The Old Deringer, Part Seven

by J. Rosemary Moss

Genre: Fan Fiction (Bonanza)
Rating: PG

LINK TO PART ONE


Adam watched Liam sleep against his shoulder for a little while. He even shifted to put his arm around the kid and let the boy lean up against his side.

He was a surprisingly affectionate and tactile child, Adam reflected—but that didn’t mean that the kid trusted Adam yet. In fact, he’d made it clear that he didn’t. He just wanted to get as much out of Adam as he could before Adam abandoned him. Liam had specified that he wanted to get as much money from Adam as possible, but he was probably out for as much warmth as he could get as well.

But despite Liam’s cynicism, Adam already knew that he couldn’t abandon the kid. He still wasn’t sure what to do with him, but he’d figure out something.

Adam grinned suddenly. He wondered how much money Liam intended to get from him. Fifty dollars? A hundred? The kid had a very small world at present—he didn’t realize that he stood to gain far more from Adam than he could imagine right now.

But there was no way for Adam to explain that to him—not yet. He’d have figure it out for himself.

Adam tousled Liam’s hair and then gently nudged the boy off of him. Then he went over to his desk and pulled out some account books—he still had Ponderosa work to see to, he reminded himself. He’d have to put the boy out of his mind for a while and get to work on the contracts.

LINK TO PART EIGHT