A Means to an End

"Craig! That's not what I-"

"Have fun back in LA. I do hope you take down that asshole boss of yours, I really do, but if I have to choose between some girl and my family, I'll take my family any day of the week, and twice on Sunday. Take care, Jaime."

With that, Craig slammed the hotel room door shut, leaving Jaime dumbfounded and confused. All she had wanted to do was encourage him. How had this happened? As she wept on the bed, her phone buzzed with a text message, indicating her flight was to leave later that day. She wanted desperately to chase after him, but there simply was not enough time.

"I want Craig... but there are women depending on me. I can't let them down."

*****

"Jaime! Welcome back!" Alexis said, hugging her best friend.

"Thanks, girl."

"And there's someone here to meet you."

"Good to meet you in person, Jaime," said Nina, giving her a hug as well.

"Nina, I can't thank you enough for everything you're doing," Jaime replied.

"Think nothing of it! I'm happy to help you like this a thousand times over. I have an appointment scheduled for you with my attorney this Friday at 10 am, so get some rest tonight."

"Yeah, I'll do that..."

"I need get going; I'm needed at the studio bright and early tomorrow," Nina said.

"Bye, Nina!" Alexis said, waving at her as she left. Noticing Jaime's distant facial expression, she said, "Hey, you ok?"

"Huh? Oh, yeah... I'm fine."

"Liar. What's wrong? Missing your guy already?" Alexis probed.

"Kind of... but he's not my guy anymore," Jaime replied. "After you hung up, we had a big, big fight. I was encouraging him to leave Apalachicola and restart his music career in Nashville, but he thought I was telling him to abandon his family."

"What?! Why would he think that?"

"I... may have called his home a Podunk town," Jaime admitted. "Oh god, I fucked it up, Alexis! I met the man of my dreams and drove him off because I couldn't keep my big mouth shut!"

"Shh, it's ok. Calm down. Listen, just let it mellow a few days, focus on this Macho business. After a couple of days, call him and explain. If he's as great as you say, he'll understand."

"But he didn't give me his phone number."

"You don't have any way to contact him?"

"No... well, there is his dad's bar and grill. I could try calling there."

"I think that'll be your best bet. Just let it simmer for a bit, ok?" Alexis replied.

"Ok... thanks, Alexis."

*****

"And that's everything, Ms. Albright."

"Thank you, Jaime, and it's Gail. Based on everything you've told me, I'm more than comfortable proceeding with this case, pro bono of course."

"Really? Even with no witnesses or physical evidence?" Jaime asked.

"Of course! We may not have much more than 'he said, she said' for the court of law, but I'd be shocked if this ever sees the inside of a courtroom. Rocco Cranston, Mr. Macho as it were, is going to want to settle this as quietly as possible, I'd wager."

"That's good to know, but... what if I don't want to settle quietly?"

"How do you mean?" Gail asked.

"It has been pointed out to me that Rocco has likely done this many times before, and will almost certainly do so again. I feel a responsibility to not be quiet about this, for the sake of all those other girls. I... I need to go public with this. With that in mind, I'm not opposed to a settlement, but I won't accept one that forces me to keep quiet about Rocco's true nature."

"Hmm... clever girl. I'm on board with that. Now, bear in mind that this may cost us the ability to settle altogether, and we still may never get this into a courtroom, but the court of public opinion can be a powerful weapon as well. You ok with trading a potential settlement for positive press?"

"Definitely," Jaime grinned. "This isn't about the money."

"Perfect. I'll schedule an interview with the police department, followed by a meeting with Mr. Cranston and his attorney."

"Police department?"

"Jaime, you never filed an incident report. Without that, we have no leverage against Rocco. Even if the police decline to charge him, this has to happen for anything to come from it."

"I suppose I'll need a reason why I waited so long?" Jaime asked.

"Just tell the truth," Gail advised. "You were shell-shocked after the incident and needed some time to clear your head, figure out what you wanted to do. Honesty is the best policy with the police; you haven't done anything wrong here. Rocco's attorneys will try to make you out to be the villain, but we won't let them. He's in the wrong here, not you."

"Sounds great. Thanks again for doing this."

"It is my genuine privilege. Now, anything else for today?"

"Nope. Keep me informed about our upcoming meetings. Thanks again!"

