Paul had to keep reminding himself that there were many good reasons to go to Vince's place that day.
For one, the girls really wanted to see their cousins. Shane's three boys. The ages of his three girls matched (almost eerily so) the ones of the three boys, leaving the children to be rather close.
Most of the time, anyways. There were occasions where the boys didn't like the idea of playing with the girls, the older children didn't want the 'babies' to play with them, and even others where all six children disliked one another for little to no reason other than children were fickle little runts.
But that wasn't the case that day, as it was all that Paul had heard about from Aurora and Murphy, seeing their cousins. Vaughn, his youngest, was in a rather foul mood that day (she had a restless night and it was showing), but he figured that she'd feel much better as the day went on.
For two, Vince really wanted to have some big family get-together recently. Linda as well. Paul knew that their schedules were rather busy and the ones of their children were equally as so, which left them little time for such things. And, with six grandchildren all growing up so fast, both Vince and Linda seemed to enjoy whatever time they could scrounge up.
Because, fine, yes, Vince could be quite the manipulative asshole that was mostly concerned with money and money alone, but he did care for his grandchildren. And his daughter and son as well. Very much. Paul couldn't fault the man for that.
And for the final, third reason, Stephanie wanted to go. And if Paul knew anything, it was that if Steph wanted to do it, they were just going to do it.
That was the law of the land.
"Oh, Vaughn," Stephanie chided gently as they headed up the walk of her parents home, "you need to be a big girl. You're too old to be carried like this."
"She's fine," Paul sighed as he bounced the girl in his arms. "Really."
No, she wasn't. But not because she was being carried. Because she was being forced to go play at Grandpa Vince's place when she just wanted to stay home and play with the doggie and do nothing at all.
Poor kid, Paul thought as he stared down at her. Didn't she know that McMahons weren't allowed to have days like that?
His other daughters scattered, the second they entered the house. They bypassed Vince, who was waiting on them, ignoring his calls for how they at least owed him a hug and he didn't care what they did, so long as they didn't break anything and cleaned up after themselves, heading off to find the boys.
"This one'll probably care about you at least a little, Vince," Paul offered up as he went to set Vaughn down in front of the man. She didn't like this, but when the old man leaned down to hug her, she didn't pull away. "The others just have better taste."
"The man jokes," Vince grumbled over the sounds of Stephanie yelling after her older daughters, bothered mostly by the fact they'd just run through her father's house with their boots and jackets covered in snow though she also called that they had better get back there and thank the man for letting them come over. "Until his paycheck comes. And leave them alone, Stephanie. Yelling at them like that. They're fine."
That got him a disparaging look from his daughter who moved just as quickly to throw her arms around him once he was finished with Vaughn. "That's funny," she said as he hugged her just as tightly. "Because if Shane or I ever acted that ways towards-"
"Believe me, we did plenty of times. Especially you."
Paul was bending down then, to help Vaughn out of her winter coat, when he heard that voice calling from the other room. It was, of course, his brother-in-law.
Which was the biggest reason Paul kinda sorta didn't really wanna go to the dinner.
It wasn't so much that he and Shane didn't get along. Or even that they argued with one another. Because they never did either of those things. Literally ever. He could never remember raising his voice to the other man, other than perhaps they got into it once, when he and Steph first began dating. Other than that though, they'd found a shaky peace which consisted of the following; just stay the hell out of one another's way.
It worked pretty well.
"Is that the sound of a jealous brother I hear?" Steph let go of her father then, shaking off her own coat and boots as well as her scarf. "That can't wrap his mind around not getting a nifty little award?"
"So the old creative television director pulled some strings and got herself an award. What's to be jealous over?"
Shane and Steph didn't hug when he came into the room to greet her, but only because the older of the siblings moved to ruffle her hair, getting rewarded in a shove.
"I really don't think someone that weaseled their way into Wrestlemania on their first time being on the show in ages can throw stones," Steph remarked with what she was hoping to be a heavy gaze, but she could only giggle, just from the sight of her brother smiling back at her. "Shane."
