A Fresh Start
Chapter One Hundred Ninety Three
Ava is coming downstairs as William walks up, slipping his arm around her waist when she reaches him as he asks. "Are you ready to go?
"Yes, they are loading our luggage into the car. Are you sure you want me to go?"
"Yes, it's time that you went back. Emma needs to get back into school and I will be up there before the end of the month."
"It's our first Halloween together. Are you going to dress up as a prince?"
"I've been there done that. I might try being a King this year."
"That's raising the stakes. So I'll be your Queen." She says, as he leans in to kiss her as the nanny comes downstairs with Emma.
"Do we have to go back today?" Emma asks when they reach the bottom of the stairs, looking at both of them.
"Emma, we talked about this." Ava replies.
"But it's fun here at the palace. I like it when all the servants do whatever I ask them to do and I don't have to pick up after myself."
"That is an indication that it is definitely time for us to go back home." Ava says.
"Emma, you have to go remember, you've go so much to do." William says, looking at Emma.
"Like what?" She asks, crossing her arms.
"You've got to help Ava start planning our wedding and you have all your friends at school, won't it be fun to see Will again."
"And we have to find someplace for us all to live because we all can't live in the room at the boarding house."
"We could stay in my old room... I don't have my old room, do I?" Emma says.
"No, but you'll have a new room and we can decorate it anyway you like." Ava says, as one of the pages walks up.
"Yes." William asks, turning to him.
"I'm sorry to interrupt Your Highness, but the ladies luggage is loaded and the car is ready, Sir."
"Thank you Robert, we will be out in a moment."
"Yes Sir." Robert nods, turning to leave.
"So, are you ready?" He asks again, turning Ava.
"Yes." She says, as he slips his arm around her again and takes Emma's hand, they leave.
Ten minutes later, they pull up to the airport. The royal jet is waiting on the tarmac. As the driver stops, William reaches for the door. "I will see the ladies onto the plane, wait for me here."
"Yes, Your Highness." The driver replies. William opens the door and gets out, turning to help Ava and then Emma from the car. Slipping his arm back around Ava, he takes Emma's hand as they walk towards the plane.
The flight crew is waiting for them when they walk on board. "Ma'am, Miss, Your Highness, welcome aboard." They say.
"Thank you." William says, nodding as the crew bows and they walk by.
Walking into the middle cabin, Ava sits down with William sitting beside her as Emma looks around. "Will you get to keep this when you come to Springfield?" Emma asks, looking at William.
"No, I won't be able to keep the plane when I leave."
"Why not, it's your plane."
"It's not my plane Emma. The plane belongs to the government of San Cristobel so when I leave they will keep the plane."
"But that's not fair." She says, sitting down as William smiles. "My Grandpa Alan has a plane, I'm sure if you asked him he would let you use it."
"I'm sure he would too." William says, as one of the crew comes into the cabin.
"I'm sorry to interrupt, Your Highness."
"What is it?" William asks, looking up.
"Your guest's luggage is loaded and we are ready to begin taxing."
"Of course." William says, turning to Ava. "I'll be there before the months out, probably within the next couple weeks."
"And I'm going to be busy. I have to look for us a place and I'm sure Billy is going to have projects for me to do."
"This won't take long." William says, reaching for her. She moves into his arms.
"I miss you already." She says, laying her head on his shoulder.
"So do I, but I promise I'll be there before you know it." He moves back. "I love you, both of you." He says softly, reaching up to wipe a tear from her cheek. He leans in to kiss her.
She kisses him softly before whispering. "I love you too." Moving apart, Ava turns to Emma. "I want you to get buckled in. I'll be right back." She says, standing up with William following her.
"Yes ma'am." Emma says. "Bye, William." She says, looking up. He bends over and hugs her.
"Good-bye Emma, I'll see you soon." He says, standing. He follows Ava to the front of the plane.
She returns a few moments later. Sitting down where she was sitting before. She gets buckled in and then turns to the window. William is standing by the car, he waves and she waves back as the plane begins to move. A few minutes later, they are in the air.
Josh stands at the bar after Reva walks out. He doesn't notice Buzz until he asks. "Where's Reva?"
"She... she left. How much do I owe you?" Josh asks, reaching for his wallet.
