The 10 Year Plan (4 page)

The man with the handcuffs on his wrist kept his arms high in the air. His trench coat had come undone as well. He had on prison orange boxers with “Inmate–City Jail” printed on them. It was simply a case of role-playing gone wrong.

The older clerk stood wide-eyed holding a small hacksaw. He looked as if he peed in his pants. Well, actually he had.

Ten minutes later Brody and Richard were at the front of the store talking to four other officers, their backup, who shook their heads in disbelief. The two “suspects” had wanted to spice their love life up and had visited Chi Chi Larue's the day before and picked up some new toys and costumes. It was a case of cops & robbers gone bad when then men realized they not only had lost the handcuff keys somewhere in the yard, but they were now also locked out of their own house with no way to get back in and very little to wear. The cashier at the nearby Out of the Closet thrift shop had been kind enough to lend them two overcoats so they could get help to remove the handcuffs from the local locksmith at the hardware store. The backup officers tried to hold back their laughter in front of the two distraught men, but it wasn't easy.

At the front counter, the clerk continued to try to saw the handcuffs off the “inmate's” wrist while his still shaken partner held his coat closed tight around his body and tried to calm his nerves. Brody was sure they'd never try something like this again and thought, that's one way to make sure their sex life stayed vanilla.

***

Brody was going to pick up Myles and go to a bar for happy hour—something he'd been looking forward to so much that he didn't stop at the station to change. Today proved to be an exceptionally hard one. After the incident at the hardware store the other officers on the force were relentless. Brody knew he deserved all the ribbing they gave him; he would have given it to them should the circumstances been reversed. Still he was tired; he needed a drink and to simply sit and bullshit with a buddy. He parked in front of Myles' place and knocked on the door. Funny, he thought, but the house felt more like home than his own apartment. He knocked a second time.

“It's open.”

Brody walked inside. As usual, OCD Myles was tidying up, making sure everything was where it should be. Myles—wearing grey slacks and a pale blue shirt—looked just as put together as his home.
His neurotic quest for perfection was charming in an odd sort of way,
Brody thought.

“You ready for boys' night out?” Brody asked.

“Hell yeah! Would you like me to get you a drink first?”

“Boy, I trained you well, didn't I?' He smiled. “Don't worry, I'll get it.”

“Still in your uniform?”

“Didn't have time to go back to the station. Mind if we stop at my place so I can change?” Brody opened the lid to Myles' ice bucket to find fresh ice and a crystal decanter full of only the best scotch. Next to Myles, this is what he was looking forward to most.

“Sure. I'm good with that.” Myles couldn't stop his eyes from raking over Brody's body as he faced away for him pouring his drink. Brody might be his best friend but even Myles could admit he was an incredibly hot guy.

Brody turned back as he took as sip from his glass. Just what he needed. “I waited all day for that.” He noticed Myles staring at him intensely, a strange sort of smile on his face. “What are you looking at?”

“Nothing. I rarely see you in uniform. That's all.”

Brody was amused at Myles reaction. “I'm guessing you like a man in uniform?”

Myles chuckled. “Who doesn't?”

Brody assumed an unusual cockiness. “So, what do you think?” he asked as he walked towards Myles, an extra bounce in his step and with an exaggerated strut.

Myles laughed uncomfortably. “I think you look less like a real cop and more like a male stripper. No wonder you're able to catch the bad guys so easily.”

“A male stripper, huh?” He thought most men would be insulted by the comment. But he was flattered.

Brody removed the handcuffs from his belt. “Have you been a bad boy, Myles?” he said with an over-the-top flirtatious tone.

Myles shrugged. “I may have broken a few laws... now and again.”

Brody edged toward him, his moves extremely seductive. “I think someone needs to do a little ‘hard time'.” He pulled out his iPhone and swiped at the screen. “So I look like a hot stripper to you, huh?” Brody said with a naughty smirk. The room filled with loud thumping music. Then he grabbed Myles forcefully just like he would a suspect and handcuffed him to a kitchen chair. Myles was a bit caught off guard but thought it could be fun to play along and see how far Brody took things.

