice building, similar to Mike's apartment in its landscaping. They walked up the two flights of stairs and knocked on the door. A tall, dark-haired man answered the door. "Hello! Come on in," he said. He smiled at Wes. "Hi, you must be Mike's new roommate. I'm Brandon. It's nice to meet you." "I'm Wes. Pleased to meet you, Brandon." Brandon introduced Wes to his partner, Devon, a smaller man with pale blond hair and wirerim glasses. With the introductions complete, they all went into the dining area and sat down to play cards. Devon brought out a round of cold beers and they settled on playing no-limit hold'em with a twenty dollar buy-in. They agreed on low values for their chips, to make the game last. Even so, it only lasted one round for Wes. He thought he'd caught Devon bluffing, but Devon had caught a break on the final card and knocked Wes out of the game. Brandon followed soon after, and Mike held him off the longest. It was still early when the card game ended, so Brandon pulled out their Pictionary game. Wes laughed. "I haven't played this in years." Mike smiled. "It's a riot, though. You gonna be my game partner, roomie?" "Sure." Wes wasn't much of an artist, but he was creative. Devon set up the game board and distributed the drawing supplies. They all had a blast making fun of each other's drawings as they played, and in the end, Mike and Wes won the game. They grabbed another round of beers from the fridge, then moved into the living room to talk. Brandon got the conversation going. "So, Wes, Mike said you guys knew each other in college?" "Well, not exactly knew each other. We were just acquaintances at the time. Mike wasn't out in college and we didn't really have any classes together or anything." "So it's just a coincidence then that you guys got together here?"

"Yeah, pretty much. Mike was advertising for a roommate and I was looking for a room. Mike recognized me right away, apparently, but I only remembered him after he refreshed my memory. It's a small world, I guess." "Sure is," Brandon agreed. "What do you do, Brandon?" "I'm a salesman. I have a delivery route with Jasper's Bread." "What brought you to Austin, Wes?" Devon asked. "Work. I'm starting as a first-year resident at University Hospital on Monday." "Oh, yeah? That's cool. You'll be working some pretty long hours, won't you?" Wes relaxed back into the cushions and smiled. "Well, it's not as bad as it used to be. The ACGME has guidelines about that now. It's still going to be more than a typical forty-hour work week, though." "What's ACGME stand for?" Brandon asked. "Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education." "Yeah? What sort of things do they cover?" "They limit how many hours can be worked in a week, how much time must be given off between shifts, frequency of days off. Stuff like that." "Do you know what your hours'll be yet?" "Not specifically. I'll find out my starting schedule on Monday at orientation. I know that I'll have twelve-hour shifts that'll vary a bit, depending on what rotation I'm on. Brandon absent-mindedly took Devon's hand in his, and caressed the palm with his thumb. "Wow. That'll be tough. I guess you knew that when you decided what you wanted to be, though." "Yeah, it won't bother me." Wes turned his eyes to Brandon's partner. "So, what do you do, Devon?" "I'm a CPA," Devon told him. "Just basic work hours for me, except during tax season. Then I log a few extra." "That's cool. There's a lot to be said for a job with basic business hours." Devon smiled and nodded. Kind of a quiet guy, but he seemed nice enough. Brandon entertained them for a while with stories about some of the people he worked with. Mike talked about the project he was finishing up at work. Wes told them about a zany

professor he'd had at medical school. Devon mostly just smiled and listened to the others swap stories and jokes. As the time approached eleven o'clock, Mike and Wes said goodbye and headed home. The streets were quiet and empty and they moseyed along, walking hand in hand. As they approached their building, Wes heard a voice call out. "Mike?" Mike stiffened and quickly pulled his hand out of Wes'. "Greg?" "Yeah. Hey…how are you? I thought I'd just drop in and surprise you with a visit. Surprise!" Mike laughed. It sounded a little tense and forced, though. Wes noticed a resemblance between them. Was this the younger brother Mike had mentioned who recently graduated from college? "You should have called my cell phone, Greg, so you wouldn't have to wait outside." "Well, I would have if it had gotten much later. I don't remember you being much of a party animal, so I didn't think it would be too long of a wait." Mike's laugh was a little more sincere that time. "Well, it's kind of hard to be a party animal living at home with Dad, you know." "Oh, I know. Believe me, I definitely know!" "Oh, hey, Greg, this is my roommate, Wes. Wes, this is my brother Greg. I guess we're both kinda pathetic, since it's not quite eleven and here we are heading home already." "Yeah, alone, too. That's way sad, dudes." Mike's laugh was still strained. "It's nice to meet you, Greg." "You, too, Wes." Greg's smile seemed sincere. Perhaps Greg hadn't picked up on the handholding. Either that, or he didn't share their dad's opinions. Mike was getting antsy. "Well, let's take this inside, okay? Greg, you're staying with us, right?" "Oh, yeah…my bag's in my car." They waited while Greg fetched his bag and then they all headed up to the apartment. Wes quickly refreshed his memory and was fairly certain he hadn't left any of his personal belongings in Mike's room, so he didn't think there would be anything incriminating to be found up there. They let themselves in and turned on the lights.

Apparently Greg hadn't been there before, because Mike launched into tour-guide mode and showed his brother around. "I have a couple of blowup mattresses for company," Mike told his brother. "You can use one of those out in the living room, unless you'd rather bunk in with me." Wes had changed the sheets on Mike's king-sized bed, so that was a safe offer. "The blowup'll be fine, thanks." "How long are you planning to stay?" Mike asked him. "About a week. That okay?" "Sure. That's great! It's good to see you again. It's been a long time." "Yeah, that's what I was thinking, too. I've actually got a couple of interviews here in the city later this week. If all goes well, you might end up seeing a lot more of me in the future." "Hey, that would be terrific. While I love being out of the parents' house, it would still be kind of nice to have some family nearby." Mike sent Wes a rather weak smile after that comment. His brother seemed like a nice enough man, but if he actually moved to Austin, then there wouldn't be any way of keeping Mike's sexual orientation from him. Hopefully, Greg wasn't the kind of guy to throw Mike under the bus to their parents. "Uh, I'm going to head to bed, guys. It was great meeting you, Greg. I hope you enjoy your stay and good luck with your interviews. Goodnight, Mike." "Thanks, Wes. Goodnight." "Goodnight, Wes." Mike flashed Wes a look that had 'sorry' written all over it. Wes headed to the bathroom to brush his teeth and pee. Then he went into his own room, where he hadn't slept since his first night there. Damn. He could hear Mike and Greg setting up the air mattress in the living room and the usual nighttime noises as they prepared themselves for bed. He tossed and turned for about a half hour before finally falling asleep.

Chapter Five Mike felt cold when he woke up…cold and unsatisfied. He'd been rather used to going at least a week or two between sex hookups, and almost always sleeping alone. But after just one week with Wes sleeping in his bed…with the most satisfying and pleasurable sex of his life every night, as well as some mornings…and damn, he was spoiled. He was flat-out spoiled rotten and had to admit feeling just a little pouty about it this morning.

He felt pretty guilty about it, too. He loved his brother. He really did. Greg was three years younger, so they hadn't really hung out together too much growing up, but they'd always gotten along well. So he felt more than a little guilty about half-wishing his brother wasn't there, because really he was quite happy to see him. How should he handle the situation? Maintain the secrecy about his homosexuality unless Greg was successful with one of his interviews? Because, then…damn…it would have to come out then. He would definitely just tell Greg outright if Greg got one of those jobs, so there wouldn't be any hard feelings later if it was a problem and he'd only moved to Austin to be near Mike. Mike rolled out of bed and headed into the bathroom to get ready for the day. After he got dressed, he walked down to the kitchen to fix them all some breakfast. He grilled some bacon, fried up some home fries, and scrambled some eggs. Either the noise or the smells woke Greg and Wes up, because Mike could hear them rustling around and taking turns in the bathroom. Greg wandered into the kitchen first. "Good morning, oh-favorite-brother-of-mine." Mike laughed. Greg had always called him that when they were growing up, whenever he wanted something. "Oh, you just want an extra ration of bacon, don't you? Admit it!" "Why can't you be my favorite brother even if I'm not after something?" "Well, since I'm your only brother, I certainly hope I'm always your favorite brother." Mike smiled at him. "You're my favorite brother." Mike heard Wes chuckle as he entered the kitchen. "Boys, it's just too early in the morning for me to stomach that kind of sappy talk." Greg smiled. "Do you have any brothers or sisters, Wes?" "Yes, in fact, I do. I have an older brother and two younger sisters." "Yeah? Do you see your family much?" "Well, lately it's been mostly just for the holidays and a couple other times a year. Now that I'm starting my residency, I don't know how much time will be available for traveling." "Yeah, it's hard," said Greg. "Our sister, Helen, settled down near home. We see her quite a bit still, but with Mike way down here, we've really missed him. I got the impression he was pretty antsy to leave home by the time he graduated. He seems happy enough here, though. I guess it's all good. He always comes home for the holidays, so far at least." "Breakfast is ready," Mike told them. They all filled their plates and sat down to eat. "Greg," Mike asked, "is there anything in particular you'd like to do here this weekend?" "No, not really. I was just hoping to be able to spend a little time with you. You don't have to make any special plans to entertain me or anything. I know I took you by surprise, so I'm happy to fall in with anything you already have planned."

"Well, we hadn't really made any actual plans. I was just going to catch up on housework and laundry today, and just be lazy and kick around tomorrow." Greg laughed. "Sounds like a typical weekend back home!" "Sad, isn't it?" Wes shook his head at them. "You know, we can go out on the town and have some fun tonight." "Now you're talking!" said Greg. "I'll even pitch in with the housework with that incentive at the end of the day." Mike agreed with them. "It's a plan, then. I know a nice little pool hall nearby. How about we head there tonight?" Greg and Wes agreed. Wes volunteered to clean up the breakfast mess, so Mike introduced Greg to the dusting stuff and headed off to sort laundry. Between the three of them, they pretty much got the housework all done by lunchtime, so they spent the afternoon watching movies, reminiscing, and catching up. Greg filled Mike in on how Helen's kids were doing, how Dad was the same as always, and how Mom sent her love and wanted Mike to be sure to let her know if there was anything he needed. Then he dropped his bombshell news on Mike. "I'm getting married." He just blurted it out, just like that. Wow. Just wow. "I didn't even know you were seriously dating anyone. I guess I'm really out of touch down here. So when's the wedding? "It's in November. I want you to be my best man." "Oh, my God, Greg, I'm honored. Are you sure?" "Of course I'm sure. You're my only brother, and you mean more to me than any of my friends. You are my best man." All that blurting out of big news affected Mike, and he found himself just coming right out and saying it. "Greg, I'm gay." Wes choked on his popcorn, but recovered quickly and shot Mike a 'Jesus, I can't believe you just said it like that' look. Greg seemed mildly surprised as well at how Mike had just tossed that out there, but responded calmly. "I know." Now it was Mike's turn to be surprised. "You know?" "Well, maybe not entirely know, but I had a pretty strong impression that you were."

"Really? Jesus, Dad doesn't suspect, does he?" "Dad? No, I don't think so anyway. I don't really think Mom has a clue, either." "What made you think I was gay?" "Well, it just added up. Anytime Mom asked you if you were dating anyone special, you'd always say you 'aren't currently.' Hell, as far as I know, you never went out on a single date in college, and you couldn't wait to get out of the house and move away. No doubt because of Dad and his rather outspoken opinions on the topic. Shit, I don't blame you for not wanting to come out at home." "Well, yeah, I guess maybe it was fairly apparent to anyone who really thought about it." "And, of course, the kicker would be that two straight guys would never, and I do mean never, be caught dead walking down the street holding hands." Wes burst out laughing at that one. It was pretty infectious, and soon they were all three laughing their asses off. Wes pointed out, "It's true, you know. I've certainly never seen it happen. It's a dead giveaway." Mike smiled at Greg. "You know, it's such a relief to have you know this. I didn't want you making such major life choices, like moving out here to be near me and asking me to be your best man, without knowing that." "I'm glad it's out in the open between us, too. You know, Helen's no fool, either. She and I have talked about our suspicions, but we've been careful not to mention it around Mom or Dad because we understood why you didn't want them to know. Is it okay with you if I update her?" "Um, yeah, I guess. I don't see why not. I've really hated being in a closet about it at all, you know? If it wasn't for Dad, I wouldn't be. I just didn't want it to cause a big rift in the family and figured it was for the best." "So, um, a question…um, are you and Wes really just 'roommates,' or might there possibly be an upgrade from the air mattress to an actual bed in my near future?" *** Yeah, Mike's brother was all right. Wes had suspected that Greg might be more clued in than he'd appeared to be. It was probably a good thing it had all came out when it did, too, because as they entered the pool hall they saw Brandon and Devon there playing at one of the tables. The guys saw them come in right away and called them over. "Hey, guys…who's winning?" Wes asked them. Brandon joked, "Devon, of course. He's won every game. Don't ever let him con you into a wager against him on a pool game." "Or poker. I learned that the hard way."

Mike made the introductions. "Brandon, Devon…this is my brother Greg. He surprised us last night. He was waiting for us when we got home from your place. Greg, these are some friends of mine, Brandon and Devon." "It's nice to meet you guys. I might actually move here if all goes well with some interviews later this week. It'll be nice to already know some people in town." "Hey, it's nice to meet you, too. Your brother's a great guy," said Devon. Wes walked over to the bar and ordered them all a round of beers and some hot wings while the others began a doubles game. By the time he got back, Brandon and Devon had pretty well whooped up on Mike and Greg, and they were all happy to sit down and take a break. Brandon sat down next to Devon, leaned back, and put his arm around Devon's shoulders. "So, Greg, are you looking for work here because of your brother, or is that just a coincidence?" "It's not a coincidence. I made a point of applying for some jobs here. I've kinda missed him, you know? I want to move away from Brownsville. It's a nice college town, but not a lot of good business opportunities, so I figured I'd try to settle near Mike." "That's awesome." Mike looked pleased listening to his brother talk about his desire to be near him. Wes knew how worried Mike had been at the idea of possibly losing his family if he came out to them. He took Mike's hand in his under the table and gave it a little squeeze. Mike looked back at him and gave him a pretty little smile. Brandon turned to Wes. "Do you have family back in Brownsville, too?" "Yes, near there. I have an older brother and two younger sisters. My brother got a management degree and settled down right there in Brownsville, managing one of the grocery stores. He's married, but no kids yet. My sisters are currently attending Brownsville University. Actually, Marie just graduated this year and Anne will graduate next year." Greg looked over at Wes. "Your sisters are named Marie and Anne? What's your last name?" "It's Shaw. Why, do you know my sisters?" Greg's jaw dropped in surprise. "Jesus, Wes. I'm engaged to Marie. I just asked her this past week, so I guess that's why you haven't heard yet. Wow. This is uncanny." It was Wes' turn to be stunned. Mike's, too. Even Brandon and Devon widened their eyes at the remarkable coincidence. "Wow is right," said Wes. "It seems like an extraordinary coincidence, but I guess when I think about it, it's not really that much of a stretch," Greg pointed out.

"I guess that's true," Wes acknowledged. "Brownsville isn't a very large campus, and Marie majored in business, too, so you were bound to be thrown together a bit." "Mike is going to be my best man," Greg told Brandon and Devon. "And oh, Wes…Marie said that she'd like for her unmarried brother -- I guess that's you -- to be one of the groomsmen. You know, Mike, with you both in the wedding party, it really might be tricky keeping Dad in the dark about you." Mike nodded. "That's true. Shit. Wes, everyone there will know about you, and I don't think either one of us wants to act like we don't even know one another. The last thing I want to do is to be 'found out' during the wedding festivities and cause a scene. Shit, Greg. What do you want me to do? I wouldn't want to risk something like that happening at your wedding." "If you're willing, then I think it'll be better to get it all over with and have you come out to them this summer so there isn't any risk of a discovery scene at the wedding." "Yeah, you're right. I'll do it. Damn…it's overdue, anyway. Dad worries me, though." It was time to get the conversation back to some more lighthearted topics. "How about a round of drinks, to Greg and Marie's wedding?" Wes asked. Everyone, of course, agreed to that. Wes hailed the waiter and placed their order. "Do you guys have plans for the rest of the evening?" Devon asked. "Brandon and I are heading over to Romeo's tonight. Do you want to come along, too?" Mike glanced over at Greg, then replied, "Well, probably not tonight." "Oh, don't decline on my behalf," said Greg. "What's Romeo's?" Mike answered. "It's a gay dance club with great music and a large dance floor." "Well, it sounds like fun. I'd love to come along. Come on, Mike, Wes…let's go with them." Mike looked at Wes, so Wes answered for them. "Okay." Wes smiled at Mike and Greg, "Let's go dancing!" When their drinks arrived, they drank a toast to Greg and Marie, and then headed over to Romeo's. *** It had been one hell of a day. Mike had just up and come out to his brother, which ended up being so much easier than he'd ever hoped. He'd found out Greg was getting married, and not just to anyone, but to Wes' sister. And he'd made the decision to come out to his parents that summer. Wow. Wow and damn. And now Greg was coming with them to Romeo's, where he'd get his first glimpse of Mike actually acting gay. Not the Hollywood-typical stereotype of acting gay; he wasn't really like that. Most of the guys in his circle of friends weren't. They would act out a bit when they were together in a setting like Romeo's, but basically they were just normal-acting guys who

happened to be sexually attracted to other men instead of to women. At Romeo's, however, Greg would see Mike interact with Wes in a sexually suggestive manner, which is what tended to happen on the dance floor. Mike knew Greg had been positive about it all so far, but he hadn't actually witnessed them together like that. They entered Romeo's and the first thing Mike noticed was guys dancing, moving against each other to a slow, steamy song. Some of them looked like they were one step away from actually making out. Mike tossed a glance over to Wes to see if he noticed, and yeah, he was pretty much staring. Mike gave him a poke and they headed over to an open table. The music was good. It was loud enough without being too loud. It had a good dance beat. Romeo's had a large dance floor with tall bar tables ringing the perimeter and a funky disco ball reflecting a crazy, colorful light show around the room. Greg scanned the room with a bit of a deer-in-the-headlights stare. A waiter approached and they ordered a round of beers and some chips and salsa. "Are you okay, Greg?" Mike asked. "You look a little freaked." Greg recovered himself a bit. "Oh, yeah, I'm fine. It's just a little overwhelming at first, but I'm okay, really. I guess it's one thing to just think about something as a concept, and another thing altogether to suddenly be immersed in it." "Yeah, I figured it was something like that. Are you going to be okay with it if I dance with Wes later on?" "Yeah, I will. Go ahead and have fun. I'm having a good time here just enjoying new experiences." "So when's the wedding, Greg?" asked Brandon. "It's in November." "That's cool." A good-looking, muscular blond man wandered up to their table and looked at Greg. "Hey. I'm Russell. Wanna dance?" Poor Greg, he looked surprised and looked over at Mike, but Mike wasn't going to help him out. He gave Greg a wink, though. Greg looked back at Russell. "Oh…um…well…" Brandon laughed and came to Greg's rescue. "Hey, Russell, this here is Greg. He's Mike's straight brother from out of town. He's just here along for the ride tonight." "Oh, I see." Russell smiled at Greg. "You do still know how to dance, though, don't you…even if you are straight?" "Um…sure…I know how to dance."

"Well, then, how 'bout it? It's just a dance. It'll be fun. I promise I won't put any moves on you." Poor Greg almost choked on that one, but he couldn't seem to bring himself to reject the man. He got up, and Russell grabbed his elbow and led him out onto the dance floor. Wes chided Mike. "Oh, man, Mike. I can't believe you hung your brother out to dry like that." "Ah, it won't hurt him any. Besides, it might be fun for him to get out there and cut loose a little. And, like Russell pointed out, it's just a dance." "Whatever you say, Mike, whatever you say." "I say perhaps we should join them out there on the dance floor ourselves." Mike flashed Wes a saucy smile. Wes smiled back, and they stood up and headed out onto the floor. The song had a good rhythmic dance beat and they started moving together in time with the music. Mike looked over and saw that Greg actually did seem to be having fun dancing with Russell. Russell said something in Greg's ear and he saw Greg laugh. And Greg was right. He did dance well…and not just for a straight guy. The music ended and a slow dance began. Mike saw Russell escort Greg back to their table. Greg seemed cheerful as he chatted with Brandon and Devon. Mike looked up at Wes and gave him a rather happy smile. He was feeling pretty content right then and he laid his head down on Wes' shoulder. Mike's arms moved up to Wes' shoulders. Wes put his arms around Mike and gently massaged his back as they swayed to the music. Mike felt as happy, right then and there in that moment, as he'd ever been. Life was good. *** Wes had really enjoyed himself at Romeo's. They all had a great time. Even Greg danced a number of dances and had a blast doing it. Once word got out that he was a straight man who'd just come along with friends for the night, the guys couldn't resist tormenting him with dance requests. He was a good sport about it and only drew the line at slow dances. Mike and Wes said goodnight to Greg and settled into bed. Wes was tired, but not too tired. He pulled Mike into his arms and put his lips on Mike's for a gentle kiss. "Mmm, I sure missed you last night," said Wes. "I missed you, too. I tossed and turned for what felt like forever. Between feeling cold and alone in bed without you, and worrying about Greg and my family…well, it was just a hard night." "I know. All better now, though?" "Oh yeah, all better. I'm so happy right now, even the thought of facing my father isn't overwhelming me. I guess I don't look forward to that confrontation at all, but I'm ready for it…mentally, I mean."

"I'm proud of you, hon. You made some tough decisions today." "Thanks." Mike gave him a hug. "How about blow jobs tonight? That's fairly quiet, since Greg's just down the hall." "Yum. It's quiet if you can stifle yourself when you come, anyway." Wes chuckled. Mike was generally pretty vocal when he came, but they didn't typically have a reason to try to keep themselves restrained. "Ditto. You can be pretty noisy yourself." Well, that was true enough, too. He pulled Mike in for another kiss and Mike responded intensely. That was typical Mike. God, he loved Mike's powerful, almost fierce responses. Mike was so incredibly sensual and put everything he had into it. Mike broke their kiss and moved his mouth to the side of Wes' neck. He rolled them so Wes was on his back and he straddled Wes' body. Mike's hands caressed Wes' shoulders, then moved down to tease his nipples. Wes' fingers outlined circles on Mike's back, encouraging him. Oh, God, it was all he could do to smother his groans as Mike continued to move his mouth and hands down his body. Wes' cock was heavy and full, and his legs moved reflexively as Mike took the head of his prick into his mouth. Then Mike licked and nipped down its underside, and Wes found himself tossing his head from side to side to subdue the groans that were fighting to come out. His hands were on Mike's head, in his hair, kneading and massaging…encouraging Mike along as he moved back up to engulf Wes' cock in his hot mouth. Mike took Wes' balls in one of his hands and rolled and massaged them. His other hand gripped Wes' hip as his mouth moved up and down Wes' prick, sucking and licking. Wes threw his head back and arched his body. One of his hands clutched the sheets and his other hand was hard over his mouth to muffle the low groans that he could no longer stop. His balls were drawn up so tight, and then he was coming. Oh, fuck, fuck, fuck. His dick pulsed and Mike sucked so hard and it felt so damned hot and incredibly intense. Then suddenly Mike's body jerked and he moaned around Wes' deflating cock. Wes felt a sudden burst of warm wetness on his leg, and he smiled and petted Mike's head.

