Seb’s Summer by K.C. Wells

Chapter Twenty-Six

 

August 7

Seb stood with the mourners, Marcus beside him, their hands joined. As the coffin was lowered into the ground, he gripped Marcus’s hand tighter still, feeling cold despite the afternoon sun’s warmth. Virtually all the people standing around the grave were gay men, and he recognized many of them. Justin’s mom couldn’t get to her feet, but sat on a chair, weeping, her husband’s arm around her.

One by one, the mourners dropped single roses onto the coffin, and when it was Seb’s turn, Marcus came with him. Seb tossed the red rose into the grave. “Goodbye, sweetheart.” His throat seized, and Marcus put his arm around Seb’s shoulders. Seb turned to him, unable to prevent the tears that welled in his eyes. “He’s in a better place.”

“You believe that, don’t you?” Marcus murmured. When Seb nodded, Marcus kissed his cheek. “Do you want to go to Maine Street with the others, or do you want to go back to Cape Porpoise?”

“I want to go home with you.”

Marcus stroked his face. “Then that’s what we’ll do. You must be tired. Tim did say you could have the day off.”

Seb shook his head. “I needed to keep busy. But you’re right. Now I feel wiped out.”

“Then when we get back to the house, we’ll curl up in bed and take a nap.”

He smiled. “I’d like that.”

Together they walked away from the grave, their fingers laced.

“I was thinking about what you wrote,” Seb murmured as they strolled.

“Hmm?”

“That GHB is the real killer. Maybe if Justin had known the risks, he’d still be alive.”

“We’ll never know for sure.”

Seb squeezed his hand. “Finish that book, Marcus. Get it out there. So there are no more Justins.”

“I don’t think my book could accomplish that feat.”

“But if it saves even one life?” Seb shivered.

Marcus kissed his cheek. “I’ll finish it.”

Seb shuddered out a breath. “Thank you. Even if it’s only one starfish at a time, it’s something. Because it will matter to the ones we save.”

Marcus frowned. “Starfish?”

“You never read that? About the old guy walking along a beach covered with thousands of starfish that had been washed ashore? He comes across a boy who’s throwing them back into the ocean, one by one. He tells the old guy he’s doing it because when the sun comes up, it’ll fry ’em. The old guy tells him that with there being so many, the kid won’t make that much of a difference.” Seb smiled. “The kid picks up another starfish and hurls it as far as he can into the ocean. Then he tells the guy, ‘It made a difference to that one.’”

Marcus’s eyes glistened. “Then yes. We’ll save as many as we can.”

 

 

August 15

Someone somewhere had flicked a switch, and time had sped up. At least, that was Seb’s explanation why the past week seemed more like a couple of days. His mornings dragged, but he made sure to keep his mind on the job: Tim needed him to be on the ball. But as soon as the wharf came into view, his thoughts went to Marcus, who he knew would be waiting for him.

His afternoons were filled with walks, day trips, and a lot of bed time. Couch time. The kitchen and bathroom saw some action too. His evenings were spent mostly with Marcus, but two or three times, they’d had dinner with Sandra and James.

His nights were spent in Marcus’s arms.

Gary called to say he’d be home on the sixteenth, so that meant Seb’s last Saturday was spent cleaning the place until it sparkled. Marcus volunteered to help, which was sweet, and they divided the chores between them.

It was almost lunchtime, and the house was spotless. The drier rumbled in the bathroom, every surface was free from clutter, and the place smelled a damn sight more pleasant than it had the day Seb arrived.

And how long will that last? Knowing Gary, about five minutes.

Marcus’s phone buzzed, and he picked it up to peer at the screen. “It’s Mom. She probably wants to invite us to lunch.” He lay on the couch and answered it. “Hey, Mom. Yeah, it’s going well.”

The little devil on Seb’s right shoulder chose that moment to whisper into his ear. He got onto the couch, and spread Marcus’s legs. Marcus gave him a puzzled frown—until Seb slowly lowered the zipper on Marcus’s jeans.

No. No, he mouthed, his eyes wide.

Seb merely grinned as he fished out Marcus’s dick that stiffened as Seb’s fingers touched it.

“What was that? Oh, sure. Lunch. We’d love to.” Marcus’s gaze was locked on Seb, his mouth open as Seb worked the shaft with one hand. Marcus’s breathing quickened. “What? Oh. We’re… still cleaning. Yeah. Still a load to do.”

Seb grinned. “You said load,” he whispered. Then he bent over Marcus’s crotch and took the head of his cock into his mouth.

“God!” Marcus shuddered. “Sorry, Mom. A… a huge spider just ran over my foot.” Seb raised his head, and Marcus glared at him. As if Seb paid him any mind. He went back to his erotic task, enjoying the slip and slide of Marcus’s dick filling his mouth over and over.

“What was that? I don’t know, I’ll ask. Seb, Mom wants to know if you like tuna casserole.”

