One Last Kiss

Over the next three or four months, Ashley grew closer to his new bandmates and even talked Jinxx into joining their band when they gushed compliments and sang their praises of his skill. They were still looking for a lead guitarist, but that was okay. Since they were still writing material for the songs Andy wanted to record, Jinxx was able to come up with the riffs and get them tracked, alongside the rhythm riffs. In fact, sometimes he’d track the lead riffs while Ash tracked rhythm for them, so in the end, they merely needed to find someone to teach them to so they could tour.

The only problem that the bassist had was keeping his distance from the young frontman. Jinxx swore that the young man liked him, and not in a friendly sort of way, but he wasn’t too sure and wasn’t about to wear his heart on his sleeve…again. The last time he’d been idiotic enough to do that, the heart in question had been shattered into millions of pieces that it took about two years to repair with the help of his friend.

However, there were times when he’d be sitting in the studio, either daydreaming or actually working, if he was needed, that he’d look up and catch those icy-blue orbs boring holes into him. Andy would realize that he’d been caught staring and duck his head so his face was hidden behind the fringe he was growing out, a beautiful blush staining his cheeks. Ash would chuckle softly under his breath, but he’d never say anything to the younger man to avoid embarrassing him over something stupid.

“Hey, Ash. Can I talk to you for a sec?”

Brought out of the riff he was working on for a song they were calling Perfect Weapon, Ash looked up to see Sandra standing in front of him. “Yeah, sure.”

“C’mon, then.” She grabbed his hand and dragged him out into the hall once he’d set his bass on its stand.

“So what’s up?” he asked curiously, crossing his arms over his chest.

“I’m not gonna beat around the bush here, so…you think you could try taking Andy out?” Sandra countered, her shades on her head so he could see her eyes for once.

“What kind of ‘out’ are we talking here?” He mentally facepalmed at how much he sounded like a used-car salesman with that one.

“A date, out,” the drummer clarified. “He’s so attracted to you that it’s driving him nuts, and he’s starting to drive Jinxx and I nuts, as well. He’s just never actually had a significant other, male or female, and doesn’t know how to go about asking someone out on a date.”

“What makes you think I do?” the bassist asked. “Just because I’m the oldest doesn’t mean shit.”

“True enough, but I know Andy. Even if I shoved my drum stick up his ass, he wouldn’t ask you out.” She smirked at the thought.

“I might be suave enough to ask someone out on a date, but here’s my next question: what makes you think I’d be the Dom?” Ash asked, returning the smirk.

“Hey, even if it’s a one-time deal, it might sate him enough for us to get some work done,” she told him.

“Don’t tell him I said this, but the only reason I haven’t asked him out before now was because I didn’t wanna scare him off,” Ash told her. “Being in a successful band means everything to both of us, and the last thing I want is tension in the band if things don’t work out, or me having to leave because we can’t work together if things do go awry.”

“So what you’re saying is that you were trying not to be impulsive?” she asked. “Impressive.”

“What can I say? I’m a Jack of all Trades and a man of many masks.” The bassist shrugged. “I’ve just been playing a figurative game of chess, if you will, weighing my next move against all possible options before I actually make it.”

“I don’t blame you there,” Sandra chuckled. “Just consider it, at the least.”

“I don’t have to consider it. I’ve done that long enough.” He glanced through the window that he could see into the studio through, but they couldn’t see him in the hallway from. “Just gimme time to figure out what I wanna do, and I’m more than willing to take a leap of faith.”

“Thank you sooo much, Ash.” In an uncharacteristic manner, the woman wrapped her arms around his waist in a tight hug. “Maybe now he can decide if he really wants you or not.”

“It’s not a problem, Sandra,” Ash chuckled, returning the hug.

After ending their hug, the pair returned to the studio to find Jinxx in the recording booth attempting to track a lead riff and Andy spinning in circles in one of the office chairs. Apparently the baby of the group was bored out of his gourd, but couldn’t listen to much of anything else so he could actually pay a little bit of attention to their guitarist’s work and not mess him up.

