This is a fictional story dealing with love and consensual sexual activities between males. If you are not of legal age, reside in an area where viewing such material is illegal, or are offended by homosexuality and/or homosexual themes, leave this site now. The author retains all rights to this story. No reproductions or links to other sites are allowed without the permission of the author.
Sorry to keep everyone waiting. I was having a bit trouble getting the storyline in my head. I hope that chapter four will not take as long. Hope you enjoy, and as always send any feedback to: panprince83@gmail.com
Evan D
The Richest Things In Life Chapter 3
When Alex arrived at the home he grew up in, he sighed. He never understood why five people needed such a large place to live. It was two stories high and approximately 9000 square feet. The entire compound sat on 210 acres with an eight-foot tall brick wall surrounding it. There were four buildings: the main house, the servants' quarters, the eight-car garage, and a guest house that Mark had moved into recently with his latest girlfriend, Amber Lester.
"Hey, Alex, long time no see." George, the guard in the gate house stated.
"Yeah, I know. I figured it was about time to grace you guys with my presence," he laughed.
George smiled and opened up the gate. The driveway took about five minutes to get to the parking area next to the garages. Sam's Porsche Cayman, Ginger's BMW M5, Mark's Lamborghini Gallardo, Courtney's Jaguar XKR as well as the family limousine sat inside. Sam also had a Cadillac Escalade ESV at his office, and Mark's Range Rover was in the parking garage at LAX while he was in Europe.
Alex parked his MDX and headed in through the back entrance to the kitchen. He saw Edna cooking his favorite meal, Chicken Fettuccine Alfredo. He slowly snuck up behind her and put his hand around her eyes.
"Alexander Logan Tigard! You're going to give an old lady a heart attack sneaking up on her like that.
Alex sheepishly let his hand go. She turned around and smiled, then outstretched her arms to hug him.
"Oh, Edna, you didn't have to cook my favorite meal."
"Of course I did. Maybe it will coax you into coming up here more often. Things just aren't as bright and cheerful when you're not around."
"Oh, stop that," he stated modestly.
"Seriously, Alex, even your father is less of an asshole when you're around."
"I'm not so sure that will be the case in the near future," he thought to himself.
He laughed at her statement.
"I didn't know that was possible, Edna."
"Yes, it is, dear. Now let me finish up here, and we'll catch up after dinner."
"Yes, ma'am."
Alex headed into the dining hall next. The dining table comfortably sat about 20 people, and a 50-pound chandelier hung over the center. There were several display cases with dishes from around the world, many of them made specially for Ginger.
Next, he headed to the library, where he knew he would find his sister. As usual, she was typing away at her laptop.
"Hey, baby bro. It's good to see you again."
"Back at ya, sis. How have things been going with you?"
"Oh, not too badly; been real busy at the office."
"That's a good thing, right?"
"You would think, but I do kind of miss having a personal life."
"Well, once you get yourself more established and get more help around the office, you'll be able to take a break. Besides, you work too hard."
"I know. But it seems all I find are gold diggers, or they're intimidated by our family name. It messes with their manhood, thinking I'm so powerful or something. I'm okay with it though."
"Yeah, understandable, one of these days I hope to find somebody, too," Alex said carefully. "I've still got a lot of life ahead of me."
Courtney looked like she wanted to say something, but she didn't. "Does she know?" Alex asked himself.
She just smiled. "I know you'll find someone special, little brother, and you never know--it may be sooner than you think."
"Yeah, maybe." He stated thinking of Garrett's smile. "Well, I best go say 'hi' to mother before dinner is ready."
"Okay, Alex, see you then."
He headed out of the library into the great room packed with all kinds of collectibles and furniture purchased in foreign lands. There was a fireplace on either side, and it continued to the back patio. The back wall was entirely made of glass with two doors also glass in the middle between the two doors. There was a large fountain with a statue of his maternal grandfather, Reginald Benson, who had built the home after his success in the banking business.
As he had expected, Ginger Tigard, was lying next to the pool with her top on, thankfully for Alex. The pool boy was applying more oil to her body as Alex approached.
"That's enough, Juan, run along now." She stated dryly. The boy looked barely 18, and Alex could tell he could understand very little English. "You have visitor, señora," he stated, proving Alex right."
"Oh, Alex, honey, It's so good to see you. Have you been taking care of yourself?"
"Yes, mom, of course. I've been keeping busy with my charity work and everything."
"Well, dear, we've all missed you and glad that you decided to come visit. I heard Edna was making your favorite."
"Yes, I saw that when I arrived. She spoils me," he joked.
"Well, it's okay to get spoiled every now and again," she smiled.
"So, how have you been, mom?"
