Chapter 8 - Dog Tags

Justin had just finished up repairing the stables doors, grooming the horses, and refilling the large grain storage bins with bags of feed from the local farm supply store. He was anxious to wash away the morning’s worth of sweat and dirt from every piece of exposed skin on his body. He’d already put all his tools away and closed up the barn for the afternoon. It was a hot day and he was ready to get out of the sun. He could work at Babylon this afternoon and enjoy being in the cool air-conditioned building instead of this swelteringly hot barn. He intended on wasting very little time in getting to the main house to clean himself up and then he’d have to find some way to get back into the city. As he rounded the barn, he noticed a very frustrated Gus close by in the yard, apparently trying to follow through on the ‘sitting’ lessons with his puppy. Justin observed him quietly for a few moments more before softly making his presence known.

“Hey, buddy, how’s the training going?”

“Not so good,” Gus replied sadly looking pleadingly up into the older man’s face. “I did everything exactly like you taught me earlier, but JB just doesn’t seem to want to listen. I don’t think JB likes me anymore Justin; and all because I won’t give him treats.”

“I’m sure that isn’t the case, Gus. JB is just a puppy and he probably just doesn’t understand what you want. He’s really like a baby, you know. You have to make things very simple for him or he’ll get confused. Now, let’s see what the problem is here and I bet we can work out a solution,” Justin said confidently, laying his hand on the boy’s shoulder to reassure him.

The next twenty minutes was spent training JB and generally getting to know one another a little better. During the short time, Justin discovered that Gus was a pretty smart kid and definitely had his father’s drive to find success in life. The thing that surprised him most about the precocious tyke, was that he shared his affinity for drawing and just about anything art related. Once they were satisfied with JB’s progress, the two new friends made their way to the main house to get cleaned up.

Walking into the grand house, the smell of baked ziti filled the air, making Justin’s stomach growl loudly and reminding him just how long it had been since his last meal. Gus chuckled at the sound explaining that his Grandma Deb was out in the kitchen cooking and suddenly came up with a bright idea. Since he didn’t want his new best friend to leave, he figured it would be okay to ask him to stay for lunch.

“Gramma Debbie, is there enough food for another person?” Gus inquired.

Debbie, in her loud but effusive voice responded, “Of course there’s enough ziti for another mouth. Did one of your friends stop by?”

“Yeah. Gramma, this is Justin. He’s teaching me how to train JB and he’s been helping daddy out in the stables.” Gus enthused.

Just as Gus and Justin entered the kitchen, Debbie turned around and was surprised to see not a kid but a grown man with Gus.  

“Well, who’s this young man, Gus?” inquired Debbie.

“Gramma Debbie, I just told you, this is my friend, Justin,” Gus stated, bouncing on his toes with happiness.

“Nice to meet you, ma’am.  Hope it’s not a bother…” Justin asked, breaking into his warm and welcoming smile.

“Well, aren’t you a breath of sunshine, Sunshine! No bother at all. Just clean up here at the kitchen sink and we’ll be ready to eat. That goes for you as well, Gus.” Debbie instructed, going about getting the food on the table.

Justin helped Gus up onto the step stool in front of the sink and then they both thoroughly washed their grimy hands. Gus giggled a bit as he and Justin fought for supremacy under the stream of water that came out of the tap. In the end, though, Justin let Gus have the top spot under the faucet, making sure that the boy used enough soap to get really clean before he rinsed his own hands. The two of them turned towards the table together and started to set the table with the dishes already laid out on the sideboard.

“Briaaaaaannnnn!,” Debbie bellowed to get the attention of the master of the house as she dished up the ziti into a large serving bowl.

“Jeeze, Deb,” Brian protested as he came through the archway from the nearby living room. “I’m not deaf, you know - at least not yet. You don’t have to scream like that.”

“Sorry, Brian. I didn’t know you were downstairs already,” Deb apologized but didn’t relent, pushing Brian ahead of her towards the table with the hot serving bowl of pasta working as a great prod to get the man moving in the right direction at a pace that satisfied the cook. “Sit your asses down and we can get started.”

“Dad, can Justin stay for lunch,” Gus thought it was wise to actually ask his father’s permission even though he’d already extended the invitation to his new friend.

“I don’t know, Gus. . . I’m sure Justin already has plans for this afternoon,” Brian tried his best to  way lay his son’s request without actually saying ‘No’ to him.

“Justin doesn’t have plans, Dad. Do you, Justin?” Gus insisted.

