Justin dived as deeply as he could and used the pool bottom to launch himself up through the water like a hot knife through butter. He burst to the surface in a spray of water that covered Brian's entire head. The older man shook his head, droplets flying from his thick hair. He spluttered from surprise and grabbed for the blond, but lost his grip on Justin's slippery arm. The younger man swam a few feet away and turned back to laugh at his lover while he tread water just out of Brian's reach. He stuck out his tongue like a schoolboy egging on a rival. Brian turned his back as if to ignore the pesky kid, but his shoulders betrayed the suppressed laughter threatening to bubble to the surface. 

The sun was particularly strong on this wintry day in Florida, and even though the temperature of the air was a crisp sixty-eight degrees, the heated water of the apartment complex pool made swimming a comfortable pastime for its residents. A vapor of steam floated over the surface of the water where cool air met warm water, slightly veiling the couple from prying eyes, not that there were many of those. Brian had chosen his Winter residence with care and there were no children allowed so the complex was normally very quiet during the day, the adult residents off at work for the most part. Actually the units were gay friendly, which made the place even more desirable. Several of the other Circus performers also occupied units in the complex. 

To no one's surprise, Brian had asked Justin to move in with him as soon as the Circus caravan arrived at their Winter Quarters. His rationale as to how his only desire was to help the young man out with finances by sharing the expenses of his apartment didn't fool anyone, but no one would have voiced their opinion on the matter. Debbie's son, Michael, probably would have protested quite loudly but he had fallen quite hard for the handsome writer, Ben. He didn't seem quite as interested in sticking his nose into Brian's business as he had in the past. This pleased Brian a great deal, not to mention how happy it made Debbie and Uncle Vic. 

Normally most of their colleagues would be at the large sports center in town where many circus acts continued to practice their routines and prepare new parts to their acts in order to stay fresh in the public's eye, but Christmas was just around the corner so Debbie had given everyone a week off in order to prepare for the holidays or visit with family members outside of their circus lives. Half the acts had already left town. Brian had nowhere to go. He never left at this time of year, or any other time for that matter. Justin, of course, had nowhere he wanted to go either. Staying with Brian was more than satisfactory to him. 

The relationship between Brian and Justin had grown by leaps and bounds. They hadn't been in Florida that long and yet Brian felt strangely as if Justin had been living with him for years. It actually came as quite a surprise to the older man. He had long ago given up the idea of sharing his life in an intimate way with anyone. He told himself over and over that he was quite content as a swinging bachelor with no one around to answer to. Now he found he enjoyed the feeling of walking in the door and knowing that Justin would be there waiting for him. He even enjoyed it more when Justin would accompany him to the sports center where his troupe spent hours practicing. Sometimes Justin would even join in a bit of the practice sessions. When he only came to watch, Brian found himself working even harder just to impress the young man. Brian wasn't ready to admit what was really happening between them, but his actions spoke volumes. 

Today was a perfect example. Brian had hardly ever used the pool at his complex before Justin came into his life, but the young man loved swimming so Brian found himself joining Justin in the water whenever the weather permitted. As they splashed around in the warm water, Brian realized how young at heart he always felt when with Justin. All the jaded thoughts that once crowded his mind during his annual hiatus seemed to disappear. As for Justin, all he could think about was Brian. He was wise enough, despite his youth, to know what had happened to him. He had something to compare this relationship with. He now knew the difference between saying you loved someone and actually feeling it. With Brian, it was real...a little scary...but real, nonetheless.

Brian stood in the water with his back turned. Visions of Justin's naked body  entered his thoughts as he suddenly realized that Justin wasn't coming after him again. He had half hoped the blond would take advantage of his turned back to sneak up on him. He had prepared himself to spring into action and grab Justin before he could get away this time. He cautiously turned around to see where the blond was. He didn't see Justin anywhere. The misty fog hanging over the water obscured some of his vision at a little distance, but there was no sign of Justin. Seconds ticked by and Brian was getting nervous. He was just about to shout Justin's name when he felt hands grabbing onto his waist. 

