Circumnavigation - 81. Ultimate Designs

Chapter 81: Ultimate Designs

Kookaburra basked in the hot sun, bobbing gently in a light breeze that did little to ease the heat. Trevor and Shane lay side by side on the salon’s deck, working on the book. The deck was hard but cool, so with the aid of cushions for their elbows, it was the most comfortable place to work. Shane had the laptop in front of him, along with many pages of written notes. Trevor leaned in close, looking at the screen, their bare shoulders touching, as Shane finished a page, turning to give Trevor a proud smile. “How’s it look?” Shane asked, giving Trevor’s shoulder a playful nudge.

Trevor stared at the screen, making a valiant effort to concentrate on it, and not on the almost naked Shane, who was still in just speedos, a fact Trevor was reminded of every time their bodies brushed together.

Swallowing once and forcing himself to focus on the words, Trevor read for a few moments before replying, “It’s great, I love it… uh, one thing though, I see a couple of words, spelled the Australian way, like color with a ‘u’ in it. Won’t that look kinda odd, in a story about an American?

Shane shrugged. “Not my problem that Yanks can’t spell, but it’s easy to fix if need be; we’ll just do a find-replace on words that you lot spell oddly.” Shane gave Trevor another nudge, chuckling, “besides, there can’t be anything in the book odder than you, that’s just not possible.”

Trevor laughed, nudging Shane back. “Asshole! Okay, other than the spelling, it looks awesome. So, what’s next, keep working our way backwards towards Suez?”

Shane nodded, and then rolled over, away from Trevor, onto his back and stretched. As Trevor fought the urge to stare, Shane said, “I think we need a break; how about a game of beach flags, or a swim?”

Trevor hesitated for a few moments. He liked beach flags, though he feared the likely result of wrestling around in speedos with Shane. A swim, he reasoned, would be safer in that regard. “A swim sounds good; I could use cooling off,” Trevor replied.

Shane stood up, carefully moving the laptop back to the salon table. “That works. I like being in and out of the water when working on stuff. A week before you arrived I cleaned and sealed the teak on the weather decks, and I was in and out of the water every half hour or so, just a dive in and then right out. The harbormaster at the marina gave me some nasty looks; you’re not supposed to swim in the marina. He never said anything though, so I kept doing it. It’s a good way to beat the heat, and speedos dry quick.” Shane gathered up his notes and gave the boardies Trevor was wearing a reproachful glance before turning away to hide a smirk.

Trevor glanced at Shane, thinking, ‘He’s winding me up again, or just yanking my chain.’ Trevor got up and shrugged, and then turned to head for the cockpit. As a swimmer, he was very comfortable in speedos and would have preferred them for the very reasons Shane kept pointing out, except for the fact that they would show far too much. Trevor glanced towards his cabin and considered changing for the swim, but had almost decided against it when the satellite phone began to ring.

Shane whipped it out of the navigation desk drawer and answered, while Trevor looked on, wondering who was calling.

Trevor didn’t have long to wonder, because after a few words, Shane handed Trevor the phone.

Trevor heard the sound of a car engine and road noise as Fowler said, “G’Day, Trevor. I hope you’re doing well and having a good time. I’ve just been at the yacht club, and I have a package from a phone company, plus an envelope from The Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles. Craig and I will be down Denham way this coming Wednesday, if you’d like to rendezvous in the region so we can give these to you?”

“Thanks, that’s great, but we’ll be back in Carnarvon this Sunday. Can we come in and see you then?”

Trevor heard tires crunching on gravel as a slightly distracted Fowler replied, “We’ll be there. Looking forward to seeing you, and Shelly– ah, my wife, will have a treat for you: a key lime pie.”

Trevor heard a few muffled words in the background as he replied, “Thanks, and please thank her for us both; the last one was fantastic!”

Trevor and Fowler chatted briefly, and then Trevor replied to a question, “Yeah, Shane’s fine, he’s been awesome. Want to talk to him? Okay, thanks sir, and see you Sunday.”

