by Trina Solet
"Moms are nice," Brent said to explain himself.
"Dads are nice too," Nate told him while rubbing his broad back.
"Me?" Brent asked while pointing at himself.
"You have your moments," Nate said. He leaned over and kissed him lightly on the mouth. As he drew back, he was surprised that Brent didn't try to make more of it.
"I can be good," Brent claimed.
When Georgie came in to ask for a snack, Nate sent her to see what his mom was doing.
"Nate's mommy is making something!" Georgie announced happily to everyone when she came back.
"Anyone would think we never feed her," Brent said seeing her excitement.
"Yes, anyone would think that," Nate agreed. He gave Brent a dirty look for not cooking when he was so good at it.
After lunch, the five of them took the Bentley and went on a tour of Bridgegrove. As they passed the more notable houses, Brent shared the most shocking gossip about the residents. Then they visited an art gallery owned by a friend of his. Brent offered to buy Nate's mom a very expensive painting she admired. At first she was speechless, then she cupped his face, stood on her toes and kissed him on the cheek.
"No, but thank you, honey," she told him.
Brent got tears in his eyes and quickly turned away. Good thing Georgie was demanding to color in one of the sketches on display.
"Serge, get my girl some crayons. She's going to double the value of that thing," Brent told his friend. Serge looked appropriately horrified.
For dinner, Brent took them all out, including John and Quin. They went to a beautiful French restaurant that his mother refused to enter at first because it was too fancy. Then she read the menu and saw the prices, and she tried to leave. Brent put Georgie in her lap so she couldn't escape.
"You're in charge of her, and vice versa," he told Georgie and Nate's mom.
They did keep each other occupied as Nate's mom tried to make her eat properly. Georgie was as well behaved as Nate had ever seen her. She did try to drink from his mother's wine glass and then tipped it over.
"You'll get us all arrested, you little criminal," Nate's mom told her. She didn't care that the sleeve of her dress got hit with the red wine. She just rolled it up. Brent promised her a shopping trip anyway.
His mom must have made a good impression because when Nate was tucking Georgie into bed, she asked, "Can we call her grandma?"
Nate was surprised.
"Pam's mom let us call her abuelita. That means little grandma," Ricky explained. He was standing at the ready with a book. He had promised Georgie that he would finish reading a story he started earlier.
"Umm. Let's just call my mom Sarah for now," Nate told them since he didn't know how she would feel about being called grandma or even little grandma.
Ricky sat on the edge of Georgie's bed and finished the story. It was kind of funny to see one kid reading a bedtime story to another.
"It was good," Georgie said when he was done reading and explaining. She was close to falling asleep but not quite there.
Brent came in and kissed Georgie on the nose as she stretched her arms up for a hug. He left her to Nate. Taking Ricky's hand, Brent walked him to his bedroom.
"You want me to read to you? Or you want to read to me?" Brent asked him as they left.
"Am I supposed to go to sleep or you?" Ricky asked.
"We'll flip a coin," Brent decided.
After he finished reading to Ricky, Brent was happy to find Nate waiting for him in his room. He was sitting on the edge of Brent's bed. Brent stared at him. He looked just right in Brent's bedroom, like the room was built around him. Maybe Brent and his whole life were custom built and then stood ready and waiting for Nate to appear and take possession of them. That's how it seemed to Brent anyway. Even Nate's mom fit in just right.
Brent got on the bed behind him. He pulled Nate down so he was resting his head on Brent's lap.
"Your mom is great," Brent said, but Nate must have seen the sad look in his eyes.
"She reminds you of your parents," he said.
She did, but it was more than that.
"My mom couldn't cook worth a damn," Brent said to try and make light of it. He ran his hand over Nate's very short hair.
"My mom can't cook either. You saw what she made," Nate reminded him.
Brent smiled. He had seen how Nate ate that French bread pizza. It probably took him right back to his childhood. Having Nate's mom there did that for Brent too. He decided to admit it.
