Date: Wed, 29 Oct 2003 04:29:25 -0800 (PST)
From: William Becker <billdrae2002@yahoo.com>
Subject: Protecting David Chapter 20

This is a work of fiction.  I love getting email and if you
would like to contact me you can at billdrae2002@yahoo.com
or you can go to my web site at http://www.mygaystories.com


Protecting David Chapter 20


Emma rescued me from a group of politicians and taking my
arm led me to a quiet corner of the room where we sat
together on a fragile looking settee.  The room behind us
glittered with crystal and candlelight, tuxedo's with
starched white shirts and jewels hanging from the throats of
elegantly dressed women.  The men and women seemed to
separate by sexes with the men standing with cigars and
their hands in their pockets and the women talking
animatedly together.

Emma's voice was a mystery, a combination of delicate
accents that spoke of Richmond as much as Boston with more
than a touch of New York and Washington.  Her hands seemed
fragile and touched my hand or arm periodically in
punctuation, like butterflies landing for a moment and then
fleeing.

"Mark, you've had a successful week, or at least so Monty
tells me." It had been more successful than anything that I
had ever imagined.  The unspoken sponsorship of the Block
family was like a magic wand, everyone wanted to talk to me.

"Thanks mainly to you and Monty, Emma.  I'm not so sure that
those folks would have given me the time of day otherwise.
But yes, it has been a good week."

"Well I can't speak for Monty but Lord, even though most of
these folks would do about anything for a free meal I can't
believe that an invitation for a dinner here would have that
much effect on them."

We sat for a moment saying nothing, just listening to the
music from the quartet at the other end of the room and the
steady rise and fall of other peoples conversations.  Emma
was one of the few women that I had known that I felt
totally comfortable with, as if we shared a deep bond that
joined us together on some wordless level.

Emma took my left hand in hers and then leaned back and
looked at me.  "Okay, now what do you suppose that they're
doing at this very moment?"

I looked at Emma and raised a questioning eyebrow.

Emma smiled.  "The people that you've been thinking about
for most of the evening, David and Alex."

I laughed.  "I'm that transparent?"

She touched my arm.  "Just when it comes to them.  So what
are they doing.....right now?"

"Oh," I glanced at my watch, "I would think that about now
David would be trying to get Alex to bed, maybe reading him
a story.  David's been reading him a bit of Treasure Island
every night."

"Mark, don't try and tell me that you don't have a picture
of Alex in your wallet.  Now let me see it."

I pulled my wallet out of my pants pocket and a bit
sheepishly handed over a picture of Alex.

"My Lord, he's beautiful!  That hair, who took this photo,
it's fantastic?"

"A friend of ours, he's a dentist but he likes to mess
around with photography.  It is cool the way that he got
Alex's hair back lit like that.  It captures the kinda other
worldly quality that seems to surround him when the light is
just right."  I looked at Emma.  "He's a good boy."

"Of that I'm certain, Mark.  You and David wouldn't raise a
little boy to be any other way.  Now I want you to promise
that you'll bring him to Washington so that I can meet him."
She glanced around the room as if imagining Alex there.  "It
would be wonderful to see a little boy running around this
house again."

"Sure, Emma, he was here once for a few days, that first
time that I met you Alex was back at the hotel.....with
babysitters but yes, we'll bring him again."

"Rumor has it that you hired Ted Olson to run the office
here."

"Yes, yes I did.  We reached an agreement yesterday.  I
think he'll be good."

"Better than most people know, Mark.  Ted is one of the most
undervalued people in Washington.  His wife was killed in an
automobile accident a few years ago and Ted pretty much fell
apart.  Well, in this town, you're not ever suppose to fall
apart no matter what happens.  The idiots!  The thing is
that he's pretty much over that now and he's got experience
that you simply couldn't duplicate and he's loyal too.  Not
a commodity in excess supply around here."

I held Emma's hand and lightly massaged it.  "He's got some
great ideas for doing the office here.  I've pretty much
given him a free hand with it."

"He won't let you down, Mark.  You'll be impressed with what
he turns out."

"I think so too.  Nice guy.  Meeting with General Shetlan
tomorrow.  He's introducing me to the military types and the
DOD guys."

Emma laughed.  "Well, I was going to say that you'll have a
boring time but then I thought how you boys love talking to
one another."  Emma continued to smile and slowly shook her
head.  "It'll be all rockets and bombs and things that go
bang."

