Aaron's Dilemma - 3. Our Weekend Together Pt. 1

It’s been a week since my birthday; Slade and I haven’t had much time together because of our friends. Its times like this that I wish they knew we were a couple so they would give us the space we need to be alone. We’re in desperate need of a few days away. He luckily has this weekend off, so we’ve decided to go to his family’s lake cabin. It’s the ideal place for us because of its isolation.

The only thing we had to do was work out a feasible lie to tell our parents. Because even though Ma knows about us, I don’t want her to know Slade and I will be alone at the cabin. We’ve told them we’re going camping with Randy and the rest of the crew at the quarry, and they bought it.

<><><><><><>

“Make sure the water’s deep enough for diving before one of you breaks your neck,” Ma states working the pots on the stove.

I wrap an arm around her shoulder. “Ma, don’t ya know, I’m always careful.”

Unimpressed, she rolls her eyes. “Yeah, sure you are. Hey, I know this is last minute, but can you take Candy? It’ll give me some alone time with your father.”

I shudder dramatically, cover my ears, and groan. “Gross. No child should ever hear those words come from a parent’s mouth. Besides, I don't want squirt around my friends. I don’t want to bust someone’s ass because he can’t keep his grimy hands off my baby sister.”

Ma stops and looks at me. “Watch your mouth. Fine don’t take her. What time do you leave tomorrow?”

“5a.m., but I leave earlier to pick up Slade, and then drive us over to Randy’s. We’ll leave from there.”

With all the food on the stove, Ma heads out the kitchen and I follow. “Okay. You know the drill. Let me know when you’re leaving, call me when you get there, call me before you go to bed, call me when you wake up, and call me when you’re on your way home,” Ma says walking upstairs.

“I’m not sure but I get the sense that you want me to call you.”

She turns on the stairs with her ‘don’t piss me off’ face. “Don’t sass me. Just do as I say, okay?”

“Yes, ma’am,” I answer quickly.

<><><><><><>

It feels as though only seconds have gone by from the time that I fall asleep to when my alarm awakens me. But knowing I’ll see Slade in less than an hour has me practically floating on air. In thirty minutes, I’m showered, dressed, reading over the driving instructions, and eating my breakfast. Checking the time, I have five minutes before I have to leave; I put two breakfast burritos in the microwave for Slade.

Heading up to my parent’s room, I knock gently before entering, and kneel by my mother’s side. “Ma, I’m leaving now. I’ll see y’all Monday, okay?”

“Okay, sweetie, drive safely, and call me when you get there,” she murmurs sleepily. “Love you.”

I kiss her cheek. “Yes, ma’am, I will. Love you, too. Bye.”

Exiting my parent’s room, I hear the microwave buzz, and hurry downstairs to gather the rest of Slade’s breakfast. The cold morning greets me upon opening the door. I scramble to the truck. While warming the engine, I place Slade’s breakfast on his side, connect my phone to the charger, and call him.

It rings four times. “Yeah,” the groggy voice on the other end answers.

I smile as I picture the sleepy face I know all too well. “I’m on my way.”

“Okay, baby,” he says through a yawn, “see you when you get here.”

“Stay awake.”

“Alright.” He yawns again and hangs up.

There’s not a lot of traffic this early Friday morning so it doesn't take long for me to reach Slade’s place. Upon walking into his room, I find him sprawled out on his back, fully dressed, phone in hand, and snoring. I walk over and crawl into bed with him, and when I lay my head on his shoulder, he automatically wraps his arms around me. A sigh of contentment passes my lips as I snuggle in closer, breathing in his smell, and taking advantage of his warmth. I close my eyes and relish being in his arms.

Slade worked two straight doubles so we hadn’t seen each other for more than two hours in the last 48. We agreed to no sleepovers to allow him the chance to rest for work. After two days of loneliness, I could spend the rest of the day like this, but unfortunately, I move from my comfortable spot in his arms to awaken him.

I gently shake his shoulder several times. “Wake up, Jones.”

He stirs but doesn’t wake up. I try a different tactic by straddling his waist and kissing him. At first, there’s no response, but soon he’s kissing me back. There’s soft moaning from both of us as the kiss deepens. His hands rest at my neck while his velvety tongue glides across mine with a firm, sensual ease. Every nibble and suck to my lip has me whimpering helplessly. His hands move under my shirt and massage my chest, but I come to my senses when he unfastens the button on my jeans, and I stop him.

“Come on, baby. We have time,” he whispers breathlessly.

Groaning, I shake my head in regret and say, “We can’t. We have a long drive ahead of us.” He boos me playfully, sits up and we exchange a few more kisses before I pull away. “Let’s go.”

