“I never thought I’d see this place again.” Tanner said quietly as he stepped carefully into the cabin. He noted the floor creaking and nodded, as if silently agreeing with Lars that the boards would have to be replaced.

“Yeah, I wanted to have it fixed up for you before, well before you came back to it. I wasn’t sure if you would or not…given the last time.” He trailed off looking around. There wasn’t much to look at. The kitchenette had survived but needed a good cleaning. The mice had left droppings in the cupboard and long since carried off the rice that had been stored in the cabinets. The table and chairs had remained intact. They were red pleather and leaking stuffing in one corner of a chair, but otherwise the mice had gone for the easier fodder of the couch and bed.

“I wasn’t sure if I’d come back either. I figure this place would have rotted away a long time ago.” He admitted. He sat gingerly in the chair with the rip and a whoosh of air let out that made both men grin.

“I didn’t get a chance to clean out the chimney yet.” Lars gestured to the dormant fireplace. He would have started a fire to make the place cozier while he worked, but there was always the chance of a chimney fire with built up creosote or nesting critters. It was safer to sweep it out first.

“I appreciate the effort, but it isn’t necessary.” Tanner said.

“Why not? This place used to be an escape from the outside world.” Lars asked.

“Sometimes, the past just doesn’t need stirring up.” Tanner countered.

“Ok, are we talking about us, or are we talking about whatever happened in Florida?” He asked. He hadn’t pressed Shirley any more about it. She had such a strong opinion about Miami, he wasn’t sure that opinion didn’t extend to all of Florida, and at her age, trying to change her mind would have been futile.

“I’m not sure.” Tanner admitted. Lars nodded. He had been afraid of this, but he wasn’t going to let it deter him.

“Ok, I can respect that, but that doesn’t mean this place should go to waste. It’s a beautiful spot and maybe someday…if you decide to have kids or something…” He trailed off.

“Kind of hard to have kids if you’re gay.” Tanner said quietly.

“Says who? This day and age, there’s always adoption or surrogacy.” Lars responded. Tanner shrugged in agreement. He couldn’t argue that, but Lars worried he wanted the place gone and forgotten, not to be shared with anyone because of the sentiment it held between the two of them. If it was truly what he wanted, Lars wasn’t going to divulge that to anyone. “Well, it may be your Gram’s name on the title, but this place means something to me too Tanner. And I think we should fix it up and that way if you decide, you can at least sell it. If not, it gives the mice a new playing field.”

“Fair enough.” Tanner got to his feet and walked over to the cabinet and grabbed the old wicker broom that had somehow managed to remain intact, if not a bit moldy. He began sweeping the mice droppings out of the cabin and Lars worked to free the shredded curtains from the windows. He wanted to turn to him every few moments, but somehow, the peace of their silence was one he didn’t think needed to be broken just then.

It was some time later when they had worked on cleaning out the fireplace and wiping out the cabinet and washing the windows by a pail of melted snow that they had warmed over the embers of the fire, that Lars stopped and admired the heavy muscles working under his t-shirt. He had enjoyed the silence, it was comfortable for a time, but now he wanted to push Tanner a little, just a little as he had done when they first came together.

He walked over to him and placed a palm on his shoulder. He felt him stiffen but then relax under the weight and he turned toward him.

“Lars.” He began, but Lars silenced him by leaning in and brushing his lips over Tanners. It was a soft kiss, one of greeting, and he didn’t press for anything more. He broke the kiss and stepped back, searching his friends gaze. Tanner shivered a little, but he didn’t think it was from the cold. They had moved the fire into the cabin after they had swept out the chimney, and the cabin was cozy again as they worked. He reached up and wiped a streak of soot from Tanner’s cheek, and his eyes fluttered closed as he leaned his face into Lars’ hand.

“I missed you too Tanner.” He murmured. Tanner exhaled slowly, like he was letting something go and he swayed toward him and Lars was just about to reach out and pull him into his arms when they heard the faint sound of the buzzing of snowmobiles.

