The Ghosts of Stanton Hall

by John Simpson

  That evening, Mark and Ryan had a drink before dinner in the living room. “So, what’s this thing you want me to do?” the attorney asked as he took a sip of his cocktail.

  “How difficult would it be for you to give the names of two men to the police: two men who committed a murder in Philadelphia back in November of 2000?”

  “Murder? In 2000? Where would you have come across information like that?” Mark asked.

  “You wouldn’t believe me if I told you,” Ryan replied.

  “Try me.”

  Ryan sat back, took a long drink of his cocktail and looked back at Mark. “I told you that we’ve been having problems with ghosts here, and I’ve found out the reason one of them is haunting my home. He was murdered in Philadelphia, and the two attackers were never caught. He wants me to help him get justice.” Ryan gave Mark a look that shouted, No, I’m not fucking crazy!

  “What? You want me to tell the police that a ghost gave you information on a nine-year-old murder? They’ll laugh me off the phone, Ryan. You can’t be serious.

  “So you don’t believe in ghosts?”

  “Frankly, no. I think that your imagination has gotten the best of you. Maybe this old house is too big for you and is playing tricks on your mind.”

  “Scott!” Ryan yelled toward the kitchen.

  Scott flew into the living room, thinking something was wrong. “What? Did something happen again?” he asked nervously.

  “No, but our friend here doesn’t believe in ghosts, so he won’t help ours find justice in this world.”

  Scott looked at Mark. “You have no idea how wrong you are. We’ve not only seen the damn thing, we’ve talked to it! In fact, it sexually molested Ryan in bed, and he thought it was me who had my hand down his shorts!”

  “You two have been in bed together!” Mark had a look of shock on his face.

  “You’re damn right we’ve been in bed together.” Scott didn’t back down an inch. “Every night since the ghost haunted my bedroom. I won’t sleep alone in this house. If I can’t sleep with Ryan, I can’t sleep here at all. I’ll leave at dusk and come back during the day to fix meals,” the butler said with authority.

  “Actually, I’m more comfortable not being alone as well. It’s been quite nerve racking, and there’s more than one ghost here at Stanton Hall,” Ryan added.

  “You really want me to believe that you two have been not only seeing but talking with ghosts? Really?”

  “Yes,” Ryan and Scott said simultaneously.

  “Well, I think you’ve both been smoking pot or something. This is the twenty-first century, not the Middle Ages!” Mark stated.

  Before either Ryan or Scott could respond, Mark was schooled by another source. The drink he was holding was knocked into his lap. He jumped up, covered in scotch on the rocks, thinking that he had simply let the glass slip. As he apologized for making a mess and brushed at his trousers, his chair was silently pulled back to the wall. When Mark went to sit down, he ended up on the floor with his mouth hanging open in shock.

  “Was that my imagination?” Ryan said as Scott began to laugh.

  “No, I obviously pushed the chair back when I jumped up. Nothing spooky about that!” Mark proclaimed.

  After Mark got up, Ryan and Scott watched the zipper on his trousers go down, his belt buckle open, and his pants slip down. Before Mark realized what was happening, his pants were around his ankles. Ryan and Scott were once again in stitches over the ghost’s shenanigans.

  “I suppose you’re gonna tell me that all that happened because you jumped up quickly also,” Ryan said with a grin.

  “I don’t know what the hell just happened, but I’ll make sure they’re fastened tightly this time.”

  Before Mark could bend over to pick up his trousers, his underwear was yanked down to the floor also. This time the attorney wasn’t shy about reacting.

  “Holly hell!” he said as he quickly pulled up his shorts and pants while Scott whistled. When he had finished putting himself back together, the ghost gave him one final tug. When Mark tried to speak, his tie was yanked up and to the side as if he were being hung.

  “Well, you better say you believe, or I don’t know what’s going to happen to you next!” Ryan warned.

  “Okay, okay, I believe. You’ve got ghosts! Tell it to stop!” Mark begged.

  Before Ryan could speak, laughter pealed out from nowhere and everywhere all at once. Mark moved over to the sofa and sat down next to Ryan. The laughter stopped, and Mark looked to his client for an explanation.

