ONE HAND, ONE HEART
Page Two
They ate lunch at Dairy Queen, Carlos happily eating Chili Cheese Dogs and Onion Rings while Trent made 'that is SO gross' faces at him. Each had a banana split for dessert that they tried not to get too overly teasing with, but it wasn't easy, they found. Too many fond memories associated with them to make that possible.
Arriving at the office, the first thing Trent did once they were settled in was to call Walker and talk to him about their desire to find a lawyer. Walker promised to discuss it with Alex that night and get back to him as soon as possible.
Trent was encouraged with what Walker said about the idea and although he knew it wasn't going to be pleasant task for them to do this, meet with the lawyer and get things legally taken care of, he felt a deep satisfaction knowing this time -- THIS time -- things would be different. He just hoped neither of them had to use any of the information for many, many years to come.
After hanging up the phone Trent looked across the desk at Carlos who was pretending not to be paying attention to his phone call, but he knew he was. Carlos looked up at him finally and smiled. Trent smiled back and told his lover what he had found out from Walker. Once he was told, they dropped the subject, both knowing it was important and needed to be taken care of, but neither wanting to spend more time talking about it than necessary.
They got to work on the business that had brought them to the office today. Their newest client was coming in to see them in about an hour and they needed to do some work on the case first, talking over options and making plans to be discussed with the client. By the time their client arrived, they had things sorted out and the meeting went well.
Not long after the client left, and they were discussing the meeting between the two of them, the phone rang. Trent picked up the phone and Carlos noted an odd look cross his lover's face when Kim spoke to him and Carlos raised a questioning eyebrow.
"It's Tommy," Trent said, to Carlos's unasked question, as he answered the other line.
Carlos considered getting up and leaving Trent alone to talk, but decided not to, at least for now. He wanted his lover to have his privacy, but just getting up and leaving seemed rude somehow. He knew Trent well enough after all these years, and even more so now since they had become lovers, to know when he wanted privacy. He decided if the mood changed, if it seemed Trent needed to be alone, he would leave then.
Carlos tried not to listen, but he couldn't help it, since he was sitting right there. But to be honest, he really couldn't make heads nor tails of what was going on from Trent's end of the conversation and the very strange, but not unpleasant, mood he sensed in his lover. Soon Trent was hanging up the phone, an odd expression on his face. Carlos watched him, and when Trent didn't look over at him, he reached a hand across the desk and found his lover's hand and squeezed it.
Trent really wasn't sure what to make of this. He was both stunned and very happy. He felt Carlos take his hand and he looked up at him, his lover's face full of concern and curiosity. He smiled brightly at Carlos who relaxed his concerned expression in favor of just curiosity.
"I'm not sure I believe this," Trent said, still smiling, "But he asked if we needed any help moving your stuff to my place." Trent couldn't help remembering their own words exchanged a few days ago at Carlos's loft about moving the furniture.
Carlos broke into a brilliant smile, so very happy for Trent who still looked a bit stunned. Happy, but stunned. "That's wonderful," Carlos said, squeezing Trent's hand again.
"Yeah," Trent said, not quite sure what else to say, "I told him we needed to check with Walker and make sure he could help and when..." Trent trailed off, remembering the conversation he'd just had with Tommy. This was a big step for Tommy, Trent knew that, one he had hoped for but wasn't sure would happen.
Tommy's initial reaction to their news hadn't been bad, but it hadn't settled anything either. He had listened to their news, nodded his head in understanding, then left the room with the excuse of having homework he needed to do. Nothing had been said between Tommy and Trent since. Trent had felt it best not to push his brother in this and he had been right. Tommy had needed time to think, time to adjust. He still needed more time, Trent knew that, but this was just such a good first step. Trent looked at Carlos again and smiled.
Carlos was so happy for Trent, for both of them. He watched as his lover absorbed the news some more, and when Trent looked up at him and smiled, having settled the idea in his head, Carlos got up from his chair and went around the desk and pulled Trent up and into a hug.
