An Unforgettable Summer (Good Guys Don't Date Bad Boys Bonus Story, Patreon Exclusive) - Ch. 6 (Patreon)

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Chapter Six – Visiting Friends

“Is it a surprise visit?” Jonathan asked while he watched Maddox drive with his usual surety, something he enjoyed doing a lot.

“Let’s call it a half-surprise. I did call them to see if they were all at home.”

“So, first we’re going to see Dex, right?” Dex who had grown up with two dads. Jonathan didn’t want to come across as rude, but he was very curious. Although it wasn’t something he had shared with Maddox, in their future, he hoped that they would raise children, too. Being able to have a front row seat and see firsthand how a family with two dads made things work had the capacity to raise a particular kind of emotion in him, one he couldn’t quite pinpoint.

“I have a feeling you’re looking forward to this even more than I am.” Maddox examined him briefly and then turned his eyes back on the road.

“I am,” Jonathan admitted. “Call me ignorant or whatever, but I’ve never met a family like Dex’s.”

“Because he has two dads?”

“Yes. I’d say Dex turned out to be an awesome guy, and it’s mostly because of them, right?”

Maddox nodded. “They’re really cool dudes. Dex is crazy about them. And, I don’t know if I ever confessed this to you, but they really did help me when I had no idea how to, um, ask you to top me.” The last words were said quickly, and Maddox pretended driving was a very absorbing activity, more than it should be.

“Oh, wow,” Jonathan commented. “They must be very open-minded. I don’t think I could have talked to any parents, no matter whose, about such intimate matters.”

“It was pretty weird at first, yeah,” Maddox admitted. “But they made me feel at ease.”

Jonathan waited, but Maddox didn’t add another word. “And that’s all you’re going to tell me about it, right?”

“Yeap,” Maddox admitted and then grinned, mostly to himself. “I wouldn’t want to ruin your impression of me.”

“Which is what? That of a…” Jonathan paused for effect, “Mad Dawg?”

Maddox laughed. “Yeah, right. I hope you’re hungry. Dex’s dads throw the best BBQ parties in their backyard on most summer Sundays. Something tells me we’re right on time.”

Jonathan pressed down the front of his short-sleeved shirt to smooth out some invisible wrinkles. Although there was no reason to be nervous about meeting Dex’s parents, he didn’t want to appear too curious and eager to learn about their lifestyle. It was one thing to idealize marriage, but seeing people who could make it work for decades was another. His parents were an example, Maddox’s amazing family was, as well, but this time, he would be able to sneak a peek into the happy life of two men who had chosen to live together, and that was nothing to take lightly.

Maddox took out his phone and sent a quick message to Dex.

“Maybe we should have called in advance,” Jonathan said. It was too late to worry about it now, but he still wanted to mention it.

“No worries. Dex’s dads always say that their door is open to all of us, and they really mean it.”

Jonathan wanted to ask what they should do if Dex wasn’t at home, but right that moment the door of the house they stopped in front of opened wide. Dex barreled through it, wearing nothing but shorts and a pair of flip-flops. He looked like he had just been sunbathing until that moment.

Maddox opened the door and gestured for Jonathan to get out.

“You mofo,” Dex said and grabbed Maddox to hike him up, shake him and then put him down, “you could have called earlier!”

Maddox made a show of sniffing the air. “And ruin the surprise? I know how much your folks love surprises.”

“You do, huh?” Dex turned toward Jonathan. “Hey, Hamilton. You two look like you caught some real nice tans.”

“Thank you, Dex,” Jonathan said politely.

Dex looked at Maddox, a bit confused, and then pointed at Jonathan. “You still haven’t managed to wear down all that good upbringing, huh? Jeez, now we’ll never hear the end of it once my dads see him.”

“Yeah, yeah, make sure to chew your food with your mouth closed,” Maddox said. “We didn’t come at a bad time, did we?”

“It’s never a bad time,” Dex assured him. “Grab your boyfriend and let’s introduce the wunderkind to dad and dad.”