Chapter Six Mike woke up to the gentle sounds of water flowing in the shower. He knew it was Greg because Wes was sprawled out on his back and he was draped over Wes' side. Nice. Mike moved his hand up Wes' warm body and trailed it over his chest and back down to his abs. Wes moved and stretched, then opened his eyes and smiled at Mike. "Good morning." "Mmm. Good morning."

Mike heard the shower stop in the bathroom. He felt warm and comfortable and didn't want to move. He hugged Wes against him tightly. Wes rolled to the side, but kept close. Mike sighed and smiled up at Wes. Wes looked at him and smiled gently back. "It's been such a wonderful week, Mike. I'm really happy here living with you. It's going to be hard for us, adjusting to my work schedule. Days might go by with us barely seeing each other." "I know. I feel pretty spoiled having you here all the time like it's been this past week. It'll be an adjustment, but we'll work it all out." Mike paused and considered what he was going to say next. "I'm happy, too, having you living here with me. It's pretty special, you know? I've never lived with a lover before." "Yeah, me neither. We've gotten to be pretty good friends, too, don't you think?" "Yeah, I do. It's pretty scary." He was feeling scared. He'd never been part of a couple before. Were they a couple? Is that what Wes wanted? He rather enjoyed his free and easy, albeit safe and careful, life. But he also liked Wes…a lot. They got along very well together, and not just in bed, although that was also outstanding. Wes was fast turning into Mike's best friend as well as favorite lover. It was very scary, indeed. Wes didn't say anything else, but he held Mike for a few more minutes, gently petting his back. *** As they walked down the hall toward the kitchen, Wes could smell sausage frying, and they discovered Greg in the kitchen fixing them biscuits and gravy for breakfast. "Awesome!" Wes said. "I could get used to having a houseboy live with us, Greg. Do you think you might want to apply for that job?" Greg laughed. "Well, much as I appreciate the hospitality you've both extended toward me, I think I'll respectfully decline that kind offer and stick to my original job plans." Mike laughed with him. "Darn. I hate dusting and you did such a good job." Greg snorted. "Thanks. I think. And breakfast is ready…perfect timing, guys." They loaded up their plates and sat down at the table to eat. "I can't believe how late we slept in today. It's practically noon!" Wes commented. "I know," agreed Mike. "I don't usually get quite that far out of sync with my regular schedule even on the weekends, but we really stayed out late last night." "I can't believe how much fun I had dancing with a bunch of guys. You know what, though? It was nice to be able to go out and have a great time like that and not feel like I was cheating on Marie at all."

They all laughed. "No," Wes agreed, "there's nothing for her to be jealous of with that." "Oh, hey…it's Father's Day. Greg, let's not forget to call Dad later," said Mike. "Oh, yeah, I'll call mine, too," added Wes. "Yeah, I'm glad you remembered that. Speaking of Dad, have you thought about when you're going to visit the folks this summer, Mike?" Greg asked. "Well, yes…actually, I have. I know I want to save my vacation time for your wedding and some time off over the holidays, so I'm thinking that I'll plan on flying home for a quick weekend trip. That would probably work out for the best anyway, 'cause once the news is out, it might not be pleasant staying at the house with Dad. It might be a good idea to give him some time to digest the information and cool down." "Good. That works out for me, too. I want to be there to support you, and if I'm just starting a new job here, I won't be able to get away for more than a weekend, either." "You want to be there for me?" Greg nodded and reached for another biscuit. "Absolutely. I think it's important that Dad knows we -- that is, Helen and I -- are behind you, and that we won't just sit back and let him think he's speaking for the whole family. And I think it'll help Mom, too. I know in her heart she'll defend you, but she's never really had to stand up to Dad." "Thank you." Mike smiled his appreciation. I know it won't be any fun for you." "I'll talk to Helen. I'm sure she'll want to be there, too. We need to plan the…ah…family conference for a time separate from whatever family get-together Mom will certainly plan with Helen's family and the aunts, uncles, and cousins and such." "Oh, God. You think she'll plan one of her big get-togethers?" Greg rolled his eyes. "I have no doubt." "Damn. I absolutely want the talk to be as private as possible…just the immediate family. The rest can find out as the topic comes up naturally later on." "Yeah. I'll get in touch with Helen and fill her in on our plans. When do you think you'd like to do this?" Mike bit his lip then grimaced. "You know what? I think the sooner the better. I want to get this over with. Maybe two weeks from now?" "Wow, that's quick. I understand that you want to get it over with, though. And you know what? That's extra good timing because I won't even have moved out yet." "I wish I could back you up, too, Mike," Wes said, "but you know I won't be able to get away right now."

"Oh, I know, Wes. I wouldn't expect it." "Yeah, I guess it wouldn't be right for someone who's a stranger to them to be there." "Thank you, though. I really do appreciate the sentiment." Mike's brow had tightened up. Whatever he said, it was obvious he was worried. Wes smiled encouragingly. "I'll be with you in spirit." Mike laughed. "Trust me. You won't be far from my thoughts, either." "So, what do we want to do today? More pool?" asked Greg. *** "I see now why Mike suggested bowling," Wes joked. Greg laughed. "He's always been good at it. He was in a high school league. I settle for having fun despite my very bad play." "Well, I'm not horrible, but I'm not good either," Wes replied. "Come on, guys, I wasn't that good." Greg rolled his eyes. "There were only six frames in two games where you didn't get either a strike or a spare." "Whatever. Wes did pretty good, too." Wes laughed. "I don't know about good, but at least I didn't get any gutter balls." "I do much better when I go along with Helen and the kids. I need the gutter guards as much as Abe and Sue." Mike grinned. "So, what now? You guys want to watch a movie?" "Count me out," Wes replied. "You two make whatever plans you want for the rest of the day. I think I'll pull out a few books to flip through to get in the right frame of mind for orientation tomorrow." "Oh, okay. We'll keep it quiet out here for you." Wes retired to the bedroom, and Greg and Mike decided on a movie to watch and put it in. Mike fetched some juice to drink and settled in with Greg on the couch. The Empire Strikes Back ended the same as the last five times they'd watched it, but they loved watching it anyway. Soon it was time for dinner, so Mike went back and checked up on Wes to see if he wanted to take a break to eat. Mike opened the door and peeked in. Wes was stretched out on his stomach with his chin on his hands and a thick book open on the bed in front of him.

"Hey, are you hungry? Ready for a break?" Wes looked up and grinned. "Oh, yeah, I'm very ready for a break. I think I'll hit the books again after dinner, though." "Oh. Well, that's fine. I understand that. I expect that'll be typical of a good share of your 'free' time for the next few years, huh?" Wes got up and came over to him. "I'm afraid so. It won't be all the time, though." Wes touched Mike's face and came down for a kiss. Wes tasted good and Mike leaned into him. Wes' tongue swept through Mike's mouth and he caught it and sucked on it, then nibbled on Wes' lips. Finally Wes leaned back, and looked at Mike with such tenderness and longing, it spooked him. "Now let's go eat," Mike said with a nervous laugh. *** "That was great, guys, thanks," said Wes. "Back to the books?" Greg asked. "Yep." Wes stood up. "Sorry to abandon you again." "No biggie," said Mike. "It's understandable." Wes smiled and gave Mike a wink before heading back to the bedroom. Mike sighed. It shouldn't be so disappointing that Wes wasn't spending the evening with them. It was understandable. Mike stood and gathered up the dishes. "So, do you want to watch another movie?" "I'm movied out. How about you call Mom and set up that visit home?" "That's a good idea. I'll make sure that weekend works for them and get my flights booked. We still need to call and talk to Dad to wish him 'Happy Father's Day,' anyway." "That's right. God, I'm glad you remembered that. I'll give Helen a call afterward and fill her in on what's going on, too." "Sure." Mike grabbed his cell phone and dialed home. "Hello?" "Dad? Hi, it's me, Mike." "Hey, Mike. How are you? Were you surprised when Greg showed up at your door?"

Mike laughed. "Yes, I was surprised. It was completely unexpected. It's great to have him here, though." "Good, good." "Happy Father's Day, Dad." "Thanks, son. It's been a quiet one with Greg gone, but Helen's family was over earlier." "That's good. Hey, listen, Dad, seeing Greg has got me realizing how long it's been since I've been home for a visit to see everyone, so I was thinking of coming home for a quick weekend visit. Maybe in a couple of weeks?" "Oh, yeah? That would be great. Let me get your mother for you so you can make the plans together." "Okay, thanks." Mike heard his dad calling his mom and then some talking in the background. Then Mom was on the phone. "Hello, Mike?" "Hi, Mom." "Honey, your father said you're coming home for a visit?" "Right. Greg's here visiting, as you know, and I guess it's made me a little lonesome for home." "That's just wonderful, honey. Your father said you mentioned coming home for a visit in a couple of weeks?" "Yes, is that okay? Not this next weekend, but the one after? I could fly out on Friday night and return on Sunday evening." "Of course that's okay, honey! I'm so excited about seeing you again. I'll call Helen right now and we'll plan something with all the family while you're here." Damn. Greg had called that one perfectly. "Sure, Mom, that sounds great. I'll let you know when my flights are once I've set them up, okay? "Okay, honey. I love you." "I love you, too, Mom. Hey, will you put Dad back on so Greg can tell him 'Happy Father's Day,' too?" "Sure, honey. I'll get him."

Mike handed the phone to Greg. "Well, that's set up. She's going to call Helen as soon as you're done talking to Dad, so wait a bit before you try her. I'll grab my laptop and set up the flights." Mike headed back to the bedroom and looked in. "Sorry to interrupt. I'm just grabbing my laptop, then I'll leave you alone again." "No problem. You are never an interruption." Mike grabbed his laptop and blew Wes a kiss as he headed back to the door. Mike smiled to himself, softly closed the door, and headed back to the living room. He settled in and logged onto the Internet to research flight times and prices. "I'm going to try calling Helen now while you research flights," said Greg. "Sure, go ahead. Let me know if you want me to talk to her at all." "Yep." Mike heard him punch the numbers into his cell phone. "Hello, Tom? Hi, it's Greg. Is Helen around? -- Yeah? -- Okay, thanks." Greg looked over at Mike and whispered, "Tom says she just hung up from talking with Mom. He's getting her now." Then he was talking into the phone again. "Helen? Hey, it's Greg." He snorted at something she said. "Just fine. You? -- Yeah? Good. How are Abe and Sue doing? Abe over his cold yet?" Damn, Helen's kids were sick? "Great. All back to normal there then? -- Yeah. Hey, you'll never guess who I met here." Greg laughed. "No. Jesus, Helen. Marie's brother, Wes, lives here. In fact, he's Mike's roommate." Greg grinned and chuckled. "Yes, that brother." That brother? Jesus. Greg laughed again and winked at Mike. "Oh, yeah…that's confirmed." Just like that? Jesus, Greg hadn't been kidding when he'd said they'd discussed it. Mike rolled his eyes, and Greg smiled and winked at him again. "Speaking of which, you just talked to Mom, right? -- Yeah. Bingo. That's exactly what the visit is all about." There was a long pause, then Greg continued, "Oh, yeah? You think so? -- You know, you're right. Now that you mention it, I guess I've noticed that, too, but hadn't really thought about it."

What the hell did that mean? Mike shot Greg a quizzical look. Greg looked back and raised his eyebrows. "Yeah, hold on. I'll put him on." Shit. "Hey, Mike. Helen's made an interesting observation in regards to Dad. I think she has a point. Here, talk to her." Mike took the phone. "Hey, Helen, how are you?" Helen laughed. "Well, I'm fine, Mike. How are you?" Mike rolled his eyes. "I'm just fine, too, Helen. It's nice having Greg here. We had a fun weekend." "Well, speaking of 'fun' weekends, Mom's already making plans for your visit in two weeks. She's probably on the phone right now with Aunt Betty and Aunt Sally, planning a potluck for noon on Sunday." "That's cool. That'll be fun. It'll be nice to see everyone again." "Well, anyway, Greg says you'll finally be telling the folks about yourself…that you're gay?" Mike sighed. "Um, yeah. I really hate the secrecy, and now that Wes and I are both in Greg's wedding, we figure it's better to make sure the folks are informed ahead of time, so they don't just stumble on it at the wedding." "Oh, definitely, but you know what? I've been thinking about it, and I don't think Dad's going to make as big of a fuss as you might think." Dream on. "Why's that?" "Well, listen. I've been paying attention, and I've noticed that Dad's rants about homosexuality weren't totally random. When you were living at home, if the subject ever came up, he would spout all his reasons why men shouldn't 'choose' to be gay. But after you moved out, his rants came to a halt, unless you were home on a visit." Dad didn't bring it up when he wasn't there? "You think he knows, then?" "I think so. You know, his comments on the subject have never really been hateful or nasty, just focused on why men shouldn't be homosexual. I think he at least heavily suspected that you were leaning in that direction, and wanted to sway you away from it. I don't think he realized how much it wasn't a choice that you were making, and that you couldn't help how you felt." That was true. Dad hadn't actually trashed homosexuals. He'd simply ranted about why it was wrong. "Yeah? I hope you're right." Mike wasn't going to hold his breath, though.

"I know he loves you, Mike, and I don't think that having you openly acknowledge that you're gay will affect that." "Well, I hope you're right. He's pretty bull-headed and outspoken in his opinions. He'll utterly hate having to acknowledge that his son is gay." "Oh, he won't be thrilled about it, but you know, he's mellowed a bit in recent years. He didn't even bring the subject up at all the last time you were here, did he? Anyway, I really think he already suspects and I'm sure he'll still love you in the end. It'll be okay, I'm sure of it." Mike sighed. "Okay. Well, if Mom's making the big family plans for Sunday, then I'd better have my chat with them on Saturday, so he can have time to recover his composure, if necessary, before everyone descends on us." "Oh, for sure. I think it'll go well, but I'd still like to be there to back you up, unless you'd rather not have me there?" Wow. She didn't just accept him, she supported him, too. "I don't mind. I don't know if I'll need the help or not, but it can't hurt. Greg wants to be there, too. I can't tell you both how much I appreciate that." "You're welcome, Mike. I'll plan on coming over Saturday morning, then." "Okay." "So, tell me about Wes. Greg says he's your roommate? Are you two together or just roommates?" "Um, we're kind of together." Mike pulled a face at Greg, who was smirking at him. "And he's Marie's brother? How cool is that!" Mike laughed. "Pretty cool." "I probably won't get to meet him until the wedding, will I? Darn!" "Probably not, sorry. I guess you'll have to find a way to survive until then." Mike rolled his eyes at Greg again. Greg laughed. "Do you want to talk to Greg again?" "Oh, no, I'm done with him. I'll just let you go. It was great hearing from you and I can't wait to see you in two weeks." "Thanks. I'm looking forward to seeing you again, too. Love ya." "I love you, too, little brother. Bye." "Bye." They hung up. Mike handed Greg back his phone and picked up his own from the coffee table. "How was Helen?" Greg asked him.

"Helen's Helen." "Always." "Well, I'd better get my flights booked." "Yeah, let me know when you're landing. I'll pick you up." "Thanks." Mike turned back to the computer and settled on flights that would land at 9:20 PM on Friday and get him back home on Sunday at 8:10 PM. "The flight lands at nine-twenty on Friday night, Greg." "I'll be there." "Thanks." They wound down the evening watching the news, said goodnight, and headed off to bed. Mike cleaned up in the bathroom and went into his bedroom. Wes was in the same position Mike had found him in earlier. He looked up at Mike, closed his book, and sat up. "Well, I'm studied out." "Good. It's bedtime. You've got a big day tomorrow, Dr. Shaw." Wes laughed at that. "I know. I'm excited." "Let's get ready for bed." Mike smiled at him. Wes stretched and got up. "Heading that way." Wes went into the bathroom to wash up. His books were scattered on the bed, so Mike stacked them up and put them on the dresser. He pulled back the covers, got undressed, and got in bed. Wes was already undressed when he returned. Mike reached over to set the alarm. "Is six-thirty going to work for you tomorrow?" "Yes. Tomorrow is just an orientation day and I don't have to be there until eight o'clock. I'll get out at six. I'll find out my schedule tomorrow." Wes pulled Mike toward him and kissed his lips. Wes' lips were soft and warm and he tasted minty. Mike responded with soft, easy kisses and put his arms around Wes to pull him closer. Wes deepened the kiss and rolled onto Mike, pushing him down into the mattress. Warm and slow and easy just felt so right. Mike relaxed back and let Wes take charge. That felt nice for a change. Mike usually called the shots and Wes seemed to like that, but sometimes it was nice to just let go and go with the flow.

One of Wes' hands was on his ass, squeezing while Wes slowly pressed his hips against Mike's, gently grinding their cocks alongside each other. Mike's tongue moved through Wes' mouth, dancing with his tongue. Wes' kisses affected him like no other, and his strong reactions were heady. Wes groaned into his mouth. Mike's cock was full and hard and he could feel Wes' cock heavy and leaking as he rubbed it against his own. Mike broke the kiss and nibbled at Wes' ear. "Fuck me, baby. Please?" "Turn over, hon." Wes' voice was low and ragged, and Mike trembled in anticipation. Mike rolled over and pulled up onto his knees and elbows as Wes opened the drawer to grab a condom and the lube. Mike heard the sound of the condom wrapper tearing, then the snap of the lid on the lube opening. He separated his knees a little to give Wes better access and felt one of Wes' hands steady on his hip. Mike felt the touch of Wes' cool fingers adding lube at his hole, then one slick finger penetrated, stretching him. Mike moaned softly and put his head down, slowly rocking his body against Wes' hands. Wes tightened his grip on Mike's hip and added another finger in his ass, moving slowly, stretching his muscle. Oh, God, he felt so good. Wes pulled his fingers out and Mike felt the head of Wes' cock at his hole, pressing carefully. The stretch stung just a bit, and Mike breathed deeply and relaxed to let Wes in. Wes' hands were both on his hips for leverage as his thick cock entered Mike. Mike spread his knees farther apart so Wes could enter him fully, and Wes pressed in to the root. Mike felt Wes' balls bump against him. He moaned softly and pressed his body against Wes. Wes held there for a moment, just gently rocking against Mike, massaging Mike's hips with his warm hands. Then he pulled back and thrust into Mike. His balls slapped against Mike's ass and Mike's torso propelled forward. He ground against Wes' hot body. Wes leaned forward and pressed a kiss onto Mike's spine. Wes' hands moved and Mike felt Wes' arms wrapping tightly around his middle, holding him close. Wes' chest pressed to him and he felt Wes' cheek against his shoulder. Wes' head turned, and he kissed, then licked Mike's shoulder. Mike shuddered and arched up into his lover's body. Wes rose up and repositioned his hands on his hips. Wes began rhythmically pumping into him. Mike's head dropped down, and he moaned and pushed back against Wes' thrusts. Mike's cock was full, aching and leaking. His balls were high and tight. He felt Wes remove one hand from his hip to reach around and grasp him. Wes squeezed and tugged, pumping his cock in rhythm with the thrusts into his ass. Mike's forehead was down on the bed and he stifled his groans with one arm. Wes was breathing hard. He bent down and whispered in Mike's ear. "Now, honey. Come now. I want to feel you." He thrust hard into Mike. Oh, God. Fuck, fuck, fuck. Wes' voice did it to Mike every time. It just pushed him over the edge and he shot, his come spurting over Wes' hand as his body jerked. He moaned into his

arm. His ass tightened around Wes' thick cock and he felt Wes convulse as he shot his load into the condom. Wes jerked against him and moved his other hand from Mike's hip, up his back to grip his shoulder. Slowly, Wes' body relaxed and he collapsed down onto Mike. He kissed Mike's shoulder as his breathing calmed. "If nothing else," Wes whispered softly to Mike, "we'll have to find time for sex at least once each day." Mike smiled to himself and whispered back, "I'll make sure it happens, baby."

Chapter Seven When Mike walked in the front door, he could smell something delicious cooking in the kitchen. He wandered in and saw that there was a lovely meat sauce simmering on the stove. Greg joined him in the kitchen. "Hey there. How was your day?" "Oh, fine. Busy, so it went by fast," Mike told him. "I started on a new project today and have a newbie assigned to me as an assistant." "Yeah? How do you like bossing someone around at work? You got plenty of practice on me when you were living at home." Mike laughed. "Well, you needed lots of guidance." Greg just smirked and rolled his eyes. "Anyway, I'm not exactly his boss, but I get to train him. That'll be different. When I started out there, I was just assisting the more senior guys on their projects. Then, this past year, I worked on some smaller to medium-sized projects on my own. I feel like I'm really moving up to have this larger project assigned to me now." "Plus, they must think well of the work you've done so far to put you in charge of a new guy to train. They wouldn't do that if they didn't think highly of you." "Thanks." Mike smiled at him. "What did you do today? Besides make this yummy-smelling sauce, that is." "I wandered your neighborhood a bit and picked up some bread at that bakery down the street to go with our pasta tonight. Then I drove around and found where my interviews will be on Wednesday and Thursday. I didn't want to risk getting lost and being late." "Good idea," Mike told him. Mike started some water boiling for the pasta, and put together a little salad. Greg set the table. It was almost six, and Mike expected Wes to be home shortly after that. They made the

final dinner preparations and Wes' timing was perfect, walking in just as Mike was draining the pasta. He looked a bit drained himself. "Smells great!" Wes said. "Thank you," replied Greg. "And ready to eat right now. Your timing is impeccable." "Awesome. I hate to tell you this, but I need to eat quickly and then abandon you guys. I start a midnight to noon shift tomorrow, which is less than six hours from now. I need to go to bed and get as much rest as I can before that shift starts." "Jesus, Wes," said Greg. "That's pretty lousy. Is that going to be a typical shift for you?" "Most of the time, it'll be six AM to six PM, but when I'm on an emergency rotation, it could be six PM to six AM, or a twelve-to-twelve shift. Since Emergency Medicine is my specialty, I'll be getting a heavy dose of that. My days off will vary a bit, too, during the emergency rotations." "Shit. You're going to be awfully tired for this one," Mike said. "Probably a little, but I don't think I'll have any trouble getting to sleep despite the early hour. I feel pretty mentally exhausted right now. There was a lot of information coming my way today." "I hope so. I hate to think of you working a long shift when you're worn out." "Well, in general, I'll have more than six hours between the end of one shift and the start of another, so that won't usually be a problem." They sat down to eat. Everything was delicious. "Wes," Mike said, "we made too much on purpose, so there'll be leftovers for us to eat for lunch tomorrow. I don't know if you'll want to take some with you for the shift you're working tomorrow, but if not, there'll be some in the fridge when you get home tomorrow for a quick warm-up before you go to sleep." "Thanks. That'll be great. I think I'll save it for when I get home. I plan on setting the alarm for eleven-fifteen. That'll give me enough time for a quick shower and some cereal before I head out. I can eat a more substantial breakfast there when I get a meal break around six, and I'll eat that leftover pasta when I get home." "Okay. You'll reset the alarm for six-thirty after you get up?" "Oh, yeah, I'll be sure to do that for you." Wes finished up quickly, thanked them for the meal, told them goodnight, and gave Mike a quick kiss on the lips. Mike heard him down the hall getting ready for bed alone and felt a little sad.

