Maverick Cattle Company Ch. 12

"Looks like a great bunch of calves. Be sure and call me next year. I want first shot at buying any calves you have!"

Mitch flashed the buyer a broad smile and nodded. "We'll definitely let you know when they're ready to market. We appreciate you coming out since we're new sellers."

The buyer nodded as he put the last details on the check, tore it from his checkbook and handed it to Mitch. Mitch folded it without looking and stuck it in his pocket. Holding out his hand to the buyer, the two men shook hands and then separated just as the trucks pulled out of the driveway.

Soon Mitch was watching as the buyer's pickup moved onto the county road and then quickly out of sight. Mitch felt a hand on his shoulder, but was surprised to turn and find Trent standing beside him.

"That was fuck'n awesome," said Trent.

"What was awesome?" said Mitch.

"Everything, we didn't have no shit happen. Those were the calves that Josh and I got into this fuck'n world. It was just awesome to see it all work. Shit doesn't usually work right when I'm involved," said Trent.

Mitch chuckled and put his hand on Trent's shoulder and squeezed. "You and Josh did a good job. Some of them wouldn't have made it if it weren't for you two. Once we get all the numbers worked, you'll both be getting a bonus for all your hard work too."

Trent stared at Mitch for a moment. "You're shit'n me! You're really going to give me money?" said Trent in disbelief.

"Of course," said Mitch, "We share the work, but we share the rewards too."

"Well fuck . . . shit like this doesn't happen to me," said Trent as he shook his head in disbelief. Trent looked up to see a questioning look on Mitch's face.

"I'm not shitting you. My dad died a few days before my birthday, after he'd promised me that we'd finally go and see his family. That was the worst, but it's always something. There's always another cock to suck so I can have food and a place to sleep at night, hoping that my latest 'Daddy' doesn't slip into my bed for some late night sex because he needs it. You fight back, you complain, you get moved. Next house could be worse, had one fuck'n hyper religious family that decided they could beat the sin out of me. It's always something, and it's always bad. The only variation is how bad is it going to be."

Mitch shook his head in disbelief and squeezed the young man's shoulder again. Trent looked up into Mitch's face, and was surprised to see a look of sympathy and understanding, with a firm underlying sense of rage at the people who did this to him.

"Trent, you're safe here, and you're welcome to stay as long as you'd like," said Mitch.

He looked up as Darrin and Josh walked up. Deciding their conversation didn't need an audience, he spun Trent and then gave him a gentle push in the direction of the house.

"Come on everybody, I'm hungry. It's been a busy day and it's time for supper."

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Darrin and Mitch looked up from the table where they were going over the books for the ranch, catching each other's eyes. The calves had brought a premium when they were sold, and the buyer had sent them a bonus because of it. It wasn't a huge amount of money, just a token from the buyer who wanted their repeat business. But it represented a promise for more good years to come.

About the time they had agreed that they were going to split the money between Josh and Trent as a bonus for their help, the back door shut with a bang and the sound of running boots echoed through the house. Josh rounded the corner and slid to a stop in front of the pair. Breathlessly waving a piece of paper in front of them, Josh was grinning from ear to ear. Finally he managed to gasp out between breaths, "Grades!"

Darrin glanced quickly at Mitch and then reached out and snatched the page from Josh's hand. The two men leaned over and started scanning down the page, digesting the information. After a few minutes of deathly silence, Darrin jump up and grabbed Josh in a massive hug.

"That's great! Straight A's! We're so proud of you, Josh," said Darrin.

Mitch stood and ruffled Josh's hair and then stood beaming as he scanned the page again. A after A was listed for the final grade for every class on the sheet.

"I have no fuck'n idea what some of these are, but a 4 point semester is damn good!" said Mitch.

"It's just the beginning classes, but I'm having so much fun. The professors seem to think I'm pretty good too," said Josh.

"If you're getting an A from them, I'd say that you are doing more than pretty good."

Just as they were headed through the list of grades again, with Josh trying to explain what the classes were, Trent walked into the house, closely followed by Max. He went to the fridge and grabbed a bottle of Dr. Pepper, then sauntered into the living room to see what was happening. Peering over Darrin's shoulder, Trent saw Josh's grade sheet and listened for a few minutes. Trent tilted his head back and drained the bottle, then reached across and ruffled Josh's hair and actually smiled.

"Nice job, college," said Trent.

