Del Sol Valley a few days later….

Maribel sat in her hotel room drinking a glass of wine. She had royally fucked up and now her marriage was over. Actually, it had pretty much been over for awhile, but she wasn’t sure she was ready for a divorce. Not yet anyway. She hadn’t planned to bring Ragnar back to her room, but after Sam left them alone at the restaurant, they continued to talk about how perfect she was for the part.

He ordered another glass of wine. And when they were almost finished, he leaned in close, “I could be persuaded to make sure Sam got her dream. With us both working on her brand, she’ll go far. Why don’t we take this conversation to your hotel room. Can’t have nosy paparazzi starting nasty rumors.”

“Of course,” she replied without giving it a second thought. He was very handsome and held the keys to Sam’s future. What could it possibly hurt?

When they got to her room, he wasted no time making it known what he wanted. As soon as the door closed he roughly pulled her to him and kissed her deeply like he couldn’t wait to be on top of her.

She had never been kissed like that before. Ryan and Evan were sweet, but this man, he was hot. “So, Mari,” he growled, and twirled a lock of her hair, “I like you. You’re feisty. I think we can have some fun tonight, and many more nights to come.” Then he ran his hand down her cleavage and she shivered with desire.

They hadn’t done anything except kiss and begin to undress each other when the knock came on the door. The last person in her wildest dreams she ever thought she would see was her husband. She knew he’d just cost Sam her big break. And she was pissed. Or at least she thought so, but miraculously, he left instead of making a scene. She thought he must have understood what she was doing and left her to it. Somehow, that made the whole thing even more erotic. She didn’t think she’d ever been more turned on than she was that night.

After round two, they both fell asleep, completely sated.

The sound of her phone buzzing woke her up the next morning. Ragnar wasn’t there, and she hadn’t expected him to be. But, it was his text that caused her phone to buzz.

‘Next time, we’ll meet at my place. Don’t be late this morning with the little princess. It’s done. R’

She smiled. Sam had the part, and the rest was a formality. And there was going to be a next time. It had all been worth it and damn fun. Even at the expense of her already failed marriage.

That morning, Sam auditioned with one of the cast members, Daxton Matherson. And she was good. Really good. Their chemistry was off the charts. Especially compared to the others. Maybe it’s because she had the script ahead of time. Maribel didn’t know for sure.

But Ragnar wanted Sam. And he was going to get her. Plus Daxton seemed to like her as well. He was a teen too, but a couple of years older.

Maribel let out a soft sigh and took a long drink to prepare herself to break her daughter’s heart. She had to tell her that her father was filing for divorce and had told her not to come home. Screw him, she thought. They needed to get their things, and if he thought he was getting out of child support, he had another thing coming. She was getting half of everything and full custody of Sam. She could play hardball. This wasn’t her first rodeo.

When she heard the sound of the keycard in the hotel room door, she put her glass down just as her gorgeous daughter walked in. Maribel sighed again. Even though she was pissed at Ryan, she didn’t want to upset Samantha. She knew she loved her father. This was going to be tricky.

********************************************************************

“Hi Mom,” said Samantha, “what did you want? I was talking to Dax. He’s going to come by the hotel and we’re gonna hang out by the pool. Get to know each other before the filming starts.”

“Sit down Samantha,” said her mother, “First, I need to tell you something.”

Samantha not Sam? Plus her mother looked upset. She flopped down on the couch. “What’s wrong mom? They didn’t take it back did they?” she asked suddenly scared.

“Oh baby, no of course not. Ragnar was very impressed with your performance.”

“Then what’s wrong? Is it Daddy?” Samantha’s stomach felt queasy.

“Why do you think it’s your father,” she said, now getting angry, “did he call you?”

Samantha was confused. Why would that make her mom mad? She quickly shook her head. “No. Does he know I got the part yet?” she asked.

Her mother sighed and went back to looking sad. “He does. Sam, how’d you like to live here full time? In Del Sol Valley, not the hotel,” she clarified.

Sam’s stomach suddenly felt better. She couldn’t believe this was happening. “Really? Mom! OMG! That would be amazing. Is Daddy gonna open a gym here?”

“Daddy won’t be moving here…” replied her mother, suddenly looking really sad. “We’re getting a divorce.”

Samantha’s head was spinning and tears immediately began to flood her vision. “What? But he came here to see you … he was excited. I don’t understand … is that why he left? Did you guys have another fight?”

