Date: Fri, 16 Jun 2006 17:54:30 -0700
From: qwb <qwb@san.rr.com>
Subject: Stonegate Stables, chapter 4

>From the previous chapter. . .

     Everyone's forever starts somewhere and, although I
didn't know it at the time, mine began when TJ (not PJ)
Lundquist unfolded his 6'1" self from the cab of the truck.
He wore bib overalls over a white tank and a Longhorns
baseball cap on backwards to keep his pale blond hair out of
his face. Tommy and Alejandro had come up behind me and were
watching with raised eyebrows and open mouths.
     "Madre de Dios," breathed Alejandro.

     Tommy was more succinct. "Holy fuck."



Stonegate Stables

Chapter 4



You're my kind of crazy
Full moon saying you know what I like
How about it baby
Let's you and I go out and get crazy tonight
- My Kind Of Crazy - Brooks & Dunn


     I couldn't speak at all. He was spectacular. If someone
had asked me to draw my dream man, I wouldn't have drawn TJ
because I wouldn't have been able to imagine all of the
little things that made him so attractive to me. His eyes
were the clear blue of a September afternoon, crinkled at
the corners; set in that strong, tan face, they were heart
stopping. He had a three day stubble thing going, the golden
hair framing his full mouth and I could almost feel it
tickling my neck. He was lean and hard, all sinewy muscle
from wrestling uncooperative horses around all day. From his
neck to his wrists, one curve melted into another,
accentuated by a light sprinkle of soft golden hair. I
couldn't see his legs but doubted they would be any less
marvelous than the rest of him.  He reminded me of an
illustration of a Viking in an old book of Norse fables I'd
had as a child.

He was looking down at his clipboard as he began to walk
toward us. Little puffs of dust kicked up from his long
strides and hung in the air. When he got near, he glanced up
with the beginnings of a smile but when he met my gaze, he
stopped in his tracks and the smile died from his mouth. The
pit of my stomach knotted up so quickly that I put a hand on
my gut. He stood there with his clipboard clutched in one
hand, knuckles white, arm muscles tensed. It was one of
those moments that you read about but think can't possibly
happen in real life. In the movies, there's always violin
music or trumpets. What I remember is lots of cursing as one
of the new horses bucked and kicked at the end of his lead,
happy to be out of the truck.

"I. uh.I'm." He stopped and swallowed. "I'm TJ Lundquist,
the, uh, shoer," he finally got out, staring at me.

     I stood there mute, rooted to the ground, until Tommy
goosed me. "Ooh. Ah, yeah. Sean Flanagan, the barn manager.
Hi." I managed to shuffle a couple steps forward and held
out my hand. He stared at it for a second then laid his
slowly into it, closing his fingers over mine in a gradually
tightening grip that had me wincing in a few seconds.
Farriers have strong hands.

     He dropped my hand with a chagrined look. "Sorry." He
glanced around the yard. "Where should I park?"

"Back up to the middle door. We'll use those cross ties." I
waved a hand toward the barn door and he nodded and got back
in his truck. The sight of those bibs tightening over his
round ass as he lifted his leg into the truck had all three
of us gulping for air. As he reached out to grab the door, I
noticed the tuft of golden hair under his arm and my stomach
went nuts gain, coiling around like a bag of snakes. I
chased Tommy and Alejandro back to work and went off to get
Queenie, unsuspecting horse shoer guinea pig. When I arrived
with the mare, TJ had his truck opened up, his nail box out,
and was buckling his heavy leather shoeing apron low around
his hips. I closed my eyes and counted to 5, then turned the
mare around in the cross tie stall where she switched her
tail and eyed TJ almost as much as I had.

     "She's pretty quiet but I'll hold her for you," I said
as he walked around Queenie, talking softly to her and
scratching her neck. You face the back of the horse a lot
when you're shoeing so I had time to study TJ Lundquist and
I liked everything I saw. He was good with the horse, quiet
but firm, and he knew his job. And he had a great ass. As he
rested his left hand on her rump, I noticed he was missing
the little finger on that hand.

     Cody came whistling around the corner and stopped dead
when he caught sight of TJ leaning casually on Queenie.
"Good Gawd Almighty, who are you?"

I jumped in before TJ could get his mouth open. "Cody
Birdwell, TJ Lundquist, one of Danny's guys." TJ held out
his hand. Cody stared at it for a long moment just like I
had and I wondered how TJ got through a day. I suppose not
every man he shook hands with was gay, but still. They
shook, lingering a little. Cody was happily partnered with
Wade, but even he wasn't immune to TJ's charm or pheromones
or whatever the hell it was.

"The Lawton, Oklahoma Birdwells?" TJ asked, eyebrows raised.

