A Fresh Start
Chapter One Hundred Sixty Six
Sam and Jeffrey spent most of the afternoon looking at furniture for the house. They are leaving the furniture store after purchasing most of what they needed for the rooms. Jeffrey puts his arm around her. "Are you hungry?"
"Yes."
"Let's go to Company." He says, opening the door for her.
"What are you doing?"
"I'm driving." Jeffrey says, waiting for her to get in. Closing the door behind her, he walks around his car. Opening his door, he gets in and starts the car. "The only reason I didn't drive before was because you insisted I use the icepack more."
"And you're cheek didn't bruise did it."
"No, but it's going to be sore. Let's go get something to eat." He says, starting the car. They drive a few blocks over and Jeffrey parks outside Company. Getting out of the car, he walks around and opens Sam's door, helping her out.
Buzz is at the counter when they walk in. "Hello, you two. How are you doing?"
"We're great Buzz." Sam says, smiling at he walks out from behind the counter, following them to a table.
"What can I get you to drink?" He asks, handing both a menu.
"I'll have an orange smoothie." Sam says.
"I'll have one too." Jeffrey says, looking at the menu.
"Two orange smoothie's coming up." Buzz says, going back to the front counter.
"I think I'll have a Buzz burger and fries." Sam says, putting her menu down.
"Okay, who are you and where is my wife."
"I'm hungry. We spent all afternoon walking around that store and I'm hungry." She says, as Buzz walks up to the table.
He puts their drinks down and Sam reaches for hers, taking at drink as he asks. "So have you decided what you want?" Buzz asks.
"Yes, I want a Buzz burger and fries." Sam says.
"Buzz burger and fries for Sam, Jeffrey." He says, looking at him.
"I'll have some of your chili Buzz."
"Oooo, that sounds good, I'll have some of that too." Sam says, as Buzz looks at her. "What?"
"You want a Buzz burger and fries and some chili."
"I'm hungry and I want a slice of your chocolate cake." She says, as Buzz looks at Jeffrey.
"You heard her Buzz and I'll have some chocolate cake too." Jeffrey says, handing him his menu.
"We'll get that right out." Buzz says, going to put the order in.
"So, have you decided what you're going to do with your study?"
"Umm, I haven't really thought about it. I could use it as a rehearsal space for the band. I'm going to need a place to rehearse since Ava and William will be at the loft. But if I do that, I'll have to have someone come in and sound proof the walls, door, and floor." Jeffrey says, as Sam looks up and see Reva walk in. He's watching her and turns to follow her gaze.
"I wonder what happened after she left with Josh." Sam says.
"I don't know." Jeffrey says, turning back to Sam. "I talked to Billy about the adding the master bathroom and second bedroom to the loft."
"What did he say?"
"We mapped out a tentative plan. He's going to draw up some plans and show me what my options are and then we'll go from there."
"Ava's supposed to talk to the painters and flooring guys. I've got the local staffing agency looking for staff for my office. She suggested that I use a staffing agency in Chicago."
"It might be worth looking into." Jeffrey says, looking up. "Reva." He says, as Sam looks up.
"I wanted to tell you both again that I'm sorry about Josh's behavior."
"Okay." Jeffrey says.
Reva turns to go as Sam reaches for her hand, stopping her. "Are you okay?"
"I will be." She says, patting Sam's hand.
"Reva, sit down." Sam says, nodding to the empty chair beside her.
"It's nothing…."
"We're family now so sit down." Jeffrey says, getting up to pull the chair out for Reva.
Reva sits down as Buzz brings Jeffrey and Sam's food. "Reva, it's good to see you." Buzz says.
"Hi, Buzz."
"Can I get you something?"
"I'm…."
"Have you eaten today Reva?" Sam asks, looking at her.
"Actually I haven't eaten since breakfast, but I'm not that hungry."
"Bring her a Buzz burger, and we can share the fries." Sam says, looking at Buzz.
"One Buzz burger, coming up." He says, turning to walk away.
