Stepping through the doorway of their 'new' house, Danny looked around in awe at the obvious opulence of their new lifestyle. "Wow!" He breathed as he eyed the deep plush carpets, the ornate furnishings, the large bay windows and lanai door that lead out to the private beach outside, "The Governor is sparing no expense, is he?"

McGarrett glanced around, seemingly unimpressed with his new surroundings, "We are dealing with some very wealthy and influential men, Danno."

The younger man nodded as he glanced up the impressive stairway that lead up to the first floor before he glanced towards his boss, "I guess if we are a couple we will be sharing the bedroom."

McGarrett nodded, "These men are very clever people. I am sure one of the first things they will covertly check when they are our dinner guests tonight is the sleeping arrangements, Danno. "

"I guess I should have asked if you snore." Danny grinned mischievously, "Because if you do I guess it's too late ask Kono to bring me some ear plugs before we go to bed tonight."

"I don't snore!" McGarrett grinned as he led the way up the stairs, silently relieved that his young friend and Second-in-Command appeared to have accepted the undercover role into which they had both been thrust. The entire case rested on how well they could pull their roles off.

All thoughts of snoring and blanket hog potential abruptly few out of their minds once they entered the main bedroom which was a study in decadence. The room was palatial; it was so large that it was bigger that McGarrett and Danny's apartments combined. The ceiling was high and there was a large chandelier in the middle which bathed everything in soft light. The ornate dark wood furniture undoubtedly cost more than a house in the most expensive beachside suburb in Hawaii and the bed itself was incredibly big, filled with enough fluffy pillows and warm blankets that there would be no issue with pillows and blankets. It was big enough that five fully-grown men could fit into the bed without being squashed like sardines.

"Well, I see that space won't be an issue here," McGarrett noted drolly as he watched Danny walk over to the bed and throw his luggage onto the velvet ottoman at the end of the bed before starting to fish for his small case of toiletries in his luggage.

The younger man turned to face him, his features carefully schooled into an impassive mask. "I'm going to grab a shower. See you in a bit for dinner?" Danny flashed a warm smile at McGarrett as the man walked across the wide expanse of the room and crossed into a door where the ensuite was, "Don't make anything too spicy!" he added before disappearing behind the door with a soft click.

The dark haired detective approached the ottoman where Danny had been before depositing his travel bag next to his friend's. He caught a glimpse of something shiny in the dark recesses of the other man's bag. A keen sense of curiosity stole over him before he managed to stop his probing fingers before they descended into the bag to see what it was. Danny's personal life had nothing to do with him; he had learned long ago not to poke unwarranted into other people's personal business in his personal capacity. Doing something like this would have crossed an invisible line that he wasn't sure he wanted to cross.

To distance himself from this train of thought, he walked out of the bedroom and back down the stairs to a less intense setting before he switched his mind to thinking about what sort of things Danny would want to eat. He only knew that the man ate sandwiches and fast food at work.

It scared him slightly when he realized that he didn't know anything about what the man liked or disliked.

H50H50H50H50

The mouth watering aroma of steak barbequing greeted Danny as he walked through the large open glass sliding door and out onto the lanai.

"I thought we could have steak and salad with our guests for dinner." McGarrett announced as he turned the steak and nodded towards the table that was already set with cutlery, glasses and plates. A large bowl of salad sat in the middle next to a plate of fresh bread rolls and a jug of icy cold orange juice. "How do you like your steak?"

"Ummm...medium rare," Danny answered as he watched his boss place another piece of steak on the grill as he felt a small knot of dread form in his stomach at the thought of the targeted two guests Steve had invited for dinner the day they had 'purchased' the house. "Is there anything I can do?"

"Answer the door." McGarrett grinned as the front doorbell rung, "It sounds like our dinner guests have arrived already. Word won't take long to spread that there are new neighbors."

Danny swallowed hard and nodded as he turned to walk back inside, "I guess it's show time."

"Danno," Steve's soft call stopped the younger man and he waited until Danny turned back and looked at him, "I would have been surprised if they were not interested in us. I know you can do this."

