A Shepherd Afield Pt. 05

"She was very happy," Hector replied with a smile.

"Good, good!" Ben said looking around. There was still a little trim work and painting left to do. "Is Dominic working on his own place?" he asked.

"Yeah, the boss-man and his lady are over there now with two of the crew working on the kitchen." Jayden answered.

"Well I just wanted to see how it was going. Excellent work, guys!" Ben exclaimed. They nodded happily.

Ben turned to Hector after he slipped his boots on. "Listen, we're going to Golden Sun for dinner before we go to the club. You and your significant other are welcome to join us."

"Thanks but Mariana is making my favorite dinner tonight. We'll definitely meet you at the club though!"

"Great! See you tonight!" Ben said stepping outside. He walked over to Dominic's place and rang the bell. A woman answered and smiled widely at Ben.

"You must be Ben Shepherd! I'm Sophia."

Dominic's wife was lovely. Dark brown hair falling to her shoulders in waves, she was maybe 5' 6" with nicely padded curves. Hazel eyes and a naturally smiling mouth were currently expressing how happy she was in her new home.

Ben smiled at the woman and followed her into the foyer when she invited him in. She gave him a warm hug.

"I want to thank you so much for helping my Dominic buy this home! I understand you were in the process of buying it yourself," she said. Her voice echoed a little in the empty house. Ben guessed they were waiting until the renovations were done before they'd move in.

"Yeah but I was far happier with Dominic getting it. More good neighbors!" Ben said earning him another hug.

"Come this way. Dominic is working on the kitchen with his team," she said leading the way.

Ben found the man in question with three of his team installing the new kitchen island. Ben noticed the backsplash was another custom design, this one using glass tile inlays. The glass tiles were also used as a border detail on the ceramic floor tiles. Ben thought the floors looked great as well.

"Hey there!" Dominic boomed happily and came over to shake Ben's hand after he helped get the new stone countertop in place. He caught the direction of Ben's gaze and grinned. "Yeah, Jayden's work! His designs are going to help us expand into the customizing market."

"That's great!"

"How did he get started with this?" Ben asked.

"He was looking at the new slate floor tiles on 11 Ashburn and out of the blue he just suggested adding slate accents in the backsplash. I had him mock it up and it looked amazing so I made him do all the custom cutting." He chuckled recalling how tired Jayden had been. "He didn't like that part so much but the results speak for themselves. For my place he suggested we use the glass backsplash tiles as a border on the floor and damn if it doesn't make the room look like a million dollars!"

"I love it!" Sophia gushed.

"Well, I just dropped by to say hello and see how the renovations were coming along," Ben said.

"Did your doctor say it was ok to be poking around home renovations?" Dominic teased.

Ben held up his hand to show he was no longer wearing the brace. "All better!" he said with a grin. "I'll let you get back to it!"

Ben made his way back to his house and found a large number of boxes piled by his garage door. He checked the labels and realized these were the pieces for the new panic room door. They'd finally arrived. He opened the garage door and began moving the boxes inside.

Tina opened the inside door and looked out. "I thought I heard the garage door open. The delivery man did not want to carry the boxes up to the front door so I told him to leave them by the garage door. I was sure you would be back quickly. Was that alright?"

"Yes, that's great. I'll take the boxes downstairs after I disassemble the old door and take it out. I have to give the milling shop a call to see if the new door is ready."

"Are you going to visit them?" Tina asked with a grin.

He knew she enjoyed the visits there as they made a fuss over her. "Sorry, not this time. They're going to have to deliver the new door in their truck."

Tina pouted and Ben grinned at her. She went back inside after giving him a quick smile.

Once all the parts were stacked neatly against the back wall of the garage Ben closed the garage door and went inside. He called and discovered his new panic room door was scheduled to be milled next week so he still had time.

Ben walked into the living room and saw Gretchen and Tina using their tablets. Tina was helping the Internet novice find her way around. He walked over and gave them both a kiss which earned him some happy smiles.

Settling in his chair in the living room he opened his laptop and went back to designing the extension for the house.

"What are you working on now Ben?" Tina asked.

He smiled and carried his laptop over to them. Gretchen moved over so he could sit between them. He showed them the new floorplan and their eyes opened wide in appreciation.

