back

Title: The One Where I Finally Write A Sequel
Author:
Pairing: CarTrick, Lambs
Part: 1/1
Sequel To: The One With The View Of The City
Series: "The One" Series
Rating: NC-17
Disclaimer: Fiction for entertainment purposes, not to be taken as truth.
Warnings: Slash Warning. AU Warning. Bi Groupal Warning
Notes: So many people asked for a sequel to this story and I love my lambs! So I figured why not.

~*~*~*~*~*~

Chris hadn’t intended on being late to work. He’d set Nick's alarm, giving him more than enough time to shower, dress and get to the bar. But then Nick woke up with him, decided to join Chris in the shower and from there, they both lost track of time. In his defense, Chris was only 45 minutes late, it could have been worse. Had Nick gotten his way, Chris would still be on his back, getting his dick sucked.

Again.

The entire ride up to the fifty first floor, Chris tried to wipe the freshly fucked glow from his skin, not to mention the big toothy grin from his lips. So not happening. He knew that he was in shit the second he stepped into Panorama and saw Lance behind the bar, a grimace on his face, eyes slanted and shooting daggers, aimed to kill. They still weren’t officially opened, but Lance looked ready to explode.

"Where the fuck have you been?"


Chris’ blood froze at the anger in Lance’s voice. He knew to proceed with caution.

"Sorry, was running late. I got detained." Chris fought not to let Lance upset his wonderful mood. He knew how stressed his boss had been lately, with the bar and the financial side of things. And his continual cat and mouse games with Justin were only adding to Lance’s frustration.

"Fuck your boyfriend on your own time," Lance bit out angrily. Chris’ eyes narrowed.

"Technically, I did." Chris pointed out coolly. He was not going to be bullied by the younger man and stood his ground. The two men glared at each other until Lance finally relented. He took a deep breath, massaged his temples and raised one hand in the air. Without saying a word, he shook his head and walked away, leaving Chris to stand in silence.


Chris knew this wasn’t over. Lance would go to his office, brood bout whatever was stressing him out this time and then come back to apologize. Chris took his place behind the bar and started to do his stock up. Lance had done most of it, leaving him only the last few things to do. They opened in fifteen minutes, which would give Chris more than enough time to do what he had to do. Thankfully, they often didn’t get customers for at least a half an hour after they opened. Chris nodded at Anna, the hostess that opened with him and headed to the back for the last of his juice.

It was nearly an hour later when Lance emerged. Chris expected the younger man to approach him so they could talk about whatever was bothering him. He was stunned when Lance didn’t. Instead, he occupied a table in the corner, ordered himself a salad and a beer and buried himself in his books. His posture clearly indicated his desire to be left alone. Chris granted him that luxury.

He was going to let Lance brood in the corner by himself. Lance would talk when he was ready, which would only make the conversation that much easier. If Chris pushed, Lance would be on the defensive. He had to wait until the younger man was ready to open up to him. There was a point in the night when Chris saw Lance staring at him. When Chris tried to give him a smile to say that they were cool, Lance simply stared at him with an expressionless face and went straight back to business, as if he hadn’t even seen him.

"What crawled up Lance’s ass and died?" Christina asked with a sneer. Her boss had yet again snapped at her for not refilling his drink fast enough. It was the third time he’d yelled at her in less than an hour.

"Don’t know sweetie," Chris shrugged, pouring Lance’s Heineken.

"Well, he just said that if I don’t get my shit in gear, he’s going to find another waitress competent enough to do my job."

Chris’ jaw dropped. Never once had Lance ever spoke to any of them like that, and he was starting to worry about him. He didn’t need to ask if Christina was serious, he could tell by her facial expression that she was.

"Watch the bar for a second," Chris said, face full of determination. He removed his apron and approached Lance. As soon as he approached the table, Lance spoke.

"What?"

"Want to tell me what’s wrong?"

"You’re not at the bar, that’s what’s wrong." Lance’s eyes were hard, his tone of voice harder. "I don’t pay you to ..."

"Fuck my boyfriend. I got that one already. Loud and fucking clear."

Lance looked up and glared at Chris. Chris glared back.

"I as going to say that I don’t pay you to meddle in shit that isn’t your business. So fuck off."

"You firing Chrissy is my business," Chris said, unimpressed. He raised an eyebrow and dared Lance to respond.

Lance only sighed and rolled his eyes. He was too angry to deal with their theatrics tonight. "I wasn’t serious." Like he had to state that point. He hadn’t fired anyone ever before and he wasn’t about to start.

"She seemed to think you were."

Lance rubbed his eyes and fought to keep his temper in control. He looked at Chris as if Chris were a small child and spoke with a very condescending voice. "It was a warning. I didn’t fire her."

"One more warning like that," Chris said, his voice equally as condescending, "and you won’t have to fire her. She’ll quit." He paused for a second. "Just a warning for you."

Lance opened his mouth to speak but no sound came out. He took a deep breath and averted his eyes to the scenery, wishing that he was anywhere but right there that minute. As if fate was trying to torture him, Lance heard the elevator sound and two familiar faces appeared at the door. His mood worsened instantly. His face contorted to a mask of disgust and he stood up abruptly, startling Chris. Without a word, he headed through the restaurant towards the back, to his office.

Chris stood at the table in shock. By the time he got to the bar, Nick and Justin were waiting for him, each perched on a stool. He blushed as he saw the look on Nick’s face, his groin tightened instantly. It was an expression of an innocent boy mixed with seductive temptation. Chris’ mind reverted back to earlier that afternoon, waking up to find Nick looking down at him, leisurely stroking his erection, waiting for him to wake up.

Instead of gawking at Nick, Chris smiled at Justin, who wasn’t smiling at all. "How have you been?"

Justin shrugged, the frown intensifying. "Busy. Screwed up." Distracted, he looked to where Lance had just stormed off and disappeared. "Is he coming back out?"

Chris gave a shrug. "He’s in a ripe mood tonight. Can’t for the life of me figure it out. It’s been tense for the past few weeks, but tonight seems to be worse than ever."

Justin groaned inwardly. He knew exactly why Lance was in a bad mood. It had to do with him and the fact that although he had promised to call the other man, two weeks had gone by without him doing so. He had been so caught up with work, that he kept putting it off and putting it off. And when Lance finally phoned him for a date, he had been forced to decline because of previously made plans.

