Hello readers! Thank you for all the reviews! I'm so happy that you're all enjoying this story. Okay, as promised, here is the next chapter pretty quickly. It was going to be even longer than this one, but I decided to break it up since it was getting VERY long. In the next chapter, James and Lily will meet, and that next chapter should be up pretty soon as well. Enjoy!

Chapter 12: What Priscilla Doesn't Know…

"I'm going out."

It had been three days since Priscilla had arrived back from her sister's but her spirits seemed to be no more improved and she seemed to be no less angry with Sirius. If anything, she was even more bitter towards him. Priscilla's sister, Patricia, had never liked Sirius, and he could only imagine the two of them talking about all of his flaws over a glass of wine. He didn't care, though. Now that he had Remus, nothing else seemed to matter anymore. After dinner the other night, Remus and Sirius had made love the entire night at various places around his house—including the table they ate dinner off of the moment they had each finished eating—and the next morning when Priscilla called and said she would be home the following morning, it was as if the rose colored glass that had been displaying Sirius's life with Remus had shattered and crashed to the earth, leaving only dust in its wake. Priscilla had been completely forgotten that weekend with Remus, and it nearly moved Sirius to tears to think that he had to continue living normally with Priscilla when he knew what life was like with Remus. He had gotten a small taste—like he had been able to put a piece of delicious cake in his mouth only to have it removed a second later. It wasn't enough, and it was torture.

But now, Sirius's spirits were lifted higher than they had been since Priscilla came home. She was going out, and Remus was due to arrive to service their lawn in less than half an hour. Trying to keep his voice steady, Sirius said—

"Where are you headed to?" in his firmest attempt at sweetness.

"Bella's."

Thoughts of Remus flew out of Sirius's head momentarily as his jaw clenched angrily. "Why?"

Priscilla turned to him with narrowed eyes. "She asked me to come over." Then, she turned back to her purse where she had been digging in a moment earlier, clearly looking for something.

"You know I hate when you see her," Sirius growled.

This time, Priscilla did not turn to face him. She had found what she was looking for—her sunglasses, which were now on her face—and she put her purse over her shoulder and headed for the door.

"Priscilla!" Sirius called. It had come out a lot more angrily than he had intended. She whipped around.

"What?" she shrieked. "I don't owe you any explanation, Sirius! I can do what I damn well please." At that, she turned on her heel and walked out the door.

Sirius's chest heaved slightly in the moments right after she left. She was right. The two of them were on hot coals to say the very least, and they had hardly spoken since she had arrived home. Usually, it was Sirius who came groveling. He would apologize profusely for anything he may or may not have done because he couldn't stand to have her angry with him, but now that Remus was in his life, Sirius simply didn't mind Priscilla's heated silence, and he certainly didn't mind sleeping on the couch every night. His apparent disinterest in patching things up and his lack of overwhelming apologies only made Priscilla angrier. She had grown to expect Sirius conceding in any fight they had, but this time, Sirius was not about to give in. The further away from his wife he was, the less guilty he felt and the more he could think about the man who was on his mind nearly every second of every day.

A little while later when Remus finally arrived, he went straight through the back gate that Sirius had already unlocked and into the back yard without greeting Sirius first. When Sirius heard the lawnmower start up, he had nearly choked on the tea that he had been drinking. He thought for sure that Remus would come inside first for a little pre-lawn care make-out session, but instead Remus had begun his work instantly, much to Sirius's disappointment. After he wiped off the tea he had spit on his face, Sirius got up to watch Remus. When he caught sight of the man, he laughed loudly. Sirius gazed at Remus through the window the way he had done every time Remus had come to service his lawn, but instead of a look of longing on his face, Sirius wore a knowing smile along with those longing eyes.

He's teasing me.

Remus was already shirtless and glistening in the hot summer sun. It was a scorching 95 degrees today, and Sirius was thankful for it. If it weren't for that, he wouldn't be able to see a sexy man sweating and flexing his muscles in his back yard. Because Priscilla was not home and because Sirius was already feeling wound up, he decided to play with Remus a little bit. He walked quickly to his office and pulled out a black permanent marker and a piece of card stock from his desk. After that, he walked back to the kitchen, wrote on the card stock in very bold letters so that Remus could see from where he was, and walked back over to the glass door. Sirius pressed the note against the glass and knocked on it hard enough so that Remus would be able to hear it over the lawn mower. He had to knock on it a few times in order to get Remus's attention, even though he was sure Remus heard it the first time around. An attempt at a hidden smile had betrayed him. When Remus finally stopped and squinted to read the note, he bit his bottom lip, winked at Sirius, and then went back to his work.

