Cleats in Clay (36 page)

“Quit fussin’, ya look fine,” Tuck told him. “We should get on out there, I guess.”
“Let’s do it, then,” Bobby agreed as he followed Tuck out the door and back into the foyer area. They followed the signs pointing upstairs to an open loft space. Once at the top of the stairs, they had to squeeze and nearly fight their way through the crowd to get around the corner.
Tuck smirked as they navigated the throng. “Wow, are they all here just ’cause it’s a show, or do they
know
Odie’s work?”
“Who can say?” Bobby replied. “Does seem like a huge crowd, though.”
They managed to get around the corner of the landing and into the open loft show space. Bobby froze when he saw the plaque on the easel stand by the doorway advertising the name of the show:
Balls In Flight

“Don’t ask me,” Bobby whispered in a worried tone. “Did you ever see any of the pieces?”
With a headshake, Tuck replied in a hushed voice, “No. I sure as hell hope he didn’t go all homo….” He trailed off as he led Bobby forward by the arm. “Better find out, I guess.”
Holding each other’s arms, the two made their way forward into the cavernous space buzzing with the noise of many conversations. They noticed the large curtain toward the back, maybe shielding another work for a big reveal later.
Bobby relaxed when he saw the first piece near the door, a work about a foot tall of an oversized baseball, surrounded by clumps of tall grass, with a hummingbird perched atop it. The whimsical work immediately brought to mind thoughts of summer. “Ah. The show’s named for baseballs and hummingbirds.”
“Hm,” Tuck teased with a smile as he gazed down at Bobby, “wonder what inspired that?”
Bobby gave his arm a firm squeeze. “Hush.”
Both men froze when they saw the little placard advertising a price, with at least one too many zeros in it. “Holy shit,” they echoed at nearly the same time.
Shaking his head in disbelief, Bobby whispered, “You think it’s worth
that
much?”
Tuck shrugged. “Don’t ask me. I’m used to shopping at Walmart.”
They made their way along the wall to the next piece. This one depicted a baseball bat with a gun holster stuck on the handle end.
Grinning over at Tuck, Bobby squeezed his arm. “Looks like I’m not the only inspiration,” he teased back.
They passed by more of the sculpture works, each seemingly inspired by some aspect of Bobby or Tuck, as they made their way to the giant curtain in central back area.
“You see him anywhere?” Bobby asked, craning his neck to try to peer through the crowd.
“Not yet,” Tuck replied, gazing around from his taller vantage. Movement that looked like a short blond-haired man near the curtain grabbed his attention. “Over there,” he said as he led Bobby toward the back.
They found Odis bouncing around all agitated and saying something to an older woman. “I don’t wanna be here all night. Let’s do it now.”
The other woman frowned at Odis. “But it’s not scheduled until nine, honey. Lots of patrons won’t even show up any sooner.”
“What am I gonna do ’til then?” Odis nearly whined.
Tuck stepped up and cleared his throat. “We having a problem?” he asked in his strong cop voice.
The woman glanced up, looking surprised and flustered. “No, sir,” she replied.
Bobby’s heart swelled in his chest when he saw that huge grin beaming from Odis’s face.
“Bonehead!” Odis cheered as he rushed forward and hugged him. “And stud!” he yelled as he reached out an arm and pulled Bobby into the hug. “What the hell? Thought you’ns still in Boston?”
Tuck noticed the woman used her opportunity to slip away.
Bobby grinned back, leaning down almost close enough to kiss him before he caught himself and stopped. “We couldn’t miss your big night. Wanted to surprise you.”
“Well, it worked,” Odis said while squeezing the guys and beaming that huge grin again.
Tuck pulled back a little but kept his hand on Odis’s shoulder. “And what was that argument all about?”
Odis shook his head. “Just a disagreement. I wanna do the reveal now, so I don’t hafta hang around.”
Bobby frowned. “But aren’t you supposed to mingle?”
“Been doin’ that for three hours already. I’m tired.”
Tuck patted his shoulder. “I thought it didn’t start ’til seven?”
“Not officially, but some of ’em started showing up at four. Seems another Vorleik show is a bigger deal than I thought. Some guy even came all the way down from Toronto just for this.”
“No shit?” Bobby asked, wide-eyed. “We noticed the price tags look pretty healthy.”
Odis smirked. “I
know
, right? And that’s after I talked ’em down a bit.”
“So,” Tuck asked as he motioned to the curtain, “what’s back there?”
Odis grinned. “I’m not tellin’. My boys will just hafta wait like everybody else.” He glanced down at their empty hands. “Ya didn’t find the buffet yet?”
Bobby shook his head. “No. Wanted to find you first.”
“Well, then,” Odis said as he led them toward a larger crowd in the corner, “libations await.”
As they made their way to the back, the throng seemed to part open a bit when they saw Odis coming. He smiled and mostly shrugged off the greetings from the other patrons while stepping up to the table. “Have some grub,” he told his boys before turning to shake hands with an older gentleman.
“Odie V?” A strong feminine voice sang out from the corner of the crowd.
Odis sort of froze in place, looking toward the source of the voice. Tuck clutched at Bobby’s arm and quietly hissed, “Shit, I hope that ain’t Tina.”
“Odie V?” the voice called out again.
Odis smiled widely when he recognized someone in the crowd and stepped in her direction. “Is that you, Marigold?”
Marigold reached back and grabbed at someone. “Told ya. He’s right here by the food.” She stepped closer to Odis and pulled him into a warm hug. “About time ya did another show.”
Odis gave her an air kiss. “Is that Rustler and Moonbeam I see over there too?”
“Sure is,” she said, waving back at them again.
“So great ya showed up,” Odis said as he led her to the table. “There’s some guys I want ya to meet.”
Odis stepped up between Tuck and Bobby, putting an arm around each man’s waist. “Boys, this here’s Marigold Sunflower. This is Tuck and Bobby.”
Tuck reached out his hand. “Pleasure to meet you.”
“Hello,” Bobby said with a smile.
Marigold turned back and waved Rustler over again before smiling at Odis. “I’m guessing yer not with Tina anymore?”
“Nope. She made her leave of me four years ago.”
Rustler and Moonbeam finally made it through the crowd. Marigold turned to them with a grin. “I think Odie has big news for us.”
Rustler stared over at the men, focusing a moment on Bobby. “Bobby Lane?” he finally asked.

