The officiant, a woman with short cropped hair in a smart pantsuit, stepped up and directed our attention to the door to the guest building. The string quartet switched to a reverent and perfectly paced rendition of the Pachelbel Canon in D.

The door opened and a smiling golden retriever appeared and trotted up the aisle between the chairs. It was Bacon, Mike and David’s dog. A collective gasp and chuckle rolled through the crowd.

As he walked, Bacon’s shining fur glistened and flowed in the sunlight. He looked brushed and groomed to perfection. Bacon reached the officiant, then turned around and sat down. He watched the door from where he came, his classic golden retriever smile on his face. Good dog!

Next came Mike, David’s quiet and burly fiancee. He had a carpentry business, mostly doing high-end kitchens. Should I have him do my kitchen? That would depend on my income, for sure. I might just be paying the mortgage and nothing extra for projects unless I could get my income up. I shook my head to focus myself in the here and now.

A little girl with shining blonde hair walked beside Mike with her arm looped through his. She carried a bouquet of flowers in her free hand, and they walked slowly and deliberately, like they’d practiced this countless times.

The crowd noticed her too, and said, “Awww.” She looked like an angel. She wore a white gauzy dress and her hair was pinned up in some kind of twisty bun on top of her head.

Bacon thumped his tail as he watched them approach but he stayed where he was. Finally they reached the front and the little girl stood on one side of Bacon while Mike stood on the other, both facing the crowd.

Mike held his hands clasped in front of him and watched the door. Everyone turned again, and David came out, this time with another little girl almost identical to the first. Oh yeah, David had twin girls.

I’d never met his ex-wife but I knew she worked at the coffee shop downtown. He’d mentioned them in passing one day, and I mulled over the complexity of being closeted due to family pressures. I never had to deal with that, but I knew it was a real thing for a lot of people, as much as so many people didn’t want to face that was the reality for so many gay people.

When I said that to David, he’d looked away with a sad smile. “Yeah, I’m one of those who people don’t want to acknowledge. They either are so homophobic they don’t want anyone to come out, and would prefer we all stay in the closet. Or on the other end, they don’t want to know that the world hasn’t changed overnight and that family and cultural pressure is tough to overcome. But we are real people with complicated lives, and not everyone is born a warrior.”

I watched him now, walking up the aisle with his beautiful daughter on his arm, smiling at the love of his life waiting for him at the altar. His parents sat in the front row with several other blonde people, including a woman I assumed to be his ex-wife. They were all smiling too. David told me he’d reconciled with his parents, and that his father made great efforts to heal the wound he’d created between them.

Anyone can change, and anyone can have a happy ending. Today proves that. I reached over and threaded my fingers through Rhett’s again. He raised his eyebrows at me. I squeezed and smiled. My rugged, handsome Rhett. He had some deep wounds, that was obvious, but despite them, he was a thoroughly awesome guy. I just hoped someday he realized it too.

His face broke into a beaming smile, and he squeezed my hand back. Then he switched hands and put his arm around me. Sarah leaned forward, got my attention in my peripheral vision and gave me an ‘I knew it!’ look.

If I could have stuck my tongue out at her, at this moment in a wedding, and not looked like an asshole, I would have. Unfortunately, my upbringing prevented it. But she knew my thoughts.

Finally David reached the front, and his two angel daughters kissed them both and went and sat in the front row with the family. Their half-grown dog laid down at their feet, and the ceremony began.

I wanted to listen. I did. But I was so distracted by the feel of Rhett’s hand around mine, I couldn’t. I traced his fingers and bones with my fingertip, traced the outline of his hand with mine, reveled in the heat emanating from his body.

How someone could run so hot — I didn’t know. Even in the summer, sometimes I got cold and couldn’t warm up. Would Rhett keep me warm this winter? Would he want to?

I stopped short in my thoughts. Did I want him to?

I did. I did want him to.

I needed to admit to myself, and him, that I wanted more. But if I told him, I might lose what we have. It would be better to have this little bit of him that I get than to lose everything.

I sat in the sunshine, breathing the sweet air of clean grass, trees, flowers, mountain breezes and…coming from next to me, Rhett’s warm masculine scent. I closed my eyes, memorizing this moment.

“Do we have the rings?” the officiant said, loud enough to interrupt my daydreaming.

At this, Bacon barked once, an answer, his half-puppy, half-adult bark charming the crowd. Everyone laughed, and Mike, chuckling, reached down and untied a box from Bacon’s collar.

The thought spontaneously rose in me. We could have Tiger in our ceremony.

I pinched myself in the leg. Get a grip. Weddings just had that effect on people. It was the romantic halo from the emotional ceremony. The venue and the energy of the event generated these thoughts.

I must have gripped Rhett’s hand too tightly as I pinched my leg with the other, and he turned to me, concerned. “You okay,” he murmured into my ear. His smell and heat intoxicated me.

“I’m fine,” I fake smiled a mellow happy look on my face. I cringed inside. This guy was going to think I was nuts.

