Love Means No Boundaries - Andrew Grey

chest. Rich honey skin, tawny nipples.
    He almost reached out to stroke, but he managed to stop himself, finally finding his voice. “It’s a little after seven.” Thank God Robbie couldn’t see him standing there gawking at the man, and with a smile, he realized he could continue to look without repercussions. “We weren’t sure how long you’d need to get ready, so I got you up early. I hope it’s okay.” Robbie smiled, and Rex slunk up the bed, bumping his nose beneath Robbie’s hand for scratches. “Have you been keeping me company?” Robbie scratched the big mutt before pushing back the covers, slowly getting to his feet, and feeling his way to the dresser.
    “Do you need anything?”
“No. I should be fine.”
    “Call if you need anything.” Joey left the room and went downstairs to the office. He’d developed detailed crop plans for all the fields, and he wanted to take them with him so he could record how each of the fields was germinating. Sitting at Geoff’s desk, he reviewed his plans while listening in case Robbie needed anything.
He was just finishing up when he heard tentative footsteps on the stairs followed by the rush of doggie feet. “I’m in the office,” Joey called out, and a few minutes later he saw Robbie’s smiling face poke through the doorway.
     
“Is there time for breakfast?”
     
“Sure.” He put his papers in a folder and took them with him to the kitchen where he made Robbie a quick breakfast. As Robbie finished eating, he pressed a button on what looked like a watch, and Joey heard a mechanical voice say, “Eight forty-five.”
    “That’s cool.”
20
Love Means … NO Boundaries
“We should go. How long will it take us to get to the auditorium at the community college?” Robbie raised himself out of the chair and picked his cane up off the table.
     
“About two minutes. It’s across the street.” Joey put his hand on Robbie’s elbow. “Let me get your violin, and I’ll help you to the car. A few minutes later, Robbie was in the car with his instrument resting on his lap, and Joey drove them across the street, pulling up in front of the auditorium. “Just a minute.” He put the car in park and opened his door, walking around the car and opening Robbie’s door. “I’ll help you get inside.” As Robbie stepped out of the car, the door to the auditorium swung open and a tall, wiry young man rushed across the pavement.
    “Robbie.” Reaching them he took Robbie’s arm. “I’ll help him in.” Before Joey could respond, the young man looked up at him, and he heard the intake of breath before the expression on his face changed to the surprised look Joey was used to seeing on people’s faces when they saw him the first time. Then the expression was gone, but Joey felt a wave of disappointment shoot through him.
    This had been the first morning in a long time that he hadn’t woken to the same feeling of self-pity. He’d actually been able to forget about the scars, forget what he looked like now, until he saw the look on the man’s face—and for a split second he absolutely hated him. Joey knew it wasn’t his fault, and the feeling passed, but for a split second….
    Robbie’s voice pulled him out of his emotions. “Arie, this is Joey. Joey, this is a friend from back home, Arie.” The young man extended his hand. “Robert Edward Hawkins.” Joey shook the offered hand and noticed that Arie’s voice sounded normal, but the look on his face was one Joey couldn’t place.
    “Isn’t Robbie’s name Robert Edward as well?” 21
Andrew Grey
“Yeah, every family has a Robert Edward where we come from, named after Robert E. Lee. That’s why I go by Arie.” Again, something was off, but Joey couldn’t quite place it. The voice sounded helpful, but something was off between the words and the expression.
     
“Oh,” Joey didn’t know what to say, and he certainly didn’t know what to make of Arie “How long do you expect rehearsal to last?”
    “We should be done at eleven,” Arie said as he led Robbie toward the building. Joey watched as they walked away, Arie’s arm on Robbie’s, a weird look on his face that he couldn’t place. Joey got back in the car and was about to pull away when he stopped the car again, looking back toward the now closed door. There was something that just wasn’t quite right about this Arie. Taking his foot off the brake, he pulled away from the auditorium.
Joey’s impulse was to drive back to the