Figuring It Out, page 3
I knew we had a lot to talk about and a lot of touching to do. So much to make up for. When we got inside the house, Joe attacked me, pushing me against the wall, and kissing me with that incredible intensity I remembered from before. I knew where it came from now. From both of us. Our feelings.
“Should we talk first?” I gasped out as he undid the bowtie around my neck.
I didn’t really want to. What I wanted was Joe pounding inside me, but I guessed I should make some attempt at rationality.
“Probably,” Joe acknowledged as he nibbled on my jaw. “But I’ve been desperate to fuck you since the last time. Talking can wait.”
“Thank God.” I grabbed his hand and yanked him toward my bedroom, attempting to unbutton my shirt with one hand. Not too successfully. Joe pounced when we got next to the bed and pushed aside my fumbling hands to strip me out of my tuxedo coat and shirt with practiced ease. Then came off my undershirt.
“Fucking gorgeous,” Joe said almost reverently as he splayed a hand across my bare stomach. “Please say I don’t have to go far for the condoms and lube.”
I shook my head, kicking off my black dress shoes. “Nightstand.” He tore off his own shirt, buttons flying through the air and if it wasn’t so hot I would have laughed at his eagerness. I shucked my pants and briefs, but didn’t worry about my socks. Joe went to the nightstand and took out a strip of condoms and a bottle of lube which he tossed on the bed and then rid himself of the rest of his clothes.
Last time, I had barely paid attention everything happened so fast, but this time, my gaze lingered over his perfect body. Hard, toned abs, perfect pecs, bulging biceps, and prominent hip bones. I was about to start drooling. Then I lowered my gaze to the long, hard cock jutting out between Joe’s thighs.
I licked my lips. “Yummy, yummy.”
He laughed. “Yeah, you think so?”
I grinned. “I’m aiming to find out.”
“Far be it from me to stop you.” He knelt on the bed and I pushed him onto his back, eagerly diving between his legs. A drop of pre-cum leaked from his slit, so I lapped it up with the tip of my tongue. Tangy and salty, but not bad. I closed my mouth over the head and drew him in, sucking and sucking until half his shaft slipped inside.
“Holy—Avery, God.” Joe’s hips rose up off the bed, managing to push himself farther down my throat, but I held back a gag. Grasping the base, I hollowed out my cheeks and worked his shaft in and out of my mouth until I had Joe writhing on the bed, groaning out my name over and over. When I was pretty sure he was close to emptying down my throat, he pushed at my shoulders.
“Avery, stop.” I did, of course, because I wanted him inside me, thrusting, throbbing, driving us both to climax.
I grabbed the lube and lay on the bed, legs hiked in the air, waiting for him to slip his lubed fingers into my hole. When he finally filled me with two fingers it felt like heaven, but yet not enough. His fingers, they were nice, but I wanted his dick, thick and hard and spreading me wide.
“Okay, okay,” Joe said with a laugh, making me realize I must have voiced my want out loud. Maybe I should have been embarrassed, but I wasn’t. I’d waited too long for this, for him, for us. He sheathed his cock with a condom and then pushed inside me.
“More,” I demanded. “Fuck me, Joe. Take me rough.”
Joe didn’t seem to need further urging because he slid in balls deep, and without hesitation began to thrust hard and fast inside me. I wanted to prolong our joining, so I didn’t touch my cock, instead I met each of his thrusts by rising up, pushing, riding his dick as much as he rode me. I was surprised when I felt the tingle. I was coming, my climax was coming on too soon, I wanted more, but my body had other ideas, and come splattered out over my stomach and up onto my chest without me ever touching my dick. Joe’s eyes widened and he held my gaze, showing me everything he felt, though, wanted, in that moment. I could barely breathe as he found his release inside me.
A long time later, I opened my eyes to see Joe watching me, his blue eyes just a little shiny.
“Hi,” I whispered.
“Hi, yourself.”
“Time to talk?” I made myself ask. It felt so good to be here with him, his arms wrapped tightly around me that I didn’t want to break any spells. Get to the serious. But then again, something inside me told me I had nothing to fear. This was Joe and he was here for a good reason.
