To my betas, thanks, ladies, for the quick turnaround and always helpful suggestions. Any remaining booboos are mine alone.

Warning: There is no angst ahead! We're over that for awhile.
Nothing but a little PWP smarm here.

I'll Raise You Three
by Klair

Simon Banks walked down the main street of his town next to his good friends Jim Ellison and Patrick Choate. The latter only really becoming a 'good' friend recently after they found common ground raising a boy on their own. They'd just exited his favorite saloon after enjoying the round of beers each bought and the conversation centering on various experiences of raising a child alone. He suppressed a chuckle remembering young Choate's expression when he described how he taught Darryl to use the commode then the outhouse.

"Well, gentlemen, it's been a pleasurable afternoon. We probably should check on the boys.”

The two younger men nodded, both a bit anxious to find out what their boys had been doing to fill the time.

They walked another block, weaving their way around the afternoon shoppers and businessmen, when Ellison asked, "Patrick, Simon, how about we all have supper together tonight at the Palace?"

"Sounds good to me," Choate agreed while tipping his hat to a passing woman with packages held securely with one arm and pulling a young girl along in her wake.

"No," Simon said, grinning devilishly at the duel frowns on the younger men. "Miss Rhonda'd never forgive me if I didn't have you all over for supper. She doesn't get a chance to cook for guests very often."

Choate hedged, "Simon, I don't want to put you out. We—"

"She was talking about making chicken and dumplings," the sheriff said offhandedly as he stepped off the walk to cross the dusty street.

Jim stopped in his tracks, about a block from the Banks' home, the others halting with him.

Simon grinned wickedly. He almost had them. "Saw her put a pie on the sill to cool this morning."

Jim closed his eyes and smiled. "Apple," he said absently.

Choate looked at his friend, eyebrow raised in suspicion. "And how do you know?"

After a slight hesitation, the older rancher smiled. "It's her specialty." Jim slapped his young friend on the back and kept it there, pushing the younger man along. "We'd love to, Simon."

