by John Simpson
“Eh, after the pounding you took last night, I figured you’d need the extra sleep,” Dean said with a smile.
“Hmm, you were hot, babe. You gave me exactly what I needed.”
“Glad I could oblige. Any plans for today?”
“No, but don’t forget that we host Hank and Shawn tonight for cards. Their bringing the beer and we’re providing the snacks and pizza.”
“Yes, I remember you telling me. It wouldn’t be the weekend unless we had those two in our home. You want me to make something, or just have some sandwiches delivered with the pizza?”
“Why don’t you save yourself the bother, and just have it all delivered. No sense in you slaving away in the kitchen,” Pat said with a broad smile.
“Okay, get up when you finish your coffee or whenever you feel like it. I have to run out to the store for a few things anyway, so I should be back like within forty-five minutes.”
“Okay, drive safely.”
When Pat heard the front door close, he took a long swallow of his coffee and jumped out of bed naked. He headed into the bathroom and took a nice hot shower to wash away the remnants of their lovemaking and to loosen up stiff muscles. When he’d thrown his legs over Dean’s shoulders last night, Dean had moved up enough so that his legs were bent farther than normal. As expected, the hot water accomplished both tasks and Pat knew that by the time Dean got back, he would be out of the bathroom, dressed, and downstairs refilling his cup.
As he sat down in the living room, Pat thought once again how much he loved Dean. Since meeting Pat, he had come a long way as far as loosening up, becoming much less staid and proper. Dean was actually a lot of fun and the perfect mate for him. It wasn’t fair that they couldn’t be married like heterosexual couples who were in this much love.
But why couldn’t they marry? It might not have any effect in the state of Maryland, but they would be legally married in six states and they could hope that one day their marriage might be recognized in Maryland. They could get married in Boston by a friend of Pat’s who was a Catholic priest. Pat began to get very enthusiastic over his idea and picked up the phone before Dean got back to see if he could get a hold of his priest friend.
He dialed the number and waited. On the sixth ring, Father Mark answered.
“Mark, this is Pat; how ya doing?”
“Hey Pat, I’m great on this crisp morning here in Boston. I guess it won’t be much longer and we’ll have snow on the ground. What’s up with you?”
“Well, I was wondering. Would you marry Dean and me?”
“Would I? You bet I would! Be aware though that the Commonwealth of Massachusetts has a minimum three-day waiting period between the time you apply for the license and the time a wedding mass can be performed. What month were you thinking, a June wedding maybe?”
“June? Nah, that’s far too long a wait. How about before the year is over? Say in December some time?”
“Wow, December is a very busy month for me, as you know. Are you planning a big wedding or a small one?”
“Well, I haven’t given it that much thought yet. But it could be just Dean and I, and my partner from work and his boyfriend. Would that be small enough?” Pat asked with a laugh.
“Wait, let me pull out my calendar, if you’re serious about this,” Mark said.
“Sure, I’m serious. I haven’t asked Dean yet, but I can’t imagine him saying no to a marriage proposal from me.”
“Well, like I said, the calendar is pretty full with Advent activities. What part of the month?”
“I don’t know, maybe towards Christmas?” Pat answered.
“Christmas? You do like to make it hard on me, don’t you?”
“Sorry, Mark,” Pat said, knowing he was asking a lot.
“How about Christmas Eve day?”
“Are you serious? You could marry us on the twenty-fourth of December?”
“Might as well. Just as busy then as I am the rest of the month. It would have to be no later than, say, noon, because I’ve got two masses Christmas Eve, including the midnight one.”
“Okay, pencil us in for, say, eleven o’clock. How’s that?”
“For you, my friend, yes. Let me know when you confirm all this. You haven’t even asked your man yet!”
“Okay, Mark; I hear Dean pulling into the driveway now. I better get off.”
“Okay, stay safe,” Mark said and the phone line went dead.
Pat heard the key in the door and Dean was in the house with a bag in his arms. “Boy, everybody is out in the stores buying everything. Are we getting an early snow or something?” Dean shouted.
