Tough Love in Kansas City: Thor's Hammer
Note: In chapter 8, I tried using the Icelandic spelling of Sigfus, but I now realize that the web does not always like accent and diacritical marks, so I have anglicized his name.
Jordy was standing on the private veranda in one of the Blue Lagoon hotel's luxurious robes, drinking a cup of tea, and admiring the moss covered lava landscape when William wrapped his arms around his lover's muscular chest and pressed his cheek into his broad shoulders.
"Babe," said William, "I am so sorry that I had to spend one minute on anything but making you happy today."
Jordy turned around and gently kissed Williams lips. "There was no way you would have let Jesse and Tyler face the lions alone. That is one of the things that I love about you. You are a champion in the complete sense of the word." Jordy kissed William again.
Finally Jordy pulled away and said, "We need to get ready for dinner. I booked us for the Chef's Table and seating is 18:30."
"What's that in American time?"
"6:30, and I would like to get there a bit early to visit the wine cellar. By the way, the dress is smart casual. Whatever the hell that means."
"It means, I get to dress you. So shuck off the robe and I will pick out your clothes."
"Okay, let me grab a quick shave."
"No, leave the scruff. Just run a little gel through your hair."
William tossed Jordy a finely woven and form fitting pair of black underwear. "We have to make sure that the only lines anyone will see is a hint of your hot cock."
Wiiliam handed Jordy a tight black mock turtle that stretched seductively across his pecs, a pair of black denim pants that called attention to his assets without being uncomfortable or slutty, and black leather chukka boots. Next, William unzipped his garment bag and pulled out a leather jacket Jordy had never seen before. When Jordy put it on it was absolutely the sexiest thing he had ever worn."
William stood back and looked at his work, tilted his head then reached up and gave Jordy's hair a slight muss. Finally, he handed Jordy a silver titanium Citizen's watch and a black leather belt with a bucket that matched the watch.
Jordy walked into the bathroom to take a look at what William had done. After a few seconds William heard an amazed Jordy simply say, "Damn, that is the shit." William just had to smile.
When Jordy came back into the room he looked at William and asked, "Are you sure this is smart casual?"
"Oops, my bad, I thought you said the dress was stunningly sexy casual. Oh, well."
"So what are you wearing?"
"I don't really think it matters what I wear. Hell standing next to you, I could be completely naked and no one would even notice."
"That's bullshit and you know it,'' laughed Jordy. "If you were standing beside me naked the only thing anyone would be looking at is that sausage hanging between your legs, and the only thing they would be thinking is how does that kid fit that monster up his ass."
William dressed much the same way he had dressed Jordy, except he switched a gray herringbone tweed jacket for the leather jacket and loafers for the chukkas. William also traded the contacts he usually wore for semi-rimless glasses with a titanium finish. Jordy's only thought when he looked at William was, "Fuck, they are making English professors hot this year."
The tour of the wine cellar was very interesting. It was carved into the volcanic rock and provided a unique window into the country's geology. The sommelier suggested several great pairings for the meal.
The chef's table at the Moss seats ten and is carved from rocks quarried on site. William listened with amused interest when the grandmotherly British lady who could have played Agatha Christie's Miss Marple asked Jordy, "Young man, do you vacation often with your father."
Jordy leaned in and said, "I haven't gone on vacation with my father since I was 17 and he took the family to Disneyland. However, my husband and I do like to travel quite often."
"Oh, my," she said, covering her mouth with her napkin, "Oh, my." William was shaking so hard trying to stifle the laughter that he almost fell out of his seat when Miss Marple leaned over and said to him. "You know sir we have something in common."
"Oh?" said William.
"Yes, I am 65 and Johnny here," she said and touching the hand of the man sitting on the other side of her, "is 54. It seems we each have a boy toy."
Now William had no chance of holding in the laughter and he was joined by Jordy and Miss Marple. As the three finally regained control, the first course was served. The chef who created it described the dish which was Scallop Ceviche prepared with pickles and coconut. In total, there were seven courses featuring the flavors of Iceland from seafood to beef loin with wild mushrooms. The meal ended with a dessert of almond sweetened rice paired with a local ice cream and garnished with chocolates and licorice candies.
As the guests were getting up to leave, Miss Marple locked arms with both Tyler and William, "It has been a delight to chat with such nice young men. I hope I did not bore you too much with my chatter."
"Not at all," Tyler said, "You're a hoot, and it's been fun visiting with you."
"Did you hear that Johnny, he called me a hoot. I can't wait to tell the sisters."
