Cassidy didn’t sleep a wink during the flight, but as soon as they got in the car, she was out.  It was a 30 minute trip from the airport to Justin’s home.  She vaguely remembered hearing Cody’s sleepy voice question where they were and where they were going.   She knew Justin had answered him, but if asked she certainly couldn’t recall what he’d said. 

Lynn had picked them up.   It was almost 6:00 a.m.—3:00 a.m. Pacific Time—by the time they got to her home.  “Cassie, baby.  Wake up.”   Her eyes felt so heavy that she could barely open them, but somehow she managed.  Justin was smiling, laughing almost.  “We’re here,” he said, bending down in front of her.

She looked past him to see Cody and Lynn walking hand in hand towards the house.  She grinned sappily at the sight.  “I am too tired.  I think I’ll just sleep here,” she said groggily.

That oh-so familiar chuckle fell from his lips as he pulled on one of her arms.  “You can’t sleep in the car.  Don’t make me carry you.”

She closed her eyes and let her head rest against the seat.  “Mmmm, I think I like that idea,” she mumbled.

Next thing she knew, his presence was close, leaning over her and unbuckling her seatbelt in the backseat.  Her eyes popped open as he gripped onto her with both hands and began pulling her out of the seat.  “Okay, okay,” she stopped him.  “I’ll get up.”

“I thought so,” he smirked.

She held his hand as they walked up to the house.  It was dark and she was too tired to try and concentrate on where she was going.  Justin was still laughing at her sleepy demeanor when they stepped through the front door.  “Come on,” he told her.  “I already brought your stuff in.  My mom set up the room right next to mine for Cody.  She’s taking him up there now.  I think he’s going to like it.”

Cassidy slowly shook off her grogginess as Justin led her upstairs.  The house was still pretty dark, even though the sun was starting to peak.  But she was too tired to observe or take anything in.  Cody’s room was just at the top of the stairs.  She knew this because the door was open and she could hear his voice, along with Lynn’s, coming from inside.

She gasped unexpectedly as she stepped inside.  It was decorated to the T—or T. rex, she should say.  There were dinosaurs everywhere.  “How on Earth did you have time for all this?” Cassidy asked with shock.

Lynn turned to her with a grin.  “I’ve been working on it ever since I found out,” she smiled.  “I had to hurry and add a few last minute touches last night when Justin called.”

“Thank you so much, Lynn.  He is going to feel so comfortable here.”  Cassidy was truly touched at all the obvious work the woman had put into Cody’s room. 

Cody was already starting to settle in, as he climbed up on the dinosaur patterned bed spread.  “Mommy, I’m still sleepy,” he yawned.

“I know you are, sweetheart,” she said, making her way towards him. 

“I’ll leave y’all alone,” Lynn said.   “Cassidy, please, make yourself at home.  Okay?   Just holler if you need anything.”

With a nod, Cassidy accepted the verbal offering, smiling as Lynn patted her son’s shoulder and left the room.   Justin came up and stood beside her.  “Why don’t you get under the covers, buddy,” he suggested, looking down at his little boy.

Sleepily Cody conceded, slipping his blue pajama-clad body underneath the bedding, his eyes already half closed.   The rubber soled slippers he’d traveled in were on the floor, right where he’d stepped out of them.  Bringing a fist to his tired eyes, he yawned again—big.

“Mommy and daddy will be in the room right next door, if you need us, okay?” Cassidy told him.

He nodded, before planting his curly blond head into the pillow.  He yawned again and his eyes closed.  Cassidy leaned down and kissed his sleepy head.  Then Justin did the same.  “Love you,” Cody mumbled.

“Love you too,” they both said.

With a grin, Cassidy followed Justin out of the room, shutting off the light and closing the door.  She barely caught the glow of the soft night light in the corner before it shut. 

She turned to Justin with a tired smirk.  “Take me to bed,” she said.  Then she thought about how it had probably sounded and added, “to sleep, of course,” just in case anyone was in ear shot.

