***UPDATED***

There seems to have been a small glitch during posting, and the ending got cut off.  Full Chapter up now!

Sorry about that! 😀

Previously on Mysterious Attraction…

RECAP

And this week…

Reeves sits at his desk, his back to the door, he’s on the phone

Reeves: Yea well, make sure there’s no trace back to us, ok?…No I don’t care what you have to do, just get it done, and do it well.

Lexie stares in annoyance at his conversation

Reeves turns in his chair to find Lexie standing there, leaning against his door way

Lexie: Daily grind huh, dad? Ordering hits on people?

Reeves: (ignores her comment) It’s good to see you, princess.

Lexie: Don’t. You no longer have the right to call me that.

Reeves: I’m sorry. I was just trying to protect you.

Lexie: I do understand that. But your ways of protecting me are irrational, disgusting and suffocating. And I did not deserve that. Not from my father. I shouldn’t had to have feared for my life for no good reason.

Reeves: Lexie, I really truly am sorry. I would never intentionally hurt you. You know that right?

Lexie: I do. But it hurts either way dad. I just- I wish you would think for 5 seconds before you order your men to pull some stupid over-extravagant scheme.

Reeves: I know, I’m sorry you’re right, you’re absolutely right. I just wanted to get through to you. I wanted you to see the danger in all this.

Lexie: Yea well, mission accomplished.

Reeves: So I take it, I was right… Carter is Skully’s son?

Lexie: From what my people were able to dig up, yes.

Reeves: That son of a bitch! I’ll kill him! (paces the office in fury)

Lexie: (stops him) No. You won’t.

Reeves: What? Lexie…that bastard was using you…using you to get to me. No one uses my daughter!

Lexie: Dad. Dad! It wasn’t like that.

Reeves: Like hell it wasn’t! (screams with a venom hissed voice)

Lexie: It wasn’t! He didn’t know.

Reeves: And you’re seriously buying that? Lexie…come on…you know as well as I do that Skully’s next hit was only a matter of time. He’s been laying low for far too long! This is it! This is his retaliation!

Lexie: No. It isn’t … dad…Carter loves me.

Reeves: Lexie…of course he says that…your beautiful, and rich! It’s easy to lie about your feelings to  a beautiful girl! But what he doesn’t realize is that’s the last lie, he’ll ever tell. (about to leave his office in a rush)

Lexie: Dad stop! If you walk out that door…I swear to you…I won’t be around to watch as they haul you off to prison, but I will make sure that they do.

Reeves: (slowly turns around) Why are you protecting him? Is he threatening you? Blackmailing you?

Lexie: N0.

Reeves: Because if he is, you can tell me, we’ll fix it, whatever it is.

Lexie: No. I’m protecting him, because I love him. And because I know him. And because he didn’t know anything about Skully being his father. He had no clue.

Reeves: And you believe him?

Lexie: I believe him.

Reeves: I didn’t raise you to be naive, Lexie.

Lexie: No. But you did raise me to trust my gut. And my gut is telling me to follow my heart. And my heart is with him. So I am asking you, to back off. Let this go, and let me handle this.

Reeves: You know just because Carter doesn’t know, doesn’t mean Skully doesn’t.

Lexie: I really don’t think he does. I mean Carter’s mom is his biological mom, she must have been involved with Skully and didn’t want him to know about Carter. So she brought in another man to raise her son.

Reeves: Well just in case-

Lexie: Carter and I have it covered, we’ll look into things.

Reeves: Ok. But you promise me, promise me right now…that if you suspect anything…anything about anyone, if even the slightest detail doesn’t add up, promise that you’ll come to me, immediately.

Lexie: I will.

Reeves: Immediately Lexie. Don’t try and play the hero, don’t try to figure it out on your own. Just come to me, no questions asked, I will fix it.

Lexie: (hugs Reeves) I promise dad. But you don’t have to worry he loves me.

Reeves: For his sake, I truly hope he does.

Lexie: (sighs) Well…I should go.

Reeves: Lex?

Lexie: Yea?

Reeves: He still married?

Lexie: Not for long.

Reeves: And you’re ok…with breaking up a marriage?

Lexie: Really, dad?

Reeves: I’m just wondering. I mean I know you. You have a good heart, and this kinda thing can eat you up. The guilt…I can only imagine how much it’s killing you.

Lexie: It was.

Reeves: And what changed?

Lexie: Carter told me some things. Turned out his marriage wasn’t as perfect as he had claimed it to be.

Reeves: Meaning?

Lexie: Meaning…that Kelly…his wife…cheated a long time ago…their marriage hasn’t been the same since.

Reeves: So…you’re his way of getting back at her?

Lexie: No. (rolls her eyes, in frustration and offence)

Reeves: Lexie?

Lexie: Come on. I’m happy ok? I’m finally happy. And he’s the one making that possible. So please…just be happy for me? Don’t try and control this?

