Two Sides of the Same Coin (45 page)

“I reckon we’ll think of lots of things like that, Jeffy. You might wanna hold off a week or two, and then we can come back to the mall rather than makin’ three or four trips.”

“You’re right as usual, buddy.” We spent the rest of the dinner planning for Halloween and for the dudes. Sandy had looked at the website and had some good suggestions for improvements. I wanted to stop by the co-op tomorrow and get some digital copies of the pictures for the exhibit to put on the website. Things were moving right along.

After dinner, we said good night to Sandy. She was staying in town with Maria. Mike and I began the long drive back to the ranch. We held hands as I drove. It sure was nice to have my truck back. A good part of the drive to the valley goes right along the Columbia River. It’s huge. The country out here is pretty desolate. Along the river most of it is desert, but it has its own beauty. It looked all silvery and seemed to glow with a cold light as we drove along the road. One thing I really appreciate about Mike is he’s in love with this land as much as I am. I prefer the area around home, which is partially forested, to the desert, but I can’t deny that the desert has an austere and stark beauty.

We got to Pateros and reached the turnoff that headed up into the valley and eventually over the North Cascades. Once we got to Twisp, we were in prime deer country. It’s a migration route, and there are signs posted all over about how many wrecks deer cause every year. We started counting the deer. By the time we got to Winslett, it was over sixty. There were even more, west of Winslett. By the time we pulled into the ranch, we had counted one-hundred-twelve; pretty amazing. We were still holding hands as we walked toward the house.

I noticed something in the sky, and told Mike, “Buddy, let’s go around to the back.” He looked at me funny, but followed without comment. As we got to the back porch, we had a clear view north. The trees didn’t start until a fair ways from the house, so we had an unobstructed view of the sky. We sat down on the edge of the porch, and I put my arm around Mike. It was cold, I was sure below freezing, but we were warmly dressed. To the north, in the sky was a shimmering curtain of red, orange, and yellow. It moved as if touched by an unearthly wind. It was crisp and cold and the air seemed to vibrate and hum. Other than that, the silence was all consuming.

“Look, buddy, isn’t that somethin’?”

“Is that the northern lights, Jeffy?”

“It sure is. Have you ever seen ’em before?”

“No, I haven’t. They sure are incredible aren’t they?”

“They are. I’ve never seen ’em this early in the year before though.” We were whispering as if our voices would affect the amazing light show in the sky. The silence around us seemed to be almost in reverence of the dancing curtains of light.

“You know, life with you just keeps gettin’ better and better.”

“Thanks, buddy.” We were huddled together. I could feel the cold in my butt from the cold wood of the porch. My legs were gettin’ cold too. Even though I had long handles on, when it’s cold, if you’re not moving, you get cold. The cold, however, wasn’t enough to make me want to go in and stop watching the aurora.

I leaned over to Mike. With my hand, I gently cupped his chin and pulled him into me. I could taste garlic from the restaurant, over the wintergreen and tobacco of dip. We gently touched tongues and shared. It just seemed like the amazing display in the sky called for a kiss, a tender caring kiss, which spoke volumes without words. We continued to look up at the lights. It must’ve been about an hour, and then they started to fade. We still sat there, just looking at the moonlit fields and woods and the millions of stars in the sky.

“Jeffy, you know I ain’t never loved nobody else like I love you?” Mike leaned into me. I squeezed him with the arm around his shoulders.

“I know that, Mike. It’s the same for me. It’s almost like we’ve known each other for years.”

“It does feel that way, buddy. Let’s get inside before we freeze our asses off.”

“One second.” Mike pulled me into him, and we kissed again. “Okay. Now let’s head in. I just wanted to kiss you once more under the stars.”

“I’m glad you did. It was really nice. Now inside. We done used up this day.” Within fifteen minutes we were in bed, asleep, bare assed in each other’s arms.

Chapter Eighteen

W
E
HADN
’
T
set the alarm, and I was shocked when I woke up and looked at the clock on the bedside table, and noticed it was almost eight. I hadn’t slept that late in a long time. Mike was curled up with his head pushing against me. My arm was thrown across his shoulder. He was snoring, not loud, but a gentle snore. I just looked at him. His blond hair was all tussled and messed up. His red beard seemed especially bright against the dark of the hair on my chest. He had a contented little smile on his face. I was content just looking at him. It always struck me anew each time I studied him just how good-looking he is. He always got me going, and this morning was no exception. I could feel a rush of blood and a stiffening below the covers. I looked up at the skylights. It looked like another cloudy day. If it was later in the year, I’d think from the dark clouds out there we were in for snow. Mike stirred next to me. He stretched lazily and moved over and cuddled against me.