Both chuckled at the game they were playing. Myles sat as Brody straddled him. Then Brody opened his shirt as his hips thrust and rubbed against Myles, who giggled at Brody's absurdity. The techno music's heavy beat thumped as Brody continued to grind up against Myles' crotch with his ass as the scene became hotter by the second. Brody dropped to his knees, grabbed Myles' belt, and released the clasp. Using his mouth, he slid it out of its loops.

Myles looked down to see Brody looking up at him from his crotch. He could feel his cock getting hard at the thought of Brody opening his pants. He fought the urge to get turned on, but with Brody grinding up against him and opening his pants, there was nothing he could do but feel himself getting hotter and hotter. As Brody continued to grind up against him, Myles could tell that Brody was turned on too. His hands were getting less playful and more seductive with each passing moment. What was happening? When did this turn into a lap dance, and why was Myles feeling so aroused suddenly? Brody shifted to face Myles, his hands resting on the handcuffs fastened to the chair.

Myles felt Brody's breath on his lips. The two men millimeters from each other's faces. In any other world this would be a scene in a bad porn movie. A crazy urge to just lean forward and kiss Brody as hard as he could overcame him.
This is so odd and wrong. Why am I feeling like this about my best friend?

Suddenly, Brody felt Myles tense up and snapped out of his daze, pulled away quickly, and opened the cuffs. There was an awkwardness that had never before existed between them. Both of them, Brody thought, had been hypnotized, each turned on by the other. This was something new. And Brody wasn't sure how to react and he could tell Myles felt the same. The electric charge between them still crackled in the room.

“We should get going,” Myles said, his voice waved.

“Yeah. I'll get my... I'll be in the car.”

“Be there in a minute,” Myles answered, as he discretely tried to avoid drawing attention to how tight his pants were.

Though the situation was uncomfortable, Brody chuckled at the thought that Myles had to wait a bit for his erection to disappear.

***

Myles waited in the car for Brody to change his clothes. He rarely entered Brody's lair. At thirty-five years of age, Brody still lived like a fraternity boy. Clothes, food, video games everywhere. Myles couldn't imagine living like that, and Brody knew how he felt. So Myles was happy just to wait. Besides, it gave him time to reflect about what had just happened. Was it simply a freak blast of sexual energy between them?
Definitely hot though,
he thought, as he giggled to himself. Before he could think further about what had happened Brody came out wearing civilian clothes and got into the car. Myles glanced at him, wondering what sort of crazy place Brody had picked for the night's adventure.

“So where are we going?” Myles asked.

“You'll see,” Brody said as he started the car. Before long they pulled up to a seedy looking bar. Myles thought,
Of course.
As soon as they stepped through the door, they were in the midst of muscular boys gyrating seductively around them. “Really, Brody?” Myles asked. “A go-go bar?” A place where the shirtless, studly bartender obviously knew Brody and what he preferred to drink.

Brody laughed. “Every so often, a guy's gotta get his gay on.”

“If you're worried about you not being gay enough, I'd say you're probably good for another year... or ten.”

Brody ignored him and turned to the bartender, a handsome man with dark hair and a pearly smile. “Two Goose martini's so dirty the health department will shut your ass down for serving them!”

A Latin muscle god in an Andrew Christian G-string danced on top of the bar. He gyrated over their drinks.

“What is it with you and go-go bars?”

Brody's attention was on the dancer's impossibly large bulge. “What? They've got four of my favorite things here. Hot, almost naked men, booze, and music!”

Myles thought for a moment as he counted in his head, and then gave Brody a confused look.

Brody chuckled and winked. Then Myles understood. Brody had figured him into the equation as the fourth thing.
Shockingly sweet for Brody,
Myles thought.

“You shouldn't snub your nose at go-go bars. They are an important tool in a gay man's sexual arsenal.”

