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Part 15
While I hated the idea of being away from Art for a whole week, I had to admit I was excited about going to the conference in Chicago. I'd been to the city a few times before and generally knew my way around. I was going to stay in a nice hotel downtown so I knew I'd have a chance to experience some nice meals and do some sightseeing.
Art drove me to the airport on Sunday afternoon to catch my flight, and he held my hand most of the way there.
"You be good now," he whispered as we got to the terminal. "And hurry back to me."
I assured him that I would and leaned over and kissed him quickly on the cheek before jumping out of the car.
The flight was uneventful and I caught a cab downtown to the hotel. The room was quite nice and I unpacked and dressed up a bit for the kickoff dinner that evening.
There was a pretty good crowd attending the conference; I'd guess somewhere between sixty and seventy people, including the consultants who were making presentations the first day. The event started with a cocktail party in the hotel where I managed to meet several of the consultants and a fair number of other personnel professionals who were attending the meeting.
One of the first people I met was a guy named Dave who lives in Chicago. He was very friendly and my gaydar pinged quite a bit as we introduced ourselves. I got the feeling he was thinking the same thing about me and we made plans to have dinner together the next evening to get to know one another.
After about forty-five minutes, we went into the adjacent room where tables for ten were set for dinner. Dave and I sat at the same table where we were joined by six other people: two women who struck me as very professional and quite serious, an older man who was one of the compensation consultants, and Neil, a quite attractive younger guy who, on first meeting, one would probably describe as gregarious or ebullient. He also made my gaydar alarm go off.
By the time dinner was over, I had decided that he was neither. He seemed just plain obnoxious to me. He monopolized the conversation of the whole table, interrupted people constantly to tell 'his' views, and was just annoying as Hell. I made up my mind not to sit near him during any of the conference if I could help it.
The next day the meeting started in earnest. I'm one of those people who always get to any function early so I was already seated and going over the materials supplied for the first presentation. Dave got there just after I did and he joined me at the same table. He was just as pleasant as he'd been the night before and he explained to me that he'd taken the "L" from his home and said it had been very convenient. I've ridden it before so I could relate to the experience.
Naturally, Neil joined us without either of us suggesting it.
"So," Neil said as he plunked himself down in a chair a couple of seats away from us, "You guys dating or what?"
"Of course not," Dave said, shrugging his shoulders. "We just met last night and Darren doesn't even live here."
"That doesn't matter," Neil said with an exaggerated wink. "Some guys don't waste time when they're out on the prowl."
"I don't know about Dave," I said as bluntly as I could manage, "But I'm not 'out on the prowl' to begin with."
"Yeah, right," Neil answered.
Just then another group of people came up and sat down at the table, filling all the available seats and the conversation stopped except for introducing ourselves to each other.
Just before lunch, Neil passed a note down to me.
"I'm in room 1229 if you want to play around later," the note said. I read it and glanced down at Neil, shaking my head to indicate a definite 'no.' I crumpled the note up in my hand but Neil spoke up again.
"Don't do that," he said in a whisper. "You'll be sorry if you do." He winked again, so I just shook my head and kept still.
When we broke for lunch, Dave and I both went to the men's room to relieve ourselves and wash up. Neil came in just as I was washing my hands.
"Why didn't you keep my note?" he asked. He'd obviously seen me throw it into the waste receptacle at the door of the meeting room.
"Because I don't care what room you're staying in," I answered quietly. "I really don't." I walked out of the room and waited for Dave to join me. We went to the lunch session and sat together and this time there was no room at the table for Neil.
"He's rather a pushy dude, isn't he?" Dave asked and I had to agree.
"He seems to think he's desirable, but he's not, in my opinion."
I don't remember which one of us 'dropped the hairpin' but by the time lunch was over we were both sure that the other was gay and I was fine with that. As we walked back to the meeting room he told me even more.
"We'd talked about having dinner together tonight," he said and I nodded. "Would you mind if my partner joined us?"
"Of course not," I answered. "I'd be glad to meet him." Dave made a stop at the phone area and then rejoined me at the table in the conference room. He gave me a 'thumbs up' so I figured his partner would be joining us.
After the day session was over, I felt tired but intellectually satisfied. I was really learning a lot. Since Dave wasn't staying at the hotel, I asked if he'd like to come to my room to freshen up before we met his partner.
"Hey, that's really nice of you," he said, accepting my offer. We walked toward the elevators at which point Neil caught up with us.
"You still deny you're getting it on?" he asked sarcastically.
"Yes," I answered, "Though I don't really think it's any of your business whether we are or not."
"You'll be sorry if you don't take me up on my offer," he said with a grin. I just shook my head. We all got into the elevator, and I was pleased to realize that Neil would get off at the 12th floor while my room was on 15. He tried to make conversation on the ride up but Dave and I just ignored him.
"Have fun, you two," he said with a leer as he got off the elevator.
"What is it with him, man?" Dave asked.
"I don't know, but he's annoying as hell," I answered.
