Sharon is used to waking up early, after all she had many chores that had to be done every day. She yawns and smiles knowing that she won't have to scrub floors or dust ever again if she doesn't want to.

The good mood stays with her as she gets ready for the day and makes her way out to the sitting room of the penthouse. There she isn't surprised to see three of her brothers. She is rather more shocked that she doesn't see them all.

"Morning! Hope you all slept as well as I did. Where's Darrin?" Sharon chirps as she comes into the room.

The three boys responded back assuring her that they all slept perfectly the night before even though it had only been a few hours of sleep. They just didn't tell her how little sleep they got.

"His lawyer called him over something to do with the Cosmo family. Said to go ahead and order breakfast when you woke up and start asking your questions. He'll answer any you have of him once he gets back." Joshua tells her smiling and giving her a kiss on the cheek not bandaged.

"What did the doctor say about your cheek?" Joshua asks leading her over to the table and then sitting her.

"He says he did his best to keep the scaring down but to have a plastic surgeon look it over when it has a chance to heal a bit. Thank you," Sharon says as he pushes her chair in a bit.

"We called down to room service about half an hour ago, the food should be here shortly. We had them send enough food that there is a wide selection for you to choose from most of it hot, but some cold cereals as well." Joshua tells her as he takes his own seat next to her.

"Sounds good. So before I start asking you questions are there any more for me?" Sharon says after taking a deep breath. She doesn't really want to go over her life any more.

The boys all shake their heads and tell her no. They are afraid they will become too angry to eat if they think about all that she's been through.

"Alright then. Darrin has a serious boyfriend, do any of you others have a significant other?"

That makes them all laugh, "No. We like playing the field far too much to want to settle down." Michael tells her after he stops laughing.

"Yeah, okay, all of you are over thirty-five, Joshua I believe you are around forty, correct?"

"Yeah, forty-one this year. The thing is, the only people father would accept as decent are from our socioeconomic class. The females are vain, vapid princesses or barracudas that you couldn't trust. Darrin is just damn lucky to find someone that is decent, but evenso, his boyfriend isn't our social equal. His family comes from money, just not any where near ours. His family nearly threw him out when he wanted to go to cosmetology school. Instead he took business classes and even earned his degree and then paid for his own schooling at the cosmetology school.

"He met Darrin when he was doing Darrin's hair and makeup for one of our commercials. It took Darrin a bit of time to convince him to go out with him. You'll need to talk to him about anything more." Joshua tells her.

Sharon nods. It is Darrin's place to tell him about his boyfriend.

"So no secret girlfriends or boyfriends?" Sharon sounds a bit disappointed.

"Nope, sorry love." Z tells her  winking at her. He's sitting across from her.

"So any love children from you numerous assignations?" She asks with a smirk.

Her brothers are staring at her, finally Michael replies, "Not a chance, at least not that they'd ever tell us. Remember, father or your term sperm donor made sure that we used protection. We never have sex without it and then in the morning we make sure to give the female some plan b as well."

Sharon smirks at them, "And some enterprising female hasn't tried to claim you as the father of their child? Not in all these years?"

"We informed them that if they do ever claim that then they better be sure because if they claim it and then a DNA test comes back negative they will be sued for slander. Everyone knows that we go all out if we take them to court. No one has ever dared to claim their child as belonging to one of us. However, if they ever do and it is in fact one of ours we will pay child support and do our best to have a relationship with said child." Michael finishes up.

Sharon cocks her head to the side and thinks about that. "Sounds fair. So should a female come out of nowhere and claim her teen child is yours you would take a test and then act accordingly. Works."

"So sperm donor was hard on you growing up. I believe Michael said that you three were jocks and that he wasn't gifted that way. What sports did you all play?"

"Darrin and I played football and then baseball." Joshua tells her.

"I swam and ran cross country. I tried playing basketball and baseball but I just wasn't very good at it. Father hated that I wasn't in manly sports but he didn't rag on me like he did Michael."

Sharon gets a wicked look in her eyes. "Two questions for all of you: first, how did you find out that Darrin was gay. Second, have any of you tried or experimented with males?"

The three males with her looked at her shocked.  Then Joshua gets his own wicked look before he covers it up. "Just how in depth do you want us to go on our sexploits little sister?"

Sharon sniffs, "I don't need or want details, just general information."

Joshua laughs at her very red face, "I was going into a lesser used part of the private school. Darrin and another member of the football team were making out pretty hard. They were going at it so hard that they didn't even hear me come into the empty, or so I thought room. Nor, did they notice me flipping on the lights. But you should have seen them jump when I told him that he needed to be more careful or someone could see him that would tell someone else and it would get back to father. And his father, meaning the football player."

Sharon smirked and managed to keep in her laugh. "How did they take it?"

