Winning the Lottery - 28. Chapter 28 - Blind Date

From Robert’s point of view.......

Well, he’d tried. It wasn’t going to be his fault if the hors d’oeuvres were undercooked or the steaks burned to a crisp!

Robert had accepted Jimmy’s invitation to the beach party two weeks earlier, but when he heard Derrick and Dr. Gabe were having guests he phoned and gave his regrets. Well, thanks to the Hawaiian grapevine, Dr. Gabe found out he’d cancelled. Jimmy told somebody, who told somebody else, who told somebody else, and eventually it ended up in Kelly’s ear and he ratted Robert out to Dr. Gabe. See how that’s how the Hawaiian grapevine works. Everyone is somebody’s aunt, cousin, brother-in-law, .... and news travels at the speed of light.

But what did Robert care about soggy hors d’oeuvres anyway on such a beautiful day? He was in the Bentley, top down, motoring along the Farrington Highway, the turquoise ocean to his left and the dry, craggy hills to his right. With condoms and lube graciously provided by the good doctor. Dr. Gabe had also said, winking at him, that he wasn’t expected home that night. Really, the man’s sense of humor was too much!

Robert couldn’t help but reflect how fortunate he was. Being raised by s single mom they weren’t dirt poor, but close. His mama did what she could, but times were lean until Robert was old enough and landed a part-theme job at McDonalds. How they celebrated that! Imagine, a whole fifty dollars a week! It seemed like a fortune. Fifty dollars will go a long way if you’re careful.

Robert missed his mama something awful. She had been his friend and confidant. As much as he loved his employers, they were just that, employers, not friends. But mama would have been so happy and proud to know he’d landed on his feet. In his head he still talked to his mother constantly. He told her that, more than just having a great job, he was with a family who treated him with respect. (And in butler school stories about employers treating their servants badly, even abusing them, were rampant.)

Anyway, he just knew mama was smiling down from heaven, and he was counting his blessings—lost in a daydream—when the chirp of a siren brought him crashing back to reality. Shit! Wire did that cop car with its flashing lights come from? Robert double tapped the steering wheel button to let the security team know he had a ‘situation’. Immediately, the voice of a security guy came over the car’s speaker system. “Hi, Robert, yeah, we see that.” Of course they had full access to all the car’s systems, including cameras. “Give us a few seconds, don’t pull over yet.” He continued driving. The police car siren chirped again, a little longer this time, obviously growing impatient. “Okay, Robert, it looks safe. Pull over. Cop’s name is Kenahoa Williams. Don’t know why he’s pulling you over. You were only about ten miles an hour over the speed limit. Let’s see what he wants...” Just then an image of the cop appeared on the car’s dash screen. A guy of mixed heritage, like many Hawaiians, cute, but looking awfully serious in his official police ID photo.

Robert pulled over and waited while officer Williams climbed out of his car and approached. In the car’s rear camera image and the side mirror the cop looked even better in person than in his photo. He moved gracefully and looked to be in good shape. His uniform was crisp and tailored nicely. Robert thought, if you’re going to get pulled over, might as well be by a hot looking cop.

Unfortunately, this cop didn’t seem particularly friendly. He towered menacingly above Robert looking sternly down into the convertible. (Robert did take some consolation that he had a great view of his impressive basket.) “This your car?” the cop asked in a gruff baritone voice.

Ha! He knew very well whose car it was!

Everybody on Oahu knows exactly who Derrick and Dr. Gabe are, and who all their associates are, and what cars they drive. As much as the Deacons would like to lead ‘ordinary’, in-cognito lives, that was pretty much an illusion. They were local, much loved, celebrities whom people generally left alone But the positive side of was that they were looked after, pretty much 24/7 by the locals. Any bad guys trying to do them mischief would have to run the gauntlet of mothers, fathers, brothers, sisters, cousins and so forth that make up the fabric of the ‘local’ society. Robert had learned all this from the various trades people and shopkeepers that he had contact with. In fact, he had learned that Dr. Gabe’s shooting had been a very freak accident. And if Bernie hadn’t have killed the guy then the locals would have torn him limb from limb. Everyone on the Island knew about Dr. Gabe’s clinic and the good work he was doing, and Derrick’s philanthropy was no secret either (although he thought it was). So, yeah, the Deacons were known, loved and protected. And as the employee, Robert was under local protection as well.

Robert was tempted to say, You know damn well who’s car this is! Instead, he bit his tongue and said, “Um. No. It’s my employer’s car.”

“A little careless to speed in your employer’s car, isnt’ it? You in a hurry to get somewhere?”

His heart sank. How was he going to explain to Dr. Gabe that he got a speeding ticket in his Bentley? But he’d been daydreaming, and the Bentley was so powerful and smooth that it’s easy to let it creep up over the speed limit. Even well looked after people can’t be exempt from traffic laws; Robert figured he was well and truly busted.

