Should Old Acquaintance
Chapter 4
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Justin watched as
They unpacked the three little sculptures
from their bubble wrap and cardboard. They both stood staring at them in
amazement.
"They have to be Patrick's,"
Justin said.
"Why do you say that?"
"They remind me of something of his I
saw in
"He did other Wise Men?"
"You think these are the three Wise
Men?" Justin asked.
"Don't you?"
"I'm not sure. I guess they could
be."
"Then what do you think they
are?"
"I'm not really sure, but they seem
to be a set. This one reminds me of JABK," Justin said running his hand
over one of the sculptures. "I love the flowing gowns. They could be
saints or angels without wings."
"They're beautiful enough to be
either of those, but I still think they are the Wise Men."
"Have it your way. Maybe they're
three gay guys," Justin laughed.
"I think I'll stick with my Wise Men
theory,"
Justin carefully lifted and examined the
clumps of paper. "A lot of it seems to be Edna's records of what she found
and how she obtained the art work. There's only a few
pages of Kinney's diary. I'll look at it first."
"I guess we were so wrapped up in
this that we didn't even notice. Your salesperson seems to have left, and it
looks like he turned out the lights."
"That's good,"
"I better call John."
Some time later Justin, John and the
children arrived at the loft. They had bought takeout for dinner. The kids
loved their McDonalds and John and Justin had found some halfway palatable
stuff at the same fast food emporium.
"We better get rid of the remnants of
this meal. Brian will kill me if he finds out I was feeding Bree this
crap," Justin said as he finished his fries.
"You kids go play on the rug,"
John said. The two ran off to get their trucks and dolls and toys. "I'll
help you clean up. We can put all this down the chute. Brian will never
know."
"Don't count on that."
"Why? What do you mean?"
"Brian has a sixth sense about some
things. He usually knows when I don't want him to know something."
"That's not good," John said.
"Tell me about it," Justin
laughed.
They cleaned up and let the kids play for
a while. By
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John and Justin stood outside the security
barrier at the airport. Bree and Patrick slept in their strollers. Getting them
into the SUV without waking them had been tricky. Patrick came to for a bit but
then went right back to sleep. Bree didn't even seem to notice that she was
being moved.
The televisions said that Brian and
Bobby's plane had landed. They were waiting expectantly for their husbands to
appear.
"What the fuck is taking so
long?" John griped. "Where are they?"
"They have to clear customs and get
their bags. They'll be out soon," Justin said trying to be optimistic. His
arms ached to hold Brian.
"There's Bobby," John
practically yelled and he bolted forward swooping down on his husband like a
giant bird of prey. He pulled Bobby into his arms roughly and buried his face
against Bobby's neck. "I've missed you so much," he whispered before
he kissed him right in front of the whole airport. They got a few rude stares
but many more smiles of understanding.
Justin was left with the two strollers. He
couldn't leave the children alone so he stood on tiptoe and waved his arms
frantically. Finally Brian, who had been looking around
anxiously ever since John descended on his traveling partner, spotted Justin
and jogged over to him.
"Sunshine," he said huskily as
he took Justin into his arms.
"You're home," Justin cooed as
he felt Brian's strong arms pull him close. They held each other for a few
moments.
"Where's the Squirt?" Brian
asked as he kissed Justin and released him.
"Right here," Justin said
pushing the stroller forward.
"Squirt," Brian said kneeling
beside his daughter and holding her little hand.
"You can pick her up," Justin
said softly.
"I don't want to wake her."
"I doubt she'll wake up, and if she
does, she'll be so happy to see her daddy."
Brian smiled and unhooked the restraint in
the stroller. He gently lifted his little girl into his arms and cradled her
there. She slept on obliviously. "I've missed you both so much," he
whispered as he pulled Justin against him.
"We missed you too."
Bobby rushed up and knelt in front of a
sleeping Patrick. He gave him a kiss and then turned to the others. "Let's
go home," John said.
"That sounds like the most wonderful
thing in the world," Brian said.
They quickly made their way to the SUV.
Brian refused to let Bree go back in her car seat. They unhooked it so Brian
and Justin could squeeze in the back next to Patrick in his car seat. Brian
held Bree all the way back to the cottage.
When they had the children safely stowed
in their crib, John and Bobby headed to the sun porch and Justin and Brian went
to the main bedroom.
"I should have taken a shower,"
Brian said as he undressed.
"I like the smell of you just the way
you are," Justin said softly.
"I missed you so much."
"I couldn't sleep without you beside
me."
"I had some trouble with that
too," Brian admitted remembering the night he and Bobby had spent in the
same bed because they were so lonely for their partners.
"I'm glad you're home," Justin
said huskily. He wanted his husband so badly that he could taste it.
Brian pulled Justin against his naked
body. Justin could feel Brian's hardness against his groin as the man kissed
him and then kissed him some more. Brian gently lowered Justin onto the bed and
knelt between his legs.
"I dreamed about this while I was
away."
"But the real thing will be
better," Justin promised. That earned him another long and burning kiss
that left them needy and on fire.
"Now, please, Brian," Justin
begged.
Brian fished the lube out from under the
pillow and prepared his husband. He then sank his aching cock into the soft
tightness of Justin's body.
"Oh fuck!" Brian groaned as he
embedded himself fully. "I never want to be away from you again."
"You don't have to be," Justin
said.
Brian found their rhythm and started them
on their journey to the fulfillment they both knew awaited them. When he
finally came just after Justin had, he knew he was really home. It was the only
place he wanted to be.
