The Inheritance Clause

This story contains descriptions of graphic sex between males. If that kind of thing does not appeal to you, stop reading now.

This story is pure fiction. If this resembles something that happened to you, it must have been an incredible experience. But it's simply a coincidence.

All comments are welcome: djwarner1984@hotmail.com Please donate to Nifty: https://donate.nifty.org/

-DJ

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The Inheritance Clause - 3

They finished dinner. They lingered at the table and continued talking. Niven and Krantz came in.

"Niven, dinner was delicious," Dawson said.

"Yes, it was outstanding," Adam added as his spirits seemed to have picked up.

"Thank you... you two chose an excellent menu. I will have coffee, muffins, and fresh fruit ready for you at 7 tomorrow morning. We will tell you then what the day's instructions are," Niven said.

"Thank you," Dawson said.

"Will you be having crème liqueur on the terrace?" Krantz asked.

After dinner, Clayton always nursed a glass of crème liqueur on the terrace. Both Adam and Dawson knew that, but they had forgotten. When Krantz asked about it, sentimental feelings about Clayton hit Dawson. He started to tear up. Adam sensed it immediately.

"Yes, please Krantz. Will you bring it out to us?" Adam said as he quickly stood.

He gestured for Dawson to stand then he subtly guided Dawson toward the door. They walked in silence with Adam propping his hand under Dawson's elbow practically shooing him outside. As they entered the terrace, the cool night air hit Dawson. He began to sob softly. Adam guided him to the railing and they looked out over the moonlit lake. Adam moved his hand to cover Dawson's shoulder. Dawson quietly sobbed.

"I'm sorry," Dawson barely whispered, "I don't know why I reacted that way."

"I do..." Adam said, "it's because you loved him. And you miss him."

Dawson nodded and didn't speak. He sobbed and sniffled. Adam squeezed his hand on Dawson's shoulder.

"I loved coming out here with granddad. He would tell me stories about my grandmother. She was so beautiful. Did he ever show you pictures of her?" Adam said.

"Yeah," Dawson managed to say between sobs.

"It's ok..." Adam said as he began to rub Dawson's back.

Dawson stayed quiet, enjoying the feeling of Adam rubbing his back.

"Oh!... Falling star! See?" Adam suddenly said as he pointed into the sky, "Make a wish..."

They stood silently together for a few moments as they looked at the sky and thought about what kind of wish they would make.

"What did you wish for?" Adam said as he removed his hand and turned to lean against the railing, looking back toward the house.

"World peace," Dawson's quick wit had kicked in and his sobbing had tapered off.

"Seriously?" Adam said chuckling.

"Well, I figure I already have $800 million worth of real estate and a pool table, what more do I need?" said Dawson with a grin.

Just then, Krantz came out with their crème liqueurs. They took their drinks and they both took a sip.

"Mmm," said Adam, "how long until the movie, Krantz?"

"About 25 minutes," Krantz replied.

"Ok," said Adam, "we'll be there."

Krantz nodded and walked away.

Adam turned to face the lake. Both boys were leaning their elbows against the railing, holding their drinks. They looked out over the moonlight reflecting off the water. There was just a hint of a breeze.

"It's so beautiful here," Dawson said.

"Mmm," Adam uttered.

"Do you think you and Vickie will live here?" Dawson asked.

Adam turned and looked at Dawson with a confused look.

"The lake house is yours. You got all the real estate," Adam said.

"I thought it was a personal asset. So it's yours," Dawson said.

They both chuckled.

"We probably shouldn't have waived the reading of the assets..." Dawson said as he started laughing.

"What the hell was granddad thinking, leaving us in charge," Adam said and then started to laugh, too.

After their laughter settled down. They both just stayed there, leaning against the railing, quietly enjoying the view, sipping their after-dinner drinks. Eventually, they made their way to the screening room.