Shane returned the phone to the desk drawer. “That was Officer Fowler. He was in kind of a hurry because it sounds like he’s driving. He has my phone and drivers' license too. He said he could drop them off for us here next week, but I told him we’d be back Sunday. And guess what? He said his wife is making us another key lime pie!”

Shane beamed. “I’ve never met her, but I hope she’ll give me the recipe. That last one was a ripper!”

Trevor smiled at Shane’s exuberance, and then his smile sobered slightly as he remembered days long past. “They’re great, for sure. I hope we get to meet her and say thank you. He said her name’s Shelly, I’ve always loved that name,” Trevor said, turning to walk out into the cockpit, lost in thought.

When Trevor reached the cockpit, he looked around the bay as Shane came out to stand beside him. “Tomorrow, let’s start off the day with some beach flags,” Shane said, glancing towards the beach and then putting his hands behind his neck to stretch.

Trevor’s eyes were instinctively drawn to Shane, and he allowed himself a seemingly casual glance at Shane’s flexing chest, and then, resisting the powerful urge to look lower, turned away and walked to the side, where he dove smoothly into the warm, calm waters of Rhys Lagoon.

As soon as Trevor surfaced, Shane cannonballed in right next to him, the opening volley of a brief but riotous splash war.

Laughing in the sun, the two friends fought their watery battle, drifting between Kookaburra’s sterns, until Trevor saw an opening and dunked Shane.

Shane came up, grinning, and as quickly as it had begun, the splash fight was over.

Trevor, muscles rippling in the sun, kicked upwards and lunged to grab ahold of Kookaburra’s transom, sparing just a glance forward between her hulls as he pulled himself upwards, intending to return to the cockpit.

A brass plaque on the left side of the transom’s aft edge caught Trevor’s eye, and he edged sideways for a look. “Atlantis has one like this, with her name and model on it,” he said, looking at the plaque with a sad smile.

Shane scrambled up beside Trevor, putting one hand on Trevor’s shoulder and hanging on to the deck edge with the other and he leaned in and read from the plaque. “Kookaburra, Lagoon 57, launched April 22^nd, 1996,” Shane said softly.

Trevor, always interested in all things related to Lagoon catamarans, reached out to tap the plaque’s lower right corner. “JeanneauTechniques Avancées. That’s the builder, same yard that built Atlantis and Ares, and Atlantis’s plaque didn’t have that. Atlantis was renamed by my mother – it’s normal for a new owner to want to name their boat – so she had a new plaque made. When it’s got the builder’s name and insignia on it like this, it means the owner ordered it new from the builder, and the builder made the plaque,” Trevor said, idly tracing his finger on the brass, coming to some smaller engraved print, ‘FR-CNB5703D996’. Trevor smiled, remembering being taught how to read the code. “The ‘FR-CNB’ part of the serial number means she was built at the Lagoon factory in France… Atlantis’s serial number starts with FR-JTA, so I guess they changed that for the 57’s, which I think might have been built at a different yard there, some of ‘em anyway. The ‘5703’ means she’s the third Lagoon 57 built, the ‘D’ is the fourth letter of the alphabet so that’s the fourth month of the year, April, and the 996 means she was competed in 1996, which was the first year they made the 57s.”

“The Blakes have had her since she was new,” Shane said, and then gave Trevor a curious look. “How the hell do you know how to read bloody serial codes like that? I think you know more about Lagoon catamarans than even the Blakes do. I love crewing, but you... you’re a captain. You like being at the helm and you know a million little details like this, and how to trim and balance the sails, all that stuff. I watched you close on the way here from Monkey Mia; I’ve crewed on a lot of boats, and you’re about the best I’ve ever seen, and don’t deny it – if you weren’t, you wouldn’t have survived to get here,” Shane said, with a touch of admiration in his voice, as he climbed up and over the rail and into the cockpit.

Trevor followed, smiling with a mix of sadness and pride. “Thanks... My Mom taught me some, and after she died, I wanted to learn all there is to know about captaining a Lagoon 55. I’ve also had a lot more practice than most skippers: lots of charters, then sailing halfway around the world. I also... I– Ares was a Lagoon 55, almost the same as Atlantis, just a little older. I figured that if I learned all I could, it’d help me figure out what happened to her and find her,” Trevor said, staring out to sea.

