"Rachel?"

She looked up as a middle-aged woman called her name.  Rachel stood up, turning to glance out the front windows as she slung her purse over her shoulder--hoping to see JC.  She let out a sigh of disappointment when he was nowhere in sight.  She forced a smile on her face as she introduced herself to Melissa, who was going to be her contact with the catering company.

"Is..." Melissa looked down at the clipboard she was holding.  "JC, going to be joining us?"

"He was supposed to," Rachel replied.  "But it looks like he's been held up somewhere, so let's just go on without him."

"Okay." Melissa smiled.  "Don't worry," she continued.  "Most grooms aren't really into all this planning stuff anyway.  All that matters is that he shows up at the church on time, right?" She laughed.

"Right." Rachel replied, laughing politely though she didn't find anything funny about the situation. 

"Alright." Melissa began as she led Rachel into a small office and sat down behind a desk.  "Why don't you tell me what you're planning and thinking about?"

After talking with Melissa for the next forty minutes about different menu options and ideas, Rachel had almost forgotten she was upset at JC for missing another wedding appointment--until her phone vibrated and she saw his name flash across the screen. 

"Do you need to get that?" Melissa asked.

"No." Rachel replied, sending the call to voicemail.  She slipped the phone into her purse.  She didn't want to talk to him right now--it would be an angry conversation and she didn't feel like getting into it with him right now, especially in front of the caterer.  "I'm sorry, what were we talking about?" She asked, her train of thought from before completely gone.

"We were going to set up our next meeting." Melissa reminded her. 

"That's right!" Rachel exclaimed, digging in her purse for her day planner.  Her phone vibrated in her purse and she looked down at it.  Seeing she had received a text she flipped it open.

I'm sorry.  I'm stuck in a meeting.  Call me.

Rachel pursed her lips as she read JC's message then jammed the phone back into her purse. A meeting?  She replied flippantly in her head.  Really?  Couldn't come up with a better excuse than that?  "Sorry." She said, pasting a smile on her face and forcing the angry thoughts from her head as she flipped the calendar open. 

"The wedding is May twenty-second, right?" Melissa asked.

"Yes." Rachel nodded.  I hope.  She replied in her head.  With the way things where going with JC at the moment she didn't know what the plan was anymore!

"Alright, then let's plan to meet about three weeks before that to finalize everything and then we'll stay in contact with each other over the phone after that up until the big day."

"Sounds good." Rachel replied.  "So do you want to meet on the twenty-eighth of April?"

"That will work for me, if that works for you."

"That works." Rachel smiled, penciling in the appointment.  She flipped back a few pages in the day planner, glancing over the weeks between now and the wedding.  There's still so much to get done!  She thought.  She was about to close the book, when her eye caught something that made her heart skip a beat.  Frantically she turned back a few pages, hoping she'd misread the information.  She fought to breathe as she hurriedly counted the days again.  "Damn it!" She breathed.

"Is everything okay?" Melissa asked.

Rachel's head snapped up, her eyes connecting with the other woman's--suddenly remembering where she was.  "What?  Yes." She replied, standing quickly.  "I-I'm sorry.  I...I have to go." She stuttered as she grabbed her purse.  "Thank you." She said, shaking hands with Melissa.  "I'll see you in April."

Rachel turned and quickly left the office, hurrying outside.  She put a hand over her mouth as the urge to throw up suddenly overcame her.  Stubbornly she fought the feeling back as she all but ran to her car.  Slipping behind the wheel and closing the door Rachel gripped the steering wheel as she fought to breath.  Passing out right now wasn't going to do anybody any good. 

"I can't do this right now." She said aloud.  "How in the hell am I supposed to deal with this right now?!" She exclaimed.  She leaned forward, resting her forehead against the steering wheel, and closed her eyes.  Why was everything falling apart?  She was trying so hard, but no matter what she did it seemed that for every two steps she took she got knocked back one.  And this was a huge step backwards.  Why hadn't she caught this before now?  She'd been so busy lately with everything going on but that was no excuse.  How did this happen? She thought. 

