Chapter 75

As the bullets went flying, the hooded teen ran back through the door he came out. Riley quickly picked Jacob up from the ground and with two other security agents they went running to the door in the opposite direction they were going. The other two agents stayed back to make sure the teenager with the gun didn’t come back out of the door shooting at them while their backs were turned.

When Riley got to the door, he found it locked. Knowing he had to get Jacob out of harm’s way, he had everyone step back. Shooting at the doorknob, he blew it off the door, forcing it open. Once he secured the hallway, he went back up and pulled Jacob into it.

As soon as they went to the bottom of the staircase, Riley and another agent walked to the door, slowly opened it and looked out. When they saw the police and school security running towards the area they had come running from, they knew that the shooter was cornered. It they were going to get Jacob out safe, this is their chance.

Riley waved Jacob and the other security agent down the stairs. “We need to get Jacob out of here and this is our chance. By the looks of it, the police have the shooter that ran down the staircase from us cornered. That gives us a clear shot down the stairs going out the way the Governor’s security agents went, any questions?”

The other two security agents shook their heads along with Jacob. They made their way to the staircase and when they reached the middle of it, Riley looked down the other half to make sure the coast was all clear. When he saw it was, they moved quickly, continuing down until they reached the floor where they had no other choice but to go down the hall to get to the middle staircase that led to the bottom floor.

Surprisingly there was no one standing guard at the bottom of the staircase. Riley thought that was odd, but didn’t stick around to find out why there were no police officers guarding the first floor staircases. He quickly moved Jacob down the hall to the middle staircase and down it. When they got the bottom floor, they found the passage that students aren’t allowed in, only teachers.

Not wasting any time, Riley and the other two agents pulled Jacob into the passage and made their way to a side street they didn’t recognize. A little worried on where he was, Riley started looking around and found Benedict and Jackson getting out of a SUV. He pointed them out to Jacob and the other two agents. There was no need for any orders; they made their way towards them.

“I was told you were given this exit by one of the Governors’ kid’s security details when they were making their way out of the building when the shooting started.” Benedict smiled at Riley as he helped Josh into the SUV. “I figured that you would need a ride if you were able to get out of that school….”

“Not to say you didn’t do your job, but what took you so long to get Jacob out of that building?” Jackson interrupted Benedict.

“Don’t even get me started with how things just fell apart when the shooting started.” They both looked at Riley with confused looks on their faces. “First the teacher refused to let us out of the classroom. She stated she was following the procedures that were put in place for something like this. Now their procedures are stupid and very dangerous, but that’s another story for another time.

Secondly, when we got out of the room and onto the roof, you won’t believe who lands up busting through the door on us.” Jackson and Benedict both shrugged their shoulders as Benedict drove away from El Paso High. “The shooter, yes you heard me right. The shooter came through the door we were about to open. The stupid kid actually thought he was going to be able take us on, boy was he wrong. When he opened fire, we had no other choice but to open fire as well. No one was hit, thankfully.

Finally, when that kid went back down the stairs, we headed over to the door on the opposite direction. It was locked, our luck! So I shot the door knob which got us off the roof, down to the bottom floor and through the passage landing us up where you picked us up at.” Riley looked over to Jacob. “None of that would have happened if it wasn’t for the quick thinking Jacob did on his feet.”

“Oh what did Jacob do to help you guys out?”

“Thanks to his knowledge of the school, he showed us another way out of the class that we were locked in. The teacher flatly refused to let us out. No matter what I told her, she refused to hand over the key to the door. Jacob knew about the other door and because of that, we got out of the classroom and out of the building.”

“Trust me when things settle down I plan to talk with Principal Michaels about how Jacob’s teacher handled this. For now, let us just be thankful that you all are out and safe. Al is waiting for his grandson at their office building. He was ready to call up the Governor to ask him to send in the National Guard to pull Jacob out of there.”

“First let me thank you guys for everything you did for me. Your second day on the job and already you were put in harm’s way, sorry about that.” Jacob found his tongue. “I know none of you expected this to happen. With that said what about my friends? I am safe and they are still stuck in the school with a crazy gunman running around shooting up the place. I don’t think it’s fair they are still stuck in there and I am safe out here.”

“First Jacob your friends aren’t the only ones that are stuck in there. There are over two thousand students there and they are stuck in the building right now. That doesn’t even include the staff and teachers that work there. I am not saying this to make you feel worse. I just want you to realize how many others are still in there.

Now as far as you being safe out here with everyone else stuck in there is a concern, sorry, but Riley and his men did the job they are being paid to do. I know you don’t want to hear that, but it’s the truth.” Jacob sat back in his seat not liking the answer he got from Jackson. “Listen your friends will get out of there safe as well as the other two thousand kids. You are special Jacob, I know you don’t want to hear that, but you are. We can’t allow a crazy gunman or anyone else for that matter harm you.”

Just as Jacob was about to reply, they drove up to the front entrance of his office building. “I am glad you are safe Mr. Hernandez! Listen to your security because when it comes down to your safety, they know how to keep you safe and alive. I had the honor to work with many of the men that are on your detail and they know exactly how to keep you safe.” Benedict looked over to Jackson. “Give my regards to Al please.”

Jackson nodded his head as he got out of the SUV. They made their way into the building; Al, Gloria, Andy Sr., Jr., and Dewayne were waiting for them in the lobby. When they saw Jacob, they went running to him and pulled him into a hug. When they finally let go of Jacob, they all started talking at once.

No one stopped talking all the way to Al and Jacob’s floor. When they walked off the elevator, they continued asking questions on what happened, whom was the one shooting at the school and on and on. Finally, when they walked into Al’s office, little by little everyone stopped talking. Jacob and Riley waited until it was quiet before they answered.

For the second time in less than an hour Riley went through what happened. Jacob sat at Dewayne’s side listening to poor Riley going through the events again. Somewhere in the middle, Dewayne grabbed Jacob’s hand and held tight. At one point, Dewayne squeezed Jacob’s hand so tight; it cut the blood flow to the fingers.
“Good job Riley and your team. Thank you for getting my grandson out of there and back to us safely.” Al turned and looked at Jackson. “I want to know who this teacher is that refused to follow the protocol in place for students like Jacob and the Governor’s kids. If she can’t follow the rules, she shouldn’t be teaching at my grandson’s high school.”

Jackson picked up the phone to take care of Al’s request. “Grandpa there is no need to get anyone fired. She thought she was following procedures that were put into place in case of something like this. When it’s all over with and the dust settles, she can be informed that there are a few things different in her procedure with having someone like me or the Governor’s kids in her classroom.”

