Never walk alone- Walk on - 1. Chapter 1

CHAPTER 28 - Reunion
Five years later.
The accolades that the Devlin-Major Portfolio received that night was indeed a watershed moment in their lives.
The lodges became so popular, they were almost fully booked right through the year, and just doing basic maintenance and refurbishment of the properties became a huge challenge, necessitating the closure of rooms or floors for upkeep to be done to Andrew and Ryan's satisfaction. To them, the reputations of the lodges came before profit and everything was done to keep them in tip top condition.

Merely by being associated with the Devlin-Major Portfolio, 'Belle Catherine' was busier than ever with Darren and Kerry running the yacht along with a deckhand. Andrew and Ryan tried to take her out at least once a month between charters, but that was not always possible and they both desperately missed the freedom of being out on the ocean.

Andrew was in big demand, consulting and advising on the opening of new properties and the Devlin-Major Portfolio now consisted of eight properties with six being properties located countrywide, where the Devlin-Major Portfolio managed the properties for other owners for a fixed monthly fee, with a percentage of profits at the end of every financial year. All of which were the result of Andrew's speech when accepting the 'Lodge of the Year' award.

To help Andrew even more, Ryan went back to studying part time, qualifying as a chartered accountant
and had a permanent office, right next to Andrew's at The Cameron which had acquired another 10 rooms, 5 luxurious garden villas on either side of the garden two years after the awards night.

Andrew sat in his office early one Monday morning, sipping his tea that had just been delivered by room
service, reminiscing over all the gains and losses over the past few years and how he came to be sitting in the general managers office at The Cameron. It had all happened very suddenly almost two previously.

The additional rooms at The Cameron were in the final stages of construction and once again, Andrew was in the midst of decor samples at home. The house was quiet as the twins were at nursery school and Ryan was studying for his final exams at his desk in the old nursery, which had been converted into a study, off the master bedroom. Yvonne was busy in the kitchen organising something for lunch after getting a load of laundry into the washing machine.
He was leafing through a thick book of fabric swatches and he glanced at his mobile when it rang next to him, seeing the call was from Paul.

"Morning Paul, how things going today?", he enquired.

"Hi Drew. All good on the western front. They started painting the interiors of the new villas this morning".

"Ah, that's good to hear. I really need to decide on these fabrics or I'm going to be the one who delays things. So why are you calling?"

"I just wanted to check if Marie and I could pop around after work tonight. Are you going to be home?"

"Yeah, we'll be home. Come for sundowners. Is there a problem?"

"Well yes and no", Paul replied reluctantly."But I would rather discuss it with you face to face".

"Oh shit, why do I not like the sound of this? You don't want me to come over and see you now.

"No, Marie wants to see you as well and she's in the city at the moment"

"God, this sounds worse and worse by the minute. But okay, we'll see you later"

"Thanks Drew. Laters".

Andrew placed his mobile back on the desk looking worried and thoughtful. His gut told him he was not going to like what the Mason's had to tell him. He stood up and walked up the stairs to the bedroom.
Ryan looked up from his books as Andrew walked in and smiled at his husband as Rascal stood up from where he was lying under Ryan's chair and came to him, wagging his tail. Andrew bent down and picked the puppy up, scratching his ears.

"Now there's a sight for sore eyes. Hi my love". He looked at Andrew quizzically."Why you looking so pertur-bed?"
Andrew kissed Ryan and perched on the corner of the desk.

"I wish I knew. I just had a call from Paul to ask if he and Marie could come round tonight. I didn't like the sound of it. Something is up!", he told Ryan, who frowned.

"It must be something personal, because if it was business, he would have told you".

"Yeah, that's exactly what I'm concerned about. Anyway, I told him to come round for drinks after work"

"Okay, I should be done here by then. I just have to write the damn exam. I cannot wait for it to be all over. Then I can be of more assistance to you".

"You are already of assistance to me, and don't think I don't appreciate it. Do you want to come downstairs for lunch, or shall I bring it up here?" Ryan stood up and stretched.

"No, I need a break. I'll have lunch with you downstairs"

They had lunch and Ryan went back to his studies while Andrew returned to the swatches. At 3pm, Ryan went to pick up the twins from nursery school while Andrew organised some snacks to have with their drinks.

Paul and Marie arrived at 5.30pm with Jonathan, now almost 5 years old, and Michael, who was almost two. The twins were thrilled to see their friends and immediately disappeared into the old guest bedroom that was now their playroom.
Ryan got them all soft drinks and organised drinks for the adults who sat in the lounge. Andrew studied them, noting that although both seemed normal, there was some underlying nervousness and decided to rip off the plaster, no matter how much it hurt.

"Okay, guys, what's going on? The suspense is killing me! You obviously have something to tell us"
Paul took Marie's hand and sighed.

"This is so much harder than I thought it would be. But here goes. We are looking to emigrate to Canada", he said quietly, glancing at Andrew.

Andrew stared at his friends in shock, then turned and walked to the window staring out at the bay. There was complete silence in the room. When he turned round, his eyes were swimming with tears.

"I'm sorry guys. I'm just being selfish. Thinking about myself. We've been through so much together", Andrew said quietly. Marie stood up and walked over to him and hugged him, tears in her eyes as well.

"We're sorry too, Drew. It hasn't been an easy decision to make. We're leaving our family and friends behind and Paul realises he is an important part of Devlin-Major".

Andrew nodded.

"As much it it breaks my heart to say this, I wish you well. I will not stand in your way. God, I'm going to miss you! Why are you going and when?" Paul and Ryan joined them at the window.

"Well not for another few months at least. That's how long we've been told it will take for my work permit to be approved and I want to see the new villas opened at The Cameron. I have been headhunted by a hotel group who want me to head up a hotel opening in Calgary. They somehow got hold of a copy of the interviews in Lodge Inn, liked what they read, interviewed me via Skype, and made me an offer. I really am so sorry Drew. I cannot turn it down. We also think it will mean better opportunities for Jonathan and Michael when the time comes"

"Fuck, if I had known, I would never have agreed to the interviews", muttered Andrew with a grin.
"But really, congratulations my friend. If anyone deserves the opportunity, you do. I just don't know what I'm going to do without you. Your professionalism and your friendship.", Andrew said sadly.

"Well fortunately we have Skype and we will certainly be back for holidays. And there's nothing stopping you from coming to visit us in Calgary", Paul said.

"That's true", Ryan agreed. "It's still a huge blow for us and the company. Your shoes are going to be difficult to fill, professionally and personally. I'll always be grateful for the way you two supported Andrew when I was kidnapped. I dread to think what might of happened had you not been around".