And that scared him. He knew it wasn't just the sex they wouldn't be having tonight that was bothering him. The more time he spent with Wes -- in or out of bed -- the more he cared for him, for the person inside. They hadn't spoken at all about their relationship, and Mike wasn't even sure what it was. Was he ready to give up sex with other guys and be committed to just one? Was that what Wes wanted? Mike put it out of his mind and focused on the tasks at hand. They cleaned up the dishes and Greg suggested they make some cookies. That was an outstanding idea. Mike agreed because he was always up for anything chocolate. He got a bag of chocolate chips out of the pantry while Greg softened some butter in the microwave. Before they knew it, they had the first batch in the oven. "We'll have to leave a baggie of these on the counter here with a note for Wes so he can't miss them. He might like to take some along for a snack tomorrow. I think he loves chocolate almost as much as I do." "Impossible. Even girls don't like chocolate as much as you do!" Mike laughed. "Oh, come on now. That's not nice." "It's true, though." "Well, I might be even with the girls on that, but surely I don't exceed their love of chocolate." Mike pouted. Greg laughed. "Okay…I'll concede that point for you if you'll stop that pitiful grimace." They finished up the cookies and then cleaned up the kitchen. They headed to the living room and wound down watching the news. At ten o'clock, Mike was tired, so he said goodnight to Greg and headed off to bed. He washed up in the bathroom and softly opened the door to the bedroom. Wes was sprawled on his back, sound asleep. Mike quietly took off his clothes and slipped under the covers. The rhythm of Wes' breathing was soothing and Mike drifted off to sleep himself. *** Wes heard the alarm and turned it off. He felt Mike's warm body sleeping alongside him and didn't want to disturb him. He must have been more tired than he'd thought, because he'd gone to sleep quickly, despite the early hour, and slept deeply enough that he felt reasonably refreshed, even though he'd only gotten about four and a half hours of sleep. He slipped out of bed and reset the alarm for Mike, then went into the bathroom. He cleaned up, then tossed on some scrubs, which he loved. The work hours were going to be long, but the uniform was about as comfortable as it got. He wandered into the kitchen for a bowl of cereal and heard the TV softly playing in the living room. He peeked in and saw that Greg was still up, watching a late hour talk show. "Hey, Wes. Did you get enough sleep?" "Yes. I got to sleep pretty fast and I actually feel rather refreshed, thank goodness."

"I'm glad to hear that." Wes went back to the kitchen to grab the cereal and saw a note on the counter next to a baggie. Yum! They'd baked cookies. He tossed them into a lunch sack to take with him and settled down with a bowl of corn flakes. He made quick work of the cereal, tossed his dirty dishes into the dishwasher, and then grabbed the cookies, his keys, and wallet before heading out the door. He smiled at Greg on his way out. "Thank you for the cookies. I love chocolate chip." "You're welcome. We had fun making them." "See you around lunch time, or will you be out?" "I'll plan on being here for lunch. We can warm up some of that spaghetti before you hit the sack again." "Sounds great. Have a good day." "You, too. Bye."

Chapter Eight Mike woke up a little before the alarm went off, feeling cold and alone in bed. Damn. He'd hoped that he'd wake up when the alarm went off for Wes so he could give him a kiss and say goodbye. At least if Wes got home shortly after noon, he'd be in bed by one, so they should have a couple of hours of overlapping time awake that evening. Just two weeks ago he'd been alone at home most of the time, so it shouldn't be bothering him. He just needed to adjust to Wes' new schedule. His work day went by fast. He and his new assistant, Morgan, made a good start on their project and finished the day making preparations for a client meeting the following morning. He'd tossed a pot roast in the crock pot before leaving for work that morning, and he could smell it when he walked in the door. Greg had potatoes boiling on the stove and there were carrots in with the roast. "Did Wes get home on time?" "Yep, he was home shortly after noon and in bed by one o'clock. He said to have you wake him up at nine." "Oh, yeah? Good. Then we can warm him up some of this roast to eat before he goes in again at midnight." Oh, he'd wake Wes up, all right. He had some pretty sweet plans for Wes' wakeup call.

They got the potatoes mashed, made some gravy, and sat down to eat. They ate quickly, then cleaned up the mess and settled down to watch some television. He'd told his mom that he'd call her back to let her know about his flight times, so he picked up his cell phone and dialed home. "Hello?" "Hi, Mom, it's Mike." "Hello, sweetheart. How are you?" He had to smile at that. She really did love him. Always showed concern for him. The last thing in the world he wanted to do was hurt her. "Just fine, Mom. I was calling to let you know about the flight times I set up." "Oh, good. I hope your flight out on Sunday isn't too early. Aunt Betty and Aunt Sally are rounding up their families, too, and we're having a big dinner here at noon." Oh, man. Between the aunts, the uncles, the cousins, and Helen, Tom, and their kids, it was going to be a very full house. Hopefully it wouldn't be a tense house, too. "That should be fine, Mom. My flight out on Sunday is at six o'clock. I should be okay staying until four. My flight lands there on Friday at nine-twenty. Greg says he'll pick me up." "That's wonderful, sweetheart. I can't wait to see you again." "Me, too, Mom. I miss you." Damn. He did miss her. He even missed Dad. Please let Helen be right. "I love you, Mike. Take care." "I will, and I love you, too. See you soon…bye." "Goodbye, honey." He hung up the phone and looked at Greg. "The big shindig with all the family is going to be Sunday at noon." Greg rolled his eyes. "Oh, gee, I can't wait." Mike laughed, and they went back to watching sitcom reruns and waiting for nine o'clock. *** Wes moaned as he woke up. Oh, God. Fuck! He grabbed for his crotch and took hold of a handful of hair…Mike's hair. Jesus! How long had Mike been down there? Wes writhed and clutched at Mike's head. He felt utterly out of control and ready to burst. He couldn't stop it, and suddenly he grunted and his hips jerked as his cock pulsed. Mike gripped his hips to hold him down as he sucked the life out of his prick. Oh, wow, wow, wow. Now that was a satisfying wakeup call.

Mike finished cleaning off his cock and crawled up his body. Wes pulled Mike close and kissed him hard, tasting his own come. Mike was intense and his tongue dueled with Wes'. Wes felt Mike's full, hard cock grinding hard against him. He moved a hand down to Mike's ass and pulled him in tight. He moved his body under Mike and squeezed Mike's ass as he ground upwards against him. Mike stiffened and tightened his hold. Mike moaned into his mouth and his body convulsed. Wes felt a hot wetness spreading between them as Mike's cock twitched and pulsed against Wes' lower abs. Mike broke their kiss and scooted down just a bit to lay his head down on Wes' chest. He was breathing hard. Wes' heart raced and he wondered if Mike could hear it beating. He moved his hand along Mike's back, petting him. "Thank you, hon. Damn, you can wake me anytime." "Happy to do it," Mike chuckled. "Now I'm kinda looking forward to you pulling a six PM to six AM shift." Wes laughed. "Quid pro quo, huh? I'll look forward to my turn to wake you up." Mike smiled up at him. "I'm going to go wash this off and warm up your supper for you. You get in the shower, baby." "Yeah, you got me rather sticky." "Is that a problem?" Mike winked at him. Wes just laughed and Mike scooted into the bathroom to wash up a bit. He came back to get dressed and Wes went in and hopped into the shower. By the time he was dressed and came out to the kitchen, Mike had some pot roast, potatoes, and carrots heated up for him…outstanding. Greg joined them at the table while Wes ate. "Say, Greg," Wes asked him. "You've said the wedding is in November, but what day specifically? I want to get my vacation request in at work as soon as possible." "It's the second Saturday of the month." "Great. Mike, why don't we take a week off…head out there the previous weekend and return the day after the wedding?" "Yeah, that'll be good. I'll put in a request at work tomorrow, too." "I know our parents will put us each up if we want, but since you'll be out by then, why don't we book a hotel together instead?" Mike paused just a bit, but then replied, "Um…okay…sure." "You're sure?" "Yeah, you're right. I'll be out anyway, and everyone will know we're roommates."

Just roommates? Wes gave Mike a little smile, then turned to Greg. "If you get one of those jobs here, what are your plans with Marie? The wedding isn't until November. Will she just move here now, too, or wait until after the wedding?" "Well, your parents weren't thrilled with the idea of her moving here with me before the wedding. We decided to keep the peace, so Marie's going to live at home there until the wedding. She'll get as good a job as she can knowing it'll be short term, so we can save some money toward getting a house, and I'll live as cheap as I can, too." "Bummer." "Yeah, I kinda wanted to move the wedding up, but apparently that suggestion was even more horrifying than shacking up would have been." Mike and Wes both laughed at him. Poor guy, six months was a long time to go without. "In-laws," Greg grumbled. Wes laughed. "Hey, as your future brother-in-law, I want you to know that I, personally, don't have a problem with you shacking up with my sister before the wedding." Greg grinned. "Well, thanks, but apparently your opinion wasn't considered." "Well, my parents might be oblivious, but I don't for one minute think you two haven't been getting together, so what's the point in separating you now?" Greg had the decency to turn red, and Mike and Wes had another laugh at the poor guy's expense. "Yeah, yeah, like you lovebirds can talk," he teased them. Good point. "Speaking of you lovebirds," he continued, "I'll go watch the news on TV so you two can have a little alone time here before Mike goes to bed." Wes waited until Greg left, then turned to Mike. "If your brother gets the job, do you want to ask him if he wants to just move in with us until after the wedding?" "You wouldn't mind? It would be a nice thing to do for him. Besides, we'd all save money that way." "No, I wouldn't mind at all. I like your brother, he's a good guy. Do you have enough room in your closet and dresser for me to move my stuff into your room?" "Oh, sure, there's plenty of room. And there's enough room in there for you to move that desk and bookcase, too." "Good, I would've missed those. I'm still going to be studying a lot for the next few years." "Okay, then, it's settled. We'll ask him."

Wes finished eating and they cleaned up the dishes. "Thanks for saving me some dinner. I really appreciate the way you guys look out for me." "We're happy to do it." Wes pulled Mike close. Mike wrapped his arms around Wes and gave him a squeeze. Wes felt such a strong, overwhelming emotion toward Mike that he'd never felt towards anybody else before. Could Mike see it in his eyes? Wes had never been a selfish person anyway, but the desire he felt to do whatever it took to make this man happy was overpowering. Mike seemed a little conflicted about them, and he hugged Mike a little tighter and just rocked side to side with his lover in his arms. Eventually they separated and walked into the living room to join Greg. Mike spoke up. "Hey, Greg?" "Yeah?" "Um, we were thinking. If you do get a job here, then you're welcome to stay here with us if you want until you get married." Greg's jaw dropped and he was silent for a moment. "Wow." He looked at Wes. "Are you sure you wouldn't mind? I honestly hadn't even considered the possibility, but that would really be a terrific option." "We wouldn't mind at all," Wes said. "I think we've all gotten along very well together, even if it has only been four days. Besides, it would help all of us financially." "If I get one of these jobs, I'll be happy to move in with you guys. Thank you so much." Mike smiled at him. "You're welcome, little brother."

Chapter Nine TGIF. Mike loved Fridays in general, but having Wes off made it extra special. He was sorry to see Greg leave, though. Greg had had his interviews Wednesday and Thursday. He'd done well, but it would be a few weeks before decisions were made. Greg had left early in the morning to drive home. Wes had worked three midnight-to-noon shifts on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. He was off Friday and Saturday, but would be starting three more of the same twelve-hour shifts on Sunday at midnight. So they were going out…out to dinner, and then a movie. Wearing nothing except his sexy sleep pants, Wes was waiting when Mike walked in the door after work. "Come here." Wes' eyes were burning as he pulled Mike into his arms and locked

the door. Immediately Wes' lips were on Mike's, and Mike found himself being pushed roughly up against the wall as Wes leaned into him. Oh, damn. Nice. Very, very un-Wes-like, but he liked it…a lot. No worries. He could definitely handle this side of Wes. Mike pressed back against Wes, wrapping his arms around Wes' neck. Wes' tongue swept through Mike's mouth, and Wes' hands were on his ass, kneading his cheeks. Then Wes broke the kiss and Mike found himself abruptly pulled away from the wall and drawn over toward the back of the overstuffed chair. Wes looked at him with a savage glint in his eyes. "Shoes, take them off." Orders? Mike kicked his shoes off and brought each foot up to pull off his socks. Right in his ear, he heard a low, hoarse voice. "Excellent." Jesus. His prick leapt at the word. Wes' hands found Mike's shirt and pulled it out of his pants and over his head. Mike reached for his belt and unbuckled it. Wes unbuttoned Mike's pants and lowered the zipper. His pants dropped and he stepped out of them. His cock had been quickly filling and his shorts tented. Wes' sleep pants were in the same condition. Wes yanked Mike's boxers down around his ankles and he stepped out of them, too. "Turn around." Wes looked directly into his eyes; his voice was soft, but forceful. Oh, baby. Mike turned around and placed his hands on the back of the chair. He felt Wes' hands on his hips, pulling his lower body backward. Mike stepped back and leaned forward, keeping his hands braced on the chair. "Perfect." Wes' voice was right at Mike's ear and Mike felt Wes' body fold along his back. Wes' arms came around him and he hugged Mike tightly to his chest. Wes nibbled and sucked vigorously at the side of his neck. "Do you like this, hon? Do you like it when I tell you what to do? Do you want to be fucked hard?" Oh, God. Yes, yes, yes, baby. Mike couldn't talk; he just groaned and leaned back into Wes. Wes' hand moved down to wrap around Mike's cock. He was so damned hard, and Wes gave him a squeeze. "Oh, yeah, honey, you don't have to answer me. I know. I can feel how much you want it. I want you, too. I want to be in you so bad." "Oh, fuck me. Hell, yes, do it, baby. Fuck me." Wes moaned and withdrew his hands. Wes must've had his pockets full because Mike heard a condom wrapper tearing, then Wes' pants were kicked aside, one of his hands was on Mike's hip, and the cool, slick fingers of Wes' other hand were at his hole, preparing him. Mike moaned and pushed back. "Ready for me, hon? You want my cock in you?"

"Yes, baby. Please, please." Mike felt the head of Wes' thick cock push into him, stretching him, and Mike pressed back, letting him in. Wes filled him and tightened his grip on Mike's hips. Mike moaned and gripped the back of the chair harder. Wes pulled back and stabbed into him with a grunt. Mike's head fell down and he arched his back. His cock was full and heavy and he reached down with one hand to grab it. He felt Wes' arm reach around and grab hold of his. "No, Mike. I'll take good care of you." Mike put his hand back on the chair and Wes' hand moved back to Mike's hip. Then Wes pulled back and began forcefully pumping into Mike's ass. Mike moaned, absolutely loving this dominant side of Wes. Wes had topped him before, of course, but he'd never been such a Dom about it. Mike was usually the more dominant personality in bed, but he found this to be a huge turn-on. Wes groaned and slammed into Mike hard. Mike felt the prick, large and pulsing deep in his ass. Wes' hands clenched tight on his hips. "Oh, fuck, Mike. Jesus!" Wes thrust a few more times as his cock emptied, and Mike felt Wes sway behind him. Mike's cock was leaking and ready to blow. He moaned softly. Mike felt Wes steady himself and pull out. He removed the condom and tossed it to a trash can. His hands returned to Mike's back. "Turn around," he ordered Mike. Mike turned around and Wes dropped to his knees in front of him. Wes looked up at him. "Fucking do it now, Mike. Now!" Oh, God. Wes engulfed Mike's cock and sucked hard. One hand gripped his ass, pulling him forward, and the other cupped his balls. His hands clenched in Wes' hair and his body jerked as he came in Wes' mouth. "Oh, fuck, Wes. Jesus. Baby, you feel so good." His knees weak, Mike slumped over Wes' head. Wes licked him clean, then helped him down to his knees, where Wes held him in a gentle embrace. Wes covered Mike's mouth with his own and nibbled and sucked at his lips, then the side of his neck. "Thank you, Mike." "Oh, baby, thank you so very much." Wes winked at him with a rather naughty little smile. "That was okay, then?" "Hell, yes, baby. You can attack me at the door any time you want." Wes laughed. "Good. I felt like cutting loose."

"That was such a huge turn-on." "I'm glad. I don't feel like that often. I usually prefer to let you run the show. That's okay, isn't it?" "Sure. I guess I'm kinda bossy in bed, huh?" Wes chuckled. "Maybe I like my lover to be bossy." Mike smiled back at him. "I guess that's a good thing."

Chapter Ten Mike and Wes had a wonderful weekend. When they'd gotten home from the movies on Friday night, Mike had done his best to demonstrate to Wes how much he'd appreciated Wes' earlier 'alter ego' manifestation. He knew that Wes loved to be sucked off, so he gave Wes the best blow job he'd ever given. He swore it must have lasted a full thirty minutes. He sucked on Wes' balls, then nibbled along the side of his prick. He did the best deep throat he could manage, considering Wes was rather large. He jacked Wes and sucked like hell. He stimulated Wes' prostate. He brought him to the edge, then backed off, over and over again. The poor man had babbled, begged, and pleaded. Wes' hands had had a death grip on his head. His hips had had a mind of their own. He'd gone absolutely nuts when Mike finally let him come. Needless to say, Mike had come on Wes' leg while he was swallowing. They'd made the most of Wes' time off on Saturday. They went walking in the park and browsed through some art galleries, then grabbed a bite to eat before heading back home so Wes could nap. It was back to the work routine for Wes on Sunday, and for Mike on Monday. Mike was busy at work all day, and it went by fast. When he got home, all was quiet. Wes was sleeping. Mike went into the kitchen to fix dinner, and there was a note from Wes asking Mike to wake him up at nine-thirty. Nice. Mike loved waking Wes up. Dinner was simple. They had some nice deli meat, and he fixed up a sandwich and took it into the living room with him. He didn't feel like watching TV, so he picked up a book to read while he ate. At nine-thirty, Mike walked back to their bedroom to wake up Wes. He quietly opened the door and found Wes sleeping on his stomach. He bent down and kissed the small of Wes' back. He placed his hands on the bed next to Wes' body and kissed his way up to Wes' shoulders and neck. "Rise and shine, sleepyhead."

"Mmm. Good morning, hon." "Good evening, baby." Wes chuckled. "Well, I got the 'good' part right. I love the ways you find to wake me up. You're not planning on stopping there, are you?" Of course not. Afterward, Mike found himself cocooned in a warm embrace. Wes held him tightly, moving one hand slowly around his back. He'd never had a lover hold him and pet him like that after sex. It was nice. Very nice. "Thanks for waking me up, hon." Mike laughed. "I love waking you up, baby." *** Wes felt refreshed after their shower. He tossed on his scrubs and Mike put on his sexy sleep pants and a ratty T-shirt. Then they moseyed down to the kitchen. "I just made a sandwich for my dinner. We have that deli turkey in the fridge. Do you want me to make you one, too, or is there something else you'd prefer tonight?" "A sandwich would be great. Thank you." Wes looked in the fridge to see what they had to drink. No iced tea, which sounded good, so he grabbed some tea bags from the cabinet and got out Mike's iced tea brewer. When his iced tea was ready, Mike handed him his sandwich. They walked out to the living room and sat side by side on the couch to watch the news while he ate. It seemed like they'd barely sat down before it was ten-thirty and Mike was getting up to go to bed. "Goodnight, baby, I wish I could stay up until you go, but I know I'd just be tired tomorrow if I do." "I know, Mike. It's okay, though." Wes kissed Mike and gave him a gentle hug. "Goodnight, hon." Mike pulled away, gave him a little smile, and walked down the hall to bed.

Chapter Eleven Mike's week flew by. Wes worked Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday nights, and was off Wednesday and Thursday. It had been nice having Wes' company for the entire evening after work. It was wonderful getting to go to bed together at the same time, and sleeping in Wes' arms. Too wonderful.

Wes' shift was switching to six AM to six PM, which would be a nice change. Mike was a little bummed that he'd be out of town for Wes' first three days of that shift, but knew he'd enjoy it next week. For now, as Mike searched out his seat on the airplane, his focus was on his family in Brownsville, and how he was going to handle coming out to his parents. He didn't want to just make an out-of-the-blue announcement. He'd try to find a natural lead-in so he didn't have to blurt it out in an awkward little speech. He spotted his seat, stashed his bag in the overhead bin, and sat down. He had an aisle seat, and the two inner seats were still empty. He'd kept a book out to read during the flight, but he put it on his lap for the time being and waited for the plane to fill up. His seat mates showed up and he stood up to let the middle-aged couple in. They were polite and exchanged smiles and hellos. Before long, the plane was in the air and the flight attendants were working their way down the aisle with drinks and little snack bags. He heard the woman in the window seat whisper to her husband, next to him, "What do you bet he's a fruit?" Huh? Jesus, was she talking about him? They hadn't said more than hello to each other, what could she possibly be basing that on? He considered his hair and style of dress to be fairly conservative. He didn't wear an earring, and he'd never thought that he had any stereotypical mannerisms. How would a random stranger be able to spot him as being a gay man, and why make a rude comment like that even if she did think so? Her husband gave a little snort in response to her comment and whispered back to her. "Probably. Straight men don't usually go for a job like that. It gives me the heebie-jeebies just thinking about it." Oh. They weren't talking about Mike. Still pissed him off, though. Why did they think it any of their business what a stranger's sexual orientation was? Apparently they were talking about the male flight attendant. He was doing a good job, efficiently and politely distributing beverages and snacks as he worked his way down the aisle. He didn't deserve to have total strangers making unfounded, disparaging remarks about him. Neither was there anything about the flight attendant's appearance or behavior that screamed out 'I'm gay.' The trolley worked its way toward them, and the courteous young man passed them some snack bags and asked what they'd like to drink. The woman replied with a thin layer of contempt in her voice, and the man responded similarly. The flight attendant looked slightly puzzled by their rudeness, but handed them their drinks with a smile. His politeness didn't waver when he turned to Mike. Mike looked right at him and gave him a smile. "May I have an apple juice, please?" "Certainly, sir." He smiled at Mike, scooped a cup of ice for him, and handed Mike a can of juice with the plastic cup. "Thank you."

