The following fictional story deals with sex among males. If you are offended by such material, are too young, or reside in a location where it is not allowed, please depart. Though not observed in this story, care enough about yourself and humankind to practice safe sex.
The author retains all rights. EvanBradley33@Yahoo.com
Chapter 26 Fumbling Forward
Drew's Home
Drew was miserable. It was as though the luncheon discussion with Rich had made him come apart at the seams. He hated it. He REALLY hated it! After Hal's rejection in his bedroom, Drew had held it together enough to take that long walk out of the bedroom under the crew's gaze and Brett's smirks before he broke down upon reaching home. Then he'd hidden for a week. But with Rich, he couldn't even hold it together long enough to get out of the restaurant. 'With Rich! My soul brother!' he thought, panic lurking at the edges of his awareness. He didn't want anybody else ever again opening him up to THEIR scrutiny! Hell would freeze over before he'd go to lunch with Rich again. He couldn't. He just couldn't. He'd opened up to Hal and look what happened. Why couldn't he learn?
Drew was frightened. 'I've learned the hard way about bracing the odds of the universe,' he thought. 'They'll kick you on your ass. Just the way Rich did at lunch. Why'd Rich do that? . . . Open my deepest secret? Reveal that no matter what Brett and Hal did to me, I wanted Hal anyway? Wanted to beg Hal to take me back in whatever way he'd have me, even if it was only a pity fuck. Like I have no pride. They'd never understand such wimpy behavior. They'd put distance between us, talk about me behind my back, make jokes. Then there would be no place for me to go. If Rich can see my deepest secret, the others can as well. It would be the end. I don't know what I'd do. Find a job someplace else? Rich must have wanted to prove himself superior to me. . . . Well, maybe he is, but I'm not going to do any dance over his having proved it. How stupid I am! I can't let anyone see my pathetic need for Hal. If I go to Murphy's Gym the way Rich was pushing me to do, I'll just leave myself open to more of that. To hell with that!' Drew thought, shutting down.
Murphy's Gym
When Drew didn't call by the next afternoon, Rich experienced his first qualms that something in his strategy had run awry. Still he hoped for the best. When Drew didn't show at Murphy's the next evening, he knew that he'd miscalculated. What had gone wrong? What had he missed? What to do? Rich felt it was imperative not to leave Drew to his own perspectives for any length of time. Wondering if he was in his right mind, he asked the guys in the locker room for a summit. He even included Hal, who was mystified about everyone's gloom - and why have a summit? Rich asked Bobby if they could impose on the Coopers by meeting in their home so that Angie could be with them when they discussed Drew. Hal's eyes widened upon hearing that disclosure, but he kept silent. Bobby agreed, calling her on Hal's cell phone with a warning about an impending visit by the crew.
It was a confused group who met in the Coopers' living room, so unlike the tenor of the potluck dinner that had occurred there only a few days before. Randy and Esteban were puzzled about the purpose of the gathering, but the group insisted that they be included, much to the visitors' astonishment. Maybe these guys felt that the two visitors really were members of their family. Hal wanted to push the crew to tell him what had occurred, but a premonition warned him to remain quiet.
Sparing nothing that might disclose that he'd made a mistake, Rich offered an honest rendition (excluding details of Wes's, Carl's and his threeway in the fishing cabin) of his experience with Drew at Il Favore and Drew's reaction. Hal's eyes bored into Rich, finding it hard to believe that he'd tried to intercede for the former lovers as he had. As he listened to Rich's story, Hal also wished he could pull Drew into his arms and offer him comfort for what was obviously a painful experience. It was as though his arms ached to feel themselves around Drew. Hal was a little perturbed at himself feeling his cock begin to harden over the image of Drew and him on his mental screen. He couldn't escape the feeling that he had contributed a big chunk of the misery Drew was experiencing. Reacting sympathetically to Rich's account, Esteban had quietly exclaimed, "Madre de Dios!"
"What?" Rich had demanded after just catching Esteban's response. Esteban jumped at Rich's sharp retort, appearing afraid, looking to Randy for protection. Randy moved closer, putting an arm around Esteban and looking into his eyes. "Please, Lover, we don't understand. Don't be afraid. Tell us what we cannot see."
