Chapter 30
**A/N-Well my darlings, we have come to the end of another journey. It has been so gratifying to share Thad and Lance's story with you. I am glad that you guys have so enjoyed this story. Much love to you all, there will be an Epilogue to follow this chapter so look out for that. Once again, thank you to all my followers, fans, and readers. Please enjoy the music video by Train, "Marry Me." hint, hint...I thought it was appropriate, xoxo Dianna
(The fire trucks-------->)
"Nate, will you hurry the Hell up? If you make me miss any portion of Lance's speech you won't have to worry about your Dom beating your ass" I huffed as I pulled on the cuffs of my dress uniform as I impatiently waited for my brother to finish whatever the Hell it was he was doing in the bathroom. I swear if he made me late for Lance's first Commissioner's Ball and his speech, Mama was going to have one less son to deal with.
"Damn, keep your panties on, you know this shit never starts on time. Lance had to be here an hour early to do the whole press conference thing and what not, but we have hours to go before the party really gets going, do you really want to sit through all those boring speeches and long winded accolades?" Nate said as he walked back out to the sink area to wash his hands.
I just rolled my eyes at him and turned back around to the mirror to give myself one last once over before dragging Nate's ass out of the men's restroom. Why I let him talk me into getting ready at his house was news to me, he took forever to get dressed. Then he drove at a snails pace all the way across town to get to the Hotel where the Commissioner's's Ball was being held. The first one of Lance's new position. He is supposed to give his acceptance speech tonight too, in just a few minutes to be exact, and Nate is doing everything he can to make me miss it. I swear I felt like he was doing it on purpose. At every turn tonight, it's like he has been right on my heels dragging me backwards when I wanted to go forwards.
Finally, he finished washing his hands, why he needed me to escort him to the damn bathroom, I don't know, but he had insisted that I leave the ballroom to go with him. Why he didn't take one of his men...Then again, if he had left with Xavier, or worse with Robbie, it was likely that I wouldn't have seen either of them for the rest of the night. The horn dogs, I have learned to almost always try not to show up at Nate's house unannounced now since I got more than an eyeful going over there last week. I had used my key to open his door, my arms were loaded with pizza and beer and Lord knows, never again. The sight of my brother and Robbie on their knees, bound with their arms cuffed behind their backs, and but naked while they serviced Xavier's impressive cock was enough to have me all hot and bothered and totally embarrassed at the same time.
I left as quickly as I had arrived, and I had hightailed it over to Mommy's house, she wasn't home when I got there, so Henri had a chance to enjoy his pizza and beer in peace before she came home, took one whiff left behind by the pizza spices, and began to go on about Henri's arteries clogging up and increasing his life insurance policy because he wouldn't take care of himself by eating properly. I loved my step father to death, but I had removed myself from the house as quickly as I possibly could while she was in mid rant. I knew I was next in line to incur her wrath as the traitor who kept funneling contraband food into the house, so I slipped away while she was focused on her husband.
Now back in the ballroom and seated with the rest of my crew, I drew a deep breath as I tried to settle all the emotions that were churning in my gut. I was so excited and proud of Lance for being one of the youngest ever to make the prestigious status of Fire Commissioner. He was going to be thirty-seven on his next birthday and without a doubt he ran circles around all of us. Keeping up with him was a real challenge whether it was on the job with all the guys or in our personal relationship, in the bedroom. But I would happily die trying to keeping up with man. I was also horny as hell, and I was sort of hoping that since tonight was kind of special, we would be able to celebrate on our own in private later on. I have been cleared to go back to work on Monday after the Doctors gave me a clean bill of health a yesterday. Lance had refused to do anything more than sporadic hand jobs or blow jobs on his part, never letting me return the favor, or going any further than that. I was more than ready to be with him, to feel him claiming me all over again.
I was brought out of my musings by the now former Fire Commissioner stepping up to the podium and began the introductions for tonight speakers. I only paid attention to what he was saying with only half an ear. The only speech I was interested in hearing tonight was Lance's, so I let my eyes wonder around the room looking at all the different departments in attendance tonight, even the Mayor was here and the entire City Council members and their spouses. Lance was up at the table of honor along with the other top brass and such. My gaze returned to my friends and family around the table where we were seated and I couldn't help but smile at their antics. Even here, they were acting like kindergarten kids. Danny, Chuck, Tommy, and Robbie were using a piece of folded up paper towel and their hands to play football field goals across their table space. Xavier was busy trying to short circuit Nate's thought processes by caressing the back of his neck with his long fingers. You could visibly see his shudders every time those busy digits brushed over a certain spot on his skin. I quickly averted my eyes. I was already worked up enough without having to watch someone else's intimate contact to add to my discomfort.
