{ #1 } I Was Shooting For The Moon, I Hit Two Stars (MxMxM || 18+)

Chapter 56 - The Marriage Of Hope & Worry

(Mark's POV - Wed. 6 May 2015)

"Freaking connection..." I grumble to myself as I hurry out of the plane and along the corridors of the airport, only getting the no service message when I switch on my phone.

Why the heck doesn't it work!?

Rather than dwelling on network issues, I shove the device back inside the pocket of my jacket and focus on dodging the numerous travelers who walk at a snail's pace until I reach my car. It's almost 6pm when I start the engine and connect the Bluetooth to my iPhone.

Well, it was a quick one-day trip, but I wouldn't have made it any longer in the current situation. It was hard enough to leave Shannon alone at home, but I couldn't skip the important meetings I had scheduled for the opening of my first Wine & Cheese Bar in Boston. It was brief but quite productive. I managed to meet the site manager and acknowledge the progress of works. I also met the manager of the company in charge of decoration, and lastly, I handed over a ton of administrative documents to make sure the restaurant will open by the end of May.

I could have spent more time there, checked more details and met more people, but I didn't want to spend the night in Boston and leave Shannon alone any longer. Even if he tries to prove himself strong, Alex's departure still affects him deeply – as much as it affects me. Shannon does go to work, eat and speak, but he's not as fine as he pretends. His nights are agitated, so he's obviously tired. Aaron told me he's his usual happy self at work, but he doesn't smile or laugh as much as he used to when it's only the two of us at home.

Last Saturday evening, he refused to go to the Black Diamond. Not that I wanted to go there either, but I thought that meeting his friends or spend more time with Liam would do him some good. Instead, he said he only wanted to have a quiet evening at home with me and I couldn't resist cuddling him while we watched a couple of movies. I even treated him with his favorite junk food, hoping to brighten his mood, and somehow, it worked a little.

As far as sex is concerned, what can I say...? The word is clearly about to disappear from our vocabulary, it seems. It doesn't mean that there's no more physical attraction between us, but our libido has been hiding. We did try... Well, I tried.

Last Thursday, I went for my usual morning run and when I got back home at 8am, Shannon was still asleep, so I quietly snuck into the bathroom for a relaxing shower. When I returned to the bedroom, my boy had rolled over to lie on his stomach and his loose pajama pants had somewhat slipped down, revealing part of his beautiful buttocks and waking up my lazy soldier. I couldn't help pulling his pants further down and although I felt guilty for waking him up when I knew he needed more sleep, I still kissed my way from the cleft of his butt up his back.

Shannon eventually woke up from all the teasing over his shoulders and earlobe, moaning loudly, and when he rolled back, I was glad to feel his own erection while hovering over him. The kisses soon turned to something more passionate, with caresses and lustful moans. His pajamas and my towel quickly flew off, but what I wanted above all was to pleasure him, so I crawled backwards and began to give him the best head I could.

However, his moans became whimpers only seconds later and when I looked up at him, my heart constricted in my chest at the sight of all the tears streaking his face.

I'm sorry, Mark... I can't... I miss him too much...

I mentally facepalmed myself while hugging and soothing my poor Babe. It was too soon. I hated myself for even thinking about sex in those conditions and my cock deflated right away. Dramatic situations never prevented me from being horny and like I often say, making love or having sex sometimes help feeling better. They are legitimate activities to lift people's spirits in difficult conditions, but I guess it depends on who the problems involve. In the end, we just spent long minutes cuddling in bed until our stomachs began to protest too loudly for lack of food.