Chapter 12: The Sin City Effect Pt. I
It felt pretty good to take a nap during the afternoon the Sunday they returned from Las Vegas. The trip provided James with moments that he will never forget… As well as one night he will never remember.
The second night that they were there, Fiona and Declan had gone to set Bobby and Tinsley straight while James left with Peter, Danny, J.T, Sav, Blue, and Jay. When he woke up earlier today, Fiona was in his bed wearing the silver bathing suit she had bought earlier and told him that they had both passed out earlier.
Currently, Fiona was asleep beside him, her raven curls spreading across her pillow as James sat up and stretched a bit. He was so glad that he finally could call her his.
Getting out of bed, James left the bedroom for the kitchen. Two days with his energy drinks was hell to say the least. He would have to drink around five of them to make up for lost time, even if it was potentially harmful to his health.
But before James could even do that, there was a knock on the door.
"For the love of God…" James muttered as he moved towards the front door. The knocking continued until he opened it to reveal Peter. "Listen mate, Fiona is still asleep and-"
"You might want her to say asleep." Peter said flashing a disc in his hand. "This isn't for her to see."
"What is it?" James questioned.
"The last night in Vegas, all recorded. And you're definitely not with Fiona on this one." Peter said brushing past James. James frowned and followed Peter into the living room where Peter put the disc into the DVD player. "I warn you, you might be shocked at what you're about to see…"
"Just play it." James said moving for the kitchen. He needed a Monster and he needed one now.
When the video began, it showed Alex with some blonde that James did not know.
"So what's your name?" Peter asked from behind the camera.
"Debbie."
"Well Debbie, I will give you one Canadian dollar if you make out with my friend Alex here."
James's eyebrows shot up his forehead. Were they really that wasted for stupid bets like that? And if to answer his question the buxom blonde moved in and began kissing Alex feverishly, gaining a chorus of cheers from off camera.
"Alright! Here you go!" And as a man of his word, Peter handed the blonde a dollar, though by now her face was a red as a tomato.
"What the hell were we drinking?" asked James.
"It gets worse." Peter said before James saw himself in the pool with Liberty, J.T, Holly J, Sav, and Anya. "Much, much, worse."
"Hey Jaime, give you a Canadian dollar if you make out with Holly J." James groaned. If he did what he thinks he did, life with Fiona had become that much complicated.
"Sorry mate, I cost more than a dollar." James replied.
On the screen, Holly J downed whatever it was in her glass before kissing James passionately. Whether or not he was at the time, James felt ashamed when he saw himself kiss her back, his hands pulling her closer.
"I'll never go to Las Vegas again…" James muttered.
On the video, Holly J finally broke away from James, taking his hand into hers, and leading him out of the pool.
"Don't tell me…" James said.
"I caught her leaving your, but I don't know what happened." Peter answered looking at James. "But if you two did…" Peter's words ended as Fiona came into view. "Right."
"What're you doing here?" Fiona asked tiredly.
"Just showing the trip." Peter said.
James thanked God that now it was showing J.T and Liberty sucking each other's faces off instead of him and Holly J.
"They must be so drunk." Fiona said. "I'm glad that wasn't us, right Jaime?"
"Mm…" James hummed as he began drinking his canned drink. It was no secret that Fiona was still angry about the whole Manny thing. If he told her about Holly J… He shuddered to think about what she might do to him or herself.
"Dude, the funniest part is coming up soon." Peter said pointing back to the screen.
James frowned as they were in an alter, he nor Holly J one of the ones there.
"I now pronounce you Mr. and Mrs. Jay Hogart."
James nearly sprayed his drink as Jay kissed the last person he ever thought this would happen to, Emma Nelson. He wondered if Emma even knew what had happened. If not, then he should probably tell her a lot sooner than later. Annulment was a lot easier and cleaner than divorce.
The screen changed before Peter cut the TV off.
"What was that?" Fiona asked.
