Ten Years Later

Olivia stepped out of the airport and into the sweltering Miami heat. She saw her father pull up a couple of minutes later, in a new luxurious Cadillac CTS.

"Baby girl where are the rest of your clothes?" Vince got out of the car and took her luggage and put it in the trunk.

"Daddy, it's too hot to where the clothes you want me to, besides I am dressed modestly." Granted her shorts were a little short, and her tank top was a tad too tight, but she was tame by Miami's standards. She tossed a rattle in the back seat before getting settled into the passenger seat. "When are you going to stop having children? It's kind of weird knowing I have a baby sister sixteen years younger than me." Vince just laughed as he pulled out of the pickup zone.

"Hey I can't help it if the ladies love me." Vince chuckled. "Don't worry; I'm scheduled for a vasectomy next month. I think five kids is enough don't you think?"

Olivia shuddered at the thought of her father's sex life. Olivia had quickly adapted to her routine of spending the school year with her mother, and summers with her father. However, she could not accept how addicted to sex he was. When Olivia was eight, Vince finally proposed to Ashley and she immediately became pregnant after the wedding. Unfortunately Vince was still hooked on the pleasures of sex and had knocked up three other women over the years. Ashley had threatened a divorce if Vince did not get a vasectomy. He did not want to add alimony onto his nearly fifty thousand dollars a month child support payments. When Ashley had first gotten pregnant, Bob had offered to adopt Olivia, so that Vince wouldn't have to pay so much in child support, but he refused. He wanted to do right by his daughter, and if that meant paying Gretchen ten thousand each month, then so be it.

Robert and Gretchen had married two years after her and Olivia had moved in. Six months later Gretchen gave birth to a healthy baby boy they named Cole. Bob couldn't have been happier knowing that he now had a biological child, but treated Olivia no different. In his eyes Olivia was his daughter as well, and he would die for her any day of the week. Over the years Gretchen regained her love of knowledge and soon acquired a PhD in molecular physics. If she wanted to she could have a high paying job in a lab, but she didn't want her parent's life. She wanted to be there for her children, not just when her research projects were complete. Gretchen graciously took a teaching job at the state university that allowed her to mold young minds to be the Einstein's of their generation. Robert moved up the ranks as well, soon becoming a detective. His goal was to one day become a Captain, but that was still many years away. Even without Vince's hefty child support money, they made a decent living. It was normal, it was stable, something that everyone could appreciate.

"How's your mother?" Vince asked as he continued on towards his mansion.

"She's fine. Her and Bob are planning a trip to Paris to visit Nana and Papa. Cole is going too since they have never met him. A shame really…" Olivia shrugged.

"Hey, your grandparents are good people; they just are just caught up in their work. Trust me they were hardly ever around when your mother was growing up. I'm sure they will happy to see your brother."

"I suppose," Olivia smiled as they pulled up to Vince's expansive beach front property. The NBA had been good to him over the years. He was nearing forty but still going strong, always a crowd pleaser. As they entered the home Vince placed her luggage by the door, knowing that a maid would take it to her room.

"Ashley took the kid's to Disneyland for the weekend, so it's just you and me for the next few days. What do you want to do first kiddo?"

"We can go play some volleyball. Just because I'm out of school doesn't mean conditioning has to end." She fished through her carry on and pulled out the ball.

"That's my girl." Vince smiled as he followed his daughter out to the backyard. A small grass area had been devoted to a volleyball court, perfect for when Olivia came to visit. Vince watched with proud as his oldest daughter prepared to serve.

Olivia had grown into a beautiful young woman, embracing both her mother and father's characteristics. She was a child prodigy, and had graduated school early so that she could attend the University of Miami in the fall. Olivia was going to be a marine biologist and her dream was to reverse the damage going on at the Great Barrier Reef, in hopes of restoring it to its former glory. She was also a prodigy on the court, being the captain of every volleyball team she had ever been on. She had been offered several opportunities to join an Olympic training team, but declined them all as she wanted to live a normal life. However she did accept the University's partial scholarship to come play at the school. Vince tried not to play favorites as he loved all his children, but Olivia was the first born, and would always have a special place in his heart. When she was ten, Olivia had asked both her parents the reason why they weren't together. Even though she was young she understood everything they told her. For awhile she hated her father for abadoning her like that. One day Robert had set her down and explained that teenagers do impulsive things and tend not to mean what they say. Yes her father had made a mistake, but he was doing a damn good job of trying to fix it. After many months of simmering rage, Olivia had finally calmed down and forgave her father. Since then their relationship has been strong, built upon being open and honest with one another. Olivia could go to Vince for anything and he was always willing to help in anyway he could.

In the end Vince was ashamed for ever having left her, knowing now that he was a great father, and had taught her well. As Olivia served the ball he beamed with pride, knowing that he could now handle whatever else life had to throw at him.