Date: Sun, 21 Oct 2001 12:14:37 -0700 (PDT) From: Orrin Rush Subject: Lifeguard Series Disclaimer: The following is a work of fiction. If you are offended by graphic descriptions of homosexual acts, go somewhere else. Copyright c 2001 by Orrin C. Rush. All rights reserved. Neither this story nor any parts of it may be distributed electronically or in any other manner without the express, written consent of the author. This is a work of fiction, any resemblance of the characters to anyone living or dead is pure coincidence and not intended. They are all products of the author's imagination. -------------------------------------------------------------- THE LIFEGUARD Chapter 46 As soon as the Judge left the courtroom, all hell broke loose. A lot of people that I assumed were reporters scrambled out of the courtroom, others, in groups, seemed stunned by the verdict. I watched the attorney general. He was trying to calm his troops who were screaming and yelling. When he finally got their attention, I heard him say "Don't worry, we'll kill this on appeal." Now that it was safe to do so, our group got together outside on the courthouse steps. Eric came over and put his arm around my shoulders. "Looks like we won that round," he said. It grew to be quite a crowd, and got larger as Annie and Jack joined us, then Dr. Naimann came out. He was mobbed by the press, so we moved away. "We've gotta celebrate this," Eric said. "How about tomorrow night in New York?" There were nods all around, and Jack asked "Should I invite Dr. Naimann?" "Absolutely," I said. "Tell him to bring his wife." We weren't jubilant. We all knew that this was just Round One, and that the case would drag through the courts for years. It was a major victory, for sure, but the war wasn't over. We all went back to Lawrence for the short trip to New York. Eric got on the phone and when we got to the penthouse, all was ready for us, even fresh flowers everywhere. Laura was still with us, and her eyes almost popped out when she saw the apartment. We got settled. Jack wanted to make calls to the West Coast, Annie planned to go to Sarah's, and would take Laura with her. Ron and Jason were staying too. They felt it useless to burn all that gas going home then coming right back. Eric got on the phone in the den, calling Greg at Micron to invite all of them and their wives to our celebration. After dinner, Jack wanted to go back to the apartment to work, but none of the rest of us were ready to turn in. Eric hailed a cab and the four of us took off, Eric giving directions. "Remember the bar with the 'under the counter' action?" he whispered in my ear. I nodded and grinned, knowing that Ron and Jason hadn't been there. I think they were surprised that we'd take them to such a nondescript bar when we knew about more exciting ones. They didn't say anything, however. We sat at the bar and ordered. Before long I felt a hand on my crotch, rubbing, teasing. That was fine, but when whoever it was reached for my zipper, I put my hand down to stop them. Eric was watching me. "Just let 'em warm you up for later," he laughed. Jason was sitting next to me and I watched his face. First there was annoyance, then surprise. "Holy shit!" he said, "somebody's playing with my dick!" Ron, sitting on the other side of him was grinning from ear to ear while Eric and I burst out laughing. "Oh my God," Jason said, spacing his words out. "I do believe I'm getting a blowjob!" "Me too, not bad either," Ron commented dryly. There was a mirror behind the bar and it was impossible not to watch them. Eric and I did our best to stay serious, but we weren't too successful. They were obviously enjoying what was happening, and let it continue to conclusion. Jason stiffened and groaned. Ron was more active and twice as loud. "Shit, he's going for seconds!" Jason mumbled. "Save some for me," Ron warned him. I felt a hand on my crotch again. I was hard by now, and the stroking felt good. I saw Eric's grin in the mirror and knew whose hand it was. I returned the favor. The bar filled up and we watched several other guys go through the gyrations of orgasm. Soon there was just about standing room only behind us. "Let's give some of these other guys a chance," I suggested. Everyone agreed, and we decided we'd had enough and got a cab home. There was no mention of the fact that Eric and I hadn't participated until we got inside. "You guys'd better do something for those," Ron said, pointing at our tented pants. "Don't want to have to take you to the hospital with busted blood vessels," he chuckled. "Not a bad idea," Eric winked, and we excused ourselves. "That was both hot and funny," Eric commented when we were alone. "Makes me want some myself," he said, patting the protrusion in