Chapter 37
It seemed like after Halloween passed, the rest of the holidays crept up and sped by. It was the dead of winter, with no more holidays for awhile.
Holidays...Ennis thought back to Halloween. It was a treat taking Junior and Bobby out in their costumes. Alma and Lureen had acted like it would be a chore. Alma even seemed shy and apprehensive when she asked Ennis if he'd mind doing it. To he and Jack, that was the fun of having kids, to participate in these holiday rituals. They'd all had a blast!
First they had gone to Jack's uncle and aunt's home, receiving a warm reception, even from Betty, who had mellowed, especially in the presence of the children. One thing about Betty, she couldn't be all bad the way she had accepted he and Jack's relationship like it was just an everyday occurrence. She never made them feel like they didn't fit in. And of course, Harold...There was no one quite like that man. Ennis had grown as close to him as Jack was. You couldn't not love him. After that they had gone to Jack's folks who went all out to decorate and make a festive occasion for the kids.
Junior wanted to dress as, what else, a cat, and took it upon herself to decide that Bobby should be a dog. Alma had tried to change Junior's mind, wanting to see her as a princess, but Junior, with her stubborn ways, wouldn't hear of being anything but a cat, so Alma gave in.
Alma hadn't been happy when she'd heard about Ace and Miss Kitty residing at Ennis and Jack's. She hadn't said anything until she and Ennis had gotten together for lunch after registering Junior for preschool. She made more of a fuss over that than anything else concerning the living situation at North Barrington Avenue. He was able to convince her that pets and kids were a natural fit. She finally actually laughed a little and said, "Maybe it is a good idea. At least I don't have to have any at my house."
Ennis had been relieved that Alma only seemed concerned about the pets. He figured it could be because she knew if she said anything about he and Jack, the subject of her and Monroe would come up and she probably didn't want to have to defend herself. Ennis always wondered just how long that had really been going on, but he didn't much care so had never brought it up.
Since their breakup, the one constant had been their love for Junior and their mutual concern for her welfare. This took the worry out of either of them using poor judgment where she was concerned. Alma knew Jack was a good man even if she tried to deny it. Monroe was a good man too, Ennis could see that. Ennis knew he and Alma would never have a friendship like Jack had with Lureen, but to be able to discuss issues affecting Junior without tearing into each other would do.
Ennis reached for the framed Halloween photo on his desk. Junior was adorable with her long painted on whiskers that Ennis had worked so hard getting just right. Her headband had pointed cat ears, and she wore a slim fitting black body suit with a long tail attached. Her little black shoes had painted on "claws." To finish off her look she wore black gloves with embroidered claws. Bobby had a headpiece with floppy doggie ears and a patchwork costume complete with tail. Around his neck he wore a bandanna similar to the ones they sometimes put on Ace's neck when he was all clean and fresh smelling after a trip to the groomer. Ennis had painted smaller whiskers on Bobby, the boy telling him to make him look scary.
Both kids were thrilled and had the time of their lives. Jack must have taken at least fifty pictures that night. They came home with way too much candy. Hard to believe they got so much from only two stops.
Ennis' thoughts were interrupted as Jack came in to sit at his desk that was across the room. "Whatcha thinking about, Ennis?" After a short pause, "As if I didn't know."
Ennis smiled and said, "Not what you think. I was actually remembering Halloween...how much fun it was."
"Yeah, it was great, wasn't it? Truth be told, I think I like Halloween better than Christmas."
"Yeah, Christmas can be pretty hectic, 'specially with kids. And having to split up the holiday between their mama's and us..." Ennis paused, "Well, nothin' can be done about that."
"I was thinking you probably had this weekend on your mind...you know, our little outing..." Jack had sort of a pained look on his face.
Ennis snorted out a laugh. "Oh, that? In a way, I'm lookin' forward to it."
"Yeah...if it goes well, maybe we can feel comfortable staying some weekends at the folk's place when we've got the kids." Jack looked deep in thought and went on, "No reason it shouldn't go well, I mean, what are they gonna do, make one of us sleep up in the loft and the other sleep downstairs?"
"Since it's winter with snow on the ground, there's no way one of us could pitch a tent outside," Ennis chuckled.
