Disclaimer: The following story is a work of fiction. If you are offended by descriptions of homosexual acts or man/man relations, please exit this page.
TALES FROM THE RANCH Copyrightc 2006 by Tulsa Driller. All rights reserved.
This is a story of men who have two common interests. You will see that they love the land where they live and work, but it is also the story of young men who love other men and their coming of age in a culture of prejudice and misunderstanding. It is a story, which deals with difficult and often disturbing issues but, nonetheless, issues which must be confronted in today's society.
This is a work of fiction and in no way draws on the lives of any specific person or persons. Any similarity to actual persons or events is entirely coincidental. This work is copyrightedc by the author and may not be reproduced in any form without the specific written permission of the author. It is assigned to the Nifty Archives under the terms of their submission agreement but it may not be copied or archived on any other site without the written permission of the author.
PLEASE: In a perfect world AIDS doesn't exist. My characters have unprotected sex. I hope you use proper precautions because I'd like you to be around to read the last chapter of this story.
NOW: On with the story. Since I've not posted a new chapter for way too long, I would suggest that some of you might want to read Book II, Chapter 3 again to get familiar with the story and characters as Chapter 4 picks up in the middle of a scene that I left open.
Tales from the Ranch Book II, Chapter 4
And, there Ray was, rubbing his own hairy chest and massaging his pecs, staring at John's crotch.
John's brain seemed to have shorted out. "I. umn. I'm. sorry," John started to say.
"You don't need to say anything," Ray soothed. "Your dick's saying it for you."
"Bu. but." John managed to stammer.
"Hey bud, it's okay. I like to read these magazines. That's why I subscribe to them."
John still didn't comprehend what he was hearing. All he could think of was that Ray was pulling a trick on him. and was going to fire him for being queer. He shouldn't have been looking at the stack of magazines on the coffee table.
"You. you. read these.?" John asked. His tongue and brain weren't working in tandem yet.
"Hell yes, John. I put them out to see if you had any interest in them. I can see that you do and I'm glad," Ray replied.
"Wh. wha. what do you mean?" John wanted to know.
"John, I finally admitted to myself that I was gay about a year ago. I think you are a hot stud, so I put these magazines out to see what kind of reaction you might have. and if you would look at them. I was too chicken to confront you and just ask if you might be gay, too."
"I. I. don't know. what I am," John honestly said. "Besides. you're my boss."
Ray walked over to stand in front of John. He offered his hand to help him stand up in front of himself. They were so close they were almost touching each other.
"Don't let that bother you. It doesn't me," Ray breathed aloud. "I won't hold it against you," he said, then rubbed his crotch against John's still-hard dick. "Or maybe I will hold it against you," he said, wrapping his arms around John's back.
John snickered. "I can't believe this. I thought you were a real stud and was thrilled when you asked me to come to work for your company, but I never thought that we'd end up like this. I'd hoped."
His next words were lost as Ray's mouth found his.
As they broke the kiss, both were super hard. Ray wasn't wearing any underwear, so his dick was pointing straight up. John had another problem. His dick was tangled up in his boxer shorts and didn't have anywhere to go. He was so hard, it was almost painful and when Ray put his hand on it, he could feel the wetness to the left of the fly on John's 501's. John almost had an orgasm from the grope Ray gave him.
Ray could tell that John was big - larger than he was.
Their mouths found each other's again. John found out that he liked to kiss, something that he and Nolan had not fully discovered the times they had sex with each other, although he and Michael had kissed the few times they were together. But that was nothing like he was experiencing with Ray. It was like a lightning rod drawing electricity to his cock and he could feel the precum leaking in his Levis.
"This could be more fun without clothes," Ray told him, breaking the kiss. He was waiting for consent to unbutton John's fly and hoped he would do the same for him. Levi 501's were the best aphrodisiac yet invented, he thought, and John certainly wore his well.
Ray searched for John's mouth again, and then moved down his throat to tickle his Adams apple. No one had done that to John before and it almost caused flashes of light and bells to ring.
John decided to do the same for Ray, backing off and then coming back as the aggressor. He must have had the same effect on Ray that he'd just experienced. Ray didn't wait any longer; he popped all the buttons on John's 501's in quick sequence, and then tugged them downward, his sticky boxer shorts following. John's actions were causing Ray to get harder himself, and he took care of his own needs, ripping his buttons open, too.
Soon their wet cocks were mashed up against each other and Ray started lifting John's polo shirt upward so it could tug it off and finally admire this guy who had been causing him wet dreams for the last three weeks. Wow! John was really hairy for only being 19-years old.
Ray actually was more of a virgin than John. The only two times he'd sucked someone else's cock was at the rest stop just south of Williamsport and that had just whet his appetite for more. But he had been afraid to approach guys, even those he knew were gay, a couple of which attended the Dignity/Integrity meetings. He really wasn't sure how to go about communicating his desires to other men. This whole scene tonight could well have backfired on him, but he had decided that it was now or never and if he lost John as an employee, then he really had let his dick do his thinking instead of his brain.
But, he had an idea that John was more than a willing participant tonight.
Ray sank to his knees, trailing saliva down the middle of John's chest and abs. As he sniffed and licked around John's scrotum, he was fumbling with John's athletic shoes, untying them by feel, as he was otherwise engaged. Finally he was able to work John's shoes off and helped him shed his pants. He felt John's hands under his armpits, lifting him upward as John helped Ray shed his 501's also. Once Ray was free of his pants, they were both naked except for John's white socks and that turned Ray on. He hoped John didn't want to take them off, unless he removed them for him.
"Let's go upstairs," Ray finally whispered, realizing that the only sounds they had been making were groans of pleasure.
Dale called Leland Stanton early on Monday morning to talk to him about making a bid on the two pieces of property that were available, telling him what Marty and Martin had said about what to offer.
Leland listened to Dale, making notes while they chatted. He confirmed that the same realty company had both farms listed, then told Dale that he would call the realtor and tell him that he had an interested party who wanted to make an offer.
"Let me make an offer on your behalf. That way the realtor won't know who's wanting to buy the property and they won't be able to hassle you."
