Mike paused a few seconds before replying. “Him? Wow, that hasn’t happened to you in quite a while. You really like this guy, huh?”
Ben loved how Mike just accepted the fact that it was a guy with no judgement. He felt his shoulders relax. “I haven’t felt like this in a very long time. And it freaked me out a little since it happened so quickly. But it just feels so right. And he feels it too. His name is Rob, by the way. He’s a widower from Massachusetts. His husband passed away a couple of years ago and he wasn’t expecting anything like this either. “
“I’m happy for you, Ben. It sounds like this is a really good thing for both of you. But you said that I might see something online. Did someone take a photo of you two kissing or something?” Mike asked.
“No, but I talked to Amanda a couple of days ago to tell her what was going on. I don’t think anyone’s taken any photos and we haven’t really been public about things, but you know how people are. I figured I’d let her know just in case. She said not to worry about it, and she’d run interference if something hit her radar.
“But we also discussed making a formal announcement of some sort. Rob and I talked about that earlier today and when I see Amanda next week, we’ll figure out how to handle that. Probably a post on Twitter or Instagram or something with a photo of us.”
“Cool. Again, I’m happy for you and hope this works out well for everyone. And bring him around to meet your older brother, okay?”
“I will, thanks. Love you, Mike.”
“Love you too, Benny.”
As the call ended, it was Ben’s turn to groan at his nickname.
Might as well call Kyle, too.
“Hi, Dad. Everything going okay?”
“Everything’s fine, son. I just wanted to share some news with you…” Their conversation was pretty much identical to the one he just had with Mike. But then, Ben hadn’t expected anything less. Kyle wasn’t fazed at all when Ben had told him a few years ago that he was attracted to both men and women.
He checked his watch and saw that he had another hour before Rob’s alarm would go off. Snuggling sounded like a really good idea.
* * *
They were both rather contemplative when they woke. Ben told Rob about calling Michael and Kyle and while they were both happy with their non-reaction to Ben meeting a man, the fact that the cruise was ending in a few days hung ominously over their heads. And that left them feeling a little out of sorts.
Ben didn’t want to dwell on what was to come all evening, so he changed the subject. “Let’s see if we can get a table at the Bluefin Bistro for dinner and then maybe we can catch the show in the Ocean Theater afterwards. It’s a musical variety show this evening. Or there’s Doubloon Bay Casino, although I’m not much of a gambler.”
“I don’t gamble either, so the show sounds like a great idea to me.”
After dinner they made their way to the theater. The show was quite good, proving to be exactly the distraction they both needed. Afterwards, they decided to stop at the Trident Lounge for a drink. Lukas saw them walk to the bar and he welcomed them and took their drink order. After getting their drinks, they moved to a table and sat, enjoying the bourbon on the rocks they’d both ordered.
“Despite all the people and activity going on here, I’m gonna miss this spot. There’s something about it that’s just so relaxing,” Ben said.
“I agree. I don’t know what it is, but this area just makes me feel calm.”
When their glasses were empty, they slowly made their way back to Rob’s suite.
They took turns in the bathroom, then climbed into bed. They were both tired and still feeling a bit melancholy, but they snuggled together and were soon asleep.
