The Professor and the Manny

by Trina Solet

  Arriving in front of the Pick & Grow, they parked and saw the fields stretching out with neat rows of fruit and vegetables. Groups of people were already out there carrying baskets and picking produce. As they walked through the gravelly parking lot, Mina spotted a red SUV and pointed it out to Jeff.

  "She can't resist a big car," Ned told him.

  "What? Not a cute, little car?" Jeff asked.

  "Big car," she confirmed with her arms out.

  "Maybe she wants to be a bus driver when she grows up," Jeff said.

  "She has her car picked out already," Ned told him. "She saw this Hummer with a paint job exactly like bright pink nail polish."

  "Oh, no, not a Hummer," Jeff said and looked at Mina who was walking a little ahead of them, eager to get at those strawberries.

  "She'll outgrow it. She's going to be a sensible girl. Actually, I want her to be exactly like Mariah, up to her eyeballs in books, no time for boys."

  "That might be because Mariah is a lesbian," Jeff informed him. He couldn't believe Ned didn't know that. Then again, maybe he could.

  "Really? That's good too. It's just the boys I want to keep away from my Mina. Dirty, little horndogs."

  "I don't think that will be your decision," Jeff pointed out.

  "I won't push. I'll just keep my fingers crossed," Ned said, not discouraged at all.

  Jeff had to tell him, "You are kind of an eccentric guy, you know."

  Ned gave him a sideways look. "That is not the first thing I want people to say about me."

  Jeff gave it another try. "Handsome?"

  Ned sighed.

  "What? That's not good enough?" Jeff asked.

  "Not when you put it in the form of a question."

  Armed with plastic baskets, they started with picking strawberries. If they started with anything else, Mina would have gone crazy. They had put a ton of sunscreen on her and had her wear a floppy, sky blue hat as well. Ned had already snapped a million pictures of her. He was a parent paparazzo, but how could he resist when Mina looked so cute. Jeff couldn't resist either. He took pictures of her and Ned among the strawberries and planned to take more.

  "Careful, don't step on them," Ned warned Mina as they walked between the rows of plants. Hearing him, she looked so indignant at the idea, he had to correct himself. "Sorry. I don't know what I was thinking. My Mina would never step on strawberries. She loves strawberries," he said. He took off her hat, kissed the top of her head then put the hat back on.

  When they had more strawberries that they could possibly eat, they moved on to tomatoes. It was there that Mina spotted something moving among the plants.

  "Turtle, turtle," Mina said while pointing at a little frog that was hiding at the base of one of the tomato plants.

  "No. That's not a turtle," Jeff told her as they both got down for a closer look. "See, it's a..."

  "Turtle," she said.

  "No, it's a..."

  "Turtle," she insisted.

  "OK." Jeff got up, giving up the fight.

  "Stand up to her. Tell her it's a frog," Ned told him.

  "Let's see you do it," Jeff challenged him.

  Ned crouched in front of her. "Mina, honey..."

  "Turtle," she said before he could say anything more.

  "No. It's a froggy," Ned told her.

  She smiled and nodded like she understood. "Turtle froggy," she said.

  "Umm. I'm going to call that a victory," Ned said and stood up looking self-satisfied.

  Jeff shook his head, not that he had done much better. Mina was such a funny little girl, fearful but stubborn, shy and excited. She was the kind of kid who breaks your heart with her littlest smile.

  Seeing her happy, Ned was happy too. "This was a great idea. Thanks for coming up with it," he told Jeff. "And thanks for coming with us when it's your day off."

  "I like being with you guys, so you don't need to thank me," Jeff said. Ned's gratitude wasn't what he wanted. He wanted Ned to realize that he didn't need to push him away.

  When they got home, Ned wanted to start cooking right away while Jeff helped Mina wash the strawberries. Ned started by making some fresh, homemade salsa, one hot and one mild. After helping Mina, Jeff went over to see what Ned was doing at the stove. Standing over the big, orange pot, Ned was cooking with his sleeves rolled up. Leaning over his shoulder, Jeff glanced into the pot, but he identified what was cooking mainly from the scent.

  "Chili? Looks good."

  "At least vegetarian chili is prettier than the real thing. Hand me the hot sauce," Ned said.

