Hey readers:
This first chapter introduces you to three people. You'll meet a fourth principal in the next chapter, as we alternate the stories of our professors. So, if you like one over the other, you can skip. But I hope you like both story lines. Enjoy!
Colin Danes and Chris Shaw taught at the same university. Colin was a Professor of Chemistry, and Chris taught Psychology. They had met about six years ago, when they were junior, untenured Associate Professors and sat on one of the interminable committees that junior faculty had to endure as part of their "service to the university." "Sort of like extracurricular activities on a college application," Chris had joked after they had both gone through review and gotten their tenure.
It was during that service that they each learned that the other was gay. There was a Pride Celebration coming up and Colin had worn a rainbow necktie to a meeting Afterward, Chris had asked him if he thought that was wise, since he didn't have tenure. Colin's response was to shrug his shoulders and to say, "I think that's probably illegal and, in any event," he dropped his voice. "Remember that grant proposal I told you about?" Chris nodded. "It was approved. I don't think the University will want my 25 million to leave. Me? " he laughed, "not so sure." Chris' mouth dropped, and Colin put a finger to his lips. "Not public yet. Please. Not to this bunch."
"Yeah, but Chris, you have to let me take you out or something." Chris laughed. "How about finding me a boyfriend?" He was joking, but not really. When Colin had come to the university, he was partnered to a beautiful, curly-haired dancer: Jeremy. Jeremy caught everyone's eye. There was some jealousy: gorgeous Jeremy and "better than average looking but nothing on the order of Jeremy" were seen everywhere. EVERYONE wanted Jeremy, and the nastier of the jealous would wonder what Colin had that kept Jeremy with him.
And then, eventually, they didn't have to worry. Jeremy had begun to gain a name for himself in the dance world. He was invited to parties, galas, you name it. He could see his star rising. Colin was working away at the project that would eventually get him his grant, his lab, and his tenure. He had never been much for outside cultural events, and now he was drawn more and more into his research. Jeremy remembered something one of his fellow dancers had told him: "when you marry a scientist, you marry a lab, too. Remember, you'll always be the mistress." At first, Jeremy had laughed it off. Then, when he started showing up at the events alone, and began getting the "looks" from other single men, many of whom were wealthy, his mind began to wander from Colin. He knew he was the one of the couple who had the looks: he was tall for a dancer, thin, a big mane of that curly hair, long beautiful hands and -- the key to his dancing success -- his long, strong legs. When they had started their relationship, Colin had worshipped him. He gave Jeremy everything he wanted, including a good, thorough fucking almost every night. Colin's dick: even as he began thinking about moving out, Jeremy thought about that thick, luscious cock. He loved sucking it almost as much as he loved feeling it travel up inside him. The kink that Colin brought to the bedroom occasionally only made things spicier. During that awful "pre-tenure" period, though, all of that was a memory. The most Colin was interested in was cuddling, and even that was rare: he was always so tired from the hours in the lab, and he just wasn't able to keep the hours Jeremy did. Colin would get up early, give Jeremy a kiss, and head to his experiments. Sometimes Jeremy felt the kisses, but often, he was deep in sleep: the parties went on until late.
Then, one night, after a performance, a handsome, dark-haired man with a thick body and a heavy moustache approached Jeremy. He was smiling.
"You know, I contacted the ballet company today to see if I could become your sponsor. They told me you already had three." Jeremy grinned: "Well, thank you. They wouldn't object to a fourth. I don't see any of that money." The man smiled. "I had something a little different from supporting the company in mind, Jeremy. By the way, my name is Angus."
Jeremy made a stupid joke: "Angus. Like cattle?" Angus just smiled. He had heard it before. "I DO have certain things in common with livestock. " Jeremy blushed. "That was bad taste, I know. I'm sorry. Also, well, I'm in a relationship." Angus just kept on smiling.
"Married?" Jeremy looked away. "No. I don't think that'll happen for a while."
