Date: Sun, 6 Oct 2002 16:55:05 EDT
From: Tulsadriller7@aol.com
Subject: Tales from the Ranch, Chapter 14/?

Disclaimer:  The following story is a work of fiction.  If
you are offended by descriptions of homosexual acts or
man/man relations, please exit this page.
TALES FROM THE RANCH
Copyrightc 2002 by Tulsa Driller 7.  All rights reserved.

This is a story of men who have two common interests.  You
will see that they love the land where they live and work,
but it is also the story of young men who love other men and
their coming of age in a culture of prejudice and
misunderstanding.  It is a story, which deals with difficult
and often disturbing issues but, nonetheless, issues which
must be confronted in today's world.

This is a work of fiction and in no way draws on the lives
of any specific person or persons.  Any similarity to actual
persons or events is entirely coincidental.  This work is
copyrightedc by the author and may not be reproduced in any
form without the specific written permission of the author.
It is assigned to the Nifty Archives under the terms of
their submission agreement but it may not be copied or
archived on any other site without the written permission of
the author.

PLEASE:  In a perfect world AIDS doesn't exist.  My
characters have unprotected sex.  I hope you use proper
precautions because I'd like you to be around the read the
last chapter of this story.

Tales from the Ranch
Chapter 14:  The rest of the Weekend
     Michael Russo and John Sterling stayed in John's room
at the Starlight on Friday night.  John was right; sex was
more fun on a soft bed and with a soft light on in the room.
     Michael and Pat Burns had not gotten past the point of
kissing and masturbating each other to orgasm.  They were
both sexually naive and it never occurred to them that two
men could do more than that.  They thought they were
probably the only two men in Williamsport who did those
things with each other and were not about to let anyone else
know about it.
     Although John didn't have much experience, other than a
few jackoff sessions with some high school buddies, he was a
little more adventuresome and had actually picked up a Men
Magazine and a Freshman Magazine at a bookstore in Austin
once.  He was embarrassed to go in the store, but had
decided that no one in Austin knew him and there was really
no fear of being seen.
These two magazines and a bad straight porn video
that a college buddy had shown him once were pretty
much the extent of John's sexual knowledge.  Oh sure,
he had grown up on a farm and knew about the birds
and the bees, but not really what men could do with
and for each other.
     John was glad to find a buddy who seemed to be
willing to experiment.  He would have to find out
about Pat.  Since he and Michael shared a room they
might be doing something together.
     The fun he and Michael had at the lake on top of
     a picnic
table was great, but he wanted more.
     It seemed that they had barely closed the door
before each
was dropping their clothes.  What had happened at the
picnic area had just warmed them up for more fun and
experimentation.
     Michael moved toward John and started kissing
him on the lips.  John loved to kiss, too, and
eagerly returned the favor. He managed to break the
contact and went for Michael's left ear, burying his
tongue as far as he could, tickling his right ear
with his left hand.  That left his right hand free to
squeeze
both their cocks together and slide them up and down
in their foreskins.
     The sensory feelings that John was causing
Michael made him weak in the knees.  At first he
didn't like the feelings, then realized how pleasant
they were.  He had just never experienced something
like that before.  He used the fingers of his hands
to both caress and pinch John's nipples, which were
almost buried in the fur that covered his chest.
     Together they moved toward the bed, not letting
the other loose and managed to lower themselves at
the same time.  They ended up with John laying flat
on top of Michael.  They rubbed their bodies against
each other, experiencing electric shocks that seemed
to come from the end of every hair on their chests
and increased their passion for each other.  Mouth
searched for mouth.
     It was easier for John to move down to lick and
pinch Michael's nipples since he was the one on top.
This brought a gasp from Michael and he felt his cock
twitch, then he could feel the wetness of precum
between their stomachs.
     He wanted to do the same to John, so managed to
wiggle himself out from under him and crawled on top,
flipping John on his back.  Michael was all charged
up and at that point was ready and willing to try
anything John might want to do.  He started out by
giving John's nipples the same treatment as he'd
received. This caused John to grunt his appreciation
and wiggle his body under Michael's.
    John wanted to suck Michael's cock again.  He
                     whispered,
"Let's turn around so I can suck you."
     "Okay," Michael replied and started to move,
too.  He realized what John was going to do, so
stayed where he was.
     John was hungry for Michael's cock again.  It
had tasted so good at the picnic area and this
certainly was a more comfortable place to have sex.
Without any preliminary licking, he simply opened his
mouth and went down on Michael's dick.  The feeling
was exquisite to Michael and he released more precum.
This coupled with the saliva John had, made his cock
all slick and hard.  John swirled his tongue around
Michael's cock and was easily able to take most of it
down his throat.  He had read enough to know that he
could probably swallow it all if he was careful with
his breathing and allowed his throat to relax.  It
worked.  Michael was "balls deep" in John's mouth.
John was enjoying this.  He had been able to take
Michael's entire dick down his throat.  He used his
hands to tickle his pubic hair and caress his balls,
which were drawn up tight.
     Michael's reservations about reciprocating what
John was doing vanished in an instant.  He didn't
give it any thought, just opened his mouth and
swallowed John.  He got about halfway down the 7-1/2
inches when he started to gag.  He pulled back and
used saliva to augment the precum John was producing,
then ran his tongue under the foreskin.  This
produced more goo, which he used to his advantage.
He tried again, this time getting all but an inch
down his throat.
     Meanwhile, John was starting to work up and down
Michael's cock, sliding his foreskin back and forth.
Neither had any staying power.  They had never done
anything like this before and didn't know how to make
either themselves or the other hold back. It fell too
good to both of them and without realizing it they
were on the verge of a simultaneous orgasm.
Michael's cock fired first and the twitches it was
producing made John unload, too. Neither had ever had
as hard of an orgasm as then.  Michael could feel
John swallow his cum and decided to do the same for
John.
     They were each so startled that this had
     happened; they
didn't know what to think; except it was the most
amazing experience either had ever had.  They kept
the other's cock in their mouths, lightly sucking and
licking until they softened.
     John allowed Michael's dick to drop from his
     mouth and moved
up to kiss him.  Michael returned the kiss with
passion.
     "Thank you," John said.
"No, thank you!" Michael replied.  "That was the most
wonderful feeling I've ever had.
     They could taste each other's cum on their
tongues and they each added some saliva to come up
with a very tasty cocktail they shared.
     Spent, they lay facing each other; eye's closed,
rubbing the other's chest.  Sleep came quickly.