Clayton had a room at the lake house configured like an authentic cinema house. It had a decent sized screen at the front of the room. There were several rows of sloped seating, with reclining seatbacks and cup holders. Clayton liked to sit in the second row from the back, so that's where the boys went. They sipped their drinks as they waited for the movie to start. Exactly at nine o'clock, the lights began to dim and the film started.

As soon as it started they were engrossed in the film. There were long stretches of the film, where neither of them moved, they were so enthralled. When it ended, Adam sighed loudly.

"Wow," said Dawson, "that was great."

"Yeah, I agree," said Adam, "I think I need to watch that again."

"Mmm," agreed Dawson.

They went up to their rooms in silence as they both reflected on the film. The boys both went in Dawson's room. They said good night to each other as Adam passed through the bathroom to his room. Dawson stripped down and put on the basketball shorts and t-shirt left for him. He could hear Adam brushing his teeth. Adam went into his bedroom and Dawson brushed his teeth. He shut off the light in his room. The glow of a soft light from under the sinks in the bathroom cast a very subtle shadow into his bedroom. He slipped into the bed nearer the closet. He turned on his side, away from the bathroom, and settled his head into the pillow.

Then he heard Adam speak.

"Hey," Adam spoke softly as he stood in the bathroom doorway.

Dawson turned to look at Adam. In a silhouette of soft light, Dawson could see Adam was wearing only his boxer briefs.

"Hey," Dawson said.

"I'm not tired yet. Ok if we talk?" Adam said softly.

"Sure," Dawson said as he lifted himself to sit up. He leaned against his pillow.

Adam came in and sat on the other bed. Dawson turned so he could look at him.

"When I was younger, my mom and I used to do this thing with movies. After it was over, we would tell each other which character we thought we would be if we were in the movie," Adam said.

"Oh, like 'The Breakfast Club'... Are you the nerd? Are you the preppy? Which character do you identify with most?" Dawson asked.

"Exactly," Adam said.

Adam then lay down on the other bed and faced Dawson. He didn't say anything.

"So which of the jurors were you?" Dawson asked.

"Actually, I think I was the kid on trial," Adam said softly.

"Why do you say that?" Dawson asked as he propped himself up to sit up more.

"He clashed with his father. And no one in the jury room seemed to see him as a person. Except that one guy, Henry Fonda. He saw who he really was," Adam said.

"Did you and your dad ever get along?" Dawson asked.

"When I was younger, yeah. But around ten or eleven, we started clashing. When I was around thirteen or fourteen, I realized he was just an angry guy. He was never happy. There was always something aggravating him," Adam said.

There were a few moments of silence where Dawson hesitated with his next thought. Then he decided to say it because he felt that he and Adam had connected, even though it was in such a short time.

"I don't know your dad all that well, only what I gathered from your granddad, but that guy on the jury who was the last one to admit the kid didn't do it, reminded me of him. He seemed to be so angry for no reason," Dawson said.

Adam sat up excitedly.

"Yes! I kept thinking that was my dad. The things he said. The way he said them. It was my dad right up there on the screen," Adam said.

He stayed sitting up for a few moments and then lay back down on the bed.

"It's good that you didn't internalize your father's anger and blame yourself. That's pretty mature of you to figure that out at such a young age," Dawson said.

"Well, it was my granddad. It wasn't so much in what he said, but it was in how he reacted to the way my dad treated him. I realized my dad treated everyone that way, even his own father. So it wasn't me who had the problem. It was him," Adam explained.

"Hmm," Dawson said.

There was quiet for a few minutes. Dawson thought maybe Adam had fallen asleep.

"Who do you think you were in the movie?" Adam said softly.

"Um... I think I'm the old guy who defended Henry Fonda in the beginning and helped him argue for the kid," Dawson said.

"Really?" Adam said, "I don't think so. No, you're Henry Fonda. He questioned everything. He figured out there was a lot more than it seemed at first. That's you. I saw you do that today with all the questions you asked. It was kind of inspiring to watch," Adam said.

"Maybe," Dawson said as he thought about it.

