Disclaimer: This story is fiction. Some of the things that happened or will happen with Jim are inspired by bits and pieces of my life. Parts of the character is fictional as well. All other characters were made up and any similarities are just coincidental. This is gay romance between teenage boys, there may be sex, but for the most part, it's about their true love of each other so if that offends you, please discontinue reading. Also, if it is illegal for you to read such material, you have been warned. Continual reading could cause a knock at your door. And you can always contact me at zarek@roadrunner.com mailto:zarek@roadrunner.com with suggestions or concerns. Thoughts and suggestion are always welcomed and may or may not be implemented. Concerns will be considered and addressed as much as possible.
I hope you're enjoying it so far and that the story draws you in wanting more. Some people have noticed that this story was "inspired" by another story, a great story, here on Nifty, "Riding Lessons" by Andrew Todd. I hope I don't step on anyone's toes and you give this story a chance. While there may be some similarities, I believe there will be enough differences as well. Mr. Todd was given my rough draft before I made my first submission. He was flattered by the fact I like his story and wanted to refer to it. He's also flattered by those who wrote him to "warn" him about this one. All I can say is, I'm glad you are loyal to him and I hope any references I use do his story justice. If you feel that I let his story down in any way, shape or form, please call my attention to where I did.
AND, if you enjoy the stories on Nifty.org, please give a donation to help cover their expenses. While the site is currently free, only donations from loyal fans can help keep it that way. Any amount will help.
Another Chance
Chapter 29
After everyone had finished eating, Zarek took Colt to gather his things. "Just thought I'd say, you were a pleasure to have as a guest. You're welcome to visit any time," Zarek said giving Colt a hug.
"I enjoyed staying here, too. Having an actual bed and not feeling like I was worthless felt good. Heck, washing dishes without having you stand over me to make sure I did them right was different."
Zarek laughed, "I hate doing dishes. When you offered, I wasn't about to say no. And, you did a good job, too. Of course, I do have a dish washer so you didn't have to do them by hand, but I think you did a better job." Colt smiled at the compliment.
The two chatted the whole time as they loaded Zarek's Mustang with Colt's new clothes and other things that Zarek had bought for him. "I can't believe how much you spent on me. You sure I can take all of this?"
"Between my computer business and writing, this was nothing. And I bought it for you, it's yours so why wouldn't you be allowed to take it?" Zarek asked.
"I'm just not used to someone treating me so nice," Colt said with a tear in his eye.
When they got to the ranch, Jackson and Ryan helped unload the car. When they were done, Zarek was about to get in to head home. He was kind of sad losing his houseguest but he knew that was part of the foster care system. Colt wasn't the first boy to whom he had to say goodbye, nor will he be the last. "You have to leave right away?" Jackson asked.
"I don't have to, what do you have in mind?" Zarek asked.
"Well you were talking about your horse in Cheyenne. What's keeping you from bringing it to Cody?" Jackson queried.
"Just not found someone that I trust to transport him, I guess," Zarek stated.
"I've already talked with Zac, Jim and their moms. What if you used my SUV and a trailer for you to go get him? Only thing you would need to pay for is the gas," Jackson offered.
"Can I go, Dad?" Colt asked. Jackson began tearing up at Colt calling him Dad.
He hugged Colt, "I'll miss you while you're gone, Son." Colt reached up a little and kissed Jackson on the cheek.
"So, when can we leave?" Zarek asked.
"Tomorrow, one way is about six to seven hours, and I figure you'll want to spend some time with your family," Jackson suggested.
"I'm sure Jim will enjoy meeting them, too. Just think, my dad is his dad's cousin and they've never met."
"Well, Heather and Marilyn said that if you wanted to spend a couple days, they wouldn't be upset. I'll expect you back on Friday?" Jackson questioned.
"That'll be great. We can either leave right after breakfast or lunch tomorrow," Zarek said.
"Can we leave after lunch so I can spend some time with my new dads before we go?" Colt asked.
"Well, you'll have to spend time with Jackson tomorrow, I'll be at work shortly after breakfast," Ryan announced.
As usual, Zac was at Jim's house when Jackson called to let them know that the trip was on. "Well Joe, you may want to drive my car to the ranch tomorrow. Zac and I will be heading to Cheyenne after lunch," Jim stated.
"I wish I could go, too," Joe said looking down.