Justin looked over at the hopeful gaze of the boy, and behind him the doubtful look on Brian’s countenance, and smiled his best and brightest smile. “You know, Gus, I don’t remember the last time I had lunch plans. I’d be honored to share your repast with you, Buddy.”

Brian managed not to groan aloud at Justin’s reply, even though he didn’t think he truly wanted the younger man to be here at the table with his family. He had absolutely no idea what to say to Justin - last night, and all their previous encounters, were just too fresh in his memory and brought up too many uncomfortable emotions. However, Brian was far too indulgent a parent to outright tell Gus he couldn’t invite a new friend to lunch.

“Of course, Sunshine can stay, Gus,” Debbie gushed as she set the pasta down on the hot plate and then quickly went back for the bowl of freshly grated Asiago cheese to top it with.

Brian knew that he was beaten as soon as Deb seconded the invitation. With a huge sigh, Brian plastered a fake happy grin on his face and seated himself at the head of the table. Debbie put out the cheese and a couple other condiments and then, chucking Brian under the chin affectionately as she passed by, took her own seat on the far side of the big trestle table. Gus plopped himself into the seat next to his father and patted the seat of the chair next to him to indicate that’s where he wanted Justin to sit.

“So, Justin,” Debbie said as she picked up the serving dish full of ziti and served herself a big helping before passing it along to Brian. “Where the fuck do you and your luscious bubble butt hail from? I know you’re not from around here - Brian has that ‘Fresh Meat’ look on his face every time he looks at you.” *Ha* The boisterous woman snorted out a cackling laugh at the embarrassed look on the young blond’s face and then winked at him to dissipate any harshness from her words.

Justin took a good long look at the woman with the bright, curly red hair sitting across from him and tried to figure her out. He took in her ample bosom, stout frame, and series of endless womanly curves. She was wearing far too much heavy makeup and had really long fake fingernails painted a bright red. She talked loudly and swore at every other sentence. On top of all that, the woman was wearing the most ridiculous long dangly earrings and a t-shirt that had a picture of a rooster on it with the caption ‘Got Cock’. Justin didn’t think he’d ever experienced someone quite like Debbie before. Somehow, though, she didn’t come across as crass so much as homey and real. Justin instantly liked the woman.

Justin gave Debbie a mega-watt smile, and began to explain in detail just how he and his luscious ass had come to be in glorious West Virginia, although he left out the part about his angel’s picture since he wanted to tell Brian about that himself as soon as he figured out how. Debbie remarked on the fact that he’d walked the whole way. Justin simply shrugged and told her that he liked to walk since it gave him the time and the peace to think.

“This one’s deep, Brian. You’re going to have your hands full with Sunshine here,” Deb cackled again, pointing her long red talon at Justin and giving Brian a knowing look.

“Deb, would you give it a fucking rest?” Brian groaned at the good natured but snide remark. Justin laughed heartily at the banter between the two people who seemed to have more of a mother and son relationship than that of employer and employee.

The rest of the meal went by quickly with lots of pleasant conversation and joking. Everyone seemed so welcoming towards Justin - well, except for Brian’s slightly reserved demeanor. Justin and Gus spoke at length about JB’s further training and agreed that Justin would stay the rest of the afternoon so they could work with the puppy more. Brian looked at his son with fond indulgence. He was amazed at the easy acceptance that Justin showed for his usually rather shy son. He’d never seen Gus take to anyone this quickly.

After dinner, Gus was drafted into helping Deb with the dishes. Brian ushered Justin out of the way of the hullabaloo in the kitchen, leading them both out onto the shady porch to wind down with an after-lunch beer. The warm summer breeze wafted over the pair as they sat in two side-by-side Adirondack chairs and sipped at their Iron City beer. Justin was comfortably full and the beer relaxed him just enough so that he felt slightly drowsy. Brian looked equally mellow as he leaned back in his own chair and took a swig at the neck of the silver bottle in his hand.

Fuck! Justin thought that it was impossible for the man from his picture to be any more beautiful, but somehow, Brian was even better in the flesh. It was quiet out here in the country. Justin had been waiting for the right moment to confess to Brian the true reason for his arrival and this looked like the perfect opportunity. Taking a big breath to shore up his courage, Justin dug his wallet out of his back pocket and pulled out the picture that he’d become so dependant on.

Running his fingers lightly over the tattered edges of the photo, Justin prepped himself to launch into a long explanation.

“Brian . . .” Just as he opened his mouth to speak, the shrill sound of Brian’s cell phone weakened his resolve and abruptly closed the window on his open opportunity.