They stood there hugging each other for a few minutes before Carlos pulled back and kissed Trent on the lips. "I'm so happy, baby," he said, "So very happy." He *was* happy, he really was, but he couldn't help but think of Theresa, his own sister, who he was afraid would most likely not come around like this. He hoped and prayed she would, but deep down, he feared and expected the worst. He tried not to dwell on it, to push it out of his head and concentrate on this good thing, but it was hard. He hugged Trent again and managed to push his fears out of his head for the time being.
Trent placed another call to Walker about moving furniture this time. After setting up a time that was convenient for Walker, Trent called Tommy back and the moving plans were finalized for the coming Saturday.
They got back to work, and after an hour or so had passed, Trent glanced up from the work he was doing. He looked at Carlos sitting at the desk across from him, his head bent forward, working on paperwork of his own. He was just about to turn his attention back to his own work when he noticed a single curl of his lover's hair hanging in his face, over his forehead. **Damn, that's cute,** Trent thought, feeling his pulse quicken at the sight, **Oh, now you've really lost it, Malloy, just *looking* at his hair is getting you excited?** But it was.
Carlos moved a bit, going to write something in the file he was working on, causing the curl on his forehead, the one causing so much interest for Trent, to move around a bit. Trent felt himself responding even more and suddenly he simply had to touch Carlos, he had to touch his lover.
Kim wasn't in the office at the moment, but he wasn't sure how long she'd be gone. Getting up from the chair he was sitting in, Trent went to the office door and closed it.
Carlos, who was oblivious to how cute he was and how adorable his curls were, looked up when he heard Trent close the door. What he saw on his lover's face when he turned around and started advancing on him made his pulse quicken and his grin, and erection, start to grow. Trent walked over to the desk, looking more like he was stalking prey than advancing on his lover. Carlos watched him, a wicked grin, tinged with expectation, on his face.
Getting to the desk, Trent grabbed the arms of the chair and pulled and pushed the chair, which was on wheels, back and around so his lover was sitting back from the desk. Keeping a grin on his face, Trent sank to his knees on the floor in front of Carlos, between the desk and the chair. He then backed up until he was crouched under the desk, in the space where the chair goes.
Carlos couldn't take his eyes off Trent. How he loved it when his lover got like this, surprising him totally with his desire. By the time Trent was on the floor in front of him, Carlos was whimpering softly in anticipation of the ecstasy to come, the expert way Trent loved him in this manner.
Trent reached out with his hands and unzipped Carlos's pants. He reached inside to find Carlos's shaft, already well on the way to getting hard, and petted it lightly. This drew a moan of pure pleasure from his lover, as he shut his eyes, and slid down in the chair slightly, making it easier for Trent to free his penis from his pants.
Grasping his lover's shaft, Trent got it out of his pants, petting it again after it was free, bringing more moans from Carlos, who was trying to keep the volume down. Trent continued to run his fingers up and down and around on his lover's shaft, looking up at him and smiling at the expression he saw on Carlos's face.
Carlos opened his eyes and looked down at Trent who was grinning at him. Trent put his hand around Carlos's shaft, gripping it firmly, beginning to move his hand up and down it, causing Carlos to moan again and close his eyes. Carlos moved his hands to the arms of the chair, hanging on to them as he tried to hang onto his control.
Trent pulled his lover and the chair towards himself as he moved his head forward to lick the fluid from the head of Carlos's shaft. This caused Carlos to tighten his grip on the chair and slide forward just a bit more. Carlos was attempting to keep his moans soft, but Trent wasn't sure it was going to stay that way much longer. Trent pulled the chair just a bit closer to himself then took his lover's penis in his mouth as far as he could before moving his mouth back up, sucking hard on his lover as he did.
The door to the office suddenly flew open. "Hey, guys, I'm back and...," Kim stopped mid-sentence, staring at Carlos.
Carlos's eyes snapped opened and he looked towards the door to see Kim standing there. He jumped slightly, involuntarily, causing Trent to bang his head on the desk.
"Oww!" Trent said loudly, rubbing his head, "Carlos, what the..."
Kim looked in the direction of Trent's voice. "Oh, my God! I'm sorry!" Kim said, finding her voice, blushing deep red and leaving quickly, shutting the door behind her.
Trent hadn't heard Kim come in, but he sure heard her leave. He started laughing.
