Live simply, love generously, care deeply and speak kindly.
Leave the rest to God.
Nudist Camp Vacation CHAPTER 33 Tim walked into Paul's room followed by Mike, Stevey and Andy, in that order. I asked Andy, "Can you stay for dinner?" Smiling, he said, "I think that can be arranged. Sure!" "Good. Let's all go down and play some videos `til supper's ready." While everyone made themselves comfortable in the game room, I slid into the kitchen and told Nell, "We'll be eight for supper. Andy's joining us, too." Nell smiled at me and said, "Good! I always like an even number at the table." With that settled, I went to join the guys in the game room. Seeing that Tim had reserved a seat for me next to him, I happily took it and held his hand. After Stevey beat Paul then Mike and Andy, Paul then had a rematch and beat Stevey then his brother. When Mike lost the second time, he stood and looked at me, pensively. When I smiled at him he ran to me and climbed into my lap, resting his head on my shoulder and peeking at Tim. Slowly, I rubbed his back and held him until he fell asleep. About an hour later Mike was still asleep in my arms even through the boys' hoots and hollers. Tim, Andy and I shared knowing smiles, watching little Mike snooze as he nuzzled my neck. I'd never known the feeling of a child sleeping in my arms. It was a wonderful experience! When the doorbell rang, Tim went to answer it. Our guests were early, but that was fine with all of us. Tim led Rita and Tom into the game room. Stevey abandoned the game when he jumped up to greet first his mom, then his dad, hugging and kissing them both. As I greeted them, Mike stirred then awoke with a scream, pushing himself away from me! I softly said, "Mike! It's okay! You're safe!" his eyes slowly focused on me. Rubbing his eyes and relaxing, he grabbed me around the neck and hugged me desperately, choking me. I squirmed into a position to free my throat, but he didn't let me go for quite a while. I made a mental note to call Susan's office the first thing Monday morning and set up appointments for both Mike and Paul. Tim quickly explained to his folks that Mike had been asleep and had probably had a bad dream. He reintroduced Andy and Paul to them, telling them that Andy would be joining us for supper. When they made themselves comfortable on the other couch, Tom seemed a little excited. "We've got some great news!" he said. "The place next to ours is for sale!" I tried to picture it, but couldn't. If we could move closer to them, that would solve a lot of issues. It would also make it easier for Stevey and Paul to see each other. "What's it like? How big is it?" I asked. "Well," he began, "from what I can remember about it the last time it was on the market, the place is a little bigger than ours. That would make it about two hundred acres. That's not too big, is it?" I chuckled. "Well, it depends. Are you sure you want this brood living next to you?" He shared a look with Rita. "Well, we hoped you'd consider it." I shared a look with Tim. He seemed to be sending me hopeful feelings. I turned to Tom and said, "Of course we'll consider it! Does it have a house?" "Well, it used to. It burned to the ground about a year ago. I understand the owners finally settled up with their insurance company, but they don't want to rebuild. It's still got a swimming pool, but it'll probably need cleaning up. The best thing is that it's got a big privacy fence around the living compound, and the rest of the place is cross fenced for pastures. There's even a section of the fence right next to us where you could put in a gate." He seemed very hopeful. "Hmm. We'll definitely need to take a look." I turned to the boys and said, "What do you think, guys? Would you like to live closer to Tim and Stevey's folks?" Stevey started whooping and Paul joined him. Mike was still silent and hadn't quite relaxed his hold on my neck. I whispered in his ear, "What do you think, Mike?" He pulled away from me just enough to look into my eyes and whispered, "Will you be there?" "You bet I'll be there!" "Will Tim be there?" "Yep! He'll be there, too!" "Then, it's okay. As long as we're all there together." Then he settled back onto my shoulder. I guess that's all he needed to say. I smiled as he seemed to melt back into my chest. "Tom, do you happen to have the phone number of the realtor?" Rita quickly pulled a scrap of paper from her purse. "Here you go," she said. Why was I not surprised? I chuckled. Reading my mind, Tim took the paper and dialed the number then handed me the phone. A pleasant male voice said, "Keller Real Estate. How may I help you?" "I'd like some information on a property you have listed." I described the location. "Yes! We just listed that property! It's distressed, but it's got a lot of potential. Is there anything specific you'd like to know?" "Yes, I'd like to know all of the specifics. How much land is there, and how big was the house that