Choices - 30. Epilogue

ALEKSEI

Alek looked in the mirror, trying to straighten an unruly tie. Why the hell wouldn’t it sit straight? He’d take his jeans or work coveralls over this fancy shit any day.

“Here, let me,” Liam’s amused voice came from over his left shoulder. “You’re going to wreck all my work… again.”

As Liam’s nimble fingers worked, Alek kept his eyes on the man he loved. Now this was a man who looked good in a shirt and tie. Some days it was hard to believe he’d forgiven him, even now that they were living together. Alek had been a bundle of nerves the day he’d asked, but it had taken surprisingly little convincing to get Liam to give up his apartment.

Looking around the room, he smiled at the touches of his boyfriend he found: from the e-reader on the side table to dirty clothes at the foot of the bed. Soon textbooks would line the shelves in the spare bedroom they’d converted into Liam’s office. This was their home now.

“Are you nervous?” Liam asked, stretching up to place a kiss on his chin.

“A little.”

This was the first time he was going to see his mother, face-to-face, since he’d come out. They’d spoken on the phone several times since his birthday, but he hadn’t expected her dinner invitation. Hell, she’d even invited Liam along, which shocked the hell out of both of them. In order to lessen any chance of seeing his father, they decided on a restaurant a little further away from the busy downtown core. Tonight was supposed to be about mending fences, and there was no guarantee he wouldn’t hit the man if he saw him again. It still made his blood boil when he thought of the things the asshole had said about Liam.

Exhaling slowly, he put his father out of his mind and tried to concentrate on the olive branch his mother had extended. “It’s been a while since we saw each other, and the last time wasn’t pleasant.”

“I’m sure everything will be fine. She’s the one who reached out to you, so maybe she’s trying to be open-minded.” Liam wrapped him in a comforting embrace, before stepping back and smoothing the wrinkles out of Alek’s shirt. “I forgot to tell you: Marty texted to say he’s going to be here around noon tomorrow.”

“Ugh,” Alek replied with a groan. “As long as he and Elena don’t make googly eyes at each other this time.”

Liam chuckled and smacked his chest. “Stop. They’re sweet with each other. I would love it if they got together. You know he’s a good man.”

Liam’s best friend had moved to Toronto a couple of months before, and when he and Elena met, the sparks were impossible to miss. Alek’s protective big brother side demanded he take Marty aside and make him aware of the consequences of hurting his little sister. Unfortunately, he also had his own charges to answer to, and dutifully listened when Marty warned him what would happen if he let Liam down again. Their conversation was surprisingly civil. It probably helped that Liam was sitting across the room from them laughing at their ‘posturing.’

“Come on.” Liam said, drawing him out of his thoughts. “You have to admit it would be awesome if they got married and had babies.”

“You’re jumping the gun a little, aren’t you?” Alek retorted with a chuckle. “They’ve only met a couple of times now.”

“That we know of,” Liam teased with a mischievous grin. “The sexual heat between those two was intense.”

“Just stop,” Alek protested with a groan. “I don’t want to hear that. She is my baby sister, you know.” In truth, Alek would be happy if Marty and Elena clicked. Everything he’d heard about Liam’s best friend said he would be a good choice for his strong-willed sibling.

“You’re such a prude. Now hustle up. We’re going to be late, and I don’t want to make a bad first impression on your mother.”

“Don’t worry. I’ll tell her I was the one who made us late.”

“Like she’d believe that. You’re perpetually early for everything. She’ll think it was me no matter what you say.”

Alek caught up to Liam at the front door and pulled the shorter man into his arms. “You sound more nervous than me.”

“I don’t want your mom to hate me,” Liam mumbled into his chest.

“She won’t hate you, I promise.”

“But….”

“And if she does happen to give you a hard time, we’ll leave immediately.”

“We can’t just leave. She’s your mother.”

“If she doesn’t treat the man I love with the respect he deserves, then we will be leaving.” Alek punctuated his statement with a kiss.

