Steamy Dorm

by Kristine Robinson

  Benjamin shrugged. "I was an army brat. My father was stationed all over the world." He nodded at another stall owner before he continued, "Then I went into the royal navy and, well, here I am."

  "I can't even learn simple phrases," I said as I dusted off my hands.

  He eyed me with amusement. "How long have you been trying to learn?"

  "A few months," I admitted. As I finished speaking our conversation was halted by more customers.

  It stayed busy for a bit. When there was another lull, Benjamin replied, "That's not very long. Do you go by Gabriel?"

  "Most of my friends call me Gabe," I said. "Do you go by Benjamin?"

  He shook his head. "Only my mother calls me Benjamin," he said with a laugh. "Call me Ben."

  When we had sold what we had and the crowds dwindled, I helped Ben load up the crates into an old truck that was far from glamorous but it suited Ben fine. The farm was out in the country and it was beautiful. Ben showed me around and introduced me to the few fulltime staffers along with a few of the volunteers who were staying at the farm that week.

  "Farming tourism has become all the rage," Ben explained in a low voice. "Not that I'm complaining," he amended with a jovial smile.

  I had to admit, if I were here under other circumstances that I might have volunteered here as well. It was relaxing. The farm staff were all friendly and courteous. Ben was very unassuming and welcoming. This side of Italy was oddly appealing to me. Morgan's Italy had been a fake glittering one but the one on Ben's farm was real and substantial.

  The next morning, Ben was notably absent at breakfast. Laura, one of the farm's overseers, told me that Ben had gone to get some supplies and would be back later in the day when I inquired after the tall blond. Laura was nice and reminded me a bit of Mirabelle. The woman was spunky and earthy. Her brown hair was pulled into a ponytail around which was wrapped a bandana. She showed me where to work for the day and how to harvest the crops appropriately. After that I was left to do the work without much interference as she went to get the backpackers set on their daily tasks.

  The sun was warm and by midday, I had abandoned my shirt which, I hung over my head to keep the sun off of me. I was bending over to retrieve another potato out of the patch that I was digging up when I heard a laugh behind me. I turned and squinted over to see Ben striding toward me. His jeans were dusty and his green t-shirt was equally dirty. He wore a straw hat that looked oddly good on him with his long blond hair spilling across his shoulders.

  "Getting into your work?" Ben asked with a grin as he motioned toward my shirt which was still draped over my head.

  I blushed a bit and shrugged. "Redheads burn easily," I said.

  "That's true," Ben said and he pulled off his straw hat. "Here, take this."

  I hesitantly took it from him and mumbled, "Thanks."

  "Don't mention it," Ben said. "You should put your shirt back on now before your back burns."

  I nodded and did so as I eyed him curiously. He had an odd expression on his face and I wondered what he was thinking. "Are you okay?" I asked him quietly. Before he could answer, we both looked around as Laura came walking up to check on me.

  "Oh. Hey, Boss," Laura said warmly to Ben. "Did not expect to see you here."

  Ben nodded. "Just checking on the recruit," Ben said before he dipped his head. "I'll see you guys at the house," he said as he took his leave and strode away. Was it my imagination that his gaze had lingered on me for a few moments?

  Laura grinned at me and asked, "How's the work coming?"

  I grimaced and looked back down at the potatoes much to Laura's amusement.

  ***

  It was the next day before I saw Ben again despite his statement. After breakfast, I saw him headed out toward the pins on the far side of the farm with a basket. I hurried after him. "Ben," I called out. He turned his head toward me. When I caught up to him, I put the straw hat on my head and gave him a hesitant smile which he returned. "Missed you last night," I said. I fell into step beside him as he walked toward the pins again.

  He said, "Got caught up with paperwork. Happens a lot these days."

  "Oh? What kind of paperwork?" I asked curiously. He glanced at me and I realized I must be overstepping my bounds. I explained, "Sorry, it's just I was an accountant back in the states so if you need help with any of that I would be willing to look at it. You are helping me out of a desperate situation and I very much want to repay the kindness."

  He sighed, "Truthfully the bank notes are getting the better of me, but I would have to translate them as they are in Italian for the most part."

  "Numbers are numbers. Just point me to the numbers," I said swiftly.

  He chuckled, "We'll see. About your situation," He paused as he gave me a look that I could not read, "I wanted to say that I don't want you to feel like you are a slave or beholden to me, Gabe."

  "I don't feel that way," I said honestly. "Where to, Boss?" I gestured toward the basket and Ben motioned toward the chicken pins ahead of us. "Fun," I said with a chuckle.

  Ben gave me a smile which made my stomach flutter. I wondered if he was into guys at all. If he was he kept it to himself. He seemed to be a very private person. I followed him into the chicken pins and did as best as I could to help collect up the eggs. I was reaching for another egg when Ben touched my arm. His hand was warm even if I could feel a few callouses on his palms from working in the fields. My pulse sped up but Ben just said, "That’s enough for today. Better get to your chores." I parted ways with the blond reluctantly but I still had more potatoes to harvest.

