The Light in Your Eyes

By Tinnean

Chapter 26

Wills was still sleeping when I woke. By the amount of sunlight coming through the curtains, I judged it must be about the same time as when I'd arrived the day before.  

He needed the sleep, and I had no intention of waking him just yet. I eased out of bed and retrieved my cell phone. Both Tim and Cris were probably down in the Pub, and I knew I'd have the privacy I needed to make this call.

I went into the kitchen and turned it on, relieved the battery had enough power since I'd forgotten to pack my charger, pressed 2 on speed dial – Wills was 1 – and waited.

"Vincent. What's up, Theo?"

"Wills won't be in tomorrow."

"He won't?"

"No. I don't want him driving when he's this exhausted."

"Aren't you the concerned mother hen."

I scowled at the phone. "Damn straight I'm concerned, Vince. He spent all night driving down here… "

"Driving down where?"

"Oh." I'd forgotten he wouldn't know. "I'm in Savannah."

"Want to tell me what you're doing there?"

"It's a long story… "

"Hey, I'm not going anywhere." He was in an awfully good mood.

"Did you just get laid?" I could almost picture him lying on a bed, his hands stacked behind his head and a satisfied grin on his face.

There was silence for a long moment, and then he started laughing. "As a matter of fact, I did."

"A little afternoon delight? I'm so happy for you, Vince! Surprised, but happy!"

"Yeah, well, there are more things to life than the job. And if you tell Matheson I said that… "

"I know, I know. Don't worry about it. Your secret is safe with me."

"So what are the two of you doing in Savannah? I assume Matheson is with you?"

"Yes. He came after me."

"'Came after you'? Oh, this is gonna be good. Start talking."

"Well, after you called the other day to tell me Wills was coming home… " It took longer than I'd thought to tell him the whole story. He kept interrupting, asking questions about things that hadn't seemed pertinent at the time, but now that I stopped to think about them… "Geez, I really was an asshole about this whole thing, wasn't I?" I sighed.

"That's beside the point. I don't need my boy in a state like this because he has to worry about you." Even back when he'd first moved into the attic apartment, I'd never heard his voice so cold, and I shivered. Was he going to tell me Wills had to choose between his job and me?

"Vince?"

"Tell him he has tomorrow off. No, wait a second, tomorrow is Friday, and I need him to… Ah, what the fuck. I'll delegate. Tell him he has the whole weekend off. I'll have his secretary reschedule any meetings that are on his calendar."

"Vince?"

"I've gotta go, Theo. Some of us do have work, y'know. Take it easy." He disconnected the call before I could say another word.

I closed my phone and set it beside me on the table. What would Wills do if Vincent told him he had to give me up? He said he loved me, but he loved his job, and I'd more or less resigned myself to the fact that there were times when it would come first, but… would this mean I wasn't even in the running?

"Sweets, what are you doing sitting around in your skivvies in the kitchen?" Tim stood in the doorway.

"I had to make a phone call, and I didn't want to wake Wills." I turned to face him, and his expression became stone cold.

"What happened? Did that bastard hurt you again? I took it easy on him earlier, but I'll tear him a new one now!"

"What are you talking about?" It hadn't looked that way from where I'd sat on the floor, but I wasn't going to bring that up.

He touched my cheek, showed me his fingertips. They were wet.

I dropped my head in my hands. "Geez. I haven't cried this much… "

"Why are you crying, Theo?" Wills stood in the doorway. His hair was every which way, there were crease marks from the pillow on his cheek, one black sock was up around his calf while the other sagged around this ankle, and he should have looked ridiculous. He didn't.

"Maybe you can answer that, White Bread."

He scowled at Tim. "If Theo didn't care about you so much, Reddy, I'd have no problem… " There was a minute pause. "… hating your guts," he finished smoothly. "Call me Matheson. Call me Wills. But call me White Bread one more time, and by the time I'm done with you, you'll be singing soprano."

"Oh, yeah?"

"Yeah." They were ready to square off against each other. No, Wills definitely didn't look ridiculous.

"Stop it, the two of you!" I jumped to my feet and crossed the kitchen to my lover. I'd think about what Vincent had said later, when we were home. "I'm crying because I'm happy you didn't cheat on me." I put my arms around him and hugged him tight. "I love you, Wills," I whispered in his ear.

"Theo." His arms went around me. "Then it wasn't a dream?"

