Second Chances

by David Horne

  Caleb cupped my face and gave me a slow, sensual kiss, then he pulled back and ran his eyes over my face. “You’re amazing.”

  We pulled the blankets up, and Caleb pulled me onto his chest and wrapped his arms around me. I could feel tears welling up in my eyes again, but this time it wasn’t because I was sad. For the first time in two years I wasn’t sleeping alone. I hadn’t realized how much I missed being wrapped in another man’s arms, but Caleb was starting to make me feel a lot of things I’d thought I would never feel again. This was just another thing to add to the list.

  ***

  The next morning was Saturday, so we slept in until eleven, at least I did. I’m not sure how late Caleb actually slept because when I woke up, he was lying on his side with his head propped up on his hand watching me while he traced his finger over my abs.

  “Good morning,” I said.

  Caleb leaned over and gave me a quick kiss. “Good morning to you.”

  I rolled over and pushed Caleb down on the bed so that I was hovering above him. “You know, it just occurred to me that we both worked really hard yesterday, and got really dirty, and we should probably get ourselves cleaned up.”

  Caleb leaned up and kissed me, biting my lip before running his tongue down my jaw. I could feel his erection, hard and digging into my leg, and my own dick grew harder with every touch of his tongue and lips to my skin. When he pulled his mouth away we were both panting. “You know,” he said, “we should probably take a shower together to save water..”

  I laughed and hopped off the bed. “You read my mind.”

  As soon as we were both in the shower with the water running Caleb dropped to his knees in front of me. “I’ve been dying to taste you,” he said, and then he did just that.

  He ran his tongue along my shaft, circling it around the head of my dick before taking me fully into his mouth. I had to throw my arm out to the side to steady myself against the wall. It was like a hot rod of lightening shooting through my body, every nerve ending was on fire. His mouth was hot, and his rough tongue moving up and down my shaft had my balls tightening in no time.

  Caleb pulled his mouth away for just a second and his eyes were dark when he looked up at me. “Cum for me.” Then his mouth was back on me, taking my dick in hard and fast, and then I felt him reach between my legs and he pushed his finger into my ass. As soon as he hit my prostate my dick exploded. I grabbed Caleb’s hair and pumped into his mouth, and he took every drop of cum I gave him. Then he stood up and took my mouth, caressing my tongue with his. It was so hot tasting myself on his mouth, I thought I might cum again. Then he turned me around and positioned his dick at my ass and brought his mouth to my ear. “Now, I’m going to fuck you.” With those words, my dick went immediately stiff again.

  “God, yes,” I groaned.

  Caleb gripped my hip and slowly pushed inside. “You feel, agh, fucking amazin’.”

  Grinding my ass back against him I turned my head so I could see his face. “Move.”

  He grinned, and I turned around and braced my arms on the wall of the shower and he pounded me hard and fast. When his breathing became more labored and he started thrusting faster I wrapped my hand around my dick and pumped my fist. Caleb cried out, and then I felt him filling me with his release pushing me over the edge, my own release ripping through me until my entire body was spent and cum ran down my hand.

  Chapter Eight

  Caleb

  Aaron gave me some clothes to wear after our shower, then he cooked us both an omelet while I made coffee. He was quiet while he cooked and while we ate, which had me worried. Last night it became pretty clear that despite the wedding band on his finger, things with his husband are not what they should be and I’m pretty sure he’s been living here alone for a long while based on the untouched master bedroom. Still, maybe he feels guilty or like he wasn’t ready to move on so soon.

  “Everything okay?” I ask.

  Aaron sits his coffee cup down and looks over at me, confused. “I was just thinking about last night.” Damn! He thinks we went too fast, or I took advantage of him. “I’m still trying to figure out how the door could have been unlocked. I know I locked it when I left here, but it doesn’t make any sense. If someone broke in, it doesn’t look like they took anything.”

  “Yeah, I can’t see why anyone would want to break in for the hell of it. Plus, there were no signs of someone forcing themselves in. Maybe it’s time for a new lock?”

