A Fresh Start
Chapter One Hundred Fifty Two
Reva is standing at the kitchen counter between the living room and kitchen when Hawk comes in. She doesn't see him as she looks at the locket in her hand. "What are you doing girl?" He asks, as she jumps. "What do you have there?" He asks, looking over her shoulder. "Is that Marah's locket?"
"Yes." Reva says, putting it back in her purse."
"Are you sending it to Marah?"
"Umm, no." Reva says, turning around. "Where's Rusty?" She asks.
"He's outside, taking care of those boards on the west side of the house."
"Josh would have gotten to that, eventually."
"Rusty's here so he can take care of it for you. Besides it's gives him something to do, besides brooding about Cassie. Do you want to tell me why you have Marah's locket in your purse?"
"I took it out and was looking at it the other day and I didn't put it back." Reva says, walking into the living room and sitting down.
"Does this have anything to do with HB?" Hawk asks, sitting down beside her. She looks at him and then looks away. "You're worried about something." She still doesn't say anything. "Reva."
"You're going to be mad at me." She says, looking at him.
"So you did something."
"Yes." Reva says, sighing softly. "I took the locket and I went to Jeffrey and Sam and I told them the truth."
"You told them the truth. You told them about Jeffrey possibly being HB's son."
"Yes."
"You don't have any proof of that."
"But I can get proof, irrevocable proof."
"How are you going to do that?"
"A DNA test."
"DNA… from the hair that Marah has in her locket, you need more than just HB's DNA."
"I've got Jeffrey's too. Once I told Jeffrey what we found and explained why Josh has been such an ass to him. I asked him for a DNA sample and he gave it to me.
"He gave you a DNA sample after you told him all that."
"Yes."
"So have you run the DNA… no I don't suppose you have. Josh doesn't know about this because if he did things would not be so peaceful around here."
"You call this peaceful."
"Considering how it can get when you two are fighting, this is peaceful. Are you… you are going to tell Josh?"
"Yes, I'm just not sure how I'm going to do that." Reva says, looking at Hawk.
"I ain't got any ideas for you."
"Pops."
"You jumped into this."
"I have to end this. Josh doesn't want Jeffrey told that he's HB's son because he thinks I'll leave him for Jeffrey. There's not a snowballs chance in hell that will happen, but I can't seem to convince Josh of that, so I figure we have the DNA test, Jeffrey knows the truth and eventually Josh will realize that I'm not leaving him for Jeffrey. I'm just not sure when I should tell Josh about it all."
"It's like I've said, bad news is better done like you would do a band-aid." Hawk says, as she looks at him. "You rip it off and get it over with, bad new is the same way, tell him and get it over with, the sooner you do it the better."
"I was thinking I would wait till… well actually Cassie asked me to wait till after the wedding."
"Yes, that might be a good idea, since Jeffrey's in the wedding party. It might make things a little awkward."
"You're not mad at me." Reva says.
"No, it's something you would do, as long as you realize that Josh is going to be absolutely furious with you." Hawk says, reaching to hug her.
"Thanks Pops."
"When did you do this?"
"A couple days ago."
"And the DNA test?"
"After the wedding, I've already arranged it with Rick."
"I think this holiday season is going to be a very bumpy one." Hawk says.
"It might be up in the top five." Reva says with a smile.
"You might be right. I'm going to go see if I can help your brother."
"If you tell him, swear him to secrecy. He can't tell Josh anything."
"I'll make sure he keeps quiet."
"Is he still fussing about Cassie?"
"No, not really, you know how he is."
"Yes, stubborn."
"Like someone else I know."
"I'm not stubborn. I'm right." Reva says, with a smile as Hawk shakes his head and smiles as he walks out of the room.
Cassie is standing at the bathroom counter as Richard leans against the door jamb, watching her. She looks in the mirror and catches him. "What are you doing?" She asks, as he stands up and walks over to her
Slipping his arm around her waist he pulls her back against him, resting his head on tops of her. "I love to watch you." He says, looking at her in the mirror.
"You love to watch me do what?" Cassie asks, looking at him.
"Anything, everything, it doesn't matter."
