The Diner of Love
3503 Angel Square Court
Llanview, PA  

"Nothin' Could Be Finer Than Some Lovin' In the Diner"
"There ain't no lovin' like some diner lovin', hey ho"

What can I get you?

Coffee's a dollar

I hope you like whip cream.

I just love the Voice of the Night. We have this special connection.

The Next Act
Tessarae87

CHAPTER SEVEN

Gigi swung open the door and smiled at Shane and gave him a big hug. “Missed you,” she said.

 “Me, too. Where’s Dad?”

 “He’s fixing breakfast.”

 “Cool. I bet its pancakes. My favorite.” Shane rushed past her into the house. “Dad. Dad-d-d-d,” he called and ran toward the kitchen.

 Rex raised his eyebrow. “Still a little unsure about whether Lovett’s gonna stick around, huh?”

 “Brody’s not going anywhere.”

 Rex pursed his lips and nodded.

 Gigi ignored Rex’s expression and instead smiled at Adriana. “Thanks for bringing Shane home.”

 “Of course,” Adriana said and smiled in return.

  Gigi stepped back from the door. “Would you like to come in?”

 “No” Rex said quickly. “Thanks, but we have to get going.”

 “Hey,” Brody said walking into the room with his arm around Shane’s shoulders.

 Adriana pursed her lips slightly then said, “Nice to see you again, Lt. Lovett.”

 Brody tipped his head and then said, “Nice seeing you as well, Mrs. Balsom.”

 Adriana waved. “Ummmmmm. Okay. Nice seeing all of you. I’m going to go wait in the car. Shane, lovely time. I’ll see you next week. Gigi. Brody.”

 Rex nodded at Brody and stuck his tongue in his cheek and puffed it out.

 Brody cocked his head to the right but then looked down at Shane and said, “Come on, soldier. I need some help rustling up our morning feed.”

 “Sure. Are we having pancakes?”

 “That’s an affirmative.”

 “I knew it!” Shane said. He turned and waved at Rex then practically bounced out of the room.

 Brody glanced back at Rex and Gigi and nodded his head then followed Shane.

 Rex looked at Gigi. “I didn’t know his favorite breakfast was pancakes.”

 “Oh, he and Brody have come up with some mega healthy recipe or something with multi grains and nuts and yogurt. Sounds lame but it’s really good.”

 Rex leaned forward with his hands on either side of the door frame. “So are you going to stick with this guy?”

 “As long as he’ll have me.”

 Rex lifted up his chin and gazed down at her. “What you trying to say, Morasco? You really love this guy or something?”

 “Yes.”

 Rex stared at her for a long five count then said, “Okay, then. Look, Shane wants to talk to you about something and I want you to know I’m fine with it. Adriana thinks it’s a mistake but—“

 “Adriana thinks something to do with my son is a mistake?”

 “It’s not like that. I just wanted you to know when you think about it that it’s okay with me. Okay?”

 She frowned. She didn’t like the sound of this for some reason. What was Adriana’s problem? They had made so much progress but there was still a subtle undercurrent of tension between them. “What’s okay?”

 “He’ll tell you when he’s ready then we can talk. Got to slide. My lady’s waiting.”

 Gigi sighed.

 Rex scratched his head but then took off running. Gigi closed the door and leaned against it. Was life always going to be so complicated?

All during breakfast she waited for Shane to bring up whatever it was Rex was talking about but he didn’t. Once they were all back in the living room and Shane and Brody were about to fire up some video game, she couldn’t stand it any longer so she brought it up.

 “Shane, Rex said you wanted to talk to us about something.”

 Shane grinned. “Oh, yeah! I decided something!”

 Brody glanced at her and then at Shane. “What, soldier?”

 “I want you to adopt me, Dad. I know Rex will always be my real, you know like bio father, but I want to be your son as far as everyone else knows. I want to be Shane Lovett.”

 Brody cleared his throat and stood up. “Ummm. I’ve got to go check on something in the kitchen,” he said and then took long strides out of the room.

 Shane’s eyes grew wide and he stared at her. “Did I say something wrong?”

