The following fictional story deals with sex among males. If you are offended by such material, are too young, or reside in a location where it is not allowed, please depart. Though not observed in this story, care enough about yourself and humankind to practice safe sex.
The author retains all rights. EvanBradley33@Yahoo.com
Chapter 15 Conflicting Currents
Ever since Brett Carter's appearance for a job interview, Hal had noticed a subtle change in Angie Cooper's behavior. She was hanging back, being quieter, not venturing "out there" with him as she had been doing when they started working closely together as office manager and owner. Her reserve had even progressed so far that she rarely shared information about Bobby and her. Hal regretted the change, feeling responsible for it. He regarded his hiring the Coopers as one of the best moves he'd made in business. Even more, he genuinely liked them. The short time Drew and he had spent with the Coopers at his home had pumped him up like little else - excluding Drew, of course - since his last failed romance. Angie felt like the sister he'd never had, Bobby the brother. And he wondered if he wasn't a substitute for her gay brother who was hiding his sexual orientation in Europe away from their parents and home community.
Hal knew Angie's reserved stance had to do with his . . . strange reaction to Brett, mistakenly calling him "Richie" - all that. He didn't even know that he understood it himself. But he'd watched her figuratively moving some distance from him, trying to take stock of circumstances, especially since Bobby, she and Drew had grown closer socially over their outings as members of the crew. Just as with Rich Adams, the company's accountant, she fell into a warm, brotherly relationship with Drew. One of the three had only to be near one or the other and they were talking like long-lost friends. Hal understood that he was the catalyst. He had hoped for a larger role. Thought he had it with Drew.
As Hal pondered these dynamics, he decided he wanted to do something nice for the Coopers. Maybe that would reassure Angie that he wasn't losing it. He sounded Drew out about taking the Coopers out to dinner. Drew paused a moment. "If you only want to treat them, that would be great. I doubt they have taken many occasions to have a really nice dinner out." Drew's eyes gleamed with mischief. "That is, if 'really nice' means expensive." Then he laughed in that way that warmed Hal's heart, the way Richie Collins's laughter had. Drew sobered a bit. "But if you want to talk, you ought to have dinner catered at your home. Or at mine. Only in an intimate setting could you have a real discussion. . . . If by 'real discussion' you mean getting at some issues."
"Why do you think I want to talk to the Coopers about issues? Do you know something I don't?"
Hal was aware that Drew's answer was carefully crafted: "I don't think, after all your wonderful assistance in getting them started at work and in a home, that you've had an opportunity to take any measure of how they're doing. I thought perhaps that's what you had in mind when you suggested treating them to dinner."
Hal studied Drew, which was always a pleasurable activity. There was no way he was going to share with Drew his real motive in inviting the Coopers to dinner. He knew he couldn't easily explain his reaction to Brett - yet. He hoped that would come with time. If Angie had difficulty understanding it, Drew certainly would. He flashed suddenly on his first conversation with Drew at Murphy's Gym, when he'd suggested Drew join the crew. Drew had literally run away. He certainly didn't want Drew running away again.
While Drew was quite open with Hal because, Hal knew, Drew loved him, sometimes in conversations Drew was so damned clever that he could be serving two purposes without anyone's ever being aware of the fact until much later. He wasn't being deceptive or two-faced, merely adroit. Hal knew the ability owed to Drew's experience in corporate politics. Drew had survived corporate pogroms, downsizing, and internecine warfare when others hadn't - and he'd done it without compromising his integrity or professionalism. Hal had seen him at work in the corporate setting only a few times but more often in conversations with members of the crew. Hal came away admiring Drew's skill in reading people and situations and handling them deftly.
So Hal was thinking that Angie and Drew could have talked between themselves about Brett Carter and the way he had affected Hal. In that case, Drew might be trying to set something up so that they could address that issue. Or he could be merely setting up an opportunity for Hal to see where his efforts had placed the Coopers. Drew knew in how much affection and esteem Hal held Angie and Bobby.
Hal and Drew had even talked about suggesting to Bobby that he start some distance courses toward finishing his degree. Maybe Angie too. Drew had suggested that Kenji and Tonio had degrees to finish. Maybe they could even suggest that Jamal start college study, for Drew had stated emphatically that Jamal could succeed in that setting with the right kind of encouragement and support. Maybe the crew should talk up their resuming their studies the way they talked up meeting personal workout goals at Murphy's Gym. In Bobby's case, maybe Hal could move him into a position better utilizing his talents in Winston Construction Company, if that's what Bobby wished. Of one thing Hal was certain: Drew would never act in anything other than Hal's best interests.
