"That's just what Sammy needs. Maybe that way she'll get a good night's sleep tonight. I know I won't," Mitch said as the two of them circled the house with their arms around each other.
"Me either," Enrico said. "Now let me show you this spot I discovered."
"You're taking me somewhere to get me naked, aren't you?" Mitch accused him.
"If you decide to strip, I won't stop you," Enrico said as he went inside the house. He grabbed a lantern, handed Mitch a flashlight and then they headed outside again.
Lighting the path with the flashlight, they made their way between the trees and finally emerged in front of an old wooden structure. It had padlocked double doors in front, wide front steps and fading white paint. Looking up, Mitch saw a bell tower and realized it was a church.
He looked at Enrico in surprise. "You're taking me to church?"
"It's abandoned, and we're going up there." Enrico pointed up.
"To the bell tower?"
"Aha," Enrico confirmed. He led the way through some undergrowth and around to the back.
"We're ignoring the No Trespassing signs?" Mitch asked as they passed two of them.
"We are very much ignoring them," Enrico confirmed. He hardly even seemed to notice them.
In the back, there was an addition that might have been a shed. That was their entrance. Enrico pushed at some of the boards, and they came off. Leaning them to one side, he went through and Mitch followed him.
With the lantern turned on, Enrico led the way through a storage room crowded with rusted filing cabinets and piles of rotting paper. They skirted the main part of the church and ended up in a narrow space directly under the bell tower.
Mitch looked up then all around. "I don't see any stairs."
"They got removed, I guess. There's a rope." Setting down the lantern, Enrico jumped up and pulled down a thick rope that had been looped around a beam.
"I wanted to retreat to a quiet spot and relax..." Mitch sighed.
"This is better. The rope is knotted and everything. Go on," Enrico said and nudged him forward. "Come on. I want to watch you climb."
Mitch grumbled then tucked the flashlight securely in his back pocket and took hold of the rope. The climb wasn't too bad, and Enrico whistled and hooted at him the whole way.
At the top, Mitch found himself standing in a bell tower with no bell. He had a great view on all sides, but he didn't exactly trust the floor under his feet.
Enrico called up to him. "There is another rope up there, a skinny one. Throw it down then pull up the lantern. I'm coming up."
Mitch found the rope and threw it down to him. After tying the lit up lantern to that rope, Enrico started climbing up using the thick rope. Mitch pulled up the lantern slowly to light his way. At the end, he got the lantern out of the way and helped Enrico as he joined him in the bell tower.
"Watch your step. Nothing here is structurally sound," Mitch pronounced as he heard floorboards groan dangerously under their feet.
"You don't need to be a handyman right now," Enrico told him and gave him a quick kiss. "Come over here and check out the view." He pointed out a glow around a rooftop not too far away.
"That's your grandmother's house," Mitch realized.
"It is. Can you hear her old lady music?" Enrico asked.
When he listened closely, Mitch did catch the melody and he pictured Sammy dancing with Mrs. Del Rio. The image helped him breathe easier and he looked all around. Peach Tree Hill was to the west outlined by the barest glow of a fading sunset.
Following his gaze, Enrico tucked himself against Mitch. "Next Saturday Sam and Wyatt are going to be married up there. Can you believe it?"
"Are you looking forward to it?" Mitch asked as he wrapped his arms around him.
"Weddings aren't my thing, but I want those guys to be happy," Enrico said and Mitch frowned. Did that mean that Enrico didn't want that kind of commitment for himself? He shouldn't have been surprised that Enrico didn't want to be tied down to one man, but Mitch was still hit by a heavy disappointment.
Then Enrico turned in his embrace and buried his face in the crook of his neck, and Mitch shivered at the heat and closeness of him. Running his hands down his back, Mitch traced the curve of his ass and felt Enrico surge against him.