"Weaseled, huh?" But he was turning his attention away from her then as he walked over to where, out of her coat and boots, Vaughn was standing up against her father's legs, being rather clingy that day Bending down in front of her, Shane patted her on the head much more gently than he had his sister "You think I'm a weasel, Vaughn? Is that why you're not giving me a hug?"
No. That was because she just didn't want to! She didn't want to do anything! She didn't want-
Grandma. The little girl heard the woman's voice then, from another room in the house, where she was speaking to what sounded like her aunt. And, after being prodded by her uncle into giving him a kiss on the cheek, she rushed off to find the woman.
Now she could live with being with Grandma Linda instead of at home. It was the rest of them that she just didn't want to deal with that day.
"Is that all you people can talk about?" Paul griped a bit as he stepped away from his extended family, leaving his coat on the rack and boots by the door. Leaving the foyer, he said, "Always holding out hope that they're something more to you McMahons than business, but here we are."
"I'm glad you brought that up." Vince was hot on his heels. "There's some things we need to discuss"
"I didn't bring anything up." Still, Paul slowed down to allow the man to catch him. "Other than business in a general sense."
"And that's exactly what I want to talk about. Business in a general sense." When he was close enough, Vince threw an arm around the man's shoulders, squeezing tightly as Paul allowed himself to be tugged around by the elderly man (though admittedly, he was rather strong for his age). "And then spend some time kicking your ass before dinner."
"Before? When is dinner then? You told us to arrive at-"
"It won't be for another hour. At least. You know how cooking goes."
"I know, sure," Paul agreed as, finally, he shoved the man away. "But the question is do you?"
"I know how to place some calls to get some damn dinner made. The hell else is there to it than that?"
It was Paul's turn to toss an arm over the man's shoulder as they disappeared down a hall, away from the foyer. The last thing Steph heard her husband saying was, "Never change, Vince."
Left alone in the foyer, she noticed, of course, the way her brother's eyes followed after the pair, but just as quickly he was looking back at her once more.
"Something tells me," he said as he nodded down the center hall, as if to suggest to her to follow him, "that the whole reason he planned this was just to get your husband here."
"To kick his ass?"
"Maybe." Shane was heading away from the side of the mansion where Steph could hear their mother and his wife and definitely away from Vince's office, where the man was no doubt taking her husband. "But given the order of succession around here these days, giving the man a chance to stage an accident wouldn't be too wise on Dad's part."
"Shane-"
"It's a joke." He bounded up the grand staircase when they got to it. "Now c'mon; we probably got about another minute before one of the kids nearly kills another, trying to elbow drop off a dresser again."
Giving in, she followed. "It was a piledriver, that almost killed one of them, and it was your son that hurt poor Murphy."
"You're forgetting that time Aurora tried to bury Kenny in the backyard that summer."
"I remember Declan being rather helpful in that. And Kenny sure was lying there, awaiting to be buried."
"He was selling the injury, Steph. Something you could learn from."
"Oh, we're going to go there?"
"I feel like we might as well." Still, once on the second floor, he stopped for a moment, listening for sounds of the children. Once he heard them, he headed towards their voices. "First though, now that they're all together, it's time for some ground rules."
Which had to be laid nearly every time all six of the children got together as, inevitably, someone would get hurt. As Aurora and Declan got older, of course, they'd more or less learned the dangers of such games, but the younger children still believed quite heavily in imitating the moves they'd grown up seeing. On more than one occasion, an evening spent together could end in tears and intense arguments between the children.
"I feel like we're the only ones who realize this," Steph told her brother as they went on their way. "Dad and Paul seem to think that they'll just sort these sorts of things all out on their own."
Other than that time mentioned above, when Murphy honestly was about seriously injured when Kenny, Shane's middle son, basically just picked her up and dropped her on her head. Paul had been very upset that time and banned all the kids from ever watching the damn shows again, if they weren't smart enough to realize they were fake.
