Beneath the Mask

Beneath the Mask 42

Written by J.P.G.

{"Beneath the Mask" is pure fiction. As I am writing this story, I am above the age of 21. If you want a story with lots of sex, look elsewhere. This is a love story. Seeing as it is a love story, sex is in there, but it's in realistic balance in the characters' lives.

Any similarity to any real events, names, or life events is purely accidental. If you are underage, (according to your state laws, a minor), if this literature is offensive to you or to anyone around your viewing area, or it is illegal for you to view such content where you are reading it, stop reading the story.

This story cannot be distributed in any way, shape or form without the author's expressed written consent.}

Story Written by: J.P.G.

Love Scenes Written By: Daddy Rick

Edited By: Daddy Rick

Edited By: Ed

Chapter 42

As soon as Franseca got the last dish from the table, her sisters walked in to help with the cleanup duty. At first, no one said a word they just went to work on doing the dishes and cleaning up any mess that was made while the boys were eating dinner. When Franseca finished the last frying pan, her younger sister spoke up.

"We know that we promised to stay here and help out with the house, but we need to get back to our husbands." Franseca's younger sister whispered in Spanish. "Our husbands need us to be there when they get home from work. You know how it is. But we have a favor to ask you, and we know we are going to be asking a lot."

"Go right ahead, ask me and if I can do it, I will."

"We already registered our kids go to school here at Morehead Junior High School. It would be good if they can continue attending school here. As you know, the schools in Juarez are not nearly as good the schools here in El Paso. Plus it is free for them to attend school here, where back home, we have to pay for it."

Looking over at her sisters, she knew what to do. "Of course, they can stay and attend school with my two youngest. In fact, I think it is best for them to continue going to school here than to drop out and transfer back. You know as well as I do know what makes it past middle school down there. We want our kids to have a lot more than we ever have and that comes with education."

Franseca made a pot of coffee for her and her sisters to drink as they continued to talk about when they plan to go back home and when they are going to return. As far as going home, they would like to leave Sunday. Now, as far as coming back, they really do not have any intentions of returning, and kept using their husbands as an excuse. She has it all figured out and has no problem with any of it, but wishes that her sisters would tell her the truth. That way she can plan that her nephews will pretty much become her sons.

Meanwhile back outside, Alex was trying to figure out who was behind the steering wheel of the vehicle that just drove up. With their lights on high beam, it is making it hard for Alex to see anything past the glare. The more he tried to look past the light the harder it was. Then out of the corner of his eye he saw a shiny object glaring back at him, which got his heart pumping.

After asking, the third time on who was there a voice that he recognized answered him. "Alex I have been circling around the block for the last hour waiting for you and Matt come home. You guys must have worked later than normal." Breathing in a sigh of relief, Alex shook his head.

"Noah you scared the shit out of me!" Alex lowered his arm from his face. "Why don't you just turn off those high beams and come on over. You are very lucky that I'm not the old Alex because I would've started shooting and asked questions later. You should never sneak up on somebody the way you just did."

Leaning in to his car, Noah cut off his engine and turned off his lights. "What do you mean sneaking up on you?" Noah laughed as he walked up to Alex. "I didn't want to stay parked in the street, because someone might think I am trying to rob someone and call the police on me so I decided to drive around until I saw that you guys got home."

"Never mind about what I just said. Let me gather my stuff, and we can go ahead and go inside so you could talk with Matt." Alex tapped on Jeremy's shoulder and signed to him that it was time to go back in. Jeremy refused at first but after Alex asked the second time, he picked up Cupid and followed him in.

Before leaving Jeremy, Alex made sure he was okay with coming in. When he was positive that Jeremy was fine, he let him go upstairs and get ready for bed. As he and Noah started their way down to the basement, Noah stopped Alex and asked speak with him in a private. Alex had no problem, and they walked to the den instead.

"I talked to Matt's parents yesterday to see why they are refusing to acknowledge their own son. I told them how good he has turned out, and everything he has done. It took a little time, but by the end of our conversation, I talked them into seeing Matt. The question I have for you is; do you think that Matt will be willing to see his parents."

Alex understood why Noah did what he did, but he should have run it by Matt first before going to his parents. "To be completely honest with you, I really can't tell you one way or the other how Matt might react to this. One thing I have learned about Matt is that he likes things run by him before acting on them. You went to his parents first and neither of us really knows how complicated that relationship really is. The only thing we know for sure is that neither side is talking."

Noah sat down on the couch and started to think over what Alex just told him. Everything that Alex said is ringing true. He knows his cousin and what he did he knows his cousin will not approve of it. At the time, it seemed like a good idea, but now as he thinks more about it and hearing Alex's thoughts he realizes it was a bad idea.

"I should have kept my mouth shut. Don't tell Matt anything that I told you." Noah looked at Alex pleading eyes. "I will come up with something to tell his parents that won't make him into the bad guy. Right now, I don't know what it is, but I will figure it out."

Not having a problem with that, Alex agreed not to say a word. They walked out of the den and headed down to the basement. When they got down to the game room, they found Matt playing video games with Ismail and Lorenzo. At first, Alex didn't see Lorenzo's arm as his mind was looking for his two little cousins. He thought that maybe they had heard him coming in, so they are hiding somewhere to try to scare him.

When Matt saw Noah standing there watching him, he jumped up from the ground and hugged his cousin. That is when Alex saw his little brother's arm in a sling. He quickly walked over to Lorenzo and knelt down. As he checked out his little brother's arm, he could see he was causing him some pain, so he stopped.

"What did you do Lorenzo? Please don't tell me it was another fight because if it was, you and I are going to have a different talk than we did before."

"No I wasn't fighting again Alex. Why did you have to go there right off the bat? You hated it when mom and dad did it to you, so why are you automatically thinking I am up to no good." Lorenzo sat down on the beanbag, looking at Ismail playing the video game.

Alex sat down on the floor next to Lorenzo trying to regroup. Lorenzo hit him where it counts and he is right. Alex hated it when his parents automatically went to the assumption he did something wrong whenever he walked in with scrapes and bruises. It used to get him mad, and here he is doing the same thing to his little brother.

"Lorenzo, I'm truly sorry for assuming wrong before hearing what actually happened. I promise that I will try to not do that again. That doesn't mean I am going to stop, but when I do, you, tell me." Alex playfully punched Lorenzo on the cheek. "That's the only way I am going to stop being dad. Yuk, who wants to be dad, surely not me!"

Alex pretended to throw up, and it was not long before his brothers joined in. Ismail put his game on pause, and ran at Alex to tackle him. To make Ismail feel good, Alex pretended that he was got him by falling back on his back and letting Ismail playfully punch him up and down his chest and midsection.

