Bossy

The next couple days were relatively uneventful.  Brody and I talked every night, though never as long as we had on Monday night.  He sounded more and more tired as the week went on, and I was glad he'd be home soon.

When I walked into happy hour on Thursday, Alex came up to me while I was waiting at the bar for my drink.  "How's Brody doing?" he asked, looking concerned.  "I talked to him yesterday for a few minutes and he said his dad called him.  He sounded awful, but of course he wouldn't tell me anything important."

I grimaced.  "He's not doing very well, obviously.  His dad calling really threw him.  He's not talking to me about it much either, but at least he's flying home tomorrow.  Though I'm sure he's going to have a ton of crap at work to come back to, so I don't even know how great that will be."

"He needs to take a vacation," Alex said, frowning.  "A real one."  I agreed and we walked over to the table.  I spent an hour or so chatting with everyone then took off.  When I got home, I called Brody.  He didn't answer and I left a message for him to call me back later if he wanted to.

I hadn't heard back by 9pm and decided to just go to bed early.  I left my ringer on in case Brody called.  He didn't, but I woke up when I got a text from him around 1am.  "Sorry, just finished up stuff for today.  I'll see you tomorrow."  I fell back asleep after a few minutes.

Friday morning I threw a pork roast in the crock pot for dinner.  I figured Brody might want a homemade meal after eating out for more than two weeks, and the pork was simple enough.  Nothing fancy, but he was pretty easy to please.  After work, I threw a couple potatoes in the oven to bake, then threw together a salad and stuck it in the fridge.  He had already asked to just stay at my house that night.  I showered and pulled on a pair of fleece lined leggings, knee high boots, and a comfy sweater, then left for the airport.

I got there right as he texted me that he had his bag.  I pulled up and spotted him right away.  He opened the back door and lifted his suitcase in, then got in the front seat.  "Hi," he said, leaning over to kiss me before leaning his head back against the headrest and shutting his eyes.

I resisted asking him if he had slept at all the night before.  It certainly didn't look like he had.  I pulled out of the pick up lane and navigated out of the airport traffic.  We were both silent until we were almost back into the city.  I wondered if he was sleeping.  Then he opened his eyes and said, "I'm starving, can we stop and pick something up?" 

"We can stop anywhere you want," I replied, reaching for his hand and sliding my fingers between his.  "Otherwise I have shredded pork and potatoes at home.  Whatever you want to do is fine."

"That sounds perfect, actually," he said, smiling for the first time since he got in the car.  "Then we don't have to go anywhere."

I drove straight home.  I sat him down at the table while I warmed up the potatoes and took out the salad and made him a plate.  "This restaurant has the best service ever," he joked, grabbing my arm and pulling me towards him when I went to get myself a plate.  He kissed me and smiled.  "Thank you." 

After we ate, Brody went upstairs to shower and I sat down on the couch, flipping through TV channels.  I don't know why I paid for cable, I hardly ever watched anything outside of a few select shows, which I could probably watch online.   He was upstairs for nearly a half hour, but when he came back down, I saw he had shaved the 5 days worth of facial hair he had collected over the week.  I couldn't help but stare at him as he walked down the stairs wearing just a pair of low slung sweatpants.

"Come upstairs," he said, turning off the TV and grabbing my hand. 

I looked at him in surprise.  I wasn't expecting him to want to do anything outside of eating and going to bed.  He laughed and pulled me up off the couch.  He kissed me, his hands sliding across my hips.

I pulled back and arched one eyebrow at him.  "Are you avoiding talking again?" I asked gently. 

He leaned down and kissed my neck, then nipped my earlobe.  "Mmmhmm, I am," he murmured against my ear.  "I'll talk tomorrow, I promise."  I let him pull me towards the stairs and followed him up.  He pushed my bedroom door open and motioned for me to go in.  He followed me in, and after he pushed the door shut again he wrapped an arm around my waist from behind and brought his mouth down to the back of my neck.

"Damn, I missed you," he muttered against my shoulder as I shimmied out of my leggings.  He didn't give me a chance to respond, though, and I gasped when he nipped sharply at my skin where my neck meets my shoulder.  "Take this off," he directed, pulling on my sweater.  I squirmed out of his grasp and turned around.

"You're awfully demanding tonight," I said teasingly, slowly inching my sweater up while walking backwards out of his reach, towards the bed. 

He cocked his head slightly.  "Is that going to be a problem?" he asked, taking a step towards me.  "You should tell me now if it is."

"Not even close to a problem," I replied.  He closed the rest of the distance between us and finished pulling my sweater over my head.  His lips crashed against mine and he groped me roughly before flipping me over so I was face down on the bed.  I moaned against the blanket as he slid one hand between my legs and turned my head to the side with the other.  He kissed me briefly before moving his mouth back to my shoulder, then my neck.  I got goosebumps as his lips and tongue moved down my spine, stopping between my shoulder blades.  I squirmed in dismay when his hand moved away from me.

Brody wrapped his hands around my hips and pulled me almost to the edge of the bed.  He propped them up with one arm and shoved roughly into me from behind.  He wasted no time, and finished quickly.  After he pulled away from me, I went into the bathroom.  When I came back out, he was laying on his side of my bed.

"Come here," he said softly.  I climbed into bed next to him.  He slid his hand across my hip and down my leg, before moving it back up my inner thigh.  I pressed my face against his arm as he stroked me gently, his aggression apparently spent.  He continued until I had had not one but two orgasms and pushed his hand away.  I laid back against my pillow and Brody leaned his head against my shoulder.  I pushed my hair into his hair, massaging his scalp.

"Feel any better?" I asked.  He shrugged. "I have to work tomorrow but you can stay here as long as you want.  I'll leave a key on the table for you if you want to go, otherwise I'll be home around 2 and I can take you home."

"I'm going to go into the office for a little bit, I think," he mumbled sleepily.

"No," I said sharply.  He looked up at me in surprise.  "I mean, I can't stop you, but look at you.  You're exhausted.  You probably haven't slept more than a couple hours a night this entire week.  You're a disaster.  You've had a really rough few weeks and I think you should take tomorrow off.  If you want to go in on Sunday I won't say a word about it, but I am strongly against you going in tomorrow.  You need a mental health day."

He stretched and settled himself on his side, pulling me against him tightly.  "I like it when you're bossy," he said into my hair.  "I do need to go in sometime this weekend, but you're right.  I promise I won't go in tomorrow."  He kissed the back of my head and I settled against him more comfortably.

"Good, thank you," I replied.   "That's two promises you've made for tomorrow now: to talk, and not to work."

"Wait a second," he protested.  "I said I wouldn't go into the office, not that I wouldn't work at all!"

"You are seriously impossible," I groaned.

"If I do a little work tomorrow and go in for a few hours on Sunday, it'll make Monday a lot easier," he explained patiently.  "I get why you want me to take a day off, and I love that you're concerned and want me to take care of myself, but I'll be miserable this week if I don't do some stuff this weekend." 

"Fair enough," I relented.

"Thank you," he murmured.  "I love you, and your bossy concern for my well being." 

"I love you too," I replied, "which is why I'm bossy about your well being."

I was still deep in sleep when my alarm went off the next morning, and it took me awhile to realize what was happening.  "Make it stop," Brody groaned. 

"Sorry," I whispered, groping for my phone, and finally silencing it.

I started to get up, but Brody wrapped his arm around me and pulled me back down.  "Call in," he suggested.  "Stay here." 

"I'd like nothing more," I replied, "but I can't.  I'll be back."  I laid a little longer before wriggling out of his grasp and going into the bathroom to shower and get ready.  By the time I came out to get dressed, Brody was asleep again, sprawled across my entire bed.  He didn't even stir as I quietly moved around my room.

I left my extra house key on the table in case he went somewhere (but hopefully not to the office!) and left for work.  My day was slow and boring.  3 of my 5 clients cancelled on me, but I was able to get ahead on some of my paperwork, at least.

When I returned home, Brody was reclined on my couch with his laptop on his lap.  "Hi," he greeted me with a smile.  He looked much better than he had when I picked him up the day before.

"Hi, did you sleep?" I asked in reply.

He laughed.  "I rolled out of bed around noon.  I haven't slept that late since college."  He hit a few keys on his laptop then shut it and set it aside.

I dropped my bag near the door, pulled off my boots, and sat down next to him.  He put his arm around me and pulled me against him.  "So that means you didn't do too much work either, at least not yet anyway, right?" I asked.

"Right," he confirmed.  "I got up, showered, walked over to that deli for lunch, washed your dishes, and did about an hour of work.  By the way, there's a sandwich for you in the fridge."

"I should leave you here while I'm at work more often!" I said with a grin.  "Thank you.  What do you want to do today?  I can bring you home whenever."

"I'd love to go home soon, but what are your plans?  Do you want to stay with me tonight?  What's the plan for meeting with Nadine and Jonathan tomorrow?"

