- Chapter Forty-Four -

Fruit Salad

When and how had things come to this? A far cry from where they had been merely a day or two ago, it was strange to think that they would end up in this place. Yet there they were all the same, sitting together on the recently stained veranda, acting as if nothing had happened.

Chairs rearranged since the last time he had visited (probably due to the rare act of caring for the property), in their current positions the pair were in front of the window, overlooking the sea. And roughly half a dancing wind chime each. Potted leaves no longer tickling the side of his head in this new set-up, there was nothing but the breathtakingly picturesque sunset on the glimmering waves and Cassie playing the sun to sleep for company.

A step above being called a novice, the blonde girl strumming in the corner was more preoccupied with getting the chords right on her guitar than she was with what her uncle was up to. She said she was trying to learn a particular song, even going so far as to play the actual tune for him, but he wasn't hearing it. As for her parents, Elena was out shopping for more groceries with Rafael in tow, and the last time any of them had seen Nathan, he was making sandwiches in the kitchen.

Mercifully Cass ordered a stack of peanut butter and banana, and Dells hadn't voiced a preference, however Sam wasn't about to make domesticity easy for his little brother. Ordering a smoked honey ham and cheese on rye, he'd specified not only the cut of the bread but the type of cheese as well.

Nate, knowing his big brother like he did, had made a convincing act of listening to the order, however if anyone actually believed he was going to break his back slaving in the kitchen they were dead wrong. It was peanut butter and banana for everyone, a bag of sun-dried chips on the side, milk for Cass, and a bottle of beer for the adults.

[Orange You Glad I Didn't Say Banana? Aka Yesterday]

"Anyone else want something?" Grabbing herself an orange from a brightly patterned fruit bowl on the counter, a miniature hybrid of the younger brother and the blonde woman inquired before going to the fridge for something to drink. Not a lot went with oranges in her opinion, but there was a certain wisdom in having some kind of beverage with any type of food. "We have water, some kind of soda - I think - and juice in the back. There's also some peach tea if milady's inclined."

Definitely her father's daughter, Cassie's reception was lukewarm at best, although her old man started to crack a smile behind the girl's back. From her uncle there was the usual shrug accompanied by a simple and just as predictable inquiry of "But did your dad get good beer this time?"

Granted the courtesy of a heads up this once, albeit said warning was all of a shadow of a window, Nathan and Elena had gone to the store in town to stock up on a few amenities. Shampoo, a spare toothbrush for their guest, toilet paper, and plenty of grocery options at the top of the list, as fate would have it beer was in fact one such luxury they invested in. Apparently it turned out that they should have gotten more than one extra toothbrush, but no one could say that the couple would be utterly unprepared.

What had caught everyone - literally everyone - by surprise was the heiress asking after "something stronger than tea". Frankly she didn't look the type, but that just goes to show that you can't ever judge a book by its cover.

Educated in the dangers of mixing booze and heavy prescription-strength meds as well as anyone else her age, it was just the young woman's fall back source of solace. Shutting her mouth into a tight line after the request had been made, it was clear that she knew she was pressing her luck, however if there was ever a time to break the rules and just indulge, this was it. She'd probably never see these people ever again, so why should it matter if they thought she was some kind of horrible?

"Let's just say that dark rooms and bad deals give me a certain kind of..." struggling to find the right word so that she didn't sound like a complete socialite brat, Daniella was torn between 'entitlement' and 'privilege', "leeway."

Sam said nothing, but her words had struck a nerve all the same.

"Funny you should mention that." Elena joined her daughter in the kitchen and grabbed two bottles from the back of the fridge. The first went to Sam - obviously - and the second she offered to Rafael, who declined with a single head shake. Approving of the young man already, the photographer smiled at what seemed to be a much safer bet for the heiress to invest in. "Nate and I agree."

While buying the liquor the couple had had a lengthy discussion about the law, the approximate age of their guest, and her unfortunate circumstances. Raised more honestly than her husband, on the drive to town Elena had naturally been against just throwing the girl a cold one, however by the time they'd gotten to the store she had allowed that it was inevitable that the heiress would get her hands on at least one bottle. Teens just had that kind of skill. She also conceded that it was probably safer to have the girl doing it under their roof than alone outside where anything could happen.

Nate, on the other hand, was not looking forward to Cass pointing out the hypocrisy of letting the older girl drink while flirting so dangerously with the age of consent. Unpleasant as that conversation was going to be, he figured that the young woman had more than earned it, if only for who her family was. Besides, the way he understood it she was close enough to the legal drinking age that it was gray in his book. How old had he been when Sam had let him have his first beer? How old was he when Sully realized that he would drink what he pleased?

