Date: Sun, 20 Mar 2022 19:05:16 +0000
From: DurtyRiter <DurtyRiter@protonmail.com>
Subject: The Man with the Jeep, Chapter 33

This chapter includes male sex. If this is unappealing or illegal in your
location, please skip this chapter.

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-DurtyRiter


*********

The Man with the Jeep


Chapter 33

"What?" Andrew asked blankly. "What do you mean?"

John answered with a slightly embarrassed smile. "When we were kids, he
used to go on and on and on about Doc Holliday and other Western characters
until I finally started ragging on him that if he liked them so much, he
should act like them instead of being a spoiled brat all the time. He
wasn't really a brat, let alone spoiled, but I was getting so tired of
`Billy the Kid this' and `Buffalo Bill Cody that' all the time that I just
wanted him to shut up about it. Before I knew it, he ditched all his
t-shirts and tank tops for button-up shirts and suspenders and started
playing the part."

"How old was he?"

"About thirteen, I guess."

"No way!"

"Yeah," chuckled John. "It was kind of crazy, actually. While most of us
were all awkward and trying to figure ourselves out, it was like he
suddenly knew and lived accordinglyÑand didn't care what the rest of us
thought. Most of us teased him about it and tried to put him in his place,
but over time we realized that we were just jealous that he had found
himself. At least I was."

"What a story!"

"I know, right? Even still, we were all convinced that anyone so dorky
would never find a girlfriend, let alone get married. But he proved us all
wrong. In fact, he got married younger than any of the rest of us cousins."
John threw his hands up in surrender. "Just goes to show how much we know!"

Grace reappeared with their drinks then.

"Here are your libations, gentlemen!" she announced with a flourish. "What
else may I serve you today?"

"I think I'd like the roast beef sandwich," John responded.

"And how spicy are you feeling today?"

"Gimme the works, if you please!"

"As you wish! And for you?" she said turning to Andrew.

"Can I get a turkey and avocado sandwich, please?"

"Of course, sir! Is there anything else you want me to have them whip up
for you?"

"Actually," John said. "Can we get some of those ranch tater tots too?"

"Absolutely! Now do you wantÑ"

"Just whenever," John interrupted her. "We don't care what order stuff
comes out."

"No problem then; we'll get those going for you."

"Thanks, Grace, you're the best!"

"Thanks, Uncle Johnny!" she said with a pleased smile. "I'll be back in a
bit!"

"Great!"

Andrew grinned at John after she had left. "I was getting dizzy there for a
moment."

"What?"

"You guys kept flipping between old formal and super casual so fast that it
was confusing."

"I guess I can see some of that," John admitted. "I'm just so used to it
that it comes naturally now." He leaned forward and added in a
conspiratorial whisper, "Brady wants it all proper for the ambiance of the
place, but I think Grace does just enough to humor him and we both like to
dance right on that line in case her dad is listening to see how far we can
take it and not ruffle his feathers. Though, truthfully, I get a kick out
of riling him up sometimes."

"And you say I'm incorrigible!"

"It takes one to know one, right?" John said with a wink.

"It seems so."

The sandwiches arrived pretty quickly and the piping hot tater tots just a
few minutes later. They both enjoyed the food thoroughly, though John had
to keep having his drink replenished to soothe the horseradish sauce in his
food.

"You did say you wanted the works, Uncle Johnny," Grace reminded him. "You
didn't think we'd tame it for you unless you said to, did you?"

"Not at all, Grace," John answered, his eyes watering. "It's really good
and worth any pain," he laughed.

"Okay then..." she replied hesitantly. Then she leaned toward Andrew. "You
see why I'm glad you're here? Someone needs to watch out for him since he
doesn't always do it himself."

"I'll keep my eye on him," he assured her.

She went back inside, Andrew guessed to get another pitcher of water. His
thought was confirmed when she promptly returned with a pitcher of water
and a glass of milk besides.

"Here you go, you masochist!" she said, placing them on the table before
him. "Let me know if I need to get you a salad to go with it."