Justin laughed at her.   “You’re dingy when you’re tired,” he told her.

“Yeah, yeah…” she groaned.  “Just show me where I can lay my head.”

“I’ll show you where you can lay your head, alright,” he teased.

“Justin,” she said, warningly.

He laughed again and opened his bedroom door.  Then he pointed to the large, white bed in the middle of the room.  It was the only thing Cassidy could focus on.  It looked mighty comfortable, with mounds of pillows and a big fluffy duvet.   A soft hum sounded from her lips and Justin was chuckling once more.

“I’m going to use the bathroom,” he told her.

“No.  Me first,” she said, and headed straight for the open doorway that obviously led to the adjoining bathroom. 

Justin shook his head, smiling to himself as he headed over to his dresser and pulled out a clean pair of shorts and boxer briefs.  He needed a shower before he slept.  Then he planned on sleeping well into the afternoon.  There was no better place to sleep than good ol’ home sweet home.  And he had a feeling he’d sleep even better than usual with Cassidy lying next to him.

He passed the closed door that she was behind and headed straight for the shower, turning on the hot water and stripping down to nothing.  He didn’t notice Cassidy staring at him until he caught sight of her when he started to step inside.

“That’s really not fair,” she said, her arms crossed stiffly over her chest.

“What?” he asked, the steam from the shower pouring out of the open glass door as he had yet to get in.

“You’re naked.”

With a quiet chuckle, he told her, “So get in with me then,” and finally stepped onto the wet tile floor, letting the hot water douse his skin.

He never expected her to take him up on his offer, but about thirty seconds later, as he’d just soaped himself thoroughly, her hands were wrapping around him from behind and her bare skin was pressed into the back of him.  Inwardly he groaned.  She didn’t know what she was getting herself into. 

His body turned in her grasp, as the water above rinsed the soap away.  He was instantly hard, and she’d noticed just as quickly as it had happened.  “I thought you were too tired,” he said.

“For a shower?” she asked.

He looked at her with lust-filled eyes.  “Quit playing with me,” he told her.

“Me?” she asked, feigning innocence.

Wrapping his arms around her slender waist, he squeezed her tight and pressed a wet kiss to her lips.  Then he reached for the soap.  “I think I’m going to enjoy this a little too much,” he said as he began covering her skin with suds.  She smirked, her eyes looking mighty heavy.  He found himself chuckling again over the fact that she was so obviously tired, but still she was here—in the shower with him, naked, knowing undoubtedly that she was definitely about to get fucked.  “Don’t fall asleep,” he told her, just as he ran a soapy hand in between her wet thighs.   “A concussion would really screw this up for me.”

The murmur she’d let out at first touch was stifled with his snide remark.  Her brown eyes popped open, shooting him an incredulous look from the tops of her lids.  “Thanks a lot,” she spouted off.

He laughed.  “I’m just kidding, baby.”  Then he braced both hands at the tops of her arms and guided her under the shower head, letting the soap rinse away.  He studied her for just a minute, thoroughly enjoying her silhouette and making it known.   She had a body to die for—curvy but athletic, firm and tone, but still very feminine.  He loved looking at it, but he loved touching it even more. 

Grabbing her, he pressed everything he had against her and kissed her thoroughly—completely.  A soft moan seeped from her vocals as both her hands ran down his back.  “Justin,” she said it softly, her eyes closed. 

“What, baby?”

“As much as I want to,” she said, “I don’t think I have enough energy to stand up for much longer.”

He smiled, loving her too much to let her tired legs suffer.  “We’ll get out,” he said, “but you better not fall asleep as soon as your head hits the pillow.”

“I think I can manage ten more minutes,” she grinned sleepily.

“Well, I think I need at least twenty,” he told her with a smirk.

“I’ll try my best.”

