*Trisha*

It's been a hard season for James and I want to be here to help him in any way I can. He just doesn't want my help lately. He doesn't open up to me, barely talks to anyone really, and I feel like maybe we are barely friends right now, never mind anything more.

Casey gets James ready for the day while I shower and then I try to help him with breakfast. James is so emotionally distraught lately he has a harder time eating and get much more frustrated and harder on himself. 

"I can do it myself." He pulls the spoon away from my hand and attempts to eat his yogurt. He doesn't want to be spoon fed, I don't blame him, but he certainly doesn't want my help either. So when he drops the spoon for the third time sending yogurt to splatter everywhere he drops his head.

"Jesus Christ." He mutters to himself while I clean up the mess as Nate comes home.

Casey ends up taking over and James cooperates more for her.

"Hey mate, how you holding up?"  Nate asks James as he leans down to pet the dog.

"I just want this to be over." James mumbles. "Hey. Do you think your driver could take me to my church at so-some point today? There's no services or anything like that. I just want to go."

"Yeah, man. I can text him right now to have him block off time today."

Jonah whizzes by me with Nate's medication and then checks his blood pressure.

"Hmm. It's a little high today." He furrows his brows and writes the numbers on a paper towel.

"I DO own paper, Jonah."

"Yeah yeah. How was Julia today? Anything stressful happen or are you just feeling anxious?"

"A little bit of both. She has a mouth on her with no filter when it comes to Donovan. One of these days he's going to snap."

"SHIT!" Casey jumps up as James begins to seize. "He's got a mouth full of food!"

The dog starts barking and Jonah jumps into action, swiping the bite of eggs from James's mouth and lowering him off his chair onto the floor on his side.

Oh my god. He's having a seizure with a mouth full of food. He could have choked! I begin to cry and cover my mouth. It wasn't long. Not long at all. Less than a minute but having food in his mouth freaked both me and Casey out because he could easily choke. Casey is now crying and heaving while watching the scene play out.

"He had food in his mouth." Casey whimpers as James comes to.

"He's fine Casey. We got it out." Jonah gives her a look of concern and Maggie disgustingly eats up the food on the floor.

"Mags, gross." James says to his dog.

"See!! This is why he can't go to jail! They can't take care of him!" I burst and storms out of the dining room and into Nate's room, slamming the door behind me. I can't take all this. It's too much.

*****

*James*

"Shit." Jonah knows he's batter up since Casey is still crying. He helps me back on the chair and heads to Nate's room to talk to Trisha.

"She's right, though." I mutter while Nate helps me drink a little water. "If I have seizures now with this stress, 'magine what it will be like if I'm behind bars?"

"You're not going to be behind bars, ok Gallo? We have another meeting tomorrow morning with Addison. She'll tell us what to do."

*****

Ren drives us to my church after lunch. Evan acts as our bodyguard in case anything happens but Nate has him wait in the car for now. No one is here. Once inside, I head right to the front almost like during Alter Call. I slide into one of the first few pews and bow my head. I have so many prayers to ask I don't even know where to begin. First I say my usual prayers asking God to watch over my family and keep the girls all healthy and safe. To heal my mom and now Katie. And then to heal me.

I then pray for Julia's health and emotional healing, Nate's heart and thank God for giving us Jonah and Casey to care for us. I pray for protection over Paul and Evan while they protect us. I pray for my relationship with Trisha but then contradict myself when I pray for Julia to somehow change her mind and choose me.

I pray for my lawyer, for the judge, for the jury. I pray they will see what happened for what it was- an accident. I never meant for anyone to get hurt. I pray my punishment will be fair but won't be time in jail. I even pray for Colton West that he understands it was not some malicious act on my part and that he is fair and doesn't go after me because he can't stand Addison. I even pray for Nadine Jones who is grieving the loss of her uncle because of me. I pray for complete emotional healing for her as well as to forgive me for what I've done.

Then I pray for myself. I begin to cry as I pray for my own physical healing. For a full recovery. Something I don't see happening.

I pray for Jeremy, that sick bastard. I pray he gets the help he needs and never lays a finger on another woman.

