WOULD OLLIE EVER CEASE TO surprise me? From the moment we met, he stunned me time and time again. First, it was the sexuality emanating from him when Milo introduced us. I found him irresistible until I discovered he was a pastor. I figured Ollie would take the hint after I bolted, but he knocked me over with his bold texts and sultry stares. I took for granted during those six weeks he pursued me that he’d keep doing it until he caught me. In the back of my mind was the knowledge that I wanted to be caught.
I was ready to give in to our baser needs, but then he said something that no one other than my family, chosen or biological, had said to me before. He told me I deserved better than a quick, dirty romp in a prop closet. I pushed him away, thinking he’d come back like he had the previous month and a half, but he didn’t. Ollie’s absence from my life rocked me because I’d become addicted to the way he looked at me and made me feel cherished. My world felt cold and dull without his heat warming me up from the inside out. The surprises didn’t end there.
He stunned me with his kindness for Henry, a man he’d never met, and his bravery for entering a home where he thought he wasn’t wanted. His honesty and openness only made him more beautiful to me. The way he teased the seniors at bingo night was the most adorable thing I’d ever seen, and I was surprised to learn how endearing I found it. Seeing his drawings filled me with an awe I’d stopped feeling a long time ago. Then there was the way he touched me and kissed me as if I was the most precious thing in the universe. It’s something every person should feel once in their lives. It was also something I didn’t want to live without.
The biggest surprise of all came the night we first made love. Yes, I realized there was a difference from the moment his hands touched my skin and his mouth pressed against mine. The intensity was still the same, but it was…more. I’d bared parts of myself to him, and he showed me how beautiful he found them to be. He wanted me. He craved me. He cherished me.
The wonder didn’t stop once we exited our bedrooms though because I got to meet the woman he called mom and his church family. I expected a handful of people to show up, but there must’ve been close to a hundred. Based on his bingo performance, I expected him to bumble about and be clumsy and cute, but he was…spectacular. His whole demeanor changed when he walked up onto the altar. He spoke with a clear, proud voice that spoke of finding love and acceptance—two things he personified. I was blown away by his commanding presence and charisma, hanging onto his every word. I felt something I hadn’t felt in a long time—faith. I believed in Ollie, and his belief that I deserved better from relationships made me want to believe it too. I wasn’t going to be healed after one stellar weekend of lovemaking followed by an impassioned sermon, but I was committed to trying. I vowed not to run whenever we argued, and we would because all couples do. I promised myself I’d talk about the things bothering me and listen when Ollie did the same.
If I had to choose a few words to sum up my epiphany while sitting in the pew, I’d call it shock and awe. I was shocked by the depth of my feelings for Ollie and awed that he returned them too. There was no mistaking the look of adoration when he glanced my way. Him, a man of esteem and respect, who greeted me with a kiss on the cheek when the service was over, and who presented me as his boyfriend to church members who approached to speak with him after the service ended.
Mamma pulled me aside to have a private word when Ollie began talking to the Thompsons about the musical selections for the following week. “I want him for a son-in-law, Archie. Make it happen,” she said fiercely, making me laugh softly.
“Mamma, marriage isn’t a unilateral decision,” I reminded her. “I will take your wishes into consideration.”
She reached up and pinched my cheek playfully. “I’ve never seen you look so happy. Not even the time Ryan bought you the Barbie Dreamhouse for your sixth birthday.” Just hearing his name created an ache inside me I knew would never fully go away, but not saying it felt worse. I wanted to feel his presence in the decisions I made, the life I lived, and the family I chose.
“He would love Ollie, wouldn’t he?” I asked her. Ryan had disliked every guy I ever brought around because he saw their true selves when I was blinded by lust and my desperation to belong to someone. Ollie would’ve wowed him just like he did me.
“Ryan would adore him,” Mamma said. “He’s up in heaven yelling ‘finally’ and doing the double fist pump he saved for big moments like when you got your driver’s license, graduated high school, and got accepted in college.”
“Or the Bengals scoring a touchdown. He was a diehard even through the difficult years,” I said fondly.
“Oh my goodness,” Mamma said fondly. “Maybe he’s up there doing the Ickey Shuffle because you’ve finally found a man worthy of your loyalty and soft heart.”
“Please not that,” I replied.
Ollie finished his conversation and looked around for me. When our eyes connected, I could see question or concern in his dark eyes, so I sent him a playful wink to let him know that neither Mamma nor I were upset or uncomfortable. Maybe I’d even tell him the reason Mamma swept me aside was to demand that I marry him, but then again, I didn’t want to risk running him off.
