Tales from the Ranch

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 2002 by Tulsa Driller 7. 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 world.

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 the read the last chapter of this story.

Tales from the Ranch Chapter 22: Is Everybody Sexy?

The campfire at the Boy Scout campground was starting to burn down to coals. It was 10 p.m. and time for the young men to at least be in their tents, whether they were actually asleep or not.

Following the custom of that Boy Scout Troop, they ended the evening with the singing with two songs, "We Are Climbing Jacob's Ladder" and "God Be With You `Till We Meet Again" followed by a trumpet player blowing Taps in the distance. Jason thought it was the most beautiful, mournful sound he'd ever heard.

The boys started making their way to their tents with a couple of the Patrol Leaders and one of the Assistant Scoutmasters making sure the fire wouldn't cause any danger to the area around it.

Jason and Dustin Fields made their way to the tent they would be sharing with Scott Maxwell. They had already set up their cots and rolled out their sleeping bags after the tent was set up. Dustin had a large flashlight in addition to the Coleman lantern he was carrying. He hung the lantern on a hook at the top of the tent frame and secured it so it wouldn't fall.

About that time Scott arrived and secured the tent flaps behind him. "Did anybody else bring anything to eat?" he questioned. "I've got some Oreo's"

"I brought some homemade chocolate chip cookies that Mrs. Wood made," Jason said.

"And I have some peanut clusters," Dustin added.

"All right," Scott said. "Is everybody willing to share?"

"Sure," the other two echoed each other.

"We have to save some for tomorrow and tomorrow night. It wouldn't do to run out," Scott said.

Jason was glad he had repacked his backpack, as he wouldn't have had room for the tin of cookies Mrs. Wood had given him.

As he opened the box, Scott asked, "Who's Mrs. Wood?"

"She lives with us and does most of the cooking, cleaning and laundry," Jason said proudly. "She's a really neat person. Kinda like having another grandmother."

"Must be nice to have a maid to pick your stuff and take care of you," Dustin said.

Jason was immediately on the defensive. "She doesn't pick up after us and if she thinks Kevin and I get too messy, she tells us about it. Then if she's still not satisfied, our parents hear about it, but mostly we take care of our room without her having to tell us."

"You mean you live in that big house and have to share a room with your little brother?" Scott asked, helping himself to another one of the delicious cookies.

"It's not just a room we share. We have a sitting area with a TV and easy chairs where our desks are, and then we each have our own bed in the other room. And we have a big closet and bathroom we share."

"Sounds like a palace to me," Scott said.

"Must be nice to be rich and have all that," Dustin added.

Jason was getting a little annoyed. These fellows were accusing him of being rich and pampered and having someone to clean up after him.

"It's not like you think it is. We have to do our farm chores, gather eggs, milk the cow, feed the horses and sometimes mow the yard, too."

"Oh, poor little rich baby." Dustin started to say when Scott interrupted him.

"That's enough, Dustin. Sounds to me like Jason has to help around his place just like you and I do, too. Jason, I'm sorry. We weren't trying to put you down, it's just that you probably have more than the rest of us do."

"Yeah," Dustin chimed in. "How big is that `farm' anyway?"

Jason had to think for a minute. "I think it's about 17,000 acres. Why?"

"Just wondered. It's hardly a farm," Dustin said.

"It's called the Bar-W Ranch, but it's really just a big farm. We raise cattle and horses and sell trees and we raise a lot of crops and there's some oil wells, too."

"I had no idea it was that big of an operation," Scott said, offering the other two some Oreo's from his sack.

Dustin had some quick math in his head. "That's almost 27 square miles. Wow, I had no idea. That's gotta be worth millions!" He finally was impressed. "And you seem just like a normal kid instead of some rich snob," he added.

"Thanks - I think," Jason laughed.

"Hey Dusty, how `bout sharing some of your peanut clusters?" Scott asked.

"Sure," he said, handing the plastic bag around."

"These are good," Jason said. "Did your mom make them?"

"Nah, they came from the grocery store. We don't have anybody at our house to bake cookies for me," he giggled.

"And. the Oreo's came from the grocery store, too," Scott added.

The three of them thought that was funny and began to relax.

Scott said, "Jason, since you are new to the troop, we need to get you started working on your Tenderfoot rank and also to start earning merit badges. We need to find out what skills you need help with. They are going to work with those of you who need to learn to tie knots tomorrow morning. Then there will be a listing of merit badges that you can look at and sign up for those you might be interested in. The number of boys signing up and qualified leaders will determine what actually will be available to pursue."

"Dusty, we need to get you started on the first phase of your First Class badge. Mr. Wyatt is going to work with three of you on that tomorrow."

Since it was a warm evening and there was no breeze to speak of, the heat from the lantern was causing it to get a little warm in the tent. Still they didn't want to open the flaps because of mosquitoes. Scott turned the lantern down as low as he could and allow it to still burn. It made a dim light in the tent, but not enough that it cast shadows on the tent walls. No one outside could tell what they might be doing inside the tent.

"Let's get ready for bed so we can turn this light off," Scott said. With that, he pulled off his hiking boots, Levis and t-shirt, leaving just his briefs and socks on.

Dustin and Jason followed, each stripping down to socks and in both cases, boxer shorts.

Jason couldn't help but stare at Scott for a little bit. He had hair under his arms, and a narrow band that ran from the middle of his chest down to his belly button, where it fanned out, then disappeared into his shorts.

Scott noticed that Jason was looking at him. He proudly said, "I've had hair under my arms for about three years, but this just started growing this summer," as he ran his hand from his navel to between his pecs.

Dustin was interested, too, because he had just started growing hair under his arms last spring.

"Neat," Jason told Scott. "I've got a few hairs down above my dick, but nowhere else."

"Let's see," said Dustin, in kind of a "If you'll show me yours, I'll show you mine," dare.

Jason, in an attempt to be a little older and accepted by the other two, proudly pulled his boxers down. Unfortunately, Dustin made a big production of getting out his flashlight and turning it on so he could see the sparse evidence.

Jason was a little irritated and said, "I never said there were very many, I just discovered them last week. Show me yours."

Dustin, since he could best Jason, didn't hesitate either. He pulled his boxers down and had a nice, respectable bush with a few hairs that led up to his belly button. However, his cut dick was hard and was about 5 inches long.

Jason could feel his cock getting hard and starting to stand up. It really had grown in the past couple of months and was about 4 inches long when hard. Dustin was impressed because Jason wasn't circumcised.

Jason was suitably impressed with Scott's bigger cock and hair. He was the oldest boy that Jason had seen undressed. The two young men looked to Scott.

"What? You want to see my dick, too? I've got both of you beat.

He pulled his jockey shorts down to his knees. He had something to be proud of. His cut cock was about 6 inches long and was almost completely hard as it was standing out about 90 degrees from his groin. His balls were large and his groin area was well covered by brown hair, which got thicker as it descended to his pubic region.

Well, that was easy,' Scott thought. I didn't even have to encourage these two to take their shorts off, or promise them anything.'

"Do you guys want to jackoff? I'm horny," Scott said.

"Sure," Dustin said eagerly.

Jason wasn't real sure how this worked, but he was anxious to learn all he could about what men and boys could do with their dicks.

"I'm in, but I can't make any sperm yet. I get the feeling, though."

Dustin was proud of the fact that he'd only recently been able to produce a few dribbles of cum. "I can shoot a little bit, but not as much as my big brother."

They agreed to all sit on Scott's cot and sleeping bag, Jason on his right side and Scott on his left. Scott had been masturbating with his older brother since he was eleven and his brother was twelve years old. If he was lucky, he could get Derek to jerk him while he did the same for Derek, but he didn't always want to do that. But they hadn't ever tried anything beyond mutual masturbation.

The three boys started rubbing themselves and soon Dustin wanted to feel Scott's cock and Scott was only too glad to allow him to explore.

"Put your hand around it and jerk it up and down."

Dustin reached over with his right hand, but the position was awkward, so he turned to where he could use his left hand. Although Scott was circumcised, he had an ample amount of loose skin that would allow long strokes.

"That feels good, Dusty. Tickle my balls, too."