“Wait, one more minute,” he says, pulling me back into his arms. I hear him inhale deeply as he burrows into my neck. I smile knowing that he needed a hit of my scent the way I needed a hit of his. I run my fingers through his hair, drawing him in closer, and loving the way his tongue feels on my neck. After the shortest minute in the history of the universe, we break apart reluctantly, and I climb off him. Slade rolls off the bed and grabs two bags by the door. We head out to the truck.

I nearly jump out my skin when Miss April calls out, “You boys have fun.”

“Yes, ma’am, we will.” I wave to her then clutch my chest when I turn away.

“I’ll be right back,” Slade jogs over to his mother. They have a quick discussion before he’s back at the truck.

“She scared the hell outta me,” I announce when he opens his door.

“Me, too.” He notices the food. “Is this for me?”

“Yeah,” I answer.

He smiles at me. “Thanks, baby.”

I smile back and give him a wink. “You’re welcome. Eat ‘em before they get cold.”

“Don’t have to tell me twice.” He scarfs down the burritos, muffins, and gulps the orange juice before I reach the highway. He burps loudly and smacks his lips. “It always tastes better going down.”

I groan. “Dude, you’re so gross.”

Slade laughs. “Whatever. You wish you can burp like me.”

“Yeah, l lay awake at night cursing you ‘cause you can burp better than me,” I reply dramatically.

He jabs me in the shoulder. “So, you admit it.”

Laughing, I say, “I admit nothing. Hey, what time did you get home?”

He slides across the bench seat, places his hand on my thigh, and squeezes. “Not until almost two. Soon as I got home, I showered and got dressed.”

Running my hand through his hair to his neck, I can see how tired he is. “You’re exhausted. Go to sleep.”

“No, it’s a long drive, Aar. I’ll keep you company,” he says putting his head on my shoulder. “Oh, I have your birthday gift.”

Excitedly, I ask, “What is it?”

He takes my hand in his and links our finger. “Not telling ya. But I will tell you that it’s something you’ve wanted for a long, long time.”

“Gee, thanks. That narrows it down to a list of over a hundred things. Can you give me a better clue than that?”

“Can I? Yes. Will I? Nah, I want to watch you drive yourself crazy tryin’ to figure it out.”

“I’m not liking you very much right now, Jones.”

He laughs placing a kiss to my neck. “You’ll get over it.”

Five minutes later, Slade falls asleep in the middle of our conversation, so much for keeping me company.

<><><><><><>

Nearly three hours later, a large, dark brown, one-story cabin with a red brick chimney along the outside comes into view. The sun reflects off the solar panels on the roof. There’s a grey stone pathway leading to the front door. The lake is about thirty-five yards from the cabin with a 10-foot long dock. There’s a wooden raft floating in the middle of the lake. A boat covered and stored on a trailer sits a few feet from the water. Stopping in front of the cabin, I take in the beauty and serenity surrounding us.

“Hey, blue-eyes, we’re here.” I coax Slade awake. He blinks several times, yawns, and stretches.

I climb out the truck and breathe in the calming, sweet smell of pine. He walks over, takes my hand, and pulls me along down to the water. At the edge of the dock, I wrap my arms around him, and rest my chin on his shoulder. We watch the ripple of the water caused by a raft of ducks swimming nearby.

“I can’t believe we have this place to ourselves, Aar,” he says quietly.

“I can’t believe we get to do this.” I move in front of him. Looking into his eyes, I kiss him, and our arms wrap tight around each other. Several minutes later, the kiss ends and he rubs his nose against mine, and kisses my chin, then we embrace.

He places his hands on my chest. “I missed you, baby. Today couldn’t get here fast enough.”

“I know. I felt like a prisoner marking off the days left on his sentence.” Slade laughs, pinching my ass when he slides his hands inside my back pockets. I yelp. “Hey, don’t bruise the produce.”

Slade looks innocently up at me. “I can do whatever I want. It’s my produce, ain’t it?” As if proving his point, his hands make hard contact with my ass and grabs onto it firmly.

With my nose in the air, and in a bad English/Southern accent I say, “How dare you? You, sir, just lost any hope of me putting out this weekend.”

I try to walk away but he stops me. Moving behind me, I feel him slide down my back, rubbing my ass lightly, and placing gentle kisses on each cheek. “Better?” He asks when he stands kissing my neck.

“Yeah,” I manage to say when after getting lost in the pool of his sapphire eyes.

He smiles shyly at me. “Let’s unload the truck. You got everything right?”

I take his hand and we walk back to the truck. “Yeah, I made sure to grab extra A&W for you too.”

