Daddy Type

By BndgDawg

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"How was Thanksgiving?" Darryl asked.

"Raucous, noisy, and full of love. To be honest, it was wonderful," I replied.

"My brothers can be a bit..." Luke started and paused.

"Like you," Cody finished.

"I’m not..." Again, Luke started and paused.

"Teasing," Cody said. "Matthew, Mark, and John are far more the rowdy type. You and Peter seem sedate compared to them."

"I would imagine the younger the brother, the more they thought they had to compete for attention," Phil said.

"The five brothers, Peter’s fiancé Stacy, Sarah and Nate, plus Cody and I, all in one house."

"Big house?" Darryl asked.

"Three bedrooms," Luke replied.

"Ummm..." Phil started.

"Mom and Dad were in their room. Peter and Stacy got Matthew’s room, which is the smallest bedroom. John and Matthew were in with Mark. Cody, Coulter, and I got the basement storage room, which had been converted into a sleep space."

"Wow. How were you boys divided up when you were younger?"

"We moved into the house when I was seven and just before Matthew was born. That would have made Peter eleven. It was Peter and me in the smaller room and Matthew, Mark, and John in the larger room. When Peter left for college, John moved in with me. When I left for college, John got a single. When John left for college, Mark got the bigger room."

"What about summers?" Phil asked.

"We got stuck in whatever room made the most sense. Mom and Dad’s opinion was that those in the house year-round got what they needed."

"That seems fair."

"It worked. I guess getting to live with different brothers made us all closer."

"Eleven years difference?" Phil asked.

"I’ll be twenty-three in January," Luke explained. "Peter’s twenty-seven and turns twenty-eight next fall. On the other end, Matthew’s sixteen and turns seventeen in May. Mark is eighteen and turns nineteen in March, and John just turned twenty in December."

You could see Phil’s brain working.

"Interesting. Except for Peter, you and your brothers weren’t conceived in the winter."

"Huh?" Luke grunted.

"You were born in January. Means you were conceived in April. December would be March. May would be... August. March would be June. Being born in the fall, only your brother Peter was conceived in the winter."

"Yeah, October," Luke replied.

"He was probably conceived in January. The baby boom starts in late June and runs through October. But more folks are born in September than any other month. In other words, conceived in December or January."

"I’m not following," Cody said.

"Most folks make their babies when it’s too cold out to do anything else. Maybe they get snowed in, things like that," Phil explained.

"Oh. Mom said that she went through one summer with a baby inside, and that was one too many. Even with air conditioning, being pregnant was too much in the summer."

"That makes sense," Phil said. "I’m guessing most women don’t plan things as well."

"I know my folks planned for all five of us," Luke replied.

"You’re an only child," Phil said, looking at me.

"Correct. My folks wanted more, but Mom wasn’t able after me. I don’t know what happened, but there was something that occurred, and I was it. They talked about adoption but never pulled the trigger."

Phil looked at Cody and was about to say something but stopped.

"My dad wanted lots of kids. I think that was one area that Mom won the battle. She had one, and that was enough for her."

Phil gave Cody a look. I wasn’t sure what it meant.

"Look, my dad’s a control freak with a my-way-or-the-highway attitude. My mom was the dutiful wife who tried, a little, to give me a nice childhood. I heard her on the phone one day when Dad wasn’t around. She was telling someone that if he’d had his way, the house would be full of rugrats. That show, So Many Kids and Counting, was on. She made the comment he’d have her beat that fucking number if he could. It was one of the few times I heard my mom cuss."

"Huh?" Luke said.

"You don’t cuss. At least not around my dad. I was somewhere around thirteen when this happened."

"My mom was thrilled to have five," Luke said.

"My mom was clear if she’d had a second, there would have been twenty more. Dad wanted lots, and I do mean lots, of kids. Have you heard of the Quiverfull movement?"

"Not at all," Phil said.

"People accuse the Duggars of being part of the movement, which they deny. Anyway, in researching my dad’s beliefs, I think he was part of or would want to be part of that movement."

"I’ll have to research that," Phil said.

"On to bigger and better things," Darryl said. "Are you ready for tonight?"

"That we are," I replied.

"What are the plans?" Phil asked.

"Ginger and Miss Luscious Lucchese should be at the club making sure Luscious knows how everything works. The club’s owner and some key staff are taking Georgia out for a birthday dinner, and they will be on the late side," I explained.

"We’re doing Rollin’ by Big and Rich to open the show," Cody said. "Instead of Cowboy Troy, we have Cowboy Tee. He’s really into it. While he’s not six-foot-four, he is with the cowboy hat, so it works."

"At intermission, we’ll have the cake come out and sing to Georgia for once," I added.

"Do you need to get there early?" Darryl asked.

"Not particularly. Everything is in place. This has been well planned out."

After dinner, Cody and Luke went back to the car to grab a few supplies. They caught up to us as we walked over to the club. Team Ginger had the space party ready.

"This looks great," Cody said.

"Thanks, hon," Devine said. "We spent time getting everything just right. You know her favorite color is red."

"Ginger or Georgia?" Phil asked.

That got us all laughing.

"Both," Devine finally said.

"It’s a lot of red," Cody said.

"Meh, red plastic table coverings, red balloons... we could have done more," Ginger said.

"Well, here are the flowers," Luke said.

"Oh, wow," Ginger said. "How many roses did you get?"

"It’s five dozen," I said.

"Sweet."

Devine and Ginger quickly put the roses in the vases and got them on the table.

I walked over to the stage and found a petite blonde who had a Dolly Parton vibe.

"Miss Luscious, I want to thank you for helping with tonight," I said.

"You must be Coulter."

"Guilty as charged."

"I’ve heard so much about you from Ginger. Where are your husbands?"

I waved at my guys, and they walked over.

"This is Cody and Luke," I said.

"Well, I can be very jealous. You three studs, and neither of you chose me."

"We just met you," Cody replied.

"I’m not a home wrecker. I will say that any of the three of you could tempt me."

"How long are you here?" Cody asked.

"I’m flying back next Wednesday. I took an entire week off."

Cody shared a look with Luke and me. I figured out he was asking about dinner. I nodded my head.

"If you have time, how about dinner one night?" Cody asked.

"I need to check with Ginger."

"Just let us know," I said.

"Who’s doing the opening act?"

Cody raised his hand and said, "My brother Casey and I are leading it, and Cowboy Tee is doing a part."

"Your brother?"

"His brother from another mother," Luke explained.

"I’m looking forward to it. Since y’all are here, do you want to go ahead and sign up?"

We took the opportunity and then moved towards our seats.

"Sign-up time," Miss Luscious called over the speaker system. "As a reminder, it’s country and western music only tonight."

The folks in the club started queuing up.

"She’s coming," I heard Devine yell.

A group of us moved over to the front door.

"I’m late," Georgia said as she walked in.

"Surprise!" We called out.

"What? What? What?"

"It’s your birthday, and we staged a coup," Ginger said. "Well, Coulter planned it, and we helped!"

"Follow us to your table," I said.

I took her hand and led her to the table front and center.

"But..." she started.

"It’s your birthday, and we’re honoring all you do for our community," I said.

Miss Luscious walked over and said, "Miss Georgia Knights, I’m Luscious Lucchese. You must be something else considering all I’ve heard and all this group has done. Happy birthday. Now sit back and enjoy your party!"

"You all are too much," Georgia said.

There was a bit of chatter as folks finished signing up, and then Miss Luscious took the stage.

"I’m honored to host tonight’s birthday celebration for Miss Georgia Knights. It’s clear from what has been done and the huge crowd here tonight that y’all agree she’s more than worth it. To kick off tonight, here's our opening act."

Cody and Casey took the stage. Cody started the song covering Big Kenny’s part, "Brother and sisters, we are here for one reason and one reason alone, to share our love of music. I present to you country music without prejudice..."

Casey came in, and the song got going. As they got close to the first refrain, Luke got up on stage and started doing the deep bass "rollin’, rollin’." As they sang, "At the top of your lungs till the windows break (rollin', rollin'). Say, hey, cowboy Tee." Tee came out from behind the counter and started the rap, "Dum-diggity-dum, diggity-diggity-dum dig this, slicker than the grease from a BBQ brisket, got more chunk than a fresh potato salad..."

The crowd went wild. For most of the regulars seeing, Tee in cowboy drag with a hat instead of his regular drag was a shocker.

As the song concluded, the crowd stood and provided quite the ovation. I looked over at Georgia, and she had a smile on that stretched across her face.

Miss Luscious came out and said, "That was wonderful. Our first performer tonight is Ginger Rouge, who is doing Georgia on My Mind."

For a while it was clear that Miss Luscious had chosen Georgia-themed songs. Devine did The Night the Lights Went Out in Georgia. Grace did Georgia Peaches. A few others got up and did the Watermelon Crawl, Good Directions, and other songs."

Finally, she stopped and said, "This evening was the brainchild of a handsome man I met tonight. Coulter, come up on stage with me." I walked up and joined her at the mic. "Coulter’s going to lead Happy Birthday since I cannot sing for the life of me.

As we started up Happy Birthday, the staff brought out a stack of plates and silverware. We’d taught a lot of the regulars the second verse, so I kept things going with "Hope you’re going to get some tonight. Hope you’re going to get some tonight. Hope you’re going to get some... cake and ice cream. Hope you’re going to get some tonight."

The cake was put down in front of Georgia, who now had tears streaming down her face.

"We love you, Georgia," I said.

She blew out the candles, and the crowd clapped.