 Gigi sat beside him on the couch. “No. No. But I want to talk to you about this. Did Adriana say something to you or do something to you? Or did Rex? Something that made you decide this?”

 “No. It was all my idea. Adriana was cool about it. She said she’d get behind anything Rex and I wanted, but I could tell she didn’t really want me to do it.”

 “Ummmmmm”

 “She’s really nice to me now, Mom.” He shrugged. “I mean she’s okay.”

 “No more Evilina?”

 “I told you she never was Evilina. She just looked like her but she didn’t have super powers or anything.”

 “Then why do you want to do it?”

 “Because Brody’s my Dad. He’s a thousand times better than anything I ever imagined or ever wanted. I just want to be his son—full out. Not just his stepson.”

 Gigi grimaced. This was her fault. She lied and it was coming home to roost. She’d thought Rex’s anger would be the price she’d pay. She never expected this.

 “What do you think, Mom?”

 “I think we are going to have to think about this long and hard.”

 “Okay, I’m going up to my room. I got to finish my new pictures for Midnight Motors. Dad says he really likes them so far.”

 “I know he does. I’m sure he’ll come up when he finishes whatever he’s doing.”

 Shane frowned and looked toward the hallway that led to the kitchen, but then he looked at her and smiled. He ran up the stairs. Gigi sighed, crossed her arms in front of her and held her sides. She walked to the front door and looked through the window at the grounds of Llanfair. She never saw this coming. It felt as if she was on a tilt-a-wheel ride at the state fair or something.

 “Where’s Shane?”

 She turned and saw that Brody had come up behind her.

 “He went up to his room,” she said. “I told him I’d send you up as soon as you finished doing whatever it was you were doing.”

 “I’m sorry about that.”

 “No problem. I know why you did it.”

 “Yeah?” He glanced down at his hands. “Why did I do it? Because to be honest, I’m kind of confused.”

 “You want it too much.”

 Brody’s eyes widened but then he exhaled and walked toward the couch but he didn’t sit down. Instead he stared toward the hallway where Viki’s clipper ship model was clearly visible. He seemed to be studying it in great detail. She watched him and waited.

 “I never thought once I told him the truth that…” he said finally. His voice trailed off and he turned and faced her. “Look, I know this isn’t possible. You don’t want this and I’m sure Balsom won’t have it and I’m not sure whether—“

 “It’s what Shane wants and Rex said he was fine with it.”

 Brody frowned. “What?”

 She shrugged. “That’s what we were talking about at the door. He didn’t tell me what Shane wanted to say but he said once I heard it to know he was fine with it.”

 “I didn’t expect that.”

 “Me either, but if it came to that would you want to adopt him?”

 “I…I…” He smiled broadly. “Yeah! I’d want that.”

 “Okay, I don’t know where this is going but I needed to hear you say it and to make sure I wasn’t assuming things.”

 He shook his head. “There are few things in this world I would want more than to be Shane’s Dad officially but…”

 “There’re lots of things to consider. But maybe this would be for the best.”

 Brody studied her face then stuck his hands in his pockets. “You know what this means. If I adopt Shane he’s my responsibility. Adriana and Rex are rich. They can give him everything he wants and needs.”

 “Except love.”

 “What?” Brody shook his head.  “No. Rex loves Shane. Even I can’t deny that.”

 “But does he put him first, above all else?”

 Brody stared at her, obviously unsure of how to answer that question. Although just like her, he knew the answer was no.

 She walked over to the couch and flopped down. “It’s my fault,” she said. “And I accept that. But here’s what kept me up at night for years. If something happens to me, who will take care of Shane?”

 Brody walked over to the couch and sat next to her. “Don’t even talk like that, but you’ve got to know I’d never leave him.”

 “But suppose Rex and Adriana decide to raise him? Rex would have every right to do that but I don’t think it would be the best thing for Shane.”

 “So you put Shane up to this?”

 “Not in a million years! Never in this life. I would never again do anything to separate Rex and Shane. But if this is what Shane wants and Rex wants it, too, or is at least fine with it, then, nothing would make me happier.”

 Brody whistled. “Are you? Do you know what you’re saying? I never knew you felt that way.”

