Second Wind

Chapter Sixteen

Ben

Saturday morning I smelled coffee before I even opened my eyes. I sat up in bed and looked around the room, feeling confused. A glance at the alarm clock told me it was nearly eight-thirty. Lula wasn't on the bed and was nowhere to be seen. I knew she was familiar with my morning routine but there was no way she could have turned on the coffeemaker; she wasn't tall enough to reach the counter. I got out of bed and stumbled down the hall to the kitchen. Joey was sitting on a stool at the counter, a mug of coffee in his hand. He greeted me with a smile.

"Mornin', sleepyhead. Nice boner."

I looked down and realized I hadn't put anything on. My morning wood was still sticking straight out in front of me. As my brain wasn't functioning properly yet and my mouth felt like it was stuck together I had trouble putting together a response.

"Why don’t you go take care of things in the bathroom and I'll fix your coffee for you, babe?"

I did as he suggested and pulled on my robe before going back to the kitchen. He handed me a mug as I walked in and then went over to the door to let Lula in.

"I thought you were working today. What are you doing here?"

"I am working, or at least I will be in a bit. I did some shopping for tonight's dinner and put everything away while the coffee was brewing. I've also made a list of things for you to do today to get ready."

"Oh God, you're a slave driver. I'm not even awake yet. It's not like this is a big party or anything. It's just Becky and some guy."

"Don't get your shorts in a knot. It's not a long list. The house is clean so all you have to do is straighten up a bit. And I want you to make the salad and get the veggies ready. I'm leaving work at four and I'll swing by the house and pick up Connor. Becky and what's-his-name aren't going to be here until seven. We might even have a little fun before they arrive if we get everything done and have some time left over."

"Now you're talking. That's the kind of incentive I need. Give me the list."

Joey was right. There really wasn't much to do. I did my usual Saturday chores and still had plenty of time to cover everything on his list. By the time he arrived with Connor a little before five, the house was spotless, the table was set and all of the basic preparations in the kitchen were done. We snuggled on the couch for a while, watching Connor play with Lula. I'm sure we both wanted to do more than snuggle, but Connor had already had his nap at home and besides, we had all night.

Becky and her guy, whose name turned out to be Glenn, arrived a few minutes before seven. Becky performed the introductions and then I gave him a brief tour of the house. While doing that I gave him the once over. He was definitely Becky's type. Mine, too. In his late thirties, over six feet tall, a big strapping guy.

I got a pitcher of martinis I'd mixed earlier out of the fridge and poured everyone a drink before we settled in the family room. I was going to use the living room but Connor and Lula were happy where they were. Besides, the tree was in the family room and I was pretty proud of the way it had turned out. Not that I got any credit for it.

"Great tree, Ben. Did your mother come over and decorate?"

"My mother doesn't do everything for me, Becky. I can do some things myself. And Joey helped a little, too."

"I didn't do much, only pick out the tree and the decorations. Oh, and I told Ben where to put the tree and how to hang the decorations on it. But other than that, Ben did it all himself."

"Glenn, help me out. They're ganging up on me."

"Sounds to me like they're just being honest."

Since those I loved were having too much fun abusing me I decided to change the subject.

"So, what do you do for a living, Glenn?"

Becky gave me a sly look as I turned toward him.

"I'm manager of a Home Depot." I had just taken a sip of my drink and I sprayed it halfway across the room as Becky cracked up. While I tried to compose myself she explained about her little cruising game and my role as helpless queen. All of a sudden we were back to the 'gang up on Ben' game again. Fortunately, Connor came to my rescue by walking over and climbing up on the couch in between Becky and Glenn and acting adorable. They both got distracted and fussed over him.

My guests somehow managed to get through the rest of cocktail hour without any more attacks on their host. A little before eight, Joey got up.

"I have a few last minute things to do in the kitchen, Ben. Why don’t you take Connor and get him ready for bed? I have his pajamas laid out for him. And make sure his pampers are clean and dry."

The panic must have shown on my face.

"Calm down, Ben, I don’t expect you to change his diapers. Just let me know if he needs to be changed."

"We'll come with you and protect you, Ben." Becky and Glenn got to their feet.

While I had been concerned about having to change a diaper, I was also a bit worried about just changing Connor's clothes. I'd never done anything like that before. Fortunately, Connor was a lot more familiar with the routine than I was and he cooperated quite well. His diaper was quite dry and fresh so there were no problems. Joey came into the room just as I was finishing up.

"See how simple it is, Ben? Nothin' to it."

"Yeah, it's kind of like changing a doll. Not that I play with dolls."

"I don’t know, you look like a Barbie kind of guy to me, Ben."

"Glenn! You just met me. You're supposed to be nice."

"I am nice, usually, but you just kind of bring out the nasty in a guy."

