by Ryan Field
For a second, they remained silent beneath the portico. Len finally said, “Could you come inside the house with me? I hate to go into a dark empty house alone.”
“Ah well. I really should get back to the party.” He wasn’t planning to return right away. He’d planned to drive around for a while and catch the tail end of the party.
“I didn’t set the alarm before we left. Who knows what’s lurking in that big empty house.”
Jim switched off the engine and opened the door. They climbed out at the same time and Jim followed Len to the front entrance. When Len unlocked the front door and turned on the lights in the main hall, he leaned back against the door frame and said, “You go in first. I’ll follow.”
This was turning into a strange experience. Jim didn’t know what to say. “I really have to get back to the party now, Mr. Mayfield. My mom will be looking for me.”
“She’ll be fine,” Len said. “She’s probably still reading off lists of accomplishments from that insufferable yearbook of yours.”
Jim almost smiled. Len had a point about his mother and the yearbook. At one point, Jim felt like slamming her face into the yearbook just to shut her up. But he would have felt disloyal if he’d agreed with Len. Jim loved his mother; he was just so confused right now. So he walked around Len and entered the house first. Len closed the front door and locked it. He passed Jim in the main hallway and led him to the back of the house to what they considered a huge family room off the kitchen.
Len switched on the lights in the family room and removed his dark suit jacket. He walked over to a glitzy mirrored wet bar with a black granite counter and asked, “What can I get you? A martini?”
“Ah well, Mr. Mayfield. I don’t like to drink and drive. I’m fine, thank you.”
Len removed his tie, opened his shirt to his waist, and laughed. “One drink certainly won’t do any harm, Jim. It might even help. You’re a man now, a college graduate.” He sent him a sideways glance. “From what I can see, you’re all man.”
Jim turned and said, “I really have to be going. I’m sorry, Mr. Mayfield. I hope you understand. I’m going through a lot of emotions right now and I’m not sure what I’m doing. It’s a rough time. I’m a little confused.”
Len smiled wider and said, “That’s even more of a reason to have a drink. It’ll loosen you up.”
Jim took a deep breath and started walking toward the front hall. “I drove you home, I came inside, and now I have to leave. You’ll be fine.”
“I’ll make you a small martini,” Len said.
Jim stopped and turned around. Len didn’t seem to be getting the message. And there was something weird about this that Jim couldn’t figure out.
“I’m sorry, Jim,” Len said. “I just hate being alone in an empty house. I’ve hated it since I was a child. Can’t you just wait until my wife gets home?”
“When is that?” Jim was getting anxious. This was getting creepier by the moment and he had a sinking feeling in his stomach. And this business about Len being afraid to be alone didn’t sound real. Len Mayfield didn’t seem to be afraid of anything.
“Who knows?” Len said, as he covered the martini shaker and lifted it over his shoulder to shake it. “When she’s out with her tennis instructor this late at night on a Saturday she sometimes stays out all night.”
“Well I certainly can’t spend the night here, Mr. Mayfield.” He wouldn’t even know how to explain that to his parents. He’d never been out all night before, not even in college.
Len filled two martini glasses and walked back to where Jim was standing. His shirt had opened wider and most of his torso was exposed. Jim said, “No,” to the martini, but Len handed him the drink anyway, and then walked over to a bookshelf beside a huge flat screen television.
As Len lit up another cigarette, Jim sighed and said, “Are you always this terrified to be alone? Seriously, Mr. Mayfield. I’m starting to think you’re kidding around with me.”
Len took a long drag and said, “I’m kind of quirky. We all have our quirks, Jim. I’m sure you have your quirks, too.” Then he winked and said, “I’ll bet I can think of at least one thing you’re terrified of.”
Jim let that remark go; he wasn’t sure what Len was talking about. When Jim sat down on a black leather chair next to a marble fireplace, Len turned to the bookcase next to the TV and pulled out a pile of magazines. He sifted through them for a moment and picked one magazine out of the pile. He opened it up without having to search long and set the magazine down on a glass table next to Jim’s chair. When Jim glanced down at the magazine, he pressed his palm to his chest and gasped out loud.