“I think so,” he said softly. He ran his thumb across my bottom lip. “I dreamed of these lips a lot. Kissing them. There aren’t any lips like them.”
“Jeff said you had a thing for me even back in high school,” I ventured.
“Jeff?” He frowned. “When did you talk to him?”
I shrugged. “A few months back. He came to the diner. Joe. Is it true?”
“Yeah, Avery, it is.”
My lungs seized. “Why didn’t you ever say?”
“Why didn’t you?”
“I thought you were straight, Joe. I never had any other idea. You never showed it to me.”
He sighed. “I know. I guess. It seemed to me that I didn’t hide it at all. Remember the first time we met, back in Mrs. Kelly’s class? I turned around and saw you and I thought you were the most beautiful guy I had ever seen. I still think that. I couldn’t believe you were real.”
I shook my head, but I smiled. “I remember that day too. God, you were hot.”
“I wasn’t out to anyone, but I swore you had to see straight to my very soul with those dark eyes of yours, Avery. When you tutored me, I thought for sure you could see it. How could you not?”
“I didn’t.”
Joe nodded. “Yeah. I was afraid to admit to anyone I was gay back then. From what I saw, I wasn’t like the gay students I knew. I wouldn’t have fit in with them. With you. And then, you got that boyfriend.”
“Brett.”
He smiled crookedly. “Yeah, him. I hated him so much. I wanted to punch his face in.”
“I just knew I couldn’t have you, so I tried to move on.”
“So did I. With Jeff. But it was never what I wanted. He was never what I wanted. And he knew it. I think he realized it when I got the job at the diner and he came to pick me up that day. Before that day, he hadn’t realized you worked there. And then he wanted me to quit.”
“I bet.” I traced his stubbled jaw with my fingers. “I would have wanted the same thing were I him.”
He moved his head to kiss my palm. “And then finally, when we broke up, I got you. For all of like an hour.”
“Why didn’t you say anything, Joe? When I was babbling on about taking advantage and all that, why didn’t you say how you felt?”
“You seemed so certain, so sure that what happened was some kind of mistake. I kept waiting for you to figure out that you were wrong, that I wanted you, but you didn’t. You didn’t even come back to the diner.”
I closed my eyes. My chest ached. “I was such an idiot. My dad had his heart attack and then I had to help my mom, and pretty soon I was quitting and avoiding the whole thing. I know that now. I was a coward and just didn’t want to deal with it, with you.”
Joe pulled me close. “Maybe we were both idiots, Avery. I waited around hoping you’d come to your senses and when you didn’t, instead of going to you myself, I took off. I came by your house one day. Drove right by it, but just kept on going instead of seeing you.”
“Jesus.” I laughed humorlessly. “We’re a couple of jackasses.”
“Yeah, maybe. But then again, maybe we just needed this time, you know. To get it.”
“To figure it out,” I suggested, using his words.
“Right.”
Sighing, I leaned on his chest, listening to his heartbeat. “Why now, Joe? Why are you back here now?”
“I wasn’t going to come back. When I left, I was leaving for good.”
I traced circles with my fingers on his chest. “What changed?”
“I had enough being miserable. I was sitting there in my stupid, boring office job wondering what the hell life was all about. I had hookups. I even saw a guy in Sacramento for three months. But none of it made me happy. And all I kept thinking about was coming back here and seeing you. So, I got my head out of my ass and called Hank.”
I peered up at him. “You called Hank?”
He squeezed me. “Yep. I didn’t want to come back here and find out you were with some bozo guy and I didn’t stand a chance. Fortunately, Hank told me you were here pining away for me.” Joe paused and then gave me a little smile. “I was surprised to hear that.”
I laughed, though it was certainly true. Pining and pining. “Thank God for Hank. My mom should marry him all over again.”
“I wished I could have come to the wedding, but I wanted to see you alone the first time. I didn’t want to show up at the wedding and steal your mom and Hank’s thunder.”
“I’m just glad you’re here now. With me. So, are we really going to do this, Joe? You and me?”
He nodded. “Yeah, I think we are.”
“Everything? Being boyfriends and…well living together. At least at some point.”
