Date: Fri, 13 Feb 2004 18:57:58 -0800 (PST)
From: Evan Bradely <evanbradley33@yahoo.com>
Subject: Chapter 15 of "The Crew"

The following fictional story deals with sex among males.  If you are
offended by such material, are too young, or reside in a location where it
is not allowed, please depart. Though not observed in this story, care
enough about yourself and humankind to practice safe sex.

The author retains all rights.
EvanBradley33@Yahoo.com

Chapter 15
Conflicting Currents

Ever since Brett Carter's appearance for a job interview, Hal had noticed a
subtle change in Angie Cooper's behavior.  She was hanging back, being quieter,
not venturing "out there" with him as she had been doing when they started
working closely together as office manager and owner.  Her reserve had even
progressed so far that she rarely shared information about Bobby and her.  Hal
regretted the change, feeling responsible for it.  He regarded his hiring the
Coopers as one of the best moves he'd made in business.  Even more, he genuinely
liked them.  The short time Drew and he had spent with the Coopers at his home
had pumped him up like little else - excluding Drew, of course - since his last
failed romance.  Angie felt like the sister he'd never had, Bobby the brother.
And he wondered if he wasn't a substitute for her gay brother who was hiding his
sexual orientation in Europe away from their parents and home community.

Hal knew Angie's reserved stance had to do with his  . . . strange reaction to
Brett, mistakenly calling him "Richie" - all that.  He didn't even know that he
understood it himself.	But he'd watched her figuratively moving some distance
from him, trying to take stock of circumstances, especially since Bobby, she and
Drew had grown closer socially over their outings as members of the crew.  Just
as with Rich Adams, the company's accountant, she fell into a warm, brotherly
relationship with Drew.  One of the three had only to be near one or the other
and they were talking like long-lost friends.  Hal understood that he was the
catalyst.  He had hoped for a larger role.  Thought he had it with Drew.

As Hal pondered these dynamics, he decided he wanted to do something nice for
the Coopers.  Maybe that would reassure Angie that he wasn't losing it.  He
sounded Drew out about taking the Coopers out to dinner.  Drew paused a
moment.  "If you only want to treat them, that would be great.	I doubt they
have taken many occasions to have a really nice dinner out."  Drew's eyes
gleamed with mischief.	"That is, if 'really nice' means expensive."  Then he
laughed in that way that warmed Hal's heart, the way Richie Collins's laughter
had.  Drew sobered a bit.  "But if you want to talk, you ought to have dinner
catered at your home.  Or at mine.  Only in an intimate setting could you have
a real discussion. . . . If by 'real discussion' you mean getting at some
issues."

"Why do you think I want to talk to the Coopers about issues?  Do you know
something I don't?"

Hal was aware that Drew's answer was carefully crafted:  "I don't think, after
all your wonderful assistance in getting them started at work and in a home,
that you've had an opportunity to take any measure of how they're doing.  I
thought perhaps that's what you had in mind when you suggested treating them to
dinner."

Hal studied Drew, which was always a pleasurable activity.  There was no way he
was going to share with Drew his real motive in inviting the Coopers to dinner.
He knew he couldn't easily explain his reaction to Brett - yet.  He hoped that
would come with time.  If Angie had difficulty understanding it, Drew certainly
would.	He flashed suddenly on his first conversation with Drew at Murphy's
Gym, when he'd suggested Drew join the crew.  Drew had literally run away.  He
certainly didn't want Drew running away again.


While Drew was quite open with Hal because, Hal knew, Drew loved him,
sometimes in conversations Drew was so damned clever that he could be serving
two purposes without anyone's ever being aware of the fact until much later.  He
wasn't being deceptive or two-faced, merely adroit.  Hal knew the ability owed
to Drew's experience in corporate politics.  Drew had survived corporate
pogroms, downsizing, and internecine warfare when others hadn't - and he'd done
it without compromising his integrity or professionalism.  Hal had seen him at
work in the corporate setting only a few times but more often in conversations
with members of the crew.  Hal came away admiring Drew's skill in reading people
and situations and handling them deftly.

