Jealousy - 1. Jealousy

Jealousy

"I'm home," Grayson called from the front door, kicking it shut with his foot and depositing their groceries on a table. Wyatt was nowhere to be seen, but he could hear the sound of the shower from the other room. He put away the groceries and set the tacos he picked up from their favorite Mexican place on the counter.

Once he heard the shower turn off, he walked into the bedroom and saw his boyfriend standing in front of their open closet, wearing nothing more than a towel wrapped around his waist.

"Heeeeey," Grayson drawled, taking in the sight. Wyatt looked good enough to eat; he usually did, but standing there slim and half-naked with droplets of water from his still damp hair beading his tan shoulders, he looked particularly delicious.

Wyatt turned to smile at him, but when Grayson went to tug at the towel, his boyfriend stepped nimbly out of reach.

"What's up?" Grayson asked, changing tactics and pressing a kiss against Wyatt's temple instead. Wyatt always smelled so amazing, even fresh out of the shower with the faint scent of his shower gel and shampoo clinging to him.

"I want to go out," Wyatt announced.

"Out where?" Grayson murmured, letting his lips travel over the shell of Wyatt's ear.

"Clubbing."

Grayson closed his eyes and pulled back. "Baby-"

"You said I could pick what we do Friday nights after you got off work," Wyatt quickly reminded him.

Grayson remembered, but he had expected (and hoped) that Wyatt would want something quiet and low-key, like a movie or dinner at a nice restaurant.

"I know, I know," he relented. Wyatt was already pulling out the puppy dog eyes, and he knew any resistance after that would be a lost cause. "Go eat while I take a shower, and then we’ll head out."

            

An hour and a half later, Grayson drove them downtown. One of the benefits of moving to a much larger city was an abundance of nightlife and several gay clubs. This was as good of a night out as any, he reasoned. He could feel Wyatt's excited anticipation next to him and grabbed his hand, giving it an affectionate squeeze.

They had both agreed to move when Grayson's job wanted to relocate him. It included a promotion with a significant pay raise and bonus, and the fact that it would bring them closer to Wyatt's family was another plus. And while Wyatt was always cheerful and never openly complained, it was obvious that Wyatt was struggling, missing his old friends and feeling useless without a job. Grayson thought it might be a good idea to let him blow off some steam.

It also didn't hurt that Wyatt was dressed like a wet dream, in leather pants, a mesh shirt, and plenty of body glitter.

"I was beginning to think you had outgrown clubbing," Grayson said.

Wyatt shrugged. "I had, but that was back when we lived near the university and had all those college kids around."

Grayson bit back a grin, as Wyatt was barely out of the "college kid" age group himself, but didn't say anything.

"Besides, I spent most of the day staring at a computer screen, putting in job applications and typing out cover letters. It was so boring. I just need to get out of the apartment for a while, dance, meet some people."

Grayson felt a twinge of guilt at the frustration in Wyatt’s voice. They were both new to the city, but Grayson at least had people he knew from work, although they weren't the kind of people he would want to hang out with socially. Wyatt had been looking for jobs since the move, but hadn't had a lot of luck. Wyatt basically had an empty apartment all day and Grayson for the evening and weekends. No wonder he was desperate to get out and have some fun.

Grayson was determined not to go home until both of them had met someone who could be a possible friend tonight.

Grayson was prepared to try several different clubs if necessary, but Wyatt liked the first one they came to. It had a reasonable cover, and loud music, with decent parking nearby.

They both approached the bar and had a couple shots, before Wyatt turned to Grayson and gave him a kiss.

"Are you okay if I go dance?" he asked.

"Sure thing," Grayson said, kissing him in return. "I'm going to check out the rest of the place."

Wyatt gave him another kiss and a wink laden with bedroom promises before sauntering onto the dance floor.

Grayson grinned, looking forward to the rest of the night. The majority of the club consisted of the bar and dance floor, with a stage set up for bands. To the right was a separate area set up with pool tables, foosball tables, and a few old-fashioned pinball and arcade games.

He made a circuit of the room, smiling at the old school arcade games. Pacman. Donkey Kong. Space Invaders.

He was seriously considering giving one of them a try, when a collective groan rose up from one of the pool tables, drawing his attention. A guy was backing away from the table, grinning guiltily, with his hands up in a position of surrender. Another guy came up and hooked his fingers into his belt loop, pulling him away.

Grayson watched them go, then approached the group.

"Do you need another player?" he asked. One of the guys looked up. He appeared to be around Grayson's age and had dark, honey-brown hair over dark eyes.

"Do you play?" he asked.

"Sometimes."

The other guy raised his eyebrows. "Are you any good?"

"I'm okay."

Honey-dark looked doubtful and glanced at the other members of his group. "Guys?"

