Enjoy

Sins of the Father

Chapter 24

Meeting the Greys Part 2

Christian's POV

The dinner is going better than I anticipated. Teddy is more relaxed and open to talking now that he is nestled safely between Ana and I at the dinner table. He laughs easily enough at his aunt and uncle's bickering and his grandmother's half-hearted attempt at scolding them for their lack of table manners.

A spoonful of his mac and cheese ends up on his lap and the juice that he's drinking drips on the table cloth leaving a large purple stain. I am pleased that he didn't feel the need to run away at the two minor mishaps.

I can't help but watch Ana has she helps him with the mess he's made.

She is very skilled in relating to him. She has a way about her that calms him.

She has the same effect on me. The nervousness I felt at the start of this evening disappeared when she walked through the door. Like my son, if I could have gotten away with it, I would have run to greet her.

My eyes catch mom's and I must refrain from rolling them at her expression as she studies the three of us: Ana and I fussing over Teddy while he enjoys the attention. She winks at me as if reading my thoughts.

Dad is watching Teddy intensely, half smiling at his every move. Its not much different than the way he used to watch me when I was first adopted. But unlike me, Teddy is unaware. My son is far less weary of his new family than I was in the beginning. Admittedly, I still am now to some degree.

...

"Let's go check out your toys," Elliot suggests to Teddy.

"Kay," he agrees, happy to have someone new to play with. "I got race cars."

Both Ana and I are awed that he is so at ease with Elliot so soon.

"I want to come too," Mia tells them and Teddy nods.

"But you're a girl," Elliot moans, making the statement to purposely make Teddy laugh. It does the trick.

"Seriously," Mia says to Elliot before turning to Teddy. "I can out race him any day."

"That's because I let her win," Elliot tells him.

"We'll just have to see about that," she says in challenge.

"You're on," he tells her.

They rush upstairs with Teddy all while mom is yelling after them to behave themselves in front of their impressionable nephew.

I ask Ana to join us in my office so that we can talk privately. She fills us in on the judge throwing out the paternity test we did in New York, only to have the same damn test done here.

"Why the hell would he do that," I ask her. "What the fuck does that mean for us now? Is he trying to make this a problem?"

"I don't know the history, but there seems to be some issue with him and my new temporary boss."

"I don't believe this shit."

"Calm down, Christian," Dad warns.

"How can I be calm? This asshole is trying to come between me and my son. The last thing we need is to have to take that test again and wait again. This is bullshit."

"Son, Judge Reinhold is a senile old coot that doesn't know what day it is half the time, let alone how to preside over a courtroom. He should have retired years ago, but he refused. They stuck him in family court. Ana, your boss put in a complaint about him once. As well he should have for misjudging a case. It led to a child being severely abused by a foster parent. He's been giving the social services department hell for daring to stand up to him ever since."

"So, Teddy has to suffer with an incompetent idiot who has a grudge against Ana's boss for doing his damn job?"

"Believe it or not, having him as Judge is a good thing. I have a way to force his hand. I'll get on board with Ana and have this pushed through."

"I was hoping you'd say that," I tell him.

"Can I stop by your office tomorrow," Ana asks him.

I am well aware that her week-long agreement is soon coming to an end and she is eager to get Teddy squared away before she leaves.

"Absolutely," Dad tells her. "The sooner the better off my grandson will be."

Ana excuses herself to say goodnight to Teddy and Dad goes upstairs with her.

"Someone is excited about being a grandpa," mom says as they leave.

"What about you," I ask her. "I know it's a lot to spring on the family."

"No, Christian, don't think that. We are all thrilled," she assures me. "Shocked. As I imagine you were at first."

"I still don't think its truly settled in my mind yet," I confess. "Other than to try and play with him and feed him, I really have no clue as to what to do."

The thought of me playing with a child strikes her as funny. Mostly since I dreaded doing it even when I was one.

"Well, that's really all there is to it at this stage of his life. That and school. Its important to get a good routine going that centers around home and school."

"Right, a routine," I agree. "I'll have Andrea research the best private schools. But what if he doesn't like school? He didn't seem to want to be around kids the last time we were out. Maybe a tutor would be best. I can find one skilled internationally-"

"Why don't you give school a try first," she suggests. "He may like it once he gets used to it."

"Jesus, Mom. I truly have no idea what I'm doing. If it wasn't for Ana's help, I don't think I would have made it this far with him."

"Perhaps this could be a good excuse for her to move back home."

"She's made it clear her home is in New York, Mom. She has no intentions of changing that."

"But do you want her to?"

"What I want doesn't matter at this point. Right now, I have to focus on my son and not Ana."

"I thought Teddy was why we were talking about Ana," she says with an innocent sweetness that makes me narrow my eyes at her in skepticism.

"I walked right into that, didn't I?"

"I have no idea what you mean," she says. But her high-pitched voice tells me she knows exactly what I mean. "But, certainly if you feel that she should stay for other reasons, I'm sure she'd be open to discuss them with you."

"Did she tell you that?"

"Not in so many words. All I know is that she's preparing to take a trip."

"To Singapore?"

"That's right. She seems very ardent about going."

I'm sure she does with that Barrington fucker waiting to get in her panties.

His name entering my mind makes me voice a question that has been in the back of it.

"Mom, may I ask you something?"

"Of course, Christian, anything."

"Do you remember what my last name was before you adopted me? Elliot mentioned it sounding like the name of a bear when he first saw me at the hospital."

"That's odd," she says. "Nothing like that was on your chart for him to read. The nurses were calling you Child Doe, but they weren't allowed to say that to you."