"What are you laughing at?!" Carlos asked, still in shock, not thinking this was the least bit funny.
"I'm sorry, Carlos, but it's funny," Trent continued to laugh, the more he thought about this, the funnier it got.
"It is NOT!" Carlos said, over the shock, but now embarrassed, looking down at Trent who was still on the floor under the desk and now laughing himself silly.
"It is too," Trent barely managed to say, before being unable to talk for laughing so hard.
Carlos just stared at Trent laughing. Once the shock had worn off a bit and the embarrassment was fading, not to mention his erection, Carlos couldn't help but smile to himself. He wasn't sure he really thought it was funny, but Trent's laughter was infectious.
"Well, you weren't the one caught with your pants down," Carlos said, "Or your banana unpeeled." This sent Trent, who had been calming down, off into another fit of laughter.
After a few more minutes, Trent managed to get himself under control again. He looked up at Carlos, and said, "I'm sorry, Carlos, really I am." Carlos was not convinced. "Do you want me to give this another go?" Trent asked, nodding at Carlos's not-at-all-erect-anymore shaft.
"No, I think the mood is pretty much blown," Carlos said, "Pun intended," this causing Trent to start laughing again. Carlos was trying to look less than pleased, but not managing to pull it off at all. Trent was just too cute when he was laughing.
"You sure?" Trent asked, a snicker escaping him.
"Yes, I'm sure," Carlos said, shaking his head at Trent in mock exasperation. "Come on, get up out of there," he added, moving the chair back so Trent could crawl out from under the desk.
Trent was out from under the desk but still on the floor. "You want me to put The Little Fireman back in the firehouse for you while I'm down here?" Trent asked, pointing at Carlos's crotch, barely managing to stifle his laughter.
"No, thanks, I think you've done enough damage for one day," Carlos said, trying to play hurt, but it wasn't working. Trent was too darned cute.
"Me?!" Trent said, pretending to be indignant, "I'm the one who bumped his head!" he added, as he stood up, rubbing his head.
After getting himself back together and zipping his pants back up, Carlos reached out to Trent and pulled him into his lap. "And I'm the one who suffered Blow Job Interruptus," he countered, this sending Trent off in a laughing fit again. God how he loved to hear Trent laugh. Carlos hugged his lover to him as he laughed happily. Once Trent was back under control, more or less, Carlos asked, "Any ideas about what we're going to say to Kim?"
"I don't know," Trent said, trying not to laugh again, "But I bet she never opens that door again when it's shut." At this, Carlos started to laugh, setting Trent off again.
Out in the outer office, Kim sat at her desk, hearing them both laughing this time. "Well, it wasn't THAT funny," she said out loud to herself, rolling her eyes.
The rest of the week passed uneventfully. More hours were spent working, since Carlos had been given the go ahead to resume closer to normal activities. They took on two new clients during the week and spent more time apart because of it, since some field work needed to be done and Trent was still unwilling to let Carlos do too much. But their off time was spent together at home enjoying each other's company or working at the loft.
On Saturday, Trent and Carlos arrived at the loft early, having wanted to get there before anyone else. They got off the elevator and Carlos left the gate and elevator unlocked so the others could come up when they arrived. He turned to find Trent watching him and smiling happily. "What?" Carlos asked, already knowing the answer but asking anyway.
"I'm just happy," Trent said, smiling some more as Carlos moved towards him and pulled him into a hug.
"Me too," Carlos said, kissing Trent and letting his hand wander down to his lover's backside where he fondled it lightly.
After the kiss broke Trent resumed his grinning. "Hey, we're here to get things ready to move, not make the earth move," he teased, giving Carlos another quick kiss on the mouth.
"Oh, you're no fun," Carlos teased back, pretending to pout.
Trent just chuckled and let go of Carlos, who let go of him reluctantly. "Come on, we got some things to do before everyone else gets here," Trent said, taking Carlos's hand and dragging him into the main part of the loft.
They did the few things that needed to be done, making sure they both knew what they wanted to be moved today and what was going to Trent's and what was going to H.O.P.E. Having the furniture they owned suddenly doubled, they had decided on what they wanted to keep from both of their places and to give what they weren't going to use to Alex, who in turn would see it got to people who needed it.
