Brian couldn’t understand how something simple turned into a fight, but it had. It wasn’t like Brian did anything wrong. He just didn’t see the point in mortgaging their asses when he could simply take care of it as he did with everything else in his life. Justin somehow saw it as Brian not letting him do his share in the combination of their lives. Which led to a huge argument instead of the shower sex Brian had planned for the first morning in their new house. Brian didn’t get it according to Justin. But, the way Brian saw things, Justin was the one who didn’t get it.

“Boss?” Ted repeated for the third time since he had come in for their morning meeting.

“Brian?” Cynthia tried when they couldn’t get Brian to answer them.

“What the hell is his problem?” Brian muttered.

“Whose problem?” Ted asked, trying to figure out what was wrong.

“He acts like what I did was akin to murder.” Brian continued, completely ignoring Cynthia and Ted.

“Justin,” Cynthia told Ted.

“Okay… What did Justin get pissed about?” Ted asked carefully.

“I paid for the house. Why have a mortgage and pay interest if we didn’t have to. You’d think he would have been happy, but no, apparently that just pissed him off.” Brian continued.

“Makes sense,” Ted commented.

“How the fuck does that make sense to you, Theodore?” Brian asked, growling.

“It’s just something Blake told me. Justin prides himself on being able to take care of himself. Since you likely didn’t talk to Justin before you just went and paid cash for the house, he probably feels like you didn’t include him.” Ted told Brian.

“We planned to buy the house, so why would it bother him if I took care of it?” Brian asked him.

“You said it. WE, not you.” Ted said, hoping Brian would get where he might have gone wrong.

“I’ve spent my life taking care of people. Yet it’s wrong to do it for the man who means more to me than anyone else in my life.” Brian said.

“Justin isn’t like the other people in your life. He doesn’t want you taking care of everything. He wants you both to take care of each other.” Cynthia said since that was the way she read Justin.

“Which is what I did. I took care of both of us.” Brian pointed out.

“Without telling him what you were doing.” Ted pointed out.

“Fuck,” Brian said, knowing that if the situation was reversed he wouldn’t have reacted any better than Justin had.

Carol, Brian’s PA, came in as Brian got that he might have fucked up by not telling Justin about paying for the house.

“Mr Kinney, there’s a delivery for you out front,” Carol told him.

Brian got up, wondering why she didn’t just bring it to his office. Not seeing anything at the reception desk he looked over at Carol, who pointed outside, smiling at his confusion. Ted followed Brian out the door and turned around when he saw Justin standing outside in front of a new car.

“I’m sorry for the way I reacted this morning,” Justin told him.

“I should have talked to you before I did it.” Brian conceded.

“So from this moment on we talk to each other,” Justin said, holding out his hand to Brian.

“What’s behind you?” Brian asked, staring at the vintage Corvette.

“Oh, since the house was paid for I thought I’d do something frivolous. I bought you a car.” Justin smirked.

“Why this one?” Brian asked.

“Because your browsing history told me this is the one you tend to look at the most,” Justin told him.

“What else did my browsing history tell you?” Brian said, crowding Justin by the car.

“It was very educational, Mr Kinney,” Justin said leaning up to kiss Brian.

Brian stopped him, staring into the blue eyes that enslaved him. “Are we good?” 

“Conner told me to get over myself and see what you did for what it was. You wanting to have a home with me. I couldn’t see it. But that’s my fault because I’ve spent my life taking care of everyone I love. Which led me to realize that you were doing the same thing.” Justin told him.

“Have time for a ride?” Brian asked, not even upset that Justin gave him something he’d been denying himself.

“I wish I could, but Conner, Blake, and I promised to help Dean get some crap Molly found,” Justin told him.

“Then we have dinner with Mel and Lindsay.” Brian reminded him.

“And I told Brandon we’d hang out at your club with him tonight,” Justin told him, wishing they could just go home.

