Copyright 2020-2021: No part of this story may be reproduced in any way without the express written consent of the author. The author grants www.nifty.org permission to post the story on their website.
DISCLAIMER: This story is a work of fiction and fantasy. No part of it is based on true events, and any similarity to any person, living or dead, is coincidental. It contains descriptions of homosexual activities between consenting adults. If you are not over 18 years of age, or if you find this type of story offensive, or viewing this material is illegal where you are, then please DO NOT READ IT! If you choose to read it, then - I hope you enjoy it!
Nifty needs donations to continue doing what we all enjoy. If you can, please consider donating.
When You Least Expect By Josh Blake
Chapter 36
"I just don't think we can keep this going much longer," Rose said.
"I'm doing the best I can," Dorothy said slowly, her stroke causing her words to slur.
"I know you are, dear," Rose said. "But sometimes the best you can do isn't good enough. I'm doing all I can do. We both are. But keeping this place going is just more than we can handle at our age."
"Have you thought about hiring some help?" I asked.
"We talked about that, but by the time we hire and pay benefits, we'd be going in the hole. We might as well just shut it down," Rose said. I saw Dorothy wince at that suggestion.
"You both know how much I want to see this place continue to run," I said. "We both do. We are just not at the point in our careers where we can make that kind of move."
"I understand," Rose said. "This place just has so many wonderful memories. I'm sure we could sell it to one of the chains with no trouble, but I don't want it to lose its personality."
"Don't give up yet," I said. "We'll think of something. If it means I have to come up here every weekend and help out, we will figure it out."
Braden and I helped Rose with the cleanup after dinner. After everything was put away, we decided to take a walk outside. This time of year daylight remained up until almost 10:00 p.m., so there was plenty of light as we strolled around the grounds holding hands.
"It would be a shame for this place to get away from us," Braden said. We sat down on one of the benches out back near the spot where we were married.
"You got that right," I said. "Can you see us living here someday?"
"I really can," Braden said. "It's so peaceful. We could sit out here together every night. But right now..."
"I know. We just can't. There's too much keeping us at home right now," I said.
"I wish there was someone who could run it for us," Braden said.
"I know, but who?" I asked. "Who could we possibly trust to run it and not take advantage of Dorothy and Rose? It is still their home and their business."
"Oh my God! I'm such an idiot! Austin can run it!" Braden exclaimed.
"How exactly is your brother going to run this place and go to school?" I asked.
"His major is hospitality management. When we talked on the phone the other day he told me that his senior internship is starting in the fall. He could intern here with Rose and Dorothy and run things for them! I'm sure it would work out!"
"Hmm. Well, I don't guess it could hurt to see where things go. Let's pitch the idea to Rose and Dorothy over breakfast in the morning and see what they think. If they like the idea, we'll see if he and Lucas can come up next weekend and talk about the details," I said.
"It's going to work. I just know it is," Braden said.
"I sure hope so. You have a good idea every once in a while," I laughed. I leaned over and kissed Braden on the lips. He put his arms around me as we launched into a full make out session.
"Let's take this inside," Braden said.
Braden and I made love that night. Something about this place just made the sex seem more passionate and more about satisfying each other and proving our love than just sex. Braden and I had a great sex life all the time but being here made it seem even better.
We pitched our idea to Dorothy and Rose over breakfast. Both of them loved the idea of Austin stepping in and managing the place for them. We assured them that they would still be the owners, but Austin could take care of the day-to-day operation and upkeep. The only thing left to do was to get Austin on board.
"There is something else we wanted to talk to you boys about," Rose said. She took Dorothy's hand. Dorothy didn't talk too much these days. Talking wasn't easy for her since the stroke, and it was often hard to understand her. Rose did most of the talking. I greatly missed my talks with Dorothy. She and I used to sit outside and have long talks about our relationships and how she kept things alive with Rose for so long. Even when I was at home, I would sit outside late at night in the summer months talking to Dorothy on the phone. She did the same thing up in Chattanooga. We would talk for hours. She was full of wisdom and advice, and I never got tired of hearing her tell stories of her life.
"I know that as part of our original agreement, we talked about the two of you buying the place from us," Rose said. Dorothy nodded. One of the things we had to discuss was what a fair market price would be. We have friends in real estate who have assured us that the value of property up here on the mountain is only going to go up. Since the pandemic ended, everyone wants to travel. I guess people took for granted being able to do what they want to, so in the few years since it's been over, our business has been great. We don't really think that's going to stop anytime soon." Rose paused.
"We are still interested in buying it," I said.
"What kind of value have you been told is here?" Braden asked.
"It was substantial," Rose said. "But Dorothy and I have made a decision, if you two agree to our terms. Neither of us wants to leave here. We talked about going to an assisted living facility, but when it comes right down to it, well, I'm just going to be honest. Dorothy won't live long if we move from here."
