Naughty Temptations

Chapter Three-1

Chapter Three

Hugh hadn’t wanted Quigley to leave so very early in the morning, but the man did have to go to work after all. Orion seemed disappointed to find Quigley not there when he got up, too.

“It’s not going to be as much fun at the swimming pool without Quigley,” the child said as he made hills and valleys with the muesli in his bowl.

“No, we’ll miss him. Maybe you can learn some more swimming to show him on Saturday when he comes there again.”

“I swim pretty good already. But I can’t dive real well. Can you teach me to dive?”

“Sure. You already have your toes on the edge of the pool and your hands and arms right. It’s just a matter of kicking your legs up and keeping them straight.”

“No, I mean off the springboard. I want to do a real dive.”

Hugh looked into the green eyes so like his own. While a straight dive was actually quite difficult to do properly, a tuck dive, with the body folded into a ball and the hands holding the shins, was quite easy. He should be able to teach Orion to do that before Saturday. “Okay, I’ll teach you to do a tuck dive. But you have to get good at it from the side of the pool before you go onto the springboard. Coming off the board, you’ll go much deeper into the water than you’re used to from just jumping in. You’ll need to hold your breath for longer and swim up to the surface farther, so you’d better know what you’re doing first.”

“Awesome, Daddy! Can we go to the swimming pool right now?”

“You’d better finish off your breakfast first. Then we’ll do our regular chores. It won’t take us more than an hour though, then we’ll go to the pool.”

Barely an hour later, Orion rushed them straight to the adult pool to begin learning to dive. He concentrated so hard and climbed in and out of the pool so many times, Hugh’s head was spinning. Finally, he had to call a halt to the lessons. “Orion, you’re using your muscles differently from normal. You need to take a break, or they’ll ache tomorrow and you’ll be in pain.”

“Aww, Dad, I have to be able to do this by Saturday to show Quigley.”

“Yes, but if you pull a muscle, you won’t be able to swim at all for a few days. Better to slow down. Slow and steady wins the race.”

“What?”

“Come with me to the children’s pool. We’ll sit over the bubble fountains in the warm water, and I’ll tell you the story of the tortoise and the hare.”

Orion groaned but followed Hugh through the complex to the children’s pool, then lay on his tummy and listened to Hugh tell the old story.

“That hare was just stupid. Only an i***t would take a nap in the middle of a challenge.”

Hugh pulled his son onto his lap for a hug. “That’s true. It was a stupid thing to do. Sometimes people do silly things because they are sure they’re right. We always need to think before we act.”

Hugh looked down into Orion’s little face and felt a burst of pride as the child nodded and agreed with him. “And we have to keep going and going and never give up, because we might still win even if we think we can’t!”

“Exactly right.”

*****

On Wednesday, Hugh let Orion dive from the springboard for the first time, and by Thursday, the child was doing passable tuck dives every time.

“Quigley’s going to be very impressed, Orion,” Hugh said proudly.

“That’s on Saturday. Can we see him on Sunday as well? Maybe for lunch again?” Orion asked, hope shining brightly in his eyes.

“I’ve missed him too,” said Hugh. So very, very much! “How about you and I organize a picnic in the park, then? You need to understand though, he might not be able to come. Now that he’s back at work, he only has the weekend to do his chores.”

“Why don’t we ask him to supper sometimes too? He has to eat supper, and so do we, so that would save him some time,” Orion said.

Hugh laughed. “Let’s just ask about the picnic first, then we’ll see.”

*****

When Quigley told people he worked in a hospital, most of them automatically assumed he was a doctor. In fact, he regularly received mail addressed to Dr. Quigley. Quigley was his given name, though, not his last name. He was Quigley David Young, not someone-or-other Quigley. Not only wasn’t he a doctor, he wasn’t a nurse either, or a porter, or a security guard. He was a hospital administrator, with a double degree in Public Health and in Business Management. He was someone who sat in an office and juggled the contradictory demands for the hospital to run profitably, with the requirement for people to be given good health care, and for medical and other staff to have the equipment and services they needed—an impossible mixture of conflicting interests.

Yet he enjoyed the challenges, reveled in the balancing and juggling required, and rejoiced every time he miraculously pulled the required rabbit out of his hat.

Despite all that, he missed Hugh terribly. They’d had one night together, a brilliantly satisfactory night, but it was still only one night. He missed throwing that rubber ball to Orion and Hugh. He missed seeing Hugh’s lovely bare chest in his red board shorts. He missed his glorious green eyes and Orion’s matching gaze. When they both looked at him, it was almost like seeing double.

At night after work, Quigley found himself surfing websites for houses with a yard where a small boy could play and two men could live together. It had to be in a good neighborhood for kids, but a tolerant one for gay men, and not too long a commute for either himself or Hugh. Also, he realized he’d better check out the local schools and daycare arrangements too. Hell, this was going to be hard. At least as hard as the balancing and juggling he did at his job in the hospital.

But negative thoughts kept intruding in his plans. What if it wasn’t what Hugh wanted? What if Hugh didn’t want the relationship to deepen any further or wasn’t interested in considering them moving in together? Was he getting ahead of himself here? Was it too soon?

