Sierra Inn

Written by Mark The Goodpen

By now I'm sure you know the drill, so I won't bore you with another disclaimer to ignore.

Thank you to everyone who has e-mailed their feedback on this story. You're e-mails let me know I should keep the Sierra Inn in business.

Feedback is always welcome at thegoodpen@inbox.com

Enjoy!!

Sierra Inn
Chapter 9

As I lay in bed with a still sleeping Brian in my arms I wonder what has spurred this sudden change in him.  I quickly stop myself from thinking too much about it, no reason to dissect a good thing.  Last night was the second night in a row I made love to him.  That's right I said it, we made love.  Okay maybe some people would just say I gave him head, but it was more than that to me and to Brian.  Actions only mean as much as the feelings behind them, I realize that now more than ever before.  And after Brian came back into the living room last night, our actions were absolutely incredible.

I took Brian by the hand and led him back to the bedroom.  When we got there I sat down on the bed and Brian stood between my open legs.  I started rubbing his chest, making circles around his nipples with my fingers.  Without warning Brian leaned his face into mine and we started to kiss, and before I knew it I had Brian's tongue in my mouth, seeking my tongue for a duel.  As we kissed I ran my hands down Brian's bare sides to his waist.  I slowly walked my fingers across the front of his waist and down his pelvis, until I felt his hardness push against the back of my hand.  Ever so gently I started jacking for him and I felt him moan into my mouth.  I broke the kiss and stood up, gently I lifted Brian by his under arms onto the bed.  As soon as his butt touched the bed he spread his legs, looking at me with a huge smile on his face.  Just to tease him a little I took my time lowering myself onto the bed and bringing my face to his crotch.  He tried to move things along by pushing his hips up towards my face but I ignored his silent plea at first.  Instead I ducked my head lower and gently started kissing his small sack.  I gently ran my tongue from the right side of his sack to the left then back again before taking both almond sized balls into my mouth, bathing them with my tongue.  I stayed there for a long time just enjoying the taste until Brian once again bucked his hips upwards and I figured it was time to move on.

"I love you," I said after lifting my head up and looking at his face which was flush with excitement.  Brian had propped himself up on his elbows so from my position I could look him straight in the eyes and he looked right back at me.
"I love you too," he said, his breath shallow and the words came out barely above a whisper.

I lowered my head again this time I opened my mouth and took in Brian's penis.  I ran my tongue over the head several times before sealing my lips and moving my lips up and down his length, bobbing my head faster and faster the longer I went.  Not too much time had passed with me doing this before Brian began to buck his hips and on his own started humping my mouth just like he had started to do the night before when he had gotten close to his climax.  On an upper thrust I again planted a hand under his butt, grabbing his cheeks and squeezing as I pushed up every time he would hit the bed.  When I heard his breath get really shallow I took my free hand and started playing with his balls which were drawn up close to his body.  Just seconds after doing that I felt his butt cheeks get tense and with one final upward thrust I started to feel his penis jerk in my mouth.  When his climax finally ended and his penis stopped jerking I slowly pulled my head up and looked at Brian who was laying flat on his back, with his eyes closed and a contented look on his face.

I slowly scooted up and laid my head on one of the two pillows at the head of the bed.  Brian scooted himself up and quickly pushed his way into my arms, resting his head on my chest.  I wrapped my arms around him and fell asleep.

Now as the sun comes into the room, illuminating Brian's face as it sticks out from the covers I take a contented deep breath as the vision of last night stays in my head.  I shift gently, as not to disturb Brian, and check the clock on the night stand, it's seven o'clock and I know I need to get to the Sierra Inn.  I wasn't there at all yesterday because of the move and it's absolutely driving me nuts.  I feel like if I'm not there the place will just fall apart at the seams.  It's not that I don't trust my employees, because I do, but I feel better when I know exactly what is going on.  I slip myself out of bed, gently unwrapping my arms from around Brian.  He shifts a little turns onto his other side but stays asleep.