Finished with what they needed to do, they sat on the couch waiting for their help to arrive, but they didn't have long to wait. They both glanced in the direction of the elevator when they heard it start to move.
Trent looked at his watch. Someone was right on time. He leaned over and kissed Carlos quickly on the mouth then got up and pulled him to his feet and into a hug, kissing him again before letting go.
They headed over to the elevator to greet whoever it was just as the gate was going up. Walker exited the elevator followed by Trivette. Trent and Carlos exchanged a look between them and then looked back at the unexpected and nervous looking Trivette and smiled.
"I figured you might need some extra help," Trivette said, looking a bit uncomfortable.
Trent looked very briefly at Walker, who he was sure had something to do with this, before looking back at Trivette. "We sure can, Jimmy, thanks for coming," Trent said, thinking it best not to dwell on this too long. The fact Trivette was here spoke for itself. "Tommy should be here any time...," Trent said just as the elevator started back down. He smiled. "Probably him now," Trent added.
Once Tommy had arrived the five men made short work of moving the furniture. They loaded the things going to H.O.P.E. first, then the things going to Trent's after. The last to go on the truck was the pool table. Trent had rented a truck he thought would be much bigger than they needed, but as it turned out, they almost filled it up with the pool table taking up most of the room.
Trent drove the truck with the furniture in it, Carlos riding with him, followed by the other men in Walker's truck. Arriving at Trent's place, they reversed the process, taking up what was staying here then bringing down from upstairs the furniture that had been Trent's that was going to charity.
Just as they were finishing up, Trent's mom and sister arrived, surprising Trent totally. Getting out of her car Katie smiled at her surprised looking son. "Figured you'd need some food to keep up your strength," Katie explained as she approached Trent and hugged him and then did the same to Carlos, much to Carlos's surprise.
Katie headed back to her car to help Tandy with the sandwiches and cookies she had brought for the men. Carlos, who was still a bit surprised from the hug, looked at Trent and they exchanged smiles before heading over the help Katie and Tandy. Carlos's smile was one of surprise and happiness, Trent's was one of happiness and pride -- he was proud of his mother's fast adjustment to and easy acceptance of Carlos as family.
The break to eat was just what everyone needed. It was pleasant and relaxed and most welcome. Carlos had been very pleased to see that Katie had brought lots of extra cookies for him and Trent. OK, for him, but he was very pleased.
Carlos wasn't quite sure what to make of Tandy. She'd been eyeing him and watching him since she got there. There was obviously something on her mind, something she wanted to ask him or say to him. He wasn't sure how to handle it, assuming it had something to do with Trent and him moving in together. He decided the best way to handle it, with someone as young as Tandy, was to just answer her questions honestly, whatever they were, but not embellish, not give more information than what she asked about.
After making the rounds of the other adults and offering cookies, Tandy headed over to where Trent and Carlos were sitting. She leaned into Trent who put his arm around her waist and squeezed her affectionately. She offered the plate of cookies to Carlos, who helped himself and thanked her, then to Trent who took one, also thanking her. Standing there, still holding the cookies, Tandy kept looking at Carlos, but trying to pretend she wasn't. It wasn't polite to stare after all. Finally unable to keep her question inside anymore, she asked Carlos, "Are you really moving in here with Trent?"
Carlos smiled his best smile at Tandy. "Yes, I am," he answered, glancing briefly at Trent, who was enjoying this a bit too much, Carlos thought.
"I think that's tight," Tandy said.
Carlos glanced at Trent who shrugged his shoulders at him. "Tight?" Carlos asked Tandy, not sure of the use of the word.
"Yeah," Tandy said, confirming what she said, "You're gonna have so much fun! I always have fun when I sleep over at Angela's house. She's *my* best friend." With that Tandy smiled happily at both of them and left.
"Tight?" Carlos said, looking at Trent who looked amused as well as totally in the dark, too.
Trent shrugged his shoulders again. "Neat? Cool?" he took a couple of guesses at the meaning of the slang.
"I think we're getting old," Carlos said.
"Speak for yourself," Trent said, chuckling, starting to eat his cookie.
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