The Long Ride Pt. 01

"Shari close your eyes?!" Itzel heard Callum say as he held the unicorn behind his back. Noting how Marda was smiling at him as she covered Shari's eyes. "Now open them!" How her heart fluttered as she listen to Shari's squeal of joy as she laid eyes upon it.

"I love it!" Shari exclaimed hugging the stuffed animal tightly to her chest.

"I'm glad you do baby," Callum said sweetly, as he stroked his daughter's hair as she stared up at him with unconditional love.

"Can I go show Bret?!" Shari asked, wanting to show all her friends her new friend.

"Of course honey, just stay where I can see you," Callum said, a smile appeared on his lips as Shari nodded before bounding off.

"Cal?" Her voice caused him to turn towards the sound of her voice.

"Yeah?"

"You're a very good father, you know that?" Itzel stated hoping she was hiding the budding feelings that were starting to form within her chest.

"Thanks, I do try to be," Callum said, a little unsettled by the praise.

"You know you are Cal, I'm not the only one who sees it," Marda whispered to him as she winked at Itzel.

"So umm..." Itzel's voice got a little flustered as those dark honey brown eyes glanced over to her. "I hear there's a cookout after this."

"So I hear," Callum said, with a smile.

"Are you going to be going?" Itzel asked, if he wasn't then she would just head home and unpack her things. She only had two rooms left to do. It was the only reason she agreed to come out. She would have stayed in her apartment but when she found that house, with its dirt cheap price, she knew she had to jump on it, so she bought it. It and her bike were the only things she's ever touched her trust fund for.

"Thinking about it, why?" Callum asked, a devilish light played along his eyes.

"Maybe I'll see you there," Itzel said, feeling her cheeks rapidly heating.

"Maybe you will," Callum agreed.

"Stop teasing the girl Cal," Marda whispered into his ear.

"So... would you like to sit with me and Shari once old Rick fires up the grill?" Callum asked, noting how Marda was nodding in approval.

"I don't know Cal, there are other distinguished men here," Itzel teased as she tapped her chin. Whatever else she was going to say Callum he would never know as Shari came rocketing in.

"Daddy! They all love my new friend!" Shari said, jumping up and down.

"Well then, that calls for a celebration doesn't it?!" Callum said, squatting down. "So have you named him yet?" he asked, lightly tugging on the unicorn's hind leg.

"Mmmhmm," Shari nodded, "I named her after her," she said, taking Callum by surprise as Shari took hold of Itzel's left hand. "Thank you, for helping to get her for me," Shari said, looking up at Itzel.

"Shari... you don't have to thank me; it was your dad that..."

"But... you rode with us, didn't you?" Shari asked, confused.

"Yes but..." Itzel looked to Callum for help.

"Then you should come and visit Itzel as much as you want okay?" Shari stated as she plumped out her lower lip.

"Shari... maybe she just doesn't like unicorns," Callum said, as he rose. A wicked smile formed on his lips as Itzel's eyes narrowed dangerously.

"Oh," Shari said, sadly.

"I do so like unicorns!" Itzel stated firmly.

"Really?!"

"Mmmhmm, don't listen to your dad, he doesn't know..." Her face instantly became red as she almost let slip of the tattoo she has on her right ass cheek.

"I don't know what?! I'm all ears." Fighting back his smile at Shari's giggle.

"I have something, which can't be shown in public," Itzel said, quickly looking away.

"I... see," Callum mused wondering where on her body it was. Wondering if he would ever see it. "What about in private?"

"Cal! You dirty pervert!" Regina said, lightly slapping his shoulder as she came up to them. She was wondering how the two of them were hitting it off. "I'm sorry Itzel, I thought Cal would have been more gentlemanly."

"She's the one that brought it up Regina, can't a man ask where it is if she's the one that brought it up?" Callum asked, noting how beet red Itzel's face had become.

"I'm so sorry Itzel, come on dear, let's go see if there're other men here who're more grown up," Regina said, jokingly. In reality she wanted to know how it was going between the two of them and she couldn't do that in front of Callum. Plus it was time to head back to the club house. "Don't you worry, I'll find you someone else," she said, lightly patting her arm as she led a confused Itzel away.

"Well, I think she's going to be a keeper," Marda mused, smiling when Callum arched an eyebrow. "Come now dear, I know you well enough to know when you're interested in someone."

"Daddy?!" Shari demanded, staring, confused at her father and Marda wondering what they were talking about.

