Round and Round (6 page)

When he woke the next morning, he felt human again, rested, and was filled with excitement. He had a date—a real date, not one of the hookups he usually ended up with. Angus checked the clock. It was well after ten, so he snatched up his phone to call Kevin. The guy had to be wondering about him. He’d forgotten to plug the phone in, so he found the cord, waited for it to power up, and hoped like hell there were no messages from work. When it finally came up, the phone remained quiet, no message chimes or anything, which was just plain lucky. He located Kevin’s number in his contacts and dialed.

“Are we still on for this afternoon?” he asked when Kevin answered.

“Yeah. I was wondering since I hadn’t heard from you,” Kevin said with a jittery voice.

“Sorry. When I’m on shift, things are so busy I usually don’t get much time, and when I got home yesterday, I slept. Just woke up, as a matter of fact.”

“Me too,” Kevin said, and Angus wondered exactly what kind of fun Kevin had been up to. He’d said he was going out with his friends. “We went dancing. Well, they did most of the dancing, since they are the ones with boyfriends. Zach and I danced together, though, because after the fire, Bull won’t take any time away from his security duties.” There was such energetic joy in the way Kevin told him about his night. “Not that I blame him, but it makes it hard on Zach. Bull is a great guy, but Zach loves to dance… and he really loves to do it with Bull.” Kevin giggled when he realized what he’d said. The guy was so cute sometimes. “So what did you have planned?”

“Is it okay if I pick you up at two?”

“That would be great,” Kevin said. “I’ll be sure to be ready. Mrs. V should be up in a few minutes for coffee, and this time I’ll make sure she doesn’t leave anything in the oven.” Kevin chuckled a little. “Do you get calls on your day off or anything?”

“Not unless there’s something really bad.” And he hoped like hell that didn’t happen. “So I’ll pick you up at two, and we can have some fun.”

ANGUS PULLED
up in front of Kevin’s building just before two and parked. He strode up to the door in time to see Kevin come out and stare at his motorcycle.

“Are we going to ride that?” Kevin asked, and Angus wasn’t sure if the reaction was good or bad.

“I hoped you would ride with me,” Angus explained. “I brought some extra gear for you.” He was still unsure of what Kevin thought until he broke into a grin and raced down the walk to the bike.

“That’s so cool. I never got to ride on one of these. My mother had a friend who was in an accident when she was young, so she would never let me ride on one for any reason.” Kevin patted the seat lightly, running his hand over the black leather. “Do I need to get anything?”

Angus looked over his tight jeans and a T-shirt that seemed painted on. Kevin wasn’t bulky, but he was otter sleek, and Angus wondered if that analogy applied to the rest of him. The thought went to his groin and suddenly there wasn’t a great deal of room in his jeans. “No, you’re just fine. I brought a light jacket for you. It might be little big, but it’ll be good.” He checked him out once again and turned away. He’d worn jeans and chaps, which he’d been told accentuated his package, but if he didn’t cool down, his entire package was going to be on vivid display.

He got a jacket from the compartment on the back and handed it to Kevin. It was indeed too big, but Kevin still looked good, and Angus liked him wearing his clothes. Angus handed him a helmet as well and helped him adjust it to fit.

“Ready?” Kevin asked with a grin. “I’m ready for some air. This is getting warm.”

Hot was more like it. “Sure. Let’s go.” Angus got on and started the engine. Then he helped Kevin on, showing him where to put his feet. “Put your arms around my waist and stay close to me. Just move with me and we’ll be fine.” He released the clutch and they moved forward.

Kevin tightened his grip, and Angus felt his nervousness as he moved closer, right up against his hips and butt. He turned on the street and picked up speed. He made it to the first light, and it turned red just ahead of them. “This is cool,” Kevin said, and when the light changed, Angus took off. Kevin tightened his grip again as they picked up speed. When he reached the freeway, Angus accelerated and joined traffic. When he got to cruising speed, Angus patted Kevin’s leg and got a pat on his belly in return.

“Jesus!” Kevin yelled in his ear. “This is awesome!”

