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Post by Bridget Ashford on Sept 1, 2007 20:01:56 GMT -5
Bridget strutted into the Leaky Cauldron, depressed and disheartened. She had been thinking about her barren life all afternoon, and she was determined to get her mind off of it. She slumped onto a barstool, and put her elbows onto the table, resting her head in her hands. Her legs ached from riding Dixie, a unicorn that she had raised from a colt. Her black hair fell in front of her face when she slumped. Annoyed, she tried unsuccessfully to blow her hair out of her eyes. She was still trying to move her hair when the bartender approached her. Reluctantly, Bridget sat up, sliding her hands into her lap.
“Can I get you anything?” he questioned her politely. Bridget noted that he wasn’t that bad looking, kind of attractive come to think of it. His dirty-blonde hair fell across one eye in a very seductive way, and the top few buttons of his shirt were undone.
“I’m not sure…just something strong,” she mumbled, still upset. If she couldn’t ignore her thoughts, then she hoped that with enough alcohol she could drown them out. After the bartender turned to fix Bridget her drink, she slouched back down on the stool. He was way out of her league anyways. A guy like him either had a girlfriend already, or was looking for someone in particular; probably someone who didn’t spend all of her free time riding mythical creatures. It didn’t take long for the man to bring Bridget her drink. She placed a few coins on the bar, and picked up her glass, sipping the mysterious liquid. It didn’t matter much to her what was in the cup, just as long as it would get her too drunk to think.
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Regulus Black
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Post by Regulus Black on Sept 7, 2007 18:56:11 GMT -5
Regulus entered the Leaky Cauldron with a shopping list in his hand. He'd been sent specifically for a short list of magical groceries.
But looking around at all the people gathered in the establishment, he decided that it was a pretty good idea to have a firewhisky on his way through. Walking up to the bar, Regulus put down a galleon. "A firewhisky, Tom. And as usual, you didn't see me here."
The bartender nodded at him. Regulus smirked and added, "If the Ministry or my girlfriend come asking."
Looking around at the people seated there, he waited for his drink impatiently. It'd take a few minutes to finish it...given the amount of time that it took to do the things Adriana had decided she'd do in the afternoon, he couldn't be gone for too long. Not long enough for more than two drinks, at least.
He glanced over at the woman seated next to him. Her head was in her hands, dark hair falling in front of her face. For a moment, Regulus thought that she might have been his cousin Bellatrix. But then he looked a moment longer, and saw that their only similar features were the long dark hair and the gender. Not wanting to scare her for staring so long, he said, "Sorry, thought you were someone I knew. Hogwarts, 1978?"
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Post by Bridget Ashford on Sept 7, 2007 20:50:01 GMT -5
Bridget placed her half-empty cup back onto the bar. She had plenty of time to cloud her mind, so rushing it wasn’t much of an issue. She was about to pick up her glass again when she noticed the man sitting next to her was staring. Despite the fact that she didn’t know him, she couldn’t help but blush at his attention. For someone like herself who was used to being invisible it was awkward to be noticed. She turned to his direction once he spoke to her, knowing it would be rude not to answer. He looked familiar, but Bridget couldn’t remember why.
“Sorry, thought you were someone I knew. Hogwarts, 1978?” he asked.
With this bit of information Bridget was able to place a name with the familiar face. She couldn’t believe that she hadn’t been able to recognize him before. The man was her cousin, Regulus Black, a student that Bridget had seen on many occasions. He happened to be one of the people she was trying to avoid. Mostly because she was worried that he would easily discover the truth. What would he think of her if he knew she was related to him? Would him finding out, ruin things for her father? She sighed knowing that she would probably never get the chance to find out. That was probably for the best, but she still felt like something was missing. Bridget had never had a good example of a family. Her selfish and conceited mother was a poor substitute. She felt a pang of jealously when she thought about how much support Regulus got from his family.
“No, I just graduated last term. But I’ve seen you on campus. Your girlfriend was in Gryffindor right?” she wondered shyly. She was almost positive that his girlfriend was in fact in Gryffindor, but she didn’t want to seem like a stalker. That would be enough to creep anyone out.
