Unfortunately, her choices became detrimental to his own well-being when Lola caught him kissing and jerking off an older neighbor boy. It was then she decided he needed to pay his own freight so she tried to pimp him out to her johns who had 'other tastes', telling him he would bring ‘a premium if you’d just give them what they want. You’re already a fag so it shouldn’t matter, baby.’ He later figured out the money was a necessity to support her own blossoming drug habit.
Mickey quickly made up his mind he wasn't going to be a hustler, nor was he going to allow his mother to sell him to the highest bidder, so at the ripe old age of sixteen, he dropped out of high school and left Nashville far behind, vowing never to look back. Thus far, he had no idea what had happened to his parents, but more importantly, he didn't give a shit. They sure as fuck didn’t care about him, so it was easy to block them from his mind and his heart.
Attending school had pretty much been hit or miss anyway, so when he dropped out for good, he procured a fake driver's license placing himself at eighteen years of age so he didn't get caught up in the child welfare system as he went off on his merry way.
Mickey had wanderlust in his soul, so he decided to move on from the gritty streets of Nashville. He sat in a coffee shop at the Greyhound station on Fifth Avenue, South, which wasn’t nearly as prestigious as its namesake in Manhattan. He decided he'd always loved horses, finding them to be regal animals, so he chose to get a bus to Louisville, Kentucky, where they ran the Kentucky Derby every May.
He found jobs at a few horse farms in the Louisville area before he got a job as a groom's apprentice at Keeneland Race Track in Lexington, about an hour away from Louisville. The job mostly consisted of cleaning stalls or bathing horses but Mickey was a quick study and learned his way around things at the track, including what it took to care for and exercise the thoroughbred racing horses, along with many things necessary for breeding and foaling race horses. He listened eagerly to anything anyone was willing to teach him, hoping he could learn enough to be valuable to someone who needed a horse hand.
While he was working at Keeneland, he met Jerry Kessler and found the man to be a kind and fatherly sort of man. Mickey worked one weekend when Mr. Kessler brought his horse, Kessler’s Komet, to Keeneland for its first race, and Mickey had been assigned to help him out with regard to caring for the large dun gelding. The horse came in third place, which wasn’t bad for his first race, so Mickey made sure he got extra hay and oats that night before he went back to his home.
Much to his surprise, Jerry Kessler offered Mickey a job at the Bar K in Louisville, citing he appreciated the way Mickey had attended to the thoroughbred as his reason for offering a total stranger a ride and a place to live. Mickey wasn’t stupid enough to think offers of the sort came along every day, so he took Mr. Kessler up on his offer quickly because the tent he’d been sleeping in behind the barn had a hole in it and it had rained nearly every fucking night. He knew he was lucky to get the break and he didn’t hesitate to accept.
The job started as shit work, literally, but he eventually worked his way up the ladder to a position of respect with Mr. Kessler over the few years he was in the man's employ. He'd learned to ride, which was new to him, and he’d learned what went into training race horses, along with hunter/jumpers. Training horses for western riding and trail riding came after a time as well. He never shied away from any work he was directed to undertake, and it seemed Mr. Kessler recognized and rewarded that trait in Mickey. It was the first time in his life he'd ever been proud of himself for an accomplishment.
When Mickey met Jackie Bardot, he fell in love at first sight. Jackie was a beautiful young man with tanned skin and a white smile. He'd been hired at the ranch part-time as a barn hand while he was preparing to attend college. He was assigned tasks like cleaning saddles, cleaning stalls, and taking inventory of supplies because he was afraid of horses. Mr. Kessler, being the kind man he was didn’t hold it against the kid and found other jobs for Jackie to do which had nothing to do with the care and feeding of the ranch horses.
Jackie had graduated from high school that summer and was set to go to college at the University of Kentucky in the fall before his father demanded he leave home, saying 'no fucking queer is gonna live under my roof', as Jackie told Mickey one night while they sat on the back porch of the bunk house beside the large horse barn on the Bar K. Stupidly, Mickey continued to fall in love with the beautiful boy, and they made plans for a life together.
When Mr. Kessler had to sell the ranch due to a cancer diagnosis, Mickey promised Jackie he'd take care of him. Unfortunately, when the new owner took over, he fired the two of them because the other hands, who were trying to gain favor with the new owner, told him they were gay.