"It's nothing Shari, why don't we stop by the house and you can put your friend in your room and then we'll go to the cookout?" Callum suggested, as Shari nuzzled the stuffed animal.

"Okay," Shari sighed happily.

******

"Shari!" Bret called out once Callum pulled up.

"Go on," Callum said, hanging his glasses on the collar of his shirt. Watching how she ran excitedly towards Bret knowing how she'd been waiting to play those games of his.

"Well now." A chill crept up his spine as he heard Itzel's voice behind him. "A man shouldn't keep a lady waiting, now should he?" Itzel said, as Callum turned to look at her.

"Waiting?!"

"Yeah..." Looking down at her feet, "You, Shari, and Regina are like the only people I know here."

"You just move here?" Callum asked, knowing the way she looks he knew she would have found someone to line her arm if she hadn't.

"About a little over two months ago," Itzel said weakly. Wondering why she was so nervous; she never was when it came to men. She's always known what to say and how to talk to and handle men. However, those men were shallow and vain only interested in getting into her pants. Sometimes she would let them other times she would string them along until they showed their true selves. Never a man like Callum, whose sole focus was on his daughter and not trying to talk her into his bed.

"Oh? Where from?" Callum asked, trying not to bring attention to the fact that he could see the outline of her red bra through the white t-shirt since she had taken off her jacket.

"LA," Itzel stated.

"I wonder what was going through your mind to choose Deadwood of all places to come to," Callum said, with a teasing smile.

"I wanted..." Stepping up to Callum, smelling the soap he uses drifting off his skin, "a slower, more fulfilling life than I would ever get in LA. Too many people there are only looking after themselves, and won't hesitate to stab you in the back to advance their careers," Itzel said, having seen it first hand when her mother would take her along into her office when she was younger.

"Ah. Well, you'll find that here, not much to do compared to LA, I would assume, but these are good people," Callum said, trying not to be led astray by Itzel's alluring scent which she wore so well. He was still wondering where that tattoo was on her body while trying not to ogle her body.

"So then, how about showing a girl around," Itzel said, with a wide smile on her face as she looped her arm around Callum's left.

"Sure," Callum nodded once he saw that Shari was preoccupied with one of Bret's games.

"So... you're a mechanic, do you like work at a shop somewhere?" Itzel asked, as they walked around as Callum introduced her to all the people in the club.

"Run my own shop, lets me be home when Shari gets out of school and set my own hours should something happen to her," Callum said, matter-of-factly.

"Cal, do you always put Shari first?"

"Of course," Callum stated plainly.

"What about you? What about your needs?" Itzel asked, as they stood watching the game of horseshoes happening behind the club house.

"When Shari graduates I'll worry about that then. Until that time, she takes precedent."

Biting her lip to keep her moan from escaping, how her heart was beating rapidly as she could feel herself falling for him. She could see herself sitting on his couch just talking and listening as all three of them enjoyed an evening together. She knew if she wanted to be with him, then she had to make sure Shari was okay with their relationship as well. Itzel had a feeling Callum wouldn't make a move unless his daughter was okay with it.

"You two want in on the next game?" asked a tall, balding man who wasn't hiding how his eyes were staring at Itzel's chest.

"Sure, if you're okay with being my partner," Itzel said, feeling her cheeks flush with heat as Callum looked at her.

"You sure you want me as your partner?" Callum couldn't stop his smile from showing at her vehement nod.

Itzel had caught Callum a few times checking out her ass as she tossed her horseshoe. She couldn't say anything to Callum about it, she too was checking out how his jeans conformed to his ass as they took turns tossing. Grinning wickedly at the other teams groan as she hit her sixth ringer in a row. A curious thought crossed her mind at how it would feel in her hand. Would Callum bat her hand off or would he allow her to touch it to her hearts content?

"Itzel!" Regina called out for her friend. "There you... are," she said, stopping in her tracks, a small smile formed on her lips at the sight of her and Callum standing so close together. "When your game is done come find me," Regina said, winking at her friend.

"So I take it she's trying to set us up?" Callum asked, even though he knew the truth.

Itzel quickly dropped her head, feeling her face becoming cherry red. "Cal, please don't take it out on her, she means well. We are having a good time are we not?" Itzel inquired, her eyes glancing up to his face.

"Yeah, that's true," Callum admitted.

"So... what if I'd like to see more of you?"

"While I'm not opposed to the idea of you seeing more of me, yet we just met one another, let's just take it slow," Callum joked, laughing as Itzel lightly shoved him.