He chuckled lightly, shutting off the water and grabbing her a towel.  He took the liberty of wrapping it around her before grabbing one for himself.  Once they were both dry, he scooped her up and carried her to the bed, where he got a good thirty minutes out of her instead of the twenty he’d asked for and triple the ten she’d first offered.  Then they both thought to put some clothes on before curling up together and drifting off to sleep.

“You’re my grandma too?” Cody asked Lynn, as he sat at the kitchen table with a bowl of cereal in front of him and a small glass of orange juice.

“Yes, I am.  I’m your daddy’s momma so that makes me your grandma.”

“I like grandmas,” he said simply, scooping a bite of Peanut Butter Crunch into his mouth. 

Lynn was smiling—inside and out.  It was just after eleven.  Cody had come stumbling down the stairs about twenty minutes earlier.  He didn’t ask for his mommy or his daddy.  He’d sat down beside Lynn on the couch and told her that he was hungry.

They’d gone in the kitchen together and she’d let him pick from the array of unopened cereal boxes that she kept stocked for Justin.  Now they sat at the kitchen table together, carrying on a conversation while Cody ate his breakfast.

The realization was hitting her full force—she had a grandson!  And he was about the cutest little boy she’d ever seen.  He reminded her of Justin in so many ways, and not just because of the striking resemblance.  He’d inherited many of Justin’s personality traits, too.  A fact that amazed her, considering the little boy had just barely met his father.

She felt herself wishing deeply that her son had finally found the family that he’d been wanting for so long.   She genuinely liked Cassidy.  She got a good vibe from the girl—and the chemistry between the two had been apparent two weeks before when she’d first been introduced.

There’d been no need for Justin to tell her the two of them were now “involved”, as he’d put it.   Lynn had already known.  Call it mother’s intuition, but she’d known it was bound to happen sooner or later—that first day when Justin had brought her and Cody to the house.  Maybe it was fate, them stumbling into each other after all this time, both coming out of horrible marriages—needing something much more stable.  Lynn certainly believed in those types of things, and she knew that Justin did too. 

Cassidy wasn’t sure what time it was when she opened her eyes.  The sun had been up when she’d fallen asleep, so the light cracking through the blinds didn’t mean a whole lot.  She focused on the back of Justin’s dirty blond head.  He was turned away from her, curled on his side, sound asleep.

She pushed herself up and leaned over him, staring down at his stubbled face.  “Justin.”

He groaned, sort of an “Mmmm?” sound.

“I’m getting up.”

He groaned again, but didn’t budge an inch.

“You’re going to sleep all day, aren’t you?”

That question didn’t even warrant a groan, apparently.  Shaking her head, she climbed out of bed and headed for the bathroom to freshen up a little before heading downstairs.

She checked Cody’s bedroom first.  Just as she thought, he wasn’t there.  She hoped he hadn’t been any trouble to Lynn.  He was normally a well mannered child, but all kids have their moments and he was in a totally new place.   Plus he didn’t know Lynn all that well.

It was a pleasant surprise to find the two of them sitting on the couch in the family room, the TV on Nicktoons and Cody explaining the premise of the particular cartoon they were watching.  Cassidy should have known the name of it, but it was fairly new and she couldn’t remember it at the moment.

Lynn looked up at the sound of her arrival.  “Well, hello there,” she said with a hospitable grin.  “I hope you finally got some good rest?”

Cassidy nodded.  “Yes.  Thank you.”

“I’m sure my son is still sound asleep.”  It was a statement, rather than a question.

“Very much so,” Cassidy smirked, taking a seat next to Cody.  She patted her little boy’s knee.  “How’d you sleep?” she asked.

“Fine,” he answered simply. 

Cassidy peered over his head and focused on Lynn.  “I hope he wasn’t too much trouble this morning.  Has he been up very long?”

“Since about eleven, and he definitely hasn’t been any trouble.  Actually, I was hoping it would be okay if I took him out for a little bit?  I wanted to take him shopping and then maybe to lunch, if that’s okay?”

