The next two days my phone physically felt heavier in my pocket. My lunch on Monday had featured President May giving me his personal cell phone number, so I could reach him if I ever needed to. It had been less than two weeks since I came out to this man that I greatly looked up to. He had become a father-figure for me. And...I had a huge daddy crush on him. Now, I had this man's cell phone number. I wanted to text him but felt like it would be too weird if there wasn't a legitimate reason to do so. He was the university president after all, and I was just some grad student.
The only half-reason I came up with was the classic "thank you card" message:
"President May, this is John Steiner. I just wanted to say thank you for our conversation on Monday and the help you have given me this summer. Also, I realized you didn't have my number yet! Dean Parsons keeps me busy but if you ever need any extra help on the first floor let me know! I'm your guy!"
I reread the text a few times and finally hit 'send.' I checked my phone every minute for the next ten minutes. I was impatient. I wanted to hear back. But nothing came. Relax John. He's a busy man.
Another thirty minutes passed, and then I felt my phone vibrate in my pocket. My hand immediately shot to my pocket like I was drawing a gun in a duel. It drew the attention and a weird look from my deskmate, Sophia. I looked away embarrassed and more calmly pulled my phone out of my pocket. It was a message from President May!
"Johnny! Good to hear from you! Yes, Monday was a good talk. You don't need an excuse to come and talk to me. My door is always open. Stop by any time!"
He had seen my text for what it was - a desire to connect with him again. I forced myself to wait five minutes before responding. It was a very long five minutes.
"Thank you, Sir. Will do!"
Right away, three blinking dots appeared. He was replying already!
"Do you golf?"
"Yes sir." I typed.
"Would you like to join me and the dean on Saturday at Brentwood? A good friend of mine, Dr. Patterson will be with us too. We need a fourth."
Yes! Ever since President May had mentioned he lived behind the 12th hole, I had dreamed about golfing with him. Maybe we'd end up in his house somehow? Better yet, his bedroom? I told myself to stop thinking crazy talk and accept the invitation while it was still on the table.
"I'd love to. That sounds like fun!"
Ten minutes later I heard from him again confirming my spot in their group.
"Great, looking forward to it! Tee time is at 10:55am. I'll be there around 10:15 warming up. See you then, son."
My heart jumped every time he called me "son." I screenshotted that sequence of texts and made sure to put it in a secret album on my phone for later use.
That whole week I felt like a kid counting down the days until Christmas morning. It couldn't get here fast enough. Saturday morning finally came, and I woke up early to eat a good breakfast and to give myself plenty of time to get ready.
I arrived at Brentwood a little after 10:15am and made the walk to the driving range with my bag slung over my shoulders. President May and Dean Parsons had snagged the two stalls closest to the entrance. Dean Parsons had a pair of tan khaki shorts and red polo with white stripes and a red Callaway hat. His shorts showed off his ass well especially when he bent over. The red polo pulled tight to his body during each swing exposing all his back and shoulder muscles. There was also a good side view of his "dad belly" when he finished his swing. Damn this man was sexy. And I had seen him naked too. Lucky me!
Behind him in the next stall was President May - a man I wanted to see naked even more. President May wore a pair of white golf shorts with a teal polo. He didn't need to be bent over to show off his ass. He completely filled his white golf shorts. The teal shirt accented his tan skin well. Perhaps, I thought, he was an older and fully matured version of Dean Parsons. This realized maturity only added to his sex appeal in my opinion. He was a daddy bear in every conceivable way.
Dean Parsons saw me first. He turned and tapped President May with the end of his club and motioned my way. President May shouted a greeting.
"Johnny! Glad you could make it! You ready to play with the big boys today?"
"Good morning Sir! Dean Parsons, how are you?"
We finished these quick greetings and small talk, and President May invited me to take the stall closest to him to get warmed up. I learned Dr. Patterson would be meeting us at the first tee. We hit balls for about fifteen minutes before making our way to the first tee. President May told me we could share his cart for the day, while the other two used their members' carts. I offered no objection to this idea and gladly took the passenger's seat next to my trusted mentor.
At the first tee there was a man who appeared to be waiting. He wore dark khaki pants, a navy blue golf polo, and matching visor. He looked to be about 6'0, 200lbs and probably in his early 50s.
"That's Dr. Patterson. He's one of my good friends - and a big donor to the university too. He makes gobs of money at the clinic he runs in town. I'm sure he'll mention that to you at some point. He likes to flaunt his success. He's a really good guy though. Actually, he's the one that highly recommended me when the school was looking for a new president. Trust me, you'll like him."
"About time you ladies showed up! I was worried I was going to have golf alone today."