"Maybe we could build an igloo. That would be one way to insure some privacy," Jack laughed.
"You'd freeze your ass off, and I'm a bit partial to it, so I'd say we best sleep in the cabin, whatever sleeping arrangements come about."
They both laughed and began to concentrate on the work on their desks that had to be done before the weekend.
...
The Saturday of January 17, 2009 found Jack, Ennis, the kids, and Ace driving out to pick up John and Denise to go to Big Bear to play in the snow and stay the night in the cabin. The forecast sounded perfect, although cool, with the high not getting out of the 40's in the mountains most days in January. It would be freezing at night. Everyone had warm winter jackets, scarves, boots, gloves and mittens to bundle up in.
The sun was shining brightly and the roads were clear as they drove toward their destination. "The snow covered mountains in the distance look gorgeous," Denise marveled. "Are you two little ones excited?" she asked.
"YES!" they shouted.
"I want to see the squirrels." Junior said.
"I'm not sure if the squirrels will be out this time of year. It might be too cold," John said.
"Bobby's never seen snow, let alone played in it, and Junior's only been in it once," Ennis said.
"I walked in the snow in Colorado with my mommy," Junior said. "It came over my boot and went inside. It was cold."
"I'll bet it was," Ennis said. "We've got better boots for you this time, taller, so the snow won't get in."
"The caretaker will have shoveled paths for us, and cleared a place to park," John said.
As they got closer to Big Bear, snow drifts lined the side of the road. The kids started to talk a mile a minute, and Ace sensed the excitement and his ears perked up. John and Denise were in high spirits and it was rubbing off on Jack and Ennis.
"How many pictures you think you'll take?" Ennis asked Jack.
"Probably hundreds by the time the weekend's over," Jack smiled.
After parking, Ace barked and trotted around as he was let out of the Land Rover. Jack and Ennis had no way of knowing if he had seen snow before. In any case, he wasn't at all afraid of it.
"Kids, stay on the path for now. We'll go inside and unpack our groceries and things before we come back out to play in the snow," Denise said.
Besides shoveling, the caretaker had made sure the cabin was warm and inviting, and had also installed a child guard across the top of the loft stairs as John had requested. There was still time before lunch to go out to play in the snow, so that was the plan.
Junior stood looking out the window jumping up and down saying, "When can we go out, when can we go out?"
"Calm down, darlin'," Ennis told her. "We'll go out in a minute. Here, let's get all your winter things on so you don't end up catching a chill."
Bobby was repeating, "Snow! Snow!" and stomping around as if he was performing a snow dance rather than a rain dance.
John wore a huge smile as he looked at his family getting ready to brave the cold outside. Denise put her arm around his waist, also with a smile across her face. Ennis overheard her say, "It's great being grandparents, isn't it? Now we even have a granddaughter to go with our grandson."
Outside, John wanted to show the kids how to make a snowman, but first Jack seemed to have other plans, and that was a snowball fight.
"Snowballs are a little dangerous, don't you think?" his mom asked.
"Not for a Two-and-a-half and Four-and-a-half year old," Jack laughed.
"You're not gonna have a snowball fight too, Jack?" John asked.
"Well, if you're challenging me to one, sure!" Jack said, as he grabbed up some snow and quickly formed a snowball, throwing it at his dad and hitting him on the chest.
"This means war," John exclaimed, shaking his fist and laughing.
He and Jack threw numerous snowballs at each other while Denise and Ennis helped Bobby and Junior with their own. Ace danced and barked at the activity. John and Jack looked exhausted by the time they finished their battle. Their cheeks were red from the cold and exertion.
"The altitude up here makes me feel my age," John said, as he sucked in deep breaths of air.
"You're not old, Dad," Jack said as he patted him on the back. "You're just feeling it since I won the snowball fight," he laughed.
"Is that so?" John chuckled as he reached down and picked up more snow and grabbed the neck of Jack's jacket getting as much snow down as he could before Jack was able to break away, laughing all the while.
After everyone was calmed down from their snowball fights, the men proceeded to build the biggest and best snowman Denise had ever seen, with Junior and Bobby cheering them on, and Ace barking wildly. Denise found some items from inside the cabin to use for a face, and she and John lifted the children up to place them onto the snowman's face as Jack clicked more pictures.