“Kinney,” Brian barked into the phone, holding up one hand to silence Justin’s tentative inquiry. “What the fuck do you mean, there’s a broken water main? Isn’t it the city’s job to fix the fucking water mains? Why are you calling me, Ted? . . . Yeah, right. I’ll just wave my magic wand and fix it from out here at Britin . . . Whatever, Ted. Just take care of it . . ." Brian kept ranting at his employee as he got up and walked back into the house, completely ignoring Justin from that point on.

Justin let out the breath he hadn’t realized he was holding, and slowly got to his feet seconds later. He started to follow the agitated brunet back into the house, but was almost tackled by a small bundle of energy barrelling into his middle as Gus rushed out of the house. Gus was already shouting out Justin’s name even as he collided into the man he’d been looking for.

“Whoa . . . slow down there buddy. Where’s the fire?” Justin laughed as he set Gus back on his feet and made sure the boy wasn’t about to topple over.

“Can we get JB and start training him,” Gus asked, clearly excited to get started on the planned doggy adventure.

“Sure, Buddy,” Justin couldn’t help but smile at the boy’s enthusiasm. “You get JB and meet me in front of the barn, okay?”

The little ball of fire couldn’t run to fetch his puppy fast enough. The two of them spent most of the next two hours working with the young dog. They had pretty much mastered the concept of ‘Sit’ and had moved on to ‘Come’ by that point. ‘Come’ did involve a lot of chasing after an easily distracted puppy though and it was hot running around in the bright summer sun. Justin was dripping with sweat and ready for a break, but Gus was just too excited to let him relax just yet. Conceding to the child’s demands that they not stop yet, Justin resigned himself to being in the sun for at least a little while longer. He couldn’t stand the dripping wet t-shirt though and immediately peeled it off, using the one dry spot of cotton fabric to wipe off his brow and neck.

Gus’ eyes widened a bit as he caught sight of what appeared to be a picture painted on the older man’s hip, just above the waistband of his low-riding baggy cargo pants. Gus wanted to ask Justin why he had something painted on him, and why it hadn’t run and smeared away with all the sweat running down his side. Justin noticed at once that his little buddy’s attention was not on the puppy any more. When he followed Gus’ line of vision, he noted that Gus was focusing on the tat on his left hip that disappeared down his leg and into his pants.

“What’s that picture, Justin,” the inquisitive boy asked with all the candor any eight year old would have.

“Well, Gus, it’s called a tattoo. It’s a way to keep a memory fresh. The ink is permanent, so that I can never forget.”

“What don’t you want to forget?” Justin lowered his cargos and boxer briefs a tiny bit more, but not inappropriately so, revealing to Gus the rest of the commemorative body art.

“Before I came to Pittsburgh, I was in the Marines,” Justin tried to explain in terms the boy would understand.

“Like a soldier?” Gus asked. “My Uncle Ben was a soldier but he died.”

“Yes, exactly. I was a soldier just like your uncle. From what I’ve heard we probably could have been stationed in some of the same places. Anyway, when I was in the Marines, a couple of my good friends died, too. You see the names here on the tags, Gus?” Gus gave a small nod as Justin continued.

“These are pictures of what soldiers call ‘Dog Tags’. We all wear them around our necks,” Justin grabbed the chain he still wore around his neck and showed the small metal tags to the boy, waiting patiently while he read the information it contained about Justin. “If something bad happens to us, as long as we have our dog tags on, the other soldiers can tell who got hurt even if the person can’t talk. And, if someone gets killed in the line of duty, then it’s become a sort of tradition to keep the dog tags of those people who were close to you so you won’t forget about the sacrifice they made to keep you and others safe. These are the names of my friends who were killed. This way they will always be with me, and they’ll never be forgotten.”

Gus smiled up at Justin in awe at the very idea of being a soldier. “Justin, can I get a tattoo like that for my Uncle Ben? I don’t want to ever forget him either.”

Justin saw the touching seriousness in the young boy’s face as he asked his question and couldn’t help but laugh. Gus was so adorable. He could just see Brian’s face when his eight year old asked to get a tattoo and then blamed it on Justin.

“No, Gus. I think that it’s commendable that you want to remember your uncle, but I don’t think that would be a good idea; at least not until you’re older,” Justin chuckled as he tried to dissuade the boy.  “I’m sure you won’t forget your uncle even without the tattoo.”

