The night that Justin had gotten the word from Dan concerning the acceptance of his manuscript for 'A Man's Love' had been the best night of the young man's life. Brian had whisked Justin away to one of the finest restaurants in town and treated him to a gourmet meal fit for a king. Afterwards the two men went to their favorite dance club and danced the night away. Brian enjoyed bragging to his circle of friends who were at the same club at the same time about his accomplished partner who had just sealed a book deal. Every one of the men caught on to that singular word 'partner' when Brian let it slip and were quietly shocked by the unspoken announcement that was mixed in with the spoken one. Professor Ben, who had already had two books published some years earlier, was particularly enthusiastic despite the slight greening of the gills around his own partner Mikey's face. Congratulations were offered by everyone, even Michael once he got over the surprise of hearing 'his' Brian calling another man ‘partner.'

That night the couple didn't even make it into the loft before their passion for each other overcame them. When the creaky, old elevator that took Brian up to the top floor of his loft apartment came to a stop the gate remained closed and the sound of labored breathing mixed with pleasure-filled groans reverberated through the entryway outside the closed lift. Justin was pressed hard against the wall as he rode Brian's hips with his legs wrapped firmly around the tall man's middle. It was a damned good thing that Brian lifted weights on a regular basis and stayed in excellent physical shape, because the ride Justin was giving him normally would have been enough to knock a lesser man off his feet. Suddenly the noises increased in volume and both men exploded...Brian filling the condom buried in Justin's ass and Justin soaking Brian's shirt just below his nipples. The men kissed more deeply and less frantically as Brian slipped out of his man, and Justin's legs lowered back to the floor. They didn't even bother to cover themselves back up as Justin grabbed his pants from the floor. They hurried out of the elevator and Brian quickly unlocked the door to his loft. Inside they cleaned up and went at it again in a state of euphoria.

That was just the beginning of their celebrations. The rest of their busy weekend was spent indulging Justin's every whim. There wasn't anything the young man could ask for that Brian wasn't prepared to give him. The poor man even sat quietly through a couple of ‘chick flicks' that Justin tended to favor even though he preferred the more rugged ‘man's man' flicks. Justin certainly made it worth his while once he re-enacted some of the more romantic moments with his lover. He took pleasure in making his re-enactment far more X-rated than the director and the studios were ever permitted to do in their films. The shower scene from one film in particular gave Brian goose bumps as Justin explored every wet inch of Brian from head to toe with his flexible tongue while the warm water poured over their bodies. By the end of the weekend both men were exhausted but thoroughly satisfied with themselves and each other.

Part of the weekend had also been spent in less provocative ways. Brian was proud to show off Justin's accomplishments to everyone and that included the ladies in his life. He and Justin spent Sunday afternoon having lunch with Lindsay and Mel and playing with his young son, Gus. The girls were extremely proud of Justin whom they had grown to admire more every time they saw him. His ability to connect with their son made him a winner in their eyes, and the fact that he had obviously tamed the 'lone wolf' at last gave him extra points for perfection in their eyes. They too were quick to notice when Brian announced that his 'partner' had won the book deal. They said nothing, as if they were afraid to break the magic spell and see the old Brian return, the one who denied he would ever have a boyfriend. Gus could have cared less. All he knew was that his new best friend was happy and that was enough for him. 

The men naturally had to let their surrogate Mom in on the big news, so a visit to the Novotny house was in order on Saturday. Justin missed his own mother fiercely. He pitied Brian for having two parents who had failed him so badly, but of course he would never say that to Brian. He personally was tremendously grateful that his own mother had proven to be a true supporter of her son and his lifestyle. Debbie reminded Justin of his mother and that made it easy to love her. That, along with the fact that she helped to ground Brian. It hadn't taken Justin long to learn that Debbie and her family were the only things that had saved Brian's sanity when he was a young child going through the tortures of hell in his cold, abusive household. Justin was convinced that Brian would never have grown up into a man he would have wanted to know if not for the love he received in the Novotny house. He owed Debbie for that and thus thought of her as his second Mom. 

Debbie's pride in Justin was enormous and almost matched the reaction Jennifer had when Justin gave her the good news. That happened in person thanks to Brian. He reshuffled a couple of appointments he had at Kinnetik, turned the reins over to Ted, and booked a first-class flight to New York City for him and Justin on Sunday night. The men stayed at the ‘Waldorf Astoria' hotel for a few days while visiting with Jennifer and Molly and spending time at the publishing house to work out the contract for the book. Jennifer was overjoyed at her son's success. She convinced Justin to let her tell Craig, but decided to wait until he was safely home in Pittsburgh before making the announcement. She wasn't sure how her ex would respond, even though it proved that Justin was as talented as she had been claiming all these years. 

