Date: Thu, 13 Jan 2022 02:26:37 +0000 (UTC)
From: rw6789@aol.com
Subject: "A Trial Of Strength" - Part 575  by Rob Williams

A TRIAL OF STRENGTH – PART 575 by Rob Williams

Chapter 575 – "COWBOY CHARLIE & THE BOYS VIC & NOAH

IN THIS CHAPTER:

Cowboy Charlie grows closer to his boys Vic and Noah. He realizes their
seeming shyness is just their way of living their own life, of singing
their own special song, even if nobody else sings along with them. The
beauty of a California beach makes them "a special kind of happy – like
great sex". Then they all witness really great sex as rugged Seth makes
love to his redheaded boy Will
______________________________________________________________________

<><> IN THE PREVIOUS CHAPTER <><>

To the surprise of everyone, including himself, cowboy Charlie had formed a
strong affection for the newest members of the tribe – the young office
assistants Noah and Vic.

Up to now the close buddies were thought of as shy, and somewhat reclusive,
preferring each other's company.  That was, until Randy's brother Charlie
visited the tribe, on a break from his star turn on the rodeo circuit.  He
quickly found out that, unlike the other boys, they had no man to call them
his boys.  And the only best buddy they had was each other.

Vic said, "Ever since we met some years ago, sir, we've just been totally
into each other – first as buddies, then as fuck buddies when we came to
the tribe.  Actually, we're lovers now."

Noah added, "We know we're not like the other boys, sir.  They're all real
handsome and buff and we're not.  We're so-so looking, with skinny bodies.
But that don't matter to us.  See, we have the same feelings, even think
each other's thoughts.  We laugh at the same things and we like the same TV
shows and music.

"It's like that Mama Cass song – you gotta make your own kind of music,
sing your own special song – even if nobody else sings along with you.
And that's kinda what we've been doing ever since we met."

The boys demonstrated by playing the song and singing along – smiles,
gestures, hip-bumps and all.  Watching these kids, so eager to please him,
Charlie's eyes brimmed with tears.

He took them on a two-day trip to the beach at Malibu where their emotional
attachment grew even stronger.  The boys hero-worshipped the rugged rodeo
cowboy and he experienced feelings he had never felt before.

The big difference between Charlie and the other men of the tribe was that
Charlie did not have sex with men.  But that didn't matter to the boys. As
the tribe's leader Bob explained to Charlie, "They're different from the
other boys in that they are sexually satisfied with each other and don't
need other outlets for sex.  It's their social life that's missing.

"Of course they have the support of the whole tribe, but they lack the
influence of their own man they could look up to.  And if that man is a
hot, hunky cowboy, boss Randy's brother – well, it don't get much better
than that.  It's great for their self-esteem too.  They'll feel they can
hold their heads up around the other boys as their equal, with you taking
care of them."

The boys were in heaven.  Noah told Charlie that the thrill of being with
him, amid the breathtaking beauty of the beach, made them "a special kind
of happy, sir – like great sex."

When they got home that evening their buddy Will invited them to dinner
with his dad, the swarthy construction boss Seth.  Will and his step-dad
were so proud of their deep love for each other that they persuaded Charlie
and the boys to watch them make love, during which Vic and Noah sucked the
cowboy's cock and made him cum.

When they left Seth's house Noah asked, "Are you sleeping at our place,
sir?"

Charlie smiled, "Is that what you want?'

"We were rather planning on it, sir?"

"Look kids, I'll level with ya.  Every time we watch other guys make love,
the man always ends up butt-fucking the boy.  And I'm sure that's what
y'all want from me.  But I ..."

"No, no, no," Vic insisted, with more spirit than Charlie had ever seen in
either boy.  "Sir, we've told you over and over, we don't expect that from
you. We accepted right from the start that you're not into sex with guys
and we know it ain't gonna happen.  Why do you think we made you cum just
now?  So you wouldn't feel you have to get your rocks off in our butts."

Realizing the strength of his outburst Vic blushed. "Sorry, sir."

"No, don't apologize, Vic.  I love that forcefulness in you.  It's what I
want in you kids, so no one will push you around.  It's me should say sorry
for not listening to you and believing what you said.  So sure, I'll spend
the night at your place.  You, er, said you were planning on it?"

"Oh, yes, sir," Noah smiled. "We have plans for you.  You said you want us
to be forceful so ... yeah we made plans.  Something you ain't done
before."

"Hmm," Charlie said.  "Sounds ominous.  Am I gonna like it?"

"Dunno, sir," Vic grinned impishly.  "Only one way to find out."

Charlie followed them across the garden and up the stairs to their
apartment, loving them more with each determined step they took.

========= CHAPTER 575 =========

<><> TWO YOUNG TOUGHS <><>

In the bedroom Charlie smiled, "So what are these plans y'all got, guys?"

"Say no more, sir, leave everything to us," Vic said in a newly
authoritative tone – or rather a valiant attempt at authority by the
scrawny young kid.

"OK, guys, I'm in your hands."

"At our mercy, you mean," said Noah, with what he hoped was a fierce look.
The boys worked on Charlie in tandem. Facing him, Vic unbuttoned the
cowboy's shirt, while Noah, behind him, pulled the shirt off over his
shoulders and tossed it aside.  They shoved him hard so he fell back on the
bed, shirtless.

His legs hung over the end of the bed and the boys backed up to him.  They
each pulled one of his legs up between their legs from behind and pulled at
the boot.  Tugging hard, the tight boots slid slowly down his legs and
finally came free so suddenly that the boys lurched forward and hit the
wall together, an image that undermined their attempt at dominance.  But
they quickly recovered, shook themselves and reset the fierce look to their
faces.

Charlie stifled a smile, sensing that he was supposed to look scared, and
frowned instead.  "What are you gonna do to me?"