"I'm really not…."
"You guys had a fight after you left the loft." Sam says, looking at Reva.
"Yes, we fought. But it wasn't until after I told Billy what happened." Reva says. "I don't really want to get into it. This is something that Josh is going to have to figure out on his own. I can't help him with it."
"Is there something that we could do?" Sam asks.
"No, no, if either of you said anything to him, he'll only dig his heels in deeper. I'm sorry. I know you don't deserve to be pulled into this."
"What is he afraid of, exactly?"
Reva looks away from them, before she turns back to them, deciding to tell them the truth. "He's afraid of me and what he believes I'll do now that you know the truth."
"I don't understand." Jeffrey says. "You said he didn't want me told because he's afraid that if I was told that somehow you and I would end up together."
"He is afraid of that. And some might say he has reason to be afraid. I was married to both his father and Billy. I've been married to Richard, Buzz and Alan and had numerous other relationships."
"But Josh has had other relationships too. Are you behaving the way he's behaving?" Sam asks.
"To be honest Sam, I'm not sure why he's acting the way he is. He's never been jealous before."
"How did he act when you were involved with the other guys?" Sam asks.
"He wasn't happy about it. I don't know why he's doing this. He seemed so cold to me just now. I didn't know him."
"What happened?" Jeffrey asks.
"Billy and I were talking about what happened when Josh came home. Billy left and I pointed out that I was surprised that he hadn't followed me home. He said he was letting me calm down. We started discussing what happened and I pointed out that it takes two people to cheat, that Jeffrey was married and in love with you even if I did want him. I reminded him that I have told him numerous times that I didn't want you and asked him why he didn't believe me. He asked me if I could honestly say I wasn't attracted you to." Reva says, looking at Jeffrey. "And again I told him I wasn't. That's when he mentioned my history with Billy and HB. I asked him if I was guilty only because I was married to both of them. I pointed out that I was also married to Richard, Buzz and Alan. I had kids with Richard and Billy and would have had a child by HB."
"He didn't say anything." Sam asks.
"He didn't say a word and I left. I went upstairs, called Richard and Cassie, asked Richard if I could stay at the farm and then I packed a bag and I left him at Cross Creek."
"You left him." Sam says.
"Yes, I left. I'm not going to stay with my husband if he thinks that I'll suddenly decide I want his brother and leave him."
"So, what are you going to do?" Jeffrey asks.
"I'm going to stay at the farm."
"And when Richard and Cassie come home?" Sam asks.
"I don't know. I think I'm seeing me how Josh truly sees me."
"Reva, Josh doesn't see you like that. He's scared."
"Of what?"
"Of loosing the woman he loves." Jeffrey says.
"He loves me and treats me like I'm one step higher than a whore."
"He doesn't think you're a whore, Reva." Sam says.
"Then what is he thinking? Because I've tried to be understanding. I've tried to be demanding. I've tried to listen to him and he will not listen to me. He truly believes that I'm going to leave him for Jeffrey, simply because I married HB and Billy." Reva asks, as Buzz brings her, her Buzz burger. "Buzz do you mind putting that in a box to go?"
"No, that's fine." Buzz says, taking the plate back to the kitchen.
"Thank you both for listening." She says, standing up.
"Reva."
"I'm okay. I'm going to go out to the farm and we'll see what happens from there." Reva says, as Buzz comes back to their table. "Thanks Buzz. I'll see you both later." She says, turning to Jeffrey and Sam.
"Okay." Jeffrey says, standing up as Reva turns to go. He sits back down and then turns to Sam. "Maybe I shouldn't've given her the hair sample."
"From the sound of what she just said and if Josh truly feels this way it would have come out sooner or later without the truth about who your father is. None of this can be blamed on you."
"You think my brother is going to see it that way." Jeffrey says, pushing his food around on his plate.
"Do you want to go?" Sam asks, watching him.
"Maybe we should." Jeffrey says, raising his hand to get Buzz's attention. When he comes over, Jeffrey asks. "Can I have the check please?"
