Mending Dr. Steele: Chapter 50—Pathways and Discoveries

Wow, wow, and double wow! I’ve got a lot of Moms out there, lol. “Take care of yourself.” “Don’t overdo it.” “Your health comes first.” You guys make me feel so special and loved. The outpouring of love, emotion, and concern was AMAZING! Forgive me that I wasn’t able to respond to each of you personally, but I felt it ALL. Thank you so much!

I won’t overdo it, I promise. I want to live… but I SO love Christian and Ana. They make my life bright, although there was one part that was really very hard to write and even though I knew how it was going to turn out, I’m glad it’s over. I may let someone else edit it because it was just that hard to write. I’m actually thinking that I might ditch it because… oh, I don’t know why. Ultimately, it fits into the story but… I don’t know. We’ll see when I get to it. CG and Ana will tell me. They keep me company, you know. 😉

We have some strong feelings about a bitch named Kate and a poor little boy named Kevin, don’t we? I like that! I like that people are being pulled either way by how they want or think this story will turn out. I’ll tell you that part is already written, too (you guys know me… four or five chapters ahead).

It irritates me though that I have been reading some other stories and I see ideas that I have on other pages… not because I think they stole from me, but because I don’t want anyone to think I stole from them. You guys know that I work hard on my ideas—that I research most of them and others come from personal experience. Know that I would never take someone else’s idea, but that if I see an idea that I have or have written but have not published it yet, I’m not going to change my story.

I read the “hot air balloon” trip somewhere, but I had already written it, so I published it. I sent CG and Ana to wine country, then I read that somewhere… not exactly the same trip, but I knew that it was published before my trip to wine country. Now I have read a sexual act that my Ana and CG did in someone else’s story. I was sure that I had the mold on that one (ominous music playing). Lo and behold, I was wrong. Yet, I’m still not changing it. I wrote it my way, and I’m posting it when the time comes. I know my readers will know that I don’t steal ideas and although I am mooching off of E. L. James, both my CG and my Ana have strayed away from her version of them. So… on with the story!

Chapter 50—Pathways and Discoveries

STEELE

I am in desperate need of something familiar and I think the boys really need to blow off some steam. So, I awake on Saturday morning and plan Food and Libations for tonight. Daddy took Christian and Jason to the shooting range with him. Jason can’t handle a firearm yet, but he went along anyway to try to cure himself from cabin fever. I sent out a text around 10:00 to let everyone know that we were on for tonight at my condo and it feels like old times again—except I’ll have Gail and my very pregnant stepmother along.

Every night this week, I’ve awakened in the middle of the night to an empty bed and the sound of sad piano coming through the bedroom. He would come immediately to bed and fall right back to sleep after I retrieved him from his piano, but it never failed. Three nights straight, he’s up on the piano. He says that he’s not having nightmares, and hot sex on Thursday didn’t even prevent the nighttime wanderings.

Last night, I had a very productive therapy session with Ace. I decided to start journalizing my feelings for Carla. I have to get them sorted out one way or another so that I can confront her without going all over the place. We’ll see how that works out. When I got home, we had a lovely dinner, a beautiful talk, and we fell asleep in each other’s arms. Yet, he awoke again, playing lamenting songs that sounded like sorrowful rain and broken hearts. I didn’t retrieve him this time. I just sat down next to him and stroked his hair.

“I don’t know how to help him,” he said, and I knew he was talking about Elliot.

“No word from Kate?” I asked. He shook his head. “That’s the only thing that will solve this, Baby. Closure. It’s what caused the problems before and it’s what’s causing his heartache now. She knows that. She’s a vengeful, spiteful bitch that doesn’t realize that she’s stacking universal cards against herself. I’m just hoping that poor baby doesn’t have to pay for the sins of his mother.”

“…Or his father,” Christian lamented. I stroked his hair some more.

“The Greys are the most loving and kind family that I have ever met. You all welcome people into your hearts based on an introduction and a kind spirit. If that baby is so blessed to be a Grey, he will have all the love and affection his little heart can hold. If he’s not, then we can only pray for his well-being and move on. Either way, Elliot will have the closure that he needs. Right now, make sure that your brother knows that you love him, that he can always count on you. He’s lost and floundering right now—he’s rudderless. He needs strength and guidance that he can only get from you. Can you give him that? He really needs that.” Christian nodded.

“Yes… I can give him that,” he said.

“Good, now play me a song, and none of that sad rainy shit you’ve been playing.” He laughs at me.

“There are some pretty nice songs about rain, you know,” he corrected me.

“Then play one of those,” I commanded. He laughed again, then kissed me on my forehead.

“Thank you for fixing my piano,” he said, softly.

“You’re welcome,” I replied. He kissed me gently on the lips and began to play me one of those “nice” songs about the rain. By the time he had gotten halfway through the second one, I was asleep on his shoulder.

I write for about an hour in my Mommy Journal and decide that I’ve spent enough time thinking about Carla Morton. Gail and I have things to get from the Marketplace so I pack my supplies in my trunk and the three of us head down to Pike’s Place. I feel festive and the need to celebrate with my friends. So we quickly gather the things that we need from the market, including some fresh spring blooms, and head over to my condo.

Being here reminds me that Christian has told me nothing about Robyn Myrick or his connection to She-Thing. He had the key to my apartment and she had my stolen gun. Christian refused to let me come tonight without at least three members of security, so Chuck is inside the apartment while Williams—I keep forgetting his first name—and some new guy will be posted outside. Chuck and the other security guys help me move the furniture out of my living room and I lay several tartan blankets of different colors on the floor.

After Gail and I prepare the food, I change into a pair of denim short-short and a white shirt that ties up at my abdomen with 3/4 length sleeves trimmed in crocheted lace. I lay out trays of covered food on the tartan blankets with pillows scattered all around. We are having a combination indoor picnic/slumber party with just the original six of us along with Gail and Mandy. I have to say that my stepmom has packed on a few pounds carrying my dad’s baby. She is in her seventh month and she looks like she’s ready to drop any day now. Her butt is huge, though I don’t dare tell her that—and she can barely walk. Dad brings her all the way to the door and sits her gently on the sofa. He’s very attentive to her and doesn’t really want to leave her. He’s going with Christian and James to the once-a-month Saturday Boys Night. Elliot and Jason are going, too, so Christian is having his own form of F&L this evening… which really makes me happy.

I have to pry my father away from his wife and remind him that people are waiting for him. Truthfully, I want him to leave before Christian comes looking for him and someone has to pry him away from me.