Jonathan liked witnessing the interactions between Maddox and his friends and could tell that he had a special relationship with each of them. With Dex, it definitely felt like Maddox was looking up to him like he was his big brother, even though he had two of those at home. Jonathan had to admit that he understood why. Dex had the commanding presence of someone who knew how to lead, which made him all the more curious to meet Dex’s dads.

Jonathan accepted Dex’s heavy hand on his shoulder and let himself be guided toward the house. They passed through a front hallway and a sunny kitchen to reach the backyard. Even though they had a good breakfast at home, Jonathan’s stomach reacted at the smell of grilled meat, and he swallowed once.

Around the grill, two men in their early fifties were talking and laughing while tending to the task at hand. What surprised Jonathan most at first glance was how short they both were. At their side, Dex had to look like a giant. Not that it was a problem of any sort, but Jonathan felt as if he had forgotten that Dex wasn’t the biological son of either of them. Their connection was all that mattered.

“Dad, dad,” Dex said quickly, “we have company.”

The two men turned with smiling faces, and their eyes lit up when they saw Maddox, and then him. He nodded politely. “Good afternoon.”

“Harry,” one of the men reached out and offered his hand. “You must be Maddox’s boyfriend. We’ve heard so much about you. And this is Dennis, my better half.”

“Half minus ten percent,” Dennis joked and shook Jonathan’s hand. “What?” he slightly turned toward his partner. “We both know I’m the skinny one.”

In all fairness, both of them seemed to be in more than decent shape for their age.

“Nice to meet you, Jonathan,” Dennis added.

“It’s a pleasure, sir,” Jonathan replied.

Dennis let out an ‘aww’ as a sign of endearment and covered Jonathan’s hand with his other one before letting go. “Did you hear him, Harry? Now that’s what I call a well-behaved boy.”

“Yeah, Dennis,” Maddox intervened, “as if you’d let any of us call you ‘sir’.”

“That’s true,” Dennis admitted. “But it’s nice to see some good upbringing once in a while. Dex, stop right there.”

Dex obeyed, his hand in midair, armed with what looked like a mouthwatering hamburger. “What?”

“We have visitors. Let’s pretend we know that we should serve our guests first.”

“They’re practically family,” Dex said with a shrug. “And I’m hungry. Maddox really did call at the last minute, when he was already at the front door.”

“Ah,” Dennis exclaimed and put his hands on his hips, while Harry got busy filling up plates and inviting Jonathan and Maddox to take their seats on the patio chairs. “So, you’re not planning to stay long.”

“Guilty as charged,” Maddox admitted. “I knew you two would start fretting if I told you even five minutes in advance.”

“What fretting are you talking about? We would have just prepared the guestroom. There’s still time.”

“We want to go back tonight. We’re on kind of a tight schedule,” Maddox explained. “But we’ll return, without a doubt.”

Harry opened some beers and put a glass in front of Jonathan. “I assume you’re not the type to drink straight from the bottle.”

“Maybe I should start,” Jonathan said. “Please, don’t trouble yourselves for my sake.”

“It’s no trouble, I assure you,” Harry replied and poured beer into the glass with expert moves. “I used to be a bartender back in the day,” he explained when he noticed Jonathan watching him. “It was how I met Dennis.”

Dex’s other dad had left the boys little time to breathe and summoned them for a little game. Jonathan could read on Dennis’s face how proud he was of Dex when his son got the ball with ease and hooted victoriously. Maddox was all laughter and the epitome of having fun, and that, too, was something Jonathan enjoyed watching. What Dex had said earlier had to be true. Evidently, Maddox was treated as if he was family.

“Dex says you’re an ace student,” Harry continued chatting. He also poured himself a glass and raised it. Jonathan did the same. “Nice having you here.”

“And it’s nice for me to be here,” Jonathan replied in kind.

Harry laughed. “We’ve had enough formalities, don’t you think? Now, please, enjoy yourself. And if you want to join the others, feel free to do so. Dex knows his priorities. Food and football.”

“Do you mind if I ask you something?”

“Go ahead.”

“Have you always wanted him to play football?”

Harry smiled. “Because we’re both two shorties, it might come as a big surprise, right?”

Jonathan hurried to deny it. “I didn’t mean it that way.”