     * * * * *
     John and Michael spent most of the day on both
Saturday and Sunday in John's room at the Starlight.
It was like two teen-age boys who had just discovered
sex for the first time and wanted to make up for
about 6 years of lost time.
     If the truth were known, they lost track of how
many times they had each cum and how they managed to
do it.  The woman who cleaned their rooms arrived
about 10 a.m. on Saturday morning to change their
sheets and collect dirty towels.  She had to wait to
get into John's room because they were in the middle
of yet another steamy session when she knocked on the
door.  John pretended that he had just woke up and
asked her to come back in about a half hour after he
had time to clean up.  She agreed.
     Since their attention had "sagged" they decided
     that showers
were in order.  Michael left to go back to his room
after they determined the maid was in a room between
their two rooms.  John pulled the wet and crusty
sheets off his bed and rolled them up, hoping the
maid wouldn't realize what they had been doing.
Michael was just through with his shower when the
maid arrived at his door.  He asked her to skip his
room and come back in about 15 minutes.
     The two guys met to go to breakfast and allow
the maid to clean their rooms and change the sheets.
They were in John's car and drove to the Pancake
House across the street from the Laundromat where all
of the guys washed their work clothes.
     John broke the silence.  "I'm glad that we got
together last night to go to the movie and get a bite
to eat.  I'm especially glad to find out that you
like to play around with another guy. If I'd known
what I know now when I was in high school, none of
the other guys in my school would have been safe," he
laughed.
     Michael laughed along with him.  "I never had
     any idea that
having sex could be better than just jacking off.  It
feels so much better when someone else is sharing
with you."
     They talked about what the experience had been
like for each of them.  When they got to the Pancake
House, they seated themselves in an area where there
were no other customers.  The waitress took their
orders after pouring each a cup of coffee.
     John decided that he needed to ask the questions
     he had
about Pat.
     "Do you and Pat play around any?" he asked.
     Michael wasn't sure he should confess to this,
but finally said, "Yes, we do, but not like you and I
did last night.  All we have ever done is to kiss
each other and stroke the other until we got off.
Until last night I never knew for sure that any other
guys were queer.  I'd heard about it, but didn't know
where to go to meet any and I'd probably been afraid,
anyway."
 "So you thought you were the 'only ones', I guess?"
                        John
asked.
     "Yeah, it seems that way.  Guys used to tease
each other about being faggots or cocksuckers or
fairies in high school, but I don't think any of them
really were.  I went along with the teasing, just to
be 'one of the guys' and I think all along I thought
that I might really be one.  I just never had the
guts to approach any of them, although I'd heard
about circle-jerks and other things of that sort."
     About this time, their orders arrived and they
dug in with gusto.  After all, sex burns off a lot of
calories.
     "What about you?" Michael asked.
     "Pretty much the same story as yours except that
I've been to a couple of gay bars in Austin and went
to one of the 'adult stores' where they sell
magazines and sex toys.  I didn't have any money to
spend on the toys and wouldn't have known what to
buy, anyway.  I did buy a couple of gay magazines
that had pictures of nude men, some with hardons, and
erotic stories about men doing sexual things to each
other.  But until last night, I never had a chance to
try it."
  "What's a gay bar like?  What do they do there?"
                       Michael
asked.
     "The first one I went to was a mixed bar, mostly
men with a few lesbians thrown in.  Mostly each group
kept to themselves although the lesbians seemed to
have taken over the pool tables. Some of the men were
paired off, I guess they were couples.  Some were by
themselves, but seemed to be watching for the right
person to approach.  There was music and a few guys
were dancing with each other."
     "Did any of the men approach you," Michael
asked.
     "One fellow did.  He asked me if I wanted to
dance.  I was uncomfortable being there to begin with
so I told him that I was supposed to meet someone
there and they hadn't shown up so I had to leave.  I
finished my beer and went out the door.  I really
wanted to stay, but didn't know what to expect or
what I was supposed to do.  He was good looking, too.
Guess I'll always wonder what might have happened."
 "You said you went to two bars.  What was the other
                         one
like?"
     "I found out later that it was a 'leather bar'.
It was all men and at first I thought it was a rough
crowd of bikers and that sort.  Most of the men were
wearing leather of some kind, either chaps,
harnesses, pants, vests - you name it.  Some of the
guys were into bondage and discipline - I guess
that's what they call it.  I was very uncomfortable
there, too.  Maybe if I had someone with me, I'd feel
safer."
     "Wow, that sounds pretty weird to me.  I guess
there must be different kinds of bars for people that
are into different things, right?" Michael asked.
     "That's what it seems like to me.  At least the
people at the first bar looked more 'normal' to me.
Maybe we can go over there some time and check the
places out."
     "Yeah, that might be kind of fun.  I just never
thought about there being that many queer guys that
they would have their own places to go.  I wonder how
many guys around Williamsport are queer?"
     About this time the waitress came back to check
on them and leave their tickets.
     "It's hard to tell, but I would be willing to
bet that there are more than just a few.  I don't
know how you would go about finding out.  I mean you
and Pat don't seem queer to me, but when I came to
your room last night and you didn't bother to cover
yourself up with your towel, I wondered if you were
trying to give me a message."
     "Well, I wasn't trying to discourage you.  Just
trying to see if you were interested - and you passed
the test," Michael laughed.
     They stood up, each leaving a tip and paid their
tickets at the counter.
  As they started back down the street, John asked
                      Michael,
"Do you think that Pat would like to play around with
both of us?"
"Probably.  I'm sure he will be astounded at the fact
                         you
are queer, too."
     "Michael, I'm not sure I like the word queer and
I think the proper term is 'gay'.  Certainly it
sounds better to me."
     "I agree.  I don't like the word either, but
guess I thought
it sounded better than faggot or fairy."
     After they got back to the Starlight, both found
that the maid had cleaned their rooms so they had
fresh sheets and towels.
     This seemed like a good time for Michael to do
     his weekly
laundry and he asked John if he wanted to do his.
     "Well, it probably is a good idea," John
replied.  "I only have a half week of dirty clothes,
but it won't get me through the coming week."
     "I suggest that you go to the grocery store and
buy laundry detergent and whatever else you want
because it's a lot cheaper there than at the
Laundromat."
     They set out in Michael's car to take care of
     their laundry. Saturday night and Sunday
     afternoon were a repeat of Friday
night.  They decided to let Michael approach Pat
about getting together with John, although Michael
was sure Pat would be all for it.