Back at the pool table, Noah and Matt were catching up. The first night that Noah showed up, it was uncomfortable for both of them, since they had not talked for a while. Now that the ice has been broken, the hard part is over. They are now able to talk with each other like the old days, like brothers.

At first, they talked like new friends staying on safe subjects like their school year and their personal relationships. Even dealing with personal relationships topic, Matt stayed vague on it. He still does not know one hundred percent that his cousin is comfortable hearing anything about two boys being together.

"Do you remember when we were young Matt and we talked about getting away from here? We wanted to get out of here so bad that we went as far as talking about the military. Can you imagine us in the military running around the desert with M-16's in our hands?" Noah slapped Matt on the arm as he laughed.

"Yeah me in a uniform, that will be a sight to see! The way life has turned out since we were kids that would be the last thing that would happen. I did get away from my house, not the way we talked about, but I got away from it. And if you ask me if I will ever go back if given a chance, I would say not just `no', but `hell no'!"

"I don't blame you Matt. It was hell in your house and I never understood why your parents were the way they were with you. They treated you so badly. Even before you got into trouble and you coming out, they treated you like crap. I wanted to be there for you when I saw that happening. I really wanted to pull you out of that house and save you, but I was too young and still am."

Matt knew that his cousin wanted to help when he was going through hell at the hands of his parents. At the same time, he knew that his cousin couldn't because they were almost the same age. How could a little kid help another little kid? Simply put he could not. Matt never held that against Noah because Noah did try to do what he could. Just talking to him about being somewhere else instead of where they were meant a lot.

"You know what I find funny Noah?" Noah looked at Matt, but didn't say anything. "We both almost grew up in the same kind of house. Yours was not physically abusive as mine was, but it was verbally abusive. Sometimes that is actually worse than physical, but you were always there for me. Thank you and I will never forget everything you did for me as we grew up. Even more so now that you are the only one in my family that's willing to talk with me knowing what you know, thank you!"

The two boys hugged for a few minutes. When they broke the hug, they switched the conversation to better times. Noah is the youngest son of five boys his parents had. The house he grew up in was always a zoo. His father worked long hours so his mother didn't have to. His father wanted his mother to be at home taking care of the kids, at least that's what they said all the time. His brothers use to tease that it was for another reason and laughed about it.

At first, Noah did not understand what they meant with what they were saying as they teased about their parents. They would say their father wanted their mother to be `barefoot and pregnant' all the time. He heard his brothers say that all the time and didn't understand it until he got older and learned that many small town, blue collar families were set up the way his was. The husband works and the wife was always pregnant and at home taking care of him and the kids. It was a carryover from the traditions of the 1940's and 50's.

At first, his life wasn't bad growing up. Yes, he got all the hand-me-downs since he was the youngest of the five boys but he didn't care because he didn't know anything different. His younger childhood was happy. When he was not hanging out with his brothers, he was hanging out with his cousin Matt.

As they got older, that changed. His brothers got girlfriends or their own lives and did not want to have their younger brother hanging around with them all the time, so more and more he and Matt started hanging together. It got to the point that Noah's brothers started teasing that they were gay boyfriends. Once again, Noah had no idea what they meant when they teased him and his cousin, but it was not long before Noah figured it out.

It did not bother him because it wasn't true. Yes neither of them had a girlfriend until the middle of their freshman year, and that was Noah. Noah was in ninth while his cousin Matt was still stuck in junior high school in eighth grade. Since they were no longer going to the same school, Noah started making new friends and ultimately he met his first girlfriend. With her, he spent less and less time with Matt, which he regrets now because he left his cousin by himself in that house.

Even though his household was no picnic, his cousin's home life was worse. All Noah got was verbally abuse from his older brothers and his father. His mother never stepped in to stop it because she felt it was not her place, so Noah had no other choice but to take the abuse.

He didn't care about the abuse and ignored it. Whenever he was not with his girlfriend or his new friends that he made his freshman year, he went into his own little world while his brothers and at times his father picked on him. By him going into his own little world, it pissed off his family even more. In return, they picked on him even worse.

That wasn't anything compared to what Matt was getting at his house. There were evenings at the dinner table he would hear his father talk about his cousin. Matt's parents already knew that they had a gay son way before Matt came out and they tried everything they could to change that. When they could not, they pretty much treated Matt as if he didn't exist. He was a ghost in his own house.

When Noah heard that, it got to that point he felt somewhat relieved because at least Matt wasn't getting beaten anymore. It looked like those days were behind him. Then he thought more into it and came to a different conclusion; it was worse. He was shunned by his own parents and no kid deserved that, no kid!

As the days turned into weeks, and the weeks turned into months, Noah and Matt grew further and further apart. Whenever Noah wanted to go and hang with his cousin, he was told either he could not by his father, or his brothers would tease him so bad that even going into his own little world couldn't block out their teasing.

His father set his foot down and told Noah that he is no longer allowed to be around his cousin. His reason behind that demand was the stupidest reason Noah had ever heard. His father thought if his own sons would hang around Matt, they would catch being gay and start loving boys, which is untrue and stupid at the same time.

His brothers felt the same way, but went even a step further. They already thought that Noah had caught Matt's `disease' and there was no saving him. So the teasing got to the point that at times it got physical between them. That is something that Matt doesn't know and if Noah can help it, he will never find out. It will hurt Matt too much.

By the end of the day, all that Noah wanted to do is get out of that house. He worked his butt off at school and got straight A's. He had the third highest GPA in his graduating class. That got him a full scholarship to college. That did not include room and board, so Noah works in the kitchen at the college to pay for that part. He didn't care because all he wanted to do is get out of his house once he went to college and when they offered him the kitchen job to let him live on his own, he jumped at it.

All through this, the only thing Noah regretted was allowing his brothers and parents to pull him apart from his cousin. He does not care if his cousin loves boys, girls or animals, he still his cousin. That is all that mattered and that is what he should have said to all those who were mandating him to stay away from Matt. Not anymore though, he made up his mind that he is no longer going to let anyone tell him whom he can or can't hang around.

In the next room, Lorenzo and Ismail finally got off their older brother and returned to the game. Alex sat and watched for a few minutes and then decided to go upstairs to see if Jacob was busy. He has been meaning to talk with Jacob about Ron's death but just hasn't had the chance with everything else has been going on at the house.

As he walked out of the room, he noticed that Matt and Noah were deep in conversation and didn't want to disturb them. He quietly walked by them and made it to the stairs without them noticing. When he reached the top of the stairs, he turned around, one last time to make sure he didn't disturb his boyfriend as he talked with his cousin.

Just as Alex made it up the stairs, he saw Jacob walking towards the TV room. Jacob looked mad, but at the same time, he looks sad. Alex stood at the entrance of the basement fighting with himself whether or not to go in talk with Jacob since he doesn't look like he is in a talking mood. Finally, after a few seconds going back and forth, Alex decided that he should to speak with Jacob about what is going on with the funeral.