  His eyes go wide with recognition. “No. It didn’t look like someone broke in because they didn’t. Jim’s got a key.”

  “Oh,” I say. A wave of jealousy makes me want to pay a visit to the douche’s house to get that key back, but Aaron isn’t mine. As far as I know he is still married, so I’ve got no right to feel jealous at all.

  “I don’t know what he was doing in here, but I’m damn sure about to find out, and then I’m getting my key back. I didn’t even know he had one until a couple nights ago.”

  “How’d he have a key without you knowing about it?”

  “He said Ben gave it to him.”

  I saw sadness in his eyes when he said Ben and, based on the pain I saw and his breakdown last night, Ben must be his husband. I wish I knew what happened with them, then maybe I could help him move past this hurt. For now, I’ll focus on the shift in his tone. “You don’t believe him.” It wasn’t a question. The way he’d said it made it obvious he didn’t think Jim had been given the key.

  “It wasn’t like Ben to keep it from me, especially when it came to important things like our home. Plus, Jim was always more about partying and, well himself. He wasn’t someone Ben went to for the important things, like house sitting if we were out of town.”

  “I knew he was a douchebag.”

  Aaron pursed his lips and then burst out laughing. “Yeah, you could say that, but we’ve been friends forever. He didn’t used to be so over the top in love with himself, and the three of us used to hang out a lot.” Aaron’s smile broke, and the sadness that was always poking out behind his eyes was back again.

  Wanting to bring back his smile, I bring my arms out in front of me and dramatically crack my knuckles and give him a sly smile. “You want me to come along to get your key back? I’m pretty sure it was love at first sight for Jim when we met.”

  Aaron chuckled, but shook his head. “Yeah, I think it’s safe to say he wouldn’t have spit on you if you’d been on fire.” He drops the smile and grows serious again. “Sometimes I forget that he lost Ben too, not just me. Losing your only brother can’t be easy, and I’ve been so focused on my own grief after losing him that I’ve not paid much attention to Jim, which is especially awful of me since we were friends before I even knew Ben. Jim’s the one who introduced us, and now I’ve kind of left him all alone in this.”

  Between his breakdown outside, and the clearly untouched master bedroom I’d seen last night I’d figured out that Ben was not around, but I had not imagined it was because he had died. I’d just thought he had left Aaron, and now I feel like a complete jackass.

  “How long?” I asked.

  Aaron picked up his coffee cup and kept his eyes locked on the brown liquid inside while he answered. “The two-year anniversary of his death is coming up in the next couple weeks. A drunk driver hit him on his way home one night. I never even got to say goodbye. The doctor said he went fast; that he probably died within seconds of the collision, like that was somehow supposed to make it better. The guy who hit him walked away with a few broken bones and a concussion. He got jail time, but it’s not enough.”

  My heart drops to the bottom of my stomach. I could see how much he loved Ben in the photo I found last night. It was written all over both of their faces, and I cannot imagine the pain losing someone you love that much must bring. Hell, he’s doing a damn good job holding himself together in my opinion.

  Getting up from my seat, I walk around the island and turn Aaron’s chair so that he is facing me, then I just wrap my
arms around him and hold him tight. I don’t say anything, because what could I possibly say that could make this any better for him. Nothing. All the annoying stuff people spout about your loved ones being in a better place, or not being in pain is just words they say to make themselves feel better. When you lose someone who you love there are no words that can make it hurt any less. The only thing that helps dull the ache is time, and how much time is different for every person. Even then, the pain never goes away. You just learn to live with it so that it becomes manageable and you’re able to go on with your own life.