"Are you okay?"
"I'm wonderful. I've got you and the boys. We have our lives back. And we're going to be parents again, so I'm wonderful." Richard says, kissing the top of her head.
"Do all weddings make you sugary sweet and soft?"
"No, just ours." He says, with a smile. "But back to the original question and my answer, I like watching you because you're beautiful and I love knowing that you're going to be my wife."
"I thought I was your wife already."
"You know what I mean." Richard says, releasing her so she can turn around to face him.
"Yes, I do."
"Are you feeling okay this morning?"
"I feel fine."
"No dizziness, no nausea, the babies…."
"The baby is just fine. I think she knows to be kind to me for the next couple days because something big is going on."
"I can't wait to do all the things that husbands have to do for their pregnant wives. I didn't get to make midnight runs to the grocery store."
"Would that even have been possible when I was pregnant with Will?"
"You know what I mean I would have gone for you. And I didn't get to rub your feet and back. I missed a lot of your doctor's appointments with Will I won't miss anything with this baby, I promise you that."
"You don't have to promise me anything." Cassie says, leaning in to kiss him softly. "What happened with Will wasn't totally your fault. You made a mistake, I've forgiven you for it and you don't have to make up for anything this time."
"I want to make up for it." Richard says, looking her in the eye. "So let me."
"Okay." Cassie says, leaning in to kiss him again. "You know there's something else that comes with pregnancy."
"What's that?"
"Increased sex drive." Cassie says, looking at him.
"For me, I don't…."
"No, for me. It's the hormones. They make a woman's sex drive stronger." Cassie says, laying her hands at his waist as she looks up.
"What, here?" Richard asks, watching her.
"We've done it in the shower and the tub. Why not the counter?"
"As interesting as that maybe, why don't we go back to bed and we can be…."
"Are you chicken?" Cassie asks, leaning in to kiss him, teasing him.
Reaching for her, he deepens her kiss. Wrapping his arms around her and pulling her to him. "I think I'm going to enjoy this aspect of pregnancy." Richard says, untying the knot in her robe.
"We'll see in a couple months when we've done this everyday and maybe every night for a week."
"Where you like that with Will?" Richard asks, brushing the robe off her shoulders.
"Umm, I don't know. I was too focused on other things." Cassie replies, tugging on his boxers and pajama bottoms.
He leans in kissing her softly. Holding her head in both of his hands. She slowly moves her hands up his back, feeling the warmth radiating off him. Releasing her, he wraps his arms around her, holding her tightly as she buries her fingers in his hair. They kiss for several seconds and then Cassie pulls back. She looks up and takes his hand, pressing it against her stomach, she whispers. "Touch me, please."
He looks down and then looks back up, seeing the desire in her eyes. Slowly he moves his hand down as she opens herself to him. He feels the warmth flowing from her, rushing from deep inside. He slips his fingers between her legs and he sucks in a deep breath as he looks up. "Is that from the hormones?"
She smiles as she leans in to kiss him. "No silly, that's from you."
"But I didn't do anything."
"I wanted you when I looked up and saw you leaning against the doorframe watching me. And I wanted you even more when you wrapped your arms around me, pulling me against you and I felt your strength and warmth. I could smell your scent and it's intoxicating for me."
"All of that made you like this." Richard asks, moving his fingers over her.
She sucks in a deep breath, closing her eyes before she whispers. "Yes, all of that and what you're doing now." She leans in kissing him, moving her tongue over his neck, feeling the pulse beating against it. She moves up his neck, softly kissing him until she reaches his ear, nipping at it.
"Cassie." He groans, closing his eyes. Pulling back, he kisses her as he pulls his hand away.
"No." She cries.
"Shhh." He whispers, wrapping his arm around her and lifting her. He takes a couple steps and then sits her down on the counter. He steps back, watching her. She leans back, bracing her hands against the counter she watches him slowly move his eyes down her body. Leaning forward, he softly kisses her stomach. "I love you." He whispers.