“I didn’t mean to keep you away from Ollie for so long,” Mamma said after looking to see what had pulled my attention away from her. “I just wanted you to know how happy it makes me to see you looking so joyful.”
“Thank you.” I pulled her into a tight hug, resting my chin on her head and smiling back at Ollie. It felt good to experience this kind of joy. I understood why people wrote sappy love songs and the lines in the movies I adored so much.
Ollie slid his arm around my waist when we rejoined him, Millie, Esther, and Henry. “Would all of you like to join my mama and me for our weekly after-church ritual?” he asked us. “It doesn’t involve snakes or sacrificial lambs,” Ollie said when I quirked a brow.
“What about virgins?” Henry asked in mock horror. I liked the kid more and more.
“That’s only the last service of each year, Henry. It sounds like your previous church was barbaric,” Ollie teased right back.
“In more ways than one,” Henry said solemnly.
“You’re one of us now, Henry,” Millie said in an ominous tone. “You won’t want to miss out on this weekly celebration.” She winked at Ollie and added, “Let me just go grab the black robes.” We all laughed at her playful antics. She and Ollie made quite the pair.
“I’m free for the day,” Esther said then looked at Mamma and Henry. “What about you guys? Willing to risk the snake venom?”
“Sure,” Henry said with a grin.
“I’m game,” Mamma said.
“I’ll go wherever Ollie does,” I said boldly, loving the way his hand on my waist gripped me a little tighter after hearing my declaration.
“Great!” Millie said. “I’ll take the lovebirds with me, and you can follow me.”
“Sounds good,” Mamma agreed. “Oh, and, Millie, never let my son drive you anywhere.”
“Hey!” I said. “I’m a fabulous driver.”
“If by fabulous you mean taking corners on two wheels, speeding through yellow lights, and weaving in and out of lanes like a NASCAR race, then yes, you are,” Mamma said.
“I have places to go and people to see,” I scoffed.
“I’m thankful every day that one of those places isn’t a morgue and one of those people isn’t an undertaker.”
“Maybe I could slow it down a little bit,” I offered.
“One of my prayers has been answered,” Ollie said dramatically. “I do believe in miracles.”
“I’m about to remember something important I should be doing,” I threatened.
Ollie removed his hand from my waist and reached for my hand. “I’ll play nice.” I didn’t mind when he played dirty, but I preferred to do that in the privacy of a bedroom.
And if I thought I’d learned all of Ollie’s surprises then I was wrong. Millie drove us to a dive in the middle of nowhere called Burt’s. “They serve the best beer and wings here,” she said when we all stood outside the door. “What?” she asked when she saw my surprise. “A Christian woman can’t enjoy a beer and some wings while watching football on Sunday?”
“She absolutely can, and should,” I amended, opening the door for her.
“I love manners on a person,” she told me.
“That means no belching after drinking a beer, Esther,” I teased.
“Wiseass,” she muttered under her breath as she followed Millie to a corner booth.
The semicircle booth was big enough to seat all of us and allow us a great view of the game that was about to start. “I’m so glad the game is on the normal broadcast network,” Millie said. “I can only take so much of Troy and Joe calling a game before they turn my stomach and ruin my appetite.”
“I’ll drink to that,” I told her.
Millie wasn’t lying about the wings and beer being the best. They worked with local IPA brewers and offered the big-name brands as well to provide a stunning array of beer. Millie’s dark ale reminded me of something you’d find in England. I was impressed by the bold, crispness of it but still preferred my lighter ale with stronger floral and fruit undertones. Everyone else chose sodas or water instead of beer. We munched on wings, potato skins, and coleslaw while talking about the game and arguing calls until halftime.
“Archie, are you riding home with us?” Mamma innocently asked after we settled the bill and walked outside.
I looked at Ollie, unsure how to answer. I wanted to stay with him longer but didn’t want to inconvenience him if there were things he needed to do. We didn’t live hundreds of miles apart, but an hour round-trip would be an inconvenience to some.
Not Ollie. “I’ll bring him home whenever he’s ready. If that’s okay with you, Arch.”
Mamma smiled broadly. “It’s fine with him. Come on, Henry and Esther. We better get going. The Reds have a late start time this afternoon and traffic will be a disaster getting back into the city.”
“Be careful,” I told Mamma, pulling her into a hug. She’d chosen not to drink, but she wasn’t wrong about the flood of traffic into the city. It was always chaos when football and baseball season overlapped. People seemed to lose their minds and drive like…me. “I’ll call you soon.”
