Thank you to everyone for reading, voting and/or commenting. You cannot know how grateful I am. Constructive criticism is welcome.
Huge happy hippie hippo hugs to Klastbreath for emergency editing. As always I tinker, so for any mistakes I ask your forgiveness.
My gratitude to nomoretears00 for always saving my bacon.
AH you are the other set of eyes I needed, I am one blessed hippie.
This is a copyrighted work of fiction by the author seeker71. All rights reserved.
*
Morning came. Davey raised the thin folds of protection that held him in the realm sleep and was greeted by the sight of his dreams made flesh.
"Good morning," Nicolao murmured before dipping his head and kissing David. Far from a morning peck, it left him breathless, and panting.
"Morning Nicolao," he said as he nuzzled into his lover's body, closing his eyes again.
"Oh no, I've been watching you sleep for half an hour, it's time to get up." Nic slid away.
"You should have gotten me up." Davey liked to snuggle for a while awake before getting out of the bed. Many mornings it led to other activities, but if not he cherished the closeness before facing the day.
Nicolao stood and stretched, "I thought you needed the rest, and I got to watch mi joya que avergüenza el sol.
David wrinkled his brow, "Nic you know I don't understand Spanish."
"Good, because even by my standards that was sappy, though true." Nicolao turned to go to the bathroom. The unfamiliar twinge caused by the previous night's activity caused him to grimace and step gingerly.
Nic adjusted the water for their morning shower. Davey came in not meeting his gaze.
"I'm sorry." David's voice was barely a whisper.
Nic came closer, and raised his chin until their eyes met. "What are you sorry for?"
"You're hurt." He began to shake thinking he had caused Nic pain.
"I swear to you it's the most pleasurable ache I have ever felt." Nicolao touched his forehead to David's. "I needed you last night. We made love, you can't be sorry for that. It's my fault; the sore muscles wouldn't be so bad if we soaked. But the night got away from me." Nicolao rested his hands on David's slim hips.
"I was okay?"
"More than okay, the best I ever had, mi lirio de los valles. Now I'm sure I'm not the only one with sore untrained muscles, why don't we see if a hot shower helps a bit." Nic straightened.
Davey followed him in the shower. The pulsing hot water did feel good on his back. "When was the last time you..." he left the question unfinished.
Nicolao shrugged, but kept lathering David's skin, "Bottomed, thirteen years ago, and that wasn't what I meant. I may not prefer it, but last night was you and me. It was special because it was us, making love, top or bottom, and nothing else in my life compares. Dee, you just have to accept that."
Nic turned Davey's body to clean his back, missing the glorious smile that touched David's lips.
After their shower Nicolao called Breezy offering Davey's services. She quickly agreed giving him her address.
During their morning walk and ride Davey would glance at him, and smile thinking about what had happened. Nicolao made himself completely vulnerable to him, they had made love, and he said he loved him. He hadn't said it back, and didn't know why. Nic was so open with his feelings; he was incapable of being anything less than candid. Davey felt he couldn't afford that kind of honesty.
They parted with a kiss. The next two weeks Nicolao would be spending long days, and possibly nights working with Jeremy. Nic was going to take every opportunity, public, and private to reassure David.
Nicolao was welcomed by Breezy, who followed him into Jeremy's office.
"Good morning Evangelista, Miss St. James would you go get us some coffee while I get him caught up?" Jeremy rose from behind his desk to a stack of boxes.
"This is a long term contract with Muecci International. The maritime shipping is fine; the products are arriving without delay. The company we contracted with for ground transportation has gone under, and they also held the storage facility." Jeremy moved to the couch in his office. The table was covered in papers.
"Sit down, get comfortable. We have transportation, and storage to work on. This was one of my first contracts. I handed it off years ago, but there has been some neglect on our part. Muecci has very specific needs for its imports; there isn't enough time for mistakes, that's why I tapped you. We have weeks to save this, but I don't want to put a band-aid on it, I want a system in place that they can rely on, not a temporary fix."
Nicolao took a seat across from Jeremy. He questioned Jeremy's assertions mentally, why weeks for what normally took months, and what specific needs? Nic would not have thought twice about it, save for his lunch with Breezy. He took in the stacks of papers on the table. It indeed was going to be a long two weeks.
