A/N: There might be some make up nookie...full on naked make up nookie. It is hump day after all. ;)

CH 26

Gareth awoke with a start, unsure of where he was. Then the reality of the light blue walls and small, lonely bed sunk in. He was in Gabe's room, Gabe was sleeping with his sisters, and everything went terribly wrong last night. Gareth glanced at the Darth Vader clock and was surprised. The house was unnaturally quiet given that it was already after eight in the morning. His kids never slept that late, and lately, neither did Phillip because most days he had clients.

Wiping the sleep from his eyes and drool from his chin, Gareth stood and stretched out his aching body listening to the cracks of his joints that certainly weren't there when he was younger. Whether it was all the physical labour yesterday, the tension of the situation with Phillip, or the unfamiliar mattress, Gareth hurt all over. And it wasn't just physical pain. His heart hurt, too, ached actually. This wasn't like when things went badly with Leeann, he actually cared about Phillip, so he wasn't sure what to do at all. Couples have fights, logically he knew that, but did Phillip? Gareth knew how much the garden meant to Phillip, it was his special place, but was the garden more important than the children? Their relationship? Gareth would like to think that Phillip felt otherwise. He really hoped that Phillip felt otherwise.

Careful to be quiet, Gareth walked down the hall and checked the master bedroom. Everything was undisturbed from yesterday, even the drop cloth was still draped over the new bedding protecting it from paint spatters, so there was no way Phillip had been in the room. He made his way to the window and looked out back. The garden looked like a bulldozer ran through it. There was a large section of dirt that was completely devoid of vegetation, the dark rich soil baking in the bright morning sun, and there were a bunch of pots filled with plants that had previously been in the ground. What the hell was going on?

Tearing himself away from the destruction out the window, Gareth made his way across the hall to the girls' room. Easing the door open, he was greeted with three pairs of concerned eyes looking up at him. Evidently the kids were too anxious to come out of their room. That in itself was enough to further injure Gareth's already fragile heart, but it also made him angry. He had no idea what was going on in Phillip's mind, but he was going to make damn sure it didn't negatively affect his children. He'd made that mistake before, but never again, no matter how much he cared for Phillip.

"Alright you guys, time for breakfast. Get dressed, we're going out!" Gareth tried to make his voice light and cheery, but he wasn't fooling anyone.

"Daddy, can we ask Phillip to come with us?" Franny asked, stretching up for a hug from her father.

"I'm not sure that's a good idea. He asked to be alone," Gareth responded, warily.

"He didn't really mean it, he was just overwhelmed." Daisy insisted, placing her book back on the nightstand.

"If that's the way you guys feel, then why are you still in here? Why didn't you get up?" He'd obviously mistaken his children's intentions. He was sure they were scared, but maybe not.

"Because we were giving the two of you time to make up," Daisy informed him knowingly. Perhaps she was a bit too smart for her own good. "You should never go to bed angry," she added. What on earth had his eldest child been reading?

Gareth facepalmed and shook his head. "Just get dressed, okay?" He rubbed his temples as he walked down the hall towards the kitchen. Daisy's a ten year old going on seventeen, he reflected in awe and a little shock of his daughter's knowledge in these matters.

Gareth went to look for Phillip. Maybe the kids were right and Gareth was just being overly stubborn or sensitive or something? How could he be twenty-nine and still not understand how an adult relationship worked? Should he have gone out to talk to Phillip last night? Was he treating Phillip, a completely different person, they way he would have treated Leeann?

In the end, it didn't matter, because Phillip wasn't home. He'd been in the house at some point because his pungent, filthy clothes from the day before were sitting in the washing machine, but that was really the only evidence. Well, that and the completely torn up yard. Gareth started the washer, putting in a bit more detergent than normal, then walked back upstairs to dress.

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Phillip loaded the sod onto the flatbed of the rental truck alongside the slate stones, boxes of patio furniture, and bags of stone dust gravel. He'd also bought a pair of heavy duty leather work gloves to try and protect what was left of his hands. There were angry sores across the pads of his hands and scratches along his wrists and forearms. They were his penance. Phillip might not be good with words, but he was hoping his actions spoke for themselves. That, and he was going to apologize, too.