"No. I… " I kissed the right corner of his mouth. "… love… " I kissed the left corner. "… you." I kissed his mouth and sighed into it as he opened for me.

Somewhere in the background I heard a faint chuckle. "I thought someone was a little over-emphatic about wanting a certain someone out of his life."

Finally the kiss ended, and Wills rested his cheek against mine, his erection nudging mine. "We should get dressed. We'll miss rush hour traffic in DC, but it's still gonna be a drive."

"We don't have to leave yet. I called Vincent… "

"What? Oh, my fucking god, why?" Just like that, his erection was gone.

"I wanted you to have tomorrow off. I told him you'd been on the go since yesterday morning."

"Oh, jesus. He's gonna think I can't deal with a long day."

"Wills, twelve hours is a long day. Thirty-one hours is two and a half long days."

"Doesn't matter. I have to go in tomorrow. I have a meeting with him."

I waved it aside. "He said he'll talk to Ms. DiNois about rescheduling your appointments. Oh, and you have the weekend off."

He raised his head and looked into my eyes. "That's a good thing. I'm gonna be pretty busy."

"Yeah?" I brought his cheek back to mine. He needed a shave, but I savored the mild abrasion. "You have something in mind?"

"Mm hmm. I need to pick up some spackle and repair that hole you put in the wall."

"Sweets put a hole in the wall?" It was Tim, sitting at the table, Miss Su on his lap, her eyes closed in evident bliss as he stroked her long fur.

"You still here, Reddy? And don't call him that."

He held out his arms. "It's ma place. Where else would Ah be?" He turned his attention back to me. "Babe?"

"And don't call him that either!"

Tim didn't respond to that, just continued to watch me and pet Miss Su.

"I… uh… I lost my temper when I read the card that came with the flowers and threw the vase against the wall."

"You lost your temper, Swe… " He caught Wills' glare and cleared his throat. "… Theo? You left that out when you told me about the roses and the card." I hunched a shoulder. "Y'know, in all the time I've known you, I've never seen you lose your temper."

I could feel a blush climb to my hairline, and mumbled, "Well, I did yesterday."

"Hmmm."

"What the fuck is that supposed to mean?" Wills crossed his arms over his chest, his expression cold and flat.

"Whoa! Take it easy, tough guy!" I ran my palm up and down his arm. "That's just Tim."

"What it means, Matheson, is that you must mean a lot to… Theo, whether he's told you or not."

Wills relaxed. "Fair enough. He means a lot to me too."

"You'd better not break his heart."

"That's the last thing I'd want to do."

"All right then. Why don't you two get dressed and have dinner with us? Thursday's always a slow night. Cris and I'll close up, and we can all go to The Good Ship Anne."

"Babe?" Now that the excitement was all over, I was starving, and it sounded good to me, but I'd go along with whatever Wills preferred to do.

"Thanks, Reddy, but I've been in my clothes for the last day and a half, and I don't think any decent restaurant would let me through their doors."

"You can wear my clothes, Wills. I've got an extra pair of jeans and a shirt." I liked the idea of him wearing my clothes.

"That's a little casual for The Good Ship Anne, and I don't think anything of mine or Cris' would fit you. We can go to Ruby Tuesday's or Applebee's instead, if that's all right with you?"

"Sure. I need a shower, though. I must be a little ripe."

"No, you're not!"

"Thanks, babe. You have to say that, though."

"Oh, yeah? Why is that?"

He leaned against me and smiled through his lashes at me. "You love me."

Tim cleared his throat. "I think we got off on the wrong foot, Matheson. What do you say we try again? I'm Tim Reddy." He rose, spilling Miss Su off his lap, and held out his hand.

Wills took it. "William Matheson, but my friends call me Wills."

"Wills. I'll go downstairs and tell Cris we're closing early." Tim studied him closely. "There are towels on the shelves in the bathroom. Theo knows where everything is. Oh, and you've got half an hour." He grinned and turned toward the door. "That should give you enough time for a little make-up sex."

"Sounds like a plan."

"The bathroom is this way, babe." I stopped in the bedroom to grab up my shaving kit and fumbled in it. "Shit!"

"What's wrong?"

"I didn't bring any supplies." I dropped my kit on the vanity, shut the bathroom door, and turned on the water. "Never mind." His eyes widened, he shivered and a flush covered his upper torso, and I wondered what he was thinking.

