When The Right Door Opens (18 page)

When she was little and he needed to go to
work at night, she always kept one of his shirts close to her nose
when she couldn't sleep. The comforting scent of her father gave
her the security of the known, to calm down and find sleep. It gave
her her daddy. If only artificially.

“Thank you.” She kissed him and was almost in
the car, when she ran back up the steps and fell around Jamie's
neck.

“I love you, dad.” she whispered to his ear
and she felt his cheeks rise smilingly.

“I love you more, princess.” She turned away
and ran to the car, waving enthusiastically, when it drove
away.

Jamie was grateful for Sebastian, who was
pulling him against his side and kissed his temple.

“She will be okay. And you will be too.”
Jamie nodded, brushing a tear away that was threateningly close to
his eyelashes and on its way down his cheek. They stayed at the
doorstep until the taillights of Kai's car where out of sight.

****

Jamie stood at the entrance gate of the cemetery and
watched many cars driving by. Not one of them slowed down and not
one of them had his father as driver. Sebastian leaned against his
car and was silently watching Jamie, who had started pacing the
parking lot. Jamie looked almost like a model with his dark fitted
suit and white shirt. His black hair was neatly put in place, but
his green eyes were restless and busy. When he wasn't watching the
cars, he was looking at his watch and shook his head
desperately.

“He's not going to come. I am a complete
failure as a son.” Jamie started to work himself up and Sebastian
finally intervened.

“Stop it! You are not. You did and always do,
what is best for yourself and your daughter. Yes, you took a rocky
road, but you ran out of options and let's be honest, your daughter
and you yourself, you are pretty fine right now. Just look at how
well she turned out to be. That is all you’re doing and that – she
is certainly no failure, far from it actually. The man I love – you
– is no failure. Now brush those tears away and square your
shoulders, so that we can do what we came here to do.” Sebastian
said gently, while touching his forehead to Jamie's. Jamie nodded
hesitantly, but let his hand slip into Sebastian's before stealing
a gentle but strengthening and lingering kiss.

“He is right, son. I failed you as a father,
not the other way around. I should have been there for you and
supported you, instead, I was too stubborn and proud to seek
contact and be the father you needed and deserved. I am so sorry.
If only I had known...”

Brady McCarrick cast his eyes on the ground
and started to walk ahead to the grave of his late wife, with Jamie
and Sebastian following him wordlessly. Jamie was speechless and
didn't know what to say or do. It was all too emotional, to process
it right away.

Like on autopilot, Jamie watched the
headstones and the colorful flowers decorating them, until finally,
his father stopped.

Sebastian squeezed Jamie's hand encouragingly
and he took a deep breath, before turning to see where his mother
would spend her eternity.

Jamie looked at a simple black headstone,
with a white dove engraved above his mother's name and her dates of
birth and death. It was a headstone like so many others, but it was
different too. This was his mother's grave, not a faceless
stranger's. Jamie fought the urge to break into tears, but upon
seeing his mother's headstone, he became aware of the reality of
the situation and of its irreversibility.

Sebastian stood very close to Jamie. He could
feel his lover's body heat radiating through the suit, but his
hands were cold and clammy. On the other side, Brady moved closer
to Jamie too and put an arm around his son's shoulder.

“I love you, son.” Brady said with tears in
his eyes and turned Jamie in his arms. Jamie found himself hugged
by his father and it was so much warmer and so much more honest,
than the one time when they had met again, weeks ago. Sebastian let
go of Jamie's hand, took a respectful step back and watched the
men, while finding it hard to swallow past the big lump that had
formed in his throat. This time, these men stood a chance for a
real reconciliation, Sebastian was sure of it.

****

Jamie felt relaxed and smiled at Sebastian when they
were back in the car. A weight had been lifted off of his shoulders
and it felt good.

“Thank you so much, for keeping up with me.
It means a lot to me.” Instead of answering, Sebastian pulled Jamie
closer and kissed him gently on the lips. “I love you.” he said,
looking deep into Jamie's eyes.

From the cemetery, they drove straight across
the town, to have dinner.