So Hal was thinking that Angie and Drew could have talked between themselves
about Brett Carter and the way he had affected Hal.  In that case, Drew might be
trying to set something up so that they could address that issue.  Or he could
be merely setting up an opportunity for Hal to see where his efforts had placed
the Coopers.  Drew knew in how much affection and esteem Hal held Angie and
Bobby.

Hal and Drew had even talked about suggesting to Bobby that he start some
distance courses toward finishing his degree.  Maybe Angie too.  Drew had
suggested that Kenji and Tonio had degrees to finish.  Maybe they could even
suggest that Jamal start college study, for Drew had stated emphatically that
Jamal could succeed in that setting with the right kind of encouragement and
support.  Maybe the crew should talk up their resuming their studies the way
they talked up meeting personal workout goals at Murphy's Gym.	In Bobby's case,
maybe Hal could move him into a position better utilizing his talents in Winston
Construction Company, if that's what Bobby wished.  Of one thing Hal was
certain:  Drew would never act in anything other than Hal's best interests.

"Which - your home or mine?" Hal asked.

"Well . . . now that I think about it, if it's my home, it isn't familiar turf.
Your home is.  Turf isn't an issue unless there will be anything sensitive
involved in the dinner discussion.  My home is strange ground to them.	It will
require acclimation on their part, which could distract from a heart-to-heart.
Your home isn't unfamiliar turf.  After all, we all lived there together for a
couple of days while I was recovering from a sprained ankle.  We got along
swimmingly there."

"Okay, my place."  Drew's eyebrows raised slightly, an unspoken question
answered - though not precisely.  "Any ideas for caterers?"

"Let me ask a few people at the office who are very much 'in the know' about
those things.  I'll call you with the information."

"Thanks," Hal said as he pulled Drew into a hot kiss, finally making Drew moan
with passion and Hal hum.
				 Hal's Home

Hal arranged for the dinner on a Saturday evening so that everyone would be
rested.  He had suggested that Drew come a little early and plan to stay the
night.	Drew quickly accepted, smiling big time in anticipation of a night of
bliss with his lover.  The Coopers arrived about a half hour after Drew.  Hal
had insisted on everyone's dressing casually.  The men wore polos, shorts,
sandals or penny loafers without socks.  Angie wore shorts, a maternity top, and
sandals.  Nearing the end of her seventh month, she was looking large.	She
would have to be, carrying Bobby's son.  However, she was healthy.  As she
showed more, the men at the site became more solicitous of her comfort and
well-being.  In groups of two or three, they dropped by each day to check on
her.  Oddly, Kenji was especially attentive.  To Angie, he was beginning to seem
like a little brother.	No doubt he was claiming her as a sister.  And the crew
included Bobby in their concern, asking after his feelings.  Angie talked to
Rich Adams almost every day, and Drew called her every day to check in.  'Really
like a family,' Hal thought.  The crew was a herd of putative brothers for Angie
and Bobby, and the Coopers were thriving on it.

As he prepared for his guests, Hal knew better than to ask:  he had a gin and
tonic for Drew, beers for him and Bobby, and a fizzy fruit drink for Angie.
They sat around on the deck, enjoying their drinks and conversation as the
caterer, an efficient, cheery young matron by the name of Carol Lubbert, heated
the dishes and prepared the dining room.  It was a beautiful, cool evening.  Hal
moved the conversation toward the Cooper's current situation by asking about the
baby.  They were taking a class about birth and newborns at a local hospital, so
the Coopers excitedly disclosed details about that.

At a lull in the conversation, Bobby looked meaningfully at Hal for a bit, then
spoke:	"I bet you wondered what landed at your door the day Angie and I showed
up, looking for a job."

"Why would you say that?" Hal asked, smiling.

"A woman almost midterm pregnant, living in a camper in the bed of an old
pickup with almost no brakes?  Come on, Hal, you had to wonder why we would
leave our moorings.  You had to think it showed poor judgment, a bunch of
foolish kids jumping out into the world at a time when they ought to be looking
for a nest.  I'm right, aren't I?"

