I watched Jordan scoop Ernie into his lap. He cooed, “Marshall, he’s so adorable. Don’t you just think he’s adorable. Maybe one of us needs…” I silenced the comment with a hand placed over Jordan’s handsome lips.

I said, “Neither of us needs a puppy right now. I’m sure if you really need some extended quality time with a puppy, Billy and Becca would be more than happy to let you sit for Ernie for a few days.”

When I pulled my hand back, Jordan was laughing. Then he whispered again, “He’s so adorable.”

Billy placed the burgers on the grill and said, “You can bet I would be happy to let you sit with Ernie for awhile. He’s friendly, and he’s not any more demanding than any young dog.”

Becca tossed her blond hair over her shoulder and said, “Billy paints a rosy picture now that the worst of the chewing stage is over. How many shoes did you lose, Billy?”

The three of us were seated on the back deck of Billy’s house, and he was tending a gas grill. Becca pitched in with him on the purchase of the grill, and Jordan and I were invited as the first guests to help test it out.

I asked, “Billy, does this new grill mean that Jordan and I get to come over for dinner at least once a week over the summer?”

He asked, “Are you planning on cooking? If you share the labor, I’ll provide the grill.”

I said, “I might just think about that. It sounds like fun.”

Jordan rubbed Ernie behind the ears while the puppy squirmed on his lap. He said, “That way I’ll get to come and play with the puppy regularly.”

Billy said, “He’s $5 an hour, but I give discounts after the third hour.”

Becca laughed and said, “You’re horrible.”

Billy grinned saying, “And you love me for it.”

She rolled her eyes and sipped at her homemade mojito.

Jordan said, “Just keep it on my tab, and I’ll pay it off when I dog sit for Ernie.” Finally, the squirming was too much, and Jordan set the dog down on the deck. Ernie immediately bounded down the steps, grabbed a toy with a loud squeak and climbed back up to join the rest of us.

I said, “I do have to admit that he is really cute, but he will grow up, too. Then he isn’t a little puppy anymore. He’s a big adult dog.”

Jordan asked, “Have you seen adult golden retrievers? They are even more beautiful in some ways.” Jordan caught Becca’s attention and said, “Marshall told me you run an animal shelter. I would guess that is a lot of hard work, but is it fun?”

She said, “Let’s just say it’s rewarding. I do really love the work and I love the animals, but it can definitely be hard sometimes. We can’t find homes for everybody, and that’s tough.”

Billy flipped the burgers, and I changed the topic of conversation. I asked, “Do you have any new tattoos or piercings lately, Billy?”

He held up his right hand to show the inside of his forearm. A bright red ornamented heart was visible. Billy said, “This one is new. A few years from now, once we’re married and settled down, someone special’s initials are going inside the heart.”

I smiled at Becca and said, “That is really sweet.”

Jordan piped up and said, “I’ve thought about getting a tattoo. I think I need to have it be fairly discreet because of teaching, but what do you think, Marshall?”

I said, “I don’t want one myself, but yeah, if it’s tasteful, I don’t mind getting to see one on you.”

Jordan said, “I’ve also thought about piercings, but I’m worried a school district might have issues with me, even if they are silent about it. I’m not sure they would appreciate me having rings on my face like Billy. It’s frustrating, but I think it’s reality. It’s really hard to know how parents would react.”

Billy turned around from tending the burgers. He said, “Well, there is definitely one kind of piercing none of them would ever know about, Jordan.”

Nodding, Jordan said, “Yeah, I could get the nipples done, but everybody is always talking about how painful that is.”

Billy shook his head. He said, “No, I was thinking about a little bit lower. How about a Prince Albert?”

I glanced at Becca, and she grinned back at me.

Jordan said, “Ouch. I can’t imagine that not hurting, at least when I would first get it.”

I said, “I’m not sure I would like that either.”

Billy said, “Oh, I don’t know. Once you played with it few times…”

Becca laughed out loud.