Mandy is seated comfortably on the sofa while Gail and I continue to arrange our picnic—warm skirt-steak picnic burritos; potato salad; sandwiches-on-a-stick (cold deli sandwiches built on a skewer); cherry-tomato and basil salad; spicy pasta with chicken, spinach, and goat cheese; lemon cake; cherry-pistachio tea cake; ice cold lemonade, and whatever libations my friends bring with them. Of course, Allen shows up first in the loudest pair of Bermuda shorts I have ever seen.

“I said ‘picnic,’ Al, not loud and crazy beach party!” I say with a laugh.

“Hey, what better way to rush summer on in than with a sexy, gaudy pair of Bermudas?” Al says with a shrug. “Beautiful Amanda, you are positively glowing, my dear.”

“And you are full of shit, but thank you, Allen,” she laughs as she accepts a hug and a kiss on the cheek from my best friend.

“When is Little Jewel due again?” he asks her.

“June 16,” she responds, rubbing her belly. “A little under two months away.” Al whistles.

“I do not envy you ladies in your ability to harvest and bear children, but I do reserve the right to spoil them.”

“Get in line, Forsythe. This one is all mine,” I say, defensively, eliciting a laugh from Mandy.

“So it looks like I won’t have a shortage of babysitters,” she says.

“Are you kidding?” I tell her. “You may have to send out a search party for me once I get my hands on that baby!” We laugh again. I want to make sure that Mandy knows how much she means to me and my dad. I’m sure Daddy tells her all the time, but I don’t get to show her as much as I would like. “Are you comfortable? Do you need a pillow for your back?”

“As a matter of fact, yes. That would be great,” Mandy says. Al and I reach for the pillow at the same time and smile.

“Go ahead, Mr. Forsythe,” I say, “but you’re still not getting your hands on that baby before me.”

“We’ll see, Jewel. We’ll see.” Mandy giggles again and I know that she’s comfortable.

“What did you bring me?” I ask.

“Well, I know that the Cabernet will be flowing en masse this evening, so I brought a lovely Chablis and some of my jungle punch for Mandy.”

“What do you mean? She can’t drink—she’s about to have a baby!” I exclaim. Al frowns at me for a moment, then breaks out in hearty laughter.

“Come on, Jewel, really? Not jungle juice, Jewel… jungle punch! Give me a little credit. People often confuse the two, but no. My jungle punch is the same thing as jungle juice, but it has no liquor in it and the wonderful assortment of fresh fruit has marinated in the delicious juices all day.” Gail comes out of the kitchen with several glasses of varying heights and the party is about to begin. Within minutes, Val shows up right behind Gary with Phil and Maxie bringing up the rear. We are into full swing when everyone is required to bring the group up to snuff on what’s happening in their lives.

“Well, everyone knows what’s happening in my life,” Val announces. “Elliot might be a father and the psycho ex is hiding the baby so that we can’t get a paternity test.”

“What’s up with that?” Maxie asks. “I would think the little tramp would be itching to be the mother of a Grey baby.”

“That’s just it,” Val says. “She doesn’t know if it’s Elliot’s baby.”

“Fuck, seriously? Her father was all over the news talking about how Elliot’s prior philandering and how he wouldn’t stand up to his responsibilities! Now you’re saying the slut may have another candidate?” Phil asks.

“That’s exactly what I’m saying,” Val confirms, “although you didn’t hear it from me. There’s supposed to be a gag order in place. That’s rich. The Kavanaughs are the most powerful media family in the Pacific northwest, and there’s a gag order keeping them from exploiting the Greys.”

“Wait a minute… Kavanaugh? As in Kavanaugh Media Kavanaugh?” Gary asks. I nod.

“Yep. The tramp in question is none other than Katherine Kavanaugh, princess to the Kavanaugh empire,” I say.

“Kryptonite Dick Kavanaugh is talking about someone else’s philandering?” Gary says and I almost choke on my burrito.

“Excuse me?” I finally get out after Phil pats me on the back a few times. Gary rolls his eyes.

“Oh yeah,” Gary continues, “that’s his nickname in the media circles. We assume his dick must be dipped in Kryptonite because the women can’t leave him alone, not even his wife who has to know what he gets up to if everybody else knows. That’s man has been with more women than Caligula…”

“Okay, now you’ve lost me,” Mandy pipes in.

“Well, let’s just put it like this. My cousin’s girlfriend’s brother may actually be a Kavanaugh. He’s most likely not the only one.”

I hear bells going off in my head and my eyes immediately go to Val. Her mouth falls open and her eyes are bugging out of her head like a cartoon. “You’re not serious!” she says to Gary. He nods.

“Yep. Jordan… Jordan West. That’s his name. He’s about 17 now and he’s the spitting image of Kavanaugh’s oldest son Eric.”

“You mean Ethan,” I correct him.

“No, I mean Eric,” he says. “I don’t know how long he and the little woman have been married, but Krypto has a son that’s older than both of his children by his wife. Eric has to be in his 30s now.” I’m texting Christian faster than I can think.

“Is Eric a Kavanaugh?” I ask.

“No, his name is…” Gary thinks for a minute. “Caulder. Eric Caulder.”

“How do you know him?” I ask.

“He worked at City of Music for a while, not long though. He knows Krypto is his father, but I think the relationship is strained to say the least. It’s Seattle’s best kept non-secret.”

“Non-secret?” Val asks.

“Yeah. Lot’s of people know, but Krypto controls a lot of the media. Who’s going to out him?”

“I know somebody who might,” I say under my breath as I text Christian with this newfound information. “What about Jordan? Does Kavanaugh have a relationship with him?”

“Well, I don’t know,” Gary says. “He really is a secret as far as I can tell. I think he’s a payoff situation, but that’s just word on the wire.” I know that terminology. I text that information to Christian as well.

“Okay, so Kavanaugh’s a hypocritical slut. What else is new? Have we had enough of this particular conversation?” I ask.

“I certainly have,” Val replies, maudlin.

“Good. Let’s move on. Maxie, Phil, I’ve been running around like a clucking duck and I haven’t heard any deets about the honeymoon.” I press, quickly changing the subject. Maxie glances nervously at Phil who just shrugs. I examine them both. “Okay, out with it. What’s going on?”

“We…” Maxie acts as if the words are burning her throat. “We… may be pregnant.”

Val gasps and my hands fly to my mouth. “Oh my God! That’s great… isn’t it?” Val asks trepidatiously.