burned, and if there are any out buildings. Tell me everything you can." "Okay! It's just over two hundred acres, fenced and cross fenced, there's a spring fed creek that runs across the property year-round, and there are pines, oaks and cedar. Some of the pastures are seeded with oats and some are coastal. There's a big barn with a loft, and it comes with tractors, implements, trailers, tools and supplies, but no livestock. The main house was thirty-six hundred square feet, but it's a total loss and the slab needs to be cleared. There are also two four car garages that aren't connected to the house. They're in good condition. "Behind the house, there was a formal garden that's in need of some attention and an Olympic size swimming pool with an adjoining pool house. There are also six studio type cabins, each with its own kitchenette and bathroom, and they can be used as servant's quarters. They were officers quarters when the land was part of the old military base. Does this sound like something that might interest you?" While he was going through his description, I was watching Tim. He was getting a little nervous. Finally, I said, "It's a lot more than we need, but we might be able to make it work. What's the asking price?" When he told me I raised my eyebrows at Tim. Even though I quickly calculated the amount to be reasonable, I said, "That asking price seems awfully high, but I won't know how high until we've seen it. Can we make an appointment to see it tomorrow? Say about ten?" "Yes, sir! You'll be the first to see it!" "Fine. We'll meet you there at ten." I handed the phone to Tim and he quickly cradled it. As soon as I was sure the call had been disconnected I said, "It's do-able. Even at their asking price. But I'll try to talk them down a bit more. We'll need to build a house, though, and a new toy box for my cars." Tom and Rita traded amazed looks. Tom said, "You mean you'll do it?" "Well, it's not a done deal yet, but it certainly looks promising." They both had large smiles on their faces as they looked at the boys scattered about the room. Rita beamed as she said, "Well, it looks like instead of one of my boys moving away, I'll have even more boys around to look after!" I smiled, glanced at a beaming Tim and said, "Every bit of help would be appreciated." Just before we went in to supper, I called Frank and asked him if he could join us to visit the property the next day. I wanted him to check it out for the security that's become so important to us. He said he'd meet us at the house and go to our appointment with us. "Alan?" Frank added. "What's this deal with the folks from Nevada?" I smiled. "Grant must have told you about it. It's just a company that wants to buy my company. There isn't much to get excited about." "Alan, I think you're wrong. Men with guns walk into your office, they make threats, they spy on you, and who knows what else?" "Yeah, that's about the size of it." "On top of that, they're from Nevada in the gaming industry. You know what that could mean, don't you?" "Yes. The implication was not lost on me." "You're gonna need some tall security, at least for a while. I hope this new place is easier to guard." "We'll see tomorrow. See you at nine?" "See you then." I know I was trying to downplay it all, but I knew he was right to be concerned. Expressing my thoughts made my gut tighten. I glanced at Tim and the boys and wondered to myself if I hadn't made a mistake by not selling the company. It put a bit of a damper on my mood. Dinner was excellent as usual, and the conversation was still animated as we continued to discuss the property. I even shared my thoughts that it would help keep the taxes down if we either ran horses and cattle on the place or leased out the barn and pastures for agricultural uses. Never having been ranchers ourselves, if we decided to run our own stock, we'd have to hire someone to take care of that for us. However, that decision would have to wait until we knew whether or not we would buy the place. The conversation changed to how much help we'd need for such a large place. I estimated we would need at least four additional employees just to care for the house and grounds, not including Nell, Marty and our security guards. "The biggest problem," I said, "would be that not only would they all have to be gay-friendly, but they'd also have to be comfortable with nudity. I can't imagine Tim, having been raised in a nudist camp, spending the rest of his life in clothing. I think the boys might enjoy it as well." Just then, I heard Paul grunt. He was pressing on his groin again. "Paul, if you and Stevey are through with your suppers, maybe you two would like to go play a video game or something." He nodded, wincing. Rita looked at me, startled. After they had gone, I quickly explained, "I don't know how much Tim has told you, but Paul was beaten by his family. That's the reason the boys are living here now. They were placed