TLR Chapter 75

Griff had settled down in Mutt and Jeff's bungalow more easily than he'd expected.  It had only been a week but it was nice to have company.  Jeff was much like Chad in many ways, always concerned that he slept and ate enough.  Mutt was like a brother to him, joking with him and inviting him to play video games or watch movies when he came home from work. They'd even gone to the shed and worked on a project that Mutt was in the middle of.

Mutt had been impressed by Griff's skill. The man worked with such deft hands and confidence that the project was finished in no time. Mutt smiled admiringly.  "You should do this for a living."

"I'm a construction worker by trade. I'm... I was... Chad's foreman," Griff said quietly.  "He was going to make me part owner of his construction company. I nearly had all the money saved to buy into the business when... when..."

An odd look crossed Mutt's face which Griff had no trouble interpreting.  "No, he didn't want the money. I insisted. I just felt it was the right thing to do.  Just before I was about to make my payment he... he..."

"It's alright," Mutt said gently.  "I understand. I had a boyfriend in high school. He died in a freak accident during a baseball game. It took a long time for me to get over him.  I still remember him with fondness every now and again.  No matter what else happens, always remember Chad, and that he loved you.  He would want you to go on, enjoy life, live."

"I... I know," Griff said quietly.

"I have an idea," Mutt said suddenly. "You need to have things to do. You can't spend all your time with nothing but your thoughts. It's not good for you, mentally or physically.  How about if you go to the stables and join in the trail ride.  Look around, see the life that's growing around you, feel the strength of the horse, smell the fresh air, feel the sunshine on your face, listen to the birds singing, and know that Chad is watching over you, happy that you're doing something for yourself."

Griff's face showed doubt but he nodded reluctantly.  "Maybe."

"No maybes about it," Mutt said, clapping Griff on the shoulder.  "I'll bring you to the stables and we'll get you set up."

"That's ok. I remember the way." Griff assured the other man.  

"So you'll go?" Mutt inquired.

"I'll go."

"Promise."

Griff managed a smile and gave his promise.

"Alright then. I'll see you later. Have fun," he stressed.

Griff nodded and turned to leave.  "Thank you, Mutt," he said in an almost inaudible voice.

"You're welcome," Mutt replied just as quietly, not even sure that Griff had heard him but happy that the man had decided to do something other than sit and think of Chad.

Along the way, Griff ran into Jeff who was running an errand.  The older man smiled and hugged Griff without a second thought.  "How are you today, Griff? You were still asleep when I got up this morning.  Did you eat?" he asked, looking into Griff's eyes.

Griffin blushed but nodded.  "I had some oatmeal, and coffee."

"We'll have to get some more calories into you, hon. I know you don’t feel like eating but it’s important that you keep your energy level up.  Promise me that you'll eat a little more for lunch. Go to the lodge and order anything you want, and make sure you eat it."

"Yes, sir."

"Call me Jeff, hon.  We're not too formal here.  There are a couple of people who are a little stuffy about how they're addressed, but I don't think you'll be running into them any time soon," he smiled.  "Now promise me you'll eat."

Griff gave a short laugh and once again gave his promise, thinking that if he ate as much as Mutt and Jeff wanted him to he'd be rolling along like a beach ball soon.

"Jeff, can I ask you a question?" Griff asked to change the subject.

Jeff arched an eyebrow at the young man but nodded.  He was well aware of what Griff was doing.

"Is there anything I can do while I'm here?  I mean, work wise.  I'm living with you and Mutt, I'm watching TV and playing games and... well... I feel like I should be doing more. I don't feel like I'm pulling my weight. I want to repay you all for all of your kindness."

"This is a place to relax and have fun, Griff," Jeff said. "It's a vacation for you, so there's no need to do anything except that.  You're a guest and a friend here, and none of us expect you to work, understand?"

"Yes sir. I mean, Jeff," Griff replied, a little downcast.

Jeff drew Griffin into another hug until the young man relaxed a little and returned it.  "Have fun, Griff.  Swim, go for a canoe ride, take advantage of the stables.  There are a lot of things you can do here to pass the time, so go and enjoy yourself."

"Alright, Jeff.  I was headed to the stables when I ran into you."

Jeff looked at his watch and frowned. "If you hurry you can catch the first ride of the day, but you'll have to get a move on."

"Yes, sir... I mean, Jeff," Griffin said a little nervously.

Jeff realized that he might have been a little too overbearing and mentally head slapped himself.  Giving Griff a sheepish grin he said, "Go on, Griff. Have a little fun.  I'll see you tonight for dinner, alright?"

