Joseph Ch. 02

Instead of having sex, Teri popped in a movie and curled up on the couch next to him. They watched the movie without talking and when it was over, Joseph kissed her goodnight. If Teri was disappointed that there was no sex, she didn't show it. That was how their relationship was and besides, Joseph knew that she didn't suffer from a lack of sex.

He went home feeling much better than when he had left. It was a temporary fix but he was determined to enjoy the respite no matter how brief it was. His respite was over much sooner than he wanted it to be. He saw the answering machine's bright red light blinking furiously. He was tempted to ignore it and a few minutes later wished that he had.

"Joseph, this is...."

He clicked the machine off as soon as he heard the voice and walked away his relatively peaceful feeling now gone.

****

Elliot Robert Mitchum sat at the bar nursing his beer. It didn't matter that it was just past noon and he was on his third beer. It didn't matter because he had lost his job-again. He brushed his dark hair back from his face and took another drink.

"Hey," a pretty brunette said as she sat down next to him.

He didn't reply but moved away, if she had caught him a few beers later, he would have been more receptive. Unfortunately, the woman didn't take the hint and moved with him. Finally, he became rude and told her to go away. The woman gave him a nasty glare, called him an asshole and went in search of someone more receptive of her charms. It was during these times in a bar that he thought about Lainie. She had to be close to being in law school if she wasn't already.

He remembered the first time that he saw her as if it had just happened. She was coming out of the library as he was going in. He even remembered how he greeted her. "I haven't seen you here before". To him she was a tiny little thing with wild hair, but he thought her pretty enough. Initially his goal was just to get into her pants as he knew that she had been untouched. Then, he found out who her parents were and set out to ingratiate himself with her. The problem was he didn't like Vietnamese. But still he pursued her until finally; she gave in and agreed to go out with him-with her parent's permission of course.

What he hadn't expected was that he had to meet them. He told himself that it would be alright and well worth it if she would put out and pay for everything to boot. He had put his wallet in the glove compartment of his car so that he could honestly say that he didn't have it. That first meeting was uncomfortable at best. He had dressed neatly, gotten a haircut and was prepared to wow Lainie's parents.

He unconsciously wiped his hands on his slacks when he remembered shaking hands with Lainie's father. He thought that he had hidden his dislike well but apparently, not well enough. He knew by the way that Lainie's parents, her father especially looked at him that they weren't fooled. Lainie was the only one that was.

"So you are a senior," her mother asked quietly.

"Yes ma'am."

"Where will you be attending college?"

"I'm still deciding," Robert replied not liking the intense way that Lainie's mother was looking at him. Just when he thought that her father wasn't going to say anything, he opened his mouth.

"Graduation is in a few months. How is it that you haven't chosen a college yet?"

"I... I umm I applied late," Elliot stammered. His dislike for Lainie's parents was growing by the second.

"I see, what do you intend to study?"

"I don't know yet. The first couple of years are prerequisites so I have time to figure that out," Robert replied wondering where in the hell Lainie was. Later he would find out that the grilling was a planned thing.

"Lainie is already looking at colleges," her mother said. "We've even visited a few."

"Well fucking good for her!" he wanted to say but instead said, "That's great. I plan to do that next weekend." It was a lie and he knew that they knew it.

While they talked, Elliot looked around the house. It was a beautiful home that confirmed what he already knew. While not filthy rich, Lainie's family had money which meant that by extension; so did she. He also realized something else- her parents loved her and would do anything to protect her. And Lainie herself wasn't stupid. He had to watch what he did and what he said at all times. The fuck sessions that he so proudly broadcasted would have to be kept secret. Lainie had to believe that he was hers and only hers.

A few minutes later, Lainie came down the stairs dressed in a light yellow sundress and white sandals. Her normally unruly hair was fixed into a simple French braid. She had gone from being merely pretty to beautiful.

