Up, Up and Away

Chapter 2

 

Bree skipped along the street between her two parents. Justin and Brian looked at each other and smiled.

“Did we ever have that much energy?” Brian asked.

“I seem to remember fucking all day every day,” Justin said with a waggle of his eyebrows.

Brian grinned at the memory. “Only on the weekends,” he added with his tongue in cheek.

“And every minute that we could find in between.”

“We needed at least an hour,” Brian smirked.

“Braggart.”

“Just saying...”

Justin giggled. “We did have our moments, didn’t we … and we still do.”

“You got that right, Sunshine.”

“Daddy, do you hafta stay at the gallery much longer?” Bree asked

“I don’t know, sweetheart. I’ll see if they’ve followed my instructions while we’ve been gone. Why?”

“I want to do something with you and Dada,” Bree informed them.

“You do? Like what?”

“Does Toronto have a zoo, or a museum or a play we can go to?” Bree asked.

“I’m sure Toronto has all of the above,” Brian stated.

“I could ask at the gallery and see what Marcus might recommend,” Justin suggested.

“Just don’t ask that woman,” Brian warned.

“You mean Alicia?”

“Yeah, Daddy, Miss Williams won’t know nothin’ fun to do,” Bree informed them.

“And how do you know that?”

Bree made a face. “She has a big stick up her ass,” Bree responded with sincerity.

The mouths of both men dropped open simultaneously as they stopped dead in their tracks. “Briana Victoria Kinney-Taylor!” they both said emphatically.

“Uh oh,” Bree replied with a frown and a worried look. She knew she should not have said what she did, but she’d heard her Dada say that about one of his clients at Kinnetik. That lady was just like Miss Williams, so she had said what she knew to be true. She also knew from her fathers’ reactions that she was in big trouble. “Sowwy, Dada, Daddy,” she said in her little girl voice. Her eyes were glued to the cement of the sidewalk awaiting the reaction she knew was coming.

“Briana,” Justin said firmly, “you know better than to say such a thing.”

Bree was about to apologize again when she thought better of it. “Even if it’s true, Daddy?” she asked truly wanting to know.

Brian couldn’t stop the snicker that escaped his lips.

“Brian, you’re as bad as she is,” Justin chastised glaring at his husband.

“Where do you think she heard that expression?” Brian asked his horrified husband.

“That doesn’t mean she has to repeat it.”

“I wouldn’t say that to nobody else,” Bree offered. “I know it’s not polite, but it is true,” she added in her own defense.

“She’s got you there, Sunshine,” Brian said.

“It’s still not polite to say such a thing,” Justin complained.

“I know, Daddy, and I’ll be careful. I want to have fun in Toronto, and I don’t think Miss Williams is going to tell us good places to go.”

“Okay, but I better not ever hear you say such a thing in front of other people,” Justin threatened.

“I won’t, Daddy.”

“And I don’t want to hear it from you either, Kinney.”

“Certainly not, master,” Brian said contritely.

“Good,” Justin replied.

“And I don’t want to hear it either, Squirt. Even if I do say it myself … occasionally,” Brian muttered.

“I promise, Dada. Can I run really fast to your gallery, Daddy?” Bree asked. “It’s just up there, and I need exercise.”

“Do you now?” Justin asked with a chuckle. “Okay, but stay on the sidewalk and don’t run into anybody.”

“Yay!” Bree yelled before she took off at breakneck speed towards the art gallery.

“That wasn’t much of a punishment for her,” Justin observed.

“She didn’t do anything so very terrible,” Brian replied.

“Not in your eyes, but if she’d said that at the gallery, I would have been mortified, and they probably would have thrown me and my paintings out,” Justin averred.

“You underestimate your importance, Sunshine,” Brian told his husband as they walked towards the gallery.

“I don’t think so. But I don’t have an ego the size of France, like someone I know.”

“You should never think small.”

“I don’t think small,” Justin retorted.

Brian didn’t want to pursue that line of thinking. The last thing he wanted was to fight, and that seemed to be the direction they were heading, so he said, “Bree knows right from wrong. She’s a smart little girl, and I know she’ll do the right thing.”

“She has such wonderful role models in you and me,” Justin said ruefully as he shook his head.

“Yes she does,” Brian stated clearly. “We’re honest and straightforward in our lives. We’re not ashamed of who we are. Maybe our … my … language isn’t always the best, but Bree knows that I don’t set out to hurt people.”

“We all know you do it for people’s own good.”

“Exactly,” Brian said before sucking in his lips.

“You’re so full of shit …. but you’re also right,” Justin agreed.

