AUTHOR: dawn
TITLE: Gravity
FANDOM: The Fast and the Furious
PAIRING: Brian/Dom
RATING: very NC17
FEEDBACK: gratefully accepted at ixchel55@yahoo.com
ARCHIVE: please ask first
AUTHOR'S NOTES: Most of this series is unbeta'd, all mistakes are my own. The storyline begins approximately eight months after the end of the first movie. This was written before 2F2F was released.
ADDITIONAL NOTES, CHAPTER 10: The subtitle and the lyrics are from a song of the same name by Hoobastank, which is on the 'More Fast and Furious' CD. Yep, it's a songfic. Sorry. But the lyrics of the song are are one of the things that inspired the story.
ADDITIONAL NOTES, CHAPTER 14: Thanks to Van for her beta on this and all the rest of the chapters of Gravity. Such a big help with so much insight.

I. The Only Chance

Brian turned off the road between the tall rock pillars that marked the entrance of the driveway. After he was clear of the road, he stopped the truck and put it into park. It was still a good 50 yards or so to the house, but Brian wanted a few moments to get his thoughts together.

As he surveyed the property, he knew that he had the right place without having to recheck the directions. The house was a sprawling, single story structure with enough room for the whole team, even though for one reason or another, their number had been cut in half. The house was also set back from the road for privacy.

But it was the garage that would have made the deal for Dom. It had four full bays.

One of the bay doors was up and Brian could see an impressive array of tools and all the accessories required of a successful garage. There were several cars parked outside the garage, all obviously acquired with an eye toward racing.

From the hints that Mia had dropped in the last few months, Brian knew that Dom had found this place almost two years ago and had rented it, knowing that it was probably only a matter of time before the shit hit the turbo charger and they had to flee the country. He'd obviously started stocking it with the tools of his trade ahead of time. This was too complete a set up to have been put in place in the last couple of months.

Brian switched off the truck's engine and leaned his head back. Tiredly, he rubbed his hands over his face and shut his eyes for a moment. He hadn't had much sleep in the last few days, and it was beginning to catch up with him.

'What the hell am I doing here?' he thought wildly. 'What have I done?'

Now that he was finally sitting here with the end of his quest in sight, it all became so horribly clear to him. He had quit the one job...no, make that career...that he had striven for, for as long as he could remember. He'd left behind all of his friends and colleagues. OK, so he hadn't had that many friends, especially after the fiasco last summer that had started all of this. He'd sold or given away most of his possessions. OK, so there hadn't been many of those either. He never seemed to stay in one place long enough to accumulate many possessions. But he'd left behind everything that he had built in the last few years to chase what might be an illusion.

He'd spent the last eight months trying to make up for all the damage he'd done.

It spoke a lot about were his head was that he saw the results of last summer as 'damage', and not the fruit of careful undercover work. He had put not only his career, but his freedom on the line to make sure that Vince didn't pull any jail time. And he didn't even like the bastard!

He'd flat out lied to Tanner and said that he had been following a lead on the hi-jackers and found Vince wounded by the side of the road, that no one else had been around. When asked about the other people reported at the scene by the Life Flight crew, Brian reported that they were just Good Samaritans who happened to be passing by.

Pretty damn anorexic!

Tanner and Bilkins had known he was lying, of course, but they had no proof. It was just a stroke of luck that the trucker who'd fought back had never materialized. He obviously didn't want to take a chance that charges would be leveled against him. After all, it was a well known fact that none of the other truckers had been hurt during the hi-jackings, just drugged. It might be seen that he'd used excessive force to protect property that wasn't even his.

Brian had been cleared of the death of Johnny Tran, too. There were too many witnesses during the long chase that had seen Tran firing the Mack 10 from the motorcycle. But the IA investigation had been hell.

Lance had been banged up pretty bad when he'd been catapulted over the railing and down the embankment. He'd broken several bones and had been laid up in the prison ward of the hospital for a couple of weeks, but he was currently being held without bond, awaiting trial for Jesse's murder. Brian thought his chances were slim to none that he'd get off. Mia would let Brian know when the trial was set and he needed to come back to testify. But besides Mia and himself, there had been a half a dozen neighbors who had been attracted by the argument between himself and Dom, who'd seen the drive-by shooting.

Then there was Jesse. Brian had taken care of everything for the funeral. He'd notified Jesse's old man in prison, not that the old bastard had really seemed to give a damn one way or another.

He had tried to be there for Mia as much as she would let him, which hadn't been very much at first. It had taken Brian nearly two months to even get Mia to listen to him. She had slammed the door in his face and the phone in his ear. Letters had been returned and marked "Return to Sender". It was only through dogged persistence that Brian had finally gotten her to listen.

Brian had groveled and begged for Mia's forgiveness. He thought that the fact that he had spilled his guts about everything and wanted nothing from her except that she might one day forgive him were what had brought her around. She had been suspicious for quite a long time, waiting for him to ask about Dom and the team. Where they were. But after a couple of months of talking, the only thing that he'd ever asked was, 'Are they safe?' When she'd said yes, he'd never mentioned them again. But every once in a while, she would throw out a bit of information, almost like bait, and though he'd desperately wanted to know more, he had never asked. It was partly because he didn't want to lose her trust. She was his touchstone with that few days that had changed his life so . irrevocably. It was also partly as a form of self penance.

Brian thought that perhaps if Jesse hadn't died, his guilt wouldn't have been so strong. But even though he knew intellectually that Jesse's death had been influenced by so many factors, there was that dingy stain of guilt that whispered in his mind, 'If Tran hadn't been so psychotically angry over the raid, and so sure that Dom had been the one to narc on him, he wouldn't have over reacted the way he had.'

Guilt was a wonderfully flexible and malleable quality. It was amorphous and could be stretched and re-stretched innumerable times to cover any and all situations.

Mia was the one thing that Brian felt no ambivalence over in regards to his guilty conscience. She had been an innocent in all of this, and he'd used her. He hadn't looked at it that way at the time, of course. He'd told Mia that he loved her, and at the time, he meant it. Still meant it in a way. Brian did love Mia. He just wasn't 'in love' with her. How could he be? Because he was in love with her brother. Brian was in love with Dominic Toretto.

"Jesus!" Brian said aloud, with heart-felt vehemence. "How the hell did my life get to be such a fucking mess?" He pressed the heels of his hands against his eyes until the backs of his eyelids became a backdrop for miniature fireworks. Scrubbing at his tired face one more, he clasped his hands together and pressed them against his lips.

That's when he caught sight of the movement out of the corner of his eye.

Standing in the open doorway of the house was Dom. Brian didn't have to be able to make out his facial features to recognize him. He would have known the man anywhere by the shape of his body, his stance, just from an indefinable something that was Dom.

Suddenly Brian's palms were sweating and his hands were trembling. He knew it was from the adrenalin surging through his body and he took several deep breaths to try and calm himself. After a moment, he reached down and started the truck. Putting it into gear, he rolled the remaining distance to the house...to Dom...feeling a mixture of elation and dread. Elation from the thought that, after months of waiting, he'd be with Dom again in just a few moments. Dread from the thought that his time with Dom could be extremely short lived.

Pulling up opposite the front door, Brian put the truck in park again, killed the engine, and got out to walk around the vehicle. He stopped when he was still a few feet from the door.

"Hello, Dom."

Brian marveled that his voice actually sounded almost normal. But he knew that his posture and face gave away his tension and indecisiveness. In the last few months he had lost pretty much all of his ability to deceive and prevaricate. He'd be a really shitty undercover cop now.

It took the other man so long to say anything, that Brian almost decided that Dom was going to let him squirm under his silent, impassive stare.

God! He looked good! He was wearing olive drab cargo pants and one of his white, ribbed wife-beaters that showed off his arms and flat stomach so well. His tan was even deeper than before and the white shirt contrasted beautifully with dark skin.

"You're the last person I expected to see." That voice still sent shivers down along his spine. It was deep and soft, but with a rasp to it. Kind of what Brian imagined it would be like to have a wolf pelt stroked across exposed skin. Longer, coarse hairs would tickle and tease, while the thick, soft undercoat would soothe and seduce.

Brian tried to speak, but his brain only got as far as opening his mouth. After that it left him high and dry. So he just swallowed convulsively.

Why he needed to swallow at all was a mystery, because there wasn't enough moisture in his mouth to lick a stamp. And while he was desperately trying to get his sluggish mind to cooperate, Dom turned around and went back into the house. But at least he had left the door open. It had taken Brian over two months to get to this point with Mia. Suddenly, he felt a little of what he dared to identify as hope.

Taking the last few steps to the screen door, he sucked in a deep, fortifying breath, pulled it open and entered.

It was cool and dark inside, like most Hispanic architecture, to compensate for the warmer weather. That was a far as Brian got in his perusal of the interior decor. He followed the sound of clinking glass until he entered the kitchen. Dom was bent over in the open door of the refrigerator.

"You wanna beer?" Dom asked. When he straightened up he had two bottles of Corona in his right hand. Brian felt an insane desire to giggle. So much of this conversation seemed familiar.

"Sure," he answered, accepting the open bottle.

The big man turned away without saying anything else and walked out through the back door. Closing his eyes for a moment, Brian pressed the icy bottle against his forehead and rolled it back and forth. It felt like his brain was on fire.

Following Dom, he found a small patio. Dom was sitting at a table beneath a ramada of slatted wood nearly sagging with a riotous growth of hot pink bougainvillea. Taking another chair in the cool shade, Brian took a nervous gulp of his beer and looked up to find Dom staring silently at him.

No one gave 'enigmatic face' like Dom.

"How are you, Dom?" All he got in reply was a noncommittal nod.

"How's Vince doing? Has he completely recovered?" Again, just the nod.

The other man's silence was daunting, and a little eerie. Desperately, Brian tried one more time. "Where are Vince and Leon?"

He didn't need to ask about Letty. He knew from Mia that Letty had left several months ago.

"What are you doing here, Brian? What is it you want?" Dom's voice was just about as expressionless as it could get. It betrayed no more emotion than his face.

Brian sat forward in the chair, resting his forearms on the table, and toyed with the Corona label. He couldn't meet the other man's eyes. "I had to come," he said, his tone was low and matter-of-fact.

"Why?" Dom demanded, this time a little more forcefully.

"I had to!" Brian repeated almost fiercely, this time with an edge of desperation in his voice.

Dom regarded Brian silently for a few moments, then tried another tack. "Why now? Why after all of these months?"

Brian's shoulders sketched a quick shrug. "Mia told me you finally asked about me," he said simply.

"So...let me get this straight. It's been...what...eight months. Suddenly you find out I make what could have been a totally off hand comment about you, and you drop everything to come down here. Is that about right?"

Brian felt a fierce elation sweep through him. '...what could have been...' he had said, not 'what was...' an off hand comment. He felt a calm quickly ride in on the rush of feeling, and he could finally take a leap of faith. "I figured it was the only chance I was going to get."

"Chance for what?" Dom's voice had become intense, and his gaze was demanding.

"The chance to be with you. To find out if you want me in the same way that I want you."

They'd switched roles now. Brian was the calm one while Dom was so visibly agitated that his nostrils were flaring with the force of his exhalations.

"How do you want me?" Dom demanded roughly.

Brian smiled serenely. It was true, the truth did set you free. "In my life...in my bed...in my body. I knew that when I came down here there would have to be either one of two outcomes for me."

"And what would those be?" Dom seemed a little more calm now that Brian had actually said the words.

"That I'd either have to fuck you or forget you."

Dom's gaze was more contemplative now, his expression faintly amused. "Fuck me? " he asked mildly.

"It's just a figure of speech," Brian smiled. "Actually, I was thinking of the other way around." His eyes and voice grew dreamy. "Sometimes, at night, in my fantasies, I can almost feel you so deep inside of me that I don't know where you leave off and I begin." Brian didn't voice his other desires. There would time enough for them later.

Dom's breathing had accelerated again. "Maybe we should take this discussion into the bedroom," he said intently.

"The garage," Brian countered gently.

"What?" Brian smiled at the nonplussed look on Dom's face.

"In the garage," he repeated. "It's one of my best fantasies. My first fantasy. I want you to fuck me for the first time while I'm spread out on the hood of your car."

Dom stared at him blankly for a moment. Then a slow smile spread across his face. "You know. For a middle class white boy, you gotta a serious streak of kink in you." His smile became a grin. "I like that!"

He pushed back his chair and stood. "The garage it is then."

II. Would You Really Have Shot Me?

By the time they reached the garage, Dom's hand were shaking so badly that he almost couldn't get the bay door pulled down. When it was finally closed and latched, he turned around, only to find Brian kneeling at his feet, scant inches away, tee shirt abandoned on the floor beside him. Dom took a reflexive step backwards only to come up against the door.

Brian followed closely behind, his face intent, his fingers reaching for the crotch of the baggy cargo pants. He made quick work of the button and zipper, and before Dom could say a word, Brian's hand was freeing his aching flesh. It took only a second more for his hard cock to be in the blazing, moist heat of another man's mouth. The thought that that man was Brian was almost enough to make him come right then and there, uncontrolled, like a teenager.

Groaning loudly, he fisted his hands in the burnished gold waves of hair to encourage Brian's initiative. Dom watched in fascination as his shaft slid wetly out of the glistening lips. But then he threw his head back with a bang against the corrugated metal door and thrust his hips forward with another groan when Brian flicked his pink tongue out to tease the tiny slit at the tip. This was immediately followed by a trip deep into the back of Brian's throat.

Dom could hear himself groaning and gasping continually, but he couldn't seem to help himself. Brian kept him off balance by constantly changing his technique. One moment his shaft was being massaged by deep throat muscles, the next, teeth were scraping delicately across the hypersensitive head. Dom shivered convulsively and speared his fingers again and again through the thick golden hair. Brian was so fucking fantastic at this, and Dom had been so excited already from their conversation on the patio, that he knew at this rate he wouldn't last long.

Dom felt a bright, hard flash of jealousy when he thought of how Brian had learned these skills. He immediately pushed the feeling aside. He'd already made up his mind when he saw Brian sitting in his truck at the end of the driveway, that if everything worked out the way he'd dreamed of for the better part of eight months, that nothing that came before would matter. They'd each start with a clean slate and build from there.

Brian had pulled Dom's tee shirt out of his pants and ran his hands up over the cut muscles of his abdomen and pecs, pausing to pinch the flat nipples into sharp points. When Dom looked back down, Brian's eyes were fixed on his face. The blue fire in those eyes began melting the core of Dom's soul. He felt suddenly adrift and out of control, riding the tide of lust and desire that engulfed them both.

"Brian," he rasped, "I'm close. Pull off." But the only response was Brian's fingers digging into Dom's hard buttocks to hold him secure while he buried his lips and nose in the dense, coarse nest of hair at the base of his cock.

The sight as well as the feeling were just too much. Dom gave a hoarse shout as he climaxed, shooting volley after volley into the hot, clinging depths. He felt his eyes nearly roll back into his head from the intensity of the sensations.

When his overloaded senses came back from the black out zone that they had hovered around momentarily, he looked down and saw the Brian's eyes were closed as he slowly licked the softening length of hyper-sensitive flesh.

Feeling Dom's eyes on him, Brian looked up. His blue eyes had a dreamy quality to them, and he rubbed his cheek gently against the temporarily spent cock. The faint rasp of Brian's light beard and the look of adoration on his his face made Dom shiver with an incredible rush of feelings so strong that it almost scared him.

Bending down, he grasped Brian around the upper arms and hauled him to his feet. Wrapping his heavy arms around the lithe body, he took Brian's mouth with his own. Thrusting his tongue inside, Dom could taste what had to be himself, surrounded by the incredible and unique taste of Brian. Their tongues rolled and entwined around one another like living creatures with minds of their own. Brian pushed his hands once more beneath Dom's shirt and slid them up his back, digging his fingers into the thick, dense muscles.

Dom's hands had gone south, sliding as far as they could into the waistband of Brian's jeans, so that just his fingertips brushed the rounded tops of his buttocks. Then it was Brian's turn to moan, and Dom captured the sound with his own mouth.

Freeing one hand, Brian reached between them and flicked open the button of his fly and jerked down the zipper. Suddenly, Dom's hands surged downward to cup the perfect, firm globes, and urged the newly freed, incredibly hard cock against his own quickly reawakening one.

Brian tore his mouth away and gulped in a long pull of air. "In me!" he gasped. "I need you to be inside me!" He sounded desperate.

"Soon, baby, soon," soothed Dom, ghosting his lips down the long line of Brian's throat until he reached the base where neck met shoulder. Unable to resist any longer, Dom clamped his teeth down just hard enough to bring a twinge of pain.

Brian responded just they way he had hoped. He gave a cry of pleasure and clutched Dom even closer. Then he arched his head back farther, offering up his slender neck for Dom to gently, and not so gently, maul.

Dom was elated. This was something he'd missed with Letty, with any woman he made love to. As sweet as making love to Letty could be, and as tough as she acted, he was always afraid to really let go with her. Afraid that he would hurt her. Here, finally, was someone strong enough to meet his force with force of his own.

"Dom, please! Please, Dom! Please!" Brian's voice was a breathy litany, a supplication in his ear as he continued to bite and suck the flesh of his throat and shoulder, leaving livid red marks on the skin.

Dom thrust jeans and underwear down over slender hips until they were free top fall to Brian's feet. Having a little presence of mind left, the blond toed off his Chucks and kicked his feet free of the material pooled around them.

Dom's broad palms and long fingers were big enough to completely encompass Brian's ass and still be able to slide into the crevice between the cheeks and stroke over the tiny muscled opening. Brian was groaning and gasping so loud that Dom had to speak up to be heard over him.

"There's a problem, you know," he growled against Brian's throat. "If we were in the bedroom, I'd have something to prepare you with." His voice was a deep rasp.

"Pocket," Brian gasped. "In my pocket."

Dom gave the slender collar bone a last nip, then slid his tongue up the side of Brian's neck to his ear. "Get it," he commanded, "and follow me." Then he stuck his tongue into the swirled opening and delved around wetly for a moment before withdrawing. He pulled his body back slowly from the more slender one, holding on to the swaying figure with one hand until he was sure that he would stand on his own. Then he walked away.

It didn't take long for Brian to miss the warmth of the big body pressing against his. He quickly stooped and searched through his pockets until he found what he was looking for, then he hurried after his tormentor.

Dom had moved to the far bay, stopping in the dim light before a shrouded car. When Brian padded up naked beside him, he slid the covering off. It was the Charger. Dom had somehow been able to retrieve it and had it almost completely restored.

"Will this do?" asked Dom mildly.

"Perfect!" Brian replied in an almost reverential hush. Then he pressed himself up against Dom. It always surprised him when he was close to Dom, that Brian was actually the taller of the two by a couple of inches. Dom was so big, so larger than life.

Wrapping his arms around the strong neck, Brian leaned forward and captured Dom's full lower lip with his teeth. He'd been wanting to do this since seeing him again.

While he gently chewed and licked and sucked at Dom's mouth, Dom lifted the slighter man and deposited him on the sloping front edge of the Charger's hood where the shroud still covered it. Brian released the now swollen lips, but when Dom attempted to push him to a reclining position, he resisted long enough to pull Dom's tee shirt off, exposing that magnificent chest.

Sure, there were plenty of men who were more muscular, but as far as Brian was concerned, that merely obscured the male form, not enhanced it like controlled body building did. Brian ran his tongue across the sculptured chest, then sank his teeth into the meat of one inward curve. Dom's breath caught harshly in his throat, and a deep moan vibrated through him.

This time Brian let himself be pushed back onto the hood. It was kind of a cramped fit because of the turbo-charger, but the setting was worth a little discomfort.

With Brian's buttocks on the edge of the Charger and his legs dangling down the front, he felt Dom spread his legs and move between them. Those large and unexpectedly elegant hands rubbed and stroked his thighs and hips, then glided over his stomach and chest. The hands were callused and rough, but that just made his touch that much more arousing as one slid up and those long fingers encircled Brian's throat, tightening just a little. Blue eyes met brown and relayed a look of perfect trust.

Dom ran his hands back down Brian's supine body. When they neared his groin, the fingers turned inward slightly so that the broad palms ghosted over his prominent pelvic bones, and the fingertips coursed lightly through the golden brown pubic hair. Brian watched as Dom lifted one hand and hesitantly ran one callused finger down the length of Brian's cock where it lay stiff and twitching on his stomach. From the look on Dom's face, Brian had a feeling that this was new to him.

"Dom?" he said, his voice husky with need. "Have you ever done this before?"

"Two years in Lompoc," Dom answered dryly. "What do you think?"

"Dom," Brian began again tentatively, eyeing the hardening length of the big man's cock. He was definitely big all over. "I haven't let anyone do this to me in a long time, and I'm no prison bitch."

"Trust me," Dom soothed, lifting first one of Brian's legs and then the other, to prop them on his shoulders. He paused to run his tongue over the bones of Brian's right ankle. "Letty's an adventurous woman. And she's a hell of a lot smaller than you are. I won't hurt you, and we can stop immediately if I do."

Brian relaxed under Dom's reassurances and his hands, though he felt a twinge of jealousy at the mention of Letty.

Dom finally grasped Brian's cock with one hand and gave it an experimental pump. Brian arched his hips into the caress and clenched his fists, only to remember that he still held the packets of lube and condoms in his right hand. Catching Dom's eyes, he proffered the items in complete trust.

Maintaining eye contact, Dom picked up one of the packets of lube, tore it open with his teeth, and squeezed the contents onto one broad palm. Rubbing his hands together lightly, he spread the lube, concentrating the slippery substance on the fingers of his right hand.

Brian continued to hold the deep, brown eyes with his own, as long as he could. But it became increasingly hard to keep his eyes from fluttering shut as he felt large fingers stroke the cool gel between his splayed buttocks. When he felt one careful finger breach the tight ring of muscle and glide into his body, he noisily sucked in a deep breath, throwing back his head. The feeling was indescribable. He hadn't been exaggerating to Dom. It had been a long time since he'd trusted anyone enough to surrender himself this way.

When he could open his eyes again, he found that Dom was still staring avidly at his face, as though drinking in every change of expression. The finger slid smoothly in and out of his body for a few moments, then Brian felt it almost completely withdraw, only to have his passage widen even more when a second finger slowly joined the first. This time there was a twinge of discomfort, and it must have showed on his face, because Dom halted the long glide in. His intrusive fingers stilled and his other hand came up and gently began to manipulate the tender ball sac that had begun to draw up in a combination of pleasure and defense. When the sprawling relaxation of Brian's body told him that the pleasure had chased away any slight discomfort, Dom began again.

As the fingers pushed deeper and deeper, Dom reached up with his other slick hand and grasped Brian's turgid shaft. Brian cried out his pleasure and tightly clutched the slippery cloth beneath himself. He'd barely become accustomed to this new set of sensations when Dom angled his buried fingers slightly upward, until the tips brushed the sweet spot inside of him. Brian gasped convulsively, his torso arching upwards and his cock releasing a small spurt of pre-cum.

Dom used the moment of extreme inattention to introduce a third finger.

Breath catching in his throat, Brian held very still. His brain was having a hard time categorizing the feeling as either pain or pleasure. It seemed to be made of equal parts of each.

"Oh god, Dom!" he rasped, and Dom held equally still, not daring to move until he had a signal from Brian.

Brian was very glad to realize that, rough play aside, Dom was being very careful not to hurt him. As he determinedly relaxed his body again, Brian could feel the bunched fingers begin to slide further into his body. He could feel the pleasure begin to build again in waves. The hand on his cock never stopped its stroking, and Dom had begun to lick and suck at the skin of his thigh where in lay close to his face.

As Dom's fingers began to make their way in and out of his body, Brian could feel himself begin to pant. Breathless, open-mouthed moans began tumbling from his lips. He could feel Dom's eyes burning hot on his face.

"Dom! Dom!" Brian could hear himself pleading in a breathy whine, and a part of him was slightly embarrassed by his complete lack of control. The other part, the bigger and more primal part, just didn't give a shit. This was what he'd been dreaming of since before the botched hi-jacking job, and Brian wasn't going to second guess himself now.

But then he realized that both of the hands manipulating his body to a fevered pitch, had stopped. It took a moment for him to comprehend that Dom was saying something.

Brian's eyes were nearly crossed with the effort it took to concentrate. "What did you say?" His voice was gasping and harsh.

"I asked, would you really have shot me?" Dom's voice was suspiciously mild. At Brian's blank stare, he helpfully explained. "Back in L.A., when you came roaring up to the house in the Supra and jumped out with your gun drawn. Would you really have shot me?"

Brian stared at Dom for a moment with incredulous eyes. Dom's face had a conspicuous look of innocence about it, and he might have a lot of moods and looks, but innocent wasn't one of them.

"I'll goddam well get a gun and fucking shoot you now if you don't finish what you started!" Brian gasped.

No sooner had the words left his mouth, than the bunched fingers in his ass spread and curled upward to firmly stroke his prostate, and the other hand quickly pumped his cock.

Brian came convulsively with a hoarse shout of pleasure. His eyes rolled back in his head and his belly was suddenly flooded with his own come. Tremors shook his body, almost as if he were having a seizure. The last thing he remembered was the husky murmur of Dom's voice. "Beautiful!"

When he came back to himself and opened his eyes, Dom was leaning over and staring at him anxiously. One hand, damp with lube and his own come, was stroking his face.

"Brian? Baby, you OK?" Dom's voice was a little shaky. What he saw obviously reassured him that Brian was alright. "What the hell was that," Dom asked indignantly. "You scared the shit outta me!"

His only answer was a silly, but extremely satisfied grin. Dom unconsciously answered with a smile of his own.

"You're worn out. I should get you to bed." Dom's voice still held concern.

"Not on your life!" said Brian. "That was just the first course. You owe me the real meal now. I'm not going to let you short change me on my fantasy! That is, unless you're not up to it." The last bit was said slyly. Brian was tired, but he wouldn't give this up for anything.

"Oh, I'm up for it," Dom assured him. He thrust down his pants, not bothering to remove them entirely, because it would have taken too long to remove his boots first. Reaching for a condom and the other packet of lube, he quickly prepared himself. Then he hesitated for a moment.

"Do you think you can stand up?" he asked. His voice was becoming strained. "This'll be a lot easier the first time if you're bending over." At Brian's nod, Dom grasped him by the hips and pulled gently towards himself, holding Brian until his legs were steady.

Before he turned, Brian leaned forward and pressed his parted lips to Dom's, who took the proffered kiss and deepened it like a starving man falling on a four course meal. When Dom released him, Brian leaned weakly against him for a moment before he felt himself being turned gently around and eased down upon the hood of the Charger.

Perking up, Brian pulled at the slippery shroud until it was bunched under his lower belly. It would serve the two fold purpose of protecting the delicate skin of his rapidly reawakening cock, and leave his chest and arms free to feel the cool metal of the car beneath him.

Dom shuffled close and insinuated his knees between Brian's legs to part them. He ran his hands over Brian's back and down to cup his hips, before using his thumbs to part his buttocks.

"You ready, baby?" Dom asked, laying the slippery length of his cock in the groove of splayed flesh.

"Oh, yeah!" breathed Brian softly, but not so softly that Dom didn't hear him.

Pulling back slightly, Dom let his cock slide downwards until the head pressed lightly against the small, but relaxed, opening. Pushing steadily inward, he gently breached the body spread out before him. Their groans echoed one another as Dom's cock glided ever-so-slowly into Brian's depths. It didn't stop until Brian felt Dom's groin cradling his ass.

"Fuck!" Dom moaned. "You're so hot and tight! I can't believe how deep I am in you!"

Brian could feel the big body behind him vibrating with the effort not to immediately begin lunging in and out of him. There was a feeling of incredible fullness, but Dom had prepared him so well, and he was so relaxed from his own orgasm, that there was no pain. Obligingly, he began to thrust himself backwards a little to let Dom know that he was more than ready.

Big hands clasped his hips tightly as Dom began to move. Slowly at first, then faster as he seemed to realize that, not only could Brian take it, he demanded it.

Because they both had had an orgasm already, they were free to take their pleasure at a leisurely pace. The thrusts were steady and languorous at first and Brian could feel the pressure building inside him again.

Every few thrusts, Dom would angle his hips to hit that perfect spot tucked up inside of Brian. First the head of his cock would nudge it gently, then the shaft would glide achingly over it.

It didn't take long before Dom picked up the pace and began pumping his hips more quickly. Soon, Brian's heedless keening was in direct competition with the slapping sound of Dom's hips meeting repeatedly with taut, rounded buttocks.

In counter to Dom's thrusts, Brian himself was thrusting. He set up a pace and was stroking his cock into the bunched, slick-coarse texture of the shroud. His own harsh breathing echoed by Dom, Brian began calling out. "Harder! Oh god! Deeper, go deeper, Dom!" And Dom obliged.

His cry echoing harshly in the large interior of the garage, Brian felt himself lose control of his battle to extend the pleasure. He came in a rush, and once Dom felt the walls of Brian's rectum contracting and squeezing his cock, he gave one last powerful lunge and began to come himself. He continued to pump his hips a few more times, but they were erratic as he also lost control.

Brian lay limply across the hood of the Charger with Dom draped over his back. But the big man was careful to keep himself propped up on his forearms, so that he didn't crush Brian into the unyielding steel.

Dom pressed gentle kisses and nips across the back of Brian's neck and shoulders. Moving his hips slightly, he ground his hips ever so gently against Brian's ass.

After soaking in the heat of Brian's body for another few moments, Dom began to slowly and reluctantly, back away, holding the condom with one hand and stroking the smooth expanse of the lanky back with the other.

Pulling completely free, Dom carefully removed the full condom and tied it off. The light in the garage was almost gone with dusk, but there was still enough light for Dom to be captivated by the sight of Brian's body, spread out and spent. Unable to withstand the temptation of one last penetration, he slid two fingers easily into the dilated, glistening hole.

Brian gave a loud, breathless moan and thrust his hypersensitive buttocks backward onto the intruding digits. Although exhausted, Dom gave a delighted grin before withdrawing. Brian was so incredibly responsive to his touch.

Dom retrieved his tee shirt and wiped himself off before pulling up and fastening his pants. Then he used the shirt to quickly, but gently wipe the crevice of Brian's ass.

Gently, Dom pulled Brian to his feet, and supporting his weight, he wiped off the seed smeared across his stomach and groin before dropping the tee shirt carelessly to the floor.

Tipping up Brian's head as it lolled on his own shoulder, Dom stared in fascination at the beautiful, flushed face before engulfing Brian's lips in a soul shattering kiss. Brian found the energy to throw his arms around Dom's neck and return the kiss. Pulling back, he studied Brian's face for a moment longer before bending over, leaning his shoulder into Brian's middle and hoisting his naked form over his shoulder.

Leaving via the regular door, Dom carried Brian through the deepening twilight into the house. He made his way through the rooms without turning on any lights until he reached his bedroom. There he gently lowered Brian's still form onto the bed and covered him with the sheet. Leaving for a few moments, he made sure that the house was locked up and the alarm set, then he made his way back to Brian. Undressing quickly, he slid in beside his already sleeping partner and pulled him carefully into his arms.

Though it wasn't even ten o'clock, Dom was exhausted. Between the emotions, the physical exertions and the mind and body numbing pleasure, he was as wiped out as Brian. But even if he hadn't been, Dom couldn't imagine letting Brian out of his arms right now.

With Brian's head pillowed on his shoulder, Dom drifted off to sleep with his chest rising and falling in time with Brian's breathing. His last thought was that it was odd how right this felt, when he never got used to sleeping with Letty wrapped around his body.

III. We've Got Time

When Brian next swam to consciousness, he was almost immediately aware that, wherever he was, he'd never been here before in his life. His next impression was of warmth cradling him from behind, neck to feet, with a band of heavy warmth across his waist. Lifting his head carefully, he looked down his body. There was a sheet haphazardly twisted at waist level, and just above it was a tanned, muscular arm securing him to the warmth.

Dom. He was in Dom's room. In his bed. In his arms. It was the warmth of Dom's body that he was snuggled up against. And suddenly, Brian experienced the most amazing flood of happiness. He was almost afraid to move, even to breath, for fear that it might shatter this perfect moment.

Then he heard Dom's breathing change and felt the arm across him tense and he truly held his breath for fear that the warmth might be withdrawn, that Dom would consider yesterday a terrible mistake. But instead, the arm tightened about his body, pulling him even closer.

Brian closed his eyes in the muted light of pre-dawn, offering up a prayer of thanks to whoever was listening. Slowly he turned his body within the circle of safety to face his lover. Dom's eyes were open. His expression was solemn as his eyes roamed over Brian's face. Brian would have given damn near anything he ever, or would ever own, to know what the other man was thinking.

"Morning," Brian said softly. His reply was a slight upward quirk of lips. "Kinda conked out on you, huh?" He was a little nervous now and didn't bother to keep it from his voice. "Sorry about that. I guess I was pretty tired. I haven't gotten much sleep in the last couple of..." The rest was cut off by the pressure of Dom's mouth.

It was a slow kiss, soft and languid. Tongues stroking deep, followed by tiny, sipping kisses. Brian opened his eyes again when he felt Dom's big hand cup his face, his thumb brushing away the moisture left from his own lips.

"Too early in the morning for so much talking." Dom's face was still solemn, but his voice held a hint of laughter. Then his mouth was on Brian's again as Dom moved to cover his body, blotting out thought, leaving only feeling.

The muted blue-gray of dawn slowly slid into the more crystalline blue of early morning as they made love for the first time. Unlike the previous day, when their activities could be better termed as frantic sex, this time Brian truly considered their actions to be love.

Their motions were slow and caressing, no hurried movements, no urge to gain satisfaction immediately. Hands stroked smooth skin. Lips brushed lips, and tongues entwined. Brian made a cradle of his thighs for Dom, who rocked his hips slowly.

Dom held himself propped on his forearms as he laved Brian's throat with broad strokes of his tongue. He alternated the long, slow licks with soft kisses and gentle sucks, leaving his marks upon Brian as surely as he had yesterday, but in such a tender fashion that it had Brian writhing in breathless pleasure.

Brian touched and explored every inch of Dom that he could reach. He stroked his hands over bulging shoulders and down the taut upper arms. His fingers glided down the long, flexing muscles of his back, caressed the flat hips and cupped the hard, rounded buttocks. He even used his feet to caress the length of Dom's legs before wrapping them securely around his hips to urge him on.

As Dom sucked at the soft flesh of Brian's throat, so did Brian use his tongue and teeth to gently maul the hard planes and curves of Dom's shoulders, neck and face. He marveled that something so dense and thick as Dom's muscles could be covered by such surprisingly velvet smooth skin.

Brian's body writhed, arching upwards into every glide of Dom's moist, erect cock against his own. They were leaking enough pre-come to let the flesh slide, but not so much that friction was inhibited.

"Soon," breathed Brian. "I'm so close!" He buried his face in the moist skin of the throat above him. But Dom slid his arms high enough on the bed to weave his fingers into the heavy waves of golden brown hair, and hold Brian's head back on the pillow.

"I want to see your face," Dom said, his breathing becoming more labored as he also neared his climax. The thrusts of his hips became faster and deeper.

"Dominic! Dominic!" His name became a soft chant on Brian's lips. Again and again, becoming faster and faster. This time, when the orgasm hit, it wasn't a wild surf breaking on a rocky shore, but the swelling of a deep ocean wave. It rolled him under, drowning him in sensation. "Dominic! I love you!" Brian cried out.

Over the pounding of the blood in his own ears, he could hear Dom cry out and then their stomachs were coated with the fruits of their passion.

Dom's weight was a heavy comfort on him for a few moments before he levered himself off to one side. He used the twisted sheet to mop them both relatively dry, then tossed it to the floor.

"I guess I better invest in a few more sets of sheets unless we want to be doing laundry every day," Dom said, his breathing still not completely normal as he rolled to his back, pulling Brian's slighter form on top of him to sprawl limply, head pillowed on his broad chest.

They lay that way for a few minutes, Dom absently stroking the long length of Brian's back and playing with the fringe of hair on his neck. Their labored breathing returned to normal and the sweat of their overheated bodies began to dry.

Finally, when the brightness of the sun told them that morning had definitely arrived, Dom heaved a huge sigh.

"I'd love to shower with you," Dom said regretfully, "but I don't think we'd ever get breakfast if I did."

"Who says we need breakfast?" Brian mock pouted. But his stomach chose that moment to make known its displeasure at being ignored.

Dom laughed. "Besides, Leon and Vince will be back before too long, and I promised them breakfast. We've got a busy day ahead of us."

"Where are they?" Brian asked idly, his fingers busy tracing the curving muscles of his 'pillow'.

"Stop that!" Dom captured the teasing fingers. "They drove a car back to a customer in Mexicali yesterday. They're driving back early this morning. So why don't you go take a quick shower and I'll put on the coffee and set things out. Then while I shower you can start cooking. OK?"

"Sounds like a plan," Brian agreed, disappointment plain. "But I like mine better," he said slyly. "'In the shower' is another fantasy of mine."

Dom cupped Brian's face in his big hands and searched his eyes intently. "We've got time, baby." His words were soft and husky before he matched his lips to Brian's once more.

By the time they broke apart, Brian was wiggling and squirming atop Dom, having insinuated his slim hips between the larger man's thighs, pressing their reawakening cocks together.

"No!" Dom laughed, tossing Brian to the mattress beside him and quickly rising from the bed. "Jesus, Brian! You're insatiable! You're going to have me worn out before the week is over! Here," he tossed something he'd withdrawn from a drawer onto Brian's temptingly nude form. "All your stuff's still out in the truck. This shouldn't fall off of you. There's extra towels in the linen closet. Bathroom's through there." He pointed to the door of the private bath in the far wall. "Now go!" He quickly pulled on a pair of baggy shorts and left the room.

Brian idled for a moment longer, a dreamy smile on his lips. Then sighing, he rose and hurried through a shower. His body ached deliciously in unusual place. When he looked in the mirror, lips and cheeks were slightly reddened by the chaff of Dom's beard stubble. And there was a necklace of hickeys and love bites encircling his throat.

What Dom had thrown him turned out to be a pair of thin cotton pants, patterned in blues, with elastic ankles and a drawstring waist. They fit pretty good. On top, his body differed drastically from Dom's. But from the waist down, they weren't that much different. The extra material in the legs of the pants would have been fuller on Dom, but on Brian they were almost straight.

