Tell Me A Story

A group of male/male romance authors was given this picture and asked to tell a story about it.
Here's what I wrote.

“I don’t even understand why you invited me to come to the conference with you this weekend. You haven’t spent ten seconds in the same room as me all day.” Jayden crossed his bare arms over his naked chest and glowered at Vincent, not even excited to be wearing the brand new teeny-tiny Speedo swimwear he’d raced out to buy when he heard the conference center had a swimming pool and hot tub.
“You knew I was here for work. The company is paying me to attend so they expect me to participate in the various workshops and forums.”
Jay ground his teeth together to stop him from screaming at Vince. It took every ounce of control he had to keep his voice sufficiently low that the people in the next room wouldn’t hear every word he said. “There’s no workshop or forum on now. Your program states ‘Free Time. Please avail yourselves of our facilities.’ The swimming pool is a facility and you know I said I was looking forward to using it.”
Jay bit his lip. He’d had such high hopes about this weekend away. Vince held a senior management position with TekiSolutionz, and he often worked late nights and all through the weekend. They had so little time together that when Vince had asked him to come to this conference he hadn’t begrudged a cent of the money it’d cost him to buy several new shirts, neckties, and even new shoes so he’d look appropriately attired to be a senior manager’s partner.
But this free time was precious. He’d had such high hopes of the moments they’d spend in each other’s others arms in the few brief breaks in the program. It would be the pay off for him sitting silent and bored beside Vince for hours and hours during the formal presentations and speeches tomorrow night.
Vince shook his head. “Jay, I never promised to spend the free time with you. I’ve gotten permission to use Breakout Room Three with one of the sound system engineers and a video tech to practice my presentation for tomorrow night. They’re going to record me so I can watch the tape and see what I need to improve. You know how important it is to me to impress our major clients and stakeholders tomorrow.”
“Of course I know. You’ve been talking about it nonstop for weeks. But what about me? When will you be able to squeeze me into your life?”
“You’re already in my life. You know I love you. I invited you here in public as my partner.”
“Yes, but we’ve hardly seen each other. When are we actually going to exchange a sentence with each other?”
“We could do that now if you’d stop pouting and acting like I’m standing you up.”
Just then Vince’s cell phone beeped.
“Gotta run. That’s the sound tech ready for me. I’ll see you for dinner tonight. It’s formal remember. At seven, in the ballroom.”
Jay nodded, but Vince wasn’t even looking. He was already halfway out the door on his way to his next appointment. Jay dropped back onto the bed. That’s the way it was far too often. Vince rushing from an important meeting to an even more important meeting. Him coming home from his very ordinary job to cook dinner for them both even though he knew that half the time Vince wouldn’t come home to eat it and the rest of the time it wouldn’t taste nice anyway because it’d gone cold and been reheated hours later.
Was that going to be all his life held from now on? Snatches of Vince’s time when his work didn’t come first? Himself just a space filler for when Vince’s career was up-to-date? Vince said he loved him, but was that enough to live on?

* * * *

Vince had trouble putting Jay’s sad face out of his mind so he could concentrate on his work. It was even harder trying to forget the bright pink and black swimwear he’d been wearing. It didn’t leave much to the imagination and Vince would enjoy freeing Jay’s mighty fine cock from the tiny piece of fabric and tasting him.
But not now. Tomorrow night was vital for his career. Only four of the senior managers would be giving a presentation at the formal dinner and he was one of them. He absolutely had to give such an honor every ounce of his effort and attention. No way could he risk stumbling over his words or not producing a smooth, engrossing speech. This rehearsal was very important to him. Only by watching a video of himself would he genuinely know if he’d gotten his timing or actions wrong or if his words didn’t come out how he wanted them to.
But he hated that Jay was sad. Vince knew he’d been ignoring Jay lately. Well, not ignoring him precisely. No one could ever ignore such a delicious hunk of premium manhood. But maybe taking him for granted somewhat. He did need to change up his game and come home on time more often. Or at least text Jay with the time he actually would be home. It was rude to expect dinner to be cooked for him and then not turn up. He did need to act better toward Jay.
He mentally ran through his speech, and then stood on the stage and gave the presentation as if he were in the ballroom. The sound crew clapped him at the end, but he wasn’t sure if they were being polite, or if they’d liked his speech. However when they replayed the video, he had come across well. Now he just had to worry that he wouldn’t fuck-up on the night. Wasn’t there some saying or other that the worse the dress rehearsal went, the better the performance usually was? Oh shit, maybe this hadn’t been such a brilliant idea after all.
“Thank you all for helping me out,” Vince said to the sound crew.
“No problem. We still have over an hour before we need to start setting up for the dinner tonight.”
“Really? I thought it’d take longer.”
“You were as smooth as silk. You’ve got time to get a coffee or whatever before preparing for tonight’s program.”
“Thanks. I might do that.”
But instead of going downstairs to the coffee shop, he went up to the rooftop swimming pool. He half expected to find Jay lying on a sun bed sipping some exotic drink, or maybe surrounded by men lusting after him in that tiny sexy pink piece of fabric.
Instead, Jay had evidently been swimming. He was in the middle of the pool stretching. Damn, he looked delicious. The yummiest hunk of man on planet Earth. Without stopping to think Vince raced down the steps and into the swimming pool, and marched across to Jay, pulling him into his arms and kissing him.
“I love you, Jay. I promise to spend more time with you.”
Jay jumped up, wrapping his legs around Vince’s waist. “I love you, too, Vince, but that suit isn’t going to like being in chlorinated water. Why didn’t you change into your board shorts first?”
“I didn’t want to waste a single minute when I could be with you. I promise to be better about letting you know when I’m free, and spending every spare second of my life with you.”
“Every spare second, hmm? How can a man resist such a wonderful offer?”
Vince tightened his grip on Jay as Jay kissed him back with so much promise if he hadn’t been waist deep in water they’d have been arrested for what might happen next.

Berengaria Brown

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