“You were just shy of eight when she died, you can’t have known much sailing at that age. How’d you get your start?” Shane asked.

“Atlantis was moored near my father’s chandlery, and she had a crew that took her out on charters, but Dad couldn’t go out on her; he gets massively seasick – even when tied up to the dock if there’s any wave motion at all. The old couple who were her crew for charters took me along a few times. Mom had kinda taught me to sail her, but they got me so I could handle her. By the time I was thirteen I could take her out alone. After a while, whenever I thought I could get away with it, I started going out and searching where Ares went down, especially on the anniversary. It’s... something I have to do.”

Trevor and Shane made their way to the deck freshwater shower to rinse off the salt, where he was again heavily distracted by the sight of Shane.

Trevor had found himself thinking of Shane more and more. Part of it was physical; Shane was Trevor’s ideal form, and his penchant for wearing as little as possible made his close presence even more intense for Trevor. However, as Trevor himself was coming to realize, Shane was far more than just attractive. He was being a true friend to Trevor, caring for him, looking after him when he needed it. The closeness and intimacy of sleeping in the same bed had affected Trevor deeply. All those reasons, taken together, made Shane’s close presence even more intoxicating for Trevor.

After rinsing off, Trevor padded over to the rail and stood in the sun to dry, staring out at the beach to avoid staring at Shane. Remembering the kangaroos, and wondering if Joel would like reading Shane’s ‘Night of the Mob’ some dark night, Trevor bounded down into the cockpit ahead of Shane, who had finished his shower. As he began turning towards Shane, who was now near the helm, Trevor said, “That was an awesome–” his voice catching in his throat, his thought forgotten as he looked at Shane, who was toweling his hair.

Trevor had a full view of Shane, who was standing sideways to Trevor, his torso turning towards Trevor as he twisted to set down his towel.

Mesmerized, Trevor’s hungry eyes roamed. Shane was spectacular: the sunlight on his damp skin highlighting his definition and tan, perfect skin. His brief and clinging swimsuit, still wet, hid nothing.

Shane shook out his blond hair, a vision in the sun, masculine beauty that rivaled the Greek Gods of old.

“What’s awesome?” Shane asked, turning his head to look at Trevor.

Trevor’s mouth opened, but no words formed. “Uh,” he mumbled, feeling suddenly transfixed, and took a step forward, seeking the salon. He was only two feet too far to his left to achieve his goal, and instead of walking through the salon door, his purposeful hurried stride carried him straight into the unyielding bulkhead.

Trevor slammed into the bulkhead, the impact sending him bouncing back, stumbling, yet again in the grip of his nemesis, gravity, as he landed squarely on his ass with a resounding thud.

“Oops,” Shane said, dashing to Trevor and helping him to his feet. “You’ve got to stop doing that, you’ll break something,” Shane said, facing Trevor and standing close, reaching out to perch his hand on Trevor’s shoulder, coming even closer as he asked, softly, “Are you okay?”

Shane was so close that Trevor could feel his breath. Their eyes met, as Shane gave Trevor’s shoulder a gentle squeeze. “Yeah,” Trevor replied, lost in Shane’s eyes.

In a sudden blur of motion, Shane turned away and walked into the salon. “Feel like having another go at the book?” he called out, in his normal cheery tone.

Shaking himself from his daze, Trevor followed, replying, “Yeah, sounds good.” Trevor lay down on the couch, face down, propping himself up on his elbows to read Shane’s latest chapter, which Shane had printed out earlier, due to preferring to make some aspects of his markup notes by hand. “This is really good,” Trevor said, after reading a couple of pages.

“Thanks,” Shane replied from his seat at the table, where he was still pecking away at the laptop computer. After a few moments, he said, in a downcast tone, “This is going to take months. Unless we hit it lucky and find a way to take Kookaburra, we’re never going to finish this before you leave. Do you really have to go as soon as Atlantis is ready?”

