Hey all: This is a multi-part story. This first part is character development and build up. I promise there will be hot sex in the next chapter! Please--give me your feedback. It helps me be a better write. Thanks!
Tom sat at his mahogany desk at 4pm on Friday afternoon and gazed out the 37th floor window onto the city below. His last client of the day had just left and the law suit they had settled would earn him a substantial commission. He was 42 years old, had a corner office, was a senior partner in an international law firm, and had been earning seven figures for the past five years. He drove the latest range rover, lived in a tony downtown loft apartment, and had a terrific group of friends. He was on the boards of the local theater and food shelf and had long been rumored to run for political office.
He seemed to have everything going for him.
But Tom was lonely.
Jeremy, his college boyfriend and love of his life, died from a brain tumor four years earlier. Tom had grieved, thrown himself into work, and had resigned himself to being single in a world of Grindr and Scruff. Occasionally, his friends would drag him to the Eagle for beers and a cigar and some eye candy. But he wasn't interested in casual sex. He made no judgments; it just wasn't his thing. His love with Jeremy had been so complete—they met their first week of college and were together for almost 20 years before Jeremy came home from work one day with a bad headache. He was diagnosed with a glioblastoma—a rapidly growing malignant brain tumor—that despite radiation, chemo, and two surgeries—claimed his life a week after his 38th birthday.
That was four years ago.
And Tom hadn't even considered moving on.
Until this Friday afternoon.
His phone rang.
Looking at caller id, it was his twin sister, Annie.
"Hey sis, what's up?" he asked as he put on his sport coat.
"Uncle Tom, it's not my mom. It's Phillip!" bellowed his seven year old nephew.
"Well hey Buddy! What's going on? How was school?" he asked.
"Well, Uncle Tom. I'm doing a project for school," the toothless boy stated very seriously. "And I need to interview a grown up who I admire."
"Well I'm honored little guy. How can I help?" asked his Uncle.
They chatted for a few minutes about being a lawyer and the work Tom did for the theater and the food shelf and what he wanted to be when he was a kid. But just as Tom was getting in his car, Phillip asked a zinger of a question.
"Uncle Tom, when are you gonna get married?"
Tom sighed. "Well sweet boy, I was married to your Uncle Jeremy. I loved him very much." Tom's voice caught. He was 6'2" and weighed 210lbs. He had short dark brown hair, a tight cropped beard and was fit, though had a little hint of a belly starting. Regardless, he didn't present as a guy who would get teary.
"I know," said Phillip matter-of-factly. "I like the pictures from your wedding. But you can get married again you know? My friend Spencer's mom got married to Bruce. Spencer said that he had to wear a suit. And his mom and Bruce kissed and it was gross."
Tom laughed. "I suppose I could get married again sweet boy. I've got to get going. I'll talk to you soon."
"Ok Unk," said the boy. "Don't forget that next time we get ice cream!"
Tom smiled, put his head on the steering wheel and sobbed. He missed Jeremy more than he could describe. The hole in his heart felt like an endless chasm.
But maybe his nephew was right? No. Not to get married! But maybe it was time to move on and try dating?
That night, after a concert, Tom joined some friends at the Eagle. He wasn't much of a bar guy—he didn't have the emotional temperament to engage in the drama of the gay world. He was serious about work, serious about the community, serious about friends—and he was a dominant personality. He and Jeremy worked because Jeremy was naturally submissive. Their sex life was great—but it was more than that. Tom was in charge. And Jeremy was content to let him be.
But this night was Nick's birthday. Nick and Jeremy were buddies since grade school and Nick had been at Tom's side throughout grieving Jeremy's death. Nick rarely asked much of Tom, so when he did, Tom showed up.
They guys were already out on the patio by the time Tom arrived a little after 10pm. Nick was there and was on his way to being toasted, and a bunch of the other guys were there drinking and smoking cigars. Steve, another friend, offered Tom a cigar, which he gladly accepted and lit up.
While the guys were chatting and talking, Tom sat smoking his cigar and drinking his vodka on the rocks. The usual group was there—Steve, Nick, Charlie—Nick's partner, Scott, David, and one of Jeremy's work colleagues, Doug. Doug and Tom had a nice cordial relationship over the years, but weren't close. Several minutes in, a young man—perhaps 22 or 23—came over to Doug. He was shorter than Tom's 6'2" by three or four inches, wore wire rimmed glasses and had messy brown-blond hair. He was thin and had a scruffy face—not quite a beard, but more stubble than one day's growth. He wore a white polo shirt, jeans, and shoes. And he looked like he was uncomfortable and out of place.
Tom glanced his way and felt a stirring in his grown. The kid was attractive—not in a classic sense—but there was something vulnerable about him. He looked a little nervous. He glanced over Tom's way. Tom froze and stared back. The look they shared was intense.
It was interrupted by Doug. "Tom," he started, "This is my nephew Ben. He just graduated from UMD and moved here from Duluth for a job at Medtronic. Ben, this is my friend Tom."
Ben put out his hand and when Tom shook it, the electricity between the two of them shocked him. Doug moved over to talk with someone else leaving Ben and Tom standing together.
"So you just graduated?" Tom asked trying to sound casual as he steadied his shaky hand and put the cigar to his lips.