 “What way? You didn’t know that I love and respect you and trust you beyond measure? I grew up, Brody.”

 Brody stood up and walked to the other side of the room and figured some of the objects on the round table in front of the bookshelf.  He glanced at her.  “I know this isn’t really going to happen,” he said, “but do you think Shane would regret it down the road if we actually did this?”

 “No. But I’m biased. If we decide to try it, we’ll give him time to think it through and get him to talk to a counselor and someone like Viki that he likes and trusts and is all sorts of wise. But if after all is said and done, he still wants this, I say we do it.”

 Brody nodded but then looked away.

 “You know,” she said, “that Shane is almost a teenager. I mean in a couple more years or so those hormones are going to kick in and then we’re gonna have to deal with a sullen, sulky head-spinner who loves  us one minute and hates us the next because he thinks we don’t have any idea what’s he’s going through. Are you sure you want to sign on for that?”

 “I’m already signed on. It doesn’t matter whether we make it formal or not.”

“The place looks great,” Sarah said.

He smiled. He never got tired of hearing that. “Thanks,” he said and let his gaze sweep around the showroom accented by exposed brick, warm wood, and a glass front that looked out on High Street. The walls had a gleaming chrome railing that circled the room and the floors were a special midnight blue that actually reflected back the image of the motorcycles strategically place throughout the showroom. It was exactly as he envisioned it, except better.

“So you’re really happy, I guess,” Sarah said.

Brody nodded. “Yeah”

Sarah smiled wanly. “I guess you can’t win them all.”

“Sarah”

“I know you think it was all about me trying to get over Cris, but if you ever question it for a minute I want you to know there is one person in this world who thinks you hung the stars. Okay?”

He didn’t know what to say to that. He’d spent so much of his life loving without getting anything in return it still surprised him that someone thought of him that way. “I heard about Jessica and Cris getting married.”

She shrugged. “Las Vegas. You know that union has disaster written all over it. He’s just doing it to be a nice guy and all. But it’s all gonna blow up and I…”

“You what?”

“Did I tell you that Layla and I are going out to California? She’s going to run her lingerie business from out there and try a little acting again. And I’m going to try to get a foot in the door of the recording industry. We’re being realistic but we know if we don’t try now it’ll be too late, you know. So in six months you’ll either see us back here or on the cover of some entertainment magazine.”

“Six months?”

“Nothing like being pessimistic, huh?”

Brody chuckled.

Sarah glanced at her watch. “I’ve got to go talk to Aunt Viki before I leave and we’re leaving in a couple of hours. So I need to go.” She hugged Brody. “Take care of yourself and be happy.”

“Hey”

Brody turned and saw that Gigi had just walked into the showroom. “Hey,” he said and smiled at her.

Sarah moved out of his arms and nodded at Gigi. “Hey. Take care, okay?”

Gigi looked surprised. “Okay.”

Sarah waved at him and then walked quickly toward the front doors and left.

Gigi turned toward him. “Something going on?”

“Sarah’s heading to California today. Did you know?”

“I knew Layla was going but I didn’t know Sarah was tagging along.”

Brody heard the sarcasm. He didn’t care. Sarah and Gigi had worked out most of their issues, even if a tiny whiff of tension still remained. And they would handle the rest without any input from him. Besides, there was no question where his heart resided. She was standing right in front of him, dressed in jeans and a tank top and he was thrilled just at the sight of her. He pulled her into his arms and kissed her passionately.  The way she kissed him back for a second he thought that a better idea for how to spend the day was for them to just get a room already.

She pulled back and acted as if she was woozy. “Wow,” she said.

He laughed. He loved it when she acted like she was crazy in love with him, whether she meant it or not.  She caught his eye and smiled suggestively and he was totally embarrassed because he felt like blushing. That was totally verboten. He was a damn Navy Seal. Seals don’t blush.

Gigi held his eye for a moment longer then walked over to the black Softail Night Train in the center of the showroom. She climbed on, grabbed the handlebars and leaned forward. “How do I look?”

“Sexy as hell. And you know you need to cut if out or I have no idea where this will end up.”

