Author's Chapter Notes:
Here ya go guys. Sorry this one took so long. Life got away from me. Enjoy!
When Charlotte’s phone alarm goes off at ten a.m. the only thing she really wants to do is roll over and go back to sleep. Her bed is warm and soft, her body heavy and fatigued. She sighs, her eyes burning as she forces them open, trying to focus on the photos on the night stand in an attempt to wake herself up. She can barely make out Justin’s boyish face, his arms thrown around his mother and father’s shoulders as they stand on a white beach, the ocean green and blue behind them, the sun winking off the water. As she focuses more she notes the changes in him from then to now, how his jaw is more chiseled, his face more angular, his hair brown instead of that hideous platinum blond. Most notable is the lack of sadness in his eyes. He’s young and his smile holds a vivacity that she rarely sees from him now. She shakes her head, banishing the thought from her mind as she pulls her body into a sitting position, groaning as her heavy limbs fail to cooperate.
She’d fallen into bed at about a quarter to six, her brain fuzzy and her heart tangled listening for any sounds of stirring in the house, waiting for Amelia’s shrill accusation as to where Justin had been but it never came. The house was silent and she marveled at how she could have possibly sat in a tree house in the middle of the woods with an almost married man until the sun chased them inside. She had fallen into a fitful sleep, dreaming of Amelia in a wedding dress, ordering her to serve champaign to the guests while Justin tried to pry the cover off the piano so he could play it. Every time she tried to help him Amelia would scream and she would scurry away, watching him the best she could as he sat desolately on the piano bench staring down at the covered keys.
She runs a hand over her face, forcing herself to her feet and she staggers into the bathroom, cringing at her haggard appearance. She dresses quickly, throwing her long dark hair into a ponytail before stumbling out into the hall. The entire house seems to be atwitter with holiday festivities, laughter wafting up towards her and she can’t help but smile. Charlotte pads down the main stairwell peeking her head into the living room and she finds everyone present, the tree glowing golden in the background.
Rachel and her husband, Brad are sitting on the floor next to the tree, holding out boxes for Hannah to shake which seems to be her favorite thing to do. Brennan and Buckley lay near by, happy to have people down at their level to play with. Billy is sitting with Ginger and Amelia, regaling both girls with stories from when he and Sadie had started dating, Ginger’s blue eyes wide and imploring, hanging on his every word while Amelia listens with polite interest. Lynn sits between Sadie and Paul, watching her father laughing when Sadie interjects to correct her husband on a point here and there. Justin and Trace are nowhere to be found.
“Hey Charlotte!” Rachel says when she notices her standing in the doorway and all eyes turn to her, Brennan and Buckley jumping to their feet to run and greet her.
“Hey,” she says chuckling as she reaches down to pat their wide heads, stepping down into the room.
“God Charlotte you look exhausted,” Amelia says, her voice slightly alarmed and Charlotte cringes, her heart rate increasing. “There’s coffee in the kitchen. It’s not espresso but it gets the job done I guess,” she says with a sigh.
“O-okay,” Charlotte says, unsure as to how to respond, turning to go to the kitchen.
“Make me one if you’re going,” Amelia says and Charlotte nods, stepping back into the hall, sighing as she trudges down towards the kitchen.
She slows as she hears the dull hum of voices, male voices, and as she gets closer she can tell that it’s Justin and Trace, their tones hushed. She peers into the kitchen and they’re standing in front of each other, both with their hands shoved in the pockets of their jeans, watching their shoes scuff the tile.
“I…I’m sorry man,” Justin says softly and Trace nods, not responding, not looking at him. “I …I know that’s not much…but its all I can do really. That and tell you I’ll never fuck up like that again.”
Trace finally looks up, staring at Justin for a long moment before sighing and nodding. Justin smiles and they both open their arms at the same time, enveloping each other in a hug, clapping each other’s backs hard before pulling back grinning.
“Hey do you think there’s any more cobbler in the fridge?” Trace asks, taking a step back and Justin does too, both men shrugging and shifting awkwardly, neither really knowing how to act after such a show of emotion.
“There should be,” Justin says stepping towards the refrigerator and Charlotte grins shaking her head. Boys…
She jumps as Brennan and Buckley swish past her, their claws ticking lightly against the tile as they enter the kitchen, sniffing around the floor. Both boys turn at the sound and smile when they see Charlotte in the doorway.
“Mornin’ Al!” Justin exclaims jovially, reaching down to pat Buckley’s head before he turns to the fridge, opening it and surveying the contents.
“Hey,” she says smiling as she shuffles over to the coffee pot. She glances at the long row of cabinets. “Where do you hide the mugs?”
“Here,” he says, placing a hand on her lower back as he slides past her and tugs open a cabinet, grabbing a mug. “You can use my FutureSexLoveShow mug.” He grins and Charlotte takes it rolling her eyes.