"And the adoption paperwork?"

"Your father took care of all of the paperwork once he agreed to adopt you," she said.

"Did he know what my last name was that day? Could he have found out and not told you?"

"I'm sure he didn't. He would have told me because he knew we needed to know for your hospital file."

"I see," I tell her. None of what she's saying is remotely similar to what Elliot thought he remembered.

"In the beginning, you missed your mother terribly," she says. "You would cry out for her in your sleep. But you refused to speak a word about her. I thought you'd want to know about her when you were old enough to come to terms with your feelings. I knew that someday you would have questions and I wanted to provide you with answers. I started gathering what things I could about her. I wasn't allowed access to any of her information being I wasn't a relative."

"Dad didn't help you?"

"He was against me looking. He discouraged it. He just said that you were our son and that was that. Like your life before us wouldn't matter to you one day."

"You obviously disagreed?"

"I did up until you had a break down when I gave you the box. The detective that worked her case was a friend of mine and he was able to get me her belongs to hold for you. There was only that one picture of her and the one of you holding the Teddy Bear. Perhaps that's what Elliot is remembering."

"What about my birth certificate?"

"The only one you have is the one we made after we adopted you."

"You named me Christian?"

"No, it was on the back of the picture. It simply said: Christian, 3 years old."

"And my mother's name," I ask her, looking over at the safe. "It's on the back of her picture."

"Ella," she says. "Ella Brant."

"Brant," I repeat, getting up to open the safe. "Not Barrington?"

"Barrington," she says. "No, I'm certain it says Brant. But we didn't put that name on your records before we sealed them and the new ones were created. Your father convinced me that it wasn't your last name because Ella made a point not to put it on the back of your picture the way she did hers."

"Maybe she just didn't think it was necessary to write it," I tell her and she nods in agreement.

"I think your father just wanted you to have Grey in your files and nothing else," she tells me a bit guiltily.

"Did he do that with Elliot and Mia?"

She shakes her head no.

I take the picture of my mother out to look at it, wondering why Dad took such strong action to not have her last name in my records.

Her face stares up at me, eyes bright grey and happy to be looking at whoever it was taking her picture. I flip it over and read the name on the back, confirming what mom just told me. Ella Brant is written in faded black ink.

"She was very beautiful," Mom says as I take the picture back and sit it on my desk.

"She was," I agree. Its all I can manage to say.

"I'm surprised that you are talking so openly about her now," she says.

"I dreamed of her. It made me curious."

She nods.

"Teddy might be curious to know more about her too one day," she says. "Along with things about his own Mom."

"I'm working on getting him the information he needs," I tell her. "For now, I hope the memories will keep him content."

"He seemed quite content with you and Ana earlier," she emphasizes.

"He is also becoming fond of Gail," I tell her and she smiles, amused at my obvious deflection. "She's agreed to look after him so I won't have to hire a Nanny. Although, I'm still considering getting someone to help her with the task. I don't want her duties to overwhelm her."

"I won't hear of it. You and Teddy have a family that is more than willing to help Gail. Your father and I have eased back on working and we would love to spend the time with our grandson. We won't be sharing him with some nanny."

"I didn't want to obligate you."

"Nonsense. I won't hear another word about it," she says. "Now, I need to go and get your father. We have some restructuring to do at home. Or its been so long since we've had a little one running around the house. We can fix your old room up for him. I'll ask some of the girls at work what their little boys like to do. Hopefully, its something besides video games."

"Just don't go overboard," I tell her, knowing its falling on deaf ears.

…..

Mom and I head upstairs to join the rest of the family.

"And you tell me not to go overboard," she teases, looking around at his room. I won't even show her his playroom. I would never hear the end of it.

Elliot has found the electric racetrack that was in Teddy's toy box and has put it together.

Dad is playing the stadium announcer and Teddy the judge. Mia and Elliot race their cars along the track. Both are sitting Indian-style next to each other, elbowing the other for the better position.

Teddy is jumping up and down at the finish line because Mia's glittery gold car is in the lead. Leave it to my sister to find the only girly looking car in the toy box. Teddy calls her as the winner and she holds her arms up in victory as dad announces her name.

She high fives Teddy and Elliot folds his arms in a huff like he really didn't just let her win. I know damn well he did.

Mom is delighted at the sight of Teddy having fun and even more so at Dad being so actively involved.

"This is all so precious," she says more to herself than to me.

Teddy reminds me of the desert that Gail left cooling on the counter and we all head down to have some.

"He certainly has inherited your appetite," Mom says to me as she helps him get a second slice of apple pie. He puts too much ice cream on top but I believe he did that on purpose.

She's been discreetly checking him from head to toe since she first laid eyes on him.

"Well," I whisper to her, eager to hear her conclusion.

"He's fine," she says with a laugh at being found out. "He's met all his benchmarks. And the way he's eating, he should soon strengthen right up."

"Bro, what did you call yourself doing with that fort," Elliot asks eyeing it.

Most of the rods for it are no longer attached and the middle has fallen in.

"I was just setting it up for you, El," I tell him.

"You mean making more work," he goads me as he walks over to it. "Come on, Teddy Bear, lets show your old man how its done."

"Kay," Teddy says, excited to help him.

"He is so adorable," Mia gushes. "I can't wait to take him shopping."

She rolls her eyes as mom, dad, and I groan.

…

Author's Note:

I hope you all enjoyed the Holidays and are having a very Happy New Year. I also hope to update again in a few days since I just need to edit the chapter.

Thank you for reading and reviewing.