The Last Handful of Clover - Book 2: Gifts Both Light and Dark

2.82 The Temptation of Richard Pratt

"I don't understand," Michelle said, drawing Richard's attention back to her. "Where is my husband?"

But before he could think of how to answer her, or even what the question fully implied, a figure rose from behind her. His view of Keith had been blocked by the bodies of Howard and Michelle. But now, not only was his lover rising to his feet, but he heard his name on his lips.

"Richard?" Keith said, his eyes wide and his stance unsteady. He took a step, and Richard was worried that he would tumble back to the hard porch. All Richard's need and longing focused in his chest like a hook buried in his heart. Tears rushed into his eyes, and Keith's face became misty, as if he was standing in the rain.

Oh my god, it's Keith, he thought. Oh, Keith, my love...

And with that realization, all the memories came flooding back to him. All the loss, and all the longing. All the regret, and all the despair. It all came flooding back, and then passed out of him in a wave, as he realized that not only was his love now standing before him, but that he was finally back in a body that could touch him. He could tell Keith he loved him once again. He could once again kiss him and tell him how sorry he was for abandoning him. They could hold each other. And all that followed.

"Baby Bear..." he said, his voice sounding nothing like he remembered. "Oh, Baby Bear..." He lifted his arms and reached for his lover, his fingers trembling.

Their gazes locked together, it amazed Richard to see that there was no doubt on Keith's face. No fear. Only a wonder and a joy that he wanted to embrace, but was too wildly fantastic to be true. Keith looked into Richard's eyes as if he was a gift he thought he either did not deserve, or knew that he could never keep.

Richard started to shake, and he leaned forward in the chair. "It's me," he said. "I'm back. I'm here. Oh god, Baby Bear, I'm really here!" He took in a deep breath and opened his huge arms wide, as if he wanted to gather in the world, and then let out that breath with a sob. Keith took another step toward him, and was raising his own arms now.

"Billy, stop," Howard said, softly. "You know they can't hear you."

Howard's words didn't even register to Richard. As Keith rushed to him, there was a sound on his lips somewhere between a whimper and a laugh. He fell to his knees next to Richard, who slid out of his chair to kneel there with him. Keith brought up a hand and touched Pil's face, now Richard's face, and the softness of that hand, the joy it brought to his heart, made Richard whimper as well. He was touching Keith's face now, and then the huge hands wrapped around the smaller man's shoulders. He pulled Keith to his chest with an embrace that was so tight that it made them both gasp. Richard eased back, not wanting to hurt Keith, knowing that the arms he had now were many times more powerful than those he had in his previous life.

This will take some getting used to, he thought. But I'll have an entire lifetime. An entire lifetime with Keith... Oh, god, he is so beautiful! He's everything I remembered. Everything I thought I'd lost forever. Why couldn't I appreciate how much of a miracle he is? Why did I have to die to see it?

"I'm back," he said, over and over again, looking so intently into his lover's face that it made them both tremble. "I'm here. Oh god, Cubby, I'm really here!" The reality of it was now flooding through them both, like the dawn that came after a million years of darkness. He was actually alive! He was no longer a ghost! He was human, with all the joys and heartache that entailed. He wanted to stretch his arms wide, and grab everything that surrounded him, and pull it into himself. Every inch of the sky, every blade of grass. Every miraculous bit of it. Keith, the house, his friends, and even the planet itself! The beauty of it all dwarfed his soul, and he felt himself begin to sob.