Love is Always Write Anthology Volume 7

breath against Scott's hair.
    "Well, no, not really, I mean, we never said we were… exclusive or anything, and we never even--"
    Interrupting, Jimmy asked, "Do you wanna be? Exclusive and all with him, I mean?"
    Scott had to think for a moment, getting the words. It was too long, he could tell by the way Jimmy pulled back and worried his bottom lip between his teeth, looking like he was ready to get out of bed. "No. It would serve you right for waiting years , but…no. He is a great guy, you were right about that, but…" His voice dropped to a whisper, pulling Jimmy close again, "I always wished he was you."
    One corner of Jimmy's mouth curved into a cocky grin, "Good." he said, closing in against Scott again. "And, I did try, you just always turned me down."
    "I always thought you were joking or…just being bi-curious. Wasn't worth risking everything just to satisfy a whim, ya know?"
    "Yeah, I know. That's why I waited so long, princess."
    Scott rolled his eyes at that, laughing, "Does that make you my knight in shining armor?"
    "Yes," Jimmy said seriously, "With an enormous joust."
    "Oh, Jesus," Scott shook his head, hiding his face against Jimmy's chest as they rolled and played together, laughing more, "You're hopeless."
    "You love it."
    Sighing again, "Yeah. Damn it."
    They were quiet for another few minutes, fingers tenderly exploring each other in a way they'd never let themselves before, bodies pressed tightly together. Scott had to ask, "What about Tina?"
    Jimmy pulled back to see his face, "What about her?"
    "I mean… When I asked where you were last night, Monica said you two were off somewhere."
    "Yeah, we were. Talking about you ." Jimmy told him, smiling as he leaned in to nuzzle against Scott's ear, whispering, "She's been telling me for a while now… That night she dropped her bomb on me and we went inside to talk for a while?"
    "Yeah?"
    "She was telling me I needed to get off my ass or I was gonna lose you."
    "I thought she was blowing you." Scott laughed, feeling like an idiot.
    "Last night she pulled me off so I wouldn't get wasted and told me it was time for drastic measures and I'd better figure something out before it was too late."
    Scott tilted his head so Jimmy could kiss him again, then pressed his lips to the man's throat, breath warm and soft as he whispered around a smile, "Remind me to thank her."
    "Send a gift; she's partial to high end jewelry."
    ****
    Sleeping more soundly than he had in weeks, Scott rested peacefully in Jimmy's arms. The first sound that woke him was a small murmur against his ear, "Someone's at the door, baby." Jimmy was whispering to him, the two of them still groggy and tousled from the night before.
    Groaning, Scott opened his eyes, blinking at the clock. He'd slept through his alarm and it was now after nine in the morning. "Christ," he said, stretching a little and shifting to get out of bed.
    "They'll go away if we ignore it long enough…" Jimmy told him, a Cheshire cat grin on his face.
    "Yeah, but…if that's who I think it is, I should probably deal with it."
    "Rob?"
    Scott just nodded as he pulled on a t-shirt and found a pair of boxers on the floor.
    Stumbling into the living room, Scott answered the door to find Rob smiling happily at him. Normally, Scott would have leaned in to kiss him, but instead stood in the doorway looking guilty. "Hey, um…"
    Rob paused in the motion of coming in, looked Scott up and down and then grinned, arching a brow, "You look like a man that's been thoroughly fucked."
    Pausing, not sure how to respond to that, Scott finally said, "It's not like that…I mean…it is , but…"
    Jimmy appeared at his shoulder then, standing close, one arm wrapping around Scott's waist, "It's totally like that. I'm sorry, man."
    Scott didn't expect the laugh from Rob, "You are not, you shit."
    "Yeah, I'm totally not." Jimmy told him, laughing with the man.
    "It's cool. I knew from the first date that you two…well, anyway, it's cool. Glad it finally worked out for ya."
    Looking as dumbfounded as he felt, Scott just stood there a moment, finally asking, "You sure? I mean…I didn't mean for anything to…didn't think it ever would happen, ya know?"
    Another laugh from Rob, "You're the only one that didn't, then. And, we weren't really…ya know?"
    "Yeah, I know,"
    "It's all good." Rob flipped his sunglasses down from the top of his head, covering his eyes and lifting his light brows over the frames, "Guess I'll have to go down to the