“Sounds like a plan to me.”
“Huh?”
“Wanna get drunk and fool around?” Ben leaned across the table to pluck the bottle from Thom’s hand and take a swig himself.
“We still need to clean up this glass, and the spilled beer.”
Ben rolled his eyes. “Fine. After we clean up, then?”
Thom took the bottle back. “Maybe.”
* * *
Thom and Ben sat on the porch in what Ben had come to think of as their usual ‘beer-drinking-chairs’, a cluster of empty bottles on the floor between them. Ben was feeling loose and relaxed, but not too relaxed to do anything about it in case Thom decided to take him up on the fooling around portion of the evening.
He looked over at Thom, who had turned his chair to face Ben’s, and was now attempting to sneak one bare foot up the inside of Ben’s leg. Ben grabbed the foot and pulled it into his lap and Thom started to giggle.
“What’s so funny?”
Thom had to fight around his giggles, but finally managed to get out, “Jaws!”
“What?”
“Wanna get drunk and fool around?” Thom gasped.
“Well, you’re drunk alright.”
Thom’s head flopped back against the chair and lolled from side to side. “I haven’t drunk this much beer since I was in college.”
“Yeah? What would you do then?”
Thom started to giggle again. “Fool around?”
“Oh God, you’re a silly horny drunk!”
“Not!”
“You so are! Geez, how far gone are you?” Ben leaned over to count empty bottles – two for him, three for Thom plus the one in his hand. Not too bad. Thom was probably just buzzed – or a real lightweight. By now Thom had managed to work his foot free from Ben’s grasp and was using it to poke around Ben’s crotch. “Find anything interesting down there?”
“Not yet,” Thom giggled.
Ben stood and pulled Thom to his feet, where the shorter man swayed for a moment before leaning against Ben and putting his arms around his waist. “You’re tall,” he mumbled, face pressed against Ben’s chest. “Mm, sexy too.” Thom’s fingers had managed to work themselves between them and were fumbling with the buttons of Ben’s shirt.
“Okay, time to go inside, sweetheart.” Ben started moving his tipsy lover toward the door.
“Like it when you call me sweetheart.”
“You do?”
“Mm hmm. S’nice.”
“Watch your step, we’re going upstairs.”
“To bed?”
“Yep.”
“Oh, good. I like bed.”
“Me too. Almost there.”
Ben left Thom lying on top of the quilt and went into the bathroom to get a glass of water. He came back out to find Thom giggling and rolling around as he removed his clothes. Ben watched, enjoying the show as Thom flopped around like a fish out of water, and finally went over to help the poor guy out.
“Better now?” he asked, handing Thom the glass of water.
“Your turn.” Thom took the glass and leered at Ben.
“Fine.” Ben stepped back and unbuttoned his jeans before pulling his shirttail out. Starting at the top, he unbuttoned the shirt, stroking his skin as it was revealed. When all the buttons were undone, he let the shirt fall from his shoulders and leaned forward over the bed, putting his weight on his arms, knowing how that position caused the muscles of his torso and arms to flex. “Shall I go on?”
Thom whimpered and nodded, and Ben stood to unzip his jeans, going so slowly that he could hear each tooth of the zipper releasing its grip. Thom licked his lips, set the glass on the nightstand, and leaned forward.
The zipper finally lowered, Ben pushed the jeans down far enough that they fell the rest of the way to the floor and he stepped out of them, wearing only the jockstrap he had put on after his shower because he was out of clean boxer-briefs.
The sound coming from Thom could only be described as a growl, and Ben made a mental note to wear jockstraps more often if that’s the reaction they got. Leaving it on, he moved back to stand by the bed. Thom crawled to the edge of the bed and reached out to run a finger down the center of Ben’s chest, his abs, and to the top of the jock, where he tucked his finger in the waistband and snapped it. He giggled again.
“Having fun?” Ben asked.