"You're welcome, sir," he replied with a smile that reached his eyes, and then moved on to the next row. Politeness personified. It was unfathomable that this couple would be so rude to that young man who was working so conscientiously, simply because they thought that he was gay. Mike hated it. He hated the blind prejudice and dislike -- hatred, even -- that some people directed toward gays. How would this couple react if they were to have a son come out to them? How would his parents react to him? And how would they react behind his back, after he left? Fuck. After a while, their trash was collected and Mike opened his book to read. The woman in the window seat was quiet now, looking out the window. The man in the middle was reading a magazine. Soon enough, the two-hour flight was over and they landed. Mike waited for the seatbelt light to go off, then stood up and retrieved his bag from the overhead. He got off the plane and headed out to where he was to meet his brother. He spotted Greg, but Greg wasn't alone. There was a young woman with him who looked a bit like a smaller, feminine version of Wes. She had to be Marie. They were both smiling and Mike walked quickly toward them, grinning as well. Mike gave Greg a hug, then stepped back to smile at his fiancé. "Hello, I'm Mike. You must be Marie." "Guilty," she laughed. "I am so pleased to meet you, Mike." "Thank you. I'm pleased to meet you as well. You look quite a bit like your brother, you know?" "So I'm told. And how's my brother doing since Greg left last week?" "Oh, he's quite well. He had a couple days off again this week. His work days are long, but he's getting plenty of sleep." Marie smiled. "I'm glad to hear that. We worry about him. But Greg says you take good care of him, making sure he eats well." "I try. If he's working, I just fix extra so he'll have some to warm up later. When he's off, he takes over and that's a nice bonus for me." Greg interrupted. "Is that all your luggage…just a carry-on bag?" "Yeah, I'm good to go." They walked out to the parking garage to Greg's car and tossed Mike's bag in the trunk. "Am I screwing up your date night with this airport pickup?"

"Oh, no," Greg reassured him. "We went out to dinner earlier, but want to make an early night of it. Marie's working tomorrow morning, so she doesn't want to stay out late. Do you mind if we drop her off first before heading home?" "No, I don't mind," Mike replied. "Oh, Lord. I don't have to meet Wes' parents tonight, do I? I don't know how much I can handle in one weekend." Marie laughed. "No, Mike. You don't have to worry about that. They're out at a movie tonight and I don't expect them home until ten-thirty or so." "They're pretty nice anyway, Mike. You don't need to worry about meeting them," Greg added. "Do they know about me and Wes?" "Oh, yeah," answered Marie. "Wes talks to either Mom or Dad on the phone generally once every week. He told them about you already." He did? "Huh. Well, good." It was about a twenty-minute drive to the Shaws' house. Mike stayed in the car while Greg walked Marie inside. He came out a couple minutes later and they started the drive home. It was another twenty minutes to get home to Brownsville. When they pulled into the driveway, Mike sighed and looked over at Greg. Greg gave him a smile and tried to reassure him. "It'll be fine. I'm sure of it." "I hope so." Mike got out and went around to the trunk for his bag. It was dark as they walked up to the door of the four-bedroom raised ranch, but the porch light illuminated the barberry bushes growing along the front of the house, and Mike could see the bright yellow and orange marigolds blooming heartily alongside the sidewalk from the driveway to the front door. Dad took pride in his yard, and it was as lush and green as Mike expected it to be at this time of year. The door swung open before they got there. "Mike! It's so good to see you." Mom tossed her arms around Mike and gave him a hug. "It's good to see you, too, Mom. I've missed you." "Come in, come in, both of you. Goodness, it won't be long before Greg moves out, too. The house'll seem so empty." "We'll always come visit you, Mom. And Helen's family lives close by, so it won't ever be too bad." They walked into the living room and Dad was there, watching the news. He got up and came over to greet Mike, too. "Mike, how are you, son?" "Fine, Dad. I'm just fine. Work is going real well, too."

"Good. That's great." Mom hovered. "You must be tired after your flight, Mike. Your room's all ready for you." "Thanks, Mom. I am kinda tired. Is it all right if I call it a night and just plan on seeing you all in the morning?" "Of course, honey. You just go on up and go to bed." She gave Mike another hug, and he hugged her back. "Goodnight, Mom." He looked at Dad. "Goodnight, Dad. It's good to see you again. We'll talk tomorrow." "Goodnight, Mike." Greg gave him a little slap on the back. "Sleep well, big brother. See you in the morning." Yeah. Shit. He wasn't looking forward to the morning. "Goodnight, Greg." Mike carried his bag upstairs to his old bedroom. It looked the same as always…his old twin bed, complete with the wooden headboard, and the soft, old plaid comforter with its matching curtains. There was a tall, green-painted dresser and a cheap little student desk. Jesus, it felt weird every time he came home and stayed there. He opened his bag, pulled out some pajama pants and a T-shirt, and changed into them. He grabbed his toothbrush and walked down the hall to the bathroom to wash up a bit, then went back to his bedroom. Mike hadn't been lying when he'd said he was tired. He was exhausted, although he thought a lot of it was from worry. His stomach twisted in knots. He pulled back the covers and lay down on the bed. His mind wandered. What would Wes be doing right then? Mike had left for the airport before Wes had gotten home from work. He probably just ate the food they had left from yesterday's dinner and watched a little TV before heading to bed early. He'd need to get up around five in the morning, so he'd probably gone to bed around nine to get a good night's rest. Had Wes thought of him up in the air, flying to Brownsville, when he went to bed? Mike didn't wonder why he cared anymore…he just knew that he missed Wes. Mom and Dad had both been truly happy to see him. They really did love him. God, he hoped he didn't devastate them tomorrow. Dad worried him. He tossed and turned, trying to figure out how in the hell he was going to open the conversation tomorrow, imagining Dad's reaction when he told them. The house had long been quiet. Even Greg had gone to bed. His stomach hurt. Shit, he had to quit stressing himself out about it. He felt like such a baby. Fuck. He was going to vomit. The feeling had been slowly building in his gut and he didn't think he could hold it off any longer. Shit! He got up and hurried down the hall to the bathroom. He closed the door and hunched over the toilet. Fuck. He hated throwing up. But

he did it anyway. Ugh. He was so fucking tired. He heaved and his eyes started watering. He fucking hated that. Some minutes later, he washed his face and brushed his teeth. At least his stomach felt better. He walked back down to his bedroom and got back into bed. Exhausted and miserable, finally, he slept.

Chapter Twelve When Mike woke up, the sun was shining brightly in his room. God, what the hell time was it, anyway? Damn, probably late. He knew it was well after midnight before he'd finally gotten to sleep. He got up and made the bed, then grabbed his clothes for the day and walked down the hall to the bathroom. It was empty, thank goodness. He went in, used the toilet, and brushed his teeth. He took a hot shower, but not too long because he didn't know who still needed to take one. Then he got dressed and looked in the mirror. Damn, his eyes were red and he looked like shit. Back in his room, he picked up his watch and saw that it was already eleven o'clock. Jesus. He went downstairs and looked around the living room. He couldn't help but be struck by the vast difference between his parents' living room and his own. Blah. This just seemed so blah to him. Some day, when he had his own house and could paint his walls, he sure as hell was not going to paint them beige. His parents' furniture ran the gamut of neutral shades as well. It was fairly new and trendy stuff, but just so very not Mike. Wes had never commented on his colorful furnishings and accessories. Did Wes like his style, or would he prefer this more neutral style of decorating if it was left up to him? Greg was in the living room and came over to Mike. "Hey. Are you okay, man? I heard you getting sick last night." "Yeah, I'm fine now. I think it was just nerves. Sorry, I just hate this." "Don't make yourself sick over it, Mike. Shit. Do you want to just forget about it? I can talk to the folks after you leave, if you'd rather do it that way." "No. Shit. No. I don't want to be that damned cowardly. I can do this. Really, I'll be fine." "Okay, if you're sure." "I'm sure." They walked to the kitchen together. Helen was already there, standing with Mom at the counter. Dad was sitting at the table working a crossword puzzle from the newspaper. Helen saw Mike and hurried over to give him a hug. "Mike, it's so good to see you! I heard you were sick. Are you feeling better now?"

"Uh, yeah…I'm fine. Thanks. It's good to see you, too, Helen." She gave him a 'don't worry…it's going to be fine' smile, and then looked over at Greg, whose expression said 'I don't know, I think he'll be okay.' Dad took that all in, raised his eyebrows as if to say 'what the hell is going on,' and turned back to his crossword. Shit. Mom came over to him. "Honey, do you feel like eating anything? How's your stomach?" "I'm fine now, Mom, really. Could I just get a small bowl of cereal, please?" "Of course, honey, whatever you want." Mike got a box of corn flakes from the pantry and Mom got him a bowl, spoon, and the milk. Mike poured the cereal and milk and brought the bowl over to the table to eat. "What's a ten-letter word for 'brave'?" Dad asked. "It ends with 's,'" he added. Mike looked over at him. "Courageous?" "Hmmm. It fits. Thank you, Mike." "Are the kids home with Tom, Helen?" Mike asked her. "Yes," she replied. "We'll all be here tomorrow for the big lunch with all the family, but I couldn't wait and wanted to slip over for a few hours today to see you." Mike smiled at her. "That's nice of you. I'm really happy to see everybody." Dad looked up again. "So, tell me about work, Mike. You said it's going well?" "Yes. I'm not a junior engineer anymore, but a regular project engineer. I've been given a pretty good-sized project and have a new guy assigned to me to train." "That's great, son. Sounds like you're doing very well." "Thanks, Dad." Mom spoke up again. "How's that sweet roommate of yours doing?" Huh? Oh, she meant Amber. "Oh, well, Amber moved out a while back. She got married." "Oh, I'm sorry to hear that. She sounded like a nice girl. I was hoping something would develop between you two." Shit. "No, Mom. Remember, I mentioned that she already had a boyfriend when she moved in with me. She was never more than just a roommate."

"Yes, I know. I just worry about you. I remember that you never used to go out during college, always studying so hard instead. I'm concerned that now you're still just working too hard and not ever getting out to meet a nice girl of your own." Mike sighed. "Mom…" "Oh, honey. I worry about you. Greg's getting married to such a nice girl, and I want you to be happy, too." "I am happy, Mom. I'm very happy." "I hope so, honey. Are you looking for another roommate?" "I've already got another roommate." "Oh, you do? What does he or she do?" "He's a doctor." "Really? Don't doctors make enough money that they don't need roommates to share expenses?" "Well, he's a first-year resident. He just got out of medical school. I don't think they make that much money until after they finish their residency. Besides, he's got student loans to pay off." "Oh, I see. Is he a nice young man?" "Yes, Mom, he's very nice. In fact, I'd met him in college. He attended Brownsville for his undergraduate degree. He was a year ahead of me." "Oh, my goodness. How nice. Is he from around here?" "Outside of town. My roommate is Marie Shaw's older brother, Wes." Dad looked up. Helen and Greg exchanged glances. Mom seemed a little confused. Shit. "Marie just has two older brothers, right, Greg?" Mom asked. "Right." "The oldest one is married. I thought the other one was gay." Shit. It was out…or about to be. Greg confirmed that. "Yes, Mom, that's right." "Oh, Mike, that won't help you get a girlfriend. I'm sure he's a nice young man, but if people know you have a gay roommate, they might think that you're gay, too."

Fuck, poor Mom. She still didn't have the slightest clue. Dad stared at Mike, waiting. Fuck…he knew. He was just waiting for Mike to say it. Mike sighed and looked back at Mom. "Well, then they would be right, Mom." Mom still appeared confused. Mike peeked over at Greg and Helen. They were busy watching Mom, waiting for her to figure it out. Dad sighed. "Brenda," he said, "Mike is telling us that he is gay. It's time to stop asking him about girlfriends. He's never going to have a girlfriend." That was it? Mike looked over at Dad. He gazed steadily back at Mike. Mike saw a little resignation, and maybe surrender, and perhaps a bit of sadness in his eyes, but no disgust. No hatred. No revulsion. No loathing. Not really even any dismay. "That's it?" Oh shit. Did he say that out loud? "Yeah," Dad said, "that's it." Mike turned back to Mom. She looked from Dad back to Mike. "Oh." Mom switched gears smoothly. "Well, honey, is Wes just your roommate or is he your boyfriend, too?" Wow, Mom. Let's just get it all out of the way, why don't we? "Uh, well, yeah, I guess you could say he's my boyfriend." "Oh!" Was that relief? God, she seemed relieved, for Christ's sake. "Oh, honey, I'm so happy for you. I just don't want you to be all alone in your life. I'm glad you have someone. Oh…when will we meet him, at Greg's wedding?" Wow. "Well, yes. That's the next time we'll be here. Greg asked him to be a groomsman. We've both got the week before the wedding off work." "That's wonderful. I'm looking forward to meeting him, honey." Mike smiled at her and looked over at Greg and Helen. They shrugged and smiled back at him. Mike turned to Dad and raised his eyebrows. Dad gazed calmly back. "Son, do you think you can make it through the rest of the weekend without throwing up again now?" Oh, shit. He wasn't going to cry. No, damn it…no. He was not going to cry. Fuck. He was definitely going to tear up a bit, though. He gave Dad a little nod, not trusting his voice. "Good." Dad turned to Mom. "What's that you and Helen are fixing for lunch, Brenda?" "It's macaroni and cheese, dear." "Outstanding," he told her. "Greg, Mike, let's let the ladies work, shall we?" He got up and walked out toward the living room. Mike quirked an eyebrow at Greg, who shrugged back at him. Greg gave Mike a little pat on the back as they followed Dad out.

They reached the living room and Dad stood waiting for them. He looked at Mike and put his arms out for him. Jesus. How could this be the same man who had preached at him all those years? Mike loved his father, and stepped into his arms and the hug that his father had waiting for him. Mike wrapped his arms around his father and gave him a squeeze. He felt himself choking up again. Dad spoke softly to him. "I'm sorry, Mike. I made this so much harder for you than it needed to be." Mike couldn't stop himself…a tear escaped and rolled down his face. He shuddered and held Dad tighter. Dad patted his back and continued. "I know it's not always an easy life and I wanted to steer you away from it. I've only ever wanted what's best for you, and I thought that was the way to do it." He paused and took a deep breath. "I didn't realize how much this wasn't a conscious choice that you were making for yourself, and that you can't change how you feel. Hell, why would anyone choose a life that can be so difficult? You wouldn't. And it's been tearing you up, hiding from us. I'm sorry for that." "Thank you, Dad. I was just so afraid of --" Shit. He took a breath and continued. "I was just so afraid of losing my family. I know guys in that situation. Their parents won't even talk to them anymore. You seemed to have some strong opinions, and I just didn't want to risk losing you." Damn. His face was all wet. He felt like such a big baby. "I love you, son. Always have. Always will. I've had years now to learn to accept this, and I saw that I was driving you away from us. I realized I didn't want that, either." Mike wiped his face and stepped back a bit. "I love you, too, Dad. Thank you. Thank you for accepting me as I am." Dad gave him a little smile. "I admit that I'll never be thrilled about it, but I know now that I would much rather have you be able to live your life as you want, with the support of your family, than be as miserable as I recognize now that you were when you were stifling yourself during your college years." "I can't ever go back to that, Dad. I just can't." "I know." He looked over at Greg, who gave him a big smile. He came over and gave Mike a hug, too. "Thanks," Mike whispered. He excused himself to go wash his face. When he returned, Mom and Helen had joined them in the living room. Apparently lunch was in the oven now. Conversation had thankfully turned to Greg's job search. "I made some follow-up phone calls the other day, and decisions are expected to be made early this week," Greg told them. "Both of those sound like great opportunities, son. Do you know how steep the competition is?"

"They're entry-level positions, and my competition is other new graduates rather than people with job experience. My grades are excellent and I feel pretty confident that I interviewed well. I'm hopeful that I'll get one of them." "You'll both be so far away," said Mom. "At least you and Mike will be near each other, though. I'm happy that Mike will have some family closer to him if you move out there." "Mike and Wes have offered to let me room with them until after the wedding when Marie joins me. That'll be a big cost savings for me and will help them save, too." "Oh, how nice!" Mom exclaimed. "Wes sounds like such a nice young man, Mike." She turned to Greg. "I guess you've gotten to know him, then, haven't you, Greg?" "Yes, Mom. I can confirm for you that he is very nice." Mike raised an eyebrow at Greg. Greg gave him a wink back. Jesus. Helen spoke up. "Mike, you mentioned that Wes is a first-year resident. Does he know yet what field he wants to specialize in?" "Yes, emergency medicine." "How exciting! I remember Marie mentioning that he was a very good student. I know the Shaws are all very proud of him." "He's very smart and dedicated," Mike agreed. Mike's cell phone vibrated in his pocket. He got up and pulled it out. It was Wes. "Excuse me," Mike told everyone and hurried up the stairs. "Hello." "Hey, Mike! How are you?" Wes sounded cheerful. "Fine now. I was a complete mess last night." "Damn…nerves? I wish I could have been there for you. All is well now, though? The news is out?" "Yes to everything…nerves, well now, and news." "That's good. Your dad's okay? It's not going to be a problem for you?" "It's a huge relief. I can't believe how much better I feel right now. It's like this huge weight has been lifted from my shoulders. And yes, my dad is very accepting. He pretty much already knew. Apparently he's had me figured out for years, and was just misguidedly trying to 'help' me." "I'm glad that's over with and turned out so well." "They even know about you, too. Mom is dying to meet you. In fact, I have to wonder if you called just now because your ears were burning!"

Wes laughed. "Uh-oh, don't tell them all about me." "Oh, please. You are such a saint compared to most people. There's nothing bad to tell about you." "Thanks." "Hey, Wes?" "Yeah?" "Do you like the way I have our apartment decorated?" Wes burst out laughing. "You certainly do have a very, very colorful style, but you know what?" "What?" "It's so you. And it's actually hard not to be cheerful in those surroundings, so I've found that it's grown on me and it would just seem wrong now if it was anything less." "Thanks." Mike didn't know why it seemed so important to him that Wes liked it. "I doubt you have a long lunch break, so as much as I would love to spend hours talking to you, I'd better let you go grab a bite to eat." "Yeah, you're right. I miss you, Mike. Should I try to call about the same time tomorrow?" Mike missed Wes, too. More than he wanted to admit to himself. And he definitely wanted to hear from Wes again tomorrow. "That's fine. Company will be arriving tomorrow about this time, but I can escape for a quick call." "Okay, bye for now, then." "Bye, Wes." They hung up and Mike walked back downstairs. Mom looked up. "Good timing, Mike. Lunch is ready." So they all headed into the kitchen for some macaroni and cheese. Mike hadn't ended up eating that much cereal earlier and his appetite was back in force, so it was a good thing Mom always seemed to cook like she was providing for an army. They filled their plates and sat down at the kitchen table. "This is delicious, Mom," Mike told her. "I'm glad you like it, honey. Are you eating well back home?" Good grief. She was such a mom. But it was nice having her worry about him like that. It made him feel loved. "Yes, I use that crock pot you gave me for Christmas a couple years ago all the time. It's probably about worn out, I use it so much."

"I can attest to that," added Greg. "That crock pot was used three or four times in the one week I was there, and we had balanced and healthy meals every day. Mike's almost as much of a mother hen as you are, making sure there are always vegetables with the meal." Mike rolled his eyes at Greg. 'Mother hen,' indeed. "Good. I think a lot of men out on their own just eat a bunch of junk and fast food. I'm glad you're eating healthy, Mike. I can feel even better about Greg moving out, too, knowing you'll keep an eye on him and make sure he eats well." "Oh, I'll take care of him, all right." He looked at Greg. "And for the 'mother hen' crack, I'll put you down for bathroom duty on the weekly cleaning assignments." Helen and Dad both thought that was hysterical. Greg pulled a face at Mike. Mom just shook her head at them all. Yep. Mike loved his family, and he was glad they still loved him.

Chapter Thirteen Mike had gone to bed early again last night, but at least it was because he felt bone-tired rather than because he was worried sick. He fell asleep quickly and slept through until eight in the morning. He actually felt refreshed when he woke up, and fortunately looked more like himself, too. Mom was, of course, already in the kitchen, working on preparations for the big picnic lunch, when Mike walked in. Dad sat at the table reading the newspaper. Greg was apparently still sleeping. "Good morning, Mom, Dad." Dad looked up from the paper. "Good morning, Mike. You look like you slept a little better last night." "Yeah," he laughed, "I did. I think I was asleep before my head even hit the pillow." "Will corn flakes be enough for you this morning?" asked Mom. "That'll be terrific. I'll get it. I know where everything is." "Oh, thank you, honey. There are some extra strawberries in the fridge if you'd like to cut some onto your cereal." "Awesome. Thanks." Mike opened the refrigerator and grabbed the strawberries. He carried them to the counter, poured his cereal into a bowl, and cut some berries onto the top. He poured on some milk and headed to the table to join Dad. "Greg will be taking you to the airport around four this afternoon, right?" asked Dad.