with us by CPS." Mike, speaking for the first time this evening, said, "Yeah, and they're all in prison, now, too!" He said it with such vehemence that we were all a bit startled. After a pause, I said, "Yes, they're in custody. Mike's folks and his older brothers." Rita grimaced and put her hands to her mouth. Then she asked Mike, "Did they beat you, too?" He nodded. "But they beat Paul more when they found out he likes boys. They even beat him on the . . ." "Uh, yes! They got personal about it." I interrupted. "Oh, God!" Tom blurted. "How COULD they?" I shook my head. "Who knows what motivates some people?" In her best motherly tone, Rita said, "You poor child!" Mike thought for a moment then asked, "Do you guys, like, take your clothes off?" I asked Tim, "They didn't see anyone . . . when you visited your folks?" Rita said, "No. We thought it best not to . . . in front of the little one. At least not until we knew he was prepared." Tim smiled at Mike and explained, "Actually, we don't usually put clothes on. We're usually nude." Mike's eyes grew so wide, I was afraid they might fall out of his head! He stared at Tim and slowly blushed to deep crimson. I decided that some ice needed breaking. "Mike, didn't Paul tell you about the weekend he spent with Stevey?" "You mean when he was kidnapped?" "Well, before he was kidnapped." "No, he didn't tell me anything!" Then he whispered, "All he said was he loves Stevey." Well, that was an unexpected revelation! I quickly glanced at Tom and Rita. They smiled at each other then they turned to Tim who smiled and shrugged. "Well," I continued, "When he went to stay with Stevey, he was nude. Stevey was living where he grew up, in his parent's nudist camp. Almost everyone there is nude." His eyebrows flew up. "Really? Everyone's naked?" "Not naked," Tom explained. "There's a difference. Naked means you take your clothes off. Nude means you're without clothes, as God made you. To nudists, it's more natural to be nude than it is to wear clothing. Besides, it feels better." "Oh. I guess I get it. Would I have to be nude, too?" I asked, "If everyone else was nude, wouldn't you want to be nude, too?" He thought for a moment and said, "Yeah, I guess so. Sure!" He looked at Tim with a goofy grin. "Would you be nude, too?" Tim laughed. "Yes. Me, too." Mike's eyes grew wide as he stared at Tim. He breathed, "Cool." I guess he forgot we were all watching him. Rita and Tom were stifling their laughter. Rita cupped her mouth toward Tim and whispered, "Someone has a crush." Tim smiled at his mother and nodded. Mike caught the interaction and blushed. Turning to me he said, "Can I go, now?" He was embarrassed. I said, "Yes, you may. Why don't you go see what Paul and Stevey are up to?" He jumped out of his chair and sprinted out of the room. Andy had been silent the entire evening, but he'd been smiling at Mike's antics. He finally said, "It's amazing how resilient kids can be sometimes. It really depends on how deeply they've been traumatized. I've seen kids become almost catatonic, and then I've seen kids like Mike bounce back pretty fast." He turned to me and said, "I want to see you adopt those boys. They need you." I nodded and took Tim's hand. "We need them." The rest of the evening wound down a bit after that. After they all had gone, Nell came upstairs and put the boys' clothing in their closets and dressers, picked up the piles of their new clothes and took them downstairs to be washed. She spent the next few hours marking each article before she mixed them in the wash. Later, as Tim and I tucked them in, we discovered that they had all decided to sleep in the nude. Mike even lifted the covers for me to see how nude he was! I have a feeling he could be a bit of an exhibitionist! Apparently the boys had all discussed it and had decided that it was time for them to get used to being nude. I didn't completely agree with it, because of Paul's situation, but he seemed to be comfortable with it. At least he wasn't self-conscious about his bold bruises. When Tim and I got ready for bed, I led Tim to the dart board. He and I were both naked. I was sporting a very stiff erection, while his wasn't quite hard. I looked down his smooth body to his soft cock and said, "Nervous?" His cheeks reddened as he looked down at himself. His very nice manhood began to surge to life as he smiled back at me and spotted my stiffy. "Yeah, I guess I am," he said. I handed him a single dart and stepped behind him. Wrapping my arms around his tender nakedness and pressing into his back, I whispered in his ear, "Don't miss." He dropped his head back and rested it on my shoulder. "What happens if I miss?" I chuckled and seductively said, "If you miss, I get a turn. I'm very good at darts so don't miss." He moaned and said unconvincingly, "I won't." He took aim and let his dart go. His dart scored a double twenty-one! I suppose I should have made him stand further than five