Myles couldn't imagine where Brody was going with this but tried to understand. “Like candles and chocolate dipped strawberries?” He tried to solve the riddle on his own but knew that he'd never be able to figure out the way Brody thought.

“What!” He glanced at his friend. “Well, yes and no. Boy, Myles, you need less romance and more sex! Here, follow along. Define go-go boy.”

What a ridiculous question! “I don't know. A fit, attractive young man wearing next to nothing, thrusting his engorged....” He gave up.
This is ridiculous,
he thought. “Let's just say a sexy male dancer.”

“Exactly! Sexy. Men are visual animals. We see hot guys and get turned on. Go-go boys are eye candy on display to stimulate our adrenaline and increase our testosterone.”

Myles still didn't get it.

“These boys are just here to tease. You can't have them. All you can do is look and gently touch.” Brody took out a five-dollar bill and waved it in front of the Latin stud. He had the dancer's attention. Was it the five-dollar bill or Brody's bedroom eyes? Not that it mattered. The go-go boy was now along for the ride. He knelt on the bar and leaned back awaiting Brody's next move. Brody took the five-dollar bill and teased the dancer's nipple with it. Both men knew where this was going, and neither seemed to mind. Brody slid the bill over the dancers well-sculpted eight pack and down the front of his perfectly trimmed treasure-trail. Then he stuffed it into the dancer's crotch while gently brushing against his large uncut cock. He turned to Myles. “Yep. No stuffing. It's all man in there.”

Under ordinary circumstances Myles would have been jealous of the exchange, but he realized Brody would never be tamed. The dancer had about as much chance of getting anything more than a one-night stand out of Brody than a cheerleader had of scoring a touchdown.

“All this is fine for you Brody, but honestly, what does this have to do with me?” Myles asked.

“Everything, buddy!”

Myles was dying to see how Brody could rationalize this pointless situation. He knew it made sense in Brody's twisted brain, but how could he explain it so it made sense to him?

“Are you saying that guys want them, but the guys will go home with me?”

“That's exactly what I'm saying! You want a man and these boys will help you get one.”

“Not for me. I want someone who cares about me. Not someone who has sex with me while fantasizing about some greased-up muscle twink in a G-string.”

“Sex is sex, buddy. You've got to lighten up.” Myles knew when he's been beaten. This was a dead-end. Brody was never going to be tamed, and he knew it. Sex was sex to Brody and he'd never be able to understand what Myles was looking for. He was running from his feelings, any commitment, and love. Exactly what Myles so desperately wanted. They were on opposite sides of the fence when it came to relationships. If Myles were the “heads” of a coin, Brody would be “tails”. That's just the way it was and Myles had no choice to accept it.

“Grab that cutie over there. He's serving mouth shots.”

Myles glanced at a cute shirtless twink wearing a G-string and carrying a tray with shot glasses. “And possible meningitis! I'll stick with the cocktail in my partially clean glass,” Myles quipped as he looked at the faint lipstick mark on his glass from a previous patron.

Brody sensed that Myles was frustrated at him and their most recent conversation. He had wanted nothing more than to show Myles a good time tonight, but suddenly he could see that Myles was entering into a slump and he needed to act quickly.

“Well, in that case, at least tip the go-go boy. Come on, he likes you. Here!” Brody summoned the same boy as earlier and placed a five-dollar bill in Myles' hand.

“I'd rather not,” he said.

“I know, but do it anyway.” He motioned for the go-go boy to present his tight ass to Myles, who really didn't mind the taunting. In fact, it was fun. The thought occurred to him that if it weren't for Brody, his life would be all work and no play. Just the opposite of Brody whose life was mostly play and not a lot of work.

“In that case, here you go!” Myles stuffed in the bill like a champ and smacked the go-go boy twice on the ass. He looked at Brody to let him know that everything was fine. He wasn't going to be a downer tonight. He also wanted to prove he wasn't the prude that everyone thought he was.

