Date: Thu, 15 Apr 2010 15:57:01 EDT
From: Draginacht@aol.com
Subject: The Bandini Affair Ch 31

The Bandini Affair 31

Draginacht@aol.com (AKA Jeff)

* * * * * * *

Disclaimer: The following is a work of fiction and any resemblance to real
people or events is purely coincidental.  The story contains graphic
descriptions of sex between men. Anyone who is forbidden by law to read
such material must stop now.  This story is being posted to the Nifty
Archive solely for the enjoyment of its readers.

This story is a spin-off of an earlier story, "David's Initiation." If you
haven't read "DI," that won't be a problem because this story can
stand-alone. However, some of the characters from "DI" will appear
throughout the story. "David's Initiation," along with earlier stories can
be found in the Author's section of the Nifty Archive.

Reader comments are welcome, just be sure to include the title in your
subject line (even "TBA" will do) so that it doesn't get dumped as spam.

* * * * * * *

>From Chapter 30

* * * * * * *

"I never considered a time when I wouldn't be working at the nursery but my
stroke changed all that. It forced me to take time to think about a lot of
stuff. Ben," he looked at his son. "You have a professional career and
London is too far away to be involved. Meg," Pop looked at his
daughter. "You've always shied away from working more than part-time so
you'd have plenty of time for your family." Pop paused briefly then added,
"And I support your decision completely." Pop then looked at Leo and
paused.

"So, Leo..." he paused again. "Are you and Matt the least bit interested in
running the family business?"

* * * * * * *

Chapter 31

* * * * * * *

Leo hadn't seen that coming. He was visibly taken aback. His mouth opened
but no sound came out. He felt Matt's hand on top of his forearm and turned
to see Matt looking at him.

"Uh..." Matt began as he turned and looked at Pop. "My gut tells me to say
yes..." He looked back at Leo. "But there's no way I could commit to that
without first discussing it with Leo." The possibility of Mom and Pop
quitting the business had, in fact, crossed his mind. But being the quiet,
private person he was, he'd kept his thoughts to himself.

 "Yes," Leo found his voice. "Do you need an answer right now or do we have
time to put our heads together?"

"Take you time, a few days," Pop smiled. "Because if you decide running the
business isn't for you, then there'll be no need to bother with Matt's
proposals for surviving this recession. See what I mean?"

Agreement was unanimous. Without much further discussion, the family
meeting adjourned. They were going to reassemble at 7:00 PM for dinner at a
favorite Chinese restaurant. Ben called ahead to alert the manager of the
large group that would be descending on him.

Matt felt a little overwhelmed. Now he understood why he'd been invited to
participate. Pop's offer to run the business was like a formal
acknowledgement that he was now considered a member of the family. He had
always been treated with respect but Mom and Pop were taking it to a new
level. Acceptance is such an important aspect of any relationship and Matt
felt he'd reached the pinnacle. He could hear his heart pounding.

* * * * *

Leo unlocked the front door and Matt followed him into the house. They
quietly hung up their coats and stood in the kitchen like they weren't sure
what to do. They had successfully avoided any discussion of Pop's offer all
through dinner and the drive home, each lost in his own thoughts. Now they
were secure in their home and it was time to talk.

"I'm going to fix some hot chocolate... want some?" Leo reached into the
cabinet and retrieved a couple of mugs.

"Sounds good," Matt replied as got a couple of spoons from the drawer and
found the container of instant chocolate mix. "While you're doing that,
I'll go the bathroom." The microwave was still running when he walked back
into the kitchen.

"If you'll watch that (the microwave), I need to use the bathroom, too."
Leo said. When he returned to the kitchen, Matt was sitting at the table
stirring both mugs of steaming, hot chocolate.

Leo sat down across from Matt, who slid a mug in his direction. They took a
few sips in silence as their eyes smiled at each other over the tops of
their mugs.

"Thanks!" Leo began and took another sip.

"I'm not as good a cook as you but it's hard to screw up hot chocolate."
Matt chuckled.

"Well... yes, but I was talking about how you answered Pop's question. I
love you for that." By now, Leo had set his mug on the table and his eyes
were focused directly on Matt's. "And I love the way you always seem to
think of me before making any decisions.

"We have to communicate, Leo. Because if we don't, we'll be in trouble."

"You're absolutely right. I've been through that with Marsha and it wasn't
pretty. Now, you said your gut told you to say ÔYes' when Pop asked if we
might want to run the business. Well, now that I'm over the shock of the
question, I feel the same as you."

"Look..." Matt began then paused. "I know... or I think I know that you
really love writing as much as I love the nursery business... and some day
you may want to go back to that. So... I don't want to do anything that
would keep you from doing that. And you're a really good writer, too."

Leo took another sip of hot chocolate as he thought about Matt's
comments. Over the past weeks he'd devoted a lot of thought to his
professional career and was ready to reply to Matt's comments.

