Note: 'With all my heart, my heart is here for you to take... ' is from Isn't It Romantic, by Rodgers and Hart. And of course, what Theo says to Wills is from The Light in Your Eyes. J

The Light in Your Eyes

By Tinnean

Epilogue

Wills made love to me without a condom. The feel of his fingers stretching and preparing me was familiar, but the sensation of his bare cock head at my hole, pushing steadily until it yielded to him, was like nothing I'd ever experienced in thirteen years of being sexually active. Maybe it was because the man who was thrusting in and out of my body, braced above me, his eyes fastened on mine, loved me.

"I'm close, babe."

"So am I." I'd been toying with my cock and balls, running a fingertip over the spot where we were joined, teasing his shaft as it withdrew from my hole and then plunged back in. I smeared the precome that was oozing from the slit at the tip of my cock over its length and began jerking off.

"God, you're so hot!" Wills growled, his teeth bared, and his hips moved faster, driving his cock into me deeper, harder. The chain around his neck beat against his torso in time to his thrusts. I caught it in my hand and pulled his head down toward me. "Yes!" He fastened his lips to mine and swallowed my groans.

My internal muscles clamped down around the bulk of him as streamers of come erupted from me, splattering us both.

Two more thrusts, and he stilled, and for the first time he poured himself into me, no barrier there to blunt the welcome heat of his semen.

For a while the only sound was our panting as we struggled to catch our breaths.

"That was the most amazing thing!"

"Yeah." I rested my palm against his cheek so he met my eyes. "It was never like that for me, Wills. Before you came into my life, I never… " I bit my lip, afraid he might tease me, might say in return, 'Don't tell me you never came,' or something like that.

Instead he turned his head and pressed a kiss into my palm. "So you see, we have to stay together, Theo. We're perfect for each other."

"Yes, we are." I kissed the hinge of his jaw. "Let me up. I'll get a washcloth to clean us up, and then we can snuggle if you like."

"Why don't we snuggle right now? We can shower and get dressed in a little while."

"You don't want to spend the day in bed with me?"

"Yes, but there's one thing I want just a bit more." He turned my face and brushed his lips over mine in a barely there kiss that tantalized and tingled. "I want us to pick out our rings. I have something in mind to be engraved in yours, and that will take a little time."

"Okay. What's it gonna say?"

"You'll have to wait until I put it on your finger."

"But I won't be able to read it once it's on my finger."

"Really?" His eyes were opened wide, and I pinched his ass.

"Don't try that innocent routine with me, Matheson! You just don't want to tell me. Okay, fine. Be like that." I tried to look hurt, but I was feeling too good, and he'd come to know me too well. He ran his fingers over my ribs, and I convulsed into laughter, nearly bucking him off.

"I love you, Theo." He nuzzled the spot where my shoulder and neck joined. "I'm so lucky."

"I'm the lucky one. Out of all the people in the world, you chose me." I sighed happily and rubbed my thumb over his nipple, plumping it. "You would look good with a nipple ring, babe."

"Can you wait until I'm 35?"

"How come 35?"

"I'll be retired from the field and then it won't matter. They're a little rigid about things like tattoos and body piercings."

The company that didn't seem to have a problem with him openly living with another man? "Uh… okay. " And then what he's said struck me. "You retire at 35?"

"Company policy. All active field agents retire at 35 and become desk jockeys."

Eight more years. I sighed in relief. I wasn't going to tell him, but now that I knew what he did, every time he went out of town I'd be worrying and praying that he came home safely to me.

"Babe?"

I smiled up at him. "So once you're 35, I'll be able to talk you into getting a nipple pierced?"

"Well, I hope I'll be able to talk you out of wanting me to have that done, but sure, if you really want me to. I'll even get a tattoo for you."

"My name on your ass?"

He gave a little huff of laughter. "If that's what you want, babe."

I'd never got a tattoo because in the business it wasn't a good idea – what worked for one john most likely wouldn't for another – but now... We could get matching tats, not on our asses, but over our hearts. I pictured us growing old and gray together, the waistbands of our trousers up under our armpits, our dentures side by side on the night table… I must have said it aloud.

"Theo!" Wills framed my face in his hands and bent toward me, his eyes on my lips, and I moaned and rose to meet his kiss, the only thought now how good this felt.

****

We went to Mount Olympus later that afternoon to pick out rings. Mason, the sales associate who'd assisted me with my Valentine purchase for Wills, was working, and he recognized me.

"Good afternoon, sir. It's a pleasure to see you again." He looked Wills over, spotted the gold chain at the throat of his open-necked shirt, and cocked a questioning eyebrow at me.

