Eric & Will make a B Movie

Intrigued, they listened while I lay it out. "There's a couple of things I'd like to pursue. First is the television series Leah and Dorian have been working on for the last couple of years. We've agreed in principle to have Sunfire Wizard produce and market the first season, thirteen shows. And Leah and I are almost done with Grolar Two, which we'll shoot next year. There's also an historical piece I've been playing with that CBC is interested in, if we decide not to make it into a feature film. That doesn't even take into account the Battle Babes movies we're kicking around. So, we're all going to be really busy for the next few years, especially since I threw your birth control pills away this morning."

They were so overwhelmed by the business aspects of our conversations that they almost let the last remark slip by.

"Gee, honey, it sounds like we...wait a minute, what did you just say?" Tory stopped talking, her mouth hanging open. Cathy laughed.

"He said we're gonna be having babies, hon, soon." Thet's when the screaming, crying, and loving started.

Leah and Dorian were grinning ear to ear the next day. "Welcome to my world," said Dorian, "sleepless nights, teething, the terrible twos, potty training. And lucky you, you get to experience it in stereo."

Leah just grinned. "First steps, learning to talk, hearing them say 'dada' and 'wuv yoo', feeling their tiny little hands grip yours for protection and love, makes me wonder why anyone would want kids anyway."

She was bouncing Cat on her knee while she talked. She wasn't paying much attention until she heard words she knew. "Wuv oo, Poppy," she said, grinning her gap toothed grin.

I took her and hugged her. "Wuv yoo too, Kitty-cat."

The family time over, we got down to work. "We've called Jerry in, he'll start casting for the series next month. We're assuming we'll do the show here, costs are low, and we have a good reputation with the locals, and the film commission. Any idea which network we want to pitch it to?"

They had obviously been thinking about it. "Well, if we go with cable we can get as bold as we want. Netflix originals are really hot right now, maybe we can get them interested. If we tone it down the CBC or any network in the States will probably take a look. I think we need to take a page out of the Netflix manual, and do all thirteen before we pitch it. That way we can accelerate the schedule, we might even get it done in two and a half to three months, once we start. Ideas? Discussion?"

There were a few minor points to work out, but I deferred most of the decisions to Dorian and Leah. It was their baby, something they'd dreamed of doing for years. The girls and I supplied most of the money, Dorian and Leah supplied most of the work. We had other things on our plate, so we left it in their hands.

Grolar Two was written, and as soon as the series was done filming we were going to start. This plot had the biologist, the nerd, and native girl, following the trail of the character played by Victoria, battling the prerequisite killer bears, greedy developers, and dealing with suspicious natives while they searched. Sylvia Shining Fox had a much larger part. The leading man from the first had a cameo, discovered living as a woman and in a relationship with a Mountain Man. His trademark long locks and slender build made him very convincing, especially with top of the line stylists and makeup artists working on him. He seemed to enjoy it enough to make me wonder if he was considering changing teams.

Sometime after the series wrap and the beginning of the movie, it happened. We had gone home, and the girls finally got around to getting the horses they wanted. Paso Fino, a breed I wasn't familiar with. They got two almost identical mares, and a stallion with a pedigree a mile long. "It seems to work for us," they'd coo.

I can shut my eyes and still see Cathy rushing into my office, waving an early pregnancy test showing positive. Tory followed, crying. Seems hers showed negative. I celebrated with Cathy and consoled Tory. It was a bit tense for a few days until they came to me with a proposal.

"Honey," grinned Cathy, "you're cut off. No more nooky for you! From me, any way. From now on until Tory tests positive, all your cute little baby makers are for her. I'm not willing to go without indefinitely, so get busy!"

Cathy slept in her bedroom for three weeks, and Tory nearly killed me. We were making love two and three times a day. We were both starting to miss our lover pretty badly when the test came back positive. Leah and Dorian came over to help us celebrate, and to share a little news. They hadn't told us, but they were trying for a sibling for Cat. She was almost exactly as far along as Tory. The girls couldn't drink, so Dorian and I tried to make up for it. They poured us both into bed, and spent the rest of the evening talking about names. They seemed to delight in our misery the next morning.