"I know you do, Bro. I promise, before summer is out, we'll take a trip, just the two of us," Jim said, looking at his mom for approval. Heather smiled and nodded her head. "I'm hoping that once they know we exist, maybe we can visit and get to know them. If you want, that's where we can go or we can go wherever you want provided Mom approves of our destination."
"Just the two of us? No Zac?" Joe questioned. "I wouldn't have a problem if he joined us."
"That's up to you, Bud. You want me to go, I'll go, but don't feel like you have to let me. Jim and I can spend time away from each other if you want to be just the two of you," Zac explained.
"You treat me like a brother as much as Jim does. I know there are times when the two of you want to be just the two of you, and I respect that. I'd enjoy you joining us," Joe responded. Zac started to tear up a little.
In the morning, the boys quickly tended to the horses, then prepared the SUV and trailer for the trip. Jackson called them in for lunch. "You excited for the trip, Colt?" Zac asked.
"Kinda, but I'll be glad to get back and really start my life with my new dads, too," Colt responded.
"As soon as Zarek gets here, we'll load his stuff into the SUV and be on our way," Zac stated.
The boys finished eating and Colt cleared the table. Zarek pulled up and parked his car beside Zac's truck. He popped the trunk and transferred his bag to the SUV. Everyone started getting in. "Colt, are you forgetting something?" Jackson asked.
"Have my luggage, so I don't think so," Colt said.
"Never mind, then," Jackson said as he turned away. A single tear startle running down his cheek.
The SUV started pulling out and Colt asked Zac to stop. He got out and ran up hugging Jackson. "I'm sorry, I forgot to give you a hug. I'll miss you while I'm away."
Jackson smiled. "I'm glad you feel that way. I was hoping you'd give me a hug before you left," he said, hugging Colt back and kissing his forehead.
After Colt was back in the SUV and buckled in, Zac put the vehicle in gear and headed out. Zac drove straight through, stopping only when they needed fuel. When they reached Cheyenne, it was after Zarek's family would have eaten supper, so they looked for a place to eat before continuing to the house. Zarek elbowed Colt real quick and pointed out a Wyoming's Rib and Chop House. Colt chuckled and shook his head. Zac pulled into Guadalajara Mexican Restaurant.
"Jackson told me that I can use a credit card for this meal, so what do you think?" Zac asked.
"This place looks good to me," Colt said.
"That's good enough for me. This is one of the best out of many good places to eat in town," Zarek stated.
"When we're done, you can drive to the house. I hope you know where your family lives better than I would," Zac said laughing.
Zarek smiled, "I would hope so, unless you've been stalking my family." Everyone laughed as they went in and sat down. The waitress came over.
"Been a while, Zarek. Who are your friends?" she asked.
"Hello Tonya. The handsome one is my second cousin. The other two, we just picked up along the road," Zarek said smiling.
"Umm, I think I was the driver. If ANYONE was picked up." Zac said holding up the keys.
Zarek introduced everyone to Tonya then told them that she was his high school sweetheart. "Yeah, and I'll never forget prom. Zarek came in with, what was his name?"
"His name was and is Tucker, Noah Tucker. And man is he handsome," Zarek clarified.
"So, you're bisexual?" Jim asked. "I was until I met Zac. Now, as far as I am concerned, I'm all his."
"Yeah, I'm bisexual. I was dating Tonya and Tucker at the same time, but I made sure both knew right away and that it would only be the two of them until Tonya dumped me at the prom," Zarek said smiling at Tonya.
"I was hurt that you chose to go to the prom with Noah instead of me." Tonya said defensively.
"I tried to get you to join us," Zarek stated.
"Ummm, dude, I'm only fifteen and even I know that a lady doesn't want to share her prom date, especially with a guy," Colt explained.
"I thought it would have been fun," Zarek shrugged his shoulders as he spoke.
"Dude, when you have such a pretty lady as your girlfriend, you treat her special. If I had a girlfriend as pretty as Tonya, I would try to make her feel like a princess," Colt blushed as he talked.
"How sweet, call me when you turn eighteen," Tonya said kissing Colt's forehead. Colt blushed even more.
After supper, Zarek drove to his family's farm. He parked the SUV and everyone got out. Zarek walked in the door. "Mom, Dad!" he shouted.
"We're in the kitchen doing dishes," his mom responded.
