 
### Hold Onto Love

### By Laurie Ather

### Published by Laurie Ather at Smashwords

### Copyright 2016 Laurie Ather

### Cover by Can Stock Photos

Prologue – Ocean Breezes

The young couple walked along the shoreline in bare feet and rolled up pants. One blond and toned, the other, a few years younger, had copper colored hair. It was spring, the water still cold, but refreshing nonetheless. Each wore a light jacket to ward off the breezes that were just enough to convince everyone else to stay indoors. They had the beach to themselves.

They had been looking forward to this weekend away for a month and nothing was going to spoil their enjoyment of the sandy beach and salty air. Even the call of seagulls was almost music to their ears. This weekend trip had been planned for months and it had been everything they had thought it would be and more.

They had been walking hand in hand in companionable silence for ten minutes when the blond suddenly stopped, smiled and said, "This weekend has been amazing. I don't want to leave."

"Neither do I," the other replied, as one hand squeezed the other.

"But we have to."

"We can always come back."

"I like your way of thinking," Tyler said and pulled other beachcomber into a hug.

Kyle returned the hug with equal enthusiasm.

"I......," both began.

"You first," Kyle said.

Tyler took a breath. _This is crazy, he thought. We've been together almost a year. I shouldn't still be this nervous around him. Okay, now or never_. "I've been wanting to ask you this for some time now."

_Oh, God,_ Kyle thought.

Tyler put his hands on Kyle's hips and pulled him close. Kyle gripped Tyler's shoulders. "Kyle, I want you to move in with me. Officially. Will you?"

Kyle pulled Tyler into a tight embrace. He buried his head in his boyfriend's neck.

"I mean, you practically live there already," Tyler was saying. "So, what'll it be?"

Kyle lifted his head and gazed into Tyler's eyes. "Of course I will. It's not like I have much more to bring over anyway." He grinned. "I think I've been dropping hints for awhile now, by bringing more things over the past few weeks."

"I've been wanting to ask for a long time now," Tyler admitted. "It'll save us both time running back and forth across town."

"I don't know what took you so long," Kyle joked. "Pretty soon I would have had to move in without being asked."

Tyler laughed. "You could have you know."

"Really?"

"I would have let you."

"I should have. We could have been having sex every night for months now. We're idiots!"

"No, we're just terribly old fashioned. We can blame our families for that."

Kyle looked up and down the beach. "Ssshh! Don't let anyone else know that!"

"Okay," Tyler agreed. "It'll be our secret. So, what did you want to ask?"

Kyle rubbed his hands up and down Tyler's arms as a stiff breeze cut across the beach. "Oh nothing," he said, "just where you wanted to go for dinner tonight." He took Tyler's hand in his and headed back up the beach. "For a second there, I thought you were going to ask me to marry you."

Tyler stopped walking. He raised his eyebrows. "The weekend isn't over yet," he said.

They both laughed and resumed walking along the shoreline. They didn't notice the wind picking up speed.

Chapter One – Kyle and Tyler

Missy picked up the phone and dialed her boss's extension. "Tyler," she said after he greeted her. "I'm getting that error message about needing a manager override again."

"Dammit," Tyler swore. He took a deep breath. "Give me a second." He neatly stacked the dozen or so invoices he was approving and then stuck the pen he was using back in the holder.

Tyler's office was behind the front desk, where Missy greeted members as they entered the gym. She also performed various clerical tasks. The area was brightly lit, very modern, with chrome pillars on either end of the desk. Wood paneled walls were covered with assorted sports artwork.

Tyler leaned over slightly so he could glance at the computer screen. There was a prompt asking for a manager code. "Here, let me enter this," he said, as Missy scooted her chair out of the way. He entered the code and the computer beeped back at him. "Shit. Can I use your chair?"

"Sure," Missy replied, as she stood and stepped away to give him some space. Tyler tried several times but couldn't get the program to accept the code. After several more expletives, he finally stopped trying.

"I'm going to have to call HQ on this one," he said. They must have changed the codes since the last time this happened. You'll have to hang tight until I get this taken care of."

"Okay," Missy said, as Tyler stood up. He noticed she moved so she would 'accidentally' bump into him. Inwardly he rolled his eyes. She'd been making half hearted attempts to flirt with him since she started working at Greenwoods Gym three months ago. He couldn't have made it any clearer that he wasn't interested. Not only would dating a subordinate be completely unprofessional, she just wasn't his type. At all. He headed back to his office to make the phone call.

Just then a member came into the gym presenting the card with the barcode to be scanned to verify membership. "Tyler," Missy called to him.

"What?" he asked, as he turned around.

"What am I going to do? The computer won't be able to scan the barcodes."

"Just get everyone to sign in manually," he said, returning to reception. He leaned on Missy's workstation where assorted brochures were placed for the members.

"Hi, Kyle," Missy was saying to the member waiting to enter the gym. It was then that Tyler glanced up at the guy standing at the desk. He was amazed at how Missy knew just about all the members names. Despite her outward appearance and flirtatious manner, she was a good worker and had an incredible knack for remembering names and faces. He could remember the long time members, but this was a new face to him. Missy was putting together a stack of paper on a clipboard for members to sign in on, when Kyle caught Tyler's eye. Tyler found himself looking into the most beautiful pair of dark brown eyes he'd ever seen.

"Hi, I'm Kyle Browne," the guy said. "I didn't get to meet you when I joined. You must be the manager." Kyle extended his hand and Tyler gripped it in a strong handshake.

Assertive, I like that in a person, Tyler thought. He was also thinking how he'd like to see this guy in a tight t shirt flexing those biceps. He wondered what Kyle was thinking, as their gaze continued a few seconds longer than necessary.

"Ahem," Missy interrupted. The men let go of each other's hand and Tyler finally was able to speak. "Yeah, nice to meet you. Hope you like it here," he said as he turned and then said, "I need to make that phone call."

Kyle signed the sheet and headed towards the locker room to change.

Missy sat back at her desk, finally realizing why her boss never responded to any of her flirting.

Chapter 2 - Meetings

Tyler spent most of the following week in and out of meetings at the administrative offices of Greenwoods Gyms. The company was expanding, opening a new location in the next month. On the one hand, Tyler was happy that his employer was doing so well, but these corporate pow wows were just....boring. At this point in his life, he was perfectly content with his mid level management position; the thought of wearing a suit every day simply did not appeal to him. He loved running the day to day activities at his location, it was a profitable location, and the membership was steadily increasing. Tyler felt secure in his job. Allen and Gloria were good people to work for.

The meeting was finally almost over. Sitting around the large conference room table was beginning to take its toll on Tyler. He had been paying attention, and made several contributing remarks over the course of the day. But he was getting restless and the handouts that he had been given were as equally covered in artful scribbles and pertinent notes.

Tyler had also been hoping to run into the guy who had introduced himself when he had been out at the front desk last week. He actually remembered the name this time in addition to the dark brown eyes and he was beginning to wonder how they'd look all glazed over in the throes of passion. _Whoa, slow down there_ , Tyler thought, as he fidgeted in his chair. It had been months since Stewart asked him to move to Florida with him and Tyler had turned down the offer. He had finally moved on after that breakup with Stewart and Kyle was the first guy since then who he really wanted to get to know. _Stop,_ he thought. Here was definitely not the place to entertain thoughts of some guy he had only met once.

He stretched in his seat and absentmindedly ran a hand through his thick blond hair. He was bored. The final item on the agenda was a brief demonstration of the new print and media advertising campaign. The owners of Greenwoods had recently retained the McIntosh Agency, the largest and most respected agency in the area to handle all aspects of the campaign.

There was a knock on the door and an announcement that Peter Starling, the head of the design team at McIntosh was there. Allen stood up and said to let him in. Peter was a tall guy with jet black hair and a perfectly tailored suit. Tyler's jaw dropped when along with this Starling dude, in walked Kyle, the guy with the incredible brown eyes he had met at the gym. And fuck if he didn't look completely edible in that pinstripe suit.

Kyle was nervous about his first major presentation even though he was merely assisting on the project. Fresh out of college, he was the junior member of the design team. He was purely a gopher at this point, but Kyle knew Peter and the other partners at McIntosh had long term plans for him.

When McIntosh acquired Greenwoods as a client, he decided he should become a member to show his support. He had fallen out of shape during his college years and now he could afford the cost of a gym membership.

What he didn't expect was the instant attraction he felt when he'd met Tyler Cole last week. He'd been so busy preparing for this presentation he hadn't had a chance to get in any more workouts during the past week. He'd really been hoping to stop by the gym on the off chance he might see Tyler again. However, that had never worked out.

It didn't occur to him that all the branch managers would be at this meeting today. He was as surprised to see Tyler as the other man was to see him. Peter was busy shaking hands with Allen and Gloria while Kyle was sharing a look with Tyler. No one else seemed to notice when Kyle almost dropped the artwork and was jolted abruptly back to reality. He had to forget the attraction he felt towards the other man for now and put on his professional persona.

Chapter Three

Is it a Date or Not?

The presentation had gone well and as the meeting was breaking up, Kyle was folding the posters while Peter wrapped things up with the client. The other managers were exiting the boardroom but Tyler lingered behind, in no hurry to leave. He finally stood up, grabbed his notebook and strode around the table to the other end of the room where Kyle was finishing up.

"Hey," Tyler said in greeting. "I guess prepping for this is what kept you from getting in a workout this past week."

Kyle looked up and grinned. "You pay that close attention to all your members' workout routines?"

"The ones I know really well." Tyler paused, and ran his hand through his hair. "Or want to get to know," he added with a hopeful look in his eye.

Kyle grinned again. _God, he has perfect teeth_ , Tyler thought.

"I'll be by tomorrow after work," Kyle said, as he zipped up the case the posters were now back in. "Maybe you can give me a hand? Spot me a few times?"

_This guy was really forward_ , Tyler thought. But I like it. Before he could answer, Peter was addressing Kyle. "You ready to head back to the office?"

The spell they were falling under was broken.

Over the next two weeks, Kyle began to attend the gym regularly, and Tyler always made an effort to spend some time with him, sometimes in his role as manager and other times as a workout buddy. They fell into an easy camaraderie and were getting to know each other in between sets. They learned each of them went to the same university, graduating four years apart. Both spoke of their families and how close knit they were. They discussed their professional lives and workout routines.

Each checked the other out as muscles flexed, sweat sliding down on smooth skin, and water bottles consumed. Tyler noticed how Kyle's short hair spiked with perspiration as heavier weights were lifted near the end of the sessions. _Cinnamon_ , he decided, that's the color of the hair he had a sudden urge to run his hands through. Between the hair, the beautiful dark brown eyes, perfect teeth, and the tufts of chest hair he saw when Kyle would wipe his brow with his t shirt; Tyler could feel his cock hardening. And today wasn't the day for that; not with what he was wearing today – the Dockers and polo shirt that he was required to wear when on the job. He had to come up with a reason to head back to his office – and fast.

"I need to get back to that stack of paperwork in my office," Tyler said hurriedly, and took a step back. Kyle quickly stopped what he was doing and got up off the bench press. "Wait," he said and briefly placed a hand on Tyler's forearm to prevent him from getting away. "What time can you get out of here?"

Tyler wasn't sure if Kyle felt the shiver that ran through him due to the innocent physical contact, but if he did, he didn't show it. He felt confident there had been a connection between the two of them, and wondered if Kyle's question was leading to an invitation for a date. Tyler didn't want to seem overly eager about wanting to spend more time with Kyle on a personal level away from the gym. He glanced at his watch merely to break away from those mesmerizing eyes for a few seconds. He said that he had about an hour's worth of work left to finish.

"Perfect," Kyle replied. "I'm almost done here. I'll need to shower and change but how about going for a quick drink at O'Toole's?"

"Sure," Tyler answered. "But won't that negate what you're accomplishing here?"

Kyle laughed. "Nah, I still have that college student metabolism." He flashed that perfect grin again which caused Tyler to laugh as well.

"Whatever you say, dude," Tyler said. "Meet you there at nine?"

"Sounds like a plan," Kyle said and turned to finish his workout.

Tyler practically sprinted back to his office and shut the door. He sat at his desk, took a deep breath and willed the pressure in his pants to subside. He couldn't quite wrap his head around how often this freshly minted college graduate was taking over his thoughts. Normally his interests fell on guys his own age or older. This was the first time someone younger had left such an incredible impression on him. Four years really wasn't that large a difference, somehow Kyle seemed older than his twenty two years.

Tyler ran a hand through his hair, closed his eyes and took another breath. He didn't feel as stiff anymore and dove into wrapping things up so he could meet Kyle on time.

Tyler looked at his watch again. About seven minutes after nine, he estimated. He wondered why Kyle was running late _. Was he going to show at all? Was all that flirting just a cruel game? Wasn't this just two guys going for a drink?_ Tyler made a point of being punctual for everything and it annoyed him when others weren't the same way. He was sitting at the bar rather than a booth, knowing it would be easier for Kyle to spot him when he arrived.

Not that the place was very crowded, given that it was a Tuesday night. Still, O'Toole's was a popular hangout. Weekends more than made up for the lack of revenue during the week. The place had a pub like atmosphere, a wooden interior dressed with varied wall ornaments of beer posters, sports figures and musical instruments. Recently, live music was being offered on weekends. There was also a small menu featuring pub grub, aimed at the younger crowd who didn't care that it wasn't a five star restaurant.

Tonight was a mixed crowd, Tyler surmised. The place was family owned and run and had been a staple in the neighborhood for three generations.

Five minutes later, as Tyler was draining the rest of his beer, he was debating whether or not he should just leave and deal with the fallout next time he saw Kyle at the gym. He stood up and turned towards the door. Before he took a step, Kyle breezed into the bar and strolled over to Tyler with an apologetic look on his face.

"I'm so sorry," he blurted out, then tilted his head back. "Wait. We're you going to skip out on me already?"

"Ahhh...," Tyler began. He hated how he sometimes fumbled over what to say when Kyle was around. He took a step back and bumped into the barstool. He tried to come up with something to say then Kyle interrupted his train of thought and said, "Was I wrong in thinking that there's a connection between us?"

Tyler opened his mouth to say something but Kyle raised his hand to stop him. "Because I think there is, and I want to see where it takes us."

This made Tyler smile. He was thrilled that Kyle was having the same thoughts that he was. "No, it's not wrong," he said. "I've been thinking the same thing." He turned into the bar, then back to Kyle. "Let's get a booth, shall we?"

"I'll get drinks. What'll you have?" Tyler told him what brand of beer he was drinking, then went and slid into the nearest booth. When Kyle joined him across the table, he gave Tyler a forgiving look. "I really am sorry I was late. My friend Libby was having a crisis and I had to help her out."

"What happened?" Tyler asked.

"Her asshole of a boyfriend broke up with her."

Kyle took a drink of his beer. "Not in the least. I could tell he was bad news from the start. But Libby and I have been friends for so long, I put up with the guy because she was crazy about him. I could see this coming, but she didn't want to hear it."

"How long were they together?"

"Two years."

Tyler's eyes widened. "That's an awfully long time for you to 'put up with him'"

"Oh, Lib and I had our disagreements over Brad. She was too infatuated with the guy to see how controlling he really was."

Tyler caught a touch of bitterness in Kyle's voice and wondered if there was more to this story. "Anyway," Kyle continued, "she'll be okay. We hashed out a lot tonight and she can see that it really wasn't a healthy relationship." He stopped and took a breath. "Sorry to lay all this on you. I know I ramble. Just tell me to shut the hell up."

"It's okay," Tyler said. "I can see already how much you care for your friend. That's a good thing."

"Lib is also looking for a roommate. I'm going to move in with her. We've been talking about getting a place for years...then she met Brad and...well.... But I guess things happen for a reason. Now we're back on track. I need to move out of my parent's house anyway."

That earned Tyler's full attention. The four years separating him and Tyler suddenly felt like ten. Reality sucks sometimes.

"Oh, there I go again," Kyle said, bringing Tyler back to the table. "Rambling." He smiled that perfect smile that Tyler was becoming very fond of. This guy was an enigma, that's for certain.

During the next hour, they talked about work, the advertising campaign, and then expansion of the gym. Tyler learned Kyle had originally been brought on as an intern the previous summer and the fact that Peter was married to his sister was one of the reasons he was hired. Kyle admitted to always having an interest in drawing and was looking forward to turning what was at first a hobby into a career. Not wanting to be a struggling artist, he learned about graphic design when Peter began dating Maggie when Kyle was fifteen. Tyler told Kyle about his lifelong interest in sports, especially running. He was on the all county track team in high school and had a promising college career until he developed tendonitis in his knee and put an end to any future dreams. After some reflecting, he made the decision to major in Sports Management so that he could at least keep physical fitness in his life.

At one point Kyle went for another round and he also put in an order for some fries. Tyler shook his head when Kyle offered him one. "I can't believe you are eating that junk after working out earlier tonight."

"Youthful metabolism," Kyle said like he had earlier in the evening at the gym.

"I should teach you how to eat better," Tyler said.

Kyle scrunched his face and said, "Don't tell me you are a vegan or some health food guru." Tyler laughed.

"No, I like a good steak as much as the next guy. It's all how you balance your intake."

"Well, that's just common sense," Kyle retorted. "My mom is a great cook," he said proudly.

"I'm sure she is. Still. I'd like to fix you a healthy meal. What are you doing this Saturday?" _Whoa._ Tyler realized he was asking Kyle for another date, even before this one...if it really was one...was over.

Kyle didn't seem phased in the least. "Apparently I've just gotten invited to your place on Saturday for a home cooked meal." Damn, this guy didn't miss a beat, Tyler surmised.

"Guess I'd better start planning a menu," he said. "Show off some of the skills I learned in the cooking class I just took."

"Check you out," Kyle said. "Now I'm really expecting to be impressed."

This time both of them laughed.

Just then, Kyle's phone rang. He pulled it out of his pocket and opened it. "Fuck," he said when he saw the number on the display.

"Who is it?" Tyler asked.

"My boyfriend," Kyle answered.

"What?" Tyler was stunned."I mean, ex...look...I have to take this." Kyle got up from the table and walked out of the bar.

Chapter Four

Dinner and a Movie

The next day Tyler was still reeling from the roller coaster of emotions he'd been on the previous evening. He was thankful that there wasn't a whole lot he had to deal with at the gym today.

After Kyle had exited the bar to take his phone call, Tyler sat in the booth dumbfounded. Was this guy Kyle simply toying with him? Because if he wasn't, he sure was convincing. After a few more moments of berating himself, he'd left enough money to cover the bill and left the bar.

To his surprise, he'd found Kyle outside, still on the phone, an angry tone in his voice. Tyler hadn't been able to make out anything he was saying, though; and he turned away out of respect to let Kyle finish his conversation. He made a move to walk away, and then felt a hand on his shoulder. Tyler turned and Kyle had mouthed the word wait.

After Kyle ended the call, he began to apologize and attempted to explain that the guy was his ex and that he'd broken it off more than a month ago. However, the guy still wouldn't leave him alone.

" _You could just change your phone number," Tyler said. Kyle nodded and said he just hadn't gotten around to that._

They went back and forth for almost ten minutes before Tyler finally had had enough. He just wanted out of there; he didn't need this guys baggage. "Let's just forget this," he said. He really didn't want to, he already felt a strong pull towards this guy, but he'd just have to get over it.

" _No," Kyle said._

" _Why? Tell me why I should invest any more of my time with you." Tyler turned to walk away._

" _Because," Kyle said, as he grabbed Tyler by the shoulder and spun him around. "I can tell that you want me as much as I want you."_

They stared at each other for a few seconds, not touching but definitely in each other's space. The warm evening air seemed even thicker as their gazes bore into each other. Later, neither would remember who moved first, but next thing they knew, they were lost in each other as their lips connected.

Arms wrapped around each other, tongues invaded mouths and battled for dominance until both men conceded and broke apart when the need to breathe became too strong.

" _Tell me you want to stop going wherever this thing is heading," Kyle said._

Tyler fumbled for words, ran a nervous hand through his hair, and finally said, "I can't."

Kyle grabbed Tyler again but gentler this time and gave a quick, softer kiss this time. "See you on Saturday," he said and then walked away.

Tyler smiled at the memory and then rolled his eyes at how much of a lovesick teenager he was being. After sleeping on it, he realized he could help with Kyle get rid of the ex who wouldn't seem to go away. He had been through a similar situation when he was in college. He also realized he only had three days to come up with a menu for their date that weekend. And he wanted it to be a very seductive meal.

Kyle was able to make it to the gym only once the rest of the week and Tyler wasn't there. His workload was increasing steadily and he was putting in some long hours. He hated that he was going to start having to get up at the crack of dawn and get in a workout before going to the office. He wasn't going to fit the gym in after work. He knew this meant he wouldn't see Tyler at Greenwoods anymore, since Tyler had told him one of the first things he did as the manager was to rearrange his own schedule so that he didn't have to be there earlier than 9:00 any morning. _Nice to be the boss_ , Kyle thought with a smile.

Although he was glad that he was starting out at the bottom of the ladder and wasn't getting special treatment simply because he was the family member of a partner in the firm. Still, Kyle's ultimate goal was to have his name on the letterhead with the rest of the partners.

Kyle knew he owed Tyler an explanation about his relationship with Tom. Even though he wanted the past in the past. Kyle had known it wasn't a smart idea to get involved with one of the teaching assistants, but he couldn't help but be drawn to Tom Kramer. Tom had the dark, brooding look of a 19th century poet and the mind of a 21st century physicist. The conversations they had that lasted well into the early morning hours were amazing and eventually the relationship had become physical as well. And it had been great, for a few months. But as graduation neared and Kyle had begun the transition at McIntosh from intern to full time employee, he hadn't had as much time to see Tom. And Tom hadn't handled that very well.

Towards the end of the semester Tom had begun to leave half a dozen messages, if not more, on Kyle's cell phone each day asking where he was and who he was with. It had struck Kyle as slightly paranoid, as Tom knew Kyle's class schedule. But both men had been busy and they had barely seen each other, unlike early in their relationship when they'd spent at least four nights each week together. At least during exam week, Tom had respected Kyle's request not see each other so he could study. Kyle could never figure out how Tom had kept up with his TA responsibilities and wrapping up the final work on his dissertation.

Despite being very intelligent when it came to academics, Kyle had thought, Tom sure wasn't the best at maintaining personal relationships. Tom had very few friends, and even they were beginning to drop hints to Kyle that in all his previous relationships, it was always the other guy who had ended it.

The day Kyle had packed all his personal belongings in the slightly off campus room he was living in to return home was the day he informed Tom that there was no future for them. He had had enough of the clingy, jealous control freak Tom had become. Tom had practically begged for another chance, had said that they could work it out, but Kyle was ready to move on to the next phase of his life, and he had known Tom wasn't going to fit in it.

Kyle hadn't heard from him since he returned home, but knew Tom was busy finalizing and presenting his dissertation. Then Kyle had met Tyler and he could already see that Tyler didn't have that neediness that Tom had. Tom was good looking and smart, but had a certain lost little boy air about him, which Kyle had found appealing at first. Kyle had always been driven, and went after what he wanted. Being so much younger than his siblings, he became determined to do things on his own and adamantly refused any help from his sisters when learning something new.

After the initial infatuation, Tom's mannerisms weren't cute anymore and Kyle had simply become tired of his whining. Kyle couldn't believe Tom was so skittish underneath his professional persona. It was as if he were two different people. Kyle was eager about moving forward with his budding friendship with Tyler, and the phone call from Tom at the bar had taken him off guard. He knew he had to do something drastic to make sure Tyler knew exactly where he stood and what direction he wanted to go with their relationship.

Kyle parked his car where Tyler had instructed him to across from the building where Tyler's condo was located. It was a new development and Kyle was impressed with the double security, first at the front gate and then at the door to enter the building. He pressed the button under Tyler's name, waited to hear the buzz, then opened the door. Tyler was on the second floor. When Kyle got to the top of the stairs, Tyler was standing there with the door open.

"Hi," Tyler said with a smile. "Come on in."

Kyle stepped into the small foyer and followed Tyler into his home. It was very stylishly decorated, but not overbearing. The living room was off to his right with a large forest green sofa in the center of it. Along the wall with the entrance door was a state of the art entertainment center.

"I can give you a tour if you'd like."

"Sure," Kyle answered.

The great room served as a living room and dining area with a chandelier hanging above a small dining table with four chairs. There was a sliding door leading to a small patio on the one side, and the kitchen was opposite. A short hallway lead to two bedrooms and a bath in between them. It wasn't a large home, but it was enough for Tyler.

"This is a great place you have here," Kyle said.

"My sister-in-law helped me pick out everything after I bought the place six months ago. She's an interior designer."

"Nice. Those photos on the wall in the living room..." Kyle began.

"Olivia took them. She spent a year in Europe after she earned her degree."

"She's your sister-in-law?"

"Yeah. She and Eric have been married five years now. Got a baby on the way," Tyler beamed.

Kyle noticed the look and thought it was great Tyler was looking forward to being an uncle.

"I've got two year old twin nieces," Kyle said. "They're a handful, but I'm crazy about them."

Tyler grinned. "They know it's a girl I can't wait to meet her. How about a beer?" Tyler asked as they made their way into the kitchen.

"Sure."

Tyler opened the refrigerator, took out two beers and handed one to Kyle. "Dinner is just about ready," he said.

"Smells good. What culinary masterpiece will we be enjoying?"

Tyler laughed. "I don't know about masterpiece, it's just chicken in wine sauce, some brown rice, and a salad." He opened a cabinet and took two dinner plates out.

"Sounds boringly healthy."

"Hey, that's what I promised and what you agreed to eat. Here," Tyler said, handing Kyle the plates, "Make yourself useful and put these on the table. Silverware is in here." He opened up a drawer. "I'll bring the food out."

After the table was set and food served, Tyler headed toward the living room. "How about some dinner music?" he asked.

"Sure," Kyle replied and followed Tyler over to the entertainment center and watched Tyler's finger skim across the CD collection.

Tyler selected a CD. "Ah, here we go. This'll be perfect. Kyle didn't recognize the face on the CD cover. As the music started, Tyler shut his eyes for a moment. "I love this piece of music. This guy is a master at Brahams."

Kyle took the case out of Tyler's hand. "This guy is hot."

Tyler laughed. "Aiden Finnigan is one of the finest violin virtuosos in the world. I've seen him perform live and he's amazing."

"I went to the symphony once as a kid," Kyle said.

