Keep Swimming (13 page)

Cary turned fully toward Heath, clenching his fists. “What do you mean?” he said through gritted teeth, not out of anger but to control himself from begging Heath not to go.

“
I sold out part of the business to Kyle. I can quit working off-shore now that I’ve recouped some of the money I originally invested. Kyle's been on me to get a business partner for years and I couldn't have thought of anyone I'd rather do this with than him. So, he'll stay here and run the service in Pensacola Beach and I’m gonna go start up another location, further down the coast, maybe.”

Cary was flabbergasted. “I-I…” Then he said the only truth he knew. “I’ll miss you.
We
will miss you.”

Heath was at him in two strides, wiping the tears that were falling from his eyes before Cary even knew they'd fallen. Then Heath kissed him on the forehead. “I’ll miss you both, too. I’m sorry it worked out like this Cary.”

“Me, too,” Cary said around the lump in his throat. Why, why did Heath have to go? Why was he quitting that damned driller job now that it was seemingly over with them and why had he not given them another chance?

“
Thanks for teaching me that I need to prioritize. A good friend told me maybe I needed to grow up a little, and I realized that’s the biggest thing I needed to take from this. I can have my dreams, but… There’s a way to do that and not disappoint myself and the other people in my life. I don't suppose growing up ever hurt anybody.”

Cary nodded against the big shoulder he’d leaned his cheek on. Then he stepped back. “Thank you, too.”

Heath’s brow went up.

“
I was so insecure. I really needed to learn to trust myself to make wise decisions in love. I shouldn’t have taken out so many of my insecurities on you. Just… thank you.”

Heath smiled at Cary, eyes too bright for Cary’s liking, before kissing him on the forehead again. “Tell the munchkin I said goodbye. But, I really gotta go,” Heath said, releasing Cary and taking a step back.

Cary watched as Heath walked toward the door. Heath’s hand landed on the doorknob before he turned around. “Just know, you’ll always be the first person I've
ever
been in love with. Stupid, quit-my-job-and-leave-town-to-be-a-better-man
in love
. And I love that little boy too. Thanks for being a part of my life, even when I didn’t know what the hell I was doing, myself.”

Cary had no breath in his lungs. His heart didn’t dare to beat. No thoughts registered. Heath just said he was in love with Cary, or he had been anyway. With Cary and Gus. Why the fuck had it had to get so fucked up?

Heath gave one nod and a two fingered wave goodbye. Then he was gone.

Cary wiped his own eyes this time. He could still feel Heath’s kisses burning on his forehead like a brand, a precious mark.

But he had a tiny wet human to see to. So he walked down the hall and wasn’t shocked at all to see his son was drying off, but his hair was full of mud. “Heaf still here? I forgot to tell him I missed him!” Gus said, smiling broadly.

Cary’s heart stuttered.

What the hell was he doing? His son loved Heath. Heath and Cary loved each other. They’d grown. They’d fumbled through so much bullshit, through storms and they’d almost sunk, but in the end they were still afloat. And Heath had given up his fucking
dream
. And not for Cary, but so he could find something he thought he’d lost with Cary and Gus.
Possibly with someone else.

“
What am I doing?”

“
Being silly again?” Gus asked, brow furrowed.

“
Yes, being so silly,” he said, feeling like the biggest heel that ever lived. He picked up Gus, sweeping him and his towel up in his arms.

“
Wait!” he yelled, knowing he hadn’t even made it outside. He slung the door open. “Wait! Heath!” He made it to the steps, yelling again. “Don’t leave! Heath!”

“
Heaf! Don’t leave!” Gus helped.

He paused when he made it to the top step. And he had to steady himself when he saw Heath leaning against his Jeep, hand on the door handle, forehead leaned on the window.

“Heaf!”

Heath looked up, surprised.

“Don’t go,” Cary said, way too quietly to be heard. He cleared his throat and said it louder. “Don’t go.”

“
Why?” Heath started walking briskly toward them. “Are you okay? What’s wrong?” He sounded panicked, and Cary couldn’t speak. Gus hollered Heath’s name and reached for Heath when he made it over to them.

Heath’s questioning look darted all over, lips compressing in concern. Gus wrapped around Heath like the little leach he was and he said, “Don’t go, Heaf.”

Finally Cary found his voice again. “What he said.”

Realization dawned on Heath’s features. “What are you saying?”

“Don’t go.”

“
Yeah, Heaf, don’t go.”

“
But…” Heath looked from Gus to Cary. Cary took a step closer.