The urge to throw up once came once more and Rachel was about to open her car door when she heard her cell phone vibrating in her purse.  Reaching for it out of habit she prayed it wasn't who she thought it was.  How was she going to explain this to him?  She sat back in surprise as a different name flashed across her screen. 

"Hi." Rachel breathed as she put the phone against her ear. 

"Hi." Megan replied hesitantly. 

Rachel felt tears start to form in her eyes at the sound of her best friend's voice.  She blinked them back as she swallowed.  She wanted to cry like a baby to Megan about everything going on right now but she held her emotions back.  Now wasn't the time to fall apart.  She didn't know exactly what was going on right now with her best friend, but instinctively, Rachel knew that Megan needed her to be the strong one right now.

"Did I call at a bad time?" Megan asked at Rachel's continued silence. 

Rachel cleared her throat before answering.  "No." She shook her head, though Megan couldn't see her.  "You have perfect timing, as usual.  I just got out of a meeting with our caterer and I now have the rest of the day free."  She dug in her purse again, finally pulling out her Bluetooth.  Turning it on and putting it in her ear, Rachel started her car and pulled out of her parking spot.  "Are you okay?" She asked, needing that question answered before anything else was said between them. 

"I don't know." Megan replied, her voice wavering.

Don't start crying, Megs.  Rachel pled with her silently.  She was holding onto her emotions by a thread and she knew it wouldn't take very much to send her over the edge right now.  "What's going on?" Rachel asked as she left the parking lot and began driving towards home. 

~~~~~~~

JC walked into the house later that afternoon, knowing he was in trouble.  He had missed the appointment with the caterer.  It wasn't that he had forgotten--Rachel had had the date programmed into the Blackberry she had bought for him last week, and even Justin had reminded him about the appointment--but he had been stuck.  He had tried to leave the meeting they had all been in but hadn't been able to.  He had tried to call her--to tell her he hadn't forgotten--but she hadn't answered.  JC had left her a voicemail, explaining everything and had sent her a text, but both had gone unanswered and he knew there was going to be hell to pay for missing another appointment.

"Rachel?" He called out tentatively, but she didn't answer.  He knew she was home--her car was in the garage.  Closing the door behind him he went in search of her, prepared to grovel and beg her forgiveness.  As he walked through the house--first downstairs then up--calling her name, JC began to get a little worried.  She didn't seem to be anywhere. 

"Rachel?" He called out as he walked into their bedroom.  The room was beginning to darken as the sun went down and at fist glance she didn't appear to be in there either.  As he turned to leave, however, he heard a sound and stopped.  "Rach?" He asked, walking further into the room.  JC walked around the bed and finally found her, sitting on the floor against the bed with her knees drawn up and her head buried in her arms--crying. 

"Rachel?" He asked, suddenly concerned.  "What's wrong?" He questioned as he sat down next to her.  He couldn't remember the last time he had seen her cry this hard and it worried him.  Something terrible must have happened.

"Everything is falling apart." She sobbed, her voice muffled as she kept her face hidden from him. 

JC put his arms around her, and she fell against him-her arms going around him as she buried her head against his chest and clung to him desperately.  JC held her close as she continued to cry.  He rubbed one hand up and down her back as he lowered his head, his lips brushing against her forehead.  "What's going on?" He asked quietly.  He hated seeing her cry.  Knowing she was upset and hurting was the worst feeling.  It made him feel like he had failed in some way; like he wasn't living up to his unspoken promise to her to always make her happy.  Her tears started to calm, but Rachel remained quiet as she stayed curled up against him.  "Tell me what's wrong, Sass." JC pled.  "Please?"

Rachel slowly sat up, moving out of his arms.  Her eyes were red and her cheeks were tearstained as she looked at him.  JC's heart broke as he saw the pain and sadness in her eyes.  "Megan and Jackson have separated." She told him.  JC pulled back slightly, blinking in surprise, but she continued before he could say anything.  "Justin thinks Aubrey is about to break up with him, you and Justin still haven't really talked to each other since his birthday and I...I think I'm..."  She looked down at her hands.  "Everything is falling apart." She repeated, her voice cracking with emotion.  "I can't do it anymore."  She shook her head as she leaned her head against him again.  "I can't do it anymore."