"Hey!" Brian called as he ambled barefoot and bare-chested toward the kitchen. "I don't mind if you want to keep me dressed as a harem boy!" His tone was playful. "Because if that's what you really want..." He trailed away in mid-sentence, mouth open, staring. "Hey guys," he finished weakly.

"Hey Brian! How they hanging'?" Leon smirked, obviously in a good humor. Vince merely glowered at him.

"As I was about to say," Dom continued mildly, as though his new male lover hadn't just waltzed out his bedroom half naked, "the truck belongs to Brian."

"What's he doing here?" growled Vince, arms cross tightly over his chest.

"He's here because I want him to be." Dom's voice was still mild, but the look he gave Vince was steely. "Is there gonna be a problem with that?"

Leon shook his head and grinned. "The more the merrier!"

"How long's he gonna be here?" The straining quality of Vince's body and the slight menacing whine in his voice reminded Brian of a pit bull a friend had owned. The dog had seen Brian as an intruder and an enemy, but he hadn't been allowed to attack him. Brian had always made it a point never to be alone with that dog.

"He'll be here as long as he wants to be." Dom's voice wasn't quite as mild now.

"You know, Vince," Brian said mildly, "I didn't expect you to throw your arms around my neck and weep tears of joy, but you could show just a little consideration for someone who saved your life and kept you out of slam."

Dom gave Brian a look that clearly said 'Don't tease the animals.' Brian knew he was being a little belligerent, but the thing with Vince was, he was more than a little like that dog. He was loyal to a fault with those he considered family, but with outsiders he was suspicious and pissy. If you let him push you, even a little, he'd shove you right into the ground and bury you.

"I'm gonna take a quick shower. I think everything's out, but if something's missing, just ask Leon. Vince, can I talk to you a second?" Vince looked mutinous, but he followed Dom from the room.

Brian looked at the food laid out on the counter. Probably a pound each of bacon, ham slices and what looked like chorizo, a spicy Mexican sausage. One of the large cartons of eggs, the kind with one and a half dozen in them, and a loaf of whole, multi-grain bread. It would probably all be gone by the time they were done. He knew that Dom was a firm believer in a hearty breakfast, and that he usually didn't stop for lunch.

Brian started throwing meat on the large griddle that sat on the stove. Soon the tantalizing smell of frying meat filled the room. His stomach rumbled loudly.

"You want some juice?" Leon's voice was close enough behind him to make Brian jump a little.

"Sure, thanks," said Brian, somewhat wary. True, Leon hadn't been antagonistic towards him since that first night, but Brian had never really considered him an ally either. He accepted the proffered glass of orange juice with a nod of thanks, then he turned back to tend the cooking meat. After a moment, he became aware that Leon had closed the distance between them and was leaning back on the counter, his eyes fixed on Brian.

When Brian's stomach growled again, Leon laughed. "Hungry?" he asked factitiously.

"We missed dinner last night," murmured Brian.

"Yeah, I guess so," Leon laughed again, reaching out a finger to touch one of the marks on Brian's neck. When Brian flinched away, he went on as if nothing had happened. "What took you so long to come down?" Leon asked when Brian finally looked at him. His tone was merely curious.

"You were expecting me?" Brian asked. At Leon's nod and small smile, he asked, "Why?"

"Damn bro, it was obvious to anybody with eyes. You two practically lit up like neon whenever you were in the same room. Even Vince sees it, that's why he's so jealous. The only one who didn't seem to see it was Mia." This last was said a little more quietly.

"Oh, she saw it." It was still a sore spot for Brian. "She actually said it a couple of times. Not in so many words, of course. But she knew. I just convinced her it wasn't true. I convinced myself it wasn't true." He shook himself mentally. He wouldn't go down that road again. Not here, not now. "Anyway, I made my peace with Mia."

"Yeah, I know, I heard." Leon was quiet for a second before he began again. "Listen, Brian, I wanted to thank you for everything you did for Jesse. It means a lot. Especially since none of the rest of us could be there."

Brian busied himself removing the meat to paper towels to drain. "I liked Jesse," he said finally.

"And he liked you," Leon answered matter-of-factly. "Yeah, he did," he added at Brian's quick look. "He said you were the only one who could understand what he did with the computers. Hell, even Dom usually only understood half of what Jesse was up to." Leon had been cracking the eggs in a large bowl as he spoke. "I miss him. A lot."

Then they both fell silent for awhile and continued to work in companionable silence.

Brian took a huge skillet and added butter. While it heated he whisked a little salt and pepper into the eggs, then poured the whole mess into the pan and began to gently stir it.

"So it doesn't bother you? About me and Dom, I mean?"

Leon made himself useful again by turning the loaf of bread into a small mountain of buttered toast. "Why should it bother me? It's not my bed you're sleeping in."

At Brian's questioning look, he continued. "My oldest brother is gay," he explained. "When I was six and he was fifteen, he came out of the closet, and no one's managed to stuff him back in since. My parents, being old hippies, were pretty cool about it. So I grew up not thinking much about coming downstairs to raid the kitchen at night, and finding my brother necking with another guy on the living room sofa." He just shrugged at Brian's look of doubt.

"I see we've timed it just right," said Dom with a grin as he strolled back into the kitchen. He was followed by a sour, but no longer thunderous looking Vince. "Nothing like eating a breakfast you don't have to cook!"

"Yeah, well, you guys get to clean up after," Leon retorted with good nature.

"Sounds fair to me," Dom shrugged.

Instead of dirtying extra serving dishes, everyone grabbed a plate and filled up at the counter before sitting down. Juice and coffee were poured, and everyone dug in.

As they ate, Brian listened to everyone discussing the plans for the day. He was content to be an observer and go along with whatever was suggested. As a matter-of-fact, he felt more contentment here than he had in a long, long time.

Later, when Dom and Brian drove in to Ensenada to pick up a shipment of parts, and Vince went grocery shopping with a meticulously made out list and instructions not to deviate from it, Leon went into the garage to get some work done.

The first thing he did was stumble over a pile of clothes in the middle of the garage floor. Jeans and a pair of tennis shoes. A tee shirt lay nearby. Puzzled, he looked around and saw the shroud pulled off of the Charger. Walking closer, he saw one of Dom's white wife beaters in a ball on the floor. Also on the floor nearby were two individual size packets of lube, empty, and a condom wrapper.

He turned in a circle to take in the entire scene again, grinning. "Kinky!" he said with another grin, then got the broom and dust pan to sweep up the debris. "At least they didn't leave the condom," he said laughingly.

Later, in the dark of night, as he lay in bed, he could hear the moans and cries coming from the room down the hall. He figured that about now, Vince had his pillow pulled over his head.

Leon just felt an unexpected stab of envy.

IV. Be Careful What You Ask For

Over the next few weeks, Brian fell into an easy routine with the rest of the guys. He usually worked side by side with Dom, which suited him just fine. He was a pretty decent mechanic, and he found he enjoyed working with his hands again full time.

Dom and the boys had a full fledged, full time business to run. They still did basic car work for the locals sometimes, but their specialty was to do custom jobs for people with the money to pay for it and either couldn't, or wouldn't, do the work themselves. They also rebuilt cars, practically from scrap, like they had with the Supra, to sell.

Brian's own skills were about on par with Dom's but Leon was an excellent mechanic. Back in L.A. his talent had been over shadowed by Jesse, who had been a freaking genius with cars. Vince was lucky to know which end of a torque wrench to use. Hell, he was actually lucky to know what a torque wrench was. How he could have grown up with Dom and hung so closely with him for so many years and be clueless about the inner workings of cars was a mystery. Now Brian knew why he'd never been around when they were rebuilding the Supra. It wasn't just because he didn't want to be around Brian, though that had been a large part of it as well.

Vince wasn't openly antagonistic towards Brian anymore. It was more in the line of simmering looks, and the occasional insult. All when Dom wasn't about, of course. When Dom was there, he just pretty much ignored Brian, which was just fine with him. But still, Brian was careful to try and never be alone with Vince. It wasn't that he didn't think he could take Vince, he was just trying to keep things as smooth as possible. Leon and Dom seemed to be of like minds, because if Vince was around, one of them was also.

It was generally warmer here than in L.A., but that didn't bother Brian. Having grown up in Arizona, he was used to the heat. The beaches were amazing! Beautiful and relatively unpopulated, especially when compared with those of the L.A. area. For a boy raised in the desert, he'd taken to the beaches in California like he'd been born with gills and simply misplaced at birth. He'd learned to surf pretty good, too. The beach opposite the house was great for swimming, but not much for surfing. But great surfing was less than a half an hour away.

Brian usually went for a swim at least once a day, quite often twice. Once in the morning before breakfast, and then again in the early evening. Sometimes he could get Dom to go in with him, but usually it was Leon. Sometimes he wondered if Vince ever got wet at all.

It was funny. Other than discussions having to do with cars or racing, Brian didn't think he spoken more than a dozen words to Leon back in L.A. But after their little talk in the kitchen that first morning, Brian began spending time with Leon. Whether they were working side by side in the garage, taking a swim, running errands, or just kicking back on the patio with a beer, he found that he enjoyed talking to the man. Behind that raspy voice and roguish exterior, there was a very intelligent man. He was actually quite knowledgeable on a wide variety of subjects that had nothing to do with cars.

Brian had begun to rely on that friendship because, outside of work or the bedroom, Dom actually spent very little time with him. At first he attributed it to Dom pacifying Vince, spending quite a bit of time with his boyhood friend to keep his overwhelming jealousy at bay. But after awhile, that just didn't explain it.

Nights were beyond incredible. The hours that he spent in Dom's arms, in the privacy of their bedroom, were his every fantasy come true. Dom was an inventive, tireless and generous lover. But Dom had relegated anything expect the purely platonic between them strictly to the bedroom. Originally, he'd thought it was part of the 'placate Vince' strategy. Brian hadn't cared for the idea of hiding their love life behind closed doors, but he'd gone along with it. In retrospect, it had been a bad idea.

Dom quickly became almost stand-offish outside of the bedroom. He shrugged off even the most casual of touches from Brian. After a couple weeks of this, on a day when Brian had had enough, he had done his damnedest to seduce Dom with his every move while they were working.

Never once had he touched Dom or said a word that couldn't be uttered in church. But he'd touched himself plenty. Not in any overtly sexual way, but with sensuous abandon. Running his fingers through his hair, wiping the sweat off of his bare torso with a towel in long, slow strokes, and more than once, he'd found a reason for his tight little ass to be stuck up in the air. And he'd made sure that Dom had a ringside seat for every act. The result was that they finally had that shower together, if you could call it that.

Despite Leon's subtle, and not so subtle hints to curtail his activities, Brian had continued, and even escalated his behavior. By the end of the day, even a blind man could have sensed the sexual tension between the two of them. Dom was simmering at a low boil, his volatile mood made up of equal parts of anger and desire. At quitting time, Brian had stretched his half naked body languorously. He informed all present that he was going to take a long, long shower.

That's when Leon, and even Vince, had eyed the two of them warily and made hasty plans for dinner. Out. Without even bothering with showers of their own.

Brian had barely had time to get his body wet when Dom jerked open the door to the shower and joined him. It was a huge shower, more like a small tiled room with shower heads on three of the four walls, but suddenly it seemed rather inadequate to contain Brian, Dom and Dom's angry passions.

Even though this was what he'd been aiming for, now that it was here, Brian felt a tingle of apprehension along with his excitement. It was a good thing that he was already hard with anticipation. As soon as he saw Dom, he quickly squirted a generous handful of shower gel onto his fingers and tried to prepare himself.

Dom had spun him around and pushed him abruptly against the wall. If Brian hadn't had one hand free to brace himself, his face would probably have smacked against the tiles. Then Dom actually pulled Brian's fingers out of his own ass, kicked his legs apart, quickly lined up his hard cock, and slammed in to the hilt.

There had been enough pain that Brian had cried out and arched away. He felt a hesitation in Dom, and knew that the big man was having second thoughts about his actions and was on the verge of pulling out. But when Brian braced both his hands on the slick tile wall and pushed his hips back, any doubt that Dom had had, wafted away in the steam of the shower.

Pressing chest to back, Dom leaned forward and sank his teeth into Brian's shoulder. Brian had cried out again and bucked his hips backward, snaking one hand around to grasp Dom's hip and urge him on.

For the first time, there had been nothing of tenderness in their joining. Instead it had been nearly brutal. Dom had grasped Brian's slippery hips with fingers that were tight enough to leave dark bruises, then pounded into him relentlessly until he'd slammed in on last time and came with a panting growl, teeth still locked into Brian's flesh, like a tom holding a female cat.

Brian's nerves jangled on the edge of a shattering orgasm. He was afraid that Dom would leave him to find satisfaction by himself. But Dom swatted off the shower controls, grabbed Brian by the wrist, and drug him to the bedroom where, both still dripping wet, he pushed Brian to his knees on the edge of the bed. It was then that Brian realized that Dom's cock was still hard, as he prepared to shove into him again.

"Dom!" Brain called out in warning, one hand reaching toward the bottle of lubricant on the bedside table. The shower gel, not really adequate for the job to begin with, had mostly dissipated from the intense friction. After a moment's hesitation, when Brian's heart had begun to pound with the thought that he'd pushed Dom past the point where he didn't care if he hurt Brian or not, Dom had stepped around and grabbed the bottle. Shivering with relief, Brian's flagging erection had sprung back to fully hard when Dom pushed several fingers full of slippery lube into Brian's already loosened asshole. After a pause, when he heard the slick, crackling sound of Dom preparing himself, Brian was held willing captive as his body was deeply invaded once more.

This fuck was even more impersonal than the one in the shower. But after a few minutes of ass jarring lunges, Dom began angling his thrusts so that almost every one raked across Brian's prostate.

Brian cried out again and again, until very quickly, the intense over stimulation brought him to a shuddering climax. He started to slump tiredly to the bed, but Dom held him upright and continued to drive quickly and forcefully into him. Before too long, he was again angling to maul Brian's tender gland, and it didn't take any time at all to wring another intense orgasm from Brian's over sensitive body. When it appeared that Dom was gearing up for another round of the same, Brian finally rebelled.

"No Dom!," he said harshly, "finish it!"

Dom picked up the pace even more, quickly thrusting himself to a finish. When he was done, he pulled himself free of Brian's flesh while he was still partially hard, causing Brian to grunt in discomfort before he collapsed face forward onto the bed.

He heard Dom go back into the bathroom, and the sound of running water as he cleaned himself up. Then he was back in the bedroom. Ignoring Brian, he pulled back the sheet in the rapidly darkening room, climbed into bed and turned to face the wall.

Brian lay as he was for a few minutes more until the shaking, caused by an overdose of adrenalin, had subsided. Then he pushed himself to his feet and went to the bathroom to see what the damage was.

As he cleaned himself up, he was relieved to see that there was no blood, but he could tell that his abused hole was swollen and puffy with heat. By twisting, he could see that there were definite teeth marks on his shoulder, and they were seeping blood. Brian swabbed them with antiseptic, pressing down until the bleeding stopped.

Meeting his own dilated, shocky eyes in the mirror, he whispered to his reflection, 'Be careful what you ask for, you might get it.' Then he turned off the light and made his way to the bed where Dom still lay facing the wall.

After a moment's hesitation, Brian approached the bed with determination. He slid under the sheet and pressed himself against the big, warm back for a moment, before tugging insistently at Dom's shoulder until he turned over onto his other side. Then Brian flipped around and backed himself against Dom, reached for his arm, and pulling it over himself like a warm blanket.

'I'll be damned if I'll let either of us go to bed with such a gulf between us,' Brian thought to himself. 'By morning it would rival the Grand Canyon.'

It took him a long time to drift off to sleep, and he could tell from the tension flowing off of Dom, that it was the same for him. But the next thing he knew, the room was seeping with early dawn light, and Brian awoke to the feel of Dom's hands and mouth on him.

They made love with exquisite care. All the gentleness that had been missing from the night before came to the surface now. Dom knew that Brian would be too sore to enter him, so they made love the same way that they had on their first morning together. By stroking one another with body, hands and mouth. The building of passion had been slow, almost secondary to the quest for tenderness.

One other time when Brian was frustrated by the lack of contact with Dom outside of the bedroom, he'd tried to seduce him again. But Dom had merely left the house and gone into town, not coming back until late at night, smelling of alcohol and the thick cigarette smoke of a bar. But at least he hadn't smelled of sex.

Many times over the next few weeks, Brian had told Dom, "I love you." Always at the height of passion, but also at other times, when they lay twined together in the dark. Each time, his only reply was a slight stiffening of Dom's body, and silence. Every time that happened, Brian could feel himself grow just a little more raw with exposed emotion.

When the rawness threatened to become an open wound, Brian knew he was going to have to do something. He tried talking to Dom about the situation, but the other man had become defensive, insisting that there was nothing wrong. He'd become angry and Brian had backed off, not wanting the confrontation to escalate into a full blown fight. In retrospect, Brian could see that that had been as bad an idea as letting Dom put the distance between them to begin with. But he felt helpless now about how to remedy the situation.

So instead of healing the rapidly developing wound in his emotions, Brian had simply put a bandage over it. He started going out in the evening. At first just to a bar in town, dragging Leon along for a couple of drinks in a neutral setting to wind down. But after one particularly tense day, he'd cleaned up and taken off with only a "Be back later," flung over his shoulder to Leon while Dom was still in the shower.

It had started out just as a drive to clear his head, but before he realized it, he found himself in the outskirts of Ensenada, over an hour and a half north of home. Without clear intentions, he'd driven aimlessly through the darkened streets. It was a week night, so there wasn't a lot going on outside of the tourist areas.

Finally he found what he'd been looking for when he hadn't even realized he'd been looking. It was a bar called, amusingly, El Bano de los Hombres, the Men's Room. The hard pumping music that poured from it, and the eclectically dressed mix of men in the vicinity told him that this was just right. He didn't want a lounge, but he didn't want to walk unaware into a hard core leather bar either. So he parked his truck across the street.

Before getting out, he flipped down the visor and observed himself in the mirror. "Be careful what you ask for," he reminded himself.

Getting out, he tucked in this tee shirt, and made his way across the street. The small crowd of men milling around the entrance noticed him coming right away. He was willing to bet that not too many blond haired, blue eyed gringos made it here.

To their whistling and kissing sounds, and murmured invitations, he entered the bar.

V. Bedroom Privileges

When Brian entered Los Hombres, he was greeted by name by many of the patrons. But unlike the first time that he'd come in, no one propositioned him or touched and stroked him as he wound his way through the crowds. He'd felt his mood lighten and his body begin to move to the driving beat of the music as soon as he walked through the door.

He didn't bother to fight his way to the bar for a beer. He just caught Marcos' eye as he walked by and gave him a smile. He knew that the bartender would send a cold Corona over to the table and start a tab for him. Vicente was in the DJ's booth tonight, and he returned Brian's smile with one of his own.

Jesus was at his table, talking with a man that Brian recognized, but he couldn't bring his name to mind. Jesus must have heard the dancers calling out to Brian as he skirted the dance floor, because he looked up and scouted out the room until he saw the young gringo.

Jesus Serra was the owner of Los Hombres. He was always to be found at his table, on the back side of the dance floor. It sat on a dais that ran the length of the wall. But his table was in the center, cordoned off by waist high wooden partitions.

"Ah! Mi cielo!" the big man called out loudly, spreading his arms in welcome. Brian thought of Jesus as 'big', but in reality he was a couple of inches shorter than himself. But he was muscular, and his personality made him seem larger. Like Dom. It had taken Brian a couple of evenings in his company to realize that that was one of the reasons that he was so drawn to Jesus.

Like Dom, Jesus was in his early-to-mid 30's, and a good looking man in a very masculine way. But there the resemblance to Dom ended. Jesus was a smiling, happy man. He was openly affectionate to those he considered friends, and he had laid claim to Brian the first time he saw him. Kind of like the Dom that seemed to have been left behind in L.A.

'Mi cielo' he called Brian. 'My heaven'. Jesus said it was because of the color of his eyes, which he claimed must surely be the color of God's domain.

As Brian approached Jesus, he was swept onto his lap, legs straddling the big man's hips. Brian grinned and rested his forearms on the heavily muscled shoulders and thrust his fingers through the thick, black, shoulder length hair.

Jesus slid his hands up Brian's back to cup his head and bring together their lips. It was a passionate kiss, filled with the slide of dueling tongues, and though Brian emerged from it breathless, Jesus' kisses didn't move him the way that Dom's did. Brian supposed that it had to do with the difference between simple physical attraction, no matter how much he liked the man, and the love he felt for Dom.

At first Brian had been hesitant to play these teasing games because he had no intention of following through with sex. He'd made this perfectly clear to Jesus the first night in the bar. But Jesus insisted that he liked the teasing and he knew Brian's limits very well and would respect them. It was, in fact, his patronage that made it possible for Brian to come to Los Hombres to drink and dance without being hassled.

"Have you come to stay this time, mi cielo?" It was the same question Jesus asked every time he saw Brian. But the answer was also always the same. A smile and a slow shake of his head. "Well, I will keep asking. Perhaps one day the answer will be 'Yes'".

"You're incorrigible," laughed Brian, prying himself out of Jesus' arms. The man would have insisted Brian sit in his lap all evening long if Brian were to permit it.

"I am sure I am," Jesus agreed with amusement. "But my English does not stretch to such big words."

"It means you never stop trying," said Brian, as he straddled a chair backwards, unaware how it highlighted his tight ass, and picked up the Corona waiting for him.

"This is so," conceded Jesus with an air of supreme confidence. Another trait he had in common with Dom. "I will not stop asking until I have a reason to. And while you continue to come into my place without this man you say you love, I will know that I still have a chance."

At the look of melancholy that clouded the beautiful blue eyes, Jesus changed the subject. "Have you plans for Cinco de Mayo?"

"Yeah," said Brian, perking up. "We've all been invited to the home of one of the big winery owners near Santo Tomas, the Aguilar family. From what I hear, they always have a pretty big blow out."

"Luis Aguilar," Jesus said admiringly. "You are moving in high company, mi cielo. How did you come to be acquainted with the Aguilar family?"

"Both Luis and his eldest son, Enrique, are racing fans. The guys have done some work for them in the past year. Everyone just became friendly, although I haven't met them yet."

Further conversation was cut short by two young men who bounded up to the table and forcibly dragged Brian out onto the dance floor. In no time, Brian was surrounded by a sea of beautiful, gyrating bodies.

Jesus watched in amusement. And as always, he felt the stirrings of desire as he watched his young friend move with graceful abandon to the beat of the music.

Jesus wasn't lying when he told Brian that he would respect the limits he put on their relationship. But that didn't mean that he wouldn't try to gently expand those limits, or that he wouldn't be there, ready to cushion the fall when the fool who held Brian's heart so carelessly, let it slip through his fingers.

Jesus knew that there had to be something more to this 'Dom' of Brian's than he could sense. Because someone as special as Brian wouldn't foolishly waste his heart and soul on a worthless creature.

He didn't know if Brian's heart would survive intact if he were to lose his love, but Jesus would be more than willing to pick up the pieces. And if that day never came...well, Brian's friendship was worth a little physical discomfort.

'Think of physical discomfort and what happens?' observed Jesus mentally. He watched as Brian finally stripped his tee shirt over his head, and with a teasing smile, he lobbed it in a ball towards the table. Jesus caught it easily. He held it up to his nose to inhale the heady scent of Brian, then had to shift and re-adjust the sudden tightness in the crotch of his jeans.

Smiling to himself ruefully, he shook out the garment then draped it over the back of Brian's chair. Then he signaled to one of the circling servers for another Corona for Brian and a Tecate for himself, and leaned back to enjoy the show.

Brian pulled the truck up to his customary parking space around the back of the house and shut off the engine. He sat for a moment, savoring the quiet of the night, before glancing at the dashboard clock. 2:30 a.m. Dom would definitely be asleep by now. But not for long.

The first time that Brian had come home from Los Hombres, Dom had stirred as soon as he slipped into bed.

"Where you been, Brian?" Dom's voice had come out of the darkness.

"I went for a drive and wound up in Ensenada. I found a nice place. I had a couple of beers, danced a little. I'm going back Friday night. You want to go with me?"

"What?" Dom's voice was dry, "we gonna go cruising? Pick up a couple of girls?"

"Unlikely, Dom, since it's a gay bar." Brian's voice had been just as ironic. When Dom hadn't answered for a minute or so, Brian thought he was going to ignore him.

"You fuckin' around on me, Brian?" Dom's voice had been very neutral, but Brian had felt the tension radiating off of his body.

Brian immediately sat up and turned on the small bedside light. Even though it was very dim, it still made Dom blink a few times before he could focus on Brian's expression.

"No, Dom," Brian's voice was very serious, "I didn't fuck around with anyone. I don't want to fuck around with anyone else. I love you. You're the only one I want. But my life doesn't begin and end with this bedroom or the garage. I want to go out sometimes. Have a few drinks. Maybe dance a little. Laugh. And I want to do it where I feel I belong and can be myself. You're welcome to come along. In fact I'd prefer for you to come with me. But I'm going just the same. And I'll never lie to you about what I do when I'm not with you. You can choose to believe me or not."

Dom was silent for a minute as he studied Brian's face. "I believe you, Brian," he said simply, and Brian slowly released the breath he hadn't known he was holding. Those simple words of trust went a long way toward bridging a widening gap between them.

Sometimes Dom woke up when Brian came to bed, and sometimes he didn't. Though he never asked again, Brian made a point of telling his lover lightly, either that same night, or in the morning, "Nope, still haven't fucked anyone else."

This time when Brian slipped into bed, Dom didn't stir, so Brian had to wake him up.

He switched on the small bedside light and flipped the sheet off of Dom's nude body. He was sprawled on his back, one hand tucked under the pillow behind his head, the other lying elegantly across his stomach. It never failed to surprise Brian, how beautiful Dom's hands were, especially for such a big man.

His cock lay limply over one muscular thigh. Dom was one of those men whose cock never got truly small. It didn't enlarge very much more when he was aroused, either. But that was alright. Any larger and he would have been difficult, even painful, to handle.

'God! he's so beautiful!' thought Brian, as he studied him for a few moments. The perfectly sculpted body and the smooth latte skin. His face was so peaceful and open, not like the closed in, wary look he seemed to wear so often these days.

"Dom," Brian called softly as he ran his hand gently down the middle of the perfect chest. When his only response was a deep sigh and a slight stretching of the compact body, he tried again. "Dom!" This time he swirled his fingertip around the navel that couldn't decide if it was in 'innie' or an 'outie', and drew his fingernails lightly across the flat stomach.

"Hhmm? Brian? Whaswrong? Whatime izit?" Dom's voice was still muzzy with sleep.

Brian leaned forward and lapped his tongue across one nipple, then blew on it gently, watching it rise to a peak. "It's 3 a.m."

Dom pulled the hand from under the pillow and ran it over his face while the other hand came up to cup Brian's shoulder in reflex.

"What's wrong?" His voice was more alert this time, but no less confused.

"Nothing's wrong," Brian paused in his oral exploration of Dom's chest to say. "But I didn't have sex with anyone tonight."

"Jesus Christ, Brian! Enough already! I've apologized several times for asking that stupid fucking question. Can't you just let it go?" Dom's tone was more weary than angry.

"Mmmm, you don't understand," Brian growled softly, his lips feathering up the strong column of Dom's throat. "I didn't have sex with anyone else tonight. I didn't have sex with you. We didn't have sex yesterday. I'm horny."

"Fuck, Brian...!"

"Exactly," interrupted the busy blond as he paused in his little nibble of a temptingly exposed earlobe. "Fuck Brian."

"What?"

Brian sat up and moved over until he straddled Dom, his bare ass resting on the man's stomach. "If our relationship is going to be bound within these four walls, I'm invoking my bedroom privileges. Wake up and fuck me!" He braced his hands on Dom's chest and let the fingers of either hand pluck and tease his nipples. Brian felt a distinct stirring behind him.

"Brian, are you drunk? Did you drive home from Ensenada while you were drunk?"

Brian sat up and rolled his eyes. "Nnooo." The word was drawn out in exasperation. "I had tequila after I got home. So...are you going to fuck me, or what?"

"You need to get some sleep, Brian. We can talk about it in the morning."

"I don't want to talk at all," Brian retorted, wiggling his hips backward until the wet tip of Dom's now erect cock grazed the crack of his ass. "And it doesn't feel like 'little Dominic' wants to do much talking, either. It feels more like he wants to do some of that 'expressive gesturing' you Italians are so famous for." Brian had been slowly lowering his torso down onto Dom's, bringing their faces closer and closer together, until the last word was spoken against Dom's lips. Brian thrust his tongue deep into Dom's mouth, following it closely with the tight seal of his own lips.

Brian rubbed his hips against Dom's stomach, sliding his engorged cock against the hard wall of muscle, as he ravaged the man's mouth. If there was a remote corner of Dom's mouth that had gone unexplored until now, it was terra incognito no longer. When Brian finally pulled away, they were both gasping for air.

"Are you going to make me do all the work?" asked Brian breathlessly.

"Yeah!" Dom growled back. "You woke me up, remember?" Any lingering traces of sleep were gone now.

Brian sat up again, eyes fired to accept the challenge. He pried Dom's hands off of his hips and pinned them to the mattress on either side of his head. He had no illusions about being able to keep them there if Dom thought otherwise, but for now at least, they seemed to be of the same mind.

Pillaging his mouth once more, Brian proceeded to lay waste to the rest of the landscape that was Dom's body. He moved down to suck strongly on the side of his neck where it met with the shoulder.

"Don't you leave a hick....aaahhh," Dom's warning was cut off as Brian sank his teeth into his throat, growling and shaking his head slightly, like a wolf with a piece of choice meat. Brian felt Dom's cock give a jump beneath his.

He gave the same treatment to the rest of Dom's torso. Sucking on the smooth bulge of his collar bone until it glowed a dull red with the blood pooled beneath the skin. Mauling his nipples into puffy, swollen points with mouth and fingers, then soothing them with cat-like laps of his tongue. Raking the smooth mound of his pecs with his teeth, and nipping the flesh over his ribs. Digging his tongue into Dom's navel like a bear in search of honey.

By the time Brian reached the tender skin in the crease between thigh and groin, Dom was writhing on the bed, moaning continually, hands clenched in the sheets. At one point he had forgotten and clenched his hands in Brian's hair, only to have his tormentor stop his 'torture' and stare at Dom until he released Brian and put his hands back at his sides.

Brian licked the soft skin all around the border of the dense patch of crisp pubic hair with broad swipes of his tongue. He was quite careful not to touch the hard cock that jutted from the center or the heavy testicles that nestled below. Dom's groan as Brian continued down the inside of his thigh made his whole body quiver and hum beneath Brian's mouth. The skin on the inside of Dom's thigh was oh-so-tender, and showed the red marks of Brian's teeth beautifully.

Wriggling his body down still further, Brian ran his tongue down the inside curve of Dom's knee and along his calf, pausing to nibble on the inner ankle, before trailing down to engulf his toes, one at a time, in the moist warmth of his mouth. Dom gasped loudly, his feet twitching spasmodically in ecstasy.

'Bet Letty never found out how sensitive his feet are,' Brian thought with a mental smirk, running his tongue between the wriggling toes.

After giving the other foot the same treatment, he spread Dom's thighs wide and slid his body up between them, making his way up the second leg and thigh. By the time he reached the groin area again, Dom was pleading with him, gasping his name over and over.

Brian reached up unnoticed to fetch the bottle of lube he'd stashed under his pillow before waking Dom. Now, laying on his stomach between the splayed thighs, he lifted the legs one at a time, to drape them over his shoulders.

Stroking hips and buttocks with gentling hands, Brian licked the heavy scrotal sac, sucking first one then the other testicle into his mouth to be mauled tenderly about. With Dom sufficiently distracted...Brian wasn't sure he'd notice if Leon and Vince came in and sat by his side with popcorn...he flipped open the bottle of lube and squirted a generous amount on the fingers of his right hand.

Letting the spit coated sac slide from his lips, he nuzzled them aside and dragged the flat of his wet tongue up the crease below, from sphincter to perineum. Dom's yelp of surprise was followed closely by a guttural groan as Brian teased the tightly clenched muscular opening with the tip of his tongue. With gently stabs, Brian was able to insert his tongue about an inch into the tight entrance to Dom's body.

This was something they'd never done before, hadn't even talked about doing. Brian wasn't sure how Dom felt about being penetrated, even gently like this, but he sure wasn't kicking him away.

Taking a deep breath, he forged ahead into unexplored territory, both literally and figuratively. He engulfed the pendulous scrotum in his hot mouth once more, and smoothly slid one long, slick finger into Dom's rectum.

"Brian!" Dom cried out, trying to sit up. But it wasn't easy to do with his legs still over Brian's shoulders. Brian slid his free hand up until it pressed lightly on the tight abdominal muscles, rubbing in soothing circles.

"Shhh!" Brian calmed. "Only this far. No further. No more." His eyes met Dom's. The pupils of the deep brown eyes were dilated wide. Not panicked, not angry, Brian couldn't exactly pin down the emotion he saw. But whatever Dom saw in his own eyes was enough to reassure him somewhat. Some of the tension was released from Dom's body as he lay back down, but he was far from relaxed again.

Brian wondered for the first time if something had happened in Lompoc that Dom had never talked about. After all, Dom had been pretty young when he'd gone to prison. And Brian had seen pictures of him then. He hadn't been nearly as muscular then, as he was now.

Brian almost withdrew his finger and said, 'never mind', but if something bad had happened to Dom, he might never get a second chance to try this again. He could live without it, but he didn't want Dom to have to live with such a dark memory if he could do anything to alleviate it.

So Brian gently withdrew his finger only long enough to squirt more lube onto it, then he slowly worked it back in, listening to the hissing of Dom's in-drawn breath. He did this a few more times until the passage was completely slick and open. Then he gently twisted his hand until it lay palm up, and curled his finger, slowly searching until he found the small, walnut sized gland. When he stroked his fingertip softly over it, Dom jerked and gasped out his name.

Brian stroked the small gland again, licking up the length of Dom's rigid cock, and he was rewarded with a spurt of pearly fluid.

"Goddamnit!" Dom gritted, "Stop teasing and finish me!"

Brian repeated his last gestures, eliciting the same physical response, but only a deep, gasping moan this time.

Slowly, carefully, Brian withdrew his finger from its snug, hot harbor, wiping his hand on the towel he had also placed within easy reach. Kneeling up, he began running his hands in soothing strokes across Dom's super heated flesh, kneading arms and shoulders, brushing soft kissed across his face until he calmed down somewhat. He was still quivering with unreleased need, but it seemed to have leveled off somewhat.

Brian brought their mouths together in a kiss of restrained passion as he prepared himself with the lube. Sitting up, he used more of the slippery gel to coat Dom's cock, which twitched like a live creature under his hands. 'He's not going to be able to hold out for long' Brian thought. 'But that's OK, I'm not either.' In teasing Dom, he'd brought himself almost to the boil over point.

Straddling Dom's hips once more, he reached behind and grasped the hard shaft. Locking blue eyes with deep brown, he whispered, "Hold me open." Then he waited a moment for the words to make sense to the other man's fevered brain. When they did, Dom used those beautiful hands to grasp his buttocks and pry them apart as though he were splitting a peach.

Brian seated he slippery crown of the thick penis against the opening to his body and slowly sank down in one smooth drop.

By force of will alone, he kept his eyes from rolling back in his head so that he could watch the exact same effect on Dom. He held very still for a few moments, until he was sure that Dom wouldn't explode, then he slowly began to move.

He used his thigh muscles to raise and lower himself on the piercing shaft, picking up the pace until the room echoed with the soft slapping sounds of his buttocks meeting the curved hips below. Gliding his hands up his own belly and chest, he pinched and rolled his nipples to erection, his eyes locked with Dom's.

Brian felt Dom move his fingers into the crack of his ass, and those callused fingertips stroked the thinly stretched skin, tracing the edge where it hugged his own thick cock. Now it was time for Brian's eyes to fall shut and his head to loll back on his shoulders.

When one of Dom's hands, slick with moisture and the lube seeping from Brian's own body, wrapped around his leaking cock, Brian knew that Dom must be close and was trying to hurry them to completion together. Well, that was just fine with Brian.

His soft keening moans were in counterpoint to Dom's harsher groans. Brian angled his body slightly backward and got lucky as the shaft impaling him rubbed against his prostate. That was all it took. He erupted with a loud cry of "I love you, Dom!", his passion spraying in a line up Dom's chest.

When Dom saw that, and felt the convulsive squeezing of the muscular tunnel around his cock, he bellowed long and loud as he emptied himself into Brian.

Brian collapsed on top of Dom, unable to move for the time being. They both labored to breathe and were sheened with sweat. When Dom was finally soft enough to slip from his body, Brian grabbed the towel and wiped up the resulting flow of semen. He'd found out the hard way since he and Dom had decided it was safe to stop using condoms, that it might feel sexy to have your lovers seed trickling slowly out of your body, but there was nothing sexy about sleeping in a gooey wet spot on the bed.

With a groan, he slid off of Dom and used a dry corner of the towel to wipe off their bellies and Dom's crotch. After lobbing the balled up towel through the bathroom door, he snuggled into Dom's arms, who covered them with the sheet.

"You're gonna kill us both one of these days," mumbled Dom, his throat vibrating against Brian's face.

"Yeah, but we'll go happy," was the sleepy reply.

An hour later, when the alarm went off at 6:30, Dom batted the clock off of the nightstand with the swipe of a large hand.

When they finally arose at 9:30, and were sitting in the kitchen drinking coffee, Leon strolled in from the garage, whistling happily, Vince right behind him.

"Morning'," Leon called cheerily, as though the two of them weren't up almost 3 hours later than normal. He had a view of Dom's bare torso, and all of the marks it bore, as he walked through the door. When he circled around behind Dom to pull a soda from the frig, he raised his eyebrows and saluted Brian with the can over the top of the smooth head. Vince merely let out a snort and stomped back out to the garage. Leon grabbed another can of soda for Vince and, with a last grin at Brian, left the kitchen.

After a moment's silence, Brian stared out the kitchen door and snickered. "Think they suspect?" When he got no reply, he turned and faced Dom, his heart plunging into his stomach. Dom was wearing his enigmatic face again.

"I'm gonna go get dressed," he said quietly. "We've got a lot to catch up on." Then he left the room.

