The Naked Truth

Chapter 9 - Epilogue

Justin sat in the rocking chair that was in Bree’s room. He had about an hour before he had to wake her so that she could get ready for her first day of school. ‘Third grade already,’ he thought to himself as he watched her sleep. The sun was peeping through the curtains of her window, billowing in the still warm breeze thanks to the Indian summer. ‘Soon it’ll be high school, then college and then...’ Justin didn’t want to think beyond college. He didn’t want to think beyond this day.

He smiled at her sleep flushed face. ‘She reminds me so much of Molly,’ he thought as he quietly rocked back and forth in the same chair that he and Brian had used to take turns with midnight and two AM feedings. “My baby girl is growing up,” Justin whispered.

After a while he crept over to the bed to sit on the edge, savoring the precious calm moments before the cottage sprang into life. Carefully, Justin drew back the covers; Bree hardly stirred. ‘She sleeps like me,’ Justin chuckled at the thought. He gathered the sleeping child into his arms, inhaling her sleepy scent. He stared at the dainty pink toes peeking out just under her nightgown, traces of nail polish still clinging to each toe. The same toes he kissed and tickled when Bree was a baby. What was it about baby toes that made one want to kiss, tickle and nibble?

A flicker of movement at the door caught Justin’s attention.

“Hey,” Brian whispered as he pushed open the door and joined his spouse sitting on Bree’s bed. Justin answered with a smile. “She’s not a morning person.”

“Not unless she wants to be,” Justin pointed out. They were still subject to Bree bursting into their room early in the morning when she was excited about a trip or something special was planned for the day. “She’s so beautiful,” Justin murmured as he gazed at her sleeping face.

“Like you,” Brian said, leaning over to give Justin a kiss; their daughter safely nestled between them.

“I love you,” Justin whispered against Brian’s lips.

“I know,” Brian countered with a smirk then kissed Justin again.

“Dada?” a tiny sleepy voice asked.

“I’m here Squirt. Time to wake up.”

“It’s your first day of school,” Justin said as he sat Bree up. “You don’t want to be late.”

“School. Is the bus coming?” Bree asked as she yawned.

“Not this morning. I’m going to take you and the school bus will bring you home,” Justin explained.

“Okay,” Bree said, stretching out her arms.

“I’ll go start breakfast,” Brian stated, kissing both his blonds before exiting the room. Justin made sure his daughter was indeed awake before he left to get ready.

 

*****
 

Ben and Michael were slowly walking up from Emmett and Drew’s cottage. Ben had decided that it was time for Michael to engage in more exercise. Gerry could find no fault in a slow stroll up and down the lane. Michael faithfully performed the formal exercises as prescribed by their resident physical therapist daily.

“What’s going on over at the cottage?” Michael asked as they walked hand in hand. The juggling of cars in the driveway of Edna’s Treasures did not go unnoticed.

“I think the kids are starting school today,” Ben replied. As a college professor he would have been already back to college but he had taken a sabbatical in order to supervise Michael’s recovery from Chronic Fatigue Syndrome.

“Do you miss it?”

“Miss what?”

“Teaching,” Michael said.

“A little but I’ve only been away for a few months. Sometimes it’s good to step back for a while then go back with a fresh perspective,” Ben explained.

“You’re not bored?”

“Michael, spending time with you is never boring. And I’m finding plenty of time to write and do research. I think I’ll be a better teacher when I do go back next Fall. Let’s say good morning before they all leave for the day,” Ben suggested as they got closer to the conjoined cottages.

“Good morning Michael, Ben,” John greeted the pair as they came in through the sun porch door.

“Morning,” Michael said. “Big day?”

“Yup. The kids go back to school. I’m beginning a new project in Pittsburgh and with any luck, Richie may become a permanent member of the family within the next couple of weeks,” John replied with a grin.

“Wow,” both Ben and Michael said.

“Bobby must be some lawyer,” Michael said with awe. Just then Bobby came into the porch from his end of the cottage, dressed in a very lawyer type suit with Patrick in tow.

“I am,” Bobby said smugly. “But I cannot take full credit for this. Without Melanie, I don’t think the adoption would be going as smoothly as it is. She really knows her adoption law,” Bobby said as he glanced at his watch. “I have court today. I’ll see you guys later.”

Bobby kissed his men then fled through Brian’s end of the cottage to say goodbye. Justin was going to drive the kids to school then return to the cottage to paint. John and Brian were driving into Pittsburgh together. Brian had decided Kinnetik needed to be shaken up for the day, plus he wanted to learn about the symphony tickets Ted had purchased. If Brian was going bring a little culture into his life, he thought he should take a more active role in deciding what kind of culture.