When the intensely bright rays of the early morning sun streamed in the walkout window and woke him just after six am it was only a few hours after he fell asleep, but strangely he felt clear headed. Phillip knew exactly what he needed to do. Pulling on some clean clothes from the laundry basket, he slipped back out the sliding door and drove off to the home improvement store, stopping at a drive through along the way for something to eat, since his hunger pangs had returned full-force.

Phillip pushed the flat trolley along the aisles looking at all the options for what he was planning on doing to the yard. In the end, he settled on some blue-grey natural pieces of slate. He wanted the yard to be somewhere that the kids felt welcome, not stifling and scary like it was when he was growing up. For good measure, he picked up a sprinkler and barbecue, too. It might have cost him a bit, but his business was doing okay, and soon enough he'd have the settlement from Brian.

Upon returning home, Phillip backed the truck up the empty driveway, surprised to find the Lewises out. It was then that he realized his mistake. Actions were good, but words just might be better. What if they left him? That's what he'd asked them to do, and they moved out of their last house in less time than they'd had now. Heart pounding, he parked and ran into the house, frantically searching for Gareth and the children, even though he knew they wouldn't be there.

While the house was empty of people, he did find a note, thank god, sitting on the counter written in Gareth's clear hand. 'Gone for breakfast, talk when we get back. Gareth.' At least it was something, even though it didn't contain any pleasantries like he was used to receiving from his boyfriend. It was something. And their stuff was still there, Daisy's novel was sitting on the table--he knew she wouldn't leave without it. Relieved, Phillip went back outside and got to work.

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Gareth debated what to do. The kids had eaten heartily, although he only picked at his eggs benedict, his appetite absent, just like his bed-partner. Gareth desperately wanted everything to be okay between he and Phillip, but he just wasn't sure how to fix anything. He did know that they would all have to return to the house at some point, though. If not just to collect their belongings. A few times he surreptitiously snuck away to try calling Phillip, but he wasn't answering, so Gareth's anxiety level was reaching new heights.

After a few hours of dragging the kids through the mall (bookstore for Daisy, new shoes for Gabe, and a sundress for Franny), Gareth really had no choice but to return to the house. Herding the kids back to the van, they happily climbed in while Gareth fretted. On the drive home, the kids were fine. Gareth was not. They had an optimism that he just couldn't mimic. Screwing his courage to the sticking place, he pulled into the now jam packed driveway.

"What is that?" Daisy asked, craning her neck to try and get a better view around the large truck blocking the sightline to the backyard.

"I have no clue," Gareth replied, hoping it wasn't a moving truck, although he was sure their fight wasn't that insurmountable. Perhaps a bit of the kids sunny outlook had rubbed off on him--just a little. Before he could even get the van turned off, the kids had fled the vehicle to determine what exactly was going on. Gareth followed along behind them carrying the shopping bags, slightly more tentative than his exuberant children.

There were four large cardboard boxes piled up against the side of the house, and then there was the garden, or what had been the garden. The massacre that had been there earlier was slowly being replaced by all new landscaping. There were still bedding plants around the sides of the yard, but at the centre, where the destruction occurred, there were rolls of sod.

"Daddy, did you know grass grows in rolls?" Franny asked, completely intrigued.

"It doesn't grow that way, silly, it grows like carpets, they sell it in rolls," Gabe explained.

"Carpets don't grow, Gabe," Franny responded, sticking out her tongue.

"Either way, what's all this grass doing here?" Daisy asked, pointedly looking at Phillip, who was kneeling next to some freshly laid sod.

"Making a yard. Children can't play in plants," Phillip responded stiffly.

"We really didn't mean to hurt your bush, Phillip. We're really really sorry," Franny offered.

Phillip gestured the children over and he awkwardly pulled them in for a big hug. "I know it was an accident, I'm so sorry I overreacted," he said quietly. "I had a bad day and should have never taken any of it out on you guys." He gave them each a kiss to the top of their heads. "I was grumpy and tired, and I thought one of you was hurt, but when it turned out it was just a mess, I didn't handle it well."

"It's okay, Phillip. We all have bad days," Gabe said, squeezing him around the middle a little more.

