160. A Lot Of Me In You

Glossary: NVD=National Vampire Day

Bridgeport, present day...

The day of the dreaded lunch with her father finally came.

Krimsyn wanted to postpone, cancel, anything just as long as she didn't have to sit through an hour of awkwardness. She couldn't though, she didn't have the heart to call Thornton and break his heart. She knew he was looking forward to it; his PA had called twice during the week to check if they were still on, and Thornton himself had also called. So to not disappoint the man, Krimsyn found herself getting ready for their lunch date.

She changed her outfit and hairstyle five times, and on the sixth Leigh and Michaela finally put their feet down.

"You look great, stop stressing," Leigh assured her as she watched her daughters play with Lucky, Michaela's puppy, on the floor. Lily was at playschool, and Kristian had gone to work with Krisis at O+ Records.

Leigh had stopped by to ask for help with Eloise's bachelorette party, but when she found Krimsyn in a state over her lunch date with Thornton she'd decided to stay and calm her down.

"Yes mom, you look great. Besides, you don't have to impress him, he's your father, he loves you already," Michaela added from the bed.  She was lying on her back, staring at the ceiling with her feet propped on the wall.  She had a dreamy expression on her face and it didn’t take a genius to figure out who she was daydreaming about.

Krimsyn knew both Leigh and Michaela were right, this was Thornton; she really didn't have to impress him. But the insecure little girl she was deep down inside, the one that always craved fatherly affection, wanted to impress him.

She took one last look in the mirror before she turned to the door. Leigh, too, got ready to leave with the tots.

Michaela stayed where she was. Her phone was now glued to her ear and judging from her excited chatter she was speaking to one of her friends.

She was so engrossed in her conversation she didn't even hear Leigh and the tots say goodbye.

On their way to the parking lot Leigh and Krimsyn managed to put in some quick planning for Eloise's party. The date was set, the venue booked, and Jesse was taking care of the deco and food. The only thing Leigh was having trouble with was the entertainment lineup. She had never been a bridesmaid, let alone a maid of honor, so she had no idea how to go about throwing the best ever bachelorette party. 

"How does Devon feel about strippers?" Krimsyn asked, she didn't have much experience with bachelorette parties either but she'd thrown many roof raisers.

"I don't know. Do I have to ask him?" Leigh replied with her own question, her brother had not even crossed her mind.

"Yes, you have to ask him, you don't want to do something that will upset him. Both the bride and the groom have to be okay with whatever entertainment you’ve lined up."

"What’s J.D. planning for the stag?" Leigh wanted to know. J.D. was Devon's best man; the two had grown close since they rescued Blake in Barnacle Bay.

"I don't know, I think the usual, you'll have to ask him," Krimsyn replied as she gave her nieces quick kisses on their foreheads and hugged Leigh.

 "Call me later, and we can work out the details," she added over her shoulder as she ran to the waiting limo Thornton had sent for her, her fiancé was meeting her at  the restaurant, she’d managed to persuade him to join them for lunch.

Thornton was already seated when they arrived at the Red Roof Restaurant, RRR in short.

"Are you sure this is a good idea?” J.D. gulped as his gaze roamed over her father through the screen.

"Relax, he doesn't bite. Just be yourself," Krimsyn smiled at him. She was about to say more, but her attention was stolen by the hostess waving at them to come closer so she could check their booking.

She was a slim, tall woman with unnaturally blond hair. Her expensive dress and the bling dangling on her neck and wrists were as ostentatious as the decor in the room.

Krimsyn wondered why she'd agreed to meet there. Yes, she and J.D. were financially okay. They could roll with the high flyers, but this place was on another league and she felt self-conscious in her ripped jeans and leather jacket. She and her fiancé stuck out like sore thumbs in this room full of power suits and skirts.

She turned to J.D., and she was ready to tell him she'd changed her mind about the lunch when Thornton looked up from the menu and saw them.

He left his seat, walked towards them and then suddenly backtracked to get the bouquet of white roses on the table Krimsyn hadn't noticed till then.

"He bought you flowers?" J.D. rubbed his chin as they both watched her father approach.

Thornton held out his arms awkwardly for her. She reluctantly danced into them. Their embrace was brief, but still emotional; Krimsyn found herself choking back a sob or two. She never thought she'd ever meet the man responsible for giving her life, let alone hug him or be held by him, just for a moment she felt like a little girl again.