"When are you wanting to tell the staff? At The Cameron and at Blue Bay for that matter", Andrew asked.

"I was hoping we could do it as soon as you decide on who my replacement is going to be. We could introduce him or her at the same time"

"Okay, so we have a couple of months to decide. If you could give us a more specific date at some stage we can make plans from there. In the meantime, we can start making discreet enquiries as to your replacement".

And that was how Andrew came to be sitting in his best friends chair.
Richard, the Food & Beverage manager, had been approached to take over from Paul, but to his credit, he had told Andrew and Ryan that he felt he was not yet quite ready and would like a few more years to properly prepare himself to assume the responsibility. Andrew had told him that he appreciated his honesty and had agreed to his request, but appointed him Deputy General Manager while continuing in his present position. Both Andrew and Ryan were very keen to eventually appoint Richard to the position and so after long discussions, it was decided that Andrew would act as General Manager once Paul had left for Canada and until Richard was ready to take over.

A month after the new villas were completed and opened, Paul, Marie and their little family said farewell and departed for their new home in Canada. A very emotional Andrew, with Ryan in support, was at the airport to say goodbye and it was decided that the Devlin-Majors would visit in July of the following year, eleven months away.

Paul & Marie had not been the only ones to disappear abroad, with Beth and Nicky having emigrated to
Scotland. They had been married in the September after their New Year engagement announcement and
six months later revealed that they were pregnant with their first baby, conceived using Andrew's sperm
as per their original agreement. The baby, a boy, was born in September, a day after their 1st wedding a
nniversary. They named him Jamie Andrew, and he was the spitting image of his father. Looking at photographs of Andrew when he was a baby, one would be hard pressed to tell the two apart. Eighteen months later, Beth delivered their second baby, Bryanna, with Ryan being the father. Of course, Andrew and Ryan spoilt them rotten and saw them often and it was with some sadness that they said their farewells less than six months later, when Beth and Nicky emigrated to Scotland.
During a visit to the clan after Fiona was born, Nicky had been offered a partnership and senior residency at the new private hospital in Fort William which she accepted. At the same time, Donald's PA was retiring, so Beth was offered her position with the office being on the Achnacarry estate, which enabled her to have Jamie and Bryanna with her each day. And so they had moved to Scotland.

That had all been almost two years ago and he and Ryan had resolved to call Richard in that morning and officially appoint him General Manager. Andrew had been slowly passing on more responsibility to him and felt that he was now better equipped to take over the mantle, leaving him to run The Cameron for a week every month, while Andrew was away visiting the other managed properties and when he and Ryan went on vacation, including three weeks a year ago when they travelled to Canada and the USA to visit the Mason's and the Kinleys.

He looked up as there was a knock on his door and grinned as Ryan put his head around it.
"Come in my love. Can I order you some coffee or shall we go have breakfast?"

"Hi babe. Breakfast please! I need some comfort food. Our babies were so eager to get to their friends this morning, I had to ask for a goodbye kiss. They are growing up much too quickly".
Andrew laughed.

"I'm glad to hear I'm not the only one they do that to. Okay, let's have breakfast. Maybe we can get Richard to join us and we can chat to him".

"Hmmm, good idea. It won't make it so formal or intimidating", Ryan replied, opening the door for Andrew to exit the office and walking with him across the lobby which was a hive of activity with guests checking out and a conference group wandering around before going down to the conference room. Housekeeping were also still busy dusting and straightening furniture, although the floors had been polished and the carpets vacuumed. They walked past the turret vestibule where Abel was arranging luggage to be carried out the vehicles and he smiled at them as they passed.

"Morning Mr Andrew, morning Mr Ryan".

"Good morning Abel", they chorused and continued on to the restaurant where Richard was chatting to some guests and keeping an eye on things. The maitre d' came hurrying over when he saw them approaching.

"Good morning Mr Andrew, Mr Ryan. Are you having breakfast?"

"Yes, we are Douglas. A quiet table please and ask Mr Richard to join us when he is finished talking to the guests please", Andrew replied.

"Certainly Mr Andrew. This way please".

He took them to a table on the quiet patio and gestured for a waiter to come over. He pulled out the chairs for them to sit down and left them with the waiter who took an order for tea and coffee before leaving them alone. They went to the buffet to get fruit juice and fruit and yogurt and had just sat down when Richard joined them as the waiter served the tea and coffee.
When the waiter left, Richard looked at them both and said,

"You wanted to see me gentlemen"
Andrew grinned at him and gestured to a chair.

"Take a seat and relax Richard. Don't look so worried".
He sat down and said,

"Thank you. It's just that I don't get asked to join the owners and General Manager for breakfast very often and usually when I do it's to discuss a problem".

"Well not today Richard. So you can relax", Ryan said. "But we do have something to discuss with you. Get some juice and whatever else you want from the buffet and come join us".
When he returned, he sat down and looked at them expectantly.

"What do you want to discuss with me?", he asked nervously.

"As you are aware, I have been giving you more and more responsibility and Ryan and I are both agreed that it's time for you to be officially appointed General Manager. We are more than thrilled with your performance but in light of our conversation two years ago, how do you feel about that?", Andrew asked him.
He sat back and looked at them both.

"Gentlemen, I want to thank you for your guidance and your patience. I accept the position and thank you for your confidence in me. I will look after The Cameron like it's my own. I really thought I had blown my chances after your offer two years ago. So I am very grateful for the opportunity".
Andrew and Ryan grinned at him and reached out to shake his hand.

"Congratulations Richard. You will have our full support . Keep up the good work. By the way, The Cameron is yours to a certain extent. With the GM position comes a dividend share of 7.5%", Andrew added.

"Wow, thank you. I had no idea. I was happy with what I have been getting. 7.5% will be amazing."

"You're welcome", replied Andrew. "I will be handing over to you during the next two weeks to get you totally up to speed. I want to make an announcement to the staff today, probably at the shift change. So if you could spread the word for a meeting in the staff dining room at 3pm that would be great. I want to see all the management at 11am in my, or rather your, office to inform them. Now enjoy your breakfast and then we can get going".

At 11am, as requested, the entire management team were in the GM's office, all looking expectant.
Andrew and Ryan entered with Richard and moved behind the large desk.

"Good morning everyone. Thank you for being here at such short notice and to those of you who have come in while off duty. We have an important announcement, but we will not keep you long.
We have, this morning, officially appointed a new permanent General Manager. You are all aware that I have been occupying this office in a temporary capacity only, and this morning I want to advise that this office will in future be occupied by Richard, who has accepted the position".