"Sure," the guy to honey-dark's right said. The one to honey-dark's left nodded as well.

"Okay, you team up with me," Honey-dark decided. "What's your name?"

"Gray," Grayson said, extending his hand.

"I'm Max," honey-dark said. "This is Leon," he gestured to the man on his right, "and Neil." Leon smiled at him, and Neil gave him a welcoming nod.

"Don't mind Neil, he’s just shy," Leon added and smiled brightly at the dark look Neil shot his way. "And Jacob is that loser that abandoned us," Leon continued as Grayson grabbed a cue. "Of course, if I had a boyfriend as hot as Jacob's, I would abandon us too."

"Of course," Max said.

Grayson grinned as he chalked up the end of the cue. "I think my boyfriend could give him a run for his money."

A chorus of "ooooo"s rose from the table as Max racked the balls.

"Hear that, Max?" Leon said, still grinning. "Sounds like Drew has some competition."

"C'mon, Gray, you can break," Max offered, stepping back from the table and offering him a smile. "Otherwise we'll be comparing boyfriends all night."

Grayson played a few games. It wasn't the best he ever played, but they still won more than they lost. Especially once it became evident that Neil had no clue how to play and needed a lot of hands on "help" from Leon.

Grayson decided to take a break and see what Wyatt was up to.

"I'm going to take a break guys," he said, replacing his pool cue.

"Me too," Max added, setting down his cue.

There was another chorus of groans like before, but they sounded half-hearted at best, and Grayson had a feeling that Leon might take advantage of giving Neil some "private" pool lessons.

He turned away, grinning, but to Grayson's surprise, Max followed him.

"Good game, man," Max said. "I'm heading to the bar, want anything?"

There was a veiled invitation in his offer, and one that Grayson knew better than to take him up on. "I'm good, but my boyfriend might want something."

They looked out on the expanse of the dance floor. From their vantage point, they were slightly above it, making it easier to look into the crowd.

"That's Drew," Max said, pointing to a handsome man on the dance floor, dressed in tight red pants and a see-through black shirt. The boy tossed his dark curls back when he saw Max watching and gave him a flirtatious smile.

Grayson scanned the dance floor, seeing a flash of Wyatt's white leather under the pulsing lights.

"That's Wyatt," he said, pointing. "We both just moved here."

"The hottie in the white leather pants and rainbow mesh top? He's with you?"

"Yes," Grayson bit out, feeling defensive although he wasn't sure why.

"He's delicious," Max said. "Keep an eye on him. Newcomers attract attention, and a guy that good looking is going to attract even more."

Grayson felt the same strange mix of embarrassment and pride when someone mentioned how attractive Wyatt was. He still wasn’t sure why someone as beautiful as Wyatt was interested in him. He was a pale, skinny beanpole with an average boring job and an average boring life until Wyatt came along. Grayson approached him and saw Wyatt's face break into a grin. That always helped. Wyatt jumped into his arms and Grayson caught him...barely.

"Hey baby," Wyatt said, giving him an enthusiastic kiss on the mouth. Grayson carefully sat Wyatt back on his feet and gave him a more thorough kiss once he wasn't concerned about dropping his boyfriend on his perky derriere.

"Having fun?" he asked.

"Yeah," Wyatt answered. He looked it too, dewed with sweat, and his regularly tousled blond hair standing up in spikes. Coupled with Wyatt's accelerated breathing, it reminded Grayson of how Wyatt usually looked in bed after a good fuck. His mind was more than happy to follow that direction.

"I'm hitting the bar; you want anything?"

"I'll go with you; I need a break," Wyatt said.

Max was already at the bar and waved them over. "I saved you some stools," he said, gesturing.

"Wyatt, this is Max, I met him playing pool. Max, this is Wyatt, my boyfriend."

“Hi!" Wyatt said. "I hope Gray didn't cost you too much money at the pool table.”

Grayson tried to answer that little barb with a pinch to Wyatt's backside, but he doubted Wyatt even felt it through the leather.

Max just laughed. He already had a beer and Wyatt ordered water, so Grayson decided to help himself to a Jack and Coke.

Drew soon joined them. Drew was not as outgoing as his significant other, but still spoke up when asked a question or when Max nudged him into a story.

Wyatt wanted to dance some more, and so, after finishing his drink and giving Grayson another kiss, he turned and disappeared back into the melee. Grayson, who never was a dancer despite numerous attempts by Wyatt to show him, stayed at the bar and had another drink, chatting with Max and Drew.

Drew appeared to be distracted by something on the dance floor and leaned over to whisper in his boyfriend's ear.

Max chuckled, then leaned in towards Grayson. "Drew is too shy to say it, but he wants to know if it's okay for him to dance with your boyfriend."