"Maybe it's time for you to go again. Next time this guy comes to town you should go. Last time he had a CD signing." Tyler took the case back and pulled out the liner. "See?" Kyle admired the signature on the sleeve.

"I'd never figured you for a fanboy," Kyle joked. "Still.....this Aiden guy is pretty hot...maybe you should...," he started.

"Oh, shut up," Tyler said, half grinning, as he folded the sleeve back and put it back in the case. "Aidan Finnigan and his manager have been partners for years."

"Oh, really?" Kyle raised his eyebrows. "Only a real fanboy would know that."

Tyler placed the CD back on the shelf. "Shut up." he said again. "Let's go eat before the food gets cold."

The conversation flowed easily as they ate their meal, each reveling in how comfortable they were around the other. Tyler told Kyle how Missy kept trying to flirt with him and it was the day they met she finally realized she didn't stand a chance. Kyle laughed and then told some stories of some of the crazy adventures he and Libby got into in high school, and how they ended up going to the prom together. Kyle even told Tyler how his mother caught him and his other best friend Paul making out in his bedroom when they were both 16.

"I'll never forget the look on my mother's face. Shock, horror, then she laughed...she actually laughed."

"Seriously?" Tyler couldn't believe that.

"Yeah....she ran out of the room, but then came back in five minutes later. Said she had figured it out and was waiting for me to say something to her and dad. The next day she joined PFLAG"

Tyler laughed softly, and then got serious. "I can't believe that – I didn't have it so easy."

"Really?"

"Yeah..my parents threw me out of the house when I told them I was gay."

"Damn...sorry you had to go through that. Where did you go?"

"Eric took me in. He and his best friend Anthony had this apartment. They let me crash there for two weeks. He finally convinced my parents to talk to me." Tyler laughed. "Should have realized then what a great lawyer Eric would be. He's great at convincing people to do things."

"So they let you back home?"

"Yeah," Tyler answered. "I'd just graduated high school at the time. It was a tough summer. I was glad to go away to Piedmont at the end of it."

"But things are great with your parents now, aren't they?"

"Yeah. Took a few more months of sorting it all out...their disappointment and all. But by Christmas that year everything was great. They even apologized to me and admitted they overreacted."

Kyle put his hand on top of Tyler's and looked him directly in the eye. "I'm glad."

"Yeah....me, too." They gazed at each other for a few more seconds, then Tyler said, "Let's get this cleaned up. I'll wash, you dry. Then we can have dessert and maybe a movie?"

"Sounds good. You'll have to tell me about those old film posters in your spare bedroom."

Tyler feigned shock."You've never heard of the Thin Man movies? Please tell me you're joking."

"Um.......," Kyle began.

Tyler stood, picked up his plate and looked at Kyle questioningly. "Are you sure you're gay?"

Kyle laughed. "Weren't you paying attention earlier?"

Tyler laughed and cupped Kyle's cheek. "Yes, I was," he said. "Come on, let's get these dishes done."Determined to educate Kyle on the wonders of Nick and Nora Charles, and their dog, Asta, Tyler chose the first Thin Man movie and set things up after they enjoyed a slice of the chocolate cheesecake he had prepared for dessert. Kyle moaned his approval while practically inhaling the cake _. God, he's adorable,_ Tyler thought. He knew he was falling hard....and fast. And he didn't know if that was a good thing or a bad thing.

They settled on the sofa, initially a safe distance apart. Shoes were kicked off and Tyler nodded when Kyle wordlessly asked if he could prop his feet up onto the coffee table. Tyler kept interjecting his thoughts about the film, but Kyle simply batted him away and said, "Just let me watch the freaking movie."

Ten minutes later Tyler started to say something again, and this time Kyle moved and covered Tyler's mouth with his hand. "Ah...ah," Kyle started as his dark brown eyes bore into Tyler's blue ones. Kyle then removed his hand and replaced it with his lips to keep Tyler from saying anything else.

Tyler pushed Kyle back and then maneuvered them so that he was lying completely on top of him. Their kisses grew deeper and hurried, as if they were in a race. Tyler stopped for a second, looked deep into those gorgeous dark eyes again, and then placed his hands on either side of Kyle's face. He turned Kyle's head slightly, and first licked, then began kissing Kyle's neck.

Part of Kyle wanted Tyler to stop and not leave a mark, but there was a bigger part of him that only knew how good it felt having Tyler's body aligned with his and all coherent thought had left the room. Kyle did find the strength, however to push, then pull Tyler so that now he was on top. He smiled at his accomplishment and got one in return, then Kyle latched onto Tyler's neck and gave him a matching love bite.

They were setting a frantic pace, both groaning in pleasure. The subtle flirting all evening long had them both semi aroused for the past hour and both knew they wouldn't last long. Tyler grabbed Kyle's denim clad ass and made an attempt to wrap his legs around Kyle's. The friction from grinding their clothing bound cocks was getting desperate, and Kyle made a half hearted attempt to unbutton Tyler's pants before he cried out, "Oh, God, I'm gonna come in my pants."

Tyler tried to make haste of unbuttoning Kyle's jeans, but he was too late. By the time he got the zipper down and past Kyle's briefs, Kyle groaned one final time and spilled his seed onto Tyler's hand and both their clothes.

Kyle pressed his forehead to Tyler's and whispered "Sorry. I've been wanting to kiss you all night...and I guess I got a little carried away."

Tyler smiled at him. "It's okay," he said. "I've been wanting this, too."

Kyle then felt Tyler's still stiff erection pressing up against him. "Um, want some help with that?" he asked.

"Please."

Kyle knelt in front of the sofa and pushed the coffee table away. He then unzipped Tyler's pants, and Tyler lifted his hips so that Kyle could pull the pants and briefs down to his knees. He swallowed Tyler's entire cock at once, and began sucking. It wasn't long before Tyler came into Kyle's mouth. He swallowed every drop and then looked up at Tyler wiping his mouth. Then he leaned over and kissed Tyler one more time.

They grinned at each other, then Tyler said, "Let me get us a change of clothes. I bet we're almost the same size."

Tyler picked up the remote and pointed it to the television. Before he could restart the movie, Kyle took the device out of his hand. "I'm sorry, Kyle said.

Tyler turned to look at Kyle and squinted his eyes. "Why?"

Kyle took a breath. "For not discussing sex safety 101 before anything happened."

"Oh...that's all?" Tyler grinned and emitted a low chuckle. "Don't worry about it. I'm clean."

"It's just...," Kyle began.

"Look. My last relationship lasted three years. We were monogamous. There hasn't been anyone since."

"Really?" Kyle was surprised.

"Yeah, really. It was rough when we broke up. And no one has caught my eye since...until now."

A small smile graced Kyle's face. "Want to talk about it?"

Tyler shook his head. "Some other time." He shifted on the sofa cushion and looked Kyle in the eye. "Is there something I should know?" He asked expectantly.

"Yes....I mean no," Kyle stammered. "I just haven't come in my pants like that since I was a teenager."

Tyler took Kyle's hand in his. "It's okay. Trust me."

"I've always been safe," Kyle admitted. "I've always used condoms when fucking. I just wanted to let you know."

Tyler leaned in for a quick kiss. "I can respect that. If it'll make you more at ease, we can use condoms when we get to that stage."

"Which I hope is soon," Kyle said rather hurriedly.

Tyler smiled. "I hope so, too." He put an arm around Kyle and turned the movie back on. Kyle rested his head on Tyler's shoulder.

Fifteen minutes later, both of them had fallen asleep.

Chapter Five – Family Time

Although her children were grown, Arlene Browne would always be concerned about the well being of all three of them. She also knew that she and Joe had raised them to be smart and responsible. So when she opened the front door at 7:00 am. On Sunday morning to fetch the newspaper and noticed Kyle's car was not in the driveway, she didn't panic. _I'm sure he just fell asleep_ , she thought. It was only a dinner date, after all.

Based on what Kyle had told her, Tyler seemed like the decent sort. After the horrible breakup with Tom, Arlene wondered if it was too soon for Kyle to get involved with someone else. She didn't want to interfere with her children's romantic lives....well, not too much anyway.

She knew Kyle would be back for the cookout this afternoon; she would have to wait to get the details when he returned. She'd love to grill him like a detective questioning a suspect, but she knew she couldn't do that anymore.

Arlene grinned, picked up the newspaper and went back inside to start a pot of coffee.

Kyle slowly shifted and stretched before opening his eyes. It took a few seconds for him to remember where he was. He wasn't upset that he fell asleep on Tyler's sofa, but it sure would have been nicer if he hadn't woken up alone. He knew they had both fallen asleep during the movie, apparently, Tyler had shut off the television, and retreated to his own room. Kyle swung his legs off the sofa, planted his feet on the floor and scratched his head _. Damn, he thought, I've met the last decent guy on the planet. He laughed to himself...his mother would love that. Shit, guess I have some explaining to do when I get home, he laughed to himself._ Although he knew his mother was pretty good about not worrying...well, at least not too much.

He made his way to the bathroom and after relieving himself, turned on the faucet and splashed some cold water onto his face. When he looked in the mirror, the first thing he noticed was the large purple bruise on the right side of his neck. He leaned forward a little to examine it a bit closer.

"Fuck me," he said. Then he thought _, I'm going to get a raft of shit about this today_.

"Is that an offer?" Suddenly Tyler was directly behind him, looking absolutely delectable in nothing but his boxers.

Kyle jumped. "Jesus Christ, don't sneak up on me like that," he said, but then grinned. "I'll take you up on that offer, just not right now."

"I'll file that away for future reference," Tyler said, as he took a closer look at Kyle's neck. "Sorry, guess I got a little carried away last night."

"It's okay, I didn't stop you." Kyle allowed Tyler some room next to him in front of the vanity. He pointed to Tyler in the mirror. "Looks like we both got carried away."

Tyler craned his neck and saw an equally large bruise on his neck. "Shit. I'm not going to hear the end of this." He softly touched the mark on his neck.

"Oh yeah?"

"I'm playing a round of golf with Eric this afternoon to get him out of staying at the baby shower for Olivia. He'll be relentless."

Kyle couldn't help but laugh. "Dude," he said, "be thankful you don't have sisters. I've got this family cookout today and Ramona and Maggie are going to take every opportunity to mention it."

Their eyes met in the mirror, and they nudged each other's shoulders. Kyle turned and gave Tyler's cheek a gentle caress before leaning in for a quick kiss, then ran his hand down Tyler's smooth chest. "I really need to go."

"Can't you stay for a cup of coffee?" Tyler asked.

"Next time." Kyle stepped out of the bathroom into the hallway. "Now....where are my pants?" He asked and then laughed at how cheesy that sounded.

"Oh, right," Tyler stepped past him to the small doors that hid the stacked washer and dryer. "I ran them through the washer and dryer."

_God, this guy was perfect_ , Kyle thought. "You didn't have to do that," he said as Tyler opened the dryer and handed Kyle his clothes.

"Least I could do," he said.

Kyle changed while Tyler took care of business in the bathroom. He found his keys on the hook in the kitchen where he had left them the night before. He located his shoes near the sofa and was waiting by the front door when Tyler came in to see him out.

"I really had a great time," Kyle said. "The food was great. So was the movie."

Tyler laughed. "Yeah, right," he said. "You barely saw any of it."

"Well, you shouldn't have been such a distraction...." he began, but was interrupted by Tyler's lips on his again. Tyler put his hands on Kyle's waist and his tongue begged entrance to Kyle's mouth. The kiss deepened, Kyle wrapped his arms around Tyler's neck then ran his fingers through Tyler's thick, floppy hair.

They broke apart, out of breath and leaned against the others forehead for a few seconds before they broke apart. "Can I call you tonight?" Tyler asked. "When can you break away from the family thing?"

Kyle thought for a second. "Everybody will probably be gone by eight. Maggie and Peter will want to get the girls in bed. Ramona and Harry...they never stick around long these days."

"Okay...eight it is...," Tyler said. Kyle opened the door, then turned and gave Tyler one more kiss before he walked away. Tyler shut the door with a smile on his face. Time to prepare for his brother's wrath.

When Tyler entered his parent's house, the baby shower for Olivia was just getting started. He pulled the collar on his shirt as high as he could hoping to hide the love bite for as long as he could. He almost made it into the kitchen before his mother cornered him and hugged him fiercely.

"How was the date last night?" Betty Cole asked her son, as she let go of him. She was a youthful looking fifty something, proud for not yet having a grey hair on her head. She was much shorter than both her sons, but neither of them ever questioned her authority.

"Great mom, he ate all my food and then we watched a movie." He wanted to change the subject before the interrogation got any deeper. "Dad already over Steve's?" Jack Cole was originally going to join his sons, but since his heart attack some months ago, he had good days and some not so good days. Today was an in between day, but he still wasn't up for hours on the golf course. He made some quick plans to spend a quiet afternoon with their neighbor.

"Yes, he left over an hour ago. And yes he's feeling a little better before you ask. You should stop and say hello before you and Eric leave. So....when are you going to see this boy again? When can I meet him?" Betty returned to the Q & A session.

"Give me a break! I told him I'd call him tonight." Tyler wasn't about to let his mother know Kyle had spent the night. She'd have far too much fun with that knowledge.

"Okay....but you'll let me know the minute you make some plans."

"Sure, mom. Where's Eric?"

"He's downstairs. He barely said hello, filled a plate with food, and then took off."

"Well...ma, this is a woman thing...." Tyler attempted to get past his mother, but she wouldn't let him. "Go get some food before you leave," she said. Then she went to rejoin the party.

Tyler fixed a plate and then went downstairs to greet his brother. The basement was as tastefully decorated as the rest of the house, a small sofa and recliner directly facing the stairwell. A big screen television backed up against the wall with the stairs. Further in the room was a professional sized pool table and the accessories adorned the wall.

"About time you got here," Eric said. He was sitting on the sofa channel surfing. An empty plate was sitting on the table next to the sofa. "Hurry up and eat so we can get out of here."

Tyler sat on the sofa next to Eric. "Are you sure you don't want to cancel the tee time? This party is for you, too. Stuff you and Liv will need when Abby makes her debut." He said before stuffing a large forkful of potato salad into his mouth.

"You're shitting me, right? All those stupid games...and women fawning over how cute and adorable everything is? Seems to me you'd be the one interested in staying."

"Hey! I resemble that remark," Tyler said around another mouthful of food.

"Gross. You are so not my brother right now." Eric elbowed Tyler, nearly causing the plate to spill over.

"Watch it!" Tyler tried to move further down the sofa, which was difficult considering how small it was. No food spilled, but Tyler's polo style shirt twisted and Eric saw plain as day the remnants of Kyle's mark leftover from the previous evening.

"Jesus Christ!" Eric exclaimed. "I thought you were going to serve the guy food, not yourself!"

Tyler was mortified, even though he knew Eric would enjoy ribbing him about this. "We ate dinner. Which I must say was one of the best meals I've ever prepared. It was this chicken in wine sauce...," he began.

"Oh, I don't want to hear about the food. Did you put out on the first date?"

"Of course not. I can't believe you'd think that. For someone so intelligent, you sure can act like the village idiot at times."

"Just looking out for my little bro, is all."

Tyler rolled his eyes. Then they burst out laughing. "Come on," Tyler said, as he stood up. "Let's go, or we'll be late for our tee time. I believe today is the day I kick your ass."

"We'll see about that," Eric said, with confidence, as he raced Tyler to the stairs. "Oh, by the way, flip that collar back up. You don't want Mom seeing that neck of yours." He left Tyler with an empty plate in his hand. Tyler rolled his eyes again and ran up the stairs.

He had almost made it out of the house when he heard someone calling his name in a sing song voice. _Dammit, he thought, I was hoping to avoid her_. Before he could turn around he was being hugged with a pair of tiny arms.

"Hi, April," he said as he extracted himself from the embrace. Olivia's sister was much younger than her and she was very immature for her age. April had had a crush on Tyler for years. At first he thought it was cute, now it was just annoying. He wished she would simply outgrow it.

"Are you staying?" April asked, hopefully, hands clasped in front of her, her long red hair hanging down her back.

"No. I'm taking Eric out. And I have to go."

April pulled his arm as Tyler headed towards the front door. "Please stay for just a little bit," she begged. Tyler forcefully yanked his arm out of her grasp in an attempt to get his point across.

"April?" A new voice asked. Tyler and April turned to see Olivia waddling into the foyer. "Leave him alone," Olivia scolded her sister. "This is a girl's only party. Go help Mom."

The young girl pouted and took off. "Thanks, Liv," Tyler said.

"Anytime," Olivia replied. "I keep telling her to stop bothering you. One of these days maybe it'll sink in." She took a breath and then rubbed her back.

"You feeling okay?" Tyler asked.

"Oh, I'm fine...considering I look like a beached whale."

"Oh come on...you look great." Tyler gave her arm a loving squeeze.

"Five more weeks," she sighed, placing a hand on her belly. "Go," she insisted, as she pushed Tyler out the door. "I hope you beat Eric today so I don't have to listen to him gloat again."

"Hey! I'm not THAT bad." They both laughed. "I'll do my best," Tyler said with a grin. He gave Olivia a peck on the cheek before he exited the house. "Have fun," he said, as he turned and headed down the front walk. He crossed the grass to the neighbor's house to say hello to his father, then he left with Eric for the golf course.

Kyle pulled into the driveway of his parents' house at 11:00 am. He knew they'd be out on the back patio, on their second cup of coffee, still reading the Sunday newspaper. He entered the house through the front door and attempted to be as quiet as possible. No such luck. Frankie the Pomeranian started barking as soon as the door creaked. _Damn dog, Kyle thought_. He was halfway up the stairs when he heard the screen door open and his mother's voice calling.

"Kyle Martin Browne." Arlene cried.

_Shit, the full name, Kyle thought. What am I? Twelve again?_ Before his mother could say anything else, he called back, "Sorry, Mom, I know you worry...I fell asleep last night and just woke up an hour ago."

They met in the foyer at the bottom of the stairwell, the grandfather clock noisily ticking behind them. "It's okay" Arlene said. "I figured as much when I didn't get a call from the police or a hospital." She raised her arm and tried to ruffle his hair, but Kyle ducked away.

"Mooooom, "he whined as he turned and ran up the stairs. All he wanted right now was a hot shower. Arlene went to rejoin her husband. She still enjoyed embarrassing her children.

It was later in the afternoon when his sister Maggie arrived with her family. Ramona and Harry always seemed to be the last to arrive. This time he was going to be ready for the onslaught of his sisters. They were just like their mother, looking out for the 'baby' of the family. Sometimes it annoyed him to no end, but most of the time, he was happy that he had such a close, loving family. Still, they didn't have to know everything, even though they'd try their best to learn every single detail of his date with Tyler. After his shower, he put on a clean pair of jeans, a black t shirt, found a button down shirt, put that on, and pulled up the collar to cover his neck.

When Maggie and Peter arrived, Kyle was in the process of dragging a large cooler from the basement to put on the patio for the cold drinks. He completed his task, and went back into the kitchen to greet them. Maggie was chatting with Arlene and unwrapping trays of food. Kyle went to shake Peter's hand, and asked, "Where are the girls?"

"Oh they cornered grandpa in the driveway," Peter answered. "Who knows when we'll see them again?"

Kyle grinned. "Oh, by the way, I have an idea for the Braddock layout."

Arlene turned from the counter. "No, no, no! We'll have no business talk today. That can wait until tomorrow."

Kyle shrugged his shoulders. "I'll catch up with you later," he told Peter.

"I'll take these burgers outside and get dad to start the grill," Maggie said.

"Good idea," Arlene said. "Kyle, you go help. Peter, help me put ice in the cooler."

Kyle and Maggie strolled down the patio stairs after Kyle had retrieved the grill utensils. Joe had the grill all but started when Karen and Katie had cornered him.

"So, how did it go last night?" Maggie asked.

"Good," Kyle answered, with a smile on his face. "Really good."

Maggie placed the plate of burgers on the picnic table next to the grill. "Oh yeah? Care to share any of the filthy details?"

"What makes you think there are any filthy details to share?"

"Because I've been hearing all about this guy for almost a month, and I'm sure there's something to tell by now." Kyle put down the utensils he had been carrying.

"Maggie! What kind of guy do you think I am?"

"Give me a break, Kyle; I know what kind of guy you are. There's always some guy you are going on and on about."

"You make me sound like such a whore."

Maggie laughed. "Well, if the shoe fits...."

Kyle paused, putting his hands on his hips. "Honestly, if you weren't my sister....."

"What?" Maggie went to grab his shirt. Kyle backed away, and almost tripped over Frankie, who had followed him into the yard. He managed to right himself, but Maggie had grabbed enough of his shirt and peeled it half off his shoulder.

"Oh.My.God. What have we here?"

"Shut up Maggie. I don't want to hear it from you...or anyone else for that matter." Kyle managed to back away from his sister.

"Well, you aren't doing a very good job of hiding this, little brother....," she said as she attempted to get in his space again. "Geez, how far did you go with this guy? I thought it was your first date."

"Not as far as you'd like to think." Kyle backed away again. "Why are you so interested in my sex life anyway?"

"Because you are still wild and single and I'm an old married woman."

Kyle laughed. "You aren't old. And I'm sure you and Peter still go at it like newlyweds."

"Yeah, right," Maggie chuckled. "You try having a sex life with two kids."

"Look, Maggie, don't say anything to anyone else. You know how they'll get. And I just don't want to screw this up with Tyler."

"Wow, you must really like this guy."

"Yeah. Somehow it's different this time," Kyle replied.

"Sure thing," Maggie said, as she crossed her fingers behind her back like a ten year old.

The rest of the day went pretty well. Ramona and Harry finally arrived, and were shooting daggers at each other, which Kyle began to wonder if anyone else had noticed. He caught up with her as they were doing some dishes, which was their routine at these family dinners.

"Everything okay between you and Harry?" Kyle asked as he handed Ramona a plate.

"Sure, why do you ask?"

"I don't know...I just saw the two of you giving each other some looks to kill."

"Don't worry about it," Ramona said, as she put the dried plate in the stack on the counter top. "We just overslept and had a mild disagreement."

"Okay...." said Kyle, not believing her. "But you'd tell me if there was a problem, right?"

"Kyle," she stated, with a little frustration in her voice. "Don't worry about it," she said again. "Let's talk about something else.....like the bruise on your neck for instance."

"Damn that Maggie! I told her not to say anything to anyone else. And she knows I meant you."

Ramona laughed. "Oh, come on, do you really think anyone in this family can keep a secret?"

Kyle rolled his eyes. "No....I guess not."

"So....tell me all about it," Ramona said, enthusiastically.

After his siblings said their goodbyes, and everything was put away, Kyle ran into the house and up to his room. He wanted to be ready when Tyler phoned him.

Chapter Six - Phone Calls

Kyle's room had become an obstacle course. Boxes were everywhere packed with his belongings for the move into the apartment with Libby. Some hadn't been unpacked since his return from college. As soon as he and Libby had finalized the plans for him to move in, Kyle had gone and bought his first piece of furniture...a new bedroom set. He didn't want to take the bed he's been sleeping in for the past ten years. He and Libby had had fun shopping that day, convincing the salesperson they were a couple, a game they had perfected over the years.

Kyle was in the middle of placing his CD's one of the boxes when his phone trilled. He smiled when he opened the phone and saw Tyler's number on the display. He plopped onto his bed and pushed the talk button. "Hey," he said with a grin.

"Hey yourself," Tyler answered. "Family all gone?"

"Yeah, I'm just packing some stuff."

"Right. The big move. Are you going to need any help?" Tyler asked, hopefully.

"Nah. I don't have a lot to take. Just my clothes and a few other things. Stereo. CD's. The bedroom set I ordered is being delivered on Saturday. I'll probably be over at the apartment a few nights this week emptying out the spare bedroom."

"Oh." Kyle could tell Tyler was disappointed.

"Seriously. There's really not much to do." Kyle didn't know what else to say. He wanted to change the tone of the conversation. "So, how were the links? Did you break 100?"

Tyler laughed. "Don't be a smartass. I'll have you know, I got less than 90 for the first time."

"Watch out, Tiger Woods."

"Yeah..right...maybe next time you can join us. And I'm sure we can find a fourth."

"Peter's a pretty decent golfer. We'll have to set something up."

"So...how was the family thing? Did you sisters give you a raft of shit like you said they would over the bruise I gave you?"

Kyle laughed. He stretched out and kicked off his shoes. "Oh you have no idea. What kind of crap did you have to deal with?"

"Eric asked if I put out on the first date," Tyler said.

"Seriously?" Kyle thought for a second. "Would you have?" He sat up waiting to hear how Tyler was going to answer.

"I don't know. Probably. I think we needed to just get the edge off. Do you have any idea how attracted I am to you?"

Kyle took a breath. "If it's anywhere close to how attracted I am to you, then...yeah, I do."

For the next two hours, they talked about a variety of topics ranging from Iraq (where they discovered, without much surprise, they had the same political views), to the economy ("A lot of the people I graduated with don't have job," Kyle had said. "I'm one of the lucky ones.") and a heated debate over jam versus jelly when they decided to share a late night snack.

"Jam spreads easier," Tyler said, as he stood at the kitchen counter preparing his sandwich, shoulder hitched to hold the phone to his ear.

"Jelly tastes better," Kyle countered, as he took a bite out of his sandwich. "What's your position on chunky peanut butter? For or against?"

"Against," Tyler stated firmly. "Totally."

Deciding they still weren't tired, and simply enjoying the conversation, both retreated back to their bedrooms and got comfortable.

"Can I ask you something?" Tyler began. "I didn't get a chance to last night."

"Just ask," Kyle replied. "I'll tell you whatever you want to know." Kyle had an overwhelming compulsion of wanting to tell this man everything about himself. He wasn't sure exactly why, it just felt right with Tyler, despite only knowing him for a short time.

"Whatever happened with your friend Paul?" Tyler inquired. "The guy your mother caught you with?"

Kyle laughed. "It didn't take us long to figure out we were better as friends than boyfriends. He was just the first guy I met who was also gay. We connected. Had a lot of adventures. Spent a lot of time on Greenbriar Street."

"Oh really?" Tyler asked. Greenbriar Street was a well known hangout for the local gay community.

"It's not what you think," Kyle explained. "I'm not as experienced as my sister Maggie would like to think I am. We spent more time watching everyone else. Although after we got out of high school Paul pretty much immersed himself. He's probably the biggest queen on the planet." Kyle laughed. "But he's also one of the best friends I could ask for."

"So you and he never....."

"Nope. But Paul did introduce me to Greg Briscoe...who was my first."

