Homeless

"Twenty...Twen...Twenty-Two...? You got me TWENTY-TWO MILLION DOLLARS, ROYCE?" She finally choked out. With a scream of joy, she tackled me sitting on the kitchen chair, knocking me over backwards.

"Well, you do have to sign the papers first," I teased while she rained kisses over my face. Then I got with the program and started kissing her back.

"When does this happen?"

"We have an appointment with my banker tomorrow. The funds are already in our trust account. We'll move the money into an account for you. You'll be able to do whatever you want then."

"How much will I get out of it?"

"All of it, I took the case, Pro Bono."

"That's millions you're giving up, Royce! That's not fair. You did the work."

"Woman with baby needing help, my mother, pants down, butt tanned!" I reminded her, looking frightened. That made her laugh.

"I want to meet your mother."

"I hope to introduce you and Emma to her soon. She'll go nuts over Emma."

"I guess we can afford to move out now. I could even buy a house; you don't need to support us anymore."

My heart fell into an abyss. I tried to put a brave face on it. "You could."

She wrapped her arms around my neck, and those bewitching emerald eyes stared into my mine. "What does Royce want?"

"Julie, as crazy as all this has been, I'm nuts about you and Emma. I love the two of you. I want you here, always and forever. I want to get married and adopt Emma for my own."

"Well, my daughter's madly in love with her Royce, and I can hardly leave her behind, can I? I've fallen in love with him too; I guess we're staying and see where things go."

That brought on a long round of kisses before Emma's fussing broke us up. We went to bed that night, cuddled up tightly, feeling like life was wonderful. Emma slept through the night for the first time.

With the disbursements completed the next morning, Julie passed a list to the bank manager and asked if she could do what was on there. He nodded and called a clerk to take care of it. I had no idea what Julie was doing.

Afterward, she asked if we could stop at a greeting card store. She picked out several cards and spent some time at the counter writing something in each before sealing them up.

We went to the hospital at her request and headed up to the maternity ward. The head nurse saw her coming, and a huge smile lit her face. "You two have accomplished something awesome here. People are now getting looked after, and the Government instituted a whistleblower hotline. If we see anything like it again, we can report it."

Julie and I congratulated them. That was fantastic.

"Could I talk to all the girls that gave me their own money when I was discharged here? I'd like to say thank you," Julie asked.

The head nurse herded us all into a tiny meeting room. Julie put all the envelopes on the table and invited each one to take the one with their name on it.

They eagerly opened the envelopes, and there was a loud gasp of disbelief when they all grasped what Julie had done. Then the tears started flowing, and soon Julie was surrounded by a group of crying women. Julie had given each nurse fifty-thousand dollars and one hundred thousand for the head nurse that put her job on the line.

After that, nothing would do, but we had to head downstairs and hand a card and a cashier's cheque for fifty thousand to the head of security who had refused to carry out her eviction order. He was the hard-bitten type, but the smile on his face and the tears in his eyes would have melted any heart. He gave Julie a grateful hug and thanked her profusely. He confessed his wife was having some medical complications. They were having trouble affording everything, even with their medical coverage and him working in a hospital. That money would allow them to catch up with outstanding bills and put some back in their savings.

Personally, I was willing to be that once the news got around the hospital, indigent patients would be getting a lot better treatment in the future. Julie's first decision about her money would have a lasting good effect. It made me love her more.

We made a quick stop to see Dan, so he finally got to meet Julie and Emma in person. Emma wouldn't allow him to hold her. I had to wonder why she threw such a fuss over other males? In any case, she snuggled down on my shoulder, her little fingers finding the small space between my shirt collar and neck and clutching the collar. Pushing her head against my neck, she dropped off to sleep, drooling into that space she'd created. I was getting soaked. The hazards of fatherhood; I loved it!

I found myself strangely content, stroking Emma's tiny back and feeling the warm dribbles running down my chest until it was absorbed by my shirt.

Dan watched me with a strange look on his face. I could see his mind working to fit this new paradigm about us into his world view.

"I really didn't see this coming!" was his final comment.

Yeah, that made two of us!

After that, we headed to the mall for Christmas shopping. We separated and went our own ways. Finished, we met up, and Julie looked like she was floating on a cloud.

