Date: Wed, 05 Jul 2000 03:18:23 EDT
From: D LS <dls_stories@hotmail.com>
Subject: Brian & Me Parts 110-111

Hello again all! :)

Here we go again, eh?  My apologies once more for the screw up last time
with the posting.  I blame... Matt.  Yeah, yeah, it was his fault.  He's
just such a distraction.  A totally welcome distraction, but a distraction
nonetheless. :)

As usual, this installment and all the others are available on my website
(http://dls-stories.homepage.com), as well as all of the current
installments of my other (NSYNC) story, 'I'll Never Stop'.

Further apologies need to be made, as well.  For those of you who are
waiting for emails from me (and I know there are a lot of you), I'm sorry.
I won't be getting to a lot of you.  There's just such a pile up of them now
that I'll never get myself out from under them.  So, what I have decided to
do is to answer those that really require an answer.  Those that ask
specific questions, and that I feel I *need* to reply to.  Now, PLEASE don't
take this as my not appreciating the mail.  I really do.  Anyone who's
spoken with me in person (or as personally as you can get on a computer)
about it knows that I appreciate hearing from you all.  At the moment, there
are just under 90 messages in my inbox, and I just don't have the time to
answer them all when they pile up like they have.  Until now, I've answered
probably about 99.5% of my emails, which should give you some indication as
to how out of hand it's gotten now, for me to ruin that.  So I do apologise
to those of you who haven't heard back. :(

I think I'll do without the rest of the usual rigamarole, if y'all don't
know.  Those of you I would thank here I've likely thanked elsewhere and
personally, so know that that still stands.  So, all that remains to be said
is that the story is entirely fictional, and not meant to imply anything
about anyone.  And if you shouldn't be reading it, then shame on you.

That being said...

Enjoy!


	PART 110

	I awoke slowly, just catching the tail-end of my cell phone's ring.  Not
hearing it repeat itself, I decided that I must have missed the call and
started to drift off again.

	"Hello, Nate's phone."

	I fought to come back around enough to figure out what was going on.  It
took me a couple of seconds to realise that Brian had answered the phone,
which was why it hadn't rung again.

	"Hey!  He told me that he called you earlier, and that you were going to
call back.  How's everything going?...  Good.  I'll have to give him a call
in a little bit...  Actually, he's sleeping.  I get the feeling that he
didn't get much last night before he was up writing, though he wouldn't
admit it."

	I smiled to myself, enjoying the space between being awake and being
asleep.  I was just conscious enough to be able to follow along with the
conversation.  Brian's half of it, anyway.

	"Yeah, he's laying right here.  The phone was actually on the bed between
us, or I would have had to climb over him to get it off the table."

	"I'm up," I mumbled, patting the bare mattress where Brian should have
been.  I patted down the mattress until I made contact with Brian's body.
He was sitting up on the bed.  When I touched him, he turned slightly, and I
opened my eyes to find him looking at me.

	"He says he's up, but all I see is a bleary eye looking at me."

	I flicked his back and smiled, then made the effort to sit up.  "I'm up,
I'm up."

	"Carrie says it can wait.  You go back to sleep."

	Shaking my head, I sat up straighter and blinked back the sleep in my eyes.
  "I'm up, I said.  Don't make me kick your ass with Carrie listening."

	Brian still had the phone to his ear, and Carrie must have said something
to make him laugh.  He agreed with her, said goodbye and handed me the
phone.

	"Hey," I said, still trying to get my voice above a grumble.

	"Sounds like you could use some more shut-eye."

	I cleared my throat - holding the phone away from me - and smiled as Brian
moved around behind me, putting a leg on either side of me and kissing my
shoulder as he pressed against my back.  "No, I'm good.  What time is it,
anyway?"

	"Ten or so.  Kevin's way too much of an early riser."

	I laughed, then moaned quietly when Brian started to blow in my ear.
"Yeah, I know.  He's always the first one up."

	"You talking about me again?" Brian whispered, chuckling and pressing
himself against me to prove how up he was.

	"Well, I managed to get him to agree to making breakfast while I read over
what you sent.  I got it finished, then we ate.  Now he's in the shower and
I figured that I would get back to you."

	"And what did you think?"

	Brian's hands slipped around my waist, then unbuttoned my shorts and
slipped inside, and I suppressed a laugh as I swatted at them.

	"You got a pen?  I've got some ideas."

	"Just a sex... I mean, sec," I said, blushing as she laughed.  I swatted at
Brian's hands again and tried to give him a dirty look, but it died as soon
as I looked at his smile.  I leaned over the edge of the bed, and Brian took
the opportunity to grab my ass as I hooked the strap of my computer bag and
took out my favourite pen and my notepad.

	Sitting back up on the bed, I wriggled out of Brian's arms and lay down on
my stomach, denying him access to at least half of me so that I could
concentrate on what Carrie was saying.  He just laughed and started gently
stroking my legs, his fingers straying up the legs of my shorts at every
opportunity.