"Sisters?"
"Oh, that is what my group of friends from university days call each other, The Sisters. In those days, the boys wouldn't let us join their clubs, so we made our own. Once a year we get together and our boys play cards, while we girls play Mahjong, gossip, and get a bit tipsy."
"If the rest of The Sisters are anything like you," William said with a wicked smile, "then that is one scandalous club meeting."
She pulled Tyler and William in and said, "If you see a group of wrinkled old hens cackling in the shallows of the Blue Lagoon tomorrow, it will be The Sisters, and I will be telling them about having dinner with two sexy Americans who think I'm a hoot." She giggled, took Johnny's arm and walked away.
Back in the room, William led Jordy onto the private veranda. Jordy was still amazed that there never really was darkness this far north during the summer. William began to kiss Jordy as he unfasten his sexy studs belt.
Jordy looked at Williams, "What if someone...."
"No one can see us. Even if they did, I'd tell them to fuck off and find their own hot boy toy."
Jordy kicked off his boots and William lowered Jordy's pants and underwear so he could step out of them.
William took a long and lustful look at his husband. The scruff, the lightly mused hair, and the smoking hot leather jacket said James Dean and bad boy. But below the waist, the muscular legs sporting a dusting of hair and the plumping cock screamed Viking sex god. William dropped to his knees and began to gently lick Jordy's balls. While the privacy walls kept away any prying eyes, the eavesdropping listener would have certainly recognized the sound of carnal bliss.
Soon Jordy pulled William back to his feet and began a deep and intense kiss. Their tongues were fluid and sensual like salsa dancers. Jordy grabbed William's bulging crotch and in a voice more beast than man said, "I need this, now!"
7 a.m. and the alarm was blaring. William rolled out of bed and got ready for the morning. He had always been an early riser and staying in bed this late seemed like decadence. After showering and shaving, William walked out of the bathroom and found Jordy hiding his head under a pillow. A naked William jumped on him and began to tickle him. Jordy was tangled in the blankets and was at his tormentor's complete mercy.
"Stop, stop, William stop." Jordy begged as he laughed.
"Time to get up, sleepy head, the sun has been up for over a month already."
"How do these people ever get to sleep when the sun never goes down," groused Jordy.
"That's what December, January, and February are for, but maybe you should ask Sigfus when we see him later today."
"Ow," mumbled Jordy.
"What's wrong bud?"
"My ass is a bit sore this morning."
"I guess we have been going at it a bit hard. Do we need to switch up?"
"No, we just probably need to avoid going to the rodeo for a while."
A couple of years before, William had taken Jordy to the American Royal Rodeo held annually in KC. Since then, playing bull rider was one of Jordy's favorite bedroom role plays.
"Maybe we should try a different type of workout this morning. I was thinking about hitting the gym after breakfast. Now that I've put a ring on your finger, I don't want you to think I'll just let myself go to pot."
"Oh, I'm not worried that William Marshal will ever just sit in his recliner watching game shows, eating chips, and drinking beer. But, if he ever did, he should know that I have a thing for daddies with beer bellies."
"You can stop it with the daddy shit right now, or I will get an annulment."
"You can't get an annulment, you've already put too many miles on this," Jordy said shaking his ass, "to get your money back." After breakfast, William and Jordy did a couple of hours in the gym before going back to the room to get ready to experience the healing waters of the Blue Lagoon. In the room Jordy noticed a package addressed to William.
"Hum," Jordy said, "who is sending your gifts? Do you already have someone on the side?"
"Whatever, after last night at the Moss, you're the choice piece of meat on everyone's menu. Who is the package from?"
"You were the one who put my look together last night. Besides, based on the present from your secret admirer, you were plenty hot yourself. Well there's no name on the card. All it says is `Round One to WM.' What the hell does that mean?"
"So, what is in the package?"
"Odd, it's a bottle of Boodles Mulberry Gin. Do you even like gin?"
William's heart skipped a beat, and he put on his best poker face. "Nope, I'm a whiskey guy. Scotch, Irish, Kentucky Bourbon, Tennessee Mash, even Canadian. I'll drink the entire United Nations of whiskey."
"You do know Kentucky and Tennessee are not members of the U.N.?"
"Well, smarty pants, there was probably some mixup and that was delivered to the wrong WM. Why don't you run down to the desk and see if they know where the package came from."
As soon as Jordy left the room, William took out his phone and called the Marshall Trust Offices in Kansas City.
"Marshal Family Trust, Maggy Thompson speaking."