Lance hadn’t been too impressed. They had endured a very awkward conversation with Lance claiming that he was too old for this shit and for Justin to call when he knew what he wanted. For real.

That conversation had taken place two days ago. Justin had felt like shit since then and clearly, so had Lance. All he could think about was Lance and the huge mistake he was making in screwing around with his emotions. And patience. He knew that he wanted Lance, there shouldn’t have been a problem. Except that Justin was practiced in screwing up relationships, especially ones that had the potential of something unbelievable and amazing.

Nick glared at his brother, a knowing expression decorated his face. "What have you done?"

"What?" Justin squeaked, his cheeks turned pink. "I ...don’t ..."

Nick raised his eyebrows daring his brother to refute his suspicions. "What did you do? Or didn’t do?" He knew his brother well, and how he tended to get in relationships. As much as he loved the younger man, he equally as much wanted to throttle him sometimes.


Chris saw the exchange between Nick and Justin and shook his head. "Nah, it’s probably just..."

"Something to do with Justin," Nick insisted. He was sure of it. And the fact that Justin hadn’t refuted his claims only verified his suspicions. "You ass."

Justin looked up to see Chris glaring at him now. He wasn’t afraid of Nick, he knew that Nick would never do him bodily harm. Chris though, he wasn’t so sure of that. Chris had given Justin fair warning one night when the three of them were hanging out at Nick’s apartment. There were rules to dating Lance. Well, one rule. But it was a big one.

No games.

No games meant no bull shit.

If Justin wasn’t serious, he should make it known immediately. Justin had assured first Chris, then Lance, that he hated games too.

Yet he was stringing Lance around. Playing with him. It didn’t mater that it wasn’t intentional. He was still doing it. Chris had also warned Justin of what would happen if he hurt Lance. Instinctively, Justin’s hand went to his groin and he cupped himself protectively. Chris nodded, facial expression deadly serious. Justin winced.

They understood each other perfectly.

"J ...what.." Nick started to ask. He stopped when Chris raised his hand, halting him. They shared a look until Nick relented, sighing. "Fine."

"Thank you," Chris whispered. Much to Justin’s distaste, they shared a kiss. Chills race up Chris’ spine as Nick’s tongue lapped at his lips. They pulled away at the sound of Lance growling behind them. Chris turned around, Lance was ready to kill.


Their eyes met in a cold, hard stare.

"You planning on firing me?"

Lance paused, a look of shock crossed his features. He shook his head. "No."

"Need something?"

Lance ignored Justin’s presence. He was hurt. Confused. Lonely. Justin promised that he was interested in him, in a ‘them’. His actions spoke otherwise. He was stupid to believe that someone as beautiful as Justin would want him. That Justin had been sincere. Seeing how happy Chris and Nick were, only made it sting more.

Despite how happy he was for his friend, he loathed him just as much. Lance wanted that, he wanted that with Justin.

"I need your order in by noon on Thursday this week. I forgot to tell you. Long weekend, no delivery Monday. Vince said if I get it to him Thursday afternoon, he’ll deliver it on Friday."

On long weekends, they were always busy. Chris nodded, he could give Lance the order right now. He always knew exactly what they had in stock and what they needed. He only nodded.

Nick’s eyes flickered between Justin and Lance. Finally he met Chris’ gaze. A look of frustration passed between them.

"Okay. That’s it then. Can you ...?" Lance started to ask.

"Of course." Chris answered. He knew exactly what Lance was asking. He had just spent the past few hours doing the paperwork for the night and was in no position to be there. It would only worsen his already crappy mood, and put the rest of the staff in an equally horrible frame of mind. Lance was leaving Chris in charge to close up the bar that night.

"Thanks." Without a glance back, Lance walked towards the door and hit the button for the elevator. It had been waiting, no one had come up since Justin and Nick. Lance stepped in, leaving two shocked brothers in his wake.

"He fucking go already?" Christina asked, reading Justin and Nick’s minds.

Chris nodded. Christina sighed in relief.

"Good, about fucking time."

"He left?" Justin asked in shock. "Like, went home for the night?" His stomach fell at the apologetic expression on Chris’ face.


"Sorry. Yeah."

"Shit." Nick whispered under his breath. An air of awkwardness fell over them. Christina approached with another round of drinks for Chris to make. The elevator sounded and Justin turned, in hopes that it was Lance coming back to talk to him.

Unfortunately, it was not. It was a rather large party of guests, at least ten by Chris’ initial count.


Chris flashed Nick an apologetic smile. The blonde shook his head and gave Chris a wink. He and Justin were going to take their usual table so Chris could focus on making drinks. Nick had a few words for his brother anyways. When they sat down, Nick took a deep breath. He saw the sadness etched on Justin’s face and everything he had intended to say was lost on the tip of his tongue.

"What’s going on?" He finally asked. Justin winced.

"I fucked up."

"Duh. Why? How? WHY?" Nick was just as upset on Justin’s behalf as he was Lance’s. For the first time Nick actually approved of his brother’s choice for a boyfriend. His taste in men usually left him lonely, heartbroken and depressed. Finally Justin had found someone decent and he was letting him get away. Nick needed to know why.

Justin flinched. He knew that if he told Nick, he would give him ‘that look’ and after the way Lance had looked at him, Justin wasn’t sure he could handle it. Not from Nick too. The glare Chris was giving him was already pressing his limit.

"He’s so nice and sweet. And I can talk to him on the phone for hours without realizing it. He’s so great Nicky..."

"And you’re not used to that?!"

Justin shook his head. He wasn’t used to it. And he wasn’t sure if he wanted to get used to it, because if ...when ...if Lance took it away, it would crush him. He had never been so scared in his entire life. Lance was everything Justin had ever wanted in a partner, a lover and just faced with the possibility of perfection was enough to terrify him.

"And work..."

Nick raised an eyebrow. "You work too god damned much." He had been telling his brother that for years. Since high school. Justin was focused and driven, and although it was something Nick respected about his younger brother, it was time for Justin to start focusing on himself. Living for himself.

"I know."

Nick hadn’t expected him to agree so quickly. And genuinely. There was more that he wasn’t telling him. Nick didn’t have to wait long for his admission.

"I’m getting an assistant."

