This is the other "future" thing that insisted I write it now. My heavy work period is about to start, so I may not be posting as much new stuff for the next six weeks or so
A Gentleman Never Tells
CJ/Danny
Rating Adult –
Spoilers through end of series
Stand alone for now but part of the "Holding Hands" universe
I would be remiss if I didn't acknowledge that although this was brewing in my muse's mind for over a year, Laura's work has pushed the need to write it up to the top of the pile.
Not mine, never were, never will be, but they consume my soul
Late July, 2027; Santa Monica, CA
Danny was working on the manuscript of his newest book (a history of political reporting) when the doorbell rang.
At first, he didn't respond. CJ and Caitlin were over at Jesse and Nancy's, but Pat was home. The last Danny had seen of him, his son was watching baseball in the family room and Danny knew that Pat was aware that his father was working.
The doorbell sounded again. With a slightly exasperated sigh, Danny got up from his desk.
When Danny opened the door, there were two men in suits. They did not have to flash their badges for Danny to know that they were police.
"Daniel Concannon? We need to talk to you."
Danny decided that he did not like the man who spoke.
"And you are?"
"I'm Detective Ford. This is Detective Ridge," he pointed to the other man, who at least smiled slightly and held out his hand. "LA Police. We need to talk to you."
Still no badges.
"May I see some identification?"
"Yes, sir, excuse me."
Detective Ridge hurried showed his credentials. The other man also complied, but with huffiness.
"Are you gonna let us in?"
"Follow me, gentlemen." Danny led the way to the living room.
"Now how may I be of assistance to you?"
"There was a murder at the White Egret on Saturday night, or rather, early Sunday morning. We're talking to everyone who was there that day."
"I'm sorry to hear that, but you must be mistaken. I've never been to the White Egret."
Danny had never been there, but the motel's reputation was not unknown to Danny. It wasn't exactly seedy, but it wasn't the nicest place in LA either.
"Your car was there earlier in the day, but it was gone by 12:30, when shots were reported. Maybe you were seeing someone on the side? Someone you don't want the missus to know about?" Detective Ford sneered slightly.
Danny told himself he needed to remain calm.
"Perhaps someone wrote down the plate numbers incorrectly?"
"This your car?"
The detective threw a surveillance camera photo on the coffee table.
Danny stared at the photo. It was indeed his car, but how? On Saturday night, he and CJ were at Ken and Laura's with some of the others.
Then he remembered. At 3:30 on Saturday afternoon, Pat had come to him, asking for a jump. When the battery in Pat's car refused to hold a charge, Danny gave his keys to his son. Pat and Maggie were going to a pool party, then on to dinner and a movie. Oh, son, he said to himself, what have you gotten yourself into?
"I think you need to speak with my son. I lent him my car that day. Let me go get him. Would either of you like some coffee?"
Danny closed the door to the living room as he left. As soon as he got to the courtyard, he pulled out his phone at called Ken Robbins.
Ken was no longer practicing law full-time, but he was still a member of the bar. Danny explained the situation, stating that he was not too comfortable with at least one of the detectives. Ken told Danny that he would be right over ("I just need to make one quick call") and to tell Pat to not say anything until he got to the Concannon home.
Three minutes later, Danny returned to the living room with his son in tow. Danny performed the introductions. Detective Ridge started asking questions (Danny was sure that the men decided that perhaps Detective Ford had not made the best impression), but they were interrupted by the door bell.
"Excuse me."
"Good afternoon. I'm Ken Robbins; I'm Pat's lawyer." Ken smiled easily at the men."
"Now why would he need a lawyer?" Detective Ford asked sarcastically.
"He doesn't have to have a reason, or to give you one; it's his right. Now, if you will ask your questions politely, I'm sure that Pat will give you his full cooperation.
"One other thing. Pat, would you prefer that your father leave the room?"
"Ken?" Danny looked at the man.
"Danny, in this situation, I am Pat's lawyer, not yours." Ken looked at Danny with a fixed stare which implied "pro bono, if necessary".
"It's okay," the young man said.