“I don’t know, honey, but lemme put on the Weather Channel and see.”
Pat flicked on the television to the Weather Channel as his mind raced, planning his wedding. He would need to buy rings, and they would need to stay in Boston for a couple of days. Should they go on a honeymoon? Should he wear his wedding ring at work? He needed to talk to Hank and see what he thought about the work situation.
Pat became filled with the glory of love as he got up from the sofa and walked into the kitchen. Dean was bent over into the refrigerator putting things into it that he just bought.
“Hmm, one of the modern wonders of the world, that is,” Pat said.
Dean just turned his head without backing out of the fridge. “What?’
Pat smiled and Dean caught on. “Oh knock it off; you shouldn’t be horny this morning, or should I say this afternoon.”
“What did you buy?”
“Just odds and ends for tonight and the rest of the weekend. I’ll order a three foot sub and one large pizza from Guido’s; how’s that sound?” Dean asked.
“Sounds good to me. I’ll give the boys a call now,” Pat said as he went back into the living room and dialed his partner and best friend—second only to Dean.
“Hey dude, how’s it hanging? You bang that cutey of yours this weekend yet?” Pat asked.
“Hell yeah! I banged him like an old jungle drum. How about you?”
“I’m not saying who got banged, but I’m a happy camper this morning,” Pat replied.
“Ahh, you dog! Threw them legs up, huh? I always knew you were a confirmed bottom.”
“You know shit, that’s what you know!” Pat said with a roaring laugh.
“Yeah, yeah, whatever. So, we playing tonight?”
“Yeah, that’s why I’m calling. Say eight? You bring the beer; we’re going to order pizza and a three-foot sub. How’s that sound?”
“Sounds great to me. I’ll try and be finished keeping Shawn naked and sweaty by then, throw him in the shower so that the scent of sex doesn’t drive you both crazy with desire, and be there at eight sharp!”
“It’s a date. See ya tonight, and oh, I need to talk to you about something.”
“Oh? Something serious like the job, or what?”
“No, not the job, although it has some connection to it. But don’t say anything to Shawn, okay?”
“Okay, but you do this all the time and I hate it!”
“Do what?”
“Tell me you wanna talk about something serious and then make me wait to find out what it is. Douche bag!”
The phone went dead. Pat laughed and hung up standing there for a moment before he hit redial.
“What is it now? You figure out a new way to fuck with me?”
“Oh shut up; you’re worse than an old woman. Listen, can I swing by and pick you up, say, around two? I need you for about an hour and then I’ll have you back to the young and hung; what do you say?”
“Okay, I’m so curious about what you’re up to that I’ll interrupt the bedroom Olympics just for you.”
“Great, see you at two.”
Dean walked into the living room and put his arm around Pat’s midsection.
“Listen, honey, something minor has come up and I need to meet Hank at two o’clock. It’ll only take about an hour or so.”
“Can’t it wait till tonight?”
>
“No, it’s police stuff, administrative crap that we forgot to do. It needs to be taken care of before Monday.”
“Okay, just don’t be all afternoon.”
“You got it, sweet pea,” Pat said as he kissed Dean on the head. “I’d better cut the lawn real quick before I dash out to meet Hank. You can dust or whatever,” Pat continued.
“Dust, my ass. I’m gonna sit my ass down on this sofa, drink my soda, and find an old movie to watch.”
“That’s fine with me, baby,” Pat said as he went to the storage shed to get the mower.
As he mowed the front and back yard, Pat was planning how the entire wedding thing was going to play out. He would go to the store this afternoon with Hank and look for rings. He was going to get Dean a big fat solitaire diamond for an engagement ring and simple bands for wedding day. He would ask Hank to be best man and ask about getting the time off from work.
Pat would pay all the expenses for Hank and Shawn to come to Boston and stay for a couple of days. It would not only be nice to have them there, but they needed witnesses for the wedding license. Now, when would be a good time to ask Dean to marry him? Should he do it on bended knee or at dinner somewhere? He would ask Hank about that too.