"Uh… Me and Mia. I'm sure you don't want to see that." Fiona's face showed her disgust about seeing a sex tape with Peter and Mia, but nodded anyway. James, on the other hand, felt that Peter was lying about the next clip. "Uh, I have to go show this to some more people. Want a copy?"
"I'm good." James said.
"Alright." Peter said grabbing the DVD from the DVD player. "Well, you two stay sober. Wouldn't want something bad to happen."
James gave Peter a nod as he began to walk out.
"You have some weird friends." Fiona said. James shrugged as he heard the door shut after Peter left. "So… Any embarrassing memories come back to you yet?"
James smiled. "None at all bird."
"Oh. Well, Bobby's out of my life, we're here home alone, and you're back to drinking your energy drinks." said Fiona. "So now what do you want to do?"
"Relax." James said. In James's mind, he had to somehow get in touch with Peter so that any evidence of him and Holly J was thoroughly destroyed. Fiona could forgive him for Manny. Holly J was out of the question. "What did you have in mind?"
"A nice long bath with my favorite guy." James smiled to hide his inner cringing. He felt real bad about this.
"Go ahead bird. I have to make a phone call." James replied.
Fiona frowned. "Is something wrong?"
"No. Just checking in on something." James said. Fiona seemed a bit suspicious at his words, but slowly moved for their bedroom anyway. James took out his cell phone and called Peter. "Come on mate…"
"Yeah." Peter answered.
"How many have you showed the entire video to?" asked James.
"No one yet. Danny and I were going to show Derek and possibly Riley but-"
"Don't." James interrupted. "Edit the whole Holly J part out."
"Dude, we won't tell Fiona whether or not you slept with Holly J. It's Vegas. That sort of thing always happens." Peter said. "But if you insist."
"I do." James heard Peter sigh.
"And people say I'm sprung over Mia." murmured his former roommate. "I'll keep it between us. Just pray that Holly J doesn't remember and things turn into something worse. I mean, it's probably best to just tell her now, but whatever."
"Right mate. And while I'm at it, I'll let her in on who her cousin was spending some time with." James said.
"Point taken." Peter said.
James smirked. "Thought so mate. Now I have to call someone else."
"Whatever." Peter responded before hanging up.
James ended the session and set his phone on the counter in front of him. There was silence in the home, making him believe that Fiona had already run her bath water and was currently relaxing. He then looked at his phone. Should he risk calling Holly J now or should he wait until later? It was probably best if he talked to he face to face, somewhere where they could do so alone.
Sighing, James moved out of the kitchen towards his bedroom to confirm his earlier suspicions. Needless to say, Fiona had neatly laid her outfit out on the bed, the door to the bathroom closed with a small line light escaping from the bottom of the door. James placed a hand on the knob and turned it a bit, not surprised to see her leaving the door unlocked.
She was kinky, that Fiona Coyne.
Smiling, James moved to the tub where she rested. Her head was resting on the back of the tub, her hair done in a bun with her eyes closed, and from the shoulders down, her body was submerged in bubbles. James only sat beside her before placing a small tender kiss on her expose neck.
"Mm… I thought you wanted to relax?" she asked with a smile, though she did not look to see him.
"Just checking in on you bird." he responded. "You look out of it."
"I got a call before we left the hotel." James frowned as her voice hinted her annoyance. "My parents have some counseling and Declan and I are being asked to join." Fiona sighed. "Sometimes my life just sucks."
"Do you want me to go with you?" asked James. Her eyes snapped towards him with such excitement, he almost regretted asking her.
"Really? I mean, even if you'll miss more classes and probably be dropped from a class or two?" Fiona replied. James shrugged. "Okay. I guess I can drop the B-bomb on them as well." James frowned. "The 'boyfriend' bomb."
"Oh…" James said.
"But… Declan will most likely not want you to come. He wants this to be a family only kind of thing." James nodded at her statement.
"I understand love. I'll talk it over with him and if he's okay with it, I'm there if you need me to be."James said.
Fiona gave him a pleasant smile. "You normally are."