Hal smiled slowly.  "Yes, I had to wonder.  But you know my background.  I'm
always ready to give a helping hand to special folks."

"Special folks?" Angie inquired, smiling at Hal.

"Folks who are fighting more than ordinary odds.  You WERE doing that, weren't
you?"

"Yeah," Bobby replied, looking to Angie.  "Want to tell them the story,
Sweetheart?"

Angie smiled back at him before facing Hal and Drew.  "I'd only seen Bobby on
the community college campus where we both were taking classes.  Like a lot of
the women students, I thought he was a real hunk of man.  But I was dating
Dennis Huxley, the son of the richest man in the county.  People thought I'd be
set for life if I played my cards right.  Mr. Huxley owned a lot of the town and
a lot of the county.  Everyone knew lots of people and relatives working in one
of the many Huxley-owned businesses or factories.  Mr. Huxley was pretty nice.
Dennis was initially, but after a while one realized that he was spoiled.  Used
to getting his own way."

"Of course, it couldn't be enough that Dennis was rich.  He was handsome too.
Six feet tall, broad shoulders, sculpted pecs, muscles everywhere, auburn hair,
dark eyebrows over smoldering - I'm not kidding - smoldering eyes.  Long solid
nose, full lips, little square chin and . . ." here she glanced at Bobby, who
had been squirming a bit at Angie's enthusiastic description of Dennis Huxley,
"and other endowments just as noble."  She looked at Hal and Drew, "but he
couldn't match Bobby."	At this point a gentle smile was born on Bobby's face.
"I discovered that with Dennis, one got good looks and a penchant for
controlling others but not much else.  With Bobby, I got the good looks; a
decent, strong man; a caring heart plus genuine, warm, protective, uplifting
love; and a talented, intelligent friend."  She blew Bobby a kiss.  He blew one
back to her.  Drew and Hal exchanged smiles, unnoticed by the couple too intent
on acknowledging their love for each other.

"I'll tell you guys, it's heaven," Angie remarked, looking at Bobby, "feeling
this guy on top of you, in you, holding you gently in his muscular arms, his
weight bearing down on you, running your fingers through all the hair on that
magnificent body."  While Bobby was squirming, she paused to take a quick
breath.  Drew and Hal had leaned forward at Angie's description of being bedded
by Bobby, their eyebrows arching in interest.

"Dear," Bobby broke in, "you're preaching to the choir."  They all laughed as
they settled back into their chairs.

Drew was heard to softly utter, "Damned horny choir now!" causing more
laughter.

"Bobby and I started sitting next to each other in Accounting II," Angie
explained, continuing their story.  "We quickly got to know each other.  It felt
so natural, at first discussing problems we'd had in class assignments, then
disclosing our worries, our values, our dreams to each other.  We moved our
chats to a coffee bar not far from campus, and then we'd grab lunch together
sometimes.  Dennis heard one too many times about our being together.  He
ordered me to drop my friendship with Bobby.  I told Dennis he didn't choose my
friends.  He was surprised, asking why I thought he didn't have a right to do so
since we were in love and had been intimate with each other - 'nearly married,'
he'd said."  Bobby quickly looked away so that his jealousy was not evident - he
imagined - to Drew and Hal.  "I reminded him that I didn't choose his friends or
manage his other relationships.  He became angry, telling me that, if that's the
way I felt, I could spend all my time with Bobby.  He'd date other women.  And
he did."

"Of course, I knew that Dennis, being egotistical, thought I'd collapse for lack
of his company.  Instead, Bobby and I started dating.  We grew serious right
away.  Dennis didn't like that.  After a couple of weeks, as I was walking home
from campus, he pulled along the curb.	He asked me if I missed him, that
devilish grin on his face.  I said I didn't."

"'Wrong answer,' he said, unamused.   He told me that our relatives who worked
in Huxley businesses could lose their jobs if I 'continued down the road with
that Cooper guy.'"