If he bothered to turn around, he would have seen what Leon did when he popped back in to get the shop rag he'd left on the counter.

The utterly bleak expression on Brian's white face.

VI. Cinco De Mayo

The Aguilar home was a two story, sprawling structure of white stucco and red clay tiles, similar in style to their own home, but on a much grander scale. It sat adjacent to the family owned and run winery and was surrounded by vineyards on all sides. The long driveway from the road actually ran through the fields of grapevines still bare of grapes, but lush with foliage.

Dom waited for their turn to pull up to the top of the circular drive, then everyone piled out of the car and the parking valet traded a numbered tag for their vehicle before driving it away to park.

They followed a pretty, young girl in her very early teens, probably the daughter of one of the workers, who showed them through the house. She pointed out the bathroom facilities along the way, and led them out through the wide-flung patio doors to the party.

The rear of the house was a series of multi-level patios that led down to what must have been an Olympic size pool. There was already a crowd of screaming children and teenagers making use of the facilities.

Beyond the pool was a wide expanse of expensively maintained green lawn, where a huge pavilion had been set up with a wooden floor. A mariachi band played enthusiastically while couples danced.

There was a smaller pavilion nearby where tired guests could sit at shaded tables and sip cool drinks dispensed from the bar set up at the edge of the tent. This was in addition to the 4 or 5 other bars that Brian could see that dotted the grounds.

Over to the left were double tennis courts, in use, of course, and Brian could see areas set aside for croquet, horseshoes, volleyball and badminton. All flooded with people. Off to the right, and farthest back from the road, were the stables. Also, obviously in use.

The patio levels, it seemed, were set aside for the more sedentary crowd, with a selection of tables and lounges set under umbrellas. Uniformed servers circulated with platters of hors d'oeuvres and snacks to stave off hunger until the big barbecue later on. And drinks of every description flowed freely from the multiple bars.

The Aguilars were obviously full service hosts. Brian and the others were even informed by their young guide, that if they'd forgotten their swimsuits, a variety of them were provided in the changing rooms in the pool house.

Dom, Brian, Leon and Vince stood around looking fairly impressed. There were probably 200 people present, and more coming in all the time. Of course, not everyone would stay the entire day. Most would drift in and out.

Dom turned to the others. "Watch how much you drink, and don't do anything to embarrass me." He might have been speaking to them all, but his gaze was pinned to Vince.

"What!?" Vince said defensively. "I know how to behave in polite society!"

Leon just snorted.

"Senor Toretto!" They were approached by a distinguished, middle aged man in an expensively tailored sports jacket and slacks.

Accompanying him was a younger man, perhaps in his late teens or very early 20s, who looked a good deal like the older one. He was dressed more casually, in jeans and a tee shirt, although they were designer, to be sure. Where the older man was handsome, the younger had the dark, liquid eyed beauty that could be found in Latinos of either sex.

"Senor Toretto!" It was the older man who had called out. "Thank you for accepting my hospitality, you and your friends!"

"Senor Aguilar, we were very pleased to accept your invitation. Thank you for having us. Ah, I think you know Leon and Vince. This is my new partner, Brian O'Connor. Brian, this is Senor Luis Aguilar, and his eldest son Enrique."

"Welcome to my home, Senor O'Connor." Luis was shaking hands all around, followed by Enrique.

"Encantado, Senor Aguilar. Thank you so much for inviting me to your beautiful home." Brian rattled off the greeting and compliment in flawlessly accented and idiomatic Spanish. The others looked at him in surprise.

"You speak our language beautifully, Senor O'Connor," Enrique commented, staring with admiration at the blue eyed blond.

"Please, call me Brian. I grew up in Arizona, among a large population of Hispanics. Also, my last foster parents were Hispanic. I learned to perfect my accent in their household."

Again, his friends gave him looks of varying surprise at this latest revelation about his past. Brian knew that they had assumed he came from a background of solid middle class Americana. And since they'd never really asked him, he'd never disabused them of the idea.

"Are you a racer like your partners, Brian?" asked the elder Aguilar.

"Well, I found out awhile back that I still have a lot to learn about drag racing to be on the same level as Dom," Brian said.

"Yeah!" interjected Dom, "but where he really shines is in your area of interest Enrique. He's a hell of a stock car racer. He's got the moves and the reflexes."

"Really!" exclaimed Enrique. "Have you ever driven professionally?"

"Nah, not really, just local races here and there." Enrique was going on about cars, but Brian was looking in wonder at Dom. He had actually bragged about him. It gave Brian a warm feeling all over, but at the same time, it made him realize just how needy he had become where his lover was concerned. If such a small thing could thrill him he was in worse straits than he thought.

Brian brought himself back to the here and now when he realized that Enrique had quit talking. He was looking between Brian and Dom in speculation.

Brian was thankful that Dom was still in conversation with Senor Aguilar, and had missed Brian mooning over him like a love sick fool. He knew that his lover would not appreciate having that kind of speculation thrown his way while in public.

When he looked back at the young Mexican, he saw Enrique looking at him with a solemn understanding that melted into a charming and sincere smile when their eyes met. Brian couldn't help but answer it with one of his own.

"Enrique!" From the exasperated tone of his father's voice, it was apparent that this wasn't the first time that Luis Aguilar had called his son's name.

Brian looked up to see a strange look on Dom's face as he watched the two of them.

"Si, papa?"

"Will you please see that our guests are made comfortable?"

"Si, papa," Enrique answered with a grin. "It will be my pleasure!"

"Just do not become so lost in talk of cars that you forget that you have other guests as well," the elder Aguilar admonished.

"No, papa," Enrique agreed, still grinning.

"Senors, please excuse me. A host has many duties, no matter that he would prefer to stay and talk with certain people. Please, take advantage of my hospitality. If you do not see it, please do not hesitate to ask for it. I will hopefully see you again soon."

After Luis took his leave, Enrique chatted happily to them, introducing them to various people, procuring drinks for them, and showing them around.

Dom was soon diverted by an acquaintance that he stopped to talk with. Soon after, Leon and Vince were pulled toward the dance pavilion and the siren call of beautiful women and soft laughter. That left Brian alone with Enrique.

"You said that you grew up in the American southwest. Do you like horses?" Enrique asked.

"Hell, yeah!" Brian exclaimed. "The Escobars, the family that I told you I lived with, they have a small horse ranch outside of Tucson. I learned a lot about horses from them. But when I moved to L.A., I kinda lost touch with the stables. I miss it though."

"Would you care to see our stables?" At Brian's smile and eager nod, Enrique led the way.

"Papa is an indifferent horseman," Enrique informed Brian with a rueful smile. "I learned my love of horses from my mother and her family. They still have a small rancho southeast of here, near San Telmo. I go there quite often."

"This is a really beautiful home," Brian offered as they threaded their way past other guests. Enrique would stop momentarily every now and then to greet people and introduce Brian, but more often than not, he simply smiled and waved.

"Papa is very proud of the vineyard and our home," Enrique said when they'd passed most of the crowd. "He did not inherit it. He worked very hard in other peoples vineyards and wineries, until he had enough money to buy this place. It was very run down and shabby, the vines were very neglected. He would not even accept help from mother's family. Now it is one of the finest wineries in Baja, perhaps in all of Mexico."

"That's quite an accomplishment," agreed Brian, "especially since your father's not really that old. Are you going to eventually take over the business?"

"In time," Enrique said in an off hand manner, "my brothers and sisters and myself. But not too soon I hope."

"How many brothers and sisters do you have?" Brian asked eagerly.

"I have 3 brothers and 3 sisters," Enrique said, laughing at Brian's expression. "They are much younger than me. Paloma and Blanca are identical twins, they are 12. Then there is Carlos, he is 10. Two more twins, Maria and Marco, they are 8, and Jesus, he was named for my uncle, he is 5. There is such a gap between the others and myself because my parents had to wait to have more children until they were more set. Financially I mean."

"It must be great to be part of such a large family," Brian said wistfully. "My parents died when I was 7, and there weren't any relatives close enough to want me. So I went into 'The System'. That's what we call the state run Family Services program. I was placed with several homes until I landed with the Escobars when I was 10." At Enrique's look of thoughtful sorrow he added, "Don't worry, I was lucky. There's some real scum out there masquerading as caring foster parents, but I never got placed with any of them. I really lucked out with the Escobars. I would have been happy to stay there as a ranch hand, even after I turned 18, a lot of the guys did, at least for awhile. But it just didn't work out."

Enrique looked as though he wanted to ask more, but Brian's tone of sorrow and regret made him hold back his words. Instead he asked, "How did you come to be with Dom and the others?"

Brian smiled inwardly at the question. It was almost the exact same one that he had asked Mia that night at the Cuban restaurant, so he gave pretty much the same answer. "That's a long story. And complicated. But the short version is that there's the mutual passion for cars. Plus, they were more like a family then, and that pulled me in. There were three more people in the group. Dom's sister Mia, who's still in L.A. in college. Jesse, who's dead now," Brian paused momentarily, then glossed over it, "and there was Letty, that was Dom's girlfriend."

"His girlfriend?" Enrique's tone was confused. "But I thought that you and Dom...?"

"You can't say anything about us to anyone Enrique, please," Brian's word were quietly pleading. "Dom's kinda new to all of this, and he still doesn't know how to handle it sometimes."

They walked in silence for a few moment more until they reached the stable. Then Enrique stopped and turned to face Brian.

"I understand," he said solemnly. "I, too, have come to realize quite recently, that I am gay. My uncle, my mother's brother, is also gay, and I see how my father accepts him for who he is. And while I think it will be the same for me, you can never be certain, can you?"

Enrique led Brian into the stable. It was deserted now, but they could hear voices outside, not too far away.

Brian spent some time genuinely admiring the horses. Not the riding stock that the Aguilars had brought in from the in-law's rancho for his guests to ride, although they were nice enough, but the pure-bred stock that seemed to be Senora Aguilar's hobby and passion. Brian readily agreed to go for a short ride.

Instead of calling for one of the hands to saddle up the horses, Brian and Enrique did it themselves, and soon they were riding away from the noise of the party.

"So, your family doesn't know about you?" Brian turned the conversation back to his host.

"My uncle does, of course. He is the first one I talked to when I began suspecting the truth about myself. And sometimes I think that my father suspects. After all, I am 22, and I have never had a steady girlfriend. I do not even really date very often. But we have never spoken of it. I think that soon I will have to tell him. It is either that, or live my life as a lie. And I'm not prepared to do that. I want to live openly, as my uncle does." Enrique seemed to consider for a moment, then grinned. "Although, perhaps a little more, how do you say it...discreetly...than my uncle. He owns a gay bar in Ensenada. He is very fierce in proclaiming his sexuality."

Brian could practically see the little cartoon light bulb go off over his head when realization set in.

"Your uncle, the one that owns the bar, is this the same one that your little brother Jesus is named after?" Brian asked slowly.

"Si'" Enrique said, only realizing belatedly that Brian had pulled his mount to a halt. He stopped and turned in the saddle to gaze in puzzlement at his new friend. "What is it, Brian?"

"Is your uncle coming to the party today?" Brian's voice was tentative and uncertain.

"I am not sure," Enrique replied hesitantly. "We talked to him two weeks ago and he asked if he might bring a new friend; he has been talking about him rather a lot lately. I think my uncle is rather - what is the word - ah, yes! Smitten! Papa said 'yes', of course, but when I talked to him last week, he said that if he came, it would be alone. So, I am not certain. Why?"

Brian didn't answer for a moment. He urged his mount into a slow walk once more, with Enrique falling in beside him.

"Brian?" the younger man questioned, "Is something wrong?"

Brian's expression was introspective, sliding quickly into fatalistic. "Is your mother's family name Serra?"

"Si." Enrique was momentarily puzzled, but that gave way to a mixture of enlightenment and confusion. "You are my uncle's 'new friend'?"

"I think so," Brian said slowly.

"But I do not understand. How can that be? You and Dom...?" Enrique's words trailed off in confusion.

"I told you that Dom is having some trouble accepting our new relationship," Brian reminded him. "Except for Leon and Vince, and now you, no one who knows the both of us is aware of it. Jesus knows. I told him about Dom the first time that I met him. And Dom knows that I've made friends with the owner of the bar that I go to. I've even told Dom that I flirt with Jesus, although," he faltered and gave his new friend a guilty look, "I probably haven't made it real clear how far the 'flirting' has gone. I never meant to get this involved with Jesus. I told him from the beginning that I was in love with Dom. But your uncle is so persistent, and I guess I haven't exactly been pushing him away like I should."

"My uncle is very charming," he agreed sympathetically. "And he is also, how you said it, persistent. He can be quite relentless in pursuing something that he wants."

Brian and Enrique had come to a halt on a small rise. It looked down over the Aguilar estate. The grounds were flooded with guests.

"Yeah," Brian agreed softly. "But I had no idea that he was taking our relationship so seriously." He paused. "I really like Jesus. He's helped me so much in the last few weeks. I'd never want to hurt him."

Enrique's look was compassionate. When he had put the pieces together about Brian's relationship with Jesus, he'd been prepared to be indignant on behalf of his uncle. But now he saw that Brian was as much a victim of circumstances as his uncle.

Something in the shallow valley caught his attention.

"Oh!" he said softly, turning to Brian with a helpless expression on his face.

"What is it?" Brian asked, then let his eyes follow the line of Enrique's pointing arm.

"Do you see that red Mustang? Perhaps half way down the line of cars moving toward the house?"

"Yeah? Nice car!"

"That is my uncle's car. I think we had better get back down there before my uncle and Dom meet for the first time," Enrique said softly.

"But it's a big party!" Brian protested weakly, although he was already turning his mount back toward the stable and urging it into a little faster trot. "There are so many people. The chances of Dom and Jesus meeting up at all are pretty slim."

"Then you do not know my uncle as well as you think you do," Enrique retorted good naturedly.

"Obviously not!" Brian muttered softly.

"Since my uncle knows that Dom is here, he will make it a point to seek him out. And he has the mutual passion for cars, and apparently you, to give him the excuse for it."

Sharing one more meaningful look, Brian nodded and they both urged their horses to a canter as they hurried back to the stable.

VII. String of Dominoes

They made it back to the stable in what was probably record time, but to Brian it seemed like an eternity. His mind had been busy conjuring up all sorts of scenarios for the premier meeting between the man who was his lover and the one who obviously wanted to be. None of them turned out well.

Enrique took the reigns of both horses and practically threw them at one of the hands who had appeared from the stable's interior at the sound of their approach.

He grabbed Brian's hand and pulled him at a trot up the lightly wooded path that led back to the house. When they suddenly burst into the open, they caught the attention of more than one of the guests standing nearby and quickly slowed to a more sedate walk. Enrique self-consciously dropped Brian's hand, but more than one eyebrow was raised at not only their explosive exit from the path, but at their disheveled appearance.

Brian tamped down an insane desire to giggle. He felt as though he were dodging in and out of a giant string of dominoes, trying to prevent them from toppling to what seemed their inevitable conclusion. The trouble was, the dominoes seemed to have multiple paths, and he didn't seem to be having any luck determining which path was going to be the next one to topple.

They skirted the dance pavilion where Brian caught a glimpse of both Leon and Vince. They were obliviously having a good time while they were busy chatting up a couple of the female guests.

"I do not think that my uncle has arrived yet," Enrique said hopefully, as they bounded up the shallow stairs to the terrace.

"How can you tell?" Brian asked.

"Because he would seek out my parents first, and there they are."

Brian looked to the left where Enrique pointed, and released a sigh of relief. But as soon as the air left his lungs, his throat closed in panic as Jesus appeared beside Luis Aguilar and his wife.

"This is stupid," Brian said to Enrique in an undertone as they continued to close the distance towards his family. "Jesus isn't going to do anything that will hurt me. Even if he wanted to, and I don't for a minute think he does, there's nothing he could say. We haven't done anything. Not much anyway."

"Would Dom think that it...whatever it is...is nothing much?" Enrique asked quietly. "I have only talked with Dom a few times, and then mostly about cars, but he does not seem to be the type of man who likes to share certain things. Or am I mistaken?"

"No," Brian agreed slowly, "you're not mistaken. Dom would give you the shirt off of his back if you were in need, but he'd fight to the bitter end to keep something from being taken away from him." Brian flashed on the memory of the fierce expression on Dom's face as he jacked a shell into the chamber of the shotgun outside of his house in L.A. when he had been set to go looking for Jesse.

Brian watched as Jesus kissed his sister and shook his brother-in- law's hand before pulling the other man into a huge hug. They were close enough now that Brian could hear them. At the sound of Jesus' voice, Brian became calm once more.

His friend had been a protector these past few weeks. He wouldn't turn on him now and hurt him. It was only Brian's guilt at failing to read the growing depth of the other man's feelings that made him anxious. But guilt was something that Brian was familiar with by now. Something he could handle.

In that moment, Jesus caught sight of the two younger man hurrying their way, and a small smile began to curl his lips. Brian felt, once again, the charismatic pull of the other man and the smile was automatically returned.

The Aguilars turned to see what had caught Jesus' attention, and saw the boys approach.

"Ah, Brian. Enrique. What have you two boys been up to? Dominic and I looked for you earlier, but you were no where to be found. You see, Dominic," Luis called over their shoulders, "here they are."

Brian whirled, another smile of welcome on his lips, but it faded away as he saw the blank look on Dom's face.

"So I see." Dom's voice was mild and as expressionless as his face.

"I took Brian to the stables. He has a fondness for horses. So we went for a short ride."

"Your horses are magnificent, Senora Serra," Brian addressed Enrique's mother, a classically beautiful, aristocratic looking woman in her early to mid 40s.

Jesus was the younger of the two by at least a decade, and they looked practically nothing alike. If he hadn't known they were brother and sister, he would never have taken them as such. Brian wondered briefly if they had different mothers.

"Where are my manners? Brigida, this is Senor Toretto's partner, Senor Brian O'Connor. Brian, allow me to present my wife, Senora Brigida Aguilar y Serra. And this is her brother, Senor Jesus Serra. Jesus, Senor O'Connor and his partner, Senor Dominic Toretto."

Brigida Aguilar's manner was just the tiniest bit cool until Brian turned his formal manners, his excellent Spanish, and his infectious, wide open smile on her. Then the thin veneer of coolness melted away like morning frost under the first rays of the sun. It revealed a graceful and charming woman who welcomed the norteamericanos to her home with gracious warmth.

"Mucho gusto." Jesus shook hands with Dom and then with Brian, giving him an amused smile and squeezing his hand slightly more than necessary. But that was the only additional acknowledgment he made to Brian.

Brian and Enrique exchanged bemused glances, but played along with the charade.

"Partner?" Jesus said quizzically.

"Dominic and his partners rebuild and customize some of the finest racing cars that I have ever seen. Brian, since you enjoy stock car racing, I want you to meet the man who will be driving our car in the race in town at the end of the month. He will be here later. But first, Enrique, why don't you show Brian where he might freshen up? Perhaps you should avail yourself of the opportunity also?"

It was one of the most polite ways that Brian had ever been told that he stank and to please go and clean up. He would have been amused if it weren't for the fact that Jesus and Dom would be left alone as the Aguilar's went to see to their other guests.

Brian turned to Dom once more, but came up against an almost physical wall of silence between them. He wondered, somewhat impatiently, what real or imagined transgression he had made to warrant it. It had an almost tangible quality and Brian's hard won calm was eroding in the face of it.

Enrique's parents had wandered off to join another group of guests, leaving the four of them in the pool of stillness spreading out from Dom.

"Enrique," Jesus said cheerfully, "you must take your friend to freshen up, and I will bear Senor Toretto company while you are gone." He was staring at Brian in a faintly challenging manner, and his smile was at its most charming.

Brian stared back at Jesus for a split second before making a giant leap of faith.

"Sure," he said. "Come on, Enrique. And while we're gone, Jesus can explain to Dom how we know each other and why he acted like he didn't know me."

Jesus' smile widened into a grin and the little upward quirk of his eyebrow eloquently said 'touche'.

The two larger men watched as the younger ones made their way quickly into the house before turning to face each other. Jesus eyed Dom with speculation, and a touch of appreciation. Dom returned his gaze impassively.

"So, how do you know Brian?" Dom asked, not seeming to realize that the very neutrality of his voice and expression were a dead giveaway as to at least some of what he was feeling. That is, if you had inside information about the true nature of his relationship with Brian as Jesus did.

Jesus continued to observe Dom for a few moments more before his smile widened. "I own the bar that our beautiful friend has been frequenting lately. We met several weeks ago."

"OK," Dom said slowly, "I remember. I just hadn't connected the name with you. But why did you pretend that you didn't know Brian?"

"Senor Toretto..."

"Oh, call me Dom. I feel like we know each other already." Dom's voice was blase in the extreme.

"Very well...Dom. You must, of course, call me Jesus." His tone matched the American's in every nuance. "The reason I pretended not to know Brian is because everyone here knows me and that I am gay. I have lived my life in the open since I was younger than Enrique. That is my choice. If it had been seen that I was previously known to our young friend, there might have been some unwanted speculation. This way, everyone is left with options."

"So, let me get this straight. You played the stranger to save Brian's reputation? Is that it?"

"Not at all. If Brian were alone, I think he would be very open about his sexuality. But I knew that you were here also."

"OK, so you did it to save my reputation?"

"No," Jesus returned flatly. "I did it to save Brian from grief. He has had enough of that in his life."

The tension between the two men had become palpably stronger as they continued to stare at one another.

Jesus lightened the mood by hailing a passing server and ordering beers for the two of them. He gestured to a nearby empty table where they sat in silence until the server returned with their beers.

"You know," Jesus interjected into the silence, "business at my bar has been...what is the word...booming?...yes, booming since Brian has graced us with his presence. His looks, his personality, the way that he makes friends so easily. Mi cielo is very popular. I have thought of offering him a job as my co-host."

Dom didn't bat an eye at the intimacy of the pet name that Jesus used for Brian.

"Brian already has a job," Dom said mildly. "I don't think he's in the market for another."

Jesus continued to smile, but his eyes had gone neutral. "Perhaps not at the moment, but if you continue to present me with opportunities to 'work on him', quien sabe? Who knows?" The words were both a caution and a challenge, as was the look Jesus gave the man he considered his rival.

After walking sedately through the patio doors and the foyer, Brian waited with admirably concealed impatience as Enrique extricated himself gracefully from one group of arriving guests after another. But when they reached the foot of the broad stairs, Brian grabbed the younger man's hand and pulled him at a run to the upper landing. They barely missed slamming into two women who were beginning their descent. Once again they had attracted attention with their behavior.

Now Enrique took the lead and pulled Brian to a door half way down the tiled hallway on the right. Pushing it open, he dragged Brian inside and shut the door. They both collapsed, staring at one another, Brian against the door, and Enrique on the edge of the bed.

"You have any idea what the hell that was about?" asked Brian.

"No," Enrique assured him. "My uncle does not usually play games. I have always known him to state exactly what he wants at all times. He's very blunt."

"Yeah, that's been my experience with him." Brian pushed himself up and away from the door. "We better get cleaned up and get back down there."

Enrique jumped up and went to another door across the room. On the other side was a gorgeous bathroom, inlaid entirely in what were probably hand made and hand painted tiles. He checked quickly for extra towels and waved his guest inside.

"You should take a quick shower." He stopped Brian as he passed, with a hand on his shoulder. Then he reached up and ran his fingers through the waves of Brian's hair. "You have somehow managed to get hay in you hair," he said slowly.

There was a moment when their eyes met and an air of hesitation shimmered about them.

Brian quickly skirted both Enrique and the strange moment by stepping nonchalantly away and running his hand through his hair. "Yeah, well, that Arabian was lipping at me. He probably left the hay as well as a generous helping of horse drool," he joked lightly.

Enrique also managed to shake off the moment and walked to the other side of the room to a set of double doors which he opened to reveal a huge walk in closet. "I will find you something to wear while you clean up. You are a little taller than me, but we are nearly the same size. Then, while you dress, I can wash."

Brian took a three minute shower, hurrying as fast as he could. All the while he was trying to form a picture in his mind as to what was happening between Dom and Jesus.

He moved faster.

Drying himself hurriedly, he wrapped the towel around his waist then began to rub his wet hair vigorously with another as he walked back into the bedroom. His head emerged from the towel as he heard Enrique speak.

"These should fit you. They were always a little too loose on me."

Brian's mouth dropped open at the sight of the outfit waiting for him. "Come on!" he exclaimed. "All I need is a pair of old jeans and a tee shirt!"

"No," Enrique said judiciously, examining Brian and then the outfit again. "These will be perfect."

Brian looked at the brown leather pants that Enrique held. They looked butter soft and expensive as hell. The shirt, he could tell, was silk and the exact color of his eyes.

"Leather will be too hot," protested Brian weakly.

"The heat of the day is past," Enrique countered. "Soon the sun will be down soon and it will grow cooler."

"But my running shoes will look like shit with that outfit! Maybe I should just wear my own clothes. They're not so bad."

"They reek of the stables," Enrique said. "Besides, I sent them away to be laundered. I have these, also." He pointed at a pair of brown leather half boots on the floor by the chair. "I measured them against your shoes before I sent them to be cleaned also. You stepped in horse manure. Our feet appear to be exactly the same size."

"I don't know," Brian said slowly, eyeing the clothes doubtfully. "I'm more of a jeans and tee shirt kind of guy. I've never worn anything like that."

"Please, Brian," pleaded Enrique. "You will look magnificent in them."

"Looking magnificent isn't exactly what I'm aiming for right now, Enrique." But at the look of stubborn entreaty in his host's eyes, Brian gave in grudgingly.

"Good!" Enrique was grinning. "I have laid out other things that you will need." He gestured as he laid the clothes on the bed beside a small pile of other items.

While Enrique hurried through his own shower, Brian began to dress himself in the borrowed clothes.

The underwear was white, silk knit, long leg briefs. They felt like his was wearing cool air wrapped closely about his loins. Looking at himself in the cheval mirror, he shook his head. "Dom would swallow his tongue," he murmured with a smirk. The briefs were sheer and tight. They hugged his ass and thighs and perfectly outlined his cock and balls.

Hearing the shower shut off, Brian hurried into the rest of the strange clothing. He pulled on socks then shimmied into the tight leather pants. He left the fly unbuttoned until he tucked in the shirt. Then he sat in the chair to put on the half boots and zipped them up.

He stood and walked over to the mirror once more. He had to admit, the clothes fit perfectly. The size and colors looked like they could have been hand picked just for him. But the person looking back at him didn't seem to be him at all.

He'd never really cared all that much about his appearance. He knew in an abstract sort of way that he was attractive, he'd had too many people tell him so not to believe it, but he'd never really thought much about it. When you're in foster care, depending too much on your looks usually got you the wrong kind of attention.

He jumped slightly when Enrique appeared beside him in the mirror. Their eyes met in the reflection for a moment before Brian turned to face him.

"Well, what do you think?" Brian asked a little nervously.

Enrique looked him up and down for a few seconds. "Es muy guapo," he murmured softly. "You are very beautiful. Dom and Jesus are going to go insane."

"Enrique," Brian hedged, "that's not a very good idea right now. Maybe I should..."

"You have forgotten the belt," tsked Enrique, fetching it from the bed. It was brown leather, of course, intricately tooled, with a decorative, but not overwhelming, silver buckle.

Enrique approached Brian, who held out his hand for the belt. But Enrique brushed his hand aside and began to thread it through the loops himself, pressing closer and reaching around Brian's slender waist to do the ones in back.

Brian was suddenly reminded that his new friend was quite beautiful himself, and nearly naked. All he had on was a small towel knotted over his right hip, and it barely reached the tops of his smooth, brown thighs.

Enrique stood with his body almost touching Brian's, barely giving his hands room enough to fasten the buckle. When he was done he didn't move back. He stood, head down, fingers fidgeting with the belt buckle.

Brian stood still, looking at the top of Enrique's head. He could smell the fresh scent of the shampoo that he'd used on his glossy, still damp hair.

"Brian," Enrique said softly, "are we friends?"

"Of course we are." Brian's voice was low and husky. He'd only known this young man for a few short hours, but already he knew that they were going to be good friends.

"As a friend, just as a friend, would you do something for me?" Enrique still hadn't looked all the way up, but he was getting there slowly as he ran his fingers up the front of the silk shirt, pausing to fiddle with each of the buttons along the way.

"Sure," Brian said, his voice slightly strangled. "What are friends for?"

Enrique finally lifted his eyes to Brian's. Their faces were only inches apart.

"I have never kissed a man before. I would like it if you were the first one."

There was a more rational part of Brian's mind that was screaming 'Are you insane!' at him, even as he leaned forward and tilted his head slightly, to better fit his mouth to Enrique's.

The other man's lips were lush and moist, and they parted for Brian's tongue like the petals of a night blooming flower for the moon.

Enrique's arms crept slowly around his neck as Brian explored the sweetness of his mouth. He stroked his tongue over the wet silken interior as his hands swept down the long line of his satiny back to cup his buttocks.

Somewhere along the way, the loose knot on the towel had come undone, and they only thing that held it up was the press of their two bodies.

Enrique moaned into Brian's mouth as his ass was caressed and kneaded. His own hands entwined themselves in the silky, golden waves, to hold his tormentor still while he launched a counter attack with his own lips and tongue.

When Brian felt his cock stirring in the confines of the tight pants, with an answering pressure from Enrique, Brian wrenched his mouth away and gently pressed the firm, slender body away from him. He closed his eyes so he wouldn't have to see that beautiful naked body, and turned away.

He leaned his hands against the dresser, pressing with straightened arms, trying to steady himself.

"Enrique, we can't do this." His voice was hoarse. "God knows you're beautiful, and I've never had any pretensions of being saintly, but I've got too much on my plate as it is. I don't want to hurt you!" He flinched from the tentative hand that touched his back and seemed to be scorching him through the thin silk.

"Brian, I am so sorry! I never meant...I did not think..." Enrique's words were distressed. Brian heard him draw a steadying breath before trying again. "I had no idea it could be like that." He gave a little half-hearted laugh. "At least I know that I am truly gay. Kissing a woman never felt that way. Never aroused me like this. But I understand, I truly do. I have no wish to make your life more complicated than it already is. And I would not wish to do anything that would endanger our friendship. Please believe that!"

Brian automatically responded to the pleading note in Enrique's voice by turning to face him. He was extremely glad that the other man had retrieved and re-knotted his towel.

"I do believe you. Things just got out of hand. Too much pressure. Unique situation, all that shit." His smile was somewhat less than convincing and more than a little strained.

"Why don't you get dressed and we'll go down and get us a couple of beers, and try to figure out what the hell is going on. OK?"

"OK," Enrique echoed, relief plain in his face. He walked to the huge closet and went in. He rummaged about, chattering away about inconsequential things and people as he began to dress.

Brian took several deep, steadying breaths before muttering to himself, "What the hell is wrong with me?"

By the time Enrique reappeared, he had himself back under control. Though, when he saw the other man looking incredible in tight black jeans and a dark coral silk shirt, his mouth was suddenly flooded with the memory of the other man's tongue. Stomping down hard on his wayward thoughts, he smiled brightly at Enrique, and they made their way back to the party.

VIII. No Gravity

When Brian and Enrique descended the main stairs, they created quite a stir. They were beautiful in contrast. Each was eye catching in his own right, but compelling when paired.

Brian, with his golden hair and skin and blue eyes, was sleek in leather and silk. Enrique was lustrous and dark, as exotic as a tropical flower in bright coral silk and thigh hugging black jeans.

As they moved through the crowd, Brian had the unsettling impression that he was actually 'slinking' across the foyer. He couldn't seem to help it. It was as though he had donned a costume and become another person. The leather pants clung so well, that Brian felt as though he had grown a new, supple skin.

The whisper thin underwear he wore kept the pants from chaffing, but it did nothing to stop the slipping caress of the creamy soft leather against his thighs, buttocks and groin. Unless he kept himself in tight check, he'd be sporting a very noticeable bulge that would be lovingly outlined by the tight crotch of the pants.

Brian could see that from where Dom sat, he had an unimpeded view of the open patio doors over Jesus' shoulder. He was amused by the fact that, while Dom had noticed their entrance, he hadn't recognized them, because his eyes had slid right past them.

Dom's double take was a classic.

Brian had begun to feel very self conscious as whispered comments swirled about him and Enrique. He had seriously been doubting the wisdom of allowing Enrique to talk him into the outfit. But most of his doubts had vanished like smoke on the breeze when he had stepped onto the patio and met Dom's eyes.

Dom couldn't have looked more shocked if Brian had suddenly appeared completely nude and painted blue.

His face was taut, lips parted, chest rising and falling rapidly with his suddenly elevated breathing. Dom's eyes lingered on Brian's face before sliding a hot caress down his body that scorched like a trail of fire.

Brian felt an answering flush of warmth and quickly decided that perhaps the clothes weren't so bad after all. If a pair of ass-hugging leather pants could elicit such a response from Dom in public, maybe they were worth the investment. Besides, the silk of the shirt did slip teasingly across his sensitive nipples.

Jesus, finally realizing that he had completely lost Dom's attention, glanced around to see what had claimed it. Then he rose to his feet and stepped around to meet Brian and Enrique.

Brian pulled his eyes from Dom's in time to catch the grimace of wry acceptance that passed over his friend's face as Jesus accurately interpreted the look that passed between Brian and Dom.

Brian tired to apologize to Jesus with his eyes, but the big man had already cast off his moment of self pity, and a huge grin of appreciation lit his face.

"Mi cielo," he said, his voice pitched to exclude any eavesdroppers, "this is a good look for you. Truly! I cannot decide if you look more like a vision from God's angels, or a temptation from the Devil. Maybe a little of both, si? And you, my nephew. When I can finally persuade you to visit Los Hombres, you must wear this exact outfit. Or perhaps not. For then I would have the virtue of two beautiful young men to protect."

"Tio," Enrique laughed, "perhaps that visit will be very soon. And maybe," his eyes caressed Brian, "I will not wish to be protected."

Hearing Enrique's words, Brian felt anew, the heat of an ill advised kiss and satin skin beneath his hands and his face grew warm.

He saw the look of amused speculation that Jesus slid from Enrique to himself and squirmed, just a little.

By now, Dom had joined them where they stood. But before he could say anything, another of the young girls who acted as 'guides' for the guests, appeared among them.

"Senor Enrique," she said shyly, when attention turned to her. "The senora would like to speak with you and Senor Jesus before the food is served."

"Very well, Maria, thank you. Please tell my mother that we will be there in a minute," Enrique said. He turned to Brian, a sly smile shaping his lips. "Brian, perhaps Dom would appreciated a chance to freshen up before the meal. Please feel free to use my room. It will be less crowded, and you will not have to wait." He tucked his arm through his uncle's before continuing. "We will find you when we all return so that, perhaps, we can all eat together, si?"

Brian smiled in return. "Yeah, that would be great. Thanks."

Dom had stood mute through the entire exchange, barely taking his eyes from Brian. His usual confident, take charge manner seemed to have temporarily deserted him. Brian grabbed him by the wrist and tugged him toward the patio doors.

"Brian!" He turned at Enrique's call. "There is no need to hurry. It will be at least a half an hour before the food is served."

Brian returned Enrique's grin. But it faded when he met Jesus' gaze.

His big friend's expression was a rapidly changing mixture of emotions. First introspective and just a touch sad. Then fatalistic and accepting. Finally, he wore the good natured grin he was known for, even if it was just a hint more toned down than normal.

When Enrique and Jesus walked away, Brian once more grabbed Dom's arm, this time tugging at a rock hard bicep. "Come on," Brian urged.

Brian led the way back up the stairs and down the hall.

Once inside, Brian turned and thrust Dom backward against the closing door. It shut with a loud bang, but neither man paid the noise the slightest bit of attention.

Brian was busy thrusting his body against Dom's and his tongue into the other man's mouth. His fingers were wrapped around the back of Dom's neck, thumbs tracing and caressing the lines of his jaw and throat.

Dom's hands were everywhere on Brian, seemingly all at once. Thrusting through the waves of his hair, gliding over his silk clad torso, then grasping and kneading the leather encased buttocks, grinding Brian's hips closer to his own.

Tongues thrust and dueled, lips sucked and teeth nipped. Their kisses were hurried, frenzied, almost harsh; their mouths were already swollen and red from the frantic pressure, but neither seemed to notice.

When Brian's fingers began scrabbling at Dom's belt buckle, Dom knocked them aside. He grasped Brian by his upper arms and pushed him away, pivoting them until their positions were reversed and Brian's back was now pressed to the door. His take charge mentality had finally re-emerged.

Dom pulled his head back until their eyes could meet. They simply stared at each other for long moments. Lips parted, panting, their warm breath mingling.

In contrast to the frenzied actions of moments before, Dom seemed to be deliberately holding himself in check. He still held Brian's eyes with his own while he raised his hands and began to methodically unbutton the silk shirt.

When he reached the point where the shirt was tucked into the pants, instead of tugging it free, he merely parted the halves so that the rich blue silk framed the golden skin of Brian's torso.

Still holding Brian's eyes with his own as long as possible, Dom leaned forward, fleetingly brushed his lips over Brian's, over his jaw, and down the long line of his throat. Brian let his head fall back to rest on the door. This slow, caressing movement, in direct contrast to their previous urgency, was erotically enticing. When Dom reached the place where neck curved into shoulder, he suddenly fell on Brian in a fair imitation of a vampire. His teeth sank into the soft skin and his mouth latched on with fierce suction.

Brian cried out hoarsely and clutched at Dom, but made no attempt to escape from the 'attack'. Instead, he pulled at Dom's shoulders and ran his hands up to clasp his head.

Brian knew that Dom was 'marking' him, proclaiming him as a possession, and leaving his brand for Jesus to see, but Brian didn't care. In fact, he reveled in it.

When Dom released his hold on Brian's throat, Brian felt the stinging flesh being soothed with flat swipes of a broad tongue.

Dom began running his mouth down Brian's throat. He traced the center, pausing to lave the notch at the base, the top of Dom's shaved head rasping gently against Brian's chin, before continuing.

When he reached the center of Brian's chest, he made forays to the left, and then to the right, to torment and suckle the nipples to erection.

Then Dom sank slowly to his knees in front of Brian, tongue sliding wetly down the center of his flat belly. He paused to swirl through the light fuzz surrounding the navel, while his fingers were busy releasing the fancy silver buckle and the buttoned fly of the leather pants.