"Do you want to take the food home?" Buzz asks, looking at their plates.
"Sure, we can take it with us." Jeffrey says, as Buzz takes their plates.
He returns a few minutes later with to go boxes and the check. "I hope you guys have a good evening." Buzz says, handing the check to Jeffrey.
"Thanks Buzz." Jeffrey says, pulling his wallet out. "Are you ready?" Jeffrey asks, looking at Sam. "What's wrong?"
"Nothing." She says, holding her side.
"Sam."
"It's nothing, really. Just a cramp."
"Is it one of those Braxton Hicks things?"
"I think so. It will pass."
"Come on, let's go. You need to rest." Jeffrey says, going to pay the bill while Sam gets their food and they leave. "We shouldn't've been walking around that store all afternoon. I didn't even think about…."
"J, I'll be just fine. This is normal, I promise."
"We're going home either way and you're going to lay down and rest." Jeffrey says, opening the car door for her. He closes the door and then walks around the car. Getting in, he starts the car and backs out. "Can you make it upstairs?" He asks when they pull in at the loft. She nods and he gets out of the car and walks around, opening the door for her, helping her out. He takes the food as he slips his arm around her waist. "This is one time I wish I could pick you up and carry you."
"You…."
"I can't I know, but I wish I could. Are you still cramping?"
"It's easing up." Sam replies, as they walk up the sidewalk.
A few minutes later, she's holding the food while Jeffrey opens the door. She walks in while he closes the door. "I want you to go lay down." Jeffrey says, following her into the kitchen.
"I'm still hungry."
"I'll bring the food to you." He says, taking it from her. "Go lay down and relax."
"Okay." She replies, walking out of the kitchen.
Jeffrey comes in a few moments later and Sam is on the couch asleep. He looks down at her and smiles. "You can eat it later." He says, taking her food back into the kitchen. He puts it away before he goes back to the living room. Sitting down beside her, he lifts her feet and then turns the TV on, turning the volume down before he tunes into Sports Center and starts to eat.
Dorian pulls up to the youth center. Sitting in the car, he looks around. He felt out of place and he hadn't even walked into the place. "This is crazy." He says, reaching for the keys. He's about to start the car when he notices a man walking across the parking lot. He stares for a moment before he slowly pulls his keys out of the ignition. Reaching for the door handle, he opens the car door and slowly gets out, never taking his eyes off Josh. He closes the door and then slowly walks towards the center. Josh is at the front counter when he walks in and turns when Dorian walks in. "May I help you?"
"I'm Dorian Cruz. Rueben suggested that I stop by."
"Yes, he spoke to me about it. Said you're working with kids on the south side."
"Yes."
"We are looking to expand over there." Josh says. "Have you seen the place?"
"Umm, no." Dorian says, watching Josh.
"Well, if you want I can show you around."
"Okay." Dorian replies, following Josh.
"We have four counselors. We have coaches that work with the kids, involving them with sports. We have staff here working with the kids on community projects. All of our counselors are state certified. We have one nurse on the premises. There's a gym." Josh says, walking over to a set of double doors.
"What do you do about possible gang members?"
"Every child that comes in here, signs an agreement to not be involved with a gang. If we find out that they are, we give them several opportunities to stop before we turn it over to Springfield PD."
"Once a kid is in a gang, they can't just quit. In most cases if they do try to quit they could loose their lives."
"We have counselors to talk to them and our counselors monitor them closely. In the summer we will be putting in pool and our staff will be teaching kids public safety. We're also starting a program to teach kids the dangers of texting while driving."
"What's the age limits for the program?"
"Kids can come here at age thirteen and they can leave after the age of seventeen. The older kids are put in as mentors for the younger kids as well."
"Can I ask why you started this center?"
"I was arrested a few years ago for a crime I didn't commit. When the guilty party came forward, she was sent to juvenile hall. I would go visit her and I watched they way they were treated. The guards there had no compassion and they treated all of them as harden criminals. And I began to wonder how many of those kids wouldn't have been there if there was some place or someone that they could have turned to. So I approached Father Ray and Reverend Rutledge and we together worked with the mayor's office and city council built this center."