Miss Luscious said, "Birthday cake break. We’ll start back up in fifteen minutes."

The cake in front of Georgia was served to her table. Ginger and Devine came out of the back with slices for anyone in the club that wanted one. Georgia waved me over and said, "I can’t thank you enough. All I expected was an opening act."

"This is my thank you. You gave me a space to escape. You gave me a space where my troubles were washed away. You gave my family a place to hang out, and enjoy. You gave us a community."

She smiled broadly.

After a bit, Luscious got up on stage and said, "Okay, folks. We have a big second half. Please get to your seats. First up for the second half is this handsome young man I’m smitten with. Cody, come up to the stage."

Cody walked up and joined Miss Luscious on stage. She put her arm around him and pulled him close. "Honey, is this song your proposal to me?"

"Sorry, no. I’m committed to my husbands. You’ve seen the video?"

"Yes! And I won’t spoil it for those that haven’t, but you need to see it!"

"So, if I say, the song spoke to me, you’ll understand. Fortunately, it all worked out in the end."

"Good. So, here’s Cody doing Marry Me."

Cody did a great job of covering the song, and I’m sure there were more than a few wet eyes in the place.

After he left the stage, Miss Luscious appeared and said, "The man that got this entire evening started is up next. He’s doing a song I love. Come on up, Coulter."

I joined her on stage, and her first comment was, "You two are a tall couple."

"Umm..."

"Oh, that’s right. He’s a handsome one too. Hmmm... It’s just not fair. Anyway, this song you picked. Is there a message in it?"

"When it came out, it fit a part of my life that is now in the distant past. Let’s just say in my first relationship, I hid so much of myself. This song spoke to me."

"Well, here’s Coulter doing Kelsea Ballerini’s Miss Me More."

I got into the song. I channeled my inner Kelsea, thinking about how she tackled the song in the video, fighting with herself. As I finished, I got a good round of applause.

"Here’s someone you all know and love. I had to give her time to change. Here’s Ms. Phoebe Fleet doing Queen’s Don’t."

As she sang the song talking about being a queen, you could see folks’ expressions getting serious. When she got to the lyrics, "Queens don't hate, queens don't fight, queens don't stay unless their king treats her right, oh, every jewel on my crown, you better believe I earned it, won't keep people around that don't believe I deserve it," the crowd clapped loudly.

The rest of the evening was joyous, and I could tell that it was touching Georgia. As the evening came to an end, Miss Luscious took the stage one last time and said, "First, I’ve been asked to remind everyone that the theme for competition night in two weeks is ensembles. Now, for my closing remarks on this wonderful night. Miss Georgia Knights, it was my privilege to host this event in your honor. It is clear that this marvelous community loves you. It is clear that this marvelous community respects you. Most importantly, this marvelous community exists because of you."

The entire room stood up and clapped. I looked at Georgia and saw she was crying. She looked over at me and mouthed, "Thank you."

* * *

"Have you given any thought to the competition?" Cody asked as we worked on dinner.

"I do have some ideas. What about you?"

"There are a lot of songs that are for groups, but I wasn’t really sure."

"Do you want to do a song that is already performed by a group or take a song that could be transformed?"

"What do you mean?"

"We could do Ugly Heart by G.R.L. That’s an easy cover since they were a group."

"Makes sense."

"Alternatively, we could take something like Kylie’s Get Outta My Way and make it work as an ensemble song."

"How?"

"Did you see the tribute video with all the porn stars?"

"WHAT?"

I grabbed my tablet and started searching. Once I had the video up, I handed the tablet to him and said, "Press play."

He tapped play, and the video started. It had been playing for only a few moments when he said, "Wow, wow, wow!" Once he got through the entire video, he asked, "So how would you split it up?"

"I think it would be by verse. The way the video is done won’t work for karaoke."

"Six guys?"

"We can do it with whoever is willing to participate."

Cody gave me a look.

"That video went around the gay community when it came out. I’m sure there are a lot of folks that will realize we’re doing a tribute to the tribute video."

"Funny. Who were you thinking about?"

"Well, the easiest would be you, Casey, and Angus doing the three leads with Luke, Kyle, and me on backgrounds."

"Why not you in the lead?"

"Tenor, tenor, baritone with a baritone, bass, and contrabass for backups."

"Got it. What about Ugly Heart?"

"Could be done with three, four, or five."

"I kinda remember the video. It was cute. I guess we don’t need to mimic it."

"Correct."

The doorbell rang, and I went to answer it. I opened the front door and said, "Welcome."

"Thanks for having us," Georgia said.

I moved to allow her, Ginger, and Luscious to enter the house.

"You are a long way from the city," Luscious said.

"I found the house. Fell in love with the house and yard. Then of course, if I hadn’t lived here, I would never have met Luke or Cody. What can I get you to drink?"

"Red wine," Ginger said.

"Same," Georgia added.

"Make it three," Luscious said.

Cody walked in holding a large tray. As he placed them on the buffet, he said, "A few appetizers before dinner."

"You’re going to spoil me," Luscious said.

"They are amazing hosts," Ginger said.

"Who is the cook?" Georgia asked.

"Cody and I do most of the cooking. Luke does most of the baking."

Luscious fixed herself a plate, took a bite, and said, "Wow, this is really good. What is it?"

"The official name is pie. Luke makes a pie crust, and then we build these little bites with minced beef and spices," Cody explained.

"Recipe. I need the recipe."

"Certainly, it’s something Luke and Cody developed from one of my mom’s recipes," I explained.

I handed our three guests their drinks and noticed Luke walk in.

"What else is there?" Ginger asked.

"Sweet potato biscuits with diced country ham, Buffalo cauliflower with blue cheese dipping sauce, and mini-skewers of vegetables," Cody replied.

"And you three don’t weigh a ton?" Luscious asked.

"You need to show her the house and that gym," Ginger said.

"We work out regularly," Luke explained.

"You would have to if you eat like this often," Georgia said.

"We don’t do this that often," Cody said. "Would you two like a tour?"

They nodded, and he started towards the back. Ginger stayed with Luke and me. After a few bites she said, "She’s smitten with you."

I noticed she was looking directly at Luke.

"Why me?" he asked.

"Oh, she likes all three of you, but evidently you’re her type."

"She knows I’m taken. Right?"

"Oh, definitely, but she’s still smitten."

The three of us stood there and chatted a bit while Cody gave the tour. Finally, we were rejoined, and Georgia said, "It’s a lovely home."

"Thanks," I said. "I had a lot of help."

"Decorator?" Luscious asked.

"Former boyfriend," I said. "He was my rebound fling for seven months before he headed off to graduate school."

"You do like them younger," Ginger said.

"Actually, my ex is older than me, and except for Rob, Luke, and Cody, I’ve never really dated guys more than a year or two younger."

"How did you meet?" Lucious asked.

"The fling, that was with Rob," I explained. "He knew he was leaving and introduced me to Luke."

"I was sorta involved with Cody, and I introduced him to Coulter," Luke added.

"We dated for a while," Cody said.

"And we dated for a while," Luke said.

"Then there was an issue in the dorms, and I needed to move out. Coulter offered me a room."

"After we moved Cody in, he and I were talking privately. As we were working out logistics for getting him to and from school, I admitted to Cody that I loved him. He said he loved me. Then we looked at each other and both said we loved Coulter," Luke explained.

"They found me in the kitchen and sandwiched me between them. We celebrated three years last Sunday."

"You two were in college when you met?" Luscious asked.

"Correct," Cody said.

"You should see this one," Georgia said. "After Coulter performs, he usually sits on his lap until the show ends."

"I can see I’m not tempting anyone in this family," Luscious said.

That got a good laugh.

"So, when are you three coming to Dallas?"

"No plans at the moment. Our only real plan is San Francisco next summer."

"Fun? First time?" Georgia asked.

"Yes and no," Cody said.

When he didn’t start explaining, Luke spoke up, saying, "Coulter had a business trip during my senior year and Cody’s junior year. The trip coincided with spring break, so we went along and had a lot of fun. That’s the no, we’ve been there before part. The yes, fun part is we’re going for Rob’s wedding."

"Rob, wasn’t that the name of the guy from the fling?" Luscious asked.

"Yup. They were here a while back, announced their engagement, and invited us to the wedding," I explained.

"Coulter’s the best man, and Luke’s a groomsman," Cody explained.

"Hmm... I need to find someone to marry," Luscious said. "And I know you three are taken."

"Should be a lot of handsome cowboys in Dallas," Luke said.

We kept talking for a bit, and then Cody said, "I need to finish dinner."

"Y’all don’t entertain in your kitchen?"

"Definitely not," Luke said. "It’s a good space but not an entertaining space."

"What’s for dinner?"

"We decided to do a culturally significant dinner," I said. "We’re having, and I’m going to butcher this, Svickova na Smetane, which translates to roast sirloin in sour cream sauce. It’s a traditional Czech dish and represents Cody’s heritage. The appetizer pies are Scottish, and we’re also having rumbledethumps as a side. It’s a dish of cabbage, onions, and mashed potatoes covered in cheddar cheese. I’m Scottish in heritage."

"For dessert, I made pastel de nata, which is a traditional Portuguese custard tart," Luke explained. "I found out at Thanksgiving that Portuguese is part of my heritage."

"It all sounds wonderful," Georgia said.

"I’m going to go help Cody get things on the table," Luke said.

A few moments later, we walked into the dining room.

"This looks amazing," Georgia said. "Y’all go all out, don’t you?"

"We try," Cody said.