I said, “Wait, does this mean Billy has a PA?”

Billy said, “Not yet, but Becca had an old boyfriend with one. She’s leaning a little hard on me.”

An evil grin spread across my face, and I said, “Well, Billy has such nice piercings everywhere else, I think his entire body should probably match. Don’t you think so?”

Becca whispered, “I think so.”

Billy grumbled, “Now, this wasn’t about me. This was a discussion about how we’re going to decorate Jordan’s body.”

I said, “I would think you would jump at the chance, Billy. You always enjoy being different.”

Billy served up the burgers with homemade potato chips made by Becca and sliced heirloom tomatoes from the farmer’s market. It was a very simple dinner, but it was delicious. I said, “Both the new grill and the chef are a success!”

With his mouth still halfway full, Jordan said, “I agree.”

As he polished off the last bite of his burger, Billy said, “I’ve got an idea for after dinner.” He looked up at the sky and said, “It’s getting dark. Let’s go down to the beach. The city beaches stay open until something like 10:00 p.m. in the summer.”

Jordan smiled and said, “That sounds great. Don’t you think so, Marshall?”

I said, “I don’t think it matters that much what I say. It looks like I’m already outnumbered.”

We all piled into Becca’s SUV, but, sadly, we had to leave Ernie behind. Billy said that dogs weren’t allowed on the city beach, and he knew that the police occasionally enforced the law. We threw a couple of blankets and a cooler with beers into the back. Within fifteen minutes, we were pulling into the parking lot by the beach on the Lake Michigan shore. A few scattered groups were still present, but the beach was mostly quiet.

It was a beautiful night. A slight breeze blew in from the lake which cooled the air off considerably from the heat of the day. We spread the two blankets on the sand and positioned the cooler so that it anchored both of them in place. Jordan asked, “Does everyone want to go down by the water?”

I looked at Billy and he looked back at me. I sat on the blanket and then smiled up at Jordan. I said, “Why don’t you and Becca go down and enjoy the water while Billy and I keep the blankets from running away?”

Becca smiled. She said, “That sounds like a good decision. Billy always complains about how cold the water is on his tender feet.”

Jordan giggled. He said to Becca, “Let’s go. We’ll leave the old guys here on the sand.”

As they jogged off toward the gentle waves washing onto the sand, I said, “Hey! Careful about who you’re accusing of being old!”

Billy took off his leather jacket and neatly folded it up in one corner of the blanket. Then he lay down on the blanket and rolled over on his side to face me. He said, “It looks like things are going great for you and Jordan. I wasn’t sure I’d ever see you so happy with someone. It makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside.”

I said, “Well, we’ve had a few issues, and it still hasn’t really been that long, but I feel really good about it.”

Billy said, “He’s young, Marshall. He’s gonna be emotional. I think for awhile you might just need to expect a new little crisis every couple of months. When he seems like he might be flipping out a little, think of all those hormones rushing through his body. I’m sure you wouldn’t mind having some of those back yourself.”

I smirked. “Are you implying something about my performance, Billy?”

Grinning, he said, “I’m sure you do quite fine, buddy. I’m sure you do quite fine.”

I asked, “And you and Becca? Is that as good as it looks?”

“Marshall, six months ago I was in the same place I’ve been almost my entire adult life. I thought I never wanted to get married. I seriously thought that marriage was for chumps, and it was an artificial institution meant to restrict people like me from being myself.”

I said, “Yes, I’ve heard the long philosophical arguments. They usually seem to happen after a particularly pleasing one-night stand.”

He raised an eyebrow and said, “We both know that you’ve been no more of an angel than me, Marshall.”

I asked, “So how has that philosophy changed, Billy? What is your new realization.”

He said, “Someday I think I want to get married to Becca. I want to share a house. We have the dog, and I’m starting to even waver a little bit when I think about kids. I’m shocked, Marshall. It’s not the me that I know. I think it’s an adult Billy Alvey that took more than thirty years to arrive.”