"Yes." I couldn't help grinning proudly.

"Ah. He is very masculine."

Wills' eyebrow rose. "Theo?"

I ran my palm over his biceps. "I'll tell you when we get home, babe."

"How may I help you gentlemen today? We have a very nice selection of ID bracelets, as well as cuff links, tie pins… "

"We're interested in wedding rings."

"Oh! How romantic! Let me show you… " He unlocked the cabinet beside the chains and withdrew a tray. "We're finding there's a demand for matching men's rings. These are pricey, I'll grant you, but when you're making a commitment like this…"

Wills looked into my eyes and smiled. "We're only getting married once, so I'd say price doesn't really matter. What do you think about this one?" He pointed to a two-tone ring with diamonds, and Mason took it out of the tray to display it.

"A very nice choice, sir. 18 karat, two-tone gold. The outer edges, which are rounded to ensure the utmost in a comfortable fit, are white gold, and eight diamonds are set in the yellow gold, twisted rope center."

It was the most expensive one on the tray. "Pretty. But as Mason said, expensive. Are you sure, babe?"

"I'm sure; I think you're worth it, but it's your choice. Do you like it?"

I had to clear my throat. "Yes." I didn't want to embarrass him by gushing, but I loved it.

"See if it fits."

"Hmmm." It slid on easily, but a very slight tug brought it back over my knuckle. "It's a little loose."

"We can have that resized and have it ready for you by the end of the week."

"I want it engraved." Wills grinned at me, took a piece of paper from his pocket, and handed it to Mason. "This is what I want on it, in cursive writing if that can be done?"

"Yes, but it will take a little longer, I'm afraid." Mason read it, his expression becoming wistful.

"Not a problem."

"It's a line from Isn't it Romantic? It is, isn't it? C'mon, tell me!"

The corner of Wills' mouth crooked in a grin that was supposed to be innocent, but didn't fool me for a minute. "Delayed gratification, babe. You don't want me to spoil the surprise for you, do you?"

"Hmph. Fine. Be like that." I glanced over the rings, frowning. "You said you have one that matches?"

"Of course. This one right here. If you'll try it on?" He offered it to Wills, but I took it from him before my lover could.

Wills immediately held out his hand, smiling a little as I slid it onto his ring finger. "A perfect fit." He rubbed his thumb over the diamond center.

"Yes, it is." I took his hand and rubbed my thumb over his. "And I want to have something engraved in it."

"Do you, babe? 'Love always, Theo'?" His eyes were lit with pleasure, and he touched that spot over his heart where the charm hung.

"I'm not gonna tell you. So there." I stared into his eyes, the perfect idea coming to me from out of the blue. "Do you have a piece of paper?" I asked Mason. I printed out the words, folded the paper in two, and handed it back to him. "Thanks."

Making sure that Wills couldn't see what I'd written, Mason unfolded the paper, gave a little smile, and folded it again. "In cursive, also?"

"Well, I'd like Old English, but I don't think there's enough room."

"What are you planning, babe?"

"That's for me to know, and you to find out."

"I haff my vays of making you talk, you know." He pretended to put a monocle in his eye.

Mason swallowed a smile. "As I said, this will take a couple of weeks, and I'll call you as soon as they're ready."

After giving him the deposit and getting a receipt for the rings, we left Mount Olympus.

"I'm starved," Wills murmured.

"So am I. We're not really dressed for Raphael's though."

"That wasn't exactly what I meant."

"Oh, no?" If we weren't in public, I'd have kissed him.

"No."

"Well, what do you say to pizza?" I raised a questioning eyebrow. "The Pizza Place isn't too far from here."

"Sounds like a good idea. We can take it home, have an early dinner, and… "

"… spend the rest of the evening practicing being married?"

"Now, that's exactly what I meant!"

****

We limped through the next day with satisfied grins on our faces, and stayed within touching distance of each other, even when we made calls to our families to let them know our plans. Miss Su didn't seem to mind as long as we remembered to include her in our cuddling.

For dinner, I made broiled leg of lamb with a red wine sauce, and served it with tiny green beans, tomatoes provençal, and butter-fried potatoes.

"I'm stuffed, babe." Wills, sprawled in his chair, patted his flat stomach and finished the last drops of the Cabernet Sauvignon we'd drunk with dinner, leaving a ruby drop on his upper lip.

"Don't get too comfortable." I leaned forward and licked it off.

"Oh?" His eyes like molten chocolate, his tongue followed the path mine had taken.