"Is this a religious institution?"
"Reverend Rutledge and Father Ray are both here if the kids need to speak to them but they are not forced too."
"The kids I work with are not rich. They don't have parents, most of them live on the streets and most of them depend solely on themselves. It's the only way they've known."
"This center wasn't built for just rich kids. We're not here to do the politically correct thing. We're here to do what we have to do to help kids, all kids. The kids that come here may have roofs over their heads and parents but a lot of them are still alone. They may not live on the streets but a lot of them have never felt the love of their parents either. It's simply our goal to give them a place to go to feel love and acceptance." Josh says, looking at Dorian.
"You have a nice center here, but I'll need to think about bring my kids here." Dorian says. "Thank you for showing me around." He says, holding his hand out.
"You're welcome. I hope you do decide to come here." Josh says, as he shakes Dorian's hand.
"I'll think about it." Dorian says, turning to leave.
After leaving the station, Mallet goes to the courthouse and speaks to one of the judge's who issues a search warrant for Olivia's room and office at the Beacon. Getting back in his car, he drives over to the Beacon.
Olivia, James and Emma are coming back from spending the day in Chicago. "Emma, you need to get ready for school tomorrow." Olivia says, as she closes the door.
"Yes ma'am." Emma calls from her room.
James is sitting on her couch as Olivia walks over to him. "You know you really didn't have to buy her the carousel."
"She wanted it." James says. "And I never got to do that sort of thing with Sarah." James says, his voice says, maybe if I had she wouldn't be the way she is.
"You didn't make Sarah the way she is. You're not responsible for what she did to Cassie at the wedding."
"No, her mother is responsible for that. But if she would have been around me more, maybe she would be more understanding and open towards other people, instead of the cold hearted snob that she is."
Olivia moves over to him, putting her arms around him, she lays her head on his chest. "Some people are the way they are, and you can't change them. Sarah is the one that will miss out knowing Cassie."
"You guys are really close."
"We are now, but we haven't always been."
"Because of Richard."
"That and I'm afraid I treated Cassie the same way Sarah treated her when I found out that she was engaged to Richard. I couldn't see what he saw in a woman that would do what Cassie had done."
"She did what she did…."
"To save Tammy and I understood that better after I had Emma." Olivia says, as Mallet knocks on her door.
She gets up and goes to answer the door. "Mallet." She says, in surprise when she opens the door.
"Olivia, I need to speak to you…." James walks up behind her. "Alone." He says, looking at James.
"Who's this?" James asks, looking at Mallet.
"James, this is Detective A.C. Mallet of the Springfield PD. Mallet, this is James Marshall." Olivia says. "Mallet, I told you everything before."
"We've discovered some new evidence…."
"Evidence?" James asks, looking at Olivia.
"Yes."
"James, can you let me handle this? I'll call you when he's finished." Olivia says, turning to James.
"If you're in trouble…."
"I'm not in trouble, am I Mallet?" Olivia asks, looking at him.
"Not if you answer my questions." Mallet says.
"I'll call you later." James says, leaning over to kiss her.
"I'll talk to you then." Olivia says, as Mallet moves out of the way and James leaves. "What are you questions?" Olivia says, looking at Mallet.
"I want your permission to search your room and office." Mallet asks.
"Search my room and office, for what?"
"To see if you have any connections to the plot to kidnap Jeffrey."
"I told you that I didn't. I knew Mr. Simmons when I was involved with Alan and Phillip but I haven't seen him since then."
"Are you sure about that? Because I went out to the inn where Mr. Schultz says you were planning on holding Jeffrey. And I found a bottle of Tylenol dated for earlier this year. I had it finger printed and found your prints on the bottle. Now, if you've never been to that inn, how did a bottle of Tylenol end up there with your finger print on it?"