They pulled on their jackets and stepped out the door just as two riders in helmets and Boothbay PD jackets rode up. Ollie pulled his helmet off and one of his buddies who Lars had never met but only seen around town, did the same.

“Well, I figured it wouldn’t be long before I caught you two boys at it again.” He sneered at them. Lars raised an eyebrow.

“Caught us at what Officer Ollie. We haven’t done anything wrong.”

Ollie killed the engine and got off the snowmobile and his fellow officer did the same.

“That’s debatable. I wondered how long it would take you two to start up again. It’s not natural. People are already talking, and I don’t like my town to be the place where those sorts of rumors start flying.” He was being deliberately insulting without being blunt, and the passive aggressiveness pissed Lars off even more. Tanner on the other hand, remained just as silent and observatory as ever.

“I don’t live my life based off of the opinions of others Ollie. If I did, I never would have remained here.”

“Maybe you shoulda run off. And that’s Officer Ollie. You disrespecting the law again?”

“You aren’t the law Ollie, you are just the upholder of it, and since we haven’t done anything illegal, you are also trespassing.” Lars countered. Ollie glared at him.

“You have a permit for that fire?” He asked. Lars slipped it out of his pocket and handed it over. It was all legal so there was nothing he could do to them for having it. He crumpled it up and chucked it back at Lars. It bounced off his chest and landed in the mud, but Lars bent and picked it up and folded it neatly, putting it back in his pocket after wiping the mud off as best as he could.

Ollie turned his attention back to the cabin. “What are you hiding in there? More of your kind?” He asked Tanner. His buddy behind him chuckled.

“Nope. Just fixing the place up for my Gram for this summer if she feels like a visit.” Tanner responded evenly. He had probably seen enough shit in the city that Ollie’s blatant homophobia did little to rile him, but Lars was at his breaking point.

“Buildings not up to code to live in. I’ll just have a look around and see what citations there are.” Ollie took a step towards the cabin door, but Tanner stepped in front of him.

“The building is not a permanent residence, year-round, and therefore can’t be held to the same standards. It is a summer dwelling and subject to the same codes as the summer homes on the coast, back in town. It isn’t summer yet, and you don’t have a warrant to search the premises, and no probable cause other than your discrimination. You aren’t the only one with a badge here, Ollie, so either go get a warrant, or get off the property for trespassing.” Tanner finished. Ollie thought a moment then smiled.

“This isn’t your property either. It’s Shirley’s.” He stated, obviously pleased with himself that he had one-upped Tanner. “Technically, you are trespassing too.”

Tanner smiled, equally as cold, and there was something that flashed in his eyes. Some hardened emotion that he had obtained in years on the force in the city. “Go ahead. Go up to the house and ask her if we have permission to be here. Let me know how that works out for you, because we both know she may be eighty, but she will roll up one side of you and down the other. I’d like to see if you have the balls to take her on. She’d be down with her cronies at town hall so fast we both know you’d be spinning across the ice in the parking lot on that shiny badge that you think makes up for your lack of balls.”

Ollie snarled at him and Lars and the other officer stepped toward them. The other officer, Officer Bricker, as his name badge proclaimed, seemed to have a modicum of sense because he tugged on Ollie’s arm.

“Come on man, we’ve got nothing here and you know it. We’ll come back another time when we got something.” Lars glared at him and he glowered back, giving him a once over that was meant to make him feel like scum, but his lip curled back, recognizing who the worst of the two of them were if it were a judge of character.

“You should never have come back here.” Ollie threatened Tanner softly. “You don’t know the shit storm you stepped in by showing your face around here again. I warned you once.”

Tanner smiled coldly. “Nothing I haven’t handled before Ollie and if you think it takes the likes of someone like you to scare me off, you’ve got another thing coming.”

Ollie pulled his helmet back on and turned the engine of his snowmobile on. He didn’t say another word but the two of them sped off, spitting up snow and mud in their tracks.

Lars turned to Tanner, “What did he mean by, he warned you once?”