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Regulus Black
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Post by Regulus Black on Sept 7, 2007 21:00:30 GMT -5
Regulus smiled when she answered him. "Oh, yeah, she was. Actually, it caused a pretty big stir with my family when I started living with her after school. Slytherin, if you don't remember," he explained. Looking up as Tom placed his drink on the bar, Regulus picked it up and took a sip, feeling the cool burn of the firewhisky run down his throat. "Regulus Black," he introduced himself, smiling over at the girl that had looked briefly like Bellatrix Lestrange. "And my girlfriend was--is--Adriana Bell." No need to mention Katie, even though he had a sudden nearly uncontrollable urge to pull the photo of his daughter out of his wallet and wave it around for everyone in the bar to see. Did parents experience this problem often? Rather than making a fool of himself, Regulus took another thoughtful sip of his drink. He wondered if his parents had ever in their lives felt that way about him and Sirius...of course they had, but...once they'd both--in their own ways--run away? What about then?
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Post by Bridget Ashford on Sept 7, 2007 22:04:26 GMT -5
Bridget felt herself relax as he was talking to her. She felt strangely comfortable with him…more comfortable than she would have expected. He answered her, mentioning how his family disapproved of his girlfriend (who apparently was named Adriana) because of her house. She wondered how they would react to find out about her, if just the thought of Adriana tweaked them out. She did understand though why the fact that his girlfriend was in Gryffindor would upset them. Usually old magic families were very particular on keeping the family blood in certain houses. Bridget just realized that her “family” just had a whole other reason to hate her. She hoped more than anything that she could keep her past a secret. The last thing she needed was some old wizard family out to get her.
For some reason she had a feeling that he was holding something back. But who was she to question him? She probably had many more secrets than he did. She held her glass again, taking a long sip while still listening to what Regulus was saying. After he finished talking, and she finished off her drink, she replied.
“I remembered. Doesn’t most of the Black family go into Slytherin? I mean…except maybe your brother, Sirius” she inquired, suddenly regretting it. She hoped he wouldn’t notice her large interest in his well…their family. Bridget wasn’t some sort of stalker; she just listened to anything that she could about her relatives. It was the closet thing she had to family.
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Regulus Black
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Post by Regulus Black on Sept 7, 2007 23:04:53 GMT -5
Regulus frowned in thought when the girl immediately brought up his brother. Funny, how the shock of a Black being sorted into Gryffindor still hadn't worn off after nearly twelve years. Debating momentarily whether or not to answer her, Regulus took a long drink of his firewhisky. As it slid down his throat, he decided that there was no harm in telling a former Hogwarts student a little bit about the Black family. And if mum, or Bellatrix, or anyone came after him for it, he'd just tell them that they could shove their Black family heritage up their arses where it belonged. Hadn't done anyone any kind of good in years.
"Yeah, most of the Black family ends up in Slytherin," he said with a sigh. "Not always even if we really belong there. Take my cousin Berne. Would have made a great Gryffindor, if she hadn't begged the hat to put her into Slytherin at the last minute. Knew she'd get disowned...though she would have eased the way for Sirius." Regulus paused, taking a sip of his drink. "Never did like Berne," he remarked.
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Post by Bridget Ashford on Sept 8, 2007 0:49:42 GMT -5
Bridget wasn’t surprised at Regulus’s answer, although she wasn’t sure who this Berne person was. She had never heard of that cousin before, and her curiosity was getting the better of her. It was in her nature to question the unknown, but Bridget was able to control herself. If she continued asking about his family, Regulus might suspect something. But…she did really want to know about the girl who belonged in Gryffindor. Why would someone go through so much trouble just to be accepted? Would she herself have done the same thing if she were in Berne’s place? Probably not, Bridget knew that she probably could never understand how important family was valued to some people. Regulus didn’t like Berne so she must not have been a very pleasant person.