After we passed the food around, Luscious looked at me and said, "I have to know what you think makes Georgia’s program so special. I need to capture some of this magic."

"First, everyone is welcome to sing. There are a lot of folks that get up there to have fun. At the same time, there are a lot of folks that put their heart into the music they perform as well. Second, it’s curated."

"What do you mean?"

"Folks sign up, but there is a definite flow to how the numbers are performed. You can tell that Georgia puts a lot of effort into the order of the evening. Third, there are the specialty or theme nights."

"Like?"

"Sex sells, disco-diva, retro, etc." I explained. "And then there are the competitions."

"Tell me about those."

"The winner gets free drinks for the month, and second- and third-place prizes as well."

I watched Georgia’s face as I explained.

"You forgot one," Cody said. "Catharsis."

Luscious looked at him.

"They are healing nights. Everyone that sings during the catharsis session has to have a song that fits the healing vibe, like getting over a cheater, dealing with abuse, or the loss of a loved one."

"Wow, just wow," she said. She looked at Georgia. "Do you mind if I use some of these ideas?"

"Not at all."

The conversation continued about how the karaoke nights had gone from a loss to the biggest night financially for the bar.

* * *

"O Christmas tree, O Christmas tree," Cody sang as we walked across the hillside.

"What do you want this year?" Luke asked.

"I really liked the blue spruce last year," Cody replied. "I’m open, though. The noble fir looks really nice as well. What do you think?"

"I liked the blue spruce. I have to wear gloves to decorate it, or I’ll end up with irritation spots all over my hands. It held up well, and all the ornaments looked great on it."

"It’s going to be a long way back to the barn," Luke said.

"Yup, but look at those trees," Cody said. "The guy that gave me the saw said that was the best quadrant to go to. Most folks won’t go that far."

"How big is an acre?" Luke said into his phone. He stared at the screen. "It says about two hundred and ten feet to a side."

"Five quadrants across and three up," Cody said. "Eight times two hundred... so, sixteen hundred feet. Hmm...."

"We’ve walked about a third of a mile," I replied. "And also think about the elevation we’ve gained."

"Yeah, a lot of folks won’t come out this far," Luke agreed.

As we started looking at trees, the joy in Cody’s face was evident. I’d come to realize how much the simple things meant to him. Decorating for Christmas, opening a present, and having Halloween allowed the kid in him to enjoy what he’d missed for so many years.

"How about this one?" Luke asked.

"That one is pretty," Cody said. "How tall?"

Cody stood close to the tree and held his arm up.

"It goes a good bit above your hand. Let’s guess it’s about ten feet," I said.

"I’d say we have a winner," Cody said.

"Agreed. Great find."

I spread the blanket on the ground, and Cody lay on it. He worked his way under the branches and started sawing. Luke and I steadied the tree as Cody made progress.

"Start pulling," Cody said.

With that, Luke and I gently pulled the tree towards us so that Cody could get the saw further into the trunk.

"Timber," Luke finally called out as Cody got the last of the trunk cut. "Now the fun part."

"At least a lot of it is downhill," I said.

We took turns pulling the tree down to the barn. There they bailed it, and we got it loaded onto the trailer. With the tree secured, I pointed the Jeep east, and we headed home.

"I’m getting hungry," Luke said as we were coming up on Purcellville.

"Check the maps," I said.

"Barbecue, Thai, pizza, deli..." Cody said.

"Parking spaces?"

"Some yes, some no," Cody said.

I pulled off Route Seven and headed east on Main Street. We found a place with a parking lot that had room for the Jeep with the trailer and stopped for lunch.

After ordering, I looked at my guys and said, "Anything you need before we head home?"

Luke shook his head. Cody said, "Nope. Just want to get the tree up and maybe try to get it lit today."

We got home shortly after lunch. With the three of us working together, we got the tree in the stand, inside, and lit in short order. Cody already had the boxes of ornaments out, so we started decorating the tree.

"This one is really pretty," Cody said.

"It’s by Patricia Breen," I said. "It is one of the few ornaments that I bought as opposed to inherited. I splurged a bit."

"Huh? Splurged?" Luke asked.

"It wasn’t cheap."

"Okay, I have to ask..." he said.

"Over three hundred."

"What the fuck? Three hundred dollars?" Luke said.

"Yep. They are handblown, hand decorated, and extremely collectible. It’s kinda like when Christopher Radko first started. All his stuff was beautiful, handblown stuff. He made most of his stuff in Poland and some in Italy. Then he sold out, and the quality dropped. The new owners were trying to mass market the stuff. They seem to be trying to get back to higher quality now."

"What other brands do you like?" Cody asked.

"There’s a line of Italian ornaments called De Carlini that I like. Again, handblown, hand-painted, and beautiful. Some of the Old World Christmas ornaments are pretty. There are a lot of smaller Czech, Polish, and other Eastern European companies that make pretty ornaments. As we pull out the stuff I bought, I’ll point them out."

"Do you mind if I find and buy something?"

"It’s your house too!" Luke said for me.

"I know. I know."

"Find what you like and add it to the tree. It’s not like there isn’t room on our tree for a lot more ornaments."

"I thought it was pretty full," Luke said.

"We need to go to Chris and Stephen’s house. Their tree is layered with ornaments. They use colored balls, set in deep on the branch, to provide a backdrop for the other ornaments. They put so much on their tree; you wonder how it holds it all."

"Have you ever thought of doing a themed tree?" Cody asked.

"I have not. Not opposed to it, but I haven’t. What did you have in mind?"

"Growing up, one of my friends, his family did a red and green tree. All the balls were bright red or bright green, and all the ornaments were as well."

"As I said, not opposed. Just remember we have to store what we use."

"Makes sense."

I could see the wheels turning in Cody’s brain.

That evening after dinner, the three of us curled up on the sectional to watch television with the tree lit and decorated in the corner.

"We do good work," Luke said.

"That we do," Cody agreed.

"It is a pretty tree," I agreed.

"We’re doing a Christmas party this year, aren’t we?" Cody asked.

"Sure. We should get the invites out quickly," I said.

"Ummm..." Luke started.

"People’s calendars will fill up fast," I said.

"Christmas cocktail party like last year?" Cody asked.

"It was a lot of fun," Luke said.

"Festive dress, fancy foods, nice drinks; sounds like a winner to me," I said.

"Either the twenty-first or twenty-second," Cody said, his tone sounding more like an ask.

"I’m betting more folks will have a party already on Saturday than on Sunday," I said.

"A Sunday party?" Luke asked.

"Sure, the twenty-third will be a vacation day or a quiet day at work for most," I explained. "We can figure it all out tomorrow and get an invite out."

With that, Cody snuggled in on one side, Luke on the other, and we started watching the show.

* * *

Sunday morning, I was standing in the kitchen starting my first sip of coffee when Cody walked in.

"Morning," he said.

After swallowing, I replied, "Good morning. Water’s hot."

He grabbed the kettle and started filling his press. "Thanks!" With his full, he started filling Luke’s. I gave him the raised eyebrow. He said, "Yup, awake and joining the world."

"He is becoming a morning person."

"Corrupted. Corrupted. Corrupted," Luke said as he joined us in the kitchen.

"Tempted with perks," Cody said with a chuckle.

"There is that," Luke said. "What’s the game plan for today?"

"Nothing on my agenda," I replied.

"Decorate outside?" Cody asked.

"Sure. What do you want to do?" Luke asked.

"Hmm... set out the lanterns. I bought some LED candles to set in them. They work from dusk to dawn. Would you want to do any lights out front?"

"The lanterns up the walkway. How about wrapping the crepe myrtle out front?" Luke asked.

"That would be pretty," Cody replied. "What colors?"

"We only have clear or multi-colored," I said.

Both Cody and Luke got looks on their faces.

"That doesn’t mean we can’t buy some lights," I continued. "It’s going to take a lot of lights to wrap that thing."

"Huh?" Cody grunted.

"Are you planning to wrap each branch individually, or were you thinking of wrapping it as one big unit?"

"Each branch," Cody replied.

"There’s what, fifteen or so branches. How far up are you going?"

"I hadn’t gotten that far. I guess we can’t do it."

"Why not?" I asked.

"You said it would be a lot of lights."

"True, but they are easy to buy."

"Need to figure out how many we need," Luke said.

"Lots of variables," Cody said. "How tightly we wrap each branch. How big around the branch is."

"Count branches, go buy boxes of lights; if we need more, we can get more later," I said.

"That’s fair," Cody said.

"In the meantime, I need a lot more coffee to get my day started," Luke said. "Plus, I need a perk or two."

I got a small platter of muffins and such together. With stuff ready, I said, "Den time for coffee, nibbles, and snuggling."

My guys followed me to the den. Luke took the middle position. Cody and I snuggled up on either side.

"This is worth getting up early," Luke said.

"See, mornings aren’t all bad," Cody said.

We stayed snuggled up for quite a while, just generally chatting, enjoying closeness, and relaxing. With the platter, we didn’t have to worry about stomachs growling.

"I guess we should get our day going," Luke finally admitted.

"I’ll clean up the dishes," Cody offered.

"I’ll get the bed made," I said.

"I’ll get my shower started," Luke added.

With that, we got our Sunday started. We went out to get lights.

"What color?" Luke asked.

"Hey, look at these," Cody said. "Super Sphere."

I could see the wheels turning in Cody’s head.

"What if we wrap the branches from the ground up, say ten feet, with green lights and then hang some of these red super spheres from the branches up high?"

"Would look cool," Luke agreed.