After shaking hands with Gail, Jaime left the lawyer's office, finding Nina waiting on her in the lobby.

"Hey! How'd it go?"

"Very well. I like her a lot," Jaime replied.

"Yeah, she's the best. I've known her for years. You hungry? Let's do lunch."

"Sure!"

Five minutes later, they were sitting in the Panera across the street.

"So, what's the plan of attack?" Nina asked.

"Well, I made it clear that I won't accept any settlement that forces me to keep quiet. Going public is exactly what I want to do."

"And the right thing to do, in my opinion."

"Agreed," said Jaime. "First, I need to file an official police report, and then we'll meet with Rocco and his attorney. If the police decline to file charges, then that makes things easy. We go public and try to educate the world."

"And if he makes a lucrative settlement offer?"

Jaime snorted. "This isn't about the money."

"I'm glad, but you still need to think about yourself. You might be out of work for a little while until this blows over. Are you prepared for that?"

"Yep. I've lived on the cheap ever since I arrived out here, stockpiling money away for the future whenever possible."

"Good for you!" Nina replied. "I have known far too many girls in this business that let the money go to their heads. They don't make any plans for down the road, blow it all on consumables, it's really very sad. Seeing a bright young woman like you preparing for her future just brings a smile to my face."

"Thank you," Jaime blushed.

"So, as you know, I've worked for some time now to build my own little empire in the adult film industry. It gives me a lot of freedom to do only the kinds of projects I want to do. I normally don't offer jobs so easily without extensive interviews, but what I just learned about you tells me everything I need to know. How would you like to come work for me?"

"Wait... you're offering me a job?"

"Absolutely. You're young, pretty, and oh so bright. I can't imagine you'd be anything but a dream to work with. So, what do you say? It'd be great, and so much more tasteful than anything you've done in the past."

Jaime paused a moment before replying, "I'm so incredibly flattered, but... I don't think I can accept."

"Why not? You're not currently under contract, are you?"

"It's not that, Nina. It's just... I don't think I can do this anymore. Any of it."

Nina cocked her eyebrow. "This is about that Craig boy, isn't it?"

"Yeah..."

"Alexis mentioned you two had hit a rough spot."

"Uh huh. I know I may have already lost him, but I can't seem to get him out of my head. I think about him all the time..."

"I see... you're in love with him, aren't you?"

"Huh. I... guess I am. I can't imagine never seeing him again, and I'd do anything to get him back. I don't care where we are or what we do; I just want to be with him. I guess that is love," Jaime realized.

"So, what are you going to do?"

"Well, Alexis said to let it mellow for a few days, then try to call his dad's bar and grill to try and talk to him. That was five days ago."

"Go home and call him, Jaime. You need some closure, one way or another."

*****

Steve stood at his bar, preparing mason jars of sour mix for that evening. He enjoyed this lull in the middle of the afternoon; only a couple of patrons were there, mainly to get away from the tourists for a bit. As he reached for another lemon, the phone started ringing.

"Steve's on the Bay. This is Steve. How can I help ya?"

"Mr. McNeal, it's Jaime Little."

Sighing a bit, Steve motioned to one of his workers. "Jason, mind the bar, will ya?" he asked, covering the phone.

"Sure thing, boss."

Stepping to the side of the room, Steve said, "I'm a bit surprised to hear from you, Jaime. Craig's been a total wreck since you left."

"Oh god..."

"He wouldn't tell me the details, but he said somethin' about you goin' back to LA for some legal battle with your boss. Also mentioned it wasn't gonna work between y'all, that you made it clear your values didn't line up with his. To be honest, I'm of a mind to end this call right now, as messed up as he's been."

"Please, don't hang up! I just want to explain."

"Well... alright. I'm all ears."

"Ok, when I last saw Craig, I said some really dumb things. I... might have accidentally called Apalachicola a Podunk town."

"And how does something like that accidentally happen?"

"I just wasn't thinking. My mind was going a mile a minute, what with the legal battle on the horizon, and it just kind of slipped out. I wasn't trying to cut him down, or the people there. I love your town, so much so that I can't wait to get back there! Really, I was only trying to encourage Craig."

"Encourage him? How do ya mean?"

"Craig told me how he was a professional musician in Nashville, but decided to move to Florida after his mom got sick."

"He told you 'bout that? Wow... you musta made quite an impression on him."