	"Okay, Carrie, go ahead."

	"Well, I think that you can work the stuff we talked about into it pretty
well.  I don't see any major obstacles.  I've got some thoughts on how to
integrate it."

	"I'm ready for them."

	"First off, I was thinking that if you had..."


	Carrie talked for about twenty minutes.  I rarely interrupted, wanting her
to follow her reasoning through before I asked any questions.  Brian's hands
continued to roam over me, trying desperately to distract me.  When I felt
my shorts and boxers whisked off of me, leaving me naked and face down on
the bed, I couldn't take it anymore.

	"Carrie, can you hold on for a sec?"

	"Sure."

	Putting my finger over the receiver so that she couldn't hear me, I turned
on the bed and took in Brian's smile.  "Pookie, this is nice, but I'm kinda
busy here.  Carrie's really starting to help me figure all of this out.
It's kinda important."  Somewhere along the way, he had also lost his pants.

	He looked disappointed, but he nodded.  "Sorry, sweetie."

	"Don't be sorry.  But can we pick it up later?"

	"Sure."  He leaned over and gave me a kiss, then pulled his shorts back
over to him on the bed.  "How about I go and see what I can do about
breakfast?"

	I put the phone down and sat up again.  "Thanks, Brian."  I gave him a kiss
to let him know how much I appreciated the time.  "Later, though, right?"

	"It's a date."  He got off of the bed and pulled his shorts back on, then
gave me another kiss and headed downstairs.

	Picking the phone back up, I pulled the blanket over my bare ass and
started talking with Carrie again, looking through the notes that I had
taken when she was speaking earlier and working my way through my questions.

	We finished up about twenty minutes later, both of us now on the same page
again and knowing where everything was moving.  As predicted, Carrie had
been very happy with what I had accomplished so far, but she had been sure
to reiterate that they needed more.  When I hung up, I sat back up and
turned my computer on again, meaning to transcribe my thoughts and notes so
that they would be available to me at the touch of a button while I was
writing.



	"You're in so much trouble," Nick said, startling me into looking up as he
dropped onto the side of the bed.

	"What?" I asked, shaking my head slightly.  "What are you talking about?"

	"You.  You're in trouble, my friend.  Your charming and lovable boyfriend
made breakfast, like, two hours ago, and you missed it."

	I winced with a groan.  "Shit."  I had gone from transcribing my notes
directly into the story once more.  I couldn't even remember making the
switch, but the proof was right in front of me.  "Is he really pissed?"

	"Disappointed, really.  I don't think he's angry, but you should probably
go talk to him.  He seemed pretty freaked when you didn't show up at the
table."

	"Why didn't he just come and get me?"

	"He came up and peeked in the doorway.  When he saw that you were writing,
he didn't bother you.  Erron was going to come up and drag you out of here
by the ear, but Brian wouldn't let him.  He said that if you needed to work,
then he was going to let you work."

	I groaned again and fell back on the bed, suddenly aware that, under the
blanket that was across my lap, I was naked.  "Dammit.  I'm totally fucking
this up, aren't I?"

	"I think you're taking it a bit far," Nick said, getting up from the bed
and looking out the window.  I took the opportunity to find my boxers in the
sheets and slip them on under the blanket.  "He's kinda upset, though.  He
seemed pretty happy about getting to make you breakfast, and then you didn't
show up for it."

	I saved my work and shut the computer down.  "What did he make?"

	"French toast.  Not bad, either.  Erron said - away from Brian, of course -
that it wasn't quite as good as yours, but it was pretty good."

	Sliding out from under the blanket, I grabbed a pair of shorts out of the
dresser and put them on.  "I just got so into the story after talking to
Carrie..."

	"He knows that.  That's why he wouldn't let us come and get you.  Erron's
sort of pissed at you on Brian's behalf.  When Brian went to sit out on the
deck, I decided to come and talk to you."

	"Thanks, Nick."  I put my arm around his shoulders as we left the room
together.  "I'm such an asshole."

	"That's exaggerating a little, but yeah, you could be a little more
attentive to him.  I know that you're working on something pretty important
with the book and all, and that you're excited about it.  Brian knows that
too, but the least you could have done was come down for breakfast."

	Nodding, I started down the stairs.  I immediately looked out the huge
windows that gave onto the deck.  Brian was sitting in a lawn chair with his
feet up on the railing.  He had a book open on his lap.

	I gave Nick a pat on the back, and then left him and opened the door,
stepping out onto the deck.  Brian must not have heard me crossing to him,
because he jumped when I spoke.

	"Hey."

	He put his bookmark in the pages just in case, then looked up at me.  I
noticed that he was reading 'IT' again.  "Hey."

	I knelt beside his chair and took his hand.  "I'm so sorry, Brian.  I meant
to just type in my notes from what Carrie and I talked about, and then I was
coming down.  But..."

