Jerry moaned softly when he felt those strong, slender hands find his scalp and begin to caress and explore. “The way you touch me, David,” he sighed into one ear and felt the contraction of his husband’s muscle around his dick. “So sensual, so sexy, so beautiful to watch.” Jerry pulled out partially and heard the familiar gasp; he’d known exactly where to find David’s prostate. “Right there, yeah, love to hear that sound.” Jerry pulled out slowly and then pegged the gland again, and again, and again, enjoying David’s gasps more and more each time. He felt his blood burning through his veins, felt the tender—yet firm—caresses over his scalp, and felt the telltale contraction around his cock.
“Need to come, baby,” David grunted against Jerry’s neck. “Oh, God, I’m gonna come soon.”
“I’ve got you, baby, I’ve got you,” Jerry sighed against one ear as he slowly lowered his torso onto David’s, putting himself at an angle that allowed him to hit his lover’s gland over and over again. With each thrust, he could feel David’s granite-hard dick move against his abdomen; he knew it would only take three or four more thrusts for David to climax. He breathed heavily into first one ear and then the other, pulling back finally after the fourth thrust to look at his husband’s flushed face. “Come for me, mountain lion, come for me.”
“Oh, Jerry, oh, baby,” David panted against Jerry’s chest.
“Oh, God, so tight.”
Jerry felt the contractions around his dick and threw his head back, amazed every time at how hot and tight David’s hole was. He felt himself let go, felt the fire climb up his spine before settling in his belly. Jerry thrust forward with each of his own contractions, spilling his seed deep inside of his lover. David had finished with his own orgasm, but continued to contract his muscles in that special way that made Jerry feel as if he would be completely consumed and lost forever. And at moments like this, he didn’t really care if it happened, as long as David was with him.
Chapter 23
CORY FLETT woke up late, or what his aunt and father would have considered to be late; it was almost eight in the morning on Saturday. Cory stretched and yawned and smiled, for the first time in a long time it seemed. He was in no hurry to get out of bed today. He was safe in a big bed, with clean sheets, and only the smell of breakfast; there was no lingering, stale odor of pot and alcohol. And best of all, Cory wouldn’t need to get up this morning to go and wash the vomit off the toilet or his father’s clothes.
He couldn’t help but wonder about the weirdness of life, about how meeting just one person could change your entire outlook. As he stretched and threw the fluffy duvet off of his body, he tried to remember that word from English class, the one that meant lucky and fortuitous. He knew it began with sara-something, but couldn’t remember the rest of it. He only remembered the first two syllables since it reminded him of Tara.
As he jammed his feet into his slippers, he found himself wondering what she was doing right now. He wondered if she missed him as much as he missed her. He’d flirted with the idea so many times of asking her out, but there was no possible way that he would have ever been able to bring her back to his place. Plus, there was the common knowledge that his father was a drug dealer and those annoying rumors that he was as well. Maybe now that he was with Jerry and David and William, he might be able to ask her out sometime. The thought that he wasn’t at the school anymore didn’t really bother him. This morning, anything seemed possible.
He walked down the hall to William’s room to find the door open and the bed made. He quickly ran back to his room to make sure his own room was neat and tidy, then made his way to the kitchen, toward the smell of breakfast and William’s contagious giggle and the yipping of that cute puppy.
“Finally!”
Cory laughed and tousled William’s hair. “You could have come and woken me up, Billiam.”
“I wanted to, but they wouldn’t let me,” William said as he pointed across the table at Jerry and David, who were already dressed in T-shirts and jeans.
“Sorry, buddy,” Cory said as he sat beside William.
“No need to apologize,” Jerry said as he stood and fetched a plate from the microwave. “William can wait; it won’t do him any harm.”
“How’d you sleep?” Jerry deposited a plate full of waffles and bacon and eggs in front of him, and David poured a glass of orange juice for him.