Dustin did as he was told. He was enjoying this. When he'd been on camping trips before, the boys in his tent hadn't done anything like this. He enjoyed making Scott feel good. Although he was in an uncomfortable position, he was able to manipulate his own cock with his right hand.

"Okay," said Scott. "Let's stand up in a circle where we can all do each other."

They stood up, completely shedding their shorts and arranged themselves so they could face each other. This time Jason was able to hold Scott's cock with his right hand, although it wasn't comfortable for either of them. Jason was surprised how heavy Scott's dick felt and that it felt soft even thought it was stiff. He finally started using both hands, one to manipulate his cock and the other to tickle his ball sack and up around his groin.

Dustin, in the meantime got into position where he could give his attention to Jason with his right hand and his own cock with his left.

"Can I kiss you?" Jason asked Scott.

"I don't think I want to do that," he said. "That's for boys and girls to do."

"My brother and I kiss each other when we do this," Dustin said. "We can kiss, if you want to, Jason."

Jason turned his attention to Dustin, leaving Scott standing there by himself, watching the two younger boys. It was erotic to watch them and made his dick even harder than it was. He spit on his hand and used it for lubrication to jack himself off.

Finally his curiosity got the best of him. "Maybe I'd like to try kissing one of you."

Dustin moved toward Scott and their lips met tentatively; Scott wasn't sure what to do. Then Dustin opened his mouth so he could lick around Scott's lips. That's all the lesson Scott needed. He returned the favor, then they soon were exploring the other's mouth.

Jason took over the action Scott was giving his own cock, standing slightly to one side of him. Scott was jacking on Dustin's cock. The stimulation was too much for Scott, who was already hot. Jason felt his dick swell and get harder, but he wasn't sure what was causing it. He could hear Scott's breathing increase and he and Dustin were almost wrestling each other with their mouths.

About that time Scott gave a grunt and started thrusting his pelvis. His cock got really hard and Jason could tell that something was about to happen. He wished it was lighter in the tent so he could see better. About that time Scott started shooting and on the up stroke, Jason got some of his wad on his hand. It was slick and he used it for lubrication, intensifying the pleasure for Scott.

Scott was firing his load on Dustin. He gathered some of the sperm up and used it to make Dusty's dick slick. It had the desired effect as Dustin fired the largest load he had ever produced.

As they came down from their high, Scott realized that Jason hadn't gotten off, so he used some of the cum to do Jason. Dustin and Jason resumed their kissing. It didn't take long to bring Jason to a roaring climax even thought he couldn't produce any sperm.

They stepped away from each other. The inside of the tent smelled strongly of sperm and perspiration.

"Wow!! I didn't know it could be like that. Thanks guys," Scott said.

Jason was very proud of the fact that he was able to make Scott feel so good and he had enjoyed it as much as Scott and Dustin. He tentatively smelled his hand and wasn't sure he liked the somewhat strong smell. He stuck his tongue out and tasted it. It didn't taste as strong as it smelled.

Scott and Dustin were standing there, watching Jason, not believing that he was actually tasting the stuff that had come out of their dicks.

"Gross," said Dusty. "I'm not going to try that."

"It's not that bad," said Jason.

Scott decided to try it. It wasn't as bad as he expected, although he wondered what it might taste like if it were warm. The cum had gotten cold and sticky. He had some wet wipes in his backpack and he gave a couple to each of the others to clean themselves up. The alcohol in the towels seemed to disperse the smell of the cum.

"That was fun," Scott told them. "I don't think it's ever felt better for me before. Thanks, guys."

"Yeah, I think I shot more than I ever had," Dustin added.

"I didn't shoot anything, but you sure made me feel good," Jason said. "I can hardly wait to do it again."

"Hey, guys. This has to be our secret, okay? We don't want the adults to find out or there could be trouble. That guy in New Jersey, James Dale, got kicked out of the Boy Scouts for doing stuff like this. I'm almost an Eagle Scout and I don't want that to happen to me. Are you guys cool with this?" Scott asked.

"Sure," said Dustin. "I don't think this was on the merit badge list, anyway."

Jason laughed at the idea that you could get a merit badge for jacking off.

"I won't tell, but I want to do it again with you guys, okay?" Dustin asked.

"Sure," the other two replied, shaking hands.

Eddie woke up about 7:30 on Saturday morning. He had decided the night before that he was going to skip a day of running. He loved to stay in bed with Tom on Saturday and Sunday mornings, if possible. It was the only days they had for unhurried sex unless there was a school holiday. Otherwise, Eddie got up so he could run for 45 minutes to an hour each morning while Tom slept in.

Ever since the first night they had spent together three years before, they slept tightly spooned together in their queen- size bed. Most of the time they were on Tom's side of the bed and they didn't seem to move around much during the night. They slept on their left sides, with Eddie snuggled behind his somewhat larger lover. Tom loved the feeling of his more muscular lover's slightly hairy chest against his back and his arm around his chest.

As Eddie was coming to, he realized that he had his usual morning hardon and it was lying between Tom's butt cheeks. It felt good to him. He decided to check on Tom and moved his hand down to his groin. Sure enough, his lover was hard, too. Eddie grasped Tom's dick, then massaged his balls. That got the expected reaction he was hoping for. At the same time, he pushed his groin against Tom's butt and kissed his right shoulder, then licked his right ear.

Tom was instantly awake. He loved for this to happen. He turned his head as far to the right as he could so they could kiss.

"Hi sexy," he whispered. "What a way to wake up of a morning."

"I love waking up next to you," Eddie said quietly.

"Mmmm. me, too," Tom said.

By this time they had wiggled around to the point that they could plunge their tongues in each other's mouth. Seldom did they ever have morning breath and the few times they did, it was ignored, as it seemed to go away as soon as they started kissing.

"Let's go pee and we can start a pot of coffee, then come back to bed," Tom said.

They rolled apart and Eddie led the way to their bathroom. Their toilet wasn't placed so they could really pee at the same time, so Eddie went first and brushed his teeth while Tom used the stool. He went on to the kitchen to start the coffee and Tom was right behind him. He retrieved a jug of orange juice from the refrigerator and poured two tall glasses as Eddie switched on the coffee appliance. Tom handed Eddie a glass, all the while admiring his naked lover.

Eddie remembered the package they had received. Taking Tom by the hand, he led him back to the bedroom.

"Get us each a jockstrap," he said with a gleam in his eye as he picked up the package.

Tom complied, standing there with two clean ones in his hand. Eddie took one and slid it on, stuffing his plumped-up cock into the pouch. Tom did the same, eagerly anticipating whatever the box contained.

Eddie, deciding to tease his lover, slowly cut the box open and made a big production of unpacking the contents. There were two plastics sacks inside, each containing a wrestlers singlet, one in gold and the other in a medium red color.

"Hey guy, ya wanna fool around?" he asked, tossing the gold one to Tom.

"Sure," he said, with a smile on his face. He was thinking how much fun this could be.

They each opened the bags and pulled their one-piece garments on. The spandex fit each like a second skin.

Stopping in the kitchen to get the pot of coffee and two mugs, they headed downstairs to their exercise equipment. There was already a wrestling matt on the floor, but their new costumes presented all kinds of possibilities to use to workout in, also.

Pouring each a cup of coffee, they put the pot on a hot plate to keep it hot while they played a new game of collegiate wrestler. Tom didn't know all that much about really being able to wrestle, but this was a new game, not a competition. The possibility of both of them getting sweaty was a big turn on for him.

While sipping their coffee, they were admiring each other. The tight singlets certainly made each of them look buff and muscular. Tom liked the low scoop of the front, which barely covered their pecs and showed off the hair on their chests to full advantage. Both were already feeling their cocks starting to get hard in the confines of their jockstraps.

"These are neat," Tom said. "What gave you the idea?"

"I was over at the high school last week to help referee a wrestling tournament. I thought this might be a way to get some exercise and cop a feel or two, also. Besides, you need the exercise," he teased.

"Since I don't know any of the holds, I'm sure you will take advantage of me," Tom giggled.

"Guess there's one way to find out although you are bigger than me," Eddie laughed, setting his coffee mug down.

Tom followed Eddie to the matt where he received his first instruction in the manly sport of wrestling.

