The next morning Hanson walked through Crawford's door, followed by Kline. They both looked strangely subdued.
James frowned. "Hello sirs. Everything all right?"
The two men sat on the couch. Kline looked at Crawford. "I'm going to Iraq."
James cursed. "When?"
"Eight days." Kline picked up the coffee in front of him. The big man sighed. "Luck of the draw."
James looked at Hanson. The Captain stared down at the table, lost in thought. "Well, I guess this is interesting timing." He pulled a camera from a backpack on the floor and set it on the coffee table. "I've deleted the picture from the camera. You can check it if you like." He reached into the pocket of his shorts and showed a memory stick to the men. "This has the only copy of the picture left." He gently laid it on the table in front of Hanson.
The Captain looked up. "Why are you giving this to us?"
James shrugged. "Because I asked for and was granted terminal leave. This will probably be the last time I will see you two." He looked blankly out the window at the parking lot. "I'm moving out of town. So that means you both are free to do as you please."
"Why? I thought you were going to milk this situation." Kline looked at him.
"Because ..." James took a deep breath, "it hurts for me to see you two together. I'm reminded of someone I once knew."
Hanson reached down for the memory stick. "Someone you knew, and lost?"
James bit his lip and nodded. "Yeah."
"Where are you going?" Kline asked and sipped his coffee.
"I'm going to try and find him." He stood. This time the officers were surprised to see James sported no erection. "I really fucked things up with him, but I'm going to try and fix it."
"You think you can?" Hanson asked gently.
James turned and stared at the Captain. "I don't know." It was the first time Hanson had ever seen doubt on the sailor's face. "But I do know that if I don't do everything I can to get him back in my life, then I don't deserve him." After a moment he looked away. He walked to his bedroom door and stopped. "I finally figured out that sometimes, love is worth any risk." He opened the door. "Good-bye gentlemen. It's truly been a pleasure to know you both." He entered the room, and the door clicked shut.
Hanson woke slowly. The heavy curtains kept the morning sun out of the room, and it was still nice and dark inside. He stretched and felt the slightly fuzzy body of Kline scoot closer and spoon him. Kline was still half asleep and put his arm around Hanson, pulling him to his chest. The Captain sighed with contentment, and snuggled close to the warm man behind him. He could feel the Lt's dick against his rump and he immediately reacted to it by getting hard. He turned and faced his lover.
"Wha ..." Kline mumbled as Hanson's grip closed on his cock. "Mmmm ..." He smiled, his eyes still closed, as the Captain began stroking him.
Hanson pushed the covers down and looked at his hand sliding up and down Kline's meat. The Lt. began breathing harder, and frowned in concentration.
"You keep that up, and I'm gonna make a mess in your sheets." Kline said and kissed Hanson.
The Captain smiled. "Well, let me see if I can do anything about that." He leaned down and put his face at Kline's crotch.
"What are you doing?" Kline looked at him, wide-eyed.
Hanson shrugged and grinned. Then he put his mouth on the big man's dick.
Kline inhaled. "Fuck." Hanson put the head in his mouth and a little of the shaft. Hanson had recieved enough blow-jobs to know how they worked. He bobbed up and down, and gripped the rest of the shaft in his fist. He jerked Kline in time to the movement of his head and tried hard to keep his teeth from scraping the thick cock in his mouth.
Kline moaned and fondled Hanson's dick. He let his fingers rub up and down the Captain's shaft and he began to move faster as he neared orgasm. Hanson groaned in pleasure around a mouthful of dick.
"Captain," Kline breathed, "I'm gonna cum." Hanson didn't stop. "Sir, I mean it." He felt the orgasm rushing toward him. "I, I ...ungh!" Kline shot into Hanson's mouth. The Captain expected it, but he still gagged a little. He kept going though, until Kline stopped shooting. Then he swallowed the slightly salty, warm fluid.
Kline pulled him down and rolled on top of him. "That was fucking hot." He kissed Hanson roughly and gripped his dick. He stroked like a maniac and rubbed the Captain's balls while they kissed.
