CHAPTER FOUR- LOVE, EXCITING AND NEW....and EXPENSIVE as HELL!!

After taking inventory the night before and the resulting bouts of lovemaking.... and good old fashioned fucking, they tallied up the firepower they had between them. Three hundred and eleven Desert Eagles of which 211 belonged solely to Justin, 132 knives and switchblades all belonging to Brian, 2 eight-inch short-swords belonging to Justin along with his pin and slim knife set which also doubled as lockpicks when warranted and 50 shotguns-- 25 apiece. The following morning it all again to make sure there weren't any miscalculations between the two of them. To say that Brian was surprised would be the understatement of the century. And it didn't even include the BDSM paraphernalia,  ALL that belonged to Justin. He looked again at his seemingly innocent-looking husband and wondered not for the first time, how much else could he NOT have known.

What surprised Brian the most was Justin's resourcefulness and dedication to keeping his other life separate from Brian. Half of the hiding places for all their weapons, he would have never thought of. Sure he used the most basic places of the garage, the basement, the attic and his office but Justin had been more creative. Who the fuck has an electronic pulley to come up OUT of the fucking oven? Justin, THAT'S who!

Brian snickered at the thought. And that was just ONE place, Brian had been surprised about. Behind the fridge; the inner chamber of the microwave scared the fuck out of him! But the fact remained, Justin had made use of every major appliance in their house- including under the coffeemaker- in the most unique ways to cover up his other profession. He even had some things stored in what was deemed their panic room.

Looking over at Justin, who appeared to be deep in thought, he was surprised by Justin's declaration. "We need to go shopping," he said, still looking at the bounty spread across the living room floor. "There's no way we have enough."

Brian scoffed at his husband's assessment. "Justin, if we get much more we'll be rivaling the U.S. Armed Forces in weaponry." He shook his head. "I suggest we leave this here for now, and take a shower. Maybe we can come up with another reasonable solution by the time we're finished."

Brian moved toward the bathroom, all the while hearing what Justin's thoughts about him being reasonable were. He chuckled at the colorful language spewing forth, even as they entered the luxurious space from the hallway entrance. Brian held the glass door open for him as Justin stomped past, to adjust the water temperature. When he joined the blond, he outright laughed as he turned Justin around to face him.

"What exactly is the problem this time, Sunshine?"

"Oh I have no idea, except that there are lunatics that WE trained about to descend on us with orders given from the lunatics who raised us."

"And you don't think that we have enough between us? Have you forgotten that we have our own brand of crazy people helping us, as well?"

"Of course, I didn't forget," Justin snapped.

Brian sighed. He understood Justin's anxiety better than anyone could. After all, he'd found out personally just how good Justin was at his job the previous night. Brian stretched his back in remembrance of the fight, and the make-up sessions that followed. He reached out to wrap one solid arm around his husband, while using the other hand to pull Justin's bent head upward to look him in his eyes.

"Stop worrying, Justin. Don't borrow trouble. Let's just take one thing at a time. We're already doing the most we can to protect ourselves."

It was Justin's turn to sigh then. "I just don't want anything to happen to you. Not now."

Brian pulled him close. He was never one to vocalize his feelings unless he was trapped in some rare lesbianic brainwashing moment. However, he couldn't help but be touched that even after all the emotional distance between he and Justin for the past few years, his husband was still willing to fight for him...for them. Brian used his head pushing Justin's back and capturing the plush lips he'd kissed millions times before- yet it always felt like the first time. His hands roamed the slick lithe body hoping with everything he had that the words he couldn't seem to say would be understood by the man before him.

It must have worked because Justin had somehow switched their positions, where he was the one flush against the wall, allowing Brian to press fully against him. What was once sweet and tender became passionate; the kiss ever changing between their hot mouths. Justin arched his back off the wall, trying his best to crawl inside of Brian's soaking wet body. Brian was taking Justin's air, but giving him his as the kiss turned even more frantic by the second. He was surprised to feel a gooey cool substance on his head, even as he pressed closer into Brian's body.

"I know it's been awhile, Justin, but I think I can still turn you into a slut," Brian whispered huskily into his blond husband's ear, while massaging the almond-scented shampoo into Justin's scalp.

