Diamonds in the Rough

Thanks to SoCalOvid for his remarkable editing skills.

Readers:

If you haven't already done so, please read Chapter 1 first!

This story requires you to have the willingness to accept an odd and unusual relationship. It calls for an open mind, and an unlocked heart.

Diamonds In the Rough Ch. 2

**

Samantha Weatherly took another sip of her beer, she heard the man with the Chardonnay, a few empty seats down, sniffle. He wiped his nose on his sleeve, and hid his head in his folded arms. She heard him sob.

'So typical of a man not to be prepared,'

she thought. Sam reached into her pocket pulled out a travel packet of tissue and tossed it to the crying man. He looked up at Sam, nodded his thanks before blowing his nose and wiping his eyes. Looking back at the party, he began crying again. Sam had seen enough. She got up and walked over to the empty seat next to him sat down, and put her arms around the distraught human being. He looked up at her as she gently rocked him in her arms.

Lynn Jacobs rested his head on the woman's shoulder and sobbed. Seeing the happy couple upset him. Lynn's partner of eight years left him three months ago for greener pastures on the west coast. Lynn couldn't believe it when Eric came to him saying he needed more in his life. They had been together for so long.

**

Lynn met Eric at college where he was majoring in interior design and Eric was an aspiring architect. Lynn was twenty-one and Eric was twenty at the time. They met at the Gay/Lesbian Club at the university. Lynn remembered that day so well.

Eric came onto him in the club's lounge. Lynn was immediately smitten by this gorgeous man. Eric had jet black hair, and golden brown eyes. He was as muscular as a Greek god and Lynn thought about the old clichés gazing into this Adonis.

Eric asked Lynn out on a date and on the third date, they kissed. Eric, being the aggressor, gently cupped Lynn's head with his hands firmly planting his lips onto Lynn's waiting mouth. Lynn almost swooned at the touch. His cock began to stir as Eric slowly opened Lynn's lips with his tongue and probed the mouth of his new lover. Suddenly, Eric looked at Lynn smiled and said goodnight! Lynn went back to his dorm and furiously masturbated. When he came he called Eric's name. Gathering his cum, Lynn licked his fingers clean, praying that this man was the one for him.

Three dates later, Eric invited Lynn into his room. They sat on the bed making out when Eric reached down grasping Lynn's penis through his pants. Lynn moaned as Eric began massaging him. Soon they had their clothes off. Eric took Lynn's virginity that day.

For eight years they shared the same bed — until three months ago.

Eric came into their apartment and announced he was leaving. He'd gotten a job in the Seattle area, he explained, and would be gone tomorrow. Lynn was completely blindsided by this; he was stunned, his thoughts chaotic.

"Why do this Eric? Why do you want to leave me?" Lynn asked tears forming in his eyes.

"Lynn, Lynn, Lynn. It has nothing to do with you; I've found the perfect job, but it's in Seattle." Eric said. "I need to expand my horizons, and there is nothing here for me anymore."

"What about me?" Lynn asked, "Aren't I something?"

Avoiding the question Eric replied, "Honestly Lynn — would you have followed me out to Seattle at the drop of a hat? You won't leave this area. You're so close to your parents it's stifling."

Lynn stunned by his crass remark, responded, "How long have you been planning this Eric?"

"I've thought about it for about a year now. I finally landed the job last week," he said. "Remember when I was going out of town attending seminars? What I was really doing was interviewing for jobs."

Lynn was shocked. Eric had planned this for quite some time and had no intention of telling him, or taking him along. Hurt beyond belief, Lynn began crying.

"Oh stop it, you little wimp," Eric said, chastising his now ex-lover. "You will find someone else, like I did. Don't fucking worry about it."

"Wha... Wha... What did you just say?" Lynn demanded, not believing what he just heard.

"I said, you will find someone else," Eric repeated.

"No, no, that's not what you said," Lynn replied his voice beginning to crack. "You said, 'Like I did.' Those were your exact words."

"Oh shit, I'm sorry Lynn; you weren't supposed to hear that," Eric said walking over behind Lynn. When Eric reached Lynn he began massaging his shoulders. It was what Eric would do to make Lynn feel better, and it usually worked because Lynn loved the feel of Eric's hands massaging and caressing him. But not this time.

Lynn angrily smacked Eric's hands away. "When did you find somebody else?" he yelled.

"Calm down Lynn, it just happened a few months ago. I met Allen in Seattle. We began hanging and fell in love," Eric said.