He held up as hand as the room broke out in murmurs.

"Let me say what I want to say and then you can congratulate him.
We want to inform the junior staff this afternoon at shift change and those of you who are on shift at the
moment should already have started spreading the word about the meeting. I would appreciate your keeping to yourselves what I have just revealed to you until the meeting. I would like the heads of department to keep an eye on the operation while we have our meeting this afternoon. I will not keep the afternoon shift long, I promise. That's all for now other than to say we are thrilled that Richard has accepted the position and have assured him of our full support. We trust he will have yours as you have supported Paul and myself. Thank you".

There was hearty applause and they all congratulated Richard before returning to their posts.
At 3pm, the meeting with the staff went off as planned and the announcement was greeted with ululating, dancing and singing.
As arranged, Andrew spent time with Richard handing over to him. His first task was to appoint a new Food and Beverage manager to replace him, which was accomplished with no fuss at all and on Andrew's last day a cocktail party was arranged to officially introduce Richard to some selected guests including Michael Gibson, the editor of Lodge Inn magazine.

The boys had made an executive decision for Andrew to temporarily work from home until Richard was settled in his new position and then Andrew would move back to The Cameron when they would usurp one of the garden villas to become the headquarters of The Devlin-Major Portfolio.

On his first free morning, Andrew dropped Cameron and Elizabeth at day school and then paid Claude a visit after once again neglecting him and Blue Bay. He was with Claude most of the morning and then drove home, feeling completely lost and not knowing what to do with himself. For the remainder of the week, he sat at his desk at home studing the financial reports of the four managed properties he would be visiting the next week and making notes to discuss with the owners and where applicable, their GM's.
The trip would entail one night in Johannesburg, two nights on the north and south coasts of Kwazulu Natal and one night in Port Elizabeth. The trips were necessary but he did not look forward to them as he found them tiring and he hated being away from Ryan and the twins. Skype made things bearable and he made sure he was in his room each night before Cameron and Elizabeth went to bed to speak to them and Ryan. Fortunately, the twins were now grown enough to realise that he was coming back home but they nevertheless stuck to him like glue when he got back home. He made sure that there was always a weekend after his return that he could spend some time with them. He had learned that the hard way, when on his first trip, he got back on a Thursday and when he dropped them at nursery school on the Friday, the experience was traumatic, to say the least. They would not let him leave them and screamed blue murder until he finally relented and took them home again and did not let him out of their sight the entire day. He even had two curious observers when he had to go to the toilet.
Just as he had done before all his trips after that, he lavished attention on them over the weekend and slipped out of the house to drive himself to the airport for his early flight to Johannesburg which, barring any delays, had him at his first appointment by 9.30am. The morning was taken up going through the financial reports and after a short lunch break he would tour the unit, checking on standards and making suggestions. In the even-ings, when he was in Johannesburg, and after Skyping with the twins and Ryan, he would meet Donna and Craig for dinner, either at his lodgings or at a restaurant. Then early to bed for yet another early flight to Durban. He would hire a car and drive to the lodge on the south coast, spend the night there and then retrace his steps north to Ballito where the second property was located. The day followed a similar pattern to the previous ones and would once again be on the first flight out to Port Elizabeth to visit the final property. If he was finished early enough, he would try to be on the last flight out back to Cape Town, but that was not always possible. If he did manage to get the last flight back, he arrived home long after Cameron and Elizabeth had been put to bed, so on the Friday, they would stay at home with him, and before he left for the office, Ryan would carry the sleeping children to the big bed where he would leave them to sleep next to Andrew. For Andrew, the joy on their faces when they woke up to find him there never got old. Of course, Rascal was always on the bed as well close to them.

The move into the new offices was completed with the minimum of fuss. Both Andrew and Ryan were on hand to ensure that the beds from the villa were safely put into storage in the basement of The Cameron. The beds were available should any extras be required for executive rooms or villas. The dining table, chairs and dresser were moved to one of the bedrooms which would act as a small boardroom, while the dining room was set up as a reception area. The lounge suite remained in place along with the coffee table, side tables and lamps and the two remaining bedrooms became Andrew and Ryan's offices and a separate telephone system was installed to easethe burden on the system in the lodge itself.

Both offices had views out into the garden through full length windows and were bright and airy thanks to the larger than normal bedrooms Andrew had insisted on.
The patio furniture remained in place should they want to meet clients or suppliers in a more informal setting, but also just to take breaks at. James would often send over new dishes for them to sample for lunch, or they would just saunter up to the restaurant and once a week they would order in take outs, much to James' disgust. If they were both in the office, and weather permitting, they would normally take their tea breaks on the patio, often joined by Helen, their 40-something receptionist/PA, Richard or Claude.

As usual, apart from overseeing the Devlin-Major Portfolio, the boys had a couple of other projects that they were working on.
With the approaching winter off season, 'Belle Catherine' was once again due for her annual haulout. Only this time she would be on the hard a month earlier, at the end of March instead of April, to have major interior and exterior work done.
Andrew and Ryan had made the decision that, due to them not sailing as much anymore and with the twins now almost six years old, the master cabin needed to be remodelled to better suit their situation.
The crib would be removed and the master cabin would revert to the same size as the port aft cabin. The
midships cabin would be refitted with two single berths for the twins, and the midships bathroom reactivated for their use. An interleading door would enable the two cabins to be one large suite or two completely separate cabins. It would give the yacht an extra cabin, leaving her with four guest cabins and two crew cabins. She would also have a two metre extention added onto her stern to enlarge the aft cockpit and
swim platform, and the saloon roof overhang extended as well to the rear of the cockpit. Although the stretch would add some weight, the additional waterline length would boost her top speed by almost two kilometres per hour. But more importantly, in Andrew's opinion, it would make her more comfortable, both in the space available, and her seakeeping.

Another project was something they had wanted to do since shortly after purchasing the house and had never gotten around to doing. The pool patio was going to be enlarged and a glass conservatory added to enclose it to the elements. It would almost triple the area of the patio and extend almost to the side of the pool, with glass doors opening onto the side of the pool at the far end and an additional door on the one side to the garden. The work would be done while they were away on their final project, another trip to see Paul and Marie in Canada and to spend a week at Walt Disney World in Orlando with a short visit with the Kinleys in Miami, who they had last seen two years previously on their first trip to North America.

Dan and Joan were not longer travelling long distances, preferring to take their vacations on board 'Texas Lass', usually in the Caribbean or the Bahamas, due to Dan's health , which had deteriorated following a mild stroke shortly after Andrew and Ryan's last visit.

