Those Golden Eyes

Those Golden Eyes 40

Warning! This is a tale about men loving men. If you find this disturbing - click off. If it's unlawful for you to read this - click off. If you under age - good luck if you can get away with it.

This is not a story for getting your rocks off. Just thought I'd let you know, so you won't waste your time if that's what your looking for. Otherwise, I hope you enjoy my writing.

I appreciate feedback and do my best to respond to it all. I may be contacted at: J S.Collection@Verizon.Net

Those Golden Eyes

Once again I'd like to express my appreciation to Dave for his corrections of all my mistakes. If there are any now it's because I added more after he did his magic. Thanks again, Dave. JWS

Chapter 40
Jason identified himself as the son of Clifford Warren at the VA Hospital and was allowed in to see his father. When he entered the room and stopped at the foot of the bed he noticed a woman sitting in the corner reading. She looked up and smiled at him. Jason tentatively smiled back at her thinking she looked familiar, but he could place where he'd seen her. He glanced at the large bloated lump lying in the bed, and shuddered. Three years of hard drinking had taken its toll. He walked up to the head of the bed and studied the sleeping face. He could not believe this ugly thing was his father. Although he had no love for the man he'd still thought he'd been handsome.

He heard rustling behind him and looked around to see the woman standing next to him. "Not a pretty sight, is he?" She commented more than asked." he used to be so go looking.

Jason silently shook his head.

"I'm Janine Smith."

Jason turned and held out his hand. "I'm Jason Warren."

I know who you are, Jason," she said taking his hand in both of hers. "I've watched you grow into to the fine young man you have become. You look so much like your daddy."

Jason looked horrified, turned and looked at the bloated blotched face nested in the white pillow and then looked back at Janine with a frown.

She let out a short snorting laugh. "He's not your daddy. Cliff was injured in the Viet Nam war and couldn't make babies."

Jason stared at her as a myriad of thoughts raced through his head.

"Do you want to hear the whole story?"

Jason nodded.

"Come sit over here," she said, making herself comfortable in one of the arm chairs. "I always told your mother she was doing you a grave injustice by staying with Cliff. You see, she still loved the young man that went off to war. She believed that somewhere in the depths of the bitter man that returned that sweet young man still hid. She never gave up trying to bring him back.

"We used to refer to May and Cliff as Mutt and Jeff. Do you have any idea who they were? No? Well, they were two Sunday comic strip characters. One was tall and the other was short. Just like Cliff and May.

"Anyway, Cliff took it into his mind that May should have a child. She abhorred the thought of having some stranger' seed inside of1 her. So she settled on her best friend from her high school days. He was gay, but for her, he helped her make a baby. And you were the results.

"She never would tell Cliff who the father was. And at first he treated you like his own child. But as you grew into a young boy you looked more and more like your daddy. Cliff had always hated him. And he turned that hate on you.

"I told your mother numerous times she should take you and leave. But she was stuck in a hard place. The house was hers and she loved Cliff. She just couldn't kick him out.

"Cliff wasn't a violent man. But he had a nasty way with words. And I think his words finally killed your mother. She just seemed to wither slowly away. On her death bed she made Cliff promise that he would take care of you until you were eighteen. I guess she figured you would kick him out when the house became legally yours." Janine stopped lost in her thoughts.

Jason studied her. "How is it that I don't remember you?"

"Well, honey, I stayed away. I'm the sort that just can't hold my tongue. I say what I think. Cliff and I had some real battles over how he treated you. And finally your mother couldn't take it any more and asked me to not come around anymore. We still got together, May and I, once in awhile. We were still friends up to the day she died. I was at her funeral. You wouldn't have noticed me. I hung back with the rest of the crowd.

"So how come you and him...." Jason could no longer bring himself to refer to him as his father. "How is it you are with him?"

"Well, I ran into him one night in a bar. The old Cliff would show himself sometimes when he was drinking. I loved the man he once was, too. Just like your mom. He asked me to move in with him. I was on hard times, so I did. After he started drinking so much, he lost his job. If it hadn't been for your generosity and his little government pension, he'd have been living in an alley somewhere.

