But he didn’t want to think of Winston. Not now. He had something special right before him, and that was what he wanted to treasure, to take with him in the dark when he fell asleep.
“Just hurry, cause I’m not going to last.”
Galen obliged him, using his hands and his mouth, sweet and quick, to bring Bede to pleasure. His mouth was warm, and the sensation of sucking, the swirl of Galen’s tongue, was enough to jolt Bede into coming before he could even take a breath.
He loved the feel of Galen licking him clean, the strokes to his quivering belly, but he didn’t take his forearm from his eyes until he felt a last, soft kiss on the inside of his thigh. Then Galen sat up and moved over Bede, pressing his chest to Bede’s chest, an embrace of body and heat that surrounded him with the beat of Galen’s heart.
“Seriously, are you okay?” Galen asked with a soft kiss to Bede’s shoulder. “Did I hurt you?”
“I’m good,” said Bede. He pulled his forearm away and saw the concern in Galen’s gray eyes. “Just some ghosts, is all.”
“It’s been a long time, yeah?”
This question was asked with warmth and kindness, and when tears prickled in Bede’s eyes, he blinked them away as fast as he could.
“Longer than for you, probably,” said Bede, putting a flip of impudence in his voice to distract Galen. Then, in spite of his earnest desire to stay awake so he and Galen could have a good cuddle, perhaps one that lasted until the end of time, he yawned hugely. “Man, that swim.”
“Yeah,” said Galen. “Me too.” His yawn echoed Bede’s and then he smiled, petting Bede’s chest with long, slow, warm strokes.
“Get your laptop and order the stuff before we both fall asleep,” said Bede, pretending to be gruff, as though Galen had been arguing with him about this the entire night.
“Yes, sir,” said Galen and, with a laugh, he got up, pulled on his boxers, and tugged his laptop from the shelf. Then, while sitting on the edge of the cot, he opened it up and started typing. After a few clicks, he looked up at Bede.
“It’ll be here tomorrow,” he said.
“Can I stay?” asked Bede, and then hid a wince at Galen’s expression, which told Bede that maybe all of this was too much, too fast, for Galen. “I’ll go,” he said.
“You can stay the next time,” said Galen, folding the laptop closed, and replacing it on the shelf. “I just need to—” He paused to tuck his hair behind his ear.
“Get your head around it.”
“Yeah.”
Galen leaned to kiss the middle of Bede’s chest, but he was too far away, and the kiss landed smack in the middle of Bede’s stomach. And since he was very ticklish there, he curled up, burying his laugh of protest in Galen’s pillow.
“Next time for sure,” said Galen, and now his kiss landed in the middle of Bede’s back, and it felt like a secret message that everything would turn out just fine, if only Bede had a little faith. In himself. In Galen. In the future.
Chapter 30
Bede
Saturday was as hot as every other day of the week had been, though, in the afternoon, when they were putting away their knapweed tools, hopefully for the last time, a slip of a breeze kicked up and Bede watched Galen look sagely at Guipago Ridge, a gray line above the trees.
“It might rain,” he said, tipping his cowboy hat back. He looked at them and shook his head. “Then again, it might not.” With a smile, he took off his hat, scraped his hair back, then put it back on again. “Well?” he asked, looking at them as if shocked they were still standing there. “Aren’t you going to go get ready?”
“Ready for what?” asked Bede, and Toby and Owen looked equally puzzled.
“Why, for your two-week anniversary, of course.” Galen shook his head as if they were the biggest fools on earth. “We’ve got reservations at the tavern. John Henton’s Tavern, in town. We’re going to have beers and burgers. Plus, you get your refurb phones with six months of data on them.”
Bede remembered being told about this, the promise. The carrot before the stick. At least that’s what he’d thought two weeks ago. That this was all some big scam to get a whole lot of work out of them without putting much into them.
However, he’d been so deep inside the day-to-day activity of the valley that he’d forgotten to believe he was being taken advantage of. Plus, having a phone to call his own, even if it was a refurb phone with limited data, seemed like a genie’s wish appearing out of nowhere. He hadn’t had access to a cell phone in five years, so it was pretty exciting, even if there was no one to call?—
“Do we have time to spruce up, boss?” he asked, even if he already knew the answer.
“I should certainly hope so.” Galen smiled at them all, though it seemed his smile lingered in Bede’s direction. “Shower. Shave. Clean shirt. Polish your boots. Everything. Make me proud, and meet me in the parking lot around five thirty.”
While the rest of the valley was lining up in the mess tent, Bede hurried to his tent, rushed through his shower, shaved too fast, almost nicking himself three times, and was in the parking lot in plenty of time. Sweating, yes, most of his cologne burned off, but he was ready. He’d never been so ready, not just to go out, to go somewhere other than the valley, but to hang out in a bar with Galen.
