Brenna looked over at Justin to see him staring at the road in front of him. “Yeah?”

He glanced over at her and then back at the road. “Would you be mad if I asked you if any of this brings back any memories?”

She smiled slightly. “No.” She then sighed. “But it doesn’t.”

“Oh.”

“Isn’t that dumb? You would think it would.”

“It’s not dumb.” He shrugged. “I just thought maybe it would.”

She nodded and looked out the window at the passing stores. “Maybe I will.”

“I bet you will,” he said confidently and then pointed out the window. “There’s the school we all went to.”

She looked to the school where a few kids were roaming around. “This is the only school here, right?”

“Yeah. There wouldn’t be enough kids to fill two schools. Oh and there’s the General Store. That place is great. We used to spend so much time there when we were kids.”

Brenna rested her hands in her lap and stared out the window as Justin continued to point out things. He had been talking nonstop since they had landed in Tennessee and she could tell he was excited to be there. She wished she could share in his excitement but this was all completely unfamiliar.

“So are you glad to be here?”

She looked over at Justin again. “Yeah. It’ll be good to see your mom again.”

“And you can see my grandparents and my dad and stepmom and brothers. And we can go to Memphis for a couple days and see your cousins and aunt and uncle.”

She nodded and looked out the window as Justin turned off the main road.

“Are you hungry? Mom said she’d have lunch ready when we get there.”

“I’m not that hungry.”

He looked over at her. “You didn’t have any breakfast this morning. Are you feeling alright?”

“Yeah, I’m okay.” She rubbed her hand over her stomach. “I just feel a little weird.”

“Like weird you need to go to a doctor weird?”

“No, I’ll be fine.”

“Okay.” Justin pulled into the driveway of a large house and parked. “Well, we’re here.”

Brenna unbuckled her seatbelt and then opened the car door. A cool breeze washed over her as she stepped out onto the ground. She watched as Justin pulled out their suitcase from the trunk and then ignored his protests and picked up one to carry to the front door.

Justin opened the front door and they stepped in. “We’re here!”

Lynn appeared from the kitchen and came over to hug them. “Oh, it’s so good to see you guys again.” She pulled away from Brenna and looked her over. “You look absolutely amazing, Hun.”

Brenna smiled. “Thanks.”

“How was your flight?”

“It was good,” Justin answered, slipping off his shoes. “A bit of turbulence but that’s it.”

“Good.” Lynn took both their jackets and hung them in the front closet. “Paul got held up in Memphis so it’s just us three for lunch.”

“What about Granny and Poppa?”

“Your grandpa had a doctor’s appointment. They won’t be back until about two. We’re going over there for dinner though so we’ll have lots of time to catch up.” Lynn turned to go to the kitchen and Brenna and Justin followed behind. “I thought we could just have sandwiches for lunch so we can eat whenever you want.”

“I’m hungry now,” Justin said, going over to the fridge and opening it.

“Well everything’s out so you can make whatever kind of sandwich you want,” Lynn said. “Brenna?”

“I’m actually not hungry.” Brenna ran a hand over her forehead. “Would it actually be okay if I laid down? I’m really tired.”

“Of course, Hun. Come on and I’ll show you your room.”

Brenna followed Lynn out of the kitchen and up a level of stairs. She opened one of the doors in the hallway.

“Here you go, Hun. Sleep as long as you like.”

“Thanks.” Brenna went into the room and shut the door behind her as Lynn went back downstairs. She flipped off the light and then crawled into the large bed.

When she woke up, the clock on the bedside table told her it was close to four thirty. She felt somewhat rested and got out of bed. When she went downstairs, she found everyone in the living room. She had seen enough pictures to know that the man sitting on the couch was Paul and she accepted his warm hug.

“Feeling better?” Justin asked as she sat beside him.

“Yeah.”

“Well since you’re awake, Brenna,” Lynn said. “Should we head over to your grandparents? They could probably use some help with dinner.”

“Sure,” Justin said, standing. Brenna stood as well and followed everyone to the front door. After getting their jackets and shoes, they all stepped outside. Justin picked up Brenna hand as they walked across the grass of the yard.

