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Chapter 31

As the days and months passed, Aaron began spending more and more time at Jays, to the point where he was practically living there, which was fine with everyone as they all got along extremely well. One night after they had dinner and cleaned up the kitchen, Jay and Aaron went for a barefoot walk on the beach. "I love the beach at night. It's so peaceful. I love the way the moonlight reflects on the water, and nothing relaxes me like the sound of the waves." Jay said quietly, not wanting to disturb the tranquility of the evening.

Aaron sighed and was silent for a moment; equally loathe to disturb the peace and quiet. Aaron also loved the beach at night. It was his favorite time of the day, when he could relax and not worry about alarms, fires or anything else connected with firefighting. He could just be. "I know what you mean. It's really beautiful. I envy you having your own private beach. Public beaches close at dusk, so I can't enjoy doing things like this." He was so surprised at Jay taking hold of his hand that he barely heard him say that he could come over anytime and enjoy the beach at night. Gotta be nice having your own private beach. Aaron mused. I'd give my right nut to be able to do this every night. He asked Jay what he was doing in a surprised voice. He made no attempt to pull his hand from Jay's.

Jay replied, "I'm not sure. All I know is that it feels right." Aaron nodded and moved closer to Jay gripping his hand a little tighter. They continued to walk in silence, content to enjoy each other's company.

Returning to the house, they surprised Tommy. Noticing their joined hands; he walked over to the two men and hugged them, tears of joy flowing down his cheeks. "I'm so happy for you guys, I can't tell you. It's about time the two of you stopped tiptoeing around each other and just got together. It's long overdue for both of you."

"You're not upset with me for betraying Kyle like this?"

Jayson, my beloved, you're not betraying me. Let go. Be with Aaron. The two of you will be good together. I want you to be happy. You've been sad and lonely for way too long. I want you to be with him. He's a good man, and you need him just as much as he needs you. One day we will be together again, as Aaron and Iukekini will be together again. But until that time, be with him. You love him, don't you?

Yes Jay replied without a moment's hesitation.

You have my blessings as Aaron has Iukekini's. Be happy and enjoy life.

Suddenly Jay collapsed into a heap on the floor, crying. He was immediately enfolded in two sets of arms. He cried hard for several minutes then regained his composure. When he looked up, Tommy noticed immediately that the sadness and guilt had left Jay's eyes. Love was there. Joy radiated outward from him as he pulled Aaron into a long kiss full of love, passion and promise. When he broke the kiss, he looked deep into Aaron's eyes. "Please stay with me tonight."

"Yes." Aaron whispered as he allowed Jay to lead him upstairs. As he entered the bedroom, he looked around in awe. The room had its own bathroom and what he assumed was a walk-in closet, since he didn't see a dresser anywhere in the room, only the bed, two nightstands and a couple of chairs in a sitting area. It was easily twice the size of his entire apartment. Seeing the room brought back his insecurities. As Jay was turning down the bed Aaron asked him in a quiet voice, "Jay can we talk for a minute?"

Something in his voice made Jay pause and turn around. "Sure, let's go out onto the balcony. It's beautiful night." Only then did Aaron notice the double doors that led to the balcony. After they were seated in the wicker loveseat, Jay asked Aaron, "What's on your mind?"

I don't know if I can tell him everything about me, but I need to, even if he dumps me. I don't want any secrets between us, especially one like this. Well, I guess there's only one way to find out. Aaron began nervously, "I know the day we met you said it didn't matter, but I need to tell you the complete truth about me, and I need to know that you are sure you want to be with me once you know everything."

"I know all I need to know about you, and yes, I do want to be with you, Aaron, more than anything."

"But what will your friends say when they find out you're seeing a guy whose entire apartment will easily fit in this room with a lot of room to spare, and is so poor that he gets food stamps and public assistance because he barely makes thirty-five thousand a year?"

Jay pulled Aaron close and kissed him gently. "I don't care what they will say. Tommy and Andy already like you and couldn't care less what your financial situation is. They're the only friends that really matter. As far as anyone else is concerned, they have two choices. Either they accept us as a couple, or they can go fuck themselves, and that includes Tony and Billy." Jay's vehement response told Aaron that Jay was sincere.