T
HE
sextet ate and chatted warmly for over an hour. Tuck was surprised to learn the Sunflowers had just celebrated their eighteenth anniversary. The news left him feeling hopeful that three-ways
could
work in the long run.

The older woman Odis had been conversing with earlier, whom Odis introduced as Harriet, the gallery owner, pulled Odis aside. “It’s almost nine.”

Odis followed her to the platform next to the curtain. She gave a signal to kill the music. As the room hushed and eyes turned their way, she said, “Now for a few words from our artist, Odis Vorleik.”

He stepped forward to a quiet spattering of applause. “Thank ya all for coming out here tonight. It’s been a while since I had a show, and nice to see ya haven’t forgotten me.”

Another spattering of applause made Odis pause. “I’m sure you’ve noticed from the other pieces a bit of a theme running through the works. Well, no need to drag this out,” Odis said as he reached for the curtain button. “I present to you the central piece,
Cleats in Clay
.” Odis pushed the button, and the curtain parted in the middle and slid quickly open.

The patrons in the room let out a hushed coo as they took in the phenomenal work that stood nearly five feet high. The piece’s tall central column was fashioned from a nearly transparent blue acrylic, giving the illusion of a jet of water flowing forth from a garden spigot resting at the top. At the bottom of the column, the acrylic beaded and bounced like water as it splashed over a pair of cleats, a dirt-smudged baseball, and a sheriff’s star badge, fashioned from white clay and coated with a shimmery glaze that looked nearly gold. While the background was stunning in its own right, the most spectacular part of the work was the three large hummingbirds that played and flirted around the column of water, seemingly floating in midair amidst sparkles of bursting pink fireworks that defied gravity.

Marigold finally broke the silence of the room, first whispering out, “Fantabulous.” Then, she said a bit louder, “You have
so
outdone yerself, Odie V.”

Bobby still couldn’t find words. Every area of the huge sculpture his eyes landed on bore some small token of him, or Tuck, or Odis. The molded monument to the three of them was beautiful beyond his describing. He glanced down at the placard, wondering how many zeros were in
this
work’s price tag, only to find the words “No Sale” displayed.

Tuck noticed Bobby’s stare, then glanced down at the placard. He stepped over to the platform and quietly asked Odis, “No Sale? Why not?”
“Bonehead,” Odis leaned over and whispered. “I made it for you two.”
Tuck glanced over and saw Bobby shaking his head violently. Bobby spoke up. “Odie, that’s too fucking beautiful for us to just drag it home and throw it in a closet. It needs to be someplace where people can see it and appreciate it.”
Odis looked over at Tuck, nodding in agreement. “Okay, then.” He went over to Harriet and told her to put a price on it. She scurried away, then returned a few moments later and changed the placard.
As Bobby stared at the incredibly large number, Odis stepped up. “I’ve had more than enough. Let’s say bye to the Sunflowers and y’all can follow me to my hotel.”

T
HIRTY
minutes later, they made it inside Odis’s hotel room. Before the door had even clicked closed, Odis stripped off the jacket and frantically worked the buttons to get his shirt off as he kicked away his shoes. Shirt finally removed, he ran over and stretched out on the king-size bed. “Get over here.”