He finished mowing the lawn at 1:45, jumped into his cruiser and took off to pick up Hank. He never thought that he would ever get married, especially once he realized that he was gay. However, fate had changed all that—fate and the good liberals of America. It was now possible to marry the one you wanted to spend your life with—thanks to the Commonwealth of Massachusetts that started it all.
He pulled into the apartment parking lot, and Hank waived from the window so that Pat didn’t have to get out of the cruiser. As Pat waited for Hank to come down, Shawn came to the window shirtless, and waved down at Pat as well. Pat gave Shawn an admiring glance from the front seat of the cruiser and instantly felt guilty considering he was going to ask his own man to marry him.
Hank came out and got into the front seat. “Well, what are you up to now?” Hank wanted to know.
“Listen, I’ve decided to ask Dean to marry me, as in going to Massachusetts and getting a marriage license and the whole deal. I want to go look at rings at that diamond emporium next to the mall and I want your opinion.”
Hank whistled. “Marriage, wow. Sure, let’s go.”
“I also wanna ask you to be my best man and have you and Shawn come up to Boston with us for the wedding; what do you say? I’ll pay for everything.”
“Best man? Hell yeah, I’ll be your best man. I’d shoot your ass if you’d asked anyone else. Shawn will be thrilled when he hears this.”
“Well, I haven’t asked Dean yet, so please don’t tell Shawn until then, okay?”
“Sure buddy. You wanna have a ring when you ask, is that it?”
“You got it. Let’s get going.”
Chapter Five
It took a little over an hour to find exactly the ring that Pat wanted to give to Dean as an engagement ring. With Hank’s blessing, he chose a diamond solitaire that weighed a little over one carat and was almost flawless. The stone was set in 14-carat gold and looked magnificent.
As they left the store, Hank asked, “Why did this whole issue of getting married even come up? It’s not like the state of Maryland is going to recognize it.”
“I don’t know what came over me. I was sitting there thinking about how lucky I was to have such a beautiful man who I love more than life itself, when I realized that if I was straight and he was a woman, I’d be getting married if she said yes. From there, it was an easy jump to asking Dean to get married.”
“Damn, you know I think about Shawn that way too. I wouldn’t replace him with anyone in the world. I’m damn lucky he puts up with my shit!”
“So do the right thing; ask the man to marry you! We can make it a double ring ceremony!” Pat exclaimed.
“Ah, Shawn’s a little young to be getting tied down, don’tcha think?”
“Plenty of couples in their late teens and early twenties get married every day; why should you and Shawn be any different? Now, if on the other hand, you don’t love him, well that’s a different story.”
“Who said that? I love him totally. When exactly are you going to ask Dean?”
“I’m not sure really. I think I want it to be in private rather than public. Why do you ask?”
“Picture this: we both get down on our knees at the same time and ask our guys to marry us? Would that be outstanding or what, partner?”
“Don’t do this just because I’m asking Dean. You should only ask that sweet boy of yours if you really want to do this,” Pat chastised.
“Fuck, man, I said I wanna do this. It even feels right! Call Dean and tell him that we’re tied up longer than you expected and we’ll go back to the store. I need a ring!”
An hour and a half later, both men had engagement rings on their persons when they returned to their respective abodes. Both took great pains to keep the bulge of the ring box well hidden to give no hint of what was to come.
“Well, there you are. Ya know, if it’s your day off, you should be off. Can’t that place get by without you for two days in a row?” Dean asked with a frown.
“Sure, honey, but once in a while there’s going to be a report or something that has to be done whether I happen to be off or not. Now, I’m done for the rest of the weekend.”
“Good, ’cause while you’ve been working for the public again, I’ve made some appetizers for tonight.”
“Ah, they look good. Why don’t we lie down for an hour so that and rest up for tonight?”
“You just wanna get me back in bed again,” Dean said with a smile.
