Date: Wed, 21 Sep 2016 16:23:00 -0400
From: Jim <zarek@roadrunner.com>
Subject: Another Chance: Chapter 85

Disclaimer: This story is fictional.  Some of the things that happened or
will happen with Jim are inspired by bits and pieces of my life.  Parts of
the character are fictional as well. All other characters were made up and
any similarities are just coincidental.  This is gay romance between
teenage boys, there may be sex, but for the most part, it's about their
true love of each other so if that offends you, please discontinue reading.
Also, if it is illegal for you to read such material, you have been warned.
Continual reading could cause a knock at your door.

I hope you're enjoying it so far and that the story draws you in wanting
more.  This story was "inspired" by another story, a great story, here on
Nifty, "Riding Lessons" by Andrew Todd.  Some people have compared my
writing style to that of Mr. Todd's and for that, I am flattered.  While
Another Chance does pay tribute to "Riding Lessons", it is a story of its
own and has its own plot and agenda.  If you have any suggestions or
concerns, don't hesitate to email me at zarek@roadrunner.com
<mailto:zarek@roadrunner.com> .  Thoughts and suggestion are always
welcomed and may or may not be implemented.  Concerns will be considered
and addressed as much as possible.

AND, if you enjoy the stories on Nifty.org, please give a donation to help
cover their expenses.  While the site is currently free, only donations
from loyal fans can help keep it that way.  Any amount will help.



Another Chance

Chapter 85

Patrick took his jacket off and Joe commented, "Wow, I need to get one of
those shirts for Jim.  Where'd you get it?"

Patrick smiled, looked at Jake and said, "The best younger brother in the
world gave it to me for Christmas."

"Seeing how you mean Jake, I won't argue, but..." Joe responded.

Jim argued, "I'm only younger by less than two months.  Patrick does have
the best younger brother, so leave it."

Joe gave Jim a hug, "I'm just glad that we all get along so great, and
whether you like it or not, you are kind of the cornerstone of this
family."

Jim gave Joe a funny look, "How do you figure?  I would think Mom is."

Joe explained, "Well, she accepted Chris and me as her sons, true, but you
have gone out of your way more to make sure I knew you accepted me as a
brother.  Who was it that the very first day I came to this family went and
bought boots, having them fixed for my shorter leg?  Who was it that rushed
to my side when that mare threw me?  Who was it that cried because you
weren't fast enough to keep me from hitting the ground and breaking my leg?
Who was it that treated Chris with so much love that he felt comfortable
enough to explain what happened to him?  Don't get me wrong, we both love
Mom very much and would sacrifice our lives for her if it came down to it,
but you, dear brother, are the cornerstone of this family."

Jim gave Joe another hug and whispered, "You keep talking like that, you'll
make me cry.  I just love you guys so much, I'm glad I get to be a part of
your lives."

Jake saw Heather and ran over to her, "Grandma, I missed you so much."

Chuckling, Heather said, "You just saw me last night."

"Uh huh, but I love you and missed you," Jake replied.  Heather picked him
up and gave him a kiss.

Patrick walked over and gave Heather a hug.  She looked at him, "Next
Tuesday, I'll be fixing liver and onions if you would like to come over."

Chris added, "When Uncle Joe and I leave the ranch that day, you can ride
with us, spend the night in your dad's old bed and then go back to the
ranch with us Wednesday."

Patrick looked at Zac and Jim and asked, "Can I?"

Jim was a little concerned, "Are you ready to face your fear again?"

Patrick answered, "This isn't exactly the same thing.  You're not leaving
me some place while you go away.  Besides, maybe this is the little step
towards facing it, and you'll be close enough."

Zac gave Patrick a smile, "I think in that short amount of time, you did a
lot of thinking.  I think Dad and I can be away from you for a night."

Jim gave Patrick a smile, stating, "And if you can sneak some liver and
onions home, I won't tell Grandma."

Heather started laughing, "He doesn't need to sneak any.  I'll send two
plates with him to the ranch Wednesday."

Jake looked at Heather, "When do we open presents?"

Heather gave him a hug and said, "You're so cute, do you know that?"

"Uh huh, Papa, Daddy and you tell me that all of the time," Jake answered.

Heather smiled, "You make me want another little one.  Well, we have to
wait for Grandpa Vince, Grandma Marilyn and Zayne to get here.  I'm not
fixing lunch, instead we have sliced ham, sliced roast beef, some bacon
strips, and sandwich fixings set out so everyone can eat as they feel
hungry.  We also have chips and pretzels."