"Yup. Ya maybe heard a my daddy. Rodeoed for a spell."
That's like saying Hank Aaron played a little ball or Mozart
wrote a few tunes.

     "God, I grew up watching Davis Birdwell ride everything
he threw a leg over. And you were 3rd in the cutting horse
nationals in February, right?"

"Yup agin." Cody squinted at him. "Plannin' to win it next
year. Getcha good seats if ya wanna go."

     "Jesus, that'd be great. This the horse?" he asked,
scratching Queenie's back. She curled her upper lip a little
and pushed back into his hand, grunting.

     "That's her. Do her right."

TJ chuckled. "Will do. Pleasure to meet you." Cody gave him
another once over before he headed off to the south barn to
get his reining horse.

     Before he started on her front feet, TJ asked me to
trot her out and back, and on the return, I glanced up to
see if he wanted us to go again, but he was staring at my
crotch and apparently hadn't seen a single step the horse
had taken. I silently thanked whatever gods had made me put
on my snuggest training tights this morning; it's always
nice to know you're looking hot when you need to be. When he
realized we were just standing there, he closed his eyes and
pinched the bridge of his nose for a moment before asking me
to trot her again. Finally I left him with Tommy on the lead
and went off to ride a three year old filly that Amanda had
purchased sight unseen from Spain a few months ago. She was
a Fresian, big and black, and a joy to ride, although she
was only 4. We worked on gait transitions for a while, then
I handed the reins to one of the stable boys and went to
take a leak.

I pushed the door open and there stood TJ with his dick in
one hand pissing a hard stream into the urinal. Jesus
Christ, what a sight. He'd undone the straps of his bibs
which were hanging halfway down his thighs and had his other
hand under his tank, running it over his chest and belly
while he pissed, obviously enjoying himself. He was wearing
a jock under the bibs and had pulled his dick out one side
of the pouch. A trimmed golden triangle curled around the
base of his penis, the tan cheeks of his ass were framed by
the white straps of the jock and, once again, I was struck
dumb.

     I stood there staring at his cock long past what could
have been shrugged off as natural male curiosity. He
finished peeing, stroked himself a couple times, either for
my benefit or just because it felt good, and was tucking it
back into the jock before I managed to drag my eyes up to
his amused gaze. He cocked an eyebrow at me as he hitched up
the bib straps and slid by me out the door, brushing his
crotch lightly along my arm on the way past. I closed my
eyes and hung my head. Jesus Christ, Sean, get a grip. The
guy was turning me into a moron. I pissed, gave it a couple
strokes to make myself feel better and headed back to the
barn where TJ was finishing up Amanda's last horse, a grumpy
bay gelding.

     "Get that grey mare," I told Tommy, taking the
gelding's lead from him. He trotted off and I hazarded a
glance at TJ but he was absorbed in the final rasping of a
front foot. He set it down, narrowed his eyes at each hoof
in turn and pronounced the gelding done. He glanced at me
and blinked, expecting Tommy, I guess, and I gave him a
casual smile, hoping to get by the men's room incident as
quickly as possible. He held my gaze a moment,
expressionless, then turned to watch the skinny grey mare
come down the barn aisle. I swapped leads with Tommy and led
the mare into the cross ties.

     "She's thrushy in her off hind," I said. "I need you to
trim her close so we can see how bad it is."

     He nodded as he watched the mare cock that toe. "Sore."

     "A little," I agreed.

     He nodded again and went to work on her. When he had
her trimmed, he waved me down so he could show me. Our knees
bumped when I squatted next to him but I didn't move away.
Let him if he wants, I thought, but he didn't. We decided
that the mare wasn't too bad and he finished shoeing her. I
gave her a tetanus shot and Tommy took her off to soak her
foot in an antiseptic bath. I got called away to help load
an uncooperative Arab and when I got back, TJ had packed up
and all I could see of him was the dust trail his truck made
as it went down the lane. I stared after him until the air
cleared.

     The following Saturday morning we had a dressage test
at ShowPark, the local horse show venue and I stopped for a
mocha on the way. Someone held the door as I reached it and
I glanced up with a smile and a "Thanks" but it stuck in my
throat when I saw TJ's grinning face. His pale blue polo and
khakis were a far cry from the bibs and he looked even more
gorgeous than he had at the barn. Today's hat was a summer
fedora made of dark straw with a thin, pale blue band, a few
shades lighter than his eyes. He looked absolutely edible.

     He followed me in and we joined the line. After taking
a long look at my tall black boots, white breeches, and
shirt under the short black jacket, he met my eyes again.
"Dressage? Thought you rode jumpers."

     "I do, mostly. Today is a just test before the
regionals and everybody rides. It's good experience. How'd
you know I jumped?"