“Great,” Cory said as he picked up his fork and knife. He looked around and wondered if he would sound stupid if he asked them to join hands with him while he thought of the things for which he was most thankful. He closed his eyes and bowed his head and said his own thanks.
“Will you help me pick out a name for Puppy?” Cory watched William look down at the puppy on the floor, finally reaching down to pick her up.
“Not at the table, William. If you want to play with Puppy, you can leave the table and go play with her.
“Sorry, I forgot.” William hopped off his chair and sat cross-legged near the entrance to the kitchen. Cory watched, amused, as William picked up the puppy and placed it inside the small space created by his folded legs. As he tasted the bacon and eggs, he smiled and continued to observe the excited little puppy try to escape. “Hey,” Cory said suddenly, his eyes darting between the adults and William, “what was Frau Zimmerman’s first name? Do you know?”
“Wilhelmina, I think,” David said after thinking for a few seconds. “Why?”
“You can use that to make a name for the dog.” Cory turned in his chair and looked at William. “She loved you and so does the puppy, so….” He shrugged and tapped the side of his head. “It makes perfect sense.”
“Hey, cowboy, that’s a great idea.” Jerry looked from Cory to William. “You could call her Mina, or… Willy?”
Cory looked over at David and couldn’t help but notice the frown, or was that a look of disgust, or alarm? He wasn’t sure about Willy; Mina might be a nice name for the puppy, though. “Or,” Cory said, getting down on the floor beside William, “you could name her Billie.”
“You know,” David said, “Wilhelmina is the female equivalent of William.”
Cory noticed William’s little blond head pop up at last and regard David. “We had the same name?”
“Almost,” David said with a smile. “What do you think of Billie, William?”
“I like it,” William said and looked down again at his dog. “What about you, Billie? Do you like that name too?” The dog yipped and tried to lick William’s face.
“Well, that’s settled, then.” Jerry stood and walked toward William. “You want to give Cory the good news?”
“Dad,” William groaned, “he’s the one who named her.”
“Not that news, cowboy.” Jerry squatted beside his son and brushed his hand over the short, blond locks. “About the classes we’re going to after lunch.”
“Oh, right!” William turned his head, still trying to avoid Billie’s tongue. “Jerry’s neighbor gives lessons on training dogs, and we’re going to some classes. Do you want to come with us?”
“Sure, sounds like fun.”
“WHAT’S taking him so long?”
Cory laughed as William struggled to hold the wiggling Billie in his arms. “Can I hold her?” William leaned over and let him take Billie.
“Don’t squish her,” William said as he surveyed Cory’s puppy-holding technique.
“I promise I won’t hurt her.” Cory looked up at David, each of them smirking at how serious William was about Billie. Cory had a brief flash thought of the future and laughed as he saw how nervous and obsessed William might be when he started having children of his own.
Cory, William, and David sat on the front steps waiting for Jerry. “Do you know what’s taking him so long?” Cory petted Billie, quieting her a little, and turned to David, who shrugged. “So, is this a business for your neighbor, or does he do it as a favor, or what?” Cory felt Billie begin to squirm again and pulled her closer to his chest, and she let out a little yelp.
“You’re squishing her,” William said, indignant. He reached over and took her back from Cory.
“Was not. She was just trying to get my attention.”
“Paulie’s a friend of Jerry’s,” David said, looking at his watch again. “I don’t know what’s keeping him, but if he doesn’t hurry up, we’re going without him.”
“Couldn’t he just meet us there?” Cory stood and stretched his back.
“Good idea,” David said and patted Cory on the shoulder. “William, go inside and tell your dad that we’re leaving and he can meet us there.”
“Sorry, sorry, sorry,” Jerry chanted as he stepped onto the veranda and turned to lock the door. “Kitty’s fault.”
“She’s weird,” William said and turned to Cory. “That’s Dad’s agent, and she’s really weird.”
“William,” David sighed, “she is not weird; she’s just different.”
“Anyway,” Jerry interrupted, rubbing his hands together. “Remind me to tell you about it later.”