"Theo. Your nose. I'm so sorry." He touched my face gently. "How is it?"

"It's fine."

"It doesn't hurt?"

"No. Well, not much." His eyes clouded with distress. "I'm teasing, babe! I'm teasing!"

The distress faded, and he grinned, but it was crooked and not at all like the one that made me want to jump his bones. "I've never punched someone I'm supposed to care about. I can't tell you how sorry… "

"I'm serious. I'm fine." I could see it was really bothering him. "Are you gonna do it again?"

"NO!"

"Okay, then, forget about it. Seriously, Wills, I've been hurt worse."

He got that flat look. "Who?"

I cupped his cheek. "It was long ago, and the man is dead. Now, get your gorgeous ass in the shower. I think we're a little overdo for that make-up sex."

The flush rose over his cheeks again. He nodded, stripped off his socks, shorts, and undershirt, and stepped into the tub. "How… how do you want me?"

"Lean back, relax, and put yourself in my hands."

"I'm all yours."

Yes, he was. His nipples were erect little nubs, snagging the chain I'd given him, and his eyes were dark with passion now.

I fondled his balls, rolling them in their sac, then dropped to my knees and went down on him, and the sounds he made were more exciting to me than anything I'd ever heard.

His knees started to buckle, and I dug my fingers into his hips, keeping him upright. I pulled out every trick I knew and brought him to the edge of orgasm again and again.

"Theo! Oh, jesus, please, Theo!"

I tickled the sensitive spot behind his balls, hollowed my cheeks and hummed a few bars from our song, and he bucked into my mouth, flooding it with his taste. I hummed again, this time in satisfaction. It had been too long.

I let his cock slip from my lips and sat back on my heels, frowning as I examined the marks on his hips. "I'm sorry, babe."

"What are you apologizing for?" He pushed wet hair out of drowsy, sated eyes.

"All the bruises I put on your body." I touched each one, knowing there would be more on his hips later.

"Do you hear me complaining?" He raised me to my feet and kissed me, his tongue scouring my mouth for a taste of himself, then wrapped his soap-slicked hand around my cock and began jerking me off.

"No, but… " I groaned and lost my train of thought. How could I think straight when he was lighting up my universe with sky rockets and Roman candles?

"I thought you were going to fuck me bareback," he murmured, his voice hoarse and gravelly against my throat.

"Wills! I'd never do that without talking to you about it first."

Lips and teeth worked that patch of skin. "When we go home, I want you to do it. I want you to fuck me without a condom."

My hips thrust forward once, twice, three times, and I came, shuddering and pouring semen into his hands. "I love you, Wills, more than anything."

"More than anything?"

"More than hot chocolate on Christmas Eve, more than trick or treating on Halloween, more than fireworks on the 4^th of July, more than making out on the beach… " I was getting giddy and silly.

"And that was pretty damn hot. I love you too, babe." His arm came around me and held me up, and we stood like that for a while. "Come on, we'd better wash up and get out of the shower. I think we've used up most of the half hour Tim gave us, as well as most of his hot water."

We stroked soapy hands over each other's bodies, being careful of sensitized cocks, and rinsed off. Then he turned off the water and reached for a towel.

"God, I've missed this!" He ran the towel over my chest and arms while I toyed with the charm that hung from his neck.

"These last four weeks – I was so lonely for you."

"Oh, babe. I can't… "

"Wills, were you serious about not using condoms any more?"

"Serious as a heart attack, Theo. I know you've always tested clean, and so have I, but if… if you'd rather I kept using them, I'll… I'll understand."

"No. If I stop wearing them, you stop wearing them. I want to feel you coming inside me." I loved that feeling, and it was one of the reasons I hadn't objected very strenuously when Franky kept 'forgetting' to use a condom.

Wills shivered and moaned a little, and I smiled.

"I want the first time we have each other with nothing between us to be in our own bed. Do you mind if we wait… " I touched the welt across his diaphragm, suddenly distracted. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to mark you up like this." I frowned. "How the fuck… I don't even remember doing this."

He glanced down, and his mouth tightened. "You didn't. Accident on my last job."

"What happened?"

"Fucking waste of time." He'd told me once about having to drive seventy-five miles to a site because the system was down, only to find that a breaker had blown and no one had thought to check it. He'd laughed, making a joke of it, but he wasn't laughing now. "Lost my concentration, lost my temper… " No, he definitely wasn't laughing now.