“Do you have any of the café style ones?” she asks. “For Amelia,” She adds quickly when she sees his face start to fall.
“Oh,” Justin says, peering into the cupboard. “Yeah I think so.” He paws through the mugs and Trace snorts.
“She has a specific style of mug she likes for her coffee?” Trace asks and Charlotte looks at him nodding seriously and he shakes his head. “That woman is…” he trails when Charlotte eyes him hard as she opens the refrigerator door and he purses his lips looking at the floor.
“Found one!” Justin exclaims pulling a delicate looking cup with a thin loop of a handle out of the cabinet. “I thought we’d bought one for her.”
“Uh, Justin?” Charlotte says, her stomach curling as she pushes things aside in the fridge, searching and praying. “Do you have any half and half?”
Justin’s eyes widen slightly. Oh no…
“I told my mom to get some,” he says, nudging Charlotte out of the way, his blue eyes scanning the contents of the fridge.
“I don’t see any,” Charlotte says and they both look at each other, panic painting their faces.
“I could run to the store really quick,” Justin says and Charlotte bites her lip.
“How long will that take?”
“Charlotte!” Amelia’s voice calls from the living room and they both cringe.
“Are you two fucking kidding me!” Trace exclaims finally and they turn to find him gazing at both of them with a look of utter disbelief on his face. “There’s milk in there isn’t there?”
“Yeah but that’s not the same,” Charlotte says and Trace rolls his eyes.
“Then give her half as much as she usually takes…instant half and half,” Trace says shrugging and Justin sighs.
“We only have whole milk,” he says and Charlotte runs a hand over her face.
“Oh god…”
Trace blinks. “So. I’m sure she’s had whole milk before. You drink…” he trails as Justin’s face goes uncomfortable. “Oh god you started drinking two percent?” Justin shifts and Trace’s eyes widen. “Skim?”
“Amelia drinks soy,” Charlotte says and Trace throws his hands in the air, making a disgusted sound in his throat.
“Gimme that!” he says snatching the mug from Justin’s hand and jerking the coffee pot from the hotplate. “You people are insane you know that?” he asks, pouring coffee into the mug and both Justin and Charlotte have to bite back the admonition that Amelia likes the sugar put in first and the coffee poured over it. “She can handle having her coffee just slightly different once.” Trace says, ripping the jug of milk out of the fridge and tipping some in the cup. He holds it out to Charlotte who looks at it for a moment before taking it.
“I’ll do it,” Justin says, taking the cup from her, patting her shoulder. Trace was his friend. If he wanted to set Amelia off Charlotte shouldn’t have to bear the brunt of it.
“Oh my god,” he says rolling his eyes, taking the cup from Justin and stomping towards the living room. “I’ll do it, you fuckin pansy asses.”
“Well…” Justin says with a sigh, watching Trace’s retreating form as he reaches for the coffee pot. “We tried.”
“Maybe we should go in there,” Charlotte says, shifting uneasily and jumping as Justin tips coffee into her mug.
“You couldn’t pay me to go in there,” Justin says reaching for the milk and pouring some into her mug and Charlotte chuckles, watching him amused as he reaches for the sugar. “Two?” he asks, shaking the packets and Charlotte nods.
“How do you know how I like my coffee?” she asks and he grins, ripping open the packets and pouring the contents into her mug.
“I know everything,” he says, tugging open a drawer and plucking out a spoon. Charlotte laughs.
“Doubt that,” she smirks as he stirs her coffee slowly before dropping the spoon in the sink.
“Actually you like it the same way I do,” he says, taking the mug from her and taking a sip before handing it back to her, grinning cheekily.
Charlotte eyes him skeptically as she brings her mug to her lips, sipping slowly and it tastes perfect to her. Justin smiles, patting her shoulder as he leans against the counter, letting his head tip back, his eyes closing and he sighs letting Charlotte see for the first time that he’s just as tired as she is.
“What time did Amelia get you up?” Charlotte asks softly, sipping her coffee and a bitter smile tugs at Justin’s lips.
“Eight,” he says with a sigh and Charlotte cringes.
“How are you even standing right now?” she asks and he chuckles.
“I used to survive on two hours of sleep a night for months at a time,” Justin responds with a sigh, eyeing the mug in her hand and Charlotte glances down, running her fingers over the shiny logo against the white ceramic. “That was awhile ago though,” he adds with a yawn.
“And you’re older now,” Charlotte smirks and Justin’s eyes snap open.
“Oh god not you too,” he chuckles.
“Thirty is not old,” Charlotte argues and Justin sighs, jumping as Buckley sits down at his feet, looking up at him expectantly.
“Oh really? How old are you again?” he asks, crouching down to rub Buckley’s face and the dog’s eyes sink closed in pleasure.
“Twenty-four,” Charlotte replies and Justin snorts.