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Early the next morning, Patrick and Briana
were the first to rise. It was all quiet in the house with each couple still
fast asleep. The lovemaking that went on the night before and into the morning
was sweet and tender, tinged with the sorrow they were all feeling for the loss
of their dear friend Edna. And the joy and relief that their journey to
Patrick, learning the ways of being a
gallant young man, kindly assisted his petite cousin down from her bed and onto
her daddy's big four-poster. Bree started to giggle softly as she was preparing
her pounce. Patrick smiled broadly and put his finger to his mouth to quiet
her. He gazed at his unsuspecting uncles who were wrapped around each other in
a peaceful sleep. His Uncle Brian looked so much like his own handsome father.
Justin's pale creamy skin reminded Patrick of his daddy Bobby, except for the
blond hair. Patrick tiptoed out of the bedroom and quietly hurried into the sun
porch where his own daddies lay asleep. The scene was almost identical with his
daddy John wrapped protectively around Bobby. As if on signal, both children
pounced on their daddies, squealing loudly at the 'oomphs' each dad exclaimed,
and giggling with glee as each child was rewarded with kisses and tickles.
After some time the giggling settled down and breakfast was declared. A naked
Brian climbed out of bed with Briana in his arms and started for the bedroom
door to begin breakfast.
"Uh, Bri," Justin began as he
noted the obvious state of undress his lover was in. Brian stopped at the door
and turned to his partner. Justin got out of bed and put on a t-shirt and sweat
pants. Justin stood with his hands on his hips and glared at his spouse, a
jovial twinkle was in his blue eyes.
"Oh for fuck sake, she's not
seventeen!" Brian said with a loud sigh. The glare became more intense.
"Okay, okay." Brian put his daughter down on the bed as he rooted
around in his drawer for some jeans. "What's this world coming to if a man
can't be comfortable in his own home? Don't answer that," Brian grumbled.
Now at least partially dressed, Brian picked up his daughter and went for the
door. "May I?" he asked Justin.
"Yes, you may," Justin chuckled
at Brian's back and winked at Bree, who appeared to be enjoying the whole
encounter safely from her father's arms. She didn't care if her father was
naked or not, she just cared that he was home. "Besides, Brian, we have
guests."
"They are not guests; they're family
and they've seen us naked."
"I know they have but that doesn't
mean they want to now, and the construction crew should be here soon."
"Construction crew? What construction crew?" The plans for combining
the cottages had slipped Brian's mind with all that had recently gone on.
"John's construction crew, specifically
Gordon and his men. They should be here any minute now. John had them here to
start marking out and clearing the land behind the sun porch. Brian, you do
want to go ahead with combining the two homes, don't you?" Justin was a
little worried that Brian wasn't serious about this undertaking.
When it sunk into Brian's sleep deprived
and caffeine free brain, Brian nodded. "I remember, Sunshine, and yes, I'm
all for it. I think it's the best deal for all of us. Especially since John's
been picking up more clients out of
After a hearty and leisurely breakfast,
the family planned to catch up with one another. Justin and John were
interested in learning what transpired in
"Sidney and I didn't have time to go
through all the documents but the gist of it all was about what Edna had found,
how she went about it and the contacts she made. I'm not sure if she had a
premonition that she wasn't going to be around to carry on the search, but she
left instructions for her bank manager and Juan Perez to contact us if more
Kinney and or Patrick art is uncovered," Justin explained. "But we'll
have to go through the papers more thoroughly.
"What about the paintings? Did he
find any more journal pages in them?" John remembered how finding Kinney's
will in the back of the mansion painting saved them all from losing the farm
and Claire's home.
"I don't know yet.
"Justin, we did read of small bit of
Kinney's journal. He mentioned that Patrick wanted children. Kinney missed his
family terribly but he seemed to be afraid of entertaining the idea of having
children together with Patrick. I can't begin to imagine what they would have
had to go through to have children as they were trying to find a permanent home
for themselves. Look at what they had to go through just to be able to live
together. They never seemed to find peace." Bobby's voice was quiet and
sad at the thought of Kinney and Patrick spending their lives alone, without
the privilege of having children.
John gently patted Bobby's hand,
remembering the heartache they both suffered in trying to have a child of their
own. The lovers again counted their blessings. The world was far from perfect
but they were fortunate to have good homes, wonderful careers and the children
they wanted.
Sensing the mood was turning morose, Brian
suggested they all get cleaned up and take the kids on a little 'march' through
the woods, check out the area and plans for the latest renovations for the
Kinney/Taylor 'estate'. Everyone cheerfully agreed.
With the breakfast dishes scrubbing away
in the dishwasher the families got washed up and prepared the children for
their outing. The weather was warm and inviting, just right for a walk through
the woods and down to the stream.
As they were preparing, they first
converged in the kitchen. Justin wanted to pack some snacks and bottles of
water. They also decided to pack some blankets and toys. That's when Brian
noticed the light on the answering machine blinking. They had gotten home late
and had other more important activities on their minds the previous night;
listening to phone messages was not a high priority.
As Brian was reaching for the button,
Patrick decided to share his innocent observations.
"Uncle Brian, you and daddy really
look alike."
"Yes, we do, Sonny Boy."
"He calls me that too."
"He does? We think a lot alike
too," Brian said proudly and with a smile.
"He sure looks a lot like you when
he's sleeping with Uncle Justin!"
"He what!?"
"I said..."
"I heard you. Justin! John? Is there
something I should know?" Brian knew nothing could have happened between
Justin and John but he couldn't help the jealous tone in his voice. Justin,
John and Bobby all started talking loudly and at the same time Brian's finger
grazed the button on the answering machine.
"Brian, it's me, please call me as soon as you get this. She knows, Brian, Joan
knows about Bree. Please Brian, call me." The terror and concern in
Claire's voice was painfully obvious.
"Oh fuck!" Four voices called
out as they stared at the damned machine.
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Old Acquaintance