Nothing could have shocked Nick more. Justin anticipated that reaction and chuckled. The firm he worked for had been telling him to get an assistant for over a year now. He had worked for them since his second year of university. First doing grunt work and then as a junior researcher for the Creative Department. Now, four years later, he was head of the department. Every other Associate on his level had an assistant, some had two. Yet Justin had always maintained that he didn’t need one. He was a hands on type of person and liked to be busy. Ten to twelve hour days didn’t bother him, he never really had any reason for an assistant. Until now.

They had begun the process two days earlier. The list had been long, interviews fifteen minutes in length. It wouldn’t take longer than that for Justin to know. They still hadn’t found him or her, but Justin was confident that they would. And when they did, it would make everything easier.


"It’s time."

"Long overdue," Nick argued.

"I know," Justin growled. Nick visibly backed off. "We made plans. I canceled. Then I canceled for the rain check."

"You’re going to have to fix this," Nick instructed kindly. From what Chris had said, Lance was all turned out over Justin. Chris had never seen Lance so interested in anything, except money. That said a lot.

"He won’t talk to me," Justin groaned as he rest his head on the table. The sound of Christina putting a cup beside his head startled him.

"From Chris, says it looks like you need it."

Justin raised an eyebrow. Christina snickered.


"It’s safe."

"What’s it called? A ball breaker?"

Nick couldn’t contain his laughter. He laughed loudly as he looked at his boyfriend and winked. Christina shook her head.

"Heart therapy," she said. "He says that it looks like you need some."

Nick’s features softened and Chris blushed. Christina must have just told them the name of his new drink. Almost immediately Nick was up and coming towards the bar.

"I love you so fucking much." Their mouths met in a steamy, erotic kiss from across the bar. Yet again, Nick was hit with just how lucky he was to have found Chris.

Justin’s attention was diverted from the view of Toronto by Chris’ shrill laughter.


"Ball breaker ...that’s hilarious."


Justin blushed. He wished Lance was there and that there wasn’t this awkwardness between them. They could sit in the corner and talk. And cuddle. And kiss. And just BE together. His heart throbbed painfully. With a single gulp he downed Chris’ drink. Throwing a fifty down, he slipped into his jacket.

"Nicky, I’m out." When Nick didn’t answer, Justin tried again. "CARTER!"

Nick looked up.

"I’m out," Justin repeated himself. He didn’t want company. Nick nodded and frowned. Justin would get a phone call first thing in the morning. They weren’t done talking.

"Carter?" Christina asked. Nick looked at her. Justin stopped in his tracks. Their eyes met and Justin joined them at the bar.

"Yeah."

"That’s your name? Nick Carter?"

Nick flashed Chris a strange look. "Yeah. Why?"

"Justin Carter?" Christina wrinkled her nose. It didn’t sound right.

Nick laughed as he shook his head. "He’s not a Carter." Christina looked at Justin who shook his head as well.

"But he’s your brother? Right?"

Nick flashed Chris a pleading look. He hated having to explain it over and over again, especially because he wasn’t sure how people would react to it. Chris patted his hand. When Justin hadn’t jumped in to tell the story, Chris did.

"Nick’s mom was married very briefly. She was pregnant and when she was about six months along..." He paused and Nick shook his head.

"Five."

"...five months along, her husband was killed in an accident."

Just as Nick expected, Christina gasped and put her hand to her chest. "Oh my goodness."

"Well," Chris said, continuing the story. "...she had Nick and her best friend at the time, well he was both hers and her husband’s best friend really. Well he helped her through the loss of her husband and the birth of her first child. She gave Nick his birth father’s last name. Over time, she and Paul fell in love and they got married. She then had Justin and the rest of the kids."

"He’s the only father I’ve ever known. Her last name is legally Carter-Timberlake. But I go by Carter, Justin and the boys go by Timberlake. It’s a headache, especially when I was in school." Nick added.

Christina blinked. "Wow."

"Yeah." Nick shrugged. It was his life, it stopped being interesting years ago. He watched as Christina's eyes narrowed and she turned to glare at Justin.

"You’re going to fix him, right?"

"Chrissy," Chris warned. She turned her glare onto him and he shrank back. "I’m just sayin’," he mumbled under his breath.

Justin held his hands up in surrender.

"I’M just sayin’," She asked, repeating after Chris. "He was fine. A little anal, needed to get laid, but fine. Rational."

Nick raised his eyes in question. Chris finished making a few drinks and sighed. "He threatened to fire her tonight."

Justin’s eye widened in surprise and he felt shame fill him. "Oh god."

"He wasn’t serious. He wouldn’t fire me, but he’s never even come close to hinting at it. So ..." Christina leaned in close, glaring at Justin menacingly. "FIX HIM."

"I didn’t mean ..." Justin groaned. He looked up and was surprised to see compassion in their eyes. It was veiled behind warning, but still, it was there. "I will if he’ll let me."

Chris and Christina exchanged glances before swirling and nodding enthusiastically.

"You’re going to have to work for it, but.." Christina loaded up her tray with the fresh martinis that had just been made for her. "If you’re serious, he’ll let you."

"Well," Nick said coyly. He snuck behind the bar and pulled Chris into the small cove that hid them from the customers. "...we’re going to head out now. How much do I owe?"


Chris shivered as Nick’s breath fanned across his desk. "Taken care of."

Nick’s lips curled into a grin. He pressed Chris tighter against the wall with his body. Both men shivered this time. "Come on over tonight." Chris didn’t hesitate in nodding. Their mouths came together in an erotic kiss.


"I’ll be late," Chris warned. "I’ve got to close up."

"Don’t care," Nick mumbled against his mouth. "Just want you in my bed. I’ll be waiting."


Chris melted. Nick grabbed his groin playfully and smirked as Chris whimpered. "You’re horrible," Chris complained as he adjusted himself.

Nick shrugged. "You weren’t screaming that earlier." It was Chris’ turn to glare as Justin and Christina laughed.


~*~*~*~*~*~

Lance pinched the bridge of his nose. His blackberry sounded alerting him to a new message. His fourth in an hour. Justin. Again.

Ten days had passed since the night that he had left the bar abruptly and Justin had called on average, four times a day. For there to be four in one hour meant that something was going on. Lance couldn’t bother to find out what it was.

Against his better judgment, Lance had trusted Justin. Wholly. He believed him when he’d said he was interested. He’d believed that Justin hated games. He’d hoped that it was for real. That they were both on the same page.