"Grannnpa, I put eyes on!" Bobby shouted.
"Grandma, I gave him a nose." Junior cried out.
It made Ennis feel warm inside knowing that Junior now had grandparents even though both sets of her own had passed on long before she was born. He knew he had a silly grin on his face, but couldn't help it.
The kids weren't tired yet and insisted on building their own snowman, so everyone stood back and let them have at it. Junior did most of the work with Bobby trying to direct her. They did a pretty good job and had a blast.
"Look at the time, we'd better get lunch," Denise said when she realized how late it was. "You two children must be starving."
"Yeah, Ennis and I are pretty hungry," Jack said, trying to keep a straight face. Everyone laughed.
"Okay, we'll save the sledding till tomorrow morning," Jack said. "Let's go get some lunch."
They left their beautiful snowmen, and all went inside to dry off, warm up, have lunch and a rest.
...
After napping, they planned to have dinner out. "I've heard the Log Cabin restaurant is good, and kids are welcome," John suggested.
"Sounds good," Jack said.
Ennis gave Junior a little pep talk before they left. "Now darlin', we're going to be eating in a restaurant. I want you to keep your voice down when you talk, and I need you to keep an eye on Bobby and help him to be quiet and to eat without playing with his food. Do you think you can help me out with that?"
"Yes, Daddy," she said very seriously.
"Good girl," Ennis said, hoping it went well.
"You worry too much, friend," Jack said as he came up from behind. "They'll be fine."
The dinner did go very well, with everyone enjoying themselves and having fun. Ennis noticed how comfortable Jack was with his dad now days, and was happy that the two of them had found a way to make peace after all those years when Jack thought that he hated his dad, and thought his dad hated him.
The food was good, and the kids didn't cause any scenes while they ate, even though Ennis cringed inwardly when Junior ordered spaghetti and meatballs. He knew that was rather a messy dish for a child, but she was becoming pretty good with a knife and fork, although he had to help her a little. Bobby had chicken strips for his dinner. When the waiter set Denise's Fettuccini Alfredo with fresh vegetables and herb garlic sauce in front of her, Ennis was a little disappointed that he hadn't ordered pasta as he usually did, but soon found that his grilled marinated chicken with rice and vegetables was excellent. John ordered Pork Ribs, corn on the cob and ranch beans, and Ennis couldn't help but think that was where Jack picked up his eating habits. Jack had Chicken Fried Steak, baked potato, and vegetables. They decided not to have dessert, but planned to have hot chocolate after they got back to the cabin.
Ace held down the fort while they were gone. Upon returning, Ennis asked Jack, "Which one of us wants to take Ace for his nightly potty walk?"
"God, it's gonna be cold, it must not be much over thirty-two degrees right now," Jack said.
"I'll do it then," Ennis said, willing to brave the cold to save Jack from freezing to death. Jack though, seemed to have other ideas and said, "I'll go with you...it'll be faster with two," and he smiled a mischievous smile that Ennis hoped only he knew the true meaning of. He felt his face flush.
Ennis was afraid that John may have gotten the drift too because he asked, "Walking the dog is faster with two?"
It seemed like maybe Denise was trying to change the subject as she said, "We'll have the hot chocolate ready when you get back. First we'll get Bobby and Junior changed into their pajamas. Take your time."
Jack attached Ace's bright red leash to his red collar and Ennis followed them out the door. Once outside Ennis asked, "What was all that about, Jack?"
"What?" Jack said, with the most innocent look on his face Ennis had ever seen.
As they walked, not speaking, they came upon some trees and started walking amongst them, their boots crunching through the snow.
As he moved close to Ennis, Jack said, "I figure the only way I'm gonna get a kiss, let alone anything else, is to sneak off in the dark with you, far away from the others."
He got right up to Ennis, their bodies tight against each other and pushed him against a pine tree as he kissed him roughly and with lots of tongue.
"What's gotten into you, boy, don't you know we're standing in snow and it's freezing out here?" Ennis said breathlessly, after they broke the kiss.
"I sure do, I'm trying to get warmed up." Ace stood by their feet and looked up at them, wondering where his walk was.