"Did we say you could speak, sir?"  Noah imitated the standard rebuke he
had heard in domination scenes – except that in their case, calling him
sir somewhat diluted the tough image.  But Charlie obediently went limp as
the boys opened his jeans and clumsily tugged them off over his feet.
Naked now, he didn't resist as the boys slid him higher up the bed, grabbed
his wrists and pulled his arms taut up to the corner bedposts.

Charlie had an inkling of what was in store for him, but he determined not
to spoil the boys' fun.  From under the bed they pulled out several lengths
of cord and wound one each round his wrists, tying them tight to the
bedpost.  Charlie figured they had been rehearsing this earlier and now
groaned, "You're starting to scare me."

"You should be afraid," growled Vic.

"Be very afraid," echoed Noah.

They were getting better at the fierce thing, except that Noah then added,
"Don't worry, sir, we used escape knots that Randy taught us.  If the guy
panics you just tug at a loose end and it all comes free."

Definitely getting mixed messages here, Charlie thought, stifling another
grin.  But good for Randy.  "I'll try not to panic, sirs," he moaned, but
his attempt at contrition sounded as phony as their aggression.  Any more
false notes and this whole thing could unravel, he thought.

The boys were working on his ankles and when he instinctively pulled at his
bound wrists and ankles he was surprised to find he was tightly bound.
They were really good at this – thanks to Randy's teaching, he surmised
– though they should probably lose the soundtrack, he thought.

"That's it, man," Vic growled, "we like to see a tough guy struggle, watch
those muscles flex."

Charlie obliged, using his rodeo show-off talents to writhe helplessly,
flaunting his naked body straining in bondage.  Actually, he was starting
to think he could get off on this.

"You're at our mercy, cowboy," Noah sneered (kind of).  "Payback for when
Nate and Jamie staked us out on the sand at the beach."

Charlie was unclear why he should be the one to pay back for something Nate
had done to them – a guy he hardly knew.  "What y'all gonna do to me
guys?  You gonna whip me or somth'n?  You gonna hurt me?"

"Depends what you mean by hurt," Vic said, struggling to sound threatening.
"We're gonna explore you."

"What?"  And then he found out.

The boys stood at either side of the bed, leaned toward each other over the
staked-out cowboy, and kissed.  Then, smiling into each other's eyes, they
knelt on the floor, and turned their attention to their man.  They reached
down and touched his bound wrists, then ran their hands down his stretched
arms, lingering on his biceps.  When they reached his shoulders they
clamped their hands over the rock hard deltoid muscles, then moved down to
his armpits.

Again they smiled at each other, lowered their heads ... and planted their
faces in his damp pits, breathing in the smell and taste of man-sweat.
Charlie moaned as they licked his pits, a new sensation that was not quite
sex, but very sexy.

They changed position again, this time coming closer together to suck in
the beads of sweat from in the cavity below his Adam's apple.  From there
they ran their tongues up his neck, over his strong jaw ... and went to
work on his face.  They kissed his eyes, his forehead, temples and cheeks,
and then, inevitably, his lips.

"Mmm ..." Charlie moaned.  It was not sexual lust he felt, but the joy of
these sweet kids demonstrating their affection for him by kissing him and
each other at the same time.  When at last they pulled back, he groaned,
"Guys, that feels so good ..."

"Did we say you could talk?"  Vic repeated his earlier rebuke, but this
time with a cheeky grin, a sign that the boys shared his own amusement at
their clumsy attempts to look and sound tough. That charade was over, and
now the boys got to work in earnest.

They moved down to the cowboy's bare chest, one of his sexiest features,
they had agreed.  In turn they ran their tongue up the deep cleft between
the pecs, then pressed their cheeks on the solid mounds that Charlie
obligingly flexed for them.  They licked his nipples and bit them lightly,
causing him to groan and flinch, which excited them even more.

After tracing their tongues between the ridges of his eight-pack abs they
pulled back to admire their cowboy, bound naked, spreadeagled on the bed.
They dug their fingers into his muscled thighs before finally focusing on
the ultimate prize.

Even though Charlie was immune to the sexual looks he got from many men,
and would never have welcomed their touch, the loving attention he got from
Noah and Vic had stiffened his cock to semi-hardness.  They now buried
their faces in his wiry pubic hair and inhaled deeply.  Noah went lower and
licked his balls while Vic ran his tongue up the thick shaft and licked the
head.

This double attack stiffened Charlie's cock to rock-hardness.  He was moved
by the earnest determination on their faces as they worked his cock and
balls, alternating positions between them.  Feeling an urge to reciprocate
he tugged at his restraints and moaned, "Let me touch you, guys.  Untie
me."

"Not a chance, sir," Vic grinned, watching his straining muscles ripple.
"Bondage is the whole point.  You asked if we were going to hurt you.
Well, not physically.  We don't go in for whips and stuff.  But you are
gonna feel the pain of frustration.  Something else Randy taught us."

Noah took over.  "He showed us you don't need fists to make a guy
surrender. You can drive him to the edge in other ways."

Randy had a lot to answer for, Charlie thought, as the boys went back to
work on his cock.  Several times they brought him to the edge off orgasm
before backing off, driving him wild with the frustration of denied
release.  He tugged again at his bound wrists and pleaded, "Let me cum,
guys, you're driving me crazy.  Suck me off ... please ... my nuts are
bursting."

Sensing his approaching climax the boys now worked together on his cock,
licking the shaft then wrapping their lips round the head and kissing each
other.  The helpless cowboy stared down at the incredible sight of the two
boys making love to his cock and each other all in one.

"That's it, boys, don't stop, please ... I give up, I surrender ... make me
cum ... I'm gonna bust my load ... aaagh."  His cock shuddered and blasted
streams of thick semen in their mouths, until finally he went limp on the
bed.

The jubilant boys smiled, the cowboy's semen coating their lips, and they
leapt to their feet.  Standing one on each side of the bed they gazed down
at the erotic spectacle of the exhausted naked cowboy, his breath heaving,
his muscular body tied and spreadeagled.  They pulled out their rigid cocks
and it took only a couple of strokes before they spurted out their pent-up
juice, splashing down on his face and writhing body.