Before Zarek walked into the kitchen, he told Jim to wait a minute then follow. Jim waited and then went into the kitchen. Zarek's mom dropped the plate she was drying when she saw Jim. "Did you have a son that we didn't know about?" she asked. "He looks just like you."
"This is Jim Bolt. His dad's name was Jon and he grew up in Montana until last year," Zarek explained.
"Who was your grandpa?" Jason Bolt asked.
"His name was Grandpa Jason," Jim replied.
"So what happened to the ranch in Montana?" Jason asked.
Jim looked down. Zac could see the pain he was feeling and started rubbing his shoulders. Jim began to speak in a rough voice as he tried not to cry, "Dad was killed by a drunk driver last year. Mom tried to keep the ranch as long as she could, but when Dad died, so did the business. With the taxes and I guess Dad got a loan for something, Mom had to sell it off piece by piece to keep the bank from taking it."
"I didn't know Jim before he met me, but I was told that he was severely depressed with everything he lost," Zac started.
"I still have bouts with it, especially when I go to talk about it like now, but for the most part, I have the most amazing life. I have this really great boyfriend, a super mom and the best boss a boy could ask for," Jim gave a slight smile.
"Wish we never lost contact. I would have offered to either help your mom or bought the whole thing off of her. What's done is done, though," Jason stated. Then looking at Colt, "And are you related to us, too?"
"I was Zarek's foster son for a few days, does that count?" Colt asked.
Jason Bolt smiled, "Close enough. Guess I would have been your foster grandpa during that time." Looking at Zarek, he asked, "So, what happened there?"
"He's now living on a ranch in Cody. It'll be the same ranch that Midnight will be staying at, and." Zarek started.
"Have you boys eaten? I can heat something up for you," Zarek's mom offered.
"Thanks for the offer, but we ate. Met Zarek's old girlfriend while we were there," Colt said.
"Tonya? You know, she's still single," Zarek's mom hinted.
"And she broke up with me, Mom. I didn't break up with her," Zarek explained.
"Well, why don't I show you boys to your rooms? We have two spare rooms so I hope two of you don't mind sharing." Jason said.
"That's fine. Zac and I share a room all the time," Jim stated.
In the morning, Zarek introduced the boys to his horse. He was a black quarter horse stallion. As Zarek started to approach, he reared up and ran over to him. "Good to see you, too," Zarek said petting his horse. "Don't worry, you're going with me this time."
The horse stretched his head past Zarek's shoulder and pulled him closer as if in a hug. The horse looked at Jim, then back at Zarek. He walked over to Jim and sniffed him, then went back to Zarek. "I guess he sees the family resemblance," Zac commented.
"I wonder if Gold would see it enough to let Zarek ride him," Jim thought out loud.
"Well, Midnight sees the resemblance but as you can tell, knew who his owner is. Difference is, I know Midnight would let you ride as long as I'm around when you mount," Zarek stated.
"He sure is beautiful," Colt said.
"Want to ride him? We have enough horses that I can ride another one," Zarek offered, looking at Colt.
"Are you serious?" Colt inquired.
They prepped the horses to go riding. Zarek helped Colt mount Midnight, then got on another black quarter horse. Jim found a palomino that he wanted to ride and Zac mounted a brown quarter horse. Zarek explained that their property was more like a farm than a ranch. It was a mere fifty acres, so they would have to ride down the road to find some trails. He took point followed by Colt. Zac took the rear. Zarek led them until they got to a field.
"Mind if I see what this horse can do?" Jim queried.
"Have fun," Zarek stated. Jim challenged all of them to a race and Zarek was the only one who backed out. Midnight proved himself even with Colt on him instead of Zarek. Jim was impressed and wanted to race Gold against him. When they got back to Zarek, Midnight held his head high as if he knew he was the winner.
After making a day of it, the boys rode back to the Bolt Farm. They brushed the horses and put them away. Mrs. Bolt was setting the table as they walked in. "Supper will be in fifteen minutes. I suggest you boys go shower and change. You're NOT sitting at my table smelling like horses."
"Yes, Mom," Zarek responded. Then he went to kiss her cheek.
She started smacking him away. "Go shower first, you're not going to rub that smell on me."
Zarek laughed and led the boys upstairs. "Mom loves horses but she's not crazy about their scent. She keeps her riding clothes separate from her other clothes and won't even wash them together," Zarek explained.