“Getting there,” Thom replied as he lowered his head and started mouthing the outline of Ben’s dick through the thin olive-green cotton of the jock. He brought a hand up to cup and fondle Ben’s balls as he mouthed the head of his dick and Ben wondered how much more cotton could stretch. Then Thom was stroking Ben’s cock with one hand while the other hand moved the fabric of the jock to one side just enough to reveal his balls and Thom was licking them and sucking the loose skin of his sac.
Ben looked down to see Thom was hard, his own cock starting to dribble pre-cum. Ben reached for it, but Thom shifted out of his reach and straightened, tucking Ben back into the jock, but still stroking him.
“I wanna fuck you,” Thom said, his hands moving to roam frantically over Ben’s chest, then around to his bare buttocks, outlined by strips of elastic.
“Do you, sweetheart?” Ben asked, laughing a little as he buried his face in Thom’s hair. His man really was a horny drunk.
“Yeah,” Thom breathed, his hands now working their way into the lightly furred cleft between Ben’s buttocks. “Yeah.”
“All you have to do is ask, you know that.”
Thom giggled. “Please?” he whispered, as one of his questing fingers made contact with Ben’s hole and started to rub. “And can you leave the jock on?”
And that was how Ben found himself on all fours, wearing a jockstrap, while his normally shy and timid lover pounded into him like a man possessed. After Thom finally came, he pushed Ben down, rolled him over, pulled the jock to one side and practically swallowed him whole. In a matter of seconds, Ben was coming down Thom’s throat.
Ben woke at one point during the night to find he was still wearing the jockstrap. It had twisted to one side and his junk was hanging out. He pulled it off and tossed it on the floor next to the bed.
The next time he woke it was morning and he could hear Thom washing up in the bathroom. He watched his lover come out of the bathroom, a towel around his waist, and walk toward the bed. Thom froze, his eyes fixed on a spot on the floor, and he flushed bright red. Curious, Ben looked down and saw the green jockstrap lying where he had thrown it during the night. Thom walked over and picked it up.
“I thought… kinda hoped… that was a dream.” He stood there, holding the jock up with two fingers. “I get a little… crazy… when I drink too much beer.”
“Lucky me,” Ben reached over to take his underwear and slip it back on. “And I learned two very important things last night.” He walked over to where he had tossed his jeans, making sure Thom got a good view as he bent over to pick them up.
“What’s that?”
“One, beer has magical properties and should be used sparingly.”
Thom snorted and went to his dresser for clean underwear. “And number two?”
“And two, I think I figured out what kind of porn you like to watch.”
Chapter 15
“I think it’s time to call Dean.” Thom took off his hat and wiped the sweat from his forehead with a bandana.
“Dean?” Ben took a swig of water from his bottle but didn’t take his eyes off the horizon to the north.
“Vineyard master at Bend or Break. We need to harvest in the next few days, and he’ll send workers to help.”
Ben didn’t reply, and the silence was filled with the sound of cicadas. It was damn hot, and the air was heavy with humidity. Thom turned to follow Ben’s gaze and muttered a curse as he pulled his phone out.
“Dean, Thom Caldwell,” he said when the other man answered. “Listen, can you get a team over here this afternoon?”
“That’s kind of short notice, Thom.”<
br />
“Yeah, but it looks like we’ve got some weather headed this way. Have you seen anything in the forecast lately?”
“No, but let me check the satellite map.” Thom waited while Dean pulled up the latest forecast. “Shit.”
“What is it?”
“Huge band of heavy storms. Listen, my guys are almost done here. I can send you… four guys with the big truck. They’ll be there in about half-an-hour.”
“Okay. I think I can call in some extra hands to help out and we’ll get started.”
“What is it?” Ben asked when Thom ended the call.
“One sec,” Thom hit the quick dial button for Chuck and Lorraine’s house. “Lorraine? Listen, we’ve got kind of an emergency out here. Can you send some of the girls over? We need to start harvesting these grapes right away. Anyone, it doesn’t matter. If they’ve got friends over they can bring them too. Thanks.”
“Okay,” Ben said when Thom hung up the second time. “Now what?”
“Now you get a crash course in harvesting grapes.”
Thom led Ben over to the shed, and they started pulling out five-gallon buckets and clippers.
