Logan's P.O.V.
Somebody is going to have to pay. Pay for the loud obnoxious noises around me. Pay for the huge headache I had. And even pay for the thoughts in my head. The thoughts that someone had tried to hurt me seriously. Maybe even kill me. I was a city doctor who worked hard and provided for his family. Who would want to kill me? Maybe someone who hated gay people? Maybe someone who hated good dads? Whoever it was, was a jerk. And as I lay on my huge couch in my huge living room, hearing the soft buzzing of noise around me, all I knew was whoever it was, was probably never going to get caught. Maybe next time, he'll just finish the job and kill me. Or maybe next time he'll come after my children and husband. My eyes shot open fast at the thought and my stomach turned.
After pushing myself up slowly, off the couch, I sat back and glanced around the almost dark room I was alone in. The fire place was roaring, and there was only one light on, right beside my huge soft recliner. I groaned rubbing my eyes and yawned quietly, hearing the buzzing sound that woke me up, coming in clearer. I heard a fit of a little boy's laughter that made my heart flutter. It encouraged me to stand up, on wobbly feet, and walk to the closed off dining room and kitchen. I walked slowly rubbing around the burning feeling around my throat and pushed open the swinging door with my shoulder. As soon as I stepped in, I squinted at the bright lights blaring down at me, but still smiled. Because I still saw the four people sitting around our huge table, two pizza boxes open, with boxes of board games at one end. I smirked seeing James spot me and he motioned me over to him. As soon as he did, Sammy and Jessie spotted me, and jumped out of their seats. I opened my arms wide and let them collide into me, as I walked in with them clinging onto me. Emily was still seated next to her dad, who both looked worried looking at me. I frowned taking Sammy's seat and pulled him on my lap letting Jessie push into me, standing still. "Something smells delicious." James chuckled and quickly put a slice of pepperoni pizza on a plate and slide it over to me. I remained staring at him as I raised the pizza and opened my mouth. He laughed quietly sitting back, grabbing a whiskey glass, which I had to assume had whiskey in it, and frowned. Just as I went to take my first bite, I noticed Sammy was staring up at my face. I lowered the pizza quick and smiled small. "What's the matter buddy?"
"Does your head hurt poppa? Daddy said we can't be too loud or obnoxious tonight." I chuckled but glared at James as I set my pizza back down on my plate and pulled Sammy and even Jessie who was also looking at my head, closer into me.
"My head hurts just a little bit. But you know what will make it feel better?" Sammy shook his head very aggressively and I smiled holding one side of his face, while my other hand held the back of Jessie's head. "Seeing my babies kick their dad's butt at whatever game you're playing." Sammy grinned big at this and turned around on me, still sitting on my lap and picked up a stack of UNO cards. I smirked giving Jessie a kiss to her cheek before she sat back in her seat. I picked my pizza back up and looked over to Emily who surprising to me, wasn't on her phone. "How does your foot feel honey?"
"Great." I raised my eyebrows at my oldest child and watched her lean forward looking at the game her brother was playing again. "I'm really glad you guys decided now when I'm bed ridden to ground me. It means a lot to me to know you guys don't care about my social life, or the fact that I have friends who will be bringing my homework to me and won't be able to text me when they get here, because you took my phone away." I sat back chewing softly as James laughed into his whiskey glass, swallowing as Emily turned to him, glaring. James chuckled reaching out and held the back of her head, as he set his glass down and picked up his cards.
"I didn't know you knew what homework was since you've dropping your grades since school started." She softly, but with a purpose, pushed her dads hand off her head and I smirked slightly. "And you being bed ridden is hardly a punishment, since you've been ditching every other day to be with that kid, Austin."
"And let me guess? If I had been with precious Max, this wouldn't be a problem?" Emily turned back to her dad and they both glared at each other. I swallowed my food fast and patted Jessies back, making her turn to me, as she rolled her eyes.
"Can you take your brother in the living room for a few minutes please?"
"Sure. I don't think I wanna hear you and daddy dismantle queen Emily's throne anymore."