"That would be great," Dale said. He was enthused over the chance of buying the farms, as were Craig and Joey. In a way it seemed like a lot of money to spend on ground to build a house, but as Marty had suggested, Dale could either farm it himself or lease the land and collect a portion of the sale of whatever was produced.
They, along with Frank and Doris, liked the idea of having their own horses and the opportunity to be able to raise a few steers and chickens for their own consumption. Joey had expressed the idea that he'd like to have a few ducks and geese "because they're neat."
"Since both pieces of property have been on the market for a while, it's my opinion that they are overpriced. The owners of the larger farm may be willing to accept a bid since they are trying to close an estate and this is the last item for them to dispose of.
"The owners of the smaller property are probably needing the money to pay off the mortgage on the farm. I know that they haven't made their monthly payments since the house burned, so I'll check to see what the loan balance is," he told Dale.
"We can't think you enough," Dale told Leland. "My only experience with a realtor around here wasn't a good one as Craig's partner and I had Phyllis Richmond 'working a deal for us'," he laughed.
Leland laughed along with Dale. "Yes, there weren't any tears shed, except by her, when she lost her real estate license."
"Well, she sure tried to run over me. I think she thought I was a hick from the sticks and she was not happy that I wanted to look the papers over before signing them. She really got into a snit about that."
"Let me make some phone calls to find out what I can about the properties; if there is a current appraisal, what the taxes are and see what the present debt is on them and I'll get back to you, hopefully later, today," Leland told Dale.
"Gee, you move fast on everything, don't you?" Dale said.
"Hey, what can I say? We're a service organization," he laughed.
"Thanks, Leland. I really appreciate your helping us out on this," Dale told him before hanging up the phone.
Craig was telling Don Albrecht about their fortune in finding two farms that were next to each other and what Marty and his father had told them.
"That sounds ideal for your needs. Building on a hilltop can make for a lot of privacy, plus you can see cars coming up the driveway from the road," Don told him.
"It also makes it easy to put a garage in the basement and use the rest of that floor for either storage or living areas. I'm still thinking that we should have two floors of living area and put the bedrooms on the upper level".
"Are you going to go the solar energy route?" Don asked.
"I'm thinking about it, at least for hot water," Craig answered.
"Stone, wood or brick?" Don wanted to know.
"I'm in favor of a mix of native stone and used brick, myself, but we haven't discussed that at all," Craig replied.
"You'll go through a hundred revisions before you start drawing plans," Don joked.
"Hey, it doesn't cost anything to dream and sketches are cheap," Craig smiled. He knew that he could count on Don for good ideas.
Frank and David talked about having a Christmas party for the employees of Saber Computers. There were 14 full-time employees and 4 others who worked on Saturdays and other times as they couldn't work a full schedule. So, they figured that they should plan for about 40 to attend the festivities on a Sunday evening. The question was, "where to have the party"? There were two possible options. The first was to use the classroom area at the store and have the meal catered; and the other was to look for a restaurant that could prepare a meal and serve that many people.
Doris invited Dale and Craig to eat lunch at her house on Monday. She needed ideas for Christmas presents for them and Joey and they needed ideas for Christmas presents for Frank and Doris, as well as Susan, Chuck, Becky and possibly Doug as they were still seeing each other.
Frank and Doris had invited the Dallas contingent of the family to Williamsport to celebrate the holiday, so they would have to share in sleeping arrangements again and the dinner would be held at Dale, Craig and Joey's home because of the larger kitchen and area to set up tables.
Craig suggested that they add Forrest to the guest list as his grandmother was in the rest home and he would be alone.
Doris asked, "What is going to happen to Forrest when his grandmother dies? He's too young to be allowed to stay in that house alone."
"If the truth be known, he probably shouldn't be staying there now, although he's old enough to take care of himself. But, if anyone really wanted to make an issue of it, he's still a minor," Dale said.
"Does he have any money?" Doris asked.
"I think he gets a little Social Security because his parents were killed in an automobile accident. That probably will stop when he turns 18. His grandmother gets Social Security, but I think that probably was assigned to the rest home when she was moved from the hospital. So, no, he probably doesn't have much money besides what he earns at the store," Dale told them.
"He's at that unfortunate age. Too old for someone to adopt and too young to be out on his own. The house is in a trust fund for him, but he can't sell it until he turns 21. Leland set that up for him because his grandmother didn't have a will. Now, thanks to him, she does," Craig said.
"It sounds to me like they need to arrange for someone to be his legal guardian. That should meet the requirements for the state law and allow him to stay in the house, as he would have non-live-in supervision," Doris observed. "I'm going to talk to Frank about that tonight. He'll know what the legal requirements are."
Joey had a good day at school. He really liked his teachers except for Kent Korte and he and Daniel were doing well enough working on their own. They had gotten three programs to work by copying a program out of a book and then modified it to other applications. Daniel's contribution was to come up with a routine that would convert Celsius to Fahrenheit temperatures.
Joey took on a slightly harder program to figure simple interest using the formula I=PRT and doing a date calculation. Only one section of code give him a problem, but he quickly figured out what was wrong, fixed it, and the program ran.
Daniel was working on a program that would use a database to print a membership list and it was coming along nicely. He was trying to work without any help from the book Joey had found at The Electronic Home.
Joey decided that his next effort would be to write a program to allow the input of several figures, such as test scores, total them and find the average number. If that was successful, then he wanted to add a routine to allow for the input of a name along with the data, sort the list and print it in alphabetical order. It was a lot of computer code and he had to use the book frequently.
He and Daniel were going to work on the program at Joey's house after school that evening.
Doug Tate, the Principal, left word for Joey to come to his office for a few minutes at the end of his lunch period, saying that he would have a late slip for him to get into his 4th hour class.
Joey presented himself to Mr. Tate's secretary at the appointed time. She told him that he would be with him in a few minutes and Joey had just sat down to wait when Mr. Tate came into the office from the hall.
"Hi Joey!" he greeted him as Joey stood up and shook hands. "Come on into my office, I need to talk to you for just a minute or two."