Griff visibly relaxed and smiled back.  "Yes, Jeff," he said as he waved goodbye.

Jeff waved back and continued on his errand.

Griff arrived at the stables and looked around.  He didn't see any riders queuing up, or horses being saddled and realized that he'd missed the first ride after all.  The other horses were out in the corral and there was no sign of Shorty or the twins.  He was about to turn and go back to the bungalow when he almost literally ran into Shorty who was carrying a load of lumber. The older man nearly dropped the armload he was carrying, apologizing profusely to Griff who looked as though he were in shock.

"No, sir. I'm sorry. I wasn't watching where I was going," Griff managed at last, helping Shorty to rearrange the slabs of wood into a more manageable pile in his arms.

"We'll call it a draw then, shall we?" Shorty joked as some of the boards shifted and nearly fell again.

Without thinking, Griffin took half the load off of Shorty's arms.  Shorty sighed at the relief from the heavy weight and thanked the young man.

"Where do these go?" Griff asked, "I'll help you carry them."

"Inside the stables. I have a lot of work I have to get done in there… danged place is practically falling apart and Bo asked if I'd get a start on it for him. Mutt is supposed to come later in the day and help but there are some things I don't want to put off any longer."

"Falling apart?" Griff asked, shocked.  Everything looked so clean and well-kept he was surprised that anything on the resort could be in that bad of a condition.

"Well," Shorty drawled in a good imitation of John Wayne, "maybe I'm exaggerating just a bit," he laughed.  "But the stables do need repairs, and I need to finish them up before I can put the horses back in, which means I have to get a move on," he said, placing his load of lumber at the base of the loft stairs.

Griff looked around. It was obvious that the men had been busy that morning even before the ride. The bales of hay and the bags of feed that were usually stored in the loft had been brought down and stacked in every available corner of the stables. He added his load of lumber to Shorty's and looked around.  "What needs to be fixed?" he asked, looking around with a well trained eye.  

Shorty pointed out the most obvious places that needed repairs and then Griff pointed out a few more places that Shorty and Bo hadn't even seen.

Shorty frowned in concentration and nodded as Griff explained where the structure had become weakened due to weather and wear.

"I can get these fixed up for you, if you'll let me.  It's what I do for a living.  I'll need some more wood, saws, waterproofing... to be honest, Shorty, this is going to take more than a few hours to repair.  It could take several days or so. The new wood has to be treated or it'll get all weather and water worn like the old boards."

Shorty sighed. "That's what Mutt said too. Right now I was just hoping to patch things up until the big job had to be done. So all I need is to replace the old boards for now. When the big job comes due that's when I'll waterproof and stain the wood before cutting and placing it. Otherwise we'll be waiting days for it to dry properly."

"Well," Griffin said with a smile, "I missed the trail ride.  I have nothing else to do. Please!" he said earnestly, seeing a look of doubt crossing Shorty's features. "I know I can do it. Just give me a chance, please?"

"Oh, I'm sure you can do the job just fine, Griff," Shorty explained quickly. "It's just that you're a guest here. You're supposed to be relaxing and having fun, not working. I'm pretty sure that James and Jeff wouldn't be too crazy about me lettin' you..."

"Honestly, I'd have a lot more fun working on this project with you than taking a canoe out on the river. Please?" Griff asked again, looking hopeful and yet so lost at the same time that Shorty caved in.  

"Fine, but just for a little while, understood?  Me and Mutt can do the big job, all we need right now are the temporary patches done like I'd planned.  If I let you do anything more James'll have my head."

"Thank you, Shorty! You won't regret it!" Griffin beamed.  With that he rolled up his sleeves and began to climb the stairs to the loft to see what needed the most repairs.

"Wait a minute there, young man," Shorty said, going into a storage closet and taking out two pairs of knee pads. "I don't know about you but kneeling on hard wood gets a bit painful after a while.  Put a pair of these on. And no arguments," he grinned as he saw Griff open his mouth to insist he'd be fine.

Griff grinned sheepishly and took the offered items, as he watched Shorty put his on. 

Shorty looked at Griff until the young man put his own on.

"Now we're ready," Shorty announced with a grin. "Let's get up there and get started."

The two men climbed the stairs and Griff began a careful walk around. He could feel immediately that some of the floorboards were warped, the wood was a little soft in places. The railing cap and top rail were cracked, as were several of the balusters, which were also a little loose. He went back down the stairs and looked at the joists again. Reassured that they were stout and sound, he nodded in approval, grabbed a pry bar and a hammer, and went back up the stairs to begin pulling up the loose floorboards, grateful that either Shorty or one of the twins had swept the loft floor clean enough to eat off of.

