A/N: For my purposes: Caleb isn't a criminal, and the Nana never had cancer. This takes place after Ryan and Lindsey begin to get along, but before they began to feel stronger feelings for each other. They are just lab partners. Also, Seth and Summer are together. I think that's everything (I hope)!

"I never would have thought that a son of mine would produce a damn Nazi. But then I thought that he knew better than to marry for money."

Ryan stared in shock at the elderly gentleman in front of him. The man was dressed in a brown suit with a wild mane of gray hair and large eyebrows. It was the eyebrows that clued Ryan into who he was looking at.

Before he could say anything, Sandy came up behind him.

"What the hell are you doing here?" He growled, moving to stand between Ryan and his father.

"Hello Sanford." The man said boldly. "Aren't you happy to see dear old dad?"

"Not particularly. You left Mom and us years ago. Why are you bothering to find me now?"

"I wanted to see my kids and grandkids before I died." Jacob Cohen declared.

"What makes you think that we care what you want?" Sandy demanded. "You left us and never looked back. Please do us the favor of repeating those actions."

Jacob narrowed his eyes, and glanced over at Ryan. "You were a much nicer boy before you hooked up with the Arian Race."

"Stay the hell away from my family." Sandy stated coldly before closing the door on his father.

Ryan stared in shock at the man who he had never heard speak so coldly to anyone. Sandy was standing with his forehead against the door and breathing heavily.

"Are you okay?" Ryan asked tentatively.

Sandy looked up at him with sad eyes. "I will be. We need to have a family meeting immediately." He declared.

"I'll get Seth." Ryan agreed.

Sandy caught his arm before he could head up the stairs. Ryan was surprised when the older man pulled him into his arms for a hug. "I love you kid. Don't ever doubt that."

Ryan returned the hug after he recovered from his surprise. "I love you too." He whispered.

Sandy pushed him away, but held him by his shoulders. "Now go get your brother, I'll meet you both in the kitchen."

Ryan nodded and continued up the stairs.

"So what's the big family meeting about?" Seth demanded as he burst into the kitchen with a more sedate Ryan right behind him.

Kirsten and Sandy were standing against the counter, which left the bar stools open for the boys. Seth stopped in his tracks.

"Whatever it was, I didn't do it." Seth declared.

"You're not in trouble." Sandy assured him, "We just need a family meeting."

"Ok-a-y." Seth drew out before taking a seat on one of the stools while Ryan sat next to him.

"Alright Sandy, we're all here. What's so important?" Kirsten asked. "I've got a meeting with the architect in twenty minutes."

"That was my father at the door earlier." Sandy announced.

"What? Grandpa Cohen?" Seth grinned, his smile faded at the look on his father's face. "I'm figuring this isn't a good thing." He muttered.

Sandy sighed heavily and ran a hand through his hair. "My father left when I was ten. It was after my mother came home from work early and found him beating my brother and me because we were playing with a new kid that had just moved in. He was furious because Kevin wasn't Jewish."

Ryan winced while Kirsten and Seth both gasped.

"As much as my mother complains that I married a gentile, she would never hurt any of you because of it. My father literally hates anyone not Jewish, especially blonds. He calls them all Nazis." Sandy explained. "My grandfather was in a German concentration camp during World War II. Ever since he heard the stories, my dad declared his own private war on all gentiles – most especially anyone that Hitler would have considered the perfect race."

"Oh my God." Kirsten breathed. "How dangerous is your father Sandy? Would he hurt one of the boys?"

"I'm sure he would have had no problem with hitting any of you before, but I haven't seen him in years. I don't know how violent he is anymore. He claimed that he wanted to see his children and grandchildren before he died." Sandy explained.

"Dad? Do you think you should call the Nana and let her know what's going on?" Seth asked, not even knowing where to start thinking about his racist grandfather.

Seth knew that the Nana and Grandpa Nichols hated each other, and were likely to throw racial insults, but he always thought their differences were more about their similar dominant personalities rather than actual hate.

Sandy nodded. "That was going to be my next step. But I wanted to give you guys a head's up first. I don't want any of you out by yourself until I figure out what exactly he really wants."

"Sandy, I have to go to the job site to see the architect." Kirsten protested, glancing down at her watch.