I lowered my gaze, back to his chest, feeling shy, which was silly.
“As a matter of fact, I have no place to stay now.”
I straightened back up, and rested my head on my hands to look at him. “Yeah? So, you think maybe, you just want to live here?”
He smiled, showing those dimples I’d never get enough of. “Yeah. If you’ll have me.”
“Have you? Joe, I’ve loved you since high school,” I blurted out, and maybe I should have been embarrassed or something, but I wasn’t. I did love Joe even then. I loved him more. And probably would love him more every day. Just like the romantics said.
“I love you, too, Avery. More than you know.”
I scooted up and kissed him, long and hard. “You happy working at the diner, honey?” Joe asked when we came up for air. “Thought you were going to be a teacher.”
“Yeah, I did want that at one time. But dreams change, I guess. I like the diner and it’s different being a part owner. Hank’s been the best. I don’t mind it. And now with you here, nothing else really matters.”
“Dreams change, huh? Hmm. I’ve always had the dream of being with you, Avery.”
“Now that’s one dream I’m glad didn’t change for either of us.” And we were kissing again.
Epilogue
“Is this sign straight?” I asked as I stood on top of one of the diner’s booth tables to hang the Happy Anniversary sign.
Joe tilted his head. “Yeah looks like it.”
I pushed another tack into the wall to hold it and then hopped down.
Joe hooked a finger in the belt loop of my jeans and pulled me close. He nuzzled my neck. For a moment I leaned into him and gave into the feel of his arms around me.
“Stop that,” I said, pushing away from him. “We have a ton of stuff to do before the party.”
He laughed. “Will you relax, Avery? Your mom and Hank’s anniversary party will be great. Everything’s going to be perfect.”
Mom and Hank had been married a year already. Time flew very fast, as they say.
“Do you think we should have had it somewhere else other than the diner?” I crouched down and opened the box of decorations. “I mean Hank spends so much time here, maybe we should have had it at the lodge or even the house.”
“They have too many friends to have it at our house, honey. The diner’s perfect. We’re having it here because the diner is so important to Hank.”
I stood up and pushed paper doilies at Joe. “Put these out at all the tables. And the counters, too.”
“Doilies?” Joe looked more than a little skeptical.
“Hank might think they are too frou-frou but Mom will like them.”
Joe nodded and smiled. “Okay.”
He set about putting the doilies about the diner and I hung some wedding bells in several parts of the diner. When we were done decorating, I stood with my hands on my hips surveying the handiwork.
“It looks good,” Joe said. He went to where I stood and pulled me close, kissing me. “If you think about it this diner is pretty important to us too.”
“Well, yeah, it’s kind of become our livelihood.”
He laughed. “That, too. But I mean it’s because of this diner we’re together. If you think about it. I wanted to work here back then because I knew you did. I wanted to be close to you.”
I looped my arms around his neck. “It’s really amazing that we ever got together considering how stupid we were.”
“True.” Joe kissed me again and pretty soon I was kissing him back with all the desire and love I felt for him. “Mm. You’d better ease up there, Avery. Or I’ll be bending you over one of those booths.”
I rolled my eyes and laughed. “There’s no way I’m going to let that happen. There are windows all around.”
“Yeah, yeah. Besides everyone should be here any minute.”
Joe tugged me back when I tried to walk away. “Hey.”
“Hey what?”
“You know this is kind of our anniversary, too.”
I grinned, thinking of a year ago when we’d finally figured it out. “Yeah, you’re right.”
“I love you, Avery. Happy anniversary.”
“Happy anniversary. I love you, too, Joe. Always.”
THE END
ABOUT SHAWN LANE
Shawn Lane is a multi-published author of gay romances and believes love and passion know no boundaries. Happily Ever After is for everyone.
She has been published by Loose Id, Ellora's Cave, Amber Quill Press, Dreamspinner Press, and Evernight Publishing.
Shawn lives in California and holds down a boring day job in a legal department of a giant corporation dreaming of the nights and weekends when she can create new stories.
For more information, visit smlgr8.blogspot.com.
ABOUT JMS BOOKS LLC
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Shawn Lane, Figuring It Out