The statement made James both pleased and sick. He had cheated on Jennifer before, so he knew how to keep something away from a significant other. But Fiona was so much different that Jennifer was. She was fragile and yet strong at the same time. Like a rose. The thorns she bore could hurt anyone, but she could be subjected to much worse than that like being crushed.
James felt a wet hand on his face.
"Tell me again please?" she asked.
Giving a reassuring smile, James silenced the thoughts of betrayal in his mind.
"I love you bird." Fiona smiled before James kissed her.
How the statement was any different now than it was earlier, he would never know, but somehow this felt different. It felt more believable to him despite carrying such a secret. Her hand left his face and vanished in the pool of bubbles she was currently lounging in.
"You know," Fiona said while closing her eyes. "Maybe we could be like Mia and Peter… Only not so public about it."
James eyes went wide. "Are you saying what I think you're saying bird?"
Fiona only smiled with a nod. "Yep."
"What brought on that idea?" he questioned.
Fiona looked at him.
"Well," Fiona said. "I was talking to Jane before we got on the plane," James had to stop himself from commenting on the rhyme. "And she said that maybe she and Declan fell into one of Peter's bets and that they might've recorded their time in Vegas. We didn't because I didn't want to and I know how much you'd like to win in your little competitions so…"
"Don't do that to yourself Fi. I know that-"
"Oh, you don't have to tell him that we did. I figured if you knew you had then you'd be alright." James blinked. It was scary that she knew that.
"Don't. I don't want you to be uncomfortable doing something for me for the sake of a stupid competition." James said.
"That's sweet." Fiona said with a smile. "But what if I wanted to see how good we look together?"
"Then I know exactly what to get for our room." James replied. Fiona looked like she was going to question what, but James rose to his feet. "I'm going to go watch TV."
"Wouldn't you'd rather watch me?" James chuckled a bit, despite actually nodding.
"You know I would bird. But you're covered in bubbles." Fiona gave James a smile before lifting one of her legs out of the water.
"I'm really entertaining." Fiona said.
James stared at the soapy, wet leg hanging in the air. He would have loved just to feel her skin, wet or dry, but chose against it for the moment.
"I'll see how entertaining you are later, alright?" he said.
Fiona submerged her leg and gave a nod, closing her eyes once more.
"Alright. I'll join you in a while." Fiona said.
James opened the door before guilt had finally taken its toll on him. Sighing, he looked at the serene Fiona.
"Fiona, there is something that I have to tell you." James said. Fiona opened her eyes to look at him. "Peter came by to show me something…"
"You and Holly J kissing? You were drunk." Fiona said.
James frowned. "Wait… You know?"
Fiona laughed. "Do I know? Of course I do! Your room was what three doors down from Tinsley's? Where do you think we were?"
"If you knew this then why-"
"Because I wanted to know if you'd tell me, and you did. Well, you are." Fiona said, still giggling a bit. "Plus it was fun seeing you stress about it. You were so drunk!"
"Okay bird, what's so funny?" James asked.
Fiona attempted to calm down, but failed. Her laughter now confusing James greatly as he attempted to wonder what was so funny.
Finally, she sighed. "I passed Holly J in the hall. She said that you called her me and she left." James blinked in shock. "That's how I ended up going to your room, that's how I let myself in because she left the door slightly opened."
"And you weren't going to tell me this because?" James saw her eyebrows rise.
"Were you going to tell me?" Fiona countered.
"I just did." James said. Fiona was ready to shoot back a response before she closed her mouth. "Yeah, I think I answered your question."
Fiona shrugged. "Doesn't matter. I would've eventually told you. After it got boring."
"You're evil Fiona." James said opening the door. "If that was you, I'd tell you."
"Won't happen. I remember things when I'm drunk, light foot." Fiona teased as James left her in the bathroom.
Smiling, James left the bedroom completely and headed for the living room. His mind was playing on all the possible ways that Fiona would react to the news negatively. Never did he stop to think that she would be alright with it. In fact, he still believed that she was cooking up a scheme that would involve him making it up to her.