"She reminds me of that feeling from when I was a kid, of being home and being taken care of. I wish I could do that for Ricky and Georgie."
"You do," Nate said, but Brent knew he didn't do enough. He brushed his fingers over the side of Nate's face, enjoying the rough feel of stubble.
"I wish that was true," Brent said. "But it was only a few years ago that I couldn't even take care of myself. Now I have two kids to think of."
"And you are taking care of them," Nate insisted.
"Not really. I have you and Quin and John. I couldn't do it if I was alone." It scared him to even think of the kids depending only on him.
Nate turned his head in Brent's lap to look at him more fully as he spoke.
"But you aren't alone. Everyone needs help. You know I used to take care of my cousins. That was me helping out my aunt. And after my father died, my aunt was still in college then, she left school for a little while to stay with me and Mom. Everyone needs someone to back them up."
Brent liked that idea, everyone helping each other, everyone leaning on everyone else so that no one was alone.
"I guess it's not so bad if you put it like that," Brent said.
"You're a good guy and a good dad no matter how hard you try to hide it," Nate said to him. "You're just stuck with all this guilt over how you handled yourself when your parents died and how much you gained by marrying Greta." Moving up, Nate shifted so that he was resting against Brent's chest. He pulled Brent's arms around him. He was quiet as he rubbed Brent's arms locked across his chest, squeezing him. Holding him felt so good to Brent even as he was reminded of bad times.
"I married for money. And if I hadn't, God knows where I would be now," Brent said, but he wasn't asking for sympathy from someone who had two jobs and went to school at the same time.
"At least you didn't go cheap."
"I did have worse offers. Then Greta came along and gave me my whole life, just handed it to me, everything I have now." It seemed impossible to Brent that everything he had was really his, especially the kids. And now Nate.
"Then don't waste it. Enjoy it. Enjoy your kids," Nate urged him. "You struck a good bargain, don't kick yourself over that. Greta found a great dad for her kids. That was probably what mattered most to her. You have the kids, and they have you. Everybody wins."
Brent kissed Nate's temple, but he couldn't agree.
"Good dads aren't afraid of their own kids."
Nate turned and looked at him.
"Of course they are. Look at Georgie. Anyone in their right mind would be afraid of her. And if you weren't here to back me up, I would be scared out of my mind too," Nate told him and entwined their fingers together.
"No, you wouldn't," Brent said without a doubt.
"I would just do a better job of faking it," Nate said and locked his eyes on Brent's.
Brent couldn't imagine Nate being scared. He looked down at him too long in admiration, and his thoughts took a different turn.
"You are so attractive when you're being modest," Brent told him leaning closer as Nate tilted his face toward him. "And when you're being confident. Even when you sleep with your mouth open." As he spoke Brent kissed Nate's jaw, his earlobe, his neck.
"I don't do that," Nate claimed as he sat up and started to unbutton the shirt he had worn to dinner.
"I'll gather some photographic evidence tonight," Brent said as he worked Nate's shirt off his shoulders.
"Don't take pictures of me while I'm
sleeping. That's creepy." Nate unbuttoned Brent's shirt, but sneaked his hands in to feel his chest before he was done.
"But you are sleeping over, right?" Brent said. He was worried that he would only get a quickie before Nate sneaked back to his own room.
"Give me a good enough workout, and I'll be too tired to go to my own room." Nate unzipped Brent's pants and did what he liked to do. He pushed his hand in past the zipper to rub his cock through his boxers. It was a huge turn-on when Nate did it while staring into his eyes. It made Brent feel like he was being seduced.
"Consider it done," Brent said between deep breaths. With his desire building like this, Brent felt like it might consume them both and still never burn out.
Nate was on top. Brent was on his back, ready for him. The first, delicious pressure of Nate's cock at his hole made him gasp. With Nate's name on his lips, he throbbed for more. His beating heart was loud in his ears as he felt every inch of Nate's rock hard cock growing thicker and harder as he squeezed him. Then Nate's amazing cock was inside him, filling him. Striking deep, Nate fucked him in powerful thrusts that shook his bones. Brent was tight around him, loving him as he moved in and out. Their bodies were like steel, working together almost violently to make each other come. Sweat drenched and exhausted, they kissed slowly with tongues entwined.