“Jacob you hate to see someone get hurt in anyway, and that’s good to a point. You are the owner of the largest corporation in this city and soon to be in the state. There is no room for you to worry about other peoples feelings. If people don’t want to follow the rules, they must pay the penalty of not doing so.”

Knowing his grandfather, Jacob knew it was better to keep his mouth shut than to argue with him. As soon as Jackson got off the phone, he informed Al that he has to go back to the school. Al was confused why Jackson had to go back.

“They got the shooter in custody and it’s all over. They need help evacuating the school and since we are there as guests, it’s right to help them out.”

“Do you know who the shooter was?” Jacob got up and walked over to his grandfather and Jackson. “Did you find out who he was and what he wanted? It looked like to me he was on a mission and the mission wasn’t to shoot up a high school.”

“Yes and you aren’t going to like the answer.” That grabbed not only Jacob’s attention, but also everyone’s in the room. “The shooter knew Alex and was after him. I didn’t get all the facts, but what I did get, the kid was angry with Alex for being gay. Not leaving the gang, but for being gay and he was willing to die to kill Alex.”

Jackson went on to tell Jacob and the others in the office who the kid was. When he said the name Ashton Rocha, no one recognized it. If it was someone form Alex’s past, he didn’t talk about him. Again, Alex doesn’t talk about anyone from the gang or any thing about that part of his life. Jacob never asked or pushed Alex to open about that part of his life because he never wanted Alex to feel uncomfortable around him.

“When you get back Mr. Jackson, you and I are going to sit down and discuss a security detail for Alex.” Everyone was surprised to hear Jacob say that. “I don’t care if I have to pay for it. Alex is going to get a security detail as well. At least until we are certain that his old life is not going to come up again. The poor guy is trying so hard to leave his past in his past, but it keeps finding a way to pop back into the present.”

“Yes sir when I get back I’ll find you so we can have that talk. For now think about how many agents you want for Alex’s detail and how do you want them around him. I recommend the fewer the better, because when there are too many agents in one area, in one group, it can do more harm than good. Again we will get into more detail about that when I get back from the school.”

Mr. Jackson walked out leaving Jacob with his family. It didn’t take long after that for Jacob and Dewayne to be alone with Al in his office. Gloria headed to the hotel to see if she could do anything to help when the others arrive. Andy Jr. had to report to the base and Andy Sr. went back to his store where he left a shift manager running things. He needed to get back there in time to make the evening deposit.

“I am glad you are safe and no harm came to you today, but we do have a lot to go over in such a short period of time. I am heading back to Austin on Friday and more than likely won’t return for several months. That doesn’t mean I am out of reach. It just means you need to get a hold of me on the company cell phones.”

“I understand grandpa, let’s get down to business.”

Al walked Jacob through the parts of the company that he ran without Jacob’s involvement. As they talked, Dewayne didn’t leave Jacob’s side. He couldn’t believe how close he was on losing the one he loves with all his heart today. They said goodbye to each other this morning, but he didn’t think it could have been the final goodbye.

When Al finished walking Jacob through the land and other items which Jacob had no idea they owned, he moved onto the car dealership. He thought Jacob wasn’t going to catch on to this part of the company as fast as he did so when they got done with it, there was some time left over before they had to go to the hotel.

“Jacob you know you are going to have to find someone to run the car dealerships like Ana is doing with the McDonalds. You will get to know some of the business, but not like a person that all he or she does all day is work in that world. I prefer it that you find someone that already knows about that world when you go looking for a VP for the dealership part of this company. That way there is no need to do a lot of training.”

Jacob leaned forward and started thinking about what his grandfather just said. He agrees with him partly, but not all the way. If he has no other choice but to hire a VP, he doesn’t want to bring in a stranger off the street into that position. Nothing against a qualified person, but that person is going to be in charge of running the everyday operations of the company as Ana does with the McDonalds.

“There are so many different sections in our company already. It’s hard to keep track of everything. Plus there needs to be a person in place in each section of the company that looks over the day to day operations, freeing me up to look at the big picture. Like you said we have Ana with McDonalds, Joe helping out with the Seven Elevens, and other personnel that don’t have the title of VP, but run departments within our company.”

Getting up from his seat, Jacob started pacing around Al’s office. When he figured out what he hopes is a solution to his problem, he walked back to Al’s desk. The only problem that he sees is selling the idea to his grandfather. There is no doubt the minute he says it aloud, his grandfather is going to shoot it down so he has to choose his words carefully and as well frame them right.

“Before you say anything in the positive or in the negative, hear me out.” Jacob looked straight into his grandfather’s eyes. “Promise me that you will hear me out?” Al agreed to hear Jacob out. “Okay I am thinking that we should move my dad out of McDonalds where he is at and over to VP of operations for the Auto Dealerships.

He has shown to us that he didn’t come down here in hopes to get rich fast. He started at the bottom at McDonalds and didn’t complain once. He worked his way up to running his own store. That promotion wasn’t made by us, but by a non-family member who has grown to depend on him in that store.

Moreover, before he came down here, he worked in a dealership up in Utah. He wasn’t running the dealership, but he did run a department, parts. It would be easy for him to step in here and take the VP position for the dealership. He can give the time that’s needed to learn everything there is to learn about the company, and he is family. I’d rather put someone in a high up position like that’s, either family or one I really know, like Ana or Joe.”

As Jacob went on explaining why he wanted his father as VP, Al sat back in his seat listening to every word. The more he talked, the more Al felt comfortable leaving Jacob by himself to run the company. He might only be seventeen, but you will never know that by the way he is talking and making his case.

“Okay Jacob I have no problem if you want to promote your father into the open VP slot. Just make sure Ana has someone to replace him before taking him away from her. Give her that respect so you don’t make her feel like nothing. She is running that part of the company very well. Just look at the money we’re pulling in.”

Jacob couldn’t believe his grandfather didn’t put up a fight to keep his father from being promoted. “By the way that reminds me about something that I have been meaning to talk with you about. I was informed by a VP from McDonald’s headquarters that they are in talks with Wal-Mart about putting a store in each Wal-Mart. I understand that they are going to make all their Wal-Marts into Super Wal-Marts.” Jacob looked at his grandfather as if he was speaking a different language.

“Don’t ask me for any details, because I haven’t been fully informed on what’s going on here. All I know is that McDonalds is among several fast food restaurants that’s bidding for that, which means more stores for us if they get the contract. I seriously don’t think any of this is going to go through, but I again I am hoping it does.

If Wal-Mart does what they say they are going to do, they are going to need to build new buildings. We own a lot of land in all the right places. Companies like Wal-Mart don’t buy the land, the rent it. That means as long as the business is there for these new stores, we are going to be raking in the cash.”

