Encounter - Chapter Seventeen - Part I
Finally, here is the next installment of "Encounter." This chapter is long, so I split it into two parts. Hope you enjoy!
He was quite sure he had never seen so much stuff - good stuff - for sale in front of someone’s house. Ennis and Jack wandered up and down the rows of toys, games, knick-knacks, books, tools, and the mother load of furniture, trying to decide what would look best in the girls’ new room. Ennis remembered growing up in the little hick town where his parents both had lived their whole lives. He and his brother had shared a room their entire childhoods and his sister, of course, had her own room, which was fashioned out of the largest closet in the house that wasn’t very large at all. He didn’t think they ever had furniture as nice as what Lureen’s family was selling, even on the rare occasions his dad brought home something new.
Lureen and her parents, who she introduced simply as, “My folks,” and Jack later told Ennis their last name was Newsome, circulated among the interested buyers, actually talking up each item, bargaining like true salespersons. After selling a tiffany-style lamp to an enthusiastic buyer, Lureen made her way over to where Ennis and Jack were looking at one of the double beds for sale. Ennis couldn’t help noticing how fluid her movements were, and how sophisticated and flushed she looked even in the chilly morning air.
“You taking an interest in anything, boys?” she asked, standing with one hand on her hip which was cocked to the side.
“Well, yeah, this bed here looks brand new,” said Ennis. Lureen beamed.
“It is practically brand new. In fact, I just gave that bed up when I moved out just a year ago.” Ennis looked from Lureen to Jack. With Lureen’s plastered-on smile and Jack’s crooked grin, he couldn’t quite read either of their expressions. Ennis worried that Lureen might try to get one over on him. But Jack wouldn’t allow that. Jack loved him. Jack Twist fucking loved him. Ennis felt himself break into a wide smile. “Well, look at you, Ennis Del Mar,” Lureen said. “You have the most wonderful smile. You should show it off more!”
“You flirting with him?” Jack asked with mock indignation. Ennis felt himself blush, and instinctively he glanced around to see who might have overheard Jack’s playful tone. Calm down, he thought. Even if someone heard, they could think Jack is Lureen’s boyfriend. Ennis hated himself for being so paranoid. He loved Jack, and he wanted the freedom to show it without suffering repercussions. But the world was still such a hateful, intolerable place.
“Calm down, Jack,” said Lureen. “I’m not putting any moves on your man.” She winked at Jack, but Ennis was mortified. There were a couple people close enough to have overheard her, and Lureen’s parents didn’t live far from Ennis’s small town…and there was a chance someone could know Aguirre or worse, Alma…
“Ennis, it’s o.k.,” came Jack’s soft, soothing tone. “We’re all friends here.”
“Oh, my, did I upset you?” Lureen asked, genuinely concerned. Her voice was much quieter. “All of us from The Quarter Horse are so used to each other, you know, we’re such good friends. We tease each other all the time.” Ennis cleared his throat.
“It’s, I-I’m just…” Ennis stammered. He felt very self conscious and wanted to tell Lureen everything was o.k. But the truth was, everything wasn’t o.k. He readily accepted his own feelings, in fact, reveled in them. But he wasn’t quite ready to share them with everyone. He cleared his throat again. “So, I’m just really liking this bed,” he said, much louder than necessary. He saw Lureen and Jack exchange a concerned look.
“Yeah, this bed is perfect for that room,” Jack said. He ran his hand over the head board, tracing the lines of the small rose engravings. “It’s a gorgeous bed, Lureen. What are you asking for it?”
Lureen paused, then said in her normal, cheerful voice, “I can give you this bed for a very reasonable price.” She hesitated. “But the price will seem even better if you buy the dresser along with it.” She raised her eyebrows and flashed her most-winning smile.
“How reasonable?” Ennis asked. He watched as Lureen produced a small note pad and pen from her pocket, and quickly jotted down her asking price. She held it up for the men to see. Now it was Ennis and Jack’s turn to exchange a look. Ennis thought the price was pretty reasonable, though it would take practically all his cash. He chewed on his thumb nail, squinting his eyes against the glare of the white paper.
“I don’t know, Reeny,” said Jack. “It’s an o.k. price, but we could probably get a better deal over at Wendel’s Warehouse.” Lureen raised her eyebrows and her jaw dropped open.
“Well, Jack Twist, are you trying to make a hard deal?”