“We better get to the gallery. Bree has disappeared inside.”

“Yeah,” Justin said. “I’m sure she’ll be fine in the gallery. They know who she is.”

“They being Miss Stick-up-her-ass Williams.”

“Stop it!” Justin ordered.

“Yes, master.”

Justin grabbed Brian’s hand and dragged him through the front door of the gallery. There they found their daughter talking to the very woman with the stick up her ass. Each of them sucked in a breath wondering what Bree was saying to Miss Williams. They quickly walked over to the pair.

“You really should go up the CN Tower. There’s a great view from up there,” Miss Williams was explaining.

“Can we do that, Dada?” Bree asked when she saw her fathers.

“I don’t see why not,” Justin said with a smile. He was relieved.

“And Miss Williams said there is a really good zoo, and we should go to the ROM which is a really big museum and it’s not very far, and there’s a big park that way,” Bree said pointing, “with swings and slides and lots of good stuff, and…”

“Breathe, Squirt,” Brian commanded.

Bree stopped and took a deep breath. “’Kay, Dada.”

“Good girl.”

“I hope Bree hasn’t been bothering you, Alicia,” Justin said.

“Not at all. She’s a very well mannered little girl. That’s to your credit, Mr. Taylor,” Alicia responded stiffly.

“Thank you, but my husband also has a lot to do with it.”

Brian couldn’t help but smirk after their previous conversation. “I always do my best to educate the child properly,” he said formally.

Justin gave him a not too obvious elbow to the ribs.

“I’m so glad to hear that,” Alicia said. “Nowadays many children are allowed to run wild.”

“We just let Bree run to the gallery,” Brian said facetiously.

“Huh?” Alicia asked not catching his meaning.

“Oh, nothing really,” Brian said gently. The woman had been helpful. “Which way was that park?”

“One block north and two west,” Alicia said precisely.

“Thanks,” Brian replied. “What do you say we check it out, Squirt?”

“Yes, please,” Bree responded with a sunny smile.

“See you back at the hotel … soon,” Brian said making it clear that he did not want Justin spending every minute of his day at the fucking art gallery.

“Yes, sire,” Justin said softly with a charming grin. He leaned up and kissed Brian’s cheek. Miss Williams gave a nod of approval.

“Bye, Daddy,” Bree said reaching up for a hug and a kiss.

“See you later, sweetheart.”

“Come on, Dada, I want to swing and slide and teeter totter and…”

“You can do all of those,” Brian replied as Bree pulled him towards the front door of the gallery, “as long as you promise to breathe.”

“They’re quite charming,” Alicia observed as father and daughter left the building.

“I think so too,” Justin said with a warm smile. “Thank you for suggesting the park and … the other attractions.”

“You really should take her to Niagara Falls,” Alicia told him. “It’s only a couple of hours away, and it’s quite magnificent.”

“I’m sure it is,” Justin replied.

“And there’s so many theatre productions right now. I can suggest the best ones. I could also look into getting tickets for you.”

“Yes, thank you very much, but I need to get back to my paintings. I’ll let you know,” Justin said as he quickly walked away.

What had happened to the prissy woman with a stick up her ass? He shook his head in wonder.

 

*****
 

Canada is pretty. Church Street reminds me of home. I know Dada thinks so too. He’s got that smile on his face, the one that he wears when he looks at my Daddy and then they disappear into their room and lock the door. I asked Patrick what they do in their room all the time. Patrick’s face just got red and all he told me is ‘adult stuff.’ I guess one day they’ll let me in on the big secret. I asked Uncle John once and he sorta got red in the face too, and then he picked me up to sit on the counter. My Uncle John is very strong like my Dada. He said that my daddies were loving each other and sometimes they needed to do that in private. I guess that makes sense cause sometimes I like to talk to grey bunny in private. And sometimes I like to look at my Patrick in private when he’s not looking at me. My Patrick is very special.

“Not interested,” Brian ground out, but trying to be somewhat polite about it.

“What did that man want, Dada?”

“Just asked for directions,” Brian fibbed. He didn’t like lying but he wasn’t about to explain cruising or getting hit on to his nine year old daughter. She’d learn all about that soon enough. Brian wanted to preserve her innocence, and his sanity, for a little while longer.

“Oh. How far is the park?” Bree quickly asked, changing the subject.

“Not far…” Brian began, trying to get his bearings. “Over there,” he pointed.

“Yay!” Bree shouted urging her father to walk faster. Brian accommodated her and soon they were at the park. There were dozens of other kids in the enclosed play area so Brian felt confident enough to let Bree loose.

“Stay within sight,” Brian cautioned her as he found a shady bench.