                                                 -----------
--------------------

General Shetlan sent a car and driver for me, it wasn't
anything likes the Block family limo but a sensible black
four door chevy with a military driver.  The General's home
was in Virginia and was set well back on a large tract of
land, done in white painted brick it seemed to go on forever
in every direction.  It occurred to me that this setup
wasn't paid for on a military man's salary.

The General met me on the front porch.  He took one look at
me and laughed.

"Rich wife!"  He took me by the arm and led me up the
stairs.  "You were wondering how the hell I could afford
this weren't you?"

"Well, now that you mention it, I guess that I was."

"Not that it matters but she wasn't very rich when I married
her.  She ended up inheriting it.  But I guess that it's all
the same."  General Shetlan, or Jimmy as he had begun
insisting that I call him, led me into the house that seemed
packed with men.  Some were in suits, some in casual clothes
and some in uniform but they all seemed very relaxed and
were helping themselves to beer and food set up at a huge
buffet.

"This little get together lets me pay off a lot of iou's
that I've accumulated over the year, well, at least
partially.  Anyway the guys love getting out of DC and
having a chance to just be jerks for a day.  I figured that
this was the perfect chance for you to meet some of the guys
that you haven't had a chance to meet yet without worrying
about how the fuck your dressed.  Besides I found the
perfect guy to introduce you around.  This fucker knows
everyone." We were approaching a gray haired man from behind
who was seated on a sofa.  He turned as he heard us getting
near to him.

"Marky!  I was wondering when the fuck you'd get here!"

"Frank!  What are you, the fucking Scarlet Pimpernel?  How'd
you get here?"

Frank shoved his unlit cigar in his mouth and talked around
it.  "Car plane car.  Okay you're up to speed."  He patted
the sofa next to him.  "Sit down kid.  Tell me how it's
goin."


                    --------------------------------

Due to the new security measures at airports David could no
longer meet me at the gate so he and Alex waited outside of
the gate area.  I kissed David and wrapped my arms around
Alex's back as he jumped up and wrapped his legs around my
waist.  One of the great advantages of having an office in
Washington was that I could leave a bunch of clothing there
and could travel light.

"Dad, wait till you see the driveway!"

The leaves were beginning to fall in sudden bursts, great
clouds of orange and brown twisting and twirling as they
fell to the ground.  There seemed to be squirrels
everywhere, chattering between themselves while they ran,
rolled and tumbled through the crunchy leaves.

Just as last year, David and Alex had lined the driveway
with carved pumpkins and Alex was pulling me along giving me
the story behind each one.  It suddenly dawned on me that he
looked bigger than he did when I left.  Surely he couldn't
have grown that much in a week, it, of course, had to be
that my point of view had been reset by being gone for a
week.

Alex was still talking and holding my fingers when I
hunkered down next to him and watched him as he talked.  He
was thin and I was pretty sure that he'd never be anything
but and in the afternoon light his eyes were a brilliant
blue.  Now that I was more on his level he moved in between
my legs and threw an arm over my shoulder in exaggerated
camaraderie and I wrapped my left arm around him.

"You can see, Dad!  We've been working hard!"

"I see that!  How long did this take you guys?"

"I long time, Dad!  Weeks and weeks!"  Well, I had only been
gone for one week but that was just a detail.  "We wanted it
to be done for when you got back!"

"Well you sure did a wonderful job."  I pulled Alex into me
and kissed him on the side of his neck while I hugged him.
"It's really pretty to come home to.  And it's pretty good
to come home to you too.  I missed you."

Alex's face lit up and he smiled broadly.  "I missed you
too, Dad.  I missed you a lot!"

I felt David's hand on my shoulder and stood up and started
steering Alex into the garage.  He was marching ahead of us
using high marching steps and swinging his arms as he headed
for the door that led into the house.  I put my left hand
around David's neck and pulled him quickly to me for a
walking kiss.  Behind the door to the house I could hear the
clicking of Joe's toenails on the tile.  His frustration at
not being outside was causing him to begin to whine and when
I opened to door he went ballistic and wouldn't calm down
until I actually picked him up and held him while he tried
licking me to death.
With his pale taupe color and blue eyes Joe always had this
ghost like quality about him and I couldn't help but
remember carrying him into that house inside of my coat.

                    --------------------------

Alex and Joe were tearing down the hall together and I bent
down and scooped a screaming Alex up on the fly.  I threw
him over my shoulder and ducked into the den with him.

"What, Dad?"  He was breathless and giggling.  "Why'd ya
grab me?"

I sat in the desk chair with Alex facing me on my lap.  "You
know who's birthday it's gonna be pretty soon?"

Alex looked up at me hopefully.  "Mine, Dad?"