"So I took care of him. Cooked and kept the house clean. Worked what odd jobs I could find. Don't know what I'll do now."

"You don't have to move out just because he is dying. Stay there."

"I couldn't afford the rent on a place like that."

"I didn't say anything about rent. I'll see my lawyer and have him set it up so you can live there as long as you want. I don't need the money from that house. It only has bad memories for me."

Janine clasped her hands tightly in her lap. Her head was bowed, and tears splashed unheeded on her hands. "I don't know what to say. But you're too generous."

"Don't say anything. Just accept it."

"I can at least pay the utilities. I make enough cleaning houses that I can do that."

"If you insist. Do you have enough houses to work full time?"

"No, I only work about three days a week."

"Can you add another house to your schedule?"

Janine looked up at him. "You mean your house, where you live? I'd clean it for free."

Jason laughed. "I don't think so. You see, there are five of us living there. And those guys don't deserve to not pay."

"Okay, what day would you want me?"

"What ever day best suits you. We all have different schedules. Oh, and Jake works at home. He's a writer."

"You wouldn't mean Jake Shipman. The author of Those Shifting Sands, would you?"

"You've read that book?"

"I read a lot of it aloud to Cliff. He couldn't believe a gay guy wrote it. Of course, knowing Cliff," she laughed, "you know he didn't use the word gay."

"I can imagine. So if you come to clean for us guys you get to meet the man."

"That would be a real bonus."

They sat quietly and looked at each other a minute. Jason looked over at the bed. "How long do they give him?" he asked.

"A week, maybe two," she sighed.

"I guess I should arrange for his burial."

"He's a Vet. They will do it for free."

"I didn't know that."

"Yes, so you don't have to worry your handsome little head over it."

Jason looked at his watch and sighed. "I guess I should be going. I missed two classes already this morning."

"It was good of you to come."

" Well, it was just filial duty. But it was nice meeting you, Janine. You have my number, so when you're ready to work, call me. Like I said, any day is fine."

"Thank you, Jason.

"I"ll stop in to see the lawyer about the house, just to make it legal."

"She smiled and said, "Tell him Janine sends her regards."

"You know him?"

She smile again and looked a little sad. "Yes, I know Mr. Lambert."

"Mm, well, I've gotta go."

"Bye, Jason, and thank you."

~~~

Tim sighed with relief. His parents were back on a plane home. His dad still seemed to be struggling with the fact that Tim was now rich. That seemed to be a bigger problem for him than his being gay had been. Funny thing was that he didn't seem to object at all to flying first class. Tim chuckled recalling how his dad had sat him down and told him to invest his money and not try to spend it all at one time.

One of the first things that Tim and Johnny had done was ask Dave to let his investment advisors handle the investment of the reward money.

Between Johnny and himself he doubted that they had spent more that two or three thousand. Most of that had been on furnishings for the apartment they were living in. Of course when they found their dream home, then they would spend a few more grand, but that still wouldn't put a dent in their bank account, to say nothing of the investments.

~~~~~

Dave received a call late that afternoon from the Hospital Administrator. He was on a first name basis with the man having donated a large amount of money to the hospital.

"Dave, This is Donald Ingrams. It is my understanding that you employ Jim Provost as a nurse."

"Yes, Donald, he is working for the Paolinis actually. He takes care of Joe's Grandfather who is getting up there in age."

"I dislike having to inform you that his license to practice nursing has been revoked."

Dave was quiet for a moment as he digested the information. "This has something to do with Jake Shipman being in the hospital, doesn't it?"

"Yes, Dave it does."

"May I know what he did?"

"Since you're his employer and are a friend of Mr. Shipman's, I believe you need to know." He paused, Dave heard him take a deep breath and let it out. "He used a date rape drug on him."

"Oh my God. That's hard to believe."

"It's true. After we interviewed Mr. Shipman and Mr. Hill to whom Provost confessed the entire thing, he admitted to us that he had done it. Even though he was very contrite and Shipman had forgiven him and is not pressing charges, there is no way the man can be allowed to continue practicing nursing."