Bobby and Tuck both chuckled. “Somebody in a hurry?” Tuck asked.
“I just wanna feel your hands on me,” Odis said. “So get over here.”
As Bobby walked up to the bed, he saw the new splash of color on Odis’s chest, just over his left nipple. He stepped closer and saw the new tattoo of a yellow six-pointed sheriff’s star with a red algiz rune in the center. “A tat?”
Tuck noticed it too. “Ya got inked?” Tuck laughed when he got close enough to make out the work.
“Why’s that funny?” Odis asked.
Tuck undid his pants and opened them enough to reveal his right hip. His new algiz rune in his sheriff’s star was done in black ink, but the tattoos looked nearly identical otherwise.
Tuck sat on the bed and rubbed his large hand over Odis’s bare chest. Odis smiled. “I did think about a hummingbird but was afraid I’d be disappointed if it weren’t as good as Bobby’s.”
While Tuck leaned down and locked lips with Odis for a gentle kiss, Bobby unbuttoned his polo shirt and slipped it over his head. He kneeled down on the bed close enough for Odis to see the new ink on his own chest, a small six-pointed star with an algiz rune. His new star was much simpler and positioned in front of his hummingbird, looking almost like a flower the bird was feeding on.
“Oh cool,” Odis said when he pulled back from Tuck.
“I guess we all think alike,” Bobby said before moving in to kiss Odis while Tuck pulled off his shirt.
“Loki’s nuts,” Odis said with a sigh as he reached up and pulled the men down next to him on either side. “I
really
missed you guys.”
“Oh,” Bobby teased. “How much?”
“About ten pieces’ worth,” Odis said with a grin. Tuck and Bobby both gazed back, looking puzzled. “I was only supposed to do five pieces for the show tonight, but keeping myself distracted in the studio while you’s gone, I came up with fifteen sculptures.”
“Wow.” Tuck kissed him slowly on the lips. “Busy little bee, huh?”
Odis chuckled. “I even got into your toy drawer too.”
Bobby grinned. “Why am I not surprised.”
“It’s not the same, though,” Odis said as he slid his hands down to the men’s crotches to fondle their growing erections. “Ain’t nothin’ like the real thing.”
“I thought you’s tired,” Tuck teased as he ran his hand along Odis’s stomach.
“Not too tired for my boys,” Odis replied with a twinkle in his eyes.
Bobby reached down and unclasped Odis’s slacks before zipping down the fly. “
Boys
, huh? Last time you said we were big men.”
Odis pulled Bobby down into a warm and fuzzy kiss to shut him up as Tuck worked his hand into his open slacks and fondled his swelling dick. Odis felt Tuck’s strong hands pulling down his boxers; then a hot and moist mouth surrounded his dick, bringing it to full attention.
“Oh shit,” Odis hissed out as he pulled back from Bobby. “That ain’t your hand.”
“Just let us say hello,” Bobby scolded before he smothered Odis in another kiss. Odis squirmed underneath him as Tuck worked his hot mouth up and down on Odis’s swelling dick.
Odis squirmed again and tried to pull away as his orgasm drew closer, but Bobby held him pinned with his kiss and firm hands rubbing across his chest. Tuck slowed his movements but applied a bit more suction, drawing the orgasm from Odis.
As he came, the little man bucked, and Bobby released his mouth. Odis whispered, “Oh fuck,” as he panted and his body shivered, releasing weeks of sexual tension into Tuck’s mouth. Tuck greedily suctioned and swallowed.
With a grin, Tuck crawled up to the head of the bed as Odis continued to pant and spasm.
Sounding almost hurt, Odis asked, “Why’d ya do that? Make me come so soon?”
“Too tired for any big-assed thing,” Tuck told him. “But it seemed like you needed it,” he said with a crooked smile as he gazed over at Odis.
Bobby nodded. “We’ll have plenty of time to catch up tomorrow,” he added as he undid his jeans and worked his way out of the denim before throwing them to the floor. He started to hug in to Odis until he saw Tuck sitting up and struggling with his cowboy boots. Bobby jumped up and ran around the bed to help while Odis also undressed. Tuck was soon naked to his boxer-briefs.
Bobby crawled into the middle of the king-size bed and rolled to his left side. “Over here, Odis,” he said as he patted the bed in front of him. Tuck spooned in against Bobby’s back, resting the fiberglass cast across his hip as Odis turned out the lights. Bobby wrapped his arm around Odis when he crawled in front of him. Bobby heard Tuck yawn as he patted Odis’s chest.
As the three of them settled in, it dawned on Bobby that he’d forgotten to tell Odis about the Timmin’s Cycle.
Well
, he thought with a yawn,
it can wait until tomorrow. Or even until we get home.
A grin spread across his face when he realized his own thought. Texas, and these men, felt like home now. Another yawn pulled him toward sleep as he hugged against Odis and nestled into Tuck. It felt so nice to have a home again.