Okay, time to put all the cards on the table. "What about your kids?"

That was the last thing Jay expected to hear. "How did you find out about them? Aaron, please believe me when I say that I planned on telling you about them tomorrow." He pleaded.

"Tommy told me during a counseling session I had with him recently, and I do believe you. But, what do you think they'll say?"

"There's only one way to find out." He got out his cell phone. He knew exactly what their reactions would be, but went through the motions for Aaron's sake. He dialed a number then activated the speaker so Aaron could hear both sides of the conversation.

As Aaron listened to both sides of the conversations Jay had with each of his kids, he came to the conclusion that they were genuinely happy for him, but he was still concerned how they would feel when they found out everything about him and his financial situation. "I see that they're happy for you, but will they still be happy when they find out the truth about me? You didn't tell them anything about my finances. I don't want them to think that I'm only with you because I'm looking for a sugar daddy."

"Baby, that won't matter to any of them. We adopted Adam when he was five and raised him to accept everyone as they are. You could be homeless and he'll still accept you. We became foster parents for Janita when she was fifteen, then later adopted her." He told Aaron the story of how they became foster parents, the trial of Janita's extremely abusive biological parents and how they adopted her as soon as the anti-adoption law was repealed. "Trust me, my love, they'll love you and won't care about your financial situation. Which will change drastically if I have anything to do with it. "Now, let's go to bed so I can show you how much I love you." He led a very nervous Aaron to the bed. "It's okay, Aaron. We won't do anything you're not ready for, and if at any time you want me to stop, tell me and I'll stop. I promise. Okay?"

"Okay. It's just that I haven't been with anyone since Iukekini." He admitted shyly.

"And I haven't been with anyone since Kyle, so we're even on that score."

Jay pushed Aaron gently down onto the bed then lay down next to him. He pulled him into his arms and kissed him gently, then with increasing passion. Aaron started trembling hard and pushed Jay away slightly. "Aaron? What's wrong?"

"N-n-nothing. I guess I'm just a little nervous."

Jay pulled him back into his arms and kissed him gently on the temple. "Sshh. It's okay, baby. We're not going to do anything you're not ready for."

"I want to make love to you, Jay. I want to feel you inside me. I'm just afraid that I won't be able to please you."

"You don't have anything to worry about. It will be perfect. Trust me. I love you." Jay punctuated his statement with a tender kiss. "But if you'd rather wait, we can just cuddle tonight. I promised you that we wouldn't do anything you're not ready for and I meant it." He pulled Aaron closer. "Baby, you're pleasing me just by being here with me. We're taking things at your pace. If you want to just cuddle, we will. If you want a blow job, I'll give you one. If you want to exchange blow jobs, we will. If you want to fuck, we will. You decide how far we go."

"But that's not fair to you."

"Aaron, look at me. You are a precious gift to me. Too precious to risk losing. I'm ready and willing to wait for however long it takes for you to be ready to make love with me. If it takes a month, it takes a month."

"But I want to make love with you now." Quite unexpectedly Aaron threw himself on Jay, kissing him passionately. He moved to where Jay's neck and shoulder connected and sucked hard for a few minutes before kissing down his chest then attacking first one, then the other nipple, licking, nibbling and sucking on each hard nub alternating back and forth until Jay was thrashing in absolute pleasure, his dick leaking a copious amount of precum. Heading south, Aaron kissed his way down to Jay's belly button, pausing momentarily to lick and suck on his belly button before following Jay's treasure trail down to his final destination. He kissed all around Jay's crotch, nibbling on the sensitive underside of his ball sac and the inside of his thighs. By the time Aaron took the head of Jay's dick in his mouth, Jay was about ready to explode. Slowly he bobbed up and down, taking Jay further and further into his mouth until his lips touched the skin of Jay's groin, Jay's dick deep in his throat. Aaron gently massaged Jay's nuts as he licked and sucked up and down the length of Jay's shaft.

