by S. E. Lund
I nodded. “Yes. Before dinner. Around five o’clock.” At that, I couldn’t hold back any longer. Tears spilled down my cheeks and I had to cover my mouth to stop from sobbing out loud. Drake pulled me into his arms and buried his face in the crook of my neck.
When he glanced up at me, his eyes were filled with tears as well.
That was the greatest gift I could have received – to see Drake with tears of joy in his eyes because he was finally going to see his son on Christmas Day. That Liam would know Drake was his biological father. Most especially, because he could start to be a real father to Liam.
Later that afternoon, after Sophie had a bath and nursed, Drake and I stood in our bedroom and dressed for the evening.
“How do I look?” Drake asked, standing in front of the floor length mirror. He adjusted his tie and buttoned his jacket.
“You look fantastic,” I said, for he did look wonderful “But don’t worry. You could be wearing jeans and a t-shirt. Liam won’t care what you look like.”
“I want to impress Maureen so she’s happy she agreed to the meeting.”
I tucked a handkerchief into his suit pocket and brushed a few strands of hair off his forehead. “You look like a rich, well-educated, highly skilled pediatric neurosurgeon. You’ll do fine. Be yourself.”
“Maureen hated my self.”
“She didn’t hate you,” I said, frowning. “You two weren’t right for each other.”
Drake sighed, and I knew he was nervous. I took his hand and led him to the door where I had left Sophie already asleep in her car seat, pacifier in her mouth, her white angora mouse hat so cute she looked like a Gerber baby.
Drake slipped on his coat and boots. He held my coat out for me, pausing to embrace me from behind, kissing my neck.
“Thank you,” he whispered in my ear. I smiled and turned into his arms for a brief embrace.
Then, Drake picked up Sophie’s car seat and Liam’s freshly wrapped Iron Man action figure, and we left the apartment.
When we arrived at Maureen’s mother’s apartment, I could hear Nat King Cole singing Christmas tunes from under the door.
“This is it,” Drake said, inhaling deeply. He looked a bit nervous.
I leaned up and kissed him, trying to allay his fears. “You’ll do fine. Smile.”
He smiled and squeezed my hand, but I could feel his nerves in his grip, which was tighter than needed. I knocked at the door and immediately, the volume of the music dropped and I heard footsteps that announced Maureen was coming to the door. When the door opened, I was surprised to see Brenda instead of Maureen.
“Drake!” she said and held open her arms. Drake embraced her, but I could tell from the expression on his face that he was surprised by the warm welcome.
Then, she turned to me. “You must be Kate,” she said with a smile. “So glad you took the initiative and contacted me. This is going to turn out to be a great Christmas after all. Liam was pretty upset to not have Chris here, but with Drake coming, he may feel happier.”
“Does he know?” Drake asked softly, handing her the present.
Brenda nodded. “Come in,” she said and reached out to take the present. “You two take off your coats and boots and come on inside.” She pointed to the closet. “Hang your coats there and come into the living room.”
Drake helped me with my coat and then slipped out of his own. I saw him smooth his freshly washed hair, a nervous expression on his face.
“How do I look?” he asked once more when I stood up from removing my boots.
“You look mahvelous, dahling. Mahvelous.” I grinned and finally, Drake smiled in return.
“You’re too young to know that reference,” he said and squeezed me, pulling me briefly into his arms.
“I have a father who loved Saturday Night Live,” I said. “We watched re-runs and so I know them almost as well as him.”
Drake picked up Sophie’s car seat and together, the three of us went into the living room. Inside, Liam sat on the floor, surrounded by a model train set.
I took Sophie out of her car seat and held her, while Drake went further into the living room. I’d dressed Sophie in a black velvet and lace dress that made her look like a little porcelain doll.
“Where’s Maureen?” Drake asked, glancing around.
“She had a previous engagement,” Brenda said and raised her eyebrows. She pointed to the sofa. “Kate, please come in and sit down. Drake, I’d like to introduce you to Liam.” She turned to Liam and gestured at him to stand. “Liam, this is Dr. Drake Morgan. Your mother told you about him earlier.”