Then, answering Detective Ridge's questions, he told them that he was indeed at the White Egret "with a friend", but that they had left by 11:00. ("We have 1:00 AM curfews," Pat said with a diffident smile.) No, they didn't notice anything out of the ordinary, but then, they weren't paying much attention to anyone or anything else. When asked if he had any proof of the timing, Pat said he had an ATM receipt from the bank two blocks from their house. Ken volunteered that "the kids" had appeared at his party "before midnight"; several other neighbors would be able to vouch for them.
"Well, okay, just one more thing. What is your friend's name and address?"
"I'm sorry, I can't tell you."
"Don't tell us you don't know her name. Your lawyer said the two of you were at his house," Detective Ridge said sharply.
"What I mean is, my father taught me that a gentleman never tells."
"Pat, in this case, you need to tell," Ken counseled the young man.
Pat let out a deep sigh. "It's Maggie, Magdaléna Muñoz. She lives two doors up the street, but she isn't home now, she's at her sister's bridal shower."
"Gentlemen, I think that Miss Muñoz and her sister are indeed at home now," Ken told them.
Danny flashed the lawyer a look of thanks. Ken had apparently figured out everything immediately. His "quick phone call" was over to Nancy and Jesse's; Nancy was hosting the shower for her husband's cousin. Carmen was three years' out of UCLA Law and was employed by the legal staff of the Hollis Foundation in San Luis Obispo, where she met a nice young Physics professor and would be getting married in three weeks.
The detectives left and headed up to Frank and Diana's place.
"Thank you, sir, for making sure that Maggie would have a lawyer, too," Pat told Ken.
"Well, from what your father said, those men weren't exactly card-carrying members of the ACLU. Plus, I thought it would be best if Maggie had someone else with her when her father found out. Frank isn't exactly Victorian, but I have a daughter, I know how a father feels when he finds out – Anyway, if they come by again, you call me. See you all later."
Danny closed the door after Ken left and turned back to his son.
"So, you and Maggie. And you've kept this from your mother and me?"
"We waited until we were eighteen, Dad. It's between the two of us. Again, what you told me when I was fifteen."
Three years earlier; western Ireland
It was a "soft" rainy day at the MacDonald residence. Liam, Fiona and Brendan Collins' four year-old, asked for "an American green money" and Pat pulled out his wallet. Danny saw the tell-tale raised circle and fixed his son with a steady stare. Later that evening, Danny and Pat had a very frank discussion.
Under his father's insistent prodding, Pat admitted that he wasn't sexually active, that he was still inexperienced, but when he found the condom, right before the family had flown over, he decided that he would carry it in order to give himself some "credit" with his friends. No, there hadn't been time to have shown his wallet to the guys.
"Well, thank God, at least, for that. Pat, a man keeps his relationship with a woman close to his chest. It is not something that a man announces to his friends. The relationship should be special, should be private.
"And in your case, if your friends think you are having sex, who are they going to suspect as your partner? Who are they going to talk about?" Danny saw the consternation in his son's eyes as the truth dawned on him. "Is that what you want to happen to Maggie and her reputation? How do you think she would feel when she found out? And for God's sake, what do you think Frank, Steve, and Mike would say, not to mention do, to you when they found out?"
Pat gulped. He hadn't considered any of that.
"You're right, Dad. It was stupid. Here." He pulled the condom from his wallet and handed it to his father.
"Why are you giving it to me?"
"I was in your den, looking for a dictionary. I couldn't find mine. This fell out of one of yours. I'm assuming it belongs to you."
Danny looked closely at the little foil packet. It was creased, the foil crinkled as if dried out. The expiration date was March 2007. It must have slipped into the book way back when he was packing up to move west, right after CJ picked him and Frank Hollis instead of Matt Santos and the White House, right after they had been tested and after CJ went on the pill.
"Pat, you do realize that this is over seventeen years old. That it's way past its date of usefulness."
"No, I assumed it was okay."
"Okay, we need to talk some more. But first, Pat, why would you think that I would need something like this? Do you think I'm not faithful to your mother?"
"God, no, Dad! I meant, I didn't know these things went bad."
"Okay, let's talk."
July 2027; Santa Monica, CA
Danny's thoughts returned to the present, but stayed on condoms.
"Please tell me that you and Maggie and being careful, that you're using protection?"
"Maggie went to the doctor the day after her birthday. She's taking pills now."