“Well, yes, if it’s true,” Maxie smiles coyly. “We’ve had one false alarm and one…” she trails off.

“One what?” Gail asks.

“One miscarriage,” she says, her voice barely audible.

“Oh my,” Mandy says, protectively rubbing her stomach.

“Max… when? Why didn’t you tell us?” I ask concerned.

“It was a long time ago,” she says, trying to wave it off, “before we were even engaged. I really don’t want to make a big deal about it. It happened, I grieved over it, and I don’t want to draw it out. I just want to concentrate on hopefully making a healthy baby now. We didn’t want to say anything about it until we were sure, but I have missed my period and I did have a positive home test. How could I keep that from my dearest friends?” I fight to keep my tears back and grab her hand.

“Oh, Maxie, I’m so happy for you. This is going to be the one, you just wait and see.” I squeeze her hand and give her a full sincere smile which she returns.

“Thank you, Ana. I needed to hear that. It’s gives me hope.” Phil takes her other hand and kisses it gently before wrapping his arm around her shoulder.

“So, Gary, how about you?” Val asks. “Anything new on the horizon for you and Marilyn?” He actually blushes at the mention of her name.

“No, nothing new,” he says. “We’ve been getting along really well and things have been going great.”

“Has she popped that cherry yet?” Phil asks, unashamed. Gail gasps and Mandy giggles.

“Of course, she has!” Al chimes in and Gary turns to him.

“How would you know?” Gary asks.

“Gary, Darling, that walk changed months ago. Sorry, but yes, I do pay attention. You are not only getting laid, but you are getting laid well. From the looks of things, I would say that dear Marilyn is pretty happy with the goods too,” Al responds flippantly.

“Oh my God,” Val laughs and I’m almost embarrassed for Gary.

“I can’t believe you people! Have you no tact? We are not having this conversation!” Gary says.

“Oh, we can talk about Krypto Dick, but we can’t talk about G-Spot Gary?” Al asks. The room erupts with laughter. Gary drops his face into his hand shaking his head.

“Give us a break, G. We’ve been waiting for this moment for years!” Val exclaims.

“Yeah!” I chime in, “and after the Bethany fiasco, I can truly say that I for one am very glad that you have met a beautiful, nice girl who is apparently taking care of you and making you happy.”

“Well… you’re biased, but I have to give you that,” Gary concedes. “She does make me happy, and I like her… a lot!” I cock my head at Gary.

“You like her… a lot?” I ask. He looks at me but can’t keep eye-contact for long.

“Yes,” he says shyly.

“Do you love her, Gary?’ I press gently. He pauses.

“I think…” He rolls his eyes and sighs heavily. “Yes, I love her.”

“Now why is that always so hard for guys to admit?” Val says. I glare at her.

“Are we really going to have that conversation?” I ask her. She twitches her lips.

“Shut up, Steele. You would have to pull teeth before getting me to admit that I loved anyone. That’s just the way I’m built, so yes—it was a trial admitting that I love Elliot, but that’s me. That’s not all women. Men, on the other hand… it takes wild bulls to get them to admit their feelings. Why is that?”

“Because that’s not the way we’re built,” Al says. “Even as a gay man, I don’t want to readily give my heart or admit that someone has snagged it. When it came to Chocolate, though, I was a goner. There was no denying it and no doubt in my mind. I was hooked almost from the beginning. Before that, ask Jewel—love was not in my vocabulary.”

“Besides,” Gary adds, “like Ana said, before Mare, there was that disaster Bethany. So no, even under normal circumstances, I’m not waving the love flag, but after that bitch… hell, no!”

“Do you ever see her anymore?” Maxie asks.

“Not since that night,” he says. “She took off from that apartment and I swear she disappeared into thin air.”

“So have you told her that you love her… Marilyn, that is?” I ask. He shakes his head.

“I’ve come close a couple of times, but… I don’t know, I guess I’m scared.”

“You better tell her,” Gail chimes in. “If she’s not sure of your feelings, she may just think you don’t want her.”

“No… she… knows…” he says, uncertain.

“How do you know that she knows?” Mandy asks. Gary looks down.

“She knows. She knows me… she knows,” he says quietly. I get the feeling that Marilyn really does know. It’s written all over him and I don’t even know him intimately.

“Well, it’s still nice to hear,” Val reinforces with a gentle touch and a kind smile… and he’s blushing again as he nods.

“Okay, get off Gary. How about you, Ana? We’ve heard about everybody else. It’s your turn,” Phil says, and the room falls quiet. I realize that Gary is still in stunned shyness, but the other three have been quite informed about my new mantra concerning mine and Christian’s love life. I see that now is the time to find a happy medium where I can discuss my life with my friends.

“Well,” I begin. “We all know that the wedding is a little over a month away. I have finally found my dress. My life for the most part is pretty much an open book—psycho Pedo-bitch tried to kill my fiancé and ended up shooting his best friend. Oh, by the way, she’s trying to plead.”

“What!?” Gail pipes in, appalled.

“No, Gail, not on the shooting. She’s trying to plead on the molestation charges. There are so many of them, it’s actually her only hope. She could end up getting 25 years for the lot.”

“Twenty-five years? That’s all?” Mandy asks.

“That’s all,” I say, “Oh, and some pretty hefty fines, that is if the victims agree to the plea. Christian says it looks like they will.”

“Well, I guess if it will spare the boys from having to testify against her, it’s a good thing,” Maxie says. “At least she won’t get off free and clear. If she does live to get out of there, she has to register as a sex offender. No more country clubs and spa days for Mrs. Lincoln.”

“That’s true, and she still has to face the attempted murder charges, so I say let her ass plead!” Gail grunts. “If I ever see her plastic blonde ass again…”

“We know, Gail,” I say, squeezing her hand. “Oh, and she has a twin.” The room has fallen completely silent. “Yes. She has an aunt who is just as unscrupulous as she is. This aunt is from Germany—rich and looks just like Pedo-bitch. She offered me $10 million to leave Christian so that She-Thing can have him.”

“Okay, I’m lost… who’s She-Thing?” Phil asks.

“She-Thing, Pedo-bitch, same person,” Al clarifies.

“Anyway, I turned it down,” I continue, “then she gave me 20…”

“Twenty dollars?” Maxie asks.

“No, $20 million.”

“You mean she offered it to you,” Val says.

“No, she gave it to me. She had it transferred into an account in my name.”

“You turned it down right?” Mandy asks.

“No, I accepted it.” Everyone gasps except for Al and Gail since they know the story.