There was a lot going on in what Adam said and Dawson wasn't sure which parts to focus on. He zeroed in on the fact that Adam identified with the accused kid. And that it was Henry Fonda who saw him. Was Adam saying Dawson saw Adam for who he really was? But did Dawson really see Adam? Did Dawson know him? He'd only just met him.

There was quiet for a while as Dawson thought about how to respond. Finally he spoke.

"Thanks for the compliment, but I don't know," said Dawson softly.

Adam didn't respond. Dawson listened intently and realized Adam's breathing was slow and deep. He was asleep. Dawson listened to the rhythm of Adam's breathing as he slowly drifted off to sleep.

When Dawson woke up, there was a bit of light coming through the sides of the curtain covering the sliding glass doors. He lifted his head and looked at the clock on the side table. It was 6:11. Dawson then settled into the bed, on his side, facing Adam. Adam was on top of the covers, face down. His head was facing away from Dawson and his knee was bent on one of his legs. This pushed one of his boxer brief-clad ass cheeks to stick up in the air.

Dawson watched Adam's muscular back rise and fall slowly with his breathing. Dawson needed to go to the bathroom, so he quietly got up. He walked toward Adam. He looked down on him. The exposed skin below Adam's butt cheeks, the tops of his thighs that lined the bottom of his briefs, was so inviting. The tender flesh along the leg band of Adam's briefs looked so soft. Dawson wanted to lean down and kiss the sensitive skin there. He did everything he could to hold himself back. He pulled himself away and went into the bathroom.

Dawson sat on the toilet as he replayed the conversation they had before falling asleep. Adam seemed so vulnerable. And adorable. The thought entered Dawson's mind that maybe he was falling in love with Adam. But he dismissed that as crazy. They barely knew each other. They hadn't even spent a full 24 hours together.

Just then, Dawson heard the shower go on. Now the thought of Adam, standing on the other side of the wall, naked, with warm water cascading down his body, started to creep into Dawson's head. His cock hardened. He began stroking. Images of Adam - his smile, his muscular back, the bulge in his boxer briefs, the tender flesh at the bottom of his butt cheeks - started to flash in his mind. In a short time, he was approaching orgasm. He closed his eyes, leaned back, lifted his t-shirt, and came on his abs, suppressing his natural urge to moan out load. A fantasy vision of Adam holding the shower door open, inviting Dawson to join him, with his meaty cock dangling between his legs was in his thoughts when he came.

The shower stopped. Dawson cleaned up the cum on his abs with toilet paper as best he could. He heard Adam come out of the shower. He flushed and came out. Adam was at the sink, wrapped in a towel, shaving. Dawson saw his muscular back and his reflection in the mirror with shaving cream on Adam's face.

"Morning," said Adam with a chipper mood.

"Morning, how did you sleep?" Dawson asked.

"Really well," Adam replied as he paused shaving and looked at Dawson's reflection, "how about you?"

"Like a baby," Dawson replied.

Adam went back to shaving. Dawson hooked a clean towel over the hook, so he could grab it when he got out of the shower. He took off his shirt and then dropped his shorts. His naked ass was exposed. The skin on his ass was pasty white. Dawson had little blonde hairs covering most of his cheeks. There were significant dimples in his butt cheeks where you could see the hard muscle underneath the flesh. Dawson thought he heard a quick intake of breath from Adam, but he wasn't going to turn around to find out.

Dawson moved into the shower. He immediately shut his eyes and ducked his head under the spray. He knew, if Adam were looking, he would see him. All of him. He began washing himself, purposely not looking toward Adam. After shampooing his hair, he turned so he was facing Adam. The shampoo and water was cascading down his flaccid dick and trimmed bush as Dawson kept his head under the spray. If Adam wanted to see, Dawson thought, I'll let him have a good look. Dawson's uncircumcised penis was at least 4 inches long while soft. It dangled in front of his shaved golf ball-sized balls. He kept his head under the spray like that for a long time, swiping his hands through his hair as he rinsed the shampoo. Finally, he turned toward the controls and shut off the water.

