Page 25

25

MASON

I left Portland and continued down I-5 through Oregon at a snail’s pace. With my mind so focused on Connor, I’d forgotten how traffic could be after the holiday. I was glad I left early to get a jump start on the commute, but the traffic had increased significantly. At least the weather was clear and relatively mild for the time of year. Thank you, El Nino.

My stops included McMinnville, Salem, Albany, and finally, Eugene, where I decided to spend the night at a rest area. I’d hit Crescent City the next day to check on the condo and hopefully see Eli. I wasn’t sure what he was doing for the holidays or if he was even in town. I’d call him in the morning.

My mind wandered, thinking of Connor again when I took the freeway exit to McMinnville. When he’d left my hotel last night, and I was getting ready for bed, I went to the bathroom to brush my teeth and saw his black jockstrap hanging on the faucet. Either he’d forgotten it or left it on purpose for my amusement. I was positive it was the latter, and I would treasure that little gift.

I texted him by voice messaging while on the road.

Me: Good morning, babe. You forgot something last night. smile emoji

Connor: Whatever do you mean? wink emoji

Me: LOL. I appreciate the Christmas gift, although a little unconventional.

Connor: I needed to give you something that would give me an excuse to see you again.

Me: That is inevitable, mister, but you’re not getting it back. You’ve just created another first for me—a jockstrap fetish.

Connor: laughing emoji I have my work cut out for me then.

Me: I’ll hold you to it!

We signed off after a few more exchanges, and I told him I’d give him a call when I was in Crescent City. Now things had escalated between us, I didn’t want him to worry about me on the road. I figured I’d text or call him once a day to ease his concerns. It felt good to think about someone special all the time, and I hoped he felt the same about me.

Once I arrived in Eugene for my delivery, I drove to a travel center to spend the night. I hit the road again the next morning and got to Crescent City a few hours later. Eli was at the parking lot he owned when I arrived. I parked my rig as he sauntered over, and when I jumped down from the cab, he greeted me with a handshake that went into a quick bro hug.

“Merry belated Christmas,” he said cheerfully. “When you called this morning and said you were heading down this way and wanted to check on your place, I could have easily done that for you so you wouldn’t have to make a trip into town.” I appreciated his offer, but there was more I needed to talk to him about, and I wanted to do it in person.

“Well, I had an ulterior motive than just checking on my condo,” I replied. “I wanted the chance to talk with you, so I’m glad you hung around for the holidays. I know you always like to hit a beach somewhere during the winter.” I gave his shoulder a light punch as I winked at him.

He laughed. “Your timing worked out great. I’m headed for Mexico in a couple of weeks for about ten days. Perfect time of year in Puerto Vallarta.”

We headed to the main building in the middle of the unpaved lot where Eli’s home was. When I walked in behind him, I was surprised he’d put up Christmas decor in his living room. He’d been divorced for years, and his daughter and son-in-law lived in New York. I knew they had come out last Christmas to stay with him, but with the severe weather back east this year, Eli didn’t want to deal with delayed or canceled flights. He’d decided to stay and work at the bar over the holidays.

I noticed the tree right away and gave him a surprised look. “You put a tree up, and your family didn’t even come out this year?”

“Yeah, I wanted it to feel like Christmas in the house. Even though we have the bar decorated, I didn’t want an absent sense of Christmas at home. It just felt right,” he replied.

Suddenly, I felt a bump against my lower leg. I looked down and was greeted by a gentle meow and big blue eyes. “Hey there, Rooboo,” I said as I bent down to scratch his head. Eli was a cat lover and had always owned one or two over the years. The gorgeous, long-haired feline had to be my favorite. Rooboo was extremely social and could be quite vocal if ignored. His coloring was Siamese, with tips of chocolate brown on his face and paws. His behavior was more like that of a dog since he’d follow you around, and he had the inane ability to play fetch.

Eli motioned for me into the kitchen—Rooboo followed and made his presence known. He jumped up on the stool next to me and gave me a vocal warning to be petted. I obliged. Once he was satisfied with the attention, he jumped down and strutted off, tail held high.

I watched him retreat. “I love that cat of yours,” I said.

“I know you do…and I know Rooboo senses it,” Eli replied, moving toward his refrigerator.

It was almost lunchtime, and Eli whipped us up some sandwiches with a couple of beers. We sat at his large kitchen counter to eat and catch up. I wasn’t sure how Eli was going to react to what I had to share with him, so I ate slowly as he caught me up on the local news.

Sandwiches finished, we took the beers into the living room to chat. Eli turned on the gas fireplace, which immediately made it feel homey. Rooboo came back in and settled on the fleece pad, taking in the warmth from the hearth. Eli then sat down and gave me a questionable look.

“What’s up?” he asked after taking a swig of beer. “I can tell something is on your mind, but I sense you’re not quite sure how to tell me. I could hear you thinking in the kitchen.” One thing about Eli was his ability to read people.

I pulled at the label on my beer bottle. “An unexpected thing happened, and I wanted to bounce it off you since you’re my closest friend.” He gave me a concerned eye as I continued. “Remember the last time I was in town and came into the bar?” He nodded. “I told you about the college student I’d given a lift to?”