Then I pray for Joe Gallo. I pray he will somehow change his ways and turn to God. That he will try to be a better person but also pray he will stay away from my family. I pray he moves far away and never bothers us again.

But God has a sense of humor sometimes with the timing of things.  Because when I hear the familiar sarcastic laugh from the side entrance of the sanctuary, I tense up, knowing exactly who is here. My stomach ties in a knot and bile travels up my throat within seconds as my nerves get the best of me.

My father enters the church. My abusive asshole prick of a father, Joe Gallo, stands in the doorway laughing at me praying. He always laughed whenever he saw us trying to do right by God. In his world, HE is God, and we should all be praying to him.

Not happening.

"Had a feeling you'd be here, son." The roaring voice continues to laugh. "Prayer ain't gonna get you outta this one, Jamie."

I look over and my stomach turns at the sight of the man. Of all days for my father to show his fucking face. He knows this is the church we go to. He's known for years. But to come here when there's no service?

I wipe my eyes and stand but when Joe takes a step closer to me, by instinct, I take a step back, so I am out of the pew and on the other side. I haven't seen Joe since the car accident, and he is thoroughly enjoying the sight of my shaky hands. It's weakness. Joe thrives off of other's weakness.

"Relax kid."

"Why are you here, Joe?"

"I expect you to call me dad." He is dead serious, too. I swallow hard and try to control my breathing. "You have no shot surviving jail now. Look at you." Joe takes another step forward and laughs when I take another step back. "That coma fucked with your head, boy. Now who's gonna take care of your mother?"

"Rot in hell." I retort. He's threatening my family right now? My hands are in tight fists as anger pumps through my veins.

"No son. That will be you. You fucking killed a man. I knew you had it in you. Looks like I'll be taking good care of Carol and the girls while you're serving time."

"You sonofabitch!" I lunge at him, but Joe punches me right in the gut, making me drop to my knees in pain.

"HEY!" Nate's British voice bounces off the sanctuary walls catching Joe off guard seeing another person in here. "I'm pretty sure I just witnessed you assault a man." He holds up his phone on speaker to dial 911. No. God no, he can't!

"No! Nate!! Don't!!" I cry out and Nate hangs up before the call goes through. "He'll just find my sisters and take it out on them."

Nate boldly walks up towards us and I'm internally begging him not to. Joe will rip him to pieces and by the smell of it, has a gallon of whiskey in his blood.

"Well, if it isn't America's heartthrob himself. Look at you. Your millions won't save him from this one, Nate Hollan."

Evan quickly storms in, but Nate puts a hand out to stop him for a second.

"I swear to God, you arrogant piece of shit, wife-beating, child-abusing prick. I have more money than you will EVER see in three of your sorry fucking lifetimes. I have excellent lawyers and the whole fucking world adores me. You lay one of your filthy hands on ANY one of your Gallo children or Carol, I will dig your fucking grave myself and bury you alive. And I don't like to get dirty. I pay people to do that shit. But for you? I want to do it myself. And when you fucking climb out of your sorry hole of a grave, I will put your half dead body in jail and let all your inmates have their way with you. Ever been to prison, Joe ? I hear they love the child abusers."

Nate pulls me to my feet as Evan stands between us and Joe so Nate can walk me out of the sanctuary.

It's not until we are all in the SUV and driving do I realize I went into shock. My father punched me. His grown adult son. He slugged me right in the stomach. If I go to jail, he will take over my mom and sisters. Everyone I have worked so damn hard to protect all these years. Everything I've done to make sure I'm strong enough to physically take on my father, yet it makes it known he is still in complete control of us.

"You should have let me call 911, James." Nate says softly but I shake my head and stare ahead the whole way home.

"C'mon, Gallo. Let's have Jonah check you out." Nate walks out of the elevator and Maggie b-lines it off the couch to me barking up a storm and grabbing Jonah's attention. When he sees me a little hunched over, he quickly shuts his laptop and comes into the living room.

"Where are the girls?" Nate looks around the spacious apartment.

"They just went to get a Target pick- up. I figured they wouldn't need a bodyguard for that if they are staying in the car, right? Casey drove. Of course. You know Trish still isn't driv-"

"Now is not the time, take a look at James for me."