	"But, your mind started working, and you got distracted."

	"Yeah."

	"It's okay."

	"No, it's not.  I should have been down here."

	He didn't argue, and I knew that he was more upset than he was letting on.
Instead, he squeezed my hand.  "Are you hungry?"

	"A little.  I'm more sorry than hungry, though.  I need a smack upside the
head for deserting you like that.  Why didn't you just punch me or something
and get my attention?"

	"Because if I can't get your attention by walking into the room, there's a
reason for it.  I figured that it was more important for you to be writing
than for you to be eating with us."

	I shook my head and sat down on the wood of the deck, still holding his
hand.  "Nothing's more important than spending time with you.  You know
that, don't you?"

	He shrugged.  "It seemed important to you, so I didn't want to interrupt."

	"With you, it's never an interruption."  But I was thinking about earlier
that morning, when I had basically kicked him out of the room for
interrupting my talk with Carrie.  "Well, it's occasionally an interruption,
but it's always a good one."

	He smiled a little at that.  "It wasn't that important, Nate.  It was just
breakfast.  I figured that you would come down when you got hungry, but I'm
starting to think that you might not even notice that you were hungry.
Which one of them went up there and got you?"

	"Nick."

	"I thought so.  Erron's kind of pissed at you, too."

	"So you admit that you're pissed at me?"

	"A little bit."

	"I thought so."  I turned and looked out through the slats of the railing
at the lake below.

	"I just wanted to be with you, you know?  This morning, when you were on
the phone..."

	"I shouldn't have pushed you away like that."

	"No, it's probably better that you did.  A few more minutes and I would
have been doing my best to get you to make noises that Carrie doesn't need
to hear."

	I laughed and looked back at him as he continued.  "And then, I wanted to
make you breakfast.  You've done all the cooking since we got here, and I
wanted to do that for you.  When you didn't come down, I was kind of upset."

	"I really am sorry."  Leaning over, I kissed the palm of his hand.  "Is
there any way I can make it up to you?"

	He looked over at me and caught my little smile.  "There's a couple of
ways."

	"Yeah..."

	"But they're going to wait."

	I started to think that Brian was a lot more upset with me than he was
letting on, but he was still smiling.  That only confused me more.  "Wait?
Why?"

	"Because you're going to go back upstairs, and you're going to finish as
much writing as you can in the next few hours.  And then, you're going to
make me a fabulous dinner, and you're going to convince Erron and Nick to
make themselves scarce tonight somehow so that we can be together.  Just the
two of us."

	I was liking the sound of that, but I wasn't sure how we were going to
manage to get Erron and Nick out of the picture.  There wasn't much to do
with acres of trees around us.  "I'm not writing now.  It can wait until
later."

	"No, it can't.  You're going to get as much done today as you can, because
tomorrow, you're not touching that damned thing.  From midnight tonight
until midnight tomorrow night, it's off limits.  The only thing you'll be
allowed to move your fingers quickly across is me."

	I matched his smile with one of my own and started to nod, but I wasn't
completely on-side with him yet.  "That sounds perfect, but why can't I..."

	"Get up there and get writing," he ordered, kissing my hand as I had his a
few moments before.  "I know that there's more in your head that you want to
get out, and when you and I are together tonight, I want to be the only
thing on your mind."

	Standing with a laugh, I bent over the side of the chair and kissed him,
smilng against his lips as I felt his hands reach up and cup my face.  The
kiss lasted a few seconds, and then he pushed my face away.  "You're
forgiven, sweetie.  No way I could stay mad at you, anyway.  Now get going
before you earn yourself a spanking."

	I gave him another quick kiss, made him promise to give me the spanking
anyway, and then stood up straight again.  "What do you want for dinner?"

	"Surprise me.  As long as you're there - all there - I'll be happy."

	I smiled and headed inside, where I found Nick and Erron in front of the
TV.

	"You make things better, dickhead?" Erron asked, looking over at me.

	I dropped down onto the couch next to him.  "Yes, bitch, I did.  Well, sort
of.  I don't suppose that you two would like to help me with something,
would you?"

	"What do you need?" Nick asked, sitting up in his chair.

	"You feel like a trip into town?  Brian and I are going to have a romantic
dinner, and I need some stuff."

	"What about us?"

	"We're going to be left to amuse ourselves," Erron said, smiling.  "Isn't
that right?  You and Brian are going to be screwing around, and you want us
both out of the way."

	"Something like that, yeah.  Brian wants me to take today and write, and
then we were hoping to have dinner and spend some time together just the two
of us."

	"What are we going to do all night?"

	"There's a TV and VCR in your room, isn't there?" Nick asked me.

	"Yeah, they're in the cabinet across from the bed.  Why?"