Surprisingly, Tom caught on quickly. Maybe it was because he was about 20 pounds heavier and a couple of inches taller than Eddie, but he was able to learn the moves quickly and managed to pin his lover about as many times as he was pinned himself.

By the end of an hour, they felt they'd had a pretty good workout. The material of the singlets made it easy to slide against the other's body. Each had stayed about half hard during the entire session, and had to adjust their dicks several times as they played. Both were sweaty and that made it even more erotic. In addition to trying different holds on each other, they had also done plenty of kissing and licking of the others body and massaging of cocks through the material and jockstraps.

Finally, they decided to call a halt to their activity.

"That was sexy. Thanks for buying these," Tom said as he started to slip out of his singlet.

"I liked it, too. I think I'll see if I can find a wrestling video for us to watch. I think it might help both of us to really learn how to wrestle."

Eddie started to toss his new costume in the laundry basket.

"Let's don't wash them right away. I like the smell of the sweat."

"Fine with me," Eddie said as he picked up a couple of wire clothes hangers, bending them so the shoulder straps wouldn't slide off. He hung them in the laundry room to dry.

Wearing only their jockstraps, it was very obvious to see that the activity had been "stimulating" to each. Picking up the coffeepot and mugs they went back to the kitchen then headed to their bedroom.

"I need to pee again," Tom said as he started to remove his jock.

"So do I. Don't take your jockstrap off, though."

"Well I'm not going to use it to strain piss," Tom said, a little irritated.

"No, I don't mean that. I meant for you to leave it on when you're through peeing."

Eddie followed Tom and watched as he pulled the pouch aside and hauled out his half-hard dick. Then they traded places.

They ended up back on the bed, rolling around and kissing each other, their cocks getting harder as they played with each other. The pouches of their jockstraps were full and each was starting to leak a little precum. That heightened the erotic feeling for each.

Tom was attracted to Eddie's sweaty body. He couldn't tell you what the attraction was, but he liked the slightly salty clean taste. It was like an aphrodisiac to him, making him even hornier, a feeling which he transferred to Eddie. This morning they couldn't get enough of each other.

Eddie wanted Tom to fuck him. As they were moving over each other's body with their tongues and hands, he reached down and shoved the pouch of Tom's jock to one side so he could fondle his rock-hard cock. He used some of the natural lubricant leaking from the cockhead and spread around the 6 «-inch organ.

"MMmmm." was Tom's reply.

"I want you in me," he said, urgently, rolling onto his back.

That was fine with Tom. Eddie had a hot ass and he knew what to do with it.

There was a tube of KY laying on the nightstand and he picked it up, squeezing out a big dollop, using it to lube Eddie's asshole, and then covered his own cock with the excess. Neither liked to be too slick when doing this as Tom produced a lot of precum when he first entered Eddie. He took a few slow, short strokes and started fucking in earnest.

As he moved toward Eddie, his lover raised his legs to give Tom easier access, then as soon as he was in, Eddie locked his ankles around Tom's back and pulled him even closer and deeper.

Eddie intended for Tom to fuck him, then he was going to return the favor, but it didn't happen that way. He was keyed up enough that when Tom shot his wad up Eddie's ass, he reached his own climax, filling his jockstrap with the product of their love for each other.

Craig and Dale also enjoyed the extra time that Saturday and Sunday gave them when they woke up. Their routine was to go pee, get juice to drink and start the coffeepot. They remained naked and went back to bed to cuddle, kiss and enjoy the other's presence next to them.

They had changed places during the night so when Craig woke up Dale was lying on his back and Craig's head was on his left shoulder, his left arm over Dale's chest. Dale was already awake, although drifting in and out of a conscious state. Craig idly ran his fingers through the hair on his lover's chest, concentrating on his right nipple. This brought Dale to a state of being awake. He leaned his head to kiss Craig on the forehead.

"Hi," Craig said. "Did you sleep well?" He squeezed the nipple.

"I did okay until right now. Are you into sadistic torture or something?" he giggled.

"Aahh. poor baby. I'll have to kiss it and make it well," Craig murmured, rubbing Dale's chest a little harder and toying with the hair, pulling it slightly.

He tilted his head up and wiggled on the bed so their lips could meet. They exchanged a tentative kiss, discovering that their breath was okay, then engaged in a tongue-dueling, tonsil swabbing kiss. That led them into changing positions so Craig was lying on top of Dale, their stiff cocks beside the other. Craig loved to feel Dale's furry body rubbing against his own smooth one.

Although Craig had a fair amount of blond hair on his arms and legs, his chest was smooth except for a trail that started about four inches above his navel and spread downward around it. His groin was well covered with blond hair that thickened as it made its way to a darker blond pubic bush. Then, his ball sack was fairly smooth, hanging beneath his beautiful 6 «-inch cut cock.

Except for his back being pretty smooth, there wasn't much of Dale's body that wasn't covered with brown hair, some of which was pretty thick. This was a big turn-on for Craig and he loved to run his fingers through the fur.

"Before we get too involved in playing around, I really need to go pee," Dale said.

This time it was Craig who got up first and held his hand out to help his lover out of bed. They went to the bathroom together, one peeing while the other brushed his teeth. Then, they went to the kitchen together, Dale getting juice out of the refrigerator while Craig got out a coffee filter and measured water and coffee.

It was so nice not to have to hurry around and they stood in the kitchen drinking their orange juice while waiting for the coffeepot to finish its cycle. Of course, they couldn't keep their hands to themselves and alternately kissed and fondled the other. Finally the coffee was ready to drink. Dale rinsed the glasses, leaving them in the sink while Craig poured two mugs to take back to the bedroom with them.

They sat with their backs against the headboard while enjoying the coffee. It tasted different and Dale questioned Craig about it.

"I stopped at the CoffeeMaker yesterday and picked up four samples of flavored coffee to see if we liked them. This one is called `Hazelnut', do you like it?"

"Oh yeah. I don't think I'd want it everyday, but for special occasions and weekends, it's great."

"I thought so, too. You are right, it's not something I would like every time I drink coffee," Craig replied.

They were enjoying relaxing together. For both it just felt natural that they were together. It was almost like they had always known each other and were proud to be each other's lover.

"We should be able to call about 8:30 to see if your new clothes are ready," Craig said.

"Right, and then go to Mercier Jewelry this morning, too. We need to pick up the picnic lunch about 10:30 and then be back here so we can meet the guys at 11 o'clock."

Craig looked at Dale. "You know when we were discussing rings last night, we didn't talk about whether to buy wedding bands or what style of ring to purchase. Do you have any ideas about it?"

"I'd like to buy you a diamond ring of some kind. Would you like that?" Dale asked.

"Wow, that would be nice. I guess we can just look to see what they have or can order. What about price?" Craig questioned.

"Hadn't thought about it. I guess we are in a position that we can afford something pretty nice. When it comes to you, the sky is the limit," Dale said, giving Craig a kiss and a big hug.

"You are so sweet. Even if you weren't a hunk, I think I would still love you," Craig teased, a twinkle in his eyes.

Another kiss was exchanged.

They looked at the clock. It was 7:35 but it wouldn't take them long to cleanup and be ready for the day. Since they were going to be on horseback, they could wear Levis and boots, Dale thought.

"You really need to try on the suit pants this morning. They were the ones that needed the most alteration done to them. I think the others will be okay because they didn't have to do that much to make them fit," Craig reminded Dale.

"Right, I think they were going to have to cut them apart and remake them," Dale agreed. "Do I need to wear dress shoes, do you think?"

"Not necessary. We should be able to tell if they are going to be okay."

By this time they were through with their first cup of coffee and each was ready for some Saturday morning loving. Dale got up to get a towel out of their bathroom. This time Craig ended up on his back with Dale lying on top of him. Either way, it still gave Craig plenty of stimulation from Dale's fur rubbing against him.

Soft pecks with lips soon turned to more passionate activities, with each seeing how turned-on they could make the other. Soon, their hard dicks were trapped between them, pointing the wrong direction. Dale lifted his hips to free them and they swung the other direction, still lying side-by-side and leaking precum.

