24 - There dwells a spirit, waiting to be released

“If I wasn’t hungry before I’m more than starving now,” Merlyn said, tracing one finger down the center of Alan’s chest to the base of his now soft cock. “Sated and starving.”

“Isn’t that what they call an oxymoron or something?” Alan replied, looking up at Merlyn with twinkling eyes.

“Probably, but it’s still the truth.” He leaned in to kiss Alan yet again before sitting up. Reaching back he found the bag of food, dragging it to them. “We have…” he opened it to check, “sandwiches, potato salad, somewhat warm sodas and fruit.”

“Are you going to feed me?”

Merlyn rolled his eyes. “I think I did that already, rascal.”

“I’d consider that hors d'oeuvres. Now I need real food. Wait a minute. Rascal?”

“Rascal, as in someone who’s playful and mischievous.”

“I’ll accept that.” Alan sat up and dug into the bag for a couple of sandwiches, handing one to Merlyn before leaning against his shoulder. They ate in companionable silence, their free arms around each other.

As the sun began to set, the water in the bay turned crimson and slowly darkened to match the night sky. The two men lay back, watching the stars appear.

“I could stay here forever,” Merlyn murmured. “No cares, no worries.”

Alan turned in his arms to look at him. “What worries?” he asked as he scanned Merlyn’s face.

“Just… things.”

“Merlyn, tell me, please. I want to know everything about you.”

“I doubt that you do, really.”

Alan smacked Merlyn’s shoulder angrily. “Do not tell me what I want and don’t want. I’m not a child that you have to keep things from, even if you still think I’m too young for you. So out with it, what’s going on that you don’t think I should know?”

Merlyn smiled wanly, rubbing his shoulder. “There seems to be a distinct possibility that I’ll be arrested for the murder of my best friend.”

“You have to be kidding me! No way! Why would anyone…” Alan paused, frowning. “Best friend as in lover?”

“No, a real, honest to god friend who meant the world to me. Someone shot him and it’s beginning to look like I have both the motive and the opportunity, as the cops would put it.” When Alan asked Merlyn told him the whole story.

As soon as he’d finished Alan said, “Then we just have to find this mysterious man don’t we?”

“’We’ are doing nothing of the sort. I’m leaving it to the police. At least the detective in charge of the case seems to believe me and she’s doing the best she can to find the real killer.”

“But…”

“No ‘buts’, Alan, I’m leaving it in her capable hands.”

“They had better be capable because I don’t want to loose you now that I can be with you.”

“If I have my way you can always be with me. At least when your boss gives you time off,” Merlyn added when he remembered the restrictions on Alan’s life. “How did you manage that today?”

“He was busy with other things so, well, I sort of snuck away.”

Merlyn looked at him, worry in his eyes. “Are you going to be in trouble for doing that?” 

“Nothing I can’t handle,” Alan replied as he quickly changed the focus of the conversation by playfully pushing Merlyn back down on the sand, straddling him before he could sit up again. “Now I’m going to have my wicked way with you.”