The little moans and whimpers coming from Justin began to enflame him. He watched as Justin's eyes closed of their own volition, and continued to watch as Justin's teeth rapaciously and repeatedly caught at his full bottom lip while Brian continued his ministrations. Brian bent his head, stroking his tongue over the abused appendage, demanding entrance into Justin's mouth, moaning his own pleasure when his tongue found its mate and began to duel. The kiss turned incendiary when Justin moved his hands to tangle themselves in Brian's wet locks. Brian spun them quickly to rinse the soap from Justin's hair, never releasing his lips in the process.

Justin lifted one muscled leg to hold Brian as close to him as possible, even while jumping up to settle the other leg around Brian's slender hip. As Brian moved to palm Justin's ample ass, he tried to remember the last time they had showered together. Three years. Three fucking years of solitary showers. I must have been fucking crazy! 

With that thought, Brian moved in the direction of the nearest spray pinning Justin's pliant body to the wall. Justin's legs wrapped even tighter around Brian's body. It felt like forever since they had showered together. There was always some reason NOT to. They were either arguing, not speaking at all or had early morning meetings.

No wonder things went to hell...fast.

They used to start each morning off with sex, mutual blow jobs in the shower and then more sex before using the water for its intended purpose. He missed the closeness with Brian he used to feel when washing his husband; missed Brian shampooing his hair and preparing Justin to face another day. If Brian knew he was thinking that, the brunet might have called him a sentimental fool. But judging by the way Brian was tonguing him, Justin began to suspect that the brunet was having the same epiphanies.

Justin gasped when he felt one of Brian's fingers enter him. From his position on the wall, he could feel every ridge on the long digit more keenly as it slowly waded in and out of his hole. After several moments of adjusting to the dexterous intruder, another joined the first causing Justin to cry out. He began to ride those fingers digging into him, enjoying the feeling of them every time they swiped at his sweet spot.

"Fuck Brian...I'm...I'm,"

"Not yet, Justin. Hold it until I get my dick inside you," Brian commanded.

Justin panted out his response. "Then fucking FUCK me already! Stop fucking playing or I'll..."

Brian chose that moment to enter Justin, impaling him fully on his engorged cock. He almost laughed at the look of surprise on Justin's face when he realized that as Brian was preparing him, he was also preparing himself with a condom for penetration. Brian looked into the hooded eyes of his lover- the man who was once his best friend-and wanted nothing more than to get back what they used to be. He began to move inside Justin rhythmically,  drawing gasps, groans and grunts from his little blond burden. Justin released his arms from around Brian's neck, latching them onto the glass shower wall behind him.

Using his weight for leverage, Justin began to shift and move himself over Brian. Brian moaned at the sight and impact of Justin's compact little body, pushing Brian and matching him thrust for thrust. The hot water rained on them from all directions, multiplying the heat and stimulation for both men. Brian increased his pace, feeling his orgasm barreling down on him, and the answering ripples assailing him from within Justin's sweet ass. The shorter man moans got even louder, as Brian continued to drive into him, nearly slamming the lithe body into the glass wall holding him up.

"Oh...my...Bri....Brian please..."

"Look at me, Justin," Brian growled, staving off his own culmination until Justin did as he said.

Hazel met blue, and all the things each of them couldn't say to each other came to the surface in that moment and with it, an entirely new resolve to preserve and rebuild what they had. Brian rocked more forcefully into Justin. Justin took the impact, and gave it back as good as he got. Brian grunted his satisfaction. For several long minutes the push and pull of sexual congress was their only conversation- one they had had many times, and one that was certainly needed just then.

Honesty, openness and love shone through, even as they stared at each other. Justin rode Brian to completion, allowing one arm to drape around Brian and bring him in for a heated kiss. It was that action which pushed Brian over the edge, his climax so strong it nearly weakened his knees. Only the remembrance of who he carried kept him standing upright. He would not hurt Justin, even in this.

As they finished and cleaned up, they remained silent. They stepped out of the shower, toweling each other off, communicating with looks and subtle touches; the need and use of words again unnecessary in the grand scheme of their lives in that moment until...

"Did you hear that?" Justin froze as he was pulling on his sweatpants.

