2. Chapter Two

Chapter Two

The town was one of the most beautiful places he'd ever seen, and he'd seen a good chunk of the world. Green trees, with rusty colored stones the size of the SUV they drove.

His newest and most annoying bodyguard to date did the driving, his huge hand on the steering wheel, his thin lips tight as he watched all around them even as he watched the road.

Bennie Mancuso was his name, and his biceps were as big as Selestino's chest. "It's pretty here."

"Yes, sir, it is."

"Please, stop calling me sir. My last bodyguard called me Sel."

"And he's no longer with you, sir."

Sel spun his head away from the goon and stared out the window, thinking of his former bodyguard. It was Sel's fault he was gone, of course, when he'd sneaked off into a bar with a guy and the bodyguard lost him for a night. It was lucky the guy was still alive. Antonio had been furious.

After the SUV sailed past a tall stand of spruce, the view opened to show a valley far below them and the rise of yet another mountain behind it. Breathtaking, how that mountain rose to a few silken-looking clouds, the subtle blue sky a canvas for the geese flying in a V over the peak of it.

He'd admire it on his own, eyes taking it in, remembering it in some folder he stored of the most beautiful sights he'd seen.

The Amalfi Coast, that was in that folder. The sea held charms for him, sure, but he preferred mountains, those tall godlike pieces of land that looked over the rest of the world. The sea was wonderful, but in it were monsters as large as ships that could withstand the depths that would crush a human like a piece of thin glass.

The navigation voice came on to tell the driver to turn left at the next road, a road with a number instead of a name. That meant they were far from cities that inevitably had streets named for the very trees he now found himself among.

Spruce, elm, fir, pine, aspen. He sighed, "How much farther?"

"Less than a mile."

That depressed him. The closer he was, the sooner it was over, and he'd be back in the bosom of his family. Surrounded, coddled, protected. It wasn't like he resented them for protecting him when he was a child. That, he very much appreciated. He could be a child, having friends and toys and laughter. The thing was, he'd never truly felt like a child. Sel, the oldest, the one that would carry the family in the years to come, had always felt responsible.

His younger siblings could play. Antonia's laugh alone made him relax most days. Knowing they were safe and happy was all he truly needed. And then, suddenly, when he became a man, and wanted to be given a man's job, a man's respect, they turned around and saw him as a little boy.

The rough road they took leveled out to smooth as they neared a big wood-sided home. The driveway was short, gravel covering it to keep them from sinking in the mud, most likely.

What he'd been told about the three men had excited him at least a little. A throuple before they were a more common thing, the three were as different from each other as could be. And yet, they had been together for over ten years.

A preacher, a doctor, and a chef. The chef had no kitchen except his home, but everyone Dante had spoken to had one name. Dayton Binx.

In the little town, Apishipa Creek, they'd made their home all those years. The beauty of the place was obvious, though Sel wondered how they didn't get antsy for more. Well, he was about to offer them more.

Two men were on the short porch as Bennie parked and Selestino got out before his beefy bodyguard could. It was better that way, less intimidating. Plus, he was sick of the man. "Hello," he called to the two men.

One was white, light brown hair combed back from his face. His fingers threaded together in front of him as he stood motionless. The other, well, Selestino couldn't figure out if he were Asian or Latino, but he was equally handsome.

Sel walked to the porch and stood just shy of the bottom step as he said, "I think my uncle spoke with you. Dante Carrillo?"

"Oh," the one with the light hair said in a rush. "Okay, yes, he did. We don't get a lot of strange cars up this way, as you can imagine."

"I'm sure. It's very private here. Beautiful."

The lighter-haired man held out his hand to Selestino as he said, "I'm Mark Rafferty, but most call me Pappy. This is one of my partners, Nathan."

Sel shook both hands as he felt his bodyguard next to him. "I'm Selestino Carrillo, and this is my bodyguard, Bennie. Bennie will stay out here, if you don't mind."

"Mr. Carrillo," Bennie whispered. "I should be in there with you."

"My uncle would never send me someplace he thought was dangerous. He's keeping me from Montana for the same reason. Stay out here."

After a scowl was borne on his ugly face, Selestino felt a little of his power return. He was, after all, in charge of something. If only it was his own life.

Being taken into the house, the person he was confronted by was a shock. He was a sweet, cute man with the most welcoming smile on his face and hair…well, hair that was bright purple.

"Hi! I'm Binx, but some people call me Binxie. I mean, you don't have to, just friends do, which we're not yet, but we might be, I guess, but, anyway, hi!"