Closing the basement door, Alex made his way to the TV room. When he looked in the only saw Jacob and Dewayne sitting there watching television. He noticed that neither of them was really paying attention to what was on the television. They were paying attention more to each other in loving and caring ways and ignoring the TV.

Clearing his throat, Alex got both Jacob's and Dewayne's attention. "I'm sorry for disturbing you, but there is something I need to speak with you about, Jacob." Looking straight into Alex's eyes Jacob just nodded his head. "I don't know if Matt has told you or not, that Ron has passed away."

Hearing the news about Ron passing away got both Jacobs and Dewayne's undivided attention. They both knew that Ron was ill, but they did not think he was that bad off. The worst they thought was going on was that Ron was tired and all he needed was rest. They never thought that he was to the point of death.

"I had no idea that he was that sick. The last time I saw he looked tired, and that is it. He didn't look sick or anything like that." Jacob got up from the couch and walked over to Alex. "Name it and if I can do it, I will help".

"I know if I need you, you will be there. Right now, what I need is to let you know that he has passed away and that the funeral is scheduled for Monday. I do not know the exact time yet, but it is in the afternoon. Of course, you and everyone pretty much in this house are invited to attend the funeral. I know it's something that none of us look forward to, but I think Ron would appreciate it if you all would come."

Jacob nodded his head as he patted Alex on the shoulders trying to console him. "Oh, one last thing Jacob, Ron has left Matt and me a little money. It is enough to pay you in full, everything we owe you on the house and the money you fronted for the business. As soon as we get the money, you will get your money."

"You know you don't have to do that with the money Alex. What you should do with that money is save it for a rainy day. You would never know when you need a chunk of money for an emergency. Trust me when I say that because I have learned it the hard way." Alex looked at Jacob with a confused look on his face. "I know this coming from me sounds weird since I have a little money in the bank. But at one time remember, I didn't have that and I wish I had."

"I understand where you're coming from Jacob, but please understand where I'm coming from. You did us a big favor by fronting the money to get the machines and get the business up and running. Then, you go in front of us the money for our own house. Please don't get me wrong, Jacob. We are very thankful for everything you have done for us, but it wouldn't be right if we get this money and not pay you back we owe you. Trust me Jacob, we have enough to pay you back the debts that we owe you and still have a little bit of money to put in the bank to fall back on."

"I will not stand here and try to tell you what you should or shouldn't do with your money. That is not my right to do. If you and Matt agree are paying my grandfather and me back on the money that we fronted, heck hand it over. You will never find me denying anyone that wants to give me money!" Jacob cracked up laughing, which lightened the mood in the room.

"You can count me and all the guys here in as far as attending the funeral. It is the least we can do for Ron, and everything he has done for you." Jacob quickly looked over at Dewayne and back at Alex rubbing his forehead. Both Alex and Dewayne were not only confused on what Jacob was doing, but they looked at each other to see it either of them knew what he was thinking.

"I have an idea Alex, but you have to give me until Monday to find out if I can get it to work. I do not want to say something here and put somebody else in a bad position before asking that person if I can offer this. There's no doubt in my mind he will say yes, but out of respect, let me talk to him first and then I will tell you what I'm thinking. Trust me if he says yes Alex, it's going to be a beautiful funeral."

Not wanting to press Jacob on what he was thinking, Alex just let it go. He nodded his head, thanked Jacob for everything, and left the TV room. As he was making his way back down to the basement, Matt and Noah were coming up the stairs.

"Where did you take off to Alex? I was starting to get worried when I didn't find you with your brothers." Matt stopped Alex on the staircase. "We didn't mean to go off in our own little world without including you. It's just the conversation took on its own life, and before we knew it, we had been talking for hours."

"Don't worry about that at all Matt. I certainly understand that you two wanted and needed to catch up. Heck, you two have not talked in what I understand for couple of years. There is a lot to catch up with when people don't talk with each other for that long period time. So don't worry about it. I certainly understand."

"You are a pretty cool guy Alex. Thank you for letting my cousin and I talk by ourselves. It meant a lot to me, and I'm pretty sure it did to Matt too." Noah extended his hand and Alex shook it. Matt leaned in and kissed Alex on the lips before heading upstairs to walk his cousin to his car.

Nothing more happened throughout the evening. Seeing how Jacob and Dewayne were with each other when he first entered into the room, it got Alex and the mood for cuddling and eventually, hopefully, lovemaking. That all depends on Matt as far as lovemaking is concerned, since he had a very emotional evening with his cousin.

As soon as he saw his cousin off, Matt joined Alex in their room. At first, they just held each other making out, but they got so horny, they couldn't keep their hands off of each other. They kissed so passionately, they knew they couldn't hold themselves back. Little by little, they were taking each other's clothes off and before they knew what they were on their bed as naked as the day they were born. They were rolling back and forth with one on top one moment and then the next.

They were making out heavily with their hot packages grinding together. Precum was making things slick enough for some real hot stimulation of the two stiff cocks.

At this point, Alex was on the bottom and he opened his legs inviting Matt to enjoy him in any way he wants. Matt slid down quickly with no hesitation and took Alex's cock all the way deep in his mouth. Alex groaned in pleasure and thrust his hips upward to feed all of his cock to the hungry mouth of his lover. As Matt was sucking, he slipped his hand down and found Alex's love opening and gently yet firmly massaging the opening.

Alex's responses were just what Matt was hoping for as he let his cock slip out of his mouth and then tongued his balls. Matt worked his way back until he reached that treasure spot. Alex had pulled his left leg up giving Matt easy and full access to his hole and Matt wasted no time in diving right in. It didn't take long for Matt's attentions to have Alex in deep desire for the big event.

Alex was able to reach the nightstand drawer, get the KY tube, and get a generous glob of the lube on his fingers. When Matt came up for air, Alex lubed his hole. Matt noticed what was going on and moved up so that Alex could lube his cock too.

As soon as things were properly prepared, Matt moved in with determination to fulfill his lover's desire. He knew that Alex was well prepared and ready so he placed his cockhead at Alex's entrance and pushed in burying himself in one full thrust. Alex groaned loudly with pleasure as he felt Matt's cock filling him.

Once in all the way, Matt began long thrusts, slow at first, gaining speed and power until both lovers were in sync and enthralled with the sensations that this type of love making generates. With each inward thrust, Matt's cockhead was making perfect contact with Alex's hot spot. This caused Alex's cock to ooze and incredible flow of precum.