She laughed.

“How does it feel though?” he asked. “That’s a great bike.”

“Feels like a whole lot of machine between my legs.”

Damn. What was she trying to do? Make him break out in a cold sweat?

“Family Day, I see.”

Brody glanced toward the back of the shop and saw Royal Tucker stroll in. As usual Royal had dressed for the part with his shoulder length blonde hair clamped back in a pony tail, a black t-shirt, jeans and a leather jacket. Brody nodded at him. He could always count on Royal to show up on time and have his back.

“Looking good, Mrs. L,” Royal said and walked next to Gigi. “You should get this one. You know you got the true biker chick vibe. No riding on the back of some guy’s hog. You need your own wheels.”

Gigi laughed and Royal helped her get off of the bike. “Always the salesman,” Gigi said.

“Damn straight. I’m going for Employee of the Month. Need to sell one more bike to best Cleaver. Help a dude out.”

“I don’t think so. One bike in the family is enough.”

“Until Cowboy is ready. That kid is going to have one major league time in high school. What I wouldn’t have given for my dad to own a Harley-Davidson dealership back when I was in high school. Just thinking about all the babes that would have been hanging on me makes me—“

“Royal,” Brody said firmly.

“Oops. Sorry.”

“Our son is not going to ride a motorcycle until he’s at least thirty, if then,” Gigi said. “That’s agreed upon.”

Royal glanced at Brody then smiled. “Just saying he’s a great kid. Those pictures he drew rock.  Kid’s got major skills and he has a perfect biker name. That’s all I’m saying.”

Brody frowned at Royal. He knew how opposed Gigi was to Shane ever riding a motorcycle. Of course put a rule in front of your basic anarchist and you get at the least a slew of constant jabs.  “Are you going to be here for a while, Royal?” Brody asked. “What about Cleaver?”

Royal glanced at his watch. “I have an appointment for a test ride in forty-five minutes, but Cleave will be here in about thirty minutes. So everything should be covered. You and your personal biker chick can go do whatever you need to do. I’ve got it covered.”

Brody walked next to Gigi and put his arm around her shoulders. “Come on, Biker Chick. Let’s go to my office.”

 Gigi grimaced. “You know I hate that term.”

 He smiled at her. “You know why I named this place Midnight Motors?”

 She furrowed her brow. “No. I just…”

 “It’s because midnight is always a special time. And one night soon you and I are going to take my bike out and ride at midnight, and then you’ll see what all the fuss is about.”

 She smiled up at him. “I wouldn’t count on it, but we’ll see.”

When she was settled in the chair across from his desk, he handed her the papers. He leaned back against the desk, folded his arms over his chest and waited while she looked over them. Finally, she looked up and stared at him.

 “I don’t understand,” she said. “I thought we were going to go for it.”

 “I’ve thought about it and finally realized that I don’t think we should encourage Shane in this. He’s ten and he’s mad at Rex. And though he seems happy enough with Rex on the surface these days, he still has to be mad. But he can’t see it clearly right now.”

 “I thought it’s what you wanted.”

 “I do, but not if it means a few years down the road Shane looks at me as an interloper who tried to take his father’s place. I never want to see that kind of disappointment and disapproval in his eyes.”

 “Shane loves you. He’d never feel that way.”

 He looked down and then held her gaze. “We don’t know that, Gigi. He’s just a little boy who’s had the concept of his world rocked perfectly hard.”

 “But Rex is—“

 “I don’t like Balsom. Never have. Never will. But the ground under his world shifted, too. He needs time just like Shane does and…you.”

 She bristled. “Time for what?”

 “To heal, Gigi. I don’t think any of you have a true sense of your real feelings yet. Too much has happened in too short a period of time.”

 “I’m fine,” she said. “But if this is the way you feel then I won’t push it.”

 “I know you are going to bite my head off but I’ve got to say it. I think you’re still angry as hell at Balsom, too.”

“No. I’m not.”

“I know you love me, but you invested a whole lot of your life and being into loving him. It didn’t turn out the way you wanted it to and you can’t just sweep those feelings under the rug.”