The first time Justin had canceled, Lance had understood. There was a huge account meeting with a new client. It was important. The second time he had canceled, it was the rain check. Work again. Out of seven dates they had made, Justin had canceled six. All because of work. No there wasn't anyone else to do it, yes work was important to Justin. More important than anything.

If work was this important now, Lance wondered how much worse it would get when he got bored with the relationship. Lance wasn’t interested in an empty relationship. They had marathon phone sessions. Justin working late, Lance still at the bar doing the books. They had spoken until dawn, watching the sun rise together on the phone. Lance couldn’t have a relationship that was only fit into a schedule between two and seven am. On the phone, no less.

So he stopped calling. Stopped answering. Wished he could stop caring.

The sound of the elevator interrupted his thoughts. It was a slow Sunday night. Britney was on the bar and Howie was waiting. There was no need for a hostess. Shock registered on his face when he saw who it was.

"What are you doing here?"

Justin shrugged. "If you answered your phone once in a while, you’d know."

"I don’t want to talk to you."

Justin gave Lance a smirk. "You don’t?"

Lance shook his head. "No."

"Good, then I’ll get to talk. Can we go somewhere else?" Justin knew the answer, but he had to ask anyways. Lance growled at him. Justin sighed. "Fine, patio it is." He looked over at the bar. "Brit?"

She gave him a nod and a thumbs up. "All taken care of Curly, it’s all yours."

Lance furrowed his eyebrows. The patio was closed. They were waiting for maintenance to come up and look at it. At least that was what Chris had said when he phoned earlier. Clearly he’d lied. Before Chris could protest, Lance found himself being led onto the deck.

"What are we doing Justin?" Lance asked, partially annoyed and partially pleased with the younger man’s arrival that night. The last thing he needed was for Justin to get him excited again, but Lance feared it was too late.

"Groveling." Justin replied honestly. Lance raised an eyebrow. "Trying to grovel," he amended.

"Don’t bother," Lance advised. He hoped that he sounded more detached than he felt. His heart was racing, and his palms were sweating. Justin always had this affect on him, but moreso now as his eyes were focused intently on him.

"You can’t mean that."

Lance shrugged. "Try me."

Justin’s eyes narrowed as he contemplated his next move. Chris had warned him that Lance would be very standoffish and upset, rightfully so of course. Chris also advised him that if he was going to make this work, he’d have to be willing to put in the effort. Justin was more than willing. These games had gone on for far too long.

"Fine," Justin said with a smile. "I will."

Lance froze, he wasn’t expecting that. He expected Justin to accept Lance’s dismissal and move on. That he wouldn’t care either way. A piece of his heart rejoiced at Justin’s persistence.


"What does that mean?"

Justin grinned and leaned forward. They were nose to nose. Lance could feel Justin’s breath fanning his lips. The skin broke out with goose bumps and he shivered involuntarily.

"It means," Justin warned seductively, "that you are officially forewarned. Prepared to be wooed. Prepared to be swept off of your feet." Justin’s stomach flipped nervously. Lance was even more gorgeous when he was confused and taken off guard. He brushed his lips across Lance’s jaw, smiling against his stubble. "Prepare to be treated like you’ve never been treated before."

Lance’s breath got caught in his throat. All that he let out was a strangled whimper. By the time he recovered, he was alone. The patio door was slightly ajar, the only proof that he hadn’t imagined Justin’s presence. When he reentered the bar, Lance went directly to his office, barely aware of the world around him.

Everything in the back, spacious, office was exactly how Lance liked it. Neat. Tidy. Organized. Every piece of paper, pen, tack, was in it’s rightful place. Except on the giant oak desk was a giant vase filled with long stemmed roses. Lance’s heart fluttered. Justin had already broken through the walls around his heart. Again. He could feel himself falling for Justin again, but this time he decided he would make Justin work for it. This time he prayed it would be different.

~*~*~*~~*~*~*

First it was roses. A few days later, candies. Justin had even managed to send up Lance’s favorite dish from his favorite restaurant, only to show up just in time to share it with him.

Even with the courting and the wooing, Lance had still not agreed to go on an actual date with Justin. He was convinced that it was still too soon and wasn’t ready for that step.

Chris warned him about games. It was dangerously becoming hypocritical. Justin had asked him out every single time they spoke, in person and on the phone. Lance continually declined.

It took longer than he had expected, but Justin finally found an assistant. His name was Alex McLean and he was everything Justin was looking for. And more. That night he phoned Lance, wanting to celebrate.

Lance was astounded to find out that Justin had hired an assistant for the sole purpose of freeing up time. For him. His heart fluttered and his stomach churned. Lance closed his eyes and tried to calm his nerves.

"I want to take you out," Justin said, excited. "To celebrate." Just as he’d expected, and feared, Lance declined.

"I can’t." Lance had long since stopped providing excuses.

Justin sighed. "Of course." The conversation died instantly. Lance felt awful. He wanted to say something to assure Justin that it wasn’t him. He didn’t know what to say, so he kept quiet. "Can I ask you something?" Justin asked, voice soft.

"Go ahead," Lance didn’t like the tone of Justin’s voice and the sound of defeat that was present there.

"Is it okay because we don’t have actual dates?"

Lance was confused. "I don’t understand."

"I canceled, what, six times right? Six canceled dates and you told me to grow up and figure out what I want. I did, went out and hired an assistant because I know what I want and am trying to fix things and it’s still not good enough. You’ve turned me down over fifty times. The only time you don’t turn me down is when I show up at work to surprise you. So I want to know. Is the difference between what I did and what you’re doing that these aren’t actual dates? And that somehow makes it okay?"

Lance sucked in his breath. He was totally justified in his accusation and had honestly expected Justin to come to this conclusion long before now. Justin was a far more patient man than he.

"J..."

"No." Justin held his breath, calming his nerves. "Just don’t worry about it. Okay. You’re clearly not interested and I’m wasting my time. I had my chance, I was an asshole and fucked it up and now ...I guess I just can’t take the hint." Justin gave a sad, sarcastic laugh into the phone. "How fucking stupid was I to think ...

"Justin," Lance whimpered. He’d gone too far and it was blowing up in his face.

"No really Lance, you’re right. I’m really sorry for bothering you. I’ll just call up Nick and we’ll do something to celebrate. Like old times, just the two of us. Chris is working so Nick will probably want to do something. I can’t believe I thought that I stood a chance. What kind of idiot am I, huh?"