“Is Berne your only cousin that you…don’t favor?” Bridget asked him unable to smother her curiosity. She knew that such a thing as family was a very dangerous topic to discuss with him, but who knew when she would get another opportunity like this. He probably wouldn’t be able to figure her out anyways. It wasn’t as if he had any real proof to support his theory…if he even had one, which he probably didn’t. All he probably wanted to do was take a little break with a drink. Not try to solve hidden family mysteries.
Bridget wondered if Regulus had any information about her father. She knew who he was, and about his family, but she didn’t know any information about his personality. Maybe one day if she ever ran into him again, she would get brave enough to ask. She then directed her attention to the bartender and requested another one of those drinks that she had drank earlier. After sliding a coin onto the bar, the man handed Bridget her drink. Her goal was still to get drunk even if she had Regulus’s company. She knew that right after he left, the empty feeling would seep back inside of her. With that thought, she hastily chugged down about half of her glass. After such a risky conversation with her cousin, she didn’t trust her mind enough to remain sober for the night.
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Regulus Black
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Post by Regulus Black on Sept 8, 2007 1:27:06 GMT -5
At that point, Regulus was starting to find the girl's questions a little bit odd. He sipped at his firewhisky, tying to decide what to tell her. It wasn't like he would give away any deep, hidden family secrets. And if he did...well, what were they going to do about it--track down a girl he'd seen once at the Leaky Cauldron and wipe her memory? Unlikely.
"Berne...isn't the only cousin I disfavor," Regulus said, her name sticking strangely in his mouth. He hadn't had to even think about her since he'd run away with Adriana...but now he wondered. Who had she ended up being married away to? Was there someone she'd been dating? Did she end up with someone she loved? She wasn't still single...was she? "But I really don't disfavor her," he amended hesitantly. "You've been through school. You know the old families...like to keep the blood as pure as possible. She's a distant enough cousin that I was supposed to marry her, but...huge recent family scandal, I knocked up my blood-traitor girlfriend instead and ran away with her, to live like a muggle for two years rather than deal with my family." Regulus drained his drink, and since he was in the middle of a story, he put down a coin for another one. Waiting for Tom, he looked over at the girl and continued, "And I'm bloody proud of it. Used to think that disgracing the family was like original sin, when I was younger. But then...you've heard the rumors. With Sirius...I just decided that it was time to get out. And I've never regretted it yet...I couldn't imagine bringing my daughter back there."
He pulled out the picture, setting it down on the bar and smiling. "That's my Katie...thank Merlin she'll never have to deal with my family, Adriana and I decided not to even give her my name..." Regulus frowned. "Speaking of names, I don't remember yours? Or your old house...know I've seen you around, though."
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Post by Bridget Ashford on Sept 8, 2007 13:35:16 GMT -5
Anxious to hear his reply, Bridget watched him carefully as he sipped his drink, probably trying to decide how to answer. “Berne…isn’t the only cousin I disfavor,” he said hesitantly. “But I really don’t disfavor her…You’ve been through school. You know the old families…like to keep the blood as pure as possible,” he explained. Yes, Bridget knew. She probably knew that concept better than anyone. It was the only reason why her life was alienated from her family. Maybe if things were different, if she had been discovered as a baby, she could possibly be accepted. But things were impossible now. She sighed to herself, and then listened to the rest of what Regulus had to say.
“She’s a distant enough cousin that I was supposed to marry her, but…huge recent family scandal; I knocked up my blood-traitor girlfriend instead and ran away with her, to live like a muggle for two years rather than deal with my family. And I’m bloody proud of it. Used to think that disgracing the family was like original sin, when I was younger. But then…you’ve heard the rumors. With Sirius…I just decided that it was time to get out. And I’ve never regretted it yet…I couldn’t imagine bringing my daughter back there.”
Bridget stared at him. He just admitted to ruining his family, and yet he was proud of it. How could he be…proud? She didn’t even know her family personally, and yet she had sacrificed her happiness for her father’s secret; in an attempt to keep the family from disgrace. Could her family be so bad that Regulus wasn’t ashamed of messing it up for himself? If it wasn’t…then Regulus would have been sorry about what he did. Bridget sat in confusion trying desperately to straighten out the jumble of thoughts in her brain.