"So are we opening presents when they get here?" Jake inquired.

Vince came in the door carrying the presents, Marilyn had Zayne in one arm
and held the door with the other.  She put Zayne down and the baby crawled
over to Zac.  Zac asked, "How long until he starts walking?"

Marilyn answered, "Generally, babies start walking around nine months.  You
started about three weeks earlier, and Zayne turned eight-months yesterday,
so he may start walking before the end of the year."

Zayne made little noises, Zac claimed that he was trying to say "bubba, or
brother," but Marilyn insisted that he was just making noises.  "You know,
when he was around six months, he said `mama' but he was looking at Vince.
Babies make up sounds trying to form words from about six months to just
under a year.  He won't associate you as `brother or bubba' until he's
around a year old."

Zac smiled, "I don't care what they say, I'm convinced that he called me
bubba."

Nick walked in and asked, "Jim, will you be Santa again and pass out
presents?"

Jim shook his head, "I don't live here anymore, so that passes to you, Joe
or Chris."

"Joe, do you want the honors?" Nick inquired.

Joe answered, smiling, "Thank you for asking, but I think Chris should get
it."

"Seriously?"  Chris replied, enthusiastically.

Joe chuckled, "You are wearing the Santa shorts that Jim gave you, so in a
way, Jim passed the baton on to you."

Chris handed Patrick and Jake matching boxes and said, "Mom, er, I mean
your grandma said that whoever hands out presents should give these to the
two of you at the same time."

"I'll race you opening them," Patrick challenged Jake.

While the boys were opening their presents, Jim looked at Heather and
asked, "Do you remember Trevor and Roger?"

"They're the two sweet boys where we took Patrick to see you," Heather
stated.  "Yes, I remember them."

Jim continued as Jake beat Patrick opening the gifts, "Trevor would like to
call Patrick sometime today and I told Patrick that I would ask you if it
was alright."

Heather told Patrick, "Text Trevor and Roger and tell them I would love the
opportunity to wish them a Merry Christmas, even if it is over the phone.
They can call any time."

"I winned," Jake declared once everyone was done talking.

Patrick gave Jake a smirk, "Yup, you won.  You beat me, but check out the
cool sleds that Grandma gave us.  Now we need to find a hill."

Chris finished handing out the presents and Patrick sent the text to Trevor
telling him he could call.  Patrick no sooner sent the text and his phone
rang.  Patrick answered, "Trevor, I'm going to put you on speaker so
Grandma and everyone else can say `Merry Christmas' to you."

"OK, and I'm putting you on speaker too, so Roger and the rest of the
family can as well," Trevor replied.

Patrick hit the speaker button and Heather said, "Merry Christmas Trevor,
tell Roger I send him my wishes as well."

"I can hear you, Mrs. Bolt, Trevor put you on speaker," she could hear
Roger say.  "Merry Christmas to you, too."

Heather responded, "Please, call me Heather.  So who's all there?  I'd like
to wish them all a Merry Christmas, too."

Trevor spoke up, "My dad and Daddy, Roger's parents, Henri and Marine, and
Grandpa Nate."

"Merry Christmas, everyone!" Patrick spoke in a slightly elevated voice.
"And, thank you for the boots.  Dad and Papa said that we'll go Monday for
them to measure Jake's and my feet.  But did you have to use so many
boxes?"

"At least I didn't wrap each box before putting it in the other," Trevor
sniggered.  "Did Jake like all of the paper in his?"

"It was funny; I was like `where's my present?'" Jake laughed.

Trevor commented, "I'm glad that you liked it, Little Bro."

Jake looked at Jim, "What's a little bro?"

Jim picked Jake up, "It's short for little brother.  In other words, Trevor
thinks of you as more than a friend, you're like a younger brother to him."

"OH! I like that," Jake replied.  Speaking into Patrick's phone, Jake said,
"Yeah, I liked it, Big Bro."  You could hear everyone laughing from over
the phone as well as around the house.

Bobby asked, "So, is there anything new and exciting happening?"

Sounding sad, Zac replied, "Jackson announced at the Christmas party that
he will be selling the ranch.  His husband was appointed to a District
Court position and the courthouse for this District is in Colorado."

"I'm sorry to hear that.  It's kind of weird that he would announce this at
the company's Christmas party, do you have any idea who the new owners will
be?"  Zac could tell from Bobby's voice, he was deeply concerned.