Lance wanted to cry. To throw up. To not have played games which had turned him into a total hypocrite. "I ...I’d really like it if you would come by tonight," he choked out. "I want to see you."

Justin’s voice was hard. Emotionless. "We’ll see."

Justin didn’t want to see Lance. Nick agreed and understood. He hated seeing his brother in such obvious pain and for the first time this all happened, Nick felt a surge of anger towards Lance. Lance was being unnecessarily cruel to Justin and Nick wanted no part of it. Chris knew they wouldn’t be by, he didn’t have to be told. Justin would have been stupid to come by after everything that had happened. It was only Lance that sat at his regular table and waited for a visit that wouldn’t come. He had no one to blame but himself.


~*~*~*~*~*~

A week later, Lance made up his mind. He got over feeling sorry for himself, hating himself and hating the world. He sat down with a bottle of scotch and tried to sort out the mess in his head. All he sorted out was that scotch on an empty stomach was not a good idea. And that he’d fucked up. Justin had too, but he’d tried to fix things. Lance made them worse. He had to swallow his pride and work on getting Justin to forgive him.

He’d worry about convincing Chris to stop growling at him every time they passed some other time. It was midway through the bottle that the perfect idea came to him. Friday night, the bar would be closing for a private function.

For him and Justin.

Lance spoke to Chris, who was surprisingly critical.

"You going to get your head out of your ass?"

"I’m trying."

"He’s really fucked up right now."

Lance knew it was his fault. He nodded. "I’m sorry."

"Dude, not me you should be apologizing to."

Lance then spoke to Nick.

"You done fucking with him?"

"I’m sorry."

Nick shook his head. He wasn’t looking for an apology, that was for Justin. He wanted assurance that Lance was serious. "You done fucking with him?"

"Yes."

"Good."

By Thursday he still hadn’t gotten a hold of Justin. It was one thirty in the morning when his call was returned.

"Please have dinner with me, tomorrow night. Nine, my bar."

Justin was skeptical, something in Lance’s voice told him that this was serious. He paused for a second, giving the invite serious thought. Softly Lance gasped and Justin shook his head. He wasn’t up for their usual dramatics. Work had been extremely hectic, on top of which he was still training Alex. Granted, his assistant was a god send and Justin wondered how he’d ever gotten along without him, it was still a transitional period. And truthfully, Justin was starting to realize that this ‘thing’ with Lance might never happen.

At all.

Let alone how he’d hoped it would.

Yet again, love had passed Justin by and if an honest, good, man like Lance didn’t want him, who would?

Not to mention seeing Nick so disgustingly happy with Chris. His brother had found his soul mate and Justin couldn’t even get a fucking date. Except now Lance was calling, after months of refusing a date with him. Justin figured that this was for the big kiss off. He sighed.

"I don’t know," he said pinching the bridge of his nose. "You don’t have to do that. We can just call it even..."

"I don’t have to do anything, I want to." Lance swallowed nervously, nearly pleading with Justin to agree. The thought that Justin might not agree hadn’t seriously crossed his mind. Now he worried that they had both gone too far and there was no way back. "Please."

"Why Lance? What more could we possibly have to say to each other?"

"You can’t mean that," Lance gasped.

Justin wasn’t so sure of anything. Finally, he relented. "Okay." He owed it to both of them to try, if not just for closure. "Your place? Nine? Are you sure you don’t want to go somewhere else?"

Lance knew that Justin had reservations about coming to his bar. From his point of view, it was as though Lance couldn’t make the effort to go somewhere else. That he could kill two birds with one stone, mix business with pleasure. That had nothing to do with why he chose Panorama for this venue. It was by far the most beautiful and romantic spot in Toronto, something that he wanted to share with Justin.

"Please." Lance begged. "I don’t deserve it, but please trust me."

Justin held his breath. In his mind he answered with ‘Anything for you, Lance.’ He responded vocally, "okay."

~*~*~*~

There was a sign on the door indicating that the bar was closed for a private function. There was also a sign downstairs so people wouldn’t make the 51 floor elevator ride for no reason. Justin missed the sign downstairs.

He was in too much of a rush.

He was over an hour late.

Lance was going to kill him. Chris would castrate him. Nick would probably chop the remains into small pieces and feed them to his fish. It would all be too late. Justin was going to kill himself.


When he left his office, he was pushing it. If he caught both subways quickly, he would just be able to make it. He hadn’t expected the delay, especially being stuck in the elevator of his office building for over an hour. At first he couldn’t even get in contact with anyone at the security desk, the phone was not working. When he’d tried his cell phone, that had proven to be useless as well, since he didn’t have service in the elevator. When someone had finally realized he was stuck, he scrambled out of his office building and across the street to the subway, not wanting to waste any more time to stop to phone Lance. With each passing minute he knew that his chances of Lance forgiving him this time diminished. Panic moved to despair to resignation. In the end, he hoped that he and Lance could at least be friends. As he rode the fifty-one floors to the bar, he tried to calm his nerves and wipe the tears of frustration from his eyes.

By the time he got there, he resigned himself to the fact that it was over. He would apologize, say good-bye and go home to nurse his shattered heart.


The doors opened. He expected there to be a hostess to greet him. There was no one. The whole bar was empty and the lights were dimmed. Lance was in the corner, talking on his phone.


"Shit, there he is. I’ll call you later."

Justin opened his mouth to speak, cut off by Lance throwing him against the wall. Their mouths met in a rough, forceful kiss. Justin was caught off guard, this was not the reaction he was expecting. When he realized that Lance wasn’t letting him go any time soon, Justin fell into the kiss, allowing Lance to practically devour him. The kiss remained forceful and hungry until finally Lance slowed down, taking the time to fully appreciate Justin’s mouth and the feel of their bodies pressed together. They were both gasping for breath when the kiss broke.


Justin was confused.

Lance could feel Justin trembling in his arms and he held him tighter, wanting to erase all of his pain and confusion. But most of all, his worry. "Are you okay?"

Justin shook his head, he was lost. "I ...what ..."

Lance looked deep into Justin’s eyes and saw his confusion. He leaned in and kissed him again, needing the comfort of having Justin there, in his arms. "You’re here."

Justin frowned. "I’m sorry .. I’m late." .

"That’s okay. I’m just glad you're here."

This was not the Lance that Justin knew. He wondered if he was dreaming.. "You’re not mad? I was supposed to be here over an hour ago."