	"Well, I was thinking that, while we're in town, we could pick up a couple
of movies or something, and Erron and I can hole up in there and give you
guys some time.  Of course, you'll have to double that romantic dinner
you're making, and we'll eat up there."

	"I don't want you guys to have to 'hole up' anywhere.  It's your holiday,
too."

	"It'll be fun," Nick said, smiling at me.  "Though that means that Erron
and I get the big bed, and you guys will have to sleep somewhere else.
You're bound to be up later than us."

	There was a momentary pang of apprehension at the casual nature of Nick's
statement that they'd be sleeping together in our room, but I shook it off.
"You sure you don't mind?"

	They shared a look, and then both nodded.  "It's not like you wouldn't do
something like that for us if we wanted you to," Nick added.

	"Well, if you don't mind, then okay.  Thanks, guys."

	"No problem."  Erron got up and went to the kitchen, returning with a pen
and a piece of notepaper from the phone table.  "Now, what did you need in
town?"



	PART 111

	Erron came in and got my attention when it was time for me to start making
dinner.  Rather than yell at me, or drop onto the bed to get my attention as
Nick had, he closed the computer screen on my fingers, forcing me to stop
typing.

	"It's time to quit, boy."

	I opened the screen again and smiled.  "Okay, you sit right there for a
minute.  Don't let me get back into it, but I have to finish this thought."

	He nodded and sat down beside me so that he could hit me if necessary, but
he couldn't read the screen.  I quickly typed in the rest of the scene, then
saved the file and shut everything down with a grin.  I had managed to write
myself to the point of exhaustion.  Well, the part of my brain that dealt
with the book was exhausted, anyway.  I didn't think I'd have much desire to
write for at least the next day, maybe longer.

	"What's Brian up to?"

	"He's spent the day on the deck, basically.  He came in long enough to make
the two of you lunch, and then he went right back out."  He pointed to the
empty plate beside me.  That had been the only distraction I had had all
day.  Brian had brought me my lunch, gotten my attention long enough to let
me know it was there, and then left me alone again after a quick kiss.  "Now
he's sitting at the table out there, reading that book."

	"The one on runes and stuff, or 'IT'?"

	"'IT'."

	I got an idea and started to laugh.  Going to the window, I pushed it open
and leaned out, looking around.  Nodding to myself, I turned around and went
to my computer case.

	"What are you doing?"

	I looked up and handed him my digital camera.  As I filled him in on the
details of the plan, he started to laugh as well.  "Now, when your cell
phone rings once, you know to get ready, right?"

	"Right.  You be careful."

	"Just go get ready, sweetie."  I smiled as I watched him disappear again,
and then I went back to the window and climbed out onto the roof.

	The roof of the building was almost flat outside of our bedroom window,
then sloped sharply to the peak.  I stayed to the flatter part as much as
possible as I navigated my way around to the other side of the roof, only
venturing onto the steeper parts when absolutely necessary.

	I finally peeked over the edge to find myself right above Brian's head, and
looking at the deck below.  I only wished I could see what part of the story
he was at, but it was too far away to see.  I would just have to hope for
the best.  Pulling out my cell, I dialled Erron's number and barely made out
the ringing somewhere below me.  Letting it ring once, I hung up and put the
phone back in my pocket, then stood up and walked to the edge of the roof.

	Taking a deep breath, I crouched and dropped over the edge to the deck
below, landing right beside Brian's chair.  As soon as my feet made contact
with the wood, I shouted 'Bah!', then collapsed to the deck with laughter as
Brian screamed and jumped, tipping over in his chair.  The book went flying
out of his hands and landed in a heap on the other side of the table.
Normally I hated to see books treated like that, but this time it was
definitely worth it.

	I had barely noticed the flashes, but Erron managed to get some very nice
shots of the entire thing.  He and Nick came out onto the deck as well, both
of them laughing like fools.  Of course, I had no room to talk, considering
that I was still lying on the deck giggling when Brian managed to extricate
himself from his chair and stand up once more.

	He had a hand over his heart as he stepped over to me, looking down and
panting while he tried to catch his breath.  He glanced quickly at Nick and
Erron, but then returned his full attention to me.  "You think that was
funny, do you?"

	I tried to speak around my laughter.  "Oh... I *know* that... was funny...
sweetie... The look on your face..."  I stopped and just let the laughter
come again as he finally started to smile.

	"That was priceless!" Erron shouted, still giggling as he sat down at the
table.  Nick patted Brian on the back on his way to join Erron, taking a
seat as well.

	"You think you're *so* funny," Brian chuckled, kneeling down beside me.
"You scared the *hell* out of me!"

	"Kinda the point, pookie," I smiled, finally bringing the laughter under
control.  "You should have seen the look you gave me, though..."

	"You're definitely in for that spanking now."  He leaned over and pushed me
roughly back down on the deck, then straddled me and bent to kiss me, his
hands pinning my shoulders.