Esteban trusted his lover, but it was Angie's affirming smile that convinced him. "In my country, when a bull in the arena is speared with bandarillos, short, hooked lances, thrust into the muscles along the spine of the bull to cause him pain with every movement, to enrage him, to make him charge the matador so that he can work his art with the cape and win the adulation of the spectators, until the matador finally delivers the coup de grace, the sword delivered into the heart of the bull - that is what your friend Drew feels now - the bandarillos. He feels he was being played maybe for your amusement," he said, nodding at Rich, "perhaps for the amusement of you all. Sorry," he spoke to Rich. "To him, it is the next-to-the-last step to his annihilation."
"Damn, damn, damn!" Rich exclaimed angrily. "I hate this!" He stood as he paced around the perimeter of the part of the living room where he was located, his customary pattern when he was upset. Wes and Carl traded knowing glances. The crew had never seen Rich so worked up, not even when Wes left him sitting in Jack's Sports Bar and Grill. Wes and Carl wondered what they should do to help their lover.
Rich suddenly faced Hal angrily. "You did this! You put us all in this place. I was loading it all on Drew's back to fix it for all of us. But you're the dumb ass who put us here. Right now I don't feel good about you at all. You spurned a GOOD man for a snake!" Rich nearly shouted in desperation. "Just because he wasn't good enough for you! Just because you were so stupid you preferred that asshole Brett Carter, who dropped you in a minute for a trust fund! What does that say about you? . . . Damn! I hate this!" he exclaimed, pacing even faster. "You put us where we are right now. Get off your sorry ass and fix your own damned mess. I'm not going to pay the price of your limitations any more! You've cost at least me but maybe all of us a good friend!"
Rich then emitted a primal scream. Angie jumped, hoping Rich hadn't awakened Hal Robert. "If Drew wasn't good enough for you," Rich continued, "why am I feeling gutted here? That's what I did to Drew. You heard: same as gutted him by disclosing what he thought no one knew! You'd better have something good to say because right now I'd like to tie into you for pushing me into a situation where I hurt a really close buddy." Wes and Carl had already hastened to Rich's side to calm him, holding him in their arms. They'd never seen him so out of control.
Hal was shocked. He'd never dreamed that his bedding Brett would lead to all this poison. . . . What did he think? That Drew would hurt for a little bit and then be all better? The very notion sucked - from hindsight. When he was with Brett in his bedroom, he hadn't thought about Drew at all except to wish him out of sight. What was happening here was bad. Poison! How could he be the antidote? At the same time, he had to be the solution to the problem because it started with him. These were his friends. They were hurting.
In a flash, Hal realized that it wasn't just Drew and him who'd been separated. It was ALL of them who'd suffered from separation. "Rich, I thank you for your efforts, but I knew nothing about what you intended with Drew. I certainly wouldn't wish a break to occur between you two. I don't want any of you to pay for my actions. I know you have by losing Drew." Hal shook his head as though to fling dark thoughts away. "I . . . I know . . . I know how Drew felt. Esteban is correct: he felt that he was ludicrous, a means to an end that was no longer important, a sorry joke. That is exactly the way I felt after I found Brett and Gwen Thomas together." He turned to Rich: "Believe me, Rich," he said a little desperately, "I know you never intended that Drew feel the way he does. And to be honest, had I been in my right mind that night when you all learned about Brett and me, I would never have intended for Drew to feel the way he does."
"Guys," Angie spoke gently. "Let's take a deep breath for a moment. It's not that bad. It's really not that bad." All the men looked hopefully to their sister, their Angie. Bobby beamed, trusting in the woman he loved. "At risk of seeming superficial, let me remind you of the adage that it's always darkest before the dawn. We're in the home stretch, fellas. We've come a long way. Let's keep heart together with our eyes fixed on the goal - being a united family again. Our brother Rich has taken it on the chin to make it work out for all of us. Let's honor him in that. We've all heard how bad it's been for him. Then let's help our brother Hal heal Drew, who's feeling lost and confused at the moment."
"But how?" Levi asked.
"Let's start with what we know," Angie said. "We know that Drew secretly desires to be reunited with Hal."
"We know he's afraid of that," Ted added.
"And that he's afraid of what we'll think of him when we know all that," Kenji observed.
"We know that Hal has broken through Drew's reserve by giving Drew the sugar maple," Max contributed.
From Tonio: "I think we know that Drew wants to be with us again not just at social gatherings but at the gym."
"We know that he's hurting and miserable," Jamal added stonily, "and that he's retreated into a foxhole."
"So where do we go now?" Bobby asked.