"And the computer attacked you?"

"You could say that. Uh… Theo?" He licked his lips, flushed, looked away, brought his eyes back to mine.

"What is it, babe? Turn around so I can dry your back."

"I… uh… " He glanced at me over his shoulder and licked his lips again. "Brynn's mom is a Unitarian minister. She married Brynn and Harry. It was a nice ceremony."

"It was?" I dried the crack of his ass, dried his balls, dried his legs.

"I always wondered what being married would be like."

"Uh… yeah?" Where was he going with this?

"I'd… I'd like Harry to be my best man."

"Okay." Was he trying to tell me that in spite of our agreeing to do away with condoms, he didn't see a future for us, that he intended to leave me eventually for a woman?

I'd been so miserable without him; how could I bear it if… Fuck it. I'd hold onto him for as long as I could, make him as happy as I could, put off the time I would be miserable again for as long as I could.

"I want you to know that I'll always come back to you."

"What?" He'd leave me to marry some woman, unknown as far as I could tell, and then come back to me when he got tired of living the straight life? Could I live a life like that? "Wills… "

"Dammit. This isn't coming out right." He turned, took my hand and brought it to his mouth, then dropped to his knee. "Marry me, Theo? I know it wouldn't be considered legal, but marry me anyway?"

I opened my mouth, but nothing came out; I couldn't catch my breath.

"Theo? Say something, babe!"

"Yes!"

"Yes? You will?"

I pulled him to his feet and into my arms. "Yes! Yes! Yes!" Each yes was interspersed with a kiss.

A tapping on the door brought us back to the present. "Not to rush you guys or anythin', but Cris an' Ah're getting' a little thin in the skin out heah."

"We'll be right there, Tim."

"His accent comes and goes, doesn't it?"

"Noticed that, did you? A lot of times it depends on how suth'n he's feeling." I laughed. "Let's go tell him!"

"I think I'd feel more comfortable dressed, if you don't mind?"

I kissed him again. I could spend the rest of my life kissing him, and it looked like I was actually going to get that chance. "I don't mind."

The hallway was empty when I opened the door and peeked around it, and we raced down it naked, to the spare bedroom.

"This is a nice room."

"I knew you'd think so once you saw it with your eyes open. I won't be sorry to leave it, though." I tossed him a pair of shorts and took one for myself.

"It's a good thing I have the weekend off. We can go shopping for rings tomorrow, and I'll get the supplies and fix the wall on Saturday."

"Rings? We're going to exchange rings?"

"Definitely. I want you to wear my ring, and I want to wear yours."

"You'll wear one too?"

"You bet. Didn't you notice? All the men in my family do."

"Even your Uncle Pete?"

"Yeah. He and Dave exchanged their Corps rings, so no one really knew." He stepped into the jeans I gave him. They were a little loose in the waist, but otherwise fit him well enough.

"So… uh, we're engaged?"

"Yep."

"And we're… uh… we're gonna get married?" I handed him one of my shirts.

"Yep." He shrugged the shirt on over his shoulders and reached for a button, then paused. "You're not getting out of it, Bascopolis, so don't even think of trying."

"Oh, what, you'll slap me with a breach of promise suit?"

"Damned straight. You can't play fast and loose with my heart."

The shirt hung open, and I slid my arms through it and around him, drawing him against me, caressing the warm flesh of his back, scarcely aware of the scar any longer. "I love you, Wills."

"Theo." He held tight. "I knew you loved me – all the things you've done for me – but it was worth the hell this past day was just to hear you say those words."

"You never pushed me for them."

"If they aren't given freely, what good are they?"

"That 'if you love someone let them go' thing?"

"Kind of. Only I have no intention of letting you go. Ever. So get used to it. I'll hunt you down and tie you to me if I have to."

"Bossy bottom."

"Maybe, but I'm your bossy bottom."

"Guys! Sometime in this century, please?"

"In a minute, Tim!" With a final kiss, I let Wills go, and we buttoned our shirts. "It's a good thing white socks and oxfords don't look too bad together."

"You just want to see me in white socks."

"This is true." I sat on the bed and tied my running shoes. "Babe, when did you want to get married?"

"Since I did the asking, you get to do the choosing, but just so you know, I don't believe in long engagements."

"Soon, then." I chewed on my lower lip. "I'd like to ask my family to come. I don't know if Poppa will, but I'd like to ask."