"Shut up Jess." I shot a warning glare to Emily as Jessie took Sammy's hand, along with his juice and walked out. I leaned forward and quickly grabbed the whiskey glass that was almost gone in front of James and tossed the rest back, squeezing my eyes shut hard. "I'm sorry Max got shot. And I'm almost sorry I cheated on him. But my grades dropping and me ditching school has nothing to do with that kid, Austin." She said his name with ice and as I opened my eyes I saw James chuckling again, sitting back looking right at me. All I could remember was how intense our fight got about how we would handle Emily's behavior. I wanted to wait until she was healed. He wanted to crush her in the hospital, which I of course did not let him.
"So, then what's the excuse for it all? I'm very curious." Emily laughed sitting back, crossing her arms over her chest and she turned away from him, giving him one of her very classic, I'm a moody teenager face. "Did you think your dad would pick your side? Is that why you wanna have another argument? Because you think you crying and pouting is going to work again?" I sighed leaning forward and cleared my throat making them both turn to me.
"Why have you been ditching? And letting your grades slip?" My voice was soft, which I could tell pissed off James, but fortunately encouraged Emily to talk.
"My theater teacher…she said there was a casting call in Saint Paul. I…I went to it. Austin went with me." My mouth parted slowly, and she leaned forward shaking her head. "Poppa I got a role in a commercial. All I want to do is act and I took the chance. Austin was supportive, and I guess me rehearsing for it and preparing for it meant I let some grades slip. But if I get in a commercial, and someone big sees it I won't need to worry about college. You guys can put that money in Jessie and Sammy's college funds." I looked over to James who surprised to me, was smiling at his daughter. I cleared my throat softly and James turned to me, laughing big. He stood up and walked around me, going into the kitchen. Emily deflated, and I turned back to her shaking my head.
"Since when did you want to become an actress? And have you lost your God damn mind?" Emily went to reach for her crutches and I stood up faster. "When are you supposed to do your…commercial?"
"This Friday. But daddy said I'm grounded so thank you for ruining my dreams. I hate you guys." I stood in front of the door for her to leave and she crutched her way over to me, groaning quietly.
"A couple of things." She looked up giving me a disgusted look and I shook my head. "Whatever terms your dad gave you for your grounding, it's doubled." Her mouth dropped open and I nodded. "If you really wanted to be an actress, you would have told us and…"
"I did tell you guys!" I raised my eyes seeing James get beside us, leaning on the wall next to me, holding a beer bottle in his hand. "This summer I went to that camp! I meant a lot of cool people who said I could be the next Jennifer Lawrence! And when I came home from camp I told you I wanted to go into acting and even go to school for it! You don't remember that?"
"I remember you telling me you liked acting and wanted to take a few classes when you went to college, but you never told me you changed your whole fucking life path!"
"I don't want to be a doctor! You two want me to be a doctor!" I heard James sigh beside me, making Emily turn to him, seething. "Sorry to disappoint you once again daddy! You wanted a boy and got me. You wanted a girl who was interested in sports and got me!" She turned back to me and I tensed up. "You wanted another doctor in the family, and to marry your best friend's son, and got stuck with me, your whore daughter! But it's a good thing you have the other two who you can mold into whatever you want!" She quickly pushed past me and crutched out of the dining room leaving both James and I speechless.
I quietly helped James clean up the dining room, and kitchen, neither of us either looking at each other. Suddenly, the fact that I was attacked at work, someone might come after me or my family still, left my brain. Did I force my own version of her life, on my daughter? Was I blind and deaf to her dreams? Did we kill her dreams?
We walked out of the kitchen slowly James behind me, still neither of us saying anything. I frowned seeing the living room empty and the TV still on. The fire was almost completely burned out and the kids had left toys on the floor. But I didn't care. I wanted to see Emily, hug her and tell her I loved her, no matter what she did. So, I stepped over the knocked over box of Legos and went to the stairs. I wasn't surprised to hear James behind me, but I wasn't a mind reader and because we said nothing after getting our asses handed to us by our youngest daughter, I had no idea where his head was at. Before I could ask him to keep his cool, we were in front of her closed bedroom door and with James still behind me, he reached out and knocked softly. I breathed out hard and reached behind me grabbing his free hand. "Em's…can we talk?" There was no sound which, in James's head, meant go in. He turned the knob and pushed the door open, both of us sighing quietly. Her blankets were pulled up over her head. She moved slightly as I walked in, letting James hand go, and gently sat down on the edge of her bed. I looked around her dark room and bit my lip seeing James sitting down at her desk.