“There’s coffee and muffins in the kitchen if you guys are hungry,” John suggested as he herded the guys toward Brian’s kitchen.

“We don’t want to impose,” Ben stated.

“You’re family, there’s no imposition,” John assured them. Ben and Michael followed the tall man into the kitchen.

“Hey, Mikey!” Brian called out as he sifted through his briefcase. He was dressed in an Armani sport coat looking very dashing. Michael and Ben did a double take. They had gotten so used to seeing Brian in shorts and jeans throughout the whole summer. They forgot that he was essentially a businessman and occasionally needed to look the part.

“Hi, Unca Michael! Morning, Unca Ben!” Bree called out as she rinsed out her cereal bowl then placed it into the dishwasher.

“Good morning, Princess,” Ben replied then gave the petite child a hug. “Are you ready for school?”

“Yup! We’re going to the school that Unca John built!” Bree announced proudly. “And later I’m coming home on Daddy’s school bus!” she said with a big smile. Brian chuckled as Justin blushed under the praise.

“I know about the school renovations,” Ben said, “but I didn’t know Justin had become a school bus driver,” Ben teased.

“I’m not driving the bus,” Justin began.

“Our little Sunshine donated a fleet of school buses for the new school district,” Brian declared proudly. “He even designed the logo for the ‘Sunshine School Bus Company,’” Brian pronounced with just a little touch of teasing. “Speaking about school, isn’t it time for you guys to get rolling,” Brian said with an arch of his brow.

Justin quickly checked his watch. “Time to go, guys,” Justin announced. Hugs and kisses were passed around the kitchen as everyone started heading out the door.

John and Brian were just about ready to go as well.

“We should go,” Ben said as he was about to dump out the rest of his coffee. John stopped him.

“Don’t. Stay, relax and finish breakfast. Justin will be back within the hour and there’s no need to rush out. Just slide the porch door shut when you go. Beau’s here and Rachel is home,” John assured them. “We’re quite safe on the lane.”

“Are you sure?” Michael asked.

“We’re sure, Mikey,” Brian answered. “Any message if I see Debbie?” Brian added as he picked up his briefcase.

“Just tell her I love her and I’ll call her soon.”

“Will do. Come along, big bro, it’s been some time since I’ve harassed Schmidt,” Brian said with an evil gleam in his eye. “I’m looking forward to it.”

Shaking his head, John picked up his well worn briefcase then followed his brother out. Ben and Michael finished their breakfast then slipped out the porch door.

 

*****
 

“Hi.”

“Hey.”

“What are you doing?”

“Working. Checking the books. You?”

“Packing.”

“Packing?”

“Yeah, it’s time I go back.”

“I kinda got used to you being here.”

“It’s not like I’m going to the other side of the planet. We’ll see each other. I want to see you.”

“Really?”

“Yes, really. I’ve grown fond of my walk on the dark side as Brian put it. I think this is where I belong. And I like belonging with you, Todd.”

“I really like being with you. For the first time since I came back to Pennsylvania I feel like I’m a part of a family. I always felt that I was on the outside looking in. Now I feel like I’m in. Does that make any sense to you,” Todd asked Gerry.

“Yes, it does. Look, I have patients to see. I’ve been away from my practice long enough but we’re only an hour away from each other. There’s no reason why we can’t continue to see each other on a regular basis.”

“You’re right. Winter is my slow time; I can come to the city.”

“We can take turns,” Gerry said. He was smiling and even though he knew Todd couldn’t see his smile, he heard Todd chuckle.

“We’re good at taking turns,” Todd said into his phone.

“Yeah. Are you free next weekend?” Gerry asked hopefully.

“I’m free!”

“Then stay with me at my apartment. I’ll stock the refrigerator, we can barricade the door and spend the whole weekend in bed.”

“Sounds like a plan. Gerry, I’m glad Brian introduced us.”

“So am I, even though I felt like I was living in a glass house with his whole family watching us.”

Gerry and Todd laughed.

“Yeah, they do get obvious don’t they? But they mean well. I’ve never known better friends,” Todd admitted.

“I’m beginning to realize that. I have to go. I’ll call you later tonight.”

“All right,” Todd said hesitantly. All of a sudden he felt like a school boy again with his first crush. “Gerry, I think I’m beginning to fall...”

“Me too,” Gerry whispered. “Until tonight.”

“Tonight,” Todd repeated then they ended their call.

 

*****
 

“Thank you.”

“For what?”

“For today, dinner this evening with you and the girls. For the past couple of weeks with Gus. For a lot of things I should have thanked you for a long time ago,” Melanie said as Lindsay walked her out to her rented car.

It was the end of a long hectic day that was finally winding down.

“Mel...”

“It’s true, Linds. I had someone wonderful who loved me and I threw it all away. I hurt you and I’m sorry.”