Slade laughs lightly. “I’m gonna start calling you my enabler if you keep feeding my root beer addiction. C’mon. The quicker we get the truck unpacked, the sooner we can enjoy ourselves.”

We move everything inside, plug in the appliances, open the windows, uncover the furniture, and make the bed in the master bedroom. I look down at the coolers. “We can put the food away later. There are enough ice packs to keep everything cold for a couple more hours.”

"That’s fine with me.” He grabs a root beer from the cooler. “Baby, do you want a drink?"

I shake my head; he shrugs, walks over to the couch, and sits down. Exhausted, I slump down next to him, and put my head on his shoulder. We sit and play with each other’s hand, when I remember. “Damn, I gotta call Ma. She’s probably wondering why I haven’t called her yet.”

“I should call Mama too,” Slade replies, digging his phone from his back pocket.

I step outside to make my call. “Hey, Ma. We’re here. Reception is kinda crappy but I’ll try to call you as often as I can, okay?”

“Don’t worry about it. Go. Have fun. Call me tomorrow though. Tell everyone I said, ‘hi’ and try not to get yourself killed. I’d hate to have to bring you back to life only to kill you myself for putting me through heartache. Oh, I gotta run. I’m late for a meeting. Bye, sweetie,” Ma says hurriedly.

“Okay. Talk to you later.”

The call ends. I rejoin Slade on the couch. “We should’ve gone to bed,” Slade says with a tired whine. Neither of us moves, and before long, he’s snoring softly in my ear.

Shaking my shoulder slightly, I call him, “Jones?” His eyes jerk open. Without another word, I lead him to the bedroom; we strip and get under the cover. His head rests on my chest, and he lazily strokes my stomach. It doesn’t take long for me to fall asleep.

My slumber is not a peaceful one. I have a bad dream about Slade. In this dream, he’s kissing another guy. When I call out his name, he smirks at me, walks away, and disappears. I awaken with a jolt, the pulse in my neck throbs achingly while sweat drips from my face, and I can barely catch my breath. I’ve had a few dreams like that one on and off over the last month, but since my birthday, they’ve become more frequent. To a degree, they get to me and make me wonder if we can survive the long distance.

“Are you okay? What’s wrong, baby?” He murmurs sleepily, looking at me.

“Nothing everything’s fine, Jones. Go back to sleep,” I answer, kissing his cheek and turning away to wipe my face. The arm he has across my waist pulls me closer to him, and he kisses the back of my neck. Normally, the gesture would’ve had a calming effect on me, but right now, all I’m trying to do is fight the urge to fall asleep.

<><><><><><>

I reach for him but his side of the bed is cold. I clear the sleepiness from my voice before I call out, “Jones?”

“In the kitchen, Aar,” he replies.

I slip my jeans on and proceed down the hall to the kitchen where he’s putting the food away. The sight of him in damp shorts and a towel draped around his neck has me entranced. Shaking the lewd thoughts running through my mind, I take a much-needed stretch. “Why didn’t you wake me?”

Slade turns around and kisses me. “Nice to see you, too, baby. I didn’t wake you ‘cause you haven’t been sleeping. Like earlier, you kept waking me with all your tossin’ and turnin’.”

Shaking my head in disagreement, I say, “No, I didn’t, did I?”

“Yeah you did,” he says with a short laugh. “You were talking in your sleep too but I couldn’t make out what you were saying. What were you dreaming about anyway?”

“I don’t remember,” I answer quickly and change the topic just as quick. “Hey, let’s go swimming.”

He knows I’m dodging. The scrutiny in the way he’s observing me has me uncomfortable, but after a few seconds, he shakes his head, and turns away. “Go change. I’ll finish putting this stuff away.”

He’s upset. I hate upsetting him but there’s no need to tell him about my dreams. I’ll stop having them eventually. I change, use the bathroom, and head back to the kitchen. Slade has his back to me and doesn’t see me approach. He jumps when I touch his shoulders. I kiss his neck as he leans against my chest, but I notice it takes him longer to relax, and I hate it.

Nervously, I whisper in his ear, “I want to tell you about the dream. I do, but I’m not ready.”

He tilts his head back to look up at me. “Baby, you can talk to me.”

“Jones, these dreams suck. It’ll be easier for me to tell you about them when I stop having them. But right now all I want to do is forget and be here with you, please?” I plead.

“I don’t…these dreams can g…,” he stops. After a few seconds, he turns to face me. “Aar, I’ll drop it. But if you keep having them, you’re gonna tell me, even if I have to beat it out of you, comprendes?”

“Yeah,” I reply relieved at the reprieve he’s issued me for now. “Thank you.”