"Which - your home or mine?" Hal asked.
"Well . . . now that I think about it, if it's my home, it isn't familiar turf. Your home is. Turf isn't an issue unless there will be anything sensitive involved in the dinner discussion. My home is strange ground to them. It will require acclimation on their part, which could distract from a heart-to-heart. Your home isn't unfamiliar turf. After all, we all lived there together for a couple of days while I was recovering from a sprained ankle. We got along swimmingly there."
"Okay, my place." Drew's eyebrows raised slightly, an unspoken question answered - though not precisely. "Any ideas for caterers?"
"Let me ask a few people at the office who are very much 'in the know' about those things. I'll call you with the information."
"Thanks," Hal said as he pulled Drew into a hot kiss, finally making Drew moan with passion and Hal hum.
Hal's Home
Hal arranged for the dinner on a Saturday evening so that everyone would be rested. He had suggested that Drew come a little early and plan to stay the night. Drew quickly accepted, smiling big time in anticipation of a night of bliss with his lover. The Coopers arrived about a half hour after Drew. Hal had insisted on everyone's dressing casually. The men wore polos, shorts, sandals or penny loafers without socks. Angie wore shorts, a maternity top, and sandals. Nearing the end of her seventh month, she was looking large. She would have to be, carrying Bobby's son. However, she was healthy. As she showed more, the men at the site became more solicitous of her comfort and well-being. In groups of two or three, they dropped by each day to check on her. Oddly, Kenji was especially attentive. To Angie, he was beginning to seem like a little brother. No doubt he was claiming her as a sister. And the crew included Bobby in their concern, asking after his feelings. Angie talked to Rich Adams almost every day, and Drew called her every day to check in. 'Really like a family,' Hal thought. The crew was a herd of putative brothers for Angie and Bobby, and the Coopers were thriving on it.
As he prepared for his guests, Hal knew better than to ask: he had a gin and tonic for Drew, beers for him and Bobby, and a fizzy fruit drink for Angie. They sat around on the deck, enjoying their drinks and conversation as the caterer, an efficient, cheery young matron by the name of Carol Lubbert, heated the dishes and prepared the dining room. It was a beautiful, cool evening. Hal moved the conversation toward the Cooper's current situation by asking about the baby. They were taking a class about birth and newborns at a local hospital, so the Coopers excitedly disclosed details about that.
At a lull in the conversation, Bobby looked meaningfully at Hal for a bit, then spoke: "I bet you wondered what landed at your door the day Angie and I showed up, looking for a job."
"Why would you say that?" Hal asked, smiling.
"A woman almost midterm pregnant, living in a camper in the bed of an old pickup with almost no brakes? Come on, Hal, you had to wonder why we would leave our moorings. You had to think it showed poor judgment, a bunch of foolish kids jumping out into the world at a time when they ought to be looking for a nest. I'm right, aren't I?"
Hal smiled slowly. "Yes, I had to wonder. But you know my background. I'm always ready to give a helping hand to special folks."
"Special folks?" Angie inquired, smiling at Hal.
"Folks who are fighting more than ordinary odds. You WERE doing that, weren't you?"
"Yeah," Bobby replied, looking to Angie. "Want to tell them the story, Sweetheart?"
Angie smiled back at him before facing Hal and Drew. "I'd only seen Bobby on the community college campus where we both were taking classes. Like a lot of the women students, I thought he was a real hunk of man. But I was dating Dennis Huxley, the son of the richest man in the county. People thought I'd be set for life if I played my cards right. Mr. Huxley owned a lot of the town and a lot of the county. Everyone knew lots of people and relatives working in one of the many Huxley-owned businesses or factories. Mr. Huxley was pretty nice. Dennis was initially, but after a while one realized that he was spoiled. Used to getting his own way."