"Baby…I'm so sorry." I looked down at the blanket seeing it moving again and I shook my head. "NO one ever tells you how to handle three very different kids at once. NO one hands you a manual on raising a spunky, carefree independent girl." I looked back to James and he smirked looking over to her corkboard covered in pictures of her and her friends. "Hearing you cheated on Max…even having sex at your age scared me. No dad ever wants to picture his daughter in bed with…"
"Okay stop." I jumped off the bed quick and the blankets pushed down revealing my two youngest children. Jessie sat up, pushing hair off her face smiling up at me. "There is only so much I will do for her." She put one leg off the bed, but I stopped her raising my eyebrows. She turned to Sammy who was clutching onto a brown teddy bear eyes wide. "I took a twenty-dollar bill from her and didn't ask questions."
"She gave me this bear." I let Jessie go and put my hands on my hips turning to James who was smiling small.
"Are you covering for your sister?" Jessie walked to her dad and patted his cheek before turning to the door.
"Don't know what you're talking about old man!" Jessie stepped out of the room making James laugh. I frowned sitting back down shaking my head.
"Did she take her car Sam?" I glanced down to him, eyebrow raised, and he quickly hid his face with the bear. I smirked and gently pulled it off him as James got on his knees beside Emily's bed. He reached out and softly put a hand on his cheek. "We can easily go down to the garage and look. But that won't be good for you." Sammy sat up fast and pulled the teddy bear back into his chest.
"She was crying daddy. She said she hated you and poppa, but it was okay if I still liked you guys." I hid my laugh as he pushed into me. "A boy picked her up. It wasn't Max though." I nodded looking down to James who was still smiling. "Are you guys going to make her leave?"
"Of course, not baby. She's still our little girl." I caught eyes with James and smiled small.
"Maybe that's the problem." I said it quietly as I ran a hand through Sammy's hair and James looked down, smile gone.
We tucked the kids into bed, after making sure they were bathed. My head was hurting bad and as soon as we closed Jessie's door, I went right to the bedroom. I faintly heard James say he would clean up downstairs and didn't give him an answer. I went right to the huge bed and fell in the middle of it, closing my eyes softly. I felt the tears start to come out and sobbed out quietly, finally. Everything that has happened in the past 24 hours has finally come to the flood gates. And all I could do was cry. I didn't let the sobs be too loud, as to worry the kids or James. Instead I just cried into the thick down blanket under me and shook softly as my throat swelled up making my heart burst. I couldn't have been crying to myself for more than five minutes before I heard the bedroom door close softly. I pushed up quick and let one little gasp escape my lips as I wiped my face and rested my head in my hands, closing my eyes. I waited for James to get on the bed, and when he did, I let him rub a hand over my back, while his long body laid on his back beside me. I turned my head to him and looked at his blank face through watery eyes. He was looking up at the ceiling gently rubbing my back still. I took in a much-needed deep breath and turned slowly onto my back. He kept his hand on my stomach once I was on my back and I looked up to the celling as he was doing and set my hands-on top of his. "Are we bad parents?" My voice was quiet. It made me feel worse.
"No. I think…" He paused, and I turned my head slightly to look at him. He sighed out also turning to me and smiled small. "I think we are overwhelmed parents." I swallowed that huge pill hard and looked back up to the ceiling. "Do you think she's right? About how I've treated her?" I shook my head softly, but quickly to hopefully reassure him. "I guess…I always used to push sports on her because…I did want a son. But I never forced her to…"
"You wanted her to be strong James. Just like I wanted her to be a doctor because I know how fulfilling it is."