"Of course I’m not late. I was just ...so worried about you ...we’re all worried about you."

Justin shook his head and let Lance lead him to a table on the patio that was decorated with candles, a bottle of wine chilling on the side and soft music playing through the speakers. "I don’t ..." He rubbed his eyes for a moment, trying to clear his jumbled thoughts. "Why aren’t you mad?"

"Because I’m too scared to be mad. Because I’m so fucking relieved that nothing happened to you."


"But ...I left on time, or I tried to anyways. I left my office and hopped onto the elevator, but it got like, four floors down from mine and just stopped. The lights went out and then flickered and the emergency light went on. And at first I thought it was just a blip, but then more time kept passing and I tried to call down, but the elevator phone wasn’t working and my cell phone wasn’t working, and it took almost an hour for someone to find me and get me out.." Justin was bordering on hysteria. He gasped for breath and closed his eyes for a second to calm his nerves. "And I was going to phone, but I was already too late and didn’t want to waste time calling. So when I got to Bay Station, I ran through the underground as fast as I could to get here..."

Lance cocked his head to the side watching Justin crumble before his very eyes. He had never seen this side of the younger man and felt his heart go out to him. Lance cupped his face in his hands affectionately. "Shhhh, it’s okay."

"I thought you would hate me. That you’d never forgive me for being late and I thought about it all last night and realized that I don’t care what has happened before, tonight was supposed to be our starting over night. We were going to try this again, but without the bullshit that happened before and then I was late... And I thought, what if this is fate’s way of telling me that I’m never going to be happy..."

Lance sat Justin down and then sat down on his lap, wrapping his arms around the younger man’s neck. He kissed him long and hard, something he’d wanted to do for far too long. Justin didn’t protest to the kiss, Lance could tell that he was relieved at being forgiven for being late and wasn’t going to complain.

"You deserve to be happy," Lance whispered as the kiss broke. "It’s going to be okay."

Justin shook his head. He still couldn’t believe that Lance understood. This was not the scenario he’d been expecting.

Lance could tell that Justin needed some sort of an explanation. He kissed Justin once more for good measure before speaking. "By ten after nine I was starting to get a little worried, and honestly, a little pissed off. I thought that this was it, you were blowing me off and this was a way for you to get back at me for being such a prick lately."

Justin shook his head. "I’d never do that, Lance."

"I know, but I just couldn’t get past the fact that you were late. That you might not show up. So first I called your cell and there was no answer. I called the office, but there was no answer there either. Then I called Nick and he said he’d just spoken to you, that you were on your way."

Justin nodded. "I called him as I was leaving to tell him I was going. Well, I talked to him for about a half an hour and just ...oh my god, I was so nervous. I was just so scared that you’d changed your mind and didn’t want to try this again with me and that you were bringing me here for the big kiss off. He basically just convinced me that it was going to be okay and I should come.

"By nine-thirty I was starting to get worried."

"Not mad?"

"For some reason, no. Annoyed, but not mad. Which is weird because I’m ALWAYS pissed off if someone is late. You know? But it was as if ....as if I knew that it wasn’t your fault. So I called Nick again and he said he hadn’t heard from you either. He called the office and your cell. Then he called the security of your building. He said that after eight you have to sign in and out through security, and he had spoken to the night guard many times before."

Justin chuckled and nodded. "Yeah, I’m always working late and he’s always stopping by with dinner or whatever. He and Joey are pretty tight now, they have a lot in common and get along pretty well."

"Well he said that he called the security guard and asked if you’d signed out. You hadn’t, Joey I guess, said that you hadn’t gone by him all night, which got Nick worried. Joey called up, got no answer and then checked a few panels, it was then that he realized that one of the elevators was stuck but hadn’t signaled."

"Huh?"

"The elevators are monitored at security. If there is one on a certain floor for too long, or is in emergency mode, it’s supposed to beep, like an alarm to let him know. This one wasn’t working, so he hadn’t noticed that it was stuck. That's when he called for maintenance and they came up to let you out."

Justin nodded, realization of what Joey had said to him dawning on him. He’d been in too much of a hurry to stop and chat, and Joey had mentioned that he was sorry he hadn’t saved me earlier. Joey had said something else as well, but Justin hadn’t caught it all. His mind was already on how many ways Lance could kill him for being late. "I was so scared." Justin whispered. He kissed Lance, enjoying the simplicity of it. There was no awkwardness, nothing except for relief that they were finally there. Together.

"Me too. But mostly because we didn’t know where you were or what happened. Nick had just spoken to you, you said you were coming here and you should have been here by nine. When you didn’t show up and I called him, he started to panic. It’s just not like you. And then I just got these mental images of what would happen if you had have been hurt ...or worse. And I realized that I didn’t care if you were late, as long as I knew you were okay and coming home to me, that was all that mattered. Even if you cancel, just knowing you’re okay, that you’re alive and well ....and it made me see how stupid I’ve been. I wasted so much time trying to keep myself from getting hurt again and I only hurt myself. I hurt you."

Justin wanted to speak but Lance cut him off. He had a lot to get off his chest.

"And you did exactly what I told you to do. You got your shit figured out and decided what you wanted. You got an assistant. You made the effort, and it still, it wasn’t enough. And I kind of, I guess I wanted to see how far I could push you until it was too much. And when I realized what I was doing, it was too late. I’d pushed too far. And I was going to tell you all of this tonight, but then I thought something might have happened to you and I wouldn’t get the chance to tell you and that made me so sad. I swear, if Nick hadn’t have spoken to Joey and realized you were still stuck in the building, I was about to start calling hospitals."

"But I'm here," Justin assured him. He was astounded by how much Lance was trembling in his arms. How affected he’d been. "I’m here now and we’re going to make this work."

"We are," Lance assured him. "We are, because it hurt to not be with you, but it killed me to think I’d never get to see you again. To never tell you how much ..how much I care for you. How I want to see if these feelings I have are ...."

"Love?" Justin asked, voice barely audible. They were thinking the exact same thing. Lance nodded.

"Yes."

Justin stood up and let Lance slide down so that he was standing before him. "I ... I don't know if I could eat right now," he admitted softly.

"Dinner will keep."