my pants. We undressed each other, something we hadn't done in weeks, Eric taking the lead. "Slow and easy tonight," he said, reading my mind. He slipped over and hit a button that opened the drapes, then came back and took me in his arms from behind. The lights of the city were in front of us, and Eric's hard dick was rubbing the cheeks of my butt. I ground into him while his hands played with my nipples. He turned me to face him and gave me a tender kiss. He moved his head back to look into my eyes. There was so much love there, then came back for more. This time it wasn't tender but passionate. When we came up for air, I could feel him dripping precum against me. I reached between us and collected as much as I could on my finger and brought it to my lips. Going back, I picked up the drips from my own dick and put my finger in his mouth. It was one of those moments that are not soon forgotten. We embraced on the bed, our dicks still rubbing. My hands roamed over his soft skin, feeling the hardness underneath. Every place I touched was hard muscle, making my tongue frantic in his mouth and my dick throb between us. I couldn't stand it much longer. I HAD to have him in my mouth. We separated and I climbed between his legs. I licked his shaven balls, tonguing them then taking them into my mouth, eliciting moans from above. Moving slowly, I moved up, inch by inch along the bottom of his throbbing cock. When I got to the top, I slowed down and concentrated on that spot behind the head with my tongue. This made him thrash and moan louder. "Time out!" he said after a few minutes of this. I looked up at him and grinned, took a few more swipes with my tongue, then slid up his body until our lips were locked again. He rolled me off him, our lips never parting. Reaching down he took my dick in his hand from the base and stroked upward. When he reached the top, he gathered my precum, and using it as a lubricant, gently rubbed the underside of the head. The combination of his lips, his tongue and his finger was too much and it was my turn to call for a "Time out." We resumed in a 69 position, taking our time, enjoying the taste and feeling of having dicks in our mouths. We got close a couple of times, but backed off. "I want you in me," I told him. He grinned and reached for the lube. He entered easily, and when he was all the way in, leaned forward to look into my eyes. "I love you," he said softly. On every stroke my prostate sent shock waves through my body. I felt him expand inside me. That did it. It was one of those orgasms that seemed to last forever. I was 'there" but then I wasn't. I felt Eric stiffen and pound me harder through the blinding impulses that were going through my brain, eventually flowing to a serene place of total calm. We held each other as the throbbing and pulsating subsided. - - - - - The celebration was catered by Chef Maurice. Who else? The Micron group was jubilant, Sarah was congratulatory, and I got a big surprise when Dr. Naimann arrived with a strikingly handsome man with him. He was introduced as Dr. Naimann's "partner". "I didn't think you'd mind," he told Eric and me with a wink. Neither of us had had a clue! Everyone congratulated Dr. Naimann on his win. He made it have a lot more meaning when he told us that the presiding judge had never had one of his cases overturned on appeal. During cocktails, I noticed Eric and Greg slip off to the den. They were gone only a few minutes, and Eric came out trying to suppress a grin. "Tell ya later," he told me under his breath. The case was about the only topic of conversation until, over dinner, Sarah asked "What are you going to do with all that money?" "Dave and I are giving our share away," Eric told her. "I'm going to be coming to you for some help, if we ever collect any of it." "Tina and I are planning the same thing," Annie added. "Will you help us too, Sarah?" "Of course, my dears," Sarah said. A case of Dom Perignon was consumed and for a finale Chef Maurice showed up to create a massive flaming dessert at the table. "We can't even get a reservation at his restaurant, and here he is, serving you himself," Jerry complained. "How do you do it?" - - - - - "Old Doc Naimann sure surprised me," Eric laughed. "My gaydar must be busted. I sure never got any vibes from him." "I didn't either," I admitted. "Hey, what's going on with Greg?" "He gave me an offer to take home to Spence." "Any good?" "Any good?" he chuckled. "I think it's fucking fabulous!" "Well, tell me, dammit," I laughed. "They've been playing with his operating system and I guess they really like it," he said, toying with me. "How does twenty percent of the company sound?" I whistled. "Not bad! Do you think Spence will go for it?" "No problem. He was