She jumped up and took a step closer to him. “I hate it when you get it all Mr. Know-It-All on me,” she said. “I guess you think you always know best.”

He looked away then focused on her again. “Those papers can be a good compromise, I think,” he said. “It will take care of what you told me was your biggest fear.”

She stared at him for a long time then nodded slowly. “You think Rex will agree to this?”

“Supposedly he’s willing to let me adopt his son, so why wouldn’t he? All that paper says is in the event that something happens to you and you can’t care for Shane that I will be his legal guardian, but it doesn’t severe Balsom’s parental rights. He could challenge me if he has any reason to think I’m neglecting Shane or putting him in danger. And if something happens to me then Shane’s guardianship goes to Rex.”

“And then Viki?”

“Well, that’s just up for debate of course. Those papers are just a markup to show what they would look like. I thought of someone you respect, love and trust. I thought of Viki, but we can put anyone you want in that position. I figured you wouldn’t want Shane to end up with your family, Adriana, Roxy or even Dorian.

“Dorian! Oh hell, no. Where did that come from?”

“Well, if Rex and Adriana are Shane’s legal guardians and something happens to them then Dorian, like Roxy would be next of kin.   Sorry about Roxy. I know she’s his grandmother and all but I thought you might have a problem with her being Shane primary guardian. “

Gigi flopped in her chair again. “I never thought about any of this.”

“I didn’t mean to upset you. I’m just trying to think about what you’d want for your… our son.”

“I can’t believe I’ve never thought about any of this. I mean I never had anything to leave Shane so I never thought about a will or anything like that….”

“Did I step over the line, too much? I’m just thinking about Shane. And, by the way, I do have a life insurance policy and a will. Everything I own goes to you and Shane. I will always take care of you, Gigi. That’s a promise I plan to keep.”

She got up slowly and moved close to him and wrapped arms around his neck. She was crying. He sighed. He’d made a mess of everything. Again.

“I know I can be a jerk,” he said. “I know I act like I have a right to run your life sometimes and I’m really sorry about that. I’m working on it, okay? It’s just that I wanted to find a compromise that would work for all of us. Maybe in a couple years or more if Shane still wants this then—“

“I love you,” she said. “More than you will ever know.”

Hallowed Grounds was practically empty this time of day and that’s why she chose it for the meeting. Even though he still had a lease on his old apartment and that would have offered plenty of privacy, meeting there just didn’t feel right. And the Carriage House also didn’t feel right. The diner was too public and Angel Square was too unpredictable. So the coffee shop seemed the best compromise. They grabbed a booth in the back and made themselves at home. No one was in earshot and it felt as if they were in a bubble.  Rex was stretched out on a blue sofa/bench, munching on a almond-chocolate biscotti, drinking an espresso and reading the papers that she’d brought. She, other the hand, was sitting up straight on the bench across from him as she took nervous sips of her latte and watched him.  

He looked at her. “So this was Lovett’s idea?”

“Yes. And for that I thank God, Rex. I never really thought of what would happen to Shane if something happened to both of us.”

“You mean you, right? It’s not like I’ve really been in his life.”

And there it was again. The anger.

“I know I made a mess of things, Rex. But there’s no way to go back and change things. Shane just needs some time. I know he hurt you by asking you to let Brody adopt him. I’m so sorry about that.”

“Not enough.”

“I’m trying here, Rex.”

“No, I mean, it didn’t hurt me enough.”

She stared at him.

“Look, I like Shane. Hell, I love Shane. But I don’t feel like his father. And that’s my issue not yours. I just never had a decent role model, you know. I have to ask myself why I never figured out he was my son.”

“Well, I lied.”

“My ex-girlfriend who I slept with and left a little over ten years ago comes back into my life with a ten-year old son that let’s face it looks just like me and who is told not to let me know his birthday? You stood up at my wedding and declared that you never stopped loving me in ten years. Why would that make any sense? Why would you hold onto me—the jerk who abandoned you without one look back? There had to be a reason beyond greatly exaggerated high school memories. You had to have a reason to hold onto me like that. Yet I supposedly didn’t have a clue.”

“Hindsight is 20/20.”

