A/N Thanks for the reviews last chapter, let's see what good ole Mr. Baker has to say this fine day.
Railman - Walter wants to do everything he can to always support and take care of his family. Yes it was a big surprise to all of them. Who wouldn't want to find an account with enough money to buy a house. Walter is ready for a chat with his least favorite person in the world. Let's see how it goes.
LouBe - Drew would never do such a thing like that, would he? Walter is just that kind of a guy. Still lots more to come over the remaining chapters.
Grykon - Too funny about the fortune cookies. Remember back in 2018 the market was booming. No busts here. Seems like there is plenty of that under that damn bridge in some guys other story going on right now. I have to balance the stories out. LOL!! Love your stories by the way.
Margaret - Things are going well for the three of them. Let's see what Drew has to say. Can't wait. Yes Paige has realized how much Walter always did for them.
Skunkee - Hopefully this was fast enough. I'll have the next one up early Monday. Thanks for reading.
Pearliegirl - Glad you enjoyed the last few chapters. Interesting idea with the garage. We will have to see what happens.
Part 12 Sunday June 1, 2018
Walter and Paige drove through a total of seventeen neighborhoods the next morning, and found no less than 70 houses listed for sale. All shapes and sizes and prices.
"I may be more overwhelmed now than when we started Walter. How would you ever decide on which house you want." Paige said while holding onto Walter's arm while he was slowly driving through another neighborhood.
"That's a good question. Maybe we need to talk to a professional realtor. Give them a list of what we want, at a price we are willing to spend and let them narrow our search for us. Doing it this way could take forever. And I know we missed several streets in most of the neighborhoods." He said scratching the bridge of his nose.
"You're probably right. If we are really going to do this, let's not wait too long. It's summer break and wouldn't it be amazing to find something before school started back up for Ralph?"
"When does your lease run out at your condo? We may have to take that into consideration if there is significant time left on it. Or we could just pay a penalty to break the lease if we need to."
"The property manager just lets me stay there month by month. So that shouldn't be a problem at all." Paige told him with a cute little smile and a flip of her hair.
"How did you manage that? Or do I even want to know?" Walter asked with a smile.
"Hey, a girl has to flirt sometimes to make sure she has a place for her baby to stay. Besides you're the only one I ever bring out the really good stuff for." She said with a wink and a small sample of some of her good stuff as Walter nearly drove her car through someone's front yard. "Hey, eyes on the road mister."
"Sorry." Walter said as he regained control again.
First thing Monday morning Walter got on a plane headed to Chicago and then on to Portland, Maine. He wasn't quite sure what he was going to say or how he thought Drew Baker was going to respond to him when he saw him there. He'd been going over all the different scenarios in his head during his fights. But he knew there was nothing that was going to stop him from talking to him.
It didn't take him long to find the apartment complex he was living in. It was only a few minutes away from the ballpark. Walter could basically track down the whereabouts of anyone he wanted to. And since this was only going to be a short trip, he was glad that he was able to find him so quick.
Walter arrived at Drew's apartment complex around 4pm, which after adjusting for the three hour difference in time zones, made for good time. He called Paige and told her he was going to see if Drew was in as soon as he got off the phone with her. Today was an off day for the baseball team Drew worked for, so Walter thought it would be his best chance to catch him at home and talk with him. He hoped this was going to be easy, but he suspected it wouldn't.
KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK
"Hold on, I'm coming… um Walter?" Drew said answering the door in shock. "What are you doing here?"
"Drew; were you um expecting someone else?" Walter asked.
"Who's there, baby? Is it the food?" A female voice came from inside his apartment. "I'm hungry, bring me my chicken wings now and don't forget the damn ranch again."
"No, it's not the food, just give me a minute, alright." Drew yelled back to her.
"That better not be that slut you told me you were done with, what's her name. I'll shove those wings up her fat ass." She screamed back.
"Did I um come at a bad time?" Walter said with a smirk. He would have to remember to tell Paige about the conversation they were having right now.
"It's not her either, I told you we were through; it's an um old friend of mine." Drew said as Walter raised his eyebrows.
"You gonna make an old friend just wait outside, it's kind of cold and wet out here." Walter deadpanned.
"Yeah uh, Walter, now's not the best time, what are you doing here anyway?" Drew asked of him as he looked back into the apartment.
"I uh just need to have a few words with you. You know to catch up and all; old friend." Walter told him, faking a smile.
"What's taking so long?" The female voice asked.
"Just give me a minute. Hold on." Drew responded back to her.
"Again Walter, now is not a good time, if you know what I mean." Drew told him again.
"I um don't, actually."
"Look, give me about ten minutes, and I'll meet you at the diner across the street."
"Ten minutes my ass. Try two, if you're lucky lover boy. I'm leaving. I got better things to do. Oh, you sure are cute though. You need someone to take out to dinner tonight and cook breakfast for in the morning?" The female said as she was leaving Drew's apartment and ogling Walter.
"I um, no thanks, I'll be fine. I'm all booked up for the night." Walter told her.
