Chapter Fifty-Five
“What did Mike want?” Joesph asked, his back to Jamie as he set up the coffee pot for the next morning.
“Um... why is your mouth all red?” Salzy asked, then drained the beer can in his hand.
Joesph turned around and smirked. “That, my friend, is a classic case of beard-burn,” then he laughed. “It means that Jamie got kissed and kissed good.
Jamie glared at his friend. “Shut up.”
“That seems... weird.” Salzy had his face wrinkled up. “Does it hurt?”
Joesph sat down with a glass of iced tea. “It doesn’t really hurt. But it will be a reminder of being kissed for a day or two.”
Jamie sat down hard. He felt drained, and he couldn’t get being kissed by Mike out of his head. And damn, he is a good kisser.
“Hmm...” Joesph said, staring at Jamie. “I think you were well and truly kissed. Looks like it had to be good too.” Then he giggled.
“He asked me to marry him,” Jamie stated flatly.
“What? Again?” Salzy asked. “What did you say?”
Without even looking at Salzy, Jamie said, “I said no, of course.”
“And may I ask, what was his response to that?” Joesph asked coyly.
Jamie lifted his head to look at Joesph. “He said he was going to keep asking till I said yes.”
“Hmm... you need to have sex with him first.” Joesph tilted his head a bit. “You wouldn’t buy a car without a test drive, now would you?”
“Wow. He is persistent.” Salzy leaned forward, looking more closely at Jamie’s mouth. “It looks like it would hurt.”
Jamie shook his head. “I have no idea what to do.” He looked at Joesph. “I can’t do a repeat of... well, you know.”
“Jamie... love,” Joesph reached over and took one of Jamie’s hands.
“He isn’t that guy. I think he’s different.
People are not all the same, you know. Look at you and me.
We’re as different as night and day. We don’t act the same.
We don’t like all the same things. We are two different individuals, and that is the case with Mike. I don’t think he’s like that.”
“I know nothing about him. Not really. I don’t know about his family, how he grew up, what his favourite color is... nothing really.”
“And that doesn’t mean you can’t find out along the way. You don’t have to walk down the aisle tomorrow, now do you?” Joesph squeezed his hand.
“No, I guess not.” Jamie nodded slowly.
“You have to admit, the man is hot. Even I can see that.” Salzy was all smiles. “I like him.”
“Then you marry him,” Jamie snarked. “Sorry. I guess I’m tired and... just overwhelmed.”
“I can’t help but be nosey, but is he a good kisser?” Joesph had that special twinkle in his eyes, like he got when he was listening to a good piece of gossip.
“Oh, yeah.” Jamie gave a slight smile. “That man can sure kiss.”
“I hope he isn’t like one of those rabbit type fuckers. They are the worst.”
“What the hell? A rabbit fucker?” Salzy almost bolted from his chair. “That’s really gross.”
Joesph laughed. “Not as in fucking a rabbit, but more like fucking like a rabbit. That pounding like a jackhammer on speed.” Joesph demonstrated by pounding his hand on the table in rapid succession.
Salzy scrunched up his face. “Guys really do that?”
“Oh, yes, they do. And let me tell you, it isn’t enjoyable at all.” Joesph sat back and took a drink of his tea.
“Doesn’t that... like hurt?”
“If done correctly, no.” Joesph shook his head. “There are some truly bad lovers out there, and I should know.”
“Can we please not talk about this?” Jamie had his head lying on his arms on the table.
“Honey, if you don’t do the nasty with Mike, you’ll never know. Do the test drive. At least that way you can decide if the ride is worth any more of your time.” Joesph stood up. “I’m going to have a nice hot shower and then go to bed and read for a while. Good night.”
“Good night,” Salzy said as he watched Joesph leave the kitchen/living area. He then looked at Jamie. “He might be right,” he whispered.
“I heard that!” Joesph shouted from the bedroom.
“How in the hell did he hear that?” Salzy asked, a look of bewilderment on his face.
Jamie had to sit up and laugh. “Supersonic hearing. I swear he could hear a pin drop from across the road.”
“And, yes, I heard that too.”
“You were meant to.” Jamie laughed as he stood up. “Okay, get out,” he said, pointing to Salzy. “I need to go to bed.”
Salzy harrumphed. “How rude.” He smiled and pulled Jamie into a big hug. “’Night, bro.”