Jay started bucking his hips wildly then cried out "Aaron stop. I'm going to blow." Ignoring his warning, he continued his ministrations until Jay shot a humungous load down his throat, swallowing repeatedly until every drop of his baby gravy was milked from his dick. After thoroughly cleaning his dick, he moved up to lie next to him and kissed him gently. "That was the best load I've ever tasted." He told him.

"That was incredible, baby. Thank you." Jay said as his breathing finally slowed down to normal.

"Believe me, the pleasure was all mine. The next load, though, you're going to shoot inside me." Aaron replied, gently stroking Jay's soft dick.

Jay shot him a sardonic smile. "It's going to be a while before I'll be ready to go again. You've totally drained me. It's also going to take me a lot longer to come the second time around."

"That was the plan." When Jay looked at him with raised eyebrows, he continued. "I'm versatile, but I'd much rather be the bottom. Iukekini didn't like to top. He only did it six times in the three years we were together, on my birthday and on Christmas.

"I used to be strictly a top when it came to anal sex. After a while I started wondering what it would be like to be fucked by someone who really cared about me, not someone who just wanted to use my ass to get their rocks off in, so I asked Kyle one night to top me. While I never totally got into being the bottom like he did, I would occasionally ask him to top me. In a way, it brought us even closer together and strengthened our relationship."

"Why are you telling me this?"

"I guess what I'm saying is that if you want to top me on occasion all you have to do is ask."

"The only the thing I want right now is to have you inside me.

"I want to be inside you, but at the moment someone is not cooperating." Jay responded, slightly annoyed at his body's unresponsiveness. Aaron continued to stroke Jay's dick until he finally realized that stroking it wasn't going to achieve the desired results. More drastic measures were indicated.

He took Jay into his mouth again and used all of his considerable oral skill to try to make Jay hard, but it just didn't happen. "Jay, relax. Let yourself go."

Tears started falling down his face as he pulled Aaron up to lay next to him. "Baby, I'm so sorry. I want so much to make love to you but for some reason I just can't get it up."

"It happens sometimes. Why don't we get some sleep then hit the beach for a while tomorrow. We can try again tomorrow. I'm not going anywhere anytime soon. You're stuck with me." And that's exactly what they did. They hit Jay's private beach for a great deal of fun in the sun, each taking turns sensually oiling up the other so they didn't get sunburned. After several hours they returned to the house and decided to take a shower to wash the sand and oil from their bodies. As Aaron headed for the guest bathroom Jay grabbed his arm. "Oh, no you don't. You're showering with me. How else am I going to get my back scrubbed?" Jay said, grinning evilly.

Aaron put up a token playful resistance. "Your house, your rules." He said, following Jay into the master suite. He allowed him to strip him and pull him into the shower and proceeded to soap him up and wash him from head to toe. When he reached Aaron's groin, Jay was very happy to see that Aaron was as hard as a rock. He took him into his mouth and began a slow, sensual assault on Aaron's dick and soon Aaron's moans became louder and louder. He soaped up a finger and gently inserted it into Aaron's tunnel of love, stroking his prostate in sync with his head bobs. Soon two fingers, then three were sliding in and out of him.

"Oh, God, Jay that feels so fucking good. I need you inside me now." He pulled Jay's fingers out of his ass and pulled him into a standing position. He turned around and pushed his ass towards Jay. "Please, Jay, make love to me."

"I can't. I don't have a condom."

"To hell with the condom. Fuck me raw. You can pull out just before you come. I trust you."

Jay soaped up his dick, placed it up against Aaron's hole and started to push gently. "Push down like you're taking a shit." He whispered it Aaron's ear. As Aaron did so, the head of Jay's dick popped into him.

"Holy fuck!" Aaron hissed between clenched teeth. Jay froze immediately then started to pull out. "Please don't." Aaron begged. "It's just been a very long time since anyone has been inside me. Please just give me a minute."

"No." Jay replied as he gently pulled out, reaching around to shut off the shower. "We're going to do this in bed where you will be more comfortable and we can use proper lube." He grabbed a towel and started drying Aaron off.

"I'm sorry I'm being such a baby." Aaron cried.