Slade kisses me but the air is still a bit thick. Needing to change the mood, I lick his cheek, and he laughs. He twists out of my arms, wipes his face, and backs away into the living area with his hands up. “Stop, Aar. Don’t make me hurt you.”

I bite my nails in mock terror. “Ooohhh, I’m so scared.”

He expands his chest and lifts his head in a challenge. “Don’t fuck with me, Brooks. You know I can take you down.”

I pull him to me, and blow softly in his ear, making him shudder, and I mutter, “Try it.”

Slade scoffs loudly. He performs a countermove that has me on the couch with him astride me before I can blink. Leaning in, he kisses me teasingly. He grips my hair painfully, but when he pulls my head back exposing my neck, I can’t help feeling aroused, as he nibbles and licks his way across my neck.

“Slade,” I moan desperately, gripping his shoulders, and clawing my nails down his back. A smack to his ass makes him bite my neck, and I cry out.

He sits back instantly to inspect the damage. His fingers gingerly glide over the bite and I wince. “Damn, baby, I’m sorry,” he says, kissing the spot.

I smile up at him. “You’ve done worse you know.”

He laughs and playfully slaps my cheek. While staring into my eyes, he skims his thumbs down my chest, and rubs both nipples. I place several soft kisses to his chest up to his mouth. Our tongues massage hungrily against one another as the kiss deepens with a newfound urgency. I hiss from the erotic discomfort of multiple bites to my lip. Sticking my hands inside his shorts and cupping his ass makes him moan. I time the rocking of his hips with my own. His shorts cannot conceal his growing arousal as it rubs against my own. I change our position with Slade laying on top of me. He slithers down, deftly kneading the muscles in my chest and biceps, the rapid flicking of his tongue on my nipples sends tingles through me.

When Slade tries to move down, I beckon him to me. He looks confused crawling back onto my lap. I free him from his confinement, and run my thumb across the leaking, fleshy slit. I stroke his heavy erection. He rocks his hips back and forth, gliding his hands across my chest; and leans forward to brush his lips against mine. His breathing and writhing quicken.

‘That feels good, baby,” he moans softly, biting part of his lower lip and closes his eyes. His skin’s flushed and hot to the touch. Change in our position has him now on his back with me on top. Loud moans pierce the air when he feels me take him in my mouth. Gripping my hair, his thrusts are quick but shallow. He calls out, "Oh, shit!" He erupts like a geyser. I can barely swallow as spurt after spurt fills my mouth. After a couple of minutes, his breathing evens out. “I fucking needed that.”

“You’re welcome,” I mumble, nibbling his ear and he laughs warmly.

<><><><><><>

We’ve just finished the setup for our picnic down by the water. Without a breeze, the blazing sun’s heat is intense and uncomfortable. In need of cooling down, I run full speed and cannonball into the refreshingly cool water.

“Mind if I join you?” Slade calls out when I break the surface.

“You better get that sexy ass of yours in here,” I reply swimming backwards towards the raft.

He stops, turns around, and palms his ass. “You mean this sexy ass?”

I lick my lips ogling the beautiful sight before me. “Oh, yeah, that’s the one. Get it in here, Jones.” He dives in and swims over to me. When he’s close enough, I kiss him softly.

“We’re gonna have a lot of fun this weekend, baby. Are you ready for it?” He asks cocking an eyebrow.

“Definitely,” I whisper. Slade turns us around so his back is towards the raft. He pretends to massage my shoulders but dunks me and takes off. I swim after him. He’s almost back to shore when I grab his foot. He tries to shake free but I’m able to pull him back. I wrap an arm around his waist with his back against my chest. “Revenge time.”

He laughs trying to hook his feet behind my legs. “Baby, don’t do it.”

“Do what? This?” I dunk him quickly but I still hold onto him.

Laughing heartily, he yells, “Okay, Aar, you can let me go now.”

“Nuh-huh, I think I’ll keep doin’ this.”

I dunk him a few more times when he suddenly calls out, “Shit!”

“What? What’s wrong?” Releasing him, I look him over in a panic. “Did I hurt you?”

Looking sheepish at my reaction, he says, “No. Just remembered that you didn’t put on sunblock.”

With a roll of my eyes, I barrage him with torrents of water. “Are you fucking kidding me? You scared the hell outta me ‘cause of sunblock?!”

When I stop, Slade sputters, wipes his face, and says without hesitation, “You know you have to take care of yourself. Alright, I’m sorry for scaring ya, but I’m not sorry for worrying.”

Frustrated but touched, I groan quietly. “But you worry too much. I’m not getting sick again, Slade.”