"Well Doug, at least you would have come in first for once!" President May retorted as he stepped out of the cart. They laughed at their jabs and all three exchanged friendly handshakes.
They quickly caught up on how the morning was going and week had been. I noticed Dr. Patterson had the same outgoing alpha persona as the other two. He always had a smart comeback or something to add to the conversation - never lacking in gusto. He was a very handsome man. Whereas President May had a more rugged sexiness to him, Dr. Patterson was more a GQ magazine handsome. He had a strong jaw, warm smile, and stylish circular glasses that completed an intelligent and dignified look. I'm sure if he wanted to, he could steal a few wives from some unlucky husbands. Money and looks go a long way. I found myself already developing an admiration for the man. My focus was dawn back into their conversation when President May introduced me.
"Doug, this is John Steiner. He's a grad student at the university and has been working in the business department for us this summer." I stepped forward to shake his hand.
"John, pleased to meet you. I'm Dr. Patterson." He had a strong grip. When he released my hand I saw him give me a quick look up and down. "So you're with the big man here?" He said while patting President May's hard stomach. The comment struck me as a little odd. It seemed to have a "dating" or "together" implication. I wasn't sure how to respond. Neither was President May who was noticeably embarrassed by the comment - the first time I had ever seen him embarrassed.
"Rick and I have been working John pretty hard this summer, so we thought we would treat him to a little golf." President May sounded like he was covering for something. He then stepped between me and the doc shielding me with his back, so I couldn't read his lips. I couldn't make out what was being said except for when Dr. Patterson laughed and said, "Oh my mistake!"
Dean Parsons grabbed my attention and pulled me over to him. He was shaking his head and laughing to himself.
"John, why don't you do us the honors and take the first shot. Let's see what you got."
I walked with the dean further up in the tee box and stopped between the two white markers. The other two stayed towards the back of the tee box and carried on their private conversation. I was slightly nervous going first and decided to take a conservative shot. It landed in the fairway, but it was certainly not the furthest shot in the world. Dean Parsons drove his ball about 60 yards beyond mine. President May and Dr. Patterson hit their drives further than me as well. I hoped I would be able to hold my own with this group.
The three of them talked and joked like they were old pals. It took a couple holes for me to ease in and grow comfortable in this new dynamic. I adopted my usual demeanor and was the quiet one that listened and laughed when they laughed. I quickly figured out the tee boxes would be my favorite part of each hole. I greatly enjoyed checking out all three men's ample posteriors when they bent down to place their tee.
On the third hole Dr. Patterson and I hit drives close together on the fairway while President May and Dean Parsons were in the rough on the left side. This gave Dr. Patterson and me a chance to get acquainted with each other a bit more. He asked me about school and my post-degree plans. I also learned more about his local clinic. He was a family physician and his clinic had been quite successful for several years. This allowed him to hire more staff, so he could play golf more. "The boss golfs while the hired hands work" were his words. He only cared for his "VIP patients" now.
A cart attendant drove by, and he offered to buy me a beer. At first, I refused, but he insisted. He told the attendant to charge the drinks to his account and gave her a $20 tip. We toasted and resumed to hitting our second shots.
Dr. Patterson and Dean Parsons quickly showed themselves to be the superior players. Golf was much more of a social thing for President May. He was no slouch, but he enjoyed the time to unwind, crack a few jokes, and make small talk with the other players that we passed on nearby holes. The president was well-known.
President May also took advantage of our alone time in the cart to probe me a little bit about our new shared secret. He asked if I had given any more thought to coming out; if I was looking to date anyone; did I have any crushes on campus, etc. I lived up to my moniker as the avoidance ninja and gave very elusive answers. I wasn't ready to tell him who it was I fantasized about on most nights. Trying to change the subject, I asked him why he never married.
"I have had my relationships. I just don't feel the need to advertise them in a public way." He stepped out of the cart, grabbed an iron from his bag and began to take practice swings, all the while continuing to divulge a bit of his biography.
"I'm from a different time where being gay wasn't accepted. You're lucky to live in such an welcoming age. I didn't have that benefit. Now, I have enough friends around me that support me, I don't need to come out to anyone else. Plus, the university doesn't need their 60 year old president announcing he's gay. They need him to make them money and grow the university. And unfortunately, in this state of the Union, I think coming out would hinder those goals."
He took a big backswing and attacked the ball with a before unseen anger. THWACK! The ball soared high into the air. It was his longest iron shot of the day.
"Would you say you're out? How many others know?" I was trying to tread lightly but still wanted a better view into his life.
"A fair amount do now - all trusted friends. Not very many people at the university know, but I still live my life, John." He slid back into the cart and took me to my ball. "I have developed a good circle of friends that accept me for who I am." He gave me a side glance. "You have to find that in order to survive in this world."