"You look great," Robert said meaning it and wondering what it would take to get her out of her dress. He liked his girls to have bigger boobs, but he would make do. Besides, it was what was below the waist that really mattered. That and of course the mouth. Lainie was a virgin on three fronts and he wanted to be the one to take her for the first time in all of them.

"Thanks, sorry I kept you waiting," Lainie replied blushing.

"It was worth the wait," Robert said falling back onto the lessons that his father had taught him about how to deal with women. "Tell them what they want to hear and soon you'll have them sucking your cock."

He stole a glance at her mother hoping that he had scored a few points. It was clear that he hadn't. They didn't like him. He mentioned something to Lainie when they were in his car.

"It isn't that," she replied. "They would have acted the same way no matter who you were."

The date was dinner at an Italian restaurant during which he found out all about her plans to be a lawyer and not some public defender. Lainie wanted to be a corporate lawyer- she would be making the big bucks. Robert was realistic enough to know that the chances of them remaining together until that happened were slim to none. But he could ride the horse for as long as he could before she gave up and threw in the towel.

As he sat listening to her plans for the future, Robert decided that he really didn't like her. He didn't like the fact that she seemed to have a perfect life. Her family could afford to buy her nice things, take vacations and to send her to whatever school she chose to attend. By contrast, his family had no money to speak of and for the most part completely ignored each other. He was jealous that Lainie had a family that loved her. Without consciously thinking about it, Elliot decided that he was going to teach Lainie and her family a lesson.

After dinner, when the check was sitting in front of him; he reached for his wallet.

"Oh shit!" he moaned as he frantically patted himself down. "I forgot my wallet! I'm so sorry! Please tell me that you have some cash on you."

"I... I have the credit card that's for emergencies..."

"I think that this qualifies," Robert broke in. "And Lainie? Can we keep this between us? The guys will laugh me out of school if they find out."

"I guess so," Lainie said after a few seconds hesitation.

By the time the evening was over, Lainie had paid for the dinner, the movie and put gas in Robert's car. Now a few years later, Robert thought about that night and saw his mistakes. He should have paid for the dinner and the movie. Having her pay for it would only make her parents dislike him more. There was no way in which her parents wouldn't find out about it which meant that he had to repay her for what they spent.

"Look, I'll pay you back, I promise," he said smiling at her.

After the movie, he took her home and gave her a respectable kiss on the cheek. He had to admit that he liked the way that her skin felt against his lips and wondered what her lips would feel like wrapped around his cock. "Slow down Rob," he chided himself as he walked away.

He finished his beer finding it hard to believe that so much time had passed. He had been married and divorced by the time he was twenty-three. Fortunately there had been no children and the divorce had been easy- neither of them had any money or property. He lost his job and had to move back home with his parents. The reception was less than welcoming. For some reason, Lainie's name popped into his head. He knew that had she showed up at home needing a place to stay, her parents would have welcomed her in spite of what she had done. That was the first of many times that he consciously remembered Lainie. Several beers later, he was much more receptive to the attentions of the opposite sex. The brunette was gone but there were others to take her place.

"You know," a beautiful redhead said as she plopped down beside him, "you look just like that actor from a long time ago. I can't remember his name."

"Robert Mitchum," Robert drawled pleased that someone noticed the resemblance without him having to say anything. "Would you believe that that's my name? Only our middle names are different."

"You must be related to him somehow..."

"Yeah... he's related to my dad," Robert lied. "What's your name?"

By the end of the evening, he had a place to lay his head for the evening. By the end of the week, he had a place to live. The woman, Lucinda Wilson was more than happy to give him a place to stay after she found out how talented he was with his tongue. For a while, Lainie went back into Robert's memories. Things were good.