Joey followed him into his office and sat down where Doug Tate indicated.
"The Student Council will consider appointing you to take Leslie Brannock's place at their meeting after school this evening. They would like for you to give a short speech as to why you feel you are qualified, what you would like to see changed at Davy Crockett High School and how you would implement those changes."
Joey took a deep breath. "This evening?" he questioned.
"Yes, they meet in the cafeteria at 3:35," was the reply. "Here's your late slip for 4th hour and an early leave slip for your P.E. class, since the meeting starts in the middle of last period."
"Wow, that's not much time to prepare, is it?" Joey said.
"You aren't required to make a long speech. There are a few on the council who don't know who you are. This is a chance to tell a little about yourself, your viewpoints on problems you think exist and how you would solve them. Maybe about 3 minutes, max," Mr. Tate said.
"Ok," Joey said. "I can write that in computer lab, we pretty much work on our own in that class, anyway."
"You'll do just fine," Mr. Tate said, knowing that Joey was the only person they were considering appointing to the vacant position.
When he and Daniel sat down at a workstation in Mr. Korte's class, Joey told him that he needed to write a short speech to give at the Student Council meeting after school.
"What's going on, are they going to do something about Thad Wilson attacking you? It's a little late for that, isn't it?" he questioned.
"No, Leslie Brannock is moving to Albuquerque 'cause his father is being transferred there. That leaves a vacancy on the Student Council and I was asked if I would be interested in being appointed to fill his place," Joey told him.
"Way cool!" Daniel said, offering the palm of his hand to Joey. "You'll be good at that job, 'cause everybody likes you."
Joey smacked Daniel's palm. "You really think so? I hope I can do it."
"What do you have to say in your speech?"
"A little bit about who I am and why I moved to Williamsport, then I'm supposed to talk about any problems I might know of and give some suggestions about how to solve the problem or implement the idea," Joey explained.
"Sounds like you got a handle on it already, my man," Daniel smiled at him. "What are you going to talk about?"
"Well, at first I thought about starting a Gay-Straight Alliance group, but I don't know if there would be enough interest or if people would be afraid to join, you know, like people might think they were gay if they joined?"
Daniel thought it was a good idea and said so. "I can see the need for it after what happened to you last week, but you might be right about people being afraid to join and some might try to join just to see who went to the meetings." Daniel was somewhat afraid it might not stop the problem Joey had encountered.
"Well, I agree with you. So, I came up with the idea of 'safe zones' where teachers who were willing to help students with problems and discuss it with them, but keep it to themselves," if you know what I mean."
"That's a good idea. It might work okay, but what if the teacher couldn't help without going to another teacher or the principal?" Daniel quizzed.
"Then it would have to be a mutual decision of the student and teacher for that to happen. The teacher could invoke the 'safe zone' also and report a problem that exists, maybe without saying who was having the problem. I don't have it all worked out, but we would have to identify the teachers and maybe put a symbol on their door or outside their room."
"It's still a good idea and some teachers would sign up immediately, other's probably would stay away from it," Daniel agreed.
"I need to use the computer to write my speech. You can look over my shoulder and help me, if you want," Joey told him.
"Okay, kind of like a ghostwriter?" Daniel questioned, teasing Joey.
"Yeah, if you want to call it that," Joey said, starting up the WordStar program.
Eddie Thompson was in the gym dressing room when Joey arrived for P.E. class. He gave his early-out slip to the coach. Eddie looked at it and said, "It's up to you if you want to suit up for class, but we're going to play volleyball and you won't be able to play for more than about 15 minutes when it will be time to take a shower and leave."
"You're not going to blow your whistle at me if I don't play?" Joey asked. They both knew he was teasing.
"No, but you'd better be prepared to run laps the entire class the rest of the week," Eddie said, winking at Joey.
"Sounds like a deal to me," Joey said as they both laughed.
Joey sat on the bleachers and watched the rest of the class play. Those who weren't playing at a given time were sitting in the area where Joey was and they all visited among themselves. For some reason Joey didn't have any classes with most of these boys, then found out that many were either sophomores or juniors and hadn't filled their P.E. requirement when they were freshman. . * * * * *
Joey arrived at the corner of the cafeteria about 3 minutes before the meeting started. The council members had pulled their chairs around so they were sitting in a circle. There were two teacher advisors for each class, so each class had three representatives and two advisors. There was one empty chair.
The Student Council President called the meeting to order and immediately asked for a motion to recognize the need to fill a freshman vacancy on the Council caused by Leslie Brannock moving away.
There was a motion and a second.
The President stood. "I would like to introduce Joey Sullivan who has been recommended to fill the vacant freshman slot. Joey, would you tell us a little about yourself?"
Joey stood and the president motioned him to stand in front of the empty chair so he moved there.
"My name is Joseph Dale Sullivan, Jr. and everyone calls me Joey. I moved to Williamsport about 10 weeks ago after having attended Remington Middle School in Houston. The reason for the move is that my father died and my half brother became my guardian and care provider.
"I have been an honors student since fifth grade and plan to take Advanced Placement courses next year. I have a First Class rank in Boy Scouts, although I haven't joined the local troop yet. I've played Little League Baseball for four summers and have played soccer for two years. I also sing in the choir at St. James Episcopal Church. My brother and I own Saber Computer Store, along with another partner.
"I've thought about what might be done to help students that are having problems, but no one to turn to who might be able to counsel them. It's my feeling that a number of instructors might be willing to help those students out and be able to talk about anything the student wanted to discuss and possibly help them with the problem.
"We would need to identify those teacher's classroom as a 'safe zone' where anything discussed would not leave the room, except where the student and instructor both agree that someone at a higher level should intervene. Again, the 'safe zone' would be invoked and the student would not be identified.
"The instructors who take part in this program would have to be honest and trustworthy, otherwise, it will not work. I feel that this would be a great benefit to those students who can't or won't talk to their parents and have no one else to turn to without being ridiculed."
"Thank you for considering me to be a member of the Student Council."
There was applause all around the room and Joey didn't know if he should sit down in the circle or find a seat elsewhere.