The bassist couldn’t help a chuckle at his childlike behavior, which caused him to stop spinning as he took notice of them. As soon as the chair was still, he swayed back and forth from the dizziness he was suffering, and the older man chuckled again as he grabbed the back of the chair and started spinning him in the opposite direction. Once he stopped again, he was pleasantly surprised to find that he was no longer dizzy, and Ash merely smirked as he told him that spinning in the opposite direction would unwind him and keep him from feeling dizzy. Those icy-blue eyes lit up as he laughed upon realizing he was right, and he shook his head.

Over the course of the next few hours, he managed to track two more riffs while deciding just what he wanted to do for a date. He figured dinner and a movie was too mainstream and typical, and if there was anything he wasn’t, it was typical. After quite a bit of thought, he decided a moonlit dinner on the beach not too far from his Santa Monica apartment would be perfect, and it would actually dial up the romance a bit. Not to mention that he was a pretty good chef and could actually cook their food himself.

He gently pulled Andy off to the side and told him that, when he got home, he wanted him to grab a pair of swim trunks and meet him at a certain beach in about three hours. Since it was only three now, that’d put their date as kicking off around six, which should give him plenty of time to get their meal cooked and for him to get to their rendezvous point. He could see the younger man’s eyes light up at the thought of being alone with him, but a bit of weariness as he wondered just what he was getting at. Ash chuckled as he left the studio and took Jinxx home, his friend knowing exactly what was going on since he’d teamed up with Sandra to get the pair together before the baby drove them all insane.

“See ya later, Ash,” the multi-instrumentalist said as he got out of his car. “Enjoy your date tonight.”

“Thanks, Jinxx,” he answered, waving before backing out of the parking space.

Within a few minutes, he was back home at his own apartment and trying to get his dogs out from under foot so they wouldn’t slow him down. Sure, he loved Tokyo and Killer like nothing else at the moment, but there were some times that their attention-whore behavior got on his nerves a bit. This was one of those times, but no matter what, he’d never stop loving them.



Three hours later, Andy was waiting on the beach Ashley’d told him to meet him at before they left the studio. He was a bit nervous about what the older man’s intentions were since they’d only known each other for a couple months and he’d never been on a serious date. He knew it was pretty obvious that he liked the older man, and as much more than a friend, since Sandra was teasing him nonstop about it. However, that made him wonder if his friend had something to do with his asking him out tonight.

At the moment, he sat on a beach towel in the sand, watching the waves break a few yards in front of him as the sun began its slow descent toward the horizon. The sky was beginning to turn different shades of orange and red instead of being its normal blue that matched his eyes, but that was okay. He always preferred being outside, no matter the setting, after dark over broad daylight.

Even though it felt like he’d been waiting forever, it was a mere few minutes after his arrival that someone tapped him on the shoulder as they walked up behind him. Startled, Andy started to take out their kneecap since they were standing and he was sitting, but he realized upon looking up that it was just Ashley. Cursing under his breath as the older man chuckled and joined him, he took notice of the picnic basket he held and raised a brow at him. The older man gave him a serenely innocent look, but he knew it was fake since he could see a mischievous sparkle in his chocolate-brown eyes.

“Do I even want to know what you’ve got up your sleeves?” he asked curiously, his brow still raised.

“Mmm, just dinner on the beach,” the bassist answered. “Better than in a crowded restaurant that wouldn’t understand or accept us, don’t ya think?”

“True enough,” Andy agreed, nodding. “So what’s on the menu?”

“Shrimp alfredo,” he answered, opening the basket. “One of my favorites and specialties, if I do say so myself.”

“Really now? Since when does a wild child like you cook?” the younger man asked.

“Since my grama forced me into the kitchen to teach me when I was knee-high to a crawdad,” Ashley laughed. “I didn’t wanna learn back then, but I’m glad she made me now.”