"Look..." Leo was already picking up some of Matt's speech
habits. "I... yes, I love writing; it's what I was meant to do. And I also
love working with you at the nursery. Since coming back home and getting
involved with the business, it's brought back a lot of good memories. It's
fun." Leo sat with his mouth open slightly, like he was on the verge of
another profound statement. "And my gut tells me the same yours told
you..." Another pause. "I'll only do it if I can do it with you."

"Do what with me?" Matt asked with a suggestive grin.

"Now get serious," Leo admonished as he grinned.

"Okay," Matt replied as his smirk turned into a loving smile. "I'm
serious. I really meant what I said. But like you, I'll only do it if you
agree to do it with me." They sat looking at each other for several
seconds; their mugs were now empty. Then Matt decided this was the proper
time for the other question he'd been thinking about. "Come with me." He
said as he stood up and let the back of his legs push the chair back. He
extended his hand toward Leo, who grasped it and stood up.

Matt led them into the front room, sat down on the couch and guided Leo
onto his lap facing him, knees on either side of his hips. Once Leo was
comfortably settled, they began with a long Ôhello' kiss, one with just
enough passion to say ÔI'm with you.' With one arm over Matt's shoulder and
the other around Matt's back, Leo could feel Matt's chest expand and
contract as they continued their kiss. Now they were communicating
physically.

"So... we're going to say Ôyes' to Pop's offer?" Matt asked. He could see
the smile in Leo's eyes.

"Yes... I'm ready if you are." Leo replied; Matt's eyes smiled back at him
and he sensed a pregnant pause.

"And... will you say Ôyes' if... if I ask you to marry me?" Matt got his
answer in the form of a long, more passionate kiss.

"Yes! Yes! Yes!" Lew finally exclaimed at the end of the kiss.

"Well, I've been thinking... first I gotta say I love you. And I think it'd
be kinda nice for us to be married if we're gonna to keep the business in
the family." He paused then continued. "I don't mean Ômarried' married
because the most we can do is be joined in a civil union, like Dave and
Tony..."

"Yes!" Leo interrupted. "I know. Oh Matt! I love you too. And the thought
of being with you forever is almost too much to hope for. I've been
avoiding even thinking about marriage because of my last
experience. But... this time it feels so right." Leo was prevented from
saying anything more because Matt's tongue was in his mouth.

* * * * *

Lovemaking that night was especially sweet, tender, rewarding and
satisfying. Development of Leo's libido had made significant strides and
Matt welcomed the challenge.

Monday morning they happily opened the nursery and went to work with
renewed interest. Just after 9:00 PM, Leo called Pop and told him of his
and Matt's agreement on taking over the business. He didn't, however,
mention anything about their decision to get married. They'd agreed to work
out the details before they told everyone.

Monday evening, Leo and Matt had dinner at Applebee's. Leo was the first to
bring up the topic living together permanently, setting up a household.

"Look... I think it's time I started contributing to household
expenses. Like, I can pay half the mortgage." Leo really wanted to share
the financial responsibilities of partnership. "If I were living anywhere
else I'd have to pay rent so I might as well help with that."

"Well, it's like this..." Matt began. "There is no mortgage."

"What?" Leo was clearly surprised. "Nobody doesn't have a mortgage!" He
exclaimed.

"He-he, Yeah, well..." Matt chuckled. "When each of us kids were born,
Mother and Dad set up trust funds for us. The idea was for us to use that
money for college. Um... but I never went to college. Instead, I got an
associates degree from Junior College. And living with Dave and Tony helped
hold down expenses and I worked at the nursery part time. So when I decided
to buy this house, I was able to use some money from the trust fund." Matt
paused for a moment. You know, it's utterly amazing how little it costs to
live when you're not making mortgage or rent payments."

"Wow! I guess so!" Leo exclaimed. "Okay, so that leaves utilities,
umm... taxes, umm... insurance, umm... I can help with those."

"Okay, that won't break the bank." Matt chuckled.

"Now, full disclosure, I got a large settlement from Marsha's dad but I
haven't done anything with it. It's just sitting in a money market
account. Hmm," Leo thought for a moment. "I really need to think about
investing that." At this point he hesitated about disclosing the size of
his settlement; he didn't want to sound like he was bragging. And just as
quickly he reached his decision. "We settled for $1.5 mil but after legal
fees and a few other expenses there's just over $1 million left." He paused
for a few seconds. "And I have about $7,000 of credit card debt, which I
really should pay off." Leo paused and looked at Matt, who picked up his
side of the conversation. Would he disclose how much was in his trust?

"My truck is clear, no loan payments." Matt hesitated for a second to
consider telling Leo how much was in his trust account. Leo had been honest
and so should he. "And the trust is worth almost $900,000.

"Hmm..." Leo mused. "I own my car outright, no loan payments."

"Other than that, no debt." Matt added. That got Leo's attention. "Well,
there's probably a couple hundred on this month's credit card bill but I
always pay it off each month."

"Wait!" Leo exclaimed. "You're 26 years old and you're and telling me you
don't have any debts?! You're essentially debt free? I don't think I know
anybody who doesn't owe something. How did that happen?"

