Need Your Love

Chapter 1-2

Behind the wheel of his beloved 1959 Mercedes, Garrett headed toward Bensonhurst Country Club with Johnette and his father, Allen, in tow. He’d had the car for a while and while he didn’t buy it new, it served its purpose.

Johnette changed the radio station to a Doris Day song when Leslie Gore’s “It’s Judy’s Turn to Cry” came over the air.

“Lovely ceremony, don’t you think?” Johnette said as they headed to the country club.

“What’s that?” Garrett asked.

“Lovely ceremony, Susan was beautiful.”

“Yeah, lovely.”

“What’s wrong? You haven’t been yourself since we arrived at the church.”

“Nothing, I have a lot on my mind.”

I’m infatuated with a good-looking guy, but I can’t tell you or my dad that. But it doesn’t matter because he didn’t say much, anyway.

Garrett discreetly adjusted himself in the seat as he moved his foot from the gas pedal to the clutch and brake. This is all about business. Garrett calmed down, rationalizing his infatuation on Eron as a career opportunity. He was sure Eron knew plenty of people who needed loans.

While he told himself that making a new connection might help him find new clients, Eron had stirred feelings in him unrelated to the bank. Maybe the excitement of meeting someone who appealed to him had awakened feelings he’d suppressed for years.

“Oh, this is nice,” Johnette said as they pulled up.

“A bit preten—”

“Dad,” Garrett admonished.

Allen Emerson blushed but stopped talking. Johnette seemed oblivious to Allen’s commentary, still enthralled with the country club.

“Are you members here?” Johnette asked.

“No, I guess George is,” Allen answered.

They got out of the car. Garrett handed his keys to the valet and escorted Johnette into the club. Allen followed close behind.

A maître d’ greeted them in the lobby. “Lassiter wedding?”

“Yes.”

“That way.” The maître d’ directed them with a wave of his hand. Johnette squeezed Garrett’s arm as they entered the ballroom. White and pink taffeta bunting covered every sconce, chair, and flat surface in the room. The local band played music from Garrett’s younger years. It reminded him of his life, living it to please everyone. Garrett preferred Elvis and the new girl groups like the Crystals and the Ronettes popping up on the radio.

“Oh Garrett, it’s just lovely. Wouldn’t it be wonderful to have our reception here?”

Unpleasant emotion churned in Garrett’s gut at Johnette’s mention of their own possible wedding. They’d gone steady for a few months, but since their first date, she had mentioned getting married at every opportunity. He didn’t blame her. She was past thirty and most of her friends had married right after college.

While not entirely opposed to having a wife, two kids, and a house on Long Island, that dream had eluded him thus far. Whenever he pictured the dream house, it was a small inn, converted from a huge, old house, furnished with all the treasures that he found at the flea market on the weekends.

Johnette’s pressure to get married wasn’t the only thing that agitated Garrett. The country club and all it stood for held no appeal. While growing up and helping Allen at the filling station, their arrogant attitudes rankled as he and his father pumped their gas and checked their oil. Allen had worked hard and probably had as much money in the bank as any of the people who belonged to the club. No, on the weekends, Garrett preferred casual backyard barbecues to dressing up for dinner.

Garrett shivered out of the daydream. He never saw Johnette’s face, or any other woman’s, in his musings. His own bottled up yearnings added to his irritation whenever she mentioned weddings, marriage, or babies.

You invited her.

For the moment, he’d let it go and enjoy himself. They found their seats and he went to the bar to get them drinks. He turned and caught Eron’s gaze as Eron approached the bar himself. For a moment, Garrett thought Eron skipped, but soon dismissed the odd thought. He returned Eron’s toothy grin.

“What are you having?” Eron asked.

“Rum and Coke.”

“Bartender, he’ll have what I’m having. I need scotch and ginger ale with a twist of lime.

“Thanks, but I don’t drink scotch. It’s too strong.”

The bartender looked at Eron who nodded. “I didn’t either until I had it with ginger. Believe me you’ll be hooked. Plus, when you go to your business meetings and order scotch, you’ll impress your clients more than with rum and Coke.”

Garrett shrugged but ceased his protest. He appreciated Eron’s tip.

“And I’ll take a vodka tonic, with half a shot of vodka?” Eron asked quickly as if he’d nearly forgotten.

The bartender nodded and finished making the drinks.

“Try it before you leave. I want to know what you think.”

Garrett sniffed the concoction, took a sip. He smiled, delighted with Eron’s drink.

“It’s good, huh?” Eron asked.

“It’s very good. How did you ever come up with that?” Garrett asked.

“My mother. My father wanted me to drink scotch, so she mixed it with ginger like her father used to drink it.”

“That’s sweet. Is she here today?” As soon as the words came out, Garrett frowned, his face red.

“Um, no. She’s gone.”

“I’m sorry, you did tell me that.”

“It’s okay. I’m young to have lost both parents already.” Eron took a sip of his drink. “They died in a car crash five years ago.”

“I’m sorry,” Garrett said with an uncomfortable smile. “My mom’s been gone for a while, too. Cancer.”

“Ah, sorry to hear that.”

“And just how young are you?”.

“Thirty-two,” Eron said as he took another drink. “What about you?”

“Thirty-four.”

Eron stared over the rim of his glass as he sipped, but said nothing.

“Well, I should go sit down.”

“Wait,” Eron gulped down the rest of his drink.

“For what?”

“Nice talking to you.”

Garrett smiled. “Yeah. Nice talking to you too.”

Garrett turned and walked away before Eron could ask or say anything else.

“What did Eron Lassiter have to say?” Allen took the drink from Garrett’s hand.