Harry waved. “You wouldn’t be the first. Dex was always a big boy. And he grew up so fast. I guess football came naturally to him. It was a bit harder for Dennis and I. We’re more into marathons and tennis. But, for his sake, we’ve learned as much as we could about football, just so that we could keep up with him. What about you? Have you always wanted to be an ace student?”

It was a fair question. “I suppose that studying comes naturally to me, as well. I have always been curious and liked reading. That, and, of course, my parents expect the best of me.” He hadn’t intended to make the last bit sound too pretentious. He hoped that it hadn’t.

Harry nodded. “And is Maddox in line with what they see as a future for you?”

Jonathan hadn’t expected the direct question. “Now, they do.”

Harry sighed and looked at his husband, who was now on the ground, protecting the ball with his body and shouting that he won. “You’re lucky, then. Feel free to ask anything you want, Jonathan. Even without you telling me that you’re curious by nature, I can read it in your eyes.”

“I don’t want to pry.”

“Nah, you couldn’t do that,” Harry assured him. “Thirty years back, when I met Dennis, the world tended to still be hush-hush about such things. Of course, it’s not right for me to complain. People before us had it a lot rougher. The thing is, the moment it became legal for us to get married, we did. Then, we adopted Dex.”

Jonathan looked at Maddox and his friend. They both came from loving families, and while he couldn’t complain about his parents, this type of warmth was not exactly the modus operandi in their home. Under Maddox’s influence, and especially his family’s, things were starting to brighten up, and he couldn’t be more thankful. “My parents have always been strict with me,” he explained.

“It’s part of what parents do,” Harry said. “Don’t hold it against them. That was a lesson Dennis and I had to learn the hard way.”

“How so?” Jonathan asked, intrigued by what Harry was saying.

“When we brought Dex home, we couldn’t keep ourselves from spoiling him. And, since he had endured some years of neglect before, he was the kind of child that would eat whatever was placed in front of him. The therapist explained to us that he was associating food with the lack of conflict in the family, so he tended to be overly thankful for it. Without our knowing that beforehand, we thought we were making him happy. So, it didn’t take long for him to start gaining weight in an unhealthy manner.”

Jonathan waited patiently for Harry to continue.

“He became more than chubby, and when we realized there was a problem, we were quite devastated. You see, we were young parents, and we thought not only that everything was our fault, but we also exaggerated. We threw some stuff at each other. Only verbally, mind you, but it still hurt, obviously. It was a time of crisis.”

“But you managed to overcome it,” Jonathan pointed out.

“Yes,” Harry said and nodded. “Marriage may not be all roses and wine, but each struggle is worth it. You might have seen that in your parents.”

“I can’t really say that I have. They’re very private with their feelings. And their crises, of which I know very little. It certainly looks like I’m mainly responsible for giving them grief if I look back.”

“That can hardly be the case, Jonathan. Parents have plenty on their mind day in and day out. Children are more often a cause of joy than one of grief. Even if they don’t always tell you that. Anyways, to continue my story, we eventually calmed down, we took Dex to therapy, and he discovered his love of sports.”

“He’s a great football player. But he’s also applying himself in his studies.”

“We don’t want to interfere too much in his plans for the future. But we did tell him that it wouldn’t hurt to have a backup plan. He told us football remains just a passion, and that he wants to have a career in business, after all.”

“I can tell you look relieved,” Jonathan said.

“Yes. It is a brutal sport. When stakes are high, you know.” Harry took a moment. “It may sound selfish, but I don’t want him injured. But we didn’t tell him that. Our wants and needs come second to his. You and Maddox, fortunately, are still far enough from such worries.”

“I was, actually, thinking about what kind of parents we would make,” Jonathan admitted to the thought that had been making laps around inside his brain on their way here.

“You only have to be a good person,” Harry explained. “And you must love your partner. The rest of the things will happen, as long as you put your heart and mind to it.”

“I’m truly grateful for this conversation, Harry.”

Harry raised his beer glass again. “Good thing you didn’t call me ‘sir’.”

Jonathan laughed along with his host.

***

“So, how was the fancy trip to Europe?” Dex asked while passing him the ball leisurely, although that still meant that Maddox had to make a run for it. “Dad is curious,” he added quickly and grinned.

