CHAPTER SIX

Due to boredom, the two decided to explore the beaches and release some stress away from Yibo's family.

Zhan padded down the wooden pier, his sandals slapping against it. The sun was warm on his back and shoulders, and the breeze light against his skin. He reached his arms above his head, stretching as he walked. The wind took hold of his dress, and he lifted it slightly, allowing the breeze to slip under it. If Heaven ever did exist on Earth, it was here, he knew it.

Thank goodness he shaved all the hair from his knees down to his toes...well he shaved all of it actually except his hair and it was like there's something missing part on his body since he doesn't do this frequently and yet nobody can't tell that he is actually a guy disguising as a woman.

"So you never even mentioned to me that you could sail," he said to Yibo, who was walking alongside him.He shrugged and stared off across the horizon. "Not much time for it in Beijing. Not when I work as much as I do... Here he is."

Near the end of the pier sat a small, beautiful yacht. Its deck was polished and shining, and every inch of it clean as a whistle. In front of the helm were two padded seats. Two pristine sails reached towards the Heavens like giant birds about to take flight.

"Have you ever been sailing?" Yibo asked, deftly climbing aboard. Zhan hung back on the pier, uncertain.

"No. So if something goes wrong, it's all you."

Yibo grinned as he gestured to him to climb in.

"Nothing will go wrong. You can trust me. I am an expert." He chuckled.

Zhan accepted his hand and let himself be pulled onto the deck. He stumbled and fell against him, but he didn't lose his footing at all. The yacht shifted slightly, and he was suddenly aware of just how small it was. It was going to be just the two of them out there in the sea, surrounded by absolutely nothing but water... and whatever was in the water.

Zhan shook his head. Still, it was better than being back at the house with Yibo's glaring relatives. He'd take potential run-ins with sharks and sea monsters any day over spitting and cursing grandmothers.

"I'm going to show you the place I love," Yibo said, passion oozing out of his words. He was still holding Xiao's hand, and he suddenly realized that they were so close together that his chest was touching his each time he exhaled.

Another long moment went by, and Yibo didn't step back; didn't let go of his hand. He didn't move at all. The waves slapped softly against the boat and some children shouted from somewhere on the beach.

Could this be real? Was something actually happening between the two of them? Perhaps the change of scenery had woken something deep in Yibo - specifically, feelings that he hadn't even known he had for Zhan. Abruptly, he pulled away, turning around to busy himself with a heavy rope. Zhan bit his lip. Nope. He had been wrong. Again.

"Is there anything I can do?" he asked, working to keep his voice steady. He looked over his shoulder, flashing him a beautiful side grin.

"Have a seat. Relax. Watch a professional at work." "Hah. All right. Sounds good to me."

At least he could still joke with him. At least they were still professional semi-friends.

Zhan dropped onto one of the plush chairs, spreading his arms out and turning his face skyward. In no time at all, the tiny vessel was taking off, Yibo standing at the helm to confidently guide it into the sea. "When I was a teenager I would come out here every day I could," he said.

"Oh yeah?"

He liked thinking of him as a teenager. He imagined he looked much as he did now - except maybe leaner and maybe tanner, thanks to the endless days spent out on the sea."When did you stop?" he asked.

His face grew darker, as if a sudden and unexpected cloud had arrived in the sky above him. "My father required me to go into the family business. I quickly lost time for all the pursuits I enjoyed."

"I thought you loved the art world." He looked at him. "I have come to. At first, though, I was just trying to respect my father, even though going into his business was not what I wanted to do." "What did you want to do?" He grinned. "motor racing." "What?! You're kidding me." He shook his head. "But I've never seen you riding a motor bike." "Sometimes, late at night, I stroll my bigbike. It's mostly a dead passion, though."

"Wow. Secret Wang Yibo... And here I thought that, as your assistant, I knew almost everything there is to know about you."

"A man must keep his secrets, Zhan," he said, his dark eyes soldering. "Or else what is there left to be desirable about him?"

Zhan's cheeks burned, and he had to look away. Something about what he had just said had been incredibly sensual.

"Yeah, well, others keeps their secrets, too."

He raised his eyebrows, but he said nothing more. There. Let him chew on that.They had been slowly turning eastward throughout their whole conversation, and Zhan noticed for the first time that the yacht was approaching a small island. On it, a tan, pristine beach gave way to a rocky crag and, above that, a hill covered in rich green trees rose up towards the clouds.

"It's the island I used to sail out to by myself," Yibo said, gazing appreciatively at it. "I've never taken anyone to it."Zhan's stomach did a somersault. "Why are you taking me?" he asked.

"I haven't seen it in years. I had to come."

Oh. Zhan pushed his sunglasses farther up his nose, hoping they hid his disappointment. For a moment there, he'd thought that Yibo was going to tell him he was taking him to his secret island because he was so special to him.

