A/N: Thanks for the reviews, y'all. Yes, I know, very teary last chapter, but not so much this go-around. Time for the awkward of Zoe telling Brick who she really is!

(For disclaimer, etc. - see chapter 1)

Chapter 26

"And you're sure this is how you wanna do this?" George asked again.

Wade rolled his eyes. "C'mon, man, you heard her the first four times she said it," he told his friend, tilting his head towards Zoe. "We gotta get this figured out with Brick, and tell everybody the truth, before we head back north."

"It's the right thing to do." Zoe nodded definitely. "I don't want any trouble, I'm not even blaming Dr Breeland for keeping things from me. After all, it really wasn't his place to approach me. I just want it all straightened out now that we're here and we know everything."

George heaved a sigh, pulling together the pieces of paper he needed and pushing them into his briefcase.

"Okay then," he said when he was ready. "I guess we're going to the Breeland house."

"He doesn't seem happy," said Zoe softly as she and Wade followed him out.

"Prob'ly 'cause he's not, doc," he told her just as quiet, encouraging Zoe away down the sidewalk a ways now they were outside and had to wait for George to lock his office door. "Like I told you before, he was engaged to Lemon once. Brick was gonna be his father-in-law and besides, since old Harold ain't exactly what you'd call the caring father type, Brick has all but been George's daddy these last couple of decades."

"Oh," said Zoe, looking pained. "Awkward."

"You're not kiddin'," Wade agreed, though they both managed to force smiles when they had to face George again.

It didn't take long to get to the Breeland place and Wade smiled to himself as Zoe's hand slipped into his own. He wouldn't call her on being nervous or whatever. After all, it'd probably be a strange person that wasn't feeling a might shaky in a situation such as this. Wasn't every day you had to tell a man you just met a week ago that you're the secret lovechild of his old business partner, he supposed.

"Well, what do we have here?" asked Brick with a smile as he opened up the door. "Nothing wrong I hope?" he checked then.

"No medical emergencies," George assured him, "but we do have somethin' kinda serious we need to talk to you about, Brick."

His eyes went right to Zoe then and Wade couldn't help but notice. Seemed to him he had to have figured out by now what was going on. Like Zoe said before, he ought to have recognised an important name like one he saw in Harley's will not so long ago. If he did and he still hadn't said anything, Wade thought that was pretty low for a guy he always thought was mostly a decent fella up to now.

"So," said Brick, now that he was sat at the table with George, Wade, and Zoe all around. "Uh, can I get you all some tea or anything?"

"No, thank you." Zoe shook her head. "We just... well, actually, I need to tell you something. I think it should be me, right?" she said, glancing from George to Wade and back.

"Whatever works for you, doc," her boyfriend advised easily.

"Sure," George agreed, making a 'go ahead' gesture with one hand.

"Okay then," Zoe began again, clearing her throat as she faced Brick head on. "Dr Breeland, I... well, I always believed that my father was Dr Ethan Hart."

"A very fine surgeon, from what I hear." Brick smiled widely.

"He is, yes, but apparently, not actually my father. I don't know if you already know this, it seems like maybe you probably do, but my father, my biological father," she explained, "was Dr Harley Wilkes."

A gasp caught everyone's attention, though the sound hadn't come from Brick or anyone else at the table. All eyes were at the door through which Lemon had just appeared, apparently shocked to her core on hearing what Zoe just said about her paternity.

"You... you're Harley's daughter?" she checked, moving closer. "But he never... Daddy, did you know about this?" she asked Brick with wide eyes.

Zoe shifted her gaze to Dr Breeland too, wondering what answer he would give. It seemed impossible that he didn't know Harley had a daughter and that Zoe was she, but there was a slim chance that he was as in the dark as everybody else, at least until he confirmed one way or the other.

"Brick?" George prompted when an answer was not forthcoming.

"Yes," he said eventually, heaving a sigh as one hand covered his eyes. "Yes, I knew Harley had a daughter. I knew your name and I... I knew you were supposed to inherit half the practice, which I'm guessing is why you're here?" he said, looking at George then. "You checked the will?"

"I did," George confirmed, nodding his head. "Why, Brick? Why would you keep a secret like that?"

"Because if he never looked for me, he didn't have to share the practice," said Zoe easily, smiling a little when she saw how surprised Brick was to be so easily read. "Come on, it's not hard to figure out. You worked all your life in that place, right? You thought when Harley passed, it'd be all yours, then suddenly, you find out your partner had a daughter, some woman from a big city up north who you never met, who could come swooping in to take your precious practice out from under you. Am I right? I bet I'm right," she said with a look.

"My daddy would not do such a thing," said Lemon immediately.

Wade rolled his eyes. "Lemon, come on," he said, sure that she knew as well as he did just exactly what her father was capable of.

The realisation of it made poor Lemon drop into a chair very quickly and very hard. She wasn't coping well with all this news she was receiving, though Wade was happy to note that Zoe was doing a lot better in this crazy situation that she might've been.

"What is it you want me to say?" Brick asked her then. "I could deny it, you can't prove I knew about this."

"You're right, I can't." Zoe shook her head. "I just want you to know that, if it is true, I don't blame you," she said, shrugging her shoulders. "Honestly, if I were you, I probably would've done the same thing."

The look on Brick's face then was all kinds of comical and Wade had trouble not laughing at it. It was clear enough that Dr Breeland hadn't expected to be called out on what he'd done, but more than that, he had not been ready for the person he almost succeeded in screwing over to be so damn understanding about it.