Not quite willing to admit guilt, he stammered that he was meeting friends up at Lualualei Park, just up the road, for a picnic.

He wasn’t particularly surprised win the cop said, “Jimmy and Winston’s party. Officer Williams was probably Jimmy’s cousin or brother-in-law. Of course he’d know that Robert was going to the party, and exactly who he was. After that, the stern facade softened and Robert got the impression of...if not warmth...not quite the asshole he’d first come across as.

“Right....” said Robert.

“Okay,” the handsome cop said with a grin. “Go ahead. I’m just giving you a warning this time. But watch your speed. I wouldn’t want to have to pull this fancy car out of a ditch...”

Robert breathed a sigh of relief. “Thank you...I promise I’ll be more careful.”

The cop smiled and that grin went straight to his traitorous cock causing Robert to shift uncomfortably.

“Good,” said the cop as he turned to walk away. But he stopped after a few paces and threw over his shoulder, “And I don’t want my blind date getting himself all banged up and bruised.”

The security guy, who’d been listening to everything, cracked up laughing. Eavesdropping bastard!

Robert found Lualualei Park easily enough and it was obvious where the picnic was. There were four pop-up shelters set up over picnic tables. People were already setting out food, and a few guys were staring at a smoking barbeque. He spotted Winston almost right away. Like him, Winston is African-American, so he was easy to pick out of the crowd. He called out to Robert, then Jimmy joined them and they started introducing him to a bewildering array of friends and relatives.

When Robert had Winston to myself for a few minutes he said, “Winston, I’m not sure about this blind date idea... Is it really that cop guy?”

“Keno? You know who he is?”

“He pulled me over just back there on the highway!”

“Oh, then you’ve got a look at his hotness. I thought you looked a little hot and bothered when you arrived,” he said, laughing.

“Very funny. I’ll admit he’s hot. But honestly, Winston, he’s way out of my league...and he comes across as a bit...um...confident.”

“Arrogant, vain and overbearing you mean?”

“Well...maybe...a little, I suppose.”

“Oh, that’s just an act,” he said dismissively. “Once you get to know him you’ll realize Keno’s the nicest, sweetest guy on Oahu. Well, except for Jimmy, of course....and you...and me.”

He sipped my diet coke. No drinking and driving for him.

People kept arriving and Robert was introduced to so many people there was no way he was ever going to keep all the names straight. Everybody made a real effort to make him feel welcome. He was enticed to try all pot-luck food everyone had brought. A type of pulled pork that reminded him of home. Macaroni salad. Even poi.

Keno didn’t show up until much later in the afternoon—Robert was beginning to wonder, and worry, if he’d even show up—but he finally arrived, much to Robert’s happy/chagrinned relief. Just shaking hands with Keno caused Robert’s cock to do its little happy dance again. But, Robert reflected, it was only lust, nothing more. He knew that the chances of having a ‘relationship’ with Keno were zero to nil. For many reasons, that just wasn’t something Robert could afford, but he figured it wouldn’t hurt to admire the merchandise. Keno had changed out of his uniform into the ubiquitous Island attire of board shorts-flops, muscle shirt and baseball cap. He’d put his sunglasses above the bill of his cap and Robert was able to study his facial features. Almond shaped, deep brown—almost black—eyes, high cheekbones set in a narrow face, straight, a slightly wide but even nose, and perfectly generous (kissable!) lips.

Keno, as it turned out, wasn’t grumpy, he was outgoing, and much to Robert’s delight, just as personable as Winston had predicted. Keno was very popular and it seemed everyone, from grandparents to small children wanted his attention. Keno accepted the adulation graciously, but after a while, in a rare lull, he suggested to Robert that they walk up the beach together. “If this blind date thing is going to work, we need to get to know each other a bit, don’t you think?” he said.

Robert found himself inordinately pleased at the suggestion. For some reason he couldn’t quite put his finger on he found Keno more than just physically attractive. Keno, he sensed, had the potential to become a friend. Someone outside the Deacon sphere with whom he could converse with a less guarded tongue.

It took a few minutes for them to extract themselves from the heard, but they soon found themselves a few hundred yards up the beach where they sat on the soft sand.

Keno surprised Robert by saying, “You’re very good looking, you know. Has anyone ever told you that you look like that actor on L.A. Law. I think his name is Blair Underwood.”

“So, I’m not the blind date from hell then?”

“No! Quite the opposite. At least in looks. I’ve got to say, I was pleasantly surprised when I stopped your car and got a look at you!”

“Well, the feeling was mutual, officer Keno. In fact, you were a little too quick with letting me off with a warning. If you’d had pulled out your ticket book, I’d have offered to bribe you with a blowjob.”

