Page 39 of A Quiet Man

Justin's smile disappeared pretty quickly as he listened, and he nodded twice, looking rather pained. He looked out over the happy family scene, boys running, husband cooking, kids playing, and he didn't say a word. His throat bobbed, but for once in his life, he didn't try to talk his way around or out of something. He was silent.

Tomas wondered if now would be a good time to wander over and find something to do. He'd really had enough Justin time for the day. Well, for longer than that.

Then Justin said, "I'm glad you both came, anyway. The boys were asking about you."

"I'm glad we came, too." It was nice not to be banned from the house anymore. Tomas had let himself believe Riley's assertion that he was family, too, for long enough that it would be really hard to disengage. He felt like family. Even Justin was more an annoying cousin than a true enemy, despite everything.

Something occurred to him. He hesitated, not sure if he was overstepping the boundaries or not. "Why don't you invite Cody over sometime? He gets along with Riley. Maybe he could be friends with you guys." As well, seeing Justin outside of his normal workplace environment, around his husband and kids, would paint him in a better light. If Cody was uneasy around him or something, that would help.

"What, invite a fox to a house full of wolves? They'd scare him to death."

Tomas snorted. "Have you met Cody? Yeah. I don't think so." He bent down and patted the puppy that was trying to climb him. "Aren't you supposed to be in your boy form, young man?" he asked mock-seriously.

The puppy did what all puppies do so well, wolf or other: made puppy eyes at him and panted, looking too adorably cute to say no to. Tomas groaned aloud, plopped down, and let the pup climb onto his lap so he could rub its ears.

He looked up at Justin and smiled wryly. "Yeah, they're terrifying."

#

The picnic went well, but Tomas was still glad to get home. Auden seemed happy, overall, with the event, but Tomas still wanted to talk with him and make sure Justin hadn't hurt his feelings. He'd kept a close eye on things and was pretty sure that nothing had happened, but there had been a few minutes when he and Riley had gotten side-tracked with conversation, so who knew what might have happened.

"Are you glad we went?" he asked when they were finally home. (Maybe it would be Auden's home someday, too. Was he still jumping the gun, wanting him to move in?)

"Oh, yes, it was really nice to meet everyone." Auden hugged his red coat around him for a moment as if savoring its warmth for a little longer before he had to take it off.

"Justin didn't do or say anything, did he?"

Auden shook his head, his smile sweet and earnest, flashing his dimple. "No, he was nice. Everyone was nice. I liked it a lot. They're such a special family." He took off his coat and hung it up.

"Yeah," Tomas agreed witlessly. The way Auden looked just now, the silhouette he made, was appealing on so many levels. He was staring, he knew it.

"What?" Auden's cheeks, already flushed from the cold, went a little pinker.

"You're really cute."

Auden laughed quietly and didn't seem to know what to do with his fluttery hands. His smile was adorable when he was flattered and a little flustered.

"I was wondering," began Tomas. "Do you think, um, maybe it's time to...to try having sex? I mean of some sort," he added hastily. "I'm not sold on any one special position or anything. Just...whatever you'd enjoy, I guess?"

Auden's flush deepened, which Tomas would have said was impossible. "What brought this on? You know you don't have to."

"Well... uh...." Tomas walked up to him and self-consciously put his arms around Auden, drawing him closer, fitting their bodies together. Auden felt good in his arms. He wondered what he should say, and decided once again to try being honest. "I really like you. I'd like this to last."

Auden's expression grew quickly serious, even concerned. "Tomas, I'm not going to leave you if we don't—"

"I know. But...it's...I think..." He searched for the words to explain how he felt. "It's not going to be a hardship, I think. I like you so much, everything about you. Your body, too. It's great, you're great. And I know this is important to you."

"Tomas, I am not going to pressure you into having sex with me!"

Tomas smiled nervously. "Of course not. But it wouldn't hurt to try. To see how it goes. I don't think it'll be bad for me. The only thing I'm worried about now is that it won't be good enough, and I'll let you down somehow. And that's not enough of a reason to never have sex, especially if you'd enjoy it. If I could make you happy."

"You already make me happy," said Auden. He licked his lips, undecided.

Tomas kissed him, quick and warm. "Come on. Let's try. Just try to still like me afterwards, okay?"

Auden took Tomas's hand. "Always."

"Make sure I know what you like."