	"Then it was definitely worth it," I returned, breaking the kiss just long
enough to say it, then putting my arms around him and pulling him down on
top of me.

	Erron gave us a few seconds, and then broke it up, reminding Brian that I
still had to make dinner for the two of them.  He pulled away, and I
reluctantly let him go.  "You get into the kitchen before you cause any more
trouble."

	"But it was good trouble."

	"We'll play more later," he promised with a grin.  "What are you making
me?"

	"It's a surprise."

	"What's he making me?" Brian asked Nick as he stood up and gave me his
hand, pulling me to my feet as well.

	"He just told you, it's a surprise."

	"Feel like helping, Nicky?"

	"Sure."  Nick got back up and came over to us, pulling me away from Brian.
We turned and headed back inside, leaving Erron and Brian to hang out until
dinner was ready.

	"Did you get everything?" I asked when we were in the kitchen.

	"Yeah, everything on your list.  Erron seems to know his wine, doesn't he?"

	I laughed and nodded.  "He's the wino of the group.  His mom's big into it,
and she passed it on to her kids.  His sister has a pretty impressive wine
cellar.  Andy and I both tend to stick with vodka if we're drinking.  That's
why I had you pick up a bottle."

	"He's got a sister?"

	"Helen.  She's a couple of years younger than he is.  She's a sweetie."

	"He hasn't really said much about his family."

	"Well, have you told him about yours?  You and I have never really talked
about them, come to think of it."

	"No, I guess not.  I haven't really said much about it with Erron, either.
It never really occurs to me to talk about it.  Especially with you,
considering that it can quickly become a touchy subject."

	I nodded as I looked over the contents of the fridge, noticing that there
were now several bottles of wine in there.  I had only requested one, but I
decided to defer to Erron on that one.  "Yeah, it can be.  I tend not to ask
about other people's families for the same reason.  Inevitably, they get
around to asking about mine, and it usually goes downhill from there."

	"So what about Erron's?  What can you tell me?"

	"He should probably be the one you ask, shouldn't he?"  I took out the
chicken and set it on the counter, then returned to the fridge.

	"Yeah, but he's not in here right now, is he?  Unless there's some reason
not to talk about it, I just figured..."

	"No, there's no real reason not to, I guess.  And it'll give me the
opportunity to give you a heads-up on one thing.  Don't ask him about his
father."

	"Why not?"

	"Erron rarely acknowledges that he even has one.  He left when Erron was
eleven, and he's not entirely over it, even though he thinks he is.  I asked
him one time if he ever thought about trying to find his father, and offered
to help him pay for it, but he went ballistic.  He's really touchy about
it."

	"His dad just left?"

	I nodded as I pulled out a cutting board for the chicken and another one
for the potatoes.  I handed Nick a knife and got him to work washing,
peeling and slicing the potatoes.  "Yeah, he left just like that.  But it
wasn't a matter of going out for cigarettes and never coming home.  Erron's
parents apparently fought a lot for most of the time that Erron and his
sister can remember.  One day, his father sat them both down, told them to
their face that their mother was a whore, and then just left them there."

	"What?"

	"Nice, eh?  Helen was nine, and Erron was eleven, like I said.   Erron
doesn't talk about it much, but Helen will.  From what she remembers, he sat
them both down in the living room and told them that their mother was
sleeping with a bunch of different men - friends of hers that they both knew
and were used to being around - and that he was leaving.  He made her out to
be a horrible woman, and told them that he would come back for them.  That
was the last that they ever saw or heard of him."

	"He never came back?"

	"Nope.  I have a feeling that he was going to try for custody, and then
didn't bother.  He wanted them to be able to repeat what he had told them.
Of course, it was all bullshit.  Mrs. McAfferty is one of the nicest people
I've ever met, and there's no way she would have cheated on her husband.

	"Erron was old enough to sort of understand what his father told him,
though.  There were quite a few years after he left that Erron barely spoke
to his mother, thinking that she had driven his father away.  Once he grew
up a little more, and realised that his father wasn't coming to get him, he
put the pieces together.  After that, he and his mom got a lot closer."

	"What about his sister?"

	"She remembers less than Erron does, but enough to be plenty pissed at her
father.  The three of them are really close, though.  It's turned out well
that way, but I wish he wasn't carrying around all that resentment toward
his father."

	Nick sighed and started slicing again.  "And he has no interest in finding
him?  Not even to kick his ass?"

	"Nope," I said, sighing as well.  "When I brought it up, it was at Helen's
request.  Janice - that's Erron's mom - didn't know anything about it.
She's never said a word about her husband to me.  But Helen felt the need to
find him, and asked me to help her.  At that point, she wasn't in the
position financially that she could afford to hire someone to do it."

	"So did you help her?"