Minutes of quietness had gone by with James mindlessly flipping through the channels. Then his girlfriend came sprinting out of their bedroom, her wet body wrapped in a towel.
"Oh my God! Oh my God!" she repeated while on the phone. "Mom are you serious?" James frowned as Fiona nearly ignored his entire life existence and snatched the remote from his hand, turning the channel. "I see it!"
"American royalty has occurred in Sin City this weekend. Son of Senator Gwyneth Nichols and actor Michael Lee Wilder, James Nichols, was caught having a romantic luncheon with apparent lover, Fiona Coyne, who is the daughter of Ambassador Harold Coyne. It has been a little over year since the Coyne's 'twincest' episode at a party where she drunkenly kissed her twin brother Declan, and now it seems she has turned her attention to the D.C native. Reporters say that the two would 'kiss occasionally while talking' as well as they 'walked as close as possible while carrying bags.' Rumor has it that they stayed in the same hotel and left via the same plane. Whether or not the two are together has not been verified, however we will try to get that out to you sometime during the week ahead. Still to come-" Fiona muted the male reporter.
James sat with his jaw slightly opened, Fiona soon sitting beside him in a similar fashion.
"Mom, I have to call you back." he heard her say.
Fiona then turned to another station where she could see a small clip of her and James sharing a small kiss at the Cheesecake Factory.
"Yes it's true. These two are definitely in love." a woman stated.
"Fiona Coyne and James Nichols. Seriously, between the two of them, who spends the most?" her male co-host asked.
"My pick is James. He jumps onto his father's jet whenever he pleases, runs off to Australia, drinks as he please, and surfs. The worst Fiona has done was shop."
"But hear me out. This is a girl who can spend thousands in one shopping trip." the man said. "I honestly believe that Fiona could out spend James any day of the week."
"Well that might be so, but now the two seems to be an item, and I have to tell you, I don't really see this one lasting." the woman said. "While they both seem to have a bit of a history with drinking, James is known to break the law and Fiona has kissed her brother. A very sloppy, intimate kiss at that. These two are explosives waiting to be ignited."
"I don't know. The whole James thing happened when he was fourteen, stealing his mom's car and being caught speeding in it. He has served his time, paid for it, his mom soon became shadow senator of D.C. And his dad seems to have forgiven him." the man said.
"But Fiona? It's rumor that her parents are going through separation and I'm sure that it started that faithful night. She had one too many drinks and kissed her brother. That video went viral in seconds around the world. Is there any redemption for that?"
"We'll have to see. We'll take a short break and then continue on what could be known as American royalty."
James was able to get the remote and cut the TV off completely. He noticed that Fiona was now crying softly, obviously ashamed by would they had said. To be honest, he was shocked to hear that she had drunkenly kissed Declan, but knew that now was not the place.
"Hey…" he said softly moving towards her.
"Don't." she said.
"I don't care what they said. It's in the past." Fiona looked at him. James took her questioning eyes as a sign to move closer, which he did. "Come on, let's forget about them. They don't know about the wonderful person you are bird."
"Right. I kissed my brother. My drinking brought on my parents'-"
"Don't think that." James interrupted, pulling her into a hug. "Come on Fiona, don't say untrue things like that."
"This isn't how it's supposed to go!" Fiona said.
"Listen," James said in effort to calm her down. "We'll find some way to get them off of our backs. We'll call my dad and-"
"Your dad?" Fiona interrupted as she sat back to fully look at James. "You hate using your dad. And what will he do?"
James smiled. "For some reason, the world just seems to listen to him. If he says that we're alright, then they'll think we're alright." Fiona nodded at the concept. People did tend to follow stars rather than political leaders for whatever the reason. "Bird, I don't want you to stress out any more than normal."
"How can I not? There are pictures on the internet and TV of me kissing my brother! And they're going to make you look bad because of this." James sighed. "Jaime, you don't know the half I've put my family through during my high school years. If they were to dig it up, I… I don't know what I'd do."