“Your grama’s the one that taught you?” he asked, uncovering his plate. “And unholy shit, this smells awesome.”

“Yeah, my grama’s the one,” his friend answered, looking a bit sad for a moment.

“What’s wrong?” he asked, pausing before taking a bite.

“Oh, it’s nothing. Just old memories,” the bassist answered, brightening up almost immediately as if he didn’t want to ruin their date.

Shrugging off any further questions since he could tell that he didn’t want to talk about whatever was bothering him, Andy dug into the food he’d been handed. His eyes widened as his taste buds were taken on a roller coaster ride with that first bite, and it was all he could do to swallow before spewing compliments at him. He’d never had anything this good, not even when his mom cooked before he moved out here.

Ashley’s eyes twinkled as he took the compliments spewed at him, and he knew that he was glad he’d liked what he went to the trouble of making. It wasn’t long before they finished their dinner, and before he could even suggest anything else to do, the older man was pulling something else out of the basket sitting beside him. He was then handed another plate, and when he unwrapped it, he found chocolate cake that was so moist it was all but falling apart. He wasn’t as fond of chocolate as he was vanilla, but considering that it appeared to be homemade, he could stomach it this one time.

Once again, Andy’s eyes widened as he took a bite of what he’d been handed, his taste buds all but exploding from how rich it was. His date chuckled at his reaction to the cake and said that, like the alfredo, it was another one of his specialties, although he didn’t make it very often since it took so much time. After swallowing what was in his mouth, he asked how it could possibly be that hard to make. Ashley told him that it wasn’t from a box, but a recipe he’d learned years ago, as nothing like the Better than Sex Cake could ever come out of a box.

“The Better than Sex Cake, huh?” he chuckled, taking another bite.

“Well, I dunno about you, but I’ve had some pretty damn good sex, and this tops it,” the older man told him, nodding.

Being a virgin and unsure of what to say, Andy merely took another bite of the cake he’d been given.

“Wait a minute…you’re a virgin, aren’t you?” he asked curiously.

Embarrassed that his secret had been discovered, he kept quiet as a blush stained his cheeks.

“Aww, you’re blushing,” Ashley squealed softly, a grin splitting his face. “Don’t worry about it, though; we all give it up when we feel like we’re ready.”

“So you’re saying that you’re not?” the younger man asked curiously.

“Haven’t been a virgin in years. Either way.” He grinned mischievously. “My first time topping was with a girl back in Missouri that went to the same high school I did, before I figured out I was gay. My first time bottoming was a few years ago, after moving out here.”

Surprised that a man like Ashley would even consider bottoming, much less actually do it, he raised his brows at him.

“I gave it up when I felt I was ready. Probably a little too young, which is why I tend to be so perverted now.” The bassist shrugged. “But I can’t and wouldn’t go back and rewrite history.”

Silence fell over them at that point and they both turned their attention back to the setting sun. It was a beautiful sight to behold, made even more special by having someone else to share it with, and Andy sighed wistfully. He wanted to tell the older man that he liked him as more than a friend, that he wanted more than just this one date with him.

He reached down and absent-mindedly started doodling in the sand, and before he knew it, he’d drawn a pretty good likeness of both of them. They were staring into each other’s eyes, tender expressions on their faces as if they’d been in love for years. It was the kind of expression he imagined to be on the faces of himself and a treasured lover on their wedding day, or as they celebrated an anniversary many years later. He doubted that fantasy would ever come true, and was pretty embarrassed when he realized that the man at his side had taken notice of his doodle and was staring at it intently.

Before he could even register what happened, a pair of strong, tattooed arms wrapped themselves around him and pulled him close to the torso of their owner. Raising his gaze from the perfectly sculpted chest in front of him, Andy stared into the chocolate-brown orbs gazing down at him, affection sparkling from their depths. He wasn’t expecting them to flutter closed moments later as Ashley leaned in and pressed their lips together, but he didn’t push him away; no, he leaned in and wrapped his arms around him as he enjoyed his first kiss.

Notes