They stood that way several minutes kissing deeply, pressing against each other. Through their heavy clothing it was hard to tell, but they both knew the other was as hard as they were.
"Shit, wearing all this heavy gear isn't too conducive to getting to do much else than kissin', is it?" Jack got out between deep long kisses.
"Jack, what are you thinking? Heavy clothes or not, we're not doing...that...out here!"
"How bout back in the cabin after we go to bed?"
"Shit, Jack, your folks and the kids are all in the cabin! We can't do none of that. Besides, don't you remember your mom and dad said they're taking the loft with Bobby and Junior, and we're getting the room downstairs?"
"Yeah, so it'll be private, they'll all be clear upstairs."
"Clear upstairs isn't very far in a small cabin with a loft with no doors. Besides, unless there's a new bed in that downstairs room, those springs are a dead give away."
"You mean you'd do it with me if the springs were quiet?"
"I didn't say that, Jack..."
Jack was chuckling now, his eyes twinkling like the stars in the sky. It was hard for Ennis to keep his good sense looking into those lustful blue eyes of Jack Twist, but he finally whispered, "We best give Ace his walk so we can get back inside before your folks wonder what's keeping us. The hot chocolate might get cold."
"Alright, alright," Jack said, stepping back. As they walked, Jack mumbled, "The chocolate might get cold but I'm not gonna get cold cause I'm burning up and I need some relief...didn't get anything last night cause the kids were there..."
"Anyone ever tell you, you complain a lot, Jack? Well, you do, that's a fact..." Ennis muttered in a playful tone.
...
Inside the cabin, Jack, Ennis and Ace found everyone in their pajamas and robes, sitting in front of the fireplace sipping hot chocolate with marshmallows. Ace plopped down in front of the fireplace looking content as could be.
"Bout time you came to the party," John said.
Bobby, imitating his grandpa shouted, "Bout time!" And Junior got in on it too and said, "We're having a party and you're late."
"Your hot chocolate is on the stove. You might need to heat it up a little; I think it's probably lukewarm now," Denise told them.
Ennis tried not to blush and quickly headed to the kitchen. After he warmed the chocolate he poured himself and Jack a cup, added marshmallows, and joined everyone by the fireplace.
"Thanks," Jack said as he took his cup from Ennis. Their fingers touched and sparks flew between them causing Ennis' face to feel warm again.
They drank their hot chocolate and enjoyed some small talk until everyone was yawning and it was clear that the kids needed to go to bed. Jack and Ennis took them to the bathroom to see to it that they brushed their teeth before taking them up to the loft to tuck them in.
John and Denise said goodnight after the kids were tucked in. "You'll make sure the cabin is locked up, Jack?" John said as he stood to go.
"Sure, Dad, goodnight."
When everyone was out of sight, Jack gave Ennis a look that spoke volumes. "Jack...I already told you," Ennis warned. "Don't get your hopes up, you hear?"
While Ennis was in the bathroom getting ready for bed, Jack made sure the cabin was locked up, and saw to it that the fire was banked, and took his and Ennis' cups to the kitchen before he went to the bathroom to get ready for bed after Ennis was finished.
In the bedroom, Ennis had gotten into the bed as quietly as he could. Jack came in and stood looking at him, stalling before getting in. "What are you gonna do, Jack, stand there all night? You're gonna freeze if you don't get in here."
"I was thinkin'...since the bed's so noisy, how bout we get down on the floor for awhile?"
"Jack, are you serious? I'm not getting on the floor."
"Why not?" Jack said in a quiet voice, as he moved closer to Ennis.
"Cause the floor is hard and cold, and because we're not in this cabin by ourselves. I'd feel...inhibited."
"No one would know. We'd be quiet."
"When have you ever been able to be quiet when we're...doing what we do?"
"Jeez, Ennis, you can say the words, no one's standing outside the door trying to hear what we're talking about..."
"Just give it a rest, huh? I'm not getting into that with you tonight. That's final. Now get in here and warm up. We can snuggle, you like that. That'll have to do for tonight."
"Shit, Ennis. I don't see why we can't...I mean, they probably think we are anyway."