Jacob laughed at his grandfather’s expression. They finished talking about the possibilities of new stores before Jacob and Dewayne headed to Jacob’s office. He dropped off the few things his grandfather gave him before they headed out to grab something to eat and then head out to go and pick up his truck from school.

Dewayne didn’t let Jacob out of his sight for a second. Wherever he went, Dewayne was right behind him. Jacob understood why his boyfriend was glued to his side and loved it. Every chance he had, he grabbed a hold of Dewayne and held him tight. For the first time in this relationship and the one before it, he felt safe. He felt he could lean on him and Dewayne wouldn’t go running for the hills.

Instead of going straight for Jacob’s truck as soon as they finished eating, they went to the Ford Motor Dealership that Jacob owns. When they got down and started looking at the cars, no one had any idea that the young kid walking up and down their aisles was their boss, the owner. When the salesperson finally approached Jacob and Dewayne, he didn’t treat them any different than any other guest and that’s what Jacob wanted.

There wasn’t a thing that caught Dewayne’s eyes. Several times, he told Jacob he was fine driving his Camaro, but Jacob wouldn’t hear of it. He kept pressing Dewayne to get a new car, but eventually he saw in his face what he was saying. There wasn’thing on the lot he likes and didn’t want to just settle for something he didn’t really want.

Finally, when it got through Jacob’s thick head, he thanked the sales representatives that came out as they headed to the car. When they were driving out, Jacob saw his Jaguar lot through his window. He asked Dewayne to head over to that lot instead of going to the school. Once again, Dewayne tried to talk Jacob out of car shopping, but he didn’t budge.

No one met them when they drove up. The sales personnel saw them, but didn’t move from their desks. Both of the boys thought that the reason they didn’t come out to greet them is because they saw two young kids who couldn’t afford a car they sell. It didn’t bother either of them, more so Dewayne, since he had no plans on getting a car today.

Not even ten minutes on the lot, Dewayne’s face lit up when he saw a car that he fell in love with. He tried to hide it, but it was too late. Jacob saw how he lit up and now knows there is a vehicle that Dewayne likes, although he won’t ask for it.

They continued walking acting as if Dewayne didn’t light up when he did. After looking at every car on the lot, they walked in the show room to look at the ones they had on the floor. Once again, Dewayne’s face lit up, catching Jacob’s attention. The car he was looking at is almost the same as the one that’s outside, with one small difference, it was a two seater convertible.

Their attention was pulled from the car when several salesmen walked up to them. “Good afternoon, did you find anything you liked?” One of the salesmen said as he extended his hand. “Not to sound rude, but have you seen the sticker prices on these cars. There is no lowering the prices, so you might be better off going to our Ford lot and look at the cars there since they might be more in your range.”

Jacob smiled at the salesmen as he let go of his hand. “If your plan was to come over here and tell us that we are too poor to afford one of the cars off this lot, why did you even ask what you asked at first. You don’t want the answer. All you want is for us two low income Mexican kids to leave your dealership.” Jacob looked over at Dewayne. “Well one Mexican and one white kid, but the same.”

The salesmen tried to back paddle, but it was too late. He had already put his foot so far in his mouth; there is no way of getting it out. None of his fellow workers tried to help him out as well. Just like him, they stuck their feet into their mouths not realizing that they are talking to one of the wealthiest kids in El Paso. Even if he didn’t own the lot, Jacob could buy the car Dewayne likes in cash without getting into a money crunch.

“Excuse me, I said excuse me…..” An older man pushed through the salesmen that surrounded Jacob and Dewayne. “I am sorry for anything these guys may have said to you and you….” The older gentleman looked at Dewayne. “Every customer that walks onto this lot are treated the same no matter what their age or standing. Is there a car you saw that you might be interested in?”

“Come on Donald, you can’t expect to make a sale here with these two young kids. One looks like he is still in high school and the other might have just graduated, if not on his last year in high school. These two don’t have a job that brings in an income for us to even attempt to send to finance.”

“You are wrong there Bob!” Everyone turned to a gentleman that Jacob recognized from his meeting the first week he had got the lots. “Good afternoon Mr. Hernandez, I hope these guys didn’t stick their foot so far in their mouths that they can’t pull it out. They are very good salesmen and I’ll hate to have to replace them all.” The general manager extended his hand and Jacob and Dewayne shook it.

“I just walked in from a meeting that we were having over at the Ford Lot. When I saw you standing here, I had to look twice to make sure my eyes were not playing tricks on me and they were not. Is there anything you saw that you liked or were you just inspecting your lots?”

The salesmen that first approached Jacob and Dewayne’s mouths fell open. Their mouths were open so wide, Jacob couldn’t help but think he could drive a Jaguar in them. It took every bit of his power not to laugh at the scene that was unfolding before him.

“Yes there is something here that we like, this….” Jacob pointed to the car that made Dewayne’s eyes light up when he saw it. “Is it possible that you could pull the car out so my boyfriend here can take it out for a spin?” Jacob pulled Dewayne into him, which surprised him, but at the same time, he was happy that Jacob introduced him that way.

“Of course we can pull the car out so, um…..” The general manger looked at Dewayne for help on his name, which Dewayne gave. “Yes, nice to meet you Dewayne! Let me go over and get the keys to the car while my staff opens the doors so I can move it out. Please wait for me outside so you don’t get hurt while we pull the car out.” The general manager asked Dewayne to stay with the owner.

As they walked out, Dewayne leaned in and kissed Jacob on the cheek. “You don’t have to get me that car. I am fine with the car I’m driving. I don’t need a new car to make me feel any more part of you and your family.”

“I know you don’t and that’s what I love about you.” This time Jacob turned around and returned the kiss on the cheek to Dewayne. “I love you so damn much, it hurts me. All I want to do is live for you and no one else. I saw how your face lit up with the car over there.” Jacob pointed to the first car. “And your face lit up even brighter when you saw this car. Let me get you this car please.”

Dewayne knew better not to argue with Jacob and he really did love the car. “I love you too and just like you it hurts being away from you even for a moment. I can’t wait until school is over so we can spend all day and night together. There is so much I plan to do when I get you to myself all the time.” Dewayne lowered his hand and pinched Jacob’s butt.

Just as he let go of Jacob’s butt cheek, the general manager drove out. He got out of the car and held the door open for Dewayne. Once he was in, the general manager closed the door and stepped back. “I’ll get the paperwork started, but will leave the car open just in case you don’t like this one.” Jacob thanked him as they started to drive off.

A normal test drive is around the corner, about ten minutes hitting every stop light, but not for Dewayne and Jacob. Since they didn’t have a salesperson with them, they took the car on the freeway and opened her up. They were gone for over a half an hour, which didn’t worry the general manger since one of the two in the car, is the owner.