He sits me down on the couch and Maggie calms down for me.

"James, what happened?" Jonah questions but I can only shake my head.

"Sir, he hasn't spoken since the incident." Evan looks over at me.

"He's in shock. His father......" Nate begins. "I now know why James, even as big and muscular as he is, fears his own father. The guy is insane. He punched James right in the stomach. In the middle of a church!"

"What, WHAT?!" Jonah earns a bark from Maggie. "He assaulted his son?! A grown man? A disabled man? And you didn't call the cops?!

"I was going to but James told me no. Joe has this weird hold on the family. He threatened James. He told James all sorts of shit but also said he would take care of his mom and sisters. And I don't mean take care of in a good way. The guy is certifiable, Jonah. You could see it in his eyes. James was praying when his father showed up. It was awful."

"So he just walked away? No repercussions? He assaults a man and walks away like nothing happens?"

"James was adamant. The look in his eyes.... Can you just check him out. Make sure his father didn't break a fucking rib or something."

"And he hasn't spoken since?" Jonah asks while grabbing his medical bag off the dining room table. He rummages through the bag and pulls out a thin flashlight, waving it in my eyes. "Definitely in a bit of shock. Like Julia, he's unresponsive. I'm sure this encounter brought up a lot from his childhood. I can't believe this."

Jonah gently lifts my shirt, but I grab his wrist and shake my head.

"I'm fine."

"I just want to check, ok friend?" Jonah is cautious but lifts up my shirt to examine me. He slowly lays me down on the couch and it brings me right back to my pediatrician checking me out after numerous "falls from my treehouse" I never owned. Tears fill my eyes thinking of the time Joe punched me in the stomach if I didn't do my chores the way he wanted them to be done.

Jonah presses down on certain spots on my stomach, and I flinch.

"Nate, grab me an ice pack, please."

"Really I'm fine." I put my arm over my eyes and begin to cry. This just brings me back to so many abusive moments in my life and to this day I can't win when it comes to my father.

"I'm going to apply ice to decrease swelling and pain and it will also help prevent tissue damage. You'll have some bruising and soreness, but I don't think you have any damage to your soft tissue or organs. He didn't faint or have trouble breathing, did he?"

Both Evan and Nate shake their heads. "No but it was a hard hit, and he went down like a sack of potatoes."

"Hollan really laid in to him after though. Where'd you even come up with that stuff?" Evan asks Nate.

"It was not my finest moment."

"Why, what did you say to him? You confronted him??" Jonah's eyes widen.

"I have an exceptional memory." Evan says proudly. "The venom that spewed out of this British guy..." Evan chuckles. "He said- I swear to God, you arrogant piece of shit, wife-beating, child-abusing prick. I have more money than you will EVER see in three of your sorry fucking lifetimes. I have excellent lawyers and the whole fucking world adores me. You lay one of your filthy hands on ANY one of your Gallo children or Carol, I will dig your fucking grave myself and bury you alive. And I don't like to get dirty. I pay people to do that shit. But for you? I want to do it myself. And when you fucking climb out of your sorry hole of a grave, I will put your half dead body in jail and let all your inmates have their way with you. Ever been to prison, Joe ? I hear they love the child abusers."

Holy shit. He got that one word for word.

"Wow. ok. You just fucking recited that one word for word?!" Nate is shocked and I can't help but smile a little at him sticking up for me the way he did with those snarky comments. Nobody and I mean NOBODY talks to Joe Gallo like that. It also makes me fear for Nate's safety now.

"I can't believe you said that to my father. And I can't believe you survived and are still here with us right now." I wipe my eyes and let Jonah hold the ice pack on my stomach.

"Yeah, neither can I. To be completely honest."

"Really, I'm fine. Can you guys not tell Trish this stuff. She's already all wound up." I sit up. "Actually... Can I go see Julia today?"

"Yeah, I can take you." Nate looks up at Evan, knowing we'll need a bodyguard from this point on for real now."

"I can drive you guys." Evan offers. "Can I drive the Mercedes?"

Nate laughs. He laughs all the way to the Avalon in one of his Range Rovers.

*******

*Trisha*

"Now where the hell is everyone?" I ask when I see Jonah the sole person in the apartment still.

