Lois and Carolyn, thanks for the beta...you’re the greatest!
Chapter 43 – Legal Partners Friday Morning – (Day 47) Brian was awakened by the tickle of soft blond hairs against his cheek and the feeling of Justin against him. And for Brian this was exactly the way he wanted to wake up every morning. Justin finally stirred and opened his eyes to look at Brian. “Good Morning, Sunshine,” Brian whispered. “Hmmmmmm,” Justin said, snuggling in closer. “No, no…none of that. We have to get up. We have to see Max, so I can make an honest, legal partner out of you.” “And, I out of you.” “I’m starting to like the idea of being tied to you,” Brian said with a smile. “Enough to give up the fantasy of me being tied in various positions to the bedpost?” “Now that’s a lot to ask,” Brian teased. “Maybe you’re right,” Justin said with a yawn and a stretch. “About my fantasies?” Brian asked hopefully. “No, when you said that we should probably get this day started,” Justin stretched again. “Although I would much rather spend all day in bed with you,” he added, snuggling close again. “I guess we could shower together, that would give us more time…not to mention save water.” “Fortunately the house has a much bigger water heater than the loft. And, we tend to save neither time nor water. But I’m sure that after putting up with that tiny shower in my loft, it will feel good to be back in a shower where we can maneuver.” “Absolutely. And if you roll off of me, I might even treat you to breakfast before we meet with Max. That way I don’t have to worry about your stomach rumbling while we’re signing all those papers.” “Why Brian, you say the sweetest things,” Justin said, reaching up to give Brian a gentle kiss. Brian and Justin finally made it into the shower. They were both eager to sign the papers in Max’s office. Even during the shower both of them couldn’t help thinking about what this was going to mean. They enjoyed the touch of each other during the shower, but then they always did. Even the simple task of applying shampoo to the other was a sensual experience. A round of fucking in the shower brought this point home as they each remembered that they would have a lifetime of this. Justin also sank to his knees under the shower spray to give Brian a blowjob. And afterwards, when Brian pulled Justin up for another kiss, the final round in the shower could only be described as lovemaking. They did manage to eventually leave the shower to get dressed to start the day. They were both looking forward to the day ahead although neither of them would really mention anything directly about it. They had breakfast at the Wagon Wheel Diner near the house, where Justin had blueberry pancakes with bacon and sausage, while Brian tried to content himself with one egg and dried whole grain toast. Of course, Brian found his breakfast more palatable because he continued to swipe morsels of pancakes and bacon from Justin’s plate. “I miss our morning lattes,” Brian remarked wistfully. “Just as soon as we get back to New York, we’ll solve that problem,” Justin teased. “I don’t think I can wait that long,” Brian mumbled in protest. “So, we’ll stop at Starbucks on the way to Max’s office,” Justin easily suggested. “You’re more than just a pretty face, aren’t you?” Brian said, gently touching Justin’s arm. He wanted to do more, but he remembered he was in West Virginia not New York City. After breakfast, they stopped at Starbucks and picked up Mocha Lattes to go, not just for themselves, but Justin thought they should take lattes for Max and Pam too. Brian chuckled to himself as he thought that most people would celebrate an official union with something like champagne. But true to form, he and Justin were definitely nontraditional, and lattes were the perfect proof of what he already knew. *** Once again, as Brian and Justin arrived at the offices of Caulfield & Caulfield, Pam immediately greeted them, “Mr. Kinney, I see that you and Mr. Taylor are back.” “Yes, we’re back again. Here Pam,” Brian said, “In view of what Justin and I are about to do, we wanted you to have this,” he said, handing her a latte. “That was very thoughtful of you. Thanks. I rushed in this morning without my usual coffee. You don’t realize it, but you just saved me,” Pam said with a smile, taking a sip of her latte. “Mr. Caulfield will be right with you.” Brian and Justin made themselves comfortable, but for some reason couldn’t resist finding reasons to touch each other. Pam watched the two of them from her position behind the desk, and she couldn’t resist smiling to herself as she savored her morning surprise. *** “Good Morning. You two must be eager. That’s what I like to see. Why don’t you follow me?” Max rambled on as he approached Brian and Justin in the waiting area. Once they reached the conference room, there were now two stacks of papers waiting for signatures. Justin immediately smiled a victorious smile. “Max, we brought you a latte in honor of what we’re about to do,” Brian said triumphantly. “I’ll definitely agree that it’s probably a little early for champagne. This is definitely better.” Max said with smile. He had his first sip and took a moment to savor the taste. “Thanks.” Then he finally said, “Okay, so are we ready?” “Definitely, let’s get this done. Then I’m off to the office,” Brian said. “Ever the romantic,” Justin remarked, “I’m definitely ready now, too.” Max smiled as he watched the two men. For the entire few minutes that they had been in the conference room, they had found excuses to continually touch each other. Nothing too overt but to Max’s eagle eyes, everything was so apparent. These were two people, who loved each other. “So are we ready?” Max asked once more. Both Brian and Justin nodded yes. “Let me get Robert in here so he can notarize certain documents as we proceed.” Max went over and pushed the buzzer. Robert entered and made