Aaron had been vibrating with excitement all night, which gave him the energy he needed to move from one place to the next as his deconstruction crews took down everything that had gone into the summer event, but which also distracted him in the worst way. His mind wandered, and he couldn’t stand still for more than a few moments. The adrenaline from the show still flowed through him, and Aaron wasn’t sure it would ever stop.

Once upon a time, Vance had screwed up his life big-time by dragging out his dirty laundry in public, but tonight, he’d made a sweeping declaration of love and commitment that Aaron could never hope to top. Vance had come out to him knowing fully well that there were people recording his every move, and maybe even agents watching in the audience, toying with the idea of bringing him on as a client. He’d potentially nailed the lid on the coffin of his career… and he’d done it so he could be with Aaron.

It was early in the morning when the last of the temporary stations was cleared away and the crew left. Aaron found himself alone beneath the stars and the moon, his heart hammering in his chest and a huge smile plastered across his face. He wanted to scream into the night or take off running like a wild man. But above all, he wanted to find Vance and spend the rest of the night with him. Whether that meant talking, or laughing, or falling into bed together, Aaron didn’t care. All he wanted was to be close to the man who’d made such a grand gesture for him — who’d potentially given up so much just so they could be together.

He headed back to his car to find Vance leaning on the hood. He grinned at Aaron as Aaron approached. “Hey. Thought I might find you here eventually.”

Aaron grinned back. “Hey yourself. I… well, let’s just say that it’s taking an embarrassing amount of willpower not to close the distance between us at a frenzied sprint and latch onto you. Thank you for tonight. You have no idea of what it means to me.”

“Is that so?” Vance raised an eyebrow playfully. “I think I might. Because as good as you feel right now after the show, I’ve finally been able to be honest to myself about what I feel, and I’ve found closure in my decision. I want you. I don’t care what that means for my career, or what people think of me, or any stupid shit like that. If it means that I’m happy — if it means that we’re both happy — then I’ll live with it, whatever it means.”

Aaron reached him at last. He slipped his arms around Vance’s waist, and Vance took him by the hips and tugged him close.

“Did you drive?” Aaron asked against his lips. “I can take us home if you want.”

“I walked. I live close enough that it wasn’t even an issue.”

“Are you declining a ride?”

“No.” Vance laughed. “And I’m definitely not declining an invitation to your house, if that’s what you meant by ‘take us home.’ I don’t think I really want to go back to my apartment tonight. When I get hyped off a show, it’s hard to come down.”

“You’re telling me.” Aaron grinned. “I should be a walking zombie after what happened today, but I’m wide awake and wired.”

“You know, I have the perfect solution to that…”

Aaron held back a laugh. “Yeah?”

“Yeah.” Vance smirked. “But you’re going to have to take me home first to find out what it is. It’s not something that’s exactly appropriate for the public.”

“Hm. I wonder what it could be.” Aaron’s hands slipped under Vance’s shirt, tracing along his skin. Vance shivered. “You’re not one of those stereotypical rock stars, are you? Sex, drugs, and rock and roll?”

“At this stage in my life, I’m interested in two of those three things. Give me twenty years and I’ll probably start being interested in pharmaceuticals. Then I’ll be three for three. Does that sound good?”

Aaron laughed against his lips and kissed him gently. Vance kissed back. Warmth bloomed in Aaron’s stomach, and he leaned into the kiss a little more, hungry for Vance’s touch, but Vance pulled away.

“You know,” Vance said. “If you do want to go back to your place, it’s probably better that you don’t start this here. I’m going to get too crazy for you if I do. I’m already hopped up after the show, and if you come along and start kissing me like that, well… I’m not going to make it to your house.”

Aaron smirked. “Round one doesn’t have to be there, you know.”

“You little devil.” Vance smirked back. “But, seriously. After what we just did? I’m sure someone’s following you in the shadows, waiting to snap some scandalous pictures so they can sell them for big bucks. The kind of thing I just did tonight? That’s tabloid fodder right there. But I don’t care. It just means we can’t have the hot back-seat car sex that I’d love to have with you right now.”

“Only this time, though, right?” Aaron couldn’t believe he was saying it, but it came so naturally that he couldn’t hold back. “Next year, when things have blown over, maybe we can look into changing that?”

“Oh hell yeah, we can.” Vance kissed him. It was intense, but it didn’t last for all that long before he pulled away. “For now, we’re going to have to resort to something more vanilla, but I promise you, even if I never sing again, it won’t always be that way. Life’s too exciting to only have sex in the bedroom.”

“Then where else can we go?” Aaron asked.

Vance winked. “Take me home and I’ll show you. I’ve got some ideas that should keep us occupied all night long.”