"Alright, I did see him. I approached him about buying one of the buildings on Fifth Street when I was considering moving Olivia's over there. We met on the docks, the bottle of Tylenol must have fell out of my purse or something and he picked it and maybe he brought it back to that inn. I've never been there."
"Why would you consider moving Olivia's?"
"I was thinking about making some changes here at the Beacon. I changed my mind after Cassie came back to work here."
"Would you let me search your room? And I must tell you, if you refuse, I have a search warrant." Mallet says, pulling out the warrant.
"Well, it looks like I have no other option." Olivia says, stepping back.
Mallet turns to the officers behind. "I want you two to search the room and you two search her office down stairs."
"Yes sir." They reply, nodding as two officers come inside and the other two go back downstairs as Emma comes out of her room.
"Mommy, what's going on?" She asks, watching the officers searching the room.
"It's okay Emma. Go back into your..."
"She needs to stay with you. We'll be searching her room as well." Mallet says.
"Mallets, she's five years old. She's not going to mastermind…."
"You could have put something in her room to hide it, Olivia." Mallet says, nodding to one of the officers.
She goes into Emma's room. After about five minutes, she returns and shakes her head. "She can go back to her room."
Emma shakes her head as she looks up at Olivia. "It's okay, you can stay here."
"We've checked everything." One of the officers says, looking at Mallet.
"Okay." Mallet says, turning to Olivia.
"I told you that I had nothing to do with this plan." Olivia says. "Now can you please leave?"
"We're going, but Olivia, stay in town." Mallet says, as the other two officers come up from downstairs.
"Captain, there was nothing in the office either."
"Alright." Mallet nods. "Like I said, Olivia, stay in town. I may still want to question you some more."
"What for, I have no idea who or why someone would want to kidnap Jeffrey. And I have no part in this scheme."
"Just stay close." Mallet says, turning to leave.
The officers follow him out and Olivia closes the door. Mallet turns back to her. "Olivia, would you let us search your car?"
"Does the warrant cover my car?"
"No, but I can certainly go back to the judge and get him to extend it to the car. It would save time if you let me search your car voluntarily."
"Emma, can you stay here in the room please? Don't answer the door and I'll be right back."
"Yes ma'am." Emma says, watching Olivia leave with Mallet and the officers.
A few moments later, they walk out of the Beacon and to Olivia's car. She unlocks it and then steps back. A couple of the officers begin to look through the car as James walks up to her. "What's going on?" He asks Olivia.
"I'm letting them search my car."
"Why?"
"Apparently Detective Mallet is investigating a plot to kidnap our Mayor. He went to the place where the kidnappers were supposedly going to hold Jeffrey and he happened to find a bottle of Tylenol with my fingerprints on it and now he wants to search my car."
"Did he have a search warrant?"
"No, he had one for my room and my office. Mallet asked me to search the car and I let him. I've got nothing to hide because I wasn't involved with any plot to kidnap Jeffrey." Olivia says, as James looks at her.
"Detective." One of the officers says, backing out of the car. He had been searching the glove compartment of Olivia's car and pulled out the vial of GHB that Simmons had given her.
"What did you find?" Mallet asks, walking over to the officer. He takes the baggy and holds it up.
"Rohiphenol, GHB." He says, turning to Olivia. "Do you know about this Olivia?" He asks, showing her the baggy. Olivia looks at it and recognizes it immediately. She had forgotten that Simmons had given her the vial at their last meeting before Schultz was arrested. "This is GHB, used to incapacitate a person. It's highly illegal, so can you explain why you have a vial of it in your car."
"I ahhh…." Olivia looks at James and he's looking at her.
"Olivia, how did you get the drug and what are you doing with it?" Mallet asks after several minutes.
"Don't say another word, Olivia." James says, looking at Mallet. "Are you formerly charging her with anything?"
"No, but this with what I have so far it is enough to take her in for questioning, unless she can explain why she has this in the glove compartment of her car."
"I don't know how that got there. I've never seen it before." Olivia says, looking at Mallet.
