Ashes to Ashes

by Jason Banks

  “Okay, babe, seriously… what have you been watching with Aunt Melanie?”

  “This one about fashion, has a few ladies in it, they talk about sex a lot!” She exclaimed, placing her palm to her forehead. “Which sounds really icky to me.”

  Max could take delight in the latter sentiment, but deduced very quickly Melanie indeed was allowing her to watch ‘Sex and the City’ with her.

  “And?”

  Lily continued. “And this show called ‘Friends.’ Joey is such a tool,” she laughed. “At least that’s what Auntie Mel says all the time.”

  Maxwell retrieved his phone from atop his dresser drawer and summoned Siri. “Siri, remind me to tell Melanie she is banned from watching television with Miss Smarty Pants.”

  The woman’s voice on his device replied promptly. “Okay, would you like to set a due date?”

  “No,” Max laughed into his phone.

  “What was that?” Lily asked.

  “Just a joke I’m playing on your aunt. She’s got a real surprise coming to her, that’s for sure.”

  Lily’s eyes widened. “Ohh.”

  Max finishes adding the last touches of his luggage, which was a single brown paper wrapped box bound together with a thin white ribbon. “Yeah, so I guess you might wanna stay away from those shows Auntie Mel watches, okay? I want your innocence in tact when Durango and I return on Monday.”

  She piped right back. “You got it, mister. But you never answered my question,” she asserted, placing both hands at her sides.

  “Oh, yes. I know a lot about him. We like each other very much,” Max replied, unsure how she’d take that—since it was really one of the first times expressing how he felt about another man that wasn’t Brogan.

  “But what about…”

  Max continued. “I still love Daddy B very much. But when you become an adult,” he stated, using air quotes—’for real’—in several years from now, you’ll understand that grownups have certain relationship needs that can’t be tended to without someone showing them how to not be lonely anymore. That’s what I found with Durango. He is so much like Daddy B, and,” Max paused to take a breath, placing his zipped suitcase onto the carpet beside the bed. “and while nobody could ever replace the wonderful man who helped bring you into this world, it is nice to have a grown-up friend who has the same cares and interests.”

  Lily nodded her head, “Okay, yeah. I understand that. Like how I found Gage to be such a nice friend.”

  Max wavered his head in thought. “Sorta, but just know that you are my number one priority always and forever. And that I always have your best interests at heart. Okay sweetie pie?”

  “Sure,” Lily retorted, crawling off the bed.

  She started to shuffle towards the bedroom doorway before stopping to turn back around.

  “I can still watch ‘Grey’s Anatomy,’ right?”

  Max rolled his eyes and clicked his tongue. “No, sweetheart. I clearly need to lay this all out to Aunt Mel.”

  “Oh no, that’s not her fault,” Lily admitted with her forefinger pointed out in the true sassy little girl pose. “I watch that by myself sometimes,” she added, twisting back around to traipse out into the hallway.

  As he followed the younger man around the corner of the resort spa area, Durango took in a large plume of steam which was emanating constantly from the heated in-ground pool. The truth of the matter was, this place was on top of the largest hot springs this side of the Canadian border within a few hundred kilometers of Victoria. So rather than massive volts of electricity warming the waters to a simmer, the resort banked heavily on the earth’s natural resources to provide an exciting in ground water experience.

  “This place is gorgeous, Max,” Durango stated, had his jaw been any lower, it would have been dragging along the ground.

  Maxwell clicked his tongue. “The pictures certainly didn’t make this place as exciting as it is.”

  “No, they didn’t do it real justice at all. Maybe you should be in charge of that on their website,” Durango offered, reeling his man in closer for a warm embrace. “I told you that I’m old friends with Shane, who manages this place, right?”

  “I think you did mention that, yeah.”

  “College buddies. Back when the first Macintosh computer hit the market.”

  Max giggled. “Yeah yeah, you’re such an old fart,” he kidded, pulling the elastic waistband of Durango’s swim shorts, causing a snap against the skin of his waistline.