“Yeah, well, we’re gonna keep it that way. So, go put on the fucking sunblock,” he growls, determined to end the conversation.

Knowing I won’t win, I salute him. “Aye-aye, Captain.”

We wade to shore and dry off as best we can. Slade takes out the sunblock and sits on the blanket. Feeling like an ass for how I acted, I straddle him and say, “You worked hard this week. I’ll do it for you.”

Slade looks hesitant. I know he wants to object but doesn’t as I take the tube from his hand. Arching my eyebrow at him finally gets him to lay back. Squeezing out a large amount, I work it into his chest and arms, and then down his thighs. I slide up his body, placing quick kisses along the way. Applying a small amount of sunblock to my hands, I push back his sunglasses to put it on his face. When I finish, I lean forward, kiss his cheek, and whisper, "Turn over."

He turns. I work the sunblock into his shoulders and back using the techniques I’d learned from a sports therapist. I massage his lower back and he groans when I apply pressure.

“Too hard?”

“Uh-huh, baby, feels good. Oh, yeah, right there,” he moans when I knead my thumbs in small circles. I feel the knots release as I continue. Minutes later, I move to his calves and end with a massage to his tired, achy feet. His satisfied moans are all I need to know that he likes it. When I’m done, I give his taut ass a swat, and he yelps, “Damn!”

I watch him rub his ass. “Oh, please. I didn’t hit you hard.”

His blue eyes lock onto my light brown. “You’re lucky I’m too relaxed to care. I almost fell asleep.”

I run my hands through my hair and smile smugly. “Well, I am the best. Who else could’ve done that for you?”

Laughing, he pulls his sunglasses down, and says, “You’re so freakin’ cocky.”

I slap a hand to my chest. “Who? Me?” He playfully pushes me off him. I grab his sunglasses, put them on, and lay on the blanket. “Okay, my turn.”

Slade follows the path I’d worked on him until he finishes with a very hard smack to my ass. Before I can object, he kisses the back of my neck. When I turn over, he aggressively fondles me; stifling my moans with a kiss. He traces a line with his tongue down my neck, drawing the outline of my abs and back up to my neck. He entwines our fingers bringing our hands down to my sides. Knowing my belly button is a major hot zone, Slade licks around it before thrusting his tongue in. He releases my hands and grabs onto my hips to keep me from bucking against him. I moan deeply. My fingers tangle in his hair.

He plants kisses down my blond happy trail to the top of my shorts, and he stops. Taking off the sunglasses, I prop myself on my elbows and watch him pull down my shorts, my semi-erect cock pops free, and he slowly licks from balls to tip. We lock eyes, but he ignores my silent plea for him to wrap his luscious lips on me, as he continues to lick my length multiple times like its ice cream.

My voice cracks involuntarily when I plead, “C’mon, Jones, stop playin’ around.”

Slade grins. He likes it when I beg because he knows he has me where he wants me. Instead of drawing it out as I expect him to, I disappear into the warm and inviting depths of his mouth. His full, soft, pink lips stretch around my girth. I squirm beneath him as his sucking and licking intensifies. I feel his throat vibrate as he hums the song playing in the background. I fall back against the blanket, and begin fucking his mouth with short thrusts. Moments later my body trembles, eyes roll to the back of my head, and toes curl as I feel the tingle in my lower back.

“Gonna come,” I announce, embarrassed at having lasted less than five minutes. Slade pulls away; I whine at feeling the absence of his warm mouth. His lips move to my neck as he strokes me vigorously. I nearly take out an eye with the first spurt of cum landing just below my left eye. Two days of release runs down the side of my body. Getting on his knees, his slightly calloused hands skim along my inner thighs, as he kisses and nips each one alternately. He then massages the tip of my extremely sensitive cock incessantly with his thumb. I clasp his wrist and pull him off unable to deal with the overstimulation.

“I couldn’t help myself,” he says, kissing the tip, and he then licks his way up my chest and kisses me.

I smile dreamily at him and murmur, “What can I say, I’m irresistible.”

He laughs and kisses me one more time. “You’re an idiot.”

I look down at the mess. “Great. You complained about the sunblock and then you go and do this.”

Slade rolls his eyes. He wets a towel quickly wiping down my chest and face. He grabs the sunblock and reapplies it. “Feel better now, your highness?”

“A little bit.” I say, rolling over on top of him and claiming his lips.

We make out under the shade of the trees forgetting about our picnic. We eventually settle in each other’s arms. Slade falls asleep as I stroke his back. I can’t help watching him, committing everything about the way he looks, smells, and sounds to memory. I kiss the tip of his nose and forehead, and caress his shoulder. He’s only asleep about ten minutes when he snuggles closer and opens his eyes.