They ended up trying a new position this morning. Craig was lying on mostly on his back, but slightly on his left side. With his left leg in the air, it allowed Dale to penetrate him from the side and back. It wasn't as comfortable as some other positions they tried, but it allowed them to kiss and for Dale to stimulate Craig's dick with his right hand. Dale wasn't sure he could penetrate Craig as deeply, but Craig seemed to enjoy it, nevertheless. He enjoyed stoking Craig's cock and being able to rub his balls, too. Craig told Dale he was hitting his prostate each time he pushed in.

Although it would never be a favorite position for them; they each had a roaring climax. Dale decided that sex would never become "routine" for them.

Craig's cum went all over his front, from that which shot clear up to his neck to the remainder, which oozed out into this pubic hair. Dale used his finger to scoop up the delicious treat and feed it to Craig and himself. Still, even with the towel, some got on the sheets, so when they went to the bathroom, Craig dampened a washcloth to clean the sheets.

They brushed their teeth again and shaved in preparation to their shower. They washed their own hair, then lovingly washed each other, before getting out to dry themselves.

By this time it was almost 8:30. Craig went to the kitchen to get each another mug of coffee and they started to dress for the day. It didn't take long and they enjoyed a third cup of coffee with a cinnamon roll.

Craig called the Gentry Shop. When Brad came on the line, he told him who he was and inquired if Dale's clothes were ready. They were, so Craig told him they would be there in a few minutes. Brad reminded Craig that Dale needed to try on the suit pants for correct fit because they had been extensively altered.

They left their condo at 8:45 and were at the clothing store in 10 minutes time. As they walked through the door, each wearing cowboy boots, Levi 501's and a snug-fitting polo shirt, Brad approached them, thinking "Woof!!" He had already gotten the suit, sport coat and two pairs of slacks out of the alteration department. "Good morning, gentlemen," he greeted them.

"Good morning," they said, almost in unison.

Brad led the way back to the dressing rooms so Dale could try the items on, starting with the suit pants.

While they were waiting, Brad tried to make small talk to cover the silence. Craig could sense that Brad was a little uncomfortable. "Do both of you live here?" Brad asked, immediately remembering that Dale had given him a new address when presenting his check the other day.

"Yes," Craig said, not sure if he wanted to divulge much information or not.

"I've sold you clothing, but I don't think I've waited on Dale before."

About that time Dale came out of the dressing room, wearing the suit pants, but not his boots.

Brad and Craig moved to the more brightly lit area where the mirrors were. Brad and the person doing the actual alterations had done their job well. One would never have guessed that the pants had been cut down three inches in the waist and the extra fullness in the legs and seat had been taken out.

"These look like they had been made especially for you," Brad said proudly.

"They fit well. I wasn't sure you could properly alter them when he tried them on the other day," Craig said.

"If they had needed any more than this, I would have recommended that we custom order a suit with the pants made for his size. We don't get too many men who are as broad in the shoulders and chest and have a small waist like you," Brad said while holding the coat for Dale to slip on.

Even wearing a polo shirt, Dale looked stunning, Craig thought.

`This guy could be a model,' were Brad's thoughts.

"Okay, since you are here, why don't you try on the other two pair of slacks and jacket?" Brad asked.

Brad took the suit coat and Dale took the slacks, heading back to the dressing room.

"Looks good on him," Brad said.

"Yes, you did an excellent job of fitting him."

Brad still wanted to know more about Dale and Craig, but wasn't sure how to go about it. "Does he workout a lot?" he finally questioned.

"No, not at all. His job keeps him that way."

"Oh? Where does he work?" was the next question.

"At the Bar-W ranch. He's the new General Manager," Craig said proudly.

"Well, he certainly has an awesome body," Brad said, realizing he'd just said too much.

Craig decided to tease him. "He certainly does. It's even better without clothing being in the way."

Brad had just found out what he wanted to know. `Woof, woof!!' he thought of both of them without clothing.

Dale came back out dressed in the dark gray pants and handed the suit pants to Brad. Again, they were a perfect fit. Brad held the sport coat for Dale. The little tuck he'd had done to the waist really showed off Dale's physique.

Craig was impressed.

Dale thought he looked pretty good, for a farm boy.

Brad could feel his cock swelling slightly.

Dale tried on the other pair of pants with the same result. They fit perfectly.

As they were waiting for Dale to put his boots and Levis back on, Brad decided to `go for it'. "Are you fellows together?" he asked nervously.

"Yes," Craig said proudly, thinking how lucky he was. He wondered if Dale knew the kind of effect he had on other people, both men and women.

"Congratulations," Brad said. With a wink, he added, "Both of you guys qualify as hunks in my book."

Brad's face turned red and so did Craig's.

About that time Dale came out of the dressing room, looking ever bit the hunk he was, and handed the slacks to Brad.

Brad headed off to put the clothing in a sack. Craig just stood there and looked at Dale.

"Wha." Dale started to ask.

Craig laughed. "Brad thinks you are a hunk."

It was Dale's turn to blush. "I don't know if I can look him in the eye when we leave."

"Just enjoy it. I am," Craig said, punching him on the arm.

Brad brought the bag containing the clothing. "Is there anything else that I can help you with today?" he questioned, knowing full well what he'd like to help them with.

"I don't think so," Dale said. "But thanks for the compliment."

It was Brad's turn to really turn red.

As they walked out the door, Brad called after them, "Thanks men, come back soon!"

Craig backed his car out of the parking place. As soon as they headed down the street, he broke up laughing.

Although he had a pretty good idea, Dale asked, "What's so funny. Brad?"

"Yes, he thinks you are a `hunk' - and so do I."

"That takes some guts to `come out' to a customer," Dale laughed.

"He was wanting to find out about us when we were in there the other day, but I don't think he could figure out how to do it. He must have thought that today might be his last chance," Craig said.

"We'll have to find out what his last name is. or maybe just call the store and ask for him and invite him to a Dignity meeting. Obviously he wants to know other gay people, like us."

"As long as it isn't `just us' he wants to get acquainted with." Craig was still snickering.

He parked in front of Mercier Jewelry store, which was just three blocks from the clothing store.

"Are you ready for this?" Craig asked, reaching over and squeezing Dale's hand.

"Yes, I guess that the person who waits on us will figure things out pretty quickly," Dale said, squeezing back.

A man, who they guessed to be in his early 50's, approached them as they walked into the store. He was impeccably dressed in a dark blue suit and was wearing expensive jewelry.

"Good morning, gentlemen. I'm Antoine Mercier."

Dale and Craig introduced themselves; feeling somewhat out of place dressed as they were. However, Antoine didn't think anything about it. He was used to dealing with the community and had learned a long time ago that clothing was no indication of what people could afford to spend.

"What may I do for you today?" Antoine asked in his very cultivated voice.

Dale spoke up immediately, taking charge of the conversation, surprising Craig.

"We would like to look at rings for ourselves, something alike."

Antoine Mercier didn't even blink an eye. "Ah yes, right over in this case," he said leading them to a low counter with two chairs in front of it. "Please have a seat."

"Do you wish a traditional ring, or are you interested in something more contemporary, maybe set with a nice stone or stones?"

He was looking at the two men, having a hard time believing that they might be gay. They certainly didn't appear so. They just looked too masculine. He really didn't care what their preference was, but he always thought most homosexuals acted flamboyant.

It was Craig's turn to speak up. "We haven't made up our minds, however, we were thinking of some type of band that might accommodate a nice diamond.

"Yes. That would be very good for a gentlemen," he said as he unlocked the case. "Do you have a preference for the type of metal?"

"Gold," Dale said.

Antoine brought out two trays containing mountings. At the same time he got out a ring with varying sizes of bands on it so he could determine ring sizes for each. The first mounting he picked was a gold band with a Florentine finish that would hold a single stone set in a platinum mounting. "This ring comes in three different sizes to hold stones that would run from a quarter carat to three-quarter carat in size."

While Dale was looking at the ring, Craig spotted a similar one, which would hold two stones.

"May we look at that one?" he asked, pointing to a tray still in the case.

"Certainly," was the reply.

Antoine got that tray out of the case. All the mountings in that tray were made for multiple stones, ranging from 2 to four, but were clearly designed to be worn by a man.

