By the time Keith made it home on Friday, he was tired and grumpy. I took one look at his face, and revised all my plans for the evening. I had thought I would reward him for all the hard work and effort he had put in that week at work by taking him out to a nice cozy dinner, but that did not seem like a good idea now.

‘Get into the shower straight away, honey. Change into your sleep things, and then come down for dinner. We can eat then watch some TV, and then I want you in bed by nine. You look beat!’
Keith bristled, as I knew he would, even though I suspected my suggestion to stay home was all Keith really wanted out of the evening. His eyes were red from lack of sleep.

‘Come on, Dusty. It’s Friday night! Our night out, you promised.’ The expected whine.

‘Yes it is Friday, and yes I did say we might go out. MIGHT, young man.’

‘Bloody hell!’ he growled, in a low voice but still audible to me.

‘Watch it,’ I said warningly.

‘This is so unfair …’ He cursed, kicking out at the door frame and I LOOKED at him. His temper had been unpredictable lately and I had put that down to the stressful week he was having.

‘Do that again and we will be discussing this upstairs. Is that what you want?’

He scowled and took a minute to rein in his temper. ‘No,’ he finally said in a much milder tone.

‘Good. Now go shower. Upstairs. Now. You’ve got ten minutes.’

He stared at me for a while, but I went on setting the table, and finally he took himself off. There was only that much sulking you could do when you got ignored, and that was a lesson I had learnt from Keith himself. Fuss over him when he was irritable and he would kick up a bigger fuss. Leave him alone with firm instructions to do something – like take a bath - and he had a better chance of coming out of his mood.

I was placing our plates on the kitchen table when Keith came back down, looking refreshed and smelling rather nice. He smiled a little sheepishly and came and put his arms around me and we hugged for a while. His way of apologizing for his little fit of temper. I nuzzled his neck and he gurgled into my chest, and it felt really good to re-connect.

‘So did you get your project completed?’ I asked as we dug into the lasagna I had prepared.

‘Yes! God, that was excruciating!’

I grinned at him. ‘That was work, my boy! Get used to it.’

‘Oh well, I really don’t mind the work, you know. It’s actually quite fun and challenging.’ He made a face at me. ‘And yes, Mr Know-It-All, I did enjoy doing it and being part of the team. If only people around you pulled their weight, that is.’ He ended rather ominously.

‘I gather there were some team members who were not doing their fair share?’

‘Uhm ...‘He replied vaguely, with a tiny nod.

I looked over at him. ‘Here, put some salad on your plate, Keith.’ I piled some greens onto his plate as he held it up. ‘So your boss was pleased with the research you did for her?’

Being new to the team, Keith had felt insecure and worried about his ability to contribute. He had taken extra pains to labor over his part of the project assignment, spending hours on the computer, rushing to meet the deadline, and I wanted to know if he had been properly acknowledged for it.

‘Yeah, I guess. Well, actually yes, she was very pleased with my part of it.’ He however did not look too thrilled.

‘Oh? Isn’t that good?’ I asked, surprised by his lack of enthusiasm.

He shrugged and continued eating, looking mostly at his plate or the table, avoiding my eyes. My boy was not too happy about something and did not want to talk about it, so naturally I had to know.

I got up and went to the fridge. ‘Since its Friday and since we are not going out, let’s have a beer. It’ll help you unwind.’

Keith looked up at me, a little suspiciously, but he caught the can deftly, pulled off the tab and happily took a long gulp. He sighed with satisfaction.

‘So,’ I said conversationally, picking up the lukewarm trail, ‘tell me, was your boss happy with the other team members as well?’

Keith rolled his eyes and sighed dramatically. ‘Dusty, can we drop this? Can we NOT talk about the project any more? It’s completed, done, over, and I am getting so sick of it.’

I raised one eyebrow. Definitely something wrong there.

‘OK,’ I said in as neutral a tone as I could find, ‘all right … we’ll talk about something else. For now.’

Keith scowled some more.

‘How about we arrange to go to the movies tomorrow night with John and Danny?’

Keith looked up sharply. ‘Oh Christ! I see Danny every damn day in the office, do I have to see him on the weekends as well?’

There was a moment of pregnant silence as we looked at each other. I coolly assessed Keith while he flushed and looked down once more at his plate. ‘Sorry, didn’t mean to snap at you,’ he said contritely enough.

I nodded easily at him. I was beginning to link some dots together. ‘OK Keith. Let’s finish dinner, and then we can go curl up on the sofa. I think there’s a re-run of The Last Samurai on. Can you manage a bit more lasagna?’

* * *

Keith helped with the washing up, still not saying much. We quickly got the kitchen straightened up, which was not difficult since I had done the lion share of the washing while the lasagna was baking.

I steered Keith into the living room, bundled him onto the sofa, turned down the lights and pulled him hard against me. I had missed him the past week. Within minutes, we were kissing and his hands were touching and roaming and I was peeling his t-shirt off. Amidst groans and grunts, cushions got thrown onto the floor and someone’s shorts landed on the coffee table. We finally surfaced, spent and breathing hard, as The Last Samurai rolled its credits.