“I don’t get it. You just said that you got your dress and now you’re saying that you accepted $20 million to leave Christian?” Gary nearly screeches. I nod. “Well, what the fuck did Christian say?”

“Nothing. I gave him the information. He traced the money. We found out that the whole transaction was valid. We transferred the money out of that account into another account and made an anonymous donation to Helping Hands. What’s she going to do, sue me?”

“That’s a lot of money to play with,” Phil says. “Aren’t you worried about retaliation?” I shake my head.

“No. You see, we have been trying to find a weak spot in Mrs. Strauss’ armor—that’s her name, Edda Strauss. Being able to trace her money and check its validity gave us just the invitation that we needed into her finances. Let’s just say that Mrs. Strauss’ fortune comes from some very shady sources. Even though she originates from old money, her new money is very dirty. If those sources find out that some nosy American is digging around in her finances, they’re not coming after the nosy American. They’re coming after her.”

“How can you be so sure?” Maxie asks.

“It’s just the name of the game. The transaction was between Strauss and me, so any retaliation would come from her. Christian has paid a small fortune to keep such a close eye on her, it’s like ants crawling all over her every second… and he’s not even being discreet about it. He’s making sure that she knows. Now, when it comes down to the source of her money, he’s digging into how the deposits are being made. If he goes too far, there’s going to be a ‘ping’ into someone else’s finances. That’s where I started to worry, so he had to explain this to me.

“If that ping stops and it doesn’t go any further, of course he could be contacted by some powerful and shady people. At that time, he would have to defend his actions and clarify that the sought-after party is not them, but Edda Strauss. Now without giving away any details, would you want to be a high-powered European government official with ties to dirty money about to be exposed because of a woman actively defending the actions of her American pedophile niece?”

“Well, at least give us a clue!” Gary says. I twist my lips.

“Okay. Well, here in the states her money can be traced back to several Ponzi schemes, including The Big One…”

“Which big one?” Val asks.

“The Big One… the one where people started dying…” She frowns and then realization dawns.

“Oh! That one,” she says. I nod.

“Christian’s head of security says that he’s surprised that she is even on American soil.”

“Shit, Ana. That seems so damn risky,” Val says.

“It is. I’ll be the first to say it, but she opened this door and she approached me. We couldn’t just stand there or she would never go away. We are certain that she taught She-Thing everything she knows. We are certain that she honed that horrible woman’s taste for little boys and that she programmed her that there was absolutely nothing wrong with it. Christian is positive that she is building an insanity defense on that very fact.”

“That’s preposterous!” Maxie exclaims. “She can’t build a defense on being a… a…” she is angrily searching for the word.

“Narcissist. Yes, that’s what I told him, but unfortunately that’s where you’re wrong. If there is any so-called justice in this fucked-up system, she can’t win a defense based on being a narcissist, but she can build one.” Maxie just shakes her head.

“Well, now I’ve heard it all,” she says. “Honey, it’s time to move to a deserted island. I don’t want to raise my baby in this country if this woman gets off.”

“Ditto,” Phil says, putting his arm around her and pulling her close to him.

“Come on, Ana, tell us something good,” Mandy says. I shrug.

“I love my mother,” I say quietly. The room falls silent and Al frowns.

“What?” he asks. I lean back against the bottom of the sofa.

“I love my mother. Many of my flight issues stem from the fact that I love her and I couldn’t take the fact that she used, misused, and deserted me during some of the most critical times of my life.”

“And this is a good thing because…?” Gary asks.

“It’s a good thing because I can face it now. I can deal with what she did and what it’s doing to my life instead of running off to Montana when things get rough.” They all fall silent again. “I’m journalizing to deal with the immediate onslaught of feelings. We’ll see how that works out.”

“I think you’re going to have to confront her, Ana,” Val says. “Elliot is still dealing with the shock of finding out that he may be a father, but I’m telling you that telling that woman how he really felt about her and what she did to him turned him into a whole new man. He stronger and more open, and I don’t think he would have been able to even deal with this kind of drama if he hadn’t gotten that off his chest.” I know that she’s right, but I don’t want to see my mother right now. I’m just not ready.

“When the time comes, I will,” I tell her. “I’ve been doing regression therapy to deal with some of the stuff that has happened to me. I won’t go into any details…” I flash a look at Maxie, but then to everyone else so that it doesn’t seem like I’m singling her out, “…but I did go back to the shooting and what I forgot about She-Thing.” Another silence falls over the room.

“And?” Gail breaks the silence.

“She hit me in the head with the butt of my gun. That’s how I got the stitches… but I beat the hell outta that bitch!” I proclaim with a hearty laugh that causes the whole room to break up into similar laughter.

---

GREY

“Her Highness is going to have my ass on a stick for this,” Jason says as he, Ray and I ride the elevator to Butterfly’s condo. Ah, yes… my beautiful Butterfly. Wait a minute… what?

“For what?” I ask him.

“You’re shitfaced!” he says. Like fuck I am. I laugh at him.

“I’m not shitfaced, Jason,” I tell him.

“Well, you’re happy as hell,” Ray says. I nod.

“I am a little happier than usual,” and hornier, “but I’m not shitfaced. I only had a few drinks with some of the guys to celebrate my birthday, but I am definitely not drunk.”

“Okay, lively then,” Jason says. I nod.

“I’ll buy that, too,” I tell him, “but I am not shitfaced.”

The elevator opens on the 13th floor and we walk around to Butterfly’s door where Williams and Martin are standing.

“You can go,” Jason tells them. “We’ve got it from here.” They both nod at him and leave without a word. It’s about 1:00am and I expect that the party is still going on. I was wrong. Gail and Amanda are laid out on different sofas while Butterfly is nowhere in sight. The television is on and no one is watching it. Tartan blankets are all over the floor.

“What happened? It seems early for the party to be over so soon,” I say.

“No it’s not,” I hear a voice on the sofa say. I look over and Amanda is struggling to sit up. Good God, she’s huge! Do all women gain weight like that when they are pregnant? Shit, I hope not! Her ass looks like it has two area codes, but I dare not say that aloud.

“Let me help you, Tulip,” Ray says to her. Tulip? That’s a strange pet name. Maybe he calls all women a flower. I’ve heard him call Butterfly Sunflower. Butterfly Sunflower… I have to stifle a laugh at that one. Maybe I  am drunk. “Everyone left about an hour ago barely able to keep their eyes open. This was really fun.”

