Walter closed the book he was reading to Ralph, after he had fallen asleep. Walter leaned over and kissed his forehead.
"Sleep well buddy." Walter said. The feelings he had for Ralph now were so palpable. He was beyond elated but at the same time so sad to have missed so much of Ralph's life already. He looked towards the front of the Loft and he saw Paige standing there in her short robe. Just watching with a look of love on her face. The robe was belted tight, but the way she stood, leaning against the wall caused a slight separation at the bottom. Walter was quite positive she wasn't wearing anything else. He swallowed hard as he began walking towards her.
"It was nice meeting your Father." Walter said quietly as he drew near.
Paige nodded with a smile as she reached her hand out.
Walter took her hand and she led him back to the bedroom area.
She turned to face him once they reached the bed. Paige's hand rose up and began unbuttoning his shirt as she kissed him deeply. She stopped as her hands tugged his shirt tail out of his pants.
"M-Maybe I should take my shower first?" Walter asked. His breathing was highly elevated and his voice hoarse.
Paige smiled before she nodded.
"If you must, maybe I should join you in the shower." Paige told him with a wicked grin.
Walter nodded with a grin as they began moving towards the bathroom.
"Oh, actually there is something I think you need to hear first." Walter told her as they walked through the door.
"What's that?" Paige frowned as Walter shut and locked the door.
Walter pulled his phone out.
"When you were taking your shower after our case earlier I made a phone call and recorded it." Walter told her. He pulled up the file and hit play before giving it to Paige.
Paige's eyes opened wide, looking at Walter as she heard Walter ask for Bobby Dankworth.
Walter nodded as he finished undressing after starting the water in the shower.
"What do you think about what he said?" Paige asked as the recording ended.
"Well using my memory of how he spoke with me ten years ago I'm fairly confident that he was being honest. I think he truly had regrets." Walter said as he washed his hair. "What do you think?"
Paige sat there on the closed toilet just thinking.
"Paige?" Walter asked.
"Sorry…I was just thinking, trying to decide if I actually believe what he said." Paige told him. "Pamela was the name I used, Pamela Cinnabar. I have to admit it really made me happy hearing him say that you really wanted to be with me. Not just chosen by him or one of the others to have sex with you." Paige sighed. "I'm also glad that he confirmed you had nothing to do with the briefcase. I didn't think you had, but it was kind of worrying me. I guess overall, I think he was telling the truth. I'm also relieved that it sounds like you had made the choice to spend your money. Even if it was in a drug fog rather than him taking it and just using it."
"I mean even knowing all of this, I'm still not happy I decided to have sex for money…but I'm not as upset with myself now either knowing about this." Paige explained.
"When do you want to breach the subject of me being Ralph's Father? Do you still want me to be listed as his Father on his birth certificate?" Walter asked.
"Of course I still want you on his birth certificate. As for letting everyone know. Toby kind of guessed it earlier." Paige sighed. "So I told him what I said I was going to say. I don't know if he will tell the others or not."
"I'd put it at about thirty one point five percent chance he'll tell the others. I suppose the best thing to do is to get ahead of it as soon as we can tomorrow. We can also take the papers to the courthouse and file them for the change." Walter told her.
"That probably would be for the best." Paige sighed and then frowned. "Wait…what papers?"
"That first night, I researched the forms we'd need to change his birth certificate. I filled them out as soon as I printed them. They are in the blue folder inside my desk." Walter told her.
"Just how many things can you do at the same time Walter? You were researching Drew and the guys, hacking websites and writing out Mrs Kovelsky's instructions to us AND finding the forms and printing them." Paige marveled at him.
Walter chuckled.
"I don't know, I never tried to keep track, I just do what I need to do." Walter grinned as he turned the water off.
Paige was standing beside the shower door as he opened it. He smiled seeing the towel in her hands. They kissed after he stepped out and Paige took the time to start rubbing him down with the towel. Paige stared at his manhood as she deliberately took the time to really fondle and play with him. The excitement of the situation had caused Walter's blood to get him half erect and her playing caused him to completely come to attention.
She hurriedly pulled him out of the bathroom and after a quick check to see that Ralph was still asleep, she took him to bed.
Paige came into the Garage after dropping Ralph off at school. She carried several bags of groceries and a box of donuts with her. She'd stopped at the nearby bakery after picking up the groceries.
"Oh, joy. Klauster's." Toby sighed seeing the box.
"What's wrong with Klauster's?" Paige asked as she stopped.
"Well, I could tell you but why deny you the experience. Come see me after your first bite." Toby told her.
Paige sighed and shrugged but moved on over to her desk. She sat the box and bags on her desk before removing her sweater.
