Family Matters, Chapter 4
Dr. Compton leaned back in his big leather chair as he considered the symptoms Landon and Laura had described. He was mentally forming a tentative diagnosis, but only a further examination would prove him right or wrong.
"I dealt with a similar case about 10 years ago in which the young man, in that case, had a tumor on the brain. His behavior had changed radically in a short period of time and his family feared he had been taking drugs. We removed the tumor, which was benign, and he is currently living a normal life. I can order the tests, but you may have to lie to her to get her to consent to taking them. Patients with her symptoms can be quite resistant."
Laura decided to tell her daughter that the doctor wanted to check her for the welfare of the baby. The developing child in her womb was Sarah's major obsession at the moment. Anything was permissible if it had to do with the health of her son.
That evening, Michael and Landon ate at home. Michael cooked steaks and a mixture of vegetables on his gas grill in the back yard. He had a chilled bottle of wine for Landon to open the minute he walked in the door.
"I hope you aren't upset that I've made a kind of celebratory meal, Babe," Michael said. "I know it might seem insensitive when you don't know what's going to happen with Sarah.
"Hell no! With any luck, I'm going to be a father. That calls for a celebration."
"Uh, what does it do to us?" Michael needed to know.
In response, Landon took Michael in his arms and gave him a deep, sensuous kiss. Michael smiled.
"Thanks! I don't know how I'd go on without you now that I've come to know you and love you. I've begun to think of us as family. Rest assured I'll stay in the background so as not to mess up your visitation rights."
"I hadn't thought about that," Landon confessed. "I don't want to hide how I feel about you..."
"We can't go public at this point. I hope we won't have to stay in the closet forever, but I'll do whatever it takes to keep you in my life."
Several days later, Landon's mother-in-law asked if she could join him for lunch. She said his housemate was welcome to come too since he'd already been made aware of Sarah's problems.
When their order had been filled, the three ate at an outdoor table which was a bit removed from where others were sitting so their conversation would remain private.
"The results of the tests have come back. Sarah has a brain tumor as Dr. Compton suspected. They won't know if it's malignant until they do the surgery. That's scheduled for a week from Thursday. Sarah agreed to it for the sake of the baby. If it weren't safe to do, she would refuse any treatment." Laura informed the men.
"I'll be there if she wants me," Landon said. "If she's still hateful toward me, I'll stay away. I don't want to upset her."
"I think you should come to let her know that you're pulling for her," Laura stated. "There are times when she seems to miss you."
The young men lingered a bit after Laura had made her departure. They discussed all of the possible scenarios.
"You need to be there," Michael agreed. "If she wants you to move back in to help in her recovery, I'll have to let you go. I love you very much, but I know you have other obligations besides me."
On the day of the surgery, Landon picked Laura and Sarah up. Sarah seemed pleased to see him and acted like she was thankful he was there. She was having a better day than usual. She placed his hand on her belly so he could feel his son kicking.
"He's going to be an active boy," she smiled. "You'll have to teach little Corbin how to play catch and how to fish – all of those guy things. You'll need to be there for your son."
"Of course I will. I can't help but love him."
"Do we have any chance of starting over?" Sarah asked.
"We'll have to take it one day at a time and see how things work out," he said noncommittally.
Laura and Landon spent several stressful hours in the waiting room. Lunch time came and went; neither had any appetite. Laura was fearful that her daughter wouldn't survive the operation. Landon was wrestling with his conscience. He hadn't told Sarah that they could go on as a couple, but he hadn't ruled it out either. He felt guilty about leaving it open and he also felt that in not making a clean break he was being unfaithful to Michael. He would have to do what was best for his unborn child – the son he had always dreamed of having.
Eventually the nurse said that the surgeon was ready to see them. Laura and Landon were ushered into the small consultation room where they sat tensely awaiting his arrival.
Dr. Dvorak was a compassionate man in his middle years. He had the kind of soft blue eyes which made people comfortable in his presence. His expression was pleasant, but grave.
"The tumor was exactly where we had anticipated it. Modern imaging technology allows us to know what we're getting into. We were able to remove most of it. It has been sent to the lab for analysis to see whether it is benign as we hope it will be."
"What if it's not?" Landon asked.
"Then, we would recommend a regimen of chemotherapy treatments and possibly radiation. We should also inject dye into her veins to see if there are other tumors elsewhere. However, your wife has insisted that she will not undergo any of those procedures for fear of harming the fetus."
"She's entering the third trimester; he's my son, not a fetus!"
"I'm sorry; I didn't mean to offend you. We in this profession sometimes slip into medical jargon too easily. It's a kind of defense mechanism, I guess. Sometimes we need to keep some distance so we don't get too emotional to function."
"When can we see her?" Laura changed the subject. "Will she be out of the anesthetic soon?"
"You may see her as soon as they get her settled in her room. We couldn't put her out completely, but she's under mild sedation. We didn't give her anything that would have lasting effects on your grandson."
Sarah was bandaged, but smiling when Landon and her mother came into her room. She motioned for them to sit as she finished taking a sip of ice water.
"Honey, it's so good to have you back! I've missed you so much. What made you leave in the first place? I seem to have some holes in my memory as well as a new one in my head."
"Uh, you threw me out because you thought I was seeing another woman."
"That's crazy! I know you better than that. You've never even looked at anyone else."
Landon swallowed hard to keep back the tears. How was he going to be able to tell her that, in a way, he had been unfaithful to her, but not with a woman? He was exhausted and his emotions were closing in on him at the moment.
The awkward silence was filled by the voice of a nurse telling them that Sarah needed to rest and that they should come back in the evening.
