Justin paced back and forth, ringing his hands together.  Bailey was supposed to be over shortly and he wanted to make sure he said everything he needed to say.  He didn’t want to mess this up.

It had taken a lot of thinking, a lot more pacing, and some aspirin, but he’d managed to come to a decision.

Justin has spent his entire life in Tennessee.  In fact, he’d never really left Shelby Forest.  He liked his little town, and he was content with his life.  But, was he happy?  He’d thought so, until Bailey and Carter Beckett walked into his life and turned everything upside down.  He found something he didn’t know existed, and he was terrified that he was going to lose it.

Justin was under no illusion that Bailey’s situation was simple.  He knew that she carried more baggage than he’d expected, but he admired her for being able to handle it all.  She was an amazing mother in spite of all the shit she and her son and been through, and even now, when her world was teetering on the edge of corruption (again), she was still able to keep a level head. 

So, he’d made his decision.  Wherever she needed to go, he was going to go with her.  If this meant running off and hiding somewhere else, he would do it.  It was crazy and probably irrational, but he felt that this was something he needed to do.  His life was simple and uncomplicated, but that also meant it was missing the passion and happiness that he’d found with Bailey.  So, where she was headed, he wanted to be right there with her.

Now, he just needed to figure out how to tell her.

Knowing Bailey, she probably wasn’t going to take this in the best way.  She was stubborn as all hell, and she was determined to keep Justin away from her drama.  He was going to have to convince her that he was not acting on a whim.  He was serious. 

What the fuck was he thinking?

~*~

With lightness in her heart that she hadn’t felt in a very long time, Bailey made her way up the steps to Justin’s house.  Carter was out with his friends and she wanted some time alone with Justin so she could tell him her news.  She hadn’t told her son yet, but there would be plenty of time for that.  They now had lots of time.

The main door was open, so Bailey knocked on the screen door and peeked inside.  “Justin?”

She could see him down the hall in the kitchen, and he turned to usher her inside.  “In here!”

She stepped into the house, kicking off her shoes and padding down the hallway.  Justin was mixing something up in a bowl.  “Hey!  I’m glad you’re here.  I’ve made some lunch, if you’re hungry.”  He kissed her on the cheek quickly, moving around the room in almost a frantic pace.

Bailey eyed him carefully, grabbing a seat at the table.  “Are you okay?”  He was pacing as he mixed, moving from one task to the next without stopping.  “You seem…agitated or something.”

He turned, pink in his cheeks.  He was blushing slightly.  “No, no.  I’m fine.  Just…you k now…fixing lunch.”  He stopped in the middle of the kitchen, looking around sheepishly.

“Is something the matter?”  Bailey was suddenly worried, and Justin’s strange behavior wasn’t doing anything to quell her fears.

Justin put the bowl down, wiping his hands down his jeans and taking deep breath.  “No, everything is fine.”  He made his way over to Bailey, sitting down at the table and reaching across to take her hands.  “I’m glad you’re here because I wanted to tell you something.”

Bailey made a face, attempting to pull back.  “Is this like one of those, ‘we need to talk’ kind of conversations?  The ones that never end well?”

Justin shook his head, tightening his grip on her hands.  He took another deep breath, steeling himself.  “I know…you…what we have…” he stopped, looking down at the table in frustration.  “Shit, it wasn’t supposed to be this hard.”

“What’s going on?”  She was really worried now.

He licked his lips.  “I want to be with you, Bailey.  I love you.”  He saw her eyes widen with his confession, but he couldn’t stop now.  “I love you and Carter so much, it makes me sick to think of you leaving.  Without you, my life would feel so empty.  I didn’t…I didn’t even know I was missing anything until you showed up here, and now that I know you...I can’t stand to let you go.”  His eyes held her gaze steadily.  “So, wherever you go, I want to go to.”

Now that the admission was out, Justin felt relieved.  The ball was in her court, and he was praying that she wouldn’t turn him down.