"I'll figure it out," Hal replied. "You see, I thought it was impossible that I'd ever see Jimmy again when Step moved away from here. But you folks showed me that sometimes the impossible can become the possible. Every time there was a loss in my life, I've retreated to the time Richie left me. I know now that that became a wall between me and what I wanted and needed. That's why I have to get Drew back because I'm sick and tired of that wall. And you know . . ." Hal thought silently for a few moments, looking off into space, "I know what the next step to get Drew back can be. I think a little dog's pissing on the wall will make it crumble."
Everyone looked at Hal as though he'd flipped out. He smiled charmingly. "Trust me."
Jack's Sports Bar & Grill
After the summit at the Coopers' home, Hal wanted to go someplace with sound and movement to trick him into thinking that his life was full but still allow him to be alone with his thoughts. 'Isn't that what bars are for?' he asked himself. So he drove to Jack's. This time he sat at the far end of the bar where not many people congregated. He nursed a bourbon and soda while he ran back over the evening at the Coopers' home.
Hal was so deep in thought that he hadn't seen them come in. A burst of laughter made everyone's head turn toward its origin. That's when Hal spotted Brett Carter and Dez Baxter. Remembering that Dez was the guy Drew had been with at The Iron Lock, Hal was concerned. 'Damn,' he thought. 'I hope for many reasons that Drew's not really hung up on Dez. If Brett wants Dez, Drew may be dumped again.' Hal's thoughts immediately made his face color in guilt. Hal was torn between worrying about Drew and still hoping that he would forget about Dez. Hal returned to his drink and his thoughts, checking out Dez and Brett now and again. He saw some other guys join them, but Hal didn't want to engage Brett visually or in any other way.
It was a different matter for Brett. He'd spotted Hal right away, regretting that the latter had seen him with Dez. He knew it would raise a lot of questions for Hal, the answers to most of which he'd be able to figure out accurately on his own. True to his character - or its deficiencies, Brett decided to control matters. He left Dez with his acquaintances and walked back to Hal. When he slid onto a stool near Hal, he asked, gesturing at Hal's drink, "Buy you another one for old times' sake?"
"I'm fine with this," Hal replied simply.
"So how's the crew?" Brett asked.
"Working hard."
"You finished the Haynes home yet?"
"Almost."
Brett continued to try to chat Hal up, but Hal didn't move to anything more than one- or two-word answers. After a long draw on his drink, Hal asked, "So where's Gwen? I thought you two would be together."
Hal saw a muscle twitch in Brett's jaw. Then Brett grinned, enjoying Hal's defeat, signaled by his having to ask about Gwen. Brett exulted in having forced Hal out of his reserved position, so to speak. He withheld an answer so that he could watch Hal twist in the wind.
Hal scooted off his bar stool, tossing back his drink as he prepared to leave. Brett's intentions suddenly shifted: he didn't understand the need to justify himself to Hal, but he had to, so he blurted out, "Gwen wouldn't be seen in a place like this," he replied in a superior manner. "Besides, she was too confining."
Hal studied Brett for a minute. "You mean she caught you balling someone else. Or was he balling you?" Brett blushed. Hal HAD caught on. "By the way, how's work on the MBA?"
Brett's mouth dropped open a bit. "Oh, I decided to wait a year before I jumped into that. Work awhile to put aside some money."
"You mean you planned to kick back and let Gwen take care of you. Must have been a boot in the butt to find that, when you put her in the same position you put me, like me, she stepped out of your game. You have a problem keeping your dick in your pants, Brett. You like to come across all strong and calculating. Interesting to observe that, when you get close to what you consider is the top of your form, your libido throws you over. The fact that it's happened at least twice in such a short period of time must be a little worrisome to you," Hal spoke simply, gloating that he'd gotten Brett back for speaking down to him about Gwen's never darkening the doorway of Jack's. Hal observed perspiration beginning to form above Brett's top lip as he glared at Hal. It was unusual for cool Brett to be so tense that he sweated. Brett's insolent smile had long faded.