“Tell us now!” William jumped up and down, and Cory saw Billie get all riled up again, paws trying for purchase as she tried to reach William’s face with her tongue.
“Later,” Jerry repeated and took Billie from William while the little guy climbed up into the truck cab. “Okay, we’re off to Paulie’s, and then I was thinking we’d go out for dinner and celebrate.”
“Celebrate what?” William was practically vibrating with anticipation. “Celebrate what, Dad?”
“Later,” Jerry said a third time.
“If you have no intention of telling us, quit throwing out bait,” David said as he reached for Billie. “Hi, there, you beautiful girl, you. I haven’t gotten to hold you much, have I? No, I haven’t.”
“Keys, wallet, puppy, kids, husband,” Jerry muttered to himself as he looked around the cab. “Okay, off we go.” Jerry turned the ignition, pulled the car into gear, and did a U-turn out of the driveway. “When I talked to Paulie the other day, he told me that his grandkids are visiting, so there should be some other young’uns your ages to socialize with this afternoon.” Jerry looked in the rearview mirror. Cory nodded and gave a thumbs up.
Cory leaned back in his leather bucket seat and settled in for a long drive, not really sure how far apart these ranches were. He was also enjoying the sounds of other people. Not necessarily the talking and the joking, but the sounds of people who seemed comfortable with each other. William hummed softly, Jerry and David were deep in conversation about other family activities they could plan for the rest of spring break, and Billie? Cory smiled as he saw that she’d finally fallen asleep in David’s lap. Cory wondered if David had that effect on everyone or if it was just the lost and lonely.
Within what seemed mere minutes, Cory heard Jerry announce that they’d arrived. He didn’t know why he’d thought that people living out in the country would live hours away from each other, but he knew that there were probably a lot of things he was going to learn about while he stayed with Jerry and David. And in a way, that thought filled him with dread. It wasn’t that he didn’t like to learn, but rather Cory would have to admit that he didn’t know how to drive, had never asked a girl out, or even danced. He knew that they wouldn’t tease him or ridicule him like his father had done, but it would still be embarrassing for him to have to admit these things. And what made it worse? He’d probably have to admit these things one at a time as each issue came up.
There were already a few other cars parked here and there along the driveway up to the main house, so they had to walk a little before meeting some of the other people. He made sure to wipe his suddenly sweaty palms on his jeans before shaking hands with everyone he was introduced to. There were about ten people in all so far, and Cory wondered how good this dog trainer, Paulie, would have to be to be able to work with so many people and their dogs.
“Hey, Jer, nice to see you.” A large, very tall, gray-haired man came up to them. “Hey, William, is this your new pup?”
“Yessir, we’re calling her Billie,” William announced as he stood beside David, who still had the dog in his arms. Billie had woken up a couple of seconds ago and wasn’t quite as energetic as she usually was. Cory figured that would change as soon as she looked around and saw all the people, not to mention all the other dogs.
“Well, Tara’ll help you learn how to take real good care of her,” Paulie said as he stepped aside and pointed behind him, then turned toward Jerry and David. “I don’t think you two were together the last time Tara was visiting with me.”
“Almost a year,” Jerry said with a grin as he turned to look at David.
Cory, along with the rest of his family, looked up when the screen door opened, and he suddenly felt lightheaded, as if he’d ridden the roller-coaster one time too many. It’s Tara. It’s her. Cory didn’t know whether to run and hide or try and act cool and suave.
He heard noises, saw Tara shaking hands with everyone and knew that he was supposed to say something, but he couldn’t seem to get his mind to focus nor his mouth to work.
JERRY caught David’s eye as Cory fumbled for a few simple words.
“Hi, Cory, I was wondering what happened to you at school.” Jerry couldn’t help noticing that both Cory and Tara were blushing a deep crimson, and Tara kept brushing her hair behind her ears. Jerry wondered if she knew that all of her hair was already behind her ears. “I was sorry to hear about your father.” Cory nodded and offered his thanks. Finally, Jerry couldn’t take it anymore and started to feel embarrassed for the poor kid.