"Fell in love? What about us Eric? What about our eight years together?" Lynn asked incredulously.

"It was good while it lasted, but I never had the same feelings for you that you had for me. I enjoyed having sex with you, but you never liked giving me blowjobs," Eric said with contempt.

"Eric, what do you mean? I give you great head," Lynn said, startled Eric would think that.

"Bullshit, Lynn! You never swallow my cum. You won't even take it in your mouth," Eric replied.

"Well if you would quit eating asparagus, broccoli, limit the garlic, and onions before we make love, I most certainly would swallow your spunk," Lynn protested. "I told you, that junk gives it a horrible flavor, and makes me want to puke."

"That's just more bullshit Lynn. Allen has no problem swallowing my 'spunk' regardless of what I eat," Eric said coldly. "That's just a fucking excuse and you know it."

Hearing Eric say his rival's name, Lynn began to sob, saying, "Fuck you Eric, it isn't an excuse. I've asked you on numerous occasions to eat some pineapple or raisins before we fuck, but you won't!"

Trying to save face, Lynn asked, "Besides don't I make up for it with my fabulous rim jobs?"

"Yeah, your tongue drives me wild back there. I love the way you can twist it into all those shapes. You are fanfuckingtastic at rim jobs Lynn, but I need more than a talented tongue and a tight ass," Eric said.

"You're nothing but an ass-kisser Lynn," Eric teased. "Allen is the consummate party animal. He sucks me, fucks me. I suck him, and fuck him. We do it all, all the time."

Lynn began to cry. He had loved Eric with all his heart. But now it was over. Eric had played him for a fool for eight years. Lynn thought that Eric would be his forever. He began to sob again. Lynn wiped his nose on his sleeve and asked a question he didn't really want to know the answer to.

"Eric did you ever love me?" Lynn asked, tears falling fast.

"Didn't you hear me you stupid little twit? I loved you, but not as much as you loved me. To me, you were a stepping-stone. You provided stability for me while I worked on becoming the best architect ever," Eric confessed, all the while boasting about his true motivation.

Lynn slumped into the chair. How could he have been so stupid, so blind? Their relationship was a complete and total sham. Putting his head in his hands, Lynn cried like a little girl.

"Aaaawh, poor little baby," Eric said, his voice dripping with venom. Tired of Lynn's 'girly' behavior, Eric went for the coup-de-grace.

Patting Lynn on the back, Eric said with a smirk, "Oh, by the way Lynn, I fucked Allen the first day I met him.

"Wait a second; not fuck, wrong choice of words. We made love. I just fucked you," he said, laughing at Lynn.

"You selfish; self-centered prick!" Lynn whined at Eric, his voice screeching. "Get out, get out now! You beast; you beastly man — get out, get out get ooouutt!"

"I will, you little pussy. I already told you I'm leaving tomorrow. You never even noticed that most of my things were already gone. Have a good life Lynn," Eric said, walking out on Lynn for good.

Lynn ran to the bedroom and threw himself on their bed, sobbing uncontrollably. Then, feeling nauseous, Lynn ran to the bathroom, and threw up.

**

For the next two months, Lynn wallowed in self-pity. Eric's cruelty took its toll on his gentle soul. Lynn finally got up the courage to go out and try to find love again.

He considered going to 'The Hayloft' first, but heard it was full of biker fags. He shuddered at the thought. Not knowing of any other gay bars in the area, Lynn scanned the internet. He was surprised when 'Gigi's' popped up; it was only a few miles away and he'd never known it was there. The description and reviews seemed good, but Lynn was still nervous about going. It took a month before Lynn finally got the courage to actually walk into the bar.

Lynn dreamt about Gigi's again on Valentine's Day night. It was a fitful sleep, because he was all alone on the most romantic day of the year. In that dream, he met his life mate. Lynn couldn't quite make out the face; about the only thing he could remember was the black hair. According to the dream, his new partner would be there during the day. Lynn laughed at the dream; he didn't really believe in fate, but he made the decision to finally go.

Lynn went there after work on Thursday. He made himself presentable and timidly walked into the bar. His first impression was disappointing. Except for a large party in the corner, and a few Lesbians at the tables, there were hardly any people in the room.