“Yes. He saw me, and yes, we had a fight. I’m sorry baby.” Her mother looked so hurt. “He doesn’t understand why I do what I do for you. He doesn’t want you living here, but he won’t move, so I’m going to move here and live with you.”

The tears began to escape and rolled down her face … they were divorcing because of her. Her father didn’t love her enough to move to Del Sol Valley with her. She knew he never cared about her modeling or acting.

“Sam, your father loves you,” said her mother softly, as if reading her mind.

“No he doesn’t!” she cried.

Her mom put pulled her head up to look at her. “Samantha, sweetheart,” she said, her words gentle and loving, “It’s going to be okay. We’ll get through this together. But right now, you need to focus on the show. This is a turning point in your future. Don’t let this be a distraction. I’ll be here, I promise, I won’t ever leave you.”

Sam pulled away. “But, what about Ty?” she asked wondering if her mom was going to bring him here and ship them both back and forth every few weekends. That would totally suck.

“I’m pretty sure he’s going to live with Dad,” said her mother, “Tyler would be bored here. He’s better off there with his cousins.”

“Will I ever see Daddy and Ty again?” she asked, as fresh tears began to roll down her face.

Her mom pulled her back into her arms. “Yes. Of course sweetie. We’ll work out some sort of visitation. Don’t worry.”

“But, what if I don’t want to go?” she asked timidly, not really sure if she would want to or not. If her father didn’t want her why should she go?

“Don’t worry about that now. We are going to go back home for a couple of weeks. I’ve asked Ragnar if he has someone that can find us an apartment close to the studio. He was actually thrilled to learn we are moving here and won’t be trying to commute. But we need to pack our things and get them sent here. If you don’t want to stay in your old room at Daddy’s while we’re there, then we can find a hotel for a few days.”

******************************************************************************

Back in Newcrest …

Ryan was nervous. He’d called the school and setup an appointment. Now he was waiting to meet Dr. Fields and figure out how to help Tyler get back on track at school.

Sitting in the office reminded him of the day he and Reagan got in trouble when he tried to beat the crap out of Archer. He hated him more now than he did then. He was glad Reagan had finally seen that asshole’s true colors.

“Mr. Murdock?” said a very sweet voice making him jump. He looked up to see a striking young woman calling his name.

“Yes,” he said and stood up, “that’s me.”

She smiled sweetly at him. “I can see the resemblance.” She put out her hand, “I’m Dr. Fields. It’s a pleasure to meet you. Do we need to wait for your wife?”

She was the principal? He expected she was the assistant. “No,” he replied hastily, his discomfort probably obvious based on her raised eyebrows.

“Okay, well, this way then,” she said and gestured towards her office.

She sat in the chair next to him instead of behind her desk. Ryan thought that was interesting. He immediately liked her. She wasn’t trying to intimidate him, but show they were both equally invested in Tyler.

“So, Mr. Murdock,” she said, “I really wish your wife could have joined us. The more input we have, the better.”

Ryan sighed, “We’re getting a divorce. She’s in Del Sol Valley with our daughter, Samantha. So it will be just me, since Tyler will be staying here with me.”

“Oh, I’m sorry to hear that. That could indeed be part of why Tyler has been acting out.”

“No, it’s not,” said Ryan.

“But that makes sense,” she argued, “His world is being turned upside down …”

“Dr. Fields,” said Ryan interrupting her, “I told Tyler about the divorce after you wrote the letter. And yes, he’s been more upset since then, but we are trying to find a new rhythm.”

“Oh. I’m sorry for jumping to conclusions. I know better. So since it isn’t the divorce, I have to ask, have you ever had considered having him evaluated for his attention problems? A lot of times that is why children aren’t able to focus in class. I’m not an expert, but it’s worth considering, based on my discussions with his teachers.”

“Actually, Dr. Fields, he was diagnosed ADHD when he was in pre-school. He takes meds at home before he goes to school. And no, he isn’t a stellar student, and yes, he still gets in trouble for acting out, but he wasn’t failing until now.”

“Ah, that makes sense then. In the lower grades, they learn a lot by rote. As they get older, they should be taking what they’ve learned and apply it. If he’s ADHD, he may be having trouble because he never really learned how to do that in the early grades. So, please, tell me a little about Tyler. He’s such a sweet boy, I immediately liked him.”