I had almost forgotten about tomorrow.  I had been trying not to think about it because it made me anxious.

"Liv?" Brody said gently.

"Oh, sorry." I had gotten distracted by my anxiety about tomorrow and completely forgotten he was asking me questions.  "We're meeting for coffee at 10:30."

"Okay, so if you don't mind, maybe we can go to my house shortly?  I'd like to stop at the grocery store, but I can do that tomorrow too.  Do you want to stay tonight?  If you do, I'll just leave to go into work when you leave to meet Nadine and Jonathan."

"Perfect," I replied.  "Let me just change and get some stuff together."

20 minutes later I had changed into jeans and a sweatshirt and packed a small overnight bag and we were heading out.  We made a quick stop at the grocery store (and Brody is a super annoying grocery shopper, by the way.  He wanders and grabs random things and that shit doesn't fly in my world.) and then were driving out  towards his house.

"So," I said, glancing at him quickly.  "How are you really?"

He sighed and leaned his head back against the head rest.  "I don't even know," he admitted.  "I have no idea what's going to happen.  I wish I hadn't gone down to Miami to consult for them.  It was really stressful and now I'm all sorts of behind here.  Pete and Neil did a great job while I was gone, but there are still things that I have to do that I couldn't do remotely and have to catch up on now."  He paused and took a deep breath.  "And I wish my dad wouldn't have called me.  That really fucked with my head." 

"I can't even imagine," I said quietly.

"And I keep thinking about how this was going on for years, right under my nose.  I should have realized it.  If I had, maybe I could have stopped it.  But fuck, then I could have gotten in trouble too.  And it's not like I can actually stop my dad from doing anything he has his mind set on."

"That's true," I agreed.  "I'm just glad you're no longer a part of his company so you're in the clear."

"No kidding, this is stressful enough without having to worry about my ass being on the line on top of it all.  Though I guess I won't know for sure that they don't find something to nail me for until it's over."  He looked out the window, then back towards me.  "Okay, I talked, now it's your turn."

I looked over at him, confused.  "My turn to talk about what?" I asked.

"About how you're freaking out about tomorrow," he replied matter-of-factly.

I grimaced.  "I am freaking out about tomorrow," I admitted.  "I just don't want it to be weird.  And they're going to be all 'oh my god, our granddaughter!' and they're just strangers to me, you know?  Strangers that I didn't even know about until a month ago.  And what if I hate them?  Or they hate me?  What if I don't know what to talk about?  What if they're really weird?"

Brody chuckled, but not meanly.  "Well, I can't promise that you won't hate them, or that they won't be weird, but I know that they're definitely going to like you," he assured me. 

I pulled into Brody's driveway while he was saying this, and after parking I made a face at him.  "I'm totally ditching them if they're weird."

He laughed.  "If that's what you need to do, then do it."  Brody grabbed his suitcase out of the back and hauled it and my bag to the door.  "Oh, hey, here's your key," he said when he pulled his out.

"Keep it," I replied with a shrug as we walked inside.

He raised an eyebrow at me.  "Yeah?" he asked.

"Why not?  You spend so much time there anyway.  Then the next time you call me at 10:30 and ask to sleep over, I won't have to drag my ass out of bed to let you in.  Plus, it doesn't do me much good keeping it in my house.  What if I locked myself out?"  I looked at him, because he hadn't responded.  "Unless you think it's weird or something, then you can give it back," I concluded hurriedly.

"I don't think it's weird," he said.  "I just wanted to make sure you were sure.  You just tossed it out there so easily."

"Well it's not like I asked you to move in," I pointed out.

He turned to look at me.  "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to make it weird.  I'll gladly keep the key.  There's no need to get defensive."

"I'm not getting defensive," I snapped.  Brody raised his eyebrows skeptically.  "Okay, maybe a little.  I'm sorry, I think I need a nap or something." 

"Well, I can help with the 'or something'," he said, grinning.  I rolled my eyes, but walked towards the stairs.  "Is that your way of accepting?" he called after me.

"I guess you'll have to follow me and find out!" I replied.

Nothing Gets By Me

I woke up early on Sunday morning, and slid carefully out of Brody's grip to go to the bathroom.  When I came back and got back into bed, he opened his eyes and quickly snaked his arms back around me.  "Don't go back to Denver," he murmured into my hair. 

"I wish I didn't have to," I replied.

He sighed and his arms tightened around me.  "It was so nice to have you here.  It was a good distraction from all the shit that's going on.  It sucks that you have to leave and I have to get back to fixing the mess that my dad made."  I rubbed his arm.  "What do you want to do today?" he asked.

"Nothing," I replied.  "I want to be completely lazy and have all our meals via room service and stay in bed until I absolutely have to get up to get ready to go."

"That sounds like a perfect plan," he said, pressing his face against my neck.  We fell back asleep for a little while, and when we woke up we ordered room service and had sleepy, lazy sex while we waited for our breakfast to be delivered.

We passed the rest of the morning laying in bed, and after Brody hung up the phone after ordering lunch at about 12:45, he frowned.  "We should probably get you to the airport a little sooner than you'd usually get to DIA," he said.  "The Miami airport sucks."

I groaned.  Flying back to Denver was the absolute last thing I wanted to do today.  And pretty much the only thing I remembered from my childhood trip down here was how much I hated the Miami airport.  "I guess I can at least shower while we wait for our food," I conceded grumpily.

I showered slowly, as if that might prolong my time left here.  When I got out of the shower, our food hadn't yet arrived, so I got dressed and started to pack my stuff up while Brody showered.
 When I was finished, the food was still wasn't there, so I sat on the couch staring at the TV.

A couple minutes later, Brody came out of the bedroom dressed casually.  "What are you going to do after I leave?" I asked.

"Jack texted me, so I might go see his place and hang out with him for awhile," Brody replied, sitting down next to me and putting his arm around me. 

I was about to answer when there was a knock on our door.  Brody got up and let our food in, bringing it over to the couch.   "This should probably help," he said with a grin.  "I know how cheerful you are when you're hungry."  I mock-glared at him and took the plate.

When we were finished eating, Brody looked at his watch.  "It's 1:55," he reported.  "We should leave in about an hour."  I nodded and settled against him, pulling his arm back around me.   We found something stupid to watch on TV and the hour flew by.  Too soon we were walking out the door of the hotel room.

"Call me when you get home," Brody said, hugging me tightly against him.

"I will," I promised.

"I'll let you know as soon I know when I'll be coming back," he continued.  "I know I'll be here this whole week for sure, but hopefully I'll be back by this time next week."

I pulled back and smiled.  "Thanks for flying me down here.  I'm really glad I got to come see you."

"Not as glad as I am," he replied.  "You'd better get going.  Have a safe trip, I love you."

"I love you too," I said, kissing him one last time before walking into the airport.

As Brody had predicted, it took me forever to get through security, even with having checked in online ahead of time.  I barely had 5 minutes to buy a snack and go to the bathroom before they began boarding my flight.  At least, sitting in first class, I got to get on right away and get settled.

The flight was uneventful and I was thankful that I hadn't checked a bag and could walk straight out of the airport to my car when I got off the plane in Denver.  I drove myself home and dropped my bag and purse right inside the door before flopping on my couch and calling Brody.

"Hey, you make it?" he greeted me when he picked up.

"Yup, flight was good.  Took forever to get through security though."

"Always," Brody sympathized.  I heard a male voice in the background. 

"Still at Jack's?  I can let you go," I said.

"Yeah, but I need to head back soon or I'll be sorry in the morning.  I'll call you tomorrow, okay?" I agreed and said goodnight.

I laid on my couch, pondering what to do.  It was only 8pm here but I was all screwed up after spending just a couple days on Miami time.  I decided to throw a load of laundry in and go to bed after.  I watched a DVRed show while I waited for the wash cycle to be done, and got sucked in.  I didn't make it up to bed until almost 11.  As I was climbing under the blankets, my phone vibrated.  It was Brody, so I answered.

"Hey," he said, sounding surprised.  "I didn't think you'd still be up."

"I was just about to go to bed," I replied.  "Is everything okay?"

"Yeah, I just wanted to say goodnight," he said.  He sounded weird though.

"Brody?" I pushed.

"My dad called me," he said, the words rushing out so fast it took me a minute to process them.

"Oh no," I responded.  "Is he...what did he say?"

"Not much," Brody said miserably.  "He just wanted to tell me he was okay and that I should do whatever I need to do to stay out of this mess."

"Oh Brody, I'm sorry," I replied.

"I already called that FBI agent.  They can't do anything with it, but at least my ass is covered.  This just sucks.  My dad spent my whole life making me hate him, and now I don't know how I'm supposed to feel with all this shit going on.  And..." he paused, and I could hear him suck in a deep, shaky breath.  "I don't know, I might not ever see him again.  At least when he was here I had the option to see him if I ever wanted to. And the last time we saw each other was so shitty."