“Unless we can take Kookaburra, which I think is really unlikely, I have to or I’ll lose the chance to find Ares, if it’s not too late already. There’s always e-mail,” Trevor offered.

“Assuming I even have e-mail or a computer... The Blakes haven’t said yet if they’ll be keeping Kookaburra or keeping me on, and if they don’t, I don’t know where I’ll be, but that’s not your worry I guess,” Shane replied sourly. This time, Trevor noticed Shane’s tone and glanced over his shoulder, to see Shane scowling. Trevor was about to reply, but Shane saw his look and shrugged, turning away. “Sorry, just a sore spot of mine... I didn’t mean to jump on your case. You have to find your mum’s boat, and what happened to her. I know I’d do the same, if I was you and it was my mum,” Shane said, sighing softly.

Suddenly, Trevor understood part of what Shane might be getting at. He stood up and walked towards Shane, stopping behind him, glancing over his shoulder at the page Shane was working on. Trevor took a deep breath, trying to decide. “Shane... you know that being around me could be dangerous; both from the voyage, and whoever is trying to kill me,” he said softly.

Shane kept his eyes on the screen. “We had this conversation before; I wouldn’t stay away just because it’s dangerous,” Shane said, still frowning at the screen, but no longer as sourly.

Trevor took a deep breath, his emotions warring. ‘If he comes with me, we’ll be together for months... I’ll fall hard for him, I know I will, and it’ll hurt like hell, because he can never be what I want.’ Trevor paced for a few moments, arguing silently with himself, ‘I’m already falling for him, plus he’s so hot he’s driving me crazy, but I need him,’ and then he looked at Shane’s slumped shoulders, catching a glimpse of his downcast face in a reflection from the screen. ‘He needs a place to be, I can’t just leave him,’ Trevor thought, his emotions warring. One more look at Shane was all it took. ‘He needs me,’ taking a deep breath, his decision made, Trevor said, “Then come with me, if you want, and either the book will set us up with good money, or I’ll get you airfare home when you want it.”

Shane brightened instantly, turning to look at Trevor, but hesitated for a moment before saying, in a hesitant tone, “How long could I stay? There’s not much hope of me getting an immigration visa for America.”

“Stay as long as you want... If you want to stay a long time, either we’ll get you a visa somehow or I’ll relocate to the Bahamas; I looked into that a little when I was there and thinking I might hang out there a year. They’ll let people in if they are bringing money or a business with ‘em, and Atlantis qualifies. You could run charters with me in the Bahamas. And if that didn’t work, we could come back to Australia; my mom was Australian so I can live and work here if I want. I’d miss the hell out of you if you left, Shane, I like having you in my life – a lot,” Trevor said, going further than he’d intended.

Shane’s grin lit up the room, his eyes sparking. “I’m going with you!” Shane declared, whooping with sheer joy, jumping up and spinning to face Trevor with a big grin on his face. Shane angled his head, his grin changing to a playful smirk as he stepped up to Trevor, reaching around him as if to give him a hug, his hands suddenly flying up to just below Trevor’s armpits, fingers questing frantically in a furious tickle attack.

Caught by surprise, Trevor tried to force his hands under Shane’s arms in a counter-attack, but ended up flailing, twisting and laughing, trying to turn away, but Shane moved with him, tickling him relentlessly.

“Trying to make me change my mind?” Trevor gasped through his laughter, twisting away and stumbling towards the couch, but Shane wasn’t even close to done.

Chuckling, Shane rushed Trevor, tackling him into the couch and sending him sprawling, flat on his back, as the tickling resumed for a moment, and then Shane paused, laying half on top of him, his head over Trevor’s chest and his hands under his armpits, ready to resume the attack. “I’m happy!” Shane declared, with a devilish grin.

Trevor laughed and tried to push Shane off, but Shane instantly resumed tickling for a moment, making Trevor writhe. Trevor tried to tickle Shane, but Shane’s arms were in the way. Shane began writhing around, his bare chest rubbing against Trevor’s stomach.

“If you keep squirming around on me, you’re gonna make me happy in a way you won’t like,” Trevor threatened, still laughing.

