Mark Arbour

Thanks for your comments. I hadn't noticed that you'd posted here (have to check my blog settings) before now. When I started writing, the sex was fun and interesting, and probably the prime reason for me to do it. It's still fun and interesting, but I've gotten so much more into the characters. I wouldn't have expected that when I started; it's been a pleasant surprise.

I've been really down yesterday for a number of reasons, but mostly because of Vic's death. I was having an early dinner at Mimi's Cafe last night and taking advantage of their free wifi to read Treb's post more thoroughly, along with all the responses, and to write out a comment on the announcement thread. I sat there afterwards, trying to subtly dab the tears away, when I looked up and saw this couple sitting in a booth diagonally from mine. There were two young men there, probably in their early 20s. One was cute and thin, a real twink; the other guy was bigger, with bigger muscles and a beefier frame. They were in the booth but sitting next to each other, touching constantly. At one point, the twink rubbed his cheek on the beefy dude's chest in a playful way. They giggled, then the beefy dude leaned in toward the twink as if to listen to him say something, but the twink kissed his neck instead. They were so cute, it was hard not to stare, but they were so visibly entranced with each other, they never made eye contact with me. But what blew my mind was that they were doing this, acting all lovey-dovey, in a restaurant, and no one really seemed to give a shit. Now some of you will note that that's not a big deal. Who the fuck cares. Well, I don't live in San Francisco or New York (we'll chalk that up to rotten luck on my part), I live in an upscale suburb of St. Louis, where people usually are required to have one SUV, and it should be foreign. Here in Missouri, the only way two guys are going to be able to marry each other is if they are able to prove they're guns and they get the NRA to support them. Yet here they are, these two guys, having this incredibly romantic interchange, right here in a restaurant in suburban middle-America. And no one kicked their asses, or tried to. I've never seen that here before. I've seen it in other places, but not here. How ironic that I do on the day I find out we lost Vic.

OMG! I've been beseeched! SMILE. Good point about Washington. If this is malaria, there are a number of different strains with different effects. And no real cure.

Dude, if I were drinking with Comsie, he wouldn't be next to me, he'd be on my lap. (SMILE).

That's what Somers was saying...Maidstone gave up too easily. He has to have some other plot in mind.

It seems that perhaps Humphreys et. al have managed to keep their capture of the other ships a secret.

mm, I know you love me. Here's a big hug back at you. OK, and I'll grab your ass while I hug you, because I'm that kind of creepy dude. ;-) We'll find out soon enough how Granger is faring. Hang in there.

Cliffhanger? You have to break the chapters up somewhere. I don't do it intentionally, unlike some of my evil brethren. :-)

Actually, this story could go on without Granger. I'd just have to follow a different protagonist or two.

I came to GA when it was just a fledgling website, following Domluka like a disciple followed Jesus. There was a cadre of us that did that, with Vic and Sharon foremost among them. That was over 8 years ago, an online eternity. As I began writing, and devoting more of my time to that, Vic and I spent less time conversing, but that didn't diminish our bond. He was like those friends I have in college, guys I don't see all that often, but when we do connect, it's like we never had a moment's separation. Vic was one of the people I'd turn to when I needed counsel, usually over something stupid that happened here. To Vic, this wasn't just a website, it was a community, something he reminded me of, and something he fostered. It wasn't about administrators or moderators, it was about the members. He certainly saved me from some ill-advised rants. :-) I hope, Vic, that you have found a place devoid of sunshine rainbows and Hershey's kisses, and is instead populated by hot gym rats. As long as I live, you will be in my memory, and I will cherish our friendship.

February 1798 Captain Somers, resplendent in his red dress uniform, stood next to Lieutenant Humphreys, who looked equally distinguished in his navy blue dress coat and white trousers. As Bacchante entered port, a boat approached them, carrying a pilot. The man spoke relatively poor English, but saw them safely to their anchorage. “Mr. Weston, I’ll have the gig brought around. Captain Somers and I will be going ashore. You are in command while I am gone.”

I don't think that one was all that bad. I've done worse.

Ask yourself this: what was Stef's alternative? If I was Stef, and I had an engagement in the evening in Chicago, I'd want to keep Will in close proximity. Even if it is at a hopping gay bar. Stef isn't worried about JP or Brad. He is capable of handling either one of them quite easily. :-)

As usual, your review is very insightful. I don't think Stef is really worried about what Brad or JP will say. I think he adopts that pose because he thinks he should, and to try and instill some restraint into both of them. Stef's inclination is to give Will his freedom, much as he had as a teen. That conflicts with what he thinks he should do as a grandparent. One of the things that makes his relationship with Will so cool is that Will gets this, and seems to know how to handle things so Stef doesn't have to feel like he's been a bad parental figure, but he can still enjoy Will's company.

Most alpha males have a weakness. Tony's is probably dominant women. He's been raised by a strong mother and grandmother, and I'm mindful that most Italian women don't put up with a lot of shit from their kids (winks at Sharon). I think your post is really spot-on. Again, Will is very focused on controlling his own life and his own world, so it makes sense that someone coming in to fuck with that is going to hit a pretty big brick wall. He's been through a lot, and that's made him more worldly, and taken away the naivete you'd expect. That's probably why Stefan is more comfortable with taking him to places like that bar: he knows Will can handle it. LMAO. Why is Will tolerating this? Because Tony is an amazing fuck. Granted, that only goes so far, but when you're a teenage male, 'so far' is pretty damn far.

You know, of all the current characters, writing Stef in is usually the most fun.

A couple of great points here. I think having a couple of entirely different narrators helps make the story more interesting. And like you, I've got friends like Tony who avoid conflict at almost any cost. To be fair, though, I'm not sure that Tony dodges all conflict, but when it hits on his sexuality, he probably does.

Nit pick 1: If you read the chapter, you'll see that it clearly says Max and not Marcel. (SMILE) Thanks for pointing that out. I edited it. Nit pick 2: Meigs was still operating. I checked on that.

I think that as long as the fake ID is convincing (would a cop know it was fake?) then the bar will be fine. And as you noted, Stef is the one who set the bar up last time it was raided. And that was a few years back too.

We have to have those chapter that sort of move things along but aren't scorchingly dramatic some of the time. :-)

July 4, 2001 “Morning!” Gathan said cheerfully as he walked into the kitchen. “’Sup,” I said casually. “Going to the festival today,” he said, all excited. “What about you?” “I’ll probably do that,” I said, with a lot less fervor than he did. “What’s wrong?” I sighed. “I’m bored shitless. The only people I know here that I can hang out with are Harry and Barry. I’d rather sit in my room and beat off,” I said. “You can

Triton's a bit of an anomaly, though, because while it's a tech company, it's probably going to cycle more as a defense-industry stock than a true tech stock. There are people like Stef out there (think: a gay Warren Buffett) who have that ability. They see the market bubbles forming and they act accordingly.

Nothing like a handy disease to make things interesting. :-)

Why thank you. Surely you all saw this coming. I mean, things were going along just swimmingly. That should have alarm bells ringing in your brains.

You're relying on my tendency to provide happy endings? That's very trusting of you. ;-)