Craig was handed the ring and he tried it on the ring finger of his left hand. It was a perfect fit. He immediately liked it.

"That ring, sir, will accommodate two stones that would run from a quarter carat to about a third carat in size. I have the same ring made up with diamonds set in it. Allow me to get it for you to look at."

He excused himself, going to another case, unlocking it and getting the ring. Antoine returned to the case where they were sitting and held the ring so they could look at it. It was beautiful.

"I think this is close to your size," he told Craig. "Go ahead and try it."

Craig removed the first band and tried the second ring. They both liked what they saw.

Antoine asked Dale if he knew his ring size and received a negative reply.

He guessed that Dale's fingers were probably a couple of sizes larger than Craig's. He selected a 10 « and had Dale try the ring to determine his size. It seemed a little snug and Dale agreed, so he tried the 11. It slipped on easier.

"Different style rings will fit differently," Antoine explained. If you look, this ring is hollow under the stones instead of the ring being a solid band. It may be that a 10 « in that ring will fit you with no problem.

He excused himself again and came back with a similar ring as Craig was trying, but in a size he thought would fit Dale. It did and Dale was pleased with the appearance of it on his hand. The ring Dale was trying looked similar, but was a wider band and had a couple of scallops on each side where the stones were set. In addition, it was curved inward on either side of the setting. It was a much more handsome ring.

"Do you have this mounting in a size that will fit me?" Craig questioned.

"Yes, I believe so. These just came in last week and I've not sold any like this yet." He excused himself again, going to the back room.

"Do you like these better than a regular wedding ring?" Craig asked.

"Oh yes, but I wonder how much these are?"

"Not cheap," Craig replied, "but they are certainly handsome."

Antoine returned about that time with the other ring in his hand. It did not have any stones in it.

"Try this for size," he said, giving the ring to Craig.

It fit perfectly.

"I know this is too large for you, but try this so you can get an idea as to how it will look on your hand," Dale said, slipping the ring off his finger.

Craig tried it and thought it was beautiful.

"What do we have here and what are the options on diamonds?" Craig asked.

"This ring," pointing to the one Craig had on his finger, "has two stones that are about .3 carats in the best grade. These stones have no flaws and produce the best brilliance." He got out his jewelers loupe and had each of them look at the stones under a lamp at the next counter.

"What is the price on this ring?" Dale asked, getting right to the point.

"This ring, set with these stones is $3,500. If you are interested in two rings, I'll sell them to you for $3,000 each."

Dale was relieved as he thought they would be more expensive. Craig was apprehensive about spending that much money, but he knew he loved Dale and would gladly buy it for him.

Craig looked at Dale and got his famous 1000-watt smile and a slight nod of his head.

"Okay," Craig told Antoine.

"It will take me about 5 minutes to put the stones in this mounting," Antoine said, smiling. He was thinking that a man and woman looking at wedding rings would never make up their minds this quickly. Maybe he should check in to selling jewelry for gay men for future marketing.

"May I ask who you gentlemen are?" he questioned.

"Yes," Craig replied. "I'm Craig Bastian and am an architect in partnership with Don Albrecht here in Williamsport. This is my partner, Dale Richards, who is the General Manager at the Bar-W Ranch."

Dale liked hearing the words "my partner" and smiled at Craig again.

"Gentlemen. I have to confess that I've only sold rings to one other male couple since I've been in business here and that was some years ago. I hope you will tell your friends that I am happy to accommodate their needs, whether it be for rings, watches, sterling silver or the other things I have in this store."

"Certainly," said Dale.

Antoine was finished putting trays away and locking the cases. "If you will excuse me for a few minutes I'll get this other ring ready to go. Please feel free to look around the store."

He went behind a desk that was behind the sales counter, but where he could still see every area of the store. He got the stones he needed out of his vault and in short order had them mounted in the empty ring. It was his practice not to reorder mountings of this type as they sold to avoid duplicating sales to too many customers.

He put the rings in boxes and carried them to the counter, reaching for an invoice.

"Do you gentlemen need separate tickets?" he asked.

"It's however you want to write it up. We are each going to give you a check for half of the total, if that's okay."

"Certainly."

They were both glad that Dale had ordered new checks printed with their address. They had just received them in the mail yesterday.

Antoine quickly wrote out the invoice and gave them the amount to make their checks for. Because of the way the sales tax came out, one owed a penny more than the other. This would provide them with something to tease each other about.

As they were writing their checks, Antoine said, "If you want anything engraved on the inside later, like initials or a date, bring the rings back and I'll be glad to do it at no extra charge."

As he gave them the invoice copy, he handed each of them a $100 gift certificate to use toward future purchases.

"These are good to use to purchase anything in the store and I certainly hope both of you will come back soon. Thank you for your business," Antoine said as he shook hands with each of them.

Each gladly shook Antoine's hand and then exchanged good- byes as they went out the door.

Antoine Mercier's thoughts were that he should never be surprised at any request he had for jewelry. He liked both of these men and would be proud to have them as friends.

Dale looked at his watch as Craig backed out of the parking place. It was just after 10:30. They drove to LeGourmet and Dale went inside to pick up their order and wrote a check for it. Trisha explained that she had put in stainless eating utensils and heavy plastic plates for them to eat off of.

"Usually we ask for a deposit on these, but I trust you to return them next week."

She had put things in two canvas bags, which would be easy for them to handle on a horse.

"Thanks guys. It's a great day for a picnic. Have fun," Trisha said as Dale went out the door.

They arrived home about 10 minutes before Eddie and Tom were to meet them. Craig carried the bags from the jewelry store and LeGourmet and Dale carried the two suit bags. It had been a busy morning.

Both had to pee and went to their bathroom at the same time, standing beside each other to unbutton their Levis and pee.

They could hardly wait to finish so they could give each other their rings.

"We really should wait for a more romantic time, but I want to try them on," Craig said. He was as excited as a child on Christmas morning. Dale wasn't far behind.

"Wasn't that nice of Antoine to give us each a gift certificate?" Dale asked.

"It certainly was, but considering the amount of money we spent, I'm sure it didn't hurt him, even after the discount he gave us on the rings."

Craig got the boxes out of the sack and they each opened one. Dale had Craig's ring and that was fine with him. He wanted to put it on Craig's hand himself.

"Happy Birthday to You," he sang as he kissed Craig and slid the ring on his finger. "I love you and I hope you will wear this ring of mine forever."

"I love you with all my heart and soul and I'm proud you belong to me," Craig said as he slid his gift on Dale's finger.

They stood and admired the rings, holding their hands side- by-side, opposite and on top of each other. They exchanged a kiss that might very well have lasted for a record time, except for the doorbell ringing.

"Damn," Craig said. This is probably the only time that I wished somebody was late."

Dale laughed as they both headed to the door.

Tom and Eddie were dressed like them.

"Hi guys," they greeted their guests, almost in unison.

All of them exchanged a handshake, then a hug as they walked inside the condo.

"Is it okay with you guys if we take beer?" Eddie questioned.

"Sure," Craig said, then looked at Dale with a question on his face.

"No problem. We have saddlebags at the horse barn and it shouldn't be a problem. There's ice in the milk barn."

"This place is nice," Tom said. "You have a great view toward the hills west of Williamsport."

Eddie walked over to the window to look out. "This must be the highest point in Williamsport, isn't it?

"No, Bank of Commerce is 7 floors. Even though the ground is lower downtown, their top floor is still 8 feet higher than here. But, you can't see the hills from the offices on that floor because the auditorium is on that side of the building.

As they stood there visiting, Craig suggested a quick tour of their unit. Both of the guys were especially impressed with the commercial kitchen equipment.

They were standing in the kitchen, Dale behind Craig with his arms wrapped around his chest.

"Tom teased them. "Now I understand why you want to learn to cook. It would be too bad to let this equipment just sit here."

"Yeah, we hadn't thought of it that way," Craig replied.

"We just would rather stay at home and eat and entertain guests," Dale added.

"Can we use you two as guinea pigs?" Craig teased.

"Sure, you might even persuade Tom to use some of this great equipment," Eddie told them.

Craig noticed Tom and Eddie's left hands. "Hey, you guys have rings alike."