"$8.48." Buzz says, picking up Josh's ticket.
Josh hands him a ten and then leaves. He walks slowly towards the parking lot, apart of him hoping that Reva will still be there. He looks around the lot as he walks to his truck, but soon realizes that she's already left. Getting into his truck, he backs out and leaves. He heads towards Lewis but changes his mind and heads for the park.
Parking, he gets out. Pushing his hands into his pockets, he starts towards the gate to the park. Entering, he walks around the playground area and through the ball field. He's barely aware of where he is as he walks. Slowly he makes his way over to the pond, walking along, he finally decides to sit down and he walks over to a bench. Sitting down, he looks up and watches a flock of geese flying south. He watches them until they are small specks in the sky before he turns his attention to the steel gray water of the pond.
Jeffrey and Sam are walking along hand in hand. Sam was saying something that she didn't finish and Jeffrey looks to see what distracted her. Spotting Josh, he looks at her. "Why don't you go over there?" Sam says.
"No, no way." Jeffrey says, turning away from Josh.
"J, he's your brother."
"He's my brother and he's made absolutely no attempt at accepting me or being civil."
"So, you're going to miss knowing your brother because of your pride."
"Isn't that what you're doing?"
"No, I am not." Sam says, looking at him with hurt in her eyes.
"I'm sorry, darlin. I shouldn't've said that. I know it's a different situation between you and your brother, just like it's a different situation between me and Josh. He has been nothing but hostile to me and I learned along time ago that you can't change a man like Josh Lewis."
"He's your brother, you have to try."
"I know he's my brother, but I'm not going to jump through hoops to get his approval. I didn't go looking for my family. They found me and I'm happy about that, but I would have been just as happy if it had stayed you, me, Ava and the baby." He says, leaning in to kiss her. "C'mon, let's go. It's getting colder out here." He says, slipping his arm around her. They turn away from Josh just as he looks up and spots them.
Apart of him wants to get up and follow them, start another fight with Jeffrey, but he doesn't, so he turns his attention back to the pond. He's still sitting there when Jasmine walks by. She's half way past him when she realizes who is sitting on the bench. Stopping, she turns and says. "Josh." He doesn't answer or look up so she says his name again a little louder.
Finally he looks up and is slightly surprised to see her standing there. "Did you say something?"
"I only said your name. You were a million miles away, are you okay?"
"I'm fine. I've got a lot of things on my mind."
"There was a..." She stops. She was about to mention that night in Miami. "I'm a good listener. Do you want to talk?"
He pauses for a moment before he sighs. "You know, it might be a good idea to get another point of view."
"So, what's the problem?"
"The problem is my wife and the mayor."
"The mayor and your wife, I don't understand."
"Well, actually the problem is mostly with the mayor."
"Did he do something illegal?"
"No, it's not illegal. He's my brother."
"He's your brother, that's great." She says, before she looks at him. "It's not great."
"No, it's not. I don't want him having anything to do with my family. I don't want him around, but yet Reva insisted that he knew the truth and that we include him, after I specifically told her not to say a word to the man."
"Why didn't you want him told?"
"I don't trust him. He uses women and I don't want him around my wife."
"You think he's going to come after your wife, why? Have you seen them together?"
"No."
"Then I don't understand."
"Maybe I should start at the beginning. Since you're new in town you don't know the type of man Jeffrey O'Neill is."
"Alright, start at the beginning."
"Several years ago when my father died, his personal attorney came to me and told me about an investigation my father had started. It involved finding a son that my father believed that he had while traveling in Chicago. I don't know how he found out about the man, but my father was looking into it. No conclusive evidence had been found at the time of my father's death. In the file there were orders from my father to give one third of his estate to this son if he was ever found."
"I'm assuming he wasn't found until now."
"That's correct, I ordered the attorney to give me the file and nothing was said to the rest of the family. I then destroyed the file and contacted the detective and told him to stop looking for my father's son."
"You didn't want to know who your brother was. You weren't curious."
"No. I had gone through it once before with my brother Billy. I didn't want to go through it again. So anyway, the years passed and I didn't think anything about it a few months back, I was contacted by the attorney's daughter. She was asking me what I wanted her to do with the files pertaining to her father's business with my father. She said some of the files were extremely important and she mentioned the file describing the detective's investigation. I thought I had been given everything pertaining to the file, but obviously I hadn't so I told her to shredded it."