“The guys from Bend or Break will bring buckets and tools, but we’ll get started with these. If you see your cousins arrive, show them where the buckets and clippers are. They’ll know what to do, they’ve helped out before.”
They headed for the end of the top row, and Thom showed Ben what to do, where to cut the stem and how to place the grapes in the bucket so they didn’t bruise. Then Thom grabbed his own bucket and shears and started down the other side of the row. They were making good progress when Lorraine arrived with three of her daughters. A few minutes later, the men from Bend or Break arrived.
They’d all been at it for a while when Thom heard the rumble of distant thunder. He looked up to see the sky to the north had gotten even darker and flashes of lightning lit the mountaintops on the horizon. He turned his head and saw Jonathan Haywood’s car coming up the drive. Damn, he’d forgotten that Jon was coming for dinner this evening. He dropped his shears and jogged to meet Ben’s father.
“Hi Thom,” Jon greeted him as he got out of his car.
“Jon, hi,” Thom panted. “Sorry, we’ve had a bit of an emergency and we forgot to call.”
“No worries. Is there anything I can do?”
“Really? Because if you mean it I’ll put you to work.”
“Yes, of course.”
“Okay, we’ve all been at this a couple of hours. If you’ll go inside and make some coffee and sandwiches that would be great. Just rummage around, everything’s in the kitchen – thermoses and platters and stuff. When it’s ready, just bring it out to the picnic table and give a shout.”
“Got it.”
“Thanks,” Thom called, already jogging back towards the vineyard.
* * *
“Dinner!” Thom heard Jon calling a while later.
“Dinner break!” Thom called out, in case anyone hadn’t heard Jon. Everyone made their way quickly to the picnic table behind the house where Jon had put out a spread of sandwiches, some cans of pop, a couple of thermoses of coffee and some bags of chips.
While everyone was grabbing something to eat, Thom ran into the mudroom and grabbed some headlamps. There weren’t enough for everyone, but he figured the guys Dean had sent would have some in their truck. He had Ben bring some lanterns from the shed. They would be able to keep going when it got dark.
One by one the workers and volunteers finished eating and headed back to the vineyard. Thom showed Jon what to do, and he joined them.
Thom’s phone rang around nine o’clock.
“Thom! It’s Dean. We’re finished over here, so I’m heading over with the rest of my crew. The storm has stalled out and looks to be headed east, but I don’t want to take a chance that it won’t change course again.”
“Okay. Thanks, Dean. See you soon.”
Thom headed over to where Jon was working his way down a row. “How’s it going, Jon?”
“Good! I’m glad I don’t have to do this for a living, though.”
“We’ve got another crew coming, so you don’t need to stay. I know this isn’t how you planned to spend your evening.”
“No, it’s fine. I’ll stick around.”
“Thanks. Look, would you find Lorraine, and maybe the two of you could make some more coffee, put together a snack or something? We’ll need a break, and I’m estimating about twelve to sixteen more people are on their way over.”
Jon headed off to find Lorraine and Thom went back to work.
The sun was coming up when Chuck and Donna arrived with big pink boxes full of donuts. Thom dragged himself over to meet them as they got out of the truck. Donna took one look at Thom and went into the kitchen to fix some coffee.
“You look like hell, Thom.”
“We’ve been up all night, Chuck. What’s your excuse?”
“Same. I was meeting with the emergency response team last night. There was a freak storm to the north, but I guess you know that.”
“Yeah, that’s why we’re all picking grapes like mad. Was there a problem in town?”
“Not yet, but the storm was bad – real bad. And the weather conditions aren’t looking good. We’re expecting more. A few of us headed up towards Salem to check the damage. Lots of trees and power lines down. You’re not the only one scrambling to harvest. A storm like that can wipe a crop out.”
“We’re not done yet. You think we’ll have time?”
“Yeah, there’s nothing on the radar right now, but the last one came up real sudden. I’m monitoring it, though. If I hear anything, I’ll let you know.”
“Thanks. I’ll go ahead and call a break.”