“Oh I don’t need an excuse for that. I’d just tell you to get your ass up to bed!”
“Ha! As if….”
“Go on up, I’ll be right behind you,” Pat said.
After Dean got to the bedroom, Pat pulled out the ring box and hid it in the hallway closet with his police gear. The ring would be safe there until it was needed in a few hours. Pat bounded up the stairs two at a time and was in bed as quickly as he could manage.
When Pat threw his arm over Dean and began to snuggle in for a nap, Dean said, “Are you telling me that you really just wanted to catch a nap up here?”
“Yep. I’m a little tired, honey, let’s sleep.”
Dean exhaled in such a way as to communicate dissatisfaction. The message was received by the intended recipient who just smiled and fell asleep. A little over an hour later, Pat woke up to an empty bed. It was sunset and slightly overcast. It looked like an early winter night already.
Pat got up and went into the bathroom where he wiped his face with a hot washcloth. He combed his hair, brushed his teeth again, and headed downstairs after changing his shirt. He found the dining room table all set up for cards, and a small bar set up on one of the kitchen counters.
“My, you’ve been busy while I was sleeping,” Pat observed.
“Just trying to make you look fabulous in front of our closest friends,” replied Dean.
“And a damn fine job you’ve done of that. I think I’ll have a cup of coffee before the boys get here.”
“Well, you’ve got about forty-five minutes before they arrive.”
Pat made his coffee and went into the living room where he sat down. He was nervous, but not quite sure why; after all, he expected Dean to say yes. As he sipped his coffee, it became apparent that he was taking one of those big steps in life. Asking someone to marry you, regardless of gender, was a major step. It also meant, in a funny way, that he was getting older. Gone were the days of childhood games, and now began the trials of manhood in adult life.
The ringing doorbell brought him out of his musing. He got up and opened the door to find two cute, smiling faces staring at him. “Come in guys, welcome!” Pat said as Hank and Shawn walked in and took off light coats.
“Hi, guys,” yelled Dean from the kitchen. “I’ve got some snac
ks prepared for us until Pat orders the pizza and sub,” he continued.
“Need any help?” asked Shawn.
“Only in eating all of this,” replied Dean.
Pat pulled Hank into the living room as Shawn went into the kitchen to chat with Dean. “So, when do you want to pop the question, or have you changed your mind?” Pat asked.
“Changed my mind? Hell no, I haven’t changed my mind. How about after the pizza, so that if our mates get carried away with joy, we can just carry them away!” Hank suggested.
“Okay, that’s sound good. You’re going down on one knee to ask, right?”
“Yep, gonna do it right.”
“Excellent!” Pat responded.
“What’s excellent?” Shawn asked as he and Dean entered the living room.
“Oh, I was just telling Hank that the Redskins are playing the Eagles next Sunday at FedEx field,” Pat replied.
“Oh cool,” was the only response from Shawn and Dean.
“Do you want to get to the cards now, or wait for a bit?” Dean asked.
Hank looked at Pat and before Pat could say anything, Hank said, “Shuffle the cards!”
Everyone went into the dining room and took their usual seats. It was poker and the various versions of it for a couple of hours. Finally, Pat looked at his watch and announced that he was ordering the food.
Everyone took a quick break while Pat called the pizza joint and gave them the delivery order. The manager happened to be a motorist that Pat had stopped one night, and given a break too. Even though he smelled a light scent of booze on the man’s breath, Pat didn’t believe he was under the influence enough to arrest. Instead of arresting him and taking him in for a breathalyzer, Pat put him in the cruiser and drove him the nine blocks to his home. Tonight, Barry, the manager at Pizza and Subs To Go recognized Pat’s name and repaid the kindness. About thirty-five minutes after the order was placed, the doorbell rang. Pat opened the door to find Barry with his arms full of food. He handed Pat two large pizzas with everything, and an overstuffed three-foot sub. Pat paid for the food, of course, but got much more than he ordered.