"Of course, it couldn't be enough that Dennis was rich. He was handsome too. Six feet tall, broad shoulders, sculpted pecs, muscles everywhere, auburn hair, dark eyebrows over smoldering - I'm not kidding - smoldering eyes. Long solid nose, full lips, little square chin and . . ." here she glanced at Bobby, who had been squirming a bit at Angie's enthusiastic description of Dennis Huxley, "and other endowments just as noble." She looked at Hal and Drew, "but he couldn't match Bobby." At this point a gentle smile was born on Bobby's face. "I discovered that with Dennis, one got good looks and a penchant for controlling others but not much else. With Bobby, I got the good looks; a decent, strong man; a caring heart plus genuine, warm, protective, uplifting love; and a talented, intelligent friend." She blew Bobby a kiss. He blew one back to her. Drew and Hal exchanged smiles, unnoticed by the couple too intent on acknowledging their love for each other.
"I'll tell you guys, it's heaven," Angie remarked, looking at Bobby, "feeling this guy on top of you, in you, holding you gently in his muscular arms, his weight bearing down on you, running your fingers through all the hair on that magnificent body." While Bobby was squirming, she paused to take a quick breath. Drew and Hal had leaned forward at Angie's description of being bedded by Bobby, their eyebrows arching in interest.
"Dear," Bobby broke in, "you're preaching to the choir." They all laughed as they settled back into their chairs.
Drew was heard to softly utter, "Damned horny choir now!" causing more laughter.
"Bobby and I started sitting next to each other in Accounting II," Angie explained, continuing their story. "We quickly got to know each other. It felt so natural, at first discussing problems we'd had in class assignments, then disclosing our worries, our values, our dreams to each other. We moved our chats to a coffee bar not far from campus, and then we'd grab lunch together sometimes. Dennis heard one too many times about our being together. He ordered me to drop my friendship with Bobby. I told Dennis he didn't choose my friends. He was surprised, asking why I thought he didn't have a right to do so since we were in love and had been intimate with each other - 'nearly married,' he'd said." Bobby quickly looked away so that his jealousy was not evident - he imagined - to Drew and Hal. "I reminded him that I didn't choose his friends or manage his other relationships. He became angry, telling me that, if that's the way I felt, I could spend all my time with Bobby. He'd date other women. And he did."
"Of course, I knew that Dennis, being egotistical, thought I'd collapse for lack of his company. Instead, Bobby and I started dating. We grew serious right away. Dennis didn't like that. After a couple of weeks, as I was walking home from campus, he pulled along the curb. He asked me if I missed him, that devilish grin on his face. I said I didn't."
"'Wrong answer,' he said, unamused. He told me that our relatives who worked in Huxley businesses could lose their jobs if I 'continued down the road with that Cooper guy.'"
"I said nothing else, so he pulled away. Bobby and I had a date that evening. I told him about Dennis's threats. I was worried for all our relatives. I started crying. Bobby pulled me into his arms." She blushed. "We couldn't help it. We had to comfort each other . . . but we didn't have any protection with us. We decided that just this one time wouldn't result in anything serious."
Now Angie grinned mischievously. "I awoke in his arms in his bed about 3 a.m., feeling very different. I knew I was pregnant."
An ornery gleam infused Drew's eyes. "His little racer sperm thought your fallopian tubes were the Indianapolis Speedway, so they wasted no time blasting down the causeway right to that egg?" Drew asked, a grin plastered on his face. Drew's imagery evoked laughter.
Then Angie sobered. "A pregnancy test kit confirmed what I already knew. So over a couple of days we discussed what we could do. There was no way we wanted our families to pay for what had happened. We concluded that we'd have to leave town before anyone found out about our circumstances. We didn't even tell our families. If they knew, they'd become targets for Dennis if he learned that they knew about us and our plans."
Here Bobby jumped in. "We pooled our funds. I already had the pickup. I knew about a fella who had had the camper for sale for over a year. We bought that. I picked it up one night. The next day we went to the courthouse where we were married by a judge. A couple of clerks who were friends were our witnesses. We left town immediately after that. We got this far when the money was about to run out and the pickup was ailing. You know the rest of the story. We have to express again, Hal, how grateful we are to you. You were a lifeline for us. And it's been great ever since. It's like we walked into another family to take the place of the ones we left." Hal beamed, raising his pilsner in a toast. They all clicked their drinks and sipped to the Coopers.
"Gosh," Drew suddenly said. "Your families must be beside themselves, maybe thinking you are victims of foul play."
"We anticipated that," Angie said. We mailed Bobby's parents and my parents a short letter explaining what had transpired, that we were married, and that we were moving elsewhere to protect them."
"They must still really miss you," Drew said, his brow knitted in concern.