Davey arrived at Breezy's house before the children did. His stomach had been in knots all day, when he was with Nic it was so easy to forget who he was. But when he was faced with the world away from Nic, he wasn't his David, he was just Davey. What was he doing at this lady's house? And what was he supposed to do with two kids?
Groupings of children walked past, and he knew the school bus had arrived. He stood, shoving his hands in his pockets. Two figures approached the house, stopped, and stared up at him.
"Um, hi," Davey greeted them.
A young boy climbed the steps, he was burdened with his book bag as well as a cello strapped to his back.
"Hey, David?" The boy questioned, extending his hand.
Davey took it, surprised by the grip, and serious large brown eyes that held his.
"Abel, so you hanging out with us?" Abel dropped Davey's hand to open the door.
"Rude!" The girl stomped up the stairs, stopping in front of David.
"Sorry, I... "Davey began.
"Not you, the challenged one," she rolled her eyes dramatically. "I'm a lady he should have made our introductions, mom says so."
"I am Averie," she smiled, "it is a pleasure to make your acquaintance." She curtsied, and then swept past her brother, who watched her with the door open. "Don't bang my cello on the way in." She growled as she walked by him.
Abel met Davey's eyes and shrugged, not disturbed in the least by his sister's antics. Davey smiled, following him inside. The two self-possessed kids were not what he had imagined, lately most aspects of his life weren't, and he was suddenly glad he had come.
That night when they were home David's joy was infectious he related everything he and the children had done. Nic held him as he spoke, then he was sure to add Breezy and her family in his prayers before he slept.
*****
The week blurred, due to the amount of work, and the time difference, work days were twelve to fifteen hours. Breezy took care of the current contracts, while Nic and Jeremy worked together on the Muecci problem. Nicolao was reminded of what drew him to Jeremy in the first place. He was fiercely intelligent, ruthless, and to the unobservant, insensate. His chestnut hair was never out of place, and late at night his clothes remained impossibly neat. Nicolao once wanted to break those controls... no, that wasn't quite right; their mutual goal was to splinter the others will. A compulsion, Nic recognized, as a shadow he was drawn to because of August.
Unlike Jeremy, David was not an echo of his past. Which was why these long days with Jeremy was beginning to weigh on him. David's last day of class he was working, while Breezy made sure she left early. She and the children not only took him to dinner, she'd had a cake made for him. Nicolao was torn. He was grateful for the time Dee got to spend with them; maybe a bit jealous, and angry he had to miss his David's celebration. And for what, so Jeremy could flirt with him every free moment? He was going to cut this exercise in futility short. He made sure Breezy was on board, and he approached Jeremy when they were eating.
"Saint and I are going to work through the weekend, when I leave Wednesday night everything should be done except the signatures and filing."
Jeremy stopped chewing, and then swallowed slowly. "You and Miss St. James decide our schedule, I wasn't aware." Jeremy replied the only sign he was annoyed was a slight tightening of his jaw.
Nicolao shrugged in response, he really didn't care. As long as the contract was done and all parties agreed on the terms, Jeremy had no reason to object.
"I put in for time off next week; I'm going to visit my family. We won't take any shortcuts, Saint and I will sleep here in the office if need be. We will have it done by Monday, scanned, and faxed by Tuesday. That should give you time to make any changes, but that shouldn't be necessary. This way I get to see my family, and the Muecci contract will have been handled properly."
"Miss St. James' has children; she's going to spend the weekend here with you?" Jeremy began to suspect the student was not his only rival for Nicolao's affections.
Relieved Jeremy had no real objections, he clapped his back affectionately. "Saint's kids will be at my house, safe and sound. Dee has been watching them for her." Nicolao smiled with the thought of Davey.
The place on Jeremy's back where Nicolao had touched him was warm. The light contact had sent a jolt from his shoulder blade right to his neglected dick. Jealousy roused within him, Jeremy wanted Nicolao's face to light up when he thought of him. He had done everything expected of him, everything. Wasn't his debt paid, couldn't he have just one thing that he really wanted? Jeremy's mind balanced internal scales, in his measure he was due, and Nic was the payment.
Jeremy took another bite of his sandwich, quickly averting his eyes. The enduring despair that rested in his core stirred. Why couldn't Nicolao give him more time?
"Alright, we work through the weekend," he declared, "I would hate to keep you from your family. You have been invaluable this week. I would have been lost without you."
"Thanks Jeremy, you should work on having more people in your corner."