Seb released Marcus’s cock. “Tell her I love it.” Then he went right back to sucking him off, only now with more vigor, his head bobbing. Marcus rocked his hips up off the couch, one hand on Seb’s head, forcing him to swallow more of his shaft.

“You heard that? Great.” Marcus’s voice sounded strained. “Okay, we’ll see you at one o’clock. Yeah, we’ll have it all done by then. Bye.”

Seb chuckled around Marcus’s dick, then pulled free. “I’ll have you done any second now.” Then it was back to blowing him. He knew the signs: Marcus was about to nut.

Marcus tossed the phone aside and applied both hands to Seb’s head. “You are going to swallow every… single… drop.” He groaned as he arched off the couch, and Seb tugged on Marcus’s balls, holding his dick steady as Marcus shot hard. Seb took it all, and when Marcus was done, he licked the shaft clean, loving the shivers that coursed through Marcus when Seb flicked the little knot of nerves under the head with his tongue.

Marcus grabbed Seb and hauled him, until Seb lay on top of him. “You are evil, do you know that?”

Seb grinned. “I couldn’t resist. Don’t tell me you didn’t enjoy it.”

“Oh, I won’t deny that. But my mom was laughing her ass off at the end. She probably knows exactly what we were doing.”

“That should make lunch interesting.” When Marcus’s face fell, Seb had a fair idea what had gone through his mind. “I know, babe. The last lunch.” The following day, Seb would be back in Ogunquit, and Marcus would be driving to New York.

“When do you think Gary will get here tomorrow?”

“Probably around noon. It’s a four-hour trip from Annie’s place.” Seb cocked his head. “Why?”

“Because I want one more night with you, and I want to avoid the situation of Gary walking in on us.”

Seb let out a sigh. “I was gonna ask you to stay, but I didn’t want to push.”

Marcus wound his fingers through Seb’s hair and drew him close. His lips brushed against Seb’s cheek before he took Seb’s mouth in a leisurely kiss.

“How long do we have before we need to be out of here?” Seb murmured against his lips.

“Maybe an hour?”

Seb sat up and stripped off his tee, then unbuttoned his jeans. “Perfect.”

They weren’t about to waste time moving things to the bed.

 

 

Marcus gave the summerhouse a final glance. “I think that’s everything.” He’d packed up all his belongings, and the boxes and suitcases stood by the door.

“If I find anything, I’ll let you know,” Mom said from the recliner.

Marcus gave her a quizzical glance. “Where’s Seb?”

“In the den with your dad. They’re talking trains this time. Apparently Seb has a friend who’s built an entire town above his parents’ garage.”

He laughed. “Watch out, Mom. Dad’ll get ideas about the attic.”

“Ideas, I can cope with. If he wants to put any of them into practice, I’ll put my foot down.” Her eyes twinkled. “He’s already got far too much stuff hoarded up there. He’s not adding a model railway.” Mom tilted her head to one side. “If I do come across something you’ve missed, I could always ask Seb to drive over here and collect it. Ogunquit’s not that far from here, and he’d probably see you before we did.”

Marcus shook his head. “And I thought Seb was the king of not being subtle.”

“It’s a Mom thing. I want you to be happy. I want all my children to be happy.” She met his gaze. “And I think Seb makes you happy.”

Marcus sighed. “I know he does.”

“So what are you going to do about it? Have the two of you made plans? Have you—”

He held up his hand, and she fell silent. “No plans. There’s still too much that needs to be worked out before I can think about the future.”

Mom’s eyes were kind. “I don’t know what circumstances brought you here, and it’s obvious after all this time that you’re not going to tell me. But I hope being here helped.”

“More than you’ll ever know.”

“Your dad and I have been talking.” She gestured to the house. “Once we’ve left, this place will be empty until Labor Day, and then after that until God knows when. So… if you need a breather… a time-out… whatever you want to call it… come here. Don’t waste time asking us first. Just turn up. We’ll make sure you have a key before you leave. And… if you want to bring Seb here? That’s okay.”

Marcus bit his lip. “This feels as if you’re giving us your blessing.”

“I think the two of you are a good fit,” she said with a shrug. “And like I said… I want you to be happy.”

“I suppose I should be relieved.”

Mom blinked. “What do you mean?”

“Well, I remember vividly your reactions on meeting some of Chris’s girlfriends. They didn’t get such glowing commendations.”

She flushed. “Oh dear. Was I that obvious?”

Marcus laughed. “Only to us.” He walked over to the recliner, bent down, and kissed her cheek. “If anything changes between me and Seb, I’ll let you know. And I really do appreciate the offer to use the house. This is my happy place.”

“I’m glad.” She got to her feet and hugged him. “Am I feeding you this evening, or will you be at Seb’s?” Her lips twitched. “Stupid question.”