Walter blew her a kiss when she looked at him.
Paige smiled and blew one back. She walked over and kissed him tenderly.
"Did you already tell them?" Paige whispered.
Walter shook his head.
"I figured you'd want to do it with me." Walter smiled.
Paige nodded just before Walter stood. They walked around his desk and Walter leaned back against it. Paige followed suit while still holding his hand.
"Hey guys." Walter said. "Come over here, we have something to tell you."
Everyone moved over after a few moments and Walter looked at Paige.
"Okay, well just so you know what we know now." Paige started and then told them the story she had told Toby. She concluded it by telling them that Walter had gotten an email last night, confirming that Ralph was his son.
Two of the three geniuses acted legitimately surprised and all three expressed happiness for them.
"And on that note. I also want to extend a well done to you guys for finishing our first contractual case yesterday with Homeland. I know at times yesterday it was kind of crazy, but I'm proud of the way we got it done. I still need a lot of work when it comes to tact but thankfully Paige was there to smooth things along. I got an email from the Governor's office officially thanking us." Walter told them.
"Whoa, how long have we been working here and now you give us a well done? What happened to our checks being our sign of appreciation? What did you do to the real Walter O'Brien?" Toby demanded.
Happy slapped the back of his head.
"What Toby meant to say is, thank you Walter. We appreciate that." Happy told him.
Paige giggled and looked at Walter who was blushing a little.
"And I brought donuts in if you'd like to have some." Paige smiled as she pointed at the box. Toby shook his head as Happy and Sylvester looked at the box.
"Uh, I'm on a diet." Happy told her and walked away quickly.
"Me too." Sylvester said and turned around to his desk.
Toby shrugged but went back to his couch.
"What's wrong with Klauster's?" Paige asked Walter.
"How do I put this?" Walter said as he looked into her eyes. "Thank you so much for thinking of us and going out of your way to get them. But honestly, they're horrible. I'm not sure how they stay in business to be honest."
"Well fine, I'll enjoy them by myself then." Paige told him with a bit of a humph.
Walter smiled as he watched while she went into the kitchen with the groceries. She emerged a few moments later with a coffee after putting the groceries away. She sat down at her desk, before resolutely opening the box and pulled out a chocolate covered donut and bit into it.
Walter grinned seeing the look on her face as she began chewing. He held up five fingers of one hand when she looked at him. He slowly closed each one. Just before he closed his pinky Paige turned to her trash can and spit what was in her mouth out.
Paige took a big swig of her coffee before pushing the box into the trash can.
Toby sat on his couch reading the latest medical journal when he paused. His brow furrowed and he sniffed the air.
"Oh man, what is that stink?" Toby whined.
Happy looked over at him and then sniffed. The fumes of her cutting torch nearly masked it but she too could smell something unpleasant.
Sylvester looked up and around the office.
"I smell something but it doesn't smell that bad." Sylvester told him.
"Are you kidding me? Man that stinks." Toby complained.
Walter frowned as he looked at him and then he smelled the air and smiled. He stood up and walked into the kitchen to find Paige at the stove cooking. He stepped in behind her as he slipped his arms around her waist and hugged her tightly.
"Hey there." Paige smiled.
Walter laughed as she was wearing nose plugs.
"We could have just gone to Kovelsky's." Walter told her before kissing her cheek.
"No, I wanted to try and make your favorite for lunch. Is everyone complaining?" Paige grinned.
"Just a bit." Walter smiled.
"What are you cooking?" Toby complained as he walked in.
"Walter's lunch." Paige told him as Walter stepped back.
"Those fish? Gross…Come on Walt. There are supplements out there you can take, you know? Other sources of the fats you want. You don't have to make the rest of us want to puke." Toby complained.
Walter just shrugged and smiled at him.
"Hey, leave him alone. I chose to do this. I wanted to try making it for him at least once." Paige snapped.
"That's all well and good, you could have at least warned us, or given us nose plugs to wear." Toby whined.
"Well you can always take your lunch early." Paige told him.
"I think I'll open some windows before I leave…and hope the place airs out." Toby complained and walked out of the kitchen.
Walter laughed as he sat in the furthest chair so any airflow would carry the scent of the fish away from him when Paige sat down with him.
Paige sat his lunch down in front of him and then came back with her salad and sat down.
She watched as Walter took a bite.
Walter sat there chewing and slowly a smile grew on his face.
"This is far better than what Mrs Kovelsky fixes." Walter said after he swallowed.
Paige smiled.
"Thank you." Paige told him before taking a bite of her chef salad.
"I really mean that Paige, this is outstanding. This isn't the same style Mrs Kovelsky uses, is this a traditional Swedish style?" Walter asked after his second bite.