Mickey felt like a failure for not being able to keep the two of them in a job, so he decided he'd go elsewhere in search of a situation for the two of them. He set up Jackie in a little studio apartment in town where he could at least attend community college while working part-time at a café in Louisville owned by a woman Mr. Kessler knew as a friend. Mickey had vouched for Jackie with Miss Ginny at the café, and she'd hired the younger guy on Mickey’s word.
Mickey promised to find a place for them near a college or university so Jackie could pursue his degree, then with a passionate kiss, Mickey went off to follow a lead Mr. Kessler had given him…a lead that would take him to Katydid Farm. He truly believed he'd found the sticking kind of love with Jackie, but not too long into his employment at Katydid, Mickey learned his boyfriend didn't seem to have faith in him, having moved on without a word.
It was Mickey's first experience with romantic heartbreak, and it hurt like hell, nearly as bad as it had hurt when he ran away from home after his mother decided to sell him to the first man who came along with the cash she needed. That hurt would follow him around for the rest of his life, he was certain.
As he slowly walked down the stairs to speak with Katie and Josh, Mickey felt his stomach tie itself in knots. Admitting his stupidity with regard to Henry Sachs and the unsolicited kiss wasn't anything he wanted to do, but he owed it to them, to be honest. They trusted him and took him into their home, after all.
He was surprised to see Tim sitting at the table with Ryan, who hopped up when he saw Mickey enter the kitchen. He bent down and hugged the boy, happy to see him. "How ya doin', dude?"
Ryan grinned at him. "We had a family meetin' last night so we’re here for negatoons," the boy explained.
Mickey looked at Tim, seeing a sweet smile on his handsome face before he looked at Ryan. "It’s negotiations, little man. Will you run down to the barn to get your dad and Uncle Josh, please." The boy nodded and took off like a shot, causing Tim, Aunt Katie, and Mickey to laugh at his quick escape.
"Can we help with dinner?" Tim asked Aunt Katie as they heard the back, screen door slam.
"Sure, boys, though I'm not sure what I'm makin' yet. I'm doin' up this bacon right now, but…just set the table and get drinks for all of us to start. Mickey, why didn't you talk to me, son? We could have worked all this out with Hank and Patsy before it ever got this far," she chastised without turning around from her post over a huge iron skillet with sizzling, heavenly scented pig inside.
"Aunt Katie!" Tim hissed because she’d obviously given up the goods on the discussion she and Tim had before Mickey came down.
He felt he’d already fucked up enough people at the farm, so he decided to intercede before Tim and Aunt Katie had a falling out. "It's okay, Tim, really.” He then turned to the hostess at the Katydid, feeling his cheeks heat as his face flushed.
He felt so damn embarrassed at his behavior, but it was too late to do anything other than apologize for the tough spot he’d put her and Josh in. “I'm really sorry, ma'am. I know how bad I messed up, and I respect you too much to tell ya there was an excuse for my behavior cause there ain't one. I'm prepared to pack my sh…stuff to leave so I don't cause a problem between y'all and Mr. and Mrs. Sachs. I hate I've dis
appointed ya," Mickey stated as he hung his head, ashamed of his behavior for the first time in his life, he suspected.
He felt a slap to the back of his head and he looked up to see the beautiful, auburn-haired woman looking at him with an arched eyebrow. "You stop that right now, Michael. From what I hear tell, you weren't the first boy to kiss Henry Sachs. Hank and Patsy are gonna have to wrap their minds and hearts around the fact their son might like handsome men instead of beautiful women. It certainly isn't the worst thing to happen in a life. At least they have a son who’s still alive. I hope Hank Sachs comes at me about this business because I'll remind him of the hell Josh and I've lived after we lost our Shane," she stated staunchly.
He turned to see Tim give him a happy smile and a wink. "See?" Tim mouthed to him as Katie returned to her place at the stove. Mickey could only grin in return because he'd never had people include him in a family as the Simmons' had done. For the first time in his life, he could be happy about being part of a great family.
When the back door opened, Matt, Ryan, and Josh came inside, all three laughing. "Woman, we're hungry. The boy wants pancakes," Josh announced as he tossed his cap onto the bench by the back door.