The travelling party would include David and Janice and would take them from Cape Town to Frankfurt in Germany via Johannesburg, and then a direct flight from Frankfurt to Calgary. Paul was taking some vacation tine to host them while in town where they would take in the Calgary Stampede before driving to Lake Louise for four days and then to the Banff Springs Hotel for 2 nights, where on their second night, they would cele-brate Ryan's 35th birthday.
The Masons would then drive back to Calgary, while the rest would travel overnight on board the Rocky
Mountaineer from Banff to Vancouver where they would stay overnight before flying to Orlando for their week at Disneyworld.
Dan had arranged for their private jet to fly them from Orlando to Miami, where, at the insistence of Dan and Joan, they would all be accommodated in the guest wing at home where they would be for three days before the jet would fly them to Teteboro Executive Airport , to transfer to JFK International to catch a Lufthansa flight back to Cape Town via Frankfurt. They would be gone for almost four weeks and due to the length of time that they would be away, Rascal was travelling with them. Fortunately, he was small enough that he could travel in the cabin with them.
They would be leaving in just shy of a month and all they were waiting for was the approval of their Schengen, Canadian and American visas and Rascal's travelling documents.

As the day of departure drew closer, they both spent a lot of time with Claude and Richard. Both wholly owned lodges were running like well oiled machines and Richard had taken to his new position like a duck to water. The new Food & Beverage manager, a young lady named Angela, was also fitting in well. The most pressing order of business was for Andrew and Ryan to sign off on the annual dividend and the payouts to the staff of both lodges, which they did two days before departure for Canada. They were both happy that the company was in good order for the period of their absence and there was always Skype should their be any issues.

On the day before they were due to leave, Andrew went to pick the twins up from day school. It was some-thing he looked forward to every time and he and Ryan did it on alternate days. There was no better feeling than seeing the look on the faces of their two beautiful, energetic children as they came hurtling round the corner and they saw him. They ran up to him and he swept them into his arms

"Hello my babies! Did you have fun today? What did Aunty Elaine teach you today?
He glanced past them and grinned at at Elaine who had followed them. Elizabeth pecked him on the lips and said,

"Daddy, me and Cam are nearly six! We are not babies anymore", accompanied by an agreeing nod from
Cameron and a muffled giggle from Elaine. He looked down at his daughter, struggling not laugh.

"Elizabeth, my angel, no matter how old you are, you and your brother will always be our babies, because your daddy's love you both very much"
She gazed at him thoughtfully, then pecked him on the lips again and nodded.

"And we love you and dad Ryan too. Very much", she said, causing his heart to swell and moisture to flood his eyes.

"Thank you my baby".
Elaine handed him their coats and little lunch boxes.

"From the mouths of babes, Andrew. From the mouths of babes"

"Thanks Elaine. Yeah, they just sometimes catch you unawares. You haven't forgotten that they will be away for the next month or so. We're leaving for Canada and the USA tomorrow"

"Yes, I made a note of it in my diary. I'm going to miss them. Where exactly are you going?", she enquired

"Calgary in Canada to see their godparents and a visit to Disneyworld for a week, with some touring around in between".

"Wow lucky little munchkins. Quite the little jetsetters".
Andrew laughed.

"You have no idea. They made their first overseas trip when they were nine months old. That was a cruise in the Mediterranean, then to Paris, Scotland and London. Two years ago we did our first trip to Canada and the USA. We had them on our yacht at three months for their first cruise. But this will be the first one that I think they will remember and appreciate"

"True, have a great trip. I look forward to seeing them back. They are both such happy kids. No problem at all".

"Thank you Elaine, I'm sure we will. It's just the long distance flying that I don't look forward to. It seemed much easier when you could just feed them and put them to bed. Now we have to keep them occupied"

"I'm sure you will be just fine. Happy travels".

"Thank you. Say goodbye to Aunty Elaine. You won't be seeing her for a while"
Cameron looked at them with a puzzled expression.

"Why daddy?"

"Because we are going to Cadana and Amewica, Cam", Elizabeth answered, with a huge sigh.
Andrew grinned and Elaine giggled

"Elizabeth my angel, it is Canada and America", Andrew corrected her. She batted her eyelids at him and huffed.

"But daddy, that's what I said".

"If you say so my angel. Okay say goodbye so we can get home. Give Aunty Elaine hugs!"
They both hugged Elaine who kissed them on the cheek.

"Have fun you two. Look after them Andrew. Bring them back safe"

"We will. Thanks Elaine".

Andrew put them down and with one on either side of him holding his hand, they walked out watched by a beaming Elaine.

Claude himself drove the family to the airport the next day in Blue Bay's guest transport. They piled all the luggage onto two trolleys, perching the twins and Rascal on top, and trundled over the the SAA business class counter to check in for their flight to Johannesburg. The luggage would all have to be claimed in Johannesburg to be checked in at international departures. Cameron and Elizabeth were intrigued by all the hubbub and Cameron looked alarmed when the luggage started moving down the conveyor belt after being tagged. Andrew had him on his arm and his son tapped him on the hand.

"Daddy, why are they taking our stuff. Stop them!"

Andrew knelt down so that Cam could see where the luggage was going and explained,

"They're taking our stuff to load onto the aeroplane, my boy. When we get to where we are going, we will get it back".

Cameron gazed at him sceptically, his dark hair falling over one eye, but seemed to accept what he told him.
There was a bit of a delay while they verified all Rascal's documents, but eventually they received their boarding cards and passed through security to the business class lounge for a snack and something to drink. Lunch would be served on the plane.
Andrew had once again made reservations on one of the daily wide-body services to Johannesburg. While they were up in the lounge awaiting departure, they had a very good view of their aircraft on the apron. When he saw one of the luggage carts heading for the plane he pointed it out to Cameron.

"Cam, you see that train with normal wheels down there?", he asked the little boy, who nodded vigorously.

"Yes daddy, what's it doing".

"Okay, watch. You see, it's stopping at the plane. That's the plane we are going on. Now you see they are loading bags into the plane on that moving belt. Can you see that?" He nodded again

"Yes daddy!"

"Well some of those bags are ours. The ones you thought they were taking. Well, now they are putting our bags onto the plane. Then just now, we will get onto the plane as well through those long things there and we will all fly to Johannesburg".

"So we will get our things back when we get to 'Hannesburg?", he asked.
Andrew nodded.

"Yes my angel. We will, you'll see"

Cameron didn't reply, but just gazed at the plane thoughtfully, gnawing on his bottom lip.