“Just being friendly. We are cousins now, you know,” Garrett chuckled, pleased with his own joke. He placed Johnette’s drink in front of her and went around the table to greet his other aunt, uncle, and cousins who’d arrived in his absence.

“What’d he have you try?” Allen said. He took of drink of the beer Garrett had fetched for him.

“Scotch and ginger ale.”

“Ah, you p***y. Drink it straight. It’ll put hair on your chest.”

Comments like that might have bothered someone else, but for him, they’d long lost their sting. Garrett laughed when Allen blushed as he glanced at Johnette. Engaged in conversation with one of Garrett’s cousins, she likely hadn’t heard.

“Poor guy. When we lost your mother that was bad, but to lose both parents and him their only son.” Allen took another sip of his beer.

“He told me.”

“His father has two brothers, George and Grant.” Allen nodded across the room where another older man that looked like George Lassiter sat. “Since he doesn’t have any kids of his own, George treats Eron like a son.”

“Aunt Susan sure filled you in!”

Allen shrugged. “She does what she can.”

Garrett scanned the room until he found Eron sitting with his date. Garrett racked his brain to remember her name. Mary something. Mary Catherine? Mary Gayle? No, Mary Ellen. That’s right.

Eron glanced over at him for a brief moment, and nodded. Earlier at the church, and again at the bar, Eron had peered right through him with his gorgeous blue eyes. Eron took a drink, his eyes twinkling over the top of his glass.

Garrett tore his gaze away. His face grew warm and the sweat gathered in his armpits. As flattering as Eron’s attention was, he couldn’t stand it.

What are you doing? You’re not…a homosexual. Not since the army and then college had he thought about other men with more than friendship in mind.

Johnette turned to Garrett. “What do you think, Garrett?”

Garrett trembled, his collar nearly choking him. “I’m sorry,” He sipped his drink. “What was that?”

“I told your cousin that if you had a membership here, we could come for dinner once in a while.”

Garrett choked on his drink.

Johnette clapped him on the back until the coughing subsided. “Well, couldn’t we?”

He lowered his voice. “That might be a little out of my budget as a loan officer.”

“Oh, you could make it work. You’re clever like that.” Johnette returned her attention toward his cousin.

Eron stood and tapped his glass with a butter knife. When the room quieted, he announced, “Ladies and gentlemen, Mr. and Mrs. George Lassiter.” Eron put the cigarette in his mouth and started the applause. Through the smoke, he glanced at Garrett.

Once Susan and George arrived, the guests sat down to an early dinner. After everyone was finished eating, the women gravitated into different clusters around the room and the men did the same.

After Allen had joined his brothers-in-law and cousins and Johnette had been absorbed into a group of his own cousins and their wives, Garrett took the opportunity to find a corner of the room in which to hang out alone. Maybe Eron would find his way to the lonely corner.

Throughout the day, a big-band style orchestra had played a variety of music. While they ate, the music was more from the war, Glen Miller tunes and such. As the afternoon wore on, they moved their way through the Fifties into the Sixties. Then they played their version of Leslie Gore’s “It’s My Party.”

From his vantage point, Garrett caught conversations on both sides of the banquet room. He beamed with pride when he overhead aunts, uncles, and cousins talking about the young men, and some nurses, signing up for the service. With the Communists gaining control of Vietnam, he feared for them, but the Emersons answered the country’s call to action.

None of those topics drifted Garrett’s way from the Lassiter side of the room. Their conversations dealt more about their businesses. It irritated Garrett just a bit. Under their pillbox hats and white gloves, they clung to their memories of President and Mrs. Kennedy. Johnette ate up the atmosphere.

Eron interacted with his own cousins and family members, fitting in with both young and old.

Maybe he’s an old soul like me, maybe he’s just being polite.

Garrett understood that connection to people older than him. He had always gravitated towards them. His senior year of high school was lonely because all his friends had graduated.

Garrett moved his attention from Eron to others. He watched his own aunts and uncles and what he presumed were probably Eron’s. When he returned his attention to Eron, he was gone.

Just as well.

Garrett considered this new, unhealthy curiosity he had developed over just a few hours. How could a person he’d barely met intrigue him so, another man, no less? He had tried for years to restrain any unnatural feelings he felt for other men.

“Garrett, what are you doing over here all by yourself?” His cousin, Jill, interrupted his thoughts.

“Just taking it all in.” He took a sip of his drink.

“Are you going to shave a dance for me?” Already drunk, she slurred her words.

“Of course.”

“I’m…I’m going to go get another drink.” She turned to walk away but fell into him and smeared her lipstick on his starched collar.

“Oh Garrett, I’m so sorry.” She rubbed her thumb across the smudge.

“I’m all right, Jill. Are you?” He set her upright.

“I think so.”

Garrett took out a handkerchief and gave it to her. “Wipe your eyes, no harm done.”

She wiped her face and took in a deep breath, then forced a smile and walked away. Garrett took another drink and caught Eron’s smile as he approached.

“You’re a hero.”

The room grew warm. “Nah, I just caught her before she hit the floor.”

“Looks like your collar caught her lips.” Eron reached up and touched the lipstick stain. As Eron’s warmth radiated through his shirt, a shudder of excitement ran through Garrett. He bobbed his head the opposite direction and shifted away from Eron.

“It was a nice wedding.” Eron dropped his hand.

“Yes, it was.”

Side by side, they leaned against the wall and nursed their drinks.

“Well, I guess I’ll go back to my seat.” Garrett took a quick gulp of his drink and pushed away.

“Wait.”

“For what?”

“How about we get another cocktail and go for a walk? They do a wonderful job with the landscaping here.”