Lynn sat down at the bar, and ordered a glass of Chardonnay. Shelly placed the drink in front of him and smiled. Putting a fiver down, Lynn took a small sip. He noticed the butch a few seats over to his right. Her right hand was wrapped in a bandage, and of course how could he forget the loud and obnoxious party in back. With his head down contemplating what to do next, he cursed Eric for putting him in this predicament. Dream or no dream, Lynn decided this wasn't such a good idea.

All of a sudden the group yelled, "Happy 20th anniversary to Bob and Michael! Everyone! Please toast the loving couple!!"

Lynn broke down and wiped his nose on the sleeve of his shirt. He put his head down and sobbed into folded arms. Suddenly he felt something hit his arm. Lynn glanced up and saw a travel-size packet of tissue on the bar counter. He looked to his right and he saw the lesbian point to the packet of tissue. There was a sad yet gentle smile on her face.

Lynn nodded his head in thanks. He opened the package and took out a tissue to blow his nose. He placed the used tissue on the bar and took out another one to wipe his tear stained cheeks and eyes. Lynn turned and looked at the celebration once more. He began to shake and started to cry again when he felt an arm reach around him.

Lynn jerked up at the touch, and was stunned to see it was the butch, holding him in her arms. She was very strong. When Lynn unpretentiously looked into her brown eyes, he saw them well with tears. He put his head on her shoulder and began to sob again. Lynn felt her strong arms gently squeeze him as she lightly rocked him telling him it would be okay; he heard pain in her voice. He stole another glance and saw tears streaming down her cheeks.

Lynn took a tissue from the packet she gave him, and handed it to her. She smiled, and dabbed her cheeks and eyes. Sam realized she still had her arm around him and with gentle compassion released her grasp as she adjusted herself on the chair.

"Hi, my name is Sam," she said holding out her hand.

"Hi Samantha, I'm Lynn," he said grasping the offered hand.

His handshake amazed her. Sam was used to the strong hands of her coworkers, and Lynn's weak handshake surprised her but not as much as his use of her full name, 'Samantha'. She sighed, and asked him what was wrong. Lynn spent the next few minutes describing, to a perfect stranger, the event three months prior that had revealed his long-term relationship to be nothing more than a sham. He told her in stark and painful detail how Eric had betrayed him and left to start a new life with a new lover. Sam listened intently. She realized they were both going through the same thing. Sort of 'kindred spirits' she thought.

After Lynn was done telling his sad tale, he listened intently while Sam described her own situation. She told him about Alexis, and Brittany's betrayal — which was worse in some ways, as Sam had actually caught them having sex. Lynn shook his head in disbelief, sad and amazed at how he and Sam had been treated by their partners. They both thought they were in relationships for the long haul, only to have their legs kicked out from under them.

Lynn realized that he'd reached his limit for one day — he needed to leave.

"Samantha, it was nice to meet you, but I have to go."

"Oh, sure Lynn. Try to have a nice day. It was good to talk with you," Sam said.

"Likewise Samantha. It felt good to share with you too."

"Lynn, please call me Sam; I prefer that to Samantha." she said with no hint of anger.

"Oh, sorry Sam, I didn't mean to upset you. I hope things get better for you, and you find that special lady," Lynn said sincerely.

"Thanks Lynn, no offense taken. I hope you find the man of your dreams soon."

"I thought I did Sam, but he doesn't want me anymore," Lynn said, trying to stop the inevitable break down. He quickly gulped the rest of the Chardonnay and left, almost running out of the bar.

Sam looked at Shelly and asked, "Shell, who was that?"

Shelly picked up the empty glass and replied, "Another lonely soul Sam, I don't know his name. I never saw him before. I couldn't help but overhear your conversation. It was very nice of you to console him the way you did."

"C'mon Shell, you know I treat everyone the way I would want to be treated," Sam said with a small smile.

"When I heard what his boyfriend did to him, I wanted to wring the asshole's neck! That piece of shit fucked him over good. Just like Alexis did to me. I could really empathize with Lynn, so it was excellent therapy for me to share my experience, and good for him to talk about his situation too," Sam said.

"Yeah, I could see that. You two sort of connected on a higher level when you were sharing," Shelly replied.

"I don't know about that Shell; it just felt good to talk with him. Well, I need one more beer to make it six, and then I'm going home to throw out their 'fuck bed', and do my best to forget Alexis," Sam said choking up just a little. Hearing her stomach growl, she asked Shelly for a menu, not quite ready to leave.

Lynn returned to his empty apartment. He felt abandoned. His trip to the bar proved futile. He laughed at the dream he had the other night.