Dorothy nodded and started to speak. "That's right," she said, slowly. "I want to be here."
"So we have a proposal. Dorothy and I just decided for sure that we wanted to do this last night. Your idea about Austin running the place just fits right in. Let us stay here until we die. Help us take care of the place and take over the management of it. If you'll let us live here and help us out when we need it, we will leave it to you in our will."
"Are you serious?" I asked.
"We are," Dorothy said.
"Yes, we are very serious. We don't like to sugarcoat things, Josh. You know that about us. Dorothy's health isn't great. I'm fine now, but who knows for how long. Will you do this for us?"
I looked over at Braden and he nodded.
"We will do whatever we can for you," I said. "If that means I have to hire someone to help take care of you, I will. We will make this work."
We all hugged and then we finished the great breakfast that Rose had prepared.
Since it was such a beautiful day, Braden and I decided to go down into Chattanooga and enjoy the day. We visited the Tennessee Aquarium, which is always a fun experience. We walked across the Walnut Street Bridge, which is the longest pedestrian bridge in the world. The Tennessee River was gorgeous as always and we enjoyed looking out over it. We walked across the bridge and enjoyed visiting some of the quaint little shops on the other side. One shop that we really liked had lots of homemade food items and candles made right in Chattanooga! We walked across the street to a splendid doughnut shop and enjoyed some of the best doughnuts I've ever eaten. As we walked back across the Walnut Street Bridge, we heard music playing.
"What's that?" Braden asked.
"It's coming from that boat," I said, pointing to a river boat.
"That looks like fun," Braden said, seeing people on the boat. "We should ride it!"
Braden and I walked to the end of the bridge and then walked down a hill and made our way to the riverfront. We walked along the river until we located the stopping point for the boat.
"The Southern Belle Riverboat," Braden said, reading from the sign. We walked inside the gift shop that was attached and inquired about tickets. We had a little time to spare until the boat took off again, so we browsed until it was time to board. They even give you a small Moon Pie, a snack cake that was born in Chattanooga, for the ride.
The sight-seeing cruise on the Tennessee River lasted about an hour and a half. Braden and I enjoyed sitting on the top deck of the boat and seeing the sights along the river as the captain gave a history lesson of some of the landmarks along the way.
"What do you want to do now?" Braden asked as we walked down the ramp and away from the boat.
"Let's get the car and drive out to the mall," I said. "We could grab lunch there and then do a little shopping."
Braden and I drove the few minutes to the mall where we enjoyed lunch in the food court and then walked around the mall. The mall was bustling with shoppers. Braden and I were just enjoying each other's company and being together. Without thinking, we started holding hands as we walked through the mall. We got smiles and nods from a few people, but most just ignored us as they were consumed with their own plans and affairs.
We passed a family of what I assumed was a husband and wife and their son. The boy looked to be around thirteen or fourteen years old. As they passed us, the man stopped.
"Hey!" he said, "Do you have to do that here?"
I heard him, but honestly, I didn't think he was talking to us. We kept walking.
"I know you heard me, you queers!"
At that point, I knew he was talking to us. I really wanted to just keep walking and not have a confrontation. We were having such as good day. But I knew that Braden would have none of this man's verbal assault.
"Excuse me?" Braden said as he turned around, still holding my hand. "Is there a problem?"
"Yeah, there is. I'm trying to have a nice day out with my family. I don't need my son seeing this shit. Two men walking around holding hands like it's the most natural thing in the world. You're sick and I hope you burn in hell. That's where you belong!"
"Ryan, come on, let's go," the man's wife said. "Leave them alone. They aren't hurting you."
"You want Asher to grow up to be one of them? You want him to see this and think it's normal?" the man spewed at his wife. For some reason, I knew this was not his first time doing this. Unfortunately for him, he picked the wrong target this time."
"If your son is gay, then he sure as hell didn't get it from seeing two men holding hands," Braden spat back.
"Braden, come on, let it go," I said. "We don't need to be on the news."
At this point, several people had stopped to see what the commotion was about. I could see phones coming out to record the commotion.
"Braden, people are recording. We can't do this. We could lose our jobs," I said. Braden heard me and nodded in agreement. He backed off.
"Is there a problem here?" A uniformed sheriff's deputy walked up to us.
"I saw the whole thing," an older lady said, walking up beside us. "These two," she pointed at Braden and me, "were just walking along minding their own business. This guy," she pointed to the man identified by his wife as Ryan, "started shouting obscenities and calling them names."
"Is this true?" The deputy asked.
"Yes sir," I spoke.
"My son is here," officer, "He shouldn't have to see this kind of wretched behavior."
"What do we have here?" A mall security officer walked up to join the conversation. The deputy filled him in.
