epilogue to Where There's Heat
Part 2
“What?” He repeats himself as he walks closer to me.
He puts a hand on either of my shoulders; a few warm fingers graze my neck. I hope he can’t feel my heart beat faster under my skin.
I lean down close to his face. I’m not sure what he wants, where he’s going in this moment. He smells like warmth and…fuck I can’t believe I’m thinking this, but Justin smells like home. I can’t think of another thing to do so I lean down to kiss him but he pulls away. He stares at me a long moment, “What did you do?”
“What?” I suddenly feel brain dead.
“You bought this?”
Oh yeah the apartment, “Yes.” I lean in for a kiss, this time he lets me taste his lips, but pulls back quickly thereafter.
“You bought this.”
I nod.
“For us?”
I nod again.
“You bought this amazing, incredible, undoubtedly unbelievably expensive apartment for…us.” His jaw clenches at the end of ‘us’ like the word is stuck in his mouth.
I nod again.
“Brian,” he shakes his head and backs away. I watch him carefully, I don’t know where this is going. I hadn’t thought this far ahead. This is what he wanted, isn’t it?
“What?” I take a step closer to him, think about reaching out to pull him to me, but stop.
“Brian…I…I can’t believe this. You’re unbelievable. I don’t know whether to be angry or elated or what.”
“Angry?” I huff a laugh and walk over to the kitchen. I return with a bottle of champagne.
He watches me, “You assumed I’d say yes?”
I nod. “Why wouldn’t you?” I give him a challenging look.
“Brian, we’ve only been back together…what? A couple of months maybe. And before that…fuck we weren’t even really dating, we were fucking. I don’t even know if we’re dating now. Fuck, I’m getting a headache.”
“Justin,” I cross the room and come to stand beside him, “I’d say we’re fucking dating. You practically live at my place. I see you everyday. We fuck every night. I come home to you, and I want to, for a long time.”
He looks from me to the bottle of champagne and back again. He blushes and it makes my stomach jump.
“Well yeah but…but...we didn’t even talk about this.”
“So,” I shrug my shoulders and start to unscrew the wire holding the cork down.
“So? So? So you just want me to move in here with you and what? Are we like a couple now? I mean if I’m going to live with you I am paying for half this place and we’re going to have to talk about the parameters of our relationship and where we’re going and…”
The cork pops and flies across the room, hits the crown molding and lands on the parquet floor of the dining area. I laugh and stick my tongue under the bubbling liquid pouring from the bottle. I hold a gulp in my mouth and then reach up to grab Justin’s neck and pull his mouth to mine. I press hard until his mouth is forced open. I let the liquid seep into him. I push my tongue in and feel the bubbles crackle and pop over our tongues. I pull away so he can swallow.
“You got champagne on your suit,” he’s so astute.
I nod. “Just…live here with me.”
We stare at each other a long time. I finally bring the bottle to my lips, take a long swig, and then I offer it to him.
He waits a moment that feels like it takes a half a lifetime to pass and then finally takes the bottle. He smiles at me as he drinks from it.
He nods.
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