"I see."

"I'm sorry, Dave, but those are the facts."

"Well, thank you for telling me."

Dave called Joe and told him of his conversation with Ingrams. Joe immediately left the job site and went to his parent's home to tell them. His dad went back to the little cottage where his father lived and asked him and Jim to please come to the main house.

They were in the middle of a game of chess and the old man complained about the interruption. Joe Sr. went back to the house leaving Jim to walk with the family patriarch.

"I guess we have to get rid of him. He is no longer a registered nurse," Angie said.

"I hate to have to do it. He's the first companion that dad has ever gotten along with. Hell, he treats him like he's his son," Joe Sr. replied. "Dad's going to be upset, that's a certainty."

When Jim entered the living room with the old man he helped him sit, and made sure he was comfortable. They both knew that the time had come, and had come much sooner than either of them had expected. Jim was sorry it had. He loved the old man like the father he'd never had. And now because of his stupidity he was losing him, too.

"Stop fussing." the old man grumbled. Jim straightened up and stood beside him. He looked expectantly at the others.

"Jim, why haven't you informed us that you have lost your nurses licence?" Joe Sr. asked.

"As far as I know, Sir, it's not official yet. I was planning on telling you as soon as I got word that it is."

" Well, we have just gotten word that it is official." Joe said.

"I see." Jim's head was bowed in shame. They had told them before they had told him. They hadn't even given him the chance to tell the family himself. Now he was being terminated without ever having had the chance to quit.

"Would one of you mind telling me what this is all bout?" the old man demanded looking up at Jim. No one but Jim saw him wink. Jim wondered why. The old man knew this moment would be coming, why was he acting like he didn't?

"Dad, Jim has lost his licence to be a nurse. We're going to have to let him go," Joe Sr. said.

"Poppycock."

Jim looked at the old man. He couldn't help but see the fondness for him in his eyes.

Joe Sr. looked at his wife and his son and then back at his father. "Do you know why he lost his license? What choice do we have, Dad?"

"You have the choice of not firing him. Jim told me that he used a date rape drug on his ex boyfriend. He is ashamed of having done it. He is remorseful,"he barked.

"Is that what you want, Dad?" Joe Sr. asked.

"That's what I want. If you fire him, I'll just have to hire him on my own."

"Dad, we would never think of going against your wishes. If you want to keep Jim as your companion we will not object." Joe Sr. looked at Jim. "It looks like you stay."

"Thank you sir. I appreciate that. I love your father as if he were my own dad."

"I know you do. It's very clear in how you two interact."

Old Joe pushed himself up out of the chair and grabbed Jim's arm. "Come on, Jim, we have a game of chess to finish."

~~~~

The old man was chuckling to himself as they left the big house. "You thought I was going to let them fire you, eh? No, my boy, I like having you around." He glanced at Jim. "And don't you dare start kowtowing to me, you hear?"

Jim grinned at him, put his hands together in supplication and bowed several times as he said, "Ah so, Master Joe. Any thing you say, Master Joe. Me no kowtow to you."

Old Joe raised his cane and smacked him across his rump. "Don't get smart with me, you young whipper-snapper."

Jim laughed. "I hadn't heard that name since my grand dad called me that when I was six."

~~~

Joe watched out the kitchen window as his grand dad and Jim wended their way back to the little cottage at the back of the yard. The camaraderie between the two was endearing.

"They are obviously good friends," he said, turning to find his parents watching over his shoulder.

"Well, even though he's not a registered nurse now, he's definitely a good companion for Dad," Joe Sr. said.