I turned to Joey. "I hope you remembered the arsenic in at least two of the entrees."

The meal was another triumph for Joey. He had prepared veal marsala, green beans with almonds and real mashed potatoes. He assured us all that it was 'free range' veal. And the potatoes were so much better than the instant kind that had taken me so long to learn how to make.

Glenn seemed like a great guy and was amazingly relaxed with Joey and me. He explained that his younger sister was a lesbian and he had spent a lot of time with her gay friends, though most of them were women. At any rate, I enjoyed meeting him and it was obvious Becky was smitten. She was sweet and charming toward him all night, saving all of her sarcasm for me. I wouldn't have it any other way.

Joey

I felt kind of bad that I hadn't put more effort into the dinner. I had planned a pretty simple meal since I'd had to work all day. Plus, both Ben and I were looking forward more to spending our first night together than meeting Becky's boyfriend. Once Glenn and Becky arrived though we were both able to focus on our guests. Well, technically they were Ben's guests, but I was starting to feel so at home in his house. It was definitely becoming my kitchen.

Physically, Glenn reminded me a lot of my brothers. He was their size and looked a bit like them. Like them, he had an outgoing personality. Unlike them, he was totally cool with Ben and me being gay. Over the course of the evening, I found myself imaging each of my brothers sitting where Glenn was at the table, having the kind of conversation with them that we were having with Glenn. It was a dream, I knew. Not even Anthony would be as relaxed and accepting. Of course, Glenn had just met us, so what did he care if we were gay? But Anthony, John and Vinnie knew me my whole life and loved me. I'd expect them to be shocked at first, but they should be happy for me, happy that I was in love and loved. I knew that just wasn't going to happen, and the thought of that brought me down a bit. I had to struggle to push that thought out of my head and focus on the present, on the people who really were at the table.

It was nearly midnight when Becky and Glenn got up to leave. That was early for a Saturday night, but Becky was aware that I was staying over and it would be the first time Ben and I had spent the night together. I wasn't sure if Glenn was aware of that, at least until we said goodnight. He surprised me by hugging both Ben and me. He whispered into my ear as he did, "You've had a long day, Joe. Don’t let Ben keep you up all night."

Ben leaned against the front door as he closed it after them.

"I thought they'd never leave." He rushed at me and took me in his arms.

"You know you don't mean that, Ben."

"Sure I do. I couldn't stop thinking about being alone with you all evening. Besides, they were picking on me all night. You were, too."

"And you know you loved every minute of it. You love being the center of attention, even if you're being abused."

"Speaking of me being abused, I think it's time for bed."

"Plenty of time for that, Ben. Let's clean up a bit first."

His jaw dropped. "You're not serious. You really want to clean now?"

"It won’t take long, and you'll be glad we did in the morning. It's so much nicer to wake up to a clean kitchen."

Ben grumbled but he went to work clearing everything out of the dining room while I worked in the kitchen. When he came into the kitchen to help he did his best to get me sidetracked. I swatted him on the butt a couple of times but discovered that that didn't make him work; it only made him friskier. We finally had everything straightened up and the coffeemaker set up for the morning. Ben made sure the doors were locked while I turned out the lights and we quietly walked down the hall. I went into the guest room to check on Connor. He was sound asleep as if he'd spent every night of his life there.

I was only with Connor a minute but when I walked into Ben's room he was sprawled face down and naked on the bed with his legs spread. Looking up between his legs at that pale white ass made my dick start to swell in my pants. I climbed up on the bed between his legs, leaned forward and lightly kissed each cheek. Ben turned his head back toward me and grinned.

"So what do you want to do tonight? Any ideas?"

"I always have a few ideas of what I want to do with you, Ben, but right now I think both of our minds are on the same track."

I pulled my shirt over my head and quickly struggled out of my pants as Ben turned around to face me. I looked down at the naked body lying in front of me. His summer tan had completely faded and his skin was so white and smooth. He looked like an angel but I knew that at that moment his thoughts were more on the devilish side.

I put a hand on the bed on either side of his chest and lowered myself onto him. I kissed him lightly, then harder, working my tongue into his mouth. As we kissed I ground my hips into his, rubbing my hard dick against his. After a while I pulled back and looked into his shining green eyes.

"I want to make love to you, Ben. I've thought about that so many times since Thanksgiving. I want to be inside you."

"Just what I was hoping, love. I want you inside me, always."

He reached over to the nightstand and pulled open the drawer. He handed me a tube of lube.

"What about a condom, Ben?"

"It's up to you, baby. You know we're both okay so it's safe either way. Whatever you're comfortable with."

"Well, in that case, let's see if we can make a baby."

Ben giggled. "I don’t think that's gonna work, Joey."

"Well, then, we'll just have to try harder."