“Yeah I didn’t think thirty was old then either. Wait till you’re right up on it,” he scoffs, rubbing Buckley’s head roughly before standing again and his knees pop loudly. He winces. “A lot of things change in those six years.”
“CHARLOTTE!!!” Amelia’s voice rings shrilly from the living room and they both cringe.
“A lot can change,” Justin repeats with a heavy sigh.
***
“Boy, if you don’t get out from under my feet I’m gonna whip you,” Sadie exclaims, sending Justin scurrying to the other side of the kitchen island.
Charlotte giggles at him as she rinses dishes in the sink, handing them to Lynn who puts them in the dishwasher. Dinner was a rowdy affair, everyone grappling for ham and potatoes, green beans and rolls, laughing and joking over the Frank Sinatra record, an actual record, that cracks and warbles in the background. Sadie is pulling a pecan pie out of the oven, Justin hovering over her shoulder expectantly.
“Dude you’re like a little fu-…friggin kid,” Trace amends from his seat at the kitchen table and Justin scowls at his friend.
“Justin sit down,” Amelia scolds and Justin plops down on a bar stool across from his grandmother, watching diligently as she reaches for a knife.
“Act like I’m not gonna give you any,” Sadie mutters to herself as she poises the knife over the pie. “You wanna do this?” she asks and Justin grins standing to walk back around the island and taking the knife from her, cutting the smallest sliver of a piece.
He grabs a fork, tugging the gooey piece from the pie pan. “You want some?” Justin asks his grandmother, holding the fork out to her and she stands on her tip toes to take the bite. “Too bad!” Justin exclaims popping it into his mouth and Sadie scoffs, pinching his side. Justin laughs as he swallows, grinning.
“Quit being mean to your grandmother,” Billy scolds lightly and Justin ducks his head, forking up another piece and offering it to her. She eyes him before taking it.
“Who wants a piece?” she asks and a chorus of “me!’s” echoes from all around the room.
Lynn and Charlotte wipe their hands on dish towels, Charlotte moving around the counter to sit at the island to wait for her piece of pie. She watches as Justin waits impatiently for the old woman to wrestle a piece of pie onto his plate and he takes it immediately, his fork digging in and she thinks she hears Amelia scoff but she can’t quite tell over the swell of the music. Today has been such a wonderful day, just hanging out with Justin’s family. She’d almost forgotten how much she missed her own.
“Your parents call yet?” Justin asks as if reading her mind and she can’t help but grin at him, his mouth full of pie.
“Not yet,” Charlotte says with a sigh, smiling at Sadie as she hands her a piece of pie. “Thank you.”
“Do you and your family do anything special for Christmas, Charlotte?” Sadie asks politely and Charlotte shrugs.
“We all watch It’s A Wonderful Life together,” Charlotte says, smiling at the memory. “And my brothers and I usually spend all day trying to pick which present we’re going to open.” Charlotte giggles. “Oh we’re only allowed one present on Christmas Eve.” She adds by way of explanation.
“That’s just cruel,” Justin manages to say around the food in his mouth and Sadie purses her lips at him.
“Just because they didn’t spoil her rotten doesn’t mean it’s cruel,” Sadie says, cutting her eyes at her grandson who snorts, shoveling the last of his pie into his mouth.
“Yeah we open all our presents on Christmas Eve because someone is impatient,” Rachel says leaning against the counter and waiting for Sadie to make up a few plates for her to distribute around the table.
“I am not impatient,” Justin scoffs, turning to drop his plate into the sink causing Lynn to hurry behind him and rinse it to put in the dishwasher.
“When he was nine we let him open one present every hour,” Lynn says and Charlotte’s eyes widen slightly as Justin ducks his head.
Charlotte watches him in silent wonder. “Didn’t you run out of presents?”
Justin’s ears are red as he refuses to take his eyes off his grandmother’s hands. “No, actually.” He clears his throat embarrassed.
Just then the record on the player stalls, switching to the next song and Justin grins as the horn ensemble buzzes, his hips starting to sway. He grins, scooping his grandmother into his arms and chuckling at her cry of surprise as he pulls her into a Swing step.
“I won't dance, don't ask me / I won't dance, don't ask me / I won't dance, Madame, with yoooooooou.” He sings and all conversation stops to allow them to watch as Justin swings Sadie around the kitchen, the old woman smiling widely. “My heart won't let my feet do things that they should do.”
The rest of the room whoops and hollers, watching in amusement as Justin spins Sadie away from him before pulling her back to him again, his voice ringing out over the record. “You know what? you're lovely / You know what? you're so lovely / And, oh, what you do to meeeeee” Justin presses his hand to his chest dramatically, grinning at the blush that comes over his grandmother’s cheeks. “I'm like an ocean wave that's bumped on the shore / I feel so absolutely stumped on the floor.”