“Sure,” Cassidy told her.

“You guys can have some more time to rest up and I can have some more time getting to know my grandson.”   She smiled big and wide as she said it.   “Then tonight you will finally get to meet my husband, Paul, and I am planning a big home cooked meal, so make sure you’re hungry.”

Cassidy felt like she should be saying ‘yes ma’am’ but instead she said, “Oh definitely.”

Lynn grinned again and said, “Good.”

“I just want to say thanks again, too, for having us and for the wonderful room you made up for Cody.  We really appreciate it.”

“Please, don’t mention it.  It was my pleasure,” Lynn smiled.

“About the room, though.   Did Justin know, because he was asking me on the plane where I wanted Cody to sleep.”

Lynn smirked.  “He didn’t know until I picked you guys up this morning.   I think you were probably conked out in the back seat when we talked about it.  I had asked him about sleeping arrangements yesterday, just trying to get a feel for if you were going to be okay with it.  So that’s probably why he was asking you.”

That made sense.

A few minutes later, after Lynn told her to help herself in the kitchen if she was hungry, Cassidy watched the two of them walk out the door, reminding Cody one last time to “behave himself for Grandma Lynn.”

“I will, mommy,” he told her eagerly, smiling from ear to ear.

She got a strong feeling that her son was enjoying all the new family members in his life.  The fact that they all kept buying him stuff probably wasn’t hurting, but she couldn’t very well argue it! 

Finding a bowl of fruit in the kitchen, she helped herself to an orange and a glass of water before returning upstairs to see if Justin had moved at all.  She had to laugh when she found him flat on his back, nose to the sky, arms wide and covers completely thrown off of him.  He wasn’t snoring, but a very soft whistle was coming out of his mouth with each breath, as his lips were parted just barely.

With a giggle she pounced on top of him. 

His entire body receded into the mattress as he let out a rather annoyed “oomph” sound.  He blinked his eyes several times before finally forcing them open.  As soon as he was conscious enough to realize what was happening, he tangled his arms and legs around her and squeezed her tight.  Then he groaned, his voice hoarse and sleepy.  “Morning,” he said.

“Afternoon, actually,” she corrected, her cheek smashed against the front of his shoulder.

“How’s Cody?” he asked, keeping her locked in his hold.

“He’s fine.  He just left with your mom.  They went shopping and then they were going to have lunch.”

“Good, so we can both go back to sleep then.”

“We could.  Or you could get up and show me around.”

His diaphragm sank as he exhaled a noisy breath from his nose.  “You want me to get up?”

“That’s the idea.”

“Alright,” he said, finally loosening his grip.  “I guess so.”

She sat up, perched on top of him and pressed both her palms into his chest.  “I think I could get used to this,” she told him.

He looked at her kind of funny, obviously not understanding what she meant.  “What?” he asked.

“This,” she said.   “Me, you, Cody—together, you know.”

He grinned and his voice was humming again as he pulled her down on top of him once more, this time hugging her tenderly, instead of squeezing the life out of her.  “I think I already am,” he admitted, stroking the back of her head.

She was smiling against him.   She liked what he was saying—very much.

After a very hearty, home cooked meal and a rather fulfilling family conversation during, Justin sat in the family room alone with his mom.  Cassidy was upstairs giving Cody a bath in Justin’s huge Jacuzzi tub and Paul was in the kitchen doing the dishes.  Tomorrow they were going to have dinner with his dad, his step-mom and his two little brothers.  Justin was just a tad nervous, but it didn’t ward off any of the strong feelings he was having towards the woman he’d fallen head over heels in love with—a feeling that was growing more and more apparent with every moment he was around her.

He wanted to talk to his mom about it and it seemed to be the perfect time as they sat just a short distance across from each other on the sofa.