The Student Council President, Tracy Watkins spoke up. "Well said, Joey. I think you have made a valid proposal." Then he followed up, "Do I hear a motion to allow Joey Sullivan to take Leslie Brannock's place on the Davy Crockett High School Student Council?"
"So moved," someone said. There was a second to the motion.
"All in favor, respond by saying 'Aye'," Tracy asked.
"Aye," almost as one voice.
"Anyone against?"
There was silence.
"Joey, welcome to the Student Council. Please have a seat and feel free to ask questions since the business before this meeting will be new to you."
"Thank you," Joey said, taking his seat. He was very proud of this latest development in his life.
Much to Daniel's disappointment, since Joey was now a member of the Student Council, they weren't able to work on their computer programs at Joey's house that evening. Also, Daniel was hoping to be able to view some of the movies Joey had. He was really curious about the collection Joey's father had put together and he thought it was awesome that Dale and Craig were cool with it. He couldn't imagine his parents even allowing he and his brother to rent a non-PG rated movie to look at in their own home.
That evening while eating dinner, Dale asked Joey how his day at school had been. Joey hadn't made any mention of the fact that he was being considered as a member of the Student Council, mainly because he didn't think he would have a chance at being elected.
"You'll never guess what happened," Joey said.
Craig was very interested as his first thought was the trouble Thad Wilson had caused Joey.
"Well?" Dale asked.
One of the students in our freshman class moved to Albuquerque because his father was transferred. I was elected to fill his term on the Student Council."
Palms were slapped around the table.
"That's great!" Craig said. "Did you know this was going to happen? I haven't heard you say anything about it."
"Actually, Mr. Tate talked to me about it last week, but I didn't say anything because I really didn't think I had a chance since not too many students know who I am."
"Congratulations!" Dale heartedly approved.
"Yes," Craig replied. "You will be good because I think everyone respects you. You seem to attract good guys for friends."
The conversation continued as they ate with Joey filling them in on his suggestion for "safe zones" where students could go to instructors for help with any problem they might be having.
"I wish we'd had something like that when I was in high school," Dale said. "There were a lot of times that I could have used a kind ear and guidance."
"Me, too," Craig agreed, "although I was always able to go to my parents if I had a problem, but many in my class didn't have understanding parents."
Doris had decided that she wanted to buy her boys' nice leather coats as a Christmas gift from she and Frank. But, the big question was what style of coat to buy. Should they be a dressy coat, such as a sport coat, or a bomber-type jacket. She and Frank finally decided that a casual jacket might be more practical, but it wouldn't hurt their feelings if the coats were exchanged for one of another style.
Business at the store had taken off and everyone was enthusiastic with the sales volume shown on each days reports. The "zip code report" each day showed that over 60 percent of the customers were coming from areas around Williamsport and another 20% were Austin zip codes. Leland was almost beside himself and was frequently in the store for an hour or two each day. He was almost like a child with a new toy and David was thankful for the guidance Leland gave. He wasn't being pushy in his recommendations; they were well thought out and mostly concerned inventory levels which he recommended be kept high. He felt that they might be able to move into the mail-order business more quickly than he had originally forecast, based on people coming from other areas to buy computers and accessories. Word had gotten back to him that Saber Computers was hurting the business of one store in Austin.
David was thankful that Leland insisted on hiring an advertising agency to take over the work on the weekly newspaper ads as well as the proposed new catalog. It was a lot of work to put those ads together, especially when he had to work with a salesman from the newspapers' advertising department in Austin. This freed up time for David to be able to look for new suppliers for the additional computer component parts they would soon be stocking to support a mail order business.
There was a new agency, Creative Concepts, in Williamsport that had already landed the advertising account for Commerce Bank. Roger Graham was from Williamsport and had worked for Allied Advertising in Austin before establishing his own company back in his hometown. His business partner was Bill Kendrick, who had worked for a public relations firm in Austin. Leland was sure that Roger and Bill, both in their late 20's, had a relationship beyond being business partners.
When Leland and David put forth the idea of some TV spots, using employees of Saber Computers, Roger and Bill jumped on the idea. "That's a super idea," Roger said. "We've had some experience with this sort of thing before, mostly with furniture stores, but the clients were emphatic that they use the 'down home, folksy approach' and while the ads seemed to help their business, we were hoping they would aim for a more sophisticated approach."
Bill added, "I wasn't comfortable with people that looked and sounded like someone from the backwoods being their spokesman. With your permission, we'd like to put together a few commercials and give some of your employees a screen test. Not everyone should be on TV, as you probably know."
David and Leland agreed.
Work was underway to complete two classrooms, accommodating a dozen computers in each. Dennis was busy running cable for the networked computers. These classrooms could also be used as a demonstration for how a network of computers worked. After Christmas the store would start offering software instruction courses for those who wanted them. In addition Dennis and David would be doing some on-site training with new network systems that would be installed in two businesses after the beginning of the New Year.
David's first sales call was to the Williamsport School System to survey their needs and come up with a proposal to furnish new computers for the computer lab and take the older computers on trade. Actually his plan would save the school board money in the long run as computer equipment was going down in cost and they could have the latest hardware and software packages when school started each fall. What was more import to him was that the name "Saber Computers" be plainly visible on the monitor and keyboard of each computer in the lab. Name recognition was important.
A second proposal was in the works to replace the computers in the school offices with newer equipment. Those computers there were 3 years old and could not run some new software programs designed to track attendance and grades.
David was amused upon meeting Kent Korte. One would think that the instructor would be pushing hard for new equipment, but Mr. Korte seemed to be disinterested in the proposal, saying that the computers in the lab were adequate for the students' needs as he was teaching programming in Basic along with WordStar and Lotus programs.
David pointed out the fact that they needed faster machines with greater memory, as Windows was rapidly becoming the standard computer operating system. Windows 3.0 had been released just a few months before. He added that many companies were releasing both Windows and DOS versions of their major programs and that Internet usage was increasing. Kent Korte remained unimpressed, saying that he couldn't think of any reason why one would need access to two or more programs at a time.