After checking to make sure I didn't wake him up I make my way into the bathroom.  I take a minute to notice how much bigger this bathroom is than my old one, before getting into the shower, trying to get myself fully awake.  While in the shower I realize how big of a week this is going to be for Brian and me.  Brian will start at his new school tomorrow, which I'm sure will make tonight as well as tomorrow morning interesting.  Mr. Quincy, the adoption lawyer promised that he would drop by the Sierra Inn to see Brian sometime this week.  I am really counting on him agreeing to help me.  I know I need a first class lawyer if I have any chance of actually being allowed to adopt Brian.  How I will pay for his help, I have no clue but I'll figure something out.  I'm also sure CPS will be dropping by at some point, which means I probably can't make too much of a habit of sleeping in the same bed as Brian, at least until I have legally adopted him and CPS would be out of my hair.

I get out of the shower and get dressed in my hotel owner clothes.  Casual by most hotel management standards, a blue collared dress shirt and black pants but I'm running a highway side motel not a Ritz Carlton so I don't feel under dressed.  I make my way back into the bedroom, where Brian is still asleep in the same position as when I left him.  I slowly make my way over to the side of the bed where he is sleeping and decide I should wake him up gently, as not to scare him or anything.  So I take the covers and throw them towards the foot of the bed, revealing Brian's naked body.  As much as I want to devour him, the business side of me is over riding any other part of me and I really do want to get to the Sierra Inn.  Brian shivers slightly, then all of a sudden sits up quickly in bed.

"What you do that for?" he asks me when he sees me standing next to the bed.  Still he only has one eye open.
"I got to get to work," I say.  "So get into the shower, quick," I add with a smile.

A half hour later we're at the Sierra Inn via the McDonald's drive thru.  I still have my breakfast in a paper bag but Brian's Egg Mc'muffin disappeared somewhere near the exit of the drive thru.  Juan is standing behind the front desk when we get to the motel.  Saturday and Sunday nights I have somebody from a temp agency working the desk so Juan can have a couple of nights off and work the day shift on Sunday, giving Laura the day off.  Brian takes his skateboard back to his self made skate park and I head for my desk.  Pretty soon after settling into a mountain of paperwork Juan comes into my office.

"Congratulations, we were booked last night," Juan says, with a smile.  "I don't remember the last time we were so busy."
"You don't know how happy I am to hear that," I say, as dollar signs flash in my head.  "Sorry I haven't been here much this week."
"Not a problem," Juan says, still standing in the doorway incase somebody rings the bell at the front desk.  "How did the move go?"
"A lot better than I had expected," I say.
"So what's the deal with the kid?" Juan asks all of a sudden.
"What do you mean?" I ask.
"Well how long you keeping him for?" Juan asks.  "I mean wasn't this supposed to be a temporary emergency thing?"
"Well originally it was," I say.  "But we've kind of become attached.  In fact I'm thinking of adopting him."
"No shit?" Juan asks.  This is usually something he'll say when he's happy but today there is no hint of happiness in his tone.  "You're adopting a kid?"
"Yeah," I say, nodding my head.  "I know it might seem weird and it's hard to explain."
"Dude, I told you whatever you do, I have your back," Juan says.  "It's just, I've never thought of you as the dad type. You know?"
"Until I met Brian, I didn't either," I say, still unsure of exactly where this conversation is going.
"Yeah and you adopting.  Wouldn't that be kind of tough?" Juan asks.  "I mean, you being a dude and all."
"Well it's not going to be easy, but I'm in the process of hiring a lawyer," I say.
"Shit dude, you move fast," Juan says.  "I wish I had your juevos."
"Thanks," I say, just as the bell from the front desk rings and Juan has to go help a guest.

I work like a mad man for most of the morning, and when it approaches lunch time without Brian having come in all morning I start to get concerned.  So I make my way to the back of the motel where Brian has set up his make shift skate park.  When I get there Brian is sitting on his skateboard, in front of one of the dumpsters playing with a rock on the ground.

"Hey kiddo," I say as I walk over to him.  "I missed you this morning.  You must have really gotten into riding."
"Nah, I've been sitting here for awhile," Brian says, as he looks up at me.  "I just like being outside better than being in your office."
"I can't blame you for that," I say as I carefully take a seat on the ground, facing him.  "So what's up?"
"I start school tomorrow," Brian says.
"Yeah," I say.  "You're not looking forward to it, are you?"
"No," he says, shaking his head.  "But I know I have to go."
"Good," I say, relieved that I won't be getting any kind of argument from him about going.  "You know the good news, is that this is a new school.  There will be all new kids that didn't even know you before at your old school.  So you might not even have any problems here."
"I hope," Brian says.  "There's something else I've been thinking about," he says, now looking down into his lap.
"What's that?" I ask.
"Well last night, and the night before," Brian says.  "I didn't do anything for you."