Shane paused and looked Trevor in the eyes for a moment. “You’re into guys, we’ll be alone together for months, and we’re already sharing a bed,” Shane said softly, with a look that Trevor mistook for concern appearing on his face, though he made no move to let Trevor up.

Trevor looked at Shane and frowned. ‘He pushed me to ask him to go with me, then he’s all over me, and NOW he gets worried I’ll hit on him?’ he thought sourly, slightly hurt by the thought that Shane didn’t seem to trust him. Trevor took a breath before replying, “Considering you’re all over me right now, you’ve got weird timing. You’ll meet Joel soon; he’s hot too, we’ve been friends a long time, spent months alone together in the Med, and I’ve never made a move on him.”

Shane eased up and away a few inches, a convincing look of abject horror appearing on his face. “Did you just call me hot? That’s a weird thing for one friend to say to another. Definite sexual harassment! Maybe I should be worried? Maybe I should be running, screaming in terror?” Shane’s expression quickly changed to smirk, and he nodded once. “You’re assuming things, mate,” he said, crossing his arms on Trevor’s chest and resting his chin on them.

The contradiction between Shane’s close contact and his words made Trevor smile. ‘If he was worried, he wouldn’t still be all over me. He’s winding me up,’ Trevor thought, as Shane’s left hand moved slightly, slowly extending his fingers on Trevor’s left pec. “Yeah, you seem real worried about it,” Trevor quipped, trembling slightly from the touch.

Shane gave Trevor’s pec a friendly pat. “You do make a good pillow,” he said, with a soft chuckle. He eased up slightly, freeing his left hand, which he began to trace, ever so slowly, down Trevor’s side.

The sensation of Shane’s light touch caused Trevor to inhale sharply. “Ah, Shane, if you’re trying to see how far you can go before I get turned on, you’re about there,” Trevor said, feeling himself growing hard. He tried to squirm out from under Shane, but Shane wouldn’t let him and Trevor wasn’t inclined to try too hard. ‘What the hell, he’s got to know what he’s doing to me,’ Trevor thought, looking into Shane’s face, seeing a lopsided smile as Shane began swirling his fingers in Trevor’s pec.

Confused, still suspecting a wind up but feeling a glimmer of hope for something he’d deemed impossible, Trevor felt the exquisite touches driving him wild, and felt his hard-on pressing through his shorts and against Shane’s abs. He felt Shane’s stomach tense and relax as Shane moved, a sensation that made Trevor gasp. His mind racing, going nowhere, Trevor spoke his question with a name, “Shane?”

Shane placed both of his hands on Trevor’s chest and eased himself up a few more inches. He glanced down at Trevor’s chest and began tracing the cleft with one finger. “I think there’s something we should talk about,” he said, very quietly, his eyes on his finger and he turned his attention to circling Trevor’s nipple. He felt Trevor shudder and looked up with a smile. “Sensitive, that’s handy,” he said offhandedly.

Trevor still suspected a wind-up, but the intimate touches were driving him wild. Tentatively, without the need for thought, he brought his hands up, settling them on Shane’s back and moving them in gentle circles. “If this is a wind-up–” Trevor said, his words cut off by a sharp intake of breath as Shane nuzzled his neck and then gave it a single slow lick.

Shane pulled himself up so that he was face to face with Trevor, and chuckled. Then he said, in a quiet, serious tone, “No wind-up, Trev, not this time. Just the end of a lie, or more the case of a half-truth. I wasn’t asleep when you asked me what aftereffects I have from the accident. I couldn’t tell you then, but now I can. You know some of my past; my so-called father ran out on Mum and me, then my mum died. After that, I was bounced around, from my step dad to other relatives; none of them wanted me for long, or much cared what I was going through. I started to get better, then Gazza moved away, and not long after I found out my girlfriend was cheating on me. I’m sick of people leaving me, Trev. Everyone I get close to either goes away or is taken away. I can’t deal with that pain so I try not to get involved if I think that’ll happen, not for anything more serious than a night or two at any rate. You and I click really well, so I knew what could happen – because you were leaving. I was scared of getting close and then being left behind – again.” Shane moved his hand behind Trevor’s head, playing with his hair. “I didn’t want my heart broken again, that’s why I let you think I was straight. Then there’s your quest – which is mine as well, now. What would you have done if we’d become boyfriends but I couldn’t go with you? You couldn’t abandon your quest any more than I could if I were you. You were hurting as well, so I thought I was doing us both a good turn and saving you from some stress and heartache too. But I never said I was straight, Trev. I just let you think I was, because I felt I had to.”