The real "zinger" came when David told Kent that Bulletin Boards were going to become as obsolete as dinosaurs since Internet Websites were going to replace them; that as Windows usage increased, the old DOS Utility programs would no longer be necessary and fall by the wayside. He would have loved to have a picture of Kent's face when he heard that bit of news.
Later that evening was the weekly store meeting. David was giving Frank, Dennis, Leland, Dale, Craig and Joey a report of his meeting with Kent Korte.
"I don't think the guy has a clue about new computer technology. He's not interested in new software and I really don't think he knows what Microsoft Windows can do and how it can help speed the computer by allowing multiple programs to be running at the same time."
Of course, Joey was becoming well versed in using Windows, along with Forrest and Daniel, as it was a package which sold well at Saber Computers due to the demonstrations they provided for customers. The demos almost always resulted in an immediate sale of the Windows package. They were selling Windows software packaged with other software of the customer's choice, all at a discount if purchased at the same time. Again, many customers didn't really know what they were buying or how they were going to use it, but it was a case of having the newest - just to say they had it.
"Mr. Korte doesn't know what's going on, all he is interested in is the Bulletin Board he runs on his home computer. He wasn't all that impressed with the Basic programs that Daniel and I wrote and didn't even look at the printout of the program. He did give us each an A for it and told us that we'd passed the computer lab course," Joey reported.
"Well, at least he gave you boysgot a good grade for it," Dale replied.
"That's not the point," Joey stated, "I'm wondering if the others in the class are going to get A's, too, without doing what Daniel and I've accomplished. We're all pretty much self-taught and if it hadn't been for the book I bought from Dennis and having Daniel working with me, I'd still be in the dark."
"Is Computer Lab a one semester course?" Craig wanted to know.
"We can take Computer Lab II next semester if we want, but I think it will be a waste of time," Joey answered.
"He's right there," Dennis said. "He's fulfilled the work needed to pass the course. What is Korte going to be able to teach him next semester?"
"The jerk needs to be replaced. Computer knowledge is going to be necessary for about 95% of the workforce within another few years. If you don't learn computer usage in school, what's the purpose of the school offering a course where no knowledge is gained?" David stated.
"Someone needs to make the school administration aware of what's not happening," Craig told them.
"They're aware that a problem exists and I think the situation has taken care of itself," Leland said. "I had a talk with Marty Williamson about this and he told me that Kent Korte has this job only because the person they hired received a better offer just before school was due to start. They needed someone quickly and Korte was available. They didn't have time to adequately check his qualifications. Those have been checked and he's failed the course, so to speak."
"What do you mean?" David asked.
"Just between us, he's being replaced at the end of the semester. The new person has excellent qualifications and we expect to have a contract for new equipment to be installed in the lab when he starts next month," Leland stated.
"Wow!" was Joey's reply. "Maybe I'd better check to see what is going to be offered in that lab next semester."
"Do whatever you want, Joey, but I'll bet that you already know more than will be taught in that course next semester. Look at what you've learned just since you got a computer at home," David told him.
"Yes, and look at the sales dollars you are generating from being able to demonstrate computer programs. We might have you teach one of the evening classes," Frank said, grinning at him.
"That would be so neat!" Joey was enthused.
"Wait a minute. We need to consider Joey's schoolwork and the other activities he's involved with. I think that working at the store for a few hours on Saturday is enough for right now. He needs time to relax and enjoy being with his friends," Dale said. He thought that Joey was spreading himself too thin.
Joey was disappointed, but realized that his Dad was probably right. He was involved with too many things: school, the store, choir and now student council. He really didn't have time to do things for fun.
Dale's cell phone rang late the next afternoon. He was working at his desk in the Bar-W office. His first thought was that Michael or Pat was calling him, but they were working on cleaning equipment. He wondered who might be calling, as only a few people knew this number. Craig generally called the office phone before trying his cell number.
"Bar-W Ranch, Dale Richards speaking."
"Dale, it's Leland. I have some information on the two pieces of property you and Craig are interested in buying."
"Yeah?" Dale was hoping for the best.
"I did some checking. The old Darrington property can be picked up pretty cheaply. There hasn't been a principal payment made since the house burnt. I found out that there are two years taxes due. Someone in the bank goofed and didn't follow through when no tax receipt was brought in. I talked to the realtor and I think we have a deal if you guys approve."
"Great. What kind of money are we talking about?"
"How does $15 thousand sound to you? That includes the taxes being brought up to date."
Dale was astounded at the price. "That sounds really good to me. I'm sure that it's fine with Craig, too, but I need to check with him."
"I know that," Leland replied.
"What about the other place?" Dale wanted to know. He was clearly excited about the whole deal.
"I made an offer of $38,500 cash with an immediate closing. Their attorney about had a stroke at that offer, but the real estate agent told me that no one else was interested and two of the heirs were really pushing to get rid of the property and close the estate. The other one is greedy, but may come around if the others push him," Leland told him.
"So, we're talking about $53,500 for both pieces of property? That's less than Marty said to offer. You are good, my friend," Dale excitedly told him.
"As I said, we're a service organization," Leland laughed.
"I guess we'll be writing a check then?" Dale questioned.
"I don't know why," Leland replied. "I told you that we can finance that whole deal by using your own money. We can give you a lower interest rate and when the house is built, we'll finalize the land and construction all rolled into one. It's a new way of financing something of this type and believe me, you qualify with no problem. All you and Craig need to do is to come to my office and sign a short-term note."
"I know, it's just that I've been concerned about Joey's money even though Joe told me to use it for a new house, if we wanted," Dale replied.
"Actually, Dale, you are simply borrowing money from yourself and paying yourself back, it's just a different way of financing this venture for your family."
"Okay. Let me see if I can find Craig and I'll call you back in a little bit. I'm sure that this will meet with his approval, but need to be sure," he said, smiling at the thought of giving his lover the good news.
"Okay, I'll be in my office about another 30 minutes. If you don't find Craig, call me in the morning," Leland said.
They told each other goodbye and broke the connection.
