Jake reached around to rub Treston's ass one more time before they got dressed. "Straight guys treat bisexuals like they're gay, and gay guys treat bisexuals like they're afraid to come out of the closet and really be gay. And I really am bisexual. I really do like both men and women. A lot of people don't get it."
"I just think you're a great guy," Treston said, then turned and walked to the other side of the desk to put on his clothes.
When they were both dressed, Treston heard someone moving around outside Jake's office. He glanced at a clock on Jake's wall and saw it was twelve fifteen. "I can't believe we've been in here all this time." The last time he'd read the clock, it had been a little after eight in the morning.
"I can't either," Jake said. "When you go out I'll just tell Sally you were here for an interview. She's the receptionist and I'd rather she didn't know what just happened. You know how it is, buddy."
"Sure, buddy," Treston said. "No problem." He didn't emphasize the word "buddy" to be sarcastic. He thought it was both sexy and cute when straight guys did it.
"But I am going to call my buddy Joe and thank him for hiring you," Jake said. "This was freaking awesome." He reached into his back pocket and pulled out cash. "I'd like to give you something a little extra."
Treston smiled and said, "No, I couldn't take it. But thanks for offering." He almost told him the truth, that this Joe guy hadn't hired him. But then he thought about how surprised Jake would be when he found out Treston hadn't done this for money and he'd really wanted to do it. He had a feeling it might have made Jake feel awkward or weird. So he kissed him goodbye and turned toward the door. Before he unlocked it and left he said, "Say hi to Joe for me."
When he reached the street, he decided to walk a few blocks north to a little erotic boutique where they sold sexy underwear. So much for getting a real job in the real world. He couldn't even show up for a job on a cheesy used-car lot without being recognized as the male stripper who shot ping-pong balls out of his ass. He had mixed emotions about this and he wasn't sure how he would feel two hours from now. On the one hand, it was nice to be recognized for doing something unique, and shooting ping-pong balls out of your ass wasn't something everyone did. And having sex with a guy like Jake had not been a bad experience. Treston's entire body was still tingling all over. But on the other hand, Treston had no idea what would become of him or what his future would be like. At that point he wasn't so sure he could change and started to have second thoughts about all the things he'd been planning for the future. He dreaded how he'd feel later that night: like a loser with no prospects for a decent future.
As he crossed the street, he heard a horn honk. When he glanced to the right he saw Cooper Boon pull up to the curb in front of him. Cooper jumped out of the park ranger truck and smiled. "I thought it was you. I'm on my way to work. Can I give you a lift?"
Though they'd been in touch with social media since they'd met, this was the first time they'd actually seen each other since the day Cooper had rescued him in Lake Mead. Treston stopped short and returned the smile. He couldn't stop smiling. It seemed like destiny had intervened one more time, and just when Treston needed it the most. The last guy Treston thought he'd run into that day was Cooper Boon. But here he was, standing in the road in his park ranger uniform and cowboy hat, ready to rescue Treston one more time. As he ran to Cooper, he felt a sting in his eye. And when he put his arms around Cooper and hugged him, he started to cry so hard Cooper could barely get him into the truck.
Chapter Twelve
"I can't thank you enough for helping me get this job," Treston said. He was standing at a file cabinet in the park ranger's station at Lake Mead, wearing his new beige park ranger uniform. He felt so professional and so normal he could hardly contain his emotions. There would have been a time when the only way he would have worn a drab outfit like this was during a fantasy park ranger strip routine at Chickey's club. He'd been tempted to do this. He'd thought about wearing the uniform on stage, stripping, and shooting ping-pong balls out of his ass. But he didn't want to disappoint Cooper and dismissed the thought completely.
"Don't give it a second thought," Cooper said. "It's nice having you around. I like it." He was on his way out the door to ride the trails on horseback that afternoon. He wore those sexy cowboy boots and hat that always made Treston's heart flutter a little. Before he left, he crossed to the file cabinet, put his arms around Treston, and kissed him goodbye. "I'll see you later. We'll take our nap and order take-out as our Monday usual. I love you."