We all hugged each other goodbye and got in our separate vehicles. Neither Ollie nor I said much during the drive back to his house. Millie mostly tsked about the things being said on talk radio. “Why must they be so hateful?” she asked. “I like to win as much as the next person, but I don’t feel the need to say such terrible things about these men. Do you think it’s because we forget they’re men? Does their athletic ability somehow transport them to a higher plane in our subconscious? They’re just men who have families who love them and have to hear and read such utter garbage. Why, I’d have to keep my television and radio turned off and cancel my subscription to the Cincinnati Enquirer if I was married to one of them.”
“Little young for you, aren’t they, Mama?” Ollie teased.
“I wasn’t being literal, Oliver. You know Randall still has my heart.”
“I know, Mama, but Coach Lewis is a handsome man. I suspect there’s a reason you like to watch his interviews.”
“The man knows football, and he cares about his players,” Millie countered. “He gives troubled players a chance when no one else is willing to risk it. I admire that in a person. Besides,” she said huffily, “he’s not the one fumbling the ball, throwing interceptions, missing tackles, or botching routine field goals.”
One could argue he didn’t bench players when they continued to screw up, but it wouldn’t be me. I wasn’t going to upset Ollie’s mama. Instead, I said, “You know how fickle Cincinnati fans are, Millie. One day he’s Football Jesus, and the next, he’s the worst coach in the NFL.”
“Isn’t that the truth?” she said, nodding her head like I was preaching the word. “They did the same with Dusty Baker when he coached the Reds and now look at them. Tell me how they’re better off now. Traded all those talented players to keep one pitcher who hasn’t completed a season in years.”
“Mama is passionate about her sports,” Ollie spoke up. “God, family, and sports.”
“Good food ranks above sports. You ought to know this by now, Oliver.”
“Millie, did you teach Ollie how to make tomato soup and grilled cheese so fancy?” I asked, suddenly understanding the extra touches Ollie put into his food, including the oatmeal. I saw him adding brown sugar, cinnamon, and a touch of honey to the milk before he brought it to a soft boil and added the oats and fruit.
“I sure did,” she answered proudly. “Delicious, isn’t it? And such simple touches.”
“It was the best I’d ever had.”
Ollie squeezed my hand where it rested between us in the back seat. Did he know he was the best I’d ever had in all categories? I thought it looked weird when we both got in the back seat to head to the restaurant like Millie was our Uber driver, but I got over it when Ollie slid his hand over mine. The tender way he circled his thumb over the top of my hand reminded me of the way his tongue circled the head of my cock the previous night. I shoved the thought aside and tuned back into Millie’s conversation before I got a hard-on.
When we got back to Ollie’s house, Millie only got out of the car long enough to hug us both. “I hope to see you again soon, Archie,” she said.
“I promise you will. Thank you,” I whispered during our hug so only she could hear. She didn’t ask me why I was thanking her, because she knew I meant the unconditional love that turned Ollie’s life around. Her reply was to squeeze me harder.
I reached for Ollie once we were alone inside his house. “If you want to know, I will tell you the nitty gritty on my disastrous relationship with Ryder, or even the Cliff Notes version if you prefer.”
Ollie briefly covered my lips with his finger. “I will listen to anything you want to share, but I already know your past is filled with losers who were too stupid to see and appreciate the gem you are.”
He knew this in the same way I knew his family had abandoned him when he came out, forcing him to live on the streets. I didn’t need him to rip open old wounds and recount his story, because my instincts and observations told me what I needed to know about his past. I was more interested in his present and future, and I could see he felt the same way.
“Do you believe me when I say neither Ryder nor what he wants now is important to me? Will you believe me when I say you’re the only guy I want and need?”
“Yes,” Ollie whispered then kissed me.
We’d shared soft, teasing kisses and deep, penetrating kisses. This kiss was…in a class of its own. The need and want were still present, but they were tempered by something deeper that felt like unspoken love. Ollie continued to kiss me as he walked me toward his room and only took his mouth away from mine when it was time to remove our shirts. I watched as he deftly discarded his collar and shirt while I fumbled with my buttons. Our mouths joined once more as we reached out to take off each other’s pants. Kisses turned to laughter when we realized our pants were tangled around the shoes we’d forgotten to remove in our haste. It didn’t take us long to fix the mess and keep stripping off until Ollie was completely nude and I was left standing in just my silk stockings.
“Did you say something about me removing your stockings with my teeth?” Ollie asked.
My response was to place my hand on his head and gently push until he kneeled before me. Ollie removed both stockings with his teeth, then I tied him to his bed with them while Ollie looked at me with unbridled love and lust. I made love to him until I thought we would both die. Afterward, I untied Ollie’s wrists and collapsed on him. He wrapped his arms around me tight and shouted, “Hallelujah!”