By the afternoon, we were more or less back to the land of the living. Cat was just past her second birthday, and the girls had promised her another present, so we walked down to the stables. It was her first time around horses, and I thought she'd be frightened, but once she petted one, we had to hold her to keep her out of the stall. "When you're big enough, baby, we'll get you one of your very own. We promise." She smiled at the magic word, 'promise'. We had never failed to deliver when we used that word, so as far as she was concerned it was written in stone.

Cathy and Tory rode almost every day, at first under the watchful eye of Senor Gomez. When he was convinced they could handle their mounts and could saddle them properly, he left them alone. He was glad the horses were here, up until then he really hadn't had much to do. He came to my office one day, beating around the bush until I asked him to get to the point. It all came out in a rush.

"My familia, we love it here. But we feel guilty because we do very little to justify what you pay us. And I have suspicions that the scholarship Maria got came from your family. I know you pay her way to much for the little housekeeping duties she does. Don't think I'm not grateful. I am, we are. But I feel useless sometimes. May I?"

I nodded and he took some papers out of a satchel he'd brought. Most of our property was in pasture, enough to support thirty horses without straining the land, plus fifteen acres that could be cultivated to grow part of their feed. He wanted us to go into the horse business.

It had never occurred to me to do anything with the property. I bought it because my girls wanted it. Oh, I loved the pond so much I had another, bigger one done, which I stocked with catfish, bass, and bream. Even bought a little jon boat and put a little electric trolling motor on it, to get the brush choked mouth, because that's where the best fishing was. Sometimes when I had writers block or if the girls were busy, I'd hop into our little off road truck and spend a pleasant hour or two fishing. I was a catch and release fisherman, although I loved salt and pepper catfish.

Before I let Jose continue I called the girls. "This concerns them more than me. They're the horse people. Maybe you should get your family down here, they'll be the ones who actually do the work if we decide to go with any plan you have."

When we were all gathered I looked at his family. Boy, their youngest had sure grown up. Fourteen now, she was already developing. And his wife, wow. Somehow, when the girls hired them, I expected a plump little woman in a peasant skirt and blouse, shy and retiring. Sofia was a willowy woman in her mid forties, looking thirty, with a mane of black hair and a very attractive figure, Jose was a lucky man. Maria was at school, so she missed the meeting.

Tory and Cathy were really impressed with his presentation. We talked of boarding horses for others, but I shot that down pretty quick. Too many strangers wandering around didn't set well with me. In the end, we decided to offer our stallion at stud, for up to thirty mares, and our two, of course. It would be pretty straightforward. The owners would drop their mares off when they were in season, and Saint John(before you ask, that was his name when we got him)would 'cover' them twice. Then the owners would pick them up. It was a pretty efficient system.

We started out slowly. Jose ran the breeding program, Tina, the youngest, was the chief groom, and Sofia ran the business end. The girls would help if we were home or had time, but it was mostly on Jose and his family. I made sure Tina and Sofia drew a salary for their efforts. They were really stunned when money was discussed. Jose figured he would just keep drawing his salary.

"No way, Jose," I said, cracking him up. "This is your baby. I think a sixty forty split of profits is fair." He was very happy, and when I told him he was to get the sixty, he was speechless.

"Look, you know I don't need the money. But my upbringing made me feel the property was underutilized anyway, so this is a win-win for everyone."

The girls agreed with me completely. They even went out and bought a more expensive, better pedigreed stud, doubling the operation. By now, Grolar II had been made. I was really careful with the girls, Cathy was five months along and Tory just under four when we finished. We used body doubles a lot. It was even more successful than the last, and there was a clamor for another, but that would be a long time into the future, if ever.

Chapter Seventeen

We decided a vacation was in order, and I took them to my old haunt in the south of France. They were a little self-conscious at first, wearing nothing but a thong in their current condition, but got over it quickly when they noticed the admiring looks from most of the men and a lot of the women on the beach.