“All right,” Liam replied, straightening his shoulders. “Let’s do this.”

Alek led Liam through the crowded dining room with a hand resting on his lower back. It was funny how comfortable he was becoming with these little displays of affection. It wasn’t all that long ago he would never have contemplated touching another man in public with anything other than a handshake. Now he found he enjoyed the intimacy, and he had to admit it appealed to his possessive side to let other people know this man was his. He stroked his thumb gently along Liam’s spine, trying to convey some comfort to his tense boyfriend. This was going to be an interesting meal.

Viktoriya Petrov sat at a relatively secluded table, and stood when they approached. She looked uncomfortable, but her smile looked genuine. “Aleksei. Look at you… so handsome.”

“Mama, you look beautiful as always.” Returning the smile, he kissed her cheek. “Mama, this is Liam… my boyfriend. Li, my mother, Viktoriya Petrov.”

Stiffening, she turned to Liam and held out her hand in greeting. “It’s a good to meet, you.”

“It’s a pleasure to meet you as well.”

The three took their seats and commenced what was probably the most awkward dinner Alek had ever participated in. His mother seemed to be trying, but it was obvious Liam’s place in Alek’s life was difficult for her to come to terms with. Liam became more withdrawn as the evening wore on as his attempts at conversation were met with little feedback.

“This was a bad idea,” Alex snapped when another of Liam’s questions was answered with a cool, single word response.

“No, please,” Viktoriya replied, reaching across the table for his hand when he tried to rise. “Don’t go. I haven’t seen you in so long, Aleksei.”

With a deep sigh, Alek settled back in his seat and engulfed his mother’s hand with both of his, trying to reign in his irritation. “Mama, I miss you too, but this won’t work if you can’t handle being around Liam. He’s become the most important thing in my life. I love him. It would be great if you were a part of our lives, but if you can’t even be civil during a simple dinner how are you going to act when we get married? Have children?”

Out of the corner of his eye he saw Liam’s head whip around and felt his stare.

“Married?” his mother whispered, pulling back and leaning heavily against her chair. “You’re getting married?”

Alek gave Liam what he hoped was an encouraging smile. “I hope we will someday… and maybe have children. One with brown eyes, and one with green.”

Liam’s eyes shone with emotion, and his voice was thick with tears. “I would love that.”

Alek reached up to cup Liam’s cheek in his palm. “Just name the day and I’m yours.”

A throat being cleared across the table drew their attention from one another. “You’re serious about this?”

“Very serious,” Alek replied, facing his mother fully, not wavering from her intense and troubled gaze.

After a few moments Viktoriya’s rigid posture deflated. “I am trying, dushen'ka,” she said softly as she wiped a tear from her eye. “I don’t want to lose you.” Alek was surprised by the endearment he hadn’t heard since he was a child.

“Mama, I love you, but I love Liam too. I won’t give him up again.”

Teary brown eyes sought out Liam from across the table. She considered him for a moment before turning her attention back to her son. “Can you give me time? I want to accept this, but I’ve always thought love between men was a sin… it’s… difficult for me.” There was a sniffle as a few more tears slid down cheeks that had become lined with age.

Liam’s hand squeezed his, lending comfort with a touch. Glancing sideways, he was given a subtle nod and an encouraging smile.

“I can give you time, but I won’t tolerate any disrespect towards the man I love.”

Viktoriya exhaled a shaky breath. “Thank you for giving me another chance. I know how much your father and I must have hurt you….”

“How does dad feel about you being here?”

“He wasn’t happy. There was a lot of yelling and words were spoken that I won’t repeat, but I told him he was not going to stop me from seeing my son. I gave him a chance to try to mend things with you, and he hasn’t.”

“Mend things? Seriously? He told me to stop being gay because it was upsetting you.”

Viktoriya lips tightened into a grimace. “Sergei has never been very tactful.”