And we did. For the next hour, we made love in every position and manner we could think of, fast, slow, hard, gentle, you name it. Throughout it was as if we were both in a trance. Once I entered him, I don’t think we separated for more than a few seconds in the entire hour. We were one, physically and emotionally. Once when Ben was on his back and I was pounding hard down into him, his dick erupted with streams of cum flooding his chest and abs. I slowed, wondering if he wanted me to stop, but he thrust his butt up onto me to keep going. I didn't want it to ever end but at long last I couldn't hold out any longer. Ben was on his back again, his legs wrapped around my waist, using his feet to pull me into him. I was lying on him, kissing him while I slowly but forcefully rammed as deep into him as I could. Each time I pulled back I nearly withdrew from him entirely. The sensation of the head of my dick against his anal ring was too much for me to take and I blasted into him, shooting over and over again. As I collapsed on top of him I realized that he had cum again.

We just lay there panting, totally exhausted but totally sated. As my cock softened it slid out of him. Ben rolled me onto my side, slid out of bed and headed toward the bathroom. He returned in a second with a damp towel, which he used to clean us both. We wrapped our arms around each other and cuddled, his head nested in the crook of my neck.

"That was so amazing, Ben. I never knew anything could be like that."

"It was pretty awesome. You have incredible staying power. I thought you were gonna go all night."

"It wasn't too much for you, was it? I don’t want to hurt you."

"No, I could never get enough of you, Joey. If you can do it all night, that's fine with me."

"Well, maybe not all night, but next time we'll try for more if you like. You were pretty amazing, too. You came twice and I didn’t even touch you."

"You were touching me, all right, just not where you can see it. Next time let's go for three."

I pulled the sheet and comforter up over us and in no time we fell asleep in each other's arms.

Ben

When I woke up there was just a hint of light coming in the windows. I was lying on my left side and Joey was spooned behind me, his right arm wrapped around me. I could feel his morning hardon pressed along the crack of my ass. I pushed my butt back against it and he thrust forward.

"Mornin', sleepyhead. I was wondering when you were gonna wake up." He nibbled on my neck and shoulder.

"Morning? It's still dark. What time is it?"

"Time for this." He thrust his hips forward again.

I reached over to the side table, picked up the lube and handed it to him over my shoulder. "Knock yourself out, kid."

He pulled away from me a bit and I jumped when I felt the cold lube on my pucker. He kissed the side of my neck as he pressed his head against me and I felt it slide in, filling me. Once he was buried completely within me, he stopped for a minute. We just lay there, united, joined together as one. Then he slowly began pistoning, withdrawing almost completely and then thrusting forcefully back in. He quickly picked up speed and force. If the night before had been a marathon, this was a sprint. He reached around me and grabbed my dick with his lubed fingers and began to stroke me. All the while he was nibbling on my neck and ear. After only a few minutes I felt my balls pull up and I began to shoot all over the sheet in front of me. As if on cue, I felt his thick rod swell inside me and begin pulsing, spurting over and over again inside me. He wrapped his arms tight around me, almost squeezing the breath out of me, and just held me close for a minute.

"Your wake-up call, sir," he whispered in my ear.

"Damn, you can wake me up like that every morning, but I hope you were planning on getting a little more sleep now. It's way too early to get up. Maybe I can have another wake-up call later." I twisted my head around and gave him a kiss.

"Maybe you can, but I have to get up now. You go back to sleep."

I turned around. "Where are you going? Don’t leave."

"I have to go to work later, and I have something to do before that, so I want to go to early Mass." I groaned without meaning to. "I'll be back before you know it."

He hugged me and I must have fallen asleep within thirty seconds. The next thing I heard was the sound of Joey clearing his throat. I opened my eyes and it was broad daylight. Joey was standing at the side of the bed, naked, holding a tray with plates of scrambled eggs, sausage, home fries and toast, and a couple of glasses of orange juice and mugs of coffee.

"Breakfast is served." I sat up and he placed the tray on the bed, then carefully sat next to it.

Everything was wonderful, which wasn't surprising, knowing how Joey was in the kitchen. What surprised me was that he had prepared all of this without waking me up. I guess I needed the sleep. After we'd eaten, Joey dragged me into the shower. Well, maybe dragged is too strong a word. He suggested a shower and I practically knocked him over getting to the bathroom. It turned out to be just a shower, which was fine with me. After our two lovemaking sessions I don’t think my body could have taken any more. But just washing and caressing each other was heaven to me.

We were toweling each other dry when I remembered Connor and asked Joey about him.

"I checked on him before I went to church and got him up, dressed and fed when I came back. Then, when I had our breakfast ready, I put him in the playpen with a couple of toys. He's fine. I let Lula out a couple of times, too."

"You are amazing, Joey. You're too good to me."

"I love doing things for you, Ben. But actually, I have a favor to ask of you and I'm buttering you up a little." He looked somewhat shy and hesitant, which wasn't at all like him.

