There was a knock at the door. Gary folded up his newspaper and walked down the hall and pulled open the door.
"Gary? Hi I'm Joe; I spoke to you over the phone this morning about letting your spare room."
Gary was taken a back for a moment and sized up his counterpart; he looked up into the young man's big brown eyes as his heart skipped a beat.
Joe carried a small backpack over one shoulder and had a suit case sitting behind him. Gary had heard the same Australian accent over the phone this morning but was expecting someone a little bit older. He had a deep voice which you would expect from a more mature man.
Gary met his hand with his own which was a bit smaller and stockier than his new guest.
Gary replied "Hi yes I'm Gary, please come in. I wasn't expecting you till after lunch"
"Sorry I couldn't wait; I was too excited to see my new place... I mean that's if you like me" Joe's expression change to a cheeky grin.
Gary smiled and ushered him into the lounge room.
As Joe followed Gary he studied the man from behind, he was a short but stocky man in his mid forties standing maybe a few inches shorter than himself. He gave Joe the impression that he was not the most agile of characters but was very powerful as his heavy feet bounded into the lounge room.
"What brings you to northern England Joe?"
Joe wasn't expecting that question upfront but replied a little hesitantly, "Oh... bit of a long story but just got to the point in my life when I needed a change of scenery and to take on a new adventure"
"Oh OK, well I am not sure you have come to the right place if you are after adventure but I guess this will be somewhat different to what you experienced back home"
Gary proceeded to give Joe the guided tour while probing deeper with a few more questions regarding upkeep, pets and smoking.
After about 10 mins they sat down in the kitchen for a cup of tea.
Gary had received a few enquiries about the room but for different reasons rejected all previous applicants.
Joe seemed to tick all of the boxes and Gary said he could move in straight away if he wanted to. Joe accepted instantly as he had been staying in a local hostel for the last few days since arriving in the country and was craving to find somewhere a little more homely.
They chit chatted into the afternoon covering quite a few topics.
Both men were single and no real sign of romance on the horizon and Gary tried to delve a little deeper to find out more about Joe's love life but he changed the subject after confirming that he had recently split from his long time girlfriend.
Joe didn't have a job lined up just yet but explained that he had come from a finance background but wasn't really looking at returning to the same industry even though he was only in his late twenties. He just wanted to see what happened and go with the flow for a little while.
Joe excused himself after lunch and wanted to explore the town a bit more. Gary invited him to have a drink tonight and he would order some Pizza.
Joe accepted and looked forward to it.
Joe returned at dusk with a six pack of beer and a bottle of white wine and Gary accepted the gift and cracked open a beer for his new tenant.
They talked for a while about the day's events as they waited for the Pizza to arrive.
Joe broached the subject again about Gary's love life asking if he had a special lady. Gary replied sheepishly.
"Na, no special lady as such... well I don't really go for the ladies if you know what I mean."
"Oh" was Joe's reply.
"You don't really give off the impression that you swing that way if you don't mind me saying. I don't really know any gay men and I guess it is a stereotype but I would expect you to be overly flamboyant."
Gary laughed out loud and the mood lightened a bit, Gary was worried that he might scare his new roommate off if he knew he was gay, but it didn't seem to bother Joe at all. Joe asked a few more questions and Gary obliged.
The door bell rang and the Pizza arrived, Gary paid the delivery man and they both had an enjoyable evening.
The next morning Joe woke early and found Gary in the kitchen with coffee and cereal. Gary had to head off to work in town at the local government offices. Joe said he would do a bit more sightseeing and would have dinner ready for him tonight.
Gary smiled and thanked him as he walked out the door.
The days passed as both men fell into a routine, Gary working Monday to Friday with Joe either taking day trips or just hanging around the house. He was pretty handy and started to apply himself to the back garden and do some fixing up. Gary was pleased with his efforts and reassured himself by knowing he made the right decision by taking Joe in.