Brian did the same, listening intently at the creaking of the stairs. Without thought, Justin pushed the stopper on his bathroom sink. Brian's eyes widened, as part of the vanity in the bathroom disappeared to reveal a vault with four Desert Eagles displayed prominently- two gold and two silver.

"What the fuck?" Brian asked, eyes wide and pointing.

"Oops. I sort of forgot about these," Justin said as he grabbed the two silver handled ones, checking the mags on both to make sure they were loaded.

"I sort of forgot about these," Brian said mockingly, as he grabbed the two remaining guns, his actions mirroring Justin's.

"Can't we just be grateful for my faulty memory right now? There's someone in our fucking house," Justin stage-whispered.

"No shit, Sherlock. But we WILL discuss your penchant for forgetting important things like this. You've gotta be too young even for the early onset of Alzheimer's."

"Not really, Brian but..."

"Can we save the PSAs for a time when we're not about to have our asses blown off?"

Justin chuckled as he and Brian exited the bathroom. On bare feet and absolutely silent, they trod across the hardwood floor of their bedroom, taking care not to step on any of the creaking floorboards within the old house. Justin entered the wardrobe and grabbed his ‘Too busy to fcuk' t-shirt. Donning it hurriedly, he tossed the other to Brian, whose shirt said ‘Breakfast Included' and he did the same. The shirt exposed Brian's midriff, since it was clearly Justin's.

The blond giggled, earning him a warning glance from Brian. They went back into mode as they exited the room, checking left and then right for the intruder. It was then Justin heard the slight giggle from above him, knowing instantly who was in his house. Sitting on one of the beams across the ceiling was none other than Daphne.

"Aren't you boys so cute this morning. I thought I would surprise both of you," she said as she let her feet dangle from her perch.

"You weren't due here until ten. Why are you in my..." Justin received a tap on his shoulder from Brian, and a subtle clearing of his throat. Justin narrowed his eyes at Brian as he continued to speak. "OUR house. Just why are you in our house at eight-thirty in the fucking morning?"

Daphne jumped down to land on her feet in front of Justin. "I thought you guys should know what is going on at headquarters this morning."

"And?" Brian asked, still in shock at the little assassin before him. It was tough imagining someone as young and congenial as Daphne Chanders being able to kill a mouse, much less an actual person.

"Emmett is on his way, so we might as well wait. Brian, you should call your people, too."

Brian nodded his head, but as he picked up his cell phone to place the call, the doorbell rung.

"That's probably Em. Daphne and I will get it while you make your calls."

Justin and Daphne hurried down the stairs, Brian hot on their heels even as he had the phone up to his ear. When they opened the door, it was Emmett with his guns drawn. There were four pointing back at him, as well. Daphne and Justin stood there in shock to see Cynthia and Ted, with their guns turned on Emmett. Brian was equally shocked at the scene before him.

Prior to this precarious situation Brian and Justin found themselves in, they were all friends with no outside knowledge of each others' lives. Now the three of them looked like they were ready to kill each other. "Put your fucking guns down, the lot of you," Brian demanded, drawing all eyes to him.

Emmett looked at Justin and Daphne for confirmation. "It's okay, Em. They're here for the same reason you are," Justin confirmed, going over to stand beside Brian.

Emmett breathed a sigh of relief, and did as Justin said. Tucking away his firearms, he said, "Well, that's a relief to know. I would've hated to have shot them without all the facts. So what exactly are the facts?"

"Come in, and we'll explain why we needed you three here this morning. Anyone want coffee?" Justin asked as he moved toward the kitchen. Their bounty of weapons was still lying on the living room floor. Cynthia commented on it.

"What the fuck did you guys do? Rob the sporting goods store?"

"Nope. This is all Brian and I have between us. I don't think it's enough, but Brian says it is."

Ted, ever the accountant said, "There must be over three-hundred guns here."

Brian smiled. "Three-hundred and eleven without the shotguns, or the Eagles Justin and I have on us right now. Justin's a regular ‘Dirty fucking Harry.'"

"Who?" Justin asked, truly puzzled by the comparison to someone who is dirty named Harry. Daphne wore the same look of confusion, causing the older adults to laugh.

"It's an old Eastwood character," Brian said.