To quote Yogi Berra, it was deja vu all over again. The Goddess appeared, rising again from the sea. As she got closer and recognized me, her smile was radiant. I was shocked by her appearance. The three years since I'd seen her had not been kind to her. There were bags under her eyes, she had a bit of a tummy roll, and her breasts sagged noticeable. But the Goddess was still in there, I could see it in her eyes.

"Goddess," I said, taking her hand and kissing it. I had used the voice of the Wizard, who hadn't made an appearance in a couple of years. The girls went wide eyed. I motioned them close. "Goddess, I present my wives, Cathy and Tory. You don't know it, but you had a role in bringing us together, and I'll always be thankful."

Her eyes grew thoughtful. She shook their hands, smiling. "Congratulations. I experienced once what you must experience on a regular basis, years ago. You are very lucky women. I've often wondered over the years what became of him. I knew he was never destined to be ordinary, and I see I was right."

The girls took to her immediately, after our history was explained. I sat, watching them chat, smiling with pleasure. She came to dinner at their invitation, looking exquisite in her gown. There was an air of sadness about her, the reasons becoming clear over an after dinner drink for us, juice for my girls. They often complained about how I treated them. "We're not made of glass, honey, we'll be fine." I always explained they more like precious china, and couldn't be replaced if they were broken. They'd giggle and quit complaining, for a little while.

The Goddess, it seemed, was the victim of a totally collapsed economy and a man who made poor business decisions. "He made some bad investments, and realized we were facing facial ruin. He gathered as many liquid assets as he could and disappeared. He's left me practically destitute. I have to sell my family home, the villa we've owned for centuries, to absolve my debts. There will be enough left over to live modestly for a few years, but my future looks bleak. I'm sorry to burden you, but I really needed to talk. Thank you for a lovely evening."

After we returned from escorting her back to her room, the girls started. "We have to help her." It wasn't a request from Tory, it was an order. Cathy was nodding her head.

"She's a proud woman, honies, I don't know if she would accept a handout." They just smiled.

"Oh, leave it to us, we'll have it sorted in no time."

The next thing I knew, we were in a bigger suite and The Goddess was living with us. "She's here to help us, honey. We're considering investing in some Greek real estate."

Two days later we were in her villa, a large, rambling structure beside the sea, with a huge garden and grounds. Debtors and the government had been rushing her to sell, so she could settle her finances. The debtors were keen to seize the land, talking about a future resort. They were bitterly disappointed when she paid everything off, even investigated to see if the money was obtained legally. The girls presented all the necessary paperwork, including a certificate stating the villa was an historic structure and should be preserved. They were furious, but nothing could be done.

I was really surprised when she flew home with us, taking residence in one of our bedrooms. It seems she had never had children, and almost no close relatives, and she had mothering instincts she had always suppressed. She and the girls told me she'd be staying at least until the children were born. I was wise enough not to argue. Besides, I liked her having her around. The girls had made it clear in no uncertain terms that there would never be a repeat of our magical afternoon, and we were both fine with it, realizing lightning rarely struck twice in the same location. Besides, dying slowly and in great pain at the hands of my girls did not appeal to me.

Ursala(her real name, we got tired of calling her Goddess)and Laura were instant friends. Laura had shed much of her careworn look, fussing over the girls. Leah surprised Ursala by hugging her tightly when they first met, explaining later she was indirectly responsible for the birth of her daughter. The Gomez family took to her instantly, over a shared love of horses. Ursala claimed our original stallion as her own, handling the unruly beast until it was gentle as a lamb.

She came down to the office a couple of months later, wanting to talk. "You know I have no real money, now. The villa is actually yours. I'm here to ask if I can stay, at least for a while. Not in your house, I'm moving in with Laura after the babies are born. We're in a relationship now. You do remember I'm bisexual, right? We discovered we fit well together. Who knows, sometime later we may find a man we could share. After all, there is history of that in the family."