"Damnit, hey come on we were almost…" Drew whimpered to her.
"Bye."
"So. Is now a better time?" Walter asked again with a smirk.
"Just give me ten minutes to take a cold shower. You can buy me dinner; you owe me that much." Drew told him as he was shutting the door and headed straight to the shower.
"Alright, ten minutes." Walter said as he looked at his watch.
Drew showed up, which was a minor miracle considering his track record. Walter had it at fifty fifty at best. Walter was patiently waiting for him in one of the booths towards the back of the diner. He had a cup of coffee and was just putting down his phone as Drew approached.
"So, Walter, what brings you out to Portland?" Drew asked as he slid into the other end of the booth.
"Good, you didn't get lost on the way over, let's get straight to the point." Walter told him not wanting to waste any more time. But before he could say another word, a waitress strolled up to the table. Walter huffed.
"What can I get you, hotcakes?" The waitress said winking at Drew.
"Hey Barbs, I'll take the uh usual. But make it a double since he's paying. And I'll take a piece of apple pie too, with ice cream."
"And what about you handsome?" Barbs asked Walter giving him the once over. "You need a piece of my special pie?"
"Coffee will be fine, thank you." Walter said giving Drew a look.
"So why you here, did Paige send you out here; if this is about child support, look I'm just a little tight on cash right now. Tell her I'll have something to send out soon."
Walter fumed for a minute thinking of how Drew never once tried to support either Ralph or Paige. Just the reminder of it almost made him want to punch Drew in the teeth. Twice.
"In a roundabout way, yes, it is." Walter said, using that as a good lead in to what he was there for.
"What are you talking about? I don't understand." Drew told him, confused.
You probably don't understand much, do you? Walter was thinking in his head, and almost said aloud.
"I would like to adopt Ralph. Become his legal parent that is." Walter told him instead, not wanting to beat around the bush.
"You must have lost your mind. Why on earth would I agree to that?" Drew said with a huff. "This is bullshit. You fly out here and tell me you want me to relinquish my rights to my son? What the hell dude?"
"Yes, I did, and I do. Drew we both know he is not your top priority. Or any priority right now, it seems. He is 15 years old, in three years you have no legal right to him anyway. When is the last time you even called him, let alone saw him?"
"I've been busy, alright. I just haven't gotten around to calling him." Drew said.
"Yeah, you seem real busy. Me adopting him would not stop you from not calling him, or even from not coming to see him. I would have no problem with you not doing either." Walter told him grinning on the inside with the way he worded his statement.
"You think being an ass to me is helping you right now?" Drew retorted.
"No, you're right. I'm sorry. Look, me being able to adopt Ralph would not in any way affect your contact with him. I would be glad to even pay for an airline ticket out to L.A. for you to see him, or with Paige's approval a ticket for him to come here with you for a week."
"What's in it for me? I mean if I agree to this. We talking 10, 20 grand?" Drew asked.
"It's not about you." Walter told him, proving his point to himself again. The ignorant son of a bitch.
"Then why? Why would I do that?" Drew asked, still ticked that they were having this conversation.
"For Ralph. For no other reason than for Ralph."
"Did he send you down here? Or was it Paige?"
"No, neither one of them did. Ralph doesn't even know I am here talking to you." Walter told him.
"But Paige does?"
"Yes, she does. We talked about it the other day."
"And she was okay with this?"
"Yes, like I said we discussed it the other day."
"And why would she.." Drew started to ask before figuring it out.
"Why would she what?"
"You guys are getting married, aren't you?"
"Um, nothing is official yet, but yes, that is the plan. And I was hoping to be able to also adopt Ralph right after we are married."
"So let me get this straight. You haven't even asked Paige yet and here you are trying to steal my kid from me." Drew said a little louder than normal.
"No. I'm not trying to steal…" Walter started to say in an angered voice, "..I'm not trying to steal anyone." He finished as he lowered his voice.
"Sorry, I didn't mean that to sound like that." Drew said to him.
"I care deeply for both Paige and Ralph. All I want for them, both of them, is for them to be happy. That's all I have ever wanted for them since the day I met them." Walter honestly told him.
"I get that, I do. Look this is a lot to take in. Let me at least think about it tonight."
"Food's here. This one's on the house for last night, sugar." Barbs told Drew with a wink.
Walter almost spit out his coffee. He watched Drew eat his meal and they continued talking. This was more dialogue than the two of them had had in the entire time they knew one another.
"Let me ask you this, if I say no, what happens?" Drew asked, unsure of the answer.
"Well, Paige could take you to court and try to legally have your parental rights terminated."
"Would she?" Drew asked through a bite of his double cheeseburger.
"I don't know. Honestly, we didn't discuss that. We hoped it would not have to come to that."
"Would that be expensive?" Drew asked, being tight on cash and all.
"Yes, especially for you, it would. You would need an attorney, it would also take place in California, so you would need to be present several days for that as well." Walter informed him.
"And how would Paige be paying for that?" Drew asked knowing the answer before he asked the question.
"She wouldn't, I would." Walter told him.