“I’ll put everything in the car. That way, I can set off tomorrow morning from his place.” Marcus grinned. “I’ll get Seb to help. He probably needs rescuing by now anyway.” It pleased him that his parents had taken to Seb. He wanted to tell his mom he and Seb would stay together, but he wasn’t about to make promises he couldn’t keep.

Let’s see what New York has in store for me first.

 

 

Seb knew from the sound of Marcus’s breathing that he wasn’t asleep. “What’s on your mind?”

“How did you know?”

He laughed softly. “How many nights have you spent in this bed?”

Marcus’s arm tightened around him. “I loved coming to Cape Porpoise as a kid.”

Seb snickered. “I wish I could say the same, but my summers here were very different. Child labor. I might have mentioned that once or twice.”

Marcus laughed. “Yeah, I picked up on it. What I’m trying to say is… This has always been a happy place for me, but I think this summer has been the happiest—and that’s due entirely to you. In fact, I’ll go further.” He nuzzled Seb’s neck, his breath warm on his skin. “You are my happy place, Seb Williams.”

Warmth flooded him. “And you’ve changed the way I feel about Cape Porpoise, which is no mean feat.” He brought Marcus’s hand to his lips and kissed his fingers. “From now on, it’s always going to be ‘the place where I…’” Seb swallowed. He couldn’t bring himself to say the words ‘where I fell in love for the first time.’ That would be too much like tempting fate.

“Where you what?” Marcus kissed his neck, and Seb shivered.

“You’re fighting dirty again.” Seb reached down to where Marcus’s leg lay hooked over his, and stroked his thigh. “And I was going to say, ‘the place where I met the most incredible guy.’” The lie tripped smoothly off his tongue.

“I’m going to miss you.”

Seb’s throat tightened, and he turned in Marcus’s arms. “Me too.” He couldn’t push aside the overwhelming fear that what they’d shared was about to end. Their lives were going to diverge, and neither of them had any way of knowing if their paths would cross again.

I know what I want to happen, but wanting won’t make it so.

As if he’d read Seb’s thoughts, Marcus brought his lips to Seb’s ear and said quietly, “This is not a summer fling. I think we both know that. And it doesn’t have to end, not if neither of us want it to.” He kissed Seb on the lips. “So tomorrow we’ll say goodbye. I’ll go back to New York, and you’ll go back to Ogunquit. Just don’t think you’re getting rid of me, okay?”

Seb wrapped his arms around Marcus. “I love your positivity.” It was the nearest he could get to saying the words that lay on his heart.

“I have to be positive.” Marcus pulled Seb closer still. “It’s the only thing keeping me going right now.” He paused. “Are you sleepy?”

“Not remotely.”

Marcus gently rolled Seb onto his back. “Then let’s make love until we fall asleep.”

Seb couldn’t think of a more perfect way to spend their last night together.

Please, God, don’t let it be our last night.

 

 

August 16

Marcus glanced at his phone and knew he couldn’t put the moment off any longer. “Time to go,” he murmured into Seb’s hair. Seb’s body was warm against his as they snuggled on the couch. Marcus chuckled.

“What’s so funny?”

He kissed Seb’s head. “You turned me into a snuggler. How did you manage that?”

“Maybe you always were. You just needed to meet me to bring it out.” Seb straightened with a sigh. “You’re right though. Gary should be here soon.”

“Have you changed the bedding?”

Seb laughed. “I did that while you were taking a shower. The sheets are in the washer.”

Marcus got to his feet and held a hand out to Seb. “Walk me to the car?”

“Why? Do you think you’ll get lost on the way?”

He grasped Seb’s hand. “No, but at least I get a little more time with you.”

Seb led him out of the house and over to the car. “You sure you’ve got everything?”

“There’s one thing missing, but I can’t fit you in my suitcase.” Marcus opened his arms wide, and Seb walked into them. Marcus drank in his smell, the feel of him, burning them into his senses.

“You’ve got my number,” Seb whispered.

“Your number, your email, your mailing address…” Marcus kissed him. “And you’ve got mine.” He held him close for one final kiss, then pulled away with a heavy heart. “Take care. I’ll call, okay?”

As he opened the car door, Seb hurried over to him. “Marcus!” He stilled, and Seb grabbed his hand. “Listen… if you feel stressed, under pressure, anxious… call me?”

Marcus heard the words Seb didn’t utter. “Don’t worry. I won’t let things get that bad. But if they do, you’ll be the first to know.”

Seb released his hand. “Take it easy. Don’t let that boss bully you into taking on more than you feel comfortable with.” He took a step back. “Now you can go.”

Marcus got behind the wheel and turned on the engine. He wound the window down, and gave Seb a wave. As he backed away from the house, a car pulled onto the gravel driveway, and Marcus caught a glimpse of a grizzled face in the passenger seat.

That has to be Gary.

He drove to the end of Pier Road, then turned right.

New York was over three hundred miles away, and every one of those miles would take him farther from where he longed to be.