She reaches up, burying her fingers in his hair, holding him to her. Her breathing deepens with the feel of his mouth on her skin. He moves slightly, dipping his tongue into her navel, playing with her, slowly moving his tongue over it. He feels her jumps slightly and he looks up. He sees the most intense look of desire in her eyes. He wraps his arms around her, kneeling down, he pulls her closer to the edge and then he's there, sinking his tongue into her, playing with her desire, while he swallows the warm liquid flowing from deep inside her.
He feels his erection growing harder, listening to her react to what he's doing. His body feels heavy with desire as she begins to roll her hips, closing her eyes. Gasping for breath, her hands clinched into fists as she lets her head fall back. He moves his tongue over her desire and he feels her jump, looking up. He watches her as he does it again. "Richard." She cries, reaching for him. Burying her fingers in his hair and holding him to her. He continues to play with her until he hears her breath catch and he pulls away.
Shocked, she opens her eyes, staring at him as he stands up. Leaning in to kiss her, he pulls her to him, holding her tightly as he takes one of her hands and lays it on his erection. She sucks in a deep breath, feeling the throbbing desire pushing against him. He looks up. "Okay." She whispers, kissing him as she wraps her legs around him and he moves into position. Slipping inside her, he fights for control as her body flutters over him, clinging to him as she takes him deep inside. He holds steady for a few seconds, waiting for her request and then slowly he pulls away. She lets him play for a few moments before she whispers. "It's time."
Bracing his hands on the counter he begins to thrust again and again. She rolls with him, moving her hips in time with his. Pushing against him when he's buried deep inside her, fighting to hold onto him when he pulls away. He feels her release building and he knows it won't be long until she explodes. Leaning over her, he changes the angle and deepens his thrust as he takes one of her nipples into his mouth, manipulating it as she sucks her lower lip into her mouth, closing her eyes. He can tell she's fighting her body's demands. "Go on." He whispers, thrusting harder.
She sucks in a deep breath and then she feels her body shatter, convulsing around him while he continues to thrust again and again. They have been together time and time again and each time he loves watching her as she swept away. His release rushes through him, filling her as her release seems to slow. Feeling his release brings a second smaller one for her. He lays his head against her, sucking in a deep breath as she reaches for him, holding him to her. Slowly he feels his body begin to relax and pushing away from her, he stands up, watching her. He moves into her waiting arms, softly kissing her. "I think I'm going to love the next nine months." He says softly as she laughs.
"You're such a man, always thinking about sex." She says, slowly running her hand through his hair as he looks up.
"I didn't bring this up." He says, looking at her. "I simply wanted to watch you get ready."
"And now I need to get another shower." She says, looking at him.
"I think I need one of those too." He whispers, helping her off the counter.
"Maybe I'll…." He doesn't let her finish, sweeping her up into his arms as she begins to laugh.
Detective Rossi walks into the interview room. Ralph looks up. "Good morning, Mr. Schultz. I'm Detective Rossi."
"Okay." Schultz replies, shrugging his shoulders.
"Do you know why you were brought here?"
"No."
"I wanted to question you about your connection to a break-in that happened earlier this summer."
"You flew me all the way out here to question me about some break-in that I know nothing about?"
"We both know that's not true, Mr. Schultz. You've already been id'd by one witness in Springfield."
"She's the girlfriend to the mayor. He don't like me and she'll say anything he tells her to say."
"And why does the mayor not like you?"
"I don't know, maybe he's jealous or something. My old lady works for him."
"Says on your prison record, you're divorced. Did you get remarried when you got out?"
"No, I didn't get prison. Stacey filled for that divorce not me."
"So, you didn't want it."
"No, I didn't." Schultz replies, as Detective Rossi nods.
He opens up a folder and looks at some papers sitting there. "You've had quite a career, Mr. Schultz, assault and battery, a couple of counts of domestic violence…."
"She attacked me first. I was only defending myself."
"Against a 5'2 130lb woman, you beat her up pretty bad. So bad you almost killed her the last time, is that why you were charged with attempted murder."
"It was a bogus charge. The DA didn't…."
"Let me guess, the DA didn't like you either, right."
"No, she didn't. My old lady could hold her own when she wanted to and she knew how to twist people around."
"So that's why you almost killed her."