"Anything, Joey. I'd do anything for you, you know that."

"I was wondering if you'd go to the cemetery with me this morning. I picked up a grave blanket at the nursery after church and it's in the van."

"Uh, sure Joey, if you want me to." I wasn't too keen on cemeteries and felt a little odd going with him to Jenny's grave, but how could I say no?

"I know it's a strange thing to ask you to do, but I don’t want to go alone. Last year I didn't want to put anyone in my family through it so I went by myself. I completely broke down at the grave and couldn't get myself to leave. I must have been there for hours. It should easier this year but even so, I know I'll be okay if you're there."

"Then I'll go. No problem. And don’t think it's strange. I love you and I'll do anything to make you feel better."

We got dressed and bundled up Connor and got him strapped into the van. Joey drove the five miles to Gate of Heaven cemetery. Somewhere in there my grandparents were buried but the place was so huge I had no idea where they were. My mother had brought me there at least once a year when I was growing up but I'd been too terrified to notice where we were going. Joey knew exactly where he wanted to go and drove straight there.

He asked me to wait by the car with Connor while he took the blanket of evergreens to a grave about twenty feet from the road. He positioned it on the grave and then knelt there for several minutes. I could see his shoulders shaking and knew he was crying. Everything in me made me want to go over and comfort him, but I knew I shouldn't intrude. I waited and after a while he slowly got to his feet and walked toward us. Tears were still streaming down his face. I hugged him and held him in my arms for a long time. Connor was standing alongside us, his arms wrapped around our legs. Finally, we parted and I wiped the tears away from his cheeks, then kissed him lightly on the lips.

"Daddy!" We looked down and Connor was reaching his arms up toward Joey. Joey picked him up and kissed him. Connor wrapped his arms around Joey's neck and giggled. Joey rubbed the back of his head.

"Thanks, Ben, it really meant a lot to me that you were here. I know it must be awkward for you."

"It's not awkward." Actually, I'd thought it would be, but it really wasn't. "I know you loved her and she was your life for so many years. This must be so hard for you and I'm glad if my being here helps you."

"It does. You are really special, Ben. I love you."

"You're pretty special yourself, babe."

Joey

All though Mass I couldn't stop thinking about making love to Ben. I know that's not what you're supposed to be thinking about in church, but it had been so amazing, both the night before and again in the morning. All day Saturday I had been thinking about making love to him. We'd only done that once and it had been the most incredible feeling for me. Not just the physical sensation, but the emotional connection as well. I'd always felt that when I made love to Jenny, but I hadn't thought that kind of thing was possible with two guys. Thanksgiving evening had proven me wrong.

I wasn't sure if I should ask Ben if we could do it again, though. We hadn't really discussed sex much; we'd just done what seemed right at the moment. I didn't know what Ben liked to do in bed. He'd seemed happy with everything we'd tried, but I wasn't sure what his favorite things were. Maybe he wanted to make love to me, to be inside me. I wasn't sure I could do that. Part of me wanted to experience everything possible with Ben, but I'd never had any fantasies about that and didn't think I'd like it. It looked like it could be painful, or uncomfortable at best. Ben had seemed to like it enough, though.

Our night together had proven to me that having me in him was something that Ben really loved. That was a relief because each time we made love I liked it even more. By the end of the service I was finally able to stop thinking about sex and started worrying about the rest of the morning.

I'd been hesitant to ask Ben to go with me to the cemetery. I couldn't go alone again, so it was either Ben or Mom. I knew that having Ben with me would make me feel better and somehow I thought that taking him with me would complete some kind of transition for me. I wasn't sure that happened, but at least I survived the morning and Ben didn't seem to mind.

By the time we got back to Ben's house I was running late for work. I pulled into the driveway and dropped him off after a brief but passionate kiss, then headed home to leave Connor with Mom. As soon as I walked in the door she started asking a dozen questions about the dinner party. I tried to answer them as briefly as I could and get out the door. She stopped me just as I was leaving.

"If you want me to go to the cemetery with you sometime this week, just let me know when."

"Thanks, Ma, but it's all taken care of. Ben went with me this morning."

"Ben?" She frowned and paused. "While he seems like a nice man, I can't say I approve of his lifestyle. Even so, I'm glad you're getting out and making new friends, Joey. But for some things, you need your family. Friends aren't the same thing.'

"Believe me, I know how important family is, Ma. But Ben was really good for me today. It was a little rough but nowhere near as bad as last year. Ben took good care of me."

I gave her a quick peck on the cheek and slipped out the door before she could say anything else. Maybe I was finally getting through to her. She had called Ben 'a nice man.' There were still plenty of negatives, but this was the first positive thing she'd said about him. I had to keep after her and knew what the next step would be.