  “You’ve now encountered what I believe is the ghost of Phillip Bartholomew. Phillip meet Mark; Mark meet Phillip,” Ryan said gesturing as though introducing two live people.

  Mark made no move to greet the unseen intruder. This apparently annoyed Phillip, who finished off his education of the skeptical attorney by appearing in front of the coffee table. Mark reacted by pushing himself back into the sofa with a look of horror on his face.

  “It’s a ghost!” he yelled.

  “No shit! That’s what we’ve been trying to tell you! Now do you believe us?” Ryan asked.

  “Yes, yes, I see it with my own eyes. Tell it to go away!” Mark pleaded.

  “Why won’t you help me?” the ghost asked Mark.

  “It’s talking to me; make it go away!” Mark once again pleaded.

  “Phillip, can you give us the names of the two men who caused your death?” Ryan asked.

  “Yes, and I can also tell you where they live today. Go into your office, and you’ll find the information on your screen. Please help bring my murderers to justice!”

  Phillip disappeared once more, and the three men went into Ryan’s office. There they found the computer on, with the names and addresses of two men on the screen. One was in Philadelphia and the other was in Camden, New Jersey.

  Ryan hit the print command and gave the paper to Mark. “Look, you’ve seen this for yourself; is there any doubt in your mind that you’re holding the names of those who caused the death of an innocent gay man?” Ryan asked.

  “Gay? How do you know he was gay?”

  Ryan picked up the funeral home ledger, opened it to the report on Phillip and let Mark read. When he was finished, Mark said, “I’ll do what I can. I need to think about how to divulge this information to the police.”

  “Maybe an anonymous tip to crime solvers? You don’t have to give your name, and if you don’t want a reward, they don’t even need your address or anything,” Scott suggested.

  “Yeah, maybe so.”

  Since the house was calm again, they went into dinner. All through the meal, Mark looked around as if he expected a ghost to pop in and sit next to him at any moment. Ryan and Scott snickered about it over their plates. Just when they thought that they had seen the last of Phillip for the night, he made his presence known one more time, to Mark’s chagrin.

  “Mark, would you care for dessert tonight?” Scott asked.

  Before Mark could answer, he turned pale and jumped up and away from the table.

  “What’s wrong?” Ryan asked.

  “I… I thought I felt a hand between my legs. I could have sworn that I felt fingers go up my leg and onto my crotch!” he said, eyes wide and voice trembling with fright.

  Ryan and Scott laughed loudly. “That’s our ghost,” Scott said. He may be dead, but he still likes hot men.”

  “I think I’d better be going,” Mark said. “Thank you for inviting me to stay for dinner; it was kind of you.”

  “I think that was just Phillip’s way of thanking you for agreeing to help bring his murderers to justice,” Ryan said.

  “Please tell him he doesn’t need to thank me,” Mark said as he headed for the hallway.

  Ryan and Scott followed Mark to the door and waved goodbye as he got into his car and left quickly. Ryan closed the door and looked around. “Now, Phillip, that wasn’t nice. You scared our friend right out of here! And after he’s agreed to help you.”

  Sc
ott laughed again and went to the dining room to finish dessert and coffee. After clearing the dishes, Ryan and Scott took another cup of coffee into the living room and sat down to watch television undisturbed.

  Chapter Eight

  THE rest of the evening was uneventful, and Ryan and Scott decided to go to bed around eleven o’clock. After turning out the lights and heading up the staircase, Scott asked the question that Ryan was expecting.

  “Okay if I sleep with you tonight?”

  “I think you can sleep in your own room tonight. Phillip should be quite happy with himself; after all, he got to scare someone and get that person to do his bidding. He shouldn’t bother you at all.”

  “Yeah, but there’s more than one ghost around this place.”

  Ryan smiled. “Sure, you can sleep with me.”

  Scott went to his bathroom to brush his teeth before coming to bed. While Ryan waited, he threw more wood onto the dying fire. He undressed down to his underwear and climbed into bed, leaving room for Scott.

  As Ryan thought about the other man, he began to get hard. Rather than fight it, he gave into it and was fully aroused by the time Scott came in and locked the door. The butler took off his bathrobe and claimed his side of the bed.

  “Well, another day done. I’m sure we’ll sleep well tonight,” Scott said.