"Whatever you want, babe." He was grinning.

"What?"

"We're getting married!"

"Yeah, we are. Let's go tell Tim and Cris before Tim breaks down the door."

****

Over dinner we discussed the wedding – who to invite, the most convenient location in which to have it, where we'd go on our honeymoon, where we'd be registered – "No, I'm kidding, babe!" Wills was flushed and happy. I was pretty giddy myself. Compared to what I'd been feeling only a few hours before – well, there was no comparison.

"Stay the night with us," Tim suggested as I packed my carry-on.

"Thanks, but… " Wills exchanged a glance with me. Our bed was waiting for us. It was going to be our first time.

"We have to go." I couldn't wipe the smile from my face.

"Well, we'll expect an invitation to the wedding."

"You've got it. Thank you, Tim, for everything." I hugged him and kissed his cheek.

"You're welcome. I wish you would have let me buy you champagne to celebrate, though."

"Another time. Wills doesn't drink and drive."

"All the more reason, then. You'd have stayed over." He turned to Wills. "I'm glad we were finally able to meet."

Wills offered Tim his hand. "I wish Theo had talked to me first, but I'm glad he has a friend like you to go to. Thanks for being there for him."

"Glad Ah could. Ah've always looked on him as family. Y'all make sure you're good to him, you heah? The next time he comes runnin' to me, Ah'll tear off your head and piss down your neck." Tim let his hand go, and Wills flexed his fingers and shook them out. Surreptitiously, Tim did the same.

"There won't be a next time. I take care of what's mine."

"Hey, I'm right here. Don't talk about me as if I weren't."

Wills smiled, that lopsided grin, and touched his tongue to his upper lip. "Is everything packed?"

"Yes. And Miss Su is in her bag and ready to go."

"You sure you want us to keep all the toys Tim bought for her?"

"Yeah, Cris. She'll have something to play with when we let you guys baby-sit."

"Oh, we get to baby-sit?"

"You’re her godfather, Tim. Who else would we leave her with when we go on our honeymoon?"

Wills wound his fingers in mine and gave a brief squeeze, then released them and picked up Miss Su's bag. "Ready, babe?"

We went down the stairs and through the Pub to where his Dodge was parked at the curb.

"Bye, Tim. Bye, Cris. Thank you both again." I got in beside Wills, waved a last time, and then looked ahead as he put the car in drive.

****

We didn't sing 'Ninety-Nine Bottle of Beer on the Wall,' but we did play a grownup version of 'I packed my bag to go to Grandma's,' including lube, sex toys, and various articles of clothing. The man had a phenomenal memory, and recited back everything in perfect order.

"… a pair of silver mesh briefs, and… " He took his eyes off the road for a second to smile at me before adding, "… a wedding ring."

I sighed happily. "Well, you win. After that, there's nothing else I'd want to bring."

Wills made good time, and he was about to merge onto the 395, when he said, "I want to return the vase to the florist and have a little talk with the proprietor."

I'd been thinking dreamily of our wedding, and those words brought me to the present with a start. "I'm sure the switched cards were just a mistake."

"Maybe. What pisses me off is that some jerk-off's wife or girlfriend got the card meant for you, and she'll have no idea what a scumbag he is."

I had to agree with him. "When I read that card and thought you were apologizing for screwing around… The thought of you with another man just about killed me, Wills."

"I'm definitely going to talk to the proprietor. This was unnecessary."

"I don't think I would have overreacted the way I did if I'd heard from you during the time you were away. I… I kept picturing you dead."

"Oh, baby." He reached for my hand. "I'm so sorry. If I hadn't been given strict orders to contact no one… "

"Y'know, I could understand that if you were CIA or FBI, but you're just a… a troubleshooter for Huntingdon."

He was silent for a beat. Then, "Yeah. Anyway, I intend to talk to Mr. Vincent about this."

Cold fingers chased up my spine, and again I wondered what Wills would do if Vincent told him he had to give me up, that it was me or the job.

"Now," he squeezed my hand, "what kind of rings do you think we should get? Dad and Mom had these bands with white gold on the outside and a band of yellow gold in the middle."

I knew I couldn't let him change the subject. "Wills… "

"I'll have something engraved for you on the inside… Yeah, babe?"

"When I was talking to Vince earlier, he said… He said he didn't need you in a state like you'd been in because you had to worry about me."

"Oh?"