"Okay, so how does your wife fit into this?"
"I'm getting to that. So, a couple months ago, Jeffrey calls us up in the middle of the night, asking to use our jet to fly to DC because he has a friend that's in trouble. Reva agrees and she decides to go with him. She decides this after I asked her not too. So anyway, she goes to DC and then she comes back. A few days later, she tells me that she has to go back to DC to finish up with some loose ends that she left. I ordered her no to go, she went anyway.
So when she gets back from the last trip, there is a lot of tension between us and one day she shows up at Lewis and she asks me to lunch. I told her I couldn't so she went to lunch with Billy. When they got back to Lewis, Reva came by my office again to see if I would be home for dinner. She overheard me telling our attorney that I had destroyed the file with the notes from the detective's investigation and she heard me order the attorney not to tell her or Billy about it.
After our attorney left, she came in and she confronted me, demanding to know what file I had destroyed and why I didn't want them to be told. We got into a loud fight and it got Billy's attention. He came to see what was going on and we got into a fight."
"What did you fight about?"
"The file and why I didn't want to tell them about it."
"What did you tell them?"
"That it was a private matter and that I wanted them to drop it."
"If you're still having problems, I'm assuming they didn't drop it."
"No, after I walked out of my office that day. Billy began looking into what files had been destroyed. He even traveled to Tulsa to find information although he used a different excuse. Anyway, about a month later, Reva and Billy show up with a file. Inside it was a copy of HB's will and inside were notes about a boy named Jeffrey O'Neill. Reva insists that we have to tell him the truth. I ordered her not to say anything.
But Billy continues to investigate, hiring a private detective here in Springfield to try and track down the detective my father hired. In the meantime, Reva decides that she's going to have a DNA test run. She goes to Jeffrey. She tells him everything and he gives her a sample. She has it compared to a sample my daughter had of my father's hair.
When she gets the results, she tells me about the test and tells me that she's already told Jeffrey everything and that they were only waiting for the test to confirm it. I tried to destroy the test results when she showed them to me, but she took them away from me and she left. She immediately took them to Jeffrey. I followed her and I found her in Jeffrey's doorway and he was kissing her. They said it was a kiss good-bye after I pulled her away from him and then punched him..."
"You punched your brother."
"Yes. Reva defended him, apologized, and we left."
"Where did you go?"
"She went home. I went to work. We didn't talk about it until later. I overheard her talking to Billy about it. We got into a fight and she left. We haven't talked since until this afternoon."
"Okay, all of this sounds innocent. So why did you not want him told? Did you not want to share your family's wealth?"
"This has nothing to do with my family's money. Jeffrey doesn't even need it. He's a successful attorney and now he's mayor."
"A man like that I would think you would want him to be apart of your family. He's successful and charming, very good looking. Are you jealous of him because he's a different man than you are?"
"I'm not jealous of Jeffrey. He's... You don't know the type of man he is. He uses women and then casts them aside like their yesterday's laundry and moves on. He's cold and he's calculating."
"That's not the impression I got of him."
"He was only being charming and you're not romantically involved with him."
"And how do you know how he treats women?"
"He... he's never hidden the fact that he scorns traditional relationships and values. He's been all over this world and he probably has no telling how many women waiting for him in each country. He's simply a player."
"So, you don't want him in the family because he's a free spirit and doesn't want to be tied down to one woman."
"Reva's like that, a free spirit. She's impulsive and she'll do things without thinking about the consequences later."
"What does your wife have to do with Jeffrey?"
"Reva and I have had a long and sometimes very complicated relationship. We've done things to each other simply to hurt each other. When I left Tulsa for college, Reva got back at me by dating and marrying my brother Billy. They had their son Dylan and then they split. A few years later, she married my father. She was pregnant with his child when she slept with me."
"I still don't see the tie between your wife and the mayor."
"I'm getting to that. We've been married numerous times and she's married both my father and my brother Billy." Josh says, as she looks at him with a blank look. "I don't want Jeffrey around because I don't want him around Reva. I will not loose her to him."
"You don't want your brother around because you're afraid that your wife will leave you, for him."
"Yes."