When they drove up, the salesmen ran out and met them as they were getting out of the car. They had a very different attitude than they had when they first talked with Jacob and Dewayne. Being that his boyfriend was happier than he has ever seen him, Jacob didn’t care about what had happened when they first walked in. All he cared about at this point was to make sure Dewayne stayed happy.

They were escorted to the general manger’s office where the paperwork was already done as he promised. He got up from his desk, offered Jacob and Dewayne something to drink before he sat back down. After getting their drinks, the general manager got down to business.

“So did you like how the car drove Dewayne?” Dewayne tried to conceal how much he liked it, but was unable to. As he tried to play down his true emotions about the car, his voice and face gave him away. “That’s the top of the line in Jaguar two seater convertibles we have. I am glad you like it.”

The general manager filled in the paperwork with the VIN number, make, and model of the car before handing it to Jacob. “So am I correct to assume that you are taking the car you just test drove.” Jacob answered yes, as he looked over at Dewayne and saw a big smile across his face. “Okay all I need is your signature here and here.” The general manger pointed to two different areas on a document.

“This is removing it out of our inventory transferring it to you, like a donation. The company pays what the car is worth, not what we sell it to the customers.” Jacob couldn’t believe how much difference there was between what they would pay for a car and what they sell it to the customers. “Okay before you leave I’ll have dealer plates put on the car so you don’t have to worry about purchasing plates. With the dealer plates, insurance is also in place. Is there anything else I can help you with before you leave?”

Jacob and Dewayne both got up at the same time. Jacob extended his hand to the general manager and thanked him for everything before heading out to the show room. They waited less than ten minutes to get the plates put on. While they were in the office, the car was sent to the back to get detailed and ready for delivery.

The sales personnel watched as their young owner and his boyfriend walked out of their show room. Those that didn’t like gays kept their comments to themselves. It wasn’t so much for fear of losing their job, but that Dewayne could punch them. Unlike Jacob, he is big and no one gets in his way. If only they knew, he wouldn’t hurt a fly.

“Jacob thank you, I mean, um, I really don’t know what to say.”

“Say nothing because there is no need for you to say anything. Let’s get back to the hotel so we can park the Camaro and you can take me back to school to get my truck in your brand new car.” Jacob leaned in and kissed Dewayne, but this time it wasn’t on the cheek, but squarely on the lips for the whole world to see.

It didn’t take them long to drive to the hotel, drop off the car, go to the school and pick up the truck. Within an hour and half they had all the vehicles back at the hotel and Jacob was heading into a meeting with Alex and his grandfather. Before that meeting got started, Riley pulled Jacob to the side.

“Jake there is a few things I need to go over with you before the end of the day. There are changes at the school will go in effect in the next couple of days and things you are doing that’s making my job harder. I know having a security detail takes some getting used to, and I’ll be patient. At the same time I am going to keep reminding about things that you need to be careful about that makes our job hard.”

“Before you even get started I know what you are going to say. I know I shouldn’t have taken off in the car with Dewayne the way I did or gone to the dealerships without you doing whatever you do to keep me safe. It’s going to take some getting used to, but I’ll follow the procedures that you outlined for me. Just give me time to get used to having you guys glued to my side all the time now.”

Riley nodded his head and let Jacob continue in to his meeting. When he walked into the lobby, Alex, Matt and Al were already sitting down, waiting on him. Just as Jacob sat down, Mr. Jackson walked in and started the meeting.

“Alex and Matt because of today’s events, Jacob and Al here asked me to put together a small detail for each of you.” Right away Alex jumped up and started to object. “Wait a minute before you get all testy on me with this. I understand you don’t want this and you are thinking they are going to get in your way. That’s far from the truth! At least the last part is far from the truth.

You need to look at this in several ways Alex. First, your safety means a lot to this family and they don’t want to see anything happen to you. That kid this morning got too damn close for my taste on getting what he wanted, you dead. How would your family and friends have taken it if that kid would have gotten what he wanted?”

“Not good, not good at all!”

“That’s right they would have taken it very hard. I understand why you did what you did, but in the future, you need to start thinking about everyone that would hurt if you were taken from them. You are no longer that kid I met in JD. You are the guy that your mother always believed was deep inside of you, but your father was keeping you from becoming the man you are today.

With that said, let me go over what your detail is going to consist of.” He handed both Alex and Matt a folder. Jacob looked over and knew what was exactly in the folders that were handed to them. “Your details won’t be anywhere near the size of Jacob’s, Al’s and Dewayne’s since you are pretty much always around Jacob.

Each of you will get two detail agents. One that will be around you at all times like in the classrooms or when you go to the restroom.” Mr. Jackson looked at Alex and winked at him. “The other one is going to be only a few steps behind you. They will blend in with Jacob’s detail and get their cues from them.

The only time your detail will get larger is if you separate from Jacob and go off on your own. That doesn’t include work, going to school, or going to work. Two agents are sufficient for those short periods of times you are separated from Jacob. What I am talking about when your detail is going to enlarge is when you and Matt here go on a date. Other than that, your detail will stay small.

Keep in mind that you are going to need to give me enough notice whenever you and Matt are going to be separate from the others. That way I can put together a unit for you without taking from the house, business and other details. Other than that, everything else should stay the same. Your life shouldn’t change that much.”

Alex glanced through the file that Mr. Jackson gave him. He stopped going through it about halfway because he realized that it was information he needed to read, not just glance at. He decided to put it away for now and read it with Matt when they are alone in their room later tonight.

“I understand why you are doing this, but I don’t see why you should go through all the trouble. There is no way Ashton is going to get out, so there is no one else out there now that wants to hurt me. If there was, trust me I’ll spot them before they even get close enough to harm me.”

“There are a lot of people from your past out there that want to harm you and there is no way you will be able to stop them all. You shouldn’t have to be looking over your shoulder all the time. That’s not right and no one should have to do that. No, you need this security at least for awhile until we can make sure there aren’t anymore threats out there.”

Matt leaned against Alex. “Do this and don’t give these guys any problems. If not for your peace of mind, do it for mine, your mothers and everyone around here that cares about you.” Matt kissed Alex on the lips quickly and they both looked at Mr. Jackson.

“Fine just tell me what I need to do and I’ll do it.” Alex looked over to Jacob. “Thank you for this and I promise I won’t give the security detail any problems. It will get some getting used to, but I’ll try my hardest to make their job easier.”

“Well then that’s all settled let’s move on to the introductions.” Mr. Jackson walked out of the lobby and when he returned, he returned with four young looking men, but they aren’t as young as they look. After Jackson did the introductions, everyone got up and made their way out of the lobby in different directions.