YOU LOOK SO FUCKING SEXY.

Sirius smiled, took the sign he had made down and crumbled it up and threw it in the trash can. Then he waited.

After an hour and a half of reading the newspaper, drinking tea, and shaking his legs in anticipation, there was a light rap on the glass door. Remus was standing there, squinting against the brightness of the sun and peering in at Sirius. Sirius smirked and walked to the door.

Sirius slid the door open and said, "Thirsty?"

"Parched," Remus said right before he stepped inside, pulled Sirius roughly to him and began kissing him fiercely.

"Mmm," Sirius murmured against Remus's mouth when Remus's tongue entered his mouth. Their tongues slid easily against each other as if they had each known each other's mouths for years. Sirius sucked lightly on Remus's upper lip knowing how much he loved it after having discovered it their first night together. Remus whimpered, pushed into Sirius, and wrapped his arms even tighter around him. Sirius brought his hands to either side of Remus's face and pulled his mouth as close to his as it could get. Sirius moaned quickly and lightly—so much so that it was nearly a whimper—reveling in the sounds that Remus was making. He then pulled his mouth away from Remus's so that they could each catch their breath. They were both breathing heavily when Sirius began to suck gently on Remus's neck. Remus moaned and tilted his head to the right in order to give Sirius more access to his neck. When Sirius nipped a little roughly at Remus's earlobe with a small grunt, Remus felt a sharp jolt beneath his belt and moved his hands to Sirius's hips so that he could push Sirius back against the nearest counter.

Remus moved his head so that he could catch Sirius's mouth with his own and they began to kiss each other with much more ferocity than before. Then Remus began to suck at Sirius's neck this time, and Sirius brought his hands to the top of Remus's head and pulled him closer this way with his elbows just inches from Remus's shoulders. Remus groaned when Sirius ground his hips against Remus's, causing their erections to brush each other for the first time in this encounter. This movement seemed to kick Remus into overdrive, and his hands went from Sirius's hips to his belt buckle in the matter of millisecond, and he began to make quick work of the fastener as well as the button and zipper of his jeans.

When Remus's hand finally found its way into Sirius's pants, Sirius threw his head back and let out a deep, guttural moan when Remus's fingers wrapped around Sirius's cock. Remus leaned forward, placed his other hand on the back of Sirius's neck and pulled him up so that their foreheads were touching. As Remus pumped his hand back and forth across Sirius's cock, he watched Sirius's reaction, while Sirius's eyes were shut tight in pleasure as he panted and moaned. The sight of Sirius coming undone at his touch was nearly enough to push Remus over the edge himself.

Just when it was clear to Remus that Sirius was nearly at his peak, Remus stopped his hand movements and brought his face up very slightly so that he could brush his tongue across Sirius's lips. Then he said, "Where's your wife?" against Sirius's mouth.

"Out." Sirius's eyes remained closed, but Remus's were open, searching every aspect of Sirius's face that he could see from this close proximity.

"Do we have time?"

"I think so."

"Then fuck me."

Sirius's eyes shot open and he could read the lust all over Remus's face. Sirius didn't think it could be possible, but he wanted Remus more than he ever had, and prior to this, he had wanted Remus pretty desperately. Without needing to be told twice, Sirius turned Remus around roughly and pushed him against the counter across from them. Remus braced himself on the counter as Sirius reached around to Remus's front and began to undo Remus's typical lawn care cut-off jeans quickly. In just a few short seconds, Remus's shorts were down to his knees, Sirius's pants were down just enough to expose his throbbing erection, and Sirius had lubricated his erection with water and his own pre-cum. He slid slowly into Remus, but this was where the niceties ended. Where their earlier times together had been more sensual and even loving, this was just pure lust—each of them trying to satisfy an animalistic need in the little time they had. Sirius's hand was on Remus's erection, pumping hard enough and pushing into Remus deep enough to cause him to moan loudly with each movement. Sirius released a moaning grunt with every thrust.