Matt increased the intensity and speed and that brought Alex to the edge. As the lead up to cumming went along, Alex's body tensed and gripped Matt's cock bringing him right up with Alex. Matt let go with a guttural growl and began pumping his load deep into Alex. As soon as Alex felt the first shot of hot cum, his cock began shooting between their two bellies. The waves of orgasm kept washing over them time and time again. As the waves subsided, Matt's body came down on top of Alex, both boys still breathing very hard and both were soaked in sweat.

Nature being what it is, Matt's cock softened and slipped out of Alex. Matt rolled off to the side and both boys laid there working to catch their breaths and waiting for their heart rates to come back into the normal range.

Matt turned his head and met Alex's gaze. Neither of them had to say a word. The eyes said it all. Matt leaned in and gently kissed Alex' lips and got just the response he wanted and needed. It was not long and the couple drifted off into that unique and wonderful sleep that follows mutually satisfying lovemaking.

For the first time ever, Alex and Matt woke up before anyone else in the house. They even surprised themselves since they had a night of heavy lovemaking that was long overdue. Now they still had many errands to do for the funeral.

In order to save time they took their showers together, which was a mistake, because they couldn't keep their hands off of each other. After they brought each other up to climax letting each other shoot two more times, they finally washed up and got out of the shower.

With big smiles on their faces, they dressed and but got hard once again as they watched each other run around the room in their birthday suits. When they finally got their boxers on, they both struggled to put their hard dicks in them. Then when they put on their pants, it was even worse since it was confining their family jewels even more.

When they finally got upstairs to the kitchen, they were even more surprised to find that Franseca wasn't awake yet so they settled for cold cereal and orange juice for breakfast. As soon as they finished eating, they put their dishes in the sink and Alex wrote a note for his mother to read when she got up. He didn't want her to worry about where he and Matt have taken off to.

The funeral home that Ron picked was not that far from Jacob's house. It didn't take more than ten minutes to get there. As soon as they parked and walked in, they were met by one of the funeral directors. Alex introduced himself and Matt before letting the funeral director know why they are there.

"Ahh so you are the young men that Mr. Baird left in charge of his funeral. If you don't mind, may I see some form of ID before we go any further? Several of Mr. Baird's family members have attempted to come in and claim they have authority over decision-making dealing with his funeral."

Understanding why the funeral director was asking for their IDs, neither Matt nor Alex had any hesitation showing their IDs. After looking over the IDs, the funeral director handed them back to the boys and waved into the back room. He asked Alex and Matt take a seat on the couch as while he gets Ron's file.

"It looks here like Mr. Baird has taken care of everything. He picked his casket, his plot, where he is going to be buried and what kind of service he wants. He also left strict orders that none of this is to be changed, no add-ons, or takeaways so there's really nothing more we can talk about since he left these instructions."

"We had no plans to change anything that Mr. Baird set up." Alex looked at Matt and back at the funeral director. "All we want to do is make sure that you don't need anything from us as far as getting his body or anything else dealing with the funeral. I understand from his family you told them that the funeral going to be on Monday afternoon is that true?"

"Yes, that's the only bit of information I was able to give to non-decision-makers dealing with Mr. Baird's funeral. What we discuss can only be discussed between us. Like the instructions Mr. Baird left, details of the funeral and things like that. That time and day of the funeral I can tell anyone that calls asking about it, but nothing more."

"Once again we have no problem with that at all. Since Mr. Baird has done all the work, all we will do is sit back and let you do what you need to do to fulfill his requests. There is no need for us to come down and be asking you questions about the funeral or how things are going. Just remember if you run into problems you get a hold of me or Matt at this number." Alex wrote down the number to the house on a piece of paper and handed it to the funeral director.

"Thank you and if I come up with any questions or problems, I will contact you gentlemen. I don't see that happening, but I promise I will call if needed."

Since there wasn't anything more that needed to be discussed, they thanked each other for their time and parted ways. When they got back home, they found that everyone was still asleep. Alex walked over to where he left his mother the note and found it just as he left it. He picked it up and put in his pocket as he headed downstairs with Matt.

Not meaning to, the boys laid down on the bed to just cuddle but landed up falling back to sleep. The next thing they knew Lorenzo and Ismail came running into the room yelling and screaming. Both Alex and Matt jumped up thinking there was something going on, but found that the younger Garcia's were just playing around.

As soon as their hearts stopped beating out of their chests, Alex and Matt jumped out of their bed and chased the younger Garcia's up the stairs. When they reached the kitchen, they found almost everybody had woken up and made their way to the breakfast table. Giving up the chase, they sat down and joined the others. Soon after they sat down with Jacob and Dewayne found their way to the table.

Alex kept looking at both of them and realized that he and Matt were not the only ones in the house that had sex last night. The way they were looking at each other and the glow in their faces gave them away. Alex looked over to Matt and hoped that they were not glowing like Jacob and Dewayne. He doesn't want the entire house to know that he and his awesome, handsome boyfriend were intimate with each other the night before.

As they ate, they tried to make plans on what they are going to do through the day but no one could agree on any one thing so they decided to just bum around the house and pretty much just relax, which was out of the ordinary. Normally no matter what, they always come to an agreement on what they should do with the day.

Figuring that since they have pretty much done everything and done it so many times it's now boring, Alex thought as he looked around the table at the blank faces. Not wanting to push the envelope Alex went along with the general decision of doing nothing but relaxing. In fact, he liked that because he can spend more time with Matt, hopefully alone.

What Alex wanted and what he got were two different things. After spending time with Jeremy and then his little brothers, Alex went and met Matt in their room. Just as they started to undress each other, there was a knock on their door. At first, they whispered to each other to ignore it and the person at the door will go away but that didn't happen. Whoever was at the door was not going away. They kept knocking and knocking.

Alex had enough and yelled out to whoever was at the door to go away. He heard his little brothers voice apologize and then him walking away. Alex knew that he hurt Lorenzo and really felt bad about it. Quickly he put on his shirt, zipped up his pants, and went running after Lorenzo.

Lorenzo heard his brother yelling for him so he stopped at the base of the stairs. "I am sorry for reacting the way I did when you came knocking on the door. It's sometimes Matt and I would like to spend time alone with each other. Just as you want some of my time, Matt wants some too. But I should not have talked to you or anyone the way I did and I'm sorry for that."

"That's okay I understand that you and Matt want to spend time with each other. The only reason I knocked on your door is that Jacob wants to talk to everybody upstairs. It looks like he figured out something for us to do but he won't say what it is."

By looking at his brother's expression on his face, he was able to tell that he was telling the truth. Alex said that he would go and get Matt and meet him upstairs and just a few minutes. Nothing else was spoken between the two as they headed off to different directions. As Alex walked to his room, he still felt bad on the way he talked to his brother through the door.