“I learned from the best,” Jack said. Lureen narrowed her eyes at him, placed the end of her pen between her lips and studied Jack. Ennis watched the looks passing between them, and realized their relationship went much deeper than just co-workers at The Quarter Horse. Had they been friends before working there or, perhaps, did they socialize a lot outside of work? Maybe they had been in a relationship…perhaps lovers…
“O.k.,” Lureen said, jotting down another figure on her pad. Before holding it up again, she looked pointedly at Ennis and said, “Now, Ennis, this is the deal of a lifetime. And I have to tell you, Jack will brow beat me until I give you the furniture.” Jack started to protest, but Lureen held up a perfectly-manicured hand, her eyes never leaving Ennis’s face. “Jack, come now, I’m dealing with Ennis.”
“Fine,” Jack said, sounding somewhat huffy.
“O.k., good,” said Lureen. “Here you go, Ennis. I think you’ll find this more than fair.” She held up the note pad and Ennis was surprised to see she had substantially reduced her asking price. But when he didn’t respond right away, Lureen actually started to look annoyed. “You’re not seriously considering not taking this deal, are you? For a double bed, including a clean mattress, as well as a gorgeous, hand-carved headboard?”
“Well,” said Ennis, looking contemplative. “It is a sweet deal.” He flicked his eyes to Jack, who raised his eyebrows and shrugged. “But, you know, it would be even sweeter if it included that nice nightstand.”
~*~*~*~*~*
“Shit, Ennis, the way you got Lureen to throw in the nightstand was priceless,” laughed Jack as he lounged on the passenger seat of Ennis’s truck. Ennis flipped on his turn signal, made sure there was no on-coming traffic and turned left onto the highway that led back home. Ennis grinned crookedly, quite proud of himself for working such a good deal.
“Well, every cent counts, right?” His eyes flicked to a small mark on his windshield, and he leaned forward slightly to pick at it with his fingernail. “Damn,” said Ennis, more to himself then to Jack, “it’s a fuckin’ crack.”
“What’s that?” asked Jack, leaning toward Ennis. “I didn’t catch what you said.”
“Oh, nothing,” said Ennis, placing his hand back on the steering wheel. “Just got a little crack in the windshield. Hope it doesn’t get bigger. Like I was saying, every cent counts, and I sure as shit don’t wanna spend money to get my windshield replaced.”
Jack squinted at the crack and said, “That’s hardly a scratch, Ennis. It should be o.k. for a while.” He leaned back against the seat and looked out the window. Ennis glanced at Jack, not daring to allow his gaze to linger too long. He could stare at Jack Twist for hours, with his chiseled cheekbones, dark brows, long lashes and succulent lips. Jack was like an attractive, male Medusa, only it wasn’t Ennis’s whole body that turned to stone with just one glance. It was just one specific part of his body.
Ennis shifted positions, then reached down and made a slight adjustment to his bulge. He was already half-erect just from the mere thought of Jack. He dared to steal another glance at his partner…his partner…and saw Jack watching him, a smile playing at the corners of his mouth. Ennis’s face burned as Jack’s eyes wandered down to his crotch, then back up to his face.
“Need help?” Ennis moaned and returned his hand to the steering wheel. “Why not let me give you some driving lessons?” He heard the soft “click” of Jack’s unhooking his seatbelt and felt the warmth of Jack’s body before their hips even touched. Jack reached out and delicately cupped Ennis through his jeans, making small circles with his hand.
“Damn, Darlin’, what are you tryin’ to do to me?” Ennis held the steering wheel in a death grip, his breath coming quickly. Cars sporadically passed them traveling in the opposite direction on the highway, and Ennis had a hard time relaxing. It was too easy for someone to see them, sitting this close. Even if they couldn’t see what Jack was doing -- Jack’s hand unfastening Ennis’s fly and slipping inside -- people could still talk.
“You’re so tense,” Jack purred into Ennis’s ear, then trailed his lips down Ennis’s neck.
“Jack, no, not here…” Jack’s strokes quickened and the beautiful feeling below intensified. “Jack, please…” Ennis grasped Jack’s wrist with his left hand while he steered with his right. He tugged Jack’s hand free of his jeans, feeling a pit in his stomach at Jack’s disappointed sound. Ennis held his breath as Jack slid back across the seat, pulling the seatbelt across his lap and snapping it into place. “I’m sorry, it’s just…”
“Look, it’s cool, really,” said Jack. “I know I pick some inopportune moments, but Ennis, you make me nuts. I can’t keep my hands off you.” Ennis felt his heart, not to mention his member, trying to burst loose.
“You, too, babe,” Ennis said, his voice husky. “But if somebody sees us…the wrong somebody…if we’re caught in the wrong place at the wrong time…”
“I know, I know.” Jack paused, then added, “We’ll do driving lessons another time.”