"Ha-ha," Matt laughed as he tilted his head back. "Dave said I'd get that
kind of reaction. Ya see, when I lived with him and Tony, they put me on to
a guy named Dave Ramsey. He has a radio show and has written books about
what people need to do to get out of debt. After listening to him for a few
months, and with Dave and Tony's help, I learned how to do a simple budget
and do some snowballing. And before I knew it I was out of debt. And I
don't ever want to go back to where I was.

"Snowballing? What's that?" Lew asked.

"You start by paying off your smallest dept first, then attack the next
larger one, and so on. I didn't have a lot of debts so it didn't take long
to get free. And as I said, it's amazing how little it costs to live when
you don't have any debts."

"Hmm, I guess so. I'd have to say we're in great financial shape. And
thinking ahead to what needs to be done to save the nursery, I'm willing to
take a hefty cut in salary."

"So can I. My plan is to ask for enough to cover expenses until we get
through this recession and then evaluate what I might be worth. I don't
really want to dip into that trust fund if I can avoid it."

"Yeah, I understand." Leo added. "Any ideas about how to divide up our
household expenses?"

"A few other couples I know have a system they like. They set up a separate
joint checking account and both contribute an equal amount each month. Then
they pay for household stuff from that account. That lets them keep their
personal finances separate.'

"Yeah, I can see some benefits to that." Leo replied. "Now tell me more
about that Ôsnowballing' thing; it sounds interesting."

Matt continued to explain more specifics of Ôsnowballing' as they got up
and left the restaurant. Leo quickly began mapping out a plan and decided
to get started tomorrow.

* * * * *

As Christmas approached, Leo and Matt concentrated on two primary
objectives. Tuesday, they sat down with Pop to discuss Matt's idea for
economizing to save the company.

Tuesday evening they reached agreement on when to announce their plans to
get married. Wednesday morning, Matt called Father Tim and asked if he was
available to meet with him and Leo after work. Tim agreed and had an
instinct that told him he was about to join two more men in wedded
bliss. They had a quick meeting and selected next Sunday afternoon,
December 27, at 1:30 PM, as the date and time for the ceremony. They chose
that day and time because Leo wanted to have the ceremony before his
brother had to fly back to London. Then later they could go to dinner at
Dave and Tony's. Everything seemed simple. Each would personally invite
family and a few friends and not worry about any of the formalities
normally associated with weddings.

Christmas morning the entire Carlsen family was gathered at Mom and Pop's
for the family gift exchange. It was the perfect opportunity for Leo and
Matt to announce their plans and invite everyone to their commitment
ceremony. Later that afternoon, they were at Matt's parents' house for
dinner and, again, the entire Close family was there when Matt and Leo made
their announcement. Even his twin brother Mark and his family had flown in
for Christmas with plans to stay through Wednesday so they, too, would be
able to attend.

Matt had been able to do something his Uncle Dave had not Ð he was able to
set up his wedding with such short notice that his mother, Kate, wouldn't
have time to take over.

Saturday, Leo and Matt first called Dave and Tony to tell them the news and
invite them to the ceremony. Since Dave was planning dinner for the
Platoon, he offered to host a reception immediately following the
ceremony. He knew Georgia (his housekeeper) would love any excuse to bake a
cake for the occasion. They then called the rest of their friends and
invited them. Kyle and Logan were both shocked and excited. Considering how
slowly their own relationship had developed they were surprised as how
quickly Matt and Leo had moved to the point of getting married. It gave
them something to think about.

Saturday afternoon they went to a jewelry story in the mall and purchased
matching rings.

* * * * *

When they awoke Sunday morning, Matt could tell that Leo was nervous. He
was well aware of Leo's shyness and feelings of insecurity and was a little
concerned about how well his lover would deal with the very public events
that lay before them. Throughout the day Matt made a point of placing a
hand on his lover's shoulder and giving him a reassuring squeeze or pulling
him into a quick hug. It seemed to help and Leo always gave him a warm
smile in return.

The commitment ceremony was a great success. Matt could tell that Leo was a
bundle of nerves but so far he was doing okay. Leo and Matt had composed
their own vows and exchanged rings. Their only surprise was seeing all the
Bandini employees in the church. Leo's sister deserved the credit for that.

Megan had been observing her brother closely ever since she caught him and
Matt kissing in the storage shed. And she was pleased at how well he had
progressed. Leo now seemed more relaxed, more confident and happier than
she could ever remember. And now, sitting in the church watching him say
his vows with Matt gave her a warm feeling of comfort.

The reception at Dave and Tony's was well attended. Leo and Matt had
specifically requested no gifts and nobody brought any. They felt the
greatest gift they received was having family and close friends around them
for their wonderful day. Leo and Matt's parents provided campaign and other
adult beverages. Before Pop left, he caught the newlyweds in private and
told them he didn't want to see their faces at the nursery Monday.