  “Ooohh,” Durango muttered, “Foreplay and we’re not even in the water yet?” He questioned, tossing their towels on the pair of spread out patio style loungers seen in any public swim area anywhere.

  “Just you wait, Mister,” Max hinted, tugging Durango back into the embrace.

  Both men stood with both their chests resting on the other. Durango still hadn’t yet afforded the opportunity to tell Maxwell about what would be the biggest shock he was sure to discover in possibly his entire life. He felt his heart strike against the younger man’s torso as they held each other in a prolonged moment of pure silence, while the hiss of the hot springs would subtly warn of its heightened temperature. But in the moment, Durango felt more peace than he had in quite some time. His confidence in Gage’s safety was equally divided up into the hands of both his brother and Melanie, and this was his first real escape from the daily hustle of being the card-carrying member of Spectrum Dads that he was. No less with a man whom he was more than certain destiny brought his way at the perfect time and place. He’d conducted quite a bit of research on synchronicity, but until recently, never truly listened to his inner voice which would provide the signs necessary of taking the most appropriate course of action in any given scenario. But in the current moment, it was all the more validation he needed to confirm just how right it felt to be where he is.

  Max broke the silence. “You’re awfully quiet,” he retracted his head. “You usually talk more than I do.”

  Durango stewed about whether he’d be taking his t-shirt off in order to submerse into the pool. He hadn’t so much as showered with Maxwell in the past, he hadn’t given much thought about the fact his scar would be exposed to the man, let alone for anyone else who’d be in the immediate vicinity.

  “Yeah, sorry, I just thought I forgot something at home,” he tried to make it sound convincing.

  Hand-in-hand, both men cautiously lowered themselves into the springs. Durango felt the bite of the water nip at his thighs as anxiety pervaded his entire belly. It was comfortable, being with Max, but until he would just come out with it, he would still feel a modicum of unease.

  “Shirts off?” Maxwell suggested, already lassoing his navy-blue shirt away from his head.

  “You’re perfect whatever you decide,” Durango murmured, swaying both his arms around Maxwell’s naked abdomen. “Come here, I’m not done with you yet.”

  Seeing Maxwell without so much as a shirt was honestly a rare occasion. Up until this point, their relationship kept as steady as a train on an expansive track from San Francisco to Norfolk. They’d eventually get where they were headed eventually and there wasn’t anything forcing them to rush things any more than was necessary. Aside from the fact the very lifeforce keeping him alive was all courtesy of a one, Brogan Baxter. While Max lowered himself into the pool to meet Durango at eye level, he too, wrapped his arms around the psychologist with yet another tight squeeze. While this wasn’t the first time Durango noticed his cock grow exponentially, the weightless elements being underwater provided always made everything feel slightly larger—and with greater intensity. And medically speaking, hotter temperatures make each blood vessel dilate in the human body.

  “What have I done?” Max whispered back, grabbing at the nape of Durango’s neck. “Have I been naughty?”

  A thick, baritone grunt escaped from Durango’s clenched mouth. He watched the younger man’s pupils grow bigger with each breath he took. “Just you wait and see,” he muttered. “You’ll find out so
on enough, I suppose,” he teased back, his nerves finally calming down at the hint that sex was for sure in their immediate future.

  Durango nudged the man’s spine against the side of the pool, feeling the sting which panged abruptly against the back of his hands. His head leaned into Max’s and tilted to dive in for a kiss, while his aching dick thumped alongside the man’s waist. The dim lights in the spa area seemed to hush just a bit more each time Durango would pull his head back to catch his breath, before invariably falling back into the man’s warm, inviting lips. Max’s lips tasted as sweet as a freshly canned jar of orange marmalade spread over a coarse wedge of toast.

  “Mmmm,” Max winced, probably feeling the extreme temperature pricking his backside.

  Durango paused momentarily to let out a short cough. “Damn, man. You gonna let a guy at least breathe?” he joked playfully, turning his chin into his right shoulder.

  “Maybe, I’m still waiting my punishment, sir,” Max bit back.