"Just make sure you have someone walk you to your car. Please Kirsten I need you to be extra careful right now." Sandy begged.

"I could go with her." Ryan offered. "My afternoon is free now that Lindsey and I finished that project."

"Thank you Ryan." Kirsten smiled. She turned her attention to Sandy. "Is that okay with you Honey?"

"Yeah, just both of you keep an eye out." Sandy instructed.

"We'll be safe. We should be back in time for dinner." Kirsten kissed her husband goodbye. "Come on Ryan, you can drive."

Ryan smiled and nodded. He glanced over at Sandy. "I'll keep her safe." He promised.

"You keep yourself safe too. If you see anything weird or out of place call me immediately." Sandy ordered.

Ryan nodded again and followed Kirsten out the door.

Sandy leaned heavily against the counter after they were gone.

"Dad, you're really freaking me out here." Seth whispered.

"I'm sorry son, but I haven't seen your grandfather in years and he was a vicious man then. He already began talking about me producing a Nazi when he saw Ryan. I just don't want any of you getting hurt." Sandy explained.

"I understand, but you should probably call the Nana." Seth reminded him.

"Yeah, I'll do that right now." Sandy agreed, picking up the phone.

"I'm going to go back upstairs." Seth informed his dad.

Sandy, who was waiting for his mother to pick up, nodded.

"Hello?"

"Hey Ma," Sandy greeted.

"Sandy? To what do I owe this pleasure?" the Nana asked sarcastically. "You never call me. Would it kill you to just pick up the phone once in a while?"

"Ma, Dad showed up at the house." Sandy interrupted before she could go off on one of her rants.

There was silence on the other side.

"Jacob was there?" She asked softly.

"Yeah Ma," Sandy answered.

"What did he want?" She demanded.

"He claimed to want to see his children and grandchildren before he died – after he already ranted about me producing a Nazi kid when he saw Ryan." Sandy explained.

"Oh no," the Nana groaned.

"Ma, how worried do I need to be?" Sandy asked.

"I had heard some rumors that he got involved with a group of zealots, but that was all I know – rumors." His mother informed him.

Sandy sighed. "I think I'm going to hire a PI. I won't take any chances with my family."

"I'll be on the first plane out."

"No Ma, it's safer if you stay where you are." Sandy protested.

"I will not sit here thousands of miles away while my family could be in danger! I'll let you know about my arrival time." The Nana declared before abruptly ending the call.

Sandy groaned and rubbed his face. This day just got better and better. Feeling ten years older, Sandy pushed away from the kitchen counter. He went into the study to find the number for the private investigator.

The car was quiet as Ryan drove out towards the new development that Kirsten's people were working on. Kirsten looked over at the silent teenager.

"You didn't have to come out here with me." Kirsten began.

Ryan glanced at his foster mother. "I can wait in the car if you don't want me there, but I think that Sandy is right to be nervous."

Kirsten's eyes widened and she shifted her body towards him in attention. "What do you mean?"

"I answered the door when Sandy's dad showed up." Ryan confessed.

"What did he say to you?" Kirsten demanded, knowing that it had spooked her normally calm kid.

"Something about me being a Nazi." Ryan shrugged. "It wasn't what he said, it was the way he said it. I think he's dangerous."

While Kirsten hadn't totally blown off Sandy's warnings, she had believed that he was overreacting. Ryan confirming Sandy's fears brought this situation to a whole new level. Suddenly she was very glad that Ryan had agreed to come with her. She trusted her foster son's opinions after the Oliver mess the previous year.

"Thank you for coming." Kirsten said softly.

Ryan cut his eyes toward her. "I just want you to be safe."

"That's what I want for you too." Kirsten smiled. "Besides, you'll get a chance to see an architect at work."

Ryan shot her a shy smile and nodded.

When they arrived at the site, Ryan parked near the other vehicles and got out. Kirsten was already starting around the front of the car across the sandy dirt.

"Come on son. Let me show you what your old lady does for a living." Kirsten grinned as she wrapped her arm around his and began to march towards the worksite where several men in hard hats were standing around a couple of sawhorses with plywood draped across for a makeshift table.

