A Tattoo for Lex - 23. Chapter 23

Ian parked the truck in the short term lot and he and Lex each grabbed one of Cassie’s bags for her. They brought them in and waited while she checked them at the counter. They walked her to where the security line began and Cassie was doing he best to hold back her tears.

She grabbed Ian in her trademark boa constrictor hold and whispered in his ear “Thank you for giving me my best friend back. I haven’t seen this Lex since before his mom died. He’s so happy and it’s because of you. I love you!”

Ian hugged her back and whispered “I love you too Cass.” He was going to truly miss the ball of spitfire, she was good for Lex, and he was good for her too. She brought laughter with her and that’s just what Lex had been needing. He stepped to the side so that Lex and Cassie could say goodbye.

Lex hugged Cassie tightly and told her “It’s not forever Dory. I’ll see you in a few weeks, And hey, if your job gets to be too much, quit. You know I’ll help you out until you find something else. I want you to be happy.”

Cassie squeezed him back and said “I’ll think about it. It might be time for a change. These next few weeks are going to suck. I’m going to miss you Nemo! God I love you!” Cassie kissed him and reluctantly let go.

“Love you too” Lex called after her as she joined the line for security. At least it was pretty short this early in the morning.

They stayed and watched as she disappeared down the concourse toward her gate. “Are you OK?” Ian asked Lex.

“No, but I will be. It’s hard knowing I won’t be seeing her everyday.” Lex answered.

They headed back to the truck hand in hand. When they were on the road again Lex decided to broach a few topics that he had on his mind. He told Ian that they should discuss their finances. He didn’t want to go into a marriage without discussing how they would handle things.

Luckily Ian was in agreement. He knew that Lex was rich and he didn’t want that fact to become an issue for them. Lex knew Ian didn’t care about his wealth, but Lex didn’t want Ian to feel like he wasn’t on equal terms. He asked Ian if it was ok if he spoke first and Ian agreed.

Lex started “I know that you’re not marrying me for my money. I think what I really want the most is for us to figure out something productive to do with it. I mean I already donate to several charities every year, but I think I want to start some sort of foundation or nonprofit that will benefit people. I just don’t know what. I figured we could try to come up with something that would be close to both our hearts. As far as the rest goes I’d like your OK to put you on my bank accounts. I really only have two, my Amex and a checking account. I have a financial advisor who takes care of my money and investments for me. I met him in college. We had a few elective courses together. I know I told you I inherited three hundred and seventy two million, well as of my most recent statement it’s actually grown to four hundred and two and some change. My financial guy is a wizard, I give away roughly five million a year and he recoups it plus some. I talk with him every month and he sends me quarterly statements.”

Ian looked thoughtful and after a few minutes of contemplation he replied “That’s a hell of a lot of money. But you’re right, we should figure out something together. I suggest we don’t do anything until after the wedding. That will give us both time to think of some ideas. It’s not something we should rush into. We should also wait until after the wedding to make any changes to our accounts. That way we can get our names changed legally first and not have to change it twice on the accounts. I don’t have nearly as much in assets as you, but I’d like to add your name to the house if that’s alright. It’s almost paid for and it would make me feel like I was contributing something. It’s nowhere near four hundred million, but it’s what I have. I also have some money in savings and a retirement account. I’d like to combine those as well. I think maybe we should schedule a meeting with your financial guy after the wedding and see what’s the best way to proceed. Also I’d be more than willing to sign a prenup. It might be a good idea considering the amount of money you have.”

Lex cut in “The amount of money WE have. I don’t need you to sign a prenuptial agreement. When I told you we were soulmates I meant it. I’ve seen a lot of soulmate connections in my travels and even though it’s rare considering the population of the world, it’s not unheard of. I have never seen a broken connection like there is when non-soulmates split up. Even when I’ve seen a person who’s soulmate has died, the connection is still there. It just makes a complete circle around the person still alive. We will probably argue, fight and disagree, but Ian we will never stop loving each other. That I am sure of.”