"Why, the Avalon of course." Jonah smirks and gives Casey a quick peck on her cheek as she walks in with Target bags.

"I really enjoy Nate's credit card access." She smiles over to me. "Are you sure that it's ok, though?"

"Dear, I do Nate's budget for him. Believe me, two hundred dollars at Target is not going to put a dent in his finances."

I see Jonah give Casey a little look and she furrows her brows at him.

"What...."

"Nothing. I just need to speak to Casey about something privately." He turns towards their room.

"Oh no you don't. Nothing's fucking private in this house and you know it. Who got knocked up, beat up or fucked up in some way? If It's Nate, I swear to God..."

"No one is knocked up!" Casey blurts out, stopping that rumor quickly.

"Nothing like that. And Nothing to do with Nate either. Just something medical. That's all."

Jonah whisks Casey into their bedroom, but I know I will have no problem getting things out of her later. Casey is awful at keeping things to herself, God bless the poor girl. I plop down on the sofa and begin texting Paul since I have no one better to bother.

[All the bathroom's in one piece still?]

This joke never gets old.

[Don't jinx it, Banks]

[What's everyone up to over there, anyway? The Avalon where the cool kids hang now?]

[Apparently. James wanted to see Julia and Nate is paying to have an alarm system put in Julia's apartment. Not telling Donovan though]

Good idea, I think to myself. But hiding it from Jeremy may piss him off.

[And if he finds out? That's not going to go over well.]

[Too bad. Moretti is getting too bold around the asshole with her snarky comments. She needs all the protection she can get]

That girls mouth is going to get her in some serious trouble. That Boston accent may sound tough, but she is not.

[ I still can't believe you submitted to be her full-time bodyguard, Paulie. Talk about throwing your life away.]

[It's my job, Trisha.]

[But you need a life outside your job]

Doesn't he see this? If he is Julia's full time bodyguard, he gives up his entire life. Any free time he has unless he pawns her off on someone else for a break every once in a while.

[No. I really don't It would be different if I were married or involved with someone. But I'm not. Remember? Last person I dated said we were boring together. Haha]

Wait. We both agreed on that. We were together out of convenience. Then it fizzled. then kinda became a once in a great while booty call. Is Paul saying the breakup was one sided? Did I read him wrong? I was so caught up in shit with Nate... AM always so caught up with Nate, I tend to put everyone else on the back burner.

I need to stop doing that. Nate is with Julia, obviously I know this. But I also know it's not going to work out. Hell, she signed herself up for the Avalon full time!! That pretty much guarantees them being over. Sooner or later going to the Avalon to see his "wife" is going to get old.

[Did you not think we were boring together?]

I ask boldy and watch the bubbles pop up then stop a few times before Paul sends his message.

[I happen to like boring]

I decide to go downstairs to the gym but the entire time on the elliptical all I can think about is that text conversation with Paul.

Did I get it all wrong?

*******

*James*

Once we get to the Avalon the nurse guides us down a hall to where Julia is. It's this big recreational room and she is hanging out with that guy Mike Maloney near the window. Can't she find any FEMALE friends??

"There she is." Nate stands in the doorway with me and the dog. "Hey, James wanted to come see you. I'm going to go visit my sister for a bit, is that ok?"

Both Mike and Julia laugh a little.

"Good luck. She's moody today." Julia announces and then studies my face. We don't even need to say anything to know when something is wrong with the other person. It's just some weird connection we have.

"Lovely. Evan is going to creepily lurk behind you guys as a bodyguard. James requires one."

"Well I'll let you all continue your weird love triangle, menage a trois shit. I'll talk to ya later." Mike throws a piece of popcorn at Julia playfully and leaves the room.

"There's no threesome." Nate clarifies to Evan in embarrassment.

"No judgement here, pal. You do you."

"No really-"

"GoodBYE Nate!" Julia cuts him off and I smirk. Nate gets all worked up when we joke like this, and I can't help but laugh.

"Wanna stay here or go outside?" Julia asks, knowing something is up the way Mags stays by my side. "James." She takes my hand and sits me down on the sofa near the window with her. "What happened? Something happened."