	"Not as it turned out.  I told her that I couldn't do something like that
without telling Erron first, and when I brought it up, he freaked.  He came
up with curses that I didn't even know existed.  After that, I had to tell
Helen that I couldn't help her.  I couldn't betray Erron like that.  She's a
little better off now, so she may have hired someone on her own, but she
hasn't said anything to me about it."

	"She probably wouldn't, though.  I mean, you'd feel like you had to tell
Erron about it, and then he'd likely be mad at her for it, right?"

	"Probably," I agreed.  "I don't bring it up at all with him.  So, if you
*are* talking with him about family, he won't likely mention his father at
all.  I wouldn't ask if I were you, either."

	"No worries about that happening.  I don't want to upset him."

	"Good."  I smiled and grabbed another chicken breast.  "But don't be afraid
to ask him about his family.  He'll talk for hours about Helen and Janice."

	"Maybe I'll ask him about it tonight.  We'll have some time alone."

	I stopped and looked him in the eye.  "You two are okay with this, right?
I don't want to be chasing you out of the rest of the house or anything."

	"We're fine with it.  We'll have fun on our own, and give you two time
together.  I'm just glad that you invited Erron to come, or I'd be stuck up
there alone."

	I laughed and went back to the chicken.



	Once dinner was ready, Nick went out and got Erron.  They both got their
stuff together and disappeared upstairs with a bottle of wine and a couple
of glasses, promising that we wouldn't see them again.  I made Brian wait
outside while I got everything ready and brought it out to him.  The only
thing that I allowed him to do was set the table, along with the two tapered
candles that Erron and Nick had picked up that afternoon for me.

	Once they were lit, I turned off the lights on the deck and walked out with
two plates, setting one in front of Brian and the other across from him.
When I turned to get the bottle of wine, I noticed that there was steam
coming from the far corner of the deck.  Following my gaze, Brian smiled.
"Erron, Nick and I decided to make ourselves useful this afternoon.  I
thought it would be nice to soak in the hottub after we eat."

	"I like the way you think, sweetie."  I leaned over and gave him a kiss,
smacking his hand as he tried to look under the cover on his plate.  "Be
right back."

	When I emerged with the bottle and two glasses, he was waiting patiently
for me.  I knew he had peeked, though.  It was written all over his face.
When I finally sat down, I gave him permission to take the cover off.

	He swept it off dramatically, then feigned surprise when he discovered the
Chicken Cordon Bleu, scalloped potatoes and sauteed zuchini.  I rolled my
eyes, letting him know that I knew he was lying, and watched as his smile
appeared.

	"I couldn't wait."

	"I have the same problem when I'm with you," I laughed.  "I'll let you get
away with it this time."

	"It looks good, sweetie."

	"Nick says that it is.  He was taste-testing at every stage of the
process."

	"Sounds like him."  Brian took a bite of his chicken and smiled, nodding
approvingly as he chewed.

	I took the silent compliment and began to eat as well.  There was a very
comfortable silence between us while we ate, just enjoying each other's
company and watching each other in the little circle of light that was
supplied by the candles.

	We were about half way finished when Brian finally spoke.  "So, did you get
a lot written today?"

	I nodded and took a drink.  Erron really did have excellent taste in wine.
He knew that I didn't normally care for it, but he always managed to find
one that I would like.  Brian had commented on it as well, and I made a
mental note to thank Erron for it.  "I got a lot done, actually.  Managed to
pretty much empty my mind for the time being.  I don't think I'll even think
about writing for at least a day or two."

	"Good.  That means that you can think about me."

	"Can't think of a better idea," I agreed with a smile.  "You wouldn't
believe the thoughts about you that are going through my mind right now."

	"I bet I would.  But that's for a little later, I think.  How did your
conversation with Carrie go?  Are you going to go ahead with whatever it is
that you weren't sure of?"

	"Yeah, we are.  She had some good ideas for working it into the story, and
she was really happy with what I've added to it so far.  Things are looking
good.  No need for Denise to get bitchy again."

	"I can't believe how into it you get sometimes.  I mean, it's good for the
story, I'm sure, but how can you just detach yourself from reality like
that?  When I brought lunch up, you were just sitting there, staring at the
screen.  The only part of you that was moving was your fingers."

	"It's always been like that for me.  I can't seem to write what I want to
write unless I'm really into it.  If there's some reason that I can't let go
and immerse myself in the story, I'm never totally satisfied with what I
write.  I wind up going back over it later, when I *can* get into the story
better."

	"It's kinda scary to see."

	I nodded.  "Andy and Erron say the same thing.  But I don't think it's a
lot different than what you go through when you're on stage, is it?  You're
in the same sort of daze."

	"I don't think so."

	"So when you're out there, you're thinking about the thousands of people
staring back at you?"

	"No, that's a sure way to freeze up."

	"Exactly.  So are you thinking about the next step in the routine, or the
next words to the song?"

	"No, that's a sure way to screw up," he laughed.  "You psych yourself out
and wind up messing up the line, or stumbling in the dance."