Hanson groaned. Kline could tell he was close and went down on him. It was his first blowjob, but he went at it eagerly. After a bit, he was sliding his Captain's dick in and out of his mouth with little difficulty. Hanson moaned. "Fuck, fuck ..." He inhaled and Kline touched the spot between Hanson's ass and balls. The Captain made a sound of surprise and orgasamed immediately. He arched his neck and back, and Kline sucked until the semen stopped coming from the man. Then he sat up, made an odd face, and swallowed.
Kline laughed. "That tasted like coffee!"
Hanson roared with laughter. After they both calmed down, they lay together in bed and kissed, touched, and just held one another. Eventually they resigned to getting up.
"You can take first shower, Kline." Hanson padded over to his computer. "I'm gonna get started on that paperwork we have to get done."
Kline lumbered into the bathroom and started the shower. Hanson watched him get in, the pulled the memory stick from the pants he wore yesterday. He opened the only picture on the stick, and there it was. He laughed at how stiff and wooden they both looked, and at how pale Kline was.
He closed the picture, then narrowed his eyes. There was a folder labeled `Boy oh Boy'. "Huh. What's this?" He double clicked and opened the folder. His eyes widened in surprise. "Oh shit."
General Jamison got to work early Monday morning. He sat at his desk and breathed a sigh of relief. Crawford was gone. The sailor had no reason to continue with the blackmail and would no longer be an issue.
Jamison opened his email and frowned. A sender named "devilish doc" had sent him a message. The subject line read, `Can you keep a secret?'. With a sinking feeling in his gut, the General opened the message.
"God damn it." He glared at the screen. There was Kyle Jamison, his own son, getting his dick sucked by a naked man, while another was eating his ass. He closed his eyes for a moment then forced them back open. Below the picture was a very specific set of directions. Fuming, Jamison began to read.
James smiled as he read the response from the General. Sighing in satisfaction, he closed his laptop and sipped his coffee. He looked out over the town through the window of the diner and watched the rain as it fell from the angry New Mexico sky.
"Anything else hon?" A perky black haired waitress named Becky asked.
"No." James smiled. He driven nearly all night and finally reached the small settlement his research had led him to: Trinity New Mexico. "I think I've had enough coffee. But," he leaned forward, "I could use some information."
The woman's directions were good. James pulled onto a long driveway leading to a ranch-style house on the outskirts of the town. He shut off the car and swallowed. He looked at the house and took a deep breath. The patter of drops on his roof and window sounded serene, and added a counterpoint to how he felt. An incredible fear of disappointment came over him.
"He'll never forgive me." He frowned at his own foolishness. "This was a mistake."
He started the car and put it in reverse. A pair of headlights turned down the driveway, and blocked his path. James put the car in park and watched in his rear-view mirror as a man got out of the truck and walked to the driver's side then leaned down.
"Hey there." The man said. "This is my property. Can I help you with ..." James stared straight ahead. The man blinked his dark eyes. "James?" His mouth dropped in surprise. "James! Get the hell out of that car!" He opened the door and James threw up his hands. He knew he was about to get a beating.
Troy yanked James from the car. The tanned skin of his face twisted into a mask of pain and anger. He held the sailor by the front of his jacket, and thunder rolled across the sky. "Tell me why you're here." Troy said. James saw his lip tremble. Water streamed down the man's face, and he frowned with pain. "I've worked real hard to forget you, so why have you come here?"
James reached up and wiped the rain from Troy's face. Troy frowned and tried to keep his emotions under control.
The sailor looked at Troy with eyes that spoke of long suffering pain and regret. "I came to tell you that I'm sorry." James gently touched Troy's cheek. "I came to tell you that I love you."
Troy's lip quivered. "Stop it." He closed his eyes at James' touch. "Why are you doing this?"
