Ten months after Jordy and Mandy were married, a fire started in one of the other apartments in their building and spread rapidly. They were evacuated late in the evening in their underwear and housecoats. When it was all over, Jordy and Mandy were homeless and lost all of their possessions. They literally only had the clothes on their backs. The superintendent of the hotel they went to stay the night dressed them out of the lost and found bin there.
The next afternoon, the couple sat in the living room at Del's, talking through their troubles with their good friend. Del was sympathetic and kept the glasses full as they talked.
"Where will you go?"
Jordy shook his head. "I don't know. Rent is so high everywhere now that I think that was the last place in town we could afford, even if there wasn't a housing shortage."
"We'll stay to the end of the week at the hotel, then the money will run out and we'll have to go to the homeless shelter while we look for something," Mandy said.
"Out of the question, my friends. I have plenty of room upstairs that I never use. The rooms up there are fully furnished, so you'll have a bed to sleep in. I've been talking about renting out that space forever, but never quite felt like opening my house to strangers. You would be honoured guests."
Jordy and Mandy were relieved and gratefully accepted Del's offer.
"We'll earn our keep," Jordy said. "We'll pay rent and help keep the place up."
"About rent," Del said. "It seems to me that you guys need a break."
"I won't take charity," Jordy said.
"No, not charity, just a break, like I said. Suppose you stay for three years, if you want to stay that long, you stay rent-free with the conditions that you help keep the place up, like you said. You pay for your own food, all that, but no rent. Then you could save up a nest-egg to use as a rent deposit or a down-payment on your own house, or buy a new car."
Jordy was going to look a gift-horse in the mouth, but Mandy accepted the offer on behalf of both of them. She put a finger on Jordy's lips to silence him and he knew the boss had spoken.
"Thanks, Del," Jordy said. "I want you to know that I will do everything I can to earn this favour."
And that was the unspoken deal.
Unknown to Mandy, Jordy and Del had made deals trading favours for sex. It was loving and not at all sordid, but presently, Jordy was paying off a cruise and the cost of his and his wife's wedding bands with flesh. The agreement was that Jordy would submit himself for Del's use until Jordy's and Mandy's first wedding anniversary. The terms for payment were nearly fulfilled, but now there was a new deal.
Neither Del nor Jordy needed to be so crass as to state the terms. It was implicit between them that Del would use Jordy (in secret from Mandy) for the duration of their coming stay. Jordy, who loved the way Del used him and let himself be used in return, was somewhat relieved at the extension of their arrangement. He didn't care to admit to himself how addicted he was to Del.
The arrangement worked on his imagination. Jordy had been able to keep a fairly hard line between his relationship with Del and with Mandy. They were all friends. They played cards and had dinners together. But when he was with his wife, he didn't pine for Del, and when he was with Del, he didn't imagine his wife there. Would that hard line become blurred if they all lived in the same house?
The next afternoon, they brought their newly-purchased travel bags from the hotel to Del's house. They had purchased a few changes of clothes and toothbrush and toiletries. They tried not to think of all they had lost and were grateful they still had each other. Del showed them upstairs, with its sizeable bedroom and deep closets, and its en suite bathroom. Del's own bedroom was on the main floor.
It was Sunday and the couple would need to work the next day, so they rested after their trauma and prepared for their work week. Nothing passed between Del and Jordy that day, but both knew each other's and Mandy's business hours. After they finished their jobs for the day, Jordy and Del would have nearly six hours by themselves while Mandy was at work.
After work on Monday, it was strange for Jordy to let himself into his friend's house with a key of his own. He was the first one home, but he expected Del would be home in an hour. Would he exact "rent" in his own way? Jordy grinned, hoping so. He never tired of his friend's dick in his mouth and ass.
Strangely enough, the weekly session with Del had not affected his sex drive toward his wife. He still lusted after her like the horny schoolboy he was when they met. The only change she had noticed was his greater inclination to include ass-play in their lovemaking. That had made her suspicious, but she had largely accepted the change in him as an evolution in his sexual interests. She even teased him that she might start pegging him one of these days, a suggestion he coolly welcomed.
Jordy brought home a six-pack of good Irish beer, wanting to celebrate the new deal, but reluctant to drink Del's booze when hadn't explicitly offered it. He popped the tab on one of the tall boys and poured the dark beer down his neck. It was a strong brand and he didn't mind if he had a little glow on by the time Del arrived home.
Jordy was on his third beer when Del entered the house. The black man grinned at him. "Making yourself at home, I see."
"I'm just loosening up."