"Yes," Eddie said as they both held their hands together for Dale and Craig to see. "We got these just before Tom moved to Williamsport to teach. I didn't want anybody to think he was single and available since I still lived in Houston," he laughed.

Tom laughed, too. "It was really that I didn't want anyone thinking Eddie was single and available."

All laughed.

Dale spoke up. "We didn't want anybody thinking that either of us were single and available so we bought rings, too."

The showed their rings.

"Wow!! What are you trying to do, blind us?" Eddie said, smiling. "Those are beautiful."

"They certainly are," Tom added.

"Craig's birthday is coming up next weekend and I asked him what he wanted. He came up with this idea and it appealed to me that it would help seal our commitment to each other."

"Have you two thought about a commitment ceremony? Fr. George blessed our union quietly since the church won't get off dead center on the issue. It doesn't have any legal bearing, but it felt good to us to have him do it," Tom said.

"We hadn't even thought about that, but if Dale is interested I'd be pleased if he would do the same for us."

"I have no objection, but I think it might mean more to me after I go through the inquirers class and am baptized and confirmed."

"Thanks for the idea. We'll talk to him and see what he suggests," Craig said.

Dale looked at his watch. "We'd better get started or we'll starve to death before we get the horses saddled up.

They put their packages in the back of the Blazer and were off to the Bar-W and the adventure of their picnic.

They got to the ranch and Dale drove back to the horse barn and corral. Neither Tom nor Eddie had been to the ranch before and really didn't know what to expect. Dale and Craig gave them a quick tour, ending up at the construction site where they discussed the new living quarters for the ranch crew.

Both thought the Williamson family was generous with the people who worked for them.

Dale made their way to the horse barn and, as to be expected, the horses went inside, hopeful for a treat. Dale got some apples out of the bin and each horse received one from the men. His horse, of course, was Tony. Craig had ridden Topper, who was Martin's horse. He had already made up his mind that Sourdough (Marty's horse) would be good for Tom to ride and Molly, who was Chris's horse, would be a good horse for Eddie.

He led Topper out first and got him ready with a saddle and bridle, then did the same with the other three horses. He got out two pair or saddlebags to put their picnic items in. He had picked up ice at the milk barn and used that to help keep the beer cold. Soon they were ready to mount up and ride to their destination. He led Tony as they made their way to the corral gate and closed it after all were through. The next gate was only about a hundred feet, so he walked that distance, too.

"I promised Jason that we would go past their campground while we were out. Do you want to do that on the way, or coming back?" Dale asked.

"Let's do it on the way," Tom said. "I'm not starved. Is anyone else?"

They decided to head for the campground.

Craig was much more comfortable on a horse this time and was able to relax and really enjoy sitting in the saddle. He had realized that the horse didn't need his attention like driving a car. Tom had been on a horse several times and was enjoying being out in the open as he'd only ridden in a small area before. This was a great experience for Eddie. He hadn't been on a horse for over 10 years, when he was a teen. This was a whole new experience and he was enjoying it.

They rode for about two miles before coming to another gate. Dale dismounted to open the gate and allow the others through, closing it and getting back on Tony. The next gate was another two miles. Dale rode next to Tom and he explained the workings of the ranch to him. Craig and Eddie talked about landscaping and the house he and Tom lived in.

The next gate allowed them access to a dirt road, which they would take to the campground, another two miles away.

As they rode up, several of the scouts spotted the men on horseback and, of course, alerted the others. Soon many of the boys had crowded around. Tom and Eddie knew a lot of the boys from either school or little league teams. Dale knew a few of the boys from little league and Craig knew a few from church.

Of course, Jason was very proud because Marty had arrived about a half hour before, so not only was his father there, but Dale and Craig who were almost family members. He took charge of making sure all the boys knew the men on the horses.

After warning the boys not to bother the horses, they tied them to a nearby fence so they could have the grand tour of the scout camp. Jason didn't know Tom and Eddie were going to be there. Dale had simply told him that some friends would be going on a picnic with them.

Marty welcomed all the men, shaking hands and gave Dale and Craig a squeeze on the arm was they dismounted. Sourdough, being Marty's horse was expecting a treat from him. Dale had put more apples in one of the saddlebags, so each of the horses received another.

The cooks were instructing part of the boys how to prepare their lunches. They each had a sheet of heavy aluminum foil and had shaped hamburger patties. Then they put onion slices, carrots and potato pieces on top, then salt and pepper before sealing the package. They were to be put on the coals of the campfire each patrol had. The boys of Wolf Patrol had already prepared theirs and were just waiting for them to cook for about 30 minutes. Jason introduced his tent mates, showed his tent and then with Scott's help demonstrated his newfound knowledge of tying several different knots.

Eddie told Scott and Jason that he had been an Eagle Scout and they were impressed. Tom had never been in scouts. Eddie wondered if these boys had as much fun after "lights out" as he used to when he was in scouts.

They were invited to eat with the scouts, but declined since they had their own plans for the afternoon. They told Jason good- bye, as well as Scott and Dustin.

They returned to the horses and found six or seven boys admiring them. "Could we ride them?" one of the boys asked.

"Not today," Dale told them. "Maybe the next time you have a campout. But we'll have to clear it with your Scoutmaster before so we don't interfere with his program."

The boys were clearly disappointed, but enjoyed seeing the big animals and having a chance to touch them.

Marty had walked back with them, thanking them for stopping. "You really made Jason's day. He really thinks a lot of all of you. Of course, we consider Dale and Craig as part of our family, but he thinks the two of you are great teachers, too."

"Thanks, Marty, we enjoyed it," Dale said.

"See you at church tomorrow?" Craig questioned.

"Sure. Jason won't be there, but my parents, Chris and Kevin will be with me."

"Good to see you again, Marty. Thanks for allowing us to use your horses this afternoon," Eddie told him.

"I'm really enjoying being able to ride Sourdough," Tom told him.

"Anytime you want to ride, come on out. These horses don't get ridden nearly enough," Marty told them.

As they were riding off, Marty was thinking that Tom and Eddie were lucky to have friends like Dale and Craig.

Because they had gone the long way around to get to the campground, it was another five miles to where they were going to picnic. They followed the river, riding slowly, enjoying each other's company. They traded riding partners several times so had a chance to get to know each other better. They were a good match of gay couples.

They finally reached the area where they had to ride single file as the trail narrowed. After another mile they were at the spot where the natural dam was holding the water back into a large pool. Tom and Eddie were astounded at the scenery, having a hard time believing that a place like this could exist within such a short distance of Williamsport. Craig was enjoying seeing it again and Dale never got tired of it.

They unpacked the saddlebags and allowed the horses to graze. They didn't tie them, as they were not likely to wander and would come back if called. All four of them found good grass and other morsels to eat.

Eddie offered the others a can of beer. No one refused. It was a warm day, almost hot and the cold liquid tasted good.

"Can we swim here?" Tom asked, indicating the pool.

"Sure," Dale told him. "The water may be cool, it usually is even on a hot day."

Eddie moved over to the edge of the rock and stuck his arm in.

"Not that bad. I'd guess maybe about 75 degrees."

Tom had to try it and agreed.

"Is there time to swim before we eat?" he asked.

"We're not on a schedule and the food has ice to keep it cool.

"Do you care if we skinny dip?" Eddie asked.

"Doesn't bother us," Dale said. "How about you, hon, do you want to swim?" he asked Craig.

"Sure."

Tom and Eddie already had their shirts and boots off by this time. Dale and Craig started removing clothing, too, Dale hoping he wouldn't get hard.

He didn't know it but Craig was thinking the same thing.

The other two dropped their Levis and then their briefs.

"How deep is this?" Eddie asked.

"About 10 feet, I think" Dale said. "It may even be a little deeper than that, but it's no less."

Eddie dove in and came up, sputtering. "The water is plenty cold when you first get in, but it's not that bad."

Tom immediately followed him, having the same reaction.

Dale and Craig held hands and went in feet first. It was colder than Craig would have liked, but he could stand it. Then he realized that it really was just the shock of hitting the water.

The four of them swam, floated and played around in the water, finally ending up in a game of two-man tag with Eddie being on Tom's shoulders and Craig on Dale's. It was fun and Craig started to get hard, feeling the wet fur on Dale's chest. Eddie was having somewhat the same experience.