"Hey Maggy, this is William. Are you alone?"
"Like normal, the rest of the office won't be in for another hour. What's up boss? Is everything alright?"
"Sure, just checking on a couple of things. Did Jesse, Tyler, or Matt get a package from some place you don't recognize?
"I just started going through the late mail from yesterday. There is a package addressed to Jesse Marshal and Tyler Davidson from some place called Caskers, nothing for Matt."
"Okay Maggy, I want you to lock that package in my office. Don't say anything about it to Jesse or Tyler. I am going to call Brad Henderson from our security company to pick up that package." "Is it a bomb?"
"No, I am sure it is not dangerous. It is very likely a bad joke, but I don't want to upset Jesse and Tyler."
"I am taking care of it right now."
"Thanks Maggy, you're a gem."
Next William called Brad Henderson president of Henderson Security and Private Investigation.
"Hey Brad, this is William Marshal and I need you to do me a favor."
"Don't tell me you already need me to put a tail on Jordy."
"No--nothing like that. I just need a little piece of mind. A bottle of Boodles Mulberry Gin was delivered to our room with an unsigned note that reads, `Round One to WM.' You know I don't drink gin, but Dawson Chandler does."
"Here's the deal Brad, Tyler and Jesse had a run in with Dawson the other day at a planning meeting and he didn't fare so well--I had Heather Lancaster sit in on the meeting."
"Ouch", Brad said, "I bet she tore him a new shithole."
"Yeah and you know Dawson, he can't let it go."
"So William, aside from the cryptic note and a bottle of gin, is there anything else that makes you think this was Dawson?"
"Yeah, the property the meeting was about is located on Mulberry Street, I know Dawson drinks Boodles Gin, and the package at the office is from a Company called Caskers which is where he orders wines and spirits he can't find in Kansas City. Oh by the way, Dawson likes mystery books and escape rooms; so, if he is up to something, he's getting off on leaving clues."
"That's good to know. I'll do some checking to see whether he is any threat."
"I just don't understand how he knows where we are." William muse. "You and Maggy are the only people who have our actual itinerary."
"How are you calling me?"
"I purchased an international phone plan before we left."
"My guess is he knows someone, who knows someone, who can access your account and track you. Hacking for Hire is a cottage industry in some parts of the world."
"I will stop using my phone then."
"Don't do that. We don't want him to know we are on to his games. Just don't use your's or Jordy's phones for financial transactions or anything sensitive. I will have new phones waiting for you in Stockholm. We'll monitor you and Jordy and when I get the phones back in the States, I have some friends at NSA who are always looking for new ways to crack the hacker rings."
"Ah, Jordy has been taking pictures of your honeymoon and well..he..."
"Don't worry, we'll download all your personal data and scrub the personal files before letting anyone else get a look at them. They will only see the PG version of the phone. The only person who will see the adult version is my phone tech Terri, and if you look up discretion in the dictionary, you'll see her picture."
"Okay, now I have to figure out what to tell Jordy and the boys. Goodbye Brad."
"Just have fun, we'll keep an eye on Dawson."
A few minutes after William hung up. Jordy came back from talking with the front desk and concierge. "No one knows anything about the bottle other than it was delivered by messenger with the instructions that it was a gift for William Marshal and his husband."
"Have a seat babe, I have something to tell you. I seriously thought about lying to you so nothing would spoil our honeymoon, but just six days ago I promised that together we will face and share whatever the future holds for us."
"Will, what's wrong?"
"I think the bottle of gin was sent by Dawson Chandler. There was also a bottle sent to Jesse and Tyler."
William told Jordy about his suspicions and what he had learned from Maggy and Brad. When he had finished Jordy said, "Look at me babe. Whatever Chandler tries, we will face it together and kick his ass. Remember, you are the Hammer of Thor and I am the meanest goon to ever play for Minnesota State."
William laughed, "Thanks Jordy, I needed that."
"Here is something else, we are not going to let Dawson Chandler get into our heads and ruin this time together. So, make your call to Jesse and Tyler to give them a heads up, then we are going down to enjoy the lagoon and we have a couples date at the spa."
William kissed Jordy, then hit Jesse's number in the contacts. Jordy was right, Dawson Chandler was not going to fuck up Jordy and his honeymoon.
Jordy and William entered the men's locker room and found two unused lockers. Then it was off to take a shower before hitting the lagoons' thermal seawaters. The first thing to know about Icelanders is they love their pools and thermal spas. The second thing is they consider it absolutely unacceptable to enter the water before first taking a proper and complete shower.