Darrin and Mitch's eyes met as a soft chuckle came from both of them. It was just too humorous that Trent was using Mitch's pet name for Darrin, and applying it to Josh.

Leaning back, Mitch looked first from one boy and then to the other. "I'm glad you're both here. We need to talk to you."

The house suddenly took on a tomb-like silence, which Darrin almost immediately broke with his laughter. "Jeez, it's a good thing. Both of you need to relax. Go ahead, Mitch."

Mitch chuckled and shook his head, "Yeah, sorry about that. Like Darrin said, it's a good thing. We got a bonus from the cattle buyer, and we decided to split it between the two of you."

Both young men were stunned into silence, but the look on Trent's face was pure disbelief. Then they both began to talk at once.

"Really! Damn! How much?" said Josh.

"I can do anything I want with it? It's just mine?" asked Trent.

"Couple hundred or so, and yes it's yours to use however you'd like," said Darrin.

Trent turned immediately to Josh. "I wanna buy some of your goats. How much?"

Both Mitch and Darrin barely concealed their looks of surprise. As their eyes flash to each other, they knew each was reeling from the shock. Josh wasn't as successful at hiding his surprise.

"My goats – You wanna buy them for—Holy shit," Josh sputtered. "I thought you hated the goats!" he finally added.

"Twink boy hated the goats. I think they're cool. Now, you fuck'n going to sell me some?"

Josh finally rallied, "Yeah, sure. We can work out the details if you'd like."

The two headed outside to see which ones Trent wanted, and how many he could afford. After they heard the door shut, Darrin turned to Mitch with an incredulous look on his face.

"Holy fucking shit! What just happened here?" sputtered Darrin.

Mitch chuckled softly and traced a few abstract gestures with his hands. "I have no idea what that was, but I think we're getting more fucking goats!" the last delivered with a slight snarl of distain on Mitch's face.

Darrin took one look at Mitch, and lapsed into hysterical laughter.

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Josh tossed the frisbee to Max again, enjoying a rare quiet moment. Max had settled into ranch life very well and Josh had been working with him on some new activities. Josh had the feeling that Trent was working with him too, but he was keeping it very well hidden. Josh wasn't certain how he felt about Trent's natural affinity with the animals, but it bothered him less now than when Trent first arrived. Actually it had been several weeks since they had cornered off with each other. Josh would never admit it to anyone else, but he was starting to enjoy talking to the younger boy. Working with the geldings had helped, Trent didn't know anything about horses, but he really wanted to train the horse that Mitch had gotten him. The joint venture with the goats was also working out pretty well, although Trent wasn't too happy when he realized he wasn't going to get as many animals as he thought with his part of the bonus.

Just as Josh threw the disc to Max, there was a sudden loud squealing of tires from the ranch entrance. Josh looked up to see Darrin's pickup fishtailing down the driveway. Josh was still focused on Darrin's arrival as he retrieved the toy from Max and threw it again. Only this time he hadn't concentrated on this throw. A soft yip snapped his attention back to Max and he realized that the disc had hit him on the muzzle. Josh raced over to see if he was injured, and Max ran from him. Josh stood dejected as he watched his brown and white partner disappear into the barn, where Trent was working with his horse.

Josh had started toward the barn to find Max, when a blaring pickup horn and a loud yell of joy announced Darrin's arrival. The rest of the family poured out and were soon congregated around Darrin as he gathered up his bookbag.

"What the hell's going on?" asked Mitch as he dusted the flour from his hands.

Darrin looked at him with a very stoic look on his face, to Mitch's confusion. "Well, I got the results of my reappointment vote . . ."

"And?" Mitch ventured cautiously.

Darrin dropped the stuff from his arms and literally jumped onto Mitch. Hugging and kissing Mitch, he started saying in a singsong voice, "I got reappointed, I got reappointed, I got reappointed."

Mitch started laughing, the worry that he hadn't even realized he was holding back melted from his body. The two of them lost themselves in their own little world of celebration. They both reveled in Darrin's success and the honest fear that if he lost his job, they would have difficulty living off the profit from the ranch. Also, if Darrin wanted another job, they would have to move, and they both loved their current home. But all those worries left their system with Darrin's proclamation. So many things slid past them, in the span of moments their future became much clearer.

Darrin slowly let himself slide off Mitch and then started picking up his gear. Everyone jumped in to help and soon all his paperwork and materials were gathered back up. They walked into the house and Darrin dumped his load on the table. Turning, he grabbed Mitch again and kissed him hard.