"Is that the same "never seen before" as the "never seen before" for the inn going towards Oakdale?"
"I haven't. I didn't even know there was an inn out there until you told me."
Mallet stands there for a moment and then he says. "I'm not going to arrest you Olivia, but don't leave town. This officially makes you a suspect in the plot to kidnap Jeffrey. Come on." Mallet says, turning to the officers.
They walk away leaving Olivia and James standing by her car. When Mallet and the officers drive past, Olivia takes a step closer to James. After they leave, James turns to her. "Let's go inside." He says, closing the door to Olivia's car. He takes her hand and leads her towards the Beacon.
James leads Olivia back to her room. Emma is in her room when they come in. "Mom." She says, coming to the door.
"It's okay Emma. I need to talk to James so can you play in your room."
"Yes ma'am."
"Thank you." Olivia says, nodding as Emma goes back to her room and Olivia and James sit down on the couch. There are several seconds of silence before she looks at him. "You're not going to ask me?"
"I was waiting for you to tell me." James says, turning to her.
"Mallet came to me the other day. He wanted to ask me some questions about a statement that a prisoner made."
"What was the statement and who was the prisoner?"
"I don't know that prisoners name, but he told police that he was part of a plan to kidnap Jeffrey. He also told them that I was part of this plan too. Mallet questioned me about the plot and I told him that I had nothing to do with it. He then asked me about a former Spaulding employee. This employee was part of the plot also and he asked me if I knew him, which I did because of my relationships with Alan and Phillip."
"And did you tell him that?"
"Yes."
"So, why is he here today asking to search your room, office and car?"
"Apparently he went to the inn and searched it. While he was there, he found the bottle of Tylenol. He had it finger printed and my prints were on it. I told him that I had spoken to Simmons to see about buying one of the buildings on Fifth Street to move Olivia's over there, but that I abandoned the plan after Cassie came to the Beacon."
"But that still doesn't explain how the bottle go to the inn if you've never been to this inn."
"Maybe I dropped the bottle when I met with Simmons and he picked it up. I don't know how it got there."
"And the drugs?"
"I don't know how they got into my glove compartment. I don't know how to even go about getting something like that, and why would I?" James doesn't answer her. "You believe me, I'm not part of any plot to kidnap Jeffrey."
"I believe you, but I can understand why they would look to you. You haven't been exactly silent in your dislike of his relationship with Sam. You do have motive Olivia."
"I didn't…."
"Don't get worked up, I'm sure that Detective Mallet will realize that you had nothing to do with this plot." James says, reaching over to caress her cheek. "I have faith in you." He says, as he pulls her into his arms.
She lays her head on his chest, closing her eyes. Guilt seems to press in on her but she fights it off. "The evidence Mallet has is circumstantial, there's not reason to panic?" She tells herself.
"Can you go out tonight?" James asks. After a few moments and she doesn't answer he pulls back. "Olivia." He says, getting her attention.
"I'm sorry, what did you say?"
"I asked if you could go out tonight."
She pulls away from him. "Let me get Emma settle for the night and we can have dinner."
"Okay, I'll be in my room." He says, getting up.
"Great." Olivia says, getting up with him. She walks him to the door and then gives him a kiss before he leaves.
An hour later, Olivia knocks on James door. He opens it with a smile. They hug and he gives her a quick kiss before he steps back. "Are you ready to go?"
"Yes, the sitter is with Emma so I thought maybe we could go into town for dinner."
"That's fine."
"Good." Olivia says, stepping back as he closes the door behind him and they leave.
Jeffrey is coming out of the bathroom when Sam wakes up about two hours later. "J." She says, looking around the living room.
"I'm right here." He says, walking into the living room with a towel around his waist.
"I didn't mean to fall asleep." She says, sitting up.
"You were tired. We did a lot of walking around that store. Are you still hungry?"
"Yes, I'll take the Buzz burger and fries."
"You don't want the chili?"
"No, I'll save it for later."
"I'll be right back."
