Something else

[Lovely]

September 26, Year 1
Dinner time


After all the commotion that had happened with Adams and his boys, Pa had come to supper to check on everyone. He'd given them a couple days to settle but was eager to meet Angel, though he'd gotten a glimpse of her once or twice at Tessa's.

Doyle seemed to be shrinking... he'll be eating on the floor under the table... and getting kicked repeatedly by charly...who is giggling.. "Stop that..."

"Doyle is so in for it." Charly whispered.

"That's why I'm on the FLOOR... hiding..."

Pa asks how old the little filly is.

Doyle was quietly cursing six ways to sunday and apologizing under his breath after each one

"Should have seen his face when she said she was 16!" Charly whispered again, giving Doyle a play by play.

"Under... how about UNDER the floor..."

Pa hooks Doyle by the collar and pulls him up.

"Shet.. yeah Pa?"

"Get up here and act like a man."

"I am... I know I'm in for it... just goin' down here to fix the squeak is all."

"Sure..."

"What?"

"So 16, huh?"

"Don't look at me like that'... ain't done nothin'.."

"That's some 16, to get to you like she has."

"Yeah, some 16... she's Angel, Pa... I told you... tried to anyway... somethin' else..." looks to the floor.

Puts his hand on his shoulder.

*cringes*

"She's a good girl.. nice manners, better than Charly." He chuckled. "You best take good care of that one."

gives him a funny look, half expectin' the beatin' of his life. ".. what?"

"Doyle.. you waited this long.. I waited this long for a gal to mean something to you.. to be special enough.. I'm not gonna scold you, now." Gives him an odd smile. "She looks like she doesn't break too easy."

"Pa!" blushes 18 shades of deep crimson and sinks in on himself and mutters. "... no, she don't break easy.. though that jacka** tried his damnedest..."

[Lovely]

Pa hauled him in the other room to chat. "Doyle, you're a grown man." Touches his son's cheek. "It's too bad what that man done to her, but it looks like you still have ideas about how special she is."

"Why wouldn't I still? She is still special. He didn't... .... she's still special." grins oddly and coughs. "He'll get his, Pa... I'm sorry, but he will. Ain't nothin' gonna hurt her, not again. I'll see to that myself."

"He didn't?" His eyes closed and he breathed a sigh of relief for the girl and for Doyle. "Of course she is.. she laughed at my jokes and called me sir." He grinned. "You don't go getting yourself into trouble. You won't be able to take care of her if you do. She has an awfully pretty smile. Am I going to see her around for supper again?"

"Maybe. Don't know. She keeps to herself and I don't go botherin' her none." The air in the room seemed thin as it tilted on him a little. "Won't be no trouble, Pa. But he deserves... ," he cut himself off, knowing he was wrong for thinking bad things on the man even if he was a devil.

"Doyle.. you're not getting any younger.. and she clearly adores you.. don't waste too much time, getting around to getting around to it." He nodded his head to the comment about Adams. "He does.. that he does.. and he will.. but you have something more important to fret about.. You keep your mind on that something special and let things work themselves out."

He found air enough to breathe and chuckle a little. "Just which trouble was it I'm not supposed to be gettin' myself in, Pa?"

"Going after Adams.. any trouble you and that Angel might find, is just the sort of trouble you need. The sort I been waiting all your life to see you get into... Damn it.. I'm getting old.. I want my boys happy and well taken care of.. and damn it.. Patrick went and got married.. never for the world thought he'd be the one to give me my first grandchild. You other boys need to get to it."

Doyle shuddered at that thought. He, unfortunately had thought that if any of them would, it would be Pat, or at least Alex, though Alex had turned into a different person in the past few months. "You're not old, Pa," he insisted kindly. The man wasn't really, he just had seven unruly boys to keep an eye on and one girl likely to be just as bad if not worse then all of them together. "Ain't gonna do nothin' that's not 'right', so until it's 'right'.. the right time or... ... just not til then." He was shaking horribly with embarrassment now and slid into the chair, holding himself up on his folded arms and waiting for the heat to leave his face.

"You're a good boy Doyle.. always have been.. even when you were younger and helping to give me these grey hairs." He chuckled and sat down next to him. "Your heart will tell you what's right and when it's right.. You'll know, long as you don't let yourself be afraid of it."