hoping for ten percent and will jump at this." "How are they going to do it?" I asked. "They're going to issue more stock. It's already been approved by their board of directors, and as soon as Spence agrees, they'll go to the stockholders. That won't be a problem since the four of them still own around 70%. It'll cause some dilution, but they figure it's going to be well worth it." "When is all this going to happen?" I asked. "It'll take a couple of months," he answered. "You realize, of course, that it'll become public knowledge, don't you?" "What do you mean?" he asked. "You'll own over 5% of Micron, and that'll have to be reported in their annual report. That will definitely not go unnoticed," I chuckled. "Never thought about that," he said. - - - - - On the ride home, Annie was having fun playing with all the gadgets on the new plane. Jack, the workaholic, had his laptop computer out and was working. Laura was reading, and Eric and I settled on the sofa by the galley. There was enough room so everyone had privacy. "You've mentioned that you have plans for the New Hampshire money, if we ever get any," I told Eric. "Are you ready to let me in on it?" "Something happened a couple of months ago that really pissed me off. I'm going to do something about it if I have to use my own money," he said. "What?" "As you know, Jim's hiring a lot of lifeguards," he said. "All the old guys are running off to get 'married' like I did," he snickered. "In the last batch, one of the kids, fresh out of high school came up HIV positive." "That happens," I said. "But it doesn't have to," Eric shot back. "Turns out the kid didn't know any better. He's straight and never thought it could happen to him. "Somewhere along the line, the ball got dropped. All the education programs that let the kids know about the dangers of unsafe sex have just about disappeared." "I didn't know that," I said. "It's happening," he assured me. "The emphasis is on finding a cure and prevention has taken a back seat. I want to change that, get the word out, at least until they do find a cure." "How do you intend to do that?" I asked. "Posters and brochures help, but I think the personal touch would be the most effective. Have teams that visit schools, put on assemblies, and present it in a way palatable to even the Bible thumpers. Who's better to do this than lifeguards? They're glamorous, looked up to and would get the kids' attention. Hell, Baywatch is one of the most watched TV shows in the world!" "Hunky guys and beautiful girls would get their attention, that's for sure," I added. "In a lot of the country, working as a lifeguard is seasonal, only during the summer. This would provide off-season employment for a lot of them, and I think a lot would do it for nothing, but I want to pay them and all their expenses." "You've given this a lot of thought," I commented. "I think it'll work, but I'm going to need a lot of help," he said. "I plan to talk to Sarah about setting it up, and Mom's agreed to help on the presentations themselves. We'll need a lot more help than that to make it effective. What do YOU think about it?" "I think I married a pretty wonderful, caring guy," I told him, taking him into my arms. "You can count me in," I continued. "If we ever get any money out of New Hampshire, my share goes into the pot too. In the meantime, if you need any money to get started, just let me know. I think you have a wonderful idea and I'm behind you a hundred percent." "I was hoping you'd go along," he said. "Don't forget your animals, though," he kidded. "I'll take care of them too," I assured him. - - - - - Eric was pensive for a couple of minutes. "You've used the term 'married' quite a few times lately," he stated. "Every time you say that word, I get chills." "Is that good or bad?" I chuckled. "Good!" he answered. "I know that you were humoring me when I came up with the commitment ceremony idea, but I think you've changed your mind a little. Haven't you?" "At first, I thought it was silly, meaningless, then, to be honest, I got scared," I told him. When he looked at me questioningly, I continued. "It wasn't the commitment that bothered me, but the thought of making a public spectacle of myself, of us. As you very well know, I'm a very private person who has trouble expressing my feelings in private, much less in public." "You've gotten so much better at that since I've known you." "I hope so, I'm trying. When we walked across the lawn that night, I suddenly realized just how much you really mean to me, and I wanted to start yelling 'I love you' at the top of my lungs. I wanted to let the whole world know how I felt. What really blew me away was knowing that you felt the same way." "Have you ever doubted me?" he asked. "You know