Justin shook his head. "Oh okay...must be an OLD Clint Eastwood movie then." He and Daphne snickered at the emphasis on the word ‘old', knowing how Brian felt about the age difference between he and Justin.

For once Brian didn't rise to the bait, although he did smack Justin on his firm ass. He turned to Ted and Cynthia. "I know why Daphne and Emmett are here so early, but what about you two? I tried to reach you just before we opened the door."

Justin handed the fresh-brewed coffees to all the occupants, before settling on the sofa in the living room with Brian. He curled his legs under him and leaned into the brunet, giving a quick kiss for reassurance that they were doing the right thing. "Daph, maybe you better tell us what's going on at JT this morning."

Daphne nodded before she began. "Your mom received a call this morning from someone named Raven. The argument was loud, and about the current contract proposal. I don't know how this Raven knew about it, but... let's just say that I now know why they gave your mother the name Wasp. I don't think I've ever heard two women as verbally vicious as those two were."

"Shit! I knew those dames were going to be fucking trouble," Brian said as he got up to start pacing. "Why can't they just be reasonable?"

Cynthia chimed in. "That's the reason we came over so early, too. I'd never heard Debbie so angry. It's like they couldn't insult one another, or blame each other enough for the situation that you two are in. Debbie insulted Wasp's inability to keep tabs on her boy. And Jenn insulted Debbie for raising such a pansy, who she couldn't trust with her own business which is why she has Brian." Cynthia nodded at the group of incredulous stares focused on her. "Yeah...it got THAT nasty."

Daphne added to the conversation again. "That's when both women said that one of you HAS to die, and they were sending people out immediately."

"WHAT?!" Brian and Justin said in unison. Both Justin and Brian's cell phones chose that exact moment to ring. Neither made a move to answer the offending objects; both knowing who was calling.

"We have to get out of here. TODAY," Justin said, already thinking ahead to what his mother's next move was.

Brian was in total agreement, but... "Justin, we haven't even looked at a place online or spoken to Emmett, who you said was a genius at this sort of thing."

"Aww, Baby. That's sweet of you," Emmett gushed, earning him a hard look from Brian.

"You think we can save the sentimental drivel for when we figure out what the fuck we're doing?"

"No need to get testy, Mr. Taylor-Kinney," Emmett said. "I think I might know the perfect place for you to hide out."

"Where?" Justin asked. He was hoping that Emmett had a spare property that no one knew about. Because of his mother's ties in the hotel industry, sometimes it often extended to Real Estate, especially when there was a corporation involved.

"You guys can stay with me," Emmett said cheerfully.

"Wrong, Honeycutt," Brian said immediately.

"Why? What's wrong with my place? And don't call me Honeycutt." Emmett narrowed his blue eyes at Brian and pouted.

Brian turned to Justin. "See that look there? THAT is why I have trouble believing he's as good as you say."

Justin rolled his eyes at his husband, before addressing Emmett. "It's not that there's anything wrong with your place, Em. It's lovely. And we would want to keep it that way," Justin soothed the tall queen.

"Right, Emmy-Lou. The people coming after us are all LIKE us, which means they aren't careful with other people's things. All that will matter is getting to Justin or I, or BOTH at the same time. No, what we need is someplace expendable."

"Brian, I will NOT live in a dump, if that's what you're thinking. True, as of now, we don't know how long we will have to be away from Britin. But I WILL NOT live in some hole in the wall, without a couch and a barely-there kitchen. It won't be safe for us to order takeout, so I'll be cooking mostly. I won't do that in a fucking roach motel," Justin said, meaning every single word.

"I'm not saying that we have to live among the vermin, Sunshine. But I am suggesting we be practical in purchasing a place. Once this is over, we aren't going to be living there so what difference does it really make?"

"It makes a difference to me, Brian. I know we won't be entertaining the kind of company that won't try to kill us, but as long as we're there, we might as well be comfortable too."

Brian sighed. He could very well understand Justin's point, especially because he was a known neat-freak and clean-aholic that dated back as far as he could remember. But this was a matter of life and death for them. Brian couldn't see fully furnishing a place, only for it to be destroyed in the end. That was why they had chosen to leave Britin.