"I said nothing else, so he pulled away.  Bobby and I had a date that evening.
I told him about Dennis's threats.  I was worried for all our relatives.  I
started crying.  Bobby pulled me into his arms."  She blushed.	"We couldn't
help it.  We had to comfort each other . . . but we didn't have any protection
with us.  We decided that just this one time wouldn't result in anything
serious."

Now Angie grinned mischievously.  "I awoke in his arms in his bed about 3 a.m.,
feeling very different.  I knew I was pregnant."

An ornery gleam infused Drew's eyes.  "His little racer sperm thought your
fallopian tubes were the Indianapolis Speedway, so they wasted no time blasting
down the causeway right to that egg?" Drew asked, a grin plastered on his face.
Drew's imagery evoked laughter.

Then Angie sobered.  "A pregnancy test kit confirmed what I already knew.  So
over a couple of days we discussed what we could do.  There was no way we
wanted our families to pay for what had happened.  We concluded that we'd have
to leave town before anyone found out about our circumstances.	We didn't even
tell our families.  If they knew, they'd become targets for Dennis if he learned
that they knew about us and our plans."

Here Bobby jumped in.  "We pooled our funds.  I already had the pickup.  I knew
about a fella who had had the camper for sale for over a year.	We bought that.
I picked it up one night.  The next day we went to the courthouse where we were
married by a judge.  A couple of clerks who were friends were our witnesses.  We
left town immediately after that.  We got this far when the money was about to
run out and the pickup was ailing.  You know the rest of the story.  We have to
express again, Hal, how grateful we are to you.  You were a lifeline for us.
And it's been great ever since.  It's like we walked into another family to take
the place of the ones we left."  Hal beamed, raising his pilsner in a toast.
They all clicked their drinks and sipped to the Coopers.

"Gosh," Drew suddenly said.  "Your families must be beside themselves, maybe
thinking you are victims of foul play."

"We anticipated that," Angie said.  We mailed Bobby's parents and my parents a
short letter explaining what had transpired, that we were married, and that we
were moving elsewhere to protect them."

"They must still really miss you," Drew said, his brow knitted in concern.

Angie and Bobby smiled.  "Well, they've just begun quick, quiet trips here to
visit us.  They are so happy for us.  You can't keep news like this a secret in
a town like that, so Dennis eventually heard about it.	He got drunk most of one
weekend, telling any of our relatives he met that they were out of a job.
Bobby's and my dad decided to pay a call on Dennis's father, explaining about
the threats Dennis was throwing around town.  That was all it took.  Mr. Huxley
had a talk with his son.  The threats stopped."

"And Dennis?" Drew asked, always one to want every loose thread tied down.

"He wasn't seen around town much for a couple of weeks.  His dad sent him back
down to the floor in one of his factories where the new hires labored.	He
worked there for a couple of months.  I think he's started dating a little
again."

"So how are your families feeling about the arrival of a new grandchild?" Hal
asked, sending the Coopers off into little stories of already doting
grandparents and siblings on Bobby's side of the family.

Drew looked at Angie.  She knew he was silently asking about her brother in
Europe.  "My brother wrote that he'd come home for a visit sometime after our
son is born.  He and his lover will stay with us. If my parents want to see him,
they'll have to come over here."  Drew smiled, the last thread in place.

			The Construction Site

Max couldn't believe how hot Brett Carter, the newly hired college graduate,
looked when he appeared at the work site for his first day on the job.	He knew
that Brett had planned his dress down to the last detail:  the gold-tan work
boots laced half way up the high tops with just a lip of tight folds of white
cotton socks showing above the shaft, accenting the gold fur on Brett's legs.
Brett's major item of clothing was the shortest cut-offs Max had ever seen,
affording a glimpse, when Brett bent over, of the bottom curves of his tan ass
cheeks and their coating of gold down.	Brett managed to bend over a lot through
the day.  His outfit was enhanced by a light grey tee shirt cut off just below
his pecs, which allowed his golden brown aureoles and pointed nipples to pop out
when he raised his arms.  A bandana tied in a narrow strip around Brett's golden
head completed the effect.  Deep in his gut, Max felt the display of masculine
beauty was for Hal's benefit.