"You're not being a baby. Like you said, it's been a very long time and this soap isn't the best form of lubricant in the world. Trust me, baby. We will make love. I just want you to be as comfortable as possible. I want our first time together to be totally awesome for you." He replied as he dried himself off then led Aaron to the bed. "Lay on your stomach. It's the least painful way." As Aaron lay on his stomach, Jay rummaged through the nightstand drawer for the lubricant and to see if there were any condoms, which there weren't. "Shit! I don't have any condoms."

"That's okay, Jay. I trust you. You can pull out just before you come."

I have to make sure I don't come inside him. I know I'm clean and he said he was, and I don't have any reason not to believe him, but I just don't want to take any chances with him. Jay thoroughly lubricated Aaron's hole before straddling his hips and positioning his dick. "Push out, baby" he said as he applied slight pressure. The head of his dick easily popped into Aaron. Jay held still allowing Aaron to get used to it. After a few moments Jay pushed forward a little more and he felt himself push through the inner ring. Again, he held completely still for a few moments before pulling out slightly and pushing back in a little further. Before either man realized it, Jay's balls were pressing up against Aaron's ass. "I'm all the way in, baby. You have all of me."

"It feels so wonderful. Lay on top of me, please. I want to feel your body on mine." Jay gently lowered himself down onto Aaron.

"Am I too heavy for you?

"No. It feels wonderful. Please, Jay, make love to me." Jay needed no further encouragement as he proceeded to thrust in and out of Aaron, slowly and deeply at first, then increasing in speed. With a surprising show of strength, Aaron flipped them over and turned so he was straddling Jay's hips, facing him so he could watch his facial expressions. He bucked like a wild man, raising up until only the tip of Jay's dick remained inside him then slamming down, burying the entire nine-inch dick inside him, over and over again until he cried out as he shot his load all over Jay's chest and stomach.

As he did so, Jay cried out in warning. "AARON! PULL OFF! I'M GOING TO COME AND I CAN'T HOLD IT! PULL OFF!"

When Aaron heard Jay's warning cry he slammed himself down onto Jay's hips and used his inner muscles to massage his dick until he shot a huge load deep into Aaron's ass. Aaron held completely still until he felt Jay's dick stop spasming and start to soften. He rolled off Jay being careful to keep as much of Jay's cum inside him as possible and simply said, "Thank you for that incredible gift. I have your essence inside me now. We are truly one. As my body absorbs your seed you become a permanent part of me. I love you so much, more than I've ever loved anyone before, and I mean anyone." He turned to kiss Jay, but he turned his face away. "Baby, what's wrong?"

"I didn't want to come inside you without a condom."

"You told me you tested clean. I needed to give myself to you one hundred percent. I needed to do it to show you how much I love you."

"I am clean, and you didn't need that to show me how much you love me. Every time I look into your eyes I see it."

"And I am clean as well. Are you saying that you didn't enjoy being inside me for almost an hour before coming inside me?"

"I'd be lying if I said no. I did enjoy it. It was incredible. You're incredible." Jay rolled over and gathered Aaron into his arms. "I just don't want to put you at any risk."

"Jay, I've gone over a year without anyone inside me, and nobody, including Iukekini, ever fucked me without a condom, and I've never fucked anyone without using a condom. From what you told me, it's been even longer for you. Believe me, Jay, I've done my homework. There was no risk to either of us. Please don't be mad at me."

Jay turned to face Aaron. "Honey, I'm not mad. It's just that I've been so conditioned to believe that unprotected sex guarantees HIV infection that it's hard for me to accept any other possibility. Believe it or not, Kyle did basically the same thing you just did one Christmas morning and I reacted the same way."

"And did he become infected with HIV?"

"No

"Even if you were HIV-positive and possibly just infected me, it would be worth it to me if that's what it took to have you become a permanent part of me."

"What about you becoming a permanent part of me?"

"What do you mean?"

"You said that your body absorbing my cum made me a permanent part of you. How are you going to become a permanent part of me?"

"Other than me leaving my cum inside you, I don't know.

"I do know. I want you to bareback me and come inside me."

"But you said you didn't like to bottom."