“Bro?” Jamie responded. “Really?”
“Of course. We’re brothers, aren’t we?” He did his salute thing that he does. “See you tomorrow.”
Jamie crawled into bed, leaving the sheet and lightweight blanket off, the ceiling fan on high.
Why can’t I stop thinking about that kiss?
Those kisses. Mike really can kiss. He rolled over onto his side, plumping the pillow some.
Can Joesph be right? Should I sleep with Mike and see what happens?
What’s the worst that can happen? I mean, if he’s terrible in bed, then. .. what?
He stretched out on his back. “Why is it so hot? It’s not even summer yet,” he whispered to himself. And why can’t I stop thinking about Mike?
Jamie didn’t sleep well, and he had very erotic dreams that involved Mike. When he woke, he had to calm himself before he got out of bed. The sheet definitely had a tent thing going on.
When, and only when, the tent went down, did Jamie get up. He could hear Joesph in the kitchen. He sighed when his bladder stopped screaming at him. Okay, this bathroom is starting to annoy me. It’s actually kind of gross.
“Morning,” Joesph said softly, a cup of coffee in his hand. “There was another raid on the Gay Bar last night.” He had his laptop open.
“How many does that make now?” Jamie asked as he poured himself a cup of coffee.
“Three, I think.”
“There’ll be a riot if this keeps up. The police can’t just keep raiding gay bars in Atlanta and it not go unnoticed. The gay community has a lot of power in that city.”
“And money,” was Joesph’s short comment.
Jamie opened his computer and logged into his email account. He immediately saw an email from Christine.
Dear Jamie,
I got the photos and specifics for the house that your friend has for rent. Yes! If I could live there and pay that kind of rent, I’m all in. That place looks amazing, and I love the fact that the entire yard is fenced in. It would be perfect for me and the kiddo.
By any chance, is there a way of finding a daycare there for infants? Or a babysitter of some sort? I’m sure there has to be. Let me know.
Now, when do I start?
Lots of love,
Christine
“Christine is all in,” Jamie said, a big smile on his face. “She even wants to know when she can start.”
“That’s excellent news,” Joesph looked over the top of his laptop. “Things are really going to work out well for you here. I’m very happy for you, Jamie.”
Jamie took a sip of coffee and closed his own computer. “What about you?”
“What about me?”
“Moving here. To Columbus?”
Joesph took a deep breath and slowly exhaled. “I’ve thought about it. I really have.” He looked Jamie in the eyes. “I just don’t think I’m ready to strike out on my own. Money is a big factor, too.”
“How much do you think you’d need?” Jamie took a sip of his coffee as he studied his friend.
“A lot,” Joesph said. “If I took all my savings, cashed in my 401(k), even if I sold Belinda, I’d have to have a major loan and I... I don’t think I’m ready to go down that road.”
“I get it.” Jamie sighed. “I did something really scary by deciding to move back here. While I have some great memories of growing up here, I also have some... demons that I’ve already had to deal with.”
“Yeah, that HVAC guy?”
“Yes, him, and another.” Jamie shook his head. “But, with the other one, it was good. He apologized for making my life miserable. Hell, he even married my best friend from high school, and she was not his biggest fan.” Jamie chuckled.
“Wow, that’s pretty cool.” Joesph smiled.
“Yeah, it was cool.” Jamie leaned forward, leaning his elbows on the table. “So, how much? Give me an approximate amount.”
“I have no real idea. I don’t know what the real estate market is like here. While you can start up a designer business without a showroom, it takes a lot longer to establish a clientele.”
“I’m going to tell you something that almost no one knows about.” Jamie took another deep breath. “So, I’m going to ask you that you tell no one. I need you to swear on Belinda.”
“Oh, I don’t think I want to know, especially if it will cost me Belinda. She’s sacred!”
“And what if I told you that you could have a backer to open your own business?”
Joesph cocked his head to one side, his eyes heavily lidded. “Oh yeah? You got yourself a Daddy Warbucks now?”
“No.” Jamie smiled. “I am Daddy Warbucks.”
“Do what?” Joesph was sitting ramrod straight suddenly.
“Well, my grandparents left me some money.”
“Jamie, my darling, I’m not talking about a few grand here. It would be a lot more. Besides, I’m not going to take your inheritance.”
Jamie leaned forward and looked over his shoulder before facing Joesph. “I’m rich. Like, really, really rich.”