by Beth Moore
Lynn felt the heat of Chris’s hands as they roamed over her body. This didn’t feel like an ordinary massage; it seemed that Chris was putting much more into it. She probably just didn’t want to go out to dinner alone with Matt and his parents tonight. Lynn tried to disguise her heavy breathing as Chris made her way up her legs and kneaded her buttocks. It did feel good, but also bad… oh, so bad. Lynn ended up drifting off to sleep, repeating to herself— she’s straight, she’s straight, she’s straight.
Lynn opened her eyes and slowly sat up. She did feel much better. Getting up, she pulled on her shirt as she wandered down the hall. Matt was relaxing on the couch watching some sci-fi movie.
“Where’s Chris?” she asked, still rubbing her eyes.
“Right after you went to sleep, she went out for a run. I haven’t seen her since,” Matt answered.
Lynn looked at the clock; it was five-thirty. “Wasn’t that like, two hours ago? And you haven’t worried about her?” she accused as she headed over to the sliding glass door leading out onto the deck.
“She’s a big girl,” Matt replied, not moving a muscle.
Lynn slid open the door and stuck her head outside. There was Chris, sitting on the steps of the deck.
“Never mind, she’s right here!” she called to Matt as she stepped out onto the wood. Crouching down, she reached out her hand to brush the hair away from Chris’s face. “Hey, you okay?”
Chris looked down, then out to the waves crashing against the shore. “Sure, it was just so nice and peaceful out here.” She looked at Lynn. “How are you feeling?”
“Better,” Lynn answered, then added sarcastically, “Now I guess I have to go with you guys.”
“Sorry.” Chris chuckled at the hint of sarcasm. “What time is it?”
“Five-thirty. You need to start getting ready?” Lynn asked.
“No, you can go ahead, it only takes me about half an hour,” she replied, again looking out at the water. “I’m enjoying myself out here.”
“Are you sure you’re okay?” Lynn prodded. “Did Matt do something?”
“No. Honest. I’ll come inside in a few minutes,” Chris answered and watched as Lynn stood, slid the glass door to one side, and then closed it behind her. How could she tell her that Matt wasn’t the one that she was bothered with? How could she tell her that she was having feelings that she didn’t understand? Chris let out a deep sigh and watched as the seagulls pranced around the sand. How easy their lives must be. Finally, she stood, brushed the sand off of her clothes, and went inside to prepare for the evening ahead.
The three drove up to the club, Matt and Chris in one vehicle, Lynn in another. The valets took their keys. Matt and Lynn looked at each other and chuckled as they were walking through the very ornate club doors. It always amused them the way the valets reacted about having to park their cars. The valets were used to the BMWs and Mercedes, and almost acted insulted when the two drove up in their beat-up old vehicles.
Before they had left, the three had discussed separating upon arrival. The women would pretend to use the facilities as Matt went on to the table. This way, Matt could have the little discussion with his parents about downplaying the wedding plans.
Matt stopped at the entrance to the restaurant, trying to locate the table where his parents were seated. Marie stood and waved politely. Matt walked through the maze and approached their table.
“Where’s Chris and Lynn?” Marie asked, looking over Matt’s shoulder for their whereabouts.
“They needed to use the restroom, and I thought this would be a good time for us to discuss something.” Matt pulled out a chair, sat, and began as his parents listened attentively. “Please don’t mention setting a wedding date to Chris. We’ve discussed it and she’d like to wait to set a date until after she’s through with school.”
“When will that be?” Charles asked.
“Well, it’s complicated. There’s her bachelor’s degree and then some postgraduate work that has to be completed. I’m really not too sure. The important part is that there will be a wedding. It’s just that it might be a little down the road.” Matt tried not to sound nervous.
“Yes, that is the important thing, but—” Marie started.
“Mom, that is the important thing. She’s got a lot on her mind right now, a lot of stress with school and all. Just please don’t mention anything about the wedding date, or the wedding plans, for that matter,” Matt pleaded.
“Well, we hadn’t said anything about the wedding since we hadn’t seen an engagement ring—” Marie started again.