"Harder, baby…" Remus moaned loudly. "Harder… I'm so c—" Sirius thrust roughly. "Close…."

Sirius seemed to get harder and deeper with every movement while they both made noises to announce their satisfaction until finally they both came with shudders, and Sirius collapsed onto Remus's back and Remus fell flat onto the counter with exhaustion.

Once they caught their breath, Sirius stood up straight, pulled out of Remus slowly, and zipped up his pants, but left them unbuttoned and the belt hanging down loosely. Remus smiled and fastened his shorts completely.

Then, Remus put a hand to his forehead, and Sirius could tell that he had paled slightly. Thinking that Priscilla had just walked in, Sirius turned around quickly, but his wife was nowhere to be seen. A moment later, there was a thud, and Sirius looked back and saw his lover in a heap on the floor.

"What happened?"

"Drink this," Sirius whispered.

Remus obeyed and let his eyes flutter open as Sirius tipped water into his mouth as he held up Remus's head. Remus was lying flat on his back except for his raised head, which was how Sirius had positioned him after he had passed out. After Remus had swallowed all the water in the glass, Sirius placed his head down very gently, then jumped up to fill the glass again. Remus sat up quickly, which turned out to be an enormous mistake when he felt suddenly like he might vomit. When Sirius turned back to him, he looked suddenly angry.

"Lay back down," he said sharply. Remus happily obeyed, and when Sirius got closer to him to give him more water, Remus could tell that it was not anger on Sirius's face. It was worry.

Sirius tipped the water back into Remus mouth again and when Remus had successfully swallowed all of it, Sirius placed Remus's head back down again, sat back on his knees and sighed with relief. Then he leaned forward once again and placed a strong hand on Remus's chest while he stroked Remus's hair off his forehead with his other hand. Sirius smiled, but didn't say anything as he and Remus stared into each other's eyes.

Mhmm, Remus thought to himself. I love him. He noticed that Sirius's hands were trembling as he stroked him. Remus reached up and put his own shaky hand on top of the one Sirius had placed on his chest. Remus had never been treated this way—cared for—by any man. It was an incredible feeling. Almost as incredible as the feeling of Sirius inside him. Almost. Sirius was something to behold.

"You scared me," Sirius whispered.

Remus smiled. "Why?" he asked. "You act like I fainted in your kitchen or something."

Sirius laughed, and when he did so, the worry seemed to melt away—although a fraction of worry still remained in his eyes—and the worry was replaced with Sirius's purely warm, handsome features. He leaned down and kissed Remus gently on the lips and left his lips there for a few seconds. It was these soft kisses—these tender, loving, gentle, incredible kisses—that drove Remus absolutely crazy. His heart leapt madly in his chest and his stomach clenched as the butterflies went insane.

"Well, I think it's safe to say we shouldn't have sex when you're nearly dehydrated," Sirius said, his voice was still very low.

Remus smirked. "I guess not… But this is your fault, you know."

Sirius leaned back on his knees and raised up two hands in a show of mock surrender. He chuckled lightly before he said, "I know, I know. If I wasn't so incredible and mind blowing…"

Remus sat up slowly, and worry flashed across Sirius's face. When Remus was able to keep his composure, Sirius visibly relaxed. "No," Remus said. "You didn't have my glass of water when you opened the door."

Sirius narrowed his eyes and shook his head playfully. Then with a grunt and a smile, he pushed Remus back down, straddled him, then leaned down to kiss him deeply. After he broke the kiss, he leaned up, but stayed on top of Remus. Remus knew he shouldn't want to so soon after he had just passed out from dehydration, but having Sirius on top of him made him want to do some seriously inappropriate things. Sirius smiled at Remus's clear internal struggle and leaned forward again. He brought his hands to the floor on either side of Remus's head and leaned down to nibble his ear and suck the skin right below it.

"I'm excited for tonight," Sirius murmured into Remus's ear.

"Mmm," Remus sighed.

"I guess that means you are, too?" Sirius said softly so that his breath traveled across Remus's neck.

"Yeah," Remus said breathily. Sirius moved his mouth down to a spot on Remus's neck right above his collarbone that he knew was one of Remus's sensitive spots, and he began to suck and lick the spot. He could feel Remus's erection begin to grow beneath him and he smiled. He began to suck a little more roughly knowing it would drive Remus crazy and it would leave a mark that he could marvel at when he was having drinks with Remus, James, and Remus's friend Lily tonight.