"If we go to court, she will probably win? Am I right?"
"93 percent of the time in a situation like this, yes. When one parent has taken on all of the role of raising a child, the court almost always sides with them. Adding on the fact that you have not stayed current with your payments to her, the numbers are closer to 98.5 percent of the time." Walter informed him.
"Damn. So, I'm screwed either way, aren't I? Drew said plopping his burger down on its plate.
"No, not exactly."
"How?"
"Like I said, in less than three years it's a moot point. Right now, you have options. You decide not to relinquish your parental rights and go to court to defend yourself. That's fine, you have that choice. Or if Paige decides not to take you to court, nothing changes until Ralph turns 18. At that point, I would be fairly certain he would never want to contact you again knowing you stood in the way of him and his mother being happy. Or you sign off on letting me adopt him, stay in his good graces; and Paige's. And I think he would want to keep a relationship open with you moving on throughout his life. So, if you truly do care for him, and keeping him in your life that seems to me to be the best option. I am biased towards it, one hundred percent biased towards it. I will admit that, but I am also being completely honest with you."
"Are they happy?" Drew asked.
"Paige and Ralph?"
"Yes, are they happy?"
"I would say yes they are both very happy." Walter told him.
"And you are going to ask Paige to marry you?"
Walter had actual tears well up in his eyes as he looked directly at Drew.
"Yes. I am. I was waiting to figure out how this part was going to happen before I asked her, and please don't say anything to her about when I was going to ask her."
"Alright, let me think about it tonight. Meet me tomorrow morning at say 8AM."
"Thank you."
"I haven't said yes yet." Drew told him.
"I know. But if you are really going to consider it, that is all I can ask for." Walter told him shaking his hand.
"Thanks for dinner." Drew told him as he got up to leave.
Walter talked to Paige that evening and filled her in on everything that was said. Knowing how hard it was for Walter to talk to him about this, in a civilized manner, let her know how much he truly wanted it to happen. She knew he wouldn't be able to sleep much if any that night, so she decided to stay up with him on the phone as long as he wanted, just talking. The next morning, Walter was sitting in his car waiting outside Drew's apartment by 6:30AM and was content to anxiously wait for the next hour and a half to pass by. Drew opened up his door around seven to throw some trash away and saw him sitting in his car. He went up to the window and knocked on the glass surprising Walter as he was deep in thought.
"Let me guess, you didn't sleep last night." Drew said with a chuckle.
"No, um Paige stayed on the phone with me till about 4:30 to help me pass the time."
"You wanna get something to eat?" Drew asked him.
"Sure, maybe not the diner though. Unless you and Barbs…"
"That's fine. There's a nice place about five minutes from here."
Walter drove the two of them to the restaurant in silence. It wasn't tense, which Walter took as a good sign. He was still very nervous, and he didn't have any idea of what Drew had decided. They got their food ordered and Walter knew they would have about ten minutes of uninterrupted time.
"I have a few conditions." Drew started.
"Oh, um okay. Does that um mean you gave it some thought and came to a decision?" Walter asked with knots all throughout his stomach.
"I did. You alright man, you don't look too good."
"Just um very nervous." Walter answered honestly.
"Whether you believe it or not, I do care for Ralph. Paige too. And I do want what's best for them. I know I screwed up a lot of things, and I'm not proud of the way I acted with how it relates to both of them. I was immature. Paige has told me how much you have helped Ralph. Trust me we have had some pretty big arguments about it. She gives you a lot of credit for the way he is now. Swears up and down that you are a great guy. I do want what's best for him and I can admit that's not me." Drew started out telling him.
Walter was emotionally wrecked at this point, the man had tears running down his face knowing Drew was going to be okay with signing the papers.
"Damn, this does mean a lot to you…. I want to be a part of his life, but I also don't want to stand in the way of his happiness either." Drew continued.
Walter was able to nod, but not much else, he was still overcome with emotion.
"You buy me a plane ticket out to see him every couple of months. You also have to make sure he knows why I did this." Drew finished.
"You have my word, and I truly am grateful for you agreeing to this." Walter told him after wiping his face with his napkin.
"How long is this process going to take?"
"My friend Sylvester Dodd, you have met him before at Scorpion, he is also an attorney and he told me within six months everything could be complete, if there were no objections from either party. Sometimes they can also last years."
"Well, what do you need me to sign."
And just like that, Walter was able to have Drew sign off on every sheet of paper that needed a signature. Maybe Drew wasn't such a bad guy after all. Who am I kidding, the guy was still a tool.
After he dropped Drew back off at his apartment and thanked him several more times, Walter pulled his car around to the back of the complex and couldn't contain his tears anymore. He called Paige the second he parked and Walter put her on a video chat. And once she saw Walter, she knew what had happened. Walter was on the next plane home and after a few more hours he was entwined in the arms of the woman he loved more than anything else in the world. Now the two of them could shed their happy tears together. Walter was now one step closer to his ultimate goal.
A/N - Let me know what you thought of this chapter. It was another fun one to write. All of Walter's little jabs.