Which is exactly what he yelled at them, all six of them (though the youngest two were mostly just innocent bystanders, as they were probably only toddlers back then). Vince tried to smooth things over that day, as it had been at another one of his great family get-togethers he loved so much, by telling Paul about all the times Shane and Steph used to do the same things and all the broken bones he had to deal with and such.
But Paul hadn't cared. It took a bit to calm him down that day. It kind of ruined the whole evening and Shane had to punish his son quite heavily as well as explain, as he felt he would be doing until the kids were, finally, able to comprehend that just because things looked like they were really happening on TV, most the time they weren't, that play wrestling was fine (he felt like that was something he'd never completely ban his kids from), but maybe just stick to grappling.
He could have really hurt his cousin, after all.
"Dad just thinks everything works out fine all on its own always," her brother offered up with a shrug. "And your husband just tries to ignore it after...that time."
Steph knew immediately what he was referring too, as Paul had been rather horrible about the whole thing. She knew that Murphy could have been seriously hurt, but at the same time, she hadn't been and it had been an accident, as Kenny would never do something like that on purpose. It was something that could have been resolved very easily by explaining to the kids just why that move was actually banned, even, up at work in nearly every situation, and that they really shouldn't try to do anything where someone might hit their head. That they could appreciate what their parents did for a living without trying to imitate it.
After all, Vince had had to do the same with Shane and Stpeh growing up. Many, many times.
But it was different for Paul, she knew, because he hadn't grown up like they did. She could remember him telling her that there was no fucking way he'd ever wrestle his sister and he definitely wouldn't try to break her damn neck.
He was rather livid over the whole thing and it wasn't easy to calm him down.
When he finally did, he felt a bit foolish and knew he'd freaked his nephews out, yelling at them like that, as well as his daughters, which he didn't feel so great about. The next time he saw the boys, he could tell they were nervous around him, which he didn't like, so he only made them promise to never try to piledrive someone, ever, no matter if they were his daughters or not, and then, as he was the babysitter that day, he took them out to get ice cream.
From then on, he left any disputes over what went on when the children played with one another to the others. Bit back any words when one of the girls ended up crying because the boys had actually slugged them and left a nasty bruise and never even scolded Aurora that heavily when she delivered a wicked low blow to poor Declan. Just reminded the others that he had nothing to do with any of that; he hadn't grown up in the business, after all.
Right?
And Vince would laugh things off, even when the kids did hurt one another. Just explain to them again that wrestling wasn't something to take lightly and, sometimes, when the boys did beat up on the girls perhaps a bit too hard, told them that if they wanted someone to really wrestle, he was right there.
Be real men. Or something of the sort.
Aurora got that talk sometimes too. Minus the man part.
"Yeah," Steph agreed softly. "I know."
The kids had found better use of their time that day, however, and were rather annoyed when their parents came to ruin their great game of hide-and-seek in Grandpa Vince's massive house, just to tell them not to play too rough with one another.
They didn't even like wrestling. That week. They liked hide-and-seek.
And video games. They really liked video games.
Vaughn didn't like any of them that day. Rather, she sat with her grandmother and aunt for most of the time before dinner, listening to them talk as she colored on some paper her granny gave her. You know, until she got bored of that and, taking in the fact neither was paying much attention to her, set off to find her father.
He was only ever one place when they went to Grandpa's house.
Mommy always told her not to bother Grandpa when he was in his office, that she shouldn't go in there, as he was probably very busy and that the things in there weren't anything to play with. The same went for her and her father's studies back at home. Unless you were told you could come in, you weren't allowed to.
But Grandpa Vince always told her that she could always come in. And that she didn't have to ask for nothing. She was the baby and she could do whatever she wanted.
That was why she liked him the best.
Other than when she didn't. Like before. When he was hugging on her. Because when she didn't, she just didn't.
At the moment, however, she did.
He and her father seemed to be rather serious when she pushed her way in there.