"You know what? I'm just going to drag a chair out here and give you two your privacy since no one is in here." Evan looks around the room before dragging a chair out to the hall and closing the door behind him.

I drop my head down to Julia's shoulder and cry.

"Oh my God, what happened?!" She holds my head down against her and I wrap my arms around her small frame. I just need her to hold me for a minute before I can speak.

"James...."

"Julia."

"Talk to me." She takes my face in both hands and lifts my face up to look at her. Then Julia kisses my lips. Because she's Julia. It's just what she does.

"He's an awful human being." I sniff. I tell Julia everything. I get it all off my chest and she lets me. She doesn't try to fix it. She just listens. Julia is good like that. Until she heard Joe got physical.

"HE PUNCHED YOU?!?" She bursts into tears and lifts my shirt. Yep. That is going to be a nasty black and blue come morning. "Oh my God. How does he get away with this shit, James!"

"He threatened to go near my mom and sisters, that's how. He knows I will never report anything if it puts my family in danger. Babe, what am I going to do if I end up having to serve time? Who will watch over the girls?"

"I will make sure Nate provides bodyguards if need be, ok? But you're not going to jail I'm so sorry Joe did this to you. He IS an awful human being." She lets me cry without judgement. And i do. For as good five minutes straight I cry in her arms. She kisses my cheeks and kisses my tears. Then, she kisses me. Like REALLY kisses me.

I can tell it it was only meant to be a simple touch of our lips, but nothing is simple when it comes to me and Julia.... And she knows I won't ever be the one to back away first. So, she kisses me, and I kiss her back.

It turns into a full blown make out session while we sit on the couch of the Avalon, not caring if anyone comes in and sees us. She can't deny this is what it's supposed to feel like.

James and Julia..

"You two. Knock it off!" Paul has entered the room and rolls his eyes at us both. "Really?"

We both shrug at the same time.

"C'mon. I want to show you something Moretti."

"You want in on the action? I didn't think you had it in you, Paulie." Julia teases and Paul gets all bent out of shape.

"You're nuts, you know that?" I laugh.

Julia looks around the room and raises her eyebrows. "You do see where I live, correct?"

"Moretti, let's go." Paul huffs, lacking patience and we get off the couch to follow him. Paul says nothing and Evan becomes our shadow while we walk down a hall. It takes a good ten or so minutes to get to the wing with her apartment but once we do, Nate is already inside. I can already tell his visit with Cara didn't go too well. It never does.

"These two were sucking face in the other room. Just an FYI." Paul rats us out like we're two teenagers.

"C'mon Jule... really?" Nate says in a reprimanding way but then kisses her forehead and pulls her in to sit on his lap making me be the one to roll my eyes now. She always goes back to Nate. It will always be Nate. "You're going to be the death of me, princess."

"Pay attention. I had someone come install a security system." Paul points to a keypad near the door and then opens the slider for Maggie who patiently waits to go outside. She already feels like home here and I think it's cute. In a weird dysfunctional way. Maggie feels safe in this apartment. She's not as on edge as she is when Julia was in one of the regular Avalon rooms. There is just too much noise and she senses people struggling all around her.

"You don't think this is a bit overkill, Paul? I mean. I have you living here. You're giving up your life to stay in this little Avalon apartment as it is." Julia comments.

"Don't care. You're too trusting, Julia. Towards EVERYONE." Paul continues.

"You act like I've ASKED for the things that happened to me."

"Not at all, Moretti. But you've let your guard down. Time and time again. That's what's gonna get you in trouble. You're always trying to see the good in people." The bodyguard crosses his arms and glares at Julia. He knows he is right. We all know how trusting Julia is. Almost naive. She wants to see the good in even the worst of the monsters.

"Whatever. Show me how to use this thing. We're probably going to need to tell someone here that we've installed security." She says as Paul shows her how to work the alarm.

"Not necessarily. Wait till something happens or Jeremy notices it. Then you can tell him you feel safer so had your bodyguard install it. Donovan can't say anything to that. What's the worst that would happen? He tells you it's not allowed, and we have to disable it?" Nate explains.

If Jeremy tells Julia she can't have a simple alarm, then that's a red flag on its own. No question.

******