all about my insecurities," I told him. "I've never doubted you, but I've had doubts about myself, wondering if I could hang onto you." He was chuckling. "I hate to admit it, but I've had a lot of those same thoughts. Am I good enough for you, and can I hang onto YOU for the rest of my life like I want to?" "I hope that ceremony helped you as much as it did me. I feel safe and secure and I hope the honeymoon never ends." "So, do you feel really, truly, 'married' to me now?" he asked. "That's just a word," I said. "It has much deeper significance to me. I may use it facetiously, but I think you know what I mean." "That's why I get chills," he answered, holding me tight. - - - - - On our rides back and forth from Lawrence to the Federal Courthouse, Ron and I had discussed our "airline". With the growth we'd experienced in the last year, our planes were in the air constantly. The new one would provide a little relief but not completely solve the problem, particularly if Eric and I did a lot of traveling. Ron estimated that half of the flights were short range, around the West, and half were transcontinental. The smaller planes were ideal for the short hops and could land most anywhere. The big one was best suited to the longer hauls. He felt that to meet our needs and provide a little "cushion", another big jet was needed, and since we were still leasing one of the small jets, he wanted to replace it with a slightly larger one that had short runway capability. This sounded reasonable to me and I promised him an answer real soon. We also discussed management of flight operations. Currently we had a secretary handling scheduling and taking care of odd chores. She wasn't all that knowledgable and there had been some problems, Ron told me. If we had four planes, it would be even more necessary to get somebody who knew what they were doing. Ron didn't want the job. He wanted to fly, and so did Jason. He had a prospect, however, a retired Marine pilot who'd spent his last few years in flight operations. The guy was qualified, but Ron wasn't sure he'd get along with all the "fag" pilots we had, since Ron was pretty sure the guy was straight, in fact, pretty macho. I'd suggested that Ron call him in for another interview and give him Bob's "sensitivity evaluation", then, if he passed that, to confront him with the fact that most of us were gay and see if he had a problem with that. Ron agreed to give it a try. The subject of "stewards" came up too. Ron had been working with Metalco's Human Resources, and all they could come up with were guys who couldn't pass the "sensitivity test". Ron definitely didn't want us to ever be cooped up with a homophobe. "Try the airlines," I'd suggested. "Talk to Dan, he may be able to help you." In all the excitement of the trial, I hadn't mentioned any of this to Eric. All the planes were owned by Metalco, so it was really my decision, but I wanted him to be a part of it. I told him about what Ron and I had discussed, and that I'd made up my mind to order two new planes. We'd get another Gulfstream V, and replace the leased one. Eric eagerly agreed, wanting to know whether we would get another GV just like this one, or if we'd get a different interior. "I love this one," he said. "It's so warm and comfortable." "Why don't we use Brucie's design on the next one," I suggested. "I liked his color scheme too. Since he did such a good job, we can have Gary do the small one." Eric just grinned when I mentioned the "steward" problem, but didn't say anything. This settled, we wandered up to the cockpit to give Ron the go-ahead to order the two new planes. - - - - - Driving home, Eric was real antsy. "What's with you?" I asked. "What're you so excited about?" "I've got a surprise for you," he said. "The wedding present that I got for us should be there by now," he giggled. I'd totally forgotten about that. "Gimme a hint," I coaxed. "No way! It'll only be a few minutes." He led me straight to the den. "Sit," he commanded. "I'll be right back." I obediently sat and waited. A few minutes later he returned, his arm around the shoulder of a shorter man. "Remember this guy?" he asked. He looked familiar, but it took me a minute to place him. "Jacques! What are you doing here?" I remembered him from our Caribbean cruise, he had been our butler. "He's here to take care of us," Eric explained, grinning like crazy. My first thought was that Mary would eat him alive. My second thought was what the hell do we need with a butler? Oh hell, I guess I could learn how to be spoiled. I gave him a big smile and got up to shake his hand. "Welcome aboard," I told him. "I'm going to love it here," he said in his highly accented English. "It's going to be so wonderful to take care of both of you. Can