"-just excited, is all, I suppose," Vince was saying as he walked around the office, staring at the many things he had lining the bookshelves, as if searching for something out of place. "This will be the best Wrestlemania yet."
"You say that every year."
"I mean that every year." He's head snapped towards the door when it was pushed open, but when his eyes fell lower, to find his youngest grandchild there, Vince only ignored her. Paul had turned as well, from where he was standing in the middle of the room, and started to tell Vaughn to go find the other children to play with, but Vince spoke right over him. "This is the year that I get my son back in the ring. Not to mention you."
"Not to mention."
"And come here then, if you're going to interrupt things." Vince was speaking then to the little girl, who was just standing there in the doorway, staring at her father and grandfather, awaiting acknowledgment. "And close the door behind you."
She didn't do that though, far too busy giggling as she rushed over to the man, bypassing the father she was so clingy to before, as she reached for her grandfather to pick her up.
He did, but it was only so he could go sit behind his desk finally, setting her in his lap.
"Don't be so sour, Paul," Vince chided as Vaughn settled into his lap and the girl's father went to shut the office door once more. "We're still working out all the kinks, but I think you'll be main eventing again."
"I'm not sour. About any of that." Shaking his head a bit, the man said, "If we have to talk about the company though-"
"We don't. But what else is there in life?"
"-I'd rather talk about a few things I've been thinking about on NXT-"
"That again." Vince made a face down at his granddaughter who only giggled. Looking back at his son-in-law, he said, "You act sometimes as if that's on par with what the main roster's doing."
"That's because it is to me."
"Oh, I know. And you're doing a fine job. A great one! I just...would rather focus on Wrestlemania."
"Right. 32."
"Hmmm?"
"Wrestlemania," he repeated, knowing the number always bothered the old man, which he wanted to do in that moment, "32. Say it with me, Vince. 32. It's been 32 years since-"
"That number don't make you sound any less old either, boy." Vince rested a hand then, on his granddaughter's head, distracting her as she started to reach for some of the papers on his desk. Not looking at her, however, the man only said, "You act as if you aren't excited."
"By something that still feels so far away?"
"We're planning for it-"
"And have been since the end of 31. I've got Takeover to worry about too." Then Paul smiled as he stood before the desk again. "Or is that what you're worried about, Vince?"
"What are you talking about?"
"Accusing me of being sour when you're secretly afraid my young talent is gonna be the real thing everyone talks about, Mania weekend?"
Vince laughed, joylessly, but Vaughn didn't know that and laughed along with him, just because she didn't know what was going on and wanted to seem involved.
"The day that happens," the man said as he gave his son-in-law a rather intense gaze, "I'll hand the company right over to you. How's that sound? Takeover better than Wrestlemania. I'll give it to you, Paul, you sure know how to entertain me."
"Should we shake on it then?" Paul had that same neutral tone as the older man, but his gaze was just as heavy. "Vince?"
His father-in-law regarded the hand before him with a frown, finally, before nodding at the chair that sat before his desk.
"Sit down, Paul. Lording yourself over me. What's wrong with you?"
It was silent for a moment or two as the man followed instruction, but neither were for sure where they should go next.
So Vaughn spoke up.
"I'm hungry."
Paul started to tell her that she needed to go find the other children or her mother, but Vince only laughed, it being far more real that time.
"I am too." He patted her belly gently. "You know I worked hard to get you all this food, huh?"
"Mmmhmm."
"I thought we already went over just how you got the food?" Paul raised an eyebrow. "Called in some people to make it for you?"
"And what money brought that in?"
"Stock money, I'm sure."
"Stock from the company that I've risen to- You know I was serious about that kicking your ass thing."
Vaughn didn't really know what that sentence meant, but she did know that her grandfather had said a bad word which made her stare up at him in shock.
Paul only grinned at him though. "I feel like you're practically asking for it here. I won't feel so bad when you're being hauled out of here on a stretcher."
"And I won't feel so bad when your wife's crying over the next quad tear I give you."