I didn't know what to say, and I cursed my therapy training for still leaving me without a good response for the people I loved.  "Shit," I muttered.  "I wish I was still there with you.  What can I do?"

"Nothing," he replied.  "It's okay.  I'm glad you were still awake.  I just needed to tell someone.  Besides the FBI, I mean."  He paused, then muttered, "Jesus.  The fucking FBI," and laughed bitterly.  "I'm going to wrap this stuff up this week.  I already booked a flight for Friday.  They'll have to work with me to get it done by then because I can't stay here any longer."

"That sounds like a good plan," I said.  "Just tell me when to pick you up."

"I think my flight lands around 7, but I'll double check tomorrow and let you know.  I need to go to bed, thanks for listening."  I said goodnight and hung up.  I wished there was something I could do to help.  The whole situation was mind boggling for me.  I didn't realize that people actually fled the country when they committed crimes.  I felt like I was stuck in some awful movie.

I tossed and turned for close to an hour before I finally fell asleep.  When my alarm went off in the morning I felt groggy and disoriented.  I stabbed at my phone, trying to make it stop.  When I finally focused enough to actually dismiss the alarm, I saw I had a text from Brody.  "Thanks for listening last night, hope you're not too tired today.  Flight gets in at 7:12 on Friday.  I'll talk to you tonight, I love you."  I texted him back and dragged myself into the shower.

I had dinner with Lauren and Kinsley after work.  "How was Miami?" Kinsley asked, after we had ordered.

I made a face.  Lauren cocked an eyebrow.  "It was mostly really good, and a little really bad," I said.  I told them about Alexa first.

"She sounds like a peach," Lauren sneered.  "Terrible judgment, College Brody, what the hell."

"She sounds like Savannah on crack and steroids," Kinsley agreed.  I cringed at that visual.  Lauren laughed.

I continued, telling them about Brody's dad.  "I don't know what to do for him," I confessed.  "I feel like an awful girlfriend because he was so awesome when Lynn got in her accident and when Nadine called, and I just...don't have any idea how to return the favor."

"I don't really think you have to do anything," Kinsley said, frowning thoughtfully.  "I mean, just be there for him.  Don't expect too much out of him."  It didn't feel like enough, but I shrugged and let Lauren change the subject.

My phone vibrated shortly after and I saw a text from Brody.  I was reading it when I heard Lauren say, "Wow, that's a big deal."

I looked up, confused.  "What's going on?" I asked.

Kinsley rolled her eyes.  "Damien and I planning to go on a trip together once tax season is over."

"Wow, that is a big deal," I agree, grinning.  "And awesome."

She smiled, then frowned.  "I just have to make it through tax season first.  Speaking of, I should get back to the office soon, I need to do one more return before I can go home tonight."  We finished our dinners, paid, and were heading out about 15 minutes later.

I drove home and called Brody.  "Hey, sorry, I was at dinner with Lauren and Kinsley," I greeted him when he answered.

"No problem," he replied.  He asked about my day and and then asked a bunch of questions about Lauren and Kinsley.

"Are you avoiding talking about your day?" I finally asked.

"Nothing gets by you," he quipped sarcastically.  I was surprised by his tone but didn't say anything, because I knew he was super stressed.  After a short pause, he said, "I'm sorry, that was shitty of me.  Yes, I'd rather not talk about my day today."

"It's okay," I assured him.  "I get it."  We talked about my day and random things for awhile longer.  Brody yawned several times.  "Do you want me to let you go so you can sleep?" I asked gently.

"No, not really," he replied stubbornly.  "I'm sorry, I didn't sleep well last night.  But I don't want to go yet." 

I struggled to find more things to talk about.  I took a chance and asked about Jack and Brody talked about him for awhile.  I ended up brushing my teeth and getting into bed while he talked. 

Nearly an hour after I had called him, he said, "I'm sorry, I've kept you on the phone forever.  You probably have things you need to do."

"Nope, actually I'm laying in bed being completely lazy and it's perfect.  We can talk as long as you want," I assured him.  I had never met a guy that enjoyed long phone conversations, and Brody usually didn't, but I assumed it was better than sitting in his hotel room stewing on what was going on. 

"Okay," he said hesitantly.  "Oh, hey!  This weekend is when you meet Nadine and Jonathan, right?  Are you nervous?"

"Yeah," I replied.  "And yes, I am.  Super nervous.  I have no idea why, though."  We talked about that for awhile, and finally Brody was yawning more than he wasn't.

"Okay, I guess I really should try to sleep," he admitted.  We said goodnight and I was about to hang up the phone when I heard him say, "Hey, wait."

"Yeah?" I asked.

"Thank you.  For talking for so long, I mean.  It helped."

"Good," I said smiling.  "I'm glad I could do something." 

You Don't Know Jack

On Saturday morning, I woke up confused for a second, then remembered I was still in Miami with Brody.  I shifted a little and grinned when he stirred, his arm tightening around my waist.  I had always needed my space when I slept before I started dating Brody, but I quickly started to enjoy sleeping with our bodies pressed together.  Now I felt weird when I was sleeping by myself.

"Good morning," he murmured sleepily against the back of my head.

I wiggled around until I was facing him and wrapped both of my arms around him.  "Good morning," I said, pressing my face against his chest.  We laid like that for several minutes until Brody's phone rang.

"Damn it," he muttered irritably, and we quickly untangled ourselves so he could get up and grab it from the table where he had left it last night.  He was out in the living area of the suite for several minutes, then he came back into the bedroom and sat on the edge of the bed.  "Do you want to order room service?  I don't feel like getting up yet, but I'm kind of hungry."  I agreed, and after we ordered he laid back down next to me.  He pulled me over against him and I settled my head against his chest.  We laid in bed talking until breakfast came, then we ate in bed and laid there for another hour or so.

"What do you want to do today?" he asked, finally.

I stretched while I considered this.  "Hmmm, something outside.  It's so nice out compared to Denver."

We ended up going to a nearby state park and wandering around on the "hiking" trails and the beach for most of the afternoon.  While we were driving back to the hotel to shower and change for dinner, a sharp, shrill ringing came from the car speakers.  He glanced down at his phone in the cupholder and swore before hitting the bluetooth button on the steering wheel.

I peeked curiously at the phone while it was ringing and saw the unfamiliar name Jack Friedrich on the display.

"Hey Jack," Brody said.

"What the hell, Adler?   You're in Miami and I have to find out from Alexa?" 

Brody rolled his eyes.  "Well it's not like I sought her out.  I'm here on business, I haven't had much free time."

"Speaking of free, Alexa mentioned that you had a girl with you.  A girlfriend.  She didn't seem to think much of her, but she must be one hot piece of ass if you--"

"Watch it, Jack," Brody warned.  He glanced at me and mouthed, "Sorry."  I shrugged.

"Shit, am I on speaker?"

"You are, but even if you weren't..."

Jack interrupted, "Okay, okay.  Point taken.  Anyway, I want to see you, and so does the rest of the old crew.  Come out tonight.  Bring the girlfriend."

"I'd love to," Brody said, "But Liv is only here for the weekend and I'd really like to spend the evening with her."

"One drink," Jack wheedled.  "You guys are probably going out to dinner, right?  Just one drink after dinner.  Then you can go fu--spend time with your girlfriend."

Brody glanced over at me and I nodded.  As much as I wanted to spend the evening with Brody in his hotel room, I knew very little about his years in Miami and was curious to meet the people he had been friends with here.

"Are you sure?" Brody whispered.  "They haven't changed much since college."

I shrugged.  "So what?  Yeah, let's go."

"Hello?" came Jack's impatient voice from the speaker.

"Sorry, I was checking with Olivia," Brody replied.  "One drink."

Jack told him where they would be and when they were going.  When Brody hung up, he sighed.  "Alexa might be there," he warned me.

"Okay," I replied, but I wasn't thrilled at the prospect.  "What are you so worried about?"

"I just haven't seen much of them since college, but I've heard enough to know that they're still 21 in their heads.  I just don't want you to judge me based on them."  By this point we were back to the hotel and he turned off the SUV and turned to look at me.

"I'm not going to judge you based on them," I replied reassuringly.  "Look, I know very little about Miami you, and I gather that there's a reason for that.  But it's not like I don't know you weren't exactly an angel before we met.  I'm excited to meet your friends.  We'll have one drink, then we'll come back and relax.  But if you really don't want to go, that's fine, we definitely don't have to."

"No," he replied quickly.  "I actually would like to see them, I just don't want you to be uncomfortable.  If you're fine though, we'll go."

We got out and Brody handed the keys to the valet.  When we got to the room, I started for the bathroom, but he grabbed my arm.  "What's the rush?" he asked, pulling me towards him and kissing me.