Reaching the Banks' home, Jim put a hand up to stop their progress. He listened for a moment then smiled, motioning the others to be quiet and follow him. As silently as possible they moved through the house and listened at the open kitchen window to the voices of their sons just outside.

~~~
"I see your two and raise you one," Justin said throwing two more toothpicks on to the heap building on the porch.

"Of course you see me, silly," Darryl said as he rolled his eyes. "I'm sitting right across from you."

"No," Justin said, fighting for patience. After all, Darryl was half >his age, a mere child. "It means I put two more chips in the pile." He looked to the sky in exasperation. "Sheesh."

"Oh. Well what does 'raise you one' mean?" the youngest boy asked, still thrilled to have the older boys include him in their game.

"It means I give you one chip," Justin said in a know-it-all manner as he handed young Darryl a toothpick. "I thought you knew how to play?"

Blair intervened for his younger friend. "We only heard them play through the door, Justin," he admitted, a slight blush rising to his cheeks. "We didn't see anything."

Though reluctant to admit to easedropping as well, Justin confessed, "Well, I saw a little through the bunkhouse window when Baba's new men were playing. Now we lay down our cards."

The boys stared at the cards they'd laid on the porch step.

After a long minute passed, Blair asked, "And now what?"

Justin shrugged. "The best bunch of cards wins."

Blair scanned the three separate card hands. "How do we tell?"

Darryl piped up brightly, "I heard Daddy say that Rafe's two pair beat his ace high."

Blair nodded and joined in with, "Yeah, and Papa said he had a full house and everyone groaned."

Justin frowned. "Oh. That must not be very good then."

Pointing to the cards, Darryl said, "There aren't any houses on these cards so maybe that doesn't matter in this game."

"That makes sense," Blair concurred and Justin nodded.

"What's going on here?" a high, indignant female voice said.

The boys looked up from their game to see Judge Pendergrast's wife looming over them. Even at only five feet tall, the rather severe, plump Mrs. Pendergrast was a force to be reckoned with. Everyone in town knew the Judge's wife. She was past president of the school board, secretary of Cascade's only church, chair of the lady's auxiliary and town busybody. She felt it her duty to make sure everyone else lived up to the highest social standards as best they could. They might be living on the frontier, but there was still a moral code of conduct to follow!

"We're just playing poker, Mrs. Pendergrast," Darryl said innocently before turning his attention to the kitchen window. He could have sworn he heard a groan come from there.

"Boys your age gambling?!" The three speechless children watched her face turn a furious red. She continued with cold outrage, "Why…Do your fathers know about this?"

"Maude," Jim said in a placating fashion as he came through the backdoor, Simon and Paddy just behind him, "it's all right. They weren't—"

"All right!" she exclaimed as her attention turned away from the boys to bear down on the long time friend of her husband. "Land sakes, next you'll be telling me you let these children drink the demon rum! James Ellison, I declare, sometimes you have the sense—"

"Maude, please," Jim said, putting his hands up in surrender. "It's not
what it looks like and you know me better than that. We'll handle it."

"Yes, I know you, James," she said, smoothing her dress to calm her nerves. In the process, she reminded herself that James had done a very charitable act by taking an orphan into his home, and adopting him no less! The Choate boy had recently done the same. Well, she didn't know the son very well, but the father had been a fine English gentleman. Hopefully the apple didn't fall far from the tree there. She glared at the three somewhat sheepish looking men with a reproachful eye. "See that you do. It is our duty to raise our children to be honorable, God-fearing, patriotic and well-mannered Christians."

"We are well aware of our responsibilities, Mrs. Pendergrast," Choate said a bit frostily. Before he could continue, Ellison poked him with an elbow, frowning with a slight shake of his head for emphasis. The younger man bit his tongue, for now.

"Good day, gentlemen," she said before strutting off.

The three men tipped their hats as she passed, no doubt to give her husband an earful.. Choate muttered so only his companions could hear him, "Who put the bee under her bonnet."

"It's a long story," Jim whispered back.

"I'm sorry, Daddy."

"We didn't mean any harm, Papa."

"We were just playing a game, Baba."

"Let's go inside, boys," Simon said, wearily. "We need to talk."

With great apprehension, the children did as they were told. When the boys were seated comfortably on the small sofa in the parlor area, Simon began to lecture. The other two men, through silent gestures and body language, had deferred to him.

"Boys, I know you meant no harm—"

"Are you going to arrest us, Sheriff?" Justin asked quietly.

"What? No. I'm trying to explain why you shouldn't gamble."

"You do, Daddy."

Simon was taken aback by his son's words. "That's different, son."

"Why?"

Simon looked to the other two men for help. Jim elbowed Paddy forward.

The young rancher shot the older man a look before he began to pace in front of the sofa, scratching the back of his head while he did so. "Well, boys…there are some things you can do now and some things you have to wait to do until you're older. Like gambling."

Justin tried to explain. "But we weren't using real money, Baba, just toothpicks."

"Yes, chiquito, but you were playing poker and that's a gambling game."

"But we weren't even playing for keeps, Uncle Paddy."

"I understand that, Blair, but. . .well, it's--" Paddy looked for help from his friends. With a sigh, Jim came forward.

The older rancher squatted down in front of the young trio.

"Blair, remember when I told you why you couldn't wipe your nose with your shirt sleeve?"

After a moment's thought, he replied, "Yes, Papa."

"Same reason applies here."

"Oh. I understand. We won't play poker anymore."

Blair turned to his perplexed companions and said, "Because they say so."

Understanding lit the other boys' faces and in unison they said, "Oohh."

At the stunned expressions Jim received from his companions, the rancher just shrugged. He turned back to the boys on the sofa.

"When you're old enough, and we'll let you know when that is, we'll teach you how to play proper. Until then, leave card playing to the adults. Deal?"

"Deal," came the reply from the three smiling little boys.

End