"Oh, c'mon, Vince. That's too easy." Paul shook his head. "You talking about quads after that sliding into the ring fiasco-"
"That was a Rumble for the books, I suppose." The man was taking out of their jabs for the moment as he considered this. "Although, I'm sure you rather enjoyed this one."
Paul let out a short grunt. "It had to be done, to lay the ground work."
"You might be the least appreciative champion I give a belt to."
"Oh, you give them now?"
"With you, it seems like everyone else thinks so."
"I think they think Steph's the one doing that, actually."
"Shane now," he corrected, "after this week's little revelation." Vince laughed. "Ain't nothing like your son coming back to your company only to announce to a rabid audience that he's the only reason you're still in business."
"It will make for some interesting question from the dumbasses that are still stuck in the eighties and believe everything you tell them."
"Why shouldn't they?" Vince grumbled this as Vaughn stared then at her father in shock. Maybe that word wasn't a bad one and she was just confused. "Things are only as real as you make them. In fact, forget me tearing one of your quads."
"Considering no one, but me has ever been the cause of that, regardless of what Chris likes to go around boasting, I really don't think that was ever on the table."
"You and Shane should beat the shit out of one another!" Vince seemed rather excited then, but Paul only frowned for a few reasons.
"Watch your mouth," was one of the things that came out of his. Ass was one thing, it seemed, and shit was another. "Vaughn is right-"
"The two of you getting hauled outta here by cops, Steph and Linda cryin', and Marissa screaming her head off- Yes! The media would eat that up! Real dissension in the McMahon family. And then-"
"Shane and I aren't doing any of that, so calm down. You're getting yourself so excited you might have a heart attack."
"Just think of it, Paul. It-"
"We're not," the man repeated again, "doing that, Vince. Ever. Shane and I aren't… So just knock it off."
His eyes had glazed over, just a bit, Vince's had, from the thought of such a media firestorm. He knew the women wouldn't be behind it, but damn if that wouldn't get all of their names in the paper. Front page! Everyone would tune into RAW that Monday hoping for a reference. And if he could get Paul and Shane to give one another some noticeable injuries, hell, his son-in-law was right, he might just die of a heart attack. Make the team get started on a whole new script for Monday. New scripts for everything! A new Helmsley vs McMahon era.
But at is son-in-law's words, Vince zoned back in, just a bit. It helped that Vaughn patted at his chest, wanting to remind him once more that she was hungry.
Ignoring her though, Vince only stared at Paul as he said, "Now don't go getting all bent out of shape over the prodigal returning, boy."
"Is that what Shane is now? The Prodigal Son?"
"He left, he's back."
"He wasn't lost. He was just fed up with you."
Vince snorted. "Anyone who's not on the same page as me is always lost."
"Then I'm lost. Enlighten me on how Shane and I fighting here would help further he and the Undertaker's match or mine? At Mania?"
"We'll save it then. For the summer. You and Shane-"
"Are never going to do that, so knock it off."
"Don't be jealous, Paul. Your brother was dead and now he's alive. He was lost and then found. He… Damn, it's been a long time since I've read a bible. How did that story end again?"
Paul just stared at him. "I think it's about time we got back to talking about what we originally were."
Vince's mind was coming up blank at his words, so after a moment, he only asked, "And what was that?"
The man didn't exactly lie as he said, "NXT. We were discussing NXT."
"Were we?" Shrugging, Vince settled back into his chair, snuggling Vaughn up real close to him before nodding at her father. "Continue then."
Dinner was called for about twenty minutes later, which meant they had to round up all the children. As it was the first the boys had seen of their uncle and youngest cousin, their mother made them hug each of them, though Vaughn wasn't too thrilled with this and just held tight to Vince's leg, still wanting to play uncooperative that day, it seemed.
Vince sat at the head of the table, of course, while Shane sat at the opposite one. When he noticed his brother-in-law take his place at his father's right hand side, however, he had to question how smart that was.
"How come she gets to sit in Grandpa's lap?" Shane's youngest son, Rogan, griped at the sight of Vaughn in their grandfather's lap. Steph and Paul had both tried to put a stop to this, but Vince had put a stop to them, rather.