  “I hope so. The construction crew will be here in the morning to start work; so we’ll be up early, I’m sure.”

  After a while, Scott began to snore softly, and Ryan decided to make a move. He slid his arm under the covers and over Scott’s stomach, moving down toward Scott’s pride and joy with careful determination. When he made contact with the underwear pouch, he put his hand on Scott’s bulge and squeezed gently, getting a good feel of the goods. Scott didn’t react, and Ryan squeezed again, fondling Scott’s package. Scott woke up, and Ryan froze.

  “Ryan, you awake?”

  “Yeah.”

  “That damn horny ghost is at it again. He’s feeling my junk.”

  Ryan laughed. “That’s no horny ghost. That’s me!”

  Scott turned onto his back, pulled the covers up and looked down. He found Ryan’s hand exactly where Ryan had left it. Scott dropped the covers and turned to Ryan. “Having a good time?” he asked.

  “Actually, yeah, but I think there’s a better time to be had—if you’re willing.”

  “Oh, I’m willing all right,” Scott said as he kicked off his shorts. “Now, get yourself a good handful,” he invited.

  Ryan moved his hand up and down Scott’s rising cock, reveling in the velvety texture. Leaning over, he kissed Scott’s tempting mouth. The two men strove for dominance, each trying to force the other’s mouth open with a probing tongue.

  Scott was fully erect in Ryan’s hand as Ryan won the struggle for control over the kiss. When Ryan released Scott’s mouth, he traveled down to Scott’s left nipple and sucked gently. Scott reacted eagerly, trying to get hold of Ryan’s cock. Ryan took the hint and kicked off his shorts leaving them both naked.

  Scott forced Ryan onto his back, took hold of Ryan’s stiff dick, and began slowly jerking him. Directing his attention to Ryan’s nipples, he made happy noises as he sucked. When Ryan tried to gain the upper hand once more, Scott pinned him to the bed with his full weight. Kicking off the covers, he slid down Ryan’s body, licking as he went.

  When he hit bush, Scott took Ryan’s balls into his hands and massaged them as he licked the impressive cock. Ryan moaned and ordered Scott to “Suck it!”

  In response, Scott took the head of Ryan’s cock into his mouth and gently rolled his tongue around the head, dipping into the slit. Ryan put his hands on the back of Scott’s head and pumped his hips, pushing his cock deeper into Scott’s mouth and throat. Ryan moaned loudly as the wet heat of Scott’s throat enveloped his cock. It felt so good that he thrust harder and faster as Scott struggled to take the face pounding.

  Finally, Scott eased off Ryan’s cock and moved down to his large balls, licking and rolling them around in his mouth, one at a time. He worked his way back up to Ryan’s cock and soundly sucked him to the point that Ryan was whimpering with delight. When Scott felt Ryan’s balls begin to climb to the base of his cock, he pulled back and ran his tongue up Ryan’s body until they were kissing.

  “That was incredible. Why did ya stop?” Ryan asked, his eyes glassy with need.

  “’Cause you were getting ready to pop, and it ain’t time for that yet,” Scott responded. “Now get to work. You wanted it. Now you got it!”

  Ryan’s smile was warm in the flickering light of the fireplace. Gladly, he tongued both of Scott’s impressive pecs while stroking his cock. Scott impatiently shoved Ryan’s head down in a silent request for some oral action.

  It didn’t take long for Scott to learn that Ryan was the better man when it came to sucking a cock. Ryan took Scott in one fell swoop, swallowing his rod to the root. The shock of so much pleasure all at once almost made Scott come right then. Ryan sensed that Scott was overwhelmed, and he slowly withdrew his mouth from the base of Scott’s cock.

  Gently, he let Scott’s cock slide from his mouth and moved down to the heavy balls. After several moments of tonguing the hanging sacs, Ryan felt it safe to move back up to Scott’s cock. Scott began to thrust his hips, moaning loudly in appreciation of the skilful blowjob.

  Ryan held his ground as Scott fucked his face, knowing how excited Scott had become. When Scott suddenly stopped, Ryan realized the other man was at the edge. Instead of showing Scott any mercy, Ryan dove on his dick and sucked it for all he was worth.