Easy enough to see that they had agreed it was going to happen one way or another, the hard part was coming up with a justification that would let them sleep at night. Technically neither of their responsibilities, by the time they'd gotten home to help Cassie with her homework, both parents concluded that they wouldn't police what the girl put into her body, however they would hold the person that brought her accountable.

In light of some of the new information to surface, as well as that scene on the beach, the blonde was less sure about the decision, however she still handed the bottle over. "Seeing as these are special circumstances," eyes falling on both girls to make it clear that this was a serious act of trust and was a one-time only kind of deal, Elena hesitated before letting go completely, "for the duration of your stay here we're going to treat you like an adult. No bedtime, no rules, however, there is a 'but' attached to all of this. Nate?"

None the wiser about her real age than he was the extent of the relationship his brother had with the girl, Nathan nodded to back up his spouse, like a good team does, "I was gonna crack wise about asses here, but considering one of them belongs to my own flesh and blood, that's a hard pass."

"Wait," remaining unnaturally quiet and keeping to himself as he opened his beer, Sam had simply been watching to see how Dells was received, so he had no clue why he was being dragged into this, "what does my ass have to do with anything?" He'd originally surmised that everything would go swimmingly, and then she had to go and drop a bombshell like that stunt earlier.

It wasn't exactly like Sam had expected them to look after Dells they way they did their own daughter, but come on, wasn't that just how they were wired now? Letting the girl help herself to the beer should have have gone against every fiber of their beings! So far little thing hadn't shown herself to become unruly while under the influence of liquor, but had it really been too much to hope that mom and dad would help keep her in line? More than just concern that the young woman would hog all the beer for herself, the brunette was worried about what ideas she might get in her head now that...

Now that I opened Pandora's box.

"You're kidding, right?" Nathan shook his head in disbelief, "Sam, this is your job, so as far as we're concerned she's your responsibility. Rafe's little girl wants her sippy cup, you better be there with a burping cloth and a hand to hold her hair back when her face gets intimately acquainted with the inside of a toilet."

Conditions sounding more than fair, Daniella nodded her consent. Popping the metal cap off the slender glass neck with a stunning display of familiarity, the young woman took her first swig in what felt like a year; burning her mouth and throat as it went down, this was still preferable to going without. "Thanks. I'll try not to disappoint you too."

[Sunset On The Patio]

Strumming the intro as she failed yet again to string together the correct notes in time, Cassie groaned and reset her hands into the correction positions. The girl was adamant that she'd master the guitar, and the first step was nailing this one song. With as much as she practiced, the music was practically seared into her head; the rub was that she sometimes got ahead of herself. Or her fingers would miss their mark.

A minor, long pause, F, C

A minor, hold it, F, and then stall before C

A minor, rinse and repeat the F, linger just a bit more before the C

A minor, not quite as long a delay, F, bring that C in closer to home

"Shit!" Brow knitting together, the blonde focused so intently on her project that she hadn't caught her father coming outside with the food, even though she was facing the house.

"Language!" Scolding his daughter for words that just about everyone used, Nathan set the family-sized platter of sandwiches down on the low brown table between the three. With so much to carry, he figured that once the ingrates knew that the food was done they'd get the clue to scamper off to the kitchen for their own damn drinks.

Cassie didn't even look up she was so engrossed, and Sam seemed a million miles away. Was he thinking about what was said on the beach? Did he regret the decisions that led to that point? Or was he more troubled that the girl claimed to have no recollection of the encounter whatsoever? All things considered, Nate wasn't all that shocked his big brother was lost in thought - he would have been too in that position.

Lifting one off the plate with a soft thanks to the chef, Rafe's kid settled back in her seat. She seemed rather transfixed by the lapping of the tide, the blue devouring the white without a second thought, but otherwise was silent as a church mouse. "Thank you."

Pleased that at least someone had some manners, he nodded at her and turned back around to get the drinks (completely forgetting about the chips). Honestly he was having a hard time reconciling this docile young woman with the frothing lunatic he had had to rip off his brother, but it was definitely the same one. The apple sure didn't fall far from the crazy tree.

Banana slice slipping slowly from between the bread as she went to take a bite, Daniella plucked the mushy circlet out before it could fall, set the sandwich down on her leg, and ate it first instead. She liked bananas, she always had. Mama used to encourage her to eat them all the time, yet as the heiress got older the woman would start to freak out if anyone saw her eating them. Well anything really, but foods of certain shapes just made her lose it.

Go figure.

[Hot Dog! Aka Another Time, Another Place]

Classmates all in a titter about the next subject on the board, Daniella kept checking her watch, lamenting that time was going inordinately slow. All at the age where they were more hormone than human, she supposed that she couldn't blame them for getting worked up about the concept, especially as the teacher was almost model levels of good-looking... But honestly the Adler heiress would have rather been anywhere else. Please just let today be over!