Angie and Bobby smiled. "Well, they've just begun quick, quiet trips here to visit us. They are so happy for us. You can't keep news like this a secret in a town like that, so Dennis eventually heard about it. He got drunk most of one weekend, telling any of our relatives he met that they were out of a job. Bobby's and my dad decided to pay a call on Dennis's father, explaining about the threats Dennis was throwing around town. That was all it took. Mr. Huxley had a talk with his son. The threats stopped."
"And Dennis?" Drew asked, always one to want every loose thread tied down.
"He wasn't seen around town much for a couple of weeks. His dad sent him back down to the floor in one of his factories where the new hires labored. He worked there for a couple of months. I think he's started dating a little again."
"So how are your families feeling about the arrival of a new grandchild?" Hal asked, sending the Coopers off into little stories of already doting grandparents and siblings on Bobby's side of the family.
Drew looked at Angie. She knew he was silently asking about her brother in Europe. "My brother wrote that he'd come home for a visit sometime after our son is born. He and his lover will stay with us. If my parents want to see him, they'll have to come over here." Drew smiled, the last thread in place.
The Construction Site
Max couldn't believe how hot Brett Carter, the newly hired college graduate, looked when he appeared at the work site for his first day on the job. He knew that Brett had planned his dress down to the last detail: the gold-tan work boots laced half way up the high tops with just a lip of tight folds of white cotton socks showing above the shaft, accenting the gold fur on Brett's legs. Brett's major item of clothing was the shortest cut-offs Max had ever seen, affording a glimpse, when Brett bent over, of the bottom curves of his tan ass cheeks and their coating of gold down. Brett managed to bend over a lot through the day. His outfit was enhanced by a light grey tee shirt cut off just below his pecs, which allowed his golden brown aureoles and pointed nipples to pop out when he raised his arms. A bandana tied in a narrow strip around Brett's golden head completed the effect. Deep in his gut, Max felt the display of masculine beauty was for Hal's benefit.
Max had sent Brett to help Kenji tape seams of the sheetrock that Ted and Levi were putting up for the walls. "Hi," Bret said in greeting to Kenji. "Don't know if you remember meeting me a few weeks ago when I came to apply for this job. Mind if I work with you? That guy over there," he gestured toward Max, "sent me over here. Brett Carter," he said, extending his hand to Kenji.
"Kenji Hamada" was the reply as Kenji extended his hand - warily. "I don't mind if you work with me."
"How long have you worked here?" Brett asked.
"About six months."
"I just graduated from college. I'm working this summer to satisfy the 'rents before I study for an MBA this fall."
"Sounds like you have your life all mapped out."
"Through a couple of years after grad school anyway."
"So what happens after the MBA?" Kenji asked, knowing Brett would pick up this line of conversation and carry it far, for it afforded Brett a chance to talk about himself, which he did for quite some time. Then Kenji, who had premonitions about allowing Brett to become too close, kept him going by remarking "Oh" at properly timed junctures or by adding a "Hm-m-m-m" to keep the oh's from being obvious.
Suddenly Brett jolted Kenji's attention back to his voice: "Say, is Hal married?"
Kenji paused long enough that Brett wondered if he was to receive an answer from this handsome, aloof fellow. "He was once. Not now."
"So what do you know about Hal?" Brett asked.
"He's my boss."
"Anyone serious in his life?"
Even cool Kenji had to block a reflex that would have arched his brows in surprise at the question he'd just been asked. "Yes."
Brett's brows beetled, signaling his disappointment. "What's her name?"
"His name is Drew Nichols."
The slightest smile flitted across Brett's lips and was gone as quickly as it had arrived. His suspicions and fantasies were confirmed.
"Is he here?"
"He's not a member of the work crew. He's an administrator in a corporation here in the city." Kenji noted a slight narrowing of Brett's eyes. "He's also one of the crew at Murphy's Gym."
"Are Hal and this Drew partners?"
"You'd have to ask them."
Then Brett took a tack in the conversation that made Kenji more wary. "Does Hal have any business partners?"
"You'd have to ask him. I just work in his construction company."