“I will!” Bree tossed over her shoulder as she ran for the nearest available swing.

With one eye on Bree, he dug into his man bag for the contract that he was going to have signed in the morning. Brian wanted to be prepared, he didn’t like surprises.

“Which one’s yours?” a handsome man asked as he sat nearby about an hour later. Brian quickly checked him out then looked up to reassure himself that Bree was still safely in sight. Bree caught her Dada’s eye and waved madly at him. Brian smiled and waved back.

“She’s beautiful. The one on the top of the big slide is mine,” the stranger said. Brian looked toward the slide just in time to see a cute red headed boy slide down as fast as he could. He landed with a thud at the bottom of the slide onto the sand covered cushioned ground. The kid laughed, obviously doing it on purpose. He stood, dusted himself off then got back in the line to head down the tall slide again.

“Every time he does that I think he’s going to break his butt then I think to myself, I did the same exact thing here when I was a kid. I just gotta get over myself, ya know?”

Brian nodded. “Being a parent makes you rethink a lot of things,” Brian admitted.

“Yes, it does. I’m Joel, by the way,” Joel said as he held out his hand. Brian looked at the man for a second but didn’t sense anything menacing.

“Brian,” he said as he shook the proffered hand. “Where does your son get his hair from?” Brian asked noting that Joel was a brunet, similar coloring to his own hair.

“My partner’s the bio dad. We used a surrogate who also had red hair,” Joel said with a smile. Brian nodded. He and Justin did the same. “You too?” Brian nodded again then took out his wallet. Joel did the same then the proud dads oohed, ahhed, and cooed over their perfect kids.

“Big age gap,” Joel noted when he saw a photo of Gus. “Jeez, triplets!” Joel laughed when he saw a picture of the “Kinney” men, all dressed up looking exceptionally dapper at a formal function. John, Brian and Gus indeed looked like they were cut from the same cloth. “Bet that leads to some interesting conversations,” Joel said knowingly.

Brian snickered. “Yeah, I had a bit of a rep back home. My brother got hit on constantly. Drove him nuts until they realized there were really two of us. And my brother wasn’t into that life.”

“And your son?”

“He’s in college and doesn’t have time for fooling around. Besides, he’s exclusive with his boyfriend.” Brian rolled his eyes when he said boyfriend. Joel nodded with acknowledgement. “I know, he’s young but he’s happy.”

“That’s all that matters,” Joel agreed.

There was a lull in the conversation for a while so Brian finished reviewing his contract then safely tucked it into his bag.

“You here on business or pleasure?” Joel asked. Brian arched a brow. “I ask because David and I come here practically every day and I’ve never seen you before.”

“A little of both. I’m seeing a client in the morning,” Brian explained as he patted his bag. “My partner has an art exhibition opening at the end of the week. We decided to make it a family trip,” Brian said as he flicked his eyes toward Bree.

“Oh man, I thought you looked familiar. Justin Taylor is your partner, right? I was privileged to catch a show of his in New York and you were there. He’s opening up here?! That’s wonderful; he has a very large fan base here. I’m sure his work will go over well.”

“Thank you,” Brian could only say. It still shocked him that he was recognized as well. Brian got an odd satisfaction from being Justin’s partner instead of Brian Kinney and his blond trick. Brian snorted to himself. He had it bad.

The two dads turned their attention back to their kids.

 

*****
 

“Would you play on the seesaw with me?” Bree asked coyly, batting her large violet blue eyes at the boy.

“The what?” the red headed boy asked. Bree pointed. “Oh, the teeter-totter.” David nodded his head and they took off quickly running to the seesaw before another set of kids could get to it.

“Where’re you from?” David asked as he held his end of the seesaw while Bree got on.

“America,” Bree said when she was properly seated.

“Where in America?”

“Pittsburgh,” Bree said. Most people had heard of Pittsburgh, it was easier to say than trying to explain her little lane.

“Oh. That’s not too far,” David commented when he got on then leaned back a little to help compensate for differences in their weight. He pushed off the ground so he could swing upward. Bree’s feet landed solidly on the ground. Her strong soccer toned legs easily took the jarring. She then pushed herself off the ground.

“Are you here with your Mommy?” Bree asked.

“No, my Dad,” David replied, he would have pointed but he had to hang on.

“Me too!” Bree said. “I’m Briana Victoria Kinney-Taylor, what’s your name?”

“I’m David. Does everyone call you Briana Victoria Kinney-Taylor?” David said after taking a deep breath.

“Nooo,” Bree said after rolling her eyes. “They mostly call me Bree.”

“Can I call you Bree?” David politely asked.