"Ah. And when was that can I ask?"

"Summer between high school and college. We all worked at Hollyoak Amusement Park."

"That's a cool place, Eric and I used to go there all the time when we were younger."

"It's a great place," Kyle agreed. "A fun summer job, too. And one night, in the store room, with all those tacky prized stuffed animals..."

Tyler tried to suppress a laugh. "You're kidding! No one caught you?"

"Amazingly, no," Kyle answered. "Considering how careless we were, I don't know how we weren't discovered. Greg was 20 at the time. Had his own place with two other roommates. Sometimes we had the place to ourselves. I learned a lot that summer."

"I bet you did." Kyle could almost hear Tyler's grin. "How long did it last?"

"Until Greg went back to College Park. We knew it was just a summer thing. No broken hearts or anything."

"Wow. I'm impressed you realized that at that stage in your life. First lovers and all."

"Sometimes it helps having an older sister who always had great advice."

"I love that you are close to your sisters. My brother is one of my best friends. And Liv is like the sister I never had."

"What about your other sister, Ramona, right?"

"She's great, too. Six years older than me, but we've always had this...connection...I don't even know if I can explain it. It's like we almost know what the other is feeling."

"Like the connection that twins have sometimes," Tyler suggested.

"Yeah, sort of like that. She's been acting different lately. I think she and her husband are having problems."

"Have you said anything to her?"

"I tried to this afternoon, but she brushed me off. Started telling me how she's up for this promotion at work, but it's all hush hush." Kyle gritted his face. "Oops-probably shouldn't have said anything."

"Kyle," Tyler said. "Who would I possibly tell? Let's change the subject. Tell me more about your amorous past."

Kyle chuckled. "There really isn't much more to tell. Had some dates in college that didn't really go anywhere, then I met Ben in junior year. We dated for 10 months. It was great for awhile, but then he graduated and I never heard from him again."

"Really? Just up and left?"

"Yeah, guess he's the one who got away, broke my heart, whatever you want to call it."

"But obviously you got over it. Who was that guy who called you at the bar?"

"Tom? We only started seeing each other spring semester this year. Fucking gorgeous, it was like I was under his spell or something. He just turned out to be a complete asshole."

"I used to date a guy named Tom, too," Tyler admitted.

"Really?"

"Yeah, for more than a year when I was at Piedmont. Turns out he had some control issues. Had a hell of a time getting through to him that it was over with."

"Must be the name," Kyle joked.

Tyler laughed. "Maybe. Can we talk about something else?"

"Sure." Kyle paused for a brief moment. He was curious to know more about Tyler's past, but wasn't going to press him. "Hey, the Brighton Film festival is this weekend. How about we go check out some films on Sunday afternoon?"

"That's a great idea," Tyler exclaimed. "I haven't been to that in years. I used to go all the time."

"It's nicer now since they moved it to Peyton's Ridge."

"There's a great lineup of films this year, too. I was reading an article in the paper today about what films were showing."

"Yeah, so was I," Kyle admitted. "I want to see the Jack Collingswood film," he said a little enthusiastically.

"Oh yeah?" Tyler asked with a lilt to his voice.

"Yeah," Kyle said with a sigh.

"So...." Tyler baited. "You think he's hot?"

"Fucking yeah, don't you?"

Tyler laughed. "Who wouldn't?"

Kyle yawned and looked at the clock on the table next to his bed. "Shit," he said. "It's nearly midnight."

"Really? I hadn't noticed." Both were thinking how amazing it was that they completely lost track of time.

Kyle broke the silence. "It's been great, talking like this. Can I call you again tomorrow night?"

"Absolutely," Tyler said. "But not if I call you first."

Kyle grinned. "Sounds like a plan. Say around 9 o'clock?"

"Works for me," Tyler said. "I'm already looking forward to it."

"Me, too," Kyle said. "G'night."

"Night," Tyler responded.

Both disconnected their phones and wrapped themselves around their pillows, with thoughts of the other dominating their dreams.

It was two days later before Tyler heard from Kyle again. He tried calling Monday night but got sent directly to voice mail. He left a message saying he hoped nothing was wrong. He didn't want to call again and seem desperate. When his phone rang the next night and he saw Kyle's number, however, he did breathe a sigh of relief.

"Hey," Tyler greeted enthusiastically. "Is everything okay? I was worried when I didn't hear from you last night.

"It will be," Kyle answered. "I wanted to call you last night but we had a crisis."

"With your friend again?"

"No. My stupid ass brother in law walked out on my sister..." Kyle began.

"So, you were right in thinking they were having problems. I'm really sorry to hear this."

"Turns out Harry has been having an affair for months now."

"Damn." Tyler felt so bad that Kyle's family was going through this. If his family was anything like his, and he was beginning to suspect it was, the entire family was devastated.

"And it gets worse," Kyle continued. "This other woman is pregnant."

"Shit. I bet your sister is crushed."

"Pretty much," Kyle said as he took a deep breath. "Ramona has this medical problem, I forget what it's called, but her chances of having kids are pretty slim."

"That's awful," Tyler said. It warmed him to know that Kyle trusted him with this personal family information.

"Ramona stayed here last night, she was so upset. She didn't want to stay in the house that they've been living in for the past three years. Mom went to stay with her tonight."

"That's good, isn't it?"

"Yeah...it's just the shock of it all. You just don't expect something like this to happen."

"No, you don't. Do you want me to come over?" Tyler shut his eyes and inwardly cringed. He couldn't believe he just blurted that out. He quickly thought of something else to say. "I know how close your family is but if there's anything I can do....."

"Thanks for the offer," Kyle interjected. "Dad and I are going to hang tonight. We'll all get through this. Actually, just hearing your voice is helping."

Tyler smiled. "I'm glad to hear that." He wasn't insulted that Kyle didn't ask him to stop over. He appreciated Kyle's desire to be with his family. These weren't the circumstances for him to meet his new boyfriend's family. _Can I think of him as that already?_ His musings were interrupted by Kyle speaking.

"It'll be tough for awhile, but Ramona will get through this. She's a tough cookie."

"Just like her brother."

"Thanks," Kyle said, and Tyler could almost hear him grinning. "So did you highlight the films you want to see at the festival on Sunday? I bet you did."

Tyler would have liked to have consoled Kyle some more, but perhaps a change of subject was needed at this point. He was also surprised that Kyle had picked up on his over organizing tendencies already. "Yes, I did. I have the entire day mapped out."

They chatted for another twenty minutes about the films and what time they'd meet on Sunday morning. After they rang off, Tyler closed his phone and ran a hand through his hair. Although he felt horrible that Kyle's sister's marriage was over, he was also elated that he was entering what could perhaps be the best relationship of his life.

Chapter Seven

"You've Got to be Kidding Me!"

Kyle and Tyler were busy at work the rest of the week, Kyle on a new project and Tyler covering for his assistant manager who was on vacation. Kyle spent several nights moving most of his things to the new apartment. They didn't get a chance to speak with each other at all.

Mid Saturday afternoon found Kyle completely moved in with Libby. His furniture arrived on time and was set up in his room. His parents had helped him bring the last of his things over and had gone home to leave the new roommates get acclimated to their new living arrangements.

Kyle didn't mind that he had the smaller of the bedrooms. The lease was in Libby's name, she deserved the larger room. His room had just enough space for the new queen sized bed, dresser and nightstand. The table with his small stereo had to be left in the living room and the crates with his massive comic book collection had to be crammed in his bedroom closet.

The apartment was small, just one large room for living and dining space, a small kitchen off to the left and the two bedrooms at the far end, the bath separating them. It was enough space for Kyle and Libby, with their work schedules, sharing a bathroom was the least of their worries.

"We should have a party," Libby said, as they fell on the sofa, exhausted from the day's work. "Celebrate you moving in."

"Sounds like a good idea to me," Kyle agreed.

"I have off next Saturday, too." Libby said. "How about then?"

"Okay. We should start making some phone calls."

"I bet I know who you will call first," Libby teased. "I can't wait to meet this elusive boyfriend of yours."

Kyle gave her an annoyed look. Libby was boyishly thin, with short cropped black hair and dark green eyes, which were currently full of mischief.

"We've only had one date so far," Kyle firmly stated. "He's hardly my boyfriend."

"But you'd like him to be," Libby said, as she playfully jabbed Kyle in the arm.

"Maybe......" Kyle replied, sighing dreamily. He paused, and said, "What about you? You seem to have gotten over Brad. The other week you were a wreck."

"I was," she admitted. "So I had a good cry, and accepted that it wasn't meant to be. I'm going to simply enjoy being young and single for awhile."

Kyle laughed. "Sounds good." He stood and extended his hand. Libby smiled and placed her hand in his. He pulled her up. "Now let's plan a party," he said.

Tyler had invited Kyle for a big breakfast at his condo the day of the film festival. Kyle joked that Tyler just wanted him to spend more time at the gym working off these meals he was preparing for him. Both men were simply looking forward to spending more time with each other.

Kyle ran up the stairs to the second floor after he had been buzzed into the building. Tyler left the door ajar and Kyle could smell the distinct aroma of bacon as he entered Tyler's home.

"Tyler?" he called, when Kyle didn't see him.

Tyler came out of the kitchen, his hands wrapped around a dishtowel. "Hi," he said and kissed him lightly in greeting. "Hungry? Everything is just about ready."

"Great. I'm starving."

"I'm beginning to wonder if you ever aren't hungry," Tyler retorted, as he headed back toward the kitchen.

Kyle followed him and jokingly asked "What's wrong with having a healthy appetite?"

Tyler turned and smiled. "Absolutely nothing. I like a man with a healthy appetite," he said with raised brows. He took a step towards Kyle.

"Are we still talking about food?" Kyle asked, as he took the towel out of Tyler's hand and put it on the counter top. He grabbed the belt loops in Tyler's jeans and pulled his body flush against his. They were essentially the same height, hips and chests met with each other, Kyle thought that their bodies were simply meant to meld together like this. Then he ran a hand through Tyler's thick hair, leaned in and thoroughly kissed him. Tyler responded eagerly and wrapped his arms around Kyle's waist.

After they parted for breath, they gazed into each other eyes. "Food's gonna get cold if we don't eat it," Tyler said, just as Kyle's stomach grumbled.

"Yeah....," Kyle almost moaned, as they let go of each other.

For the next few moments they organized the food, and each filled a plate with eggs, bacon and hash browns. They carried the plates and tall glasses of juice to the dining table. "I hope you also have coffee," Kyle said before they sat down.

"Oh, yeah, let me get that started," Tyler replied.

Kyle grabbed his arm. "No, it can wait, sit down and let's eat."

Once again, they fell into easy conversation and simply enjoying the others company. Kyle filled Tyler on all the details of his move and about the party the following weekend. When they finished eating, Tyler went to start the coffee and laughed as Kyle filled his plate again. "Don't want to waste any of it," was all he said.

"I figured we'd be busy at the festival most of the afternoon and probably won't get a chance to eat again until late...so go ahead....eat up." Tyler said as he filled his plate a second time as well. "Oh, how is your sister?" He asked as he met Kyle back at the table. "She doing okay after the split?"

"She's hanging in there. Harry moved out, Ramona is going to stay at the house for now, but they are going to put it on the market and split the profit. At least Harry isn't being a dick about that."

"That's good to hear."

"Oh, I almost forgot," Kyle started to say, as Tyler got up to start the coffee. "When I was making phone calls last night about the party, Paul mentioned him and his boyfriend Charlie will be at the festival this afternoon. We'll have to meet up with them."

"Great," Tyler replied. "I look forward to meeting him."

Coffee was done and the two men sat down at the table with hot mugs.

"Speaking of....I told you about my exes', now it's your turn to tell me about yours."

Tyler almost choked on his drink. "Way to change the conversation," he finally spit out. "You are direct, aren't you?"

"It really bugs the shit out of me when people segue way around a topic. My motto is, just ask up front." Kyle shrugged his shoulders.

"I get that, but doesn't being direct get you in trouble sometimes?"

"Maybe once or twice."

"I'd like to hear those stories...."

"Ah....don't try and get out of this. Today is your turn for storytelling."

Tyler laughed, and took another sip of his coffee. "There really isn't much to tell."

"I still want to know," Kyle said softly. "Who was the first guy you had a crush on?"

Tyler chuckled. "Are you serious?"

Kyle grinned. "No," he said. "You don't have to tell me anything you don't want to."

Taking a breath, Tyler combed a hand through his hair. "You told me about your first, least I could do is tell you about mine." Both took another sip of coffee before Tyler began again.

"This is such a cliché but when I was in high school, I had it bad for one of my teammates on the cross country team, Andrew. He really made it seem like he was interested, and one day, when we were the last ones in the locker room, I tried to kiss him."

Kyle's interest was piqued. "What happened?" he asked.

Tyler took a breath. "He punched me out."

"Wow...did he give you any grief after? Tell the rest of the school?"

"Surprisingly, no. We were on our way to the state finals the following week, and at least he was smart enough not to mess with the team dynamic. He did avoid me the rest of the year."

"Ooh, that smarts."

Tyler shrugged. "I survived. Until I got to college. There was this guy in my dorm, Dylan, he was really hot, my roommate, Sean, kept telling me to get over it, that he was straight, but I wouldn't listen to him."

"Did you make a move on him?"

"Nah, not this time, I didn't want to be shot down again."

Kyle reached out and took Tyler's hand in his. "I can't believe you didn't have guys waiting in line to date you."

Tyler returned Kyle's grip. "Thanks. I guess I just have never been into casual dating. I always was looking two steps ahead when I met someone, and that turned a lot of people off."

"You're an old fashioned guy in a modern world."

"Huh.....," Tyler said, then paused for a second _. That does pretty much sum me up, he thought. Why have I never realized that before?_ "I guess I never thought of it that way before."

"I think that's why you and I connected so quickly," Kyle said. He rubbed his thumb over the back of Tyler's hand. "We both are family guys in an ever changing world. So....tell me more."

"I finally got over Dylan. He got caught up in the party scene, and that just wasn't my thing. Sean and I were doing intramural cross country and that's where I met Jake. He was shy, took me almost a month to get him to go out with me, and it was another month before we finally lost our virginity with each other."

"How long did you guys last?" Kyle asked.

"Only six months. Jake was still in the closet and he simply couldn't deal with it."

"Ouch. You really have had tough luck in the romance department."

"I guess I have. I decided to concentrate on my classes. Figured I was better off not even looking. Sean had met Linda by this time...so I wasn't seeing much of him either. Then I met Tom. He was amazing. We met in this Greek History class and partnered up on a project. He was like a Greek god himself. I fell hard and fast for him."

"Sounds like the Tom I fell for at Piedmont, Kyle said.

"I know, it's really bizarre how similar it is. We were together until graduation. He wanted to stay in Bloomington, and wanted me to stay with him. But I had this job waiting for me here. He begged and begged me to not take it, that I'd find something else, but I wanted to stay close to my family."

"How did you finally convince him it was over?"

"He never believed I'd go until the day I packed up all my stuff and left. I haven't heard from him since."

"Wow...you have to wonder about some people. This could be the same guy, I swear it," Kyle said, thoughtfully. "This is almost Twilight Zone similar."

"I know. Wouldn't it be really weird of it was the same guy?" Tyler pondered.

"Can't be, can it?" Kyle also puzzled over the almost absurdity of the situation. "But let's move on. We need to watch the time, or we'll be late for the festival."

Tyler checked his watch. "Shit. You're right. Let's get these dishes cleaned up."

While cleaning up, Tyler told Kyle how he met Stewart at a Health Care seminar three years ago and they hit it off perfectly. After a year of dating, they moved in together and things couldn't have been better. Until Stewart visited Pamona Health Care in Florida and was offered a job that he couldn't (and wouldn't) refuse. Tyler and Stewart argued about it for almost a month and when all was said and done Tyler stood by his decision and refused to move that far away from his family. Stewart's family was already two hundred miles away, he didn't have a problem with moving to Florida. Tyler recalled that final discussion they had on the issue some six months ago.

" _You may have lived on your own for years, but you still haven't cut those apron strings," Stewart said, accusingly._

" _My father just had a heart attack. I can't pack up and move one thousand miles away," Tyler retorted._

" _Your mother, Eric and Olivia can look after him."_

" _I'd feel as if I were abandoning him."_

" _Two hours on a plane. It's even the same time zone. Seems to me," Stewart spat out, "that you are abandoning me?"_

Tyler was feeling almost bullied. "I thought you knew how important my family is to me." He tried to walk away.

Stewart grabbed him by the arm. "I do," he said, trying to sound sympathetic. "I think your father is great. But his prognosis is good. And I love my family, too. But this is us – the family of you and me."

Shrugging Stewart's grip off him, Tyler sighed. "I'm sorry, Stewart. I can't. I won't."

Stewart tried another tactic. "What about those promises we made to each other – that we'd be together forever? Remember those?"

" _I do." Tyler softened a little. "I meant every word when I said them." Then he turned again. "You always said you loved it here."_

" _Yes, I do. But sometimes you've got to take a chance. A risk. My salary is going to almost double. We can have a great life there. We won't have to worry about a thing. You won't have any problem finding a job."_

Stewart always was a good salesman. Tyler had almost got caught up in his pitch. "My life is already great. And money isn't everything. There's something to be said about roots and stability. I don't want to start over."

Tyler could see Stewart's frustration was growing as he rolled his eyes. "You sound like you are seventy five instead of twenty five." Stewart was getting angry now.

" _That's not fair," was all Tyler could say._

" _Is is fair to me that you are just discounting everything we've built over the past three years?"_

Tyler had had enough. "I'm sick of arguing about this." He paused. "I know," he finally said, "Maybe we can try a long distance relationship."

Stewart laughed. "I can't believe you are even suggesting that. You know we both are all or nothing when it comes to relationships."

Tyler thought for a second. "You're right," he conceded. "I guess this is really it then."

" _I guess so," agreed Stewart._

Ten days later, Stewart was gone. Tyler hadn't heard from him since. He'd driven everyone crazy with getting past the breakup, but every now and then some pent up resentment resurfaced.

Kyle put away the plates then pulled Tyler into a fierce embrace. "I'm sorry that you had to go through that," he said softly. Tyler let his head fall onto Kyle's shoulder.

Kyle broke the embrace and gave Tyler a soft, consoling kiss, but Tyler grabbed him and turned it into much more. Those desperate feelings had come back and he backed Kyle against the counter and shoved his tongue as far into Kyle's mouth as he could. Kyle was surprised at the invasion and when he felt Tyler's teeth almost clamp down on his bottom lip, he pushed him away.

"God I'm so sorry," Tyler said as he wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. "I really thought I was past all that. Talking about it just brought it all back. I guess I'm still dealing with some abandonment issues because he never got back to me."

Kyle took Tyler's hand in his and gave it a squeeze. "It's okay. You're allowed to be upset. You did try to get in touch with him, didn't you?"

"Yeah," Tyler replied. "And he never returned any of my calls."

"I'm sorry," Kyle said, as he took his other hand and patted Tyler's shoulder, then rubbed his lip.

"I should be the one who's sorry," Tyler apologized. He looked closer at Kyle's lip. "You aren't bleeding, are you?"

Kyle shook his head.

"Look, Kyle," Tyler began, entwining both Kyle's hands in his. He looked past Kyle briefly, before meeting his eyes. "I really like you. A LOT. I haven't felt this way in a long time. I don't want to screw it up."

"You aren't. I've just been through a bad breakup, too. And I like you a lot as well." He took a breath. "Let's just take it slow. Just enjoy being together. I think the rest will fall into place."

Tyler smiled. "Yeah," he said. "You're right." He gave Kyle a quick kiss.

"Ouch," Kyle said, and they both laughed.

Tyler looked at his watch. "We seriously need to get going if we're going to make that 1:30 showtime."

"Well then, let's get out of here!"

Kyle and Tyler had barely made it into the lobby of the theatre when they heard Kyle's name being called in a high pitched voice. They turned to see a tall, brightly dressed guy heading in their direction. Kyle soon found himself enveloped in a bear hug before being on the receiving end of a noisy kiss.

"Hey there, handsome," Paul greeted his friend. "How are you?"

"I'm good," Kyle replied, turning to give Charlie a hug. "Nice to see you again."

"You, too," Charlie said with a smile.

"And who have we here?" Paul asked as he gave Tyler the once over. "You were right, Kyle. He's gorgeous."

Tyler blushed a little. Then found himself in another one of Paul's very friendly hugs.

"Nice to meet you," Tyler said after Paul stepped back. "I've heard a lot about you."

"Oh really?" Paul said, a flirty tone to his voice. "Interested in finding out more?"

"Paul!" Kyle chided. "Can you tone it down a bit?"

Paul put his hands on his hips. "Well, I could," he said, then dragged a finger down Tyler's chest, "but what would be the fun in that?"

Kyle rolled his eyes then was surprised when Tyler captured Paul's hand and kissed the back of it.

"Oh, I like this one, Kyle," Paul said. He glanced up and down Tyler's body again. "You always did go for the jocks."

"Hey," Charlie piped in. "What am I, chopped liver?"

Paul put his arm around Charlie. "Charlie, my love, you are man enough for me. All the right parts in all the right places." He gave his partner a loud, obnoxious kiss.

After Charlie and Tyler managed to finally get around to introducing themselves to each other with a handshake, the four of them went to the auditorium to find seats. Following a friendly disagreement on where to sit, they found four empty seats. As soon as they sat down Paul announced he had to go to the 'little boys room' and left again.

"He's worse than a woman," Charlie observed.

Tyler and Kyle laughed then Tyler felt his phone vibrate. When he checked the number he told Kyle, "It's Eric, I want to take this. I hope nothing's wrong with dad." Tyler's father had been feeling ill all week, nothing serious, but the family was still concerned, given all the health issues the man had in the past months. Tyler excused himself to try and find a quieter spot where he could talk a little more privately with his brother.

The lobby was nearly empty, most attendees already having filtered into the auditorium. Tyler found a spot near the rest rooms. By this time, the call had switched to voice mail, so he quickly dialed Eric's number.

Eric picked up the call quickly. "Tyler," he said. "I'm glad I caught you."

"It's not Dad, is it? Is he alright?"

"Yes, he's fine." Tyler breathed a sigh of relief.

"It's Liv, she's gone into labor," Eric told his brother.

"But she's not due for another month!" Tyler cried.

"Calm down," Eric said. "It's still the very early stages. And they have a monitor on the baby, and even though she's still small, lung development is good, she should be okay."

"Oh, good. I'll come to the hospital."

"You don't have to. This could go on for hours. I know you are with Kyle at the movies today. I'll give you a call in a few hours."

"Are you sure? I'm sure he'd understand."

"Trust me. Nothing is going to happen anytime soon. Go back and enjoy the film."

"O---kay," Tyler said. "I'll call you later."

They rang off and Tyler leaned against the wall. He rubbed his forehead with his fingers, and took a deep breath. He was really excited about becoming an uncle and wanted to be there, but knew there was nothing he could do. Both his and Olivia's parents were bound to be there....and probably annoying April as well. Yeah, he'd stay where he was. The movie would be good and he could hold Kyle's hand for the duration. That was much more enticing than hanging around a hospital.

He was jostled out of his thoughts by voices coming from the rest room. He recognized Paul's laugh and when he looked up he saw a face he hadn't seen in years and thought he'd never see again.

"Tyler," Paul said at the same time his rest room companion blurted "Jesus Christ! I don't believe it."

Tyler had apparently lost the capacity to speak.

"You two know each other? Fabulous! I was just telling my new friend that I was here with friends and since he was alone, could sit with us."

"Um...no...," Tyler stammered. He then directed his next comment to the other man. "What the hell are you doing here?"

"I came to see a film," the guy said. "I never thought I'd see you again. But now that I have....." he said, suggestively.

"Don't even think it," Tyler said, angrily. "I'm here with a date."

Paul was looking back and forth between Tyler and the other guy. "How do you two know each other?" he dared to ask.

"We were partners once," the guy with the dark hair said. He took a step towards Tyler.

"A LONG time ago," Tyler clarified, and stepped back and bumped into someone.

"Hey, Tyler," he heard Kyle say, "I came to see what was taking so long......oh fuck!" Kyle noticed the other guy. "Tom?"

Tyler turned around. "You know this guy? Wait. This is the Tom you just broke things with?"

Tom burst into laughter. "Seriously Tyler? He's your date? You've got to be kidding me!"

Chapter Eight

Endings and Beginnings

"Ohmygod!" Paul exclaimed. "What are the odds of this?" He stood with his mouth open. "I'm speechless. Utterly speechless. And you know that is no small feat."

Kyle gave him a look and Paul got the hint. "I'll go save your seats," Paul said, as he walked away.

Tom still had a smirk on his face. "I can't believe it. The two of you.....together. How long has this been going on?" He looked at Kyle. "Were you screwing him when you went 'home' those weekends?"

"You prick," Kyle spit out, as he lunged toward Tom. Tyler pulled him back.

"Oh, look, he's defending you already."

Kyle eased out of Tyler's grip. "I can handle my own battles. And not that it's any of your business, but I didn't meet Tyler until after we broke up."

Tom's demeanor changed. "I was still hoping you'd change your mind. I found some t-shirts of yours at my place. I thought you'd come back."

"In your dreams, Tom." Kyle took Tyler's hand. "Come on. Let's go watch a movie."

They got two steps away when they heard Tom expel half a laugh. "Shit. You two haven't fucked yet, have you?"

As soon as they were out of earshot, Tyler said, "He's bi polar, I'm convinced of that."

Kyle agreed. "He knows how to lay it on at first. It was easy to fall for him." They stopped walking before entering the auditorium doors.

"I know," Tyler said. "Didn't take you as long to see what he's really like, though."

"Maybe he really does have a medical condition and it's just gotten worse over time. I heard one of the other T.A.'s telling him to go get help, but he adamantly refused."

Tyler took a breath. "Is this going to be a problem for us? That we share an ex?"

Kyle looked him right in the eye. "Only if we let it become one." He cocked his head. "Hey, this is the first test for us. But I'm sure we'll get past it."

Tyler smiled. "I'm sure, too." He squeezed Kyle's hand as the lights dimmed. "We'd better get back to our seats."

After they sat down they assured Paul and Charlie that everything was fine and they'd fill them in after the movie was over. Suddenly Kyle remembered why he went to fetch Tyler in the first place. He leaned over slightly and asked about the phone call to Eric.

Tyler's face lit up. "Olivia went into labor."

"What!" Kyle exclaimed, loud enough to earn a few shushes from their neighbors. "That's awesome. Wait. Don't you want to go to the hospital?"

