Chapter 17
“I
thought
your family was supposed to be exceptionally polite. Doesn’t showing up uninvited to someone’s house en masse violate the country club rules of social order?”
Ford looked away from the open refrigerator. “Yes, it does, but Laura’s the only one who belongs to a country club and she isn’t—”
The doorbell rang, and from the living room, his sister Kimberly called out, “That’s probably Laura and Craig. I’ll get it.”
Ford slumped his shoulders and stared into the refrigerator again. “I stand corrected.”
“No matter how hard you look, food isn’t going to appear.” Trevor rubbed his palm over Ford’s back. “But it’s after eight. I’m sure they all ate by now. They’re not here because they’re hungry.”
“Well, I’m hungry. We missed dinner.” Ford stood and closed the refrigerator.
“We got distracted.” Trevor pulled him into his arms and kissed his neck. “Tell me what you want to eat and I’ll have it delivered.”
“You have St. Louis food delivery places on speed dial?”
“Better. I have an American Express Black Card.”
“Of course you do.” Ford chuckled. “You keep spoiling me.”
“Get used to it,” Trevor rumbled against Ford’s heated skin.
“Hi, Ford. I brought cheese and crackers. Where do you want me to put… Oh.”
Ford looked up and saw his sister Laura standing next to the kitchen table, staring at them with a large tray in her hands.
“You can put it down there.” He nudged his chin toward the table. “I’ll get plates.” He walked over to the cabinets.
“Sorry. I, uh.” She cleared her throat and jerked her gaze away. “I just, uh, didn’t expect to see you like that.”
Ford bit the inside of his cheek to refrain from pointing out that his engagement was the entire reason his sisters and their husbands had shown up at his house unannounced, so seeing him hugging his fiancé couldn’t be classified as unexpected.
“You’ll be careful around the kids, right, Ford?”
“He’s in his house, and I’m going to be his husband. Learn to expect it. And if you don’t want your grown kids being exposed to a hug, don’t bring them over when I’m here because you can count on them seeing me touching their uncle.” Trevor stomped over to him, his jaw ticking and his blue eyes stormy. “Here, I’ll help you with those.” He reached for the plates.
“You’re out of line, Laura.” Ford sighed and caressed Trevor’s arm. “Why are you here? I was hoping it was to congratulate us, but if you’re looking for a debate, I’m not up for it.”
“We came to be supportive,” said Kimberly as she walked into the room. She glared at Laura. “Right?”
“Yes. Geesh. Stop with the overprotective big sister act and give me two seconds to get used to this, okay?” She ran her palms down the front of her skirt, straightening it. “I’ve never seen Ford with anyone and suddenly he’s…with a guy. It’s a big change.”
“You should have listened to me years ago when I told you he was gay. Then you’d be all caught up.” Judy’s husband Thom strolled into the room. “Guess I’m not as dumb as you and Craig like to say, huh?” He opened the refrigerator. “What do you have to drink, Ford?”
“You knew I was gay?”
“Yeah.” Thom leaned farther into the refrigerator and came out with an almost-empty bottle of orange juice. “Is this all you have?”
“I wasn’t expecting company. How did you know I was gay?”
“Just knew.” He shrugged. “Pretty sure your father suspected too. Wasn’t sure if you’d ever admit it.” He flicked his gaze to Trevor and smiled broadly. “But bringing someone like him home, I didn’t see coming. When you lay down your cards, you go all in, man. Way to go.” He put the orange juice back in the fridge and tipped his chin toward Trevor. “I voted for your dad. Both times.”
Laura gasped.
“That’s right, I’m a Democrat. All sorts of things are coming out of the closet. You’re okay if I bring over some beer, right, Ford?” He swaggered away. “Hey, Judy, baby. I’m going to the store to get drinks. Do you have the keys?”
They all watched Thom leave and then Ford shook off the surprise at his proclamation and refocused on his sister. “Laura, I appreciate you coming over, but you don’t need to stay if you’re uncomfortable.”
“I’m fine.” Laura marched over and hugged him. “You’re my brother and I love you.” Her back was stiff and her lips tight, but he knew she was trying.