~~~~~~~~

Rachel tightened her arms around JC's waist, wishing they could just stay like this forever.  She had reached her breaking point today and she didn't want to deal with anything anymore.  She didn't want to deal with the stress of planning a wedding anymore.  She didn't want to worry about finding a space to open up shop for her business.  She didn't want to think about the fact that her best friend and her husband weren't married anymore and possibly wouldn't be again. 

"Do you want to go get some ice cream?" JC asked quietly, breaking her from her thoughts.  Rachel sat back as she looked at him. 

"Ice cream?" She asked, looking at him in question.  "Are you crazy?"

"What?" He asked with a shrug, looking at her innocently.

"I'm sitting here crying and all you can think about is food?  Really?!" Rachel replied hotly.  His apparent disregard of her feelings, making her angry.  Didn't he realize that she needed to talk--not eat--right now?  "Do you want to order some take-out while you're at it?" She asked sarcastically.

"No."  JC replied with a chuckle.  Rachel glared at him.  "I'm just suddenly having a craving for some mint chocolate chip ice cream." He informed her as he stood.

"I'm pretty sure we have some in the freezer--"

"I don't want that ice cream." JC said, cutting her off as he reached for her hands and pulled her to her feet.  "I want some different ice cream."

"Some different ice cream?" Rachel asked, looking at him like he was crazy.

"Yep." He nodded.  "And you look like you need some different ice cream right now too.  I know the perfect place." 

"I don't want to go get ice cream right now!" Rachel exclaimed as she pulled her hand from his.  "Look at me!  I'm having a nervous breakdown here, JC!  My best friend finally called me back this afternoon, after I've been worried sick about her for the last three days, only to tell me that she and her husband aren't even married anymore because apparently he's still married to his first wife whom he thought was dead!" She began pacing in front of him.  "Justin came over the other day to inform me that he thinks Aubrey is going to break up with him and he doesn't know what to do about it, but apparently I have all the answers and am the only one who can tell him what he needs to do!" She threw her hands up in the air.  "You're getting ready to leave in a few days and I'm trying not to think about how much it's going to hurt to have to say good-bye to you and stay here all by myself while you're gone!  I still can't find a place to open up shop, which means I don't have any customers, which means I don't have any money coming in, which means that I'm not quite sure how I'm going to start paying back on that stupid loan I just got and you," she pointed at him, "want to go get ice cream right now?!"  She stopped to look at him.  "Really?!"  She asked, her chest rising and falling dramatically as she put her hands on her hips--anger coursing through her system.

JC stood looking at her in silence for a moment, his blue eyes taking her in.  "You're stressed out." He stated.

"Oh, really?  You think so?" Rachel replied sarcastically as she crossed her arms over her chest. 

JC took a step towards her, putting his hands on her upper arms.  "You're upset, I realize this." He began.  "Let's just get into the car and take drive somewhere.  You need to get out of the house for a little while." He told her.  "Get some fresh air and take a step back from everything.  Please?"

Rachel looked at him for a moment, her blood still pumping.  "Just get into the car?" She asked, as if she didn't believe it was that simple. 

The corners of JC's mouth twitched up as he fought a smile and Rachel saw a spark of mischief before he began singing, "Hop in the car and go with me.  You don't have to pack everything.  Don't you wanna feel the breeze?  And forget everything, baby."

Rachel pulled back, one eyebrow raised as she looked at JC.  She fought the smile she felt coming to her face despite the fact she had been crying and yelling only moments before.  "You're a dork." She told him.  "Really?" She asked as she put her hands on her hips once more.  "You're going to stand there and sing one of Justin's songs to me right now?"