Dom only tugged the pants down an inch or so, spreading the fly wide open to frame Brian's groin as the shirt did his chest.

"Fuck!" Dom uttered softly, his voice almost reverential.

Brian didn't have to look down to know what Dom saw, but he did anyway.

The thin, silk, knit briefs were stretched almost to transparency, and his golden brown pubic hair created a dark backdrop for the pale stretch of his stiff cock.

Dom leaned forward and mouthed the erect shaft through the material, making the wet fabric cling more lovingly to the flesh it covered. Then he reached up and parted the front slit of the underwear until Brian's cock jumped through the opening. Sliding his fingers in, he scooped the pouch of Brian's testicles out into the flow of his hot breath.

Brian tensed with anticipation, then moaned loudly when Dom's lips slid around his aching erection. He sucked gently on the head, tongue flicking at the tiny slit on the tip, before his lips made the trip down his shaft.

Dom's left hand traveled around to grasp leather clad buttocks. His right one slid back up, over belly and chest, to cup around Brian's throat. His thumb stroked the chords in the slender neck, while the tips of his fingers rubbed the mark he'd placed there earlier.

The light pressure of Dom's fingertips, tracing the teeth marks in the center of the red splotch, renewed the slight stinging. That, coupled with Dom's mouth on his cock, was enough to release a seemingly endless string of moans and gasps from Brian's throat.

Dom couldn't swallow all of Brian's respectable length because he wasn't sufficiently practiced enough to deep throat him. This was something that Dom didn't often do, at least no more than a token lick or suck. Usually it was Brian on his knees in front of Dom, like the first time in the garage. So this was enough of a novelty, and such a complete turn on for Brian, that he knew he wouldn't last long.

Brian cupped the back of Dom's skull with both hands, gently caressing the lightly stubbled skin. He watched through glazed eyes as his own fingers moved around to travel the ridge of his brow, down the straight, prominent nose, to trace the full lips that moved erotically along the length of his shaft.

Brian let his head fall back against the door once more, and closed his eyes. But his sensitive fingertips continued to move lightly over all of the planes and angles of his lover's face, like a blind man reading Braille.

Unable to resist any longer, he began to tentatively move his hips forwards and backwards, thrusting his cock gently between Dom's lips, into the incredible heat of his mouth.

Soon a rhythm was found. On the in-thrust, Dom's tongue would tease the underside of Brian's shaft. On the retreat, he would suck strongly, as though to hold onto his prize more tightly.

"Oh, God! Dom! You're fantastic!" Brian gasped. He felt almost light headed with the incredible sensations. He was close. So close. He felt a rush of heat in his groin and gasped a warning to Dom.

After a moment's hesitation, Dom clamped his one hand firmly on Brian's ass, and sucked more strongly. He moved his other hand from Brian's throat, to brush fingers against lips, thrusting them inside Brian's mouth, into the wet heat, before withdrawing them to cup over Brian's mouth.

Brian uttered a loud, but muffled groan against Dom's hand as he came violently, flooding Dom's mouth and throat.

When Dom finally pulled away, Brian felt like all of the marrow and strength had been sucked from his bones.

Glancing to the side, he had a fleeting view of himself in the cheval mirror.

Shirt thrust open and partially untucked. Brown leather pants laying open and his still half erect cock tumbling from the fly of skin tight, translucent underwear. He looked utterly wanton and felt completely sated.

He let himself slide, weak kneed to the floor, clutching Dom's shoulders, while strong arms encircled him in support.

Opening his eyes, he saw Dom's face, red from strain, pupils dilated, his lips glistening with the remnants of Brian's passion.

Leaning forward, Brian licked hungrily at Dom's lips and chin, chasing his own unique flavor. Then he sealed his mouth onto Dom's, thrusting into the humid interior.

Resting his forehead against Dom's, eyes momentarily closed, he panted and attempted to get himself under control.

Tilting his head back far enough to meet Dom's eyes, he held them with his own for a moment before brushing a tender kiss across Dom's swollen lips, gliding across his cheek, until his mouth came to rest against the tender skin just behind Dom's ear.

Brian held still for a moment, just breathing in the unique, musky, yet clean scent of Dom, feeling the tremors of unreleased tension in the body he held. Then, lifting his head slightly, he whispered, almost inaudibly, "I love you."

But Dom heard. And his body shuddered in response. Before he could react and pull away, Brian pushed slightly, helping to ease Dom's body back onto the carpeted floor, following him down. Nimble fingers released Dom's hard cock, and Brian's head bowed to a familiar feasting.

Dom was so aroused, that it only took moments for his orgasm to overtake him.

Afterward, Dom retreated to the quiet solitude he always sought nowadays after they made love. No words were spoken as they cleaned up, straightened their clothes and made their way back to the party.

Dom had closed himself off completely again. Not the cold, accusing silence of before, but it was a separation from Brian just as surely as if he'd walked away and left him.

Brian was at a loss as to what was going through his lover's mind. He only knew that each time that Dom shut him out this way, it slashed another wound in Brian's soul.

They reached the patio and found themselves directed to a table that had been set aside for them by Enrique. Brian sent a server off for a couple of beers and was trying to frame a question for Dom that wouldn't put him on the defensive when they were interrupted.

"Hey, Dom! Man, I been looking for you." Leon was grinning and relaxed. He'd obviously been having a good time. Whether Vince had been having a good time or not was anybody's guess. He stood behind Leon, arms crossed, perpetual frown in evidence.

Then Leon caught sight of Dom's table companion. "Whoa! Brian?" Leon's face was just as shocked as Dom's had been. "Holy shit, Cinderella! Where'd you park the pumpkin coach?"

At Brian's saucy, albeit somewhat embarrassed grin, Leon made motions for Brian to get up, which became more forceful until Brian complied with a good natured sigh of exasperation. Then he had to turn for inspection at his friend's twirling gesture.

"What? Enrique decide to play 'dress-up Brian'?" Leon grinned.

"Fuck you, Leon," Brian laughed. "Enrique and I went horseback riding and Senor Aguilar delicately hinted that we might be more comfortable if we cleaned up."

"Oh, horseback riding." Leon snorted, darting out a hand to flick aside the collar of the silk shirt, exposing Dom's brand. "Did that big animal you were riding try to take a bite out of you?" Leon's eyes slid teasingly towards Dom. "You know, you gotta be careful around big strong animals like that."

"Was there something in particular you wanted, Leon?" Dom asked quietly.

Leon's grin was still present, but it had lost some of its animation. He tilted his head quizzically at Dom. "Nah, Dom. We was just checking in. We're gonna eat with some new friends. We'll meet up with you later, OK?" He clapped Brian gently on the arm. "Take care, bro." Then he grabbed Vince by the back of the neck and gently pushed him towards the steps to the lower grounds.

Brian could hear Vince's bitching. "What the hell was that about? I thought we was gonna..." His words faded away into the background babble of the crowd.

Brian looked solemnly at Dom for a long moment before quietly asking, "What the hell was that all about? What's the matter, Dom?"

"Nothing's wrong, Brian." Dom's voice was equally quiet.

"That's bullshit, Dom." Brian still spoke softly, but more forcefully. "Something has been bothering you for weeks now. Why won't you talk to me? What just happened upstairs was fantastic. What we did...the way you treated me and touched me, the fact the we were here and not locked away in our bedroom at home...that was more exciting, more of a turn on, than I can possibly tell you."

Dom wasn't looking at Brian. His eyes were scanning the guests surrounding them. But when Brian's voice got a little more insistent, Dom turned to him and made a 'calm down' gesture.

Brian reached out and grabbed the gesturing hand. When Dom would have tugged it away, Brian held fast and gave it a little shake to get his lover's attention. Then Brian captured the man's eyes with his own, and held them as tightly as the grip on his hand. When he spoke, his voice was low, barely more than a whisper.

"Dominic Toretto, I love you." Brian tightened his grip on Dom's hand when he would have pulled it away. "And what's more, I think you love me, too. But how can I be sure? You've never said so." Frustration crept into his voice. "Sometimes it seems that we know each other so well that we can actually finish each other's sentences. At other times your actions are so totally alien to me that you might as well be from another planet." Brian paused for a moment, waiting for some kind of response. "Why can't you just talk to me? You used to. Back in L.A. I've never felt as close to you as the time you told me about your father's death. Not even when you hold me and you're inside my body." Brian finally let go of Dom's hand, but didn't allow his eyes to escape.

"Why are you pushing this now, Brian? When we're here, surrounded by all of these people?" Dom finally looked away.

"Because we are here, surrounded by all of these people," Brian insisted. "When I try to talk to you at home, you just walk away. Nothing I say makes you stay and listen. If you walk away now, it's going to cause a scene. And that's what you try to avoid at all costs. You don't want attention drawn to the two of us. Is it shame, Dom? Are you ashamed of your relationship with me?" The pain in Brian's voice got the reaction that all of his words hadn't.

Dom's head snapped up and this time it was his eyes that did the capturing. "No!" His voice was very emphatic. "I'm not ashamed!"

"Then what's wrong?" pleaded Brian.

As he watched his lover's face, he could see the thoughts working behind his eyes. Too bad he couldn't see the contents of those thoughts. There was nothing enigmatic about his expression now.

"Talk to me, Dom! Tell me what's going on in that head of yours, because I can't take much more of this...this not knowing." Brian closed his eyes for a moment, slumping back in his chair. "I'm tired, Dom. I'm tired of trying to keep my feet under me when there's no gravity."

"What? What are you talking about, Brian? 'No gravity'?"

"Brian! Dominic!" Enrique's voice hailed them from a few feet away where he stood with his uncle. "Come on, they are going to begin serving now. We need to get in line."

With evident relief, Dom pushed back his chair, preparing to stand. Brian reached out once more. This time he merely laid his hand on Dom's arm.

"This isn't over, Dom. We've got to finish this later. I'm not going to let it go this time."

Dom stared back at Brian for a moment, his 'game face' back on. Then he nodded once in agreement, before standing and moving off to meet the others. Enrique, after glancing quickly between the two of them, fell into step beside Dom, while Jesus waited for Brian to catch up.

After they had walked a few steps amidst the chattering crowd, Jesus asked, "Are you alright, mi cielo?"

Brian looked up to see his friend watching him carefully, his eyes straying to Dom's 'brand'.

Brian reached up to touch the mark, a little self conscious, before giving Jesus a reassuring smile.

"Dom would never hurt me, Jesus. He's like you. He's too conscious of how strong he is. Dom never does anything to me that I don't want. He's very careful."

Jesus was quiet for a moment, keeping pace beside Brian. "There are other ways to hurt someone than with the hands, mi cielo," he said softly.

"I appreciate the concern, Jesus, more than you know, but really, it's OK. Actually, we were kinda beginning to talk just now."

"Ah, and we interrupted. Lo siento," he apologized.

"Nah, it's OK, really. This wasn't exactly the best place to have the conversation that we need to have. But it was a start. Day after tomorrow, Dom and I are planning to take a trip to Mexicali. We've got a little business to take care of and then we're going to just take a couple of days and do tourist shit. Just kick back and relax by ourselves. We'll get everything hashed out then."

"Bueno. That is good. I will be happy for you when some of this trouble is smoothed from your life."

Brian stopped suddenly, his hand on Jesus' arm, pulling him to a stop beside him, disrupting the flow of traffic behind them. Brian was pretty sure that if it had been just him alone, he might have been run down by the hungry hoard advancing on the buffet tables. But with the solid presence of Jesus beside him, the crowd merely split in two and flowed around them like flowing water around a boulder.

"Jesus," Brian began tentatively, "if I ever led you to believe that..."

"Brian," Jesus interrupted gently, "you led me to believe nothing except that you are very much in love with 'your Dom'. I am a grown man, I control my own beliefs and actions. As you can see, I am not distraught and wallowing in the remnants of a broken heart." Brian reddened slightly. The way Jesus said it, it did sound incredibly conceited of him. "Could I have wished for a different outcome? Si, of course. But I do not think that I could feel about you the way that I do if you were the kind of man who would give up on something, or someone, that you wanted and needed so desperately. I am happy for you, mi cielo."

Brian looked at Jesus admiringly for a long moment. "I'm so lucky I met you that first night that I walked into Los Hombres," Brian said. "I was looking for trouble, and I probably would have found it. Instead, I found a good friend who's been incredibly generous to me. Thank you."

Jesus chuckled and threaded his arm through Brian's, turning him to walk with the crowd once more.

"If you want to thank me, help me fight my way to the food. I am starving." He paused for effect. "And do not stop me when I tease your friend. He deserves it for putting you through such a hard time. Just a little teasing," he added hastily at Brian's look. "Nothing too terribly serious."

Brian just snickered and shook his head as they made their way to the buffet.

It was well past midnight when they left the party. They had eaten until they were stuffed, and drunk a little too much, except Dom, who had volunteered to be the designated driver and had switched to soft drinks after eating.

Leon and Vince had drifted off to sleep during the hour long ride home, but Brian had stayed awake, watching Dom's profile, illuminated by the glow from the dashboard.

Occasionally, Dom would look at Brian. He didn't think that Dom could see more than the glitter of his eyes in the mostly darkened car interior, but still, he would seem to hold his glance for long moments. Brian felt a sense of closeness with Dom in those moments.

Arriving home, Dom helped Leon get an almost comatose Vince into the house and to his room. Brian took care to lock up the house and still beat Dom back to the room.

Brian began to undress. He unzipped and toed off his half boots, and stripped off the socks. He stood barefoot, in leather and silk, his hands at the top button of the shirt when Dom entered.

Closing the door behind him quietly, Dom walked to Brian and brushed his hands aside. With careful and precise movements, Dom finished undressing Brian, lips and hands caressing skin as it was revealed.

With the same careful movements, Dom made love to Brian. He brought Brian to the brink of orgasm, again and again, only to back off each time, until Brian was pleading and babbling like an idiot, on the edge of insanity. When Dom finally allowed Brian his release, he was wringing wet with perspiration from the intensity.

Several hours later, Brian was awakened by Dom. No words were spoken, but this time his lovemaking had a sense of urgency about it, so it didn't last nearly so long.

Yet again, as early dawn light seeped into the room, Dom woke Brian. This time their lovemaking was slow and languorous. Brian remained half asleep throughout most of it. To him it had an almost surreal, dreamlike quality. When he slid into his orgasm, it was gentle and quiet.

The last thing Brian was aware of was Dom's arms about him and his whispered words, "Go back to sleep."

When Brian finally swam to consciousness, the bedside clock said it was nearly noon and Dom was no longer beside him.

Stretching luxuriously, he mentally cataloged and cherished each aching, sore muscle before rising to shower.

Moving toward the smell of freshly brewed coffee, Brian entered the kitchen to find Leon and Vince there.

Brian poured himself a glass of juice and leaned his hip against the counter, studying the other two.

"You look like shit," he addressed Vince bluntly, but cheerfully. "You're not much better," he informed Leon.

Glancing out of the window, through the patio and toward the garage, he looked for the man responsible for the smile on his face.

"Where's Dom?" he asked, draining his glass and pouring another. "We need to decide on a couple of things before we take off for Mexicali tomorrow."

Receiving no answer, he turned back to the guys. Both were staring into their coffee cups as though they held the secret to life.

"Leon? Where's Dom?"

It took another few moments before Leon took a deep breath and looked up at his friend. "Dom left about an hour ago."

"Yeah? Where'd he go? Will he be back soon?" Brian could feel the smile fading from his lips. Vince still wouldn't look up.

"Leon? What's going on? Where's Dom?" By now, Brian's voice had taken on a flat quality.

"Brian," Leon's voice was soft, "Dom left for Mexicali. He said he'd be back in about a week." At the stricken expression on Brian's face, Leon looked away. But his head jerked back, as well as Vince's, at the sound of shattering glass.

Brian had slammed his juice glass against the far wall, spraying that side of the room with glass shards.

His face was absolutely white, and he was shaking with rage.

"That fucking coward!" Brian cursed.

IX. Learn to Deal With It

Allowing himself the luxury of becoming hypnotized by the rapidly passing night scenery, Leon relaxed in the passenger seat of Vince's Maxima. Vince, content to drive and listen to the softly playing radio, was quiet for a change, allowing Leon time to think.

The last few days had been a hell of a balancing act. He'd been walking a tight wire between Dom's demanding voice from Mexicali, and Brian.

Brian alternated between a pale, silent wraith who drifted noiselessly around the house, and a cyclone of sarcastic rage. Leon had known pregnant women who didn't go through the quicksilver mood shifts that Brian had been prone to lately. Even his menopausal aunt had been more predictable.

Not that he could blame Brian. He wanted to bitch slap Dom and tell him to snap out of whatever fugue state he seemed to be in and make up his damned mind. Except, of course, he wasn't masochistic enough to slap Dom.

In recent days, Brian had set up a pattern. He'd sleep until mid-afternoon, spend time on the beach, then leave for Ensenada in the early evening. Too early to go to the bars, so Leon wondered what he was up to. He wouldn't return until the early hours of the next morning, then he'd fall into bed exhausted, to arise the next afternoon and begin the cycle again.

When Vince sarcastically asked if he was going to help Leon in the garage, Brian had replied harshly, that this was supposed to be the week of his vacation. If he couldn't spend it doing what he'd planned, he'd damn well spend it doing what he wanted.

But then he stopped and looked at Leon in uncertain contrition, asking if he needed help. Leon had assured him that nothing much had been planned for this week on purpose. Nothing that he couldn't easily handle by himself.

He wasn't sure about the wisdom of Brian spending so much time in Ensenada by himself in the state of mind that he was in, but he also knew that to try and keep him home would be disastrous. He needed to release some of the tension and anger he was feeling before Dom returned.

Telling Dom when he called, four nights in a row, that Brian wasn't home, had been an experience. The tension coming over the phone line had been enough to make the hair on the back of his neck ruffle.

Last night Dom had called earlier, as Brian was walking out the door. Leon had stopped Brian, offering him the phone.

Brian had merely looked at the phone and said in a quite audible voice, "If I wanted to talk to Dom over the phone, I would have stayed in L.A.," and he'd walked out. Before Leon could formulate what he was going to say to the man on the other end of the line, Dom had tersely said, "I got the message!" and disconnected.

When Dom had called this evening, Leon and Vince had been out eating. Deliberately.

The message on the answering machine merely said that Dom was returning earlier than scheduled. He was finishing up a couple of things, and that he was going to drive back tonight. He'd probably be back in the early hours of the morning.

Leon wasn't sure what he was doing was the best idea, but he had the notion that if he could get Brian home before Dom, that maybe things would just sort of fall into place.

After all, Brian wanted to work things out with Dom. Even as mad as he was, Leon knew from the way he moped around the house in the afternoons, that Brian missed Dom. So maybe this wasn't going to be a fool's errand.

Leon reached over and punched off the radio.

"Listen, Vince, when we get there, if Brian's where I think he is, I want you to just drop me off and go on back. I'll come home with him in his truck." Leon's rough voice was quiet in the dark of the car.

"Where do you think he is?"

"I've seen his truck outside a bar on Macheros a couple of times."

"That's OK," Vince's usually intense and combative voice was actually relaxed and calm. "I'll go in with you."

"Nah V, that ain't a good idea. It's a gay bar, and you'd blend in about as well as a turd in a punch bowl, my man."

"Well I sure as shit hope I don't blend in with a bunch of faggots!"

Well, there goes the calm, thought Leon.

"Now, you see dawg," said Leon, a note of warning in his voice, "that's what I'm talking about. It ain't in my plans tonight to get stomped to shit cause you can't control your temper or that mouth of yours."

"Like a bunch of faggots are gonna be able to get the best of me!" Vince sneered.

"Yeah, well, Brian didn't do too badly that time outside of Dom's store. Besides, we're not talking about some disco with a bunch of punk kids. This is a serious place where bikers hang out."

"How do you know who hangs out in this gay bar?" Vince asked suspiciously.

"For Christ's sake, Vince, how do you think I know? I know it from the same way I know that that's where Brian sometimes hangs out! Cause I've seen a bunch of bikes parked out front."

"Fucking freaks!" muttered Vince.

"V, you better get your head on straight, cause I'm getting sick of your shit! Besides, you better not let Dom hear you talking like that." Leon's voice was harsh with growing impatience.

"Dom ain't no faggot!" shouted Vince angrily, turning nearly to face Leon.

"Watch the damn road!" Leon barked, gripping the dash as the right front wheel tipped off of the poorly marked and darkened pavement and the car gave a sickening lurch.

The next few seconds were taken up with Vince righting the car and taking several deep breaths before he continued.

"Dom ain't queer," Vince said more quietly.

"Sure," Leon snorted, his voice filled with sarcasm, "he's just banging Brian cause he can't get the women to look at him. Or are you trying to tell me that they're sharing a room to save on linen, and that the sounds we hear coming from that room at night are just boyish high spirits?"

Vince didn't answer. His sullen mood filled the darkened interior of the car. It was so intense that it became almost a black hole of silence. It seemed even to mute the growl of the engine and the hum of the tires of the pavement.

When they reached the outskirts of Ensenada, Leon relented.

"Look V, I ain't gonna slap a label on Dom, cause that's his business, not mine, and not yours. But you better learn to deal with it, the idea of him and Brian, together. Cause even though they're having some problems, I think they're a good match. I mean, Dom needs some light to balance his dark, or he just gets too fucking intense. And if Dom can get his shit together, I know he'll see it too. It's what he's been wanting for months, whether he'll admit it or not. It's what he needs."

At first Leon didn't think that Vince was going to say anything, but then he broke the silence. "Dom loved Letty," he insisted.

"I know he did, V. But not enough. I talked to Letty one night after Dom had stormed out when they'd had another fight. She said she was tired of sleeping in a bed that had a blond ghost in the middle of it. And I don't think she was talking about Monica."

Leon gave Vince a little time to take in what he'd just said before he continued.

"Vince, I know you were a little busy with your own problems on that last day in L.A., and you weren't around for a couple of weeks after, cause you were still in the hospital. So you didn't see what Dom was like after he learned that Brian was a cop."

"He was pissed!" Vince insisted.

"Yeah, man, he was," Leon agreed, "but it was more than that. You didn't see him on the ride back into L.A. It was more than worry about you and Letty, and what was happening with Jesse. It was more than worry about the cops. He had a look on his face - it's hard to describe - cause I've never seen Dom look that...well...vulnerable."

"It was like the look you tried to describe to me when you told me about the time his father died. Like someone had just cut a big hunk out of the middle of him, and there was this huge gaping hole."

"After he met me and Letty in Tijuana, driving that Supra, and told us what Brian had done to try and make it up to Dom and the rest of us, it was like the pain of being betrayed by him wasn't quite so deep." Leon paused. "You know Vince, no one feels that much hurt, that much betrayal, from some car jockey the you've only known for what? not even a month, no matter how much you like him."

There was another pause before Leon continued.

"Face it, bro, he fell for Brian just as hard as Mia did. But there was Letty in the picture. And I think that Dom did love her, and nothing would ever have come of it if everything hadn't gone to shit during that last job. Cause Dom's just loyal that way."

When Leon had finished, silence ruled the car's interior again. But it was a silence more thoughtful than stubborn.

The only words for the next few minutes were Leon's directions to the bar as Vince negotiated the streets crowded with Friday night partiers, let loose on the town after a hard week of work.

Vince finally pulled up where indicated and Leon's arm gestured in front of him as he pointed out the driver's window.

"That's the bar, and there's Brian's truck, down the street." But Leon just sat and contemplated his friend silently, debating on the wisdom of what he was going to say next.

"You getting out or what?" asked Vince, turning to look at Leon. "What?" he said irritably when he saw he was being sized up. "What!?" he repeated louder.

Leon sighed as he decided to go ahead and lay it all out. Maybe Vince would actually think about what he was going to tell him during the hour and a half ride home by himself.

"Listen, Vince. I'm gonna tell you something, and I don't want you to bite my head off. I want you to just think about it."

Vince's face settled into grim lines and his silence had a stony quality to it that didn't bode well for the flow of free thought.

Leon took a deep breath and forged on. "Even with Mia out of the picture, you're still jealous as shit of Brian, but now it's all about Dom."

In the glow from the street lights, Leon could see that Vince's face was darkening with anger. Before Vince could get out the hot words that were probably scorching his throat, Leon continued.

"And I don't mean in a gay kinda way, either," he soothed. "I'm talking about the fact that Dom's been your best friend since you guys were in grade school together. I know you love him like a brother. Shit, so do I. The girls he's been with, even Letty, weren't any threat to that friendship. I mean, yeah, Letty was one of the guys as well as Dom's girl, but she was still just a chic, right? And now, here's Brian. And he's all the things that the chics were and more. He's a guy. He can be all the things that a woman can never be to a man. But V, man, nobody will ever be able to take your place with Dom."

"You knew both his mom and his dad. You were there for him when they died. You've helped him through the bad times. You were there to help with Mia when Dom got sent up to Lompoc. You were there to help him when he got out again. You guys have got a whole history together that no one else can ever have, no matter how long they know him, or how close they become."

"So just think about it, will you? Because I know you want what's best for Dom, and I really think that's Brian. The kid loves him Vince, even you gotta admit that. He gave up a hell of a lot to be here with Dom. And until the last couple of weeks, even with the strain of whatever's been going on between those two, Dom's been happier and more relaxed than I've seen him in a long time, even with Letty."

Leon kept his eyes on Vince's profile, visible in the street lights. He could see the tension gradually flowing out of his friend, leaving behind a thoughtful look, which, Leon admitted, wasn't exactly a normal look for a man more given to emotional outbursts.

"So..." Leon opened the door and slid out, leaning back in to finish, "if Dom gets back before we do, just tell him that Brian's with me, and that we'll be back soon. OK? It's not like it'll be a lie."

At Vince's nod, he closed the door and walked around to the driver's side. He slapped his friend's arm playfully through the open window. "You take care, V. Try and keep it on the road."

As Leon walked across the street towards the bar, he heard Vince call after him. "You sure you don't want backup in there? I mean, who's gonna watch your ass for you?"

Leon's laughter floated back over his shoulder and he spun around to face the car, walking backwards for a few steps. Spreading out his arms, he laughed again. "I don't think having someone watch my ass is gonna be a problem in here, brother!"

With a big grin and a final salute, he walked confidently through the door of the bar.

Paying the cover charge, Leon walked through a gauntlet of men in denim and leather who eyed him like he did an available woman. He knew that most of his confidence was bravado.

Having grown up with an older brother who was gay, Leon was used to being around gay men. But he still followed the advice that all good Mexican mothers give their daughters. When faced with the unwanted attentions of a man, you don't make eye contact, you don't do anything that would encourage those attentions.

So, being as non-committal as possible without being offensively rude, Leon made his way to the bar. He even managed to ignore the big hand that accidentally brushed across his ass.

With 20/20 hindsight he realized that the jeans he wore were too tight. Not his usual baggy pants. But he was wearing his favorite #8 basketball jersey and it hung down to mid-thigh. So at least his ass and crotch weren't on prominent display. But more than one finger stroked across the intricate tattoo on the hard ball of his bared right shoulder.

As he approached, Leon scoped out a place where he could actually get up to the bar without pressing too close between the other men. "Una Corona, por favor," he called when he got the bartender's attention.

Throwing down the pesos for the beer, he scooped it up, took a swig, then began what he hoped was an unobtrusive perusal of the patrons as he wandered through the bar.

He had to be careful. The last thing he needed was for the men in here to think he was cruising. But Brian's blond hair should be easy enough to spot amongst all of the dark Hispanics.

Like most bars where there was dancing, the music was felt as much as it was heard. The heavy beat crawled over Leon's skin like a living thing. It caressed and shivered its way down his body, and the feeling was not unpleasant. It left him with a tingling sensation.

Also, like most dance bars, the air was thick with the humid heat of overly warm bodies packed too tightly in the space allotted. No women's perfume, though. Just the occasional tangy whiff of men's cologne, the smell of clean sweat, and the pervasive musk of heated male bodies.

There were a couple of pool tables just beyond the bar, that were crowded with both players and spectators.

Sipping at his beer occasionally, Leon wandered around through the men, choosing the less populous routes whenever possible. He declined a couple of invitations with a good natured shake of his head and moved on at an unhurried pace.

He tried not to peer too deeply into the alcoves and corners where he could see bodies closely entwined in the shadows. Just a quick enough glance to determine that one of the occupants didn't possess dark gold hair.

Leon reached the edge of the dance floor before he found his quarry. The sight that greeted him stopped him in his tracks.

It was easy to think of Brian, with his open smile, and his blond haired, blue eyed, good looks as your typical white, middle class, boy next door. But that didn't even begin to describe the erotically sexual being that seemed to hold center court in the press of bodies gyrating to the heavy beat of the music. Not even the Brian at the Cinco de Mayo celebration, the one in leather and silk, could match this.

Brian had shed his tee shirt like so many others, and his skin, even though tanned, still glowed almost luminously pale against the sea of burnished copper and brown flesh. His slender but nicely muscled torso was sheened with moisture and his golden brown hair was darkened with sweat.

His body was moving rhythmically with the music. Hips snapping and thrusting with the beat, while his upper body seemed to hear a different tune that it followed more sensuously.

Most men, most straight men at least, danced without using their arms very much, holding them pretty close to their bodies, as though tethered. Brian danced with abandon. His arms were mostly held above his head, hands running through his hair, then caressing his own neck and shoulders.

Leon was mesmerized. This was a side of Brian that he'd never seen before. This was the Brian that Dom obviously saw when the bedroom door closed at night. And it finally hit Leon that this was probably at least one of the problems between the two of them.

When he left his life as a straight cop in L.A., it was as though a chrysalis had been shed, and this was the creature that had emerged. The only problem was, for some reason, Dom seemed determined to keep this more sensuous creature locked behind the bedroom door.

Brian came to the bar so often so he could spread his cramped wings. But Leon knew that Brian would be content, for the most part, to keep this new, shiny incarnation just for Dom. But his lover had relegated it to such a small portion of their lives, that it was growing atrophied with neglect and disuse.

"He is something, is he not? Our beautiful gringo?" The voice that spoke in lightly accented English was so close to Leon's ear that it made him start.

X. Crawling In The Dark

The speaker turned out to be the man Leon had seen with Brian at the Aguilar's Cinco de Mayo celebration. Leon had only seen the man from a distance, but he'd taken note of him because of the almost proprietary air he'd had when he stood next to Brian. Not to mention the waves of tension, practically visible even from a distance, that he brought out in Dom.

He was about Leon's height, but powerfully built, and attractive in the same way that Dom was. They both had a kind of magnetism that didn't require classic facial features. He would, Leon knew, attract both men and women to him, just like Dom. At the moment, he was eyeing Leon up and down like he couldn't decide if he was a threat, or a treat.

"Yeah, he's something alright," agreed Leon, his eyes returning to Brian on the dance floor.

"Well," the Mexican said, propping his forearm on top of Leon's shoulder and leaning in close, "he's strictly 'look but do not touch', my friend. Private property."

"Yours?" Leon asked sharply.

"No, que lastima," he sighed. "The first time he came here, he made it quite plain that he was here to dance. To talk, to drink, to have a good time and to maybe even get a little friendly. But the line of friendship is drawn at waist level. There were a lot disappointed hombres, of course, but there are those of us who have grown quite fond of him. We make it our business to see that his wishes are respected." The voice was friendly, but with an undertone of threat.

Leon eyed the other man with consideration before replying.

"Thanks for the warning, but Brian's got nothing to fear from me."

The Mexican's eyes narrowed with an unvoiced question as he studied Leon.

"I ain't gay," Leon explained. "I'm just a friend, here to see he gets home alright."

The Mexican grinned suddenly and his charismatic personality glowed brightly. "You must be Leon then," he said with a laugh, slapping him on the shoulder in a friendly gesture, "because you are too charming to be the one called Vince." He laughed again, this time at the color that flooded Leon's face.

"I am Jesus," he introduced himself with an outstretched hand. "Come, you will sit at my table. Brian will be over as soon as the next song has played. It is his song. He always requests it and Vicente always plays it for him at about this time." He gestured to the clock on the wall that showed that it was almost midnight.

Leon followed Jesus back to the table and took the seat indicated. He found that his view of Brian was actually better. The kid obviously stuck fairly close to his friendly protector.

The song slid smoothly into a different tune, and the press of bodies around Brian seemed to melt away just a little. He now seemed to be isolated in the crowd.

The beat of the song wasn't quite as hectic as the previous one, but it was still fast paced with a driving beat.

I will dedicate, And sacrifice my every Thing for just a second's worth, Of how my story's ending.

And I wish I could know, If the directions that I take, And all the choices that I make Will end up all for nothing.

Show me what it's for, Make me understand it. I've been crawling in the dark, Looking for the answers. Is there something more, Than what I've been handed? I've been crawling in the dark, Looking for the answer.

Despite the nearly frenetic beat of the music, the words were more than a touch melancholy, especially when coupled with the raw emotion showing so plainly on Brian's face.

Leon took a quick look at Jesus' face, and saw him staring solemnly back at Leon. He knew that Brian hadn't been very happy for the past couple of weeks, even before Dom had pulled his little disappearing act, but he hadn't realized just how deep that unhappiness reached. Brian had just been very good at disguising it. Leon wondered if Dom had any clue as to just how unhappy his lover was.

Help me carry on, And show me it's OK to, Use my heart and not my eyes, And navigate the darkness. You'll be ending me, If I'm coming suddenly, Will I ever get to see, The ending to my story.

Show me what it's for, Make me understand it. I've been crawling in the dark, Looking for the answers. Is there something more, Than what I've been handed? I've been crawling in the dark, Looking for the answers.

So when the Hell wilI know, know, know, know!?

Brian looked so damn tired. There were faint smudges under his eyes. Leon knew he spent quite awhile in bed each day, supposedly sleeping until late afternoon. But obviously, either all his time hadn't all been sleeping, or else the sleep hadn't been very restful. But even so, through the guitar riff, Brian's movements seemed to increase, as though he were trying to exercise some personal demon.

How much further do I have to go? And how much longer till I finally know? Cause I'm looking and I just can't see What's in front of me. In front of me!

Show me what it's for. Make me understand it. I've been crawling in the dark, Looking for the answers. Is there something more, Than what I've been handed? I've been crawling in the dark, Looking for the answers.

When the music changed, Leon watched as Brian gracefully extracted himself from his multitude of 'dance partners' and made his way over to the table.

Leon was gratified and a little flattered to see that Brian's first reaction upon seeing him sitting at the table, was a small smile of genuine pleasure. But that was quickly replaced with a look of concern.

"Everything's fine, Bri," Leon reassured him, and watched the slow, lazy smile return to his face.

"So, you two have introduced yourselves?" Brian plucked up the freshly served, ice cold Corona and took a long pull from the bottle.

Leon found himself watching the muscles working in his long, slender throat. Then the slow movement of the moisture beaded bottle as it was trailed slowly over the heated skin of his throat and up across cheeks and forehead.

Brian's whole body was glistening with sweat. Even from a couple of feet away, Leon could feel the waves of heat radiating off of him, and smell the warm, clean scent of his body. Suddenly, inexplicably, Leon had to stop himself from tugging at the crotch of his jeans for a little more room. 'What the hell?' he thought.

"Yeah, Jesus seemed to have no trouble recognizing me from your description." Leon acknowledged his own fresh beer with a tip of the bottle toward the Mexican, before taking a small, cautious sip. He was going to make this beer his last. There was no way in hell he was going to let himself get even the slightest bit drunk tonight. He had a feeling that it could lead to disaster on a biblical scale.

He watched as Brian made his way behind Jesus to the chair between them on the back side of the table. As he passed the other man, Brian laid his hands on heavy, muscled shoulders and massaged them momentarily, then slid them away caressingly.

It was a sensuous, but not really sexual, action. Leon had seen Brian begin to do the same thing to Dom on several occasions when he had first come down to stay with them. Only instead of reaching up a hand to pat Brian on the arm with easy affection the way that Jesus did, Dom had subtly shrugged off his hands.

More pieces of the puzzle were falling into place.

"What are you doing here, Leon? This isn't exactly your kind of place to hang out." Brian slumped into the chair with a kind a boneless grace that only the lithe and limber could achieve. He watched Leon expectantly out of impossibly blue eyes, and Leon realized that Brian was just a little drunk.

"Dom left a message this afternoon. He wrapped up everything early and he went ahead and started for home late this evening instead of waiting for tomorrow afternoon."

Brian watched him for a long, quiet moment before replying. "So you came to fetch me home for Dom?" The question as very low and mild.

"It ain't like that, Brian," Leon protested. "I never told Dom where you were..."

"You don't have to make excuses or lie for me, Leon! Dom knows exactly where I am."

"I know that, man," Leon soothed. "And I haven't done either of those things. Dom doesn't ask me questions when I say you aren't at home." He hesitated a moment before leaning forward, and grasping Brian's knee, he gave his leg a little shake. "I know things are tense right now."

Brian solemnly eyed the hand on his knee. "You know," he said mildly, "Dom won't do that. Touch me, just casually like that. He touched me more in L.A. when I was Mia's would-be boyfriend."

"I know," Leon sighed. "The last 15 minutes have kinda been an eye opener for me. I'll help you in any way that I can, you know that. But you and Dom gotta talk, bro. You gotta sit down somewhere alone and just hash out everything that's bothering the two of you."

"That's what the trip to Mexicali was supposed to be for," Brian muttered sullenly.

"And there is something bothering Dom beyond the obvious," Leon continued, as if Brian hadn't spoken. "You just have to be persistent and not let him brush you off. You guys can make it work, I know you can. You just don't need anymore stress right now. That's why I had Vince drive me in tonight, so I could drive back with you."

Brian's eyes opened wide and he looked quickly around. "Vince is here?" His voice was incredulous and slightly apprehensive.

Leon laughed loudly. "Shit! That would be something to see, wouldn't it? Nah, Bri, he dropped me off and headed on home. If Dom gets back home before we do, he'll simply tell Dom that you're with me, nothing else. The rest is up to the two of you. But at least Dom won't have a running start with his emotions before you get there. OK?"

Brain regarded Leon for a moment. "You're a good friend, Leon." His voice and look were solemn. But then they turned just a touch sly. "I'll go home now on one condition."

"And that would be...?" asked Leon, his look wary.

"You have to dance with me!"

