Chapter 27

“Yes, I just got done talking to her. She went over there on her own, caught him at home, and I guess it was a revelation to her for damn sure!” said Ava.

“I see,” said Blake. “And?”

“She doesn’t know what to do,” said Ava.

“Maybe I do,” said Blake. “The goal is to make things up to our man. His fatherhood is an issue, but it is also one that we might be able to deal with at a later date. I mean after Candace gets to know the man better.”

“Okay, but...” she said.

“Like I said. We need to get our man happy. Marian is the key to doing that,” he said.

“But his condition? I mean if it’s even still on the table,” she said. “If she is intent on keeping the money, it would for sure be less than a waste of time to even discuss it with her, let alone him.”

“I could be wrong, but it’s not the money he’s concerned about. No, it’s having control of his life and having us do things his way. Well, and as well how Candace sees him and me: our relationships with her, our fatherhoods,” he said.

“I guess you’re right,” she said. “But will Candace give any ground. I mean any ground!”

“We’ll be playing that one by ear,” he said.

“We need to talk to Candace again first, and then, if all goes well, Marian,” she said. He nodded his agreement.

“Look, honey,” said Daniel. “For some reason, maybe a good reason or maybe not, but this request of your parents to include—yes in a big way—the guy who was your sperm donor if not exactly your real daddy, seems to be super important to them. If I had to bet on the issue; I’d be betting on the ‘good reason’ side. I think you need to talk to them again, and see if you can get a better feel for all of this. I’ll back your side regardless, but I mean...”

“Okay, okay,” she said. “I guess I see your point. Talking to them again is probably the best way to go. And, like you say, it can’t hurt anything; and maybe I, we, can get some clarification as to why they are so bent on the man getting more recognition than he actually deserves.”

“Yes,” said Daniel. “And, I have to say, considering everything that’s gone down in this past year or so, your bio-dad might deserve a heckuva lot more than, on the surface, appears to be the case. Something’s out there that doesn’t feel right, not to me, late comer though I am.”

Candace gave her fiancée a look. “I’m beginning to think that you have a point, a really serious point,” she said. Mom and Dad are not being straight with us. I mean they are not telling me, us, everything. I feel it too,” she said.

“Candace will be here shortly—again,” said Blake. “She actually sounded positive. Maybe, just maybe, she’s rethought some of the things we talked about before.”

“Hmm,” said Ava. “She was pretty adamant when she left before. No, I think she might have talked to her fiancée and he might have suggested something for her to consider or ask of us or present to us.”

“Now you say it, I think you may be right, probably are right. At any rate I guess we’ll be finding out shortly,” he said.

“Yes,” she said.

Well, since my less than wonderful visit with my daughter—she was that whether she wanted to be or not—I had heard not a single word from her or anybody else about anything whatsoever. One had to love it.

I decided to not go to their Christmas soirée. The food would undoubtedly be first rate, but apart from that it would end up being just another “so what” bit of nonsense. I didn’t cotton to again being just some kind of holiday ornament just so that the bad guys could feel better about themselves. No indeed!

I pulled into the lot and parked. It was almost 8:00 a.m. time to go to work. Hank would be working with me today, but he’d not show up till tenish. He’d be overlapping me and Leona. Of course, Marian didn’t work with us anymore. She was rich now and above slaving with the working classes; I smiled at the thought.

She hadn’t been too proud to accept help from me when she was on the street sleeping wherever she could find a place to lay her head. Well fuck her! And, we did have another full timer on the payroll with Morton having signed up when I’d gone back to Phoenix: he covered everybody’s day off and generally worked swing and weekends. So we were good at the store.

The two older Willis’ heard her coming down the stairs. Ava took a deep breath.

“Hi, honey,” said Blake.

“Dad, Mom, we’re going to have another talk about the other guy aren’t we?” she said.

“Candace that other guy is your dad. He really is. But yes, your daddy here has an idea or two to run by you. Okay?” said Ava. Candace nodded.

“Okay,” she said. “And I did talk to Daniel about your idea. And he did think it would be a good idea to touch base with you again.”

“Hmm, well that’s good,” said Blake.

“Candace, we understand that you’re not exactly keen about Julian Willis taking the place of your daddy on your wedding day. But he, your daddy here, as I said, has come up with a possible compromise. Okay?” said Ava.

“Okay,” she said.

“Candace we, your mom and I think, that if we could get Marian and him to be a part of the wedding party, well, it might go a long way toward achieving our goal,” said Blake.

“Okay?” said Candace, not sounding especially positive in her response.