It was about quitting time. Dale decided that instead of calling Craig, he'd rather wait and tell him and Joey both in person so they could all share the good news.
Craig had only been home a short time when Dale walked into the kitchen and gave him a deeply felt kiss that made their groins tingle. "Wow, what brought that on?" Craig giggled. "You can do that again."
"I just missed you today," Dale told him, giving him a hug. Craig groped Dale and teased, "You are glad to see me, aren't you?"
"Yeah. Where's Joey?"
"He had a Student Council meeting last period and then was supposed to work with one of the advisors on his proposed project for "safe zones" where the students can talk to the teachers without any fear of the conversations becoming public."
"Oh, yeah, I'd forgotten about that. What time will he be home?"
"Should be here anytime," Craig said, smiling. "Why, do you wanna play around a little bit?" He wiggled his eyebrows provocatively.
"That, too, but guess it can wait. What are you fixing?" he questioned.
"Mom gave me her recipe for chicken breasts baked in mushroom sauce with wild rice, so I just finished up boning them and can put the rest of the dish together in a little while. I got two bags of salad greens, fresh green beans and there's a bag of succotash in the freezer. We have cake left from last night."
"Yum." Dale started to say as Craig reached his lips for another kiss.
About that time Mitsey barked and raced toward the front door. Joey was home from school. He knelt down to play with her for a little bit and then she ran toward the kitchen with Joey following.
"Hi Dad's" Joey said.
"Hi!" he heard in a double reply.
"I haven't fed Mitsy yet," Craig said, "but she's been outside. She didn't race me to the kitchen when she came back inside. Guess she was waiting for you to do the honors."
"That's okay," Joey replied. "Ya hungry girl?" Mitsy was dancing around in front of her dishes. Joey measured the dry food into her bowl, then put it down and washed the water dish while Mitsey gobbled her food down.
"How was your day?" Dale asked Joey.
"Good. We had two pop quizzes, one in math and the other in English. I think I got a 100 on each. Mr. Korte was in a really foul mood today and wouldn't talk to anyone. He didn't even bother to read the names of the people who hadn't logged onto his bulletin board the previous day. Do you think he's found out he's getting canned?" Joey asked.
"Hard to tell," Craig said. "I think if I was in his place and got my walking papers, I wouldn't show up in class again."
"He may have to in order to get paid," Dale said. "He just may realize that there are going to be big changes made in the Computer Lab set up and he's not qualified to teach the new technology either."
"Ain't that the truth!"? Joey replied. Craig was nodding his head yes.
Dale couldn't wait to tell the good news. He started smiling and Craig and Joey both noticed the 1000-watt grin. "Oh boy, we're gonna get it," Craig laughed. "Look at your other dad's smile."
"What.?" Joey started to ask.
"Are you guys ready to become farmers?" Dale asked, his grin getting even wider.
"We got the land?" Craig asked, clearly excited.
"At least part of it. We got the old Darrington property for $15 thousand. Leland made an offer of $38,500 for the other place and he thinks the owners will probably accept it, but maybe not right away.
"That gives us the place to build our house. If we can get the other place later, that's great. If not, it wasn't meant to be," Craig said.
"Neato!" was Joey's reply. The three men pulled themselves into a group hug.
"How soon will we start building the new house?" Joey wanted to know.
"We have to get the plans completed first, then find a contractor to build it. It will be at least the end of February before anything happens as far as digging a hole," Craig said. "But, now we know where it's going to be will let me work out the details of things we've discussed. At least the area where the house is going to go is large so we don't have the constraints of a city lot to work with. The big thing will be to figure out how to build a driveway and where it will have to be. That's a pretty good climb from the road."
"That's right," agreed Dale. We've got to get building materials up there, as well as cement trucks."
"Let's have a drink to celebrate and talk about this some more," Craig said, "then if I can get you and Joey to help me in the kitchen, we'll get dinner underway."
"What are we going to have, Mom?" Joey teased, causing Dale to laugh. Every time Joey called Craig "Mom" he thought of him being dressed as Cinderella for the Halloween party.
Your grandmother gave me her recipe for chicken breasts baked in mushrooms sauce with wild rice," Craig said. "I need to see if I can make any sense out of it," he teased.
Actually all three were becoming very proficient in the kitchen. At least one of them always helped Doris in the kitchen when they were invited to Craig's parents home for a meal. Doris was an excellent instructor and along with the cooking course at Wyler's, both Dale and Craig were doing very well.
"That's easy to do," Joey told him. "Have you boned the chicken breasts yet?"
"Yeah, that's done and I saved the bones for chicken stock, too," Craig proudly replied.
"That's the hardest part of putting the dish together," Joey told them. Both agreed with him. They were starting to work well together as a kitchen team and Craig planned to replicate this kitchen in the new house, maybe making it a little larger.
Craig fixed Beefeater martinis for himself and Dale, along with a ginger ale for Joey. He carried the drinks to the kitchen. Dale was snapping green beans and Joey was slicing the mushrooms that Craig had already washed and dried.
After they "cheered" each other, Dale said "I don't think I've been so excited since I found out that your other dad was gay," causing all three of them to laugh.
Craig put his hands on his hips. "I want to know, did I get first place or did the farm get that honor?" That added more laughter.
"You have that honor and always will," Dale said, turning around to give Craig a tonsil-swabbing kiss. Joey was looking on, fascinated. He loved his dads and was grateful they loved him back. "Come on, dads. Get a room!" he giggled. Actually he wondered how a kiss like that felt. He could feel himself getting a little hard.
When Dale and Craig pulled apart, it was obvious they were more than just a little hard.
The banter about the day's activities continued as they set about their tasks of getting dinner ready.
Joey talked about the student council meeting and that his idea of "safe zones" had their attention. He was invited to give a more detailed report at the next meeting and Mrs. Chilton, one of the freshman advisors, was going to work with Joey as she had had some experience with this in another school. She wanted to put a good presentation together to take to the school administration. In addition, two other members of the student council would be joining the planning group.