"What do you think, Coulter?" Cody asked.

"I’m game. It will be pretty."

When we got home, Cody wanted to get started lighting the yard. Luke gave me a look, and I returned it with a smile. I knew that, for Cody, getting to do all he had missed during his childhood was important. He wanted the full Monty when it came to every holiday, every event.

"How about I work on lunch while you two start figuring out how this is going to work?" I suggested.

"What do you mean? Wrap lights, hang spheres, what else..." Cody asked.

I put my hand up and said, "You’ll need to run power to the trees you’re going to light. You don’t want to cross the walks where someone could trip. You want it neat and tidy."

"Got it," Cody replied.

I went into the house and got started. About twenty minutes later I opened the front door and called out, "Lunch."

As we sat and ate, Cody started. "We need extension cords. I was checking online and found a suggestion to use something called lawn staples to hold the cords down so folks don’t trip walking through the yard."

"While there isn’t any power," Luke started. "I did a practice run with some of the lights, and once we get power to the tree, we can see what we like."

"Outdoor extension cords are in the shed. How many feet do you need?" I asked.

"One about fifty feet and one about sixty feet," Cody replied. "I checked the shed and found what we had, but they are orange."

"Which is good for yard work where you want folks to see the cord, but not for yard décor where you want it hidden. So, a few cords on our shopping list."

"We also need something to turn the lights on and off. I found these controllers that can be set to come on at dusk and then off at specific times," Cody said.

"Sounds like a quick shop will be good after lunch," I said.

"Can we try out the samples first?" Luke asked.

"Sure," I said.

"I want to know if we need more lights," he explained.

"Going to be hard to tell in the daylight. But we can try to get a sense. Lights aren’t that expensive, and having some backups will be good."

While I cleaned up after lunch, Cody and Luke got an extension cord and got his samples lit. I joined them out front and asked, "Which do you prefer?"

"I think this one is the best," Luke said. "It’s a bit like Goldilocks. That one is too dense and is going to be too bright. That one is too sparse and won’t be bright enough. And that one is just right."

Cody and I both chuckled at his explanation.

"Do we need more lights?" I asked.

"A few more boxes wouldn’t be a bad thing," he admitted.

"Cords, staples, lights, anything else?" Cody asked.

We both shook our heads.

"Are we all going, or should one go and the other two work on lights?" Luke asked.

"I’m open either way."

"Eh, we’re not on a deadline. Let’s all go together," Luke answered himself.

We took off, grabbed what we needed, and came home. With the three of us working on it, it didn’t take long until we had the yard ready for the night.

* * *

"Any trips coming up?" Greta asked.

"Not on the near horizon," Rose, our new sales manager, replied.

"Any issues coming out of customer support?" Lucinda asked.

"Really, nothing much at all. Most of our support calls are for the ‘I don’t know how to do this’ type issues," Jennifer replied.

"Should we start developing tutorial videos?" I asked.

"That wouldn’t be..." Jennifer started and stopped. "I was going to say that wouldn’t be beneficial, but thinking about it more, it’s a great idea. We could go through the tickets and find out what the most common issues are and create videos for how to do those items."

"How would we do this?" Lucinda asked.

Everyone looked at me.

"My thought is we use the integration test environment. Set up realistic-looking dummy data. Have someone do the screen captures of everything that has to happen to complete whatever task or transaction is being shown. Finally, we need a voice that provides the narration."

"That raises a few questions for me," Ravi said. "What do you mean by realistic-looking dummy data? What do you mean by a voice?"

"We can’t use any customer’s data. What is currently in integration test is an odd assortment of data used to test specific scenarios. What I’m thinking is we create a specific set of data that is realistic in concept but artificial in reality. As an example, if the company were Mouse House with employees Mickey, Minnie, Donald, etc. Then we add products like mouse ear hats. Does that help? Of course, we can’t use that example, as Walt Disney would come after us in a heartbeat if they found out. As far as the voice, think about the IVR. We used a specific voice. It should be a voice that folks want to listen to. That they have confidence in."

"Got it," Ravi replied.

"You know this stuff," Gretta said.

"I worked on training videos at my last job early on. I learned from good people."

"We should start trying to figure out where to hire someone for the voice," Jennifer said.

"Not necessary," I replied. "I’m sure we can find someone with the voice we want internally."

"I agree. I think we can find one of our team to do it. One thing to think about is that they will become the voice of the company, so think about longevity as well. Moving on to the next topic," Lucinda said. "I think this will be the last year for the holiday lunch as a single event. With our growth, I struggled to find a place that could handle us all. I’m thinking that going forward we should mostly do departmental events, not company events. Thoughts?"

"Coulter and I talked about this before Thanksgiving," Ravi said. "We were anticipating the change."

Lucinda gave me a look. I just smiled back at her.

"Let’s start putting together ideas for departmental events for twenty-twenty," Lucinda said. "On another topic, as usual, we will shut down at eleven thirty on the day of the party. I don’t want folks coming back and working."

"Understood," Greta replied.

"Other topics to discuss?" Lucinda asked.

"End-of-year ratings," I said. "Any changes anticipated to next year’s form?"

"I don’t think anything is necessary. I’m happy with our evaluation form."

"Super, then I’ll make sure I go through twenty-twenty goals while giving my twenty-nineteen performance ratings."

"Sounds good. Anything else?"

Everyone shook their heads.

As we headed out, Lucinda tapped my shoulder and nodded toward her office. I followed her in.

"You’re good for the company."

"Thanks. What I do."

"Hmmm... figured out our training needs and developed a plan, got one of the most resistant-to-change folks on board with shifting from company events to departmental events, and subtly remineded everyone to get their goals developed and ready in time for performance evaluations."

"I’ve got a lot more experience than most of the leadership."

"But you weren’t in leadership at your last job."

"I’m observant. I know what they did. I know how they did it. It is a company with good processes."

She smiled at me and said, "I appreciate you bringing the concepts forward. Clearly you haven’t forgotten much."

"I still hear about what’s going on," I admitted.

"Oh?"

"My tenant Luke works there, and my friend Justin just got promoted to vice president there."

"May I ask a personal question?"

"You may always ask. I might not answer."

"Your tenant has been living with you a long time. And I know you have two. Do you mind explaining? I mean, I know you’re attached to them. You have that picture of the three of you on a beach together on your desk. And..."

"I hope this doesn’t change our relationship," I started.

The look on Lucinda’s face was interesting. She shook her head.

"The three of us are in a relationship. In fact, we recently celebrated three years."

"The three of you... Wow, I didn’t really expect that. Are you happy?"

"Deliriously," I said.

She looked at me, and I could tell the thoughts were coming a mile a minute. Finally, she asked, "What about their families?"

"Well, Cody’s family isn’t in the picture. After the attack he has had no contact." She nodded. "Luke’s family is aware and very accepting."

"I won’t say anything to anyone."

"Thanks. I do try to keep my personal life personal."

We chatted for a few more minutes, and I headed to my desk. As I sat, I thought about what had just happened and shuddered a bit. It went much better than I could have thought.

I kept it to myself as Luke and I rode home. I knew I should let them know, but I wanted to do it once.

"Home!" Luke called out as we walked into the house.

"Kitchen!" Cody called back.

We dropped our stuff off, hung our coats, and walked into the kitchen. Cody came over and gave each of us a hug and kiss.

"How was your day?" Cody asked.

"Good," Luke replied. "Same stuff as usual."

"Mine was good. I did have one surprise today."

Both my guys looked at me.

"Well. I came out to Lucinda."

"Huh?" Cody grunted.

"She was asking about my tenants."

"Wait, your boss knows we’re a triple?" Luke’s voice was loud.

"Yep, and she seemed okay with it."

"That’s great."

"Yep, yep, yep," I said. "What can I do to help with dinner?"

Luke threw me a look that told me changing the topic was not cool.

"What’s wrong?" I asked.

"I’m processing. You told your boss, and she didn’t care," he explained.

"Actually, she asked about our relationship, and then I explained. It’s not like it is completely hidden. I have that picture of us on the beach on my desk. She knows I’m attached to you. You both still live here. The secret is less a secret than one might think."

Luke nodded his head.

"Back to my question, what can I do to help with dinner?"

"It’s good," Cody said. "Well, you could pour drinks."

After we got our dinner on the table, I asked Cody, "How was your work?"

"Good. I got approved for a training class."

"What class?" Luke asked.

"It’s a boot camp for the CISSP exam."

"You don’t..." I started and stopped. "You’d get the associate’s version, right?"

"Yep. I need four years of work experience since I’ve got a relevant degree."

"Your boss is great," I said.

"Huh?"

"She’s pushing to develop you. That’s a good thing!"

"I do appreciate her a lot."

"How’s Chris doing?" Luke asked.

"He’s good. I’m learning so much from him."

"What do you mean?" Luke asked.

"He’s got what... fifteen years of experience. He helps me understand things."

"That’s nice of him," Luke said.

"He’s a great guy."

"Yoga tomorrow night?" I asked.

"Yeah."

"See if they want to do dinner afterwards."

"In yoga outfits?" Luke asked.

"We’ll have to pull on pants and a sweatshirt afterwards. It’s cold out. We could hit the burger and custard place over on Route Fifty," I explained.

"That would be nice," Cody said.

* * *

"How goes?" I asked Josh as we sat down.

"Going well. I’ve been meaning to say thank you."

"Oh? Why’s that?"

"You three joining Chris at yoga makes him happy."

"We’re enjoying it."

"It took some pressure off of me."

