by Diane Adams
“Of course, dear. Now why don’t you take Prince outside for a run?”
“Okay.” He looked at Jared. “Don’t forget me.”
“We won’t.” Devon looked relieved at the promise and tugged Prince toward the door. The name almost made Jared break out in a laugh. The poor mutt was anything but a prince.
“Devon, wait.” Alex pulled a couple things from his pocket. Devon turned and tried to see what he held.
“What?”
He held a dog brush and a small pair of scissors out to the boy. “It’s a dog brush. You’ll have to be really careful because he’s got a lot of rats in his hair. The scissors are to cut out the ones you can’t get out with a brush.”
Devon’s brow furrowed and he tugged Prince’s hair. “Prince, don’t have no rats. That’s just mean!”
Jared barely kept the grin off his face as he waited to see if Alex could bail himself out.
“Not real rats, tangles. His hair is all tangled almost like rats tried to live in it. It’s just a silly thing people say.” Alex held his hand out to the brown and white dog, fingers curled toward his palm, and let it smell him.
“Oh.” Devon looked like he was struggling with the idea. “Okay.” He glanced at his dog. “He’s real messy. Can you help me?” He turned big eyes on Alex, and Jared did an internal fist pump. He knew how much Alex wanted to win the boy’s trust and be his friend. Jared was unsurprised by the beseeching look Alex turned his way.
“Okay?”
Jared grinned. “Of course, we don’t need you boys. There’s a ball under the seat in the truck if we aren’t done when you finish brushing him. Kels dropped it the last time I took him to the park. We can buy him another one. Let Devon and Prince have that one.”
Devon gave a quick glance at his grandmother, who gave permission with a nod. The pair headed for the front door, Prince walking happily between them, tongue lolling like he was laughing at them all.
* * * * *
Pearl studied Jared as she waited for him to tell her why he wanted to visit. They’d met at the lawyer’s office the day before and then went to the clinic for the tests. He’d made it a point to ask if it was okay for them to stop by even though it’d be another day before they heard about the test results.
“I want to say something, but I don’t want to offend you. It’s not a judgment on you in any way,” he began, obviously feeling his way cautiously.
“Just say it, I’ve got a thick skin,” she promised with a small smile.
Jared glanced around the house before he turned back to her. “Okay, then. I want to do some home repairs for you. The attorney thinks that even if the tests come back the way we hope, that Child Services is going to do an inspection because of the circumstances.”
“You don’t think I can pass?” Pearl knew her dry tone gave nothing away and waited with some amusement for Jared to fumble his way to an answer.
“I don’t want to take a chance. I do this for people all the time. Your home is in better shape than a lot of the ones I work on, but I want to do this for you guys if you’ll let me.” Jared sat back with an air of waiting, but he couldn’t seem to keep from looking around the room. He looked eager to get started.
“I know there are a lot of things that need work. The farm has been in my family for three generations. I don’t want anyone to come in here tearing it down and building some half-assed fancy thing in its place.” She could be as blunt as the next person.
Jared’s laugh rang out. “I see you have the same opinion of Extreme Home Makeover that I do. No one gets a quality home built in a week, but we can make a big difference in just a couple weeks if you’ll let me.”
Pearl thought about what he was proposing. The place needed more than just a facelift, but it had been years since there was money or help to keep things maintained. “What exactly do you want to do and how much will it cost?”
She’d never seen anyone grin the way Jared did at her words. It was clear he thought he’d already won. Well, maybe he had, that remained to be seen.
“No cost.” He held his hand up when she started to protest. “I work on several houses a year. I have some boys I’m teaching carpentry and home repair to and the projects give them hands-on experience they couldn’t get otherwise. Specifically I want to check the roof, do some work on the front porch and the ceilings. I want to check the plumbing and the electricity. Beyond that I want you to have new carpet, paint, curtains…if you will make a list of what pieces of furniture are true antiques and which ones are simply old and worn, I have a friend I want to take you shopping.”
Pearl started to say something but couldn’t find the words. Jared spread his arms out over the back of the couch. In the silence that fell between them she could hear Devon’s laughter mixed with the low tones of Alex’s voice.