Matt interrupted, “Just another stress that I didn’t want to put her through right now. I’m just so happy that she said that she’d marry me, the ring will come later, when she decides she’s ready.”
“Well, I agree with her,” Charles stated. “She’s a smart girl and there’s plenty of time for the other things after her career falls into place. If I’d had waited a little longer before your mother and I got married—”
Now Marie interrupted. “If we had waited any longer, I would have married someone else, Charles.”
That announcement brought a round of silence at the table. Marie finally broke the stillness, “We’ll do whatever you want, Matty, frankly, I’m just glad to see that you found someone.” Marie looked over Matt’s shoulder. “And here she is now!”
The seated family rose from their chairs, the parents making their way to Chris and then Lynn.
“Hello again,” Marie said to Chris as they hugged. Turning to Lynn, she remarked, “Lynn, so glad to see you again!” then hugged her.
Charles reviewed Lynn. “Lynn, you’re more beautiful than the last time I saw you. Looks like life is treating you well.”
Lynn smiled. “I have no complaints,” she said, then paused as if she was rethinking her comment. “Well, not many anyway!”
The five of them laughed and sat down, Matt taking Chris’s cue to pull her chair out for her. The waiter arrived at the table with a bottle in an ice bucket
“I hope you don’t mind, I took the liberty of ordering champagne,” Charles said, motioning for the waiter to open the bottle and pour five glasses.
“So, Lynn, what do you think of our Matty’s girl?” Charles asked while the waiter poured champagne all around. It was obviously a rhetorical question, as he cleared his throat, raised his glass, and announced to the table, “Here’s to Matt and Chris! And to Lynn, may you find someone as special someday!”
Lynn smiled and made eye contact with Chris. “I should be so lucky,” she said directly to her and then clinked her glass against all the others. Chris, caught off guard by the sincerity of the look in Lynn’s eyes, clinked her glass a little too hard, spilling the liquid onto the linen tablecloth. Recovering quickly, she laughed. “I just can’t seem to hold my liquor!”
Minutes later the waiter returned to their table with a tray full of appetizers. “Oh, I ordered some of those fabulous little quiches!” said Marie excitedly as she took the dish from the waiter and proceeded to pass them around.
“Those look delicious!” Chris said, taking an appetizer from the plate.
Lynn looked worriedly at Matt, who was unresponsive. Lynn leaned over and whispered into Matt’s ear, “Those have crab in them!”
Matt looked at Lynn, totally clueless. Lynn leaned over and whispered again, “Chris is allergic to shellfish!”
Matt caught Chris’s hand, just as Chris was about to take a bite of the appetizer. “Honey, I believe that contains crab in the mixture.” Then looking at his parents, he explained, “She’s allergic to shellfish, swells up like a balloon. Wouldn’t want to spend your first night in town at the hospital, would we?” he joked.
Chris put the appetizer down immediately and gave a relieved look at Lynn. I’m glad she remembered, she thought. She was obviously paying more attention to details about Chris’s life than Matt was. Matt was just nervous, she tried to convince herself.
The group ordered and ate leis
urely, enjoying the atmosphere and the music, although somewhat corny. A full orchestra playing “Love Shack” was not Lynn’s idea of music. A new song began.
“Oh, I love this song,” Chris remarked. “It reminds me of my parents.”
Lynn looked at Matt, whose mind was obviously somewhere else. Lynn did what she had to do—she elbowed him in the side. Matt flinched and was brought back to earth, then looked at Lynn curiously. Lynn mouthed the word “dance” and nodded to Chris. Matt took his cue.
“Honey, may I have this dance?” Matt asked Chris. Chris accepted and they made their way onto the dance floor.
“Shall we follow his lead, Marie?” Charles stood and held out his hand to his wife. Marie stood and they floated away.
Lynn sat there watching, enjoying the way that Chris was obviously trying to get Matt to lighten up. Finally, Matt broke into a smile. Then she almost fell over in her seat as Chris kissed Matt lightly on the lips. Lynn knew that it was going to happen, should happen, to look natural to his parents, but she was clearly unprepared. She gulped down the rest of her drink and tried to fix on something else. It was no use, her eyes, like magnets, kept centering on the “happy couple.”
