"How do you think she'd feel about going in on a start-up business? It couldn't hurt to have a medical professional on board and being a medic in the army counts."
"That's not a bad idea. I bet she'd have a few ideas to put on the table, too. From the parent point of view, you know?"
"I do." Slayde took his fingers, squeezed. "I'm starting to have hope, man."
"You'd better. I'm not going to let anyone leave you hanging, baby." He had Slayde's back. And lucky for him, he had the man's front, too.
"Promise? Because I'm yours."
Those words made him warmer than anything ever had, made him feel good all the way from his toes to the top of his head. "I promise, and I'm holding you to those words."
"It's a deal." Slayde pushed up, took another kiss.
He opened the man's mouth, tongue delving deep. Fuck, he hoped kissing Slayde never lost this drugging, magical quality. If he was really lucky, he'd be able to see if it was still this good in fifty years.
Chapter Fourteen
He waved Drake and Christian off for school and he logged on to Skype from the kitchen where he was feeding the girls, the actions now routine after a month. "Hey, Momma. He's off. No tears today." Hell, there hadn't been tears for weeks, but he still liked to let her know things were going well.
She grinned, nodded. "Excellent. I got my papers, Slayde. Thirty days. I'll be home by Halloween."
"Oh, honey. How great for you." And, for the first time in God knew how long, it didn't make him feel all panicked.
She peered at him. "You look like maybe you've made your peace with it."
"I… Drake and I want to talk to you about all of us going into business together. We'd have to start small, of course, because California's expensive, but…" It was a way for their family to stay together.
"Business? What kind of business, honey?"
"Drake came up with an idea to organize male nannies, a queer-friendly service for families and nannies."
"Oh, honey, that sounds like a great idea. I know how much trouble you had finding a family who was willing to work with a male nanny. Of course I have a hard time being upset about that…" She gave him a wink.
"I would have dropped any other job for Jerry. Frat brothers are the best."
"I knew you loved him best."
"I knew him first." Slayde grinned at Mindy. "I love Drake best."
She hooted at him. "You two are the cutest fucking thing ever."
"Mommy! Mommy, bad word!" shouted Maggie.
Mindy groaned. "Sorry, baby."
"Push-ups!"
She groaned again, but moved out of her chair and did ten quick push-ups for them.
Slayde applauded and blew kisses. "When you get back, we'll work on details, huh?"
She nodded. "I'll retire in April, so we'll have six months to plot and plan."
The front door opened and closed, Drake calling out. "One boy, successfully deployed to the school bus."
"Hooray. Two girls are coloring and I'm chatting with their mom."
"Hey, Minds." Drake leaned over his shoulder and waved at Mindy.
"Hey, brother. We were chatting about California next year. Guess what? I got my orders!"
"Hey, good for you. Halloween?"
He could feel Drake's body behind him, warming him.
"October fifteen."
Slayde leaned back, cuddled in. Drake's hand landed on his shoulder. "The kids are going to be thrilled, Minds."
"So are we. It's going to be good to see you."
Mindy grinned. "We have a lot to plan, the three of us."
"We do. We'll make it work for all of us and those babies of yours, Sis."
"Lord. Just what I need, a couple more boys."
Slayde chuckled. "We're even now." And they were. He was part of this family, no matter what. A real part. Uncle Slayde.
"Who gets to be the tie-breaker?" Drake asked.
"Well, whoever I hook up with eventually because one day I'll fall in love again, right?"
"Oh, honey." He reached for the laptop, wanting to hug her. "You know it. You're going to find someone wonderful."
"We'll make sure he's wonderful," growled Drake. "Good to those babies and even better to you."
He squeezed Drake's fingers. "That's right. Gorgeous and wealthy and into babies." Hell, Mindy could get pregnant walking through the same room where there was a hard on.
"Oh, I think three is enough. Anymore and I'm going to have to hire you back, whether or not I can afford it."
"We'll babysit. I think, though, maybe we'll have our own houses when we move…" They needed a little more privacy.
Drake whispered evilly in his ear. "Naughty, naughty uncle Slayde."
"Be good." He couldn't help his moan, his nod.