"I'm all sweaty and gross," I protested.

"Sweaty maybe, but definitely not gross," he countered, grabbing my hips and pressing his body against mine.  I started to argue but he pressed his lips against mine, silencing me.  I still would have preferred to shower first, but his fingers sliding beneath my shirt was enough to convince me otherwise. He tugged off my shirt and my bra and was rolling a nipple between his fingers when he asked, "Do you still want to shower first?"

"Shut up," I gasped, reaching for his shorts.  He chuckled and pulled his shirt off before backing me up to the bed.

When we were finished, we got into the huge shower together and then quickly got dressed and ready to go out to dinner.  We decided to take a cab because Brody didn't feel like driving.  When we were seated at the restaurant, I smiled at Brody.  "So, what should I know about your friends?" I asked.

He laughed.  "They're wild and immature.  Be prepared to hear some less than savory stories about everything tonight, including me."

"Especially about you, I hope," I replied with a smirk.  He shook his head, trying not to smile.  He did look a little nervous though.

We enjoyed our dinner, then walked over to the bar that Jack had said they'd be at.  It was not my type of place at all.  It was dark, hot, crowded, and loud, there was a packed dance floor (already?  It was only 8:30) in the middle of everything.  "It's quieter upstairs," Brody said in my ear, motioning with his head to the stairs in the corner.  He laid a hand on shoulder, stroking the nape of my neck with his thumb as we walked over and up the stairs.

"Get a drink first?" he asked, gently turning me towards the bar.  I nodded.  We walked over and his hand dropped from my shoulder and settled on my waist, pulling me close to him.  While we waited for our drinks, Brody turned and scanned the bar.  He must have found them because he waved and turned back to me.

After we got our drinks, we made our way through the people to a table in the corner which was occupied by three guys and a girl.  Two of the guys stood up and gave Brody an awkward man half-hug.  The other smirked at him and said, "I'm not standing for an asshole who can't even tell me when he's in town."  But then he broke into a huge grin and jumped down from his stool and gave Brody a real hug.  "It's been way too long, man, it's good to see you." 

He turned to me and Brody quickly introduced me to Jack, Aaron, Chris, and Erica.  I kept mixing up Aaron and Chris in my head, so I decided I wouldn't actually say either of their names out loud.

"It's nice to meet you," Jack said, throwing a charming smile my way.  I couldn't help but notice how hot he was.  He was a perfect opposite of Brody, features-wise.  Blonde hair, blue eyes, a little taller than Brody, similar build.  No wonder they got into so much trouble together.  "I'm honored to meet the woman that got Brody to settle down."

I laughed.  "I'm not sure how much credit I can take for that, but it's nice to meet you too."  They shifted their seats so we could sit.

Jack eyed up Brody's IWC watch.  "Looks like you're doing well for yourself," he commented.  "I don't even know what kind of watch that is, but it looks expensive."

Chris (or Aaron?) laughed.  "I'd bet that watch cost more than you make in three months, Jack."

Brody shrugged, looking uncomfortable.  The watch, which he had bought in celebration of buying out his company, was an out of character splurge for him but I knew he loved it. 

"Seriously, though," Jack said.  "I heard through the PR grapevine that you bought out Denver and don't work for your dad anymore.  That's awesome, congrats."

"Thanks," Brody said, the smile returning to his face.  "It's been a lot of hard work, but it's pretty great to have my own company now."  They talked about the company for awhile and then the guys caught Brody up on what they were up to.  They were loud and a little rowdy, but overall I thought Brody had exaggerated on their lack of maturity.  Erica didn't say a word, and occasionally glared at me.  Okay then.  I made a relevant comment or asked a question here and there but I was mostly quiet while they caught up.

When they were done, Aaron (I think?  Maybe it was Chris) turned to me and with a smile asked, "So Olivia, what do you do?"  I told them about my job and the guys asked me a few more questions.  Erica was buried in her phone.

When I finished my drink, Brody leaned over and whispered, "Do you want to stay or go?"

"It's up to you.  I'm fine if you want to stay, it seems like you're having fun."

"One more drink," he replied.  I nodded.  We excused ourselves and went up to the bar.  "Are you sure you're okay?" he asked.

"Do I look not okay?" I replied, laughing.  "I'm fine.  Your friends are nice.  Well, besides Erica, what's her deal?"

Brody rolled his eyes.  "She's Alexa's friend.  I'm sure Alexa told her to be an ice queen.  She's actually usually pretty cool if you can catch her without Alexa."  I wasn't quite sure I believed that, but at least  I understood why she wasn't my number one fan.

When we returned to the table, someone was sitting in my seat.  It took me a second to process, but I realized it was Alexa.  Great.  Brody groaned.  "I'm rethinking these drinks now," he said.  I agreed, but we continued to the table.  There was only room for 6 stools at the table, so Brody stood so I could have his, since mine was taken.  Aaron-or-Chris immediately offered to give up his seat so Brody could sit too but Brody waved him off.  He stood slightly behind me, almost between me and Alexa.

"Oh, sorry," Alexa cooed insincerely.  "Did I take your spot?"

"No, he was clearly standing the whole time in anticipation of your arrival," Jack said, rolling his eyes.

"He would," Alexa retorted with a smirk.  "I think we all know that."

"Well, this got weird really fast," Chris-or-Aaron muttered. 

"I'm impressed with how much you've matured, Alexa," Brody commented sarcastically, draining his drink.

Alexa laughed.  "And I'm not impressed with how you think you're too good for us now, with your fancy suits and your cute little 'girlfriend' and your very own little company."  She turned to Jack.  "Did you know Brody was down here for two months in August and September?  Did he call you once?  Shoot you a text to see how you were doing?"

Jack looked at Brody.  "Is that true?" he asked, clearly hurt.

Brody sighed.  "It's true, Jack, but I was working from dawn to midnight nearly every day.  My dad barely let me out of his sight.  It's not like I purposely avoided you.  I really would have loved to see you." 

"Yeah, let's talk about your dad," Alexa continued to the topic that had been tactfully avoided up until this point, undeterred by the looks she was getting from everyone at the table except Erica, who sitting in her seat watching the goings-on with a tiny smile on her pretty, smug face.  "Really mature of you to leave him hanging.  And now he's out of the country and can probably never come back.  Do you feel good about that?"

Brody gaped at her. "Are you fucking kidding me?" he asked, shocked.  "And how do you know so much about this?"  Alexa simply smirked in response and Brody's look of shock quickly turned to a look of disgust.  "Never mind, I can use my imagination."

"You fucked his dad?!" Jack yelped, immediately drawing the attention of the people at tables around us.  "Wow, even I didn't think you were that desperate and dirty, and you know I've never liked you."  Alexa just laughed.

"Let's go," Brody growled in my ear.

"Gladly," I replied, quickly finishing my drink.


As we walked out the door, Jack caught up to us.  "Look, Jack--" Brody started.

"No, don't," Jack interrupted.  "I'm not mad.  I'm sorry she ruined what started as a good evening.  Look, how long are you around?  Can we get dinner or a drink or something?"

"I'll be here for about another week.  I'll call you so we can catch up uninterrupted."

Jack grinned.  "That sounds good." He turned to me and extended his hand.  "It was really great to meet you, and I'm impressed that you kept your cool while Alexa was popping off at the mouth in there.  Brody's a lucky guy."

I gave him a tight smile.  "I'm pretty lucky too, no matter what she thinks."  He smiled back and walked back into the bar while Brody looked for a cab.

Brody was silent on the short cab ride back to the hotel.  I gave him his space, while I silently cursed Alexa for putting him in a foul mood on my last night here.   When we got up to the room, Brody stormed around for a few minutes before going through the bedroom into the bathroom and slamming the door.  I heard the shower start.  I changed into a pair of comfy shorts and a t-shirt and sat on the couch flipping through TV channels. 

Brody came out of the bedroom a few minutes later in shorts and a t-shirt.  He sat down on the other end of the couch and motioned me towards him.  I laid down and rested my head on his leg.  "I'm sorry, that was a clusterfuck," he apologized, running his fingers through my hair.

"She was pretty wretched, are you okay?"  I asked, rolling over to look up at him.

"I'm fine," he replied, brushing a piece of hair out of my face.  "Thanks for letting me have some time."  I nodded as I sat up and wrapped my arms around him.  He hugged me back and kissed the top of my head, and we sat there for a long time before untangling ourselves and heading to bed.

Warm Welcome

On Thursday, I went straight from work to the airport.  My flight left at 6, and it was a 4 hour flight.  Since Miami was two hours ahead, I got there a little after midnight, local time.  Brody had some work stuff to do Friday morning, but as of lunch time on Friday, he'd be all mine.

Down in the baggage claim area, I spotted him before he saw me.  I took a moment to enjoy the fluttering in my stomach that still happened every time I saw him, before walking quickly over and throwing my arms around him.