  Jeff picked it up, about to hand it over. Then he reconsidered. "Wait, what are you going to do with it?" Holding the bottle close to his chest, he looked at Ned mistrustfully.

  "Mainline it," Ned said, confirming his worst fears.

  "I bet you would."

  "Hand it over," he demanded in a growly voice and put out his hand for it.

  Jeff gave him the bottle while grumbling.

  "I'll go easy," Ned promised. "But if Mina can handle it..." He shrugged.

  "I can hear you silently calling me a wimp," Jeff accused him.

  "You? Never."

  True to his word, Ned did put only a little bit of hot sauce so the chili was edible. After dinner they stuffed themselves with strawberries.

  "They taste extra good because we picked them," Ned told Mina. "And it was Jeff's idea."

  Mina clapped and when she went to bed she asked for The Little Mouse, the Red Ripe Strawberry, and the Big Hungry Bear as her bedtime story. He and Ned put their heads together over the book and read it to her by taking turns.

  After Mina went to bed, Jeff was alone with Ned and he wasn't going to waste the opportunity. First he had to hunt Ned down in the den. When Jeff went in, Ned was standing by his desk with his back turned.

  Stopping in the doorway, Jeff eyed him hungrily, admired the curve of his tight ass and the strong lines of his shoulders. Ned still didn't know he was there though. To get his attention, Jeff stepped further inside and shut the door.

  Ned turned. "You cornered me, I guess," he said with a grin.

  "I think I've got you where I want you," Jeff told him.

  "Better lock it if you're serious," Ned warned him and motioned toward the door.

  Jeff liked the sound of that. He turned the lock and in the next second rushed at Ned for a deep, thorough kiss that wouldn't let either of them breathe. The kiss tasted like strawberries and left them both gasping for air.

  "I suppose I brought that on myself," Ned said.

  Though Jeff was still out of breath, he kept his hands busy groping Ned everywhere. After every kiss, he only wanted him more.

  "You did. How dare you feel so good?" Jeff mumbled in his ear as he wrapped himself around Ned and kissed his neck.

  Ned's hands were roaming his body and his teeth were at Jeff's earlobe. "You drive me crazy," Ned said.

  "No. You," Jeff said as Ned's teeth worked his earlobe and made him grip Ned's ass hard.

  His mouth was back on Ned's more urgent now, kissing him harder. That's when Jeff lost his head, wanting too much, denied too long, he didn't let go until he had his fill of kissing Ned. Ned was raking his back then digging his fingers through Jeff's hair, all while walking them backwards to the small sofa in the den. Once there, he turned them around suddenly and pushed Jeff to sit down.

  He shoved Jeff's knees apart then kneeled between them. Running his hands up his thighs, Ned unzipped his fly. Jeff didn't need to be told to lift his hips so he could pull his jeans and boxers down.

  "I wanted to blow you," Jeff complained. He'd been dreaming about that, but Ned insisted on going first.

  "Wait your turn. Age before beauty," Ned told him in a raspy voice and pushed him to lean back.

  Fingers digging into his thighs, for a moment Ned only breathed over his jutting cock. Then he licked his lips before he used his tongue to tease the head of his cock. He moved down slowly until he had covered every inch and left Jeff writh
ing. Moving back up, his tongue circled the head. His hand wrapped around the shaft. His other hand played with his balls.

  Ned had him breathless and begging. Finally he took the head of his cock in his mouth and sucked. It was wonderful. Jeff felt his heart beating, big and loud, like it would burst. Ned's mouth moved down, taking him in inch by inch while sliding his hand over the rest. Jeff's cock was enveloped in bliss.

  When Ned's head started bobbing up and down, Jeff thought he would lose his mind. Ned was sucking him deep, moaning around his cock. His breathing harsh, Jeff felt like he couldn't last more than a second. His head was spinning, his whole body tight.

  Then Ned eased off and sucked him slowly. Jeff shuddered under the sweet torture of his mouth. His hands clawed at Ned's shoulders and back. Keeping his voice low, Jeff called his name and begged for release.