"Then you're a free agent, Jeremy. I think we'd make a good pair." There was silence, and Jeremy looked away. Angus spoke again. "At least the pleasure of a kiss, handsome man."
"Uh, yeah. Sure." Jeremy thought it would be a simple peck, but Angus held him in an embrace for a few minutes, as he gave kiss after kiss. Jeremy felt himself getting hard. "Think about it, Jeremy. I've got to be leaving. Do you need a ride home?"
"No, I..." Jeremy began, and stopped. "I'd like that." Angus drove Jeremy to the apartment building he shared with Colin. "University housing. Your man is an academic?"
"An associate professor. Chemistry. I don't really understand his work so I can't tell you what he does." Angus laughed as he put his arm around Jeremy's shoulders. They began to make out, and Jeremy looked up at Angus. "Can I have your cock?"
"I was gonna tell you, but since you asked..." He spread his legs, and Jeremy expertly opened the zipper and went down on a cock that was not as beautiful as Colin's but tasted pretty good. When Angus began to moan, he tried to push Jeremy's off of his dick, but Jeremy shook his head to indicate no, and then he took every drop of Angus. "Thank you," Jeremy said, and Angus chuckled. "I should be thanking you. Best BJ I've had in a while." He squeezed Jeremy's hand. "When is your next performance?"
"Three days," Jeremy answered. "I'll see you there. Afterwards." His eyes pierced Jeremy and the dancer knew: take an overnight bag. He did. He left a note for Colin before he left for the rehearsal before the show, then gave a nervous, mediocre performance that the critics noted was not up to his standards. He didn't care. Two hours later, he was in Angus' apartment, his legs in the air, and that cock was plunging into him. Jeremy tried not to think about Colin, but he couldn't help himself. One time kept on coming back: Colin had tied him down to the bed, eaten out his ass, and had called him a bussy -- a man pussy -- before he fucked him. It got Jeremy so hot that he came before Colin did, something that never happened.
It took Colin a while to get over Jeremy leaving. Chris was at his side almost constantly. They were not compatible sexually: both were tops, but Chris did everything in his power, be it professional or friendly advice to get Colin back up on his feet. He thought that it was working, and it was. Colin got over the sadness and the shock, but he became almost reclusive. He taught his undergraduate lecture class, his graduate seminar, and worked in the lab. Hours and hours. Weekends. Holidays. Then, the tenure decision. It wasn't long after that that Chris received tenure as well.
"Take a break from the lab, Colin. A week. Just a week. Let's celebrate at spring break and go somewhere. Have our way with pretty boys, get some sun. C'mon. We get about 4000 weeks if we're lucky. Let's enjoy one of them. Colin let his friend talk him into it. They went on a beach trip where Colin learned something they laughed about afterwards: Chris' type was so different from Colin's, that they would never fight about men. Chris couldn't help from staring when a chunky, dark haired man with facial hair walked by. He even liked men who were shorter than him, unlike Colin. Jeremy had been an exception. He looked on the trip, too, and every man he looked at was a taller version of Jeremy. Chris noticed. One night, he did something he thought Colin would appreciate: he found an escort that looked like all the men Colin was checking out. He brought him back to their hotel as a surprise (they had separate rooms). The next morning, the escort spoke to Chris. "Well, that was the most interesting night I've had in a long time." Chris smiled. "Did you get a taste of his cock?"
"NO! There was no sex at all. We sat down and listened to music. He held me, talked to me -- what a sexy voice he has -- and massaged me until I fell asleep. I never even got undressed."
"Oh, dear," Chris thought. He had just fucked the shit out of another man he had picked up: his third of the trip, but Colin? "This is going to take more work."
Ultimately, it took very little work. Chris was a good friend of a playwright in residence at the University. His new play was premiering at the University, and he insisted that Colin go with him. "It's not all chemistry, Dr. Danes. And I talked to Mei. She said you're ahead of schedule and you could take a break." Mei was Colin's lead post-doc. She had a ruthless sense of organization, and a work ethic that made Colin look like a slacker. She had been wanting Colin to get out of the lab for weeks.
