Strictly Business - 14. The Finale

Here we go, final chapter! 

Brian knocked on the door of their bedroom, not sure if Sam would want to see him and talk to him at that moment.

“Yes,” Sam replied. He didn’t even know who was knocking, it could’ve been Clara or Maggie, but he was pretty sure it was Brian. Still, he decided to let them in, whoever it was.

Brian was nervous, he knew Sam was sensitive and vulnerable at that moment, but he didn’t want to wait. He wanted to clear things up with him right then and there.

“Can I come in?” Brian spoke quietly.

“Sure,” Sam replied. As he raised his head and looked at Brian watching him with love and concern in his eyes, he realized he actually wanted Brian by his side even though he was hurt. He was glad that they were alone in the room, as he didn’t want to talk in front of their friends.

Sam patted the bed next to him and Brian came and sat there, their legs touching. They both looked at the floor, as they thought about what to say. Brian was the first to speak.

“I’m sorry, baby.”

“I know you are… Why didn’t you tell me?”

“I know how you feel. I know you get insecure sometimes. I know, because I’m the same way…” Brian replied and Sam covered his hand with his own.

“I did ask Richard to marry me. It was our third anniversary and was supposed to be the best day of my life, but it turned out to be the worst. I didn’t want to talk about it with anyone, I couldn’t… Only Bo was forced to listen to my crying for weeks…” Brian chuckled as he said that.

Sam squeezed his hand and put his other arm around Brian’s shoulders.

“I should’ve told you, but it’s hard talking about stuff like that. Besides, it doesn’t even matter now anyway, now that I’ve got you.”

“I get it, baby. I guess we’re more alike than I thought. I just didn’t know, and I was… surprised.” Sam didn’t want to admit that he was very scared and jealous. Jealous that Brian loved Richard so much that he proposed to him. Of course, Sam realized they were too early in their relationship to even think about marriage, but he couldn’t help but feel jealous. He hoped that one day, Brian would propose to him as well. When he does, Sam would not say no.

“I’m sorry,” Brian said gently.

“Hey, don’t apologize...” Sam cupped Brian’s face in his hands and kissed him, “…for being a sissy!”

“I’ll show you who’s a sissy!” Brian laughed as he grabbed Sam, put him on his lap and spanked him. In a few seconds, they rolled on the bed and Sam ended up on top of him. Brian squeezed his arms tightly around Sam.

“What did I ever do to deserve you?” Brian smiled as he asked, looking Sam in the eyes.

“You’ve been the best boyfriend in the world, that’s what you did!” Sam gave him a passionate kiss as he was grinding on top of him.

“Come on, we don’t want all of our guests to leave while we’re here,” Sam eventually reluctantly broke the kiss, stood up and took Brian by the hand, pulling him off the bed.

“Or do we…?” Brian smirked.

“We’ll have plenty of time for that,” Sam winked at him and opened the door. As they got out smiling and holding hands, everyone smiled at them and resumed their conversations, pretending that nothing had happened. Everyone except Jared and Eric, who were still at the balcony, talking, not even noticing what had been going on inside the apartment. Sam went to sit on the sofa next to Clara.

“What happened there? Everything alright?” Clara asked him, concern evident in her voice.

“Yeah, everything’s fine. We just had to reopen some old wounds… But we’re fine now, honestly,” Sam nodded and smiled at her.

Brian returned to Chester and Tina.

“Brian, I’m sorry… I didn’t know that he…” Tina started to apologize.

“Hey, no worries. It’s my fault, I should’ve told him anyway.”

“Yeah, but he didn’t need to find out this way.”

“Doesn’t matter now. We’ve talked it over, and we’re fine now.”

“I never doubted it. He’s a good guy and it’s obvious he loves you so much,” Chester said.

“I know. I’m really lucky to have him,” Brian smiled and looked at Sam, who was sitting and talking to Clara and Maggie. As if he knew he was being watched, Sam turned his head and his eyes met Brian’s. He returned the smile and slightly nodded.

“Yep, so lucky to have him,” Brian thought again.

--

Ever since Sam and Brian started living together, they relationship only grew stronger. At first, both of them had some concerns that since they were both working and living together, they would spend too much time together and get on each other’s nerves. Of course, neither of them voiced those concerns, but they were wary and waited to see how things would develop.

It turned out that their fears were unfounded. Even though they were working at the same company, they hardly saw each other there. They were in different departments and would only cross paths occasionally on the hallway. Sometimes, a whole day would go by and they would see each other only at the end of the work day, when they met to go home together.

Also, they maintained their social lives with their respective friends, not wanting to be one of those couples who were attached to the hip and couldn’t go anywhere without the other person.

Of course, when they were left alone, they could hardly keep their hands off each other. Soon after they moved in together, Brian was feeling a little adventurous and decided to ask Sam to top him for the first time. They both liked it more than they thought they would, so that was now a regular part of their sex life. Brian was still the top most of the time, but whenever they wanted to change it up, or when Brian was feeling particularly slutty, he would just lie on his stomach, put his ass up, and Sam would know what to do.

