Should Old Acquaintance
Chapter 15
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Brian was barbecuing steaks. They smelled
wonderful. Justin was in the kitchen making a salad. Bree was playing with her
dolly in the sun porch. John, Bobby and Patrick were having dinner over at
Claire and Steve's. It was kind of nice to have the place to themselves
for a while.
"Salad's ready," Justin called. "How long for the steaks?"
"Another few
minutes for yours. Mine
hasn't even sailed across the flames yet," Brian laughed. He loved his steak
very rare.
"I don't know how you eat raw
meat," Justin said coming over to the barbeque.
"It's not raw. It's rare."
"I don't care what they call it. It's
still raw."
"Sissy," Brian laughed.
Justin elbowed his husband good-naturedly.
This was an ongoing battle that neither of them would ever win, and they didn't
really care.
"How was your visit with Father
Tom?" Justin asked out of the blue.
Brian frowned and tried to keep the
emotions off his face.
"What happened?" Justin asked.
He had learned a long time ago how to read that Kinney face.
"What makes you think something
happened?" Brian asked. Justin stared at his husband just waiting.
"Okay, okay. Claire and I ran into Joan at the church."
"Does she live there now?"
Justin asked.
"Seems that way," Brian
chuckled. "Every time one of us goes near the place, she's there to
observe and comment.
Justin understood the Kinney shorthand.
"And what was her comment?"
"She was aghast that her two children
were in her church together."
"When did it become her church? And
why was she aghast?"
"I guess I took her look to be
aghast. She was certainly surprised."
"Not half as much as you were, I
bet," Justin chuckled.
"You got that right."
"What did you tell her about why you
were there?" Justin wondered what kind of a story the two Kinney children
had come up with.
"The truth," Brian replied
looking into Justin's blue eyes.
"About the
baptism?" Justin asked
in surprise.
"Your face looks a lot like Joan's
when we laid that one on her."
"Asshole," Justin said giving
Brian another shot to the ribs.
"I asked her to come."
"You didn't?" Justin's eyes were
very big.
Brian nodded. "And then you should
have seen my face when she said yes."
"Holy fuck!"
"There was nothing holy about it. I'm
still not sure why I asked her, and I'm even more unsure about why she said
she'd come," Brian admitted.
"She saw Bree the other day. I bet
she wants to hold her granddaughter." Brian's face got a very strange look
on it. "What?" Justin asked, worried.
"She said Briana had a beautiful
name," Brian said almost in a whisper. He threw his steak on the barbecue
so he could avoid Justin's gaze.
"She does have a beautiful name. Why
does Joan acknowledging that fact upset you?"
"That's the first nice thing she's
said to me in … as long as I can remember."
"Oh, Brian…" Justin said as he
pulled Brian into a hug.
Brian held on for a minute, tugging
possessively on Justin's hair. After a deep breath, he let go. "You're
going to make me burn my steak," He said flipping the still raw hunk of
meat. "Get Bree. This is ready."
Justin walked away knowing that Brian had
said as much as he could about the encounter with his mother. It was better to
just leave it alone now. But Joan Kinney better not fucking upset Brian on what
should be one of the happiest days of his life.
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As July was coming to an end, the work on
John and Bobby's cottage was beginning to wane. With the new roof and attic,
Gordon had the opportunity to drop new electrical cable to bring the one
hundred-year-old cottage into the 21st century. That made
Gordon feel a whole lot happier. And then there was the new heating
system. He and his men did it all and preserved the quaintness of the old home.
John and Bobby were very pleased. They were especially happy that their home
was now in a habitable state. Patrick had his room back and all of his things
and they were all now able to sleep in their own beds.
Brian split his time between the two
offices, taking Bree with him when he could so that Justin had the peace and
quiet he needed to complete the artwork for the Rage show and his work on the
Patrick/Katherine portrait. If the painting turned out well, Justin wanted to
present it to his mother as a gift on the day of the christening. Justin
realized that Jennifer didn't always get the chance to spend as much time as
she'd like with her granddaughter. And that was partly their fault. Bobby had
once called Brian and Justin selfish in the way that they were raising Briana
all by themselves, with little help from the family. It suited Brian and Justin
just fine and of course, Jennifer was at least an hour and a half away. Justin
thought his mother would love the painting. That is if he could get it
finished. The sun was shining, the birds were chirping in the trees again since
the noise of the construction was now gone. Justin had no excuses not to paint.
And that's how Sidney Bloom found Justin, painting away in the sun porch.
"Hello, my boy!"
"
"My dear boy, if Mohammed will not
come to the mountain..."
"Then the mountain comes to Mohammed.
I get it. I'm sorry
"No need to apologize. You're not the
first artist who likes to stick close to his studio and this is a perfect place
for you to work. And I see you've made wonderful progress."
"What do you think?" Justin
nodded toward the portrait.
"I think it's beautiful. Will you
allow me to display it at the gallery? We never discussed what you wanted to do
with Edna's treasure once we restored them all."