Keno cracked up laughing. “Okay, good looking and has a sense of humor. That’s two ticks on the positive side of the blind date ledger,” he choked out. Once he’d sobered a little he said, “Tell me about yourself, Robert Gantry. I know you work for the Deacons, but how did you get here? Where are you from? What’s your story?”

Robert told Keno that, inspired by Downton Abbey, he enrolled in Butler school. “I thought it looked like a dignified profession,” he said. “And the school in Belgium seemed light years away from my hometown. It was a grand adventure. A roll of the dice really, all my life savings, and the proceeds from the sale of my mama’s house went on tuition.”

“And you got hired by Derrick and Gabe right out of school?”

“Yes, that was truly a stroke of luck. Most people don’t get the ‘big’ positions right out of school. Many end up as concierges at high-end hotels. Some get secretary positions, depending on their skills. I was lucky that the woman who does job placement at the school had a soft spot for me. She told me that when Dr. Gabe called she knew I’d be perfect for his family.”

“And now you drive a Bentley convertible.”

“Sometimes, yes. It’s really special. Now it’s your turn. Tell me about Keno Williams. You have a Hawaiian first name, but a Scottish last name. There must be a story there...”

“Well, my grandad, an African-American, not Scottish, by the way, was from the mainland. He met and married my grandma while serving in Vietnam in the early 60’s. They settled in Hawaii where he got a civilian job with the Navy after he’d completed his service. My dad was born here. Then he married my mom who was born and raised here as well. In fact, they were high school sweethearts. I wanted to be a policeman from an early age, so I studied criminal justice at the U. of Hawaii, and here I am...”

“And you’re single?”

“Yes, and you?”

“Yes. But to be honest, I don’t really know if I’m interested in a boyfriend or anything. My work takes up the majority of my time.”

“But you agreed to a blind date?”

“Well, I was coerced. But I’m glad I came. I’m glad I met you, though. Maybe, I hope, we can be friends.”

“I don’t know, Robert. After that blowjob comment, I’m thinking of other possibilities...”

“Friends with benefits?”

“Yeah...that might be a place to start. Can I call you later? Maybe set something up. Maybe we could go out to dinner or something some night.”

Robert said he’d like that.

The sun was getting low in the sky setting diamonds sparkling on the Pacific as the two men made their way back to the main party. If anyone noticed their absence, nobody commented on it, although Robert was certain a few questioning glances came their way.

After thanking Jimmy and Winston for a lovely afternoon—and for all the glorious picnic food!—Robert made his way back to the Bentley, but not alone. “I’ll walk you to your car,” said Keno. Having enjoyed each other’s special company for the afternoon, neither was eager to say goodbye. “Call me when you get home,” added Keno.

On the way home Robert was distracted by a lively debate between the devil on his left shoulder and the angel on his right shoulder.

The devil was all for a wild, rutting, raunchy sex affair with Keno. “It would do you a world of good,” said the devil. “For once in your life, just Go-For-It!”

The angel was quick to point out that debauchery was the path to ruin. Yes, sex with Keno might well make the earth move, but when bodies collide, so do hearts. And the angel reminded Robert that he was already losing his heart to this handsome rake. And the angel had no doubt Keno was the rakiest rake in Hawaii. After all, a guy that good looking and charming must have the boys lining up. Robert would be just another notch in his belt, and he’d be left mooning about like an adolescent with his first crush.

But the devil was quick to point out that Keno probably had a big, beautiful cock.

“Oh God,” Robert moaned aloud as he gave his own semi hard cock a squeeze.

And there was another concern. There were no secrets on Oahu. No matter how circumspect they tried to be somebody would spot them together and word would get back to Dr. Gabe. Robert simply couldn’t risk that.

It was just lust, pure and simple. A cold shower or five would take care of that. A relationship at this point in Robert’s life was just not going to fly. He needed to concentrate on his job, which could often be 24/7. The solution was easy. Simple! When Robert called Keno, which he’d promised to do when he got home, he’d simply tell Keno that he wasn’t in a position to, well, date. Keno would understand perfectly; he was most likely too busy to date himself, he, too, had a demanding job too. Easy! Piece of cake!

“Hey sexy?” That deep voice answering the phone melted Robert’s resolve like an ice cube left out in the Hawaiian sun.

“Keno...um....”

“When can I see you?”

Robert was aware that he had two free days coming up. Derrick and Gabe were flying back to the West Coast with their guests then continuing on to Orcas Island to visit Derrick’s parents for two days. Dane would be staying with Kelly and Jordan.

Robert thought, what the hell! And said, “Um...well... Day after tomorrow. I’ll be here by myself for a couple of days. Would you like to come over for a swim and dinner?”