The weeks and months passed by unusually quickly for both of them, and before they knew it, it was almost their first anniversary. As Sam was thinking about his life with Brian and how he’s happier than he’s ever been, he realized that many of the big moments in their relationship were initiated by someone else. Firstly, Clara was there to help them (or make them) reveal their feelings for each other. Then, Sam’s dad brought up the topic of them living together.

Sam knew he was always too shy and insecure when it comes to his feelings, but being with Brian made him more self-confident. He used to always imagine Brian being the one who would one day pop the big question. Brian was older, more experienced, so it kind of made sense to Sam. However, he began to realize that he didn’t want to wait any longer. This time, he would be the person who would create the next big step in their relationship. Not Clara, not his dad, not anyone else. He loved Brian with all his heart and he was completely sure of what he was doing.

Their upcoming first anniversary seemed like the perfect moment for it. While Brian was usually better at organizing romantic dates for them, Sam took it upon himself to do it this time. He told Brian he’d handle everything, and that all he had to do was show up.

The day finally came and Sam was beyond nervous. Up until that day, everything was fine: the preparations went smoothly, everything was organized without a problem, but now he actually had to go through with it.

Both guys got dressed in sexy smart outfits – Sam opted for navy blue pants and jacket, white patterned shirt and black shoes, while Brian chose dark grey, almost black pants and jacket, and a black shirt and shoes. As soon as they got dressed, they hurried out the door before Sam had a chance to rip the clothes off of Brian and start riding him. He couldn’t resist Brian dressed like that.

Brian had no idea where they were going, but he soon figured it out. Sam was driving them to the restaurant where Brian took them for their first date. They picked a table outside, with a view of the river where they walked after that date. Once again, the paper lanterns above them were lit, while candles were burning at each table, for a cozy, romantic atmosphere.

“Ohh, you remembered!” Brian said softly.

“How could I not?” Sam smiled at him and took his hand.

After the appetizers and the main course, the guys toasted with champagne, raising their glasses and grinning, thinking about the first time they were there.

“To us!” they said in unison.

“I can’t believe it’s been a year!” Sam said.

“I know… It’s like it was yesterday that we were making small-talk in the hallway, afraid to approach each other,” Brian chuckled.

“Sometimes I can’t believe it… It’s a dream come true for me.”

“Same here, baby.”

At that point, Sam reached out for the inside pocket of his jacket and pulled out a small, black velvet box. Brian’s eyes nearly popped out of his head as he realized what was about to happen. Sam’s hands were shaking.

“Brian, being with you has truly been a dream come true, because you are the man of my dreams. I still can’t believe how lucky I am to be with such an amazing man. I liked you from the first time I saw you, and I loved you from the first time you kissed me... I would love nothing more than to spend all of my life with you.” At this point, both men were on the verge of tears.

“My Brian… Will you marry me?” Sam asked as he opened the box, revealing two identical platinum rings.

“My beautiful Sam, of course I will!” Brian pulled Sam close to him, devouring him in a kiss. Tears were rolling down their cheeks, but they didn’t care. It was as if the whole world disappeared around them. There were only the two of them, feeling nothing but endless love for each other. As they separated, they started laughing and gently wiped the tears from each other’s faces. Sam pulled out one of the rings from the box and placed it on Brian’s hand, and Brian took the other one, placing it on Sam’s.

“Baby, I… I love you so much.” Brian still had a hard time believing what just happened. “You have made me the happiest man on earth…”

“I love you too, baby, and I’ll show it to you every day, for the rest of our lives.”

They took each other’s hands, admiring their rings and smiling at each other.

“Let’s go inside, it’s getting a bit chilly out here!” Sam got up and pulled Brian after him. Brian was still trying to process everything, so he just went along with it and let Sam take him wherever he wanted. As they entered the restaurant, Brian saw two tables filled with people he knew. His and Sam’s parents were there, as well as Clara and Maggie. There were also Tina and Chester, who came as a couple, as well as Jared and Eric, who also came as a couple. Of course, there were also two empty seats for Sam and Brian.

As the guys approached, the guests started clapping and shouting, thrilled to finally see them. They all got up and couldn’t wait for their turn to kiss and congratulate the newly engaged couple.

“You organized all of this!” Brian looked at Sam and gave him a peck on the lips.

“Yeah!” Sam grinned.

“That was a risk. What if I said no?” Brian smirked.

“Well, I took a shot… It was 50-50,” Sam chuckled and shrugged his shoulders.

“More like 70-30.”

“More like 100-0.”

Brian put his arms around Sam and pulled him in for another big kiss. There he was, with the man he loved, thinking how life couldn't get any better.

“For the rest of our lives?” Brian asked.

“For the rest of our lives,” Sam replied.

THE END

Thank you so much for reading, all of your support has been really amazing and overwhelming for me! I am so sad to finish this story, but I hope you've enjoyed reading it as much as I have enjoyed writing it!