They stepped into a fancy restaurant and a
waiter dressed in black guided them to a table close to a large
window, overlooking the garden and a lovely pond with white swans.
The sun was setting and the men watched the orange orb vanishing
behind a line of green trees. Flickering candle light illuminated
the whole restaurant. The setting was romantic through and
through.

Jamie looked at Sebastian, asking himself how
and why he had deserved a man like him. Not only did he look like a
model in his suit, he was also funny and witty, intelligent and
creative, passionate and patient and above all, he genuinely loved
him and wasn't afraid to show it, even in public. Sebastian's hand
slipped over Jamie's as if on cue and they began talking about
their pasts and their futures, about dreams and hopes, fears and
worries. In between gentle banter and deep discussions, they shared
a delicious meal and drank too much wine.

The mood shifted from casual to sensual.

Their looks became more desiring and their
body language became more straightforward, until they both decided
that it was time to skip dinner and go home. Sebastian licked his
lips seductively, a mannerism Jamie still couldn't place as
deliberate or tick. He only knew that it always went straight to
his groin and that he needed to get this man home as soon as
possible and feel him inside of himself. Jamie was sure that a
night to remember lay ahead of them.

****

Jamie and Sebastian couldn't get out of the car fast
enough. They kissed passionately against their front door, with
Sebastian pinning Jamie against it. When they finally managed to
stumble into the house, they continued kissing passionately and
bumping into furniture, knocking down a vase. There was no time to
be wasted and they were both grateful for the empty house. No
restrictions required. They could christen every room in the house,
if they desired to do so. Jamie and Sebastian giggled, drunk on
lust and wine, and wrestled out of their jackets, before joining
their lips again for more sensual kisses.

Suddenly, the light came on and both men
stared into the same face, like deer in a headlight. They froze
with their hands on the belt of the other and both were horrified
to see the man in front of them, but for entirely different
reasons.

“Rudy?” Sebastian asked, knowing full well,
that the man in front of him was his ex-husband. And while he was
still racking his brain on how Rudy had managed to enter his home,
when Sebastian had changed every lock in the house to keep this
from happening, he heard Jamie's confused voice.

“You?” asked Jamie, recognizing the john that
had raped him months ago. The one who had indirectly driven him
into Sebastian's arms. The one who had changed his life for the
better.

~~Chapter 13~~

Rudy had been watching the men since their car drove
up the driveway. He saw Sebastian getting out of the car with ease,
and it filled him with happiness to see his ex-husband being
better, but he also saw the splint he was still wearing over his
clothes and the cane he needed for support. Sebastian and his guest
were laughing and couldn't keep their hands and mouths off each
other. How could Sebastian ignore which day it was? It was the
anniversary of their first date and Rudy had wanted to spend it
with him. Furious and jealous, he stood in the living room, with a
poker in his hand. He needed to get rid of the competition and
then, Sebastian would be his again. Rudy couldn't believe that he
had been replaced. And then he saw the face of Sebastian's new man.
At first, Rudy didn't know where he had seen that face before, but
then it came back. “Son of a bitch.” he growled and grabbed the
poker tighter. His knuckles whitened and his mouth was nothing more
than a thin line. He was determined to get rid of that man, now
even more than before he had seen the whore's face. It hurt, that
Sebastian had ignored his calls and had changed the locks, but Rudy
always found a way back into his husband's life. Always. And the
other man needed to go. Now.

Rudy saw the men kissing, when they stumbled
into the house. The moans Sebastian made were not foreign to his
ears. Once there had been a time when those moans were for him.
Only for him. Now they were for a street whore. Rudy decided that
he had seen enough and switched the light on.

The terrified look on both men's faces was
almost comical to Rudy, and he grinned maniacally. His gaze
followed Sebastian's hands and when Rudy saw where they were, hate
overpowered him. Full of rage and hate, he approached the couple.
They had the audacity to still touch each other. In his presence.
No man, apart from himself, had the right to touch Sebastian. His
Sebastian. He lounged forward and with a threatening growl, he
punched Jamie in the face, so that he fell backwards to the floor.
Sebastian seemed to want to go after Jamie, but Rudy was determined
to keep him from doing so. With the poker still in hand, he took
wide swings at Sebastian's leg, the one that was still in a splint.
He needed to hinder Sebastian from running away or fighting
him.