“Hey, listen, Tara,” Jerry began as he stepped up beside Cory. “We were thinking of getting another dog, a bigger dog, so David and I will be over here learning about them. You don’t mind working with Cory and William by yourself, do you?”
“Not at all,” Tara said with a smile as a young boy, a little taller than William, came up to stand beside her. “William, this is my brother Wayde.” Jerry watched, his heart threatening to burst out of his chest, as William extended his hand to Wayde and the two young boys shook hands.
As William and Cory moved off to follow Tara and Wayde, Jerry could hear Tara begin to explain about some of the differences between training puppies and mature dogs. When Paulie moved off to welcome the last of his class for the day, David came up beside Jerry and touched his elbow. “Was that what I think it was?”
“Oh, you bet,” Jerry said with a chuckle. “I’ll have to give him some tips on how to be irresistible.” He looked quickly at David, prepared for some scathing retort. Jerry wasn’t sure, at first, if David had heard him; David was staring off into the distance, his eyes following the foursome and Billie.
“I think that would be great, cowboy.” David turned back to look at him, his eyes bright, his smile as full and happy as Jerry hadn’t seen in a long time. “But be careful, will you?” David pretended to brush something off Jerry’s T-shirt. “Just teach him the basics for now. I don’t think the world is ready for two of you.”
“Are you flirting with me?” Jerry moved in close and felt David’s hand on his chest. “I feel it only fair to warn you that I can’t resist good-looking men with kids and pets.”
“Neither can I!” David chuckled and then stopped. “Wait, what? Pets? As in another one? You were serious?”
“You’re the one who suggested it,” Jerry said, his shoulders hunched and his tone incredulous.
“I did not,” David argued, “I said that we would have to buy William however many puppies… never mind. Besides, it looks like William and Wayde will become fast friends.” He moved so that the sun wasn’t in his eyes. “Should we get another husky, or…?”
“Why don’t we let Cory decide?”
“Fair enough.” David turned, his arms now crossed over his chest. “So, are you going to tell me what we’ll be celebrating, or will you be the one following Billie around with a plastic bag for the next six months?”
“Please,” Jerry harrumphed, “I shovel horseshit a co
uple of times a week. You think I’d be scared of a little puppy poop?” Jerry wrapped his arm around David’s shoulders and leaned in to whisper in his ear. “Remember how I told you I applied for that artist-in-residence position a few months ago, and that if I got it, we’d be living in Europe for six months?” Jerry smiled as he saw the comprehension cross over David’s face. “We’ve got a couple of months to get ourselves organized for six months in Italy!”
“Oh my God, Jerry!” David grabbed onto his forearms. “Oh my God, the boys are gonna go crazy!”
“Maybe William will even find someone to speak German with, so he can make sure he doesn’t lose his German. And I, uh, made arrangements—with Kitty’s help—to have Cory be my… uh… assistant during the afternoon sessions. He’ll be able to experience some other art forms as well as work—”
“Wait,” David said suddenly. “What am I going to be doing? I hadn’t thought about that.”
“Whatever you want to do, baby. That’s the best part.” Jerry led David over to the veranda where they both sat down. “You can be in charge of their schooling, and all of Europe will be your classroom.”
“You know,” David said as he narrowed his eyes, an idea clearly forming in his mind. “I should take off the entire year, and when we return, I can home school the boys.” David smiled at the idea, but shook his head, as if he’d just realized what it would actually mean. “A whole year away from teaching my kids at school?”
Jerry heard the disappointment in his husband’s voice. “Listen, baby, it’s a great opportunity, but even if we all stay on the ranch and don’t go, I’ll be just as happy.” Jerry leaned over and kissed David’s nose. “I don’t care where I am as long as the three of you are with me.” Jerry kissed him again on the nose. And waited.
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