"As long as Wyatt is cool with it," Grayson answered. It felt weird that they were asking him instead of Wyatt.

Grayson saw Drew approach Wyatt. He might be shy in person, but he had swagger on the dance floor. He watched him approach Wyatt from behind and sidle up against him with a full body undulation. Wyatt turned, and Grayson watched Drew smile and say something to Wyatt before wrapping an arm around Wyatt's waist and pulling him flush against his body.

Wyatt looked at Grayson. He was surprised, but there was also a question in his gaze.

Is this okay?

Grayson lifted up his glass in a casual salute and nodded. Sure, go ahead.

Grayson watched them...well dance was probably the wrong word. More like ground against each other.

Watching them felt...strange, bombarding Grayson with conflicting emotions. There was definitely lust. Wyatt could make folding laundry look sexy, just by being Wyatt. Wyatt lived to dance and it showed, in every sinuous, sensual move.

Maybe it was because Max and Drew had been so friendly and outgoing, or maybe because Drew and Wyatt had both checked beforehand to make sure he was okay, but seeing them dance together didn't bother him.

He felt what might be faint flutterings of jealousy, yes, but there was something else there, something deeper that he couldn't quite name. It was like he was seeing Wyatt for the first time: not as the flirty waiter who first caught his eye, but a sex kitten on the dance floor.

His mind might have been undecided as to how he felt, but as he watched the way they came together again, pelvis to pelvis, his body made his own feelings perfectly clear.

Deciding to drag Wyatt home and possibly fuck his brains out if he wasn't too exhausted, he tried to ignore the both of them and refocus on Max, who was talking about looking for a house for him and Drew. Max was complaining about how much homes in the area cost.

"What about you?" he asked. "You said you and Wyatt were new to town, did you buy a house?"

"No, we rent an apartment," Grayson said. "There’s a good chance that I might get relocated again, so buying a house right now wouldn't be a good investment."

"Well, I think Drew and I might like it if you hung around a little bit," Max said with a wink.

            

Grayson and Wyatt stayed at the club until last call, leaving with Max and Drew's numbers in their cell phones and tentative plans to meet up the next week.

Wyatt drove them home. Grayson was looking forward to bed; he had been up early for work and it was very late, but he couldn't get the images of Wyatt dancing with Drew out of his mind. The way they moved together, gliding together, the way they touched each other. He had a very vivid memory of Wyatt running his hands down Drew’s chest, before wrapping an arm around his waist and executing a slow grind against the other man's pelvis. Grayson remembered the way it felt to watch them, the feeling that blossomed up inside his body, stained with the ugly edges of jealousy, but also something else, something deeper, older, primal.

Want.

Need.

It flared up in him, spreading heat through his body, feeding his desire.

He knew Wyatt felt it too, because when they finally got home and Grayson was pressing him against the kitchen door, kissing him hungrily, Wyatt responded in kind, returning his kiss with a ferocity that bordered on avarice.

This only fueled his desire instead of sating it, and soon he had Wyatt's shirt rucked up, kissing his stomach while impatient hands fumbled open his pants, then he had the hot length of him in his mouth.

Wyatt groaned his name, sex in every syllable, and grabbed at his hair, pulling on it slightly as he let his head drop back against the door.

Grayson took him as deep as he could. Everything, the sounds Wyatt was making, the pulling of his hair, the taste of his precum slick against his tongue, and even the bitter throb of his knees on the hard kitchen floor, was drawing him in, deeper and deeper. He was so hard, and his erection ached against the hand Grayson pressed against it, trying to ease the pressure. It was a sweet ache, and one he was willing to endure for a little longer.

He gripped Wyatt's thighs, drew him deeper, moaning low in his throat. Wyatt growled something above him, either a curse or endearment, Grayson wasn't sure which, but it sent another surge of satisfaction through him. This is what he wanted the entire night, watching Wyatt out on the dance floor, to get him home, devour him like he wanted.

Wyatt was pulling at his hair with one hand, pulling at his own hair with the other, biting his lip.

"Baby, I'm about to--God, yes--ah--ah--oh-h--"

Then Wyatt was filling his mouth, and Grayson swallowed and gently sucked him clean until Wyatt's shaking hands were gently guiding him off. He rested his face against Wyatt's thigh, pressing a small kiss there that quickly turned into a hickey. Wyatt was panting above him, hands petting his hair, and it felt good.

"Jesus," Wyatt finally managed and bent down to help Grayson off the floor. Grayson's knees hurt just enough that he swallowed his pride and allowed Wyatt to support him. He leaned in and kissed Wyatt again.

"I'm not Jesus," he teased. He grabbed Wyatt's hand and tugged him towards the bedroom. "And I'm not done with you yet."