Jim spoke up, chuckling, "You're talking to them.  Well, technically, Zac
and I will own half.  Our brother, Joe, is buying a quarter and Jackson
will retain a quarter to maintain the cattle business, but Zac and I will
have full control of everything.  We'll take ownership once I graduate.
You and Nick should bring the boys for a visit next summer."

"We will take you up on that," Bobby averred.  "Trevor looks a bit excited,
and I'm sure he would like to meet Patrick Henry personally."

Trevor spoke up, "Speaking of him, I received the nicest thank you letter
he could have possibly sent.  Once he has his new horse, he's planning to
send me a picture of it.  He says that he wants to name it Patrick's
Miracle.  I thought that sounded very appropriate."

Patrick nodded his head, even knowing that Trevor couldn't see him, "I have
to agree, I'm so happy for him, when I first met him, he looked so sick,
almost like a skeleton, but now he's looking healthier.  He's still on the
really skinny side, but he is putting weight back on.  You should have seen
how happy his mom looked when he announced that his leukemia was gone.
Jackson's dad swears that Aurixi did it, but how could a horse take a boy's
illness from him?"

"I don't know, but I have heard of some strange things," Nick stated.

Heather asserted, "Nick, I recognize your voice, I would like for you to
meet my husband, Nick."

"Nice to meet you, Nick," Nick chuckled.

"Likewise, Heather has been talking about you and Robert and how friendly
the two of you were towards my family.  It's nice to finally chat with
you," Nick stated.

"Please, if you don't mind, I prefer Bobby," Bobby requested.

"If that is what you prefer, then Bobby, I will refer to you as such," Nick
replied.

Bobby's voice sounded pleasant, "I would appreciate it, thank you."

After slightly more than an hour, Jim finally offered, "It was nice
chatting with everyone, but we need to be heading home soon.  Scott's
planning to come to the house and spend the weekend with Patrick, and he'll
be arriving soon."

"So, we better let you go.  Patrick, do you have Skype?  Roger and I would
love to video chat with you and see this handsome Scott for ourselves,"
there was a chuckle in Trevor's voice.

"I have it on his laptop, I just need to create an account for him.  I'll
have it done tonight," Jim declared.

"Thank you and I'll chat with you and Scott tomorrow, Patrick," Trevor said
before they ended the call.

They were still unloading presents from the truck when Scott's dad dropped
him off.  Scott asked Patrick, "Did you like what I got you?"

"I didn't open it yet.  I wanted to wait for you to be here," Patrick
answered.

Scott smiled.  "You didn't have to wait, but I like the fact that you did.
I love you so much, Patrick."

Patrick placed his arms around Scott and pulled him in close.  He didn't
care who was watching, he pressed his lips to Scott's and parted his mouth.
Scott took the hint and slipped his tongue into Patrick's mouth.  Patrick
could feel himself and Scott both getting hard, but it was Jake that caught
their attention, causing them to break the kiss, "Ewww, Daddy, Scott put
his tongue in Patrick's mouth.  How disgusting."

Jim started cracking up, "OK love birds, let's finish getting these
presents in the house.  Scott, have you eaten yet?"

Scott replied, "Yeah, but if you haven't, I can take my stuff to Patrick's
room while you do."

Patrick winked, "I just had some tongue, so I'm good.  Besides, we ate a
lot at Grandma's"

Zac looked hard at Patrick, "I have a ham in the oven that's been
slow-cooking all day.  We have Grandma Heather's potato salad in the
fridge, and I'll be cooking a bag of frozen corn.  Are you telling me that
you're not going to eat any of it?"

Patrick looked down, "I'm sorry Papa, but I'm not really hungry right now.
Maybe in half an hour or so, I will be."

Zac gave Patrick a smile, "What about an hour?  I'm not pulling the ham out
for another hour.  And Scott, you're welcome to join us, maybe have a
sandwich."

"I can do that," Scott agreed.  Looking at Patrick, he added, "Let's go
open our presents."

Patrick gave Zac a hug and followed Scott into the house.  Jim smiled at
the two of them.  Once they were in the house, he said, "I think we lost
our help carrying the rest of the presents."

"I'll get the presents, why don't you go create a Skype account for Patrick
so he can text the account name to Trevor," Zac suggested.

After Jim finished setting up the account, he found Patrick still holding
the box Scott had wrapped for him.  Scott was holding a silver chain with a
horse hanging from it. "I love it, will you put it on me?" Scott asked.

Joking, Jim said, "If you really want me to, I will, but Patrick's right
there.  I think Patrick has good taste, though.  That necklace looks like
the one Papa wears.  I gave it to him our first Valentine's Day."

