by Shea Balik
One day, he planned to buy a home, hopefully with Lowen, but he still hadn’t saved enough money for that and with Lowen still attending college, and living with three other guys in an apartment off campus, he doubted Lowen had much savings, if any.
With them both having rinsed off, Lowen turned off the water and pushed back the shower curtain. Blue grabbed their towels and handed one to Lowen.
“Would the landlord agree to my moving in?” Lowen asked as they dried off.
That wasn’t a question that had ever come up before so he couldn’t say for certain. “I don’t see why not, but I’d have to ask him to be sure.”
“I’m making an assumption, since you live here, you like it, so I have no objections unless moving is something you’d prefer,” Lowen said diplomatically.
Which sounded like the complete opposite of Lowen. Oh, around customers he was that way when needed but not with Blue. “Is there something wrong?” Blue asked.
For once it was Lowen who blushed. Blue was so dumbfounded that his jaw dropped as he stared at the pink that stained his lover’s cheeks. “What is it?” Blue asked. “Is something wrong?”
Wrapping the towel around his hips, Lowen walked out of the bathroom and into the bedroom. He opened a drawer Blue had cleaned out for Lowen to use since he spent most nights there. Blue frowned as he watched Lowen put on a pair of boxer briefs.
“Lowen, talk to me.” Since they slept nude and it was bedtime, he wasn’t sure why Lowen felt the need to put on underwear.
“I’m br…” Lowen mumbled so softly Blue couldn’t make out all of what he’d said.
“What?” Blue almost hated to push because Lowen’s entire body was so tense he looked as if he might snap like a twig. But clearly something was wrong and Blue wouldn’t feel right not helping if he could. It seemed like all Lowen ever did was help him. For once, it would be nice if Blue could return the favor.
He feared Lowen was ready to bolt even if he only had his underwear on. Just when Blue was ready to step in front of the door to block Lowen from doing just that, it was as if all the air had been let from a balloon as Lowen’s shoulders sank down in defeat and his body almost seemed to curl in on itself.
“I’m broke, okay?” Lowen finally said. It broke Blue’s heart the way Lowen sounded demoralized. “If we moved into a new place, I’d never be able to help with the security deposit or anything else they required.”
He dropped down onto the couch and put an arm over his eyes. “Hell, I’m living with three other guys in a shithole and I’m barely able to come up with my portion of the bills.”
Feeling like shit for not being more sensitive to Lowen’s money problems, especially since they had touched on the subject when Lowen admitted he wasn’t sure going to college was worth it, Blue sat down next to his lover and curled up in his arms.
“I’m sorry. I know you told me you were having trouble making ends meet. I wasn’t thinking when I brought up where we were going to live.” Blue felt like a complete ass. “I just didn’t want you to feel as if this was my place and you were a guest. To be honest, I don’t want to move. I happen to like living here and it’s close enough to work and the store that I don’t have to have a car, which has let me save money.”
He placed his hands on Lowen’s head and urged him to meet his gaze. “I just didn’t want you to ever feel uncomfortable here, in our home.”
When Lowen didn’t say anything, Blue feared he’d really messed things up. “Please tell me you forgive me. I love you and I swear I don’t care about how much money you do or don’t have. I mean, it’s not like I have much either. I so don’t want money to be something that comes between…”
Before he could continue rambling Lowen kissed him, stopping him mid-sentence. “Thank you,” Lowen said once he’d gotten Blue to stop talking. “I don’t want money to be a problem either. I mean, I am starting to make more now that I have the job at the winery, but it’s still going to be hard for me to make ends meet.”
Blue nodded, completely understanding. “Did I ever tell you, when I first opened up my store, I lived on one packet of Ramen a day?” So often Blue had wanted to give up, but he’d refused to let a few missed meals, no electricity at times, and the inability to come up with enough quarters to go to the laundromat to stop him from fulfilling his dream.
Lowen’s lips quirked up at the corners. “Yeah, I’m kind of living in that stage right now. Well, I was, until the winery. Even so, the few times we’ve gone out have created havoc with what little money I do have.”
Blue shrugged. “So, we stop going out. It’s not like I want to squander the money, either. We’ll just cook here. It won’t be much more than spaghetti and hamburgers but it will be food and we won’t have to spend so much.”
He felt like a king when Lowen smiled at him gratefully. “You really are the best, my sweet Blue.”
“I like that,” Blue admitted.
“What?”
“When you call me my sweet Blue.” Even saying the words himself had Blue’s heart beating faster.
Lowen wrapped his hand around the back of Blue’s neck and pulled him close. “Good,” he murmured, his lips brushing against Blue’s. “Because you are.”
“Can I ask you a question?” Blue was loath to bring it up as he’d felt the tension within Lowen when he was tracing the tattoos on his arm while they were outside. At the same time, he was curious. “What do your tattoos mean?”
Lowen let out a harsh breath, clearly having been taken by surprise. But, instead of telling Blue he didn’t want to talk about, which is kind of what Blue was expecting, he finally said, “They’re my connection to my parents. Each animal was put on whenever my parents had mentioned seeing it while in Africa.”