"But it's not okay for me to take it out on you. Any of you," Phillip stated pointedly.

Although he wasn't exactly sure where their relationship stood, Gareth knew enough to know that his kids were fine in the yard with Phillip, so he gestured that he was going to put the bags inside. He took a deep breath, then went through the walkout doors to the basement. As long as the kids were okay and Phillip seemed fine, he still had things to finish in the bedroom. Besides, he still wasn't sure what to say or if he was supposed to say anything. Phillip's apology helped, but being an adult sucked.

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Phillip showed the children how to roll out the sod, slightly overlapping the edges of roll, then tamping them in with their feet. Mostly Franny just stomped on the pieces that everyone else laid out, and the small patch of ground that had been completed when they arrived home was suddenly much larger.

It took about another thirty minutes to finish the grass, then Phillip set to work on the pathway. Giving each child an empty pot, they filled them with stone gravel from the bags Phillip had bought, and poured them out on the black membrane where Phillip wanted to lay the slate stones he'd gotten. As they poured down the gravel, Phillip got the rake and started to level out the area enough for a pathway and small patio area right by the walkout from the basement. He explained how the membrane helped keep weeds from growing up between the rocks, although in the future he wanted to get moss to grow between them.

Surprisingly, the children were very helpful for almost two hours before they really began to lag. Partially it was because they wanted to make it up to Phillip, and partially because they realized that he was actually doing this for their benefit. Besides, they really liked the challenge of determining how the pieces of slate could be fit together like a jigsaw puzzle.

"No child should be afraid of playing in their yard. I was, as a child, and I don't want that for you," he told them as he thanked them for their help before they went inside.

Sweat dripping from everywhere in the midday sun, Phillip finished up with the stone dust over the next hour then picked up the empty bags and placed them in the garbage bins. He put away the empty pots the children had used and replaced the rake to its' rightful place in the potting shed. Finally, he went in for lunch.

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Gareth stood at the counter scrubbing his hands with a pot scrubber to remove the paint that was caked in his nail beds. The painting was finished and he'd gotten the bedroom back into some semblance of order. All in all, the effect was nice, and not the least bit floral or old-lady like. He was still worried as to how Phillip would react to the makeover, but given what was going on in the back yard, now Gareth thought the bedroom was probably an easier change to handle.

The scrubbing was all but futile and his hands were a mess. As Gareth struggled to clean them, Phillip came up behind him and enveloped Gareth, placing his damp chest flush against Gareth's back and his badly damaged hands overtop of Gareth's, caressing them gently. His heart raced to have his lover so close again, and he could smell Phillip's musky scent making his head spin with want.

"I'm so sorry, Gareth. I was exhausted from work, and people, and hunger, then I thought the children were hurt, but they weren't, and the plant, and the crying, and...I just didn't know how to handle everything." Phillip trailed off and Gareth felt soft kisses on the back of his neck, right behind his ear. Gareth knew it was Phillip's attempt at an explanation, as convoluted as it was, but he wanted to make sure Phillip understood. He fought his own need, and addressed the man.

"They really didn't mean to damage your plant." Gareth turned to face Phillip, looking into his deep, dark eyes, noting the sadness and guilt. "But you really shouldn't scare them like that."

Phillip's shoulders sunk, and Gareth felt like a heel, but in the end, it was the kids that were the most important in this equation, no matter how much he felt for Phillip, wanted Phillip.

"I know," Phillip's voice was almost anguished. "I remember when I was young and did the same thing. Children need a place to play. That's why I took out some plants and laid grass. This afternoon I'm installing a patio, and putting together furniture and a barbecue. I'm so sorry, Gareth. Please."

Gareth leaned forward and gave Phillip a gentle kiss. A kiss of forgiveness, Phillip obviously understood and Gareth didn't want him to be tormented any longer. The kiss deepened, and the men pressed together hungrily. They'd missed each other terribly. It was touching, what Phillip had been doing, even if it did seem a little manic, and Gareth really wanted to make up. "Thank you, and I'm sorry, too. I should have spoken with you later, instead of just avoiding you. I was tired and out of sorts, too. Do you want to see what I've been doing, Phillip?"