"I meant him, silly," Scott chuckled as he went to sit on Patrick's lap.

Patrick admitted, "I see Papa wearing his all the time and it makes me
think of Scott, so I looked for it when I was shopping."

"Like I said," Jim grinned, "you have good taste.  This paper has your
account name and password for you to get on Skype.  I'm going to trust you
and not check, just do me a favor and don't accept invites from anyone
unless you know them.  I'll leave you two alone."

Jim went into the kitchen to see how Zac was doing.  Zac's horse necklace
caught his eye and he smiled.  "What?" Zac asked.

Jim gave Zac a kiss and replied, "Our son just gave his boyfriend a
necklace that looks just like yours.  He said that he noticed you wearing
yours all the time and all, it just makes me feel happy that you still wear
it."

"Well, you see," Zac started, "my boyfriend gave me this necklace on our
first Valentines.  I rarely take it off."

Jim looked starry-eyed as he spoke, "I know, but seeing him give Scott his,
my heart is all aflutter like the day I gave it to you.  I love you so
much, Zac."

"By the way, did you look at the gift that Joe gave us?" Zac inquired.

Jim responded, "I saw the dinner tickets, was there anything else?"

Zac nodded his head, "The restaurant is in Cheyenne, and there's also a
room waiting for us for whenever we set a date to spend the weekend at the
Nagle Warren Mansion, just the two of us."

Jim had a look of concern on his face, "What about Patrick and Jake?"

"The note signed by Joe, Buster and Patrick says that Joe and Buster will
stay here to watch the boys.  Patrick signed saying that he agreed to
this."

Patrick slipped into the kitchen, "Dad, I want you to do this.  I want you
and Papa to go have fun and not worry about Jake or me for the entire
weekend.  I feel like you two have given up so much for us already and I
ruined your weekend away when I became anxious."

Jim took Patrick in his arms and said, "Bud, you didn't ruin anything.  I
think we had more fun after you joined us.  If you think you can handle us
going away for the weekend, I'm all for it, but never ever feel like you
ruined anything.  We love you so much."

Patrick hugged Jim back, "I love you and Papa, too.  I know that you both
planned to do things that night but couldn't, and..."

Zac cut him off, "As Dad said, we had more fun once you joined us.  You
made a couple of great friends and you feel more comfortable with who you
are.  You ruined nothing, Bud.  I'm with Dad on this and we did manage to
do what we planned, so forget the idea that you ruined our weekend.  You
made it a better weekend, if anything.  Dad was worried about you until you
tackled him, so yeah, we were happy that you showed up.  So, what did Scott
give you?"

Patrick simply smiled and held out his right arm.  Around his wrist was a
silver Figaro bracelet.  It was a little loose and Patrick showed that he
could slip it off and on without unclasping it, but it was still barely
tight enough that he shouldn't have to worry about it accidentally falling
off.

Zac advised, "Just a suggestion, unclasp it when you do take it off so you
don't accidentally stretch the metal."

Patrick agreed, "I know, I just wanted to show you that I can."

"You can also clasp onto one of the links to make it seem a little short
and even less likely to fall off.  Having it a little big, it might be just
the right size when you're done growing," Jim suggested.

Patrick asked, "Can you show me?"  Jim pulled the chain taut and then
loosened it by a few links before he put the clasp through the link.  When
Patrick shook his hand to see how the bracelet fit, he smiled.  "That feels
less worrisome and makes me feel more comfortable, thank you."

Jim smiled, "Any time, Bud."

Zac pulled the ham out of the oven and Patrick's mouth started watering.
Scott came into the kitchen and said, "That smells good.  I'm not really
hungry, but I think I will take you up on that sandwich.

After supper, the boys went to Patrick's room and played until Patrick
suggested for Jake to go to his own room so he and Scott could have a
little personal time together.  Jake hugged Scott and then Patrick and said
that he was going to bed.

In the morning, Patrick was up first and went to the bathroom.  He locked
the door going to Jake's room and then woke Scott up.  "Want to shower
together?  I already have Jake's door locked so we can wash each other."

Scott jumped out of bed and followed Patrick into the bathroom.  After an
hour in the shower, they heard Jim knocking on Jake's door to the bathroom.
He called out, "We're leaving in ten minutes.  You boys need to be dressed
and downstairs or I'm dragging you out in whatever manner of dress you
are."