Her mind was distracted by him pulling out a photograph of a cute little girl. He grinned, “That’s my Katie…thank Merlin she’ll never have to deal with my family, Adriana and I decided not to even give her my name…” Would she though? Bridget had always been jealous of Regulus and his brother…for the family that they had; for not having to be burdened with this secret. Did Regulus really think that she was better off not knowing the family at all?
"She's a cutie," Bridget replied smiling. She had never given much thought to children...too much of a risk. The kid had a very large chance of ending up as warped as she was.
“Speaking of names, I don’t remember yours? Or your old house…know I’ve seen you around, though,” he finished.
Bridget shook her head so that she could clear it enough to answer his question. “Bridget Ashford…I was in Ravenclaw. My mother wasn’t too thrilled when I got my letter…but I came to Hogwarts anyways. You see, I grew up in the States. My mother had left trying to separate herself from our world,” she clarified, shocked at telling Regulus that. She had never mentioned her mother to anyone before.
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Regulus Black
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Post by Regulus Black on Sept 8, 2007 16:22:06 GMT -5
Regulus smiled when Bridget complimented Katie--who honestly wouldn't? --and tucked the photo away in his pocket, feeling strangely fulfilled now that he'd bragged about his daughter to at least one person. "Thanks," he said proudly.
Tom placed his second firewhisky on the bar, and Regulus took a drink of it right away. When Bridget introduced herself, he swallowed too quickly and nearly choked, but then said, "Of course! The American girl a few years below us...I remember when you were sorted, everyone was hoping you'd be in our house so that they could drill you on your accent..."
He frowned at her. "So, now that I've divulged Black family secrets to you...you have to explain yourself. Why didn't your mum want you coming to Hogwarts? Why'd she leave the wizarding world? I shared my stories with you so it's only fair..." Regulus grinned teasingly. "And you never know--I could have Death Eater alliances that can pry them out of you anyway if you're not reeling social." Laughing so that she knew he wasn't remotely serious, Regulus took another drink of his firewhisky and looked at her expectantly.
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Post by Bridget Ashford on Sept 8, 2007 17:33:15 GMT -5
“Of course! The American girl a few years below us…I remember when you were sorted, everyone was hoping you’d be in our house so that they could drill you on your accent…” he said after almost choking on his drink.
Bridget wasn’t surprised. She had been thoroughly teased about her American customs, and lack of a British accent. “To me you are the freak with the weirdish accent. My friends and I used to try to imitate the sound,” she retorted, fighting laughter. “You always seem so proper…everything sounds like something an old lady would say,” she chuckled.
Her good mood faded at his next comment. He wanted to know why her mom left…why she didn’t want her to attend Hogwarts. He wanted to know her secret. Bridget froze, unable to think. This is exactly what she was always trying to avoid.
“And you never know—I could have Death Eater alliances that can pry them out of you anyway if you’re not feeling social.” He said through laughter. She knew that he was only teasing, but she wondered how serious his threat would become once he knew who she was. Would he just have her taken out, to make things easier for the family? Or would he tell her father’s wife about her, causing the entire family tree to despise her guts? She couldn’t tell him, coming clean was out of the question. Bridget had spent all seven years at Hogwarts keeping her history private, and for what? For her to tell the first Black she came in contact with the truth? That was definitely not going to happen.
Another question came to her mind, and this one disturbed her the most. The question was; why? Why had she kept quiet? She had been protecting the reputation of a man that she had never known, a man who probably shouldn’t have had an affair with her mother in the first place. Bridget’s face fell as she realized what that meant. She had sacrificed friends…the only chance that she had at ever getting a family…for a stupid mistake that her parents had made. They were the ones who screwed up, and yet she was the person who had to pay. Where was the justice in that?! She felt her face burn with anger as she continued to think. She had to get control over herself before she exploded. Bridget took a few longs breaths, before finally finding the words that she would say to her cousin.