Max had sent Brett to help Kenji tape seams of the sheetrock that Ted and Levi
were putting up for the walls.	"Hi," Bret said in greeting to Kenji.  "Don't
know if you remember meeting me a few weeks ago when I came to apply for this
job.  Mind if I work with you?	That guy over there," he gestured toward Max,
"sent me over here.  Brett Carter," he said, extending his hand to Kenji.

"Kenji Hamada" was the reply as Kenji extended his hand - warily.  "I don't
mind if you work with me."

"How long have you worked here?" Brett asked.

"About six months."

"I just graduated from college.  I'm working this summer to satisfy the 'rents
before I study for an MBA this fall."

"Sounds like you have your life all mapped out."

"Through a couple of years after grad school anyway."

"So what happens after the MBA?" Kenji asked, knowing Brett would pick up
this line of conversation and carry it far, for it afforded Brett a chance to
talk about himself, which he did for quite some time.  Then Kenji, who had
premonitions about allowing Brett to become too close, kept him going by
remarking "Oh" at properly timed junctures or by adding a "Hm-m-m-m" to keep
the oh's from being obvious.

Suddenly Brett jolted Kenji's attention back to his voice:  "Say, is Hal
married?"

Kenji paused long enough that Brett wondered if he was to receive an answer
from this handsome, aloof fellow.  "He was once.  Not now."

"So what do you know about Hal?" Brett asked.

"He's my boss."

"Anyone serious in his life?"

Even cool Kenji had to block a reflex that would have arched his brows in
surprise at the question he'd just been asked.	"Yes."

Brett's brows beetled, signaling his disappointment.  "What's her name?"

"His name is Drew Nichols."

The slightest smile flitted across Brett's lips and was gone as quickly as it
had arrived.  His suspicions and fantasies were confirmed.

"Is he here?"

"He's not a member of the work crew.  He's an administrator in a corporation
here in the city."  Kenji noted a slight narrowing of Brett's eyes.  "He's also
one of the crew at Murphy's Gym."

"Are Hal and this Drew partners?"

"You'd have to ask them."

Then Brett took a tack in the conversation that made Kenji more wary.  "Does Hal
have any business partners?"

"You'd have to ask him.  I just work in his construction company."

Max's eyes had passed over the visual field filled by Kenji and Brett as he was
looking elsewhere, but something he noted in the corner of his eye caused them
to dart back to Kenji.	Max could tell he wasn't happy.  It was never easy to
tell what Kenji was feeling or thinking, but after living with him for almost
six months, he knew the signs.	It wasn't what Kenji did; it was what he didn't
do.  Ordinarily, Kenji was quick, nimble, graceful.  But when he was stressed,
it was as though everything about him became rigid.  Brett was clearly getting
on Kenji's nerves.  Max heard a supply truck from Benton's Lumber Yard pulling
into the site to deliver building materials, so he called Brett over and
explained where he wanted the materials and how he wanted them arranged, sending
him out to help the deliveryman.

Max walked over to Kenji.  "Babe," he said in greeting, for he knew Kenji liked
Max addressing him that way.  He'd never admit it, but Max had already intuited
that Kenji was hungry for informality and easy but genuine warmth and love.
Once Max had perceived these special needs of Kenji's, he realized Kenji had
grown up without them.	The rest of Kenji's former life was still a mystery to
Max.  "Why are you upset?"

Kenji didn't answer for a bit, but Max knew he would.  He was just choosing his
words carefully.  "I felt as though I were being pumped for information," Kenji
replied.

"What information?"

"Personal stuff about Hal."

"L-i-i-i-k-e?" Max asked, drawing his voice out.

Kenji glanced at Max, seeing some concern in his eyes. "Like whether Hal has
been married, whether he has a romantic interest, whether he and Drew are
partners, whether Hal has any business partners."