  Pulling back, I took his face in my hands and gave him a soft kiss. I knew it was time for me to go home. Last night was amazing, and if I want there to be any possibility for it to turn into more than a one-time thing I need to leave. I need to give him time because I know he’s not in the right place for a new relationship right now, not with the anniversary of his husband’s death coming up. The grief he still feels is immeasurable, and there is anger there too when he brought up the driver who took Ben from him. I really cannot blame him for that, hell, I didn’t know the guy and I’d like to have a round or two with the driver who took him away from Aaron so soon. I do understand better why he referred to me as a hero for driving everyone home last night. I’d shrugged it off as him rambling since he’d been drinking, but it was so much more than that.

  As much as I hate it, I know I need to give him space for now. I already care about him too much to want what happened between us last night to be all that we ever have. I want to know that we are together because he feels the same way, and not that he’s just lonely and looking for someone to fill the hole left behind by the loss of his husband.

  I cleaned up our breakfast dishes while Aaron called Jim to see if they could meet up to talk. When he came back into the kitchen I was drying the last dish and putting it away. “I’m going to go meet him at his house.”

  “Why do you sound like that’s not such a good idea?” I ask.

  His eyebrows were drawn together like he was thinking hard. “He just seemed a little too excited that I wanted to see him.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “I swear he damn near squealed like a teenage girl getting asked to the prom by her biggest crush.”

  “What’s that all about?”

  Aaron shook his head. “I don’t have a clue. I’m probably just reading too much into this. Maybe he’s just lonely. I can certainly understand that.” He looked at me and smiled softly. “It feels pretty good when someone comes along and you stop feeling completely alone.”

  My heart started doing gymnastics in my chest and I smiled back at him. I liked knowing that I’d been able to get through to him a little, to help him see that he’s not alone now. Of course, him saying that was going to make it really hard for me to give him any kind of space. Maybe that’s not actually what he wants or needs? Maybe what he really needs is to be shown that he doesn’t have to be alone, not anymore.

  I smile back at him and step forward, making sure to keep my eyes locked on his. “You don’t have to be alone, Aaron. I just want to make sure you know that.”

  “That’s really good to hear,” he replies, then he leans in and gives me a lingering kiss.

  I smile at him when he pulls away. “So, you think you can take me to my truck before you go make Jim’s day? Ya know, since you don’t want me to tag along and steal any of his attention away from you.”

  Aaron rolled his eyes and shoved my shoulder playfully. “You’re ridiculous, you know that.”

  “Most people find me to be charming and funny.” I wiggle my eyebrows at him.

  Aaron picks up my boots and tosses them at me. “Nope. Ridiculous is definitely the best way to describe you.” He moves in closer, his eyes narrowing on me, and he cups my face. “Now get in my truck before I have to show you just how ridiculous you are.”

  I have to take a deep breath to calm my hormones because I know he was just messing around, and I started it, but I really just want to stay right here and let him show me exactly how ridiculous I can be. Instead I quickly lean in and kiss his cheek and then turn and head for the door. “Let’s go. Wouldn’t want you to keep Jim waiting. He might decide to come over here and use his key instead, and then you’d have no choice but to share him with me.” Laughing, I walk out the door just before Aaron has the chance to find something else to throw at me. Hopefully he won’t use the ride to my truck to exact his revenge. I smile to myself, then again, that could be interesting.

  Chapter Nine

  Aaron

  Jim opened his door before I had the chance to knock, and the cheesy smile on his clean-shaven face told me that I’d been right in my assessment that he’d sounded way too excited on the phone for me to come over.

  “I’m glad you called. I got this new movie that I wanted someone to watch with me. It looks pretty funny. I was actually thinking about calling you to see if you wanted to watch it when my phone rang. Great minds, right.”

  I looked away from him and ran my hand through my hair. This was going to be harder than I’d thought, but it had to be done. I couldn’t have him just popping in my house whenever he wanted, especially since he clearly doesn’t have the courtesy to make sure he locks the door back on his way out. Anybody could have just walked in there and taken whatever they wanted; they could have messed with something of Ben’s, and that was not something I was willing to risk.

  “Listen, Jim, I’m not here to watch a movie with you. We need to talk.”