Phillip nodded dumbly, spent with the amount of talking, the kind of talking they'd been doing, and so very relieved. No matter what Gareth was going to show him, he was going to be happy for his man.

He took Phillip's hand and pulled him towards their bedroom. "Voila!" Gareth opened the door and pushed Phillip into the bedroom for the big reveal. Gareth watched Phillip's face as his eyes opened wide to absorb all the changes; the paint, the bedding, the rugs, the curtains. Phillip stood awkwardly, unsure of what exactly to do while examining the new bedroom.

Phillip's brow furrowed, perplexed. "You did this for me? For us?"

Gareth nodded, trying to gauge Phillip's response. "It's one of the reasons I was so off yesterday, the paint was making me ill and I was exhausted. Is it okay?"

"Of course. It's great. This is our home, not just mine." Phillip turned to face Gareth. "I'm so sorry for everything."

"So am I, I should have talked to you after, gone out and checked on you at least." The two men embraced and kissed passionately, hardness pressed against each other, wishing they could try their new bedding, but knowing they couldn't because the kids were about, even if Daisy was willing to give them time to "make up." Gareth carefully kissed Phillip's torn hands, and Phillip nuzzled the nape of Gareth's neck until they pulled apart for some lunch when Phillip's stomach rumbled.

"Later," Gareth promised.

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Dinner that night happened a little later than usual, since Gareth had to run to the store for propane and burgers, and Phillip had to finish up some details around the back. But they had hamburgers made on their new barbecue, on the new patio (not quite completed), at the new table and chairs that Gareth had assembled in the afternoon while Phillip laid more stone. And it was a welcome change for all of them.

"This is amazing, Phillip," Gareth said, taking in the man's work in awe. "I can't believe you did all this." He looked across the new lawn, sod being lightly watered by the sprinkler Phillip had purchased. The part of the patio where the table, chairs, and grill sat was mostly completed, the slabs of slate fit together with care, a thin border of gravel between them. There was still a small pile of slate left and the pathway to the potting shed to complete.

Phillip's cheeks reddened, although it could have been a little bit of a sunburn, too. He was also very pleased with how well everything was coming together.

"Yeah, we've never had a barbecue before," Daisy said. "When we lived in apartments they weren't allowed."

"But you lived in a house before you were here," Phillip was confused. He never really wanted to ask about conditions with Leeann. He preferred to think she just didn't exist.

"Yes, but we were only there just a little over a year. There were often disagreements with landlords, so we had to move a few times," Gareth explained. Phillip took it to mean that Leeann had problems with the landlords, since he couldn't imagine the rest of the Lewises causing any issues.

"I've never had a barbecue, either," Phillip explained. "My father did not approve of them, they damage the aesthetics of the garden."

"What does that even mean?" Gabe asked, face screwed into a look of confusion. Where else would a barbecue go?

Phillip shook his head slightly, ruefully. "It doesn't matter. My father was wrong. He was wrong about a lot of things." 

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After the kids were safely in bed, the men continued their attentions from earlier. Gareth examined Phillip's damaged hands and declared that anything they did in bed that night, he was firmly in charge because they definitely had to work in the new sheets and have make up sex, but Phillip shouldn't do anything to hurt his painful cuts. Instead, after tea, Gareth led Phillip to the bedroom, Gareth stripped Phillip and himself of their clothes, and Gareth pushed Phillip down on the bed.

Phillip rested his head on the new blue pillowcases and watched as Gareth began to move up the bed, naked and on all fours, erection proudly pointing forward. He stopped to lower his head and gently lap up the inside of Phillip's inner thighs, until he was able to suck one, then both of Phillip's lightly furred testicles in his mouth. His tongue rolled them around in his mouth, and a little bit of drool ran down his chin. Gareth nuzzled his face against Phillip's hardened member, a little smear of Phillip's fluid marking his cheek. 

Phillip went to move his hands down to Gareth's head to pull him up for a kiss, and maybe to lick his cheek clean, but he was stopped by Gareth. "Don't you dare use those hands. Put them behind your head and keep them there. We need you to heal, remember?" He had a devilish smirk on his face.