“I’ll get Lindsay to invite Ben to go with us,” Brian smirked.

“Smug bastard. Just because your matchmaking skills worked once with Emmett, now you plan to do the same to your brother?” Justin asked, willing to help give Brandon what he had with Brian.

“He deserves to see what having someone who really loves you can be like. Plus, Ben won’t judge him for living his life the way he wanted. I think that, like me, once Brandon finds the right guy, he’ll want something different.” Brian told him, leaning down to kiss Justin again. “By the way, thank you for giving me something just because you knew I wanted it.

**********************************************************************************

Normally, getting arrested meant calling Jen or Brett. But today Justin didn’t have to deal with his mother’s stare or Brett’s teasing for once again being arrested.  Instead, it was Brian and Ted laughing as they paid the bail. Which Justin wasn’t happy about since Molly swore she’d gotten permission to remove the stuff from the construction site. Only the owner hadn’t answered and the police weren’t willing to wait on a return call. Molly looked sorry but kept swearing the guy told her to take anything from the garbage they were throwing away. Molly took off, saying she’d get the guy to tell the police but Brian and Ted got there first and bailed them out. 

“She swore to me the guy gave her permission,” Justin told Brian.

“I heard the guy tell her she could take anything she needed,” Dean assured Justin.

Ted was standing away from them on a call and smiled when he hung up. “Hugh said he did give them permission, so we just need to wait for him to get here,” Ted told Brian.

“How come he answered for you?” Conner asked.

“He’s one of our clients,” Ted told them.

“I just don’t get it. Why did the police even show up?” Blake mentioned.

“It was an anonymous call,” Brandon told them, as he came in.

“How do you know?” Brian asked since Brandon was off today.

“I called Carl when one of the guys bragged that Conner James got arrested. I stopped by the site to see if I could help, but you guys were already gone and the crew seemed as surprised as you guys were that the police showed up. The foreman tried to tell the cops that Molly did get permission but we’ve had calls about thefts there so the police were waiting for the owner to confirm it.” Brandon told him.

Carl came out of his office, stopping to speak to the desk sergeant, then coming over to them.

“Hugh called and wanted to apologize for not straightening this out sooner. He plans to have the stuff delivered to Molly’s place and hopes that you guys aren’t upset at him.” Carl said, looking at Brian.

“I’ll call him after Justin gets cleaned up. Any idea who called the police?” Brian asked.

“Other than it sounded like a kid, no idea. How about do us all a favor and get a letter saying you have the right to remove anything, it will save us time. As much as I like you, Justin, I’d really rather not be on the wrong side of Jen or Deb.” Carl told Justin, smiling.

“The hens ganging up on you?” Brian teased.

“You wouldn’t believe what two best friends are like when they’re joined in a cause,” Carl said laughing. “Apparently the momma bears don’t like it when people mess with their babies.”

********************************************************************************

Michael sat at Babylon, planning to make sure Brian couldn’t miss that he was having fun without him. Michael had spent the last two weeks punishing Brian by ignoring him for treating him like he meant nothing to him. Not one phone call or even a visit, just so Brian would feel what life was like without Michael there. Tonight, Michael sat with a group of guys who pretty much hated Brian and told them how whipped Brian had become. He added that Justin thought he owned Brian and that Brian couldn’t do anything or go anywhere unless Justin said he could. The guy laughed at the idea the Stud was being led around by the dick by some blond twink.

Brian and Justin showed up looking for Brandon, with Ben behind them talking to Ted and Blake. Conner and Brett went to the bar to get drinks for everyone, and dealt with guys gushing over Conner. Emmett and Drew were dancing already, but Emmett had been given the gossip making the rounds and planned to make sure Brian heard it from him. He watched as Michael stood on the catwalk smirking, waiting for the gossip to get to Brian. He’d hoped that Michael could be happy for Brian. But then, he’d spent years hoping for Michael to grow up and being disappointed in him. So why he still tried to believe in Michael, Emmett didn’t know anymore.