Suddenly I am panic stricken thinking somebody might be in earshot of our conversation.  I quickly look around and realize nobody comes back here except for me and occasionally Juan, who wouldn't be out here now anyway.

"That's okay," I say, in response to Brian's statement.  "I wanted to make you happy, and doing that made me happy."
"Yeah, but it's not fair to you," Brian says.  "I know I can make you even happier.  If you wanted me to."
"Well I appreciate you caring about me like that," I say, a small smile coming to my face.  "But this is something we can talk about later when we're at home.  For now how about some lunch?"
"I like that idea," Brian says.
"I thought you would," I say with a chuckle.  "Sunday's pizza day here.  Is that okay?"
"Can birds fly?" Brian asks, with a huge smile.

When we get back to my office I call and order the pizza.  After hanging up the phone I say a silent prayer that CPS won't check on Brian's eating habits anytime soon.  I promise myself that I will learn to cook sometime soon.  After lunch Brian takes a nap on the couch and around three we head home via Target to get Brian school supplies and the supermarket to get us food.  I know how to cook exactly three things.  Spaghetti, macaroni and cheese, and tacos so I buy food for all three in addition to half the snack aisle which Brian seemingly dumped into the cart while I wasn't looking.

When we get back home, Brian helps me carry the groceries up to our second floor apartment.  When we get up the stairs, I see Julie standing in front of the door.

"Hello Brian," she says as soon as she sees us.
"Hi," Brian says, meekly.
"Hello, Mr. Wasdin," Julie says, seemingly the friendliest she has been to me since I met her.  I instantly get suspicious.
"Hi Ms. Harden," I say, as I finally am able to pull my key out from my pocket.
"I know, you just moved here but I was very curious to see the place," she says.  "Do you mind if I check it out?"
"Not at all," I say, as I put the key in the front door.  "Come on in," I say, opening the door.

Fortunately, with my parents help, I was able to make the apartment look presentable virtually from the minute I moved in.  I don't have a ton of stuff because I've spent much of my time the last few years at the Sierra Inn so there weren't too many boxes and virtually no moving mess once we got to the new place.

"Very nice," Julie says as she takes a look around the living room.  "No offense but I must say, it is certainly an upgrade from your last place."
"No offense taken," I say.  "I agree with you," I say as Brian and I put the groceries down on the kitchen counter.  "We'll be buying a second bedroom set this week, so for right now I'm still sleeping on the couch," I say, not telling Julie the truth for obvious reasons.
"That's fine," Julie says.  "I don't usually work on Sunday's, but like I said I was curious about the two of you.  Brian how do you like this apartment?" she asks as she ducks her head into the hallway, seemingly to confirm that there are two bedrooms.
"It's cool," he says.  "The fire place works with a light switch," he says, showing Julie the electric fire place.  It is the first time I've heard Brian talk to Julie without any contempt in his voice.  Maybe the contempt came from him being unhappy before.  Maybe now he really is just happy.
"Impressive," Julie says with a smile.  "Ah, Mr. Wasdin may I talk to you outside for a minute?"
"Sure," I say, with a slight gulp.  "Brian why don't you see if there's anything good on T.V?"

Julie leads me outside, my mind spinning with all the different ways this could end badly.

"Mr. Wasdin," Julie says, once we're standing outside the closed front door.  "I don't want us to have an adversarial relationship.  After all if you care about Brian as much as you have said you do, then we're both after the same thing, which is Brian's welfare.  So I just want you to know you don't have to be afraid of me."

To say I am taken aback by Julies offer of virtual teamwork is an understatement.  Something like this was just about the last thing I was expecting.  My suspicion though is still telling me that this lady is up to something more than she's leading on to.