"Hey!" he said happily, hugging me back tightly.  "I'm so glad you're here."  He pulled back and kissed me.  The kiss was soft at first, but quickly progressed to a smoldering PDA that was completely out of character for him.  When we broke apart, I was breathless.

"I guess you are," I said, when I had caught my breath.  "I'm glad I'm here too."  He grabbed my bag and slid his other arm around my shoulders, and we walked out of the airport.

When we stopped at a sleek silver Range Rover, I raised my eyebrows.  "The board spared no expenses," Brody said.  "Wait til you see the hotel room they put me up in."  He navigated the big vehicle confidently out of the parking lot and into traffic. 

"Have you ever been here?"  he asked, stepping quickly on the brake when someone pulled in front of him.

"Once for a couple days when I was in middle school, but I don't really remember anything," I replied.

"I can see how Miami wouldn't make much of an impression on a 12 year old," he said with a smirk.   So far, all I saw were lights and cars.  "Did you get your appointment rescheduled?"  I was supposed to have my second therapy appointment tomorrow but had rescheduled it and gone yesterday.

I rolled my eyes.  "Yes, dad, I went yesterday.  It was good."

"Sorry," he said sheepishly.  "I just want you to take care of yourself, and you're not always so good at doing it on your own."  He had a point, but he was the same way.  He drove through the busy downtown streets and pulled up in front of a large hotel.  The valet opened my door as Brody grabbed my bag from the backseat.  I was always a little overwhelmed by valets and doormen, and in my tired state after a full day of work and traveling, it was all I could to smile politely and murmur thanks.

Brody took my hand and we walked in.  We stepped out of the elevator at the top floor of the hotel, and Brody opened the door to a huge suite.  "Wow," I said, looking around.  Brody nodded, setting my bag on the couch that was perfectly positioned facing the large windows that overlooked downtown Miami.  He came up behind me, wrapping his arms around me.

"Does this fancy suite have a shower?" I asked, leaning my head back against his shoulder.

"As a matter of fact, it does have a shower.  I'm pretty sure 6 people will fit in it, too."

"Oh good, we'll have to try that tomorrow," I joked. 

He laughed, kissing me on the cheek.  "Go shower.  Then, I believe I have some promises to keep."  That perked me up quickly, despite the late hour, and I headed for the giant bathroom.

After my shower, Brody proceeded to do everything he had promised in our phone conversation earlier in the week.  I got impatient halfway through and tried to rush things, but he wasn't having it.  Almost two hours later we collapsed next to each other on the bed, exhausted and satisfied.

"If that's how you greet me after 8 days apart, you should go on longer trips more often," I said, when my brain cleared.   He just laughed and wrapped his arms around me, pulling me close to him.  We fell asleep like that.

I woke up early the next morning when Brody's alarm went off.  "Good morning, beautiful," he murmured against my ear, drawing a finger down my arm.

"Morning," I replied, pushing my hips back against his.  His hand moved up to my breast, cupping it and rolling my nipple between his fingers.  I moaned and pushed my hips back harder against him.  He pushed into me from behind, holding me tightly against him as he thrust slowly, grinding his hips against mine at the deepest point of each thrust.  I gasped as his lips found the back of my neck.

"Mmmm, I am so glad you came down," he breathed, before picking up the pace.

He stayed curled around me for a few minutes after.  Then he sighed and sat up, stretching.  He pulled the blanket back up over me.   "What time is it?" I asked.

He checked his watch.  "Almost 6:30 now.  Go back to sleep.  I'll be back in time for lunch, and we'll have the rest of the afternoon together."  He leaned down and kissed me gently before heading into the bathroom.  I fell asleep before he finished showering, and didn't wake up when he left.

I was up, showered, and ready to go by the time Brody came back at 12:30.  I had a restaurant for lunch picked out, a tapas place within walking distance of our hotel.  It was sunny and close to 70 degrees, and it felt amazing as we walked.

After we had ordered several plates and drinks, Brody said, "Robert, the chairman of the board, invited us out to dinner tonight.  It's totally up to you if you want to go."

"Sure, why not," I replied. 

Brody called Robert to let him know we were up for dinner, then put his phone away.  He grinned at me across the table.  "Do you have anything to wear to an obnoxiously overpriced restaurant?" he asked.

I thought for a minute, then shook my head.  "I don't think so, sorry."

"Don't be, you didn't know you'd need it.  I guess we'd better do some shopping today then," he replied.

I raised an eyebrow.  "You?  Shopping?  This ought to be interesting."

He grimaced.  "Anything for you," he said, winking.

After lunch, we wandered through downtown for awhile. Brody stopped outside a pricy-looking women's clothing boutique.  "Well?" he said, motioning towards it.

I shook my head.  "I can't afford anything in there."

"Good thing you're not paying then, huh?" he replied.  I glared at him.  "Seriously, Liv.  I won't even tell you the insane amount of money they're paying me for this consulting work, but if I'm going to drag you to this dinner, let me spend a very small portion of it on your clothing for it."  Without giving me a chance to argue, he tugged me firmly towards the door.  How very Pretty Woman.

We walked out nearly an hour later with a gorgeous deep emerald dress and a pair of ridiculous expensive, but amazingly comfortable, bronze pointed-toe pumps.   "Now what?" Brody asked, when we got back to the hotel.

I frowned and inspected my nails.  "I'm seriously considering going down to the spa and getting a manicure because my nails are awful, and I feel like I can't wear that dress with my nails looking like a hot mess."  I paused, then grinned at Brody.  "You should come too.  You can get a pedicure."

It took a little convincing, but 20 minutes later we were both getting pedicures.  Even though he agreed that the pedicure was awesome and his feet looked and felt great, he drew the line at a manicure and refused to join me for that.  Instead, he sat and talked to me while I got a gel manicure with a bronze polish that would match the shoes we got nearly perfectly. 

By the time we were done, it was time to get ready for dinner.  Brody let me shower first, and I dried my hair while he showered.  When I was done with my hair and makeup, I carefully slipped my new dress and shoes on.  "Well?" I asked, turning in a slow circle.  "What do you think?"

"I think it's too damn bad we need to leave for dinner in 5 minutes, because you look amazing," he said, sliding his arms around my waist and kissing me softly.

"Well, that works," I responded, pushing my fingers into his hair and massaging his scalp.

"No, don't do that, or we'll end up late," he groaned.  I laughed.

Dinner, for being "obnoxiously overpriced" was really quite good.  Robert was an older gentleman, probably in his early 60s, and he was very polite and soft-spoken.  I wondered how he had stood a chance against Brian Adler.  We lingered at the restaurant for awhile after our meal, finishing a bottle of wine.  Eventually, we parted ways.

As Brody and I were walking out, hand in hand, a rich, throaty female voice said, "Well, if it isn't the infamous Brody Adler, back in his old stomping grounds."

We both turned.  The voice belonged to a stunningly gorgeous woman with thick, jet black hair and icy blue eyes.  "Alexa," Brody said in surprise.  I had no idea who she was, but immediately pegged her as ex.  She turned her piercing gaze on me, looked me up and down, and must have determined me not worth her time because she quickly turned her eyes back to Brody.

"Just visiting?" she asked, stepping closer to him.

"Here on business," he replied curtly.  He turned to me.  "Liv, this is a friend from school, Alexa.  Alexa, this is my girlfriend, Olivia."

"Girlfriend?" she scoffed, looking back at me briefly.  "Huh.  Cute."  The way she said it was not complimentary.  Brody bristled, but I squeezed his hand.  He remained tense but kept his mouth shut.

"Well, Alexa, it was nice to see you, but we need to get going," Brody said, after a long pause.  She gave him a half-hearted hug and me a disgusted glance, then turned on her very high, very expensive looking heel and left.

"She seems lovely," I said with a smirk when we got in the car.  "I thought you said you didn't have any exes."

Brody laughed.  "She's not really an ex.  We hooked up for awhile in college.  A long while, I guess.  I developed feelings for her, she didn't reciprocate, I cut things off.  She's..."

"A huge bitch," I supplied helpfully.

"Yes.  A huge bitch," he agreed.  He glanced over at me and I smiled.  "Are you upset?" he asked.  "I guess I should have told you about her, she's the closest thing to an ex I have."

"Not at all," I assured him.  Jealousy has never been my thing.  I don't put up with jealous significant others, and I don't get jealous either (unless the mistress is work...).  The only thing that bugged me about Alexa was her nasty attitude. 

Traffic downtown was heavy and it took a ridiculously long time to get to our hotel, which was barely a mile away.  By the time we got back to the hotel room, I was completely ready to lay in bed, and Brody looked positively exhausted.  He couldn't have gotten more than 3 hours of sleep the night before, so I was surprised when he slid his arms around me from behind and kissed the back of my neck as I took off my shoes and my necklace.