A man in kakis and a button down shirt with the sleeves rolled to his elbows looked up and smiled at Kirsten. It faded upon sight of the muscular young man at her side. Eric Reed had been working with Kirsten Cohen for several weeks now on the Fontaine Hills project. Long days spent with the beautiful intelligent woman had caused Eric to develop a crush. He had seen her wedding ring, but he liked to convince himself that the marriage wasn't that happy if she was spending all her time with him. This guy was really good looking, and he knew how some of these Newport women liked to go young. He had actually been counting on it. Now it looked like that ship had sailed and Kirsten had already hooked up with another guy.

Eric pasted a smile on his face and walked over to greet the newcomers.

"Hi Kirsten! We were just finishing up the framing." Eric smiled.

"That's great! I hope we can stay ahead of schedule like this all the way through completion. I'm sure there would be a bonus in it for the men." Kirsten grinned. She glanced over at Ryan and gave him a loving look. "Eric, I would like to introduce you to my son, Ryan. He wasn't busy this afternoon and I asked him to come out here with me. He has an interest in architecture."

Eric felt like his face was going to crack as he fought to keep the smile on his face. There was no way he wanted to deal with some rich brat asking stupid questions. But Kirsten was the boss, and he was making a lot of money on this project.

Ryan studied the man in front of him. He had noticed the way that Eric looked at Kirsten. The man was obviously checking her out. It made Ryan want to pound his face, but he didn't do that anymore. Instead he shot a glare at the architect before glancing around the construction site. Having worked construction all summer, he was very familiar with the operation, and this one looked top-notch.

"Well! Let's get a couple of hard hats and take a look at the progress." Kirsten declared happily. She knew that Seth had absolutely no interest in what his parents did for a living, so it was exciting to her that she finally got to fulfill the dream of showing her son what she did; and actually know that he was interested in possibly following in her footsteps.

Ryan smiled at Kirsten's obvious excitement and allowed her to lead him over to a small bin of hard hats. They each found one to fit and then they were off with Eric playing tour guide. Ryan kept one eye on the building and one on Eric as the other man cautiously flirted with his foster mother. When he could, he kept between Kirsten and the architect.

They were moving through the living room of the model home when Ryan noticed something. He was looking up at the supporting beams in the open great room. The trusses were spanning a thirty foot space. He narrowed his eyes as he studied the rest of the room, looking for an upright support, but there was none.

"Um, Kirsten?" Ryan spoke up softly.

"Yes Sweetie?" Kirsten turned away from what Eric was showing her.

"Is there another upright support for this part of the ceiling?" He asked cautiously.

"No, why?" Kirsten was curious why her son would be asking this question. She hadn't forgotten how he spotted the problem with their home remodeling.

Ryan sighed sadly. This was going to get ugly. "These trusses are only single trusses. They can't support a thirty foot span without either adding an upright support, or doubling up the trusses."

Kirsten looked up and realized right away that Ryan was correct. "Eric I need to see those blueprints." She instructed.

Eric said a quick prayer that they were somehow correct on his drawings, but he was afraid it may have been his mistake. He glared at the teen behind Kirsten's back, but the blond kid just stared at him coolly.

Kirsten poured over the blueprints and then sighed. "Damn, there goes our schedule." She muttered.

She glanced up at the architect. "What do you suggest to fix this?"

Eric rubbed the back of his neck. "We could rip off the roof and change the trusses, or we could add columns to the room."

Kirsten sighed. She glanced over at Ryan who was looking at the blueprint. "What do you think Honey?"

Ryan was silent for a minute. Eric wished the kid would just say something already, but when he glanced at Kirsten she was obviously ready to give her son as long as he needed.

Finally, Ryan spoke up. "If you take the roof off, you're going to add weeks to the construction schedule and many thousands of dollars. But, since the ceiling isn't in yet, you could add columns here, here and here." Ryan said, pointing at various points on the design. "Then you only add a few days and properly support the roof."

Kirsten studied what he was saying before giving him a proud smile. "Good job Ryan. We'll double check the numbers, but I think your solution is the best."

Ryan shot her a shy smile. It felt really good to here Kirsten praise something he did. Things had been different between them since he returned from Chino. Kirsten was more openly affectionate and supportive. It was nice.