"Because it's true." James pushed the black hair on Troy's head back away from his eyes. Troy released him and stood with his arms to his side. "I don't expect forgiveness. But I couldn't live with myself if I didn't try to set things right." He looked at the little yellow truck in the driveway and decided that he could get around it. "I'll go." He took a card from his wallet and put it in Troy's shirt pocket. "If you ever want to talk, call me."
Troy watched as James got into his car and drove away. Silently, he took the card from his pocket and looked at it. Then he turned and walked into his house.
James drove back to Trinity. He checked into a hotel and collapsed on the small bed. He was physically and emotionally drained. As he lay there, he cried great wracking sobs until he finally slipped into a dreamless sleep.
A few hours later James woke to the ring of his phone.
Hanson and Kline rode to work and entered the office. The Captain kept the pictures of the General's son a secret initially, but eventually he told Kline.
"No." Kline's jaw was set. "I'll have no part of blackmailing Jamison."
"Look," Hanson began, "it's Iraq Kline. People are dying over there." The Captain pleaded with him. "Please. Please think about this."
Kline looked levelly at the Captain. "You saw what blackmail did to Crawford – how calculating he had to be. I don't want to live like that."
Hanson slumped in his chair and closed his eyes. He sighed. "I hate that you're right." He inhaled in thought. "Then, why don't we turn in the other picture?"
Kline stared at him in disbelief. "Crawford's picture? Of us?" Hanson nodded. The Lt. was silent for a moment. "Captain, we'd both be thrown out."
"I'm aware of the consequences." Hanson opened his eyes and leaned forward. "I'm also willing to go through with it."
Kline frowned with surprise. "What about your family tradition? And ... you love the corps!" He shook his head. "I can't be responsible for getting you booted out."
"Kline, I want to do it."
"I don't!" Kline brought his fist down on the desk with a thud. "No! If we did this you'd come to hate me for it. It'd happen one day where you'd miss the corps." He looked at Hanson. "And you'd remember that I was the reason for you losing it."
Hanson looked down at his hands in his lap. "You're more important to me than the corps." He said quietly.
Kline was floored and opened his mouth to speak.
The door opened and General Jamison strode inside. Both men scrambled to their feet.
"Captain Hanson, leave the office to the Lt. and I." The General's voice was terse and strained.
"Yes sir." Hanson left with a single confused look at Kline.
The door closed and Jamison turned to the Lt. "Son, sit down and let's deal."
James sat nervously at the diner in Trinity. He watched as Troy's truck pulled up beside his car. The tall, athletic man got our and walked into the diner. Wordlessly, Troy walked to the table, and sat opposite James. He sat a coffee cup right side up and poured himself a cup of strong, dark coffee. He sipped it and sighed. His eyes rested on the table and he worked his mouth as he tried to find the words he wanted to say.
"I tried to throw your card away." At last he spoke. "Actually, I did. Three times." He took another drink. "But I kept digging it out of the garbage." He put a spoonful of sugar in the coffee and stirred. He finally looked up. His face was streaked with tears. "James, I don't hate you. But I sure as hell can't take you betraying me again."
James nodded. "I'll leave, if you want." He frowned at his hands. "But I know I'll never have what we had with anyone else." He looked up. "I want to start over Troy."
Troy reached across the table and gripped his arm. "I just can't let you back in like that." He closed his eyes and clenched his jaw against his emotions. After a moment, he opened his eyes and stared at James. "But it's true that I've never stopped loving you." He nodded in decision and released James' arm. "I'll call you again within a month. I'll give you my answer then." He got up, took out a couple of bucks, and laid them on the table. He looked down at the sailor. "And it'll be my final answer James. I have to get on with life. With or without you, I have to get on with it."
He walked back to his truck. James watched as it drove away and he prayed that it wouldn't be the last time he saw it.
Kline sat, stunned, at the desk. Jamison left the room and Hanson walked in before the door even shut.
"What happened?" Hanson was desperate to know.
"I ... I'm staying here." He looked up at Hanson with a dazed expression. "He asked me what I wanted and I said that I wanted to stay here." He shook his head. "Tell me you didn't do this."