I wasn't going to let him distract me, though. "We've got some serious planning to do."

"We do, don't we." He smiled lazily.

"Yeah." He had said that since he'd asked me to marry him, I could choose the day, and I'd been giving it some thought. "How does August 31^st sound?"

"My birthday? As?"

"The day we get married?"

He flushed. "Are you sure?"

"Well, yeah. It's a Sunday, so it would be perfect, don't you think?"

"Don't I… Oh, Theo!" He jumped up, grabbed me, and hugged the breath out of me, and I prayed I never grew used to the feel of his body pressing against mine. "What a birthday present you're giving me!"

I ran my fingers over the curve of his ear and tugged the lobe. "You'll never have an excuse to forget our anniversary."

"As if!" He paused in scattering kisses up the length of my neck. "That's five months away, though."

"Is that too long an engagement for you?"

"Yeah, but I guess we're going to need the time to get everything organized." He sighed and let me go.

"Yeah." I bumped my shoulder against his. We were really doing this! "Let's get the table cleaned off. We've got work to do."

In the kitchen, I put away the leftovers and prepared a pot of coffee, and Wills loaded the dishwasher.

While the scent of my favorite coffee filled the kitchen, I readied a tray with the coffee things, then took a platter with the baklava I'd made earlier in the day from the fridge and put it beside the tray.

"Wills, why don't you get pens and a couple of note pads? I'll meet you in the dining room in a few minutes."

"Okay." He grinned, and I wanted to yank down the jeans he wore –not the 501s. If they had been, in combination with that grin, we never would make it out of the kitchen. He knew, too. That grin deepened, and he winked at me. "I'll be waiting for you."

"Take the baklava, will you?"

"Sure thing." He dipped a finger into the honey that had been drizzled over the pastries and sucked it off, making sure I was watching. "Anything else I can do to help?" he asked innocently.

"Get outta here, hot stuff. I'll be with you as soon as the coffee is ready." I watched his ass as he sauntered out of the room and licked my lips. Contemplating the plans I had for that ass later, sans a condom, I waited until the coffee settled, then placed the pot beside the cups and saucers on the tray.

There were two yellow legal pads on the table, and Wills was munching on a pastry, already scribbling down names.

"You're the best cook, babe," he mumbled around a mouthful.

"I know. That's why you're marrying me."

"Among other things."

"This is true." I put a coffee cup and a dessert plate at his elbow, pulled out the chair next to his, and sat down. Before I began to write, I put a pastry on my own plate and licked my fingers clean of the honey. "Is Vince going on my list or yours?"

"Um… probably yours, since he's been your friend longer than he's been my boss."

"Okay. I'll put down 'and guest.' What?" There was a strange expression on his face.

"I never thought I'd see his name in conjunction with 'and guest.'"

"Any idea who he'll bring?"

"You make it sound as if it's a done deal that he'll come with someone."

"Sure, why not? I found you. Why can't he have found someone? What about that cutie we saw him with on New Year's Eve? What was his name?" He opened then closed his mouth, but I kept rambling on. "Y'know, I just remembered something. When I went after you on Friday, the security man in the lobby… "

"Sanford?"

"Um… yeah, that was his name. Anyway, he seemed really surprised when I said I was Vince's friend. What's up with that?"

"Mr. Vincent is the original lone wolf." Wills regarded me thoughtfully, as if trying to decide how much he should tell me. "No one at the WBIS knows anything about his private life. In the five years I've been there, as far as anyone knew, he had no private life."

"Everyone has a private life." Even we rentboys did to some degree.

He shrugged and turned back to his list. "Go ahead and put down 'and guest,' Theo, but until Mr. Vincent shows up at our wedding with… someone, I have no intention of speculating about it."

"But… " I shut up. Vince had never talked about it, and if he'd wanted me to know, he would have. I wouldn't tease Wills about it. "Okay, babe." I went back to my list.

It didn't take me long to finish. Poppa had asked me not to tell the rest of the family or contact any neighbors. It wasn't a problem since I hadn't been in touch with anyone from home for so long. I nibbled on the baklava, licked more honey off my fingers, then peeked at Wills' list. It had already reached thirty, and that was just the adults in his immediate family. There were still second and third cousins, once and twice removed.

"It's too bad about your other grandparents. Are you still going to send them an invitation?"

Wills had called them that morning when he assumed they'd have gotten home from church, and had wound up talking to his uncle. When he'd gotten off the phone, he'd been pale and had refused to talk about it beyond saying that they wouldn't be coming.