Hal turned away, walking to the front door of Jack's and outside, leaving Brett to nurse his beer - and Hal's disclosure about Brett's weakness. For the first time ever, that remark about his libido made Brett begin to take a long look at himself. It started with regret that he'd lost the guys in the crew. He had a stable of studs with whom he could have played for a long time. He hadn't really loved Hal. Oh, he liked him, and the sex was really good. Playing Hal like a puppet had been what he loved. And he'd loved the monetary possibilities that Hal could have offered. Then Gwen came onto him that fateful day. He hadn't even thought about the likelihood that Hal might show up at the Thomas site since the other guys had left the site. After Hal had fired him, Gwen had set him up with an apartment and an allowance. He'd felt as though he'd finally gotten his due. Then he'd met Josh Hanson at a bar one night when Gwen was attending a fundraiser with her husband. When she'd paid a surprise visit to his apartment, she'd found them in bed fucking like rabbits. Hal was right. He never loved any of these people. So why couldn't he control his sexual drive? How long was this problem going to go on?
The Coopers' Home
Everyone had arisen to enjoy breakfast together the next morning. While the four sat around the table, with Esteban and Randy taking turns holding and feeding little Hal Robert, they shared stories about their lives since Angie and Randy had last seen each other. Finally, they fell silent. "Well, I guess this silence means it's time for a powwow about Mom and Dad," Randy stated. The other three easily detected Randy's worry over the issue of his parents.
"Randy, why don't you tell us how you're feeling about Mom and Dad," Angie suggested.
"I love them, Sis; I always have. I admire Dad, who's never been anything but good to me. I know he set a lot of hopes in me. I learned that from the earliest time he started teaching me sports or had me working with him. I loved hearing him brag to his friends about my sports stats and my grades. That's why I started early on to lay plans to leave so that he'd never guess that I'm gay, never have to see his friends' faces when they learned that I'm gay. I just couldn't disappoint him. I also couldn't face the chance," here Randy gulped, "that he'd reject me. I obviously wasn't thinking too clearly about the long term."
Randy took a draw on his glass of orange juice. "I love Mom. You know," he said, looking at his sister, "how loved she made both of us feel, how she made both of us feel that we were special. You had to feel the same way about her that I felt about Dad. Isn't that one of the reasons you wanted to leave town when you learned about this little fella?" Randy asked as he leaned forward, giving Hal Robert a soft kiss on his forehead. Bobby's eyes shot to Angie, for she'd never shared such a possibility with him. She shook her head in the affirmative.
"I decided," Randy continued, "Mom would let Dad set the tone for our relationship when they found out I was gay, and Mom would just follow along. Never say anything." Angie shook her head in agreement.
The group sat quietly at the table. Esteban held out his arms for Hal Robert. Randy shifted his nephew into Esteban's arms, causing the little fella's brow to wrinkle over being moved. However, when he stared up into the face of his new uncle, he started waving his arms, smiling and cooing. Esteban chuckled in delight. How he wished Randy and he could have children. It was the curse of being gay, he decided.
"So should I call Mom first? Or Dad?" Randy asked.
"It's past time for Mom to step up to the plate," Angie replied. She looked at her wristwatch. "Call Mom now. She'll be at home alone because Dad will be at work. Then she'll have to take the lead in telling Dad. He won't have time to work out a script she'll feel she has to follow."
"But how do I tell her?" Randy asked.
Angie thought a moment. "Invite Dad and her here to dinner tomorrow night. She'll want to know why you didn't let them know you were coming. So just tell her straight out - you brought your male lover with you, so you weren't certain that they'd want to see you. That we'd invited Esteban and you here because we have no problems with your being a couple."
Randy looked at Esteban, regretting the degree to which the latter was feeling that he might be the cause of trouble. "Should I say 'male partner'?"
"No, Randy. She might decide that she wants you to mean a male business partner. Be absolutely clear so that they know the context here if they decide to come visit."
"Shouldn't we have them come over tonight and just get it over with?" Randy asked.
"No, they need time to accommodate to what they will have learned."
"You mean to put on a public face," Randy said a little bitterly.
"Maybe, maybe not. You have to be fair to them Randy or you won't get what you desire, their acceptance of you and Esteban. Remember, Mom will be the one telling Dad. We don't know what dynamics will play out there."
Randy let out a sigh. "Would you talk to Mom after I tell her? I'd feel better. I think she might too. You can work out the details of the dinner."
Angie placed her hand over Randy's. "Of course. Let's go use the phone in our bedroom."
Hal's Home
After work the next afternoon, Hal began to put his plan into motion. He stopped by his home briefly, hustling into his bedroom while Jimmy stopped by his food and water dishes in the kitchen.
