“Hey Chris!” grinned Joey as he sat down across from his friend at the table. For most of the past two months it had just been him and Chris getting together for lunch daily as Josh and Lance spent most of their free time with Stacy who had gave in and moved back in with them a month earlier.
“Hi Joey,” sighed Chris has he tried concentrating on the menu in front of him.
“What’s wrong?” asked Joey with concern. This hadn’t been the first time lately that Chris hadn’t been his normal cheerful self.
“It’s Justin,” sighed Chris and Joey nodded his head understanding. In the past eight months, all of them had become close friends with Justin; except the only problem was that he was confined to the house all the time. “I just wish there was something I could do for him.”
“You know the rules,” replied Joey with sympathy. “Unless they marry, a Lamb remains with his master as long as his master choices. If the Shepherd no longer wishes to have the Lamb in his service, the Lamb would be either sent down to work in the bottom levels of Cielville or they will be killed. Maybe if Jim Bass hadn’t disowned Lance, Lansten might have been able to arrange something like he did with JC, but that’s not possible now.”
“I know!” sighed Chris. “Yet he’s my best friend and it kills me whenever I go out to do something fun and have to leave him there.”
“Then put him on his leash and take him with you!”
“I’m not going to treat Justin like some animal!” growled Chris; insulted that Joey would even suggest that.
“Then marry him!”
“I don’t love him that way!” protested Chris. “Not the way you love Kelly or JC and Lance love each other!”
“It’ll be a business marriage Chris!” Joey informed his older friend. “You two get married, Justin becomes a Shepherd and then everything will be okay!”
“Do you think that it’ll work?” asked Chris, staring at Joey.
“Ask Justin what he thinks,” suggested Joey with a sigh. “Maybe he’s happy with being a Lamb and living here with you.”
“He’s not,” sighed Chris. “I can see it in his eyes. He wants to be free.”
*~*~*
“Read the list back to me!” ordered Josh as he flopped down next to Lance on their bed. It was later that night and Stacy had already retreated to her own room, while Lance and Josh relaxed in theirs.
“For a girl, so far we have ‘Jamie’, ‘Angel’, ‘Tammy’, and ‘Zoe’. For a boy we have ‘Miles’, ‘Eric’, ‘Chase’, and ‘Xander’,” informed Lance as he read from the list in front of him as the pair tried and decided on a name for their baby. “Plus we’ve agreed that ‘Christina Josephine’ or ‘Christopher Joseph’ will be the middle name, depending on whether it’s a girl or a boy.”
“Who’d thought that naming a baby would be so hard!” whined Josh as laid down on his back and stared up at the ceiling.
“At least we have the middle name picked out,” grinned Lance as he laid down next to his husband. Long ago, the pair agreed that the middle name of their child should be named after their friends that had gotten them together. Yet, neither Joey nor Chris knew about it since they wanted it to be a surprise.
“Can’t we just do the rest when we see him or her?” asked Josh, looking over at Lance. “Say if it was a girl and we decide on the name Jamie, but when we actually see her, she could look like a Zoe but then we’re screwed since we already agreed on the name.”
Lance stared at Josh for a few minutes while he mauled over in his head what his husband had just said. “You just want to end this quickly tonight so we can have sex, don’t you?” he asked with a grin.
“You got me babe,” replied Josh returning the grin.
“Well, I guess we could put the discussion off until tomorrow,” suggested Lance as he sat the list on the bedside table before rolling over on top of Josh, who flung his arms around Lance’s head pulling his lips close for a kiss.
“Good idea,” moaned Josh against Lance’s lips, before Lance began kissing his way down his husband’s neck.
“Let’s just hope we don’t wake Stacy,” murmured Lance as he smiled against Josh’s skin.
“We’ll be extra quiet,” groaned JC as Lance’s mouth moved lower.
“Will you two be quiet!” yelled a voice from the next room. “Some people, one of which just happens to be carrying your child, are trying to sleep!”
“Well that just killed the mood,” sighed Josh as Lance rolled off of him. “I wonder if Ford would like to take care of Stacy for awhile?”
“It’s just one more month sweetheart,” reminded Lance. “Then Stacy will be back at her own place and we’ll have our very own buddle of joy to look after. But until then, I’m sure the shower will be able to drown out the noise. . .”
“Race ya!” cried Josh as he scampered off the bed and raced towards the bathroom, while shredding his clothes in the process, leaving a chuckling Lance to follow him.
*~*~*
“So that’s the suggestion,” finished Chris as he completely told Joey’s idea to Justin. “What do you think?”
“I don’t know,” sighed Justin sadly. “I’m flattered that you’d do this for me, but remember, I’m not one for this whole business marriage thing. I hate to be a hypercritic and now agree with a marriage being a business deal, just because it now works in my favor.”
“You wouldn’t be a hypercritic,” replied Chris. “Remember what C said? You’d understand if you were ever in that position! Why don’t you think about it and talk to C?”
“But what happens if we meet and fall in love with someone else?” asked Justin. “Us being married would prevent either of us from ever being with that person!”
“That’s a risk I’m willing to take.”
“Why?”
“Because,” sighed Chris. “You’re not just my friend, you’re my best friend and friends look out and take care of each other.”
“You consider me your best friend?” asked Justin surprised. “But what about JC, Lance or Joey?”
“I’m really close with all of them,” admitted Chris. “But there’s just this natural connection I have with you that I don’t have with them. I mean come on Justin, when was the last time you did any chores around here? When was the last time you slept in one of the Lambs’ rooms? When was the last time, we didn’t’ have dinner together? You. Are. My. Best. Friend!”
“Okay,” smiled Justin.
“Okay, what?”
“Okay, we’ll get married,” grinned Justin. “Just so you know though, I’m not putting out until I have that ring on my finger.”
“Nuts!” laughed Chris. “Maybe I should rethink this?”
“I just don’t want you dying of a heart attack before the wedding,” teased Justin.
“Or for me to find out just how bad you are in the sack!”
“Well someone isn’t getting any action on the honeymoon now!”
“I will if I invite Dani, my ex-girlfriend along.”
“On our honeymoon?” pouted Justin as he thought about it. “I guess it’ll be okay if you took me somewhere nice.”
“Only the best for my boy,” grinned Chris.