Repetitive action not eluding the notice of the teacher, Jay tapped the three letter world scrawled across the rectangular expanse then proceeded to point the yard stick at her in particular, singling the girl out. Previously content in a swarm of giggles and verbal fantasies whispered to neighbors in a barely audible hush, the vultures turned their collective gaze to their prey. Accustomed to the suave older man torturing her for his own amusement, she knew knew that she was going to hate whatever happened next.

"Tut, tut." Milking the attention as he plunged through the rows of adoring students to the back corner where the heiress cowered - feigning ignorance of the hearts in their eyes as he went - the man perched comfortably on the edge of her desk. Charismatic and free as they came, Jay was a very hands-on educator. "I fear I'm boring the skirt off of Miss Adler."

If only, his eyes said.

Casual Friday the student body were more or less allowed to wear whatever they pleased, although in her case it was more what others preferred her to wear.

Mama desired a lady, her new step-father an idol, and Jay something more sinful, so that entailed a bevy of tights, no shortage of heels, every known scent of perfume, short skirts or dresses, and the face of the modern woman. I guess two of seven days for myself isn't so bad. As Shen taught me, it's more than some get.

"Unfortunately by law I'm not allowed to be more hands-on with this topic," he said that, yet he visibly touched the side of her face and flashed a cheeky grin for the rest, "but I try my best. If you have a better way of covering this topic, please, let me know."

"No, sir, I don't-"

Leading the witness exactly where he wanted her to go, the teacher would have made a terrible (or suburb, depending on what you were looking for) lawyer. Although the real crime should have been how good he looked doing it. "Then you just know better than I do?"

"No-"

Defense overrated in his opinion, he was prepared to cut her off at every available opportunity. Whatever it took to watch the 'amira squirm. "Oh, but I think that you think you do." Taking great joy in the shade her cheeks were glowing, Jay was sure to remember the moment for life. "In her head, Miss Adler clearly has everything all figured out."

"I don't!" Shifting uncomfortably in her seat, she was no better than a worm on a hook. A fat, wriggling worm.

Shaking his head with a sigh, he bemoaned - nay, downright detested that so many roses allowed themselves to wilt prematurely. At least somewhat sincere in his profession, Jay honestly wanted to see a day where his students would shine. "Don't sell yourself short, Miss Adler. Not like so many of the others. Show me the fire I know you keep locked away! Like your classmates, I'm sure you know something." Predatory gaze of the hunter gleaming in his green eyes, Daniella wasn't the only one he looked at; catching the eyes of a handful of others, she was only the last.

At a loss, the girl became truly crimson as she slunk down in her seat. What was she supposed to say to that?!

Jay saw he would just have to try a little harder with this one. "Shame. But I don't want it said that I'm not a fair guy - so I'll make you a deal." There was real potential in the girl, if only she let herself put in the effort. "Instead of sending you to detention for disrupting my class yet again, we'll try a little exercise to get you out of your shell."

"How...?" Questioning what was in store, she realized with a start that she had almost forgotten her manners. "Sir?"

A single word was printed clear as day on the board, because there were several facts and cautions he could pass on to his audience, too many to bother writing in fact. As fate would have it, of all the things they could have been discussing, the current point was on safety and prevention. I love my job. "I want you... to help me demonstrate the proper way to put on a condom."

Eyes wide enough to throw across a field and report to Area 51, she gasped, "On you?! In front of everyone?!" Daniella may have been panic-stricken, however everyone else was too busy laughing at such an absurd and stupid statement to think for even a moment there was a deeper context. Sure the popular girls were all probably blowing the professor for higher grades, but why would the most popular teacher in the school waste time on the likes of her?

Won over by the mere thought of being so bold, at the same time he wasn't about to jeopardize his potion at the school. Tutoring privately had proven problematic, however so far he'd managed to keep that off the record.

Hunger in his eyes all the same, Jay shook his head and held up a hand to quiet the gales of laughter filling the room. "Not quite, Miss Adler." Standing up and dusting himself off just for show, the man flashed that knee-weakening smile he had one more time. "I was thinking more like showing me how you'd put it on one of the bananas."

Duh. There had only been an obvious box of them on his desk. Bananas! Well, rubbers too, but up until that point she'd done everything she could to not pay attention to those.

"Right." Wow, way to look like the world's biggest idiot in front of people that didn't particularly care for her in the first place. "But..." Getting personal, the heiress had recently learned how to put a rubber on on her partner, only she'd never used her hands to do it before. "I've never..."