Dawson turned toward the sinks and could see Adam brushing his teeth, still wearing just a towel. Dawson stepped out and began drying himself.

"What do you think is in store for us today?" Dawson asked.

He wanted to give Adam a reason to look at him, so he could see where his eyes landed.

"God only knows," Adam said, "or Niven and Krantz only knows," he added with a smile as he looked at Dawson's reflection.

Dawson was drying his legs and he watched Adam's eyes dart up and down his body. He chuckled at Adam's response. He stood and was drying his hair with the towel, letting Adam see his junk if he wanted to look.

"I hope we get to do the menu again, that was fun," Adam said as he stopped brushing his teeth and ran the water.

"Yeah it was," Dawson said as he finished drying his hair.

Dawson took his towel and hugged it against his chest with one hand. He went over and stood next to Adam at the sink.

"You know, we could just ask Niven if we can make the menu, even if it's not one of the tasks we have to do," Dawson said.

He turned to drape the towel onto the hook and then turned back standing completely exposed to Adam. Adam shook his toothbrush toward Dawson.

"That's a great idea," Adam said.

Dawson watched as Adam's eyes dipped down to his crotch and then back to Dawson's eyes. Dawson looked toward the sink but could see in his peripheral vision that Adam looked again. Dawson walked out of the bathroom toward his bureau. He took out a shirt, pants, boxer briefs and socks and turned to sit on the couch. He didn't look directly, but he could tell Adam was watching him. When he sat on the couch, he heard Adam finish up and go into his bedroom.

Dawson put on his socks and underwear. He slipped on the shirt and pants. As he was zipping up, he started to feel bad about tempting and teasing Adam. He knew Adam had a fiancé. He knew Adam was straight. Even if Adam was having doubts, it was not fair for Dawson to do that to him. He started to feel guilty. He tried to justify it by thinking that they were going to be together for six months and they would see each other naked eventually. But the guilt still crept in.

Dawson slipped on his loafers and went over to his sink. He saw Adam with just his boxer briefs and socks on in his room. Dawson brushed his teeth. He trimmed the scruff on his face with the electric groomer. He finished and primped his hair. He went back into his room to wait for Adam. He grabbed the will and went over to the sliding glass door. He opened the door and stepped out onto the balcony. He looked out onto the lake. It was going to be another beautiful day. He went back in, sat on one of the couches, and opened the will. He flipped to clause C and read the details of the personal assets.

"Hey, Adam? Adam! Come here!" Dawson suddenly yelled.

"What?!? What's wrong?!?" Adam said breathlessly as he suddenly appeared from the bathroom, fully dressed.

"Read this. Right here..." Dawson said as he held out the papers.

Adam came and sat next to Dawson on the couch. Dawson could smell Adam's clean scent. It smelled wonderful to Dawson. Not as good as Adam's musky smell from the day before, but still good. Adam leaned into Dawson and they held the papers together. His eyes went to where Dawson was pointing.

"The lake house and all of its property and possessions, minus the pool table and accessories, will go jointly to Dawson Andrew Stewart and Adam Corbin Jameson, each having a 50% stake in the asset," Adam read out loud and then paused.

"What... the... " Adam said.

"Keep reading," said Dawson.

"It is my intention to have Dawson Andrew Stewart and Adam Corbin Jameson jointly decide the disposition of the lake house, each owning half its value," Adam concluded.

"Wow," Adam said.

"Yeah," said Dawson.

Adam let go of the will and Dawson brought it down onto his lap. They sat in silence with their mouths open. They both looked out of the open door at the lake and the property beyond as they absorbed what they had just learned. Finally Adam spoke.

"Why would he do that? As far as grandad knew, we didn't even know each other. He put two people, two strangers to each other, in charge of agreeing what happens to the one possession he prized over everything else. It doesn't make sense. Does it?" Adam ranted.

"No," Dawson said, "it doesn't."

They were both quiet for a few moments.