"You must have really missed me," I teased, as he pushed the strap of my dress down with one finger, his lips trailing after.

"I really missed you," he confirmed, before moving his finger and mouth to my other shoulder.  Soon he had my dress off, though I did stop him so I could hang it up instead of leaving it on the floor.  He took the opportunity to get rid of his clothes.

Since we were both a little worn out from last night and this morning, we didn't actually have sex, but we spent over an hour laying together, letting our hands and mouths wander.  It was incredibly intimate and when we finally dragged our lips apart to sleep, I felt more content and connected with him than I ever had.   

Not Yet

Brody came over again on Tuesday night.  He confirmed that he was leaving for Miami the next evening.  I felt another stab of anxiety but pushed it away.  Brody had also learned a little more about the situation after his teleconference with the investigators today.  

"Basically, my dad was involved in just about every type of white-collar crime that exists," he explained.  "Fraud, forgery, extortion, embezzlement, bribery.  It makes me sick just thinking about it all, and how it was probably going on right under my nose."

"I wonder if that's why he sent you off to Denver," I mused.

Brody looked surprised.  "I honestly didn't even think about that, but it would make sense," he agreed.  "Hey, will you take me to the airport tomorrow?"  I said yes, but I couldn't keep my face from falling as I thought about him leaving tomorrow.  Brody grabbed my hand pulled me toward him.  "Stop it," he instructed.

"Stop what?" I asked.

"Stop thinking about me leaving."

I smirked at him.  "Make me," I teased, cocking an eyebrow.  He laughed and stood, picking me up and throwing me over his shoulder.  He carried me upstairs and set me down on my bed.  His stubble scraped gently across my cheek as he kissed my neck, then my jaw, then my lips.

I started to pull off my shirt but he put his hands over mine.  "Not yet," he said, grinning when I glared at him.  He pushed my hands away and replaced them with his own, sliding over my sides on top of my shirt.  We laid back, and as he kissed me he trailed his fingers all across my fully-clothed body until I was squirming and practically begging him to let me lose the clothes.  He relented and sat up so I could pull my shirt and bra off.  My hands moved to take off my pants but he stopped me again.  "Not yet," he repeated.  I practically growled at him, but it was cut off by his mouth on mine and his fingers against my breasts.

Several agonizing minutes later he was tugging off my pants.  I gasped when his fingers slid against me.  "Not yet," he said again, when I reached for his pants.  My noise of frustration quickly turned to a moan as he pressed his fingers harder against me, and my moan turned to a cry of pleasure as I came.

"I need you inside me right now," I gasped.  "Or I swear I will kill you."

He laughed as he quickly took off his clothes and nudged my legs apart.  I moaned again and pushed my hips up against his as he slid into me.  He spent the next 20 minutes continuing to make me forget about him leaving, and when we were done, I could barely think about anything.  My brain felt like it had melted and I couldn't even form a coherent sentence.

"Come here," Brody murmured after we had both recovered for a couple minutes, pulling me over towards him.  I scooted over and laid my head on his chest.  He wrapped one arm around me tightly while the fingers of his other hand moved across my shoulder blades.  "Feel any better?" he asked.

I nodded against his chest.  "But I still don't want you to go."

He chuckled.  "I don't want to either," he admitted.  "This is going to be really weird.  And I'll miss you."

"I love you," I said, snuggling closer to him.  I could no longer resist the heaviness of my eyelids and I let them close.

"I love you too," he replied, tightening his arm around me.


After work the next day I drove out to Brody's house.  He had only worked part of a day and I was picking him up at home.  He lived in the opposite direction of the airport, but I didn't mind.  That was more time to spend with him before he left, even if it was in the car.

He was ready to go when I got there and the drive to the airport went way too fast.  I felt ridiculous for being so sad about him leaving, when it was only two weeks, but I couldn't help it.  Rationally, I knew that this was different from the last time, but it was still not fun.

I parked in drop-off area and got out of the car as Brody pulled his suitcase out of the back.  I swallowed hard, but as much as I tried to fight it, my lip started to tremble.  "Hey, don't do that," Brody said gently after he had shut the back and pulled his suitcase over to me.  He wrapped his arms around me in a tight hug as I sniffled.  "It's okay," he soothed me.  "It'll go fast."  We stood there for a few moments, but then he had to go.  He pulled back and held me at arm's length.  "I'll call you when I get there, okay?  If it's too late, I'll just text to let you know I made it."

"No," I protested.  "Call.  I don't care how late it is."  He nodded and kissed me.  I kissed him back, trying to prolong it as much as I could.  Finally I let him pull away.

He hugged me one more time and kissed me on the forehead.  "I'll talk to you tonight.  I love you, Liv."  I told him I loved him too and quickly got back into my car so I could get out of everyone else's way.  I sighed and told myself to stop being ridiculous as I put my car in gear and drove home.

I was half asleep in bed when my phone buzzed with a text from Brody letting me know they had landed and he'd call when he was at the hotel.  I tried to stay awake to wait for his call but I was sleeping when my phone finally rang.  "Hi," I said sleepily.

"Hey, were you sleeping?  I'm sorry," he replied.

"Don't be, I told you to call.  How was your flight?"

"It was fine.  Long.  The board has me set up in a really nice room at least," Brody said, before yawning.  "Liv, I'd love to talk longer but it's nearly 2:30 here, and I have to be to an 8am meeting."

"Okay, I should get to sleep too.  I love you."

"I love you too, Liv.  Goodnight."  I said goodnight and hung up, falling quickly back to sleep.


On Saturday, Lauren, Kinsley, Cassie, and I went out.  It was nice to catch up with everyone together.  Cassie was still sleeping with both Nick and James (though James more than Nick).  And she was still quite happy with the situation.  More power to her.

"And how's Alex?" Cassie asked Lauren.  Lauren blushed, which made me laugh.  Lauren does not blush.

"Good," Lauren said.  She smiled, then said, "Actually, really good.  I'm glad you guys talked me into going out with him."  I beamed.  I was so happy she was happy.

Kinsley reported that she and Damien had been spending more nights together than apart.  "It's so weird," she said, shaking her head.

"I think you mean 'normal'," Lauren said.  "That's what normal people do.  We're not normal."  This led us to an extended, slightly drunken discussion on normal vs abnormal and relationships.

We ended the night around 1.  I wanted to call Brody but knew it was 3am there.  I sent him a quick text instead, hoping it wouldn't wake him up, and went to bed.



On Monday, I missed a call from Brody while I was at the gym with Kinsley.  After I was home and showered, I called him back, hoping to catch him.  He answered on the second ring.

"I miss you," he said.  "I wish you were here."

"Oh yeah?  And what would you do if I were there?" I asked.  He then spent the next 10 minutes describing in great, scandalous detail all the things he'd do if I wasn't nearly 2000 miles away. 

"You are a horrible tease," I moaned when he was done.

He laughed.  "You asked for it.  And besides, all that could be yours if you come down this weekend."  It took me a minute to process what he said.

"Wait, this weekend?" I asked.  "Seriously?"

"Why not?" he replied.  "This week is your Friday off, right?  You could fly out Thursday night and fly back on Sunday.  Come see me." 

"I would love to," I responded.  "I'd have to reschedule my therapy appointment, but I could look at tickets, at least."  I wasn't sure if I could really spare the money for a weekend trip right now, but I remembered Brody commenting on how cheap the tickets had been when he booked his.

"You don't have to," he replied.  "I already booked you one."

Now it was my turn to laugh.  "Confident, huh?"

"Well, you made my argument pretty easy when you asked what I'd do if you were here.  I booked a 6pm flight on Thursday, and a 5pm flight on Sunday, but we can change the times if you want.  Will you come?"

"I'll come," I said, smiling.

And just like that, I was going on a weekend trip to Miami. 

Conflict of Interest

I had my first therapy appointment on Friday, and the place was a 45 minute drive away.  I briefly considered canceling it, but I told myself I was being ridiculous and went.  Alyssa, the therapist, was young, upbeat, and had a good sense of humor.  I liked her right away.  I was able to tell her about what had happened with Jordan, plus we talked a little bit about what was going on right now with with the Sanders calling me.  We didn't talk about anything in much detail, as it was an initial appointment, but I felt comfortable, and I made an appointment to go back in two weeks.

 On Saturday, I called Nadine while I was at Brody's house.  "Hi, um, Mrs. Sanders?  This is Olivia."  I was so nervous to make this phone call that I was pacing the living room.  I tried sitting down in one of the chairs but stood right back up again.  Brody watched me pace. 

"Olivia!  Please call me Nadine.  Hello, dear," she said, sounding surprised and a little scattered.

"Hi," I said again, dumbly.  I shook my head at myself.  "I had some time to think and I'd like to meet you guys."  I cut right to the chase, not knowing what else to say.  There was silence in the other end for several long seconds.  Did I lose her?  "Mrs.--um, Nadine?  Hello?"

