Rancho Bonito

Chapter 7

The public dinner that Saturday was the first of the summer season. It was booked to capacity. Tom already had his menu planned and I spent Saturday morning with him scouring various markets in search of the perfect squab and prime rib. He threw me a stern look as we studied one butcher's offerings.

"When is Dr. Anderson going to acquire that herd? Give me control of my meat source and I can guarantee the quality of food we serve."

It was an argument I'd heard from him before. It was one of the things that had started Keith talking about raising his own beef. The idea of making them longhorns had started out as a whim but quickly became more practical as we looked into the issue.

Longhorns, it turned out, were hardy, produced excellent, high-grade beef on less feed than other domestic cattle and would be an interesting addition to our miniature ranch. Darrel had liked the idea and he knew of a boy on a neighboring farm who was good with cattle and would work evenings and weekends for us.

So I was able to answer Tom's question positively. "We've got our eyes open as we speak. As soon as a herd goes on the block -- and our purchasing agent approves -- we've got your beef."

After nearly two hours of haggling and scrutinizing his choices with a diligence I found almost maddening, Tom and I drove back to Rancho Bonito. Tom immediately headed for the kitchen where he would spend the rest of the day working his magic. I spent the morning tending to B&B business.

Our guests had made a brief appearance for breakfast, then retreated to their room again. I made a point of reminding them of the big dinner and they assured me they wouldn't miss it. But the better part of the day was spent in their room. The honeymoon was obviously going well. I tried not to think about what they were doing, since it was difficult going about my business with a boner and Keith wasn't due back from a business meeting until nearly four o'clock.

I spent the last hour in the stable with Button and his mother and had the little guy eating oats out of my hand before I returned to the house in time to catch Keith in the shower. I joined him and gave him one of my patented Todd Richards quickies, which had us both clinging to each other under the drenching spray.

He kissed my upturned mouth. "You make coming home from anywhere an experience. What brought this on?"

I grinned and told him about our amorous guests and he hooted with laughter.

"Maybe we should specialize in gay honeymoons. What do you think? Make ourselves into the Niagara of the southwest? No waterfalls but plenty of fireworks."

"Cute, really cute."

He squeezed my right ass cheek. "Come on," he said. "Let's go check if the serving crew has arrived. I hope they don't screw up the chairs like they did last time."

The dinner went off without a hitch. We had just over three hundred guests, including a teen group we'd invited from a nearby shelter. Both Keith and I were fans of organizations that helped kids in trouble and this particular group had always made a good impression on both of us. Vincent delVecchio, the director, had been a good friend of Keith's parents. He was gay and had gotten into trouble himself with some right-wing groups which seemed to think that, because he was gay, he had an ulterior motive for helping kids. We supported him whenever we had the chance, and tonight was one such example of that.

Vincent came up to us after dinner and held out his hand.

"As always, my compliments to Tom. If I could afford him, I'd steal him away for the shelter." He shook Keith's hand, then pumped mine. "Always appreciate your support, guys."

"Love to do it, Vince," Keith said.

Vincent's gaze strayed over to where Charlie and Ty stood engrossed in conversation with one of the county politicos. Ty looked absolutely enthralled, which had to be a crock, since I knew the politician and he was a terminal bore. Ty had mentioned once that he was an environmental engineer, so I knew he dealt with a lot of politicians. It was obvious he knew how to handle them.

"I see you have some famous guests this time around," Vincent said. "I saw his work down at Moonstone. Very nice. Is he here to paint?"

"No," Keith said. "Honeymoon. The guy next to him is his partner. The one talking to Oversmith."

"Hmm," Vincent murmured. "Almost as pretty as one of his boyfriend's pictures."

I looked at Keith and grinned. "Isn't he, though?"

"Who all did you bring tonight?" Keith asked.

"Six all together. Three new to the program and a couple you guys know - Joannie and George." Vincent pointed out the two that Keith and I had met at one of the other dinners, a pair of teens who had been in the system since they were kids. Vincent touched my arm. "Come on. I'll round them up and introduce you."