Max's eyes had passed over the visual field filled by Kenji and Brett as he was looking elsewhere, but something he noted in the corner of his eye caused them to dart back to Kenji. Max could tell he wasn't happy. It was never easy to tell what Kenji was feeling or thinking, but after living with him for almost six months, he knew the signs. It wasn't what Kenji did; it was what he didn't do. Ordinarily, Kenji was quick, nimble, graceful. But when he was stressed, it was as though everything about him became rigid. Brett was clearly getting on Kenji's nerves. Max heard a supply truck from Benton's Lumber Yard pulling into the site to deliver building materials, so he called Brett over and explained where he wanted the materials and how he wanted them arranged, sending him out to help the deliveryman.
Max walked over to Kenji. "Babe," he said in greeting, for he knew Kenji liked Max addressing him that way. He'd never admit it, but Max had already intuited that Kenji was hungry for informality and easy but genuine warmth and love. Once Max had perceived these special needs of Kenji's, he realized Kenji had grown up without them. The rest of Kenji's former life was still a mystery to Max. "Why are you upset?"
Kenji didn't answer for a bit, but Max knew he would. He was just choosing his words carefully. "I felt as though I were being pumped for information," Kenji replied.
"What information?"
"Personal stuff about Hal."
"L-i-i-i-k-e?" Max asked, drawing his voice out.
Kenji glanced at Max, seeing some concern in his eyes. "Like whether Hal has been married, whether he has a romantic interest, whether he and Drew are partners, whether Hal has any business partners."
Max's brows and frown registered displeasure that Brett was wasting no time in fulfilling Max's suspicions about him. Max just shook his head to indicate that he'd heard. "Let me know if he quizzes you again."
"Why does he want to know all that stuff?" Kenji asked.
Max sighed. "Unless I miss my guess, he intends to worm his way into Hal's life. He needs information to know how to go about doing that."
"What about Drew?" Kenji asked with some concern of his own expressed.
"Do you think Brett would care anything at all about Drew?"
Kenji reluctantly shook his head in the negative.
Two days later, Drew had dropped by the construction site, entering the trailer. Brett saw him right away. "Who's that?" he asked Tonio, with whom he had been working.
"Drew Nichols."
"That shrimp is Hal's boyfriend?" a somber Brett asked as though the very prospect were ridiculous.
"Something like that," Tonio answered, carefully vague in his reply, for Brett had by that time plied them all with plenty of personal questions about Hal. Tonio ceased his work for the moment, making certain Brett was looking at him. "By the way, all of us like Drew. No one here will like your putting him down like that. Just a word to the wise," Tonio warned, turning back to his work.
In fact, Brett had been so concerted in his pressing members of the crew for details about Hal's life that it put the rest of the crew on guard. They'd talked quietly among themselves about it. They didn't like it. Though no command had been uttered, they closed ranks, not automatically taking Brett into their circle and confidences as they had each other new member of the crew.
The crew was put off by other factors as well. At Murphy's gym and sometimes at the construction site, Brett had pushed the group into little competitions with Hal always as the focus. Over a couple of weeks, he'd set Hal against every one of them in some kind of competition. It didn't make any difference whether it was pushing the limit in lifting, reps on the machines, or whatever. He'd finally set Hal against Drew on the track, competing to see who could run a long distance in the shortest amount of time. Every time Hal beat one of them, Brett was all over Hal, pulling him into a sweaty embrace, kissing him on the cheek. Hal seemed to be grateful for Brett's attention, losing sight of the effect Hal's victories had on the members of the crew. Predictably, Brett never set himself in competition against Hal. They gradually realized that Brett had cast himself as Hal's cheerleader, conditioning Hal to hugs and physical caresses as rewards when he won.
At the same time, the crew noted how excited, even agitated, Brett was during a competition, how his eyes were alight after Hal won. After competing against every member of the crew, Brett started branching out in the weights area, pulling strangers over to compete against Hal. More Brett machinations for the crew not to like. Out of earshot of Hal and Brett, they complained about how Brett had taken over their workout time, changed their group dynamics. Meanwhile, Drew had grown quieter.
Drew and Rich
About three quarters of the way through one of the crew's workout sessions at Murphy's Gym, Rich Adams had suggested quietly to Drew that they move up to the indoor track to jog. Rich really wanted to sound Drew out to see if he was upset. Drew confessed to being puzzled about Brett's intent. "I think he's a gym groupie," Rich had said, his arm thrown over Drew's shoulder as they made their way to the track.
"Gym groupie?" Drew inquired.
"A college jock who misses the roar of the crowd. So he hangs around a gym, trying to recreate the battles of the gridiron, court or track," Rich explained. "I see them around here every once in a while. They don't seem to stay long. They are looking for something they'll never find here."