"I think I have the solution," Ted piped up. "There's an empty warehouse, loft not far from here. No neighbors. I've been thinking about buying the property myself. It used to be a shed, but the former owners of the property decided to turn it into a place where their family could stay whenever they came to visit. It's already fully furnished. The survivors of the couple, who used to live there decided that the place held too many painful memories for them, and they want to short sell it."

"How bad is it, Theodore? Is it inhabitable?" Brian couldn't see the kids of the couple doing repairs, and then wanting to offload it in a short sale if it wasn't run down.

"The place has only been vacant for about eight months; the couple died literally within hours of each other. I could get the realtor on the phone, and tell her I want it right away. Since it will be in my name and I have the cash in the account, you could write me a check and therefore Justin's mom won't find out about it."

Brian and Justin mulled over the information Ted just gave them. The plan seemed sound enough but Justin still needed some assurances. "What's the realtor's name, Ted?"

"Jackie Newman. I've worked with her before. She helped us get the building for Kinnetik and even before that, my condo."

"I know she knows my mother. Are you sure we can trust her?"

"At this point, Justin, what do we have to lose? Either they find us, or they don't. We won't go looking for the trouble, but we can't avoid it either," Brian said. He moved back to the couch where the blond sat, playing with his lukewarm cup of coffee. "I say we take the chance. We still have to try to negotiate with the moms, but it's obvious we can't do it from here."

Justin looked into the sparkling, steady, hazel eyes. He really wanted to believe that this was the best move for them. "Alright," he whispered. "We'll do it, Brian. But I still think we need to go shopping, and we don't have any time to waste arguing about it. I've seen the wisdom in your argument. So don't you think it's time to see the same in mine?"

Brian looked at Justin, and saw the seriousness in the young man's face. It was true that Justin was well-trained. If he was responsible for training the people in his agency, then Brian knew protecting themselves wasn't going to be relegated to simple gun fight. "Alright, if we're going to do this, then let's do it right. First things first though. Let's get all of this packed up. Since it's too much to use our normal carrying cases, I think our individual luggage sets will have to do. Mine is in my office at the back of the house and Justin's..."

Justin answered immediately, already mentally planning for other eventualities. "Mine is in my studio. My laptop and passport is still in one of the bags so just grab it. Also, Daphne, you'll find a file within the safe on the wall. I need you you grab it and any ‘other' contents in there. You know what color the current folder is, right?"

"Purple, right?"

"Yeah. And although I haven't looked at it yet, I know it contains the information we'll need to bargain with mother and Deb. It also includes the names of our next targets, once the deal goes through. As soon as you round that stuff up, put it in the trunk of the your car near the front. My sketchbooks and supplies should be packed with the computer already."

She looked hard at Justin. "Don't you think you can wait to plot out commissions, Justin? This should be at the forefront of your priorities."

"Believe me, Daph, saving Brian's ass is definitely at the utmost top of my to-do list.  But he still has to rest sometime in between training. I won't have much time to train him, so I will be literally kicking the shit out of him while we go at it. He'll be glad for the respite, and I still need to lay the groundwork for the orders we received in the last week."

She didn't like it but she knew better to argue with Justin. Both of his jobs played an equal, and important role in Justin's existence. She guessed in some small measure, JT Designs was Justin's way of making sure he was still alive. The jobs for the ‘company' were often draining and difficult, not to mention outright dangerous. But as long as he could create something, it would maintain his sanity.

Brian looked as if he remembered something that he kinda wished he'd forgotten. He schooled his features before speaking again, hoping that no one caught his momentary lapse. He cleared his throat. "Theodore, call Jackie. Cyn, I need you to pack up those files on the desk, and the computers. Be careful not to dislodge the flash drive. It's downloading information. If the bag is too small, one of us will just have to carry it by hand, along with everything else. Justin and I will be right back down, after we take care of some last minute packing on our own." After Brian and Justin had given their instructions they turned to head up the stairs before being stopped again by Cynthia blunt question.

"You're not going to fuck are you? Because we really don't have the time," Cynthia asked, knowing Brian and Justin's penchant for fucking anytime and anyplace.

Daphne laughed. "Been there and done that already this morning, Cyn. I'm pissed that I missed the show by a minute or five. Could have been the highlight of my young life."