"Oh babe. I feel so much better. It's not tenure, but that means I'm doing fine and that most of the faculty are honest enough not to vote on whether they like my sexual orientation. Jeez, it's such a relief," said Darrin.

Mitch grinned and kissed his husband again. "I know. It's fantastic. We have to celebrate tonight." Mitch wrapped his arms around Josh and Trent, pulling them into a group hug while Darrin watched and laughed. Both boys immediately teamed up against Mitch and quickly all three were in the floor scuffling with each other. Soon the laughter from them and Darrin was filling the house. After a few minutes of hard play, Mitch was lying on his back, panting for breath and waving surrender.

"I give, I give!" said Mitch between heaving breaths.

"Pizza, we need lots of pizza to celebrate tonight!" said Josh with enthusiasm.

"Umm, pizza sounds great," seconded Trent.

"It does sound great!" said Mitch, "Here, let me get you some money." Mitch fished out his wallet and started pulling out bills to send with the boys.

"Nope, tonight is my treat," said Josh with a smile.

"Our treat," said Trent, enjoying the feeling of having at least a little cash of his own.

"Fine, fine," said Darrin with a laugh, "Anything but pepperoni and dead fishes."

"Dead fishes?" said Trent with a disdainful look.

"Anchovies, Darrin hates 'em," said Mitch with a smile.

Both boys chuckled and then headed out the door together. Darrin and Mitch watched them leave and then collapsed on the couch to wait for their return.

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While they were waiting for the boys to show up with supper, the pair had been cleaning up a little around the house, a never-ending job in a house with three, really four, men living in it.

Suddenly, Mitch turned to Darrin with a smile.

"You know what tomorrow is?"

"Of course I do! It's our anniversary!" replied Darrin.

"We should camp out tonight, on Anniversary Hill."

"You think?"

"Yeah, we'll fill the pickup bed with sleeping bags and quilts and relax under the stars," said Mitch with a grin.

"Relax . . . ah huh," said Darrin with a conspiratorial look.

Mitch ran past Darrin, swatting him on the ass. "Come on lazy butt, let's get the shit in the pickup before Frick and Frack get back with the pizza."

The two spun into action and were soon piling the pickup bed full of blankets sleeping bags. They also grabbed the cooler and filled it with snacks and drinks to take with them. Eventually, they had everything packed and were back on the couch relaxing in each other's arms. Darrin had leaned over and was kissing Mitch passionately when he heard.

"Ewww, get a room!"

Darrin looked over his shoulder and gave Trent his best parental look. "Hush, boy. Someday you'll understand."

"I understand now. It's just gross when old people do it," said Trent with a smile.

Mitch jumped off the couch to chase Trent while Darrin and Josh smiled at their antics. But the whole response made Darrin feel good about the future, because it meant Trent was relaxing enough to tease him and Mitch. Darrin laughed when Mitch caught Trent and started tickling him unmercifully. Eventually they separated and everyone gathered around the table, descending on the pizza. The next hour or so was spent enjoying really good pizza and comfortable conversation. Eventually the two young men drifted away to finish their chores, while the older couple cleaned up the boxes and crumbs. Finishing the cleanup, they walked hand in hand to the barn to check on everything before they left.

They met Josh coming back from checking the goats, and Mitch patted him gently on the back as they passed each other. Josh looked up with a shy smile of triumph. Mitch looked down and saw that Max was again a shadow, right at Josh's heels. Mitch had heard the yip from Max earlier and was glad to see that whatever had happened, was settled between the two of them.

Having found Josh and his dog, the pair made their way to the barns to check on the horses. Mitch knew that Trent had progressed far enough with his gelding to move him into a box stall. He had been a little concerned that the move was too soon, but he'd let Trent make the choice. But he definitely wanted to check on the horse before they left.

They walked quietly through the stalls until they reached Whitey. Creeping up, they peered into the stall and were both stunned. The gelding was lying quietly in his stall, with Trent lying on his front quarters. Mitch started to scold Trent for putting himself in such a dangerous situation, but Darrin tugged at his arm to silence him. He looked over and saw Darrin shaking his head.

Moving out of the barn, and Trent's earshot, Darrin turned to Mitch. "Let him be. The horse seems fine with him. He just seems to have that knack with animals."

"I know," replied Mitch, "But if that horse spooks—"

Darrin kissed Mitch softly to stop him. "I think this time we have to trust Trent's intuition."