Jared leaned forward, his face intent. “Let me do this, please.”
Pearl nodded slowly, but she had one remaining question. “What happens if the tests tomorrow say Cassie wasn’t Andrew’s child?”
“Then we fight for her, because that’s what family does.”
Bittersweet Conclusion
“Oh my God.” Alex collapsed into the oversized recliner in front of the fireplace in their room. “Are you trying to kill us?” Every muscle in his body ached. He couldn’t remember how Jared had tricked him into doing the shingles. Yeah, he knew how to do them, but he wasn’t a roof guy or a cabinet guy or a pull-up-the-carpet guy. “My god, man, I’m an architect, not a handyman!”
Jared laughed at him from where he was tickling Cassie while he diapered her. “You did a great job, the roof looks great. Clark said you almost kept up.”
Alex flipped him off. “So, what’s left?”
Jared picked up Cassie and cuddled her close. Alex’s heart ached a little when he squinted his eyes open enough to see him rocking her slowly back and forth. She snuggled her head on his shoulder, already close to sleep. Knowing they’d stay a part of her life was nice, but not the same. Not even close.
Once the DNA tests came back proving conclusively that Cassie was Andrew’s child, the custody thing had turned into a piece of cake. The lawyer was able to establish a paperwork trail to prove Pearl’s kinship to both children. All that remained was a routine visitation to the home by Child Services and custody would revert back to Pearl. Alex couldn’t help his mixed feelings and wasn’t surprised when Jared picked up on them easily.
“Pearl said she’d bring Devon tomorrow for Christmas. He’s so excited about spending more time with the twins. It’s good enough, Alex,” Jared had told him with a gentle kiss. “We’ll have our own kids to make memories and traditions with one day. This Christmas it’s enough to give Cassie a home.”
Jared pushed Alex’s legs out of the way and nestled down beside him, baby in arms. “Now tell me what you’re thinking.” Cassie turned her head and gave Alex a sleepy smile, eyes at half-mast. He turned to drape his legs over Jared’s lap as he so often did.
“Everything. Child Services is visiting Pearl next week?”
Jared nodded. “The twenty-seventh. I have a couple things left to do, but overall the house is done, and except for Pearl’s keepsakes and the antiques, everything is shiny and new.”
Alex chuckled despite himself. “I thought she was going to fall over when that truck pulled up full of all the things she and Stevie had ‘window shopped’ for.”
“That was great,” Jared agreed with a smile of his own. “You know the house is awesome, it just needed a little work. Pearl told me it’s been in her family for three generations.”
Alex cupped Jared’s face tenderly. “Thanks to you it’ll last three more. She’s got some gorgeous wood furniture. Her master bedroom set is to die for.”
“I saw you drooling over that,” Jared teased. “She said her mother was born in that bed. So new mattress, I hope.”
“You’re awful.” The fondness he felt was in direct contrast to his words, and he traced Jared’s jaw with h
is thumb before sliding his hand down to lay against his neck. “I loved how the twins took Devon under their wing. He might not be super smart, but he caught on fast and was a big help to them painting the cabinets and then the walls. Stevie told me she is going to homeschool him with her kids. I thought Pearl would cry when she offered.”
“They’ve had a rough time, but they are a part of the Douglas-Ross clan now. Smooth sailing, right?” Jared winked at him and he laughed.
“Oh yeah, no doubt. Now, tell me what you and Mama Pearl were whispering about in the corner.” Alex slid his hand to Cassie’s back and rubbed gentle circles on it, her breathing deep and even under his touch.
“Ah that. She used to make and sell goat cheese to the farmers’ markets in the area. Apparently she did very well at it. Stevie acted like she’d met a celebrity when she found out that was Pearl’s cheese. Anyhow after the accident, she couldn’t even walk over the rough ground to care for the goats, much less milk them and whatever else it takes to make ‘the best goat cheese in the world’.” Jared passed Cassie to Alex for a cuddle. He cradled the baby close and kissed her soft dark curls. “After Christmas I’m going to help get her business going again. Stevie is all in, let me tell you. Pearl gets her husband’s Social Security death benefit, her own disability check, and the kids will get death benefits from their father. With just a little additional income they’ll be okay. She’s got to be careful, though.”