Sel liked him immediately. "Hi, I'm Selestino, but people call me Sel, because, well, it's shorter."

Binx laughed, and it sounded like the twinkle of wind chimes, right before he hugged Sel. "It's great to meet you!"

Pappy laughed, and it was a much deeper sound. "Binx is very excitable, as you can see. Binx, drinks?"

"Oh, right! Beer? Tea? Coffee?"

"Water?" Sel asked.

"Sparkling, mineral, flat?"

Sel laughed again. "Mineral would be great, thank you."

As Binx positively bounced off, Nathan and Mark led him into the living room. "Please, sit," Nathan said to him.

He sat across from them as they took seats on the couch. Sel was in a lovely chair that just surrounded him like a glove.

The room was comfortable, nicely decorated in wood and stone, like they'd brought their beautiful surroundings right inside the door. Sel wasn't as nervous as he thought he'd be. They were warm, welcoming people.

"We met your uncle briefly when your…cousin? When Brett Lincoln was staying here after he got out of prison," Mark informed him. "Brett's a lovely man, and Dante, well, he's a character."

Nathan nodded and said, "He is. Handsome, with a flair for fashion."

Sel agreed readily. "He loves clothes. It was one thing he taught me. Clothes may not make the man, but they surely help ."

Binx was back with a bottle of Perrier with a purple straw in it. "I didn't know if you'd want ice."

"No, this is fine, thank you," he said to Binx, then watched the man sit on the rug at the feet of his two partners. It was a little strange, but he ignored that, smiling at Binx.

Binx was almost pretty, smooth skin, not a line on his face, though Sel suspected he wasn't in his twenties any longer. He was at least thirty, probably more like thirty-five. All the qualities and looks of a clubbing twink, but his eyes showed his love for his partners as he gazed over each shoulder at them.

"Dante said you were coming to make us an offer," Nathan told him.

"I do, have an offer, that is. I don't know if you're aware of my uncle's new venture. He and his husband, Blaine, have purchased a large piece of land in Montana. They're turning part of it into a resort for gay men."

"Only gay men?" Binx asked and Mark gently hushed him.

"I…I don't know, actually. I mean, I think so, but…"

"It's okay, Selestino. I'm sure that's been thought of by them. Please, go on," Nathan soothed.

He hated that he'd gotten flustered, but sucked it up and continued, like his father and uncle would have. "Thank you." After swallowing, he cleared his throat and continued, "Dante wants the resort to have only the best. He's asked his family and closest friends for recommendations of people to fill valuable positions there. The overwhelming response to the need for a head chef at the restaurant was given by our cousin, Brett. He told Dante that the best chef he's ever known was, well, you, Binx."

Binx sat up even straighter and smiled even as his eyes welled with tears. "Me? Really?"

Each of his partners placed a hand on Binx's shoulder as Mark said, "What did you expect, Binx? You are."

"But…I mean, people know me here, a little in Denver, but…really?"

As tears fell from his pretty hazel eyes, Binx gazed down at his lap.

Selestino went on, "Not just Binx. They also need a doctor. Right now, they're relying on the vet who's been at the ranch for the animals. He patches people up when they need it. He can't take on both, once the place gets running. And, of course, they'd also build a little chapel, so those practicing their faith can worship."

The two men on the couch stared at him, dumbstruck, it seemed, but Binx's head rose as his eyes widened incredibly. "You want us to move up there?"

"I think that's the hope, yes. In you three are the answers to some of the biggest needs my uncles have there."

Binx scrambled to his feet and started to slowly pace as it seemed his partners were too stunned to think at all.

"I mean, it would be great, finally, a place to cook all the time, my own place, well, mostly, I guess, the kitchen, but still…" Binx stopped and asked Sel, "What cuisine?"

"I think that would be up to you, but the place must fit the western theme. It's going to look like an old west town, only one part of it, the…adult's only part, will be separated from the regular town."

"Wild west! Oh, that's brilliant. I could do a lot with that," he said, and then continued pacing.

"Binx," Mark said, gently. "We'd have to leave here. Do you realize that?"

Binx stopped and cocked his head. "Well, of course, Sir. It wouldn't be forever, though. And our friends could visit, right?"

"Of course. It's a resort for gay men, but it's also for their families. My uncles went from having it just for, well, people into a certain lifestyle, to a place where families could go so that the men parenting could be free of bigotry and just enjoy a vacation in a beautiful place. There'll be a guest ranch, horses to ride, hikes. There are lakes, and Blaine was talking about having pony rides for the littler kids. At night, the town would shut down and the adult part would come alive for the parents, and they'll be daycares and babysitters, things like that."

