Date: Fri, 21 Aug 2009 11:38:25 -0700 (PDT)
From: Henry Brooks <hankster1430@bellsouth.net>
Subject: The Transplanted Heart Chapter 3

After the young man hung up, Jimmy had second thoughts about how effective
he had been.  He was kicking himself for telling the man it was OK to
experiment with gay sex.  Then he rationalized that he had also said not to
push it, and to experiment only if it felt right.  Well, what's done cannot
be undone.  In fact, he felt rather good.  He had just done some
ministering and that was what he was trained to do.  He decided to surprise
Roger and have dinner ready when he came home.

He opened the freezer and found some chicken breasts.  In a basket on the
kitchen table he found some baking potatoes.  There were eggs in the fridge
and bread crumbs and corn starch in the pantry. Jimmy defrosted the chicken
in the microwave, and when the breasts were soft, he soaked them in the
scrambled eggs, patted them on the starch and then the breadcrumbs.  He
found a cookie platter and put the breasts on the platter, which he then
put in the oven to bake.  His southern soul would have preferred to fry the
breasts in corn oil, but he wanted to take good care of his new heart.  On
a separate shelf in the oven, he placed two potatoes to bake.

He was setting the table when Roger came in.  "What are you doing?  You
should be resting," Roger said as he embraced Jimmy and kissed him hard on
the lips.

"I slept most of the day, and I assure you, I'm up to this.  You can finish
setting the table, and put out any condiments you would like with the
chicken and potatoes."

Roger changed into a pair of shorts and a sexy tank top shirt.  When he
came out of the bedroom, Jimmy distinctly heard Robbie say, Wow!

"Wow!" Jimmy repeated and Roger laughed.

Dinner was very tasty and Roger kept telling Jimmy over and over again how
much he was enjoying it.  During the meal, Jimmy told Roger about his
dream.

"God has blessed both of us," was Roger's only comment.

Then he told Roger about the young man's telephone call.

 "I hope he lets us know what happens.  I wouldn't have told him anything
different than you did," Roger said.

"I am so glad to hear that," Jimmy sighed in relief.  "How is your sermon
going?"

"It's finished."

"Can I hear it?"

"Yes, tomorrow in church.  I wrote it for everyone, but it's really for
you," Roger smiled at Jimmy.

"I'll just have to be patient then."

The day's events were not particularly strenuous, but they were a bit much
for a transplanted heart.  The moment the two lovers got into bed, Jimmy
fell asleep just as he was hunkering up to Roger.  Roger smiled to himself
thinking that lesson number two would have to wait until tomorrow.  His
mind repeated Jimmy's words, "I'll just have to be patient then."  As he
thought that, Roger distinctly heard a young voice whisper in his ear,
Don't sweat it.  You have a lifetime to love.  As he fell asleep his eyes
were wet with tears.

When Jimmy entered St. Benedict Episcopal Church the next morning, he was
awestruck by how ornate the décor was.  His humble little Baptist church
had no stained glass windows and certainly no statues of saints or of the
Holy Family.  Of course Robbie could read his thoughts, and he heard the
boy whisper in his ear, My temple has lots of stained glass windows, but no
statues either.

What's heaven like? Jimmy thought, hoping that Robbie could hear him.

Aah, I have no words.

Jimmy sat in the second row of pews.  Roger had suggested that he sit in
the first row, but he didn't want to be conspicuous.  Peter and Ellie
spotted him and sat down beside him.  Peter introduced Ellie to Jimmy, and
Jimmy hardly noticed that she was black.  He was becoming color blind.

"It is so nice to meet you at last," Ellie said.  "Father Roger never stops
talking about you.  You are as handsome as he said you were."  Jimmy
blushed a deep shade of crimson.  He was totally unused to compliments.

Jimmy had never witnessed so much pomp and circumstances in his life.  It
seemed to him like a theatrical production by the time all the priests and
deacons had finally walked down the center aisle and to the altar.  He was
awestruck by the swinging incense and the solemnity of the procession.
Frankly he preferred the simplicity of his church, but he was not critical
of what he was witnessing.  It had a certain majesty.

Jimmy tried to follow the unfamiliar service, and at last Roger got up to
deliver his sermon.  For a moment, Jimmy could not breathe, but he heard
Robbie telling him to relax and he did.

Roger smiled at his flock and welcomed them all to God's house on this
beautiful Sunday morning.  Jimmy realized that he had never welcomed his
flock, but always dove right in to his fire and brimstone sermon.  He
wasn't regretful, but rather he was learning a new way.

"Our God be with you!" Roger intoned.

"And also with you!" the congregation responded.

"You know," Roger began in a conversational way, "the other day I started
to list all the lessons I could think of that Jesus had taught us in his
short three year ministry.  My list included charity, forgiveness, love,
service, loyalty to our fellow men, and loyalty to God.  Then I tried to
list these lessons in the order of their importance.  That became a real
challenge.  Obviously they are all important.

"We are always influenced in matters of choice by what is going on in our
lives at that particular moment, and I found myself returning over and over
again to the lesson of love.  Why?  Because that is what is going on most
strongly in my life right now."  Roger smiled at his congregation.

The congregation all looked at each other and smiled right back at him.

Roger went on to describe all the different kinds of love; the love of
parents and children, husband and wife, sister and brother, neighbors and
friends.  Then there was the hard kind of love; the almost impossible
ability to love your enemy.  "Jesus said that it was possible, and
therefore it must be so."  Roger paused here and smiled at his flock.