     * * * * *
     As they were driving back to their apartment,
Dale and Craig were digesting everything that had
happened so far that week. They had met each other on
Tuesday and fate seemed to have thrown them together
to be lovers as they were already living together.
Each considered himself the luckiest man alive at
that moment.
     They had been introduced at a meeting Marty and
     his father
hosted to talk about building a house for the ranch
crew to live in.  The Williamson family had always
treated their employees better than any in the area
and the ranch was getting to the point that they
needed full-time employees instead of hiring people
for seasonal work.  They figured that providing a
nice place to live was an incentive to get good men
that would remain in their employ for longer periods
of time.
     Craig had seen Dale around town a few times and
had taken the trouble to find out who he was.  Dale
had seen Craig, but he was shyer and didn't quite
know how to go about getting acquainted with him.
     Yes, it was an act of fate that they finally had
a chance to meet each other face to face and Craig
had acted on the chance that Dale might be gay.
Several things had helped as they each had a need for
someone in their life for love and companionship. The
fact that Dale was going to sell the house he lived
in was a big help as this meant he needed to locate a
place to move to.
     The sex had been passionate, but there was an
     underlying
feeling for each other, a hunger for Dale to be
accepted for who he was, and a deep attraction for
each other.
     Dale hadn't grown up with a terribly high esteem
for himself, given the circumstances of his family.
His grandmother and mom tried to instill in him the
fact that they lived on the wrong side of the tracks
and there was no way out.  That might have been true
for his mother, but he had a determination that he
could do better.  His father had presented him with
$15,000 that he had put aside for his college fund.
He hadn't been heard from since, but Dale knew he was
living in the Galveston area at that time.
     Although Dale was very good at basketball,
football and track, he knew from the time he was in
the 7th grade that he was different, that he liked to
look at his fellow teammates in the shower, but he
never had the guts to follow his instinct.
 Dale's grandparents and mother had died by the time
                         he
finished junior college and the last of his college
money was used to take care of his mother in her last
illness.  True, Dale had found a home at the Bar-W,
but had never felt worthy of himself or anyone else
until he met Craig.  He now had someone he loved, who
was proud of him and wanted to be his partner, his
lover.
     Craig had a much easier life, coming from a
family who was upper middle-class.  His father had a
good job and his mother never had to work outside
their nice home.  He had an older and
younger sister who adored their protective brother.
     Like Dale, Craig had figured out at an early age
that he was different, but hadn't said anything to
his family until forced to do so by a very aggressive
young woman who was looking for someone to marry.
Any man would do.
     Craig finally told his parents why he wasn't
interested in her - both reasons.  The first being
that she wasn't looking for love, she just wanted to
be married because all of her friends were getting
married.  And. the other reason was the "G" word.
It turned out that his parents already suspected and
it didn't bother them.  Actually the only objection
his father had was that Craig had told the entire
family one evening.  He felt that Craig should have
only told his parents instead of the way it happened.
     Both Dale and Craig had several very
     unsatisfactory
experiences with other men, to the point that they
were actually virgins when they met each other.
     That had changed in the past week.
The other things that had transpired just since noon
                         was
that Marty and Martin (senior) Williamson had told
Dale that Parker Morton, the General Manager of the
Bar-W Ranch, had announced his plan to retire at the
end of the year so he and his wife could travel.  The
Williamson's wanted Dale to take the job.
     On top of everything else that had transpired
     that week, it
was the overwhelming news announced at the Williamson
family's Sunday dinner.  In less than a week, Dale
had gone from a ranch cowboy, a crops foreman, who
didn't think a lot of himself, to being the General
Manager of the best ranch in Central Texas.
And the people he worked for thought it was fine he
was gay and had invited his lover to join them!
This was a lot of excitement for both Dale and Craig
                         to
process.
     * * * * *
After they turned onto the highway to take them back
                        into
Williamsport, Craig grabbed Dale's left hand and held
it.  He squeezed it, then brought it to his lips and
kissed the backside. "I'm so proud of you I can
hardly stand it.  I thought you were pretty special
to begin with, but now I'm married to a real stud who
has just gotten the greatest promotion ever!"
     Dale got tears in his eyes that soon were
running down his cheeks.  He squeezed Craig's hand
and returned the gesture, kissing the back of his
hand.
     "I'm so happy that I don't know what to say or
do.  I just can't believe the job offer.
     "Hon, I can assure you that they would not have
given you the job if they didn't think you could
handle it.  They also know that you are smart enough
to ask for help if you need it.  Just trust their
judgment and have the same faith in yourself that I
have."
     They rode in silence, holding hands.
Arriving back at their condo unit, Dale unlocked the
                        door
and they walked in and headed toward the bedroom.
     "I don't know about you, but I'm ready to get
out of these clothes.  I don't mind dressing up, but
there is no need to keep them on any longer," Craig
announced.
  "I'm with you," Dale replied as they started with
                        their
ties.
     "How about a nap and then go to the cocktail
party for the Dignity group?  Does that sound okay to
you?" Craig asked.
 "That sounds good to me.  Do you think we can wear
                       casual
clothes?" Dale asked.
"I'm sure of it.  We can probably get by with shorts
                         and
pullovers of some kind."
     By this time they had hung up their coats and
pants and were down to their socks and boxers.  With
no prompting from the other, they shed those, too.
Standing on either side of the bed, they pulled the
sheet and quilt down.
     Dale lay on the bed and motioned for Craig to
lie on top of him.  It felt so good to be so close to
one's lover, his man, his partner, and his life-mate.
They lay in total bliss each absorbing the feelings
the other was projecting.  They exchanged deep
kisses, then rolled so they were facing each other,
arms and legs entwined.  Within a couple of minutes,
they were each sound asleep.
     * * * * *
     Dale woke up first.  They must have separated
while sleeping because he had turned on his other
side and Craig was spooned behind him with one arm on
the pillow above Dale's head and the other around his
chest.  His hard cock was pressed against Dale's
butt.  He looked at the clock.  It was 5:15 and they
had slept for about two hours.
   He needed to pee and if they were going to the
                      cocktail
party for the Dignity group they would have to get up
soon anyway.  He stretched, then rolled around to
tickle Craig on his nipples and plant little kisses
on his face and eyelids.  He got a little response
when Craig's eyes fluttered open.
     "Hi lover.  How's MY GUY?" Dale asked.
     "Mmmm, you feel so good," Craig responded.
     "I'll make you feel good," and with that he
moved just enough he could wash out Craig's ear,
pinching his nipples while doing so."
