The drive was long already, but with Blithe in the car, it was always longer. She had to stop every so often to go to the bathroom or get something to eat, and I don’t know why I never remembered to pack her snacks. By the time we pulled into my father’s winding driveway, we had been on the road for close to eleven hours.
I was ready to drop.
The girls, however, hopped out of the car and tore for the front door as my father whipped it open. Blithe jumped into his arms. He held her close before he gave Paige a hug. The girls went inside as I struggled to get the bags out, and my father headed toward me.
“Need a hand there, son?” he asked, clapping me on the back affectionately. My father’s warm personality was something I was still getting used to.
“Thanks, Dad.”
I started handing him bags before I closed the trunk of Paige’s car. Her car was the only reliable one we had to travel in, but it was beginning to see the first stages of breaking down on us. I kept up repairs on it as much as I could, but even I had to admit the cost was getting to be a bit much.
“Let me help you up the stairs with these,” my father said.
“It’s good to see you,” I said.
“I’m glad you guys could make it. With Blithe being sick last week, I wasn’t sure if you and Paige would chance it.”
“Trust me, Paige wouldn’t miss a chance to come up here,” I said, grinning.
I could hear Blithe giggling as she tumbled above our heads into the ball pit.
“I see she’s found her space,” I said.
“I’m glad she feels like she has one here,” my father said.
“And I take it Paige is at the hot tub?”
“Or in the room getting into that sauna. Here, I’ll take Blithe’s stuff to her room. Do you have a minute to talk?”
“Sure,” I said. “Let me get our stuff set down first.”
I walked up the steps and took a sharp left. Blithe’s room was on the same side of the house as my father’s, and at first, it made me hesitant. I had slept in Blithe’s playroom just to be closer to her, just in case she needed anything in the middle of the night. But night after night, if she needed anything, my father was right there. A few times, she even crossed the hall and went into his room to climb into bed with him.
Paige convinced me to relinquish my nights’ watch and come to bed, and ever since, the ritual was that Paige and I got some alone time while my father took care of Blithe.
I dropped our stuff in the room and heard Paige sighing audibly. I grinned at her sounds and went to take my clothes off. I could just imagine sliding into that sauna with her and allowing the steam heat to envelope us. I could see the droplets of sweat trickling down her bosom as I wrapped my wanton lips around her nipples. I could taste the salted wetness of her pussy lips as the heat swirled around our heads.
“You ready?” my father asked.
His voice shattered my daydream, and I went back into the hallway to join him.
“What’s up?” I asked.
“Before I tell you, I want you to know that no one came to talk with me about this.”
My eyes narrowed in confusion. “Okay?”
“I didn’t even know you guys were short on money until I talked with Paige last week.”
“Wait, what?” I asked.
“It was nothing. I called to confirm you guys were coming up, and Paige told me Blithe was sick. She was panicking because she went to the drug store to buy something and her card got declined.”
Why the fuck had she not told me any of this?
“Dad, what happened?”
“Look, I don’t want to get anyone in trouble—”
“No one’s in trouble, okay? I just…” I looked back into the room and heard Paige sigh with relief again. “I’m just wondering why the hell I’m the last person hearing about this.”
“The only reason I know is because I called at the right time,” he said. “That’s it.”
“But she brought home medicine and stuff for Blithe. How did she do that if her card was declined?” My eyes slowly rose to connect with my father’s. “How much do we owe you?”
“Nothing, it was nothing. Blithe was sick, and I was more than willing to help.”
“Dad, you tell me right now how much we owe you,” I said. “You know I only want to use my own money, out of the trust, and not be beholden to you.”
“Son, I’m serious. You don’t owe me a thing.”
“Dad, I’m not playing. I have the money. From the trust. Paige thinks we need to save it for the future but I have it right now and I can pay you back.”
“Zach, if this is how you’re reacting to hearing about the purchase of some medicine, then I can’t proceed with this conversation.”
I bit my tongue and drew in a deep breath through my nose. “I’m sorry. Continue.”
“I want to give you guys a house,” he said. “If you won’t take any more of your money out of the trust then at least let me buy you a house.”
It took me a second to process what my father had said before I could figure out how the fuck to respond.
“No.”
He waved my refusal away. “I wasn’t able to give you guys a proper wedding gift.”
“That’s because you paid for the damn wedding, Dad.”