	"So then, would you say that you're basically thinking about nothing, and
just letting your body and your voice do their thing without you getting in
the way?"

	He looked at me across the table and started to grin.  "I hate it when you
do that."

	I looked back smugly and took another bite.  "I'm just saying that we're in
the same sort of zone when we're doing what we love.  Your zone just happens
to involve more movement and activity.  I wonder what our brainwaves would
look like while we were doing that."

	"But I come out of my zone a whole lot easier than you do."

	"Yeah, but yours has definite limits to it.  You're on stage for a set
amount of time, and then you take a little break, and then you're back out
there again for another set amount of time.  My routine doesn't have a time
limit or borders on it.  I can go for ten minutes, or five hours, depending
on how the ideas come to me.  Until someone stops me."

	"Which normally takes either a nuclear blast or a cuff to the side of the
head," he laughed.

	"And no one ever has to give you a nudge to let you know that it's time to
go offstage?"

	He gave me another sheepish look, then nodded.  "Sometimes.  It happens to
all of us sometimes."

	"The defense rests."  Taking a sip of my wine, I winked at him across the
table, making him laugh.

	We finished dinner, and then Brian stood up and took my hand, pulling me to
my feet as well.  Putting his arms around me, he started to sway back and
forth, humming slightly as we moved in the centre of the deck.

	"You know," I said, putting my arms around him as well.  "I would swear
that I told you that I didn't dance."

	"And yet, here you are," he laughed, kissing my neck.  "And you're doing a
good job of it, too."

	"Well, I never said that I couldn't dance.  I can.  I just don't like to."

	"You aren't enjoying yourself?"

	I smiled and hugged him tighter.  "You cheated.  You know I can't *not*
enjoy myself when you're with me."

	"Then shut up and dance with me."

	Brian stepped up his humming, getting a little louder and putting his mouth
right at my ear so that he was the only thing I could hear.  I recognised
the song, but I couldn't remember what it was called.  One of those
beautiful yet generic love songs that everyone can hum along with, but few
people can actually name.

	I think he cycled through the song at least twice, trying to get me to
dance with him for as long as he could.  I noticed it, but didn't say a
thing.  Having him in my arms, moving to music which, quite literally, only
we could hear, made me consider the advantages of ignoring him just a little
more often.

	All such thoughts were driven out of my mind, though, when I felt Brian's
hands work between our bodies and slide down my stomach.  "You're
overdressed for what I have in mind," he whispered, and suddenly my shorts
were undone and falling to the deck.  He spun me around, making me step out
of them as my boxers also fell, leaving me totally naked in his arms.
"That's better."

	"How come you're still dressed?"

	He sighed dramatically and flicked my back.  "Must I do *everything*?"

	I arched my eyebrow and looked him in the eye.  He merely looked back at
me, a little smile playing at the corner of his mouth as he waited.  I
leaned in and gave him a very brief kiss, then dropped to my knees and
kissed his stomach.  He laughed, caught off guard, and I moved my mouth to
the waist of his shorts, grabbing the button-flap with my teeth and pulling
on it.  Twisting my head around, I finally managed to get the button undone,
and then started to work on the zipper.

	I could feel Brian growing hard against the fabric and smiled to myself,
then ran my tongue up the surface of his zipper until I managed to lift the
tab on it and grab it with my teeth.  Pulling it down, I succeeded in
getting his shorts to fall off of him, and then noticed that he wasn't
wearing any underwear.

	He winked when I smiled up at him.  "I changed while you were making
dinner."

	Nodding, I started to move toward him again, but he backed away and put his
hand under my chin, then pulled me to my feet.  "You.  Hottub.  Now."

	"Ooh."

	"I said now."

	"One sec."  I ran back inside, hoping that Erron and Nick were really going
to stick to their promise not to be downstairs, and got out a tray from the
cupboard.  I got out the dessert that I had decided on, and added two shot
glasses and the bottle of vodka from the freezer, deciding that if we were
going to truly let loose, we may as well have help.

	I stopped at the table again and added our wine glasses and the remainder
of the bottle, then walked back over to the hottub, where Brian was standing
waiting for me.

	"Planning on doing some heavy drinking, are you?"

	"Nope, but I'm only good for one, maybe two glasses of wine before I'm sick
of it." I put the tray on the ledge and stood back up, right into Brian's
arms.  He took my hand and stepped into the hottub, pulling me along with
him.

	As soon as we were sitting down, he started to kiss me, his lips barely
touching my skin before they moved on to the next spot.  I managed to
maneouver myself onto his lap, so that I was facing him with my knees on the
seat to either side of him, then grabbed his head to keep it still while I
kissed him back for all I was worth.

	When I finally pulled back, I looked at him and smiled.  His eyes were
still closed, and his lips held the kissing position for just a moment
before he realised that I wasn't coming right back to it.  Reaching out, I
pushed his head back and grabbed a strawberry from the bowl.  I dipped it
into the bowl of whipped cream, and then placed it to Brian's lips.