 That really got Craig's attention and he thrust his
                        cock
against Dale's, which by now was hard, too.
     "Sweetie, I gotta go pee.  You wanna join me?"
     Dale asked. "Yeah, lead the way," Craig
     responded.
     Dale rolled over and got out of their bed,
holding his hand out for Craig to grab onto.  He was
out of bed in a moment and Dale pulled him to
himself, giving him a big hug and sloppy wet kiss on
his cheek.  They turned to go to the bathroom, Craig
following and pinching Dale's hairy butt.  "Beep.
beep. I'm horny," Craig exclaimed.
  "As soon as I pee I'm going to take care of your
                      'horn',"
Dale giggled.  "Do you realize that we haven't had
sex since yesterday morning.  I was getting more
before we started living together.  Guess I'm going
to have to move back to my house," he teased.
  "Poor baby.  You can either have a quickie right
                       now, or
save it up for later," Craig told him.
     "Can't I have both?" Dale questioned.  "I can't
get enough of your body.  You've gotten me hooked,"
he teased.
     By this time they were through peeing and Craig
took Dale's hand to lead him back to the bed.
  "Can we try something different this time?" Craig
                       asked.
     "Sure, I'm game.  What do you want to do?"
     "You sit in the middle of the bed so I can sit
facing you. I want us to be able to kiss while we
jerk each other off.  I've always wanted to do that
to a guy."
"Sounds like something young boys might do.  I think
                         it
sounds like fun," Dale agreed.
     They got in position and started just by kissing
each other. When they were both fully aroused, they
started stroking each other's cock.  It felt so good
to both of them.  It was, indeed, something that
younger boys might to do each other, but they had
about 10 years of experimenting to catch up on,
things that they could now do to each other.
     It quickly became apparent that this wasn't
exactly the most comfortable position to do this.
Without breaking their kiss, they managed to separate
themselves, then lay facing each other and continued
stroking the other.  It felt so good.  Both were
leaking precum and they spread it over their cocks to
use as lube.  Craig was still fascinated by Dale's un-
cut cock and loved the way the foreskin slipped up
and down.  He wished he had a foreskin, too.
     It didn't take them very long to reach a climax,
getting cum all over their stomachs and chests - and
the bed.
     "That felt wonderful," Dale whispered after he
calmed down a little.  "Thanks."
     "Thank you," Craig said.  "Guess we need a
shower now so we can get dressed and go to our
party."
     Craig crawled out of bed and held his hand to
pull Dale to him.  They exchanged another, deep kiss
and Dale followed Craig to the bathroom.  This time
it was his turn to pinch Craig's butt cheeks.
     Craig opened the shower door and held it for
Dale to climb into the cubicle.  He adjusted the
water and they turned on all four showerheads.
Although they each had their own washcloth and bar of
soap, they spent more time washing the other than
themselves.  It just felt so good to touch and caress
each other. Of course this kept them a little hard,
too.  Although they both would have liked to enjoy
the water for a longer period of time, they needed to
get ready for the party.
     Craig shut the water off and reached out to get
their towels.  They lovingly dried the other, paying
special attention to their dicks and exchanging
kisses while being dried.
     Getting out of the shower, they each used their
hairdryers enough to comb their hair into place, then
applied deodorant and cologne.  Dale followed Craig
to their bedroom where they each selected athletic
socks and boxers, then found their shoes, casual
shorts and a pullover to wear.
     During this time they had exchanged few words,
but had touched the other as they selected clothes
and dressed.  To each, it was comfortable to be
around the other and they enjoyed the closeness of
sharing the other's silent company.
     They were through dressing about the same time
and exchanged a kiss that started out to be brief,
but became more meaningful and lasting a couple of
minutes.
"Wow!  That was great.  I love being with you," Dale
whispered.
     "Hey, Mr. General Manager.  You're not so bad
     yourself. Another touch of their lips and they
     were ready to leave. Driving to the rectory,
     Dale asked Craig, "Have you been to
any of these meetings before?  What should I expect?"
     "I've only been to the first two which were just
organizational meetings.  They were just to see if
there was any interest in forming a local chapter and
how many we might expect to show up.  This is the
first social meeting and they will call for election
of officers if there are more than a dozen here.  If
less than that, it's possible the idea will be
dropped.  There have been some newspaper ads and a
notice in the free gay newspaper distributed in the
bars in Austin.  Also, several of the more liberal
churches in town were supposed to have put a notice
of this meeting in their bulletins.  Whether they did
or not, I don't know.
     "What are the goals of the group?" Dale asked.
     "National affiliation, exchange of ideas with
other chapters in the United States and to establish
what we hope is a stable influence and show of unity
among ourselves.  Some chapters have a booth at a
fair or street carnival to distribute literature and
the information that help is available to those who
need someone to talk to or counseling about
recognizing themselves as being gay.  Some chapters
have a hot line that teens can call for counseling.
     "Sounds like a good cause.  I wish something
like this had been available to me when I was
younger," Dale said.
     "I agree.  There are chapters in both Dallas and
Ft. Worth, but I had no way of knowing that when I
was in high school," Craig agreed.
     Craig parked his car in a corner of the church
parking lot close to an elegant old home.  There were
5 other cars in the
lot.  They got out of the car and headed to the
     house. "Does the church own this property?" Dale
     asked.
"Yes, the house was built about 1890 and was
completely
remodeled just before Fr. George and Paul arrived.
It needed a total update, so it was gutted with
paneling, windows and doors being kept to be refitted
and reused.  We put in new wiring, plumbing, central
air and a new kitchen.  Although it still looks
largely the way it did before, the house is
essentially new inside the brick and stonewalls.
     They walked up the steps to the porch of the
gothic-looking house (it matched the architecture of
the church building).  The front door was open so
they walked in.
As they were going down the hall to the front parlor,
                         Fr.
George came around the corner, shaking hands and
giving each a hug.
     "I'm so glad you could make it.  I think we're
going to have more than a dozen in attendance this
evening, so we can vote to organize and elect
officers if everyone is in agreement."
     Dale was thinking how much different Fr. George
looked this evening.  He was wearing chinos and a
tight-fitting tank top and sandals.  He had a good,
muscular body which one would never guess was under
his clerical clothes.
     About that time Paul joined them, shaking hands
with both Dale and Craig.  "Hi guys, welcome to our
home.  I'm in charge of the bar tonight.  Could I fix
you something?"
    Craig looked at Dale.  "Hon, would you like a
                      Manhattan
tonight?"