Guests began leaving at 4:30 PM and by 5:15 the only people left were Matt,
Leo, and the members of Dave's Platoon: Mike and Todd, and Dan and Berk,
and Kyle. Logan was automatically included as Kyle's guest, making a total
of five couples. Dinner was served at 6:30 and the men sat round the table
tossing humorous, friendly jabs at the two newly-weds. And because
Champaign and wine was served with the meal, everyone was invited to spend
the night. As was traditional at Dave and Tony's gatherings, the men soon
found themselves dancing to romantic music, a perfect setup. Holding his
partner close to him, Matt could feel that Leo was still nervous but the
high level of tension noted earlier had subsided considerably.

After about thirty-five minutes, Dave nodded to Mike. Mike whispered
something in Todd's ear and the two of them quietly slipped out of the
room. A few minutes later, after having removed the cover on the hot tub,
they slipped back into the room and acted like they were dancing
again. Five minutes later Tony stopped the music in the middle of the song,
which got everyone's attention.

"Okay everyone," Tony announced loudly. "Out of your clothes and into the
hot tub!" Leo and Logan were the only ones who were caught by
surprise. Matt quickly realized what was about to happen and smiled. Leo
was a little surprised and confused until he saw Mike give him a wink. He
winked back as he remembered what Mike had told him that afternoon he spent
at Mike's house. Kyle and Matt exchanged knowing grins, and Logan appeared
confused but smiled anyway.

Holding onto his new spouse, Matt rested his hand on Leo's shoulder as they
walked through the house toward the pool shower/changing-room and was
rather surprised that Leo's tension level didn't seem to be getting any
worse. They held hands as they stepped through the changing-room door and
hurried naked toward the hot tub as thick steam rose into the cool night
air.

While the hot tub could seat eight men comfortably, ten men was a squeeze
but they all managed to get in. Tony had turned on the outdoor speakers so
the romantic music they'd been dancing to could be heard. The atmosphere
was definitely exciting and intimate.

"So Leo, how does it feel to be married?" Mike asked to start conversation.

"It's wonderful." Leo replied with an embarrassed grin. That's when he felt
Matt's hand slip into his crotch and encircle his rapidly stiffening
prick. ÔHe's not wasting any time,' Leo thought. "I've finally found the
man I'm supposed to be with." Leo said proudly.

Leo reached over and wrapped his fingers around Matt's cock. It was a
familiar grip and when Matt looked at Leo, he saw a big grin. He hadn't
expected that. He suspected Leo might be a little too nervous and hesitant
to reciprocate. But here his partner was, looking confident and aroused. He
quickly leaned in and joined his lover in a lingering kiss.

"Yea-a-a-a-a!" Everyone cheered but there was no applause; hands were
occupied in other endeavors and never broke the surface of the water.

Leo observed how quiet everyone became. He felt excited to participate in
an underwater circle jerk with a group of trusted friends. Upon looking
around the hot tub he observed Kyle and Logan sitting directly across from
him; Logan had a surprised look on his face. The kid was the youngest of
the group and might be feeling a little intimidated or embarrassed at the
moment.

"Watch Logan," Matt whispered in Leo's ear. Leo looked at his spouse and
smiled as he continued jacking Matt's large tool. Everyone was quietly
concentrating on the task at hand... or Ôtask-in-hand.' Leo continued
looking around the hot tub, watching for any changes is facial expressions.

"Oh-h-h-h..." Logan moaned. Leo watched Logan close his eyes and open his
mouth. He could see that everyone else was watching Logan then all eyes
turned toward him. This was exciting and he was getting close. ÔAm I next?'
he wondered. Well yes, he was.

Matt could feel his partner begin to tense up and start breathing
faster. He could actually feel the semen surge through the Leo's urethra
along the underside of his prick. As Leo moaned, Matt leaned over and
covered his mouth with his own. He also slipped his tongue into his lover's
mouth believing it would intensify Leo's pleasure.

As Leo came down from his high, he heard another "Oh-h-h-h." He didn't
bother to look to see who it was; he was more interested in returning
Matt's kiss. He now began a more serious effort to bring his lover to
climax.

As far as Leo and Matt were concerned, they were the only two people in the
hot tub. They held each other firmly and continued kissing until finally
Matt succumbed to the loving pleasure of his partner's hand. A very short
time later, all ten men sat looking around the hot tub at each other. Dan
was the first to extend his hand toward Leo.

"Welcome, Leo." Leo shook Dan's hand. "And you, too, Logan." Logan shook
Dan's hand also. "You've just been inducted to Dave's Platoon." Then all
the others offered their hands to the two inductees. Leo had a lot of
things going through his mind like, only moments earlier the hands he just
shook had been administering pleasure to someone else's cock. Also, they
were now sitting around with the hot cum of ten guys circulating around his
body. (Actually it was cum from only nine guys because Logan had been so
surprised he didn't know he was supposed to jack Kyle off.) Leo needed only
a few seconds to rationalize that the whole scene was both exciting and
erotic.

"Okay guys," Dave began, "It's time we got out of this tub before our tools
shrink up. Let's let the two inductee couples go first and the rest will
follow when they've rinsed off in the shower." Matt knew the routine and
led the way to shower room. He and Leo stood under one showerhead to rinse
off while Kyle and Logan stood under the other one. Leo found it exciting
to be showering with two other men he knew but had never actually seen
naked. He tried not to stare but couldn't help noticing that Kyle still had
an impressive hardon.