Ryan relaxed and couldn’t help but smile. She seemed genuinely concerned about his son’s welfare. More so even than his own mother. “It’s refreshing to see someone that really wants to understand Ty and what makes him tick,” he said, “He’s definitely a complicated child. He’s sweet, but very different from his sister. School was always easy for her and she never gets in trouble. While Ty, just cannot sit still and is impulsive. I’m sure he’s jealous of the attention she gets from everyone, especially from their mother.”

“So, do you think maybe he feels there is some favoritism?”

“Well, my wife definitely lives vicariously through our daughter. They went to Del Sol Valley for Sam to audition for a part in Strangerville and she got it.”

“You must be very proud of her,” said Dr. Fields, “But I can see how Tyler might feel left out. And that could be part of the reason for his acting out.”

“Possibly. He and Samantha aren’t close. Bel was always taking her to do commercials and pageants, so they didn’t interact a lot at home – other than Sam yelling at Ty to leave her things alone.”

“I see….” stated Dr. Fields. “So what’s a typical day for Tyler? What works and what makes it worse?”

Ryan sighed. “That’s hard. Like most kids, he’s totally in his element playing video games. He’s good at it too. That’s the one thing he can do for hours and not get restless. He likes a routine. But gets easily distracted. He will run and play outside with his cousin Jack though. Jack’s a year younger and Tyler has always seemed to get along with him better than his older cousins.”

“When was the last time he was re-evaluated?” asked Dr. Fields.

“A couple of years ago. We see the doctor quarterly for a med check. But they just ask how he’s feeling and write the script. He hates taking the meds, so I don’t make him take them on the weekend, which can cause discipline problems from time to time. He does behave differently off of them. He seems happy-go-lucky, imaginative, going from one thing to the next, making it up it up as he goes, instead of quiet and withdrawn.”

Dr. Fields was quiet for a few minutes. “I can see how that would make it hard for him to function in a classroom that demands attention. Even on the meds, if he’s not getting it, his mind will wander. Which is likely what’s happening in math.”

“So do you have a suggestion? How do we get him back on track? It would kill him to fail and be in the same class as his younger cousin, who is quite bright.”

“I’ll observe him in the classroom the next few days, and in conjunction with his teachers will come back with some recommendations that we can discuss. This isn’t me telling you what to do, it’s a joint decision. He will likely need some tutoring and I would like to spend some time with him, getting to know him, with your permission, of course.”

“You? Don’t you have other teachers or counselors that do that?” asked Ryan, secretly hoping it would be her. He really liked her and she seemed to genuinely have Tyler’s best interest at heart.

“We do, if we decide that’s warranted. But he doesn’t seem that far off the rails that a little catch up and redirection might be all he needs before he slips completely through the cracks. I can clearly see how much you love your son and have tried to help him. The lessons are getting harder and he needs to be able to reason through them. Like I said, take what he’s learned and apply it to a new situation. You said he’s really good at video games. Maybe we can take that and show him that he’s using math when he plays and doesn’t even realize it. Help him relate to the material in a way that has meaning to him.”

Ryan was smiling ear to ear. “You would really do that for him?” For some reason, Dr. Fields helping Tyler like that made Ryan feel like his load was lightened immensely. He had a friend and an ally to help make sure his son was going to be okay. He felt very fortunate that this feisty and passionate educator happened to be at Tyler’s school.

Dr. Fields smiled warmly at Ryan. “Of course, that’s why I do what I do. And, for some reason, that sweet child struck a chord with me. Reminds me a little of myself at that age. And I think he has just enough of a healthy respect for me that it’ll work. He was very polite and respectful when I spoke to him. But Mr. Murdock, you are likely going to have a challenge with the divorce because no matter how hard you try, it will effect him. I think it would be good for him to have some consistency with someone that he trusts.”

“Meaning you?” asked Ryan.

She smiled. “Yes, I think so.”

“So, when do we break the news that he’s gonna spend time with the evil Dr. Fields?” Ryan chuckled to let her know he was only teasing. She laughed and it was so real, that it made Ryan smile even more.

“No time like the present. Let me get my assistant to pull him out of class. It’ll be best if we show a unified front. One second.”

She got up and turned to walk out of the office and Ryan couldn’t help but admire the view. Abruptly, she turned back and nearly caught him. “Um…Mr. Murdock,” she said and smiled, “I didn’t even ask if now was a good time for you.”

“It’s perfect. No time like the present,” he parroted her words back to her. This time when she left, he kept his eyes glued straight ahead.

Go to Chapter 4.05 >>>>>

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A/N – I want to welcome to another Casting Call Sim.

Meet Daxton Matherson submitted by Aussiekarima