"But I do know one thing. I'm going to figure this out. We are going to figure this out," Dawson said as he turned and looked at Adam.

They looked at each other without moving. They were sitting so close together that Dawson could smell the remnants of the shaving cream Adam used. Dawson felt like Adam was going to move in and kiss him. Then Adam slightly sat back and smiled.

"Yes, we are," Adam said as he patted Dawson's knee, "c'mon, I need some coffee. Let's go see what Niven and Krantz know."

Adam got up and went through the bathroom door. He came out holding his copy of the will. Dawson got up, closed the sliding door, picked up his copy of the will, and joined him. They left together, through Dawson's door, to go downstairs.

They entered the dining room. Krantz was dressed in a traditional butler uniform again, standing at the coffee, tea and juices set up on the service table on one side of the room. On the service table on the other side of the room, was a tray with half a dozen muffins, several pieces of fruit, and a fruit salad of strawberries, pineapples, blackberries, and blueberries.

"Good morning, Adam. Good morning, Dawson," Krantz greeted them.

"Morning," both of them said at the same time.

"Coffee?" Krantz asked.

"Yes, for both of us," Dawson said.

"Help yourself to some muffins and fruit," Krantz gestured to the service table across the room, "if you'd like something else, I can ask Niven to get it for you."

"This is fine, Krantz," said Adam as he took an orange and a muffin.

Dawson put a scoop of the fruit salad into a bowl and grabbed a muffin.

"Oh, these are warm. Did Niven bake these this morning?" Dawson said.

"Yes, Mr. Jameson loved her fresh-baked muffins. She loved making them for him," Krantz said.

Krantz placed the coffees in front of each place setting. Adam took the seat at the head of the table, Dawson sat next to him.

"Juice?" Krantz asked.

"Orange juice, please," Dawson said.

"Do you have cranberry juice?" Adam asked.

"Of course," Krantz responded.

Krantz poured the juice. Adam prepared his coffee. Dawson took a chunk of the muffin and tasted it.

"Oh my god, banana nut. This muffin is amazing. I'll have to find Niven and tell her," Dawson exclaimed.

He put another chunk into his mouth and closed his eyes as he enjoyed the muffin.

"You can tell her momentarily. She'll be coming out in a few minutes," Krantz said.

He placed the juices on the table in front of the pair.

"Can I get you anything else?" Krantz asked.

The boys looked at each other to check in.

"No, I think we're good," said Dawson.

Krantz left the dining room through the kitchen pass-through. Dawson prepared his coffee while Adam tasted his muffin.

"I forgot how good Niven's muffins are," Adam said, "whatever we do with this house, we need to keep Niven so she can make these muffins for us every day."

Dawson noticed Adam said, 'we need to keep Niven' and 'she can make these muffins for us', as if they would just both keep living in the house after the six months. He didn't say anything about it.

Both boys ate their breakfast while they poured over the will. Dawson started with the beginning of the will. Adam started by reading clause C. A few minutes went by as they read in silence. Dawson began flipping pages to one section and then back again. He did it a couple of times.

"Check this out," Dawson said.

He waited for Adam to look up.

"When Clayton says here that I get the pool table, there are no conditions. Clause C doesn't apply. And then when you go to clause C, it's specifically excluded. I get the pool table, no matter what happens," Dawson explained.

Adam looked over and read the section in the main will that Dawson pointed to. Then Adam looked down at his copy of clause C.

"Yeah, you're right," said Adam, "he must have really wanted you to have that."

Both boys paused as they thought about it.

"What did you talk about during those pool games? It must have made an impression on him," Adam mused.

"I don't know. Life? We just talked about normal things..." Dawson said, "but, you know, whenever I think about Clayton, it's in the pool room. I think that's where we became friends. It must have meant a lot to him."

Dawson began to tear up. Adam reached over and began to gently rub Dawson's arm, resting on the table. They sat like that in silence for a few minutes. Finally, Adam withdrew his hand. Just then, Krantz came out.