"Thank you for showing up, I wasn't sure you would," Thornton told her as he handed her the flowers.

He turned to J.D. They shook hands and he asked after his parents. J.D. was surprised he knew them.

"I always make it a point to know about the people in my children's lives," Thornton explained as he led them to their table.

Thornton asked them about the band and their upcoming five cities tour while their waitress poured their drinks.

Krimsyn and J.D. were shocked he knew so much about their music and that he was an unapologetic, shameless, crazy fan of their work.

Krimsyn saw Katie walk in with Kristian, she ushered them over to their table and introduced her to Thornton.

Katie explained Krisis was in yet another meeting with Leigh's security detail, and she'd volunteered to look after Kristian. They'd come in to grab some take away at Kristian’s insistence since he wanted plasma fruit pancakes.

Thornton appreciated the beauty holding his grandson, but he was more fascinated with the miniature of Krisis.

He asked to hold Kristian, and he was pleasantly surprised when the little guy jumped into his arms.

He kissed his rich red hair and held him close, cherishing his baby smell. Kristian looked so much like Krisis when he was that age.

"Daddy," Kristian cried excitedly. He was touching Thornton's face, but looking at someone behind him.

When Thornton turned around he wasn't surprised to see Krisis there. He'd obviously come in to check on Katie and his son.

"You have a beautiful son," Thornton told him as way of greeting.

"Thank you, he takes after his mom," Krisis replied.

The tension between the two men was easily noticeable, and Krimsyn wondered what it was about this time. She knew about the gene latency; Krisis had told her as soon as he found out. And she knew it couldn't be the source of the friction between them since her brother had told her he didn't blame Thornton for the procedure, it was the withholding of the truth he had been angry with.

Katie and Krisis excused themselves and J.D. saw his chance to make his escape too. Things were going well between Krimsyn and Thornton, there was no reason for him to stick around. He'd only tagged along to help Krimsyn get through the initial awkwardness, and now that she seemed comfortable with her father he didn't see a reason to stay; they needed to be alone to get to know each other and air out their issues.

"So did I pass the test?" Thornton asked when they were alone.

Krimsyn was caught off guard by his question, she had no idea what he was talking about.

"J.D. I'm guessing he thinks I’m okay for him to leave you alone with me?" He explained with a smile.

Krimsyn laughed, it was warm and relaxed, and just seeing her eyes sparkle with mirth brought joy to his heart, he'd prayed for this moment for years.

"I guess so," she replied.

As she took a lazy sip from her glass Krimsyn studied him from beneath her long dark lashes. She saw a lot of Krisis in him, from the arrogant way he draped himself on the seat, the curve of his lip when he smiled, to the charming, almost flirty way he spoke to their waitress, he was all Krisis. There was none of her in him or rather there was none of him in her.

"You are wrong. There’s a lot of me in you also," he answered her thoughts.

"Like what?" Krimsyn challenged. She held his hazel brown gaze, feeling the millions of female eyes on them. She could read their thoughts too, they hated and envied her, they all wanted to be sitting where she was, wining and dining one of the most influential men in their community. But they had no idea why and how she came to be sitting there.

"Like your determination and strength, you don't let anyone stand in your way once you've decided what you want."

"And so does Krisis," Krimsyn argued.

"True. But your brother is hotheaded and emotional; he lets his heart rule his head. He gets that from your mother. And you let your head rule your heart, you get that from me," Thornton replied.

Their waitress interrupted their talk then when she dropped the steaming entrées in front of them.

Krimsyn watched the waitress fall to pieces all over Thornton. He wasn't saying anything suggestive, it was the way he spoke to her as he asked her about the main course, like she was the only female in the room and he only had eyes for her that got her. That too was all Krisis. She'd always called it the Frost Effect; it was obviously a Thornton Effect.

Her father turned back to her with a smile, the waitress was gone and they were alone again.

"How's the shrimp?" he asked.

"It’s delicious," Krimsyn replied truthfully, she’d ordered it at his suggestion.

She asked him about his job and she was genuinely interested in hearing him talk about the Vampire Council.

Thornton grew self-conscious suddenly when he realized he'd hogged the conversation for a large part of their first course. He skillfully moved it back to her. She told him about her life in Champs Les Sims, the band, J.D. and Michaela and before long she'd given him a scaled down version of her biography. They were both grateful for his talk with Krisis, they knew their lunch would not have been this comfortable and easy if it wasn't for the ground work Krisis had done when he confronted him in his office just a couple of weeks earlier.