“I’m glad you enjoyed yourself, Tulip. Now come on. I want to get you home so that you can rest properly. Arms around my neck, now.” I watch as Amanda grabs Ray around the neck. He anchors his hands together at her lower back and effortlessly lifts her off the sofa to her feet. I’m impressed, and apparently, so is Mandy.

“You’re the best, Ray,” she says lovingly smiling at him.

“Where’s Butterfly?” I ask. Amanda looks puzzled at me.

“Annie,” Ray clarifies for her. She nods.

“She’s in her room. After she cleared all the dishes and cleaned up the food, she was exhausted. I think she may have had a few too many glasses of wine.”

“If that’s the case, you two will make a perfect match tonight,” Jason chuckles as he rouses Gal. “Wake up, My Love. It’s time to go home.” Gail sleepily opens her eyes and stretches.

“What time is it?” she asks.

“About 1:30. I had to make sure the Boss got back to the Butterfly in one piece. He’s a little one past his limit,” Jason says.

“I. Am. Not,” I say, getting a little irritated that Jason keeps insisting that I’m drunk.

“I didn’t say that you were shitfaced,” he teases.

“Take your wife home,” I order him. “Where’s Davenport?”

“He’s in Allen’s room.” Gail says. “With two guards posted at the door and security at the desk, there was certainly no reason for him to sit awake waiting.” I nod.

“Fine,” I say removing my leather jacket and tossing it on the sofa. Gail stands and takes Jason’s hands.

“Jason, where is your sling?” Gail asks.

“It’s in the car, Love. I just needed to stretch my arm a bit. The therapist said that’s okay if it gets too stiff.” Gail looks side-eyed at him.

“Jason…” she says in a warning tone.

“Don’t read any more into it, Love. I was only stretching my arm. Now let’s go home,” he says. They walk to the door where Ray and Amanda are already standing.

“Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do,” Jason says to me.

“And exactly what does that cover?” I ask him sarcastically. “Before you speak, please remember that my fiancée’s father is standing behind you.” Jason chuckles and shakes his head.

“Goodnight, Boss,” he says as the four of them leave the apartment.

“Goodnight,” I respond before closing and locking the door behind them. I examine the living room while I ponder my night. It looks like they were having a huge picnic here. I hope she had a good time with her friends.

I’m beginning to enjoy the evenings at the Men’s Club. This was only my second visit, but it was a good time and environment to reconnect with my brother and begin to rebuild our relationship. We really have to stick together with this Kavanaugh shit coming out and… well, fuck, he’s my brother. I was glad that he was able to loosen up and have fun. He’s sticking to his pledge not to drink, but it didn’t stop him from being his goofy self. I was glad to see that with all that he’s going through right now. Some of the men tried to talk about his ‘situation,’ but we just headed them off telling them that we can’t discuss it because of the gag order.

Boys’ Night turned into a small birthday celebration for me thanks to James. The more we talk, the more I discover that we have a lot in common. He’s a loner that always wanted to make a name for himself but doesn’t make friends easily. Allen is only his second serious relationship. His first was some guy named Jose. He confided in me that he was very much in love with Jose, but the guy left to follow his dreams and James was pretty broken after that. Following a series of meaningless sexual trysts which sounds achingly familiar to me, he met Allen and the rest is history.

After I cut a cheesy ass cake they bought me and had a few celebratory rounds with the guys at the bar, James and I found ourselves at a table in the corner spilling our guts to each other after we had both had a few more drinks than we intended. Shit, the man told me all about being molested as a kid before he really knew who I was. I think I can trust him. Once they could see that I was loosening up, a few guys came over trying to talk a little business or get some details out of me about the date for my and Butterfly’s wedding. Sorry, guys, I’m not that drunk.

I turn off the television and walk the familiar trek to Butterfly’s bedroom. I can’t help but remember the first time I had sex with her here, carrying her down this very hallway and groping that fabulous ass. I couldn’t wait to get her into bed. My dick starts throbbing just thinking about that night. As a first fuck, she was the best I had ever had. That says something, because I have had a lot! Not that I’m proud of it, but it’s true. As I get to Butterfly’s door, Davenport cracks the door to Allen’s bedroom in his boxers and I can see his Glock in his hand. I nod once at him and he nods back, closing the door behind him.

I open Butterfly’s bedroom and there she is. She is wearing these tiny ass denim shorts and a white shirt tied around her waist. She’s lying on her stomach with one leg bent and she cuddling the pillow. That ass! God, that ass! Her cheeks are sticking out of the cut-off shorts and my mind immediately scans who was here tonight possibly looking at her ass:

Phillip—newlywed and present with his wife.
Garrett—fucking ga-ga over Butterfly’s receptionist.
Allen—as gay as the day is long.
Davenport–more like a brother than a suitor.
Williams and Martin–outside of the apartment. Did they see that ass?

I take a deep breath and let it out, closing the door behind me. The disturbance causes Butterfly to roll over on her back and resume sleeping. Her hands are over her head and I swear it’s like she’s offering herself to me. Fuck, my dick is so hard that it’s painfully trying to explode from my jeans. I remove my shoes and socks, then quickly unbutton my fly to release Greystone. I think he actually sighs from relief once I get him out of my jeans and boxers.

Leaving my clothes in a mass on the floor, I snatch my T-shirt off and throw it across the room before taking my erection in my hand. I just want to look at her for a moment and Greystone is viciously hard and pulsing. I stroke my hand up and down my shaft hard and slow a few times as I watch the rise and fall of Butterfly’s beautiful breast peeking out from the buttons of her shirt. Is she wearing a bra? Fuck, I don’t think so! That makes my dick ache more and my hand is just not doing it. I climb onto the bed and make quick work of her shorts and panties. She whimpers and moans and moans a bit as she stretches her arms above her further, pushing her breasts up at me.

Fuck!

I untie her shirt to find that, to my delight, she is in fact sans her bra. Her perky breasts stare back at me as she is slowly bringing herself to consciousness, stretching and writhing underneath me like a cat. I can’t stand it anymore. I nestle myself between her legs and Greystone finds his mark without any help. I thrust hard into her, gasping at the immediate relief I feel being buried inside her core.

“Hah!” she gasps, immediately grabbing the bars in the headboard. “Christian!” she breathes without opening her eyes. The acknowledgement goes straight to my dick and I start to stroke her, deep and steady.

“Yes, Baby,” I whisper, bringing my hands up to the sides of her body so that my thumbs can caress the soft flesh of her mounds. My lips and tongue feast on her nipples, first one and then the other, while I stroke in and out of her hot wetness driving us both to the edge of sanity.