"I don't know." He sighed, and his smile was filled with regret. "I wish Uncle Tony hadn't objected to Grandma and Grandpa being there." He'd offered to have a second ceremony in Florida so they could see their only grandson get married, and I would have gone along with that, but his uncle's flat-out refusal had put paid to that plan.

I wanted to beat the crap out of his uncle. What bug had crawled up his ass and died, leaving him such a bitter man?

"Y'know what? We can still go down and visit them. Your Uncle Tony isn't likely to slam the door in your face, is he?"

"No." But I could see Wills wasn't certain about that. "Well, at least Aunt Maria said she would be there. That kind of surprised me."

It surprised me too. She was a nun, and I would have thought her order frowned on same sex relationships. "She does know I'm a guy, doesn't she?"

"Yeah, I made sure she understood; she's the oldest, you know. She wasn't happy when I told her Uncle Tony didn't want Grandma and Grandpa there, but she won't say anything to him about it."

I understood. His uncle was to all intents and purposes the head of the family now. I ran a palm up and down his back. "The next time we go to Florida, we'll stop in Naples. And if you think it would be better for me not to go with you… "

"Never. If I go, you go."

"Okay, but if you decide it will be easier to tell them I'm just a friend who came along on the trip, that's fine with me."

"Is it, Theo?"

It wasn't, but he didn't need added stress. "They're old people, and for a couple of days, I can fake it."

"Fake what?"

"That I'm not head over heels in love with you."

"Theo, I'm not ashamed of what we have together."

"Ass. I know that. I'm making a sacrifice for you, hotshot," I teased, not wanting him to realize I was serious. I cuffed his shoulder. "Accept it gracefully." I glanced further down his list. "Who's Angelina? Oh, your Uncle Tony's wife. Do you think she'll come if he won't?"

"I don't know. Aunt Angelina is still on Long Island."

"She's not with him in Florida?"

"No. She wanted to be close to her children and grandchildren – they all live on the Island – so she kept the house out in the Hamptons. It would have been nice if we could have been closer, but after my Mom died… I ran into Cathy a couple of years ago at the Smith Haven Mall; she's the cousin who's my age. We had lunch, and she caught me up on all the family news."

"You recognized her?" I remembered him telling me his uncle had basically cut off all contact with Wills and his father after his mother had died.

"Yeah. It was like looking at a picture of my Mom." His smile was filled with nostalgia.

"Are you inviting those cousins too?"

"And their husbands, although Cathy wasn't married at that point. Yeah, that'll probably be another ten. The worst they can do is say no."

I toyed with the hair that grew at the base of his skull. Why let them use distance as an excuse? "Y'know something, Wills? We could have the ceremony and reception on Long Island. What do you say? That'll make it easy for Grandma and Grandpa Matheson."

"Really? You wouldn't mind, babe?"

"Nah. It's gonna be mostly your family anyway."

He leaned into my touch. "I'm glad your father is coming to the wedding."

"I was sure Ma and Acacia would come, but it really surprised me when Poppa said he'd be there." What he'd actually said was, 'Of course I will be there, Teodore. But give you away, my son? This I will not do.' "I'll fly them in."

"Sounds good. Um… Do we want the little ones coming?"

"Your cousins' kids? Your call, babe, but I don't have a problem with them." Not the Matheson ones, at any rate. They'd been cute and fun when I'd met them the year before, and although I'd never had the opportunity to interact with kids before, I'd enjoyed spending time with them.

"Okay. We'll invite them and let their parents make the final decision."

"We could always have the ceremony earlier in the afternoon if you like. This way they wouldn't be all worn out and out of sorts. Or maybe we can find a reception hall that has a room where they can crash if they need a nap."

"You're a sweetheart." He leaned over and kissed me. "Thanks, babe."

I cleared my throat and squeezed his hand. "I love you so much, Wills."

A flush stained his cheekbones, and he brought my hand to his mouth. "Let's get this finished and… " The door chimes sounded. "Who the fuck… ? I'll get it."

"I'll come with you. I could use a break."

He went into the bedroom and got his gun. "Just stay behind me."

"Wills?"

"No one has the key to the front door, and the ladies downstairs would call first." He squinted through the peephole, then placed his gun on the console table. "It's Mr. Vincent." He opened the door.

"Vince. I wasn't expecting to see you. Would you like a cup of coffee and some baklava?"

"Thanks, I'd like that. You make good coffee, Theo."

"I'll get another cup."