  A sound rumbled through Ned's chest and he hummed over his cock. Then he got serious. He sucked on him harder, each pull bringing Jeff closer to coming. Jeff gasped his name in gratitude. He couldn't think or breathe. He was at the mercy of this incredible feeling building inside him until he was coming. As Ned swallowed his come, Jeff felt like his whole body would shatter from that climax.

  But there was no time to recline there in a spent, satisfied sprawl. Still kneeling in front of him, Ned was unzipping his fly and freeing his cock. His hand was reaching for it already when Jeff growled, "No. Don't you touch that."

  Ned laughed but raised his hands in surrender. He stood up and Jeff followed his hard cock with his eyes, ready to devour it. Still sitting down, looking up from Ned's cock to his mouth, Jeff reached for his face and Ned leaned down for a kiss. The kiss was lingering, tasting of come.

  Ned straightened, breaking off the kiss too soon, but any time would be too soon for Jeff. Placing his hands on Jeff's shoulders, Ned told him, "Stay where you are."

  Jeff did as he was told but pulled Ned closer and reached behind him to place his hands on his ass. Trailing his fingers up and down Jeff's arms, Ned sent shivers all through him. Not having Ned's patience, Jeff got to it in a more straightforward way. He simply had to taste Ned. He had to have him.

  He swallowed him down until he almost choked and then sucked him with a steady rhythm. Running his hands over his shoulders then higher up, Ned rubbed the back of his neck with one hand and the back of his head with the other. Jeff moved his head from side to side and heard Ned grunt.

  With Ned's cock filling his mouth, he was in heaven. Ned moaned steadily now, a deep sound that urged him on. Picking up speed, Jeff wanted to suck the life out of this man. He wanted to make him come like he had never wanted anything in his life. He lived for that moment when Ned stiffened and came down his throat. Moaning, Jeff swallowed every drop.

  "I knew you would taste this good," he said, panting and looking up into Ned's eyes.

  Locking his arms around him, Jeff dragged him down on top of him. They reclined sideways on the sofa and dissolved into a long, deep kiss. Jeff could have fallen asleep like that, with Ned on top of him, his beard tickling his neck. Just as his eyes closed, Ned called his name.

  "It's Mina's bedtime not yours."

  "You want to go again?" Jeff challenged him, hoping for a yes.

  "No, but if you sleep like that, you'll mess up your back and your neck," Ned said and climbed off him. With regret, Jeff watched him tuck in and zip up.

  This is just the beginning, he promised himself. He didn't say it to Ned though. He was too afraid that Ned might tell him that he was wrong.

  Chapter 16

  Ned's night had been restless, spent reliving every second of what he and Jeff did in the den. His day at work was busy, thankfully not leaving him much time to obsess about the taste and feel of Jeff's magnificent cock. He did have to go to use the men's room at one point so he could jerk off real quick.

  When he came out, feeling a little embarrassed for doing that at work, he caught sight of his guilty face in the mirror and stopped. What did Jeff see when he looked at him? Why did he want him? Ned smiled at his bearded face in the bathroom mirror. Why question a good thing?

  When Ned came home and walked into the kitchen, he wasn't sure what was going on. All the chairs were lined up in two rows and facing in the same direction. Mina was sitting in one of them while Jeff stood behind the kitchen table telling her something in what sounded like Spanish.

  "We've established that I'm no expert, but that's not Russian, is it?" Ned asked while Mina came over to him for a hug.

  Jeff confirmed it. "It's Spanish. I'm teaching Mina a few things I learned in school."

  "Good plan. Teach her another language I never managed to learn," Ned groused.

  "She seemed to like it," Jeff said. "I think she might have a knack for languages."

  "She might, but I got into the numbers game for a reason," Ned told him.

  "I'm helping her with her English too so you won't feel left out," Jeff said to him with a compassionate grin.

  "Thank you for taking pity on me. And you're teaching her toys another language too?" Ned said when he noticed the chairs all had stuffed toys and dolls sitting in them.

  "Is school," Mina told him.

  "This is a classroom," Ned realized. "Great idea."

  "So far Mina is a pro at raising her hand," Jeff said and Mina raised her hand to show him.

  That reminded Ned to send her off to wash her hands so she could help with making dinner.