Just before boarding time, Ryan put Rascal back into his travelling box and they headed for the gate with the twins and Rascal sitting on top of the cabin bags, the kids looking very pleased with themselves.
At the gate, they were the first to board, having children to attend to, and it wasn't long before they were getting comfortable in their seats in a 2-2-2 configuration. The adults were all in window -aisle seat pairs, with Andrew and Ryan seated behind one another and one of the twins in the seat next to them. Rascal's box fitted neatly into a cavity in the bottom of the seat back ahead of Andrew.
The flight attendants fussed over their smallest passengers and the twins proceeded to charm the pants off them. The cabin was only about half full so they got plenty of attention.

They pushed back on time and then the huge Rolls Royce Trent engines began their distinctive whine as the pilots started the four engines that would power them up country. Both the twins had small earphones on and were engrossed in watching cartoons on the tablets that their dads had bought for the trip to keep them occupied, although when they accelerated down the runway for takeoff, Elizabeth looked up in alarm and when the nosed pointed up into the sky, she grabbed Ryan's hand and held on for dear life until they levelled out. Ryan put his arm around her and stroked her hand and she went back to her cartoons.

For Andrew, the best moment came when the flight attendants began serving lunch. Cameron watched with rapt attention as the attendant lifted the tray table out of the arm of the seat and opened it up in front of the little boy. Cameron looked at Andrew with a WTF expression on his face, which turned to utter amazement when his special kiddies meal was placed on the table. He looked at Andrew again and tapped his hand.

"Daddy, is that for me", he whispered. Andrew grinned down at him.

"Yes Cam, that's your lunch. Here let me help you", Andrew replied as he slid the table towards his son.
"There you go. Now it's closer. See it's your favourite. Macaroni cheese. And you have a juice to drink.
And there is jelly and custard as well. But you got to eat your macaroni first before you can have the jelly. Okay".
Cameron grinned at Andrew and nodded.

"Okay daddy"
The attendant, who was waiting to serve Andrew his meal was grinning broadly. He put the meal on Andrew's table and said,

"Oh wow, he's gorgeous. How old is he? Before Andrew could reply, Cameron answered.

"I am five, nearly six. The same as my sister, Elizabeth. We are twins, but I am older."
The attendant squatted down next to the seat.

"Wow, nearly six. And what is your name?"

"My name is Cameron Devlin-Major and my sister is Elizabeth Devlin-Major", he replied.

The attendant extended his hand and he extended his own little hand after looking at Andrew and getting a nod from him.

"Pleased to meet you Cameron. My name is Sean. You're my favourite passenger today".
He glanced at Andrew and said softly,

"So they are twins", gesturing to Cameron and Elizabeth .

"That's right, same mother, two fathers".
Sean's mouth formed an 'O', and he looked puzzled before asking,

"Would you mind if I came to have a chat when things are quieter?"

"No not at all. No problem".

"Thank you Mr Devlin-Major" and he stood up and returned to the galley.

Sean left them for last to clear the tables and took the opportunity to speak to Andrew and bring Rascal some scraps.

"May I ask you a personal question, Mr Devlin-Major? "

"Please call me Andrew. Devlin-Major can be a bit of a mouthful. And it depends on the question whether I answer you or not".

"You are listed on our passenger notes as travelling with your partner and children. Is the gentleman sitting behind you your partner?

"Yes, Ryan and I are partners and Cam and Elizabeth are our children."

"So you are a gay couple with twins", he asked hesitantly.
Andrew nodded, glancing up at Ryan, who was now standing behind Andrew's seat, listening to the conversation.
"Yes we are, and proudly so. We've been married for almost six years now"

"Wow, you guys give me hope! I'm gay too, and my partner and I want to have children as well. We've been married for two years. How did you go about it? Especially with twins?"

"We considered adoption, but ultimately decided to go with surrogacy. The original plan was to have two babies, two years apart with each of us providing the sperm. The biggest hurdle was that we wanted our children to at least have the same mother. Then a doctor friend told us about a procedure called hetero-paternal fecundation where the surrogates ova are fertilised with the sperm from two donors and implanted into her womb. It took a couple of attempts, but it worked".

Sean stared at them with a look of wonder on his face. A chime sounded as the seatbelt signs were turned on.

"You really have given me hope. Thank you for your time. I really appreciate it. I must get back to prepare for arrival"

Thirty minutes later they touched down at Johannesburg's O.R.Tambo International Airport and as they were disembarking, Andrew handed Sean his business card.

"If you need any more information, call me, although we will be out of the country for the next month"

"Thank you Andrew. I will call you at some stage I'm sure. Safe travels"

They had to wait at the luggage claim before it began circulating with their luggage and once again Andrew explained what was happening to Cameron, who was facinated when their luggage appeared on the carousel.
Once they had all the luggage, they had to go up two levels to the departures concourse and then walk almost the length of the building to the older Terminal B, to check in for their Lufthansa overnight flight to Frankfurt. After checking in at the the airlines business class counter and receiving their boarding passes, including those for the Frankfurt - Calgary leg, they delayed passing though security and immigration and had coffee at one of the coffee shops and to allow Ryan to take Rascal for a quick run on the grass across the terminal access road before the flight although they knew they would probably have to clean the box at least once during the flight and to this end, Andrew had brought along a pack of the twins unused disposable diapers, a box of which still lurked in a cupboard in the garage storeroom. The travel box was also lined with a thick absorbent pad, of which they also had extras.

After going through security and immigration, they went straight to the business class lounge to relax for a couple of hours, and an hour before boarding, got the twins something to eat as they were getting
hungry, although there would be a kiddies meal for them on board the plane. Rascal also had a small bowl of chunks.
They all later agreed that it was one of best commercial international flights they had been on. The aircraft, one of airlines Airbus A380 double decker jets, had the business class cabin situated on the upper deck, just behind the small first class cabin.The seats were all fully lie flat, very comfortable and the aircraft was impressively quiet. The crew were efficient, but friendly and the service and meals superb. The twins were already quite drowsy when they boarded and as soon as it was possible after take off, a flight attendant made up their beds so that they could sleep. The kiddies meals went uneaten and Andrew and Ryan had the rare treat of being able to enjoy a dinner at leisure. They didn't stay awake too late either, as they had a 05h30 arrival into Frankfurt-am-Main where they had a five hour layover before their flight to Calgary.
Andrew had booked them into one of the more exclusive business class lounges which included showers for them to freshen up. They all remained in transit after establishing that there was a lovely large patch of grass at one end of the transit lounge where Rascal could stretch his legs and do his business and relaxed in the busi-ness class lounge, where they all had showers, including the twins, which left them all feeling much better. However, Rascal was a bit fretful, tired of being cooped up in his travelling box so Ryan slipped a few drops of the calming remedy 'Rescue' into his water and he fell asleep just before they boarded the aircraft.