"Yes, yes, I'm here.  Sorry.  I'm just a little surprised, I didn't expect to hear back from you, honestly.  But I'm so happy to."  She sounded like she was near tears, and I was again surprised by her strong desire to find me and meet me.

"I know you live in Utah," I said, trying to redirect the conversation because I was a little uncomfortable with the display of emotion.  "What were you thinking?"

"Well, we try to get to Denver a few times a year.  We haven't been this winter yet, so I think we can perhaps arrange a weekend trip out there.  Our...well, we have some family in the area, so we can work our plans around your schedule and maybe we could meet for coffee or dinner or something.  Whatever you want.  We realize that this is probably a bit overwhelming for you, so we're willing to be flexible with what you want to do."

We talked for several more minutes, choosing a weekend that worked for both of us.  We decided to get coffee on the Sunday morning of that weekend, because I worked on Saturday.  She made no mention of the kids, and I didn't ask about them.  When I hung up, I blew out a shaky breath and sat down heavily on the couch next to Brody.  He squeezed my leg gently and I slid my fingers between his.

"So, three weeks, huh?" he asked.

I nodded.  "I didn't expect it to be so soon," I admitted.  "I'm not sure how I feel about that."

Brody looked like he was about to reply, but his phone rang.  He rolled his eyes and pulled it out of his pocket.  "Just a sec," he told me.  He answered it and spoke for a couple minutes.  "Sorry," he said after hanging up.

"It's okay," I replied.  "How is work, anyway?  It seems like you haven't been getting as many calls."

"It's been good since Pete and Neil started taking calls too," he said, putting his arm around me.  "Cassie has the next round of interviews set up, so hopefully we'll find a couple people and I can cut down my hours a little in general soon."  I liked the sound of that.

The rest of the weekend was low key.  We decided to stay in Saturday night, but we went out to brunch with Lauren, Alex, Kinsley, Christian, and Kendra on Sunday.  After brunch, Brody, Christian, and Alex went off to do guy things, and Lauren, Kinsley, Kendra and I went shopping.  I didn't find anything I felt like buying, but Lauren and Kendra both found a ton.  It was nice to hang out with them, in any case.

On Monday I was finishing up the contact note for my last client before lunch  when my desk phone rang.  I hardly ever used it, and I was surprised when Brody was on the other end.  "I tried your cell but it went straight to voicemail," he said.  I told him it must have died, and he practically interrupted me.  "Can we get lunch?"

I pulled up my schedule to double check, but I had two hours scheduled for lunch today because I was hoping to get ahead of some of my paperwork.  "Yeah, you have good timing, I'm just finishing up and I have a couple hours.  Is everything okay?"  He sounded weird.

"No, not really.  I'll tell you about it at lunch."  We made plans to meet in 20 minutes.  I finished my note and grabbed my stuff and left.

Brody was already there when I got there, pacing outside the door.  "Hi," I greeted him.  He gave me a perfunctory kiss on the cheek but he was obviously distracted.

Once we were settled with our food (and he had yet to say a word besides "hi") I looked at him and said, "Brody, what's going on?"

He rubbed his jaw and took a deep breath before talking.  "My dad is in a lot of trouble," he started.  I thought of the night he showed up at Brody's house and immediately grew nervous.  "I got a call today, from the police, or the FBI, or someone...I don't even know.  He's gone.  They think he left the country."

I stared at him.  "But...why?" I asked, confused.

"I don't know.  They wouldn't tell me what they were investigating, just that they were investigating him for some suspicious financial activity."  I continued to stare at him.  I had no idea what to say.  "Liv, if I hadn't left the company when I did..." he trailed off, but I knew exactly where he was going with it.

"Wow," I said, finally.  "So now what?"

He shrugged.  "The investigators know he was out here, so they want to talk to me a little more.  I've got a phone conference scheduled with them tomorrow.  I don't think there's anything else I can do, though." 

"Is there anything I can do?" I asked.  I tilted my head, trying to make eye contact with him.  He had been staring over my shoulder, but brought his eyes back to mine. 

"Can I stay at your house tonight?" he asked. 

"Of course," I replied.  "Is that it?"  He nodded.  We finished our lunch quietly.

"Are you going back to work?" I asked with concern as we walked out.

"I don't have a choice," he replied.  "I probably shouldn't have left for lunch, but I needed a break."  I nodded.  "I'll see you tonight," he said, when we got to my car.  He hugged me tightly and kissed me before pulling open my car door for me.  He leaned in and kissed me again, then shut the door carefully.

I focused hard on my clients for the rest of the day and managed to distract myself from thinking about Brody's dad.  When I got home, I started making dinner.  Brody walked in at about 7:30, right as I was finishing up.

"Excellent timing," I said with a grin.  He smiled weakly back.  I grabbed a beer out of my fridge and handed it to him as he walked into the kitchen, yanking off his tie.  He took it from me and caught me around the waist.

"Thank you," he murmured as he pulled me against his side.  I slid my arms around his waist and rested my head against his shoulder.  We stood like that for well over a minute, before I pulled away to turn off the stove.

"Are you hungry?" I asked.  He shrugged.  I handed him a plate, knowing he'd eat anyway.  He put food on it and sat down, pushing things around his plate.

I sat too, and was just taking my first bite when he suddenly said, "I got another phone call this afternoon."  I chewed and looked at him expectantly.  "It was the chairman of the board of my dad's company.  They want to hire me as a temporary consultant to help them straighten out this mess."  I froze, staring at him.

"So, does that mean...?" I couldn't finish my sentence.

He nodded.  "If I do it, they want me down there for a couple weeks.  They want me to fly down on Wednesday."

"Wednesday?" I squeaked.  I took a breath and cleared my throat.  "It's Monday.  And isn't it some sort of conflict of interest?"  I didn't like the idea of him going to Miami at all.  For one, it brought up bad memories of the last time he went...but much more importantly, I was worried about him getting involved in something he didn't need to be involved in, and adding to the stress and high emotion of the situation.

I could barely listen as he explained how it would work and why, as long as the investigators cleared it, it wouldn't be a problem.  "Liv," he said gently, when he was finished explaining.  "It won't be like last time."  I didn't say anything, not sure how to explain what I was really worried about.  "If you really don't want me to go, I won't."

I blinked at him in surprise.  "Really?" I asked, not sure if I had heard him right.

"Really," he said firmly.  "And if I do go, it will be totally different.  We're in a different place in our relationship, and I'd only be going for two weeks, three at the most.  And I don't work for the company anymore so they can't make me stay.  But if you're uncomfortable with it, I'll tell them no."

"No," I said quickly.  "I don't want you to do that.  I mean, I really, really appreciate that you'd say no for me.  But I'm okay with it.  Well, 'okay' probably isn't the right word, because I don't love it, but I'll live.  I'm really glad that you gave me the chance to weigh in though."  I stopped, abruptly cutting off my own rambling.  Brody laughed.  "Actually though, that's not really what I'm worried about."  Brody looked at me curiously.  "I'm worried about you.  This is a lot to take on."

"I'll be okay," he assured me.

"That's what I'm worried about," I replied.  "You'll say that, but will you really be?"

"You could come with me," he suggested.  We both knew that I couldn't, though.  

"I'd love to, if I wasn't still brand new at my job," I responded with a frown.

Brody helped me clean up after dinner and we went straight to bed.  He was completely worn out from a long day and the news about his dad, and I was feeling completely unmotivated to do anything but sleep.  It took me over an hour to to fight back the bad feeling I had long enough to fall asleep.

Too Much Information

On Thursday morning, James called.  I called him back over my lunch break.

"Hey Liv, I'm finished with your stuff," he greeted me.

"Already?" I asked, surprised.

"Yeah, I told you it wouldn't take long.  When do you want it?  We can meet at the office if you want to.  Jordan is out of town, so he won't be around.  I have time later this afternoon, otherwise I'm pretty open tomorrow.  Or we can figure something else out."

I thought for a second.  I didn't really want to wait until tomorrow, now that I knew he was finished.  "What time this afternoon?" I asked.  "I should be out of here by 5, and I could come right over.  I don't want to keep you too late though.  I'm off all day tomorrow, so I could do anytime then."

"Around 5 would be perfect, actually," he replied.  He gave me the address and directions to his office before we hung up.

I called Brody.  "James is done already," I told him.  "I'm going to meet him after work."

"That was fast," he commented.  "Do you want me to go with you?"

I was surprised.  "You want to go with me to see James?" I asked.

"No, I don't want to go with you to see James," he replied.  "I want to support you though, and if you want me to go with you, I can pretend that I don't want to smash his face in for a little while."