The blond, blue-eyed devil had lunged to his feet, exhaustion obviously forgotten, and came around to grab Leon's hands and tug on them in an attempt to pull him to his feet.

"Nah, man, I don't dance," Leon objected, resisting the pull of the hands.

"Just one dance? Please?"

Leon might have been able to resist the pull of his hands, but not the pull of those blue eyes with the shadow of hurt lurking in them. Giving a martyred sigh, he allowed himself to be dragged to his feet and led toward the dance floor.

"Hey!" Jesus called out, forgotten at the table. "Don't you leave without thanking me for saving your friend from all of the ass grabbing perverts in this place."

"Never!" Brian called back happily.

When they reached the edge of the dance floor, the hard hitting music suddenly segued into a slow, sensual Mexican ballad. "Even better!" exclaimed Brian enthusiastically.

"No way!" Leon protested in vain, trying to pull back. But when those relentless, shameless, beseeching eyes turned back to him, he knew he was a goner.

"Shit!" he muttered, feeling intensely uncomfortable. "Fine. But I'm leading!"

Brian smile serenely as he wriggled his way through the crowd of paired men, clinched together. When he found a small space he turned into Leon and draped his forearms over his shoulders. Brian's fingers immediately found and began to toy with the heavy silver chain that Leon always wore.

He waited for a moment while Leon rolled his eyes and brought his hands up hesitantly to Brian's waist. But they flinched and skittered away from the moist, bare flesh and dropped slightly to rest on his narrow, jean-clad hips. Not a much safer choice, thought Leon wryly.

They didn't dance so much as merely sway in place, feet shuffling slightly, occasionally pivoting a little. Then Brian was bumped sharply from behind and wound up pressed to Leon.

With a grin, Brian took advantage of the situation and wrapped his arms tighter around Leon's neck and plastered their bodies more closely together.

He insinuated one of his thighs between Leon's, who then had no choice but to reciprocate, or struggle and over balance them into a heap on the floor. He also had no other viable option but to bring his hands up onto the clinging man's back.

When he felt the hands on his naked skin, Brian seemed to take it as some kind of signal. He released a gusty sigh and nuzzled his face against Leon's beard clad cheek, like a cat rubbing up against him.

Brian's mouth began to tickle the conveniently place ear, tongue stroking the delicate outer curve, down to the lobe, which he nipped gently then began to suckle on. Leon felt himself shiver and then begin to sweat, and it wasn't just the warm, humid atmosphere.

Leon couldn't remember a time when he been so aware of another human being. Brian's nearness seemed to activate all of his senses.

He felt the heat radiating from his body and the firm flesh beneath his hands. The clean, faintly musky scent of fresh sweat and soap tickled his nose. And the tiny, not-quite-sighs, not-quite-humming noises that Brian was continually making, shivered across the inner surface of his ear.

If someone had told him, even an hour ago, that he could become sexually aroused by the press of another man's body, the smell of his skin, and the sigh of his breath, Leon would have said that they were crazy. But with a growing sense of dismay and horror, he felt himself becoming erect, and there was no way that Brian wasn't going to feel it, since his cock was nestled up against the other man's groin.

Brian pulled in a slow, sensuous breath and rubbed his crotch against Leon's. "Mmmm," the throaty sound seemed to vibrate in a straight line from Leon's tympanic membrane to his cock, and he found it suddenly difficult to breath. "Is that for me?" The whispered word were dreamy and wistful.

Leon jerked his head back enough to remove his ear from the younger man's lips. "Fuck Brian!. Whaddaya expect? You're half naked and draped across me like a damp tee shirt. I may be straight, but..." Leon's voice trailed off as his tormentor leaned back enough so that he could see those blue, blue eyes, veiled behind sensuously half closed lids. Moving apart their upper bodies had the effect of pushing their hips closer together.

"But, what?" Brian whispered.

Leon pulled in a shuddering breath. His small laugh wasn't humorous in the least. "Brian," his voice was rougher than normal, "if Dom knew what even 1% of me was thinking right now, he'd probably serve me my own balls on toast for breakfast in the morning."

Brian tilted his head quizzically to one side just a little, a small half smile playing on his lips. Leon felt the arms behind his neck tighten almost imperceptibly, and saw those full, impossibly red lips move ever so slowly towards his. He knew that Brian was giving him plenty of time to pull away. He also knew that he wasn't going to.

"Oh fuck!" Leon whispered in self derision, just as the other man's lips touched his own.

The pressure was very light at first. Brian's lips were moist, but barely parted as they touched his own.

Leon felt hot and shivery, as though he had a fever. Then he felt the tip of Brian's tongue stroke across the seam of his lips, and he knew he'd lost complete control of himself.

With a moan he opened his mouth, inviting Brian's tongue to enter and play.

It was everything a kiss should be. A hot, moist, languorous duel of tongues and lips. They each tasted and explored one another's mouths, mapping out the terrain as carefully as any surveyor.

Subconsciously, Leon cataloged the sense of taste with the other things that were uniquely Brian. His breath was sweet, with the over tones of the Coronas he had consumed, but like the rest of him, there was an underlying freshness.

Leon slid one hand up into the damp golden waves of hair to cup Brian's head. The other hand slowly stroked and caressed the moist, naked skin of his back.

Brian rubbed his groin slowly and insistently against Leon's, building the sexual pressure up to an almost painful point.

When the mutual need for oxygen parted them, it was only a fraction of an inch and Leon felt Brian's smile against his own lips. "Nice," the blond breathed softly.

Suddenly hearing the silence of the rest of the bar, Leon looked up to see that he and Brian had become the floor show. Even the DJ had evidently halted the play of music when that last song had died away, and everyone had been watching them attentively.

Their resurfacing was met with whistles, cat calls and cheering. Leon could feel his face flood with hot color, and he closed his eyes momentarily to blot out the sight of his audience.

Mercifully, the DJ sent another song blaring into the room and Leon was able to escape back to the table in tow behind Brian. He received more than a few caresses and pats on his ass on the way there, and more than one envious look.

Then there was Jesus' knowing look to be met. He lounged back in his chair, a huge grin on his face that was all for Leon. "I told you that our little gringo was quite something," he said laughingly.

Brian smiled fondly at his big friend. "We have to go, Jesus," he said softly.

"Not without my thanks!" Jesus said, sitting up and spreading his arms expansively. Brian moved closer and sat astride the man's lap, entwining his arms around his neck and meeting the reaching mouth with his own. This kiss was very enthusiastic, but it seemed much less sensual than one he and Brian had just shared.

Leon watched hands roam over Brian's bare skin and cup his tight buttocks, and he felt a micro-burst of pure, green jealousy. He was shocked at his own feelings and surprised that they hadn't lit up the darkened bar like a flash of neon.

By the time he got himself under control, both Brian and Jesus were on their feet and the Mexican was holding out a broad hand. Leon took the proffered hand automatically and was pulled into an abrazzo. A Mexican tradition consisting of a manly clasp to the chest of another man. All highly acceptable in the macho society of straight men, except for one thing.

"You must come back another time!" Jesus said warmly, but when he was close enough, he licked Leon's ear and added in a whisper, "Straight boy!" Then he let his hand brush down over Leon's ass.

Leon jumped as if he'd just received an electrical charge and his eyes were wide with shock.

His dick was painfully hard and he'd just shared one of the most erotically charged kisses he'd ever experienced. With another man. And everything was due to a blond, blue-eyed, ex-undercover cop turned drag racer and mechanic, and evidently the male equivalent of a houri.

This was not what Leon had in mind when this evening had started, any more than getting banged up in a bar brawl with Vince. As a matter of fact, he wasn't so sure that he wouldn't have preferred the beating. He had a feeling that he would have recovered from it a hell of a lot faster than he was going to recover from what he'd discovered about himself in the last few minutes.

All of this occurred to Leon as Brian led him by the hand through the bar and out into the relative cool of the night air.

Leon docilely followed the other man up the street and let himself be put into the passenger's side of the truck. His thoughts were spinning out of control and the painfully hard condition of his cock didn't make it any easier to try and get a grasp on the situation.

XI. I Don't Think That This Is Such A Good Idea

Letting his head fall back to rest against the top of the seat, Leon briskly rubbed his hands over his face, trying to jump start his brain. Unfortunately, it just kept turning over and over, like an engine that wouldn't catch. His mind was whirling with the images of moist, golden skin and the lingering feeling of a lithe, muscular body pressed tightly against his, Brian's lips on his and a tongue that pillaged his mouth. Leon could still taste him, and licked his lips again at the thought.

He shuddered deeply at the riotous feelings coursing through him, both mental and physical.

Part of him knew that he should be horrified at what he was feeling. Feeling for another man, for Brian. But he couldn't seem to get past the immediate need to feel them again.

He was vaguely aware of the fact that Brian had started the truck and was driving out of the city. With a start, Leon realized that they had actually left the lights of Ensenada behind.

As Leon glanced out of the window, Brian pulled the truck off the highway onto another road that led west toward the ocean. It took him a moment, but he eventually recognized the road to Punta Banda, a small town on the tiny peninsula of the same name.

"Brian, what are you doing? We ain't got time for this, we gotta get back home." But the other man simply flashed him an intense look and an enigmatic smile. Leon didn't have the concentration to fight about it, so he just let his head fall back again and went along for the ride.

He couldn't believe that it had been at least thirty minutes since they'd left the bar and he was still as aroused as ever. His cock was painfully hard and his skin felt too tight on his own body.

It definitely made it hard to concentrate when all of the blood that was supposed to be helping your brain to function went south and seemed determined to stay there. The fact that he could still smell Brian's scent, beside him and on his own body, wasn't helping either.

Another couple of minutes and a few turns brought them to the end of the road, which seemed to feed directly out onto the beach. Brian pulled the car out into the open and stopped, turning off the engine. The tang of salt breeze and the sound of the Pacific gently rolling onto the beach filled the cab of the truck.

"What are we doing here, Brian?" Leon asked tiredly. He didn't think he could stand much more teasing.

"I stop here sometimes on the way home, to think and clear my head." Brian released his seat belt and turned sideways towards Leon. His voice was huskier than usual. "You don't really want to drive for the next hour like this, do you?" Brian leaned over and drew his fingers lightly across the bulge behind Leon's fly.

"Fuck!" he exclaimed, arching up into the touch with a groan. "Brian, are you trying to kill me? I can't take much more of this."

"Neither can I," he heard Brian murmur, who reached up and flicked the control on the dome light so that it didn't come on when he opened the door, and slid out.

He moved quickly around to the passenger side. Opening the door beside Leon, Brian gave him a nudge. "Move over closer to the center of the seat," he instructed.

Mouth dry, Leon silently complied.

Brian stood in the thin moon light and toed off his Chucks, throwing them into the driver's side floorboard. Then Leon watched, open mouthed, as the blond flipped open the button of his jeans and lowered the zipper. He slowly pushed the jeans down past his hips, taking the underwear with them, freeing an erect cock, equally as hard as his own.

Pulling the pants off his feet, Brian tossed them onto the seat on the other side of the truck and climbed in beside Leon, shutting the door behind him.

Leon drew in a jagged breath when he felt Brian's hands at his own fly. The touch was enough to stir him to action. He put his hands over Brian's to stop them. "Bri, I don't think this is such a good idea." His voice was so hoarse he hardly recognized himself.

"I don't care," replied the naked blond, his nimble fingers unzipping the jeans. "Lift up," he urged, and Leon suddenly had no other thought than to obey.

When his jeans were stripped down and off along with his shoes, Brian quickly knelt up on the seat then straddled Leon facing him. Their heated flesh melded together and their hard cocks slid against one another in a sensual duel.

They both moaned in helpless pleasure, arching toward one another.

That part of Leon, where the little warning siren kept going off, thought that he should be appalled by his lack of control. This was Brian. Dom's Brian. That he should crave this intimacy with another male body seemed totally foreign to him. That it was Brian, he thought should feel horrifying. But all he felt was an overwhelming sense of urgency. He guessed that the old saying was true, 'A hard cock knows no conscience'.

The dark of night wrapped them in midnight blue, increasing the sense of intimacy and solitude. The moon was just a slender crescent, but it lent enough light to illuminate the features of the two men for each other.

As if offended by the barrier to his need for bare flesh, Brian caught the hem of Leon's shirt and made short work of jerking it up and over his head, discarding it to the side. As soon as it was off, Brian caught Leon's face in both of his hands and slanted their mouths together, aggressively thrusting in his tongue .

A sound, suspiciously like a growl, issued from Leon's throat when his taste buds were flooded with the remembered flavor of Brian. With the mutual use of lips, tongues and teeth, it became less a kiss and more an attempt to eat each other from the mouth down, as a firestorm of lust consumed them both.

Bringing up his hands, Leon began to grasp and knead at the smooth flesh laid bare for him. He pinched the unfamiliar flat nipples, raking them lightly with his nails, bringing them to erect points that pushed into the light hair of his own chest as soon as he moved his hands to Brian's back.

While Brian rubbed himself, cat-like, against Leon, keeping his nipples teased and erect, Leon let his hands slide down the warm, smooth skin until he cupped Brian's buttocks. After a tactile exploration of the firm, silky globes, he grasped them and urged Brian into a riding motion that resulted in the most incredible friction on their cocks.

They were both so incredibly excited that they were leaking enough pre-come to allow their cocks to glide easily against each other through the silky moisture.

The kiss, which seemingly went on forever, was in reality a series of kisses. When their lips would part, the absence of contact could be measured in fractions of a second until they were once again melded together.

Leon wasn't exactly sure what was whipping them to such a frenzy. The circumstances, the night, the dance at the club. The kiss. It had certainly all contributed, but it was more than that.

Leon's mind finally flashed through a kaleidoscope of images.

Brian in the kitchen that first morning, half naked and, at first, tentative and unsure. Then relaxed and golden and happy. Brian wet on the beach or sliding through the water as gracefully as a seal. On the patio, beer in hand and head thrown back in laughter at something Leon had said. Brian smiling as he turned to model leather and silk for Leon.

They had been flirting.

All this time, he and Brian had been flirting, ever so gently, with one another. Apparently since that first morning.

Other images joined the show, this time with a soundtrack. The mixture of moans and cries that filtered through the hallways of the house at night. The sight of the light bruises, pale bite marks and reddened flesh on Brian and Dom that had signaled a night of passionate lovemaking.

Leon had been...not jealous really, but envious. It was subtle, but he finally recognized the signs.

He'd never put a proper name to these feelings before because he'd never anticipated that they might be caused by another man. Then he gave up trying to figure out what was going on, and just let himself ride the waves.

Leon finally pulled his mouth from Brian's with a gasp, followed by a guttural moan as Brian slid a hand between their bellies to grasp both of their cocks. He began to squeeze and gently jack their erect shafts together as one, while Leon's hands were gripping and releasing Brian's ass cheeks to the same rhythm.

When Leon's fingers slid into the humid valley of flesh and brushed over the opening to Brian's body, the younger man threw back his head with a gasp.

Leon quickly took advantage of the tender flesh of the offered throat. The slightest rasp of beard stubble beneath his lips felt erotically forbidden to him, and it drove him into a frenzy of sucking and biting. But something, some still coherent flash of self preservation, stopped him before he got carried away and really marked the pale skin. He had to satisfy himself by running his tongue and lips over the salty skin and taking tiny, soft nips with his lips.

The fingers of one hand continued to stroke the cleft of Brian's ass. When he ran his fingers down far enough between the spread cheeks, he was momentarily startled by what he found. Not the soft wet opening of a woman's body, but the wrinkled scrotum and hard, smooth shaft base of another man's sex.

The flesh was as soft as a woman's, but firmer. And right now nearly as moist from the combined leakage of their cocks. He was gathering some of the moisture that seeped down over their balls and slid his hand back up through the splayed cleft.

The unexpectedly erotic smell of masculine sex flooded the cab of the truck. It's heady musk complimented, but almost overwhelmed, the clean, tangy scent of the ocean breeze. Leon found it foreign and incredibly arousing.

Brian moaned loudly when Leon's fingers brushed over the exquisitely soft skin of his perineum and scrotum. While one slick hand came back up to probe softly at the entrance of the wide spread ass, the other delved back down deeper to stroke and tease.

Brian keened softly at the cascading sensations, and snaked a free hand behind Leon's head to bring their panting mouths together once more.

The darkened truck was filled with the sound of moist kisses and heavy breathing. Of the slick slide of flesh on flesh. Behind it all was the soft but powerful shush of waves washing onto the shore.

With a single wet fingertip, Leon breached the relaxed hole, and Brian convulsed with a cry muffled by Leon's mouth as he came over their stomachs in pulsing jets.

The gush of the hot, thick seed spraying onto his body, and the spasm of Brian's sphincter around his fingertip were enough to trigger his own orgasm.

Leon pulled his mouth away from Brian's and gasped for air. He almost felt suffocated by the intensity of his climax, and he called out loudly, wordlessly, neck arching backwards with the force of the feeling.

When Leon came back to himself, Brian was nuzzling his still arched throat, and softly biting his chin through its light beard.

Leon brought both of his hands up to clasp either side of his friend's face. Tipping that beautiful face up, he held him still while he softly and slowly kissed Brian's closed eyes, his forehead, cheeks, nose chin, and finally came to settle with incredible tenderness on his lips.

"Thank you," he whispered softly into the other man's mouth.

After a moment, Brian pulled back slightly to look at him. He reached up and brushed a hand through Leon's disheveled hair. "You're more than welcome," Brian said solemnly, but with a small smile. He laid his head on Leon's shoulder and snuggled down a little deeper. "And thank you."

They stayed that way for a few minutes more, letting the peace of the ocean sounds wash over them, calming their racing hearts and labored breath and lulling them almost to the point of sleep.

Leon's hands rested on the other man's hips, thumbs idly stroking the soft skin of his waist. Brian's arms were still loosely draped on Leon's shoulders, his fingertips ruffling the hair at his nape while gently massaging his neck. Their bodies rose and fell in sync with their breathing.

When Leon felt his eyes closing and his mind drifting, he knew it was time that they moved. But a part of him wanted to stay right here.

Sighing deeply, he ran his hands up Brian's back. "We need to get cleaned up a little and get on home." His voice held quiet regret.

"I know," said Brian softly.

With seeming reluctance, he levered himself up from the warm body beneath him. Their partially dried semen made a soft sucking sound as they pulled apart, and they both laughed quietly at the sound.

"It's a good thing we didn't wait any longer to move," Leon's voice was huskier than usual. "I might not have any hair left on my chest if we did."

Clasping his hands around his friend's waist, he gave him a little boost when he levered himself up off of Leon. He knew that Brian's legs had to be a little stiff from remaining in the same position for so long. "OK?" he asked.

Brian nodded and opened the door, sliding out onto the sand. "We're a mess!" he commented wryly. "Why don't we clean up in the surf. It'll be a little cool, but not too bad." At Leon's nod, he reached around and pulled a towel out from behind the seat. "Always prepared for a swim," he said with a grin.

They made their way down to the water and waded out until the water was waist deep. This area of the coast had gentle waves that lapped the shoreline. Perfect for getting cleaned up. With slow movements they scooped up water and rinsed each other off in caressing strokes.

Brian ducked down for a moment and let the waves wash over his head. Besides being stiff with sweat, his hair was liberally coated with their combined juices from Leon's hands.

When Brian stood up and threw his head back to slick the water from his hair, the moonlight gilded his body to pure gold. Leon was struck with the thought that he'd be hard pressed to remember a more beautiful sight.

Before tonight, he had never considered the male body in the terms of beauty. Well built, yes, but the word "beauty' was reserved for the female form.

Moving closer, he slid his arms around Brian's waist and pulled the willing man into his arms. He covered the soft lips one more time with his own. The juxtaposition of soft lips surrounded by the very masculine rasp of beard stubble once again struck Leon as foreign and incredibly erotic at the same time. They indulged in a slow, gentle, but thorough kiss while the surf lapped around their legs.

When they broke apart, they moved onto the shore and retrieved the towel. Taking turns, they dried each other off with pats and gentle swipes. Then they returned to the truck and silently got dressed.

Leon slid into the driver's seat and started the engine.

After he had maneuvered the truck around and they were back on the road, Brian slid over across the seat under Leon's welcoming arm, and laid his head on the offered shoulder.

On the drive back, Brian fell asleep to the gentle stroking of a hand in his hair.

In the dark quiet of the truck, Leon contemplated what had happened this evening. It had changed a lot of conceptions about himself that he had always taken for granted. Like being straight for one. Obviously he wasn't, not completely anyway.

Was this little interlude with Brian a product of right place, right time, or right person? The latter definitely. The first two probably. But he knew, that unless Dom was exceptionally stupid and careless, that this would never happen again with Brian.

He knew now, with a great deal of certainty, how someone who had been basically straight all of his life, like Dom, could fall in love with another man. With Brian.

He also knew, that if he wasn't very, very careful, he might find himself in the same position.

Leon solemnly prayed that it wasn't already too late.

XII. Do You Subscribe To The Bill Clinton Definition Of Sex?

Brian was sprawled in an untidy heap on the couch. But that's the way that he always slept, unless they were together. Then those long arms and legs would be wrapped around Dom. That's the way it had been from the start.

Dom thought it would be too confining, that he wouldn't be able to get used to it. Surprisingly, it hadn't taken any time at all. It seemed natural from the first night together. Now he found it hard to settle in at night without him.

It had been difficult to sleep in Mexicali with so much on his mind. The empty place beside him had made it almost impossible.

Only Vince had been home when Dom arrived last night. Vince, who hadn't been able to lie convincingly to Dom since they were kids, had said he didn't know where Brian was. But Dom knew, though it was easier knowing Leon was with him.

Dom tried to wait up to talk to Brian, but the sleepless nights and the long drive had taken their toll. When he awakened this morning, his breath caught at the sight of the empty place beside him. He'd feared the worst until he'd come into the living room and found Brian asleep on the couch.

For almost an hour, Dom watched Brian sleep, formulating how he was going to say what he knew needed saying. It wasn't going to be easy for him. In fact it would probably be one of the hardest things he'd ever done.

Lost in thought, Dom heard the shift in breathing that announced that Brian was re-surfacing from deep sleep.

First came the deep breaths and almost sighs. Then the lips and tongue began to work, trying to moisten a mouth dried out overnight, probably made worse by the liberal consumption of alcohol that Dom could smell on him. Followed by the stretching of those long arms and legs and the fluttering of his eye lids.

Dom saw Brian's eyes blink open and closed several times before they finally remained open. It took a few moments more before he was able to focus on Dom. A flash of some emotion, it could have been anything, moved across Brian's eyes before he could shut it down.

Dom watched while Brian levered himself to a sitting position, long legs swinging to the floor. Neck and shoulders rotating the kinks out, Brian yawned hugely. He ran one hand through his hair while the other attempted to rub away the red creases on his cheek, compliments of the leather couch.

"I can make a fresh pot of coffee while you go shower," Dom offered quietly. Brian was never fully awake until after a hot shower.

Yawning again, Brian nodded absently and pushed himself , somewhat unsteadily, to his feet. Stretching his arms up over his head, he obviously caught a whiff of himself because his nose wrinkled in a grimace of distaste.

He turned the stretch into a disrobing maneuver when he reached back, caught the neck of his tee shirt and hauled it over his head.

That's when Dom saw the marks.

They were faint, but they were pink and fresh. Not the darker, washed out color of old marks left by his own lips and teeth almost a week ago.

Dom remained frozen as Brian trudged past him on the way to their bedroom and the shower. He attempted to think. But no matter how hard he tried to concentrate, he couldn't get past the images of those marks of passion marring Brian's flesh.

Dom was familiar with every blotch, every bruise, every impression, mark, hickey, whatever, that appeared on Brian's body. Dom knew everyone of them because, whether intentional or done in the heat of passion, they'd always been made by him.

Until now.

Dom realized that he'd been sitting much longer than intended when he heard the shower cut off. So he pushed himself up and went into the kitchen to put coffee on. He was moving on auto pilot, because his mind was still turning the same images and thoughts around in his head, over and over, like a hamster on a wheel.

He was sitting at the kitchen table when Brian walked in. He was outwardly composed, but inside he was a seething, churning mass of emotions. Possessiveness, jealousy, anger, resentment. Fear. Brian was wearing nothing but the blue, drawstring pants that Dom had tossed to him on that first morning. Brian had laughingly refused to give them back, calling them his harem boy pants. His hair was still wet and mussed, having obviously only been towel dried and finger combed. And his torso was bare.

To Dom it seemed as though Brian was flaunting the marks that someone else, some other man, because Dom knew that it was a man, had put on his body.

Brian picked up a glass from the drain board and fetched the jug of juice from the refrigerator. Pouring himself a glass, he downed it in one long gulp before pouring another. It was his morning ritual. The familiarity of it made Dom's chest tighten.

"So how was Mexicali?" Brian asked with deceptive mildness as he leaned his hip against the counter. He faced Dom, the length of the table between them.

During the last few minutes, Dom had rehearsed over and over in his mind what he was going to say. How he was going to say it. He had every intention of keeping his cool and finishing the conversation that Brian had started at the Aguilar's party. But then he opened his mouth and out tumbled "Is there something you wanna tell me Brian?" It came out as an accusation.

Brian paused in mid-sip, locking eyes with Dom over the rim of the glass. His lowering lids veiled his eyes and thoughts as he finished taking his drink before answering.

"What do you mean, Dom?"

"Every other time that you've come in late, you couldn't wait to wake me up and reassure me that nothing happened."

"And you've always made it quite clear that you wished the original question had never been asked," countered Brian coolly.

"Well, I'm asking now. Have you been fucking around on me Brian?" Dom demanded.

Dom could see that Brian was very angry. It should have served as a warning signal, because Brian rarely got truly angry. But he couldn't get past the red haze that filtered his own vision. A red that seemed to pulse and emanate from the marks on Brian's torso.

"You know, Dom, given our current situation, I don't really think you have the right to be demanding answers. But that's OK." Brian was responding to Dom's fiery temper with ice cold control. "I'll answer your question. And that answer is 'It depends'."

"What the hell kinda answer is that? Depends on what? It's just a 'yes' or 'no' question, Brian."

"No, not really." Brian's nonchalant attitude was really starting to piss Dom off. "I mean, it could be yes or no, depending on how you answer a question. Do you subscribe to the Bill Clinton definition of sex? Because if you don't, then the answer is 'yes', I was fucking around. But if you do, then the answer is 'no', I wasn't."

Dom could feel his face go hot with color and a throbbing started in his temple where he knew a pulsing vein must be visible. "What the fuck are you talking about, Brian? Just say what you mean." Dom voice had risen considerably in volume.

Brian's voice, on the other hand, remained coldly calm, at least on the surface. "Alright, if you need it spelled out for you, here it is. I had physical contact with another man last night, and it was something more that purely platonic in nature." Brian's tone was coldly matter-of-fact. "But," he emphasized, "no bodily orifices were penetrated. Unless you count my tongue in his mouth, and vice versa." Brian took a sip of his juice. "Is that clear enough for you, Dom?"

The only sound in the room was Dom's harsh breathing while their eyes remained locked on each other. Then the refrigerator kicked on and the sudden noise of the compressor broke the silence and the stare down.

Dom lowered his eyes to his clenched hands and took several deep breaths in an effort to bring his temper back under control.

"Who was it?" Dom asked in a low, tense voice, still not looking up.

"That's really none of your business, Dom. I've told you what happened, you don't need to know anymore than that."

"What about your promise to never lie to me?" Dom was looking at Brian again.

"I'm not lying to you, Dom. Everything I've told you is the absolute truth. Not telling the name of the man isn't lying."

"It doesn't matter," Dom said scornfully. "I'm pretty sure I can guess who it was."

"Oh, I bet you can't," murmured Brian. "It wasn't Jesus. I know that's who you're thinking of. But it wasn't him."

"Enrique then. He was following you around like a bitch in heat at the party."

"I haven't seen Enrique since the party. He's been away on business with his father the whole week." Brian pushed himself restlessly away from the counter. "Give it up, Dom. I'm not going to play twenty questions with you while you try to guess. It doesn't matter anyway. It's not going to happen again. He's a friend, and it was a comfort thing."

"'A comfort thing'?" Dom mocked. "Is that how you see fucking? As a 'comfort thing'? Is that what we've been doing these past weeks, Brian? Comforting each other?"

"The sex was incidental, Dom," Brian said wearily. "It was the closeness I wanted. A feeling of connection." He paused. "And no. I don't consider most of what we've done as being in the least comforting." Brian's shoulders slumped a little.

"Why did you take off, Dom? I thought that maybe, at the party, we came to an understanding of sorts. That we were at least going to be able to talk out our problems. Why did you just leave that morning without a word."

Brian's head was bowed, so he didn't see that Dom was about to respond. About to tell him everything. But Brian started to speak again, and his voice was so low that Dom had to almost strain to hear.

"Ever since my parents died when I was seven, there's been very little that was solid in my life to hold onto. When I was with the Escobars, my last foster family, I felt a sense of belonging for awhile, a connection with someone, but that...went wrong."

"Until I became a cop, I never had that feeling again. When I joined the force, I felt as though I'd found the place I was supposed to be. I thought I'd finally found 'my family', or at least as close as I was going to get to one since I didn't have any blood relatives left. My sergeant, Tanner, he kind of became a surrogate father, and I had lots of 'brothers and sisters'. And I was happy."

He paused for a moment, taking a deep breath.

"But then I went undercover, and I met you, and the rest of the team."

"Watching you guys together, how close you were, how you cared about each other, I came to realize that that's what family is. And, God, I wanted that, and I wanted you. I wanted both so badly that I physically ached at times. But I was stuck. I figured there was nothing I could do about it."

"The night after the raid on Tran, when I finally had to face up to the fact that you were the ones behind the hijackings, Tanner could see how torn I was." Brian gave a small laugh. "He thought it was because of Mia. He told me that there's all kinds of families, and I was going to have to choose which one I was going to be a part of. I thought I had chosen. But that all meant absolutely nothing when I thought you guys were in danger."

"So I gave up everything I built in my life, and I gave you the keys to the Supra. And don't think that I believe you owe me anything, because I don't. I did what I wanted to do, what I felt I had to do, and I'd do it again in a minute. Because by that time, I was so in love with you that the thought of you going back to prison killed me. Especially if I was in any way responsible."

"After you left, I felt so fucking empty inside. I felt like I was just floating through life, not really tied to anything anymore. That's one of the reasons that I kept in touch with Mia. Yeah, I felt guilty about the way I'd treated her, and I wanted to help. But there was also a selfish reason. Through her I could keep connected to what I'd lost. She was like a lifeline."

Brian finally looked up to meet Dom's eyes.

"When I came down here and you let me stay, I felt like I'd been given a second chance. Something...someone, that I could hold on to, and someone who would feel the same about me. An anchor to keep me from drifting. And I thought, if I could just not fuck this up, I'd do anything to stay. But I was wrong, Dom. I guess even family isn't worth it if I have to loose my self respect to stay."

"So what I want to know, Dom, is this." Brian suddenly whirled around to face the window, gripping the edge of the sink, as though he couldn't bear to look at Dom's face when he asked the question. "Do I mean anything at all to you? Or am I just a convenient fuck? Because I've come to realize that it's not enough to just be with you. You have to be with me, too."

At the sorrow and weariness in Brian's voice, Dom felt a deep twinge of guilt.

Twinge hell, it was more like an incapacitating muscle cramp. He hated the way it felt. But then, like a targeting system, his eyes zeroed in on the bruises on Brian's back. And at his waist. Fingerprints.

Dom felt such a rush of pain. A selfish pain, with a such a need to protect himself, that he mindlessly struck back with the first weapon that came to him.

"Is that what last night was, Brian? Payback for going to Mexicali without you? For taking away your 'anchor'? Is that what I have to look forward to whenever I don't want you clinging to me? That you'll go out catting around, looking for 'comfort'? Maybe we should go back to using condoms. Just in case."

Dom was horrified at what he'd just said.

Even as he was opening his mouth to take it back, he felt the spray of liquid across his face. Then he heard the shattering of the glass behind him. It was only after he noted these, that the image of Brian whirling around and hurtling the half full juice glass past him sank in.

Dom didn't know who was more shocked, him or Brian.

Suddenly he could see all the fight just drain from Brian. The light in his eyes seeped away while Dom watched. It was terrifying. Brian was always so vital, so alive. Dom felt as though he'd just committed a kind of symbolic murder.

They stared at one another for a long moment. There was a voice inside Dom's head that was screaming at him to just say something! Anything. But nothing came out.

"Maybe I should just leave," Brian said flatly. All the animation had fled his voice. A small humorless smile ghosted over his face as he added, "Before there's nothing left to drink out of in the house."

Brian stared at Dom for a few moments, as though willing him to speak. But Dom was still frozen in horror at what he's just done. His mind couldn't seem to make sense of what was happening. Couldn't seem to unravel the frayed knot that he'd just pulled so tight that it could never be picked loose. Only severing it would work.

So while he sat and stared, Brian quietly walked out of the kitchen.

Leon had heard the argument, of course.

He hadn't gotten very much sleep last night. Too much in his brain to sort through. So he'd only been dozing lightly when he heard Dom get up. But when there followed only silence for over an hour, he'd begun to relax and started to drift off to sleep. Then the sounds of the argument had reached him.

Though the term 'argument' might have been a little misleading from what he was hearing. Or rather what he wasn't hearing. Mostly the only thing audible was Dom's raised voice. Every once in a while he'd hear Brian's low murmur. Then came the shattering glass and the silence afterward.

Leon had been listening intently, wanting desperately to see if everything was alright, but not wanting to interfere. That's when he'd heard the stealthy creak of Vince's bedroom door.

Leon jerked on a pair of jeans and intercepted Vince before he could get any further. But he needn't have worried. Vince was simply standing in his open doorway, looking down the hall.

Catching Vince's eye, he pantomimed a question. Vince pointed toward Dom and Brian's room, where the door stood open, and mouthed, 'Brian'.

Leon asked silently, 'Dom?' But Vince only shrugged, shaking his head slightly. So Leon gestured for Vince to stay put and walked softly down the hall to peer into the other bedroom.

What he saw made the muscles in his chest tighten.

Brian sat on the edge of the bed, arms wrapped around his own middle, hunched over as if in pain. For one horrifying moment, Leon was afraid that Dom had hit him.

"Brian?" he asked softly, stepping closer. "Are you alright? Are you hurt?"

It took a moment for Brian to respond. When he looked up, Leon had never seen such raw pain and misery on anyone's face before.

"What?" Brian's tone was uncomprehending for a moment, then he realized what his friend was asking. "He didn't hit me," Brian said dully. He gave a humorless little laugh. "He doesn't have to. He can make it hurt just fine without using his fists." He paused. "I guess I'm not so bad at it myself."

While he'd been speaking, Brian pushed himself slowly to his feet and wandered across to the closet. From the bottom of the closet, he pulled out his big, blue duffel tote. His actions were tentative. As though he were moving through a dream. Or was in shock.

Moving to the chest of drawers, he began stuffing the contents of the right side into the bag. His movements were more sure now. Faster, more deliberate.

"What are you doing, Brian?" Leon asked, though he could see perfectly well what Brian was about.

"It's over, Leon. I should never have come down here." Brian stopped. "But I had to try," he whispered, maybe to Leon, maybe to his reflection in the mirror.

"Don't go," Leon urged. "Whatever's wrong, I know it can be worked out. I'll bunk with Vince. You can stay in my room. Just don't leave like this, Brian."

"Too late," insisted Brian. He was moving more quickly now. "This was a bad idea from the beginning. I don't think that Dom ever really wanted this. It's just not the way he's made, I guess." He was scooping items off of the bathroom counter into a small shaving kit which he stuffed into his bag.

He stopped for a moment, looked around in confusion, then dug a tee shirt out of the bag and pulled it on. Stuffing his feet into his tennis shoes, he bent and picked up his keys from the bedside table where he'd emptied out his pockets less than an hour ago. Hesitating for a moment, he twisted off the ring that held the keys to the house and garage and tossed them back onto the table.

Leon made a small sound of protest.

Then Brian turned and pulled several hanging garments from the closet, among them the silk shirt and leather pants given to him by Enrique, and threw them over his arm.

Turning around, he saw Leon standing in the middle of the room, looking at him helplessly. He hesitated, then dropped the clothes on the bed and moved to Leon, pulling him into a close hug. Leon's hands came up to clutch at Brian's back.

"You've been a good friend," Brian whispered in his ear, "and that means a lot to me. Dom doesn't know that it was you I was with last night. And he doesn't need to know."

At Leon's groan, Brian clutched him tighter and gave him a little shake. "Listen to me! It was just an excuse anyway. If it hadn't been that, it would have been something else. Dom just isn't ready for a relationship with another man. Maybe he never will be." He brushed a soft kiss across Leon's cheek before releasing him.

Quickly, he picked up the bag and the other clothes.

"I'll come back for the rest of my stuff later. But I'll call first."

"Are you gonna stay in Mexico?" Leon asked numbly.

"I don't know yet. Maybe. For now anyway. I can't go back to L.A. Maybe San Diego. Or maybe I'll head back to Arizona. I'm just not sure where I'll be for now, so I'll leave word with Jesus, OK?"

He moved out into the hallway, heading toward the front door, Leon trailing behind him.

"What's going on?" Vince asked from down the hall.

"What's going on, is that you win, man. I'm out of here."

Brian took several steps further then Vince called out again.

"Hey Brian?" He stopped awkwardly when Brian turned to look at him. "I am sorry." There was another clumsy pause. "Take care, OK?"

"Thanks, Vince," Brian said wonderingly. "You too."

Leon followed Brian out to his truck, trying to find the words that would make him stay and give it one more chance. But he had no luck. Still trying, he kept talking until he realized that Brian had paused in the act of getting into his truck and was staring down toward the beach, a pained expression on his face. Turning to see what had caught Brian's attention, he saw Dom.

He was standing on the sand, motionless, looking out to sea.

"Take care of him, Leon. He pushes himself too hard sometimes. He doesn't know when to quit. Would you do that for me?"

"You know I will," Leon replied gruffly. "Even though all I want to do is go and smack him around until he gets his head out of his ass."

"Thanks." He stopped and smiled sadly at Leon. "It's probably for the best, you know. I think we'd just end up tearing each other apart."

Brian climbed into the truck and rolled down the window. Reaching out, he clasped Leon's hand in a hard grip.

