Stranded

by Andrew Grey

  “This sounds like a subplot for one of your books,” Kendall said and then yawned.

  “It could be,” Johnny admitted. “Once you figured out the flowers weren’t from me, you started rejecting the gifts, and they got more insistent.”

  “Hence breaking into my car and coming to the apartment,” Kendall said. “And when that didn’t work, they destroyed my dressing room.”

  “Frustration and violence,” Johnny added. “But that still didn’t get them what they wanted, and by then they couldn’t come forward or otherwise you’d know and they’d be in trouble. And by then security had been alerted and more was added to the location shoot, so they waited until they could get you alone.” Johnny swallowed and held him closer while Kendall wrapped his arms around Johnny’s waist. “Why were you apologizing so much the other day?”

  Kendall lifted his gaze to Johnny’s. “When I was in the car, I blamed you. I actually thought you might have done everything. I wasn’t thinking clearly and I blamed you for not coming out here with me to keep me safe. I might have hallucinated things. I really don’t know.” Kendall tried not to think about it too much. “I shouldn’t have doubted you.”

  “And I shouldn’t have stayed away,” Johnny whispered and slowly shifted until he was on top, his reassuring weight and warmth pressing Kendall into the soft, luxurious bedding. “I never should have let you go, even temporarily.” Johnny kissed him, and instantly Kendall’s passion rose, his cock throbbing as he shimmied his hips slightly to get a bit of friction from Johnny’s hip. Johnny stroked Kendall’s cheek and then kissed him. “You’re everything to me,” Johnny whispered.

  “So are you,” Kendall said, and then their kisses cut off further conversation. Their bodies remembered and knew each other deep down. Johnny had set his kit near the bed when he unpacked, and in the darkness Kendall heard a soft snick. He rolled over, thinking it had been way too long since he and Johnny had been together like this.

  Johnny swirled his slick fingers around Kendall’s opening, teasing his skin. He added more slick, and Kendall groaned long and low when Johnny breached him with a long, slender finger.

  “Been too long,” Kendall moaned.

  “Yes,” Johnny hissed and slowly moved his finger in and out. Then he added another, the burn exquisite and unexpected. Kendall breathed shallow and fast, his heart thundering in his ears as he anticipated what would happen next.

  Kendall stretched out, parting his legs wide, silently issuing his invitation. “Make me yours, Johnny, like I was before.”

  Johnny slowly stroked down his back. “You were always mine, and you’re not broken,” Johnny said, and Kendall felt him press for entrance. Kendall pushed back, and Johnny eased inside him. “You’re perfect and stronger than anyone I know.” Johnny sank deeper and deeper, pulled out a bit, and then went deeper still, joining them together. “I love you,” Johnny whispered when he pressed his hips to Kendall’s butt. He waited for a minute and then slowly began to move. Kendall ground his hips against the bedding, moaning softly with each loving thrust.

  Johnny withdrew, and Kendall rolled onto his back and lifted his legs, and Johnny sank back into him. Their bodies pressed together, gazes locked in the dim light, they made love, soul-deep love that rekindled the banked flames of their relationship. Kendall had always needed Johnny, but being with him, connected to him, he realized how much he’d been missing, how much they’d both been missing.

  “How did we let this happen?” Kendall whispered, arching his back as Johnny drove into him, rubbing the spot that damned near sent him into orbit.

  Johnny paused. “You want to talk now?”

  Kendall pressed back against him. “No. Fuck now, talk later,” Kendall said, and Johnny moved again. Groans changed to moans, which morphed to cries and turned into yells that could probably be heard for miles, but Kendall didn’t care any more than he could stop it. Johnny loved him, and he went with it, each scream a cry of joy from the depths of his soul. “Johnny, I can’t take much more,” Kendall moaned, arching his back, desperate for more.

  “Yes, you can, and you will,” Johnny gritted between his teeth as he snapped his hips like a madman. “You’re mine,” he said.

