Page 27 of Lorenzo & Lily

“That’s all I ask. My door is open anytime.” She nodded to them and hurried away.

Ethan watched her leave, a frown on his face. “Do you think she’ll get help?”

They started walking their own path through the towering stacks, the agent following close behind. “I don’t know. She saw a therapist at the MARC, which is required for everyone who comes through there. Not everyone takes advantage of therapy – they’ll just sit through required sessions without saying anything – but some do. I don’t know if she spoke to them or not, and it’s not my place to know, but I’ll speak to her assigned therapist about it, just in case she comes back.”

“What if she hated her therapist? Wouldn’t that make it uncomfortable for her, if she did come back to speak to someone else?”

“It could, that’s true. Hmmm. I’ll think about it. Anyone can switch therapists, if they’d prefer to see someone else. If she had an issue with hers, I would hope that she’d made it known.”

“Do people often switch therapists?”

“Sometimes. You need to feel comfortable with your therapist, and not everyone has a good rapport with the first therapist they meet. I switched therapists for that reason.”

When Ethan stopped dead in his stride, Lorenzo paused as well, his eyebrows raised. “Problem?”

“You switched therapists?”

Lorenzo’s eyes shuttered and he began walking again. “Yes.”

Ethan walked quickly to catch up. “I thought you just gave up on therapy when the first therapist didn’t work out.”

“Well, I didn’t. I switched to the doctor I see now and it’s worked out well.”

“You still see a therapist?”

“Some things take a while to get over, Ethan. Surely you understand that.”

Ethan put a hand on his arm to halt him. “I do. I’ve seen things I wish I hadn’t. I, well, that is to say we–”

“You mean our nosy brothers told you I woke up screaming from a nightmare and now you’re trying to see if I’m regressing back into a pit of despair?”

Ethan’s eyes flitted away for a moment before coming back to his. “Not exactly.”

Lorenzo jerked his arm away. “It is exactly that. Listen to me closely, little brother.”

Ethan’s eyes narrowed; he hated being reminded he was the youngest of all the siblings.

“I do not need your fucking pity. If there’s one thing you should have learned by now in the Navy, is that no soldier or sailor wants pity, anyone’s pity. What they want is respect.”

“We respect you.”

Lorenzo scoffed. “I’ll believe it when I see it.”

“You shouldn’t have to see it to believe it.”

“No, I shouldn’t. However, since none of you believe I can do anything until you see me do it, I’m not going to believe you, either. Not until I see it with my own eyes, until I feel it in my heart.”

“We’re just worried about you.”

Despite himself, Ethan’s words sent a comforting warmth through him. Worrying meant he cared, and it felt good to have someone care for him.

Now, however, it was time for things to change. This incessant hovering over him had to stop. He was a father now, even if none of them knew it yet, and no one would believe him a capable father if they didn’t trust he was a capable man.

“Stop worrying, and start trusting and respecting me. That’s what I fucking need from my family.” He spat out a curse when he glimpsed the time on his watch. “Come on. We’ll be late for tea.”

* * *

Lily caughtLiliana as she ran towards her from the school’s steps. Lily smiled wide as she scooped up her baby girl, inhaling the faint lingering scent of crayons and sweat. She gave her a kiss on the temple and set her on the ground.

---