The Firehouse Grill

Chapter 10

Grand Opening - Part 2

Feeling totally flushed and embarrassed, not to mention a lil buzzed, I followed Dylan and JD out of the elevator into the main area of the bar and dining area where the entire staff had assembled.....along with a few carry-over guests (high profile ones too!)....I was absolutely convinced that everyone in the room knew what had just taken place and I froze in the entry way....all of a sudden I felt a hand pat my ass and someone whispering in my ear..."Move...walk....smile.....wave".....the room erupted with applause and I was showered with congratulatory handshakes and compliments. As I scanned the room I realized that all of the important people in my life were there...all of those that believed that this crazy idea could work and all of the people who worked so hard to help it become a reality....they were all there....cheering and clapping...some with misty eyes and some with huge smiles....and, of course, some with that buzzed look....but there they were.....celebrating the beginning of a new adventure...and new path and a new direction...not only for me but for the neighborhood, the town and, themselves too! What a great feeling....I had goosebumps and found myself becoming very emotional...which of course, you have found not to be my most redeeming feature.....remember I am the guy who doesn't get emotional...doesn't get sucked into silly feelings and am certainly not the mushy type....but none-the-less....here I was feeling all of those things...go figure!

When I came back down to earth I went to each and every one of those in the room and shook hands, hugged, congratulated them for all they had accomplished in such a short period of time and thanked the remaining guests who were in the building. At that point JD came up and discreetly ran his hand across my ass and then moved it up to the small of my back and suggested that we start working our way towards home. Though I wanted to bask in the moment I decided he was absolutely right....tomorrow was going to be a bigger day and I was kinda running out of fuel.

We said our good byes and headed out where JD's car was waiting. We did decide to stop at Theresa's for a night cap and it was very quiet in there....it was nice. Momma Theresa was just finishing up at the front desk.....grabbing me and giving me that classic Italian momma squeeze....and this time she got JD too! Steve had a couple of single malts on the rocks ready when we sat down and it was really nice to get off my feet for a bit. As JD and I were schmoozing over the events of the evening Steve came over and said "you will never guess who was in here looking for you tonite.......Andy!" I had to think for a minute as, I guess, outta sight, outta mind.....but then I realized...."He was looking for me? Did he say why?" "Nah.....he was lookin really good though....seemed cleaned up, clear, actually...he was looking pretty damn hot!" (I knew it.....finally I got some sense of what Steve was into!!!!!)

At that point JD wondered out loud about what the hell we were talking about so I told him "Andy was that guy that worked for me at Mag....he was the manager before I hired Dom...he had some issues and I had to let him go" and at that point Steve jumped in and said "and he's the guy that sucker punched Matt in the side of the head that night"....."Thanks Steve...I wasn't gonna go there" to which JD responded "Thanks Steve...at least I know now...he's the guy we saw here that one night.....you said you would tell me later but never did!....so what’s up with this guy and why do you think he's sniffing around?" I didn't really have a clue and said as much. Steve did volunteer again about how good and cleaned up he looked. I surmised out loud that he was probably looking to just check in...maybe he needs a job again? JD looked at me with a little bit of an annoyed look..."Why on earth would he be coming to you for work? Doesn't he understand the consequences of the stunt he pulled?" "I did really care for the guy and when I finally had to let him go he asked if he could ever come back to which I told him we would talk after he got cleaned up and his life somewhat in order". JD still looked somewhat irritated at the thought and excused himself to go to the restroom. After he walked away Steve did tell me that that was exactly what Andy was looking for, a job, and even went so far as to ask Mama Theresa if she was hiring.....I decided to just let it go, drop the subject. "Steve, when JD gets back I really would like to just drop the issue and enjoy the rest of our evening....I will cross the Andy bridge when the time comes". "No problem bud but there is something else that he did say and you should know...." and with that Steve was interrupted as JD reappeared; Steve moved away and the subject was not brought up again....that night! Though I was incredibly curious about the part that Steve left out I decided we all would be better off if I just dropped it....still I was left to wonder???

JD and I had a couple of cocktails and enjoyed our visit with Steve. Theresa's had cleared out which, for me, was a little surprising considering it was a Friday night and the gayborhood is usually bustling with foot traffic well into the wee hours. I realized I was exhausted and, about the time I was going to suggest we head out, JD said "come on, lets hit it". We paid out, shook hands with Steve, thanked him and were on our way. As we were walking up the sidewalk towards our two places I said "Ya know, it occurred to me that we didn't talk today about what we were doing after the opening....did you want to come back to my place or did you have other ideas?" "You know, it's been a long day so how bout I drop you at yours and we will both get a good night's rest.....I'm really beat". Ordinarily I would have totally understood what JD was talking about but this time he had a tone, still sounding somewhat annoyed. I figured, Hey, we all have our moments but this one time it just felt weird. I certainly don't want to blow a horn here but there hasn't been one time, since we met and given the opportunity, that JD hasn't wanted to be with me so I was feeling strangely uncomfortable.

"Ok, I am all good with that, you have been a huge help the past few days and I am sure you are every bit as worn out as I am so your plan sounds fine.....you go get your car and I will just hike it home"

"I will drop you at your place"...

"nah...I am all good, the walk will be good for me and besides I need to sneak into Mag and grab a few things"

"Matt, I will take you home - it's not a big deal"

"Listen stud...I just need the walk...my head's spinning from today and it will do me good...please don't worry about it...I am good" (I knew full well that what I wanted most was a smoke and just a few minutes to myself)

"Ok, if you are sure" and with that JD ran his finger along the side of my face and kissed me on the cheek, said good night and headed for his car.