Blue glanced at the lion, elephant, tiger, snake, and several birds he couldn’t name. There were more tattoos on the other side of his arm that Blue couldn’t see at the moment. “You miss them.”
It wasn’t a question but Lowen had answered it anyway. “Yeah. Or, I used to?” Now that sounded like a question, as if Lowen wasn’t sure. “I could have several more tattoos, but I guess I got used to them being gone and didn’t feel the need to continue commemorating them.”
This time when their lips met it wasn’t a casual brush. He could feel the need within Lowen as his tongue glided against his in a passionate dance that had Blue’s toes curling and his cock coming back to life.
“I believe we’re ready for round two,” Lowen murmured. “Since we’re out of the shower, you can’t exactly fuck me there, but I wouldn’t mind you bending me over the couch and having your way with me.”
Now that was something Blue could get behind – literally.
CHAPTER 16
“Happy Fourth of July, everyone,” Lowen called out as even more guests streamed through the doors of the tasting room. It was pretty much standing room only at this point, but it wasn’t deterring anyone.
Brogan had given Kaylee carte blanche on renting extra tables both for inside the tasting room and out on the wide porch. They had specials going on with various wines as well as plates of foods to go with the tasting. Everything from cheese and crackers to caviar, with pretty much everything in between was available.
They were also doing wine pairings with small dishes in one of the event rooms for lunch, as well as at four, for those that weren’t planning on a having a full meal. Although, with the five courses they would be serving, it would equate to much more than a typical meal.
The vineyard had also opened the main wedding venue to accommodate more seating for the restaurant since it had a full kitchen. Both the lunch and dinner seatings were completely booked. To add to the festivities, The Twisted Vine was also offering picnics that could be combined with a tour, or by itself.
For the kids, there were games, face painting, and a small petting zoo put on by one of the local farms. The vineyard was overrun with people, but from the laughter and smiles, it appeared everyone was having a great t
ime.
Even Lowen. As much as he would love to spend the whole day with Blue, he had to admit the tips he was making were well worth the few hours of work. The good news was he would be able to sit on a blanket and cuddle with his sweet Blue while watching the fireworks that night.
“Is everyone having a good time?” he asked the ten newcomers.
“It’s been great,” one of the men answered. “But our babysitter just arrived to watch over the kids, so we’re ready for a little adult time.”
The woman on his arm, glanced around. “You look pretty busy. Will there be any chairs opening soon?”
Lowen nodded to a table who had finished their tasting and he’d just delivered several bottles of wine they’d ordered. “I can’t say for sure, but I believe that table will be getting up soon.”
It was always a crap shoot to make that guess since many times people sat and talked after their tasting, especially when more often than not at least one member of the party was slightly buzzed. But even when no one was, they’ve just had – hopefully – an enjoyable experience and not everyone was inclined to leave right away. Fortunately, today things were running differently with the many activities the vineyard was offering.
He held out several menus to the group. “In the meantime, why don’t you look this over. If you would like suggestions just flag me or one of the other tasting assistants down and we’ll be happy to help.”
The others took the menus happily, but the woman who had asked about seating had the beginnings of a frown. Thankfully, when Lowen left them to go back to his next group to pour their next selection, he noticed the table he’d mentioned was indeed starting to gather up their things.
“I think you’ll enjoy the last selection,” Lowen said to the group who’d gotten all three tasting selections. The Twisted Vine allowed for two people to share the normal two ounce pours, which gave them the opportunity to taste more than one of the offerings.
But three was frowned upon. Fortunately, this party of six didn’t mind sharing from the same glasses, as he wasn’t allowed to split one tasting three ways. Or, at least, it was discouraged. There had been times he’d done it when customers became aggressively insistent.
“It’s our dessert wine laced with a hint of chocolate.” He finished pouring when Kaylee gestured him over. “If you’ll excuse me, I’ll be right back if you have any questions.”
He stepped back to where Kaylee stood waiting for him. “I know you’re supposed to get off in less than an hour, but Sharon hasn’t gotten here yet for her shift.” It wasn’t often his boss looked panicked, but she did now. “We had known there would be a lot of people but,” her gaze went around the room with very little ability to walk through as people milled about either enjoying their tasting or waiting to be served.
As much as Lowen didn’t want to work overtime when he planned on spending the rest of the day with Blue, he also wasn’t about to leave the vineyard in the lurch. He reached out to place a hand on Kaylee’s shoulder, hoping to help calm her rising anxiety.
“I can stay. I’m sure Blue won’t mind. And I’m sure Sharon is just running late because of traffic,” Lowen assured her. “Several people have mentioned it took them twice as long to get here because the roads were packed.”
Kaylee nodded as her eyes started to glaze over as she watched the door, where more and more people were streaming in. Even if Sharon got there, Lowen wasn’t so sure he’d feel right about leaving yet. There were just too many customers to handle at the moment.
“It will be fine,” Lowen said as he moved away from his boss to pour another group’s next tasting. The thing was, the more times that door opened, the less Lowen believed they would make it through the day.
***
“We owe you both,” Brogan said as Lowen finally got off work with less than an hour before the fireworks. “Because of the tremendously busy day we’ve had, Andrew, Deacon, West, and myself decided to arrange for dinner next week for all the employees. I hope you two will join us.”