Ian glanced over at Lex and once again was amazed that this beautiful man was his. He gave him a quick smile and with eyes back on the road said “You amaze me every single day. I think the only thing we really need to focus on is communicating. As long as we do that we can probably avoid most pitfalls that couples usually go through. I’m happy that we can have conversations like this. I don’t ever want you to avoid bringing something up that might be uncomfortable and I’m happy that I can bring up any topic with you as well. So what else shall we discuss while we have the time? Kids? I know you didn’t want to really talk about it when Cassie was here. Does the thought scare you?”

Lex answered “Hell I think the thought would scare anybody. I don’t know anything about taking care of a little human. The thought of holding a baby scares the shit out of me! What are you supposed to do with those things anyways?”

Ian laughed and replied “First off they’re not things! God, Mom would have a field day with that comment! Second, I think you’d make a great Dad someday. I think that we should keep our cards on the table when it comes to having a kid or kids. If an opportunity comes up then we can go all in.”

Lex looked at him and smirked. “And your mom would have no problem with you comparing us having a kid to a poker game?” he queried.

Ian snickered and said “Yeah, um, maybe not the best choice of words.”

Deciding to end the serious conversation the spent the remainder of the ride talking about Ian’s work.

“I’m considering taking on an apprentice. The shop is getting really busy and I don’t want to get to the point where I have to turn people down or have them not be able to get an appointment for a month. I’d like to be able to turn over some of the easier work to someone who needs the experience. Now that I’ve completed your back I wouldn’t mind doing more scar cover up work. Not to mention I’d like to spend time with you as well. I’m proud of my work but I don’t want to get so involved that it doesn’t leave time for the people I love.”

Lex told him “I think that’s a great idea. Maybe you should call the guy you did your apprenticeship with and see if he has anyone who might fit the bill.”

Ian said “Hmmm, great minds think alike. I wanted to get your opinion before I called him. I’ll see if maybe I can get a hold of him this afternoon.”

It wasn’t long before they were back home and Ian and Lex made a quick brunch before he headed to the shop.

The rest of August flew by as Lex continued to work on the backyard. By the middle of the month he had everything cleared and just needed to keep it maintained until the end of September when he planned to get fresh mulch for the flower beds, even though the flowers wouldn’t be blooming. He started to sand the gazebo after finding an extension cord long enough to reach that far back. Ian had called his mentor and the man gave him several names of people he knew. Ian had been interviewing them but still hadn’t decided.

Before they knew it Labor Day weekend was approaching. Ian and Lex had decided to clear the whole weekend and enjoy it. The weather forecast was predicting sunny skies and warm, but not hot temperatures. In other words, just perfect. Jarren and Mazen’s party was on Sunday and with most people having Monday off Jarren had told Lex that it usually ran pretty late into the night and they should be prepared to stay over if the were going to drink any alcohol. Jarren said it usually turned into one big slumber party as most everyone had something to drink although not everyone got drunk. Mazen tried to keep everything under control.

Finally the day of the party arrived and Lex and Ian brought several bottles of wine as well as a case of beer and Lex had made two cheesecakes. Jarren said they usually had between 30-40 of their friends and family over. Lex had found out through Jarren that they had a big family. He and Mazen were fraternal twins and they also had two other brothers and two sisters. All except their youngest brother were married and between all the siblings there were nine nieces and nephews all under the age of ten.

The party was in full swing they arrived and they parked several houses down the street in front of one of their neighbors. Mazen saw them first and greeted them enthusiastically. He showed them where to put the booze and the cheesecake. Jarren was out back manning the grill and waved when he saw them. Lex and Ian recognized several people and Lex had gotten to the point where he was comfortable mingling with other people. Ian had done a lot to pull him out of his shell.

They had been there about forty-five minutes when all of a sudden Ian looked over and his face broke out into a huge smile.

“JACE!” he yelled. He handed his beer to Lex who smiled as he watched Ian greet his best friend. The two men wrapped their arms around each other and Ian actually lifted Jace off the the ground.