Craig's report was that they were finally ready to break ground on Warren Collins new shopping area. He was hoping that Ray Evans' company would build the buildings, but they had declined to bid as they had too much work and their crews were spread too thin to consider the project. Ray had been most apologetic, as he hated to turn down business. But the warehouse/distribution center between Williamsport and Austin was under way and it was taking a lot of effort to keep the project on time.
"I hope they will be in a place where they can consider bidding on our new home when the time comes," Craig said.
Dale agreed, and then added, "What about being our own contractor and sub-contracting everything out to the best bid?"
"I've thought about that. Certainly with Don's help we could probably do that. After all, I'm drawing the plans and know what has to be done and in what order," Craig told them.
"Couldn't we save some money by doing that?" Dale questioned.
"Sure, probably even about 25%. We don't have to worry about making a profit, just keeping the contractors on course and making sure they are following the plans. The most important thing is keeping everyone on schedule, as some things have to be accomplished right along with a task that belongs to another contractor. Can't have one sitting around waiting for the other to finish up," Craig replied.
"Didn't that John fellow quit the Bar-W and go to work for Ray?" Joey questioned.
"Yes, and he's doing quite well. He stopped at the ranch the other day to thank me for encouraging him to leave that job and work for Ray. He said that he loves the work and everyone in the company has been very helpful in sharing knowledge and making sure he understands his new job. Actually, except for working with a couple of the crews the first two weeks, his main job has been going from site to site, checking progress, making sure material is being delivered on time and troubleshooting problems," Dale said.
"That's great, how are the other two working out? Aren't they living in that new house by themselves?" Joey asked.
"They are living in the house and seem to be doing their jobs well. We've shut down any fieldwork until sometime in February, so they have been cleaning and repairing all of the machinery. We'll have a mechanic from John Deere come out in a couple of weeks to go over the tractors and make sure they are ready to run when we start using them again. With four tractors, it's easier to have their mobile service truck come out here rather than drive them to the dealer's shop," Dale told them.
"Are you going to hire more people to work in the fields?" Craig questioned.
Dale replied, "Yeah, I'll probably need two to start before the first of March and at least one more a little later. With the additional land Marty bought we'll have more crops to take care of. Most of the movement of cattle and horses has taken place, but there are still several herds to move to new areas and thatthe land where they've been will have to be plowed and put into crops.
"I'd like to work out there for a little while, just so I could learn something about farming - since we're all going to be farmers," Joey grinned. "Don't forget that a couple of my friends from Houston want to come visit and want to see the ranch, too."
"Joey, I wouldn't mind having you work out there, but I'm afraid that you are going to spread yourself too thin with all of your activities. I realize that school will be out right after the end of May, but you need to decide about working at the store and working on the ranch. You still have four more summers until college beckons and you may even want to take A/P classes some of those summers, too," Dale told him.
Craig was standing there, nodding his head in agreement. "He needs to have some time for fun because he's only going to be a teen-ager once."
"That's right" Dale told them. In my case, I had to work to help out at home, especially after my mother became ill. Although I have no regrets about it, I did miss out on some activities that would have been fun."
"I know," Joey said. "Like Forrest. He pretty much has to support himself, although he gets a little money from Social Security every month because his folks were killed in an accident."
"Forrest is doing really well at the store. Dad's glad he hired him. We'll see to it that he goes to college, but don't tell him that. He'll be better off not knowing about that until the time gets closer and as smart as he is, he may get enough scholarship help to make it on his own," Craig told them.
Ray led the way upstairs to his loft bedroom. John was admiring his tight buns. It was easy to tell that like his own, Ray's tight, muscled body came from hard work, rather than from working out in a gym. They were standing next to the bed and Ray was pulling the cover and top sheet down. Bob men were extremely horny. Ray had never had another man in his bedroom and something was about to happen that he'd only dreamed of happening, the chance to explore another man's body.
John hadn't been with Nolan for about three weeks because of John's new job and Nolan was having to make up for lost time to get his grades up to the point he could finish the semester and not have to take all of his classes over again. Although they talked on the phone every few days, John's hand was his only source of relief.
John started to pull his socks off when Ray stopped him.
"Leave them on. I don't know why, but I find men wearing socks very sexy."
"I do too," John whispered. "Why don't you put some on?"
Ray broke the embrace just long enough to open a drawer and hurriedly pull out a clean pair, bending over and pulling on the white work socks. That seemed to excite each of them even more.
"Lay down on your back," Ray whispered, not realizing that he wasn't speaking out loud. John complied, pulling Ray on top of his body. Their lips found each other again. Ray was wondering why he hadn't had the guts to do something like this with another man before. It had been almost a year since he'd had his last, hurried experience in the men's room at the rest stop south of Williamsport. He'd tried to suck a man off, but in his fear of getting caught, he'd actually just jacked him until he came. The man's cum had blasted all over Ray's shirt. He was scared and left the room without saying anything to the man. All he could think about was getting out of there before someone else came along. After he returned home, he took off his shirt and sucked some of the cold cum from the shirt while he beat off. This was going to be a lot more fun.
Ray and John were a perfect mesh for each other; they could stimulate each other in the right places simply by rubbing together. Although John had experienced this with Nolan, Ray was hairy like himself; although he didn't look that way because his chest hair was lighter in color, not dark like John was. Both enjoyed kissing each other. John had more experience with this than Ray, but he was a quick study.
Ray was attracted to John's un-cut cock. He had seem other boys who were uncircumcised in the locker room in Phys Ed, but he really didn't know how they worked and he was surprised when he pulled the foreskin back that John's cock looked just like his own. The only difference he could see was that the skin was loose on John's cock while he was tight with the skin barely moving when he jacked himself. He loved the way John's cockhead disappeared and reappeared when he stroked him.
Because Ray had read a lot of stories in "Advocate Men" he had more knowledge as to what two men could do to pleasure each other than John. He was anxious to experience some of the things he had read about. He moved himself down John's body, stopping to lick his Adam's apple, which caused John to bounce on the bed. Okay, so this must be one of the erogenous areas he'd read about. He continued on down thru the fur to lick his left nipple. More bouncing on the bed, with a louder "Ummph" from John. While he nibbled on that nipple, he was pinching the one on the right pec. There was a louder noise from John, causing him to sit up and pinch both of Ray's nipples. . It was like a bolt of lightning had hit him and Ray could feel his cock belching some precum.