“So is current sight in this case. I didn’t want to know. As much as I adored Shane I didn’t want to be somebody’s father.”

“I see.”

“I’m not sure if you do, Morasco. It was all a perfect storm kind of thing. There I was not wanting to grow up and you offered me a path back to my former, younger self but that path came with the mother of all grow-the-hell-up wakeup calls. I wasn’t ready.”

“And now?”

“And now I compare myself to Lovett’s reactions in all of this and find myself wanting.”

“Oh, Rex.”

“No, it’s true and that’s the first clear sign I had that I’m finally on the road to being an adult. I’ve looked at this situation and tried to figure out what’s best for Shane, not what’s best for me.”

“And you think that’s Brody?”

“You know we can fool ourselves about the past if we want to. We can claim we were so much in love but the truth is I left you without a second thought and didn’t look back. And I swear I don’t know what I would have done if I knew you were pregnant, but I honestly don’t think I would have stayed or stepped up. That’s not who I was back then.”

Gigi nodded and studied her hands. Why did this hurt so much even after all of this time?

“I’m not saying that I didn’t care about you. I’m saying that I didn’t care enough. So I compare myself to Lovett and I come up wanting.”

He wasn’t considering the whole story. “The fact is that Brody knew about Shane but you didn’t.”

“Knew about him and loved you and him for ten years even though he thought you’d dumped him.”

Her eyes widened.

Rex nodded. “Yeah, I’ve heard the story. Pretty intense, you know?”

“Why did you come on to me once we crossed paths again, then?”

“I love Adriana. I’m not saying that to hurt you. It’s just the truth. But I wasn’t ready to get married. Too much adult stuff for me.”

“So why did you propose?”

“I didn’t really. If I say it was all Dorian, would you believe me?”

“Knowing Dorian, yes.”

“Dorian pissed off Adriana about me one time too many times. Dorian never liked me and not without reason. Dorian and I had our clashes and I targeted Adriana because she was a sudden heiress who didn’t know what to do with her money. Can you believe Adriana inherited thirty million dollars and planned to give almost all of it to charity.”

“Adriana? Your Adriana?”

“Yup. But when I wasn’t looking she captured my heart, you know. Dorian, though, was having none of it. Your hair would stand on end if I told you the stunts she pulled to get me away from Adriana. So Adriana fought back and announced we were getting married and there was nothing Dorian could do about it. Before I knew what hit me, we were off and running toward the altar.”

She shifted in her seat. She had an idea where this was going and didn’t like it. “What does that have to do with me?”

“It shouldn’t have anything to do with you, but the truth is I used you. I used you to drive Adriana away. I promise you though I didn’t know that’s what I was doing at the time. Of course I cared about you. I still do. A lot. But chasing you also seemed like a way out of a situation that I needed to escape badly.”

Damn you, you selfish bastard, she wanted to scream but didn’t. Instead she counted to twenty and addressed the problem head on. “Okay, Rex, I think my ego has had enough fluffing for one day. Are you going to sign the papers or not?”

“Will. And if you think what I’m saying here is that I don’t care about you, then you’re not listening.”

“I heard you.” I heard everything you said.

Rex made an exaggerated move of exhaling. “Whew. Because I don’t want to lose you. And I promise you, I’m going to work out all of this daddy stuff.”

“Good.” What else could she say?

Rex slipped the papers back into their manila envelop. “I’ll find a notary today and sign the papers and drop them back by the Carriage House or Lovett’s place. Got a preference?”

“Brody’s at the shop today. Maybe if you take them to him, he’ll have time to give them to the lawyer and the papers can be filed as soon as possible.”

Rex studied her face for a second. “And it’ll give us a chance to talk man-to-man?”

“That too.”

“Okay,” Rex said and stood up. He leaned over and kissed her on the cheek. “It’s been a pleasure, Morasco.”

“Balsom,” she said and nodded.

Rex grinned at her and then walked out of the coffee shop.

She closed her eyes for a few seconds then took a deep breath and exhaled. Too much truth in one day can make your head spin. Brody had been right though. She had been angry, but now, suddenly, she felt lighter. She exhaled again and finished her latte then went to the counter and bought a pound of coffee beans to surprise Brody.