When their cocks were drained they laughed, dropped to their knees and
licked their own jizz off their man's chest and face.  Then they climbed on
the bed and lay close to Charlie, their heads on his chest.  "Thank you,
sir," Noah said.  "That was awesome.  Would you put your arms round us,
please sir."

"I'd love to," Charlie smiled, "except for one small detail.  I, er, I'm
still tied up."

"Oh ... oh, sorry, sir, we forgot.  Good job we used Randy's escape knot."
They quickly untied his ankles and wrists and he folded his arms over them.
"See this is the first time we did this, sir.  You think it worked?"

"Well, judging by the lake of jizz I shot, I'd say it worked just fine."

"Any suggestions, sir?"

"Hmm, let see.  I would cut the dialogue.  It was like one of those dodgy
movies where the soundtrack don't quite match the picture."

"Yeah," Vic admitted, "we don't have that tough guy act down, do we, sir?"

"Because it's not you, kids.  I mean, if Randy barked those lines it would
scare a guy shitless.  But y'all are not Randy.  You have other qualities
that I love about you.  Still, that was hot, kids.  Except ... there's also
such a thing as payback time."

Their eyes lit up.  "You mean, you gotta do the same to us, sir?"

"When you least expect it, kiddo.  But now you gotta sleep.  You're working
tomorrow.  Mustn't be late or your boss Brandon will blame me."

<><> TROUBLE BREWING <><>

Next morning when they all got up and showered Vic said, "It's a workday
for us, sir.  As we live over the office we're usually the ones to open it
up at 8:30 and start the coffee.  Do you have plans for today?"

"Oh, I'll get to know some of the other guys I haven't met properly yet.
Also, my right wrist is playing up a bit, real sore, and even a minor
sprain could be a killer in my business.  It's the hand I hold the reins
with and it takes a lot of punishment every day.

"You need Doctor Chad, sir," Noah said.  He's what you call an orth
... ortha ..."

"Orthopedic surgeon," Vic prompted.  "He's the best, sir, the head of
surgery at his hospital."

"Yeah, I've heard Bob talk about him."

Noah said, "We don't cook up here on work mornings, sir. So today we're
having breakfast downstairs with all the other guys.  It's a casual
come-when-you-like buffet."

When they made their entrance to the buffet in the garden, all heads
turned.  Charlie's affection for the boys was a new event in the tribe and
the other boys were dying to get the scoop from Noah and Vic.  It was quite
a rowdy meal, casual as Noah had said, with lots of table hopping.  Most of
the men there Charlie had met already and they greeted him warmly.

Except ... Over the years in the rodeo Charlie had become good at sensing
the mood of a room and his antennae picked up a certain tension in Randy
who seemed unusually grouchy.  He usually had breakfast in his house with
Bob, cooked by Will, but today he was grabbing a bite here before an early
start at the construction site.  Maybe just trouble at work, Charlie
thought.

He said to his boys, "Hey, kids, Randy's not usually this cranky, is he?  A
couple of days ago I was with him and Bob in their house and they were
working on figures or something and arguing a lot.  Does your grapevine
have any info on that?"

"Oh, we don't need a grapevine for that, sir," Vic said.  "Working in the
office we hear all the issues about the running of the company.  See, Bob
runs the financial side – budgets, financial planning and stuff, but
Randy's the action man, running the construction sites, only interested in
getting the job done on time."

"Yeah," Noah added, "and this often causes conflict between the two bosses.
But they love each other so much it always blows over.  Except this one's a
humdinger.  Has to do with the construction crew's overtime.  Randy will
pay his men whatever it takes to keep the work on schedule, but Bob's
concerned they're going over-budget.  Something like that."

"Hmm, just so long as you guys don't get caught in the crossfire."

"Oh we're used to that, sir.  Some time ago Randy came in ranting and
raving `cos the paychecks were late and he blamed us.  But our boss Brandon
wasn't having any of that and he gave Randy a tongue lashing – can you
imagine – confronting the big boss like that?"

Just then Brandon rolled out in his wheelchair and smiled, "Someone taking
my name in vain?"

"No actually," Charlie laughed.  "The boys here were just saying what a
protective boss you are – brave too.  I asked them about the tension in
the air and they mentioned stuff about overtime."

"Ah yes, the great overtime debate," Brandon shrugged.  "This one's gonna
take all Bob's skill and diplomacy.  He has asked to meet with Ryan and me
in his home office so we can finalize the figures.  He wants everything,
payroll savings and offsets, to be cut and dried before he meets with Randy
again.  He hopes to show Randy a budget that includes as many overtime
hours as possible.

"Er, in the meantime, boys, the preliminary figures mustn't be given to
anyone – anyone at all," Brandon said pointedly, and everyone knew who
he meant.  "They're only raw figures and could be misleading, only stir up
more trouble."  He smiled at Charlie.  "But you don't want to hear about
our troubles, sir, you're on vacation.  When are you going to drop in on
Pete and me, and our neighbors Hassan and Eddie?"

"Soon, I hope, Brandon.  I've heard so much good stuff about Pete and you.
It's nice to hear about a loving, no-drama couple after the other stuff
we've been talking about."

Vic looked at his watch. "Is that the time?  Come on Noah, we gotta open
the office. Thanks for last night sir.  Have a great day – see you after
work."

The boys gave him warm hugs then ran off, and Brandon smiled after them.
"They're such great kids, Charlie, and I'm so pleased you've taken them
under your wing.  You've transformed them from the shy, retiring boys they
were before they met you."

"I guess I should thank you, Brandon.  They told me how you protected them
from Randy's rage that time – you gave the big bad boss a
tongue-lashing, they said."

"Look, Charlie.  I'm not a brave man, but Bob made me the office manager
and I hired Vic and Noah.  Where work is concerned I'm their boss, they
answer to me, to Bob and no-one else.  And it's my responsibility to
protect my staff.  It's as simple as that."