"Yeah. I wish it could be a longer trip, but I wanted to keep my vacation time for the wedding and some time off around the holidays." "That makes sense." Mike finished his cereal and washed up his dishes. "Mom, is there anything I can help you with?" "Actually, yes, there is. Do you mind peeling potatoes?" "I don't mind at all. How many do you want peeled?" Mom got out the potatoes she wanted peeled and Mike got to work at the sink. Greg joined them in the kitchen. "Good morning, all." He was cheerful, as always. They all wished him a good morning back. He poured himself a bowl of cereal and joined Dad at the table. "Are you picking up Marie to come over for the afternoon, Greg?" Mike asked. "Yeah. She hasn't met all of the aunts and such yet. That should be fun. I hear Alan's bringing a girlfriend over, too." Alan was one of their cousins, Aunt Betty and Uncle Carl's oldest son. Aunt Betty and Aunt Sally were Mom's younger sisters. Alan was going to be a senior at Brownsville University in the coming year. "Oh, yeah? Are Ben and Marcia coming, too?" Ben and Marcia were Alan's younger siblings. "They'll be here," Mom said. "Betty says they're coming, anyway. So are Brian and Katie." Brian and Katie were Aunt Sally's kids. Aunt Sally was divorced. She was the youngest of the three sisters, and quite a bit younger than Mom and Aunt Betty. There was a brother between Betty and Sally, but Mike hadn't seen Marty since he was about five years old, so he barely remembered him. He remembered hearing that Marty had gotten in a big fight with Mike's grandparents and had taken off afterward. Mike had heard Mom, Aunt Betty, and Aunt Sally talk about him and wonder where he was, or if he was even alive. They'd tried to track him down, but with a last name like Jones, that wasn't easy to do. The cousins were all a bit younger than Mike, so they had never been great friends. Alan and Ben were four and five years younger than Mike, so Greg was closer to them than he was. Greg had always gotten along better with Ben, actually, saying Alan could be a prick. Marcia was three years younger than Ben. She was about to be a senior in high school. Mike was pretty sure that Brian and Katie were in junior high. Katie loved to baby-sit for Helen's kids, and Abe and Sue just adored her. "So the head count today'll be, what, eighteen?" Mike asked. "That's the way I figure it," replied Dad. Greg said, "I'm going to go fetch Marie right after I'm done eating, Mom, unless you've got something for me to peel, or husk, or scrub, or whatever for the food-fest first."

Mom laughed. "Oh, just go and fetch your sweetie, Greg. But I reserve the right to put you both to work when you get back." Greg smiled at her. "Not a problem. We're happy to help. I think Marie said something about making some brownies to bring over, too. So you can count on that for the dessert table." "That's wonderful. She's such a sweet girl, Greg." "I know, Mom. That's why I love her." Greg finished up and took off to go pick up Marie. Mike was done with the potatoes and sent the peelings down the garbage disposal. Mom was busy putting some pies together. "What's next?" "Hmmm…let's see. Your father's going to be grilling out, so maybe you could get the hamburgers formed on a plate?" "Sure." He dug around in the meat drawer of the fridge and pulled out the hamburger packages. He washed his hands again and formed, seasoned, and layered a bunch of hamburgers. Then he covered them up and put them in the refrigerator, ready for Dad to grill. Mom had the pies in the oven and was slicing up the potatoes to make some au gratin potatoes. "Want me to husk that corn, Mom?" "Yes, honey. Please." Mike grabbed the bag of corn on the cob and brought it out on the patio. Dad was working on his crossword puzzle and hollered out the screen door to him. "What's a five letter word for 'concentrate'?" "Think?" Mike replied. "Well, that's what I had, but now it looks like the middle letter is a 'c.'" "Oh, hmm…how about 'focus'?" "That works. Great." He chuckled. "I especially miss you when I'm working on my crosswords, Mike." Mike looked up from husking the corn and smiled. Wow. He still couldn't get over how well it had all gone with Dad. It was as if they were actually closer now, without a secret they both knew existed keeping them apart. He felt so lighthearted, he found himself whistling as he worked, finishing quickly. "Have you got anything else for me to do, Mom?" Mom looked around the kitchen, most likely going over her to-do list in her head. "You know, honey, I think that'll do it. Dad'll start the grill in an hour or so, I've got the pies in the oven.

The baked beans and potatoes are ready for the oven. You've got the corn all ready. Betty and Sally are bringing some salads, Helen is bringing cookies and chips, and Marie is bringing brownies. Thank you so much for your help." "You're welcome, Mom. I hope Marie has the same brownie recipe that Wes uses. Those are terrific." "Did he bake you some brownies? That's so sweet." "Yeah. If his days off fall during the week, he takes care of dinner, and that often means brownies. We're both major chocoholics." Mom laughed. "I know you are." Mike smiled and went up to his bedroom. He stripped the sheets off his bed and remade it with fresh sheets. He packed up his stuff so he was ready to just grab his bag and go later on. Then he picked up his book and brought it down to the living room to read until company started arriving. He only got about a chapter read before Greg returned with Marie. He stood up to greet them. Marie was holding a plastic wrap-covered plate piled high with brownies. "Yum," Mike said to her. "That looks delicious." She smiled. "Wes told me you're addicted to these brownies, so I thought I'd make them for my contribution to the potluck picnic." "That was certainly nice of you. Thanks for thinking of me." Greg and Marie took the plate into the kitchen but returned quickly. "Apparently," said Greg, "there's been a dynamo assistant chef in the kitchen this morning and there's nothing left for us to help with." Mike laughed. "Sorry, I didn't mean to step on your toes." "Oh, don't worry. My toes don't mind at all." Mom and Dad joined them in the living room, and talk turned to wedding plans until it was time for Dad to go out and start the charcoal and Mom to work on final preparations in the kitchen. Greg and Marie kept Dad company on the patio, and Mike went back to reading his book. *** Chaos. That's what it was…chaos. Abe and Sue were tearing around the backyard, whooping and laughing. Katie was chasing them, acting like a monster. Greg, Alan, and Ben were teasing Brian, playing some kind of keep-away game with a kick ball. Marie, Marcia, and Misty -- Alan's girlfriend -- were taking turns on the tire swing, laughing and yakking about whatever it was girls talked about when they got together. Helen, Mom, Aunt Betty, and Aunt Sally were bustling around in the kitchen, setting up the food line. Tom, Uncle Carl, and Mike were standing around the grills,

acting like they were helping Dad, who was busy rearranging and flipping the burgers, chicken, and hot dogs. "Who has the meat platters?" asked Dad. "This stuff's done." Mike grabbed the platters off the picnic table and handed them to Dad. When they were full, he and Tom took them into the kitchen while Dad and Uncle Carl hollered for everyone to come and eat. Everyone loaded up their plates and headed back outside. The younger kids and the older generation, along with Helen and Tom, took over the picnic tables. Mike joined Greg, Marie, Alan, Misty, Ben, and Marcia on a couple of large blankets spread out in the yard. The food was delicious and the lemonade was perfect. Mike was halfway through with his plate when he felt his cell phone vibrate in his pocket. He set his plate down and excused himself, heading for a quiet corner of the yard. "Tell him I said 'hi,'" hollered Marie. Mike gave her a smile as he answered the phone. "Hello?" "Hello, hon. How's lunch going?" Mike sat down under a tree and spoke softly to Wes. "Wonderfully. The only thing missing is you. Oh, Marie says to tell you 'hi.'" Wes laughed. "Tell her 'hi' back for me. Hey, did she make you those brownies?" It was Mike's turn to laugh. "Yes, thank you for giving her the idea. I haven't gotten to dessert yet, but I'll be sure to have one or two of those." "I miss you. I can't wait to see you again. I'm off the next two days, you know, so I'm going to stay up, waiting for you to get home." "I can't wait to see you, either. You don't have to try to stay awake if you're tired, though. You're always so tired after your shift. I'll be happy just having you there next to me." "Well, I'm going to try anyway." "Okay. It's nice to hear your voice. How's work going?" "Good. I like this day shift. Even though it's still an extra long day, it's at least close to normal work hours." "Hey, you're going to actually be off both days of next weekend, aren't you?" "Yessiree. That'll be sweet. I can't decide if we should just relax and hang out together, or figure out something special to go out and do."

"How about we do a day of each? Do something fun on Saturday and rest up from it on Sunday?" "I like the way you think, Mike. I'll think about what we can do on Saturday." "Good. It's up to you…your special day, baby. You know what else, though? Friday is the fourth of July. You'll probably be tired out from work. Do we want to plan to go out or not?" Wes laughed. "Let's just play it by ear. We'll make last minute plans to go somewhere if we're up to it." He paused. His tone changed slightly and he added, "I guess you don't necessarily have to stay home if you want to go out without me." Mike didn't care too much whether they went out or not, but felt oddly troubled that Wes didn't seem to care if Mike went out partying without him. "Well, we'll see." "Um, I should probably go eat my sandwich before my break is done." Shit. "Yeah, okay. Bye, Wes." "Bye." Mike walked back to the picnic blankets and sat down. Everyone seemed tense. Greg and Alan's faces were red. Ben, Marcia, and Misty didn't seem to know where to look, and Marie appeared distressed. Fuck. Alan looked at Mike with a bit of a sneer. Fucking little prick. Mike looked right at him. "You have a problem, Alan?" "Oh, no," he said, "I don't have a problem." Fucking weasel asshole. Mike turned away from him and looked at Marie. He gave her a smile and told her, "Wes says to tell you 'hi' back." She looked a bit relieved and gave him a little smile. "Thank you, Mike. How's he doing?" "Fine, he's just busy working." Ben spoke up. "What's Wes do for a living, Mike?" Thank you, Ben. "He's a doctor. A first-year resident," Mike told him. "Cool!" exclaimed Marcia. "Like Grey's Anatomy." "Sweet, or like ER," added Misty. "That's what he's going to specialize in, emergency medicine," Marie told her. "Does he look like Dr. McDreamy?" Marcia asked. Jesus…girls. "Even better," replied Marie.

"Oh, how romantic," sighed Misty. She put her hand up on her forehead and affected a faint. The girls all broke down in giggles and Greg, Ben, and Mike rolled bemused eyes at each other. Alan snorted, got up, and stalked off into the house. He came back out after a minute with some pie and cookies, but walked past them to go sit under the oak tree and eat. What a dickhead. The rest of the group brought their plates in to the kitchen. Everyone selected some dessert. Mike took a couple of Marie's brownies. They trooped back outside and the girls wandered off to the tire swing again to gossip. Ben walked over to join Brian, Uncle Carl, and Tom at the basketball hoop. Mike sat down at the picnic table with the stragglers. "Did you get enough to eat, honey?" Mom asked. "Yeah. I don't think anyone will be leaving hungry, Mom," Mike laughed. "If they do, it's their own fault," agreed Aunt Sally. "Everything was delicious," added Aunt Betty. Mike looked over at Alan and noticed that Greg had joined him under the tree. They seemed to be having a difference of opinion. "Shit." Mike got up and walked over towards them. Much as he appreciated Greg's support, he really didn't want this to degenerate into anything physical, and if the looks on their faces told him anything, that was a decided possibility. At least they were keeping their voices down. As he got closer he heard Greg. "Don't be such a fucking prick, Alan." "I'd rather be one than take one up the ass like your brother, asshole." Oh, shit…Jesus fucking Christ. Had Alan actually just said that? "Mother fucker." That was an almost-but-not-quite under the breath comment coming from directly behind him. Mike really couldn't believe his dad had just said that. Mike saw that Greg hadn't taken that retort from Alan very well, either, and had shoved him up against the tree. Alan was pushing back. Mike ran the last few steps. He grabbed Greg and pulled him back and away from Alan, but Alan followed and hauled back a fist like he was going to plug Greg. "Alan!" That was not a voice to be ignored. They'd all learned that early on. Alan instinctively came to an instant halt. Greg and Alan were both breathing hard. Dad's eyes were narrow slits as he shot daggers at Alan. Alan's face was still red as he stared back at Dad, a touch of dread in his eyes. "Do you have a problem with my son?" Dad's voice was so cold, Mike literally felt chilled. Alan looked over at Greg, then at Mike, then back to Dad. "No, sir." He was a prick, not a fool.

"Then I'd better not ever hear, or hear of, such vulgarity coming from your mouth again. Do you understand me?" Alan paused, but he wasn't stupid. "Yes, sir." "Good." Dad turned and walked back toward the house. Jesus. Mike looked at Greg and patted him on the back. "Come on," Mike told him, and hitched his head toward the basketball hoop. They walked over to join the game, and Mike noticed Uncle Carl walking over to meet up with Dad. Greg and Mike didn't bother looking back to see what Alan decided to do. The guys were just starting up a new game of 'horse,' and Mike and Greg played a round. Mike dropped out when the next round started up and went in the house to see what was going on there. Mom, Dad, the aunts, Uncle Carl, and Helen were in the living room talking. Mike heard Mom say, "Sally, I've never heard that before. What makes you think Marty was gay?" "Well," replied Aunt Sally, "do you remember his best friend, Billy? You know…that skinny blond kid who was always hanging around here with Marty?" Oh, that sounded interesting. Mike slipped in and sat next to Helen. She leaned over and whispered in his ear, "Alan can be such an asshole sometimes." Mike gave her a look that said 'no shit,' and she smirked back. Aunt Betty replied, "I remember him. He was always so very polite, wasn't he?" "Yes," said Aunt Sally, "that's him." "I know who you're talking about," added Mom. "Well," continued Aunt Sally, "one time when Mom and Dad were out, and I got home early from somewhere or other, I came in the house and waltzed in to the rec room and, boy, oh, boy, they were kissing and making out like there was no tomorrow. I backed the hell out of there as fast as I could and I don't think they ever knew I'd walked in and seen them. I never said a word about it to him or to anyone else, either." "Oh, my," said Mom. "That was sometime in his senior year, as I recall. I was a junior, and you two had both gotten married and moved out by then." "Do you think that's related somehow to his leaving that next summer?" asked Aunt Betty. "Well." Sally leaned forward, her eyes wide. "As you both already know, there was a huge fight between Marty and Dad right before Marty took off. I was up in my room hiding out from it all and couldn't hear the entire argument, but a word or two of what Dad was shouting at Marty did filter through. What I heard certainly suggests that Dad had either been told or had figured it out and was, well, highly upset, to say the least."

"I wonder why he never contacted any of us, though. Did he think we'd react the same way as Dad did?" "I don't know, Betty. I wish I did." "Well," added Mom, "We've talked about trying to find him before, and after Mom and Dad died, we tried on our own. I think it's time we actually do it, don't you? We don't know if he's even still alive, and I think that if he is, he should know that his sisters still love him." "Let's take action, then," said Dad. "We'll hire a private detective and find out where he is." "Agreed," said Uncle Carl. "Ladies, we'll need you to write down everything about Marty that could possibly be useful. His full name, when he graduated from high school, the full name of his friend Billy. He might have known where Marty went, or might have gone with him. If you know what his social security number is, that'll be especially helpful. If he ever talked about a particular place where he might have wanted to move to eventually, that could be a clue." "Got it. We'll dig up whatever we can this week and put it all together for you," Aunt Sally said. "How exciting," exclaimed Helen. "I remember Uncle Marty a little bit. He was always so much fun. He would play hide and go seek with me and Mike, and pretend like he couldn't find us even though I'm sure our hiding spots must have been so lame. Do you remember him, Mike?" "Just a little bit. He laughed a lot, I remember," Mike replied. "He certainly did," agreed Aunt Sally. "I missed him so much after he left. I'd known he would be leaving for college soon anyway, but we still would have seen him. I wonder if he was ever able to go to college. It must have been so hard for him." "I'd always thought that Marty had taken off by his own choice. Do you think that he just chose to leave after that big fight with Dad, or do you think Dad might have thrown him out?" asked Aunt Betty. "I don't know for sure," replied Aunt Sally. "I didn't hear all of the fight, only a word here and there. You're right, though. It's certainly possible that's what happened." "I hope he's okay now, and happy wherever he is," said Mom. Poor Mom, it was her personal mission in life to make sure everyone she cared about was happy in his or her life. They all heard a commotion at the back door, and Greg, Marie, Ben, Alan, and Misty all trooped into the room. "Ah ha," said Greg. "Here's where you're all hiding out. We're hoping to get up a big game of kickball, including everyone. Are you 'old' folks up to it?" "Old! Who's old? I can kick your young butts in kickball any day of the week." And Uncle Carl probably could, too. He was in pretty good shape. So was Dad, for that matter.

They all got up and paraded out to the backyard for a rowdy game of all-ages kickball. Mike thought Dad and Uncle Carl manipulated the team selection just a bit and made sure that he, Greg, and Alan were on the same team together. It was actually a wise move on their part, because they found themselves cooperating with each other in the name of team spirit. They backed each other up and cheered for each other and, by the end of the game, they were basically getting along with each other as well as they had in the past. Granted, they'd never been fast friends, being four years apart, but they'd always been courteous and friendly to each other, and Mike did want that back for the sake of their families. He suspected Alan did, too. Afterward, they all trooped back into the house for drinks. It was about time for Mike to leave for the airport, so he alerted Greg to be ready. Up in his room, he picked up his bag, and walked back out to the hallway, where he found Alan arriving at the top of the stairs. "Got a minute?" Alan asked. "Ah, sure," Mike told him. He jerked his head toward his room. "Come in." They stepped into Mike's bedroom. Mike turned to Alan and waited for him to speak first. Alan stared at the ground and generally fidgeted and looked uncomfortable, as if he wasn't sure what to say. Mike didn't help him out. Finally, he looked back up at Mike and spoke. "Look, Mike, I guess I just want to tell you that I'm sorry about earlier. I shouldn't have said that shit." "Okay." He squirmed a little more. "Shit. I just…well…shit. Well…you're still you, you know? Nothing should be changed just knowing that about you. I'm sorry. You can't forget it, I know, but can you forgive me? I'd really like our relationship to go back to how we were before." Okay, that was good. "Thank you, Alan. I appreciate that, and I accept your apology. Friends?" Mike held out his hand. Alan took it and smiled. "Thank you." Mike gave him a smile back. "Come on, let's go back downstairs. I need to make a round of goodbyes." Back in the kitchen, Mike walked over to Mom and Dad. "Time to go?" asked Mom. "Yeah, sorry it's such a short visit, Mom. It was great being here with you again, though." He gave her a hug. "I love you." She hugged him back. "I love you, too, Mike. You take good care of yourself, honey." Mike stepped back and looked at Dad. He reached out and pulled Mike in for a hug. "Love you, son. Don't be such a stranger, okay?"

"Okay, Dad. I love you." Mike gave him a squeeze and stepped back. Helen was right there, smiling at him. He gave her a hug, too. "Thanks, Helen. You're my favorite sister." She laughed and hugged him back. "I love you," Mike told her. "Love you, too, little brother. Take care." Mike looked around the room and gave a blanket goodbye to the rest. They told him to have a safe trip and wished him well. Mike caught Greg's eye, Greg grabbed Marie, and they headed for the door. They settled into the car and gave a collective sigh. "You know what?" Mike asked them. "What?" "Although I'm certainly happy to be heading home to see Wes, I think this might be the first time I've left here actually regretting that the trip couldn't have been a little longer." "Really?" asked Marie. "I'm glad. I'm so sorry about starting that whole upset with Alan." "Don't be sorry, Marie. I'm glad it came out. I don't want to hide who I am from any of the family. I wonder how Alan felt about Misty's comments. She obviously didn't agree with his opinion." "Maybe that helped him realize how misguided his own reaction was," added Greg. "We noticed that Alan followed you upstairs. Was that to make up with you? I spoke with him a bit after you went inside…before we came in to recruit everybody for kickball. He said he would never really understand it, but regretted being so crude and ugly about it." "Yeah, he apologized. He seemed sincere, so I'm okay with it all now." "Did Dad actually hear what Alan said?" "Yeah, we both did. You should have heard what Dad said under his breath after that. I was almost more shocked by that than by Alan." "What did Alan say?" Marie wanted to know. "Sorry, baby," Greg told her, "I'd rather not repeat it. Let's just say he was extremely vulgar and leave it at that." "Oh, I've heard worse," Mike told them. "Just not from anyone I actually know, let alone a family member." "God, I hope you don't have to endure that kind of crap often!" said Greg. "No, I don't go around randomly announcing to strangers that I'm gay. But sometimes groups of ultra-conservative types will loiter around the outside of places like Romeo's and heckle or taunt us when we go in or out. I've never had anyone I know come right out and say anything like that, though, whatever they may or may not be thinking."

"That's a shame," said Marie. "You just mind your own business and don't shove your opinions in their face and they should just do the same. You aren't hurting anyone. It makes me mad. Poor Wes. He's probably been subjected to that, too, then, hasn't he?" "Probably. I'd be surprised if he hasn't. We haven't talked about it." "I miss Wes. It'll be nice to get to see him more if we move to Austin near you, Mike." "I should know about those jobs this week," Greg told her. "I've got my fingers crossed. But you know you're going to be missing us both for about four months if I do get one of them." "I know. We'll have to plan a few weekend visits. You could fly back for a weekend like Mike just did, or I could fly there to see all of you. And we can IM and talk on the phone in the evenings, too." Greg smiled over at her. "We'll make it, baby. It won't be easy, but we'll make it." "I know," sighed Marie. "Then I'll miss the rest of my family instead. It can't be helped, though. I know we need to go to a larger city for better opportunities, so going to one that already has some of our family settled there is a great compromise." "Before you know it," Mike told them, "you'll have your own little family keeping you busy. I'm looking forward to having some little nieces and nephews living near enough for me to get to know them better than I've been able to do with Abe and Sue. I've kind of missed out on them." "They're sweeties," Greg told him. "Jesus, can you imagine me with my own kids, though? It seems wrong. I feel like we were just kids ourselves yesterday, you know?" Mike laughed. "Well, more like a week ago at least for me. I've been out on my own for long enough to feel a little more like a grownup. Although I certainly felt like I was about fifteen this weekend." Greg laughed. "I got a little taste of what it feels like to be the big brother." "I know. I can't tell you how much I appreciate everything you've done for me these past few weeks, which only goes to show, you'll make a terrific father." "Thanks." It took them about a half-hour to get to the airport. They all hugged and said their goodbyes, and then Mike went in to await his flight home. *** Mike let himself into the apartment and all was quiet. He could see that their bedroom door was open and the light was on. He walked down the hall and discovered Wes lying on his stomach across the foot of the bed. Books and a legal pad full of notes were scattered around him, and he was fast asleep with his head on one of his arms.