 

"Jesus," Wyatt mumbled again, lying sweaty and sated in their bed. He made a move like he was trying to get up, only to collapse back down, and rolled over toward Grayson in a boneless heap. Grayson chuckled and pulled him in for a kiss.

"Okay, baby?"

"My legs don't work very well," Wyatt mumbled.

"I wonder why," Grayson teased.

"I'm sure dancing for several hours, and then being fucked out of my mind had nothing to do with it," Wyatt agreed. He hooked an arm around Grayson's neck and pulled him in for another kiss, then laid his head down on Grayson's shoulder.

"I take it you had a good time tonight?" Grayson asked.

"Um-hmm. What do you think about the guys we met?"

Grayson remembered the way Wyatt and Drew had moved on the dance floor. "Friendly." Then, after a moment's thought, added "Too friendly, almost."

Wyatt grinned. "I'm glad I'm not the only one who thinks so." He bit his lip. "Did it bother you?" he asked, looking up. "The dancing?"

Grayson considered his own muddled thoughts about the matter, but it was too late and he was too tired, and too blissfully satisfied unpack all of that now.

"No," he said. "Not really. It wasn't what I expected, but Drew had asked me, and I told him it was fine if you were okay with it."

"Good." Wyatt sounded relieved, and Grayson realized that his boyfriend had actually been worried.

"Hey," he said, moving down to kiss him gently. "It's okay. You asked, and I was fine with it. If I wasn't, I would have intervened. Were you okay with it?"

"Well...I was surprised, at first. But I don't know, it was kind of nice to dance with somebody. Even if it did have huge sexual undertones."

"Maybe he was trying to seduce you," Grayson teased.

"Oh please, Max was the one looking at you with bedroom eyes over at the bar."

Grayson chuckled. "Now you sound jealous." He laced his fingers with Wyatt's, bringing his hand up to his mouth and kissing his fingers gently. "Max and Drew are probably the kind of people who flirt with everybody," Grayson reassured him, even though he didn't note that happening with the other guys they were playing pool with.

"Do you think they were really flirting with us?" Wyatt asked.

Grayson cracked an eye open and gave Wyatt an amused grin. "I don't see how the dancing you and Drew did could be interpreted as anything but flirting."

"But you didn't mind it."

"I already told you I didn’t mind it. It was just dancing. No boundaries crossed."

"Do you think Drew and Max date other people? Like besides each other?"

Grayson had wondered that himself.

"Maybe. Max didn't mention anyone other than Drew though, and I heard Max refer to him as 'boyfriend' several times."

"Maybe Max and Drew are just casually dating," Wyatt suggested.

Grayson shook his head.

"No, Max was telling me they were looking to buy a house together."

"Well...as long as they don't try to steal you away from me," Wyatt said, lacing his fingers with Grayson's, and Grayson realized that he wasn't the one who felt insecure about the evening.

"No worries there," Grayson said, reaching over and stroking a thumb over Wyatt's cheek. "All my roads lead back to you."

Wyatt kissed him, long and full of tender affection.

"Good. Cause I could probably take Drew in a fight, but I don't know about Max. He looks scrappy."

Grayson chuckled and kissed Wyatt again. "Catty. I like it."

Wyatt mumbled something incoherent, and Grayson listened to his breathing as it slowed and deepened before he closed his eyes, allowing him to do the same.

                        

Grayson slept late the next morning before Wyatt gently nudged him awake for some slow, lazy, Saturday sex. It was one of the best ways to start a morning, Grayson reflected as he carefully worked at massaging the soreness out of his boyfriend's legs. They both showered, Wyatt cooked breakfast, and they easily fell into their usual weekend routine. It was easy to ignore the confusing thoughts from the evening before, buried under the comforting familiarity of running errands, doing chores, and making love.

Until the next Friday night, when Wyatt was ready to go out again. When they arrived at the club that evening, it didn’t take long for Max to find them, his entire face lighting up when he came over to greet them.

Grayson reached over to give Max a quick hug, but Max pulled him in, enough to feel his heat and the smell his cologne before releasing him.

“Drew is on the dance floor and looking forward to seeing you,” Max told Wyatt. “He says none of the other dancers are as sweet as you.”

Wyatt’s cheeks went slightly pink, but he looked pleased.

“Catch up with you later, okay?” he said, giving Grayson a kiss before disappearing into the crowd of bodies on the dance floor.

“At last, I have you all to myself,” Max said, sliding a fingertip up the back of Grayson’s arm in a way that made Grayson want to shiver.

“Well, you have me, so what are you going to do?”

Max’s smile turned wicked. “Let’s start by getting you drunk.”

“Works for me.”