"No, sweetheart.  Yours isn't for a couple of months.  It's
gonna be David's."  I had to smile at the disappointed look
that washed over his face.  "Are you gonna buy him a
present?"

"I don't have any money, Dad.  Well, maybe there's a little
in my elephant bank.  Would that be enough?"  Mike had
bought Alex a ceramic bank in the shape of an elephant.

"I'll give you the money, Alex.  But you gotta pick it out.
It'd mean a lot more to David if he knew that it was
something that you picked out for him.  So what I was
figuring was that you and I would go to the mall on Saturday
and buy him a present that would be just from you.  Wanna do
that?"

"That'd be cool, Dad but what'll I get him?"

Well, Alex, that's what you've got to figure out and you've
only got a few days to do it.  You have to talk to David and
try to figure out what he'd like but you can't let him know
what you're doing cause it's supposed to be a surprise."

"Should we get him something fuckin good, Dad?"  I'm not
sure but I think my eyes crossed.  Was this something that
he heard me say, or David?  We really did try to be careful
but little boys hear everything.

"Where did you hear that word, Alex?"  I can't imagine what
the expression on my face must have looked like but Alex
kinda froze.

"Tommy told me.  Is it a bad word, Dad?"

"Well....it's a bad word mostly and it's especially a bad
word when little boys use it."

"Is it a bad word when grownups use it, Dad?"

"Yes.....well, there may be a time or two when it isn't but
mostly it is and you sure shouldn't be using it."

"Are you mad at me cause I said it."  Alex's face had become
totally serious.

"Nope.  See, Alex, it's just one of the things ya gotta
learn and nobody is born knowin all this stuff.  You
wouldn't expect me to be mad at ya for not knowing something
that ya never got a chance to learn.  Would ya?"  Alex kept
his serious expression and shook his head slowly, no.
"Well, anyway, there's gonna be lots of stuff that Tommy
tells you or that somebody else tells you and some of it is
gonna be good and some maybe not so good."

I pulled Alex onto my lap.  "Kiddo, this is one of the
things Dad's are good at, or at least they should be.
Whenever you're wondering about something just come and ask
me.  I won't ever be mad at you, Alex, as long as you're
being honest and kind and remember that you can ask me
anything."  I touched his hair.  "You can talk to me about
anything, son.  I'm like, totally on your side and nothing
that you ever say or do is gonna change that one bit."

I smiled.  "Unless of course I decide to feed you to the
alligators that live in the basement."

"DAD!!!  You promised that you wouldn't talk about
alligators in the basement anymore!

I laughed and pulled Alex to my chest and kissed his the top
of his head.  "Okay, okay!  No more alligators in the
basement.  Boy, you sure are a spoil sport!"

"I hate alligators!"  Alex gave an exaggerated shiver.

I kissed the top of his head again.  "You don't have to
worry about alligators, Sweetheart.  Besides, I think the
bears ate em."

"DAD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

                    -------------------------------------

I finished toweling off my hair and walked out of the
bathroom and sat naked next to where David was lying on his
side watching me.  "Well, four years old and our son has
already learned to say "fuck".

David sat bolt upright.  "What?  Where the fuck.....?"

I smiled and kissed his forehead.  "Well, god knows that it
couldn't have been us, we'd never use language like that."

David started to turn and open his mouth.

"It wasn't us, Babe!  Tommy provided the instruction."  I
turned and kissed David's neck where a large vein was
pulsing.  "But you can also bet that he's heard us say it
too.  Just probably didn't sink in or maybe mean anything to
him."

David pivoted and laid on his stomach burying his face in
the pillow.  His voice was muffled.  "I knew that it had to
happen."  He turned and looked up at me and smiled.  "It's
like the beginning of the end.  I figure he'll be buying a
motorcycle and smoking any day now."

I ran my hands inside David's boxer shorts and squeezed his
butt.  "Well unless he's got way more in that elephant bank
then I figure possible I don't think he can afford either of
those things."

I turned my body so that I was lying next to David on the
bed my naked body pressed to his.  I laid my head on his
shoulder so that my face was buried in the crook of his neck
and my left leg was across his body.

"I don't think that we have to worry about Alex.  First of
all he's a really decent and loving kid and unless we fuck
up big time he'll stay that way.  Yes I know, there's that
word again."  David was rubbing my shoulders lightly and he
just grunted.  "You know, the thing is that if Alex asks me
why he can't use that word I'm not too sure that I can come
up with a really great reason.  Except, of course, the whole
socially unacceptable line.  After all it just describes an
act of love and lust that supposedly nobodies ashamed of."

