married—you know, Dick-and-Joe married.”
I shrugged. “Good question. Wish I had an answer.”
We were quiet for another minute or so, sipping our drinks, and then I couldn’t resist asking: “What about you? Don’t you want a lover?”
Tom stared pensively into his glass, lips pursed. Then he brought his eyes back up to mine. “Sure, some day. Maybe I’ll be lucky enough to find somebody in the same boat as Lisa and I—though I realize that’s not exactly a very deep pool for fishing. I’m really glad Lisa has Carol, and I do admit it would be nice to have someone just for me. But I realize that not many guys would be able to adjust to this kind of a relationship. I don’t imagine you would.”
I didn’t know if he was being rhetorical or specific, but I think I could figure it out, and I was both embarrassed and a little ashamed of myself because he was right…I couldn’t.
Tom took a quick, quiet intake of breath and gave my hand a quick squeeze. “So,” he said, “for the foreseeable future….”
“Well,” I said, trying to lighten the air a bit, “it’s surely not as though you were doomed to a life of celibacy.” I gave him a wicked smile. “Not as long as I’m around, anyway.”
He pulled back his head and opened his eyes wide as if he were totally surprised. “Well, thank you sir,” he said, then let his expression segue into a softer smile. “I just might take you up on your kind offer.”
“Any time,” I said with a smile.
Now! Now! my crotch yelled, and I quickly squeezed my legs together to shut it up.
*
We took our time finishing our drinks, talking about everything and nothing, laughing and reminiscing. When our glasses were empty, Tom said: “Like another? Or are you in a hurry to go out? I was thinking maybe we might just order in a pizza or something.”
“Fine with me. I’m plenty comfortable just staying in.”
“Good.” Getting up from the love seat, he picked up the glasses and heading for the kitchen. “Where’s a good place to get delivery pizza around here?”
“Momma Rosa’s about as good as they make ’em. And it’s pretty close-by.”
“Great,” Tom said from the kitchen, where I could hear the clink of ice cubes being dropped into our glasses. “You want to call them? The phone’s just around the corner in the hall, and the book’s in the little drawer in the phone stand.”
“I think I remember the number.” I got up and went to find the phone. “Large sausage, pepperoni, green olives, onion and…half mushroom for you, half anchovy for me. Right?”
“You are good!” Tom said from the kitchen. “How in hell can you remember that after all these years.”
I dialed Momma Rosa’s and listened as the phone rang several times. “It hasn’t been all that long,” I said, hand over the mouthpiece. And at that moment, it really didn’t seem so. “And if you’ll recall, we practically lived on the st…”
“Momma Rosa’s.”
I placed the order.
*
About 25 minutes later, Tom had just excused himself to go to the bathroom when the buzzer rang.
“I’ll get it,” I called to Tom, getting up to go to the door.
When I heard the knock, I opened it to find Jeff Barber, whose parents owned the laundromat I’d gone to for the past several years—in no small part because Jeff, now about 18, was a singularly tasty piece of eye candy who had been rather blatantly coming on to me since he was around 16. I never took him up on his offer, to the ill-concealed disappointment of my crotch, but….
Jeff was carrying a large Momma Rosa’s pizza box, and seemed as surprised to see me as I was to see him.
“Dick!” he said with a very large and very sexy grin. “I didn’t know you lived here!”
“I don’t,” I said, reaching into my back pocket for my billfold. “Just visiting a friend. And what are you doing delivering pizzas?”
“I’m starting college pretty soon, and need the extra money.” His grin never faded. The
I shrugged. “Good question. Wish I had an answer.”
We were quiet for another minute or so, sipping our drinks, and then I couldn’t resist asking: “What about you? Don’t you want a lover?”
Tom stared pensively into his glass, lips pursed. Then he brought his eyes back up to mine. “Sure, some day. Maybe I’ll be lucky enough to find somebody in the same boat as Lisa and I—though I realize that’s not exactly a very deep pool for fishing. I’m really glad Lisa has Carol, and I do admit it would be nice to have someone just for me. But I realize that not many guys would be able to adjust to this kind of a relationship. I don’t imagine you would.”
I didn’t know if he was being rhetorical or specific, but I think I could figure it out, and I was both embarrassed and a little ashamed of myself because he was right…I couldn’t.
Tom took a quick, quiet intake of breath and gave my hand a quick squeeze. “So,” he said, “for the foreseeable future….”
“Well,” I said, trying to lighten the air a bit, “it’s surely not as though you were doomed to a life of celibacy.” I gave him a wicked smile. “Not as long as I’m around, anyway.”
He pulled back his head and opened his eyes wide as if he were totally surprised. “Well, thank you sir,” he said, then let his expression segue into a softer smile. “I just might take you up on your kind offer.”
“Any time,” I said with a smile.
Now! Now! my crotch yelled, and I quickly squeezed my legs together to shut it up.
*
We took our time finishing our drinks, talking about everything and nothing, laughing and reminiscing. When our glasses were empty, Tom said: “Like another? Or are you in a hurry to go out? I was thinking maybe we might just order in a pizza or something.”
“Fine with me. I’m plenty comfortable just staying in.”
“Good.” Getting up from the love seat, he picked up the glasses and heading for the kitchen. “Where’s a good place to get delivery pizza around here?”
“Momma Rosa’s about as good as they make ’em. And it’s pretty close-by.”
“Great,” Tom said from the kitchen, where I could hear the clink of ice cubes being dropped into our glasses. “You want to call them? The phone’s just around the corner in the hall, and the book’s in the little drawer in the phone stand.”
“I think I remember the number.” I got up and went to find the phone. “Large sausage, pepperoni, green olives, onion and…half mushroom for you, half anchovy for me. Right?”
“You are good!” Tom said from the kitchen. “How in hell can you remember that after all these years.”
I dialed Momma Rosa’s and listened as the phone rang several times. “It hasn’t been all that long,” I said, hand over the mouthpiece. And at that moment, it really didn’t seem so. “And if you’ll recall, we practically lived on the st…”
“Momma Rosa’s.”
I placed the order.
*
About 25 minutes later, Tom had just excused himself to go to the bathroom when the buzzer rang.
“I’ll get it,” I called to Tom, getting up to go to the door.
When I heard the knock, I opened it to find Jeff Barber, whose parents owned the laundromat I’d gone to for the past several years—in no small part because Jeff, now about 18, was a singularly tasty piece of eye candy who had been rather blatantly coming on to me since he was around 16. I never took him up on his offer, to the ill-concealed disappointment of my crotch, but….
Jeff was carrying a large Momma Rosa’s pizza box, and seemed as surprised to see me as I was to see him.
“Dick!” he said with a very large and very sexy grin. “I didn’t know you lived here!”
“I don’t,” I said, reaching into my back pocket for my billfold. “Just visiting a friend. And what are you doing delivering pizzas?”
“I’m starting college pretty soon, and need the extra money.” His grin never faded. The
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