Poor guy. Mike hated to wake him, but he knew he'd have to do it to get Wes comfortable under the covers. He quietly took care of his unpacking first, then collected Wes' papers and books and stacked them on the dresser. He turned off the overhead light and went into the bathroom to get washed up and ready for bed. He got undressed and went back to face Wes. He pulled back the covers, then gave Wes a little kiss on the side of his face. "Wes?" he said softly. "Let's get you undressed for bed, baby." Wes just moaned a little and turned his head the other way. Jeez. Maybe he could get Wes undressed without waking him up. The man was out cold. He pulled off Wes' socks, then worked his shirt up his body. His arms were up, so that helped. Mike gathered the shirt up and stretched it over Wes' head, then up and off his arms. Wes made a few noises, but otherwise seemed insensible to what Mike was doing. Mike had to roll Wes to get his jeans off, which was not easy, but he managed to get him turned onto his back. He unbuttoned Wes' jeans and carefully worked them down his hips. After that it was easy, and he got them pulled off Wes' legs. Mike got Wes' boxer briefs worked down over his hips as well, then pulled them off, too. He was better off moving the pillows and having both of them just sleep sideways on the king-sized bed than trying to get Wes situated the right way. He set the alarm for six-thirty, then fetched a couple of blankets and arranged them over the top of them both and settled in next to Wes to sleep. Wes felt so nice and warm, and his steady breathing was soothing. It was good to be home.

Chapter Fourteen The last thing Wes remembered was studying on the bed while waiting for Mike. Now Mike was warm in his arms and they were lying sideways on the bed. It was still dark out, and a glance at the clock told him that they still had fifteen minutes before Mike's alarm went off. Wes tightened his arms around Mike and gave him a soft hug. Damn, he'd missed Mike. He'd spoken to Marie on the phone after Mike's flight had left, and she'd told him a little about what happened over the weekend. She knew from Greg that Mike had been sick to his stomach Friday night. Mike had alluded to having had some nerves, but hadn't told him how bad. It was just like Mike to protect Wes from worrying about him. Marie also told Wes a little about the altercation with Mike's cousin after the phone call on Sunday, too. Would Mike mention that? Probably not. Mike had a strong protective side to him, and would rather take the whole world on his own shoulders than risk troubling those he cared about. Wes could feel Mike's morning hard-on pressing against him and smiled to himself. Oh, yeah. It was his turn to give Mike a playful wakeup call. He rolled Mike onto his back. Mike moaned softly. One of his arms was flung across his eyes and the other was up over his head. Nice. Wes carefully crawled down and settled between Mike's legs. He gently lifted Mike's legs up, settled Mike's knees over his shoulders, and took hold of Mike's hips.

Mmm. Wes brought his head down and sucked along the underside of Mike's prick. Mike's body gave a little shudder. Wes licked his way up to the head of Mike's cock and took it into his mouth. His tongue swirled around and he slowly sank down, engulfing Mike fully in his mouth. Wes came back up and gave a strong suck. Mike's body jerked and Wes heard a yelp as Mike's hands landed on his head. "Oh, Jesus, Wes! Oh, my God. Oh, God, baby. Don't stop. Please, don't stop." Well, of course he wasn't going to stop, and now that he had Mike's attention, he did just the opposite. He attacked with full force. Wes opened himself up and moved up and down Mike's stiff cock. Mike's hips moved instinctively and Wes let Mike fuck his mouth. Mike groaned loudly and Wes could taste his pre-come. Mike's hands tightly clutched his head and he heard Mike cry out. "Oh, fuck, Wes. Fuck!" Mike's body started twitching and he was babbling, tossing his head from side to side. Finally, Mike gave his hips a final thrust and his body jerked as he groaned and came hard. Mike's cock grew and pulsed in Wes' mouth, and Wes closed his lips around him tightly. Hot spunk spurted to the back of his mouth. He sucked and swallowed as Mike's cock slowly softened. Mike's moans turned gentle and the hands on Wes' head lightly massaged him. Wes groaned as he licked Mike clean. His own cock, already stiff upon waking, was now rock hard and leaking. He didn't have time to decide how he wanted to remedy the situation because he found himself being hauled up and roughly tossed to his back. Suddenly, Mike was on top of him. His mouth was on Wes', his tongue invading Wes' mouth. Oh, God. Wes grasped Mike's ass and ground his cock up into Mike's groin. Mike pressed down hard, rubbing forcefully against Wes. Wes groaned loudly in Mike's mouth and felt his climax building. His cock ached and his body started to jerk. He held Mike hard against him as his hips ground up against Mike and then the hot wetness of his come spread between them, his cock pulsing as it emptied. Mike's kiss softened and they nibbled on each other's lips. Wes petted Mike's back and Mike relaxed against him. Then the alarm went off. Mike smiled against Wes' mouth and climbed off him to reach across and shut off the alarm. "Oh, God, baby, you were so much better than that buzzer. Thank you so much." "You are so very welcome, hon. It was my pleasure. God, I missed you this weekend." "I missed you, too. I thought about you so much. I really appreciated your calls." "How the hell did we end up sideways on top of the bed anyway? I guess reading textbooks is not a good way to try to stay awake when you're tired, huh?" Mike laughed. "I would say definitely not. You were sleeping so soundly, you barely twitched when I undressed you."

"Thank you, I appreciate it. I really wanted to greet you when you got home, but this worked out nicely instead. Are you ready for our shower?" "Oh, yeah." *** Mike walked in the door after work and was greeted by the most delicious aroma. He loved Wes' days off. Much as he didn't mind, and, in fact, liked taking care of Wes on his long work days, he found that he appreciated being coddled now and then himself after a day in the office. He went into the kitchen to greet Wes and see what he was cooking. "Good afternoon, baby. Dinner smells fabulous. What are we having?" Wes turned and smiled at him. "Barbecue beef short ribs, skillet taters and onions, fresh steamed green beans, and some mixed fruit. How was your day?" "Yum. And fine…it was just a basic day in the office, nothing noteworthy to report." "Good. Well, this'll be ready in a few. I just need to take care of the last-minute stuff." "Super. I'll get the table set." But Mike's phone rang in his pocket, so he answered it instead. "Hello?" "Hey, roomie, how was your day?" It was Greg. "Roomie? Does that mean you got the job?" Wes looked at him and raised his eyebrows inquiringly. "I received a nice job offer today, which I have since accepted. I'm so excited! There's so much opportunity for advancement with this job," Greg replied. Mike nodded his head affirmatively at Wes. Wes smiled and whispered, "Tell him congratulations for me." "Congratulations, Greg, that's outstanding. And Wes says congratulations, too." "They want me to start a week from today, Mike. Is it okay for me to move in with you guys next weekend?" "Sure. That's fine. Hey, Wes is off work next weekend, so that works out well." Mike whispered again to Wes, "He starts a week from today. He needs to move in next weekend." Wes nodded. "Oh, good," said Greg. "I was worried about disturbing his sleep while hauling stuff in. I'm glad he'll be off work."

"We'll get his personal stuff moved out of that room this week. Plus, we're going to move that desk and bookcase into my room for him, too. He needs them." "Perfect. I have a couple of things I've bought that I'd like to bring, so that'll make room for them. I've got a bookcase of my own and a little arm chair and side table. Do you think those will fit okay in that space?" "Sure. How are you hauling it?" "I figure I'll get a hitch put on my car this week and rent a small trailer. I was planning on driving on Friday again, only leaving earlier this time. I'll probably get there about five or so. Will that be okay? "Yeah, that's fine. Wes is on a six AM to six PM shift, Wednesday through Friday. He'll want to go to bed a little extra early on Friday night, though. He's always tired after his long shifts." "Oh, that's fine. Hey, that's the fourth of July, isn't it?" "Yep. We don't really have any plans anyway, though." "Okay, I just have that little bit of furniture, and some boxes of books and movies and my clothes and stuff like that. If you'll help me, I don't think we'll need Wes' help." "No problem. You've still got that key, too, don't you? I'm off work for the holiday, but in case I'm out running an errand or something and you get here before I get home, you can get in?" "Yep, I've got it." "Good. Well, listen. Dinner is ready here, so I need to let you go. Congratulations again, Greg. We'll see you Friday." "Thanks for everything, Mike. Figure up what my share of the rent and such will be and let me know, okay?" "Oh, yeah, I'll do that." "Okay. Bye, Mike." "Bye." They hung up and Mike looked at Wes. "Wow. Greg will be here to move in next Friday afternoon." "So I heard. If you can help me move that desk and bookcase this evening, I'll take care of moving the rest of the stuff tomorrow while you're at work." "Good idea. I promise, any time you need quiet study time in there I'll just leave you alone to it. You won't regret giving up that room." "I'm not worried about it."

"I'll work up an estimate of how much the utility and grocery costs will increase and figure up what our new three-way split of expenses will be, too. That'll be a nice savings for us both." "Great. Hey, better get that table set. I'm about ready to dish it up here." *** Oof. The desk was heavier than Wes thought it would be, but working together, they got it moved. Wes just stacked his books and stuff on the floor for the time being and they got the bookcase moved easily as well. It would be nice to be truly sharing Mike's room with him instead of just sleeping in there with him while his stuff occupied another room. They settled into the living room to relax a bit. Wes had some things he wanted to look up in his textbooks, and Mike wanted to finish a book he'd started reading on the airplane, so Mike put some soft music on the CD player and they just sat companionably on the couch, reading their books. They were listening to Leonard Cohen sing So Long, Marianne when Wes heard a noise and realized it was Mike's phone vibrating in his pocket again. Mike pulled it out and looked at it. "It's Greg again," he told Wes. Wes listened to Mike's side of the conversation. "Hello?" There was a pause while Greg talked and Wes saw a slight glint of alarm growing in Mike's eyes. What was that about? "Um, sure…yeah…that's okay." What was okay? Mike looked at Wes and gave him an 'oh, shit' look. Damn. "Oh, okay. Good. That'll work." Shit. What would work? "No, no. It's not a problem at all. Tell them I'm thrilled." Uh-oh. "Okay. Still the same time on Friday? Great. See you then." Mike sighed. "Okay. Bye." Mike hung up. "What is it?" Wes asked. "Well…" Mike grimaced. "Greg told Mom and Dad about his plan to put a hitch on his car and haul a trailer out here. And he further mentioned to them about how you're actually off work next weekend." "Uh-oh." "Yeah, so Dad decided that since he's got a big pickup truck anyway, and since Mom kinda wants to meet you, and I suspect he might want to check you out himself, that he would 'offer' to drive out here with Mom in the pickup, hauling Greg's stuff, while Greg drives his car out." "So I get to meet your folks this Friday, I guess."

"Yeah, and it looks like they'll stay the weekend and drive back on Monday morning. Greg will just let them use his room, and he'll sleep on the blow-up mattress in the living room for the weekend." "Oh, man. Well, that's okay. But, well, you know…yikes." Mike laughed. "It'll be fine, really. You don't have anything to worry about. I'm just sorry about the fact that we'd planned on doing something special for your free weekend." "Oh, I think this is plenty 'special' enough for me." Mike laughed again. "I'm glad you're such a good sport. I'd be freaking out if it was your parents coming to stay with us." "Hey, my parents are totally cool about this." "I know. I've never met a guy's parents before. It's something I'm going to be nervous about no matter how unjustified it might actually be." "My parents kind of want to meet you, too. I've never lived with a guy before, either, and they're very curious about you." Maybe it wouldn't be so bad. They had accepted Mike, but still, this was all new to them. What would they think of his sharing a bedroom with their son while they were here? Wes put it out of his mind and they went back to reading their books again for a few hours, then went to bed.

Chapter Fifteen Mike cleaned the apartment and caught up on the laundry during the week leading up to his parents' visit. There was no way he was having them arrive with the place less than spotless. He'd put a pot roast in the crock pot that morning, too. It wasn't exactly traditional Fourth of July fare, but he'd never bothered to get a grill. He'd gone grocery shopping in anticipation of his company earlier in the week, but he needed to make a last minute run out to the convenience store for some milk and bread. As he approached the apartment building on his return, he saw both Greg's car and Dad's pickup in the parking lot. He found them all in Greg's room, rearranging the furniture so it would better coordinate with the new additions still down in the truck. Mike gave them all a smile. "Hello. How was the drive?" "Hello, honey," said Mom. She gave him a hug. "The drive was just fine. How was your day?" "Just fine," he told her. Dad and Greg moved the dresser into place. "Are you all set here now, with the rearranging?" Mike asked.

"Yes," replied Greg. "Are you ready to haul stuff up?" "Sure, let's go." "Honey, your pot roast smells terrific," Mom said. "Would you like me to work on some side dishes for dinner while you boys do the hauling?" "That'd be great, Mom. You wouldn't mind?" "Of course not, honey. I'm happy to do it." "Thanks. Just make yourself at home in there. Check out the pantry, fridge, and freezer, and make whatever you want. I've already got carrots in the crock pot with the pot roast. Oh, and Wes should be home between six and six-thirty, so we want to plan dinner for sometime after six-thirty, okay?" "Okay, dear. I'll take care of it." "Oh, hey," Mike asked, "are you guys going to want to go watch fireworks tonight, or are you wiped out from the long drive?" "Well," said Dad, "we've already discussed that. Your mother and I would just as soon stay in, but don't mind if the rest of you want to go out. We don't want you to change any plans on our account. Greg said he doesn't care either way. He'll go out with you and Wes if you want to, but is happy to stay home if you don't." "Okay," Mike replied, "Well, we didn't have any concrete plans, and were just going to see how tired Wes was when he got home, then decide." "That's fine," said Greg, "I'm easy. We'll just wait and see." Dad, Greg, and Mike walked back down to the truck and started bringing in the boxes. After a few trips, they got to the furniture. Greg and Mike carried the arm chair and Dad followed them with the little side table. Then they went back down for Greg's bookcase, which was pretty good-sized. As they approached the truck, Mike saw Wes' car pull into the lot. Mike walked over to meet him. "Hi, Wes. Everyone's here. We're just bringing up the last load." "Oh, darn," Wes laughed. "I missed out on the hauling? What a shame." Wes looked worn out. And his laughter wasn't really reaching his eyes. Something was bothering him. They walked over to where Dad and Greg were waiting by the truck for introductions. "Hey, Wes. Long day? You look beat," said Greg "Yeah, rough day. I'm fine, though." "Wes," Mike said, "this is my father, George Evans…Dad, my roommate, Wes Shaw." They shook hands. "I'm pleased to meet you, Mr. Evans," said Wes.

"Oh, no," replied Dad, "please call me George, unless you want me to call you Dr. Shaw?" Wes laughed. "Please don't do that. George it is, then. And you can call me Wes." Dad clapped him on the back. "I'm pleased to meet you, Wes. Greg is right, though…you look beat. Why don't you go on up to the apartment while the three of us wrestle with this bookcase?" "Thank you. I can help out a little. I'll get the doors for you, at least." The bookcase was heavy, but with three of them lifting it, they didn't have any trouble getting it up the stairs. Wes lingered and held the doors for them. In Greg's room, Mike turned back to introduce Wes to Mom, but Wes had already discovered her in the kitchen. As Mike approached, he heard Wes telling her, "I love dumplings." "And you know, they're really quite easy to make," Mom said. Wes turned to look at him. "Mike, do you have your mother's dumpling recipe?" "Um, no, I don't have that one. Can I get it from you, Mom?" "Of course, honey. I'll write it out for you after dinner." "Thanks. So you guys already introduced yourselves to each other?" "Yes, we did. He's quite a charmer." She winked at Wes, who smiled back at her. Mike laughed at them. "Yes, he is. So what can I help you with now, Mom? We've got everything inside now, so I'm free to help you out here." "Oh, how about setting the table, honey?" "Sure." He turned to Wes. "Do you want to go get changed?" "Yeah, and washed up a bit. I'll be back out in a few." Wes headed down the hall to their bedroom. Mike grabbed a folding chair out of the coat closet to add to the four chairs around their little table. Soon the table was set ready for dinner. Mom had made a salad and cut up some peaches. Together with the meat, carrots, and dumplings, it made a hearty meal. The dumplings still needed to finish cooking, so Mom, Dad, Greg, and Mike went into the living room to sit down. "I'll plan on getting everything put away in there right after dinner, that way you guys won't have to climb over boxes when you go to bed tonight," Greg told Mom and Dad. "It should only take me about an hour, I think." "Thank you, son," said Dad.

"So, Mom, Dad, is there anything in particular you'd like to do this weekend?" Mike asked them. "We didn't really make any plans. We'll leave it up to you, honey." "Okay. Well, a few ideas might be going to the state history museum, or visiting some art galleries. Mom, we have some interesting specialty shops if you're interested in that. If we want to do something more active, we could go bowling. I whooped up on Greg his first weekend here." Greg laughed. "Yes, he did. But you need to count me out of your plans, at least for tomorrow. I need to do some suit shopping." "Oh, bummer, you have to wear suits?" Mike asked him. "Well, mostly it's business casual, thank goodness, but for meetings with clients, I'll need to wear suits. I have one, but should get a couple more, as well as some shirts and ties. Actually, I need to shop for some polo shirts and khaki pants, too. I don't really have enough of those, either." Wes rejoined them and Mom checked on the dumplings. Dinner was ready, so they went into the kitchen to fill their plates and sit down. "Mike, Brenda, the food is delicious," Dad complimented them. "Thanks, Dad," Mike told him. "Mom should get most of the credit, though. I feel bad putting you to work in the kitchen like that, Mom, when you're a guest in my home." "Oh, nonsense, honey. After all the help you gave me last Sunday morning? You were such a tremendous help." "Well, that's home, though. I don't consider myself to be a guest when I'm there, and it just wouldn't feel right if I didn't help out." Wes laughed. "Mike, you just like to be busy, I think. I know you can't relax if anyone else is still working around you. Now I know where you get that from." Dad chuckled. "They're two peas in a pod. Like a pair of Energizer Bunnies." Greg laughed. "Nice image, Dad." Mike rolled his eyes and just tried to ignore them. They were right, though. He did take after Mom's side of the family, both in appearance and in personality. And as he'd learned the previous weekend, that's apparently were his homosexual gene came from, too. Oh, man. The dumplings were incredible, and Mike got up for a second serving. He brought the bowl back to the table. "Does anyone else want some more dumplings?" he asked. And, of course, everyone did.

When they were all done eating, Mike stood up. "Mom," he told her, "you are not going to help with the cleanup." "I'll help you, Mike." Greg volunteered. "Thank you," Mike told him. "The rest of you can just shoo." Wes chuckled. "Well, I'm too tired to argue with you, so I'll let you two handle it." Dad certainly didn't argue. He'd always been a little more old school and didn't consider the kitchen his domain. Mike expected that at this point; Dad would be more in the way than help even if he tried. He was by no means lazy, and did an awful lot around the house, not to mention the yard. It was just more divided between what he considered to be the man's work versus the woman's work. Mom had never seemed to mind, though. She was a little old school herself, although she had made sure her sons, as well as her daughter, knew how to handle basic cooking, laundry, and household chores. So Mom, Dad, and Wes went back out to the living room by themselves. He hadn't thought about how he'd be sending poor Wes out to the wolves by himself, so to speak. Oh, well, like Mom said…Wes was a charmer, and Mike knew Wes could handle it. Greg cleared the table and Mike rinsed and loaded the dishes into the dishwasher. Then Greg wiped the table and came back in. He looked like he wanted to ask Mike something. "Is there anything else you need for your room, Greg? Do you want some help?" "Oh, no, I don't need anything at all. I'll have it all settled in about an hour. Um --" Greg blushed a little. Shit. What was up? "Listen," he lowered his voice, "I think I should warn you -- since Mom and Dad are staying in there this weekend -- well, it's just that the walls aren't quite as soundproof as you might think they are." "Oh, shit. Jesus. I'm sorry, Greg. Damn. How embarrassing is that!" Greg laughed a bit. "Oh, don't worry. Nothing at all can be heard from the living room, and I've got this 'sounds of the ocean' little background sleep noise thing I like to use that I'll have in there. I just doubt that Mom and Dad will be using it. Well, anyway, I just thought it would be kinder to warn you than to not say something." "Hell, yes. Shit. Thanks for the warning, and sorry about that. Damn, I thought we were being pretty quiet." "You were, really. It's just that when everything is otherwise quiet…well…that's when you can really tell they're just apartment walls." Mike wasn't sure whose face was redder, his or Greg's. Greg gave him a goofy grin and told Mike he was going to go take care of his room now. Mike told him to have fun and walked back out to the living room.

Dad was busy questioning Wes about his work at the hospital and what his plans were…safe topics. Mom and Dad were sitting on the couch together and Wes was sitting in the recliner, so Mike sat cross-legged on the overstuffed chair. Damn, Wes looked drained. "Wes," Mike told him, "you're exhausted. You don't need to stay up tonight. Why don't you go ahead and go to bed now so you'll be rested enough to enjoy the weekend?" Wes nodded. "Yeah, you're right. I'm sorry to abandon you folks so early, but Mike's right. I'll be much better company tomorrow, I promise." "Oh, Wes, dear, don't you worry about it at all," said Mom. "You work so hard. You just go back there and get some sleep. We'll be fine out here with Mike." "Goodnight, Wes," Dad told him. "Goodnight, George, Brenda. Goodnight, Mike." Mike got up, too. "I'm going to fetch the air mattress and bedding for Greg. Do you want to look through the movies and see if you'd like to watch one, or we can just watch the news?" "We'll look," replied Dad. Mike walked down the hall with Wes. They went into the bedroom and shut the door. "Is everything okay?" Mike asked him. "Yeah," he said, "I'm fine." "I got the impression something was bothering you when you arrived home this afternoon." Wes gave Mike a tired little half-smile. "You are too perceptive, hon." "You're tired right now. Let's talk about it in the morning, though, okay? You sleep now." Mike gave him a hug, and Wes held Mike tight for a moment. "Goodnight, Mike." Mike looked up at him. He reached up and gave Wes a light kiss. Wes kissed him back, and then they parted. He gave Wes an encouraging little smile. "Goodnight, Wes." Mike got the air mattress out of the closet and left Wes to get ready for bed. He fetched the rest of the bedding from the linen closet in the hallway, then hauled it all back to the living room. "Did you decide if you want to watch a movie tonight?" Mike asked his parents. "Or we can watch the news, or maybe play some cards." "I think the news will be fine for tonight, son." Mike switched on the TV and turned it to one of the news channels, then handed the remote over to Dad. It was just easier that way. Dad chuckled, but took it from Mike. "Oh, hey,"

Mike told him, "we've got today's paper over in that basket if you're interested. Maybe we've got a different crossword than the one you do in the paper back home." Dad smiled at him. "I'll give it a try while we watch the news." Mom handed him the paper, and Mike got up and grabbed a pencil for him out of a drawer in one of the side tables. They watched the news for a while, but it was pretty dismal. Dad looked up from his puzzle and switched the channel to one of the news magazine shows. They watched while the show analyzed a murder mystery, and debated the evidence and whether or not they thought the guy was guilty. After about an hour and a half, Greg emerged from his room wearing his pajamas and carrying a pile of empty boxes that he'd broken down. He stacked them by the door. "Hey," Mike told him, "we can put those in our storage unit downstairs if you'd like to keep them for when you move again." "Thanks, yes, let's do that." "Sure, we'll bring them down tomorrow." "Well, I'm all settled in," Greg told them. He smiled at Mom and Dad. "The room is all yours." "Thank you, sweetie, for giving up your room for us. We sure appreciate it." "No problem. This air mattress is pretty comfortable, actually. Besides, I'll bet I stay up later than any of you, and this way I'm not bothering anyone if I watch TV." "I don't think I'll take that bet because I know you'd win," Dad told him. He turned to Mom. "Actually, Brenda, I'm a bit tired out from that long road trip today. It's a little early, but I'm ready for bed. How about you?" Mom agreed. "I'm tired, too." She got up, and Dad followed her down the hall to Greg's room. Mike looked at Greg and handed him the remote. "Here," he told him, "it's all yours." "Thanks." Mike got up and started the air pump to blow up the mattress. "I'm kinda tired myself, so I'm going to head to bed, too," he said. The air mattress finished filling and Mike closed it up and stacked the bedding on top for Greg. "Do you really not mind staying home and missing fireworks?" "Don't mind at all." "Is the air mattress really pretty comfortable?" "Actually, yes, it is." "Good. Well, goodnight, then. See you in the morning."