“Excuse me, are you alone? Would you like to dance?” asked a man, probably in his thirties, with slicked-back hair. Could this night get any worse, she asked herself. Just then, like a knight in shining armor, she heard Charles’s voice.
“I’m sorry, young man, this enchanting young lady owes the rest of this dance to me.”
Lynn smiled as she took Charles’s hand and mouthed “thank you” to Marie who was seating herself. Marie smiled back and waved. Lynn and Charles finished the song out on the dance floor.
Chris tried to make Matt smile. She told the dirtiest joke she knew. That did it. Mart’s face cracked into a smile and he let out a laugh. “That’s what 1 like to see!” she said and reached up to kiss him lightly on the lips. Matt looked at her as if confused.
Chris answered his look. “Keep smiling, I’m just doing what your parents would expect, trying to look natural, you know, like two people in love?”
His smile returned. “What would I do without you?” Matt noticed that Chris was looking away, toward Lynn, and at the man who had seated himself next to her. They watched as Mart’s father swooped in to save the day. Then, returning to their dance, they smiled at each other, both glad to see that Lynn had been rescued.
Chris’s eyes wandered back over to the other couple. She watched as Charles guided Lynn around the dance floor. Chris had been surprised at Lynn’s attire that evening. The black slacks made Lynn appear even slimmer than usual. The cobalt-colored sweater that hung just off her tan shoulders and scooped down her back made Chris break out in a sweat. Charles’s hand was placed gently on Lynn’s bare back. Chris remembered the soft skin under her fingertips and felt a tingle run through her body.
“Hey, Earth to Chris. Where are you?” Matt woke her from her daydream.
Not able to tell him the truth, she chose a vague response. “Nowhere really.” She was saved from further questions as the music stopped and Matt led her back to the table.
“Thanks, Charles,” Lynn said as Charles pulled out her chair. “I am forever in your debt.”
“No, actually, I’m the one in your debt.” Charles paused, then continued, “That investment advice that you gave me the last time we were here, well, let’s just say it was right on the mark. In fact, it built our new swimming pool!”
“Well, I’m glad it worked out for you,” Lynn replied. “I’m always happy to help out.”
“If you have some time before we leave, I’d like to speak with you about another venture that I’m interested in.”
“No problem. Just give me the details, and I’ll take a look at it.”
Chris was surprised, to say the least. Lynn the waitress, the singer, also gave investment advice? Would her talents ever end?
“Well, I hate to break up the party, but I’m on in half an hour,” Lynn apologized as she grabbed her jacket from the back of her chair.
“We understand, how do they say it, ‘That’s showbiz’!” exclaimed Marie.
“Lynn, you are joining us for ther picnic tomorrow, aren’t you? I’m afraid none of us are as good at sports as you, and we don’t want our family to look entirely pathetic!” Charles joked.
Lynn smiled. Happy to be included, she replied, “I wouldn’t miss it!” Pausing, she placed her hands on Chris’s shoulders. “But you know, Chris here is pretty athletic herself. You may actually win a trophy tomorrow!”
Chris blushed, not knowing whether it was because of the compliment, or who it came from. With that said, Lynn waved goodbye and showed herself out of the room.
The evening lingered on, longer than either Matt or Chris had anticipated. At two o’clock, the music stopped, and the night was declared over. With a sigh of relief from both, the couple slid into the El Camino and settled side by side. Aware that his parents were still watching, Chris whispered, “Put your arm around me.” Matt, now used to following her cues, did just that, and pulled out from in front of the building, waving good-bye. Looking in the rearview mirror, Matt chuckled and shook his head as he watched the valet, who was clearly unhappy with the tip that he had been given.
“Boy, it was a good thing we knew all the right answers, huh?” Matt said. “All that practicing sure paid off!”
Chris agreed and slid away slightly from Matt to give each of them some space. “So, what time is the picnic tomorrow?”
“It starts about ten o’clock. Get a good night’s sleep, ‘cause Dad likes to enter a lot of events.”