  His smile dropped immediately, and his body tensed. He folded his arms over his chest and scowled at me. “Dammit, Aaron, I thought we’d worked all this work stuff out already. I told you I won’t make these money saving cuts anymore. I don’t know what else you want me to say. I tried to help our business become more profitable, but you have made it perfectly clear that you don’t care about profits, so I’ll do it your way.”

  The only thing that kept running through my mind while he rambled on was that I should have brought Caleb with me. If Jim wanted to be a defensive dick, I don’t know why I am trying so hard to bite my tongue and not hurt his feelings over the crap he’s pulling. Just because we’re friends doesn’t mean he gets to do or say whatever he wants. This douchebag version of himself that he’s become since Ben died is getting old, and what the hell does he mean by our business. He’s an employee, a well-paid one, but still only an employee.

  “I’m not here to talk about work, Jim, but since you brought it up let me remind you that it is my business. We already went over what you pulled, and as far as I’m concerned it is finished. You said it wouldn’t happen again, and I believed you. Now, can we sit down and have a conversation without you jumping to conclusions and being an asshole, or do we need to talk another time?”

  Jim rolled his eyes and plopped down on his couch. “Fine. You just seemed so annoyed when you came in that I figured it must be about all that work crap again. If it’s not that, I don’t know what you’re being so damn serious about.”

  Walking over, I take a seat in the chair across from him and lean forward with my elbows resting on my knees. “I want you to give back the key you have for my house.”

  “What? I don’t understand. Why?”

  He looks like I just slapped him or took away his favorite thing in the world. “You don’t need it, and honestly, I don’t like the fact that you just go into my home when I’m not there without my knowledge. I know we’re friends, but I still need my own private space and it feels like I don’t really have that while I know you can just let yourself in as you please.”

  “I don’t know what your issue is,” Jim raises his voice. “It’s not like I even use the damn thing.”

  “Really? Because you forgot to lock up behind yourself after you used it yesterday. I got home last night and my front door was unlocked. Anyone could have gotten in there, Jim. They could have stolen stuff. They could have taken something of Ben’s!”

  I sat back in my seat and
looked away from him. I hadn’t meant to yell, but just thinking about someone taking something of Ben’s makes me want to knock his teeth out for being so careless.

  “How the hell do you just assume it was me? Maybe someone really did break in. Did you even consider that?”

  Slowly I turn my head back so that I’m looking at him again. Despite his words, his face tells me everything I need to know. He won’t look me in the eyes, and I can see the anxiety from being caught written all over his face. Leaning forward, I reach across and place my hand on his. “Look, Jim, I don’t want to fight with you. I know you miss Ben, and the upcoming anniversary isn’t helping matters at all. We both miss him, but I need my privacy, and I need to know my home and the memories I have there with Ben are secure. I’m not asking for the key back to hurt you, and even though I don’t understand why you were in there yesterday I know you didn’t leave the door unlocked on purpose. Let’s just move on from this, okay?”

  He’s quiet for several minutes, then he gets up without saying a word and walks over to the kitchen counter. I hear the sound of keys jingling, then he walks back to the living room and holds his hand out to me. When I hold my hand out, he drops a key in the palm of my hand. He tries to look away, but I see the hurt on his face, and the tears threatening to spill over that are pooling in his eyes. I never expected him to be so upset about having a key to my house. I still don’t want to give it back to him though, and that just makes me feel like an even bigger asshole, but I can’t get past this strange feeling that Jim wasn’t being honest about how he got the key in the first place.

  Not wanting to argue with him or upset him anymore I don’t bring up the fact I don’t believe that Ben gave him the key. It doesn’t really matter anymore now that I’ve got the key back, right? Instead, I just say, “Thanks,” then I get up and head to the door.

  I hear Jim clear his throat and when I turn around to look at him again, he’s rubbing the back of his neck and refusing to meet my eyes like he’s nervous about something. “You don’t have to leave so soon,” he says after a minute. “I know I was a dick when you got here, but you don’t have to leave.”