When we got to the room, I gave Dave some towels and a washcloth and he freshened up in the bathroom. I had brought a bottle of Scotch with me and walked down to get some ice from the machine by the elevator.
I offered Dave a drink and he accepted so I made them and then went in to wash up myself.
The room had a loveseat where Dave was sitting when I came back. I took my drink and turned the desk chair around to face him then sat down. We both lit cigarettes and started to relax.
"So, tell me, Darren," he said, "Do you have a special guy at home."
"Yes I do," I answered. I explained that Art and I had been dating for several months and were really getting to like each other.
"That's great," he said. "I think it's great when two guys find each other and settle down."
"Well, I hope that's where we're going," I said with a chuckle. I explained that we'd started very slowly and both of us thought it was best.
We were just finishing our drinks when Dave said we should head downstairs to meet his partner who was picking us up in front of the hotel. As we walked outside, we unfortunately ran into Neil again.
"Aha," he said, "You two still denying you're playing together?"
"Oh, go to hell, Neil," Dave said. "Stop pestering people."
A silver Mercedes pulled up just then and the driver gave a short toot to the horn.
"Come on," Dave said and he led me to the car. I climbed in back and he sat in front.
"Hank, this is Darren. Darren, this is Hank."
I shook hands with a very attractive 30-something guy with twinkling blue eyes and a great smile.
"Let's go, pal," Dave said. "We're trying to get away from that clown." He gestured toward Neil, still standing on the curb.
We had a delightful evening. The guys took me to a wonderful restaurant in Chicago's Greek town and I had a delicious dinner of flaming Kasseri cheese and wonderful roasted lamb with vegetables.
Conversation flowed very well too. Hank was in corporate real estate, Dave was of course in personnel like me, and both of them were fun conversationalists. It was hardly a 'gay' evening, except that we all knew the others walked that side of the street and therefore didn't have to watch what we said as carefully as we might in a mixed crowd. They dropped me back at the hotel just after 9 o'clock and I thanked them for a very pleasant evening.
When I got back to my room, I changed out of my dress clothes and slipped on a pair of lounge pants. I called Art and we talked for about fifteen minutes. We talked about nothing in particular but it felt so good just hearing his voice and telling each other how much we missed the other. We kissed into the phone before hanging up.
At quarter to ten I was beginning to get sleepy. I knew it was because I'd been so busy paying attention that day and it was a strange kind of fatigue. Then there was a loud knock at the door.
I looked through the peephole but couldn't make out who it was. "Who is it?" I asked through the door.
"It's me, Neil," came the answer. "Open up." He was being quite loud and it struck me that he'd been drinking.
I opened the door only slightly and spoke quietly.
"Go to bed, Neil," I said. "I don't want to see you any more today."
"Oh, come on, man," he said. "We need to talk."
"We don't have anything to talk about so go to bed." I closed the door and made sure it was locked.
Ten minutes later the phone rang. I jumped and then answered it. Of course, it was Neil.
"Come on, man," he whined into the phone. "I'm lonely and I need some company down here."
"Go to bed and don't call me again," I answered. I was getting angry. "If you call again, I'll report you to the hotel detectives." I slammed down the phone. He didn't call back, thank goodness. I didn't want to have to explain this whole deal to the hotel dick.
The rest of the conference was very good. I met many other interesting and nice people. We had the afternoon off on Wednesday so Dave drove in that morning and in the afternoon he took me to where he and Hank lived in the northern suburbs. It was a lovely home and they grilled steaks and vegetables and we sat on their deck and had a delightful evening. Dave had suggested I bring clothes to stay overnight which I did. I called Art who wasn't home so I left a brief message saying that I was having a very good time at the meeting and that I missed him and loved him.
Hank and Dave couldn't have been nicer or more hospitable. They were both fun and we laughed and talked, getting to know each other. I told them about Art and they seemed genuinely interested in hearing about us and our developing relationship.
Early the next morning, Hank dropped Dave and me at the train station and we went into the city on the 'L.' It was fun and a very efficient way to commute. I went up to my room and got my tie and jacket for the meeting. The message light was flashing, and there were two messages.
The first was from Art: "Sorry I missed your call, Babe. Call me tomorrow. I'll be home after work, but I'm going out to dinner with my sister at 7. Okay? Love you."
The second was from Neil: "Hey big guy, give me a call so we can play, man. Room 1229." He sounded half drunk again.
The meeting went great and I was really enjoying myself and learning a lot. I lost count of the number of times Neil propositioned me at something like forty, and he grew increasingly annoying the whole time. Fortunately, he never returned to my room and the phone calls stopped after the one message he'd left.
Friday, the meeting broke up at a final lunch. Dave and I had become fast friends and we exchanged email and telephone information so we could keep in touch. We even talked about them visiting Art and me or us coming back to Chicago. Unfortunately we left our papers on the table when we went out for a cigarette at the coffee break. I'll found out why it was unfortunate later.
Part 16
Art:
Despite the fact that Darren and I had been seeing each other for only a few months, the week that he was gone was hell. I can't explain it. I'd lived alone for several years, but that week I just felt incredibly lonely. Logically I knew it was only going to be for a week, but nonetheless, I still felt it.