"Because she's being a baby," Stephanie said, though her words were directed at her daughter. Not that she cared. "And you're a big boy. Aren't you?"
Sometimes. Other time he wanted to do the same.
There were five places on either side of the table, the women and Paul filling up four of the seats on one side and the five kids who weren't, as Steph had said, being big babies seated on the other. Murphy was closest to her Uncle Shane and stared up at him after deciding that she did not like those disgusting vegetables on her plate.
"Are you really gonna fight the Undertaker at Wrestlemania?" She was staring at him with wide eyes. The man only nodded as he too shoved his vegetables around on the plate.
"Of course." Reaching over, he patted her on her blonde head. "You were listening on Monday to me, weren't you?"
"No."
"No?" He frowned. When he was her age, there wasn't a single match that he and Steph would miss if they could help it.
Shaking her head, she said, "Rora did though and she said that you're gonna do it."
"Well, I am."
"Like how Daddy did?"
"You remember that?"
Shaking her head no, she said, "But Rora said he lost too."
"Too?" Shane glared down the table then, to his oldest niece. She and his oldest, Declan, were very busy trying to discreetly play with one of their hand-held video games under the table (they'd be reprimanded if caught). Well, he was playing and she was watching it seemed. "You think I'mma lose, Murphy?"
Nodding, she said, "If Daddy did."
"You don't think I'm as strong as your dad?"
She glanced over at the man, who was speaking softly with Vince, before up at her uncle. Taking in her father's bulk and her uncle's...lack there of, she felt she had no choice but to nod.
"Yes."
Shane only smiled at her. "Yes I am?"
"No."
"No to no that no I'm not which means that yes I am?"
"You're confusing me," she complained as he only laughed and patted her on the head once more.
"So it's decided then," they heard suddenly from the other end of the table, where Vince had been leaning down, listening to something Vaughn whispered in his ear. "Kids, you guys all wanna spend the night tonight?"
"What?' Steph frowned. "Dad-"
"Really?" Kenny perked right up. "Can we?"
"Of course you can. All six of you. You-"
"Vince," Paul started. "Why are you-"
"Because the baby wants to." He poked Vaughn in the tummy, who laughed. Actually, she had asked if she could spend the night; but the rest of them could come along too. If they had to. "It's been a long time since all six of you-"
"Because we all decided that there were too many of them for you to watch," Shane said, frowning at his father. "And there still are. You-"
"That was when they were all still so tiny. Most of them are practically grown now! Aren't these two driving?" He motioned to his left, at Aurora and Declan, who mostly were hoping it wasn't too obvious they hadn't touched their food at all and, rather, were very consumed in murdering zombies. "I swear they are."
"Dad-" Stephanie tried again as Marissa spoke up too, but Linda cut them all off.
"I think it's fine," she said as Vince nodded. "But only if you kids want to."
Paul made a face as Murphy and Kenny tried at the same time to yell yes at the top of their lungs and therefore drown out any complaints the others made. Steph only put a hand to her head while Shane and Marissa hushed them both.
"That settles that," Vince said, nodding down at Vaughn. "The yeses have it."
"Because that's how things should be decided," Paul griped to his wife. "By who can scream the loudest."
"Oh, you'd be surprised."
Not that the children's parents were going anywhere any time soon. In fact, after dinner, in which the children mostly just fed their vegetables under the table to Vince's mastiff, who was hiding under their, while the adults drank a tad too much wine, save Paul, who didn't drink, they stuck around for quite some time. While the kids dispersed to get back to playing...whatever it was they were playing, Vince took Paul off again, Vaughn being goaded into going with her sisters and cousins that time, leaving the men to discuss whatever business they had together in peace.
Shane thought about following them, when he saw them disappear towards his father's office once more, but found best of it, instead staying in the dining room with his mother, wife, and sister. They were drinking still, wine, as the children ran off, with a groan, he refilled his own glass.