     "Danny said." He stared into the pastry case for a
moment, then turned back to me and bit his lower lip. From
the expression on his face, I thought he might be about to
declare his undying love but instead he said, "I'll be back
out early Monday to check the grey mare." I nodded, we got
our coffees and left, I to my dressage test and he to no
telling what.

I got to the barn around 7 on Monday, just in time to watch
TJ back into place by the middle doors. I was determined to
act like a normal person this time and wandered casually
over to his truck. As I opened the door for him, he handed
me a to-go cup. "Grande mocha, one sugar, lots of whipped
cream" he announced, grinning at me when my face registered
my surprise. Not just good looking and hung like the
proverbial horse, but kind and thoughtful, too? Could he get
any better? I had to find out. I looked into those blue,
blue eyes, putting a little heat in it, and the humor
drained out of his face to be replaced with something that
made my heart pound.

     "Come over tonight," I said softly. "I need.I want to
spend some time with you. Away from thrushy horses and
without an audience." I cut my eyes at Tommy and Sam,
smiling at us from the office door. He looked at me
carefully, running his eyes over my face before nodding, got
out of the truck and went to work. I enjoyed my mocha while
he approved the grey mare's progress, and just before he
left, I tucked a note with my cell # and address into his
front bib pocket. He patted it with his damaged left hand
and gave me a smile.

     I called Maria with a few requests, then called Vincent
and Dylan, who each had permanent security codes to my
place, and told them I needed the house to myself tonight.
With that accomplished, I zombied through the rest of the
day, getting tossed on my ass by the Fresian filly while I
was imagining TJ's shoulder under my hand rather than the
filly's. But 5:30 eventually arrived and I loped out the
gate on Zena, hot to get home. I showered quickly, jogged
down the stairs, and puttered in the kitchen waiting for TJ
who arrived around 7, freshly showered but still with the 3
day stubble. "How do you keep it just the right length?" I
asked him, running a knuckle down his cheek.

He stayed silent, watching me, until my hand dropped off his
chin. "Horse clippers. Set them for a close body clip and it
comes out like this." I chuckled and pulled him through the
door. He followed me to the kitchen and I poured wine for
both of us, then led the winding way to the jungle pool with
its hot tub tucked in one corner. Maria had laid out towels
and placed candles here and there. I wandered around in the
dusk lighting them with TJ at my side until we were back at
the Jacuzzi.

     Then things kind of ground to a halt. I'm not a bashful
guy but I just couldn't relax with him. My palms were sweaty
and I couldn't think of a goddamn thing to say that didn't
sound idiotic. I turned away from him slightly, cursing this
as a bad idea when I felt his big warm hand settle over the
back of my neck, then slide down onto my chest. He spread
his feet slightly, pulled me back against him and put his
mouth to my ear.

     "Thanks for having me over," he said softly. "I was
gonna ask if you didn't." He hooked his hand up over my
opposite shoulder and squeezed softly, holding me in a
gentle headlock.

     I draped a hand over his arm and we stood there quite a
while, sipping our wine and watching the sun go down. His
chest rose and fell in deep, even breaths behind me and I
could feel the steady thud of his heart against my back.
When it was almost dark, he turned to me and I felt his warm
breath wash across my cheek. "Gonna feed me?"

     "Shit, yes. Sorry." I reluctantly pulled free of his
arm and stepped away from him to get some platters of
cheese, crackers, fruit and cold chicken out of the fridge
by the barbeque. I arranged them on the edge of the fire pit
and he sat down close to me on a chaise lounge while we ate.
At one point he plucked a grape and offered it to me, his
hand a couple inches from my mouth so that I had to reach
for it. I took the first knuckle of his finger as well and
heard him suck in a quick breath as I tickled the tip of it
with my tongue while it slid from my lips. Such a hokey move
but sooo effective.

     I guess that broke the ice cause the next thing I know,
I'm on my back on the chaise and TJ is looming over me,
braced on those beautiful golden arms, lowering his face to
mine. Sweet Jesus, could he kiss. I've been kissed by a lot
of men, a few women, a couple horses and the odd dog, but he
was in a class by himself. Slow, deep, sincere. He kissed
like he meant it. I've met people who hug that way. You come
away from one of their hugs all warm inside with a silly
smile on your face. After several minutes of learning every
inch of my mouth, he pulled back slightly and looked at me.
I lay there, slack jawed, eyes shut, totally undone.

     I took a page from Tommy's book with a heartfelt,
breathless, "Fuck."