Resolutely, Quigley thrust those thoughts to the back of his mind and continued his search for neighborhoods and houses with yards.

Thursday night after work, he did his grocery shopping for the next week and cleaned his apartment. Friday after work, he did all his laundry then packed a swimming bag and an overnight bag. Just in case. He didn’t want anything to stand between him and the opportunity to spend time with Hugh and Orion.

Saturday morning, he was standing on the stoop at the surf store when it opened. He’d seen people at the pool playing on long, foam tube things that supported them in the water. They weren’t precisely a flotation device, but they did offer support, and kids seemed to ride them like a horse and have races in the water with them or lie back in the water using them to support their necks. He wanted to get them all one. They seemed like a fun toy.

He found them at the side of the store, labeled Pool Noodles. Well, at least now he knew what they were called. Quigley chose a blue one, a green one, and a red one then made his way to the checkout. As he was about to get in line, the idea that Orion liked to copy Hugh drifted through his mind. Thoughtfully he went back to the display and replaced the green and blue noodles, getting out two more red ones. He knew they both liked red, so they’d all have red noodles.

*****

His damn d**k was harder than iron. He could pound nails with it for sure. Thank God his black board shorts were baggy. He’d likely be arrested for indecent exposure if he was wearing Speedos as many of the men did. Not that he didn’t want to see Hugh in a teeny tiny pair of swim briefs. Oh yeah. He’d like to see the brown hair on his chest trailing down, pointing to Heaven, his c**k a neat bulge in the Speedos. They’d be red, of course. Red seemed to be Hugh’s favorite color. At least Hugh never wore a swim shirt, so he got to stare at the man’s muscled shoulders and nice pecs. Hugh had a truly delightful chest, highly lickable, with just that faint trace of hair. Hugh’s chest hair was so soft, perfect for running his fingers through as they slid across to tweak his n*****s or trailed south to Hugh’s glorious c**k.

Desperately, Quigley pulled his mind away from luscious Hugh before his c**k exploded and got him into real trouble.

He’d arrived far too early at the swimming pool, longing to see Hugh again and Orion. Orion was the first small child he’d really known. The kids of some of his work colleagues had never entranced him the way Orion did. He was sometimes just a little boy, yet at other times the things he said and did were so mature, well above his age. The kid was a thinker and bright as a button, a child to be proud of. Son of fire, son of light. Hugh had named him very appropriately.

Quigley sat on the edge of the children’s swimming pool idly watching a young mother with a baby girl. The woman looked to be maybe twenty years old and had excess flesh bulging out of her swimsuit. Her gaze was only on her daughter, and the baby was happily splashing in the water bubbling up from the fountain. The mother was laughing and splashing with the infant. They were totally absorbed in each other and the water and full of joy.

Happiness comes from within. Everyone is the master of their own destiny. She doesn’t care she hasn’t got the perfect figure. She’s completely happy with her baby. I would be happy with Hugh. Orion is the icing on the cake. They’re my fire and light. Hugh fires up every nerve ending in my body, and both he and Orion light up my life. I will talk to Hugh about moving our relationship deeper and further.

Just then Quigley heard the sexy rumble of Hugh’s voice. “We’re at least half an hour early, Orion. Likely he won’t be here yet.”

Then he heard Orion’s piping treble. “Yes, I know, Daddy, but I didn’t want to be late.”

That sound was followed by a shrill squeal and a small body hurtling across the concourse toward him. “Quigley! You’re here!”

Quigley opened his arms to hug the little body throwing itself at him.

“I’ve missed you, Quigley. I told Dad we should all have supper together sometimes during the week, and he said yes. You have to eat supper so that won’t use up too much of your time, will it?”

“No, it won’t. I’ve missed you, too. Both of you. I think having supper together regularly is a great idea.”

Orion tugged on Quigley’s arm.

“Come on. I’ve got something to show you. I’ve practiced, and I’ve practiced, and I’m good. I’m good, aren’t I, Dad?”

Without waiting for a reply, Orion hustled them all to the adult pool and hurried to line up at the springboards.

“He’s started diving?” Quigley was trying hard not to drool at the wonderful picture Hugh made, his eyes a deep sparkling green, his hair tousled from getting changed, his delicious, muscular chest nakedly on display.

“Uh-huh. Watch.”

When it was his turn, Orion walked to the end of the springboard and waved to them. Then he stood with his toes over the edge and did a perfect tuck dive, hands holding his shins, body curled, toes pointed.

When the flame-red head bobbed up out of the water, Quigley was clapping. He wanted the child to see straight away how impressed he was.

“That was perfect, absolutely perfect! I’m proud of you, Orion,” he said as the boy bounced across to him.

“I wanted to have something new to show you. I’m going to learn a pike dive next, but Dad said they’re harder, so it’ll take a while to get it good.”

“Your tuck dive was amazing. I’m very impressed. Anyone who learned a tuck dive so fast will defeat the pike dive, too,” Quigley said.

“Do you want to see me do it again?”

“Of course.”

Orion hurried off to line up at the springboard again, and Quigley let his eyes rest on Hugh. “He’s a good kid, your boy,” he finally said.