Katie turned around and smiled. "Which boy?"
All of the men at the table laughed, putting Mickey at ease. "Well, Ryan and Matt wanted ‘em…" Josh started.
Ryan quickly walked over to Katie and took her hand. "No, Grampa, you said she'd make us pancakes if I made a sad face," the boy stated, causing all of them to cackle.
Katie turned to the table where the men were sitting and laughed again. "Okay, what kind? Do you want apples? Do you want canned peaches? Do you want bacon pancakes?" she asked.
Mickey felt awash with good feelings at the look of love on her face for the men at the table. In that moment, he knew Katie Simmons was the type of mother he'd have wanted if he'd had the choice. Unfortunately, the fates saw fit to give him Lola May Sumner Warren.
When Matt Collins stood behind him and placed his hands on Mickey's shoulders, he froze. The bull rider had quite a tight grip, and while Mickey could take care of himself in most instances, Matt Collins could likely kick his ass if he became so inclined. The man was really a beast, but when he looked at Tim, he seemed to melt, which actually gave Mickey a glimmer of hope he might have a heart inside his broad chest.
"Aunt Katie, he's the guest. It's up to him," Matt stated as he leaned forward and left a kiss on the top of Mickey's head, who looked at Tim to see he was smiling at the gesture. Mickey simply smiled in return.
"Miss Katie, it's whatever's the easiest," Mickey suggested, hoping to appease everyone at the table because no one wanted to piss her off.
"I want the ones with bacon if anybody cares," Ryan stated as he climbed into the chair in front of where Mickey stood, settling himself on a thick phone book. Mickey held the laugh because he knew the boy's height was a sticking point, or so Tim had told him. Looking at the bull rider, Mickey was pretty sure it wouldn't be an issue for long.
"Okay, any objections?" Katie asked. Nobody spoke, so she went about making them a breakfast for dinner. They had bacon pancakes with honey butter and hash brown cups with an over-easy egg cooked inside. They ate and laughed, which was something Mickey knew he didn't do enough. After the table was cleared and the dishes were in the fancy new dishwasher Matt and Tim had given her for Christmas, Katie took Ryan into the living room to play dominoes, stating it helped him with his math skills.
Matt, Tim, Josh, and Mickey sat at the table, and Mickey felt like he might be sick, suddenly fraught with the nerves he’d felt when he told Tim of his indiscretion. "So, you wanna take my best hand and give me Paulie shit-for-brains? He don't like horses, Timothy, and he’s a lazy SOB," Josh pointed out, cluing Mickey into the fact some groundwork had been laid without his knowledge.
Matt laughed, surprising Mickey. "Let's look at this as an opportunity to keep us both from bein' sued for a hostile work environment. Tim's about to smack Paulie in the head with a hammer because the kid believes he knows the business of ranchin’ better than Tim's computer. Paulie fucks around with the amounts of hay and grain we feed the cattle, which throws off Timmy's numbers, and I get to hear about it every damn night.
"We know Paulie's a young buck who thinks he knows everything, and he seems to believe takin' care of horses is beneath him. Hell, I think Danny likes dealin' with the horses more than Paulie, and Dan hates horses. Paulie is a good carpenter, though. Our barn’s been fixed up, but yours might need some work, not that I’m criticizin’, Josh. At the end of the day, I need a hand on the place who gives a shit about those horses besides me, Tim, and Ryan. Mickey's ideal for the job and I believe after Hank cools off a little bit, we can figure out a better situation all around," Matt explained.
Josh looked at Mickey and grinned, nudging his knee for a minute. "Well, if he's gonna be takin' care of prime stock, he oughta get a raise over the other hands who won't do it. We don't talk about wages here at Katydid, and I'm sure Mickey wouldn't open his mouth to the other boys about what ya pay him, but if he's not gonna live here anymore, he's gonna need to live somewhere."
"Uncle Josh, why wouldn't he live here?" Tim jumped in with a worried look on his face.
Josh crossed his arms over his chest and wore a cocky grin. "Well, Hank comes to the house for coffee every mornin' before we start the day so we can figure out who’s gonna do what. If Mickey's here and there's hard feelin's? I think it could get ugly." As Mickey was about to protest and promise to get out of the house before Hank showed up in the morning, he felt a heel grind into the top of his boot. He turned to look at Josh, who had a serious look on his face along with a cocked eyebrow.