  "I just hope she does OK when there are real kids in those seats not just her stuffed toys," he said once she was gone. "Actually she'll get a chance to be around a group of kids later today. Glen and his wife got stood up by their babysitter. It's their date night and they're dropping off their four kids here. You get the evening off."

  "What? Why?" Jeff asked, confused.

  "You can't babysit all those kids. It wouldn't be fair," Ned told him.

  "And you can?" Jeff said showing absolutely no faith in him.

  "I'll manage. I owe Glen a ton of babysitting for always watching Mina for me at the office. You can just go have fun," he said to Jeff.

  "Four kids are coming over here," Jeff told him ominously.

  "I can handle them," Ned said and tried his best to fake some confidence.

  Jeff shook his head at Ned's claim that he could handle all those rowdy kids. "I'm staying. Do they know to be nice to Mina?" he asked, a little worried.

  Ned smiled at his protectiveness. "Glen gave them a talking to about that and made various threats."

  They had a quick dinner since Glen's kids were being fed at home before they came. Excited to have kids coming over, Mina waited by the window. When she saw Glen's car pull up in front, she called out to him and Jeff.

  As all three of them looked out the front window, a tall, skinny girl, who was about ten, and her three brothers, all younger than her, marched up the driveway. When Ned opened the door, the kids got into a scuffle over who was going to come in first. Then they all stumbled in more or less together. They all said hi. This time they seemed to be in competition for who could do it the loudest.

  It was clear right away that these were children of a different ilk. Glen's kids were nothing like his quiet little Mina. Seeing the worried look on his face, Jeff told him, "We'll stand united. It will be fine."

  Ned had a different plan. "I was kind of hoping to hide behind you."

  Before Ned could introduce them to Jeff, the oldest of the kids had something to say to her three brothers.

  "Don't scare Mina or you're going to get it!" Glenda yelled at her brothers. She was her father's daughter all right. "I'll protect her," she assured Ned. "I'm the oldest. They have to listen to me or I'll beat them up."

  "Please don't," Ned told her.

  "What if we scare Mina?" the youngest boy asked. Ned was pretty sure his name was Milton, though his siblings called him Milt.

  "She'll go to hide under the bed," Ned told him.

  "Like a kitty. A kitty will hide under the bed if you scare h
er," Milt said.

  "Yes, just like that. So don't do it," Ned told him.

  Glen's kids were hell on each other, but they were all very nice to Mina. She seemed to get used to them pretty quickly. It was a good sign. If Mina could handle the four of them, she should be able to handle a bunch of regular kids, no problem.

  They sent the kids to play outside in the back yard. It was one way to minimize the damage. While they were out there, Ned decided to feed them some ice cream.

  "Are you boyfriends?" Glenda asked, suddenly popping up out of nowhere next to Ned and Jeff in the kitchen. Busy scooping ice cream into bowls, Ned was caught off guard.

  Jeff wasn't. "Yes, we are," he said and Ned gaped at him.

  Ned was still recovering from the shock, but Glenda had already moved on to a more pressing issue. "I don't need sprinkles on my ice cream," she said though there were no sprinkles in sight.

  "Good. We don't have sprinkles," Ned told her.

  "We should have sprinkles," Jeff said and added them to the shopping list.

  Glenda told them her reasoning. "My dad says I have to have sprinkles so I don't forget I'm a kid. But I don't need them. I'm almost grown up."

  "I think I agree with your dad," Ned told her then sent her to get the other kids from the back yard so they could all have ice cream.

  As Glenda went off to herd her brothers, Ned turned to deal with Jeff. "Why did you tell her that we were boyfriends?"

  "Just testing out the idea," Jeff said and grinned at him.

  Ned had to admit that it sounded good. But how could this be possible? Looking at Jeff, he took in the sight of him. Beauty and heart, he was more than Ned ever dreamed of. And he wanted to be his boyfriend. It was crazy.

  "Well, don't go telling other kids before you tell Mina or you'll be in big trouble," Ned warned him.

  "So this boyfriend thing is a go?" Jeff asked and looked really happy about it.

  "I didn't say that. It's under consideration."

  Jeff didn't push him about it then. As long as the kids were there and Mina was awake, he was on his best behavior. But once they were alone, all bets were off.