"Next..." Matt announced through the door toward the hot tub. "C'mon," he
said as he handed Leo a towel. "We can take a real shower upstairs." He was
referring to the upstairs master suite the Dave had assigned him and Leo
for the night. With the towels tossed over their shoulders, Matt led Leo by
the hand through the house, up the stairs, and into the master bath
shower. Kyle was right behind them leading Logan by the hand to the bedroom
Dave had assigned them. Kyle had spent several nights in the house with
Matt when they were in high school and knew his way around.

Weddings are typically filled with joy and happiness... and stress. The
newlyweds were exhausted. That, combined with unloading their family jewels
less than thirty minutes earlier was enough to wipe them out. That meant
there was much less pressure to observe the traditional marital
Ôconsummation' on the wedding night. Consequently, the couple enjoyed a
relaxing shower, went to bed and quickly fell asleep in each other's arms.

Leo awoke just after 5:00 AM for a bathroom call. His movement getting in
and out of bed must have awakened Matt because as soon as Leo crawled
backed into bed, Matt made a trip to the bathroom. Leo felt the bed move
when Matt returned and soon felt a long, hot, stiff shaft of male flesh
press into the crevice between his ass cheeks as Matt's arm wrapped around
his chest and pulled them tightly together.

ÔHmm,' Leo thought after waiting several seconds to see if Matt was going
to make a move. ÔOkay, it's up to me.' And he knew what he wanted. He'd
thought a lot about sex and what he liked most. Although he loved having
sex with Matt, any kind of sex, his favorite was taking Matt's succulent
member in his mouth and down his throat. He had a number of reasons. One,
he loved the way Matt tasted. Next, he loved the silky smoothness his
tongue felt as it patiently licked and swirled around Matt's head. Then he
loved feeling that head slip into his throat. He'd hold it there and feel
Matt's pulse. And eventually he loved the feeling he got when Matt
came. The sounds Matt made when he came were very rewarding; it was Matt's
way of telling Leo how much pleasure he felt and it was always
intense. Sometimes Leo would take Matt's sperm directly into his throat but
he liked it best when it flooded his oral cavity. At the last moment, he
liked to place his tongue at Matt's tip so he could feel the seminal fluid
gush past his tongue to make its escape. And then the flavor of Matt's
semen was exquisite, as was the aroma that flooded Leo's nostrils. That's
what he wanted to experience at this moment.

Wasting no time, Leo slipped under the covers, wrapped his hand around
Matt's long member and guided it between his lips. He experienced the
things he loved: the taste, the smooth texture, and the smell. He slowly
slurped his way down Matt's shaft until he felt it press against the
entrance to his throat. Leo pressed down and felt Matt slowly slip
inside. Finally his nose nudged against Matt's nut-sack. The aroma was so
exotic and erotic. After a few seconds, Leo could feel Matt's pulse through
his dick. It was exciting. He was in no hurry to back off; Leo had learned
how to breath through his nose and that allowed him to enjoy Matt that much
longer.

Finally Leo pulled back and focused on Matt's glans. After a few trips up
and down Matt's meat, Leo felt a large hand on his hip; he paused. Matt was
repositioning him. Then a hot, moist mouth engulfed his prick. Even with a
large cock in his mouth, Leo managed to smile and resumed pleasuring the
instrument in his mouth. Holding Matt's jewels in his hand, Leo detected
movement toward Matt's core; he was about to cum. Leo had decided how he
was going to do this and he pressed forward until he had completely
swallowed Matt's member. Just in time. Matt's hips thrust involuntarily and
Leo felt the first volley of cum surge through the shaft. Leo quickly
withdrew and savored the remaining volleys in his mouth.

When Matt's orgasm erupted, he ceased action on Leo's dick but he never let
it leave his mouth and when he released a series of moans, they were all
that was needed to cause Leo to cum.

The two lovers lay quietly, trying to obtain adequate oxygen through their
noses but not quite willing to release each other from their mouths. When
Leo was satisfied he cleaned every last drop of seminal fluid from his
partner's cock, he gently placed it on Matt's abdomen and allowed it to
slide from between his lips.

When he felt Matt release him, Leo turned around and their lips found each
other. They lay quietly kissing and caressing each other.

"I love you." Matt spoke softly and kissed the tip of Leo's nose.

"I love you, too." Leo replied. And they kissed some more. Leo knew they
weren't finished when he felt Matt begin to grow. He knew Matt's favorite
position so he began to roll to his left and tug on Matt to follow. In a
matter seconds Leo was on his back, his knees pulled to his chest and
Matt's tongue at his rear opening. He hadn't expected that last part. As
soon as Matt felt Leo was ready, he moved up, aligned the head of his cock
with Leo's rosebud and slowly entered his mate.

The lovers were in no hurry and they barely moved for several minutes. They
took time to whisper intimate physical and emotional feelings to each
other; their mental and spiritual feelings were taking care of
themselves. Each man knew he'd found everything he needed in the other.