Alex asked to speak with Jacob in private, so they went up to his room. The conversation surprised Jacob, but he respected Alex and answered any concerns or questions he had. He also apologized several times. He found out, thanks to Alex, that somehow in the last couple of months he has gotten the guys at the house afraid of him. He never meant to do that, but he did.

After he finished the conversation with Alex, he and Dewayne spent what time they had left before Jacob had to go into work. Dewayne tried to talk Jacob into taking the night off, but he refused. He didn’t want what happened today to change the way he did things. That includes what he does in his private life and school life.

“Dewayne do you think I have gotten to the point that the guys are afraid of me?” Dewayne looked at Jacob stunned. “What I mean is that are they afraid to come and tell me what’s on their mind. Tell me I am being a total prick and to knock it off. I never meant for that to happen, and if that’s the case, I need to fix it.”

Jacob started to walk off when Dewayne pulled him down to the bed. “Hold your horses! Don’t throw a question at me and not let me answer it.” Jacob turned to look Dewayne straight in the eyes. “The answer to your question is no. If they have a problem, they aren’t afraid to come and talk with you about it.

Moreover, if they have a problem with something you do or say, they need to be man enough and just speak their mind. If they aren’t, then the problem must not be a problem. What I mean is that certain things bother each of us, but not all of us. You can’t always be watching yourself on what you say around the group. If you do that, you’ll go crazy.

So just do what you promised to do and not take life so seriously. If you do that, everything else will fall back into place. They do understand that you are under a lot of pressure and that’s why they haven’t come up and told you anything. With that said, they have seen the old Jacob has returned and they love it.”

Every single word that Dewayne spoke, Jacob took to heart! One thing he has in Dewayne that he never had with Joey is the ability to lean on him whenever he needs someone to lean on. Before it was Joey, and since he was his boyfriend, he was more than willing to be the shoulder for Joey to cry on. However, there were times he needed that, like now, but Joey couldn’t be depended on to be that person.

Now it’s a very different story. Jacob has seen over the last several days since he and the others have moved into the hotel how much Joey has changed. The roles have been reversed and now he sees that Joey is the one that Caleb goes to and leans on. Since he left, he has done a lot of growing up in such a short period.

Instead of showering, Jacob and Dewayne lay on their bed and cuddled with each other until it was time for Jacob to leave. When he finished getting ready, and started to head out, Dewayne joined him. Jacob grabbed his hand and held it all the way down to the lobby. Even when they stepped out of the elevator, Jacob refused to let go of Dewayne.

As they were heading out the door, a young kid from Joey’s shelter approached Jacob. Jacob has seen the kid in passing, but never talked with him. He was always afraid to say something to the young kid because he didn’t know where the boundaries were. Therefore, instead of sticking his foot in his mouth, Jacob stayed from away from conversations with the kids from New Mexico.

“Um, can, um can I speak with you, please.” The young kid stuttered. “There is some thing I need to talk with you about that I heard.”

“Of course you can talk with me.” Jacob extended his hand. “By the way my name is Jacob and this handsome guy at my side is Dewayne, my boyfriend.” Cody introduced himself as they made their way to the lobby.

“So what’s on your mind that you need to talk with me about?” Jacob looked at Dewayne. “I hope you don’t mind talking in front of my boyfriend. We don’t keep secrets from each other no matter what it is.”

“Um, no I don’t mind if he stays.” Even if Cody had not been comfortable with Dewayne there, Jacob wouldn’t have asked him to leave. “I don’t know if you are the person I should talk to about this, but I have no idea who to talk to. If you aren’t the right person, please let me know and point me in the right direction.” Jacob nodded his head.

“The other night when the police were here, I was outside the whole time while they were talking with you. For some reason when they walked out, they didn’t see me standing there, which I am used to. Many times no one knows I’m standing around whenever they are around me.

Anyways, I was standing at the corner able to hear what they were talking about. One of the policemen wasn’t happy with the other. They were arguing back and forth, about how things are being done with you. The one that wasn’t happy was threatening the other that he wasn’t going to go along with the plan. But the one that seemed to be in charge was telling the one that was refusing to go along with the plan that he had no other choice….”

“Can you tell me exactly what they were saying to each other and who was saying what in the conversation” Jacob could see that Cody was confused about what he was being asked. “You know, was it the police chief that was angry or was it one of the other cops that were with him that night.”

“I don’t know who the police chief is.” Cody scratched his head thinking that he might have made a mistake opening his mouth. “The guy with all the stars on his shirt was telling the other guy that he has to get another detective to finish what the detective that got arrested was doing. He said something about him wanting something to hurt you and your grandfather. I really didn’t understand everything that was being said, but I did get the jist of it. He basically ordered the other guy to do whatever it takes to get you and Al.”

Cody nervously went on and told Jacob everything he heard that night. He surprised himself the more he talked about it, the more he remembered what he heard that night. He remembered almost word by word. When he’d finished talking, he told Jacob everything that was discussed and was able to clarify who the police chief was talking to.

“Cody thanks for seeking me out and telling me this. I know it wasn’t easy and you had no idea who I was.” Jacob got up and shook Cody’s hand. They walked out of the lobby, and before leaving the hotel. Jacob thanked the young kid again.

Nothing was said at first when they drove out of the parking lot, heading to work. When they got on the freeway, Dewayne broke the silence. “You know you are going to have to tell grandpa about what you just were told. That Police Chief is after you for all the wrong reasons. He wants to pull down the Governor and doesn’t care who he hurts to get that done.”

“I know, but I don’t even know how to approach this subject with my grandfather. One thing I do know for sure when I tell him what Cody just told us, my grandfather is going to hit the roof. He’s accepted the Chief-of-Staff position and is going to think he is bringing problems to the Governor on his first day.”

“First of all grandpa has been working for the Governor more than a few days, maybe not in the role he is in now, but pretty close. Secondly, he isn’t bringing a problem to the Governor. By the sounds of it, it’s the other way around. The only reason this guy is after you and grandpa is because he wants to pull down the Governor.”

“You’re right; you’re right on everything you just said. The next time I see my grandfather I am going to sit down and just tell him what I was told. What he does with that information is up to him. Hopefully he will see that the police-chief is willing to break the law in order to pull down the Governor by the sounds of it.”

They talked a little bit more about the topic of the police-chief before dropping it. Instead, they started to talk about the new house. By the time they drove into work, they knocked out a few items they had put to the side they didn’t agree on. One of which was how the house was going to be set up. Who was going to stay where in the house?

“Jacob I have a funny question for you, and it might not be any of my business, but I have been wondering this ever since I moved in.” Dewayne pulled Jacob into his side. “I don’t know if I’m out of line, but I am going to go out on the limb and ask you about it.