David began running his fingers through my hair.  It felt
wonderful and I really wanted to just fall asleep with my
head on his chest and knock off about twenty hours.  It had
been a tiring trip.

"Well, you did tell him not to use the word didn't you?"

"Yep."

"I mean we can't have him talking like that."

"Emma wants me to bring him to Washington."  I yawned and
snuggled closer.  "She thinks......well, I guess that I
don't really know what she thinks but she wants to meet
him."

David must have realized just how exhausted I was because
while we continued talking he pulled the covers over us and
continued to stroke my hair.

"She's got this thing about him," I yawned again and
snuggled deeper, "really wants to meet him."

The next thing that I was aware of was the feeling that my
cock was both hard and being held in David's hand and that
some time had passed.  I couldn't quite get myself to open
my eyes and wasn't even totally awake but some primal part
of me was causing me to thrust my hips forward, the basic
male desire to fuck.  Then I felt a sudden wet warmth and
some part of me knew that I was inside of David and I
wrapped my arms around him and buried my face in his hair
while I fucked him.  I still hadn't opened my eyes but
somehow knew that it was dark in the room, the early pre-
dawn hours.

I felt David wrap his right leg behind my mine and his hand
pull mine tighter to his chest while the only sound that he
was making was a rhythmic gasping sound.  In my mind we were
in a park somewhere and we were both fucking and yet sitting
and talking together and some other part of me was totally
aware of where we were and what we were doing.
What my cock was doing in his ass was so clear in my mind,
the way that his muscles were stretched and then how they
grasped my cock, holding onto it as I dragged it slowly
outward and then when I came it was almost like I was
watching my cock shoot, time after time, great sprays of
semen filling him, spilling out of him, running over my hip,
soaking the bedding.

The next thing I knew David was sitting on the edge of the
bed wrapped in his white terry cloth bathrobe with a cup of
coffee in his hand and the sun was streaming in through the
window.

I finally managed to keep one eye open, my voice sounded
hoarse.  "That for me?"

David put his right hand on the side of my face and then
bent and kissed me.  "You ready for it or ya wanna sleep
some more?"

I smiled at him.  "If I opened my mouth could you just pour
it in?"

"You're ready for it."

I wrapped my hand around his leg and held it.  "We fuck last
night or did I dream that?"

"I guess that I instigated it.  You were hard and I started
to play......and one thing led to another."

I gently pulled him down on the bed next to me and pinned
him down with my body as I looked at him.  "I didn't hurt
you did I?  I wasn't even sure that it was real.  Was I too
rough?"

David black hair was splayed out over the white pillowcase
and his emerald eyes were even more intense than usual.  "It
was perfect, different than usual but still perfect."

"I didn't forget you know......happy birthday.  I called
George and made a reservation for us for dinner tonight.
Did Alex give you his present?"

David smiled.  "He was really sweet.  Maybe I'll wear it
tonight."

I slid my hand inside his bathrobe and lightly held the side
of his naked body.  "I kinda like you this way.....all bare
assed and needing a shave."

I heard Alex walking down the hallway and talking to Joe
just a second before bursting into our room.

"Dad, when are ya gettin up?  We're supposed to have a
birthday breakfast.  That's what Mrs. Meurer says."

I slid my hand smoothly out of David's bathrobe and rolled
over to face Alex and Joe.  "Comere ya little critter!"  I
grabbed David and hauled him up onto the bed next to me.
Joe jumped up and sat very close.  Alex was laughing and
rolling into a ball in case I tried to tickle him.

"Honest, Dad!  Mrs. Meurer says we gotta come and eat."  He
was rolling over until he was wrapped up in my arms, a warm
little boy in blue flannel pajamas.

"What are we having, Alex?"

"All kinds of stuff, Dad!  Eggs and sausages and bacon and
potatoes and toast."  He rubbed his eyes with his fists.
"Is it gonna be my birthday soon, Dad?"

"December 1st, about another month, Kiddo."

"Am I gonna get good stuff, Dad?"

"I was thinking maybe we'd get ya a years supply of
vegetables, cauliflower maybe."

"Dad!  Noooo vegetables!  Boys don't want vegetables. I
wanna bike.  You think I'll get a bike?"

David stood up, adjusted his bathrobe and held out his hand
to Alex.  "Come on, Sweetheart.  Let's give Mark a chance to
take a quick shower.  You can show me my birthday breakfast.
Okay?"

Alex jumped up and grabbed David's hand and then used it to
swing himself off of the bed.  Joe was already running ahead
and looking back to make sure that they were coming.  I
headed into the bathroom and took my shower, wondering if
they would be able to get my present to David installed in
the short time we would be out to dinner that night.