Both men achieved another massive orgasm before collapsing and falling
asleep in each other's arms.

* * * * *

Monday morning Dave was sitting at the kitchen table reading the paper when
he saw Matt and Leo about to enter the kitchen. He glanced at the wall
clock and saw it was almost 10:30 AM.

"Hey, if it isn't the newlyweds!" He put down his paper and stood to greet
his guests.

"Afternoon sleepy-heads!" Tony added. He'd just poured for his partner a
mug of coffee and set on the table in front of him.

"Were is everybody?" Matt asked, trying to sound innocent but not quite
succeeding. He knew he looked embarrassed yet knew he had no reason to.

"Gone hours ago!" Tony exaggerated.

"Have a seat and I'll get you some coffee." Dave said.

"I'm up, let me get it." Tony said as he placed his hand lovingly on Dave's
shoulder. "You can have breakfast or... you're not to early for lunch."
Tony couldn't seem to resist teasing Matt and Leo.

"I'd love some breakfast." Leo replied and ignored Tony's tease with a
smile. A few minutes later he and Matt were shoveling down some cereal and
bananas.

"So, do you have any plans for some time off together?" Dave asked. He
wasn't trying to pry and he didn't want to call it a Ôhoneymoon' but he had
a plan in his mind. He watched Leo and Matt exchange glances.

"Not really," Matt replied. This all came together so quickly we hadn't
thought that far ahead."

"May I make a suggestion?" Dave asked and looked at each man.

"Sure Uncle David, er... sorry, Dave." Matt grinned and everyone
chuckled. Some habits are hard to break.

"Remember that condo in Fort Lauderdale?" Dave asked.

"The one on the beach?" Matt replied. "Yeah, I remember."

"Tony and I always enjoy going there to get away and we thought you two
might like to use it." Tony had been refilling coffee mugs and stopped to
lean down and share a kiss with Dave.

"In fact, that's where we spent our honeymoon." Tony added as he refilled
his mug and sat the empty decanter in the sink.

"We love to go down there." Dave continued. "We can turn the phones off; we
have no interruptions; it's totally quiet; and we're able to relax and
reconnect."

"And," Tony added, "you can walk hand-in-hand or arm-in-arm along the beach
and nobody cares. You can even share a kiss if you feel like it."

"Matt," Leo began, "I like that idea. Whadda you think?"

"Or there's Vale," Dave added.

"Too cold!" Matt shuddered with a chuckle. "I'm with Leo; a nice warm beach
sounds good right now."

"Okay, just let me know and I'll get it set up." Dave replied.

"Great. We have plans for the rest of the week, including New Year's
Eve. After that, we'll take a look and get back to you." Matt
explained. Then turning to his partner, "That sound okay with you?"

"Yeah, that's good." Leo agreed. "I think Pop wants to finalize the
recession plan and present it to the employees next week. Maybe we could go
after that."

"Recession plan?" Tony asked.

Matt and Leo explained how the recession had affected the nursery business
and outlined their general plan on how to adjust to it. Without knowing the
details, Dave and Tony agreed they were making the right steps.

As Matt and Leo walked toward the door Tony handed them a sack full of the
greeting cards everyone had brought to the reception. What a surprise when
they got home! Those wedding cards contained cash and checks totaling more
than $800.

* * * * *

The rest of the week was devoted to managing the nursery and working with
their financial advisor on the final version of the recession plan. Pop
selected Tuesday, January 4, as the day to present their plan to the
employees.

Meanwhile, Friday evening, Matt and Leo, and Kyle and Logan joined several
other gay couples they had become friends with to celebrate the arrival of
the New Year. Again, Matt observed how Leo's tension seemed to build the
closer they got to social activities. And he seemed to be doing much
better; Leo's wasn't completely relaxed but was definitely more at ease. At
the beginning of the evening, Leo remained in constant physical contact
with his partner. And as the evening wore on he allowed more and more space
to creep between him and Matt.

"What are you doing Sunday?" Kyle asked quietly. He and Matt were leaning
against the wall side-by-side watching the guests in the room.

"No plans, why?" Matt replied quietly.

"You and Leo want to come watch Logan and me get married?"

"NO-o-o!" Matt exclaimed quietly as he pulled back and gave Kyle a smile of
disbelief.

"Yeah." Kyle replied looking slightly embarrassed.

"What brought this on? I thought you said you'd never get married!"

"Well, it's your fault." Kyle chuckled.

"Oh really!" Matt chuckled. "I've got to hear this; it's gonna be really
good. So how is it my fault?"

"When I watched you and Leo get married it made me think about my
relationship with Logan. He's a really great guy and it's clear he loves
me. And when I tried to think of being without him I realized I didn't want
to think about it."

"And when did you actually make the decision?" Matt asked.

"Sunday night... We were lying in bed at Dave and Tony's house after
inducting Log and Leo into the Platoon. We'd just finished making love and
I could only imagine what you and Leo were doing and I... Well, I asked Log
what he thought about all that and he said ÔYES.' I mean... I didn't really
propose but it wound up that way and I said ÔYes,' too."