It wasn’t as if Lowen was going to say no to that. After several conversations with Blue about whether or not he should spend the money to continue college in the fall or not, he’d realized just how much he enjoyed working at the vineyard.
He wasn’t sure a business degree would help working there, but he’d also figured since he only had three semesters worth of part-time classes left before finishing, it would be stupid to quit college now. Living together and sharing expenses would help him financially enough that he could stop being a ride sharing driver.
Not that he’d necessarily quit. But that was the beauty of that job. He could sign in or not anytime. So, if he was suddenly strapped for cash, he could work for a while, otherwise he was going to concentrate on getting through his classes.
“Thank you, Brogan. It was my pleasure to help out.” Lowen had never been above kissing up, although, in this case, he was happy to do his part. Would he have rather spent it with Blue? Definitely. But he’d also made enough money to pay for all his classes for the fall in just this one day.
The rest of the weekend was likely to be fairly busy too, since many people would stay for the extra-long weekend. And with Blue owning his own business, he wouldn’t have to feel guilty about spending the weekend working, since Blue would be doing the same.
“Oh, I couldn’t accept,” Blue said from next to Lowen. “I’m not an employee. All I’ve done is eat your food and drink your wine.”
Andrew pulled Blue into a hug. “Are you kidding? You’re part of our family whether you like it or not.” When he pulled back, he looked sternly at Blue. “Which means not only are you coming, but you’re stuck with all of us pestering you until you agree.”
Lowen just knew Blue was going to blush, and he wasn’t disappointed. What he hadn’t expected though, was for Blue to beam like he was on top of the world. How Andrew had known Blue needed to be treated like family, Lowen didn’t know, but he owed the man a huge thank you.
“Then I’ll be there,” Blue said. “Is there anything I can do to help set things up?”
Brogan shook his head. “We’re going to close the restaurant a week from Monday to the public. The chefs insisted on still doing the cooking, but we will be bringing in outside waitstaff so ours will get to enjoy the dinner.”
“Well, if you should need anything,” Blue said. “Please let me know. I’d be happy to help out.” God but Blue looked absolutely stunning as he continued to light up from within with happiness.
“We will,” Andrew assured him. “Now, you and Lowen get out of here. The fireworks will be starting soon.”
After saying their good-byes, Lowen wrapped an arm around his lover and headed out. Lights were starting to come alive as the sun went under the horizon. They probably had another half hour or so before it would be completely dark.
“Did you have a good time today?” Lowen asked as they walked along the path to one of the viewing areas. Although, as the vineyard was at the top of the mountain, there wasn’t exactly a bad area to see the display.
Blue leaned into him a little more. “It was a lot of fun. The Twisted Vine didn’t hold back on making the day a hit. But I missed you.”
Oh, that was so… just… Lowen stopped and pulled Blue into his arms. When they were close enough that their lips were barely touching, he whispered, “I missed you too, my sweet Blue.”
Then he sealed their mouths together in kiss that curled his toes. People were everywhere as they all searched for that perfect spot to see the fireworks, but for Lowen, right there, with their arms wrapped around each other as he kissed the man he loved, Lowen couldn’t imagine a better place to be.
Fireworks that lit up the sky paled in comparison to this man who had a way of making everything that much better. They had been together for just over a month, but Lowen couldn’t remember what it was like to be without Blue in his life. Nor did he want to.
“I know I promised not to bring it up for a year,” Lowen wh
ispered against Blue’s plump lips, halting the kiss for a minute. “But when that year is up, I’m going to bring you back to this spot and ask you to marry me, Blue Moon. Because I don’t want to live this life without you by my side.”
Blue smiled, their mouths brushing against each other with the movement. The turquoise came out in full force as Blue’s eyes danced with happiness. “When you bring me up here and ask me that question,” Blue said. “I’m going to say, ‘yes.’”
As the first burst of light exploded in the air above them, Lowen and Blue were too busy staring into each other’s eyes, dreaming of that day to come, to watch.
CHAPTER 17
One Year Later
“Brogan, Kaylee,” Lowen said nervously as he entered Kaylee’s office in the upstairs area of the tasting room. “You wanted to speak with me?”
Calm down, he told himself as Lowen wiped his hands on his pants before taking the hand Brogan held out to him. They’re not going to fire me. Lowen had been repeating that over and over again in his head since Kaylee had asked him two hours ago to come to her office when his shift ended.
He had plans with Blue that evening, important plans, that already had him on edge, so her request hadn’t helped him to remain composed. He’d fucked up two different tastings in the past two hours, which only served to turn what should have been a great day, into a fuck storm that he couldn’t seem to control no matter how many deep breaths he’d taken, or how many times he’d counted to ten.
When he had to text Blue that he would need to delay their date for a half hour, Lowen’s hands had been shaking so hard it had taken him fifteen tries to type his apologies. Not even autocorrect had been able to help him with his inability to hit the right keys.
“Yes, Lowen, please come in and have a seat.” It should have made him feel better that Brogan smiled at him and sounded happy, not somber, but it didn’t.