It took him nearly thirty minutes to find the other four. Two of them had wandered down by the stables, technically a taboo area since we didn't want a flood of guests scaring the animals. Vincent brought the pair back looking sullen; since he'd clearly been giving them a talking to about obeying house rules. Part of me wanted to tell him to lighten up, but I knew he was right. If those kids couldn't learn to follow simple and non-draconian rules in this kind of social setting, how could they possibly learn to fit into any setting?

But I felt a lot of sympathy. Hell, if it hadn't been for a supportive mother I could have been one of these kids. Discovering you're gay when you're not much more than a kid yourself can make for a fucked-up childhood. I knew all the statistics about the high rates of suicides among gay teens; I personally knew about the self-hatred. Vincent didn't exclusively deal with gay youth, but he saw more than his share. He got a lot of referrals too, because -- despite the opinions of a few narrow- minded bigots -- he got the job done. The kids in his care thrived. Which is why he had our unqualified support and the support of many of our neighbors.

"Maybe it's time to think of another group ride," I said, loudly enough for the recalcitrant pair to hear.

One of the duo, a pudgy girl of maybe thirteen, turned outraged eyes on me. Her partner, a pimply-faced boy of no more than fifteen, gazed at me owlishly before turning to take his cue from the girl. Then his look grew hostile.

That surprised me. Usually the kids were excited at the chance to ride. What kid didn't love horses? Apparently not this pair.

"Sylvia, Donovan, what do you say to Mr. Richards' offer?" Vincent seemed as puzzled as I was by their hostility. "If you don't want to accept, that's your choice. I'm sure I can find others who would jump at the chance.

The girl muttered something. It sounded like 'exploiters' to me, but when she didn't repeat it I dismissed it as angry muttering. A kid with attitude. Surprise.

The others were visibly thrilled and immediately wanted to know when. I thought through our timetable over the next few weeks and frowned.

"It's tight, guys. The only free time we have is right after our current guests leave next Tuesday. The new guests won't be here until Thursday. Does Wednesday sound good to everyone?"

"Not soon enough," Joannie said and earned laughter all around.

"Patience is a virtue," Keith said and received a lot of rolled eyes accompanied by more laughter. Except from the pudgy girl and her shadow.

"Patience is a crock," she snapped and stalked back to the buffet table, where she attacked the fruit salad with vehemence. The pimply-faced boy tagged along. He nibbled on a dry cracker and didn't look at all happy.

"Quite the pair," Keith murmured to Vincent.

"They're new in the system," Vincent said, for our ears only. "I'm not making excuses for poor behavior but if you knew half of what that poor child has gone through, you'd excuse her, too. I worried it might be too early to bring her on this outing, but I wanted to show her that there's good in the world too." He frowned. "Funny, I thought she would like it here. She seemed to be such an animal lover when we spoke at the shelter during her admission."

"Maybe if she proves she's tough enough we won't be able to hurt her," I said. Vincent nodded.

"Sometimes they seem to find it easier to sabotage new chances rather than give them the opportunity to fail." He glanced at his watch. "Well, it's later than I thought. I'd better round this herd up and get them back on the bus. As usual it's been a pleasure, you two."

He shook my hand, then Keith's. In private he would have kissed us, but we were all too conscious of the others around us. No sense adding fuel to any smouldering fires.

Vincent directed Joannie and George to find the other two and he went after his newest set of troublemakers. For all that she had seemed unhappy, when he informed her they were leaving, Sylvia was suddenly loath to leave. Who could ever understand the mind of a teenager?

After Vincent and his charges left, Keith and I wandered through the crowd, chatting with friends and neighbors while we checked out the mood. Everyone seemed upbeat.