They had fallen asleep together, but not long after, Brent woke up to the sound of Nate's even breathing. To hear him and to feel him in his arms, body heavy with sleep, gave Brent a feeling of peace and trust. He wanted to hold on to that feeling at any cost. Brent had never strived to be taken seriously. So now that he needed Nate to recognize how deep his feelings for him were, he wasn't sure he knew how to convince him. But then Nate never showed any signs of doubting him. He never looked through him or dismissed him like countless other people did, especially after his parents died.
A hole was left in Brent's heart when he finally had to accept that his parents were really gone. He would never hear his father laugh at something his mother said or did. His father would never hug him suddenly, for no reason other than because he was his dad. His mother would never mess up his hair because she was in a good mood. She would never sneak a cigarette and then blatantly deny it in a way that now reminded him of Georgie.
Brent had to leave all of that behind, go into the world alone. He couldn't forget the fear or the taste of his own desperation. Every day more doors were closing in his face. One by one, his friends had decided that he was too different from them now, that he didn't belong. He wasn't one of them any more. It was like he had fallen into a deep hole and no matter how much he yelled for help, no one could hear him. The ground under him was always sinking. Soon he would be swallowed up. Of course he took the first hand that was offered to him. At that time, his marriage to Greta seemed like an honest bargain. But as he made a life with her, Brent sometimes had a feeling that if he turned around, he would see his parents, and they would be looking at him with disappointment.
Brent turned his head on the pillow and looked at Nate in the dim light. He was sleeping with his mouth open.
"Click," Brent whispered while he pretended to take a picture.
Brent imagined if his parents could see him with Nate. Not now. When they were both dressed and decent. He closed his eyes and pictured it. He and Nate weren't dressed casually. They wore suits. They were standing together, but a minute ago Brent's parents had walked him down the isle. Now they were beaming at him proudly. So this must be a wedding. Nate's mom was there with Nate's father. He looked kind of like Nate. Brent would have to ask Nate to show him a picture of his dad. Brent and Nate turned to each other. As he gazed at Nate, Brent realized that they were naked and everyone else was gone. He must have skipped to their honeymoon. Brent wasn't sure any more if this was a fantasy or a dream. It didn't matter. Nate was in his arms.
Chapter 21
As Nate woke up, his closed eyelids were flooded with morning light. He was warm and content. Then he felt Brent's lips brushing against his chin, his neck, his shoulder. Brent's stubble grazed him lightly. Unconsciously, Nate rose toward his touch. Brent answered his need with a deep kiss. Their bodies were grinding against one another. Nate took hold of Brent's ass, squeezed and massaged it as Brent moaned. They continued to grind against one another until they came.
It was Sunday, the last day of his mom's visit. Through the open French doors of the sunroom, Nate saw his mom was with Brent. She was telling him to plant more flowers.
"You could have roses stretching as far as the eye could see," she said.
"I'll have some roses planted just for you," Brent promised her. Seeing Nate, he said, "I'm kidnapping your mom and taking her shopping."
"Oh, no. You can't," Nate's mom protested and she meant it.
"I owe you a dress. And if you spend any more time with Georgie, I'll owe you a whole wardrobe," Brent told her.
Knowing that if she went shopping where Brent planned to take her, his mom would only faint at every price tag she saw, Nate proposed a trip to a regular mall. Brent objected, but he was outvoted.
They had to drive well out of Bridgegrove to find a normal mall, but his mother was more at ease there than she would have been where rich people shop and salespeople look like they stepped off the pages of fashion magazines. It was more fun for the kids too. They could poke around more freely. Nate's mother insisted on buying them each a toy, which stopped Brent from buying them the whole toy store and making her gift less special. He did try to buy up the whole bookstore for Ricky.