himself comfortable, taking out his seal and other implements. “I guess the best way to do this is to handle it one document at a time. I will describe each document and go over its provisions. I’ll then give you time to read the document for yourself. Then you can sign it as required. To make things easier I used different colored flags so you would each know where to sign. The blue flags are for you, Justin…the yellow ones for you, Brian. Once everything has been settled about the first document, we’ll move on to the next one. We’ll do this until both stacks are complete. How does that sound?” Again, Brian and Justin nodded their agreement. “Before we begin, let me give you the legislative history of Legalized Domestic Partnerships. The congress was very conservative when the Legalized Domestic Partnership was created. They really didn't want to pass the legislation, but since it looked liked the measure had the necessary votes anyway, a few of the more conservative legislators added several restrictive clauses. One of those clauses provided that once granted, the parties had to go to court to dissolve the partnership...no simple dissolution would be allowed by mutual consent like a divorce or regular partnership. That’s part of the reason that most gay couples continue to take the simple commitment ceremony route. Some took the marriage route in places like Massachusetts or Canada, but the unions are not universally recognized in this country. Most filed simple statements of domestic partnerships after the ceremonies for limited things like insurance coverage, mortgages, etc. But none of these actions had the true force of law or the legal ramifications of the Legalized Domestic Partnerships. The requirement to go to court to dissolve the agreement was the legislature's way of striking back at being forced to legalize something that many members were dead set against. The other provision they required had to do with registration. Although the legalized domestic partnership is nationally recognized, the couple has to register their partnership in each state of residence.” “Thank you Max, for the political science lesson, but now can we get on with this,” Brian said impatiently. “Eager are we Brian?” Max said with laugh. “Although, I can’t say that I blame you.” Max added looking over at Justin. “Ok, let’s get to it.” Max started with the first paper in the stack and proceeded as he described. Brian and Justin signed where needed. They continued through the stacks signing various types of documents including wills, powers of attorney, insurance documents, etc. As they continued to go through the stack, Brian became concerned about the toll this might be taking on Justin’s hand, so Brian began to massage Justin’s right hand between signing each document. Max couldn’t help smiling as he watched the gesture. Max had seen Brian be a tough negotiator during many business deals. He continued to be surprised by the tenderness that Brian showed in dealing with Justin. Max, once again, took it all in but made no comment. Several hours later, Max finally said, “Okay, here is the final document, the Agreement to Legalize Domestic Partnership.” Max went on to explain the provisions of the agreement. He reminded Brian and Justin that everything was legally binding. Once again, he reminded them to revoke this agreement would require corresponding legal action on everyone’s part. “A marriage would only require a mutual agreement and a simple divorce on the grounds of irreconcilable differences. To break this agreement will require a day in court. I just want to be sure that you understand that. This final document is an ironclad contract. Few couples are willing to commit to this extent.” “We heard you the first time, Max,” Brian complained. “We’ve talked about this Max. We really do know what we’re doing,” Justin said in response. “Max, we’ve already made the commitment. These papers just legalize a decision we both already made,” Brian concurred. “A commitment that already exists.” Max nodded his acceptance, as he watched them sign the final document. Robert notarized the document, and both Brian and Justin were each given a copy. “You realize that this will be recorded, and a public announcement will appear in the papers here and in New York. It usually takes about a week for it to be published. Usually very few people actually read these notices in the paper. But then again, you two are so high profile that I expect the media to be all over this fairly quickly. I just want to be sure that you are prepared,” Max cautioned again. Brian and Justin indicated that they understood. Finally, everything was concluded. Robert had completed his work, so he quietly left the room. Brian swept Justin into his arms and said, “You’re now stuck with me forever and ever because I’m never going to let you go.” Justin smiled a full wattage Sunshine smile, “You’ll never be able to escape me either. We’re going to be together forever and ever.” Brian and Justin slid their arms around each other’s waist. They said goodbye to Max. They even said goodbye to Pam as they were leaving. They got in the car and both of them finally remembered to breathe. Brian reached across the seat and pulled Justin into a passionate kiss. They ever so slowly broke apart and once again reached over to kiss each other again. When Justin finally settled back his seat, Brian reach across and touched Justin’s hand. He intertwined his fingers with Justin’s. Brian slowly lifted and kissed Justin’s wrist ever so gently. “I know that I have to get to the office, but I think we need to stop at the loft first,” Brian said quietly. Justin just smiled because he had the exact same thought. “I want you inside me,” Justin responded softly. “There is nowhere else that I would rather be,” Brian added. And with that, Brian pulled the car out of the parking space.