"It's okay," Tyler answered quietly. "Eric said nothing was going to happen for awhile. It's a few weeks early, but everything will be okay."

"Are you sure? I won't mind if you want to leave. I can hitch a ride home with Paul."

Tyler cut him off. "No. I'm staying here." He leaned to whisper in Kyle's ear. "I'd rather sit with you in a dark movie theater than in a hospital waiting room."

The theater darkened, so Tyler missed the massive grin that appeared on Kyle's face.

After the feature film ended, there was a short documentary then a break until the next movie was to begin. The two couples remained in their seats for a few moments after the house lights came back on and all agreed both films were thought provoking and well made. And that in the feature film Jack Collingswood should have been naked the entire ninety minutes.

"You two want to head over to Perry's across the street for a bite to eat?" Paul asked as the foursome made their way out to the lobby.

Kyle looked at Tyler, expectantly. "I want to call Eric," Tyler said as he pulled his phone from his pocket.

Before he could punch in the numbers, he felt a hand on his shoulder. Tom had caught up with them. "Tyler, Kyle," he addressed both of them. "I want to apologize for what I said earlier. It was rude and uncalled for." He seemed very sincere.

Tyler and Kyle looked at each other. Kyle shrugged his shoulders then loosely put an arm across Tyler's shoulders. "Sure," Tyler said. "But I also think we've both made it clear that neither of us want you in our life anymore."

Tom glanced at Kyle. "Come on, we can all still be friends, right?"

"No," Kyle answered firmly. He moved the hand on Tyler's shoulder to his lower back and gently urged Tyler toward the exit. "Paul, Charlie, let's go get a bite to eat."

None of them saw the venom in Tom's eyes.

Outside the theater, Paul exclaimed, "What an asshole!"

"Didn't I tell you how much of a jerk he is?" Kyle said. "One minute he's your best friend, the next he's out for blood."

"Yeah, you did. Like a wolf in sheeps clothing."

Meanwhile, Tyler had his phone to his ear after dialing his brother's number and was surprised when his mother answered. "Mom, what's going on?" he asked, a bit nervously.

The others gave him their attention as he listened to the update his mother provided him.

"Ohmygod," Tyler said, his face starting to drain of color. "I'll be right there."

His companions grew worried. "What?" Kyle asked, putting a hand on Tyler's arm.

Tyler held up a finger in a 'wait a minute' gesture and listened as his mother continued to fill him in on what was going on at the hospital. Kyle had the impression that his date had been cut short.

"Sorry," Tyler said with a sympathetic look. He put a hand on Kyle's shoulder. "Olivia is being taken in for an emergency c section. Her blood pressure spiked. I want to be there for them."

"I understand," Kyle said. "Family is important."

Tyler leaned a little closer to Kyle. "So are you," he all but whispered. "I'll make this up to you, I promise. Let's do dinner one day this week."

"Okay. Although this time let me do the cooking. Come to my place. It's not much but I want you to see it."

"I can't wait," Tyler said with a smile. "Especially looking forward to finding out what you'll fix for me." Tyler looked at his watch. "I should go." He gave Kyle a quick kiss.

"Call me later," Kyle said. "Let me know how everything is."

"You got it." Tyler gave Kyle another kiss, and turned to his new friends. "Paul, Charlie, it was great meeting you. We'll have to get together again soon."

"Oh, you know it," Paul said, with a lilt to his voice. He pulled Tyler into a hug. Charlie simply shook his hand.

"See ya!" Tyler called as he took off.

Paul turned to his old friend. "Kyle," he said. "You are not letting that man get away."

"I don't intend to," Kyle said dreamily.

"Okay," Charlie said. "Now that we have that decided, can we please go eat now?"

Kyle, Paul and Charlie enjoyed a leisurely dinner, Paul still intrigued over the fact that Kyle and Tyler shared an ex. Kyle reassured him they wouldn't let that fact get in the way of their budding relationship. The trio also discussed the party Kyle and Libby were hosting the following weekend and Charlie invited Kyle and Tyler to his artist friend David's gallery showing in a few weeks.

The evening film was another brilliant one and afterwards Paul insisted on waiting to meet the writer/director as he was one of Paul's favorites. Kyle kept checking his phone and this did not go unnoticed by his friend.

"You aren't going to make the phone ring by staring at it," Paul observed.

Kyle responded by giving him the finger.

Paul laughed. "You've got it bad. I've never seen you act this way over a guy before."

Kyle grew serious. "I'm just afraid I'm going to fuck it up somehow."

Paul rolled his eyes then dragged Kyle to a quieter place to chat. Charlie followed them. "Don't even think like that," Paul said.

"Yeah," Charlie agreed. "I know I just met the guy, but it's obvious he's really into you."

Kyle took a breath. "He did tell me this morning that he really likes me."

"See? No worries."

"I still have a question," Paul stated thoughtfully.

"Yeah?" Kyle asked, crinkling his eyes.

"What's he like in the sack?"

Kyle's eyes widened. Paul **would** ask this. "Well....," he started to say.

"Wait," Paul said, shocked. "You guys haven't had sex yet?"

_This is bizarre, Kyle thought. Twice in one day people questioning me about my sex life_. He'd had no idea why Tom made the comment earlier, but he knew Paul could read him like a book. "We've done a lot, but--."

Paul didn't let Kyle finish. "What the hell are you waiting for then?" he asked, with a small hint of humor. He put one hand on his hip and poked Kyle in the chest with the other. "Tyler's hot. You need to bang that boy."

This time Kyle did laugh. "We just haven't had the time. Something always seems to come up to prevent us."

"Don't give me that shit. There's always time for sex. Right, Charlie?" Paul turned to his partner and raised his eyebrows. Charlie simply groaned.

It was after eleven pm. when Kyle's phone finally chirped. "Hey," he greeted Tyler. "I was beginning to get worried," he admitted.

"Sorry," Tyler apologized. "After we left the hospital, Eric and I went for a bite to eat."

"Oh, yeah, I guess you missed dinner. Is everything okay with your sister in law and the baby?"

"Yes!" Kyle could hear the pride in Tyler's voice. "Olivia's fine. Abby's good. Tiny, since she's almost a month early, but breathing on her own, which is a good thing."

"Glad to hear it. Did you get to see her?"

"Only through the nursery window. I'm going back tomorrow and hopefully we'll all get to hold her."

"See? You are a proud uncle already. I remember when Karen and Katie were born. Babies are amazing."

"Yeah," Tyler agreed. "Almost makes me want one of my own. Then I think, naaahhh."

Kyle laughed. "Yeah, I know what you mean."

"Anyway, when can we get together this week? I still want to make it up to you for bailing today."

The fact that Tyler was so sincere wasn't missed by Kyle. "Libby told me tonight she'll be working late on Wednesday and Thursday doing inventory. Which night is good for you?"

"Let's make it Wednesday. Break up the middle of the week."

"Sounds good to me," Kyle agreed.

"So how was the other movie?" Tyler asked. "Did you run into Tom again?"

"It was okay. Murder mystery. Pretty easy to figure out, though. And, no, we didn't see Tom again. Maybe he just left. I don't even care."

"Then I don't either. Let's put him in the past where he belongs and look to the future."

Kyle grinned. "Oh I like that idea."

After chatting for a few more minutes about what time on Wednesday and other mundane things, they rang off, each already counting down to when they'd see each other again.

Wednesday finally arrived and Kyle was stuck at the office. He kept checking his watch and each minute seemed to take forever to tick away. At 4:00, he finally handed the approved artwork for a new client's media campaign. He had to organize it all and turn it into the senior partner before he could leave for the day. He had originally planned on preparing something himself for Tyler, but it looked like that wasn't going to happen now. Not how he was hoping the evening would go, he really wanted to impress Tyler with his budding domestic skills.

After completing a few more things for the client, he finally left work at 6:00. Tyler was due to arrive in an hour. Just enough time to pick up the Chinese he'd ordered before he left the office and change out of his work clothes. And he could at least set the table with plates and not eat out of containers using plastic utensils.

When the doorbell rang, a pang of nervousness swept through Kyle. He had promised Tyler a home cooked meal and he didn't have one for him. He'd have to make it up to him somehow. He thought of the other stop he'd made on the way home and smiled.

Tyler looked like he'd come straight from work himself, dressed in sweats and a Greenwood's Gym t shirt. "Hi," Tyler greeted him as Kyle let him inside. "I got stuck at work. It's been a hectic day – one of the members slipped and fell at the pool."

"Shit," Kyle said. "Are they okay?"

"Yeah, nothing serious. Just a lot of paperwork to fill out." Tyler tugged Kyle's arm and pulled him into an embrace. "I still feel bad about leaving early the other day."

Kyle easily fell into Tyler's arms and eagerly returned the hug. "Don't. I got stuck at work today, too. So my plans for a home cooked meal got tossed out. Hope you like Chinese."

Tyler laughed and let go of Kyle. "I do. I'm so hungry I could eat just about anything right about now."

"Good," Kyle said. He gave Tyler a quick kiss. "Did you find the place okay? I know it's a little bit out of the way."

"I know how to use Google maps," Tyler joked, which caused Kyle to give him one of his smiles that he knew Tyler loved.

Kyle led Tyler to the dining table where he'd set up their meal. "Let's eat while the food is still hot. Then I was thinking we could watch the game?"

"Sounds good."

After they finished eating and put the dishes in the kitchen (Kyle said he'd clean up later), they got comfortable on the sofa and turned the ball game on. Kyle had grabbed two beers out of the refrigerator and for the next three hours they simply enjoyed each other's company while cheering their team on to what was obviously going to be a victory.

Over the course of the evening, they had migrated closer to each other and sat shoulder to shoulder, the occasional hand on a leg, and several high fives during exciting parts of the game. As the game neared its end, Kyle was losing the battle of paying attention to the television and was paying more attention to the man next to him. Finally he decided he'd waited long enough and pounced on Tyler, practically crushing him into the back of the sofa and kissed him. Tyler wrapped his arms around the younger man and pulled them both so they were lying down. When they broke apart, Kyle said, "I wanted to do that all night."

"I was thinking the same thing," Tyler said. "I wasn't going to wait much longer before making my move."

Kyle laughed and kissed him again, prying Tyler's mouth open with his tongue. Tyler put his hands on Kyle's ass and thrust his hips up. Kyle returned with a thrust of his own. "I think maybe we should take this into the bedroom," Kyle said, then got up and pulled Tyler off the sofa and headed towards his room. He pushed Tyler onto his bed and intended to shut the door, but in his haste, the door remained half open.

Tyler lay on his back, sprawled out on the bed, and propped himself on his elbows. "God, you're beautiful," he said, his eyes dark with lust.

"You're crazy, but gorgeous," Kyle said. He took off his shirt, and then removed his shoes and socks. He leaned over and took off Tyler's shoes and socks, then crawled up on the bed and planted kisses on Tyler's forehead, nose, lips, then neck. Tyler groaned and ran hands through Kyle's hair.

"I made another stop on the way home," Kyle whispered in Tyler's ear in between kisses.

"Oh yeah?" Tyler asked, before he leveraged his way so that he was now on top of Kyle. "I stopped at the store on the way over here."

"Oh, I love how we think alike."

Tyler took off his shirt and carelessly tossed it away. He kissed and licked his way around Kyle's neck, and shoulders, then moved his way down and laved Kyle's nipple into a hardened peak and then repeated the same on the other.

"Yessss," Kyle hissed, as he grabbed what he could of the spread. Tyler continued moving south and just as he was beginning to unbutton Kyle's pants, they heard a loud noise.

"Kyle?" a female voice called. "OHMYGOD! I am so sorry!"

Tyler practically fell off the bed, but regained his composure and looked for his shirt. Libby ran back out into the other room. Kyle just laughed.

Kyle and Tyler put themselves together as best they could before going out to greet Libby. "I didn't think you'd be back until at least midnight," Kyle told her.

We finished early. Saved the rest for tomorrow night," she said. "Look, I'm really sorry, but you did leave your door open. And the TV was on; I thought you just stepped away for a second."

"It was mostly shut. You still should have knocked first."

"I guess I figured Tyler had already left."

"Obviously he hasn't."

"Again...I'm sorry." Libby turned to Tyler. "Hi, didn't think I'd be meeting you this way!" She offered her hand.

Tyler shook his head, and gripped her hand. "Yeah, I didn't either. Nice to meet you."

"Um.....," Libby stammered. "If you guys want to go....ah...finish what you started, I'll go shut myself in my room and listen to my iPod real loud."

Kyle snorted, and Tyler simply looked away. "Thanks, Lib, but I think you've spoiled the moment....."

"Sorry."

Kyle took her into his arms. "Stop saying sorry. We're good."

Libby looked up at him. "Yeah?"

"Yeah." He kissed her forehead.

"I'll just turn in then." She looked at Tyler. "We're going to remember this forever, aren't we?"

"I think so." He smiled. "Don't worry about it, though. We can laugh about it later."

Libby turned to her roommate. She pointed her thumb at Tyler. "Don't let this one get away," she told Kyle. "I'll see you at the party on Saturday, right Tyler?" He nodded. "Great," she said, then went into her room and shut the door.

"I like her," Tyler said.

Kyle took Tyler's hand and led him back into his bedroom. "You want to pick up where we left off?" He suggested.

Tyler took a breath. He pulled Kyle so they were both sitting on the bed, then entwined their hands. "I'd love to, but I don't think I can with Libby in the next room."

"Yeah, I guess the timing pretty much sucks."

Tyler kissed Kyle, then got up and found his shoes and socks. "I'm gonna head out. I need to put together a staff meeting tomorrow morning after what happened today."

Kyle was disappointed. "I was really hoping tonight would be the night for us," he admitted.

Tyler pulled him into his arms. "Yeah, me, too."

"We're still good, right?" Kyle asked nervously.

"More than," Tyler assured him. He finished tying his shoes, and stood up. "I better get going. I did have a great time tonight."

"Me, too," Kyle agreed. They stood by the front door. "Call me tomorrow?" he asked.

"You got it," Tyler said. He gave Kyle a long, leisurely kiss. "G'night."

"'night," Kyle replied.

Chapter 9

It's Raining Beer

Rain. And lots of it. For once, the weatherman was right in his forecast. Tyler woke up in a good mood, despite the dreary outlook for the day. He was already looking forward to the party tonight and the fact that even if Kyle didn't know it yet, Tyler was planning on spending the night in his bed, and not a whole lot of sleeping was to be had. He didn't even care anymore that Libby would be in the next room. Tyler was determined that tonight would finally be the night he and Kyle would make love for the first time. He knew they'd be great together, based on what they'd shared so far. He wanted Kyle like he'd never wanted anyone before. He couldn't and wouldn't wait much longer before he would have him. _God, just thinking about it, he thought. Time to hop in the shower._

As the water cascaded down his back, he thought about how that even after only knowing Kyle for just over a month he could see a future with him. This relationship was different than his previous ones. With Tom, it was mostly just about sex. They were young and stupid, away from home for the first time. He wondered how they managed to stay together for almost a year. Then with Stewart, in the beginning they wanted to be the gay version of Ozzie and Harriet (but with dogs instead of kids). But in the end, Stewart wanted more than the white picket fence life.

Yeah, he could see being with Kyle for a very long time. His similar devotion to his family was very appealing. On the surface, they were perfect for each other. He wasn't going to push things, however. Tyler jumped in fast with Stewart and in the end had pushed him away. He didn't want to go through another breakup like that ever again.

Tyler finished in the shower so he could get the Saturday morning chores done. He was going to Eric and Olivia's house for lunch to see Abby, who had been allowed to leave the hospital the day before. Olivia wouldn't be up and about much, and her mother was there helping out, so he wouldn't stay too long. Kyle had asked him to come over mid afternoon to help set up and assist with preparation of the food for the party. Libby had been called in to work at the last minute to set up some new displays at the store but was assured it wouldn't take the entire day. The promise of being paid time and a half was something she couldn't turn down.

When Tyler got to Eric and Olivia's, her mother greeted him when he entered the house. "Tyler," she practically sang. "I haven't seen you in ages! How are you? Eric tells me you have someone new in your life." Tyler always thought of Mrs. Morrison as bouncy. Olivia obviously got her vibrant personality from her mother.

Tyler stifled a laugh and shook his head. "That brother of mine tells everybody everything."

"Oh come on," Mrs. Morrison said. "I remember how somber you were at the New Years Eve party. I'm happy to see you smiling again."

They heard Eric barreling down the stairs before seeing him. He had an empty bottle in his hand and a very tired look on his face. "Hey there bro," he said to Tyler.

"Hi, Dad," Tyler replied.

Eric paused in mid step. "Kinda liking the sound of that."

"I'll let you two eat," Mrs. Morrison said. "There's plenty left. I'll go up and see what my granddaughter is up to." She left to go upstairs.

"So.....," Eric drawled, as he opened the refrigerator and took out two sandwiches wrapped up in plastic wrap. "Big party tonight, huh?"

"There's only going to be about 10 people there," Tyler explained.

"Still. No more wild and crazy nights for me. I will have to live vicariously through you." He handed one of the sandwiches to his brother.

Tyler rolled his eyes as he unwrapped the sandwich and took a bite. "Yeah, I'm a real party animal."

"Doesn't matter...you'll probably get some tonight."

Tyler choked on his sandwich. Eric slapped him on the back. "What's this acting all weird all of a sudden?" Eric thought for a second. "Wait. Don't tell me you and he haven't.....it's been more than a month already and you haven't....."

"Shut up, Eric. Just shut up. We have..just not..."

Eric put his hands up. "I don't want to know the sordid details."

Tyler grew serious. "I like this guy. A lot. I don't want to rush into anything like I have in the past. I don't want to screw things up."

Eric wiped his mouth with a napkin. "Wow," he said. "But don't go so slow that you miss out on the chance for something special."

"I know."

"Do you? Don't lose focus, then. I know how you can get when you are stressed over things. You block people out. Don't let it happen with this guy."

"I really want it to work out."

Eric leaned back against the counter. "Jesus, I've never seen you like this before. I've got to meet the guy who has turned my brother into such a wuss."

"Hey," Tyler said, half serious, half jokingly. "I am not a wuss. I've beat the crap out of you before, and I can do it again."

"Not in the mood today, little bro. Got a kid now. Besides, Liv would beat me even worse."

Tyler laughed. "Now who's the wuss?"

"So...," Eric began, "why haven't you brought 'Mr. Perfect' around yet?"

"Um...."

"Don't give me that. Liv and I were just talking about getting everyone together maybe next weekend, bring him over then."

"Is she going to be up to it? Your wife just had major surgery giving birth to your child..."

"She goes to the doctor next week. We'll see what he says. But plan on next Sunday to introduce us to the Boy Wonder."

"I guess it is about time you all met Kyle," Tyler said. "I'm meeting his family tomorrow. Actually, one of his sisters will be at the party tonight."

"Probably wants to scope you out. Make sure you're good enough for her baby brother. You did tell me he was the youngest of three, right?"

"Yeah, he is. And fuck you by the way. I am good enough!"

"Hey, language." Eric pointed a finger at Tyler. "There's a child in the house now."

Tyler laughed. "You better take your own advice. You're worse than I am most of the time. Now, I want to go see my niece and get to know her better."

"She eats, sleeps, cries and shits. What else is there to know?"

Tyler just rolled his eyes and left his brother alone in the kitchen.

After visiting for almost an hour, Tyler was on his way to Kyle's. Olivia was tired herself and wanted to rest while Abby was napping. He left with his brother teasing him about 'sealing the deal.'

People drove like idiots in the rain. What should have been a thirty minute drive had turned into 45 minutes of misery. When Tyler finally got to the apartment building, all of a sudden the rain began pelting down harder. He got soaked just running the short distance from his car to the front door.

"Jesus Christ!" Kyle said as he opened the door. "Get in here." He pulled Tyler inside. "I didn't think it was raining that hard."

"It wasn't." Tyler replied, running a hand through his wet hair. "Until I got out of my car."

Kyle gave Tyler the once over. "Well hell, take those wet shoes off and I'll find you a dry shirt."

Tyler toed off his shoes and left them by the door. He followed Kyle to his bedroom. Clothes were strewn everywhere. "I'm sorta behind on doing laundry," Kyle said. He picked up a yellow t-shirt from the floor and smelled it. "Yeah. This one's clean." He tossed it to Tyler.

"Seriously?" Tyler questioned and scrunched his eyes. "Yellow?" Tyler thought it was strange that someone who wore suits to work was this unorganized at home. But he didn't want to insult Kyle, so he accepted this shirt.

"My flamboyant side," Kyle joked. "Paul tries to bring it out in me every now and then."

Tyler laughed. "I bet he can bring out the 'flamboyant side' in just about anyone."

"Yup, gotta love the guy for that."

Tyler took off his wet shirt and handed it to Kyle, who tossed it in a hamper. He put on the dry one as Kyle picked up the rest of the clothes on the floor and put them in the hamper as well.

"Paul certainly livens up a room," Tyler said. "I bet he'll be the life of the party tonight."

Kyle grinned. "Probably. Oh, I think there's a hair dryer in the bathroom if you want to use it."

"Thanks. Sometimes I hate my hair."

Kyle stopped what he was doing and tossed the jeans in his hand on the bed. He ran his hands through Tyler's thick hair. "I love it. Don't ever cut it short."

Tyler smiled. He leaned in and kissed Kyle. "Didn't get a chance to do that earlier." Kyle wrapped his arms around Tyler's neck and prolonged the kiss. His tongue begged entrance to Tyler's mouth but Tyler backed off.

Kyle was confused. "Something wrong?" he asked.

Tyler placed his hands on the younger man's forearms and pulled him close. "No. No," he said. "We're just not going to get anything done if we start something now." He gazed directly into Kyle's dark eyes. "But later after the party is over, I have plans for you."

Kyle put his forehead against Tyler's. "Oh really? What sort of 'plans'?"

"If I told you, it would spoil everything."

"Well, then I can't wait."

An hour later the kitchen was a mess with three different coating mixes for the chicken wings. Kyle and Tyler learned quickly that they worked well together and weren't really in the others way. Libby had called and said she was on her way home and would stop at the liquor store for the beer. "I could have picked that up on the way over," Tyler said. Kyle told him that that was the best way for Libby to contribute as she couldn't cook at all. It was best to give her an easy job regarding the menu when it came to hosting a party.

Not much later they heard the front door being unlocked and Libby calling out to them. "Are you two decent?"

"Get your mind out of the gutter," Kyle called back.

"I like living in the gutter," Libby retorted, as she entered the kitchen.

"You live there permanently," Kyle snarked back. "Where's the beer?"

"In my car," she answered, as she tossed her keys to him. "You didn't actually think I was going to bring two cases of beer up here by myself, did you?"

Kyle rolled his eyes.

"Hi, Tyler," Libby said, as she reached for a wing. Before she could, Kyle smacked her hand. Libby just laughed and took a step back. Then she noticed the t-shirt Tyler was wearing. "Excuse me, isn't that one of your t-shirts Tyler is filling out quite nicely?" She elbowed Kyle.

"Yes," Kyle answered. "But not for the reason you think." He took Tyler's hand. "Come on, let's go get the beer."

Libby was still laughing as the couple left the apartment. Impishly, she took a wing from the bowl when she heard the door shut.

Hours later the guests had arrived, including Paul and Charlie, Libby's best girlfriends Jodie and Kerry and a few mutual friends of Kyle and Libby's from high school they had kept in touch with. The ballgame was on the television, but the volume was low. Paul and Charlie put themselves in charge of the music. Jodie and Kerry kept the food flowing and some of the others were playing video games in Libby's bedroom.

Ramona stopped by saying she couldn't stay long. She had more packing to do and wanted to get back on her search for a new place to live. Kyle pulled his sister into his room and told her, "I know you're really here to grill Tyler then report to Mom and Dad."

She feigned innocence. "Who, me?" She joked.

"Please," Kyle begged. "Just be nice. He's different than the other guys I've gone out with. Don't scare him off."

Ramona was surprised. She'd never seen her brother like this. "Wow. You are serious about this one."

"Yeah, I am. Didn't you believe me the other week?"

"I guess not. Sorry. Does he know how you feel?"

"I think so," Kyle said nervously. He shifted from one foot to the other. Before he could speak again, Tyler appeared at the door.

Suddenly a high pitched scream came from the other room.

"Paul," all three of them said, followed by a long laugh.

"I'd better go see what happened," Kyle said. "You two get acquainted." He glanced at his sister and gently smiled at Tyler then squeezed his hand before exiting the room.

Tyler looked at Ramona and asked, "Time for the Spanish Inquisition now?"

Ramona grinned. "Is that why Kyle told you I was here?"

Tyler was amused at Ramona's perceptiveness. "He just said you've always been a little protective." Ramona opened her mouth to say something but Tyler held up his hand. "Don't worry about it. I'm the younger sibling, too." He indicated for Ramona to sit on the bed. He sat next to her and nodded his head. "I know what it's like. My brother is the same way."

This broke the ice and they eased into a friendly conversation, getting to know each other. Ramona was surprised at how well Tyler seemed to know Kyle already. She told a couple embarrassing stories about Kyle when he was younger that Tyler filed away for future reference. Tyler asked about Ramona and learned about her job, and her living situation. She had six weeks to find a new place to live. He told her he knew there were several units on the other side of his development he knew were on the market and she should look into that.

After chatting for almost half an hour, Tyler and Ramona decided they should rejoin the party. They ran into Paul who declared he was appalled at Libby's CD collection (hence the girly scream) and had gone out to his car and brought in something better to listen to. Tyler noticed Kyle was nowhere to be found.

"Did you see where Kyle went?" he asked Paul.

"Last I saw he went out the front door. He was on the phone. Guess it was quieter outside."

"Thanks," Tyler said. When he opened the entry door, Kyle was finishing with the call and shutting off his phone. "Who was that?" He asked.

"No one. Don't worry about it," was the answer he received. Kyle went back inside. "I need a beer," he announced loudly and got a few cheers.

Tyler wanted to know who Kyle was on the phone with but he also knew now was not the time to start what he thought could possibly turn into a fight since it was obvious Kyle wasn't happy about something concerning that phone conversation.

Ramona and Libby sought out Tyler when he re-entered the party and looked at him questioningly. "What's going on?" Ramona asked.

"Kyle was on the phone with someone. And now he seems really pissed off."

"Who was he talking to?"

"I don't know. He wouldn't tell me."