When he opened up the door, he found Matt on the bed completely naked with just a pillow covering his private area. Before Alex could say a word, Matt removed the pillow, and his dick stood straight up. That automatically gave Alex a hard on. His dick pressed against the fine cloth of his boxers trying to get free.

"I see Alex Junior wants to come out and play with Matt Junior." A Matt started to laugh as he tugged on his cock.

"That's no lie that Alex Junior wants to come out and play, but he can't. Man do I wish he could come out and play, but Jacob is asking for us to go upstairs because he has figured out what we can do." Alex pushed down his cock, but it sprung right back up. No matter what he did, he couldn't get his dick to go down.

Matt wasn't happy either, because he wanted to spend time with his boyfriend alone. He got off the bed and started getting dressed. Just like in the morning, Matt had to fight to get his hard dick to go inside his boxers. Once again, when he put back on his jeans it made it even worse because they confined his very hard dick in a small space.

Once they felt they were presentable and their dicks went semi-hard, they headed upstairs to join the others. When they finally got upstairs, they found everybody running down the stairs or ready to go. Shortly after all the guys gathered at the front door, Jacob and Dewayne came down the stairs. Just as they were coming down the stairs Franseca, Alex's family, Gloria, and Andy senior were coming down the hallway from the kitchen.

When they walked outside, Jacob realized that not everyone is going to fit in one vehicle. He tossed Tom the keys to his Camaro and instructed his mother and father to go with his grandmother and one vehicle and anyone else that didn't have a ride to go with Alex and his family in their SUV.

Once they were settled into their vehicles, they all lined behind Jacob struck and followed him without question. As they got on the freeway, Alex kept asking Matt, what he thinks Jacob is up to, but Matt just shrugged his shoulders. They in return asked Francesca, but just like them, she didn't know.

Having no other choice but this a go along for the ride. Alex changed the subject and started talking about Ron's funeral. Franseca listened how the funeral was going to happen. When Alex mentioned that they were going to have to take half of their school day off on Monday in order to attend the funeral, Franseca had no problem with that. She gave permission for them to miss school that day.

As they were finishing their conversation dealing with the funeral, Jacob had taken an exit off the freeway. There were in between downtown and central El Paso, which confused Alex even more. There is nothing here as far as parks, golf courses, or anything like that for them to go to. This made Alex even more anxious than before to find out what Jacob has in store for them.

They did a U once the light turned green and landed on the Gateway West and then they turned into the parking lot of a hotel that has been closed for over a year now. As soon as they parked their vehicles, everyone got out. Alex looked around the parking lot and immediately recognized Joey's truck.

Alex could see he was not the only one that recognized Joey's vehicle in the parking lot. Several of the other guys recognized it as well. "By the looks of some of you are piecing things together where you're at." Jacob started to explain to the group. "This hotel my grandpa bought and donated to Joey to use as a shelter for gay teens that find themselves without a home.

I know you guys would want to help them get this place up in going so I figured why not come on down and do just that. Joey started to move in last weekend, and I am sure there is a huge mess in there that we can give a helping hand with. Plus we can hang out with an old friend that has returned back home after being gone for a few months."

Everyone looked at each other, but no one objected on helping out Joey. They headed in an almost immediately they were greeted by a teenage boy they did not recognize. Alex couldn't help himself when he chuckled at what the kids said to them as he walked up. "I am sorry but this isn't a hotel. If you are looking for rooms you will need to go down the street to the Motel 6."

Alex was not the only one that got a kick out of what the young teenager said. Jacob as well cracked up laughing as the kid pointed to the street. Then a familiar voice informed the other guys that they were not looking for room. Caleb pushed his way through and greeted everyone.

As soon as everyone greeted Caleb, Jacob explained why they were there. Just as the last word left his mouth the elevator sounded, the door opened and Helen and Harold walked out. They immediately saw the group and came walking towards them with a big smiles on their faces. Helen and Harold greeted those of the group they knew and those that they didn't, Jacob introduced.

Once the introductions were done, Harold invited everyone to the penthouse just as Caleb did. Harold informed Jacob that that is where Joey is. Before Jacob could reply, the elevator door opened once again and this time Joey walked out with several other kids. Just like Harold and Helen before, when Joey looked over and saw Jacob and gang, his face lit up. He stopped talking to the guys at he came down with and walked over and greeted everyone.

"Man, I was just thinking of you guys!" Joey could not get that big grin off his face. "Now here you guys are standing in the lobby of the shelter. Why are you all here? I hope nothing has gone wrong or anyone is hurt."

After calming Joey down, Jacob explained for the third time why he and the others had come down. Joey, Harold, and Helen welcomed the help. Not wasting any time, they split into groups. Alex, Matt, Chase, David, and Tom were instructed to help Janet, Gary and some of the boys to take their furniture and stuff up to their floor. The other split up to other groups and helped elsewhere in the hotel.

When Alex came back down to pick up another load of boxes, he recognized the person sitting in the couch in the lobby. Slowly he walked up and tapped Bobby on the shoulder. Bobby quickly turned around and when he saw Alex standing there behind him he jumped up from the couch. They greeted each other by the old handshake they used to do in the neighborhood before getting down to business.

"Don't get the wrong here on what I'm about to ask because it is great to see you but what are you doing here?" Alex looked at Bobby with a look not of anger, but it wasn't a look a friend would have towards another friend that just came home after being gone for several months or years.

"Judge Evans, put me into a pilot program that just got started here in El Paso. I was in court yesterday morning and got out yesterday evening, but I am not the one that you should be worried about Alex. The reason I say that's because I wasn't the only one that got out yesterday."

"What do you mean? You are the only one that I see from the gang here. Are there more that were released to this program you are talking about and if so who are they and where are they? Are they people I should be worried about?"

"Let me answer your last question first and the answer is yes, the person that was released yesterday with me you should be worried about. Ashton was released yesterday, but not to the program. His attorney got him out, because the District Attorney didn't hand over all the evidence and witness lists that they should've during the trial."

Alex sat down in the chair next to the couch where Bobby was sitting. The minute Bobby said the name Ashton so many thoughts started racing through Alex's mind. It is not that Alex is afraid of action but the fact that Ashton can actually get many to follow him on whatever he wants done. That is one of the reasons why Alex picked him to run the dorms in `B' building as he has the ability to get people to do things that are wrong and they know that it's wrong, but they still do it.

"I can see you are giving it a lot of thought, what I just said, and you should. The minute you left the center, the only thing he talked about was getting you. It doesn't matter to him that the green light has been pulled, he still wants you dead. I heard rumors when we were moved to the new facility that he was still planning on getting you."

"This guy thinks that he should have been the one running the entire gang in the detention facility. Not just the dorm that I put him in charge of. On top of that, I know he doesn't like the fact that I'm gay. With those two facts in play and the way he thinks there's nothing that's going to stop him trying to get me."