Liam stood and wiped his hands when Drake extended his for a shake.
“Hello,” Liam said.
I stood with Sophie in my arms, a choke in my throat to see them together – father and son. So much alike. Both had jet black hair, fair skin and very blue eyes rimmed by thick, dark lashes.
“You’re my bio-logical father,” Liam said simply, as if it were nothing too monumental.
Drake leaned down and shook Liam’s hand.
“That I am,” Drake replied, his voice thick with emotion. “You’re my biological son. Pleased to meet you.”
“Here’s a present from Drake and Kate, Liam,” Brenda said, handing Liam the wrapped toy. “Why don’t you open it?”
Liam sat down and quickly ripped the wrapping off.
“Wow,” he said, an expression of surprise on his face. He held up the boxed Iron Man figurine. “It’s Iron Man!”
Drake knelt and helped Liam remove Iron Man from of the box, which was no easy feat, given all the plastic wrap and wires to prevent theft. Finally, he had it done. “Here you go.”
Liam examined it carefully, moving the arms and legs into various positions.
“Thank you,” Liam said finally. Drake nodded, smiling as he watched Liam fly Iron Man through the air.
We all sat on the two couches and watched Liam for a moment. Drake was focused on Liam, his expression intense as if he couldn’t believe it was real.
“That’s a nice train set,” Drake said and knelt back down beside Liam. “Can you show it to me?”
“Sure,” Liam said and put Iron Man down. Drake bent onto one knee and watched as Liam turned to the train. “I got it from my grandpa and grandma for Christmas. It’s a Thomas the Tank Engine set. I watch Thomas on TV.”
The next hour was taken up by Drake making small talk with Liam about his toys and how he felt about being in Manhattan. Meanwhile, Brenda and I talked about Sophie and how she was doing after the attack.
I overheard Drake and Liam talking and it made my eyes well up.
“My mom said you’re the man who gave me stem cells,” Liam said while he moved Thomas the Tank Engine along the track.
“I did,” Drake replied. “We were lucky that we were a match.”
Then, Liam picked up Iron Man and flew him around some more.
“Do you have any questions about me?” Drake asked, his voice soft. “Anything you want to ask? It must be strange to find out I’m your biological father.”
Liam continued to play for a moment, making the sound of a plane as Iron Man flew around.
“Are you going to marry my mom again?” he asked, his little face serious, brow furrowed.
I felt a knot in my gut as I watched Drake. He glanced at me and then Brenda before turning back to Liam.
“No,” Drake said softly. “We got divorced before you were born. I’m married to Kate now. Sophia is our daughter and your half-sister.”
“I have a half-sister?” Liam asked. He turned and looked at Sophia, his eyes wide.
“Yes,” Drake said. “She’s my daughter and you’re my son, so you two are half-brother and half-sister to each other.”
“Will she come to my birthday party?” Liam asked, his eyebrows raised. “We don’t know anyone here.
“Of course she’ll come if you want her to,” Drake replied.
“She’s kinda young to play with my toys, but sh
e could hold something.” Liam went to a box of toys at the side of the room and removed a stuffed Minion. “Here,” he said, bringing it over to where Sophie sat with me. “She could hold this.”
Sophie was busy sucking away on her pacifier but she stopped sucking and smiled when he came over.
“She likes me,” Liam said and turned to Drake.
“She does,” Drake said with a smile.
“Here you go, Sophia,” Liam said. “Here’s a Minion. He’s Herb Overkill. He has only one eye.”
On her part, Sophie reached out slowly and grabbed Herb Overkill, bringing him immediately up to her open mouth.
“She’s trying to eat it,” Liam said. He pointed at Sophie and turned to Drake. “Babies always try to eat everything.”
“No, no, sweetie,” I said and tried to take Herb away. “You shouldn’t get Liam’s toy all wet with drool.”