"Fiona, if you haven't heard, this isn't my first rodeo in the limelight bird. I've done some noteworthy things, and they were not all great things." James replied. "We will get through this, alright? It's just a little rumor here and there. Nothing major."
"Nothing major? James, I've been used in more drunk jokes than Charlie Sheen and Lindsay Lohan combined! I don't want you to be a part of that. Ever." Fiona said.
"I won't. Just-" James was cut off by a series of knocks on the door. "Just get dressed before someone gets the wrong idea love."
Fiona nodded and moved to do just that as James went to answer the door. Opening it, he spotted a woman who he did not recognize.
"Where is my daughter?" she asked.
James was completely frozen now. If this was Fiona's mom (God knows he was praying that she wasn't) then he was in a world of trouble now. For starters, Fiona had yet to tell her mother about her living arrangements, not to forget that Fiona and Bobby's breakup was rather recent and no one but Declan knew about it in the Coyne Family, and these things were kind of big.
"Are you going to let me in?" the woman asked, her eyes nearly cutting into James's grey ones.
"Come in…" James said stepping aside.
The woman moved into the condo with an angered sigh. James closed the door and locked it, wondering just how he got himself in this predicament. He assumed that Fiona's mom was in New York preparing for whatever counseling she and her husband were attending. He then wondered on how Fiona's mom even knew of where they stayed until one person stuck out in his mind.
"Declan…" James muttered moving down the hall sending a text to his companion. "I hate Yankees."
"Mom!" James heard Fiona say/yell. James moved into the living room, seeing the woman give Fiona such a glare that it nearly made him shivered.
Fiona was now in on of James's shirts, not that he cared, and some shorts she wore whenever she did not feeling like getting completely dressed. Obviously, her mother's visit was more a shock to Fiona than James.
"What is this that I'm hearing Fiona? Explain to me why you went to Vegas with him? Declan told me that you were here doing your studies." James knew his friend was in some serious trouble with his mother, so he immediately began sending Declan a message telling him to stay away from the condo. "What is going on, Fiona?"
"Mom, this is my new boyfriend, Jaime." Fiona said, stopping James from finishing his message. "Jaime, this is my mom, Laura Coyne."
"Hi." James said.
Laura's brows furrowed. "What happened with Bobby?"
"Bobby and I split up. He was cheating on me with Tinsley." Fiona answered. "I've been with Jaime for a week now."
"And you just move on with him? Do you even know anything about him?" Laura stated. "Fiona, when we allowed you to come up here with your brother, we were very clear that you were to spend your time on your studies, not run off with some playboy actor's son."
While James did not necessarily like his father, and that was putting it mildly, he had a pet peeve about someone else speaking badly about the man. Even if the guy was not the best father in the world, he surely earned more respect than being referred to as a "playboy actor" as she put it.
"Let's go Fiona. We'll talk on the way back to your dorm." Laura said. Fiona remained in her spot. "Fiona Celestine Arabella Coyne, let's go right now."
"I can't." Fiona said twiddling with her fingers now. "I…"
"You…?" Laura stated.
"I moved in with Jaime." Laura gave a tired sigh. "No Mom, don't think it's just two troubled teens living here, because I swear it's not. Jaime and I-"
"Get your things. You're moving out of here." Laura said before looking at James. "And you? You didn't think that I would hear about this? You think-"
"Bobby was becoming abusive." Fiona immediately said.
James watched Laura's features move from anger and annoyance to worry. Laura then moved for her daughter and embraced her, something that James was slightly glad for. He was given enough time to finish his message and warn Declan.
"Fiona, why didn't you tell anyone?" Laura questioned. "He would've been sent back if he touched you again?"
James frowned. "Again? This has happened before bird?"
"…" Fiona was quiet under his gaze. "Once… During senior year… But he swore it would stop!"
"That's what they all say." James said moving for the door.
"Jaime wait!" As James reached for the door, he felt a hand gripping his left wrist. He turned and looked at Fiona. "If you go out there and fight Bobby, it won't do any justice. Not for you. Not for me."