"Well man, I will be joining you in your boat very soon, because when he saw me getting out, he actually formed a gun with his hand and shot it. He doesn't trust anyone, and I can probably include his own mother in that group. He is dangerous, out for revenge and right now he has nothing to lose because he knows he's going back in once he is retried."

"Why do you think he thinks that Bobby? If his attorney was able to get him out on evidence that wasn't presented at his original trial that means they have the evidence to use in his retrial. With new evidence for him and his attorney to use there's a big chance that he doesn't get any more time."

"You would think that, but you are wrong, because Judge Evans told Ashton right there in the courtroom that he will deny motions to use the evidence. That pretty much puts him back to square one, which means he is going to go back into the system and do his full term that he was sentenced to originally."

Since there is nothing else to do at this point, Alex figured it wouldn't do any good for him to be thinking about it. He is going to keep a watchful eye but it is more than likely knowing how Ashton works that he has already been around. That means not only he is in danger, but also anyone around him will be in danger when Ashton makes his move.

"There is no use for sitting here hitting our heads against the wall trying to figure out what we can do. Until Ashton makes his move, all we can do is go on as normal. Let us not let our thoughts get the best of us either, because if we do that that will give Ashton the upper hand. Never let anyone get under your skin to the point that you are scared."

Alex got up from the chair and pulled up Bobby from the couch. "Let's go back upstairs and help these guys move in." Bobby nodded his head, followed Alex to the boxes, and picked up several of them before making his way to the elevator. He held the elevator door open until Alex got there and they headed up to the eleventh floor together.

The rest of the day went by fast. They pretty much had everything either up in the appropriate room or down in the basement storage by the time they sat down for dinner. All through dinner, everyone joked around and was just having fun. At one point Jacob changed the conversation from them talking about their plans for spring break to what they should do tomorrow, since all the unpacking has been done.

They decided to relax and hang around the pool at Jacob's house. Just as they got the time down on when Joey and his group should arrive, Jacob got up and started getting everybody ready to go. On their way out to the vehicles, Jacob stopped and reconfirmed the plans for tomorrow with Harold and Helen before getting into his truck.

Just like the trip up, everyone followed Jacob back to the house. Alex really wanted to let Matt know what he found out from Bobby, but kept his mouth shut, because his mother was in the SUV. He figured he would tell Matt when they are alone later tonight. That way he doesn't upset his mother with the news.

For some reason the traffic was heavy as they turned onto their side street leading to the house. As they got closer several emergency vehicles sped pass them, grabbing everyone's attention in the car. Alex looked over to Matt with a confused look on his face, but he knew Matt didn't have the answer he was looking for.

When they turned onto their street and they saw where the emergency vehicles were rushing off to, Jacob's house. Jacob came to a complete stop causing all the other vehicles behind him to do the same thing. Jacob and everyone in his truck got out first and then Alex and everyone in his vehicle got out seeing if they could get a closer look at what in the world is going on.

As they walked up to Jacob, they were joined by the others. When they reached Jacob, no one said a word. They just stood there stunned at the sight unfolding before them. Each of them was thinking of their own enemies that might have started the house on fire.

The only one to cross Chase's mind was Patricia. Just the night before he had broken up with her and she swore to get her revenge. Matt could not help but think that maybe his parents found out he was happy and wanted that to end. The others thought of old enemies that they have made throughout the years, including Alex. His list of enemies is huge, and on top of that list is Ashton.

Then he was the first one to break the silence. "What the Fuck? Who would start a house on fire?" No one looked away from the house. They stood there frozen as they looked on once again at the scene of the house burning down. None of them could understand why someone would do something like this to them.

Alex noticed tears rolling down Jacob's cheeks as he watched his house burning to the ground. He has never seen Jacob that vulnerable. Even when he was gung ho on trying to kill him, Jacob not once showed weakness. Not that what he is doing now is a sign of weakness, but it is saying a lot about how Jacob is feeling right now.

Unlike the others, Carlos has no other choice but to work at the print shop on the weekends, not just in the evenings after school. Still, helping his mother and stepfather, Carlos gives his checks to his mother to pay some of the bills at the house so when he walked into the door after work on Saturday evening, he was dead on his feet.

His mother had dinner on the table for him, but he did not feel much like eating. From a tough week at school, and then at work, all he wanted to do is rest. He was so tired he didn't even feel his stomach growling at him. All he wanted to do is see his pillow and not wake up for at least a week.

"I know you are tired son, but you need to get something in your stomach before you go to bed." Carlos's mother said, softly as she stood at the entrance of the living room. "Come on into the kitchen and eat something and then go to bed. You still have a long day ahead of you tomorrow, and you need all the rest you can get."

Bending his neck as far back as he could, Carlos looked at his mother. "All I want to do is sleep mom, and that's it. I have to get up tomorrow morning at seven to get to work on time because you know as much as I do the buses take almost 4 times as long to get from point `A' to point `B'. I almost missed my stop this morning because I have fallen to sleep in the back of the bus. Lucky for me one of the other passengers knew who I was and normally where I get all off and she woke me up."

"I understand everything you are saying Carlos, but you just can't starve yourself. So get off the couch, go to the kitchen, and eat the dinner I placed on the table for you. The faster you eat the faster you can go to bed and do not worry about taking the bus tomorrow. I will take you to work and then I'll pick you up after work."

That caught Carlos's attention. Somewhere deep inside him he was able to find a second wind that gave him enough strength to get up and eat dinner. As soon as he finished eating, he actually helped his mother clean up the kitchen before heading to bed. The minute his head hit the pillow, Carlos was out for the night.

Meanwhile back at Jacob's house. No one has moved from their spots. None of them was able to find the words to tell each other what they are feeling or thinking. Jacob turned to the group, wiping the tears from his face and spoke for the first time since they arrived at the house.

"Dewayne, my father and mother will come with me to find out what happened while the rest of you wait here?" Jacob noticed the look on everyone's face was the same, anger mixed with frustration, and at the same time confusion. "Whoever is running the show down there won't let all of us in and I want answers. If all of us go, we are all going to be talking at once."

"There's no need to explain your thoughts to us Jacob. We understand, and it's probably better that a small group goes down there instead of all of us." David interrupted Jacob, in order to relieve him of the stress of trying to make everyone feel good. This is not the time for that. Jacob needs to go find out what exactly happened and if they are able to get control the fire before it burns the entire house down.

As Jacob and those he picked to go with him walked towards the house, the others split up in their own little groups talking about what is unfolding before them. Alex, his family, and Matt walked over to their SUV. At first, no one said a word, but finally after five minutes of silence. Alex spoke up first.