The flight was called and they boarded the aircraft for the nine hour leg to Calgary. If the previous leg had been the best international flight they had been on, then the leg to Calgary had to have been the worst.
The aircraft was a Boeing777 and compared to the A380 that they had just been on, it was very noisy. Andrew and Ryan could never decide whether it was just the aircraft, or the fact that they had now been travelling for over 20 hours and were just travel weary, even though they had slept well on the Johannesburg - Frankfurt leg. So it was a very tired group who shuffled off the plane at Calgary International at 14h40 with their body clocks already at 23h30 Cape Town time.
Marie met them in arrivals and hurled herself into Andrew and Ryan's arms when they appeared through the sliding doors.

"It so good to see you again. You have no idea how much I have missed you. All of you"

"Hi Marie, really good to see you too", Andrew said. He looked down at Cameron and Elizabeth who stood on either side of him. He knelt down and said,

"Do you remember Aunty Marie? You were very small when you last saw her"

They both shook their heads shyly not saying anything, but studing the smiling, blonde lady who had hugged their dads

"They've got so big. And they're so gorgeous. You guys are amazing".

She hugged David and Janice as well hugged and then led them to the parking garage to her SUV where all the luggage was loaded in, then they set off to the hotel that Paul that was managing, where they would be staying. Paul and Marie had offered to have them stay in their home, but Andrew and Ryan both felt that a hotel would be better. Had it been only them, they would probably have accepted the offer, but felt it was too much for the couple to put them all up. So Paul had arranged for them to stay at his hotel on a complimentary bed and breakfast basis while they were in town.
The hotel was situated in parkland slightly out of the city centre, with a fabulous views of the Bow River
and the Rocky Mountains in the distance. Paul met them as they stepped into the foyer with a wide smile.

"Hi guys, it's so good to see you. I'm sure you are all exhausted, so let's get you into your rooms and we can catch up later. I would advise a short nap and a shower, but don't sleep too long. Rather go to bed at about 9pm, to get your body clock to reset. You'll probably still feel a bit jet-lagged for a day or so".

"Thanks for puting us up Paul", Andrew replied. "We were fine until Frankfurt, but the Calgary leg was awful. That damn plane was so loud. It was very difficult to get any rest. But it's really good to see you again. We miss having you around".

Paul took them to the reception desk where he got them checked in and then accompanied them to their rooms, which were large family rooms he referred to as 'Pool Cabanas' with patios that opened into the lovely garden. Andrew and Ryan were in a two bedroomed unit while David and Janice were in a smaller one bedroom next door.

The first thing they did was get Rascal out of his travelling box for a run in the garden. The puppy was ecstatic and took off running, barking and yipping, his long ears flapping behind him. He rolled on the grass and crawled on his belly and when Cam and Elizabeth came out with Ryan he scampered up to them, his tail wagging so hard his entire body was moving. Ryan kept a close eye on him and when he crouched to do his business, Ryan quickly grabbed one of the bags they had brought with them for the purpose and scooped it up before tossing it in a handy bin. He and the twins played with him for a while to get rid of his pent up energy,but eventually his tongue was lolling so Ryan got Cam to get him a bowl of water which he lapped at noisily, his tail still wagging.
The boys tried to have a nap, but between the twins and Rascal, the attempt was in vain, so they both had a shower, changed and went for a walk to explore the area with Rascal on his leash.
They took a pathway to the river and then strolled along the river bank on a wide promenade, but not unexpectedly, the twins little legs soon got tired, so their dad's picked them up and headed back to the hotel, stopping at a playground for Cam and Elizabeth to use the swings, seesaw, and the jungle gym.
The weather was comfortably warm with a slight breeze which they were pleased about. On their first trip, there had been a few days when it had been stiflingly hot and humid. They had both, however, worked up a bit of a sweat while playing with the twins and carrying them back up the hill to the hotel. They ran into Paul in the foyer, who grinned when he saw them.

"Couldn't sleep huh. Have you been out exploring?"

"Yeah", Ryan replied."Between these two and Rascal, I had my doubts we would get any rest. Hopefully we can have an early night"

"That's exactly why I haven't planned anything for tonight. What are you doing for dinner? Our grill house is great if you want to eat in", Paul said

"Then that's what we'll do. Have an early dinner and an early night", Andrew replied. "Can you guys join us".
Paul pulled out his mobile.

"Let me just check with the Minister of Household Affairs. I think Marie may be anticipating just that, but let me make sure", he said holding the mobile to his ear.

"Hi doll, you done anything for supper yet? I thought so! Yeah they want us to join them for dinner in the grill house.. Sixish?", he asked looking at Andrew and Ryan and raising a querying eyebrow. They both nodded.

"Yeah six is great. See you later. Love you"

The boys got the twins into the bath and left them to play in the water while they showered with one of them keeping an eye on the kids. Then they dressed the twins and dressed themselves while the twins watched videos from the bed. At six they knocked on the door to David and Janice's room and then headed for the grill house on the mezzanine level above the foyer.

The room was warm with dark gleaming wood panelling, red leather upholstery and brass lighting. An open kitchen was placed at the far end where the chefs were already bustling about with orders for the early diners already seated. The floor manager led them to a large horseshoe shaped banquette table with rattan placemats on the bare table. A condiment caddy with salt and pepper pots, ketchup, mustard and thousand island dress-ing stood in the centre. Wooden handled steak knives and forks were placed on the placemats, along with red and white checked linen serviettes, a wine glass and a water glass. Paul, Marie and their two boys were already seated and when Jonathan spotted them he jumped up and ran to meet them, giving Andrew a huge hug around his waist and whose eyes filled with tears at the little boys welcome.

"Hi Uncle Andrew, I've missed you", he said shyly.
Andrew knelt down and drew him into a hug.

"Hi there Jonathan. And I have missed you too. You're such a big boy now"
Jonathan turned to Ryan

"Hi Uncle Ryan, I missed you too", and moved to hug Ryan as well who also knelt and returned his hug.

"Hi JonJon. Well at least now you will see us for a few days. Do you remember Cameron and Elizabeth"
The boy nodded and grinned.

"Yeah, we used to play together. They are much bigger now too"
Ryan tousled his head.