"Whatever works." He shrugged with a grin and Rachel allowed him to pull her towards him.  JC wrapped his arms around her waist as he bent slightly, resting his chin on her shoulder as he hugged her close.  Rachel put her arms around his neck, blinking back the sudden tears that came as she inhaled his familiar and comforting scent.  This is what she needed.  She didn't need to get out of the house, she didn't need to get in the car and go for a ride, she just needed someone to hold her and tell her everything was going to be okay. 

As if he had read her mind, JC's arms tightened around her and he turned his head slightly, nuzzling her ear.  "Everything will be okay, Sass." He whispered.  Rachel tightened her hold on him as she attempted to get as close as possible to him even though she knew it was an empty promise.  He had no way of knowing anymore than she did how things were going to turn out!

"I look terrible." Rachel stated with a sniff as she pulled back slightly.  "You really want to be seen around town with me right now?" She asked.

"You look fine." He said as he brushed his thumb against her cheek, wiping away the remaining moisture.  "We can do the drive-thru thing and you can wear your sunglasses.  No one will know you've been crying." He smiled.

"Right." Rachel chuckled as she stepped back from him-running her fingers through her hair.  "They'll all just think I'm drunk." She replied dryly.

JC laughed as he put his hands on her shoulders and leaned forward, kissing her forehead.  Rachel smiled up at him.  "Come on." He said with a wink as he reached for her hand.  "Let's get out of here."

~~~~~~~~

JC looked over at Rachel as she sat, eating away at the chocolate peanut butter ice cream cone she had ordered.  He watched as she licked around the cone and wondered if she had any idea how sexy she was at the moment.  She had pulled her hair back into a ponytail and slipped on a black hoodie before they had left the house and he watched as she innocently crossed one long leg over the other--her tongue still working away at the ice cream.  She wasn't even trying and she made him hot.  He wanted nothing more than to just lean over and...

He shook his head and looked away.  His intention in this impromptu date tonight had been to distract her not to seduce her!  He looked out over the panoramic view of the valley below them--watching as the sky darkened and the lights flickered on--as he took a bite of his own ice cream.  He knew Rachel was going to want to talk about everything she'd told him earlier, but for the moment she seemed content to just sit there in silence.  So he waited.  When she was ready, she would let him know.

~~~~~~~

Rachel sat beside JC, taking a bite of her ice cream and feeling a little like she was doing something naughty.  She could hear her mother's voice in her head, scolding her as a child.  "Don't eat that right now.  You're going to spoil your appetite."  She smiled at the memory--a light breeze brushing over her.  She caught the lingering scent of the man sitting next to her.  Rachel turned to look at JC, her smile remaining as her eyes roamed over his profile.

She hadn't realized it until right now--sitting here with him--that she missed him.  Sure, they lived together, but they were each so busy with their individual projects and responsibilities right now that she felt like she hardly saw him anymore.  It was like they were living separate lives with only occasional visitation rights.  She sighed as she took the last bite of her ice cream cone and looked back over the valley spread out below them.  The next two months before the wedding with him being gone were going to be hard.  Especially now.  She thought as she sub-consciously placed a hand over her stomach.

"I think I'm pregnant." She blurted out before she could stop herself.

JC choked beside her.  "Excuse me?!" He asked, coughing as he looked at her in surprise.  Rachel looked over at him, chewing on her bottom lip.  "Pregnant?" He asked.  Rachel nodded.  "Are you..." He paused, coughing once more.  "Are you sure?"

Rachel shook her head.  "That's why I said, ‘I think.'"

JC cleared his throat as he looked down at his feet.  "Okay...what makes you think you're pregnant?  Aren't you on the pill?" He asked, looking back at her.