Emmett giggled into Drew’s shoulder when the manager went over to Brian and told him what Emmett told him to say. Brian listened, rolled his eyes and pulled Justin into his arms and kissed the shit out of him, in front of everyone after glancing up and making sure Michael was watching.

“What?” Drew asked, just happy that Emmett was happy.

“Look at Michael and tell me what you see,” Emmett told him.

“He either looks confused or constipated ” Drew replied.

“Likely both, since his verbal diarrhea didn’t work to make Brian push Justin away,” Emmett told him.

“He needs to get a life, one that doesn’t revolve around building his castle around Brian.” Drew told him.

“Until Justin, there was no threat Michael couldn’t get rid of,” Emmett told him.

“Being in love changes what you’ll put up with,” Drew told him.

“Does it?” Emmett asked.

“For me it does. Nothing means more to me than you do. I don’t care what anyone else wants or thinks about me, now that I finally have you back.” Drew told him.

“Which is the same for Brian. None of this matters to him anymore; the club, being the stud, or the freedom he once said he’d never give up.” Emmett told him.

“It’s the same for all of them,” Drew told him, looking at the men having fun regardless of what the shithead on the catwalk tried to do. “Okay, now he looks pissed about something,” Drew said as Emmett looked up.

Emmett followed the glare to see Brandon sitting with Ben, not sure what Michael was upset over since Ben hadn’t shown any real interest in him.

“Somehow I have a feeling this is going to be Justin or Brandon’s fault,” Emmett told him as Michael glared at both Justin and Brandon.

Brandon was still reeling about what Mel and Lindsay had asked him. He was flattered but at the same time surprised at the request. He wanted to say yes, just because he loved his nephew, and having a child of his own was a dream he’d never allowed himself to have. Now if he wanted the dream could be a reality.

“What are you thinking?” Ben asked. Since he’d hoped tonight meant Brandon was interested in him.

“I got an offer that I want to say yes to, and it would make sense since Brian and I are brothers,” Brandon told him, liking that Ben was easy to talk to.

“You don’t have to tell me, but I’ll offer my opinion if you want it,” Ben told him.

“Lindsay and Mel want to have another child and asked me to father one with Mel. It would mean that Gus’ sibling would actually be related to him.” Brandon told him, really wanting to hear what Ben thought.

“Do you want a child? That’s what should be important here.” Ben told him.

“I love Gus, and the idea of having a part of me… it’s just something I didn’t let myself think about.” Brandon told him.

“It’s something I always wanted but can’t have, but for you, it’s something you can have,” Ben told him.

“Would you want to get involved with a guy who had a ready-made family?” Brandon asked.

“Would you want a guy with HIV?” Ben asked.

“It’s what held me back. Which sounds awful, but I won’t lie to you.” Brandon told him.

“So it wasn’t me agreeing to dinner with Michael?” Ben joked, trying to lighten the moment.

“No, because I could tell you weren’t interested in him,” Brandon told him.

“What do you think now?” Ben asked, hoping.

“I think as long as we’re careful and make sure you stay healthy that I don’t have to worry that one day you might leave me. I also think it could just as easily be me leaving you since my job isn’t the safest job in the world. It’s just, if I do this, have a kid, do you still want to give it a try?” Brandon asked.

“I need to confess something first,” Ben told him, not willing to let Brandon find out any other way.

“Tell me, but I don’t know if anything else would bother me,” Brandon told him.

“I slept with… well more like tricked with, your brother, once, years ago at a white party.” Ben told him.

“Are you in love with Brian or do you want him again?” Brandon asked.

“No. While he lives up to the hype, in the end, he didn’t mean anything more than the five others that weekend,” Ben told him.

“Good answer,” Brandon said, giving in and kissing the lips he’d wondered about.

Ben pulled back, wanting to ravish Brandon. “For the record, I think you’d make a great father, I hope I’m there to see it.”