With a grin, he began to work with Shorty beside him.

<<<<<<<>>>>>>>  

Jax had been pacing the floors of the main house that he shared with Heath and James.  Video games had become boring, as had the programs on television. At this time of day, they seemed to be mostly talk shows, which he detested.  Leaving a note for James and Heath on the refrigerator he went for a walk. He knew he couldn't go swimming or canoeing without one or both of them there, so he searched around for something else to do.

He'd been making the rounds of the resort when he heard hammering and followed the sound to the stables where he found Griff, shirtless and sweaty, prying up old boards and replacing them with new, freshly sanded ones.  His hair was sprinkled in sawdust and he had a smile on his face a mile wide.

Jax waited until Griff had finished hammering and called up to him.  "Good morning, Griff," he said with a smile, "how are you today?"

Griff looked up from what he was doing and glanced around curiously until he saw Jax through some missing floorboards and grinned.  "Hey you! Shorty just went in to make some iced tea. Why don't you go in and tell him you're here, I'm sure he's making enough for a small army.” 

Jax looked longingly at the piles of wood, remembering all the projects he'd helped his father with when they lived in California out at the ranger station.  "I'd rather help you, if that's alright?" he asked tentatively. "I used to help my dad with stuff like this. I could be useful."

Griff looked uncertain at first, but then realizing that Jax was probably as bored as he'd been he said, "Sure, I could use a hand. Can you bring me up another of the boards? Be careful when you come up though. Shorty and I are only about half way done. As you can see there are some boards still missing," he laughed.  "An extra hand would be welcome."

Jax tested a few of the boards for strength and nodded.  It was a good quality wood for temporary repairs. Choosing a board at random, he hauled it up to the loft.

"That one goes here," Griff said, pointing to a hole in the floor to his right.

Jax carefully placed the board, admiring the way it fit perfectly.  He picked up some nails and a hammer.

"Oh, hey, I'm not sure Shorty would be too happy if he saw you working with that," Griff said worriedly, "It took a little persuasion to even let me help."

"Many hands make light work," Jax quoted with a smile as he began to expertly pound in the first of the nails.

Griff smiled and turned once again to the board he'd been working on. Soon the two of them were hard at work.

Shorty had nearly finished making the iced tea when he heard the sounds of two hammers instead of the one. Thinking that Mutt had finally arrived he smiled and poured three glasses which he took into the stable. His jaw dropped when he saw that the second person was Jax.

His instinctive reaction was to yell at the boy to get down from there, but the boy looked so content, working side by side with Griff that he didn't have the heart.  'James and Jeff are going to kill me,' Shorty thought. But the two young men seemed happier than he'd ever seen them, and so he let the two continue.  He walked up the stairs, making sure his footsteps could be clearly heard over the din.

The two boys looked up, at first with smiles, and then a little apprehensively.  Griff glanced at Jax and then at Shorty, a plea in his eyes.

Shorty smiled and said, "Cool drinks all around.  Take a break guys, and drink slowly."

Jax and Griff gladly took the offered drinks and took sips, mindful of Shorty's watchful eyes. "Sit down," Shorty directed. "Take a load off."  He looked at the floor which was a little more than half done and nodded, “Good job guys. Couldn't have done better myself."

"There are still the rail and the loose balusters on either side of the opening," Griff reminded him.

"And like any good Boy Scout, I come prepared," came Mutt's cheerful voice from below, armed with a power screwdriver and boxes of 2" and 3” screws.

Shorty walked back down the stairs and offered Mutt one of the glasses of iced tea. 

"Thanks, Shorty, I could use that after the morning I've had," Mutt was still cheerful but it was obvious to the older man that he was tired.

"Are you up for this?" he asked, concerned.

"Some men work from sun to sun, but a maintenance worker's job is never done."

"I don't think that's the way it goes,” Griff said, frowning in concentration.

"Nope," Mutt grinned, "but it fits the bill for the time being." Turning his attention to Griff he asked, "As far as the balusters are concerned, I'll get to work on those right now.  You and Jax seem to have the floor boards in hand," he said as he clipped on his tool belt and attached the drill to a bungee cord in case he lost his grip on it.

"What am I, chopped liver?" Shorty asked with mock indignation.

"You are our faithful manservant," Mutt said loftily with a truly atrocious attempt at a British accent.  "More iced tea, Jeeves, pronto."

"Ohhhh, if you were one of mine..." Shorty growled, the smile in his eyes belying his words.