I wasn't as surprised as the girls. I'd seen the glances, the skin contact that seemed to linger. Good for both of them. "This is your home now, Goddess. It would leave a big hole if you were to leave. Never, ever, worry about money. You have no idea how wealthy we are, and you will always be taken care of. With your permission, I'll open am account at the bank, deposit into it regularly. Plus, your home is your home, and it always will be. Never think otherwise, or you'll offend all of us."

"No! It isn't my home now, it's belongs to the family. We can use it for vacations. It might even be used in movies at some point. I could really see an Issabella novel set there."

She had a point.

Chapter Eighteen

I looked around me. We were sitting in the screened enclosure I'd had built. I built it because it had gotten way to crowded at the dining room table for family meals, and this was my solution, at least for the summer.

Jose and his family were there. We were more friends than employer/employees, thanks in part to our business venture. Maria had decided to become a vet, saying it would be handy for the family business. Ursala and Laura were always there for our traditional Sunday dinners(that's lunch to you non-southerners), as were Leah, Dorian, and their children, if they weren't working. They'd had a little brother for Cat, which she found fascinating.

Tory's mother surprised us all a few months back by moving to our area. She had divorced her husband, sold the house she got in the settlement, and with the money she had gotten besides, was very comfortable. She brought the two youngest daughters with her. My girls insisted on buying her a house in the same development as Leah and Dorian. Laura and Ursala also had a house in the neighborhood. Realtors loved us, because just as soon as they found out who was interested, they stood firm on the price, knowing we'd pay.

So you get the idea, Sunday lunch could get really crowded, especially if the youngest girls brought friends or boyfriends, which was pretty well all the time. I think the food was as big a draw as the company. Sofia would go all out with the Mexican dishes, Ursala would usually counter with a Greek dessert and some meat dish, usually lamb, Laura would bring veggies, and occasionally catfish, which she knew I'd love. Carmella(Torys' mom) knew a few Colombian dishes, and made the best fried chicken I'd ever tasted. The meals made me glad the girls had put a home gym in.

I loved it when a baby cried and three heads would snap around. Was it D W(Dorian William), Ursala Leah, or Carmella Laura? Yes both my first two were girls. We became something of a local legend, when I showed up three times in seven weeks for a birth. First was Cathy, two weeks later it was Leah, and then Tory. I held my first child, and seven weeks later my second, experiencing feelings I'd never had before. I was immortal now, my blood would run in the veins of generations to come. I prayed they would all have good lives, and I would live long enough to see at least the next generation. It was a very humbling realization. Every man in the universe should experience fatherhood, in my opinion. Maybe the world would be better.

We sat down and had a long talk. We decided one more each, and after that they would be getting into the danger zone. So when the girls turned one, we would start all over. Was I happy? Damn right I was.

We had our own studio now, and our no nonsense approach to making movies was almost legendary. Our studio had a nickname in Hollywood, The Factory, because we ground out movies the way other companies manufactured products. And just like a manufacturing plant, if you didn't produce to expectations you were fired. Big name actors sometimes declined parts if we were involved, knowing we wouldn't put up with anything stupid or unprofessional. Others lobbied to get parts, glad to work in a professional environment where the drama was saved for the screen. The series Leah and Dorian developed was in its' third season, and had won numerous awards, including three Emmys. I even got one on for best script, along with Leah. The Issabella movie we had done was one of the best grossing romances that year.

I had written three more Battle Babes, and was thinking of winding it down. They had been fun to write, and had made me very rich, but I was tired of them. I was looking for an epic way to end it.

To my amazement, one of my mysteries made the bestseller lists. The lead character, private detective and struggling actor Dirk Hanson stood six feet three, had jet black hair and piercing blue eyes, classic good looks and a body that looked like it was chiseled in stone. His nickname in the industry was Dark Handsome, a play on both his looks and name.

Dark Handsome and the Princess Of Porn was so well received, we decided to make it into a movie. Who knows, it might end up as a franchise. The plot included an in depth look at the dying industry, being replaced by amateurs on the internet, with embezzlement, corruption, and murder thrown in. He even falls for one of the women he met, and is wondering in the last lines in the book if he could ever have a relationship with her, considering her career choices. I was already two thirds done with the sequel.