Patrick's and Scott's eyes got big as they hurried to finish actually
showering in the now cold water.  They were at the top of the steps as Jim
was starting up them.  Patrick asked, "Can we at least drink a glass of
juice before we go?"

Sounding serious, Jim asked, "Didn't you drink enough water in your
hour-long shower?  Poor Jake had to use our bathroom when he woke up.  He
almost didn't make it."

Patrick looked at Jake, "I'm sorry, I should have made sure you got to go
before we took our shower."

Giving Patrick a smile, Jim said, "Your juice and breakfast is on the
table.  Papa's going to head to the ranch and we'll leave after you've
eaten, so don't just gobble it up."

"Thanks Dad," Patrick responded.

As they rode to the ranch, Patrick texted Trevor.

Dad set my Skype account up.  It's PABolt2004.  We should be home around
4:30 our time.

The rest of the day was a typical winter Saturday for the boys.  Patrick
was anxious to get home.  When they got in the house, he and Scott ran up
to his room.  He started his laptop and there was a Skype message waiting
on him.  It was from someone named Old Geezer1933 and said, "Want some fun
with a eighty-two-year-old man?  Get naked and start your video chat."

Patrick looked at Scott and said, "Ewww, that just sounds gross.  Now I
know why Dad said not to accept invites from strangers.  I'm blocking him."

Scott nodded his head, "Yeah, I would, too.  I mean, eighty-two, wasn't he
around when Noah built the ark?"

Patrick laughed, "No, I think the 1933 in his name was the year he was
born."

It was almost five and Patrick was tired of looking at his laptop, waiting
for Trevor to "call."  He grabbed his phone to text him and received a
notification that he had another friend request.  Hoping that it wasn't
another old guy, Patrick opened his Skype and his face lit up as he read,
"Trevor King has sent you a friend request.  Would you like to accept it or
decline?"

Scott was repeating, "Accept, accept!!!"

Patrick accepted Trevor's invite and started typing, "What took you so
long?"

Trevor tapped out, "I wanted to give you extra time in case your dad
decided to stop somewhere.  Start your video chat so we can chat."

Patrick started his video chat and Scott backed away.  Patrick gave him a
funny look, "Babe, what's wrong?  You were excited when you saw the
invite."

"What if your friends don't like me?" Scott whispered.

Patrick had a funny look on his face, "Why wouldn't they?  I mean, it's not
like they'll be the ones dating you, so why wouldn't they?  You're the one
normally bold between us."

Scott finally grabbed the spare chair Jim had given to Patrick for when
Scott was there.  He sat beside Patrick and Trevor said, "Wow, Patrick.  I
thought Scott was good-looking in the pictures your dad sent us, but now to
actually see him, he's just plain gorgeous."

Scott started blushing and Patrick put his arm around him.  "See Babe, I
told you, you didn't have anything to worry about.  Besides, I love you and
that's all that should matter."

Trevor asked, "So, do you still have doubts of whether you're gay or not?
From where I am sitting, I can answer that."

Patrick smiled, "I'm gay, I know beyond any doubt that I am and I very much
love Scott."

Scott just smiled.  Roger looked at him and asked, "What about you, Scott?"

"Do I really need to answer that? I mean, I'm not ashamed of it, and I love
Patrick with all my heart.  If I have to say it, I will, but can't you see
how happy Patrick makes me?" Scott replied.

Trevor nodded his head, "Yeah Scott, I see that big smile on your face.  I
can see how you keep stealing glances at Patrick with love in your eyes.
So, you don't have to answer this, I mean it is personal, and if you do, we
don't need details, but have you two done anything yet?"

Patrick blurted out fast, "Oh my gosh, do you know what head is?  When we
first found out, we thought it would be gross, but then I talked to a boy
at school and he told us more about it and we tried it and..." then in a
calmer, almost euphoric voice, he added, "It was amazing, both giving and
receiving."

Trevor laughed, "Yeah, we know what it is.  I'm guessing that you liked
it."

"Oh yeah," Scott replied.  "Patrick has an amazing tongue.  I do have a
question though."

"Ask, if we can answer, we will," Trevor declared.

Scott asked, "I heard some boys at school when I was in a bathroom stall.
One said that he was going to get a fag to rim him before the school year
was out.  Do you know what he meant?"

Trevor explained what he knew about rimming and Roger started laughing.
"What's so funny?" Trevor finally asked, looking over at Roger.

