Thomas stirred in his sleep when he unconsciously pulled Ethan closer to him. It was late in the morning and Thomas could barely open his eyes to see the man in his embrace.

"Ethan, your phone's going off." Thomas mumbled into Ethan's neck.

"I don't hear anything," Ethan groaned. "Are you saying this just so we can have sex again?"

Ethan could feel Thomas smiling in his neck as he felt Thomas' hand wander his body. Ethan began to softly moan when he felt Thomas sensually caressing his torso.

"I'm not lying," Thomas chuckled. "But I'm not denying that sex thing either."

Ethan didn't bother checking his phone as he just complained about Thomas being the one to wake him up. "I need my beauty sleep,"

Ethan thought that he was going to be able to go back to sleep, especially after being awake all of last night. Ethan felt Thomas retract his hands away from his body, and then he felt Thomas roll to the other side of the bed.

Thomas sighed as he then began touching his own chest. "I guess I'll just have to play with myself then..."

Ethan's eyes shot open when he heard the suggestive tone in Thomas' voice. He turned over to face Thomas, and was met with Thomas' smirk when he used his other hand to grasp himself under the covers.

"Can I help you with something?" Thomas pretended as he looked straight into Ethan's lustful eyes.

Ethan didn't want to miss out on the fun, so he rolled onto Thomas and sat on his torso. Silently staring at the man underneath him, Ethan's hands joined Thomas' as he dragged the duvet over their heads.

~~~~~~~~~~

Both of them were now sat against the headboard as the duvet covered their naked torsos. Despite being sweaty from their latest rendezvous in bed, Thomas had his arm around Ethan's shoulder so that he could hold him close.

Ethan was resting his head on Thomas' shoulder as he stared at their entwined hands that were above the covers. He loved the feeling of having Thomas' hands against his own, and he enjoyed the way how they seemed to fit so perfectly together.

"How do you have such soft hands?" Ethan laughed, "All the products I buy doesn't make mine as soft as yours."

Thomas lifted their hands in the air so that he could inspected his own hand in the sunlight. "Good genetics?"

Ethan was jealous as he was in disbelief of the man besides him. "How can one guy be so lucky to have it all..."

Thomas looked at Ethan with a confused look on his face. "What do you mean?" Thomas laughed.

Ethan's eyes roamed Thomas' body as his hands also followed everywhere he looked. "You're relatively tall... All your abs are nicely defined... Your chest is so fucking firm..."

Ethan gently held Thomas' face in his own hands as he continued, "You have such a strong jawline... Your eyes are sparkling... And you're just ridiculously handsome..."

Thomas didn't know where Ethan's sudden honesty was coming from. Regardless, he was enjoying how open Ethan was being with him, and seemingly appreciating every feature that defined him.

"Well you did accuse me of being an underwear model when we first met." Thomas laughed.

Ethan didn't want to just describe Thomas' looks. Ethan knew that there was plenty more to Thomas than just his appearance, there was everything else that made Ethan feel so alive and appreciative about the man next to him.

Ethan began brushing Thomas' cheek as he adored everything else about Thomas. "You're really smart... You're funny... You're really caring..."

Thomas could feel all the sincerity radiating out of Ethan as he looked into his bright green eyes. Thomas was wholeheartedly smiling as he pulled Ethan in to kiss the top of his head.

"You really do know how to butter somebody up." Thomas joked.

Ethan rested himself against Thomas as he felt comfortable in the other man's embrace. He let out a relaxed exhale as he grabbed Thomas' hand once again.

"What should we do now?" Thomas asked as he played with Ethan's hand.

"I think we need to take a shower." Ethan suggested. "Right now I'm feeling kind of gross."

Both of them silently agreed as they nodded their heads. But neither of them moved because they didn't want to leave the bed just yet either.

Ethan shrugged his shoulders as the insatiable man didn't want to take anything for granted. "Got to make most of the few days left together..."

Thomas grinned as he then pulled the man into a soft kiss. Both of them fully intended to make up for the lost time from the last three weeks, and this continued when Ethan pulled Thomas over onto his own body.

But because they were so obsessed with the other person on them, neither of them were able to react to the footsteps that now stood outside Ethan's bedroom.

"Ethan?!"

Ethan pulled himself away from Thomas so that he could look besides him, and see who was at the door. His heart dropped when he realised somebody caught them in the compromising position.

"Dad!" Ethan's heart was racing when he saw that Javier was clearly able to see him intimate with Thomas. "What are you doing here?!"

"Kristen... She tried to call you this morning..." Javier was at a lost of words as his voice came out in a whisper. "You took the Nevsdale report... We need it for an afternoon meeting..."