"No, I said that I didn't get into it as much as Kyle did. But as much as you wanted me to be a permanent part of you, I want you to be a permanent part of me." Jay started stroking Aaron's dick until it started plumping up in his hand. Jay took him into his mouth for a slow sensual blow job, or so Aaron thought. Once he was good and hard, Jay lubed them both up, moved into position and slowly lowered himself down onto Aaron's thick ten inch dick, pausing every now and then to allow his body to get used to the invasion. After what seemed an eternity, Aaron's dick was fully embedded in Jay's ass. "Oh, God that feels awesome!" Jay moaned as he started to rise and fall. While Kyle had topped Jay several times, he never did it bareback. It was one of the most incredible things he had ever felt. Aaron's dick was so hot in his ass. Up and down. Up and down over and over again. Jay changed the angle until his prostate was jabbed with every thrust. He suddenly felt his balls tighten. He uttered a strangled cry as he shot his load all over Aaron's chest and stomach. His ass muscles clenched and unclenched around Aaron's dick until, with a shout, Aaron shot one of the biggest loads of his life into Jay's ass. Jay immediately pulled off, lay on his stomach and clenched his asshole shut to make sure that none of Aaron's cum leaked out of him, just as Aaron had done when he came inside him. He leaned over and gave Aaron a deep, passionate kiss. "Now we definitely belong to each other." They snuggled up against each other and drifted off to sleep. The next morning Aaron was awakened from one of the deepest sleeps he had in a very long time. He stretched luxuriously and slowly opened his eyes to see Jay standing next to the bed, breakfast tray in hand. He sat up in bed, just as Jay began saying "Good morning, baby. Sleep well?"

"Better than I have in a long time. To what do I owe the honor of breakfast in bed?"

Jay gently set the tray over Aaron's lap and climbed onto the bed next to him, giving him a kiss full of love. "This is my way of thanking you for last night. It was so wonderful. You have no idea how much it meant to me."

"I'm sure it meant just as much to you as it did to me. It was the best night of my life, one I hope to repeat over and over again."

"Oh, trust me, we will, but first you need to get some fuel into that magnificent body of yours, especially since I don't plan on letting you out of bed at all today except to answer the call of nature.

"Speaking of which..." Aaron jumped up, went into the bathroom and raised the water level in the toilet several inches before finally shaking the last few drops off. Returning to the bed he gathered Jay into his arms briefly before they attacked the huge breakfast Jay had prepared. After eating and performing their morning hygiene rituals they spent the morning making love, each taking turns giving and receiving before heading downstairs in search of lunch.

"Just when we thought the sexual marathons were over..." Andy began teasing the two men.

"Don't even start, Andy. There have been plenty of times when we haven't seen you or Tommy for several days, but we sure heard you." Jay teased back.

"BITCH!" Andy retorted, blushing furiously.

Jay gave him a smug look. "Don't start a battle unless you're absolutely sure you can win."

Tommy chose that moment to walk in. Noticing the looks on Andy and Jay's faces he said. "Lost another verbal battle, Andy?"

"Yep" Jay replied. "He made a comment about thinking that the sexual marathons were over."

Tommy busted a gut laughing. "You'll never learn, will you, Andy?" Grabbing a bottle of water from the fridge he headed into the living room to watch some TV leaving Andy to fume a little. After fixing themselves lunch Jay and Aaron headed back upstairs to eat and watch a little TV before resuming their day of lovemaking.

Two days later Aaron showed up at Jay's, punched the code into the keypad and waited nervously while the gate slowly opened. God, I hope he likes his present. I really wanted to get him something special, but I just didn't have the money. Sometimes I really hate my fucking life! Finally the gate finished opening and he drove up to the house and parked. Making sure that the carefully wrapped present was completely hidden in amongst the bags of food he brought, he went up and rang the doorbell. Tommy opened the door and ushered him quickly inside.

"Are you sure you want to do this, Aaron? You don't have to, you know."

"I'm sure. It's Jay's birthday and I wanted to make him a special dinner."

"Cool. Let me grab Andy and we'll make ourselves scarce. You know where everything is in the kitchen."

"Where are you guys going?"

"Out so you and Jay can be alone."

