“Jase is right,” Luis said. “We’ll pretend this never happened.” Then he smiled and looked up at the ceiling.
When he thought about the image they’d given Darius for the rest of his life, he almost started to laugh.
“I’ll tell Cory to come up and take a look at the lock today,” Jase said. “And it’s fine to take Hunter for a walk. We’ll shower and get dressed. We’ll be downstairs in a little while.”
Darius took a couple of backward steps toward the door. He was wearing the electric blue basketball shorts and a tight black T-shirt. Without looking up, he opened the door partially and slipped through it sideways. “Sorry again, guys. I will definitely knock a lot harder next time I come into this room.”
Luis and Jase exchanged glances. When the door was shut and Darius was gone, Luis dropped the sheet and said, “I’m glad Hunter didn’t walk in on us that time. I think we should get up and check the door from now on before we do anything like this again. We have to make a point of it, Jase.”
Jase reached for the ends of the dresser resting up against a wall beside their bedroom door. He pulled the dresser back, dragged it a few feet, and stopped when it was blocking the door.
“What are you doing?”
“I’m making sure no one can get in here.”
“Why?”
Jase let the sheet drop from his waist and he crossed the room naked. His dick was now semi-erect and it was swinging back and forth. When he reached Luis, he put his arms around him and kissed him. “We’re going to take a shower together now,” he said. “And the door has to be locked because you’re going to be on the shower floor on your knees washing my dick.”
“Oh, you have no shame whatsoever,” Luis said, reaching down to cup Jase’s balls. “You’ve not only scarred poor Darius for life, but now you want to turn me into your personal sex slave.”
Jase slapped his ass. “You are my personal sex slave.
Besides, we haven’t had a morning like this to ourselves since I can remember, and I plan to take advantage of it completely.” He smiled. “Get in the bathroom now and do your job.”
* * * *
Luis set the clothes he was planning to wear to Josh’s and Roland’s Fourth of July party across the bed. He chose a new white cotton polo shirt and a pair of navy blue walking shorts. This was the first time he’d ever worn the white polo shirt. It had a large embroidered emblem below the left shoulder, with a guy on a horse playing polo. Jase had seen it in the window of a store in the city and he’d surprised Luis with it a week earlier. Though Luis had never been the type to save clothes for specific occasions, he had been saving this particular shirt for the Fourth of July party. The local gay couples in the area that would be attending the party were the type that only wore an outfit to a party or event once. Luis had a feeling after these guys wore an outfit they packed it into a plastic bag and marked it with a date to be sure when they’d worn it last. This one time, Luis wanted to compete with them.
Even though he was married to a billionaire and had a thriving career as a model, he always felt inferior to these small-town gay guys, with their stuffy candlelight dinners, their department store dining room sets, and their Martha Stewart pots and pans. They were friendly enough on the surface, but smug and superior if you looked close enough. Luis knew this new polo shirt would turn them all into jealous maniacs. Of course Jase found it on sale for less than a hundred dollars at a discount store, mainly because there was a small snag under the arm no one would ever notice. But everyone else would think Jase had spent retail, well over three thousand dollars, and this alone would make Luis smile all afternoon.
Luis slipped into a plain white jock strap and walked into the bathroom to check his short dark hair. That little wave above his forehead wouldn’t go right no matter how hard he tried or how much product he used. Jase was downstairs with Hunter waiting for him in the driveway. Luis had been working on a blog post for Elena and he’d lost track of time.
He could see Jase now, leaning against the truck, with his arms folded across his chest, tapping his right foot. Jase would be forcing a smile for Hunter’s sake but he’d be thinking, where the hell is dizzy dumb Luis now? He knows the party starts at two and it’s already after two.
But Luis was in no rush to get to Josh’s and Roland’s house, so he took his time getting ready. He told himself he was going to make a serious effort that day to be extra nice to Josh and Roland. He wasn’t going to pass judgment on their lifestyle and he wasn’t going to let himself get annoyed by Josh’s ex-wife Hillary’s never-ending talk about what she was doing for the Angel Association. And if Josh tried to get into his pants that afternoon the way he was always trying to get into his pants, Luis would smile and take it in stride.
But when Luis walked back into the bedroom in nothing but his jock strap, there was a knock on the door and Darius asked, “Are you sure I should come to the party with you? I don’t want to intrude on a family event.”
Luis sighed and said, “Come in, Darius.” This guy was so shy about certain things it made Luis feel like screaming sometimes. On the one hand, Darius was strong and capable of doing anything. On the other, he disappeared into the floorboards whenever it came to anything social.
Darius stepped into the room and gaped at Luis in his jock strap. He blinked and stared down at his shoes.
Luis frowned. “Calm down, Darius,” he said. “We’re both men and I am wearing a jock strap. Frankly, if you think about it, you’ve seen me in less.”
Darius took a breath and looked up at Luis. He shrugged and said, “I know. I’m just kind of shy about these things. I hated changing clothes with the other guys when I was in school. I always felt so weird about it. I guess I’d never be a good porn star.” He laughed and rubbed his jaw.
Luis smiled. He hadn’t seen this kind of sweet, adorable innocence in a long time. He wasn’t sure whether or not Darius was still a virgin, but he wouldn’t have been shocked if he was. He walked across the room and reached for Darius’s hand. He said, “You’re a very sweet guy. And don’t change at all.” Then he released his hand and went back to the bathroom to check his hair one last time.
“Are you sure it’s okay if I go to the party with you?”
Darius asked.
“Of course it’s okay,” Luis said. “We think of you as part of the family now.” Especially after what Darius had seen that morning. But Luis didn’t mention this aloud.