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Ian got off the phone with a grin; this Valentine's Day was getting better and better. Not only had it fallen on a Saturday this year --which made it an ideal date night for two overworked professors -- but he'd just heard some good news perfectly suited to this day.
He and Quinn had gotten back from a romantic lobster dinner at Galatina a half hour ago, then exchanged presents. He'd given Quinn his favorite Perugina dark chocolate assortment, while Quinn had gifted him with a bottle of Captain Morgan's Private-Stock Spiced Rum. When they were just finishing up a piece of candy and a nip of rum each, the phone had rung and Ian enjoyed a joyful conversation with one of their friends.
Ian walked into the living room and instantly felt the soft heat of the fire Quinn had made for them. And he felt all the hotter when he gazed at Quinn, who was stretched out on the couch with a paperback, looking as comfortable as could be. The second his husband saw him, he threw his book on the coffee table, letting Ian glimpse what he was reading. Ah, a good choice for the season: "If on a Winter's Night a Traveler" by Italo Calvino.
Quinn sat up, so that Ian could fit on the sofa cushion, and then put his head on his lad's lap. "Mmmm, you make a much better cushion for me," he said with a lopsided smile. He snuggled into Ian with a contented sigh.
"Must've been made to measure," said Ian, smiling back into dusk-blue eyes.
They both wore Luke sweats with thick socks, and the crackling fire added to the delicious warmth they brought to each other. And they needed that warmth, since it was a typical Saturday night in mid-February, with a foot of snow already on the ground and more coming down every minute. They were lucky if the temperature had made it into the single digits. Clearly, the perfect time to stay indoors, especially with a nice cuddly husband to keep you cozy.
Ian said, "That was Barbara on the phone. She's invited us to her wedding on the third weekend in November." Barbara and Nell were friends who lived in West Palm Beach and could now marry, thanks to equal marriage coming to Florida just last month, on January 6th. "They've snagged a reservation at the Fountains Room at the Coral Resort in Boca Raton."
"Oh, I'm so happy for them!" Quinn turned his winter-furred head to kiss Ian's stomach over his sweatshirt. "Nell said that her folks already think of them as their two daughters."
"What more can you ask for?" said Ian, knowing that his and Quinn's parents thought of both of them as their children in the same way. "Barbara told me that she and Nell are glad they've waited all these years, so that they could get married in Florida."
Quinn said, "You remember Nell's mom, Roberta?" At Ian's nod, he continued, "Nell mentioned something sweet about her the last time we spoke. It seems that Roberta got so tired of them postponing the wedding that she wanted them to come up to New York last summer and have the ceremony in Forest Hills."
"Ah, the perks of being a snowbird." Ian's chuckle set Quinn off, too.
Quinn drawled, "Y'know, lad, I wouldn't mind some early-bird specials up north. We shouldn't have to fly all the way down to Boca to get them." As he spoke, he could practically taste the Key lime pie on his tongue.
Ian rubbed his husband's belly over his sweatshirt. "And to think, we just ate dinner a little over half an hour ago." He leaned down to kiss Quinn's forehead. "Not to mention the rum and chocolate."
"Why are you surprised? You know better than anyone else that I'm really a hobbit." Quinn snorted a laugh.
And Ian just snorted back. "I thought we had you pegged as half-Ent, half-hobbit," he intoned in an ostentatiously scholarly voice.
"'Ent' that the truth." Quinn relished Ian's groan, and after a thoughtful pause, he continued, "Guess that means I'll never stop talking about food," since Ents were a notoriously long-winded people.
Ian let out something between a grunt and a laugh this time. "Sounds about right." His blue-green eyes lit up with delight. "I can see that I'm going to have to up my game to compete with your quips."
"You've got nothing to worry about, laddie." Quinn nuzzled into his lad's stomach. "Your puns are as lightning-fast as your reflexes."
Ian inclined his head and said, "Thank you, Master Qui," as if he were a grateful Obi-Wan, answering praise from Qui-Gon.
Quinn sighed happily when Ian took his hand and started to play with his wedding ring. The caress of his fingers felt warmer than any glove. "We're very lucky. I never thought equal marriage would happen so quickly, especially down south."
"Yeah, we're definitely talking Force-enhanced speed. I still can't believe that Florida has become the 36th state with marriage equality." Joy infused Ian's words. "Before the Windsor ruling, there were only nine. That's four times the number now!"