A few weeks had gone by since Joe had moved in and both men were developing a close relationship. One Friday night Gary mentioned he was having a few friends over for drinks and Joe was more than welcome to join them.
Joe accepted and was looking forward to it.
Later that evening Joe returned home from the Gym and heard women's laughter coming from the dining room as he walked through the door.
Joe poked his head through the door and his eyes met two ladies sitting around a table with Gary and a couple of bottles of wine.
The lady on Gary's left was a full figured woman in her late thirties. Her name was Anne and had short dark hair and was quite attractive, her large bosom overflowed onto the table as she let out a hearty laugh. Joe's eyes were immediately drawn to her curves as her laughter made her breasts bounce.
The second lady, Daisy, was a slim blond woman who Joe guessed was in her late forties but was trying hard to look a few years younger. She was also smiling from a joke that Gary had just made when she noticed Joe standing in the door way.
"Don't mind me I've just finished up at the gym."
Come have a drink Gary said.
"I will very soon, I'll just have a quick shower and freshen up."
As Joe left the room he heard one of the ladies say "Oooh he's cute Gary, tall dark and handsome, I see you have very particular tastes for you new house guests" the roomed file with laughter as Joe turned on the shower.
A little while later Joe came back dressed in something a little more casual and he sat down at the table to join in.
"You're a couple of drinks behind" said Anne as she giggled and poured him a glass of wine.
Without a hesitation he grabbed her half full glass and downed it in one gulp as he reached for his new glass and also took a large gulp from it too.
Anne burst into laughter and Joe's eyes were drawn to her heaving breasts again. Anne noticed his vision stray and smiled brightly.
Joe looked her in the eye again and said with a cheeky grin. "If I die tonight I hope I am reincarnated as a motor boat."
Anne roared with laughter, "If you put those gym shorts back on you can start my engine whenever you want."
Everyone laughed, although Gary just let out a small chuckle, he was shocked by Joe's surprising comments and with the ease he flirted with the women. Gary felt a little bit of jealously in the pit of his stomach as he wished that Joe would flirt with him too.
Daisy changed the subject and said to Joe that they were about worried how long he was in the shower for and they were going to send Gary in to rescue me as she gave Gary a nudge under the ribs.
Everyone laughed again but Gary actually did wish he could have gone into the bathroom and joined Joe in the shower. Gary's eyes locked in on Joe as he was focused deep in conversation, Gary started to picture the steamy youthful body being pinned up against his own but was snapped back to reality as Anne roared with laughter again.
As the night wore on and the drinks flew freely, the girls gossiped about peopled they knew and Gary's love life, well the lack of it as Gary had put it.
Anne suggested they all head out sometime and even said Joe should be Gary's wingman to help him get some action.
Joe obliged and smiled at Gary,
Gary tried to side step the subject but Anne persisted and reminisced about Gary's one time love affair when he was in university, He was on a very long dry spell. The girls laughed again and Daisy could see the embarrassment in Gary's face so she changed the subject.
It was 1 or 2 am when the Ladies called a cab and left for the evening. Joe thanked them for the entertainment as they headed out the door and said they would have to do it again some time.
Joe returned to the table where Gary was sitting with an almost empty glass.
They had chatted for a while as Joe finished his wine.
"Gary, I wouldn't mind being your wingman if it would help."
Gary smile "Yeah, that would be great but you might need to guide me through the process, it has been a while since I tried the dating scene."
Joe chuckled, finished his wine than stood up and excused himself.
"Thanks for the great night, I had fun. Next time though we will hit the club and find you a man."
Gary smiled as Joe left the room and thought to himself – I have already found the man I want but I don't think he knows it yet."
Several days later Gary returned home after attending a work function where he had had a few drinks.
He heard the shower running and noticed Joe's gym bag sitting in the doorway of his bedroom.
Daisy's comment had been playing over in his mind about him joining Joe in the shower and he secretly prayed for an opportunity to do so.
The alcohol from the function had put Gary in a courageous frame of mind and he thought this might be his chance.