Max's brows and frown registered displeasure that Brett was wasting no time in
fulfilling Max's suspicions about him.	Max just shook his head to indicate that
he'd heard.  "Let me know if he quizzes you again."

"Why does he want to know all that stuff?" Kenji asked.

Max sighed.  "Unless I miss my guess, he intends to worm his way into Hal's
life.  He needs information to know how to go about doing that."

"What about Drew?" Kenji asked with some concern of his own expressed.

"Do you think Brett would care anything at all about Drew?"

Kenji reluctantly shook his head in the negative.

Two days later, Drew had dropped by the construction site, entering the trailer.
Brett saw him right away.  "Who's that?" he asked Tonio, with whom he had
been working.

"Drew Nichols."

"That shrimp is Hal's boyfriend?" a somber Brett asked as though the very
prospect were ridiculous.

"Something like that," Tonio answered, carefully vague in his reply, for Brett
had by that time plied them all with plenty of personal questions about Hal.
Tonio ceased his work for the moment, making certain Brett was looking at him.
"By the way, all of us like Drew.  No one here will like your putting him down
like that.  Just a word to the wise," Tonio warned, turning back to his work.

In fact, Brett had been so concerted in his pressing members of the crew for
details about Hal's life that it put the rest of the crew on guard.  They'd
talked quietly among themselves about it.  They didn't like it.  Though no
command had been uttered, they closed ranks, not automatically taking Brett into
their circle and confidences as they had each other new member of the crew.

The crew was put off by other factors as well.	At Murphy's gym and sometimes
at the construction site, Brett had pushed the group into little competitions
with Hal always as the focus.  Over a couple of weeks, he'd set Hal against
every one of them in some kind of competition.	It didn't make any difference
whether it was pushing the limit in lifting, reps on the machines, or whatever.
He'd finally set Hal against Drew on the track, competing to see who could run a
long distance in the shortest amount of time.  Every time Hal beat one of them,
Brett was all over Hal, pulling him into a sweaty embrace, kissing him on the
cheek.	Hal seemed to be grateful for Brett's attention, losing sight of the
effect Hal's victories had on the members of the crew.	Predictably, Brett never
set himself in competition against Hal.  They gradually realized that Brett had
cast himself as Hal's cheerleader, conditioning Hal to hugs and physical
caresses as rewards when he won.

At the same time, the crew noted how excited, even agitated, Brett was during a
competition, how his eyes were alight after Hal won.  After competing against
every member of the crew, Brett started branching out in the weights area,
pulling strangers over to compete against Hal.	More Brett machinations for the
crew not to like.  Out of earshot of Hal and Brett, they complained about how
Brett had taken over their workout time, changed their group dynamics.
Meanwhile, Drew had grown quieter.

				  Drew and Rich

About three quarters of the way through one of the crew's workout sessions at
Murphy's Gym, Rich Adams had suggested quietly to Drew that they move up to
the indoor track to jog.  Rich really wanted to sound Drew out to see if he was
upset.	Drew confessed to being puzzled about Brett's intent.  "I think he's a
gym groupie," Rich had said, his arm thrown over Drew's shoulder as they made
their way to the track.

"Gym groupie?" Drew inquired.

"A college jock who misses the roar of the crowd.  So he hangs around a gym,
trying to recreate the battles of the gridiron, court or track," Rich explained.
"I see them around here every once in a while.	They don't seem to stay long.
They are looking for something they'll never find here."

"What's that?" Drew asked with interest, looking up at Rich, his eyes wide,
taking in Rich's information.

"Yesterday . . . the excitement of a stage of life that's over for them but that
they can't move past.  They really need to find a team to play on again.  I
guess that's what some of them do, and then it begins to work for them."

Drew threw an arm around Rich's waist as they slowly climbed the stairs to the
indoor track.  "You're speaking from experience, aren't you?"