As William and Jordy entered the communal men's shower they saw a very hot and naked couple they recognized. Sigfus and Christopher were showering in preparation to enter the lagoon. Sigfus told William and Jordy to put conditioner in their hair and not rinse it out. "There is a lot of Silica in the waters," Sigfus said. "It won't hurt your hair, but it will make it hard to manage. The conditioner keeps that from happening."
Before leaving the locker room Jordy found Sigfus and gave him his key to his and William's room. "William and I have a spa appointment between 17:00 and 18:00. Please feel free to take a nap or whatever you need to do to relax."
"Thank you Jordy. My mother's place is small and Christopher's dorm is not very private. But...I...we don't...how can I put this...."
"What?"
"I'm sure housekeeping has already made the bed."
"Oh, don't worry about that. What's a little cum between friends?"
Sigfus blushed and smiled.
"I almost forgot, William expects you and Christopher to be our guests for dinner at Lava tonight. Reservations are at 19:00. That should give William and me time to get changed and you and Christopher time to get dressed."
William and Jordy sank slowly into the Blue Lagoon's 102 degrees (F) mineral rich thermal waters. William eased back into Jordy's chest like he was sinking into his favorite chair to read a good novel. "I see you made Sigfus blush again. Do you ever think we think too much about sex."
"I don't understand your question. That's like asking, do we breathe too much air? This world would be a lot better place if people thought more about how to screw the next guy rather than how to screw over the next guy. Seriously, wouldn't the world be better if basic training in the military taught how to give a better blow job to the enemy than how to blow up the enemy. To paraphrase Woody Allen, "I may not understand the question, but sex is definitely the answer." William laughed, "For a minute there, you almost sounded political."
"I am political. I am a sexual revolutionary. Call me Fiddle Casto!"
"Take it easy there El Cumandante. Remember you've married into the bourgeoisie."
William and Jordy moved to the in-water bar for a couple of beers. They were trying to decide what to order when an older man with a British accent asked, "Are you Americans?"
"Yes, are we that obvious?" said Jordy.
"I just noticed you aren't sure what to order, and of course your Mid-Western accent is a bit of a tip off. My name is Terrance Morton. I served 13 years in the British Consulate in Chicago and six years in Denver, so I am pretty fluent in Yankish."
"Well, Mr. Morton, I am William Marshal and this is my husband Jordan Owens. Please call us Will and Jordy."
"Nice to meet you Will and Jordy. You can call me Terry."
"So Terry," Jordy said, "What do you suggest?"
"I think you will like the Arctic Berry Ale from Einstok Olgerd. It is brewed in a fishing village just 60 miles below the Arctic Circle. My theory is if you are living that far north you'd better have something good to drink."
"Thanks for the recommendation," William said.
"You are welcome. I am here alone. So if you are interested, I would enjoy chatting with a couple of guys from the U.S.A?"
Jordy looked at William, then said, "We would enjoy that as well."
Jordy and Terry found a spot while William purchased three beers. When William handed Jordy a bottle sporting a Viking wearing sunglasses logo, Jordy smiled and said, "I like it already."
"Will, do you spell Marshal with one or two L's," Terry asked.
"My family spells it with one."
"Like William Marshal, 1st Earl of Pembroke, and purportedly the greatest knight of his age."
"Yes, it is family lore that we descended from him and one of his wife's Irish servants. I am not sure which is the greater point of family pride, that we are descendants of a great Lord of England or that we are a line of Irish bastards."
After a bit more chat, Terry said "It has been wonderful visiting with you, but I must catch a flight back to London in three hours. So I must bid goodbye, my friends."
After Terry left, Jordy said, "Here I thought you were a Viking and all along you are descended from a Norman noble."
"Don't forget, William the Conqueror was just a Viking with a French accent, and I am descended from the bastard of a Norman noble. "
"Even better. Do you need me to wax your lance, my liege?"
"Geeze, first it was Vikings, then Latin Revolutionaries, Now English nobility, what next. I feel I'm trapped in Mel Brooks' History of the World, Part I"
"I was thinking maybe Ancient Greece."
"What?!"
"Yeah, I was reading that the Greek city of Thebes had an elite force of gay loves. I think they wore hot pants and fought in something called a phallics."
"Okay shit-for-brains, The Sacred Band of Thebes was a troop of 150 pairs of gay lovers. However, Greek warriors were called Hoplites--they didn't wear hot pants, and the formation they fought in was a phalanx--not a phallics."