Reeves: Ok…but only because I trust you…I trust your heart and your gutt. But like I said-

Lexie: I know- I will call you if anything.

Reeves: (smiles) Ok…It was good to see you, I’m so glad you stopped by. I was beginning to think you’d never forgive me.

Lexie: Dad…let me make something clear. I understand you wanting to protect me, but that doesn’t mean I forgive you for it. This isn’t the first time you’ve done this. Your known for going too far. And with that being said the reason I’m really here is to tell you…that…I want out.

Reeves: (sighs in relief) It’s about time.

Lexie gives him a look of confusion

Reeves: I never wanted this life for you.

Lexie: I don’t understand, I thought you were grooming me to take over.

Reeves: No. I only let you into this business because I thought it was what you wanted. In some crazy way I thought it was what you needed to get past your grief. But I was wrong. The more responsibility you took on, the more it worried me. I’ve been waiting for the day you’d ask for an out. But I knew you had to come to that decision on your own.

Lexie: (laughs) Letting me come to a decision on my own…that’s a radical concept for you…well I’m glad you can at least grasp the concept. But to be honest it was Carter who geared me in the right direction.

Reeves: Well isn’t that convenient. He could be just trying to get you to step out, and weaken our man power.

Lexie: Dad.

Reeves: Or he could just be a good man.

Lexie: Thank you. And he is. So whataya say…you think there’s a career out there for me?

Reeves: Absolutely. Why do you think I made you head of the clothing store front. I knew fashion has always been something you were passionate about. My only hope was that you’d get more of a rush out of that side of the business, then this part of it.

Lexie: Yea well I guess at times we’re more alike than I realize. We thrive on danger and the adrenaline rush. But unlike you that rush isn’t something I’m comfortable living with. Because at the end of the day, it’s still dangerous and deadly.

Reeves: I couldn’t agree more. But I’ve made my bed, I’ve made my choices, and my enemies and now in order to protect my family, this is my life. And I need you to know I don’t enjoy it. But I’ll do what I have to, to protect you.

Lexie: Dad? I want you to know that none of this makes me love you less, I just don’t agree with any of it, and I can’t support it anymore. But I also don’t blame you for my choices. It was my choice to ask you to be apart of this war with Skully. It’s just when we lost mom…I didn’t want to feel that pain. I needed a way to cope…and I thought this was it. I wasn’t thinking clearly, and I don’t think I ever realized what all of this actually meant. I don’t want this.

Reeves: I don’t want this for you. I respected your drive to seek revenge, because I felt the same way. And I thought it would be hypocritical of me to exclude you, in this fight. Because you had hurt just as much as I did. But I never thought it would be permanent. This isn’t your life. So you do what’s best for you and I will support you 100%.

Lexie: Thank You.

Reeves: Lex, I want happiness for you…and I want you to know that anything that I have ever put you through or pressured you into involving this business, I am truly sorry for. For a long time I couldn’t even see straight. After losing your mother, I vowed to myself that I’d never let anything happen to you. So I guess keeping you apart of the business was my crazy way of keeping you safe. It was my way of keeping an eye on you. I have a lot of enemies and I worry about you. I am overjoyed that you want a better life for yourself. But I think that you may want to relocate all together.

Lexie: You really think that’s necessary?

Reeves: I do. Go, go somewhere you’ve never been, go start a fashion empire. I can fund everything. Which reminds me…(reaches into his inner suit jacket pocket) I think this belongs to you (hands her a wad of cash) I’m sorry my plan was unnecessarily out of line.

Lexie: (takes the money) Thank you. I appreciate this and the apology. But I think I’m going to stick around. I don’t think anyone is stupid enough to come after Reeves’ daughter. This is my home. Carter and I will figure out a safe way to live here.

Reeves: I hope so.

Lexie: Besides, even though you drive me crazy, and I usually end up screaming at you for your crazy antics. You’re my dad, and I love you. And I wouldn’t be happy living thousands of miles away from you.

Reeves: Love you princess, (he hugs her tightly)

Lexie: (smiles) Ok well I really better go now, Carter and I have a lot of things to discuss.

Reeves: Alright. Just be careful Lex, please.

Lexie: Don’t worry dad, (smiles and leaves, closing the door behind her)

Reeves: (Sighs…waiting a beat, he stands there and ponders, hands on hips, soon he takes out his cellphone) Hey yea, listen- do me a favor, pull up any information on Carter…I’m talking about everything you can find…I want to know every single detail of his life ….including everything there is to know about his parents. And one more thing Lexie is not to know a thing about this… ok? Ok thank you.

Reeves hangs up his phone and sighs, a picture of Lexie as a little girl sits on a nearby shelf. Reeves sighs

Reeves: (he whispers) Please forgive me, Princess.

STAY TUNED!…Chapter 6 continues next week…

Carter and Kelly finally have have the conversation you’ve been waiting for…

(*I do not take any credit for the actual images themselves, they all belong to their rightful owners*)

Happy Weekend!

-<3-