The play wasn't all that interesting, but it got much more stimulating for Chris at intermission. There was a scene change, and before he and Colin went out to the lounge to get a drink, he saw the stagehands come in. Rather, he saw ONE of the stagehands: hunky, with dark, almost oily hair, and a big smile. He had on the traditional black shirt stagehands wore, with sleeves rolled up. "Those arms," Chris whispered. "That smile. OH GOD. When his chest flexes: nipples." He whispered even lower: "Flex for me boy. Flex for your new Daddy." Colin began to laugh. "Incorrigible. That's what you are. Just incorrigible."
"I HAVE to get into his pants. Or more to the point, his ass. And his mouth. But mostly his ass."
Colin was still laughing. He hadn't enjoyed himself like this in a long time. "Let's go get a drink, Chris. Maybe it'll cool you down." As they headed to the bar, Chris stopped. He held Colin's arm. "OH, I think I see something you're going to like." Discretely, he pointed to the left where a tall, thin man, was talking to a couple of women. "He's your type, Colin." He heard Colin whisper "Yes. Yes, he is. Even more than Jeremy." This man wore glasses which always turned on Colin. Jeremy wore contacts. And Jeremy was, as they say, "fashion forward." This guy, in his blue oxford shirt, his skinny corduroy trousers and penny loafers, almost seemed "geeky."
"Hello, I'm Chris. This is my friend Colin, and he just threw a boner seeing you" Chris began to laugh. "STOP THAT, CHRIS. You're embarrassing me."
"Oh, Colin, you have no idea how I'm GOING to embarrass you if you don't make me a promise. Before the lights go down, you're going to go over and talk to him. Because if you don't...I'm going to and tell him my friend wants to meet him." Colin looked at Chris and he knew he was serious. He sighed. "Alright. He gulped. I am RUSTY at this." Colin tossed his drink because he needed a line, and he could only think of one. He smiled as best as he could and walked toward the man. "Maybe the girls won't leave," he thought. No chance. They saw Colin and giggled as they went off. The guy looked the other way."
"Good evening. I'm Colin. Can I talk you into having a drink with me?" The man smiled. "I'm Paul. You're not very good at cruising, are you?" Colin blushed. "What do you mean?" Paul spoke with a baritone voice. "My friends were just pointing out the guy who had been checking me out for the last ten minutes."
"So, I lose subtlety points, I guess." Colin guessed it was his "lizard brain" that began to function, because he was imagining what Paul looked like naked.
"Well, I don't win any prizes. My friends are always telling me about guys who are checking me out, and I never notice." The lights started to pulse on and off to indicate the show would be starting up.
"Paul, I... you're right, I'm not good at this but, could we maybe have a drink or something? Maybe after the show?" Paul smiled. "I have a wicked commute, so I need to leave right away." He paused. "Raincheck? Tomorrow?" Colin sputtered "Oh, yes, of course. If the timing works. I teach until 6 and, well, I don't know how I'd find you."
"Nor do I know where to find you, Colin. But I work at the bookstore across the street from the campus. I get off at 5:30. There's always stuff to do so, you want to come by? I don't really spend much time on campus after work so, I don't know a good place to go." Colin felt like a schoolboy. "Well, I'll meet you then." He held out a hand to shake Paul's and then pulled it back. "Oh, sorry, I forgot. I work in the chemistry department. Here's my card." The lights were flashing more quickly. "We'd both best get to our seats," Paul said. Colin grinned. "I'll see you tomorrow, Paul." After he went off, Paul looked at the card. "A professor. I'm stepping up in the world" was what he thought.
