A/N This is the last chapter, my friends. Thank you for reading and following the boys to the end of their journey. Hope you enjoy the ending :o)

CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN

After the first few days at home, I was longing to go back to work. I'd been back to the hospital to have the stitches removed and endured the doctor's third degree as he checked how I was feeling, whether I'd had any dizzy spells or headaches and so on. That first day after Paul and I made love, I had actually felt quite rough and he had refused to so much as touch me for the next forty-eight hours, but that quickly passed and I was almost back to my usual self.

The next week or so, I went down to the gym at least once a day to bother Edward and Collin and chat to the regulars, but still my two managers and Paul refused to let me work. They feared it would be too much for me and that I would end up making myself ill and so far I had reluctantly agreed. I watched TV, read magazines and idled away my time while Paul researched and contacted companies who made sports supplements, deciding he was going to have his own brand made. All the recent press had made him known about and he had a good chance of making a successful start. He had even received a call from Andrew Leonard at FitWorx, apologising for his hasty dismissal and offering him his old job back, but he had refused, saying that he now lived in New York and had other plans.

Paul had returned to Boston one last time, borrowed a van from an acquaintance and driven back with his belongings, officially moving in with me. While he was gone he insisted that either Edward or Emmett stay with me and they had eagerly obliged, despite my insistence that I was ok to be alone for one day. When he finally came back on the train after returning the van to its owner, both guys were hanging out with me as the gym had closed some time before.

Now Paul had been properly moved in for more than a week and at last, no one could convince me to stay in the apartment a minute longer. For the first time since before the attack, I went down to the gym alone to spend the day at work, planning to sit in my office and go through any paperwork that had accumulated in my absence which Edward hadn't been able to deal with. I was delighted to be back, even though I couldn't yet work out myself and had to satisfy myself with office tasks or chatting to the clients. At least I was back in the middle of things and I was happy to see that there had been no problems in my absence. Gym numbers had increased and Edward and Collin had kept on top of everything, re-working their rosters between them to cover my absence.

When I headed back up to the apartment in the late afternoon, Paul was busy in the kitchen making us dinner. I helped myself to a beer from the refrigerator and hovered, watching, as he made spaghetti sauce.

"Your Dad called," he told me.

"Really? When?" I had barely heard from Dad since I got home. He had called once to check how I was doing, but the conversation had been short and awkward and he hadn't visited, even though Leah had done her best to persuade him and had been to see me herself several times with Sarah.

"About an hour ago. He wants you to call him back."

"How did he sound?"

"I don't know; like he wished it wasn't me he had to give the message to." Paul grimaced slightly. "How was work? I hope you didn't overdo it."

"I'm fine. Edward wouldn't let me do much anyway. Did you pay him or something?"

"No, but I did talk to him, although it was his idea to make sure you took it easy."

"I'm perfectly well now," I said. "Not even tired. I'll give Dad a call."

I left him to finish dinner and grabbed the phone, calling Leah's apartment. It was Sarah who answered, delighted to hear my voice.

"Is your Mom there?" I asked.

"Yes, but she's in the bath. She's going out."

"Really?" I raised an eyebrow. "Anywhere special?"

"Jeannie's Dad's taking her to dinner."

"That's nice," I said, smiling to myself. So Leah had given Jasper a chance after all. She hadn't talked about him to me at all since they had been to Coney Island, but clearly it had been the start of something and I was glad for her. "Is Marie staying with you?" I asked Sarah.

"No, there's no need 'cause Grandpa's here," she reminded me. "Do you want to speak to him?"

"Yes, please."

It was a minute or two before Dad came on the line and greeted me with little more than a grunt.

"You know Leah's going out with that fellow, Jasper?" he said then.

"Yes, I know, Dad. I'm happy for her."

"Don't you think it's a bit soon?"

"No, I don't think it's a bit soon; it's been months. She's entitled to find happiness and if Jasper gives her that, then great. Is that what you called about earlier? Paul said you wanted me to call you back."