            

Grayson didn’t end up getting drunk, but as Max continued to ply him with drinks, he wasn’t entirely sober either. He and Max had staked out a prime spot to watch Drew and Wyatt dance, and Max was telling him a story about how he and Drew had met.

“So, she asks, ‘do you have apple fritters?’ And Drew gets one and puts it in a bag, and she yells at him ‘I didn’t askfor one, I just want to know if you had them.’ Mind you, they are in a display case clearly marked. She just wanted to yell at someone,” Max said.

“What a bitch,” Grayson replied. He could see Wyatt and Drew drop down with perfect synchronization and grind their way back up. His cock twitched in appreciation of the sight.

“So Drew says, sweet as can be, ‘So you don’t want one?’ and she snarls ‘No, I’m still looking.’ So he calls out ‘I can help the next person who is actually ready to order.’ She glared daggers at him, but I hustled up to the counter, smiled hugely at the cute baker behind the counter and said ‘So I heard you have apple fritters.’ He gives me this great “go to hell” look, but all he says was ‘Yes sir.’ He kind of ground it out through his clenched teeth. It was so adorable. So then I said, ‘I’m so hungry for something sweet, I think I’ll take all of the apple fritters.’”

Grayson laughed and fist bumped Max. “That’s awesome.”

“Drew’s coworker was barely holding in her laughter. The bitch left in a huff, and I had two dozen apple fritters on my hands.”

“You’re evil. I like you,” Grayson decided.

“So every time I went back to that bakery to flirt with the cutie behind the counter, he would give me a free apple fritter as well. I never had the heart to tell him that I hate apple fritters. I always gave them to my coworkers.”

Grayson always secretly thought that he and Wyatt were the world’s cutest couple, but Max and Drew might top them.

“Well, your secret is safe with me,” Grayson assured him.

Max took a sip of his drink, watching Grayson with dark eyes.

“If you are going to keep my secrets,” he said, setting his glass down on the bar, “then I have a better one for you.”

“Oh really?” Grayson said, leaning forward. He felt good, a little tipsy, reckless and carefree.

Max leaned in to speak close to Grayson’s ear, and Grayson could smell the strong yeasty smell of beer on his breath. “If we were not both taken, I would snatch a tasty thing like you up in a heartbeat.”

Grayson’s face warmed, and he felt the slightest ghost of teeth scrape the edge of his ear right before Max drew away and clapped a hand on his shoulder in a gesture that was unmistakably friendly.

“I can see Leon and Neil; do you want to try for a game of pool?”

 

Wyatt ended up having to drive them home, as he was the most sober, and again Grayson was all over him as soon as they walked through the door. They didn’t make it to the bedroom, but ended up frantically making love on the kitchen table, which groaned and rocked alarmingly under their weight. Grayson was sure he was going to feel it in his back later, but it was totally worth it. Everything seemed to crash inside of him, the sight of Wyatt and Drew dancing, Max’s sexy whisper in his ear, Wyatt’s damp skin underneath his hands, purred compliments, and the barely-there scrape of teeth, until he was gasping and shaking as the orgasm overtook him. Afterwards, he kissed the sweat beaded on Wyatt’s neck and breathed in the sweet scent of him, sweat and cologne and sex.

“One of these days I’ll make it to bed, promise,” he murmured.

Wyatt chuckled and stroked his hair. “Don’t worry about me, old man.”

“Shut it,” Grayson teased, then tilted his head up to kiss him. He helped Wyatt up off the table, and they walked into the bedroom, tripping over discarded clothing as they went.

Grayson collapsed on the bed and smiled when Wyatt cuddled up next to him, pulling the sheets up over their rapidly-cooling bodies.

“You and Max looked pretty friendly over at the bar,” Wyatt said, settling his head on Grayson’s shoulder.

“Yeah. He was telling me about how he and Drew met while Drew was working at a bakery. And then he told me that if I wasn’t taken, he would be moving in on me.”

“Yeah. Drew said something similar to me,” Wyatt said through a yawn. “I told him unfortunately that I was a one-man band.”

“Wyatt, sweetie, that’s not what that means.”

“Well, I think he got the idea. I’m with you, and I’m sticking with you.”

“Ditto, baby.”

 

The Friday night dances became a tradition. Grayson wasn’t worried about himself and Max. The flirtations were welcome, hell, he even liked them and returned them on occasion, but both of them knew that the other would never act on them.

He thought about Drew and Wyatt sometimes, though, in little corners of the day, driving home after work, in the shower, at night with Wyatt in his arms before he fell asleep. He probed it gently at first, fragile thoughts, delicate, like spun glass.