Angus grinned, knowing he’d made the right decision. Talking was difficult, but that didn’t matter. He watched the road and did his best to keep his attention where it should be, rather than on the fact that Kevin was hard against him, combined with his own arousal, which Kevin was going to discover for himself if his hands drifted any lower. Man, he was a firecracker of the highest magnitude.

They roared past Carlisle on 81 and got off a few miles later, taking the country roads up into the mountains to one of the state parks. Trees stretched across the road, and away from the highway and the sun the temperature dropped and the air freshened. Angus came here often. It reminded him of home, and he felt he could breathe and clear the cobwebs.

“Where are we going?” Kevin asked.

“I brought a picnic,” Angus said, patting Kevin’s denim-encased leg once again before pulling through an intersection. A short way along, he made the turn into the park and drove around until he found a parking spot. He pulled in and silenced the engine.

“Wow.”

Angus waited for Kevin to get off and then followed. They removed their helmets and jackets. Angus opened the case on the back of the bike, pulling out a small cooler before stowing the jackets.

“That was something else. I can still feel the engine vibrating.” He took a few steps away and then returned. “It went right up my legs to my butt.” Kevin chuckled as he took high steps to work the kinks out of his legs.

“I’ve always loved the feel of a bike.”

Kevin glanced downward and then looked away, but not for long. “I think everyone can see that.” He giggled again and then stepped closer.

“What are you doing?”

“Shielding you from little children.” He continued his laughter. “Besides, we might get mobbed, and we’re on a date, so you’re mine and they can all eat their hearts out.” His laughter died away and slowly his smile fell away as well, his gaze becoming more and more heated. “That ride was amazing and… well. It did the same thing to me.”

Angus’s excitement had diminished, and he’d felt Kevin’s arousal, but having him admit to the excitement had him hard once again.

“Are you going to wear those chaps all day?” Kevin asked, and Angus set down the cooler and removed them. He locked the case and secured the bike before leading Kevin into the park.

“Do you want to walk around or eat first?”

“Let’s walk, if that’s okay,” Kevin said.

Angus grabbed the cooler, and they headed off to the lake. As they got closer, the happy yells and screams of children mixed with overlapping voices and splashing, a sound that meant joy the world over. Kevin stopped where the path approached the lake. Kids jumped off a floating raft, calling out to friends before hitting the water.

“I used to love swimming,” Kevin said softly.

“Not anymore?”

“I drowned when I was six. I was at a lake and dove in. I remember shooting under the water and then everything went dark. My mom told me that when I didn’t come up, she started yelling, and all kinds of people jumped in. One of the men found me. I guess I was lucky. He knew CPR and brought me back around.” Kevin stared out over the water. “I coughed and spat up. When I opened my eyes, Mama was crying, and then I did too. They made me lie still and just breathe for a while.”

“Do you know what happened?”

Kevin shook his head. “No. They said they thought I might have bumped my head, but I never felt anything, and it didn’t hurt when I came out. Of course if I had, I could have forgotten or something. But I don’t go in the water. It took weeks and a lot of pleading from my mom before I’d even take a bath.” Kevin shuddered. “I hate the water.”

“You don’t even wade?” Angus asked.

“Sometimes, but I’m always nervous, and after a while I just get out.” Kevin turned back to him. “I went to summer camp for years and sat on the beach watching the other kids play. I used to take a book and sit in the shade. This one counselor decided he was going to help me get over my fear. So he picked me up, carried me to the water, and was going to throw me in.”

A chill ran up his spine. “Oh God. That must have been terrifying.”

“It was. I threw up all over him just as he reached the dock. After that he left me alone.” Kevin grinned. “The kids called me Pukey after that, but no one tried to force me into the water again.” Kevin began walking down the path. The farther he got from the water, the less rigid his posture became. “Sorry if I’m spoiling things.”

Angus caught up with him and took Kevin’s hand. “You aren’t. I wasn’t planning on swimming or anything.” Actually, he had thought about wading, but they could forego that. “It’s just really nice here. There’s a dam right over there that makes the lake. It isn’t very big, but it’s great for playing in.” Angus led them away. Some other walkers looked at them askance, but Angus ignored them. A few looked like they might say something, but his glare kept them quiet.