"Uh...no...I wanted to talk to you. About you."

Finally, I thought. Was he now ready to make a proper effort with me again after our conversation in the hospital?

"Ok," I said pleasantly. "I guess you've had some time to think since I got home."

"I'm sorry I haven't been in touch very much up to now," he began. "I shouldn't have kept my distance, with you still recovering."

"I'm fine. Went back to work today," I told him. "You don't have to worry about me any more."

"You must have heard that those guys have been arrested," Dad said then. "Including the one your...um...Paul put in the hospital."

"Yes, I've been watching the news. I might have to testify against them, but otherwise, there's no more trouble for us."

"It's taken me a while to get my head around...everything," Dad confessed slowly. "You know what I think...thought about you when you were younger. It's not been easy for me to change my way of thinking, but you're a grown man...I guess you know what's right for you."

"Yes, I do," I put in firmly.

"You're my son, Jacob. It's not fair of me to judge you, I know that. I want you to be part of my life, what I have left of it and I know I've made things difficult for you, both with my disagreement with Leah and now, with...Paul. I want to make things right with you while I've still got the time to do it."

"I want that too," I agreed at once. He was actually beginning to accept me being with Paul, it seemed. "So where do we go from here?"

"Perhaps you could invite me see your gym and your new home. I haven't seen this new building yet; it rather shames me that I didn't take more of an interest before I left New York. How long have you been in there now?"

"Four years."

"You've done well, son. I've never said so and I should have, but I am proud of you. You've worked so hard to get where you are and it's easy to see you love what you do."

"Thanks, Dad," I said in surprise. "So, when do you want to come over?"

"How about tomorrow? I'll bring Sarah. Leah will probably want some peace and quiet in the morning. She said not to wait up, so..." He stopped without finishing the sentence and I raised an eyebrow. Clearly Leah was planning a good evening with Jasper and I noted that I no longer felt anything other than hope for her, that things would work out for the pair of them.

"That's great, Dad, come over whenever you're ready," I agreed to his suggestion of a visit the next day. "Just come straight into the gym; Sarah knows where my office is." I was amazed by this step forward and hoped that Dad would make an effort to at least speak to Paul if he intended coming up to see the apartment as well. "You know Paul will be here, right?" I added just in case.

"Yes, I know." He didn't elaborate, but at least things sounded promising.

"Sounds like it went ok," Paul said after I hung up, sitting down beside me and passing me a tray holding a large plate of spaghetti and a few slices of garlic bread. He placed his own tray on his lap and dug his fork into the food.

"Yeah, he's coming over tomorrow to see the gym and the apartment. He said he wants to make things right with me while he still has time. I guess that means he'll try to speak to you too; he knows you'll be here."

"I hope so," Paul said. "Not for me; I don't care what he thinks of me, but for you, I mean."

"I know."

We enjoyed the meal and then relaxed in front of the TV for a while, me sprawling out with my head in Paul's lap, his fingers stroking my scalp. My hair had grown back a little more now and I was relieved that my scar wasn't very noticeable unless someone was really close to me. It would fade and disappear among my hair when it grew back to its usual length.

I shifted my position slightly, rolling onto my side facing Paul, my head still resting on his knee. He was wearing jog pants, as usual with no underwear and I had felt a slight movement in them during the last few minutes. I immediately saw that he was about half hard, his cock pushing against the soft fabric impatiently.

"What are you thinking about?" I grinned, tucking my finger into the waistband of his pants and drawing it away from his body until the tip of his erection appeared.

"What do you think?"

"My tight ass and how much you want to fuck it," I teased, running my finger over the spongy head in front of me and making it twitch.

"Christ, Jacob."

"You're still being so gentle with me," I said. "You don't need to be, you know, I won't break." I pulled the pants down further, freeing him and extending my tongue to tease him, running it down the length of his shaft and back up. A bead of pre-cum oozed from the slit and I captured it quickly, causing Paul to moan softly.

"I can't help it," he said. "I can still remember how fragile you looked when I first came back and you had only been conscious a little while."