Wyatt and Drew’s dancing, the beautiful, provocative sexy twists of their bodies, didn’t bother him at all. Other things, intimate things that he imagined them doing, like kissing, having sex, or even cuddling in bed, left him sick and cold.

He found comfort in the fact that the thought of Wyatt being with someone else made him feel ill.

It was that thought experiment that helped him admit what he really felt. Heliked seeing Wyatt dance with Drew. He liked to see their bodies moving, the sultry stares they exchanged, the heady, flirty energy, and the sexual energy that crackled between them. He liked that and all the attention that it drew, because he knew, at the end of the night, Wyatt would be leaving with him. It excited him. Hell, it excited both of them, a thin sliver of jealous possessiveness sparking a greedy need to devour each other’s bodies in explosive passion.

Their fiery passion had mellowed to the warm glow of affection over the years, but those nights it was like Grayson was seeing Wyatt for the first time. Back when they couldn’t wait to see each other, touch each other, teasing each other while on dates into delightful distraction. Back to entire weekends spent in bed, foregoing food and sleep just so they could touch each other, again and again…and again.

It worked for both of them and if no one got hurt, what harm could it do?

 

"What about this one?" Grayson asked several weeks later, holding up another ring. Max shook his head. "Too gaudy."

Neil nodded in agreement.

"Fuck," Grayson muttered, raking a hand through his hair. He was running short on time. He hadn't figured that choosing a simple piece of jewelry would be so complicated.

Wyatt had gotten a job interview at the bakery where Drew used to work and was feeling optimistic about his chances. Grayson had recruited Drew and Leon to distract Wyatt for a few hours with a movie to “celebrate” while he shopped.

"I w-would chose something simple and uncomplicated," Neil suggested. "Then g-g-go shopping for the bands together to p-p-pick something you both like. You can buy W-Wyatt a fancier ring then too, if you w-want."

Grayson gave him a surprised look. It was the first time he had heard Neil speak, and he had almost gotten used to Neil's eloquent body language and nonverbal cues. He had a nice voice, quiet but strong.

Neil was turning pink in the face, looking back at Grayson with a challenge in his gray eyes.

Grayson smiled and gave him a wink, which appeared to put Neil at ease. He smiled back.

Neil’s advice was good advice, but it was worry about what the ring symbolized more than the ring itself gnawing at his stomach. He was ready for the next step and hoped Wyatt was too. They had talked about marriage before, but in a nebulous, abstract way as opposed to concrete plans.

In the end, he found something he liked, a slender, white gold band with a row of five small diamonds in the middle, one for each year they had been dating. When the cashier told him the total, Neil whistled lowly and Max chuckled.

"Don't go making the rest of us look bad, big spender."

"Choosing the ring was the easy part," Grayson said. "Popping the question is going to be the hard part."

"Relax," Neil said. "You talked to his p-p-parents, right?"

"Right."

"And you know that he w-wants to be married at some p-p-point."

"Yes."

"And he is crazy in love w-w-with you."

"Yes."

"Then don't wo-worry."

"I just worry that it’s too soon," Grayson said, taking back his credit card from the cashier and signing the receipt. Once the casher handed over the ring in its fancy bag, he removed it, looked at it again and tucked it in the inside pocket of his coat.

"Dude, you guys have been dating for five years and living together for what, four of them?" Max asked.

"Three."

"That's a long time, and Wyatt is still obviously head over heels. He tells Drew almost every time he sees him," Max added with an eye roll. "Don't worry, I'd be shocked if Wyatt refuses, and if he does, Neil, Leon, Drew, and I will be over with some alcohol."

Grayson smiled weakly. "Thanks, guys." He was still nervous as hell, but having his friends with him helped.

"Why don't you go out with us tonight?" Max suggested. "Let us take your mind off of the impending proposal and get you set up with some liquid courage."

Neil nodded his agreement. Grayson considered it. He knew he would be stewing and nervous all night until he proposed, and Wyatt would be sure to notice. Besides, Wyatt always felt sexy and flirty after dancing, which could only work in his favor.

"Sure."

 

That night, Wyatt was dancing with Drew, as usual, and Grayson was seated at the far end of the bar, where the music wasn't as loud and conversation was easier. He was talking to Neil, who had finally opened up to him.

"It's been forty years, but the Voyagers are still functioning," Neil told him. "Voyager one has entered interstellar space, and Voyager two is at the edge of our solar system. They are p-p-powered by nuclear generators. Some instruments have failed, but some still w-work."

"Uh-huh," Grayson said. He had no idea Neil was super into space, but that was where the conversation had turned, and Grayson was intrigued in spite of himself.

Neil raised his eyebrows. "I'm boring you, aren't I?"

"No!" Grayson insisted. "I didn't know any of this. I mean, my teachers talked about it when I was in school, but I didn't know the Voyagers were still a thing." He wracked his brain for info about space. “So, why don’t we send people to the moon anymore?”