Brian looked down and saw Justin's pale locks through the clear blue water. Without warning, he felt Justin's mouth clamp over his flaccid cock through the swim trunks he was wearing. Brian almost slid down into the water from the sheer shock of the action under the surface. At the same time, he let out a whoosh of air mixed with the undeniable sound of pleasure. It was hard to understand how Justin could remain underwater for so long. It had to be a full minute since he went under, at the very least. Another fifteen or twenty seconds flashed by in which Justin quickly sucked on Brian through the material. Finally he jumped back up to the surface, the water breaking over his sodden head. He flashed an evil little grin at Brian who responded by grabbing tightly onto Justin's waist and lifting him half out of the water, like one of the acrobats from the Circus. 

Now that Brian had Justin firmly in his grasp, he had no intention of letting go. He lowered the laughing young man back down until they were eye to eye. Brian then swooped in for a deep passionate kiss that went on and on. By the time that Brian finally released Justin, the young man's legs were too weak to hold him up. He slumped against Brian's chest and looked up contentedly into the older man's soulful eyes. 

"You had better not start something you are not willing to finish, my fine young friend," Brian warned Justin. 

"This shouldn't be a problem for me, old man," Justin teased back. "I'm quite capable of finishing anything I start. That is if you'll stop kissing me like that. I'm afraid I get a little weak in the knees when you do that and I might not be able to walk back up to your apartment."

"Our apartment," Brian corrected, sending a shiver of delight through Justin's heart. "And speaking of the apartment...I think I've had enough sunshine and water for one afternoon. But don't let me stop you from getting your exercise. You can stay and swim around as long as you like."

Brian started to pull away and turn towards the metal steps leading out of the pool when Justin restrained him. He turned back to face the young man.

"If you think you are going to leave me here alone where anything could happen without a lifeguard on duty, you are sadly mistaken, Brian Kinney. If you are getting out, I guess I'll just have to leave all this fun behind and join you instead."

Brian could hear the eagerness behind the sad-faced mask Justin tried to put on as he spoke. 

"Then let's go," Brian ordered, "before I change my mind and decide to pay you back for trying to drown me."

The lovers quickly moved to the steps and made fast work of towelling off and hurrying back to their shared apartment. The door had barely closed behind them when their sopping wet swim trunks lay at their feet and they were in a tight clinch, kissing deeply and repeatedly as their bodies warmed up inside and out. Before long, they were stretched out on the thick carpeting with Justin's leg high in the air as Brian pounded into him sideways with all the vigor his lust for the young man brought out in him. They were face to face, touching each other in the many spots they had come to discover caused maximum pleasure for one another. Eventually the room was filled with the sounds of their building excitement until they both came at almost the same moment and shouted out their reaction for all the world to hear, if the world had been listening.

They lay there fully spent and wrapped in each other's arms until a slight chill made goose bumps appear, dappling their skin. Brian pulled the soft multi-colored coverlet off the couch where it laid waiting for those nights when they would fall asleep while watching a television sitcom or detective series. Brian still mourned the loss of his favorite genre, the classic Western, and wouldn't have watched TV as often if Justin hadn't enjoyed it so much. He wrapped the blanket around them and they remained right where they were. In a few minutes, the exertion from the swimming and extra-curricular activity lulled them into a short nap. 

An hour later, the couple woke and took a hot shower together to ease the discomfort of their bodies from lying on the floor for so long and to clean off the chlorine from the pool. Justin fixed a quick snack and they settled down at the kitchen table. As they sipped on the strong coffee Brian had brewed, they began to talk about their plans. Brian was particularly proud of Justin because of the offer he had recently received from a small, but very popular gallery in town. 

Somehow, word had spread among the Circus community, which included quite a number of different organizations, about the young artist who was bringing in quite a tidy income for the Novotny Family Circus through his drawings and paintings being sold to customers visiting the show. That led to a visit from the uncle of one of the performers from a rival Circus. The man owned a small art gallery that specialized in undiscovered young talent. A new show was being held right after the New Year and he wanted to take a peek at the work of this young man who, it was rumored, had increased the revenue of his Circus just from his advertising graphics, not to mention his artistic works. Once Justin showed off some of his pieces that he had not sold, the older man quickly asked Justin to submit some of his pieces for the new show.

