A Love from the Past Ch. 04-06

"But you should have told me. You agreed to marry me, that means we shouldn't have secrets between us," Paul reminded her.

"I know, and I was going to tell you, I just didn't know how," Shella sighed.

"You open your mouth and say, 'Paul, I got knocked up by my ex,' that's how," Paul said. Shella sighed again and took a long draw of her hot chocolate. "Shella, why couldn't you trust me enough to tell me?" Paul wanted to know. Shella shook her head. "No, Shella, I need an answer. If we're going to make it, you need to tell me the truth," Paul said.

"I dated someone about two years after I had Netalia. When I mentioned to him that I had had a baby, he called me a whore and split," Shella answered.

"And you thought I was going to do that?" Paul asked softly.

"No, I didn't, but I had buried it so far deep inside me," Shella answered.

"That isn't good enough Shel," Paul told her. Shella's eyes widened.

"What does that mean?" Shella asked softly.

"I'm sorry Shella, but if you can't trust me, I can't be with you anymore. I'd like for you to pack a few things, give me back my ring and the key to the apartment. You and Jason can come get the rest of your things when Tina and the baby get home," Paul said.

"Paul, please, give me another chance," Shella pleaded. Paul stood up with a shake of his head.

"I can't, I'm sorry," he told her before he walked away.

"Shel, you called, what's wrong?" Dex asked.

"Paul broke off the engagement," Shella answered, pushing off against the ground, swinging lightly.

"I'd say that I was sorry but then I'd be lying," Dex told her. "Why did you call me?" he wanted to know.

"Jason is busy with Tina and Parker and you're the first person I thought of," Shella answered.

"I thought you wanted me to leave you alone," Dex murmured. Tears fell down Shella's face.

"I don't know what I want. I wanted to just get on with my life," Shella wailed. Dex knelt down in front of her and gave her a gentle hug.

"Marry me Shel. I know it's been ten years since we've seen each other, but you were willing to marry me once, why not now?" Dex murmured.

"I was marrying you because I was told to. You don't love me and I don't love you and I want to marry for love," Shella answered.

"Please Shel, give us a chance. We loved each other once," Dex said softly.

"But not in a romantic sense. You loved me like a brother loves a sister. I want more," Shella told him.

"What can I do to prove to you that isn't true?" Dex asked.

"Give me time," Shella murmured.

"How much time?" Dex wanted to know.

"I don't know Dex. Can you take me to a hotel? Please?" Shella asked, wiping the tears off of her cheeks.

"No. Not to a hotel. I have plenty of room, you can stay with me," Dex said.

"No way Dex," Shella protested.

"I'll keep my hands to myself," he promised. "Well, most of the time," he amended. Shella couldn't help but laugh.

"Okay, I'll stay at your house, but if I find you trying to hump my leg, I'm sending Jason after you with a bow staff," Shella threatened. Dex laughed.