"There is a love, however, beyond all others," he said in deep and florid
tones, "and that is the love of two soul mates.  Sometimes two people fall
so deeply in love on this earth plain, that their souls are destined to
retain that love through all eternity.  It might be the love of two
friends, two brothers, a husband and wife.  Who knows what fuses those two
souls together?  Imagine what a blessing it is from God, when two souls on
earth find themselves so deeply in love that their love is destined to last
until the end of time.

"My dear friends be happy for me.  I have found my soul mate.  I ask you to
please join me in the social hall after the service so that I may introduce
him to all of you."  Roger then read a biblical verse apropos to his
sermon.

"This is the good news," Roger concluded.

"Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ," the congregation responded.

Roger directed everyone to his favorite hymn and the service concluded with
everyone singing loudly and joyously.

In the social hall, Roger introduced Jimmy as Pastor Jim Winningham, and
long before it was over, Jimmy's hand hurt from all the hand shaking and
the well wishes.  If this had happened in my church, he thought, I would
probably have been stoned.  A wave of remorse washed over him.

Several people invited the two pastors to lunch, but they declined.  Roger
explained that Jimmy was recuperating from major surgery and rest was
essential.  In fact, Roger hustled Jimmy back home as soon as possible.  As
soon as they got there, Jimmy stripped to his shorts and sat down on the
living room recliner, and Roger made them salads for lunch. As he prepared
the salads, Roger was quiet and Jimmy dozed off.  As he slipped deeper into
sleep, Jimmy distinctly heard Robbie.  There is nothing wrong with my
heart.  It will serve you for your entire life.  You two need to get out
more and enjoy the scenery.

"Did you hear that?" Roger asked.  His question fell on deaf ears.  Jimmy
was fast asleep.  Roger looked at his sleeping partner.  Jimmy's face
looked so angelic that Roger nearly cried.  Yes Robbie, he thought.  After
lunch, I'm going to air him out in the park and take him out to dinner.

If you had to create the perfect day, today would be it.  Everything was
perfect, the temperature, the humidity, the breezes, and the lack of clouds
in the sky.  Jimmy and Roger sat on a bench watching a girls' soft ball
game.  Somewhere during the game, Roger took hold of Jimmy's hand.  They
were in a public place and Jimmy wanted to pull his hand away, but his
heart would not let him.  Instead he smiled at Roger and said, "Robbie is
definitely winning out."

"I love you," Roger whispered, "and we are going to celebrate tonight.  I'm
taking you to a very fine restaurant.  We'll relax your diet a little for
the occasion."

"I'd rather stay home and continue our lessons," Jimmy said.

"After dinner sweetheart!  I won't neglect your education.  I promise."

Roger had a filet mignon steak for dinner, and Jimmy splurged with a roast
half chicken with the skin removed.  He couldn't resist a little vanilla
ice cream for dessert.  He hadn't had ice cream in years.

"Thank you for dinner, Father," Jimmy said as they were driving home.  "You
sure know how to spoil a guy."

"You ain't seen nuthin' yet!" Roger joked.

They were standing in the shower.  The water was cascading down their
united bodies, as they soaped each other all over and allowed their fingers
to enter forbidden erogenous zones.  Jimmy was making little whimpering
sounds.  The joys of the flesh had been forbidden to him for almost four
decades, and he could not believe how wonderful Roger made him feel.

His brain kept imploring God to forgive him for his transgression of having
sex with a man, and for having sex as an unwed person, but his heart
answered, Nonsense!  This is where you were meant to be.  You are in the
right place at the exact right time.  You are with your soul mate.  It is
God's will.

When they got into bed, Roger was afraid to place his full weight on Jimmy
so he straddled him and supported his weight with his arms as if he was
doing push-ups.  It was uncomfortable but his thoughts were only with Jimmy
and to please him.  He leaned down and kissed Jimmy on his lips forcing
them apart, so that their tongues could caress each other.  Jimmy's
whimpering sound resumed anew.

When Roger reached Jimmy's nipples and began to suckle them, the room was
filled with Jimmy's cries of "Aah!"  Roger continued downward, sucking
Jimmy's navel, then his pubic area.  At last, Roger began to run his tongue
all up and down Jimmy's balls, which nearly caused Jimmy to pass out.  When
Jimmy felt the first stroke of Roger's tongue running up and down the shaft
of his penis, he cried out, much to Roger's surprise, "Thank you God for
this great gift!"

Encouraged by this outcry, Roger enveloped Jimmy's entire cock in his mouth
and deep throated him.  Jimmy wanted to cry out and warn Roger that he was
about to cum, but of course, Roger knew that.  When Jimmy came, spurting
his jism down Roger's throat, he gave out one final wail and began to cry
hysterically.  He was still crying when Roger released him and lay chastely
down beside him.  "Now I know what love is," Jimmy cried to no one in
particular.

"Yes, just as you said, it is one of God's many gifts to us," Roger
affirmed his belief.

Jimmy said, "I can't now.  I'm just too done out, but in the morning after
we have rested, I want to do all that to you.  I want to show you how much
I love you."

"Yes, my darling, in the morning."  They fell fast asleep in each other's
arms, and as they did they each felt a kiss on their cheeks.

"Goodnight Robbie," they said in unison.

To be continued........