"It sounds to me like the only wretched behavior here today is yours," the mall cop said to the man. "I'm going to have to ask you to leave, sir. You are banned from this mall. For life. We don't allow any of our patrons to be subjected to harassment. I'll escort you off the premises."
Surprisingly, the crowd that had gathered around us started to clap. The man started to protest. The deputy shut him up.
"You've just been banned from the premises. If you don't start moving now, I'll have to arrest you for trespassing."
In a huff, he stormed away, closely followed by the deputy and mall security. Another mall security officer approached Braden and me.
"I'm terribly sorry for this," he said. "We want your visit to be as comfortable as possible. If you'd like to speak to mall management,"
I cut him off.
"Thank you," I said, "but that won't be necessary. My husband and I just want to enjoy the rest of our day. There's nothing you could have done to stop someone like him. We do appreciate your quick reaction."
"And thank you as well," Braden said to the older lady who intervened on our behalf. "I'm Braden, and this is my husband, Josh."
"I'm Barbara, it's very nice to meet you," she said.
"Can I ask why you stepped in and took up for us?" I asked. "Not many people would do that these days."
"It was the right thing to do," she said. "My grandson is gay. If someone ever tries to hurt him, I hope someone will be brave enough to stand up for him."
"I'm sure he's a fine young man with a grandmother like you," I said. Barbara asked if she could hug us. We agreed, and she did. We all went on our way. I was sure that this would end up on social media at least. I only hoped we could keep our identities out of it.
Braden and I were in the shoe store trying on some tennis shoes when we heard a voice from behind us. It was a child's voice.
"Ex-cuse me. Sir," the nervous voice said.
I turned around to find the boy whose father verbally harassed us earlier.
"Hello," I said. His mother was standing a few steps back from him. She looked mostly at the floor but looked up and nodded at me. I nodded to her. Braden stepped over beside me.
"I thought you all had to leave," Braden said. I put my hand on his shoulder. He stopped talking.
"They made my dad leave, but they let us stay. We're buying my school clothes. Listen, I just want to say I'm sorry for what my dad said. He had no right to say those things to you."
"Thank you, son." I said. "I didn't catch your name."
"I'm Asher. This is my mom, Celia." Celia nodded and gave a small smile. I could tell she was embarrassed.
"Asher, thank you for coming to say that to us," I said. "You aren't responsible for what your father does. And neither are you." I looked at Celia.
"I know, but still, I just wanted to say I'm sorry," he said. "Mom, can you give me a minute?" Asher said. Celia nodded, and walked over the women's section of the shoe store where she could still keep an eye on Asher.
"The other thing I wanted to say, ummm, I guess the joke's on my dad because I've known that I'm gay for a while now. Mom knows. We aren't telling Dad."
"That's probably a smart move," Braden said. "Your mom is okay with it?"
"Yeah, she said she doesn't care as long as I am happy." Asher said. "Anyway, I'll leave you guys alone now. Oh, one more thing, you two are really hot. Especially you." Asher pointed at Braden, blushed, then turned and walked out of the store. His mom followed.
I started laughing. Braden's jaw was on the floor.
"Can you believe that?" Braden asked.
"No! How could he think you're hotter than me?" That earned me a punch on the arm.
"Because I am, Daddy!" Braden said.
"Keep calling me Daddy and I'll have to spank you in front of all of these people," I said.
Braden and I both found some shoes we liked. We paid for them and then headed a clothing store where we picked out clothes that we thought would look hot on each other. We were having a great time when once again, someone behind us said "Excuse me."
"You have to be kidding me," I thought to myself. I turned around to find Celia standing there.
"You don't have to apologize again," I said. "It's all good, really." I was starting to get tired of this whole thing and really just wanted to leave.
"No, I'm not. I mean, yes, I am sorry, but that's not why I'm here. My son, Asher, he's over trying on clothes, so I only have a minute. He's gay."
"I know, he told us," Braden said.
"He also thinks that Braden is hotter than I am," I said. "But I don't think so. What do you think?" I asked. She just gave me a blank stare, then shook her head a little and blinked her eyes like she was resetting her brain or something.
"Ummm, maybe this was a bad idea," she said.
"I'm just having a little fun," I said. "Don't mind me. What did you need?"
"It's just that I don't know any other gay people. If my son is going to be gay, he needs role models and I need to know what he's getting into. Can we talk sometime?" She handed me a piece of paper with her name and phone number written on it. She also wrote her email address. "Thank you," she said.
Before I could reply, she walked away.
"That was weird," Braden said.
"Yes. Very much so," I said.
The next chapter in this series will be published soon!
Your feedback is always appreciated! Send it to whenyouleastexpect2020@gmail.com. Let me know if you want to be added to my mailing list to be informed when new chapters are published.