"I'll expect to see the new blueprints on my desk by Monday afternoon." Kirsten ordered.

"Of course." Eric agreed, hoping that was the end of it.

Kirsten winked at her son. "Come on Honey, you've just earned an ice cream!"

Ryan chuckled and playfully offered his arm. Kirsten looped her arm through the crook of his elbow and allowed him to guide her to the Rover.

They were just about to get into the car when a Jaguar pulled up at the site. Ryan sighed heavily and glanced at his foster mother. Kirsten smiled sympathetically and patted his arm.

"Don't worry, I'll protect you." Kirsten assured him softly.

"Who's going to protect you?" Ryan muttered under his breath.

Kirsten chuckled and squeezed his arm. "Easy Tiger."

Ryan gave her a sideways glance and then turned his gaze to the large man approaching them. Kirsten released his arm and stepped forward to hug her father.

"Hey Dad. What brings you down here?" Kirsten asked.

"I heard that you were going to be coming by this afternoon and I thought I would take the chance to review the site with you. Clearly you were ready to go?" Caleb replied, ignoring the young man standing with his daughter.

"Yes, we were. By the way, you would be very proud of Ryan. He was able to spot a potentially serious problem if we had continued putting up the ceiling. As it is, the change will only be a minor setback." Kirsten bragged, putting her arm around Ryan's shoulders.

Caleb stared down at the boy that his daughter had taken in. He found absolutely no reason to like the kid that he was sure was waiting to rob his daughter blind, and he definitely didn't like the punk around his work sites after burning down a model home right after arriving in Newport.

"What would the boy know about all of this?" Caleb scoffed.

"Dad, don't you remember me telling you that Ryan spent the summer working construction? Anyway, we were checking out the framing work and Ryan noticed that the trusses were wrong for the great room. Since we haven't completed the ceiling yet, it's an easy fix." Kirsten smiled proudly.

Caleb raised his eyebrows in surprise. "I'm just surprised the boy actually did any work."

Kirsten narrowed her eyes. "Actually Dad, Ryan has pretty much worked a job since he got here, we made him quit during the school year so that he could concentrate on his studies. We didn't want him to work at all, but that was the compromise that we worked out."

Caleb didn't want to admire anything about this kid, but he had to admit that Kirsten had him there. "Then I thank you for catching the mistake." Caleb stated reluctantly.

Ryan just nodded at him, but never changed his distrustful expression. Kirsten smiled at him.

"Sweetie, why don't you go start the car? I'll be there in just a minute."

"Okay." Ryan replied softly before walking to the Rover and climbing in.

Kirsten turned to face her father. "It's amazing to me how stupid you can be."

"Kiki, what are you talking about?" Caleb scoffed.

"All these years you've berated Seth for not being athletic enough or more interested in the family business. Then we make Ryan our son. He's a star soccer player, he's acing his AP classes, and he grew up wanting to be an architect. So what do you do? You treat him even worse than Seth!" Kirsten ranted.

"Is the boy really that smart?" Caleb asked curiously, knowing how difficult Harbor was.

Kirsten chuckled. "He took the SAT's his sophomore year. He scored in the 98th percentile."

Caleb's eyes widened with surprise as he stared at the Rover thoughtfully.

Kirsten took a deep breath. "Look Dad, I'm not asking you to be a real grandfather to him – even though I wish you would. I just want you to stop antagonizing him. Stop calling him 'Boy'. His name is Ryan."

Caleb looked down at his daughter's pleading face and sighed. "Alright Kiki, I'll make nice with – Ryan."

"Thank you." Kirsten smiled and reached up to kiss his cheek. She turned and started towards her car.

"Does he really want to be an architect?" Caleb called out.

Kirsten shot him a playful smile. "His favorite Christmukkah present was 'Historical European Architecture'. I know for a fact he can quote from it."

Caleb swore under his breath. It was extremely rare as far as Caleb Nichol was concerned, but it just might be possible that he had made a mistake. However before he would admit to such a thing, he needed more information. Flipping open his phone, Caleb hit the speed dial for his private investigator. It was passed time he found out everything about Ryan Atwood.

TBC…