‘Umm … that was nice,’ Keith purred as he stretched lazily, leaning his head on my chest.
I had to agree with him. ‘Very nice,’ I murmured into his ear, and he tried to squirm away as my breath tickled him.

‘Oh no, you don’t! Come back here!’ We playfully struggled a bit, and then I stroked his hair, feeling him settle down once more against me. I had learnt to develop a pretty keen sense of Keith’s moods and I could tell he was in a place where he was tottering between wanting to let things off his chest and trying to work out the problem himself. ‘You want to tell me what’s bothering you, babe?’ I asked softly, hoping he would choose the former.

There was a long moment of silence; he seemed to be considering my question seriously. Then finally, he shook his head. ‘No, not really, it’s about work and I don’t really want to talk about it. Please Dusty. I’m tired.’

And he was, I could see that clearly. I just went on stroking him and petting him till his breathing evened out and he fell asleep in my arms.

I looked down at my sleeping lover and my mind dwelled on what a dramatic change had come over him ever since he started this job. I was happy he was adapting well. More than well actually, he was flourishing in that environment. For the first time, I could see a fire in his eyes as he talked with passion about something apart from partying and getting high.

I had wanted Keith to find a routine and hoped to turn his head to more useful and purposeful pursuit of his time. But I never imagined he would get on with it so well, and in so short a time too. Keith was usually a friendly, generous and easy-going person and it had never been difficult for him to make friends. The difficult part was making friends with the right kind of people. His boss apparently loved him – and I was rather grateful when I learned that it was a ‘she’ boss rather than a ‘he’ boss. Keith was also innovative and intelligent and quick-witted, and if he combined commitment and focus in his work, I could well imagine the kind of results he would and could produce.

Well, I had practically bullied him into getting a job, and now that he had it and loved it, it was only right that I support him and be glad of his success. But I sure missed having him around as much as before.

* * *

Keith’s mood did not improve much over the weekend. In fact, it got downright nasty on Saturday afternoon when I suggested we swing by John’s place.

‘I thought you enjoyed their company,’ I said, watching his reaction.

‘Well I don’t!’ he replied shortly. ‘I have nothing in common with John.’

‘And Danny? Don’t you have anything to talk to him about?’

‘No.’

‘You got on well enough the last time I checked.’

‘Is that what you do, check up on me all the time?’

‘OK, what’s going on with you two?’

Keith ignored the question and snapped. ‘Can’t I be myself without you assessing me? What am I – some kind of … Ow!’

He yelped as I spun him around and smacked him on his behind. ‘What?’ he demanded, rubbing his hand on the sore spot angrily.

I took his hand and pulled him with me. ‘Sit down.’ I pointed to the sofa.

He threw his hands up, as if he could not imagine how unreasonable I was being, and sank down into the sofa in a huff. He folded his arms tightly across his chest, a sign that warded off unwanted questions, and that said clearly he was in no mood to communicate.

I, on the other hand, was extremely eager to communicate. In fact, I was determined to get to the root of the problem.

‘All right, tell me what’s going on? Hmm?’

Keith shrugged and folded his lips firmly together.

‘We are going to talk about this, Keith,’ I said, still patient. ‘If it were a simple problem at work I would leave you to it. But its not, is it? Look at you, snapping and jumping down my throat the whole weekend. I want to know what’s bothering you.’

‘I don’t ask you what’s bothering you at work, Dusty!’ Keith pointed out, irrelevantly I might add. ‘So why don’t you just get off my back?’

‘And I don’t come home from work in a foul temper nor take it out on my partner. I am not stressed to the point of being incapable of behaving in a civil manner whenever I mention a certain name. If I did, you certainly have every right to be asking me the same question, and I would certainly be sharing my problems with you.’ I looked at him severely and he ducked his head. ‘Now – one more time, young man. What is bothering you?’

Keith shook his head mournfully, but he seemed to be losing the battle with himself, and finally blurted out. ‘I think I’m gonna quit.’

‘What?’

‘Well, don’t ask if you are gonna get mad at what I tell you!’ Keith snapped as he jumped to his feet. ‘I knew you would not understand!’

I snagged his wrist as he tried to worm his way past me, and pulled him back. He growled and tried to shake my hand off so viciously that I smacked him a couple of times on his butt to get his attention. It did not work.

‘Stop that, Keith! I mean it. Stop it right now!’ I said in my sternest voice. Another two hard smacks and this time he stopped struggling and stood with his head down, looking miserable.

I sat down on the sofa and pulled him down on top of me, cradling him as he choked out his next words. ‘I thought about it, Dusty. Since Friday, I’ve thought about nothing else. And it’s not going to work. Its not. Really its not. I am going to tell Kathy I’m quitting first thing Monday morning.’