  “And you’re mine,” Kendall replied. Johnny stroked him hard and firm, just the way he liked. Kendall gasped for air as his release built and built. He wouldn’t have been surprised if he exploded, but instead his release bloomed like a tropical flower, showy, full, and bright in the jungle sunlight. Kendall groaned and floated as Johnny came deep inside him. His lover, his friend, his world, everything he had and wanted wrapped into one package that was honestly and truly his. There was nothing in the entire world that meant more or was better than his Johnny. Nothing. “Love you,” Kendall whispered, and Johnny kissed him.

  “Love you too,” he said, and then all was still and it was just the two of them. Kendall didn’t remember Johnny cleaning them up or him tucking him in, but Johnny must have because Kendall was soon warm and comfortable, with Johnny holding him as he sank into a restful sleep.

  TWO very busy days later, Lyman wrapped up shooting, and everyone packed up their gear to head back to the city. They checked out of their hotel, and Kendall said good-bye to Juan, Guy, Lyman, and the crew who’d helped him through the shooting process. Lyman and Johnny seemed to have hit it off, with the director showing Johnny how movies were made. It seemed he was really interested in turning Johnny’s stories into films.

  “We’ll probably need you to come out in a few weeks to make some sound edits, and I’d like it if you were able to come and see the first draft edit. You have an eye for the theatrical that would really help,” Lyman said to Kendall. “I truly hope we get to work together again.”

  “Same here,” Kendall said, and they shook hands. Once the good-byes had been said, they got into the car, and Johnny drove them back toward the city.

  “What do you have to do before we can go home?” Johnny asked as they rode.

  “Make sure the insurance company has everything set for the car, empty out the few things in the apartment, and get plane tickets.” Kendall sat back and closed his eyes, basking in the cool air that blew from the vents. “I’ll never be able to sit in a car and not think about what happened.”

  “I know,” Johnny said gently. “If I get my hands on whoever did that to you….”

  “If we find out, we’ll call the police, and they’ll take care of everything,” Kendall said, and he saw some of Johnny’s anger slip away. Johnny rested his hand on Kendall’s leg.

  He had finally put his foot down and made Lyman call the police. They’d explained everything that had happened and showed the investigators the car. Of course, the police were pissed as hell, but when Lyman explained what had happened when they’d reported the missing person, and that they had gotten no support, the police had changed their tune pretty quickly. Of course, there wasn’t much for them to find by that point, but at least a report had been made, and that was about all Kendall cared about for right now. At least he’d gotten out alive. He was with Johnny, and they were on their way home.

  Chapter 10

  IT TOOK them three days to wrap everything up, and then he and Johnny were on a plane back to New York. It touched down at LaGuardia, and after getting their luggage, Johnny hailed a cab and they rode to their building. As they crossed the bridge into Manhattan, Kendall sighed deeply as tension he’d been holding for days seemed to slip away. “I never thought seeing New York could be relaxing.”

  Johnny chuckled. “It’s home.” Kendall moved closer and leaned against Johnny as they rode through Manhattan traffic to their building. Johnny paid the driver, and Kendall hauled bags up the stairs and inside. He returned for another load, and together they got the last of the bags into the apartment. The place was stuffy, and Kendall threw open the windows and let the breeze and city air flow into the room. Kendall flopped down on the sofa and immediately put his feet up while Johnny bustled to start getting things put aw
ay.

  “That can wait a few minutes,” Kendall said. “Come sit with me.”

  “I will, but I have something for you,” Johnny said as he carried some of the bags into the other room. He returned with a large envelope and handed it to Kendall. “This is for you. I’ve called it Johnny Loves Kendall—not very original, I’m afraid.” Kendall opened the envelope and slowly turned the pages. Johnny had had it bound together for him. “I was planning to tell you about it when you got home, but… well, things happened.”

  Kendall read the dedication out loud. “‘To Kendall, the real Kendall—I love you forever and always.’ That’s very sweet, but couldn’t you have said something like, ‘To Kendall, the super stud of the entire world. I love you more than anything. You’re my amazingly hot superhero’, or something like that?” Kendall dodged a pillow, and then Johnny leaped onto the sofa, tickling his ribs until Kendall squealed like a girl and squirmed so hard he nearly fell onto the floor along with the manuscript.