Binx stared pleadingly at his partners. "Sirs, please?"

"Binx," Nathan began. "We're not moving our entire life at the drop of a hat."

"But you're only at the clinic three days a week, and you said you were getting anxious to be back full-time. A new church, for Pappy, for you, an office of your own."

"Yes," Selestino said. "On the outside, it would look like any country doctor's office, a shingle hung outside the door, my Uncle Dante said, but inside would be a state-of-the-art medical office with a couple hospital beds, X-ray machine, whatever you want. It's a long way to any medical office where they are, so it would have to handle a lot of different injuries."

It was Nathan's turn to pace. "My own office, whatever I'd need…"

"My own kitchen, making all my food," Binx countered as they passed one another in front of the fireplace.

Mark, or Pappy, laughed at them both. "How about we take a trip up there to…check out the place? Then we can decide."

Nathan looked at him and asked, "What about our friends?"

"I just asked that, Nathan, my love. Binx answered they could visit. We could come home to visit too, and it wouldn't be forever. We won't even sell our house. How about this? We go there and check it out, see if we even like the area. If we do, we set a limit on how long we'd be there, a year, say. Then, we set to searching out for our replacements here, and then our replacements there when we want to retire and move back home." Mark looked at each of them as he added, "And this is home, and will always be home."

Binx literally bounced in place, clapping his hands. "An adventure!"

Selestino fell in love with Binx at that moment, seeing the joy radiating off him. Not like he wanted to be with him, but as a friend, a lovely new friend. Binx would never play poker well, never lie well. His emotions were painted across his face. Selestino had been around too many men who wouldn't understand that kind of face value.

"From what I've been told, it's been an adventure from the start. I must disclose some of those things to you three."

Binx stopped mid-clap and stared at him. "What?"

Nathan tugged Binx over to him and sat on the couch, taking Binx onto his lap just as Mark sat beside him. "Go ahead, Selestino."

Swallowing again, he reminded himself that he was a Carrillo man, and he had a long line of them to follow. He'd speak clearly, he'd be strong. "There was a man there who killed people. The man was the illegitimate son of the former owner, out for some kind of strange revenge. He didn't directly kill his father but facilitated his death."

"And? Was he caught?" Nathan asked.

"No. He took off after the men currently living in the former owner's farmhouse on the property. His former home, I should say," he said, stumbling over his thoughts a bit. Again, he straightened his back and moved along. "He had a bunker there, a panic room. That's where he was leaving the men he'd kidnapped."

Binx wrapped his arms around Nathan's neck as he quietly asked, "He hurt people?"

"A few, yes. We're not even sure what he was planning for the others, if they were to be killed too or not. Since the panic room was found, however, he's not been seen. Dante and his security detail have made the ranch as protected as a place that big can be. If you go, even for a tour, you'll have to be escorted for now. My uncle works tirelessly to find him."

Binx laughed a little and exchanged looks with both his partners. "We've…been through things like that."

"Would you mind if we brought along some other people?" Mark asked. "They'd be our personal security."

Perking, Selestino said rather quickly, "Of course not! Bring whoever you'd like!" Then he remembered he wasn't the boss of the place. "Well, I'll check with my uncle, but I'm sure it would be fine."

"Good, good. Binx, will you do an audition for Selestino and his…didn't you have a driver?"

"Yes," he said, downtrodden. Thinking of bringing Bennie into the house didn't thrill him.

"We'll feed you and you can meet our friends. Lonnie and Travis are a little closer to your uncle in terms of having spoken to him more than we have, and I'd love you to meet them."

"I'll start cooking," Binx said, hopping off his partner's lap and rushing toward what Selestino assumed was the kitchen.

"If you don't mind inviting my driver inside, I'll help Binx. I'm interested in cooking."

"Of course," Mark said. "You saw where he ran. It's right through the dining room, the only door there."

So, he lied. Sel hated to cook, but he wanted to speak to Binx, since he seemed to have a handle on things, like controlling the two men, even if he called them both Sir.

He entered the kitchen to see Binx flipping through a notebook, but he looked up once Sel walked into the room. "Hey! Did you need more water?"

"No, I need a favor."

As both eyes narrowed and his blond brows rose impossibly high, he whispered, "I have a feeling we're going to get along just fine."