Drake just chuckled in his ear, then kissed it. "Bye, Sis."
"Bye, boys. Less than thirty days!"
God, it felt so good, to be able to celebrate -- to truly celebrate.
"Say goodbye to Mommy, girls!"
They both came running over, Maggie still holding her crayons, Jenny with her baby. "Bye, Mommy! Bye!"
She waved, tearing up. "Thirty days, right?"
"Thirty days. Buck up, Sis. You'll be back and wiping runny noses before you know it."
"I can't wait."
Chuckling, Drake waved and leaned in to turn off the Skype.
"Hey." Slayde kissed Drake's cheek. "You need a cup of coffee?"
Drake's eyes traveled over him. "That's not what I need, but it'll do."
"Be good, officer."
"I am the epitome of good." Drake gave him a look that nearly burned him on the spot.
"Oh, lord. Cereal? Toast?"
"Oh, I think you should make us something amazing and magical."
Slayde offered suggestions. "Bacon and eggs? Waffles?"
"Bacon and eggs and waffles. With some sort of fancy butter."
"Spoiled brat." He had some amazing cranberry butter in the fridge.
"Your fault."
"Maggie? Is it my fault Uncle Drake is spoiled?"
Maggie tilted her head. "Spoled?"
"Rotten."
"Unca Drake not rotten."
Drake puffed up and grinned at him. "There you go -- I'm not spoiled."
"She's playing favorites." He held his arms open to Jenny. "You still love me, right?"
"Yes!"
"Do you love me, too?" Drake asked, also opening his arms.
"I love you!" Maggie leapt for him. "We all loves all of us."
Slayde nodded. "God, yes. We all loves all of us."
Drake grinned. "Yeah. Yeah, there's all kinds of love here."
"Dork." He snuggled Jenny's cheek. "You want a waffle, baby girl?"
"Uh-huh."
"Special waffles," Drake suggested.
When he gave the man a look, Drake grinned and added, "That's for calling me a dork."
"Go let Uncle Drake get you beasties dressed and I'll make fancy waffles."
Laughing, Drake took Jenny from him and put her on the floor. "Come on, last one up's a rotten egg."
"I no like eggies."
"Then you better move!" Drake chased the girls out, the giggling and laughing fading as they went up the stairs.
Slayde watched, then grabbed the apples, the grater and the cinnamon. Fancy waffles it was.
Chapter Fifteen
They finally got the kids down and Drake stopped Slayde before the man went downstairs to clean the place within an inch of its life. "Come on, baby. Let's go make out."
Mindy was coming home tomorrow and it was going to be even harder than it was now to get together for more than just sleeping.
"But…" Slayde was a little crazy about the whole dusting thing.
"But we don't have to go to meet her until two. You've got the whole morning to be a crazy man with a feather duster."
"Shut up." Slayde pushed into his arms, face lifted for a kiss. "The kids are going to be insane."
&nbs
p; "Uh-huh." He pressed their lips together, moaning into the kiss. God, Slayde made kisses special.
Slayde hummed in response, tongue sliding against his, tasting him. His hand slid down to Slayde's ass and he started walking backward. He didn't want to get interrupted by the kids.
"Mmm. Did you check the doors?"
"Before I came up." He found the doorknob to their bedroom. Their bedroom. And it had been for a while now. He'd moved his clothes in, everything.
He got the door open, pulled Slayde on through, all without breaking the intoxicating kisses. Slayde's fingers opened his jeans, tugged at his T-shirt.
"I love making love to you." It had never felt like this. Ever.
"Good. It would be weird, otherwise."
He shook his head. "I didn't mean it like that. I meant…" He shrugged. He wasn't good with words and shit. "It's good."
Slayde cupped his face, rested their foreheads together. "Thank you. You're it for me, Drake. My one true thing."
"I hope so. 'Cause if you left I'd have to hunt you down."
"Not going to happen."
"Good." He drew Slayde back in, took that mouth and started undressing his lover. His partner. Fuck. He liked the sound of that.
Slayde stretched, pushed right into his hands, so eager, so fucking hot. His fingers wrapped around Slayde's prick, the heat sliding on his palm. He'd never appreciated that kind of thing, now he had the time, the desire. Groaning, he started jacking the sweet prick.