“Sure, blame it on me,” Dennis said, but grinned back.

Maddox threw a quick look at Jonathan, to see if he was feeling out of place or anything. By the looks of things, he was engrossed in his conversation with Harry and didn’t show any signs of feeling awkward.

“It was fun. I mean, Jonathan and I always found ways to--” Maddox became tight-lipped suddenly.

Dennis rolled his eyes. “I can imagine. So, I suppose there’s no need to ask you about historical landmarks and such.”

“We saw some ruins,” Maddox explained. “And some really beautiful villas in Italy. I think they call them little palaces or something like that. They do look the part.”

“Well, it’s good you haven’t started talking in a phony accent and keeping your nose high. I wouldn’t have minded bringing you down a peg or two,” Dex joked and aimed the ball at his face.

Maddox caught it just in time.

“Seeing how my son threw me under the bus already, forgive my curiosity, Maddox, but what kind of place does Jonathan live in? You can tell by his manners that he was born with a silver spoon in his mouth.”

“Rusty calls it The Castle.” Dex mimicked quotation marks with his fingers. “Does it have a moat?”

“No,” Maddox replied. “Don’t believe everything Rusty says.”

“That’s why dad is asking you,” Dex pointed out, unfazed. “He’s pretty sure Rusty imagines half or more of the things he says.”

“Hey, hey, I’m not calling Rusty a liar,” Dennis intervened. “He’s just a kid with an incredible imagination.”

“Well, you will be able to see for yourselves what the place is like.”

Dennis and Dex looked both at him curiously. “How so?” Dennis asked.

Maddox played with the ball in his hands, tossing it from one to the other and staring at it, while his mouth stretched into a grin. “There’s going to be an engagement party at the end of the summer. And of course, you’ll be invited.”

“The kids, you mean,” Dennis pointed out.

“No, you will all be invited,” Maddox insisted. “The place is huge. And I overheard Jonathan’s mom asking him if my friends’ families would be interested in coming.”

Dennis’s expression was priceless. “Are we going to be invited to a castle? But really, there’s going to be a lot of us! Who’s going to handle such a big crowd?”

Maddox wiggled his eyebrows, pleased that he knew so many things the others didn’t when it came to Jonathan, his family, and everything that concerned him. “You haven’t met Mr. Simmons. That’s the butler. That man is a machine when it comes to organization and looking after that huge estate. All packed into a sarcastic, yet full of good intentions, person.”

“A butler? A real butler?” Dennis asked. He rubbed his forehead. “What are we going to wear? Nothing we have at the moment is good enough.”

Maddox had no intention of throwing Dex’s parents into that kind of conundrum. “I know for a fact that you and Harry have perfect senses of style. Don’t worry so much.”

“Dex needs a suit,” Dennis said.

Dex rolled his eyes. Then he took the ball from Maddox. “Good work, Maddie. Now you’ll have me looking like a sweating gorilla in a suit.”

“Finally, you’ll look presentable enough for a girl to like you,” Maddox said.

“Yes, indeed,” Dennis reinforced and threw his son a shrewd look. “When are we going to organize an engagement party for you?”

Dex traded glances with Maddox, ones that told him, half-jokingly, that he would look good strangled a little. “Not yet, dad. You know me. I only care about school and football.”

“And playing the field, I’m sure,” Dennis added. “Ah,” he sighed, “why can’t you follow Maddox’s and Jonathan’s example and find someone?”

“I find someone every weekend,” Dex said airily. “Only that it’s not always the same someone.”

Dennis covered his ears. “I didn’t hear that. Did you say something to me, son?”

Dex laughed and threw the ball at his dad. Dennis was forced to uncover his ears to catch it. “Focus on what’s important, dad. Maddox and Jonathan are throwing an engagement party.”

“Oh, yes,” Dennis said brightly. “Do you think they’ll have good catering, Maddox?”

“I wouldn’t invite you just so that you could work some more,” Maddox said.

“Yeah, dad,” Dex said. “Settle for being a guest once in a while.”

“It’ll be tough. But I suppose I can manage,” Dennis said promptly.