Brody is obviously taken aback at Myles' skill and assertiveness.

“Hey,” Myles told him with a naughty grin, “if I'm going to do it, I might as well do it right!”

As Myles sat at his desk in the law firm of Bernstein, Goodman, Scheckman, & Tyler, inundated with paperwork, Diane, his best gal-pal and also an attorney with the firm, walked into his office without so much as a knock on the door. With long brown hair and a slender figure she was smart, cultured, beautiful and classy—the female version of Myles but with Brody's bravado. Like Brody, she was sexually confident and comfortable at expressing her feelings. She sat on the edge of the desk. Obviously, she planned to say something profound and Myles made for the perfect captive audience.

“Please Diane, not now, I'm up to my nose in briefs... And not the good kind.” He paused and looked at her with a grin. “If you know what I mean,” he said, proud of his Brody-esque pun.

She ignored the protest and bad pun and continued with what she wanted to talk about. “Tell me,” she said, “what is wrong with men?”

Myles leaned back in his chair and sighed. When it came to Diane and her needs, there were no other options and it was better to give in and move on. He leaned back, hands behind his head. “At least it's not a complicated question,” he said. “Let me clear my calendar for the next decade so we can figure it out.”

“Do you have any idea what it's like to have an ovary full of eggs screaming ‘fertilize me'? It adds a whole new dimension to the misery of being single.”

Myles was getting antsy; he needed to get some work done, and this was certainly not a topic he had time for, nor one he wanted to be dragged into—particularly not at this hour. “No clue, and I prefer not to know. In fact, I don't want to discuss it either.”

“Being gay doesn't excuse you from having to deal with this.” She stared into his eyes, determined to engage him. He knew he wasn't going to slither out of this conversation – even with the crazy amount of legal work that covered his desk.

“I'm pretty sure it does. Besides, I'm newly single now too.” He'd decided that since they were going to have this conversation, he might as well get a little sympathy too and assumed a sad-faced expression.

“That's great!” she said. “It means that next month you and Brody are going to be a couple!”

“What!” He didn't realize he'd told her about the ten-year plan. “When did I tell you about that?”

She gave him a “Bitch, please” look.

He chuckled to himself. There obviously wasn't anything she didn't know about him, and clearly he'd shared more with her about his personal life than he'd originally thought.

“If I know Brody, he's probably forgotten all about it.”

She leaned toward him, her eyes piercing. “Then remind him! Brody's a great catch, and he is so damned hot!” She leaned back, message delivered.

Myles was surprised at her reply. Even as boy crazy as she could be, she certainly knew he would never be with Brody. “Diane, he's not relationship material. You know that!”

Diane swung a leg back and forth. “What about you two just fooling around then? I mean, I just don't understand how your best friend is a sexy cop, and you haven't hooked up with him yet!”

Myles couldn't believe she was saying this. “Contrary to what you may think of gay people, we don't all sleep with each other.”

“Really? I didn't get that memo and neither did the rest of West Hollywood!”

“Brody is my friend. You don't sleep with your friends.”

Diane smiled. “How is it that I never heard of these rules? I swear you make them up as you go along.”

“Brody and I don't see each other that way.” Diane gave him an incredulous looks as he turned away and picked up some papers, hoping she'd take the hint and let him get some work done. This conversation was getting to personal and cutting a bit close to a nerve. Ordinarily Myles would happily engage Diane in a conversation about how he and Brody were completely wrong for each other, but not today.

“Don't tell me you're not his type!”

Myles laughed sarcastically. This was too easy. He had the perfect retort and he had to use it. “Brody has only one type.” Diane knew where he was going with this and followed his lead.

“Facing down!” they said in unison as they laughed at how well they knew each other.

Men always came easily for Diane. Maybe not the right man every time, but there was almost always a man by her side. They would call, and she would answer. What usually followed was one night out and the next one in. No real harm in that if they were both consenting adults. If men could enjoy the fairer sex, then why couldn't the fairer sex enjoy them, as well? Two could play the same game, and what a game it was.