"Here, type in your number while I go win this," Itzel said, handing Callum her iPhone 10.

Callum was a little sad knowing that Itzel liked the newer and more shiny gizmos that he couldn't ever afford. Knowing if anything started between them it would likely come undone when he couldn't give her the latest contraption that hit the market. Sighing into his mind, even if it didn't last, he was sure going to enjoy it while it did.

"In your face!" Itzel shouted thrusting her arms into the air as she landed her eighth ringer. Callum's eyes couldn't look away at how Itzel's breasts bounced. Feeling his face heat when Itzel shot him a smirk when she caught him staring.

"Well Cal, this has been an interesting day," Itzel said, as the hour reached seven o'clock as she, Callum, and Shari stood by his bike as the sun began to set once they had finished with their dinner.

"It has been... interesting," Callum nodded.

"And it was so nice to meet you Shari," Itzel said, looking down at the little girl.

"Are you going to join?" Shari asked, in that innocent child voice of hers.

"I just might," Itzel said, smiling seductively at Callum. Stepping closer to him, "I know you probably are antsy about getting involved with someone but give me a chance? That's all I ask." Leaning in placing a kiss on Callum's left cheek. "Thanks for having dinner with me, I'll call you," Itzel said, waving to him as she walked towards her bike.

"I like her Daddy, she's funny," Shari said, looking up at her father.

"Oh, you do, do you?" Callum cooed smiling down at her.

"Mmmhmm," Shari hummed as she held the tube that contained her poster tucked underneath her right arm.

"Well, maybe we made a new friend, wouldn't that be neat?!" Callum said, to which Shari nodded her head very vehemently. "Come on honey, let's go home, and find a wall in your room to hang that on," he said, seeing the elation flooding his daughter's eyes.

Chapter Four.

Sunday, eleven am.

"Shari!" Callum called out as he tied his boots.

"Yes Daddy?!" Shari called from the living room as she played with her dolls.

"Go put your shoes on," Callum said, in a fatherly voice.

"Okay." Callum heard Shari running to her room. He wasn't looking forward to when Shari hit her teens. If she was anything like him at that time, he knew he'll have his hands full. He so didn't know how he was going to handle her dating. He wished he could call his mother's father and ask him how he handled his mother when she first started dating yet his grandfather had passed long before Shari was born.

"You ready Shari?!" Callum called out as he stood by the front door waiting on his little girl.

"One second!" A smile touched his lips as he listened to his daughter saying goodbye to her friends and even Bernard. Shari's hair flew through the air as she raced out from her room, filling his outstretched hand with her own.

"Daddy, where are we going?" Shari asked, once she buckled herself in as Callum slid into the driver's seat of his truck.

"It's a surprise Shari," Callum said, smiling at his daughter as he started his truck. Pulling out his phone, bring up google maps hitting the button to start the navigation to Vanessa's home.

After fifty minutes of driving Callum pulled along the curb in front of Vanessa's home. Shari was looking all around at the strange surroundings. "Now Shari, I want you to be on your best behavior, can you do that for me?" Callum asked, as he cut off the engine having to be content with her nod. Shari quickly rushed to his side; Callum could feel her nervousness as she held onto his hand.

"Daddy, who lives here?" Shari asked, as they walked up the walkway towards the front door.

"You'll see," Callum said, smiling down at Shari as he smelled the hints of charcoal drifting on the air. His finger pressed on the doorbell, listening to its tone ringing out within the interior of Vanessa's home. He already knew they had more money than he could ever hope to have, as he drove through the housing community. Yet he knew none of that mattered when Shari's smile would light up her face, that was worth far more than any amount of money. He heard the rustling inside and the hushed voices as someone drew near to the door.

"Mommy!" Shari squealed as Vanessa came into view. "Mommy! Mommy! Mommy!" she repeated as she jumped in place.

"Well, hello baby," Vanessa said, smiling down at her daughter before holding her arms out to her. "Did you have fun yesterday?" she asked, hugging her daughter tightly.

"Mmmhmm," Shari hummed into Vanessa's ear.

"Thank you, for bringing her today, it means a lot Cal," Vanessa said, glancing up at him as her chin rested on Shari's left shoulder.

"No problem, this is for Shari," Callum said, gently stroking the back of his daughter's head.

"Hey, you made it!" Henry called out as he held a tray of meats in his hands to throw on the grill.

"Shari would you like to come in and see my and Henry's home?" Vanessa asked, looking her daughter in the eye.

