A week after Dad passed away, we started preparing for the funeral. Hannah was so distraught over the whole thing that all three of us had to get involved with burying Dad.There was a part of me that felt like, since I was doing this, in a way, I was making up to my dad for being a disappointment. We didn’t get to talk much since I got out of prison, even though I’d gotten to visit him a few times. It wasn’t that I didn’t want to, but either Hannah was talking with him, or he couldn’t speak, even when he was awake.I’d gotten him to look at me, and he didn’t look at me with the disappointment from before, but because he didn’t say it out loud that he forgave me, I couldn’t take it as if he did.At least, he’d looked at peace the last time I saw him, and he seemed to be glad that Claire and I were getting along well when we showed up at his room together.Still, I hadn't done enough for him. Hell, I hadn't done a single fucking thing for him.It was too late to make things up to him.
I woke up late in the morning. It was something I was growing used to, now that I didn’t have a job to go to. It was a pretty dangerous habit for me to have, since I would end it soon.Especially since I’d finally hit gold. There was no confirmation yet, but I thought I had a pretty good chance. It had been a while since I’d actually worked, though. Not that I stayed idle while I was unemployed, I did some freelance work that brought in a bit of cash every month, since I had nothing to do at home the days Rogue had to go to school, it kept me from being bored, too.We had lasted a longer while than I’d initially thought we would, and I didn’t even have to sell the apartment and move into a smaller one for it. though a part of me felt really guilty, using cash from Richard’s will and life insurance that he’d left to my name to keep us afloat, but I liked to think of it as him looking after us from beyond the grave.The money hadn't run out, because I’d been extra careful with it, but I
“Say what?”I was still a bit dazed from Claire’s confession. “I told you to sit down. But you insisted on standing,” she said as we stood in the living room. I came home and thought that I’ll bring her something that I made this afternoon. It was the best Bouillabaisse that I'd ever made and she was a fan of French cuisine, so I brought it home in between class.“I’m pregnant. We’re going to have a baby.”It was as if she’d rehearsed the speech as she said it, over and over again.We were going to be parents.I was going to be a dad.Shit!“Great,” I said as I lifted her up and hugged her. Fuck, I wish that I was taking acting classes and not culinary, because I was fucking panicking, but I didn’t want her to worry. I wasn’t going to run away from this, but it was a little much to take in. I never thought of becoming a dad, so something like this being sprung at me out of nowhere would obviously be a shock.It was definitely my responsibility, and I really wanted to be with Claire,
The first day of my new job was coming up. I was so fucking scared. I was going to be a fucking chef at the Old Blue Tavern. Dad and I used to eat there when I was a kid. It was under new ownership now, after it had gone downhill, but I wanted to bring it back to its glory. Make it into a place where I would want my family to come and enjoy. I smiled. My family. Me, Claire, our little Richard, named after my dad, and the new little one on the way. Now, all I had to do was make it perfect.For the first time in my life, I had a purpose and I didn’t feel like the bad apple anymore. If anything the complete opposite. As if for once I could look in the mirror and feel proud about who I was and what I was going to do with my life. This was all new to me, but it filled me up with this crazy warm feeling and I knew that it had everything to do with Claire. Whoever said that love was made for fools, had obviously never been in love. “You coming in here, big boy, or are you going to make me w
“Wake up, Claire,” Rogue murmured in my ear, shaking me awake. “If you don’t get up now you’re going to be late, you know? You’re starting your new job today!”I groaned as I struggled out of my drowsiness. We’d gotten married over the weekend and today was my first day as the new Assistant District Attorney. Rogue had even been considerate enough not to keep me up late last night and he’d done everything with Richard, our nearly two-year-old who we named after his father, including getting up with him at one a.m. This second pregnancy was only a bit less than a couple of months along, so I wasn’t showing yet, and it hadn’t gotten in my way, though I’d still had to report it when I went in for my interview for the ADA position. I had been told it wasn’t an issue, though, and seeing as I had gotten the job, it clearly hadn’t been.Funny how I had been pregnant when I started working as a public defender and now, I’m pregnant again starting as the ADA. I was determined though, to do my
I lay on the bed, on my side, with pillows stacked around me. It was close to the baby’s due date, so I’d taken my maternity leave. The strain on my body was a lot greater than what I had imagined it would be, even with it being baby number two. The closer to the due date I arrived, the heavier my body felt. Rogue had pretty much confined me to bed rest until our daughter arrived. He took on the role of care giver, when he wasn’t at work, taking care of both Richard and me. When he was away at the Old Blue Tavern, Mom would be here helping me when I felt like I needed to move around to alleviate some pressure.I was being pampered, and even though it got annoying at times, I loved it.“How are you doing?” Rogue asked, walking into the room.We’d had breakfast a while ago, and he’d left to wash the dishes and do some other chores around the apartment while I rested on the bed. He’d put Richard in his playpen in our room so he could see me. I had my eyes closed, though I wasn’t sleeping
