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"So, you think we could make it work?"

"Connor, I've always thought we could make it work. You
know, it might take some adjustments on both our parts, but we can do this."

"I'm glad to hear you say that because I was afraid you
wouldn’t want me anymore."

Mike pulled Connor into a hug and kissed his forehead.
"We're good. Don't worry. Just take the next few weeks to build yourself
up and know that when you're ready, I'm waiting for you."

Connor leaned in, his lips only a hairsbreadth from Mike's.
They both stayed still as they breathed in and out together. Finally, Connor
closed the distance. Their lips met in a sweet kiss that made Mike wonder if he
could survive living without Connor. He couldn’t wait until Connor was ready to
move forward. He'd take it slow, but really, he wanted to take Connor home
tonight and never let him go.

*~*~*

Leigh was five months pregnant and Gresh couldn’t believe that
in a few months he'd have his baby in his arms. It was surreal. They were at
the doctor's office, waiting to see a sonogram of the child.

Leigh looked healthy but they weren't close. It was funny,
Jamie and Kip had such a good relationship with Liz that he was a little
jealous. Liz was leaving in the morning for a job in New York, the cruise job
had fallen through, but she was scheduled to be on stage in a show in two
months. The twins were three months old and doing well. He was excited that
their kids would be nearly the same age.

Lane had been staring at the same page in the magazine for
the last ten minutes, his foot tapping fast on the floor. He put his hand on
Lane's knee, stopping the bouncing. "Relax, babe. Everything will be
fine."

"I know, I'm just nervous."

The door opened and a nurse stuck her head out. "Okay,
we're ready for you." Leigh had already gone back to change and get ready
for the sonogram.

He'd been waiting for this moment for a long time. When the
sonogram technician placed the paddle on Leigh's stomach she squirmed.

"It's cold," Leigh squealed.

Lane laughed and the ice seemed to be broken. Gresh only saw
fuzz on the screen until the picture came into focus. He sighed and held onto
Lane's hand. They were going to have a baby.

"Do you two want to know the sex of the baby?" the
technician asked.

"Yes," Lane and Gresh said together.

"It's a boy. See here." The lady pointed to the
screen and Gresh saw what looked to be a penis.

Lane squeezed Gresh's hand and stepped closer. Leigh beamed and
took Gresh's other hand. "I'm so happy for you two."

They would have a family now. Not that they weren't complete
without a baby, but the twins had made him even more aware how much he wanted a
baby. He and Lane left the room, allowing Leigh to get dressed. They waited for
her out in the hall, planning on taking her to lunch.

There weren't any chairs and Gresh suddenly felt weak. He
took a step, headed to go sit in a chair. The door opened and Leigh stepped
out. Gresh whipped his head up and realized this mistake almost too late. He
lost his balance and tumbled to the floor. Leigh yelped. Lane was there,
helping him up, checking his head.

"What's wrong?" Leigh asked.

"Nothing," Gresh said.

"He's fine. Just fell." Lane supported some of
Gresh's weight but he didn't want to lean too much on his husband, not with
Leigh looking at him the way she was.

Leigh still looked skeptical as they exited the office.
They'd told her up front that he'd had a head injury. Last week he'd had an ear
infection and now he was a bit dizzier than normal. Leigh decided to skip
lunch, heading down the street on her own. Gresh watched her walk away and worry
settled in his stomach.

"I don't know Lane, but I somehow feel like something is
wrong now."

"Everything will work out," Lane said but he didn't
sound convincing.

A week went past and they hadn't heard from Leigh. Gresh
called her, leaving a message on her voicemail. Another week went by and Gresh
called the doctor's office. Leigh had canceled her last appointment and hadn't
rescheduled. His stomach twisted as he called his lawyer, hoping that there was
something they could do.

Leigh had signed a contract, but that didn't mean she would uphold
her end of the bargain. The lawyer contacted the police who went to Leigh's
apartment, finding the place empty. When Gresh got the call he was glad he was
sitting. He lost consciousness because his brain was spinning so fast. When he
woke, Lane was there.

"Tell me," Gresh whispered.