Ethan could see from a distance how Javier's eyes were drifting between him, and Thomas on top of him. Ethan was petrified as he pushed Thomas off his lap, and covered their naked torsos with the duvet.

Thomas was frozen as he didn't know what to say. He could only imagine the hurdles that Ethan was jumping over in his mind, and Thomas could clearly see how Ethan was scared after being caught in bed together.

"I have to go." Javier whispered as he dashed down the stairs.

Ethan didn't think twice as he began to chase his dad down the stairs. He threw his jeans on as he then tossed Thomas' pants to him, leaving the bodyguard to get dressed so that he could talk to his dad before he left.

"Dad! Wait!" A panicked Ethan yelled from the stairs.

Camilla was standing at the bottom of the stairs as she was soon joined by Javier. She missed Javier's confused expression and instead saw how a shirtless Ethan was standing in front of them.

"Ethan? I thought you were out of town?" Camilla recalled.

Ethan had to put his priorities straight as he tried to address the man that had just caught his son with another man. "Dad... I... I-"

"Sweetheart, I really think we should get going." Javier whispered to Camilla. "Our son's got company."

Camilla then heard another pair of footsteps coming from upstairs, and she voiced her interest as she asked. "Who is she?"

Thomas wanted to help Ethan by trying to reduce any aggravated emotions and thoughts Javier may have had towards them. But Thomas didn't realise that Camilla was also in the house, and he immediately regretted stepping out of the bedroom when they made eye contact.

The socialite had seen Thomas clearly come out of her son's bedroom in just his underwear, and Camilla was sharp as she didn't let her older age mess with what her mind connected together.

"Is... Is this... Is that... What?" Camilla kept asking herself in confusion.

Ethan didn't know where to look as everybody in the house was waiting for him. Thomas was patient as he tried to not pressure Ethan into anything. Javier was speechless as he tried to collect all of his thoughts together. And Camilla was astonished as she didn't want to accept anything she was seeing.

"Camilla, let's just give them some space." Javier told her as he then dragged her towards the door.

Camilla didn't want to leave her son as she had a million questions on her mind. "We can't leave him!"

Javier didn't know where to look as he tried to separate everyone away from each other. Javier still hadn't processed how Ethan could be in bed with Thomas like this, and Javier certainly knew that his wife felt the same way too.

"But I need an explanation!" Camilla yelled as she was also escorted out of the door by Javier.

Ethan was chasing them down the stairs as he saw the door close. Ethan was standing right behind the door with his hand on the doorknob, but Ethan was struggling to convince his hand to open the door.

Ethan was lost for words as he let himself fall against the door. The lump in his throat was making it harder for Ethan to breathe, and he tucked his head in between his knees as he tried to collect his unstable composure.

Thomas ran next to Ethan and crouched besides him on the floor. He could hear Ethan's heavy breathing, and he could see how Ethan was trembling with fear.

"Ethan?" Thomas whispered gently. "Speak to me."

Ethan kept his head down as he felt like his worlds were colliding. He hadn't prepared himself for this as Ethan felt all of his stress and worries were stockpiling.

"I'm scared." Ethan whispered faintly.

Thomas had never been in this position himself before, so he didn't know what he could say to make Ethan feel better.

So Thomas ended up wrapping his arms around Ethan and holding him closely. The intimate embrace was all Thomas could offer, as he tried to subdue Ethan's shaking that was taking over.

~~~~~~~~~~

A hired car was soon sent for Ethan and Thomas as they were instructed to go to the Shelton Manor. Both of them reluctantly stepped inside as they sat in the backseats, with the both of them anxious of what was coming next.

Thomas was equally as worried for Ethan as he tried to whisper words that could possibly help his boyfriend. "It's going to be okay, Ethan. We're going to be fine."

"But what if it's not?" A worried Ethan was shaking his head as his eyes showed how scared he was. "You saw their reactions... They had nothing to say."

"Maybe they just needed time to process it?" Thomas reasoned.

Ethan has had 26 years of learning how his parents would react to certain things. He's had experience in preparing for any outrage that was going to be targeted at him, as well as tears and frustrations that were because of him. But this was something Ethan couldn't predict, and Ethan didn't know what to expect anymore.

"They don't send a car over for nothing... They don't demand us to be at the Manor for nothing... And they certainly don't expect to see their son naked in bed with another man."

The car eventually pulled outside the Shelton Manor, and Ethan was still flooded with anxiety as his legs couldn't stop shaking.

"Ethan-"

Ethan quickly grabbed Thomas' hand so that his presence could try and calm him down. Ethan was already broken as he then looked back at Thomas, and tried to search his eyes for something comforting and reassuring.