“I’m…my mother…I never met my father,” she started, her anger failing, and slowly being replaced with her old fear. She was crazy…this was crazy. She took another deep breath before continuing. She decided that she could tell Regulus the main story; she would just leave out a few details. “You have to understand. My mother isn’t a bad person…she just did some bad things. When my mom was twenty-four, she fell in love with the wrong man. He was way out of her league. He had money, connections, not to mention that he was married and had kids. But she fell for him nevertheless. After a year of seduction, she eventually persuaded him to fall in love with her as well. The affair lasted all of six months; ended when she wound up pregnant. My father supposedly gave my mom a lot of money…so she could leave the country…” she explained, shocked that she got all of that out without stumbling.
“She kept me…hidden…she had to leave our world to prevent from being found by someone who could discover me. That’s why she didn’t want me to go to Hogwarts…she was afraid that I would reveal the secret to his family,” she said, barely whispering. Bridget could feel her hands shaking. Her insides felt unstable…as if anything could cause her to completely lose her sanity. She looked up at Regulus, tears threatening to spill through her eyes. Saying the story out loud brought back all the feelings from the night when her mother had told her about her past. The betrayal...the pain. Each breath brought another wave of anger, reminding her what horrible things her parents did.
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Regulus Black
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Post by Regulus Black on Sept 8, 2007 18:07:00 GMT -5
"Old ladies do say some of the things I say," Regulus laughed, "but not all. I mean...I've never heard an old lady say 'fuck'. I don't know about your American old ladies, but...British ones certainly don't."
Regulus could see Briget's apprehension when he asked her to share her secrets. It wasn't like he'd told her anything particularly profound about the Black family...hoping he hadn't pried too deep, he said apologetically, "I'm sorry, was that too personal? I mean, we've never spoken before, as far as I'm aware. Not a first conversation topic?" he asked.
But Bridget began to tell him a little about herself anyway, for which he was grateful. Regulus hated making a prat out of himself when he pried into other people's lives. His was just so...abnormal, though. He liked listening to other stories.
" My mother isn’t a bad person…she just did some bad things. When my mom was twenty-four, she fell in love with the wrong man. He was way out of her league. He had money, connections, not to mention that he was married and had kids. But she fell for him nevertheless. After a year of seduction, she eventually persuaded him to fall in love with her as well. The affair lasted all of six months; ended when she wound up pregnant. My father supposedly gave my mom a lot of money…so she could leave the country…"
Regulus took a drink of his firewhisky while Bridget shared her story. The offhand comments about her father having money and connections caught his attention. He snorted at the irony. "Sounds like someone from my family," he muttered socially. "Like...like something one of them would do, to preserve the blood, you know? Fat lot of bloody gits, the whole mess of them." Regulus laughed sourly, without humor, and added, "Hopefully you're not tied into my family--though if your father had money and connections, you probably are. All sorts of problems, incest being one of the least of them. That's why I wasn't too upset when I got out." It sounded like he'd sprung himself out of prison, but it was the truth. Living within the narrow and straight confines of Black family expectations was much like living in a sort of prison.
Bridget lowered her voice so much that Regulus had to strain a little to hear her over the bustle of the pub. "That’s why she didn’t want me to go to Hogwarts…she was afraid that I would reveal the secret to his family,” she breathed. Regulus looked at her, concerned. He could see her hands shaking on her lap, and that she'd paled several shades. "Bloody hell, that was too personal, wasn't it?" he said quietly. "I'm sorry, Bridget. Well...did you reveal the secret?" he asked, trying to get to a point in the conversation where they could speak of other things--things that didn't make Bridget look like she was going to vomit all over the bar. "Tom, bring my friend another of whatever she's drinking," Regulus said, putting down another galleon. Old money and all, it wasn't like he'd miss it, and he felt bad for making Bridget explain something that was obviously painful to her.
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Post by Bridget Ashford on Sept 8, 2007 19:23:42 GMT -5
Bridget’s stomach flipped when Regulus commented on her father’s social and financial level. “Sounds like someone from my family,” he muttered. She nearly choked at that comment. He obviously saw the connection between them, and he wouldn’t take too long before figuring everything out. He also said that he hoped she wasn’t tied into his family…oh well too late now. The deed had already been done. They were related whether Regulus approved or not. As she came to the end of her story, she could tell that he was very concerned about her. He probably had reason to be too, she probably looked awful. “Bloody hell, that was too personal, wasn’t it? I’m sorry, Bridget,” he said quietly.