"I know. And he's so talented; he said he almost had a recording contract in Nashville. All I wanted to do was encourage him to pursue that, keep from wasting his talents."

"Huh. Well, that don't seem so bad. I wonder why he got so hot?"

"I don't know. He started talking about how I was asking him to give up his family, that his talents were with helping you. He kept talking like I was trying to get him to forget you forever or something. I have no idea how it got to this, but-"

"Say no more, Jaime. This ain't your fault, and it ain't Craig's neither. It's mine."

"Yours?"

"Yeah. See, I was never any good at business; my Lynn always handled that. After the cancer took her, Craig helped me keep this place afloat. That was three years ago. Three years I've stolen from my son..."

"Mr. McNeal, that's not fair."

"No, it is. I've been relyin' so heavily on Craig that I've been stealin' his dream career from him. Now, he feels obligated to me. That's why he flew off the handle at ya. Now what to do about it?" Thinking a moment, Steve continued, "Jaime, I need to ask you a few serious questions, and I need your complete honesty on them. Can you gimmie that?"

"Of course!"

"Clearly, you care a lot about my son to keep after him like this. But he's still my son, and I'll do anything to make sure he don't get his heart broken. What is your plan in all this, Jaime? Are you gonna be continuin' your, uh, job? And most importantly, how do you really feel about Craig?"

Jaime took a deep breath; it was true confession time.

"Mr. McNeal, I'm not going to sugarcoat this at all. Clearly, Craig told you about my line of work, which I totally understand. To be honest, I was offered another job just today, one with a far better boss than I could have ever hoped for, but I turned it down. I turned it down, because... I can't go back to that life, not anymore. For the last three years, I've been trying to find my place this in world. Now that I've seen the life Craig has, built on the simple pleasures of love and family, I know what I want.

"That being said, I'm not making some impulsive decision to move across the country without a dime to my name. I won't go into the details, but suffice to say I've saved a very comfortable amount over the last three years for my future. I will never need to be taken care of by Craig, or any man for that matter. Mr. McNeal, the truth is... I'm in love with your son. A week ago, I didn't even know he existed, but now, I don't want to imagine my life without him. He's honest, genuine, and loves his family above all else. Even in his anger a few days ago, those qualities managed to shine through. I don't know what chance I have of getting him back or even seeing him again, but if there is a chance, I'll take it. I love him. If nothing else, he deserves to know that."

Steve pondered this for several seconds before responding, "I believe you."

"Thank you," Jaime eked out, now close to tears.

"Listen, you need to focus on your legal battle right now. Don't you worry 'bout Craig; I'll handle him. Do what you need to do out in LA, and come back here when you're ready. Can ya do that?"

"Yes, Mr. McNeal."

"One last thing: you can call me Steve. If everything you told me is true, I imagine I'll be seein' a helluva lot of ya from here on out. Take care of yourself, Jaime. Keep in touch."

"I will. Thank you, Steve."

Ending the call, Steve made his way to a back room of the bar, finding Craig hard at work on the computer.

"Hey, Dad. Just goin' over last week's receipts."

"Yeah, thanks. Hey, uh... take a break. I wanna talk to ya for a bit."

"Ok, sure. What's going on?" Craig asked.

Taking a seat, Steve said, "I just got an interesting phone call... from one Jaime Little."

"Ah shit... Dad, why'd you even take the call?" Craig whined.

"Because she wanted to tell me her side of things, and I must admit that she provided some context."

"Context my ass..."

"Craig, shut up a moment and listen," Steve replied sharply. "Now that girl feels awful about what she said to you. She swore she didn't mean Podunk the way you took it, and I believe her."

"That ain't even what pissed me off, Dad. Do you have any idea what she wanted me to do?"

"She wants you to pursue your dream career in Nashville, boy! You've got the talent for it; we all know that."

"Yeah, and abandon you in the process!"

"You are not abandoning me, Son!" Steve moaned. "Listen, this spat that y'all had ain't her fault and it ain't yours... it's mine. Craig, you've been fantastic these last three years. I was in a bad spot after your mom passed, and you were my rock all the way. But I'm better now. So, I think it's time I started being your dad again."

"Dad..."

"No, I mean it. You put your family above everything, and that's admirable. Now, I need to follow your example and put my family first. So I'm gonna do you the biggest favor of your life. You're fired."