"Hello, we're right here you know?" Justin asked haughtily, his mild annoyance resurfacing at not getting a repeat performance after their shower fuck.

"Yeah well if you two had been on YOUR way upstairs like you were SUPPOSED to be, you wouldn't have heard us talking under your clothes like that," Cynthia said pointedly.

Her tone was stern enough for Brian and Justin to get moving, but not before they rolled their eyes. Emmett, who had been snickering at the entire exchange, laughed out loud at the end. He had no idea that city-bred Cynthia would even know about the southern and country club innuendo about sex, which he hadn't heard in years. It was a refreshing change from the overt references he had grown used to-- not that he minded those either sometimes. Emmett called after them, "You have five minutes, otherwise I'm coming up to get you."

"We'll be ready if for no other reason than to keep you OUT of our bedroom," Brian commented.

The last thing they heard was Emmett saying, "Now what the fuck am I supposed to do with this whip?"

About an hour later, everything and everyone was moving right on schedule. So the last thing they were expecting was a setback, in the form of Michael Novotny.

Daphne moved to answer the door, hand firmly wrapped around her gun. She took a moment to look through the window, noticing a dark-haired short man, smiling. It freaked her out, but she kept her features in check. Opening the door halfway, she continued to look him over. At first, she didn't recognize him, but she automatically didn't like him either.

Turning on her own country club manners, she asked, "May I help you?"

The rigid formality was not lost on Michael. But figuring he could weedle and charm the unwelcoming woman in front of him, he says, "Yeah. I'm looking for Brian Kinney. Is he here? Are you his new housekeeper? I know that the last time I spoke with him, he told me he needed one."

Daphne tightened her hand on her gun behind her. "Do I look like his fucking housekeeper to you?"

Michael gave her a once over, as if she was insignificant. Admittedly, he'd hung around David, Brian, and Brian's twinkie ex-boyfriend enough to know expensive clothing when he saw them. But then again, Brian could just be paying her very well. He always did have high standards, even amongst his employees. "Look, I asked you a question. If Brian finds out that you're keeping his best friend on the doorstep like some common visitor, he's going to be pissed! And I won't hesitate to tell him of your inappropriate behavior, towards his most favorite guest."

"I don't give a flying fuck WHO you THINK you are. Insult me ONE more time. Go on; I dare you," Daphne was about two seconds away from having Emmett and Teddy do their jobs as cleaners.

Justin saw immediately, where this was headed. And no matter how much he would love for Daphne to shoot the little fucker, he couldn't allow it to happen at this moment. They had other, more important things to do. Stepping on the side of the doorway where it was open, Justin said politely to his best friend, "Thanks. I'll take it from here, Daph. You and the others, do another sweep to make sure we have everything. Okay?"

He could see and sense her hesitation, wanting nothing more in that moment than to make good on her threat to take out the idiot in front of her. He breathed a sigh in relief, when she belligerently turned on her heel, muttering about Brian needing to get new friends. He wholeheartedly agreed with her assessment, specifically in this case. Before Justin had a chance to say anything, Michael was already speaking...again.

"WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU DOING HERE?! I thought we were well rid of you! Brian is NOT going to like that you're here in HIS house, Justin, and that his little maid let you in. Where is he?!"

Justin counted to ten in his mind, trying to calm the distasteful feeling of being in Michael Novotny's presence again. It was never his favorite place to be. He had never been happier, when the little bastard was unable to attend his wedding to Brian eight years ago. And Justin would have been even more ecstatic to never lay eyes on the annoying little pissant again. Unfortunately, fate decreed otherwise.

Taking another calming breath for good measure, Justin calmly answered, "I could ask you the same question, since you are at MY house, Michael. What the fuck are you doing here and where is your leash?"

Michael blushed furiously at the reference to David. Both Brian and Justin had nicknamed his husband as Michael's ‘leash', since the Michael couldn't seem NOT to speak his mind whether appropriate or not. "My husband had a meeting, not that it's any of your fucking business."

"Well, Michael...MY husband's whereabouts are also NONE of your fucking business as well. I'll be sure to tell him you dropped by."

Justin made to close the door, but was stopped by Michael's arm and words. "Listen, you little shit..."