She glanced around the bedroom. It was such a beautiful and cozy room that she was going to miss it when they moved into their house next month. She loved the room. She loved the bed. She loved being next to him. She couldn’t take her eyes off of him. He, on the other hand, was engrossed in a folder of glossy printed brochures and technical sheets.  

 “So everything is set?” she asked just to make him get his nose out of those papers and focus on her.

 He glanced over at her. “Yes. Banneker had the process expedited, although I’m not sure how he pulled it off. Probably Viki Davidson’s influence. In any case, we should have the official papers next week.”

 “Viki was thrilled, you know, when I asked her if she’d be willing to step in. I don’t know how I’ve been so lucky to find such good friends. I mean I spent most of my life after you left alone with Shane and then suddenly ten years later there were Marcie and Viki and then Layla. Weird.”

 He smiled at her. “We’ve both been lucky.”

 “I guess that’s that then…except for Shane. He’s not happy about the whole adoption thing not going through.”

 “I talked to him and promised him if, and I emphasized if, he still wants to do that in two years then all of us will reconsider.”

 “Did Rex agree to that?”

 “He brought it up. He seems satisfied and actually said he thought six months or a year was enough time.”

 “Okay, I guess that means we get to play this by ear.”

 “Yup,” he said and shifted his gaze back to the brochure in the folder.

 Crap. Why was he ignoring her? Couldn’t he even see her anymore? She was half-naked and panting for him. Well, not really half-naked but it was the intention that counted. “What’s that?”

 “Promotional materials on the 2009 models and the prospectus for 2010. They’ve got some great stuff coming out.”

 Motorcycles. Motorcycles. Motorcycles. If he didn’t make it clear every day that she and Shane were the most important things in the world to him, she’d be jealous of that shop and all those shiny toys. Sometimes, though, you have to play the hand you’re been dealt. “Let’s take a midnight ride,” she said.

 He looked up suddenly from the brochure and stared at her. “Really?”

 “Well, I thought we could do it right here in bed.”

 “Oh,” he said and frowned, but his face quickly morphed from disappointment to a big smile as he seemed to get her meaning. “Okay, I guess we can rev a few torque right here.”

 She smiled. Finally!

 He closed the folder he was reading, threw it on the floor, turned off the lamp and reached for her.

 “Kind Sir, I don’t want you to think that just because our child is with Rex tonight that means we can go all buck wild and stuff.”

 He chuckled. “You sure know how to sweet talk a guy, Mrs. Lovett,” he said and kissed her.

 The intensity of the kiss made her feel like she was drowning in him. She fought for air and said softly, “Let’s make a baby, Brody.”

 “What?”

 “A baby. Let’s make one.”

 He stared at her, but then smiled. “I get it. Simulated baby making is fun.”  

 She moved back. “I’m not kidding. I want this. A lot.”

 “Are you sure? Isn’t it too soon…”

 “I tossed the pills this morning. It’ll take a few weeks for the fertility to kick back in but we can practice until then. Dr. Wilson says it is fine to try.”

 Brody grunted, sat back up and turned on the lamp. “I don’t think we should joke around about this, okay? I really understand about—“

There it was again. On the surface everything was great between them but underneath he wasn’t totally sure about her. He didn’t really trust her feelings.

 “I don’t think you’ll ever know how much I wanted Diana, ” she said.

 “I know but we don’t have to--”

 “You thought she was Rex’s, didn’t you?”

 “I…”

 There it was. She’d been right about what was going on with him. Somewhere after meeting with Rex and then sitting in the coffee shop and ruminating about her life since she came to Llanview what she said jumped out of the shadows and became clear. 

 “She was your daughter, Brody, and I can guarantee you that,” she said softly but firmly. “The last time I slept with Rex was eleven years ago. There was no way she was Rex’s child.”

 Brody sighed. “It’s okay. You don’t have to say that.”

 “Yes, I do, because you had every reason to believe she was Rex’s but it just wasn’t true. We got together once but nothing happened. The truth is he was still in love with Adriana and I was trying to rewrite the past.”