"And you're basing this simply on the fact that she was married to both your brother and your father."
"You don't understand Reva. She's impulsive and she doesn't think and I don't want any… temptation around her."
"You think simply because she's been married to all the Lewis men, except the mayor, she's going to decide to leave you for him because of that."
"Yes."
"I have to tell you this from a woman's point of view. It takes a lot for a woman to cheat on their husband. I should say it takes most women a lot to cheat on their husbands. They have to feel neglected, ignored and totally taken advantage of and from what you said about Reva, except for the part about you ignoring her after she came back from DC, she doesn't seem like the type to simply decide to cheat. Have you ever caught her with another man while you were married to her?"
"No, but Reva is a free spirit and she's impulsive. She always does things without thinking about the consequences later."
"Then you're assuming she'll become involve with the mayor based on your own fear." Josh starts to say something, but Jasmine holds up her hand. Have you said anything to Reva about this?"
"Yes, of course I have."
"And what did she say?"
"That nothing would happen, that she has absolutely no interest in Jeffrey."
"But you don't believe her."
"I believe she believes that, but I know her and I would rather push Jeffrey away then take the chance that Reva will decide to leave me for him."
"Wait a minute, he's married. He just recently got married. I spoke with him this morning."
"You spoke with him this morning?"
"I work for Sam, her new clinic. Jeffrey was at her office this morning when I arrived at work and told me that they were taking the day off together. He seems very much in love with her."
"Jeffrey doesn't love any woman."
"Is this the only reason you don't want him around?"
"Yes."
"It seems to me that you're insisting just a little too strongly. You might think Jeffrey is this cold hearted man but I didn't see that this morning and I'm not sure I believe it now. If he's so cold, how did he get to be mayor?"
"It was given to him after his opponent was poisoned. The poison was meant for Jeffrey."
"Was he connected to the poisoning?"
"Not directly, the man that poisoned Blake was trying to get to Jeffrey. He's has a rather checkered past with women and other stuff."
"So, back to this problem, have you said anything to...?"
"You told..." Jasmine looks up the moment she hears DJ's voice.
She interrupts him before he can finish. "Mr. Lewis and I were just talking about his wife and family." She says, looking at him pointedly.
"You were talking about his wife and family." DJ says, not believing them.
"Yes, we were talking..."
"About..."
"A problem…." She decides not to say anything about Josh's problems. "I shouldn't be so rude. Josh let me introduce..."
"You don't need introduce me."DJ says, turning and walking away while Jasmine watches him and Josh watches her.
"So, back to your problem…?" She says, turning back to him.
"Do you want to go after him?"
"No, he's angry with me and when he's angry it useless to try to talk to him. He'll only dig his heels in. So this problem with the mayor and your wife, do you trust her?"
"Of course I trust her."
"From what I'm hearing, I hear something different. It tells me that you don't trust her."
"She's my wife and my life. That's why I don't want her around Jeffrey and I don't want him in the family. I'm simply trying to keep my family together."
"It sounds to me like you're trying to control everything, including your wife and I can't see her taking orders, not from the picture you've painted for me." She says, standing up.
"I'm only trying to protect my wife and my family."
"It sounds to me like they don't want your protection. Maybe you should consider stepping back and taking another look at this problem. Maybe your approach isn't the best way to handle the situation."
"There is no other way to handle this. He can't be apart of our lives."
"You do what you want, but consider this. How has this course of action worked so far?" Jasmine asks before turning away.
"Where are you going?"
She turns back to him. "I was on my way to get something to eat. I'll see you later." She says, turning and walking away while Josh watches her.
Jeffrey walks into the living room. Sam is looking over a file. For a moment, he watches her. Reaching up, she tucks her hair behind her ear. Laying the towel in his hand on the table behind her he walks over to the couch and sits down beside her. "What are you doing?"
"I was going over some of the legal documents for the practice."
"Do you want me to look them over?" He asks, as she looks at him. She hands the papers to him. Sitting back, she watches him. "It looks to be in order." He says, handing the papers back to her after a few moments.
"Thank you." She says, taking the papers. "Do you miss it?"
"Miss, what?" He asks, sitting back.
"Practicing law, do you miss it?"