Lex watched in amusement. He had listened in several times when Ian had talked to Jase and put him on speaker phone. He liked what he knew of the man. Jase was the polar opposite of Ian. Where Ian was over six feet, Jase was barely taller than Cassie, maybe 5”8’, if even that. He had a stocky build but wasn’t fat, rather muscular but not in the overblown bodybuilder way. He had red hair. Not carrot top red but more auburn, like Cameron Monaghan who played the Joker on Gotham and Ian Gallagher on Shameless. He looked a little like him, just not as tall. He wore stylish glasses which gave him a rather nerdy look, but surprisingly worked in a kind of hot nerd way.

He heard Ian exclaim “What the hell are you doing here?! You told me you had plans this weekend!” as he dragged him over toward Lex.

Jase answered “I obviously lied Douchebag. I wanted to surprise you. I ran into Bailey and she mentioned the party and that you would be here and she invited me.”

Bailey was one of Jarren and Mazen’s sisters who worked at UMass and was also friends with Jase.

“So what happened to your latest bed partner? Ian grilled. Jase was bisexual and had gone through both girlfriends and boyfriends at a rapid pace when he was younger, having slowed down somewhat as he approached thirty.

“Found him in bed with the girl I dumped six months ago.” was the reply.

“Ouch” said Lex, who had overheard.

Ian turned and pulled Lex into his side and introduced them. “Lex, this asshole is my best friend Jase, thinks he’s God’s gift to both men and women, but as you can see is just a loser. Jase, this amazing man is Lex. What more can I say? He’s perfect.”

Lex offered his hand and Jase took it and pulled him into a hug instead. He put his mouth close to Lex’s ear and whispered “Can I kiss you and pretend to slip you some tongue so I can drive Ian crazy?”

Lex laughed, gave him a gentle shove and looked at Ian and said “We need to keep him and Cassie apart at the wedding.”

Jase looked at Ian and asked "Who's Cassie and is single and hot?"

Ian laughed and showed him Cassie's picture on his phone saying "That's Cassie and she can give even you a run for your money. I'd even put my money on her!"

Jase looked at the picture and repiled "Niiiiiiiicccee! She's really cute!"

Lex just shook his head. He was all of a sudden very happy that it was Cassie and Kathy planning the decorations for the wedding and not Cassie and Jase. They would've definitely had to elope!.

Jarren and Mazen came over with fresh beers in hand. The were already acquainted with Jase and greeted him enthusiastically. Lex asked the brothers if they were finished with the house they were renovation with the difficult couple.

Mazen chuckled and informed him “Yeah, we finally finished although I almost quit before we were done.”

“What happened?” Lex inquired.

Jarren interjected and asked “Remember when I came to look at the gazebo when your friend was here and I told you Mazen had taken off in a huff?.” Lex just nodded.

Mazen sighed and continued “Well she decided that three weeks before we’re due to finish she just HAD to have all new stairs in the front foyer. Chrome, metal and glass railings leading to the upstairs. This is a Victorian era house and she wants glass and chrome. She got really pissy when I told her that even if I wanted to, which I didn’t, I couldn’t change them. The house is on the Historic Register and it would take an act of God for them to approve something like that. Restoration yes, chrome replacement no. I nearly walked out. My dad had to step in. I just wanted to throttle her.”

“She sounds spoiled and I suppose her husband just sat back as usual?” Lex empathized.

“Actually he was pissed. He only found out about her plans when Dad called him to let him know what was going on. I guess he finally found his balls and told her off. He became the primary contact and we didn’t have to deal with her anymore. At least the house came out nice.” Mazen said.

Jarren nodded. “That was one reno that we will never forget!”

Lex looked at Jarren and said to him “Hey, I’ve been meaning to ask you but kept forgetting. How did your Mom and Dad come up with your names? They’re pretty unique.”

Jarren laughed and replied “It was a complete fluke. We were supposed to be Jared and Mason, but the day after we were born, apparently my Dad had left the hospital to check on our sisters and one of the nurses brought the forms in and gave them to our Mom. She, however was still strung out on whatever painkillers they had given her and was higher than a kite. She never could handle drugs or alcohol. So, being strung out like a junkie who had just snorted a huge line of coke, dearest Mother filled out the forms and totally butchered the spelling of both our names. How she managed to get the rest of it right no one will ever know. Hence, we are Jarren and Mazen.”