Mitch let out a soft sigh and then shrugged his shoulders. With that settled, they made their way back to the pickup. They'd left a note on the kitchen table telling the boys that they would be out all night. So they slipped into the pickup and quietly made their way back to the location where they had proposed to each other. They were frequent visitors to the outlook, but this one day each year was very special. They slowed and parked the truck so the bed was overlooking the small valley.

They both climbed out of the pickup and Mitch let down the tailgate for them sit upon. He reached back, pulled out two longnecks from the ice and popped them open. Handing one to Darrin, he leaned back on one elbow as they looked across the rolling pastures.

"Pretty amazing isn't it," said Darrin softly.

"It is amazing, the scenery is outstanding," said Mitch with a smile.

"No, it's amazing that we have all this and how good things are. Josh and Trent are doing ok, just normal teen drama. I got an almost unanimous vote for reappointment, and we know who the abstaining vote was. The ranch turned a profit this year too. But the most amazing thing is that we're still together and love each other. Everything else can go to shit and so long as I have you, it'll all be fine."

Mitch leaned over and kissed Darrin gently on the cheek and then settled back with a huge smile on his face. "You're right, the most important thing is us. We've had crap that would tear a lot of couples apart. With me falling down the bank, or the two boys being dropped on us, not to mentions some of the assholes you have to work with and some of my past coming back to haunt me. I know I love you more now than ever before."

Darrin started rubbing his hand over Mitch's back, loving the feel of the muscles under his soft touch. Turning, he looked at his husband and thought he was more handsome than when they first met, and he was amazing then. A few strands of grey had started threading their way through his sideburns giving him a very distinguished look, and his face today was a little scruffy, which Darrin loved. But he guessed it was also that he was a great guy. He'd had some bad things in his life, and the two of them had clashed on occasion too. But they realized that a disagreement wasn't the end of the world. They had gotten better about talking through any problems too.

Darrin surveyed the area and had to chuckle at what he saw around the pickup. Mitch caught his soft amusement and looked down.

"What?" said Mitch.

"The Indian Blanket is spreading. . ." said Darrin with a smile. "You know that it's all because of our lovemaking up here on the hill."

Mitch chuckled at his husband and his superstition. "You know, you better be careful or someone will think you're a silly queen!"

Darrin laughed at his disbeliever and threw open his arms to the scenery. "I'm the queen of all I survey!"

Mitch chuckled and pulled Darrin into the nest they had created in the back of the pickup. They lay quietly in each others arms, watching the sun slowly set, coloring the western sky a vibrant crimson. They quietly snacked on the things Mitch had packed for them while slowly drinking their ice-cold beer. Against the background of a darkening sky, Darrin leaned in and kissed Mitch tenderly.

"I love you, Mitch McRichards. More and more each day."

Mitch cupped Darrin's face in his hands, returning his kiss with loving passion. "I love you too, Darrin Anderson. In spite of your silly superstitions."

Darrin laughed as he ran his hand under Mitch's shirt, enjoying the texture of the fur that coated Mitch's stomach. Leaning in, he started nibbling on Mitch's neck as his hand explored under the tight t-shirt. Darrin pushed the shirt up until he found the hard nubs of flesh that were Mitch's nipples. Rubbing them lovingly with his fingers, he started sucking on the side of Mitch's neck.

"Hmm, you know how that gets to me. Damn, you're making me hard as a rock," said Mitch through a groan.

"That was kind of my plan," said Darrin with a throaty chuckle. Diving back in, he bit down on Mitch's neck until he heard a soft sigh of pleasure from his man. Pushing his hands higher, Darrin quickly stripped Mitch of his shirt and tossed it to the side of the pickup. Darrin pushed back on Mitch, pinning him and letting their bodies slide over each other. As Darrin pressed his lips against Mitch's, their tongues warred for supremacy as their lovemaking escalated. Soon their world had shrunk to the back of the pickup and their sensations were limited to their shared touches. Darrin suddenly ripped off his own shirt and tossed it aside, desperately needing to feel the touch of Mitch's body against him. Their passion began to reach a fever pitch and Darrin pushed back, rising to his knees and gasping for air as he looked at the hot cowboy lying between his legs. Mitch's perfect fan of dark chest hair flowed down his body to his midsection and moving around his navel to form a dark rich treasure trail that disappeared into Mitch's Wranglers. Even in the dim light, he could see the substantial bulge in Mitch's jeans from his rigid cock.