feet from the board! My dick was pulsing in his crack, and still I didn't distract him! Tim stepped closer to the board where I'd written the "winnings." "Let's see," he said, as he squinted at my scribbling. "What's `around the world'? Since it's a double, does that mean . . . `twice?'" My face almost split from my smile. "I'll show you," I said in a low voice as I led him to the bed. I turned him around and pushed him gently to his back and helped him to the center of the bed. Giving him a brief kiss, I whispered, "Turn over." I chuckled as he had to arrange his erection under him, then I climbed onto his back and began to caress, massage and kiss him beginning at his neck and ears. Slowly I massaged every muscle, beginning with his scalp. I moved to his neck, leading with kisses and following with licking, and massaged from one ear to the other, taking in his heavenly scent. I continued to his muscular shoulders, kissing and massaging back and forth, then down one arm to his fingers, from his deltoids to his triceps and down his arm to his hand. When I kissed and sucked each finger, he finally moaned loudly and squirmed into the bed. "Hold very, very still," I whispered. "Pretend you're paralyzed." His only response was to squeeze his eyes shut and whimper. I know it was torture for him, but it was supposed to be! I went back up his arm to his shoulders and across to his other arm and repeated my kissing and massaging. I began to kiss and massage across his back, from one side to the other, slowly moving from one muscle to another, giving each my full attention. After several minutes he seemed to be relaxing, so I continued south to his lower back. When I made it to his glutes, he tensed again. I smiled to myself as I kissed every inch of his beautiful bubble butt, and somehow avoided, at least temporarily, that hidden treasure. As I traced his muscles down the back of his right thigh, he nearly came off the bed, squealing like a surprised animal! Laughing, I said, "Tim, calm down! This is supposed to be relaxing!" He laughed and said, "Alan! I never realized how ticklish I was back there!" Still laughing, I said, "Okay, I won't touch you so lightly. Just concentrate on the sensuality of my touch." He relaxed again and I continued, being careful not to tickle the back of his knee. I caressed and kissed his calf, then his ankle, then began to massage his foot. When I began to suck on his toes he began to pant and squirm again. Without saying a thing, I stopped and let his breathing return to near-normal, then quickly licked between each of his toes. That was when he screamed! "Tim!" I hissed. "You'll wake the boys! You may even wake the dead!" Panting, he haltingly whispered, "I . . . I can't help it! Please, just touch my dick so I can get off! Then you can go back to torturing me!" I laughed. "Tim, this isn't supposed to be torture! Just wait until you find out what happens next." "I . . . I don't know . . . if I'll live that long," he panted. "Oh, I think you will," I chuckled as I finished massaging his foot then his calf. "Just don't let yourself climax. It'll be good for you to exercise control." He moaned his frustration as I continued my journey up his thigh, laving the underside of his scrotum with my tongue and blowing on it lightly. Seeing it draw up, I moved to his left leg, giving it the same treatment, all the way to his foot. When I licked between the toes of his left foot, I glanced up at his face. He had stuffed the corner of the pillow in his mouth, his eyes clenched shut and his hands were tightly grasping the covers! I nearly fell off the bed with laughter! "Tim, relax!" I whispered. "Alan," he whispered, "Under normal circumstances, you can turn me on by just looking at me. But feeling your lips, your fingers and your tongue all over me is driving me crazy! I want your dick in me so bad it feels like it's actually itching inside! Please hurry!" Without saying a word, I slowly continued back up his leg to his butt, gently spreading his cheeks. Probing with my tongue from his tailbone down to his pucker, I gently washed it then licked down toward his scrotum. Finding it more difficult to reach down that far, I suddenly discovered that he was tucking his pelvis, trying to aim his pucker at my mouth! "Relax, kiddo!" I chuckled and stuck my tongue quickly dead center and pushed. I found a little resistance at first, but it quickly disappeared, almost welcoming my intrusion. "Mmm, yes!" Tim groaned. I slowly swirled my tongue into his chute, then pulled free. "No! Please, more!" he begged. "Turn over," I whispered. He quickly flipped onto his back and drew his legs up. "No," I whispered, smiling into his eyes and pushing his legs down. "I'm not quite done yet." "Nooo," he whimpered. "Patience," I whispered, as I climbed to his face and kissed him gently on the lips. I glanced at the clock and discovered I had only been at my task for about twenty-five minutes! I