When they were alone in the elevator, Laura spoke to her son-in-law.
"This has to be very difficult for you. I've come to understand how she treated you because of her illness. She wasn't the same person that you married. I don't know if you can mend your marriage or even if you want to. I can't say I'd blame you if you go through with the divorce, but you need to decide what is best for your child, he should have a family."
Landon nodded, but did not speak. He couldn't trust his voice.
It was the middle of the afternoon by the time Landon had dropped Laura off and gone in to work. On the way, he had called Michael to tell him the news. Michael was waiting for him in his office. They had a long talk about what had transpired.
Michael again said that he would support Landon in any way that he could, including giving him up if that was best for everyone concerned. He did not reiterate that he would always love Landon, although his heart ached to do so. He wasn't going to heap more pressure on his lover.
Landon went to the door, locked it, and pulled down the shade. Then he took Michael in his arms and gently kissed him.
"Please say you love me and won't leave me. I love you more than anything; more than life itself."
"I do love you, but you'll soon have a son who'll need your love too. I can't come between you."
"You won't! He'll have two dads to care for him."
The guys stood teary-eyed in each other's arms for several minutes.
"Well, I'm not going to get anything done here today," Landon announced. "Can you take off early and go home with me."
"Consider it done, my love."
The lab report came back with bad news. It was cancer and it was the kind that grew rapidly. There was no guarantee chemo or radiation would slow it down, much less cure it. Sarah had maybe two months to live and that was an optimistic estimate. She might at least be able to hold on long enough for Corbin to be born on schedule, or they might have to take him early by c-section.
Sarah took the news without showing any emotion. Her mother and husband could not hold back their tears. She, however, seemed to be staying strong for them.
For the next couple of weeks, Landon took a few of his things and moved back into the townhouse. He watched over her by night and on the weekends. Her mother came during the weekdays when Landon was at work. He shared Sarah's bed and held her every night as she drifted off to sleep. He put the divorce proceedings on hold, knowing that she would rest better if he did. He would do what he could for the woman he had once loved with all of his heart.
Michael and Landon still worked out together nearly every day at the gym and they had lunch dates whenever possible. Both wanted to share their love in a physical way, but each was hesitant to say so.
On a Saturday in early May, Laura came over to the townhouse unexpectedly to relieve Landon of his duties as caregiver.
"I want you to call the nice young attorney friend of yours and see if he'll do something with you. You look as pale as a sheet. Why don't you go to the beach or play some one-on-one to get some sun and fresh air. You deserve a break."
Landon smiled at the lady who had screamed and railed at him a few months ago. Since she had come to understand what he was up against, she had become his friend and ally. He wondered how she would react when the truth came out about his love for Michael.
"Thanks! I could use some time off. I'm not complaining. I did make a vow `for better or worse'."
Michael picked up the phone on the first ring. He was pleased to hear Landon's voice. He asked his buddy to come over as soon as he could. They could pack a lunch and spend the rest of the day at the beach.
When Landon arrived, he immediately took Michael into his arms and held on for dear life. Both men cried silently, not wanting to let go - ever.
"We'd better go." Michael said, shakily.
"Let's stay here. We can sun in your private backyard – maybe sit in the hot tub..."
"There's too much temptation here. We need to be in public."
"Yeah, you're right about the temptation. That's why we need to be here!"
Michael was going to protest further, but his mouth was covered by Landon's. His knees got weak as Landon pulled off both of their shirts so their bare chests could touch. It felt like a jolt of electricity shooting through of them.
"Landon, are you sure..."
By way of an answer, Landon undid Michael's shorts and knelt as he pulled them, along with his underwear, to the floor. He then engulfed Michael's half erect phallus completely. Michael moaned in ecstasy. He'd had oral sex with Samantha, but it never felt like this! His cock quickly expanded to his full size causing Landon to choke.
"God, that's huge!" Landon exclaimed as he caught his breath. "I want to learn to deep-throat that monster."
Of course hot talk only served to make Michael's dick harder and his libido boil more. He hadn't had any relief, except for one wet dream, since Landon had moved back with his wife. As a result, he shot a copious load after about three minutes of Landon's licking and sucking. He watched, light-headed, as Landon swallowed every drop.
Michael stayed hard as he undressed his lover. He led Landon into the bedroom to lie down while he tried to return the favor. He was pretty sure he needed to be on the bed too because his knees were still wobbly.
Michael licked and nibbled on Landon's nipples because he had discovered how much Landon loved the treatment. Then, he licked his way down to the inside of Landon's thighs and back up toward the throbbing shaft which was now pointing toward the ceiling like a soldier at attention. But before he tackled the warrior head-on, he stopped to bathe Landon's balls. Landon clawed at the sheet under him in a heroic attempt not to spew too soon.
Finally, Michael took pity on his lover by engulfing as much of that beautiful cock in his mouth as he could and caressing the rest with his left hand. After a few minutes of sucking from the base to the head, he released Landon from the exquisite torture and brought him over the edge. He too swallowed the tidal wave of jizz that flooded his mouth.
As they lay naked and cuddling, Landon lightly ran his fingers over Michael's back. The two fell asleep for twenty minutes or so when they were awakened by Landon's cell phone. He sprang out of bed and ran to the living room to answer it.
Author's notes: A special thanks to the following who emailed this week:
Mike D, Paul R, Mendy D, Paul F, Ash T, David F, Tony W, Barry J, Darell R, Bob O, Dick M, Wayne, Bill K, Nick S, Ott H, Trish R, Zero, Walt S, Tom A, Douglas and Lawrence, Jim W, Bill T, John D, Mark L, and Stephen R.
I appreciate the encouragement.