"More coffee?" he said as he looked at the table to see what the boys needed.

"Yes, please," Dawson said.

"Yes. I don't usually drink that much coffee, but this coffee is good," Adam commented.

"It's a special blend Mr. Jameson discovered years ago when he went to Africa," Krantz said.

The boys buried their faces back in the wills. Krantz noticed as he poured more coffee.

"You're both awfully engrossed in the will. Did you find something?" Krantz asked.

"Yes, we did," Dawson said excitedly, "but we want to talk to you and Niven about it together."

"She should be out shortly," Krantz said, "we have your instructions for the day."

Both boys stopped reading and looked at Krantz. Then they looked at each other. Dawson broke the tension when he stood up.

"Split another muffin with me?" Dawson said to Adam.

"Mmmm," said Adam as he went back to reading.

Dawson came back and sat down. He split the muffin in half and watched the steam come out of the muffin. He put one half onto Adam's plate.

"A pontoon boat? There's a pontoon boat? Where is it? I didn't see it at the dock," Adam asked with his face buried in clause C.

He looked up at Krantz, waiting for a response.

"Oh, yes. Well, he purchased that at the end of last summer. It was a custom order, so it took time to build it. I should be hearing from them any day now," Krantz said.

"Huh," said Adam.

Niven came into the room from the kitchen.

"Ah, Niven. These muffins are amazing. Thank you for making them. They're delicious," Dawson said, bursting with enthusiasm.

"Thank you, Dawson. It was my pleasure," Niven responded with a slight self-satisfied grin.

Dawson popped the last morsel of the muffin into his mouth. Adam sipped his coffee. He pushed the plate with his orange peels forward and then sat back in his chair.

"So, Dawson found something in the will. Did you know granddad left this house and the property to me and Dawson? I mean, 50-50. We own it jointly," Adam said.

Krantz had a curious look on his face. Niven's mouth opened a bit.

"I thought it was yours, because it was Mr. Jameson's personal asset," Krantz said to Adam.

"I thought it was real estate, so it went to Dawson," said Niven.

The boys both chuckled.

"We had the same reaction. We each thought the other owned it. Any idea why Clayton split the property like that?" Dawson said.

Krantz looked down and thought. Niven looked at Krantz as she tried to search her mind for the answer. Krantz started shaking his head.

"No, I have no idea. Where does it say that?" Krantz said.

"Here, in one of the sections where we waived the reading," Dawson said as he flipped to the section and pointed at it.

Krantz leaned over and started reading.

"I can't imagine why he would do that. Did you two even know each other then?" Niven said.

"Well, I knew Dawson existed because granddad talked about him. And Dawson knew who I was. But we had never met until the wake," Adam said.

Adam smiled to himself as he remembered meeting Dawson on the back porch of the funeral home.

"Huh," said Krantz as he finished reading.

There was silence as the four of them looked at each other.

"Well, perhaps we'll figure it out at some point. For now, though, we have today's instructions," Krantz said.

The boys looked at him hopefully.

"First, you have a multi-day task. You need to drive out to the Santos property line. Inspect the fence for repairs and make note of any posts or rails that need replacement. When you get back, I'll place the order for any lumber and hardware we need. When the supplies arrive, which might take a couple days, you can go back out and make the repairs," Krantz said.

The boys looked at each other. Dawson was kind of surprised by the task. Adam was aware of the fence.

"That fence has needed fixing for a while," Adam mused out loud.

Then Adam's face lit up.

"Krantz, is Elvis home? Or are they on the road?" Adam asked excitedly.

Dawson turned and furrowed his brow in confusion as he looked at Adam.

"I called over and asked Margherita. Yes, he's home," Krantz said.

Adam got excited and smiled a big grin.

"Do you think they'll be ok if we bring some apples and carrots?" Adam said with eagerness.

"I've already thought of that. Yes, Margherita said it would be fine. Niven contacted the market. They are sending some over as we speak," Krantz said with a grin.