"Jesus, Jack," Ennis said as he felt his face flush.
Jack shut up, turned off the light, and got into the bed, forgetting to be easy getting in, making the bed springs squeak loudly.
"Do you think you can be any louder? That's probably why they gave us this room, so we couldn't do anything."
"Sorry."
They found comfortable positions and lay in the darkness. Ennis could tell that Jack was wide awake by the way he sighed now and then. After a few minutes Jack whispered, "Ennis, I know I can be quiet. I promise I can, if we could just get down on the floor, we could have a quickie."
"When have we ever had just a quickie?"
"Well, there's a first time for everything. Come on, what do you say?"
"What if someone comes down to use the bathroom? They'd hear us for sure."
Jack got up, rested on his elbow, and said, "No one will be coming down this soon after going to bed. If we're going to do this, we'd better get to it so we're sure no one comes down till we're done."
Ennis lay there thinking, wanting to do what Jack was suggesting, but was scared. Finally desire won out and he started to get up very slowly, barely making the springs move at all. When he was out he whispered, "You come outta there now...but do it quietly."
Jack followed Ennis' example and the springs made next to no sound as he got up. They threw the pillows down and dragged the bedspread to the floor and lay down together. "Shouldn't we take our clothes off?" asked Jack.
"No!"
"No, why not? How can we fuck in our clothes?"
"We'd best leave most of 'em on, just in case."
"Just in case what?"
Impatiently Ennis said, "In case someone comes down and we have to get up and look normal fast!"
Jack smiled and said, "Okay, then."
Ennis felt Jack reach into the opening of his pajamas and grab his hard cock. He fiddled around getting it freed of the cloth. When that was done he wasted no time going to work on it. Ennis felt like he would go crazy, so much so, that he had to be reminded to be quiet by Jack. He felt Jack's mouth and tongue lick, swirl suck and basically torment his cock, bringing him to the point of no return in no time flat. A stifled groan escaped Ennis' lips as Jack took all Ennis gave him, drinking it down to the last drop. When Ennis was licked dry, Jack kissed a trail up his stomach, across his chest, up to his neck, and finally to his mouth, kissing him deep.
"Aren't you glad we're doin' this?" Jack asked.
Even though it was nearly pitch dark, Ennis could tell he was smiling. He heard it in Jack's voice, and yeah, he was glad.
Ennis quickly rose up and turned to roll on top of Jack, kissing his lips, trying to keep control of the situation but it was damn hard. The fact that Jack's folks were nearby seemed to unleash a passion that shocked him, but he went with it, all the while trying to remain as quiet as possible. He scooted down and, instead of leaving Jack's pajamas on and trying to snake his cock out as Jack had done to him, he yanked his pajamas and shorts down to his knees. His mouth nearly attacked Jack's cock as he let groans escape his throat. He tried to rein it in and stay quiet. He teased and played with Jack's hard cock with his tongue and lips and fondled his balls with his fingers. Jack gripped the bedspread and muffled sounds escaped. His head rolled side to side and Ennis knew that his orgasm was building. In short order Jack was shooting his load down Ennis' throat and he took it all, making sure to lick every drop so as not to have any evidence left behind of what had gone on in the room that night.
Ennis felt hard again already and hoped Jack wouldn't notice because he'd talk him into going for round two and he'd come to his senses enough to know they needed to call a halt to this and be glad they got what they did, get back into the bed and go to sleep. After some lazy kisses and some barely audible pillow talk on their makeshift bed on the floor, they gathered their pillows and the bedspread, and carefully crawled into the bed, snuggling up close, both satisfied and weary, ready for a good night's sleep.
...
Ennis was up early to let Ace out the next morning. Ace looked refreshed by the cold mountain air and had a bit of a run in the snow. Ennis was nearly frozen by the time he got back inside and found Jack starting the fireplace. Since there was only one bathroom they decided they'd better use it while they could so they wouldn't slow things down when the others got up. They had things to do before heading back home. They were looking forward to getting the kids on the sled.
"We could save time by using the bathroom together," Jack said.
"Keep your voice down," Ennis cautioned.
"I was only kidding, Ennis," Jack said, trying not to smile. Ennis shook his head and disappeared into the bathroom, locking the door behind him.