But Thomas had nothing because he was unsure of how things were going to turn out. The best Thomas could do was offer a soft smile to Ethan, and use his thumb to brush the back of Ethan's now entwined hand.

Ethan eventually forced himself to let go off Thomas' hand, as they then stepped out of the car together. Ethan needed to stand on his own two feet and show everyone how poised he was of himself, but the facade only lasted until they stepped into the study.

~~~~~~~~~~

Javier had the study specially designed so that his chair and desk were towering over the guests chairs. This gave off an intimidation factor as Ethan felt like he was belong looked down upon by his parents that were looking at them from across the desk.

"We need to know how long this thing has been going on between you two." Javier expresses monotonously.

Ethan didn't fight back with any jokes as he saw the serious expression on everybody's face. "About less than 2 months."

Javier nodded his head as he then asked, "Is this serious between you two?"

Ethan briefly glanced at Thomas besides him before answering, "It is."

Camilla was shaking her head in disbelief as her voice came out faintly, "This can't be real..."

Ethan felt uncomfortable being scrutinised in his seat, as well as being denied that his relationship with Thomas was serious. He could only imagine what Thomas was thinking as he had stayed silent since they entered the Manor together. 

Camilla darted her eyes to Thomas and addressed him directly. "So this all started when you were hired to guard my son?"

"Nothing happened until after I finished my 2 weeks," Thomas explained. "And even then it took another month."

Camilla scrunched her face at the pair of them as she then spoke out loud, "Do you recognise our confusion when we see our son, who has strictly been dating women previously, is suddenly in a relationship with a man that was hired to be around him?"

Ethan didn't like what his mom was hinting at. "What are you saying..."

"Let me spin this story for you, because that's what journalists do." Camilla sadly laughed as she then rephrased their relationship in a bad light. "Local COO and mogul, Ethan Shelton, pays for a random man to stay with him and have sex together for months..."

Ethan felt sick when believing that was how his mom saw his relationship with Thomas. "It's not like that!"

"People don't care about the truth!" Camilla argued back. "It's what people will see when it's plastered all over the media. Everybody's reputation will be put to shame because of it, and nobody around here could bounce back from it."

Things were quickly becoming heated between them as Ethan and Camilla were constantly arguing back and forth. Javier let his presence be known as he commanded the room with his voice.

"Everybody step out of the study," Javier demanded. "I need to speak to Mr Miller on his own."

Ethan disliked the change of tone from his dad, and he didn't like the idea of Thomas being left alone with a man that held so much power with his name. "Dad-"

The vein in Javier's neck popped out as his face became red with frustration. "Now!"

Ethan was taken back from seeing his dad furious at him. It had been so long since he saw Javier like this, and Ethan felt so small when he was being looked down upon like this.

Thomas hesitantly reached for Ethan's hand and whispered to him, "Go. It'll be okay."

Javier and Camilla witnessed the discreet interaction between the two of them. They both stayed silent as Ethan eventually left the room first, with Camilla following behind him straight afterwards.

~~~~~~~~~~

Before Ethan could run away from her, Camilla dragged Ethan into one of the many rooms that were unoccupied. With the nearest one being a dining room, Camilla pushed her son towards a nearby chair.

"Ethan, I'm sorry but I just can't seem to get my head around this." Camilla whispered gently. "This is just so completely random."

Ethan knew that it would be difficult for people to understand. He didn't even understand it himself at first, but Ethan had time to process it before he was ready to admit it out loud.

"It was weird to me too Mom, but things just ended up this way." Ethan tried to explain.

Camilla swallowed nervously as she gently reached for her son's arm. "Ethan, did Mr Miller force you into doing something you didn't want?"

Ethan snatched his arm back as he was left furious at Camilla. "No! Thomas didn't do anything wrong."

"But you've never been interested in men before!" Camilla pointed out.

"And I'm not!" Ethan explained. "But Thomas is a special scenario."

Camilla thought that she connected their points together as she answered back, "Exactly! Because he pushed you into it!"

Ethan had his face buried in his hands as he felt like he was in a loop. "You're twisting my words now..."

"Just like the media!"

Camilla was worried about her son's reputation being dragged through the mud by ruthless people without morals. With the Shelton name and brand constantly being printed everywhere, Camilla wanted to be able to protect her family and legacy as much as possible.

Camilla forced her son to look at her as she tried to show how much she cared for him. Camilla placed her hand on top of Ethan's as she gently spoke, "I'm not angry at you, Ethan..."