     He sort of choked and jumped to his feet. I opened my
eyes and looked at him but he avoided my gaze and stripped
off his clothes quickly, then pulled me to my feet and
tugged my shirt off. If he looked good dressed, it was
nothing compared to how he looked naked. He was golden all
over except for his small dark nipples, pinkish brown cock
and darker scrotum which hung full and inviting between his
thighs. The only hair on his body was a light haze on his
forearms and lower legs and a little ribbon trailing down
from his belly button to the blond triangle I'd seen in the
men's room at the barn. The rest of him was smooth and tan,
a silken veneer over the hard planes of his chest and the
tight muscles of his belly. Wow.

     I finally roused myself enough to help and we eased
into the hot bubbling water, settling thigh to thigh on a
deep bench. He draped his arms out along the rim of the tub,
his fingertips resting lightly on my shoulder. I gathered my
wits about me, determined to stop acting like a love struck
teenager. "What's TJ stand for?"

     "Timothy James." His head was resting back against the
edge of the hot tub and his eyes wandered over the night
sky. "But that took too long to yell when my mom was pissed
so it became TJ pretty quick."

     We talked more easily after that and I learned that he
was 27 and had grown up in Montana with an older brother and
sister, leaving the one horse town of his birth the day
after high school graduation. He'd ridden all his life and
loved horses but needed to make a living so becoming a
farrier seemed like the best option. After two years of
school in Missouri, he'd been practicing for 6 years and had
moved here a couple months ago. His brother had gone to
college with Danny's sister and Danny had offered him a job
when one of his other guys moved to California. He'd lost
the finger when a horse had pinned it to the shoeing stand,
crushing it beyond repair. As I told him about my career-
ending accident, he pulled me a little closer, hearing the
regret in my voice and I leaned into him, enjoying the solid
comfort of his body.

     When we were both pruney and sweating, I pulled him up
out of the tub and shoved him into the pool, leaping in
after him with a big splash. I came up sputtering with no TJ
in sight and thought fuck, he can't swim and I've killed
him. I was about to dive and look for him when he grabbed me
around the waist from behind and shot us both up out of the
water like dolphins. We crashed back into the pool and he
rolled me around until we were face to face, my arms around
his neck, his hands on my ass, both of us treading water
just enough to stay afloat. He licked a drop of water off my
nose, then closed his mouth over mine and almost drowned us
both as we stopped kicking to concentrate on the kiss.

     He paddled us to the steps where he rolled onto his
back and pulled me on top of him, belly to belly, holding my
head with both hands so he could look me in the face. I
flattened my hands against his chest, feeling his nipples
harden into my palms and stared back into those beautiful
blue eyes. Finally he spoke in a low voice. "I wanna be with
you. Please take me to bed."

     I smiled at him gently. "TJ, I asked you over here to
get to know you better, not to jump you on the first date."

     "I know. I want to." When I didn't reply immediately, a
shadow crossed his face and he began to shift out from under
me. "Forget it. Sorry."

     I gripped his shoulders, holding him to me. "No, I want
to. Jesus, you have no idea how I want to. I just.don't want
you to think I expect it."

"I don't think that." He nuzzled his face into my neck.
"Please."

     Well, shit, I'm only human. We climbed out of the pool
and I led him to the little cabana hidden under the
waterfall. It's a special place, sort of a hideaway and only
Vincent has ever shared it with me. We toweled each other
dry which led to some of the most arousing foreplay I've
ever experienced. We went slowly, both of us feeling
whatever it was that had stopped him in his tracks and
struck me mute the day we'd met. We kissed for a long time,
standing by the side of the big bed, freshly made up by
Maria that afternoon, running our hands over each other's
bodies, learning the curves and valleys, memorizing the
quick intakes of breath that signaled a sensitive spot. He
had good hands, as I've said before, and he knew how to use
their strength firmly but gently.

     By the time he pushed me down onto the bed, neither of
us was steady on our feet. He lowered himself onto me,
letting most of his weight press me into the mattress from
chest to thigh, supporting himself on his elbows so he could
look me in the face. "Before we do this, I need you to know
that I've only been with a few guys." He looked a little
defiant at this admission but swallowed and continued on. "I
mean, I know what to do but...shit." He buried his face in
the curve of my neck and mumbled something else. Gone was
the flirty man from the bathroom, rubbing his chest, pissing
like a stallion, and the one who'd attacked me on the
chaise. I was holding a shy, embarrassed kid and the change
startled me.

     I rubbed his back a moment, then tugged on his hair a
little, trying to get him to lift his head. "TJ. It's ok.
Talk to me. What else did you say?"

     He raised his head and stared at me, his blues eyes
dark, then said bleakly, "I said I've never fucked." I
stared at him blankly for a moment, speechless yet again. It
was becoming a bad habit.

- - - - - - -

Like it? Let me know.  qwb@san.rr.com   Please use the story
name as the email subject. Thanks.