Charlie chuckled.  "It don't sound that simple to me, dude.  But it's good
to know they've got your support."

"And they have yours too now, sir.  You're their hero."

<><> THE BALLOON GOES UP <><>

It was mid-morning when Brandon and Ryan took the latest budget printouts
over to Bob in his home office, leaving Vic and Noah basically to do
routine work and cover the phones.  They talked about the pending budget
issues, interspersed with sexier topics centered on Charlie and what they
did last night.

"Vic, do you think he really will do payback for what we did, and tie us
up?"

"Hard to say, dude.  He loves us and would never hurt us, but as he's not
really into sex with guys, so it's hard to tell what he's thinking.  With
Randy you know where you are `cos he always takes payback.  I mean, look at
how he treats Bob when Bob takes charge and throws orders around.  Randy
always ends up fucking him to show him who's boss."

The phone rang, and Noah dealt quickly with the routine call and hung up.
He frowned in thought.  "Vic, you said Charlie loves us, but do you think
it's for keeps?  Like, you just said it's hard to tell what he's thinking."

"Dude, it's not what he's thinking that counts, it's his feelings, and he's
made them real clear."

"It's just that he makes us feel happier than we've ever been.  And if all
that went up in smoke, I ... I don't think I could handle it, Vic."

"You won't have to, buddy.  Don't get paranoid about stuff like that.
Charlie said he wants us to be forceful so no one will push us around."

As it happened, that hope was about to be put to the test.  It was nearing
noon when they saw Will loading his truck with the packed lunches for the
crew.  They braced themselves for increased phone calls, as guys like Randy
often called during his lunch break.

But he didn't call ... he burst in.  Randy was always a rather scary
presence to the boys, especially when he was wearing his sweaty work gear
– greasy tank-top, muddy jeans and boots – as he was now.  And his
bad mood at breakfast had obviously worsened.

There was no greeting and a scowl instead of a smile, "Where's Brandon?" he
demanded.

Vic tensed.  "He's over with Bob and Ryan working on the budget, sir."

"Fuck, that's what I need to talk about.  But you'll do.  I want the
overtime figures – how much we've spent this month and how much is
left."

Vic tensed even more.  "I'm afraid we're not allowed to do that, sir."

Randy clenched his fists and his eyes blazed.  "Not allowed?" he
bellowed. "What the fuck's that supposed to mean?  I'm the guy who allows
you to do stuff.  I'm the boss."

Noah took a deep breath.  He was not as brave as Vic but he remembered what
Charlie had said and stood his ground.  "I'm afraid that's not true, sir.
Brandon is our boss and he gave us instructions that we couldn't give those
figures to anyone yet `cos they're not finished and ..."

"Who the fuck do you think you are, kid?"  I'm running a company here and I
need my guys to work overtime.  But I gotta know if I'll have enough
fucking cash to pay them.  So give me the goddam numbers or I'll ..."

The boys were really scared now and knew they were making Randy angrier
than he already was.  But they had their orders and didn't want to look
weak for Charlie.

Vic stood up and faced Randy. "Sir, if you do anything bad to us, we'll go
to Charlie for help."

"Charlie? What the fuck's he got to do with this?"

"He taught us to be strong if anyone tried to push us around.  He said, if
we had a problem we should go to him and he'd protect us."

Randy's rage was now mixed in with his old residual resentment of his
brother.  He shouted, "My fucking brother is not running this company, I
am.  And if he gets in my way with this bullshit he's been spilling you,
I'll roll right over him.  He tried that before and look how that turned
out – I shoved my dick up his fucking ass."

"Sir, we're Charlie's boys now.  He loves us and ..."

"Oh that's the crap he's been feeding you, eh?"  He shoved Vic who sat down
heavily in his chair.  The thought of his brother turning these boys
against him, as he wrongly supposed, stoked Randy's fury to a peak.  And as
always when anger consumed him he lashed out blindly – not with fists
this time but with irrational words meant to hurt.

Towering over the boys he growled, "OK, so let me tell you a few home
truths about your hero Charlie.  After I left Texas he didn't contact me
all these years, until Ben and me ran into him by chance at the rodeo.  My
brother's a gypsy, a wandering gypsy – here one day gone tomorrow.  He's
never gonna settle, and he has a girl in every town – probably feeds
them the same tired bullshit line he fed you ... `ooh, I love you, I'll
come back to you as often as I can'.

"Plus he's a big narcissist – a fucking rodeo star, parading around the
arena with no shirt on.  Oh, he prob'ly gets off on two kids like you
worshiping him, just like the rodeo crowd does, but as soon as the cheering
stops he's off.  You won't see him for dust.  You'll be out of sight out of
mind, and it'll be years till he pitches up again."

Mercifully Brandon came in followed by Ryan. They had heard the raised
voices as they crossed the lawn to the office and knew at once that the
balloon had gone up.  Brandon rolled his wheelchair up the ramp and into
the office and got between Randy and the boys.  He had dealt with Randy in
this mood before and he didn't scare him.

"Sir," he said defiantly, "I assume you came in to see me."

"Yeah, and instead of you I got these kids. You should fire their fucking
asses for insubordination – they point blank refused my orders."

"Sir, I've told you before, if you have a problem, speak to me.  I'm their
boss and they were simply carrying out my orders, which supersede yours."

"Fuck you boy ..."  He raised his hand but Brandon didn't flinch.  Even the
wildman had enough shreds of impulse control to stop him striking a boy in
a wheelchair.  Instead, he jabbed a finger at Brandon.  "OK, you can tell
your boss that I'm damn-well gonna give my crew all the overtime they need,
and if it busts his stupid fucking budget it can come out of your boss's
own pocket.  Got it?"

"Yes thank you, sir, and I'll be sure to pass on your message to Bob.  Now
if you're finished we have work to do loading the just-finalized overtime
budget into the computer."

Eyes blazing, fists clenched Randy spun round, stormed out of the office
and slammed the door behind him.