I spotted Charlie and Ty by the pool deck talking to a small crowd. Since Charlie seemed to be getting the bulk of the attention, I had to assume they were art lovers. Ty sipped his wine and looked smug. When his eyes met mine he raised his glass and grinned. I noticed he didn't cling quite so closely to Charlie in public. His or Charlie's choice? From what I had overheard I suspected Charlie set those boundaries. Ah, well, it wasn't always easy being out in a society that couldn't seem to make up its mind if we were okay or some kind of demon. Keith and I wrestled with the same issue all the time. Everyone knew we were lovers, but knowing and seeing the physical signs -- even if all it was was a touch or a passionless kiss -- was something else altogether.

The party finally broke up around ten and the last of the guests left in a cab just before eleven. Keith and I strolled around the empty grounds checking things out before heading in. There was nobody around. The lights were on in the honeymoon suite, so I assumed Charlie and Ty had turned in for the night. Why did I get the feeling they weren't reliving the evening highlights? I was still grinning when Keith and I entered our own quarters.

"Now what?"

I paused in taking off my shirt. "Just thinking of those two again. They're making me feel downright inadequate."

"Oh, don't," Keith breathed, running his hands up my chest and curling them around my neck. "You're perfectly adequate. I'll vouch for that."

It took me a second to process his words, then I hit him with my shirt. "You are so dead, mister."

Keith was laughing when I pinned him to the bed. "Bad choice of words?"

"Adequate?" I locked his arms above his head with one hand and began to tickle him with the other. "I'll show you adequate. You won't walk for a week."

Keith tried to buck me off but I clung to him with muscles well honed by riding horses. Under my pelvis I felt his cock grow hard. I grabbed both his hands in mine and held them over his head. Then I brought my face down so that my mouth was less than an inch from his.

"Now that sounds like a promise," he whispered.

"Believe it, mister. I'm going to fuck you silly."

Keith's blue eyes deepened to sapphire. His head tilted up and his mouth opened in anticipation of my kiss. I brushed his lips with mine, then drew back.

"You think I'm easy? Think I'm going to kiss you just like that? Maybe I'll make you beg for it."

He rotated his hips under me and rubbed the hard ridge of his cock against the saddle of my thighs. He groaned at the pressure in his groin.

"Anytime," he whispered. "Anywhere."

"Now?"

"Please!"

I lowered my mouth to his and ate his heated cries. I don't know if he was begging or cursing. I was past caring. All I wanted was to bury my cock in his deep ass and fuck him until we were both screaming.

"Fuck --"

The alarm shrieked from every room in the house. I was off the bed before the first ululation died down only to be replaced by another. I recognized the distinctive tone seconds before realization came over Keith's slack face.

"The stables!"

Chapter 8

The sky glowed. I hurtled around the corner of the house and ignored the winding path, leaping over the knee high shrubbery that lined the walk. Keith was a half step behind me. He fumbled with his cell and I heard him shouting.

"Rancho Bonito. Fire. In the stable area. I don't know - Hurry."

He jammed the phone back into his pocket and grabbed my arm as I rounded the paddock and almost bolted across the yard.

"Todd! The fire trucks are on the way. Any chance anyone's in there?"

"Who --? Darrel!"

Keith shook his head, digging his heels in. "He went home after the barbecue."

"Charlie -- Ty --"

Barely were the words out of my mouth before a dark shape loomed up on our right and a half-dressed Charlie staggered into view with Ty at his side. Ty's shirt was buttoned up crookedly and his bare feet had been shoved into Nikes.

"What the hell --"

The fire was in the brood mare stable where Sally's Mark and Destiny Road had been housed.

"The horses!" I screamed and made to bolt out of Keith's grip. He hung on and to my dismay Charlie seemed intent on helping him.

"You can't go in there, Todd."

Flame leapt out of the stable roof. Even as I watched in mounting horror, the southern end of the long, low building collapsed in a shower of sparks. Superheated air blasted out of the gaping hole and washed over our upturned faces. My skin felt tight from the mushrooming heat.

Keith jerked me backward and I stumbled and would have fallen if Charlie hadn't been in my path. He caught me and and, now I was off balance, dragged me back several feet. One of my hastily thrown on shoes came off in the dirt. I barely noticed the ground scraping my bare skin.

