The Nanny

Chapter Fourteen- Man to man.

~~Callen's point of view~~

After Greenlee left yesterday, I sat down and thought hard about everything. I had some decisions of my own to make. I knew that I needed to talk to Zach, man to man. I know things can't go back to how they were. I won't let them go back to how they were. I love Greenlee; I purposely held back on her. I won't do that anymore.

I thought long and hard about Zoey too. I even talked to the therapist about it. He said what I thought. That if I wanted Greenlee the way I said I did, then I should accept all parts of her life. After all, I am the cause of it. I caused all of this, so I have to step up and take responsibility. That includes her raising a child with Zach.

At some point, I do need to talk to her about Arianna. I need her to fully understand that what happened was not her fault. That laid solely on Arianna. I assume that Arianna thought I would never find out. She was wrong. She may have been good at keeping secrets, but her partner in crime was not. His wife found a journal he kept after his death. It detailed everything; she and I met up, I read it. I then thoroughly washed my hand. I even had the medical doctor here test me.

That would have been devastating. If I would have given Greenlee something, I would never forgive myself. Every day that I am in here, I realize how bad I royally fucked up. I also realize how stupid I was. I put everything into my marriage to Arianna. The only good thing to come from it was Bria. She tarnished our marriage in her death.

All the time I spent with her devoted to her and one afternoon with a woman I had never met destroyed it all. It's time for me to focus on my future and my children. That starts with having this conversation with Zach. I did my research on him. He doesn't need my money; he has his own. He doesn't have a criminal record, and his credit is better than mine. Everything Greenlee told me about him was the truth. He was honest with her about everything.

I was looking for a reason to hate him. Instead, I found things I like about him. Paper trails don't always mean anything. I need to get to know him personally. Our personalities may clash; I don't see that happening, though; I'm not looking for reasons to dislike him anymore; I am looking for reasons to make this work for us all.

I call Greenlee.

~~Phone conversation~~

Greenlee: "Hello Callen."

Callen: "Hey, Sweetheart."

Greenlee: "I was just getting the girls ready to come see you."

Callen: "Glad I caught you. I won't be able to see you today."

Greenlee: "Why not?"

Callen: "I have a therapy appointment during visiting hours."

Greenlee: "Oh, ok."

I get a facetime notice. I quickly accept it.

Callen: "My God, you're beautiful."

She blushes.

Then I hear it.

Bria: "Dada, Dada, Dada."

Greenlee flips the camera to Bria. Bria points her hand to the screen.

Bria: "Mama Dada."

Greenlee: "That is Daddy, isn't it?"

I see Bria's face come close to the phone. I realize she is giving me a kiss. Greenlee flips it back to her.

Greenlee: "As you can see, she is perfectly fine."

Callen: "I wasn't worried about her. I know you have her."