<><> PICKING UP THE PIECES <><>

Brandon instantly turned to the boys who sat stunned and trembling, tears
running down their ashen faces.  He leaned forward in his chair and held
their hands.  "Noah, Vic, I'm so sorry that happened.  I shouldn't have
left you alone.  Did he hurt you?"

He gave them time to recover and stammer an answer.  "He didn't hit us,
sir, but ..." Noah choked back his tears and took a deep breath.  "Sir, he
said that everything Charlie promised us was a lie.  We're not really his
boys `cos when he goes away he'll never come back ..."

He choked up again and Vic took over.  "He said Charlie has a girl in ever
town and feeds them the same line of bullshit he fed us.  He's just a gypsy
show-off, here today and gone tomorrow.  It was all a dream, he don't
really love us and ..."

"Boys, I've heard enough.  Yes it's all bullshit – Randy's bullshit.
You know how he gets when he's in a rage – he says things he don't mean
and that make no sense.  Everything he told you is wrong.  But you don't
need me to tell you that, you need Charlie.  He came into Bob's house just
as Ryan and I left, so I'll run across there and send him to you.  Go
upstairs to your apartment, dry your eyes and have a drink.  I promise you,
boys, everything is gonna turn out right. Ryan, can you hold the fort
here?"

"Of course, sir."  The boys, looking slightly less miserable, went upstairs
while Brandon wheeled back to the Boss House to see Bob and Charlie.  When
Bob saw him he knew there was trouble

"How bad is it, Brandon?"

"Pretty bad, sir ... the worst actually."

He glanced at Charlie who tensed.  "Is it Noah and Vic?"

"Yes, sir, they're involved.  They're not hurt, but Randy was in one of his
rages and upset them.  I sent them up to their apartment and told them to
have a drink."

"Brandon," Bob said, "before Charlie goes to them, tell us what happened."

"Near as I can make out, sirs, the boys were in the office alone when Randy
burst in and, my guess is, demanded they give him the preliminary overtime
figures.  Of course, they refused, following my orders, so Randy hit the
roof and, well, you know what that means."

"Did he hit them?" Charlie growled.

"No, no.  But when they told him you would protect them he ... he must've
been angry with you too, sir, `cos he told them a lot of lies – that you
were a here-today-gone-tomorrow roving cowboy with a girl in every town. He
said you made the same promises to all of them that you gave the boys, and
he wouldn't be back here for years."

Charlie leapt to his feet and clenched his fists.  "Fuck him.  Fuck him to
hell ... those sweet kids – I thought he was famous for protecting
kids."

"Charlie," Bob said, "when Randy gets mad he's a different guy.  He has
anger issues and ..."

"Anger issues?!  The man's a fucking savage ... those sweet vulnerable
kids.  OK, Bob, I've had it.  I'm outa' this place and I'm taking the boys
with me.  I can't leave them here, he's a danger to them next time he has
more fucking anger issues.  I gotta go to them now.  Sorry about this, Bob,
but I'm done."

He ran out of the room and Bob rolled his eyes at Brandon.  "Here we go
again, buddy."

"We do indeed, sir.  And this time there's real damage and it'll be harder
to pick up the pieces."

"Yes, Brandon, put we gotta start, as we always do.  The first crucial
thing is to keep Charlie away from Randy.  They're both hot tempered,
though Charlie's nothing near as volatile as Randy, and a physical
confrontation could be disastrous.  We're safe for a while as I'm sure
Charlie will stay with the boys, comforting them in their room.

"I want you to go back to the office and hold the fort from there.  Above
all let me know if you see signs of Charlie leaving with the boys.  I'm
pretty sure that was just an impulsive threat made in the heat of the
moment.  Taking the boys away would have all kinds of drawbacks.  I'll call
Will and have him take lunch up to them as soon as he gets back from the
work sites.

"Oh, and try to keep all this under wraps as long as you can.  God knows it
won't be long before it's all shaking the branches of the grapevine.  I
want to talk to the twins, I depend on them a lot when stuff like this
happens.

"I'm too angry to talk to Randy now, and you're still not his favorite
either.  But Ryan seems to have dodged the bullets successfully and Randy
has no beef with him, so ask him to call Randy at the site to give him the
final overtime figures.  You know how we made them much more favorable for
him, so that should placate him a bit.

"My guess, based on past experience – lots of it – is that when the
rage subsides the truth will dawn on Randy of the damage he's done.  Vic
and Noah have always been favorites of his and I would bet the remorse is
probably already setting in.

"Brandon, I want to thank you once again for being so calm and rational in
all this.  You're my rock, as always, and I'll be sure to tell your man
Pete that."

"Thank you, sir.  I'll go to the office and do as you say.  Er, are you OK,
sir?"

Bob sighed.  "Yeah, Brandon, I guess so.  I've been through this so many
times before.  The big question now, though, is how am I ever gonna forgive
Randy this time?  But that's my problem."

<><> THE BOYS' HERO <><>

When Charlie went into the boys' bedroom Vic and Noah were sitting together
on the edge of the bed. They looked up, wiped their cheeks and put on a
brave face, but it was obvious they had been crying.

Charlie smiled, "Come here kids.  He knelt on the floor before them and
wrapped his arms round them in a long tight hug.  "First off, boys, I love
you.  And now I want you to tell me everything Randy said to you."

They took turns and spoke haltingly.  Every ugly word was etched in their
minds and they repeated it all.  "What really hurt, sir, was when he said
you didn't really love us, that you made the same promises to girls in
every town and you had no intention of coming back for years."

"Yeah, well none of that stuff is true, kids.  I once told you I would
never lie to you, and I haven't – I meant every word.  But bits of what
Randy said are true.

"After Randy left Texas we didn't see each other again for years, not until
a few days ago at the rodeo.  But neither of us made the effort to contact
the other.  It's true I'm a gypsy, just like him, and it's true that, as a
cowboy on the rodeo circuit, I move from town to town.  And it's true I'm a
show-off in the ring – it's good for business.  You already knew all
that.