Nights in the City were spent in revisiting some of the places they had visited after Brian took the young man under his wing to teach him the pleasures of being a gay man. Memories flooded back for both of them and they worked hard to create new memories every chance they got. One night in particular was memorable after Brian hired the hotel masseuses to provide a first-class massage for them both. The women's magic fingers did their job superbly and relaxed the couple fully, but within seconds of Brian handing over a huge tip to each woman and closing the door behind them the couple were all over each other providing a massage that neither woman could have achieved in a million years. 

Life then returned to normal once the couple came back home. Justin worked frequently on suggested changes and improvements of his manuscript and developed a good rapport with the editor Dan had assigned to him. Finally after a couple of months or so of hard work and devotion to the task, the book was ready for publishing. Dan worked with Brian's ad agency to set up the marketing for the novel. Brian had finally been given an advance copy of the final draft. Poor Justin had been on pins and needles not being sure how Brian would react to the obvious similarities between the novel's couple and themselves but he needn't have worried. Brian had been shamelessly proud of the flattering portrait Justin had painted of the older lover in the story. It didn't hurt that he had fallen as deeply in love with the author in real life as the character was with his young lover in the book. 

Justin had been so excited the day the book came out. That was the day that really changed everything. Brian had been forced to stay home because of a prior commitment to another of his biggest clients when Justin had gone to New York to start his book tour, which was scheduled to last for weeks and take him all over the States. With the holidays looming he would not be able to see Brian because of the heavy workload the ad man was under. Justin wasn't happy about the separation but he had faith in Brian and their feelings for each other. He left disappointed but without worry. Unfortunately it proved to be the one time Brian should have been with him. 

The shit hit the fan the second day in New York, just before Justin was to fly out to his next destination on the book tour. Justin was signing books at a popular book store in Manhattan. Advance word on the book had been overwhelmingly favorable with reviews calling it a 'heartfelt love story for the ages' and 'that rare love story between two men that everyone can relate to'. Brian had performed his usual magic in getting the word out to a vast audience, so the lines were long with both men and women wanting to get a glimpse of the hot, new writer. Justin figured that the majority of the men in the line were gay (actually quite a few of them subtly hit on him) but he didn't care as long as the book sold well. He had just signed the inner leaf for a giggly, young lady and handed it back to her when he saw who was next in line. It was his father.

Craig Taylor stared down at the stranger he once knew as his son. He fidgeted while the silly girl in front of him fawned all over his boy. If only his son would appreciate a girl's attention like normal men did, Craig wouldn't have felt so angry. Right now all he wanted to do was throttle Justin, even if it was in public. He carefully controlled his temper as he stepped forward just as Justin looked up and met his eyes. The shock and surprise registered immediately. Craig heard his son suck in his breath and then there was an uncomfortable silence that descended over them like an invisible wall. It blocked out all the chattering patrons standing behind the blond man who looked so much like the young writer. Craig didn't have a book in his hand waiting to be signed.

"Dad." was all Justin could get out. Another minute of eerie silence and then, "so Mom told you about my getting a book published at last?"

"She told me. She also told me what it was about. She actually sounded proud of you. I only came here for one reason....to let you know that I'm talking to my lawyer. I'm considering suing you for defamation. I hear tell that you wrote this book more as a biography than a fiction and I'll be damned if you'll drag my good name through the mud like that. The least you could have done was to use a pseudonym and not the name I gave you!" 

The more Craig talked, the higher pitched his voice became. He had reached the point of no longer caring what anyone overheard.

"Did you even read the book?" Justin asked as calmly as he possibly could under the circumstances.

"What? Are you crazy? I don't read filth like that. But I've heard enough from others to know that you have given me grounds for my lawsuit. I've had friends and employees come to me asking if the writer of the hot, new book is the same Justin Taylor as my son. How am I supposed to answer them? You've shamed me and I intend to make you pay for it, and that lover of yours from Pittsburgh too. YES! I know all about that man. Your mother could hardly wait to tell me that you had found someone to love who loved you back. That has nothing to do with love. It's lust and perverted love at that! Everyone knows that men like you and this Brian character can't stay faithful or have a meaningful relationship that lasts more than five minutes. He's probably out butt-fucking some other man right this minute while you run around promoting your sick lifestyle. Hell, you probably even pick up strangers in every city you come to. LOVE, HAH!" 