Tom, what’s going on with him? What I mean is that he isn’t like everyone else. He wasn’t kicked out of his house or his parents moved away like David’s for a better job, but yet he is living in your house. I thought with the fire and everything he would have gone home at least until we move into our new home.”

“You know I didn’t even think about that, but you are right. Tom isn’t like everyone else. Chase’s parents pretty much wrote him off and told him that to his face. David’s father got a higher judges seat and took it and on and on. But Tom’s parents love him and never kicked him out.

I guess what happened with Tom is that he started sleeping over a couple of days a week, and then those couple of days turned to five and then the whole week. He slowly moved in and no one really noticed it or cared. I wonder why his parents didn’t object to the idea of their son moving out of their house. I’m pretty sure they didn’t give permission for that.”

“I don’t know about any of that. All I was trying to point out is Tom isn’t like the others in the house and that might be a problem later down the line. His parents could put their foot down, and that foot might land across your neck. You need to head that off and make sure Tom has permission from his parents to be living at the house and get that permission in writing. You don’t want to give that stupid police-chief anything to use against you and grandpa.”

Jacob understood where Dewayne was coming from and agreed with him. He needs to have to sit down and talk with Tom and then with his parents. It’s possible at the end of the day it won’t be Tom getting in trouble it will be him since the house is his. There is no way he is going to be arrested again for something that wasn’t his fault like the party that was thrown when he and Joey first bought the house.

Just when Jacob opened his mouth to say something, the elevator door opened. He decided to keep his thoughts to himself until he is alone with Dewayne later that night. He and Dewayne walked out of the elevator and made their way to his office. They got to work on what they discussed about the new house until Jacob’s first meeting. When Ana and Gloria walked in for their evening meeting, Dewayne stepped out.

“Jacob, how is it going to work with a McDonalds inside of a Wal-Mart?” Ana asked the minute she and Gloria sat down. “You know there is no way they are going to put a hole in their wall for us to have our drive through. In addition, we need a full kitchen and lobby. How is all that going to fit inside of a Wal-Mart?”

“Right now Ana we’re not certain yet there is going to be McDonalds inside the new Super Wal-Marts. All we know for sure is that they are still in discussion about this and we won’t know for months. I am sure if we get the contract, all your concerns and many more will be dealt with.”

They moved on to their normal meeting. It wasn’t a long meeting since Jacob didn’t ask any questions and Ana didn’t have anything of interest. When they got up to leave, Mr. Jackson was walking in. Jacob was surprised to see him. He thought everything that needed to be taken care of was done early this afternoon.

“Jacob there are a few things I need Alex and Matt to sign, but I didn’t know if you wanted me to deal with it or you wanted to.” Mr. Jackson handed Jacob the file folders. “The reason I am bringing this up to your attention is because you are the one that’s going to pay for his detail. I don’t know if you want Alex to know what it’s going to cost to keep security around him and Matt.”

“To tell you the truth I don’t even want to know what it cost to keep security around him or me.” Jacob laughed as he looked through the first file. “Look anything dealing with the cost, take it out, and only give that to me. Everything else you can give directly to Alex and Matt to sign and deal with. At no time, do I want you or anyone on your teams to let those two know what it’s costing to keep them safe. If Alex ever finds out that cost, he surely will reject the security and there is nothing any of us can say or do will get him to change his mind on that.”

Mr. Jackson asked for the files back. He went through them and took out the papers that had the costs and then handed them to Jacob to sign. The other papers he put back in the file and stood up to leave when Jacob asked him to hold on. He signed the paper work and handed it back to Mr. Jackson.

“Go ahead and give me the files and I’ll make sure Alex and Matt sign whatever you need them to sign. I’ll have them signed and back to you tomorrow morning when we go and pick up the new CEO.” Mr. Jackson nodded his head, handed the files back to Jacob, and then left the office.

As Jacob headed out of the office, Dewayne was walking back in. He turned around and followed Jacob up to the front where Ethan was sitting working on his homework. When Jacob approached him, he shut his book and got up with a worried look on his face, as if he was caught doing something that he wasn’t supposed to be doing.

“I’m sorry! I know I am not supposed to be doing my homework while at work, but it was slow. I had nothing else to do. Please….”

“Don’t worry about that Ethan; if I was in your shoes I would be doing the same thing while it was slow. Do your homework or anything else that needs done while you can.” Jacob handed Ethan the files. “Do me a big favor and take these files down to Alex and Matt. Let them know I need them back this evening all filled out.”

Not asking any questions, Ethan took the files and headed down to the print shop. When he stepped out of the elevator, he went directly to Alex’s office and found both of them talking about a print job. He knocked on the cracked open door. Both Alex and Matt looked up with a smile on their faces.

Ethan walked in and handed the files to Alex. “Jacob asked me to bring these to you and told me to tell you that he needed everything filled out and back to him yet this evening.” Alex took the files and looked into the one on top. When he realized the file he was looking at had Matt’s name on all the documents, he handed the file to Matt.

“Tell Jacob we will fill out whatever needs to be and have everything back to him before the end of the evening.” Ethan thanked Alex and headed out the door. As he was making his way back to the elevator, he decided to take a short detour and drop in to say hi to his father. He still has no idea what was going on last night, but he is hoping that whatever it was his father is ready to talk about it.

Meanwhile back at the hotel, Chase was sitting up in his room. He was the only one that didn’t go into work with the others. He felt bad, not ill, but bad because he found out that Patricia was there at the beginning of the shooting and she was thrown to the ground and hurt. Jacob’s security didn’t mean to hurt her as the shooting started, but they pushed her to the ground too hard.

He was beating himself up for everything that has gone bad in Patricia’s life recently. He felt it was his fault that she got hurt, because she wouldn’t have been there if she wasn’t expelled and she wouldn’t be expelled if she were not angry with him and tried to hit his friends. In addition, on and on his mind went, to the point he was hitting his head against the wall trying to find a way to help Patricia out.

Finally, he gave up and went down to the lobby for some fresh air. When he got off the elevator, his tongue fell out of his mouth. Standing there in the lobby was the hottest guy he has ever seen, next to Ethan. He stood there frozen in front the elevators. Chase couldn’t believe he was feeling the same feelings he had with Ethan. He thought that Ethan was the only one that could bring out these feelings in him, but boy was he wrong.

The guy standing there looking around the lobby doesn’t look much older than Chase. Chase figured he might be around eighteen, nineteen years old at the most. He has black wavy hair that’s barely past his ears in the back, which looks very hot on him, standing maybe five eight, not much taller than that.