He and Marissa left first that night. His father had tried to get them to stay in his mansion while they were in town, but they wanted to head back home that night, it seemed. Only after making all three boys promise to behave and telling them they'd be back in the morning to pick them up.
Paul and Stephanie only lived down the road from Vince, however, and stayed for a bit longer. This had more to do with her husband being held captive (or holding her father captive, maybe) in that damn office for hours. It was only after Stephanie went to get him and tell them both, finally, that it was time to call it a night, that he was able to leave.
He thought that the girls would have copped out on the idea of staying over at their grandfather's place with their cousins, as some time had passed, but nope. Even Vaughn seemed to be in better spirits, albeit a bit tired, and waved him off when he tried to, at the very least, take her back home with them.
It wasn't until they were in their own home, completely alone, that Steph and Paul both seemed to realize what exactly that meant. And, with the scent of wine on her breath, she giggled it to him.
"Until, you know, around three in the morning when Vince is losing his shit because he's gotten the kids so wound up and he can't get any of them in bed, and they're all fighting, and we have to go either pick up just the girls or all six of them, just to get him some peace," Paul finished for her, though drug her off to their master bedroom regardless. "Until then."
"If you don't wanna-"
"Oh, no, we're gonna fuck." The word alone got him a hit to the chest, but he only grinned. "We just gotta hurry and get it out of the way before that happens."
It was only after they had and some time had passed, long enough for him to wash off a bit and her snuggle up in their bed, that she got around to what she really wanted to talk about.
"What were you and Dad doing all night?"
"Did you not hear him? The old bat kicked my ass."
"Paul-"
"Mmmm." He fell into bed with her. "I think I like it better when you're screaming my name and raking your nails down my back. When you say it this way, I feel like it's out of annoyance."
She only laid there on her side, staring at him as he snuggled up under the covers as well. "You're not going to tell me, are you?"
"What's there to tell? Your father likes me more than you. Get over it, Steph. Jeez. Clingy much?"
"I'll smother you in your sleep."
"Better not." He was on his back, but did turn his head to the side to stare over at her. "Else you'll never find out what we talked about."
"I have a feeling I won't either way."
Grinning, he said, "It was nothin', Steph. We just...talked. Well, he did, mostly. A lot. You know, I'm starting to think that man might be a bit full of himself."
"Just a bit."
"Your poor mother. Lucky you, your husband is rather level headed, from what I hear."
"Is that so?"
Nodding, he said, "Smart too. Educated. Talented."
"Talented in what?"
"Life." Then he winked at her. "And going down on you, if earlier was any indicat- Hey, if you legit smother me, I'm gonna be pretty pissed off."
Steph had only thrown one of the pillows towards him though, trying hard to make a face and keep from giggling.
"Just pretty pissed off?"
"Well, I think your father implied that I'm going to Heaven when I die or something, so dying won't be too bad."
Sitting up a bit, she stared down at him with a frown. "Just what did you guys talk about, Paul?"
"A lotta stuff."
"Because if he told you he gets to decide who goes to Heaven and Hell-"
"You tellin' me he ain't? Because I agreed to pledge my life to him, then, under false pretenses."
She fell into the bed then, closer to him than before. "You pledged your life to me, mister. Not him. And don't forget it."
Paul kept his alight eyes on hers though he was already trying to remember if he had taken his phone off silent (he was honestly expecting that call from the McMahon house in the coming hours, as Vince could handle an entire roster of grown men and women, but six boys and girls typically managed to get to him after about two hours), watching her snuggle up real close to his chest.
Wrapping an arm around her, he only whispered, "Yes, ma'am," against the top of her head. Then, softly, he added, "You're going to be the one going to get them, by the way."
"Am not."
"Are too."
"Whose life did you just agree was pledged to whom?"
"Whom." Snort. "You pretensions bitch."
"P-Paul-"
"I'm drunk."
"You didn't drink anything. Literally at all."
Hmmm.
When she lifted her eyes to meet his, he only said, "I'm drunk off you."