"You know pills don't protect against diseases - "
"Dad, this is me and Maggie. We're the first, we'll be the only ones, for each other. We did get blood tests, more as an act of faith and honesty to the other, but, dammit, Dad, you know what we've meant to each other, how can you even think?" Pat was upset.
Danny was trying to adjust. Was it really eighteen years since CJ had given him this son? Was the little boy really an adult, at least legally? And if he was having a hard time adjusting, what must Frank be going through right now? Danny didn't want to think of his Caitlin sleeping with anyone.
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to imply. So, are you okay? Is Maggie okay? Is there anything you need any, ah, advice on?" If his son was going to be having sex, Danny's instinctive pride wanted him to be good at it.
Pat smiled and Danny, as he always did, saw CJ in his face.
"Maggie is awesome. I'd say you can't imagine, but I know damned well that you know only too well how wonderful everything is. We did okay, I guess. We're still learning. We read books beforehand, still are. Dad, we really did discuss this, starting a while back, almost two years. That's when we decided that we would wait until we were both eighteen. We're fine, really, except that the next four years are going to be tough. I know you're probably disappointed, but, again, we did wait until now. And I'm only a year younger than you were when you and Brian's mom - ."
When Danny looked up in surprise, Pat told him that he overheard his father and his aunt discussing Brianna that summer three years ago and had put two and two together.
"Pat, I think your mother and I and Frank and Diana knew that this day would come. Hell, we joked about it at first. Disappointed, no. I do feel a little bad that you went to some place like the Egret, so, I don't know, ordinary. First times should be special."
"Saturday wasn't our first time. Last month, well, we gave some money to Maggie's cousin Andréa, she got us a nice place at the Sheraton. And, well, we have taken one or two people into our confidence. But money's a bit tight right now, and without a credit card, it's hard to get a nice place. I don't suppose you'd let us -"
"With your sister in the house? Don't even think it. You've taken on a man's privilege; you've also taken on a man's responsibilities. One of which, by the way, is telling your mother."
"No."
"Excuse me?" Pat hadn't been so obviously defiant for at least twelve years.
"Ken said I had to tell the cops, and, since I involved your car, I felt you had a right to know. But, this is between Maggie and me."
"I appreciate what you are saying, but do you expect it to stay that way?"
"Probably not, but Mama won't hear it from me. You're her husband, and I'm sure you don't want to keep it from her, so you tell her if you have to. Now, it there's nothing else - "
Pat stood, waiting for a few seconds, not for explicit permission to leave, but wanting to show respect. When his father didn't say anymore, he left the den.
Once he was back in his room, Pat called Maggie. She was okay. It wasn't as bad as it could have been. Having Carmen there, both as a lawyer and as a sister, was a godsend. She needed to thank Mr. Robbins. Pat hung up with Maggie, took a deep breath, and made another call.
Five minutes later, Pat knocked on the door of his father's den.
"Dad, I'm going up to the Muñoz' house."
"Do you think that's wise, right now?"
"I called Uncle Frank, told him I wanted to talk with him. I need to let him know that, I guess, my intentions are honorable, that I'd never hurt Maggie, that when we're through undergrad, we will marry."
Danny felt a surge of pride; his son was indeed taking responsibility for his actions. Then the father persona rose to the forefront.
"Do you want me to come with you?"
"Dad, I have to do this myself." Pat opened the front door.
"Hi, Mama." Pat kissed CJ's cheek. "Bye, Mama."
Danny looked at his wife and smiled. Her hair had turned to silver, but it suited her. (His had long ago turned completely gray and was beginning to turn snow white.)
"Caitlin?" he asked as they exchanged kisses.
"Over at Hank and Steve's with Pam, looking at clothes. There was some sort of excitement at the shower, Carmen and Maggie left a bit early. I stayed to help Nancy clean up.
"Come sit," Danny said, leading her into the courtyard. He told her of the events of the afternoon.
CJ sighed, repeated all the things about where had time gone, got a little weepy remembering first times – sitting up, tooth, the pictures of first steps during Carol's wedding, first day at school, First Communion, his first time driving alone.
The doorbell rang again.
"More times today than it has all month," Danny muttered as he went to get it. He opened the door to Frank and Diana.
"May we come in?"
"That depends. Is my son still alive and capable of fathering a child? Not any time soon, of course," Danny joked.