Justin releases Sadie only to reach for his mother who squeals in surprise, her hands going to his shoulders and they both laugh as he pulls her close, swaying her from side to side as the music slows. “When you dance, you're charming and you're gentle / 'specially when you do the Continental”
The rest of the room cheers as Justin grips Lynn around the waist and they take four steps, Charlotte marveling as their legs crisscross and then turn, each giving a little kick with their feet. They fall out of the Continental as quickly as they slipped into it and Charlotte now knows where Justin’s dancing ability came from. “But this feeling isn't purely mental / For, heaven rest us, I am not asbestos!”
“And that's whyyyyy…” Justin spins his mother off, reaching for Rachel who giggles, allowing him to spin and dip her. “I won't dance, why should I? / I won't dance, how could I? / I won't dance,…” He bows to his cousin who does a flourished curtsy in return. “Merci beaucoup.” They both laugh as he snatches her close again, swaying to the jazzy trumpets “I know that music leads the way to romance,” He spins her away from him. “So if I hold you in arms I won't dance!”
Ginger squeals delightedly as Justin offers her his hand, Trace snorting beside her and Charlotte thinks she hears him mutter “showoff” as Justin swings Ginger around. “I won't dance, don't ask me, / I won't dance, don't ask me / I won't dance, Madame, with you.” Justin dips her, laughing as she giggles, pulling her up swiftly and spinning her back to where she falls into her chair. “My heart won't let my feet do things that they want to do”
Justin grins, soft shoeing over to Charlotte who can’t help the grin on her face as he sings to her “You know what?” He takes her hand, bowing to her. “you're lovely,” He pulls her off her barstool, stealing her breath as he pulls her into his arms. “Ring-a-ding-ding, you're sooo lovely” Her eyes meet his and she grins as he presses his hand to his heart dramatically. “And, oh, what you do to me.” He spins her, turning her so that her back his pressed to his front, his chin hooked on her shoulder as he sways them, his voice causing goose bumps to rise on her skin “I'm like an ocean wave that's bumped on the shore / I feel so absolutely stumped on the floor.”
He brings her arm over her head, twirling her back around and his hand settles on her lower back, tugging her close while the other presses her hand over his heart. She gasps, feeling it thud steadily against her palm as he sings to her, swaying her slowly, his eyes dancing happily. “When you dance, you're charming and you're gentle / 'specially when you do the Continental” He spins her out, the room whirring by in a blur of color and smiling faces and she’s tethered to him only by her hand in his. “But this feeling isn't purely mental” He jerks her towards him and she’s spinning back, so dizzy from the movement she fears she may topple over but she lands right back against his chest, falling against him clumsily and he laughs. “For, heaven rest us, I am not asbestos!”
He’s gone in the flurry of movement in which he came, spinning over to Amelia who sits in her chair watching in cynical amusement. He offers his hand to her, bowing low and she shakes her head at him. He smirks, grabbing her arm anyway and pulling her from her chair with a gasp.
“and that's why / I won't dance, I won't dance / I. won't. dance,” He spins her out, and Charlotte envies the grace with which she twirls, wondering how someone can go from stiff to fluid in a matter of seconds. Justin bows to her, smirking as he continues to sing. “Merci beaucoup.” Amelia nods her head primly, a smile pulling at her full lips and Charlotte can’t help but see the girl she used to be. The girl that Justin loves, that he’s holding onto so tightly. Justin seems to notice too because his smile lights up the room. “I know that music leads the way to romance / So if I hold you in arms I won't dance!!”
He finishes by dipping Amelia low, almost completely to the floor, one leg swept out gracefully behind him and the entire room erupts into applause, even little Hannah who looks elated at everyone’s gaiety. Amelia reaches to cover her face with her hands, laughing herself and Justin pulls her upright again, kissing her flushed cheek and they look happy. They look really genuinely happy and Charlotte forces herself not to be disappointed in that fact.
Charlotte nearly jumps out of her skin as a jaunty polka tune blares from her pocket and all eyes turn to her. Justin’s smile fades as he watches her fumble in the pouch of her hoodie for her phone. The caller I.D. reads “home” and her heart wells in her chest, a smile pulling across her face, and Justin is momentarily dazed by the happiness that radiates off of her.
“It’s my parents,” she says, flicking her phone open and turning for the stairs. “Excuse me…”
Justin watches as she turns, enjoying the little laugh she emits before quietly saying “hi Dad” as she trots towards the stairs. Her pony tail swishes behind her, the light catching on the strands of gold he’d never quite noticed woven into the chestnut brown. He wonders why he also never noticed what a great… Amelia’s hand pats his chest and his attention is snapped back as he smiles back at his family, squeezing Amelia around the waist and he pushes the thought from his mind.
Story Tags: fiancej desksex affair love hottubsex