Mutt grinned before placing the extension ladder against to loft rim board then checked the loose balusters. "Yeah, some of these are cracking, we'll have to replace them. Shouldn't take long though with you helping, if you want to," he said to Shorty.

Shorty turned up his nose and replied, "I'm sorry, sir, I have been ordered to go and fetch more iced tea. I'm afraid I won't be able to help at the moment."

Everyone laughed and congratulated Shorty on his excellent British accent.

"Just kidding, Mutt. As soon as I get myself a glass I'll be right up there with you."

"Thanks Shorty," Mutt grinned as he turned toward the boards and began to take the old screws out.

"And Jax!" Shorty called before he left, "put on that pair of knee pads before you get started again."

"But..." Jax began.

"No buts. Your knee is still healing and those floorboards are hard. Put them on. Now. I'll get myself another pair when I come back in."  He waited until he saw Jax put the gear on and nodded approvingly. “I want you to stand and walk around every 20 minutes so your leg doesn't cramp up.  Mutt and Griff I’m counting on you two to help him remember to do it.”

“Yes, sir,” Griff said pulling out his cell phone to set the alarm to ring every 20 minutes.

Shorty watched the other men for a few minutes with a smile of affection as they began to work, tossing jokes and good natured challenges back and forth.

"I'll be back in no time," he promised as he turned and left the stables.

Shorty arrived back in the bunkhouse just in time to answer the phone.

"Shortelle here," he answered.

"Shorty," came Heath's worried voice, "have you seen Jax? I've been all over the resort looking for him. He said he was going for a walk but not where or when he'd be back.  Did he go on the trail ride this morning by any chance?"

"He didn't go out with the guys, no," Shorty said, trying to find a diplomatic way to address what was really going on.  Finally, he decided that the truth was the only way to go.  He told Heath where Jax was and what he was doing.

"BUT!" Shorty said, loudly enough to get through to Heath who had been sputtering and tripping over his own tongue as he expressed his dissatisfaction with that answer, "he's working with Griff..."

"Griff!" Heath yelled, preparing to begin another tirade.

"And Mutt, and I've never seen them as happy as I have today. So calm down.  I'm here. Mutt's here, and the job is getting done four times faster than it would have been if it were just me and Mutt.  And Jax is happy," he stressed.  "To be honest I've often felt that you were keeping him cooped up too much.  He's out there smiling and joking with the others, and he's doing a great job from what I could see.  Now, do you want to come out here and embarrass him and take him back home or do you want him to feel useful and happy?  Think on it.  Now, I have to go get some iced tea and don't take this the wrong way but I hope I don't see you. And don’t worry about lunch, I’ll feed the boys." He left Heath gaping like a fish out of water on the other end of the line and hung up, pouring and gulping down a glass of iced tea before heading back out to the stables.  He checked the horses in the corral, making sure their water was cool and fresh and that they had plenty of shade before going back inside and helping Mutt with the rail and balusters.

<<<<<<<>>>>>>>  

Heath didn't know whether to be angry or not.  Jax working with nails and a hammer ten feet off the ground wasn't his first choice of things for his brat to be doing, but it was like Shorty said, he could allow it, or he could go to the stables and embarrass Jax by insisting that he stop working and go home.  He frowned, looking at the phone, debating whether to call James or not.  Finally, he decided to do a little sleuthing.  He made his way to the stables and stood outside the doors where he wouldn't be seen, listening to the hammering and laughter. He drew back around the corner when he heard footsteps coming down the stairs and Shorty's voice complimenting Jax on the great job he was doing.  He could imagine the look of pleasure on his brat's face and couldn't bear to take that away from him. Finally, smiling, he slipped away as carefully as he'd come and went back to his office.

Shorty picked up some more wood for the new posts, keeping an eye on the younger men as he did so, and went back up the stairs to help Mutt take apart the railing now that the balusters had been removed.  It was turning out to be a bigger job than he'd originally expected. 'And these are just temporary repairs,' he thought to himself with a mental sigh.  He knew that Mutt was usually quite busy during the week and that the final repairs were going to be a lot for him to handle, even with his help, so he decided to call James about possibly hiring Duke’s brother, Dean to help with the final job.  The young man owned a small construction company.  He was a hands on owner as well and the extra hands would make the work that much easier.  Not only because Dean was experienced, but because he already knew about the resort, knew the people and was as much family as the other resort residents.

He only worried about the three-hour commute and made a mental note to ask James to provide Dean with accommodations while he did the work.  That was of course, if James approved the work order.