"Do you guys think that Jacob is going to blame this fire on me?" Franseca looked at her son with dismay in her eyes. She could not believe he would actually think that of Jacob and then actually ask the question aloud. They have gotten to know this young man, and there is no way he would ever think that of Alex or anyone in the house.

"Don't ever think that Jacob would automatically assume you are to blame when something goes wrong. He knows that you are not the only one with enemies that would do something this stupid and hateful! I believe all of us in the house have made an enemy out of someone recently that would probably do this, not just you."

"I agree with your mom Alex. There is no way Jacob would think that of you or anyone for that matter. In fact, I believe he would look at himself before looking at you because you have stayed out of trouble and away from the gang. So instead of beating yourself up for something that is not your fault, let us hope for the best. It's going to take all of us working to get life back to normal after this."

"What do you think the best is Matt? Look! Our house, the whole thing, is burning down to the ground as we speak." Alex turned and pointed to the house. "There's no way that that fire department can get control that fire. I hope they do, because we need our house. There is just too many of us that live there."

"You know, we all need to do is just settle down." Mario stepped between Alex and Matt in hopes to stop a fight before it starts. "Whoever set that fire wants to hurt someone in the house. They already got what they wanted and that is burning down the house. Don't let them get you fighting and get another victory."

Both Alex and Matt took a deep breath before speaking again. Alex pulled his mother, grandfather, and Matt to the back of the SUV in order to have privacy to tell them about what he found out earlier in the day. As he told them what Bobby said, they started to understand why he thought it was his fault.

"First we don't even know if it was Ashton that started the fire. So before we go off all half-cocked, let us make sure it was him, because if you go up to Jacob and tell him what you just told us, it's going to put you in a bad light. Even though you had no idea this was going to happen it could still look bad for you Alex."

He didn't like the idea that his grandfather is proposing that he lies to Jacob. Alex feels that he has already built enough trust with Jacob that he would not look at him badly because of someone from his past has come back to haunt him. Before he moved in, he sat down and talked with Jacob and put everything on the table, which Jacob didn't take offense to any of it. So now, Alex is asking himself why Jacob would take offense to him learning about Ashton being released from jail.

Due to the respect he has for his grandfather, Alex decided not push the subject. He dropped it by agreeing with his grandfather not to say a word to Jacob but when he did that he clarified he would not say a word to Jacob tonight, but he never said he wouldn't say a word to Jacob after tonight. His grandfather did not catch that and make him go back and clarify what he meant.

The subject was changed to what if the house is a complete loss and where are they going to go to live. "Your aunts are going back to Juarez tomorrow, but what about us, where are we going to stay?" Franseca looked nervously at her son.

"I am pretty sure as we are speaking Jacob is thinking about that. There is no way he is going to leave any of us out the cold without a place to stay. Even though we are not his responsibility, he believes in his heart of hearts we are. Because of his big heart, I can say that without a doubt he is going to have a plan when he comes back and the plan will include all of us." Alex started walking back to Jacob's truck, followed by Matt and his family.

They stood there once again, just staring at the flames coming from what used to be the largest and most beautiful house on the block. They didn't say a word to each other, because their minds were numb. The more and more they looked at the house burning, the more they got depressed.

It was as if the fire had hypnotized them, and they had no idea that they were stood there for an hour. They were brought back to reality in when they heard Jacob's voice. He had already come back and started explaining what was going on with the house. After he finished talking almost at once, everyone started asking questions. Instead of answering the questions, Jacob finished explaining what he found out and left it at that.

The one thing they all agreed on is that this fire was not going to be put out any time soon so they decided to go to their vehicles and try to get some sleep. They all know there is no way they are going to be able to but they are going to try.

When Alex, Matt and the others got back in the SUV, they chatted for a while, but one at a time everyone had fallen asleep. None of them woke up again until they heard someone yelling outside near their vehicles. Alex leaned forward in his seat and saw Jacob and everyone in his truck walking towards the house.

"Hey guys wake up it looks like the fire is out!" Alex said as he shook Matt awake. Once Matt was awake, Alex got down from the SUV. As they started walking towards the house, they caught up with the others. When they reached the driveway, they saw Jacob walking through what was once the front door of the house.

Being careful where they step, they joined Jacob in the house. Just as they entered the house, they heard several voices yelling at them. Alex turned around and at first, he could not understand what they were saying, and then a man that looked to be in charge walked up and spoke loud enough for them to hear.

"You guys can't be there. Not only is not safe, but we have not had a chance yet to look over the scene. You could be destroying evidence that could tell us how the fire started, clues as to who started it and where exactly did it start. So please, all of you come on down where it is safe."

Since they were the last ones to enter into the house, they were the first to back down to what used to be the driveway. Jacob joined them shortly after they got down. Alex looked at the person that was yelling at them and saw that he was in charge because of the rank on his shirt collar.

While Jacob was talking with the fire marshal, Alex noticed Jeremy starting to walk away from the group. He looked lost and scared, because he had no idea what was going on. Then all of a sudden, he saw Jeremy kneel down and start clapping his hands. Alex turned and saw a little black furball running towards Jeremy. He picked up Cupid and started kissing her all over.

Everyone smiled at the scene of Jeremy united with his little dog. Then, Jacob's voice brought everyone back to reality. He answered the fire marshal's question and started walking away. About midway down the driveway, Jacob stopped and turned around. With a very serious look on his face, he informed the fire marshal not to try to cover anything up, because he plans to hire his own investigators.

Once he said his peace, he turned around and walked towards the vehicles. The others realized that Jacob is not going to wait for them so they quickly ran after him. They got back to their cars got in since Jacob had gotten into his truck. Alex figured that Jacob had already made a plan on what they are going to stay for the night.

Then Jacob did not move for a few minutes, and that started to get Alex worried. All of a sudden, he saw Jacob leaning out of his window. He yelled to follow him and then pulled his head back into his truck. Alex heard the others honk their horn so he did the same thing as he started up his car.

Carlos did not wake up until he heard his alarm clock go off and because he hit the snooze button several times his mother had to go in and force him out of bed. Since he took an extra thirty minutes of sleep time, Carlos had to rush to get ready. He did not even have time to eat breakfast. His mother knew that, so she started to throw everything on a paper plate in order for her son to eat his breakfast on the way to work.

"Hopefully this should be the last month that you have to work yourself as hard as you have been Carlos. Your stepfather is getting his hours back and once his checks start showing those hours, we will be okay. You can either cut back on the hours, or quit the job altogether if you wish."

"More than likely I will cut back on my hours, but I will not quit my job since they took a chance on me with my background. I know my best friend is part owner of the company, but the other owners could have overridden his decision of hiring me and because of that I will not leave Alex in the lurch of finding my replacement."