     Dale was a little embarrassed at being called
"Hon" in front of others, but realized they were
among friends.  "Yes, that would be fine for me."
     Craig told Paul, "Two Manhattan's on the rocks."
     "Coming right up," Paul said.  "Go on in the
living room and meet everyone else.  I'll bring your
drinks."
 Fr. George took Craig and Dale's arms so he was in
                         the
middle and pulled them along toward the living room.
     The first person Dale saw was Eddie Thompson,
the coach from the Stephen F. Austin Middle School.
He couldn't believe it. Eddie Thompson - gay?"
     Eddie acknowledged their presence by saying, "Hi
Guys. Dale. Craig.  Great to see you here.  Another
person walked up and put his arm through Eddie's arm.
"Let me introduce my partner to you.  This is Tom
Bryant.  Tom, this is Dale Richards and Craig
Bastian."
 They greeted one another.  While they were shaking
                       hands,
Trisha Sutton walked up, holding hands with another
woman.
"Hi Craig and Dale.  I'm Trisha from 'Le Gourmet', I
delivered your dinner the other evening.  This is my
love, Marilyn Kolb.  They shook hands.  Marilyn
looked as manly as Trisha looked feminine.  Dale
almost winced when Marilyn shook his hand.  She
certainly had a firm grip.  He decided that he might
not want to meet her in a dark alley at night.
Another woman came up to be introduced.  Her name was
Patricia Wilson and they shook hands with her.
  There were two other women, Stacy Bauer and Joyce
                       Morris.
They exchanged greetings.
     About that time Paul arrived bearing a tray of
drinks, which he distributed to those present.
"There are hors d'oeuvres on the table in the dining
room," he pointed, "Please help yourselves."
     Fr. George spoke up.  "Yes, please help
yourselves.  Paul will be in a real snit for at least
a week if you don't eat them all."
Paul gave George a squeeze around the waist and said
                        in a
loud voice, "And fuck you, too, Mary Poppins!"
     That brought a big laugh from everyone and
seemed to relax all of them.
Fr. George disappeared and came back in the room with
                         two
men.  Again Dale was surprised.  It was Ray Evans and
Mark Clarke.  Everyone introduced themselves to those
they didn't know and greeted the ones they already
were acquainted with.
     The next person to arrive was Joseph Hervey, who
had been in Dale's class and lived on the farm the
Williamson's were purchasing.
     Right behind Joe Hervey was Greg DeFazio.
     Then after that was RJ Barton whom Dale had gone
to school with and worked at the convenience store
where he bought gas. When they greeted each other,
R.J. squeezed Dale's arm and whispered, "I always
wondered about you.  Great to see you here."
     The last person to arrive was Alan Zimmer, who
     was from
Austin and was to give a talk to the group after the
meeting started.
.    People moved back and forth between the living
and dining
room, carrying plates of the delicious food Paul had
prepared, enjoying their drinks and visiting with
each other.  It was a very casual atmosphere and the
people were diverse in their backgrounds and
education, but all had a common bond.  They were all
gay.
     Paul was in his element, being the lady of the
house, the rector's wife or just being Paul.  He
loved being the center of attention when it came to
entertaining and he did it so well.  He seemed to be
everywhere.  No ones drink became dry without him
plucking the glass out of their hand and replacing it
with a fresh one.
     After about a half hour, Eddie got everyone's
attention asked that they find a seat and the
informal meeting would start.
     He started in after everyone was seated.  "I'm
     Eddie
Thompson, as most of you know and I've lived in
Williamsport for a little over a year.  I'm a coach
at Stephen F. Austin Middle School and taught in the
inner-city schools of Houston before moving here.
Tom Bryant and I've been together for three years. He
came to Williamsport a year ago and I had to wait a
year for a coaching position to open here.  We
belonged to a Dignity Chapter in Houston and it was
our idea to see if we could establish one here.
Father George and Paul have been supportive and I'm
glad to see such a good turnout for our meeting
tonight.  Now, I'd like to go around the room and
have everyone introduce themselves and tell us a
little about what they do, their interests, hobbies,
whatever.  Tom, why don't you start?"
     "I'm Tom Bryant and I teach History at Stephen
F. Austin Middle School.  As Eddie told you, we've
been together for three years.  We met in our first
year of teaching at Horace Mann School in Houston.
I'd already signed a contract to come to Williamsport
when Eddie and I got together and almost stayed in
Houston to be with him, but we both wanted to live in
a more rural area and love living here now.
     "I'm Greg DeFazio.  My parents and I own Tony
D's Restaurant.  I'm 25 and have lived in
Williamsport since I was 10 years old.  I figured out
that I was gay when in high school, but didn't think
I should do anything about it.  The last few years
I've been going to Austin to a couple of the gay bars
there."
     Fr. George was next.  "I attended seminary at
Nashotah House in Wisconsin and after completing my
requirements for ordination, I went back to England
to be ordained as a Deacon, then became a Priest two
years later.  Paul was the organist at my parish and
we fell in love.  I wanted to come back to the United
States and Paul thought it would be a good
opportunity for both of us if we could find the right
situation.  The Archbishop of York was my sponsor and
helped me establish a connection here.  I made it
very clear that I was gay and would not consider a
parish unless they would hire Paul as Music Director.
So, here we are in Williamsport and we both love it
here."
     Trisha Sutton was next.  "I grew up in Austin
and attended
two culinary schools, in Chicago and then New
Orleans.  Some friends there helped me get a job at
the Saville Restaurant.
Then I met Marilyn at a law enforcement convention in
New Orleans and after a year I decided to move to
Williamsport to be with her.  Shortly afterward I had
a chance to start my own catering business and it's a
lot of hard work, but is growing."
  "I'm Joyce Morris and I grew up near here.  I was
                       married
for 8 years and have two children.  My marriage
wasn't working and my husband left me with two young
children.  About a year after that I met Stacy and I
discovered that I was really a lesbian.  We've been
together for two years and she would like to adopt my
two children as hers, but we're running into snags
with the court system in Texas."
     "I'm Ray Evans and I own Home Builders
Construction Company with two of my old high school
buddies.  I'm 35 years old and have never had a
relationship.  It was just a year ago that I finally
admitted to myself that I'm gay.  I saw the ad for
this meeting in the newspaper."
     "I'm RJ Barton and I'm 24.  I grew up here in
Williamsport. I've known I was different since my
freshman year in high school. I've never really done
anything with another man, but want to." He blushed.