then kissed his left cheek, his forehead and eyes, then kissed and licked his right ear, around his jaw line, finishing by kissing and licking his left ear. Then I kissed down to his neck and across to his collar bone and to his right shoulder. Then I continued by kissing, massaging and licking the front of his deltoid and bicep, down his arm to his hand. I kissed and licked his palm, watching his reaction. He was watching me. I could tell as soon as I hit a G-spot, because his mouth would drop open and he'd gasp or pant. He had so many, I lost track. After a brief hand massage, I kissed his palm and continued back up the inside of his arm to his armpit. Being careful not to tickle him, I licked and kissed him hard, twirling his pit hair with my tongue. The erotic scent of his armpit was making me lose my concentration! As punishment, I licked my way to his right nipple, sucking and nipping at it, swirling my wet tongue all around it, ending with a rapid intake of breath directly around it. He gave an airy scream, trying not to make too much noise! I quickly clamped my wet lips back down on it, and he grabbed my head, pressing my face against his tit, panting! When I finally freed myself from his grasp, I sat up and asked, "Too much?" He looked up at me with glazed eyes, his mouth slightly open and slowly shook his head. I think he was somewhere in a state of exquisite euphoria! Tenderly I massaged his chest and licked a line from his right nipple to his left. Glancing briefly into his eyes with a smile, I imitated a leach on his left nipple as I had his right. When I was just about to suck air over it, his eyes widened in disbelief, as if to plead with me not to do it! I hesitated just long enough to tease him then sucked, deeply! He threw his head back and gasped several times! When I clamped down on him, he grabbed me again to hold me against his chest, almost smothering me and muttering oaths to the Divinity! This time when I broke free, I immediately kissed and massaged down his well defined six-pack to his navel and swirled my tongue around it, sucking and licking at my leisure. When I was done, I glanced up at him to see that he was watching me through squinting eyes, his mouth still hanging open. I smiled at him as I got to my knees between his legs and grabbed his left thigh, completely bypassing his dripping cock! I could see that it was so hard that it was standing above his belly, pulsing with his heartbeat! He threw his head back and groaned. I chuckled as I massaged his thigh tenderly but thoroughly, then briefly massaged his leg and kissed the top of his foot. I abbreviated my agenda, because we were both becoming far too turned on! After I quickly massaged his right thigh, caressed his leg and kissed the top of his right foot, I paused, hanging over his crotch. When he whimpered and raised his dick toward me, I smiled and lowered my face to his scrotum. Taking his balls both carefully into my mouth, watching for his reaction, I moaned. When he felt the vibration he threw his head back and gasped, clutching at the covers. I could feel his erection pulse, briefly, so I knew I'd better be careful. He was very close to going over the edge. I knew he'd been very high erotically since shortly after my ministrations began, so I knew he'd probably have a hair trigger. Slowly, carefully, I released his nuts, licking any excess saliva from them, kissing them in that way that makes a man feel complemented. Then I prepared for the finale. I began to slowly lick from the base of Tim's cock, carefully tracing his urethra, all the way to his frenulum. His mouth was wide open and he was panting. Watching his face carefully, I returned my lips to the base of his cock and repeated the path I'd just taken with my wet lips. This time when I reached his frenulum, I kissed it, nipping at it with my lips. His eyes opened and he began to pant. When I was afraid he'd hyperventilate, I quickly sucked his dick all the way into my mouth and down my throat! As I was about to grab his scrotum, he erupted! Bucking like a wild bronco, he came again and again and again, shooting directly down my throat! His bucking gave him just enough stimulation in my throat that it seemed he'd never stop! When I thought he was finally through, he bucked one last time and collapsed, panting hard! Slowly I extricated his deflating appendage from my mouth and kissed it carefully. Gently resting it on his tummy, I crawled over my exhausted lover and lay on top of him, planting kisses on his face. Slowly, one by one, he put a leg or an arm around me, tightening his grasp until I thought he might pull me inside him. I reveled in the feeling of oneness with Tim. In spite of our age difference, it seemed that we were made for each other, that we should always have been together and should never be apart. He finally pushed me up just high enough to look into my eyes, run his fingers through my hair and