Jax and Griff both breathed a sigh of relief when the floorboards were finally in place.  They stood up a little stiffly, glad that Shorty had insisted that they wear the knee pads. Jax's leg felt a little wobbly after all that kneeling and he sat back down. Taking the twenty minute breaks and stretching his leg out like Shorty had insisted had helped but he hadn’t really relied on his knee for a very long time.   His whole body felt a little sore, but he smiled. It was a good kind of sore, and he looked forward to helping with further jobs on the resort. He finally felt he'd found his niche and he couldn't help the feeling of pride and accomplishment that ran through him.

They were all startled by the sound of Bo's voice, calling them all in for lunch.

"When did you get back?" Shorty asked, surprised.  "I didn't even hear you come in."

"We got back a good hour ago and with all that hammering and drilling it's no surprise that you didn't hear us," Bo laughed.  "We took care of the horses we used on the ride as well as the ones in the corral and went in to make lunch.  I waited for a break in the noise because I didn't want to scare any of you while power tools were in use."

"We really should finish the railing before we do anything else," said a very tired looking Mutt.

"Lunch. Rest. That's an order," Shorty said, giving Mutt a look.  "And you look exhausted. Bo and I can finish up the railing after the last ride of the day."

"I'm fine, really, Shorty," Mutt said.  "This is just all in a day's work for me. Now that we have the posts up, the rest of the railing shouldn't take that much longer, especially with Jax and Griff helping.  Honestly," he said in response to Shorty's look of disbelief, "I promise that I'll go home directly afterward and take a good long nap. Ok?"

Shorty stifled a yawn. He too had been up at the crack of dawn, as had Bo and the twins, moving the heavy bales and bags of feed to make room for the repairs.  He didn't feel it was right to tell Mutt to go home after lunch rather than complete the task at hand. And Mutt was right. With Griff and Jax helping, the railing and balusters would be completed before the last ride of the day was over and the horses had to be returned to their stalls.

"Help me put out some extra hay and grain for the horses and we'll head in for lunch. Sound good?" Shorty asked.

The other men were more than happy to help and they were all sitting down to their lunches only minutes later. Griff and Jax ate more than Shorty had ever seen before and smiled contentedly as he alternated between bites of his sandwich and spoons full of the soup that had been left over from the night before.  He insisted that they all take an hour to digest and relax before going back to work. The suggestion was greeted with a mixture of groans and agreement.

"If I sit for that long I'll never get back up," Mutt groused.

"I can send you home to sleep now if you're that tired," Shorty replied.

Mutt's expression changed immediately.  "No, Shorty, I'm fine, really. I'm just not used to relaxing much during the day."

"Alright then, we'll take a rest and continue afterward. Do you guys want to watch television for a while? Or a movie?  I'll make some popcorn."

All of the young men readily agreed to that plan and after the dishes were washed, they headed into the living room to flip through the channels until they found a Pinky and the Brain cartoon. They sat back and munched on the popcorn Shorty had made fresh on top of the stove.  The boys laughed and enjoyed just being together.

When the cartoon was over they cleaned up the small mess and went back out into the stables.  Bo and the twins readied the fresh horses for the last trail ride of the day while Mutt and the others went back to work. The four of them together measured, cut, and sanded the wood, replaced the railings and balusters and managed to sweep up the sawdust before Bo and the twins got back.  They helped curry the horses, polish the tack and herd the horses back into their stalls before parting ways with promises to see each other again soon.

Mutt, Griff and Jax headed toward Jax’s house to drop off the radiant looking young man before heading back to their bungalow where they showered, changed, and promptly fell asleep in the living room where Jeff found them. Heath had told him what had happened and frankly, he was happy for Griff and was determined to keep him busy for the rest of his stay.  He debated asking James to keep Griff on as part of the maintenance team but decided to think awhile more before taking such a big step.  There was always the chance that Griff wouldn't want to stay, so he decided to bide his time and watch.

<<<<>>>>  

Jaxon walked into the main house, excited and happy, his face, clothes and hair full of sawdust. Heath, who had let James in on the story when he'd arrived home, smiled in response. James, having mixed feelings about things, remained silent for the time being, listening to Jax babble on about how much fun he'd had working with the other men, working with his hands and feeling as though he'd made a difference for once since arriving at the resort. Seeing a concerned expression on Heath's face, Jax assured him that he had taken proper safety measures, including the knee pads and several breaks at Shorty's insistence.

As their evening meal progressed Jax became more and more quiet until Heath and James noticed that their boy was all but asleep at the table.  They roused him long enough for him to take a shower and then put him to bed where he fell fast asleep