“Oh, god, you feel so good,” she whimpers, her breath uncontrolled as she floats in ecstasy, still never opening her eyes. I know she is concentrating on the feelings and sensations our coupling is producing and it makes me even hornier. Desire is flooding me and burning in my balls and my pace quickens only slightly with the rise in my nature. “Yes… yes… so good,” she gasps.

“You feel good, too, Baby,” I growl as I grind deeper into her, trying to keep this steady rhythm that burns so good.

“Yes… god… please… don’t stop, Baby. Please, don’t stop…” she begs. Are you kidding? Stop now? With this aching, burning, passionate… are you kidding? I groan in my chest and I hear her whimper as her body stiffens and her hands tighten around the bars. Fuck, I can’t take this shit.

“I’m gonna come… I’m gonna… I’m… ah… ah… aaaa—” Just as she’s crying out her climax, I cover her mouth with mine to absorb her screams. I cover her fists on the bars with my own, anchoring us both to the bed as I continue to thrust and grind deliciously into her. She is pulsing and shaking and keening as this orgasm racks and torments her body, inviting my powerful erection to follow suit. I am groaning into her mouth in no time, burying myself hard inside her hot, pink flesh while she is still pulsing out her release and squeezing my juices out of me. It’s so intense and hot that I think I stop breathing for a moment to pulse out the seconds between her legs. I release her lips and bury my face in her neck as my nuts continue to empty into her, rendering me completely helpless. I finally take a breath as the contractions begin to subside, but I dare not move.

Good God, that was insane! I bring my mouth back up to hers and take her panting lips in a delectable kiss. She moans quietly into my mouth as my tongue makes love to hers. God, my body is feeling nothing but relieved and grateful after that cosmic coupling. I pry her fingers from the bar and gently massage her hands as she purrs into my mouth. I lay her hands flat on the bed and bring my hands to her cheeks. I finally pull my lips away from hers and cup her beautiful face.

“Open your eyes,” I breathe. I need to see her. I need to see those beautiful blue eyes and I need her to see how much I love her… how much I need her.

She opens her eyes, sated and longing at the same time and looks right through me. “You are incredible,” she whispers. I brush the sweat-drenched hair from her forehead.

“You are amazing,” I say, taking her lips with mine again. I roll over on my back, taking her with me so that she straddles me but holding her close so that I am still inside of her. Anchoring her head at the nape, I indulge in more of those delectable kisses. After a while, she moans again and her hands cup my face. I feel her muscles contract and she moves her hips a bit. Shit! I’m still tender… a little hard, but tender.

“Don’t move! Oh, god, Baby, please don’t move!” I plead, crushing her pelvis into me. She pauses for a moment and looks at me.

“I want to make love to you,” she says softly, her voice betraying her disappointment.

“I’m…” I don’t know how to tell her that I still so tender and I don’t know if I can do it. Her expression is begging, yearning. “But you did make love to me, Baby,” I say, trying to ease the pleading in her eyes.

“No,” she whispers. “You made love to me. I want to make love you, now.” Her hands are on my shoulders now, her expression waiting for permission, wanting. I have to give in. I know that once I get past the tenderness, it will be heaven all over again… and I can’t stand this rejected look in her eye. I could never reject her, no matter what a certain doctor says.

“Please be gentle,” I say, and I can’t believe that I hear myself saying those words.

“Gentle,” she repeats softly.

“Gentle, Baby. I’m sore. I came so hard that…” I gasp as she slowly starts to move her hips—very slowly. It’s still a little painful, but something stirs in me…of course it does. She always moves me. I slide my hands around her waist so that they rest right as the top of her ass. She is slow, methodical, and gentle.

“Look at me, Christian,” she says, her voice soft but commanding. I didn’t know I had closed my eyes. I open them slowly and see a combination of my lover and my Domme. I am captivated. Oh, god, she can do whatever she wants to me.

“There he is,” she says, regarding me licentiously. “I want you to look at me. Never take your eyes off of me.”

“Yes. Yes,” I breathe. I don’t call her Mistress. That’s not what this is, but I can hear my Mistress talking to me, commanding me to watch her while she loves me. “Keep your hands right where they are. That’s the perfect place,” she breathes, controlling her arousal while she instructs me. “Do you know why?”

“Why?” I groan as she pulls me into her world of pleasure and Nirvana.

“Because you’re touching the small of my back, which is where you hold me when you guide me and when you want me to know that you are there to protect me. You are also cupping part of my behind. This ass is yours and no one else’s, so this is where you hold me to possess me. Holding both of these places, you can feel me loving you.” Her voice is full of lust and her words shoot right to my dick—to the Neanderthal in me that is beating his chest, jumping about and declaring, “Woman! Mine!”

I groan loudly as my balls want to come from the emotion of what I just felt, but my dick is not even close. Greystone is lounging in paradise, sipping on sweet nectars and indulging in a luscious full body massage. She’s right—I can feel her back roll against my hands as well as her gorgeous ass rise and fall with each slow, gentle glide of her body against my sex.

“Oh, Ana, Baby,” I moan as I almost close my eyes again, lost in the wonderful sensations she is bringing to me.

“Ah, ah, eyes open,” she coaxes, and I open my eyes again. “That’s it. I want to see you. I want to watch you like you watch me.” She grinds gently into me then rocks her hips seductively while I’m inside of her.

“Oh gooooooooddddd!” I lament. I want to touch her all over. She only moves her hips. Her whole torso never leaves mine and her legs cradle my hips.

“Yes, Baby. I want you to feel me,” she croons. Our closeness is pushing me harder than her magnificent stroke if that’s possible. She moves her hands from my shoulders to my face and lowers her mouth to mine. Our lips are parted, barely touching, and we share each other’s breath. I’m fighting not to wrap my arms around her and pull her closer to me. The intimacy is so extreme that I feel like my chest is going to explode.

“Ana… Baby… I’m…” I don’t know what to do. I almost feel like I’m going to come, but not really. My body is caught—trapped in some middle land between intense lust and orgasm.

“Don’t come yet, Honey,” she says, her voice smooth and sweet. “I know you can hold out. I know you can enjoy the ride with me.” She does the gentle seductive rock again and my fingers clasp against her ass. “No,” she chides, ” gently, just like you want me.”

“Please, please, let me touch you.” My voice is strained and tortured, but I can’t take it anymore. She pauses for a moment as she continues to gently ride me still looking into my eyes.