"His baklava is good too… "

"I'll get a dessert plate too," I called over my shoulder. I took a cup, saucer, and plate from the cupboard and a teaspoon from the silverware drawer. Miss Su was lapping delicately at her water bowl. "We have company, puss. I don't think you've ever met Mark Vincent. Would you like to?"

"Mrrow." She trotted along at my heels.

"Make sure you behave, all right? Don't go dipping your paw in the honey."

"Mrrow."

We entered the dining room just as Wills said, "You won't mind if I check." He took a black plastic case from Vince, gripped my upper arm in passing, and left the room.

"What's Wills going to check?"

"The video. I thought you might want it."

"The… " The cup rattled in its saucer, and I put it down on the table. "… the video?"

"Yeah."

I fisted my hands to hide the tremors in them. "You never told me how someone in your company got hold of that, Vince. I mean, it's hardly a threat to national security."

He poured the coffee himself and took a sip. "There's nothing like coffee from freshly ground beans."

"Vince… "

Miss Su stood on her hind legs and rested her front paws on his thigh. He gazed down at her and smoothed a hand over her ears. "Hello, cat."

"This is Miss Su."

Her muscles bunched, and then she was in his arms. He cradled her and continued stroking her head.

Wills returned, the tape in his hand and his mouth grim. "It's the tape."

Vince observed him coolly for a moment, then nodded. "You'll do." He sat, settling Miss Su on his lap. "Do you know a rentboy named Kip?" he asked me.

"Yeah. He was with us for a little while a few years back, but then he moved on."

"Did you ever mention my name to him?"

"No. Paul and I may have talked about you in his hearing, that's possible, but truthfully, it's so long ago… "

"Did you run into him recently?"

"Just before Valentine's Day."

"He was with an older man?"

"Yeah. Vince, why the third degree about Kip?"

"The man he was with had the tape."

I sat heavily, feeling cold. "Was that why he thought he recognized me? Of course, that had to be."

"Kip said he was going to give you the tape."

"When?"

Vince shrugged. "He said he tried to set up a meeting with you, but you kept putting him off."

"He told me he wanted to get together with me, but he didn't say why. It was the middle of tax season, and I was busy. When I did try to get in touch with him, he'd checked out of his hotel."

"When was that?"

I thought about it. "It wasn't the end of February. I remember being surprised that he was gone because he'd told me he was staying until the end of the month."

Vince nodded. "That's what he said. He freaked and ran."

"Why didn't he just fucking tell me he had that tape?"

"He didn't, actually. It belonged to Alfred Honeycutt."

"Who?"

"Honeycutt." Wills spoke quietly. "The man who was keeping Kip? I'm sorry, sir."

"Not your fault, Matheson. Shit happens."

"Okay, so the tape belonged to this Honeycutt dude. That still doesn't explain why Kip didn't tell me about it."

"Couple of reasons. He didn't want to blow a good thing, and he was jealous."

"I can understand the not-blowing-a-good-thing thing. His 'daddy' had bucks and as far as I could tell didn't have a problem spending them." I remembered the Cartier watch Kip had said he wanted, and which had been bought for him without blinking an eye. "But what was Kip jealous about?"

"The one thing that you had that he didn't think he'd ever have. Your relationship with Matheson."

Yeah, that made sense. It was what every rentboy dreamed of and so few achieved, although for a time it had seemed he'd had it. But… "What did he freak out about? Why did he run? How did he find out Wills works for the WBIS? I never mentioned him by name."

Vince shrugged. "To answer your questions in order: Kip freaked because he realized who his sugar daddy was. He ran for the same reason. As for him finding out Matheson's employer, he didn't know, but Honeycutt did."

"Who the fuck is this Honeycutt?"

"He's fairly smart, he has resources that he can call on," Vincent gave me a flat look, "and that's all you need to know, Theo. According to Kip, Honeycutt wanted you – he was positive you were the boy from the tape – and he was royally pissed when you tore up his business card. He was able to get a look at the merchant's copy of the receipt for your purchase, and from there it didn't take him long to dig up what he needed to know."

"Blackmail, sir? His silence about Theo's past in exchange for… He doesn't need money." Wills' lips tightened. "Theo in his bed?"

"But that's stupid. You know all about my past!"

"Honeycutt didn't know that, but no, not blackmail, although the end result was still supposed to be you in his bed. It was more for revenge, to get at you through Matheson." Vince stopped petting Miss Su, picked up a piece of the baklava, and took a bite. "He knew Davies from college." He scowled, and I wondered if he'd bit down wrong on an almond and hurt his tooth.

"But Mr. Davies isn't my department head. He couldn't fire me!"