"Goodnight." Mike walked down the hallway. The bathroom was still free, so he snuck in there to quickly pee and brush his teeth, then quietly went into the bedroom and closed the door. Wes was sleeping on his stomach tonight. Mike got undressed and slipped under the covers to curl up next to him. His body was warm, and Mike relaxed and listened to the night sounds. Mom and Dad took turns using the shower and brushing their teeth. Mike heard Wes breathing softly and steadily next to him. He heard Mom and Dad talking quietly in their bedroom, and he fell asleep.

Chapter Sixteen It was just starting to get light out when Wes woke up. He felt warm and cozy curled around Mike's back. Mike was still asleep, his breathing steady. Wes' erection pressed gently against Mike's backside and he couldn't help a little smile. Damn, he liked waking up with his lover. Shit. Mike's parents were in the next room. It was one thing quietly having sex with Mike while Greg was in the next room, but parents? What a scary thought. His morning wood suffered a quick and natural death. He was not going to let that spoil the warm intimacy of a nice, morning snuggle, even if it was one-sided. He listened for sounds of life in the apartment, but didn't hear any yet. There was something oddly comforting about being the only person awake, and he just lay there holding Mike, listening to him breathe. Eventually he heard Mike's parents stirring in the next room. Soon they took turns washing up in the bathroom, and Wes felt Mike awaken. He gave Mike a little squeeze to let him know he was awake back there, too. "Mmm," Mike moaned softly and turned in Wes' arms. He put his arm around Wes and snuggled in closer. Wes could feel Mike's breath warm on his neck. "Mornin'," Wes heard him mumble. Wes gave him a squeeze. "Good morning," he whispered back. "Did you sleep well?" "Mmmhmm. You?" "Yes. I feel very refreshed this morning. Thank you." "Good," Mike replied. There was a pause, and then he seemed to remember something. "Oh, baby?" "Yes, hon?" "Something was bothering you yesterday. Do you want to talk about it?"

Shit. Not really, but it would probably help. He didn't want to burden Mike with his issues, but he knew Mike. It would burden him more knowing something was bothering Wes and not being able to help him through it. "Well, it sounds stupid because I'm not ignorant, so it's not like I didn't know this would be a part of my job." "What is it, baby?" Wes sighed and just spit it out. "Someone I was helping to take care of died yesterday." "Oh, shit. I'm so sorry." "Thank you." Wes paused, and then continued. "It's not that we did anything wrong…sometimes there just isn't anything more that can be done for someone. It's the first time I've personally had to face death. Hell, even my grandparents are all still alive. It's just so sad. It's hard, Mike. It's just hard. They tell us that it's something we'll get used to. I don't know if it's something I want to get used to. I don't want to be cold and unfeeling about losing people. I do this because I care, and I don't want to lose that feeling." "Wes, you're not capable of being cold and unfeeling. This I know. You don't have to ever worry about that happening to you." Mike gave him a hug, and continued. "Everybody's different and handles things in different ways. You'll simply learn to cope with it better as you go on. That's what I think. You won't become unfeeling, but neither will it continue to affect you with such very strong emotions. I think your mind will develop a coping mechanism that fits you." Wes considered what Mike said and gave him a little squeeze. "How did you do that, Mike?" "Do what?" "Know what I needed to hear." Mike gave Wes a warm kiss. "I didn't. I just said what I felt." They lay in each other's arms for a while, until they started hearing some noises out in the kitchen. Then Mike wasn't capable of lazing around anymore, and they got up to take turns in the shower so they could go help their company fix breakfast. *** "Good morning, Dad." Dad sat at the table reading the newspaper and looked up. "Good morning, Mike." "Good morning, Mom. Let me help you now." "Good morning, honey," Mom said as she fried bacon. "You've certainly got a well-stocked kitchen."

Mike laughed. "Well, I was expecting company, so I did extra grocery shopping. I've got some oranges and berries in the fridge. Why don't I fix up some of those?" Wes came into the kitchen. "Good morning, Wes," Dad said. "Good morning, George, good morning, Brenda. How are you this morning?" "I'm just fine. And your timing is good, Wes. Breakfast will be ready in about five minutes," Mom replied. "Is Greg up yet?" Wes asked. Greg grumbled something out in the living room, and then stumbled past them, mumbling something about a shower. Dad chuckled. "It's better that he be tired today than on Monday. He needs to get into an earlier routine to be ready for his job." Mike cracked the eggs into a bowl and whisked them up. Mom got a pan ready and he poured them in. Mom handled finishing the eggs while Mike set the table, and Dad and Wes folded up the sections of the newspaper they were reading and got up. They all poured juice and filled their plates, then sat down to eat. Greg's shower was a fast one because he quickly joined them at the table. "I am going to go to bed so early tonight," he said. They all laughed, then discussed their plans for the day. They settled on the state history museum, and planned to head out after getting everything straightened up after breakfast. The plan was to eat a late lunch out afterward and just have a light supper in the evening. Greg would be on his own shopping, and planned to be back for supper. *** They slowly meandered their way through three floors of rooms at the state history museum, and Wes found he was truly enjoying his weekend, even though it wasn't the one-on-one time he and Mike had originally planned for themselves. Just being with each other was enough; they didn't have to be alone. Wes took Mike's hand in his and gave it a little squeeze as they approached another room. There were already some people in there looking around and he felt Mike try to withdraw his hand. Wes tightened his grip. Mike gave him a worried little look. Jesus, Mike really wasn't comfortable with any kind of public display at all. Wes went ahead and let Mike's hand drop, and gave him a little smile to let him know it was okay, he understood. Although he didn't understand, not really. They wandered around the room, reading about the displays. Wes heard the people around them discussing the various artifacts. Then he felt Mike's hand. It felt a little stiff, but Mike was holding his hand and gave him a little squeeze. Damn, he was proud of Mike. He looked at Mike and gave him a wink. Mike appeared a little nervous, but gave him a smile. Hopefully Mike's efforts wouldn't be rewarded with any nasty comments. He didn't encounter that too often, but occasionally it happened.

He gave Mike's hand another squeeze and they walked over to the next display. Others milled around, and if anyone noticed the two of them holding hands, they didn't react to it. Wes noticed a straight couple holding hands, too. Wes wasn't into overt or inappropriate displays in public, but if a public behavior was acceptable for a straight couple, then he felt it should be acceptable for a gay couple, too. He knew that Mike still preferred to protect his privacy in public settings, but Wes preferred to avoid any semblance of a closet, no matter who was around. If he wanted to hold hands, then he should be able to do it. They were done with that room and George and Brenda approached them. "I think this is the last room, isn't it?" George asked. "Are you boys ready for some lunch?" It was after noon and Wes was getting hungry. "Yes to both," he told him. "Do you have any restaurant preferences?" "I'm in the mood for a good burger," replied George. "How about you, Brenda…what are you in the mood for?" "I'd love a club sandwich." "I know just the place," Mike said with a smile. "Let's go." *** "How about a game of gin?" Mike suggested. "Great idea, son. Get the cards." They sat around the table and Wes dealt the first hand. It was nice. Mike seemed so comfortable now around his parents. They were all feeling pretty at ease in each other's company and just plain had a fun time. Time flew by and before they knew it, Greg walked in the door, loaded with packages. "Holy cow," said Mike. He got up to help Greg out with his burden. "Do you have any more down in your car?" he asked. "No," replied Greg. "This is it for now. The suits are being altered and aren't ready yet." They carried the packages back to Greg's room, then Mike returned alone. They switched to playing hearts for a while, and after a couple of rounds, Greg rejoined them. "Boy, do I ever hate shopping," he declared. Wes leaned back in his chair and laughed at him. "You're marrying the wrong gender, then. Marie, like most of the ladies, loves to shop." Greg grinned back. "Oh, I may not always understand the female mind, but I'm definitely attracted to the female body."

Mike smiled ruefully. "You're lucky. Life will be less complicated for you. I used to try so hard to feel even the smallest level of physical attraction towards girls back in high school." "When did you come to the conclusion that you were gay?" Greg asked. "Oh, I'd say it was senior year in high school," Mike told him. "Before then, when I wasn't feeling the same kind of attraction toward girls that the other guys did, I just kinda figured I was maybe a little bit of a late bloomer. Eventually I had to acknowledge that I did feel the attraction…it just wasn't toward girls." George cocked his head, and looked contemplative, with his eyebrows knit together. "I don't recall that you ever went out on a date at all, with a male or a female, during your college years." "No," replied Mike. "I didn't want to lead any girls on, and I didn't know how you guys would react if I dated a boy. I guess I feared the worst. I just wasn't ready to face you about it yet, and I didn't want to sneak around behind your back, either." "You weren't a very happy person at that time and I regret contributing to that." Mike smiled. "I spent most of my college years mooning about Wes. Anyway, I'm very happy right now, so we'll just forget about the past." Mooning about him? Mike had mentioned something like that after their first night together. "That makes me wonder," Wes said, "if we'd be together here now if we'd gotten together back then. We were different people then. I remember being pretty immature at times. I wonder if we would have even liked each other." "There you go, George," Brenda told him, "you can quit fretting about it now. It's obvious these boys are a great match for each other, so now you can be happy for the part you played in making sure they didn't grow to dislike each other back when they were young and foolish." Mike blushed at his mother's words. "Oh, Dad," Mike told him, "I hope you aren't stewing about that. It was my choice to suppress my feelings." "Thank you, Mike. I'm glad we came out here with Greg. I feel a lot better about things now." George looked at Wes. "And I've enjoyed getting to know you, Wes. It's been a pleasure." Wow. Wes gave him a smile. "Thank you, George. I appreciate that. I've enjoyed getting to know you and Brenda, as well. I have to admit I was a little nervous. I've never met a boyfriend's parents before." "Well," said Greg, "all's well that ends well." "Yes, it is," concluded Brenda definitively, then added, "Greg, are you hungry, sweetie? We're just planning on having some sandwiches for a light supper. We had a pretty big late lunch."

"I grabbed a bite to eat while I was out. I can wait and eat with the rest of you. Thanks, though." They decided to watch some comedy reruns on TV until supper. The rest of the evening went by quickly and uneventfully, and they all went to bed rather early, drained after their full days of sight-seeing and shopping.

Chapter Seventeen As Mike and Wes approached the dance club, Wes saw a group of men approaching from the other direction. One of them looked over at them. "Hey, Mikey. Who's the new guy, your roomie? Are you keeping him to yourself?" Mike laughed and introduced Wes. "Hey, guys. This is my roommate, Wes. I actually met him back in college. He's a doctor now, fresh out of med school. He began his residency here at University Hospital last month. Wes, this loudmouth here is Bob, this is Randall, and this is Craig." Wes managed a polite, "I'm pleased to meet you." But suddenly he felt a little cold. He wasn't jealous, was he? He'd never been in an actual relationship before. Hell, were they truly in a relationship now, or were they simply roommates with…well…lots of privileges? Shit, they'd never actually sat down and discussed it. He'd used the term 'boyfriend' when Mike's parents were in town, but he'd never heard Mike use it. He noted that Mike sidestepped the 'are you keeping him to yourself' part of Bob's question. Damn. Damn, damn, damn. What was the protocol here? Was Mike planning to set up a hookup for himself tonight? Was he expected to? Shit. Had Mike fucked these guys? Shit…probably. Suddenly he was finding it hard to want to like them very much. Mike looked up at him and gave him a smile and a little eyebrow wiggle. "Let's go on in and dance!" Wes gave his lover a little half-smile and put his hand at Mike's elbow to guide him into the club. They found a table and settled in with Bob, Randall, and Craig. A waiter approached the table for their drink order. Craig spoke up. "Beer all around?" Wes shrugged and looked at Mike. "That's okay with me," Mike replied. Mike, Bob, and Randall all agreed to a round of beer and the waiter scurried off, returning quickly with their drinks. It was a locally brewed draft and was quite good. "Hey, Mike. Brandon and Devon were telling me that your brother has moved in with you now, is that right?" asked Craig.

"Yep, it sure is," replied Mike. "He moved in last weekend. He's hanging out at home tonight. He's a little wiped out from his first week of work and having to get up early. He's more of a night owl." "Brandon was saying you brought him here to the club when he was in town visiting last month, that he got suckered into dancing with a bunch of the guys. I wish I'd been here to see that," Craig said with a laugh. "Yeah. He actually had fun, too." "So, Wes…" Bob smiled at him. "Would you care to dance?" Damn. He'd rather dance with Mike, but Wes realized he couldn't monopolize him, and he didn't want to be rude to Mike's friends, either. "Sure." Wes smiled back and they went out to the dance floor. Bob was a good dancer and they moved well together to the hypnotic beat of the music. Bob was a few inches taller than Wes and rather muscular. When the music changed to a slower selection, he took hold of Wes' arm and led him into the next dance. Wes was pulled in close and he felt Bob's other hand at his waist, so Wes put his free hand on Bob's shoulder. Bob smiled down at him and winked. "I hope you don't mind my minor coercion, but I was really hoping they'd follow that song up with a slow dance, so I could snag you for one while I still had you in my clutches." Wes laughed. It was kind of hard not to like the cheeky man. He could see why Mike had him in his circle of friends. "Of course I don't mind," Wes told him. "I'm here to dance, aren't I?" "Yes, you are. I guess my real aim is to find out how things stand between you and Mike. I know dancing among friends wouldn't be off limits regardless, but…well…how do things stand between you guys? Are you a couple or just roommates?" He paused, and then continued. "I guess my point is that if you are a free agent still, then I'd love to be the first one here to put a move on you. Because, Wes, you're a beautiful man and you seem like a very nice guy, too…and that's a wonderful combination." Bob laughed down at his expression. "Wow," Wes told him. "Well, thank you for the compliment. I certainly appreciate it. To answer your original question, though, I guess I don't really know myself. Where things stand between me and Mike, that is." Bob quirked an eyebrow at that admission, so Wes elaborated. "The thing is, yes, we've been pretty much more than just roommates, but we haven't really sat down and talked about defining our relationship. I've thought about it a bit and I know what I want our relationship to be, but now I realize I don't really know what Mike wants." Bob's chuckle rumbled through his rather wide chest. He pulled Wes in a little closer and spoke softly into his ear. "Well, I've been watching Mike watch you dance with me, and I think I might have an idea of how Mike wants to define your relationship." Now that was a happy thought. Wes looked around to find Mike, but Mike wasn't looking at them anymore. "Shit. Well, he doesn't seem to be put out at all about our dance. He's heading onto the floor to dance with Randall right now."

"Uh-oh." "Uh-oh?" "Yeah…uh-oh." "Okay…what do you mean by that?" "Well, if you're serious about wanting a committed relationship with Mike, then you might say that Randall is your biggest competition." "Damn." "Well, that is, from Randall's point of view, he's your competition. I don't know how Mike feels about him, though. Well, other than that he's a fun hookup." "Damn. I think I'd rather not have known that last little tidbit." Bob laughed again. "Well, Wes, you know we've all hooked up with each other, so that's just something you'll have to get over. Fidelity isn't retroactive, anyway, you know. Besides, you guys haven't defined your boundaries yet." "I know, I know. This is just new territory for me. It's not like I don't have my share of experience with other guys, too. But it's kind of hard to have all of his former lovers right here in my face, you know." Wes sighed, and added, "You're right, though. We still need to have a talk and define what we have. I appreciate your understanding, and your advice. Your heads up about Randall, that is." The song ended and they walked back to their table. Mike stayed out on the dance floor with Randall for the next song, but Wes went ahead and ordered them all some munchies and another round of beers when their waiter wandered back by. He saw Craig out on the floor dancing. Craig was about Wes' size, and he was with a shorter and slightly chubby fellow. They seem to be having a good time together. Bob asked, "So, are you going to put a move on Mikey when he and Randall are finished dancing?" "I guess I'd better put a serious move on, huh? Make sure he can see for sure what I want, so he can either go along with my lead or not?" "Sounds about right. Then talk it out later. Don't let Randall get in the way of your plans, though. If he's smart -- and he is smart -- he'll do his best to keep Mikey away from you for the rest of the evening." Their munchies and beers arrived and the song ended. Randall slipped in between Wes and Mike, and Craig brought his dance partner over to the table and introduced the man to them. "Matt, I think you know Mike. This is his roommate, Wes, and this is Bob and Randall. Guys, this is Matt."

"It's nice to meet you, Matt." Wes smiled at him. Matt reached across to shake Wes' hand. "Hello, Wes. It's nice to meet you, too. So you're living with Mike?" "Yes, I moved in last month." "Lucky you." Wes laughed. "Yes, I am lucky, aren't I?" This brought on a chorus of 'oh, yeahs' and he couldn't help grinning like an idiot. He caught Mike's eye and gave him a wink. He played a little footsie under the table with Mike for good measure, since Randall was blocking him from making a more forward move. Mike seemed a little relieved by his attention and gave him a lopsided grin. They got busy with their refreshments, but when the next new song started up, Wes was quick to get the jump on anyone who might have other plans for Mike. "Hey, Mike." Wes reached across for his hand. "How about dancing with me?" "I would love to dance with you." They headed out onto the dance floor. *** The sultry song was perfect for sending the signals Mike wanted to convey to Wes. Jesus, they should have thought to have a talk before now. But until he'd seen Wes out on the dance floor, with Bob clearly putting some heavy -- and he wasn't too sure if they were unwelcome - moves on Wes, Mike just hadn't realized how strongly and possessively he felt about Wes. But damn, he sure did know it now. He hoped Wes didn't want to hook up with Bob or one of the other guys tonight. Fuck, fuck, fuck. What was this…love? Did he actually love Wes? He sure as fuck was jealous! Jesus! He looked up at Wes and stared into his eyes. He put his heart into the dance as he moved against Wes, never breaking eye contact. He moved his hands up Wes' body and he felt Wes' arms gently on his back, slowly moving as they swayed to the music. The song was lovely and hypnotic and he could feel Wes looking into his soul. Please, let Wes see how he felt about him, and, please, oh please, let Wes feel the same way back. The dance ended and he reached up to give Wes a gentle 'thank you' kiss. Wes responded beautifully, then smiled at him, gave him another little kiss on his forehead, and pulled him in for a gentle hug. Oh, yeah. They hadn't verbalized anything, but Mike was pretty sure they were now on the same page regarding their hopes for each other. He knew he must have had the goofiest grin on his face as they walked back to their table. Randall didn't appear very happy, but Bob looked somewhat smug. Craig was just oblivious as he chatted with Matt.

Mike was a little confused and slightly disturbed by Randall's behavior. He'd never thought of Randall as anything more than a good friend and a fun hookup, among several. He'd never treated Randall any differently than the others, and hadn't noticed that Randall felt any differently about him, either. But tonight, after seeing him arrive with Wes, Randall had been acting almost possessively toward him, as if he had a prior claim. It was definitely puzzling. Mike didn't want to alienate Randall as a friend, because he really did value their friendship, but he saw that he'd need to firmly, albeit gently, let it be clear to everyone that he was now with Wes. They sat down and Wes put an arm around Mike's shoulders. Mike smiled at Wes and slipped his arm around Wes' waist. Bob reached for some of the chips and salsa. "Hey, thanks, Wes, for ordering up the munchies." "You're welcome, Bob. No problem." Bob downed the rest of his beer and turned his attention to Randall. "How about dancing with me, babe?" Randall looked slightly startled by Bob's sudden request, but quickly recovered and agreed. "Sure, Bob," he smiled. "Let's boogie." Craig and Matt headed back out to the dance floor as well, so Wes and Mike were left alone at the table. Mike leaned into him and gave his waist a squeeze. Wes hugged him back. "Baby?" Mike asked. "Yeah, hon?" Mike glanced up at Wes and looked straight into his eyes. "I don't think I've ever felt this emotion before, but when I saw you dancing like you were with Bob, my feelings were definitely tinted with green." Wes chuckled. "I started seeing green as soon as we approached and your friends started joking with you." "We're overdue for a talk." "Yeah, hon, I think so, too. I've never felt this way before, and it's kind of taken me by surprise." "Yeah, me, too." "Want to get out of here? Go home and talk?" Wes almost said that with a straight face. Not quite, though. "I like the way you think." ***

The apartment was quiet when they returned. It was fairly late, so Mike figured that Greg was sleeping. They slipped quietly down the hall to their bedroom and softly shut the door. Wes turned to him and smiled. "We really should talk this out, honey." "I know," Mike replied. "It's so weird. It just struck me tonight that you're the only man I want in my life now." "Thank you. I needed to hear that. This is scary, you know? I've never been in a committed relationship before, and it seems so odd to feel this deeply about someone I've only really known for a little more than a month. But I do. It's utterly amazing, but…well…I love you. I truly do. I love you, Mike." Oh, God. "I love you, too, Wes." And he did. He truly did. Damn, he was choking up. Wes' arms tightened around him and he sniffled into Wes' chest.