I make you a cocktail?" "Sure, I think I could use one," I told him. Eric came over to sit next to me, still beaming. "You REALLY surprised me this time," I told him, laughing. "How's Mary taking it?" "Don't know for sure," he laughed, "I warned her." "I'm dying of curiosity," I told him, "I've gotta find out." I got up and wandered out to the kitchen. Mary was perched on a stool watching Rene work on dinner. She had a big smile on her face. "Welcome home," she said. "Have a good trip?" "Successful," I said. "How's everything around here?" She started chuckling. "You mean the 'addition', I assume?" "Him too," I answered, trying to gauge her reaction. "Eric told me he'd be coming," she said, still smiling. "When he showed up, I wouldn't let him stay until I called Bob to see if he'd been checked out. Eric had already taken care of that." "Well, what do you think of him?" "He's amazing. I've never seen anybody with so much energy. He cooks, he cleans, he answers the door, and does just about everything else that needs to be done before any of us even have a chance. He's already an enormous help, and he and I are getting along real well. He knows who's boss and isn't pushy." I was shaking my head. "I was wondering if we'd have to find something to keep him busy, but I guess I don't have to worry about that." "Not him," she said. "He never holds still." I went back into the den, still shaking my head, but grinning. "Everything OK?" Eric asked. I glanced around, Jacques was nowhere in sight. "I can't believe it," I told him, "Mary thinks he's Mr. Wonderful." "Somehow, I knew they'd hit it off," he said, then changing the subject, "I had a long talk with him before I hired him. He knows the groundrules. He's a horny little fucker, but he knows you and I are totally off limits. No games." "Don't you trust me?" I kidded. "It's HIM I don't trust," he laughed. I pulled Eric over to me and gave him a kiss. "Thank you, babe. You really surprised me, and I'm sure we'll both soon wonder how we survived without him." "Just remember, he's on MY payroll!" I grinned and kissed him again. - - - - - The hubub in the news over the verdict in New Hampshire didn't die down. It was a major topic every night on the news, getting analyzed from every possible angle. There were rumors flying that a recall movement was underway in New Hampshire, targeting everyone involved from the governor on down. There was also a lot of speculation about what the state would do when they had to pay up. All the "experts" had predicted that the verdict wouldn't be overturned on appeal, and that they couldn't get away with bankruptcy, so a day of reckoning loomed. About the best the state could hope for was that the damages would be reduced. There was also the earlier default judgment against the county to be dealt with. Would that also be appealed? Both Eric and I were bombarded with requests for statements and interviews. Our secretaries had stock responses. "No comment," we weren't available, and referred the callers to Dr. Naimann's office. - - - - - Eric's first priority was go get together with Spence on Micron's offer. I wasn't involved, this was their baby. When the two of them came into my office all smiles, I knew they were going to accept. "Congratulations!" I told them, not waiting for them to tell me. "Pretty neat, huh?" Spence said, grinning. "This little fart has been busy," Eric said, putting his arm around Spence's shoulder. "He's been working with some tax men and has come up with a way for us to do this virtually tax free, at least until we decide to sell some of the stock." "I'm going to get a second opinion before we sign anything," Spence piped up. "There's just too much involved." "Good thinking," I commented. "Spence's going to call it the 'SPY System'," Eric told me. "Any particular reason for that name?" I asked. "My initials," Spence grinned. "My middle name doesn't start with 'P', but I like it. It's catchy!" We sat and talked about how the transaction would be handled. Since he'd never been there, Spence wanted to go to New York to finalize the deal, taking Jimmy too, of course. With a wink at me, Eric suggested that we all go, "just to keep you two kids out of trouble," he said. "How's Jimmy?" I asked. "He's awesome," Spence said. "I really love him. It took me a while to get used to that big dick he's got, but now I love it!" he reported unashamedly. "Size queen!" Eric teased. "You betcha," he giggled. "Jimmy's going back to school this fall too." "Another lifeguard bites the dust," Eric commented dryly. "Hey, when are you guys going to have another pool party?" Spence asked. "We've been kind of busy," I chuckled. "I know, I watch the news," Spence said. "How about Sunday?" Eric asked, looking at