I made myself stay busy on Sunday after I took him to the airport, and I finished my weekend chores and stuff and then watched some TV alone.
It wasn't that Darren and I spent every night together; it was just that it seemed like something was missing when I didn't get to see him on those days.
On Wednesday evening, I stopped at the store and ran into a work friend who invited me to have a drink with him. We had two and then I went home and found a message from Darren. I didn't delete it. I saved it because he said he loved me. How sweet is that? I tried to call him at the hotel several times and finally left a message for him. I thought it odd but then remembered he was in Chicago and there were a lot of fun things to do in the evening.
Fun things to do? That worried me and for a few minutes I got very jealous and concerned. Finally rational thought returned, and I stopped worrying. I had no reason to distrust Darren and I wasn't going to start all that.
He called me Thursday and explained about the guys Dave and Hank he'd met and that they'd entertained him at their house the night before. See. I had nothing to worry about with my guy. We had a nice chat and it just warmed me so to hear his voice telling me he loved and missed me. I told him the same and he sounded pleased too.
I went to dinner with my sister that night. She asked about Darren and I explained that he was out of town. I guess I must have looked sad when I said it.
"Poor little boy," she said, patting my hand. "Somebody's missing his boyfriend, isn't he?" I glanced around quickly but no one could have heard her.
"Yes I am," I confessed, "And I really am growing more and more fond of him every day." She smiled and I think she knew not to tease me about it any more. Instead we talked about other things. Finally, though, she brought the subject back up from another angle.
"Have you told Mom about Darren?" she asked.
"No, and I'm not sure I'm going to," I answered. "I'm still not sure how she'd feel about it and I don't want to hurt her if she doesn't approve."
"Oh, I think she'll approve, once she gets used to the idea," Kathy said. "She never did like your wife, you know." I smiled and nodded. They'd never liked each other, which was of no concern now.
"Let's just see how it goes," I said. "If it works out that we're gonna be together, then I'll consider telling Mom about it."
Friday morning I was so excited I could hardly breathe. He's coming home this evening and I can hardly wait! I was up half an hour before the alarm rang and bounced out of bed, made coffee, changed the bed, showered, made and ate breakfast and was still at work twenty minutes early. Several of the guys in my department noticed how early I was and asked what was up.
"Nothing's up," I said with a laugh. "Just woke up early I guess."
The day dragged a bit but soon it was quitting time. I'd figured that I could get home, have a shower, get dressed again and still get to the airport in plenty of time. I even parked the car in the short-term lot and went in to meet him at the gate. I couldn't wait to see him.
The flight was just a couple of minutes late and when he came up the walkway and out into the terminal I could feel my smile grow to the full width of my face. He was grinning big when he saw me too and we actually hugged right there in the airport. I'd never hugged another man in public before that I could remember, but I wasn't embarrassed. He was my man and I wanted to hug him then and there.
We got Darren's bag from the luggage place and I carried it to the car. Art put his arm around my shoulder as he held his briefcase in the other hand. We got the car loaded up and climbed in.
"God I've missed you," Darren said, leaning over to give me a quick kiss on the lips. "I've missed doing that too." It made me nervous when he kissed me in public, but there really was no one around so I kissed him back.
I asked him if he wanted to go home first or out to dinner, which was what we'd planned for that night. He said he wanted to go home and get a shower and have a drink and then we'd go out.
When we got to Darren's house, he took his luggage into his bedroom and headed for the shower. I made us each a drink. Darren put on casual clothes like I was wearing and we were soon side-by-side on the couch, making out like a couple of teenagers.
"Man, you feel so damn good," he whispered after a few minutes.
"You too. God, I missed you, Babe."
When we'd finished our drinks, we started talking about where to go for dinner and settled on the local fish house that was always good on Friday.
"Let me check my phone messages before we go," Darren said. "I doubt there's anything important but I guess I should check."
There were four messages on the machine. The first was a reminder call from his dentist's office about making an appointment. The second was from his mother, saying she wanted us to come to dinner again soon. The third was a call from his boss at work, informing him about a meeting he was to attend on Monday that had been scheduled while he was gone. Darren smiled as he clicked 'erase' to each message.
The last message just about changed my life. It was from someone whose voice I'd never heard before, but it was the words that tore me up.
"Hey Darren, this is Neil. I just had to call and tell you that meeting you was about the best thing that's ever happened to me. Sorry we missed out on some of the conference, but the sex was awesome. I've never been fucked like that before. You even made me come, for God's sake. And then when you let me into that hot furnace ass of yours, oh my God! You're the best and the hottest ever. Give me a call so we can get together again soon. I want more of that action, man." Click.
"No," Darren shouted at the machine. "You nasty fucker! You son of a bitch!" I'd never heard him talk like that before.
But I panicked. And I ran. I was out the door in a flash and didn't even listen as Darren called me back. He chased me out to the car, but I got in and started it and drove away. I could barely see to drive for the tears pouring out of my eyes.