Chapter 29: Thief of My Heart

"You should smile more, Lyle," Jeromy comments over breakfast, "You always look like someone pissed in your cornflakes."


Lyle knows how much Violet loves her father, so he reins in the sarcasm, "It's genetic. My natural expression is a frown."


"A frown is just a smile turned upside down," Jeromy says. Lyle gives up on the conversation and waits for Violet to get out of the shower.

Smiling isn't something Lyle does often or for just anyone. For Violet, however, he does it without thinking about it.


"I have something for you, " he says, getting down on one knee and offering her a ring. "Do you recognize it?"


Violet gasps, "Of course I do. That's Sofia Carlton's ring." When they were kids, Lyle showed her this ring the first time she visited his house. He told her it was his grandmother's favorite piece of jewelry, and it was the first thing he ever stole. He called it his greatest treasure, and said he'd never part with it for any reason. "You're giving it to me?"


"You're my greatest treasure now, Violet. I would be honored if you'd wear it."

That night Violet is invited to a party hosted by her Aunt Jammie and Uncle Josiah. As they arrive Violet is greeted by her uncle Carter, who is very excited about her engagement.

While Violet chats with her uncle, Lyle is left to prowl the house unsupervised.

He certainly doesn't need a new computer, they have one just like this at home, and he has his own laptop, as well as enough money to buy several more computers just like this or better if he wanted. But kleptomania isn't about need or even desire, it's a compulsion, and the unattended PC calls to his twitching fingers.

Violet can't sleep until she's checked the faucets.


"I didn't even use the sink," Lyle informs her from the shower.


"I know," Violet says, "I just need to check it anyway."

That night, Violet has a nightmare. It's her wedding day, but when her guests arrive, the sinks all explode causing a huge flood in the hall, drowning everyone. 


After that nightmare, Violet cancels her wedding plans and opts instead for an at home wedding party.

Her home wedding party is not without its emergencies. Though she's becoming a talented chef, she'd decided not to stress herself about the food served at her party, and planned to use the food from the replicator. But when she replicates Allyson's key lime pie, it's spoiled. Violet freaks out, and then throws together a salad as fast as she can. She barely has time to dress before the guests start arriving.

Lyle is freaking out, too, just in a more subtle manner.

Guest start to arrive. Lyle's father Loren comes up and introduces himself. "You look familiar. Do I know you?"


"I'm your son, Lyle."


"No, I don't know any Lyle."

"Go mingle, Dad, Try not to ruin my wedding," Lyle says sadly.

Antone and Tamika (Wyoming McDermott's youngest daughter) want everyone to know they are newlyweds.

Not all of Lyle's family are insane, evil and criminal. His brother Nicholas and sister-in-law Janelle are sincere and gracious in their congratulations. Nicholas is considerably older than Lyle and escaped the Carlton house when his brother was just a toddler.

As they prepare to take their vows, Violet freaks out.

"You stole my heart," Violet says quietly as Lyle slips the ring onto her finger.

The room is full of their families and friends, but the Violet and Lyle barely notice them.

After the ceremony is done, Lyle approaches his mother, Chanel Carlton. As though this were just any other day, she launches into a boast about her business successes, ignoring that her son just got married.

"Well, I guess I should take your father home now. You be a good boy, now. I don't want to hear you've been misbehaving."

"Sure, Mom, thanks," Lyle says, and his mother leaves without a word of congratulations. A hug would be out of the question, Chanel doesn't engage in that kind of affection, but the preemptive reprimand wasn't really called for.

Finally, it's over and the couple are alone.

"That went pretty well," Violet observes, and then notices the expression on her husband's face, "What's wrong?"

"This was a mistake. I'm not good enough for you, Violet. I'm going to disappoint you..."

Violet knows him and knows the deep insecurities that lie beneath his cocky, self-assured demeanor, and she knows the source of his self-doubt all too well.

"You know that's not true. Do not let her ruin our happiness."

Violet guides him over to the bed. "I've watched you try over and again to make your mother happy, to make her say she's proud of you. It's never going to happen, Lyle. Not because you aren't worthy, but because she can't be pleased. She refuses to be anything but critical, to find a flaw in anything you do, no matter how good it is. But I do love you, and I'm proud to be your wife, so let's put our mommy issues behind us, and be happy together."

"I noticed your mother didn't say a word to you all day," Lyle observes.

Violet shakes her head, "Even though I'm not a vampire anymore, she still can't look at me without seeing Beau Merrick. It hurts, but I guess I understand. If someone did that to me, if I was made to carry a child from a man who forced himself on me..."

Her words rouse Lyle's protective instincts. "I would never let anyone hurt you, Violet."

Violet has got a job at the Little Corsican Bistro. Lyle isn't cut out for regular employment, instead he dabbles. He's set up shop in Oregon's office, working on various projects. It doesn't bother him in the least that that the walls are purple and decorated with fashion sketches.

He also does freelance work for the science facility. And hacking, because his kleptomania is not limited to swiping real objects, but also extends to breaking into computer files and transferring money into his offshore accounts. He's also not above industrial espionage, selling one business' secrets to another for his own profit.

One evening Violet is invited to a party hosted by Tamika and Antone McDermott.  Violet is working that evening, so Lyle shows up alone.

He's not interested in socializing, of course. It's the access he's here for. Your teddy bears are not safe.

Because of her late hours, Lyle and Violet eat dinner after the rest of her family is in bed. Tonight, she made Lyle's favorite, cheesesteak.

"Tamika called me," Violet says while they eat, "She says you showed up to her party, disappeared upstairs, and the next day she discovered some of her things went missing. She suspects you took them."

Lyle stands up, "I told you I'd disappoint you. Now you want me to leave, I suppose."

"Sit down and finish your dinner, Lyle," Violet answers with a smile, "I told you that I love you, knowing full well who you are. I just want you to be more careful. If stuff disappears every time you show up to a party, we aren't going to get invited to any more parties."

Lyle could do without the parties, but he wants to please Violet, so he finds other ways to indulge his kleptomania, like stealing Crissy Carlton-Wheloff's car.

Challenge Notes:

I originally threw a wedding party for Violet and Lyle at my community lot party hall. But shortly after I got the pic of Violet freaking out in front of the buffet, my game crashed. I had last saved right before she made the party call, so I decided to have a home party instead. And then I used my one community party pic as her 'nightmare'.

When I first had Lyle interact with his father at the wedding, he had the introduction interactions only available. Which I found very weird, as Lyle grew up in the same house as his father.

Lyle's mother does actually have the mean-spirited trait. 

Though I had Violet initiate the 'get married' interaction, the couple ended up with Carlton as a last name. I know that can be changed easily with master controller, but I haven't done it. It might be fun to change my legacy family name. I'm dithering. Will decide before they have kids, lol.

Lyle earned enough points to get the trait change reward, so I swapped his Snob for Computer Whiz, allowing him to hack for money. His LTW is to have 50k worth of stolen goods. I've never done that one, so it should be fun. 

He's also dabbling in invention, though obviously I can't sell anything he invents.

Oregon and Jeromy will be elders in a few days, and Hunter will become YA and move out.