"I'll talk to you soon, alright?"

Leon just nodded mutely and watched while Brian started the truck, turned it around, and drove off down the long driveway, turning onto the highway and disappearing.

XIII. Seeing Clearly

It was the tickling that brought Brian out of a sound sleep. First the feather light tugging of the hair over his forehead. Then the ghost touches along his eyebrows and down his nose.

When he pried open sleep glued eyes, Brian had to squint and blink against the flood of blinding sunlight. When he could keep his eyes open for more than a fraction of a second, the first thing he saw was an extreme close-up of an out-of-focus face. Brian scrunched his eyes quickly shut against the dizzying image.

When he opened them again, the face had retreated and coalesced into that of a small child. A little boy, past the toddler stage, was Brian's estimation, but not by much. He was Mexican. But that was neither surprising nor unexpected, considering that he was in Mexico. But where had the child come from?

Then he remembered. He was at the Serra family rancho.

When he had shown up on Jesus' front door step in Ensenada after the fight with Dom, his friend had taken one look at his exhausted and dejected expression before he had hustled Brian into his vintage candy apple red 1970 Mustang Boss 429. It was a measure of Brian's depression and pre-occupation that he didn't even pester Jesus to let him drive the beauty like he usually did.

On the way to the family ranch, as Brian had drifted in and out of sleep, he'd heard Jesus talking on his cell phone. First he had called the manager of Los Hombres and arranged to be away for the next few days. Then he had obviously called ahead to the ranch to warn them that he would be arriving with a guest. Brian had felt Jesus touching his hair and stroking his arm and shoulder occasionally and had been vaguely comforted by the gestures.

That had been five days ago. The first three days, Brian had spent hiding in bed, sometimes sleeping, other times as a semi-comatose lump, reviewing the last few weeks of his life like a Mobius loop that kept endlessly twisting until it came back around to the same ending once again. He had only ventured from bed at Jesus' insistence, to pick at food when it was brought to him. Then he would crawl back into his safe cocoon as soon as possible.

Until yesterday morning.

Yesterday morning, Jesus had barged into the bedroom and thrown open the drapes, flooding the room with obnoxiously bright and cheerful light. Brian had pulled the covers over his head to block out the sun, but Jesus had ruthlessly stripped them from the bed, demanding that Brian get up. When Brian didn't comply, he had physically hauled him out of bed.

Deaf to Brian's protestations, he had dragged him into the bathroom and thrust him into the shower, still in his underwear. Reaching in, Jesus had turned on the cold water full blast, blocking escape with his body when Brian had yelped and tried to scramble like a cat out of the shower. In self defense, Brian had hurriedly adjusted the temperature of the water, since Jesus threatened to turn the cold back on if he simply turned it off.

"You are behaving like a drama queen," Jesus said bluntly to Brian's gaping face. "Besides, you stink. You have 20 minutes to make yourself presentable and come down to breakfast, or we do this all over again."

Clean and dress, a chastened Brian had been properly introduced to the rather extensive Serra family. He reluctantly ate a hearty breakfast, urged on by the matriarch's concern and Jesus' stern look. Then Jesus had dragged Brian outside and they had done tedious, menial, backbreaking chores all day long. Jesus had run him ragged.

After a faltering start, the familiarity of the chores from his childhood on the Escobar Ranch, had returned. Then he had welcomed the work. It was a distraction. It took his mind off of his own seemingly hopeless situation. Later on he had sheepishly apologized to the Serra family for his churlish behavior, eaten a hearty dinner like a starving man, then fallen into a deep and dreamless sleep.

Which brought him back to the present. There were young children on the ranch, certainly. But none this young. At least not in the main house.

Then Brian remembered. Enrique was coming today, and he was bringing his younger siblings. Brian squinted again at the small face peering anxiously at him.

"Hola muchacho," Brian said.

His reply was a shy grin full of tiny, pearl-like teeth.

"¿Es su nombre Jesus?" Brian asked.

A giggle and an enthusiastic nod confirmed that this was, indeed, Enrique's youngest brother. Brian smiled in return.

¿Cuántos años tienes?" he asked softly.

Little Jesus held up a grubby, chubby hand, all five fingers spread out.

"Five years old, huh? You're a big boy." Another happy nod confirmed that, like Enrique, his brother was bilingual.

¿Dónde está, Enrique?" Brian asked.

"Here I am," answered Enrique from the open doorway.

Behind Enrique were two pre-teen girls, identical in appearance as far as Brian could tell. They stared in awe at the sight of the beautiful, blond gringo in bed, naked to the waist where the sheet lay. Brian grinned at them and watched as they both blushed charmingly, then conferred in furious whispers. Brian could see that the hallway beyond Enrique seemed to be filled with children.

"Blanca, get Jesus. Everyone go back downstairs. Brian and I will be down in a few minutes for breakfast."

One of the girls walked slowly into the room toward the bed. She looked at her sister over her shoulder once before sidling up to her little brother. Her eyes roamed avidly over Brian's face and bare torso.

"Hola, Blanca," Brian said softly with a smile.

The girl giggled, her hands on her little brother's shoulders, but didn't say anything.

"¡Blanca! Pronto, por favor!" called Enrique.

Blanca's twin sister darted around Enrique and skipped up to the bed to grab her sister's hand. Then they both stared at Brian with an enchanting combination of demure boldness.

"Mi llamo, Paloma," the second one whispered shyly.

"Encantado, Paloma," Brian greeted her with grave courtesy.

With an exasperated flurry of movement, Enrique rounded up all of his younger siblings and ushered them, protesting, out of the room, closing the door firmly in their faces. After a little muted grumbling, Brian could hear them all retreating in a noisy gaggle down the hall.

Enrique leaned against the closed door, smiling at Brian, his eyes stroking over his exposed chest. Brian shivered in response to the warmth of the look.

"You are a shameless flirt," Enrique laughed. "And it seems that the women, as well as the men, of my family are susceptible to your charms. My mother has found reason to mention you several times since the party. That is why they were all so anxious to see you."

Enrique moved slowly closer until he could sit on the side of the bed. His eyes moved over Brian's face. Then he lifted a hand and drew the tips of his fingers in a whisper soft caress over one already pebbled nipple. Brian shivered once more before reaching up to capture the hand.

"I had almost forgotten how beautiful you are," Enrique said softly.

"Enrique..." Brian faltered. How could he chastise his friend for being truthful enough to show what he was feeling? Brian felt the same tug towards Enrique. But then he also felt it for Jesus, and most especially Leon. Brian wondered helplessly whether he was, in truth, the slut that Dom implied.

His anguish must have shown on his face, for Enrique gave his hand a squeeze and stood up.

"Come on and get up," Enrique commanded. "No work today. Jesus and I have two surprises for you. We are all taking you on a little trip. I am going to show you one of my most favorite places. You will need to wear jeans, and hiking boots, if you have them. If not, good tennis shoes will do. Oh, and bring a jacket. Hurry up, now. We have much to do." This last was said as he closed the door.

Brian looked at the beside clock and saw that it was barely 7:30. Enrique and the others must have left their house at 5 am to get here this early.

Jumping up, Brian took a quick shower and dressed as instructed. He made it downstairs in 15 minutes and moved towards the dining room and the sound of chattering, excited voices.

The huge, always full table was now bursting with seven extra places. Brian moved to his spot beside Jesus and saw a familiar face on the other side of his chair. A big grin splitting his face, he hurried over and enveloped his friend in a big hug.

Leon returned his hug, an equally huge grin on his own face.

"This is your other surprise," Enrique said from across the table.

"Jesus called a couple of days ago and invited me," Leon explained. "I drove to Enrique's yesterday evening and spent the night there. Then I followed them here this morning."

Brian reached out and gripped Jesus on the wrist, squeezing affectionately.

"Have I told you lately what a good friend you are?" Brian asked softly.

"Not today," Jesus admitted with a grin. "Come on, everyone eat! We have adventures waiting for us!"

The 'adventure' turned out to be a planned trip to the nearby Parque Nacional Sierra San Pedro Martir.

When deciding how to divide up into cars for the trip, Leon had sheepishly admitted that he had already promised Blanca and Paloma, and their eight year old sister, Maria, that they could ride in the yellow Skyline with him and Brian. Leon just shrugged when Brian gave him a knowing grin.

That left Jesus and Enrique in one of the ranch's SUVs with the younger boys, ten year old Carlos, Maria's twin, Marco, and little Jesus.

The park turned out to be 236 square miles of rugged wilderness. Soaring granite peaks, some over 10,000 feet high, deep canyons, and lush forests teeming with wildlife. On the summit of one of the peaks was their ultimate goal. The Observatorio Astronomico Nacional, with its 84 inch diameter telescope. Jesus had arranged for permission ahead of time to enter the observatory.

From the ranch to the park, it was about 30 miles. The road in the park itself was dirt, though well graded, but the Skyline, with it's low clearance, had little trouble making the trip, which took the better part of an hour.

Brian was enjoying the trip, listening to the girls chattering and watching them try out their budding skills at being flirtatious. But it was also frustrating. He wanted to ask Leon about Dom. How he was doing. To find out what was going on. But he had to hold his tongue and bide his time. It wasn't the type of conversation to be having in front of inquisitive, pre-teen girls.

It was another hour or so to the summit, stopping along the way to see spots of interest. Then, from the parking area, it was a one and a half mile hike on a paved path to the observatory.

Even if they hadn't had permission to enter the observatory, the view would have been worth the hike.

All around them stretched the forest and the mountains. Brian realized that, beyond the forest, they were seeing clear to the Pacific Ocean on the western side, and to the Sea of Cortez, and beyond that, the mainland of Mexico on the eastern side.

Brian and Leon were practically speechless at the beauty of the surroundings. The air had a crystalline quality to it and Brian felt his mind break free for the first time in over a week. He was still unsure about many things, but they no longer seemed so hopeless now.

Enrique was smiling proudly at the splendor of his country. The kids were all excited, even though they had been here many times before.

After a couple of hours of exploring, and after everyone had had their turn at the giant telescope, which was amazing, they were all ready to return to the vehicles and find a spot to eat the picnic lunch that had been packed for them.

"We will walk ahead and meet you at the cars," said Jesus quietly, eyeing them knowingly.

"Thanks, Jesus. We won't be long," Brian promised, the gratitude glowing in his eyes.

Brian sat with Leon on a shelf of granite and watched the others move off. Now that they were alone, Brian didn't know how to begin.

"Leon..."

"Jesus said you were feeling pretty down when he called," Leon said softly.

Brian smiled slightly. "Well, he was a lot less diplomatic when he confronted me yesterday morning," he said ruefully. "I believe the term 'drama queen' was used."

Leon laughed as Brian described his awakening yesterday. But it faded away as he looked closely at the dark mauve shadows under Brian's eyes. He could also tell that in the last couple of weeks Brian had lost some weight. And he didn't have that much to spare. When he was seeing Brian everyday, the change hadn't been so apparent.

Leon reached out and cupped Brian's cheek in his palm, stroking his thumb gently beneath one eye, as if in an attempt to wipe away the darkness, both under his eyes, and in them.

Brian closed his eyes and nestled his cheek into the rough, warm palm.

"I was so afraid that what I did would push you away." Brian's voice was almost a whisper. "I'd hate to loose your friendship because I acted like a bitch in heat."

Leon slid off of the rock ledge where they sat and turned to face Brian. He moved until he was standing between Brian's legs, close to him. He reached out again and cupped Brian's face with both hands.

"Brian, you didn't do anything. The last time I looked, I was a grown man, able to make my own decisions. I may not have the muscles of Jesus or Dom, but I think I'm perfectly capable of defending my 'virtue', if that's what I want." Leon made sure that Brian's eyes met his. "I won't tell you that what happened was something I was looking for, but we didn't do anything that I didn't participate in. And enjoy. A lot. And you weren't acting like a bitch in heat. You were looking for comfort with someone who was safe."

Brian searched Leon's eyes and saw the truth in them. He felt a relief so deep that it made him shaky and somewhat breathless. His smile was just a little lopsided. "I may have been looking to you for comfort," Brian admitted softly, "but you're far from safe."

Leon grinned and bent his head toward Brian. He pressed a gentle kiss on his lips that was almost platonic. Almost.

"Come on," Leon said, grabbing Brian's hand and pulling him to his feet. "We better get going. We're all spending the night at the ranch, so we've got plenty of time to talk. But there are a couple of things you need to know."

They started down the path, walking close together, shoulders occasionally brushing.

"First of all, Dom is miserable. And he's making all our lives a living hell."

Brian knew he shouldn't feel glad that Dom was unhappy, but it gave him hope that things between them had a chance of working out after all. There was also the small, childish part of him that was just glad for Dom's misery because he was behaving like such a shit!

"His attention in the garage is for shit. And you know, when Dom can't concentrate on cars, there's something seriously wrong. In the morning when I get up, he's already awake and sitting on the beach. In the same spot where he used to watch you swimming in the mornings. Just staring out at the water. Like he's waiting for you to pop out like a mermaid. Or maybe that's a merman. Anyway, after work, after the dinner that he doesn't eat, he goes and sits on the damn beach again. In the same spot. I swear to God, there's a hole the exact size of Dom's ass imprinted permanently in the sand there. It's pathetic, is what it is. And I never thought I'd ever use that word about Dom."

Brian smiled faintly at the description Leon was giving, just as Leon intended, he's sure.

"So here's the deal," Leon continued. "Enrique and I had a long talk last night. It seems that he and Jesus have been scheming like a couple of yentas on how to get you two back together." Leon stopped and his smile was a little perplexed. "You know," he mused, "Jesus and Enrique, they both want you, but they're willing to put all of that aside to help you and Dom get back together. They're pretty good guys."

"They're not the only ones," Brian assured Leon softly, reaching out to squeeze his arm.

"Anyway," Leon cleared his throat and looked away, "you know that race that the Aguilars have a car entered into?" Brian nodded. "Well, you're going to be there with Jesus and his family and Vince and I are going to make sure that Dom is there, also."

"Vince is going to help?" asked Brian incredulously.

"Yeah, Vince has actually been doing a lot of thinking lately. Come on, don't look like that. I know thinking before he acts has never been Vince's strong suit, but he's coming around when it comes to you and Dom. He can't stand the way that Dom's been acting, either. And he's smart enough to be able to figure out...OK, with a little explanation...what's going to change that."

Brian looked dubious, but Leon seemed so sure, that he had no choice but to go along with the plan. By the time they got to the parking area, Brian and Leon had hashed out the basics of the problem.

Blanca and Paloma fell on them, smiling and flirting, each tucking a hand into one of theirs. Brian thought that maybe he was holding onto Blanca's hand, while Paloma held Leon's. Little Maria got the best of both worlds by insinuating herself between the two men and grabbing a hand with each of hers.

They found a beautiful spot beside a stream to have their picnic. Afterwards, the kids went exploring, always under the eagle eye of their uncle Jesus, while the grown ups firmed up their plans a little.

By the time that they arrived back at the ranch, they were exhausted. When they finished a light meal, the kids were cleaned up and packed off to bed. Then there was time for a little adult conversation with the family before the strenuous day caught up with them, too.

There was a tense moment when it was mentioned that Brian could share his bed with his friend. Brian and Leon looked at one another helplessly. They fully realized that this was not a good idea. Jesus, who had been told about the incident after they left the bar, though not in any detail, came to the rescue.

"Nonsense!" he said. "Guests should not have to share a bed. Enrique can share with me and Leon can sleep in his room."

Enrique looked perplexed for a moment, but it didn't take him too long to catch on to the reasoning. He wasn't exactly dim. He had felt the vibrations between Brian and Leon. Feeling the same things, he completely understood the temptation of the original plan.

So, everything sorted out to everyone's satisfaction, the household wandered off to their separate beds.

In the morning, everyone joined up again for a big, confusing breakfast. Brian loved it. All the kids, all the family that had made him so welcome. He loved it with the passion of someone who had spent most of his life without a family of his own. He felt a twinge when he thought that, if everything worked out between Dom and himself, there would never be any kids. But if that was the sacrifice that he had to make to be with Dom, then he was willing to make it.

Before he saw everyone off, he found a moment with Enrique to thank him for his help. Then he said his good byes to the children, receiving shy kisses and hugs from the girls and little Jesus, and manly handshakes with the boys.

Then came his goodbye with Leon, which Brian managed to do privately.

He put his arms around the other man and held him tight, Leon returning the embrace. Easing up a little, he rested his forehead against Leon's, closing his eyes for a moment.

Brian took a deep breath, but when he spoke, his words were so low, that as close as he was, Leon had to strain to hear them.

"Would it be alright with you, if I told you that I love you?

Leon stiffened slightly. As close as he was to the rest of the team, and especially as close as he had been to Jesse, love wasn't a word that was used very freely. Not in the macho world of cars and racing. But Brian never did follow the rules all that well. He usually defined what he wanted, picked his target, then took the most direct route to the objective. That was just the way he was. So Leon relaxed back into the embrace.

"Yeah, I think that would be fine." Leon's husky voice was even rougher with emotion.

"I know you have brothers," Brian continued, his voice a little more sure and strong, "but I never did. I had a friendship at one time that meant everything to me, but it got damaged. Beyond repair, I think. And while I don't think that the way I feel about you is completely appropriate for a man to feel about his brother, I know that what I feel is more than friendship. I know this kinda sounds mixed up, but is it...you know...making any sense to you?"

"Yeah," Leon admitted, "it kinda makes perfect sense. At least from where I'm standing, cause I think that I feel the same way about you."

They stood quietly against one another for another long moment before they broke apart, their eyes meeting in understanding. Then they joined the others.

Brian stood beside Jesus and waved as the others drove away. For the first time in several weeks, Brian felt, at least partially, at peace. After the trip up the mountain and talking with his friends, he felt as though he were seeing clearly for the first time in quite a while.

He knew that no matter what happened from here on, at least he wasn't going to be alone.

XIV. Is It Something In The Water?

"...dangerous, Brian. Are you sure you know what you're doing?"

Not Leon's words so much, as who they were addressed to, caught Dom's attention as he walked past the living room. He would normally have been mortified at the idea of being caught eavesdropping, but at the sound of Brian's name, nothing short of sheer force could have pulled him away from his listening post.

"I'm serious, Bri. Don't let him talk you into doing something that you're not ready for. When's the...It was this morning? What happened? You're kidding! Brian, that's fantastic! But you know, if you let him talk you into doing something like this, Dom's not going to be very happy. Besides, it's been awhile since you've done this. Your ass is really going to be feeling it by the time it's over."

Dom felt incredibly frustrated. Hearing only one side of the conversation was filling his head with all sorts of images that he knew in his gut were false, but that still didn't stop his mind from manufacturing them.

Leon started to say more, but Dom was distracted by the sound of Vince coming in the kitchen door. As usual, there was nothing subtle about his presence, and he made enough noise for three people.

"Hey, Dom! What are you..."

He stopped short at Dom's impatient swiping motion. But when Dom turned back toward the living room, he saw Leon watching him with a knowing smirk on his face. Jaw muscles clenching, along with his hands, Dom spun around and brushed past Vince as he made his way to the refrigerator.

Jerking open the door with a loud rattle of condiment bottles, he pulled out a Corona and viciously twisted off the cap, which he hurled into the trash can. It clanged down the metal sides because Vince had forgotten to put a trash bag back in the can.

"Damn it, Vince...!"

"Hey! I just took the trash out. I was gonna put a bag in it. You just didn't give me a chance!"

While Vince was re-lining the can, Dom was straining, trying to hear Leon's soft spoken words past Vince's deafening clatter. But all he caught was a husky laugh and more low murmuring. Then Leon appeared in the kitchen door, cordless phone held down at his side. He replaced it in its cradle on the wall and helped himself to a beer, settling at the table opposite Dom.

"You know, Dom," Leon paused to take a pull of his beer, "if you want to know about Brian, all you gotta do is ask."

"Was that Brian on the phone?" asked Vince as he joined them at the table, beer in hand. "How's he doing?"

Dom turned to stare at Vince incredulously. "Since when the hell do you care?"

"Hey! I don't...I mean, I can..." Vince sputtered in ineffectual self-defense in the face of Dom's sarcastic anger.

"What Vince is trying to say," Leon came to the rescue, "is that he was coming around anyway. But everything was kinda rushed along when he realized that Brian's leaving would turn you into such an impatient asshole."

"Yeah, what he said," Vince muttered, taking a long drink of his Corona.

Dom stared across at Leon. He was able to keep his hands from squeezing on the beer bottle, but he couldn't stop his jaw muscles from clenching repeatedly. Leon just stared back at him with an unblinking gaze. Accusing. Challenging. What the fuck? Leon had rarely pulled against him in the past. He was always the level headed one that he could trust to watch his back.

Vince fiddled with the Corona bottle, turning it around and around in his hands, taking a little sip, glancing nervously from a silent, staring Dom, to a silent, staring Leon. He cleared his throat noisily.

"So...is the race still on for Sunday? We still going?"

"Yeah, sure," answered Leon before Dom could open his mouth. "Only there's been a little change in plans. It seems that Menendez, the Aguilar's driver, took a header down the front steps when he tripped over the family pooch. Broke his leg."

"No shit! But who'd they get to drive at the last minute like this?" Vince asked ingenuously.

Leon just stared at Dom until his friend could put the pieces together for himself. He could see the tide of realization as it washed over the big man's face.

"Brian? Brian's gonna drive Luis Aguilar's car? No fucking way! It's too goddamn dangerous!"

"Brian's a good driver, Dom," Leon replied evenly, secretly pleased with Dom's reaction.

"I know he's a good driver! I probably know that better than you." Dom ran a hand over his lightly stubbled scalp, making a faint rasping sound. "The trouble is, Brian is absolutely, fucking fearless sometimes. He acts like he's ten feet tall and made of Teflon coated, tempered steel. Sometimes he's got this weird aura of indestructibility about him, but it's just a mirage, a fantasy. He could get hurt doing shit like this."

"Brian's not careless, Dom," Leon said quietly, watching the emotions play over his friend's face. "He doesn't take stupid chances."

"The fuck he doesn't," Dom said harshly. "I've been with him when he's done some incredibly talented, but stupid things. Besides, he doesn't know the car. He doesn't know the track or the competition. Hell, even the rules are bound to be different than what he's used to. This isn't NASCAR, this is Mexico. It's a dirt, short track in the ass end of nowhere!"

Dom ran his hand over his scalp again. It was a gesture he repeated often when he was agitated. "Fuck!" he muttered under his breath.

"You do love him, don't you?" The vicious look that Dom gave Leon was meant to quell any further personal questions. Usually it worked. But not this time.

"I wasn't sure, you know?" Leon continued, "Because it seems like you've been trying your damnedest to push him away for weeks now."

"This is none of your business, Leon," Dom growled, the warning unmistakable.

"The hell it isn't! Brian is my friend, Dom. You're my friend. How can I sit on the sidelines and watch the two of you self-destruct? Do you know what a fucking miracle it is the you two even got together? The obstacles that you each had to overcome?"

"You don't have all the facts."

"Bullshit!"

"He's living with him!" Dom yelled. His face twisted and spasmed as though hit with a sudden pain.

"He's not 'living' with Jesus, Dom," explained Leon patiently. "He's staying with him and his family, temporarily because he doesn't feel like he's welcome here."

Leon slouched down in his chair, his expression was calculating as he stared at Dom across the table.

"He's only staying with them until after the race," Leon informed him, taking a sip of his beer. "After that, he's leaving. Leaving as in leaving Mexico. He's going back to the States."

Dom jerked as though he'd been slapped. Once again he grimaced as though in pain, then his face settled into lines of bleak despair.

"Maybe that's for the best," Dom muttered.

"How can you fucking say that?" Leon yelled, sitting back up and leaning forward to jab a stiffened forefinger into Dom's shoulder. "Goddamnit, Dom! You piss me off so fucking much sometimes. You will never find another person who's as much a match for you as Brian! You'll never find another person who will willingly give up everything for you without the guarantee that you'll be there for him in the end! And you know what? In the end I guess you weren't there for him! So maybe he's better off without you after all. Unfortunately, he seems to love you. Though, for the life of me, right now, I can't figure out why."

Dom's face gradually tightened as he listened to Leon's scathing accusations. The words hurt and angered him, all the more because there was more than a modicum of truth in them.

"You don't have all the facts!" Dom insisted again, angrily.

"If you mean what happened the night you returned from Mexicali, yes I do," Leon retorted.

"What happened?" Vince asked.

"He lied to me," Dom said insistently. His words were directed at Leon. Vince was ignored.

"He didn't lie," Leon retorted, "he told you what he did."

"What did he do?" Vince asked, perplexed and ignored.

"He lied about the 'who'," Dom persisted. "I asked him point blank if it was Serra, and he said 'No'."

"If who was Serra? What the hell are you guys talking about?" asked Vince.

"That's because it wasn't Jesus," gritted Leon.

"Well, if it wasn't Serra, then Brian's a bigger slut than I imagined, and he picked up someone he hardly knew," Dom snorted. "So much for seeking comfort from a friend!"

"Ohh," Vince said, suddenly enlightened. "Brian fucked Jesus?"

"No!" Leon snapped at Vince, but he was glaring at Dom, who just glared right back. Their eyes clashed and held for long seconds before Leon finally looked away.

Jaw muscles clenching repeatedly, along with his fists, Leon stared down a the table top for a small eternity before making a decision.

Taking a deep breath, he held it for a count of ten before slowly blowing it out, willing his body to release it's tension, flexing his fingers out so that they lay flat on the table. He slowly looked up until he met Dom's unwavering gaze. Mentally saying a possible goodbye to years of close friendship, Leon confessed.

"It was me," he said simply. Then he admitted to himself that it was an incredible relief to have it all out in the open.

For a moment, Dom's face showed no change at all. Leon thought for one horrifying second that he was going to have to make his confession all over again. Once had been cleansing, twice would be excruciating. But he was 'saved'.

"You fucked Brian?" Vince demanded. "Or was it you and Jesus? Together?" The last was faintly scandalized.

"No!" Leon rasped, his eyes never leaving Dom's face, which had turned an alarming shade of deep, dusky red. He was clenching his jaws so tightly, that the muscles stood out like small granite boulders.

Between his facial color and the way his muscles worked under his skin, Leon was reminded of a documentary he'd once seen about the destructive force of lava. In particular, there had been footage of a river of molten rock, and Leon had been fascinated with the way it roiled and shifted beneath the surface. That was Dom at this moment.

"'No' what?" Vince demanded indignantly. "'No', you didn't fuck Brian? 'No', Jesus didn't fuck Brian? Or 'no', you didn't fuck him at the same time, but fucked him separately?"

"Not now, V!" Leon snapped, his eyes still mesmerized with the mayhem in Dom's.

"Why am I always the last to know anything?" Vince grumbled.

Leon couldn't afford to take his eyes off of Dom. He could feel the tension building in the big man. He looked like a ten foot steel coil compressed into six feet of space. Leon could feel his own muscles tensing in readiness.

"What is it with everyone down here?" groused Vince. "Is it something in the damn water? I thought all you got from the water down here was the runs, not the urge to fuck Brian."

"Shut up, Vince!" Leon shouted.

He was distracted enough by Vince's blathering that he nearly reacted too late. He didn't see the release, but he did see Dom's huge fist hurtling towards his face.

Leon had enough time to jerk his head back, and he might have ducked the blow entirely, but Dom had also launched himself out of his chair, and his body followed his fist at least part way across the table.

Relatively speaking, it was a glancing blow, but it was a glancing blow from an enraged Dominic Toretto. Leon felt the pain explode in his face when the punch connected hard enough to send his chair over backwards. When he hit the hard tile floor, the whoosh of air being forced from his lungs did far more to stun him than the blow to the head.

As he gasped ineffectually for air, Leon was vaguely aware that Vince had scrambled half way over the table himself, to catch Dom around the body and restrain him. Somewhat. But as he desperately tried to suck the much needed oxygen back into his lungs, Leon knew that if Dom succeeded in breaking free from Vince and made his way around the table before Leon could get to his feet, that he was going to be in a world of hurt.

When he was able to push himself upright and then stand, Leon realized that Vince was practically sitting in Dom's lap in an attempt to pin him to his chair.

Whatever Vince was frantically whispering to Dom, it was obviously having the desired effect. But then, Vince had had years to perfect the art of cooling off, or at least leveling off, Dom's temper.

Dom didn't lose his cool very often anymore, not since the incident with Kenny Linder, but Leon knew from stories that he used to a lot more volatile. Even now, or perhaps, particularly now, because he penned it up so tightly, when Dom lost control of his temper, the result was volcanic.

Still, even though Dom had ceased to struggle against Vince's hold, his body was heaving and shuddering body with the attempt to subdue his emotions. But Dom only managed to control his physical actions. His eyes were like red hot knives attempting to flay the skin from Leon's body an inch at a time.

Still shaky from the wind being knocked out of him and the look on Dom's face, Leon bent slowly and picked up the chair, setting it upright then sinking onto it, once again facing Dom.

Belatedly Leon realized that the front of his shirt was wet and had the yeasty smell of beer. His jeans were damp also. In his lunge across the table, Dom had knocked over the beer bottles and their contents had wound up on Leon.

Unbuttoning his shirt, he peeled it off and used the dryer portion on the back to blot the extra moisture from his chest and belly, then he lobbed the balled up shirt through the laundry room door. Then he wished he kept the shirt on. Somehow he felt more vulnerable this way.

Pushing to his feet once more, Leon took a deep breath to steady himself, then bent to retrieve the fallen bottles from the floor. Now that some of the initial numbness had worn off, when he bent over and the blood rushed to his head, he was forcefully reminded that only moments before, his face had been the target for one of Dom's huge fists. The left side stung and throbbed.

Dropping the bottles in the empty trash can with a crash and clang that made him jump, he got three more from the fridge, twisting off the caps and setting them with small, precise thuds on the table in front of each chair.

"It's OK, Vince," Leon husked, "get off of him."

He waited while Vince slowly complied, eyeing his two friends warily while he returned to his chair, immediately taking a healthy pull from the fresh beer. He had a wide-eyed look on his face, like a small child who has just witnessed mommy and daddy fighting for the first time, and feels unsure. Like his stable little world was just knocked askew.

Dom sat eerily still, but there was nothing pacific about his demeanor. The look in his eyes was murderous as he glared at Leon.

Leon's steady look had a deceptively calm appearance as he took a small, fortifying sip of his beer.

"I'll give you that one, Dom, because I figure I deserve it. But not again. Not unless you want me to return blow for blow, for every stupid ass thing that you've done in the last few weeks." Leon's voice was low with warning, as he kept his eyes locked with Dom's.

Leon waited, giving Dom a chance to talk. When all he did was continue to burn holes in Leon's soul with his eyes, Leon started talking again.

"I'd like to say that I was drunk," Leon said softly, "but it would be a lie. Brian was a little drunk, but not that much. It just happened, Dom. It wasn't something that either if us was expecting. And it sure as shit wasn't something we planned."

Leon paused to gather his thoughts. He ran his hands unthinkingly over his face and winced as he pressed hard over his bruised cheek bone and rapidly swelling lip. He carefully probed with gentle finger tips and knew from the way it felt, that in a few hours, he'd have a black eye.

"You want some ice for that?" Vince asked with uncharacteristic restraint.

"Yeah, thanks, V." Leon knew that it was Vince's way of apologizing for his distracting chatter earlier.

"Thanks, man," he said, when Vince handed him a dish towel filled with ice cubes, then pressed it gingerly to his face.

"Look, Dom," Leon continued tiredly, "I'm gonna have my say, and I hope you'll listen to what I'm gonna tell you. Cause I love Brian, and I know that he loves me, but it's a brother's love, a friend's love. I'm the comforting little campfire that he was drawn to when he felt lost and alone. It just got a little out of hand that one time. If you can't see, that for Brian, you're like a forest fire that burns away everything else until there's just you and him left, then I pity your blindness."

"He's right, Dom," Vince added softly.

"Then, if when I'm done," Leon had to pause for a moment to clear the small lump that seemed to be blocking his throat, "if you want, I'll take off. I'll move out."

At Leon's words and Vince's wordless sound of protest, Dom felt something crack through the dark, hard shell that had formed around him at Leon's confession. Something inside him immediately protested at the possibility of losing Leon. He'd lost so many of his team in the last year.

First Jesse dying, and almost losing Vince. Mia was parted from him, and even though that would have happened eventually, it still hurt. Letty leaving had made another hole in his life even though, in the end, it was something that he'd wanted, and even helped orchestrate.

Then Brian came, and his presence was like a balm over a painful wound. But Dom had been unable to stop picking at the wound, making it worse and worse, until he'd driven Brian away with his behavior.

There was a part of Dom that couldn't stand the thought of losing yet another member of his family, but when he looked at Leon's face, he didn't see his friend and brother, he saw the eyes that had watched Brian's passion. The lips that had made those red marks on Brian's throat and chest. And when he let his gaze drop to the table, he saw the long, sensitive fingers that had left the bruises on the pale skin of Brian's hips. Where he had gripped Brian tightly while he...

Dom abruptly pushed himself up and away from the table. He paced to the sink and braced his hands on the edge of the counter, staring out the window in an unconscious imitation of Brian during their last 'conversation' here in the kitchen.

Movement in the room behind him, caught in the glass of the window, snagged his attention. He watched while Leon's reflection reached up with crossed arms to grasp his own shoulders, as though hugging and anchoring himself at the same time. His head fell back on his shoulders and he seemed to be staring at the ceiling. His face was a well of despair and Dom could see the discoloration and swelling already beginning where his fist had made contact.

He could see Vince, too. His face was torn as he looked back and forth between his two friends, reaching out hesitantly to clumsily pat Leon on the arm.

'When did I become the bringer of despair and pain?' thought Dom numbly. His heart felt like a tightly clenched fist. 'All I ever wanted to be was like my father. He took care of his family. He always put our welfare above his own. He always showed us love. It was never held back stintingly, or doled out only when we pleased him. How did I get to this place in my life where I seem to be pushing away everything and everyone I care about with both hands?'

Dom abruptly twisted on the cold water tap and cupped his hands under the flow. Splashing his face with the cool liquid, and cupping it up to flow over his head and neck, he rubbed briskly, sluicing off the excess. Turning off the tap, he shook his hands then reached for a clean, folded dishtowel in the basket on the counter. Roughly drying his face, head and hands, he strode back to the table, startling the other two men.

He pulled back his chair at the head of the table and sat down. Taking a healthy pull from the bottle of Corona, he turned his gaze from Leon to Vince and then settled it back on Leon. Part of his heart seemed to lurch and begin to unfold as he saw the hope seeping into his friend's face.

"So," he said with determination, "how do I convince him to come back."

Leon's joyous shout of laughter and Vince's huge grin made another part of his soul soften and quicken again with life. But Dom knew that he'd only feel whole and content once more when he'd repaired his damaged life with Brian, and brought him home where he belonged.

XV. Lodestone

"I'd almost forgotten."

"What did you say, Dom?" Vince asked.

It was a strain to hear over the clamor of the crowd and the roar of the race cars. The drivers and their crews were revving their engines in last minute tests before the start of the race. Announcements in rapid fire Spanish, continually blaring over the PA system, added to the confusion rather than helping.

"I said, I'd almost forgotten," Dom repeated quietly.

Leon and Vince followed the line of Dom's sight and saw Brian. Big surprise. He was across the track in the pit stalls, surrounded by Jesus, Luis and Enrique Aguilar, and a man on crutches with his leg in a cast.

Brian was decked out in a fireproof driving suit in the dark green and white of the Aguilar Vineyard label, the main sponsor of the racing crew. The vineyard name was blazoned across the chest of the suit, and, along with the names of numerous other sponsors, mostly covered the suit and the car itself, a sleek little Ford Taurus.

"What? You trying to tell us you forgot what a pretty puss Brian has?" Vince teased.

At that moment, Brian threw back his head and laughed at something one of the men had said, and Leon heard Dom's sharp indrawn breath beside him. Looking back at his friend, Leon saw that his lips were parted and his breathing had quickened.

"Nah," Leon said, a hint of a smile on his face. "He just forgot what it's like to see Brian laugh like that. Right?"

Dom pulled his gaze away from his estranged lover with visible effort to look at Leon. His eyes were immediately drawn to the left side of Leon's face. The discolored area under the eye and the slight swelling around the corner of the mouth. Leon saw the fleeting trace of regret in Dom's eyes, but he didn't mind a little bruising. Personally, he thought he deserved a lot more.

He knew that Brian still felt guilty, despite Leon's reassurances, for what he saw as his seduction of Leon. Leon felt guilty for what he saw as taking advantage of his friend during his time of vulnerability and need. And Leon made damn sure that Dom felt guilty for his part in the whole mess.

It wasn't hard. A careful touch to his face, a 'carelessly' spoken word. He didn't lay it on too thick, because the plan wasn't to ditch his own share of the blame, or lay everything at Dom's door, but to divert thoughts of blame from Brian.

Sure, Brian wasn't entirely innocent in how he had behaved, but going down that road wouldn't get his two friends back together. Besides, he knew that Brian would shoulder his fair share when the time came.

Watching a shadow spread across Dom's face as he went back to observing Brian, Leon turned quickly back to the group across the track and saw Jesus leaning over to whisper something into Brian's ear, and the resulting grin was huge.

Rolling his eyes at the jealousy and insecurity that Dom showed over Brian, something he never seemed to have felt over Letty, Leon hurried to pour oil onto turbulent waters.

"You know," he began, "you're the main reason for Brian's good mood." Then he had to stifle the urge to snicker at how fast Dom took the bait. He was kind of enjoying this. It wasn't too often that he was able to have the upper hand where Dom was concerned.

"What does that mean?" Dom asked with totally obvious nonchalance.

"It means," Leon continued patiently, "that until I called Brian yesterday and told him that you were coming today and wanted to talk to him after the race, he was just as mopey as Vince used to be when he was stuck on Mia and she wouldn't give him the time of day."

"Hey!" Vince said indignantly, which they both ignored.

"Besides which," Leon said with feigned indifference, "you don't have to worry about Jesus' intentions. He's long since accepted the fact that he'll only ever be friends with Brian, so he's turned his sights on someone else."

"Oh yeah?" Dom said with heavy sarcasm. "Who's the lucky guy?"