***

Maddox could detect a new light in Jonathan’s eyes as they left Dex’s place. “You had fun, right? I mean, I kind of ditched you out there, since Dex was so hyped, but you didn’t seem to mind.”

“You’re right,” Jonathan confirmed. “I had an awesome time with Harry. He told me enough embarrassing stories about Dex growing up that I could start my own Xpress.”

“He did, huh? Well, Harry is usually a guy who doesn’t open up as quickly as Dennis does. But he took a liking to you, right away. That says something.”

“Really? Harry told me he used to be a bartender. I can’t see how Dennis can be even more open than someone who used to be in such a people-oriented job.”

Maddox laughed. “Obviously, you don’t know the whole story. First of all, Dennis has a small catering business, so he’s a people person by definition. And second, Harry was quite taciturn for a bartender, Dennis says. He had to wrench words out of his mouth. Of course, according to gospel, it only happened because Harry was already crushing hard on him.”

“Dex has an awesome family,” Jonathan said. “Thank you for taking me with you to visit. Are we going to see Kane, too?”

“He’s vacationing with Louise’s family. Your mom said something about sending formal invitations via mail. We might not see Kane until the end of summer. No, we have our work cut out for us,” Maddox said with a grin.

“Ah, we’re going to hang out with Rusty!” Jonathan realized. “But aren’t we supposed to drop by your house, first? I understand that he lives very close to you.”

“He wouldn’t forgive us very easily if we offend him by visiting him second. And I’m telling you, he would sniff out that we dropped by my place first in a jiffy.”

He was telling nothing but the truth. Rusty didn’t just have a sixth sense, he also had a seventh, and an eighth, and who knew how many others. This time, he called before reaching the outskirts of town. “Yo,” he said as soon as Rusty picked up. “Did you get your beauty sleep? We’re coming for you. Nah, in like ten minutes or so.”

Unlike Dex, Rusty needed advance warning, but mainly because Jonathan was with him. Rusty had understood a long time ago that Maddox would never judge him or his family. But he didn’t want Rusty embarrassed in front of Jonathan because of the poorly-kept lawn, or how his mom didn’t like strangers.

Jonathan would never judge him, either, but Maddox had developed a special sense when it came to Rusty. He knew, even without being told, when some things were okay, and others weren’t.

So, it was no surprise to find Rusty in the middle of the street, playing traffic police. Maddox pulled over and waited for Rusty to hop in the back.

“Yo, yo, yo,” Rusty greeted them and patted them both so hard on the back that they had to lean forward to escape. “Nice tans, my dudes. Especially you, Hamilton. There goes any doubt that you might be a vampire.”

“I’m sure you’d have liked that, right?” Jonathan asked.

“For you to be a vampire? Nah, Maddox wouldn’t have liked to have his blood sucked. Or what do I know? Maddie? What do you like most to have sucked? Blood or --”

“Nice seeing you again, Rusty,” Jonathan said brightly.

“Call me Maddie again, and I’m going to drop you off in a flash.”

“All right, jeesh, you’re no fun. Can’t I even ask Jonathan if he’s into sucking --”

“No,” Maddox interrupted him. “I’ll have to take my car for a good cleaning if you sit too long in the back, running your mouth.”

Jonathan laughed. “I’m sure Rusty means nothing dirty by his line of questioning.”

“Oh, really? You’re on his side now?”

“I totally mean something dirty,” Rusty confirmed his kinkster status immediately. “Only that, you know, in a good way.”

“So, what do you guys want to eat?” Maddox asked.

“Don’t ask Jonathan. He doesn’t know the place yet. I want pizza. Jonathan, say you want pizza, too.”

“Obviously,” Jonathan confirmed.

“All right,” Maddox agreed. “But we must act hungry when we go back to my place, or my mom is going to strangle us.”

“Don’t worry about me. I always have room for more.”

“I promise I will eat sensibly,” Jonathan added. “Although, knowing how you’re an expert in pizza places, it might be difficult for me to do so.”

“Maddox got you in his bed with pizza.” Rusty began to snicker like a naughty schoolkid.

“Like I’d be that easy,” Jonathan protested.