"Thanks Grace," he said with a smile.

Andrew even offered to trade half of his sandwich. "I'm sure it's a great
way to cool that heat."

John thought about it for a moment before asking for a quarter of it
instead.

Andrew took his first bite of John's roast beef and confirmed that after a
few moments of delicious flavor, the heat did indeed ramp up quickly. He
scarfed down the other two bites in a hurry and returned to his mild
sandwich to cool his mouth down. He was happy he had enough left to bring
his tongue back to equilibrium before he finished off the tasty tots.

"You okay?" he asked John.

"Oh yeah, I just forgot how big a kick they pack."

"I see that! It tasted amazing before the heat seared my taste buds off."

"For sure," laughed John.

"Are we finished here then?"

"Oh no! I'm suddenly in the mood for some dessert! Namely, ice cream."

"That does sound good," Andrew admitted.

John had polished off the milk and most of the pitcher of water by the time
Grace came by again.

"Hey Grace, could we get some ice cream too?"

"Sure! What flavor would you like? We have blackberry, caramel swirl, and
peach today."

"Ooh! Peach sounds perfect right about now."

"And I'd like some of that blackberry, please," Andrew added.

"Coming right up," Grace said before dashing off.

"You're going to love the ice cream too," John assured him. "They make it
themselves and they always have three random flavors to choose from."

"Nice! When she said blackberry, I couldn't say no."

"You're going to love it."

And he did. The speckled purple filling the waffle cone was good to the
very last dripping bit.

John finished the last bite of his and sat back with a satisfied
sigh. "That hit the spot."

"It did!"

Grace came out again and took their plates once they announced they were
finished.

"I'll be back in a moment, Uncle Johnny."

While she was gone, Andrew noticed John slip a $50 bill under the pitcher.

"That's some tip even for family!"

"I know, but it's not like I'll ever have kids of my own. Brady is
comfortable, but if I can pitch in to help, I will. Especially since Grace
will have prom and who knows what all this year. She's a good kid and this
should help take some of the edge off for Brady."

"You are really amazing, you know that?"

John grinned. "I try! Besides, family watches out for family."

"Well I'll cover lunch at least," Andrew declared.

"Okay," John agreed.

Once Andrew had settled the bill, they made their way out, passing Brady at
the counter.

"Was everything to your satisfaction, gentlemen?" he asked.

"It was wonderful," Andrew assured him. "And the service was excellent!"

"Very good, sir," replied an obviously pleased Brady.

"Great as always, Brady," John confirmed. "Will we see you around soon?"

"Hopefully, sir. I will see if I can get away at the end of the month and
swing by."

"Excellent! I will see you then!"

And with a final wave, he led Andrew back out to the car.

Andrew took a final look at the place as John backed them out of the
parking space and back onto the road.

"It's so much nicer inside than it looks from out here," he commented.

"Yes, well Brady is concerned that if he looks too prosperous, someone will
come in and rob the place. I rather think that sprucing it up would attract
more business. We disagree on that point, but it's his place to run, so his
way goes. At the campground, on the other hand, I get to call the
shots. Took us a bit to figure that out, but it works."

"Is this part of that trust thing you talked about earlier?"

"Yeah. In fact, we had this before we ever set up the campground. At the
time, this was home and that was vacation property. It was years before we
built the first cabin on the other site."

"Really?"

"Yeah. It's cool, but you haven't seen it yet. If you're free, we could
stay there next weekend."

"Count me in!"

"Brilliant!"

They made their way back to town enjoying the scenery and each other's
company. The trip home seemed to fly by to Andrew, but he wasn't sure if it
was because he had nodded off at some point or if time warped differently
as he drank in the view of his handsome driver. He subtly checked his shirt
to make sure he hadn't actually drooled all over the place in either case.

They arrived at Andrew's place just as dusk approached, and though he
invited John in for dinner, John declined so he could get some things done
to be ready for work the next morning.