Leon could feel his face grow hot and the saliva dry in his mouth. He kept his eyes riveted to the group in the pit stall. His tongue felt glued to the roof of his mouth, and his very inability to say anything was what drew Dom's attention. He didn't have to see the other man's face to know he was being studied.

"Interesting." The neutrality of Dom's response made the heat flare in Leon's face. He refused to give Dom the satisfaction of looking.

"And will you be granting the man his, uhm, heart's desire? Or gently ease his disappointment?"

"Ease whose disappointment? What are you guys talking about?" Vince asked in confusion. He'd had his eyes and mind glued to the low cleavage of the generously endowed señorita in the bleachers below them.

Leon's eyes flew to Dom's face and knew, that against his will, his own had a quiet pleading in them. On the other hand, Dom's held a gently mocking look that said 'Payback is a bitch,' and Leon realized that Dom had, all along, been aware of Leon's attempts to gently steer the 'guilt machine'.

"It seems that Leon has an admirer with, uh, amorous intentions," Dom told Vince, his eyes still on Leon's face.

"Yeah?" grinned Vince. "Do I know her? Is she a fox?"

When neither of the answered him, but only continued to stare at one another, Vince became impatient.

"What?" he said, looking in perplexity from one to the other. "What's the joke?" he asked in the face of Dom's slowly growing grin. "Is she a dog or something? No, wait!" horror was creeping into his voice. "You said 'his'. It's a guy!? Some guy's swinging wood over Leon? That's...that's sic..." Vince trailed the last word off quietly in hopes that Dom wouldn't notice.

"So," Dom's voice was filled with gentle mockery, "Are you going to give Jesus what he wants?"

Leon stared back challengingly. "I haven't decided yet." His rough voice was very cool.

"Jesus? You haven't decided if you and Jesus are going to fu...Oh hell no!" Vince argued. "Come on! I thought it was just a 'Brian' thing! I mean, everyone wants to jump Brian's bones at some time or anoth...I mean, not everyone!" Vince back pedaled fast enough to cause whiplash when both of his friends turned to stare at him in amazement. "I mean...I don't...I would never..."

"Vince?"

"Yeah, Dom?" Vince answered nervously.

"Maybe you should think about quitting while you're still ahead?" Dom suggested gently.

"Yeah! OK! Anyone want a beer? I think I nee..er, want a beer. I'm...I'm gonna go get a beer. Can...can I get you guys a beer?"

Dom and Leon turned back to watching the men in the pit stall while Vince melted away in the crowd, muttering something about 'the water down here'. But while Dom's eyes were solely on the golden haired figure that was the momentary 'sun' around which everyone revolved, Leon studied the big, dark man at Brian's side.

"Jesus is a decent guy," Leon said quietly.

"Yeah. He's a real prince." Dom's voice exuded sarcasm.

"I ain't kidding, Dom. He and Enrique have been scheming like matchmakers on how to get the two of you back together. I wouldn't be surprised if they planted that mutt on Menendez's steps, just to put him out of commission for awhile, knowing that you'd just have to be here to watch Brian race."

"Yeah, OK. I get it." Both men were silent for a few moments. Then Dom brought the subject back around again. "Are you going to give Serra what he wants?"

"I really don't know," Leon said after a moment's hesitation. "I think, maybe, yeah."

"You don't sound real sure," Dom rumbled quietly. "Don't let him push you into something you're not ready for."

Leon snorted. "Jesus doesn't 'push'," he said dryly. "That's not his style. He sets out very tempting 'bait' and waits for his prey to come to him." Leon could feel the heat growing in his face again as he remembered the looks, the fleeting touches, the soft words spoken in confidence as they'd planned today. The heat of the other man's body as he had stood close, but not touching.

"Uh, OK. New question. Why? Ask yourself, 'Is it him, or is it curiosity?'."

Leon was quiet for a few moment, surround by the din of the crowd. "Both, I think," he said finally. "I mean, Jesus is a hell of a nice guy. He's really gentle and patient for a man his size. Like he's aware that, with all that mass, he could do some major damage if he wanted. Kinda like you." Leon threw a grin sideways at Dom. "Sometimes," he added slyly, then had the satisfaction of watching Dom squirm again. "He's funny, and he's pretty damn smart. Added to all that, he's not exactly hard on the eyes."

Leon grew quiet. "But the other part is, 'I gotta know'."

"Whether it was just Brian or a fork in the road," Dom supplied solemnly.

Leon turned to stare at Dom for a minute, his eyes searching the bigger man's face for traces of jealously, but finding only understanding. "Yeah. I need to know," he agreed.

"Leon! Dom!" their fragile moment of mutual understanding was shattered by a call a few feet away. It was Enrique.

"Hey Enrique! How's it going? Big day today, huh?" Leon watched as Enrique shook hands formally with Dom then more enthusiastically with himself. Enrique was a little in awe of Dom. He had confided to Leon, that, while he could definitely see the attraction for Brian, he would find it too intimidating to go to bed with Dom.

"I have come to invite you to watch the race with us from the pit," Enrique said formally.

Leon started to reply, but Dom beat him to it.

"I don't think that's such a good idea," he hedged warily. "You know Brian and I have been having some trouble and we haven't had a chance to talk yet. I don't want to take the chance that I might do something to upset or distract him before the race. He needs to keep his mind in the game."

"Oh, but..." Enrique's tone and face held dismay. "But it was Brian who asked my father for permission to invite you over. Do you not think that it would be more distracting and upsetting for Brian if you were to refuse?"

"He's right, Dom," Leon warned.

"Is there a chance that Brian just meant to invite Leon?" Dom asked, still concerned.

"No," Enrique said firmly. "Brian was most specific."

"OK," Dom finally agreed, equal parts relieved and anxious. "But we gotta wait for Vince. He went to get something to drink."

"Oh," Enrique hesitated for a moment. "No, you must go now. Before very much longer, they will stop the foot traffic across the track. We do not wish to take the chance that you might not get across. I will wait here for Vince, and, if there is time, we will follow you across."

Dom tried to argue, but once again was out voted and Leon hustled him down to the gate. The guard stopped them until he could radio across for clearance, but amazingly, it didn't take very long before Leon and Dom were across the track and walking down the inside of the pit road toward the Aguilar's stall.

Since the guard had radioed for permission, Jesus had been on the lookout for them, and he now met them several yards from the car.

Like Enrique, Jesus had a more formal, almost stiff greeting for Dom before he turned to Leon with a warm smile. Jesus grasped Leon's extended hand with both of his and opened his mouth to speak. When he caught sight of the marks on the left side of Leon's face, his hand flew up and his fingers brushed feather light over Leon's chin.

He stared in shock for a moment before his face darkened and his expression became fierce. He swung his fiery gaze toward Dom, and started to follow it with his body before Leon wrapped both of his hands around Jesus' thickly muscled arm above the elbow and tugged him back.

"No!" Leon said in a low, but determined undertone. He had warned Brian about the whole incident with Dom the last time they'd talked on the phone, to prepare him, so that awkwardness and tension wouldn't spring from something best forgotten. He had no idea that Brian wouldn't have thought to warn Jesus or that the big Mexican would react so strongly. "This isn't your business, Jesus! It's between Dom and me. Besides, it's a settled issue."

When Jesus would have strained forward anyway, Leon used considerably more force to squeeze the hard flesh beneath his fingers warningly. "Forget it, Jesus! Brian knows what happened, but don't start something that's going to distract him!"

Though the tension in his muscles remained, Jesus quit straining forward. Leon eased up, but maneuvered his body around until he stood between the two larger men. Jesus continued to glare at Dom, fists clenched, while Dom stood deceptively still, arms hanging loosely at his sides, an impassive expression on his face as he stared back.

The absurdity of the situation made Leon want to laugh. He had never had anyone straining to fight for his honor before. Besides, he felt like a lean greyhound between two huge mastiffs. Dom had maybe an inch or so on Jesus in height, and he had the advantage in reach, but Jesus probably out massed Dom by about twenty pounds of muscle. If the two of them ever fought, it would be an awesome sight.

"OK," Leon said, glancing around, "we're drawing an audience. Let's remember why we're here, alright?" He pivoted around and grabbed each larger man by the elbow and began to usher them the last few feet to the Aguilar's stall.

Luis Aguilar was there to greet Dom and Leon graciously. He looked perfectly at ease, as though half the people in the grandstand and in the pits hadn't just witnessed his brother-in-law almost come to blows with one of his guests. Leon didn't think anyone had exactly filled Luis in on what was happening between Dom and his new driver, but the man was shrewd enough to know that something was in the wind.

Once they were within a few feet of the car and Brian, Leon took the chance that Jesus and Dom weren't going to get carried away on a testosterone tide, and stepped quickly forward to put his hand on Brian's back. He was bent over by the left rear wheel, conferring with one of the pit crew and he looked around at the touch of Leon's hand and a huge smile lit his face.

Saying something to the other man, Brian straightened and pulled Leon into a quick, hard hug. When he backed off, the mischievous grin that Brian gave him as his eyes flicked over the marks on Leon's face and then toward Jesus, helped Leon to realize that the omission of certain facts to Jesus had been intentional, not an oversight. Someone else had obviously been trying their hand at playing matchmaker. Leon just shook his head ruefully.

"You look pretty snazzy," Leon said, changing the unvoiced subject. His eyes raked over Brian's lanky body in the, not tight, but form fitting, one piece, driving suit. Even standing in the shade with a nice breeze blowing, Brian was sweating slightly in the fireproof suit. "Not exactly leather and silk, but very macho," joked Leon.

The mention of leather and silk reminded Brian of Enrique, and his eyes searched past Leon. "Where's Enrique and Vince?"

"Well, Vince went looking for something to rinse the taste of his own foot out of his mouth," Brian's quick grin was rueful, "and Enrique sent us on ahead so we wouldn't get stuck in the stands, while he waited for Vince."

Brian eyes were not-so-discreetly searching over Leon's shoulder, and Leon could tell the second that he picked Dom out of the crowd of milling men. They stopped like he'd stood on the brakes. The almost palpable arc of electricity that left the blue eyes told Leon that Dom's eyes had met Brian's. And the visibly increasing tension in his body was a sure sign that Dom was making his way toward them.

Leon didn't have to see Dom to know these things. Watching Brian was like watching the needle on a compass that always pointed to true north. Dom was Brian's true north. But then, the last couple of days had confirmed Leon's suspicion that Brian was Dom's lodestone.

Leon suddenly felt as though he were standing too close to an electrical storm. He could practically feel the energy crawling over his skin, and he knew that Dom was standing directly behind him. Brian's eyes were glued to a spot just beyond his right shoulder, and Leon slowly slid away until he no longer came between his two friends.

"Hello, Dom," Brian said. His voice was warm, but had a tinge of wariness to it.

"Hello, Brian," Dom answered, "you look good."

Brian did look good, but Dom was a little worried and saddened, and yes, guilty, at the dark smudges beneath those blue eyes that made them seem to glow even more brilliantly than normal. Plus, he seemed to have lost weight.

"Yeah, well, you look like shit, Toretto! Have you given up on eating and sleeping all together?"

"You should be talking?" Dom's retort was mild and a small smile hovered around his lips. Brian's answering smile was just as faint.

Dom realized they were both circling each other like a couple of animals that had mauled one another in the past and were now leery of each other. He knew that the description was all too apt, but he was determined that there wouldn't be a repeat of that. All he had to do to keep his mind on his plan was to remember what the last two weeks had been like without Brian. Three weeks if he included the one in Mexicali, which he did. If the eight months after he left L.A. without Brian, had been like living with a hole in himself, the last three weeks had been like loosing an arm. It had been painful to function, to even think properly.

Never again, he swore.

"Look, Brian..." Dom glanced around, trying futilely to find a place where he and Brian could speak privately, even for a few minutes, but the area was lousy with crew members.

Seeing what he was after, Brian motioned him to follow and he led Dom into the three sided, roofed enclosure that served as a garage. Almost everyone was out clustered around the car anyway. Most of the needed tools had been carted out there as well. The only people left were a couple of the clean-up boys.

"Guys, give us a minute, OK?" Brian tilted his head toward the outside, and the other men slowly wandered out into the open, eyeing the strange gringo curiously. It wasn't totally private, but it would do.

"Brian," Dom started again, "I told myself I wasn't going to get into this now. I mean, this is pretty lousy timing, but I'm really sorry for the things I've said and done over the past few weeks. I...it's impossible to explain in the amount of time we have, with everyone standing around like this. When the race is over, could we get away for a couple of days and just talk?"

Brian's face relaxed more and more while Dom gave his little impromptu speech. He began to remind Dom of the Brian that had awakened in his arms after that first night together. He was ashamed that he had been such an instrumental part of banishing that quality of lightness that made Brian so appealing.

"Just talk?" Brian questioned, a small, genuine smile shaping his lips.

"Well," Dom hedged, "no plans, just let things come as they will."

"Oh, they usually come just fine," Brian murmured softly, but continued more loudly. "But Luis is throwing a party after the race, for all the crew and sponsors and friends. You guys are invited, of course. I have to show up for at least a little while, but then we can cut out early."

"Oh. Of course there would be a celebration party for the winner. What was I thinking?" Dom said softly.

"Well," Brian laughed, "nice of you to assume that I'm going to win, but the party is on whether I win or lose. It's just kind of a kick off party. This is the first race that the Aguilar's have entered. Menendez was pretty hacked at first that he wouldn't be driving but he's been a good sport and very helpful."

"By the way, congratulations on your qualifying run. Outer Pole. Not bad! Starting off in second position for your first big race. Especially considering that it's an unfamiliar car and a strange track." Dom's face turned solemn. "You be careful, Brian. Too much strange shit is getting thrown at you all at once. Promise me you won't be taking any unnecessary risks out there today. It's not worth it. That is," he continued tentatively, "unless you plan on doing this on a regular basis?" Dom's heart pounded a little as he waited for the answer.

"Nah!" Brian disavowed quickly. "It's fun to be caught up in the excitement, but it's not something I'm prepared to give over this much of my life to."

Dom let his breath out slowly, and he hoped, unobtrusively.

"And you don't have to worry about me pushing too hard," Brian continued. "Luis made me promise the same thing. He said he'd be happy if I just came in in the top half somewhere. And that shouldn't be too hard, considering my starting position, and the fact that this track is so freaking narrow, it's going to be damn near impossible for anyone to pass me unless they've really got some moves in them."

"Brian, have you ever driven short track before?" Dom asked seriously. He'd been to short track races before. It had always been a cross between a race and bumper cars, sometimes with a little demolition derby thrown in. Few cars ever came out of it without being pock marked with dings, dents and scratches. A couple of times, there had been serious damage to the body of the car.

"Hell, Dom," Brian grinned, "I told you. I've only ever driven in small local races. They've all been short track. I don't know what I'd do if I actually had to drive using 'racing etiquette'. I've even driven on dirt a time or two. Though, I'll admit, it's not my best surface for driving."

"All the same, you be careful. I've seen tempers really flare on short tracks. People who don't qualify in the upper ranks get down-right cranky. Like you said, there's not much room to pass."

"I'll be careful," Brian promised. Then his face turned solemn. "But, we are going to have that talk this time, right Dom? Because I don't think I can handle this much longer. I need to know where to put my feet."

Dom didn't like the anxious turn in the conversation. He wanted Brian's mind on the race, not worrying about what was going to happen afterward. So he took a step closer to Brian, then another, until their clothes were brushing, until he could feel the heat of Brian's body, and smell the scent that was only his. He reached out and put his hand on Brian's arm. It was the first time they had touched since the night of the Aguilar's Cinco de Mayo party, and the feeling was charged. A part of Dom ached at what had been missing for the past three weeks. The hollow feeling was made worse by the thought that it was a situation created mostly by himself. Dom made sure that their eyes met and held.

"Brian," he said softly, so softly that it was difficult to hear his own voice over the incredible noise of the crowd. "Brian," his voice was louder with determination. "I love you," he said simply.

Watching the play of emotions on Brian's face, Dom knew that he had made the right choice to tell him now. They ran the gamut from incomprehension to stunned surprise to a smile of pure and brilliant joy.

Most of the tension seemed to leave Brian. Almost imperceptibly, he swayed forward until his body was barely touching Dom's. Just lying ever-so-gently against him. He was trembling slightly with barely leashed emotions. Dom knew that Brian was holding back because they were practically in public and Dom had always shunned any indication of intimacy in front of others.

Without giving himself a chance to think, only to feel and react, Dom reached out to gather Brian in his arms and pull him close. There was explosive exhalation of air from Brian, and any remaining tension seemed to flow away with the outward breath, and he melted into Dom, tucking his face into the curve of Dom's neck, his arms encircling the muscular back.

"Fuck, Dom!" The words were whispered into the soft hollow of skin behind Dom's ear. "It took you long enough!"

Dom was faintly aware of some grumbling and dirty looks from the pit crew, just a few feet away, but he couldn't bring himself to care, one way or the other. He turned his head sideways until his nose and lips were buried in the dark golden silk of Brian's hair. Then he just breathed. Through his nose and through his parted lips, not only smelling, but tasting the uniqueness that was Brian.

Dom was unsure how long they stood there that way. It was forever, and it was mere seconds. But suddenly he was aware of another presence at his side. He looked up to see Leon anxiously hovering close by. Beyond him was Jesus.

"Man, I really hate to break this up, but Brian, it's time to get ready. The warning came down that they're going to begin queuing up for the start pretty quick." Leon's voice was filled with genuine regret for the interruption, and barely suppressed glee for how well things were turning out. Even Jesus, in the background, looked pleased.

"I don't have to race," Brian's voice was husky in his ear. "We can just leave."

"No. We can't," Dom said reluctantly, clasping the man in his arms a little closer before slowly pushing him away. "You'd hate yourself if you let Luis, and everyone else, down."

"Yeah," Brian agreed slowly, his eyes fastened to Dom's face. "But I don't want to let you out of my sight. I'm afraid I'm going to wake up and this will all be just a really great dream."

"I'm not going anywhere, Brian. I swear." Then Dom curved a hand behind Brian's neck and pulled until their mouths touched lightly.

"Hah!" Brian released a short shout of joyous laughter, a look of bemused wonder on his face.

He wasn't able to say more, though, for at that time, the pit crew descended on the two and hustled Brian away towards the car. In no time at all, they helped him to slide in through the windowless driver side.

While Brian belted down a couple of bottles of water to try to stave off the dehydrating effects of the intense heat in the car, crew began securing him into the five point harness that would keep him safe. Then his helmet with the attached ventilation hose was donned along with the fireproof driving gloves. And once the crew no longer needed close access to Brian, the steering wheel was reattached.

As Brian reached out to flip down the visor of his helmet, Leon called out to him loudly, Jesus hovering near his shoulder.

"Drive safe, bro! Keep your mind in the game and watch your ass! We'll all be waiting for you when you're done."

"I don't need to drive!" Brian shouted joyfully. He knew he had a huge, silly ass grin on his face. "I can fly!"

"Brian!" Dom yelled, a look of fierce warning on his face.

But the old Brian, the 'Dude! I almost had you!' Brian was back, and he felt fearless.

Seeing the disquiet on Dom's face, though, brought back to him to earth. So he toned down his grin and met Dom's eyes with as much reassurance as he could muster. But it didn't dim the glow he felt inside.

"I'll be careful!" he yelled, pushing hard to make himself believed. To reassure. Then he pressed down his visor until it locked, and flipped up the ignition switch that sent the car roaring to life.

By then he was being waved onto the pit road and he drove slowly out onto the track as his name and car number were announced and down to his place at the head of the starting line, on the outside of the track. To his right was Paolo Cortez in car number 14, the winner of the coveted pole position in the qualifying runs.

It took awhile for the other thirty-six cars to take the positions that they had qualified for. But eventually they were all lined up by twos down the track, stringing back from the starting line.

The dirt track was just over a half a mile in length. The straightaways were flat and the turns were only banked twelve degrees. This would make for less bumping than on some of the more steeply banked tracks that Brian had been on, but he'd been doing a little research on stock car racing in Mexico and, without the strict NASCAR rules, it was a little more rough and tumble here.

Each lap, considerably slower than the qualifying runs, where pure speed with enough control to keep your car on the track made all the difference, would take approximately twenty seconds. And this was a relatively short race of only 200 laps.

Brian, already sweating buckets inside the suit and the hot box of a car, even with direct ventilation fans blowing on him, tried to do as he'd promised Dom. He tried to slow his mind, which was racing faster than the engine, and bring it to bear on the matter at hand. As it was, he was surprised, and a couple of seconds behind, when Cortez pulled out from the starting line. He hadn't even noticed the pace car pull out onto the track, even with it's rotating yellow roof light, to begin his run.

"This isn't good," Brian muttered to himself. "Get your shit together O'Connor! And get your head out of your ass!"

As the pace car drove his two laps around the track at the pit road speed of forty miles per hour, to allow the drivers to mark their tachometer readings and warm up the engines and tires, Brian managed to focus himself.

By the time they came around the last turn and started down the backstretch, Brian had his mind focused and was ready when the pace car peeled off the track and the flag man began to wave the green flag.

With the tension making his body practically quiver like a tightly strung bow, Dom watched as the green flag was waved and the cars jumped into high speed.

Almost immediately, car 14, with the inside advantage, took the lead, with Brian in number 69 right behind him. In a matter of seconds, they were both braking as they went into a controlled slide around the first turn, their wide tread tires desperately scrambling to grip the dirt surface of the track. Then they were accelerating into the straightaway once more, the wolf pack of cars clinging to their asses. This track was so short that Dom thought it more resembled two drag strips connected with two U-turns more than anything else.

Dom was distinctly aware of the chatter in the pit and the slightly tinny sound of the spotter on the radio as he kept Brian advised of the conditions of the track and the movements of the other cars who trailed him.

After fifty or so laps, the cars and drivers began to sort themselves into ranks. Those in the front, the ones in the middle, and the cars who lagged in the back third.

Brian was driving rock steady, his nose practically glued to the ass of the lead car. He seemed to have the uncanny knack for anticipating the moves and speed of number 14, never coming too close to his car nor letting any real distance develop between them. Dom knew that, at the moment, Brian wasn't even attempting to pass the lead. He was content to stay right where he was and cause the lead driver to expend energy trying to anticipate and foil his feints.

As time went on, Dom began to relax a little. Now his tension was more of the anticipatory variety. The tension, the anticipation, the slow building adrenaline rush. So different, but so similar to drag racing.

Put in terms of sex, Dom saw drag racing as the down and dirty, slam-bam-thank-you-ma'am, breathless variety. While stock car racing was more the second round, high endurance kind that left you seriously trying to pull some much needed oxygen into hard laboring lungs.

When the cars lagging behind began to peel off one by one for a pit stop for one reason or another, Brian and number 14 held on and seriously widened their lead.

Dom knew that, over the last few days, Brian, the crew chief, and Menendez had to have planned very precisely how much play Brian could get out of a tank of gas. And Dom could tell by the exhortations of the crew chief into the radio, that Brian was seriously pushing the limits of those calculations.

Finally, when it seemed as though both Brian and number 14 might be down to ghosting around the track on fumes, the lead driver veered onto the pit road. Dom and everyone else, breathed a sigh when Brian followed him down.

By the time Brian reached them, his conference on the radio with the crew chief had settled on the fact that, besides refueling, and wiping down the front grill and windshield, the two inner tires would be changed.

Flipping up his visor, Brian flexed his fingers as he plucked the water bottle from the small basket on the long pole that was offered to him from the other side of the wall. His eyes searched for and found Dom's as he guzzled the water. His face was flushed with heat and dripping with sweat, but his eyes were incandescent with excitement. In less than 20 seconds, Brian was on his way back to the track, moving at a sedate forty miles per hour.

Number 14 had pulled out just before Brian, but made the crucial mistake of trying to gain a little space by speeding down the pit road. But he was clocked and penalized with a stop and go. So when they lapped the track again, number 14 had to detour down the pit road, come to a complete, momentary stop inside his box, then exit down the pit road once more, all at the proper speed. By this time, Brian had nearly a full lap on him.

The crew was jubilant and Dom knew he had a grin spreading his mouth so wide that it made his face hurt. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Jesus pick Leon up in a bear hug and swing him around in a full circle before lowering him slowly back to the ground.

For a moment they froze, faces mere inches apart as they stared at one another. Dom grinned now for an entirely different reason.

'OK,' he thought, 'so now I'll stop worrying about it.'

By now there were several lapped cars between Brian and number 14. Cars with more laps to go to finish the race than the two lead cars, that were running unintentional interference. The status quo was maintained for several more laps, with number 14 valiantly trying to pass the intervening cars to have a chance back at Brian. Under NASCAR rules, the lapped cars would have been flagged to give way. But this was Mexico.

Number 14 managed to pass all but two of the cars between him and Brian, when Brian began his last 10 laps. Number 83, directly behind him, and only one lap back, became desperate to try and pass him and make up the lap for a chance at winning.

Dom felt himself flush hot, and then go cold in the heat of the day as he saw 83 maneuvering for a bump and pass. There had been quite a few bump and passes on the track over the course of the race, but only farther back in the pack, at lower speeds.

He could see that Brian had been made aware by the spotter, of what the car on his tail was attempting to set up, and he kept maneuvering to stay out of his reach. But as they were coming out of the backstretch and into the sliding turn, 83 gave Brian's left rear bumper a healthy tap, and Dom's nightmare became a reality.

Brian's tail end began to skid right, towards the outer wall, and 83 sped on by, followed closely by the next car, then number 14. When Brian turned sideways, the roof flaps popped up in an attempt to stabilize the car and keep it from becoming airborne. The other cars were frantically attempting to stay out of Brian's path, and it was only by a miracle that a pile up didn't happen.

By the time Brian's ass end smacked the outer wall with a glancing blow hard enough to send him in a 360, spinning back toward the inner wall, Dom was on the move.

When the security guards attempted to stop him from running down the pit road, he plowed through them, vaguely aware of his name being frantically called from behind. But it didn't really register. He watched as, seemingly in slow motion, another car came out of the turn and Dom knew that this one wouldn't be able to totally avoid Brian.

As Brian's car bounced like a banked pool ball from the outer wall, and was skidding backwards and sideways toward the inner, car number 3 tapped him on the left rear quarter panel, and that was enough to send Brian tumbling sideways, over and over, until he crashed through the inner wall and came to rest upright once more.

"Brian!" Dom could hear his own voice screaming. He couldn't help himself. The sight in front of him seemed to become superimposed on an all too horrifyingly similar scene, from nearly 15 years ago. The flames danced in front of his eyes, the explosion and the screams rang in his ears, and he felt the searing heat burning his face once again.

Suddenly his own world tipped sideways and he was tumbled to the ground, tackled by security guards.

There had been arms restraining him that day, too.

He immediately began to strike out. Sometimes his fists would connect with something solid, but more often than not, his swings were wild and he hit nothing but air. The futility of his actions merely fueled his frenzy.

He could hear his voice, breathlessly sobbing Brian's name, but in his mind he could also hear a ghost echo. 'Dad!'

Not again, not again! Please God! Please! Not again.

"BRIAN!!"

Intermingled with his own cries were the yells of the security guards, the excited screams of the crowd, and the wail of the emergency vehicle's sirens. Then the weight of the guards was lifted from him one by one. He would find out later that it was Leon and Jesus pulling them off and restraining them. At the moment, he was barely conscious of it, only of the fact that he was once again free to go to Brian.

Scrambling up, he ran the last few yards to the wreck. His mind finally cleared enough to know that the car wasn't in flames, that Brian was in no immediate danger from fire.

Brian was so still. He was slumped slightly to one side, and Dom restrained himself from tugging him through the window opening, narrowed by the crumpled roof and bashed in side panel, for fear of inadvertently injuring him further. Luckily the roll cage had prevented the majority of the damage that could have happened.

"Brian?" Dom's voice was still frantic and hoarse, in direct contrast to the tentative way he reached through the window towards his lover. His hands on Brian's shoulder were gentle and unsure.

A faint stirring and moans came from Brian as he twisted his body slightly and turned his head toward Dom, though it hung downward slightly, as though he hadn't the energy to lift it up. The helmet and it's reflective visor obscured Brian's face.

"Brian?" Dom repeated, this time softer, as though his raised voice might cause further damage.

A soft chuffing sound came from behind the visor, and Dom feared for a moment that Brian was choking, until it came again and he was able to identify it.

When Brian spoke, his voice was muffled by the helmet, but distinguishable.

"That's...not...what I had in mind," he said, his voice was faint and hesitant, but there was laughter lurking behind his words.

XVI. Shadow Memories

"I don't need to go to the hospital, Dom."

Dom kept his eyes on the road and ignored Brian's words, as he had the first three times he'd said them.

"I hate hospitals," Brian muttered, slumping down further in the passenger seat of his truck.

"We're not going to a hospital," Dom explained patiently for the third time. "We're going to a private clinic."

"It's Sunday. The clinics are closed."

"This one will be open. Luis called ahead to arrange it." Dom kept his voice patient, but his hands were beginning to work spasmodically on the steering wheel. The clenching made his palms sting where they had been scraped and scratched after being tackled by the security guards. Which only served as a reminder of the circumstance of the injuries.

A slow motion replay of the crash unwound itself once more before Dom's eyes, and he gripped the steering wheel hard for a moment, his jaw becoming tight with the need to deny the images in his mind.

"The medic said I was alright," Brian argued.

"He said you were probably alright," Dom countered, "but that you needed to be checked out by a doctor and should have some x-rays taken, to be sure."

"I hate hospitals," Brian muttered, his voice becoming more sullen. "And a clinic is just a small hospital. I don't need to go to the hospital, Dom."

"You're going to the damn hospital, Brian!" Dom's control of his emotions finally slipped under the pressure and terror of his memories.

There was silence for a moment, but in his peripheral vision, Dom could see Brian turn to stare at him.

"I just love it when you're all forceful like this." The Baja desert could have lent moisture to the sarcasm of Brian's voice.

Dom mentally winced and made a determined effort to reign in his own fear. Finally, he slumped a little in surrender to his own angst. He searched for the logic to persuade Brian to see reason, but in the end, the emotions won.

"Brian." His voice was soft, almost overwhelmed by the hum of the tires on the blacktop. "Do this for me. Please."

Once again Brian turned to stare at him. This time his head was tilted a little to the side to see more of Dom's face. His look was considering. Finally he sighed in resignation.

"Fine," he said. Then, "But if I have to get a shot, I'd better get a sucker."

Dom's relief was palpable. Brian never could hold onto a bad mood for very long. His innate good nature wouldn't permit it.

"If the Doc doesn't give you one, I'll buy you a whole bag," Dom agreed readily.

"Yeah, well, what I want to suck, you won't have to buy me."

"What!?"

Again, his peripheral vision served him well when he saw Brian's grin at his momentary loss of control. The car jerked across the dividing line on the road before settling back in their own lane.

Once more under control, Dom turned and gave Brian a scorching hot look. It melted the grin away from Brian's face and drew one of equal intensity from him. Their eyes met and fused in the heat of the moment, before Dom forced his own back to the road.

Dom took a deep, shuddering breath to steady himself and push back the tide of need that surged through him, body and soul, like a tsunami. A quick glance at Brian told him that he wasn't the only victim of quicksilver lust.

Brian had let his head fall back against the seat, eyes closed. His hands were moving restlessly on his thighs and his lips were soft and parted. But those blue eyes abruptly opened, the hands slowly tightened into fists and the soft lips firmed into a straight line.

Without raising it, Brian rolled his head to the side until his eyes once again met Dom's. His look was just as intense, but with a different purpose.

"Talk first." His eyes and his voice had an edge to them. Dom met his eyes for another moment, then gave a single nod.

Silence descended over the cab for a few minutes and Dom was willing to let it be, but another glance at Brian told him that he had drifted off to sleep.

Momentary panic gripped Dom. He knew it wasn't exactly reasonable, but he didn't fight it.

"Brian!" he called loudly, taking his right hand off the steering wheel to shake the other man.

"What?" Brian called, his voice a little groggy as he sat up against the pull of the seat belt. "What is it?"

"Don't go to sleep," warned Dom.

"Why not? I'm tired." Brian's voice was plaintive.

"Here." Dom rummaged in the bag on the seat between them and pulled out another bottle of water. "You're still dehydrated. Drink some more water and stay awake until the doctor rules out a concussion."

"I don't have a concussion, Dom. I've had one before, and it doesn't feel anything like this. Besides, if I drink any more water, we're going to have to stop so I can pee."

"So, we'll stop if we have to. Although I doubt if it will come to that. You won't need to pee until you have some excess fluid in your system. And humor me about staying awake for now. After we leave the clinic, the hotel I have us booked into isn't far away. You can take a nap before dinner, then we'll have that talk. OK?"

Brian sighed, but nodded and accepted the bottle of water. "What do you want to talk about? You want to know what I've been doing for the past two weeks?"

"No!" Dom barked, but then immediately toned it down with an apologetic look. "Tell me about growing up. You never told me before that you grew up in foster homes."

"You never asked me," Brian said mildly. "The past wasn't something we've exactly been exploring since I came down here."

"Yeah, I know. But tell me now."

"Nothing much to tell. My parents died when I was seven."

"What happened?"

"Car crash. A trucker, trying to cram fewer hours into his haul. He falsified his log books because he was trying to get back to Phoenix in time for his son's birthday. He almost made it, too. But he fell asleep at the wheel and wiped out my parent's car about 20 miles west of Tucson. There weren't any relatives close enough to want me. So," Brian shrugged, "foster care."

"Was it very bad?" Dom asked quietly, wondering briefly, what his life would be like if he'd never had his family around him.

"No, not really. I mean, sure, losing my parents was bad. I turned into a real problem for awhile. Bounced from home to home for a few years, but it wasn't because I was badly treated or anything. The juvenile offender record that the LAPD and the FBI made up for me and Jesse found was an exaggeration, but there were grains of truth in it."

Brian smiled ruefully.

"I wasn't the hardass that I thought I was back then, but the local cops did get to know me. In the end, I was picked up for joy riding with a bunch of older boys. I was thirteen, for Christ's sake."

Brian laughed and shook his head at the memory.

"I was given a choice, juvie hall for six months, or the Escobar Ranch for Boys, for a six month trial period. If I fucked up there, it was juvie until I was eighteen. So I chose the Escobars."

Brian's eyes took on a distant, preoccupied look, as though he were viewing shadow memories playing across his mind.

"And?" Dom prompted.

It took Brian another second to pull himself away from the re-emerging memories. When he did, he gave Dom a calculating look that Dom couldn't read.

"There was another boy who arrived at the ranch within days of me. We were almost the same age, only four months apart, and we were the new guys. So we just kind of naturally drifted together."

Brian laughed.

"Shit, Rome was always so damn hyper."

"Rome?" Dom asked. Brian had a strange look on his face and an odd tone in his voice. Even after all of this time, this 'Rome' still had the power to move Brian in some way.

"Yeah, Roman Pearce. Man, he couldn't sit still for more than a few minutes at a time. From the first day, we were always getting into trouble. Always together. It was just small shit, nothing to get shipped off to juvie for, but because we were always mixed up together, the Escobars told us that if we didn't settle down, they'd have to send one of us away."

Brian's face went still and his eyes turned solemn.

"Someone finally found the right buttons to push on the two of us. We would have gone to juvie together, but we couldn't stand the thought of being separated."

Brian's face still had a quiet, distant look. A look that made Dom's hands tighten on the wheel and a shiver of apprehensive jealousy travel down his spine.

That's stupid, he told himself. It's been years since they've seen one another. How can I be jealous of a memory? But still...

"You were in love with him," Dom said in a flat voice. It wasn't a question.

Brian turned to look at Dom. "Not then, no. At least...we were still too young to really know what that meant. But yeah, within about a year, I knew what I felt."

"How about him?" Dom skirted around his name. "Was he in love with you, too?"

"He wouldn't admit it at first. He was too busy bolstering up his macho image." Brian was staring at him, a small smile on his face. "He almost lost me before he could admit how he felt."

Dom tensed. "But he became your first lover, didn't he?" At Brian's silent nod, he asked, "What happened?"

"In a really short space of time, we drifted so far apart that we barely spoke to one another. We were both suffering, but I couldn't just put aside what I felt, and he couldn't seem to accept it. We couldn't go back to what we had been, but we couldn't move forward. Sound familiar?"

Brian's look was challenging.

"Anyway, I got bucked off by one of the ranch horses. It threw me through one of the corral fences and I was knocked unconscious." Brian gave a little snort of sarcastic laughter. "That's why I know what a concussion feels like. Are we seeing a repeating pattern in my life?" Brian's smile had a slightly bitter edge to it. "I was taken to the hospital and stayed on the edge of a coma for about four days. When I finally woke up, Rome was by my side. I found out later that he had snuck out of the house in the middle of the night and walked and hitched the fifteen miles into town, and then snuck into my hospital room. They found him, of course, and hauled him back to the ranch. He promptly ran away again and managed to get into my room, even though they were watching for him. This time they locked him in our room. But he still got out and made it back to me."

Brian paused for a moment, and Dom waited impatiently for him to drink more water.

"Anyway, by this time, some enterprising young intern, with a little lateral thinking in him instead of just tunnel vision, noticed that the spikes of brain activity in my EEG readings coincided with Rome's illicit visits. They put two and two together and actually came up with four. So they OK'd it for Rome to come and stay with me in the hospital room.

"They told him to talk to me. So he stayed with me for practically the next twenty-four hours, talking non-stop. If you knew Rome, you'd think that that wasn't exactly a hardship for him. We used to call him the Mouth. But it almost proved too much for him. He damn near had no voice left by the time I woke up. The doctors were just minutes away from sedating him so that he'd sleep."

"But I did wake up. And his was the first face I saw, and the first words I heard were him telling me that I'd been right all along, that he did love me. But if I never woke up, I'd never get to tell him 'I told you so'. I had to stay in the hospital for almost another week."

Brian's grimace of disgust prompted Dom to speculate. "That's why you dislike hospitals so much." Brian nodded. "How old were you when this happened?"

"Rome had just turned sixteen. I was about four months behind him."

"So, when you got back to the ranch, that's when you two became...lovers?" The word almost choked Dom.

"Not right away. Overload of emotions and all that crap. We were pretty tentative around each other. Plus, for the first couple of weeks, Rome tended to treat me like one of those delicate, little blown glass figurines you see at the booths in the malls. I had to tackle him one day and start wrestling, before he'd begin treating me normal again. After that, the physical stuff came pretty quickly, but in stages. We had a room to ourselves, so it was easy to..."