“I did not,” he protested. “It was your money. It’s all your money. You just won’t take it.”
“You’re not giving us a house. I can’t take a house from you.”
“Why not?” he asked.
“Because we just can’t, okay?” I ran my fingers through my hair as I leaned my back against the wall of the hallway.
“Will you just talk with Paige about it?” he asked.
“No.”
“Talk with her about it.”
“She didn’t talk with me about Blithe’s medicine,” I said. “Why should I talk with her about this?”
“Maybe because she realizes your ego is too fragile to accept help?”
“What the hell does that mean?” I asked.
“Look at how you’re reacting. How do you think her thought process went when her card got declined?”
“We can’t take a house from you,” I said.
“You’re not taking anything. I’m giving it to you. If you don’t want to look at it as a gift, then look at it as an investment into the future of our relationships as a familial unit.”
“Spoken like a true businessman.”
“Then tell me how I should speak, and I’ll word it so your fragile ego can handle it,” he said.
I frowned. “My ego isn’t fragile.”
“You sure as hell are acting like it.”
“You guys okay out here?” Paige’s smiling face came into view.
“Just fine,” my father said. “You look positively radiant, Paige. The sauna working okay?”
“It’s working just fine,” she said. “How’s Blithe?”
My father shrugged. “I haven’t heard her up in the playroom for a few minutes. But don’t worry, I was just about to go check on her. If she’s asleep, do you want me to move her or leave her where she is?”
“Move her,” Paige said. “Although if you wake her up, she might want to crawl into bed with her grandfather.”
“And I wouldn’t have one problem with that,” my father said, smiling. “The two of you get some rest. I can only imagine how long the drive was for you two.”
“You’ve made that drive before,” Paige said.
“But not with a child,” he said, grinning.
My father walked away and left me with my sweating, naked wife. She had a towel draped around her luscious body her from chest to ankles. I backed her into the room and placed my lips upon hers, and her hands made steady work of the clothes I still had on my back.
“You smell like a road trip,” she said.
“I know. It’s gross. I might need to steam off the scent a bit.”
“And I think I know the perfect place to clean you up at,” she said.
As I backed my lovely wife into the sauna with our naked bodies pressed together, my father’s proposal rolled around in my head. It was difficult to enjoy this moment while I considered his offer. I didn’t want to take charity. I hadn’t wanted his money before, and I sure as hell wasn’t going to make a habit of taking it now, especially since my father’s money paid for the lavish wedding.
I reminded myself of how he had said it was my money. He was right, but it still felt like his. Or, rather, like strings that attached me to him.
But my girls deserved the best, and the truth was, I wasn’t give them the best. I had the opportunity to provide them with more than I was giving them. We had a family car and a motorcycle but we could go for another vehicle, and apparently, we couldn’t even buy Blithe some fucking medicine.
When we first found the townhouse, it was easy to swing. Between the money I was making with the lumber company— because I still wanted to earn my own way in life and not be some trust fund bum— and the way Paige’s art took off, we were pulling in money we never thought we’d see in our wildest dreams.
But when tax time came around, we realized we’d been foolish for paying off the house in cash. We’d made some bad money calls, and Blithe’s extracurricular activities became more of a financial handful. I hadn’t been used to managing the money for three people, or even one.
Back in my single days, I’d barely needed much money but now things were different. Paige had to pull back her painting to focus on raising Blithe so I could keep my job, and it really took a chunk out of the money we were used to pulling in.
Now, we considered it a good month if all our bills were paid, and we had enough money to make two grocery trips. I really should take more money out of the trust, or let Dad buy us a house.
My girls deserved the best, no matter what I had to do to give it to them. I didn’t want to be indebted to my father, but I also wanted Paige and Blithe to have security. I wanted Blithe to grow up with her own yard. I wanted Paige to be able to have her own space. I wanted to have a decent cooking space where I could cook my girls the best food I could.
I could give that to them if I just let my father give me more of his money. My money, I tried to mentally correct myself.
I had to get used to the fact that it really was my money. Even if my father had been an ass in the past, he’d been doing all he could do in the present to make up for it and he wanted me to have that inheritance.
That was it. As I rolled my tongue between Paige’s legs and listened to her luscious sounds, I made up my mind. I would fuck her until she passed out, I would hold her in my arms all night long, and then I would wake her up with my cock between her legs.
Then, we would sit down and talk.