"Well I appreciate that," I say.  "And I'm very glad to hear it, because I absolutely have Brian's best interest at heart."
"I'm glad you said that," Julie says.  "Mr. Wasdin, I'll be honest with you, I'm still skeptical about you.  I know your intentions are good but I'm not totally sure you're capable of being a parent.  I only say that because you're a single man running a very demanding business.  I do not doubt for a second that in a different circumstance, maybe say one more traditional, that you would be an outstanding father."
"Thank you," I say.  "This might not be the traditional set up.  But I'll make it work."
"I hope for Brian's sake you do," Julie says.  "I haven't seen him that happy since I've known him."

There is one question that has been bugging me since I met Julie but I'm always too afraid to ask it.  Brian said she disappeared after dropping him off at his last foster house, but she seems to really care about him, and I can't see her doing something like that.  Don't get me wrong I'm not saying that I like her, because I don't but I have to give her credit for seemingly caring very much about her job and for Brian.

"Ms. Harden I have to ask you something," I say.  "It's about something Brian told me, and I'm only asking you this because what he told me doesn't seem to fit.  What happened with his last placement?"
"What do you mean?" Julie asks.
"He said that you dropped him off there, and you never came back," I say.  "He said you were supposed to comeback to check on him but you didn't.  What happened?"
"Did he also tell you that when I dropped him off at the Smith's I was eight and a half months pregnant?" she asks, an actual smile appearing on her face.
"No, he left out that detail," I say, feeling my face getting red.
"Well that's what happened.  I was on maternity leave," Julie says.  "Mr. Lofton took over my cases, but there was no way he could have followed up with every one.  The Smith's have been in the system for years and we've never had any problems with them.  So Mr. Lofton must have assumed Brian was one placement he could skip.  I won't say it's right but considering the circumstances I can't say that I wouldn't have done the same thing if I were in his shoes."
"That makes sense," I say, having gained some respect for the woman standing in front of me.  "I only asked because you seem so diligent."
"Well thank you," Julie says.  "I try, and don't worry about it.  If I were you I would have asked also.  Well I better be going I'm working on your license so we can make this a long term placement.  You should be hearing from me by the end of this week, either by phone or in person," she says the last part with a smile.
"Okay, I'll keep a look out then," I say, we actually shake hands before she heads downstairs and to the parking lot.  "That woman is up to some serious shit," I say to myself when she is out of earshot, then I head back inside to attempt making tacos.

A chef I am not, but Brian is either too polite or too hungry to say anything as he packs away taco after taco.  As I eat my meal I can't help but smile at the little Hoover sitting next to me at the breakfast bar.  After the food is gone I put the dishes in the dishwasher and Brian heads to the couch and starts to get his school supplies together for tomorrow.  I watch him from the kitchen as he fusses with his new backpack, trying to figure out exactly where he wants to put everything.  Just as I start the dishwasher, I here Brian zip his backpack closed, before resting it against the wall near the front door.  He sits back down on the couch and I join him.  We watch television together in silence for awhile before Brian finally speaks.

"Are you going to come with me tomorrow?" he asks, looking up at me.
"Yeah, I'll drop you off at school," I say.  "Eventually you can ride the bus if you want."
"Okay, but I mean are you going to come in with me tomorrow?" Brian asks.
"Well I kind of wanted to talk to your teacher," I say, and I can tell by the look on Brian's face that was not the answer he was looking for.  "But I could just call her if you'd rather I stay away."
"Well it's just my first foster mom came in with me when I started at my old school," Brian says.  "And I don't know, it's just that at that school I got made fun of a lot."
"Because your foster mom met your teacher?" I ask.
"I don't know," Brian says.  "I mean they didn't make fun of me about that, but just other stuff."
"Well Brian, if you don't want me to come inside tomorrow then I won't," I say.  "It's up to you."
"Thanks," Brian says.

Brian shifts and lays his head in my lap as we continue watching television for a couple more hours.  Around nine I send Brian to take his shower and get ready for bed.  I get some sheets and a pillow and dump them on the couch, just incase we get a visit from CPS in the morning.  When Brian comes out of the shower I go into the bathroom and get ready for bed myself.  When I get out, I see Brian in the bedroom sitting on the end of the bed, wearing nothing but a towel that is still wrapped around his waist.

"Can you sleep with me?" he asks.  "I feel better when you sleep with me."
"Okay," I say.  "But we actually have to sleep, tomorrow's a big day."
"Okay," Brian says, as he nods his head.

We get into bed and Brian crawls right into my arms.  He settles his head on my chest, and I wrap my arms around him.