Trailing off awkwardly, Daniella couldn't have been any more red if she ran through the art department and jumped in all the paint they had. Naked. Even more nerve-wracking? The fact that her classmates couldn't have gotten any louder. Mostly it was just snorts and guffaws, but some of the meaner souls made jokes about her having never even seen a dick, or that she had seen too many but never bothered with safety. There were worse as well, but like usual the heiress pretended not to hear.

"You won't even try for me? I'm deeply disappointed in you, Miss Adler." Waiting for the teen to follow him before returning to the front of the room, he left her no choice. "Do we need to have another discussion after class about your behavior?"

Head hung low, Daniella knew she was beaten. "No, sir."

"Good girl!" Beam widening, Jay subtly ran his hand along another girl's gartered thigh and grazed the top of a different student's hand on the way up to the front. Whether by design or fluke, the heiress saw.

[Sunset On The Patio, pt II]

Words echoing in his head like a record stuck on repeat, the brunette was so far down in his own thoughts that he'd barely registered the beer Nathan had handed him. Handed Dells to pass along to him? Or had his little brother set them on the table, and he'd automatically grabbed it? Somehow there was an open beer in his hand, the burning wash of alcohol draining down the back of his throat. It warmed his cheeks in the damp breeze, but he didn't want to be warm - he wanted to be numb.

More wounded by those three little words than he should have been, Sam didn't know if that was Daniella still laboring under the delusion that he was that psychopathic millennial or if she had turned against him. She had ample motive and even a new god, but had she really been callous enough to just abandon him like this? Breaking his new personal rule, the thief cast a sideways peek at the downcast silhouette to his right.

Hair now a pale phantasm and tickling her shoulders, fresh bandages poked out beneath the rolled back sleeves of a silver sweater, crinkling at the wrist as she took a swig. Half a bottle gone already, Dells was sitting a little less straight than her norm, one foot under the table as if she meant to fly away. Maybe she would.

Silent in her stargazing but sending missed signals down on earth, he tried to not think about the way her knee was touching his, or that her eyes kept flicking in his direction when she thought he wasn't looking.

"You're so lucky," sighing dreamily with a last look at the expanding heavens, Daniella addressed Nathan as he climbed into the hammock at the other end of the porch, "what I wouldn't give for a view like this!"

Elbow bumping into Sam's, he noted dimly that she didn't move it away immediately. Not even after a few moments of prolonged contact.

Nate was taken aback by the compliment, shocked that someone so ridiculously wealthy wouldn't have a dozen places with views a hundred times more splendid than this little slice of paradise. "Come on, I'm sure you have plenty of homes with better."

Daniella shook her head, a far-away look in her eyes, "Mama likes the manor on the city limits the best, so that's where we live. There's a beautiful stretch of river, but the smog and pollutants don't really let much through." Of the other estates, there were a handful with this kind of scenic backdrop, however they were also lacking something that was special to this place.

"Astronomy something you interested in?" Venturing into a conversation once he caught on that the heiress was actually opening up, the adventurer reminded himself not for the first time to not bring up her father. His big brother still hadn't gotten around to explaining what had happened, and as guilty as he felt for his part in events, the truth really should have come from Sam. Although if he didn't get off his ass soon...

Fidgeting in her seat, the motions were too small to see with the naked eye, however the brunette was certain that he wasn't imagining it. Dells was deliberately pressing into him, her little finger shyly dancing back and forth over the armrest as she inched her way over to taking his. There was some space between the chairs, and if anyone cared to pay attention, what she was doing wouldn't have been very secret.

Bobbing her head in earnest, the young woman nodded with an impassioned flush, "Yeah!" Clearing her throat, she amended in a much calmer tone. "Yeah. Not just astronomy but history and adventure, action..." About to go into a long list, she took a deep breath and started again. "Honestly I really love to learn, dumb as that sounds."

He looked at the girl as if she had just given him the secret to the universe. Dumb!? Nate wanted to know if it was possible to adopt her!

Anything to take me away. "Actually," she confessed without thinking out the consequences, "I was looking around at some of the books you guys have, and there probably isn't one that I wouldn't like to peruse in my spare time..." She wouldn't dare ask to borrow a single tome under the circumstances, but it couldn't have been clearer that she was hoping she might get invited back for the opportunity.

Seriously, what are the odds that Elena would let me keep her?

Author's Note:

The song Cassie is playing in Ed Sheeran's 'Give Me Love'. I went through a fair few songs, but when I heard this it fit in all the criteria I had set: more or less means something to the situation, is relatively easy to play (okay, the site ultimate-guitar said intermediate), isn't too on the nose, and is by a singer that I think will be recognized roughly fifteen years from now.

Also, the "Orange You Glad" section was something I wrote rough four, five chapters ago. Happy I finally got to make use of it!