Chapter Twenty-six: Hell Yeah

He rubbed a hand over his mouth. By now someone up at the house must have noticed him but with his cell phone turned off, he wouldn't know. He'd been sitting in his car out front the home he had grown up in for at least an hour. It was his day off and he wanted to spend it with Danny but before he could even think of that he had to have a word with his father. He looked at the clock on the dashboard. Danny would be arriving at his apartment within the next few minutes, only to find a note stuck to the door. It explained that he would be late, that he should let himself in and get comfortable. Nervously he ran a hand through his hair, putting the car into gear and pulling into the driveway. A minute later he was standing outside the front door wondering if maybe he should knock or just walk in. A maid saved him the trouble, bumping into him on her way out for the day.

He slipped into the home full of memories, not many of them that good.

"Mom?" he called out, knowing that she would be home. It was too early in the day for her to be out with her friends or some social event. That meant that she was either in the sunroom or poking around the bedroom getting ready to go out. Hopefully she was in the former because trying to talk with her while she was getting ready to go out was not always the best time; she half listened. What he wanted to talk about was important.

Stopping by the bottom of the stairs he called out again, "Mom?"

"Marty? Is that my favorite son I hear calling to me?" his mother replied coming from the direction of the kitchen. She was wearing a pair of sandals, off-white slacks, and a peach silk blouse. For once the amount of jewelry and make-up she had on was small. But Martin knew that before long she'd be all made up and on her way out the door. That's how things had been since he was very young.

"I'm your only son," he said as he hugged her.

She kissed him on the cheek. "To what do I owe the pleasure of your visit?" She took him by the hand, leading him through the kitchen and into the sunroom where a pitcher of lemonade was waiting, accompanied by small sandwiches he figured were cucumber. His mother, always the traditionalist. "It's your father, isn't it?"

He sat but only after his mother did. "Isn't it always?"

"Well let's put that off, shall we? Just for a little while?" she suggested. "I rarely get to see you. Word on the grapevine is that you've been dating someone pretty seriously for a while now. So tell me, what's he like?"

Martin did little to hide his surprise. His mother knew that he was dating a guy. "How…"

"A mother knows, Marty. I've always known." She sipped her lemonade. "Now tell me, does he make happy? What's his name and what does he do for a living? We should have him over for dinner some night. I sure would like to meet the man that my son is so smitten with."

Dinner with his parents? Inviting Danny to this house, this huge mansion? Danny knew that he came from money but to actually see the wealth first hand; he wasn't entirely sure that Danny would be able to deal with it. "I'll run it by him, mom. He's actually the reason I'm here. Seems dad offered him a lot of money to leave me."

His mother's eyes got wide with surprise. "Are you serious?"

He nodded.

"Why I…" Unexpectedly she stood, going back through the kitchen. He heard her yelling his father's name from the base of the stairs. So his father was home. Things were on the verge of becoming interesting. While he waited he poured himself a glass of lemonade, sipping at it nervously. About two minutes later he heard his mother talking to his father as they walked back toward the sunroom. "My son has just been kind enough to inform me that you offered his boyfriend money if he broke apart their relationship. Is that true?"

Martin looked at his father for a fleeting moment before looking elsewhere. He'd been hoping his father wouldn't be home because he really didn't want to be present for this conversation. "I'm looking out for the boy's best interest."

"My best interest?" Martin remarked. "By breaking up my relationship?"

"Martin-"

"Honey," his mother interrupted, "you have to accept the fact that your son is in love with a man. And I will not allow you to make my son unhappy. As long as this man treats him right and makes him happy…." At that point she turned to look at him. "Does he?"

He couldn't keep from smiling. "Yes, mom, he does make me happy. And he treats me well. I love him."

--

He got back later than expected, the afternoon traffic holding him up. When he'd left the house his parents hadn't even really noticed him slipping out. His mother was trying to make his father understand. The note was no longer on the door and when he tried the knob it turned freely; which told him that Danny was waiting for him. A smile formed on his lips as he thought about his lover. He liked the idea of having someone waiting for him when he came home. Pushing the door open he tried to put the visit home behind him. Danny was sitting on the couch, his feet up on the coffee table and a book occupying his attention.

"Reading something wonderful?"

At the sound of his voice Danny jumped, closing the book and putting it beside him on the couch. "Are you always so sneaky?"

Martin cocked an eyebrow. "What are you reading?"

"Nothing," Danny said, standing. "Just forget about it. Tell me where you were. Today was supposed to be our day." He wrapped his arms around Martin's waist, lightly kissing him on the lips.

Martin took the opportunity to slip around him and reach for the book. He read the title, then looked at his lover. "You're reading this?" he held up the book. "I read this one. Does this mean…?"

"At the moment it doesn't really mean anything," shrugged Danny. "Just reading material."

"This is never just reading material."

Danny was quiet for a moment. "Do you think that I have a shot?"

He placed the book on the table and drew Danny close. "You already have a working knowledge of law. I think you should go for it. I'll help you as best I can. And I know just which unit of the FBI you should work for…"