One. Two. Three. Violent beatings.

Sebastian's painful screams were almost
deafening and Rudy finally stepped away. He saw Sebastian's face
distorted with pain and started to panic, when he saw and realized,
what he had done. The leg looked bad and even through the pants,
Rudy could see bones sticking through the flesh. Sebastian held his
leg with both hands and yelled in pain. Rudy had never wanted this.
He had never wanted to hurt his love. He only wanted to keep him
away from that other dirty scumbag.

Rudy turned around, just a second to gather
his thoughts, but Sebastian's wailing distracted him too much and
when he turned around again to face his ex-husband, Jamie was
crouching over him. Jamie was trying to calm Sebastian down and had
his phone in one hand and the other had was touching Sebastian's
cheek, locking their eyes. Rudy saw it and didn't like it at all.
Without thinking, he took the poker again and without any emotions
showing, he stabbed Jamie in the back. A round stain of red blood
immediately formed on the white shirt when he pulled it out of the
wound again.

Jamie was silent. He had not made a sound.
Not of surprise. Not of pain. Sebastian's brown eyes were open wide
and looked at Rudy in disgusted shock. Jamie sank down to the
floor. The phone forgotten. His hand touching his back
disbelievingly. Sebastian cried and said Jamie's name over and over
again, while Jamie, with his head in Sebastian's lap, still tried
to calm him down.

“Shh. It's okay. We are going to be alright.
It's only a scratch. Only a scratch.” Jamie closed his eyes briefly
and focused on Sebastian. Quelling the pain.

Rudy started to panic furthermore.

“I... Sebbi... I didn't want to hurt you.”
Rudy stammered and ran his hands through his hair. On sudden
instinct, he heaved Jamie onto a chair and tied him to it with duct
tape that lay conveniently on the coffee table.

Jamie was pale and silent, but conscious,
while Sebastian was pale too, but he spoke incessantly. His words
were only interrupted with screams pf pain.

“Why, Rudy why? We could have talked.”

“Shut up!” Rudy slapped Sebastian in the
face. He had heard enough. “You don't want to talk to me. You
ignored my calls and on our wedding anniversary, you sent me away.
I bet you even forgot which day it is today. I have feelings too.
If I had known that this little dirty whore is yours, I would have
made sure that he died on that street.”

“What? You... that was you? Jamie? That was
him?” Jamie nodded faintly and Sebastian noticed that he started to
sweat and to shiver.

“You raped Jamie?” Sebastian asked again,
still not believing his ears.

“It's not like it was planned. I drove home
from you and there he stood. It was like an invitation and I took
him up on it. But he was too teasing, too slow. I wanted fast sex.
The rest, I swear, the rest was an accident. I shoved him, he fell
and blacked out. I didn't know what to do, so I pushed him out of
the car on my way home. I could not have known that he knows his
way around here. Do you even know that he is a slut?”

“He isn't. Not anymore.”

“What? Do you seriously think you saved him?”
Rudy snarled and fished for a pack of cigarettes in his pocket. “I
have to take a leak. Stay there, honey. Or else you will regret
it.”

****

“Jamie. Jamie! Talk to me. I love you, please. Talk
to me! I need to hear your voice. Look at me. Jamie, look at me!”
Sebastian pleaded. Jamie started to cough and blood spilt from his
mouth. Sebastian looked around himself. He was in so much pain, but
he needed to help Jamie. Save them both. Rudy was acting too
wayward to trust that his good judgment would come back anytime
soon. Sebastian clenched his teeth and then he saw it. Their only
way of rescue. Jamie's phone. Sebastian reached out for it, forcing
his body to obey him despite the pain. He listened for Rudy, but he
didn't hear him. He dialed 911 and without introduction he pleaded
for help. He quickly managed to say the address, before he heard
the toilette flush and disconnected the call. It was their only
chance. Their only hope.