He watched Slayde's cock move over his palm, the heavy flesh hard, wet-tipped. So fucking sexy. His own cock pushed against his zipper. Moaning, he leaned in for more kisses, his hand still playing over Slayde's heat.
"I want your mouth, lover. Please."
Groaning, he dropped down to his knees, wanting to make Slayde fly. Slayde's eyes burned down at him, so needy. He felt so fucking powerful, knowing how he made Slayde ache. He licked at the tip, taking the pre-come in, tasting the slight saltiness.
Slayde shuddered. "Like a fucking wet dream, lover."
"Look who's talking."
Slayde was the wet dream. Drake licked his way down the hot cock, and then back up along the bottom, tracing that thick vein with his tongue. Slayde arched, salty drops on his tongue. Humming, he took the head between his lips and slowly moved down the thick heat.
His lover moaned, hips rolling, cock sliding on his tongue. He tightened his lips, added more suction. The next moan he got was fucking perfect. Delicious. He wrapped his fist around the base and began to bob his head.
"Oh, Jesus. Jesus. Lover." Slayde's hands landed on his head.
He came off Slayde's prick so he could grin up at the man.
"Drake…" Oh, this was fun.
"Yeah, baby?" He took another swipe at the tip of Slayde's cock.
"Teasing me."
He grinned and licked again. "Me?"
"Nope, the other studly asshole lapping at my prick like a giant kitty cat."
Drake laughed and then blew a raspberry against the tip of Slayde's cock. Slayde blinked, then cracked up. Drake was addicted to that sound, the way that things could be fun and easy between them. How there was no fucking shame in playing together.
Grinning all the harder, he stopped teasing and took Slayde's prick in, sucking hard on the tip. Slayde's mouth closed so fast Drake heard his lover's teeth click. He'd have laughed again, but his mouth was a little busy.
"Please, Drake. Let me have it."
The plea from Slayde made his own prick jerk with need and he took as much of Slayde in as he could and started to bob again, sucking hard. Slayde started whispering to him -- sweet little promises and praises and it was hot and sweet, altogether. It spurred him on and he went down farther, sucked harder. Jesus, he loved this man. Loved Slayde.
"Gonna. So close."
He nodded around Slayde's cock. He was ready. Drake reached up, nudged the sweet, soft ballsac, Slayde coming for him, with that single touch. He swallowed the man down as his mouth was flooded with Slayde's spunk. He groaned, pulling hard, wanting that orgasm to go on and on. He let his tongue play with Slayde's slit and the jerk he got, the groan, made him feel like a million dollars.
"Fuck, you're good at that."
He pulled off slowly. "Everything I know about sucking cock I learned from Super Nanny Slayde."
"Super Nanny Slayde." One blond eyebrow arched. "Oh, you are in big trouble, Cakey-Wakey."
"That's a dangerous thing to say when a man's got his teeth this near to your dangly bits."
"You like my bits, dangly or otherwise."
He couldn't deny that at all. "I do." He stood, fingers beginning to dig in to Slayde's ribs. "I don't like Cakey-Wakey, though."
"I do. I adore him."
His heart melted. "Butthead." He pressed their lips together.
Slayde tasted like home.
***
"Christian, hold on. Mommy is coming." Jenny was sleeping on his shoulder, Maggie was sitting on Drake's shoulders wearing a cat-ballerina costume and Dorothy shoes. Christian was wearing his My Mommy is a Hero T-shirt.
The soldiers were running an hour and forty five minutes late, the kids were hungry, and the sun was beating down, tomorrow's promised cold front keeping the hot oppressive. The runway where they'd assembled the waiting family was jam packed, Mindy not the only hero coming home today, and their kids were not the only ones beginning to lose patience.
"Tell me the mood will change the minute the soldiers come off that plane," growled Drake.
"It'll change." Assuming the ten thousand pregnant women standing around didn't just spontaneously give birth.
"Okay. I'm holding you to that." Drake made a face as Maggie's hands went around his neck and strangled him.
