We lay in bed in silence after that. I noticed that, despite having a good night's sleep and the second-best orgasm of my life, it was still only just after eight in the morning, so I was in no rush to get up. Vítor's hand was stroking my back lazily and was dangerously close to sending me to sleep.
"Do you have to go to work on Monday?" he asked.
"No, we have a water leak, so the center is closed next week while the plumbers fix it."
"Do you have to be there?"
"No."
"I need to go to Porto to deal with a couple of things. I'm back on Monday afternoon. I was wondering if you'd like to come with me."
The question caught me by surprise. I sat up in bed, facing him, unsure of how to answer because I didn't know what any of what happened in the last twenty-four hours meant.
"Hey." He sat up and put his hands on either side of my face. I couldn't resist leaning into his touch. "After what happened yesterday, I don't want to leave you on your own. Besides, the weather is meant to be good and there's a place I'd love to show you."
"Okay."
His eyes lit up and he kissed me in such a way that my body was getting ready for round two, until my tummy rumbled.
"Right, we need a shower and breakfast. In that order."
I laughed. "Are you saying I smell?"
He tackled me so I fell on my back, pinned my arms above my head, and he buried his face in my armpits.
"Hmm, you smell divine."
I giggled when he planted soft kisses that revealed how ticklish I was under my arms and all down the sides.
"Unless you're ready for round two, old man, I say we follow your suggestion," I said, pushing him away and running toward the bathroom. He was behind me not a second later, showing me that being older also meant he had a trick or two up his sleeve.
On our way to Porto, we decided to stop for lunch in Aveiro. I'd never been to the aptly named Venice of Portugal, but it didn't disappoint. After lunch, we walked along the canals and admired the colorful boats and houses that gave Aveiro its nickname.
Despite not being directly on the seafront, there was still a small breeze that kept us cool as we walked along the canal. I admired the colorful paintings on the sterns and bows of the gondola-style boats, which depicted scenes from old times.
The seaweed trade had died a long time ago, so the boats were mainly used for tourists to enjoy riding along the canal, and for a moment, I wished we had enough time for a ride.
"I want to help you look for him."
I stopped at Vítor's words, not just because they were unexpected since we hadn't talked about anything personal all day, but also because of the underlying assumption.
"Tiago, I haven't known you long, but I don't believe for a second that you haven't been looking for your brother since the day he ran away."
Once I recovered from his words, I told him about my failed attempts and the struggle with keeping the authorities on my side, especially after they found out I worked at a LGBTQ center.
"Until then, I'd been just one of many people looking for a loved one. Their lack of interest came from the slim chances of actually finding my brother. I made the mistake of asking a detective to meet me at work. We'd had this kid come in. He was in such a bad state, Isaac took him to hospital. I tried to rearrange my meeting with the detective, but he insisted it had to be that day, so I asked if he could stop by the center. After that, they were even less interested in helping me until Fred came along."
"Fred?"
"Frederico Mendes. I met him a few years ago. He actually came by the center to introduce himself. He didn't have a problem with me because he's gay himself. I don't know why, but he took a special interest in my brother's case, and he's been helping me since."
Vítor's face dropped, and I had to think for a moment what the reason could be for the sudden mood drop.
"We're just friends. He was really into Isaac before Max came along and hasn't had anyone since. Besides, he's not my type."
He pulled me into a small walkway between two buildings and pushed my back against the wall, caging me in with his arms.
"What is your type, Tiago?"