“Are you feeling alright?” he asked. “You still look a little pale.”

Yeah. I’m still kind of tired. And I’m getting hungry.”

“Well that’s good to hear. Granny will have lots of food over there. She’s an amazing cook. She’ll feed you until you burst.”

They arrived at the house a few minutes later. Brenna stepped in through the front door ahead of Justin and almost immediately a short, white haired woman was coming towards them.

“Bren, this is my grandma, Sadie,” Justin introduced.

Brenna smiled as the woman came over and gave her a tight hug.

“Sweetie, it’s been so long since I’ve see you. You look great.”

“Thank you.”

Sadie pulled back and Justin leaned down to hug her. “I thought you had forgotten about us, Justin. We haven’t seen you for such a long time.”

He laughed. “I’ve been meaning to come back but I’ve been so busy.”

“Well it’s good to see you. You’re even more handsome than the last time we saw you.”

He laughed again. “Thanks, Granny.”

Sadie turned to Brenna and winked. “Am I right, Sweetie.”

Brenna giggled a bit. “Yeah.”

Justin smiled and put one arm around Brenna’s waist, pulling her to his side. “You guys are going to give me a big head,” he said, letting his hand slide down to rest on her hip.

Sadie waved him off. “Come on, you two. Bill’s anxious to see you.”

Justin’s arm slid from her as they followed Sadie through the house to the kitchen. Outside the screen door, there was a man sitting on one of the patio chairs, a cast on his leg. He looked up when they stepped outside and a warm smile spread across his face.

“Justin, Brenna, you’re here.”

Justin leaned down to give him a hug. “Hey, Poppa. How’s the leg?”

“Oh, I’ll be fine. Just a small set back. Brenna, come give me a hug.”

She went over and tentatively gave him a hug.

“How’re you doing, Pumpkin?”

“Good, thank you.”

Justin sat down on a chair at the table. “Were you playing chess?” he asked, gesturing to the board sitting in the middle of the table.

“I’ve been waiting for someone to play with,” Bill said, a twinkle in his eye.

Justin smiled. “Well then let’s play.”

“If you boys are going to play chess, I’ll get started on dinner,” Sadie announced.

“I’ll come help,” Lynn offered. “Brenna?”

“Sure.” She followed the two women into the kitchen. “What can I do to help?”

Sadie presented her with a bowl of potatoes. “If you could peel these, that would be lovely.”

“Sure.”

“You know,” Sadie said, pulling some things from the cupboards. “I was just saying to Lynn a couple weeks ago how much we missed you and Justin. I’m so glad you came out here.”

Brenna sat down at the table and began to peel a potato. “Me too.”

“And you just look so different since I last saw you.”

“Really?”

Sadie smiled at her. “You have the pregnancy glow.”

Brenna laughed. “I do?”

“Absolutely. It’s so exciting that we’re going to have a great grandchild. Someone to spoil again.”

Brenna smiled. She had only known Justin’s grandparents for a few minutes and already she was in love with them. They both seemed so nice.

“So do you know yet if it’s a boy or girl?”

“No. I think we’ll let it be a surprise. Justin want a boy though.”

“Now that doesn’t surprise me one bit,” Lynn said. “He’s always wanted a boy that he can teach everything to.”

Sadie laughed. “Not to mention he wouldn’t know the first thing to do with a girl.”

Brenna smiled. That was the complete truth.

“And what do you want, Sweetie?”

“It really doesn’t matter to me. A boy or girl would both be great,” Brenna answered and she could say she was being completely honest. It seemed that the closer she got to Justin, the more excited she got about having a baby. It didn’t matter if it was a boy or a girl. Either way, they would have a baby.

Once there was really nothing left for her to do in the kitchen, she went out onto the patio where Justin, Bill, and Paul were all talking. Brenna pulled out a chair and was fully prepared to sit on it when Justin grabbed her hand and pulled her over to him. A blush rose in her cheeks as he pulled her down onto his lap. He put his arms around her, resting his hands on the small bump on her stomach and she soon relaxed in his arms. She sat out there, talking with them for the next twenty minutes until Lynn stuck her head out the door telling them dinner was ready.