I gave Josh a smile as Chris, Cody, and Luke walked up to the table with our drinks.

"We’re number 247," Cody said.

"We’re number 436," Chris said.

"So, how was Thanksgiving?" Josh asked.

Cody and I both looked at Luke.

"What? Just because we were at my family’s house? I had a great time. I got to hang with all my brothers. I came out to all but one of them."

"Huh? What?" Josh asked. "They didn’t know you were gay?"

"They knew about the gay. I explained our relationship to them. We likened it to coming out. We had good food. We walked on the beach. We had fun," Luke explained.

"Beyond time with the family, I really enjoyed that museum," I explained.

"The Chrysler Museum," Cody said.

"What about yours?" I asked.

"I think Cody called Thanksgiving a boisterous and joyous family event. If yours was raucous, I’d call ours a three-ring circus," Chris said.

"There were eight of us that stayed at the house. Then there were three VRBO rentals with the extended family. On Thanksgiving, we had about forty for dinner." Josh said, looking at Chris.

"Something like that. I’ll admit I lost count. Between parents, kids, grandkids, girlfriends, boyfriends, and more, it was hard to keep track. The weather was nice, so we got a good bit of horseback riding in."

"Sounds like fun," I said.

"Speaking of fun, we’re looking forward to your party," Josh said.

"Glad you two can come."

"Can we bring anything?" Chris asked.

"Just yourselves," Luke replied. "We’ll have plenty of food."

"Chris mentioned us coming to karaoke," Josh said.

"It’s an option," Cody said. "We have a good group of folks that come, and we have a lot of fun. You don’t have to sing to enjoy."

"I sort of sing," Josh said. "I won’t break your eardrums."

"There are those that are committed to their performance and those that have fun," Luke said.

"Which are you three?" Josh asked.

"We have fun, but I’d say we are mostly committed to our performances," I replied.

The hard-to-understand loudspeaker announced, "Number 436, your food is ready. Number 436."

Chris got up to get their food. Within a few moments, the loudspeaker called our number, and Cody took off to get our trays.

"I think this new job has been great for Chris," Josh said.

"Why’s that?" Luke asked.

"He got a great co-worker that is becoming a great friend, and we got the three of you as friends. He’s also much happier than he was at his last job."

Chris and Cody joined us, and food was distributed around the table.

"I was just saying how happy you are at work," Josh explained.

"Damn right. Great boss. Great work. Great co-workers. Great friend," Chris agreed. "It was a great move for me."

Cody’s smile threatened to split his face in half.

"Have you been in IA your entire career?" Luke asked.

"No. I started in software testing. I transitioned to a job more focused on testing the security features of software and systems. That led me to transitioning to performing DIACAP on a DoD contract. We moved to the Risk Management Framework after they retired DIACAP."

Luke held up his hand. "What’s DIACAP?"

"Sorry, acronym soup. It stands for the DoD Information Assurance Certification and Accreditation Process; it was the DoD framework to make sure their systems and the systems of vendors were secure. They moved to the Risk Management Framework that they based on NIST standards about three years ago."

"Didn’t like government contracting?" I asked.

"Not at all. My company was okay. My customer was a... I want to be nice, but in reality, I can’t be nice. He was a complete and utter jackass."

"Oh?" Luke asked.

"I’m sure you’ve seen those motivational posters. The ones with an image, a key word, and a saying?"

We nodded.

"Have you seen the demotivational posters? Same style, just negative words."

I nodded, but Cody and Luke shook their heads.

"Well, Mr. Jackass had a poster of the pyramids on his door with the word ‘achievement’ under it. The saying was you can do anything you set your mind to when you have vision, determination, and an endless supply of expendable labor. He put the word ‘contractor’ as an insert between ‘expendable’ and ‘labor’. We were nothing more than unworthy labor, and that got old over time. Josh and I talked it over, and moving to INOVA was something that we thought would help reduce stress and let me have a real life."

"I work to live. I don’t live to work," I commented.

"Exactly," Josh said.

"What about you?" I asked.

"I started with my company when I graduated from Tech. It’s a good place to work, and they’ve treated me well. I work on software that they market to the federal government, but I’m not considered a government contractor."

"Front end? Back end? Other?"

"I work primarily on the backend, but I’m moving into more of a full-stack role."

"Bridging front and back, great! We’re still small, but as we grow, I’m figuring we’ll need some full-stack folks.

"Enough work discussion," Luke said. "Ready for Christmas?"

"That we are. We’re doing Christmas Eve and Christmas with my folks," Chris explained. "Then we’re heading to the farm."

"Back to southwestern Virginia?" Cody asked.

"Yep. They are my family," Josh said.

"Makes sense," Cody replied. "I’m doing Christmas with my family."

That put a huge smile on my face.

* * *

"What are you doing tonight?" Georgia asked.

"We’re doing The Sound of Musik."

"What?"

I handed her the thumb drive and said, "Not the movie. It’s a song by Falco."

"Oh, that sounds interesting. Who’s in your group?"

"Luke, Cody, Casey," I noticed Georgia was nodding along. "Kyle."

"What?"

"He agreed to perform, and we’re hoping this really works out."

"Looking forward to it."

"Thanks."

I got back to the table and talked with Justin and Angus a bit until the lights flashed.

"It’s our last competition night of 2019, and we’re celebrating with Ensemble Night," Georgia explained. "I’m going to start by giving thanks to our three judges who have covered each competition this year. First, the wonderful Miss Nomer!" She stood, and the crowd applauded. "Next, the marvelous Miss Lavish Lazuli." She stood, and the crowd applauded. "And finally, the sweet Ms. Noe Stalgia." She stood, and the crowd applauded. "Now, to get things started, the Ladies of Glam are covering Dua Lipa’s New Rules."

Ginger and her team walked onto the stage. They pulled out a few plastic pink flamingos and put them in different spots on the stage. I was really impressed as they not only covered the song but also represented the video. As they finished, they got a good round of applause.

"Next up," Georgia announced, "we have Team Hoochie covering Pontoon, originally by Little Big Town."

The team walked up to the stage, quickly disrobed down to a mix of one-piece bathing suits for the ladies and board shorts for the guys, and put a number of pool floats on the stage. Georgia got the music started, and they played up the water vibe. It was a riot.

"Our next group is taking on a song by Austrian singer Falco. I’ll admit I’m not familiar with the song, but I’m looking forward to them taking a solo song and turning it into an ensemble. Here’s Team Sauerkraut with The Sound of Musik."

The five of us got on stage. We didn’t have props, but we did have a good look. The music started, and I got things rolling.

"Es beginnt in einem Wald, alle Rechte sind bezahlt, und es endet doch daheim. Meine Hände sind so kalt, denn die Zeit die ging ins Land..." I sang. I continued to cover the first verse, which was completely in German. I’d taken that section as the German wasn’t too hard to master considering its close relation to Dutch.

Luke and Kyle moved front and center on the stage, flanked by Casey and Cody singing, "The sound of musik." Then Luke and Kyle started singing the rap, "Do the bang-bang-boogie, say up jump the boogie, do the rhythm on the boogie the beat..." while Casey, Cody, and I sang the "sound of musik" in the background.

Casey and Cody covered the next verse, and we all got into the chorus. As the song said, you could see the bodies of the audience swaying as we amped things up.

When we finished, we got a huge round of applause.

Georgia got on stage as we exited. She said, "That was The Sound of Musik by Falco if you’re searching to add it to your playlist."

The night was simply electric.

* * *

"I’ll pick it up early on Christmas Eve," I said to Justin as we walked from the shed in his backyard around to the front.

"It looks like a nice bike."

"It better be," I replied. "Luke and I spent nearly eight hundred on it. But from what Luke’s said, it’s the bike Cody keeps looking at online."

"What about you two?"

"I have a nice bike I bought after... and Luke brought his up from home one trip."

"And of course, anything Cody had..." Justin started.

"Is long gone," I finished.

"He’s going to love it. I was talking to Angus about getting bikes."

"There are a lot of great trails around here."

"We’ve rented a few times down in Old Town then ridden along the Potomac," he explained.

"That sounds like a nice ride. I want to get a bike rack for the Jeep so we can load up and go."

"Smart."

"What did you get Angus this year?"

"I’m surprising him," he explained. "I’m flying his Mum for two weeks."

"That’s really nice. When does she arrive?"

"She gets in around seven on Christmas Eve morning."

"How are you picking her up? I could go out and pick her up if you like. I’m off Christmas Eve."

"That’s nice of you to offer. Casey and Kyle are slipping out early."

"It really is nice of you."

"It’s that family connection."

"When do Casey and Kyle head south?"

"They are going down for New Year’s. Rodney and Rebecca are doing a family reunion Christmas with her siblings at the Boar’s Head Inn."

"Charlottesville?"

"Yep. They do a Christmas light show that is evidently amazing. The place is decorated for Christmas. Most importantly, I guess it is central to all of the siblings. Kevin and Kenneth are doing Christmas with their girlfriends’ family."

"Well, Casey’s doing Christmas with his dads. That’s important."

Justin gave me a huge smile.

"You three are staying here?"

"Yep. We’re heading down to the Beach for New Year’s as well."

"Maybe the five of you can hook up for something?"

"I’m sure Cody and Casey have already started on their ideas," I said with a laugh.

"What did you get Luke?"

"Cody and I went in on a new laptop. It’s sharp. HP designed this small laptop that has LTE service. The exterior is leather. The screen pivots so you can use it as a tablet."

"Nice. My problem with those is the keyboard then sits on whatever surface you place it on."