That got an eye roll, but a cute little giggle as well. Burying her head once more against his side, Steph said against it, "You're not getting anything else outta me tonight, so stop trying."
"Babe, I'm old," he told her as he shut his eyes. "It'd have to be something spectacular for me to even entertain the idea of doing anything else tonight."
"You're not old."
"Feels like it."
"My dad's old."
"You're dad's ancient."
"But you're not old."
"Neither are you."
"Oh, as if that needed to be said." Steph probably rolled her eyes again. He wasn't sure. "I'm not even forty."
"Yet. You're so close these days, you have to add that now, babe."
"Shuddup."
"Make me."
But they were both too tired for anything like that.
And when that phone did ring at three in the morning, Paul didn't even bother waking his wife. Just slipped out of her grasped and went to take care of things, just like he always would. He'd gotten rather good at getting Vince outta jams in the past decade, after all.
Especially ones that hadn't needed to be created in the first place as, just like Paul had figured, Vaughn and Rogan both wanted to just go back home because they were little kids and Vince's mansion was scary at night (hell, Vince himself was rather scary at night) and damn, Paul just loaded all six of them up and drove them back to his place where he somehow managed to get them all off to bed with far less fuss than Vince had gotten.
One day, when the old man wasn't around to make dumb decisions, Paul was sure he'd miss him. But that night as he fell into bed with Steph again after convincing the two younger ones that the scary story Vince neglected to tell Paul he'd told them (which was the real reason, apparently, for their fears) wasn't real and to just, please, go to sleep, as well as got the older ones to wind back down again, Paul could have murdered his father-in-law.
Honest.
Especially when, bright and early the next morning, Vince showed up to cart the boys back over to his place, as not to have to admit defeat to Shane when he arrived for the kids later.
"You're crazy, you know that?" Paul griped after listening to Vince bribe the boys with twenty bucks each (the sucker; they'd have done it for ten; although, if they weren't so foolish, they'd have realized he was willing to go up to a hundred each) not to tell their father it hadn't been his place they'd spent the entire night at. "What difference does it make if Shane knows or not?"
They were standing there, in the younger man's driveway, as Vince grinned and said, "I'd never hear the end of it if he did find out. And they'd never be allowed to spend the night all with me again."
"You're never going to hear the end of it from me! And I'm going to stop it from happening. Because calling me at three in the morning isn't-"
"Oh, hush, Paul." Vince only patted him on the shoulder before rushing to get in the car with his grandsons. "No time for talking today; busy schedule!"
When wasn't it?
"I hate your father," was what came out of Paul's mouth that morning over breakfast. The girls were still asleep and would be for some time after their eventful Friday night. "Just so you know."
"Mmmm." Steph only yawned as she poured him some more coffee as well as filled a mug for herself. "You always says that."
"And I mean it."
"But do you though?"
Staring down at the cup, he said, "I know he's all happy that your brother and him are back on such great terms, but I don't get how lying about the boys not having to come over here because he's an old ass men and six kids are just too much to manage helps their relationship any."
"He just wants to prove Shane wrong and brag about what a great grandfather he is."
"Yeah, because that's conclusive to a great father-son relationship."
"Lucky you, you only have daughters." Steph went back to the stove, where she was frying him some bacon. "And never have to figure that out."
No. He just had to figure out the exceedingly more complicated relationships that he would have, the older his girls got.
Still, he only said, "At least we got that outta the way, I guess, for a bit. That whole big happy family bit."
Stephanie glanced back at him, but he was glaring down at his coffee mug, clearly still tired after the long night they'd had.
Sporting a headache of her own, though it had more to do with that wine she'd guzzled down, she flipped the bacon before whispering, "Yeah. At least."
A guest requested this and I wasn't really sure what to do with the idea, so I hope it turned out okay. I'm not exactly the biggest fan of Shane (in the show, I mean) and really don't think the relationships are as strained off the camera as people try to make them out to be. Still, ask and you'll receive.