"I love you, Kevin," I hear him say, softly.
"I love you too, angel," I say, as I start gently stroking his hair.

The next thing I know there is an obnoxious buzzing sound coming from the nightstand and I realize it's the alarm clock.  Brian rolls over me, his head leaving my chest for the first time since last night.  I reach over him and slam my hand down on the alarm clock to shut it up.

"Come on angel, we got to get you to school," I say, as I yawn.
"K," Brian says, as he slowly sits up.

I stumble the way into the kitchen and put a couple of pop tarts into the toaster.  While thinking to myself that I don't actually remember putting pop tarts in the cart yesterday at the supermarket.  Just as the pop tarts pop, Brian comes into the living room wearing his black Nirvana t-shirt.

"You're going to be the coolest kid at school," I say.
"Thanks," he says, as he gets up on one of the bar stools.

I put the pop tarts on a plate and put them in front of Brian.  Personally I'm not much of a breakfast person so I just settle for a cup of instant coffee and a banana.

"I changed my mind," Brian says.  "Will you come in with me?"
"Sure angel," I say, with a smile.  "Whatever you want, and it's okay if you change your mind again before we get there."
"I probably will," Brian says, with a little giggle.

Ten minutes later we are in the car and headed towards Brian's new school.  The entire ride is silent, as Brian just stares out the window seemingly counting telephone poles as we go.  This time I manage not to get myself lost and find the school on our first pass.

"So are you sure you want me to come in?" I ask as I park the car.
"Yeah," Brian says, meekly.  "I'm sure."
"Okay," I say.  "Angel, no matter what you're going to be fine here.  Don't worry, just be yourself and the other kids will love you."
"You think so?" Brian asks.
"I know so," I say, a smile coming to my face.

We walk into the school building slowly. Brian is obviously trying to put the inevitable off for as long as possible as he literally drags his feet as he walks.  As we walk I start to think about how much things have changed.  Today is Monday, it was a week ago tonight that Brian was sitting on the curb in front of the lobby of the Sierra Inn.  That means a week ago at this moment I was the owner of a highway side motel and not much else.  My life was defined by my work and that was it, I had no life outside of the Sierra Inn.  Now just a week later I'm dropping off my foster son, who I hope to adopt, at school.  How wild is that?

When we get into the school office we are greeted by the same lady that helped enrolled Brian here last Thursday.  This time the smile stays on her face when she sees us and I'm not sure if she actually remembers who we are until she opens her mouth.

"Brian was placed in Mr. Leonard's class," she says.  "That's room one fifteen, if you'll follow me I'll introduce the two of you to him."


We follow the secretary down the long corridor lined with colorful bulletin boards until we finally get to Brian's classroom which is at the end of the building.  The lady opens the door and we follow her in.  The classroom is typical, desks all lined up facing the white board at the front of the class.  The teachers desk is sitting on the side of the room near the door so right when the door is opened we see Mr. Leonard.  He looks younger than me, probably fresh out of college.  When he sees us come in he smiles and stand up.

"Good morning Cindy," he tells the secretary.  "Who do we have here?"
"This is Brian Landers," Cindy says.  "And his foster father, Brian will be in your class."
"Hi there Brian," Mr. Leonard says, with a smile on his face.  "How are you today?"
"Okay, I guess," Brian says, his hands in his pockets, his face pointed towards his feet.
"I'm Kevin Wasdin," I say, holding out my hand which Mr. Leonard quickly shakes.
"Nice to meet you, I'm Rick Leonard."
"Brian's a little nervous about his first day," I say forgetting how much I hated it when I was a kid and my Mom would talk for me.
"Well that's understandable," Rick says.  "Brian, you don't have to worry we have a lot of fun here and the kids in this class are really, really nice."
"Okay," Brian says, his face still looking at the ground.
"Brian I have an empty desk right in the second row, in the middle," Rick says pointing towards the front of the classroom.  "That's right next to Ethan, I think the two of you will get a long really well.  Why don't you put your stuff down there.  And then did you see the library on the way here?"
"Yeah," Brian says.
"Why don't you go get a book for yourself, you'll need it for the first fifteen minutes of the day," Rick says.  "You can choose any one you want."