"You and Alex have come a long way in the last couple months. If someone would have told me a year ago, that they were able to see the future and in the future you two were out of the detention facility and out of the gang, I would not have believed it. The reason I say that is once again you two have come a long way in such a short period.

Look at you to now and look back at what you two were, and you will understand what I am saying. Alex is now part owner of a print shop and you son, moved in, and helped your grand parents out until we were able to get a bigger house and then you continued to help us when things got bad. That would not have happened a year ago.

So whatever you learned in that detention facility, please do not ever forget it. You are not the same person that you were when you were sentenced to that ugly place. When you got out, I got my son back. The son that I knew was there, struggling to get free. I am glad the boy I lost so many years ago has found his way back home."

Carlos's mother leaned over and pulled her son into a hug. She did not want to let him go but knew she had no other choice because he could not afford to be late for work. When they did let each other go, they both had tears rolling down their cheeks. With his voice breaking, Carlos said goodbye to his mother and told her that he loved her.

TO BE CONTINUED...

I have a home page for you to see what the characters look like or what the places look like. If you want to walk in their shoes, please go to: http://jacobmillertex.com/

WRITER'S CORNER:

{Welcome back one and all to another exciting chapter of "Beneath the Mask". This chapter covered some areas that were in "Jacob Finding His Way" chapter seventy and seventy-one. So if there is a plot that is mentioned, but not in detail, it is because it was in detail on one of the chapters I just mentioned.

Well the chapter did not start with the cliffhanger. I wanted to keep you all wondering on that for a little longer. How many of you skipped ahead to get the answer to the cliffhanger from the last chapter. Come on be honest, how many of you? Just playing, I probably would have skipped ahead to find out who was the person that drove up into the driveway with a shiny object.

You all found out at the beginning of the chapter that Franseca's sisters are moving back to Juarez. You also found out that by the looks of it they have no plans on coming back to get their kids. I can understand why they are doing, it, but they should be truthful at least to Franseca. They are leaving two pre-teens on her doorstep to take care of.

Now to the cliffhanger, I hope you all are not angry with whom it was. I have told you guys many of times I am evil and this is one prime example of that. Anyway, it was Noah and he just wanted to see his cousin. I am glad that Noah is coming around and that Matt at least has one family member back in his life.

I did not like Noah going behind Matt's back and talking to his parents. He really does not know what is going on there. What if by talking to them, Noah accidently told them where Matt lives? With what we know and learned in the chapter, Matt's parents, excuse my French, are assholes with the way they treated Matt.

Here is another set of people that could have set Jacob's house on fire. By the sounds of it, they do not want their son to be happy. Noah told them that their son was happy and they might have burnt the house down make their son unhappy. Even though we found out that Matt's parents agreed to see their son.

Also in this chapter, you learned a little more about Noah. You learned how he grew up and what his life was like. It was not as bad as Matt's was, but any kind of abuse is bad abuse no matter if it is verbal of physical. Matt got both and Noah just got the verbal abuse. I think we are going to see these to unite and together they are going to be strong.

There are now some characters out there that can come into play to cause problems for Matt; Noah's brothers. They gave Noah hell as he grew up. It got so bad, Noah stopped hanging around Matt in hopes the teasing would end. What do you think they are going to say and do when they find out that those two are talking again?

Finally, the boys had a sex scene in this chapter. Although it is not written yet, I know it is going to be a good one since I have read what Daddy Rick has written in the past chapters with the sex scenes. I am going to leave it at that because I know Daddy Rick is going to talk about it in his corner.

Alex found out in this chapter about Bobby and Ashton. He took the news good about Ashton being in the free and after him. At least up until they drove up to the house and saw it burning to the ground. Again, there is another person that could have started the house on fire. I really hope Alex does not do anything stupid like go after Ashton and deal with him the old way. All that will get him is a stripped uniform.

What can I say about the burning down the house that I did not say in chapter seventy of "Jacob Finding His Way". I am not going to bore you guys on going over the same thing I have already done. What I am going to say is that there is a lot of people that could have done it, but when you guys are find out who did it. You will be surprised to the point of wanting to come down to slap me across the head.

Let's talk a little bit about Carlos since we a saw a little more of him in this chapter. It looks like he and his mother are really getting along now. She feels that she has gotten the son back that she lost many years ago to the gang life. Carlos is seeing the mother he once knew as well. I really think these two are going to get very close as far as mother and son can go. They never abandoned one another, and that made them stronger.

Now one final note I would like to talk about here. Several characters of this story and my other stories are going to be used in a new story that's being started as I am writing this corner out. The author of this story has already written many stories, which I have mentioned before, CastleRoland. The first chapter is already done and it looks great.

There is going to be a short cut on my site to get to that story and I highly recommend that you go in and read it, plus his other stories. The name is Rebirth and that should tell you a lot already about the story.

I don't want to say too much more and spoil the future chapters to come, so I won't. I warn you though! Don't skip a chapter, or you will be lost. There is a so much to answer in the chapters to come. Keep reading the future chapters, and enjoy! Please email me and let me know how I am doing at jacobmillertex@aol.com, Thanks!}

EDITOR'S CORNER:

I have had this chapter finished, sitting open on my computer for several days now. I was looking for something interesting, inspiring or deeply insightful to say about this chapter. The problem is, JPG said everything that needs to be said in his Author's Corner! He didn't leave me a crumb to work with!

Ok, I could talk about the love scene, but you read it. I don't think anyone needs an instant replay. I think it was pretty self explanatory. If you need a play-by-play review, perhaps you need to come meet me in person! There has been some feedback that I might have gotten a bit too detailed in writing love scenes. I scaled this one back in details a bit hoping to hit the balance. My focus with the love scenes is to try and focus on the deep emotions and the connection the various couples have. One of these times I will throw in a "just for fun", playful sex scene. Sometimes in a relationship there needs to be just some fun with intimacy.

How do you like the new site? JPG and Ed are putting a great deal of sweat into it. I get sucked in here and there for my opinions. JPG is funny. I'm so "wise" when I agree with him and, well, let's just say I appear to be not so wise if I have a differing point of view.

Every aspect of JPG's stories coming to you is a team effort and there's tons of work and love that goes into the final product you see. JPG has added Ed to the Editor's department. Ed follows up my work and polishes the chapters even more.

I'm very glad Ed joined up. I am no professional editor by any perspective. I have no degree in English Composition or Literature. I did get what I think was a good solid foundation in school and, amazing though it is, it seems I paid attention.

I hope that you all like the many directions all the stories are going and the way characters are evolving. I'm seeing some serious players emerging that have been somewhat in the background. There are also several threads in place that are going to involve a lot of drama.

I hope you are all like me that are always anticipate and are anxious for the next installment in all the ongoing sagas.

Until next time,

"Daddy" Rick