“I love you too.” He patted her back awkwardly.
“I’ll adjust, Ford. We’ll all adjust.”
“Okay.” He smiled weakly when she finally pulled away and left the room.
“Are you all right, Ford?” Kimberly asked.
He nodded.
“You tell me if you need anything.” She scooped up the cheese tray and the plates. “I’ll put these on the coffee table so people don’t run in and out of the kitchen and make a mess.”
As soon as she was gone, Ford turned back into Trevor’s arms and leaned on him.
“You described your siblings really well. We have protective older sister Kimberly who’s married to never around Bob, uber-conservative middle sister Laura who’s married to nice guy Craig, and wild child Judy who’s married to black sheep Thom. He’s my favorite, by the way.”
“That’s right. Now that you’ve met them, they can all go home.”
“Laura brought snacks and Thom went out for drinks.” Trevor held him tightly and kissed the side of his head. “I think they’re staying for a while.”
Ford whimpered.
“If it really bothers you, we can probably scare them off by making out in front of them.”
“I am not making out in front of my sisters.”
“Okay. Then you better buck up, camper, because there is a party in your living room.”
“I prefer the kind of party we were having in there earlier,” Ford whispered.
“Me too. We can get back to that after they leave, but for now, our entertainment’ll have to be seeing your sister Laura sit on the same spot where I had my bare ass earlier.”
“You’re terrible,” Ford said, but his lips twitched.
“Uh-huh, terrible.” Trevor put his hand on Ford’s back and steered him out of the room. “Oh, look, I was right.” He flicked his gaze to Laura sitting on the couch.
“Cut it out.” Ford nudged his shoulder against Trevor’s.
“Made you smile.” Trevor gripped Ford’s waist and grinned at him.
“That you did.” Ford leaned into him. “I love you.”
From the corner of his eye, he saw Laura watching them, her previously bitter expression sweetening.
“I love you too.”
“How was your week?” Ford mumbled against Trevor’s mouth, unwilling to move any farther away.
“Good. Busy but good.” Trevor nibbled on Ford’s lips and dragged his hands up Ford’s back, pressing his fingertips into the muscles as he pushed Ford against the closed door.
Somewhere along the path from unknown one-night stand to frequent sexual partner to good friend, Ford had fallen hard for the distinguished in the boardroom, dirty in the bedroom president’s son. Loving Trevor was easy, admitting it had been challenging, but now that Ford had told his family and the world who Trevor was to him, he resented having to spend any time apart. Unfortunately, both of their careers demanded long hours and travel, so Trevor had left St. Louis on Sunday and Ford’d had to satisfy himself with telephone calls until they’d both been able to fly into DC on Saturday morning.
“What’d you do?”
“Worked.” Trevor moved his hands forward and skimmed them over Ford’s chest. “San Francisco Monday and Tuesday, New York the rest of the week.”
“Just work? Nothing fun?” Ford tipped his head to the side, giving Trevor room.
Trevor shook his head and then dragged his teeth across Ford’s neck. “Meetings all day. The only entertainment I had was seeing a couple of unwitting street performers when I went outside to get some polluted air.”
“Funny.” Ford chuckled. “And what type of street performers? Were you by Times Square?”
“No. These guys were less…professional.”
“What do you mean?”
Leaning back so their eyes met, Trevor said, “In San Fran, there was a man riding a bicycle with a bottle of bleach in one hand and a gasoline container in the other singing ‘Luck Be a Lady.’”
“Um.” Ford arched his eyebrows. “That sounds pretty ominous. What was he doing with them?”
“No idea.” Trevor shrugged. “Whatever it was, he didn’t make the news, but he had a surprisingly good Sinatra impression.”
“I’m sure that’ll serve him well in his endeavors. Whatever they might be.”
“It’s best for everyone involved not to think about that.”
“True.” Ford nodded. “Did the New York entertainment have lower criminal overtones?”
“I guess that depends on how you look at it. We saw the guy in New York get arrested so he’s more of a criminal in the official sense, but he strikes me as pretty harmless.”