"I've been to two gay bars in Austin and picked up
one of the gay newspapers.  That's where I saw the ad
for this meeting, and then there was one the other
day in the Williamsport Journal.  So, here I am."
     Dale was next.  "I'm Dale Richards and I grew up
here in Williamsport, too.  In fact RJ, Joe and I
were in the same high school class.  I work for the
Bar-W Ranch as a crops foreman actually I just found
out today that I'm going to be the new General
Manager."  There was applause, which embarrassed
Dale.
"I just met Craig this past week, although I've seen
him around town before.  Things have happened really
quickly, but we've decided to live together and see
if we can make a relationship work."
  Craig was sitting next to Dale on a love seat and
                       reached
over to squeeze his hand.
     "I'm Craig Bastian.  I'm 26 and am an architect
in partnership with Don Albrecht.  One of the first
projects we did after establishing our office was the
modernization of this rectory.  I grew up in
Arlington, Texas and knew that I was gay at a very
early age.  I'm out to my parents and business
partner and they have no problems with it.  As Dale
said, we've found each other and are going to see
where this leads us to."
     "I'm Marilyn Kolb and I'm a Lieutenant on the
Williamsport Police Force.  I grew up in San Antonio
and went to their Police Academy, working on their
force for 3 years.  I met Trisha when I was attending
a law enforcement-training course in New Orleans. She
was in charge of the banquet the first night of the
school. When I returned home to San Antonio from the
course, I found my application to join the
Williamsport Police Department had been accepted.
Trisha moved here shortly after I did."
     "I'm Mark Clarke and I work for the Williamsport
Co-op.  I'm 32 and grew up in Bedford Falls.  I saw
the notice for this meeting in the Williamsport
Journal.  I'm not sure I'm gay. but I don't think I'm
straight either."
  "I'm Stacy Bauer and I'm from Williamsport.  I've
                       been in
two lesbian relationships.  The first didn't last
very long because she wasn't committed to it.  Then
two years ago I met Joyce and we've been together
since.  I love her children and we are trying to get
things worked out so I can adopt them and have
parental rights.  It's a slow process.  Oh, yes, I
work for the local Farm Bureau as a crop inspector."
     Dale realized why she seemed familiar.  She had
given some advice on building the terraces in a
couple of the fields at the Bar-W, which had resulted
in the Bar-W getting a soil conservation award.
     "I'm Patricia Wilson.  I just moved here from
Dallas about two months ago.  I work for Southwestern
Bell as an accounts representative.  I'm 28 and have
been in a relationship that didn't work.  That's what
resulted in me asking for a transfer to come to
Williamsport."
     "I'm Joe Hervey and I'm from Williamsport.  I
went to high school with RJ and Dale and I live on
the ranch next to the BarW, which has just been
purchased by them.  I didn't go to college after high
school.  I joined the Air Force instead and served
for 6 years.  I just got out last month and am going
to enroll at Western Junior College for this
semester."
     "Hi 'yall," Paul said in a fake British-Texas
accent which brought a big laugh from everyone.  "I'm
Mrs. Rector, the lady who runs this place.  I sleep
with George, whom I adore." Everyone was laughing.
"Seriously, I'm Paul and am the Music Director at St.
James.  I grew up near Liverpool. that's in England -
across the pond. and George and I have been together
for 5 years.  I came here with George three years
ago.  I love it here and it's been our pleasure to
host the meeting tonight."
     Everyone applauded.
Fr. George stood up.  "I want to introduce our guest
                        this
evening.  He is a member of the national Dignity
board and is from Austin.  Please welcome Alan
Zimmer."
     More applause.  Fr. George sat back down and
Alan said, "If you don't mind, I'll stay seated while
I talk.  As he said, I'm Alan Zimmer.  I'm 41 years
old and got involved with the Dignity Chapter in St.
Louis when attending Washington University.  After I
finished law school, I moved to Austin and met my
partner, Jeffery Fields, who was also a new attorney
at the firm we both joined.  Like Dale and Craig, it
didn't take us long to realize that we were met for
each other and we were living together as soon as he
could get out of his apartment lease, although I can
assure you that he spent practically every night at
my place."
     Laughter.  Craig squeezed Dale's hand, which
     he'd been
holding since he and Dale had introduced themselves.
     Alan continued.  We've been together for 15
years and shortly after that happened we started our
own law firm.  We specialize in gay issues, workplace
discrimination, wills, estates, adoption, legal
partnerships, and just about every legal gay
situation that exists.  Our firm is now recognized
nationally and we have 3 other attorneys who are
partners in the firm.  We are licensed to practice
law in 41 states and the District of Columbia.
     "This is not a commercial for our firm, in fact
I hope that none of you ever have to use our
services, but I want to impress on each and every one
of you that in many cases gay rights are just now
getting the attention they deserve.  Some of you come
from understanding families who would do nothing to
hurt you, but other family situations may not look
kindly on your lifestyle and will do everything to
keep you from due process of law if the death of a
partner should occur.  Sometimes wills are contested,
power-of-attorney is denied, you are prevented from
visiting your partners if they are in critical care.
     "I brought some handbooks with me this evening
which explain many of the problems that could happen
in a seemingly ironclad will.  If you want more
copies, please let me know.  They are free and our
firm distributes them as such.
     "Now that the commercial is out of the way. and
please don't think I'm trying to drum up business.
The main reason I'm here is to represent the national
board of Dignity and welcome you as a chapter if you
decide to form one.  This doesn't have to be done
tonight, but I'll be glad to answer whatever
questions I can."
     There was much discussion and many questions.
The group voted to elect officers that evening and
the following people were nominated and elected.
President:  Eddie Thompson; Vice-
President:  Marilyn Kolb; Secretary: Patricia Wilson;
Treasurer: Tom Bryant.
     The next order of business was to establish a
regular meeting night and it was decided that the
first Saturday of each month would work the best.
Eddie appointed Trisha and Stacy to come up with a
program for the next gathering.  With that the
meeting was adjourned.
As the group left, they all expressed their thanks to
                         Fr.
George and Paul for their hospitality, the meeting
place, drinks and refreshments.
     * * * * *
 On their way back home, Dale and Craig were talking
                        about
the meeting.  Dale was about incredulous that there
were so many gays in Williamsport who seemed to be
"out" to others, as evidenced by their attendance at
the meeting.  And. there were three from his own high
school class.  He was feeling much better about being
gay.
     "Hon, I think there are a lot more around here
that we don't know about and probably never will.