Several times they went to the rock ledge to get another drink of beer. All emptied their cans and Eddie climbed off Tom's shoulders to get more. Craig realized that he and Eddie were about the same size and Tom and Dale were pretty evenly matched. However, it was obvious to him that in the dick department Eddie might be as big as Dale.

After playing around for another half hour, they were ready to get out of the water. Since they had no towels, the only alternative was to stay naked and let the sun dry them off. The rock was warm and it felt good to sun themselves.

The two couples were sitting somewhat apart and Dale realized that Tom and Eddie were making out, locked in a passionate kiss. He caught Craig's eye and nodded his head in their direction. Both were somewhat embarrassed, as the two couples didn't know each other very well.

By that time they were dry so Dale and Craig moved over to where they could put their clothes on. Tom and Eddie caught their movements and they stood up to get their clothing. Craig was right. Eddie was as large as Dale and on his shorter, more compact frame, it looked even bigger.

The two couples got dressed, Dale and Craig glad because the thought was going through both their heads that they weren't sure they could handle an intimate moment in front of another couple. Although they had no problems being nude with each other, being hard in front of guys they didn't know very well could prove to be too much at this point in their young gay life.

"The swim and games were fun, but it made me hungry," Dale said.

All agreed.

Craig started getting the food out. The containers held a macaroni salad, potato salad, vegetables with dip, ham sandwiches, deviled eggs, stuffed mushrooms and cake. The heavy plastic plates and eating utensils were laid out and everyone started helping themselves. Eddie handed each of them another can of beer. The food tasted delicious, partly because it was, but partly because food always seems to taste better on a picnic.

Their conversation was lively and covered many subjects. One subject that came up was Eddie reminiscing about his days in the Boy Scouts and camping trips. He told them that his introduction to sex was on his first camping trip, when he was the youngest of four boys in a tent. They wondered how Jason had fared with his first camping trip.

"I hope he got along okay. For being raised on a farm, both he and Kevin are a little naive about sex and what goes on. I don't think they've been sheltered, but they have always been so tight with each other that they don't seem to have developed too many friendships with other boys their age," Dale said.

"Do you mean they have no clue about sex?" Tom asked.

"Well, immediately after school started the Riley twins gave them a bad time, calling them cocksuckers, faggots and some other things. Jason asked me for some help in doing sit ups, push ups and rope climbing so he could do better in your class," he said to Eddie.

"And he did very well with all three. I had no idea you had helped him," Eddie told him.

"Well, after we were through, he hung back while Kevin had something else to do. He told me what the Riley twins had said and he was upset because he really didn't know what they meant. I had a hard time believing he didn't know what a faggot or cocksucker was... or the word `fuck'. Most kids know those terms before they get to grade school.

"What did you do?" Eddie asked. "That really put you on the spot."

"I answered his questions truthfully and told him that he really needed to talk to his father. I know they have a good relationship and he should be started into puberty by now. It's time for Marty to talk to him about things like that."

"Maybe his father doesn't know he's overdue," Tom said.

"No, I told Marty about our conversation and he said that he would talk to him. He thanked me and said he would talk to him, and also told me that if there were more questions, it was fine with him if I answered them, too."

"The more I'm around Marty, the more I respect him," Craig said.

"Do you think he knows you guys are gay?" Tom asked.

"Oh yeah, he knows. and seems to approve. He told us that an old friend from college is gay and that he and his lover come to visit Marty and Chris from time to time," Dale replied.

"Not only that, but I'm to go along to the various horse and cattle shows with Dale and be treated like one of the other wives," Craig giggled.

That brought a laugh from the others, too.

"Cool," Eddie said. "Did you know that the Williamson Foundation gave the Dignity group $2,500 to help us get started?"

"Yes, I did and I told Dale about it, too."

"You guys are lucky to be working for and with such tolerant people. We haven't run into any problems here either, but that doesn't mean they don't exist. I'm sure that many would be more than willing to condemn us if they even thought we were gay," Tom said.

"Do you guys have any idea how many gay people there might be in this town?" Dale asked.

"A lot, and a lot more that we will never know about because they keep it hidden deep in their personal closets. The claim is that at least 10% of the population is homosexual and another pretty good chunk is bi-sexual. Even taking the conservative numbers, that would make something like 2,000 people in this town who might be gay," Tom said.

Eddie agreed. "You get into major metropolitan areas like Houston or Dallas and there are more. For example, in Houston we lived in what was known as the `Montrose District'. That area of the city was probably 90% gay, to the point that we felt we could walk down the street together, holding hands as did a lot of the other couples."

Dale was impressed. "That's hard to believe."

"Wait until we go to Ft. Worth and Dallas next Thursday. You'll get your eyes full," Craig told him.

"I know, that's what you keep telling me," Dale replied.

"I wonder what makes Williamsport a good place for gay people to live? We seem to have uncovered a lot of people who have made themselves known to us just since we've been together the last two weeks," Craig told them.

"It would be my guess that we have several large churches here that are more tolerant than most. For instance our own parish has an openly gay priest and everybody loves him. He and Paul fit right into the community and if anyone says anything against them, there are always three or four who immediately come to their defense. The big Lutheran church, St. John's offered to provide a meeting place for the Dignity group but we decided that St. James would be a better place to meet because of Fr. George," Eddie said.

"I always thought that `Dignity' was a group of gay Catholics. It was in the Dallas area. At least that's the affiliation the campus club at SMU had," Craig asked.

"It is," Eddie said. "What happened here is that a Dignity group formed but the priests in the area wouldn't support it. Our Integrity group was just being discussed - this was about 3 years ago - and we decided to put our efforts together because we had support from several Episcopal priests and they had none. It really is called `Dignity - slash - Integrity' but we just call it Dignity. Those who want to belong to the national Dignity group have their money sent there and it's the same for the Integrity people. We have a total of 21 people who have come to the various meetings we've had. Six of them are Roman Catholic, 11 are Episcopalian and the remainder are from either the Methodist, Lutheran or Presbyterian churches here in Williamsport."

"That makes sense," Dale said.

"What Eddie and I would like to do is let it be known in the high schools is that there are people who can counsel teens who are having questions about their sexuality. The tricky part is that we could be accused of `recruiting' boys and girls to be gay, or that we were taking advantage of them," Tom said.

"I can see the problems that could present. I wish I'd had somebody to talk to when I was growing up. My mother and grandmother belonged to Victory Temple, although they didn't go often - thank goodness - but that group isn't very tolerant of anybody that doesn't belong to their church. I didn't think I could talk about my feelings because they would have hauled me to church and brainwashed me," Dale told me.

"Is that the Reverend Jimmy Bob Jones church?" Eddie asked.

"Yes," Dale replied.

"I hate to tell you this, but he's the most dangerous person in town. He preaches all this salvation stuff that only he could come up with and all the while he's diddling little boys that are pre-puberty. As soon as they start growing hair around their cocks, he drops them for younger boys. He's ruined more kids than souls he's saved. I know because Tom and I have counseled several boys that are junior high age. One of them was beside himself and talked about suicide," Eddie said.

Tom picked up the story. "He was in the 7th grade last year and all of a sudden went from a reasonably happy little boy to one that came completely apart. My friend, who was his teacher, was finally able to get the information that Rev. Jimmy Bob didn't love him anymore and he thought he was going to hell when he died. She was able to get him to talk to Eddie and me and we pretty much got to the bottom of the problem, but it took some doing. The family has moved away from here, and he seems to be doing better. His parents are taking him to a counselor, but they were afraid to confront the Reverend."

"That's terrible," Craig said.

"It's sick," Dale said. "That could have happened to me."

"It's hard to tell how many young boys he has ruined. Unfortunately, many of them shove the bad memories away and they don't resurface until years later and then they really cause problems," Eddie said.

By this time, they had eaten most of the food and Craig started gathering up the containers.

"Guys, that was great food, thanks for inviting us out here," Eddie said.

"I'd like to do this again, but next time we'll provide the food. It's so peaceful out here and we really enjoyed getting better acquainted with the two of you today," Tom added.

