Page 16 of The Rule of 3

Ever so carefully, Tanner removed the vibrator and reached for a tissue to wipe up all of the lube. His spent dick slid out, and it was then he realized he needed more tissues. “Wow, things get a little messy without a rubber,” he commented as he watched his seed dribble down the inside of her thigh. He felt like a Neanderthal when he realized the sight turned him on. Tossing all of the tissues into the wastebasket and setting the toy aside, Tanner encouraged Zoë to stretch out in bed so he could cuddle and spoon her from behind. Then he whispered into her ear, “I love you so much.”

Zoë grabbed the hand that he snaked around her middle as she said, “I love you too, Tanner. And… you did it! You made it even better this time. That was amazing.”

Chapter 15

Tanner wasn’t fooling around when he’d said he wanted to get married. During the weeks leading up to Christmas, he looked at rings and thought of the most romantic thing he could do to persuade Zoë to marry him. He was happier than he’d been since Princeton with Eli.

Tanner’s conversation with his best friend had been bittersweet, however.

He waited until the evening, when Eli was likely to be home and alone. Zoë was Christmas shopping with a friend, so he had some time to himself. He poured himself a drink and got comfortable, but then he realized his hands were shaking when he made the call.

“Hey, Tan! I haven’t heard from you for a few days. How’s it going?” Eli’s happiness in hearing from Tanner was obvious.

With a partially forced smile in his voice and a lump in his throat, Tanner answered, “Things are great, Eli. Really great. But…”Oh crap. This is going to be hard.“I, um… well, I finally got back together with Zoë. Can you believe it? You always said I’d be able to do it.” Now he felt like he was rambling. “I used your advice again, and it worked.” Tanner finally stopped making happy-sounding remarks and waited for Eli’s reply. Instead, there was silence. “Eli? Are you there? Say something.”

Eli finally cleared his throat and with a choked voice, he sounded like he was mustering up some enthusiasm for his soft reply. “I’m happy for you, Tan. I know that’s what you’ve wanted all along. So… now it’s done.”

Tanner didn’t have to guess that there was a double meaning to Eli’s statement.

Done.

There would be no more fishing trips, no more sharing a room at reunions, no Tanner and Eli as lovers. Only Tanner and Eli as buddies. As much as that hurt, he’d have to live with it. It was their great plan, and it would help his chances of becoming governor.Damned ambition!

“God, Eli. This is hard,” he said in a hoarse whisper. “I really do love Zoë. She’s wonderful. But I love you as well.”

Eli sighed and answered, “I love you too. But your campaign is going to have to really kick it up after the first of the year, so it’s going to be important that everyone knows you’re settling down. You were a little bit of a wildcard being so young and single. Well… single as far as everyone else knew. I knew you were mine.”

A tear rolled down Tanner’s cheek as he said, “Don’t put that in past tense. Please.”

“I have to! It’s high time I found someone to settle down with too.” Eli sounded sadly determined. “This hurts like hell, but we knew, and we hoped, it was coming. You’re going to make an excellent governor. Just look at what you’ve done with that town of yours. It’s listed on a bunch of blogs now on those Hidden Gems lists for little-known places that are great to live.”

Tanner snorted, “That was your doing. You’re the one with the press in your pocket.”

“True enough, but your success as mayor has done a lot for the place, and if it hadn’t, no one would write about it no matter what. I’m so proud of you and your accomplishments.” Eli paused. “I wish I could kiss you right now… just one last time.”

“Eli, are we even doing the right thing?” Tanner asked in a strangled voice. “Maybe I ought to come out to the world and just let everyone know I’m bisexual, and they can like it or… fuck them!”

“Come on, Tan. We’ve talked about this. Maybe by the time you’re old enough to run for president, all the bigots will have died off or crawled back into their nasty little caves, but until we’re sure of that, we can’t take the chance.” Eli shook his head, even though Tanner couldn’t see him. “This is going hurt for a while, but you have Zoë in your corner now. You haven’t told her about us, have you?”

“I have not. And frankly,” Tanner muttered, “it’s killing me to keep it from her. It feels like a sin of omission. I don’t like lying. And you’re wrong, for once, Eli. It’s not gonna hurt for a while. I don’t think I’ll ever get over this kind of hurt. Just think of how miserable I was without Zoë. I had you, and I still felt incomplete. I don’t mean to minimize my love for you in any way, Eli. I just feel sometimes like I need you both. Somehow.”

“I get it. I do, Tanner.” Eli sounded like he was taking a drink if the clinking of ice cubes were an indication. “I guess I’ll see you after the new year. We’ll kick up the campaign then. Are you going to get married soon?”

“We will if I have anything to say about it. The sooner the better. Zoë knows I’ll have to be traveling around the state pretty soon in order to make a bunch of public appearances and speeches.” Tanner seemed to brighten a bit talking about this. “It’s not like she has a big family to worry about for a fancy wedding. If her parents even bothered to show up, it would be a miracle. Anyway, we’ll see. I still need to pop the question.”

“She’ll say yes. You’re irresistible, Tan.” Eli let out a strangled sigh. “I’d say yes if you were asking me, but we know that’s not happening.”

“No. Sadly, it’s not.” Tanner paused. “God, listen to me! I should be happy about Zoë. It’s not like she’s some consolation prize or something. Now I just have to figure out when and how to propose. I was thinking Christmas, but that seems too trite somehow—offering her a ring for a Christmas present. I want our engagement and giving her a ring to be special and separate, you know?”

“You’ll figure it out. I have faith in you.”

Tanner blurted out, “Will you be my best man, Eli? Is that too much to ask of you?”

With a sad chuckle, Eli answered, “I’d do anything for you. Even if it means breaking my heart to do it.” He took a deep breath. “Just let me know when and where to show up—if I’m not already down there overseeing your campaign. We’ll get it done, Tan. Maybe I’ll meet some beautiful southern belle in Kentucky and fall head over heels for her. You never know. Maybe we’ll be old, settled-down, married guys at the same time.”

“Yeah. I better go. Zoë’s due home any minute.”

“You guys are living together already?” The surprise was evident in Eli’s voice.

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