This is still a small town in comparison to Dallas,
Ft. Worth and Houston.  Those cities have whole
neighborhoods that are populated mainly by gay
people. You wouldn't believe some of the old places
that gays have bought for practically nothing,
refurbished completely and sold for a lot of money.
Don and I have consulted on several of those projects
and the results are unbelievable when you consider
what they started with.
     "Don't be fooled.  As I said before there are a
lot of people who support us as long as we don't
become overt and embarrass them.  Others would run us
out of town by the quickest method they can come up
with.  You and I are very lucky in that you have the
support of the people you work for and I have the
support of my business partner and family and most
importantly, you.
     "If we want to show affection for each other in
public, we'd better wait until we go to Ft. Worth and
Dallas.  We'll go to a couple of the gay areas and
you will see many couples, gays, lesbians, straight
people walking down the street holding hands."
     "I've had so many new experiences this week that
     I'll be
sorting through those many times before we ever get
to Ft. Worth or Dallas," Dale said.
     "We're going to have a good time there.  The two
cities are as different as night and day, but each
are a lot of fun to visit," Craig told Dale.
     There were back at their condo where Craig
parked his car and they took the elevator to the 5th
floor.  Dale unlocked the door and followed Craig
inside.  They each felt the need of being held by the
other.
     * * * * *
     Neither of the guys was hungry.  The hors
d'oeuvres had been more than enough to sustain them
after the big dinner at noon.
     "Let's strip down to our boxers and just hold
     each other and
talk," Craig said.
     "Okay by me, lead the way," Dale responded.  He
stood behind Craig and wrapped his arms around his
chest, pushing him to the bedroom.  This action
caused both to sprout boners, which they loved.
     "I love it when you turn me on," Dale whispered
in Craig's left ear, then used his tongue to give it
a bath.
     Craig broke loose from the hold, turning around
and with a twinkle in his eye, said, "Not half as
much as I love what you just did.  My dick just about
ripped a hole in my boxers when you did that.
     "Good, I know where you can buy more," Dale
teased. "Although it would be fine with me if we just
went naakked (drawing out the mispronounced word) all
the time."
     "If we did that, we wouldn't be able to keep our
hands off
each other, would we?"
"Probably not, but is there anything wrong with it?"
                        Dale
asked.
     "No, I have no problem with it.  It's seldom
anyone knocks on the door without being invited over
and certainly no one can really see in the windows
since I keep the sheer curtains drawn most of the
time," Craig responded.  "Besides, we're on the 5th
floor and there are no other buildings within 10
blocks that are as tall as this one."
By this time, each was stripped down to their boxers
                         and
socks.  Craig picked up Dale's shoes, pullover and
shorts, as well as his own.  "I'm going to hang your
shorts up 'cause we can wear them again."
"That's fine," Dale said, giving Craig another kiss.
     Craig disappeared into the closet to dispose of
the things in his hands while Dale stood there,
counting his blessings and thinking about what had
happened during the past week.  He was standing there
with a vacant look on his face when Craig came back
out from disposing of the clothing.
     "Penny for your thoughts," Craig said.
     Dale smiled.  "I was thinking about you and how
lucky I am, along with all that has happened in the
past week."
     "I could echo those same words and they would be
100 percent true, too," Craig added.
     They held hands and walked to the living room
together, settling on the love seat turning so they
could face each other, one leg against the back and
the other hanging off the front, supported by their
feet.
     They found that they could have body contact by
rubbing the other's leg and could face each other to
talk.  If they wanted, they could put their other leg
up on the seat, too.
     "Do you know that I've never used this love seat
until you came over here the other evening?  Now we
don't sit anywhere else," Craig said.
     "This is a pretty good place to sit side-by-side
if we want to cuddle and I like what we are doing
right now, because I can be close to you and touch
you and look at you," Dale replied.
     "I agree with that.  This place just needed you
to be in it to make it complete for me," Craig told
Dale.
     "You are so sweet.  I can't believe that a week
ago tonight we didn't even know each other and look
at what has happened since Tuesday night.  I didn't
dream in my wildest dreams that I would find love and
that it would be a beautiful man like you."
     This time it was Craig's turn to get tears in
     his eyes.  He
held Dale's hands and brought them both to his lips,
kissing one, then the other.  This brought Dale to
the edge of tears of happiness, too.
     "Hon, I don't mean to pry, but would you mind
telling me why you seem to feel inadequate?  You seem
to want to beat yourself up all the time and
sometimes I think you have a low opinion of yourself.
You don't have to if you don't want to, but if we are
going to 'be there' for each other, then I think I
have a right to know what's going on.
     "It's a long story.  Are you sure you want to
hear all the gruesome details?"
     "Yes, because maybe I can help you realize that
Dale Richards is a wonderful person," Craig said.
"Why don't I fix us a refreshment and you can tell
the whole story.  I'm a good listener."
     "Okay," Dale replied.
"Fine, you take the ice bucket to the kitchen for ice
                         and
I'll fix us each a drink.  Is a Manhattan okay with
you?"
     "Works for me.  Do you have a corn popper?"
     "Yes, it's in the bottom of the cabinet to the
left of the refrigerator and there is some popping
corn in the panty, to the right of the door, about
the middle shelf."
     They got up, Dale getting the ice bucket,
filling it and returning to the living room, then
going back to the kitchen to see about the popcorn.
'Good,' he thought to himself.  'This is the kind
that uses oil and butter instead of dry popping it.'
The popcorn oil was on the shelf next to the popcorn.
While he was getting set up, Craig brought his drink
to him.  Within 5 minutes, there was a large bowl of
popcorn for them to eat.
     Craig grabbed napkins and they settled back on
     the loveseat
as they had been before.  Craig had set up a wood TV
table for their drinks and the popcorn bowl.
     As they settled in, Dale began talking.
     "My grandfather was a truck driver who spent a
lot of time on the road.  He supplied my grandmother
with enough cash to run the house but there was never
any extra because he spent most of
his time in Williamsport at the poolroom downtown.
It supposedly was that he could bet his beer money,
but he always lost all of that and a lot more, too.
Guess he wasn't a good pool player and always thought
he was going to win the 'big one' except there never
was any 'big one'.  They didn't bet that much money
on a single game.  Of course, he always had a willing
opponent who was willing to take all he was willing
to bet.
     "Grandmother didn't do much to provide a home.
She worked as a domestic, cleaning lady, doing
laundry and cooking for others.  Mom wasn't a very
good student, although pretty and, I guess, popular
with her girl friends.  She never had a boyfriend for
very long.  From what she told me, because we lived
on the 'wrong side' of the tracks, the boys expected
her to be an easy lay.  When they found out she
wasn't, they didn't want anything to do with her.