whisper, "Amazing! Absolutely amazing! I feel like I've just flown around the world by peddle power!" I laughed and said, "Now, that's a new one!" Smiling into his eyes a moment I said, "Turn over." His eyes widened and he said, "Why?" "You threw a double, didn't you?" "No!" "Yes, you did. I saw you." "No, I mean, I did, but you're not doing that again! At least not tonight!" Then he began pushing me off him. "What're you doing?" I asked. "It's your turn! You're about to get the other half of my double!" I hesitated. Somehow I sensed that I was about to experience not only Tim's love, but a bit of revenge as well. With mixed emotion, I said, "Well, it is in the rules that we can choose to give our `winnings' to the other if we want, so I guess it's okay. . . ." He smiled a wicked smile and said, "Okay, on your stomach!" When he was done with the kissing, massaging, caressing and licking, and had peeled me off the ceiling, he teased my painfully swollen member until I was panting, begging him to let me get off. When he finally impaled his mouth and throat with my eager sword, I found that I had just enough control left to enjoy it! But perhaps I was enjoying it too much. Almost without my noticing, he slowly penetrated me with a finger and found my prostate! He massaged it a few times and it felt as if he'd set off a stick of dynamite in my ass! I don't think I'd ever been so turned on or had such an explosive orgasm! As we both recovered in the afterglow of our love making, wrapped tightly around one another, I experienced a revelation. Have you ever dreamed about someone so beautiful, intelligent, well endowed and perfect in every way, that you knew that it was impossible for him to exist, much less actually end up in your bed? At that moment I felt as if that dream had come true, and more. Tim was everything I had ever fantasized about, and he had just let me explore every inch of his body, inside and out, with my tongue, and he had just done the same to me! Everything was so perfect, I didn't want to let him go for fear I'd wake up and find that it was all just a dream! I pulled away from Tim's face just enough to see his eyes. "What's wrong?" he whispered. "Nothing," I whispered, my eyes becoming moist. "Nothing's wrong. Everything is so right. I love you, Timothy Smith." He smiled, kissing me lightly then whispered, "I love you back, Alan Stewart." We parted only to pull the covers over us then nuzzled into each other's arms again as we drifted off to sleep. The next morning we woke still wrapped around each other, our mouths close enough to kiss. I think we may have been kissing in our sleep. When we finally got ourselves together we went downstairs to find that the others were already eating breakfast. As we ate and planned the day I thought that it would be best if just Tim and I went to visit our prospective new home, but I couldn't fight against the insurrection that would have been against me as the boys screamed at me! We all piled into the Hum Vee with Grant and Frank following us in Frank's Suburban. When we arrived at the property, I discovered why the property hadn't registered from Tom's description. It had a tall security/privacy fence around it, made of a rough wooden material that made it almost completely blend in with the trees and bushes around it. The gate was open, so we drove in, closely followed by Frank and Grant. The boys were silent and their mouths were gaping. Tim and I were a bit in awe ourselves! It was well beyond anything I had expected! When we all piled out, the boys were ooing and ahing at everything they saw, even though the house was a burned out shell with yellow tape around it. "All right, boys!" I said, "Stay close! I don't want anyone getting lost. We'll see the place together!" Frank and Grant heard what I'd said. Frank said, "We'll keep them close. Don't worry." Mike came to my side and hugged my arm. He looked up at me and whispered, "I like it." I smiled at his statement and said, "Why don't you hold my hand?" He quickly grabbed my hand. When Tim got close, Mike grabbed Tim with his other hand. "Good!" I thought. "At least Mike won't get lost." Just as we were about to start out on our own to explore the place a young, twenty-something realtor came tearing through the gate and jumped out of his car. He greeted us with a disarming smile of crooked but white teeth by saying, "Welcome! My name is Troy Keller." I quickly introduced myself and shook his hand. Indicating Tim, I said, "Troy, this is my partner, Tim." To his credit, he didn't flinch. He merely took Tim's proffered hand and shook it, saying, "Nice to meet you, Tim." Then I introduced the boys. "This is Mike, Stevey and Paul." "Hi, guys!" "And last, but not least, this is Frank Holmes and Grant Marshall. They're our security staff." He nodded to them and said, "Welcome!" Then he looked at all of us and said, "Please follow me! We've got a lot to see. The house, as you can see, is