The Out of Towner Read online

  He pulled his suit out of the wardrobe and put his carefully folded clothes at the top of the suitcase, then zipped up the bag and glanced around the room, as though ticking his way through a mental checklist.

  “Got everything?” Thomas asked.

  “Yes. I think so.” Jimmy’s tense, focused expression calmed. “Umm… so…”

  Thomas and Carlos both chuckled. Thomas wondered what in the hell you were supposed to say in this situation. He’d been depending on Jimmy knowing, since this had been his idea to begin with.

  Jimmy grasped Thomas’s hand, leaned forward and kissed him on the mouth, then did the same to Carlos.

  “I umm, I had a really nice time with you guys last night. I just, I really needed that.” He pushed a hand into his pants pocket and pulled out his wallet. “Given the whole Mary thing, I don’t ever want to be in the position where I’m the extra person outside a real relationship.” He pulled a business card out of his wallet and handed it to Thomas. “But if you two ever find yourselves in New York, I’d love to put you up. Even if this,” ––he waved around the disheveled hotel room. “Wasn’t on the menu.”

  Thomas thanked him and the three men walked down to the lobby. Jimmy checked himself out. They all kissed at the doorway again. Jimmy left and Carlos asked the desk attendant to call a cab for them.

  “Is wedding stuff back on the roster now?” Thomas asked as he and Carlos walked back into their apartment.

  “I suppose,” Carlos said with a yawn. “As long as breakfast is too.”

  “There’s nothing in the house,” Thomas told him.

  “I’m ordering Chinese. I’m not going grocery shopping right now. Don’t argue with me unless you’re either planning to go instead, or are willing to carry me down the frozen food aisle after my knees give out. Because they will. I am not kidding about this.”

  “Moo Shu Pork,” Thomas answered. “Extra pancakes.” Carlos gave him a thumbs up and pulled his phone out of his pocket. They both headed into the bedroom and changed out of their suits and into their jeans while Carlos ordered dinner: Thomas’s Moo Shu pork, a double order of cream cheese wontons and Mock Duck Mai Fun for himself.

  “Okay,” Carlos said, pulling a light sweater over his head. “What wedding question did you have?”

  “Should we invite Jimmy? Or would that be awkward?”

  Carlos set his hands at his hips and looked up at the ceiling. “I don’t think I can answer that until I am full of Mai Fun and cream cheese wontons.”

  Thomas let it go. He called the caterers back. It turned out they just needed to reschedule the tasting because there had been a minor mishap with a vendor and they were out of about half the things Carlos and Thomas had asked to taste. Carlos did dishes and put out cat food. Chinese food arrived. Thomas dumped each of their orders onto separate plates and split the wontons 60-40 between Carlos’s plate and his. They plopped down on the couch and after some squabbling, put on Parks and Rec.

  “Jimmy at the wedding,” Carlos said, after he’d inhaled his fourth wonton. “I think it would be sweet to offer.”

  “Awkward at all?” Thomas asked.

  “Baby?” Carlos said, jamming another wonton into his mouth and chewing it as best as he could manage before continuing. “We’re eating take out and watching quirky comedy on our couch right now, after a night of wanton sexual misadventure with the man. It’s not awkward now, why would it be awkward if he sees us get married in three months?”

  “You’re not afraid of his whole ‘my open relationship broke my heart’ story?” Thomas asked.

  Carlos leaned forward and gave him a salt- and MSG-flavored kiss. “We are not in an open relationship. You’re mine. I’m yours. We made a decision to share each other with a handsome and eager to please friend last night. I would not be opposed to doing that in the future. Especially on vacation. But I want to stay just yours. And I want you to stay just mine.”

  “Good point,” Thomas said with a yawn. “I’ll put him on the list.”

  “What do you think about his New York offer?” Carlos asked.

  Thomas bought himself time by shoving and entire wonton in his mouth. “I think, if we ever wind up in New York, it would be rude not to at least give him a call,” Thomas replied. He grinned at his fiancé. “Maybe he’ll have a boyfriend next time and we can cross all sorts of things off that list.”

  Carlos laughed and kissed him again.

  They finished their lunch, and, bursting with mediocre greasy goodness, fell asleep on the couch for the next three hours, napping in each other’s arms.

  ****

  “What?” Carlos yelled at him.

  “I said it’s loud!” Thomas repeated over the roar of cars and buses and people and the old-school 80’s boom box a homeless man in a speedo was dancing to.

  “Oh. Yeah. Really fucking loud.”

  “Are you sure this is his building?” Thomas asked.

  “Yes. Look at the numbers. Look at the street sign. This is it.”

  Thomas looked at the shining gold numbers against the brick, then let his head loll back to gaze up at the high, glass encased building.

  “You’ve gotten snippier with me since we got married, you know,” Thomas told Carlos, sticking his bottom lip out at him.

  “No I haven’t. We’re both like this when we fly. You know that.” Carlos grabbed his hand, the way he had been doing for months, making sure their wedding rings touched before he kissed Thomas quickly. “So… do we, like, hit a call button, or what?”

  “No, here he comes,” Thomas replied, pointing at the handsome brunet coming through the door.

  “I’m so glad to see you guys!” Jimmy shouted, throwing his arms up as he raced down the front steps. He scooped each of them into a hug. Thomas kissed his cheek as Jimmy pulled away.

  “Come in, come in!” Jimmy guided them both up the steps and into the elevator. “I’m so excited you guys made it out east!” He told them. “I’ve got a great weekend planned. Tonight, we’re going to go see Wicked. This afternoon, I thought we’d go to the park and then you guys can pick out a restaurant, as long as it’s Italian. I can’t let two Minnesota boys leave New York City without eating in an Italian restaurant.”

  The elevator dinged open. Jimmy grabbed both of their suitcases and wheeled them down the hallway, before finally pausing in front of his apartment door and pulling out his key. “Also, I figured you guys would at least want to go look at Times Square. Everybody does.”

  Carlos looked over at Thomas and grinned as Jimmy tucked their suitcases into the hall closet. Thomas grinned back.

  “That sounds like an awesome plan, Jimmy,” Thomas told him. “Carlos, baby, what are you thinking? Times Square or Central Park first?”

  “Oh, Central Park,” Carlos said. “For sure.”

  “Perfect!” Jimmy told them, tucking his scarf down into his jacket. “I’ll just––”

  Carlos stepped forward, grabbed Jimmy’s scarf, and pulled it back out of his coat, which Thomas was already unbuttoning.

  “We’ll go after,” Carlos told Jimmy.

  Jimmy gave them both an eager grin. “After what?” he asked, with a cheeky smile.

  “After we’re done,” Thomas said.

  Jimmy laughed as Thomas kissed him.

  It was going to be a good vacation.

  The End

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  Other Books by Lilith Duvalier:

  www.evernightpublishing.com/pages/Lilith-Duvalier.html

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  Evernight Publishing

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