“What’d he do?”
“Stood on the corner naked, bent over, and flashed his ass at people driving by.” Trevor paused and then his smile widened. “The funny thing is, that isn’t the first time I’ve seen someone do that on that very corner.”
“Same guy?”
“I don’t think so.” He shook his head. “But the lighting isn’t great and I wasn’t that close, so I guess it’s possible. This one was singing Lionel Richie.”
“You have really interesting serenades.”
“Mmm hmm.” Trevor dipped forward, brushed their lips together, and then picked up Ford’s suitcase. “I’ll put this away while you look around.”
“I’m surprised it took you this long to add the Ritz Carlton to your five-star hotel tour.” Ford darted his gaze around the wide open, brightly lit space. “It’s gorgeous.”
“I like the smaller boutique hotels. This property is huge, so it’s not somewhere I’d usually stay but…” Trevor flattened his palm on Ford’s back and caressed him. “I’ll explain why we’re here in a minute, but first I need to return a work call. Poke around and tell me what you think of the place.”
“Okay.” Ford shot his hand out and grasped Trevor’s shirt before he could walk away. “One more kiss.”
Eyes warm and adoring, Trevor leaned toward him and slid their mouths together. “Better?”
“Yeah.” Ford licked his lips, trying to capture Trevor’s flavor.
“Good.” Trevor kissed him again and then turned down a hallway to their right. “I’ll put your bag away. Don’t forget to check out the balcony and the office.”
Ten minutes later, Ford was drinking water and staring at five crystal chandeliers hanging over a white granite countertop in a kitchen bigger than his apartment.
“That took longer than I expected.” Trevor walked in and wrapped his arms around Ford’s waist. “What do you think of this place?”
“I think ten thousand square feet is too big for any hotel suite, even if it is the Ritz, and putting sparkling glass in a place where people cook is a cleaning nightmare.”
“It’s less than six thousand square feet and you don’t need to worry about cleaning because it comes with maid service. All the other hotel amenities too. Sport club, room service, valet—”
“Wait.” Ford scrunched his eyebrows together. “What are we talking about here? I feel like I’m missing something.”
“We’re getting married in a month. I assume that means I get to live with you.”
The reminder of their quickly upcoming wedding date warmed Ford’s heart and thinking of living with Trevor, sleeping with him, hardened his cock.
“Yeah.” He set the water bottle down and moved closer to Trevor, pressing their bodies together. “I get you every night.”
“Yes, you do.” Trevor leaned forward and nibbled on his ear. “Would you like to spend those nights here?”
Ford moaned and spread his legs, making room for Trevor’s thigh between them.
“Ford?”
“Huh?” He pressed down against the hard muscle, riding Trevor’s leg.
“Do you like this place enough to live here when we’re in DC?”
“Live here?” Ford leaned back and blinked several times, trying to focus.
“Yes. I’m in and out a lot and you have your trips to Missouri, but we’ll both be spending at least half our time here when you’re in session, right?”
Ford nodded.
“Was your plan for me to move into your studio? Because from what you’ve told me, it’s too small for one person, let alone two. And instead of renting an office, I’ll probably work from home when I’m here, so I’ll need something big enough to hold meetings, preferably with a separate entrance. This place has four suites, each set up to have a private entrance. We can keep one for us, use two for your family when they come visit, and I can turn the fourth into an office.”
“You’re buying a hotel for us to live in?”
“I’m thinking about buying this condo for us to live in, but only if you like it. They have other units in this building and in the Georgetown location, but this is the only penthouse on the market.”
“I didn’t know you could live in a hotel.”
“Some of them. The Ritz and the Four Seasons have residences in several of their locations. So? What do you think? Should we buy it?”
Ford glanced around the opulent kitchen. “Trev, I don’t care where I live. I just want to be with you and do right by my constituents. If you like it and it’ll make it possible for you to spend more time in DC without neglecting your work, then yeah, buy it.”
“Good. I’ll call the broker this afternoon and tell her to make an offer. Did you eat on the plane?”