‘Whoa there, slow down.’ I slid him off my lap so that I could turn him around. ‘Why don’t we start at the beginning, huh? Tell me first - what is it that is not working.’

‘The job… I don’t know. The work … it’s … you know …’

‘No, I don’t know, honey. Keith, you were doing fine. Just last week, you told me you enjoyed what you were doing. You were excited to be included in that project. All that time you spent researching and writing up the report … ‘

Frankly I was stunned. I had not seen this coming.

‘Yeah, well, last week … things were better. I mean different. Look, I don’t want to discuss it any more Dusty. You asked me what’s bothering me and I told you. End of subject.’

I managed not to smile at that remark – it sounded too much like me when we were in one of those arguments that had gone on much too long, and I had to pull rank on him to shut him up.

‘Oh no, not end of subject, my boy! And since when do you decide whether or not it’s the end of the subject? Isn’t that always my job to decide, hmm?’

I could not get a smile out of him. ‘Come on, darling, why don’t you tell me what is really making you this unhappy?’ My tone was soft and coaxing.

Keith laid his head on my shoulder. ‘It’s not worth it if some people get mad at you for doing a good job. I never meant to hurt anyone. I was just doing what I was supposed to do. I can’t help it if Kathy likes my work.’

‘Ahhh …’ I said. ‘By someone, you don’t happen to mean Danny, do you?’

Keith sighed unhappily. ‘He is such an asshole.’

I tapped his thigh warningly.

‘Well he is!’ Keith insisted. ‘He can be so unreasonable. All week, he had been taking shots at me. At first, I thought my work sucked and I tried harder. I thought he was my friend. I have done everything I can think of. I even asked him for advice.’

‘And what did he tell you?’ I stroked Keith’s head, kissing his temple.

‘He said … he called me a phony!’

I frowned. I did not like that. But it would not help to fan Keith’s wrath at that moment, so instead I asked. ‘And why would he say something like that? Did you do or say something to give him that impression?’

Keith looked up in surprise at me, a little hurt. ‘What do you think, Dusty?’

‘I’m sorry, I had to ask.’ I held his face in my hands and kissed him lightly. ‘Its not that I don’t trust you, sweetheart, but that doesn’t sound like Danny at all. I wanted to see where he was coming from. Did you two have a fight?’

‘No, well, not at first. But he kept criticizing me, and passing nasty remarks, when we were alone and even sometimes during group meetings. I could tell even Kathy was surprised. Then when she reprimanded him, he got really mad.’

‘And what happened then?’

‘I asked him out to lunch.’

‘And?’

‘He wouldn’t go. I didn’t know what else to do. He wouldn’t talk to me. It didn’t feel right working with so much …. animosity. The last thing I wanted was for Kathy to think badly of him. I wasn’t trying to show him up or anything, Dusty. I wanted to do a good job, that’s all. How could he say …. ‘ he trailed off.

‘My poor darling.’ I murmured sympathetically. ‘I’m so sorry you had such a hard time of it. What did he say actually?’

Keith took a deep breath. ‘He accused me of being unprofessional, short of saying I was sucking up to Kathy to get ahead. I hated him for saying that!’

‘Was Danny having problems at work then?’

‘Don’t think so. I mean, he never said anything, and Kathy always treated him the same like anyone else. It was only when we went into this project that he became so …. strange. So competitive. Before that he was fine.’

‘OK, I get the picture. Anything else that you think might be important for me to know?’

‘Why?’ Keith sat up in a hurry, eyes narrowing. ‘What are you going to do?’

‘Relax. I just want to know the facts.’

‘You are going to call John, aren’t you?’ he said accusingly.

‘Look Keith, obviously Danny is upset with you, and from what you have told me, for all the wrong reasons. The least we can do is to find out why he is so angry and jealous – yes, Keith, it sounds like he is jealous or envious – and try to work this out with him.’ I paused, letting that sink in. ‘And I think we should go over to John’s place because I believe that is where Danny is over the weekend.’

‘Oh please don’t, Dusty! I have already decided that I am going to quit. I don’t need to work anything out with Danny, believe me, I don’t need to and I don’t want to. Please don’t ask him about this, Dusty. Please don’t!’

‘Is that how little you value his friendship, Keith? You would just leave this hanging and never see him again?’

‘YES!’

I sighed with exasperation. ‘No, Keith. That is not how we treat our friends. I know, ‘I held up my hand as Keith opened his mouth to protest, ‘I know, he has not been fair to you. But I am talking about how YOU treat your friends, how WE treat our friends, not him. And there’s no way I am going to leave this unsettled. John and I are not about to hang our friendship out on a limb just because of this. We are not going to stop seeing one another or being friends just because of this little misunderstanding. OK? So we are going to go over and sort this thing out with …’

‘No! I won’t go! I am not the one who started this. He did. He is the one in the wrong! Why do I have to go over to him now, like I need him. I don’t! He can go to hell for all I care. I don’t need his friendship and I don’t need this job. I told you, I’m quitting!’