Slayde snorted. Drake was just cranky because they'd been up late being pervy. It was kind of amazing.
Drake grabbed Maggie's hands and put them up on his head, wincing as she pulled at his hair. "Come on, Mindy. We need to see you."
The soldiers started coming off busses and the crowd immediately started moving forward, pressing. "Christian! You hold on to one of us the whole time."
"I've got him." Drake's hand grabbed up Christian's and his lover pressed closer to him, keeping them together.
Slayde searched the crowd, grinning as one family after another came together.
"This is cool," murmured Drake. "Like, really."
"Yeah. Yeah, it's the good part, coming home."
"Mommy, Mommy, Mommy!" Christian was jumping next to Drake. "Where's Mommy?"
"We're looking, Christian." Drake was scanning the crowd.
"She's coming." Mindy was tall and buff, much like her brother, not a shrinking violet at all.
"Where? Where?" Christian was pulling hard at Drake's hand and finally Drake just wrapped one arm around his waist and lifted him up as they headed toward Mindy.
"I see her!" shrieked the little boy.
"Christian!"
"MOMMY!"
Christian started struggling and kicking, fighting Drake hard. "MOMMY!"
Slayde teared up, and about that time Maggie saw her, too. "Mommy? Mommy, we here!"
When they were only a few yards away, Drake let Christian go, the little boy running right for her.
"Down, Unca Cake! Down!"
Drake took Maggie off his shoulders and set her down. Jenny curled into him, sleeping hard, and he hid his face in her neck as Mindy knelt down, arms open.
"This isn't cool, it's awesome," muttered Drake, arm going around him for a quick hug.
"It's amazing." He might be crying a little.
"Yeah." Even Drake sounded a little choked up.
Then Mindy was on them, Christian holding on to her waist, Maggie in one arm, her other open for the baby. She was crying.
"Jenny, Mommy's home." He handed the sleeping baby over and Mindy's knees buckled, both Drake and Slayde catching her.
"Look at you, Momma." Drake grinned at her.
"Uh-huh. Home? I
have to come back in tomorrow for paperwork and stuff, but I can head home now."
"Come on. We brought the manny-mobile." Drake winked at him.
"Butthead." He took Jenny back from Mindy, Drake grabbing her duffel.
"Come on, Minds. Let's get you home before we all melt in to the fu-- asphalt."
"There's stuff for ice cream sundaes at home, too!" Slayde had the day all planned out.
"That's our Super Manny." Drake winked at him again.
"You know it." Mindy laughed, kissed Drake on the cheek. "It's so good to see you, Drake."
"Yeah, you too, Minds."
If Slayde wasn't mistaken, Drake was misting up.
"He's like a Super Manny Sidekick. Officer Cakey." Drake wasn't the only one who could tease, Slayde was good at it, too.
"Oh, someone's cruising…" Drake growled at him.
Maggie laughed. "Uncle Cakey!"
"Mommy?" Christian tugged her hand. "What's a sidekick?"
"Apparently your Uncle Cakey."
"If the two of you are going to gang up on me, I'm going to have to put on my leathers and take out the motorcycle." Drake thought that was a threat?
"What a shame that would be…" Slayde gave him a wicked grin.
"You just want me to put my leathers on." God, the man was a terrible tease.
And of course he did. Christ. The man was stunning.
"You think?" Mindy was laughing at them.
Drake stuck his tongue out at her.
They wandered together, the six of them, Mindy greeting people she knew, stopping periodically to touch Jenny's hair. Drake stayed close, grinning at Mindy, grinning at him.
"Sundaes, huh?" Mindy licked her lips. "What's for supper, Slayde?"
"Am I still on the payroll, lady?"
"Yep, six more months until I retire."
"Damn, then the kids want breakfast for supper."
Drake laughed. "Special waffles!"
The kids took up the call, and started chanting, "Special waffles!"
"What in the world are special waffles?"
Maggie grabbed Mindy, started whispering in her ear and Mindy's eyes went wide. "Special waffles are when Uncle Drake kisses Uncle Slayde?"
"What? No!" Drake looked shocked. "No way."
Of course he usually got talked into it with a kiss or two from Drake, didn't he?
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