Justin had been hesitant at first. He knew he had talent, but his work was untrained and he wasn't certain he was ready for a genuine art show. It was more like playing when he drew his pictures to sell at the Circus. Even the work he had done for Debbie to advertise the shows and the acts had been more like a favor than something he thought of as an artist's work. When Brian sensed Justin's hesitation, he stepped in to reassure Justin that he was as talented an artist as any man on the planet. Brian's faith in him carried the day for Justin and he finally acquiesced. As they sat at the table on this December afternoon, they talked about the ordinary things that couples would when comfortable with each other. Brian described some of the new moves he was considering for his act and Justin talked about the subjects for his upcoming artwork for the show. Pride in one another enfolded them in comforting arms. Nothing could mar their sense of security in each other.

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

Miles away from where Brian and Justin were discussing their plans for the immediate future on this mild Winter day, another man was freezing his ass off waiting in his vehicle for his latest detective to show up. This guy was his fifth detective, but he had high hopes for this one. He had called Ethan earlier sounding very excited about something. Ethan had ordered him to come right over to the apartment to pass on what he had discovered, but the man had errands to run. He had offered to stop by later that afternoon, but Ethan was in a hurry. He agreed to meet the guy at a park half-way between their two locations. Ethan didn't appreciate being put out in such a way, but if the news was worth it, he would be forgiving. 

Ethan was just about to turn the car engine on again in order to run the heater once more when he spotted the detective's car through an open spot on the snow-covered windows. He welcomed the heat as it filled the interior of the car. He waited for the man to park his car and run skittering over to Ethan's vehicle. The older man slid into the seat beside Ethan and blew into his hands, trying to warm them up. He was extremely skinny and looked as if a strong gust of wind would blow him away. He wrapped his jacket tighter around his chest and turned to Ethan with a self-satisfied smirk on his pinched face. 

"Well?" Ethan asked, not wasting time on civility.

"Well, Mr. Gold, I think I've found your friend."

He paused for dramatic effect, prompting Ethan to lose his temper.

"For fuck's sake, quit dragging it out. Did you find Taylor or not?"

The detective's head snapped up. It was obvious that his client wasn't a man who liked to play games. He decided to get right to the point...a good idea given his client's attitude. 

"If this guy is the same Justin Taylor, then yes, I've found him. From what I was able to gather from an associate, he fits the general description you gave me. It's really too bad that you told me you destroyed all the photos you had of him, but my associate is willing to try and get a photo of the guy for you to check out. He's going to have it sent to me by UPS."

"So, where the hell is he and how did you find him?"

"He's in a small town near Tampa in Hillsborough County, Florida. I had been keeping a close watch on art showings for up and coming young artists and found a story on this one place that has an annual show. It listed the artists for the new show and one of the names was Justin Taylor. It could be a coincidence but that's when I had another detective I know from the area check it out. He obtained the description of the young man from the Director of the gallery the showing will be held in and it fit the info you gave me. So, I presume you want him to get a photo of the young man?"

Ethan's voice shook with excitement. What the fuck did he think he wanted? This was the first bit of good news in half a year. He forced himself to remain as calm as possible when he answered the moron.

"Of course I want a picture....just to make sure we have the right guy, but how many blond boys with artistic talent named Justin Taylor could there be out there? Florida, you say? What the hell is in Florida, besides too much sun and oranges?" 

"I don't know, Sir, but once you've confirmed his identity from the photo, I'll go down there myself and check it out. The showing is in less than three weeks, so I'll have time to get some answers if I ask the right questions. It will look innocent enough. This young man wants attention for his work or he wouldn't have agreed to be a part of the show. I'll just act like an interested art critic or connoisseur."

Ethan smiled for the first time. There was something almost feral about the way his face changed when he contemplated finally coming face to face with Justin again and showing him that he couldn't hide from the one man who loved him enough to search everywhere for him. Maybe then he would stop fighting the inevitability of their relationship. The detective felt a chill that had nothing to do with the small snowstorm outside. He wondered what his client was thinking that made him look so strange. Well, it wasn't any of his business. He was getting paid quite a lot of money to find a young man, not ask why. 

Once the detective slipped out of his car and hustled as fast as his long legs could take him to his own vehicle, Ethan put his car into 'drive' and pulled away from the curb. As he drove himself back to his apartment through the gray-white snow-filled streets, he smiled again. Almost....he was almost within reach of his goal. In less than a month, he expected to be lying next to Justin and making the stubborn young man his once again. He knew that Justin would be grateful once he accepted his fate. Soon he would be a happy man again...both of them would.

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