"We had a good time, too. I'm glad the water was warm enough we could get in the pool. There is a spring upstream a little way that puts a lot of cold water in the river," Dale said.

"It's really a pleasant place to get away from the world. I don't even think I've been aware of an airplane going over," Craig said.

They called the horses back, although they had only wandered about 25 feet from where they left them. Dale loaded the saddlebags on the horses he and Craig were riding."

"Are you guys in any hurry to get back home?" he questioned.

"We don't have to be anywhere until about 6:30 this evening."

"Would you like to ride for a little while? There are some beautiful ravines on up the river about 3 miles," Dale said.

"Sure," Eddie said, with Tom echoing.

The men arrived back at the ranch about 4 p.m. Dale showed the three others how to brush the horses and wipe the leather down so it wouldn't mildew and get hard. They were just finishing when Kevin came into the barn with his friend, Jack, in tow. Sandy was with them. Jack knew Mr. Thompson and Mr. Bryant, but he had never met Dale or Craig before.

Kevin proudly introduced them. "This is Dale Richards. He runs the ranch for us and he's also kinda like Jason's and my big brother, too. This is his partner, Craig Bastian. He designed the house that we're gonna go look at in a minute."

Dale and Craig shook hands and exchanged greetings with Jack. It made him feel grownup because it was seldom that men offered to let him shake their hand.

"Kevin, don't forget your chores. Is your grandfather going to milk Star, or do I need to do it?" he questioned.

"Jason talked to grandpa about it yesterday morning," but I'll remind him when we go in the house."

"Okay, just checking. You boys have a great time this evening."

"We're gonna check on the geese to see if any more hatched since last night."

"I didn't know we had some new ones," Dale questioned.

"Yeah, she had 8 eggs and four of them were hatched last night. Com'on and I'll show you," he said, turning into a tour guide.

They four men followed Kevin and Jack around to where the nest was. Immediately the gander came rushing at them and Sandy put herself between Kevin and Jack and the mad gander. They walked on around the corner and the gray goose started hissing at them, too. She got off her nest and they were able to see that all the eggs had hatched. There were 8 little goslings. While she was occupied with the others, Dale reached down and picked up two of the newly hatched babies. Everyone admired them; all the while the parents were making a big fuss. Dale put the goslings back in the nest and they moved on, the gander making a lot of noise, but seeming a little more docile than the previous evening.

"That's neat," said Jack. I've never seen baby chickens or geese before."

"We've got some little ducks that are just starting to get their feathers. Let's go find them."

They told the men good-bye and went on to the hen house.

As they were driving back into Williamsport, Tom said, "I wonder where he came up with the word `partner' for the two of you?"

"I have no idea. These two boys surprise me all the time. I think maybe it was when Marty gave us a thumbs up when he announced my promotion and the news of our relationship at Sunday dinner last week," Dale answered.

"That whole family surprises me. They welcomed me into their `extended' family and I have a feeling that the two of us will be invited to the ranch from time to time, at least I hope so," Craig said.

"The two of you are certainly lucky. They acknowledge you as a couple and make you welcome in their home. That doesn't happen often, I'm sorry to say," Eddie said.

"For instance neither of us have been invited to the other's parents home since we've been together. Nor have they come to visit us in Williamsport."

"That's sad. Is there anything you can do about it?" asked Craig.

"I don't know. We haven't pushed the issue. I know my parents would love Eddie if they got to know him, but getting them to come here hasn't worked out. I've thought of going to Houston for a visit and just tell them we were staying with them, but we haven't tried that. Maybe we should," Tom told them.

"That's too bad. My mother and father invited us to have dinner with them next Saturday night when we are in Ft. Worth. They can hardly wait to meet Dale and I can't wait to introduce him to them because I know they are going to hit it off right away."

Both Tom and Eddie thought that was great and were quiet in their thoughts, except for the fact they were sitting in back, holding hands as Dale and Craig were doing.

Dale drove in the parking lot at their complex. The men exchanged good-byes, each exchanging hugs with the others. They got in Eddie's small GMC pickup, waving as they drove down the street.

Craig and Dale gathered the remains of the picnic from the back of the Blazer. There were still four cans of beer in the sack of ice, but the men were out of sight.

Inside, they put things away and rinsed out the food containers so go in the dishwasher, along with the loaned plates and eating utensils.

"I want to see how horsy you smell," Craig teased. He dropped to his knees and sniffed the insides of Dale's Levi-clad thighs. "Not too bad," he said, starting to pop the buttons on Dale's fly. Since Dale was wearing jockey shorts, he had to undo all the buttons so he could pull the Levis and shorts down.

Dale was enjoying this. No one had ever, of course, done this to him. Out popped his one-eyed night crawler that was wearing a turtleneck sweater.

Craig easily swallowed Dale's dick, as it had not gotten fully hard yet.

"Uunnah," Dale grunted. "That feels so good."

"Doesn't taste horsy, either," Craig said. "I wanted to suck you off at the river this afternoon but I didn't know if it would bother you or upset Tom and Eddie."

"I don't know what my reaction would have been. It did turn me on to see them kissing. I just realized that I've never seen two men kiss each other before. I have no idea what kind of reaction they might have had, but it didn't seem to bother them to kiss in front of us."

Craig went back down on Dale's fully hard cock.

"Let me do that to you, too, just to see what it's like," Dale said.

Craig stood up and Dale knelt in front of him. He sniffed Craig and there was little horsy smell. He thought that had it been a hotter day, the horses might have gotten wetter. He could tell that Craig was already hard. Well, there was no element of surprise like when Craig unbuttoned him. He started in at Craig's waist, popping the buttons, then pulled his 501's and jockey shorts down in one motion. Craig's dick looked good enough to eat and that's what he intended to do. He easily buried it to the root in his hot mouth, using one hand to massage Craig's balls and the other to play with his ass.

"Uhmmnn." Craig seemed to be enjoying this. It made Dale work harder. He wet the index finger of his right hand and pressed it against Craig's bud, which yielded easily after a few strokes of Dale's finger.

"This feels great, but can we go into the bedroom?" Craig questioned.

"Sure," Dale said, getting up and holding his Levis and jockey shorts, as did Craig, so they could walk the short distance.

"Sit down and I'll help you take your boots off," Craig said.

Dale complied and soon Craig had pulled off his boots, socks, Levis and shorts, leaving him in only his polo shirt. As he stood in front of him to remove his shirt, Dale inhaled Craig's dick again. It felt so good, but he wanted to be naked, too. Craig started by shedding his shirt. Without missing a stroke, Dale indicated that Craig was to stand on one leg while he removed the boot from his other foot. He didn't think he could keep his balance, but somehow Dale managed to remove both boots and socks as well as his Levis and shorts. Craig maneuvered himself onto the bed so that his cock was still in Dale's mouth. Dale managed to bury it even deeper and was using the muscles in his throat to his advantage. That, and with the use of both hands, he knew he was going to make Craig cum shortly.

"Let me suck you, too," Dale heard. He wanted to say `no', but instead it came out a hum. That's all it took. Craig emptied himself into Dale's mouth and throat. He thought that was the fastest he had ever cum while they were having sex.

When Craig's cock started softening, Dale pulled off and shared the remainder of his harvest with his lover. Craig used his share for lubrication as he got into position to suck Dale. This was totally a new feeling to Dale as they had never tried fresh cum as a lubricant to suck each other before. Craig managed to wet a finger and work it into Dale's ass. Then a second finger. He had barely located Dale's prostate when Dale blew his load down Craig's throat. It was a record time for Dale also. Sex with each other just kept getting better each time.

(to be continued)

• • • • • Author's Note: This is my first attempt at gay fiction, and the only way I can learn whether or not I should continue is from my readers' feedback. I would appreciate your comments, criticism, suggestions, and anything else that you would care to say. All Email will be answered. If you wish to receive e-mail notification of subsequent posting, please let me know by sending your request to the e-mail address below. Contact me at: tulsadriller7@aol.com

Thanks for the overwhelming response to previous chapters. I received positive replies from all over the world. My special thanks to RW, whom I've known for many years and value his suggestions. Also for the proofreading help of Paul Daventon, author of "Turning the Page" found in the "Adult-Friends" section of Nifty. Please read it.