CHAPTER XVIII

Ever since that night, Nate and Cael have spent more and more time together. From going to each other's house, to even going to the gym together. They would go running together on Saturdays and Sundays, and have many sleepovers where none of them sleep. And the text messages were infinite.

Hey.

Hi.

It's early.

Yeah. You turned me into an early bird.

That's good. That means I won't have to call you to wake you up every time.

I like you waking me up.

Well...

I like hearing your sleepy voice.

You do?

Yeah... It's really sexy. So smooth and low.

I didn't know that. I would have used it more if I knew it.

You can still use it. You've just woken up, haven't you?

Just a second.

Soon, Nate heard his phone ringing. Cael was calling him. Nate got excited. When he met Cael, he thought that he was really handsome. But he was Antoine's baby daddy. But Antoine had no interest in him, and he had his own love life to worry about. So, he started flirting with Cael. And, surprisingly, Cael started flirting back. And now, they are together. And they were seeing each other every time they could. Many times, Cael would invite him for lunch or just for a cup of coffee. Or they would call each other just to listen to each other's voice. How did things end up like this?

"Hello", Nate heard a voice saying from the other side. A low pitched and smooth voice. God, he felt so horny just listening to that voice.

"Hi", He answered.

"Your voice is also sexy when you wake up". Cael said.

"You think so?"

"Yeah... I can imagine myself doing so many things to you right now".

"Like what".

"I would begin by kissing those pink lips of yours. I love your plumpy underlip"

"I love your lips too. They are so tasty".

"Your lips taste like strawberries. Fresh strawberries covered in white chocolate".

"God. You really are cheesy".

"You like cheesy".

"I do. At least if it's you".

"And I am the one who is cheesy. But I forgive you. You're so cute, how could I not forgive your cheesiness?"

"I wished you were here. Then I would show you how cheesy I could be. How clingy I would be following you everywhere. Nipping on those ears and those nipples of yours. Kissing your chest and the inside of your thighs. Licking..."

"Stop". Cael said suddenly.

"Why?"

"I'm driving. And you're making me hard".

"Oh... Sorry, I didn't know", he laughed, "I thought that we were going for some phone sex".

"I'm sorry, I wasn't clear with you before. And I lead you to this".

"Where are you going?"

"Well... It was a surprise. I bought a breakfast basket for you and I was going there to give it to you. Would you like that? It looks really yummy".

"Hummmmm".

"And we can go to work together later".

"I'd like that".

"I'll be there in 15".

"I'll be waiting".

Seventeen minutes later, Nate heard the intercom calling.

"Sorry, I'm late".

"Two whole minutes. Should I still let you in?"

"Doha and Jinx miss me". Doha and Jinx were Nate's cats. The first time Cael went to Nate's apartment, the cats were nowhere to be seen. They were pretty anti-social, and didn't like people much. But on the third time, Jinx just jumped on Cael's lap while he and Nate were making out, and Doha began licking his hair. Since then, he and the cats became besties.

"They definitely miss you. They heard your voice and went to the door to wait for you".

"So... Will you let me in? For the cats, please".

Nate laughed.

"Ok. For the cats". He opened the door and soon Cael rang the door. The cats started jumping trying to open the door themselves. "Just wait, babes. I'm opening the door". As soon as he opened the door, Jinx jumped into his arms and Doha walked between his legs caressing them and purring.

"Hello, my furry babies". Cael said, caressing Jinx's head. Jinx was a black fluffy cat with big yellow eyes, while Doha was a short haired tricolor baby girl. "I have to give your mommy his gift. So, can you let me in?"

The cats didn't listen, instead they kept him at the door's threshold.

"Just ignore them and get in. They will keep you there forever if you let them", Nate laughed. Cael let go of Jinx and started walking inside, ignoring Doha's attempts to stop him. He put the basket on the table. Nate hugged him from behind and Cael turned him around to face him. He then kissed Nate longly, and hugged him tightly in the waist. He then put one hand under his shirt and the other he grabbed his ass. Nate moaned softly. Cael kissed his neck softly and nibbled his ear.

"Your lips really taste like fresh strawberries". Cael said between nibbling his ear and kissing his neck.

"Must be my lip balm", Nate said between moans.

"You must use your lip balm all over your body, cause it's addicting".

"God. I hate to stop you, but we still have to eat and go to work". Cael stopped kissing him and looked at him with the eyes of a lost puppy. "Don't even try looking at me like that, you know I'm right. Now, open this basket and let me see what you brought me".

"Okay, okay", He laughed and unwrapped the basket. They took everything out and began eating. Soon, when Nate was satisfied, they put everything away and went to brush their teeth to go to work. Cael already had his own toothbrush on Nate's apartment, and Nate had his own on Cael's. Sometimes they wondered if they were going too fast, but he would tell himself Everyone has their own time, including us. If this is not too fast for us, then it's not too fast.