...to be continued
He was quite sure he had never seen so much stuff - good stuff - for sale in front of someone’s house. Ennis and Jack wandered up and down the rows of toys, games, knick-knacks, books, tools, and the mother load of furniture, trying to decide what would look best in the girls’ new room. Ennis remembered growing up in the little hick town where his parents both had lived their whole lives. He and his brother had shared a room their entire childhoods and his sister, of course, had her own room, which was fashioned out of the largest closet in the house that wasn’t very large at all. He didn’t think they ever had furniture as nice as what Lureen’s family was selling, even on the rare occasions his dad brought home something new.
Lureen and her parents, who she introduced simply as, “My folks,” and Jack later told Ennis their last name was Newsome, circulated among the interested buyers, actually talking up each item, bargaining like true salespersons. After selling a tiffany-style lamp to an enthusiastic buyer, Lureen made her way over to where Ennis and Jack were looking at one of the double beds for sale. Ennis couldn’t help noticing how fluid her movements were, and how sophisticated and flushed she looked even in the chilly morning air.
“You taking an interest in anything, boys?” she asked, standing with one hand on her hip which was cocked to the side.
“Well, yeah, this bed here looks brand new,” said Ennis. Lureen beamed.
“It is practically brand new. In fact, I just gave that bed up when I moved out just a year ago.” Ennis looked from Lureen to Jack. With Lureen’s plastered-on smile and Jack’s crooked grin, he couldn’t quite read either of their expressions. Ennis worried that Lureen might try to get one over on him. But Jack wouldn’t allow that. Jack loved him. Jack Twist fucking loved him. Ennis felt himself break into a wide smile. “Well, look at you, Ennis Del Mar,” Lureen said. “You have the most wonderful smile. You should show it off more!”
“You flirting with him?” Jack asked with mock indignation. Ennis felt himself blush, and instinctively he glanced around to see who might have overheard Jack’s playful tone. Calm down, he thought. Even if someone heard, they could think Jack is Lureen’s boyfriend. Ennis hated himself for being so paranoid. He loved Jack, and he wanted the freedom to show it without suffering repercussions. But the world was still such a hateful, intolerable place.
“Calm down, Jack,” said Lureen. “I’m not putting any moves on your man.” She winked at Jack, but Ennis was mortified. There were a couple people close enough to have overheard her, and Lureen’s parents didn’t live far from Ennis’s small town…and there was a chance someone could know Aguirre or worse, Alma…
“Ennis, it’s o.k.,” came Jack’s soft, soothing tone. “We’re all friends here.”
“Oh, my, did I upset you?” Lureen asked, genuinely concerned. Her voice was much quieter. “All of us from The Quarter Horse are so used to each other, you know, we’re such good friends. We tease each other all the time.” Ennis cleared his throat.
“It’s, I-I’m just…” Ennis stammered. He felt very self conscious and wanted to tell Lureen everything was o.k. But the truth was, everything wasn’t o.k. He readily accepted his own feelings, in fact, reveled in them. But he wasn’t quite ready to share them with everyone. He cleared his throat again. “So, I’m just really liking this bed,” he said, much louder than necessary. He saw Lureen and Jack exchange a concerned look.
“Yeah, this bed is perfect for that room,” Jack said. He ran his hand over the head board, tracing the lines of the small rose engravings. “It’s a gorgeous bed, Lureen. What are you asking for it?”
Lureen paused, then said in her normal, cheerful voice, “I can give you this bed for a very reasonable price.” She hesitated. “But the price will seem even better if you buy the dresser along with it.” She raised her eyebrows and flashed her most-winning smile.
“How reasonable?” Ennis asked. He watched as Lureen produced a small note pad and pen from her pocket, and quickly jotted down her asking price. She held it up for the men to see. Now it was Ennis and Jack’s turn to exchange a look. Ennis thought the price was pretty reasonable, though it would take practically all his cash. He chewed on his thumb nail, squinting his eyes against the glare of the white paper.
“I don’t know, Reeny,” said Jack. “It’s an o.k. price, but we could probably get a better deal over at Wendel’s Warehouse.” Lureen raised her eyebrows and her jaw dropped open.
“Well, Jack Twist, are you trying to make a hard deal?”