"Good." Justin led Lance inside and over to the far side, where there was a spacious, large table. He was pleased to see that the tables were all bare, except for the red cloth covering them neatly. His jacket was on the floor almost instantly and Justin was working on losening his tie. He raised an eyebrow and Lance started to follow suit. Halfway down the buttons on his shirt, Justin abandoned his own clothes to assist Lance. Lance resumed where Justin had left off.

"We could wait until it’s a perfect time," Justin said as he parted Lance’s dress shirt. He slid it down the other man’s arms and tugged at the wife beater underneath, leaving Lance bare from the waist up. Lance followed his actions exposing Justin’s muscular chest and back. They both gasped softly at the sight of each other half naked, bathed in the candle light.

"I don’t want to wait, I want you right now," Lance admitted. He headed to his office, returning moments later with two small cushions that were always kept on the loveseat in his office. He threw them on the table before unfastening his dress pants and letting them fall down his legs. His underwear followed shortly after and as Lance kicked them away, he watched Justin’s eyes roam shamelessly over his nude form.

Justin extracted his wallet from his back pocket and grabbed the condom from the inside pocket. Lance smirked as he reached forward to undo Justin’s pants. Moments later, they were both naekd and leering at one antoher.

"You are so fucking gorgeous," Lance whispered, trailing his fingertips all over Justin’s body. Goose bumps appeared everywhere Lance touched and Justin couldn’t help but tremble. He turned his head to look out the window, amazed at how beautiful everything around them was. It caused him to catch his breath and Lance smiled. "That’s why I wanted to come here. To share this with you."

"It’s beautiful," Justin admitted.

"It is," Lance agreed. "But what I just realized now, is that it doesn’t matter where we are. I keep wanting to have you here with me because this is the only place that I can think of that is as beautiful as you deserve. But wherever we are, it is going to be just as beautiful, as special."


Justin blushed, causing Lance to smile.

"So, tomorrow night? I was thinking maybe we’d go out for dinner somewhere."

"Where?" They were standing in the middle of the restaurant, completely naked and pressed tightly against each other, neither at all self concious of that fact. Justin leaned in to cup Lance’s face. He never thought that this night would end up like this, and refused to allow himself to think too much about it for fear of finding out it was just a dream.

"Anywhere you want."


Justin smiled. "But ..."

"Chris can watch the bar tomororw night." Lance tugged on Justin’s hips. He leaned back on the table, laying down with his head on one pillow, and his hips resting comfortably on the other. Lance saw the surprise in Justin’s eyes and chuckled. "You don’t mind?"

Did Justin mind fucking Lance? Not by a long shot. "Hardly."

Justin cralwed up after him, settling himself between Lance’s legs. He looked down at their bodies and then around him, feeling his cock harden considerably. It was like a fantasy come true.

Their mouths came together in a steamy kiss, their tongues battling between them. Justin ground their aching cocks together, while his hands roamed shamelessly all over Lance’s skin. When they broke for air, Lance’s lips were swollen and his eyes were shut tight.

"I think that I’m going to make Chris a partner."

"What?" Justin asked, his brain was fried and Lance was talking about Chris.

"Of the bar. I’m giong to make him half partner. We’ve been talking about it and ...I think it’s time I get some help of my own. So I’m not bound to being here all the time."

Justin grinned, kissing Lance forcefully. "That’s awesome."

Lance nodded.

"You said ...earlier," Justin whimpered. Lance had wrapped his legs around Justin’s waist and it was hard to focus on anything other than the feel of their bodies pressed together, of the look of Lance’s body open and waiting for him. "That as long as I was coming home ..to you ..."

Lance blushed. He had wondered if Justin had heard that part. Clearly he had. "Yeah."

A look passed between them, they both understood each other perfectly. Justin smiled. "Good."

Before they could say anything more, Justin’s phone started to ring. It was on the floor, in his pants pocket. At first he was going to ignore it but Lance gently touched his chest.

"Answer it."

"Uh... No."

Lance snickered. "It’s probably Nick. He was worried sick about you. I was talking to Chris when you came in, so they know you’re here, but he probably wants ..." The phone stopped ringing and Justin grinned. Seconds later, it started again.

"He’s going to keep calling until I answer."

"So answer it."

"No."

"What if it were him?"

Something pulled at Justin’s chest and he gasped. Lance smiled.

"Exactly."

"What?" Justin finally answered when he’d retrieved his phone.

"Bro, you okay?" Justin would have felt bad at the worry in Nick’s voice and the harsh treatment he was giving him, but Lance was still laying on the table, naked, hard and looking delectably fuckable.

"Fine. Got Lance naked, on a table ready to be fucked. Can we maybe talk about this later?"

Nick snorted and rolled his eyes. "Fucker." He looked at Chris and shook his head. "He’s fine. That teaches you to be worried about him."

"Me?" Justin heard Chris say. He started to laugh. He knew full well that Nick was probably driving Chris crazy having not heard from him.

"Nick? I’ll talk to you later." Justin hung up before his brother could take up any more of his time. He turned his attention back to Lance who was breathing heavily, his cock weeping at the tip. "Now, where was I?"

"About to fuck me?" Lance shrugged, looking hopeful.

Justin grinned. "Right. I was." The condom wrapper was tossed onto his pants and it’s contents sheathed over his erection. Justin used two fingers to stretch his soon to be lover, shivering at the reaction his fingers elicited in him. "God you’re so tight."

"Fuck .." Lance whimpered. "More... Just a bit more.."

"You sure you want me to..." Justin’s question was cut off with Lance’s mouth on his, their tongues meeting in a passionate kiss.

"I want you, I want you inside me."

Justin shifted Lance’s legs so that they were over his shoulders. He placed the tip of his erection at Lance’s opening. Without sufficient lube, he’d been forced to stretch him more than he normally would have, and now they were both at the breaking point. Justin needed to be inside of him. Now. Ten minutes ago. Months ago.

The process was slow and torturous in that they both wanted Justin to slam inside but knew that he couldn’t. Finally, after much stop and go, Justin found himself fully sheathed in Lance’s body, his hips flush against Lance’s ass.

Time stopped, neither man could breath. It was surreal and as Justin looked down into Lance’s eyes, he knew that this was how it was supposed to be. This was what Nick had tried to tell him the day after he and Chris had first gotten together. Chris had left, reluctantly on both of their parts, to go home and change before having to go in to work and Nick had immediately called Justin, needing to talk. There was just something about being connected to Chris and looking into his eyes that had rocked Nick to his core. It wasn’t anything he’d ever felt before, with anyone. Not even Kevin whom Justin knew Nick had loved with his entire heart and soul. It was something that Nick had tried desperately to explain to Justin, finding no words that could adequately describe it. In that moment, Justin understood.