****

Three years later

"One more year," Lainie breathed as she worked on a paper that was due in a week. She was now glad that her parents had insisted on paying her expenses while she was in school. She had to hand it to those students that still worked while carrying the heavy load and a few of them even had kids! She reread the paper and decided that it was missing something but put it away. Her mind couldn't focus anymore and she was in desperate need of a break. Her treat to herself was to give herself a manicure and pedicure while she watched television. Since it was the weekend, she could finish the paper and still have time to revise it after she sent it to her father for editing. Often he would find a point that needed clarification and asked her what she meant. By this time, her parents had co-authored a book that was being added to the curriculum at the university where they taught.

She was so proud of them but as always that pride was tempered with guilt that she knew would never go away. She saved her work, shut down the laptop and went to gather the supplies for her pedicure and manicure. Next she took a long hot shower making sure to put on the shower cap to protect her hair. When it came down to it, she couldn't cut it. Instead she paid someone who did hair out of their home to fix her hair on a weekly basis. The woman, who lived three blocks away; always did her hair on Sundays so it looked fresh for the beginning of the week.

After her shower, Lainie oiled her dark caramel skin and began to work on her nails as she watched her favorite shows. One of the commercials was an ad for a law agency. As she watched the commercial, she made a decision- she would apply for an internship somewhere. But before she did that, she needed to make sure that she had enough school under her belt. The next thing would be to find out which firms were looking for interns. She already knew what her parents were going to say- that she should concentrate on her studies, but she needed the experience and wanted to get her foot in the door somewhere. It could be a real feather in her cap if she interned with one of the well-known firms.

An hour later, her nails were a lovely shade of purple and her toe nails matched. Since it was still early and she wasn't tired, Lainie cleaned up her mess, made a cup of hot tea and logged on to her laptop. It was almost two am by the time she had a list of firms that used interns. It was three by the time she finished working on her resume and four by the time she finished ordering books to help her pass the BAR exam. Finally, she was ready to sleep.

*****

Joseph sat in the large chair and groaned. It had taken him almost three more years before he finally accepted that he needed help with his issues. He still kept the last name of Richardson and was almost sure that he would always keep it. He wasn't getting help because his family had had enough of his anger; he was getting it because he knew that they were right.

Nathan had asked if he wanted him to come with him to his first appointment as moral support, but Joseph had declined. He didn't know what he was going to say and he didn't want any hurt feelings if he should say something horrible. Suddenly he didn't want to be there. The anger was more comfortable. He likened it to an old pair of bedroom slippers that were falling apart but they still felt good to the feet. Just as he was about to leave, Eustace Matthews appeared.

"Going somewhere?" he asked in his deep bass.

Caught, Joseph didn't reply.

"Joseph," Eustace said firmly. "If you don't want to be here, then there's no point to this. It would be a waste of time for the both of us."

"I don't want to be here," Joseph replied. "I have to be here. No one is making me, but I've come to the conclusion that they're right. I have to get a handle on this anger. And before you ask, I don't feel the need to rape. If you ask me that whole genetics thing was and is bullshit."

"I see," Eustace said as he settled in his chair. "May I ask what your explanation is? I'm not saying that you're right or wrong. I'm just curious."

"I know that it started centuries ago. I can also believe that we thought that it was our right and that humans were inferior to us. Having said that- I believe that someone long ago realized that it was wrong and was too afraid to say anything. What pisses me off is that it could have ended a long time ago. Someone even before my uncles could have ended it! My father and then Uncle Ethan could have ended this years ago! Both of them were cowards. They held on to that genetics crap knowing damned well that it was bull shit! Then they say that it was because they didn't know any better! But they fucking did and did nothing about it."

"You do know your family history do you not?" Eustace asked.

"Yeah, I know it. So what?"

"Why do you think that you and Nathan never raped?" Eustace asked.

"Because we were taught that it was wrong!"

"And who taught you that?"

"Our parents did," Joseph replied.

"And where do you suppose that your father and uncles got the idea that it was acceptable to hurt innocent women?"

When Joseph didn't reply, Eustace continued.