“You know, you misled me. Before, you called it a picnic, now it’s a sports event!”
“Oh, stop whining. At least you’re athletic, you’ll laugh when you see my family try to compete!” He laughed, then turned serious. “But please don’t laugh, at least not to our faces!” His face broke out into a smile, which turned into another laugh.
Matt parked the car in front of the house and opened the door for Chris.
“I’m going to get out of this monkey suit and into something comfortable” Matt said as he slid off his tie and began pulling off his shirt while walking down the hall.
“You’re the first gay man I know who doesn’t like dressing up!” Chris called after him.
“Oh hell, I’m probably the first gay man you’ve known!” He laughed. Sticking his head out of his bedroom door, he called out, “True?”
“True,” she admitted. “But I’ve seen a lot of movies.”
Chris entered the bedroom, closed the door, and began stripping off her clothes as well. She pulled on a T-shirt and a pair of flannel boxers and padded into the kitchen for a bottle of water. “You want anything from the kitchen?” she yelled to Matt.
“How about a bottle of milk of magnesia?” she heard him answer; she yelled back, “You’ll have to settle for a glass of milk!”
Carrying the water and milk into the living room, she plopped down on the sofa, exhausted. Matt followed her lead and plopped down on the adjacent couch. Just then they heard keys in the front door.
“Hey, how’d the rest of the evening go?” Lynn asked as she threw her keys onto the table.
“Good, really good,” Matt answered. “Thanks for that save on the shellfish.”
“No, I’m the one who should thank her for that!” Chris laughed.
Matt started giving Lynn the details of the rest of the evening, but Lynn interrupted.
“Wait, I want to hear all this, but I really need to shower first. I swear they’re not turning the air-conditioning on in the bar anymore!” Lynn disappeared down the hall.
When Lynn returned, she asked, “Anyone for ice cream?”
Chris’s face lit up. “Count me in!”
“Come tell me how much you want!” Lynn motioned for her to follow her into the kitchen. They re-emerged with bowls overflowing with each of their favorites.
“Sure you don’t w
ant any, Matt?” they teased.
“No thanks, I don’t want that stuff floating around in my belly all night!”
Matt and Chris filled Lynn in on the events of the evening. When they were through, and tired of laughing, Matt excused himself, saying that he had to rest up for the next day, which was only a few hours away.
“How about you? Are you going to poop out on me, too?” Lynn asked Chris.
“Actually, I’m wide awake,” Chris replied.
They sat in silence for a few moments, both focused on their ice cream. Chris broke the silence first. “So, you know all the details of my life, but we never got around to your life.”
“That’s because I’m not an integral part of this charade.”
“Well, to quote you, ‘I think Matt’s fiancee should know something about his roommate’s life,’ unquote. Well, I mixed up a few words, but you get the gist of it.”
“Okay, so what do you want to know?” Lynn conceded.
“How about where you grew up, your parents…” Chris added sarcastically, “your hopes and dreams.”
“I grew up in a small town in the valley, both of my parents are still alive. My dad still works as an architect. My mom, a computer programmer, is semi-retired, so she says, but she still works out of their home. I have one brother, younger than me, who is a landscape designer. I see them a couple of times a year. We’re not extremely close.”
“And do they know that you’re gay?” Chris asked.
“Yes, I knew very early on, and made them very aware of it. They’re pretty accepting of my lifestyle.” Then Lynn sarcastically added, “As long as they don’t have to know where I sleep and whom I sleep with.”
“You mean the thousands and thousands of women?” Chris teased.
“I know what Matt believes. But I don’t think he really understands. I think a lot of men only sleep with women, or other men as the case may be, because they get horny, you know for the actual sex act.” Lynn paused in thought and then continued, “But I don’t sleep with women— and believe me, he has way over exaggerated about my sexual exploits—because I’m horny.” She looked at Chris, trying to make her understand. “Once you’ve had true intimacy, you keep searching it out, wanting that feeling again. So sometimes, I just need to feel wanted. I need the intimacy, even if it’s only for a few hours, even if it’s someone I don’t even know.”