"Move your fucking arm before you don't have one," Justin said, his voice deadly calm and just as cold.

Michael looked into Justin's eyes, trying to gauge the sincerity in which he was ordered. He wasn't sure how to take Justin's threat, but by the look in the now-ice blue eyes, Michael was loathed to find out. "Look, Justin, I just want to talk to Brian. I can't find my mother, and I wanted to know when was the last time he'd spoken with her."

"And it didn't dawn on you to treat the people within my house with respect and dignity? For the record, Daphne is NOT a housekeeper; she is my assistant."

Michael laughed, mirthlessly. "What could possibly need an assistant for? Everyone knows you live off of Brian's money."

Justin closed his eyes, and began the count again before speaking. "It is the same old song and dance with you, isn't it, Michael? And just what business is it of yours where and on whom Brian chooses to spend his money? Apparently, David hasn't spent enough on you, since you still don't have any class or a muzzle. Personally, I would prefer the latter because it would mean you would have to shut the fuck up sometimes."  Justin heard a snicker behind him, and knew immediately who it belonged to.

"Good one, Sunshine," Brian said, as he placed a gentle kiss on his husband's lips. Turning abruptly to Michael, he continued. "Well now that you have offended my guest and my husband, what can I do for you, Michael? As you can see we're very busy here."

Michael took a moment to gauge the activity, and voices going on behind the couple. He noticed the mountain of luggage standing tall, waiting for the occupants of the house to claim. "Taking a trip? Where are you going? I'm in town for awhile, and I was hoping we could hang out."

Justin narrowed his eyes at the unwanted guest. "I thought you said you were worried about not hearing from Deb. But of course, this is just like you, isn't it, Michael? Like I said, your brand of shit never fucking changes." He looked at Brian, disregarding the man in front of him. "I'll leave you to get rid of him, Brian. We're going to be late if you don't." And with that last statement and a visual warning of the time, Justin left Brian to deal with his ‘former' best friend, although Michael still didn't see it that way.

"So are you going to answer my questions or not?" Michael asked.

Brian pinched the bridge of his nose, already feeling a massive headache blossoming behind his closed eyelids. Michael's incessant whining was even thicker, and more annoying than Brian remembered. He hadn't been exposed to it on a daily basis going on ten years. He supposed that was the reason he was now, once again, sensitized to it. Prior to Michael moving in with David, Brian had learned to tune out the annoying high-pitched tenor and brassy quality of Michael's voice, which had become like the notable static when changing a television channel when there was no antenna; just noise with minimum understandable words.

That said, Brian hoped the meeting wouldn't last long at all. "Mikey..."

Michael's smile widened. "Mikey...it's been a long time since you called me THAT."

Brian tried again, skipping over the nickname he had given the brunet back when they met in high school. Michael no longer fit the description from the Life commercial, and hopefully his current eating habits didn't either. But that wasn't something Brian was prepared for, or going to examine. "Justin and I have a pressing business matter that requires our full attention. So no, I won't be ‘hanging out' with you while you're in town, because I won't be here."

"Business? What business could he possibly have, Brian? You're the successful one, and as usual, he's just along for the ride. He..."

"Michael, listen to me. Are you listening?" Brian asked. When Michael finally cut off his rant, Brian continued speaking low, clear and concise words as if speaking to a child. "Justin IS my partner in LIFE and in BUSINESS. So whatever he and I do together- or even individually- is NONE of YOURS. Is that clear?"

"Crystal," Michael answered. He understood the tone Brian used, and that his thoughts, feelings or opinions of Brian's husband were NOT up for discussion or debate.

"Good. Now we really must be going. Enjoy your stay in Pittsburgh, and when I hear from Deb, I'll tell her you're looking for her."

Brian moved back into the doorway, closing the door with Michael still standing there. He watched as the man, defeatedly, got back into his car and began to drive out of the gates leading to Brian and Justin's home. Motioning that the coast was clear, Brian, Justin, Daph, Cyn, Ted and Emmett began the process of loading the other suitcases not already in the vehicles. Within fifteen minutes, they were on their way to the next location. Unbeknownst to them, they had a nosy little tail who had seen Ted and Emmett, and now decided to follow.

Michael was not about to give up on Brian so easily.