“Mornin’, buddy, you sleep well?”

“Like a rock, how about you?”

“Really good; I’m surprised we’re still in bed. I ain’t slept this late in a long time.”

He ran his hand over my chest and belly and down to my cock. He chuckled as he grabbed it.

“Rock is right, Jeffy. Let’s stay in bed a little longer.” He moved up, and we kissed. It started out gently, but we began dueling tongues more aggressively. He was chewing lightly on my bottom lip. His hand moved down to my balls, and he began fondling and massaging them. It felt great.

“Jeff? You know how yesterday you said I could fuck you if I wanted?”

“Lemme guess, you want?”

“I do.” He was looking at me with a mixture of tenderness and longing.

“Let’s go for it then; only one thing, I only been fucked once before, so go slow, okay?”

“Maybe I better not then. I never fucked anyone at all.”

“No. I want to experience you in me. To me fuckin’ is a commitment kinda thing. And I’m committed to you. How about I sit on you?”

“Okay, when you’re ready, just tell me what to do.” He began licking my nipple. Normally I don’t really like that, but it was nice. He moved over me, his tongue in the treasure trail of fur down my belly. He took his time, slowly, teasingly, until he reached my cock. He continued fondling my balls as he licked my shaft. After a few minutes of that, he started licking my balls.

“Yeah, buddy, that feels great. Keep goin’. Oh yeah!”

He then moved down with his tongue to my ass. It felt great. I was the one squirming around and moaning now. I could feel myself relaxing, and he continued to lick and shove with his tongue. He came up for air and asked me to throw him the lube, which I did. I felt the cold of the lube against my hole as he rubbed it with his finger. He then slid it into me. I’d finger fucked him enough that he knew to go right for the gland. He gently rubbed it as he worked his finger in and out. I was still moving around and moaning. I relaxed more, and he worked in another finger. It felt really good. I began to feel stretched when he put in yet a third finger. He gently worked them in and out and around.

“Jeffy, I think you might be ready. What do you think?”

“Get the rubber on and get lubed up and lie on your back.” He did so, and I straddled him. I put some lube on my ass and took hold of his cock. When I did, he shuddered. I positioned it and pushed against him. I pushed a little too hard because I felt a sharp stab of pain. I just held there, waiting for the area to relax again.

“Jeff, we don’t have to do this.”

“Tell me how it feels, buddy.”

“It’s amazin’; you’re all warm and tight. And I like lookin’ at you.”

He had a good view. I’d pulled up so I was squatting on him. My knees were wide apart, and my cock was sticking up and out. He reached up and rubbed my chest.

“Okay, cowboy, I’m gonna ride you.” The pain had subsided, and I began to gently rock.

“Oh Christ! Jeffy, that feels so good. I can’t believe it. I’m inside you!”

“Does feel good, don’t it buddy? Just concentrate on how good. You like fuckin’ me?”

“Hell yes. I love this. It feels so good.”

“Yeah, buddy, your Jeffy’s fuckin’ himself with your big dick. You’re makin’ him feel real good. You’re one hot fucker, buddy.” He was just moaning. I continued rocking back and forth and moving gently up and down. To my surprise, I was enjoying it. I normally didn’t even like my ass played with, but with Mike, it was real nice. We looked at each other as I rode him, both of us taking our time, enjoying pleasuring each other.

“Jeffy, I love the way your big cock moves around when you ride me. You are huge!”

“That big dick is there for you, buddy, for your pleasure exclusively.” He looked around and spotted the lube. He reached over and got it, and poured some on my cock. He began stroking with one hand while he tugged on my balls with the other hand. It felt so good. I wasn’t gonna last much longer.

“I’m close, buddy.”

“Go for it! Cum all over me.” I looked at him smiling up at me; that was all it took. I shouted out loud as the first shot hit the headboard. The second ended up all over Mike’s face, the rest on his chest. I pulled off and then took the condom off his cock. He looked real hot, hands behind his head and those patches of red hair under his arms. I went down on him and took his cock in my mouth. He began moaning and whimpering as well as squirming around. His balls were all pulled up tight, so I figured he was about ready. After about a minute, he began breathing hard, and my mouth filled with the salty, bittersweet taste of him. I kept it in my mouth as he spasmed. When he was drained, I moved up and kissed him, putting some of his own juice in his mouth. We both swallowed.