"You can only have as many books as you can carry," Nate told Ricky. When Brent tried to overrule him, Nate reminded him that he made him the disciplinarian.
Ricky set aside some books he had picked out but couldn't manage by himself, and Georgie picked them up. She clutched them and looked up at Nate defiantly.
"Don't act so brave," Nate told her. "You aren't breaking any rules."
She was still a little hero to Brent. He laughed and kissed both kids leaving Nate to enjoy his role as the bad guy.
Nate was looking at them fondly when he saw his mom watching him. She came over and gave him a hug while they waited for Brent and the kids to get checked out.
"As an overprotective mother, I would warn you to be careful and not get too attached, but it's too late, isn't it?" his mom whispered to Nate.
"Yes, it is," he admitted.
"Well, you have good taste, honey. As ready-made families go, that's a good one," she said.
Nate smiled at her. He was so glad she liked them. And she was right. Very quickly and without noticing, Nate had passed the point of no return. Now he would never be happy without Brent, and he couldn't imagine leaving the kids. They had run off with his heart. And he didn't even want it back. He just wanted to be with them forever to watch them grow up. He wanted to see them take on the world and win. His heart was set on them, the whole bunch. They would be his life, his family. He was sure of it.
Since Nate's mom would be leaving that evening, Brent decided that they should give her a sendoff once they got back home. He recruited John to help him set up the food and drinks. Quin and Nate were in charge of the music. The controls were behind a hidden panel in the big, formal sitting room that hardly ever got used. Sitting on either side of Nate's mom on the sofa, the kids showed her family pictures from a big album.
"I have my dad's hair and his eyes too. Georgie has Mom's eyes and Brent's hair but darker," Ricky was explaining to Nate's mother, with the aid of some photos.
"You call him Brent, not Dad?" she said.
"He isn't really my dad," Ricky told her.
"Of course he is. I know a dad when I see one. He's definitely your dad," she said with an equal measure of offhandedness and certainty that Nate knew well.
Ricky didn't argue with her. Nate wondered if hearing one more person tell him what he already knew would bring Ricky closer to saying the word "Dad." It would make Brent so happy, but Nate wanted it for both of them. It would do Ric
ky good too. Nate remembered that after his father died, hearing another kid call out Dad or Daddy would break his heart all over again. He was sure that in Ricky's case, if the word was said, two hearts would get unbroken.
Quin and Nate fiddled with the controls until dance music was coming from every hidden speaker in the house.
"Watch out. I'm going to embarrass you so much," Nate's mom told him as Georgie pulled her up for a dance. That was her way of saying that she was going to dance her heart out.
"Go crazy, Mom," Nate told her.
She had nothing to worry about. She was a good dancer. Georgie's dancing was a lot like her kung fu, arms and legs flailing everywhere. When Brent showed up, he quickly set down a tray of food.
"Cutting in," he told Georgie.
She tried to fight him.
"No cutting! No cutting!" she yelled.
Nate picked her up and spun her around. Of course she wanted him to do it again and again. Ricky danced with Quin and John. After dancing with Nate's mom, Brent danced with everyone in turn until he was dancing with Nate.
With his arm around Brent's back, holding his hand, and gazing into his eyes, Nate felt just right.
"You done switching partners?" Nate asked him, feeling Brent's arms tighten around him at the question.
"Forever," Brent said while his eyes challenged Nate to take him seriously if he dared.
"I'll hold you to that," Nate told him and smiled. Happy to hear it, Brent smiled too.
They danced all over the house, down the hallways, in the foyer and outside around the fountain with the colored lights. Seeing that it was dark out reminded Nate's mom that she had to go. She excused herself to go pack, and Nate went with her. Georgie found them and saw what was happening.
"We are dancing," Georgie protested and tried to pull Nate's mom away from her packing.
"No. I have work tomorrow. I'm leaving, honey. I'm going home," his mom told her.
"Already?" Georgie said, getting a little teary eyed. She then turned to Nate and said, "I miss her."
