by Gayle Keo
Mike had to think about that. It had not occurred to him. Which, he told himself, was a little stupid. The recent laws allowing and or blocking gay marriage, as well as the higher profile of transgenders, made the topic very uncomfortable for some people. Especially some jocks he knew from locker room talk. Mike himself did not have patience with the old school of thought that said Jocks were manly men. Dismissive of gays or transgender folk. It was the twenty first century and live and let live was his philosophy. Of course, his manager may be worried about his reputation and endorsements.
“I don’t know, to be truthful. Some of the guys are a little old fashioned I guess. Others won’t give a shit as long as I can still hit the three pointers. It just occurred to me my manager may blow a gasket from a financial angle. Endorsements and stuff, but nowadays, I can’t see it hurting any endorsement deals. If it does, I find others. It is amazing how much money is floating around waiting to be spent on guys and gals like me,” he told her. She chuckled softly.
“I am glad it won’t hurt your prospects. I wouldn’t want that. I was so excited to see you again it would bum me out if us spending time together hurt you in anyway,” she admitted, leaning against him. His arm went around her automatically and he could tell she was not wearing anything under her robe.
“I am not going to worry. I have a yoga instructor who says the only things that can hurt us are things we let hurt us. So if people have a problem with us being friends, screw them. They are not worth my time,” Mike told her firmly.
Her head lay against his upper arm; he was quite a bit taller than she was. They continued standing there. Enjoying the view and the quiet after the wild night. He came to the decision that if something happened it happened. She was attractive, even if he had known her before as an old school buddy. In fact, that was a good reason in favor of it. She knew him well and he knew her. It certainly wouldn’t hurt to give it a try. He had not been in a relationship for a long time. He laughed at himself inside, she may not even be thinking along those lines. He heard a quite sniff from her and looked down. She was crying a little.
“Hey, are you okay Savanah?” He asked concerned.
“I’ll be fine. The night just hit me all the sudden. The fires, Joe being attacked. I love that guy. I want to bury whoever did this to him,” she said and sniffed again, looking up at him. Her eyes glistened and her damp hair sparkled in the lights from the street.
“He is going to be fine. Don’t you worry about it. I like him, too, and we are going to fix this for him. All we have to do is get enough evidence for the cops to do something, right?” Mike said.
“That should do it. They will be investigating pretty hard with your name involved. The press will be on them hard too I am guessing,” she responded.
“There you go. If we don’t find anything they need, they might get it done themselves and we won’t have to. See, just like that it is over. Damn I’m good,” he said with a grin and she laughed as he had hoped. Her eyes sparkled even more and her smile was enticing to him. She came up on her toes bringing her face closer and he could not stop himself from leaning downward to kiss her. She responded with a passion that surprised him. He was equally as surprised with the quickness of his own urgent response. When they broke apart she had a stunned look in her eyes and Mike had a feeling he did too.
“Wow,” he said.
“Double wow. I have been wondering what kissing you would be like,” she said.
“How was it?” he couldn’t help asking. She grinned.
“Great, but I am sure you can do better,” she said.
Mike remembered in high school Savant used to sit on the sidelines reading while Mike practiced lay ups and free throws. Whenever Mike asked how he did he had said the same thing then. Mike decided to respond differently than he did in high school. He reached down and scooped her up in his arms and she gave a startled cry and then a laugh.
“Down the hall on the end,” she said through her laughter before burying her face in his neck and kissing him. Mike’s legs moved faster to get down the hall at the end. When he got there he found a big bedroom and a queen-sized bed. He lay her down and he robe came open showing him the full view of her front side. He really like what he saw and immediately took off his shirt and then the rest of his clothes. When he stretched out next to her, she snuggled into his arms.
“I want you to know when I saw you at the beach I was kind of hoping we would end up here. I hope you don’t mind,” Savanah told him. He could not help smiling a little, surprised but not much.
“I am glad you did. I thought you were hot when I first saw you, then when I found out who you were that did not change anything except I know you. It doesn’t bother me a bit,” He told her bending his face to her breasts to prove it. She gasped and moaned softly while he used his hand to stroke her belly and slowly working his way downward.
“Oh Mike, ah baby you are good at this!” She gasped out.
Mike responded with a soft, laugh and teased her eager opening. Whatever physical form Savanah might have previously had she was all woman now and he did know his way around women. He felt his member gaining size and strength against her while he kissed her breasts more, working his lips upward as he teased and squeezed her lower half. He slid one hand under her rear and teased her from behind while still teasing her from the front. Savanah really enjoyed that and her enjoyment brought his to an all new height. The throbbing in Mike’s stiff shaft of need was stronger than he could remember it ever being and as her lips trailed down his chest, her fingernails ran down his back and he groaned with his raging passion for this amazing woman.
“Ah damn Savanah, oh damn I can’t hold out much longer baby,” he gasped out in his desire.
“Good…take…me…baby! Now!” She moaned as if from deep within her. Mike positioned himself over her and she reached up and took his member in her hands, positioning him over her own place of need.