“Thanks, Jeff. I’m glad we tried that. I’ll be honest, it was great, but I think I like getting fucked better.”

“You’re welcome, and that’s fine with me; I’ll fuck you any time you want it.”

“Last night was pretty special, wasn’t it? I ain’t never saw the northern lights before.”

“I’m glad we saw ’em together, buddy.”

“Let’s get some coffee, Jeff.” We got out of bed and put on our socks and long handles and headed downstairs.

Over coffee, bacon and eggs, and fried potatoes, Mike asked me about the letter from my dad.

“When are you gonna read the letter your dad left for you?”

“I don’t know, buddy. I guess today. I just gotta be in the right frame of mind, ya know. We gotta get your truck and talk to Mary Grace today, maybe after we get home from that. So do you wanna eat here or either in Winslett or Twisp?”

“Don’t make me no never mind.”

“Let’s eat here then. I’ll put a pot roast in the slow cooker. I got a great recipe for pot roast braised in stout. Maybe we could do some more dancin’?”

“I’d really like that.”

“Me too, buddy. I wanna spend an evenin’ with ya, with no one else but us, neither one of us sick or froze or sore. Just you and me.”

“That sounds fantastic. So how do ya wanna work gettin’ my truck?”

“I reckon after breakfast I’ll put the pot roast in the slow cooker, and then we can head to town. We’ll talk to Mary Grace, get your truck, and get a loaf of good bread and a pie at the bakery. Then we can come back here and get a workout in. I wanna put some time in on the cross country ski machine. I also want to work on my bronzes.”

We finished breakfast, and Mike volunteered to clean up since I was cooking dinner. I thawed a chuck roast in the microwave. I put it in the slow cooker with the rest of the ingredients and turned it on.

“Reckon that’s about it, Mike. We can have mashed potatoes with that. You want a salad too?”

“No, the roast carrots and potatoes and gravy should be enough. Remember, we’re gonna have bread and pie.”

“Good man. Come here, buddy.” He did and I put my arms around him and gave him a big hug. I nuzzled into his neck. “You’re special, and I don’t want you ever to forget it.”

“Thanks, Jeff.”

“Now let’s go get dressed before we end up stayin’ here all day.”

We were in the truck and almost all the way to Winslett when the clouds opened up and disgorged, not rain as I expected, but sleet. I know Halloween was only a week away, but it usually didn’t get this cold until the middle of November. I usually don’t need to wear thermals until mid-October, and this year the weather was cold enough to put them on in mid-September. Mike and I both had on coats, and we almost never left home without our cowboy hats, so we were fine. It continued to sleet as we got to Winslett and got Mike’s truck. It was melting the moment it hit the ground, but it still was cold. He drove his pickup the block to the co-op. Mary Grace was there and showed us the pictures of Mike and his crafts. I really liked the one with me and Mike sitting on the fence smiling at the camera. I asked if I could get some digital copies of some of the pictures and picked several. She was curious and asked why. I told her about the plans for a dude ranch. She was delighted. She was on half a dozen boards for business and tourism and such around the valley, so I suppose she liked the idea of more tourists spending money. She looked at me, hesitated a few times, and finally spoke.

“Jeff, are you going to the community Halloween party?”

“We were plannin’ on it, why?”

“Well, you know I’m pagan, don’t you?”

“I heard you say ‘thank the goddess’ a few times, but I never thought anything of it.”

“Specifically, I follow a path called Wicca, so I’m a witch. Now I heard through the town gossip that you two have been threatened. I’d like to cast a spell to protect you.”

“Uh, okay… I… uh… Mary Grace, I don’t know too much about this stuff. What exactly do you do?”

“We, first of all, cast a magic circle. It’s a sphere of energy around us. Then we invoke the elements earth, air, fire, and water. You see Wicca is a religion of nature. Then we ask the Goddess and God to join us. We drink a toast to them, and we’ll celebrate Samhain, which is Halloween. For us, it is a time to remember the dead. The gates between the worlds are very thin then, and our dead loved ones can visit us. After that, I’ll do the spell for protection, and then I’ll read the tarot for anyone who wants it. Finally, we thank the Goddess and God and the elements, and that’s it.” I had heard about Wicca before, but didn’t know too much about it. She went over to her desk and got a small book and handed it to me. It was by an author called Cunningham and it was titled
The Truth about Witchcraft Today
.