"Congratulations, Bud!" Matt wrapped his arms around his longtime friend
and they laughed as they hugged. "I think this is something Leo will want
to see."

* * * * *

Kyle and Logan were joined in a civil union two days later. Logan and Matt
witnessed the event with several of their mutual friends in attendance.

* * * * *

Tuesday morning all the employees of the Bandini Nursery managed to squeeze
into the customer area of the main building. Pop opened by acknowledging
the unprecedented nature of the meeting and briefly explained the financial
stress the company was under. No one was surprised because they could see
the decline in business with their own eyes. Then he turned the meeting
over to Matt. Although there had been no formal announcement that Mom and
Pop were going to retire, no one seemed surprised that Matt rather than to
Leo was running the meeting.

"Thanks, Pop." Matt began. "We've agonized over how to go about finding a
solution to this problem. I'll tell you right up front that our hearts
wanted to reject one option and that was to close the doors and go out of
business." He saw a lot of heads nodding in support.

"So we looked around for other options to avoid that one and I'm about to
explain what we came up with. I just want to ask that you hold your
questions until I'm finished. It isn't complicated so we should be able to
get through it pretty quickly." Matt paused.

"Please keep in mind that a key element of our plan is to try to make sure
we don't have to let anyone go; we want all of you to keep your jobs."
Again he saw heads nodding.

"First we're asking everyone to take a ten percent pay cut until such time
as the profits returned to pre-recession levels. And I mean everyone, me
included." What Matt wasn't saying was that he and Leo had agreed to a
fifty percent pay cut. They could easily survive with small supplements
from their other sources of income. This announcement produced a lot of
furrowed eyebrows.

"Second, we're going to have to stop all matching contributions to your
401K's." The concerned looks on faces grew even more concerned. "Now, you
still have the option of continuing your 401K contributions or you can
defer them to offset the pay cut. Or, if you can afford it, take that money
and put it in a Roth IRA. We can talk more about that later if you're
interested. Again, we plan to resume matching contributions when we return
to pre-recession profit levels."

"After all of that bad news, the good news is that you'll continue
receiving your current health benefits." The scowls began to fade and were
slowly replaced with looks of relief.

"And finally, Pop wants to implement a profit sharing policy. That's still
being developed but the goal is to twice a year pass along a portion of the
corporation's profit to all of our employees. I hope you can understand
that we have to reinvest some of the profit in the business to make sure it
continues to grow.

"As I said, our plan isn't complicated. Now I can see by the looks on your
faces that you have a lot of questions. The first may be: how and when does
this become effective? The answer to that question is in your hands. We all
get to choose whether to lay people off or accept a pay cut. We'd like you
to take a few days to think about all this and then we'll have another
meeting. Does anyone have any questions?" Matt asked.

Leo was impressed by the way Matt conducted the meeting. Self-confidence
was one of Matt's strong characteristics that first attracted Leo to him
and he felt such pride knowing they were now connected. ÔYes, Matt's the
one to run this business.' Leo thought.

The meeting continued for another forty-five minutes until every employee's
questions and comments were heard. Judging by the nature of the questions,
there seemed to be strong support for the ten percent pay cut proposal but
were not yet ready to commit. They all wanted to take the idea home and
discuss it with their families before deciding.

* * * * *

"Thank you, Matt, I thought that went well." Pop said after the employees
returned to their work. "What did you think, Leo?"

"I guess I'm surprised. I didn't know exactly what to expect but I'd have
to say the reaction seemed positive." He placed his hand on Matt's shoulder
and smiled. "You did a great job. It's clear that the employees have a lot
of respect for you. I predict they'll talk this over and we'll have an
answer before the end of the week."

"Well, that would be nice." Matt replied. "Then we could ask Pop for some
time off to go to Ft. Lauderdale." He looked at his father-in-law and
smiled. All three men knew Matt had found a clever way to ask for time off
without really asking.

As Leo had predicted, by the end of the week the Bandini employees had
chosen to take a pay cut and everything that went with it. Two employees
reluctantly told Matt that they couldn't afford the pay cut and would have
to find better paying jobs. Matt accepted their notice and invited them to
continue working for Bandini until they found other work. Then he made
another offer. Since the two employees were making just as much as some of
the others who had accepted the proposal, Matt suspected they might be
somewhat weak on managing their incomes. He offered to set them up with a
financial planner with the hope that they would find a way to stay on.

* * * * *

Matt was behind the wheel and the passenger compartment had been quiet for
some time. He glanced across at Leo who appeared deep in thought as he
looked straight ahead. Pop had told them he didn't want to see them for at
least a week so Matt called Dave and made arrangements to use the
condo. And now they were about ten miles north of Ft. Lauderdale.

"You're pretty quiet," Matt said breaking the silence. They had driven
Leo's Camry for better gas mileage and had switched off driving duties
during the trip. Matt was driving the last leg because he knew his way to
the condo.

"Huh, oh." Leo replied and turned to smile at his partner. "I was just
thinking."

"About?"

