Ready-Made Family

Chapter Seven

"Are you sure you are ready to go back to work already?" Madison asked worriedly as she prepared breakfast for the kids and Brandon. Right now Brandon was seated at the table dressed in his suit and tie with his hair slicked back. He had the paper in front of him but he wasn't reading it, instead he was trying to convince Madison he was ready to go back to work.

"I've been off for two weeks and I've already attended a therapy session and a follow up at the hospital" Brandon said "besides I'll be working shorter days for now and will be home just after lunch. I still have my appointments that I need to attend. Plus I won't start until Monday".

"I know you'll only be working half days but I don't see why John can't just run things for now".

"He has been for the last two weeks" Brandon said "but it's my company now". Brandon sighed a little and ran his hand through his hair "it was such a struggle just to get him to retire and let me take over. I can't have him coming in now thinking he can change everything.

"I've worked hard to get things to be the way I want it. I fought him on a lot of things when he was still CEO; he was never open to my ideas. But now that I have my own control I have been changing a lot over the last year" Brandon said with a sigh "I thought I explained all of this to you a year ago? You should know how much this bothers me".

Madison realized her slip. If they had really been together for the last fifteen years she would have heard about Brandon's struggles with his father before. "Sorry dear" she apologized serving out a plate of bacon and eggs "I just must not be with it today". She walked to the staircase and called to the kids "breakfast is ready".

Emma and Ella came running but Noah trailed behind them busy on his phone.

"Little early for the phone don't you think?" Brandon said taking a big gulp of his black coffee.

"He's talking to a girl," Emma said crawling into her seat and taking a bit of the crispy bacon she held in her hand.

"Anna" Ella said taking some egg onto her fork and eating it carefully.

"Anna?" Brandon asked curiously "do you mean Isabelle's daughter Annabelle?"

"She goes by Anna now" Madison said grabbing her own serving and sitting down "kids grow up too fast these days". She glanced at Noah "talking about growing kids, you seem to be talking to Anna a lot these days".

Noah shrugged trying to play it off but Madison noticed the faint blush on his cheeks. She glanced a knowing smile at Brandon who just chuckled a little.

The kids ate their food pretty quick before they all excused themselves. The girls went to the playroom in the basement to play with their dolls but Noah went out back.

"Have we ever gotten around to giving him the talk yet?" Brandon asked collecting the dish to wash.

Madison shook her head wiping down the table "only a quick one about puberty, like hair and stuff. But nothing about girls... or sex". She knew she should have talked to him about a couple years ago but she kept putting it off. Maybe it was because she didn't want him to grow up or maybe because she though this talk was best coming from man to man. But considering he was starting high school in two months maybe it was best to sit down and chat with him.

Brandon nodded "how about this weekend I take him to a baseball game and on the way back chat with him a little?" Brando suggested. "He seems a little distant from me". Madison opened her mouth to argue but he silenced her with his hand "there is no denying it. And I can't say I blame him. He's a teenager now. He doesn't need his daddy hanging around trying to baby him. He and I have to find things we can do as men".