‘Keith Fenton!’ I said sternly.

‘He does not want to talk to me, don’t you understand? He won’t speak with me!’

I had not seen Keith this worked up in a long time. I caught hold of him and trapped his hands in between mine. ‘Keith, first of all, you are NOT quitting. No way are you doing that! You don’t quit just because of one little bump along the road.’

‘But I don’t need the job, Dusty. I don’t need the money, I don’t need this crap!’

‘It’s not about the money. Never was. And you know it too. Now, calm down and listen to me. I won’t make you come with me if you don’t want to. I’ll go alone. Just to talk to Danny and see why he’s upset. In fact, I think it might be better for me to go talk to Danny alone first and try to find out what’s bugging him.’

Keith still shook his head at me, getting more and more cross at not getting his way. ‘Don’t go,’ he muttered. ‘Please?’

‘I want you to stay here, and get yourself under control. I understand how frustrated you are, but like I said, this is just a misunderstanding. I want you to think this through rationally. We’ll work it out, but first we need to understand things from Danny’s point of view. Since he won’t talk to you, maybe he will open up to me. OK? Are you listening to me, Keith?’

‘I don’t understand why …’ Keith squeaked suddenly, his voice breaking. He began pummeling me with his fist and his eyes were suspiciously bright. ‘Why can’t you just let it go? Why can’t you …’

I fended off his punches; Keith was a strong and they hurt!

‘Don’t make me have to spank you before I leave, Keith.’ I said somberly and he quieted down at my tone. ‘Enough tantrums young man. What did I just tell you?’

When nothing was forthcoming, I repeated sternly. ‘Stay here. Wait for me. Calm down. No more tantrums. Understand?’

He sniffed and turned away. I sighed, laid my chin on his head and said softly. ‘Baby, don’t do this to yourself. You enjoy the work, you love the job. Don’t quit just because of this one hitch. Lots of things are going to go wrong in our lives. We can’t quit every time something goes wrong, can we? Hmm?’

We sat together for a few minutes longer, then I got up. ‘I’m going to call John and tell him I’m coming over.’

`Go ahead!’ he said spitefully and I restrained myself from smacking him again.

I went into the study to make the call. John answered wearily. ‘Hi Dusty, I was about to call you myself.’

I grunted. ‘Danny been spilling his guts?’

‘Something like that. Pair of brats, that’s what they are! What are we going to do about them?’
‘I thought I would come over and speak with Danny. Is he around?’

‘Sure, come on over.’ John invited readily enough. ‘I’ll be glad to talk to someone sane AND civil around here.’

I laughed. ‘Be there in fifteen. See ya!’

Keith was still sitting on the exact spot where I left him, staring moodily at the floor. He shrunk further into himself as I came back into the room, indicating clearly his displeasure.

‘Sweetheart, I’m going over to John’s now.’

‘I can’t stop you, can I?’ he asked tragically.

This time I rolled my eyes. ‘Is this really necessary?’

‘Don’t expect me to be here when you come back.’ A direct challenge.

I stopped in my tracks and waked purposefully back to the sofa. I reached down and gently lifted Keith’s chin up with a finger. ‘Listen to me, kiddo. If you are not here when I get back, or if I find that you have stepped out of the house while I was gone, you are going to be extremely sorry.’ His blue eyes stared into mine. ‘Do you understand me?’ I asked softly.

I felt him tremble and finally give a small nod. ‘Yes,’ he whispered.

‘Good.’ I said, in a tone which indicated how serious I was. I hesitated about leaving him alone, but I knew that staying back would mean I had played right into his manipulating hands. Instead I gave him a long look for good measure, hoping it would suffice to keep him in place, before I silently let myself out of the house.


* * *

John already had a pot of coffee going by the time I reached his house. He poured me a cup and we sat down together at the breakfast bar. I loved John’s house and I felt totally comfortable there. We had spent not a few mornings together during our early years of friendship at that very table top after a night of crashing, and I enjoyed the sense of easy familiarity.

‘Do we have a real problem or is this simply Brat-Week?’ John asked mildly, drinking slowly from his cup.

‘I was hoping you would know. What did Danny tell you?’

John grimaced. ‘A lot of nonsense, if you ask me. Insecurity mostly. I think he was afraid Keith would get ahead of him at work, and that would make him inadequate or lesser or look stupid …‘ He opened his eyes wide and shrugged. ‘Jealousy too, I guess. Your brat, apparently, has done the unforgivable by becoming the boss’s new blue-eyed boy, besides making all the office ladies swoon over him and the guys treat him like he is a one of the guys. And damn it, the flashy sports car didn’t help any either!’

We grinned at one another. ‘I see.’

Secretly I was pleased. I couldn’t help it. I was pleased and proud of what John had said about Keith. Still I had to ask.

‘I get it. Did … er… and did Keith do anything to warrant Danny feeling that way?’