The fact was, as Paul's friends told him regularly, he SUCKED at dating. And cruising. And anything having to do with relationships. Maybe it was true, he thought. His longest relationship had been about 7 months, and at 35, he felt that was a little ridiculous. The man who had come up to him was, well, not a dream boat but... Paul smiled. He liked older men. And Colin gave off an air that intrigued him. At his height, and when he did have dates, the guys always assumed that Paul was a top. He topped, but very few of them came back for a second date because, well, he just wasn't into it. This guy -- Colin-well, he was a professor. Paul didn't know why he thought this, but he assumed as a professor, Colin was used to being in charge -- taking control. He hoped...he really hoped. A sane adult, who would see that Paul wanted to do nothing more than serve a man he loved. He shook his head. "We haven't even had a drink yet," he thought and went back to his seat.
"We won't talk about it," he said to Merry and Lydia, "but I have a date for tomorrow. No questions. No teasing, no nothing, or you walk home tonight."
"I CANNOT BELIEVE YOU DID THAT," Chris told Colin when they sat down again. He repeated himself the next morning as they were having coffee. "I wanted you to talk to him, but... GEEZ, you got a date?" Colin was feeling full of himself. "I guess I still got it." Chris smiled. "So, want to know what I did after the show?" Colin had a feeling. "No. Tell me."
"I waited at the stage entrance. When Eddie came out, I just told him "You're the most beautiful man I've seen in a long time."
"He didn't deck you?" Colin asked, intrigued by his more experienced friend.
"NO. He said thank you and introduced himself. He has to work tomorrow, but we exchanged numbers and we'll be getting together on Saturday."
"Oh, wonderful! What are you doing?" Chris sat back. "Oh, I suggested we go and visit a museum, then come home to my place and fuck each other's brains out." Colin began to laugh. Chris was poker faced, but he could imagine that he had said exactly that. "Actually, I said I'd fuck HIS brains out."
"And his response?"
"He told me it wouldn't be too hard. I have my doubts. I think he's probably the smartest man in the world. And even if he's not, he has great tits and a great ass." Colin laughed through a mouthful of cappuccino. "You are SUCH a slut." "No, you're just a prude. Why didn't that guy wake up in your bed this morning?"
"Because he has a long commute, and he was there with two girlfriends." Chris grinned like the Cheshire cat. "Let's make a bet. If you get a kiss from that boy,"
"His name is Paul," Colin interjected.
"If you get a kiss from Paul tomorrow, and get him in your bed this weekend, I'll take you to any restaurant you want." He grinned. "But you have to promise I get to be the best man when you and Paul get married."
"You know, we sound like high school boys, Chris, but yes. Sure."
"Pinky swears. Got to play this out," Chris held out his hand, and Colin locked pinkies.
Colin knew the bookstore very well, but he had never noticed Paul before. "Is he new?" he thought to himself as he walked over. There was a stone bench outside the store, and he saw Paul sitting there. "OH GOD I'M A DEAD MAN," Colin thought. Paul had on black jeans, a plaid shirt with a very skinny black tie, and a navy jacket. "If he has on Batman socks, I'm truly doomed," he thought.
"I thought you'd be inside working?" He came and sat down next to Paul. He sat VERY close, and Paul didn't inch away.
"Well, it's a beautiful day and I wanted to get some sun. I also didn't know what direction you'd be coming from." Colin wondered if he felt Paul scrunch a little closer to him.
"So, I had an idea, Paul. A drink is nice but, if you don't mind an early meal, can I take you to dinner?" He saw a smile flicker across Paul's face. "Uh, sure. I can't be out late though."
"These are all student eateries. They specialize in getting you out fast. Pizza? Chinese? Italian? Hungarian? What rings your chimes?"
If Colin could have read Paul's mind, he would have seen something like this on a page: "I like pizza but...I want a goodnight kiss and I don't want to smell like garlic, but..." And if Paul could have read Colin's mind, he would have read something similar, with the line added at the end "Don't forget to invite him over for the weekend if things go well."
"Madame Szabo makes wicked chicken paprikash. And other things. And if you like dessert..." Paul smiled. "Put a leash on me and lead me." Colin didn't miss a beat. "Don't tempt me."
