Redemption (Book 3) The Fixer Series (21 page)

But through all of the cursing and pain, seven hours of labor and holding her legs in the air for the whole world to see, my beautiful baby girl made her appearance into the world.  The second she took her first breath, and belted out her first cry, she melted my heart.  That's right, that tiny, baby girl brought her daddy to his knees
. I cried.  I had never loved another human being as much as I loved my little girl.   

Dakota Marie Prescott, was born on Feb
ruary 14th at 11:05 p.m.  She weighed 8 lbs, 10 oz and was 21 inches long.  She was beautiful, just like her mother, but had my eyes.  The first time I held her, I sat in the corner chair in Brooke's room, watching her sleep as I counted every one of her little fingers and toes, placing light, little kisses along her cheeks.  She didn't cry much when I held her, and I attributed that to her knowing that she had her daddy wrapped around her little finger, the minute she graced us with her appearance in this world. 

 
My relationship with my mother was also on the mend.  She had found it in her heart to forgive me for everything I'd done, including killing my father.  And once again, Brooke had been right, she just needed time. 

Mary and Brooke's relationship was also on the mend.  Once Brooke found out she was pregnant, she began reaching out to her mother.  One night
, when we were talking, she told me that she had forgiven her mother, but that she would never like her.  I think she recognized how weak her own mother truly was, and how strong she was.  I knew Brooke would never let anything happen to Dakota, or to any of our future children for that matter. 

As a matter of fact, Brooke had dedicated much of her time to helping victims of abuse and sex crimes.  We had taken the money that my father had once used to run his illegal operations, and turned it into something positive that was now helping people in need.  She had even gotten my mom, Mary and Stephanie involved in helping run some of the facilities that helped the victims. 

I was so proud of her for overcoming such horrendous shit, and using the money we had to do good in the community. 

I was still running Prescott
Oil and Gas International, but was forced to make changes along the way.  It was unfortunate, but the company had to do layoffs due to budget cuts. Which wasn't all that bad, because it enabled me to get rid of those I suspected of being involved the dirty shit my dad was in, or at least knew about it.  I had also brought Tristan on board as my Chief Operating Officer.  He knew his shit, and I trusted him with my life.  Everything ran like a smooth machine with us as a team. 

Since losing Tristan as part of my security team, I had brought Alexi on full-time.  He and Mandy were getting along well, and they too were expecting their first child, but not until the summer.  Alexi turned out to be a great guy, and I trusted him to care for my family and keep them safe. 

I was still a control-freak, but I took Tristan's advice and loosened the reigns a bit...that was until Dakota was born.  I vowed to keep her locked in her room until she turned thirty.  Brooke agreed.  We joked about these things, of course, but sometimes you just want to protect your babies from all the evils of the world. 

My sister
, Danielle, and I had grown very close.  I may have not been her twin, but we certainly had a connection.  It took a long time to sort out what I'd seen that day when I thought she was dead.  She explained that she had been approached by the F.B.I., much like Stefan had, when he was a student.  It turned out the F.B.I. had been watching Thomas, Wade and the Governor for quite some time.  At the time, Danielle didn't know our father's involvement, but she quickly figured it out the more involved she became with the case. 

The girl that I
fixed
the crime for was a decoy that the F.B.I. had made look like Danielle.  They have very good make-up artists, according to my sister.  The girl in question, was actually a young woman that had died from a drug overdose, and her family donated her body to science.  It was a confusing, fucking mess and I was glad it was finally over. 

We never did figure out who the jewelry in the box belonged to.  We could only assume that it was taken from young women that were sold into slavery, never to be heard from again.  And
, Danielle was a huge advocate for those women.  She traveled all over the world with the F.B.I., looking to save women that had been taken and sold against their will.  Which worked out well, because many of the women that were rescued, received help through the program that Brooke ran. 

Stephanie had been a huge help in getting the housing set up for the young women enrolled in the program.  It was initially Stephanie's idea to take some of the money from my father's stash and have small apartments built, where the women could stay during their r
ecovery, but with privacy.  Every Prescott property was heavily guarded and security cameras were being watched 24/7.  The facility was just outside of the city, but close enough to the penthouse, so if anything happened, Tristan and Stephanie could be there within ten minutes. 

I was grateful for the direction that my life had taken, but nothing was more important to me than the two girls I had waiting for me at home. 
And that's what life is all about.  Love and family.      

A Wintertime Affair

Tristan's Beginning

              It was the second week of December and school had just let out for winter break.  The campus was like a ghost town, with the exception of the few who were catching later flights, or were locals avoiding the return home sooner than they had to.  It would be the first Christmas that I wouldn’t be spending with my family in Russia, as I had agreed to attend a holiday charity ball with my buddy Dylan that his family was hosting. 

             
The Prescott’s were wonderful people and always welcomed me into their home.  This year was no exception.  As soon as Dylan’s mother heard I would be attending the charity event, she insisted I spend Christmas with their Prescott family.  I felt a bit out of sorts not heading home to my own family, but since my mother has passed away from breast cancer a few years back, Christmas just wasn’t the same.  I missed her terribly and being back at home just brought back all of the painful memories of what I no longer had. 

             
Dylan and I had been dorm mates our freshman year of college and when we were able to move into an apartment our sophomore year, we agreed to get a place together and split the rent.  Not that either one of us was hurting for money, but it made it fair.   

I was just sitting on the large, leather couch watching “Big Bang Theory” when Dylan and Christina entered the room holding hands. 

“Hey man, we’re gonna go watch the Broncos game over at The Tavern.  You wanna come along?” Dylan asked. 

“Sure,” I said.  “Can you give me at least ten, so I can clean up before we head out?” 