“Momma,” he said, in a tone that revealed a deep discussion was on its way.  “Is it bad that I already feel like I want to spend the rest of my life with her?  Is it wrong that the word marriage is already floating around in my head?”

She smiled, all-knowingly.   “No, sweetheart.  It’s not bad or wrong to feel that way.  But I would strongly suggest waiting just a little bit before taking such a drastic leap.”

He nodded, understanding exactly.  “I know you’re right.  But I just feel like we’re this happy little family and it’s the best feeling in the world.  I don’t want them to go away,” he said softly.

“They’re not going anywhere, baby.  Cody is your son.   Nothing is going to change that.”

“Not just Cody, though.   You know what I mean.”

She did.  Of course she did.  Reaching out, she patted his knee affectionately.  “I like her—very much.”  Justin smiled at her approving words.  That was important to him.  “And I’ve got a good feeling about this, I do.”  That made him happy too.  “Just give it a little time.  You’ve gotta test the water before you jump in.  Things have been fairly easy so far.  Let’s see how things pan out after the news breaks.  When you guys get back home things are going to be different.  You know that.  You can’t hide in your houses forever.”

Cassidy stood just inside Justin’s bedroom door.  She’d heard every word of their discussion.  She hadn’t meant to.  She’d been on her way to get Cody’s clothes from his room when the word marriage had hit her ears like a force of nature.  Not that she was afraid of marriage.  Maybe she should have been, after the horrible one she’d just ended.  But she wasn’t.   

It had surprised her, because it was the last thing she’d expected to hear even if it was something that she wasn’t supposed to be listening to.  Of course she’d had to listen to the rest of the conversation after that.  She just stood there grinning, having a general appreciation for Lynn’s words of wisdom—and for the fact of hearing the woman’s admittance that she liked Cassidy “very much.”  That was always good to hear.

But now Justin was coming up the stairs and she had to pretend like she hadn’t heard a word of it.  Wiping away the smile on her lips, she opened the door just before he barged in, trying to act as if she’d just made way to it, on her way to get Cody’s PJ’s.  “You wanna sit with him while grab his jammies?” she asked.

“Of course,” Justin grinned.

She passed by, feeling guilty that she new things she wasn’t supposed to.  She felt bad for listening in on a private conversation he’d been having with his mother.  She’d never been one to hide things in a relationship and she knew that as awkward as it might be, that once she got back in the bathroom she was going to have to tell him that she’d heard.

So she grabbed Cody’s blue and green plaid pajama bottoms with matching solid blue shirt and returned to Justin’s giant bathroom, where she found him sitting on the edge of the white tile that surrounded the raised tub.

He had a goofy grin across his handsome face as he watched Cody sink a red plastic ship, making his own sound affects to go with it.  Letting her presence be known, she stood just a few steps away, closed her eyes and blurted it out.  “I heard,” she said.  “I heard you talking to your mom.  I’m sorry.”  Then she peeked out of her right eye, hoping to gauge his reaction.

“Okay,” he said with a bit uncertainty.  “I guess I should probably be a little embarrassed?”

She shrugged, opening both her eyes completely.  He was asking her how he was supposed to feel.  She didn’t know what to tell him.

“I guess I’m just more surprised that you’re admitting that you heard what you heard.  After that wears off, then maybe I’ll be embarrassed… I think.”

She half smiled.  “Please don’t be embarrassed, and I’m sorry for being so honest, but I just don’t want to hide stuff.  I hid something once and it was probably the worst mistake of my life.”  He’d have to be brain dead to not realize that she was referring to how she’d hid Cody from him. 

Justin’s eyes closed briefly, as an audible breath pushed out through his nose.  When his gaze returned it wasn’t focused on her, it settled instead on the little boy they’d created together—completely on accident, but so divinely on purpose.

It was amazing how oddly normal it all seemed.  For once in her life, Cassidy felt like she was right where she belonged.  She felt like she was with her family.

© BrandyRae 2005