"I swear I didn't." Hanson sat opposite him. "I wanted to, but I'd never do something like that without you knowing."
Kline nodded. "Then it was Crawford." He laughed, relief beginning to flood his soul. "That little bastard."
"Yeah." Hanson felt immensely relieved. "Can't say that I'm sorry `bout it though."
"I know." Kline got a thoughtful look on his face. "I wonder where he is?"
Three weeks passed. James got a job in Santa Fe as an EMT and he was going to school as soon as the semester began. He tried not to think about Troy and the upcoming end of the month, but that was impossible.
Today, he sat in an apartment he had rented and listened to bluegrass. He hummed along to the tune and barely heard it when his phone rang.
Two hours later, James pushed the engine of his car as he drove across the New Mexico desert. He grinned fiercely as he passed a sign along the road.
"TRINITY – pop 780"
Hanson got home and gave a weary sigh. Work was tough this week and he was glad Friday had arrived. He threw his gym bag on the couch and stopped.
"Mmmm." He followed his nose to the kitchen where something wonderful was cooking. Kline stood in front of the stove. He was stirring something in a pot and wore some ear phones, listening to the I-pod Hanson got for him last week.
Hanson felt a delicious surge of wickedness and crept up behind him. He carefully approached, sure to stay out of his line of sight, and prepared to scare the shit out of the Lt.
Kline suddenly held up the wooden spoon in his hand. "Don't." He turned and gave Hanson a warning glare.
"Damn it!"
"I can see you in the chrome on the stove." He chuckled and went back to stirring the spaghetti sauce.
The Captain walked over and looked into the boiling pot. "Looks good." He turned to Kline and grinned. "I'm glad you moved in. The food is so much better now."
Kline smirked. "Keep talking and that's all you get out of me."
Hanson wrapped his arms around Kline from behind. "You think I want something else?" He ground his groin up against Kline's backside.
"I'd say that just confirmed it." The Lt. turned and kissed his lover. He smiled at the Captain. "You taste almost good enough to eat."
Hanson smiled, but Kline could tell something was on his mind. "You all right?"
The Captain bit his lip and suddenly went pale. "I have ... I have to ask you a question." He swallowed nervously and tried to dispel the idiotic terror in his gut. "However you answer is fine. So don't feel pressured, either way."
Kline looked at him suspiciously. "All right."
Hanson looked down and gripped his hand. "I don't really know how this works with two guys, but ..."
Kline frowned and felt something pressed into his palm. Hanson let go and the Lt. brought it up and opened it, palm up, to reveal a thick, silver colored ring. A wedding band.
Hanson watched his face anxiously and his rehearsed speech was instantly forgotten. "I love you." He said simply.
It was the first time either of them had said it. Kline picked up the ring with trembling fingers. It was perfectly sized for the big man. The platinum band was engraved with `Semper Amor' on the inside, and was otherwise unadorned.
Kline looked up, awe and relief on his face. "I've been so afraid it was just me." He put the ring on and smiled. "I love you too. I really do." The two of them hugged and Kline kissed him. They remained with their arms around one another and Kline whispered in his ear, "Wait right here."
They separated and Kline left the room. He returned a few minutes later. In his hand was a small velvet black box. He handed it to the Captain. Hanson opened it and stared. An intricately knotted ring, made of white and black hills gold, sat gleaming in the light.
He looked up in wonder. "How long have you had this?"
"Since Monday." Kline forced himself to stay composed. "So, we really gonna do this?" He looked down at the ring on his hand, and Hanson slipped his band on.
The Captain swiped at his eyes and cleared his throat. "If you'll have me, hell yeah."
Kline laughed and took him in his arms. "Then consider yourself off the market." He gazed down at the smaller man.
Wordlessly, the two kissed. While on the stove, their dinner burned to a crisp.
Author's note: That's all for this story. Thanks for reading, and sticking with me. Thanks a lot for all the emails and encouragement. It's really nice to get.