Roger said, "Look at Patrick and Scott's face.  I don't think they believe
you.  Guys, you thought head was gross until you tried it, trust me,
rimming is not as gross as you think.  Just make sure you are clean down
there.  Think about it, as long as you both are clean back there, you're
just licking skin"

Patrick stated, "I see your point, but I don't know.  We'll think about it,
but no promises."

Trevor commented, "You don't have to promise us anything.  What the two of
you do or don't do should be between the two of you."

The boys chatted for a while, Trevor told them about being elected
Vice-President of the Gay Students Alliance.  Scott asked a few more
questions which caused Patrick to blush.  Trevor answered as best as he
could.  When Jim called the boys down for supper, they finally said
good-bye.

At dinner, Patrick told Jim about the invite that he blocked.  He said, "I
definitely see why you said not to accept invites from just anybody.  I
don't want some guy old enough to have voted for Lincoln seeing me naked.
That's just gross."

Jim nodded his head, "Well, I'm glad that you blocked him.  I'm not saying
that I'll turn him in, but I may talk to Grandpa Nick about it."

Scott asked, "Why would an eighty-two-year-old man want to chat with boys?"

Jim looked down, "I would say that he may not have known how old Patrick
is, but with his year of birth in his user name, I seriously doubt that.
The sad truth is, there are some people who just like to hurt children.  I
don't know why or why God allows it, other than the fact He gave everyone
freewill, but they do.  And you never know who is really behind a Skype
message or text message unless you know the person personally.  There are
people in their twenties, thirties and older who might pose as an eleven or
twelve-year-old to get you to do things.  Don't get me wrong, not everyone
that age is that way, but it's hard to trust them unless you them."

"Thanks for caring, Dad.  I do understand why you said not to accept
invites from strangers, and I'm glad you care," Patrick stated.

The rest of the weekend, Patrick and Scott had fun and were kind of sad
when it was over.  They did discuss rimming but neither boy was ready to
try it.  Scott gave Patrick a long sensual kiss before getting into his
dad's truck.  Scott put his window down and asked, "Can Patrick spend next
weekend at my house?"

Jim slowly shook his head, "Next Saturday is Jake's birthday."

"I'll be this many," Jake said holding one hand showing all of his finger
and thumb and the other hand showing one finger.

Scott asked, "How many is that?"

Jake counted his fingers out loud, "One, two, three, four, five,
six... I'll be six years old."

Scott grinned, "Very good, little munchkin."

Jake returned the grin and asked, "Will you come to my party?  You're
Patrick's boyfriend and like a brother."  Patrick started blushing.

Scott looked at his dad, pleadingly.  Mr. Gavin just nodded his head.
Scott smiled and told Jake, "I wouldn't miss it, especially since you
asked."

"The party will be at the ranch.  Normally, we would do it after we get off
work, but with Jake being only six, Jackson figures that it would be better
for the guests if we have it at noon," Jim informed Scott.  Then looked at
Ed and added, "You and your wife are welcome to join us."

Scott got an evil look in his eye, he looked at Jake and asked, "Would you
like my dad and mom at your party?"

Jake started jumping up and down, nodding his head.  Jim worried what the
boy might do to himself and placed a hand on his shoulder.  Jake finally
calmed down and inquired, "You coming too, Scott's dad?"

"Now, how could I possibly say no to that cute face.  Dena and I will be
there."

As his dad started pulling away, Scott put his window up.  Jim heard Scott
tell his dad, "Patrick has Skype on his laptop and we talked to his friends
in..."

Jim placed his hand on Patrick's shoulder, "Is Scott planning to ask his
dad to set him up with Skype?"

Patrick looked up at Jim's face and smiled, "He's going to try, promising
to only use it to chat with me, and maybe Trevor and Roger."

"That would be cool, but school work takes top priority, and then yours and
Jake's puppies.  And no talking on Skype after your bed time," Jim averred.

Patrick stated, "We were thinking of doing our homework together through
Skype, is that acceptable?"

"Yeah, Bud," Jim agreed, "as long as you get your work done and your grades
don't slip.  The two of you can do homework on Skype and then chat."

"Thanks Dad," Patrick said, giving Jim a hug.

Zac asked Patrick, "Speaking of the pups, did you and Jake ever decide on a
name for them?  I mean, they are four months old and saying yellow puppy or
black puppy doesn't really cut it."

"Jake wants to name the yellow one Cheddar," Patrick stated.

Jim asked, "Like the cheese?"

Patrick nodded his head and said, "He said that you told him Colby was like
the cheese."

Zac and Jim started laughing, Jim said, amongst his chuckles, "Yeah, but
Colby is also a name."