"Look," Remus panted as Sirius sucked his neck and ground his hips down gently on Remus's. "Lily…" Remus's breath caught in his throat. "She… doesn't know… about… us."

"So," Sirius said against his neck. "It will be our secret."

Remus shivered at the feeling of Sirius's breath on his neck. "James—James knows," Remus said.

"True…" Sirius sucked Remus's neck in the same spot again. He then trailed his tongue from that spot back up to Remus's ear. "God, you taste good," he whispered into Remus's ear.

Remus moaned. "Just… Just be incon… inconspi…cuous tonight. I need to tell her myself." The last syllable of Remus's sentence was several octaves higher than the rest of his sentence, due to the fact that Sirius had just reached in between them and began massaging Remus's cock above his pants.

"You're hard again," Sirius murmured.

"So are you," Remus breathed.

"You relax," Sirius said huskily. "I'll take care of you."

Remus looked at him and his heart seemed to quake as Sirius moved down his body and began to undo his jeans. He felt as if that sentence had been so full of so many things that were being unsaid between the two of them. Although Sirius did not know, Sirius was the first man to treat Remus with the utmost respect, love, and kindness. He was everything that Remus had ever wanted and never thought he deserved or would have. Although Remus did not know, Remus had awakened Sirius from some kind of stupor he had been in. He was the first person to make Sirius feel whole in a very, very long time. As Remus felt Sirius unzip his pants and release his cock from its denim prison once again, Remus began to relax. Not a moment later, however, Sirius's mouth was around Remus and sliding down his length, and Remus tensed up immediately with pleasure. Remus tried to relax, knowing that if let himself get too carried away he may become lightheaded and pass out again, and he needed to be fully awake for this experience. This was the first time that Sirius's mouth had been anywhere near Remus's cock, and Remus thought he would simply die from the feeling of it. He began to shake and shiver all over as he groaned, moaned, and gasped from the feeling of Sirius's mouth around him. There was a slight hesitancy as with a person who had not done something in a long time and was finally getting back into it. There was also a tinge of urgency, as if he was eager to prove to Remus that he could make him feel good. Sirius need not have worried, though; Remus sometimes felt that he could come just by looking at the incredibly handsome dark-haired man who was in between his legs.

"S-Sirius…" Remus moaned loudly. "I'm gonna…" And a small yelp and some violent tremors later, Remus came into Sirius's mouth, and Sirius took it all in.

"You taste good," Sirius whispered as he slid his body up against Remus's and kissed him. Remus could taste himself in Sirius's mouth, which nearly made him hard again.

After pulling out of the deep kiss, Sirius glanced up at the clock above the sliding door in his kitchen. "We should…"

"Yeah…" Remus agreed regretfully. He could have stayed like this forever.

When the two of them had sufficiently straightened themselves up and put all their clothes back on properly, they both stood at the glass door, looking at one another. Remus did not want to leave, nor did Sirius want him to. But they each knew what had to be done.

"I…" Remus started. Don't say it, Remus, he warned himself. You aren't there yet. "I'll miss you." They were standing so close, but they were not touching. Sirius's hand was on the handle of the door.

Sirius smiled. "I'll see you tonight," he said.

"Yeah…" Remus said. "But until then… I'll miss you." He looked up at him with his round, brown eyes and the very smallest of smiles on his face.

"Dammit, Remus," Sirius said as he put his arms around Remus and pulled him close. "If you keep looking at me like that, I'll never let you leave."

"Then don't," Remus said as he put his arms around Sirius's neck and buried his face in the crook of Sirius's neck. Remus was breathing in and out deeply so that he could get all of Sirius's scent. Sirius sighed and shivered. Sirius then put his hands on Remus's arms and pulled them away from his neck and looked at him. He gave Remus one of the soft kisses that drove him crazy and said—

"Tonight."

Despite how much he loved when Sirius kissed him like that, that wasn't the response he had wanted. It was moments like these when Remus truly felt like the cheater that he was—when he felt like the other man. He had to go. He had to leave because soon his lover's wife would be home. He felt silly for wishing and hoping that maybe Sirius would have just let him stay, and then when she came home, they would have revealed everything. But no. He had to go.