  ***

  Later that day, Laura told me Ben needed me in the office. She led me to a small room off to one side of the main living area. Ben's head came up from the paper he had been working on as we entered. "Good," Ben said in earnest. "Grab that chair by the wall, Gabe." When I had picked up the wooden chair, Ben motioned for me to place it next to where he sat. As I did so, Ben said to Laura, "Thanks." The girl gave him a bright smile and then bounced back out of the room to see about her other charges.

  Ben handed me a stack of papers. "Let's see if you can make sense of this," Ben said. "I got the bank manager to print most of it out in English."

  I took the papers and nodded, "It looks pretty straightforward. Do you have ledgers here that you keep on the farm?"

  Ben nodded, "Yes." He pulled a large book out of a desk drawer. This is the current one." He handed it over. It was a hefty book. Luckily most of it looked like it was English. Ben pulled out some other mail and correspondences which he set to work on.

  Working beside Ben was devilishly distracting. He bumped me while he was working and apologized. I did not mind the contact. If anything, I wish he would touch me more, not that I could say that to him. The flush on my cheeks made me keep my eyes squarely on my own paperwork for a bit after that. Surprisingly, I made a good bit of progress despite Ben's closeness.

  After that, I spent afternoons in Ben's office doing the day's paperwork. A good chunk of that time was spent fantasizing about the man next to me bending me over his desk and doing unmentionable things to me. Ben for his part, treated me with respect and never said anything even remotely close to flirty. I figured Mora had told him enough of the story that Ben had gotten the idea that I was gay, but if he did then, clearly, he thought nothing of it either way. There were worse things, but spending afternoons beside the man made me wish he were a little more receptive.

  ***

  I used the phone on the farm to let my family know where I was and that I was okay. My parents had tried to call the payphone back where I had been but had gotten no answer. By that time, I was probably already at Mora's house. I felt better knowing that my parents had not ignored my call for help. However, I insisted to them that I was fine and I did not need help at all. I was quite content on Ben's farm, to be honest. Mirabelle phoned the farm to check up on me as well, after my parents told her where I was. It felt nice to hear from them all.

  A mont
h passed while I worked on Ben's farm. I found as I looked through the accounts, that Ben was sending most of the profits elsewhere. He took just enough out of the profits to pay the staff and keep the farm running. The farm could have been making a tidy profit, but instead it was just breaking even.

  Laura confided in me that Ben had started the farm to give back to the community after he had settled in the area. The local school had needed to be rebuilt so the farm had begun funding the renovations. Another tidy sum was being sent back to what I assumed was Ben's home in Ireland.

  I asked Ben about his life back in Ireland, but he just shrugged it off saying, "I rarely go home. The money is just to help with my parent's mortgage and expenses since my father is disabled."

  "So, there's no significant other waiting for you back home?" I asked with lighthearted curiosity as I penciled in an amount on the ledger.

  The afternoon sun was coming in the windows and made odd shapes on the walls as the trees moved in the breeze. Ben laughed, "No. Why?"

  I shrugged, "Just curious. We work together a lot and I don't know that much about you."

  "That's true enough, but my life in Ireland is pretty much nonexistent. My life in Italy isn't much better," Ben said with a chuckle.

  I gave him a grin and said, "All work and no play." This only caused Ben to chuckle more.

  ***

  Ben was soft spoken and straightforward except for at odd moments when he seemed to withdraw. I pondered the blond man. My attraction to him had grown so much that I felt I had to find out once and for all if there was anything there. One evening I caught Ben as he was about to retire for the evening and asked him if I could talk to him. Ben motioned for me to come into his room.

  "I wanted to let you know that I don't require any further payment," I said as I eyed a family photo of Ben and his parents.

  He said, " Are you returning home then?"

  I shook my head. "Not right away. I just don't require any further payment. I would like to stay on and help out, if you'll have me, that is."

  "I didn't realize you liked farming so much," Ben said as he eyed me with interest.

  The grin that came to my face was swiftly followed by a blush. "Besides my tendency to sunburn, it isn't bad. Besides I think you could use the help managing the business side of things," I said in a matter of fact tone.

  He nodded, "I probably could."

  We eyed each other for a moment. I walked over to him tentatively. I was not a short man, but he was a good three inches taller than me at my 5 foot 9 inches' height.

  "So, you remember when you asked me to put my shirt on?" I asked softly. When Ben nodded slowly, I continued, "You didn't ask me to put that on out of modesty, did you?"

  He eyed me and then asked, "Truthfully?" I nodded and waited. He sighed, "I didn't want the temptation."

  "Temptation?" I asked curiously as I edged a bit closer. He neither advanced nor retreated. He merely let me come to him.

  Ben said, "You had just gotten out of a horrible relationship. I didn't want to take advantage of you."

  "So you are attracted to me?" I said for verification.