"You guys don't need to do that. I planned on making enough for all of us to share."

"Thanks, but we'll take some leftovers. This is the first birthday you guys get to share as a couple, and Andy and I think you guys should spend it alone."

Aaron gave Tommy a quick hug. "Thanks so much Tommy. You guys accepting me into your circle of friends means more to me that you can possibly imagine."

"It's our pleasure, believe me. Now you better get to cooking if you want to have it ready before Jay gets home from work. See you later...much later as in tomorrow!"

"You guys have fun!" Aaron rushed into the kitchen and began to prepare a five-star meal. He was just finishing setting the table on the deck when Jay arrived home.

"Hey guys, anybody home?" He walked out onto the deck and looked around in amazement. The underwater pool lights were on, but the only other light was provided by several strategically-placed tiki torches. "Oh, wow!" Jay said as he took in the sight.

Suddenly Aaron appeared, startling him. "Hey, baby happy birthday. I hope you're hungry."

"Starved. Where is everyone?"

"They went out, so it's just you and me."

Jay closed the distance between them and pulled Aaron into a fierce embrace, planting a lip lock on him that left him weak in the knees. "Awesome." He said, breathlessly as the lack of oxygen force them apart.

"Why don't you go get changed into something more comfortable while I put dinner on the table?" Aaron whispered into Jay's ear before nibbling slightly on his earlobe.

"Something more comfortable as in just my birthday suit?"

"If that's what you want to wear, that's fine. However, I might just be tempted to have my wicked way with you.

"Threaten me with a good time!"

"I don't threaten. I promise then I deliver!"

A few minutes later Jay returned dressed in nice shorts and a polo shirt. Aaron's breath caught in his chest as he looked at Jay. "You look incredible. Dinner is ready, so why don't you sit down and open your present while I dish everything up."

"Baby, you didn't have to get me anything. Just being here with me is more than I could wish for." Jay opened the package and pulled out six tall, purple candles almost the exact color of the bag that Crown Royal Liqueur comes in. "Wow, these are really beautiful, and my favorite color too. Where did you find them?"

"I didn't find them. I made them."

"You made these? How?" Jay asked, incredulously.

"There's a store called `Candle Crafts' where you can go buy candles, or buy the stuff to make them with. They also teach candle making and have a room where people can go and make their own in. I love making candles. These, however, are not ordinary candles. I've infused them with eucalyptus oil, so whenever you have a cold or are congested, burn one and breathe in the vapor. It's basically the same thing as using a vaporizer with Vicks."

Jay hugged him gave him a deep kiss. "Thank you, baby. I love them. Maybe one day we can go together and you can show me how you make them."

"There's really nothing to it. You melt the wax, add whatever scent, color dyes or essential oils you want, pour the mixture into the mold and let it cool.

"How often do you go there?"

"Hardly ever anymore."

"Why's that?"

"It costs twenty dollars an hour to use the place, so unless you're going to make several candles, it's too expensive."

"Perhaps you could teach me how to make candles and we could make them together as Christmas gifts for everyone. I think it would be fun."

"Sounds like a plan. Now let me put dinner on the table so we can eat. There's supposed to be a full moon tonight, so I thought we could have dessert on the beach after we take a nice long walk.

"I'd love that." Jay whistled appreciatively at the gourmet spread that Aaron placed before him, which was comprised completely of Polynesian dishes, some of which Jay had never had before. He dug in with gusto, filling his plate to overflowing more than once. Finally he pushed himself away from the table. "Baby that was one of the most incredible meals I've ever eaten. Everything was fantastic. I can't thank you enough."

"Believe me, the pleasure was all mine. It's so wonderful to be able to cook like this again."

"Too bad Tommy and Andy weren't able to try any of this." He said, looking over the empty serving dishes on the table with a pang of regret in his voice.

"They will. I made enough so that they could have some as well."

"Wow. That's an awesome thing for you to do."

"It's nothing. I love to cook. I was asked to give this to you after dinner." He handed Jay an envelope with a card in it. Jay opened the birthday card, which was from Tony and Billy and contained a note.