John shook his head and sighed heavily. ‘To be honest Dusty, I don’t see any of this being Keith’s fault. Danny was pretty frank about it by the time I got him to talk. Keith was just doing his job. What he didn’t know about the work, he asked. He didn’t show off, or put up a front or anything. Danny just … went into overdrive … he admits he was being unfair and a regular ass. Its ok, he can’t hear us!’ John gave a wicked grin. ‘Yep, he’s feeling pretty bad about it by now.’

‘Poor chap!’ I said sympathetically. I had grown to be quite fond of Danny.

‘And what did Keith have to say about all of this?’ John asked.

It was my turn to let out a sigh. ‘He says he wants to quit.’

‘Humphhh! And why am I not surprised? Typical.’

I flipped my hand against his arm. ‘Shut up! OK, where is your poor brat? What have you done with him? Did you torture it out of him?’

John grinned even more. ‘He’s upstairs, hopefully in bed, where I sent him. He’s already feeing sorry and small and embarrassed about all of it, and terrified when I told him you were coming over, so I’d appreciate it if you didn’t beat him up any more. I want him in one piece please!’

‘Schmuck!’ I muttered under my breath, and headed towards the stairs.

I found Danny under a pile of blankets, which he had obviously pulled over his head when he heard me approaching. I sat down next to him on the bed and forcefully peeled the sheets back.

‘Come out of there, Danny.’ I said in a firm voice.

After a moment, an eye peeped out and the red head appeared. ‘Hi Dusty?’

‘Hi Danny.’ I looked him straight in the eye, and he burst into tears.

* * *

They saw me to the front door, Danny snuggled into John’s broad back.

‘Come here, Danny,’ I said, pulling him out and drawing him into a hug. ‘It’s OK. I am not mad.’
His eyes were still red but he let me give him a tight squeeze and even hugged back. ‘Will you tell Keith …?’

‘No.’ John said firmly. ‘You will tell Keith yourself.’

‘But he hates me….’ He caught both our eyes, and backed down. ‘Ok, ok, ok … I’ll come over tomorrow and … and … talk to Keith?’

I nodded approvingly at him. ‘’That’s good Danny. Remember what we talked about? Just be honest and tell him how you felt. I’ll see what I can do tonight to … um … prepare him for your visit. It will be fine.’

‘OK,’ Danny said softly, not at all convinced.

I leaned down and kissed him on the head. ‘I’ll see you around elevenish tomorrow then? Be good!’ I turned to John and clapped him on the back. ‘Thanks man. We’ll do lunch next week?’

‘Sure!’ John agreed, and I ran out to the car. I had stayed almost two hours and I guessed that Keith would have driven himself up the wall by then. I flipped open my cell phone as I got into my car, calling the house to let Keith know I was on my way back.

I frowned when no one picked up. Feeling uneasy, I tried Keith’s cell phone next. Same thing – no answer. With a bad feeling in my stomach, I started the car and headed home. I scanned the drive, hoping to see the red sports car where Keith had parked it the night before. It was not there. I pressed the garage remote button; one last chance, I thought. Maybe Keith had moved his car inside. It opened up empty.

I sighed in frustration and disbelief as I let myself into the house and began flipping on switches. ‘Keith!’ I called loudly. The house was absolutely quiet and still.

Damnit! I cursed under my breath. ‘Keith!’ I called again, this time up the stairs. At the same time my eyes searched the hall table for a note. Nothing. Not really expecting to yield any results, I still went into every room both upstairs and downstairs. No sign of my brat.
I dialed his cell phone again, and left a terse message. I was ready to throttle Keith. My hands literally itched! Where could he be? And how dared he disobey me when I had explicitly told him to STAY PUT!

I thought about where he could possibly have gone to and I had a sudden flash of memory. In our early days together, before we introduced discipline into our relationship, whenever we had had a fight he would always storm out of the house. And I knew where he would run to.
I got back into my car and headed out to his apartment, hoping my hunch was not wrong. There were so many other places he could have gone to, so many types of trouble he could get himself into in his kind of rebellious mood. I didn’t even want to think about the possibilities.

It was usually Keith’s way to rebel when he was unhappy about something, for no other reason than it was a part of his nature. But this time, he had also issued me a direct challenge, one which he could not back down from without losing face. I had hoped I had been able to circumvent it by my threat of reprisals if he disobeyed. Apparently it hadn’t worked. He would be sorry and contrite later, I knew, but for Keith, it was a rite of passage. He had a long way to go to learn that he could not always give in to his passions and impulses as a way to make himself feel better.
I sighed with relief when I spotted his red car in his allotted space.

I parked at the visitors’ car park and jogged my way across to his block. Keith had given me a set of keys so I easily let myself into the enclosed foyer entrance and rode the lift all the way up to the 18th floor. There were only 2 apartments to each floor and we had always appreciated the privacy it offered.