me. I nodded. "You want Jimmy to let the guys at the beach know about it?" Spence asked. "That'd be great," Eric said, "save me a bunch of phone calls." "Don't forget Hal," I reminded Eric. - - - - - When we got home, shorts, shirts and sandals were on the bed ready for us to change into. "Did you tell Jacques?" I asked Eric. "Nope." "Then he must have one hell of a crystal ball!" I said. "It's not going to be hard to get used to this." Eric just grinned. Our drinks were served the minute we sat down, and we relaxed while waiting for Eric's parents to arrive for dinner. "What sort of mischief have you two been up to lately?" Karl chuckled. "Eric pulled off another deal," I ventured. "Had I better sit down for this?" his mother asked, laughing. "Maybe you'd better LIE down," I chuckled. She looked at me to see if I was serious. "OK, I'm ready," she said. "How much this time?" "How's three billion and change sound?" Eric teased. "Don't spend it all in one place," she said, rolling her eyes skyward. "It's true, Mom," he said, then told them the story of how it had happened. I sat and listened, beaming with pride in My Man. His parents just shook their heads. - - - - - The pool party got off to its usual start. The tables were groaning with food and the horseplay was as noisy as ever. Hal was late, so I waited on a lounge chair for him. When Jacques led him out, I saw him scanning all the bodies in the pool and scattered around it, the sight I'd been admiring myself. When he reached me, he turned his back to the pool. After a handshake, he almost whispered "It's him!" "Who?" I asked. "The lifeguard I've been drooling over for the past month." I just grinned. Eric came over. "Come on, Hal, come meet the gang," he said, dragging him toward the pool. Hal dropped his wallet and keys on the table and followed. Eric introduced him around, then they both jumped in. I decided it was time to join them. I got splashed, dunked, groped and goosed by the playful bunch, loving every minute of it. Spence and Jimmy were particularly persistent, hanging onto me and rubbing their dicks on my thighs until they both were hard. Jimmy really was hung like a horse! Eric joined the fray, groping Spence and making him turn me loose. "What's this?" Eric said, holding onto Spence's boner. "Same thing you've got," Spence said, grabbing Eric. "Wow," he whistled, then in a quieter tone, "I thought Jimmy was big!" They weren't the only ones getting "friendly", the whole group seemed to be in a rather playful mode. Eric swam over to me and put his arm around my waist in the chest deep water. His hand strayed and found my hard dick. "You too?" he giggled. "Yeah, me too," I laughed. "It's hard not to with all the attention I've been getting." "Do you think things are getting out of control?" he asked seriously. "Nah," I said. "Everybody's just having a little fun," and reached over and grabbed his hard dick. "We're not setting a very good example," he giggled, as we continued stroking each other. I was getting real close when he finally let go. I think he was too. I was tempted to push him over, then did exactly that. It was pretty obvious what was happening and we had an audience. A cheer went up and Eric glared at me. "I thought that was against the rules," someone commented. "Can't I tickle him?" I asked as innocently as possible. Eric decided on a coverup. "I'm real ticklish, guys," he said with a big smile. "Yeah, right!" "No, I really am," he protested, "and Dave knows all the places that really get me going." "Like your dick?" someone asked. "What's that white stuff floating around?" another giggled. "OK guys, I'm sorry," I said. "I broke the rules." "And you're gonna pay," somebody said, and the next thing I knew I was being manhandled with about four hands on my still stiff dick. It was rough, but I couldn't help myself and shot a big load in my suit. Eric stood there grinning. That seemed to defuse the situation, and the play became a lot less serious. "I'll get you for this," Eric promised. I grinned at him, hoping he would. - - - - - Jacques was spoiling us rotten. After our workouts, he gave us massages, ignoring the boners that always sprung up and got one himself in the process. He never touched either of us, though. When he suggested giving us facials, I was surprised, and Eric swore he hadn't dropped any hints. Every morning while we were in the shower, he set out our clothes for the day, always exactly the appropriate things for what we had planned. I thought he was psychic until I learned that he called our secretaries to find out what we had scheduled. Somehow, he had the ability to anticipate our "wants", supplying them almost before we thought of them. All of our "needs" were taken care of automatically. His