Patrick explained, "But he's only going to be six, I don't think he
understands that.  He also wants to name the black one Duck, like from the
commercials."

Zac stopped laughing and asked, "What do you want to name them?"

Patrick thought for a minute, "I think Cheddar would be kinda funny, but
while I like that commercial, I'm not really fond of Duck as a name for a
dog.  Like Cheddar goes with Colby, I would like a name to go with
Kunoichi.  You said that meant female ninja, and Grandpa Nick has Shinobi
which means Ninja, so I was thinking of maybe calling him Sam for Samurai."

"I like that," Jake stated.  "Cheddar and Samurai."

"Do you want Sam or Samurai?  Jake named Cheddar, so I think you should
name the other," Zac inquired.

Patrick admitted, "I like Samurai, but thought Sam would be easier."

Jim nodded his head and acknowledged, "Then Samurai is his name.  And we
can always call him Sam for short."  Patrick smiled.

On Monday, Patrick was looking at designs that he liked for his boots while
an attendant was measuring his and Jake's feet.  He found a design and
asked if he could get it.  The attendant looked at the page he was looking
at and responded, "That is cobra skin and would be covered with your gift
certificate, so yes you can.  And for an additional fifty dollars, we can
include matching belts."

"Fifty dollars per belt?" Jim asked.

"Oh no, I figured that if you got the matching belt, you would want one for
each boy, that's thirty dollars for the older boy and twenty for the
younger one." The attendant explained.

Zac commented, "You figured correctly, but how soon will the boys outgrow
them?"

"For children, we add extra length to make it a longer time.  They will
outgrow the boots first.  And with these boots, as long as they are still
in good condition when they do, we will measure their feet again and create
a new pair for half the cost plus the original boots.  We will donate them
to a needy family."

"Ma'am," Zac said sternly, "I believe you convinced me to add the belts."

Patrick asked, "Dad, can you take a picture of these boots and send them to
Trevor and Roger so they know what we're getting."

"May I?" Jim asked the attendant.  She nodded her head.

When Patrick spent the night at Heather's, he called Zac and Jim before
going to bed, but had no issues with being away from them.  When he handed
the liver and onions that Heather gave him for Jim and Zac to Jim, Jim told
him how proud of him he was.

New Year's Eve, Heather had invited everyone to celebrate.  Patrick was
surprised when she fixed him a drink.  "Aren't I too young to drink this?"
he asked.

Heather nodded, "You are, but it's very weak.  I used only an ounce of
alcohol for a twenty-ounce glass and am splitting it between you and Jake
so that you would feel included.  Cough syrup has as much if not more
alcohol.  If you would rather not have any, I can fix you a drink without
any."

"If Dad and Papa have no problem with it, then this will be fine," Patrick
responded.

Jim answered, "It's just once a year, Grandma already asked if you boys
would be allowed.  Papa and I agreed that as long as it was weak.  Just no
driving."

Patrick laughed, "Dad, I'm only eleven.'

"So you really shouldn't be driving.  I may have to ground you," Jim
teased.

Patrick chuckled, "Dad, I'm not driving."

Jim smiled, "OK, no grounding for driving, then."

The rest of the night, they played card games and other games that the boys
could join them in.  When they played more sophisticated games like euchre
or spades, Jake sat on Zac's lap to watch him play and Patrick sat beside
Jim so Jim could explain the games to him.  Chris also took time to play
games like Trouble, Sorry! and Chutes-n-Ladders with Jake and Patrick.  It
didn't surprise Jim when Jake fell asleep at his usual bed time, but
Patrick stayed up until they watched the ball drop.

Jim was going to pick Jake up so they could go home but Heather stopped
him.  She suggested, "Why don't you carry him upstairs and put him in your
bed?  Patrick, would you like to spend the night again?  You and Jake can
go with Joe and Chris to the ranch tomorrow, if the weather permits.  And
Jim, you and Zac are welcome to spend the night also."

"It would beat walking home in the dark, Dad," Patrick urged.

"Jake can sleep in my bed and Patrick can sleep with Joe so you two can
have your old bed," Chris suggested.

Joe agreed, "I'm up for it if Patrick doesn't mind sleeping in my bed with
me."  Patrick nodded his head so Jim and Zac agreed.

In the morning, it didn't snow but it was very cold; the high for the day
was twenty-six degrees.  Jim suggested that Patrick and Jake stay with
Heather and Heather loved the idea.  Jackson told them to work quickly to
take care of the horses and get home.