"I'm not fragile any more." I grasped him, angling his cock down towards my mouth and sucking on the head until he hissed and cursed, squirming beneath me.

"I can see. Keep doing that."

I let him pop free of my mouth and moved my head away. "I think I might just make you wait a bit longer."

"Fucking tease," he growled, but his lips were pulled up at the corners into a grin. "Maybe I'll just have to do it myself." He wrapped a hand around his erection and gave it a few slow pumps until I grabbed his wrist and pulled his hand off.

"You can take a bit of teasing."

"Not for long."

"It'll just make you desperate to fuck me."

"I'm always...desperate to...fuck!" he groaned. My hand was beneath his shirt, fingers tugging firmly on the nipple ring and he leaned forward slightly to remove the garment, yanking it off over his head and tossing it to the floor. "Let's move this to the bed."

"Alright. I'm gonna need the lube in a minute anyway," I smirked, sitting up.

Groaning, Paul followed me, shedding the jog pants in the doorway and throwing himself into the middle of the bed. His erection slapped against his belly and lay there quivering, the tip leaking into his happy trail. I undressed more slowly, one item of clothing at a time while he watched, occasionally begging or demanding that I hurry the fuck up and join him. I lay down beside him at last, my head by his feet. I had been thinking about doing this for the past couple of days, but Paul had been taking charge of everything and I hadn't had the opportunity.

"What are you doing?" he asked.

"You'll soon see. Pass me the lube."

He picked up the already half empty bottle from the chest and passed it to me, then lay back and idly stroked himself as he watched me uncap it and squeeze some onto my fingers. I was lying on my back and now I drew my knees up and let them fall outwards, giving him a good view. He let out another groan and I reached down, running one lube-slicked finger back and forth over my hole, slowly stroking my cock with the other hand. I was throbbing almost painfully, but I was determined to ignore my need to come and torment Paul instead as I prepared myself for him. He was already cursing under his breath, his cock in one hand while he stroked his chest and stomach with the other.

"Want to see me fuck myself?" I teased. He growled something unintelligible, propping himself up more against the pillows so he could see better. Gently I pushed one slippery finger into myself, shuddering at the feel of it. Paul's hand slid from his stomach to his balls and cupped them, squeezing lightly, apparently determined to give me a display as erotic as the one I was giving him.

"You're going about it the right way if you want me to quit being careful," he panted.

"That's what I was hoping." I slid my finger in and out of myself a few times, turning it this way and that, lifting my butt off the mattress to ensure nothing obscured his view. "Like this? Feels so hot in there...so tight..."

"Fucking hell," Paul groaned, rubbing himself harder.

"Slow down; you don't want to waste that, do you?" I grinned. "I know you want to be pounding your cock into me when you come."

His hand movements slowed, his chest rising and falling rapidly, eyes fixed between my legs as I added a second finger and pushed deep. I carried on in the same way for two or three minutes until I was thrusting three fingers into my ass and pumping my cock eagerly and Paul was alternately swearing and whimpering, eyes wide and breathing laboured.

"Hell, Jacob, I can't stand this any longer!" he exclaimed, taking his hands off of himself suddenly and sitting up. I was now longing for his hands on me, his mouth on mine, his cock filling me and I withdrew my fingers with a wet, slurping sound and turned around.

"I'm ready for you."

"Come here!" He grabbed at me roughly, one hand gripping my neck and pulling me into a heated, messy kiss, lips crushed against teeth, his tongue plunging into my mouth. I moaned around his tongue, groping around on the mattress until I found the lube and squeezed out more into my hand. Blindly I grasped his erection which was prodding me in the hip and coated it quickly in the cool liquid. His lips left mine and our eyes met, his almost black with desire.

"Sure you're ok?"

"Just fuck me," I breathed. "Hard."

"Turn around."

I turned to face the wall, positioning myself on hands and knees, thighs spread wide and hands gripping the end of the bed, feeling the mattress dip as Paul moved in behind me. In a second I felt the thick, slippery head of his cock rubbing over my hole, teasing me for a long moment before he slowly pushed it into me.