Perching on the side of his bed for a moment, Hal pulled his work boots off, sliding his dirty jeans down his long legs. Then he walked over to the dresser, pulled open a bottom drawer, and dug into a stack of cut-offs, looking for his shortest pair. When he had them, he shut the drawer and slid them up his tanned, muscled legs, putting his boots back on. He started to pull his tee over his head in preparation to change into a clean one. He stopped, thinking that he should keep it on even if it had trapped the scents of his day's work. 'Who knows,' he thought. 'It may be the perfect complement to my plan.'
As he walked his jeans over to the laundry hamper, dropping them in, he felt a little silly, but he believed that his plan could move matters along to another stage, even if Drew and he just stumbled into it. He returned to his dresser, opening one of the top drawers. He pulled out a rumpled but neatly folded pillowcase. He lifted it to his face, pulling in the scents of Drew. He hadn't been able to bring himself to wash it - even when he was still with Brett. He knew it would be the only artifact of his time with Drew that he'd ever possess. Odd, now that he thought about it.
As he leaned against the dresser, he entered a reverie. 'I had thought I was in love with Brett, but I kept Drew's pillowcase hidden away? What did my keeping the pillowcase reveal about my falling in with Brett?' He noticed his choice of words: not "falling in love" but "falling in" with Brett. Hm-m-m-m-m. 'Did I sense something about Brett's fickle nature even then? Or did I actually want to hang onto Drew, even if a pillowcase was hardly the man himself?' As a smile slowly formed on his face as he remembered that, after Brett left him for Gwen, Hal lay the pillow case over his face as he beat off, fantasizing about Drew. He resolved to follow through with his plan.
Hal knelt down on the bedroom carpet and called Jimmy. He had to call only once. Jimmy came trotting into the bedroom and over to Hal, looking bright and eager, his tail wagging. 'Wish I could see Drew's ass wagging like that because he was glad to see me,' he thought. Hal held out the pillowcase. Jimmy looked at Hal and then slowly leaned forward, sniffing the pillowcase. Then Hal spoke Drew's name, smiling. As he had done in introducing little Hal Robert to Jimmy, he started saying Drew and Jimmy's names and then his own as he pointed to each of them and at the pillow case when he said Drew's name. He had to stifle a laugh when Jimmy, after pausing a moment, plunged his nose into the pillow case, recording Drew's scent. He knew Jimmy had caught on. Then he grabbed Jimmy up, hugging him, saying the three names over and over.
Finally he arose. "Okay, Peacemaker. Let's go piss on a wall." He walked them toward the garage.
Drew's Home
Hal's pickup slid rather soundlessly into Drew's driveway. Jimmy looked at Hal as though to ask where this place was and what they were doing here. "Drew's home," was his answer to Jimmy. His tail started wagging. Hal alighted from the pickup as Jimmy trotted over and hopped from the cab, looking around and dropping his head down to smell something in the lawn. Hal slammed the door to the pickup, knowing Drew would hear it if he were home. "This way, fella," he said to Jimmy as he walked around the side of the garage to the gate in the backyard fence. Jimmy shot through ahead of him as Hal let the gate clang shut. He forced himself not to look through the bank of windows in the family room. He walked over to the sugar maple, noting that the soil around it was dry enough that it was beginning to crack. He picked up the hose and turned on the water, running his hands up and down the sapling as the water poured into the catch basin, not missing the sexual implications in his hands' behavior. Out of the corner of his eye, he caught Drew's shadow lurking in the hallway to the family room. So he called Jimmy to him, picking him up and standing so that Drew would clearly see that Hal was not alone.
'Gotcha!' he thought as his peripheral vision revealed Drew stepping out into the door to the hallway to check them out. He stood there, and then began to walk toward the door to the backyard. As he pulled the door open, Hal and Jimmy looked over at Drew. Drew stepped out and walked over to them.
"Hey, Drew," Hal said in greeting, deliberately letting Jimmy know that their quarry was at hand. At the mention of Drew's name, Hal felt Jimmy's tail wagging against his side. Just before Drew reached them, Hal set Jimmy down on the ground. Jimmy immediately trotted over to Drew, sniffing his feet and sandals and then his lean legs.
"Hey little fella," Drew started to say, bending down to pet him when Jimmy suddenly sprang off the ground like Captain Rocket into Drew's arms. Hal snorted out a laugh, for Jimmy had caught Drew off guard. Drew was grabbing Jimmy as though he were a catching a football from a bobbled pass. Jimmy's tongue was assaulting Drew's cheeks and neck as he made snuffling noises, signaling that he was excited and happy.