Sometimes, my mom had a way of just winding me up and getting me into trouble. I was one of the top associates at my law firm. On my way to being a partner. I had worked fucking hard to get where I was. I certainly didn’t have the title babysitter written on my forehead. Yet, that was what my mom had roped me into. Babysitting my stepbrother.He’s older. So, he should have known better.The problem was that didn’t stop him from acting like a big kid. He had problems with drugs, gambling and women.Why women problems?Because instead of chasing women that were single, ones that he could actually hook up with, he had an addiction to only go after the ones that were taken.Oh, and they weren’t taken by just a simple jealous partner. No, he had a death wish by chasing mobsters and policemen’s wives. He always chose the partners that could kill him and get away with it. His gambling problem would have been manageable if he had money to throw away. But like most gamblers, he didn’t have
I should’ve called Claire and told her that Kathleen was picking me up. But, Claire was so damn uptight. How we were going to live in the same house was beyond my comprehension. She talked to me like I was fucking stupid most of the time. Just cause I’d been in the joint. I wasn’t dumb. Besides, I hadn’t had any pussy for years. It felt like a fucking lifetime. The last thing I wanted to do when I got out was listen to Claire set down the rules on her place while I was as frustrated as hell. Shit, it made sense to call Kathleen and have her pick me up.She would feed me.Not only my stomach, but my cock too.I just needed to stop at the diner to satisfy one appetite before she satisfied the other. Kathleen had no idea what being in jail for three years meant. I couldn’t jerk off without some guy getting the wrong idea, so guys like me kept themselves to themselves and never thought about sex.I used to fuck morning, noon, and night, it was hard. It was fucking difficult. One time I
I lay on the bed, on my side, with pillows stacked around me. It was close to the baby’s due date, so I’d taken my maternity leave. The strain on my body was a lot greater than what I had imagined it would be, even with it being baby number two. The closer to the due date I arrived, the heavier my body felt. Rogue had pretty much confined me to bed rest until our daughter arrived. He took on the role of care giver, when he wasn’t at work, taking care of both Richard and me. When he was away at the Old Blue Tavern, Mom would be here helping me when I felt like I needed to move around to alleviate some pressure.I was being pampered, and even though it got annoying at times, I loved it.“How are you doing?” Rogue asked, walking into the room.We’d had breakfast a while ago, and he’d left to wash the dishes and do some other chores around the apartment while I rested on the bed. He’d put Richard in his playpen in our room so he could see me. I had my eyes closed, though I wasn’t sleeping
“Wake up, Claire,” Rogue murmured in my ear, shaking me awake. “If you don’t get up now you’re going to be late, you know? You’re starting your new job today!”I groaned as I struggled out of my drowsiness. We’d gotten married over the weekend and today was my first day as the new Assistant District Attorney. Rogue had even been considerate enough not to keep me up late last night and he’d done everything with Richard, our nearly two-year-old who we named after his father, including getting up with him at one a.m. This second pregnancy was only a bit less than a couple of months along, so I wasn’t showing yet, and it hadn’t gotten in my way, though I’d still had to report it when I went in for my interview for the ADA position. I had been told it wasn’t an issue, though, and seeing as I had gotten the job, it clearly hadn’t been.Funny how I had been pregnant when I started working as a public defender and now, I’m pregnant again starting as the ADA. I was determined though, to do my
The first day of my new job was coming up. I was so fucking scared. I was going to be a fucking chef at the Old Blue Tavern. Dad and I used to eat there when I was a kid. It was under new ownership now, after it had gone downhill, but I wanted to bring it back to its glory. Make it into a place where I would want my family to come and enjoy. I smiled. My family. Me, Claire, our little Richard, named after my dad, and the new little one on the way. Now, all I had to do was make it perfect.For the first time in my life, I had a purpose and I didn’t feel like the bad apple anymore. If anything the complete opposite. As if for once I could look in the mirror and feel proud about who I was and what I was going to do with my life. This was all new to me, but it filled me up with this crazy warm feeling and I knew that it had everything to do with Claire. Whoever said that love was made for fools, had obviously never been in love. “You coming in here, big boy, or are you going to make me w