"Cam, Elizabeth, do you remember Jonathan?"
The twins both studied him before Cameron said,

"I think so , dad. He used to play with us and push us around in our wagons"

"That's right, Cam. Clever boy."

The twins squirmed out of their dad's arms and stood hesitantly in front of Jonathan, who took their hands and walked them to the table. He lifted them up onto the seat and then sat next to them. Marie smiled at him and winked. Michael was standing in the seat next to her.

"Hi Marie, hi Paul. God he has got so big. And I'm amazed he remembers us. And so has Michael. Definitely his mother's child", Andrew said looking at blonde haired little boy next to Marie.
Marie laughed.

"He's got a memory like an elephant. Never forgets anything. He often talks about you guys and the twins. How you guys feeling?"

"Well I don't know about mom and dad", replied Ryan, "They seem to be quite fresh, so I think they managed to have a nap. But I know I feel quite knackered. No chance of sleep with these two around. And Rascal!"

David and Janice nodded, smiling.

"We had a lovely nap, thank you. Still feel a bit tired. But better than we did when we arrived", Janice replied. Marie looked back at the boys.

"Paulie told me you went for a walk this afternoon. Let's get some decent food into you and you can have an early night. You'll feel better tomorrow I'm sure."

Dinner was a very happy occasion, despite their weariness. There was a lot of laughter as old friends caught up with one another, both old and young. The food was good, the service attentive and a lot more relaxed than that the any of the Devlin-Major lodges. Ryan and David had huge Alberta beef sirloins while Andrew, Janice and Marie had fresh grilled Canadian salmon. Paul had spare ribs. The kids wolfed down their chicken nuggets and fries, and they all had ice cream, chocolate brownies or both. No prizes in guessing who had both.
The adults all drank Molson lager, even Andrew, eschewing his preferred wine. The good meal, beer and jetlag finally started taking it's toll and by 8pm all the arrivals were ready for bed. The twins had come to sit between their dads and were slumped against them, fast asleep. They gathered all their belongings and a doggie bag for Rascal, said goodnight to the Masons and headed for bed. Marie would collect them in the morning after break-fast to show them around town, while Paul completed his last day of work before his vacation started.

They all had a solid nights sleep and woke up the next morning feeling a lot better, if slightly fuzzy-headed. Yet another hot shower seemed to help that and they all traipsed down to breakfast in the restaurant off the foyer. It was a standard hotel breakfast with cold items on the buffet and hot items from the cooking station where a chef was in attendance.
They all enjoyed a hearty breakfast, then returned to the rooms to gather sunhats, sun protection cream,
cameras, Rascal and all the other paraphernalia for the day and went to meet Marie outside the main doors.

They piled into her SUV and she drove them through Calgary's city centre, pointing out all the interesting sights. The lampposts all carried advertising for the Calgary Stampede that they would be attending the
following night. Seeing the pictures on the posters, Andrew had a sudden thought and leaned forward to
peak to Marie.

"Marie, would you mind stopping at a mall. I would like to get suitable clothing for the Stampede tomorrow".
Marie giggled.

"I know just the place to take you".

Ten minutes later they pulled into the parking lot of the Stone Creek Western Shop, a store that specialised in cowboy style gear. They all piled out of the car and headed in.
When they emerged an hour later, they had all been kitted out with Western style shirts, stetsons and boots, which the guys, including Cameron, who had got a very expensive pair of tooled boots, would wear with denim jeans. Janice and Elizabeth had soft calf skin skirts to wear after Elizabeth had thrown a hissy fit, not wanting to wear trousers and telling her dad she was not a boy.
Marie took them to Fort Calgary, situated at the confluence of the Bow and Elbow Rivers and was the historical and cultural gathering point from the first indigenous people thousands of years ago to the arrival of the North-West Mounted Police in 1875. The fort was the birthplace of the city of Calgary and played a significant role in the establishment of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. They wandered around the beautiful white painted building with it's grey slate roof and red window detail, examining the historical artifacts on display and learning more about the history of the area.

When they left the fort it was getting on for lunchtime, so Marie took them to Humptys, a lovely kid friendly restaurant. The decor was bright and cheerful and the kiddies menu had some great choices as well.
She took them back to the hotel to relax for the afternoon and at the end of his day, Paul would drive them to his home where he and Marie were hosting a dinner for the visitors and some of their Canadian friends. Andrew had offered to go home with her and help with the preparations, but Marie insisted it was all under control and thanked him for the offer.
Jonathan wanted to stay with them at the hotel and keep the twins company and when Andrew assured her it would not be a problem, she agreed.

They arranged for the hotel laundry to wash the new clothing and then chilled at the pool, keeping a close eye on the twins and Jonathan. The twins had been taking swimming lessons, so were fairly comfortable in the water and after observing Jonathan, it was obvious he was at home in the water as well, but they kept an eye out nevertheless. Rascal, naturally, joined them in the water.

At 4pm, Paul came out to tell them he would be finishing up in an hour, so they headed for their rooms to shower and change before meeting Paul in the foyer. Andrew slipped an envelope into his jacket pocket as they left the room.

The drive to the house was a short one, only a few blocks to what was obviously a very affluent suburb. When Paul swung off the road onto a paved driveway Andrew whistled in appreciation.

"Wow, Paul, this is incredible. The house is amazing. It's a lot bigger than your first home".
Paul laughed

"Yeah too right. Although it was comfortable, the first house was just a temporary home until we had time to find exactly what we were looking for. Fortunately, the company gives me a very generous housing allowance as part of my package. When we found this place we knew we wanted it. We had to pay in a little to make the payments meet my allowance, but with the cash we got from the sale of the house in Bloubergstrand, it was not a problem. Come on, lets show you around"

They all clambered out of Paul's SUV and followed the path to the front door which was opened by Marie as they approached.

"Hi guys, welcome to Chez Mason. Come on in"

"Jeez Marie, the place is huge. I know you guys moved, but I had no idea that it was this big. Now I'm sorry we didn't take you up on your offer to stay with you. I was worried we would be puting you out", Andrew said, looking at the magnificent staircase that curved up one wall to the upper level.
She glared at him.

"Andrew Devlin-Major! You should know me well enough by now to know I would not have offered if it was going to be a problem".

"Yeah, I know. And thank you again. But we are quite comfortable where we are. It would have been a lot easier with Rascal. Speaking of which, would you mind if we let him run around?

"No, not at all. Put him down and let him run around. I'm sure the kids will keep him occupied. Okay, come through to the back and Paul can get you all something to drink before he goes upstairs to change. Then we can show you around".