  “I should, huh,” Johnny teased as he continued tickling, and Kendall curled up to try to block potential access to his ticklish parts. “Oh super stud of the entire world.”

  “So you agree,” Kendall said, and Johnny eased up on the tickling. “I’ll take that as a no on the dedication change,” Kendall said as he picked the manuscript off the floor, then sat back up.

  “You’re such a goof,” Johnny said as he sat down next to him. “I fictionalized the story, but it’s based on our romance.” Johnny grinned, and Kendall set the manuscript on the table.

  “I do love you, and I love that you wrote a story about us. Are you going to have it published?” Kendall asked.

  “I don’t know. I mean, it’s rather personal. I did change details and add some things to make the story readable. I also added bits of drama and a conflict that didn’t exist in our relationship for tension and to move the story along. But it’s still our story, and I didn’t want to do anything until you read it and agreed.”

  “Okay,” Kendall said. He picked up the manuscript and then leaned against Johnny. He opened the pages and began to read.

  “What’s this?” Johnny asked, shifting slightly.

  “You’re my comfy reading pillow,” Kendall said, and he made a show of “adjusting” Johnny so he’d be more comfortable.

  “How about if I bring you a pillow,” Johnny offered. “I have another story that’s been pushing its way forward, and I need to get started on it.” Kendall sat up, and Johnny returned with a pillow. Kendall got comfortable, and soon he heard Johnny typing away at the table.

  He stopped reading to eat and get a drink of water. Otherwise he read the book all the way through. It wasn’t as long as one of Johnny’s adventure stories, but it was definitely a page-turner. “Am I as hot as you describe the Kendall in the book?” he asked as he set the completed manuscript on the table.

  “Yes. You always were. I can remember waiting outside that theater that first night. I wasn’t sure which way you’d come out, and I tried to keep an eye on all the possible exits. I thought you were so incredibly beautiful and spent the entire time I waited wondering what you saw in me. I told myself a million times I was being a fool, but then you came out and smiled at me. I was a goner from that moment on. You were this talented actor, and I was just a poor graduate student, yet you seemed to like me, and….”

  “Like you?” Kendall stood up and walked to where Johnny sat in front of his computer. Leaning over Johnny’s shoulders, he slid his hands down his chest and belly. “You were sweet and kind. You didn’t seem as interested in the fact that I was a performer as much as you were interested in me, the person.” Kendall kissed Johnny’s cheek and then nibbled lightly on his ear. “If you want the truth, you had me at the buggy ride through the park in the snow. And yes, I want you to publish the story. I think it’s beautiful.”

  “Okay, I’ll let Elizabeth know to accept the offer from Penguin,” Johnny said.

  “You already have an offer?” Kendall confirmed.

  “Yup, but I didn’t want to accept until you read it. I’ll use a pen name for this one, but I don’t plan to keep it a secret. I just don’t want to mislead my regular readers. Because if I use my real name, they’re going to pick it up and wonder why Johnny isn’t dodging a hail of bullets and Kendall doesn’t have ninja powers.” Johnny smiled. “I’m very pleased with it,” he said as he turned around and tugged Kendall to him.

  “I love it,” Kendall said softly, and they kissed gently, languidly.

  “Do you want to finish unpacking while I run to the store and find something for us to eat?” Johnny asked. Kendall agreed, and Johnny grabbed his keys and left the apartment, but only after snagging another kiss.

  Kendall carried the last of the bags into the bedroom and began the unpacking. His phone rang just after he started, and he almost let it go to voice mail, but peeked at the display and grabbed it just before it shifted. “Hey, Sal,” he said brightly. “What have you got for me?”

  “Your pick of shows, if you want them,” Sal told him. “It seems being gone for a few months has increased your value.”

  “Go ahead and send the offers over, but I’m not sure what I want to do right now. The filming was grueling. More than any show I’ve ever done, and there was a bit of an incident.” He told Sal what happened in the desert.

  “Was it that bad?” Sal asked.