I broke free and took two steps forward. But even in my daze I knew it was useless to go into the stable. I hurriedly glanced at the second stable - the one we kept the ranch horses in. It was intact and even as I watched I saw Darrel leading Waco out of the building. Keith plunged in behind him and came out seconds later at a dead run with Quincy in tow.

I turned my mind off of thinking about Sally and Button. I couldn't save them, but I could help save the other horses. By the time the fire trucks roared into the yard, lighting up the night with their alarms and their flashing lights, we had all the horses out of the non-burning building and safely tucked away in a distant paddock, where the chaos wouldn't disturb them anymore than they already were.

Only then did we realize there were two horses missing. Mistral's Gold and Bound for Glory.

Keith and I scrambled through the intact stable as though somehow we could have overlooked half a ton of horse flesh. All the stalls were empty. So was the tack room and the feed room.

"Maybe they got out beforehand," Keith said. He rubbed at a spot of soot smeared across his cheek. "They must have."

Darrel grimaced. "They were here earlier when I made my last rounds after dinner. I'm sure --"

"You'll have to vacate the area, gentlemen." A weary-looking fireman entered the stable. He ignored our protests and hustled us out of the way. He also ignored my pleas to save the horses in the burning building. They all did. They knew as well as I did that anything that had been in that conflagration was past rescuing. They were sympathetic but stern. Leave or they would remove us. We left.

Someone -- Charlie? -- had draped a jacket over my shivering shoulders. Ty slid an arm around me and propelled me back into the house. I was vaguely aware of Keith at my side, then we were both sitting on a brightly-colored sofa in the common room and something cool was stuck in my hand. I raised it to my mouth unconsciously and nearly gagged at the straight Scotch that burned a singular path down my throat.

I was still shivering under the thin denim jacket so a throw was wrapped around the two of us. Keith's normally strong shoulders were shaking where they nestled against my side.

Darrel appeared and his ashen face told me everything I needed to know. His mouth worked silently and for a minute I thought he was going to weep, then he clamped his mouth shut and clasped my shoulder.

"Who would do this, Todd?" His fingers bit deep into my numb flesh. "Who?"

"What..." I licked my heat cracked lips. "What the hell are you talking about?"

"They're saying it was arson, Todd."

"Arson?" My voice came from a long way off. I felt sedated. Anaesthetized.

Beside me Keith stirred lethargically.

"No." Keith moved, his entire body shaking. "No, that's not possible. It can't --"

"They found the accelerant. I saw the gas cans. You can smell it."

I realized with a pang that he was right. I had smelled it out in the yard but hadn't made the connection. Arson? Who the hell would deliberately kill our horses?

Something stirred in me then and it took me a moment to recognize it. Fury. White-hot fury engulfed me. I tensed, my hands clenched into tight fists. I was vaguely aware of a flash of pain, then I heard Ty's startled yell as acid burned into my flesh.

"Jesus, the glass --"

"Get his fingers open. I'll get the betadine."

My fist was forced open. More pain shot through my hand when something liquid splashed over my stiff fingers.

"At least there was alcohol in the damned thing. He won't get infected."

I blinked and looked down at my lap where my bandaged hand lay in a damp stain of blood and drying Scotch. I had broken the glass in my hand.

"Todd," Darrel's voice was surprisingly gentle. "We're going to put you and Keith to bed now. We'll figure out what happened in the morning. Okay? I gotta get back to Mandy. She'll be frettin', wondering what's going on."

"Go," I croaked. "Tell her it's okay. Tell her --"

"We'll sort this out tomorrow, Todd. Keith. Get some rest. Okay?"

We were put to bed. I felt Keith's rigid form beside me in the bed we had shared for over a year. I stared up at the blameless ceiling. Keith rolled over and clung to me; his breath warm in my ear. I turned, not sure I wanted to be touched. Unsure how to tell him that. Then I was holding him and I couldn't have let him go if my life depended on it. I was a drowning man, and he was the only thing keeping me afloat.

There were no tears, no more rage. Nothing. Eventually there was sleep.