Alan walked into Denny's office to see him talking animatedly on the phone. He started to leave, but Denny waved him into the room. He settled onto the couch and listened with half an ear while he perused the Boston Globe.
"I think that's a wonderful idea! Sure, sure, six o'clock. See you then." He placed the receiver back in its cradle and looked at the younger man seated across from him. "Hey. How was court?"
"Hey, yourself. Judge Brown was in fine form; he called me 'outrageous and shocking' five times! I'm sure that must be his personal best." He used his chin to point at the phone. "Who were you talking to, if you don't mind my nosiness?"
"Edgar Tomlinson, someone I knew several lifetimes ago. He and I were in love with the same woman. She chose him."
Alan sat forward and put the paper down. "I'm sorry, Denny."
Denny waved his hand dismissively. "Don't be," he replied, "He thought he had pulled one over on me. They had a son they named Benjamin. She called me up when the kid was eight months old. Said she had made a mistake, she should have married me. Told me she had left him and wanted to know was there any hope for us. But, by that time, I was married to my second wife, Clovis. I did sleep with her though. After all, Denny Crane!"
"Anyway, he wants me to meet his son. Ben has been practicing law in New Jersey for years and wants to relocate back to Boston to be nearer his mother. Ed asked if I could help the kid get a job."
"Here?" Alan asked as his eyes widened.
"Hell no," Denny shot back, "Only you got hired here because I liked you and I was familiar with your abilities. I don't know anything about this kid except that he's a lawyer."
Alan started laughing. "Denny, I know how long ago you were married to your second wife. It seems to me that would make this Ben is about my age, maybe a year or two older. That's hardly a 'kid.'"
Denny snorted, "Who cares? I'm just going to meet the son of a former acquaintance who I may or may not help find a job." He checked the time. "Would you like to come with me? I'm meeting them at the bar in the Omni Hotel."
"No, thank you. This sounds like something you need to do on your own. Tell you what: How about I meet you at your condo and we'll have a sleepover? I'll bring hot chocolate and popcorn. There's a John Wayne movie on TCM tonight."
"Perfect!" Denny crowed, "You have the key, just head over there and I'll see you around eight."
BLBLBLBLBLBLBLBLBLBLBLBLBLBL
Alan was lying on top of the king – sized bed dressed in one of his nightshirts sipping hot chocolate in the bedroom of Denny's condo watching the credits roll for "The Green Berets." It's ten – thirty; I'm officially worried. He was reaching for his phone when he heard Denny's key slide into the lock. Finally!
"Alan? Are you here?"
The slight slur in Denny's voice caused the younger man to frown. "In the bedroom," he answered. He watched as Denny strolled in obviously feeling very little, if not no pain at all, yanking his tie from around his neck and dropping it onto a chair. "So," he deadpanned, "I take it you, Ed and Ben had a good time."
"Actually, Ed only stayed long enough to introduce us; he said he had to be somewhere else. I thought it would be awkward, but Ben's a great guy; real easy to talk to. We ended up having dinner and after dinner drinks, too."
"I'm really happy for you," Alan replied drily.
"I'm sorry I missed the movie; the time just flew by and before I knew it, it was ten o'clock! Ben walked me out and put me in a cab." Denny toed off his shoes, undid his belt and trousers and sat heavily on his side of the bed as he let his pants drop to the floor. "We still have so much to talk about; we decided to get together for dinner again tomorrow."
"What?" Alan put his mug down. "Did you forget that tomorrow you and I are supposed to be having dinner with those two lovely ladies we met at Fenway Park? I've been looking forward to that for the last week!"
Denny hefted his bulk off the bed to remove his jacket and shirt. He attempted to fold his pants along the pleats, but when he kept twisting the legs, he gave up and threw them on the chair with his tie. "Call them and tell them something work related came up and tell them we'll do it Saturday. Remind them we'll be in a limo and taking them to Ruth's Chris for steak dinners. They'll go along with it, trust me."
Alan was more than a little annoyed. "Fine," he snarled as he turned off his light and snuggled into the bed with his back to his best friend. Moments later, he felt the covers lift and shift as Denny got into bed and turned out his light. Wordlessly, Denny reached over to rub Alan's back and pull lightly on his shoulder. Sighing, he made a decision not to be angry anymore and turned to cuddle up against the older man who immediately put his arm around him, grunted in contentment and quickly dropped off to sleep. For whatever reason, Denny's snoring calmed him so that he could think clearly. I think I better meet this Ben character. I don't like how easily he influenced Denny to stay out later than he planned. This guy might be a problem.