She led the way under the staircase into a huge family room that opened up onto an equally big tiled patio with a built in BBQ and wide stairs to the sparkling pool, surrounded by a stunning, very private garden. The patio lounge suite stood on one side and two matching six seater patio tables stood on the other.
Jonathan and the twins disappeared into the family room to watch videos, and Paul organised them all drinks and then went for a quick shower and to change out of his suit.

The two other couples who had been invited arrived just before 6pm and Paul was already busy making the fire with Ryan keeping him company. Marie introduced everyone and before long there was a happy buzz of conversation interspersed with lots of laughter as the Canadians made the visitors feel at home.
Marie had found a South African expat who had opened a butchery and made proper boerewors. And there were steaks and chicken sosaties. She had done a large Greek salad, a potato salad and a curried peach salad. And to Ryan's delight, she had malva pudding and ice cream for dessert.
The distinctive aroma of boerewors grilling over hot coals soon filled the air and shortly after Paul announced that dinner was ready. Everything was just placed on the two tables and everyone just sat wherever the found an open chair and helped themselves. The Canadians all raved about the boerewors and the evening was thoroughly enjoyable.
After dinner, Paul gave them a tour of his impressive six bedroomed home all with en-suite bathrooms, telling them the reason they wanted a bigger home was to be able to have family and friends stay over when they came to visit. Andrew felt bad that Paul was obviously disappointed that they had not stayed with them. Before they went back downstairs, Andrew hugged him.

"Your home is beautiful Paul. And I'm really sorry I turned down the offer to stay. I can see you are disappointed and it's my fault. I promise next time we will stay here with you. I have something for you that I meant to give you on our first trip over and inadvertently left it in Cape Town. I really wanted to give it to you personally, so since then it's been in safekeeping, so to speak."
He took out the envelope and handed it it Paul, who opened it and stared wide eyed at the document he held.

"Good grief Drew, what is this"

"That is a cheque drawn on the company account for your share of the dividends for the financial year before you left. You were still fully entitled to your dividend. It's been sitting in an interest bearing account until four days ago".
Just then Marie came up the stairs.

"There you guys are. I thought you got lost" She looked at Paul and asked,"What's that you got babe?"
He handed the cheque to her and got a similar reaction

"Jeez, what's this for"

"My dividend cheque for the last year I was at The Cameron. I didn't think I was entitled to it after I left, but it seems Andrew thought otherwise"

"That's a helluva lot of money Andrew, are you sure? It's what, hundred and twenty thousand ZAR?!"

"I'm sure Marie. It's not all dividend. As I just told Paul, some of it is interest. It's been sitting in an interest bearing account since you left"
She stepped forward and hugged him.

"Thank you. What a fantastic surprise. And that's exactly why you are as successful as you are. Because you are ethical and you care".

"It's our pleasure Marie. Paul deserves every cent. All I'm sorry about is that he won't be getting any more".

"Well thank you, both of you", Paul said, tucking the cheque into his shirt pocket
"I think we'll put it aside for our trip to Cape Town at the end of the year. We want to go down for Christmas and New Year. Get away from the winter weather"

"That's great news. And you will stay with us at home . No arguments", Ryan said.
Paul and Marie both laughed.

"Yeah okay no arguments. Now we need to get back. Everyone will be wondering what we're doing up here".

The remainder of the evening was spent just reaffirming old friendships and making new ones. They didn't stay too late as the next night was going to be a late one, so Paul drove them back to the hotel at 10. 30.

The next day after breakfast, Paul and Marie took them to The Core shopping mall to satisfy Andrew's shop-ping crave and in the afternoon relaxed in the warm sunshine at the pool, in anticipation of their outing to the Calgary Stampede in the evening arriving at the bustling venue at 4pm, and the twins had a nap.
Cameron and Elizabeth looked absolutely adorable in their outfits with Elizabeth preening in her skirt and a peach hued plaid shirt with pale blue indigenous detail on the front, cream bobby socks peeking out above her tiny boots and her stetson hanging on her back. Cameron had a cream shirt with brown detail to go with his blue jeans, a wide belt with a big buckle, and his tooled cowboy boots. His stetson was perched on the back of his head.
The admission tickets Paul had bought included seating in a VIP area and parking close to the entrance.
They wandered around the venue looking at the many exhibits and stalls with Cam and Elizabeth perched on their dad's shoulders, and took the children for rides at the carnival. At 6.30 they bought corndogs, huge meaty hamburgers and large sodas and headed to their seats for the main event commencing at 7pm.

The first item on the program was the 'Round the Barrel Race' where the horse and rider have to race around barrels against the clock, two competitors at a time, with the fastest going through to the next round. The twins were wide eyed at the spectacle but were a little distracted by their food and sodas.
The next item was the chuck wagon race, where wooden wagons drawn by a horse with a driver on the seat of the wagon, race around the track of the arena. The twins loved it, jumping up and down in excitement, huge grins on their faces.
That was followed by the steer roping competition. The first competitor chased his steer down and lassooed it before rolling it over and tying it's legs. The action took place right in front of where they were sitting and the steer was complaining bitterly about the treatment it was getting. Elizabeth burst into tears and Cameron tapped Andrew's arm urgently, tears in his eyes.

"Dad, dad, he's hurting the little cow. Why?"
Ryan comforted Elizabeth, while Andrew picked Cameron up onto his lap.

"He's not hurting the cow, my angels", Andrew told them. "Just like you sometimes don't like it when we hold you tight, he doesn't like being tied up. He's just cross, that's all",

The action had occurred so close to them that the cowboy heard Cameron's anguished cry. When he was done roping the steer, he stood up and looked over at them and noticed the twins crying. He grinned and bent down to pick up the calf that was now lying quietly. Cradling it in has arms he stood up and walked over to the barrier, indicating to Andrew and Ryan to bring the twins closer. They carried the distraught pair to the barrier and the cowboy said softly,

"He's not hurt. I'll show you".
He gently untied the calf and placed it on its legs. The calf turned to look at him reproachfully and took off across the arena for the gate on the far side.

"See, he's not hurt. He's just fine. So you don't need to cry".
They both calmed down and nodded, sniffing.

"Thank you", Andrew said to him and he turned to follow the calf .
The twins were a bit subdued after that and sat on the dad's laps when the rodeo competition started. To prevent any problems, Ryan explained to them what was going to happen and why the horses were bucking the way they were and they seemed to accept his explanation. They nevertheless watched the goings on in the arena with slight apprehension. The evening ended with a huge fireworks display and as they were heading for the parking area, all the stress and excitement caught up with Cam and Elizabeth and they fell asleep, cuddled in their dad's arms.