The Mayor was introduced as the next speaker, and I wished for something stronger than the wine they were serving with the rubber chicken or the slab of raw meat that they were trying to pass off as catered food at these things. I watched as Lance tried to appear polite and interested in the proceedings going on up there and I had to smile. He had shared his plans with me over the last few weeks since I have been released from the hospital and he insisted I stay with him until I recovered fully from my injuries. He didn't give me an option to refuse and for once my Mom just smiled and indulged my man and his wishes to have me close to him.
And one of the first things his office decreed was that Xavier was now Battalion Chief of Ladder 29. Christy chose to stay on as Xavier's secretary rather than move on into the Federal Plaza with Lance as his Personal Assistant, she said she preferred the less stress job. So upon the mutual decision amongst all the guys in the crew, the sexual group relationships on the job were going to stop. Lance and Xavier decided that it would be better for everyone involved that on the job everyone kept it professional, but if they chose to have something outside of the station house, on their own time then that was their business. Fraternization within the same unit could happen, but only with the clear understanding that if the personal relationship interfered with the job, then it's an immediate reassignment of all those involved. And the couple involved cannot work the same shift as the other partner if they belonged to the same station. Those were just among the new rules that Lance set in place.
So keeping within those rules, Robbie was promoted to Lance's Personal Assistant, he was more than qualified to do the job. Lance told Robbie that he was more than happy he chose to work with him. Lance felt that Robbie was wasting his talents as his PA, but Robbie wanted the job more than anything else, and everyone had a hard time saying no to Robbie. So that left three open positions in our unit and I was hoping Nate would have taken one of the positions, but he refused in honor of going back to school. He was serious about becoming a Fire Marshall and all of us applauded his decision. So, Xavier was checking out the top players of the other stations as well as the promising students from the academy as candidates to fill the open positions.
A round of energetic applause once again brought me out of my head as I watched my man smile and shake the hands of the other heads of departments as he made his way to the podium. I sat up straighter and I was almost vibrating with excitement as I enthusiastically applauded right along with everyone else. Xavier turned and winked at me and I am sure the huge smile that split across my face showed everyone seated with me just how proud, and how much I loved and supported my man. I was too busy looking at him, ardently studying the way his body moved. I was totally caught up in how handsome he looked up there, how regal almost, and powerful, a true man in charge that I didn't notice it when he had said my name until a spot light swung my way and people clapped as Lance asked me to stand up. Wide eyed and in complete shock, I jumped and plastered a smile on my face when Robbie all but dug the flesh off my ribs to get me moving.
Almost everyone other than my friends that were seated with me looked just as shocked as I did when Lance went on to introduce me as his life partner, and that if it wasn't for me and my constant loving support of him, that he wouldn't have made the decision to take his position of office. He went to say that he was proud to call himself my partner as well as the new Commissioner of the Fire Department he has worked so diligently and so hard for, years to serve this community and the people in it. And the crowd applauded once again to more energy this time. I discreetly scanned the faces that I could see and almost everyone was clapping, there were only a few looking on with disgust. And as always you can never make everyone happy. I just hoped that those who were disgusted or appalled by our choice to love one another, didn't make his time in office difficult. We have had enough of that shit already. Lance proceeded to blow me a kiss and even though I was touched beyond belief, I couldn't wait for all the attention to be off of me, so I quickly as I could plopped my ass back into my seat and seriously contemplated sliding under the table and remain there for the rest of the event.
Nate couldn't help but rub it in and my crew snickered and teased me as Lance finished up his speech. I was touched when the others, the Mayor, the Police Commissioner, the former Fire Commissioner, and most of the City Council members made a show of solidarity by giving Lance a standing ovation and clapping him heartily on the back as he made his way back to his seat. There were a few more small speeches before everyone was released to eat and party on. I snatched my wine and gulped it in one go and chased it with a cold glass of water. I knew that Lance was headed my way and I wanted to be calm and collected by the time he made it to my side. Thank God my mother stayed home, she would have been all aflutter and overexcited swearing that a marriage proposal was next in line. She would have been probably picking the colors for the wedding in her head before Lance had even finished speaking. My inner twink was too shocked by Lance public announcement of our relationship to make his appearance, but I was sure he would get over it soon.
It took a few minutes for him to make it to my side, a lot of handshakes and greetings, small chats, and all the things someone in his position should come to expect when amongst the crowd of his peers like this. But by the time he did make it to me, I was all but having a seizure in my seat. Robbie literally shoved everyone over to make room for Lance as he sat beside me and leaned forward and used that lucious mouth of his to place a sweet tender kiss on my lips right there in front of all and sundry to see. Needless to say, there was nothing I would have or could have refused him at that moment. Every cell, every string of DNA, every molecule that made me who I am belonged solely to the man seated at my side. And when the music started up and he asked me to dance, there was no way in hell I would have refused him.
