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The Tessarae Inn |
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The Son Also Rises CHAPTER 11 Sean-Ryan liked America. He even liked his stupid penny-poor job of driving rich people around. Rich people were the same everywhere –it was one of the real constancies in the world. Their arrogance and smugness made them good for a laugh and erased any conscience he had about exploiting them. And like so many other things in this country, rich people in America did more of it, did it bigger, and with even less shame. They were fun. But that’s not why he stayed. He decided to stay a few more weeks and see if he could work some business connections. Wasn’t Flynn always talking about how they needed to expand? Maybe he was right. August Moon was small. They were a profitable enterprise because they were deadly, brutal and, in the beginning, there was no mercy. Not for men; not for women; not for families. So at home, small or not, there were no lessons to be taught. These days no one ever considered the possibility of crossing him because they understood the price. New territory meant new lessons because once again people would have to learn what was at stake. Still it was worth debating the value of getting a foothold in this vast country. There was a lot of money to be made here. Yet, he wasn’t sure his heart was in it anymore. Either way, it was time to go home. He and Flynn would talk and reach some kind of decision. “Hey, Philip. This one just came in as a special request. Got a little something-something going with one of those rich bitches? Better watch yourself. We value our reputation but I bet a good looking guy like yourself been approach more than once about giving them bitches the shaft in that special kind of way.” Sean-Ryan glared at Ralph Smith then snatched the order slip out of his hand. Of course, the downside of his job was having to put up with morons like Smith. He read the order then smiled slowly. Blair Manning wanted to be picked up in twenty minutes and wanted Philip Spenser to drive her if possible. Damn luck—luck of the Irish. He hadn’t seen her in a few weeks and suddenly he remembered how much he hated that fact. He was leaving day after tomorrow and now didn’t have to orchestrate a way to see her before he left. This was a different address though. It was that big estate where he had stopped with her once before. Wonder why she was there?
Sean-Ryan glanced in the rearview mirror and watched her for a few seconds. She was laughing at something the kid just said and the kid lit up like a Christmas tree. Todd Manning was pretty damn well set in this life. No wonder he would have done just about anything to get back. Sean-Ryan didn’t envy him the big house, the fast cars, or the legit businesses. Those were just things. The only reason he didn’t have those things was because he chose not to. The money was unimportant. Whatever Manning had, he had access to fifty times more. But he did envy Manning his wife. She was something to behold. The kid’s mother would have disagreed though. Of course, that was primarily because Katherine was a vengeful, spiteful woman who would have hated that this woman was more a mother to her son in a few months than she had been to him in her whole lifetime. She was probably spinning in her grave just at the thought of it. He smiled at the image. He had finally decided he would leave the boy alone and let Blair Manning give him everything Katherine couldn’t or wouldn’t give him. It was a just end to an ugly situation. This was the best revenge he could devise--his payback to her for everything, including the ache in his heart. ========== “Where’re Starr and Jack, Blair. They didn’t want to come?” “Not today, Mama. Starr is spending the day at the zoo with her friend Susie and Jack is with Dorian. She’s going to bring him by to see you later today. I brought someone else for you to meet though.” “He’s handsome, Blair. He’s not a new boyfriend or something is he?” “No. This is Philip Spenser. He was kind enough to drive us up here today. I didn’t want to feel rushed so I asked him to come in with us.” “Nice to meet you, Mr. Spenser. My daughter always brings such handsome men with her but she only has once prince. That’s Todd. She loves Todd and he loves her, too.” Blair smiled at Addie then glanced quickly at Philip to see how he was reacting to the conversation. She would not tolerate anyone making fun of her mother but he smiled so gently at Addie that Blair relaxed. He bent slightly at the waist and said, “Nice to meet you, Miss Cramer. You are beautiful like your daughter.” Addie smiled broadly. “Oooooooh, I like him Blair. He’s probably someone’s prince too. He even sounds like a prince.” “Yes, he probably is, Mama.” “Who else did you bring, Blair? You said you brought someone to meet me.” “He’ll be here in a minute. He’s down the hall but maybe I should go check on him. I’ll be right back.” “I’ll go for you, Mrs. Manning, if that is acceptable.” She nodded and smiled. He really was just the nicest man. “Thank you, Philip.” Blair watched him leave then turned her attention to Addie who was painting one of those pictures with numbers in them. Her mother, of course, had paid no attention to the colors designated by the numbers so what was emerging was a wonderfully bizarre rendition of a landscape scene with blue