Remus looked down, opened the sliding door, and walked out before Sirius could see the tears burning in his eyes. Remus walked out and retrieved his lawn care items. For a moment when he had walked out the door, he had stupidly hoped that Sirius would grab him. He hoped that Sirius would pull him back inside because he had changed his mind, even though he had just felt so stupid for wishing nearly the same thing moments earlier. Remus walked to his van and piled his things inside. After he had put everything in the back except for his bag of shears and clippers, he walked to the side of the van and opened the door to put the bag inside. Suddenly, he felt strong arms twist him around and lips crash into his. He stood slightly still in surprise for a moment, but then he instantly melted into Sirius's arms. The door was open so that no one from the street could see them, and the van and a fence blocked them the rest of the way.

After several moments of a passionate kiss, Sirius pulled his mouth away but left his forehead against Remus's and one hand on the back of his neck. "I'll miss you, too," he panted. He kissed Remus softly, turned, and walked back into his house without another word.

When Sirius was far enough away, Remus whispered, "I love you."

When Remus finally made it home a few hours later, he felt strange. He was elated and yet slightly miserable. His afternoon with Sirius had truly been one he would never forget, just as every day with Sirius was, but he could not shake his negative thoughts. He was a… mistress… and he was afraid to tell Sirius he loved him. Most of all, he was terrified because he really did love Sirius. It was too soon—much too soon for love—and yet here he was. It was awful.

Remus took the elevator up to the sixth floor of his apartment complex, and walked to the door sluggishly. After two orgasms, dehydration, and a long day of work, Remus did not know how he would find the energy for tonight. He decided he would have to take a short nap when he got inside, and then get up to get ready for his dinner with Lily and drinks afterwards.

When Remus opened his front door, he nearly screamed. There was Severus.

Sitting on his couch.

Looking at him.

Smiling.

"How did you get in here?" Remus asked angrily as he walked in and slammed his door closed behind him. He threw down his stuff and walked over to Severus.

"The super let me in," Severus said. "He always did like me."

"Couldn't have known you that well, then, could he?" Severus looked stung, and Remus felt slight regret after he said the words, but Severus deserved them. He didn't want him in his apartment. Especially after what had happened last time.

"I'm sorry about what happened the last time I was here," Severus said, as if he had read Remus's mind.

"It was my fault as much as yours," Remus said shortly. He walked to his kitchen and fixed himself a drink. He did not offer Severus anything. When neither of them said anything, Severus eventually spoke.

"I had a really good therapy session today," he started.

"Congratulations."

Severus ignored Remus's apparent snark and continued. "I want to be your friend, Remus… I need to be your friend." Remus walked over to his sitting area and sat in the chair diagonal from Severus, who was on the couch. Remus narrowed his eyes. "I promise with all my might that I will never try to be anything but your friend again. I just… I want to show you that I've changed, Remus. I have. And I want you… I need you in my life. Just," Severus paused. "Just give me a chance. I know I don't deserve it, but I'm asking."

Remus regarded Severus with suspicion. He looked like he was sizing him up. Then, he said, "Okay." Very simply.

"Okay?" Severus's eyes widened in response. Clearly, this was not what he had been expecting. In fact, he looked like he had braced himself for the bitter response that was to come. "Okay!" he said happily. Remus had never seen Severus this genuinely happy. "Well," Severus stood up. "As a friend, I should probably get going. It was rude of me to drop in so unexpectedly."

This time, it was Remus's eyes that widened, and his mouth dropped open slightly. Severus walked past Remus, kissed him on the top of the head, patted him on the shoulder, and left the apartment.

What the fuck just happened?

Okay! Severus is definitely going to be making more appearances in the future. With Severus and Priscilla around, things for our boys are certainly not going to be smooth sailing. For those who wanted to see a dominant Remus, I'm sorry! The Sirius votes won out. But there will be at least one dominant Remus scene in this story, I promise. I love dominant Remus. For those of you who wanted a dominant Sirius again, you're welcome! But like I said, there will be dominant Remus, so I hope you don't hate me too much for it. Anyway, in the next chapter, Remus is a little mischievous:

"You better keep your hands to yourself," Sirius said quietly. "I don't know if I'll be able to resist your advances."