It was the most magical experience of my life, I thought I was going to die of embarrassment. I thought that I was going to spontaneously combust with all the blushing almost to thermonuclear proportions with all the eyes that were on us. But as my heart pounded away in my chest, my sole focus was on Lance, everything and everyone faded away. I couldn't tell you how long my body swayed across the dance floor, perfectly insync with his. I buried my face underneath his chin and inhaled his unique scent, a perfect mixture of his cologne and his skin and I was intoxicated, completely high on this man. And for once I didn't give a damn who knew it. He was mine and I was his and that was all that mattered to me. Time just flew by and all too soon and to my utter disappointment, we were calling it a night and Nate was going to drop me back to Lance's house since there was a photo shoot with all the Department Heads and those paying patrons of the community.. Or I should say the donating members of the community that paid through the nose to have their photos taken with the Mayor and other City Leaders.
So, I kissed my man and told him I would see him at home later and I made my way out of the ballroom with my brother at my side. I looked around and I didn't see Xavier, or any other of the guys for that matter and I asked Nate about it and he just shrugged and said he was going to catch up with them later, and Danny and the crew left right after the dancing began. So I just shrugged my shoulders too and let my mind wonder to what I wanted to happen for Lance and I later on tonight. I was trying to think of ways to entice my sexy beast of a boyfriend to get past the jacking off stage and pound my ass through whatever surface he might happen to pin me up against. Every time I stepped through his foyer, I have never been able to look at that center table the same ever again. I was so absorbed in my head that at first I didn't notice it when Nate turned onto the street that lead towards my station house, rather than taking the other turn that would take me home. It wasn't until the blaring horns of the fire engine sirens shook me out of my revere. I looked back through Nate's truck window and saw the huge ladder truck behind us.
I turned my confused gazed to my brother and he just smiled and kept crawling up the street, several police cars with lights flashing and sirens blaring flew by the truck and blocked off all traffic on both ends of the street. Nate turned the corner and my heart threatened to fly right out of my mouth, all of our rigs, the ambulances, and several police cruisers lit up the night, there emergency lights flashing blue and red, illuminating the entire station house and the surrounding street. The sirens were now off and the silence was almost as deafening. I couldn't get my mouth or my tongue to form the question of what was going on. Nate stopped the truck in the middle of the display and I watched wide eyed through the front windshield as the trucks formed a uniformed line in front of us. My head snapped around to my brother and he just grinned at me like an idiot and pointed his finger for me to look forward again and I did.
I lost my ability to breathe when I watched one lone tall lone figure emerge from the brilliance of the flickering lights. And I would have recognized that sexy ass gait anywhere. I watched as Lance walked from between the rigs and to the passenger side door of Nate's truck. He opened the door and smiled that heart stopping smile of his at me. And still I couldn't get my brain to work enough to ask him what the Hell was going on. I just blindly to the hand the offered me and followed him around of the hood of my brother's truck and into the middle of the street. I took a second to look around us and my entire crew, even the ones on shift were all decked out in the dress uniforms and standing at attention in front of the rigs. Several police officers, and Paramedics were also standing at perfect attention. My eyes flew to the my brother as he stepped out of his vehicle as a song broke into the silence of the night. I vaguely recognized it and as soon as the lyrics hit my ears, the words, "Marry me," had my eyes flashing back to Lance and a sob nearly escaped my throat when I saw him kneeling at my feet on one knee in front of me. He was still holding one of my trembling hands in his, and in his other hand was an open black velvet box.
The ring it contained was absolutely stunning, a thick gold band with a diamond right in the center. Tears poured out of my eyes as his gorgeous lips curled up into a gentle smile with the song still playing in the background. His shimmering emerald gaze held me in place and I felt like I was caught in a dream, a dream I never wanted to end. The absolute adoration and love pouring out of his beautiful eyes as he studied my face had me almost hyperventilating on the spot. The song finished and I watched as Lance's chest rise as he drew in a deep breath. His gravelly baritone washed over me. "Thad, you know you mean more to me than words could ever describe, so I am not even going to try, no amount of eloquence can say what is the simple God honest truth. I love you, you complete me in every way. You are my dream, everything I have ever wanted in this world and the good Lord was kind enough to bring you into my life just when I needed you most, and I need for you to remain at my side, in my bed and in my heart forever. So, please, please say that you will make the happiest man on Earth and marry me."
The air that I didn't realize I was holding whooshed out of my lungs as I nodded my head, yes, words were definitely beyond me by now. Lance quickly placed the ring on my finger as everyone around us let out ear shattering shouts and whistles, the police cars pinged their sirens while everyone clapped as Lance proceeded to suck my tongue down his throat. Nothing in my life could have ever compare to this moment. I didn't even notice when my mom started snapping pictures while poor Henri tried to video tape the entire scene from multiple angles. My inner gay boy was happily twirling around the room with lit sparkerlers wearing a stunning white wedding gown and them red fuck me heels. But nothing, nothing could drag my attention away from the loving embrace of my man. I clung to Lance right there in front of the station house that where all my dreams come true. Where this Rookie wasn't just living out his dream, but I met the man of my dreams at that very same station house also, and I couldn't have been more blessed.
The End