Chapter 6

"I was on a broomstick, trying to calm a dragon, when I felt the worst pain I've ever experienced. It was like my heart was torn in two. I had to land urgently and be evacuated from the field. At first, I thought something had happened to you, but the pain kept getting worse. It got so bad that I thought my heart was going to explode. That's when I had a flash, I saw you in the throes of pleasure."

Steve felt increasingly worse as Charlie spoke. He knew he was solely to blame, and he was ashamed. The redhead's stern face hurt more than punches, but he didn't attempt to reach out to him. He knew he'd be rebuffed.

Finally, when the wizard turned to face him and locked their eyes, it was as if he was being pierced by white-hot knives.

"I tried to convince myself I was wrong, but the pain subsided and then came back three times in total."

Steve lowered his gaze to the ground, searching for words, but nothing could excuse his mistake.

"I'm sorry, Charlie, so sorry," he murmured, raising his eyes to meet his lover's.

"Sorry for what?"

"For betraying you, for causing you physical pain on top of the emotional pain. I messed up, there's no other way to put it. I was less than nothing."

Charlie exhaled, his gaze had softened a little, although it was still wounded.

"Why did you do it?"

"We had a tough case. I had to ask a friend from university for help, and I offered to take her to dinner in return for a favor. Except, Mary's arrival had me all shaken up, and we laid things out while sharing a bottle or two."

"Please, Steve, don't tell me you cheated on me because you were drunk."

"Yes, I'm sorry. When Catherine arrived, I was already quite intoxicated. We drank more together, and she made advances. At first, I resisted, but we kept drinking, and I gave in. I don't even remember taking her to my room. The next morning, I was woken up by a work call, and that's when I saw her. I couldn't handle it. I realized what I had done to you, that I was risking losing you, and I knew I had to find a solution. I told her to find her way out and went to work."

"So you thought ignoring my messages was the best solution?"

"I wanted to talk to Catherine before talking to you."

"Why?"

"To prove to you that she was just a mistake."

Steve hoped that his confession would save his relationship, although he wasn't one to open up or talk about his feelings. But he knew that if he hadn't made this effort, being complete and transparent in his explanations, he would have lost Charlie for sure. Now, he hoped that Charlie would give him a chance to show that he had never considered replacing him with Catherine. The words Charlie had spoken to him ten years ago echoed in his mind, 'You're not stuck with me for life. Since you're not a magical being, you can choose to break this bond and live your life on your own.' No, he definitely didn't want to break their bond, and he prayed that Charlie would allow him to mend it.

"Call her."

Steve looked at the dragon caretaker for a moment, confused, before understanding and dialing Catherine's number. She picked up right away but suggested coming over to Steve's place when he asked if she had time to talk. Charlie nodded silently, indicating his agreement. The soldier confirmed the meeting and hung up. The two men got up, but before heading back to the house, Steve took Charlie's hand, stopping him.

"I love you, Charlie, and I'll do my best to make it up to you."

The redhead sighed and pulled him closer by his waist.

"I'm willing to give you a chance, but with a few conditions."

Steve's heart raced with hope, desire to kiss his man, and anxiety about the conditions to come.

"Never cheat on me again."

"I promise."

"Keep Catherine as far away from you as possible."

"I'll do what I can, but professionally..."

"It'll stay professionally, in that case."

"Okay."

"Answer my messages."

"Okay."

"And stop hiding our relationship. Stop pretending I'm just a friend."

Steve knew the last point would be the hardest, even more so than keeping Catherine at bay. His secretive nature wanted to keep his happiness to himself. But he would do whatever it took for Charlie. So, he did what he'd been longing to do since Charlie's arm had wrapped around his waist: he kissed him. A moan escaped him as his lover responded to the kiss and took control. He could have gone on like that for hours if it weren't for the whistles and cheers from Danny and Mary. The two lovers parted, smiles on their faces.

"Do you forgive me?"

"I'll work on it, and you, you keep your end of the bargain."

"I promise."

Steve planted another quick kiss on Charlie's lips and took his hand to formally introduce him to Danny and Mary. He was relieved that neither of them commented on his sexuality or his fling with Catherine. He stared at Mary for a long moment, but she just smiled, seemingly unfazed to learn that her brother had been in a relationship with a man for ten years. Steve figured he might have a talk with her if needed, once they were alone. For now, he invited Danny and Mary to leave so he could talk to Catherine, and the former headed home while the latter went to the kitchen. Charlie sat down on a chair near the door, indicating that he would listen to the conversation.

"Don't you trust me?" Steve asked, feeling he deserved this reaction.

"I think I'll need some time to fully trust you again," the redhead replied with a hurt tone.

Steve took this remark as an attack but forced himself not to react; he had asked for it. He searched for words to reassure his lover about what lay ahead, but he heard Catherine's car pulling into the driveway.

"She's just a mistake and a friend."

"Go see her."

Steve didn't take offense at the annoyed tone. He kissed Charlie quickly and left. While he was okay with introducing Charlie to his sister and Danny, he wasn't ready to do so with the military, and his lover seemed to understand that, at least for now.

His smile faded upon seeing Catherine. He knew the conversation wasn't going to be pleasant.

"Hey, soldier," she greeted him with a smile.

"Hi," he responded coldly.

He grabbed her by the shoulders when she approached for a kiss.

"Is something wrong?"

"What happened last night was a mistake, Catherine."

"You didn't seem to think so when we were making love."

"We had sex because I was drunk, Cath, and it won't happen again."

"Why not?"

"I have someone in my life that I'm committed to."

"I know."

"Sorry?"

Steve was shocked to hear that and wondered what he might have said under the influence of alcohol. He also realized that Catherine had slept with him knowing he was already in a relationship, and he couldn't fathom why she had done that.

"I've known since university, but you told me again last night. I also know that she lives far away, and you've always been in a long-distance relationship. Seriously, Steve, don't you think you'd be better off with someone you can see more often?"

"Uh, no. Listen, Catherine, you and I were a mistake, and it won't happen again. I care too much about my relationship to let you try to ruin it."

She was silent for a moment before smiling.

"I get it. I hope we can still be friends."

"Yes, of course."

"Okay, see you around, soldier."

Relieved that the conversation ended on that note, he watched her drive away. He entered his house and found Charlie, who didn't seem as satisfied as him.

"You know she's going to try to get into your bed again, right?"

"Oh, come on, don't worry, she got the message."

Charlie pouted, but Steve couldn't imagine his friend insisting on sleeping together after this conversation. Now, he wanted to show his love to his man and put these two horrible days behind them.

"How about a beach picnic?" he suggested.