“Yes, you may,” Bree said with her best smile. She liked that David was polite.

They teetered up and down for a while longer then decided they needed to climb on the jungle gym. As they carefully got off the seesaw, a misdirected soccer ball bounced over the fence and rolled in front of Bree.

“Can you send it back, please?” an older kid shouted at Bree. Bree got a very competitive gleeful look to her eyes. She quickly guided the ball closer to the fence with her feet then bounced it high off her knee so she could send the ball back over the fence with her head. David gaped at her with wide eyes as the older kids cheered.

“You’re good,” the older kid called over to her. “We’ll be back tomorrow if you want to play,” the kid said noting that Bree really wasn’t wearing clothes for soccer.

“Really?” Bree wasn’t sure if the kids meant it. They were several years older.

“Really. We start practice at ten. We have a game later but we practice around ten.”

“Okay, but I have to ask my Da…my father,” Bree replied trying to sound a bit older.

“See ya tomorrow,” the kid said sincerely.

“Bye!” Bree waved.

“You play soccer?” David asked with new respect for the petite blond girl.

“Sure. My Dada taught me. He won trophies in college. I’m going to win them too.” Bree had trophies that she won in other tournaments but she thought those were for kids. She wanted a trophy like her father won at Penn State.

Bree and David climbed all over the jungle gym until David’s father called him over. It was getting close to dinnertime and they had to go. Bree and David said goodbye and made a tentative play date. Brian shook Joel’s hand before they parted company.

“Did you have fun?” Brian asked as they began to walk toward the hotel.

“Oh yes, Dada! I had the bestest time,” Bree beamed. “My new friend, David, is very nice. Can we come back tomorrow at ten? Those kids want me to practice soccer with them. Pleeezzz, Dada!” Bree pleaded.

“I’m not sure, Squirt. I have a meeting in the morning,” Brian answered as he stood on the corner of the street deciding which way to go.

“Oh,” Bree said, her face visibly falling.

“Let me think about it and check my schedule before you get all sad, okay, Squirt?”

“Okay, Dada.” Bree perked up a bit. If there was a way for Brian Kinney to be in two places at once, he would, especially for Bree. Bree skipped along by her father’s side back to the hotel.

 

*****
 

“Hey, Sunshine!” Brian called out when he entered their hotel suite. Justin was sitting in the main room studying a brochure from the gallery.

“You’re late, I was sure you’d beat me back,” Justin said as he stood to get a hello kiss from his spouse. Bree squiggled in between them to get kisses of her own. “I was about to send out a search party,” Justin teased.

“Miss Thing here, was very busy making friends and organizing soccer practice,” Brian teased back.

“Oh Dada!” Bree said with a roll of her eyes. “But, Daddy, I did meet a boy named David and he played on the seesaw with me and some older kids do want me to come back in the morning so I can practice with them. Can I? Pleeezzz?” Bree batted her blue eyes at both her parents.

“I don’t have a problem with that but my meeting’s at eight,” Brian explained. “If I get done fast enough, I can take you. The office is close by.”

“I can go as your assistant,” Bree suggested, in a very business-like manner. Justin stifled a laugh. Brian sucked in his lips.

“Did you bring business-like clothes?” Brian asked in all seriousness.

“Yes, Dada,” Bree assured him.

“Well, then, Miss Bree, you can be my official Kinnetik assistant on this trip,” Brian said as he grabbed Justin’s wrist to check his watch then he picked up the room phone to call Cynthia. “Cyn, I have Miss Briana Victoria Kinney-Taylor, my assistant, here. Can you bring her up to speed regarding our client? Yes, that’s what I said,” Brian responded in answer to Cynthia’s question. “Just fax it here.” Brian read off the number the concierge had given him. There was a fax in the office part of their suite. “Thanks, Cyn. I’ll let you know how it goes. Here she is,” Brian said then handed the phone to Bree.

“Hi, Miss Cynthia,” Bree said into the phone then sat to listen to what Cynthia was telling her.

“Are you sure about this?” Justin asked Brian while Brian changed his clothes.

“No, I’m not sure but the purpose of this trip is to mix business with pleasure and spend time with you and Bree. Right now this is the best I can come up with.”

“She could come with me,” Justin offered.

“She could but then she’d grow bored and think of more colorful phrases to describe Miss Williams. We have a more serious problem to discuss right now,” Brian said before Justin could lecture him about his evil ways.

“What’s that?” Justin asked softly as he wrapped his arms around Brian’s trim waist and leaned his head on Brian’s chest.

“What to do about dinner,” Brian whispered as he hugged back.
 

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