"Uh, about what I'm going to do to you in about twenty minutes from now."
Leo was now grinning at Matt as he reached over and took hold of Matt's
right hand, which was resting on the gearshift lever.

"Dare I ask what that might be?" Matt asked, a broad smile taking control
of his face.

"You sure you want to know?" Leo chuckled.

"Is it X-rated?" Matt could feel movement in his boxer briefs. They had
said absolutely nothing of a sexual nature during the drive but with the
condo just minutes away the atmosphere was changing.

"Triple X-rated." Leo squeezed Matt's hand.

"Even better!" Matt chuckled. "So just exactly what do you have planned?"

"First we're gonna get in the shower and get really clean." Leo began.

"Ooo, I love sex in the shower."

"Nope, no sex in the shower." Leo cautioned. "After we dry each other off
I'm gonna lay you on the bed and kiss you. I'm gonna kiss your eyes, your
nose, your chin, your mouth, your nipples, your belly, and your balls."

"You skipped something." Matt smiled.

"Then I'm gonna do something I've never done before. You've done it to me
and now it's my turn." Leo wasn't going to actually say he was going to rim
his lover's ass; he decided to let Matt figure that out on his own.

"Hm-m-m, I thing I'm going to like this." Matt added. This was a little
like phone sex but in person. He was aroused and a good part was due to Leo
expressing a plan to take charge of their lovemaking. That was new.

"And I predict that it won't be long before you're begging me to enter
you. And I'm a sucker for beggars... ha-ha-ha." Leo laughed at his little
joke. Then he leaned across the armrest and whispered seductively: "Because
while I'm inside you I'm gonna take you into my mouth and suck you dry."

Matt was almost shocked by Leo's boldness.

* * * * *

Their first night and the next two days were like a real honeymoon. There
was plenty of food in the fridge and they had each other so they didn't
leave the condo until after noon the second day. They held hands as they
walked along the beach with their feet in the water. Matt's arm was on
Leo's shoulder and Leo's arm was around Matt's waist. Occasionally they'd
stop and share a brief kiss.

They went out for an early dinner and while walking back to the condo they
passed a tattoo shop.

"Hey..." Leo exclaimed. "I want a tattoo."

"Really, what kind?"

"One like yours." Leo responded. And just that quickly, Leo added a tattoo
just like Matt's. It measured about an inch and a half by an inch and a
half and because Matt's was placed just above the left corner of his pubic
bush, Leo had his placed just above the right corner of his pubes. Now when
they made love their tattoos would almost be touching. And just like
Matt's, it was a red heart with two purple roses behind and a ribbon or
banner furled across the front of the heart. Then Leo took it one step
further, he had the name "MATT" added to the center of the banner. Not to
be out done, Matt had "LEO" added to the banner of his tattoo.

* * * * *

Early the next morning, Leo lay listening to Matt sleep. This time, Matt
lay on his left side and Leo spooned behind him. Over the past three days
they had enjoyed multiple sessions of lovemaking. They had tried numerous
positions, all of which Leo found fulfilling. Yes, they had a lot of
uninterrupted sex but there was much more than sex that was going on. There
was a form of bonding happening that went far beyond sex. Leo learned to
appreciate the deeper meaning of Matt's comment about the physical,
emotional, mental and spiritual aspects of love and sex.

Of all the positions they'd tried, Leo still liked giving his lover head
best. His next most desired position was being on his back and feeling Matt
move inside him with controlled physical power. Matt could crush him but
Leo never felt threatened.

Matt began to stir. He could feel Leo's erection pressing against his lower
back. He rolled onto his back and Leo's lips found his. An hour later they
stepped out of the shower, having washed all evidence of sex from their
bodies.

"This had been great." Leo began as he finished off his coffee.

"Yeah, Dave and Tony were right." Matt replied. "This has been a wonderful
time together. We'll have to do this as often as we can."

Matt got up and refilled their coffee cups. "When do you think we should go
home?" He asked.

Leo thought about that question for a few seconds. "I'm ready when you
are." As good as their private time together had been, he was interested to
know how things were going at the nursery.

"Is tomorrow too early?" Matt asked. He too was interested to know if there
were any further developments concerning the recession recovery proposal.

"No... not too early." Leo smiled. Let's spend the day at the beach, go out
for a nice dinner, and head home tomorrow.

"Maybe when we get home, you can help me buy some new furniture for our
house and do a better job of decorating it." Matt smiled. Now that he had
someone to share his house with he wanted it to look like a real home.

* * * * *

Leo Carlsen and Matt Close set off the next morning on the journey of the
rest of their lives. Matt became the official manager of the nursery and
Leo was his equal assistant. The recession recovery plan worked better than
they hoped. A year-and-a-half later the employees pay cuts had been
restored and profit sharing checks were about to be distributed.

Leo had stumbled on a part-time job writing for the local gay weekly
newspaper and was thoroughly enjoying it. He considered it the perfect
world because he could work in his profession without giving up working
with Matt. And he also took up martial arts so he and Matt could spend even
more time together.

* * * * * * *

The End