"What's this got to do with your break-in?"
"Nothing, I'm just curious. But you're right I brought you here for a reason. So Chief Cooper says that the victim id'd you from a line up. You want to tell me what happened."
"I don't know. I've never been to DC. I went to see the Mayor yesterday, to see if he would help with my old lady. Like I said, he don't like me and when I left I was arrested that night for bogus charges."
"You solicited a cop for sex and then raised hell when they took you into custody, thus the disturbing the peace and from what the report said, you could have been charged with more than that."
"It was all a setup, planned by…."
"By the police department, that's usually the case when they do a sting operation. What were you doing at the mayor's apartment building?"
"Like I said, I wanted to see if he could help me with Stacey."
"And you couldn't do that at City Hall, you had to speak to him at his private residence."
"Yes."
"Why?"
"My old lady works for him. I think they could have something going on, on the down low. That mayor's a player, you know his rep."
"We're not here to discuss the mayor's rep. So you say you've never been to DC, is that correct."
"Yes, I'm on parole. I can't leave the state of Illinois without my parole officer's permission."
"That's funny, because I looked into your credit card history and there was a purchase for a roundtrip ticket to DC in early July, right around the time the victim's apartment was broken into."
"I bought the ticket for a friend."
"What's this friend's name?"
"It was a buddy of mine."
"Your friend doesn't have a name?"
"I promised I wouldn't tell. He was seriously scared when I bought the ticket for him."
"So you bought this ticket for your friend and you never came to DC."
"No, I told you I can't leave the state because of the parole."
"Because that's funny also, I have another witness here and after Chief Cooper contacted me about this matter, he faxed over your mug shot and I showed it to my witness and he also recognized you as the man that forced him to open the apartment in question." They sit there for several seconds staring at each other before Detective Rossi asks. "You have nothing to say to that?" Schultz still doesn't reply. "That's okay, I'd be scrambling too. So, I'm going to have the officer take you back to your cell and I'll arrange for you have a meeting with one of our public defenders, unless you have another attorney you would like to use. You don't." Detective Rossi says, as Schultz shakes his head. "Alright, I'll arrange for one of our public defenders meet with you." Detective Rossi says, standing up. "The officer will be right back." He turns to leave and then stops. "Oh, I forgot something. I've got a warrant here for your DNA." Detective Rossi says, pulling out a long q-tip.
Schultz sits there staring at the swab. "What if I refuse to give it to you?"
"You can't, I have a warrant." Detective Rossi says, pulling out a piece of paper and showing it to him.
"Alright." Schultz says, opening his mouth. He stares at Detective Rossi as he takes a swab of his mouth.
"Thank you. I'm sure this will clear up everything." Detective says, closing the swab and putting away before he stands up. He closes the file and then he turns to leave.
Richard turns the water off. Leaning in, he kisses Cassie before he opens the door to the shower. "Yes, I think I'm going to like the next nine months." Richard says, smiling as she steps out of the shower.
"You think you'll enjoy it even if I wear you out." She asks, looking at him.
"I won't care and I won't complain." Richard says, wrapping a towel around his waist.
She reaches for her robe, wrapping it around her. She walks over to the counter, and begins to put her makeup on. Looking in the mirror, she watches him. "Do you have to go into City Hall?"
"I only have to go in for about an hour and then I'll be through for the next two weeks. I just thought of something." He says, walking over to her.
"What's that?"
"A honeymoon and a pregnant wife, I think I'm really going to enjoy this."
"Oh, go get dressed before the boys get up." She says, pushing him towards the door as he leans in and kisses her quickly. He turns to leave, catching her smile as he walks out.
Richard gets dressed, going downstairs after he gets the boys up. He starts a pot of coffee before he turns to TV on and tunes into CNN. The boys come downstairs a few minutes later and he fixes them breakfast before he goes back upstairs to check on Cassie who is leaving their bedroom. "The boys are downstairs eating breakfast and I think I'll take them to school since I'm going into town and they can ride the bus back home."
"That's fine. I'm going to go over to the Beacon and make sure everything is under control over there since I'm going to be gone for two weeks." Cassie says, walking into the kitchen. "Good morning, boys." Cassie says, going over to the table and kissing both of them.