Cael fed the cats before leaving and Jinx snuggled with him again, jumping in his arms, while Doha caressed his legs. They weren't like that even with Nate, and he sometimes would feel jealous.

"I think you're a cat dad already". Nate said laughing. But then he remembered how that word was complicated for Cael and wondered if he did something wrong. However, when he saw Cael laughing, he calmed down.

"Maybe I really am a cat dad". He snuggled Jinx who melted in his arms.

They went to the car. Cael always listened to some random Asian pop on the way to work and would sing along to almost every song. As Cael sang, Nate asked if he spoke any of those languages.

"I learned a little bit of Gangeoneo some years ago, but I mostly studied by myself. I learned a bit of Yueyu also, but I already forgot most of it. Sometimes I listen to a song or another and identify a word. But I mostly try to repeat the sounds". He laughed and went back to singing an upbeat song while making the funniest expressions. Nate found those moments so comfortable and enjoyable. Cael's lively way of starting his day made him want to enjoy every moment. That man made him happy. And everything he learned about him made him want to spend more time together.

Before he could even notice, they arrived in the building and Cael was parking the car. He is such a good driver. He thought as the car entered the space perfectly. They got into the elevator and said goodbye as they went to different floors. As soon as he got to his desk, Antoine called him.

"Good morning, sir", he saluted as he went into the room.

"Close the door, please". Antoine said.

"Sure".

"Do you have the documents that need my signature?"

"Yes. Here they are", he said, giving Ant the documents.

"Let me just review them, and I'll sign them in a second. Please separate the documents from DKZ too, and the report of the new AI. And the sales report of the new cellphone. And the documents for the 10 a.m. meeting".

"Sure".

Nate waited for fifteen minutes as he reviewed all the documents. Nate was always amazed by how fast he read. He took notes all over one of them and some red letters on the margins of another one. He signed the other two.

"Please, review the parts I signaled before bringing them back. I almost forgot the contract with Lan Niao. Is it ready?"

"Not yet".

"And the one with Kanren?"

"They said they will email it by 11 a.m.".

"Alright. Message the lawyers from Lan Niao asking them when the contract will be ready and bring me the Kanren contract as soon as the meeting is over".

"Noted".

"Now, to the DKZ documents. Are we having the same problems as before?" He asked as he scanned the documents.

"Pretty much".

"And what are they doing about it?", he said massaging his temples.

"The same as before".

"I really didn't want to deal with this now. Tell Allan Rigby to come to my office after you leave. I'll send him there. I should have sent him when the problems began, but they told me they would deal with it themselves. They definitely showed they can't do it right". He said, angry.

"I will call him".

Lately, he felt that Antoine was overworked, and, as a result, angrier and severer. Working from home was in theory a way for him to spend more time with his kids, while they were still small, but he had his doubts that he was getting to spend any time with the twins.

"And the report for the new A.I.?" He said scanning the report and taking notes of the main points.

"The development is going well. The code you provided is working 100%, and the implantation to create a virtual reality has good prospects".

"And the commercial analysis?"

"The initial selling price for the virtual reality goggles will have to be pretty high, but since we have the monopoly of the technology and it creates a totally different demand, we believe it will sell well with a select group. The price will also drop quickly. But the other uses for the A.I. have much better applications and better profit return".

"Okay...", he said, reading something that caught his attention. "Now the sales report for the new cellphone..."

And the talking continued, as they went through the points that Antoine already signaled and added more as he remembered other topics that were left. When it was 9h50, Antoine started to get ready for the meeting and scanned the documents again to see if there was any point left. He took another note on the margin of the text and rearranged the pages. He got his suit and while putting it on, he looked at Nate.

"You and Cael should come to the house this weekend".

"You already knew?"

"It was pretty obvious. And it was not like you were trying to hide", he smiled. "I'm happy for you Nate. You deserve to have someone who likes you and respects you".

"Thank you".

Nate didn't have a good history of relationships. Most of them started well, but they all proved to be the worst species of men and women. They soon proved controlling, abusive and toxic. Emile said that Nate's cupid had a terrible aim. The last relationship was the worst of them all. He was manipulative and kept Nate away from all his friends and even his family. He was jealous of Nate's relationship with another alpha - Emile - and prohibited Nate from talking to him. He was adept at rough sex and many times he took the condom off in the middle of the act. Nate thought he should tolerate everything, as he was afraid that his boyfriend would abandon him. The worst thing was when he went to work with his wrists purple. Antoine noticed it and called Emile. Emile flew over the same day. While waiting for him to arrive, Antoine stalled, giving Nate more and more work. When Emile arrived, he ran to Nate and hugged him.