Craig leaned in closer as he sneered out the last words, making ‘love' sound like a dirty word. Justin barely concealed his fury. How dare this man, who had never cared one ounce for him since early childhood, sit in judgment of his love for anyone or anyone else's love for him? He stood up behind the desk and leaned in so that they were almost nose to nose.

"Are you quite through Dad? Because I am. I've been through with you for some time now. I don't give a flying fuck what you think of me anymore. And yes, I do know what love is. I have it now and I'll be damned if you are going to take it away from me with your poison. I could be gone six hours or six months and Brian would still be waiting for me. That's love. What do you know of love anyway? The only person you ever loved was yourself. You can take your empty threats and your suit and stuff them up your ass. Your days of bullying me are long gone. Now since you never did read my book, nor intend to, I would appreciate it if you would step away from the line and let my real readers have their turn."

Justin was breathing hard. His face had reddened with the effort to control his anger. His father was reluctant to back down for another full minute but then couldn't stand the unflinching look his only son gave him which clearly showed no fear. Craig backed away from the desk.

"I'll see you in court," he hissed, then swept the small pile of books at the side of the desk onto the floor. He turned and exited quickly before security could get to him and show him the door. 

Justin grimaced at the tall man who had been next in line. He stood there with Justin's book tucked under his arm. Suddenly he moved to the desk, put the book down onto its top, and began to clap. Seconds later another set of hands clapped, then another. Soon the entire line was clapping, some at the end of the line not even sure of why. Justin's frown slowly turned into a wide grin. It had never felt better getting the chance to finally tell his father exactly how he felt. He would have chosen a more appropriate venue but it was done. He felt as if a weight had been lifted from his shoulders. For the first time he realized that he REALLY didn't care what his father thought and never would again. The man had lost his son once and for all. Now all Justin wanted was to tell Brian what had happened.

Once Justin got to the hotel that Dan had booked for him, he hurriedly packed his suitcase for the flight to his next destination. While he waited for the shuttle to pick him up to take him to the airport he called his mom to let her know what had happened. She couldn't stop apologizing for telling Craig about the book. Justin finally convinced her that he was fine with it. They said their goodbyes and Justin then put in a call to Brian. The man answered on the first ring as if he had been holding the phone to his ear and waiting for the call. 

"Hey Sunshine! So tell me all about your first book-signing. Did everyone fawn all over the cute, young writer with the romantic heart? Bet you got a few numbers pressed into your hand while signing those books too."

Justin then filled Brian in on the whole scene...the good, the bad, and the truly ugly. He could hear the fury in Brian's voice after he related some of the more hateful remarks from his father, especially concerning Brian's devotion and trustworthiness. He only snorted when Justin repeated Craig's threat to sue over the book.

"Let him," Brian laughed bitterly. "Free publicity for you and a public airing of the kind of man and father he truly is." Brian paused, not sure how Justin would react to what he wanted to say next. "Justin, how do you feel honestly? I hope you didn't let that bag of hot air get to you."

"Don't worry about me Brian. He did me a favor tonight. Any lingering feelings I had for him that were hopeful of a relationship were killed by him once and for all. I don't want to ever talk about the man again. I love you Brian. I miss you so badly."

"I love you too, Justin. I miss you too, but it won't be for long. I'll be here when you get back home. Then we'll have to work on some new angles for a second book. Who knows, maybe your lovers can seriously consider getting married and starting a family of their own."

Just the word 'home' coming from Brian's mouth made Justin feel secure and ready to face the world. He hated being away from Brian even for a few weeks, but he knew he had someone to come home to who wanted him there no matter what. That was enough to shore up Justin's faith in the two of them and what he was doing with his life. Craig Taylor simply wasn't strong enough to tear down that wall of protection that Brian had built around the young writer. No one would be strong enough to do that.

The lovers kissed goodbye and felt the love through the distance that separated them. As they hung up, Brian allowed himself to feel the anger inside again that he had controlled for Justin's sake. Then and there he made up his mind to again shuffle appointments with clients. He had a task to perform that was far too important to wait for a break from work. After all, what good did it do him to own his own business if he couldn't delegate when needed? Brian Kinney began making plans for a quick trip to New York City, followed by a trip to San Francisco, the stop on Justin's book tour for the day after tomorrow. Brian had two men he had to see...one for pleasure and one for pain.

To be continued..........