"Then maybe we are bad parents." I snapped my head to him quick and he smirked rolling onto his side. "Let's snuggle. We'll deal with this in the morning." One of his hands started to push down into my pants and I quickly turned to face him and pulled his hand out quick.
"Our daughter snuck out of the house. I think that's something we should deal with right now." He laughed as his hand moved back to my body and pushed it into the back pocket of my work pants, quick.
"She didn't go far." I relaxed a little as his hand squeezed around my ass cheek and he moved forward ever so slightly. "When I was locking up downstairs, I saw a beat-up POS out on the street. I could see her sitting in the passenger seat. I think she's with Austin. Just right outside the house." I nodded feeling a little better as he lips attached to my neck making me start to shiver. "Just so you know…"
Before he could finish my phone started ringing loudly from my pocket in my pants. He groaned loudly rolling onto his back and I smirked seeing how effected he was and sat up slowly. I pulled my phone out and frowned at the time. It was almost 11 at night. If I didn't see Juliet's face smiling up at me, I would have ignored it. But because it was her, I slid it to answer and put it to my ear quick. "Hello?"
"Hey Logan. It's me." I rolled my eyes hearing Kendall's voice and laid back down, turning slightly to lay on James's huge chest. "I hope I didn't wake you up, and you're feeling alright."
"Is that really why you called Kendall so late?" He chuckled, and I closed my eyes letting James run a hand through my hair softly.
"No. Juliet wanted me to call you. Something…. someone burned down her office tonight." I shot up fast and felt my stomach turn. "No one got hurt but everything is gone. She did say however she asked you a while back to hold a few important documents for her. Something about her insurance and her financial records. DO you have those papers still?" I frowned pushing off the bed and walked to the shared walk in closet of mine and James.
"Yeah. They are in my safe. Do I have the only copies?" I bent down quick and pushed a pair of huge army boots of James to the side and crawled closer to the medium sized black safe.
"No. Well…she isn't sure. She's looking right now. That's why she wanted me to call to make sure you still had it. She never told me why she gave you them." I smirked putting my phone between my ear and shoulder and quickly opened the safe.
"When you…uhm…"
"Cheated you can say it Loges." I rolled my eyes reaching into the opened safe and pulled out the thick yellow folder sitting back on my feet.
"Yes. When you cheated she was worried about what she was going to do with her marriage and asked me to hold her some important documents. Just for safe keeping." Kendall laughed, and I quickly peaked in the folder seeing her beautiful hand writing sighing out. "I have a very thick yellow folder in my hands. I'm going to put it back in my safe though."
"Babe…" His voice trailed off and I gently set the folder back in the safe and shut it hard. "No sweetheart just go lay down." I smiled as I pushed myself up and turned. I froze seeing James giving me a worried look, half naked. I glanced down his hard-looking body but looked back up to his face hearing Kendall sigh. "I also have another question for you." I nodded letting James walk to me and without warning pick me and throw me over his shoulder. I muffled my groan of my stomach hitting into his hard shoulder and held myself up on the middle of his back. "That intern at the hospital, Shawn…" I rolled my eyes and tensed up as James threw me back on the bed and closed my eyes. "Does he have any kids?" I sighed softly and opened my eyes feeling James working on the button of my pants and let him start to undress me.
"It never really came up Kendall. But he's young. So, if he does have any, they are tiny babies." James was rough with pulling my pants down my legs and managed to pull my boxer briefs down with them.
"Okay…so what about a younger brother? Say a 17-year-old kid? Maybe named Austin?" I sat up fast again and pushed James away getting a very irritated look from him.
"Why?"
"The office building next to my wives burned down one, has a camera out front. Guess who they caught getting into a car just after her building went up in flames?" I grabbed a hold of James arm as he squatted down in front of me shaking his head. "I have a hunch that what happened to you today and the building being burned down, are connected. And I think it is that intern of yours. Who after doing a background check, found out has a kid named Austin living with him. Same last name." I stood up slowly, James following, growing more worried. "In the morning, I'm coming by, and I need to have a few words with your daughter."