"I maintain that initially the males in your family really believed that this was their right. But I also agree with you. Someone- even way back when this started knew that it was wrong and was afraid to speak up. I also agree that had someone spoken up, this could have ended long ago but there were other things namely your grandfather at play."

"So you're saying that we have no responsibility in this?" Joseph shot back hotly.

"Not at all," Eustace replied. "What I am saying is that we have to look at the big picture. Your father and uncles didn't wake up one evening and decide to rape. This was in your family's case a taught behavior. Should someone have spoken up? Absolutely. If they had..."

"Do you know what else I don't get?" Joseph interrupted. "I don't understand the women that marry into this family. Why didn't they run the other way?"

"Maybe they saw the males that your father and uncles were meant to be," Eustace replied. "I do know that it wasn't an easy thing for them to accept. It was much more difficult for your mother and Katrina for obvious reasons. Let me ask you something since we're talking about the women in your family. Are you seeking your mate?"

"Fuck no!" Joseph replied hotly. "To do so would be selfish. I would rather live alone than expose a woman to my screwed up family."

Eustace didn't reply. This was a subject for a much later time.

"So," Eustace said sitting back in his chair, "what prompted you to finally accept that your family is right?"

Joseph wasn't sure of how to answer the question because he didn't know the answer. At least he told himself that he didn't. He didn't want to admit that as of late he was beginning to feel a longing that had at one time been easy to push away. The drafts that he had been working on for years were complete and locked away. He was still undecided as to what to do with them. That, he realized was part of the problem.

"You have no idea?" Eustace asked.

"I guess... I guess I need to understand why I'm the one that's so angry when it should be Nathan," Joseph replied.

"Nathan had his issues too," Eustace said.

"I know, but I don't understand how he can claim this fucked up family of ours. How can he bring a mate into this? How is it that he isn't as angry about it as I am?"

"I don't need to tell you that we all handle anger differently," Eustace replied. "But Joseph, the difference between you and Nathan is this. He dealt with it head on and then decided what he was going to do about it. He had a hard time of it, but ..."

"And I'm drawing it out," Joseph interjected.

"You've come to be very comfortable with your anger. You've been using it to keep from dealing with your issues with your family."

"I know that!" Joseph snapped. "So what are we going to do about it?"

"I am going to help you deal with your problems," Eustace replied. "You are going to do the work. Shall we get started?"

******

Lainie sat in the very front of the class. She didn't want to miss a word. It was crunch time. Every grade counted and she as determined to maintain her four point zero grade point average. She had gotten an internship at a firm called Richardson and associates and she hoped that they would keep her on after she passed the BAR exam.

Her first day would be in a week and she was excited. While it was by no means the biggest firm in town, it was very highly regarded. She had done her research and decided that she could have done much worse. What impressed her was that the firm as small as it was, was growing and that it had three areas of practice- criminal law, corporate law and pro bono.

None of the other firms had that and from what she could see, Richardson's was successful on all fronts. She researched the firm at great length and was surprised to see that there was only one other partner- Winston Marshall. She had wondered about that and then dismissed it as irrelevant. Maybe she would be the next partner. What did surprise her was that all of the lawyers at the firm were expected to take one pro bono case per year. New hires started out in the pro bono department and were expected to be there for no less than a year. She didn't like that but she would deal with it.

Next she researched the owner of the firm. Joseph Richardson. She had stared at the picture of him for a good long time taking in his blond good looks. He looked much too young to own his own firm.

"His family must be loaded," she murmured. But that didn't explain the high success rate of the firm. She applied for the position and was surprised at the quick response. She interviewed a few days later and was hired in.

After she got the position, she called her parents ready to justify her decision to go to work. They surprised her by congratulating her. The one thing that they wouldn't budge on was their continued financial support of her.

"Save your money for a nicer apartment," her mother said.

Lainie argued but to no avail. In fact, she had no plans of moving after she graduated. She had come to love her neighborhood and the people who lived around her. There was no point in mentioning that now, it would only set off another long discussion that she wasn't prepared to have.