“Mr. Mayfield,” Jim said. It was an old copy of a Playgirl magazine. Len had opened it to the infamous nude centerfold he’d done when he was in college. He could have been Cain’s identical twin brother back then. They had the same slightly hairy legs and large round biceps. Len must have been about Jim’s age when he posed for the photo. He was stretched out on black sheets, stark naked, holding an erection in his fist that was so large there had to be four inches sticking out of the top of his fist.
Len ignored Jim’s reaction. He took a long drag and asked, “I’m curious, Jim. What’s your impression of me? What do you see when you look at me?” He opened his shirt all the way and pulled it out of his pants.
Jim glanced at the large chest muscles and the ripples on his abdomen. This was the kind of body Jim had always wished he had. He looked down at the naked photo and took a deep breath. “I don’t understand, Mr. Mayfield.” Aside from a few wrinkles that only gave him more character now, Len looked almost exactly as he did when he’d posed nude in college.
“I want to know what you see when you look at me.”
Jim shrugged. He took a large gulp of martini and said, “You’re a cool dad.”
“Would you be surprised if I told you my wife and I haven’t had sex in more than ten years? I know she’s been seeing the tennis instructor and I turn my head the other way.”
Jim gulped his martini that time. “I think that’s too much information, Mr. Mayfield. You’re my best friend’s dad. I’m not sure I should be privy to that kind of personal information.” The martini was kicking in and he tried hard not to stare at Len’s naked torso. He tried even harder not to gape at the bulge between his legs. Len had hiked up his tight stucco chinos and his dick was pointing to the right. If Jim looked close enough he could see the outline of the head.
Len spread his legs wider and leaned back. “Did you know my wife is having an affair with her tennis instructor? Would you have guessed that I can fully understand why my wife finds her tennis instructor so appealing? I can’t blame her at all. You should see what he looks like in those tight white tennis shorts. He’s got an ass you could bury your face in for a week without coming up for air.” He laughed. “Of course he doesn’t have a brain in his head, which is a shame. He’s not smart and adorable like you, Jim.”
Jim’s chest tightened and he heard his heart beating in his ears. He stood up fast and said, “I think it’s time for me to leave, Mr. Mayfield. You’re starting to really freak me out now.” Though he wasn’t completely certain, he had a feeling Len Mayfield, his best friend’s father, was trying to seduce him. Or worse, maybe he was trying to find out if Jim was gay so he could make fun of him.
“We have the entire house to ourselves, Jim. It’s just you and me, two grown men, consenting legal adults who find each other attractive.”
Jim felt his face flush; he did find Len Mayfield attractive. He started to perspire at his temples. “Ah well, Mr. Mayfield. I think I know what you’re doing. This is wrong. You’ve been friends with my parents for years. We can’t do something like that. You’re a married man. I’m best friends with your son. My God, we went to baseball bible camp together.” Len felt like running out the door with his arms in the air. Of all the things he could have predicted that night, he never thought his best friend’s dad would do something like this.
“Oh, you know,” Jim said. “I’m not an idiot. Please stop playing with me. I might not be the most experienced guy in the world. But I think I know what you’re doing right now.”
Len shrugged. “I’m lost. You’re not making sense anymore.” Then he unbuckled his belt and opened his pants until his pubic hair was exposed. He couldn’t stop laughing; he seemed amused at Jim’s reaction.
When Jim saw that Len’s penis was almost fully erect and ready to tent out of his slacks, he looked up at the ceiling and said, “Give me a break, Mr. Mayfield. You know what you’re doing and I’ve never been so embarrassed in my life. You tell me all kinds of things. You’re all like, ‘My wife is having an affair with the tennis instructor.’ And then you’re all like, ‘I think the tennis instructor is a hot guy.’ I think you’re trying to get into my pants, Mr. Mayfield. And I have to tell you that I’m stunned, simply stunned.”