"This one the screen pivots on a hinge and covers the keyboard."

"Great design."

"It seems to be."

"What did you ask for?"

"I gave them some ideas, but nothing extravagant. I have everything I need and pretty much everything I want. Mostly, it was some stuff for the Jeep and a few things for the kitchen. That type of stuff."

"How practical."

"In a lot of ways, I’m a practical guy."

"You’re pretty extravagant when it comes to others."

"I guess. It’s the way I was raised. My folks were always doing for others and more conservative when it came to them."

"I know what you mean."

"I guess I should be getting home."

"See you Christmas Eve."

"Thanks again."

* * *

"Last night was fun," Cody said as he sat down and snuggled up to me. "It was nice to catch up with Landon and Brandon again."

"I got that same vibe from Kevin and Bradley," Luke said.

"You and me both, but I just ignored it. They aren’t part of our friend group. I can understand why Ben and Austin include their neighbors. It’s not like they are evil; they just don’t seem comfortable with us being us."

"Agreed," Cody said. "What do you think bothers them?"

"Hmm... they could be traditionalists," I replied. Cody gave me a look.

"Couples only. The other issue could be the age difference."

Cody nodded his head.

"I hope at this point they don’t think I’m grooming you two. But I honestly don’t care."

"I never thought I’d have so many parties to attend," Cody said.

"Four in four days for you."

"Yeah. The work party was nice. Ben and Austin’s was a blast, to be honest. I think I’m looking forward to tonight the most."

"Why’s that?"

"First, their house is fricking amazing. Second, you’ve talked about how spectacular their trees are. Third, I’m excited to see how they handle a party."

"One thing is that they hire someone to run their kitchen."

"Huh?"

"Their party is usually very well attended."

"Oh?"

"I’d say there will be seventy-five or so there."

"Wow."

"They do all the food. But then they have these two ladies that run the kitchen. They make sure that the platters stay full of food, wash dishes as things move along, etcetera."

"Wow. So, they can mingle with guests throughout the evening."

"And they don’t have to face the cleanup at the end of the night."

"Isn’t it expensive?"

"Remember the time versus cost discussion we had a while back? They value the time they get to spend with guests. They value the time they don’t have to spend cleaning up."

"Makes sense. Should we hire someone?"

"Too late to get someone for tomorrow night. Let’s see how things go, and we can talk to Chris and Stephen about their people if we find it was too much."

"Cool. What are you wearing tonight?"

"The black slacks that go with my dinner jacket, a white shirt, and that red velvet blazer."

"That sounds sharp. I wish I had something. Hmm..."

"We have time to run to the mall. I’m sure Lord & Taylor would have something."

"I don’t..."

I put my hand up.

"Don’t have time? What’s stopping you? Don’t have money? Bullshit. Don’t need something to go to parties in?"

"Okay. Okay. I get it. After sleepyhead gets up, we can have breakfast and head to the mall."

"He might need something as well."

"It’s either buy something or a black suit, I would think."

"Yup. Yup. Yup."

We sat and chatted for a bit before Luke joined us.

"Do you need an outfit for tonight?" Cody asked.

"Umm... What’s the dress code?"

"He’s doing a red velvet blazer, black slacks, and a white shirt."

"Then no. I guess we need to go shopping," Luke replied.

"How about we grab breakfast out and then head over to the mall?" I asked.

"Sounds like a plan," Luke replied.

The three of us got cleaned up and then headed to the diner for breakfast. We got to the mall just as it was opening.

"What are you thinking?" I asked.

"I’m thinking you need to help me pick something out," Luke replied.

We walked into Macy’s and looked at a few of their items. I saw a black velvet jacket with a cutwork pattern on the lapel. "What do you think of this one?" I asked.

"That’s nice," Luke said.

I handed it to him and he tried it on. He looked at himself in the mirror and said, "Not bad, but what do I wear under it?"

"White shirt with a bowtie. Red shirt with a tie or bow tie. Mandarin collar shirt. Lots of options."

"It’s nice," Cody said. "Since the design in the lapel isn’t Christmas-specific you could wear it more often."

"They have a couple in my size. Let’s keep looking," Luke said.

"How about Lord & Taylor?" Cody asked. "That’s where we got our suits."

"Lead on," I said.

We got to the store, and I realized the woman that helped us buy the suits was working. She smiled and said, "What can I help you gentlemen find?"

"We are going to a fancy holiday party tonight. Plus, we’re hosting one tomorrow night," Cody explained. "We need something to wear." He pointed at Luke.

"We have some really nice dinner jackets from Tallia over here. Let me show you," she said. She dug through one of the racks and held up a blue dinner jacket with a paisley pattern woven into the fabric. She looked at Luke and said, "This will go really well with your eyes."

He slipped it on and it fit him well.

"I agree. It really works with your eye color."

"Um... What to do with it?"

"Do you have nice grey slacks?" she asked.

"Dockers?"

"Hmm... really dressy or more casual dressy?" she asked.

"What?" he asked.

"I get it," I replied. "Tonight is dressier. Tomorrow night is more party dress."

"What are your waist and inseam?" she asked. Luke provided the numbers, and she walked off. She returned quickly with a pair of grey slacks and said, "Go try these on."

He walked off with his items in hand.

"We’re going to need something a bit longer for you."

She went hunting through the racks again. Finally, she pulled out a red and green tartan dinner jacket with black silk lapels.

"Oh man, that’s great," Cody said.

He slipped it on, and it did just fit him in length.

"We do carry a little for the tall man," she commented.

"I could wear my black dress slacks and a shirt tonight."

"That would work. Have you thought about tomorrow night?"

"Yup. Top secret," he said with a huge smile.

Luke walked out and looked sharp. He had a smile on his face, so I knew we’d found a winner. It didn’t take long for them to pay for stuff and for us to get home. We worked on a few projects until it was time to get cleaned up, dressed, and drive over.

"Welcome. My, don’t you three look wonderful," Stephen said.

"Thank you," I said. I gave him a quick hug. "Thanks for having us."

"Is that the family tartan?" Stephen asked.

"No. It’s a more commercial variation of a tartan. My family tartan has yellow and blue as well. It also tends to be more asymmetric," I explained.

"Foods is in the dining room. There’s a bar in the great room."

"Thanks!" Luke replied.

We wandered into the party.

"Not sure which of you three studs wins best dressed," Darryl said as he gave me a hug.

"Thanks," I said.

"I’m looking forward to tomorrow night as well," Darryl said. "It’s the last Christmas party of the season."

"What do you have planned for Christmas?" I asked.

"I’m leaving Monday for a week in Quebec," Darryl explained. "I’m staying at Chateau Frontenac and going to have a great time exploring the city."

"Cold. I hear it’s a lovely hotel," I replied.

"It’s been a lifelong dream to go and stay there."

"Gentlemen," Phil said as he walked up. "Can I steal Cody and Luke for a minute? I have someone I’d like to introduce them to."

Both my guys glanced at me and then walked off with Phil.

"I have to admit, there are times that I’m more than a bit jealous," Darryl said.

"Oh?"

"Not one but two studs. More importantly, the amount of love you three show for each other."

Phil walked back up a few minutes later. I gave him a raised eyebrow.

"They are talking with Keaton," he explained.

"Who is Keaton?" I asked.

"He’s the son of one of Chris and Stephen’s friends. I met him when I got here. He’s a senior in college and didn’t feel like he’d fit in tonight with all the old folks that are here."

"So, you stole Luke and Cody to entertain him," Darryl said.

"He’s gay. He’s twenty-one. He’s bored," Phil said.

"Did you present them as a couple?" Darryl asked.

"Nope. I said this is Cody, and this is Luke. I turned and walked away to get a drink."

I saw someone I met at one of Chris and Stephen’s prior Christmas parties, excused myself, and walked over to say hi. It was more than an hour later before I ran into Luke, Cody, and Keaton.

"This is Coulter," Cody said as I walked up.

"Nice to meet you," Keaton said.

"Having a good evening?"

"Yes, thanks to these two."

"Oh?"

"They’ve been helping me, hmm... navigate the social scene."

"Not comfortable with the old folks?" I asked.

"Intimidated is a good word for it. Plus, I came at this from the wrong perspective."

"What do you mean?"

"Cody and Luke explained how they got to know Chris and Stephen. How it intimidated them, but that both guys were friendly and nice. They introduced me to... let’s see, Ben and Austin, who are a lot of fun to chat with; then Darryl, who is very funny; and finally Tom and Craig. And can I say, WOOF to Craig, man is he developed."

"Being a personal trainer does that to you," I said with a bit of a chuckle.

"Cody and Luke have also been helping me develop my general party skills. They are really nice guys."

"I agree with you. They are very nice."

Cody and Luke both started to chuckle.

"Let’s see. I know you’re Coulter. Hmm... how long have you known Chris and Stephen?"

"Over ten years. They were friends I got to keep in the divorce."

"Huh?"

Cody gave Keaton a look.

"Sorry. My coach is giving me feedback. Instead of huh, how about – you are divorced?"

Cody smiled.

"My ex and I married in Maryland. We separated after I discovered infidelity. We divorced very shortly after gay marriage was legalized nationwide since we both lived in Virginia."

"Sorry that that happened to you. Dating someone now?"

"Yes, we just celebrated our third anniversary earlier this month."

"Congratulations. Is he here tonight?"

"He is."

With that, all three started to chuckle.

"I take it these two filled you in?"

"Yes. I don’t know if it is for me. I will say I’m only a bit jealous. The three of you take each other off the market."