“Yes,” she breathes, and it’s like a beautiful harmony ringing in my ears. I run one hand the full length up her back splaying my fingers across her while the other arm wraps possessively around her waist holding her gently so that she is still able to move. She lets out a small gasp of air at the closeness while I feel like my whole body is about to explode.

“You are magnificent—everything I want… everything I need. My heart burns for you and my body is yours. Forever, I will be your every desire.” She says as she licks the shell of my ear then brings her tongue down to my earlobe. I feel a shiver that starts in the back of my neck and tickles me between my shoulder-blade. Her teeth gently nibble my lobe before biting just hard enough for me to gasp and for that tingle to wiggle down my spine and start simultaneously in my toes. I move infinitesimally to match her gentle strokes just a little as her words turn that tingle in my toes and spine to a gradual fire.

“You make feel things I’ve never felt before,” she whispers into my neck and I finally afford myself the luxury of closing my eyes and sinking into her total essence, absorbing her feel, her smell, her taste still on my lips, her words. Oh, God, I’m transcending this place into ultimate pleasure and I don’t know what to do except… just be.

“I can’t wait to be your wife… to belong to you in every way… to truly be one with you—body, mind, and soul.” You are one with me, Baby. You are one with me right here, right now, in this place, just us. You are mine.

Her lips are back against mine, kissing me and speaking to me as the fire creeps up my legs, my thighs, and to my hips, down my spine and into my stomach. Fuck, it’s consuming me! I groan loudly into her mouth. “You are everything to me. Everything! You light up all of my dark places and make everything worthwhile. You give me strength and peace… you are more than every dream and fantasy I ever had. You fill my heart and soul with love and joy and I love you, Christian Grey. I love you with my whole being now and forever.”

The two fires meet in the middle of my body and become an unbearable flame. Nothing in the world will stop this blaze, and I mean nothing… except…

“Wings! Wiiiinnnnggs! Wiiinnnggss!” I pant. I can’t hold it. All the love and passion that I feel at this moment is likely to kill me if I don’t come… now… inside of her. Physical orgasms I can control but emotional ones, I have no hope.

“Come for me, Baby,” she breathes into my mouth while licking my lips. “Give it to me!” That fire burst into my pelvis and consumed everything from the waist down. I let out a cry so loud and primal that I’m sure it could have awakened the dead. If Davenport didn’t hear it, he’s deaf—but if he comes into this room, I’ll shoot him with his own gun!

My body breaks into powerful convulsion, causing me to involuntarily shoot to a sitting position with Butterfly still in my arms and on my lap. I am gushing frantically and endlessly inside of her, my head back and mouth open gasping for precious air.

“Yes! Yes! Come for me! Give me all of you,” she breathes as she licks and nips my neck lusciously. “Oh, God, you feel so good filling me… aaaaahhhh!” She cries out demurely and I know that she is coming now, too.

“Ooooohhh, Aaannnaaa!” I groan tortured as another wave of pleasure pulses through me with her quickening muscles.

“I love you, Christian,” she breathes, tortured and aroused. “I love you, I love you, I love you, I love you…” I lean my cheek against her breast. I need to be here or I feel like I may pass out. Sensing my need, she cradles my head, thrusting her fingers into my hair while her orgasm wanes and she fights to catch her breath. I hold her down unto me, close to me, begging this feeling not to leave as my breath returns and the muscles in my legs release. As the burning in my body finally cools and our breathing matches one another, calming and soothing, I turn my face to hers.

“Kiss me… please,” I beseech, and her lips meet mine almost instantly, infusing me with the energy to bring me back to planet Earth, back to my role as her protector and lover. She has to know that all of her words while she made love to me are tenfold in my heart for her. I used to be strong and independent, an island among men. Now, there is no me without her. The thought is frightening and exhilarating all at once, to know that one person can be the end of me—but that same person is right here with me, holding me, loving me, pledging her life, body, and soul to me. I wrap myself in that comfort just as she’s wrapping me in her arms, declaring her love to me over and over…

*-*

“We hit money with this one,” Welch tells me on Monday morning when he comes into my office. “Jordan is definitely a secret. What’s he’s paying that West woman to keep quiet is a whole lot less than he would have to pay if Mrs. Kavanaugh found out that he had a love child during their marriage.”

“Really? The asshole didn’t get a prenup? He’s just the type that would need one,” I say.

“That’s just it. He did sign a prenup. Eliza knew about Eric before they got married. They were together when he was conceived. So she made him sign an agreement that three-fourths of his net worth would convert to her if he had any children outside of the marriage. Not only that, but their children would take precedent in any will or division of property before any children conceived outside of the marriage. By the time she’s done with him, anything that he has left over, he would have to split between his children or be left completely penniless.”

Why is this man so fucking cocky if he knows that there is another human being out there that can cost him everything that he has?

“I don’t get it,” I say. “He’s too ballsy. There has to be something else, something he has on her maybe?” Welch shrugs.

“Not that I know of. Katherine and Ethan Kavanaugh are definitely their father’s children. Eliza Kavanaugh doesn’t have any skeletons in her closet that I could find. Believe me, I checked. Katherine is dirtier than her mother as she had an abortion in high school, but these days that’s not so taboo—pretty much nullified by the fact that she’s toting around a baby now. Ethan’s clean—nothing to come out and bite him in the ass except that he has at least two siblings out there that he doesn’t know about.”

“I think he does,” I say. Welch raises his eyebrows at me. “Ethan got into a fight with his father last week. He told Kavanaugh to give him his trust fund or else he was coming clean with everything that he knows. It has to be Jordan unless there’s another deep, dark secret that we don’t know about.” Welch says.

“I’m going to run with this one, but I really need to call Ethan. If we have the same trump card, it would take the wind out of Ethan’s claim and I don’t want to do that.”

“Are you sure about that, Sir? I mean he is still in enemy camp and that shit could backfire on you in the biggest way.”

“Not really. I just want this baby shit buried, and I want Kavanaugh to know that I have something on him because his daughter has something on me. It’s going to come out when I’m ready, but I can’t have him or her blabbing it before that time. So I need to know if we’re shooting with the same ammo, because if we are, then I need different ammo.” Welch nods.

“I’ll keep digging just in case,” he says standing to leave. “Good luck.” I nod.

“Yeah, I’ll need it.” When he leaves the office, I dial Ethan’s job.

“Thank you for calling Freestone Capital. How may I direct your call?”

“Ethan Kavanaugh, please,” I tell the operator.

“One moment.” A few seconds later, “Ethan Kavanaugh.”