"Deal," he said, extending a hand to help her out of the swing.

~~~~~~~

"I want to know what my options are," Dex said into the phone. "Yes, I'm aware that Shella gave up her parental rights. I never did. I just found I even have a daughter." Dex stopped and listened to the attorney on the phone. "Do you have any idea of who I am?" Dex shouted. "I'm the crown prince of Tria that's who I am!" he exclaimed. He looked up to see Shella standing in the doorway. "What is it?" he asked, covering the speaker.

"Netalia's here," Shella said softly. Dex nodded and held up a finger. Shella backed out of the office and down to the library.

"I've never seen this many books in a single, private collection before," Netalia breathed. "Do you think Dex would mind if I looked at them?" she asked Shella.

"I don't think he'd mind at all." She studied the spines of the books before selecting one off of the shelf. "This one is about the history of Tria. You might find it interesting," Shella told her.

"Actually, it's a pretty boring book, but it has some great facts about the country," Dex said from the doorway. Shella laughed and took a deep breath to calm down. She hadn't been prepared to meet her daughter for at least another eight years.

"Does Victoria know you are here?" Shella asked.

"Not exactly," Netalia admitted.

"She does now," Darius said from the doorway. "She's in the lobby screaming kidnapping," he added.

"My aunt is insane," Netalia groaned. Shella grinned.

"You probably should go back home," Dex said with a sigh.

"I don't want to," Netalia protested, her eyes widening. Shella could read the panic in them and took a step forward.

"What did Victoria do?" Shella asked.

"I haven't eaten since the burger you guys bought me last week," Netalia admitted.

"Excuse me please," Dex said as he walked out of the room.

-30 minutes later-

"Where is my niece?" Victoria demanded to know, angry at being kept waiting. Shella stood with Netalia, Jason, Tina and baby Parker while Dex, Darius and a team of lawyers stood in front of Victoria.

"I'm right here Victoria," Netalia answered, stepping forward.

"It's time to go Netalia," Victoria said stiffly.

"I'm not going anywhere with you," Netalia said.

"I'm legally your guardian," Victoria reminded her.

"I'm not going anywhere with you," Netalia repeated.

"Do you want to spend another week in your room where all you get is water?" Victoria snapped. Dex looked angry but triumphant.

"That's all we need to temporarily grant custody of the girl to the Prince," one of the lawyers announced.

"Bull shit!" Victoria took two steps towards Dex, her fists clenched in anger. Darius and the other guards stepped up and surrounded her.

"I would think about your next move very carefully," Darius suggested, his voice low, angry.

"My niece is coming home with me," Victoria insisted.

"This is Mr. Braden from Social Services," Dex introduced, stepping back. He motioned for his friends to join him in the library.

"I thought she was going to hit you," Jason said shaking his head.

"She wouldn't get close enough," Dex told his friend, staring curiously at the baby in his arms. "May I?" Dex asked. Jason nodded and slid the baby into Dex's arms. Shella swallowed as she watched her former fiancee hold her nephew. Jason glanced at Tina then watched the look on Shella's face; she felt Jason's eyes on her and smiled weakly. "I'm okay," she mouthed. Jason nodded and took the now fussy Parker from Dex and passed him off to Tina.

"This is where you'll be sleeping," Dex told Netalia, showing her into a bedroom. The walls were a lavender color with white trim and white lace curtains. A full sized bed with light purple and white laced blankets and sheets sat in the center of the room with a white bookshelf and dresser placed against opposite walls.

"It's beautiful," Netalia murmured.

"The cook starts serving breakfast at six thirty and stops with breakfast at eleven, so don't sleep all day. I'll have a tutor here to continue with your lessons by nine," Dex said. Netalia nodded and watched Dex walk towards the door. He stopped and turned back towards her. "Good night," he murmured.

As Dex walked down the hall, he peeked in Shella's room on his way to his own. She was writing in a leather journal, tears streaming down her face. "Shel, are you okay?" Dex asked from the doorway.

"I'm fine Dex, just please, leave me alone," Shella answered, her voice sounded quiet in the stillness of the night.

CHAPTER SIX

"Shella, are you here?" Netalia called, walking the halls of the house. Shella appeared in the doorway and Netalia's eyes widened. "Dex said the chef doesn't like anyone messing around in her kitchen," Netalia reminded Shella.

"I'm the exception," Shella told her. "C'mon, I'm making cookies," she added.

In the past six months, Dex, Shella and Netalia had fallen into an uneasy routine; Shella was becoming more relaxed around the daughter she had given up, but Dex still made her nervous. It had been so long since she had seen him that she didn't know how much he had changed and she was almost scared to find out.

"It smells good in here ladies," Dex said. Shella jumped and spun around. Dex was leaning lazily against the door jam with his arms folded over his chest and a lazy grin on his face.

"You scared the crap out of me," Shella breathed.

"Sorry." He turned to Netalia. "Billy's waiting in the foyer to take you to the museum," he said. Netalia nodded, snagged a baggie of cookies and hurried out of the kitchen.

"She seems excited," Dex commented.

"Most likely she wanted to get away from the tension," Shella said absently as she pulled cookies from the cookie sheet and onto the wire cooling rack.

"What tension?" Dex asked. Shella sighed and turned off the oven.

"We've been dancing around each other for months Dex. You've been having Darius follow me when he isn't with you, even to work, and when we're here together, you keep giving me these 'come fuck me' looks," Shella said.

Dex grinned. "You can do that anytime you want," he agreed.

"Not gonna happen Dex," Shella retorted.

"But I can dream can't I?" Dex asked.

"Keep me out of your dreams buster," Shella snapped.

"But they're much better with you in them," Dex said, pulling Shella closer to him and kissing her gently. Shella moaned and kissed him back. She pulled away slightly as his hands went under her sweater and cupped her breasts. Dex moved his hands down over Shella's hips and down her legs until his fingers brushed the hem of her skirt. He started pushing the skirt up around her waist, his fingers pushed past the waistband of her panties and into her damp heat. He only stopped when an outraged noise was heard from the doorway. Shella pulled away and blushed when she saw the cook standing there. "This is the last time I allow you to mess with my kitchen," she said. Shella pushed away from Dex and ran from the room.