Ian looked and Jarren and chuckled saying “Dude, that’s pretty fucked up!”

Jase gave Jarren a long stare and finally managed to say “I think Jarren is a sexy name.”

Jarren turned bright red and changed the subject and asked “Does anyone else want another beer?” as he stood up and collected a few empty bottles that had been left behind by other party goers.

Jase stood up and told Jarren he would help him get the fresh beers for everyone.

Mazen looked at Ian and Lex and observed “Somebody needs to pull that boy out of the custom closet he’s built for himself, but you didn’t hear it from me.”

Ian looked at Lex and Lex answered “He’ll find his way out when he’s ready. It’s not easy for everyone. A lot of guys take awhile to figure it out.”

Mazen nodded and replied “I just want to see him happy. Hell, I just want to be happy. A nice, quiet girl I can settle down with. A cute brunette, brown eyes, maybe Greek or Italian. Knockers that are just a little more than a handful. That’s my ideal girl.”

Ian looked at Mazen and laughed “Sorry dude, but you’re on your own with that quest!”

Surprisingly Jarren and Jase made it back with fresh beer. It looked like Jase had been shot down. He leaned over and whispered to Ian “Maybe I should switch back to girls? A nice hot blonde. Haven’t dated one of those in a while.”

Ian took a long pull of his beer and rolled his eyes.

They all sat back and enjoyed the rest of the party. They ate, drank and socialized. Ian and Lex kept their alcohol consumption at a reasonable level, not wanting to feel the effects of overindulging again so soon. Jase and Ian got each other caught up on what was happening in their lives. Lex enjoyed watching them interact. It reminded him of Cassie and he laughed when the reminisced about the antics they used to get into and how they drove their parents up the wall.

Jase told Lex about the time they were out dirt bike riding with friends who lived next to a state park and were racing to see who would get back to their friend’s house first. He had stuck to the trails in the woods, but Ian decided to cheat and took to the road on a bike that was not street legal. Needless to say he was spotted by a cop and not wanting to get in trouble zigzagged through the neighborhood and ended up driving the bike through his friend’s garage and right into their cellar as their house was built into a hill, similar to Ian’s and the door from the garage to the cellar was open. The cops drove by and stopped and asked their friend Rob who was standing in the driveway stunned, if he had seen a kid on a dirt bike. Rob, being the good friend that he was, pointed up the street and told the cops he went that way. All with a straight face. The garage door was open and the cops didn’t see a dirt bike in there as Ian had closed the door that led into the cellar. Yep, that was one of their prouder moments.

Lex asked “How old were you?”

Jase was the one who answered “What? Maybe 15 or 16? That age where you’re just plain stupid and don’t really care.”

Ian teased “You never left that stage!”

Jase merely grabbed his beer and muttered “Asshole” just before taking a long pull.

Mazen and Jarren rejoined them at some point after mingling with some of their other guests. Their dad had lit the fire pit and as the night cooled off the warmth was welcomed. Before they knew it it was after midnight, the kids having either left earlier with their parents or were piled like sleeping puppies in the newly finished cellar that had been turned into a rec room/man cave. Luckily the only couple of people who had really gotten shitfaced had sober rides home.

Mazen and Jarren had redone their entire kitchen and living room after a late winter storm had toppled an old oak tree that no one realized had rotted on the inside and was unfortunately too close the house when the storm decided to unleash 50 mph winds. The tree had crashed into the house wreaking havoc to that end of their home. Luckily nobody was hurt and they had good insurance coverage. Because the boys did the all the work themselves they were able to afford high quality materials and their kitchen looked amazing. They also had enough to redo the cellar as well. They really were good at what they did.

It was a little after 1:00 AM when they headed inside. Ian and Lex quietly settled on one of the couches in the living room that had been opened up with the kitchen. There were a couple of other people sprawled on the other couch and another person on a chair sleeping, one they recognized as a brother to Mazen and Jarren. Jase took a recliner and soon all three were fast asleep.