“Hey, you.” I smile at him, my thumb stroking his cheek. “Hungry?”

He yawns, stretches, rolls over on top of me, crosses his arms across my chest, and rests his chin on his forearm. “I’m always hungry. We should get to those sandwiches before they get soggy.”

I prop myself on my elbows and kiss his forehead. “What’d you make?”

“Turkey ‘n cheese and roast beef with all the fixin’s on the side; there’s chips, fruit, and a garden salad.”

“No carrots, right?” I ask.

“Seriously? I know you’re allergic to raw carrots, so why would I put them in the salad?”

Shrugging, I kiss his cheek and say, “Force of habit, I can’t help it.”

<><><><><><>

I scarf down several sandwiches, and most of the salad and some fruit. This is the most food I’ve eaten in one sitting in over two months. Slade looks impressed when I let out a thunderous burp. Rubbing my full belly, I smile. “Damn that was good, Jones.”

He winks. “Thanks, Aar.”

Finishing off my water, I look over at the covered boat. “Do you think there’s enough gas to take it out?”

“Only one way to find out.” He runs up to the cabin and reemerges with the key. He pulls off the cover and climbs in. The boat sputters to life. He checks the gauge. “It looks like there’s just under half a tank. Wanna chance it?”

“Hell yeah,” I answer.

We take everything up to the cabin. It takes some time to get the boat into the water. Now that we have, God, help me, Slade wants to drive first. I can’t object because it’s his family’s boat. I perform a silent prayer when he starts the engine. My heart pounds at an alarming rate. He drives as if the cops are chasing us. For ten minutes, we careen around the lake, waking the once still water, and making the ducks fly to get out of the way. He turns abruptly nearly tossing me from the boat. I can’t take it anymore.

I move to stand beside him. “Ok, Jones, that’s it you’re done. I almost fell out back there.” He sinks his teeth into my shoulder. “Stop that hurts.”

I rub the sting from my shoulder. Slade laughs, gives up the wheel, and sits in the seat that I vacated. At a leisure but acceptable pace, I drive us around the lake. We’re making plans for what we want to do later. I look around oblivious to how quiet he has become, until I hear multiple sniffles, and I turn to see him watching me, but he turns away quickly wiping his eyes.

Concerned, I ask, “Jones?”

He tries to hide behind his sunglasses by pulling them down, and sniffles again. “Allergies are actin’ up.”

“You don’t have allergies,” I slow the boat to a stop, and sit in the seat next to him. “Why’re you crying?”

He looks out at the water. “I’m not.”

I move to kneel in front of him but he keeps his eyes on the water. A tear rolls down his cheek and he flicks it away, taking his hands in mine, I kiss his palms. He exhales a deep breath. “Is it bad?” I ask.

He answers with a shake of his head. “When I think about you leaving, this happens,” he whispers sullenly, gesturing to his face. “And I feel like an idiot ‘cause you see how stupid I’m actin’.”

His head falls forward. I take his sunglasses off, cradle his head in my hands, making him look at me. “I’d be lying if I said I haven’t done it too,” I confess. “I hate that I’m leaving but I’m coming back to you.”

Slade closes his eyes, leaning his forehead against mine, and whispers, “It’s impossible. Two days without you had me climbing the walls, how do I go months?”

I hug him. “C’mon, Jones, don’t do this. We both know how hard it’s gonna be. But we know what we have to do; we’re calling each other every night, Skyping our date nights, and alternating holiday vacations to see each other.”

“Yeah, but it’s not the same as having you here. Who’s gonna get me through Randy and his ridiculous stories about Tammy, or Josh’s crazy schemes?” He pauses briefly. “What about the monkey dance?”

Ah, the infamous monkey dance. I came up with it three years ago when Slade’s grandpa had a heart attack, and he refused to smile, even after he learned his grandpa was going to be fine. It’s my go-to move to make him smile. Knowing what I have to do, I stand up, do the dance, and even make the noises. When I finish, he smiles weakly.

“Jones, we’ll be back together in no time, okay?” I hope he can’t see through the façade as I think back to the dream. He smiles half-heartedly. With a nervous chuckle, I blurt out, “You don’t want to breakup, do you?”

Slade shakes his head and laughs. “It took too long to train you. It’d be a pain in the ass to do it all over again with someone else. So, no, I don’t want to break up,” he says genuinely.

“Train me? Really? I’m not a dog, Jones.” His infectious laughter has me laughing with him. Then out of nowhere, the sun disappears, followed by a deafening boom of thunder that startles us. The sky lights up with several large bolts of lightning. The temperature drops with the wind blowing strongly. The thunder makes another frightening appearance.