By the time Ennis reappeared, Denise was in the kitchen preparing breakfast. "I'll go see if she needs some help while you use the bathroom," Ennis suggested. By the time breakfast, which consisted of pancakes, bacon, juice and coffee was ready, everyone was up and had been in the bathroom.
"Too bad we don't have more than one bathroom in this cabin. If we're all going to be coming here at one time, we could use another, especially when the kids are older," John said.
Ennis felt relieved to see that John and Denise were acting normal, so evidently no one was any the wiser for what he and Jack had gotten up to the night before. Then Jack just had to open that mouth of his.
"That would be a lot more convenient to have a second one, Dad. And, what do you think about a new bed in the downstairs bedroom?"
"Something wrong with it?"
Jack seemed to think better of what he was saying, his face took on a half-sick look, but it was a little late by then so he sort of had to go on. He didn't look in Ennis' direction, and Ennis was looking everywhere except at Jack.
"Well, the springs make a lot of noise is all. It's not that big a deal though, forget it, we don't need a new bed."
"If it bothers you, sure we can get a new bed. It's rather old anyway, it's no wonder the springs are bad. It's seen a lot of use."
Ennis was getting more and more uncomfortable by the second, and felt his face flushing. He silently prayed the conversation would end, and soon. Denise seemed to pick up on his discomfort so called into the living room to Bobby and Junior, "Let's all have breakfast!"
The conversation turned to other topics while they ate, to Ennis' relief. He just didn't know what had gotten into Jack to mention the noisy springs to his dad like he had. He wasn't going to hold it against him but he'd get back at him, that's for sure.
As soon as they could, everyone filed outdoors to play on the sled. Jack pulled Junior and Bobby around as Ennis took pictures. The snow was perfect for sledding. The kids were a little young to try going down any hills, but they laughed, screamed and hollered while being pulled around the yard. Ace was excited and kicking up snow as he trotted beside the sled. When Jack got tired, John took over, then Ennis. Denise watched from the porch. It was another beautiful, sunny day. Their snowmen still stood, watching over the merriment. The morning went fast, and soon it was time for lunch before packing up to leave.
No one really wanted to leave, but the time had come, so off they went back to the city. It would seem like a dream that they'd been in the snow by the time they got back home. It was as if they'd been in another world. Junior and Bobby chattered nearly non-stop about the snow. They had been clearly impressed by their weekend.
After dropping John and Denise off and saying their good-byes, Jack and Ennis stopped at the grocery store to get what they needed for the week. Junior and Bobby had accompanied them a time or two when they shopped on a Sunday afternoon so they were pros and tried to help. Ace waited patiently in the Land Rover. They'd told Lureen and Alma that the kids would probably be a little late at getting back so they didn't have to rush, and went back home to put the groceries away and let the kids play with Miss Kitty before having to return them to their other homes and other parents.
...
That night after dinner was finished and dishes were in the dish washer, Saturday's mail gone through, a few phone calls made, and things were quiet, Jack's blunder concerning the bed came up.
Ennis walked up behind Jack in the kitchen, put his arms around him, and in a husky voice whispered, "Just what the hell were you thinkin' this morning bringing up the squeaky springs to your daddy? In front of your mama no less."
"Ennis, I don't know what the hell I was thinkin'. I don't think I was thinking. I couldn't have been. Soon as I said it I realized I shouldn't have. Shit, I'm sorry. I hope you weren't too embarrassed."
"Oh, I was embarrassed alright...and it's all cause of you," he whispered in a low voice. "You were a bad boy, Jack Twist, and you must pay for it."
Jack smiled and chuckled, getting the drift of where this was headed. "Ennis, I'm glad you're not mad."
"No, I'm not mad...I know mistakes happen. But that doesn't mean you don't need to be punished," Ennis, still whispering, said into Jack's ear.
"You're right, Ennis, I deserve a spanking. I was soooo bad," Jack chuckled.
They were both unable to control their laughter by then, and were becoming quite aroused, so quickly made sure the house was locked up, and to their bedroom they went, not even taking the time to let Ace out for one last potty break. They could do that afterward. Both were anxious to get into a bed that didn't squeak.
To Be Continued...