Libby shrugged off and went back to her hostess duties. Ramona told Tyler she was going to head home. She hugged goodbyes to Kyle and Libby and told Tyler she'd see him the next day at the family cookout. "Don't worry, I'll give you a glowing report to the family," she said and Tyler laughed. "Keep your eye on that brother of mine tonight."

"Sure thing," Tyler said and hugged Ramona before she left. He wondered if Ramona simply didn't want to accept that her brother was an adult now and could make his own choices.

Tyler probably should have paid closer attention to Kyle's alcohol consumption but he decided it was a party after all, everyone was having a good time, there was much laughter, bad singing, even worse dancing and nothing had been broken. He didn't want to confront Kyle in front of all his friends. When Kyle staggered into his room and passed out on his bed, Paul and Charlie declared it was time to call it a night. The other guests had sporadically left over the course of the evening; some were heading to another party.

Libby and Tyler were left to clean up the mess. Amazingly, it didn't take very long. When they were finished, Libby told Tyler that she hadn't seen Kyle drink that much in a long time. "Something must be bothering him," she said. "Maybe you can find out."

"I'll do my best," Tyler said. "That phone call seemed to trigger it."

"Yeah, that's right," Libby reflected, as she put the last bowl in the cabinet, and folded up the towel she was using to dry the dishes. She turned the light out in the kitchen and they headed towards the bedrooms. "Kyle really likes you," she stated plainly. "He talks about you all the time."

"Really?" A soft smile spread across Tyler's face.

"Yeah. So don't screw him over or you'll have to answer to me!"

Tyler laughed. "Don't worry. The last thing I want to do is hurt him."

"Good." Libby gave Tyler a peck on the cheek, then went in her bedroom. "You can have bucket duty with him tonight. I've been there, done that, and don't want to again." As she shut the door, she turned and said, "Good Luck!"

Tyler went into the bathroom to get a glass of water and two aspirin. Then he went to Kyle's room and this time he made sure the door was shut. He put the glass and pills on the nightstand next to the bed where Kyle was sprawled across diagonally. Tyler took Kyle's shoes off and then toed his own. Even drunk, Kyle was absolutely adorable with his arms around the pillows and hair stuck in several directions. Tyler sat on the edge of the bed and tried to maneuver Kyle to a lengthwise position. His efforts proved fruitless for about a minute until Kyle stirred with a groan. Kyle slowly lifted his head off the pillow and blinked his eyes slowly.

"Hi," he managed as he shifted to give Tyler more space.

"Hi yourself," Tyler said. Then he grabbed the water glass and pills. "Here, take these."

"Why?"

"To avoid feeling like shit in the morning." He handed the aspirin to Kyle, who tossed them in his mouth then took the glass to wash them down.

Kyle scrunched his eyes and then mumbled "Thanks." He tried to sit up but simply fell back onto the bed. "Sorry," he said. Then he managed to move enough so he was now lying on one side of the bed on his back.

Tyler stretched on the other side of the bed, lying on his side. He propped up on his left elbow and looked at Kyle. "Care to tell me why you drank so much tonight?"

Kyle then turned onto his side, perhaps a bit too fast. "Shit," he said, then belched loudly. Tyler was up off the bed instantly. "Are you going to puke?" he almost shouted.

"No, no..." Kyle answered. "I didn't drink that much." He lifted his arm towards Tyler. "Come on. Lay back down with me."

Tyler couldn't refuse that invitation. He took Kyle's hand and got back onto the bed. Kyle immediately moved closer and Tyler pulled him into his arms. Despite the overwhelming smell of alcohol permeating from his body, Tyler cold still smell the scent that was uniquely Kyle, which he was becoming increasingly addicted to. Even through layers of clothing between both of them, Tyler was starting to feel a tightening in his jeans. _Oh god, he thought, not like this. I want us both coherent our first time._

As if responding to his thoughts, Kyle began kissing Tyler's shoulder through the cotton t- shirt. Tyler moved without thinking and in the next second Kyle had latched his mouth onto Tyler's neck. Tyler moved his head again, and ferociously kissed Kyle, tongues and teeth clashing. Tyler could taste the bitterness of the beer Kyle had consumed over the course of the night and for a brief moment he didn't want to wait to have this man.

Tyler broke the kiss but Kyle was relentless and climbed on top of the other man. Kyle cradled Tyler's face and kissed him senseless. Tyler almost caved but finally recovered enough of his senses and pushed Kyle off of him.

"Kyle, stop," Tyler said.

"No," Kyle spit out. "I want you to fuck me." Kyle attempted to kiss Tyler again, but got pushed away a second time.

"I do want to make love to you," Tyler began, and he could tell by the look on Kyle's face he had caught the change in terminology. "You know I do." Tyler shifted his body so that Kyle could feel how bad he wanted the younger man. "But not when you're drunk. I want us both fully alert the first time I make love to you. And then, when we recover, I want you to make love to me."

Kyle looked at Tyler, almost desperately. He looked as if he were going to say something, but took a breath instead. "Arrrgghhh," he moaned. Then sat up. "Give me another drink of that water," he said. "I'm starting to get a headache."

Tyler obliged and then put the glass back on the table. "You know I'm right. You want to be right there with me, and you want to remember it."

"Yeah...I do...sorry for being such an idiot tonight."

"It's okay. Tomorrow morning I want you to tell me why you chose to consume mass quantities of beer to drown your sorrows instead of just talking to me. I know this thing with us is still in the early stages, but I do want to be there for you."

"I don't know what I was thinking," Kyle answered, almost shyly. "So, you plan on being here in the morning?" he asked, raising his eyebrows.

"Yeah, I'm not going to leave just because you were stupid tonight."

"Thanks. Um...so you are still going to stay the night? In my bed?"

Tyler laughed. "Yes. Sometimes two people actually just sleep together in a bed."

"Really? What a concept."

This time they both laughed. They stripped to their boxers and climbed back into the bed, Kyle once more curling around Tyler and both holding onto each other as tightly as they could.

Chapter 10

I think, no I KNOW I'm falling in love with him

The sunlight pouring through the window indicated it was nearly noon but the couple on the bed was still asleep. Kyle finally stirred and the first thing he realized was that he didn't feel the least bit hungover, which he was happy about given the amount of alcohol he had consumed the night before. The second thing he noticed was the very warm body leaning back into his _. I could get used to this, he thought_ , as he wrapped his arms even tighter around Tyler.

None of Kyle's previous relationships had reached the comfort level he felt with Tyler. The fact that he felt this way so quickly both thrilled and scared him at the same time. In his previous relationships, he rarely spent an entire night in bed with the other person. He and Ben never spent the night, they learned the hard way when they'd lived in the dorms and had gotten reamed out by the resident advisor the first time. Tom had his own apartment off campus, but when he'd began to get too clingy, Kyle started making excuses not to stay over. With Tyler, Kyle never wanted to leave.

Kyle knew he had to tell Tyler about the phone call he received from Tom during the party and the outrageous offer Tom had made. He didn't want to keep secrets from Tyler.

Right now, however, Kyle had other thoughts on his mind. He ran a hand up, then down Tyler smooth, muscular chest. Tyler was in great shape; Kyle figured he had to be given his job. And Kyle was attracted to the entire package, the floppy blond hair, the sparkling blue eyes, broad chest muscles, the six pack, and the defined legs. Kyle took a breath, and then began placing light kisses on the back of Tyler's neck and shoulders. Tyler stirred slightly and leaned back into Kyle but continued to sleep. Or so Kyle thought. Tyler let out a groan when Kyle shifted and shoved his hand into Tyler's boxers. Then Kyle felt a hand on his and heard laughter.

"Good morning?" Kyle offered.

Tyler turned around to face Kyle. He was wearing a huge grin. "Hi," he said. "I take it you are okay this morning?"

"Never better," Kyle replied with a grin of his own. He leaned in for a kiss but before he could, Tyler almost mumbled, "God, he has perfect teeth."

"What?" Kyle asked, a confused look on his face.

"Shit," Tyler said, as he covered his face with the palm of his hand. "Did I say that out loud?"

"Um..yeah, you did."

"Sorry," Tyler said in a soft voice.

"Don't be. These teeth cost my parents a fortune. In fact, my mom and I spent so much time in Dr. Fanning's office that she and her husband are two of my parent's best friends now."

Tyler leaned up on his elbow. "Seriously?"

"Yeah. The four of them go out all the time. In fact, they're going on a cruise together in the fall." Kyle pulled Tyler close and met his eyes with lustful glare. "But forget about that. I believe we were right about here..." he said as he poured everything he had into kissing Tyler senseless. Tyler returned the kiss with equal fervor and when Kyle rolled on top of him and started grinding against him.

Kyle planted his elbows on each side of Tyler and cupped his face. They continued kissing for several long minutes and when they needed to break for air, Kyle looked deeply at Tyler, licked his bottom lip, and said, "I want you so fucking bad. But I'm not going to last long."

Tyler groaned after a particularly heavy thrust. "Neither am I," he said as he grabbed Kyle's boxers and pushed them off his hips. Kyle took them off the rest of the way and tossed them across the room. Then he removed Tyler's and carelessly threw them in the same direction. Kyle leaned in for another heated kiss and moaned when Tyler wedged his hand in between them and grabbed his cock. It only took a few strokes before Kyle was coming hard in Tyler's hand and over their stomachs. Tyler continued to stroke as Kyle rode out his orgasm with closed eyes and one loud exhale. Kyle moved off Tyler and lay still for a moment.

"Um..care to help a guy out?" he heard Tyler practically beg. Kyle opened his eyes and smiled at the sight of Tyler spread out, legs slightly spread, rubbing his own cock. "Anytime," Kyle answered and moved slightly to latch his mouth onto Tyler's left nipple.

"Fuck," Tyler groaned, as Kyle batted Tyler's hand away and began stroking Tyler's cock. "So close," Tyler managed to say as Kyle increased his efforts. Several more strokes and Tyler came on his stomach. Kyle pumped him until Tyler stopped moaning and thrusting into Kyle's hand. "That was great....just...great," Tyler said as he sunk his head into the pillow and closed his eyes.

"Hey," Kyle said, "you may want to watch this." As Tyler lifted his head up and leaned on his elbows, Kyle began to lick the come off Tyler's stomach. Tyler ran a hand through Kyle's short hair. "God you're sexy," he said, as Kyle lapped up the last bit. Kyle looked up at Tyler and gave him another one of those perfect smiles. He gave Tyler a quick kiss then jumped off the bed and turned towards the bedroom door.

"Where are you going?" Tyler asked.

"Gotta take a piss. Be right back." Kyle opened the door, still naked.

"Kyle," Tyler called. "What about Libby?"

"Oh, she had to work today. She's probably gone already. Besides, nothing she hasn't seen already." He was out the door before Tyler could respond.

When Kyle got back to the bedroom Tyler stepped out of the room with his shorts back on. "My turn, okay?"

"Sure," Kyle said and let Tyler go by him, but not before he stole another quick kiss.

Kyle was changing the sheets on the bed when Tyler returned. He still didn't have any clothes on. Tyler leaned against the door frame and admired the view. "Are you some kind of hedonist and just haven't told me yet?" he asked.

Kyle laughed as he shimmied a fresh pillowcase on one of the pillows. "Would it be a problem if I were?"

"Hell no," Tyler replied as he crossed his arms. "You have a great body. I could get used to this easily."

"Hmmm," Kyle pondered as he bent over to pick up the comforter on the floor, giving Tyler a bird's eye view of his ass. "What if I did this?" Kyle heard Tyler take a deep breath then exhale.

"Fuck," Tyler said.

Kyle straightened up and tossed the comforter haphazardly on the bed. He sauntered over to where Tyler was standing. He put his hands on Tyler's shoulders then ran them down his arms. "One of these times we gotta make it last longer than ten minutes."

"Yeah," Tyler agreed. "Sometimes foreplay can be a good thing."

Kyle put a finger to his bottom lip. "Really? That's not just a myth?"

Tyler gave Kyle a playful shove with his shoulder. "Just wait. I'll show you."

"How about right now?" Kyle asked anxiously.

Tyler smiled. "And ruin the clean sheets you just put on the bed?"

Kyle put on a pouty face but pulled Tyler towards the bed.

"Next time," Tyler said, "I'll more than make it up to you."

"Promise?" Kyle asked with a leer.

"Guaranteed," Tyler answered. He pulled Kyle with him and sat on the foot of the bed. "Right now I want you to tell me why you drank so much last night. I didn't think you were that much of a drinker."

"I'm not," Kyle admitted. He stood back up, opened a dresser drawer and put on a pair of shorts. He didn't want to have this conversation naked, literally and figuratively. He sat back down next to Tyler and entwined their hands _. Our hands fit together perfectly_ , he thought as he gave Tyler an apologetic look. "I'm really sorry," he said. Then he looked at Tyler quizzically. "Why aren't you pissed off?"

"I didn't want to have a confrontation in front of everyone. And later on you were too out of it to be reasonable," Tyler said, while rubbing his thumb on the back of Kyle's hand. "I just want to know what you were thinking. Was it something I did?"

Kyle shook his head. "No, no, don't think that. Whatever this is that's happening between us," he began as he motioned between the two of them, "is great. I don't want anything to mess that up. And I can't believe how cool you're being about this."

Tyler caressed the side of Kyle's face. "Oh, I'll probably get mad at you over something sometime." He smiled. "And I don't want to mess up what we have either." He gave Kyle a loose hug and they fell back on the bed. Tyler pushed the comforter aside and they moved up so they could lie fully on the bed. Tyler wrapped his arms around Kyle and Kyle placed his head on Tyler's shoulder. He put his free arm across Tyler's chest.

"So, what happened?" Tyler asked. "Who were you talking to on the phone?"

Kyle took a breath. He closed his eyes tightly and said, "It was Tom...fucking Tom called me."

Tyler was shocked. "Seriously?" He looked at Kyle. "Open your eyes." When he did, Tyler could see the raw emotion in them. "I thought we made it perfectly clear neither of us wanted him in our lives anymore."

"You know how hard it is for him to take no for an answer."

"True." Tyler sighed. "Just ignore his calls if he tries again." He paused. "Wait. Why did you answer his call in the first place?"

"I didn't look at the number first, just answered the call. There was so much going on, I wasn't paying attention."

Tyler squeezed Kyle's hand. "Makes sense. Things were kind of hectic for awhile there last night."

Kyle took a breath. "I don't think he'll go away so easily by just ignoring his calls."

"We'll just have to wait and see. What was he going on about? You were talking to him for some time."

Kyle turned toward Tyler. "Oh, you aren't going to believe this. He wanted to know if we'd be interested in a three way relationship with him."

Tyler's jaw dropped. "Seriously? I can't believe he even had the balls to suggest that. I hope you told him there's no way that would ever happen."

"Don't worry. I know I convinced him that that was completely out of the question."

"Good." Tyler said. He gave Kyle a loose hug. "Because I want you all to myself."

"I don't want to share you either," Kyle whispered into Tyler's ear.

They held onto the embrace for a few minutes then Tyler stood up. "Look," he said. "I want to go home, shower and change before we need to be at your parent's house. So I better get going." He found his clothes and quickly dressed quickly. Kyle followed him to the front door.

"I'll come pick you up around 3:00, okay? Mom and Dad's is closer to your place than it is from here."

"Okay, I'll see you then," Tyler said. He kissed Kyle and was on his way.

After some gentle ribbing from Kyle's parents about finally getting to meet him, Tyler was put to work like any other member of the family. Dinner was a casual affair, enjoyed out on the back deck as the previous days storm had blown over. It was a perfect early summer afternoon. Tyler made a point to individually chat with each of Kyle's family members, charming them all, especially the 2 1/2 year old twins, Karen and Katie.

Kyle was watching Tyler play with the girls when Maggie snuck up behind him and playfully punched him on the shoulder. "You've got a keeper there, little brother," Maggie said as she also took in Tyler bonding with her children.

"So I've been told...by everyone," Kyle replied. "His brother and sister-in-law just had a baby girl. He's practicing the whole uncle thing."

Maggie laughed. "That's nice. He's a natural with them."

"Tyler is really close with his family, too. I'm meeting them next Saturday."

"My, my," Maggie said in a high pitched voice. "College grad, working stiff, meeting Mr. Right. Never thought I'd see you like this at such a young age."

Kyle glared at his sister. "Shut up, Maggie," he said with a laugh.

"Girls!" Maggie called, as she headed towards the steps. "Time to go home." She turned again toward her brother, who had followed her. "I'm really happy for you."

Kyle just grinned.

It took almost an hour for Maggie and Peter to get the girls calmed down and out the door. Ramona said her goodbyes as well, and thanked Tyler for recommending she look into units on the market in his development. She had an appointment the following evening with a Realtor to look at one at the opposite end of the neighborhood from where Tyler lived.

Kyle's parents told Tyler he was welcome back anytime and gave Kyle some leftover food to take home with him.

When they arrived back at Tyler's place, Tyler turned in his seat and said, "Your family is great. I really like them."

"They like you, too," Kyle said with a smile.

"I had a nice time. Your mother really is a good cook."

Kyle laughed, and then got serious. "Can we get together sometime this week? I don't want to wait until next weekend to see you again."

Tyler unlocked the seat belt, leaned over and whispered "What about right now?"

Kyle turned off the car and was out the door in two seconds. When Tyler stepped out of the car he called, "What about the food? It'll go bad sitting in your car."

"Shit," Kyle said, pushed Tyler out of the way and grabbed the bag from the back seat. "I can stick this in your fridge, right?"

"Sure."

As soon as they got inside, Kyle hurried into the kitchen, placed the bag of leftovers in the refrigerator and tossed his keys on the counter top. Tyler had barely made it around the corner before Kyle grabbed him by the shirt, pushed him against the wall and kissed him. Kyle grabbed Tyler's hands and pressed them above his head against the wall as he ravished Tyler's mouth, his tongue easily gaining access. He rubbed his rapidly hardening cock against Tyler's and could feel his responding as well. For a brief second, Tyler considered simply letting Kyle take him right then and there, but he didn't want their first time to be quick and dirty.

Tyler slowly pushed Kyle away and looked into his lust filled eyes. "Let's take this into the bedroom. I think that would be much more comfortable." Hand in hand they made their way down the hall to the bedroom. Tyler turned to Kyle and caressed the side of his face. "Let's take it slow this time. I want to take you to the edge and back....several times."

Kyle almost shivered. Tyler took him into his arms and kissed his forehead, nose, and then lips. He slowly turned and pushed Kyle gently onto the bed. He knelt and took off Kyle's sneakers and socks. He kissed his calf muscles while he was there, then ran his hands over the short denim pants Kyle had on. He popped open the button, unzipped, then slowly removed the garment, one leg at a time. Tyler tossed them haphazardly onto the floor and slowly kissed and nipped his way up Kyle's left leg, then down the right.

Kyle lay boneless on the bed, emitting soft moans and deep breaths all the while. When Tyler stopped, Kyle propped himself on his elbows. He caught Tyler's eyes with his own. "You're killing me; you know that, don't you?"

Tyler merely grinned. "Don't die on me yet. I have much more planned." He palmed Kyle's cloth covered cock, which caused Kyle to fall back on the bed.

"Please," Kyle begged.

Tyler chuckled. "Already with the begging? We've only just begun." Tyler crawled onto the bed and covered his naked love with his completely clothed body. He peered into those dark eyes and said, "You're so beautiful."

"Shut up and kiss me," was all Kyle said in return. Tyler complied.

The next few minutes passed by with both frantic and leisurely kisses, arms wrapped around the other exploring their new lover's body. At one point they stopped long enough to remove Tyler's clothing. Once they were both completely naked, they reveled in the skin on skin contact. For a brief time, they each battled for dominance, using arms and legs to leverage the other underneath himself.

When they finally stopped to catch a breath, Tyler asked Kyle to move so he could sling back the bedspread. "Lie back," Tyler instructed Kyle. "Just enjoy."

Tyler started at Kyle's neck kissing and licking his way down his torso. He stopped to suck each of Kyle's nipples into hardened peaks before resuming his way south. Kyle pushed Tyler's head lower, but Tyler wouldn't have any of it. Tyler stopped and lifted his head.

"Please," Kyle begged again. "Suck my cock."

Tyler smiled. "All in good time."

Kyle just groaned. Tyler resumed his ministrations and left several love bites on each of Kyle's hips before settling in between his legs. Spreading Kyle's thighs, Tyler kissed the inside of each one as Kyle moaned loudly.

Kyle was quickly losing all coherent thought. No one had ever taken their time like Tyler was. When Tyler licked and then sucked his balls into his mouth, Kyle uttered, "Oh, fuck" and grabbed as much of the sheet as he could. He could almost feel the grin Tyler was sporting. Then, finally, finally, Tyler engulfed his entire length at once, swallowing the pre-come that dribbled out.

"Oh god," Kyle cried. "I'm so close." How he was still forming complete sentences, he had no idea.

Tyler let go of Kyle's cock with a pop and grinned. "We can't have that," he said and grabbed the base of Kyle's cock to prevent him from coming. "I don't want you to come until I'm inside you."

Kyle groaned again. "Well, then get on with it!" He ordered.

Tyler laughed. It had been a long time since he'd had this much fun when having sex. _Would it be like this every time with Kyle?_ He leaned over and grabbed a tube of lube and a condom from the night table drawer. He gave Kyle a quick kiss on the lips then resumed his position between Kyle's legs. He placed the foil wrapper next to Kyle, opened the tube and squeezed a generous amount on his fingers. Tyler gently probed around Kyle' entrance before slowly inserting a finger.

"Yes....." Kyle muttered. "More."

Tyler obliged and put a second finger in while giving Kyle's cockhead a quick suck. He then managed to squeeze in a third finger, and when he brushed Kyle's prostate, Kyle responded by thrusting and bucking his hips.

"I'm ready," he said. "Hurry. I can't last much longer."

Tyler removed his fingers and Kyle sighed at the loss. He picked up the condom, and Kyle managed to sit up and take it from him. "Let me," he said, and took the condom out of the package.

Tyler knelt on the bed and Kyle slowly and deliberately rolled the condom on Tyler's cock. When he was done, Tyler let go of a breath he didn't know he was holding. Kyle found the lube and generously prepared Tyler, stroking his cock several times.

Tyler hissed. "I'm close, too." He looked at Kyle. "How do you want to do this?"

"I want to see you when you come," Kyle said, as he lay back down on his back. He bent and grabbed his knees, presenting himself to Tyler.

"You're beautiful," Tyler said again.

"Shut up and fuck me," was the response Tyler received.

Tyler positioned himself and slowly pushed his cock into Kyle's open and willing body. "Oh god," he said, as each adjusted to the intrusion. "You're so tight and feel so good." Tyler leaned in for a kiss, then smiled and said, "Hi."

"Move, dammit," Kyle said, as he wrapped his legs around Tylers hips.

Each of them knew they wouldn't last long. Both moaned as the intense feeling increased. Sweat was dripping off both of them. Kyle squeezed his hand in between them and pumped his cock. It only took several strokes before he came, covering both their stomachs while shouting Tyler's name.

Tyler continued to pump in and out hitting Kyle's prostrate on each thrust. After several more thrusts he fell over the edge, coming deep within his new lover. Tyler collapsed on top of Kyle and lightly kissed him while their breathing returned to normal.

Blue eyes caught brown and all Tyler could say was, "Wow."

"Yeah," Kyle agreed as he felt Tyler slip out of him.

Tyler moved to get up but Kyle pulled him back. "Wait a second," Kyle said and wrapped his arms around Tyler. "That was amazing. I just wanted you to know that. No one.....I....it's.." He stammered.

Tyler returned the embrace and his eyes softened. "What? No one has ever worshiped your incredible body before?"

Kyle blushed and closed his eyes. "Open your eyes, Kyle," Tyler said. When he did, Tyler placed each of his hands around Kyle's face. "You deserve all that. Do you have any idea of how special you are?" Tyler kissed Kyle and poured everything he had left into it. After a minute Tyler finally said, "We really need to get cleaned up." He rolled off the bed and left the room. He didn't see Kyle wipe the tear from his eye. Tyler came back with a towel and grinned, tossed it to the man in his bed.

"I'm hungry," Kyle announced while wiping himself with the towel. Tyler had put on a fresh pair of boxers.

"Seriously?" Tyler questioned. "After all that food you inhaled earlier today?"

"I'm a growing boy," Kyle joked. Naked, he left the bedroom and came back with one of the containers of leftover potato salad his mother had given him. He'd also grabbed two forks. He handed one of the utensils to Tyler, sat on the bed and placed the tub in the center of the bed and dug in.

Tyler just shook his head. "I thought Sean could eat a lot. You definitely have him beat." Tyler joined Kyle on the bed and took a forkful himself.

"He's the college roommate, right?" Kyle asked. Tyler nodded. Kyle tugged at Tyler's boxers. "I don't think I should be the only one naked here."

Tyler glared at him. "You're insane," he said.

"You like it," Kyle retorted.

"Oh, hell," Tyler said and took off his boxers and flung them across the room.

After they emptied the container, Tyler placed it and the forks on the floor. When he rolled back onto the bed, Kyle had his arms stretched out and Tyler went willingly into them.

"It's starting to get late," Tyler observed. "We both have work tomorrow, do you need to leave?"

"Not just yet," Kyle said. He kissed the top of Tyler's head. "I'm kind of comfortable right now."

Tyler snuggled closer, entwining their legs. He lazily played with the hair on Kyle's chest. Both men dozed on and off for a bit but were jolted awake when Kyle's phone chirped with a text message notification.

"Ignore it," Tyler mumbled and clung on tighter.

Kyle tried to break out of Tyler's grip. "I should see who it's from."

"Oh, okay." Tyler pouted and let go of Kyle. "Wait. What's more important than me?"

"I did have a life before I met you," Kyle retorted.

Tyler stuck out his tongue. Kyle laughed as he crawled off the bed, found his pants and took the phone out of the pocket. "It's from Libby," he said. "She's staying at Jodie's tonight. They went out after work and she had a few too many."

"Smart of her not to drink and drive."

"She has her moments." Kyle quickly sent a reply and turned the device off. "There. No more interruptions." He sauntered around the bed and crawled on top of Tyler. "Ready for round two?" He asked. He ground his half hard cock into Tyler's thigh.

"Oh, I think I can be convinced," Tyler replied.

