Aswe came down from our high,Ipulled out of him slowly, collapsing onto the bed beside him.Icould hear our heavy breathing filling the room and smell the musky scent of sex in the air.
Heturned over, andItook in the sight of his flushed cheeks and swollen lips.Ireached out, running a finger down his chest, feeling the sticky remnants of his release.
"Fuck,Kev,"Isaid, my voice still rough with desire. "Thatwas incredible."
Hegave me a lazy, satisfied smile. "Yeah," he said. "Itreally was."
Andas we lay there, wrapped in each other's arms,Iknew that this was only the beginning of our journey.Iknew that there were still so many thingsIwanted to do to him, so many waysIwanted to make him feel good.
Butfor now,Iwas content to just lie here, basking in the afterglow, feeling his heartbeat against my palm.AndIknew that, no matter what the future held,I'dalways cherish the connection we shared.
“Weshould probably get back downstairs,” he said as he curled tighter against my body.
Ichuckled becauseIwas pretty sure he’d be perfectly fine staying up here all night, ringing in the new year more intimately.Iturn my head, kissing his sweaty brow. “Soon.Ijust want to hold you for a bit longer.”
23
KEVIN
Thedifferencebetween the man who accompanied me to theNewYear’sEveparty and the manI’dcome home with was stark.I’dworried for a minute thatRodneycatching us would put a damper onAnson’smood for the evening, but in the end, a lot of valid points had been made, and he seemed more resolved than ever to not only run for mayor but to win by a landslide.
“Youdo realize you don’t have to turn in the nomination papers in person, right?”He’dbeen practically vibrating with energy this morning when he snuck out of bed before the alarm went off so he could print out the paperwork.Sincethen, he’d been scribbling notes on a legal pad withBartat his side.Ichuckled as a thought struck me. “Doyou think they’ll letBartcome to work with you once you have an office in city hall?Hecould be the city mascot or something.”
Ansonset down his pen and stared at me, his brows knit in confusion. “Exactlyhow much coffee have you had this morning?”
Itwas possibleAnsonwasn’t the only person excited about him taking this next step.We’dspent more of the first thanIcared to admit brainstorming ideas forAnson’splatform, andIcouldn’t wait for him to share his passion with others.Whathad started as a quip to shut downMayorThompsonhad blossomed into a passion to effect change.Iheld up my mug. “Thisis my first.Thethought popped into my head because he’s been extra needy the past couple of days.IfIwant to find him,Ijust need to look for you.”
“Ah, got it.”Hepicked up the pen and started writing again.Iglanced over his shoulder to see what he was working on so hard.Itwas a list of questions and answers.Asif sensing my confusion, he explained, “Idon’t want to rely on my family’s name to win.I’moddly looking forward to people asking tough questions, and this is a trickIlearned in law school.Youwon’t be caught off guard if you spend time thinking about what might be asked so you have the answers on hand.”
Pullinga chair next to him,Iswiped the legal pad.He’dcovered a broad range of topics from fostering community relationships to the need for improved infrastructure and affordable housing.Thelatter had been on both our minds since my mom was still struggling to find a place to live.Ihad a possible solution, but it felt a bit too soon to bring it up.Andeven then, there was a difference between solving her problem and solving an ongoing problem.
“Asfor turning in the papers,IknowIcould mail them in, butI’dlove nothing more than forThompsonto be there whenIwalk in.”Itmight not be healthy for him to be so amused by the thought of enraging the current mayor, but it was fun to watch.Itwas yet another way he’d changed from the uptight manI’dfirst approached about fixing his fence a few months ago. “Havingyou by my side and our family behind us seems like a pretty clear message thatI’mnot going anywhere, andI’mnot doing it alone.”
Myheart melted hearing him talk about our family as a combined thing.Mymom had been spending more time withEleanorwhen she wasn’t atKeith’splace, and she was truly happy, which she deserved.TheLangsfordshad returned to theirFridaynight family dinners, which now includedMom, me, and evenKeithand his family a couple of times.Thebest part was how right it felt for all of us to cook together and then sit around playing games after the table was cleared.Itwasn’t the lifeI’dexpected, but it was definitely the oneIwould work every day to hold on to.