"She's taken off. They can't find her."

"Fuck, our baby. What can we do?"

"Jackson at the law office said he would call in a
private investigator. We'll get the baby back."

Gresh felt as if the world was falling apart. Their baby had
been kidnapped but how do you explain that to the police? The baby hadn't been
born yet. Where was Leigh and what was she doing? Gresh held Lane close and
could felt his shoulders shaking. He hated that his husband was so upset. If they
couldn’t find Leigh, he didn't know what they would do.

Chapter Twenty-One

Connor drove straight through to Dallas. His home was on the
market and his job was secure. He hadn't seen Mike in weeks and he wanted to
show the guy how much he meant to him. Connor had worked through a lot of harsh
memories and bad feelings in therapy. He knew now that the reason he wanted to
be tied up during sex was because of the abuses he'd suffered in his childhood.
He hadn't had sex in a long time and it had been forever since he'd been tied
up, but he was looking forward to discussing bondage with Mike. Now he wanted
to be tied up for pleasure, not to excise some demon in his past.

He was about five miles from Mike's place when his phone
rang. He clicked the button on his wireless Bluetooth. "Connor here."

"It's Mike. I'm done with work. I just wanted to talk
for a bit. I know you're busy getting stuff ready to go, but I need to hear
your voice."

Connor smiled to himself and tried to remain calm. "Why
don't you tell me what you did today?"

"Are you driving?" Mike asked.

"Yeah, I'm driving."

"You can call me back later."

"No need. I'm almost at my destination."

"Okay."

"So, are you home?" Connor asked.

"Yeah, just sat down. I'm thinking of ordering a pizza
but barbecue sounds good too."

"Order the pizza." Connor's stomach rumbled. Pizza
sounded delicious.

"If you were here which would you want?"

Connor turned down Mike's street and pulled up in front of
his house. "Pizza. Hey, could you do me a favor?"

"Sure." Mike sounded wiped out and Connor hoped
he'd be awake enough to get busy because Connor really wanted to be with the
man.

"Could you go to your front door and tell me what the
weather is like."

"I can see from here. It's cold and cloudy."

"Maybe you should look out front."

Mike blew out a huge breath and Connor heard him groaning.
"You are being a total bitch tonight."

"Just look out your front door."

Silence greeted him and then he heard the sharp intake of
breath. "You didn't, oh my God," Mike yelled. A thunk sounded in the
earpiece. Mike must have dropped the phone because he could hear the guy yelling
but the sound wasn't coming from the phone. The door flew open and Mike bounded
out. Connor laughed and caught Mike in his arms, hugging him close.

"You came up. I can't believe you're here."

"Babe, I said I would as soon as I could."

"I know. It's just such a good surprise. You're
here." Mike kissed him, his tongue demanding entrance. Connor opened for
him. This was heaven. Connor felt whole. He'd been so confused with Riley—it
wasn't Riley's fault. He'd been confused his whole life. Bad decisions had
become the norm. Riley could have been a good decision but he'd made mistakes
and Riley had too. They'd both taken for granted what they had. Work had come
first, not Riley. With Mike, he wanted things to be different. They could have
a real relationship and make this work if he gave it the respect it deserved.

"I'm moving here, to Dallas."

Mike pushed Connor to arm's length, his fingers digging into
Connor's shoulders. "Will you move in here with me?"

"Really? I didn't want to assume. I can find my own
place."

"Are you kidding me? I want you here. We'll both be
working—"

"Wait, there have to be rules," Connor interrupted.

"Rules?"

"I need to put you first and I need to be put first in
this relationship." Love shone in Mike's eyes. Connor could tell that this
relationship would be different. Mike cared deeply for him. Connor sighed and
stepped close to Mike, wrapping his arms around the man. "I want to live
here. I don't have all the answers and I'll need your help at times to get my
perspective straight, but yeah, I want to be with you."

Mike's lips were on Connor's neck, his hands roving over
Connor's body. They needed to get inside before he dropped to his knees and
took Mike in his mouth. He stepped away and glanced over his shoulder, his car
was locked and all of his bags were stowed in the trunk.