talents seemed endless. The man could do anything. Neither of us had been so pampered in our lives. Not only was it easy to become accustomed to, we soon relaxed and just enjoyed everything he did for us. His assumption of responsibility for all the small details of our lives came about gradually. Small tasks that we'd previously done ourselves were gradually taken over and we forgot about them easily. In a very short time, Jacques became indispensable and an integral part of our lives. - - - - - Eric and Spence had worked out all the details on the transfer of rights to Spence's operating system to Micron. All that remained was for them to go to New York to sign the agreements. We planned to leave on Friday so Spence and Jimmy could spend the weekend seeing the sights. The signing and a celebration planned by Micron would happen on Monday. I wasn't the least bit surprised when Eric told me that Jacques would be our "steward" on the flight. I knew that Ron was still having trouble finding people for this position. There was an air of excitement when we met at the hangar. Spence was trying to act blase about the whole thing but wasn't succeeding very well. Eric didn't even try to hide his feelings. It isn't every day that one puts together a $15 billion dollar deal, and they deserved to be on cloud nine. We got on board, Jacques welcoming us in a new uniform. Since this was their first time on the new plane, both boys had to see everything and find out how all the gadgets worked. Spence was a typical "kid" again. For takeoff, Eric and I decided to use seats instead of our usual "perch" on the couch. The kids grabbed the couch, smiling, giggling and hugging each other. Once in the air, Jacques served drinks, booze for Eric and me, sodas for the boys. "What do YOU guys do on this couch when you're alone?" Jimmy snickered. "None of your damned business," Eric laughed. "I can imagine!" Spence piped up. "If you behave yourselves, maybe someday we'll let you guys join the 'Five Mile High Club'," Eric offered." "That'd be awesome!" Jimmy said. "We'll be good," he promised. "Hell Spence, you can afford one of these yourself," I told him. "It'd be nice, but I'm not ready for that. Too much responsibility. We'll just use yours," he said. "I'm really looking forward to working with Micron," Spence continued, getting serious. "I really like Greg, and I promised him that I'd help them all I can. It's going to be fun learning how a REAL programmer works." "Wise ass," Eric teased him. "How do you guys REALLY feel about this?" I asked them. "It's a major milestone for both of you." "Seriously?" Spence quizzed me. "It's more of a feeling of accomplishment, like I did something really worthwhile. I owe a lot to Eric, though. Without him, none of this would be happening. I tried to fuck him, both literally and figuratively, but he didn't give up, and made me come to my senses. I'd probably have ended up with a few million for the platform and the system wouldn't ever have happened. "I owe you a lot, big brother," he said to Eric. "You've given ME a lot too - financially and your friendship," Eric answered. "Let's not get mushy, guys," Jimmy warned. I didn't have to ask Eric how he felt. I knew. - - - - - "Hey, are you guys art freaks or what?" Spence asked as he surveyed the penthouse living room. "Dave is, and I'm learning," Eric told him. "Wish I knew more about it. This stuff looks fabulous." "There's more to life than dollars and computers," Eric told him. "Give a little thought to taking some other courses to broaden your horizons." The boys got dressed up to go out to dinner. Neither one looked very comfortable in a suit and Eric had to tie their ties for them. We went to Chef Maurice's and the boys were served wine even though they were underage. Maurice insisted. After dinner, we had our driver take us through the Times Square area and around the village. They couldn't wait to come back and explore both places on their own. Saturday and Sunday they went sightseeing. We gave them the limo and the driver was their guide. Saturday night we took them to the Rainbow Room at Rockefeller Center and Sunday night to Windows on the World atop the World Trade Center. Touristy, but the boys enjoyed it immensely. Eric and I had fun too, catching their enthusiasm for everything. Monday was the big day. Eric and Spence would formally join the ranks of the world's super rich. We were to meet in Jerry's office at 2:00. To channel their restless energy, Eric took the boys shopping that morning, coming home loaded down with packages. If my "boys" had been excited, they couldn't compare to the Micron four. Jerry and Greg were always hyper, but Mike and Ted, the usually quiet ones, were just as animated. After an