I was taking a drive on a clear summer day, the type of drive where you don't know or care where you end up as long as you have the windows down and a good song on the radio. I pulled into the small town of Scituate, Massachusetts; a town known for its picturesque quality, where the shops are small and pricey and a car costing under $30,000 is rarely seen. I maneuvered my beat up old car through the immaculately kept streets of the town suddenly feeling a bit out of my element within its boundaries.
It would not be the only new boundaries I would cross that day.
I parked my car in front of a little bookstore and ventured inside, not looking for anything in particular but that's just the kind of day it was. I browsed and struck up a conversation with the shop owner about the writing craft and mentioned that I was interested in writing for children (stories much different than this one, I assure you). He gave me directions to another bookstore two towns away and gave me the name of a man who could help me. The town was a long way away but I knew the drive would be nice so I didn't mind.
I got back in my car and went sailing over the roads, the directions in my hand and the tunes blaring in my ears. I arrived at this new bookstore within a half hour and was greeted at the door by a kind man in his early forties. He introduced himself as Bob (I will omit his last name since he is a published author and married) and informed me that he was the owner. I told him why I had come and who had recommended me to him. Bob smiled and I noticed a gleam in his eye. In hindsight I can guess that the man who had directed me here was aware of Bob's bisexuality and had sent me there to be seduced.
Bob told me all about his writing career and showed me some books he felt could help me in my own pursuits. Whenever he would bring a book to me he would open it up so we could both read it and place his hand on my shoulder while discussing its contents. I admit that in my twenty years I had no sexual experience with men aside from the usual teenage curiosities - playing strip poker with the guys or being drunk and getting naked on a dare. But Bob's hand on my shoulder was sending chills though my body. Of course, men had put their hands on my shoulder before, teachers and other authority figures, but I never felt this kind of excitement from those touches. Only years later when my naΓ―vetΓ© had become slim did I understand that he had been sending me vibes.
When Bob brought the third book to me and placed his hand on my shoulder it didn't stay there. He gently and slowly moved his hand down my back then up to my shoulder again. He repeated this a few times while discussing the book, though I assure you I wasn't hearing a thing he said. After a while we both realized that the discussion had stopped and all we were doing was staring at the same page while he slowly grazed my back and shoulders with his fingers. At this point a customer entered the store and the hand left my shoulder. Bob handed me the book and tended to the woman and they talked for a while.
I was confused about my feelings and with the fact that the front of my jeans felt tighter now. I wasn't gay and felt no attraction to this man, yet I couldn't deny the pleasant sensation I received from his touch.
I roamed the small bookstore and glanced at the contents of the shelves, not willing to admit to myself that I was secretly hoping the woman would leave and Bob would approach me again. My patience was rewarded when I heard the bell above the door chime signaling that the woman had left.