When Chase was finally able to move, he walked over to the guy he has never seen before and introduced himself. The minute he turned around, he smiled, Chase’s heart to start so beat fast that it felt it was going to jump out of his chest. The smile alone can make anyone fall in love with him instantly. Then the eyes, man the eyes are blue, but not the normal blue you see all the time. They are a very light blue, almost grey and they sparkle as he looks at you.

“Nice to meet you Chase, my name is Marco Gonzales.” Marco extended his hand and Chase took it. When their hands touched, Chase felt electricity going through his body that no one has ever made him feel. “Do you live here with the other guys that came in from New Mexico?” Chase shook his head no, letting go of Marco’s hand.

“No I didn’t come with the guys from New Mexico. I live here in El Paso, just staying here temporarily until either we buy a new house or rebuild on the land where our old house was.” Chase couldn’t believe how freely he spoke with Marco. Never before has he opened up to anyone as quickly has he is doing right now. Even with Ethan, he held things back from him for a couple of days.

“Don’t tell me that you own the house that was burned down this last weekend.”

“I didn’t own the house, but I lived there with my best friend and a couple other guys. It sucks being without a house. This makes the second time in the last couple years I have been without a house.” Chase looked down to the ground and right back at Marco. “So are you from New Mexico and going to be living here?”

“No I’m not from New Mexico. Just like you, I’m from El Paso. I am going to live here though. I was hired today to help run the kitchen.” Chase looked at Marco trying to figure out if he was gay, bi or straight. Something he has never done with another guy that he has just met; a girl yes, but another guy no.

“So do you know how long you and your friends are going to be living here at the hotel? I am pretty sure you guys would be itching to move back into your own house again.”

“To tell you the truth I can’t wait until we do. Don’t get me wrong I’m thankful that we had a place to stay when the house burned down, but it isn’t like having your own room in you own house. We always have to be on our toes because we don’t want to wear out our welcome here. Hopefully Jacob and his grandfather can get the ball rolling and get the house built sooner than later.”

Just then, Joey walked up and handed Marco his driver’s license and social security card. He looked over at Chase and asked him if he wanted to take Marco for a tour of the hotel, Chase jumped at the opportunity to spend more time with Marco. The way Joey smiled back at him let him know he gave more away than he wanted to.

“Should I leave my bags here or what?” Marco looked around the front desk and then leaned over it, giving Chase a great view of his butt. It wasn’t a big butt, but it wasn’t a small one either, it was perfect size. The more he looked at Marco’s behind, the harder Chase got. He got so hard, he couldn’t hide it anymore.

When Marco stood up straight and looked at Chase, Chase quickly moved his hands to cover his front side. Marco’s mind was on his stuff, so he didn’t notice Chase did. He was more concerned about his stuff where to put it so it didn’t walk away. As he started to put his stuff behind the counter, Chase snapped out of it and helped him out. Once they got all of Marco’s stuff behind the counter, Chase started the tour.

Trying to take his time, Chase took him to every room on the first floor, many of which he has never been in himself. Once they finished the tour, they walked back to the lobby and grabbed Marco’s stuff to take to his room. It wasn’t a lot of work since he only had a few bags they had to lug to the second floor.

“Well Marco it was nice meeting you. If you have any questions or you just want to hang out, you are more than welcome to come up to my room. It can get boring in this place when you have no one to talk to.”

Marco thanked Chase and offered him the same thing before they said their goodbyes. Not wanting to leave, Chase made his way back to his room. Unlike earlier, Chase’s mind was filled with happy thoughts. Although he doesn’t know anything about Marco, he is more than willing to hang out with him to find out if he likes boys or girls.

As Chase was tripping all over Marco, back at the print shop Ethan was having the worst day of his life. When he got to his father’s office, he found the door cracked open and his father on the phone. At first he was going to leave, but he heard his father say his name and the tone he was speaking he didn’t sound too happy.

Ethan moved closer to the door and leaned in so he could hear his father better. He didn’t know to whom his father was speaking to right away, but it didn’t take long for Ethan to figure it was his mother. The way he was talking it couldn’t be anyone else. His father only speaks that way to his family and no one else.

“I did what you asked me to and not say a word to Ethan, but it has been a whole day and still nothing. How long do you expect us to wait for him to grow a pair, come, and tell us the truth about his life? There is no way he is going to be able to keep it under wraps the way he is carrying on in public with that…..”

“We aren’t going to have this conversation for the second night in the row. I won’t let you tear our family apart because you are being close-minded. We have spoken about this at length and we both agreed if any of our kids are gay, it wouldn’t matter. Why are you being this way now? I don’t understand any of this.”

“I have no problem with what we discussed. What I have a problem with is that Ethan is refusing to talk with us. We haven’t been bad parents that any of our kids won’t come up and tell us what’s going on in their lives. We had that closeness back home, and the only thing that has changed from there and here is the place where we live.”

Ethan had no idea what his parents were talking about. He knew for sure it was about him because his father was saying his name repeatedly, but he had no idea what his mother was saying. By the sounds of his father, she is sticking up for him. That’s not making his father happy at all.

“Damn it I am tired of discussing this issue. Either he comes and talks with us about that boy I saw him kiss after school yesterday, or I am going to confront him at the dinner table in front of his brothers. I know he wouldn’t like that, so he’d better take us to aside as soon as we get home and tell us about that boy.”

When Ethan heard his father mention the kiss he and Derrick had the day before, he started shake. He was shaking so much his knee hit the door, causing it to open. The creaking of the door opening got his father’s attention. Mr. Critchfield looked over at the door and saw his son standing there shaking and tears rolling down his face.

The only thing that came to Ethan’s mind was to run, so he did. His father called out for him, but he didn’t hear him. Mr. Critchfield dropped the phone, and went running after his son. As he ran out of his office, his shirt was snagged on the door handle, pulling him back into the office. To make matters worse, once he got his shirt off the door handle, he slipped on the floor when he reached the main hall where the banks of elevators are.

Ethan didn’t wait for the elevators and headed for the staircase. As he ran up the stairs to Jacob’s floor, he was unable to see clearly due to the tears. That didn’t stop him. All he wanted to do is get to the only person that he feels would understand what he is going through right now with his parents.

All of a sudden, he got dizzy and he could barely keep himself up, when he reached Jacob’s floor. He leaned against the wall for support and to catch his breath. Once he was able to walk again, he made his way as quickly as he could to Jacob’s office, trying not to attract attention from those that are working. The few people he passed on his way could tell that something was going on with him, but didn’t stop Ethan to find out.

He didn’t realize that he didn’t knock on Jacob’s office door; he just burst in on him and Dewayne kissing. Jacob turned and saw a scared, shaking Ethan standing there at his door. Knowing that something was seriously wrong, he quickly made his way to Ethan. Just as he and Dewayne got to him, they could hear Mr. Critchfield screaming for his son.