Trevor’s hands, with a mind of their own, continued roaming on Shane’s exquisite swimmer’s back. Confused, though starting to believe, he said softly, “You’re gay? You said you weren’t, and you said you like girls?” Trevor smiled to show that there was no rancor behind his question.

Shane ran his fingers through Trevor’s hair, smiling, his other hand tracing gentle circles on Trevor’s side. “I’m not gay, and as for liking girls, that’s true, I do... but I’ve never said I was straight, just that I’m not gay, which happens to be the truth. You’re into guys… But with me, Gender doesn’t much matter, I’m into whoever catches my eye – and my heart. One very hot guy in particular, lately,” Shane said, lowering his head to nuzzle Trevor’s neck.

“You’re bi,” Trevor murmured, beginning to believe.

“The light finally dawns,” Shane replied, easing up to nudge Trevor’s chin with his own. “When you invited me to go with you and stay as long as I like, you took away the one thing that was holding me back,” Shane said, as he leaned in and nibbled on the crease in Trevor’s neck. “I’ve a good idea how you feel, and I know exactly why you’ve been walking into things and getting so shook up and distracted. You’ve given me more than a few cases of the clumsies yourself,” Shane added, before resuming his nibbling.

Trevor shuddered from the sensations of Shane’s lips and roaming hands, letting his own hands clutch at Shane’s back, pulling him closer. Trevor was so turned on that he was having a hard time thinking clearly; he wanted to believe, though lingering doubts remained, thanks to Shane’s penchant for the artful wind-up. “This feels good,” was all he could think to say.

“It’s supposed to; it’s part of my sneaky secret plan to seduce you,” Shane replied, easing back to look Trevor in the eyes.

“You can’t seduce the willing,” Trevor said, his voice barely above a whisper, lost in Shane’s eyes.

“I aim to try,” Shane replied, tracing his fingers down the cleft of Trevor’s chest. His eyes followed his fingers, and his voice took on a softer tone, “One of the reasons I left Cairns is my most recent ex: while I was off on a charter to the great barrier reef, he found somebody else. So I got left, like I always do. A few of my old mates knew I’d been dating a guy and gave me some crap about it when I was down over the breakup and in no mood for it. I’d just had enough. I didn’t care anymore, so I decided to hit the road and give the competition in Perth I’d heard about a burl. Trev, you’re big on loyalty – and so am I. When I learnt that about you… I’ve had a very hard time keeping my hands to myself ever since.”

Shane eased himself up, until he was face to face with Trevor, and lowered his body to Trevor’s. Trevor could feel that Shane was hard, and searched Shane’s eyes, looking deep, trying to find some hint of deception, though hoping he wouldn’t. For a moment, he tried to find words, but then, without the need of thought, Trevor cupped his hand behind Shane’s neck, pulling him in until their noses brushed. Driven by a deep desire, coupled with an urgent need to know for certain, Trevor touched Shane’s lower lip with his tongue, soon feeling Shane’s tongue against his own.

Trevor took a deep breath, pulling Shane in, as their tongues began to dance, tenderly at first, but as the passion increased, the kiss became more. Nothing he’d ever done had felt so right. Lost, focused on nothing but the moment, the joy of it, the closeness, Trevor deepened the kiss, his hands kneading Shane’s back, feeling the muscles moving in time with his own, Shane’s hair falling over his face, his breath hot on his cheek, and Shane’s hands rubbing at his sides, ever more insistent.