I slipped my key into the front door and opened it. The living area was in darkness and I allowed my eyes to get accustomed to the dimness as I scanned the room. Slowly, the shadows took shape and I saw a huddled figure in a corner of the over-sized sofa in front of the empty fireplace. I sighed and flipped the switch on and the shadows receded. Keith looked up silently, in a calm way as if he was expecting me. Across the room, we stared at one another.

I walked over to the sofa and looked at Keith closely. I had been ready to jump down his throat for having left the house and not answering his phone. But the look in his eyes halted me. He looked both lost and resigned and I suddenly lost the urge to strangle him.

Still I kept my voice firm as I asked, ‘would you care to explain what you are doing here, Keith?’

He chewed on his upper lip as he gazed up at me, shrugging a little as if he hadn’t a clue in the world how he got there. His eyes remained wide and questioning, and I shook my head at him.

‘Don’t you open your eyes at me. You know exactly what I mean. I am waiting for an answer.’ I said.

I saw him swallow and clasp his hands together. He shook his head slightly and I raised my eyebrows. ‘I told you to stay in the house, didn’t I? I told you to wait there for me and that I expected you to be there when I returned from John’s place. Do you remember that?’

He gave a tiny nod and I pressed on. ‘And yet, despite my instructions being so clear and specific, you deliberately disobeyed me by coming here. Blatantly!’

Keith’s face paled but he kept his eyes fixed on me. That was an encouraging sign; it meant he intended to take responsibility for his actions and was not trying to worm his way out of the situation. When Keith tried to wriggle his way out of trouble, he would usually argue and pace around the room, averting all eye contact. I had come to believe that in those times, he was trying to convince himself as much as me that he was innocent of any wrong doing and therefore did not deserve to be punished. But when he looked directly at me with trust in his eyes, I knew that was his way of admitting fault, of submiting to me and my rules and authority.

‘Um … Did you see … Danny?’ he quietly asked, sweeping aside the immediate focus of our discussion.

Realizing that that was the uppermost concern in his mind at the moment, I allowed us to switch directions. I grunted and sat down opposite him so I could watch his face. ‘I did.’

‘W..what did he say?’

‘Danny was very upset.’

‘Ohhh …?’ Keith’s eyes opened wider, obviously curious but reluctant to dig. That was Keith and his pride. He would find it beneath his dignity to beg or ask for more information. I folded my arms and decided to wait.

I won the battle. Slowly, Keith slid out of the sofa and crept over to my armchair, sliding up to me in between my knees. He laid his head on my chest and my hand automatically reached up to stroke his hair.

His voice was muffled as he murmured into my belly. ‘So … did he say what … um … he was upset about?’

I smiled down at the fair head resting heavily against me. ‘Oh, I believe he realizes how inappropriate his behavior was, and how unfair he had been to you. He is beating himself up about it actually.’

‘Good!’ he said savagely, and I smacked him lightly on the head.

He looked up at me, his blue eyes clear and indignant. ‘Isn’t it good that he finally acknowledges he was being an …. Well, you-know-what? Are you sure he said that?’ he asked suspiciously. ‘Or did you make that up?’

I said seriously. ‘He is coming over tomorrow to see you. I guess he wants to apologize.’

‘Oh!’ Keith looked slightly taken aback. ‘How come the change of heart?’

‘You can ask him that yourself.’

‘Did John spank him?’ Keith asked, a trifle too vengefully I thought. ‘Is that why he is coming over?’

‘If you mean is John making Danny come over to apologize, the answer is NO! Danny is really sorry about the whole thing. Like I said, it’s just a small misunderstanding and you’ll talk about it and that’s the end of the matter. As for whether John spanked Danny or not, that is hardly your business, is it Keith?’

He pouted and shrugged his shoulders.

I swiftly took the opportunity to turn the conversation back to our issue at hand. ‘However, whether or not I spank you is very much your business.’

He began to chew on his lip again, looking worried. ‘I’m sorry Dusty. I just had to get out. You know me. You know how it is with me.’

‘No Keith, that’s not going to work. You have total control over yourself and your actions. Do not be telling me you cannot control what you do or say. There is a brain in there somewhere,’ I tapped the side of his head, ‘and I expect you to use it!’

He twitched his head away from my finger, but continued looking at me, soulfully. ‘I’m sorry.’
‘You ought to be.’

‘Well, I am!’ He insisted sincerely.

‘I know, but the fact still remains that you left the house when I told you not to. You chose to disobey me. Why?’ My voice was very stern by then.

‘Dusteee….. please don’t be mad….’

‘Tell me. Why did you disobey me?’ I was very insistent and I could see Keith crumbling.

His lips quivered as he blurted out. ‘I asked you not to go! I didn’t want you to go to John’s.’

‘And because I didn’t do as you asked, you had to retaliate? Is that it?’ I nudged his chin up with a finger so I could look into his eyes. They glistened with sudden tears as he nodded miserably.
I resisted the urge to kiss his eyes; they were so blue and appealing. Instead I said matter-of-factly. ’You deliberately threw me a challenge.’