"Apples and carrots?" Dawson asked in confusion, "Elvis?" He added as he raised an eyebrow.

"You'll see. You're gonna love it," Adam said with excitement, as if he were a little kid.

"Adam, perhaps you should tell him. Remember what happened last time?" Krantz said.

Adam looked at Krantz. Then he turned and looked at Dawson. Dawson raised his eyebrows.

"No... no, it'll be fine, Krantz," Adam said as he kept eye contact with Dawson, "Dawson, trust me. I want this to be a surprise," Adam said with confidence.

"Ok, I trust you," Dawson said as he looked at Adam.

Niven and Krantz stole a quick glance at each other, without the boys noticing.

Somehow, after barely a day with Adam, Dawson trusted him. He simply accepted that he would have to wait to find out what the apples and carrots were for and what they had to do with Elvis.

Niven cleared her throat. The boys broke eye contact and looked toward Niven and Krantz.

"Second, is another multi-day task. You need to inventory all of the artwork on the property. That involves going through every room and the artwork in storage. Then you need to decide what artwork you want displayed in each room and then make the changes," Niven said.

"How much artwork is in storage?" asked Dawson.

"There is quite a bit, over two hundred and fifty pieces in storage and about seventy-five pieces displayed in the house," Niven said.

Both boys nodded as she told them how much there was.

"Is there a time limit on either of these?" Adam asked.

Dawson turned and pointed at Adam, showing his pride that Adam came up with the question.

"They need to be done before the six months is up," said Krantz.

"Ok," said Adam, thinking neither of these would take six months.

"Anything else?" Dawson asked.

"Yes, the last instruction for today. You must play three games of pool after-dinner," Krantz said.

"That's it?" Adam asked.

"That's it," Niven said.

"Pool?" asked Dawson as he turned to Adam.

"Sure, why not," said Adam sarcastically as he resigned himself to the fact that none of it made sense.

"Well, that's it for tasks. The bulk of your wardrobes should arrive today. I will place them in your rooms when they arrive," Krantz said.

"Thanks," Adam said and then took a sip of his juice.

Dawson looked at Adam. He turned toward Niven.

"Niven, we have a favor to ask," Dawson said.

Adam swallowed and brought his glass down.

"Oh, yeah," said Adam.

"If it's not going to interfere with your process, can we select the menu for dinner again?" Dawson asked as nicely as he could.

Niven pursed her lips. She pushed the middle of her glasses up on her nose.

"If you can put your dinner menu request in before noon, so I have enough time to get any ingredients and prepare the dishes, I have no problem with that. In fact, you can submit a dinner menu every day, if you'd like," Niven said.

Dawson smiled and then looked at Adam. Adam smiled, too.

"We can do it each morning at breakfast, so you have plenty of time. Thanks, we really appreciate it," Adam said.

Niven nodded.

"We should have time to squeeze in swimming today," Dawson said to Adam.

"Definitely. I'm intrigued by this pontoon boat. I want to learn how to swim before it arrives, so I'll feel comfortable on the boat," Adam said.

Dawson reached out and touched Adam's forearm.

"Absolutely," Dawson said, "Let's go out to the fence first."

Adam nodded. Dawson casually pulled back his hand.

"Anything else?" Adam asked Niven and Krantz.

They both shook their heads.

"I'll get the menu form," Niven said.

"More coffee?" Krantz asked.

"No, thank you," said Dawson.

Adam shook his head.

"I'll prepare the ATVs. Contact me when you're ready to head out," Krantz said and then left the room.

Niven followed behind him as they left through the kitchen pass-through. Suddenly, Adam got a knowing look on his face.

"What? What did you figure out?" Dawson said as he looked at Adam.

"Granddad is giving us tasks to prepare the house for one of us to eventually live here. When we hit the end of the six months, we'll have upgraded the property and decided which one of us wants it. Then one of us buys the other out. Or if we decide neither of us wants it, it will be ready to sell," Adam said.

"Maybe," Dawson said.