"You did well with him, old friend," Frank pulled Danny into a one-armed hug. "When the time is right, I will be pleased to place my daughter's happiness in his hands."
"You left the two of them alone in your house?" CJ asked as the others joined her in the courtyard.
"With Carmen as chaperone," Diana said. "We told her not to let them out of her sight, even to go to the bathroom."
"So what are we going to do?" CJ asked.
"What can we do?" Frank replied. "We've known this day was coming for eighteen years. I know we've told both of them that we want them to wait until they have their first degrees, to experience college life and dormitory life. I know they are so young, but they're well-rounded kids, they share similar hopes and dreams, we" he indicated the four of them, "have similar values that we've imbued in them, they have the same religion.
"Danny, CJ, when Pat came to talk with me, after he went over the expected stuff – how much he loved Maggie, how much he loved our family, how he wanted to give our daughter only the best – he talked about what he wanted to give you. Pat talked about how you found each other so late, how you've been blest with stuffing so much life into so few years', as he put it. Uncle Frank, we will honor our parents' wishes and wait for four more years, but after that, we will marry and start our family. I want my parents to know their grandchildren. I want my children to know all their grandparents.' I had to keep myself from telling him that Diana and I wouldn't mind grandkids ourselves. Carmen has found someone, yes, but I don't think she and Ed will be anxious to have kids right away. And Steve and Mike don't even have serious relationships yet.
"But then, the idea of my baby having babies, I'm glad that they will be two hours apart come fall, although I still wish that Maggie had settled on Marymount, like Carmen did."
"Actually, Frank," Danny answered, "it would be better if she were at Notre Dame with Pat. At least there, the dorms are all single-sex and opposite sex visitation is strictly monitored. I know that Maggie will be in an all-girls' dorm, but if she has friends - "
Pat would be starting Notre Dame in the fall. Maggie had also applied there and was accepted, but she was offered a soccer scholarship to Northwestern. She really wanted to play (and she really wanted to save her parents from the expense.) Danny couldn't help but notice that his son had scheduled his classes so that he had Wednesday afternoon through Thursday afternoon completely free. When he mentioned something about it, Pat told him that Maggie would be away on many autumn weekends, playing for Northwestern.
"What do we do now? You know they're not going to stop just because we know, and they are no longer children, we can't ground them," Frank said. "I can't see giving them carte blanche in either of our houses. I'm not sure how I'm going to handle it the first time that Carmen and Ed stay with us after their wedding. And if we were to let Maggie have bedroom company, Mike would insist on the same privilege, Steve too when he's home, and both of them are not anywhere close to being exclusive with anyone. And you guys, with Caitlin just barely a teen, could never-.
"But the idea of them in a place like the Egret, or in the back of a car, it's not what I want for my daughter either."
"We were going to give Pat a credit card in the fall, with us having online access to monitor it," Danny said. "I could give it to him now. He'll have to come up with the money for pay for rooms, but at least they could go to someplace nicer."
"I was thinking," Diana opened hesitantly. She wasn't sure how her husband would react to her idea. "I think that on occasion, when we know about it, we should let them stay away overnight."
"How often?" CJ asked. It might be the best solution, at least for the rest of the summer. At least the men weren't saying "no" immediately.
"No more than twice a month," Frank said. "And they tell us where they'll be. If they want to act as adults, they have to treat us with respect and consideration. Other than those times, they still have curfews, and they don't do anything in either of our houses. As for other places, it's don't ask, don't tell'. And we review at Thanksgiving."
He looked at the others. They nodded in agreement.
"Then let's go talk with them."
"Does it ever get any easier?" CJ asked as they walked up the block.
"It gets different," Diana replied. "Some things are easier, some are harder. Part of me was glad that Carmen wasn't living the 'single girl life' at home, or in an apartment here in the city. Out of sight, out of mind, I guess. I wanted her to find the right man, but I did worry those first two years, so I'm glad that she's getting married. And I worry about Steve. He's with a different girl every time we see him. If he's being sexually active with all of them, I'm just afraid of the odds."
"The hard part is when you can't fix their problems with kisses and hugs," Frank laughed.
As they walked into the Muñoz family room, Danny noticed with some pride that his son put a protective arm around Maggie.
"Carmen, would you excuse us?" Frank asked his older daughter.
Danny smiled at the young couple. "Okay kids, let's talk."