grass and yellow mountains. “This is really pretty, Mama.” “Isn’t it. I think Starr would have liked it, too. I miss Starr. I wish she had come.” “I’ll bring her in a couple of days and you can spend as much time as you like with her.” “Goody, but Starr doesn’t like to paint much.” Someone cleared his throat and Blair looked up and spotted Philip and Sean standing in the doorway to the dayroom. She smiled at Sean who looked a little nervous then walked over and put her right arm around his shoulders and gently pushed him close to Addie. “Here he is, Mama. I would like you to meet Sean Mahoney. I told him all about you and he couldn’t wait to meet you.” “Nice to meet you, Sean. You want to paint with me?” Sean grinned. “Okay.” “I’ll be walking the grounds for a bit, Miss. I’ll check back in a half-hour or so?” “That will be perfect, Philip. Thank you.” Blair sat across the table from Addie and Sean and watched them paint. Letting Sean go back to Viki’s had been one of the hardest things she had ever done in her life. But in the end, she decided that it was best for everyone involved. She had tried to teach Starr compassion but Sean had been hurt by it. And although he had displayed no unusual levels of agitation and tension since that awful night two weeks ago, she was still convinced that something was eating away at Todd. She was determined to find out what was going on. She’d already talked to almost everyone at The Sun looking for clues and was working on Viki but so far she was drawing a blank. She had found nothing to indicate that Todd was lying to her. Even so, she could not allow Sean to be placed in the path of a potential firestorm again. She had no intention of abandoning him though--at least not until he could return to his home in England safe and sound. So, she visited him on a regular basis and once he understood that she was going to stay in his life, he seemed to settle in once again at Viki’s. Viki though told her that unlike before Todd had not been by to see him once since he returned. Had her foolish decision to bring Sean home ruined that too? She shook her head slowly then glanced over at Sean and Addie with their heads stuck together. Bringing Sean home may have been a mistake but this visit to Addie was obviously the perfect decision. It was his idea. When she asked him what he wanted to do today, he reminded her that she promised that he could meet Addie so she planned the trip, including making sure her favorite English driver was along to provide a bit of home for Sean. And he was obviously having as much fun as Addie working on the painting. He fit right into the spirit of the enterprise. He delighted Addie by painting a cloud purple and a tree a blazing orange. The two of them just seemed to click. Blair moved over to the couch and watched them from a distance and tried not to smile too much. First, they painted then Addie showed him how to use glitter and macaroni to create three-dimensional collages. The thing was that Sean seemed utterly fascinated. He was not making fun of Addie on any level. He talked more to Addie about his life in thirty minutes than Blair had heard him talk about his life in the three months she had known him. She heard stories about his school and his buddies back home, about how beautiful England was and about his dreams. Blair couldn’t help smiling. Maybe in the end everything really was going to be okay. Sean suddenly looked at her with wide-eyes. Something was wrong. She franticly looked around and when she noticed the small spot of paint on his shirt she exhaled loudly. Her mother managed to stay pristine even when working with potential disasters like paint but the mortals around her were known to have mishaps. “It’s no problem, Sean,” she said in a light tone. “We can swing by Viki’s and get you a clean shirt before we go to football practice. But why don’t you go down to the washroom and see if you can get some of it off.” He smiled at her with such relief that her heart flipped. What was he used to in his life? Sean popped up out of his chair and galloped out of the room just as Philip appeared in the doorway. “I am here, Miss, if you are ready.” “Just a few more minutes, Philip.” He nodded and left the room again. Addie walked over to the couch and sat next to her. She placed both of her hands on the seat and rocked back and forth slightly. “He’s a nice little boy, Blair. Thank you for bringing him to see me. I can imagine what Jack will look like now when he is older but why is he so sad?” “He lost his mother not long ago. He misses her and he’s far away from home.” “That always hurts. I am glad he is with you.” “Well, he’s not really staying with us…any longer. But I visit as often as I can.” “Todd always makes such pretty children. He is very handsome, Blair, although sometimes he’s mean. Todd sure is pretty though and so are his children.” “Yes, Mama, Jack and Starr are beautiful. And, Mama, you know Todd doesn’t mean to be mean, he just can’t help…” “And Sean. Sean is beautiful, too.” Blair stared at Addie then turned toward the door just as Sean raced back into the room. He stood for a moment, brushed his hair off his face then stared at her with hazel eyes and for a second she couldn’t see anything at all.
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The Son Also Rises FAN FICTION SLIDESHOWS
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