“It’s a travesty, really,” Neil said. “NASA hasn’t sent anyone to the moon in forty-five years, but it’s mostly because of budget and p-p-political hurdles. There are so many reasons to g-go back: setting up a radio telescope on the far side of the moon, research into developing a colony for Mars exploration, and a lunar-based crew could develop a fuel depot for deep space missions. Lunar tourism isn’t out of the question either. But the funds for those things are so limited with our current administration that it is likely that p-private companies like Space X or Blue Origin will g-g-get there first.”

"Right, right."

Max approached him, put a hand on Grayson's shoulder. His eyes were fixed on the dance floor.

"We might have some trouble."

Grayson followed his gaze.

Last he had seen, Drew and Wyatt had been dancing, their usual sexy grind. Now someone, a guy that Grayson didn't recognize, was trying to get between Wyatt and Drew, who both stepped away, a clear signal for the guy to back off. But the guy didn't appear to notice, or didn't care, stepping back into Wyatt's personal space and locking an arm around his waist. Wyatt instantly pushed back against his chest and leaned back. The guy laughed and pulled him closer.

Grayson was already on his feet and heading over when Drew moved forward to intervene. The guy pushed Drew away, hard enough to knock him on his ass, and Grayson heard Max behind him going "Oh fuck no," and rapid footsteps approaching from behind.

Wyatt was pissed now; Grayson could see it in his face and body language. He pushed back against the guy, hard enough to break free and turned to help his friend. The guy grabbed Wyatt by the wrists and yanked him back up, then hit him across the face.

He hit Wyatt. His Wyatt. His beautiful, sexy, sweet Wyatt.

Grayson saw red, which wasn't a thing he even thought was real until now, and the next thing he knew, he was tackling the guy and felt the solid, satisfying thump as his fist met flesh, followed by the sickening crunch of breaking bone.

Then there was a faceful of bright pain in return that blinded everything else out. Grayson heard yelling, scuffling, then someone had him underneath his arms and hauling him up bodily. Grayson was assaulted by another wash of pain and he kicked out reflexively, with a dim, grim sense of satisfaction when he felt his foot connect.

"C'mon buddy," he recognized Leon's voice and knew he had no chance against the other man. He grudgingly let himself be herded away. He saw the other guy crouched on the floor, cradling his midsection, then leaning over to vomit on the floor. Grayson shuddered while the dance floor quickly cleared. He saw Drew leading a thunderous looking Max away. Wyatt was approaching and Grayson knew, instantly, that his boyfriend was pissed.

I'll never hear the end of this.

* * * 

"This is stupid," Wyatt grumbled. They were at their apartment, Max and Drew with them. He held Grayson's face in his hand, carefully cleaning the blood off his face. "This is stupid, what you did is stupid, what they-" he jerked his head towards their companions, "-did was stupid, and this whole thing in just--"

"Stupid?" Grayson asked. He smiled at the dark look Wyatt gave him and instantly regretted it, as it pulled on his torn lower lip.

"Take it easy, dumbass," Wyatt growled and even though his voice was heated, his touch remained gentle.

Grayson figured it was prudent to sit quietly while Wyatt patched him up and wait for him to run out of steam.

Apparently, he had taken the guy by surprise enough to get one or two hits in, before faring as well as a skinny computer nerd with no fighting expertise was to be expected, which was pretty poor and hugely embarrassing. Max, thankfully, had joined in, pulling the guy off and punching him for shoving his boyfriend and for hitting Wyatt, and Wyatt had, at some point, jumped on the guy's back and bit him. Leon and the club security had broken up the fight and escorted them all out. The guy's friends came to take him home, and security had agreed not to call the police if they all left and didn’t come back.

"You should have waited for security!" Wyatt snapped.

"After I saw that shitbag hit you?" Grayson reached out and gently touched the bruise forming on Wyatt's cheek. "And after what he did to Drew?"

"Yes!" Wyatt said, even though he visibly flinched when Grayson's fingers brushed the bruised skin. He would have a shiner for sure. "They were already on their way over and would have taken care of it."

"I don't know, I thought seeing your boyfriend jump in there to defend you was pretty hot," Max interjected, trying to come to Grayson's defense. Wyatt shot him a dark look, and Max winked.

* * *

"What were you thinking?" Wyatt asked again that night. Lovemaking was out of the question, even if Max and Drew hadn't opted to spend the night in their guest bedroom. Grayson's body still held the memory of angry hands, and Wyatt's simmering displeasure had not cooled as the night went on.