At dinner, Colin learned that Paul had just started at the bookstore, and that was why he hadn't seen him before. He loved theater, but he loved opera more. He went to all the local productions at the university because he could get in for free, and he was trying to save up money, so he didn't have to commute. "I travel about an hour each way. That's why, well, I couldn't do what I wanted to, which was go out with you after the show." Colin looked at Paul's face. His glasses made him SO sexy. "You could have stayed over," he blurted out, and then blushed. "I can't believe I just said that."
"Yeah, that would have been a little fast even for two gay guys...especially one who's perpetually single like me." Paul looked up. "Now, I can't believe I said THAT." Colin wanted to say, desperately, "you shouldn't be single," but held his tongue this time. They made small talk, and Paul DID spend a good amount of time before he picked a rich chocolate cake for dessert. "I'll be up all night but, well, I don't sleep well anyway."
"Any ideas why?" Colin asked, and Paul sighed. "Lots. But not for tonight. You already know too much about me." Colin countered "I bet you've figured out a lot about me too, Paul." He brushed Paul's calf with his foot. "Let me get the check. I'd love to keep you here longer but..." He saw Paul's face and the disappointment that disappeared quickly. "Good," he thought to himself. "Leave `em wanting more. That's what Jeremy used to say."
When the check came, Paul asked, "split it?" and Colin answered. "Absolutely not. My invite, my check." For some reason, Colin saying that gave Paul a sense, again, that this was a man who liked to take charge. "Ok. For this time." When they walked back to where Paul's car was, Colin put his hand very lightly on the small of Paul's back. Paul didn't find it displeasing. When they got to the car, Paul hit his forehead with his hand.
"THAT'S stupid! I left my backpack in the store. I need to go and get it. Should we say good night here?" Colin began thinking "he really ISN'T experienced. I know what's going on."
"I'll walk you back to the store, Paul. It's getting cooler, but it's not that bad." Paul smiled. "Then let's go." He felt Colin's hand on his back again. "Ok, there'll be an alarm but worry not. I'll get it turned off right away." Paul pulled out a key and opened the door. He went in, followed by Colin. "It's behind the cash register. Just one second." Paul bent down to get the bag and when he stood up, he felt Colin's hand on his elbow. "You need to turn around so I can kiss you good night, Paul." Paul tensed up a bit. He wanted this to happen but now that it was. Colin felt it.
"Paul, if you want me to leave, I will, but..I really want to kiss you."
"Ok,"was all Paul said, as Colin moved in and pressed his lips to Paul's. He didn't move them away but continued to kiss him. When he moved his hands to Paul's butt, Paul opened his mouth and took Colin's tongue.
"MMMM. You're a good kisser, Paul." Paul's baritone responded. "It's my prehensile tongue." While they were kissing, Colin maneuvered Paul up against the wall. He held him there. "I want to do three things, Paul. First, I wanna dig my chin into your neck and mark you. Then I want to get you naked. And then...I wanna push those legs into the air and fuck you for the rest of the night." Paul was breathing hard. "I had similar thoughts. Maybe not the marking though." Again he thought "SHIT. I'm oversharing." Colin wrapped his arms around Paul. "Maybe you can spend the weekend with me? Bring enough so you don't have to worry about getting home for Monday work? I'll make it worth your while. Bwah hah hah." Colin realized that Chris would be laughing like a clown if he heard him say that. But there was no laughing when Paul said "I'd REALLY like that. You're sure?"
"Let's kiss some more. Then you tell me." While they were kissing, Colin moved one of Paul's hands to his crotch. Paul shook his head yes, and then moved Colin's hands to his own crotch.
"I don't have your number. Call me at my lab? We'll plan everything."
"Early tomorrow, Professor Colin." Paul thought "titles suit him. Maybe Mr. Maybe Sir. Maybe Master. Time will tell."