On the cheek?? It was more like a peck.....like something you would get from a long-lost relative who didn't particularly care for you. Ok Matt, stop reading something into nothing. You are, as you well know, the commitment-phobe who didn't want to get into anything serious....the guy who, by yesterday’s standards, could be called a Ho....why all of a sudden are you put off cuz you didn't get tongue and a hand on your ass?? I found myself having this conversation, with myself, right in front of the door at Mag. The lights were out in the restaurant, and I looked at my watch...

"Well of course they are, its after 1am....goof bag".

I decided to forego unlocking the door - lit my smoke and headed the 10 blocks to my place. Walking back I have to pass a couple of semi-dark alleys that don't have street lights...not like the block corners and intersections that a very well lit. As I was walking I kept feeling as though there was someone following me. It was after 1am and I suspect the combination of exhaustion, a couple of stiff cocktails and my concern about what was going on with JD all combined to have me feeling very uncomfortable. I was sure, when I turned around, that I saw someone duck into the alley closest to me....I stood and stared there for a minute but didn't see any further movement. It was unusual for there not to be a throng of people around....this is usually prime time for people getting back to their cars as the bars in the neighborhood were closing down....but none-the-less...I still had an eerie/creepy feeling so I quickened my pace and almost sprinted the remaining 6 blocks to the house.

I got to the door and unlocked it and still had this weird sense that I was being watched. I went inside, turned around and looked up and down the street, closed and then locked the door. I still had this nagging feeling as I dropped my keys and the mail on the kitchen counter...something just didn't feel right but I couldn't put my finger on it.....It was nearly 2 am but I was still pretty "wired"...exhausted but not sleepy. I walked down the hall flipping on lights as I headed towards the bedroom where I kicked off my shoes..hung my jacket up in the closet and stripped down to just my CK's. It was relatively warm in the house, so I opened up the bedroom windows and headed back towards the kitchen. I thought that a glass of wine might make the sleep gods cooperate, so I poured what was left in a bottle of Pinot from the other nite and headed out onto the back deck. As I was sitting in a lounge chair drinking the wine and having a smoke I felt that feeling again..as if someone were close and watching me.....Enough....I wasn't sure what was going on in my head but I decided it was nonsense...I downed the rest of the wine...put my smoke out and went back inside carefully making sure the slider was locked, the front door was locked, the windows were locked and the blinds were all drawn closed. I, for some reason, left one of the lights on in the living room and padded back to the bedroom where I crawled in, set my alarm (not that I ever needed to) and hoped I would fall quickly into a deep, quality yet short sleep.

It appeared as though sleep did not take long as I found myself in the throes of one of the most amazing and erotic dreams I had had in a long, long time. I was feeling the soft touch of a finger running along the side of my face following my jaw line....then slowly...almost painfully slow, the finger ran down my chin to my neck and to my left nipple...carefully tracing the outline over and over again....and then down my side...so light a caress that it almost tickled as the touch made its way to the waistband of my CK's...lingering there for a second before it moved towards the front...slowly...carefully...methodically as the touch hit the small trail of hair that went either north towards my chest or south underneath the confines of my boxer briefs. It was at that point....when the touch moved north up to the center of my chest and then to the right nipple that I realized...in somewhat of a haze...that I had become so aroused that my dick had started to leak. I was sure I was in the middle of one of the most exciting wet dreams since I was a teenager. I know that I started to move around a bit....how could I not as I was being intensely stimulated and getting harder by the minute....I wasn't sure of my surroundings....I thought my eyes were open but I wasn't able to focus and things seemed really hazy.....I was, however, content to just go with this dream and see where it led. I was somewhat fearful of waking up and not being able to remember the details...which worried me because not only was I conscious of waking up...but also conscious of the fact that oftentimes we don't recall how our dreams end....so I just made an assumption that my head was screwing with me and I would just enjoy the few minutes of this erotic adventure.....

I came back to the touch and realized that both of my nipples were hard as pencil erasers...they had come to life as is the norm for me...play with my nips and I could bust a nut just from that. As the touch moved back towards the center and down my chest towards my stomach and treasure trail I was aware that I had really begun to squirm. I was grabbing the sheets with both hands...or so it seemed...but I couldn't really focus on my reactions...it was almost like I was watching from above....again...that weird out of body experience like I had had before....in my foggy head I had determined that I probably had too much to drink...that last glass of wine must have relaxed me to the point where I was just in a complete daze...so I was in this weird mix of REM and REALITY....lol. Just go with it Matt...that alarm is going to go off any minute!

There was a moment in time...I think...that I realized that I was feeling another sensation....it seemed as though my boxer briefs were sliding down my thighs towards my ankles. I probably wouldn't have even experienced this sensation were it not for a breeze I felt consistently tickling by cock and balls.....one of those where the hair stands up on end...you know the kind....sensation...not the actual breeze.....as I opened my eyes....I couldn't really get focused but, again, I was filled with that feeling that I really wasn't alone....not as though in my dream state I was bothered...just a feeling that there was a presence......

BLAT BLAT BLAT BLAT.....snooze......BLAT BLAT BLAT BLAT.....snooze.....BLAT BLAT BLAT.....snooze.....ok ok ok......I couldn't ignore it anymore.....I rolled over towards my right side to turn the stupid clock off....realizing that I was naked and the top of the sheet was wet........i lifted my head peering towards the clock, nightstand and window and...HOLY SHIT......