“Please Jacob don’t let him come back here and take me away, PLEASE!” Ethan stuttered in between his sobs.

No words needed to be said between Jacob and Dewayne when Jacob looked over at his boyfriend. Dewayne knew what he needed to do. He walked out of the office and found Mr. Critchfield limping down the hall towards him. He quickly walked up to him and asked him to turn around and head back to the lobby. Mr. Critchfield refused and demanded to be let through to talk with his son.

“Mr. Critchfield, you don’t want to do this here, whatever it is. Why don’t you and I walk back to the lobby and look at that leg. It looks like you hurt it and we want to make sure you aren’t walking on a broken leg.”

Dewayne let Mr. Critchfield lean on him for support as they made their way to the lobby, followed by several security agents. No one said a word until they reached the lobby. Mr. Critchfield broke the uncomfortable silence.

“I need you to let me back there to talk with my son. He needs to know that he has nothing to be afraid of from his mother or me. You need to let me back there…” The more he talked, the louder his voice got. Dewayne knew if he didn’t calm Mr. Critchfield down soon, the situation was going to get out of control in a very bad way.

Before Dewayne could say a word, Mr. Critchfield got up and started walking back towards Jacob’s office. Dewayne ran up to him and tried to pull him back into the lobby, but he wasn’t going to allow it. The security agents saw that, and assisted him back to the lobby kicking and screaming trying to break free.

“I want to go back there and see my son. You have no right to keep me from going back there. Let me go back there.” He kept struggling to get free, leaving the guards no other choice but to slam him into the floor. As he was being contained, the elevator door opened and Ethan’s two older brothers walked out.

“What the hell is going on here dad………..”

TO BE CONTINUED………………….

WRITER’S CORNER:

{I would like to welcome each and every one of you back to “Jacob Finding His Way”. Man, what a chapter this was filled with excitement and drama. Before I go any further, don’t forget go to the bios and look at the new character that was introduced in the chapters, Marco Gonzalez. He is a hot one even if I do say so myself!

The chapter picked up right where it left off, the shooting at the high school. Riley was able to get Jacob out of the building using the route that the Governor’s security put together. I am glad that they got Jacob out, but at the same time, I agree with Jacob that he wasn’t so special to be brought out before the others. The character of Jacob in every chapter just surprises me every time.

If any of you are confused about the floor plan and everything I talked about as far as the school, look at the main page and there you can see the entire high school. In addition, if you feel you need more detail about the shooting, you need to read “Beneath the Mask”. There in chapters forty-four and forty-five you will get a lot more detail about this.

It was good to see when Jacob got to the office his family was there to meet him. As you can see, I didn’t say his family and Dewayne because in Jacob’s eyes Dewayne is his family. Anyway they were all there and didn’t leave Jacob until they knew that he was safe and no harm had come to him.

What do you all think about the plans that Jacob and Al discussed in this chapter about their company? As I wrote out this plot, I spoke with my Editor Ed about having McDonalds in the Super Wal-Marts here in El Paso. He informed me that he has Subways in his. I always thought that all the Super Wal-Marts had McDonalds; boy was I wrong there about that.

Anyway, it happened here in our very first Super Wal-Mart in 1994. I am moving it up a little sooner, but we did have McDonalds in our Wal-Marts. What this means to Jacob is he will earn a lot more money since he is the owner of all the McDonalds in the Super Wal-Marts. Remember how much money he makes in profit within his stores. By adding more stores, he will get a lot more money.

I love that Dewayne got the two seater convertible Jaguar. Boy does Jacob love Dewayne, and he really shows it. I know you aren’t supposed to measure love by material things, but Jacob has the money and why shouldn’t he spoil the heck out of the people he loves? You know that old saying, ‘you can’t take with you’. Jacob is starting to see that.

It looks like the police chief wasn’t as smart as he thought he was. He should have made sure there was no one out there when he was talking to the precinct commander. Cody heard everything and finally went and told Jacob. I cannot wait to see what Jacob and Al do with this information. Be ready for the fireworks is all I can say about this plot.

It looks like Jacob has big plans for his father, what do you all think about that? I know many of you were concerned and wrote me when Gloria became Ana’s assistant. You were all afraid that Gloria was going to be Andy Sr.’s boss and it was going to be trouble. With Jacob’s plans, that’s all going to change. I really hope Ana releases Andy Sr. as soon as she can and that Andy Sr. takes his son’s offer.

It looks like many of your emails and comments have been answered here about Chase. By the looks of it, Ethan is not the only guy that gets Chases blood boiling. The only question I have, is Chase going to make the same mistakes he made with Ethan with Marco? Hold on here; are we putting the cart before the horse here? We don’t know if Marco is gay, bi, or straight. So all this wondering could be for nothing. Stick around in the next couple of chapters you will get your answers to your questions.

Finally let me talk about the ending. I know the curse words are flying and you are angry with me. How long did you all think this was going to stay in the background before it exploded? Man, it exploded in this chapter and I cannot wait to see how it unfolds. Is Ethan’s dad going to be one of those parents I have written about in all my stories or will he be another Francesca and accept his son? His mother is willing to so why not his dad when he seemed to be okay with having a gay son until it became reality?

As always I can go on and on about the open plots in the story! If I do that, I can actually write several more chapters. So many plots can take a turn at anytime. You might think it’s going to go one way, but ends up going another. Don‘t miss anything, or you will be kicking yourself for it.

There is a so much to answer in the chapters to come. Stick around and keep reading the future chapters, and enjoy! Please email me and let me know how I am doing at jacob@jacobmillertex.com, Thanks!}

EDITOR’S CORNER:

A busy chapter with lots of things going on and happening all in one day and the day isn’t over yet. The shootout is over, thank goodness. Where is Patricia? Chase mentioned that she got hurt so what happens there? Personally I hope it’s all over between her and Chase plus Chase looks like he has his hormones galloping again when he met Marco. (Check out his picture, he is one hot stud YUM) The whole gang needs to watch that police chief too and I don’t know about you but I had completely forgotten about how Tom arrived at the house, maybe another mystery there as well. I wish, oh how I wish I had a boyfriend who would buy me a Jaguar convertible. That’s a sign of true love if ever there was one.

Regarding Ethan, oh dear everything appears to be going pear shaped when it all looked so simple if only this sweet young guy had gone to his parents straight away after Jacob suggested it everything would have been all right. Now it looks as if World War 3 is about to start. I get the impression that Ethan is still a bit immature for his age. Let us hope he grows up quick.

Until next time take care, and don’t forget we welcome your comments and thoughts so please let either Jacob or me or even both of us, what your thoughts are.

Hugs Trevor
trevor@jacobmillertex.com