enthusiastic welcome, we all went to a large conference room where all of Micron's top executives were assembled. Jerry introduced Eric and Spence to the group while Jimmy and I melted into the crowd. They sat at the conference table to sign the agreements, passing them back and forth until everybody had signed everything. Then the speeches. Spence blushed at all the praise heaped on him. Eric was called the "catalyst" who brought Spence and Micron together. From there, it became a pep talk for Micron people. The whole thing didn't take long. Afterward we were all invited on a tour of the Micron building. Eric made excuses for us, and we agreed to meet the boys at home. "It's really Spence's day," Eric commented on the elevator down. "I'm just a bystander." I just smiled at him. "We'll talk about that later," I said. "Let's find a quiet bar and talk," he suggested. "There's one around the corner from the apartment that's nice." The bar was dark, quiet, with only a few customers sitting at the bar. We found a booth where we could talk undisturbed. "Feel like celebrating?" I asked him. "Not really, its not that big a deal," he said. "Don't underestimate yourself and the part that you played in all this. Without you, it never would have happened." "Another case of being in the right place at the right time and getting lucky," he said. "Making money is getting meaningless. I already have more than I can spend in my lifetime, and I don't have even a fraction of what you do. How do you deal with that?" "After a while, the money itself becomes meaningless," I told him. "It's the scorecard, telling you if you're doing something right. For me it's all an adventure." This lead to a philosophical discussion that lasted the rest of the afternoon. Eric's mood changed and we were both laughing when we found our way back to the penthouse, a little bit tipsy, too. There was a gizmo in the oversize shower that turned it into a steam room. We decided to give it a try and maybe sober up a little in the process. It heated up fast as we sat on the little bench. So did we. I watched as Eric's dick rose to full staff. Mine followed. We stroked each other gently, kissing deeply. "How do you want it?" he asked when we broke for air. "Hand or mouth?" he giggled. "Like this," I said, standing and straddling him, pointing his dick at my hole. "No lube?" he asked. "Don't need any," I said, lowering myself onto him. - - - - - The boys were dressed and waiting when we emerged. "Can we have one drink before we go?" Spence asked. "Is my good little Mormon boy turning into a lush?" Eric kidded him. Jacques served us a drink and Spence told us about their afternoon. He was "like totally" awed at how much effort was being put into developing his concepts. Hundreds of people were working on it, and he was excited that he'd been able to talk to a lot of them. Many of them were moving to the west coast to continue their work where Spence would be available if needed. Dinner with the fearsome foursome started out as a self- congratulatory love feast. From what I was able to gather, they expected the new software to literally take over the market when it was released. The conversation became more technical, leaving Eric and me out of it. Greg, however, talked to us in language that we could understand. I was surprised to see that Jimmy was fully involved in the "other" discussion, sounding very knowledgable when he commented. "We can't keep quiet about an acquisition this big," Greg told us. "We have to give our stockholders some clue about why their stock is being diluted." "Will our names come out?" Eric wanted to know. "Not at first," Greg said, "we're just buying 'SPY Systems', but there'll be a lot of digging around, and somebody's going to find out who's behind it eventually." "I guess that's inevitable," Eric said, "but I want Spence to remain anonymous as long as possible." "We'll do our best," Greg promised. - - - - - There had been innumerable toasts, and the boys were "feeling" all the champagne they'd drunk. When we got home, they headed straight for bed. The answering machine in the den was blinking. Eric checked the message. It was Hal, asking us to call him as soon as possible, leaving several numbers where he could be reached. Eric called him, and all of a sudden turned very serious, just listening. "We'll meet you there in the morning," he said and hung up. "What happened?" I asked. "The chopper carrying ore from the mine was shot down," he said. "The pilot and another guy from the mine were killed in the crash." - - - - - To be continued. AUTHOR'S NOTE: I appreciate hearing your comments on the story, my writing, and anything you would like to offer - good or not so good. Send me a message at orrinrush@yahoo.com