"There are a lot more available men to find," Luke said.

It was interesting interacting with Keaton during the rest of the evening.

* * *

"What next?" Luke asked.

"What have you gotten done?"

"I arranged the cookies on the what did you call them?"

"My mom called them tazzas. Some folks call them cake stands, but with three stacked like that, I’ve heard them called dessert pedestals as well."

"Okay, cookies are the two sets you gave me. I did a tray of peppermint frosted brownies. All of that has plastic wrap over it. I need to figure out how to deal with the English toffee."

"Break it into pieces and put it in a bowl."

"Got it. Oh, and your mom’s fruitcake is on a cake plate."

"That just leaves the trifle."

"Cool. I’ll start on that."

"I made the lemon curd earlier."

"I’ve got the gingerbread made, so it should just be assembly."

"Whipped cream."

"I can make that quickly."

I turned to get back to my project. I’d gotten a few more things done when Cody walked up and said, "What can I help you with?"

"Where’s the list?" I asked.

"Right here."

"What’s left that’s not checked off?"

"Seems like really just plating food and getting things on the buffet and other tables. I finished setting up the bar."

"Why don’t you go get cleaned up and dressed?"

Cody gave me a kiss and took off.

"You almost done?" Luke asked.

"I am. As soon as I get one more thing done, I’m going to go get cleaned up."

"Cool. Tail end Charlie here," he said.

I finished up my tasks and retreated to the bedroom. Cody was starting to get dressed when I walked in.

"This is going to be fun," he said.

"I agree."

I ducked into the bathroom and got started on my preparations. When I came out to get dressed, Luke was just walking in.

"Cody looks sharp," Luke said.

"Good. I think your idea was spot on."

I got dressed and joined Cody in the kitchen.

"I think we’re set," he said.

"And ten minutes before guests are supposed to arrive. We did good."

"Yep."

"I saw what the kitchen staff did. Do you think we need help?"

"It is more the during and after that will tell," I replied.

Luke joined us in the kitchen and said, "I think this worked out well."

I nodded my head as the doorbell rang. Cody took off to greet our first guests.

"Merry Christmas," I heard from the foyer.

Luke and I joined Cody to find Darryl and Phil.

"My, don’t you three look sharp," Phil said.

"I figured we all three had black suits," Luke explained. "So, pants, vest, white shirt, and festive bowties."

"It’s a great, coordinated look," Darryl agreed.

I gave each guy a hug and said, "Merry Christmas." As we finished the greetings, Ben, Austin, and Anthony came in. Anthony said, "We carpooled."

"Merry Christmas!" I replied. "Let me take your coats. The bar is in the dining room along with most of the food. We have two party cocktails ready to go, plus a variety of mixers and alcohols."

"What’s the party cocktail?" Anthony asked.

"We have a candy cane martini. Pour the syrup, add vodka, or white rum, and shake. We also have an apple cranberry Moscow mule."

"Yummy," Ben replied.

The guys gave me their coats, and I took them to the first bedroom and put them on the bed. As I came back to the foyer, the doorbell rang, and I answered the door.

"Welcome," I said as Mindy, Zach, and Caleb came into the house. "Let me take your coats. The bar is in the dining room along with most of the food. We have two party cocktails ready to go, plus a variety of mixers and alcohols. Cody should be in there to show you everything."

Mindy gave me a huge hug and said, "Thanks for having us."

"A pleasure," I replied.

"We’re thrilled to be here," Zach said.

Caleb nodded.

I took their coats down the hall and heard the doorbell ring. As I came back toward the foyer, I found Luke letting our next guests into the house. With him at the door, I joined Cody in the dining room as folks were getting their first drink of the evening.

Anthony walked up, drink in hand, and said, "Oh, my gosh. That tree of yours is beautiful. I miss having a fresh-cut tree."

"Does your complex allow them?"

"No. That’s the bad part. They are considered a fire hazard."

"Makes sense; not everyone takes care a tree correctly. We had a lot of fun decorating it."

"It shows. It definitely shows."

The evening was a whirlwind, getting to talk with friends. Enjoying great conversations and catching up with a few.

After the last guest left, Cody walked up to me and said, "Staff. I want to hire staff for the next time."

"I’d agree. Between dealing with coats, making drinks, and restocking trays, it was a bit much," Luke said.

"Concur. We can talk to Stephen and Chris."

"Have you looked at the kitchen?" Cody asked.

"Yes, and I’m not worrying about it. We can clean up more tomorrow."

* * *

"Merry Christmas to you!"

"I’m glad we stayed home."

"Me too..."

"We get to establish our own traditions this way," Cody said.

I leaned forward and kissed him gently.

"Let’s give Luke a Christmas present and head to the kitchen."

Cody smiled and nodded.

We hit the bathroom and then regrouped in the kitchen for coffee.

"I know we have our lunch planned, but what about breakfast?" Cody asked.

"I bought a chocolate chip Panettone for French toast. We can make whipped cream or mint whipped cream and, finally, ham."

"Sounds yummy."

Luke came running into the kitchen. "Santa came! Santa came!"

"He did? Did you clean yourself off?" Cody said.

I about split my sides laughing.

"Good one, Dude," Luke said. "Let’s open presents!"

We’d agreed to put all the presents out in piles. I’d gotten Cody into the bedroom first, and Luke grabbed the bike and put it in the den "under" the tree.

"Grab a coffee and come on," Cody said.

As the three of us walked into the den, Cody stopped at the door.

"Holy!"

He ran over to the bike that had a huge bow on it.

"Guys! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!"

With that, he started bawling his eyes out. Luke and I wrapped our arms around him as he sobbed.

"Man," he finally got out. "That’s the bike I’ve always wanted. Thank you! I don’t deserve you two."

"You sure do," I replied. "You deserve the best, and we love you!"

We gave Cody time to look the bike over.

"Presents!" Cody said. He sat down on the floor in front of a small stack of boxes.

"Here!" he said. He handed identically sized and wrapped boxes to Luke and me.

We both ripped open the boxes. I found two smaller boxes inside. I opened the first and found a digital photo frame. The second box had a photo album. I started looking through the album.

"This is amazing," I said.

"I went through all the photos I’ve taken of us," Cody said.

"This is special," Luke said quietly as he hugged Cody.

"The digital frame is for your desk or a space. It’s the same pics."

"Thanks," I said, leaning over and giving Cody a kiss.

I grabbed two boxes and handed one to Cody and the other to Luke. Cody carefully removed the wrapping and opened the box while Luke tore into it. Cody looked inside and started crying again.

"I’d forgotten about this," Cody said.

"Very cool," Luke let out. "I’ll wear it proudly!"

"They are custom, and I used the dress shirt that fit you best to get a pattern and measurements."

"Holy..." Cody let out as he realized there was something under the shirt.

"Can’t have Scottish if you don’t have a kilt!" I explained.

"I don’t think I’ll wear them together; that would be too much plaid," Luke said.

"No, a solid shirt would be better," I agreed.

"I’ve never seen you in a kilt," Cody said.

"Mine’s been hidden. We’re going to look great at the next Scottish games."

"Huh?" Luke grunted.

"Over in Alexandria each year. I’ve missed going for a long time," I explained.

"Angus is going to love this!" Luke said.

"Yup!"

"Presents!" Luke said. Luke grabbed two boxes and handed one to each of us.

"Holy cow," I exclaimed. "Georg Jensen!"

"What is it?" Cody asked.

"Cocktail shaker, bottle opener and a wine coaster," I explained. "Very, very nice."

As Cody got his box open, he exclaimed, "Awesome." He pulled out the cycling jacket, leg warmers, and gloves Luke had purchased for him.

"Hopefully they will fit," Luke said. "If not, I have the receipts."

"Cool, thanks!" Cody gave Luke a big hug.

"Here," Cody said, handing me a box.

I opened the box and found several items wrapped in bubble wrap.

"Wow!" I let out as I realized that it was a set of desk accessories in the mid-century modern style.

"They are vintage," Cody sounded proud of himself. "I found them at a charity shop."

I started looking at the items and realized they were all from the sixties and in really great condition.

"This will look amazing on my desk," I said. I leaned over and gave him a huge hug.

"Here," Cody said, handing Luke a box.

He opened it and started pulling out lacrosse equipment.

"Dude, cool! We need to play more often!"

"I figured you, me, and Kyle," Cody said.

"Merry Christmas, guys!" I said.

"Merry Christmas!" They replied.

"Breakfast!" Luke exclaimed.

"Let’s get it started."

It took about thirty minutes to have everything on our plates. We’d just settled back into the den after eating when Luke’s phone started buzzing.

"My folks," he explained.

"Cast it to the television," I said. Cody and I got up and let him have a few moments with his family.

"Coulter, Cody!" Luke called.

"You didn’t have to leave," Sarah said. "You’re part of the family!"

"We were giving Luke some time," I said. "We were coming back."

The five of us caught up for a bit, talked about presents received, and talked about plans for the day.

After he hung up, Luke asked, "What time do we head over to Justin’s?"

"Justin said any time after four is good. Food starts at five and dinner at six," I explained.

"Huh? Food at five?" Luke asked.

"Appetizers," I explained.

"Yum!"

As we were getting dressed to leave, I heard Cody ask Luke, "Wearing your kilt?"

"Umm... yeah, why not?"

"What shirt?"

"A dress shirt," Luke said. "Pick a color that is in the tartan or just white. How about yellow or red?"

A moment later, Cody stuck his head into the bathroom and asked, "Coulter, does this yellow go with the tartan?"

