Chapter 1

John had gate-checked his guitar. It was a vintage Gibson hollow-body with a pale yellow finish in a battered hard shell case. Even though the guitar had made music for close to forty years, John had only owned it for one week. He adjusted his grip on the ivory handle and stepped quicker towards the baggage claim where Frank promised to be waiting.

Two weeks. It was hard to believe they'd only known each other for two weeks. After they ended up rooming together on a group rate ski trip, they struck up a special kind of friendship that neither one had expected to find.

"John!" a female voice exclaimed. He turned to see Lily dragging a rolling bag from the gate he was passing.

"Lily!" he called back and opened his arms to her. She dropped her bag to leap in his arms as he swung her around, kissing her soundly. "I know it's only been two weeks, but I sure missed you."

"I'm just glad Frank was serious about letting me come, too."

"Are you kidding? We know what we owe you." Lily had been there when both men had been coming to terms with the physical part of their relationship. Neither one had ever been attracted to men before, but the situation on the ski trip and their instant connection gave them an opportunity to explore something new. Lily had been a part of the whole thing. "By the way, did you happen to pack one of my shirts by accident after the ski trip?"

"Uh..." Lily blushed and shrugged. "There was a soft green button-down shirt in my bags when I got home."

"That's it! You didn't happen to bring it with you?" John asked.

"Yes, but..." She reached for her rolling back so they could continue to the baggage claim. "Can I buy you another one or something? I kinda like ... sleeping in it."

"Why?" he chuckled.

"It smelled like you guys," she whispered almost too low to hear. "Just let me keep it. Please?"

He chuckled. "You didn't have to steal it. I'd have given it to you."

"Good. Then fair warning, then, I'm probably gonna steal another one." She gave him a sideways grin and bumped into him on purpose.

"You're a nut, you know that?"

The escalator took them down to baggage claim where a trim, handsome man was holding a small sign that said John and Lily. Frank had an anxious expression on his face until he caught sight of them, then smiled broadly.

As they closed the distance, Lily jogged ahead to hug and kiss their friend.

"Lily, you are a sight for sore eyes." The strained whisper was largely due to the strangle-hold she had around his neck. She let him go to step back, watching the two friends size each other up.

"Frank," John said and gave him a back-slapping hug. Keeping his face close, he took big breaths to savor the scent that had been haunting him. "It's great to see you."

"I see you brought your axe with you," he said as he moved back with sparkling eyes.

"Thanks again for this. I've had the best week ever playing it every night and dreaming about this trip."

"It was the least I could do," Frank said with a flush of embarrassment. "Come on you two, let's get your bags and I'll take you home."

Home. John nodded as Frank led them to their baggage claim carousel. It felt like home despite never being in Austin before. While the waited, Lily told a long, involved story about an awful date she'd had the previous weekend. Her energy and enthusiasm were infectious and John soon found himself laughing at her antics.

She finished as the laughter died down, "Needless to say, I deleted the app off my phone. No more techno hook-ups for me."

"So what are you gonna do now?" Frank asked as he grabbed the heavy bag she was pointing to.

"I'd like to talk about that with you both later," she said without meeting their eyes. "Maybe after we have a bottle of wine and get comfortable."

Frank glanced at John to gauge his reaction. John shrugged and smiled. They'd all hit it off so well he already considered her part of their lives. She had made it clear she wasn't interested in kids and marriage, so maybe she was interested in something a little less traditional with them. Given how many new things he'd tried in the last few weeks, it seemed worth considering, if nothing else.

After getting the bags into the car, Frank drove them out into the city and pointed out a few Austin landmarks on the way to his place. He'd said it wasn't a typical house or apartment which made John insanely curious, but Frank had refused to divulge any secrets to either of them before they arrived.

When he pulled up to a large, old brick building, John was confused. "Is this your office?" It was two stories tall with a flat roof and the fading paint on one wall advertised it had been a warehouse of some kind once.

"Nope," he said. "It's home." He got out of the car with a funny grin and opened the trunk to get their bags.

Lily seemed apprehensive, as she was probably more used to the kind of luxury they'd enjoyed at the ski resort. Dragging her rolling bag while Frank and John wrestled the rest of the large bags, they followed her to a non-nondescript metal door.

Frank got out a key-ring and opened it, reaching inside to flip a switch before moving back to get the bags. Lily and John walked inside with their mouths agape.