"It's also true that in every town I have my pick of the ladies, but what's
not true is that I make them the same promises I made to you, and then
renegue on them.  I have never told anyone I would come back to them every
break I get from the rodeo.  And I've never told anyone I loved them –
until I met you and asked you to be my boys.  I meant every word I said to
you, kids.

"The reason Randy took off on you like that had nothing really to do with
you. He was mad already about something else – that stuff about his
crew's overtime – and you know, as well as anyone, how he loses all
control when he flies into one of his rages, and either lashes out with his
fists or says stuff he don't mean.  You happened to be the nearest guys for
him to yell at.

"It's also true that his resentment of me goes back years.  We were always
competitive when we were boys, and some of that still lingers.  So when you
said I would protect you, his addled mind saw that as a direct challenge to
him.  Like I said, it was all irrational, and when he calms down he'll
regret it all.

Bob told me that Randy's like two different guys – the hard-working,
respected leader, always protective of boys, versus the crazy raging one
who totally loses his mind. Unfortunately, you got to see the crazy one.
It's a damn good job he didn't swing his fists `cos he'd have to deal with
me – and I've still got a score to settle with him.  I can't let him get
away with this."

The boys glanced at each other with a touch of panic.  Vic said, "Oh sir,
please don't fight with Charlie, he's your brother.  We don't want anyone
fighting over us.  We always knew what Randy was like – it's just that
this time when he talked about you ..."

"OK, I promise we won't fight.  But ... you believe what I've been saying
to you?"

"Yes sir," Noah said managing a watery smile.  "We realize it was Randy's
anger talking, and we believed you when you said you'd never lie to us."

"Great, I'm glad we settled that.  The question is, what do we do next?  My
first reaction was to get you out of harm's way and take you the hell away
from here."  He saw another look of alarm in their eyes.  "But now I'm not
so sure about that.  I would love to have you tag along on my travels, but
that would mean a lonely life for you, long days waiting for me in hotel
rooms.

"Plus it would mean taking you away from everything you have here – all
your buddies, a great job and a great boss, and wonderful guys like Bob
taking care of you.  So I think sticking to our original plan is the thing,
what do you say?"

"Yes please, sir," they said in unison.

And at that moment there was a knock on the door and Will's voice said,
"Room service."

He came in with a big tray and a big smile.  "Bob asked me to bring you
lunch, guys.  Er, you are sticking around, aren't you, sir?"

Charlie grinned, "Looks like it, Will.  You can't get rid of me that easy,
and I have a feeling you'll be seeing a lot more of me too."

"Makes me very happy to hear you say that, sir.  Bon appetit gentlemen."
And with a cheery wave and a satisfied smile, Will left them alone.

<><> WAKING FROM A BAD DREAM <><>

So the situation was calming down in Bob's office and in the boys' bedroom,
but the same could not be said of the construction site, where daylight was
starting to pierce through the storm clouds of Randy's rage.

Bob had got it right when he told Brandon, "My guess is that when his rage
subsides the truth will dawn on Randy of the damage he's done.  Vic and
Noah have always been favorites of his and I would bet that remorse is
probably already setting in."

As Randy tried, as usual, to drown his sorrows in physical work, an image
kept staring him in the face – Vic and Noah's tear-streaked faces
staring up at him in fear.  He blinked in disbelief at the memory.  He
loved those kids, and they were scared of him?  What had he said to ...?

And his words came back to haunt him.  He had lied to them, lied about his
own brother Charlie, a guy he had come to respect and admire in the last
few days.  He had shed his old resentment, hadn't he?  Hadn't he ...?  He
was confused, like a man waking from a bad dream where he was ranting like
a savage.

It was the ring of his cellphone that jarred Randy back to the stark light
of reality.  Mechanically he answered it and heard Ryan's voice – the
calm, matter-of-fact tone of a computer technician.

"Sorry to interrupt you at work, sir, but Bob asked me to give you this
data about overtime right away.  We've finished the budget analysis and we
were able to find considerable savings in other areas and factor them into
the overtime budget.  The total comes to almost as much as you said you
needed, sir.  It's why we didn't want you to go by the raw, provisional
figures we had in the office. I sent you an email with the exact final
totals – I think you'll be pleased, sir."

"Thanks, Ryan," Randy murmured absently and hung up.  It should have been
good news, but it sent his mind reeling.  What?  What?  So all the anger
and yelling was for nothing.  The boys had been right ... they were just
obeying orders.  And he had ... He tried to forget what he had done and
said, but he kept seeing the image of those pale, scared faces.

He had to go to them, Charlie too.  He had to make things right.  Then he
had to face Bob ... no, he couldn't even deal with that now.  Bob must be
thinking he's the most evil cretin he had ever met.  Randy yelled at his
foreman Darius.  "Take over here, dude.  I got something I gotta do."

<><> PAX FRATERNA <><>

Charlie, Noah and Vic were in the boys' apartment eating the lunch Will had
brought, in a soothing atmosphere of relief and contentment.  But suddenly
the calm was pierced by the screech of brakes outside and the slam of a
truck door.

"Randy," Charlie said grimly.  "Don't worry kids, I'll handle this."

"Please, sir, don't fight with him.  We would hate that."

He smiled reassuringly.  "I promised I wouldn't Noah, and I keep my
promises.  Eat your lunch."

He ran downstairs and confronted Randy just as he approached the office.
Brandon and Ryan watched anxiously from the office window as the brothers
glared at each other, fists clenched.  Brandon knew better than to
intervene.  This was between the two macho brothers.

Charlie snarled. "What the fuck, Randy?  They're just boys, two vulnerable
young kids – innocent bystanders in whatever crazy war you're waging
this time.  I thought you were supposed to be the great protector."

Randy put his hands behind his back and jutted his jaw.  "Go on, Charlie,
take a swing ... beat me to a pulp ... I deserve it."