WhileAnsonshowered,Iconsidered signing the first line on the nomination form.Theonly reasonIdidn’t was we were heading over to his parents’ house shortly, and they deserved to be the first to support him.Afterthat, his brothers and their partners could sign, and thenI’dadd my name.Itwouldn’t take him long to get the required signatures, andIdoubted he’d face any of the questions he’d thought of over coffee this morning.Thenext few months would afford the citizens plenty of opportunities to needle him.
Myphone rang whileIwatchedBarttraipsing through the yard.Icouldn’t wait until it warmed up enough to start planting because the shades of brown in the yard following a warm-up that melted the snow were depressing.MaybeAnsonandIcould take his truck to the greenhouse and pick out everything we’d need to bring some early spring color to both of our yards once the threat of a hard freeze was over.
Andyes,Iwas already thinking about spring and beyond with him.Likeany couple, we’d have our ups and downs, but the hardest battle had been won as soon asIcrackedAnson’sgruff exterior.Iwas looking forward to what came next.
Iwas still staring at the nomination papers when warm arms draped over my shoulders.Itwisted around and looked into the eyes of the manIloved.Theman who was going to leadHarmonyGroveinto the future. “Youready for this?”
“Morethan you can imagine.”Heseemed calmer than his early wake-up would have indicated. “AmIgoing to have to ask you if you’ll support me in the spring elections, or are you going to sign the papers?”
Ipretended to think for a moment, remembering the first time we’d been together.Amusementwelled up in my chest, andIsmirked atAnson. “I’mnot sure.Imight want to hold out and see if you’ll beg me?”
“Oh, so that’s how it’s going to be,”Ansonmused.Hereached over my body and picked up the pen. “KevinMickelson, would you do me the honor of being the first to officially pledge his support for my mayoral ambitions?”
Alump formed in my throat asItook the pen with a shaking hand.Itwasn’t as if this signature was anything life-altering, but it felt like it could be.Thiswas just another step in what would become our history together.Andjust likeIhadn’t wanted to assumeIshould be the top name on the page, it settled something inside me, knowing he wanted me to be his first.Isigned my name, filled out the rest of the boxes, and handed the papers to him. “There’sno one elseI’drather support.Ilove you,AnsonLangsford, andIlook forward to seeing what you accomplish this year.”
Hiseyes were glassy asIstood, pressing my hands to his chest.Hisfingers curled around my wrists, holding me in place. “Ilove you too.It’sgoing to be one hell of a year, butIknowI’llget through it with you by my side to keep me grounded.Ilove you too.I’mnot sureI’dbe here without you shoving me out of my comfort zone and breaking down the boxesI’dconstructed for myself.Now, you should probably get dressed so we can head toMomandDad’splace for breakfast.Itwon’t surprise me if she’s invited everyone she knows out for a pancake breakfast in the barn.”
“It’sbecause she loves you,”Ipointed out.Ino longer yearned for a supportive family like theLangsfordmen had.Myfamily might not have been as functional or openly loving as theirs on the outside, butIwas coming to realize that different didn’t necessarily mean bad.Andnow,Iwasn’t just an outsider looking in on what they shared.EleanorandRussellhad welcomed me into their family with open arms, andEleanormade sure my mom knew she was stuck with them now as well. “Isshe already planning a party for after you win?”
“Let’snot get ahead of ourselves.Ifshe has, she hasn’t said anything to me about it yet.”Therare glimpses of the tentative, calculated manI’dmoved in next door to wasn’t unwelcome.Itwas proof that he wasn’t playing at being someone he wasn’t, for my sake.Hewas simply growing into a better, happier version of himself. “Besides,ifIwin the election,I’dlike to do something atHarmonyHouse.Idon’t want it to be a celebration that only includes those who are tied to me through genetics or marriage.Abig part of whyI’mdoing this is for the kids, so it only seems right to do something where they can stop by too.Winor lose, it’s time for me to start putting my attention where it matters, not just my money.”
EverytimeIthought it wasn’t possible to loveAnsonmore, he managed to surprise me.Therewouldn’t be time for him to work on improvingHarmonyHousewhile also running for mayor, butI’dalready been in contact withBilly, and we were in the early stages of streamlining and expanding the services the youth center offered.Iwas looking forward to the start of the spring semester whenI’dspend the afternoons on my days off at the center tutoring and helping grow the job-skills program they were trying to get off the ground.Showingteens they didn’t have to leave town to have a full life would be key to reversing the exodus that always seemed to happen with every graduating class.