In high school she was always one of the prettiest girls in her class. She was a cheerleader, on the yearbook staff, a member of the debate team, and even the class treasurer. Like Tess McGill in
Working Girl
, she had a head for business and a bod for sin. In spite of all that, she was still her own woman—strong, proud, and determined to make a difference. Law school seemed like a natural choice for her. Northern California born from a prominent family, she wanted to stay in state but still have a chance to get out on her own. The University of San Diego Law School was the perfect fit. It offered warmer, drier weather along with great beaches and a relaxed lifestyle. Diane excelled not only in her studies but socially as well.

In college she dated a number of guys but had one truly serious boyfriend. A teaching assistant, who was a class ahead of her, first introduced Diane to more carnal, if not to say, “kinky,” sexual preferences. At first she resisted but slowly he eased her into an appreciation of the less socially discussed forms of intimacy which released feelings and desires in her she had long kept locked away and secret. Their adventures, as he liked to call it, were always a wonderful release and distraction from the pressures of papers and exams. He even proposed to her, but Diane was set on building a career first. She could have her fun along the way as need be, but career was goal number one.

She started at Bernstein, Goodman, Scheckman, & Tyler not long after graduation. Maybe it was her grades that got her the job. Maybe it was her looks. Maybe it was both. Regardless, she was a real lawyer now and she was going to make the most of it.

When Myles first arrived at the firm, Diane was taken with his good looks and friendly, sweet nature. He always dressed well, smelled clean and fresh, and greeted everyone with a warm smile. Myles wasn't like other men who always came on strong. It was a nice change of pace for her to be treated like a person rather than an object to be desired.

She hadn't been dating as much since starting at the firm. The days were long and the weekends even longer sometimes. Thus if a romance developed with Myles, maybe he would understand her schedule better than her more recent, short-term boyfriends.

Whenever she needed to go talk to Myles, she made sure to always look her best. Yet no matter what she did, he never seemed to take the bait. This made Myles all that more appealing to Diane. She craved what she couldn't have. She liked the chase, and this stud was certainly giving it to her. Diane finally made the first move and asked him about having drinks after work one night to further discuss a case. He agreed, and they went to a bar right around the corner from their office.

Talking with Myles was easy. He listened. He paid attention and asked questions. His eyes didn't wander around the bar checking out other women. Myles focused on Diane and took in everything she told him with a sympathetic, reassuring and supportive ear. But when it came to talking about himself, she sensed Myles was a bit more guarded.

He mentioned having gone through a few relationships of late. None were quite working out. He tried too hard, his friend Brody would tell him. Maybe his buddy was right. Myles wanted a relationship too much. He thought Casey was the one for sure this time, but he was scared off too. Diane cocked her head. It was loud in the bar with music playing and everyone trying to talk over everyone else. Did she hear Myles correctly?
He?
She wanted to be sure.

“So what does Casey do for a living, if I may ask?” Diane asked, as she leaned in close for his answer.

“He works for a director's production company reading scripts. No one you've ever heard of.”

There it was. That's what he never showed any interest in her. She felt relief mostly but also a little sadness. He seemed like such a catch and she had clearly wasted countless hours fantasizing about what the two of them would be like in bed.

“It's hard to find a good man,” Myles said with a melancholy smile.

“Yes, it is,” Diane replied. She raised her beer. “To good men.”

“To good men,” he toasted back. They clinked glasses.

A strikingly good-looking guy, a model type, walked close by their table. For the first time, they both looked away from one another.

They caught each other looking, and then broke out laughing.

“For the record, I saw him first,” Myles exclaimed with a smile.

“Not fair. Clearly he was more into me since he passed right next to me,” Diane fired back with an equally devilish grin. “Besides you had a boyfriend last, I'm due!”

Myles tilted his head back with a laugh. “Fair enough,” he nodded. They toasted again.