"You don't have to go into the details," Dom's voice was harsher than he had intended before he caught himself. The thought of Brian in anyone else's arms, doing to him the things that Dom did, was enough to twist his guts into knots. "I get the picture," he finished more mildly.

Brian's smile was amused.

"So why aren't the two of you still together? What happened?"

That wiped the smile from his face and Dom felt a twinge of guilt, liberally laced with the taint of victory.

"We'd been lovers for almost two years by then. Oh, we experimented with girls, mostly just to keep up appearances, but with a little curiosity thrown in. But we always came back to one another."

"We got careless and were discovered by one of the new kids at the ranch. He was older, like us, and he resented the fact that, by that time, we had earned quite a bit of freedom. We were going to be leaving the ranch in a few months. Rome first. He was going to get a job at a garage in town and wait for me to be free, then we were going to go to L.A. together. We were both crazy about cars by then. We kept everything with a motor running on the ranch."

"When the Escobars found out, they didn't take it too well. They're both pretty strict Catholics. Rome was sent away early, to a facility in Tucson, but he was out of there in a couple of months. They watched me like a hawk. Rome couldn't get anywhere near me. But one of the girls in school that I had dated, Mary Sue, had figured out the score between Rome and me, and was OK with it. She acted as a go-between, carrying messages for us." Brian's smile was gently amused. "She thought it was so romantic."

"Anyway, we made it to L.A., and we had no trouble finding work in this really big garage. It didn't take us long though, to figure out that the owner's prosperity, and all the extra activity around the place, were connected. After hours the place was a chop-shop. Mac made a pretty good living parting out exotics, and sometimes selling them whole. I didn't want to have anything to do with it. I was past my 'bad boy' stage by then, and wanted to stay legit. But Rome just kept saying he only wanted to stay in long enough to get us a bankroll to open our own garage."

"That's when we started drifting apart. I mean, we still lived together and everything, but this gulf between us just kept growing. I got another job in a different garage, a legit one, and I met this guy named Tanner. He used to bring his car in for service. When I found out he was a cop, it fascinated the shit out of me. I started asking him all kinds of questions and he always answered them. He came by a couple of times and took me out for lunch, and I spent one Saturday over at his house, helping him tinker with this old 'Cuda he had."

"What? He wanted to get in your pants or something?" Dom's voice was a little sour.

"No, man, Nothing like that. He'd had a son that he lost to leukemia a few years previous. He would have been just about my age. I think Tanner just kinda saw me as a replacement of sorts. Anyway, he sponsored me when I decided to enter the police academy. That's when things really went downhill with Rome."

Brian was quiet for a few moments, sipping the bottled water as he stared out the side window. Dom thought he was through with his story, until he suddenly began talking again."

"By this time Rome wasn't working for Mac anymore. He'd saved the extra money he'd made and opened his own garage. It was small, but he had a rep as a good mechanic, so he was able to get together a small, but loyal client base in a short amount of time. He was really pissed at me, because not only was I not running the garage with him like we'd planned, I was training to become a cop, something he hated."

"We weren't living together by now. Hell, we were barely speaking. Just after I graduated from the academy, there was a series of raids on the known chop-shops in the city. Rome got caught in the sweep and they found eight stolen cars in his shop."

"Were you in on the bust?" Dom asked curiously.

"No!" Brian turned and glared at Dom. "Jesus, you must really think I'm a shit!"

"No, no!" Dom said hurriedly. "Of course I don't! God, I'm sorry Brian. I just spoke without thinking. That was stupid! I know better than that. You wouldn't even turn on me and you'd hardly known me for a month. Of course you wouldn't turn on your friend."

Brian was mollified, but still a little huffy.

"I didn't know anything about the raids. I was just a rookie. They don't let us in of things like that unless we were actually a part of them." Brian's voice became dejected. "If I had known, I would have helped him. Would have warned him. But as it was, when I went to visit him in lockup, he accused me of all kinds of crap, and told me he never wanted to see me again. He spent three years inside. He got out just before I went undercover on the truck hijackings. I tried to see him, but he wouldn't even talk to me."

Dom had the feeling that Brian was finally done with his story. But he had one more question to ask.

"Is that why you let me go that day?"

For the duration of a several heart beats, Brian didn't reply, and Dom felt his chest tighten. Then Brian turned to look at him. His expression, and his voice when he spoke, were mild. Very matter-of-fact.

"I let you go that day because I'd fallen in love with you, and the thought of you being locked away again killed something inside of me. But, yeah, my history with Rome might have had something to do with my actions."

Blue eyes and brown held fast together for a small eternity, until Brian realized that Dom wasn't doing the 'driving without looking' trick. They'd quit moving; they were parked in front of the clinic.

"Well, shit," Brian said softly. "Let's get this over with. I need to ask the doc if he wants a urine sample before I go and piss a river. Damn, I'm practically floating." Brian stopped with his hand on the clinic door, and turned to Dom once more. "Then we're going to go and check into that hotel of yours, and it's going to be your turn to talk."

"I promise," Dom agreed.

XVII. 6.82 Miles Per Second

Dom wasn't sure how long he sat on the side of the bed just watching Brian sleep. He glanced at the clock.

Too damn long.

Never long enough.

When they'd arrived at the hotel, a resort really, Dom managed to talk Brian into taking a nap before dinner. It hadn't been hard. Brian could barely keep his eyes open.

After picking out what he wanted delivered for dinner later, Brian had barely had the strength to shed his jeans and crawl between the sheets before he practically passed out. Dom had tried to convince him to leave the discussion for morning, but Brian had been adamant. Dom was to wake him no later than 7:30.

So here it was, 7:50, and Dom had just been sitting on the side of the bed, watching Brian sleep for twenty minutes.

He'd had every intention of waking Brian on time, but when he sat on the bed and his weight dipped the edge down, Brian had turned automatically in his sleep, to spoon himself around Dom's body. His torso was pressed against Dom's backside, and the side of his face was nestled against his thigh. Brian had curled his arm around Dom and his hand lay on his opposite hip.

The sight of Brian curled so trustingly around him, even after all they'd been through in the last weeks, made something swell and tighten in Dom's chest. He found it almost painful to breath.

Dom had almost lost him. First from his own stupidity, then through a cruel twist that had tried to duplicate the fate of his father.

It had been close. So very, very close.

Dom found that he had to clear his throat before he could softly call his name.

"Brian."

Dom reached out and gently ran his fingers through the thick waves of hair, his hand itching to delve deeper into the softness.

"Brian, it's almost 8:00."

A deep sigh swelled Brian's chest, pressing it more closely to Dom, while his arm tightened reflexively around his waist. Brian's head turned, unconsciously moving into Dom's hand.

"Brian," Dom called for the third time, a little more firmly. "Dinner's going to be here soon. You need to wake up now."

"Hmmm," Brian sighed, and this time his eyes slowly opened. They were unfocused at first, but soon he offered a toned down version of that devastating smile that had managed to pierce Dom's defenses from the very beginning.

Brian's hand tightened on his hip, then slid caressingly up Dom's back, sending shivers through him.

His deceptively strong hand closed around the back of Dom's neck and urged his head down. Dom braced his right hand on the bed beside Brian's head as he bent willingly with the pressure and touched his lips gently to Brian's, bringing his left hand up to cup his face.

The kiss was soft. Gentle. Just the slightest pressure of lips.

Brian's skin was warm and had an aura of softness from sleep. The physical softness was an illusion, though. It was a smell more than a matter of touch. It mingled with the clean, faintly musky scent of his body. It lay over the hard, lanky form that had been pared of any phantom excess flesh it might have carried. What was left was muscle and bone.

Dom realized that, in the last few weeks, Brian had lost almost all of the the last traces of boyishness, in both looks and manner, that he had possessed that first day at the lunch counter in the store. He felt a pang of remorse and a surge of self-directed anger, knowing that, while he hadn't been the original catalyst of that change, his actions had surely hurried it along. He silently vowed to do all that he could to reverse that change.

Dom infused an exquisite tenderness into the second kiss. Lips moving softly, gently. The weight of his mouth on Brian's was butterfly light.

The third kiss was a little firmer, but no less gentle. Lips slightly parted, sipping delicately at the addictive taste of Brian.

By the fourth kiss, Brian's hand had tightened demandingly on the back of Dom's neck, and when he opened his mouth, hot and wet, Dom fell into the hard, needy passion of it.

It had been so long.

Brian shifted until he lay on his back and his right arm was free to wrap around Dom's body, pulling him closer. Dom responded by transferring his weight to his left arm, still holding himself a little above Brian, so that he didn't crush him.

They both dueled for the pleasure of entering the other's mouth. It was an even battle, as each got their turn at victory. The momentarily vanquished had to be content to suck and nip at the invader.

The sounds Brian made upon awakening had been soft and faint. They became deeper, almost pure vibration without sound, as their kisses deepened, transforming into moans of pleasure and need.

During sleep, Brian's tee shirt had ridden up, and the sheet that covered him had slid down, baring the flat abdomen with it's dusting of soft, golden hairs.

Dom lifted his mouth from Brian's, to trail it over the faint rasp on his chin, and downward, as his right hand ghosted over the down that crept beneath the waistband of the boxers.

Brian's almost guttural sounds rose to breathy moans and gasps as he arched into Dom's touch.

Brian's hands scrabbled at Dom's back, then caught the hem of his tee shirt, pulling it up until he had access to the taut muscles. He dug his fingers into the hard flesh.

Some part of Dom's mind knew that this was getting out of control, that this wasn't what Brian wanted. But he couldn't seem to make his body obey. It was chasing after the primal urge that chanted: Touch! Take! Possess!

The situation wasn't helped any by the fact that Brian seemed to have no more control of his body than Dom did over his own.

Brian's hands were sliding and caressing, tugging and grasping. He kept pulling Dom tighter and tighter against him, like they could never be close enough. Like he wanted Dom to crawl inside his body.

That thought brought a shudder of need cascading through Dom like an avalanche. He swiftly fastened his mouth onto Brian's once more, sliding both arms under his back to pull Brian tighter against him, until not even a breath of space separated them.

To be inside of Brian's body, a part of him. To touch. To take. To possess. At the moment, that was the only thing that seemed to matter.

The blood was pounding in Dom's ears, setting up an almost audible racket. He pulled his right arm from beneath the hot, hard body, while still crushing Brian to his chest with the left. His right hand moved down Brian's side, stroking, pulling and caressing until he glided over the flat, angular arch of his hip. Sliding his hand still further, Dom closed his fingers over the long muscles of Brian's thigh, tugging until Brian slid his leg up and curved it around Dom's waist, locking the two of them together.

Brian arched his pelvis upward, thrusting his erection into the hard muscles of Dom's abdomen, as Dom kneaded and caressed the firm, rounded flesh of Brian's ass.

Dom wasn't sure what it was that caught his attention, but he finally realized that something wasn't quite right. Struggling against his own need and Brian's determination, he pulled his lips and tongue away from Brian and raised his head. Opening his eyes, the dim room lit only by twilight seemed ablaze. When he made the effort to still his breathing, he heard it. The insistent knock at the door.

Before he could clear his mind enough to call out, Brian had run his mouth up the column of Dom's throat and, pausing to bite his chin hard enough to leave a mark, he fastened his lips once more to Dom's, holding his head in place with both hands.

Dom growled low in his throat and pulled Brian closer. But the knocking persisted, and now that Dom was aware of it, he could no longer ignore it.

"Brian." Dom's voice, when he managed to free his mouth, was so low and raspy, he barely recognized himself. "Brian, wait." Those were the two hardest words that Dom had ever uttered.

He turned his head to the side to evade the seeking lips once more, then gasped when they found his ear instead.

Brian ran his tongue around the rim of Dom's ear, then sank his teeth into the lobe. Almost before Dom could grunt in real pain, Brian laved the injured flesh with his tongue, then pulled it between his lips to gently suckle.

Dom groaned, then gasped once more, this time in response to a current of lust that ran in a straight line to his groin, as Brian thrust his tongue wetly into Dom's ear, moving it in and out as though it were a miniature cock.

"Brian! Stop!" he gasped insistently, making an effort to pry his lover away from his own body. But Brian seemed to have grown extra limbs while Dom wasn't looking, because unwinding them all proved to be a daunting task, especially when Dom's heart wasn't really in it. But he persisted.

The knocking at the door was becoming sharper, more insistent, so the next time Dom freed his mouth, he called out, "Un momento, por favor!", and was gratified to receive silence in return. Brian, also, became still.

When Dom looked down, Brian's eyes were wide open, but glazed with incomprehension.

"Brian," Dom said gently, his voice husky with need, "they're delivering dinner. Say the word, and I'll send them away. But is that really what you want?"

Brian closed his eyes, and a shudder of need swept through his body. Slowly, he relaxed and unwound himself from Dom, but his breathing was harsh, almost panting.

Dom pressed a gentle kiss to each of the closed eyes, then slowly pulled away. His cock was so hard that he almost groaned with the effort of standing up.

Brian was in a similar condition. He had thrown his arm over his eyes, and was obviously struggling to get his body and his emotions under control. But the evidence of his erection straining the front of his boxers, said it was going to take awhile.

Dom knew the feeling.

"I'll tell him to leave everything on the warming cart. We can serve ourselves. Why don't you go take a shower, OK?" When he received no answer, he tried again. "Brian, are you alright?"

Brian still had his arm across his face, but this time Dom got a jerky nod in reply.

"We've got time, baby. Take all you need," Dom said softly, leaving the bedroom and closing the door behind him.

Dom waited while the server parked the warming cart inside the sliding glass doors that led to the patio, then signed the bill, adding on a generous tip. After locking the door behind him, Dom made his way to the tiny kitchenette and stuck his head beneath the faucet, turning it on full cold.

Drying off quickly, Dom pulled a cold Corona from the tiny fridge and, crossing to the patio doors, he stepped outside. He leaned against one of the pillars that held up the patio roof, and took a deep draw from the beer, desperately trying to get himself under control.

He stared unseeing at the ocean, mere yards away. He was equally oblivious to the beautiful surroundings, except for being grateful that their seclusion would guarantee them a certain measure of privacy. Dom had chosen the place for just this reason.

There was a main hotel, but spread out over the grounds and along the beach, were a number of bungalows set apart, like the one they were staying in. None were visible from the others.

By the time Brian appeared twilight had slid nearly into dark and Dom had managed to bring his charging emotions somewhat under control.

"It smells good," Brian said softly. His voice would have seemed relaxed to anyone else but Dom could hear the tension in it, still vibrating slightly around the edges.

"Yeah," Dom agreed steadily, turning to greet him. "The food here is supposed to be as good as the surroundings and the service."

There was a moment of awkward silence as they gazed at one another.

"Got one of those for me?" Brian asked, nodding toward the empty beer bottle in Dom's hand.

"You really shouldn't," Dom told him slowly. "You're still dehydrated from earlier, and alcohol will only make it worse. Besides, you're not supposed to drink while you're taking the muscle relaxers the Doc gave you. How about some ice tea or lemonade? I had them send down a pitcher of each."

"Well, I'm not taking the muscle relaxers yet. So how about we compromise? I get a beer now, and I'll have tea the rest of the evening?"

"Sounds like a deal," Dom agreed softly. "Have a seat," he added, nodding toward the small patio table, "and I'll get you one and bring the food out."

"I'm not an invalid, Dom," Brian said, his voice mildly amused.

"Yeah, I know," Dom said. "Just let me do this, OK?"

Brian gave Dom an affectionate smile and settled himself at the table.

Dom quickly furnished them both with a beer, then went about lighting the citronella torches that ringed the patio to keep the mosquitoes at bay, and illuminate the area. Then he rolled out the cart, and after a quick inspection as to it's contents, he swiftly set out the dishes and silverware. The hotel had also thoughtfully provided candles for the table, with protective glass chimneys. Obviously they were used to catering to honeymooners and other romantic couples.

Dom knew that when he had reserved the bungalow for two they had assumed that his partner would be a woman and he didn't disabuse them of the idea. He wasn't going to lie about it, but he decided that it wasn't their business who shared his bed.

Dishing up the food they had each chosen earlier, Dom poured glasses of ice tea for them both then joined Brian at the table.

Brian hadn't eaten anything since that morning and he was making appreciative sounds as he gazed avidly at the savory looking food, but he waited for Dom before he began eating.

Dom's original choice for the meal had been the one that Brian picked, but knowing that Brian liked to steal tidbits from his plate, he chose something else for the sake of variety like he always did.

By unspoken agreement they made small talk during dinner, steering away from such dangerous topics as Jesus and Leon, racing, and trips to Mexicali.

Brian told Dom about the Serra Ranch and the trip to the Observatory with all of the Aguilar children. He laughed as he told Dom about Blanca and Paloma, and their attempts at flirtation. Dom told Brian about the garage and business, and caught him up on the news from Mia.

Dom could almost pretend that the last three weeks hadn't happened. That they were home, talking over the events after a normal day. But as dinner drew to a close, and true darkness fell, the incorporeal specter of The Talk, began to solidify and take on true substance.

Dom played with the leftover crust of a roll, tearing it to small bits on his plate, as his mind desperately raced to find a way to begin.

He'd had it all laid out in his mind, exactly what he wanted to say and how he wanted to say it. It had all sounded so logical and easy.

Now he knew his plan for the inadequate pile of excuses that it was, and he realized that he was going to have to dig deeper if he was going to convince Brian to stay. And he had to convince him to stay. The alternative was too painful to contemplate.

"Dom?" Brian questioned softly. When Dom looked up, he saw Brian regarding him somberly.

Suddenly, the light from the torches, which had seemed so beautiful earlier, had taken on an altogether different quality. It seemed harsh and pitiless, like huge flood lights suddenly illuminating the dark, secret places in his soul.

The look on his face must have been truly pathetic to behold because the slight impatience on Brian's face suddenly melted away, replaced with gentle understanding.

"Dom, why don't we go for a walk on the beach."

Dom grabbed at the offer like a drowning man reaching for a lifeline. While Brian blew out the candles and capped the torches, Dom quickly shoved all the dishes back onto the cart, and wheeled it through the living room to sit outside the front door for pickup. In minutes they were heading across the sand toward the beach.

Brian could feel the waves of tension rolling off of Dom. Usually a very contained man who had, Brian suspected, begun cultivating an aura of stillness while in Lompoc, Dom was now fidgeting constantly. Picking up pieces of driftwood or small shells to fling back into the ocean, scuffing the sand with his feet, turning his head, this way and that to look anywhere but at Brian.

Brian watched this behavior patiently for a few more minutes as they walked, until fond exasperation prompted him to act.

"Dom," he said softly, "would you like me to start this with a question?"

Brian felt his breath catch in his throat at the look of lost desperation that Dom turned on him.

Brian had realized almost from the start, that Dom wasn't a man who put his affections into words very often. He was a demonstrative person with those close to him, though. Hugging Mia, ruffling Jesse's hair in passing, quick, tight hugs for Vince and Leon. And the way he held Brian at night, engulfing him in his arms completely, bodies pressed tightly together. But even now, when Dom had finally used the words 'I love you' to Brian, to delve any deeper was causing him incredible distress.

Brian almost decided that further words weren't needed if the cost was going to be this high. He even had his mouth open to tell Dom that it was OK, to let him off the hook, but he stopped himself. Because Brian did need to hear the words. He needed to know what had made Dom nearly drive him away with his distant ways. But what was equally important, Brian thought that Dom needed to say the words.

So Brian took a deep breath, and reached out to lay his hand on Dom's arm, halting him in his restless movement.

"I know that I asked you this once before, and you answered me. And I believe you...I do. But I think it's a good place to start again." Brian tugged on Dom's arm lightly until they were facing one another.

The moon was nearly full and the sky was cloudless, so it was easy to see Dom's eyes. To read his expression.

"Are you ashamed for people to know about us, Dom? To know that we're lovers?"

Brian almost wept with relief when he read the truth in Dom's eyes before he even opened his mouth.

"Brian!" This time it was Dom who wrapped his hands around Brian's wrists, then slid them up until he cupped his shoulders, giving them a little shake for emphasis. "No! I've never been ashamed of my relationship with you, and I never will be."

"Then why, Dom? Why have you refused to acknowledge what we are to each other? I'm not talking about in public. I know this isn't LA, where just about anything is accepted. I know that here in Mexico, things are different. Even Jesus, who's as openly gay as just about anyone I've ever met down here, doesn't flaunt what he is in public. But at the house, around Leon and Vince, who've known about us since that first morning when I came out of your bedroom half naked and covered in hickeys, you refuse to acknowledge how you feel. Why Dom?"

"Brian," Dom began hesitantly, "I'm not like you. I didn't grow up knowing I was gay. As a matter of fact, I'm not really sure that I am gay." At Brian's incredulous look, he backtracked quickly. "No... look, that's not what I meant. I mean, obviously I'm at least bisexual. You're not the first man I've had sex with. But you are the first man I've ever made love to. Every other time was in Lompoc And even though it was usually pleasurable, it wasn't a choice. Because I had no choice, really. It was either other men, or remain isolated and celibate. And at the time, I didn't know it was only going to be two years. I was released early. I was on parole for three more years." Dom ran his hand over his bare head, a sure sign of agitation. "Shit! I'm making a mess of this!"

"No!" Brian said, desperate to keep Dom talking. "It's OK, I understand. Just go on."

Dom took a deep breath, and visibly tried to calm down. "What I'm trying to say is, that, other than a couple of isolated instances when I was a curious, horny teenager, you're the first man I've ever wanted to touch like this." Dom rested his hands on Brian's waist, then began pulling him slowly forward until the space between them disappeared. "The first man ever, that I've wanted to kiss." He slid his arms around Brian's back, then reached up slightly to brush their lips together. "And you're sure as hell the first man that I've ever thought about fucking me."

"What?!" Brian jerked back to stare at Dom, open-mouthed.

"Yeah, well, we'll talk about that later," Dom smirked, cocky confidence slipping back into his voice.

"Damn right, we will," Brian muttered, as Dom relaxed his hold, and tugged Brian to sit on the sand at his side.

Brian sat cross-legged. Dom pulled his knees up and rested his forearms on them, staring at the surf. Once more he was quiet, but there was a stillness about him now that told Brian he was merely gathering his thoughts before continuing.

"Brian," Dom began again, turning to face him, "you remember when I showed you the Charger that first time? When I told you about my dad?" Brian nodded silently. "You remember what I told you, just before we left the garage? About racing, I mean? How I felt about it?"

"I remember exactly what you said," Brian answered quietly.

Dom cocked his head slightly at the emphasis in Brian's tone.

"'I live my life a quarter mile at a time.'" Brian recited softly. "'Nothing else matters. Not the mortgage, not the store, not my team and all their bullshit. For those ten seconds or less...I'm free.'"

Dom's lips parted as he stared in wonder at Brian. "You remember the exact words?"

Now it was Brian's turn to stare out to sea. "Yeah, well...that afternoon, when you told me about how your father died and about Kenny Linder...that's when I realized that I loved you."

"But you still slept with Mia that night." It wasn't an accusation, just an observation.

"I didn't exactly see us as having a future together, Dom. Besides, I was desperate to prove myself wrong. To prove that I wasn't really in love with you. It didn't work," he added quietly. "All it did was make me feel guilty as hell."

There were a couple of minutes of quiet stillness between them before Don spoke again.

"Wait a minute. You decided you were in love with me after hearing how I beat the hell out of Linder?"

"Dom," Brian explained patiently, "I was a cop, remember? I already knew about Kenny Linder. It was when you told me about after. The tone in your voice, and the look on your face when you said he was a school janitor and had to take the bus to work. That was the Dom that I fell in love with. Well, part of him, anyway. I actually fell for the whole package." After another moment of silence, Brian turned once more, to find Dom staring at his profile. "Why did you want to know if I remembered that day in the garage?"

Again, there was a slight pause while Dom gathered his scattered thoughts.

"I knew that I wanted you, physically, back in LA," he began slowly. "That confused me. Like I said, it had never happened before. But I was able to tuck it away, out of sight, for the most part."

"Then that last day in LA, everything went to shit. Vince was hurt, Jesse died and I had to leave Mia behind, to separate her from me, for her own good. I made it down here to the house late that same night, but it took Leon and Letty nearly a week. They were laying low. They didn't know about Jesse at first, and they were trying to find him. Trying to learn about Vince. They weren't even sure that I'd gotten away."

This time there was an air of agitation around Dom. He rubbed his hands compulsively over his knees, his fingers working the material of his pants.

"That was a bad time," he continued. "I was cut off from everyone and everything I cared about. I had dislocated my shoulder and cracked several ribs in the crash, so I was in pain. And I was so fucking confused about you. It was you that my thoughts kept coming back to. With all the shit that had happened, all I could think about was you. That you were a cop. That you lied to me and betrayed me. That you gave me the keys and let me get away. That I left you standing in the street as I drove away. The look on your face."

He paused to draw in a shaky breath.

"But then Leon and Letty made it down. They told me that Vince was alive, that Mia was OK, and that there wasn't a warrant out for our arrests. They said that you had taken care of everything. That eased my mind, but still, all I could think about was you. And that just heaped more guilt on top of the pile."

"I felt guilty about Jesse's death, that there should have been something I could have done to prevent it. Guilty about Vince and, to a lesser extent, Letty getting hurt. Because I'm the one that insisted on going through with the plans that last day. Guilty about leaving Mia in the lurch to clean up the mess and take the heat from the cops."

"But still, even with all of that, what my mind kept coming back to was the look on your face as I drove away that day. I should have asked you to come with me. I wanted to! I was just so fucking confused! The only thing I knew was that where I was, wasn't where I wanted to be. I wasn't with who I wanted to be with."

"Do you know, I haven't raced once since I left LA? The one thing that I thought meant the most to me, didn't interest me anymore. There was this giant empty spot in my life. It created a gulf so wide, that nothing on the other side could touch me. Not Letty, certainly. Sure, she continued to share my bed, but I was pushing her away, just like I did with you. But with her it was deliberate. I was pushing her away to make a spot for you. I lived eight months of my life in limbo, because you weren't by my side!"

Dom's voice had become fierce, almost angry.

"But Dom, don't you see, it was the same for me! Exactly the same! But I'm here now. Why were you trying to push me away with one hand while grabbing at me with the other?" Brian's voice had a tinge of anger to it also.

"Because you scare the shit out of me!"

Brian stared at Dom's stony profile in shock. "What?" he asked, faintly.

Dom lowered his head until it rested on his arms. His body was rocking slightly to and fro, shivering like a spring wound too tightly.

"That's not what I meant." Dom's voice was weary, and the tension seemed to flow out of him like water from a breached dam. "I scare me. The way I feel about you terrifies me. How strong the emotions are." Dom raised his head until he could look into Brian's shocked face. "The things that I had thought I cared about most...racing, Mia, Letty, the rest of the team...it's like they were nothing if I couldn't have you with me. And I fought that feeling, tried to push it away and bury it."

"When I realized that I couldn't do that anymore, when I asked Mia about you and made plans to go and get you, that's when you showed up. And I thought everything would be fine again. I thought that everything would get back to normal, or at least as normal as it could be after all the shit we'd all been through. But it didn't. You filled up that hole in my life alright, but you also pushed everything else out. Suddenly, there was nothing in my life but you."

"You're all I ever think about. All I ever want to do is be with you, beside you. If I could wrap you around me and carry you everywhere I went, I still don't think it would be enough."

Dom reached out and brushed the hair off of Brian's forehead, then ran his fingers lightly down the side of his face.

"Without you, I have no life. Just an endless string of days to wander through while pretending to give a damn. With you, I still don't have a life, because it's your life. Do you know how hard it is for someone like me to admit that?"

Dom used one finger to wipe away the single tear that slid down Brian's face. Now that he had let it all out, admitted to what he'd kept bottled up inside for so long, feared for so long, there was a look of incredible peace on Dom's face.

"I thought that if I could...compartmentalize you...push you into just one part of my life, that I'd be able to keep you there. But you refused to be put away like a toy when I was done playing with you, didn't you?" Dom's voice was filled with gentle, ironic humor.

"Then you left, and it felt like my life had been ripped apart again. It didn't make it any easier knowing that it was my fault you were gone. So, when I set about getting you back, I thought I'd do anything to make that happen. But I was wrong. I wasn't ready then. It took seeing you almost die on that track today for me to realize that I could actually lose you. And as much as the thought of losing control over my life scares me, the thought of not having you in it scares me even more."

Dom continued to touch and stroke Brian's face and hair, looking at him with eyes that were finally at peace.

"Did I answer all your questions?" Dom asked wryly.

In answer, Brian flung himself sideways into Dom's arms. He put enough force into it that he actually bowled him over, and the momentum was enough to send them rolling at an angle, down the small sand dune on which they had sat, toward the shoreline. When they came to rest, Brian was on top.

He captured Dom's face between his hands and began to kiss any surface he could get his lips on, not even pausing to wipe off the sand they were both liberally frosted with.

"Dom," he said, using his lips for speech at odd, fractured moments. "You stupid bastard! Don't you realize? That's exactly the way I feel about you? It's called LOVE, Dom! Only it doesn't seem to scare me the way it does you, because I'm not the control freak that you are."

"What do you mean, 'control freak'?" Dom laughed, rolling their bodies until he could be on top.

But it was a redundant question, because Dom never let Brian's mouth go long enough to answer it, until the surf washed over their legs, shocking them out of their precarious position.

By then, neither cared about the answer, they just raced each other back to the bungalow.

When Dom awoke, he could tell by the angle of the dim light that filtered into the room that the sun was setting. He also knew that Brian wasn't in bed. Wasn't in the room.

He lay still for a moment, listening. He could hear the ceiling fan over head, whirring continuously about. He could hear the restless rolling of the surf, a muted roar, then a whoosh and a hiss, followed by a lull before it flung itself on the shore once more. He could even hear the wind. A gentle steady sound that billowed the sheer curtains hanging in front of the open, sliding glass doors.

But he couldn't hear Brian.

Untangling his legs from the sheet, he swung them over the side of the bed, grimacing slightly at the strain of overworked muscles. Rubbing his hands over his face, then scrubbing them over the faint bristles on his head, he stood and made his way into the bathroom to piss. He passed on the lamp, preferring instead to navigate by what natural light was left.

While he relieved himself, he winced a little at the slight soreness of his penis. The result of a night and a day, nearly twenty-four hours, of making love with Brian.

The thought brought a lazy, sated smile to his face. Sated until he began recalling some of the more salient details of their activities. Then he could feel his cock stirring lazily with the memories.

He quickly curbed those thoughts. He was amazed that he could feel the urge right now. He hadn't come so many times in so few hours since he was a teenager.

Finishing up, he quickly washed his hands and sluiced water over his face. Passing through the bedroom, he snagged a pair of shorts and pulled them on before wandering into the living area.

"Brian?" he called softly. Receiving no answer, he made his way to the sliding glass doors.

They were identical to the ones in the bedroom, down to the softly billowing curtains. But Dom knew that, as impatient and distracted as he'd been when they returned to the bungalow last night, he hadn't neglected to close and lock the doors.

Pulling aside the sheer material, Dom glanced out and immediately saw Brian sitting on the crimson washed sand, watching the sun set into the ocean. Dom slid the screen door open, then shut behind him.

He knew that Brian was aware of his approach by the slight tilt of his head, but he didn't turn around. Dom stopped beside Brian's shoulder and reached down to touch his hair lightly.

"I thought you'd still be asleep," Dom commented, his voice a soft rasp.

Brian leaned sideways until he rested against Dom's leg, and moved his head slightly, as though inviting deeper contact with the hand. Dom obliged by sliding his fingers through the dark gold waves, and massaging Brian's scalp lightly with his fingertips. Brian responded with a noise that sounded suspiciously like a purr. He had tipped his head back slightly and closed his eyes. Dom was entranced by the look of utter bliss on his lover's face.

Brian sighed softly. "I woke up to pee, and I saw that the sun was setting. I was just...I don't know...felt pulled out here." Tipping his head back farther, he smiled up at Dom. "What about you? I thought I wore you out pretty good, old man. How come you're awake?"

Dom responded to the 'old man' remark by tightening his fingers playfully in the thick hair and giving his head a slight shake. He gently pulled the support of his legs away. Then he moved around behind Brian to sit slightly above him on the dune. With his legs on either side of Brian's warm body, he moved up until they were pressed together. Brian ran his hands up and down Dom's legs, and Dom reached around to cup Brian's throat with one hand, that slid slowly up to his chin, and gently guided Brian's face around to his.

The kiss was deep, but slow. Thorough, but tender.

Dom pulled slowly away and pressed his lips to Brian's temple.

"I woke up and you weren't beside me," Dom said simply, wrapping his arms around Brian.

Brian let himself to relax completely, allowing his full weight to gradually come to rest against Dom's chest. Dom's cheek was pressed to Brian's temple.

They sat in companionable silence for a few minutes, just watching the sun slide peacefully into the ocean. They felt each other's body's moving rhythmically with the process of breathing. At first in counterpoint to one another, then they were synchronized, breathing in tandem. But their breathing rates began to separate slowly into counterpoint once more. It continued. Sometimes in opposition, sometimes in concert, but always in harmony.

"What are you thinking?" Dom's voice was a deep rumble.

After a moment, Brian answered. "Six point eight two miles per second."

It took a beat for Dom to process the answer, but it still came out as incomprehensible.

"What the hell does that mean?" he asked with a soft laugh.

Out of the corner of his eye, Dom could see a couple walking down the beach toward them. They'd obviously gone for a walk and were on their way back to the hotel. Dom marveled that, mere days ago, he would have tensed up, perhaps pulled away. Now, it didn't seem to matter.

"On the one date I had with Mia, I asked her how the team had gotten together. She told me about each of the others, then she said something that's...I don't know...kinda shaped most of the last year of my life." Brian's voice was slow and calm. "She said that you were like gravity. That everything just got pulled to you. I can't speak for everyone else, but that's exactly how I feel. For me, you're like a gravitational force that's as strong as the earth's."

Dom waited for a moment, but no further explanation was forthcoming. What he felt, was a pulling sensation in his body that corresponded to Brian.

He wasn't sure who was pulling whom in.

"Very flattering," Dom remarked, bending his head to nip gently at the curve of Brian's shoulder, "but what does that have to do with six point...whatever?"

"Six point eight two miles per second..."

"Yeah, that."

"...is the velocity required to escape earth's gravity."

"Where the hell did you learn that?" Dom asked, faintly incredulous.

"Discovery Channel."

"Well, what's that got to do with anything?"

After a second, Brian answered. "It's just that I figured, if I ever wanted to escape your 'gravity', that's how fast I'd have to go. And I think that would require something a little better than a ten second car."

"Do you want to escape?" Dom asked hesitantly.

"Nah," Brian answered immediately with a grin, twisting around to look Dom in the face. "I like gravity. It keeps my feet on the ground. It keeps things where they're supposed to be. I'll take my world with gravity, thank you very much."

Dom immediately bent to catch Brian's mouth with his own, thrusting his tongue past willingly parted lips. Brian brought one arm up and over his head to curl it behind Dom's neck, holding him close.

"Oh, for God's sake!" muttered a voice in tones of disgust.

Being otherwise occupied, they hadn't heard the closing footsteps, but Dom knew it had to be the couple walking on the beach. He slowly pulled his tongue from between Brian's lips and tipped his head slightly to see their audience.

The woman, very obviously pregnant, was gazing at Dom and Brian with a gentle smile and undisguised interest, her steps lagging slightly behind that of her husband, who was stalking past, throwing looks of profound disgust their way. Dom bent his head under the other man's irate glare and lasciviously licked the corner of Brian's smiling mouth.

"Oh, Jesus!" the man said, hurrying away.

"Good evening," Brian said to the smiling woman, with extreme cordiality.

"Good evening," she replied, her tone amused, as was the glance she threw after her husband. "It's a beautiful sunset, isn't it?"

"Beautiful," Dom agreed, solemnly, pulling Brian tightly back against him.

"Sue! Come on!" The husband had been so wrapped up in his own mutterings, that it had taken him awhile to realize he'd left his pregnant wife behind.

"Did you guys just get in?" she asked, waving her hand negligently at her audibly fuming husband.

"Yesterday afternoon," said Brian. "We...ah...didn't get out much earlier."

"I envy you guys. We leave in the morning." Her tone and her look said she envied them more than their continuing vacation.

"Sue! The baby! We need to get back to the room and rest before dinner!"

"We!" Sue snorted, looking at Brian and Dom in amusement, gently rubbing her stomach. "You'd think he was the pregnant one!"

"Sue!"

The woman sighed hugely and rolled her eyes heaven-ward. "Coming Marty!" She smiled again at them. "You guys have fun, OK?"

"Have a safe trip home," Brian called after her.

When the sun had sunk completely out of sight, Dom's sigh gusted in Brian's ear. "You wanna go up to the hotel for dinner, or have something sent down again?"

Brian rose to his feet and reached down to pull up Dom, groaning in exaggeration at the weight.

"Let's order room service again. I'm anxious to discuss that, uh, reversal of positions you alluded to yesterday evening." Brian's tone was quite comically prim as he finished his sentence.

"'Reversal of positions'. When did I 'allude' to that?" Dom asked, grinning.

"Dom-i-nic!" Brian drew out his name in separate syllables, the way his mother did when she knew he'd done something wrong. It made Dom smile. "You know you..." Brian hesitated. "But if you're not ready, that's OK, too. I know you've never..."

"Well...that's not technically true," Dom hedged, a smile spreading over his face.

"You mean you..."

"I mean, that I did a lot of thinking when I was alone in Mexicali. I knew this was something that I wanted, and I didn't want you to be completely uptight about hurting me. So, I went to a shop, and bought a little...er, toy, to practice with." Dom could feel the heat rising in his face at the admission. But it was worth the momentary embarrassment to see the slack jawed look of growing arousal on Brian's face.

"You...did you bring your 'little toy' with you?" Brian asked, tongue working in a suddenly dry mouth.

"I might have," was Dom's smug reply.

"I'm going to want a demonstration of your...technique. Just to be sure you have it right, you understand."

Dom felt the heat flare in his face again, but this time it was equal parts embarrassment and sexual excitement.

"I think that that can be arranged," he said.

They stared at each other for a long moment. Twin smiles of lust broke across their faces, growing bigger and bigger. Grabbing Dom's hand, Brian broke into a run back to the bungalow.

finis.