I looked at him out of the corner of my eye. Either we were the worst idea ever, or the best idea ever. I couldn’t decide. Were we mismatched or did his crazy match my crazy?

When the ceremony was over, and the couple was announced, they kissed in front of all their gathered friends and loved ones. In that moment the crowd burst into applause. The new couple held their hands up into the air. They radiated joy and exultation. With that the two angelic little girls clapped their hands, jumped out of their chairs, and ran to hug them.

They kissed the girls on their foreheads, held their hands high again, smiling at us all, and left back down the aisle, their dog trotting beside them.

“What a beautiful wedding,” Rhett’s mom said, wiping her tears. Her perfectly manicured fingers dabbed a tissue under her eye. She leaned over. “Someday I’d love to see my Rhett get married,” she said. “But in the meantime I’ll settle for him being with someone nice like you.”

“Mom,” Rhett said. “You’re embarrassing Oscar.”

“I’m not embarrassed,” I lied, my cheeks burning from inside. I’ll never outgrow these damn pink cheeks — they run in the family. “The pink cheeks just run in the family — they don’t mean anything,” I said.

“He’s lying,” Sarah leaned into our huddle. “Pink cheeks do run in the family, but the bright red thing he’s got going on right now is all blushing.”

I’m going to kill you later. I told her inside my mind. My eyes must have sent the message because Sarah looked at me as if I’d said them out loud, and laughed. “You love me,” she said, and kissed me on the cheek.

Fucking hell.

“I think Oscar needs a break,” Rhett said, and stood up, pulling me up with him. “What time is the reception?”

“I think it starts now, and goes for a few hours,” I said.

“Then they won’t miss us for a while,” Rhett said. “You need some fresh air, don’t you?” He looked at me, unblinking. What was he playing? I didn’t know but I wanted to find out.

“Definitely,” I agreed. “You’re the emergency medical professional,” I added. “If you think I need to get away, I’m sure you’re right.”

Rhett kissed his mother on the cheek and pulled me along with him. “If you’ll excuse us, I’m going to go find Oscar something to drink.” He pulled me toward the building where the wedding party had exited.

I half ran half walked along with him, trying to keep up. “Is everything okay,” I said, once we were out of earshot. “Why the big hurry?” My heart pounded and the heat in Rhett’s hand intensified in my own. He squeezed harder.

He leaned over me as we walked, so no one else could hear. “So good, Oscar. I just want to be alone with you.”

My breath caught in my throat and my cheeks flared hot again. “Ah, okay,” I managed.

“Is that all right with you,” he breathed in my ear, pressing his size against my side as we walked.

Breathe. Remember to breathe. “Yes, that is all right with me.” Whatever Rhett wanted next, I wanted too.

He pulled me into the building, in a different door, and we walked along the hall. “Look like you belong in here,” he murmured in my ear. I held my head high and mimicked his purposeful stride. This must be the fireman in him. Act like you are in charge, or know what you are doing, and people assume you are, or that you do. “I know this building, I’ve been here before doing fire inspections.” He stopped at a door, turned the handle and listened without putting his ear right up against it. “Occupied,” he said.

I stared at him, wide eyed. “You’re bad!” I laughed, the nervous energy making my entire body buzz with adrenaline.

He winked at me. “You have no idea. Do you want to find out?”

“God, yes,” I panted. My cock throbbed against my leg, pressing against the seams in my pants. I closed my eyes and willed it to behave, to stay unnoticeable, until I could be behind a closed door.

Rhett looked down and bit his lip. “I have the same problem.” He looked up and down the hall, but no one had noticed us yet. “Let’s go.”

He pulled me along again, this time his arm around me. He murmured in my ear as we walked in step. “No one will interrupt us if they see us deep in private conversation,” he said. “So while we are talking, you should know that as soon as we are alone, I’m going to pull out that big delicious cock of yours. Then I’m going to lick you from the bottom of your balls all the way to the tip of your cock.”

I gasped, blinking at his words. My erection throbbed harder. Fuck.

Rhett chuckled, and leaned in closer, whispering again so no one else could hear and he steered me along. “We could get caught, here in the hall with boners — like two horny as fuck teenagers. But you’re no teenager, Oscar. You’re a delicious grown-ass man and I’m going to taste you — and swallow every drop of you.”

“Oh god,” I breathed. I was in risk of my knees buckling. Good thing his rock hard arm was around me.

Just then he grabbed a doorknob, and tried the turn. Locked. I started to walk away and he held me back. He listened at the door and then pulled out a paper clip. “Cover me,” he said.

Cover him? Was he insane? Yes, apparently he was. He leaned against the door and listened to nothing, like he was feeling his way through it. He fiddled with the opened paper clip inside the door lock. This hall was empty, but for how long? Someone could come at any moment.

Just then the door clicked and opened. “Success,” Rhett said. “If anyone is inside, we’ll act like it was a mistake. Just be confident.”

Be confident. Okay. The outrageous danger of what we were doing exploded my senses into overdrive. My heart pounded, my cock strained past my boxers and all I wanted was to get Rhett naked. And to lock the door behind us.