"The new master bedroom will be beautiful! I love the French doors leading out to the deck!" Gretchen sighed.

"I think you will need a larger bed Ben." Tina said with a grin.

He looked over at her questioningly.

"Your current one only holds three people. There are four of us now," she explained.

"Oh! I thought Gretchen would prefer her own bedroom!" he exclaimed and turned to look at the woman.

She was looking back at him with a hopeful look in her eye. "You don't want a room of your own?" he asked. She shook her head. "Oh! Well... I'd- I'd better take another look at my floor plan then."

He stood up and went back to his chair.

Gretchen moved back beside Tina and quietly thanked her. Tina just smiled and nodded.

"Ben? Are you going to be home for dinner tonight?" Tina asked.

"Hmm? Oh, no sorry. I'm going out with the twins, Karen, Penny, Jayden, and Frank. I finally get to meet my doppelganger," he replied.

Tina grinned. "An overnight date?" she asked.

Ben paused. "I- I'm not sure."

Tina looked to her tablet and sent a quick text to the twins. "Yes, you should bring your overnight bag."

Ben snorted and shook his head at Tina's smile. "Once you've had our baby I'm taking you out dancing!"

Tina's smile flashed brilliantly across the room. He looked to Gretchen. "I'll take you out once your arm heals." She gave him a happy smile too.

Ben turned back to his laptop. He had designing to do. He was going to need one hell of a large walk-in closet!

As Ben parked his truck in the lot across the street from Asylum he sighed with contentment. His stomach was pleasantly full from a good meal, he'd enjoyed his dinner with his daughters and their dates (Frank did remind him of a younger version of himself), and the twins looked breathtakingly beautiful tonight. Under their coats Lisa and Lori were wearing body hugging dresses of red and black but Lisa's dress was red with black accents and Lori's was black with red accents. To finish the look, they each had one red and one black four-inch heeled pump. Their manes of red hair were teased up and Ben wanted to nibble his lips down the sides of those long smooth necks. Their eyes twinkled with joy at the hungry looks he was sending their way.

Karen and Penny had their party dresses on making Jayden and Frank grin widely. Reminded of their state at the end of their previous outing the girls were behaving tonight and had only one drink with dinner. Jayden and Frank stuck with a single beer each.

They left Ben's truck and began walking towards the club. As Ben and the twins had... plans for after the club the others would be taking a cab home.

Ben looked up at the windows of the factory conversion. Like the last time they were here the lightshow even from outside was dazzling.

Everyone met in front of the club and they heard someone calling out Ben's name. They turned and spotted Hector and a petite woman with a very large head of hair approaching.

"Hey Hector- Oh. My. God!" Ben paused with a wide grin as he took in the man's freshly shaven upper lip. He looked so different. Better! Younger yet more mature at the same time.

"Yeah yeah, don't rub it in!" Hector said with a smirk.

"No, it looks really good!" Ben grinned then turned to the woman who was staring up at him in awe. "You must be the reason for Hector's sudden appreciation of class and style."

The woman seemed at a loss for what to say so Hector stepped in. "This is the love of my life, Mariana Torres."

Ben took the woman's tiny hand in his gently and shook it. "Delightful to meet you, Mariana!"

"Th-thank you!" she stuttered.

Ben made the introductions and her eyes were wide by the end when she saw Ben was dating twins.

"It's cold out here. Let's-"

"Mr. Shepherd!"

Ben turned to see a man with an earpiece hustling over to their group. He struggled to recall the man's name. Ah! "Damien! How are you! And please call me Ben."

The man's face lit up with a thousand watt smile when he saw Ben remembered him. "I'm doing very well! You've come to grace our club once more?"

"Indeed I have and I've brought along my friends," Ben said with a nod towards Hector and Mariana who looked star struck at Ben's treatment.

"Right this way then!" Damien smiled and led them back to the front doors. The two men guarding the door nodded to Damien and held the doors open for the group.

They made a quick stop at the coat check then Damien handed them off to their personal server, Mandy, who brought the group to their table in the reserved section. Hector and Mariana were delighted and took seats smiling at Ben as the others took theirs. The server handed Ben the menu for the bottle service options. Ben recalled the package they purchased last time and asked the others if that would be satisfactory tonight. They nodded happily. He gestured for Hector to put his wallet away and the man grinned at him.