Chapter Eighteen Romeo's was packed. Wes and Mike had a table with Craig, Matt, Bob, and Randall. Bob and Randall were on the prowl for hookups and were out on the floor dancing. Craig and Matt seemed to have paired up with each other. "Did you guys just meet two weeks ago, or did you already know each other?" Wes asked. Craig replied, "We'd never hooked up before then. I'd seen him around here before, though. I remember he hooked up with Mike a few times last winter." Matt blushed a little and gave Wes a little eyebrow wiggle. He gave Matt a little wry smile and looked over at Mike. Mike winked back at him and sent him a little 'but I love you' smile, and suddenly he was okay with it. Matt was a nice guy, but Mike didn't love him or he would have stayed with him. "How about a round of beer?" Wes asked. Everyone agreed to that, of course. He went over to the bar and ordered a round and some snacks. When he got back to the table, Bob had rejoined them. "Hey, Wes. Hey, Mikey, when are you going to bring your brother back to the club so the rest of us can meet him?" Bob asked. Mike laughed. "I'm not sure I'll be able to convince him to come back here. We'll have to plan on meeting up at the pool hall or something. Anyway, he was sent to Chicago for some kind of training this week, and he arranged his return flights so he could spend the weekend in Brownsville on his way back."

The beers and snacks arrived and they got busy eating and drinking until a nice slow dance started up. Mike looked over at Wes with a 'hey baby, let's dance' gleam in his eyes. Craig was giving Matt a similar look. "Oh, you lovebirds, go on, get out there and dance," Bob said. They all laughed and headed out onto the dance floor. As they swayed together to the music, Wes noticed Bob making a circuit of the room. Bob seemed to have a fairly dominant personality. That was probably why Bob and Mike hadn't hit it off for a long-term relationship, since Mike was also rather dominant. Wes loved the way Mike felt moving against him when they danced. He tightened their embrace a bit and Mike's head rested on his shoulder. It felt like Mike was molded against his chest. Wes saw that Bob had stopped to speak with a young man he hadn't noticed there before. Blond, probably just a little shorter than his own six feet, wire-rim glasses, average-looking. Bob led the man out onto the dance floor and pulled him into his arms. Randall was dancing again, too. He was with a man who looked to be about thirty-five, a little taller than Randall, nice-looking with a slightly receding hairline. They certainly seemed to be getting along well. The man had one hand with a good grip on Randall's ass, and Randall looked to be leaving a mark at the base of the man's neck. Apparently Randall had his hookup for the night lined up, and Bob was making progress on his. "Holy shit, I think that's Morgan," Mike blurted out. "Who's Morgan?" "He's the new guy at work. I didn't know he was gay." "Oh, yeah? Where is he?" "Dancing with Bob." The song ended and Wes saw that Bob was escorting Morgan to their table to join them. Craig and Matt were heading back to the table, too. "Hey, Morgan," Mike said when they arrived at the table. Bob seemed surprised. "You know Morgan? He's pretty new in town." Morgan seemed a little startled when he saw Mike as well. "We work together," Mike told him.

"Ah," Bob replied. "Well, for those of you who don't already know him, this is Morgan. He's fairly new in town and apparently works with Mike. Morgan, this is Craig and Matt, and Wes here is Mike's partner." "I'm pleased to meet you, Morgan." Wes held out his hand to Morgan, who smiled and shook Wes' hand. "I'm happy to meet you, too." Craig and Matt welcomed Morgan as well. "Mike, I'm a little surprised to see you here. I wasn't expecting it." "No? Well, I don't hide the fact that I'm gay at work. I just don't go around making random announcements. I think most people know, though. Do you plan on being 'out' at work, or do you want me to keep it to myself?" "I hadn't decided yet. I wasn't sure if it would be a problem or not. Apparently not, so I'll take my cue from you and do the same." Craig interrupted. "Who's that guy Randall's taking off with? I've seen him around, but never met him." Bob replied, "I think his name is Corey. I don't really know him, either." Mike just shrugged, but Matt spoke up. "Yeah, his name is Corey. He's okay. He's a little intense for my tastes, but a good guy." "Ah," said Bob. "Well, 'intense' sounds like a good fit for Randall." "Yeah," said Craig. "I think that's why he was starting to get hung up on Mike. Mike's pretty intense and Randall likes to be told what to do." "Hey! I'm not that pushy, am I?" The guys laughed. "Oh, honey," Bob affected a campy voice. "You do rather like to call the shots." Poor Mike. He looked at Wes for help. "I told you, love. I like the fact that you're bossy…most of the time, that is." Wes tossed a wink at Mike for good measure. "Well, I admit that I kinda like taking charge in general, but seriously, I go along just fine when Wes does take the initiative, don't I, Wes?" "Yes, you do. You've played very nicely several times with me in the driver's seat." "Seriously, guys, Wes totally attacked me right at the door when I came home from work one night. Really! You should have heard him tossing out orders. I almost called him 'sir' by the time we were done. You can't say I'm too bossy after that!"

Wes was almost afraid the guys were going to hurt themselves because they were laughing so hard, trying to picture Mike calling anyone 'sir' during sex. Bob wiped a tear from his eye. "I think that if anyone had any doubts as to whether or not you two were perfect for each other, it's been cleared up now. You've met your match, Mike. I'm happy for you, babe." Poor Mike. He seemed somewhat chagrined. How could he not know how intense he was in bed? And why did he think that was a bad thing? "I'm considerate, though, aren't I, Wes?" "Of course you are, love. Being pushy isn't the same as being inconsiderate. Is that what's bothering you about it?" Mike was completely unselfish in bed. He was very intuitive and extremely attentive to his lover's needs. "I think that might be it. I guess 'pushy' and 'bossy' just sound a little negative, as if they might imply selfishness. I don't want to be selfish. I don't think I am." Bob, Craig, and Matt were all quick to reassure him that he was anything but selfish. Morgan just grinned and looked like he didn't know what to say. Wes looked Mike right in the eye and told him, "Mike, your genuinely kind and thoughtful nature, as well as your reasonableness and easy temper, are what initially attracted me to you. You have since become the best friend I've ever had, as well as the best and most considerate lover. I love you with all my heart, and it pains me to see you thinking poorly of yourself." That finally convinced him. Mike propelled himself into Wes' arms and hugged him tight. "I love you, too, Wes, more than anything in the world." Wes heard a soft chorus of "awwws" behind him. Then the guys discreetly left them alone and went back out onto the dance floor. *** When Mike walked out of the bathroom to go to bed, Wes was already undressed and standing in the middle of the floor in an 'at ease, soldier' position, waiting for him. Mike stopped short and gave Wes a questioning look. Wes had an unnatural look in his eye, and suddenly Mike realized that he wasn't looking at his Wes anymore…it was his 'alternate universe Wes' who was standing there in front of him. Oh, baby. "Get undressed," Wes simply stated. Mike didn't mess around. He was naked in less than ten seconds, awaiting further orders. Wes' hands came out from behind his back and Mike saw that he had a couple of old ties bunched up in his hands. Holy fuck! Wes was going to tie him up! He'd never been tied up before, but he trusted Wes…completely. His eyes must have gone as big as saucers because Wes quirked an eyebrow at him. "Turn around," Wes ordered.

So he turned around. Wes took his hands, crossed them behind his back, and tied them together. It was snug, but not binding. He could pull out of it if he really wanted to. But, of course, he didn't. Wes placed the other tie over his eyes and blindfolded him. "Bend over," Wes said. Mike separated his legs a little for balance and bent over. Then he heard the snap of the lube opening and felt Wes' cool slick fingers at his hole, preparing him for what would come. His heart beat faster and his shaft was quickly filling. Suddenly, Wes' hands were off him again and he heard Wes' voice, low and husky in his ear. "Stand up." He straightened back up. One of Wes' hands was at his elbow and he was guided across the room. Wes stopped him, and he could feel a wall in front of him when he swayed forward. Wes turned him around and he could feel Wes' breath over his mouth. Mike lifted his face up and Wes kissed him. It was a deep, ravishing kiss and Mike found himself pushed back against the wall. Wes' hands were on his ass, lifting him, and Wes ground his pelvis into Mike's as his tongue fucked Mike's mouth. A long, low groan escaped Mike and he tried to grind back against Wes, but had no purchase. Wes lifted him a little higher until his feet were off the ground. Jesus, he was strong. Mike's tongue dueled with Wes' and Wes moaned, then captured Mike's tongue, sucking hard on it. Then he lowered Mike back to the ground and spun him to face the wall again. Mike heard the crinkle of a condom wrapper tearing open, and then Wes' body pushed his right up against the wall before retreating just a little. He felt Wes' hands under his arms, lifting him. Then the pressure was back, pressing him into the wall, and his legs were kicked apart. Mike's cock was stiff and aching and pressed up tight against the wall. Wes' hands were back on his hips, supporting him, and Wes' legs were between his, holding them spread open. Mike could feel the hard ridge of Wes' cock along the crack of his ass. Wes' breath was warm at his ear and he spoke to Mike again with a gravelly tone. "What's my name?" Huh? Mike tried to say his name was Wes, but only a grunt emerged. "I said, what's my name?" Jesus, that voice was not to be crossed. He choked it out, "Wes." That wasn't the answer Wes had been looking for because his hands dug into Mike's hips and the pressure against his body increased. "Wrong answer," the hoarse voice told him. "You have one more try." Oh, fuck. He knew what Wes wanted to hear, and he managed to sputter, "Sir." "Good boy. And don't you ever forget it." And suddenly Wes' cock was pressing at his hole. Mike's back arched as Wes entered him, and he found himself impaled on Wes' thick hard

cock while his body was pressed roughly against the wall. Wes' hands had a death grip on his hips and he hammered into Mike over and over again. There were so many sensations coursing through his entire body, Mike didn't even feel it coming until he was coming…hard. Harder than he thought he'd ever come before in his entire life. And he was loud. His moan was more like a roar and he could feel his body convulsing against Wes as his ass spasmed around Wes' cock. Then the pounding stopped, and he could feel Wes pulse deep inside him. Wes groaned loudly as his body quivered against Mike's back and Wes' grip on his hips tightened. Long moments passed as they caught their breath and his upper body relaxed back against Wes. He felt the tension ease from Wes' grip as Wes' softening cock slipped out him. As their breathing regulated, Wes slowly lowered Mike's feet back down to the floor. He couldn't support himself yet, so they continued down until they were sitting together on the floor. He leaned back against Wes and smiled. "Thank you, sir," he whispered. Wes chuckled and nibbled on the side of Mike's neck before replying. "And don't you forget it, boy."

Chapter Nineteen Morgan looked up from the files he was organizing and smiled. "Good morning, Mike." "Good morning. How are you?" "Fine, you?" "Pretty good. Wes and I had a nice relaxing day on Saturday. Walking in the park and browsing art galleries…just a pleasant day. Did you do anything special?" "Nothing like that, but I pretty much spent the weekend with Bob. We went dancing again on Saturday night. He's a great guy. I like him." Wow. That was un-Bob-like. He didn't usually even spend the night with new hookups, let alone see the same guy two nights in a row. "He is a great guy. He's a lot of fun, a good friend." "Craig and Matt seem like good guys, too. And you're certainly fortunate to have found Wes. Bob was right. You seem to be a terrific match." "Thanks. Didn't see it coming. Resisted it a bit when I did, but now? I've never been happier." Morgan smiled and Mike moved the subject back to work. "I see we've got some new correspondence from the client. Let's see what changes they want now."

Morgan fell smoothly in with the transition back to work topics. He was very organized and had the files logically sorted. He pulled out the papers Mike requested, and they got to work incorporating the client's requests into their plans. *** Greg was in his room and Mike was in the kitchen putting the finishing touches on dinner when Wes got home. He was getting used to his schedule now and wasn't as tired after work as he'd been in the beginning. He smiled at Mike. "How was work today?" "Fine, busy as always. I was a little concerned that things might be a little weird now working with Morgan after Friday night, but it wasn't." "That's good. He seems like a sensible guy." "He is. Very smart and very organized. He's actually a very big help, even though he's still pretty new. I've told Mr. Brewer that, too." "Good for him." "He mentioned that he pretty much spent the weekend with Bob. They went back to Romeo's together for more dancing on Saturday night." "Oh, yeah? Bob's a good guy. It's hard not to like him. Good for him and Morgan both. I hope it works out for them." "It's strange, isn't it, how my friends are all pairing up all of a sudden? We've all been free agents for so long." "Yep, first you and I, then Craig finds Matt, now it looks like Bob might be settling in with Morgan. Kinda early to call that one, though." "Yeah. I know how Morgan feels, but don't know if Bob feels the same. I hope Randall finds someone to make him happy, too. I wouldn't want him to feel left out if the rest of us all paired up." "Perhaps he and that Corey guy will hit it off." Mike laughed. "It sounds like they should be a good match in bed. Hopefully they'll get along well outside of the bedroom, too." "We don't actually know if Corey's even looking for a relationship. He might've only been after a casual hookup for the night." "That's true enough," Mike admitted. "How was your day?" "Typical. Just another busy day at the hospital." Greg came in. "Hey, Wes."

"Hey. You got in pretty late last night. How was your weekend back home?" "Great. Nice to see Marie again." "Separation harder than you thought it'd be?" "It's not easy, but not as bad as it could've been. It helps that I'm here and not spending my evenings alone, dwelling on it." Mike smiled at him. "November will be here before you know it." "Can't come soon enough. No offence," he was quick to add. Wes laughed. "None taken."

Chapter Twenty Wes was looking forward to seeing his parents, since it had been half a year since he'd been home, but Mike was fidgeting in his seat and definitely looked nervous. He gave Mike an encouraging smile. "Mike, I promise you this will be easy." "Will it just be your parents at the house? Or will your youngest sister be there, too?" "I'm pretty sure Anne will be there. My brother Stan and his wife Rachel might be, too." "She's expecting now, right?" "Yep, she's due in January. Mom and Dad are ecstatic. Mom can't wait to have a grandchild to spoil." Mike smiled. "Yeah, I hear that. Mom loves having Abe and Sue over. That's why I don't worry about it too much when she frets about her 'empty nest.' I know Helen brings her kids over to see Mom and Dad a lot." They pulled into the drive. He turned to Mike. "Ready, hon?" "Ready as I'll ever be, anyway." They got out and walked up to the door. Wes gave a knock, then opened it up. "Hello!" he called out. "Anybody home?" Anne came running down the stairs and leapt at him. "Wes!" She flung herself at him for a big hug. "Mom! Dad! Wes is home!" she hollered toward the kitchen, then turned back to Wes. "Oh, they might be out back." Wes laughed. Mike looked amused beside him. "Anne, I'd like you to meet my partner, Mike Evans. Mike, this is my youngest sister, Anne."

"Oh, Mike." She gave him a hug. "I've been looking forward to meeting you. You do look a little bit like Greg. Marie said you did." "Thank you. I'm happy to meet you, too," Mike said. He got a little formal when he was nervous. That was all right. Wes knew Mike wouldn't be able to stay that way for long around his laid-back family. "Let's go out back and find the folks," Wes said. Anne led them through the kitchen to the back door. Sure enough, Mom and Dad were out there, and so were Stan and Rachel. Everyone stood up when they saw them. Poor Mike, he felt rigid at Wes' side. "Hey, hey," bellowed Dad, "how are you, son?" Wes was engulfed in a bear hug, then passed to Mom. She gave him a squeeze, too. "Wes, I'm so happy you're home. And this must be Mike." She turned to Mike and gave him a hug. "I'm so happy to finally meet you, Mike. I can't thank you enough for taking such good care of our Wes." Mike was passed over to Dad, who smiled at him and shook his hand. "Welcome, Mike. It's nice to meet you." "Thank you, sir," Mike replied. "It's a pleasure to meet you both." "Oh, just call me Jerry, please. And my wife is Lilly," Dad told him. "Thank you." Mike looked like he was relaxing a bit, and he gave Wes' parents a nice smile. Wes turned Mike toward his brother and his sister-in-law. "Mike, this is my older brother, Stan, and his wife, Rachel. Stan, Rachel, this is my partner, Mike." Mike and Stan shook hands and Rachel gave him a little hug. "I'm pleased to meet you both," Mike told them. "I'm happy to meet you at last. We've heard so much about you," Stan replied. "Your timing is perfect, boys. My casserole just finished. It's staying warm in the oven." Mom led them back into the kitchen. The table was already set, so they sat down while Mom brought her casserole and some rolls to the table. "Wes, did you see Marie before leaving the Evans' house? I know she was heading over there to see Greg," Dad asked. "Yes, I did. I get the impression Greg is going to be kept rather busy this week helping her out with last-minute wedding preparations." Mom laughed. "I don't doubt it. Just listening to her side of their phone conversations has been tiring. I guess he's got the apartment ready for them now?"

"Yes. A two bedroom. We got his stuff all moved over there and the bedroom furniture she specified got delivered the other day. The rest of the furniture shopping will happen after she gets there." Talk turned toward questioning Wes and Mike about their work, then to Stan and Rachel's baby preparations. Mom had a delicious cake for dessert, then Mike and Wes said goodbye and drove to their hotel. Mike let out a huge sigh as they pulled out of the driveway. He looked at Wes and smiled. "You were right, of course. That wasn't bad at all." "You're a worrywart. But that's all right, you're my worrywart, and I love you regardless." Mike laughed. "Well, I'm glad to hear that you still love me even with my flaws uncovered." "I'm hardly flawless either, you know." Mike looked at him and grew serious. "We balance each other well, don't we?" "Well put, hon. Yes, that's exactly what we do. We're alike in essentials, but otherwise, yes…we balance each other." Mike smiled. "This is going to be a fantastic week. We've never had such a long stretch of free time together." "We'll have to go dancing a couple nights." "Sure, that'll be great. But tonight, I've got other plans for you." Mike gave him a wink and a naughty grin. Nice. They arrived at the hotel and carried their bags in to the desk to check in. They got their key cards and headed up to their room. The room was fairly spacious, with a king-sized bed and a sitting area off to the side. The door closed behind them and he heard Mike click the lock. He turned around and saw Mike pull a tube of lube out from an outside pocket of his suitcase and toss it onto the bed. Mike gave him an eyebrow wiggle. They both laughed and Wes just dropped his bags where he stood. They laughed again and fell into each other's arms. *** Mike moaned as Wes brought his mouth down over his and held him close, gripping the back of his head. His arms were tight around Wes. They kissed for long minutes, tongues dancing and bodies moving against each other while their erections grew and hardened. Then Mike pulled back and grabbed Wes' shirt. He quickly tugged it up over Wes' head. Wes grabbed his and did the same. They each kicked off their shoes, pulled off their socks, and made short work of removing each other's jeans.

Wes drew down the bed covers and they tumbled onto the sheet. Mike's mouth found Wes' again and they kissed furiously, rolling around on the bed, caressing each other's necks, chests, nipples, backs, asses. Mike landed on top, between Wes' legs. Wes spread his legs farther and pulled them up. Mike grabbed the lube and squeezed some out onto his fingers. He bent down to kiss, nibble, and lick on Wes' splendid abs while his fingers prepared Wes' ass. He sat up again and just looked at Wes. Jesus, Wes was so fucking gorgeous. He looked stunning with his arms spread out wantonly over his head, body arching and writhing while Mike prepped him. What had he done to deserve such an extraordinary partner? His cock was so hard it ached, just from holding and kissing this man that he loved so very much. Wes' cock was full and heavy and Mike found it amazing that he could have that same effect on him. Wes opened his eyes and looked up at Mike. "I love you, hon." Mike pulled his hand away and lined his cock up. He looked into Wes' eyes. "I love you, too, baby." He pushed into Wes. Wes was relaxed and let him in easily. Oh, God, Wes felt so hot and tight. Wes' hands were at his hips, gripping him tightly. "You ready, baby?" he asked Wes. "You ready to be fucked?" Wes groaned his assent and Mike pulled back to ram his cock back into Wes. He positioned himself over Wes and started to thrust steadily. Mike could feel his balls drawn up tight. His thrusts were frenzied as his climax built. Then his cock throbbed and he emptied himself in his lover's ass. His body jerked as he fell onto Wes' chest. Wes' arms moved up and around him, holding him close as Mike gasped and moaned against him. Mike's breathing steadied and he pulled out. He could feel Wes' cock, still hard beneath him. Wes took hold of his face and looked into his eyes. "I want to come inside you. Get on your hands and knees, hon." Oh, fuck yes. He quickly rolled off of Wes and pulled up into position. Wes was quick to move around behind him. He heard the snap of the lid on the tube of lube, and then felt Wes' cool slick fingers at his hole. He was already very relaxed and Wes pushed his thick cock smoothly into him. Mike groaned at the feeling of fullness Wes gave him. His ass was stretched and he could feel Wes' balls right up against his backside. Wes held there while moving his warm hands slowly up and down Mike's back and sides, and around to caress his chest and abs. Wes was breathing hard. Mike knew Wes had been close to coming before entering him. Wes groaned, positioned his hands on Mike's hips, and pulled back to thrust into him. Wes pounded into him several times, and then grunted as he pushed all the way in one final time. Mike felt Wes' hands clench his hips hard as Wes' cock grew and pulsed. He could feel Wes' hot come spurting deep inside him and, God, it was the most wondrous feeling, knowing there was nothing between them anymore. ***

Wes smiled to himself as they washed up in the bathroom, then lay back down on the bed to snuggle. Wes wrapped his arms around Mike and pulled him to his chest. He loved just holding Mike and rocking him in his arms. He could feel Mike smiling against him. "Do you remember after our first night together, when you told me how you'd thought about me after we first met back in college, and how I was your dream come true?" Mike looked up at him. He was wearing a blissful little smile that Wes had grown to love. "You are my dream come true, Wes. All of my dreams have come true since meeting you." Wes smiled back at Mike. "I'm sorry I didn't remember you back then, so I didn't dream about you specifically. But everything I've ever wanted in a relationship, everything I've dreamed about…it's all come true with you. You're my dream come true, too, love." Mike pulled up and gave him a little kiss. "I love you so much, Wes." "You are truly my soul mate, Mike. The thought of ever losing you is unbearable." Wes felt Mike shudder against him. "Wes, I love you so much." There was a catch in his voice. "I don't ever want to lose you either. You're everything to me." "You won't ever lose me, hon. We're committed. You're my partner for life. Someday I hope we'll be able to say that we're married, but until that day we can still be just as committed to each other as if we were." Mike looked up at him and smiled. "I'll marry you in a heartbeat, sweetheart. The day it becomes legal." He made a little face at Wes. "Something tells me this might be a long engagement, though." Wes just held onto Mike and rocked him for a while, then asked him, "You know what I don't want?" "Don't want? What?" "I don't want to wait for this country to figure out what's right. I don't want to wait to get married. I want to go to Canada and have a ceremony that will mean something to us, even if it won't mean anything in our state. Will you do it, Mike? Will you marry me?" "Oh, my God." Mike just stared at Wes for a moment. "Yes, Wes. I'll marry you anytime, anywhere. Yes." Wes smiled, rubbed Mike's back, and simply said, "Good." The End