“Whoa. That doesn’t look good.” Slade points off into the distance and the sky is dark as night.

“We gotta get off the water.” I turn the key, the engine sputters, and nothing. “C’mon, C’mon, C’mon,” I beckon while repeatedly trying to get it started

“Baby, stop, you’re gonna flood the engine. Wait a few and then try again,” he says nervously.

I close my eyes and pray for it to start. We breathe a sigh of relief when it comes to life. I drive as fast as I can without killing what’s left of the gas. We arrive at the cabin minutes later. Slade hops onto the dock to pull us in and tie down the boat. He grabs the boat cover and before we open it, the rain starts; it’s hard and fast. There’s a lot of water in the boat by the time we get it covered. We bolt up to the cabin. Cool air from the fan greets us when we crash through the door.

“Woo, it’s cold in here,” Slade states, drying himself with a towel from the couch, and shivers.

I grab the blanket off the couch, wrap it around my shoulders, and encase him in the blanket with me. I lock my arms around his neck. I hum my approval at feeling his hands grab my ass. Eventually, he stops shivering, but we don’t pull apart. I love being in his arms. This is where I belong with him and not in Boston over 600 miles away.

A couple minutes later, he draws back and says, “I gotta piss so bad I can taste it.”

“You say the sexiest things,” I say with a straight face but unable to hold in the laughter.

Slade laughs along, slips out my arms, and into the bathroom. “Babe, grab me some clothes.”

There’s another loud flash of lightning. Good thing the cabin is off the grid, we don’t have to worry about losing power. I change quickly and grab his clothes. I knock on the bathroom door. “Here.”

His gorgeous naked body greets me when he opens the door. All I want to do is slather him in honey and slowly lick it off. Grabbing the clothes from my hand, he smirks, and closes the door. He emerges seconds later dressed and says, “It’s early but I should get supper on.”

“Okay, I’ll help.”

He shakes his head vehemently. “No way. Remember the last time you tried to cook?”

Unlike Slade, I’m a disaster in the kitchen. Last year for his birthday, I made his favorite meal: neck bones with cabbage and cornbread. It didn’t turn out the way I’d hoped. He ate a couple bites but couldn’t finish the rest.

“I can help though,” I offer. He turns me towards the couch. Getting the hint that he doesn’t need me I give up. “Fine, I’ll watch TV.”

I surf the stations, while he works with precision, and has supper in the countertop oven within ten minutes. I land on an old 80s action film, when he appears and sits on the arm of the couch.

He chuckles. “Let’s watch this. At the end when he shoots that naked dude in the head in the middle of the street it’s so fucked up.”

“I know I couldn’t stop laughing ‘cause I wasn’t expecting it.”

I yawn and he looks at me. “Take a nap.”

Rubbing his knee, I shake my head. “Lay with me.”

“If I lay down, I’m gonna fall asleep, and the food will burn.”

“Sit then,” I say, pulling a cushion from behind me, and placing it on the floor. He sits crossed leg in front of me. The last thing I remember is draping my arm over his chest and kissing his neck.

I awaken to Slade nibbling and whispering in my ear, “Aaron? Baby, wake up.” I crack an eye open to see him smiling at me, and I smile back. “It’s about time. I was doing that for two minutes.”

“What’s wrong?” I sigh, closing my eye again.

He tugs on my hand. “Supper’s done, c’mon.”

“Do I have to?”

“Yeah, you haven’t eaten in a while.” On cue, my stomach growls making him laugh. “See?”

“Okay, fine.” Slade helps me off the couch and I turn off the television. “What’re we having?”

“Baked chicken with rice, and roasted veggies,” he says.

We make our plates, say grace, and dive in. My eyes roll after I take my first bite. “This is so fucking good, Jones.”

He blushes. “Thanks, babe.”

While we eat, the rain continues to pelt the roof, the thunder breaks through the air every so often, and the lightning continues to light up the sky. The lights flicker causing us to both stop eating and look around.

I chuckle nervously. “What’s with the lights?”

He shrugs looking baffled. “I don’t know. Pa installed a new battery last year. It can’t be that. I’ll go check. The wind must’ve loosened a wire or something.”

I grab his hand when he moves to stand. “No, messing with electrical things outside while it’s lightning, es no bueno. Stay here. If we lose power, we’ll find a way to keep ourselves busy,” I smile mischievously. I collect our empty plates, and wrap up the leftovers. “Have you thought about working the line at the restaurant?”

Slade stands with his back against the counter as I wash the dishes. “I’m too busy doing double duty as a server and prep cook. I don’t have the energy to work the line.”