Ethan looked back at his mom gingerly as he felt a dumbbell was lifted off his heart. "Really?"

Camilla had her frustrations misguided elsewhere when she vented, "I'm angry at him."

Ethan knew that it couldn't all be perfect as he then pulled his hand away from Camilla's. Ethan looked back at her sadly as he felt the same dumbbell was dropped back onto his heart from over a cliff.

"You were on a straight and narrow path to marriage and kids someday. Thomas is just messing with your head, and is making you drive on the dirt instead of the road."

Ethan sadly mocked Camilla as he was shaking his head in disbelief "This all goes back to you, and how you are forcing the lifestyle you want for me."

Camilla was equally frustrated at seeing how her son was questioning her love. "Is it so wrong for me to want my children to have a happy lifestyle? One that won't be faced with constant prejudice, cruel comments and side glances, and an unnecessarily harder life?"

Ethan stood up from his chair as he bursted out with annoyance and irritation of reliving the same conversation over and over again. "Maybe I will get married - someday! Maybe I will have kids too - someday!"

Ethan's eyes looked defeated, as he tried to stabilise his voice to show off his conviction and seriousness. "The only thing I want right now is Thomas. The same man that is being shaped and twisted into a predator, when he is nothing like the monster you are both making him out to be."

Ethan then began to head back towards the study, so that he could take Thomas away from them both. He didn't need either of them corrupting his relationship with Thomas, and Ethan could only hope that Thomas didn't fall victim to anything that was being said today.

~~~~~~~~~~

Back in the study, the atmosphere was less hostile and more civil between Thomas and Javier. Thomas tried to present himself as brave and confident, but both of them knew that Thomas was shaking deep down.

Javier was sat in his chair feeling pessimistic about the whole situation. After having the time to process everything he learnt, nothing had changed in the way Javier felt about Ethan.

And that was why it was going to make things harder with the conversation he was going to have with Thomas.

"Is it a serious relationship between the two of you?" Javier asked again.

"Ethan's my boyfriend." Thomas said confidently.

"But you still live in different countries, right?" Javier reminded them.

Thomas sadly nodded his head when he confirmed that they still lived five thousand miles apart. "The long distance is difficult, but we both want to make it work."

Javier had a strong fondness for his old friend's son, especially since he trusted Thomas with protecting his son's life. Javier respected the type of person the bodyguard portrayed himself as, and he praised Thomas for all of his traits and characteristics that made him so likeable.

But that only made seeing him and Ethan together harder, because Javier knew that their relationship couldn't last like this.

"I don't know how my son feels about you, Thomas." Javier began to feel sick when he told Thomas, "But I need you to break up with him."

Thomas' heart dropped at the idea of splitting up with Ethan. They were only just reunited together after so long, and Thomas dreaded the idea of not being with Ethan ever again.

"Thomas, you are a very intelligent and bright man. But do you honestly think that a relationship can exist when the both of you have to constantly travel on planes to see each other?"

Thomas looked away from Javier as he couldn't bare to repeat the answer he kept telling himself. Thomas always told himself that all of the constant video calls were good enough, but Thomas knew that he was lying to himself after every time they ended the call.

"You both have very busy and important lives, and I just don't think either of you have the time or patience for this distance." Javier said sadly.

Thomas finally looked up at Javier as he then admitted his genuine feelings for the older man's son. "But I care about Ethan, and he cares about me too - so much that it hurts whenever we aren't together. I don't want to end things when we are both finally happy with each other."

Javier felt his heart breaking after hearing the man in front of him showing how much he cared for his son. There was so much sincerity in Thomas' voice, and the honesty in Thomas' eyes supported everything he was saying.

"I have to take your word for it that you care about Ethan. But I need you to consider Ethan's feelings about this entire situation." Javier pleaded.

"I have been!" Thomas immediately answered back. "All I do is think about Ethan, and how everything is so much harder for the both of us."

Javier stood up from his chair so that he could sit besides the drained and conquered Thomas. Javier then put his hand on Thomas' shoulder as he then tried to comfort him.

"Ethan's going to be too stubborn to let you go, despite how much it is going to crush him in the endgame. If you say he cares about you, as much as you do him, then it's going to be excruciatingly painful when you both continue this impossible relationship."

Thomas was shaking his head as he didn't want to accept anything that he was listening to. He had considered breaking things off with Ethan multiple times, to spare them down the road when the distance drove them even further apart, but Thomas was never brave enough to follow through.

"I booked a plane ticket for you in a couple of hours," Javier told Thomas. "Make it easier for the both of you, and end things now - before it gets too painful."

==========

Author's Note: Part 2 is tomorrow.