"Yeah. . . .When I didn't make it in the minor leagues, I had to face facts.
It's hard to let go of dreams like that in which one has invested so much
energy, time, and hope."  Rich realized that he wouldn't ever betray that
feeling to most of his male friends, but he would to Drew.  As soon as one
shared confidences with Drew, he had a champion who would work tirelessly for
his buddy's well-being.  "So I'm not putting gym groupies down.  Sometimes, I'd
like to jump in and help some of them.	Tried that once in fact.  I'll never do
it again.  He wasn't ready for reality yet.  They're still hanging on to
yesterday."

"But Brett won't find a substitute like a team.  Not enough time.  He's only
here for the summer."  Or he's found it in the crew," Drew finished, extending
from Rich's explanation.

"Right," Rich said, pulling Drew against his side in a brotherly gesture.  They
climbed several steps in silence.

"Have you noticed," Drew asked, "how Brett is all over Hal when Hal wins
against one of us?"

Rich's lips pursed.  He'd been asked a question he didn't want to answer, but
Drew was too special for him to duck the query.  "Yes."

"Have you noticed that Hal not only welcomes it but seems to need it more and
more?" Drew continued.

More time elapsed before Rich answered.  "Yeah."

"Did you know that Brett's been pushing Hal for a couple of weeks to go out,
just the two of them?"

Rich kept his face from registering the concern he really felt, for he'd
expected just such a tack from Brett.  "No."

"Brett drops by the office more often when Hal is there, going into his office
to thank him effusively for giving him a job, for allowing him to learn so much,
for relating something new he's learned or accomplished, pushing for Hal to
share the business side of the company so that he can learn more, almost begging
Hal to go out with him to talk.  There's always lots of hugging, and Brett has
his hands all over Hal, especially his ass."

"You've been talking to Angie," Rich intuited.

"Yes."

"Don't worry about Brett insinuating himself into Hal's business.  It's a
principle of Hal's that he learned from Walter Henderson.  You know who Walter
was, right?" Rich asked Drew, looking down into those intense blue eyes.

"Yes, the bequest he left Hal allowed him to start Winston Construction
Company."

Rich shook his head in the affirmative.  "Walt taught Hal to hold his business
cards close to his vest.  I'm his accountant, but I don't know everything about
Hal's plans.  It's an ingrained behavior, so Brett's butting his head against a
wall there.  But I don't like it that he's being so nosy."

"You've all seen that Brett is growing more important to Hal?"

It was another question Rich had hoped wouldn't come, but he loved and
respected this man too much to duck it.  "Yeah."  He and most everyone else had
talked about Hal's change, and their discussions had pretty much followed his
and Drew's present line of conversation.  The crew's concern started when they
noted that Hal started spending more time with Brett in the gym than Drew.
Bobby and Rich and the others had stepped in to latch onto Drew so that he
wouldn't feel alone and maybe wouldn't notice, one of the reasons Rich had
suggested this interlude between them.	Obviously they had failed in meeting the
latter goal.

"I hear that when Hal leaves the office," Drew continued, "to work with you
guys, that he always partners with Brett now.  I hear that his slips in calling
Brett 'Richie' are more frequent.  Some of the guys think Brett encourages Hal
to call him Richie.  They even hear Brett initiating conversations about
Richie."  Rich said nothing, but he'd heard the same himself.  He wondered from
whom Drew had acquired this information.  Well, they were all buddies, and the
crew had long ago accepted Drew as one of their number.  They not only liked
him, but they respected him, looked up to him although Rich didn't think Drew
ever caught on to that.

A big sigh escaped Drew.  "Did you know that Hal and I aren't together as much
away from the site and this gym?"

"No," Rich said, feeling discomfort in his stomach.  "Just remember, Drew.
We're almost to midsummer.  After the Fourth of July, we'll slide right down to
the end of the summer.	Brett will leave then."

"That's still a lot of time for mischief to occur," Drew muttered as they moved
out onto the indoor track. "You know, Rich, it's ironic:  there's always a snake
in paradise, isn't there?"  Drew didn't realize how prophetic his words were.

(To be continued.)