There was still something about it that didn't make sense to him. Why make them play pool? What did that have to do with upgrading the lake house? Dawson looked at his coffee cup as he tried to think about it.

"Adam, just so you know," Dawson said as he put his hand back on Adam's forearm again, "I'm going to give you my half. You and Vickie should have this house. It should stay in your family."

"Dawson, I appreciate that," Adam said as he placed his hand on Dawson's hand, "But I can't let you just give me your half. Besides, we don't have to commit to anything just yet."

The boys looked at each other longer than they should have. Dawson felt the vibe again from Adam. Adam slowly removed his hand and drank the rest of his juice. Dawson withdrew his hand. Niven entered the room with several menu forms and the binder.

"If you want to do this now, just leave the form on the table when you're done," said Niven.

"Thanks," said Dawson.

"I'll be cleaning your rooms while you're out. Is there anything you need?" Niven asked.

"Niven, there's no need for you to clean our rooms every day," Adam.

"When you have to run a household, I'll listen to your advice," said Niven with a slight chuckle.

Adam raised his eyebrows and started to laugh.

"I guess she told you," said Dawson as he smiled and sat back, placing his napkin on the table.

"The apples and carrots are on their way. I'll give them to Krantz when they arrive so you'll have them before you go out," Niven said and then she pursed her lips and left the room.

"Are we going to be dressed ok to go out to the fence line?" Dawson asked as he looked at his clothes.

"Um... we should probably change into jeans and sneakers," Adam mused as he stood up.

He walked over to one of the service tables. He leaned in and looked at the painting hanging above it.

"I never really looked at any of this artwork. I remember every once in a while granddad would change some of the paintings. But I never really thought about it," Adam said softly as he looked at the detail in the painting.

Dawson watched Adam. He really was a handsome man, thought Dawson. He liked it when Adam got excited about something. He sat and watched Adam as he went over to the companion painting on the other side of the room.

"Huh, that's funny," Adam said.

"What?" Dawson said as he got up and went over to Adam.

"This painting has two people on the hill, see them? They're off in the distance. I never noticed them before, they're so far away. They're walking away from us in this one, with the sun on the left. In the other one, I think it's the same two people walking toward us on the same hill, walking with the sun on the right," Adam mused as he tilted his head looking at the painting.

"Hmmm," said Dawson, now noticing the way the shadows showed where the sun was in each painting.

Adam turned and grabbed one of the menu forms. He sat back down in his chair and scooted it closer to Dawson's chair. Dawson grabbed the binder and moved his chair closer to Adam's before he sat down. They worked together and planned the dinner menu as they bantered back and forth, laughing and joking, thoroughly enjoying themselves.

After finishing the menu, they went upstairs to change into the jeans they wore the day before. Dawson snuck glances into Adam's room as he tried to catch a view of him in his boxer briefs again. He wasn't able to. They both finished changing and went downstairs.

As they entered the garage, they saw Krantz standing over one of the ATVs. Dawson went over to the other ATV to check it out. Adam came up next to Krantz, who was holding the cargo bin open.

"I've put some hats and glove in here, in case you need them. Niven put the carrots and apples in the other ATV. She also put in a cooler with some drinks, in case you stay out a while," Krantz said.

"Thanks Krantz, we should be back before lunch" Adam said.

"Just remember," Krantz said, making sure he had both boys' attention, "That fence is the property line. Don't cross it. And if you do, I don't want to know about it."

"We understand," said Adam as Dawson nodded.

"You have your communicators?" Krantz asked.

Dawson patted his pocket. Adam nodded his head.

"We do," Adam replied.

They donned their helmets and mounted the ATVs. They turned them on as Krantz stepped back. They both tentatively drove forward, taking their time to get used to them. Adam moved out in front. Dawson followed. They sped up as they got further away from the garage and house and headed for the fence line.

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If you liked this story, tell me: djwarner1984@hotmail.com And then donate to Nifty: https://donate.nifty.org/

-DJ