'Damn!' Hal thought. 'It worked! And I never imagined Jimmy could jump THAT high.'
When Jimmy was settled in Drew's arms, he walked over to Hal. "There can't be any doubt that this is the celebrated Jimmy," Drew said, smiling.
"The one and only," Hal replied softly, smiling at Drew.
"You didn't tell me he was so friendly. Is he this way with everyone?"
"He's a friendly puppy, but he doesn't come on to just anyone. Only people of quality." Drew's eyebrows rose at Hal's remark. "And studs."
"Okay, now I know a scam's afoot," Drew said, the corners of his mouth quivering as he tried to shut down a smile at Hal's brazen overture.
"Jimmy's never wrong," Hal replied seriously. Drew rolled his eyes.
"May I tell you something?" Hal asked soberly.
"Of course," Drew replied.
"I'm over Richie, Drew, really over him. I'm never going back there again. Recent experiences have taught me what a dead end that part of my past is. I'll always love Richie, but I have to live in the here and now. I can't live in a ghost's world."
Drew shifted from one foot to another, indicating his discomfort over the topic area. He bent down, putting Jimmy on the grass. After he straightened up, he shoved his hands in the back pockets of his cutoffs, knowing even as he did so that it was a classic "guy" gesture disclosing his lack of ease with the direction of the conversation. "That's good, Hal. You're ahead of me. I still struggle with learning to let go." Drew immediately colored, realizing that his remark included letting go of Hal. He hadn't wanted to make Hal uncomfortable.
Hal's reaction to Drew's remark was one of joy. 'There's still a chance,' he thought.
"What I mean is," Drew attempted to change the import of his previous comment, as he stood there, again shifting his weight from one foot to another. "Oh forget it," he said in defeat.
"If you're talking about us, Drew, I don't want to let go. And I pray you don't want to let go of me or us either. Even though I don't deserve you, I want you back, Drew. I want us to be together again. I have always loved you. Even when I was with Brett, I was thinking about Richie, never Brett. I believe you've already figured that out."
Drew recalled Rich's observation that Richie and Brett had been removed from the field, giving the two former lovers another chance without those barriers.
"You may not feel like investing any more in a relationship with Hal Winston, but if you decide to do so, I'll never again give you cause to regret it. I'll love and treasure you for as long as we have."
As Hal and Drew had been talking, Jimmy had been trotting around Drew's backyard, lifting his back leg at every change in plane and sprinkling a few drops. Suddenly Drew's attention shifted to Jimmy's behavior. "Does he do that everywhere you take him?" Drew asked. Hal suddenly burst out laughing. "No. I guess he's decided that he's claimed you, so this is part of his territory. He's marking it off."
Hal noticed that Drew was trying unsuccessfully to stifle a grin. "Is that what you're attempting, Hal?"
Hal dropped the hose into the catch basin and walked over to Drew, pulling him up against him, using his hand to turn Drew's face into his pecs where he'd have to smell Hal's scent. 'Might as well go for broke,' he thought.
"I hope it's more than 'attempting.' I need you in my life, Drew. I don't deserve you, I acted stupidly, but you know why. That reaching back for Richie is over. It should have ended a long time ago. I was too weak to face up to it and put it where it belonged - 'on the shelf' in my life. Had it been there, Brett would never have happened. I didn't love him, Drew, and I doubt he loved me. We were using each other, he deliberately, I unwittingly. For me it was like being with Richie again. But I've realized just recently that when you and I were together, I didn't think about Richie - just us. Honestly. So I promise you here and now that there will be no more Bretts in my life. I've got my head on straight finally about my past. Could you find it in your heart to give me a chance to prove what's in my heart regarding you?"
"Is this only about jumping back into bed with you?" Drew asked pointedly.
"Not at all. I lost you through my own foolishness. I want to win you back, no matter how long it takes. Would you give me that chance?"
"Maybe," Drew responded, shifting his gaze to Jimmy's industrious coverage of the entire backyard, marking his territory. Drew shivered, but he didn't really know why. Hal grinned at Drew's reaction, noting more prominence in the crotch of Drew's cutoffs. 'Well, his ass isn't wagging, but I think he's interested,' Hal thought. Hal quickly stifled the grin.
(To be continued.)