It felt strange to Andrew to spend a quiet evening alone at home, which was
rather funny in a way, because until that first camping trip with John
three weeks ago (was it really only three weeks ago?), this was his
normal. He would typically be halfway through a book by now. And he hadn't
cracked open a new one in weeks.

It was too late to start a book now. He needed to get laundry done and make
some dinner, so that's what he did, thinking of this weekend's adventures.

The Greek restaurant and Althea. The lofty cabin suspended in the
trees. The unexpected appearance of Duncan--twice! Mabel and her diner. The
card games with John. The Sunday drive to Brady's old Inn. It had been a
full weekend, and yet it didn't seem overwhelming at any point. Well, okay,
maybe that point just before he passed out when John had to call Duncan to
check on him that first night: that was the very definition of
overwhelming, he supposed.

But it was a very restful time.

In all of those situations, there was John. Steady, confident, handsome
(God, was he handsome!), and kind. Andrew realized John was kind to
everyone. Maybe that was why everyone seemed to trust him and relax around
him. Even Brady, who was clearly uptight, had somewhat thawed the instant
he saw John. Everyone loved him.

Just like Andrew. Was that all this was? He had just fallen into admiring
John like everyone else so much that he was misinterpreting things? Was he
so desperate for love that he couldn't tell the difference between
infatuation, admiration, and love?

Andrew needed a glass of wine.

Here he was falling for a man who seemed to have some superpower of getting
people to like him. Andrew was just one in a crowd. A tiny dot in a sea of
adoring humanity declaring John the most amazing person in the world.

Andrew's thoughts continued to run down this vein as he sipped through one
and then another glass of wine.

He was clearly missing something. There was no way anyone could be this
perfect. What was he missing? Where was the chink in John's armor of glory?
Andrew decided he must be blinded by his need for companionship. But there
was no one else to ask for a second opinion. All the people he had met over
the last few weeks were already under his spell and none of his
friendsÑeven using the word looselyÑhad met him yet.

Andrew switched his laundry around and poured himself a third glass of
wine.

He wondered what glaring warning sign he was missing, because there had to
be one. There was always something. And the harder it was to find, the
stupider he felt when he discovered it. Like suddenly realizing someone was
missing an arm after hanging out with them for an entire week.

And if there was one thing Andrew hated feeling, it was stupid. He wished
he had stuck to his guns and cut it off with John when he intended
to. Better that than having The Big Revelation after investing his heart
and soul.

His phone beeped with a new text.

`Hey there, handsome! Sorry I couldn't swing dinner tonight. I'm guessing
you're overthinking that right about now, but I promise I would be there if
I could. I would never have asked you to be my boyfriend if I didn't want
to be with you always and forever, and I mean that!'

Again with the perfect timing! How did he do that? Still, what he said did
ring true: it was John who asked Andrew to be boyfriends, not the other way
around. So maybe there was something potentially real here after all. And
if not, he could always blame John for pushing things too far, right?

`Thanks John' he texted back.

And now that he thought about it, most of those people he had met recently
seemed to have known John for a long time. That bode well for John's
character. Everyone Andrew knew was lucky to have just a couple long-term
friends, but John seemed to have a lot. Maybe Andrew was reading too much
into things after all.

Plus, he recalled that several had been surprised and/or relieved that he
had a boyfriend. What was that about? It slowly started to settle that John
might not be on the endless cycle of relationships that everyone else
seemed to be on. The entire situation started to look a bit different from
before. Now that he was thinking about it, maybe this relationship with
John was genuine after all. Maybe he shouldn't try so hard to figure it out
or sabotage it. Maybe it was worth investing in and seeing how far it could
go.

He sighed to himself and then cut himself short with a sharp laugh as he
remembered a prayer from an old TV show: "I'm a man, but I can change. If I
have to. I guess..."


*********

What do you think happens next? :)

Check out my other posts! These ones are not stories I've written, but they
are uncopyrighted pulps from the '80s that I enjoy and wanted to share
before they are lost forever:

"The Battlefield" in the Historical section

"My Favorite Freshman" in the College section

"Alaskan Huskies" in the Encounters section