Justin’s hand slid down her hips as she stood up and then he weaved his fingers through hers as they walked into the house. She had noticed lately he had become a lot more touchy, both in private and public. Not that she was complaining. Even a simple touch was enough to send her insides churning. Being around him did things to her that she never thought possible. And she knew the words Kate had told her months ago were right; she was falling in love with him.

Air came out of Brenna’s mouth in a sigh as Justin’s lips attacked her neck with hot kisses. She didn’t know what had gotten into him that day but she was hardly complaining. It felt like he was working magic on her.

His face came back up to hers and his mouth covered hers, kissing her deeply. She kissed him back, desperate for more. It was like a punch in the gut when there was suddenly a knock on the closed door and Justin pulled his face away from hers.

“Yeah?”

“Supper will be ready in a minute,” Lynn called through the door.

“Okay. We’ll be right down.”

Brenna sighed as she heard Lynn’s footsteps fade away. What horrible timing. She was expecting Justin to get off of her but instead he turned his head back to her and kissed her again. As his lips began to trail down her neck again, she found her voice.

“What about supper?” she asked, surprising herself by how breathy her voice came out.

“It can wait a few minutes,” came his mumbled reply

A smile came across her lips and she allowed herself to once again become intoxicated by him. She came back to reality quickly when his lips and roaming hands left her body and he pulled himself off of her. She felt completely boneless as he stood up from the bed.

“Ready for dinner?”

Her mouth dropped a bit at his words. “Dinner?” She asked hoarsely.

“Yeah, they’re waiting for us.” His eyes got a devilish twinkle in them. “Should I tell them you’ll be a minute?”

She brought up a hand up to her hot face and nodded. Justin left the room chuckling and she let out a frustrated groan. Reluctantly, she got off the bed and went over to the mirror in the room, straightening her clothes as she went. She winced a bit as she took in her messed up hair and swollen lips. She attempted to smooth down her hair and then took a deep breath and left the room.

Downstairs, Justin was already sitting at the table eating spaghetti. She avoided his eyes as she sat down in the chair across from him.

“Are you feeling alright, Hun?” Lynn asked as she brought over a plate of food. “Your cheeks are flushed.”

“Yeah, Bren,” Justin chimed in, nudging her leg under the table with his foot. “You are pretty red. Is it too hot in here?”

Her eyes narrowed at him. “I’m fine,” she said, picking up her fork. She watched Justin out of the corner of her eye as she ate and eventually she couldn’t take his smug expression anymore. So without breaking her conversation with Lynn, she brought her foot over to Justin and slowly rubbed it up his leg. He started coughing as he choked on his food when she reached his thigh and a satisfied smile came over her face.

“Are you alright, Justin?” Lynn asked.

He took a gulp of water and cleared his throat. “Yeah, fine,” he said, reaching under the table with one hand to grab her foot. She jerked it away when he tickled it and he merely raised an eyebrow at her as he picked up his fork again.

She couldn’t keep the smile off her face as she ate. She just loved being around him. He made her happy and made her feel so good about herself. The past five days they had been in Shelby Forest had been great. She had been able to spend so much time with him and felt that she knew him so much better than she had before they had left.

Once dinner was done and everything was cleaned up, Justin wanted to go for a walk and she happily agreed to go with him. The fresh air felt amazing as they walked out of the house. Justin found a path and as they began walking down it, he moved his hand from her waist to slip inside the back pocket of her jeans. She smiled and leaned against him slightly as they walked.

“I’m so glad we came here,” she said after a few minutes, breaking the silence. “It’s so good to get away from work for a while.”

“Are you not liking work anymore?”

She shrugged. “I don’t know. It just used to be more exciting. Lately it seems like all I’m doing is paperwork and sitting in on meetings and stuff like that. It just gets boring.”

“Hmm,” Justin said as a reply. He was quiet for a long moment. “Well at least there’s no chance of you getting hurt again.”

“That was just a freak accident.”

“I know. Well maybe when you get back Johnny will have some exciting thing planned for you.”

She smiled and sighed, looking up at the darkening sky. “I can only hope.”