Ben was once more fascinated by how they engineered the sound baffling system to allow the music to be so strong on the dancefloor but muted sufficiently in the seating area for conversation. He could still hear the music but it wasn't overpowering here.

The server left to get their initial drinks as a tall slim man approached the table.

Ben smiled and stood to shake the man's hand. "Stephane! I said I'd come back!"

"Ben! So delighted you did! I hear you just returned from rescuing young women in Australia!" the man said with a delighted grin.

Ben glanced to the others at his table and saw they were all looking at him in surprise. He sighed. "Uh yeah, I did find one who needed a little help."

"It's wonderful that you are keeping chivalry alive!" Stephane gushed.

"Please, I'm just doing what needs to be done because I can," Ben said humbly.

The man's smile couldn't get any wider. "Well I hope you have a wonderful time tonight at our club! Will you be visiting the Steam Room?"

Ben caught the excited looks on Karen's and Penny's faces and grinned at them. "Yes, some of my group didn't get a chance to enjoy the experience last time so I believe we will. My treat." The girls squealed with joy and the twins looked at Ben with heat in their eyes. He suddenly recalled their activities on their previous visit and his face flushed.

"Excellent! I'll let them know. Have a wonderful time and welcome back to the Asylum!" Stephane said as he moved away. Ben gave him a nod and smile.

"What's this about rescuing a woman in Australia?" Hector asked as his lady stared at Ben excitedly.

Ben just shrugged dismissively. "I just met a young woman who I discovered later had run away from home and had been pressed into working at a strip club. All I did was bring her with me to Sydney to get her home."

"You met her in a strip club?" Hector's eyebrows went up as he couldn't see Ben going to one.

"Yeah, the engineering team I'd gone to Melbourne to work with wanted to celebrate and took me out to dinner. Unfortunately the place turned out to be a seedy strip club. The guy running it was a real sleazebag. The food was good but the place itself was horrible. A number of the women had been forced into the business apparently," Ben grumbled.

"And this sleazebag just let you take this young woman with you?" Hector asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Well... I can be very convincing when I need to be," Ben said with a small smile and a raised eyebrow as he squeezed his right fist with his left.

"Yeah baby! That's what I'm talkin' about!" Hector hooted as he high fived Jayden who was grinning widely as well. Ben just shook his head with a smile.

Mandy returned with the drinks and Ben's spring water was there too. A cheer went up when they saw the shots. Everyone raised a toast and slammed back their drinks. Ben smiled and shook his head as Karen and Penny gasped at the burning sensation. Frank and Jayden were trying to look cool but their eyes were watering a little too.

"Shall we dance?" Ben asked and got cheers again.

They made their way out onto the dancefloor and let the beat inside to move their bodies. Frank moved a little awkwardly at first but soon loosened up.

The music was so good they stayed on the dancefloor for almost an hour before they went back to the table for their second round of shots.

"Ben, would it be ok for us to throw a Halloween party at our place?" Penny asked hopefully.

"A costume party!" Karen added excitedly.

The twins picked up that excitement and begged Ben to say yes. He smiled at them then looked back at Penny. "Who's invited to the party?"

"Everyone!" Karen cheered.

Jayden took Karen's hand in his. "Maybe we should limit the first party to a manageable number to keep the expense down and make the clean-up reasonable."

Ben was pleased to hear Jayden's level headedness balancing out Karen's enthusiasm. They were a good match. Karen pouted but Jayden just kissed her and she smiled at him.

"I'm fine if you want to invite the neighbors and Dominic's crew and a few friends from school. We'll have to get decorations, food, and drinks for everyone. Determine how many people are going to be there and we'll order accordingly. Are you planning party games and dancing?"

"Party games?" Jayden snorted.

Ben looked at the twins who were smiling back at him. "Fine! I don't throw many parties! I'll leave the entertainment up to you youngsters!"

"Mr. Shepherd-" Frank began.

"Frank! Please, call me Ben! I feel old enough as it is!" he reminded him once more.

The young man ducked his head and gave him a guilty smile for forgetting once more. "Sorry... Ben. What's so special about this Steam Room?"

"Oh! That's just something you'll have to discover for yourself," Ben said shaking his head with a smile.