He started to move, slowly at first, letting Lance get used to him. After a few moments, Lance was writhing against him, scratching at his biceps hungrily. There was a feral expression in his eyes that shattered Justin’s will power. He shifted so that he could lean down and capture Lance’s mouth with his own, and kissed him as he thrust in deeper, harder and faster. Any worries that it had been far too long for him and whether he still knew what he was doing fled his mind as Lance howled animalistically. There had been no direct stimulation to Lance’s cock, yet still, he had just come and had exploded all over his own chest, some even reaching his cheek.

Justin leaned down and licked the come from Lance’s face, pausing to suck on his tongue. "So fucking good..." Justin mumbled. He wanted to come desperately. He was right on the precipice of it, so close he could almost feel it.

Lance clenched himself around Justin as best he could, focusing on the after termors of his own orgasm and wanting to commit this moment to memory. It was more than he could have ever fantasized and as Justin growled and grunted into his ear, Lance felt his cock harden again. His balls were on fire and with a surprised gasp, he arched his back and came again. Justin’s cock punched directly into his prostate and Lance whimpered, shaking violently underneath Justin’s assault on his body.

"Fucking hell," Justin grunted, shocked as he opened his eyes to see Lance come a second time. He knew from talking to Chris and Nick that Nick was able to come one after another, but had never witnessed it first hand. And truthfully he wasn’t sure he believed his brother, knowing that Nick liked to exaggerate when it came to talking about sex. But he saw Lance collapse and hold onto his arms tighter, his body

Justin thrust in a few more times before he felt his whole body tense. It was then that he reached his release, biting roughly into Lance’s shoulder and expelling himself violently into the condom. He continued to thrust as best he could around the termors, but he couldn’t focus on the multitude of overwhelming sensations. When his body finally let go, he collapsed onto Lance’s chest, burying his face in the other man’s throat.

"Wow."

Lance chuckled and stroked Justin’s back lovingly. He looked around, unable to believe that this had finally happened, and here of all places. He didn’t regret a single moment. "That was amazing," Lance mumbled against the side of Justin’s head. He softly kissed the curls, practically purring.

"Definitely better than I’d fantasized," Justin admitted. He propped himself up on his elbow so he could look at Lance. Their eyes met and so much passed between them. He leaned in and pressed his lips to Lance’s, needing the comfort of his kiss. "So, you’re not working tomorrow?" He asked, voice hoarse.

Lance shook his head. "Nope. Whole day off. I just have to clean everything up tonight before we go and that’s it." Justin raised an eyebrow and Lance motioned to the two of them on the table. "I don’t think Chris is going to want to come in tomorrow and have to deal with come stained tablecloths. Especially tablecloths stained with our come. His and Nick’s ...not so much of a problem, ours ...problem."

"True." Justin snickered. With a groan, he carefully rolled off of Lance, hating the feeling of their bodies separated. He gently pulled off his condom and wrapped it up in a handful of cocktail napkins from the bar.

"My office," Lance suggested. He grudgingly got off of the table as well and followed Justin down the hall to where his office was located. There was a private bathroom in there, which although did not have a shower, did have a large sink and plenty of towels. "Throw it out in here, I’ll bring the garbage down when we go."

Lance kept several changes of clothes at the office for emergencies such as this one. Rather than have them both change into their more formal, work wear, when they were finished, he handed Justin a pair of shorts and a tee shirt, himself slipping into a pair of jeans and a tee.

"These are going to look stupid with my dress shoes," Justin whined playfully. Seconds later Justin tossed a pair of flip flops at him. Justin grinned. "Perfect fit, just my size." He looked at Lance’s feet and then his own. Taking account the difference in their height, he felt his stomach flip excitedly knowing that they wore the same size shoe. The shorts were slightly baggy on him, but not by much, and just enough to have Justin’s heart fluttering. The tee shirt, on the other hand, was snug, outlining his muscular chest and stomach perfectly.

"Hungry?" Lance asked, eyeing Justin. Their eyes met and each took a moment to appraise the other.

"Starving," Justin answered. He could see the hunger mirrored in Lance’s eyes.

"Me too."

"Good. So lets have something to eat, enjoy the beautiful view ..." Justin started. He was cut off by Lance’s kiss.

"And then go home and take care of it." He wanted more. Now. He was ready for Justin again, that once was not enough to satisfy the need he had deep inside of him. Justin nodded, licking his lips. "Yeah."

They headed out of Lance’s office, Justin went straight out to the table where they had just fucked and removed the pillows and table cloth. He balled them both up and put them in a giant bag, knowing that they should take them and wash them personally. He tossed his clothes in there as well. Lance headed directly into the kitchen to get their dinners. Finally, they were seated at the table on the patio, the food between them untouched. Their eyes were closed blissfully, mouths feeding hungrily on one another.

"Thank you," Justin whimpered as he pulled away. "Thank you for giving me another chance."

Lance’s face clouded over and he looked down. It should have been him apologizing, not Justin. "No, thank you. I’m sorry for fucking you around, especially after I got so mad that you’d done it to me."

"You were hurt. You had every right to be hurt."

"Hurt is one thing, punishing you is another. I was wrong."

Justin nodded and kissed Lance’s mouth affectionately. "We were both wrong." He took a deep breath and closed his eyes, allowing himself to get lost in the moment. When he opened his eyes, he saw Lance watching him with a look of utter adoration and love on his face. "I’m so glad I found you. When I first saw you, that first time we came here ...I was so ...awed by you. I never thought that you ...that we ..."

"I know," Lance whispered. He felt the same way. "We’re going to make this work," he promised.

"And if we don’t?" Justin asked, needing to know the answer. He saw Lance’s lips curl into a smirk.

"There’s always your brother, he’s pretty hot." Lance snickered as Justin’s jaw dropped. He leaned in to press their mouths together in a steamy kiss. "I’m kidding, I don’t want anyone but you." Justin didn’t look convinced. Lance leaned in to whisper something in his ear. The doubt was erased instantly and Justin’s cheeks turned an impressive shade of red. Lance grinned. "Believe me now?"

"Forever."

Finis


back