Morning came all too quickly when the kids who had been sleeping downstairs came charging up the stairs like the bulls in Pamplona. Jarren’s mom came out of the guest room and in short order had them quieted down. Having so many kids of her own she had quickly learned how to herd animals known as children. She sent them back down cellar to watch a movie until breakfast was ready, having put one of the older girls in charge.

Lex and Ian sat up as Jase pulled the recliner to its upright position.

“What do you say we head out and grab breakfast somewhere? Ian suggested.

Lex, still not totally comfortable with strangers agreed.

They declined the offer to stay for breakfast, Lex telling Jarren’s mom that she had her hands full already and besides, they had things to do later on as well. He asked her to thank Jarren and Mazen for them and said he would call Jarren later as well. Jase followed Ian’s truck in his car as they left.

Betty Ann’s was becoming their go to for breakfast. It was convenient, reasonably priced and had good food and friendly staff. What more could one ask for? The three men filled up on coffee, eggs, pancakes, hashbrowns and of course bacon.

When they were done Ian asked Jase what his plans were for the day and Jase replied “I’m going to hang out with you and Lex for a little while before I head back to Amherst. I need to finish some prep work for a couple of classes.”

Ian paid their bill and they headed back to the house. When Jase caught sight of the Chief he let out a long whistle of admiration. He walked over and ran his hand along the smooth leather seat, turned to Ian and exclaimed “Dude, your description did not do this piece of beauty justice!”

Lex, always appreciative of someone who admired the bike looked at Jase and asked “Want to go for a ride?”

The smile that lit up the man’s face was almost as bright as the late summer sun. Lex ran into the house to get the helmets and keys. After checking the strap on Jase’s helmet he quickly gave him his rules for being a passenger and then mounted the bike. When the Chief started up with his familiar roar, Lex could hear Jase’s whoop of delight even through his helmet and over the loud sound. Smiling as Jase settled himself behind him, Lex yelled for him to hang on and off they went leaving Ian behind waving at them.

Jase was smaller and lighter than Ian but it didn’t take long for Lex to get used to his weight distribution. It was more similar to Cassie’s even though Jase outweighed her by 50 lbs or so. Lex kept to the rolling back roads and did a large winding loop that eventually took them back in the direction of the house. Roughly forty-five minutes after they set out they were pulling back into the driveway. As Lex shut off the bike and Jase got off, Jase pulled off his helmet and pulled Lex into a hug after he had dismounted and thanked him rather enthusiastically “Dude! That was wicked awesome! That bike is so cool. Thank you!”

Lex smiled and replied “You’re welcome”

They made their way into the house and found Ian in the living room on his phone talking to his mom. He wrapped up the call as he saw Lex approached and after hanging up he stood up and gave his man a quick kiss. He turned to Jase and told him “Mom said hi, and you’d better stop in to see them next time you’re in their neck of the woods.”

Jase nodded and said “I’ll call her and invite myself for dinner next time I go see my folks, though I’m not sure when that will be. My schedule is hectic as it is and I’m already rearranging it the week of your wedding. My mom bitches every time I talk to her that I live less than an hour away and how horrible I am for not coming to see them more often.”

Ian laughed “Your mom is as bad as mine, I’ve been threatened with being struck from the Christmas card list. You know she’s serious when she does that!”

“No shit my man, You’d better make sure she gets an engraved invitation to this soiree of yours.”

Ian snorted and said “Already taken care of. But I am thinking of sending it by a singing courier. How well would that go over?”

Jase snickered and shook his head “Mmmmm, maybe not so much if you value your life! Welp, much as I’d love to stay I got shit to do back on campus. The newest batch of liberal hooligans striving for a higher education awaits my vast wealth of knowledge.”

Jase thanked Lex again for the ride and pulled him into a hug. Then he turned to Ian and threw his arms around his waist and hugged him as well. Lex smiled at the height difference. Like night and day. Jase pulled away and as he headed for the door reminded them “I’ll see you in a few weeks, text me or call if you need me to do anything.”

“Will do” Ian called out after him.