"You have no idea how much I want to do that, bro, and I would, except I
promised Vic and Noah there would be no fighting.  They at least are
civilized, with more sense and decency than you could ever muster.  You're
a sicko, you know that?  Bob calls it anger issues – I call it
insanity."

"Charlie, I have no excuse.  I totally lost it and took out my rage on the
nearest target. Of course I love those kids, and what you're doing for
them.  Your protectiveness is straight out of my own playbook – when I'm
not behaving like a caveman.  Please, Charlie, I wanna make it right with
them. I wanna tell them it was all lies."

"I already told them that, and they believe me."

"Charlie, I love those kids and they think I'm a monster. I just wanna make
my peace with them."

Charlie frowned.  "On one condition, Randy.  That you go see our brother
Doc Steve – as a patient – and tell him all that's happened and why
you acted the way you did.  He specializes in anger management."

"OK, Charlie, you're right.  I'll go see him."

"Right.  But one false move and I'll take those kids out of here and you'll
see none of us again."

The boys stood up from the table when Charlie walked in – followed by
Randy.  "Kids, Randy has something he wants to say to you."

Randy stared at their nervous young faces, and stammered, "Guys ... I
... can I hug you?  Charlie, please, can I hug them?"

Charlie looked questioningly at the boys, who said in unison, "Yes please,
sir."

Randy stepped forward and folded his muscular arms round them tenderly as
tears ran down his cheeks.  "I'm sorry, kids.  I was out of my mind,
behaved like a monster.  But I love you guys, you know that, though it
don't seem like that now.  The stuff I said was bullshit.  Charlie loves
you, he's your man, and I'm thrilled about that.  Maybe one day you can
forgive me ..."

"We already have, sir," Vic said. "We know how ... how angry you get
sometimes, but Charlie made it all come right."  Noah added, "We'd just as
soon forget all this ever happened, sir."

Randy turned to Charlie who smiled, "I'm starting to realize that the boys
of this clan can teach the so-called adults a thing or two, bro."

"Yeah," Randy said, "the rest of us worked that out some time ago.  You're
the smart ones, kids, eh?"  He ruffled their hair.  "You send us back to
the cave where some of us belong sometimes, me especially."

He turned to Charlie.  "Dude, I make you all a promise.  When you're away
at the rodeo, I promise to take care of these boy, just as you would want.
Nobody will hurt them, especially me.  That's a promise, brother to
brother, and Bob will always be right there to make sure I keep that
promise."

"I appreciate you saying that, bro. And er, talking of Bob, don't you have
another stop to make?"

Randy sighed.  "Yeah, and this is a tough one.  You don't know how many
times I've faced him in circumstances like this, feeling like a mad dog
who's slipped the leash and let him down once more.  The mystery is why he
sticks with me and don't kick me out.  God knows I deserve it."

"No mystery, Randy – he loves you, simple as that.  Anyone who's seen
you together knows that.  Now go and make your peace and leave us to finish
our lunch."

Randy threw his arms round Charlie and tears again came to his eyes.  "I
love you, dude.  The best damn brother a guy could have."  Before the tears
flowed he strode to the door and left.

<><> LOVE & FINANCE <><>

In the Boss House Bob was working at his desk when Randy walked in.  Bob
was looking sexy as ever, barefoot in jeans and white V-neck T-shirt
stretched over his muscular torso, and Randy's cock swelled in his jeans,
to confuse him even more.

Randy had no idea what to say.  Whatever he said would be a hollow echo of
all the times before when he had faced the man he loved and stumbled an
apology.  So it was Bob who spoke first – with a tone of sadness.

"Not the boys, Randy.  Especially those kids starting to feel their way
through life.  It's one thing to lose your temper with one of the men and
start a brawl, but when you attack innocent boys, shatter their illusions
and leave them in tears.  Do you know how ugly that is?"

Randy shifted uneasily from foot to foot feeling like a misbehaving
schoolboy hauled before the headmaster going through a litany of his
offenses.  "And badmouthing your own brother to his boys – Charlie, the
brother you just re-discovered and bonded with.  Do you know he was about
to take the boys and leave the tribe?  And why?  Because you couldn't wait
a few hours for us to finish the overtime budget."

Randy mumbled, "If it's any consolation, dude, I made my peace with the
boys and Charlie, and promised to go see Doc Steve for some shrink
sessions."

"Well, that's something, I suppose – though I suspect that's more a
tribute to their generosity of spirit than your display of contrition.  So
now it just leaves us, Randy."

"Buddy, I know I fucked up real bad, but you're not gonna ...?"

"No, Randy I'm not gonna leave you – Jesus that sounds like a cracked
record, `I'm not gonna leave you...' over and over again."  He sighed.
"You'd probably like me to tie you up and smack you around, some form of
physical punishment to appease the caveman in you.  But we both know it
would do no good, you'd hardly feel it.

"I thought of not letting you touch me for a week or so, like that ancient
Greek dame Lysistrata who told her women to withhold sex from their men
until they stopped fighting. That would sure be frustrating and you'd
imagine yourself punished, but it would pain me as much as you. So then I
came up with another idea, the one you least expected."  He paused and
Randy stared into the deep brown eyes.  "Take your clothes off, Randy."

That he hadn't expected, but he hurried to obey, kicking off his boots and
pulling off his jeans.  For a moment he stood there in just his sweaty
tank, his long, thick cock swinging between his legs – knowing
instinctively how much that look turned Bob on.  Then he yanked off the
tank.

"On the bed," Bob ordered.  Randy lay down on his back.  Standing at the
foot off the bed Bob pulled off his T-shirt and stood there barefoot and
shirtless in beltless blue jeans hugging his long slim sexy waist – the
look he knew excited Randy most.

"OK, here it is – the thing you least expect and least deserve, but I
suspect it will bring home to you what you almost wrecked, and make you
feel even more guilty – as it should.  Randy, I'm gonna make love to
you. Not the drill-your-ass and rip-it-open brutal kind.  This is gonna be
gentle, passionate love – the kind you jeopardize every time you go off
the rails as you just did."