The interior looked like something out of a magazine. It was all exposed brick, stainless steel, halogen lights, and modern furniture set out in the open space of the first floor. It had artwork on the walls and sculptures hanging from thin metal lines. The kitchen to their left looked like it belonged in a restaurant, with large steel working tables and counters around a professional gas range.

"What the hell does your startup do?" Lily asked as she gazed back at him.

"It's actually my third one. I sold the first two already and made out okay." He put the bags down in the space between the kitchen and living room areas. The living room was silver and black leather, dominated by a comfortable looking sectional that took up half the room. John spotted the projector on the ceiling facing a silver rectangle that looked as large as a movie theatre screen.

There was look of embarrassment on his face as she shrugged and said, "This one isn't doing as well. Which was why I needed the trip to get away."

"I love this place," John whispered as he turned slowly in a circle to take in everything. "I ... wow."

"Let me get you guys upstairs so you can wash up and get settled in. I'm cooking us dinner."

"There's more?" Lily laughed. "Holy shit..."

He had a lift to the second floor in the corner. It wasn't an elevator because it wasn't enclosed, but the wide platform carried them to the second floor just the same. When they stepped into the open area, John saw it was divided between a sprawling home office and a comfortable bedroom. The bathroom appeared to be a stone square set off by itself in one corner.

"Gorgeous," Lily whispered. "There's just the one bed?" she asked with an arched tone. "Just what kind of girl do you think I am?"

"The best kind," he said and kissed her warmly. John stepped close and embraced them both, kissing her first, then kissing Frank for the first time since he arrived. She touched their backs while the heat built between them, the kisses turning to nuzzles and nips as both men confirmed the connection they still felt.

"Sorry," John whispered. "Got carried away."

"I'm not complaining." Frank pulled back with a grin. "Let me show you were you can put your things."

Frank had a entire dresser and armoire empty for them next to his own. It looked like the same design, but they were obviously newly installed from the bits of sawdust and cardboard in the corners. He'd gone to a great deal of trouble to make them feel welcome and Lily was practically dancing as she put her things away.

"You didn't have to do all this," John said quietly. "I'd have been fine putting my suitcase on a chair."

"I want you to feel at home." The embarrassed look was back, making him look even more attractive. He lowered his voice to a whisper, "It's nothing, really."

"Thanks," John said as they put his clothes away together.

Sitting on barstools at the large metal table in the kitchen, John sipped his Shiner Bock while Lily and Frank were busy chopping and cooking dinner.

"Are you sure there's nothing I can do?" John asked, feeling a little useless right at that moment.

"I'm just making a salad. If it makes you feel better you can rub my shoulders while I'm working." Lily wiggled her shoulders with an expectant look in his direction.

John chuckled as he got up to carry his beer over towards her. She was like a whirlwind, he decided. She blew into your life and turned everything upside down, but you ended up thanking her for the experience somehow. He put the beer down, rubbed his hands together to warm them, the began to kneed the muscles in her shoulders and neck. She had showered and changed into a light green dress with thin straps.

"Oh, a little harder please," she whispered as he dug in with his thumbs. "That's it, right there. Just keep working out that kink."

Frank glanced over with an amused grin at the two of them. "Don't get so distracted you accidentally add some meat to the salad."

"I'm being careful," she said, gesturing with the knife. "I just want you to know I'm resisting the urge to thank you again, Frank."

"Isn't that the same as thanking me, which I've begged you both to stop doing?"

"Not at all," she replied. "I have lots of urges I resist. Would you like to hear about them?"

"Sure," he said as he lifted the lid to check the chicken breasts.

"Well, for the last hour or so I've resisted the urge to take your clothes off and have you for supper. And right now I'm resisting the urge to climb up on this table so John, here, can have his way with me. See? Totally under control."

"I'd oblige, but that chicken is smelling pretty good." John said as he moved the thin straps from her shoulders that kept getting in the way. She hummed deep and rolled her neck as he continued the massage.

"It's almost ready," Frank said and stirred another pot next to it. "So is the fettuccine." He got out three plates, utensils, napkins and arranged them at the table while Lily finished the salad. "John, would you get the two bottles of the pinot grigio out of the fridge. The glasses are over there." He pointed to a chrome and glass hutch full of fine china and crystal.