a total loss, so you'll have to build another if you want to live here." About an hour later we had toured the grounds, pool house, one of the cabins and the barn. Troy asked, "So, what do you think? Is this what you're looking for?" "Actually," I said, "we weren't really looking for anything. This just attracted our attention. It's a nice place, but there's a lot of land devoted to the residential part of the property." Troy's face dropped. "So, you don't like it?" "Oh, I didn't say that. It'll just need a lot of work and we'll have to build a new house before we can live here. I'll tell you what. Let's take a tour of the land that goes with it, and we'll see what we can do." He nodded slowly. "Okay, but there's a lot of property and I don't have four wheel drive." I said with a sly smile, "Oh, I think we can make do in our cars." It seemed unusual to me that he hadn't seen the vehicles that brought us here. It's been my experience that real estate people usually try to size up their prospective buyers using whatever methods they can to learn about them. The type of vehicle you're driving usually says something about who they are. The Hum Vee, to say the least, could not only carry all of us in perfect comfort, it could easily handle almost any terrain around the place as well. When the boys were rounded up, I said, "Okay, boys, let's go see the place." Troy asked, "Do you have room for me to go along?" "Of course!" I turned to Frank and Grant and asked, "Do you want to go along, or do you want to look around some more?" Frank said, "I'd like to look around the grounds. We'll catch up with you in a while." "Okay." When Troy focused on the Hum Vee, he expressed surprise. "Wow! I've never ridden in one of these. This'll be a treat!" I chuckled as Tim and the three boys climbed into the back seat and Troy climbed in the front. Troy looked into the back seat and said, "I knew these things were wide, but I didn't know they were THIS wide!" As we made our way around the property it became clear that Troy wasn't very familiar with it, but I kept my bearings and at least we didn't get lost. Basically, I wanted to get a feel for the quality of the soil and the growth conditions. If it was overgrown in some areas, it could be quite an effort to clear it. Apparently the previous owners had actively ranched it, because it was all relatively clean. When we returned to the compound, I was satisfied with what we had seen, and Frank and Grant were waiting for us. When I climbed out of the Hum Vee, I walked to Frank and asked, "What do you guys think?" Frank said, "It's a big place, but in some ways it'll be easier to secure than the place you're in now. Its best feature is that solid, tall fence. We can put electronic surveillance around it and cameras here and there, and we can use one of the cabins as a command post. The grounds around the house and gardens form a nice compound. I just have to ask you, Alan: can you really afford all this?" Frank has never asked me anything like that before this. It occurred to me that he had no earthly idea about my finances, probably because I'd lived relatively modestly, given my circumstances. I smiled at him. "Frank, I can assure you that I can afford it. I might have to sell a little stock, but it's time I cleaned up some assets, anyway." He shook his head at me. "Alan, you never fail to amaze me." "And you amaze me, Frank. Go ahead and put together a security plan for this place. I'll let you know when to proceed." He smiled and nodded. I turned back to the Hum Vee where Tim was keeping Troy occupied. I got Tim's attention and motioned him away from Troy. "Tim," I whispered, "what do you think about all this?" He looked at me, dumbfounded. In a very low voice, he asked, "Are you seriously considering buying this place?" "Yes!" I chuckled. "Even if it wasn't so convenient to your folks, it'll be a great place for the boys to grow up. But what do YOU think?" "Alan, how much money do you HAVE?" "Well, with stocks, bonds, property, toys, all added up, not including the company, it's about . . ." I whispered the amount in his ear. "Holy SHIT!" he screeched. I held my finger to my lips and said "Shhhhhhh! You'll give me away. Now, money aside, do you like this place?" He sighed and looked around. "It's awfully big, but I could get used to it. Now I know what you were saying last night about needing a staff to maintain it." "I think the cabins would be perfect for staff housing. We could even add a bedroom or two to one or two of them if need be, and we can build a toy box to match the barn. There isn't enough room in the toy box we've got now, anyway, if I want to add more cars." "MORE cars?" he laughed. "Well, I guess it'll be a good place for us. If you really want to buy it, then I think you should. It'd be great living so close to Mom and Dad. We could go over there any time we wanted." I smiled at him. "Did you see how private it is, too? We can go