Bailey smiled, tears filling her eyes.  She attempted to speak, but the emotions she’d been choking down for months suddenly surged up inside of her and she couldn’t hold them back anymore.  She sobbed and laughed at the same time, feeling slightly maniacal. 

“Bailey?”  Justin moved from his side of the table, lifting her slightly so he could sit in the chair and place her on his lap.  He wrapped his arms around her, holding her so tightly that he shook with her.  “Shhh,” he soothed, “it’s going to be okay.  I’ll take care of you and Carter.  It’s going to be okay.”

Bailey hiccupped, trying to get a hold of all her emotions so she could share her news, but it was difficult to rein all of this in.  She had left Boston in fear, and had spent her entire stay in Shelby Forest looking over her shoulder.  Now…now she knew she could move on.  It was a lot to take in.

Slowly, her sobs quieted and she was able to breath normally again.  She sat back, wiping at her cheeks and laughing slightly.  “I’m such a mess.”

Justin swiped his thumb under her eye and smiled at her.  “It’ll be okay.”

She nodded.  “I know.  I know, because I just got through talking with Amelia…”

“Is she going to help you relocated?”  Justin cut her off, going through all of the scenarios in his head about where they might need to go.

Bailey laughed, “Justin…stop.  Listen.”  She reached into her purse that was hanging on the chair and took out the letter from her father.  “Amelia got this sent to her, from my dad.”  She shook her head at his unasked question.  “No…he’s gone.  But, before he left, he put together some incredible things.”  She handed him the letter and waited for him to finish.

“I don’t understand.”  He gave her a questioning look.

“Travis has to check in with a police officer in Boston, a friend of my dad’s.  If he fails to check in for even one day, a stack of photos will be sent to his parole officer showing Travis in the midst of drug deals.  Which means he’s broken his parole.”

It took Justin a few minutes to process everything he had just heard.  “So…”

“So?  We’re staying, Justin.  Right here.”

He let the words sink in, savoring the sound of them.  When he had fully understood he implication of her statement, he stood with her still in his arms, spinning her around the kitchen.  Together they laughed; giddy with the sudden release of tension they’d both been under for a while now.

When he was almost to dizzy to stand, Justin stopped spinning, holding Bailey tightly to his chest.  “Staying?”  She bit her lip, smiling and nodding.  “Are you sure?  I mean…Shelby Forest isn’t Boston…”

“No…but it’s you.”

Unable to stop himself, Justin capture Bailey’s lips in a kissed filled with happiness and promise and all of the things he wanted to give to her.  When he needed a breath, he pulled back and rested his forehead against her own.  “I was so scared that I was going to lose you.”

“Me, too.”

“Does Carter know?” 

Bailey shook her head, “no, I wanted to tell you first.”  She pulled back slightly, hesitant to let Justin go.  She wanted to hold onto the joy of this moment for as long as possible.

The pair stood for a while, enjoying the feeling of being together without the strain of worry.  Finally, Bailey’s stomach grumbled loud enough to make them both laugh, and Justin finally finished the lunch he’d been making when she showed up.

“So…what are you going to tell Carter?”

Bailey slowly chewed her food, thinking over her response.  “I guess I’m just going to tell him that we’re staying.  I don’t think he needs to know the details.”

“And what about Travis?”

Bailey sighed.  This was the part she didn’t really want to think about right away.  “I don’t know.  I’m obviously going to tell him what I know.  But…I can’t tell him to leave, at least not know.  He doesn’t seem to want anything except to know Carter…and…well, I think I should give him that chance.”

Justin was uncomfortable with that idea, but he knew that Bailey was only trying to do what was best for her son.  He would let her make whatever decisions she needed to, as long as he knew she would stay.

“Well…I think we should finish up here, and then go grab Carter.  I’d like to take you two out to dinner.” 

Bailey’s smile lit up her face.  “I’d like that.”