  “I’m not being dramatic. I wouldn’t have made it through another day if Johnny and Lyman hadn’t rescued me. So yeah, it was that bad. No one ever figured out who the stalker was, but afterwards the gifts stopped, and I’m very grateful. I hope whoever it was stays the hell away from me.” Kendall shivered at the thought and sat down on the edge of the bed. Then he stood up and checked that the doors were locked. He wished Johnny were there.

  “Okay, I’ll send the offers over,” Sal said a bit softly. “I’ll talk to you real soon.”

  “Don’t you dare hang up until Johnny gets home,” Kendall said, nearly panicking. He hadn’t spent much time alone since the incident. He hadn’t realized it, but Johnny had been there almost constantly.

  “Kendall, of course I’ll stay on the line,” Sal said, and he heard papers shuffling in the background. “Is it still that difficult?” Sal asked in this rather fatherly way he had sometimes.

  “Sal,” Kendall whispered, beginning to shake like a leaf, “I was knocked out and handcuffed inside a car in the desert. It took more than two days for them to find me.” Kendall gasped for breath, and it took a concerted effort on his part to keep the panic from completely taking over. “You read the script they sent me. That’s almost exactly what happened. I thought I was going to go out of my mind. In fact, I probably did.” Kendall took a deep breath and listened for Johnny. God, Kendall hoped he got back soon. “When they found me I could barely walk, and Johnny had to carry me to the truck.” Then the tears came, and Kendall couldn’t stop them. “Sal, I wet myself, and worse, I think.” He tried to stop crying, but all that came out were gasps and sniffles. “I licked the car windows so I could get water. That’s all I had for two days.” Kendall gasped and finally caught a breath. “I licked the windows, Sal!”

  “It’s okay, my boy,” Sal said gently. “It’s over, and you’re home with Johnny. Nothing is going to happen here.”

  “I know that. I know I’m fine and that I’m safe. But it doesn’t feel like it. I wake up almost every night thinking I’m back in that damned car. Sometimes it’s just for a few seconds, but it happens night after night.” Kendall took a deep breath, then let it out very slowly before taking another. He had to calm down. “To make matters worse, after all that, I had to get back into the fucking movie car and shoot almost identical scenes. I don’t know how I did it.”

  “You did it because you’re strong and because you’re damned good at what you do,” Sal told him calmly, and Kendall felt some of that calm come through to him. “I’ve been around actors all my life. My folks were in vaudeville and then they r
an a small theater once they retired. I know actors, and you got through it because you had to and because you compartmentalized what happened and what you needed to do. It’s what we do to keep ourselves sane when performing difficult parts. Now that you’re home, those compartments are breaking down, and believe it or not, that’s a good thing. It means you’re dealing with it.”

  “I know,” Kendall said. He just hated that it was happening now and Johnny wasn’t here to help him. “They don’t know who did that to me, Sal. The police weren’t helpful when I went missing, and when they found me, Johnny and Lyman were just interested in getting me back safe.”

  “They didn’t call the police?” Sal asked, horrified.

  “We did, but by then there wasn’t much for them to find,” Kendall explained. “So this freak is still out there somewhere.” And he was now afraid to be alone.

  “It’s going to be all right,” Sal said gently. “It isn’t likely they’ll go to New York, but I can help you with security if you need it. I’ve helped arrange this sort of thing before. You remember that incident with Hugh Jackman a few years ago….” Sal didn’t need to go into details. “I helped with that situation.”

  “Can I have Johnny call you? He’s been handling that part of things,” Kendall said.

  “Of course,” Sal answered. “I’ll have the copies of those books and music sent over to you today. Look them over and see if anything catches your fancy.”

  Kendall heard noise in the hallway and he stilled. Keys sounded in the lock, and Kendall peered through the peephole before opening the door. “Johnny’s here,” he said with relief. “Thanks, Sal.”

  “No problem, and let me know what you’d like to do.” Sal hung up, and Kendall put the phone on the counter and practically launched himself at Johnny, who’d just managed to get the groceries set down.