“Babe, you totally are,” Maddox drawled. “But only with me.”

“Gosh, you two are making me sick,” Rusty joked and sank into the backseat, with an arm thrown over his face.

“Good, did it ruin your appetite already?”

“Not yet. Smooch for like five minutes or so, or until I’m starting to think that you’re trying for a baby, and then I’ll think about it.”

“I’m driving,” Maddox pointed out. “No way am I going to put all of us in danger just because you’re curious about our gay smooching.”

In the rearview mirror, Maddox caught Rusty’s eyes for a moment. He could swear there was just a little more than simple curiosity in them. As much as he and Jonathan had no secrets, he couldn’t go ahead and ask Rusty what that was all about. Maybe another time.

“Yeah, curious, right.” Rusty snorted and reverted to his usual hiding behind a shield of carelessness and feigned boredom. “I’ve watched plenty of porn so I know all about it.”

“Are you watching gay porn, Rusty?” Jonathan asked, slightly shocked. How he could still be surprised by anything Rusty said was beyond Maddox’s comprehension. By now, Jonathan ought to know the guy.

“Sometimes,” Rusty replied, without blinking. “For research purposes.”

“What kind of research is that?” Jonathan asked again.

Maddox decided to sit back and enjoy the show.

“How many nerve endings are in the ass?” Rusty asked with academic aplomb.

Jonathan threw Maddox a disoriented look. “I have no idea.”

Rusty ignored him as if he hadn’t even expected an answer, anyway. “Only the external sphincter has like thousands. And then there’s the internal and --”

“Rusty, are you sure you were watching porn and didn’t accidentally switch to some medical sites?”

“It could have happened,” Rusty agreed. “The thing is, playing with your ass can give you a lot of pleasure, right?”

“Are we having this conversation?” Maddox asked but talked as if he did so with himself. “Why are we having this conversation?” He briefly looked at Jonathan to get an answer.

“Rusty is curious,” Jonathan said and pointed at the kinkster on the backseat.

“You know, let’s just leave this conversation until after we grab a bite,” Maddox suggested. “But, before that, just for the record, what are the preliminary conclusions of your research, Rusty?”

“I would say that almost all people might like it in the butt,” Rusty replied without a moment’s hesitation.

“Good,” Maddox said. “Now I can sleep better at night. I’m not an anomaly, according to Doctor Rusty.”

“Wait, do you guys switch?”

“Jonathan, make him shut up.”

“Ha, just try it, Hamilton.”

Jonathan turned in his seat and looked at Rusty. Maddox could tell a battle of wits would follow. The chances were that they might not be done with it until they reached the pizza place.

“How would you like me to teach you how to ride Asta when you come visit?” Jonathan asked Rusty directly.

“Asta? That pretty horse of yours?”

“Yes, that’s her.”

“I totally would like that,” Rusty confirmed.

“It’s a deal, then? Your silence for riding lessons?” Jonathan asked.

“Yeah. I’ll never ask you guys again if you are versatile.”

“Very well, then.” Jonathan turned with a triumphant grin toward Maddox.

“I know you are,” Rusty decided to rain on his parade. “I can see the signs.”

“Don’t describe the signs, please,” Jonathan said curtly but he was biting his lips to keep from laughing.

“All right. Make sure you don’t forget about our deal, Hamilton. Wait, what if I’m too heavy for her?”

“You won’t be too heavy. You can’t have more than ten pounds or so on me,” Jonathan explained.

“Do horses have weight limits? You know, for the dudes and dudettes they must carry on their backs?” Rusty continued questioning Jonathan.

Jonathan sighed and nudged Maddox’s elbow. “He’s at that age, right?”

“Thank fuck for the internet. And I have a feeling Rusty’s never going to grow out of that age. Just search online, Snoopy.”

“I am so not a beagle,” Rusty protested.

“What are you?” Jonathan asked patiently, in a very grandfatherly tone.

“Maybe a Golden Retriever?”

Jonathan smiled and reached into his pocket. He threw the still half-full bag of pistachios in Rusty’s lap. “Here, have a treat then.”

Rusty put his entire hand into the bag. “Thanks. I mean… woof.”

TBC

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