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Brian came back out onto the porch after having finally resolved the latest crisis regarding Babylon. He hadn’t seen Gus in quite a while and felt that fatherly urge to check on his offspring’s whereabouts. He didn’t have to go far though. As soon as he walked down the porch steps, he spied Gus and Justin, along with JB, frolicking about in the clearing in front of the barn.

The sexy young blond had stripped down to his cargos. His chest and back shimmered in the sun with sweat. There were rivulets that ran from Justin’s hairline down his face and neck, adding to the sheen on his upper torso. As Brian watched, Justin threw his head back and broke into peals of boyish laughter. Something about the timber of that laugh went straight to Brian’s cock. He was instantly hard, the tip dripping out a bit of pre-cum and making a dark wet spot on the front of his slacks. Fuck, that little blond twat really got to him somehow.

Watching as Justin started back to work with his son and the pup, he admired the movement of the toned muscles of Justin’s back and pecs. As Justin squatted down to praise JB, the cargo pants loosely hugging his slim hips were pulled taut across the wondrous playground of his perfectly rounded ass; a teasing shadow of crack showing just above the waistline.

Brian licked his lips at the sight and the tightness in his slacks increased. Brian could almost taste the salty, sweat slicked skin. Before he knew it, Brian’s mouth was watering and his imagination was running off on all the other things he could do with his tongue to that gorgeous body.

What the fuck! He had to stop thinking this way. He couldn’t keep daydreaming about his stable boy. After all, he wasn’t some fucking dreamy-eyed schoolboy. He was Brian-fucking-Kinney; he’d fucked a lot of men and didn’t get all soppy about anyone before. He wouldn’t let this little blond - no matter how attractive his firm round ass was - get to him.

Brian forced himself to look away from the too-tempting sight. He headed back into the house and grabbed a cool bottle of water from the fridge, draining the contents in two large swallows. His mind wandered back to the hot sweaty blond and his son outside and he decided that maybe both those boys could use a cool drink themselves. He quickly grabbed two more bottles of water and headed out the door.

“Boys,” Brian interrupted as soon as he neared the training area. “Time to take a break and get some water. Here, drink this Gus. And then I think you should get out of the sun. You’ve been out here for hours and it’s way too hot.”

“But daaaaaad . . ." Gus protested “We were just getting to the really fun part.”

“Gus! No arguments. Here, take your water and JB and get inside right now,” Brian insisted with his full-on parental voice.

Gus grumbled under his breath but did as he’d been told. Brian handed the remaining bottle of water over to the hot sweaty blond who accepted with alacrity. As soon as Justin had the bottle in hand, he twisted off the cap and after taking a mouthful of the cold liquid, Justin proceeded to lift the container above his head and poured the remains of the proffered drink over his over-heated body. Justin then gave his head an enticing little shake, sending rivulets of water all around him; some of which splashed onto Brian.  

“Damn, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to get you all wet Brian, here let me dry you off.” Justin offered as he bent over to pick up his now dry t-shirt which was lying in a patch of grass at his feet.

Brian moaned at the sight - those fucking loose cargo pants suddenly became so tight when the younger man bent over and they were low enough to start with that the tops of Justin’s ass cheeks swelled out just perfectly. Without any conscious volition, Brian’s hand moved towards the delicious sight and before he could stop himself, he found himself fondling the glorious roundness. He felt Justin tense up just a bit as his hand drifted lower, then the blond wiggled his ripe full ass into the touch, pressing back against Brian’s hand just enough to let the older man know that his caress was welcomed.

Brian trailed his hand upwards, no longer content with groping through the fabric of those annoying cargos, needing to feel the heat of the pale flesh against his skin. Before he realized it, his wandering hand had negotiated its way beneath the waistband of Justin’s pants and was inching its way down the tempting crack as if his fingers were being drawn there with some magical ass magnet. Justin stood upright and turned around just enough so that he could see into Brian’s eyes as he reveled in the feel of the frisky fingers’ touch. Justin wrenched his neck around and let his lips migrate over towards Brian’s invitingly soft lips. What started out as a light brushing of lips, soon became more demanding. Their tongues swirled and wrapped around one another with an almost desperate need to connect on an ever deeper level.

Brian came briefly to his senses and realized that they were still out in the open and visible to anyone who came along. Taking ahold of Justin’s hand, he drew him into the house growling. “I can’t hold out any longer, Sunshine . . ." Brian complained, unwilling to let Justin go again without a more thorough taste of honey - he wanted the whole damn hive.

Since Justin didn’t object, Brian swiftly led Justin up to his bedroom.