"I wasn't," Grayson admitted. He couldn't stand to see Wyatt's frown, so he stared up at the ceiling. His fingers slid stealthily over the sheet until they found Wyatt's and his chest loosened with sweet relief when Wyatt accepted the unspoken invitation and took his hand.

"Are you still mad?" Grayson asked.

"Yes."

"Okay." Grayson waited for Wyatt to elaborate a little, but he didn't. "Can you at least tell me why?"

"You got in a fight!"

"Yeah, so?”

"It was dangerous! What if Leon and Max hadn’t been there tonight? What if we were having this conversation in a hospital room?”

“But we’re not,” Grayson pointed out. “And weren’t you the one trying to bite the guy?”

Wyatt shrugged. “I don’t like other people playing with my toys. But you're not in high school anymore, neither one of us are. It was stupid and dangerous."

"I was defending you!"

"I didn't want you to!" Wyatt retorted. "That guy was a piece of hot garbage; he was about to be kicked out anyways without any help from you. I'm not a damsel in distress; I'm a grown-ass man and I don't need you rushing in to save me, or Max or Drew. I can take care of myself."

Oh, dammit, Grayson thought, feeling like this was the root of the issue.

"Hey," Grayson rolled over onto his side and touched his face. "I know you can take care of yourself, and I wasn't trying to act like you couldn't. I love you, like crazy, stupid, someone-hurts-you-they-hurt-me-too kind of love. And when I saw that guy hurting you and Drew, I was mad and scared, and I just reacted. I couldn’t think of anything except getting him away from you and hurting him for hurting you. And I'm sorry. You're right, it was stupid and dangerous, and I promise not to do it again, if that is what you want."

"It scared me," Wyatt admitted. "I was scared that the guy was really going to hurt you. And I... I’ve never seen you act that way and that scared me too. I was scared of you, and I hated that."

Grayson turned his hand and kissed the palm. The skin was smooth and warm against his lips. "I'm so sorry, baby. I didn't mean to scare you. That’s the last thing I want." He gave Wyatt's hand another kiss. “I was just jealous of that guy. I couldn’t stand seeing him touching you.” He had never thought of himself as a possessive man before. But that was before Wyatt had changed his life, before he had the wonderful friends in Max and Drew and Leon and Neil. He felt his nerves dissipate as his resolve hardened. Tonight had driven home the one thing he wanted. Wyatt, to be his. Now and forever.

“You know that you have absolutely no reason to be jealous, right?” Wyatt said. “I love you like crazy, and there is no one who would be able to steal me from you. Not Max, or Drew and especially not sweaty, gross strangers in a club.”

“I know,” Grayson said, not knowing how much he needed the reassurance until he heard it. He moved in for another kiss, a gentle, tender meeting of lips. “I love you.”

“I love you too.”

             

Grayson woke up the next morning feeling the previous night more deeply than ever. His swollen face throbbed in misery, and his limbs were stiff and achingly sore when he tried to move them. He groaned into the sheets, unentangled himself from Wyatt’s embrace, and stumbled to the shower. The warm water made the scrapes and cuts on his face sing anew, but his aching muscles felt slightly better when he got out. He dressed and could hear Wyatt, Max, and Drew in the kitchen, laughing and talking. The tantalizing aromas of coffee and bacon drifted in, making his stomach rumble.

He crossed the room, opened up the nightstand, and pulled out the box with the ring in it. He opened it and looked at it for a long time, watching the way the morning sunlight glinted off the diamonds, sending shafts of light around the room. He smiled, closed it, and carefully stowed it in his pocket.

He joined the others in the kitchen.

“Morning, baby,” Wyatt chirped. He poured a cup of coffee and passed it over.

“Morning.” He nodded to Max and Drew before taking a sip.

“Man,” Max said, moving closer and tilting Grayson’s face up. “That asshole got you pretty good, huh?”

“Yeah,” Grayson said. “It was a dumb move.”

Standing there in the kitchen, with his boyfriend and his friends, full of warm sunshine, it struck him that this was what he wanted. For the rest of his life, this moment right here.

“Baby,” he said, and Wyatt glanced at him. “I want to talk to you about something.”

Drew looked alarmed and slid off the stool he was sitting on. “Um…maybe we should…”

“No.” Grayson held up his hand. “No, I want you to stay for this.” He approached Wyatt and took his hand. “I just want to say that…that I love you. I love everything about you, and I love the life we have started together.” Wyatt was staring at him with wide eyes and slightly open mouth. “And I want to continue to share my life with you. For the rest of my days.”

He pulled the box out of his pocket, knelt down in front of an astonished Wyatt and opened the box, revealing the ring.

“Will you be my husband? Marry me?”

The smile that blossomed on Wyatt’s face and the way he tackled him in an enthusiastic kiss was all the answer Grayson needed.

 

~END~