Brian nods before going over to the desk and putting his backpack on the seat and then heading for the library, without even giving me a second look.

"I figured you wanted to talk to me," Rick says.
"Thanks," I say, with a little chuckle.
"So you're Brian's foster dad?" he asks.
"Yeah," I say.  "He's been placed with me for just about a week."
"Okay, is your wife at work?" Rick asks.
"No, um I don't have a wife, I'm single," I say.  "Brian being placed with me is kind of a long story."
"That's fine," Rick says.  "I understand.  You don't have to worry about Brian, when I was in college I volunteered at a boys group home so I know how to handle foster kids."

I'm not sure if I particularly like that comment.  I know Rick was trying to comfort me, but Brian isn't some type of animal that needs handling.  Normally I'm not so picky about other people's word choice but Brian brings out the protective side in me.

"Well I just wanted to ask that if you see anybody picking on Brian, you'll give me a call," I say, handing him my business card which I have written my cell phone number on the back of.  "That's what Brian is the most worried about, being picked on."
"Oh, well sure I'll call you if I see anything," Rick says, sounding a little surprised.  "But I don't think he needs to worry, the kids in this class are really quite well behaved."
"I'm glad to hear that," I say.

Just then Brian comes back into the room, with a book in his hand.  He shows it to his new teacher, after being prompted, and Rick compliments him on his choice of a mystery.  I glance at the clock and see that school will be starting soon so I decide it is a good idea to clear out.  The last thing I want to do is embarrass Brian on his first day.  There will be plenty of time for embarrassing him when he gets a little older.

"Okay, buddy I'm going to get going," I say.  "You have a good day, and I'll pick you up this afternoon."
"Okay," Brian says, nervously.  "I'll be good, right?"
"You'll be terrific," I say with a smile.
"Thanks," he says before throwing his arms around my waist.  I return his hug and give him a reassuring squeeze.
"Okay buddy," I say, after another glance at the clock tells me I really need to scoot.  "I'll see you before you know it," I say releasing him and myself from the hug.
"Okay, see ya," he says.

I shake hands with Mr. Leonard before quickly scooting out the door.  When I'm half way to the front door of the building the bell rings, but at least I made it out of the classroom so nobody will place me with Brian.  I get into my car, and just sit there for a minute.  This just doesn't feel right, being in the car by myself.  I've gotten so used to having Brian with me this last week being alone now seems foreign.

"Six and a half hours," I tell myself before starting the car.

Ten minutes later I get to my motel, when I walk into the lobby Laura is standing behind the front desk, typing away but looks up when she hears the door shut.

"Good morning, Kevin," she says.  "This is latest I've ever seen you get here.  Where's Brian?"
"School," I say.
"Oh that's right, I'm sorry," Laura says.  "Before my senile brain strikes again, a Mr. Quincy called.  He wants you to call him back."
"Thanks," I say before darting to my office and quickly dialing Mr. Quincy's number.

"Hello," I hear Mr. Quincy say after his secretary has put me through.
"Hi, Mr. Quincy, this is Kevin Wasdin, I'm returning your phone call," I say.
"Oh yes, thank you for getting back to me so quickly," Mr. Quincy says.  "I've been doing some thinking this weekend about what you told me.  I would be happy to represent you, it's not often you find somebody as willing as you are to help a virtual stranger."

I feel my hope swell when I hear what Mr. Quincy has to say.  I know having him represent me, will make it a lot more likely that I will actually be able to adopt Brian.  

"I still would like to meet Brian," Mr. Quincy says.  "Would it be okay if I came by your motel at about four thirty this afternoon?"
"That would be perfect," I say.  "And Mr. Quincy, I can't thank you enough."
"You're very welcome," he says.

After hanging up the phone I can't help but smile.  The first piece of the puzzle that is the adoption process has been put in place.  This morning has confirmed something to me that I had never really doubted.  The solo car ride showed how empty I feel when Brian isn't around.  I guess I never noticed it before he showed up because I was so used to it.  But my life without Brian close to me is boring.  Somehow Brian just being close to me makes my life more exciting.  I hope that getting Mr. Quincy to represent me means that the only time I will feel this emptiness is when Brian is at school.  I reluctantly dig into my work, counting the minutes until 3:30, when school lets out.

To Be Continued...

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Chapter 10 Coming Soon!