"Let's go have some fun. We can unpack my things
later."

Mike grinned and tugged at Connor's shoulder. Before the
front door shut behind them Mike was ripping at his clothes, getting undressed
fast. Connor watched him strip, loving the way his muscles bunched and pulled.
Mike was naked and Connor was hard. He already liked being here.

"We need to talk." The words surprised Connor as
much as they surprised Mike. Why was he doing this now? Mike was naked and
ready but not for talking.

Mike's shoulders deflated but not his dick. "What's
up?"

"I like bondage."

Mike blinked twice before his eyes went wide.
"Bondage?"

"Yeah, in the past I couldn't get a good orgasm without
being tied."

Mike stared at him, his eyes narrowed a bit and Connor could
see his mind working. Neither of them spoke or moved until Connor took Mike's
hand and kissed the palm. "With you, I think it's different."

"Why?"

"In therapy I learned a few things about myself. In the
past, I didn't form healthy relationships. I think I can now. But talking to
you about bondage and the reasons why I liked bondage in the past versus why I
want to be bound now will make the difference long-term in our relationship. I
know that I don't need to be treated badly to accept love. I want to experience
a healthy sexual relationship with you. That means that I need to trust you to
bind me, and trust you to treat me well outside of the bedroom too. I trusted
Riley to bind me, but I didn't trust him to treat me well outside of the
bedroom."

"Connor, I swear with all that I am, I will treat you
with respect and love. I won't cheat on your or love another. You are the only
man for me."

"I need you to always be honest with me."

"I will and I expect the same from you."

"Got it. Now, I want to get naked and fuck you
hard."

"I thought you wanted to be bound. I have cuffs in the
bedroom."

Love, pride, and hope flowed through Connor, "Babe, I
freaking love you. But no bondage today, just pure love."

Mike tugged at Connor's shirt, exposing his belly. Connor
unbuckled his belt then unsnapped his pants. Mike tugged the zipper down and
shoved Connor's pants over his hips. Mike's mouth was on Connor's dick, sucking
hard. He sat back and his tongue flicked the tip as he pulled off—Connor shivered,
knowing that he wouldn't last if Mike kept this up. He wanted to be inside
Mike, dumping his seed deep in the guy's ass.

"Get up." Connor pushed Mike away and pulled him to
standing. "Bedroom, now."

Mike led the way. He stretched out on the bed face down.
Connor drew in a ragged breath, his head swimming at the sight. Mike's lean
legs were spread just enough for Connor to see the underside of his balls. He
dropped to the bed and ran his nose up Mike's leg to his ass. Mike yelped when
Connor nipped at his cheeks. Connor blew a few raspberries on Mike's rear and
they were both laughing by the time Connor made his way up Mike's back to his
shoulder. Mike lifted his hips, grinding his ass against Connor's dick.

"Lube?" Connor asked.

"Top drawer, bedside table."

Connor reached for the lube, opening the cap and spreading it
over his dick. He didn't waste time lining up. His first push in to Mike's ass
felt like heaven. The heat was amazing, the softness sweet.

Mike groaned and lifted up off the bed a bit. "So
fucking good."

They rocked together, Mike turning his head for a few kisses.
They were good together. He appreciated the way Mike loved him. They had
something special and he didn't want to lose it. This was exactly what he'd
been looking for. A man who loved him openly and without question and one he
could love.

Mike's ass clenched around his dick. It was all the
encouragement Connor needed. He came hard and fast, sinking his teeth into
Mike's neck. He reached around for Mike's dick, holding the tip as Mike came,
spilling his jizz over Connor's fingers.

They were both breathing hard as Connor lifted his hand,
licking away Mike's seed. Mike turned and licked at Connor's hand too. Soon
their tongues were tangling. Mike pushed at him and he rolled off. Then Mike
was on top of him, pushing Connor to the mattress.

"That was amazing," Mike said.

"You are amazing."

"I want you for more than just sex, but I'm glad we work
here—in bed together."

They kissed then Connor pulled away, sitting up and getting
serious. "I know we have a lot to work through."

"We do." Mike stroked Connor's leg.