'So much bullshit,'

he thought.

Sam was nice enough, but 'she' wasn't a 'he'. Lynn did enjoy talking with her. He wondered what she did for a living. She seemed to be rather strong. He liked that in a person, male or female.

Lynn sat down at his desk and went over tomorrow's appointments. Lynn was especially looking forward to the conference at Macy's. His skills as an interior wizard got him the contract to redesign their offices. The meeting with the subcontractor tomorrow was to go over the plans. Lynn hoped throwing himself into his work would lessen the pain of Eric's betrayal.

Slowly he realized that life was beginning to look brighter.

Sam got back to her place at seven that evening. She went inside and was relieved that Alexis had taken her things and was gone. Sam felt sadness that the relationship ended with Alexis' betrayal, but was glad she got rid of the cheater quickly. Sam wondered if the bitch Brittany had helped. She doubted it. Brittany was a user, and Alexis fell for it. She started to tear up again, when she saw the envelope on the table. It was addressed to her in Alexis' handwriting. Sam didn't know what to do with it. She finally decided to put the envelope in a drawer to look at later, much later. The wounds were still too raw.

Sam stretched and yawned, definitely not tipsy after six beers, but she was very tired. Tonight would be the last night on the sofa-bed; her new bedroom set would be here tomorrow. Sam couldn't wait.

**

Almost three months had passed since Sam caught Alexis cheating on her. She was doing better and had gone out on a few dates, but never felt any serious connection. Sam became concerned if she could find someone to love again. Alexis called a few times, but Sam never answered the phone, or bothered to listen to the messages. As far as she was concerned that part of her life was over.

Sam spent a lot of time thinking about her parents. She wished they were still here, instead of in Arizona. Sam was glad she had her job to go to every day. At least she had friends at work. Nevertheless, it was hard coming home to an empty house.

In early May to help ease her loneliness, Sam went to the local animal shelter. Sam thought she would get a cat, until she accidentally walked by the dogs.

Looking into a cage she saw him lying there. His ears perked up as he sensed her presence. Sam read his bio, and learned the big black dog was a little over a year old. He had been hit by a car and was found cowering in a yard under some bushes. His left hind leg had been badly cut, and his right ear had almost been ripped off. The veterinarian had repaired both, eight stitches for the ear, and twenty-five in his leg. He was neutered, and after a month, the fur was growing back nicely where it had been shaved. Today was the first day he was available for adoption.

The dog looked up at Sam, his chestnut eyes called to her. She squatted in front of his cage to get a closer look. Carefully she reached in to stroke his ears. The dog gave her hand a gentle lick and Sam's heart melted. She fell in love with the Belgian Sheepdog. Sam adopted the gentle giant that night and named him 'Major.'

Major was a smart dog. She took him to training classes, and he picked up the commands very quickly. Soon she and Major were walking around the neighborhood — well, actually strutting. Everyone who saw them could see how much Major loved Sam. For her part, Sam enjoyed having someone to care for again.

She never knew how much she missed that part of her life until she adopted the black dog.

Sam talked with her boss, and he agreed to limit her out-of-town assignments. The local kennel she had found was good, but Major was her dog and he missed her terribly when she left. When Sam picked him up, he literally jumped in her arms. Sam was amazed at the love this seventy-pound fur ball gave her. She hoped that one day soon she would find another person to love as much.

**

Lynn was busy at Macy's. It was the last week in June and it was near the end of the job. The offices were looking superb. He was complimented extensively on his choice of fabrics, and color schemes. Lynn enjoyed arranging the charming silk flowers, and wistfully pretended that his knight in shining armor gave them to him. He thought less and less of Eric. He was in full recovery mode.

Lynn headed to a restaurant in the mall and did a double take. He saw Sam sitting at a table eating lunch. He remembered how kind she was to him back in February. He really appreciated that.

Lynn was embarrassed at how he had run out, but at the time it seemed like the right thing to do. Lynn walked over to Sam.

"Hi Sam. Remember me?"

Glancing up, Sam smiled. "Hi Lynn! How are you doing? It's good to see you again."

"I'm doing fine Sam; time heals the wounds, they say," he said with a wry grin. "I wanted to thank you for helping me that day. I needed a shoulder to cry on. I'm sorry I ran out the way I did."

"No worries," she said. "Would you like to sit down and join me?"

"Glad to Sam. I see your hand is better," he said sitting down nodding at her right hand.