"Can we go now?" Karen asked with wide eyes.

Ben looked at the others and saw everyone was pretty excited about going. "Let's do it!" Karen and Penny rushed off with Jayden and Frank in hot pursuit. Hector and Mariana rushed after them. Ben grinned and stood to follow with the twins at his sides. They stopped a moment to let Mandy know they'd be back.

The girls and their dates made their way around the dance floor towards the specialty room and passed another section of tables. They saw four men sitting at one watching them approach. They'd obviously had a few drinks.

"Would you look at the fuckin' tits on those bitches!" one brayed to his buddies who were leering at Karen and Penny. A fourth man on the far side of the table was silent. He was much larger than his friends and watched the ladies with cold, hungry eyes. He slammed his drink back and licked his lips as they passed.

The girls instinctively reacted to the threat and reached for each other's hands. Jayden bristled and Frank watched the men with a scowl. Hector caught up with his friends and kept the group moving.

After they passed the big man stood and began to prowl after them. His companions grinned as they fell in behind him.

Ben and the twins were bringing up the rear and missed the interchange as he and the twins were watching the lightshow on the dance floor. When they reached the entrance for the Steam Room the others were already inside. Ben paid for the group and waved to the twins as he carried his little bag containing his white swimsuit and wrist band. He found a locker inside and quickly changed into the skimpy swimsuit. Sighing, he stuffed his clothes into the locker, locked it, and put the wrist band on. He pushed the door to step out into the dark and steamy atmosphere of the next room. His band vibrated and as he did last time he looked down at it.

This motion saved him from the full impact of the punch thrown at his face. The fist struck his forehead and he slammed back against the wall.

He looked up in time to see his assailant throw a punch with his left fist. Ben took the hit on his arm then grabbed the wrist and yanked him forward to drive his knee into the punk's chest with a deep thump. The man crumpled as the shock knocked the wind from his lungs. Ben stomped on his ankle to keep him down and heard the sharp snap of bones breaking. His assailant tried to scream but had no breath. In his street clothes he was very difficult to see in the dim room.

Ben looked around and spotted someone lying on his back on the floor. He rushed over and knelt down and saw it was Jayden. He was breathing but he was out cold. He'd probably been taken out by the man Ben put down. It was too dark to see any injuries.

Ben stood to move forward and dimly saw Frank holding his own against another man in the distance. They were in a grapple but Frank managed to land a few heavy punches to the man's torso. Frank looked like he had things in hand until a large man lunged in from the shadows to hammer his jaw. Frank went down hard but the big man just turned and slipped back into the shadows. The man who Frank had almost taken out kicked weakly at Frank until Ben grabbed his hair, yanked him backwards and slammed his head against the floor. He went still. Frank was moaning so he was coming around. Ben moved forward to follow the big man.

In the dim blue lighting Ben saw Hector trading blows with a third man. Ben knew the large one was just waiting for an opportunity to strike.

Then he heard Lisa scream.

It wasn't fear. It was rage!

Ben rushed towards the sound and saw Lisa and Lori standing between the big thug and his daughters who were huddled together against the wall trying to cover their exposed breasts with their arms. Lisa's lip was split and none of the women were wearing their bikini tops. Several ripped pieces of white fabric were scattered on the floor at their feet. The man was touching his cheek and Ben saw something dark on his fingers when he pulled them away. Roaring in anger the man lunged forward and backhanded Lisa, knocking her down. Lori was immediately on him, clawing at his face. Ben was almost on them when Lori came sailing through the air at him. She slammed into his chest and he carried her down onto the floor protecting her with his body. She was dazed but looked ok.

Agony stabbed through Ben's side as he was kicked in the ribs. He rolled as best he could and scrambled to his feet, blocking another kick with his forearm, catching a punch with his shoulder and taking a glancing blow off his temple. The man was incredibly strong and his fists felt like hammers. The last blow dazed him and he lunged forward to grapple with his attacker.

Crooked white teeth gleamed in the dark as the man stared him in the eye, grinning with a mad hatred. He spat in Ben's face and delivered a heavy blow to Ben's ribs causing him to suck in his breath.

The stench of whisky poured over Ben.

Two more punches landed as Ben struggled to clear his head.