Nope. He was just his special personal assistant - not his special person, no matter what they were trying to make his parents believe. He forced himself to look away from him, his black locks whipping in the wind and his white shirt clinging to every muscle, and to focus instead on the approaching beach, whose sands they were almost breaching. While Yibo secured the boat, Zhan took in their new surroundings. The chattering of some birds was coming from somewhere nearby, but other than that the island was silent. "We're the only ones here," he said breathlessly. "Our own island." Yibo looked at him and nodded, another smile forming on his face. He loved it when he smiled. He didn't do it half as often as he should. "We have our own island back in China." He laughed. "Yeah, and we share it with eight million other people." "Let's go," he said, offering him his hand. He accepted and leaped onto the ground, his now bare toes twisting pleasantly in the sand and water. They walked across the beach, heading towards a shady spot on the edge of the woods, and Zhan stopped to slip his sandals back on.

"If I remember correctly," Yibo said, "there is a small cave near here. I believe this way." He moved farther into the woods, and Xiao followed.

It was nice and cool in the shade, and the sounds of birds grew louder as they walked on. Soon they came upon what looked like a large boulder resting against the side of the hill, but as they walked around it Zhan saw that it was a cave.

"Excellent," Yibo breathed. He turned and looked at Zhan, a smile still on his face.

"If I'd known this is what it truly took to make you happy, I'd have brought you here months ago."

Zhan laughed. "And forgotten about all the fancy hotel bookings and rare floral arrangements."

Yibo's smile faltered and he looked down at the ground.

"Am I a bad boss, Zhan?"

Zhan blinked, hard. He had never asked him anything like that before.

"No. Why would you think that?" "I've been thinking lately about all the things I ask you to do..." He looked back up at him. "And maybe I make such ridiculous demands because I am searching desperately for the next thing to make me happy.... Except nothing ever does make me truly fulfilled. And so I am sorry if I ask too much of you."

"You don't have to apologize," Zhan croaked. "It's my job." "But I want to apologize. I'm going to start doing things differently."

Zhan looked down at his hands, which were fumbling with his sunglasses.

"What's brought about this change of heart?" "The whole situation with my parents. The real truth is, I do want to get married. I want to find someone soon who I can be with for the rest of my life. But I want to make the choice of my partner on my own. The girl they chose for me... I don't know her too well, but I know her enough to know that she is not the one for me."

Finally, he looked up at him. Why was he telling him this? And why was he now staring at him like his gaze was a laser beam directed at his face? He had no idea what to say, and so he just look while watching him... And wondered if he should reveal to him what was in his heart - what had been there since the very first day he had seen him. What would he do if he told him he was in love with him? Would he recoil in disgust? since he's been hiding that fact that he was gay. Would he laugh on his face? Or would he respond in warmth? Could it be... possibly... that there was a part of him that maybe considered the 'partner' he was talking about... could be him?

"Yibo," he whispered,

Swiftly, he stepped forward, silencing his mouth with his lips. Zhan gasped, and the air he took in was straight from the mouth of the man he had been pining for day in and day out for what had seemed to be countless eons. He grasped the back of his head, caressing his hair in his hands, and Zhan dropped his sunglasses to the forest floor. His kiss made him feel like every bit of energy was being drawn out of his body, cleaned, then put right back inside of him. It was a transfusion of the soul. He broke away, but kept his hands on him, one on the back of his head and one on his lower back. Zhan felt his skin burn with pleasure where he touched him, and he felt for sure that for the rest of his life his hand prints would be branded in those very spots.

"You fulfill me, Zhan," he said. "I am sorry I never said it before. I wouldn't let myself admit it, even to myself." "But why not?" he gasped. He blinked heavily, his eyes roving around as he searched his head for an answer."Because," he slowly said, "I didn't want to lose you. Every woman I have ever been with was just another woman to me. They were all flings. And by keeping you as just my employee though a guy ... you are special... I guess I was keeping you in a safe place. If I didn't try to woo you or date you, then things wouldn't go wrong and cause you to leave my life. I'm tired of that, though. And I'm sorry if I do lose you because of this, but Zhan... I had to tell you all of this before I die."Abruptly, he dropped his hands and stepped back. A deep grimace was on his face.

"Yibo."

He reached out towards him. He could feel tears in his eyes. This was all too much. There could have been no way that, when he'd first stepped foot on that yacht earlier, he could have imagined the day would go like this.

"I have been crazy for you since the beginning," he said. "I mean, honestly, how could you not notice?"

And like a storm cloud being blown away by a gust of wind, all the darkness left Wang Yibo's' face. Light shone through his eyes, and tenderness rested on his lips as he pulled Xiao Zhan to him again. His kisses were gentle and slow. He was taking his time, and that knowledge made Zhan feel as if he was sprouting wings to fly away towards Heaven. Because time was something they had now. They both wanted each other.

Time was theirs, and they could do with it what they pleased. Zhan reached down, splaying his fingers against his chest. He could feel the muscles beneath his shirt as his chest rose and fell. He was breathing heavy, and he could hear his own breath too - a jagged intake of air. Pulling away, he stared at him... licked his lips... swallowed hard. His hands fell against his waist, grasping on to his hips like they were his life support. For a moment they stood looking into each other's eyes, and Zhan felt as if he was about to fall over.

