The sound of light knocking rouses me from a deep sleep. I hear Todd saying, “That’s Bernadette, Bailey! Can you open the door? Then you can meet her!”

The sound of my son’s yelling soothes my fear that he’ll be traumatized today from my sister’s visit last night. I will never call her his mother. Before I can alert them all that I’m awake, I hear Sydney’s voice, too. “Yeah, Dad. Get the door. Todd talks about his grandma all the time. I want to meet her.” Warmth blossoms in my heart thinking about the look on Bernadette’s face when I tell her that Todd must refer to her as his grandmother. We may not be related by blood, but I know that Todd and I both consider her family. My parents have been dead for years, and Bernadette’s a wonderful stand-in as a grandma for my son.

“Hi, you must be Bernadette. Please, come in.”

“I don’t want to intrude on your morning. I saw the police here last night, and I wanted to make sure my boys are okay.”

I snicker before calling out, “Bernadette, don’t you even try to fool me. I know exactly who called the police last night. Thank you.” Rolling over to get on my knees, I finally push up to my feet. The picture of the kids dancing around Bernadette’s feet with Snickers right there in the mix, Bailey smiling at me tenderly, and Bernadette beaming as she leans down to meet Sydney is one I never want to forget. “Thank you. I’m doing what you’ve been begging me to do for years.” I cut my eyes down to the little ears in the room. “I’ll be following the proper channels to make sure that can’t happen again.”

Bailey’s face twists in question and his eyes search mine. “I forgot to ask, what happened?”

Bernadette straightens up from the children singing gleefully, “Two someones got to take a ride, and their car was towed this morning.”

With narrowed eyes, Bailey says, “Good.” Then he stalks back to the kitchen. “Coffee’s made if anyone wants some,” comes floating from over his shoulder.

Bernadette and I both follow him into the kitchen. She asks, “What do you guys have planned for today?”

“We’re going to have breakfast, and then I’m going to see what I can do about talking Bailey and Sydney into staying for a while, maybe working on our puzzle. Would you like to stay?” She’s still in her housecoat and slippers, but after years of watching Todd here in the mornings, it isn’t that unusual for her to come over like that.

“Actually, I was going to ask if you guys would like some alone time. Maybe I could take the kids and Snickers to my house and make us a nice big breakfast. It’s quiet over there this morning, and the silence is making me feel a little blue. Would that be okay? Give you guys some time to rest alone.”

“Oh, well…” I look at Bailey who’s nodding so quickly he could be a bobblehead. “You sure you don’t mind Sydney going over there?”

“Sydney?” he calls into the living room.

She runs in with Todd and Snickers right behind her. “Hi, Dad.”

“Hi, Sydney. Would you like to go to Ms. Bernadette’s with Todd and Snickers for breakfast?”

She pumps her little fist into the air, screaming, “Yes,” and then so does Todd, which of course makes Snickers start barking and dancing at their feet.

Bernadette cackles at us. “You two are going to have your hands full.”

Bailey giggles which for some reason reminds me of the question I never asked Bernadette. “How did you know how to fill out the profile for Valentine’s Inc.?”

“A mother listens to what goes unsaid, Clark. When you came home from the gym, you never discriminated about who you talked about. So I took a chance and just told them male or female, didn’t matter, as long as they loved kids. And obviously, they did good,” Bernadette says as she reaches over to rub Bailey’s arm. “Now, no sappy stuff this morning. The kids and I will be back around twelve-thirty for lunch and to work on that puzzle. Enjoy your nap.”

As she exits the kitchen, the kids follow her out talking a mile a minute about what they want to eat and asking if they can watch a movie. Bailey rushes out to help with coats and shoes while I have a cup of coffee. When I hear the door close, I yell out, “Hey, Bailey, you want to lock the front door?”

“I already did.” Then from farther down the hall I hear his voice. “I’m going to take a shower before my nap, Clark. If you’re interested.”

Rushing down the hall, I shed my clothes as I go. The bathroom in the hallway between the three smaller bedrooms is empty, so I head for the one in my room. Sure enough, there’s a naked Bailey disappearing behind the shower curtain as I enter. Not wanting to waste one minute of alone time, I sprint back to the nightstand by my bed and grab lube and a condom, placing them on the ledge of the bathtub as I step into the shower behind Bailey. He spins to face me; he’s beautiful with his red hair plastered over his forehead, his green eyes sparkling up at me.

“Hi.”

“Hi,” I say before moving in to capture his lips with mine. The silkiness of his wet body has my hands gliding seamlessly over him. His hands move up to cup my face as I pull him up tighter to my body, rubbing our hard lengths together.

“Honey?” Bailey murmurs against my mouth.

“Hmm…” He can’t respond as I suck his lower lip into my mouth. His hands trailing down my neck over my chest until he’s lightly caressing my nipples. As I sigh into his mouth, he twists a little harder. My eyes pop open as I let his lip go. “What?”

“I adore how sweet you are to me and Sydney. You’re such a gentle and kind man.” His hands tenderly stroke from my nipples down my sides, as they cup my ass, he squeezes and says, “But, Clark. Your body is hot as sin. I’ve been watching you for months, kissing you for days, and I have a crick in my neck from the way we slept. I need you to quit messing around and fuck me, then cuddle me.”

My eyes widen at his sassiness, but who am I to deny my man. Spinning him away from me, I kiss down his body until I’m on my knees behind him. Circling his tight, pink hole with my tongue. He pushes back so I reach for the lube. As I warm some on my fingers, I whisper his name, causing him to look over his shoulders at me. “Babe, it’s been a long time for both of us. I won’t hurt you. Just let go and feel, but trust me to pace it right for us.”

With the subtle nod of his head, I begin to open him up. Someday I’ll tell him how many times I dreamed at night of this very thing. Watching my fingers disappear into his body is beautiful, listening to him whimper in passion exceeds my fantasies. Once he’s ready for me, I roll the condom on and stand up, turning him to face me. “Ahhh… the advantages of you being so much smaller than me,” I say pulling him up and bracing his leg over my arm while lining my cock up.

“You mean look how lucky I am that you can manhandle me.” I open my mouth to tease him back when he cups my cheeks again and looking me dead in the eyes whispers, “Clark, I love you. Shut up and fuck me. Don’t make me tell you again.”

So I do. Slowly, I push into him until I can feel his skin against my balls, pausing only long enough for him to adjust. The minute he nods his head, I give him what he’s been asking for. It’s not slow, or gentle, and it’s definitely not nice, but it’s so, so good. Keeping my support of his lower body with my arm, I wrap my other arm up his back to hold the base of his head to keep him from hurting himself on the tile as I slam into him. Over and over.

“Bailey, jerk yourself for me. I’m not going to last much longer, and I want to see you come,” I pant.

He reaches between us and his motions are fast and hard, quickly becoming frantic as he approaches his release. As his cum shoots in between us, he cries out. The pressure around my dick as he comes feels as if it’s squeezing my release right out of me, as well. Not being able to hold back, I groan as I push up into him, emptying my cum into the condom inside of him.

Pulling out slowly after catching my breath, I support Bailey’s body as I move him into the center of the shower where the water can wash away his release. I rub gentle, soap covered hands across his belly and chest, then down to wash lightly around his tender, used hole. “There’s my sweet, man. I knew you had it in you, though,” he says to me with a sappy smile.

“Hmm… anything for the man I love.” As tears fill his eyes, I lean in and whisper against his lips, “Can it really be this easy, babe? Is this too fast?”

“I don’t know, but they say third time’s the charm.” We seal it with a kiss before getting out of the lukewarm water, drying each other off, and curling up in my bed together for the first time. But definitely not the last.