Alex sighed and shook his head. “I know or she’ll lose benefits and that could mean her insurance. It’s okay, I’ll help keep track of it with her.” Jared kissed him and their lips clung tenderly. “And I still wish…”
Jared rested his head against Alex’s and his hand covered Alex’s where he held the baby. “Shh. I know. Alex, I haven’t been exactly onboard with the whole adopting-kids thing. I thought fostering was a good compromise.”
Alex’s breath caught and he stared hopefully at Jared, who kissed him again. Their lips no more than a hairsbreadth apart, he made a promise. “I’m ready. Next year we’ll give a child of our own a home for Christmas.”
Merry Christmas
“Jared, wake up.” Alex shook him firmly. Jared ignored him and snuggled back under the blankets. Maybe he didn’t always act like he was fifty-five, but after a day touring Paris and an evening spent loving Alex, he wanted to sleep.
“Jared!” Alex sounded exasperated. Jared thought he’d been sleeping longer than he thought. He opened an eye to peek at the clock. Eleven. He grunted. Alex had lost his mind. He closed his eye and attempted to pull the blanket over his head.
Alex’s lips brushed his ear. “I have a surprise for you.”
Jared tried to brush him away. “Too tired. Surprise me in the morning.”
“Now, old man,” Alex chuckled and stole his blanket. Jared sat up and grabbed for the covers, but Alex backed off the bed, keeping them out of reach. “Put your robe on, it’s cold.” Alex advised. He headed for the bedroom door, blankets all balled up in his arms. Jared watched him go in disbelief. His skin pebbled with the chill and he scrambled off the bed in search of his worn flannel robe. He pulled it on and the soft folds settled warm and welcome against his cold limbs. Frustrated and verging on angry, he went in search of his lunatic husband.
“Have you lost your mind?” he demanded as he entered the sitting room of their suite. He belted the robe and glared at Alex who grinned like the Cheshire cat from a nest of blankets on the couch.
“Temper!” Alex warned him with a wag of his finger. “Be nice, we have company, dear.”
Completely baffled Jared followed the direction of his nod. He’d been too focused on Alex when he came into the room to register that the TV was on and he stared at it in disbelief. Instead of some late-night movie no one wanted to see, the screen was occupied by the smiling faces of his family.
Jens grinned from his place beside Cassie, his arm curled possessively around her shoulders. Jared’s shocked gaze moved from face to delighted face. Clark, Stevie, Xander and Jay, Annie, Rachel, Kels, their parents…
“My God, Devon…Tara…Matt…”
“Surprise! Merry Christmas!!” their extended family yelled, laughing, seemingly well satisfied with his reaction. Stunned speechless Jared tore his attention from the TV to meet Alex’s gaze.
“You…”
Alex lifted the corner of his blanket in silent invitation, and Jared slid into the warm nest without protest. He brushed his fingers over Alex’s jaw, enjoying the rough stubble of his unshaven skin. Jared thought his heart might burst with everything he felt in that moment.
“I love you,” he whispered against Alex’s mouth just before he took his lips in a heated kiss and the world fell away.
“Oh, damn.” He heard Clark groan from across the ocean. “Dude, I swear to God, you better not touch his back…”
Glad that for the moment there were no children in the family, Jared flipped him off and ignored the resulting roar of laughter to finish kissing his husband breathless.
THE END (Until the next time)
Diane Adams
Diane started writing a number of years ago but never published until Dreamspinner Press accepted Blue Skies in spring of 2010. She works a regular 9 to 5 job during the week and has the herculean task of raising three kids on her own so time to write her stories isn’t always so easy to find. She has successfully managed to squeeze a bit in here and there and loves to write, explore and develop her characters although she admits she has to be careful with characterisation (her favourite part) as she is prone to spending too much time on this and not enough on making sure things happen!