  He chuckled and agreed with a nod of his head. "Yes," he said softly. "Are you trying to tell me something here?" His eyes danced with amusement and I gave him a smile as I nodded. Ben returned the smile as he leaned over to brush his lips against mine. The kiss was soft and hesitant as we felt each other out. As our confidence increased, the kiss deepened. My mind flicked back over to the times with Morgan and the difference was pure and simple.

  Ben was kind and honest. He never said something he did not feel. I trusted him more in the month I had spent in his company than I ever had Morgan. I fell into the kiss with him, not out of desperation, but release. We eased back to the bed and undressed each other languidly as we took the time to explore each other's bodies. His lips made me gasp when they found my neck.

  I bit my lip to keep from crying out. My fingers made quick work of the buttons on his jeans and I smiled at the rush of breath and mumbled words that came from his mouth against my neck when I wrapped my hands around his shaft. "What sort of language is that?" I asked in amusement.

  He breathed against my skin, "Gaelic."

  I grinned, "Is there a language you can't speak?"

  "Lots of them," Ben assured me as he pulled his shirt over his head. I followed his example and we made quick work of our clothes. When we came back together the feeling of our naked skin together made my head spin. He pulled me down to the bed and I went with him willingly. I gasped when he pushed me over onto the bed. Before I could say anything, he took me into his mouth and I clenched my hands in his long hair.

  I mumbled, "Ben, please."

  He lifted his head and looked at me with concern. "Are you alright?"

  I nodded and motioned for him to lay beside me. He complied. I rolled into him and gave him a soft kiss. The hardness of him pushed against my stomach and against my own hard length. "Will you make love to me?" I asked softly.

  "Are you sure you want that?" Ben asked quietly.

  I smiled at him and said, "I'm not going to break, Ben. I want you to make love to me."

  Ben eyed me for a moment before he kissed me deeply enough to make me dizzy. He levered himself over the top of me and I made a sound of appreciation when his weight came down on top of me. He leaned over and retrieved a tube out of the nightstand. I gasped when he slipped his slick fingers inside of me. He stretched me gently and thoroughly before he pushed into me. He held me still beneath him as we both adjusted to the feeling. I nodded at him that it was okay for him to move.

  When he finally did move inside of me, I wanted to cry at the sweet agony of the tenderness that he did so with. If this was making love, then I had never truly done it before. I wrapped my arms around his neck and we moved in a slow rhythm that was simple and perfect as we kissed. I thought that making love to Ben was just like the man himself, simple and perfect.

  ***

  The sun beat down as Ben strode across the field toward where I was talking to some backpackers. I turned to Ben as the backpackers went off to the fields to find Laura. "Did you get up with your parents?" Ben asked as he dusted his pants off.

  I wiped some dust off the man's cheek. "Yes, Mom wanted to know if they should bring something for the holidays?" We turned toward the house. I looped my arm through the tall man's arm.

  "They can if they want. My parents said they were coming in the last week before the winter holidays," Ben said.

  I sighed, "The farm is going to be very full for those two weeks."

  "Aye, but then they all go home for 6 months," Ben said as if this was a big secret.

  Grinning, I suggested that we put them all to work in the fields for those two weeks. Ben considered it then laughed. Life might have been different than I imagined it, but it was perfect even if I did take a roundabout way to get to where I should have been.

  Love Me Hard

  An Erotic Gay Romance

  JAKE

  I never knew what I wanted until I lost the man I thought I loved.

  Tyler was the perfect beau, with enough money to buy a small island and a gorgeous body.

  I was stupid for ever thinking he cared about me.

  But Alan didn't think so. He was different. Kind. Charitable. The perfect chocolate god.

  I wanted him. I wanted to be like him. I didn't want to be an idiot fashionista.

  I wanted to know what it meant to love somebody.

  And it wouldn't hurt to have his sweaty body pounding into mine.

  But there was no way he'd ever go for a guy like me...

  ALAN

  I wanted a better life for myself. I didn't want the drama.

  When I saw that boy laying on the ground, my heart broke.

  The one good man in a thousand and he gets a beating right in front of me.

  Jake was kind and compassionate. He was just mimicking a man that clearly didn't love him.

  I knew I'
d regret helping him, but I couldn't help but wonder what it'd be like to have a chance with a good man...

  * * *

  Chapter 1

  The light from the bar dyed Tyler's blond faux hawk a sickly shade of green. He was bobbing his head up and down to the music while I watched waiting for him to pull himself away from his phone.

  “Are you trying to get a high score on Tetris?” I yelled over the raucous techno beat.

  Tyler looked up past me

  “Hello?” I waved my hand in front of Tyler's face.

  Tyler slapped it away. “What do you think you're doing?”

  “Well isn't it obvious? I'm trying to spend an evening with my boyfriend. I mean what's the point of even going out if you're just going to sit there on your phone?” I had to lean in across the stool next to him and yell just to be heard.