  Durango studied the circumference of the springs area to spot nobody else around. With finesse, he surreptitiously lifted Max by the waist and planted the man’s bottom on the edge, while tracing his left hand up the guy’s thigh.

  Maxwell let out an excited moan, as a thick erection sprung from over the waistband of his trunks as Durango lowered them down to his knees. Within a matter of a moment and no time to spare, Durango covered his pursed lips around the tip of Max’s penis and tickled the man’s balls with the same hand which seconds earlier offered the rush of adrenaline shoot straight into Max’s crotch.

  Maxwell howled slightly louder than before, while tilting his head back.

  Durango’s free hand quickly lifted to cover Maxwell’s cries of pleasure, while taking in the man’s dick inch by inch into his warm, slick mouth. Having another man’s cock inside his mouth was not actually a first for him, much to Maxwell would surely be surprised. There was one brief moment in college when he fulfilled a dare, or a cash bet, when he sucked on a fraternity brother’s cock for twenty straight minutes without pulling away. So he was confident this experience with Max wasn’t ill prepared for, to say the very least.

  Durango pulled his head back momentarily to catch his breath. “Shhhh, you’re gonna get us caught,” he hushed Max.

  He felt slightly giddy and surprised that he threw out his inhibitions and commenced what obviously was a few steps above public displays of affection. It might’ve even been illegal. For that he was unsure of. Canadian decree or not, it was so fucking hot. He fought hard against lowering his own shorts and forcing Max back into the water, so he could slide inside the man’s asshole while the surfacing bubbles surrounded them inside the hot springs.

  Before Durango could wrap his salivating lips back around the man’s cock once again, Maxwell pushed his body back into the heated pool, pulling his shorts back up to his waist. Durango was surprised Max seemed to have already had his fill of excitement at the joining of his thighs.

  “You’ve already had enough?”

  “No,” Max bit back, twisting Durango’s torso and pulling it into his. “It’s my turn, hot stuff.”

  This activity was sure to excite his own dick beyond measure, sending his testosterone into overdrive for the first time in what might have been years. Durango hoped against hope that he would make it the entire duration of their sex, whether it would finish down in the springs or up in their hotel room where the two of them could have a generous, more private romp. And within moments, he felt his shorts being dragged down just before the rush of Maxwell’s warm tongue pressing into the back of his neck. Durango winced slightly at the suction his skin felt, being bit into tenderly much like he’d seen in a Twilight film. The strength of Max’s right hand voyaged down Durango’s chest until it eventually stopped at his erection, before it wrapped completely around with a firm grip. But it felt terrific. Maxwell’s trigger hand knew its way around the male form, instead of just the anatomy of a camera after all.

  “Oh my fucking god!” Durango spat out, realizing he’d just contradicted his previous expectation of Maxwell moments prior.

  He murmured in satisfaction the entire duration that Maxwell’s swiftly stroking hand held the fragility of his manhood within its tight grasp.

  Maxwell clutched his hand inside Durango’s as he followed the man back up to their room at the resort. Once they kicked off their shoes, Maxwell paced over to the large wall which was made entirely of windows looking out over the waters of Horseshoe Bay. In his time settling into the Northwest Coast of the States, he never imagined having such a peaceful view at home which looked out into the northern Pacific Ocean. But this was different from his backyard glimpse of the Washington shoreline. Alternatively, his senses were heightened as in another quick moment, he’d be spread-eagle on top of the bed while he let the new man of his desires pound him in the ass to any degree he wanted. This was quintessentially, the peak of Maxwell’s libido in several months.

  Meanwhile, Durango found a folded card propped up on the bench, which rested horizontally at the foot of a plush king-sized bed. The only hint of light shone through the wall of windows from a giant full moon illuminating over the thousands of ripples in the water.

  “Babe, we have some treats here,” Durango said, stepping over toward the bathroom, flipping the light switch on over the sink. “This card is from Shane. It says, ‘Have fun you two. Enjoy a night of pure bliss courtesy of my backyard.’”