“That’s all right,” Liam said, sounding officious. “She can have it. I already have another Herb Overkill. It’s a present.”
Drake smiled and ruffled Liam’s hair. “That’s very nice of you, Liam.”
“She is my sister.”
“She is,” Drake replied, his voice low and filled with emotion.
For the next few moments, the three of us adults and Liam watched while Sophie chewed on Herb Overkill. Then, she reached for Iron Man, when Liam held him out.
“No, you can’t eat Iron Man,” Liam said and pulled him gently away. “He’s too strong. He’d break your teeth.”
“Luckily, she doesn’t have any teeth yet,” I said with a smile. “We won’t let her get Iron Man all wet.”
Of course, at that pleasant moment, the front door opened and Maureen walked in, her arms full of shopping bags.
“I’m home,” she said and removed her coat. She turned to us and saw Drake on the floor with Liam. “You’re still here.”
“We should go,” I said to Drake and stood up. “Sophie needs to nurse.”
“Yes,” Drake said, his voice filled with obvious reluctance. “We should be going.” He turned to Liam. “It was nice to meet you. I hope we can get to know each other better now that you’re living in Manhattan.
“Will you bring Sophia?” Liam asked as he handed Sophie Herb Overkill once more.
“We sure will,” Drake said. “Maybe next time you could come to our house.”
“Maybe,” Maureen replied. She walked over to Liam and stood behind him, holding onto his shoulders protectively. “We’ll have to do some planning about this.”
Drake nodded. “Whatever you think is best.”
On my part, I put Sophia’s snowsuit back on and got her into the car seat while Drake pulled on his boots and coat.
Liam came over to the door, Iron Man clasped in his hand, watching while Drake tied his scarf.
“Well, Liam,” Drake said. “I’m glad I met you. I hope we can see each other again soon.” Drake glanced in Maureen’s direction. She didn’t look entirely happy, and was probably hoping to have missed the three of us.
“Yes,” she said. “I’ll call you and let you know what time is good. Sorry I didn’t get back in time to visit.”
I didn’t believe her for a moment. Finally, after a brief hesitation while I dressed in my coat and boots, we went to the door. Drake turned around and waved at Liam as we left the apartment.
Brenda winked at us as she closed the door. I was glad we had her on our side.
Drake put his arm around me as we went to the elevator.
“That went well,” I said and smiled at him.
“It did. It went very well.” He didn’t say much, but I could tell from the expression on his face that he was ecstatic. Liam knew Drake was his father. It didn’t mean much at this point, for Drake was a stranger. To be a real father, Drake would have to spend time with Liam, be there for important occasions and hang out with him. They would have to build a relationship slowly, over time.
Finally, the elevator bell rang and the doors slid open. We rode it in silence, but when I glanced at Drake, he looked so happy, a smile lingering on his face. It made my heart swell with love for him.
“I got my wish,” he said to me when we walked along the street to the parking garage.
“I’m so happy for you, Drake,” I said, tears in my eyes.
“Thank you,” he said, his voice breaking. “It was all because of you that I even had the chance to see Liam.” He leaned down to kiss me. “I love you more than anything.”
“I love you more than anything,” I replied. I meant it. At that moment, I felt as if all the bad things that happened over the previous six months were forgotten, pushed back into the darkness. There was only today, and Drake, Sophie and me. Soon, Liam would be part of that small circle.
Drake kissed me and then we continued to the parking garage and drove off into the growing darkness of the Christmas Day night.
Chapter 17 : Drake
The first few weeks after Christmas were uneventful, and I almost forgot about the looming trial and the investigation into the attack. It all came back again to interrupt my time of marital and parental bliss when I got a call from Detective McDonald to attend a meeting at the precinct.
“What’s the meeting about?” I asked, annoyed that they still hadn’t cleared me of any involvement in the attack on Kate.
“We need you to answer a few questions.”
“Is this really necessary?” I said, impatient, not wanting to go back to the precinct yet again. “You charged Lisa. Why am I still being questioned?"