“Would that offend you?” Len asked. “Would you be disgusted if I were trying to get into your pants? Do you find the thought of making love to me that repulsive?”
“Well, I’m not offended,” Jim said. “I’d be shocked. You’ve known me since I was a child.”
“Would it make a difference if we’d just met for the first time?”
Jim didn’t think this time before he spoke. “In that case, it wouldn’t make a difference. And yes, I’d find you very attractive. But that’s not the point, Mr. Mayfield. What would Cain think? What would my mom and dad think?”
“Such drama,” Len said. “Of course I’m not trying to get into your pants, Jim. Would I do something like that to you?”
It dawned on Jim that he may have overreacted. Maybe he was so confused about everything in his life he’d assumed the worse about Len Mayfield. He lowered his voice and stared down at the floor. “Now I feel awful. Please forgive me, Mr. Mayfield. I don’t know what I was thinking. I’m an asshole. I really am. This is my problem in life. I never say or do the right thing. I’m not suggesting you’re gay or anything. I’m not admitting I’m gay or anything. Please let’s keep this between us. Please don’t repeat this to anyone.” The thought of Len Mayfield telling Jim’s father that Jim was gay made Jim want to vomit.
Len couldn’t stop laughing. “You’re not an asshole. You’re adorable, Jim. I’m actually flattered that you’d be attracted to a man my age. And, if you are gay, there’s absolutely nothing wrong with that.”
“Ah well, I didn’t say that I was gay, Mr. Mayfield. Don’t get me wrong. I’m not sure what I am to be honest with you. I do think you are a very attractive man. You’re gorgeous, in fact. But I don’t want you to get the wrong idea or anything. I’m not the kind of person who would seduce his best friend’s dad, my God.” He moved closer to Len and said, “Please forgive me for being such an asshole. I’m not myself right now. I didn’t mean to insult you.”
Jim would have babbled on all night if Len hadn’t said, “Have you ever seen the photo wall in Cain’s bedroom?”
The last time Jim had been in Cain’s bedroom was back when they were both in high school. He remembered how it smelled like Cain, a combination of soap and sweaty young man. “No. I’ve never seen the photo wall.”
“Then you’re in for a treat. My wife filled an entire wall in Cain’s bedroom with photos of him. There are photos of Cain playing football, photos of Cain on the beach, and photos of him during college debates.” He zipped up his pants; he adjusted his erection. “Follow me. I’ll show them to you.”
Chapter Four
* * *
Jim followed Len up to the second floor and down the hall to the last door on the right. Jim knew this was Cain’s bedroom. Though he hadn’t been up there in years, he and Cain had shared more than a few sleepovers there when they were kids. The bunk beds were gone now, replaced with a queen sized bed that had a black tufted leather headboard. The Star Wars bed-in-a-bag comforter and sheet set were gone and now there was a shiny black duvet and large square black pillows that matched the duvet.
Len gestured to the far right wall and said, “There you go. The entire wall is devoted to Cain.” Then he crossed to the right side of the bed toward a window that looked out over the swimming pool.
The only sound in the room was Jim’s heels clicking against the hardwood floors. He’d worn a new pair of Italian shoes he hadn’t broken in yet…part of his new sophisticated look. He crossed to a long white wall and glanced up and down at photos of Cain. His entire life was up there, from his kindergarten class photo to his college football team photo. Jim leaned forward and rubbed his chin. He smiled at the photo of Cain in swimming trunks. He must have been about thirteen there; he’d just started to grow hair on his legs and every time he came close Jim got an erection. He was carrying a surfboard and his hair was wet and messy. Even then, he looked absolutely perfect.
When Jim spotted a photo of himself standing with Cain next to a small dinghy, he smiled and said, “I don’t even remember when that was taken. It must have been at summer camp I guess.” He’d spent many a frustrated night sharing a small cabin with his old friend and a few other guys. Cain would lie in the cot next to his, in his underwear and no cover, and Jim would have to sleep on his stomach to conceal his erection. Sometimes he jacked off when he knew Cain and the other guys were sleeping. Sometimes he fell asleep with blue balls and a dick so hard he could have cracked marble with it.