Kyle proceeded to map his way around Tyler's body much in the same way that Tyler had done to him earlier. Kissing and nipping his way from top to bottom and filing away to memory the places that caused Tyler to react with stronger words and noises that urged Kyle not to stop what he was doing. Kyle wanted nothing more than to take Tyler hard and fast, but he also wanted to give as much pleasure as Tyler had given him. Kyle had worked his way down one leg and up the other then settled in between them and removed Tyler's hand, which was pumping his cock. "Here, let me," Kyle said and gave Tyler's shaft a few strokes.

"I love your hands," Tyler managed to say.

"What about my mouth?" Kyle asked right before engulfing Tyler's entire cock.

"Fuck," Tyler spit out. "Don't stop."

Kyle maneuvered a hand and squeezed Tyler's balls then lowered his hand to tease around his perineum, then ghosted a finger at his entrance. Tyler spread his legs to give Kyle better access. "I'm so close," Tyler said.

Kyle let go of the cock in his hand and asked, "What happened to that lube from earlier?"

"Wha......" Tyler was almost beyond thinking but managed to feel around the bed. The room had gone almost completely dark as evening had worn on, the street lamp outside providing the only light in the room. "Check the drawer," Tyler finally said, as he began to focus again. "There's more in there."

Kyle opened the drawer. He felt around and discovered a plethora of lube and condoms. "Jesus, Tyler, did you buy out the entire store?"

Tyler laughed. "I was hopeful," he said.

Kyle laughed with him and took a condom and another bottle of lube out of the drawer.

"Now, where were we?" he asked. "Oh yeah, right about here." He turned and situated himself between Tyler's legs. He licked up and down Tyler's cock, gave his balls some attention, then moved again and teased his opening.

"Oh, god," Tyler moaned. Kyle pointed his tongue and pushed it in as far as he could. Tyler grabbed his cock again and after a few strokes, shouted his release. Kyle continued to lick and probe around Tylers opening until Tyler stilled. Kyle raised his head and then lapped the come off Tyler's belly. "You're amazing," Tyler said, still slightly out of breath. Kyle kissed him and said, "I'm not finished with you. Turn over. On your knees."

Tyler did as he was told and Kyle retrieved the tube of lube. He flipped open the cap and squirted some on his fingers. After planting a kiss on each of Tyler's ass cheeks, he pressed one, then two fingers into Tyler. He figured after the rimming, Tyler would be able to handle it and he was right.

"Yes......" Tyler hissed. It had been awhile, and yet he was amazed how quickly his body had acclimated. Kyle pushed slowly in and Tyler groaned when his sweet spot met with Kyle's fingers for the first time.

"Please......" Tyler begged.

"Please what?" Kyle countered.

"In me. Now."

"Pushy."

Kyle removed his fingers and Tyler almost whimpered at the loss. Kyle tore open the condom wrapper, quickly rolled the rubber onto his cock then spread a generous amount of lube on his prick. He positioned himself and teased Tyler's opening again with the head of his cock. Tyler pushed back. Kyle grinned and slowly pushed the rest of the way in.

Fuck, he thought, I'm not going to last long.

God, Tyler thought, I want him to stay inside me forever.

Kyle grabbed Tyler's hip and within a few strokes felt his impending orgasm. Each man was breathing heavy, and the only other noise was skin slapping skin. After six more thrusts Kyle came deep within his lover. Tyler felt a second, smaller release and spilled onto the sheet below him.

Tyler plopped down on the bed and Kyle fell with him. When Kyle shifted slightly, he slipped out of Tyler. He took the condom off, tied it and very quickly ran to the bathroom and trashed it.

Returning to the bedroom, he smiled at Tyler lying on the bed, back towards him. Was he asleep already? He gently climbed on the bed, spooned behind Tyler, pulling him close.

The last thought each of them had before falling asleep was _I think, no I know I'm falling in love with him._

Chapter 11

The Perfect Summer

Kyle and Tyler grew closer over the next weeks. Kyle made a favorable impression on Tyler's family and was told he was welcome back anytime. Soon they were spending most of each weekend together and having dinner on Wednesday after work to break up the week.

Kyle was still going to the gym early each morning and Tyler insisted he wasn't getting up any earlier than he had to. He got in his workout at the end of the day. They decided this was a good thing. They agreed that if they were going to be hot and sweaty at the same time they'd rather it be when they were alone and naked.

They spent the summer keeping busy outside of the bedroom as well. Tyler insisted Kyle watch his entire collection of Thin Man films and Kyle had to admit that, even given their age, they were amazing movies. They went to the local art house cinema any time a new film that struck their fancy was playing. They ran into Tom at the cinema once and were shocked when Tom told them he'd been seeing a therapist and he'd leave them alone from now on. Both of them were happy to close that chapter in their lives once and for all.

Kyle insisted on going to the city's annual art festival at the end of July. In early August Tyler acquired tickets to a ball game and they left happy when the local team won.

They attended the opening of Paul's friend's art gallery which turned out to be a tremendous success. Tyler got a surprise at the event and ran into an acquaintance that had all but disappeared after their high school graduation. Tyler had barely known Matt in school; they ran in different circles, Tyler with the jocks and Matt with the drama club. They only knew each other because it was a small student body and everyone at least knew everyone else's name. Matt had been in New York trying to make it as an actor but hadn't had any luck. He was taking a summer break to visit his family. When he walked away Kyle turned to Tyler and observed, "He was so flirting with you."

"No he wasn't. And besides, I did introduce you as my boyfriend," Tyler reasoned.

"That doesn't mean anything to some people."

"It does to me," Tyler said, pulling Kyle close and giving him a quick kiss.

Kyle smiled and leaned into Tyler's embrace, but was quickly pulled away. "Hey," Paul said, stepping in between them. "What's with the PDA's? And who was that gorgeous thing flirting with Tyler?"

That night, as Tyler made love to Kyle, he hoped Kyle realized how much he cared. Tyler wanted so badly to tell Kyle he loved him, but also didn't want to scare him off. Was Kyle ready to settle down? Tyler wondered. He didn't think Kyle would run off on him like Stewart had, but he was beginning to think he'd never have a lifetime commitment from anyone, which was what he wanted most.

Family time was always important to both of them, and Kyle and Tyler each got to know the others family better. At Abby's christening, Tyler acted as godfather and Olivia's sister April was godmother. Tyler brought Kyle to the event and it finally became clear to April that her infatuation with Tyler was just that. They also helped Ramona move into her new place.

In mid August, Tyler's friend Sean came for a visit while Kyle was out of town at a training conference. Sean lived far enough away that getting together wasn't easy. The two friends kept in touch mostly by email. Sean wanted the scoop on his friend's new relationship and to also let him know that he and Linda had finally set a date for their wedding. Sean took Tyler out to dinner and asked his friend to be his best man.

Kyle had asked Tyler to pick him up at the airport when he returned from the conference. Stopping off at Kyle's apartment first to drop off his luggage, Tyler asked him "Do you just want to stay here? I remember you said Libby was going to the beach this weekend with her girlfriends."

"Nah," Kyle said as he hung his suits in the closet. He tossed a duffle on the bed. "I'm sure there isn't any food here."

"We could get take out," Tyler offered.

Kyle ruffled through his dresser and pulled out a couple t shirts and tossed them into the bag. "I've been eating take out for days." Kyle looked at the wall and said in a soft voice, "I miss your cooking."

Tyler almost laughed. "I'm sorry....what was that?"

Kyle roughly shoved a pair of socks into his bag. "I said I miss your cooking, okay?"

"That's what I thought. I just wanted to hear you say it again." Tyler paused. "Wait. I just made you dinner a week ago."

Kyle shrugged his shoulders. "I know. But three days of lousy room service has made me appreciate home cooking."

Tyler made a face. "You're fucking with me, aren't you?"

"Ahhh....," Kyle began. "Shit. I'm going about this the wrong way. We missed our Wednesday meal this week. I've gotten used to that."

"We still talked to each other every night you were gone."

"Yeah, but it wasn't the same. We weren't five miles apart, we were five hundred." Kyle zipped his bag in frustration.

"What exactly are you trying to say here, Kyle?" Tyler folded his arms across his chest.

Kyle took a breath. "I did some thinking on the flight home."

"And......" Tyler wondered if he should be worried.

Kyle walked around his bed and placed his hands on Tyler's shoulders. "I want to toss out the rest of the condoms."

Tyler's eyes grew wide. He had been waiting for weeks to hear those words. "Really? That's a big step for you."

"Yeah, I'm certain of it. I know we've only been together for about three months, but I already know I only want to be with you."

"Kyle, I....," Tyler interrupted.

Kyle waved him off. "Let me finish. I've wanted to say this for awhile now." He looked Tyler square in the eye. "I love you, Tyler, and I've got a pretty good feeling that you love me, too"

"Oh, God," Tyler said, as he took Kyle tightly into his arms. "I do....yes..." He pulled back and gazed at Kyle. "I love you, too." He pressed his forehead against the younger mans. "I have for a long time now," he admitted.

Kyle wrapped his hands around the back of Tyler's neck and pulled him in for a kiss that left them breathless. When Kyle's tongue touched the roof of Tyler's mouth, all Tyler wanted to do was throw his lover on the bed and take him right then and there. A loud grumble from Kyle's stomach interrupted that thought. They broke apart, laughing. Tyler did notice, however, a small tear running down Kyle's right cheek. He wiped it away with his thumb.

"Sorry," Kyle said, a little embarrassed. He put his hands behind his back and weaved back and forth on each leg.

"For what?" Tyler asked.

"Getting all emotional. And forgetting to eat." Kyle seemed shy all of a sudden.

Tyler caressed his lovers face. "Babe," he said, "I think we're way past being shy and nervous around each other. Don't worry about it."

Kyle smiled and raised an eyebrow. He took Tyler's hand and kissed it. "Are we also at the pet name stage?"

_Shit, thought Tyler. How did that spit out?_ "Do you mind?"

"No," Kyle replied. "I kind of like it." He kissed Tyler's hand again. "Can I call you schnookims?"

Tyler scrunched his eyes tight. "Not if you want to see me naked again." They laughed again, and then Kyle's stomach growled once more.

Tyler took a step back. "Why don't you change out of those travel clothes then we'll go over to mine and I'll make you some spaghetti?"

"Ooh, my favorite." Kyle grinned widely.

"I know."

Kyle started unbuttoning his shirt. "You know you don't have to seduce me with food anymore. I can pretty much guarantee you're going to get some tonight."

"I know that, too," Tyler said then licked his lips.

"Bastard."

"But you love me."

"Yeah," Kyle said, and exhaled deeply. "I really do."

After they cleaned and put away the dinner dishes, Tyler poured them each a glass of wine. He led Kyle to the sofa and got comfortable. He wanted to talk before the evening progressed any further. "I want to ask you something," he said as he placed his glass on the coffee table.

"Should I be worried?" asked Kyle. He took a sip of his drink, then Tyler took his glass and put it next to his.

Tyler turned to Kyle and took his hands in his. "No. I just want to make sure you are serious about not using condoms anymore."

"Yes," Kyle said without hesitation. "I trust you when you said you are clean and I know I am too. I want to be with you in every way. No barriers between us."

Tyler lovingly gazed at Kyle. When he caressed his face, Kyle turned his head to kiss Tyler's hand. "I really want this," Kyle said.

"So do I."

Both leaned in for a kiss, soft and gentle at first, then steadily increasing in strength. Hands were everywhere, as if they were touching each other for the first time.

"Let's take this into the bedroom," Tyler said when they broke for air. "I have a plan." He stood up a little unsteady on his feet.

Kyle fell back into the sofa, unable to speak at first. "Okay," he finally said. When he could move again, he got up, kissed the other man and grinded his denim covered erection into Tyler's equally hard cock.

"Oh, God," Tyler said, as he pushed Kyle backwards across the room. "Hurry. I don't want to finish before we even get started." T shirts were taken off and tossed along the way. When they got to the other room, Tyler shoved Kyle onto the bed, knelt down on the floor and unbuttoned Kyle's pants. He yanked them off, along with his shorts. Before Kyle could react, Tyler had engulfed his cock.

"Fuck," Kyle exclaimed. Tyler almost had him at the brink, then suddenly everything stopped. "No!" Kyle cried out, and tried to push Tyler's head back down.

"Nope," Tyler grinned as he stood and looked down at Kyle, all hot and flustered. As tempting as it was to suck his lover off, Tyler had other plans for this evening. He took his own pants off and kicked them aside, then grabbed the tube of lube from the night table.

"What are you up to?" Kyle asked, as he grabbed his aching cock. Tyler pushed his hand away and told him to scoot up and watch. "Enjoy and let me do the work," Tyler added.

Kyle did as he was told. Tyler lay on the bed facing Kyle. He squirted some lube onto his fingers then bent his knees. He stroked his own cock a couple times, then probed his hole with a finger.

"Jesus," Kyle breathed. "You are so fucking hot."

Tyler inserted a second finger, and both men groaned loudly. Kyle began stroking his cock again when Tyler inserted a third. "You ready for me?" Tyler asked. "I want to go for a ride."

Kyle could only nod in reply. Tyler removed his fingers, then straddled Kyle and aligned his entrance onto Kyle's straining cock. He slowly lowered lowered himself, taking all of Kyle in. "Ohmygod," Kyle managed to say. "This is...fuck....amazing."

"You feel incredible," Tyler said. "I love you."

"I love you, too," Kyle said. "Now, would you please move?"

Tyler didn't answer verbally, he simply closed his eyes and took himself and his lover to the edge, then leaned forward and kissed Kyle on his lips, then his neck. Kyle took advantage of Tyler's position and flipped them over. Tyler grinned and spit out, "Well, o—kay," and gave up control. Kyle rammed his cock back into Tyler and this new angle caused them both to cry out in pleasure. Kyle thrust several more times before groaning out, "I'm coming!" and spilled deep within Tyler's willing body. Tyler snuck his hand in between them, and with a few strokes to his cock, was coming on both their stomachs.

Kyle finally rolled off Tyler and exhaled loudly. "Damn!" he said. "That was even better than I thought it would be."

Tyler laughed. "It was pretty spectacular." He got up off the bed. "Be right back." He ran into the bathroom, grabbed a towel and cleaned himself off. Then did the same to his lover. He tossed the towel carelessly onto the floor then picked up the comforter which somehow had fallen off the bed. "Come here," he said, inviting Kyle into his arms. "I need to have you near me."

"You always will," Kyle answered.

Sometime in the middle of the night, Tyler woke with Kyle's back pressed into him. He began to gently kiss and nip his lover's neck and back until he could feel Kyle push back into his hardening cock. "Take me, babe," Kyle whispered. "I want to feel you in me." This time, their lovemaking was slow and easy, but just as satisfying.

They spent the weekend without leaving the condo, despite the beautiful weather, creating their own cocoon which was difficult to break on Sunday evening, but had to be done.

The next week went by quickly and Labor Day weekend was upon them. Kyle had promised Libby he would spend Friday night with her, as she was going out of town again for the remainder of the holiday weekend. Tyler had arranged to join Eric and Olivia for dinner.

Kyle paid for the pizza when it arrived. Libby joined him on the sofa and handed him a beer. They clinked the bottles and each took a swig.

"So....," Libby began, as she grabbed a slice out of the box. "Are you going to tell me or not?"

"Tell you what?" Kyle asked, before inhaling a huge bite.

"Oh come on. You've been acting different since you got back from that trip to Boston. Did something happen there?" When her friend didn't immediately answer, she continued her assault. "Okay...when you got back then?" Kyle still remained silent. "Waaaait...." It finally dawned on Libby. "This has something to do with Tyler, doesn't it?"

Kyle finished off the slice of pizza he was eating and took another drink of the beer. "I should know better than to try and keep something from you."

"I knew it! What, did he propose or something?"

Kyle scrunched his eyes and shook his head. "Seriously? We've only been together three months." He took a breath. "All kidding aside, Lib...."

Libby put down her food. "Okay. I know you really like this guy. I hardly see you on weekends anymore."

"Yeah....sorry about that...."

"No.....," Libby took Kyle's hand in hers. "I'm glad you found someone. Wait. You aren't moving out already, are you?"

Kyle laughed. "No...it hasn't gotten to that stage yet...." He took a breath. "But, I did tell Tyler I love him."

Libby practically tackled her friend down on the sofa, but he overpowered her. "About freaking time!" She exclaimed.

Kyle was confused. "What?"

"Oh, Kyle! How blind do you think I am? Any idiot would know you are in love with this guy. I figured it out about a month ago." She playfully pushed him. "Boys. I don't know why you have such a hard time sharing your feelings."

"We talked about how we felt before..."

Libby punched him again. "Silly. You should have told him then."

"I know. But it's okay..."

"Are you still being safe? Should I buy you more condoms for your birthday next month?"

He looked at her sarcastically. "Libby. Always up front." She nodded. "Actually, we talked, and we don't need them anymore."

"Really?" Libby was actually surprised. She knew how careful her friend was when it came to sex. Kyle smiled. "Wow," she said. "You really do love this guy."

"Yeah.....," Kyle said. "I do."

Libby gave her friend a warm hug. "I'm really happy for you...and Tyler. He's a great guy. "

Kyle broke the hug and grabbed his beer. "Can we finish off this pizza now? I'm really hungry."

"Sure thing," Libby agreed. The rest of the evening was spent eating more junk, watching bad movies and wiping tears of laughter.

Tyler was having a similar conversation with his sister in law. They were in the nursery; Olivia was putting Abby down for the night.

"She still keeping you up at night?" Tyler asked.

"Not so much," Olivia answered. "She almost has the hang of sleeping all night." She gently laid the infant in her crib, and put a light blanket over her.

"That's great." Tyler looked at niece. "She's perfect, isn't she?"

"Yes, she is. Are you sure you never want kids?"

"Positive. I'll be the doting uncle, and then give them back to you and Eric."

"Alright. I'll stop bugging you." She decided to change the subject. "I'm going back to work in two weeks."

"Really? I thought you weren't going back for another month."

"Grace just acquired this huge account and she wants me to manage it."

"That's fantastic!" Tyler gave Olivia a hug.

They broke apart and left the room. In the hallway, Olivia rubbed her forehead with her thumb and forefinger.

"Another headache?" Tyler asked. "When are you going to get that checked out?"

"You're as bad as your brother. I have an appointment on Tuesday."

"Good. I worry about you." Tyler leaned against the wall and gently squeezed Olivia's arm.

"I'll be fine," she said, then poked him in the chest. "I want to know about you."

"What about me?"

"Let me rephrase. You and Kyle."

"What about us?" Tyler couldn't help but grin.

"See?" Olivia said, and she poked him again. "Something's different in you tonight. It wasn't there a couple weeks ago."

Tyler couldn't stop smiling. "Things are great between us. He told me he loves me."

"Awwww...," Olivia squealed, and gave her brother in law a hug. "I hope you said it back."

"Of course I did," Tyler said, stating the obvious. "He's different than anyone else I've been with. I really think he's the one. He cares about his family as much as I care about you guys. He won't run off like Stewart did."

"Well, I hope not. I haven't seen you this happy in a long time."

"Yeah. Things couldn't get any better." He headed towards the stairs. "We better get back downstairs. Tongues will be wagging what we're doing up here."

"Let them wag," Olivia laughed. "Oh, you two are still coming over on Monday, aren't you?"

"Wouldn't miss it."

The next day Kyle and Tyler were at Kyle's sister Maggie's house for the annual end of summer cookout/pool party. Tyler was in the pool with both of Maggie and Peter's girls while Peter kept two more watchful eyes at poolside.

At the opposite end of the yard, Kyle sat with his sisters enjoying the day.

"Tyler's great with them," Ramona observed.

"He is," Maggie agreed. "He also looks great in that bathing suit."

"What?" Kyle perked up in the lounge chair he was sitting in.

"It's unanimous then!" Maggie exclaimed. "All the female members of the family are in love with your boyfriend."

"Just like me then." Kyle casually remarked.

Ramona and Maggie turned towards their brother then looked at each other. "Dish!" they exclaimed in unison.

The couple arrived at Kyle's apartment late and exhausted after a day out in the sun. They stripped off their clothes, climbed into bed and were asleep within minutes. They had made a reservation to go to the new paintball center the following day and wanted to be well rested.

The local sports complex had been expanded and Tyler knew the owner fairly well, as he had been a regular at the gym for years. After picking up the necessary gear, it took nearly an hour of chasing each other around the field to empty all the pellets in the guns. Kyle proved to be more adept at firing; Tyler was almost completely covered in yellow paint. Tyler raised his arms in surrender and was heading towards Kyle and the exit when Kyle shot him once more square in the chest.

"Fuck!" Tyler yelled. "That hurt!"

Kyle took his goggles off as Tyler arrived next to him. "Sorry, babe," he said. "I swear that was the last shot I have."

Tyler removed his eyewear and ran a dirty hand through his hair. "Shit," he said. "This is going to take forever to wash out. We're never coming here again."

Kyle gently swatted Tyler on the ass and they made their way to depose of their equipment and clean up. "Yes we are. I'll even let you win next time."

"Promises, promises."

Kyle rolled his eyes. "Come on. I'll buy you something to eat."

At the food shack next to the sport complex, Tyler was certain there wouldn't be anything of nutritional value on the menu. He let Kyle order while he sat at one of the few empty outdoor tables.

Kyle came back with a tray of oversized chili dogs, a large plate of fries and two of the largest containers of soda Tyler had ever seen. Tyler could tell by the look on his face Kyle was quite pleased with himself.

"You really expect me to eat this shit?" Tyler asked.

"Oh come on," Kyle answered back as he placed the tray on the table and sat across from his boyfriend. "Where's your sense of adventure?"

"You killed it along with my dignity on the paintball field," Tyler said, as he rubbed the back of his head.

"Well, this place doesn't serve the five star meals you're used to. Look at the presentation. Grease encased in fresh baked bread. I figured you could use a little diversity on your palette."

Tyler laughed. "That's what I love about you. You can make junk food into a work of art."

"Just eat," Kyle mumbled, as he took a huge bite of his masterpiece. Tyler picked up the other dog and had to admit it did taste pretty good. "My arteries are clogging already," he snarked, taking a sip of his drink.

"By the way, you can reclaim your dignity tonight however you want." Kyle grinned.

Tyler almost chocked on his drink.

Tyler's place was closer to Eric and Olivia's; they planned to spend the night there so they could take their time getting ready the following morning. They each had enough personal items at the others home so they didn't have to stop by Kyle's apartment on the way. They never spoke of the unintentional way they were almost moving in with each other. Things were perfect the way they were for now.

As soon as they got in the door, Kyle said he was going to take a shower and headed for the bathroom. Tyler went into the bedroom, looked at the bed and suddenly remembered Kyle's words from earlier about reclaiming his dignity. When he heard the rush of water from the showerhead, he formed an idea. His twitching cock was in agreement. He grabbed the item from his dresser that he purchased the other day.

He could hear Kyle humming to himself under the spray of water. Yet another adorable habit he was growing quite fond of. He took his clothes off and silently treaded to the bathroom. Kyle was oblivious. Steam was already increasing the heat in the room. Tyler carefully opened the door and stepped into the stall.

"Jesus!" Kyle almost screamed. "You could have warned me."

"Why? I'm taking back what's mine." He grabbed Kyle and pushed him against the wall. "You told me I could."

"Wha...," Kyle began. Then he recalled what he had told Tyler that afternoon. He grinned and decided it would be fun to let Tyler have his way with him. He loved that they were versatile with regard to their sex life. It was a wonderful balance and he knew he was lucky to have found someone who was willing to both give and receive. When Tyler leaned in and kissed him hard, Kyle succumbed and let him take charge.

"I'm going to take you....and take you hard," Tyler rasped, and turned Kyle around. He kissed and licked his way down Kyle's back. His lovers moans spurring him on,

When Tyler spread Kyle's cheeks and began probing his entrance with his tongue, Kyle let out another loud moan. "God, that's perfect," he said. "Don't stop."

"Babe, I'm just getting started," was the reply he got. Tyler went back to his task, only this time he also wrapped a hand around Kyle's very hard cock and tugged. He steadied the younger man by placing his other hand on Kyle's hip.

After another few minutes, Tyler stood up and pulled Kyle around for another searing kiss. "Don't think I can last much longer," Kyle said when they broke apart. "I need you in me now. Just fuck me, please!"

"Oh, I love it when you beg," Tyler said. He opened the door just wide enough to grab the waterproof lube. He bought it a week ago and was glad they were finally going to use it. And if he had his way, they'd need to get more. Kyle took his own cock in hand and began stroking himself. Tyler batted his hand away. "No," he said, "I want you to come just by me fucking you."

Kyle expelled a deep breath. Tyler quickly coated his cock and in one smooth move pushed into his lover. "Oh god," Kyle groaned. "Fuck me hard."

Tyler grabbed Kyle's hips and moved fast and furiously. In no time at all Kyle was spurting on the wall. Tyler wasn't much farther behind, coming deep within his lover.

A few seconds later, Tyler turned off the water, which had now become cold. He buried his face into the back of Kyle's neck and whispered "I love you" in between catching his breath. Kyle turned around, pushed Tyler's hair off his face and then smiled. "I love you, too," he said.

Stepping out of the stall, they dried off and silently walked hand in hand to the bedroom. They climbed into bed, Tyler wrapping Kyle in his arms. "Yup," he said. "Dignity reclaimed." Kyle chuckled, kissed Tyler's shoulder and pulled the covering over both of them. Sleep claimed them soon after.

The next morning, after another round of slow and easy lovemaking, both men were basking in the afterglow. "You're amazing," Kyle finally said, as he propped onto his elbow.

Tyler leaned over and gave Kyle a quick kiss. "You aren't so bad yourself."

Kyle turned to leave the bed. "Need a shower now," he said.

Tyler pulled Kyle to prevent him from getting away. "Wait a few minutes and I'll join you."

"That's the best idea you've had so far today." He paused. "Wait. Second best. Waking me up via a blowjob was the best idea so far." Kyle turned back to Tyler and snuggled close to him. "Oh, by the way, I love you."

"I love you, too," Tyler said. "And I'm going to tell you every day."

Kyle smiled, and decided a shower could wait. "I should have told you how I felt as soon as I knew it was true."

"Don't worry about it." Tyler rolled on top of Kyle and kissed him thoroughly.

"You better watch it," Kyle said, gently pushing his lover away. "We're going to get stuck to each other."

"Would that be such a bad thing?"

Kyle ran his fingers through Tyler's hair. "Nah, guess not." He pulled Tyler in for another searing kiss. He canted his hips up, as both their cocks were reawakening. In the other room, the phone began to ring. "Ignore it," Kyle said. "Let the machine get it." As soon as the ringing stopped, the trill of Tyler's cell went off.