  Max’s curiosity begged to know what the actual fuck that even meant. But whatever it was, he was at such a stage of euphoria between his hormones kicking into high gear and the fact he’d just spent the most amazing hour of hot romance down at the springs, it could’ve been homegrown fruit or vegetables, and he’d have been just as chuffed.

  “Umm,” Max murmured, feeling Durango approach from behind, grabbing him around his tight chest, feeling the smooth glide of the psychologist’s lips land at the base of his neck. “Is this pot? Oh my god, I haven’t had any of this since like I was sixteen.”

  “You naughty boy,” Durango affirmed, patting Max on the butt cheek. “You were way too young. Were you ever punished for it?”

  Fuckin’ A! Max thought to himself immediately as the intensity of his emotions returned to his cock. Hearing the roar come from an older daddy type is always what turned him onto men in the first place. He liked a man who could assert a level of control over him, that’s one of the qualities which turned him onto Brogan quick into their relationship.

  Alright high on life, Maxwell lifted one of the two joints from a small square silver plate they’d precisely been placed on. As he placed one end between his passion hungry lips, his hand reached for the lighter which he assumed was also provided by Shane. In no time, he ignited the other end and watched the tip burn into a small fiery orange blaze and took in a deep inhale. Max turned his head to exhale and bite back with something overtly cheesy—but romantic nonetheless. Before he could formulate a word, his chest immediately tightened, and he let out a series of raps from his lungs.

  Durango rolled his eyes in a sarcastic manner. “Yeah? Been a while, hasn’t it, Scooter?” He joked, taking the reefer from the younger man’s pinched fingers.

  After he regained his composure, Maxwell took no time to bite back with his sultry response. “I don’t think I learned my lesson from the last time, because I’ve been,” he paused, taking the man’s free hand, placing Durango’s rugged forefingers in between his lips, licking them clean of whatever salty remnants had been left over from the water downstairs. “…so very bad, I need that punishment, Daddy!”

  Max was impressed that Durango was able to inhale such a deep puff without choking like he did. But whatever reservations he had about the incidence of smoking a substance while abstaining from alcohol was so far gone from his conscience, it may as well have been cocaine. All Max wanted in the moment was Durango, and all of him. After several months of going steady, this was the night it all changed.

  Durango let out
a huff. The illumination of the moon bounced off his eyes and Max was sure his trembling dick was about to burst right then and there, without any further activity. Durango took in another deep lungful from the joint, placed it onto the tray and leaned in towards Max’s face. He wrapped both hands around Max’s head, groaning in arousal. “Count to three and breathe in,” he muttered, gently meeting his mouth to Maxwell’s with zeal.

  Max did as instructed and counted to three while experiencing the less harsh hit of the pot smoke enter his lungs. He’d heard of shot gunning and cum swapping, but this was a technique to smoking the devil’s lettuce he’d never before practiced. Durango’s tongue slid deep into Max’s inviting mouth and he welcomed every part of this juicy advance, in fact, Max gently nipped at the man’s upper lip.

  While the hushed environment amplified on the sounds of Canada’s finest nocturnal wildlife from their room’s window ajar, Max could hear the strength in Durango’s moans and let him take the lead.

  “Ommmmm,” Max cried out with excitement, feeling Durango forcefully yank his swim shorts down around his ankles.

  Durango hissed. “Take off your shirt,” he ordered, bending down to wrap his arms around the base of Maxwell’s ass.

  As Max removed his shirt and raised it over his head, he felt as if the Earth’s gravitational pull was weakening. But as he watched his damp shirt fall to the soft carpet, he realized Durango lifted him up and was carrying him around to the edge of the bed, reintroducing himself to the concept of Newton’s laws, as his naked backside met the coolness of the silken bedspread. If obeying Durango’s commands to remove his shirt weren’t enough to shoot his cock as straight as a medieval sword in battle, being thrown on top of the bed made his dick feel strong enough to split air molecules in half. And watching the man heave the shirt off his own back for the first time—goddamn. Though he could only make out the shadow Durango’s body, he was ready to take any part the man was going to offer.