“
Heath, I love you. I’m
in love
with you too. Isn’t this where we realize we almost sank, but we gotta keep swimming?”

Heath laughed with a sob as he wrapped a meaty paw around Cary’s neck and hauled him in for a quick kiss and a long, tight hug. They stood, arms wrapped around each other—all three pair of arms—and Cary had never felt such a perfect moment in his life.

Heath had never been so excited to be finished with a two weeks—this, his final two weeks to serve out his notice. He’d meant it when he said he was finished. He’d sold Kyle the boat he had been running and half share of the business. Heath had offered it to him first and it’d turned out his best friend had been saving every penny he could, hoping one day Heath would cave on the idea of a business partner.

The money covered the last of Heath’s payments on his yacht, while leaving a little to live on, in addition to the savings he’d built up. He’d have been fine relocating, but now that he was staying in Pensacola, he and Kyle would be able to put all their effort into getting the contract they’d lost, mostly because the customer had wanted two boats on call on a somewhat full time basis and Heath’s schedule hadn’t been able to accommodate.

He was under no delusion that he and Cary didn’t have some things left to work through, but they’d talked for hours after they made up and before he headed out this final time. But he knew he’d done the right thing. He’d quit his job and sold half his company, readjusting his dream so that maybe, just maybe, one day if another person came along he’d be able to make someone other than Heath a priority. The fact he’d gotten Cary, Gus,
and
a sense of peace in one fell swoop, that was just a bonus.

He pulled his Jeep into the parking lot of the marina. He had no worries that the homophobic assholes he worked with would show up this time, no old fuck buddies—well, maybe Kyle but there was the promise of free food so it’d be hard to beat him away with a stick.

When he got to the boat and saw the light on inside, a wave of unadulterated joy swept over him, dragging him out into a happy tide he hoped he could float on forever. He went aboard and walked in the cabin, following the sounds of Cary and Gus’s voices to the living quarters below deck. Cary was working on the efficiency stove in the galley and Gus was chattering away at the table, mouth going like a rabid squirrel.

Heath leaned against the door frame, watching as his guys argued with each other as to which side was starboard. “Actually, Cary, you’re wrong,” he said.

Two excited faces jerked in his direction. Gus slid out of his chair yelling, "Heaf." Stepping down one foot at a time, in the careful way the poor little guy had to do it, so Cary made it over first and kissed Heath. He hugged Heath briefly before turning and sticking his tongue out at Gus and saying “Beat you!”

“
Very mature, Whitmore.”

“
What can I say? He answered the question right. I had win something,” Cary said and gave Heath one last peck on the lips before going back to where he’d been cooking. Heath picked up Gus and they discussed what a sore loser Cary was. Heath was briefly taken aback by just how happy he was in such a domestic situation.

After lunch they decided to take the boat out to Mexico Beach, a sort of celebratory outing. They wandered on the beach picking up more shells and Heath thought he’d discuss seashells 'til he was blue in the face. Finally he admitted defeat and fell to sit on the sand, leaving Cary and Gus to their hunting. He’d been traveling all morning so he was worn out.

Cary gave up after a while and came to sit by him. Heath pulled Cary close, tucking him under his arm. Cary put a hand on Heath’s knee and they just enjoyed being there. Together. It didn’t matter who saw them, wouldn’t affect them once they’d gone home. They just sat , enjoying the simple pleasure of  watching Gus chase seagulls happily, and were ready with their phones to look up random shells he may appear with.

“
I gotta run to the bathroom.” Cary thumbed the direction of the public facilities. Heath watched as he walked off, making sure he was inside before calling Gus over. Cary came back a short while later and had no sooner sat down before Gus came back, dropping a handful of shells in Cary’s lap. Cary groaned but helped look them up, Heath chewing his lip to keep himself from laughing.

“
Daddy look!” Gus said.

Cary sighed. “Oh yay,” he said, side-eyeing Heath. “Another one.” He took the proffered shell, but paused, looking at it critically. “What the…” He held up the key attached to the shell so Heath could see. “I think someone lost a keychain.”

Heath and Gus both snickered and Cary eyed them. “Heath, if this is a key to your place, that’s sweet and all, but I already have one.”

Heath shifted toward Cary. “Well, you have one to my boat. But I’m moving off the boat into a new rental. And I was kinda lost before, so I’m…” He felt his cheeks flush, a little embarrassed. He knew he was doing something good, but that didn’t mean he was accustomed to being romantic yet. Assuming Cary thought this was a romantic gesture. That’s how he’d intended it. “This is lame. Sorry. But, I just… I got a new place. A house Kyle’s uncle is renting out. That way I have a permanent place and the boat is freed up for business and—” Cary put a finger over Heath’s lips, rolling his eyes.