"I spent a shitload of money, even worse, I paid for it all to be delivered. I don't have to carry a single bag!" she crowed.

I couldn't fault the expression of absolute bliss on her face. She'd been through the mill, and a little happiness helped to make up for the past.

Christmas went very well. I took some time off to enjoy Julie and Emma. We decorated my place and visited my relatives to introduce Emma and Julie around. They were a total hit. My family got together Christmas day for our traditional turkey dinner. Everybody welcomed Julie and fussed over Emma. After everything was cleaned up and everyone was sitting in the living room, I went down on one knee and proposed to Julie. That got a resounding yes and applause from the family. Over the next few days, we visited with friends so Julie could flash her new ring around.

All-in-all...Best Christmas Ever!

**********

Epilogue

June turned out to be a very auspicious month, coinciding with our wedding, my adoption of Emma went through. She was now truly, my little girl.

Today, twenty years later, I'm walking down the aisle to the strains of the Bridal March with my little girl. Her inner radiance glows. Hanging onto my arm, she looks utterly gorgeous, an identical twin of her mother all those years ago. She has the same emerald eyes and only has to turn them on me with tears spilling to wrap her dad around her finger. Not that her mother does anything different. Dad's a wuss for his girls!

Of much greater surprise, though, is the man walking and holding her arm on the other side. Her real father, Kurt!

Kurt got religion. He also acquired a wife who resembled Julie. Flaming red hair, scorching green eyes, her five foot nothing height radiated with her no-nonsense attitude. She made it very clear she'd have his balls for bookends if he took up his old ways again. She had no trouble convincing ME she meant it!

He showed up on our doorstep around the time Emma turned fifteen, wanting to make amends for his terrible decisions all those years ago. We talked about it and decided to give him a chance. That turned out to be the right decision. Emma knew she was adopted and had been expressing some curiosity about her real father. She spent some time with Kurt and his wife and managed to develop a good relationship with them.

Kurt stepped up to the plate and apologized to Julie for his behaviour all those years ago. She forgave him. The relationship prospered between the four of us until we got to be good friends. I guess it's one of those never-say-never things in life.

Kurt had generously offered to pay for Emma's college and wedding expenses. We had compromised on splitting them instead. She was still my little girl.

We three shared hugs below the altar, and she turned to ascend the stairs to her waiting groom. I felt optimistic about him. I was impressed with how that young man looked at her with adoring eyes! It reminded me of how I looked at Julie in the beginning. A look of total enchantment. Love! Emma looked at him the same way.

It hadn't hurt that his background, criminal and health records all checked out. Not that Emma or Julie knew I'd done that. A father can't be too careful. Or too obvious!

The tears suddenly hit me, my lips trembling! My little slobbery finger buddy had grown into a woman and was leaving me...us for the next stage of her life. Part of me wanted nothing more than to go back to those days when she first lay in my arms, her bright blue eyes staring up at me.

I looked over at Julie, finding her eyes leaking badly too, her hanky getting a good workout. We looked at each other and smiled through our tears. It was going to be okay!

I gave a small wave to my parents, Beth and Dan, our best friends, then bent down to give Julie a kiss. Sitting between our other two teenagers, I put an arm around each and pulled them comfortingly close to me. Julie leaned closer on her side, laying her arm over mine. Bound in love, the four of us waited for our little girl to repeat those time-honoured words that pledged her heart to another!

Emma and her fiance were lost in each other's eyes when the Minister looked around at the assembled wedding guests.

"Dearly Beloved, we are gathered here today...!

The End.

© Copyright 2020 Gordo12

Author's Notes: Merry Christmas from Gordo12.

This was intended to be my second Winter Contest story, but outside events overcame the time available. I figured I'd finish it and offer it over Christmas instead. I hope you enjoy it.

I would appreciate your comments and votes. Even if other comments have said the same thing, sometimes a preponderance of the same issue makes an author pay more attention.

PS: The favourite story and favourite author buttons are badly underused on this site. If you enjoy my demented little ramblings, click on them, please. The site will notify you on your control panel of new stories.

PPS: my first Winter Contest story can be found here:

https://www.literotica.com/beta/s/hidden-boss If she recognized him he was so dead!