pvtguy

Growing pains...but they are developing as a couple. Alec is acclimating well. I guess he must be still working remotely. Finn is delightful!

Alec has to learn how to accept compliments - but that will take time for sure! Both need to learn how to communicate more openly - another process! Lots of adaptations!

It's been a busy weekend for me and it's only Saturday evening. I just finished reading this chapter and all the comments. They are spot on. I understand CJ and Owen not following the "Dad-Papa" routine, though I have always had reservations about calling one's parents by their first name: after all, the kids are the only ones who can genuinely call them Dad or Papa and that denotes a special relationship. However, they are not the first parents I've known who preferred to be called by their first names. That said, they are very good disciplinarians and do try to keep their kids cognizant of the fact that while they have benefits other kids don't, they still need to be respectful of others as equals. I applaud that! Thanks for sharing your talent always Carlos! (BTW: I have that image of the Carlos sandwich etched in my brain now!)

Very good chapter. I hope Henry does call Don but it could be in that ethical grey area if he goes to dinner with Don and Noah.

Been there, done that! I rarely use coupons anymore.

And Florida's "education" leaders in Tallahassee are doing the same with all issues LGBTQA.. If a teacher should respond to a student in grades K-3 if a question is asked about why Susie has two dads or two moms, the teacher can lose their teaching license if s/he responds in any way that violates the guidelines set by the State Board of Education.

So, they're trying to look at every angle in regards to Henry...but what difference would it make if he's gay? Does Don think there might be a "blackmail" motive from someone else?

You are definitely a teacher through your educating us simply by telling a wonderful story with characters we feel are family to us all! Thanks.

Believe the reaction you get on an extremely well-crafted story! You interlace family drama with history, geography, and culinary education. The ceremony was described so realistically that I felt as though I were there observing in person! This story could go on for years as far as I am concerned!!

In my career in education, I have met a few Henry's and his parents. Elena is slowly wearing down his protective layer. While slowly moving forward - and this is very realistic as these cases go - there is progress being made. Now to find out who is behind the rumor...

Thank you for another vicarious vacation that has whet my appetite for travel, however impossible for me. I love how precocious Liebe is in both questions and observations. The twins aren't far behind!

You go, Sue!!! It's about time she showed her true grit! Robbie shows more depth here, though it was always present - simply because he acknowledges the love he has for his new family. His melding both his birth mother and Sue together is a great accomplishment! Sue truly has earned it. She is truly the most outstanding character in this chapter. Well done!!

And so a plan is forming, however tentative at the moment.

Elena is doing great analysis of Henry's responses and what she did and did not ask. All possibilities have to be considered until the evidence limits those possibilities to reality. Henry's a smart kid. It will be very interesting to see how this goes.

Very well done! I don't want to repeat the very articulate words already spoken, but just say that shared grief does create strong feelings between those who have gone through similar experiences. My best friend's father was killed in a railroad accident on the evening of the first day of spring when we were in 8th grade. That was 60 years ago, and I still feel it on the first day of spring! My friend has also passed, but we truly cemented our friendship through that shared experience. I see good things happening for Woodrow and Paul.

"She mentioned the story felt like an epilogue, and in a way it is. An epilogue to the entire series. Hopefully, new readers will discover the characters, like them, and decide to tackle the series." I do hope there are more stories about the offspring of CJ and Owen...This could keep you writing, and us enjoying every word, for quite a while! I will agree, @JACC said everything I could have tried to say but not as eloquently. Thank you Carlos for providing such quality reading material!

There's at least enough loose ends to have two or three more chapters, lol! I hate to see good stories come to their inevitable end. What about Alec's business? I'm looking forward to the Last Chapter (boo hoo!)...

Trying to rule Henry out as a suspect or to actually get him to confess is going to be a difficult job - let's see what the contact at home is like.

Elena is surely trying to no avail so far. Henry seems to distrust others and doesn't speak - a trait that is perhaps cultural. Let's see the next step.

While Cam was very forward, he is exactly what was needed to get Finn and Alec on track. I applaud him! @weinerdogsaid, "usually skim over descriptions of intimate scenes because with a few exception of a few most authors say variations of the same thing.But @Demiurgeis one of those exceptions.His descriptions had me engrossed and I read every word." I couldn't agree more! This was more intense without being salacious.

Hmmm....how did I know that Finn was going to show up? Fun chapter!

When one "wakes up" later in life, it is no coincidence to think the past was empty...but it took all that to get Alic to become the person he is today! Same for Finn. Now, I can't wait for the house to sell...

Yes, there is codependence with Alic and River, but there is real platonic love that unites them. That they need to grow independently is a given, but their friendship does have redeeming value for both.

So they might already have seen this boy. I hope their strategy works without spooking him.

So beautiful a statement of true and pure love. There are many my age who lived lives as expected of them (or as perceived expected) but left behind someone they did love. Thank you for being able to express such deep feeling through words.