"Definitely!"

He disappeared. I finished up and walked into the bedroom.

"I got the ironing board set up in the other room," Luke said. His red dress shirt looked crisp.

"You’ve definitely gotten the hang of ironing shirts."

"I had a good teacher. Underwear or none? I know that’s always a thing that’s asked."

Cody reappeared with his shirt ironed.

"It’s your choice, honestly. From what my dad told me, it really depends on the situation and, to be honest, your preference. Going dancing, underwear, and yes, they do sell plaid. Other times, it’s optional, but bear in mind you don’t want to be flashing anyone unnecessarily. The kilts are lined, by the way, so you won’t have the wool against your dick."

"I hadn’t thought about that," Cody said. "Are you going commando?"

"No. When I sit or bend or make any other movement, I just don’t want to have to worry."

"Makes sense," Luke concurred.

"You’ll need to learn to sit with them on as well," I warned.

"Huh?" Cody grunted.

"Like women in a skirt, you can’t cross your legs the same way."

"Oh!" Luke said.

"You may want to practice before we go over."

"Good idea," Cody agreed.

We finished getting ready to go and then went into the kitchen to pack up our stuff.

"Where’s the list?" Cody asked.

"In my head," I admitted. "Brussels sprouts?"

"Check," Luke said.

"Sticky toffee pudding trifle?"

"Check," Cody said.

"Kilted soldiers?"

"Huh?" Luke said.

"Sausages wrapped in bacon," I explained.

"Oh, check! I thought you were talking about us."

I let out a short chuckle, "Let’s load up and head over."

We got everything into the car, and Cody drove us over. I rang the bell, and we were quickly greeted by Kyle.

"Merry Christmas!" he said. "Wow! All three of you, Angus is going to be psyched!"

Kyle led us back to the kitchen.

"Merry Christmas," rang out from both groups.

"Nollaig!" Angus said to me.

"Nollaig!"

"Guys, what’s that in English?" Luke asked.

"It’s just the Scots or Gaelic term for Christmas," I explained.

"You speak Scots?" an older woman asked.

"This is my mom, Ailsa," Angus said.

"Tha e na thoileachas coinneachadh riut," I said. "And with that, I’m going to stop, or I’ll get in trouble. I’m Coulter. These are my partners Cody and Luke."

"Nice to meet you all," Ailsa said.

"Five yards or eight?" Angus asked. "Wait, turn for me, boys. Ah. They’re definitely eight yards!"

"Of course, I’m not going to cheap out on their kilts," I said.

"Five or eight?" Casey asked.

"How much fabric is used?" Ailsa explained. "You can tell by the number of pleats. The more pleats, the more fabric."

"Seriously, there’s eight yards of fabric in those?" Casey asked.

"Well, Luke’s has eight plus the lining fabric. Cody’s is nine yards plus the lining."

"You look really good in those," Angus said. "I should have worn mine."

"They are really cool, but I don’t think I could wear one," Kyle said.

"You can try one of mine one time," Angus said.

"They’re all the same," Casey said.

"It’s our family’s tartan," I explained. "Clan Buchanan of which the Bochanans are a part."

"Umm..." Kyle started.

"We are family," Cody said a bit forcefully.

"Damn right," Kyle quickly agreed.

"Foods on the island, folks! Let’s eat!" Justin announced.

"This is quite the feast," I commented.

"Lots of contributors," Justin said.

Each time one of the three of us went to the island, I noticed Angus and Kyle watching.

"How many do you have?" I asked Angus.

"Seven. You?"

"Four. I inherited my dad’s."

"When did you wear one last?" Justin asked.

"Fifteen-ish years ago. Another no-no in James’ book."

Cody just shook his head. Luke gave a look.

"So wrong," Kyle said.

"Agreed."

Cody got up and grabbed a spoonful of Brussels sprouts.

"You want to try one on," Ailsa said to Kyle. "Don’t you?"

Kyle looked a little sheepish.

"Come with me," Angus said.

The two walked towards the bedrooms.

"He can be so apprehensive," Casey said.

"What?" Luke asked.

"That handsome, jock-stud is so concerned about what he wears. He doesn’t want to look too gay!"

That got a few laughs.

"Seriously, be careful with the comments," Casey explained.

It was a few minutes before they returned. To be honest, they both looked great.

"Holy f..." Cody said. "Sorry."

"I have heard it all," Ailsa said.

"Studly," Cody said.

"Which is which?" I asked.

"Angus is in the modern and Kyle is in the ancient," Ailsa explained.

"I assume Clan Mackenzie," Luke said.

"Aye," Angus said.

Angus had a white dress shirt on with his kilt. Kyle on the other hand had a fitted dark blue tee showing off his chest while the color matched perfectly.

"You’d look sexy in a sack," Casey said.

"Thanks. I really like the look," Kyle admitted.

The two sat back down at the table.

"Ready for dessert?" Justin asked.

Luke showed his excitement as he said, "Yes. I never met a dessert I didn’t like!"

"Ailsa made a Dundee cake," Angus explained. "Casey made millionaire’s shortbread, tablet, and Ecclefechan tarts."

"Cody and Luke made sticky toffee pudding."

"I’m going to get fat," Justin complained.

After dinner, we all moved into the den. There was a small pile of presents around the tree.

"Any amazing gifts this year?" Angus asked.

"They got me the exact bike I wanted. It’s amazing. You should see it."

"We did," Kyle said with a bit of a laugh.

"Huh?"

"It was stored in our shed for the past week," Justin explained.

Cody turned and looked at Casey. He put his hands on his hips and said, "You kept a secret."

"Yep. Just like you did about Kyle doing karaoke. I kept one that was necessary!"

Cody put a big grin on his face.

"Other than that, our kilts and shirts," Luke said.

"Shirts?" Kyle asked.

"Well, I won’t wear a kilt all the time, but I can wear my new plaid shirt in the family tartan," Luke explained.

"I got beautiful Georg Jensen bar accessories, a vintage desk set, and a digital frame with great family photos," I said. "What about y’all?"

"Mum being here is the best," Angus said.

"A new suit," Justin said.

"We’re broke college boys," Kyle said. Casey nodded in agreement.

"We got some nice clothing and such," Casey said.

"Changing topic, where did you get this tree?" Cody asked.

"I found it online," Casey said. "It’s very retro and goes well with Justin’s vintage ornaments."

"It is really cool," Luke said. "I’m not used to a silver tree."

"I like the rotating light," Cody said.

"Makes it easy to take down," Justin said.

"What do you mean?"

"Just take off the ornaments, fold up the tree, and store. No taking the lights off."

"You’ll have to come over and see our tree," Cody said. "We got a Colorado blue spruce."

"Where’d you find that?"

"Out past Leesburg but not as far as Winchester," I explained.

"How long are you here?" Luke asked Ailsa.

"Two weeks," she said.

"Do you all have plans for New Year’s Eve?" Luke asked.

"Nope," Justin replied.

"Come over for dinner," I said.

Justin looked at Angus, who nodded. Kyle and Casey then nodded.

"Looks like we’re doing New Year’s Eve at your place," Ailsa said.

The conversation continued for a while, when I noticed Casey with an odd look on his face. I asked, "What’s up?"

"Was thinking I would like to try on a kilt," he explained.

"You could try on Luke’s and see how you look."

"Huh? Why not use one of Angus’ kilts?"

"You’re what five foot seven, and he’s six foot three? That’s eight inches of extra length. It’s not all in his legs, but enough of it is that you’d look more like you’re wearing a dress. Talk to Luke about a time when you can try his on. There’s only an inch or so difference in height, so you’d be able to tell if you like the look."

"Thanks, that’s a great idea. Then I have to pick a tartan."

"Not going with Clan MacKenzie?"

"I would, but..."

"First, Angus would love it. Second, there are always a variety of clan tartans, so yours doesn’t have to match any of his. You could do..." I stopped, grabbed my phone and pulled up the Clan MacKenzie Society website. "This is the modern like Angus has on and here’s the ancient like Kyle is wearing. They have a weathered and a dress. If we look at clan.com, they have other options."

I handed him the phone, and he looked at it a bit. Finally, he said, "I really like MacKenzie Two or the hunting tartan."

"See what Angus has and then choose."

"Yours is so bright."

"The Clan Buchanan site states that the tartan is defined by... how did they say it... Oh yeah, brilliant colors and asymmetrical design. These three kilts are all the ancient colors. I also have my dad’s Buchanan Dress Blue which is a tartan that came out in the eighties."

"It’s such a rich culture," Casey said.

"Aye, that it is."

Cody walked over to us and said, "You two seem deep in conversation."

"He’s educating me on Scottish tartans," Casey replied.

"Aye, you need one," Cody said, mimicking me a bit.

We got home late. After putting the dishes in the kitchen, we headed for the bedroom.

"Two years in a row," Luke said.

"Yes. And many more to come," Cody agreed.

"I get two grow old in your arms," I said.

"That’s a long way off," Cody said.

"It’s like the Ty Herndon song," I said. "And when they carve my stone, all they need to write on it is ‘once lived a man who got all he ever wanted’."

My guys enveloped me in a hug.

"Naked," Luke said. "I want my final Christmas present!"

He pulled away and started stripping his clothing. Soon, there was a pile of discarded clothing on the floor and the three of us naked on the bed.

"Fucked. I need to get fucked," Luke said.

"All he wants for Christmas is a cock in his ass," Cody sang.

"Who can argue with him?" I asked. With that I moved in behind Luke and started eating his hole.