“Yes, and I think you told me his name was Connor,” he replied. “His eye color distracted you, or something like that.”

I nodded. "That’s right. I saw him again the last time I drove through the college town in early November. I’d ordered lunch at a diner by the university, and he walked in, much to my surprise. I invited him to join me.”

Eli kept a neutral expression but didn’t say anything as he took another swig of his beer. It was my cue to keep going.

“After we ate, he invited me to a fraternity kegger that night.” Again, Eli didn’t say anything but raised his brow. “I decided why not, so I met up with him and his friend Spencer. I’d planned to spend the night in town in my truck anyway.”

Eli leaned forward. “What happened?”

I hesitated and looked back down at my almost empty beer bottle. “We met up, and his friend left us to mingle with the college crowd. It gave Connor and me a chance to chat more. Well… his questions led me to tell him I was a widower. He was sympathetic.” I took a moment before continuing. “I don’t really know what came over us, but we ended up kissing.” I looked back up at Eli.

“Whoa, what?” he exclaimed with a look of utter surprise. “I did not expect that.”

“It was an unexpected move, but he drew me in, Eli. I couldn’t help it when I looked into his eyes. He did say he and his friend were gay when he invited me, but I didn’t think anything of it at the time. That fact didn’t bother me.”

Eli tapped the side of his head and pointed his finger at me. “Now I remember—it was his green eyes, just like Claudia’s, right?”

“Yeah. I know this sounds odd since you’ve only known me to occasionally date women after having been with Claudia. But there’s something about Connor that had me over a barrel.”

Eli stood up, took my beer bottle, and said he’d be right back with fresh ones. It gave me time to think about what else I was going to say. I was also sure he was pondering what more he was going to say or ask. It didn’t take long for him to return and hand me a fresh, ice-cold bottle.

There was no judgmental look from Eli, only a friendly face I could spill my upturned life to. “Keep going,” he said as he sat back down.

“We had sex,” I said flatly. At that point, Eli almost spat his beer.

After he recovered, he asked, “Wh… what? Where?”

“In my sleeper cab. And he spent the night with me.” I figured I might as well be upfront with him, but I’d spare him the details. “In the morning, he invited me to have Christmas dinner with his family in Portland. It worked with my route, so I did. He also took me back to my hotel, and then…you know.”

He shook his head in disbelief yet smiled. “Well, you’re just full of surprises.” He laughed softly, and I knew his reaction wasn’t disgust, which helped my nerves settle.

“So, getting back to Christmas dinner and his family. How did that go?” He asked matter-of-factly.

When I thought about what I’d offered up to Eli, it felt like my life had suddenly turned into a daytime soap opera. I didn’t want to go into all the details, but I found it humorous that he was curious about Christmas dinner and not about the sex between Connor and me.

I’d begun to pay more attention to the label on my beer bottle. “There was some drama with his brother Kyle, who left abruptly shortly after I arrived, but dinner was nice. Connor’s mother was lovely, and his college friend Spencer was there spending the holiday with them. He kept the evening lighthearted.”

I looked up at Eli. I could tell he was assessing how he was going to respond. “I would assume the tension between Connor and his brother was directly related to you?” he thoughtfully asked.

“Yup. Connor told me later that his brother was upset because he hadn’t told him my age earlier. It apparently freaked Kyle out, considering I’m around the same age as their mother. And honestly, I had my suspicions that it could be an issue with his family,” I replied.

“Age is just a number,” Eli said, rolling his eyes. “His mother was fine with you, though?”

“Connor told me she was surprised when she first met me, but he also said she wasn’t one to be judgmental. And she treated me kindly and with respect,” I replied.

Eli had been sitting across the room from me as we chatted. He slowly stood up and joined me on the sofa, putting a few feet between us. Of all my male friends, I’d always been amazed at his sense of empathy.

“Mason, listen to me. I’ve known you for years, and we’ve been through a lot. We’ve laughed and cried together.” He closed the distance between us and put a hand on my shoulder, and my throat tightened. “You’ve always been like a brother to me, and you can talk to me about anything. I’ve suspected you’ve been lonely for some time and used your job as an escape. God knows I've escaped to that bar of mine. But if meeting Connor was meant to be, then see what develops. Fate can be a nice surprise.”

Again, there’s that word ‘fate.’

“You’re my best friend, Eli,” I responded, my eyes rimmed with tears. “You sat through Claudia’s suffering with me, but we’ve also had great, crazy times together. Your friendship means a lot. I’m still trying to process the whole sex with a guy thing, but Connor made it so easy. It felt natural with him.”

I finished my beer in a couple of big swallows, and Eli laughed. “Sexual attraction is a fluid dynamic, and we can’t always help who we fall in love with,” he said.

“Hey, I’ve only known him a few months. Saying that four-letter word is taking a big leap here.” Eli just laughed.

After we talked, I was about to order myself a rideshare, but Eli said he was heading to the bar and offered to swing by my place. When he dropped me off, I told him I’d come by the bar later that night for a quick drink.

It felt good to be home. But I was alone again.