Zac helped Jim, Joe, Chris and Buster take care of the horses, and they
took turns going into the office to avoid getting too cold.  At least the
new barns weren't as drafty as the old barns had been and Gerry even built
heaters into each of the barns.  They helped, but as spacious as barns are,
they were still colder than a house, but not nearly as cold as outside.

When Zac was in the office, he asked Jackson, "Did you ever find a horse
for Patrick Henry?"

Jackson chuckled, "It might be a bit late for him, he died in 1799.  OH,
you mean Patrick's friend."

"You knew who I meant," Zac said, shaking his head.

"Yeah, there is one in Kanab, Utah.  He's up for adoption, instead of sale,
and they just received him less than a month ago.  I've already contacted
them and he'll be transferred to the rescue in March.  He won't cost
Patrick more than three hundred.  The horse is barely three and has not had
a rider yet, so that might be an issue."

Zac looked a little confused, "Why not until March?"

"In case you didn't notice," Jackson began, "it's cold outside.  Horse
trailers are not known for heat and they would rather not travel this far
with him until the weather gets warmer."

Zac nodded, "That makes sense.  Have you told Patrick Henry about the
horse?"

Jackson grinned, "I did and he offered to give me the full five hundred if
we break the horse for him.  I told him that we would, but he didn't have
to pay the extra, I would make sure it was done."

"Make sure what was done?" Jim asked as he came in, followed by Joe, Chris
and Buster.

Jackson replied, "The horse for Patrick Henry will need someone to break
him."

"I volunteer," Joe offered.

Jackson smiled, "I'm guessing that being thrown didn't bother you too
much."

"Not too much.  Besides, I've learned things that will help," Joe declared.

Jim chimed in, "I'd like to help.  He is going to Zac's and my son's
friend's horse, so I want to help with the breaking."

"It sounds to me like we have that taken care of, now if the horses are
taken care of, git out of here and head home," Jackson demanded.  Zac
looked at Jackson before going out the door.  As if he had read Zac's mind,
Jackson assured, "Yes, the barn is ready for the party and I have eight
heaters set around the walls of the barn, plus small ones at each table.
It should be a little toasty in there."

"I'm glad, some of the parents were concerned with having the party in a
barn," Zac stated.  "I told them that you would have it taken care of and
for them to join the party.  I compromised with them asking to give five
minutes, and if they weren't happy with your solution, we wouldn't be
offended if they left."

Jackson chuckled, "I don't think they'll leave.  If the horse barns were as
warm, the horses might shed their winter coats.  And they can't put them
back on like the children can."

Zac laughed, "That would be funny to watch a horse take off and put on a
winter coat like that."

When it finally came time for Jake's party, several families showed up,
despite the cold weather.  Ed, Dena and Scott were the first to arrive.
Walker and his parents were next.  Patrick asked, "Is Sean coming?"

Walker shook his head, "His dad took him to Canada to go ice fishing and
they're not back yet.  They were just crossing back into Montana at Wild
Horse Border Crossing when I was talking to him."

Patrick had mixed emotions over Sean not coming, "It's a shame he can't
make Jake's party, but I'm happy that he's having fun with his dad."

"He did give me a present for Jake in case they didn't make it," Walker
stated.

As his classmates came, Jake introduced them to Zac and Jim.  "Daddy, Papa,
this is my best friend in class, Chase Dubois.  His middle name is Ledoux,
and he was named after a singing rodeo cowboy."

Jim said, "You mean Chris Ledoux?  We have his CDs.  Papa plays them all
the time, they're so good."

"Yeah, him," Jake confirmed.

Another boy walked over to Jake and gave him a hug.  When they parted, Jake
announced, "This is Ivan Navi.  If you read his name backwards, it's the
same.  Isn't that cool?"

Jim nodded his head, "Yeah, it is."

Patrick walked over with his phone in his hand, "Jake I have a phone call
for you."

He tapped the speaker button and Jake said hello only to hear Trevor and
Roger say in unison, "Happy Birthday, Jake."

"Trevor, Roger, thank you.  You guys actually called on my birthday.  I
love you guys," Jake gushed.

Trevor said, "We love you, Little Bro.  We couldn't miss calling you.  We
look forward to coming to Cody this summer.  Catch you then."

Zac grinned, "That's so cool of them calling to wish Jake a happy birthday,
even if it was a short conversation."

Jim concurred, "Yeah, they are a great couple of boys.  I'm glad Patrick
and Jake got to meet them."

Jake was very happy with his party and everyone had fun.




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