Tim looked at Matt and leaned forward, covering his mouth as he whispered into the bull rider's ear. "Uh huh." "I guess." "You sure?" "Never thought of that." "Gotcha."
Matt then turned to look at Mickey and smiled. "The basement's done, so you can live downstairs until we finish remodeling that little barn to make it into a small bunkhouse. After that's done, you can move out there and be the resident babysitter for any other hands who need a place to live. For now, you live in the basement as part of your wages, and since you'll be our horse hand, we've agreed to pay you…" he stated as he pulled out a pen and grabbed a napkin, scribbling a number before he folded it and handed it to Mickey.
He opened it, and his eyes nearly dropped out of his head. It was more than he needed, for sure. "Before you get all starry-eyed about it, this comes with some strings. You agree to babysit Ryan a coupla nights a month so Timmy and I can go out for dates, and you do your share of chores around the house. You cook?"
Mickey laughed. "Actually, I can. I used to cook for my….well, I learned and Miss Katie's been helpin' me learn more things. She says I make a pretty good steak, and my chili's not bad, either. I can cook other stuff, too, so it's not a problem. As for Ryan, just call me the Manny," he teased which brought a huge laugh from Tim. It definitely broke the tension around the kitchen table.
Matt held up his hand and leaned forward. "One more thing, Mick. No one-night stands. We have an almost eight-year-old boy, and it's been difficult enough for him with two dads. You paradin' guys in and outta the house? That's not somethin' I'm gonna tolerate. Find somewhere else to fu…entertain," Matt stated.
Mickey knew there was no wiggle room, though it didn't matter because he hadn't had sex in quite a while. Based on the people he'd met in town at the diner, Southern States, and the cowboy bar, Pete's Place, there wasn't anyone who would remotely fill the bill, so it became a non-issue in his mind.
"I'd never do it, Matt. I wouldn't ever disrespect your home that way, and besides, the only two people I'd ever consider spendin' time with are taken," he confessed with a grin, hoping they heard the sincerity in his voice because he meant it with all his heart.
Josh laughed a little. "Now that we've ironed it out, let's talk about my finder's fee."
The four men laughed, and Tim w
ent upstairs with Mickey to help him pack up his stuff to make the move. Once they were in Tim's old room, he turned to Mickey and smiled with understanding at Mickey’s hesitation to pack up his things for the move. "Hard to leave, isn't it?"
Mickey was standing, frozen in front of the closet as he looked around the room, seeing the first home he'd really ever had, and wishing he didn't have to move. Josh and Katie weren't his parents, but they were people of value. His own family…not so much.
"This is the first real home I ever had, ya know? I mean, I lived at the Bar K in the bunkhouse, and Mr. and Mrs. Kessler were real nice to us hands, but Josh and Katie made me feel like family," he confessed to Tim as he felt his eyes prickle a little before he turned his head to hide the tears he was sure he was going to shed.
Tim chuckled as he pulled Mickey into his arms. "I know the feeling, my friend, but it's time to move on to bigger and better pastures. Besides, I could use somebody to play World of Warcraft with me. Matt hates video games."
Mickey nodded, having blinked back the tears. "I don't know what that is, Tim, but I'll learn."
"Yes, my friend, you will. Your life is going to grow in ways you never imagined." Tim pulled away, and they both smiled. It was a new day for Michael Warren, and he welcomed it with open arms.
Chapter Four
"Ms. Turnberry's office," Jon heard when the phone was answered. He'd gone through the damn switchboard because he'd inadvertently spilled coffee on the message with the woman’s private number, smearing the digits when he tried to dry it. Instead of admitting to Karen he'd done such a stupid thing, he looked up the firm on the internet. Unfortunately, direct lines weren't listed so he had to go through the switchboard, having to endure the five minutes it took for the receptionist to track down Turnberry’s assistant from whatever third-world country where she seemed to have disappeared.
"This is Jonathan Wells returning," he explained as he, once again, reviewed the paperwork for what he hoped would be Matt Collins' new domestic partnership agreement.
Loving the Lawyer (The Cowboys of Katydid Farm Book 2) Page 4