"But I need--"

"What do you need?" Gareth slid his body all the way up Phillip's, kissing him deeply as their two dicks pressed against each other. Phillip licked the mark from Gareth's face with the tip of his tongue, then groaned.

"I need you, Gare. You," he panted into Gareth's ear before running his tongue along the outer lobe, making the man shudder.

Gareth reached over to the drawer for the lube. "You have me Phil, and soon you'll have all of me."

He made sure Phillip kept his hands up, no matter how tempting it was for him to run his fingertips along Gareth's tight nipples. "No cheating!" Gareth admonished, when Phillip tried to clutch at the man, as Gareth's slicked fingers played with Phillip's hole. He took his time, teasing and torturing, enjoying Phillip's moans and hip thrusts when he tried to get more, deeper, penetration.

Finally, when he felt he'd teased Phillip long enough, Gareth leaned forward and started to suck low on Phillip's neck while he fed his cock into Phillip's hungry entrance. As he pushed forward, he moved his lips, dotting Phillip's skin, leaving marks and moving closer to his exposed armpit, inhaling lustily. As he took a deep breath, his hips met with Phillip's firm ass cheeks, so he pulled slowly forward and continued to tease at his entrance with his mushroom head, enjoying the tightness and rubbing on his sensitive frenulum.

Gareth was moaning above Phillip, and it took everything in Phillip not to reach forward and touch his man. Clenching his fists, he also started to clench his hole, begging Gareth to thrust forward. He needed to be filled. "Please, please, Gare. Fuck me."

A smile broke across Gareth's lust filled face. "I thought you'd never ask." He slammed his hips forwards piercing deep into his partner. Stabbing at him with his member, in the warm heat of his lover. He reached down and took Phillip's hard cock into his fist, mimicking the squeezes of Phillip's entrance.

"Yes, ungh, yes,...please fuck me, harder." 

Gareth looked straight in Phillip's eye, then spit down on Phillip's dick to make it more slick in his fist. Phillip moaned watching the liquid trail from Gareth's lips down to his stiff dick and when the hot wetness hit against his purple helmet. It was just so fucking good as Gareth stroked him outside and in.

Both men were panting heavily, and close to their orgasm, when Phillip could take it no longer. Violating Gareth's rules, he reached up and pulled Gareth down by the back of his neck to meet in a deep and violent kiss as he thrust his tongue deep in his lover's mouth. 

The sensation was just too much for Gareth, and his cock stiffened even more before he began shooting his load deep into Phillip's channel. His own hot juices surrounded his member as Phillip's orgasm was triggered, squeezing his spent cock even more, and Phillip shot his sticky load between them sullying their chests. Their satisfied moans were muffled through their passionate kisses, and when they pulled apart, both panted heavily.

Gareth leaned his forehead against Phillip's as they gazed lovingly into each other's eyes, and he slowly pulled his spent dick from the man's ass. "Let's not fight again." He rolled to his side and laid next to a very messy, disheveled Phillip who Gareth thought looked extremely sexy. Gareth's own limp member dripping a little on his leg, but he was, by far, the cleaner of the two at the moment.

"Or at least try to talk it out," Phillip offered, running the back of his hand along Gareth's jawline, loving the shape and feel of his man.

It tickled, so Gareth grabbed Phillip's hand and brought it to his lips, kissing it gently. "Yeah, I don't think your hands can take another argument."

"I'm so sorry, Gare."

"No, I'm sorry, Phillip. I'm pretty sure I gave you a hickey," he said with a grin. Phillip groaned and heaved himself out of bed to examine the damage and clean up a little after their very satisfying make up session. 

A/N: If only all arguments could end so well; a revamped garden, new barbecue and patio, a redecorated bedroom, and a hickey (among other things). And didn't Phillip's torn up hands allow Gareth to take charge? In the end, they're both exhausted and sated, and the kids (thankfully sleeping during the last bit) went to bed knowing that all was well and got to help with the construction a bit.

There's still a bit more to go with our men and there are still loose ends that need to be tied up, so sadly, there might be a few more bumps in the road. At least they can take them on together.

Next update is on Friday! Thank you to all who read, vote, and comment! 

<3 JJ