"I was." She told him.  He looked at her sharply.  "I am."  She clarified.  JC looked at her in confusion and she sighed.  "Okay, look.  I know you don't want a big explanation about how birth control works, and you probably don't give a damn anyway as long as it does, but every month I'm supposed to take a placebo that makes it so I can have a normal period." She paused.  "I think the placebo is stupid and I don't usually take it.  I just go back on the pill after my cycle ends only..." She looked down at her clasped hands in her lap.  "Only, I haven't started yet.  I'm late." She told him.

"How late?" JC asked.  Rachel gathered her courage and looked up at him, meeting his blue eyes once again.

"A week and a half." She answered, watching him closely--trying to gauge his reaction.  She couldn't tell if he was mad, upset, excited or just plain shocked.  His face was completely unreadable at the moment and Rachel felt like she was waiting for a bomb to explode as he remained silent. "I didn't realize anything was wrong until today."  She scrubbed her hands over her face, her shoulders dropping.  "I've been running a million miles an hour, trying to get everything taken care of, that I didn't even stop to think about it.  I was setting a follow up appointment with the caterer today and was taking a close look at my calendar when I figured it out." She explained.  "I thought we were safe.  I'm sorry." She murmured, not sure why she suddenly felt the need to apologize.  He was just as much to blame for this as she was! 

"Why are you sorry?" He asked, setting his dish of ice cream on the bench beside him.

"Because." She replied.  "This is my fault.  I should have been paying more attention.  This is a really bad time to have a baby.  I'm trying to get my business started, you're going to be gone, we've got the wedding to finish planning, and I don't want to be a pregnant bride." She confessed with a pout.

"Rachel." He stopped her with a chuckle, putting his hands on her arms.  She looked at him, pulling her bottom lip between her teeth.  "Take a deep breath." He told her, his lips lifting slightly as she did as he requested.  "I'm not mad." He stated. 

"You're not?" She asked.

"No." He shook his head.  He lifted one hand--cupping her cheek.  "A little shocked." He admitted.  "But...I'm not mad."

"Why not?" She asked, puzzled.  A baby was going to change everything!  Why was he okay about this?  Why wasn't he freaking out?  Why wasn't he-

"I told you this is what I wanted." He replied.  She looked at him in question. "I told you when I asked you to marry me that I wanted to have a family with you."

"But right now?!" She asked.  "We're not--I'm not--ready!"

"The timing's not exactly great," he admitted.  "I'll give you that, but it'll be okay." He assured her.  "I promise." He continued as he lifted his other hand--gently framing her face as he leaned forward to press his lips against hers.  "It'll be okay."

Rachel's hands came up, wrapping around his wrists as he continued to kiss her.  The overwhelming anxiety she'd been feeling since making the discovery this morning finally beginning to relent.  JC pulled back slightly but Rachel kept her eyes closed as he rested his forehead against hers-their breath mingling. 

"We need to celebrate." He told her, sitting back to look at her.  He dropped his hands from her face as he grinned excitedly.  "I'm going to take you out somewhere for dinner."

"Not tonight." She told him. 

"Why not?" He asked.

"I just want to sit here with you tonight." She told him as she slid her hand into his, lacing their fingers together, and scooting closer to him.  "I miss just being with you." She admitted quietly as she laid her head against his shoulder.  "And we're running out of time to be together."