‘I was angry when I said that. I didn’t really mean it, but you took forever to come home … so … so I thought … I’d …’

‘Teach me a lesson?’ I asked dryly.

‘We … ll.‘

‘Keith, that’s not how it works. You do NOT retaliate when I say no. Do you?’

Keith lowered his eyes and muttered something incoherent.

‘Answer me.’

‘You are right. I shouldn’t have. But I did. So - are you … going to spank me?’

‘What do you think? Don’t you deserve to be spanked?’ I held out my hand to him and pulled him to his feet. We needed to get this over with and I didn’t want to wait till we got home. The apartment was as good a place as any to deal with it.

He sniffed loudly but allowed me to tug him into the master bedroom. It was mostly bare, most of his things having been moved to my place. There was not even a hairbrush left, I noted to myself.

We had never really used that room much before. A couple of times we had tumbled into the bed when things got too hot for us, but we had never actually slept there. And Keith had never been disciplined in the apartment before either.

I looked around and sat down on the bed and drew Keith closer. He was suddenly very cooperative, clinging on to me, which was totally unlike him in a situation like this. He pushed his body hard against me, leaning into me, demanding attention and comfort.

I pulled him onto my lap and held him for a while. ‘Poor baby,’ I said soothingly.

He nestled closer, so I rubbed his cheek with the back of my hand.

I continued in a low tone. ‘It hasn’t been easy, I know. But that’s no excuse for defying me and disappearing when I explicitly told you to stay put. I am very cross about that, young man! Not to mention not answering your cell phone. Didn’t we agree you would never do that again?’

‘Yes.’

‘Yes, we did. And you ARE going to be spanked for that as well.’

He groaned but remained glued to me.

I gently pried him off me and stood him up. ‘Strip,’ I commanded, indicating his jeans.
He didn’t say anything, just began unbuckling his belt and pushing his jeans down. He looked up at me for a brief moment, then sighed and pushed his shorts down as well. I pulled him over my lap, face down this time. Made sure his torso was resting on the bed. Then I clamped one hand over his waist and began to spank him with the other.

‘Ow!’ he cried out, wriggling fiercely. ‘Ow!’

I spanked him soundly, remembering my worry when I found him gone and not being able to locate him. I watched his bottom go from pale to pink and didn’t stop till it turned a darker shade of red. It was a serious spanking in my book and Keith knew it. If we had been home, he would most certainly have gotten the hairbrush. I compensated with extra long and hard smacks instead.

He started crying softly into his arms, where he had hidden his face, and his cries gradually became louder as I spanked longer and harder.

Finally, he raised his head and pleaded. ‘Please …’ he panted. ‘God! That hurts Dusty! Oh stop please … Please …’

I paused, panting a little myself. ‘What is this spanking for, Keith?’

‘Dis…obeying … ‘ he gasped.

‘How disobeying?’

‘For leaving … the house when you told me not to. Ow!’

‘What else?’

‘Not … not answering … my cell phone … Ow!’ Another stinging slap was delivered.
‘Are you going to be remembering this lesson, Keith?’ I asked, as I landed another two smacks on his heated butt.

‘Yes, yes!’

‘When I say stay put, what does that mean?’

‘It means … I … don’t go anywhere. Ow!’ He jumped as my hand connected with his butt again.

‘That’s right. It means you don’t go anywhere!’ I said, and I smacked again, harder still. He yelped loudly and twisted to get free.

‘I’m not done yet. Stop struggling!’ I ordered.

With some difficulty, he settled down, burying his face into his folded arms once again. But I knew he was paying attention.

‘I won’t tolerate defiance, Keith. Especially when it’s done in a fit of temper to get back at me. Don’t do it again, or next time I will use my belt. Do you understand?’

Keith lifted up his head and gasped at me. ‘W...what?’

‘You heard me. Blatant disobedience and direct defiance will earn you a spanking with my belt in future. Believe me, you don’t want me to do that, Keith.’

‘But … ‘

‘Darling, why do you think I asked you to stay put? To make you more miserable? You were already distraught and upset and I didn’t want you going out alone in that frame of mind. God knows where you would have gone and what you would have done.’

‘I came here!’ He cried defensively.

‘Thank God for that. Tell me, was this the only place you thought about?’

He squirmed under my hands. ‘Well … um … no … er, yes … maybe … ‘

‘Yes or no?’

‘I did think about going to a pub, OK? Just for a drink? Just a drink … ’

‘Exactly. And the choices you make when you are angry and upset are usually those that land you in trouble. What if you had had more than a drink? Would you have driven yourself home? Would you have called me, knowing you would be in trouble? ‘

He didn’t answer, so I continued. ‘I will not allow you to do anything that might endanger yourself or put you in a compromising position. I will do my best to keep you safe – that’s my job. And yours is to not go against my orders when I tell you to do something. Not ever!’

He sniffed loudly but seemed to accept my decree.

‘Is that clear, Keith?’ I asked softly.