“Hurry up, man.   Brody and Andrew are waiting for us.”

“Shit!  Brody’s
gonna be there?”

“He sure is and you know what that means,” he said with a chuckle.

“Yeah.  Tits, everywhere.  Not that I’m complaining, but the dude doesn’t attract the highest quality of women, if you catch my drift.”

“I hear you, man.  I wouldn’t worry too much though Trist, Christina’s friend A.J. will be joining us as well.”

“Even better.  I sense a hook up coming on,” I said rolling my eyes as I headed to the shower. 

I showered as quick as I could, threw some gel in my hair and dressed in jeans and a Broncos jersey.  When I walked into the living room, Dylan and Christina were practically doing each other on the couch. 

“Man, you have a room over there,” I said pointing towards Dylan’s room.

“I do, but I like it on the couch.  If you’d loosen up a bit you might like it too.”

I laughed.  “Dude, do you ever not think of pussy?” I asked, knowing that it was making Christina feel uncomfortable. 

Dylan stood and placed his arm on my shoulder, “we really need to get you out more Tristan.  Man, you’re so uptight and I think meeting someone might actually help you to relax a bit.”

“I have plenty of warm holes to stick my dick in Dylan, can we go now?” I replied irritated.

I wasn’t usually so down and reserved, but I had spent the day feeling guilty about not going home to see my family and I was really missing my mom.  I had to attribute that to my emotional state because I normally acted as carefree and wild as Dylan.  I didn’t date much back at home because I spent most of my time going to school, helping with the family business and taking care of my mom.  American kids were so different.  It seemed that most were spoiled and didn’t have to work or help out with their families.  It was quite a culture shock. 

I grabbed my coat as we headed down the stairs to Dylan’s truck and I climbed in the back of the cab.  I knew Christina wanted to sit next to him so she could talk his ear off about A.J. and I was fine with it.  I wanted to be left alone and sitting in the back provided that. 

As the truck veered onto the highway, I could hear Christina telling Dylan how A.J. wanted to be a writer and that she was really good.  Of course my buddy humored her because he was in love with the girl.  I had hoped that one day I could find a girl as cool as Christina, too.  She was the type of the girl that was beautiful, dressed well, acted like a lady, but she loved sports.  All sports.  You could take her to the bar to watch the games and she wouldn’t complain.  She was every man’s dream, including mine, but only from the sports point of view.  I preferred my women a little on the thicker side.  I wasn’t into skin and bones on a girl.  I didn’t like fat either, but a little cushion was right up my alley. 

I’d been lost in my own head when we arrived at The Tavern.  Parking downtown was a nightmare and expensive as hell.  We drove around the corner at least three times before we found a spot that was close enough to the bar.  None of us wanted to walk very far since it was freezing outside.

I saw Brody through the window sitting next to a hot blonde as we walked toward the entrance of the bar.  The place was
hoppin and suddenly, I was grateful that we were meeting Brody and Andrew since they had saved us a seat at their table.  It had been a long time since I’d last seen Brody.  He had gotten picked up by a professional hockey team in Arizona, while Dylan and I still played for DU. 

“Hey man, it’s good to see you,” I said giving Brody a hug.  “It’s been a fucking long time.  How’s life been treating you?  How’s life in the desert?”  I asked.

“I love it, except for the heat.  That shit is brutal,” he told me, taking his seat. 

I took the seat across from Brody, giving me the perfect view of the large, over- sized plasma screened TV.  The place was so loud you could barely hear anyone speaking.  The place suddenly erupted into cheering when the Broncos scored their first touchdown in the game.  The score was now 7 to 0. 

A beautiful waitress came by in her school girl uniform, exposing her large, fake breasts and took my order.  I ordered a Bud Light on draft and some fish and chips.  Dylan and Christina ordered the same.  I was still lost in my own world, going through the motions of watching the game on TV.  If I was being honest, I really wasn’t paying all that much attention to the game.  I just wasn’t in the mood to be around people and sitting at home wasn’t the answer, either.  I was feeling very unsettled, and I hated it. 

The waitress arrived with our beers and food and was nearly knocked on her ass by a beautiful brunette that was trying to take a seat next to Christina on the wooden bench.  Deafening screams and girls hugging became the scene around me. 
That must be Christina’s friend
I thought.  Beautiful blue eyes, gorgeous, long brown hair, pretty smile, hmm…lovely thighs.  Now that was that kind of girl I could see myself hanging out with.  She was everything I looked for in a girl, I just hoped she had a personality to go along with it.  Then she would definitely be the perfect girl for me. 

I took a sip of my beer, trying to ignore the two girls next to me.  I grabbed a piece of fish out of the basket and proceeded to chew, when suddenly I heard my name mentioned in the conversation.  I was all ears after that. 

Apparently Christina thought I was a mega hottie too.  Hmm…Something to hold over Dylan’s head to piss him off when he’s being a dick.  Perfect!  I chuckled to myself.  I continued listening.  A.J. had just been offered a job in New York as a personal assistant for an author by the name of M.J Fields and she would be leaving just after the holidays.  She was leaving school to pursue her dreams, just like that.  I had great respect for her, and from what I could gather, she had intelligence.  I knew she was a keeper.  Only one problem, I didn’t know her. 

I excused myself, heading to the restroom trying to figure out what I would say to this girl.  I came up blank.  What the hell was wrong with me?  I never had these issues when it came to women, but there was something special about her.  I could sense it.  She didn’t behave like the other women our age.  She even carried herself differently, more confidently.  I zipped up my fly, washed my hands and headed back to my seat. 

“Hey Tristan,” Christina said as I approached the table.

“What’s up Chris?” I replied back.