Craig blinked at this. "I'm what?!"

"Fired. Not right away, of course. I'll give ya time to find work, reach back out to your Nashville contacts. But once you've done that, you're outta here."

"Dad, be serious. You'd never be able to keep this place afloat without me! What's your plan for when I'm gone?!"

"That's my concern, not yours. I'll find a reliable business partner to help me keep this place goin' for years to come," Steve replied. "You've done enough for me, Craig. It's time you start thinkin' about your own future."

"And you think all this is just gonna magically get me and Jaime back together?" Craig asked. "She had every chance to come after me if she wanted to! Why should I leave you hangin' just to chase after a fantasy?!"

"Because she loves you, dammit!" Steve roared slamming his fist on the table. "That girl is head over heels for ya, boy! I could hear it in her voice; she was damn near cryin' when she told me this! Hell, she turned down work today and is plannin' to move down here after the business with her boss is done, all because the only thing she wants now is another chance with you! And clearly you were taken with her before that little spat. I saw the way y'all were lookin' at each other at the crawfish boil, so don't even try to lie to me, Craig. You weren't never any good at it anyhow!"

"Maybe I was way into her, but that was then."

"Then tell me this: why were you so into her to begin with?"

Craig thought a moment. "It was... seeing her hold Hayley's little girl. Damn, the way her eyes lit up... and to top it all off, one of our riders that day was a moody teenage girl. She talked with her, heard the girl was wantin' some random hookups with the guys on the beach, and Jaime steered her away. Told her that sorta thing wasn't worth it." Snapping back to reality, he continued, "But I was just foolin' myself. I latched onto an ideal that wasn't fair to either of us. No, she made her choice, and I've made mine. She chose California, and I chose family."

"At least think about it, won't ya?" Steve pleaded.

"No. Dad, I understand what you're tryin' to do, but it ain't meant to be. I need to lie down a while," Craig said, heading towards the bunk in the adjoining room. "And you can forget that shit about firing me!" he shouted over his shoulder.

*****

Craig... Craig!

"Nuh... wha?"

Craig blinked as his vision slowly came into focus. His eyes hurt from the bright lights in the room. Soon, he managed to make out what was in front of him. It was his mom's hospital room.

"Hi, sweetie."

Craig sat slack-jawed for a few moments. It was his mom, Lynn McNeal. She reclined back in her hospital bed in a fluffy bathrobe, magazine in hand. Her hair was no longer matted and dirty as it was in his last memory of her; it was dark black and healthy, styled into her signature pixie cut. She was exactly as he wanted to see her: strong and healthy, her body no longer ravaged by the cancer that ended her life.

"Mom?"

"Yeah, it's me," she grinned.

"Wha... what are you doing here?"

Closing her magazine, she replied, "Trying to do one last motherly thing for my only child."

"No, I mean... why are we here, in the place you died?"

"Because for some reason, this has become your most enduring memory of me, Craig. I can't let that continue, not with it affecting the rest of your life."

"Mom..."

"Sweetie, you need to live your life. Your life. You've been so strong these last three years, and I can't tell you how proud of you I am. But you've been so devoted to your father that you never properly grieved for me."

"I had no choice! Family comes first; that's what I promised you!"

"I know, and I'm so thankful that you've been so strong. Your father wouldn't be doing as well as he is if you hadn't been."

"So you're saying he actually is better?" Craig asked.

"Yep, and he really wants to help you now. He meant every word he said about starting to be your dad again."

"That's great, but-"

"No buts, Craig!" she replied in her mothering voice. "I know you're stubborn, but so am I; you're my son after all. I won't take no for an answer."

"But why appear to me now, all of a sudden?"

"Because I know things you don't, sweetie. I've been watching over you for three years now, and I've seen the life you could have."

"You've seen my future?" Craig asked in wonderment.

"Your future hasn't been written yet. But I've seen what it could be, for better or worse. And right now, you're at a crossroads to those outcomes."

"Mom, I love seeing you again, but you don't have to be so mysterious. What's this really all about?"

"Craig, you're so close to having it all. Everything you've ever wanted, your music career, a loving family, and the girl of your dreams, is within reach. And I'm using my one divine intervention to make sure you don't miss out."

"This is about Jaime, isn't it?" Craig realized.

"What do you think?" she asked with a smirk.