                    ---------------------------------

Walking into our favorite restaurant the owner, George,
immediately kidnapped Alex, showing him off to other diners
and eventually handing him into his wife's outstretched
arms.  Alex claims that he hates this but whenever we want
to go out to dinner George's is the only restaurant he ever
wants to go to.  Usually after about fifteen minutes of this
baloney we get our kid back with a smug smile on his face.
Alex takes his place between us in a booth, kneeling so that
he's high enough to be sure of our attention.  When we began
taking Alex with us to restaurants we both automatically and
without discussing it stopped drinking our usual martini and
started opting for Coke instead.

Alex put both hands flat on the table and leaned over
towards me.  "David's wearing my birthday present!"

"I know and it looks great on him.  Matches his eyes."  I
glanced at David whose black hair was beginning to hang down
over his forehead.

Alex looked momentarily perplexed then he knee walked toward
David and peered into his eyes.  "Yeah!"  He sat back on his
haunches to contemplate this development and stared at
David's face.  "Your eyes are green, Dad!"

David smiled and put his hand on the side of Alex's face.
"You noticed that did you?"

Alex turned his head to me.  "David's eyes are green, like
the sweater."  Then in a sudden shift of interest.  "I want
a hamburger, Dad, but I don't wanna have vegetables."  He
was slowly shaking his head.

David touched Alex's shoulder.  "You're gonna have at least
a salad."

Alex just stared up at him.  "Okay but can I have fries?"

Out of the corner of my eye I could see a man in the far
corner of the restaurant staring and frowning at us, from
time to time he would turn to his wife and seemed to be
talking angrily.  I didn't say anything to David and he
couldn't see the guy from where he was sitting.  I wanted to
go over and beat the guy to a pulp.  It had been a long time
since I had been in a fight and an even longer time since I
had been in combat.  It seems weird to say it but there's
something pleasurable about it, something frightening but
deeply satisfying and for a few moments I could imagine my
fist connecting with that guys face, the crunch of bone and
the spattering of blood and I could remember the adrenaline
rush.
I forced it not to show on my face and then forced it from
my mind.

"David, you haven't asked me what I've gotten you for your
birthday."  I swore that he could read my mind and a shadow
passed over his eyes for just a second and then disappeared.

He smiled at me.  "Well, it's gotta have something to do
with computers because I found out that you been talking to
my IT guys about something for the house."

"Did they tell you what?"

"Nope, they're all acting innocent, don't know what I'm
talking about."  He leaned back and crossed his legs.  "You
know that I've got all the computers that I could ever use,
so it can't be that."

Alex leaned into David.  "Maybe he got you a bike, Dad."  He
turned and looked at me.  "Is it a bike?  Did you get him a
bike?"

The waiter brought our food to the table and after getting
it sorted out he stepped back, look hard at Alex and
pretended to draw a six-shooter and fired.  Alex grabbed his
chest and collapsed on the seat of the booth for two seconds
and then sat up laughing.  As the waiter was walking away
Alex explained.  "Darren and I were playin cowboys."

David looked like he was about to swallow his tongue so I
thought that I better do a little diverting.  "David you
live all day with some of the most sophisticated electronic
stuff on the planet so I thought that maybe something older
and more handmade might be nice.  The reason your guys have
been acting so weird is that it's being installed in your
office at home right now and I wanted at least one of your
guys there so nothing got screwed up."

David sat up straight.  "Well what the fu......what is it?"

I took a bite of steak and talked while I was eating,
exactly what we tell Alex not to do.  "It's an old wall
mounted astronomical regulator, a clock, made in the late
1800's by the Edward Howard Clock Company.  They had to be
really accurate because they used them to time the movement
of the stars.  I had told Emma that I was kinda thinking in
this direction and she musta put the word out cause we had
one in two days but then we had to have it refurbished and
there's not all that many people left who can do that, at
least not to the original standard."  I looked at him and
kinda ducked my head and then looked at him again.  He was
smiling.  "I hope you like it."

He was looking straight at me across the table his eyes had
taken on a calm, deep quality like dark emeralds and his
voice was soft and warm.  "It's perfect, I know that I'll
love it."

Later that evening we walked into his office and there on
the ten foot high wall was the seven foot high Howard
Regulator doing exactly what Edward Howard had designed it
to do more than a hundred years before.  The huge pendulum
was slowly swinging, ticking away the seconds, the hours and
the days impervious to the perils of the century and a half
since its creation.