"Why don't you get dressed? I can get the burger." Sam says, getting up.
"I don't mind…."
"Go get dressed." She says, leaning in to kiss him.
"Okay." He leaves and she goes to the kitchen. He returns a few minutes later, in sweatpants, no shirt and socks on his feet. "There is one thing I won't miss when we move into our house." He says, sitting down beside her.
"What's that?"
"Cold floors."
"It will be nice to have floors that are heated."
Sam finishes eating a few moments later and Jeffrey carries her plate back into the kitchen when he comes back, she's still on the couch. "Do you want to watch a movie or something?" He asks, sitting down beside her.
"No, I've given up on the movie thing, at least for right now. "
"So, what do you want to do?"
"We could talk." Sam says, looking at him. Jeffrey looks at her and then gets up. "I wonder what Reva's doing right now?"
"I don't know." He says, looking out at the window.
"You haven't had much to say about the stuff with Josh and about HB." Sam says, watching him. He doesn't answer her. She sits there waiting for him to open up. "I know how…."
"I used to fantasize about my father coming to our apartment." Jeffrey says. "When I was a boy, I used to wonder what would happen if he knew I was his son and would he marry my mom and take us away from the neighborhood. I missed having my dad around for the father and son things at school. I never played sports because I didn't want to be the kid without a father. And I never understood why my Mom wouldn't tell me who he was. I guess she didn't want to tell me because she knew he had another family."
"Maybe she did think she was protecting you. We'll never know why she didn't tell you about this. But I think if HB knew about you, he would have taken care of you and your mother."
"I never once considered that I would have brothers or sisters out there that I didn't know and that didn't know about me. And now I have two brothers, one of which hates me because he thinks I'll try to steal his wife away from him." Jeffrey says, turning back to her.
"I don't believe Josh truly believes you would try to steal Reva away from him. I don't think his issues have anything to do with you."
"He tried to punch… well he did punch me." Jeffrey says, reaching up to touch his left cheek.
"I know." Sam says, getting up and walking over to him. "Billy seems to be okay about this. He's the one that started looking into it the first place."
"But Billy's a product of another affair HB had. He's like me, a bastard…."
"You're not a bastard." Sam says fiercely. "What happened between your mother and HB was completely beyond you. You had no say in it at all and if Josh can't see that then he's a fool. I never want to hear you refer to yourself as someone's bastard, do you understand?" Sam asks, looking up.
"Yes ma'am. Our child won't stand a chance with you." He says, teasing her.
She smiles as she says. "I don't like the term. A child is never a bastard, simply because he or she was born illegitimately."
"I feel like a bastard." Jeffrey says.
"You're not, you had no control over this, none."
"My brother and his wife split because of me."
"Josh and Reva split because he was an ass. If he truly loved her, he would know that she would never leave him for you, period, whether you were married or not. They will have to work this out and there is nothing you could have done to stop this from happening."
"You didn't see his face today, in the doorway. He truly wanted to hurt me and all I did, was hug her."
"I saw his face when I came around the corner. He wasn't rational, but it's not because you did anything to make him that way. He's got serious issues with trusting Reva, you didn't do that."
"I don't want them to split because of me. Maybe we shouldn't go over there for Thanksgiving and Christmas."
"We can do whatever you want to do, but I don't think you should make a decision right now, sleep on it for a while. We still have two months before Thanksgiving."
"Alright, maybe we should go on to bed. I've got early meetings tomorrow."
"That's fine. I'm still tired." Sam says, turning for the stairs.
He reaches out to stop her. "I love you."
"I love you too." She says, looking up at him.
"If we could, I would show you how much I love you."
"You can show me later, but I already know and I love you just as much." Sam says, leaning up to kiss him.
"Come on, let's go to bed and tomorrow I want you to take it easy."
"Yes Sir, Lieutenant O'Neill." Sam says, mock saluting him as he laughs, putting his arm around her.
"That's Colonel O'Neill, Lieutenant." He says, as they walk towards the stairs.