“Yeah. They had a hot breakfast all prepared for me.” Ford combed his fingers through Trevor’s hair and gazed into his smoky blue eyes. “You didn’t have to do that. I could have grabbed a bagel or something.”
“I like taking care of you, honey.” Trevor cupped his cheek. “It’s funny. I’ve never even had a pet so I didn’t know how much I’d like doing that.” He grinned, dimples flashing. “You’re teaching me new things about myself.”
“Are you comparing me to an animal?” Ford crossed his arms over his chest.
Trevor threw his head back and laughed. “Well, you do sometimes make those animal sounds in bed…”
“You’re lucky I missed you or I’d be mad.” Ford playfully shoved at Trevor’s shoulder.
“Does that mean I have special Get Out of Jail Free status right now? Because that would really come in handy.”
“Why? What’d you do?” Ford narrowed his eyes and tried to look upset, but the truth was, he had missed Trevor and seeing his bright smile made Ford so happy he likely wouldn’t be able to muster up anger for any reason.
“I made lunch plans for us.”
“Oh. Sure. I’ll get a salad or something because I had that late breakfast, but I don’t mind going to lunch. The company’s more important than the food anyway.”
“I’m glad you feel that way because we’re having lunch at the White House with my parents and then we’re meeting with their event planner to go over details for the wedding.”
“I thought we were seeing them on Tuesday?” Ford’s breath quickened and his eyes widened.
“Change of plans.”
“But I’m not emotionally prepared to meet them yet.” He grabbed onto the counter. “I thought I had a few more days.”
“As it turns out, being president of the United States means you occasionally get pulled away unexpectedly, so we had to reschedule.”
“Don’t tease me. I have to meet the parents of the man I’m going to marry, which is intimidating enough. But they also happen to be the president and a woman who has a reputation for bringing roomfuls of people to their knees. I’m allowed to be nervous.”
“I’ll protect you.” Trevor pulled him into his arms.
“You’re still teasing me,” he said, the words muffled by Trevor’s shirt.
“I can’t help it. You’re adorable.” Trevor reached down and squeezed his butt. “All joking aside, what’s the ETA on the end of your freak-out? Because we need to leave in the next few minutes or we’ll be late.”
Trevor’s nonchalant demeanor calmed Ford down. “Fine. Let’s go. I can melt down when we have more time.”
“Good plan. We’ll schedule a meltdown for you later.” Trevor kissed Ford’s cheek and began walking out of the room.
“You’re not funny.”
“I’m hilarious, and you have nothing to worry about. My parents are excited to meet you.” He paused. “Or their version of excited, anyway.”
“That’s nice.” Ford let out a relieved breath. “And I’m sure they’ll want to talk about personal things, not grill me about my politics, so I’ll be fine.”
Trevor turned to him, his eyebrows raised. “Have you been listening when I talk about my parents? They will most definitely want to talk about politics, and if they touch on anything personal, it’ll be brief and ultimately related to politics.”
“Really? You think they’ll want to have a debate over lunch?”
“Not a debate.” Trevor stopped walking, grasped Ford’s shoulders, and looked into his eyes. “Honey, you do understand what’s going to happen, right? My dad’s in his second term. That means there are no more elections in his future. As soon as he’s out of office, the two of them are going to focus on your career. And when I say focus, I mean focus.” He took Ford’s hand and walked toward the door.
“They’ll want to help with my career even though I’m not a Democrat?”
“Who says you’re not a Democrat?”
“Uh, my voter registration card?”
“Tell me that again after you’ve spent some time with my mother.” Trevor grinned dangerously. “She can be very persuasive.”
“Doesn’t matter how persuasive she is. If you take my parents’ level of upset about the whole gay son marrying a man thing and multiply it times ten, you still won’t reach the nightmare that would be their reaction to my running for office as a Democrat.”
“I know.” Trevor held the hotel door open, stepped aside, and put his hand on Ford’s lower back as he walked by. “I’m looking forward to watching our parents talk about your campaign. It’ll create a bigger bang than whatever that guy in San Francisco did with the gasoline and bleach.”