Bridget brushed the hair that had fallen into her face away. “I’m alright…I have just never told anyone about that before,” she mumbled. And she would be, after she steadied her heartbeat.
“Well…did you reveal the secret?” he asked. He was just probably trying to get her mind off of the present thought, but she didn’t mind his attempt. Did she reveal the secret? I mean, he had already unknowingly said the thing himself. He would find out sooner or later, why should she try to postpone the inevitable? Her thoughts were interrupted by Regulus ordering her another drink. She thankfully took the cup that Tom… (The sexy bartender had a name?) offered her. After a very long sip, she set down her glass, ready to tell Regulus the rest of her tangled past. How exactly he fit into the picture. She avoided his eyes, not able to face him.
“You weren’t too far off with your assumption. My father is Cygnus Black,” she told him, trying to disguise the fear of rejection from her voice. She wasn’t sure if she could take him being angry at her, especially over something that she couldn’t control.
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Regulus Black
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Post by Regulus Black on Sept 9, 2007 0:56:05 GMT -5
He looked up in surprise when Bridget admitted that she'd never told anyone about her history before. Alarmed, he put down his glass and waited until she lifted her head enough for him to look her in the eyes. "Bridget...if you've never told anyone that before...why tell me?" he asked, shocked.
But his question answered itself a moment later. "My father is Cygnus Black," Bridget said, voice too normal. Regulus was too surprised to say anything for a moment. Gaping at the girl sitting next to him, it was a while before he could pull his thoughts together enough to form coherent sentences. "Cygnus..." but which one? Uncle Cygnus, or great-grandpa Cygnus? When had great-grandpa died again? "Oh...you're in the middle of the mess of the middle of the family, then. Either my half-cousin or my great-aunt..." he remarked, voice detached as he considered her connections.
Regulus frowned thoughtfully, looking over at her. "Why didn't you say anything, though? Why didn't you talk with us before? I didn't even know your name until today."
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Post by Bridget Ashford on Sept 9, 2007 1:47:05 GMT -5
Bridget felt awkward at his response. Instead of yelling at her like she would have expected, he seemed completely shocked. Regulus took a few moments, before asking her which Cygnus was her father. She found this question slightly amusing, although she was still a little uneasy about his reaction. “Haha…I hate to break this to you but my mom wasn’t desperate enough to sleep with your great-grandfather…well…our great-grandfather I guess. He’s just a little too old for her taste. We’re cousins…” she said, trailing off. She felt uncomfortable, talking about his great-grandfather as if she had some kind of relationship with him, or even known him for that matter.
She saw Regulus considering something in his head, before frowning. Bridget’s muscles tensed silently preparing her for his delayed reaction that would probably surface in his next statement. She was surprised when his question was in a calm tone. “Why didn’t you say anything, though? Why didn’t you talk with us before? I didn’t even know your name until today.”
At first, Bridget wasn’t sure how to answer. I mean, she had been confused by that exact same thought just minutes before. “I’m not so sure anymore. Right after my mother told me who my father was my first instinct was to come up here to Britain so that I could meet him. I remember being so infuriated when my mom made me swear not to tell anyone. She said that…if I did…I would ruin his life. He already had three girls of his own…and I didn’t want to mess things up for them. If I couldn’t have a daddy…then someone at least deserved to. I didn’t want to be the one responsible for kicking him out of the family,” she answered. “I know I can’t control who my father is…but that doesn’t change how much I can potentially wreck your family.”
Bridget’s fingers tightened around her glass again, and she lifted the cup slowly to her mouth. The drink burned as the warm liquid went down her throat, but she didn’t stop the flow. The taste was comforting…reminded her that she wasn’t as numb as she felt. She placed the now empty glass back on the bar with a clump, and asked a question that had been bothering her for some time.
“What happens now? Are we to both walk out of here like this conversation didn’t take place? I never thought this through long enough to figure out what I would do next in this situation.”
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