"Justice? I gave up on justice a long time ago Fiona. I'm doing this to make me feel better." Fiona then kissed him. A deep, mind-blowing one at that.
"Does that make you feel better?" she asked. James said nothing, just nodding slowly. Truth be told, hitting Bobby a few times with his Nissan before exchanging it for his Mazda would probably feel ten-times better, but for the sake of Fiona, Bobby would walk for another day. "Come on Jaime, let's just stay here for tonight, alright? I really need you here."
James only stared at Fiona. It pained him to know that in the end, he would find Bobby. There was nothing Fiona or her mother or Declan could do about it.
"I need to get the sheets." he said quietly to her.
Fiona's face went through a variety of colors, most noticeably pink and red. This actually made James smile to think that she was right. While James had remembered to put the sheets in the bed before they left, he had forgotten to dry them, hence he was re-washing them and drying them now. The sheets that were currently on their bed was a spare that Fiona had gotten the previous Tuesday.
"It was a leak." James told her. Fiona looked absolutely horrified in thinking that he was going to use such a statement when explaining how their sheets got dirty.
James gave Fiona a small kiss on the forehead before opening the closet with the washer-drying machine. He retrieved the fresh sheets before closing the door. Fiona gave him a small smile and shook her head before following James down the hall into the living room.
"What are those?" Laura questioned as James made a beeline for the bedroom. He doubted that his "leak" joke would be as funny to Laura as it was to him.
"Um…" James heard Fiona start as he walked into their bedroom. He folded the sheets up and set them in the designated drawer, something he knew Fiona would chastise him about if he did not. She, like his mother, always griped about folding clothes properly before storing them away.
In fact, Fiona and his mother had a lot in common with their house cleanliness.
Pushing those thoughts aside, James moved from the bedroom towards the living room where mother and daughter were talking.
"James," It was Laura who had called out to him. He gave the woman his undivided attention as this was probably a crucial step in his and Fiona's relationship. "Fiona tells me that you're a Law student?"
"Uh, yeah. It's really nothing. Just trying to view my options." James replied.
Laura's brow rose. "Really? What do your parents have to say about your trip to Vegas or this condo? Surely they're a little annoyed at your sidetrack."
"A little." James answered. "Law isn't something I like doing, its writing. I'm just exploring my options, like I said. And as for going to Las Vegas, it was more of a spur of the moment kind of thing."
"Spur of the moment? Well, if you didn't know, my daughter doesn't need any of those moments anymore." Laura said. "She's had quite the few of them during high school. I don't know how Michael raised you and I don't know your mother at all, but we don't do that. Fiona needs to focus on her studies."
"I agree." James responded.
"Yet, you deliberately took her away from those studies, possibly got her drunk, and put her in this situation." Laura said.
"I didn't do anything." James said. "I only went to support a friend of mine. Her boyfriend had a performance there and she asked for a little support from her friends." Laura's face remained not amused.
"Mom, Jaime didn't force me to go. I went on my own-"
"You protecting him isn't going to get you anywhere, Fiona." Laura stated. "How old are you James?"
"I'm nineteen." James said.
Laura frowned. "You took a year out of school? What made you finally go back if you were just going to run off to Vegas?"
"My friend Jeff…" James began.
"He must be a good role model if he got-"
"Jeff wasn't the best role model mate. He could drink twice as much as I could and still be sober." James interrupted. "He died and before he died he had a dream of living the American dream. Get a decent job, modest house… He wanted a husband but…"
Laura blinked. "He was gay? Are you-"
"I'm straight. Jeff was just my friend. A friend that I saw the telltale signs of suicide thoughts, and still did nothing until it was too late. That's why I went back to school." James answered.
"Oh. Well, I'm sorry you had to experience that, but Fiona and you aren't going to work." Laura said. "She needs someone who can keep her sober and out trouble, something you are failing to do. You have a bar in there."
"Mom you can't do that!" Fiona said. "Jaime and I-"
"Fiona, this isn't up for discussion." Laura told her daughter.