Cooper had set routines that couldn't be broken. Treston didn't need a watch or a calendar anymore. Cooper always napped for an hour after work. On Mondays they ordered Chinese take-out from the place that delivered a few blocks away from Cooper's apartment-kung pao chicken, an egg roll, and always three fortune cookies for Cooper. Treston could tell it was Tuesday if Cooper rode the trails in a pick-up truck, Wednesday if Cooper had chicken salad for lunch, and Thursday if Cooper wore his black cowboy boots. Treston would never have known it was Thursday if Cooper didn't vacuum the entire apartment at precisely eight o'clock in the evening, or Friday if he didn't have a small glass of prune juice after dinner. He even went to bed at ten every night and woke at six every morning without deviating from the pattern. They had sex between six and seven a.m. On Sundays, Treston always got spanked on the kitchen table.
Treston glanced over his shoulder to be sure Roger, the other ranger who worked at the desk full time, hadn't returned from lunch yet. Then he reached down, squeezed Cooper's dick, and said, "I love you, too. You're my hero."
It was about a month after Treston ran into Cooper near the used-car dealership where he'd gone to apply for a job. After Cooper helped Treston into the car, he drove him home and called in sick that day. He spent the rest of the afternoon listening to Treston talk about how frustrated he was with his life and how he wanted to change his circumstances. In the past when they'd communicated with each other online, Treston had held back and he'd never gone into any great details about what he did for a living, especially the part about being an escort sometimes. But that afternoon he told Cooper Boon everything, from his ping-pong ball act to the guys he saw in private sometimes after the shows. Treston figured if he wanted a relationship with this man he had to be honest and it had to be based on mutual trust.
Cooper sat and listened without saying much. At one point, he sat down on the sofa next to Treston and put his arms around him. He held him tightly and said, "I had a feeling your life wasn't exactly normal or perfect. But I had no idea it was this complicated. What you need is stability. You need a regular routine." He made a fist and pounded the sofa arm.
At the time, Treston felt secure confessing all this to Cooper. Though he was attracted to Cooper, he didn't think Cooper would ever want to get involved with him. Good guys like Cooper Boon didn't think about starting relationships with strippers who sometimes got paid to have sexual encounters with other men. Good guys like Cooper Boon found decent, respectable guys with whom to build relationships around set patterns and normal routines.
So no one could have been more surprised than Treston when Cooper grabbed him, threw him down on the sofa, and kissed him. And when Cooper stopped kissing and said, "I'll help you get a job because I'm in love with you and I want to marry you," Treston thought he'd lost his senses for a moment.
Treston sat back and said, "All the other men I've been with don't bother you? And I've never been able to stick to a routine or pattern in my life."
Cooper reached for Treston's hands and held them tightly. "No. The other men don't bother me. I'm in love with you and that's all that matters. And I'll turn you around. I'll get you into a routine."
Cooper didn't go home that night. For once, he broke his routine. They ordered take-out, drank wine until midnight, and wound up in Treston's bed, where Treston was surprised to learn Cooper Boon made love even rougher and with more intensity than any of the bad boys Treston had dated in the past. That night Cooper threw him down, slapped him in all the right spots, and turned him around in so many different positions Treston actually had trouble keeping up with him. He even grabbed his throat and punched him a few times. In the morning, when Treston climbed out of bed to examine the bruises on the backs of his legs, he noticed Cooper's cowboy hat and boots on the bedroom floor and smiled. He knew, deep in his gut, he'd finally found the right man to fall in love with.
The rest happened so fast Treston barely had time to think. Cooper got him a part-time job at Lake Mead working as a file clerk three mornings a week in the ranger's station. He wanted Treston to quit his job at Chickey's strip club right away, but Treston said he couldn't do it until he either was married or had another full-time job with which he could support himself. So Cooper made a deal with him. He told Treston if he quit his job at Chickey's he would marry him, even though gay marriage was not legally recognized. He said Treston could move into his larger apartment and he would take care of him until he found a full-time job that didn't include stripping. Then he kissed Treston and told him he loved him and he would always take care of him. So Treston agreed to everything and they set a wedding date with enough time for Treston to give his notice at the club, clean up his affairs, and get out of his lease.