Love Out of Time – Chapter 16 – Home for the Last Time

Spencer ended up sprawled out on one of the couches. Aaron looked over and shook his head a laugh on his lips and his eyes lighting with humor.

Spencer got up and gave Aaron the amulet, “I won’t need this anymore.” Aaron lifted a brow as he took the necklace. Standing-up he walked into his study and put the amulet in a locked box in the back of the safe.

“You may want to use it again one day,” he said as he turned towards Spencer.

“Nope. Everything I want is here. I love you Aaron. I’ve loved you since I first saw you in that little studio and you looked up at me and smiled. I don’t need to go back anymore.” They both walked back into the living room where he sat on the couch next to Aaron and snuggled in close. “I saw Maeve.”

Aaron reached up and carded his fingers in Spencer’s hair, holding him close. “What happened?”

“Not much. I went forward in time. I wanted to see if she’d come to James’s grave and she did.” Spencer felt Aaron stiffen next to him, “I’m sorry, I know it was a risk, but I had to try. I had to see what happened to her. She married again, had three girls and said that she is happy.”

“How does that make you feel Penny?” Aaron kissed his forehead as he kept an arm around his lover.

“Happy, sad, a little jealous.” He lifted his head and kissed Aaron. “Jealous because the way she talked she gave to her new husband what she never gave me. She gave more of herself to him and she admitted that what we had probably wouldn’t have lasted anyway. Sad because her daughters, like our children, will never know James. And happy that she was able to put all of what happened between us behind her. I was happy that she finally learned to move on.”

“You really aren’t going back, are you?”

“No. There is nothing left for me Aaron. Even though we had tough times I would never give-up what we found together. I’ve never loved anyone the way I do you.”

Breathing in deep Aaron laid down and pulled Spencer on top of him. He kissed the genius as he wrapped his arms around him. Sighing softly as Spencer put his head on Aaron’s shoulder the two men stayed curled up together getting lost in the feeling of the moment.

Spencer propped himself up on Aaron’s chest and looked at him as he softly stroked his cheek. “Why don’t we take a vacation. Go somewhere horribly romantic. We can do it after your retirement party from the firm. Go to France or Italy. We’ll get lost in the beauty of the city, eat decadent food, drink lots of wine and make love someplace new. Go to all those places we keep saying we want to visit but life always got in the way.”

Aaron smiled even more as his eyes sparkled with the idea. “I love it. You can take your camera. Ramble about the sights, tell me everything you know about wherever it is we go.”

They talked for a long-time and made plans for after their retirement. Spencer said he would pack his best cameras, maybe set-up several showings for when they got back. It felt almost like it had those first few weeks they had spent getting to know each other. With no kids and no jobs to hold them down they felt free to explore the world and have fun doing it.

Aaron pulled Spencer up closer and kissed his forehead. “Why don’t we go to bed.”

“It’s still early.” Spencer quirked a brow as he looked at the man he loved.

“Yup.” Aaron stood up from the couch and walked off towards the bedroom looking back at Spencer with a wicked grin on his face.

“Oh, well I guess we could turn in early.” Spencer went after Aaron and when he made it to the bedroom he turned and closed the door.