“I’d love a key. I’ll get you one for our place.”

“
You never lock your doors, though.”

“
Shut up, Heath.”

“
That’s not nice, Daddy,” Gus said, wagging a finger. Cary snatched his son up and started tickling him. After a few minutes of that, he let Gus go off to look for more shells.

“
Thank you, Heath. It does mean a lot.”

“
I was thinking maybe Gus could help me pick out a dog. I’ve always wanted a dog, almost more than I wanted my business, but with my schedule I couldn’t…” He looked up at Cary whose eyes were full of wonder.

“
This is real, isn’t it?”

“
What?” Heath drew out the word, unsure.

“
This. Us. You’re staying and you’re getting a dog and we’re…”

Heath grunted then huffed a laugh. “Yeah, I s’pose we are, huh?” Cary reached out a hand and placed in on Heath’s cheek. Heath leaned into the touch, soaking up the warmth there. “I love you Cary.”

“I love you, too. So much.”

Heath was overwhelmed, his chest full to bursting. It was the complete opposite of the ache that had been heartbreak, rather like he was full as a tick on love. And he didn’t even care how much a sap it made him to think as much. “
Sometimes things work out how they’re supposed to.”

Heath stood and held a hand out to Cary. Cary took it, Heath giving him a hand up, and they gathered Gus. They walked down the beach, hand in hand. Heath couldn’t remember ever holding anyone’s hand, not even when he was a horny teenager doing about anything he could to get laid. He was glad Cary was who he got to share it with the first time.

Going for the world record for amount of sap in one day?

He laughed at himself.

“What?” Cary asked.

“
Nothing, just being dumb,” he said. Cary hummed in his throat, disbelieving.

Like their first trip to Mexico Beach, Gus fell asleep in Heath’s lap on the return trip. He refused Cary’s offers to take him until it was time to dock. They’d made it back with plenty of daylight left so Heath thought maybe he’d break out the grill and they’d make a regular party out of it. Maybe he’d be nice enough to call Kyle.

Or he could just call him tomorrow and let him have leftovers.

Heath went back below deck after doing final checks and found Cary, ass in the air, digging through the refrigerator. Heath moved up behind Cary, rubbing his hands down the shapely, firm globes of Cary’s ass. Cary raised his torso slowly, wrapping an arm backward around Heath’s neck, moaning as Heath ground his cock against Cary’s ass.

Heath licked behind Cary’s ear before sucking in one of his earlobes.
Oh hell, yeah
. He loved the sounds coming from the man—the man he loved, who loved him. It was a heady feeling having that much power over someone and knowing they had it over you.

“
Heath, baby, are you here?” Heath paused at the sound of the woman’s voice up top. Cary turned to him, brows raised high.

“
Oh, no,” Heath said, grumbling as he backed away from his boyfriend.

Cary snorted, once, twice, then laughed aloud.

“Heath are y’all down stairs?”

“
Yes, Mama. Give us just a second!” Heath said, petulantly.

Cary fell forward on Heath’s chest and laughed silently there. “Why, Heath, why do people show up unannounced so often? I swear your boat is a bad luck charm or something.”

“Maybe I should trade with Kyle,” Heath mumbled.

“
Hm. Maybe,” Cary said. “Well, I suppose I can’t storm out on this one.” Cary straightened from where he’d been leaning on Heath. He held out his hand. “Let’s do this. Gotta keep swimming and all.” Cary gave him a wink. Heath gave an exaggerated roll of his eyes so Cary knew he was imitating him. He took Cary’s hand, tangling their fingers.

“
You say that now,” he said as he started pulling Cary along. As he took a step up toward the upper deck, he turned to Cary. “But
you
get to deal with her blubbering and talking about her plans for her new grandbaby.”

Cary’s eyes went wide. “Wh-what? Why would she…”

“Just stand in her way, I dare you.”

Cary tried to pull free of Heath’s grasp. “Why, Cary, whatever is the problem, darlin’?”

“I think I’ll go for that swim now.”

Heath raised an eyebrow. “How you figure you’ll do that?”

“Jump overboard.”

Heath guffawed, couldn’t hold it back. He pulled Cary close. “Good God, Cary. I love you.”

“Yeah,” Cary said, quietly. “I know.”

THE END