JC gave her fingers a gentle squeeze.  "Okay." He replied.  Rachel felt him press a kiss to the top of her head.  "But tomorrow night," He told her.  "We're going out, so be ready." 

~~~~~~~~~

Megan slowly opened the front door of her house and peeked inside the next afternoon.  The front room was quiet and still, giving her the permission she needed to enter.  She needed to grab some more of her and Scott's things, but didn't want to face Jackson.  She wasn't ready to see him yet and had purposely decided to come over in the middle of the day--knowing he would be at work.  Closing the front door behind her, Megan walked through the front room and down the hallway--her eyes stubbornly avoiding the pictures all over the walls that seemed to be mocking her.  The happy couple and family the portrait portrayed were a lie and it broke her heart.

Stopping first in the baby's room, Megan began gathering up the clothes and other items she needed for Scott--putting everything into the tote bag she had brought with her.  Opening the top dresser drawer her eyes fell on the picture frame sitting on top of the unit and, against her better judgment, she reached out with her left hand and picked it up.  Her thumb brushed over the face of the man pictured as she looked at it longingly. The photo had been taken right after Scott had been born--her mother perfectly capturing the moment when Jackson had held his son for the first time.  Megan loved that picture.  The wonder, amazement, and love on Jackson's face as he looked down at the newborn had always made her smile and her heart swell with love.  Now...it only made her sad. 

Letting out a heavy sigh, Megan put the picture back on the dresser but felt reluctant to let go of the picture frame.  When her eyes moved to her wedding ring, Megan finally pulled her hand away from the photo, instead grabbing her left hand with her right as she looked down at the diamond ring.  It had only been four days but Megan had been through every emotion in the book in the last ninety-six hours--the most dominant being confusion.  She didn't know what to think or feel anymore.  All she knew was that somewhere along the way the security she had felt in her relationship with Jackson had disappeared. 

Megan had thought long and hard about what her mother had said--pondering the reason behind why Jackson had kept everything quiet about Kate.  She realized that she had jumped to conclusions and accused him in anger instead of letting him explain his actions, but the reality was she still felt betrayed.  She still felt that his going behind her back was just more evidence to the fact that they had stopped being a couple and had started living separate lives.  No matter his intentions, his secrecy still hurt.

Slowly she took off her wedding band and placed it on the dresser beside the picture--her hand feeling strangely naked.  She blinked rapidly against the tears forming.  She suddenly felt sick to her stomach but she stubbornly squared her shoulders and went back to the task at hand.  She stopped as a sudden sharp pain on her right side took her breath away.  She put her hand against the area on her lower abdomen and bent over slightly. 

"Are you okay?"

Megan gasped in surprise, whirling around at the sudden question.  "Jackson." She breathed.  Her eyes hungrily took in the sight of him and she cursed the fact that her heart skipped a beat as his blue eyes met hers.  Her knees felt a little unstable.  "How long have you..." She trailed off as another sharp, stabbing pain came.  Once again she placed her hand against the spot, her shoulders hunching slightly as she closed her eyes--trying to breath through the pain.  What the hell is going on?  She wondered.  She had felt a little nauseous the last couple days but had passed it off as being stress, but the pain was new.  She didn't know how to explain that.

"Megan?" Jackson asked, stepping towards her.  Her eyes lifted to his once more.  His worry filled blue eyes watched her closely.  "What's wrong?"

Megan shook her head.  "I'm fine." She insisted.  "It's nothing." She straightened as she turned back to the dresser.  "I just..." She cried out suddenly, her hands grabbing on to the dresser as the pain worsened.  Her knees buckled but Jackson quickly covered the distance between them, catching her as she fell.

"You're not fine!" He told her.  Megan shook her head, closing her eyes against the pain.  She bit her lip as she curled up into the fetal position.  "Megan?" Jackson asked.  "Megan, look at me." He pled as he ran his hand over her face, his voice filled with frantic worry. 

"I can't..." she shook her head as she tried to catch her breath.  "I can't...breathe.  It hurts." She told him, tears leaking out from beneath her lashes. 

"I'm going to go call 911." He told her as he moved to lay her down on the floor.

"Don't!"  She reached out to him, gabbing onto the front of his shirt as she finally opened her eyes.  "Don't leave me."

"I'll be right back." He promised.  "I have to go call for an ambulance and my phone is in the other room."  He leaned down, pressing his lips against her forehead.  "I'll be right back."

Megan closed her eyes and let go of his shirt as he stood.  She wrapped her arms around herself, curling up as tight as she could--hoping it would alleviate the pain.  She head Jackson's voice, talking on the phone, as he hurried back to her.  She wanted to open her eyes and look at him--to reassure herself that he was really there--but as another wave of pain washed over her, her body couldn't handle anymore and she willingly surrendered to the darkness.