“It’s ‘cause you grew up in a haunted Dracula castle,” Carver said, and Scott laughed.
The side door opened again, and punctured the quiet of the reception hall with a sudden hubbub of conversation. The two of them looked over and saw the wedding pack filing in, led by Letty and Lillian.
Carver stood and dropped off of the stage, moving away from Scott.
“All good?” Letty said, giving them a questioning thumbs up.
“All good,” Carver said.
CHAPTER FOUR
When they got back to the house, Carver tucked himself away in a hall bathroom so he could redownload Grindr and look for someone nearby who could give him a prostate orgasm, because he was liable to keep acting nuts until he got one. After some scrolling he found a promising-looking gentleman who was advertising himself as a hung silver fox. He was the same age as Carver’s father, which wasn’t ideal, but his pictures showed that he was in good shape and indeed hung. Plus, he was nearby — he had a room for the weekend at the Marriott in Bitterfeld’s town center.
Carver messaged him that he was interested and asked for a face photo. Silver Fox sent one, proving that he was handsome for an old guy.
What do you want twink, Silver Fox said.
just need to get fucked out of my mind, Carver said.
Absolutely,said Silver Fox.Come on down pretty boy, I will give you the fuck of your life.
Carver nodded to himself in the bathroom mirror, then typed to Silver Fox,meet you there in 30
When he stepped out of the bathroom, Lillian was walking by, carrying a crudité plate.
“Hey,” Carver said, and she stopped. “I’m gonna, uh, drive up to the Equinox in Mamaroneck for a workout. I need a cold plunge, sauna, something.”
Lillian nodded, offering him the plate. He took a slice of bell pepper. “Can I come with?”
“Noo, thanks,” Carver demurred. “I need to — alone. I need to lock in and just… you know.”
“For your psychological problems?”
“Yyyyyes.”
Lillian shrugged. “Okay. Watch out in the sauna with that lightheaded stuff. Don’t crack your head open.”
“Good point.”
“That would fuck up this wedding for sure.”
Carver laughed. Lillian walked away down the hall, and he hurried in the opposite direction for the front door, away from the sound of conversation and laughter in the sun room at the back of the house. He shut the front door behind him, then walked at a normal pace to the Maybach, waving to his parents’ across-the-street neighbor Mr. Jeffries who was out trimming his hedges.
The tall chestnut oaks and American elms that lined his parents’ leafy street and the neighborhoods that encircled theirs steadily gave away to shorter maples and hawthorns as he rolled toward the town’s center. The houses, schools, tennis courts and waterfront restaurants gave way to row after row of tiny businesses that were draped in fairy lights and packed in cheek-by-jowl: bagel shops and upscale hair salons and gardening supply stores. The Marriott stood on a corner, tall and proud, boasting an atrium conference center for anyone who felt the need to conduct business an hour’s drive outside of Manhattan. Carver found a two-hour spot out front, fed the meter with his credit card, and went in.
“I’m meeting someone upstairs,” he told the (gay?) guy at the front desk, handing over his ID. “Room 414. My name’s Carver? I don’t know if he —”
The guy held up a finger as he checked his computer. “Yup,” he said, and handed him a keycard. “Enjoy.”
Carver thought, with paranoia, that the “enjoy” sounded too knowing. “Yeah,” he said with some bass in his voice, then headed for the elevator.
Outside the door of 414 he briefly had second thoughts — he didn’tlovefucking strangers, it was at times quite awkward — but his hand rose and knocked without his input, and then Silver Fox opened the door, looking to Carver’s relief exactly like his photos.
“Hey there,” Silver Fox said, smiling and stepping back to let him in. He was wearing only a hotel robe.
It was a nice suite, large and spacious. The lights were dimmed and a few candles were burning on surfaces throughout. Silver Fox offered him a cocktail glass with two fingers of whiskey in it, and Carver took this and downed it, then began to strip.
“Okay,” Silver Fox said, laughing.