~~~~~~

"What do you mean I have to go back to Victoria?" Netalia whined.

"The deal made with child services was that if Victoria promised to allow unannounced visits by the social worker, you were to go back to her house," Dex answered.

"I don't want to go back!" Netalia shouted.

"I know kid, and I don't want you to go either," Dex murmured. He gave her a tight hug as Victoria pulled up. "You can call me any time you want to, it doesn't matter how late," he promised, slipping a piece of paper in the book about Tria into her messenger bag.

"I'll miss you," he added, pressing a kiss to her cheek.

"I'll miss you too," Netalia sniffled. She stopped hesitantly in front of Shella. Ever since Dex had told them that she had to go back to Victoria, Shella became very monosyllabic and refused to elaborate on anything.

"If she even looks at you cross eyed, call us," Shella said softly. Netalia nodded and hugged Shella tightly, winced at the pressure Shella's hug caused. "Take care of yourself," Shella whispered as Netalia walked over to the car. Victoria lifted Netalia's bags off of the ground and put them in the trunk. Shella's hand found Dex's as Victoria and Netalia got into the car and drove away.

"Shella ..." Dex began. Shella said nothing, just pulled her hand from Dex's, turned and walked back into the house.

"Where are you going?" Dex asked when Shella walked past the library thirty minutes later with a duffel bag.

"I need some space to think," Shella answered.

"There's plenty of room here," Dex pointed out.

"I can't think if I'm anywhere within a hundred feet of you," Shella retorted. She walked out the door and climbed in the waiting cab.

~~~~~~

"What are you doing here?" Paul asked, surprised to see Shella in the doorway.

"Can we talk?" Shella murmured. Paul nodded and let Shella into the apartment. "I screwed up Paul," she told him. He nodded his agreement. "I stayed with Dex. No, nothing happened, I didn't sleep with him. There are like fifty bedrooms in that place between the main residence hall and the two guest halls," Shella said. Paul studied her closely.

"What's wrong Shel?" he asked.

"Netalia, that's what I named her. Her adoptive parents were killed in the mall explosion about six months ago. She found a letter I wrote to her to be given when she was told about being adopted. She looked Dex up. Her aunt locked her in her room and refused to feed her for a week. The state gave Dex temporary custody of Netalia. They decided a few days ago to give Victoria another chance to be Neta's guardian," Shella manged to say before silent tears began streaming down her face. Paul wrapped his arms around her and held her close. "This is why I couldn't even hold her or look at her when she was born. I was afraid that if I did, I'd never be able to say goodbye," Shella said through her tears.

"It's going to be okay," Paul murmured, rubbing her back gently.

"She went back to that monster of an aunt and there isn't a damn thing I can do about it because I wasn't willing for my life to be more complicated than it should be!" Shella exclaimed.

"Shella, did her adoptive parents treat her well and love her as if she was their own?" Paul asked gently. Shella nodded through her tears. "Could they provide for her in a way you couldn't?" Again, Shella nodded. "Were you able to provide for a baby ten years ago?" Shella shook her head again. "Then you made the right decision," Paul told her, gently wiping away her tears.

"But now what do I do?" Shella sniffled.

"You move on," Paul answered.

"I tried," Shella murmured. Paul suppressed a sigh. "Can we try again, please?" Shella asked. Paul found himself nodding. "I love you Shel, and I've missed you," he told her, pressing a kiss to her lips. Shella moaned and gasped against his mouth as Paul's fingers slipped inside her.

"I have an idea," Shella said, pulling away slightly, her breath uneven.

"What's that?" Paul asked, curling his finger inside her. Shella moaned and closed her eyes as she moved against him.

"Let's fly out to Vegas. I have the whole weekend off," Shella suggested.

"What about your dream wedding?" Paul asked, brushing his thumb by her clit causing her to let out a loud gasp.

"The hell with a big wedding," Shella panted. Paul grinned and began stroking her faster, making her cry out as she came.

"I'll go pack a bag. You save all that energy for later," Paul told her.

~~~~~~~~~

"Did you have fun?" Victoria asked, choosing her words carefully.

"Yes," Netalia answered honestly.

"What do you have there?" Victoria wanted to know, motioning towards the book in Netalia's hands.

"A book about the history of Tria and it's people," Netalia told her.

"I see," Victoria said, her tone and expression calm and unreadable.

"Please don't tell me I can't see them again," Netalia pleaded.

"We'll see," Victoria said.