"He's never had to act as a nurse yet with Dad. When the time comes we'll just have to hire a nurse, too," Angie stated.

~~~~~

As Jason left the VA Hospital he wondered how Janine knew Mr. Lambert. And then he wondered about how his mom had known a high-powered lawyer like him and could afford his services. He stopped at a light. The image of Mr. Lambert came uncalled into his mind. Jason frowned to himself, looked into the mirror and then shook his head. "No way. That couldn't be," he said aloud.

The things that Janine had told him had left him shaken. He had always wondered why he held no resemblance to his father, not in looks and certainly not in stature. Yet his image in the mirror and the mental image of Mr. Lambert superimposed over it left him shaken.

When he got back to the house he didn't feel like going to class and paying attention to a lecture. He wandered into the kitchen and got a bottle of Coke out of the fridge, and then went to see if anyone was home. He stopped at the opened door to Jake's office and saw him typing away on his keyboard. He leaned against the jam and just admired his big buddy. He was so sexy, Jason thought, but he didn't really think of him in a sexual way. They were buddies and they each had a man they were in love with.

Jake paused in his typing and looked up. When he saw Jason he grinned. "How long have you been standing there?" he asked.

"Just a couple of minutes."

"Why didn't you say something?"

"Didn't want to interrupt you train of thought."

Jake stretched, his arms above his head, his legs out straight under the desk and his butt barely on the edge of his chair. "So how was the visit?"

Jason found himself distracted watching Jake. He was so cat-like. He sighed as he brought his attention back to what they were talking about as he hesitantly walked into the room. "Interesting. I learned some significant things this morning."

Jake waited; he could tell that his little bro had been deeply affected by whatever it was he'd learned. "He's not my real father."

"Really?"

"The woman he was living with was a friend of my mom." Jason then told the whole story to Jake. "You want to know something funny?"

Jake just looked at him.

"I think I know who my real father is."

They were interrupted at that moment by Pete coming in the house and yelling for Jason.

"I'm in Jake's office," Jason yelled back.

Pete came rushing in with a sheaf of papers in his hand. "Jason, I know I went behind your back, but I wanted to be sure before I told you." He noticed that Jake was sitting at his desk. "Oh, hi, Jake." Jake grinned and nodded. Pete turned back to Jason. "I hope you're not going to be upset." He paused, out of breath.

"I promise not to get upset. What did you do?" Pete looked so happy along with looking apprehensive that Jason figured it had to be something good.

"Well, I.... you know how they can tell if someone is related by using DNA?"

Jason nodded. "That's why you took the sucker stick from Mr. Lambert's desk."

"You saw me?"

"Yeah, but I had forgotten about it until now."

"You look so much like Mr. Lambert. And he kept addressing you as son rather than Jason. I'd recently been talking to Tim about his Forensics class where they are studying how DNA can identify family ties and I thought that it would be fantastic if he could use that to prove it." He paused for a breath and looked at Jason. "So you suspected the same thing I did?"

"Not until this morning when I met the woman living with my father when I went to visit him at the VA Hospital. She told me he's not really my dad."

"So you put things together like I did?"

Jake couldn't take any more. "Would you two just get it out. Is Mr. Lambert Jason's dad or not?"

They both turned and looked at him.

"How did you know?" Jason asked.

Jake laughed. "This is like listening to a cheap dime store mystery novel. Let me see if I can put the pieces together. Tim is taking a class on forensic sciences which includes the study of DNA. Pete took the stick form Mr. Lambert's desk and I would suspect a sample of your DNA," he said to Jason, "and gave it to Tim. Am I correct?"

Pete just nodded. Jason raised his eyebrows, staring at Pete. "How did you get my DNA sample?"

Pete blushed and mumbled, "From the cum I wiped off of your chest and belly that night."

Jason took a turn at blushing. "You are sneaky, Pete."

Jake decided it was time to take their minds off their embarrassment. "Are those papers the results of the DNA tests?" he asked. "I'll bet they show that this Mr. Lambert is Jason's biological father."

"Is that true, Pete?" Jason asked.

Pete swallowed hard, and nodded. Jason grabbed the papers from his hand. He leafed through them not understanding all the technical mumbo jumbo. He stopped at the last page. In clear precise words it stated Sample A was closely related to Sample B.

Jason looked up at Pete. "That's why he kept calling me son. I am his son."

"So you're not angry?"

"No, why should I be angry?"

"I went behind your back to do this."

"And you did it because you love me, yes?"

"You know I do, Jason. And I would love for you to have a dad that loves you and that is proud of you for what you are. And Mr. Lambert seems to be the man. He acted like he was so proud of you, and the way he said son just had so much love in it, I figured I couldn't be wrong." Pete ran out of words and just looked at Jason hoping he understood.

Jason stood there looking back at Pete for several moments. The emotions he was feeling toward his lover were overpowering his ability to move. Finally he embraced him and buried his face in Pete's chest

" I love you for doing this, Pete," he mumbled.

Pete just grinned like he'd been given the best of prizes and held his little man tightly against his body.

"And I just love living in this house with you guys," Jake said, grinning at the two younger fellows.

"Come on, Jase, let's go upstairs where we can have some privacy." He winked at Jake as they left the room.