"Because we have more information, more dates to check, and need to get your response."
"Can’t you forward a copy of your questions and the dates to my lawyer? She and I can go over them and provide any answers you need.”
“We’d prefer if you could come down in person,” McDonald said curtly.
“All right,” I said. “I have to coordinate with my lawyer to arrange a time she can attend.”
“Please call me back as soon as you have a time. We’d appreciate it today or tomorrow at the latest.”
“I’ll try,” I said and ended the call, in no mood to be polite. If the cops had done their job, I should have already been cleared. I had no idea how they could believe that I had been involved with Lisa and was conspiring with her. It beggared belief.
I left my office and went to the living room, where Kate was reading the daily paper and Sophie was in her Exersaucer.
“What’s up?” she said when I leaned down to kiss her. “You’re frowning.”
I took in a deep breath and tried to calm myself. Kate had enough on her plate. She didn’t need to deal with a frustrated husband.
“Detective McDonald asked me to come down to the precinct to answer some more questions,” I said and plopped down beside her on the sofa. “I suppose that Lisa’s claiming we were together on some new dates.”
“You’re kidding,” Kate said and frowned. She moved closer and ran her fingers through my hair, her green eyes so sympathetic. “I’m so sorry.” She leaned up and kissed me on the mouth. When she pulled back, she shook her head. “She’s completely insane if she thinks she can make those claims and that they’ll stand.”
“She’s mentally unbalanced,” I said with a nod. “I still wonder if she’s delusional or whether this is to punish me. She couldn’t have me so neither could you and when that didn’t work, she’s trying to make trouble for me. I should track down Derek Richardson up and talk to him about her. I called and left a message but he hasn’t returned my call. He could corroborate the fact that I didn’t want to get involved more than just a one-off at his dungeon parties. And he offered.”
“You should give his name to the police. Let them know.”
“Apparently, he moved to Malaysia. I’ll try to reach out to him again, but it may be difficult to find him.”
Kate made a face. “Whatever she is, I hope the police figure this out so we can move on. I don’t even want to think about the attack.” Kate s
hivered visibly and moved closer. I put an arm around her and pulled her against me, kissing her temple, her cheek, her mouth.
“Don’t worry,” I said and squeezed her. “They’ll have to realize she’s crazy sooner or later.”
“I hope so. Are you going to ask Lara to go with you?” she asked, her eyes moving over my face. “She can corroborate a lot of dates for you. She knew who all your submissives were, didn’t she?”
I nodded again. “Yes,” I said and pulled out my cell. “I’ll call and she if she’s available.”
I made the call and held the cell up to my ear. It rang twice and finally, Lara answered.
“Drake Morgan, MD. Just the man I wanted to speak to.”
I smiled, glad to have her on my side. “What did you want to speak to me about?”
“I spent some time talking to a few subs I know who are familiar with Lisa. Apparently, she was collecting stories about you and your activities during the past few years.”
“Yeah,” I said and rubbed my eyes. “I got a call from Detective McDonald about coming down to provide my whereabouts on about some more dates.”
“When do they want us down there?” she asked, and I heard the sound of paper shuffling on the line. “I’m in court later today, but I’m off tomorrow morning. We could go then.”
“They said today or tomorrow at the latest. I’ll call McDonald back and tell him we’ll be by tomorrow.”
“Okay,” Lara said and exhaled. “Do you want me to call them?”
“No, I can do it. I don’t want to seem like I’m not cooperating. But hey,” I said, thinking about Derek. “Have you had any luck contacting Derek Richardson? He could back me up that he offered for me to be a regular in their play, but I refused.”
“No,” Lara said, her voice sounding hesitant. “I haven’t been able to track him down. I’ve contacted someone I know who works in Kuala Lumpur to try to find him, if he’s in Malaysia. Derek is free to do whatever he wants whenever he wants. He’s hands-off when it comes to the business so he might be traveling, according to his manager of US operations.”
I sighed. “Okay. We’ll have to deal with the dates alone, I guess.”