"I'm eighteen!" Fiona protested.
"Your point?" James was taken back by the statement. Laura was seriously going to take Fiona away. "The way I see it Fiona, here are your two choices. Leave with me and we'll figure out a plan that works for both of us or rehab."
"Rehab?" the sound of Fiona's voice pained James. She was not a severe drinker yet. There were times when he has seen her push the bottle away. "I don't need rehab! I'm completely capable of staying sober on my own!"
"Those are your choices. Deal with it." said Laura with a tone of authority. James only moved to the kitchen to retrieve his already opened energy drink. He did not want to see Fiona crying. "So what is it going to be Fiona?"
James looked at Fiona, her eyes seconds away from spilling the tears they held. He could understand her pain to a degree. There were several of times his parents had shipped him off to his grandparents in order to stay out of trouble, whether the trouble was real or not. Fiona has been drinking, but not like people thought. James was one to see the progress in her tolerance. The less Bobby was around her, the less she drank. That was simple.
"James… I'm sorry…" Fiona said rising from her seat.
"Don't be." James stated as Fiona quickly left for their bedroom. His grey eyes shot towards the cause of this in fury. "You're making a mistake."
"The only mistake I made was given her a choice." Laura spoke. "And, no offense, you are clearly not the choice I want her to have. She needs someone who is sure of their future and works for it. Not someone who is bound to take every twist and turn because of a friend."
"You're a terrible people's person." Laura's head reeled back as if she was dodging a physical blow. "You thought that Bobby was her knight in shining armor, and he was the worst douche that you could've picked in the first place! And I'm not just some wild uncontrollable kid! I took a break, something you should probably do as well!"
"Look, if you're going to tell me that you love my daughter-"
"I do!" By now, James felt his former anger getting the best of him. He cursed his father's side of the family for being so zealous when it came to something that they truly believed in. "You may have forgotten what that is because of whatever it is that's going on between you and your husband, but I honestly love your daughter."
Laura rose from her seat. "You raised your voice at me… I honestly don't like that." James bit back another burst of shouts that were boiling in his throat. "And another thing, don't ever bring up my private life again. I am doing everything I can to keep my husband and my children alive, together, and in their sane mind. You have no idea at how stressful that is, do you?" James begrudgingly shook his head. "I didn't think so."
"But taking Fiona away isn't going to solve anything, is it?" Laura frowned at the statement.
"It will give me and her father the ability to supervise her so things like this won't happen." Laura said. "Fiona! Let's go! We'll send someone for your things later!"
"She's never going to forgive you." James said quietly.
"She's a teenager, eighteen or not. They all say that." Laura said.
"I said it when I was ten and I'm just now starting to warm up to my dad." James told Laura. "That's almost ten years of the cold-shoulder mate. Do you really think you can handle that from Fi?"
"Not every child has your mentality." Laura retorted as Fiona trudged in-between the two. "Let's go."
"Fine…" said a defeated Fiona. She then moved into the kitchen and gave James the longest kiss he has probably experienced in his life. "Bye James."
"Call me." James said resting his forehead on hers.
Fiona nodded before moving away. She gave her mother a fierce glare before heading for the front door.
"In the end," Laura said. "You'll see that I was right."
"You sound like my mom." James muttered.
"A successful lawyer who is now senator of D.C? That's a compliment." Laura said.
"No. A mother who tried to do what was best for her child and ended up screwing him up severely." James replied. "Now he hates his dad, he's not big on having a social life, he's got a smart attitude, he hates being told what to do by complete strangers, and the only person he's said he's love is being forced away by her mom." Laura crossed her arms. "My mom is a great lawyer, but it's her parenting that I was questioning mate."
"Your mother has done her part in keeping you alive. You should thank her." Laura said moving for the front door.
James only stood in the quietness, hearing the door open and then close. He took in a deep breath before taking out his cell phone and dialing a number. If he was going to lose Fiona, he damn sure was not going to lose her lying down.