Randy didn't quite grasp Bob's reasoning but he felt nervous just the same
as he watched Bob drop his jeans and stand naked before him.  Randy's cock
rose to full mast as he stared up at his muscular, square-jaw-handsome
superman lover.

Another surprise was when Bob reached for a jar of lube, something they
never used together.  "Like I said Randy, slow, gentle and loving – lube
and all.  Now show me your ass."

Obediently Randy slid his heels back on the bed and offered his ass to Bob,
who was lubing his cock.  He wiped his hands and knelt on the bed between
Randy's bent legs.  He leaned forward, braced his hands on the bed and
Randy stared up into the deep brown eyes.

"I love you Randy ..."  Bob lowered his head and kissed the stubbled gypsy
full on the lips, his passion mounting as his warm breath flooded Randy's
mouth and their tongues pressed against each other.  Randy's cock was
already pulsing when he felt the exquisite sensation of his lover's cock
sliding into his ass.

Bob's face pulled off him and Randy's blue eyes gazed up at the chiseled
features of the man he loved. As he felt Bob's shaft ease deeper and deeper
inside him he groaned, "Fuck ... fuck ... you're so fucking beautiful man.
He reached up and ran his hands over Bob's face, his neck and his solid
pecs.

But as Bob pulled gently back, then entered him again at the start of the
gentlest love-making Randy frowned, "No, I don't deserve this, man.  Punish
me, man, pound my ass ... hurt me ..."

Bob frowned down at him.  "Hurt?  Yeah you understand hurt don't you,
buddy?. The brutal way you hurt those boys.  It's love you don't really
understand, do you – the kind of love those boys and Charlie have for
each other, that special love that you almost destroyed?  You don't
understand the love I have for you, so intense it lets me forgive you over
and over again for your rage-filled brutal acts.

"You feel this?  This is love that I'm giving you now, Randy, the love that
transcends all the pain and heartache men cause.  No, Randy, I'm not going
to hurt you – not in the way you mean.  I'm gonna show you the love you
don't deserve.  And the shame you feel will be more painful than any
ass-pounding ever could."

He bent down again, kissed Randy's eyes and licked the tears that were
already starting to flow down his cheeks.  "Look at me, buddy, the man you
love – and the man you humiliated.  When you shame yourself you insult
me ... me, who you swore to love and protect always. This is what you
almost lost, tossed away like a used rag in a fit of rage.  But here I am,
still making love to you, because I can't stop, even when I'm angry."

As he heard the sorrowful tones of Bob's voice, felt the tender caress of
his face and the gentle massage of his ass, Randy was overwhelmed with
shame and guilt, a pain worse than any physical beating could cause.  He
knew he didn't deserve a man like this, and yet he could never, ever live
without him.  As Bob continued to make love to him his pain grew worse, he
was sobbing in remorse.

Suddenly Bob pulled out, inched backward and lowered his face toward
Randy's cock, oozing precum.  "No," he moaned ... "Please, I ... aaahh!"
He felt Bob's tongue on his cock, then the lips that parted and the mouth
that slid all the way down to his pubic hair. He looked down at the
stunningly handsome face rising and falling on his cock.

That erotic image overwhelmed him with remorse and he howled like a wounded
animal as his cock erupted deep in his lover's throat."

Bob pulled away and Randy closed his eyes in a daze.  When he opened them
he saw the soft brown eyes smiling down at him as Bob kissed him again.  He
felt the shock of Bob's shaft re-entering him, and amazingly, the fuck
continued.

After his orgasm, the same barrage of sensations as before now intensified
and he moaned, "I just shot my load, dude, I can't take any more.  Please
... I love you, man, more than ever before.  Please forgive me and cum in
my ass.  I love you," he sobbed.  "Please ..."

Bob's muscles flexed, his eyes pierced Randy's as his cock swelled and
poured juice inside him – the balm that soothed the troubled soul of the
gypsy who had lost his way, and been rescued once again by the love of his
man.

<><> LOOSE ENDS <><>

Minutes later as they lay side by side, Bob propped himself on his elbow
and looked down at Randy.  He anticipated his next concern,

"Don't worry about the tribe's reaction, Randy. I'll make sure this brings
the sorry episode to a close for the rest of the guys too.  I'll tell the
twins what we've done here and they'll tell Eddie.  And in seconds everyone
will know that I have punished you and made love to you all in one. They'll
all take their cue from me as they always do. They'll know I've closed the
file on this ugly chapter, and that will be that."

"Thank you, buddy," Randy said humbly.

"As for Charlie, don't worry about him either.  He's as tough as you are
– it's bred in the bone with you guys.  His focus will be on the boys,
especially provisions for them after he leaves.

"Tomorrow he's gonna see Doc Chad about his aching wrist, to make sure
he'll be fit to hold the reins tight in the punishing rodeo.  And while
he's there he intends to talk to Chad and Adam's boy Nate, who Noah and Vic
regard as a big brother.  I know you've sworn to take care of the boys, but
I think Charlie will be happy to have Nate as a backup.

"And by the way, your brother Ben was talking to me earlier, hopping up and
down with excitement that his man Jason, is finally due back from
Australia.  He's dying to introduce the fireman to Charlie.  They're both
show-offs so it should be quite a match."

Randy smiled. "There you go again, taking charge and arranging everyone's
life for them."

"Somebody has to – someone who's not gonna lose his cool and start
swinging his fists."

"That ain't gonna happen again, dude, I promise you that."

Bob sighed.  "Randy, be careful what you promise.  How many times have we
closed out a chapter like this in our lives, with you saying `never again'?
And look how that turned out."

Randy flashed his roguish gypsy smile.  "Yeah, buddy, you have a point
there."

<><><><><><><><><><><><><><><>

TO BE CONTINUED in "A Trial Of Strength" – Chapter 576