"Good morning." They both reply.
"Can we ride Lady Tammy tonight?" Will asks.
"We don't have time right now." Cassie says, opening the refrigerator door. "We have the rehearsal dinner tonight for our wedding, remember. We can go riding when we get back."
"You're not going riding." Richard says, looking at Cassie.
"You know what I meant." Cassie says, taking out the orange juice as she looks at Richard's cup of coffee.
"You can't have any."
"I know that, that doesn't mean I don't want some." She says, pouring herself a glass of orange juice. "Boys, go get your stuff for school. Your Dad's going to drive you today."
"Yes, no bus." RJ says, jumping up from the table.
"Can we pick up Emma?" Will asks, looking at Richard.
"Not today buddy." Richard says, ruffling his hair.
"Okay." He says walking upstairs as Richard turns to Cassie.
"You need to eat something."
"I will. When do you want to tell RJ about Blue?"
"Maybe we can tell him after we get home tonight." Richard says.
"Okay." Cassie says, as the boys come back downstairs.
"Let's go." Richard says, reaching for his briefcase and keys. The boys hug Cassie and then leave as Richard walks over to Cassie. "I'll see you later." He says, softly, kissing her.
"Okay, be careful, please."
"I always am." He says, smiling as he walks out of the house. Cassie waves as they leave and then closes the door.
A few minutes later, she grabs her keys and heads for the Beacon. Olivia and James are in Olivia's when Cassie arrives. Going in, she stops at the front desk and then walks into Olivia's. Cassie walks up as James looks up, releasing Olivia's hand as he stands up. "Cassie." He says.
"Hello." Cassie says, looking at both of them.
"I figured you would be getting ready for the wedding."
"I only came by to see if there was anything you needed me to handle before tomorrow and to make sure Chris has everything for the reception and that the flowers will be ready." Cassie says, sitting down at the table.
"Everything is fine here at the Beacon. We're working out the details for the expansion in Europe and I'm sure the food and flowers will be ready for tomorrow." Olivia says looking up as one of the maids comes into Olivia's. "I'll be right back." She says, getting up.
"She's on top of everything." James says, watching Olivia walk away while Cassie watches him.
"This is more than business deal now, isn't it?" Cassie asks, as James looks at her.
"Olivia and I are friends. We enjoy each other's company." James replies.
Cassie looks at him before she says. "I know we're just starting this relationship and it might be the wrong thing for me to do but I've been around Olivia a lot longer than you have and I'm not trying to warn you off her. I only want to give you this advice. Be careful, she has a reputation with men." Cassie says.
"Thank you, but I think Olivia will be quite good for me."
"She's been and done a lot of things. It's not my place to tell you about them but don't get too carried away with her before you know everything. I don't want to see you hurt." Cassie says.
"Aren't I supposed to be the one worrying about you being hurt?"
"I have the perfect guy so you don't have to worry about that." Cassie says with a smile.
"I'm glad you're happy." James says, taking Cassie's hand.
"I am happy again."
"I can see that."
"So tell me what you have worked out about the expansion." Cassie asks, as Olivia walks back to the table.
"We're going to build the first resort in England, the Lake District."
"That area is similar to here." Cassie says.
"Yes, it is. And if that works then we'll see about some other places."
"Richard took me to the Lake District when we were in England on a state visit once. It's beautiful country."
"I think it will fit perfectly with the plans for the expansion." Olivia says.
"On your anniversary, you and Richard can come over and stay for a week or two." James says.
"We'll see, that's a long way away and we'll have…. We don't know what will be going on for us then." Cassie says, almost kicking herself because she had almost told James about the baby.
"I think that's a great idea." Olivia says.
"We'll see." Cassie says. "I'm going to catch Chris and check on the menu for tonight's dinner and then the reception and then stop and check on the flowers." Cassie says, standing up as James stands up.
"We'll see you later then." Olivia says, looking up at Cassie.
"Yes, and thanks for covering for me." She says.
"What are partners for?" Olivia asks, as Cassie smiles, leaving them alone a few moments later.