 “It didn’t matter.”

 “Why not?”

 “Because I loved you and wanted you and Shane’s a great kid, so Diana couldn’t have been anything other than a gift.”

 Was he for real? What had she ever done to deserve him? “Has anyone ever told you that you’re too good to be true?”

 He smiled. “Just once.”

 That comment threw her. That’s not what she had expected him to say. She studied him as a disquieting realization hit her. “Did you ever love anybody else during those years we were apart? I mean really love?”

 He leaned against the bed’s back board. “Why? What’s this about?”

 “Did you?”

 “I came close once.”

 She told herself to breathe. It was so stupid but she was suddenly scared and jealous, so she pushed. “What happened?”

 “I was still in love with you and I couldn’t promise her if and when I’d get over it. And someone else was in love with her.”

 “So you stepped aside.”

 “Yeah. Made sense. He was a good guy.”

 Her mind made the leap, mapped the equation and suddenly the answer was staring her in the face. “And your best friend?”

 Brody looked away and then glanced back at her. “Yeah, he was my best friend.”

 “But if Toliver hadn’t been in love with Grace then you and she might have made it?”

 He shrugged. “It’s possible. But why are we talking about Grace?”

 “Because it was something Grace said to me that finally cut through my fog. I didn’t know you thought that Rex was Diana’s father but then I was such a fool back then I couldn’t add 1 +1. But Grace who lives two hundred miles away knew exactly what you were thinking, because she knows you that well.”

 “She’s Toliver’s wife, Gigi. He loves her.”

 The question was whether Grace knew that. “How did you know he was in love with her?”

 “What?”

 “How?”

 He tilted his head to the right and stared at her out of the corner of his eyes. “You really want to talk about this… now?”

 “Yes. How?”

 “Because he got up in Henry’s—“

 “Henry’s?”

 “Yeah a bar we used to go to all the time. He got up and sang ‘If This World Was Mine’ to whole bar full of half drunk military folk. Believe me that is not Toliver’s style.”

 “Why that song?”

 “I don’t know but Henry’s was a little hole in the wall owned by a ex-marine--a 'nam vet--who hadn’t changed the place in thirty years or more. The jukebox was one the old utilitarian numbers and the most current song was 1968 or so. So it’s not like he had a whole lot of choice. It was the best he could do. And it’s not a bad song. ‘If this world was mine I’d give you each day sunny and blue and if you wanted the moonlight, I’d give you that too.’ I remember that line.”

 Beautifully sappy and there is no way she could imagine Toliver ever singing that. “Was Grace there?”

 “She didn’t have to be. I knew and half that bar knew who he was singing about. Simple as that. He laid it on the line for her.”

 “So you stepped aside?”

 “Yeah. I guess you could put it that way.”

 “Suppose Toliver hadn’t been in love with Grace? I could have lost you for good?” The simplicity of that equation stilled her soul.

 “What do you want me to say?”

 “That you love me and forgive me for being such a fool for such a long time. I was so afraid of loving you that I did it all wrong, Brody. I protected my heart, shredded yours and kept my son from his father.”

 “That’s all water under the bridge now.” Brody said. He turned off the lamp, slipped down under the covers and pulled her into his arms. “I’ve finally realized that I don’t know anything about love, except what I feel. I don’t know how or why I fell so hard for you, but I did. And I regretted it plenty, but that never changed a thing about how I felt.”

 She gently traced the outline of his face with the tips of her fingers. “I do love you. Probably more than you will ever know. But I know you don’t really totally trust me yet.”

 “I do. Why would you say that?“

 “Because it’s your truth. And just like you made me face the truth about my anger at Rex, it’s okay to face your truth about me as well. We’ll work on it together.” She ran her fingers along his bare chest. “Me, you, Shane and Baby Girl Lovett.”

 He smiled.

 “And here’s my other truth. I’m not going anywhere. You’re stuck with me. And I’m going to spend the rest of my life making you happy.”

He kissed her then said, “You already do. Enough for a lifetime or two.”

 THE END

Thanks for Reading THE NEXT ACT! I hope you enjoyed it!

~~Tessarae87

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