"Only if Daddy can come," Shari said, in a cute stern voice.

"Of course Shari, your dad is always welcome here," Vanessa said, flashing Callum a smile. "Now there's some people who want to meet you, are you up for it?" she asked, her eyes slyly running down Shari's outfit. While it was clean and didn't have a spot on it, something she would have thought would be marring her clothing; yet she could tell the clothes have been through the wash hundreds of times.

"Are they nice people?" Shari asked, innocently.

"I think they are," Vanessa lightly giggled, "come on, let me introduce you to them," she said, holding out her hand to her daughter as she loomed over her. "You're welcome to join us Cal."

"Oh, I was planning on it. Like I'd leave my daughter alone with you and your husband," Callum said low, so his daughter wouldn't hear.

"I understand Cal," Vanessa nodded as she pushed the door closed. "This way," she said, leading Shari by the hand to her living room where her parents and Henry waited. Henry wanted to be there when she brought Shari in before heading out to man the grill. "Mom, Dad," her voice was loud and clear as she entered the room, "I'd like you to meet your granddaughter, Shari Eva MacRoe," Vanessa said, proudly. "It's okay Shari," she whispered as she felt her daughter tremble slightly as she looked back to her father.

"It's okay Shari," Callum said reassuringly, mimicking Vanessa.

"You're not going to leave right?" Shari asked, a slight tinge of fear crept into her voice.

"Never baby." Smiling warmly when Shari nodded and set her shoulders just the way his father does. His eyes glanced up as Tobias and Constance rose from their seats. Callum could see the years had not been kind to them. Tobias' once jet black hair was now mostly gray, Constance had added a few more pounds and wrinkles on her face.

"Hello there, I'm your grandmother," Constance said sweetly, as she bent slightly at her hips. Her eyes running over Shari's hair, face, and body looking for any sign that Callum had been neglecting her. "And this grumbly man in your grandfather," she said, lightly patting Tobias' belly. "Shari would you like to sit with us so we can talk?" Constance asked, eager to learn all she could about Shari.

"Hey, want to come help me with the meat?" Henry asked, once Shari was settled and he and Callum were pretty much forgotten.

"Sure," Callum nodded, "Shari I'll be outside, I won't be far."

"Okay," Shari said, with a loving smile on her face as she looked at him.

"So Cal, did you find the place okay?" Henry asked, as he laid the steaks on the hot grill.

"Yeah," Callum muttered as he stared out onto the expansive yard. Knowing Shari would love that pool, and he knew where she would be begging to go during the summer.

"You and Shari are more than welcome to come over and use it," Henry said, once he noted how Callum was eyeing their pool. "Just give us a call ahead of time."

"Yeah, that's not going to happen," Callum said to himself.

"There he is," Vanessa said, once she opened the back glass door that lead to the patio Henry had set their grill on.

"Shari, what's wrong?!" Callum asked, as Shari rushed up to him and wrapping her arms around his legs.

"I'm sorry Cal, Dad said something stupid and Shari didn't like it," Vanessa said, knowing this might end her and Henry's chance to be in Shari's life.

"I don't want to go with them, don't make me Daddy," Shari pleaded with tear filled eyes.

"Come again?! I think you need to explain, like right now," Callum growled. No one, not Vanessa, not her husband, and definitely not her parents were ever going to take his daughter away from him.

"Cal, before you bite my head off, know I didn't know Dad was going to say it..."

"We're going to fight for custody of Shari," Tobias said, appearing in the doorway.

"The hell you are!" Callum roared. "You have no say in Shari's welfare, you should know that you can't take her away from me. Ever?! Did you not learn that when I had to jump through all those hoops just to be her father and the State, the State agreed that I am the rightful parent. So good luck with trying to cancel out my parental rights," he spat, his eyes glared hatefully at Tobias.

"Cal, he doesn't mean it. Do you Tobias," Constance said, trying to diffuse the situation.

"But Cal, we can take..."

"I take care of my daughter quite well thank you," Callum said cutting Tobias off, narrowing his eyes at the man. "I've taken care of my Shari for eight years without a single helping hand from either one of you. So who's the court going to listen to, the man that's been there every day, help to feed, clothe and bathe my daughter, or the ones that's never seen her, doesn't know her, doesn't know her medical history. Never lifted a finger to help her in any way but yet they talk to her for an hour and decides that they want her. Well, you know what, over my cold, dead body. You do this, I will end you," Callum said, darkly.