“What do you like to do besides fight fires?” Kevin asked. “Oh, and ride motorcycles?”

“That’s about it, really. I have a house with a small backyard, so I keep it clean and have a few plants. There isn’t a lot. I guess I’m someone who doesn’t need much. How about you? What do you do?”

“I got moved to the company help desk a while ago, after this whole office shake-up. Stores call us with problems and stuff. I like it, but now it’s getting pretty boring. I want to be a programmer, but no one at work thinks I can do it. I’ve asked but never get anywhere. So as a hobby I do things I like. I created my own video game, sort of. Zach draws comic books, and he has a superhero named Bull who was inspired by his husband. When they go to comic events, Bull dresses up. It’s really cool. I made a video game to go with the comics. I think it’s pretty good.”

“Have you shown it to anyone at work so they know what you can do?”

“No. They would think it’s dumb or something,” Kevin said. “I did it for fun and as a favor to Zach. I still have some work to do on it, and once it’s done, Zach said I could go with him to, like, Comic-Con or something, and we could try it out and see what people think.” Kevin’s excitement leaped with each step they took.

“That’s pretty neat. I’d like to see it sometime,” Angus said. “I used to play video games a lot, but I haven’t in a while. I used to be pretty good.”

“Then I’ll have to play you. Not at my game, because you’d lose—I know all the secrets. But we can play Mario Kart or something like that. There are characters who ride motorcycles.” Kevin squeezed his hand as they approached the second lake. This one was quiet.

“The path goes around it,” Angus told him.

“I know it’s stupid, and I hate that I’m such a baby that I get nervous just being around a lake. I know the water isn’t going to jump out and grab me, and there isn’t some monster under the water. For me the monster is the water.”

“I’m not going to try to make you get any closer.” They followed the path around the lake, sun sparkling on the water. Angus tried to see it as Kevin saw it and really couldn’t. Most fears weren’t rational, but Kevin had a basis for his.

“My dad sent me to a doctor who was supposed to cure me, and the same thing happened that did with the camp counselor, only all over his office.”

Angus chuckled. Served them right. “Some people think they know best.”

“They do. I’m mostly happy staying away from water. It isn’t like I miss swimming and long for it but can’t go near the water. It’s something that has bad memories for me.”

“Let’s talk about something happier,” Angus said as they left the lake behind and entered the deep words.

“Like what?” Kevin asked.

“Your video game. It really seems cool. How did you get interested in creating them? I mean, there aren’t any video game companies around here.”

“I’ve always been interested in computers. I’m really good with them. I understand them almost better than I do people. I’m a geek through and through.” Kevin stopped walking and Angus did the same. The air under the trees was still and moist. “I used to love video games as a teenager, but I was never very good at them. My hand-eye coordination really sucks. I’d put quarter after quarter in the machines and be dead in a few minutes. I got a Wii one year for Christmas. My dad got his hands on one by sheer luck, and he gave it to me. It was really nice of him. He got it because it was the hot toy that year, and he thought I’d really like it. But I wasn’t very good. I played a lot, hoping I’d get better, but it didn’t really happen. Eventually it sat there most of the time unless company came over, and then they’d kick my butt.”

“Okay. I can understand that. But something obviously changed.” Angus took Kevin’s hand again.

Kevin looked down at their clasped hands. “You don’t have to do that, you know. We are out in public.”

“I’m not ashamed of you,” Angus said. “If people have a problem with me holding hands with you, that’s their problem. It was hard for me to come to grips with who I am, but once I did, I decided I wouldn’t hide. I figure if we don’t make a huge deal out of holding hands, then no one else will either.” Angus met Kevin’s gaze with a smile. “So tell me what made you decide to try making games.”

“I started playing again with the guys. Jeremy is really good, and so is Tristan. They showed me some of their tricks and what exactly to concentrate on and what to ignore. Once I knew that, they started to make sense and we played a lot. Sometimes against each other, but always for fun. Then I started playing around with different graphics packages and found I could come up with some interesting things. When Zach’s
Bull
comic books started to take off, he and I sat down and developed the game. It turned out really well.”

“So this is your first one?” Angus asked, his mind beginning to churn.