"I guess a show wouldn't hurt. You
could do it along with the other Kinney's, maybe some of my other work
too."
"Ah, I see, perhaps a display of
styles across time and genre. Sounds perfect! Now for the
reason that I'm here. I have a little something for you. They're not the
originals, of course, but I do think you'll be pleased. Gentlemen."
The bears brought in several cartons and placed them on the table.
"
"A wise man. Three wise men when you open the other boxes."
"How? What are they made of? They're heavy but it's not
stone. And I prefer to call them the three gay guys."
"I'll leave what you call them up to
you. After the statues were cleaned, we made castings of them,
I had these made for you. I thought you might like them."
"Like them! This is so great! I love
them. Thank you,
"It's the least I could do. I have
been pressuring you lately."
"I do my best work
under...pressure."
"Be that as it may, do you have any
idea where you'd like to display these? Here, in the porch or..."
"Are they waterproof?"
"Waterproof? Why, yes they are. They're made of a hard resin. They
will stand the test of time. Better than the originals, I imagine."
"Then if you and your, um, men,
wouldn't mind a stroll through the woods, follow me." Each man picked up a
heavy statue and along with
Near the great rock in the small clearing
by the stream, Justin stood to look around for a special spot to place the
statues.
"Here, place them here." Justin
picked a spot away from the water's edge, up on a pile of flat boulders. The
workmen placed the statues then stepped aside so that Justin could arrange them
to his liking. When he was done, it looked as though the three, whatever they
were, were standing, engaged in congenial
conversation. Justin was very pleased. He crossed back to where
"Thank you," Justin whispered
into
"You are most welcome, my boy."
Back at the cottage,
"Before we leave, I have one more
surprise for you."
"
"Nonsense. And I think you'll agree that this painting belongs
here. Whoever planted your garden did a fabulous job. This painting will fit
right in."
"I suggest that back wall, in between
those two doorways, away from the direct light. It should be safe there."
Justin could only nod. "Then we shall leave you to it." Sidney
exclaimed as he shooed the men from the cottage, leaving the still speechless
Justin standing, gazing at the wondrous painting.
Several hours later, Brian, John, Bobby
along with the children found Justin sitting on the floor in the sun porch
staring at the sunflower painting which was leaning up against the back wall.
Brian handed Briana to John and knelt on the floor next to Justin.
"Justin?" Brian said gently as
he laid his hand on Justin's arm. "What's wrong?" Justin looked up
slightly startled; he hadn't heard them come in. All of Justin's attentions
were rapt in the painting.
"A name," Justin whispered.
"A name? What name? A name for what?"
"A name for our
home. We should have a name
for our home."
"I didn't know we needed a name,
Sunshine."
"We don't need one but I'd like
one." Brian settled on the floor and drew Justin in closer. Even in the
summer heat, the stone floor was chilly. Brian had Justin in his lap with his
arms wrapped about him. John and Bobby stood quietly and waited. "This
cottage, both of them, they look like all those old English cottages I've seen
in books and in paintings."
John knelt next to the two men and offered
his opinion.
"They should, they were originally
built over a hundred years ago. It makes sense for them to have been fashioned
like English cottages." Justin and Brian nodded.
"Have you ever noticed how the
English have names for everything. Their
great estates. Their cottages. Even their fields." Brian and John exchanged worried
glances. Brian raised his hand to touch Justin's forehead. "I'm not
sick....
"I remember. It was part of Edna's
treasure that she left for us." Brian smiled at the fond memory of Edna.
"The colors are so bright, now that
it's been cleaned. It looks as though Kinney painted it yesterday," Bobby
commented. The colors were dazzling, a testament to the artist and the artisan
who restored it.
"Justin, what would you like to name
our home?" Brian asked.
"You said it yourself, Bri."
"I did? What?"
"Edna's Treasures. On a little plaque, near the front
gate or over the main door to the porch. I never want to forget her and
what she has done for all of us." The four men smiled. It was a fitting
name.
"Then Edna's Treasures it shall
be." They sat for a few more moments until Justin's stomach grumbled. He
had forgotten all about lunch and hadn't a thought about dinner. Brian groaned;
his butt was getting cold. "I think your stomach has signaled the dinner
bell and the next time I sit on this floor, remind me to put down a pillow
first." Brian struggled to his feet, bringing his spouse with him.
"Hungy, Dada!" Bree declared.
"Good idea, Squirt. Let me change out
of this suit and we'll make dinner. So what's on the menu
tonight, little lady?" Brian asked his daughter.
"Hot dogs!" Briana said loudly, Patrick agreed with a giggle.
"Then hot dogs it is. I love a
well-done wiener, boys and girl!" Brian announced with his tongue firmly
planted in his cheek and a twinkle in his eyes as he headed for the bedroom to
change.
John, Bobby and Justin burst into belly
laughs at Brian's double entendre. The kids, however, wondered what was so
funny.
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Old Acquaintance