"Do I miss battling it out in a courtroom, trying to judge a juries reaction and trying to figure out how to win a case for my client, yeah, maybe I miss it a little bit."
"How long do you have until the next election?"
"The election will be next October. The filing date will be in a few weeks."
"A few weeks, you didn't say anything. Are you going to file?"
"No."
"Why not, you're a great mayor."
"I ran for mayor to gain some respectability…."
"Respectability, I don't understand."
"After Russia and what happened in San Cristobel with Cassie, and the circumstances surrounding my admittance into the agency, I didn't feel too respectable when I came to Springfield." He says, getting up and going over to his guitars.
"J." She says, getting up.
"I've never really felt respectable, even growing up in Chicago. I was the kid without a father. I always pretended to be tough, pretended the looks and the not so soft whispers from the kids didn't bother me, but not knowing always did bother me. And now I know who I am. I have two brothers, one of which despises me."
"I don't think Josh despises you."
"Then explain what he's done. He's been judgmental and pompous since I came to Springfield, before I ever became involved with Marah or Cassie."
"Baby, we don't know what Josh is thinking."
"Yes, we do. He thinks I'm going to go after his wife, due mostly to the fact that everyone in Springfield knows my philosophy on relationships, a lot of that philosophy was developed after you left."
"Josh doesn't know this. He doesn't know how you used to be. You have to let him see that part of you. I think he would like that man."
"So, I have to be someone I'm not to get the acceptance of my brother."
"No, but we both know this loner, devil may care man that you've tried to make everyone believe you are, isn't who you actually are."
"How did we get on this subject? I was watching you with the papers and I once again realized how lucky I am to have you back again and how incredibly beautiful and sexy you are."
"We're both lucky to have each other again, as to being beautiful and sexy. I won't fault you for having good tastes." She says, as he leans in, kissing her.
She slowly opens her mouth, deepening the kiss, reaching up to wrap her arm around his neck. He moves back and she moves with him. Reaching up, he buries his fingers in her hair. Pulling away, she looks into his eyes. There's a soft smile on her lips as she leans in to kiss him again but he stops her. "Let's not do this here." He says. She looks at him for a moment and then moves off his lap.
Getting up, he turns as she stands up. Bending his knees, he lifts her into his arms. "J, you…."
"I'm fine." He says, leaning in to kiss her.
She lays her head on his shoulder as he walks across the living room to the stairs leading to their bedroom. As he climbs the stairs, she asks. "When will Billy be here tomorrow?"
"Probably early, around eight I guess. Why?"
"I just wondered." She says, snuggling in closer to him.
He walks into their room and over to the bed. Leaning over, he lays her on the bed and then stands up. Kicking his shoes off, he reaches for her shoes. Slipping them off, he pulls her socks off and then leans back over her with one leg on the side of the bed, he kisses her again. He starts to lie down beside her as she reaches to stop him. "Finish what you started." She says softly.
He looks at her and then reaches for her sweats. Tucking his hand inside, he lays one hand on her stomach, relishing the feel of her breathing. Her skin is soft and warm, smooth, like fine silk. He can feel the smallest of bulges where their baby is growing inside her. Lifting her hips seems to snap him out of his trace. Reaching for the waist band again, he pulls the sweats down. Tugging them until they are at her feet and then she kicks them off.
Sitting up, she crosses her arms and pulls her t-shirt over her head, tossing it to the floor. Pausing for a moment, he slowly moves his eyes over her naked body. The fullness of her breast, compared to the smallness of her waist, the bulge that's just barely showing and then the smoothness of her legs. He smiles when he reaches her feet and finds her toes curled into the comforter beneath her. Leaning in, he kisses her as he moves to kneel over her.
She lies back, reaching up to wrap her arms around his neck. She pauses for a moment, slipping her fingers into the hair at the base of his neck, before she moves them down his back, along his spine. She's about halfway down his back when she feels him shiver and she smiles. She continues on, her fingers moving over the hard muscles of his back. When she reaches his waist, she stops for a moment as he pulls back, looking down.