"Why?" Emile asked.

"What are you doing here?" Nate questioned, astounded.

"Why didn't you talk to me? Why didn't you tell me?"

"What are you talking about? I'm in the middle of work".

"This", he said, showing the marks on Nate's wrist. Nate quickly withdrew and covered the marks.

"This is nothing for you to worry about".

"Not to worry? For heaven's sake, I'm your best friend and you haven't talked to me in a month. I call you but you never answer. I sent you thousands of texts asking if everything was alright. And now, this? And I shouldn't worry? Tell me the truth Nate, what's happening?"

"Nothing is happening!" He shouted.

"Don't lie to me. Don't lie to yourself. We have been through this before. The people that belittle you, that say bad things about you, that treat you terrible, and you tolerate it all because you think you're in love. And you think they are in love with you too. But this is not love! This is violence and abuse. And you... you deserve so much more. You're an amazing person, so incredible but you never value yourself. So, please, tell me the truth. What is happening?"

Nate cried. At these moments, Emile was the person he needed. The one who made him talk. And he talked. Better, the words flew like water from a broken dam. And there was so much to be said, so much he tolerated because he thought he should. But why? He was a strong person, a competent worker and a lovable friend. He deserved much more than nights of unpleasurable and hurtful sex, harsh words instead of compliments and a control freak that didn't know how to love him. Nate broke up with him, and said that he should never come back or he would ask for a restraining order.

What Nate didn't know was that Antoine and Emile thought that this was not even close to enough. Antoine hacked his computer and shared publicly all his media, as well as his conversations with previous partners where he threatened them. Emile convinced some of them to press charges for domestic violence, including one who had been severely abused. They told his employer about his violence history and the domestic abuse charges, as well as bad unethical behavior at work that got him fired. They also contacted all the companies even remotely related to his field of work and convinced them to blacklist him. He suspected Nate, but Antoine sent his security force there and told him that they still kept the worst things they found hidden, and that if he did anything to Nate, all will go public. In the end, he was arrested for domestic abuse and after being released changed countries and started working in a low-paying job.

***

After work, Nate met Cael who was waiting for him next to the car in the parking lot. They kissed briefly, and got into the car. Cael began to play his favorite songs and sing alone as they got out of the building. They had agreed to have dinner together at a recommended restaurant, and luckily it was open until late. While they were in the car, distracted, Nate looked around. A thought suddenly came to his mind and he remembered his short conversation with Antoine that morning.

"Ant told us to go to the house this weekend". When he said that, Cael froze.

"He knows?", he asked, worried.

"Yeah. He said it was pretty obvious".

"He wasn't mad or something?"

"He was just a little worried. I have a bad history choosing the wrong partners".

"Do you want to talk about it?"

"Nah... And he was positive about our relationship. He said I deserve to be loved and respected. I guess he is seeing you in a better light now". Cael blushed and smiled hearing those words. It was great to have a good relationship with Antoine, now not only for the twins, but for Nate too. Antoine's brother was Nate's best friend and he was Nate's boss and close friend too. That he was not resistant to him anymore and was even thinking positively towards him was great progress.

"You do deserve all the love in this world. You are an awesome person and an amazing boyfriend. I would kiss you right now if I could, but if I do that we will get into a car accident". Nate laughed.

"You can kiss me when we get to the restaurant. But just a little. I get shy doing things in public".

"Okay, okay. Just a little peck then".

"Alright". Nate said as they stopped at a red light. He quickly gave Cael a peck on his cheek and went back to his seat. Cael blushed and giggled.

"Such a naughty boyfriend I have".

"Just wanted to tease you a little".

"If you keep doing that, we'll not be able to have dinner".

"Oh... And I'm so hungry".

"I can see you are hungry... Hungry for something else".

"I can be both types of hungry", he laughed.

"You can. But focus now. You are the one who really really really wanted to go to this restaurant. I made the reservation and all. Now, if you don't go..."

"What?"

"You'll make me really annoyed. You talked about this for two weeks non-stop!" He said playfully.

"I really did", He laughed.

"Now I'm even willing to sacrifice sex for dinner. So this better be worth it".

"I hope it is, otherwise I would also be really disappointed". He pouted and Cael laughed at his childish acquit.

"We are almost there, so brace yourself for a great dinner or a disappointment", He said as he searched for a parking space. As he found it he maneuvered to fit the car. After he stopped the car completely, he inclined himself to take off Nate's safety belt. As he did that, he whispered in his ear. "But don't think I forgot my kiss". He kissed Nate longly and they almost lost the reservation because of that kiss. While their lips moved and their tongues danced, Nate could only think This will be a long night.