“As tactful as a bull in a china shop,” Alek muttered quietly.

A stifled giggle made him turn his attention to his boyfriend. The man looked like he was trying hard not to laugh, holding both hands in front of his face.

“I’m sorry.” Liam said behind his fingers.

“What’s so funny?” Alek asked, bemused.

“It’s just….” A snorted chuckle escaped and Liam couldn’t hold back anymore, laughing loudly and wiping away tears. “I had a mental image of your father running through a china shop knocking over displays yelling ’you’re not gay’ over and over again. “

There was a moment of utter silence before both the Petrovs joined in. Several minutes later Viktoriya wiped her eyes and grinned. “Do you remember the time your father walked into the stand in the hall? He knocked over that awful sculpture your grandmother gave us on our wedding day. I had to pretend to be heartbroken.”

“I remember that thing. Those eyes gave me nightmares for years.”

After the tension of the evening, the laughter felt good... cathartic… and it was great to see his mother smiling again. “I’m glad you agreed to come out with me,” she said once the laughter had died down again. “I know I wasn’t very hospitable, but I’m happy you came as well, Liam. You are the man who stole my son’s heart, and I will respect that.”

Liam’s face reddened with a blush as he smiled shyly. “I think he stole mine first.” The look of adoration Alek received made the breath catch in his throat. He could have lost this, and he would never let himself forget that fact.

“When will I see you again?” his mother asked, looking between both men. “How about dinner in a week or two?”

“We would love that,” Liam answered for both of them.

“Maybe next time you could come to our house and we can cook for you?” Alek offered.

“Elena mentioned you had moved in together. I didn’t know you’d learned to cook.” She turned to Liam with a hesitant smile. “Is that your handiwork?”

“No,” Liam replied with a laugh. “I can barely cook myself. Elena’s been teaching me when she has time. Alek makes a wonderful solyanka, though.”

“Solyanka? I haven’t made that in years. I didn’t know I gave you the recipe.”

“You didn’t,” Alek replied, his good mood dimming. “I found one on the internet that sounded familiar. It was close, but it wasn’t exactly like I remembered.”

Regret-filled eyes met his. “I can give you the recipe, dushen'ka. I will email it.” With a firm nod, she rose from her seat. “I’ll call you in a day or two and we can set a date.” Soft, gentle fingers slid through his hair. “I will be better next time. I promise you.”

Alek stood and pulled his mother into a hug before she hurried out of the busy establishment. After paying the bill, he led Liam out to the parking lot. The drive home was quiet with both men lost in thought. Liam finally broke the silence as he shut and locked the front door.

“Well that was an interesting night.”

Alek chuckled. “Interesting is an understatement. I can’t believe Mom argued with my father over me. I never thought she would go against him.”

“I guess she loves you too much to let her husband keep you apart,” Liam replied before biting his lip and looking down at the floor. “Did you mean it?”

“Mean what?” Alek’s mind was preoccupied with the events of the evening.

“What you said earlier… about marriage… kids.? It’s okay if you didn’t. I know you probably said it to get a reaction, so I won’t hold you to anything….”

Alek stopped Liam’s nervous rambling with a finger against his lips. “I meant every word.”

“You want to marry me?”

There was something in his front pocket, a slight weight he’d been carrying every day, for weeks, waiting for the perfect time. As the man he loved stood before him with devotion shining in his eyes, Alek realized now was that time. He reached into his pocket and slowly lowered to one knee as Liam watched with wide eyes.

“Liam…. I have a question for you.”

The End of Book 2

Well folks, that's it for Liam and Alek's story.  I hope you enjoyed the ride.  I want to that my editor, beta reader and dear friend, Gary, for all of his hard work as he helped me get this story off of the ground. I   would also like to thank all of you who've taken the time to read and support this story.     
 
I do have a Bryce/Nathan story planned, but I have another project in the works first.  (hint:  There may be a vampire involved  )