"Oh, I've been splendid. There hasn't been many social gatherings lately, so I've been relaxing most of the time. I've maxed out the teacup collection. I was thinking about taking a painting class. Your father is never home anymore to entertain me."
"Courtney told me he's been living at the office lately."
"Yes. He's been working a lot of cases lately keeping those slutty party girls out of jail. Besides he's hired a legal secretary who apparently is servicing his needs."
"Mother, I don't even want to think about that. But seriously, you're okay with that?"
"Well, it is an assumption after all. It's not like it hasn't happened before though. Besides, Armando over there has been keeping me quite satisfied."
Alex shook his head. He never understood why his parents stayed together. His best guess was that the reason was monetary, and even though his father was quite successful in his legal practice, he had agreed to a prenuptial agreement that would not allow him to touch a cent of Ginger's inheritance if they were to divorce. All Alex knew was that he never wanted a marriage like that. He wanted a marriage built on trust, monogamy, and most of all, love. He was still a bit young to truly know what love was, but one thing he knew was that when he looked at Garrett earlier that day, he saw into his soul, as if there was already a bond present between them. He really hoped that Garrett felt the same way, but he knew that time could only tell, as far as that went.
"Well, I'm glad you're keeping yourself entertained, mom. So, is dad coming home tonight?"
"George phoned me earlier and told me your father was planning on entertaining his clients for dinner tonight, then returning to the office to finish up paperwork."
Alex sighed with relief. He knew he would have to face his father sooner or later, but he was hoping to have a look around his father's study that evening. After all, he could get lucky and get some answers.
Dinner went without a hitch. Alex tuned out his mother's stories and just kept to himself the whole time. Afterward, he thanked Edna for the meal and stated to everyone he was going to gather a few things from his old bedroom before he headed home. Courtney hugged him and headed to the west wing where her bedroom suite was located. He then hugged his mother, before she headed to her liquor cabinet and turned in for the evening.
He headed back to the kitchen to talk with Edna.
"Hey, sweetie, how have you been doing?."
"Quite well, Edna. Keeping myself busy with the non-profit and catching up on my tan. I would like to do something more, though. I will probably be needing an income soon. The trust fund won't last forever."
"Honey, you don't have to worry about that. Your parents still give you your monthly allowance, and you can keep using your time to help those in need.
"Well, Edna, I have to prepare for having to fend for myself at some point. It seems like that may be the wise thing to do."
"Oh my gosh, Alex. Do they know?"
Edna had been like a mother to Alex. She had practically raised him and siblings while his parents were too busy being socialites. So, it was inevitable that she would find out he liked the boys. A few years earlier before Alex bought his own place, Edna was cleaning his room and discovered his porn stash under the bed. When she confronted him about it, he was scared shitless. Edna just smiled and told him she loved him and only confronted him about it, because she wanted him to know that she was there for him and wouldn't tell a soul. Also, she told him he needed to hide it better, for his mother was known to wander into his room when she was drunk.
"No, not yet. But it's only a matter of time. I can't share too much, but I've found myself in a situation that would not only bring my sexuality out in the open but also will most likely cause a legal situation between dad and me."
"Come on, you have to give me more information than that, Alexander. I raised you better than that."
"I know, Edna, but all I can really say is I made a promise to a family that dad wronged on behalf of one of his clients. I don't know if there's anything I can do about it, but I'm going to try. Don't worry, I won't keep you out of the loop for long."
"You better not. I understand what you're saying, Alex. If that's what you have to consider, then I would suggest going back to school and looking into social work or behavioral science. It doesn't pay much, but I know you would love it."
"Believe or not, that's what I've actually had in mind."
"Okay, dear, well, I need to clean up. I hope to see you again soon. You better keep me up to date on things, and visit more often, young man."
"I will, Edna."
After he headed up the stairs in the east wing, he actually did stop by his old bedroom to gather up some of his early logs for his non-profit work he had forgotten when he had moved out. He then headed toward his father's study. He knew that he would not find any of his father's case files or client records there, as they would be kept at the office, but he was hoping there was something that might give him some answers. He milled around for about thirty minutes, until he found his father's financial log books from two years earlier. He decided to take them with him, so he would have more time to look at them. There were a few other documents that looked suspicious which he took with him as well. The last thing he found was a collection of his father's datebooks. He found 2007 and turned to July. The items written in for the week in question were in some kind of code that he could not decipher.
"Hmm, that's odd," he thought to himself. He was very curious as to what he would find in the financial records, but he didn't want to risk hanging around too long. Something told him he didn't have much time, even though he was told his father wouldn't be home that evening. He made sure nothing looked out of place before he left the room. As he was leaving, he heard a voice he recognized coming from downstairs. He quickly headed to his old room and hid the things he had taken from the study. He would have to retrieve them later. He headed down the back stairs and hoped he would avoid whom he had heard, but he wouldn't be that lucky.