“You could be the next, Michael Symon or Emeril Lagasse, except way hotter,” I say with a wink, drying my hands after I finish the last dish.

“I cook for fun,” he says, kissing my bruised shoulder and walking to the living area. “TV?”

“Music.” I grab my iPod and cycle through my playlists before deciding on a mix of old school Soul/R&B. Seconds later, the room fills with the rich, alluring voice of Otis Redding. I join Slade on the couch, he places his head on my lap, and he smiles up at me. I run my hand down his torso and let it rest on his hip.

“God, I love this song. Remember when we had your house to ourselves and all we did was dance?”

I nod at the memory. “Oh, I remember. I also remember us falling when I tried that dance move I saw on TV. Epic fail!”

“I know you landed on me. My ass hurt for two days,” he chuckles.

“I thought for sure you wouldn’t ever let me touch you again.” A new song begins. I slide from under him and stand. Holding my hand out, I say, “Let me redeem myself. Dance with me.”

“Just as long as you don’t try that move again,” he laughs.

I haul him to his feet, drape my arms over his shoulders; Slade holds my waist, and we sway to the music. With each song, we get closer, and before long, his head is on my shoulder, running his hands up and down my back. My hands are now under his shirt resting on the small of his back.

One of my all-time favorite songs is the next to play, and I sing the melodic tune of ‘I Only Have Eyes for You’ by The Flamingos softly into his ear. Every word in this song is exactly how I feel about him. The rapid beating of my heart coincides with his own, and his labored breath is hot on my chest.

“Aaron, I’m ready to give you your present now,” he whispers nervously.

We continue to sway but I’m confused as to why he’s choosing now to give me my present. I receive a breathy one-word response of “yes” when I ask, now. Slade sits me on the couch. He walks into the bedroom and returns with a small green box with a white bow on it. He sits facing me on the couch. “Happy birthday, baby,” he says, handing me the box and kissing my forehead.

Opening the box, I see a beautiful platinum key with our names etched in script. There are two dates under our names: the day we met and our anniversary. He lifts my head to him. Looking deep into my eyes, he holds my cheek in his right hand, and smiles warmly. "God, Aaron, I love you so much. I’ve known since that night I sprained my knee at the dam, and you told those stupid ass jokes about cops and hookers to help keep my mind off the pain. Not gonna lie, baby, it scared the hell outta me when I realized how much I loved you. After that night, I tried so many times to tell you but I’d psych myself out. I won’t do that anymore. With all the craziness in this world, loving you is the only thing that makes any sense to me. You’re generous, sweet, caring, loveable, and an amazing kisser.” We both laugh. “You’re my most favorite person. I like that you’re not perfect but you’re perfect for me. And, I’ll never let another day go by without saying, ‘I love you’ because I do, with all my heart.” Slade takes my empty hand, placing it over his heart, and covering it with his.

My heart skips several beats. Hearing the words was everything I hoped it would be and more. I press my cheek into his hand and kiss his wrist. The tears well up in my eyes. Looking at him, I know what I have to do.

“I love you too, Slade.” I kiss him, it’s unrushed, but consuming; I smile blissfully when it ends. I have one hand on his neck while the other holds the box to his waist. “I’m not sure when I fell in love with you but I know when I realized it. It was when you took Candace to her school dance. You saw how upset she was when no one asked her, and you didn’t even hesitate to step in when I told you she wouldn’t let me take her. You made my little sister happy when she was having a rough time in school. I saw you in a whole new light. So that’s when I knew, and every day since then I’ve fallen more in love with you ‘cause you’re so good to me and to everyone else around you. It’s just who you are deep in your soul. When I was younger, I convinced myself I that couldn’t be happy like everyone else ‘cause I knew I was different, but that changed the second you walked into my life. You’re everything in this world to me. My heart is and always will be yours. I love you so much, Jones.”

Slade exhales softly. Draping his legs over mine, he places one peck to the corners of my mouth and pulls me in for a deep, gentle, lingering kiss. We wipe the tears from each other’s face when we part. His forehead against mine; he taps the key and whispers, “There’s more. Read the inscription.”

The incredible burst of emotion for me is palpable. A lump forms in my throat as I flip over the key to read the engraving:

Baby, you hold the key to my heart! I’ll love you always, Jones

“You hold the key to mine,” I whisper tenderly, gliding my fingers over the words.

“There’s another part to your gift. Look under the cushion,” he says anxiously. I can’t hide my shock upon lifting the cushion. Slade pulls out the condom. “Aaron, I’m already yours in mind and soul. Now, I’m ready to be yours in body," he says huskily. "I want us to make love.”