 I laughed.  "Well, I appreciate the offer.  I think I'll be okay though.  You're still coming over tonight?"  He confirmed that he was.  "That's good enough for me.  I'll tell you about it then."

"Liv, I mean it.  If you change your mind, let me know.  I'll go.  And I'll be nice.  I appreciate that he's doing this for you."

"Thank you.  It means a lot that you'd go.  I really am okay to go on my own though, I promise," I assured him.  We both had to get back to work, so we hung up soon after.  After I hung up, I was completely distracted, wondering if James found anything interesting.  I powered through the rest of the day and left right after my last client.

I made it James's office by 5:15.  Their receptionist was gone for the day, but James came out shortly after I walked into the office.  He hugged me before leading me to his office.  I sat down and looked at him anxiously.  He smiled reassuringly and slid a folder over to me.  "Paper copies of the stuff I'm going to show you," he said, tapping on the screen of an iPad.

"So," he started.  "Nadine and Jonathan Sanders are indeed Alan Sanders's parents, and your paternal grandparents--biologically, anyway.  As far as I can tell at least."  I nodded.  "They live in Utah, like they told you, in a town called Price.  It's a pretty small town, and it's about a 6 hour drive from here.  Alan Sanders was their only son, and he was born when Nadine was 20 and Jonathan was 23.  They were married about 4 months before he was born."

I held up a hand to stop him.  "So they're, what...?  66 and 69 now?" I asked.

James nodded.  "Nadine is 65 actually, but she'll turn 66 soon.  They actually seem pretty active.  There was lots of stuff on their volunteer work and community activities."  He looked at me to see if I had any other questions and I shook my head.  "Okay.  Nadine was a teacher's assistant and a substitute teacher for most of her working life.  Jonathan did a lot of factory work, but he went to dental school when he was 40 years old and spent 15 years as a dentist after that.  They're both retired now."

He paused and looked at me carefully.  "Liv, this part might be a little surprising, so just let me know if you have questions or need a second to turn it over in your head, okay?"  I nodded, anxious and curious.  "Alan had a 14 year old daughter and a 9 year old son.  Nadine and Jonathan currently have custody of both of them."

I let the information sink in for a second, then asked, "So, they're my...half-siblings?"

James nodded.  "I'm guessing you've probably realized that there's a possibility you had half-siblings around, since you never knew your--um, Alan, but it's always a little weird to have it be confirmed," he said sympathetically.  I didn't say anything.  I was surprised, even though James was right--I had certainly considered that Alan might have other children.  But it was easy to forget about it when you had no way to know for sure.  Now I knew for sure.  I hadn't thought that I might get information like this when I asked James to look into Nadine and Jonathan.

"If you want, I can step out if you need a couple minutes," James offered.  He started to stand.

"No," I said quickly.  "I'm okay."  He raised his eyebrows like he wasn't sure if he believed me, but nodded and gave me a little more general information about Nadine and Jonathan.

Finally, he said, "I don't have much more right now.  If you want me to, I can look further into anything I've told you today.  Like if you wanted more information about the kids, or Alan."

"I think this is okay for now," I said slowly.  I looked up at him.  "Thank you, James.  I really appreciate this.  I might have a couple more questions after I wrap my head around it all, but I'm good for now."

"Just say the word, and I'll see what else I can find for you," he replied.  We both stood and he put his arm around my shoulders as he walked me to the door.  "Are you sure you're okay?" he asked, when we got to the door.

"I am.  I just feel sort of weird right now.  I might be less okay once it all sinks in, but I think I'm fine," I replied honestly.

James nodded.  "That's pretty normal.  Will you let me know what you decide you're going to do?"  I agreed to do that, and he wished me luck and hugged me.  I thanked him again and walked out to my car.  

When I got to my car, I tried to call Brody, but he didn't answer. I debated just going right home, but the bar they were at for happy hour was on the way, so I decided to stop. When I got inside, I was surprised to see that Brody was already there.  He was sitting with Lauren, Kinsley, and Alex.  Small group tonight, which was good.  Brody got up and hugged me when I made it to the table.  "Was it okay?" he asked quietly.  I nodded.  He pulled back and examined my face before sitting down again.  I sat next to him.  All four of them were looking at me expectantly, so someone must have filled Alex in.

"They seem legit.  And like nice people," I said, with a shrug. 

"And?" Lauren asked.  "Is that it?"

"And...I have a half brother and sister," I replied.  "They're living with my--with them."

"Wow," Brody and Kinsley said at the same time. 

Lauren shrugged.  "You always figured that was likely though, right?" she asked.

"It's not the same to think of the possibility and actually have it confirmed, Laur," Kinsley admonished.

"I did think it was likely, but yeah.  It's weird.  Especially now that they contacted me, you know?" I replied.

"So what are you going to do?" Alex asked curiously.

"I have no idea," I admitted.  "I thought this would help me decide, but I don't know that it did. I think I got just a little too much information and now I'm overwhelmed again."

Brody took my hand and said, "Once it all sinks in a little more, you might have a better idea."  I nodded.  They let me change the subject and I stayed for about 20 more minutes before I needed to get out of there.

"I'm going to take off.  If you want to stay longer, that's okay," I said to Brody.

He shook his head. "No, I'll come too."  We said goodbye and headed out.  When we were back at my house, Brody hugged me again.  "How are you really?" he asked.  "That must have been a bit of a shock."

"I honestly have no idea.  I don't feel nearly as surprised or upset as I think I should feel, if that makes any sense.  I mean, it was surprising enough that she called me out of the blue, what's a couple of half siblings on top of it?"  I laughed.  "I am a little curious how she found me, though."

"Maybe you're not the only one with a private investigator for a friend," Brody said with a shrug.

"Yeah, maybe not," I agreed.  Even though I felt okay overall, I was worn out, and we went to bed early.  I was glad that the next day was one of my Fridays off.

I got up when Brody left the next morning, and went to the gym and did some stuff around the house.  After lunch, I called my mom.

"Hi, honey, how are you?" she answered.

"I'm okay, Mom," I replied.   Then I filled her in on what James had found out.

"Wow," she said, when I had finished.  "Well, I can't say I'm surprised, and while I'm sure you're not surprised either, I bet it was a bit of a shock to hear.  How are you holding up?"

"I think I'm okay," I said slowly.  "I don't really know.  I'm really confused how they found me.  And having half-siblings kind of freaks me out, but I'm not really sure why."  My mom was sympathetic, and asked a few more questions, but she refused to give me advice about whether or not to meet them.  When I hung up with her, I called James. 

"How are you doing, Liv?" he asked, after we had exchanged greetings.

"I wish everyone would stop asking me that," I answered honestly.  "I have a question though, do you have a couple minutes?"

"Go for it," he replied.

"This might sound really dumb, but how do you think she found me?  She said she'd been looking for me for a few years."

"Hmmm," James mused.  "Well, it's not very likely she found you with a lucky Google search if she'd been looking for a few years without finding anything, but let me look up a few things.  Can I put you on speaker?  There's only two other people here and I'm in my office with the door closed."  I told him it was fine, and a second later I heard computer keys tapping.  "Nope, neither your address or phone number are listed here..." he started.  More keys tapping.  "You run a 22 minute 5k?" he asked with surprise.

I laughed.  "Hooray for Google," I replied.  "No, not really.  I mean, I used to, but I don't run much anymore."

A few more keys tapping.  Then, "What are your Facebook privacy settings like?"

"I have it locked down as tightly as their shady privacy settings allow," I replied.

After a second he said, "Yeah, I can't even find your page here.  Okay...what's your mom's first and maiden name?"  I told him.  "Did you ever legally have Alan's last name?"

"No, it was Bern until Chris adopted me, and it's been Saffiano since."

Another pause and more keys.  "I obviously see information about you here, but nothing that would lead me to even know you live in Denver, much less your phone number.  If I can't do it with a Google search, a 65 year old woman certainly can't," he said confidently.  "I'm guessing they used their own investigator."

"Wow," I replied.

"What?" James asked curiously.

I paused for a minute, trying to figure out how to put my feelings into words.  "I guess I'm just surprised that finding me was important enough for them to pay someone to search for me for a couple of years.  It feels really weird and kind of high pressure, but also...touching, kind of.  I don't know how much sense that makes."

"I think it makes perfect sense," he assured me.  "Look, if you want, I can probably find out if they're using someone.  I'm confident that they are, but if it matters to you, I can try to confirm it."

"No, that's okay.  I trust your educated guess."  I paused.  "I know I thanked you yesterday, but I really can't even tell you how helpful this has been.  And I appreciate that you've just answered my questions and did what I asked for without asking me any questions about why any of it matters.  So thank you."

"Liv, I meant it when I said I'd do anything else I could to help.  I'm glad I could find you what you needed.  Have you decided what you're going to do?"

For the first time since Nadine called, I felt confident in what my plan was.  "Yeah.  I'm going to meet them."