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"No," Jake agreed. "I don't think he is." He looked over at 'Lissa's house and what was left of her things. "Come on," he said. "We have work to do, then I think we should get ice cream and go do something fun. Maybe torture Elias and Tor with mini-golf or something."

Cath nodded, her smile forced but there. "Taggarts against the rest?"

"You know it." Jake smiled at her and nudged them both back to where they belonged, on the right side of the street.

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Elias kicked their butts.

Even when Tor abandoned him and teamed up with Jake, Cath, and Jacob, Elias kicked their butts.

The four of them would play the hole, take the best score, and match it against Elias'. In the first

nine holes, they beat him on one. On the second nine, they didn't even come close, and Elias man
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aged to get a hole in one four times.

"Want to explain to me how a ranch hand got so good at mini-golf?" Jake asked when they were

returning their putters.

Elias grinned and winked at Cath. "I've always been good with my hands."

"Oh, that's nice," Cath said sweetly as Jake's jaw dropped open. "I've always been pretty good with a shotgun."

"My sister!" Jake slapped Elias' arm.

Tor laughed and slapped Jake's arm right back, before Elias could do it. "Think your sister can take care of herself, Taggart."

Cath beamed at Tor and slipped her arm through his. "Now, Jake. You didn't have it in your head

that I'm innocent, did you?"

Jake shuddered. "I don't want to know. And stay away from my cowboys--they break easy."

Elias smirked at him and took Cath's arm from Tor's. "I think it's best if Jake takes a few moments to gather his thoughts, Miss Cath. He's obviously lost his mind and confused me with someone

else," he said as he led her toward the ice cream stand where Jacob was already picking out flavors.

Jake looked at Tor, and glared. "Shut up."

"I didn't say anything," Tor protested, holding his hands up.

"Shut up anyway; I can hear you thinking from here."

"That's scary, Jake."

"No, Elias flirting with my sister is scary. You laughing about it in your head and thinking it's cute 87

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that I've gone all big brother about it is scary. Me knowing you're thinking that is just… normal."

Tor raised an eyebrow. "You're panicking," he said gently, like he would when Lug was spooked.

"I think you need ice cream."

"Shut up."

***

his hands tangled in Tor's hair, and his balls lifting up tight. He was staring sightless at the ceiling, reaching for his orgasm and feeling it boil in him, surging up and up and almost over, everything

tight and bright and ready to explode.

And then Tor lifted his head, fighting against Jake's grip in his hair. He came off Jake's dick with a

slurp and said, "So, you're really not worried about it?"

"Fuck!" Jake's hips fell back to the bed and he slapped Tor up the side of his foolish, smirking head. "Will you stop doing that?" It was the third time Tor had stopped, and Jake had had just about enough of that particular game.

Tor grinned at him and kissed the head of Jake's cock, his tongue lapping at the metal ring. "Sorry,"

he said, utterly insincere. "Just making sure--"

"If you mention either Elias' name or my sister's I swear to fucking God I'll roll over and go to

sleep."

Tor licked him. "No, you won't."

Jake growled. "Why are you thinking about either of them when you've got my dick in your

mouth?" he asked, not minding the licks or the kisses. His dick didn't care if Tor was thinking

about sales tax or the paint on the walls, as long as Tor's mouth was busy with making Jake come.

"Just to keep you from coming before I'm ready," Tor admitted, and then there were slick fingers shoved into Jake's ass and things were back on track.

"Oh," Jake breathed, the fire stoking him back to a near boil again. "That's better."

Tor chuckled and sucked him again, his fingers going deeper and faster. Jake took it, wanted it, and

in seconds he was rocking his way back onto Tor's hand and up into his mouth. He'd have happily

done that another dozen times and shot his load down Tor's throat, but as soon as climax was on the

map, that nice red X that marked the spot, Tor pulled away, pulled out, and started climbing up

him.

Jake groaned in frustration, but willingly spread his legs, lifting one until Tor was in the right place for him to hook up over Tor's shoulder, and then there was just the long slow glide to bliss as Tor

took him, pushing in and in and up and down and generally just making himself at home in Jake's

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ass.

"Ready?" Tor asked, finally as breathless as Jake had been over and over since they'd tumbled into bed.

"Fuck me." Jake's eyes closed and nothing mattered at all except Tor moving over him, in him.

Hard and fast, and at some point Jake realized that the headboard really wasn't fastened to the bed

frame and he'd have to fix that before they delivered it to the man who'd bought it. It banged and

rattled with every thrust and Jake grunted every time Tor did, their voices made for each other, for

this, for fucking and loving and then that X was in front of him, written on Tor's hand around his

cock.

"Yes!" Jake yelled, his back arching, and then again as he started to shoot, finally, finally.

"Yes!" Tor echoed, his hips slapping on Jake as he sped up, fucked Jake right through it, his cock and his piercing hammering on Jake's gland until Jake thought he'd surely die of it, and it would

almost be welcome to go with such perfection around him.

And then, sweating and swearing and with Jake's come on his hand and on Jake's belly, Tor said,

"Always," and froze, his climax pouring out of him in and into Jake, so strong Jake could feel it.

It wasn't until Tor was asleep next to him that Jake remembered they had about eight hours before

Tor would leave. Five days until he could go home.

Jake sighed and held Tor a little tighter and closed his eyes. It would be all right. In a week, every-

thing would be all right.

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It was a hard week. Jake spent his days cleaning the house and finishing the donation drop-offs

when he wasn't doing last minute things like gathering medical and school records for Jacob. He

made a last stop at the lawyer's, spent time with Cath, and tried to ignore the fact that he and Jacob

were staying in an empty shell of a home.