Reaching for the waist of his pajamas, she pushed them down over his hips, taking his boxers with them. When she reaches his knees, he moves off her. Reaching for the clothes, he pulls them off and tosses them to the floor before he turns back to her. He holds out his hand and she takes it. Pulling her to him, he kisses her. Slowly moving his hand over her hips, cupping her and pulling her closer, he sucks in a deep breath. After a moment, he breaks the kiss, moving down her jaw to her neck, the warmth of his breath whispering over her skin, heating the already raging inferno rushing through her. "J!" She moans, closing her eyes.
Reaching up, she buries her fingers in his hair, silently trying to direct him. For a moment he lets her but then takes control again, moving up to her ear. Rolling her to her back, he knows that playing with her ear drives her absolutely insane with desire. She can't resist him even if she wanted to when he plays with her ear. Wrapping her arms around him, she hugs him before laying her hands on his shoulders. He continues to torment her and finally she decides to give as good as she's taking.
Once again, she moves her hands down his spine, moving at a snails pace. She feels the tension building in the rhythm of his breathing, telling her that he's feeling exactly everything that he's making her feel. Finally, he pulls back, sucking in a deep breath while she watches him. For a moment, she pauses and then leaning up on her elbows, she presses her lips to the pounding pulse beating at the base of his neck. "Sam!" He groans, closing his eyes. She smiles, looking up. "I was going to take my time." He whispers. "I wanted to drive you crazy."
"Umm, you're already doing that."
He catches her mouth, slipping his tongue into hers without giving her the opportunity or option to choose. After a moment, she feels her lungs burn with lack of oxygen, but she doesn't want to let him go. Finally he pulls away. Looking into her eyes, he realizes how incredibly turned on she is. "I don't think this is going to be slow and easy."
"You do it however you want. I simply need to be connected to you." She says, leaning up to kiss him again.
Laying her back, he moves into position. Breaking the kiss, she reaches for him, cupping him as she arches her back. He slips inside her, the slick warmth of her body, closing around his. Pulling back, he thrusts forward. She takes him completely, her body holding his while he slips into a simple rhythm. She moves with him, her hips rolling against his, fighting the distance when he pulls away and clinging to him when they are completely connected.
Wonderful sparks of fire fly through their bodies, warming the temperature of their blood. Leaning up on his elbows, he slips deeper inside her, caressing the deepest center of her body. She reaches for the comforter beneath her, fighting to hold on. She feels torn between the need for release and the desperation to keep the pleasure building. For a moment, she looks up as he looks down. His eyes seem to say, it's okay. That first incredible wave washes over her. Her body tightening around his, milking the desire building inside him while hers rushes through her body, arching her back, she screams.
Her release burns through him, filling him with incredible heat. He continues to thrust, drawing another staggering wave from deep inside her, prolonging her release, until he's confident that she's fully satisfied. Pulling away, he thrusts once more. Burying his body deep inside hers, each coursing wave burns through him, flooding her. As the most powerful explosion burns through him, he feels a second release rushing through her. Sucking in a deep breath, he collapses into her waiting arms.
They each struggle to catch their breath, laying there with their arms around each other. She feels him slip from inside her as the desire recedes and reality breaks through. Leaning up on one arm, he looks down and smiles. "I will never get enough of you."
Reaching up, she moves her fingers over his face. He kisses them softly when she reaches his mouth as she says. "I don't want you too." He leans in, kissing her before he moves to lie down beside her.
A few moments pass before she rolls to her side. He's lying on his back. His head is turned and he's watching her. "What are you thinking about?" He asks, watching as she looks down his body.
"I know it's hard for you to let your guard down, especially after you've been hurt and I'm incredibly grateful that you let yourself trust me again."
"You are the one person I will always trust." He says, tucking a strand of her hair behind her ear.
"This situation with Josh and finding out who your father was has hurt you, but I think you need to reach out to Josh. I know you think it's useless, but the effort has to be made. Otherwise, you'll always be haunted by this. And from a practical point of view, if you are planning to have a relationship with the rest of the family, reaching out to Josh will make that easier."
"When did you become so practical?"
"I've always been practical."
"This, from the woman, that refused to follow orders during a sting in Panama."
"That was completely different and I was right, we got the information and it lead to a rather large bust of drugs and weapons."
"You were lucky." She starts to say something as he moves towards her. "Let's not end tonight on an argument."
"You're lucky I'm in an agreeable mood." She says, leaning back.
"How agreeable?" He asks, as she moves closer to him, kissing him again.