"What's that?" Drew asked with interest, looking up at Rich, his eyes wide, taking in Rich's information.
"Yesterday . . . the excitement of a stage of life that's over for them but that they can't move past. They really need to find a team to play on again. I guess that's what some of them do, and then it begins to work for them."
Drew threw an arm around Rich's waist as they slowly climbed the stairs to the indoor track. "You're speaking from experience, aren't you?"
"Yeah. . . .When I didn't make it in the minor leagues, I had to face facts. It's hard to let go of dreams like that in which one has invested so much energy, time, and hope." Rich realized that he wouldn't ever betray that feeling to most of his male friends, but he would to Drew. As soon as one shared confidences with Drew, he had a champion who would work tirelessly for his buddy's well-being. "So I'm not putting gym groupies down. Sometimes, I'd like to jump in and help some of them. Tried that once in fact. I'll never do it again. He wasn't ready for reality yet. They're still hanging on to yesterday."
"But Brett won't find a substitute like a team. Not enough time. He's only here for the summer." Or he's found it in the crew," Drew finished, extending from Rich's explanation.
"Right," Rich said, pulling Drew against his side in a brotherly gesture. They climbed several steps in silence.
"Have you noticed," Drew asked, "how Brett is all over Hal when Hal wins against one of us?"
Rich's lips pursed. He'd been asked a question he didn't want to answer, but Drew was too special for him to duck the query. "Yes."
"Have you noticed that Hal not only welcomes it but seems to need it more and more?" Drew continued.
More time elapsed before Rich answered. "Yeah."
"Did you know that Brett's been pushing Hal for a couple of weeks to go out, just the two of them?"
Rich kept his face from registering the concern he really felt, for he'd expected just such a tack from Brett. "No."
"Brett drops by the office more often when Hal is there, going into his office to thank him effusively for giving him a job, for allowing him to learn so much, for relating something new he's learned or accomplished, pushing for Hal to share the business side of the company so that he can learn more, almost begging Hal to go out with him to talk. There's always lots of hugging, and Brett has his hands all over Hal, especially his ass."
"You've been talking to Angie," Rich intuited.
"Yes."
"Don't worry about Brett insinuating himself into Hal's business. It's a principle of Hal's that he learned from Walter Henderson. You know who Walter was, right?" Rich asked Drew, looking down into those intense blue eyes.
"Yes, the bequest he left Hal allowed him to start Winston Construction Company."
Rich shook his head in the affirmative. "Walt taught Hal to hold his business cards close to his vest. I'm his accountant, but I don't know everything about Hal's plans. It's an ingrained behavior, so Brett's butting his head against a wall there. But I don't like it that he's being so nosy."
"You've all seen that Brett is growing more important to Hal?"
It was another question Rich had hoped wouldn't come, but he loved and respected this man too much to duck it. "Yeah." He and most everyone else had talked about Hal's change, and their discussions had pretty much followed his and Drew's present line of conversation. The crew's concern started when they noted that Hal started spending more time with Brett in the gym than Drew. Bobby and Rich and the others had stepped in to latch onto Drew so that he wouldn't feel alone and maybe wouldn't notice, one of the reasons Rich had suggested this interlude between them. Obviously they had failed in meeting the latter goal.
"I hear that when Hal leaves the office," Drew continued, "to work with you guys, that he always partners with Brett now. I hear that his slips in calling Brett 'Richie' are more frequent. Some of the guys think Brett encourages Hal to call him Richie. They even hear Brett initiating conversations about Richie." Rich said nothing, but he'd heard the same himself. He wondered from whom Drew had acquired this information. Well, they were all buddies, and the crew had long ago accepted Drew as one of their number. They not only liked him, but they respected him, looked up to him although Rich didn't think Drew ever caught on to that.
A big sigh escaped Drew. "Did you know that Hal and I aren't together as much away from the site and this gym?"
"No," Rich said, feeling discomfort in his stomach. "Just remember, Drew. We're almost to midsummer. After the Fourth of July, we'll slide right down to the end of the summer. Brett will leave then."
"That's still a lot of time for mischief to occur," Drew muttered as they moved out onto the indoor track. "You know, Rich, it's ironic: there's always a snake in paradise, isn't there?" Drew didn't realize how prophetic his words were.
(To be continued.)