Kyle groaned. "Damn. Someone really wants to talk to you."

Tyler crawled off Kyle and went to retrieve his phone. "It's Eric," he said, when he saw flipped the device open. "What?" he said, a little annoyed. Irritation soon turned to shock. He sat on the edge of the bed. "Oh my god." Kyle scooted over and sat next to him. "I'll be right there." Tyler absentmindedly dropped the phone on the floor.

Kyle took Tyler's hand in his. "What is it?" he asked. Tyler took Kyle into his arms, tears welling in his eyes. He let go, wiped his face, and stood up. Kyle stood up, too and said, "Tell me, you're really scaring me."

"It's Olivia," Tyler said, his voice shaking. "She was taken to the hospital this morning." He began pacing around the room.

"Shit," Kyle said. "Is it bad?"

Tyler picked up the phone off the floor and began fiddling with it. "Yeah, it is. She had an aneurysm. They don't know if she'll make it."

Chapter 12

Fall into Despair

Kyle had only been to one other funeral in his life. His grandfather had passed away when he was in high school after a long battle with emphysema. His death was sad, but expected. Someone Olivia's age wasn't supposed to die. He wished he could have known her longer.

Everyone was devastated; Olivia's parents for losing a child, her sister for losing only sibling and confidant; but mostly Eric, widowed at such a young age, with a two month old.

Kyle spotted Tyler talking with his brother. Eric looked like he hadn't slept at all in the past week. Kyle couldn't imagine what he must be going through; losing the person he planned on spending the rest of his life with. He turned when he heard someone call his name. Kyle smiled and leaned down when Tyler's mother went to put a kiss on his cheek.

"Thank you for being here," Betty said. "It means a lot to Tyler. All of us, actually."

"I know Olivia was like a sister to him. I only wish I could have known her better."

"She was really special. I don't know anyone who didn't love her."

Kyle smiled. "If I can do anything..." he began to say.

Betty lightly touched his arm. "Just be there for Tyler. He's having a really difficult time with this."

Kyle glanced at Tyler, as did Betty. He and Eric were talking with a dark haired guy who Kyle quickly figured was Eric's friend Anthony. "I love your son, Mrs. Cole. I'd do anything for him."

She squeezed his arm affectionately. "How many times have I told you to call me Betty?"

"Sorry....Betty." He smiled at her.

"Oh come here," she said and hugged him tightly.

Kyle saw Tyler heading in his direction as Betty went to speak with another family member. Tyler took Kyle by the hand, went out into the hallway and gave him a bone crushing hug. "I'm so glad you're here," Tyler said, his eyes welling up again. "I need you to help me get through today."

Kyle wrapped his arms around the other man, reached up and placed a comforting hand on the back of his head. "I'm here, babe. Let it out."

They stood silently for a few minutes until Tyler finally let go of the grip he had on Kyle. "I think I'm okay," he said, "then I break down again."

Kyle wiped the tears from Tyler's face. "I know how close you were. How's Eric?"

Tyler closed his eyes then slowly opened them while shaking his head. "Numb. He hasn't slept in days. I've barely gotten him to eat." Tyler had been staying with his brother for the past week. Their parents and Olivia's family had been taking turns caring for Abby. Today the baby was with Eric's neighbor.

"I can't imagine what he's going through," Kyle said. "To lose the person you love...suddenly like that."

"There really were no symptoms. Although she would get these headaches. She had an appointment last week to get it checked out. I'll always wonder if this could have been prevented."

"From what I've read about aneurysms in the past couple days, not really."

Tyler was touched that Kyle had taken the time to do some research. He smiled. "Do you know how amazing you are?"

Kyle grinned back. "Why.....yes, I do. How do you think I snagged you in the first place?"

That made Tyler laugh. "Thank you," he said, and gave Kyle a quick kiss.

"What was that for?"

"For making me laugh for the first time in more than a week."

Kyle gripped Tyler's arm in a reassuring squeeze. "I'm here for you, Tyler. You know that, don't you?"

"Yeah, I do."

"Ready to go back in there?"

"Ready as I'll ever be."

Knowing how important family was to Tyler, Kyle gave him all the space he wanted to spend more time with his brother. Kyle would have been the same way if it were one of his siblings.

He had been busy at work with a new client and was putting in a lot of extra hours with the campaign presentation so he didn't have a whole lot of free time to think about the fact that he and Tyler hadn't seen much of each other in the past three weeks. He thought he'd made it clear to Tyler that he could talk to him, that he was there for him. He couldn't understand why Tyler hadn't been in contact with him. They used to talk almost every day. Now it was more like only three or four times per week. Kyle knew Tyler had been staying at Eric's the first two weeks after the funeral, and had even canceled a few dates, and while it bothered him greatly, he let it slide. It was when Kyle turned the calendar to October it occurred to him that maybe Tyler needed a little help in moving on with the grieving process. In the past two weeks they'd seen each other only three times. Twice they'd shared a meal and then some idle chatter in front of the television. In between Kyle had called Tyler several times and each conversation was cut short. The third time was just the other night and when Kyle had asked him when they could resume their regular schedule of seeing each other, Tyler had lashed out at him saying something about when he felt like Eric had a better grip on handling things.

" _Look, I know you are still grieving. It's only been a month," Kyle had said._

" _So give me a break," Tyler countered._

" _I've given you time. I've hardly seen you lately."_

" _Eric needs me."_

" _So do I."_

The rest of the evening had ended in a stalemate.

The next two days at work were hectic with last minute preparations for the presentation. Kyle was still very pissed at Tyler but for the most part didn't show it. Until the client presentation when it was discovered that he'd put the incorrect sales projections on the slideshow. He couldn't believe he messed up something so critical but Peter acknowledged that the figures were wrong and reassured the client of the correct amounts. He promised the adjustments would be made on the copies of the prospectus that would be sent to the investors. Later that afternoon, Peter took Kyle into his office.

"What the hell is wrong with you?" Peter demanded. "You've been busting your ass on this campaign for weeks and have been doing remarkable work. Then you fuck up at the presentation?"

"I.....," Kyle began.

Peter waved him off. "Look. Speaking as your boss, you've been a great addition to the team. You've got the talent to go far at this firm. But as your brother-in-law, I can tell something is bothering you. Talk to me."

"As what? Your staff member or your brother-in-law?"

Peter laughed at Kyle's sarcasm. "Both. But one at a time."

"Fine," Kyle conceded. "I'm sorry I screwed up today. You know when I'm here; I'm all about the job. It won't happen again."

"Good." Peter scratched his forehead. "Because I have something to tell you." Kyle tensed for a second. "Oh, no. Don't worry. This is good news. The partners and I agreed that if Demetrious signed the contract today, we would submit your work for an ADDY."

Kyle was shocked. "For real?" The ADDY awards were the top awards in the advertising industry. "We got the account? An ADDY?"

"Yeah," Peter assured him. "Just the local ADDYS for now, don't go thinking national yet." He patted Kyle on the knee. "Half a dozen other agencies were hoping to nail the Demetrious account. You should have heard him after you left the meeting. He ran out of superlatives when praising your work."

Kyle began pacing the room. "I can't believe this. Goddamn!" He stopped moving. "Wait. Then why did you ream me out?"

Peter laughed. "Well, you still screwed up the numbers. And that made us look bad. Fortunately I can bullshit the best of them." He grew serious. "Why? That's not like you. You're always really focused when it comes to the work. What's going on in that brilliant head of yours?"

Kyle sighed deeply and sat in one of the chairs facing Peter's desk. Peter sat in the other one. "Talk to me, bro," Peter said.

Kyle got directly to the issue at hand. "It's Tyler," he said.

"I figured. He was noticeably not there at the monthly family feast the other week."

"He's still busy being his brother's keeper. I've seen him a grand total of three times in the past two and a half weeks. And the last time, just the other night, ended in a huge fight. We haven't spoken since."

"I'm really sorry. You two really seemed to have something solid."

"We do.....did....I don't know anymore."

"You told me once one of the first things that drew you to him was the close bond he had with his family. Just like ours."

"Yeah, and I totally respect that he's there for Eric after such a tragedy. And I get the whole 'everyone grieves in their own way' thing." He stopped to take a deep breath. Peter didn't say anything, letting him unload at his own pace. "I've been thinking the past two days. He dumped his college boyfriend to go help when his dad had a heart attack. Then he broke off his last relationship after three years because he didn't want to move away from his family. Is he choosing his family over our relationship now?"

"Hmmm. I can see how you would think that," Peter reasoned. "You'll just have to convince him you aren't taking him away from his family. That he can love them and you."

Kyle huffed. "Easier said than done."

"Kyle, what you have to ask yourself is this. Is he worth it?"

He didn't have to think twice. "Yes. He is."

"Well, then do what you have to do."

Encouraged by the talk with Peter, Kyle went home and thought about how to get a message through to Tyler. He was still upset over the fight they had the other night but he loved Tyler too much to not make the attempt to keep him in his life.

When Libby got home from working late at the store, she found her roommate on the sofa surrounded by wads of rolled up paper.

"What's going on here?" she asked, as she entered the room.

Kyle lifted his head when he heard her voice. "Oh, sorry," he said. "I'll clean this up."

"What are you doing?"

"Trying to do something for Tyler."

"Why? Aren't you still pissed at him?" She deposited her large purse on the floor and sat next to her friend.

"Well...yeah...,"Kyle admitted. "But I've been feeling like shit for the past two days. I screwed up at work today, then Peter-"

"Wait...," Libby interrupted. "You screwed up at work....what happened? You're the most serious person I know when it comes to their job."

"I know. I am. I told Peter this is the first and last time he'll have to save my ass. I put the wrong sales projections on a slideshow presentation. But it all worked out in the end. The client signed the contract."

"That's good then."

"Yeah, and even better," Kyle shifted in his seat. "The partners are going to nominate my work for an award."

Libby practically fell off the sofa. "Oh my God, that's awesome! Who knew when you started doodling cartoon characters that you'd end up where you are today?"

"Yeah..." He grinned. "Youngest associate at McIntosh to earn this and all," he said proudly, the sighed. "And the first person I wanted to call was Tyler...but I didn't because I knew he probably wouldn't answer his phone."

Libby put an arm around him. "Oh, Kyle," she said. He laid his head on her shoulder. He started feeling sorry for himself again, but then quickly dispelled those thoughts. He sat up and grabbed the pen and notebook.

"No," he said. "I'm not going to give up on him. He may have chosen family over a relationship before, but I'm going to break that cycle."

"Wha....." Libby started to ask.

"I'll tell you everything later. Peter asked me if he was worth it and I told him yes. I'm going to prove to Tyler that I'm not going anywhere and he can have it all."

"Wow, you really do have it bad. I've never seen you like this over someone before."

Kyle looked his friend in the eye. "Swear to God, Lib. I never have felt this way before. I can see myself spending the rest of my life with him."

Libby hugged him tightly. "Don't tell me that." She tapped on the notebook. "Tell him." With that, she got up, grabbed her bag and went off to her room.

Kyle quickly grew frustrated again. The words simply wouldn't come to him. He got up, paced around the room and sat down again. Absentmindedly, he began doodling on the paper. Then it hit him. He knew the perfect thing to do. He went in his room, took out his drawing pad and pencils, and started to draw.

Chapter 13 – Turning Points

Tyler had been back at work full time for almost a week; while he was getting done what needed to be done, his heart wasn't in it. His boss, Allen, had been great about letting him take time off (he had more than enough personal time accrued), but Tyler knew he was beginning to push his luck. He hated leaving Eric home alone, but Mom swore that she'd check on him. Eric had taken a leave of absence from the firm, but was due to return in two weeks.

He tried to focus on the piles of paper on his desk, but the words just seemed to blur. When he heard a knock on the door, he assumed it was Missy. "I told you to leave me alone," he said abruptly.

"Sorry...not going to do that," a very familiar voice said.

Tyler looked up and saw the one person he wasn't expecting. "Kyle," he said. "Shouldn't you be at work?"

Kyle leaned on the frame of the office door. "I told Peter I had some personal business to take care of this morning."

"Oh," Tyler said softly, still confused as to why Kyle was there. "I didn't think you'd want to see me again after the other night."

Kyle walked into the office and stood at the side of Tyler's desk. Tyler noticed he had a package with him. "Why?" Kyle asked. "Because we had a fight? All couples have fights sometimes."

"But...."

Kyle waved him off. "Yeah, we said some things we shouldn't have....but I don't recall either of us saying it was over between us."

Tyler covered his face with his hand. "Kyle, I can't deal with this right now. Why are you here?"

"Just to give you this," he said and handed Tyler the package in his hand.

"What's this?"

"Open it," Kyle instructed.

Tyler tore off the plain paper to reveal a nicely framed black pencil drawing. "Wow," he said. "You drew this?"

"Yeah. My way of letting you know I'm still here for you."

"This is amazing," Tyler said, tracing a finger over the artwork through the glass. "I don't know what to say."

"You don't have to say anything. I know you are still having a tough time with everything and I wanted to try and cheer you up." Kyle shifted from on one foot to the other.

"Thanks. It means a lot." He paused. "Really."

Kyle gave him a small smile. "You're welcome." He turned. "I need to get to work."

"Wait," Tyler said and pushed back on his chair.

He came around the desk and enveloped Kyle in a tight embrace. Kyle wrapped his arms around his back and Tyler was reminded of how perfectly their bodies flushed against each other.

They broke apart and gazed at each other for several moments. "I still love you," Kyle said through quivering eyes, then turned and walked out the door.

Tyler picked up the drawing again. He'd seen Kyle's drawings before, raw, untamed comic characters, but this was portrait like. In the center were he and Kyle, hands clasped, bodies facing forward, but heads turned towards each other. Kyle was in a suit, Tyler in his work uniform. Behind each of them were head and shoulder images of their parents, siblings and other immediate family members, all with happy smiles. On Tyler's side was Olivia, looking down at them from a cloud in the corner. Kyle had entitled the piece 'Heroes for each other.'

Tyler shut the office door, sat in his chair and broke down.

Half a box of tissues later, Tyler had finally composed himself. He needed to talk with someone and when he picked up the phone his fingers automatically dialed his brother's number. He wasn't surprised when his mother answered. "Mom, hi," he said. "How's Eric today?"

"It's a good day. We're going to West End Day Care. He has to sign a new contract. They held the spot for Abby."

"Great! I know that is the only place Olivia trusted to take care of her."

"She went to school with Julia Siletti, the director."

"Oh yeah, I think I remember her saying that."

"Now, what's wrong you?" Betty asked.

"Nothing. What makes you ask?"

"Oh, Tyler, I can tell when one of my boys is upset."

Tyler sniffed and grabbed a tissue. "Kyle stopped by on his way to work this morning. But I really want to talk with Eric about it. Could you get him please?"

"Only if you promise to tell me later."

"I will, Mom. I just want to talk to Eric right now."

Just then Eric walked in carrying his daughter. "Who's on the phone?"

"Your brother. He wants to talk to you. Here," she handed him the phone. "I'll trade you. Hand over my granddaughter." Abby was wide awake and smiling. Betty stepped into the other room singing to the baby.

"Hey," Eric said into the phone.

"Bro, I need your help," Tyler said.

"I'm kind of busy today...,"Eric said absently.

"Please," Tyler begged. "Kyle stopped by here this morning and I'm a mess. I...." He was nearly in tears again.

"Hey, hey," Eric said, putting aside his own feelings for a moment. "I'd love to help, but I don't think I'd be the best company right now."

Tyler took a deep breath. "I haven't been so great either. But I've been thinking this morning. Kyle stopped by the gym. He gave me a present. I want you to see it."

"Stop by after work then."

Tyler thought for a moment. "How about you come to my place? I'll grill us some steaks."

"I don't know....Abby."

"I'm sure Mom and Dad will watch her. And a change of scenery will do you good."

Eric actually laughed. "Like your place is a big change of scenery."

"Okay. It isn't. But one step at a time, bro. We'll get through this together."

"Eric...we need to go," Betty called.

"I hear Mom beckoning," Tyler said. "Come over at seven."

"Okay," Eric said. "See you then."

~~

The brothers sat on the terrace tearing into the meat. "Mom is going to grill you when you get home," Tyler said.

"I know," Eric agreed. "Hey, thanks for getting me out of the house. Well, I was out signing the contract."

"No problem. How did all that go?"

"Fine. I'm really impressed with the place. One less thing to worry about." Eric sighed. "Although, it's a big step. In a lot of ways. Never planned on being a single dad. I think I'm okay, and then I'm not. Seriously...I need to start getting out more. Maybe it's good I'm going back to work. Get my mind working again. And everything in the house reminds me of Olivia."

"Maybe you should think about moving," Tyler suggested.

"No."

"O—kay."

"Her mark is everywhere here, too." Eric motioned to the inside of Tyler's home. "She designed your place, too. You aren't going to move."

"She wasn't my wife."

Eric's hand tightened around his fork, his nails digging into his palm. Tyler watched as rage and hurt flooded his eyes and flinched visibly from the sight.

Instantly Eric's eyes softened. "Sorry," he said, placing the fork back down onto his plate.

"I am, too," Tyler said. "I shouldn't have said that." He pushed his plate away. "You finished?"

Eric stared at his half eaten plate. "Yeah. This is really good though. I just...."

"I know. I haven't been eating much either. I've lost ten pounds since...."

"I've lost fifteen," Eric admitted.

They looked at each other. "We can't go on like this, Eric," Tyler said.

"I know. And Mom...she'll never say it, but she's so stressed out." He paused. "I'm going to join that support group she suggested. I can't be like this when I get back to the office."

"And there's Abby," Tyler said, as if Eric needed reminding.

"You're right. She's lost her mother. I need to be there for her." He closed his eyes for a moment then pushed his chair back. "And I will make sure she knows how amazing her mother is....was." He wiped a tear forming in his eye. "I really need to get used to talking about her in the past tense."

"We all do, bro."

Tyler stood and picked up his plate. "Let's get this stuff inside. I want to show you the drawing Kyle did."

After cleaning up, Eric went and sat on the sofa while Tyler went into his room to get the drawing. He idly leafed through a magazine while waiting. He tossed it onto the floor when his brother returned to the room and took the framed drawing from Tyler's outstretched hand.

"This is incredible," Eric said as he looked at Kyle's artwork. He moved the frame around and glanced at the drawing from several angles. "Kyle is really talented. Did he have photos or did he draw this from memory?"

"I don't know." Tyler answered.

Eric fingered the image of Olivia in the corner of the frame. "Tyler, do I need to knock some sense into you?" Tyler had a confused look on his face. "This guy loves you and isn't going to ask anything more from you except to love him back." He put the drawing on the coffee table.

"What are you saying? I don't-"

Eric covered Tyler's mouth with his hand. "Don't overanalyze. It's simple. Do you want to be with Kyle or not?"

"Yes, but—"

"No," Eric interrupted him. "No buts. I've seen you do this before. Putting everyone else first instead of yourself. Be selfish for once. Go call him and make things right."

"What? Now?"

"Why not?"

"I can't....I need time to think."

Eric groaned. "God you're stubborn." He pinched the bridge of his nose. "Look, I'll be fine. Olivia's gone. I'm finally beginning to accept that. There's nothing I could have done to save her. But you can make this work with Kyle."

"You..."

"Stop it!" Eric said a bit louder than necessary. "Tyler...shit happens. I could argue how unfair it is that Olivia died so young. I've been through the mad stage of grief. You've been incredible to me the past few weeks. I can never repay you for being there for me when I needed you. But you can still be with the person you love." He picked the drawing off the table. "Here's the evidence. You two, together, with your families' supporting you."

Tyler couldn't argue with his brother. Not when he was in lawyer mode. He knew Eric probably wasn't finished, so he kept quiet.

"It's apparent to me that Kyle understands the importance of family," Eric continued. "Think about how much time he's spent with us. And how many times have you told me you can't wait to do things with Abby like you have with his nieces. Jesus, Tyler, what's it going to take to get through to you?"

Tyler was nearly in tears. He hated being this emotional. "I just never thought I deserved to have it all."

Eric shook his head, and then pulled his brother into an embrace. "Everyone does, little brother."

Tyler let the tears flow. Eric didn't let go until he felt Tyler stop shaking and let his head fall onto the back of the sofa. "Thanks," he said.

"Anytime," Eric assured him.

Tyler tried on a small smile and then looked at his watch. "Shit. It's after eleven already."

"Don't worry about it. I already told them I'd probably stay here tonight."

"But how did you figure that?"

"I know how you get, Tyler."

"Oh. Yeah. The overly emotional gay brother."

Eric softly punched Tyler on the shoulder. "Stop it. You're one of the strongest people I know." This time Tyler's grin was much larger.

"Hey, what about being away from Abby?" he asked.

"She'll be fine. This is important for both of us. That little girl needs her father and her uncle to get their shit together. And if this is what it takes, I'm willing. How about you?"

Tyler didn't think he could admire his brother any more than he did at that moment. "I'm in," he finally said.

The next morning Tyler felt better than he had in quite some time. He and Eric talked for another hour the previous night and it had been productive for both of them. Tyler had planned on spending the day coming up with a way to make it up to Kyle and proving his love.

When he got to work, however, he learned the other manager was out with the flu and he'd have to put in extra hours for a few days while she recuperated. Before he knew it, Friday had arrived. He'd planned on calling Kyle and attempt to set something up for the weekend but just has he picked up the phone, the other line rang and it was the Doug the weekend manager asking for the day off. "Family emergency" is what he said and Tyler didn't hesitate to say fine. Doug was a good employee and Tyler knew he wouldn't call out unless it was a true emergency. So much for making plans, Tyler thought.

When he finally got home that night, Tyler could hear the phone ringing even before he opened the door.

"Hey," Eric said. "Did I interrupt something good?"

"No, I just got home."

"You usually don't work this late. What's going on?"

Tyler exhaled. "Kate is out with the flu. And then today Doug called out. I'm going to need to go in tomorrow."

"Shit." Then Eric laughed. "Tough being the boss, isn't it?"

"Shut up." He toed his shoes off then went to the refrigerator and grabbed a beer. "So why are you calling?"

"Well, I was going to ask if you patched things up with Kyle, but I guess you haven't had the time."

"You guessed right. I was going to call him today and hopefully make some plans but before I could Doug called."

"Sorry. Hey, look, Anthony's here and we're watching the game. Why don't you come over?"

"Thanks, but I'm too tired. I've got to rework some schedules and turn them in tomorrow."

"Maybe next week then? We can catch up. And hopefully you'll have good news."

"Yeah. Hopefully. How is Anthony? I still can't believe Lynne turned out to be such a bitch. He's better off without her."

"He'll be okay. It's been a shitty couple of months, hasn't it?"

Tyler took a swig of the beer. "Yeah, it really has."

"I've done a lot of thinking this week and even more so since last night and I realize Olivia wouldn't want me to live in the past. I've got a daughter to raise and I need to be around for her. Abby is not going to lose both her parents. And you have a great guy who wants to be with you. You and Kyle are perfect for each other. Olivia would want you to be happy, too."

Tyler was glad Eric couldn't see how emotional he was getting. He covered the mouthpiece and took a deep breath. He leaned back against the counter.

"Tyler, are you still there?" He heard his brother ask.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm here." He closed his eyes. "Kyle is pretty great, isn't he?"

"Don't tell me, tell him that. Look, I've got to go. I want to get back to the game."

"Tell Anthony I said hey."

"I will. And call Kyle." Eric hung up before he could answer.

Tyler was dragging at work the next day. By ten o'clock he was already on his second iced coffee. He had laid in bed awake half the night thinking of Kyle and what to say to him. Inevitably he found himself thinking of Stewart and comparing the two relationships. He and Stewart had hit it off when they first met at that health conference. Each thought it was fate that had brought them together; meeting at a seminar hundreds of miles away yet living at opposite ends of the same town. They had similar viewpoints regarding business, the health industry and were both serious about their careers at that point in their life. Stewart introduced Tyler to classical music and Tyler got Stewart to appreciate the game of baseball. They differed when it came to family, Stewart had a sister on the other side of the country that he rarely saw or spoke to. His parents were successful individually as well as part of a couple. Tyler admired and respected them for this but when he and Stewart went out with them, Tyler always felt as if they were stiff and formal. Stewart always had a difficult time with the closeness of Tyler' family and how they shared so much of their lives with each other. But he and Stewart made it work for a long time, their differences keeping things interesting. The sex had been good, even though neither had much experience when they met. They each thought that was as good as it got. Then Stewart got the job offer so far away. He had debated for weeks over whether or not he should take it. Tyler realized that things had been strained even before the job offer and he just hadn't noticed at the time.

He also realized he'd had more fun in the few short months with Kyle than he had in the years he'd been with Stewart. Kyle's family had welcomed him with open arms and treated him like one of their own from the day he met them. But it wasn't all just fun and games and family. Kyle also had a serious side. Many nights, after what he knew now was the best sex he ever had, he and Kyle would talk for hours about everything and anything. It hit Tyler that he had connected with Kyle like he had with no other person before. He would never meet another person better suited for him than Kyle. He couldn't let him slip away.

The first chance he had, he was going to make that call to say and do whatever it took to make things right between them. He was able to leave earlier than planned and the thought of perhaps salvaging some of the day had him smiling the entire drive home.

He ran up the stairs to the second floor and dropped his keys while attempting to unlock the door. He cursed as he picked them up and finally got inside.

He quickly dialed Kyle's cell number but it wasn't Kyle who answered. "Tyler? It's Libby. This is so weird; I was just going to call you. There's been an accident. Kyle and I are at the hospital."

Chapter 14

The One

"Oh my god! How bad is it? Is he okay? Which hospital?" Tyler knew he was rambling.

"Tyler...," Libby tried to interject.

"He's got to be all right. I can't go through this again. I knew I should have...." He couldn't finish the thought.

"Calm down," Libby said in a soothing voice. "He'll be okay. Just a broken wrist and a mild concussion. He's down in x-ray right now. We're at St. James."

"I'll be there as soon as I can. What happened?" he asked as he grabbed his keys and walked out of the building.

"We were riding bikes at Northpoint Park. His bike got a flat tire; he lost his balance and flipped over the handlebars. Landed in the rock garden."

"Oh God. Look, I'm in my car. I'm on my way."

Tyler couldn't get to the hospital fast enough. He knew he was probably breaking several traffic laws, but he didn't care. Although he did believe Libby when she said Kyle was fine, until he saw him with his own eyes he wouldn't be able to dismiss his fear of the worst. If only he would have called earlier to make plans this wouldn't have happened. Those brief seconds when he thought he had lost Kyle forever would plague him for some time. He needed Kyle in his life and he vowed to never let anything come between them again. By the time he pulled into the parking lot he was a nervous wreck. His heart was pounding in his chest and he practically sprinted across the lot to the Emergency Room entrance.