“Oh damn is right boy. I want…it…all!” As he lowered his hips the tip of his pulsing lust entered her and he took it as slow as he could. Dragging out the teasing of both of them until he had sank into her completely and she was able to take all of him. A lot of women could not and as he began the rhythm with his hips she matched it and they went faster and faster. Gasping and moaning their desires in increasingly incoherent words of pleasure and when his lust for her made a final explosion he shook with his passion and Savanah was shaking under him, unable to speak as her pleasure matched his. When he rolled off of her, he laid there catching his breath. It was the sort of work out he loved and somehow she had been the most amazing experience he had ever had. He did not know why; it did not matter to Mike. They lay in each other’s arms and as the sun began rising above them and they fell into a sleep of contentment and relaxation after a night of violence and stress.
*****
Savanah finished her shift of bartending and turned it over to Dean, the night bartender at Happy Jacks. It was a good thing too, she thought. She could handle the slow pacing of daytime, but the night time crows were picking up. The press had finally gotten tired of hanging around so that was good too. Fortunately for her, she had been careful about keeping her home location fairly secret so none had found it yet. The press had, however, discovered who she was as she had been worried about. She was proud and humbled by how her old friend and now lover had handled questions from the press. She sipped a beer remembering with a smile on her lips.
“So you are supporting your friend against the thugs who attacked him?” Asked a reporter.
“Of course,” Mike had responded.
“Do you support the private detective who was asked to work the case?” The same reporter asked.
“Of course. She is only poking around. We have every confidence that the police will get to the bottom of it. Joe just wanted the reassurance of having someone he knows asking around too. It is no big deal,” he said.
“The detective is an old school friend of yours isn’t she,” A m
ale reporter asked.
“Yep. Savanah Lorrel. She runs her own successful detective agency. She is good and will ease Joe’s mind,” Mike answered.
“So it does not bother you that your old school chum is a transgender?” The reporter asked. Savanah had frozen while watching it on television. She had been sitting with Joe at the hospital visiting. They had watched as Mike had laughed at the reporter.
“Nope. If an old friend is happy, that is all I care about. Are you one of those that would have an issue with an old friend being transgender?” The reporter got blustery and it was obvious he would.
“What does that have to do with anything?” The reporter said. Mike grinned at him.
“Absolutely nothing. The same as the question you asked. Now as I was saying, some friends got together to help a brother out until he is back on his feet. I am sure the police will get to the bottom of it. So if you will excuse me, I get to go cook French fries,” he said leaving the little front yard of his house. Joe had squeezed her hand when it was over.
Sitting in the bar at the end of the day, she wanted to hug him, at least. He was off helping get the new tent spaces set up. He had also ordered security cameras as he had mentioned and those would be installed the next day. Everything was going along nicely she thought. Lena came out of the back with a plate of food and brought it to her.
“Here you go. All employees who work a shift get a meal. I know you like the mushroom burger so here you go, girl. You rocked the bar today,” she told Savanah who blushed slightly at the compliment.
“Well, thanks but it is a good thing you didn’t put me in the kitchen. I might have started a grease fire. I have done it before,” she admitted biting into a hot fry and smiling. Mike was right. The spices on these things were amazing. Lena laughed.
“Mike told me. He also said you knew how to make drinks. I hope you like the food sweetheart,” she said making her way past Dean and back into the kitchen. After a bite of her burger she sighed happily.
“That woman is a saint,” She told Dean when he came down to where she sat at the bar.
“Hell yes. She takes care of all of us. Pretty too. I can’t figure out why she turns me down,” he said conversationally, getting Savanah another beer.
“Doesn’t she have a boyfriend?” She asked.
“Yes,” Dean answered.
“You are a dog, man. That could be the reason,” She said grinning. He appeared to think about it.
“Your probably right. Hear anything new darlin?” He asked, leaning against the bar. All the customers were at tables or out on the beach.
“Everyone on the street is pretty sure who was behind it, but no one will say it outright. As far as I can tell whoever is backing Tony is the one we have a problem with. You know Tony, right?” Savanah asked curiously.
“I did. Haven’t hung out in years. He was starting to get into stuff out of my league so I backed off. He wasn’t very cool anyway,” Dean finished. Savanah nodded since her mouth was full of burger. She finished it and then drank off the rest of her beer while Dean worked the other end of the bar. She felt full and comfortable. Savanah pulled a thin cigar out of her purse and lit it, exhaling the smoke away from the bar. It was open air so she could technically smoke it here. She didn’t want to irritate other customers. It was California after all. So she decided to move over to a table out from under the awning, in the smoking area. Dean brought her another beer and she relaxed while waiting for Mike to show. When she finished her cigar, Lena came out of the back with two plates full of food looking around and looking exasperated. Then she spotted Savanah with a look of relief.
“Hey darling, could you take this to tent number four. My waitress is on four table at once and I am having problems in the kitchen,” she asked.
“Sure, table number four?” She said taking the plates. A burger and fries plus a plate with several pieces of pie.
“That’s it. Thank you so much,” Lena said and headed back to the kitchen. Savanah rearranged her load, butting her purse over shoulder and took the plats down the little path to the tents.