“Say what?”I was still a bit dazed from Claire’s confession. “I told you to sit down. But you insisted on standing,” she said as we stood in the living room. I came home and thought that I’ll bring her something that I made this afternoon. It was the best Bouillabaisse that I'd ever made and she was a fan of French cuisine, so I brought it home in between class.“I’m pregnant. We’re going to have a baby.”It was as if she’d rehearsed the speech as she said it, over and over again.We were going to be parents.I was going to be a dad.Shit!“Great,” I said as I lifted her up and hugged her. Fuck, I wish that I was taking acting classes and not culinary, because I was fucking panicking, but I didn’t want her to worry. I wasn’t going to run away from this, but it was a little much to take in. I never thought of becoming a dad, so something like this being sprung at me out of nowhere would obviously be a shock.It was definitely my responsibility, and I really wanted to be with Claire,
I woke up late in the morning. It was something I was growing used to, now that I didn’t have a job to go to. It was a pretty dangerous habit for me to have, since I would end it soon.Especially since I’d finally hit gold. There was no confirmation yet, but I thought I had a pretty good chance. It had been a while since I’d actually worked, though. Not that I stayed idle while I was unemployed, I did some freelance work that brought in a bit of cash every month, since I had nothing to do at home the days Rogue had to go to school, it kept me from being bored, too.We had lasted a longer while than I’d initially thought we would, and I didn’t even have to sell the apartment and move into a smaller one for it. though a part of me felt really guilty, using cash from Richard’s will and life insurance that he’d left to my name to keep us afloat, but I liked to think of it as him looking after us from beyond the grave.The money hadn't run out, because I’d been extra careful with it, but I
A week after Dad passed away, we started preparing for the funeral. Hannah was so distraught over the whole thing that all three of us had to get involved with burying Dad.There was a part of me that felt like, since I was doing this, in a way, I was making up to my dad for being a disappointment. We didn’t get to talk much since I got out of prison, even though I’d gotten to visit him a few times. It wasn’t that I didn’t want to, but either Hannah was talking with him, or he couldn’t speak, even when he was awake.I’d gotten him to look at me, and he didn’t look at me with the disappointment from before, but because he didn’t say it out loud that he forgave me, I couldn’t take it as if he did.At least, he’d looked at peace the last time I saw him, and he seemed to be glad that Claire and I were getting along well when we showed up at his room together.Still, I hadn't done enough for him. Hell, I hadn't done a single fucking thing for him.It was too late to make things up to him.
We woke up in the middle of the night or it could have been the early hours of the morning. Who knew? Claire had nothing in her apartment to tell the time, or even to make it comforting. So, I was at a complete loss, with an aching cock and feeling nauseous from not eating. The thumping on the door that woke us up became louder. It scared me so fucking much. Maybe Kathleen had found out where Claire lived and decided to send some goons over. Shit, why the fuck I hooked up with her at times was beyond my comprehension. She was nothing like the women I normally hooked up with. At least they were a bit polished. Kathleen could easily have passed for a badly dressed drag queen.I shook my head at the idea of her knowing where Claire lived or sending guys to beat me up. Then, I thought that maybe something I had done in the past had come back to haunt me and that I had put Claire in danger.Shit, Claire.The stepsister that I had always thought was so uptight was completely different to wh
I let out a groan of frustration as I threw myself back into the couch. I was at home in my living room, with my laptop open in front of me on the low coffee table. I’d been looking online for jobs, and a while back I found a good lead, and applied. I just got back a reply.It was a bit soon to be getting a reply. If it took a couple weeks to a month, I would feel better about my chances of getting the job. When I saw I’d gotten a reply already, I knew it was bad before I opened it, and sure enough, it was a rejection.“Fuck,” I muttered to myself. “What am I going to do?”It was a bit early to be getting too panicked over this, but I couldn’t not worry about it, either. I’d gotten my paycheck for my last month of work at the company. I didn’t miss how I didn’t get any commission out of the job I had been working on with Simon, even though I’d done considerable work on it. I at least got paid for all the overtime I’d pulled. I couldn’t go back there and complain or they’d just slap me
We sat there for a long time after Hannah had left, and Claire didn’t look like she wanted to move. She didn’t even try her drink, just holding it between her palms, warming it up. After a long moment, when I couldn’t stand seeing the lost look on her face anymore, I sighed and wrapped an arm around her shoulders.“Did something happen between you two that I should know about?” I asked. “What were you two talking about before I came back here? Is something wrong that I should know about?”Claire sighed and looked at me, a tiredness in her eyes that hadn't been there before.“It doesn’t matter.”I frowned. “What are you talking about? Of course it matters! Does it have something to do with Dad?”She bit her lip, looking unsure. My heart suddenly felt cold, thinking it might actually have something to do with Dad.He had been getting better recently. He was awake more often, he looked more alert. His face looked fuller, though his color only looked a little better. I wasn’t naïve enough