Tyler quickly spotted Libby and Kyle's parents sitting in the uncomfortable chairs chatting quietly between themselves. Kyle's dad saw him first and stood to greet him. Tyler shook his hand and said, "Hi Joe, how is he? When can I see him?"

"He's fine," Joe answered. "Been down in X-Ray for awhile. Guess they're backed up." He tried to lighten the mood. "Maggie's shift is in the ER today. They're letting her stay with him."

"You got here fast," Libby observed, as she stood to give Tyler a hug.

"Traffic wasn't bad," Tyler said. Libby could tell he was lying. "How long have you been waiting?"

Arlene looked at her watch. "About forty five minutes." She squeezed Tyler's arm in affection. Nobody even acknowledged that he and Kyle had been apart for the last month. Tyler inwardly thanked Kyle's parents for this small gesture. "Really, he's fine," Arlene assured Tyler.

"I can't help it. I'm worried," Tyler said sadly. "I want to see him. I've been a little preoccupied lately. I need to make it up to him."

"We know," Arlene said softly. "You'll see. Everything will work out for you two."

"I hope so."

Libby pulled Tyler's arm to get his attention. "Listen to me, Tyler. I've known Kyle for a long time and I can tell you he's never cared about someone the way he cares about you. It's terrible what happened to your sister-in-law but I want you to know that Kyle has been miserable to live with the past couple weeks." She stood back and looked closely at Tyler. "Looks like you've been miserable, too."

She doesn't miss a thing, Tyler thought.

"Libby....," Joe started to say.

"Let her speak, Joe," Arlene snapped at him. Joe knew when to back down from his wife and raised his hands in submission.

Tyler shut his eyes. "She's right," he said to Joe and Arlene. "I'm not here because Libby called. I was calling Kyle to try and make things right between us. I know I've been shutting him out recently but I know for sure he's the one. I love him and I'm willing to do whatever it takes to get him back."

"Well," Libby drawled. "I saw the drawing. I don't think it'll be that difficult."

Tyler smiled.

"What drawing?" Joe and Arlene asked simultaneously.

Before they could get an answer, Maggie returned to the waiting area. The four of them looked at her hoping for good news. "He's fine," Maggie said. "It's only a distal radius fracture. He'll need a cast for about a month, but the bones should heal completely."

Everyone began talking at once.

"Thank goodness," Arlene said.

"Whew," Libby breathed.

"Good to hear that," Joe remarked.

"Can I see him now?" asked Tyler.

Maggie smiled. "Slow down, everyone. I can take you all back for five minutes but then he's only allowed one person with him. Doctor Lucas should be releasing him within the next hour." She indicated for them to follow her.

When they got to the bed Kyle was on, Maggie pulled the curtain for what little privacy there was to be had. Kyle was sitting on the bed, legs dangling off the side. The cast on his left arm wrapped around his thumb and went almost up to his elbow. He had a few minor scrapes on his face and knees. He saw his parents first. "Mom, Dad, sorry."

Arlene crossed the distance and kissed her son's cheek. "Don't be," she said. "Accidents happen."

I know this isn't how you planned on spending your Saturday afternoon," Kyle said.

"Don't worry about it, son," his father said. "We're just glad you're okay."

"Yeah," Libby said. "It sure looked pretty bad when it happened."

"When can I start bragging about it?" Kyle joked.

"Oh, he's fine," Libby said.

Kyle noticed Tyler standing quietly behind his parents. "Tyler," he said. "Thanks for coming."

"I think that's our cue to leave," Libby said to Joe and Arlene. "Let's go get a coffee."

"Are you serious?" Joe joked. "Hospital coffee?"

"I know you have the stomach for it," Libby retorted.

"Ooh, good one," Joe laughed.

"Hey, Lib," Kyle said before she stepped out. "What about our bikes? And my car?"

Libby turned to him. "Oh. Taken care of. Ramona and your parents neighbor Ed took care of all that."

"Good," he replied.

Arlene went to give her son a soft hug. He winced slightly. "Little sore," he said.

"We'll be back before you leave," Arlene said. Her husband ushered her out.

Libby leaned in and whispered to Kyle. "I didn't call Tyler. He was calling you. Just wanted you to know." He smiled.

"Okay," Maggie announced. "Time's up. Glad you are okay, Kyle. Don't come to my ER again."

"Not planning on it," he said. Maggie left with Libby and left Tyler and Kyle staring at one another.

"Hi," Tyler said.

"Hi," Kyle said back.

A few more moments drifted by. "I'm really happy to see you," Tyler finally said. "When Libby said you had an accident, I have to admit, I thought the worst at first."

"Don't...," Kyle started.

"I couldn't bear that thought," Tyler interrupted. "I'm so glad you're okay."

"It was my own fault," Kyle admitted. "I practically dragged Libby out today. I wanted a distraction for a few hours. All I've wanted to do the past couple days was call you." Tyler shut his eyes. "I wasn't paying attention," Kyle continued. "I veered off the path." Tyler hesitantly placed a hand on Kyle's leg, hoping it was okay. Kyle looked down, but didn't remove Tyler's hand.

"This is my entire fault," Tyler said, sadness in his voice.

Kyle put his good hand over Tyler's. "No it isn't," he said. "This is all on me. It was my idea to go for a bike ride."

"What exactly happened? I haven't had time to get all the details."

Kyle briefly told him how he asked Libby to go for a ride at the local park to get out of the apartment and clear his head. It was working until they reached the mini concert pavilion where Kyle and Tyler had gone to listen to a string quartet the weekend before Kyle went to Boston. Lost in thought, Kyle didn't realize the tire had gone flat until he lost his balance. The next thing he knew he was face down in the rock garden and pain was shooting through his wrist and head.

"Oh God," Tyler said. "It is my fault."

"Stop it," Kyle scolded. He yanked Tyler's shirt and pulled him in between his legs. He leaned up, pulling Tyler down and kissed him hard.

Tyler gently pushed away from him. "Kyle, don't," he said. "You have a concussion. You've got to be in pain."

"Not that much," Kyle replied, putting his hand on the back of Tyler's neck pulling him close and kissing him again. This time Tyler put his arms on Kyle's shoulders and returned the kiss.

"Hey!" They heard a voice yell and broke apart, looking sheepishly with kiss-swollen lips and messed hair to spot Maggie standing in the doorway. "No making out in my ER," she said smiling. "Does this mean what I think it means?"

"I don't know, sis," Kyle snarked. "What do you think it means?"

"Have you two patched things up?"

"We still have a lot of talking to do...," Tyler started to say.

"But we'll get there," Kyle finished.

"Glad to hear it," Maggie said. She clapped her hands and grinned.

Both Kyle and Tyler had hopeful smiles on their faces. Tyler stepped out of between Kyle's legs and stood by the side of the bed at a safe distance. Still, Kyle took his hand and entwined it with his. Kyle didn't want the fragile connection they had just found to break.

Doctor Lucas stepped in announcing, "Here are your discharge papers, Kyle. I see you have someone to take you home. Be sure to make an appointment with your own doctor as soon as you can so he can follow up on the concussion. You'll also have to come back here and see Dr. Powell, the orthopedic surgeon here who set your wrist to see how the bones are healing. They may change the cast, depending on what the x-rays show. Then you'll probably need a wrist brace for a few weeks.

"Jesus," Kyle said, shaking his head.

"I'll make sure he does what he's supposed to do, Doctor," Tyler said. He let go of Kyle's hand so Kyle could sign the documents.

"Good," Doctor Lucas said. "Here's a script for prescription strength ibuprofen. Take them if you need to." He handed the slip to Kyle. "Good luck," he said as he walked away.

"Finally," Kyle said as he slid off the bed. "I can get out of here. I hate hospitals. No offense, Mags."

"None taken," his sister assured him. "Let me go get a wheelchair."

"No way. I'm walking out of here on my own," Kyle insisted.

"Very well," Maggie conceded. "Tyler, you hold one arm, I'll hold the other."

"Guys, come on," Kyle pouted.

"Kyle, you have a mild concussion. You can still lose your equilibrium," Maggie stated.

"Fine." He let Tyler and Maggie lead him out. His parents and Libby were in the waiting room and walked behind the trio out the door of the room.

Maggie turned to Tyler and said, "You'll need to bring your car around. I can't let him outside until you do that."

"I'll go get it," Joe said. "Where are you parked?" Tyler gave him the keys and told him where to find his car. A few moments later, Joe was back with the vehicle.

Maggie let go of her brother at the edge of the sidewalk and said, "Take it easy. And use the pain meds if you need them, don't be Mr. Tough Guy."

"Sure thing, sis," Kyle said.

Maggie kissed him on the cheek. "I need to get back to work. I'll call you tomorrow to check on you."

"Okay."

She waved to her parents and Libby and went back inside.

"Are you sure you don't need any more help? Libby asked.

"Positive." Kyle said. "I'm sure Mom and Dad will give you a lift. I really want to be with Tyler now."

"Come on then, Libby. Let them go, so Kyle can rest" Joe said, then went to embrace his son. "Take it easy the rest of the weekend. Let us know if we can bring you anything."

"Thanks, Dad. I will."

"Call us tomorrow and let us know how you are," his mother said. She ruffled Kyle's hair, and then kissed him.

"See ya," Libby said. "Go slow the next couple days." She loosely embraced her friend and whispered "with everything."

Kyle looked at her in the eye with conviction. "I will," he mouthed back.

~~

Finally, just the two of them, and each was relieved for different reasons. Kyle was glad to be leaving the hospital and Tyler was thrilled that Kyle didn't hesitate over where to spend his recuperation.

Tyler helped Kyle into the car, then hurried around to get going. "You ready?" he asked.

"Yes," Kyle replied.

They stopped at the pharmacy to fill the prescription despite Kyle's insistence that he really wouldn't need them. When they finally reached Tyler's place, it was almost 8:00.

"Do you want me to set you up on the sofa or the bed?" Tyler asked when they were inside.

"Sofa first. I'm hungry," Kyle realized. "Do you have stuff to make a sandwich or something?"

"I'm sure I can put something together."

After eating and some television, Kyle was dozing on and off.

Tyler stood up. "Come on. Let's get you to bed."

Kyle moved too quickly and gave a slight hiss. He grimaced and reached out as if to grab onto something. Tyler caught him as he teetered.

"Kyle?" Tyler asked, very concerned.

Kyle rubbed his forehead. "Stood up too fast. Just a little dizzy."

"Are you sure that's all it is?" Tyler was getting nervous.

"Yes, I'm fine."

"You should take one of the pain pills."

"I'm sure the regular stuff will be fine."

"I think...."

Kyle shook free of Tyler and stepped away. "Stop hovering, Tyler. I know how I'm feeling."

"I'm just trying to help." Tyler backed up.

Kyle shut his eyes tightly, and rubbed his forehead again. He exhaled slowly. "Sorry I snapped. I'm really glad you came to the hospital today." He took a step towards Tyler and put a hand on his shoulder.

Tyler covered Kyle's hand with his. "Libby didn't call me. I was calling your phone."

"I know."

"And you didn't tell me?" Tyler let go of Kyle's hand and shook it off his shoulder.

"Well, there really hasn't been time." Kyle was getting irritated, but he knew it was from all that had happened that day. He really didn't want to argue with Tyler tonight.

"Look Kyle," Tyler was saying. "I was calling to see if we could get together. I've got so much to make up to you. If I'd only called you earlier in the day..."

Kyle took a breath. "Drop the what ifs. Nothing we can do about it now." He yawned, and then rubbed his head another time. "I've got a headache. I know we need to talk but I can't right now. I just want to take something and get some sleep."

"Sure thing," Tyler said. "We can talk tomorrow." They walked to the bedroom, not touching, the unresolved tension between them as taut as a wire.

Tyler went to the bathroom to get the pills and some water, while Kyle managed to strip down to his shorts and crawl into the bed.

"Do you want some space? I can sleep on the sofa," Tyler said after he'd given Kyle the pills and water. Please say I can at least sleep in the bed with you, Tyler silently prayed.

Kyle put the cup on the nightstand and then tossed the comforter in invitation. "No," he answered. "I want you here. I miss sleeping with you."

"But your arm..."

"We'll manage."

Tyler took off his pants and got into the bed, staying a safe distance from Kyle. Kyle had turned on his right side and put the injured arm in front of him. "Tyler," he called. "Get over here."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, I want to feel you next to me."

_One small step towards healing, Tyler thought._ The wretchedness of the day was washed away with those words.

The first thing Kyle realized when he awoke the next morning was that his head wasn't pounding anymore. He'd never let Tyler know how bad the pressure had been. The next thing he noticed was Tyler staring at him, lying on his side, elbow propping his head.

"Morning," Tyler said with a smile.

"Good morning," Kyle yawned.

"How's the headache?"

"Gone."

"Good. What about your arm? And the rest of you?"

"Stiff. And not in a good way."

They both laughed. Kyle would be okay. His sense of humor had never left him.

Kyle smelled the unmistakable scent of coffee. "You made coffee already? How long have you been up?"

"Only about half an hour. I'll go pour you a mug."

On his way back to the bedroom, Tyler ran into Kyle. "Whoa," he said. "What are you doing out of bed? You need to rest."

"Oh come on, Tyler. You of all people should know I need to work these sore muscles so they don't get stiff."

Tyler shrugged. "That's true."

After sitting down and taking a few sips of the coffee, Kyle finally spoke. "Look, Tyler, I know you and your family have been through the wringer lately, but I was pissed that you shut me out."

"Ah....," Tyler began.

"No," Kyle interrupted. "Let me finish. It finally dawned on me that this is what you do. You broke things off with Tom when your dad had his heart attack."

"Things were bad with us anyway. We were already on the verge of splitting up." Tyler was feeling a bit defensive.

Kyle wasn't going to let him try to explain away his pattern. "That's beside the point. Then Stewart got a job offer in Florida and you refuse to go with him because you want to stay near your family. Now you've essentially been ignoring me since Olivia died. You keep putting your family before your own relationships." Kyle was past being angry at Tyler, but he still had to let this all out.

Tyler closed his eyes. He placed both coffee mugs on the table. "You're right. Guys have dumped me before because I put my family before them at times. I could say there were other issues too, but the biggest one has been that my family is really important to me. Hell, we all still live within fifteen minutes of each other. But I'm never going to apologize for being close to my family." He asserted each point with a point of his finger. He thought for a brief second Kyle would simply get up and leave at any minute. Which was the last thing he wanted. He hoped and prayed this relationship could be saved. Then his prayer was answered.

"You shouldn't have to."

Tyler slid back onto the sofa in relief. "Thank you," he said. "I have been an idiot because the whole time I was dealing with my grief I'd forgotten that you are the same way with your family. Can you ever forgive me?"

Kyle could tell Tyler was truly sorry. "I admit I was mad at you for awhile, but not anymore. And I forgave you days ago."

Tyler was confused for a moment. Kyle had no qualms about them sleeping in the same bed last night, and then he remembered the other olive branch. "The drawing," Tyler finally said. His heart ached with love for this man whom he thought he lost forever. "That was the most incredible thing anyone has ever done for me." Kyle smiled and let Tyler continue. "I had Eric over for dinner the night you gave me that. He finally helped me see how blind I had been. Oh, and he joined a support group. He's only been to one meeting and said it's helping already." He shook his head. "He's the one whose wife died then he ended up helping me."

"Your brother's a good guy. I'm glad he's getting help." Kyle scooted a bit closer to Tyler. "If we can't count on each other in a crisis, a family tragedy, or anything else, we're not going to last."

"You're right." Tyler put his arm on the back of the sofa, but not touching Kyle. One step at a time. Repair the relationship first, and then deal with the intimacy. "I should have trusted that you'd be there for me. You have to know that it was never anything against you personally. Eric made me see the pattern I'd been developing. The safe bubble of my family is where I knew I'd always be loved. That's why all my previous relationships failed. I need to be close to my family and no one ever got that."

Kyle looked at Tyler, raw emotion in his eyes. "I do."

"I know. And that's why I feel so horrible. You deserve to be treated better than that. I can never repay you for sticking by me."

Kyle put a hand on Tyler's thigh. "Just love me. That's all I want."

Tyler covered Kyle's hand. "I do love you. We're going to get through this, aren't we?"

"Yeah...we are."

After a few moments of silence, Tyler spoke again. It felt wonderful talking like this. He'd never felt closer to anyone than he did right now. He had finally found what he was looking for, and it was all in the form of the man sitting next to him. "I seriously was going to call you the day after you gave me the drawing, but work was crazy. Doug called out...I had to fill in until I could rearrange the schedule."

"I wondered why I didn't hear from you. I thought about calling you, but Libby kept telling me not to."

Tyler half smiled. "When I finally did get a chance to call, she answered your phone."

"Sorry about that."

"I have to tell you, for a split second I thought the worst. I couldn't bear it if I never saw you again. I know now you totally get me. I never thought I'd meet someone who completely understands the bond I have with my family and how I'll never let anymore break it."

"Tyler, you are who you are because of your family. And that's the man I fell in love with."

"Oh, Kyle," he said, tears forming in his eyes. "It's that simple? We're back together?"

Kyle looked at him quizzically. "I don't remember ever breaking up. I never stopped loving you."

Tyler shifted and pulled Kyle into a loose embrace. "I love you, too. So very much." He tightened his grip. Kyle's intake of breath caused him to let go. "Oh, God, I'm sorry. Are you okay?" Worry spread across Tyler's face.

"I'll be fine. Maybe I should take one of those painkillers."

"I'll get you one." Tyler stood.

Kyle grabbed his hand to stop him. "Then we better call our families and let them know we're okay."

Tyler grinned. "I can't believe they haven't called us already."

~~

They spent the rest of the day taking it easy and doing a lot more talking. They knew there would be challenging times in the future but they vowed to be honest with each other and never take the other for granted. Communication was key and they knew now that talking things out up front would prevent the kind of misery they'd each been through the past few weeks.

When Kyle spoke with Maggie, she told him Peter insisted he take a couple days off work. Tyler arranged to take time off as well. "They owe me, after all the hours I've put in the past few days," he had said.

Kyle was able to be squeezed in at his doctor's office Tuesday morning and afterwards he and Tyler went out to lunch.

"Feels good to be out and about again," Kyle said. He was a lot more mobile now and hadn't needed a pain pill in over a day. As they ate their sandwiches, he remembered something he hadn't told Tyler. "I forgot to tell you we scored this huge account."

"That's fantastic!" Tyler said.

Kyle then told him how he messed up at work, Peter saving his ass, and the award submission.

Tyler couldn't stop grinning. "I'm so proud of you."

"Thanks. I won't win, but it's great to have my work recognized."

"You're a brilliant artist, Kyle. Don't let anyone say otherwise." He paused. "Ooh, now I know what to get you for your birthday."

"What?"

Tyler feigned shock. "And ruin the surprise?"

"Seriously Tyler. I'm just glad we worked through our issues. All I want for my birthday is to spend the day with you." He took a bite of his sandwich. "Oh, and for you to come with me to Ramona's on Friday night for PBGN."

"What's that?"

"It's this tradition, Ramona, Maggie and I started a long time ago. We get together the night before each of our birthday and play stupid games. 'Pre Birthday Game Night' we call it."

Tyler laughed. "That's brilliant." He took Kyle's hand in his.

"Yeah, was just the three of us at first, then when they each got serious with someone, we included them. This will be the first time I'm bringing someone."

_Oh god, Tyler thought_. He was so choked up he wasn't sure if he could speak. "Wow. Means a lot to me that you are including me in this."

Kyle looked T square in the eye. "Because Tyler....you're The One."

The revelation took Tyler's breath away and left him speechless.

Both Kyle and Tyler returned to work on Wednesday and Tyler understood that Kyle wanted to go to his apartment and spend time with Libby. They agreed to resume their Wednesday dinner dates the following week.

Friday after work, Kyle let himself into Tyler's place and it took some convincing before Tyler accepted the fact that he felt like himself again, barring the cast on his arm. They walked the two streets over in the development to Romana's place. It was a beautiful fall evening and they wanted to enjoy the weather before the cold of winter set in.

When they arrived at Ramona's, Peter drew Tyler aside and warned him, "Just go with the flow. Don't even try and referee." Several hours later, after silly board games and at least a dozen games of UNO where the rules constantly changed and at one point Tyler thought blood would be spilled, the siblings declared the evening over. As Ramona was ushering everyone out the door, Kyle was still wound up. "Just wait until your PBGN next month, Ramona! Revenge will be mine!"

"Goodnight, Kyle," Ramona said, practically shutting the door in his face.

Kyle turned to Tyler and gave him the once over. "You survived unscathed. One day I'll have to tell you what happened to Peter his first time. Don't worry," he said, gauging the look on Tyler's face. "No calls to 911 were made."

Tyler just shook his head. He had seen the Browne siblings at their worst now. And he was happy to have been included in the festivities. "Thanks again for inviting me tonight."

"You're a part of my life now. And that means you're stuck with my family, too."

Before Tyler could say anything, Maggie called from outside the building. "You guys want a ride home?"

Kyle caught up with his sister. "Nah. We're going to walk."

"Are you sure? It's almost midnight."

"Certain. No one is going to turn into a pumpkin or anything."

"Okay..and you need to get your fairy tales right." She turned to walk away and muttered "You'd think my gay brother would get fairy tales right."

"I heard that!" Kyle called.

Maggie laughed. "Happy Birthday," she called back and got into the car with her husband.

Tyler and Kyle took their time walking back to Tyler's place. When they were halfway through the tree path, Tyler stopped and pulled Kyle close to him. "It has to be past midnight now. Happy Birthday." He leaned in for a gentle kiss. Tyler was ready to resume their sex life and he was hoping Kyle would get the hint.

"Thanks," Kyle said and wrapped his arms around Tyler. "This is already the best birthday ever."

Tyler softly caressed the side of Kyle's face. "When we get back home, I want to show you how happy I am to have you in my life. I'm going to show you how much I love you."

Kyle didn't answer verbally; he simply took Tyler's hand and quickened their pace. Guess we both want the same thing, Tyler reasoned.

Seven minutes later, after fumbling with the lock and practically falling through the door, jackets were on the floor, shoes were kicked off and they were on Tyler's bed wrapped up in each others arms.

Epilogue – New Year's Eve

Tyler adjusted his tie for the fifth time in the last ten minutes. He really hated wearing suits but tonight it was necessary. After Olivia's death, her parents had joined and become active in the local chapter of the Brain Aneurysm Foundation. They had helped organize tonight's New Years Eve banquet. They quickly filled their table for ten with April and her date, he and Kyle, Kyle's parents, Eric and Eric's friend Anthony. Eric and Anthony had been helping each other with the loss of their spouses. Different circumstances for each of them, but a loss nonetheless.

Tyler thought about his own relationship with Kyle and how he had almost thrown it away. Kyle's perseverance in not giving up on him was something Tyler hadn't expected and he'd be forever grateful for that. The day of Kyle's bike accident solidified Tyler's realization that they needed to be there for each other. The superheroes drawing Kyle made would forever be displayed in his home as a reminder of that no matter what life tossed at them. Kyle wasn't going to be anywhere but by his side. And he'd never leave Kyle's. Since they'd been back together, things had been great. They had their spats, but nothing they couldn't, or wouldn't work through. Sometime in the New Year, Tyler decided, he wanted to ask Kyle a serious question. He just had to wait for the right moment.

He looked at his watch again. Did only five minutes pass since he last looked? Kyle was due to arrive any moment now. He fiddled with his tie another time and groaned in frustration. How does Kyle deal with this every day? Just then he heard a noise at the door and a key jiggling in the lock.

Tyler grabbed the suit jacket and was putting it on as Kyle entered. "Hey," he said with a smile.

Kyle stopped where he was. He scrutinized Tyler's appearance. In the black suit, crisp white shirt and maroon tie, he couldn't suppress his appreciation. "Damn," he said.

"What?" Tyler asked. "Is something wrong?" He wiped the arms of the jacket.

Kyle crossed the foyer into the room and stood in front of Tyler. "No," he said. "You're perfect. And dead sexy in that suit. How am I supposed to keep my hands off you all night?" Kyle kissed him, took his overcoat off, and then tossed it on the sofa.

"You're looking pretty hot yourself," Tyler commented. Kyle wore a grey pinstriped suit with a dark shirt and an equally dark tie.

Next thing Tyler knew, he was being pinned against the wall with his boyfriends tongue shoved down his throat. Much as he didn't want Kyle to stop, Tyler pushed him away. "Kyle, we can't," he said breathlessly. "My parents and the Morrison's are expecting us."

Kyle bit his lip. "I know....I know," he almost whined. He rubbed his forehead. "I couldn't help myself. This is only the second time I've seen you in a suit you know."

"When was.....oh." Tyler remembered the last time he had a suit on was at Olivia's funeral.

"Yeah." Kyle grinned. "Wouldn't have been appropriate if I jumped you then."

"Not really." Tyler smiled and both knew that even though Tyler still missed her more often than not, she would have wanted everyone to enjoy life. Tonight was a way to honor her memory and celebrate her life.

Tyler grabbed Kyle's arm and pushed up the jacket sleeve. "Did you remember...yes, you did." He'd given Kyle a pair of gold cufflinks as a Christmas gift.

"I still can't believe you spent so much on these," Kyle said, as he fingered the jewelry.

"You should talk," Tyler countered. "Booking a weekend away for us.....three months

from now."

"I told you that place needs to be booked way in advance. And that's when I can finally take time off work." He paused. "Wait. You're messing with me, aren't you?" Tyler grinned and shook his head. "I know it'll still be cold," Kyle continued. "But I can't wait to walk along the beach with you."

"I know. Me too." Tyler kissed Kyle and squeezed his hand. "But for now..." He went to the closet and retrieved his own overcoat. "Just wait until we get back tonight. I promise you we won't leave the bed until it's time to go to your parents tomorrow."

"I like the sound of that," Kyle agreed. He picked up his coat and put it on. "Tickets?" He asked.

"Oh, right," Tyler went to the other room and came back with the cards. Kyle went to open the door but Tyler put a hand on his to stop him. "One more thing. Please make sure I'm the first person you kiss at the stroke of midnight."

Kyle looked at Tyler and smiled. He cupped Tyler's face with his hands and said, "I wouldn't have it any other way.