Thornton decided to tell her about Margaret, he knew she had to hear it from him, to give her the peace she'd sought for years.

"I knew that. Krisis told me," she informed him when he paused for breath.

"But you had to hear it from me also. I loved your mother. I still do. You never get over your first. Krisis will have a hard time getting over Leigh," he replied.

"You make it sound so final," Krimsyn protested. She knew about Ariel's predictions, Krisis and Leigh had told her on Michaela's birthday.

"It will be if your brother doesn't act on this soon. The bill comes into effect on the first of January; your brother doesn't have much time."

"What bill? And what does that have to do with Krisis?" as confused as she was, Krimsyn guessed correctly that the bill was the source of the friction she'd sensed between the two men.

"The bill preventing us from turning humans-" Thornton filled her in on the rest and her reaction mirrored Krisis'.

"They can't do that!"

"Yes, they can. It's out of my hands. I've stalled them for too long," Thornton was about to say more when his phone buzzed in his pocket. He pulled it out, looked at the caller ID and placed it on the surface without answering it.

Krimsyn, still reeling with shock from his announcement, stared at the light on the phone blink on and off as it continued to vibrate on the table.

"Go," she told him absently. She knew it must be important for whoever it was not to give up after so many tries, they were obviously determined to get hold of him.

"I’m sorry to rush off like this," Thornton apologized as he once again took her in his arms. This time their embrace wasn't as awkward as their first.

"Can I take a rain-check?" he asked hopefully.

"I’d like that," Krimsyn replied truthfully. She'd had a wonderful time with him. Underneath the tough, arrogant exterior lay a warm, humble man, and she'd enjoyed seeing that side to him. When he wasn't being an ass, her father could be quite charming and entertaining.

"So what do I call you now?" She asked him as they waited for the waitress to return with his cheque card.  

"What you've always called me I guess," he replied. And Krimsyn laughed.

"Okay, I’m curious, what do you call me?" He asked with a small smile and something Krimsyn could only describe as dread in his eyes.

"Bastard."

"I’m sorry, what?"

"You asked what I call you, and it's 'bastard', some days it’s ‘the S.OB' and others it's 'the rapist father'." Krimsyn replied.

"Okay, I don't really like the last one, so any one of the first two will do," Thornton laughed as he took her hand and led her out of the restaurant.

It was sunny and bright outside and they stood there for some time watching kids in the park across chase butterflies and run after their pets. Thornton remembered spring was Krimsyn's favorite time of year when she was still a little girl.

"You know what, work can wait!" He decided suddenly. He was already on the phone, talking to Celina, before Krimsyn could protest. He cancelled all his appointments for the day and turned off his cell phone.

"You didn't have to do that," Krimsyn told him when he took her hand again and they slowly walked down Fifth Avenue.

"I wanted to," he replied.

For a while they didn't say anything as they walked down the street, Krimsyn stopped a few times to window shop.

"What are your plans for our national holiday?" she asked suddenly.

"No plans. Probably dinner with Celina. But since she has a boyfriend now I can't really count on that. So it may just be a TV dinner and a movie," Thornton told her.

Krimsyn grew quiet as she thought about his answer. He sounded like a lonely man, and it was sad that with all his money, power and influence he didn't have any friends or family he could spend National Vampire Day with. It wasn't right; no one should be alone on the one day humans had given them to celebrate their heritage.

"Would you come if I invited you to lunch? I'd have to ask Mickey and Krisis, of course. But I think it would be great for all the kids to spend time with you," Krimsyn offered.

"I’d like that," Thornton graciously accepted her offer.

They walked to a tiny coffee shop on a side street and they sat outside, Krimsyn ordered a hot chocolate and Thornton settled for an espresso.

He asked her about past holidays and she gladly recounted some for him. She also took out her phone and showed him pictures of all the kids.

He marveled at how much Lily looked like Jacqueline and how the triplets were a perfect blend of Krisis and Leigh.

Soon their talk moved back to NVD, and by the time he left her at O+ Records, the small lunch she'd invited him to had turned into a dinner party for thirty.

"Are you sure you won't bring a date?" She asked as she reluctantly let go of his arm.

"I’m certain.  No plus one," he assured her. Though his libido was well taken care of, he hadn't dated anyone in years. None of the 'lady friends' he had were good enough to take to a family function. Besides he really wanted to connect with his grandchildren and make the most of the second chance he'd been given...