Made in Heaven

The Son

Joe was lost. For the first time in a long time, he was very, very lost. The good book was filled with many passages and sacred advice on how to beat temptation and keep your focus on the light, but nowhere did it tell him how to stop the thoughts from popping into his mind.

He kept himself at bay like he always did, but that meant nothing to him when he was alone with his thoughts. In the dark of the night, he would find himself dreaming — no fantasizing — about the beautiful British boy. No! Not a boy. A man. A young man five years his junior, who applied and received an extended visa, meaning he was there to stay.

For how long, Joe didn't know, but any longer than a few seconds was absolute torture for the man. Joe just didn't understand! He was a preacher for crying out loud! He devoted his life to the Lord and this is how the man repays him? By allowing Satan himself to dangle this gorgeous creature in front of him like a steak in front of a starved dog?

Having Benjamin around was slowly beginning to ruin Joe. Even the most innocent of acts was enough to haunt his mind. Joe would be in his office after a sermon, just thinking of how the day went. All Ben would have to do was lock their eyes and the man completely forgot what he was speaking of.

Every smile, every laugh, it sent a shiver down his spine. Joe held off for so long; a whole month and a half before he finally broke down, unable to stop himself. It had been a long summers day and the men of the congregation came together to do a bit of good. They cleaned up the churchyard and the nearby park. Normally seeing men sweat through their shirts was never a bother for Joe, but Ben was different.

He walked around in nothing more than khaki shorts and a wife beater, his blond locks sticking to his head as the muscles in his arms glistened with sweat. Joe found himself staring, his mouth hanging wide as he watched the young man walk back and forth, busy at work. Only when his right-hand man Rami captured his attention did Joe finally snap out of the trance Ben had put him under.

Rami, being the ignorant fool he was, didn't suspect a thing. In fact, he liked having Ben around as it meant a little less work for him to do. Ben still followed Joe around weeks later, looking like a lost puppy who finally got a good owner. He was so eager to please that it was putting a real damper on Joe's attempt to stay good and true to the vows he had taken.

Any time they needed a volunteer, Ben was up and ready. Any time they needed an extra set of hands, Ben was there. He came every Sunday, arriving early and staying late. He wasn't the most religious man and there were times when Rami had caught him snickering at some of the things that were being discussed, but that didn't change the fact that the effort was being put in and he was serious about working closely with Joe.

It was back home, after that full day of working in the sun that Joe broke down and gave in to his temptation. He hadn't touched himself in years, remembering all the cruel things the old Nun in his school used to say about boys who jerked themselves off under the eyes of the lord.

Joe was lying back down on his bed, thinking about the way Ben looked under the hot, sticky sun. He thought about watching him get soaked under the spray of the hose the men used to cool themselves down with and then dry off using the towels that had been given.

Joe tried not to feel dirty when he rubbed one out to the image of a dripping wet Ben Hardy, though he found it rather hard when the first thing he saw after the stars behind his eyes simmered down was the face of the crucifix hanging up across his bed.

Joe didn't want to see Ben was the enemy. He didn't want to sexual time and turn him into some pathetic object of his affections the way Lord Frollo had done to the gypsy Esmerdela in Huntchback.

Truth was, Ben had a lot to offer the congregation. He was well liked among the people and being a bit younger, he easily drew in the teenage crowd. He was a polite man with a delicious accent who lived with his dear old aunt who always brought the more delicious lemon bars to every single sermon.