"Darrin nodded and told me thanks and held back the other one. Not sure what he told him but he told him something that calmed the other one down completely. Other than just give me a dark look he ignored me. I grabbed what I was sent for and left turning off the lights as I did so."

"And have you ever thought about or tried being with a guy?"

"Naw, I just don't see males like that. Too be crude like your friend, I like pussy to much to try dick."

This just makes Sharon laugh. Once she gets herself under control she takes a bite of food and turns her attention to the other two and just raises an eyebrow waiting as she eats.

Michael sighs, "I saw one of the football team coming out of Darrin's room after hearing sounds of sex. I knocked to see if he could help me with a math problem and there wasn't any one else in there but sex perfumed the air pretty strongly.

"As for your other question, yes." The other two brothers just stare at him with jaws dropped.

"You don't have to tell me, but was it a one time thing or is it more?" Sharon asks food on her fork forgotten.

Michael blushes red and looks down at his plate unable to look at his brothers. "More. I and a fellow photographer for the company were out shooting in rather remote areas. We got drunk one night and he put moves on me. I accepted and we've been lovers on and off since." Michael looks up at them defiantly.

Sharon smiles sweetly. "Again, you don't have to answer but are you attracted to other males or is it just him?"

Michael turns his nearly hostile gaze to her and sees nothing but interest responds, "Mostly him, but there are others that I wouldn't mind being closer and more intimate with."

Sharon keeps the other brothers from interrogating Michael by turning to Z. "Well, the others have answered but you haven't."

"I walked in on him having sex with his boyfriend at work." Z tells her then turns his gaze to Michael.

"You've been holding out on us." It is nearly an affronted statement.

"I didn't think you needed to know. It's not like you talk about your sex life with us." Michael retorts.

"Z," Sharon waits until he turns his attention back to her and his hostility lowers. "You still haven't told me if you've ever been with a male."

Unnoticed Darrin stands in the doorway stunned with what he's just hearing about his brothers. 

"Yes, once, but it wasn't willing." Z says more than a little hostile.

Sharon gasps and drops her forgotten fork. All fun and games forgotten. She goes to Z and gives him a hug. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry I brought it up." Sharon is fighting tears. She never once thought her innocent questions would harm her brothers like that.

Z hugs her back. "It's okay Sharon, you didn't know, you couldn't have known. I've never told anyone else except my therapist and the bastard that did it is dead."

Darrin is furious though, "Z, why didn't you tell me?"

Z looks both haunted by his past and angry. "We were all going through shit. Father was being an asshole of the highest order. Mother had just left and we were all cut a little adrift."

"Who was it?" Darrin demands.

"One of father's 'friends'," Z says using his fingers to denote quote marks.

"Z," Darrin says getting even more angry.

"Demarco Cosmo." Finally Z gives in.

"Wait, like Angelina Cosmo, that family?" Sharon asks more than a little horrified.

"Like I said they are all like that." Michael says angrily.

Darrin demands of Z, "Why didn't you tell me?"

Now Sharon gets angry and rounds on Darrin before anyone else can say anything she starts laying into him. "You have no right to demand that. Back off Darrin. I had no idea that my innocent questions would bring such painful memories out. You have no idea just what kind of trauma sexual abuse can have on someone. Especially if that someone is young."

For the first time ever Darrin talks back to her, "You don't have the right to say anything Sharon, back off."

Sharon becomes furious, "If I am part of this family like you all claim I am, then I do. You have no idea the kind of pain I inadvertently pulled up."

Darrin sneers at her. "And you do?" Totally forgetting the story Delaney told them about the football team.

"Yes, you damn asshole, I do. Not only do I have the trauma of that fucking football team trying to do what happened to Z, but I'm also a nurse and one of my practicals was in the psych ward and there were several people, not just females, there due to sexual assault. Part of my classes covered psychology, not enough to help him, but enough to know that I personally can't help  him. I can just love him." Sharon wipes the tears away from her face. "That and protect him from overbearing asses like you." Sharon finishes chest heaving angry face staring down an arrogant then thoughtful looking Darrin.

Sharon doesn't fully calm down though until she feels Z's arms around her. "It's alright Sharon. It's something my therapist and I have been working on. She told me that when I felt safe enough that it would be a good idea to share with my family. That I was holding myself back from receiving the healing from their love because I was afraid that they would turn away from me in disgust."

Z buries his head into her hair as he continues, "I knew my brothers would be angry on my behalf but I never thought that you would accept me so fully or become so protective over me. Thank you."

"We don't want to hurt him further, Sharon." Michael assures her and goes up to the two of them. He makes it into a group hug. Shortly Joshua joins them and finally Darrin.

"I'm sorry Z, Sharon is right. I won't force you to tell me anything you aren't willing and ready to tell me, us."

"Thank you." Z tells them and lets the silent tears flow as he's surrounded by and loved by his family.