As they sat at the table, Jason Bolt looked at his wife and Zarek. "I've checked into the Montana ranch while y'all were out. Apparently, Jim's mom sold to one person so the ranch is still intact as one piece of property."
"You thinking about seeing if he'd be willing to sell, Dad?" Zarek asked.
"Thinking about? No. I already called him. He's having no luck and is eager to sell. That property is worth five to six million easy and he offered to sell it to me for five hundred thousand."
"You'd be a fool to pass that up," Mrs. Bolt said.
"Glad you feel that way. I know we should have talked about it, but I wired him the money already. We take possession just after Fourth of July." Mrs. Bolt kissed her husband's cheek to show him that she approved.
"What about this place?" Zarek asked.
"If you want it, it's yours. Otherwise, I do have a guy who has been trying to talk me into selling. He offered me the same amount as what I paid for the ranch in Montana."
"Appreciate the offer, Dad, but my life is in Cody right now. Besides, this means that you're just switching properties. Sweet that you'll get paid the same amount."
"Well, your life may be in Cody, but you'll need to visit Montana from time to time. We'll actually be closer to Cody than we are right now."
"Don't worry, Dad. I'll make plans to do that."
"And Jim, I would love for you and your mom to visit whenever you want. I would love to get to know the two of you, you are family after all."
"I'd love to visit the ranch. I have so many happy memories there and a few sad ones," Jim stated. "I also have an adopted brother; if you don't mind, I think he'd love to see where Mom and I used to live."
"We'd love a chance to meet him, too. Give us a few weeks after we move in, then you can come visit any time you like," Mrs. Bolt offered. Jason nodded his head in approval.
During the remainder of their stay, everyone helped Jason and Mrs. Bolt box up items that they weren't using. The house definitely looked as though they were ready to move when Zarek started getting Midnight into the horse trailer. This trailer had two stalls so while Midnight was in the one, the tack was placed in the other. The ride home seemed longer than they remembered as everyone was worn out from their trip.
"Think I'm gonna need a vacation when we get back," Jim quipped. Everyone laughed.
"So did everyone enjoy their stay?" Zarek inquired.
"I like your parents. If Dad and Dad let me, I'd love to go visit when they're in Montana." Colt suggested.
"We'll see what we can do."
"I'm glad to meet them, too. Hard to believe that your dad is my second cousin. And I'm really glad that the family ranch will belong to the family again. Do me a favor and don't tell my mom. I want to take her there and surprise her," Jim requested.
"What are you going to do, take her for a drive and just go up there?" Zarek asked with a smile.
"Something like that." Jim grinned.
It was late when Zac pulled into the ranch. Jackson and Ryan came out to greet them and Colt ran over to hugged Jackson, then Ryan. "Thanks for letting me go, but I'm so happy to be home," Colt said with teary eyes.
"No problem, figured we'll have a long life ahead of us where we can spend time. This was time for you to spend with Zarek. We know you two got close and we don't want to do anything to ruin that friendship. It is just a friendship, right?" Jackson asked.
"Yeah, Dad, he's a guy," Colt said without thinking. "I mean, I know you and Dad are both guys, and I'm happy as long as you are, but I think I'm straight."
"Think?" Ryan asked.
"Well, I've not found any guys attractive, but I have found some girls to be attractive. And when I met Zarek's old girlfriend, I really thought she was attractive," Colt explained.
"Well, doesn't matter to us if you're gay or straight, what matters is that you find someone who makes you happy," Jackson stated.
Zac and Zarek were coming out of the barn and Colt walked over. "Zarek, when you go to Montana, if my dads let me go again, could they come?" Colt asked.
"If they want to come, I wouldn't have a problem with it."
"What's in Montana?" Jackson asked.
"Zarek's dad bought the ranch my family used to own," Jim stated. "Please don't tell my mom, though, I want to take her up there and surprise her."
"You have my word," Jackson stated. Everyone looked at Ryan.
"I'm a lawyer, I know how to keep secrets," Ryan said with a grin.
Jackson offered everyone a cup a coffee before they left, but everyone was eager to get home. Jackson and Ryan walked Colt into the house and was asking him about the trip while everyone else got in their vehicles to head home.
When they got there, Jim and Zac walked straight to Jim's room. They put their bags down and flopped on the bed. Heather came up to check on them and they were sound asleep. As careful as she could, she pulled their boots off and kissed them both on the forehead. She closed the door and she went back downstairs.
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