Shane pulled away, pausing to catch his breath. Looking Trevor in the eyes, he smiled, angling his head, to whisper from an inch away, “Still think I’m just winding you up?”

Trevor, his hands roaming on Shane’s sides, smiled back, lost in Shane’s eyes, knowing at last that Shane was telling the truth. “No, but I need a lot more convincing,” Trevor said, with a sly grin, pulling Shane closer.

Shane saw the mirth in Trevor’s eyes, and chuckled softly. “I can think of one good way to prove it, though it’ll take a few hours,” Shane said, rolling them both on their sides, still face to face, letting his hips grind into Trevor’s.

Trevor closed his eyes for a moment, focusing on the feel of Shane’s body and the hardness pressing against his own through his shorts. Burying his head in Shane’s neck, Trevor licked slowly at the crease, reveling in the taste and scent of him, slowly working his way down to Shane’s chest, twisting awkwardly to reach it.

Trevor pulled Shane in for another deep and furious kiss. When they came up for air, Trevor smiled. “I need more convincing,” he said, chuckling softly before nibbling at Shane’s neck.

Shane hugged Trevor tight and then eased back, placing his hand on the front of Trevor’s tented shorts to give a gentle rub, and chuckled. “Something’s sure up, and I haven’t started proving my case, yet.”

Trevor returned the touch, letting his hand linger and explore. “A few thousand times should take care of any doubts,” Trevor said softly, giving the front of Shane’s tented speedos a slow massage for a few long moments. Trevor ran his hand up Shane’s side, whispering, “Let’s see what you like,” as he lowered his head and traced his tongue down the cleft of Shane’s chest, feeling him shudder. Trevor, with deliberate slowness, worked his way to the left, until he began teasing Shane’s nipple with his tongue, evoking a grunt of pleasure. Trevor paused, just long enough to say, “Okay, that part seems to work, let’s see about the rest.”

Shane chuckled, and then let out a soft moan as Trevor shifted to his other nipple. “Test whatever you want... that’s hot,” Shane gasped.

Trevor pushed Shane further away, right to the edge of the couch seat, to get access to his abs. He began by tracing them slowly with his fingers, taking his time, watching Shane’s reactions to see what he most liked.

Shane, with exquisite slowness, traced his finger along the top of Trevor’s waistband. Trevor looked down, trembling from the sensation, as Shane murmured, “You’re overdressed for this.”

Trevor felt a tug on his drawstring, and worked his hands in to tease Shane’s abs, working his way down, inch by inch.

There are many things that cannot for long be denied, and Shane was at the mercy of two of them; passion was one, and Shane, driven by the need to share the sensations he was feeling, eased back to the edge of the couch so he could reach Trevor’s abs. Awkwardly, Shane reached over Trevor’s arm, his fingers nearing their goal, as the second undeniable factor took over; Shane, distracted and intent on his task, felt his elbow slip off the seat cushion, and he yelped in surprise as gravity took over and he fell off the couch, hitting the deck with a resounding thud.

Smirking, Trevor leaned forward and looked down at Shane. “You fell off the couch,” he observed, accompanied by a sad shake of his head.

“No shit, Sherlock,” Shane grumbled, with an embarrassed smile on his face, as he lay flat on his back, and then began to sit up.

“Gravity works,” Trevor added helpfully, reaching out to push Shane back down, and then shoving himself off the couch to carefully half fall, half land on top of Shane.

“Ooof,” Shane grunted, his arms wrapping around Trevor. “This floor is hard.”

“It’s not the only thing that is,” Trevor replied, chuckling as he ground his hips into Shane’s and launched into a furious kiss.

When Trevor came up for air, hands still roaming Shane’s sides, Shane grinned. “A bed would be a lot more comfortable than the floor,” he offered, glancing towards the galley stairs and easing himself up on one elbow.

Trevor, lying on top of Shane, blocked Shane’s move to get up, grinding into him again and nuzzling his neck. “I’m fine here; you make a great pillow.”

Shane’s hands moved fast, his fingers questing deep as he tickled Trevor, making him writhe, laugh, and twist. “Bed, or do I tickle you until you’re a blubbering mess?” Shane demanded, with a laugh of his own.