He missed Tor. The phone calls he tried to keep to a minimum were either difficult and near-silent

or quickly deteriorated into innuendo, depending on how late at night it was and how long it had

been since he’d last jerked off. More often than not, they'd have a conversation about once a day

and a follow-up call for phone sex a few hours later. He was starting to feel like he was pathetic,

but as far as phone sex went, it was pretty good. Tor had a way with words.

It helped him to keep from noticing that the house was cold and barren.

Jacob, on the other hand, seemed to ignore that the house was devoid of everything he'd ever

known. He treated sleeping in the tent like an adventure, and even took to ignoring the PlayStation

in favor of getting Jake to help him practice his new poker skills.

If Jake had known he'd be spending his evenings playing cards and eating take out, he would have

had Tor and Elias take the TV and the PlayStation with them, instead of leaving it for him to wres-

tle into the car. He got it in, though, along with his bag and the rest of Jacob's things, and then there they were, on Thursday evening, ready to go.

He closed the trunk and looked at the empty house, listening to Jacob and Tressa talking inside.

The door was open and he could see them through the living room window, just standing in the

empty room. This was the last of Jacob's goodbyes, and then they would go to Cath's for the night,

ready for an early start in the morning.

Jake waited by the car, trying not to spy as Jacob and Tressa talked quietly, and quickly looking

away when they turned to each other for a hug. He studied the lawn instead, eyeing its color criti-

cally and wondering if he should have mowed it once more.

They came out a moment later, Tressa with Jacob's last box in her arms. She handed it to Jake and

stood back a step before turning to hug Jacob one more time. "Bye," she said softly.

He nodded, looking vaguely uncomfortable, and she started walking down the driveway. "Tressa,"

Jacob finally blurted as she reached the street. "I'll call you next week."

She grinned and nodded. "Okay. See you, Jacob. Bye, Mr. Taggart."

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Jake waved and looked at Jacob, almost immediately dismissing her from his mind. "You okay?"

"Yeah." Jacob pointed to the box. "Sorry about that, I couldn't pick it up with the cast."

"No problem." Jake opened the back door of the car and fit the box in next to the tent. "Got everything? Want to take a few minutes to look around?"

"Nah, I'm good." Jacob walked around the car and climbed in. "Feel weird, though."

"Weird how? Sick?" Jake asked, starting the car. A flu bug would make travel interesting.

Jacob shrugged. "Sad and excited at the same time. Confused."

"That makes sense," Jake said, nodding. "I'm… more excited and worried. Sad, too."

"What are you worried about?"

"Doing right by you," Jake said. "Hoping I can live up to what your mom would want. But I'm ex
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cited about it, 'cause I think you'll like the ranch, and I know the people living near us are good

folk. I like you, Jacob, and I'm glad you’re going to be with us."

Jacob flushed, an embarrassed smile turning up the corners of his mouth. "I like you, too. And I'm excited about the horses and learning to ride."

Jake smiled back at him. "Good, then. Now, if I can just get you as excited about the joy that is

mucking stalls…"

Jacob made a face and Jake laughed, itching to reach out and ruffle his hair. He wasn't sure pre-

cisely how it was all going to work out, but it would.

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The Silence

The drive home was easy and smooth, if a little quiet when Jacob fell asleep about two hours in.

Jake let him rest, content to drive with only his own thoughts to keep him occupied. It wasn't quite

like being out on horseback with no one around to distract him, but it was close.

When he got off the interstate he debated about taking the main highway into town and looping

back toward the ranch, but his need to be home overrode the idea that he could show Jacob around

town a little. There would be time enough for that; right then he just wanted to love on his dog and

see his horse, and show Jacob his new home. So he switched over to the local road and cut across

country, taking only about twenty minutes off the trip but getting there as fast as was reasonable.

He did wake Jacob, though, about ten minutes from the spread. "Almost there, kid," he said, reaching over to nudge Jacob's shoulder.

With the ease that came with youth, Jacob straightened up, rolled his shoulders, and blinked a cou-

ple of times. Jake would have had an aching neck for hours, but Jacob seemed fine and wide awake

within a couple of minutes. He looked out the window and scratched absently at his cast.

"How long?" he asked.

"Couple of minutes. We'll be driving along our land in a mile or so."

"Cool."

Jake glanced at the speedometer and grinned ruefully when he realized he'd sped up again. He was-

n't a lot over the limit, but he was definitely faster than he had been since turning onto the local

road. A quick look in the rearview mirror assured him he was alone on the road, so he let his lead

foot carry them along for a bit.

"This is it," he said quietly, not able to keep from grinning as he pulled in the drive, smiling as he always did at the big iron sign. He had no idea if anyone would even be around to greet them, but

he knew for sure that his dog would be there.

Jacob was silent beside him, but was looking around avidly, his feet shifting like he was more than

ready to get out of the damn car already. Jake didn't blame him at all; the car was cramped and

there was all that space out there to move in and fresh air to breathe.

He pulled up next to the house, the yard empty of trucks and people, and had barely shut off the

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engine and opened his door when a barking furry mass flew around the corner of the barn and bar-

reled across the yard at them.

"That'd be the pup," he said dryly as Barkley paused to pee on the front tire of the car before launching himself at Jake's legs.

Jacob laughed and nodded, yelping when Barkley climbed right in the car with him and started try-

ing to lick his face. "Friendly thing, aren't you?" he said to Barkley, scratching the top of the dog's head even as he tried to get out of the car and out of the range of Barkley's tongue.

Jake grabbed the dog and dragged him out of the car, pausing long enough for an extended tummy

rub before nodding to the house. "Want to go in?"

Jacob nodded, his eyes fixed on the barns. "Yeah, okay. Um, can we take in the box? The one

Tressa had."

"Sure." Jake got the box, vaguely curious about what Jacob wanted from it, and headed to the