  “I’m gonna come!” Scott shouted, signaling Ryan to stop.

  It didn’t work. Ryan was intent on making Scott come. As Ryan bobbed his head rapidly up and down, Scott gasped loudly and blew his load in Ryan’s mouth. Ryan didn’t even attempt to swallow the load and let it drain back out onto the cock from whence it came.

  When Scott fell back with a groan, Ryan grabbed his shorts from beneath the covers and wiped his face off. As he did the same for Scott, he smiled at the other man’s incredible grin.

  “Did ya like that?”

  “Fuck. Are you kidding? I thought I was gonna come my guts out, I came so hard! You were fantastic. Give me a minute, and I’ll show you how much I liked that.”

  “Or you could just turn over, and I can get off a different way.”

  “Um, I don’t bottom. My ass is virgin, and I want to keep it that way.”

  “Now that’s a damn shame.”

  “That I’m a virgin?”

  “No, that you won’t be one for much longer!”

  “Ha! We’ll see about that.”

  “We certainly will.”

  Ryan knelt over Scott’s chest and pointed his hard on directly at Scott’s mouth. Scott got the idea and smiled. “Now that I can handle!”

  Ryan slid his dick between Scott’s enticing lips and rocked back and forth. Considerately, he varied the depth of the thrust so that he didn’t constantly hit the back of Scott’s throat. After just a couple of minutes, Ryan’s climax had built to a peak. At the very edge of coming, he pulled out and shot his load all over Scott’s face, neck, and chest.

  “Oh nice, thank you! I can’t open my eyes or breathe through my nose. Care to help me out here?” Scott asked through tightly pursed lips.

  Ryan laughed, got the other pair of underwear, and wiped Scott off before cleaning his cock. He threw both pairs of underwear onto the floor and collapsed onto the bed, letting out a large sigh as he did so.

  “That was phenomenal,” Scott said. “Where did you learn to suck a dick?”

  “I have ten years’ experience. Started young, you see.”

  “Much to my benefit.”

  Ryan put his arm over Scott’s chest and was about to say something, when the sound of applause rang out loudly in the bedroom. Both men sat up and saw Phillip’s ghost staring at them and clapping enthusiastically. “That was so hot! Nothing like this was going on around here un
til you guys showed up!”

  “Look here, Phillip; this isn’t funny. We deserve privacy when we’re being intimate! How would you have liked it if someone was spying on you and Harry when you made love?” Ryan asked.

  “Gimme a break! What the hell else is there for me to do around here? I’m dead!”

  Ryan looked at Scott, and both men looked at Phillip. “Sorry about that!” they said in unison.

  “At least stay invisible and silent,” Ryan said. “If we don’t know you’re watching, than it’s not so bad. But you have to admit, it’s not every gay couple who has a ghost running around on the loose!”

  “Oh, you’ve got more than just me. There are two other ghosts here who refuse to move on. They’re getting angrier, and I don’t expect that they’ll stay quiet for much longer.”

  “Why are they angry?”

  “You’ll have to ask them!”

  With that, Phillip faded out, and the two living men were alone once more.

  “I don’t think I’ll ever get used to having dead people watching us, especially now that we’re fucking!” Scott said.

  “You think I like it? What would you suggest I do about it?” Ryan asked.

  “Find the murderers so we can have peace.” With that, Scott turned on his side and went to sleep.

  THE next morning, the rumbling sounds of heavy equipment woke both men up. Ryan got out of bed, looked out the window, and saw flatbed trucks carrying machines that bore the name Henson Construction.

  “Well, they’re here. We might as well get up. We sure can’t sleep through this.”

  “I’ll get a quick shower and make breakfast. The usual?” Scott asked.

  “No, I worked up an appetite last night, so I’ll have the weekend breakfast please.”

  “You got it. See ya when you come down.”

  Scott left the room to get ready for the day as Ryan walked into the bathroom and began his morning routine. While he was in the shower, he thought about the relationship between himself and Scott might change now that they had made love. Did he have feelings for Scott? Ryan had to admit that he felt more for Scott than he did for Mark. Something about the young butler just tweaked Ryan’s heart. It was more than Scott’s obvious good looks; it was also his heart and the fact that he cared about the same things that Ryan did.