The men were rubbing each other, making a lot of noise with their 'oohing and ahhing' as new stimulations were tried. John tongued out Ray's navel, causing more bouncing on the bed. This was fun. Finally they settled into a 69 position, Ray devouring John's big cock as far as he could.
"Hey, watch the teeth," John gasped. It felt wonderful, but Ray's teeth hurt.
"Sorry," Ray said, pulling off briefly before swallowing again.
John reciprocated with the action Ray was performing on him.
Hardly any time had passed until both could feel their organism approaching. That just stimulated them on to a greater desire to give the other the best blowjob ever. For Ray, this would be the first time someone had sucked him to organism. John had a little more experience, but he could tell that Ray was really "into this" as he prepared to blow his load down his throat.
John's first torpedo of semen felt like it was blowing the back of Ray's mouth open, but he bravely accepted the gift, moving back up John's cock so he could taste the next salvo offered. The action caused Ray to erupt into John's mouth, where John greedily sought his load. They kept the other's cock in their mouths, gently coaxing out the remaining semen as their organs relaxed.
Without any thought as to what they were doing, their lips searched for the other and they mixed their rewards in their mouths.
'Wow, so this is what guy sex is about,' Ray thought. He wished he'd had guts to do this 15 years ago when he was in high school.
John came down from his sexual high slowly; savoring the taste of Ray and the feelings they had stirred in the other. Somehow, Ray's eagerness made it the best sex he'd experienced. He wanted to do this again.
Ray had the same feelings, but all of a sudden he was hungry and that reminded him of why John was at his house to begin with.
Kissing one more time, Ray said, "How 'bout we raid the kitchen. I invited you over here for some food. We've had the appetizer and main course, but how 'bout some real beef and then we try this again?" Ray said with a leer.
"I'm with you. That was fantastic," John agreed.
"Our clothes are downstairs," Ray said. "How 'bout we just put on our boxers and I'll start a fire and we can eat in front of the fireplace?"
"Fine with me. What can I do to help?" John asked.
Ray dug a pair of Joe Boxers out of his underwear drawer, putting them on. "Your shorts are downstairs, so why don't you grab them. I'll start the fireplace and grill, then you can help me put the salad together and get the burgers ready to cook."
"Okay." John was glad Ray didn't suggest getting dressed. This would give him a chance to scope out Ray's body. Maybe if he was lucky, they could have a repeat performance.
As they shared the meal, each exchanged sexual history with each other. Both were pleased that the other was somewhat inexperienced. That would give them a chance to slowly explore male sex with each other.
John was concerned because Ray was his boss. He wondered how that would affect his job.
Ray's thoughts were somewhat in the same direction. He hoped that he hadn't ruined their working relationship and decided that he'd better tell his partners, Keith and Andy what had transpired. They knew that Ray was probably gay, as they had discussed it at one point. Keith and his girlfriend lived girlfriend together. Ray thought that Andy seldom dated the same woman more than twice. At the rate he was going, he probably was running out of available women.
Dinner conversation was quiet. Both men were eyeing each other and liked what they saw. Ray was wondering how to proceed in this relationship, should there be one. He hoped so.
John felt more sexually fulfilled than with either Nolan or Michael. Maybe it was Ray's maturity that tweaked his libido. 'To hell with me working for Ray,' John thought. 'I'd gladly quit and go back to the Bar-W Ranch, if Dale would have me, just so I could see Ray again.'
Ray was thinking somewhat the same thoughts. He hoped that allowing his dick to do his thinking wouldn't totally fuck up their relationship. If John got annoyed about something, he could easily hold it over Ray's head and cause problems as an employee. He would have to proceed with caution, but wanted John to be part of his life. His thoughts were twisted.
After they finished the delicious burgers and salads in front of the fireplace, they were sitting on the floor in front of the loveseat. The two beers they drank with the meal relaxed them even more. The heat from the fire felt good on their mostly bare skin as all they were wearing were boxer shorts and the socks.
Ray felt compelled to ask, "Are you okay with what we did earlier?"
"Oh yeah," John answered. "I've been wishing. but I was scared. You're my boss and." John trailed off.
Ray leaned over so they could mesh lips. After a deep kiss they pulled apart.
"I know. I wanted this to happen, too, but I don't want this to ruin our relationship at work. I'd like to see you again. The sex was great and I'm happier than I've ever been. Before I was scared to death about my sexuality, but I feel great about what happened earlier."
They exchanged another kiss.
"Do you want to spend the night?" Ray asked.
"Oh yeah," John eagerly answered, leaning in for another tonsil-swabbing kiss.
John helped Ray put things away in the kitchen, rinse dishes and load the dishwasher. The two gathered John's clothes from the living room and carried them upstairs.
Author's Note: Thanks for all the emails you sent after the release of Book II, Chapter 3. I did not get all of them answered, as some of you have found out. However, I have to point out that I am no longer with AOL as an ISP. Two people sent emails containing a virus that trashed my computer and erased files and sent a lot of emails that I didn't send. I was lucky that I had just backed up the sub-directory a day or two prior to receiving those files, but I lost some programs and other data that I can't replace..
I finally got fed up with AOL. They pulled the plug on me sometime back when I sent a notification note to readers advising them of a new chapter. Too many came back because email addresses had been changed and then one person reported that I was sending unwanted SPAM. AOL finally relented and allowed me back on line, but with the warning that if it happened again, they would shut down both my primary and secondary emails. After I ordered new service, they didn't shut my account down and didn't tell me it was still open.
My special thanks for proofreading help to Paul Daventon ("Dukes of Windsor"), who has taken time to help me catch obvious errors.
Chapters 5 and 6 are well along toward completion and will be posted soon.
Any comments are appreciated and you can reach me at TulsaAuthor@hotmail.com.
Thanks, David.