"Well, it isn't called the Supreme Court for nothing, m'lad," said Quinn with satisfaction. He should have known from the mischievous look on his herven's face that one of his wisecracks was on the way in response, but he never expected a mini-serenade, as well.
Ian said, "Mmm-hmm. The Supremes basically told the states with marriage bans to "Stop! In the name of love." He couldn't resist singing the last part of his sentence.
Even with that telltale gaze, Ian's musical quip still surprised a burst of laughter out of Quinn. "And now they've finally decided to rule in June on whether our marriages are Constitutional."
"What we need is the luck of the Irish, my love." Ian ran his fingers through his husband's hair, hoping that Quinn had luck to spare and that it would rub off on him.
Quinn smiled up at him indulgently. "Actually, my grandmother is the one we have to thank for our good fortune." He could see the understanding dawn in Ian's eyes. "Your little shamrock just may come through for us again." He sat up a little, so he could reach Ian's lips, when they came down on his for a sweet kiss.
Ian eased Quinn back down into the comfortable nest of his lap, running an eager tongue over his lips in delight, to capture every last bit of Quinn's taste. "I'm so glad that Nell and Barbara will finally be able to have what we have."
"Amen to that, lad." Quinn reached up to caress his cheek with his forefinger, a touch which always told Ian how very much he was loved.
"Can't wait to make travel plans for West Palm Beach," said Ian. "We won't be able to do a thing until our schedules are set over the summer for the autumn semester."
Quinn said, "The wedding is probably on a Saturday, so we should be there the day before."
Ian winked at him. "Yeah, wouldn't want to miss the rehearsal dinner, now, would we?"
Quinn snuggled into the cotton of his lad's sweatshirt. "Hope we get Fridays off for the fall term. You never know."
Ian's grin widened with every snuggle. "The last time we got that was about seven years ago. And I still think it was because Professor Billatta is sweet on you. Dream on, ma gradh."
"Stranger things have happened." Quinn chuckled, sending good vibrations all through Ian. "Maybe one of us will get to be on the Scheduling Committee."
"Oh, I'd love to be on that one," Ian said. "I've had it with the Textbook Committee. I'd have to be a Jedi diplomat to get anything done with that lot."
Quinn's eyes sparkled with insider knowledge. "Well, word is that Case is about to approve your pick of "Captains Courageous" for the Kipling slot in your Victorian Lit course." The happy and gobsmacked look on Ian's face was enough to make Valentine's Day complete for Quinn already.
"That's fantastic! Can't wait to teach it." Ian was bubbling over with excitement, much as he had during their champagne toast at dinner. "The adventures of Harvey and Dan are almost as good as our own."
Quinn could feel his laddie's good vibrations all the way down to his toes. "It's really shaping up to be a grand autumn semester. Your Victorian Lit class and the wedding are plenty enough to celebrate, but I have a little something extra in mind."
Ian ran his fingertips through Quinn's eight o'clock shadow. "What are you planning?"
Quinn basked in his lad's caresses. "How about combining our trip to Boca with a cruise?"
"Oh, Quinn, you spoil me rotten." Ian bent down to nuzzle his cheek.
Quinn beamed up at him as he said, "You can thank Nell and Barbara, too, for having the foresight to plan the ceremony right before Thanksgiving, so we can celebrate the holiday in Florida."
"And it's at the tail end of the hurricane season, so we shouldn't have any problems with the weather." Ian grinned as he remembered the foot of snow on their lawn.
Quinn nodded. "It'll probably be in the 70s at that time of year."
"And that's not even the best thing about it," Ian said. "What makes it so wonderful is that this time we'll be down there by ourselves."
"Well, we've already taken two cruises with our family, so we've earned a bit of freedom," said Quinn.
Ian gave a slow nod. "Just us, for a change." His grin became even bigger.
"Why, laddie, it sounds like you can't wait to get me alone on shipboard," Quinn answered with a sly grin of his own.
Ian winked. "You mean you and me, tropical drinks, swimming in seas only a little less blue than your eyes? How did you guess?"
"Because I'm a Jedi mind-reader, of course." Quinn sat up, grabbed ahold of his laddie, and gave him the Valentine kiss he'd been waiting for.