"So, you don't want your half of the practice?" he asked carefully.

Zoe opened her mouth to answer that, only for George to cut in.

"I would advise against answering that question, even verbally, unless you're real sure of your answer," he said with a look.

"Okay," Zoe said then, carefully considering her next words. "The truth is, I don't know. I only found out about Harley three weeks ago, when my mother drunkenly confessed at a party. Then, pretty soon after that, I find out he's already passed away, and then George checked the will and suddenly I'm a medical practice heiress!" she said, shaking her head. "On top of that, it turns out that, by some wacky coincidence, I have been dating a guy from the same town my natural father came from, and I've actually been working in a hospital in New York with your nephew! How frickin' nuts is that!"

Lemon looked positively dizzy as she faced Zoe then. "You work with Jonah?"

"I did, for a while," Zoe confirmed. "I'm pretty sure he's headed back down this way soon."

"To a job in Mobile," Lemon agreed. "He called just a couple of days ago to let us know he'd be comin' to visit but... well, he never said a thing about you, or any of this."

"Man knows how to keep a secret that ain't his to tell," Wade told her definitely. "Course, it's gettin' to be less of a secret since we're all here talkin' about it now."

"I don't want any more secrets," Zoe explained, looking around the table at all those assembled there. "There have been way too many already and I'm not adding to them anymore. I came to Bluebell as Wade's girlfriend and that's not a lie, we are together, and I could not be happier about that," she said, glancing his way with a genuine smile on her lips. "But I'm also here because I am Harley Wilkes' daughter. I want everybody to know that, but it was only fair I started with you, Dr Breeland."

He nodded that he understood that and even went so far as to thank her for it then.

"I appreciate that, Zoe, and uh, well, you know, in light of all of this, I think we can probably drop the formalities. If there's a possibility we're going to be partners, and even if we're not, well, I knew your father a lot of years. I think you should probably call me Brick."

"Okay, Brick." Zoe smiled. "Well, like I said, I have no idea what I'm going to do about the practice yet. Me and Wade, we have to get back to New York in a couple of days and I have a lot to process. In the meantime, I'm perfectly happy for you to keep doing whatever you're doing doctor-wise."

"I assume that's alright with you, councillor?" Brick asked George with a smirk.

"Yes, sir," he agreed, smiling back at him, clearly relieved that there had been no unpleasantness here.

It was a sentiment that Wade could get on board with. Last thing anybody around this table needed was a fight. There had been way too many tears and recriminations, all told. Besides, Harley wouldn't want any of that kind of thing on his account, Wade was sure on that. The old man would only want everybody to get along and make the best of things. That was just the kind of decent guy he had always been. Given what her mother was like, Wade had to wonder how much of Zoe's goodness and kindness came from Harley. He was inclined to think quite a bit.

"What?" Zoe asked when she caught him staring.

Brick had got up from the table to get himself a stiff drink and George had offered to help Lemon get some sweet tea, since she looked like the one who needed it most. That just left the two of them, which was mostly how Wade liked it when it came to him and Zoe anyhow.

"I was just thinkin'," he told her, "how you're a little like your daddy right now. You know, all decent and understandin'? That was Harley. Oh, hell, doc, I didn't mean to do that," he said right after, as the tears built up fast in her eyes.

"It's fine," she promised him, waving away his concern with one hand, even as she swiped under her eyes with the other. "It's nice. I like the idea that there's a part of him in me, you know, other than all that DNA and everything," she said, laughing at herself in the very next moment. "I like that people who knew him might see something of him in me."

"I reckon they will, Zoe." Wade nodded, moving to pull her closed and planting a kiss on her head. "He woulda been so proud to know you, I'm sure on that."

"I hope so." Zoe sighed. "Well, I do feel better knowing this all going to be out in the open now, and it's cool being here, seeing where you come from as well as where Harley was from, getting to know everybody," she said happily. "Still, it won't suck to get back to New York. Bluebell is great, but it's not home."

Wade meant to reply to that but never got the chance. Zoe said something about using the bathroom and wandered off, leaving him alone with his mouth opening and closing like a landed bass. He wasn't exactly sure what he would've said even if Zoe gave him the opportunity to find the words.

Of course, Bluebell wasn't her home, he knew that, so why it came as such a surprise to hear her say it, Wade wasn't sure. This was his place in the world, the town he was born and raised in, and yes, Zoe had ties to it as well, even without him, but New York was where she belonged.

That could present a problem yet. Sure, Wade had to be in the city right now too, for his career and everything, but some day, he had a notion to come back to where he started. He had thought, especially given Harley and the practice and all, that he would be bringing Zoe with him. Now, he was less certain and that gave him a real uncomfortable feeling.

"You want some tea, Wade?" Lemon asked him as she and George returned and placed a tray down on the table, bearing a pitcher and glasses. "Of course, you can have something stronger if you want to. Looks like Daddy is indulgin' so..."

"Uh, yeah," said Wade, getting to his feet. "Think I will have somethin' with a little more kick to it," he said, heading towards the bar and asking Brick for a double.

"That's not like you, Wade," the doctor said, frowning some even as he poured him his drink.

"Yeah, well," he said, taking a hold of the glass and swallowing down his whiskey in one painful gulp, "it's been a hell of a day."

To Be Continued...