God help him, now that what he had wanted for so long was finally happening, his body seemed absolutely unable to take it. It was almost as if it was going into shock. Slowly, one of his hands rose to his face, cupping his cheek. His thumb dragged across his jaw, stopping at his lips. Zhan stared into the depths of his eyes and felt an overwhelming surge of gratitude take over his heart. All these years he'd been telling himself to stop waiting around - to find another man who actually wanted to be with him as well. But his intuition wouldn't let him. No, it always said. Don't walk away just yet. So he hadn't. And not only had the seed that Zhan hadn't even known had been planted come to fruition, but its fruit was sweeter than anything he ever could have imagined, thanks to the roots that had been growing. He knew Yibo. He knew him. They had worked day in and day out together for years. There had been time for them to become certain about each other.

Because of that, he knew that every touch of the hands and every taste of the lips was meaningful; was real. Simultaneously, they bridged the space between their faces again, meeting in the middle. Finally finding some physical strength, his mouth opened to his. His tongue slipped in, testing first, then probing. Zhan moaned, unable to stop himself. He grabbed his shirt, clinging to it with both hands.

Deftly, he lifted him, and his legs circled around his waist. Breaking his mouth away from his, he gasped.

"Tell me if you want to stop. I don't want to do anything you don't want to do."

Zhan moved his hands up, running them through his dark locks. "The last thing I want is for you to stop." "Good." Their lips met again, and Yibo leaned forward, lowering Zhan onto a patch of soft, green grass. Still, though, he held himself back, his body hovering just inches above him."I want you, Yibo," he said, staring into his eyes. He was craving for more. His words enough for him, he mashed his mouth against his, a satisfied moan escaping from him. Settling on top of him, he pushed between his legs, pressing right up against him. Zhan could feel the bulge forming underneath his pants, and waves of heat shot on his hard on. Reaching behind him, and underneath his dress, Zhan slowly removed his clothes. The strings dangled loosely; teasingly. Yibo slowly reached a hand up - one side at a time - to push the clothes straps off of his shoulders. The dress fell to his waist and the undies toppled to the ground as he set his lips against his right shoulder. Lightly, he kissed his skin, then moved a little higher and kissed again, until he was sucking on his neck.

Zhan moaned.

"I want you to do so much to me," he whispered.

"I want to do so much to you," came his husky response, his face buried deep in his hair.

Zhan shuddered. His every cell was sparking - as if they had been filled up with electricity.

"Show me," he said, pulling his head back to look into his eyes.

"Show me right now."

He laughed, burying his face in her neck.

"Here? In the woods?"

Zhan smiled. He couldn't believe how spunky he was being. He had never talked dirty like this with any man - ever.

"Right here in the woods - on this island - where we can be as loud as we like."

Swiftly, he put his hands on his waist and yanked, pulling his dress all the way down. Another smooth jerk and it was off, forgotten in the grass. His eyes never wavering from his, he hooked a finger under the waist of his bottom underwear and tugged. The suit joined the dress, and Yibo bent down to place his mouth between his legs. Zhan gasped, taken over by the sudden intensity of the sensation. His legs quivered as he sucked and licked his hard on penis . The pleasure increased, then decreased as he slowed down bobbing the shaft of his hard on, then increased as he sped up his motions again playing his penis and licking his twitching horny hole. Zhan's eyes rolled up towards the treetops, the light dancing through their leaves. Feeling as if he couldn't even stay still, he grabbed at Yibo's hair and pushed his hips into his face.

"I need you right now," he gasped.

Yibo stopped what he was doing to look at him again.

"Only if you are sure," he said.

"You keep checking," he smiled.

"But my answer's never going to be any different." He smiled back at him.

"Then I am done talking."

And with that, his shorts were off and his fingers was inside of him, stroking and opening him up. He sighed in pleasure as the tip of his dick entered him, then gasped as he drove the full length of it in.

He clawed at his back, not even knowing what to do with himself. He filled every inch of him up, and he was completely lost in the unbearable pleasure of it all. Putting his mouth back on his, they kissed fervently as he pulled out then plunged in again.

Zhan let out a shriek, moving his hands to clutch at the patches of grass that surrounded them.

"God," he gasped, and then, remembering that no one could hear them, he said it again.

"Y-Yibo," he moaned,

"Zhan," he whispered into his ear.

Yibo increased his pace, and the pleasure deep inside his built, spiraling higher and higher.

"Oh God,"

he cried out as he came, his legs shaking around his waist, splurting his cum all over his stomach while still enjoying the short period of ecstasy.

He moaned into his neck, going even faster now. Zhan pressed his hands against his back, urging him on. He moaned even louder and thrust one more time and came inside him.

Sweat covering his back, he collapsed against him. Zhan stared up at the trees, his hand tracing little circles over Yibo's back. He turned his face from his shoulder into his neck and kissed him gently there. Xiao closed his eyes, listening to the breeze in the trees and the shallow breathing of his lover. Everything had its time, he knew now. All was right. And all was perfect.