Total pages in book: 69
Estimated words: 64847 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 324(@200wpm)___ 259(@250wpm)___ 216(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 64847 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 324(@200wpm)___ 259(@250wpm)___ 216(@300wpm)
“Right, but I should have found a balance.”
“Yeah, you should have. And Mom shouldn’t have made you out to be a villain for working so much, especially when she was enjoying the hell out of spending the money you brought in. But nobody’s perfect.”
I was shocked to hear him say something critical about his mother, but before I could comment on it, he straightened up and said, “Anyway, this has been a lot to process. I think we should quit while we’re ahead and talk again in a couple of days. Want to have dinner on Friday?”
“I have plans, but I think you might like them.” I retrieved two tickets from my desk, and then I crossed the office and handed them to him. “I’ll be at this fundraiser with my boyfriend and some new friends on Friday night. Come have dinner with us, and meet everyone. We can find a quiet place to talk if you want, or we can just hang out. Either way.”
“The list of words and phrases I never thought I’d hear you say is growing. So far, it includes my boyfriend, I’m bi, and hang out. Oh, and fuck,” he said, with a little smile. “But this sounds good. I’ll see you there.”
He started to leave, but then he turned back to me when I said, “Just one more thing.” I pulled him into a bear hug and said, “I love you, son.”
He half-laughed as he hugged me, and then he muttered, “Damn it, I almost made it out of here without crying.”
“Crying is good for you, despite what my father taught me. So much better than bottling up your emotions.”
Lee let go of me and nodded as he took a step back. “I know. See you Friday, Dad.”
After he left, I felt dazed as I wandered back to my desk and took a seat. Then a smile spread across my face.
That had gone exceptionally well, not that I was naïve enough to think all our problems could be solved that quickly and easily. We had a lot of rebuilding to do, and I knew our relationship was very fragile right now.
But for the first time in a long time, I saw a glimmer of hope when it came to my relationship with my son, and I was going to try my damnedest to make things right between us.
15
Aleksei
When I got home that night, Timothy was waiting for me on the front steps with two bags of groceries. “You’re early,” I said with a smile, as I climbed the stairs.
“So are you.”
I paused a step below him so we were closer to the same height, and he draped his arms around my neck and kissed me. He deepened the kiss before leaning back just enough to look in my eyes. His were sparkling with mischief as he told me, “I brought stuff to make dinner, but I was hoping you’d want dessert first. And by dessert, I mean me.”
We couldn’t get inside fast enough after that. The groceries were chucked into the foyer once I got the door open, and then I pushed him against the wall and kissed his neck.
A moment later, both of us jumped when the alarm started wailing. I rushed to shut it off while Timothy chuckled and ran upstairs with his messenger bag.
By the time I joined him just a few seconds later, he’d stripped down to a hot pink jock strap and was dumping a bunch of sex toys onto the mattress. I said, “You look like a man with a plan,” as I tossed my suit jacket onto the chair, covering up my stuffed octopus.
“Oh, I am.” He started making a toy display on the nightstand. “My plan is to get your hands all over my naked body. I’ve been dreaming about that all day.”
I came up behind him and slid my hands around his waist. “I totally support this plan.”
In a matter of minutes, both of us were nearly naked on the bed—only that sexy jock strap remained. His body was pressed to mine, skin-to-skin, and it felt so good. Better than anything. I relaxed into his embrace, tasted his lips, and let myself drift along in a state of pure bliss. Everything else fell away, and Timothy became the center of my universe.
He was setting the pace this time, and he really did have a plan. After a while, he met my gaze and said, “There were certain things you avoided when money was changing hands, certain lines you weren’t willing to cross. I totally get that. But things are different now, Alyosha. I’m yours, so can we please erase those lines? There’s so much to explore, so many things I want us to experience. If you’re not ready, I want you to know I understand and respect that. But if you’ve been holding back for my sake…could you not?”