	His eyes opened at the same time that his mouth did, and his tongue shot
out, swirling around the base of the strawberry before he sucked it into his
mouth with a smile.  I smiled back and bent my neck to blow in his ear as he
chewed.  Both of his hands slipped down my back and came to rest on my ass,
holding me against him.

	"I'm really sorry about this morning," I whispered, directly into his ear.
"The last thing that I want is you feeling ignored.  I love you."

	He shifted under me, raising his hips so that he could grind against me.
He succeeded in getting me to moan much louder than I had whispered.  He did
it again, but I managed to hold my silence this time.  He put his lips to my
ear as well.  "Don't apologise again, love.  I love you, too.  And that
means all of you, including the part that ignores me sometimes so that you
can do what you love, and what you're meant to do."

	"One last thing before you forgive me entirely?"

	He pulled back a little so that he could look me in the eye.  "What?"

	"This."  I brought my hand up and smushed the strawberry that I had been
holding, then smacked my hand against his forehead, leaving a big, juicy,
red mark on him.  The shock on his face was clear, and I started to laugh.
"Remember how much you love me," I chuckled, then braced myself for a berry
to the head.

	Instead, Brian growled and grabbed my hands, pulling them around and behind
my head.  Then he launched himself off of the seat, pushing me through the
water and onto the seat across from where we had been.  He pushed me against
the wall of the tub, low enough that only my head was above the water, then
kissed me roughly, still growling lowly as his tongue invaded my mouth.  He
continued to hold my hands back, pinning them to either side of my head.  It
was a lot rougher than he normally got, but it was definitely a turn-on.

	I brought my legs up and around his waist, squeezing him while he kissed
me.  I applied a little more force than I normally would have, matching his
apparent mood.  It only proved to excite him more, from what I could tell.
He pressed his lips harder against mine, and I think he might have had his
feet braced against the other side of the tub for added leverage.

	I pressed back against him, not in any attempt to get away, but to make
sure that he knew I was enjoying myself.  Considering that I could feel the
proof of how much fun he was having, I was pretty sure that he would know,
but I wanted to leave no room for doubt.  My pressing back didn't accomplish
much other than continuing the kiss for a few wonderful seconds when he
finally decided to back his head away.

	He released my hands, but continued to press me against the wall as his
mouth slipped around to my neck.  We were both out of breath and panting as
I threw my arms around his body and let them explore on their own.  I still
had my legs around him as well, and when he backed away, I went with him.

	Still not speaking, he moved us into the centre of the tub and I felt
myself being lifted slightly, until my chest was out of the water.  I heard
Brian take a deep breath just in time realise what was going to happen.
Taking one of my own, I found myself pulled back down, under the water
level, as Brian sat on the bottom.

	As soon as my head was below the water, I felt Brian's lips pressing to
mine and parted them for him.  His tongue met mine as my hands left his back
long enough to brush against his forehead, making sure that the berry juice
was gone, and then returned, sliding around him.  Just before I thought I
might pass out if I didn't get some air soon, I felt Brian brace himself
under me and then we were moving upward again.

	I broke away from him as soon as I could breathe, inhaled, then returned my
lips to his.  He continued in the upward movement, and I soon found myself
perched on the side of the tub with just my lower legs in the water.
"Swee..."  He silenced me my putting his finger to my lips, and then his
hands went to my shoulders and pushed me back, forcefully laying me down in
front of him on the ledge that ran around the tub.

	He got out of the water and climbed on top of me, the water dripping off of
his body and onto me as his tongue once more searched for mine.  Even with
him pressed against me - and quite possibly because of it - I could feel the
goosebumps form on my skin, damp and exposed to the chill of the night air.
I shivered under him and slid my hands up his body, finding the little bumps
on him as well.

	I was about to suggest that we get back in the water when he silenced me
completely by lapping at the spot behind my ear.  I shivered again, but it
wasn't from the temperature of the air.  I moaned loudly and closed my eyes,
trying to arch my back, but unable to do so with his weight pressing me
down.

	Gradually, Brian moved around some more, and I could feel him stretching.
I opened my eyes to find him smiling down at me.  He was reaching over and
lifting a part of the ledge up, exposing the heater for the tub.  He pulled
out a bottle of lube and started to grin.

	"You little bastard," I laughed.  "You had this all planned."

	"Wishful thinking," Brian defended himself with a wink.

	"Yeah, right.  You just happened to have that hidden exactly where you need
it.  What'd you do, run through this whole thing to figure out where we'd
wind up?"

	"Do you want to argue about this, or keep going?" he asked, still smiling
at me.  "We can just sit back down and talk, if you like."

	I clamped my mouth shut and let him continue.

	"That's better."

To Be Continued...

Thanks for reading!

~*D*~