“I learned from the best,” Jack said. Lureen narrowed her eyes at him, placed the end of her pen between her lips and studied Jack. Ennis watched the looks passing between them, and realized their relationship went much deeper than just co-workers at The Quarter Horse. Had they been friends before working there or, perhaps, did they socialize a lot outside of work? Maybe they had been in a relationship…perhaps lovers…
“O.k.,” Lureen said, jotting down another figure on her pad. Before holding it up again, she looked pointedly at Ennis and said, “Now, Ennis, this is the deal of a lifetime. And I have to tell you, Jack will brow beat me until I give you the furniture.” Jack started to protest, but Lureen held up a perfectly-manicured hand, her eyes never leaving Ennis’s face. “Jack, come now, I’m dealing with Ennis.”
“Fine,” Jack said, sounding somewhat huffy.
“O.k., good,” said Lureen. “Here you go, Ennis. I think you’ll find this more than fair.” She held up the note pad and Ennis was surprised to see she had substantially reduced her asking price. But when he didn’t respond right away, Lureen actually started to look annoyed. “You’re not seriously considering not taking this deal, are you? For a double bed, including a clean mattress, as well as a gorgeous, hand-carved headboard?”
“Well,” said Ennis, looking contemplative. “It is a sweet deal.” He flicked his eyes to Jack, who raised his eyebrows and shrugged. “But, you know, it would be even sweeter if it included that nice nightstand.”
~*~*~*~*~*
“Shit, Ennis, the way you got Lureen to throw in the nightstand was priceless,” laughed Jack as he lounged on the passenger seat of Ennis’s truck. Ennis flipped on his turn signal, made sure there was no on-coming traffic and turned left onto the highway that led back home. Ennis grinned crookedly, quite proud of himself for working such a good deal.
“Well, every cent counts, right?” His eyes flicked to a small mark on his windshield, and he leaned forward slightly to pick at it with his fingernail. “Damn,” said Ennis, more to himself then to Jack, “it’s a fuckin’ crack.”
“What’s that?” asked Jack, leaning toward Ennis. “I didn’t catch what you said.”
“Oh, nothing,” said Ennis, placing his hand back on the steering wheel. “Just got a little crack in the windshield. Hope it doesn’t get bigger. Like I was saying, every cent counts, and I sure as shit don’t wanna spend money to get my windshield replaced.”
Jack squinted at the crack and said, “That’s hardly a scratch, Ennis. It should be o.k. for a while.” He leaned back against the seat and looked out the window. Ennis glanced at Jack, not daring to allow his gaze to linger too long. He could stare at Jack Twist for hours, with his chiseled cheekbones, dark brows, long lashes and succulent lips. Jack was like an attractive, male Medusa, only it wasn’t Ennis’s whole body that turned to stone with just one glance. It was just one specific part of his body.
Ennis shifted positions, then reached down and made a slight adjustment to his bulge. He was already half-erect just from the mere thought of Jack. He dared to steal another glance at his partner…his partner…and saw Jack watching him, a smile playing at the corners of his mouth. Ennis’s face burned as Jack’s eyes wandered down to his crotch, then back up to his face.
“Need help?” Ennis moaned and returned his hand to the steering wheel. “Why not let me give you some driving lessons?” He heard the soft “click” of Jack’s unhooking his seatbelt and felt the warmth of Jack’s body before their hips even touched. Jack reached out and delicately cupped Ennis through his jeans, making small circles with his hand.
“Damn, Darlin’, what are you tryin’ to do to me?” Ennis held the steering wheel in a death grip, his breath coming quickly. Cars sporadically passed them traveling in the opposite direction on the highway, and Ennis had a hard time relaxing. It was too easy for someone to see them, sitting this close. Even if they couldn’t see what Jack was doing -- Jack’s hand unfastening Ennis’s fly and slipping inside -- people could still talk.
“You’re so tense,” Jack purred into Ennis’s ear, then trailed his lips down Ennis’s neck.
“Jack, no, not here…” Jack’s strokes quickened and the beautiful feeling below intensified. “Jack, please…” Ennis grasped Jack’s wrist with his left hand while he steered with his right. He tugged Jack’s hand free of his jeans, feeling a pit in his stomach at Jack’s disappointed sound. Ennis held his breath as Jack slid back across the seat, pulling the seatbelt across his lap and snapping it into place. “I’m sorry, it’s just…”
“Look, it’s cool, really,” said Jack. “I know I pick some inopportune moments, but Ennis, you make me nuts. I can’t keep my hands off you.” Ennis felt his heart, not to mention his member, trying to burst loose.
“You, too, babe,” Ennis said, his voice husky. “But if somebody sees us…the wrong somebody…if we’re caught in the wrong place at the wrong time…”
“I know, I know.” Jack paused, then added, “We’ll do driving lessons another time.”
...to be continued