The young detective smiled and nodded as he turned back to answer the door. If Steve believed that he could carry out the role, it gave him a renewed confidence within himself that he could as well. Danny padded out of the kitchen and across the living room to emerge into the entrance hallway. He rested his hand on the doorknob for a few moments to collect his composure before he plunged himself into this next persona, into a world where he was nothing but a fictitious construct. This was like a Hollywood movie but with higher stakes where so many things could go wrong. Schooling his features into something amiable, he wretched the heavy wooden door open, to come face to face with two people.

"Hello," he greeted cordially, "you must be Boris and Wilhem. Nice to meet you both, won't you please come in?" he stepped aside so the two men could walk in, before closing the door with a dull thud.

"Hi," the one named Wilhem greeted warmly. Danny felt distinctly uncomfortable when the man's dark blue gaze raked up and down the length of his body, as if assessing him. Things were further compounded by the fact that the two men were wearing very sophisticated Armani suits with matching crisp white shirts and complimentary silk ties that undoubtedly were more expensive than Danny's entire wardrobe. His best suit, which he happened to be wearing at the moment, had nothing on these. He allowed his eyes to drink in the sight of the two men in front of him.

"Thanks for inviting us for dinner," the shorter one, Boris, interjected. He was very exotic looking, with olive skin and dark green eyes and black curly hair that shone under the light from the chandelier above. There was something very aquiline about his appearance and Danny found himself reminded strongly of predatory cats.

"Indeed, it's always good to get to know the neighbors," Wilhem added surveying the surroundings. For all of Boris' distinctive exoticness, Wilhem was a contradiction in plain aristocratic elegance. There was no doubt that the man was handsome; people could swoon over his deep navy blue eyes which bordered on purple, the straight European nose, chiseled jaw and platinum hair. "We brought you a housewarming present."

From his stylishly Italian leather attaché case he extracted a bottle of fine cognac wrapped with a little red velvet bow on it and handed it to Danny. He allowed himself to peer at the bottle in his hands. While he was no fine wine connoisseur, he was able to recognize that it was indeed very expensive.

"Thank you very much." He said automatically, "Please make yourselves at home," he waved his hand in the general direction of the monstrosity of the leather sofa, "I shall go and put this in the wine bar and see how dinner is coming along. That should give you a chance to meet Steve. Won't be long."

"Sure, you do what you have to," Wilhem replied. And was it just him, or did the man's gaze linger on Danny's for a fraction more than what was friendly and considered normal?

"I'm looking forward to meeting, Steve," Boris added as Danny walked briskly over to the wine bar on the other side before disappearing into the kitchen. It was not exactly the most dignified exit he could have made but at least he fully avoided flat out running out of there.

Leaning across and softly running his hand up and down his partner's upper leg, Wilhem smiled. "See, told you the younger one was cute. By the tan and his muscles, I would say he is a surfer boy who loves playing in the water." He grinned when Boris growled with jealousy, "But I think you will find Steve is more to your liking." He whispered playfully.

Before Boris could respond to his lover's playful teasing, they were interrupted as a tall dark haired man emerged through the open lanai doors with his arm wrapped around the younger man's waist. "Hello," he greeted them warmly as he released Danny and stepped across with his hand outstretched to shake both of his guests' hands in welcome. "I am so glad that you could join us for dinner tonight. It is wonderful to meet and get to know our new neighbors."

Reaching for the tall man's hand, Boris smiled at the firm handshake, holding Steve's hand for a fraction longer than necessary, "I am really looking forward to getting to know both of you. Wilhem was so excited that we were getting new members in our small community."

"We're very happy to finally find such a close knit community where everyone is so nice and accepting, despite our, ah, differences," Steve quipped, raising his eyebrow in a meaningful manner as an arm snaked around Danny's hip to pull him closer as actions spoke volumes louder than words ever could. The young man played his part well, ducking his head and flushing slightly.

"Of course, we're very glad for you both too." Wilhem added, his lip curling "Why deny the heart what it wants?"

McGarrett gently cupped Danny's chin in his hand and raised the young man's face up towards his own and kissed him softly on the lips before he turned back and smiled at his guests who were grinning as they watched them. "The steaks are almost ready, shall we go out onto the lanai."

"Let's." Wilhem agreed eagerly as he followed the couple outside.