Dear Jay;

May your birthday be totally awesome. We wanted to do something for you but didn't know what to do, so we decided to have the maid service come in and clean up after dinner so you and Aaron could have the entire evening to yourselves without having to worry about the after-dinner clean-up. Have a great birthday evening!

Love,

Tony and Billy

"Those sons of bitches!" Jay exclaimed, laughing.

"Who? What?"

"Tony and Billy. As a birthday present they're sending the maid service over to clean up the dinner dishes so we can have the entire evening to ourselves."

"That's really nice of them. Let me clear off the table then let's go for a walk on the beach. There's something I'd like to talk over with you."

"Okay." Jay rose and started gathering up the dirty dishes when Aaron stopped him.

"No. This is your birthday. You just sit and relax. This will only take me a couple of minutes." True to his word, Aaron was back in a couple of minutes, standing next to Jay and holding out his hand. "Ready to take a walk?"

For an answer, Jay kicked off his sandals, took Aaron's proffered hand and stood. "Ready when you are." Once they were on the beach, Jay asked "What did you want to talk about?"

Aaron took in a deep breath and let it out slowly. "Jay do you believe in God? I mean do you belong to a specific religion?"

"Yes I believe in God, but I don't believe in organized religion. Why?"

"I have something to tell you, but I'm not sure how you'll take it."

"You can tell me anything you want. Unless you tell me you're a serial rapist or a child molester it won't change how I feel about you."

"Okay, here goes. I'm Wiccan."

"Like on Charmed?"

"Yes and no. I don't have magick powers to blow things up or see the future or shit like that. What I do is make magick candles."

"Magic candles?"

"Yeah. I make candles that are infused with natural herbs and essential oils like eucalyptus, cinnamon, stuff like that which, when mixed in certain combinations, promote healing, confidence, things like that. Good things, nothing harmful."

"Isn't that considered to be Satanic?"

"Only by those who don't understand it or take the time to understand it. The number one tenet of Wicca is `harm none lest ye be harmed'.

"So the candles you made me are magical, and you are what, a warlock?"

"Warlock is one term for a male witch, but I don't like to use that term. I prefer the term witch, and yes, the candles are magickal."

"So how did you become a witch? Is it something you learned or were born into?"

"It's a combination of both. Besides being gay, have you ever felt that there was something different about you, something you could do that no one else could?"

Jay was silent for a few minutes while he pondered Aaron's question. "When my grandson Kyle was really little and he had a headache, I would place my hand on his forehead and the headache would go away. The same with his stomach."

Aaron nodded knowingly. "Hold out your hands, flat with the palms facing up." He then held his hands about an inch over Jay's, whose eyes widened in astonishment.

"Wow. I can feel that. How do you do that?"

"I'm transferring some of my natural energy to you. You are a white healer. You have a gift of healing. We are connected, which is why when we have sex, the experience is so intense, at least for me. I never had such an intense connection with anyone."

"Nor did I. So you're telling me that I'm a witch?"

"That's something you have to discover for yourself, that which is within you. You need to learn more about what it means to be Wiccan before you decide whether to practice it or not."

"Do I have to practice it?"

"No. The choice is yours. I don't follow all of their beliefs or perform all their rituals. I just make magick candles."

"Is that something you can teach me?"

"Yes. Infusing magick into a candle is basically as simple as following a recipe in a book, and infusing some of your essence into the candle."

"Would it require renouncing my belief in God?"

"Not at all.

"Cool. I'd really like to learn how to do the candles."

"I'd be happy to teach you, but first you need to learn how to make regular candles. I have a book on basic candle making I'll let you read that explains how to make the different types of candles, then we can take a trip to Candle Crafts one afternoon and make a few of the simpler ones to start out with. It never hurts to have candles around the house in case of a power failure."

"Sounds good to me." Jay stopped walking and pulled Aaron down to the sand. "Thank you for telling me. I love you." He kissed him gently then the two of them laid side-by-side looking up at the moon and the stars for about an hour before returning to the house. After making love Jay said "thank you for making my birthday so wonderful."

"Believe me, the pleasure was all mine." Aaron replied as they drifted off to sleep in each other's arms.