“Ethan, it’s Christian.” There is silence on the line for a moment.

“Christian! Is something wrong with Mia?” His voice is panicked.

“No. No, nothing’s wrong with Mia. I need to talk to you about what happened on Wednesday,” I say. He sighs.

“Please tell me we’re not going to fight. I just can’t take it anymore…”

“No, we’re not fighting, Ethan. You’ve still been fighting with you father?”

“Not really,” he says. “I gave him a week and he has until Wednesday to transfer my trust fund, then all bets are off.”

“I have to ask you, Ethan. What do you have on your father that makes you think he will sign over your trust fund and let you walk away from being a Kavanaugh?” The line goes quiet again.

“Oh, fuck, not you, too?” he exclaims. “I told my father—my blood—that I would not use my relationship with Mia against you all and now you want me to use it against him?” he fumes.

“No. God, Ethan, calm down. That’s not it at all,” I say sighing heavily.

“Well, what the fuck is it then?”

“Remember our talk about information being power and I told you that I was looking for something on Kavanaugh, too? Well, I found something and I don’t our something to be the same something because it will take the wind out of your sails if it is.” The line is quiet again.

“Forgive my mistrust, Christian, but I’ve had enough lies and deceit to last me for-fucking-ever. How do I know you’re not full of shit right now?” This is the part I don’t like. This is where I would tell the other person on the line that they would just have to trust me. Ethan is not having that shit and I know it. So I just have to come clean.

“You have another brother,” I tell him.

“I know about that,” he says, impassively. “Everybody knows about that. I’ve known about Eric since I could talk. If that’s your big secret, keep looking.”

“I didn’t say you have a brother, Ethan. I said you have another brother… a little brother.” The line is quiet and then I hear a small crash on the other end of the line.

“Are you fucking kidding me? Another fucking son? You’re fucking kidding me, right?” Okay, I take it that he didn’t know.

“Unfortunately, I’m not, and by your reaction, I take it that you didn’t know this piece of information.”

“Fuck me! Fuck me! Fuck me! Fuck me! Another fucking son! Fucking hell!” He has put the phone down and is obviously pacing around the office. I can hear someone’s voice in the background and he exclaims, “Do I look like I’m alright? I’m having a fucking temper tantrum! Now get the fuck out of my office… and close the goddamn door!” Shit! He is mad. Does he ever get this mad at Mia? I hope not. Then again, I discovered last summer that Mia has a bit of wildcat in her blood, too, so I don’t doubt that she could take him on if he started to feel himself too much. After a few more expletives, he’s back on the phone.

“Fuck it, I don’t care anymore. All we need is one more girl and we’ll be the fucking Brady Bunch,” he hisses. Okay, I’m lost. I remember watching reruns of that old show and we’re a kid short.

“You mean two more girls, right?” I correct him.

“No, I mean one. My father has a 14-year-old daughter in Little Rock, Arkansas.” What? How did Welch miss this?

“How do you know?” I ask.

“You tell me first. How do you know that my dad has another son?” I tell him what I know, how I found out and how I had Welch double-check and confirm the facts before I presented them to him.

“I’ve never seen Eric,” I conclude, “but I’m told that they look exactly alike.” He sighs.

“Well, Ashley’s mother came to me for money a few years back,” he says. “She had a picture of her and my dad together and she had Ashley with her. The kid is the spitting fucking image of Kate. I don’t know why she came to me instead of Dad, but I gave her some money and she went away. I’ve been keeping tabs on them… and she still looks like Kate.” Shit. Does this man thinks that the press has so much power that it can work for him and not against him?

“Does he know that you know about his daughter?” I ask Ethan.

“No, but the fact that he has been pooling my $3 million to transfer to me by tomorrow indicates that he has something to hide,” he answers.

“How do you know that?”

“I’m a financial advisor. I have my sources.” Yep, and I have mine.

“Okay, well I should tell you that when I hang up from you, I’m calling your father. I’m using this bit of information about his son to press him into getting Kate to the courthouse by Wednesday. I will also be holding it over his head in case he wants to go public with anything that he may know about me. There’s a little issue of a prenuptial agreement that might just ruin his whole life. I won’t say anything about Ashley.”

“Yeah, we know about the prenup. That’s why he’s getting my trust fund money together.” He sighs. “William Kavanaugh is such an asshole,” he adds.

“Are you sure that you want to change your name?” I ask him. “That would bring up even more questions—you know, like, why you don’t want to be associated with your father?”

“I don’t know. He’s being spiteful and he thinks that requiring me to change my name is going to change the fact that I don’t want anything to do with him. I’m willing to do that, but now, I’m thinking about my mom and how this will affect her. I hate that she fell in love with a man who couldn’t love her like she deserves. This whole thing is going to tear her apart. I don’t even know what to say to her.”

“Well, think about it, Ethan. You may even want to talk to William about it—after you get your trust fund, that is. There are other people to consider before you make that decision, and the public will want to know what’s behind it.”

“Yeah, I guess I should think about it. Christian, should I have a prenup for Mia?” he asks. Okay, that question hit me out of the blue.

“That depends. What are your intentions?” I ask, suspiciously.

“Well, we both have money and if we ever split up…” He pauses and I actually hear him gulp on the other end. “I don’t want anyone to think that I want any of Mia’s money and I’m sure that she doesn’t want any of mine. That’s all.” He spit the words out quickly, like they were burning his throat.

“You should really talk about this with Mia,” I say, not sure how to answer that question.

“Do you and Ana have a prenup?” Oh, shit, I’d never even approach a prenup with Butterfly. Should I? Why would I even want a prenup? If she left and took half of everything that I own, I’d still be a very wealthy man—miserable, unhappy, and very wealthy.

“No, we never discussed a prenup,” I tell him. He’s quiet.

“Forget I asked, Man. I’m not trying to cause any problems…”

“You haven’t,” I assure him. “It’s just something that we never discussed, and you and Mia should if you think you should.” The line is quiet.

“Thanks for being straight with me. I don’t know about the name change anymore, but I know that I’m done with my Dad after this. I don’t even want to know if he has anymore children because it won’t matter to me, so if you find out, don’t tell me.”

“Will do, Ethan. I’m sorry that I had to be the bearer of bad news.”

“Yeah, well, I have to go. Bye Christian.” He ends the call without another word.

---

A/N: Caligula was one of the Roman Caesars during the Julio-Claudian Dynasty. During Caligula’s reign, Rome was all sex and sadism. He was killed much like Julius Caesar, but he was quite known for his sexual perversity.