‘Yes,’ he replied, his tone matching mine.

I stroked his hair for a while and then patted his red butt lightly.

‘Ow,’ he yelped, but there wasn’t much punch in it.

I laughed softly. ‘OK, sweetheart, we’re ok now. Come on, get up and turn around.’

He quickly put his arms around my neck and clung on once he was seated again on my thighs. He sniffed a few more times, but I knew the sting was probably receding by now and he was more than capable of handling it.

‘So you ready to talk to Danny tomorrow?’ I asked.

He shrugged and buried his head further into my neck.

‘Everyone makes mistakes, Keith, and everyone deserves to be given another chance to make things right.’

‘I guess …’

‘Good boy,’ I said, kissing him firmly on the mouth. ‘Come on, put your jeans on and let’s go home.’

* * *

Keith was jittery the whole morning, jumping at the slightest sound outside the house. He paced the rooms, moving from kitchen to living room to study and finally I sent him outside to trim the hedges.

He groaned but went obediently. I could see him from the kitchen table where I was nursing a strong cup of coffee with the Sunday papers. Keith was wearing a sleeveless t-shirt and his snug Sunday shorts and he looked good from where I was sitting. His exposed arms were muscled and toned from swimming and tennis; his legs were long and well-shaped and supported a cute butt, which was pointed in my direction at the moment as he bent over to trim the hedge. I remembered how it had looked last night after the spanking I had given him, and decided I would have to check him out thoroughly later in the day.

I saw Keith straighten up and stand stiffly, as Danny’s car drove into our driveway. Danny walked slowly over and stopped in front of Keith. He began to speak, and I could see his eyes darting everywhere. I could not hear what was said beyond a murmur of noises, but I could see quite clearly their faces and reactions. Keith nodded a few times, not really saying anything. A moment of awkward silence, during which I held my breath, watching intently. Then Danny held out a hand. For a moment, I thought Keith would not take it. Then I sighed with relief as he held out his own hand shook Danny’s.

A few more exchanges were made, both young men smiled a trifle awkwardly, then Danny turned and went back into his car. We both watched Danny’s car reverse and drive off, then Keith looked straight into the house and held my gaze. I smiled at him, and nodded slightly, showing my approval. He shrugged, then turned back to finish trimming the hedges.

‘Hi,’ Keith said as he came to the study where I was working on my computer. He leaned his shoulders against the door frame, striking a handsome post.

I looked up. ‘Hi. Did it go ok?’ I asked.

‘Yeah, you saw us.’

‘C’mere.’ I pushed back my chair to pull Keith down to my lap, his back against my chest. He gingerly sat down and I kissed his neck. ‘Thank you. I’m proud of you.’

Keith dipped his head, flushing a little. ‘You hungry?’ he asked.

‘Yeah,’ I said into his ear.

‘Shall I fix us some sandwiches?’

My hand tightened around him to prevent him getting up. ‘No,’ I murmured as I nibbled his ear.
He giggled a little. ‘Thought you said you were hungry?’

‘Oh yes, very hungry indeed.’ My hand slid further down his front and fumbled with his shorts. ‘How’s the butt?’ I asked softly.

‘Still sore!’ he growled.

‘Let me see!’

I pushed him off my lap. He laughed a little as I bent him over the desk in front of us and pulled his shorts down.

‘Hey!’ he protested playfully.

‘Let me look. Hands on the desk. I am going to check you out … thoroughly!’ I said as I ran my hands over his bottom, which was slightly pink in only a few places. My fingers traced the line of his crack and he wriggled and gasped. Keith was rather ticklish and I knew all the right spots.
I kneaded the firm cheeks slowly, feeling him relax. I heard Keith sigh and groan as I spread him open and teased him some more. One hand reached round to his front and started to stroke.

‘Still sore, Keith?’ I asked in a low voice.

He leaned his head down onto his hands, raising his butt. ‘Yes,’ he breathed.
‘Too sore for me?’

‘Never too sore for you, Dusty,’ he panted.

‘Thought so.’ I kissed him on his right cheek as I pulled the lube out from a drawer.

Standing up, I quickly got rid of my own pants and then leaned over Keith, my body covering his, meshed together while my arms held him tightly to me. He grunted a little.

‘You ok, darling?’ I asked.

‘’Yes.’ It was barely a whisper.

We stayed still for a long while, just enjoying the sense and touch of bare skin and the growing heat and mounting want. I was in a wonderful place in my life with Keith and I closed my eyes for a moment to savor the thought. I had never known such togetherness; never suspected how special it could be. I thought about all the insecurities we had had about one another during the past couple of years, and marveled that we had come this far.

I began to move slowly against him, feeling a tenderness well up in me as I watched my lover arch his back and rise to meet my thrusts. He craned his neck so that our eyes could meet and I leaned over to claim his waiting mouth.

Then we let the passion take over and simply gave ourselves up to the rhythm of our love.


T H E E N D