     "She graduated from high school and worked at
the A&W Drive In as a carhop.  My father was 20 years
old at this time and arrived in town to work as a
steamfitter at the new power plant they built about 6
miles south of Williamsport.  His nickname was 'Jolly
Joe' and he and a couple of his buddies from the crew
went to the A&W one night.  They gave my mother a bad
time, but Joe left her a tip of $5 for an order that
didn't come to that much. He told her that he hoped
he would see her again.
     "The next night he was back, by himself this
time.  He asked her for a date after she got off work
and she accepted.  This time he left her a $10 tip.
He was back to pick her up after work and they rode
out to the lake by the power plant.  He fixed her a
drink like he had, a bourbon and Coke.  I don't know
if he got her drunk, but they ended up having sex
several times that night.
     "Mom thought he was handsome and rich and that
he might be a ticket out of Williamsport for her, so
I guess she thought if he would marry her, everything
would be great.  It didn't work out that way.
Grandmother gave her hell for being dumb enough to be
'easy' and made her douche to get rid of the sperm
he'd shot into her.  It didn't work.  I was born 9
months later.
     "Grandfather contacted Joe and he basically said
he wasn't going to assume any responsibility and left
town the next day. You know, 'thanks for the fuck, it
was fun, but don't bother me about it' type thing.
     "We didn't hear from him again until I was 13
years old.  He arrived at the door one Sunday
afternoon when grandmother and mom were out playing
bingo.  Grandfather answered the door and recognized
him immediately.  He came in and I was called out of
my room in the basement to talk to him.  I didn't
have a picture of him, but knew him immediately when
I saw him.  I think that today we would probably look
pretty much alike.  Grandfather went out to find mom
and bring her to the house.  Joe - Dad - whatever you
want to call him, asked me a few questions then told
me that he had been in the Navy for 8 years, serving
in Vietnam and now worked for a construction company
in Galveston that built drilling rigs.
     "He left an envelope for me, saying it was money
for me to go to college.  He wrote a letter saying
that he was sorry he hadn't been around to watch me
grow up but that he had been saving money for me.
There was a passbook for a bank account showing that
he had been putting $100 a month in the account. The
account had been closed and there was a check for
$15,000 with the letter.  That was the last I've
heard from him.  I suppose he's still in Galveston."
     Craig whistled.  "Wow, that's some story."
     "It must have been about that time that I had
discovered that I was attracted to other boys and
men.  I was out for football and basketball and ran
track.  I was pretty good as an athlete as I matured
much more quickly than the others in my class.  I
never tried to do anything with the other boys as I
heard them call others fags, homos and fairies.  I
don't think the kids they were teasing actually were,
but they were easy targets because they were small
and not apt to fight back.  I just shoved any
interest I had in other boys to the back of my
mind and worked on being a good athlete.  You saw the
trophies in my old room."
     "Yeah, I was impressed."
"I think my mother always resented the fact that she
                        gave
Joe what he wanted - a good screw - and my being
around was a constant reminder that her life might
have been better if I hadn't been born.
     "Well, both grandparents died when I was 15.
Mom was still working as a waitress for the people
who owned the A&W, although they had given her a job
in their downtown restaurant after she became
pregnant.  My grandparents left her the house and a
stack of medical bills she managed to pay off with a
little help from me.  I had a paper route and mowed
yards in the summer and did any other odd jobs I
could to help Mom.  About that time she got a job
working in the office at the Co-op and Mort's wife,
Margie, worked there, too.  She and mom became
friends and they liked me, so helped by seeing to it
that I had a job out here when I could work.  After
high school, Mort hired me to work at the Bar-W in
the summer and any other time I was available.  "Mom
got sick at the beginning of my second year of Junior
College and they discovered it was a brain tumor.  It
caused the loss of use of her legs and she died about
a month before I finished school.  I used the last of
my college money to pay for a nurse to help me the
last couple of months she was alive."
     Dale was sitting there with tears running down
his cheeks. This was the first time that he'd told
anyone this story in its entirety.
     Craig leaned over to kiss his face, holding it
in both his hands.
     "I had no idea what this was all about, but I
want to tell you something, Dale Richards.  You have
absolutely nothing to be ashamed about.  You helped
take care of your grandparents and your mother.  You
played athletics in school, you were a good student
and popular with the other kids."
     "Yes, but."
     "Don't you beat yourself up anymore.  You may
have had a hard beginning, but it's all come full
circle.  You helped your family, when they couldn't
really help you.  You cared for your mother when she
was sick.  People noticed your devotion to her and
helped you, too.  Obviously, Mort and his wife saw
that you had potential.  Look what has happened this
past week.  Mort wants to retire and recommended you
to take his job.  He didn't have to sell Martin or
Marty; they already realized they had a jewel right
in front of them.  From what I heard at noon, they
expect you to make a mistake now and then and will be
there to help you anytime you ask for that help.
     "You know, Hon, that you have their support and
you certainly have my support for whatever you need.
If you didn't
have my support, you wouldn't be sitting here as my
lover right now."
     "Craig, hon. I think I feel better about myself
right now than I've ever felt.  Somehow, just talking
about it with someone who wanted to know and
understand has made me feel a lot better. I think I
just thought of the bad things and since I didn't
have anyone to talk to, they just stayed bottled up
inside me."
     "You are probably right about that.  People who
are alone tend to get bogged down in things that are
of no consequence and let it get the best of them.
I'm here for you and I love you with all my heart, so
please let me know when something is bothering you.
You know, with two of us worrying about something, we
each only have to carry half the load."
 "I hadn't thought of it that way.  Craig, you make
everything seem so simple.  I love you for who you
are and what you are.  I think you have stepped in to
complete my life and that makes me love you even
more."
     With that they embraced and held each other
tightly.  Craig hoped this would be the last time
Dale would be down on himself for something over
which he had no control and a lot of things, which
didn't make any difference to anyone else.
     * * * * *
     (to be continued)
     * * * * *
Author's Note:  This is my first attempt at gay
fiction, and the only way I can learn whether or not
I should continue is from my readers' feedback.  I
would appreciate your comments, criticism,
suggestions, and anything else that you would care to
say.  All Email will be answered.  If you wish to
receive e-mail notification of subsequent posting,
please let me know by sending your request to the e-
mail address below.  Contact me at:
tulsadriller7@aol.com

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