Diane knew from here on out that maybe he wasn't boyfriend material, but he was certainly best friend material.

***

Myles had another long day at the office trying to clean up everyone else's lives. He loved being a lawyer, but it was exhausting. It was mid-week, and he was already tired. Entering his silent apartment, he flicked on the light. He carefully hung his keys on their designated hook, loosened his tie, and dumped himself onto the couch where he scrolled through his list of phone contacts. Then he shook his head and laid the phone on the table. There was no one he wanted to talk to or see. He'd call Brody, but didn't want to be that co-dependent. They'd seen each other almost every day this past week, and he was sure Brody would enjoy a night off from riding the gloom train with him. Instead, he fixed himself something to eat, not like the elaborate meals he created for various boyfriends, but a plate of leftovers only for himself.

He sighed. What was there to do? Nothing, really. Just another evening alone. Let's face it, he told himself; there was nothing he wanted to do and no one he cared enough to do it with.

He turned on the TV and began to surf the channels. Nothing worth watching, at least that he was in the mood for. He glanced at the clock. How could the second hand move so slowly!

Finally, he grabbed a deck of cards and laid out a game of solitaire. He was bored, totally bored, and feeling sorry for himself. People who said you shouldn't engage in self-pity were wrong. It was good for the soul.

He looked at the clock. It was an hour later, time to go to bed. He peeled off his shirt, revealing his tight swimmer's body, chiseled chest and just the perfect hint of abs under a fine layer of chest hair. Quickly, he changed from his dress slacks and briefs to a pair of cutoff sweatpants.

Lying back in bed, he began to fantasize. The sexy man who would be his husband. A dark-haired, take-charge kind of guy. Myles would lay his head on the man's broad chest and listen to his heartbeat. He could see himself lying in bed holding the other man, running his fingers through the man's hair as the two of them lay, flesh against flesh. The visual was so real the man almost seemed to be there in the bed beside him. By now Myles had a major hard-on. But there was a problem. He felt too tired to jerk off, but too horny to ignore the large bulge under the sheets.

Then he remembered the toys in the nightstand. What the hell, it wasn't that late. A playful grin crossed his face as he opened the drawer. He reached inside and grabbed the Jeff Stryker dildo, only to find his hand wet and sticky from a jar of spilled lube he couldn't remember buying.
Naturally,
he thought. Why should this be easy?

What a mess! And he couldn't stand messes. He pulled a gym sock from the bottom drawer of the nightstand and began to furiously wipe the soaked toys. Next he pulled out the projector. Damn it! It was sticky too. He placed everything he'd cleaned on the headboard. Then he emptied the drawer of the fleshjack, and wiped it down with another clean sock.

Just then his iPad sprang to life with Brody's grin lighting up the display. Myles couldn't stop the big smile that appeared on his face. Brody was probably just calling wanting to tell him about his latest conquest and Myles felt his smile slip a touch and a too-familiar tinge of jealousy gnaw at him. It happened each time he had to hear about Brody's most recent fuck buddy but Myles chose not to examine that too closely. Though it bothered him, he knew Brody, even with his bachelor lifestyle of reckless abandon, would always be there for him.

He brightened again as he saw Brody's image on the screen when he answered the call. Shirtless and sexy as hell, Myles was sitting alone in a leather chair and eating a burrito with a fork. Brody returned the smile as he saw Myles' image in return on the screen.

Myles liked to think he knew all of Brody's expressions and what they meant, and there was definitely a bit of mischief on his face and he didn't understand why.

“Someone's getting busy tonight! You go, boy!” Brody dropped a bit of burrito onto his chest, picked it up and popped it into his mouth.

Myles was confused. Then he realized: the giant dildo behind his head, the other toys sitting beside it. “Wow.” He was embarrassed. “No!”

Brody laughed. “Talk about incriminating evidence!”

Myles tried to dig himself out but only made things worse. “I'm just cleaning up. Everything's covered in lube!”