The adrenaline rush from the day before had worn off, leaving Thom exhausted. He grabbed a donut from one of the boxes and headed towards a group of workers. “Coffee and donuts!” he called out. “Pass the word!”
Stuffing the rest of the donut in his mouth, he headed inside to wash up. “You’re a goddess, Donna,” he said as he went through the kitchen where Donna was brewing coffee.
Lorraine was asleep on the sofa where she had crashed around midnight. The downstairs bathroom was occupied, so he headed upstairs. Ben was coming out of the guest bathroom when Thom got to the top of the stairs.
“Hey,” Thom said, “How’re you doing?”
“Exhausted. You?”
“The same. Chuck just got here with donuts and a weather update. Donna’s in the kitchen making coffee. I just called a break.”
“What’s the story on the weather?”
“Bad. Real bad to the north, but it looks like we’ve got a bit of a breather. We need to get everything in as fast as possible. I think everyone’s about to drop, though. Maybe I should send everyone home for a few hours to rest and then start again this afternoon. What do you think?”
“You think the weather will hold?”
“I don’t know, but I think it’s a chance we’ll need to take if we don’t want people collapsing out there. I’ll see what Dean thinks.”
“I think you’re right. I’m going to go get some of that coffee. See you downstairs in a few.” Ben bent to kiss Thom on the cheek as he passed him to go down the stairs. Thom turned to watch the other man for a moment before going into the bathroom. The casual kiss had taken him off guard. It was a simple gesture of affection, but it was the kind of thing he thought of as passing between couples. He liked the thought of being part of a couple, of being able to share those simple gestures. It had been a while since they’d been on a real date, and Thom decided that as soon as the harvest frenzy was over, he’d plan a special evening for the two of them.
Chapter 16
It had rained almost nonstop during the week since the rushed harvest was finished. It had mostly been a steady, dreary drizzle, but there had been the occasional thunderstorm, complete with lightshow. Everyone had been keeping an eye on conditions to the north where flood warning
s had been in place for the last forty-eight hours.
When the harvest was finally completed, Thom and Ben hadn’t had any energy to do more than take showers and collapse into bed. The kitchen was full of dirty dishes and unwashed laundry covered the bedroom floor, but no one could be bothered to do anything about it.
“It’ll all be there tomorrow,” Thom said into his pillow before falling asleep.
Ben was asleep before Thom could finish the sentence.
They didn’t set an alarm, and for the second time since they had started sharing a bed, the sun was up before they were. Once again, Ben woke first. He rolled over to see Thom sprawled on his stomach, half uncovered. Raising up on one elbow, he adjusted the covers over Thom, then with an arm around his waist, pulled the smaller man close. He spooned his chest against Thom’s back, his morning semi nestled comfortably in the crack of Thom’s ass, and breathed in the scent of Thom’s sleep-warm skin.
“Mm?” Thom stirred.
Ben rubbed Thom’s stomach and pulled him even closer.
“You awake?” Ben whispered.
“Mm-hmm.”
“Liar.” Ben moved his hips slowly, making sure Thom could feel what was lurking beneath the covers.
“I’m awake now.”
“So am I.” Ben buried his face in Thom’s neck, then shifted to suck his earlobe in the way he had learned made Thom ticklish and horny at the same time.
“Oh, you’re an evil man,” Thom gasped and pushed his hips back against Ben, who adjusted his now fully alert cock to slip between Thom’s thighs where it pushed against the back of the other man’s balls.
“I am,” Ben agreed, and reached down to cup Thom’s balls, pushing them back against the head of his cock before wrapping his hand around Thom’s shaft and stroking it slowly, in rhythm with his own rocking thrusts.
Ben looked over Thom’s shoulder, and could just see the tip of his cock as it emerged from between Thom’s thighs and pushed at his balls. He adjusted his timing so that his hand slid towards the base of Thom’s cock as his own thrust forward, pressing Thom’s sac between his hand and cock. As his hand slid towards the tip, he increased the pressure, tight over the glans as he had seen Thom do when he masturbated.
Saving Grapes (Cable's Bend Book 1) Page 11