"Oh, God," I panted, hanging my head and lowering my upper body so that I could brace myself with my arms. Looking back at myself, I could my own cock hanging heavy beneath my belly, Paul's knees planted apart between mine as he pushed forward, letting out a deep groan of pleasure as he filled me an inch at a time. He paused about half way and held still for a moment, then pulled almost all the way out before plunging back into me, burying his full length inside me this time.

"Fuck!" I hissed as he grazed my prostate, making me clench and shudder. I rested my forehead on the mattress and reached down to grasp my cock, desperate for some friction as Paul began to fuck me rhythmically, his hands gripping my hips tight, his balls swinging against my own.

"Want more?" he said through his teeth.

"Yes!"

His hands tightened, fingers digging into my flesh as he increased the pace, flesh slapping against flesh, his thick shaft pounding me, driving grunts and moans out of me with each thrust. Beads of sweat broke out of my pores and Paul's hands slipped on my skin, causing him to grip tighter to keep his balance, his own sweat dripping from his face and upper body onto my back. He was panting and groaning loudly, a litany of curses and words of love alternately spilling from his mouth.

"Harder," I encouraged. "I'm so close. Please..." I pumped my cock more vigorously and he pistoned into me, fingers bruising me as he held on even tighter.

"Come for me," he gasped. "Let me feel it."

A few more hard strokes and I was done, shooting my load onto the bed beneath me, feeling my ass clench tighter around Paul in reflex.

"Fucking Christ!" he cried, grinding himself hard against my rear, holding himself deep inside me as his cock began to jerk with his release, filling me with his fluid. His hands loosened on my hips and he lowered himself slowly back onto his heels and slipped out of me. I collapsed onto my belly, grimacing as my chest came into contact with the wet patch on the mattress.

"That was amazing," I panted, rolling onto my back. "Felt so fucking good."

Paul stretched out at my side and leaned in to give me a small breathless kiss.

"I love you," I added.

"Love you too." Another soft kiss and then he drew back, his chest still heaving from the exertion, and rubbed a hand over his face. His short hair was damp and sticking to his scalp and his softening cock was still leaking a little fluid.

"We're gonna need a shower and a change of sheets," I grimaced as I felt wetness seep from me onto the bed. Paul smirked, but didn't move and I slid closer to him, draping an arm across his chest.

Eventually we dragged ourselves up and into the bathroom to clean up and I found fresh sheets to put on the bed before we got back into it. It was still early, but Paul put a CD on and we lay together, listening to the background music and talking.

Finally everything seemed to be going so well. I had the man I loved beside me; my daughter had accepted him and had begun chatting to him easily when she visited me. In addition my ex-wife was venturing into her own new relationship and Jasper seemed to suit her perfectly; Sarah already liked him too and admitted she was glad to see her Mom smiling so much again. The gym thrived and Paul was about to embark on his own business, which I had already promised to support by stocking his products in the gym. Even Dad was slowly coming around to my new way of life and even though his would eventually be cut short, I intended to make the most of the time we had left, just as he said he wanted to.

Earlier that year, I had made such a mess of things with my disloyalty to Leah. I had been filled with guilt over my first night in Boston, never imagining it would ever be anything more than that and then later I had gone on to hurt Paul as well by turning him away in my despair. Now here I was, happier than I ever thought possible and with the amazing support of everyone that mattered. Somehow everything had worked out and I felt that I was far luckier than I deserved to be.

"What are you thinking?" Paul asked. "You've gone quiet."

"Just how lucky I am. After all the things I fucked up on, somehow I ended up getting everything I always wanted."

"Me too," he murmured. "When I met you, I was so determined it was going to be my usual fuck and run. Then I just couldn't leave it alone. Even when you broke up with me, I was only going through the motions with that twink. I didn't want him or anyone else...I loved you. Love you...always."

"I love you, Paul," I repeated. "Always."