nude here." He smiled conspiratorially with me. "Yeah, I know. I've been wanting to get you out in nature and see how you like it." I glanced down at his front. Yes, he was reacting to the thought, but so was I. Before we got too carried away, I cleared my throat and said, "Let's see what we can do." Walking over to Troy, I said, "Make them an offer of this amount," I said, as I scribbled a number on the back of my card He wrinkled his forehead. "That's kind of low." "That's my offer. Write it up." He smiled and nodded. He said, "I've got a laptop and printer in my car. I'll prepare the paperwork for you to sign, but I'll need some more information from you." The boys were excited as they looked around the cabins and I gave Troy the information he needed. Mike had latched onto my hand again, and wouldn't let go. I quickly signed the paperwork and Troy immediately made a call on his cell phone. As we were getting into the Hum Vee to leave, Troy came running up to the driver's side window. Out of breath, he panted, "Mr. Stewart, they've already considered your offer and said that they want a little more money." "Tell them I'll split the difference and pay them cash." His eyes grew large as he stepped away from the car, relayed my counteroffer into his phone and waited a moment. He smiled and cordially signed off. Stepping up to the car with a wide grin on his face, he said, "It's yours! Mr. Stewart, I've never sold a place this size so quickly! Are you sure about the cash?" I raised an eyebrow at him. "Sorry," he said, sheepishly. "I shouldn't ask questions like that." I reached out the window and shook his hand. "Congratulations on your first sale." He looked at me with a very surprised look on his face. "But . . . how'd you know?" I smiled at him. "Just a guess, but several things gave you away. Always find out what kind of car your buyer's driving. Never appear surprised that someone will look at an expensive property and offer cash. When land is included, always assume that a prospective buyer will want to see all of it. And never appear disappointed when someone makes a low offer. It's all part of negotiating." "I almost blew the deal, didn't I?" I chuckled. "No, Troy, it wasn't that bad, but some people might be arrogant enough to let it turn them off. You're a good salesman. Just get a little more experience and you'll be fine." "Thanks! I'll bring you the revised contract signed by the owners then I'll get the escrow going and contact the title insurance company." "Good. I think we can shorten up the escrow to two weeks, don't you?" "Sure! Thanks, again!" I shook his exuberant hand one more time and we left. The boys had been uncharacteristically quiet, whispering back and forth among themselves. Finally, I asked, "Are you boys okay? Is there anything bothering you?" Stevey said, "No, not really. Alan? When I asked you how rich you are, you said you were really rich." I laughed. "Yes, Stevey, I guess I did. Now you want to know how much money we've got, right?" "Yeah!" "Well, the first thing I'll tell you boys is that I'm not going to tell you. It's just money. Money's just a tool. We just happen to have a lot of tools. Up to now I've always lived modestly. I never wanted anyone to know how much money I had. But, now we need to spend some of it to get what we need and want. Besides, the place is probably worth twice what we're paying for it. But, the only thing that's important is whether you guys will like living here. What do you think?" Paul said, "That pool rocks!" Stevey "high fived" him. Tim looked back at the boys and said, "The best thing is that we can go nude!" That comment was met with several positive comments from both Paul and Stevey, but Mike was being quiet again. I glanced at Mike, sitting on the other side of the car. He was staring off into space. "Mike? Is something wrong?" I asked. He looked in my direction and said, "No." But he didn't sound convincing. The boys chattered about the property, where they'd have a fort, and how they'd go exploring when we moved in, but Mike didn't join in their excitement. When we got back home, I waited until everyone got out of the car, and sidled up to Mike, holding him close. When everyone was out of earshot, I asked, "Mike, what's wrong?" "Nothing," he said, but I still didn't believe him. Kneeling at his side, I said, "That didn't sound like a real `nothing' to me. You can ask me anything, you know that? Don't you want to live on that place?" "Yeah, I guess." "Is it too much, too fast? I know this is an awfully big change for you." He thought a moment and said, "No, it's okay." "Then please, Mike, tell me what you're thinking." "I was thinking: can I have a horse?" I threw my head back and laughed. "Of course you can have a horse! I think we all may want horses." He smiled and grabbed my neck, kissing my cheek. Then he whispered in my ear, "I love you." I whispered back, "I love you, too."To be continued . . . .