"Wow, I leave the country for a few weeks, and when I return, I see that 'boy wonder' has graced us with his presence."
"Shut up, Mark!" Alex growled. "I was just about to leave."
"Oh. come on, little brother. Don't you want to visit with Amber and me? We haven't talked in ages."
"No, not especially. I only had enough time to eat dinner and finish some business in my old room. Glad you're home safe, though," he tried to say it like he cared.
"That's fine. We'll have to catch up sometime, though. I really do need to talk to you about some things."
"Whatever," Alex stated. as he headed into the kitchen and out the back door.
His brother pissed him off nearly as much as his parents did. He was an arrogant prick. The twelve-year age difference never helped their relationship either. His brother always treated him like a burden. He never once showed positive attention to him growing up and was embarrassed to be around Alex when his friends were over. After graduating high school, he went straight to Harvard, even though he was only accepted because of his dad's influence. In fact, he barely passed the bar exam. He met his first wife at Harvard, had a kid, divorced after 2 years, and so began the serial monogamy. He didn't have a single thing to do with his six children or their mothers; he just sent the required money every month. Apparently, he had been dating Amber for about three months, though this was Alex's first time to see her. He had noticed, however, that she was not what Mark typically dated. In fact, she looked somewhat familiar, but he figured he had seen her at some social event in the past and left it at that.
Before he could get to his car, he heard her shouting his name. "Alex, I need to talk to you."
He scoffed. "Why?" Then he took a better look at her. "Shit!" he said out loud.
"I see you recognize me now."
He nodded, as he lost most of the color from his face. He had gone to Stanford with her. She was a masters student at the time, he knew, but her best friend was Alex's first boyfriend, Daniel."
"You always said your last name was "Thomas," but I should have known you were lying about it."
"Do you blame me?"
"No, I don't. Don't worry, I haven't said a word. I know enough about your family to have figured out that they have no earthly idea. And if they did, the outcome could be ugly."
"I thank you for that. I know I can't keep it from them forever. You always seemed like a nice girl, and I know you're not the gold digger type, Amber. So I have to ask, 'why my brother?' and 'do you know what the hell you've gotten yourself into?'"
Amber laughed. "Yes, I know about the 3 ex-wives and six kids. And you're right, I'm not a gold digger. I also know you two aren't exactly close, and believe it or not, he has turned over a new leaf. I can't say much else about it, because it's not my place to say, but I think you should give him another chance."
"I hope you're not fooling yourself, but I'll consider it. Not tonight though. I've got a lot of other things on my mind."
"Understandable. Well, it was good seeing you again, and don't worry, I won't say anything to him about you. I'll leave that to you."
"Thanks, Amber. Good seeing you again, too. Have a good night."
He got into his SUV and drove off.
He arrived at his beach house off of Escondido Beach Road around nine p.m. He was a bit disappointed that he had had to come home empty-handed and that his stupid brother had interfered with his plans and that he would have to make another trip up there soon. He decided to call Garrett.
"Hello."
"Hi, Garrett."
"Alex, it's good to hear from you. Did you find anything out?"
"Possibly. I have a few leads, but I'll keep working on it."
"No rush. I appreciate anything you can do. But, anyways, it was great meeting you today."
"Likewise."
Alex hesitated a moment, cogitating to himself, "Should I ask him out? He makes me so nervous. I can't believe I even called him. Maybe it was too soon. I don't even know if he's gay. I won't know unless I ask."
"Alex, are you still there?"
"Oh, I'm sorry. I was thinking for a moment. Um...I was wondering if you would...um...like to hang out tomorrow."
He couldn't bring himself to officially ask him out. He decided he couldn't be too forward. He definitely had to see him the next day, though.
Garrett didn't hesitate to answer. "Of course, Alex, that would be wonderful."
"Did I just say that a little too enthusiastically?" Garrett thought to himself. "It's not like he's asking me out on a date or anything."
"That's great then. How about I come pick you around ten, and we can just spend some time getting to know each other?"
"Awesome. I'll see you then, Alex."
"Looking forward too it. Sleep well, Garrett."
"You, too. Bye."
"Bye."
Alex found it difficult to sleep that night. His anxiety was running quite high. He knew that he couldn't fall in love instantly, and all these feelings were so new to him. The only time he had feelings that were even remotely close to this were with Daniel. The main reason that their relationship fell apart was the distance between them, when Alex moved back to Malibu, which was about a seven-hour drive. They tried to keep in touch, but Daniel eventually met another guy on campus, for which Alex didn't blame him. His feelings for Garrett were different, though. He just couldn't explain why, and frankly he didn't want to. Finally, after two hours of thoughts spinning in his head, he drifted off to sleep.
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