~~~

Jason kept putting off making an appointment with Fred Lambert, who had been his mother's lawyer, and who had becomes his. Pete finally took matters into hand and made an appointment for Jason and told him he'd better not break it. Jason was thankful and at the same time scared to face the man he was certain was his biological father.

"What exactly are you afraid of?" Pete wanted to know.

"I don't Know. What if he doesn't want to admit it? What if he rejects me?"

"And what if he does want to accept you as his son?"

"Do you think he will?"

"Jason, stop and think. What did he call you several times, the last time you saw him?"

"Jason?"

"He called you Son. It was like he was subconsciously accepting you even then."

"Do you really think so?"

"Keep the appointment and find out.

~~~

Fred Lambert opened his office door to personally ask his next client in. "Good Morning, Jason."

"Good Morning, Sir." Jason stepped up and shook his proffered hand.

"Come on in. Have a seat." He closed the door and followed Jason. He sat on the corner of his desk with one leg on the floor. "What can I help you with this morning, Son?"

Jason explained about wanting to let Janine live in his house rent free, but that he felt there should be some kind of legal papers for the agreement.

"Well, this is a rather unusual situation, but I don't see any problem with it. I'll draw the papers up and send them to you. You just get Ms. Smith to sign them and send one copy back to me."

Jason hadn't used Janine's last name in his explanation. "Mr. Lambert, do you know Janine?"

Fred smiled. "Yes, your mother, Janine, Cliff and I were all school mates all the way through high school."

"She asked me to give you her regards. And you're my biological father, aren't you?" Jason blurted out and then held his breath. He hadn't figured any other way of broaching the subject.

Fred blinked. "Janine told you."

"No. She only said that Cliff is not my father. This told me," he said, standing up and handing the DNA papers to him. "Pete suspected it when he saw you and me together. He took a lollipop stick off your desk as we were leaving."

Fred nodded, noted what the papers were and laid them on the desk. "I wanted to tell you then, Son, but I didn't know how you would accept it."

Jason's heart bounded. "I don't know you, but you're a nice man. I wouldn't mind claiming you as my father."

Fred grinned and held out his arms to Jason. "And I wouldn't mind claiming you as my son. And I'd love to get to know you better, and Pete."

Jason walked into his embrace and hugged him back. When Fred let go of him Jason stepped back.

"So are you married? Do you have a family?"

"Yes, and yes. You have a sister and two little brothers."

"Geez, I never ever imagined that I would have that."

"Would you like to meet them?"

Jason ducked his head. "I would but, wouldn't your wife resent me? I mean she's...." Jason stood up and paced across the room and turned to face the man that he now knew to be his biological father. "She's not my mother."

"Liz knew about you before we were married. No, she wouldn't resent you. Actually, I think she just might want to adopt you. She's seen you a couple of times while you were growing up. I think the last time was at your mother's funeral."

"You were at my mom's funeral?" He turned and walked back over to the desk.

"Of course we were. I couldn't let your mom go without saying good bye. We were always good friends despite her marrying Cliff."

"Wow, there is so much I didn't know about my mom's life."

"I've got some wonderful stories I could share with you."

"Even if I am grown, I think I'm going to enjoy having you as my father. So what do I call you?"

"How about Fred? Or I'd be proud if you called me Dad."

"Thanks, Dad." Jason grinned. Fred stood and held his arms out and welcomed Jason into another hug.

"You're welcome, Son. I love you."

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