“I have an order four tent number four,” she called out wailing into the open side facing the beach and grinned. It was Mike.
“Cool dude. I was wondering when you would show. I guess this is your dinner. That is a lot of pie man,” she told him setting the plate down. She noticed that he had a beer and there was a fresh one for her. Before she even though about a drink, she could not help herself and hugged him tight. He returned it and held on as long as she did. Nice, she thought to herself. After they broke apart he smiled and gestured he to a seat, taking his after she did.
“You look great. Half of that pie is for you also,” he told her. She blushed slightly. She was wearing a loose blue blouse to her hips with red capris pants and tennis shoes. It had been functional for working behind the bar.
“You are looking great too,” she told him.
Mike was in a pair of jogging shorts and nothing else. He had obviously been in the sun working all day. His hair was mussed and he looked better than great to Savanah. She watched him dig into his meal and he finished it in record time. When he finished he took a slow gulp of his beer before sighing.
“The burgers are great, but these fries are amazing,” he said in satisfaction. Savanah grinned and reached into her pocket and pulled out a slip of paper.
“Don’t say I never gave you anything darling,” she told him handing him the recipe. His face lit up like a Christmas tree and he then stood and pulled her to her feet to give her a hug.
“I have wanted to know this since I first tasted these things as a kid. How did you get them?” He asked, carefully putting in a pocket of a shirt hanging over another chair in the tent.
“Through scheming and carefully sneaky skills. Lena said do not ever tell Joe she gave it to you,” Savanah finished. Mike laughed and promised, hugging her again. They sat back down and enjoyed their beer and the people watching from the tent. After a moment he cleared his throat.
“I saw Detective Roswall from last night. He came by an hour or so ago,” Mike told her.
“Oh did he have an update?” She asked, eyeing the pie.
“Yep, well kind of. He said Tony has been on their radar as a dealer for a while, but they have been waiting to find out who he works for. They want the big fish, but unfortunately, they have not been able to figure out who that is. They were considering bringing him in for actually questioning when a small problem arose. He got his ass beat,” he said. He reached over and sliced the pie in even halves, offering her a fork.
“What did he do?” Savanah asked sinking her fork into the pie. To her the best thing about Happy Jacks was the pie. Especially the Dutch apple.
“He didn’t do anything, well anything new anyway. Even though his name was never released by the cops, enough people around here knew who was the suspect and word got out. A few enthusiastic basketball fans found him leaving a convenience store and beat him right there on the street. He was hit pretty good and now he has disappeared. For safety reasons, his lawyer said,” Mike finished before digging into his own slice of the pie. Savanah thought about that and did not like it. It made things riskier.
“Wounded animals are at their most dangerous usually. So now he is more pissed off than before. I am guessing he is blaming us?” She asked.
“Me actually. His lawyer stated his client was going into hiding and that I am indirectly responsible. He claims he is considering a civil suit against me,” Mike told her, finishing his pie. Savanah reassured him on that score.
“He won’t. No one with his background can risk going to court and having their past paraded in front of a judge. Or worse a jury who would judge him on their own feelings instead the letter of the law as the judges are supposed to. He is saber rattling, and not that well,” she said. Mike nodded and sighed.
“Either way, like you said, he is pissed. So I called the security company I contacted for the cameras and hired a few pe
ople to hang out around here. They are mostly in the hills overlooking this beach and whoever enters,” he informed her. Savanah was impressed and said so. He looked a little embarrassed but took her hand.
“Thanks but, well, besides being friends with Joe I wanted to make sure you have some kind of backup. I don’t know what we have together but I am enjoying it and want to see where it leads. I hope you don’t mind,” Mike said. Savanah was amazed and happy with his decision about the two of them. She was not wild about the extra security. It might scare bad guys away instead of bringing them in where they could catch them. It wasn’t a big problem and since he had done it for her, she wouldn’t say anything about it.
“Thank you. I am glad you feel that way because I do too,” She was going to go on but his phone rang. He rolled his eyes and glanced down frowning. He reached out to where it sat on the table and slid the button to answer it. It was on speaker.
“Hello,” he said.
“Hello hero, does it bother you that your team lost the game, but you are still called a hero?” It was Tony on the other end. They glanced at each other and Savanah began scrolling through her phone searching for an app.
“Not really Tony. Does it bother you that you set a bunch of tents on fire and people call you a pussy?” Mike asked him innocently. Savanah found the app she wanted and thumbed it on, setting it next to Mikes phone. It was a voice recorder.
“Not in the least. You know both you and that freak of nature you are friends with will not make it through this don’t you?” Tony asked. Savanah knew who the freak of nature he mentioned was. Mike looked furious but she shook her head not to worry about it.
“I am sure we will be fine. I would think you would be worried though. I heard a little while ago that a couple of out of shape sports fans kicked your ass boy,” Mike told him.
“That was nothing compared to what is going to happen to you. Never mind that thing you are dating,” he said maliciously. Savanah felt her anger growing. She was used to malicious compliments from time to time. This guy though was beginning to get under her skin. She could see Mike had just about had it too.