“We both made mistakes but I’m learning to balance the painful memories with the good ones. We can only learn from our experiences and move on,” Lindsay said philosophically.

“I’m learning,” Mel said with a soft smile.

“Mel, thank you for sticking around to help Bobby with Richie’s case. It means a lot to Emmett and Drew. They love Richie so much and Richie loves them.”

“Bobby’s a good lawyer. He really didn’t need my help. He did a lot of research on this type of law.”

“That may be but Richie stands a better chance with you being there.”

Mel opened the car door then sat behind the wheel.

“When do you have to go back?” Lindsay asked.

“I’m committed to seeing this case through then I’ll go back.”

“Mel, it’s none of my business but you and Lorna...”

“I know. She’s a phenomenal lawyer and she has other...”

“Attractive attributes?” Lindsay offered.

“That’s one way of putting it. But you’re right; it’s not all wine and roses. I’ll deal with it when I go back.” Lindsay stared at Melanie. “I do intend to go back. I’m doing good work there but I’ll probably look for my own apartment when I return. I’d like to find a place where JR and Gus will feel comfortable when they come to visit.”

“The kids will like that,” Lindsay confirmed. “I better say goodnight. I have a busy day at the gallery. It’s time for the Emerging Artists show and whether Justin likes it or not, Sidney wants to have a special exhibit for the nudes he’s painting.”

“Oh please, don’t you think the public is tired of seeing Brian naked?” Melanie groaned as she started the car.

Lindsay laughed. “Apparently not. But he’s not the only model.”

“Really? Who did Justin bribe to sit for him?”

“Maybe you’ll just have to stick around to find out,” Lindsay said smugly. Mel smiled.

“Maybe I will. Goodnight, Linds. Thank you for dinner,” Mel said as she put the car in gear preparing to drive off.

“Night Mel,” Lindsay said as she turned to go back into the house.

 

*****
 

“Did you have fun today?” Justin asked as he emerged from the shower toweling off his hair and wearing just a robe. Brian was in bed reading a new contract.

“If you mean did I terrorize Kinnetik? Yes, I accomplished what I set out to do but I’ll be going back tomorrow. Cynthia is taking a vacation and I promised her I’d make myself available. Plus contracts of some of our long standing clients are up for renewal. I want to be there.”

“Of course you do,” Justin said in full agreement. “You’ve built your business on your personal relationships with your clients; it makes sense that you be on hand when you renew your contracts.”

“Bree had a good day today,” Brian said as a non sequitur.

“Yeah, she was so happy to be back to school. I hope her enthusiasm for learning never changes.”

“She’s determined to go to Penn; she’ll do it,” Brian said with conviction as he put his contract down on the bedside table.

Justin dropped his robe then crawled into bed straddling Brian’s legs.

“Want something, Sunshine?” Brian asked with a smirk.

“Yeah, you,” Justin said as he pounced.

“I think you got me,” Brian replied as he found his arms full of blond bombshell.

 

*****
 

“Hi, did I wake you?”

“No,” Mel said into her cell phone. It was way after midnight east coast time. “I’m doing a little research.”

“You’re good at that,” Lorna said. “Very detail oriented. It’s what makes you a good lawyer.”

“Thanks. We’re making progress. I think the adoption will go through soon. I’d like to stay until it’s confirmed. Can you spare me?”

“Yes, of course. I know how important this is to you and to your friends.”

“Not to mention the LGBT community.”

“True.”

There was a pause in the conversation.

“Mel.”

“Lorna.”

The women spoke simultaneously.

“Melanie, I know when you left things were a little rocky between us. I hope when you get back we can settle our differences. Either way, I do not want to endanger our professional relationship. We do good work together.”

“I agree. We’ll talk when I return.”

“So you are coming back.”

“Yes I am but I think it would be better if I moved into a hotel. We need time to reevaluate our relationship.”

“I agree. Goodnight, Mel. Good luck with the case. Call me when you’re heading back.”

“Goodnight, Lorna,” Mel said as she hit ‘end.’ Melanie lay back in the large loft bed and looked up at the ceiling. Never in a million years did Melanie ever imagine that she would be sleeping in Brian Kinney’s bed. Surrounded by law books and legal pads, no less.

“Life works in odd ways sometimes,” she murmured to herself. She slipped off her glasses then nestled down into the duvet. ‘Things will look clearer in the morning,’ she thought to herself as she drifted off to sleep.

“That was a lot easier than I thought,” Lorna mumbled as she hung up the phone.

“What did you say?” a voice asked from over her shoulder as a soft hand fondled her breast.

“Mmm, nothing,” Lorna murmured as she rolled over. “Nothing of importance.”

TBC
 

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