Paige nodded.
"When we were at the college yesterday I noticed they had a guest Swedish speaker this week for their cuisine coursework, Eva Eriksson. I emailed her asking if she had any tips to recommend for them. I told her my boyfriend loved them and I wanted to cook them for him. She sent me the recipe with excellent directions." Paige smiled.
"Well Mrs Kovelsky better watch out. She might lose my business." Walter grinned as he took another bite.
"Paige? Did you happen to cook extra so that I could try it?" Sylvester asked.
"There is a little left in the pan, if Walter doesn't mind sharing." Paige smiled.
"I don't know. I might have to fight over this." Walter told her.
"Please?" Sylvester asked.
"Help yourself buddy." Walter nodded as he pointed towards the stove.
"I cook chicken picatta one time and you trust me that much Sly?" Paige grinned.
"Oh yes. I watched everything you did. You are very conscientious in preparations." Sylvester said as he got out a plate and scooped what was left onto the plate. "It doesn't smell anywhere near as bad as Mrs Kovelsky's dish, and there is something to it that is really making me hungry." Sylvester said as he sat at the table.
"Mmmm…Oh this is heaven." Sylvester exclaimed as he chewed his first bite.
"Thank you Sly." Paige said as she continued to eat her salad.
Walter stood in the Loft by the wall looking back at the area where Ralph was sleeping. Since that first night that Ralph slept at the Loft, Walter knew he had strong paternal feelings for the young man. They got even stronger yesterday.
Paige stepped up next to him and slipped her arm around his back as she leaned in against his side.
Walter smiled looking at her and slipped his arm back around her.
"I don't understand Paige." Walter finally said.
"What's that?" Paige asked looking up and saw tears in his eyes.
"I've only known Ralph a week, I've had proof he was my son for twenty eight hours and yet I am consumed by my thoughts of him. There's nothing I wouldn't do or give right now for him. What was so wrong with me?" Walter asked.
Paige frowned as she saw a tear run down his cheek.
"Nothing lover. Those are very appropriate feelings for you to feel. That's how I feel about him." Paige told him.
"No. Sorry, that wasn't what I meant. I mean, if I can feel this for him, why couldn't my parents feel this for me?" Walter asked.
"Oh…Walter. I'm not sure if I can really answer that. I can only tell you to remember what I said when I told Dad about what Sylvester said. Few parents meaningfully engage with mentally enabled children. Maybe because of everything else going on they just couldn't figure it out. The difference would be you know about Ralph's abilities and you can empathize with that because you grew up the same way. But your parents didn't have that luxury so to speak. I would imagine if they loved your sister that much they had to love you too. They just didn't know how to express it so you'd understand, maybe?" Paige told him as she stepped around and hugged him tightly.
"I suppose." Walter shrugged.
They stood there for several minutes.
"I should probably take you both to meet Megan." Walter said as he tried to get his mind off what he was feeling. "Maybe take you over tomorrow for lunch. Then we can explain better about what happened before taking Ralph over."
"I'd like that." Paige smiled at him.
Greetings! I hope this finds you well!
Railman - Glad you enjoyed meeting him. Toby was totally a surprise to me there. And now, he didn't blab? How did that happen? I think Walter is off to a good start with his potential Father-in-law. lol
LouBe - Isn't it nice? What does he have up his sleeve? And he didn't blab the truth! *gasp* lol Cliffhangers...man...I hope this story doesn't have any. *mwahahahaaaha* There is one coming up...I've wondered several times if I should be mean and when it happens hold off the follow up chapter and post the few chapters of Aine and then come back. LOL Oh yeah...Walter was definitely worried when she told him the truth. LOL He was just hoping the thought that he was sleeping in the RV would protect him...lol But Paige wasn't leaving it like that. She wanted the unadulterated truth. Yep, he was definitely approving of what he did.
2LawDog - hehe Right? But then I loved S1 Toby. He was a jerk but he was very supportive over all. This story finally has him back to more like that. Yeah, I think Paige and her Dad are going to be okay over all in this. Thank you! Yep, everything seems to be coming together quite nicely.
Pearliegirl - Sounds like a good way to relax! Minus the cigarettes. lol I did enjoy my pipe for a few years before I gave it up. Black cherry tobacco was always a wonderful scent. Glad you are loving it! I think it is a good place to chill!
Susan - hehe He'd rather not know she's having sex. lol He's a bit stubborn on living together though. Hopefully he'll at least grow accepting of their life together. They don't need anything else tearing at them. He definitely would not change Ralph now. He's really happy at how "alive" Ralph is now. Grandpa is definitely very proud!
To the Adventure! -Tim