"It seems you have so much to teach me Professor Marshal."
"Yes, and one of those things is how to tell time. If we don't get our asses in gear, we will be late for our spa appointment."
After rinsing off the salt and minerals of the lagoon, Jordy and William were led into what seemed like a cave or cellar. However, it soon opened into an underground room. Jordy had booked a couples massage in a subterranean massage suite.
William hung in the bliss between sleep and consciousness. The masseur coaxed the tension from his muscles as he worked in body oil infused with the unique microalgae found in the Blue Lagoon. Occasionally, he heard a murmur of satisfaction from his partner and smiled. At the end of the hour, both William and Jordy were relaxed and renewed by the expertly administering healing magic of human touch.
When William and Jordy returned to their room they heard the shower running and playful laughter from the bathroom. The veranda door was open and the sweet smells of an Icelandic summer had replaced all but the slightest scent of maculine love still hanging in the air.
Sigfus and Christopher had not heard the door open and close, so when they stepped out the bathroom nude and sportively grabbing each other, they were caught off guard and quickly ducked back into the bathroom for towels.
"We'll step onto the veranda while you guys dress," William said.
It wasn't long before Sigfus and Christopher were also on the veranda.
"We found some clothes and a pair of boots out here, so we took them inside," Christopher said. "I hope that was the right thing to do."
William looked at Jordy and in a tone of mock scolding said, "Jordy, if you can't take care of your clothes, I am not going to buy you anything more."
"That's fine with me," laughed Jordy. "I prefer to be naked."
"Jordan Preston Owens," William said and Jordy snapped to attention. "There has been enough sexual innuendo today."
Christopher looked at Sigfus and asked, "Are they always like this?"
"Yeah, my entire tour of Icelandic culture, history, and geology was one long straight line for quips and puns about sex and being gay."
"Hey Sigfus, we are sorry if we were out of line the other day," William said.
"Are you kidding, I had a great time. Plus, that night I wrote a bunch of those jokes down. Later this summer one of the cruise lines will be stopping with a gaycation cruise, and if I wear some tight shorts and tell those jokes I should easily rake in the tips."
"I'm hungry," Jordy broke in. "Over dinner you can tell us where we're going to see the Northern Lights."
As the Range Rover headed away from the lights of Reykjavik Sigfus said, "I don't want you guys to be too disappointed with what you will see tonight. The viewing season for the Northern Lights is really September through April. The aurora borealis is active any time of the year, but during the summer in Iceland the nights are too bright to usually see it."
"We understand that seeing anything is a long shot," Jordy said, "But we thought we should at least try, and now that we have found friends to share it with us it is even more worth the effort." While Sigfus drove, Christopher used his knowledge of Nordic and northern cultures to make the time pass unnoticed. "The earliest known account of the aurora borealis was made around 568 B.C. by the official astronomers of the Babylonian King Nebuchadnezzar II," Christopher said. In the 6th Century, Gregory of Tours witnessed the Northern lights and said it was `... so bright that you might have thought that day was about to dawn.' The term aurora borealis--northern dawn--is attributed to both Pierre Gassendi and Galileo Galilei, who both observed the lights on Sept. 12, 1621."
"The Vikings believed the Northern Lights were reflections from the Valkyries' armour as they led the warriors to join Odin in Valhalla. The Inuits of Greenland thought the spirits were playing a game kicking around a walrus skull. And, the Native Americans had a variety of understandings of the Northern Lights from a way to communicate with ancestors to evil threats. One of my favorite superstitions associated with the lights is from Icelandic folklore, it was believed the Northern Lights helped ease the pain of childbirth; but, if a pregnant woman looked directly at them, the child would be born cross-eyed."
"Of course today" chuckled Christopher, "our mythology is science and we know the aurora borealis is the result of solar particles interacting with the Earth's magnetic field."
Sigfus parked the Rover and the two couples each found a spot to wait. For an hour nothing much happened. Jordy and William huddled together as much from the desire to be close as from the need to share each other's warmth. Just as they were resigning themselves to not seeing anything, a faint green light shot across the sky directly above them. Jordy, ever the romantic, couldn't help but believe it to be a cosmic blessing on his life with William.
That was the only activity of the night, but it was enough. The way back to the resort was mostly in silence. William and Jordy said goodbye to Sigfus and Christopher because they were leaving for Stockholm the next morning. However, Jordy had a feeling that someday they would see Sigfus and Christopher again.
Next--Tough Love in Kansas City: Bottom's Up
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