Trevor laughed and rolled off Shane. “Okay, okay, bed it is, you wimp,” Trevor quipped, smiling like a little kid on Christmas morning.

Shane scrambled to his feet and raced down the galley stairs to Trevor’s cabin, laughing with joy.

As soon as Shane was near the foot of the bed, Trevor launched himself at Shane’s back, tackling Shane, landing them both in a heap, and then furiously tickling Shane, catching him by surprise and making him laugh and thrash. “Bastard!” Shane gasped, trying to get Trevor back, but this time Trevor had the advantage.

Trevor flipped Shane face up, flopping down on top of him as he stopped tickling him, his eyes locked on Shane’s. “Did it ever occur to you that my biggest objection to you coming with me was me thinking you’re straight? I knew I was falling for you and I didn’t want to get hurt – or risk hurting you,” Trevor said quietly, with a faint smile to let Shane know there were no recriminations.

Shane let his hands roam Trevor’s sides, their eyes still locked as Shane replied, “Uh, no... I never thought of that. I should have... it’s kind of the flip side of the same coin. I just thought we’d both get hurt worse if we were a couple and you left,” Shane said, with a shy, faint smile, his hands still roaming.

Trevor eased down, pulling Shane into a deep kiss. Finally breaking it, he replied, “It would have hurt worse, you’re right...” Trevor leaned forward, his chest on Shane’s, to give the underside of Shane’s collarbone a tender lick. He eased up towards Shane’s ear. “Let’s see if you like this,” Trevor whispered, before beginning to nibble on the lobe.

“Mmm, yeah, that works,” Shane murmured, breathing harder, his hands slowly working their way towards Trevor’s lower back.

Shane’s fingertip slowly traced Trevor’s skin, crossing his lower back, and then hooking his waistband at the hip, giving a light but insistent tug. Trevor arched up, giving Shane access, letting him untie the drawstring and start easing the shorts down. Trevor kicked them off as Shane’s hands began to explore, and then pulled Shane in for a furious kiss, his hands slowly making their way towards Shane’s speedos.

Shane rolled them onto their sides, lips still locked, as Trevor fumbled with Shane’s drawstring. Breaking the kiss, Shane teased Trevor’s hands, foiling them. “What makes you think I’m going to let you get me naked? You know how shy I am,” Shane whispered in Trevor’s ear, chuckling.

Trevor grinned, his hands flying up to Shane’s sides, fingers questing, making Shane writhe and laugh. “You’re shy – yeah, right...” Trevor said, before pausing the tickling and reaching for Shane’s drawstring again. Shane’s hand again interfered, and as Shane chuckled, Trevor traced his thumb slowly along Shane’s waistband. “You just want to give me a raging case of blue balls,” Trevor said, laughing as he resumed his attack on Shane’s ribs.

“Not a bad idea, that,” Shane said, his hand settling on Trevor’s erection. “But I’ve a better one,” he said, giving it a few gentle rubs.

Groaning with pleasure, Trevor resumed his attack on Shane’s drawstring, this time with no interference from Shane.

As soon as Shane’s speedos were off, Trevor let his eyes roam, taking in a sight he’d thought he’d never see. “You have no idea how many times I’ve wanted to,” Trevor said softly, reaching out and taking Shane in hand.

“I think I do, same as me,” Shane replied, guiding Trevor’s hands to his back as they rolled face to face, pulling together, their banter fading, supplanted by passion as they gave themselves fully over to their mutual desires.

~~

~

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Please let me know what you think; good, bad, or indifferent.

Please give me feedback, and please don’t be shy if you want to criticize! The feedback thread for this story is in my Forum. Please stop by and say "Hi!"

Many thanks to my editor EMoe for editing and for his support, encouragement, beta reading, and suggestions.
Special thanks to Graeme, for beta-reading and advice.
Thanks also to Talonrider and MikeL for beta reading.
A big Thank You to RedA for Beta reading and advice, and to Bondwriter for final Zeta-reading and advice.

Any remaining errors are mine alone.