Len smiled and said, “Did anyone ever tell you how much you look like Adam Levine, the rock star. I just saw him on TV the other night. If your hair was darker you could be his twin brother.”
Jim frowned. “I get that a lot. Some people even tell me I should dye my hair darker.”
“Don’t you touch a hair on your head,” Len said. “You’re perfect just the way you are. I like the changes you’ve made, too. The last time we met you were a messy kid in baggy pants and sweat shirts. Now you’re a sleek grown up guy with a more sophisticated look.”
Jim gulped. He’d never learned how to take compliments well. And that’s because he’d never had to deal with taking compliments up until now. Most of his life he’d been plain and ordinary. It wasn’t until recently, when it seemed as if people started to notice him and compliment his looks. Maybe the new short haircut and contact lenses had been a mistake. Things were easier when no one noticed him.
“Would you come over here and help me open this window,” Len said. “It’s a little stuffy in here and I feel like getting into bed.”
When Jim turned to face him, he saw that Len had removed his shirt and his pants were open again and hanging so low on his thin waist those sexy muscles near his pelvis were showing. He wondered once again how a man in his forties could look so good; he felt another sensation between his legs and sighed out loud. Why if Len’s pants had been a fraction of an inch lower Jim would have seen the base of his dick. “Ah well, Mr. Mayfield. Maybe you should sleep in your own room.”
Len shrugged; his chest muscles bounced. He rubbed his abdomen and said, “Cain’s with some girl from Austin. And my wife won’t be home until morning. I’d rather sleep in here. Besides, my wife and I don’t share the same bedroom. I either sleep here or in one of the guest rooms. Would you please come over and help me open the window.”
Jim didn’t like the sound of this. He didn’t want to get too close to his best friend’s half naked dad in an empty house. But he took a quick breath and walked to the other side of the room anyway. He kept his head down and his eyes fixed on his shoes.
When he reached the window where Len was standing, Len stepped back and set his palm on the small of Jim’s back. He gave him a gentle shove and guided him to the window. Then he leaned into Jim’s back, thrust his arms forward as if he were going to wrap them around Jim’s torso, and reached for the handles on the bottom of the window. “You push the top and I’ll pull from the bottom. This window sticks sometimes. I’ve been meanin
g to get it fixed.”
Len was so close now Jim could feel his breath brush against his neck. His deep smooth voice hummed in Jim’s left ear. Jim’s face grew warm again and his heart began to thump. In a moment, he knew he would perspire. He pressed the heels of his palms at the top of the window and gave it a sturdy shove. The faster he opened the window the faster he could get out of that house.
The window went up so fast Jim almost fell through the screen. It hadn’t been stuck at all. It slid up so easily Jim could have opened it with his pinky finger. He lost his balance and Len had to wrap his arms around Jim’s waist to keep him from falling.
Len held him tighter and said, “Wow, I guess that wasn’t stuck after all. Silly me.”
When Jim felt Len’s erection poking his ass, he turned sideways and climbed out from under Len’s arms. He moved without stopping, terrified to glance back at the half naked man, toward the bedroom door. “I’ll be going now, Mr. Mayfield. I think it’s time for me to leave. This is highly inappropriate behavior. Why your pants are ready to fall down, Mr. Mayfield. I knew you were trying to do this. I was right all along.”
“Don’t you want to help me get into bed, Jim,” Len said. “I was going to ask you to help me take off my shoes. My back has been bothering me lately and it’s painful when I bend down. Then you can tuck me in.”
Jim stopped at the door. He turned and smiled. “I’d rather not. I don’t think it’s a good idea.”
Len’s eyebrows furrowed; he set his hands on his slim hips. “Jim you’re acting like a child now. You’re a grown man. It’s not like I’m trying to force you into anything. You could have left a long time ago. I’ve noticed how you can’t stop looking at me. You’ve been undressing me with your eyes since you saw me at your party.”
